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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
St. Joe’s Prep athlete dies in workout
VOL. 93 ISS. 28
The last step
Protest after racial slur at Greek event
The Senior Choreographic Project, a part of Temple’s dance program, is training students for life after college.
Ryan Gillyard collapsed on the football field near University Village during a practice last Saturday.
Several fraternities and sororities pulled out of Greek Week after the incident last weekend.
STEVE BOHNEL Assistant News Editor As Brother Bob Carson read from the Book of Luke, hundreds of people at the Church of the Gesù at St. Joseph’s Prep sat and listened. Together, they mourned the loss of Ryan Gillyard – a freshman linebacker and running back on the school’s football team – at a Sunday mass dedicated to him. Family, friends, teammates, alumni and coaches, who wanted to honor the boy who had played football since he was 6 years old, attended the mass. Gillyard, a 15-year-old from Upper Darby, was participating in an early morning workout on Saturday with his teammates at a practice field at Cecil B. Moore Avenue and 11th Street, when he suddenly collapsed. After an ambulance crew spent about half an hour trying to revive him, they rushed him to Temple University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The passage Carson read, Luke 24:35-48, told the story of how Jesus appeared to his disciples following his resurrection. While his disciples were startled and terrified, and questioned his appearance, Jesus told them not to worry, and that he was indeed standing in their presence. In the ensuing homily, Father Stephen Surovick said that while many in attendance may have felt
“
He never took love and care of him from others for granted. It’s a consolation that we knew of him.
”
Rev. George Bur | president, St. Joseph’s Prep
JOE BRANDT STEVE BOHNEL The Temple News
MARGO REED TTN
Bevara Anderson, a freshman dance major, rehearses senior dance major Camille Gamble’s Senior Choreographic Project during a March 20 showing on the fifth floor of Conwell Hall.
T
EMILY ROLEN | A&E Editor
here’s no light on stage. Inside heavy wooden doors it’s bare feet on springing wood – demanding steps keep time with music. Shadows play up and down long legs and deep breathing does most of the talking. Soon the seats in the small theater on the fifth floor of Conwell Hall are bouncing. Powerful steps and thighs smack the floor. It echoes in the room. The sound of movement reverberates in the theater, and for a fleeting moment after the music dies, it’s quiet again. Someone offstage yells, “Do we have time to do that again? Yeah, let’s do it again, guys.” When the lights go up, senior dance student Rebecca Brissette and her dancers in the showing on Feb. 27 take a final breath and trot offstage for a moment. This showing, one of four as part of the Senior Choreographic Project – the semester-long thesis project for senior dance majors at Temple – was a halfway point.
GILLYARD PAGE 2
DANCE PAGE 10
Waking up from a nightmare
With falsified charges behind him, Praise Martin-Oguike is continuing his comeback. ANDREW PARENT Assistant Sports Editor Praise Martin-Oguike sits alone with his equipment in the locker room at Temple’s Edberg-Olson Complex. He’s preparing for the football team’s annual Cherry & White game, strapping on his gear before he takes the field after all this time. And when his eyes soon snap open, he realizes it was just a dream. For nearly two years, the redshirtjunior defensive lineman was kept off the field, and away from the university he decided to call home prior to the start of his senior year at Woodbridge High School in New Jersey.
NEWS - PAGES 2-3, 6
ANDREW THAYER TTN
Redshirt-junior defensive lineman Praise Martin-Oguike celebrates during Temple’s 36-10 win against Connecticut last fall.
LIFESTYLE - PAGES 7-8, 17-18
He said he was reduced to dreaming at night about dressing and suiting up for occasions like the spring game, instead of lining up alongside his teammates. He was banned from team activities, barred from Temple premises and lived with his parents without a job, all aftereffects of a rape charge that was later found to be false. As an 18-year-old freshman in late May 2012, life as Martin-Oguike knew it changed when a 21-year-old Temple student accused him of rape after he denied her a long-term relationship, according to reports. He was eventually cleared of the charges in October 2013, and was reinstated both
PRAISE PAGE 21
SLUR PAGE 3
Video released in 7-Eleven assault Police believe the suspect and victim knew each other.
STEVE BOHNEL Assistant News Editor Philadelphia police are still searching for a male suspect responsible for an aggravated assault inside the 7-Eleven at 1501 Cecil B. Moore Avenue on March 22 at around 6:25 a.m. According to the official police report, an unknown male suspect, aged in his early
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT - PAGES 9-12, 14
Rolling Stone report addressed
Provost finds passion in conducting
Comedy show bridges gender gap
Sabrina Erdely’s “A Rape on Campus” is now known for its holes in reporting, and has been discussed in several journalism classes. PAGE 6
Provost Hai-Lung Dai has found time to balance his career while continuing to pursue his love of conducting. PAGE 7
Comedy-Gasm! aims to include all types of comedians in order to make the scene more inclusive. PAGE 9
OPINION - PAGES 4-5 Hyperlinks: do they work?
The predominantly AfricanAmerican fraternities and sororities of the National Pan-Hellenic Council pulled out of Greek Week events last week after members got word that a Delta Zeta sorority member had used a racial slur at the Greek Olympics. Inella Ray, president of Delta Sigma Theta sorority’s Temple chapter, said the DZ member wanted to gather her fellow sorority members around her, so she said “come over here, n----s.” The incident was reported to Delta Zeta and Student Activities, Ray said. At last week’s Greek Sing event, where Greek organizations gathered onstage at the Temple Performing Arts Center to show their musical skills, members of NPHC gathered onstage and held hands as Julia Crusor of Delta Sigma Theta read a statement to the audience, part of which is in a video posted on Instagram. “This is very problematic,” said Crusor, who also serves as vice president of external affairs for Temple Student Government. “While the word was not used directly to a member of our council, we are beyond upset and hurt that this type of language is being used in this Greek body.” The university, Temple Student Government and Delta Zeta’s national branch released statements on the incident. The Temple statement called the use of the slur “unacceptable,” and indicated that the university was conducting an inquiry into the incident. “Temple has addressed the issue with the Greek organization, which has taken strong action against the
20s, walked up to the victim, who was placing an order at 7-Eleven’s front counter. He then repeatedly punched him in the face, before fleeing in an unknown direction. Executive Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone said the victim was a 20-year-old student. The police video shows the suspect punching the student, before almost falling to the ground. He then punched him more than a dozen times, before the victim walked toward the store’s exit.
7-ELEVEN PAGE 3
SPORTS - PAGES 19-22
Spring practice continues
NEWS
PAGE 2
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
Athlete collapses on campus Continued from page 1
GILLYARD
JD MOUSLEY TTN
Three students were assaulted near this parking lot in December 2014. Police are still searching for eight suspects, who were captured on video.
STAFF REPORTS | CRIME
TUPD still searching for suspects in December group assault on students Police are searching for eight people in connection with the incident. STEVE BOHNEL Assistant News Editor On Dec. 6, three Temple students were assaulted on Montgomery Avenue while heading on their way to study for a test. More than four months later, Detective Gavin Collier still struggles with the unsolved case file. “Sometimes, it’s the cold cases that don’t go away,” said Collier, who has been a Temple Police detective for six years. “They bother me, especially something this serious. I have a daughter who attends Temple, a wife who works here at Temple, so the Temple community itself is very important to me.” According to the police report, the students were walking west on the north side of the 1200 block of Montgomery Avenue, when a group of eight people approached them. Moments later, a male in the group started to punch all three students, resulting in swelling and abrasions around all three victims’ eyes. Executive Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone said one of the students – a 19-year-old risk management major – was the most injured, as he received stitches from Temple University Hospital due to a laceration on his lower lip. The offenders left The View at Montgomery and appeared to be “amped up” while leaving the building and heading toward the scene of the incident,
which occurred across from the Insomnia Cookie truck between 12:30 a.m. and 1:30 a.m. In the time since the assault, Leone said Temple Police have used several photos, a video and have worked with management from The View to try identifying the suspects. When he saw the footage, he said he thought the case would be solvable. “Usually, we’re very successful when we capture images on the video to identify people,” Leone said. “I was really confident in this one, because we got some great shots, so I thought, ‘Somebody’s going to know who they are.’” “If I was able to get one name, we could build on that,” he added. “Maybe it’s a false sense of security, but we’ve done really well with the camera images.” Collier said he worked with management from The View and looked through the building’s guest logs. Whenever a resident signs a guest in, security takes the guest’s ID and scans it, and a photograph of the ID is timestamped and saved electronically.
people that came in … just to see if there was anything that matched up, but nothing really stood out to me.” Both Leone and Collier said a reason the suspects may not have been initially identified was because the incident happened right before Winter Break. Since most students were not on Main Campus, spreading the word and receiving help from the student population became more difficult, they said. Both added that the suspects appeared to attack the three victims without a motive. Collier said this trend has become more common recently, especially when attackers are intoxicated. “In this day and age, a lot of times, there are random acts of violence,” Collier said. “Especially involving alcohol. I don’t know if this group had been imbibing alcohol, but looking at the elevator [footage], it appears they may have been in that partying mood and been drinking.” Collier said he believes somebody knows the attackers, but is unwilling to come forward – either out of loyalty to the suspects, or in fear of retaliation if
Sometimes, it’s the cold cases that don’t go “away. They bother me, especially something this serious. ” Gavin Collier | Temple Police detective
“Unfortunately, a lot of those images are too poor to read the names on the ID card,” Collier said. “I went back as far as 10 p.m., and looked at all the
they gave up their names. Today, Leone and Collier said the investigation remains at a standstill. But with the end of the spring semester in a
COURTESY TEMPLE POLICE
Charlie Leone, executive director of Campus Safety Services, said this was the individual who punched all three victims on Dec. 6.
couple of weeks, Collier said he won’t stop trying to find new angles to figure out who was responsible for the incident in early December. “Even over the summer break, when everybody else isn’t thinking about it, I’ll still revisit it, look through the file, see if there’s anything else that might pop up to give me some indication of where to go next,” he said. Anybody with information about the case is encouraged to call Temple Police at 215-204-6493, or email police@temple.edu. * steven.bohnel@temple.edu T @Steve_Bohnel
like the disciples, those who came to honor Gillyard on Sunday morning showed the overall strength of the school and surrounding community. “With the death of Ryan, we too find ourselves startled, terrified and questioning,” Surovick told the congregation. “Our presence today says so much to each other amidst what we are feeling right now.” Even students who did not know Gillyard personally were in attendance. Steven Bradley, a junior at St. Joseph’s Prep, said that while he had only really seen him walking around in the school’s hallways, the news on Saturday was saddening. “Even though I may not have known him that well, it’s a surprise to see him go at such a young age,” Bradley said after the mass. Several players’ parents also attended, including Michael Slawson, who said his son, Michael – a junior on the football team – knew Gillyard personally. “For the kids, this is going to be a terrible loss,” Slawson said of Gillyard’s passing. “I want to commend The Prep for how quickly they got this [mass] together.” Slawson added that when he first found out about the news, he immediately thought of the Gillyards’ well-being. “When I heard the news, my heart went out to the Gillyard family,” he said. “I hope God prays for [Ryan] and his family.” Gillyard was recognized at several points during Sunday’s mass, and was the main focus of Surovick’s homily. He told the crowd that even though the 15-year-old’s death “wasn’t fair, wasn’t right, and may not make sense,” his character during his short life ensured that he has found peace. “Ryan is now living an eternal life,” he said. “Today, we commend Ryan to the Lord, to the Lord who welcomes him and embraces him a new life.” Moments before the closing hymn, St. Joseph’s Prep President, Rev. George Bur, said Gillyard’s selflessness was evident until his death. “If there is any consolation for Ryan … he never took love and care of him from others for granted,” Bur told the congregation. “It’s a consolation that we knew of him.” * steven.bohnel@temple.edu T @Steve_Bohnel
Several Temple trustees donate to Diaz’s campaign The former judge has received $4,750 from members of the board. JOE BRANDT News Editor Six Temple trustees and two administrators have made contributions to the campaigns of candidates vying for victory in this May’s Democratic mayoral primary, according to a database of election records compiled by the Inquirer. Besides Nelson Diaz – the trustee since 1992 who is running in the primary – trustees made personal donations to Anthony Hardy Williams. He is currently a state senator for the 191st district, which includes most of West Philadelphia, portions of South and Southwest Philadelphia, Darby and
NEWS DESK 215-204-7419
Darby Township. Lynne Abraham, the city’s former district attorney, received a $1,000 donation from trustee Daniel Polett, the namesake of Polett Walk on Main Campus. In total, Diaz has received $4,750 combined from current or honorary Temple trustees: Dennis Alter and Milton Rock each donated $1,000, while Leonard Barrack donated $2,000. Polett donated $500, and Edward Rudolph contributed $250 as well. Diaz’s campaign manager, Ian Rivera, did not respond to a request for comment. One Temple-affiliated individual donated the maximum to a candidate. Larry Kaiser, dean of Temple’s School of Medicine and CEO of Temple University Health System, donated a combined $2,900 to Williams’ campaign in two separate donations made last Sep-
tember and December. Trustee Patrick Larkin gave $1,000 to the candidate, while Ken Lawrence, senior vice president for government, community and public affairs, gave $250. There were no donations reported for President Theobald or Chairman Patrick O’Connor, though several employees of Cozen O’Connor, the lawfirm where he is vice chair, have made donations. PREIT, headed by trustee Joseph Coradino, donated $1,000 to former councilman-at-large Jim Kenney. The mayoral candidates plan to debate on May 4 at the Temple Performing Arts Center. * jbrandt@temple.edu T @JBrandt_TU Steve Bohnel contributed reporting.
NEWS@TEMPLE-NEWS.COM
COURTESY NELSON DIAZ CAMPAIGN
Trustee and former Court of Common Pleas judge Nelson Diaz announced his intent to run for mayor in a news conference held in January at Tierra Colombiana, a restaurant in the Hunting Park neighborhood. Since then, several members of Temple’s Board of Trustees have donated to his campaign.
NEWS
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
PAGE 3
STAFF REPORTS | LGBTQ community
Law school hosts panel on trans issues “Transforming Law: Legal Issues in the Transgender Community” addressed health care and incarceration. LIAN PARSONS The Temple News
KARA MILSTEIN TTN
The event included panels on a variety of issues pertinent to the transgender community.
KARA MILSTEIN TTN
Kel Kroehle (left), director of the Bryson Institute and Qui Alexander of the Mazzoni Center speak on the Trans* Youth panel held Friday in Barrack Hall.
On Friday afternoon, the Beasley School of Law hosted “Transforming Law: Legal Issues in the Transgender Community” in Barrack Hall. Panels included discussions about supporting trans youth, health care and incarceration. Grace Osa-Edoh, a secondyear law student and organizer of the event, said she started planning the event about two months ago. “I’ve had people come up to me and say, ‘I’ve never thought about this before,’ which is really great,” she said. Students in the LGBTQ community have expressed concern about the insufficiency of gender-inclusive housing, gender-neutral restrooms and support systems at Temple. The broad scope of Friday’s event, held by the Temple NGL Gender Justice Committee, highlighted these lack of resources for the LGBTQ community, and proposed possible solutions for greater equality. The symposium opened with “Trans* 101” led by Jaymie Campbell, a professional development manager at the Mazzoni Center. According to its website, the Mazzoni Center is the only healthcare provider that specifically targets needs of the LGBTQ community in the Philadelphia region, providing medical services and support systems to those that need it. Campbell presented basic information about gender identity, and provided the audience with tips on how to navigate unfamiliar situations involving gender in a conscientious manner, specifically in settings like the workplace. “The goal is to answer preliminary questions you may have [about gender] and leave you with more advanced questions,” Campbell said to the audience. “The purpose of today is not to talk about these [gender] binaries, but to to talk about the middle [of the spectrum].” The discussion was interactive and included audience participation in activities and the opportunity to ask questions. Another organization represented at the symposium was The Attic Youth Center, founded in 1993 and located in Center City, which provides a safe space and resources for LGBTQ
youth like counseling and community engagement. Campbell’s panel discussed ways to effectively help trans youth in the form of genderaffirming therapy, advocacy and access to resources. Qui Alexander, community organizer and trans youth support group leader at The Attic, emphasized the importance of fostering young people’s identities by their own standards and terms rather than society’s to create a healthy sense of self. “If we are constantly creating [youths’] narratives for them, they are stuck in the same cycle as us as adults,” Alexander said. “When we’re challenging gender, we’re challenging the building blocks people have built their world on and sticking to it because we’re used to it leaving out a lot of people.” Pennsylvania does not have state-level protections for transgender people who disproportionately experience harassment and discrimination in the workplace and public spaces. Legislation created to bring greater gender equality would have to come with education and understanding, Kel Kroehle, director of the Attic’s Bryson Institute said. “If you don’t know why you’re mandated to follow something, it will morph into [misuse] of power,” she said. “Policy will do more if you know what it is.” Educating and informing the general public about trans issues begins with unlearning misconceptions and understanding individual experiences of people from the trans community, Kroehle said. Other forms of progress include visibility and representation for trans people, intersectionality and public accountability. “There’s an internalized fear about what happens when you support young people,” Kroehle said. “You’re seen as ‘pushing an agenda.’” Issues like comprehensive health care and inclusive justice system practices are changing with the incoming generation. “The awesome thing about college is there are still a lot of young adults who are excited about learning new things and have access to information to challenge [the status quo],” Alexander said. * lian.parsons@temple.edu T @Lian_Parsons
Suspect in March assault at 7-Eleven on Cecil B. Moore Avenue knew victim, police say Continued from page 1
7-ELEVEN
The suspect then followed the student, yelling at him before throwing another punch a few steps away from the exit. The 20-year-old then walked away from the offender, who continued yelling at him before leaving the store. According to the report, the student was taken to Temple University Hospital, where he was treated for facial injuries. “He had some bruises and he needed dental work,” Leone said. Leone said the assault may have been the result of an incident earlier that morning around 6 a.m. at The Let Out. He said that the student, along with a friend, had been walking around in the establishment with management. He added that the student’s friend may have stolen something, which led to the suspect looking for both him and the victim. Leone said the student and his friend split up after they left The Let Out, when the student walked 10-15
yards ahead before stopping in the 7-Eleven. Leone added that the suspect first walked to and looked inside the Dunkin’ Donuts on the 1400 block of Cecil B. Moore Avenue. After that, he went to the Subway sandwich shop on the 1500 block and looked inside, before finally finding the 20-year-old student inside
on the morning of the assault, he added. Leone said no TU Alert was sent out about the assault since it “came out as a disturbance and a fight” when police received initial word. Police initially believed it was a simple assault, but a detective was sent to the hospital and learned there was a fracture. The surveillance footage of the as-
looking for somebody specific, and “He was found him inside the 7-Eleven. ” Charlie Leone | executive director, Campus Safety Services
the 7-Eleven. “It wasn’t like he was out there to [randomly] beat anybody up,” Leone said. “He was looking for somebody specific, and found him inside the 7-Eleven.” The student’s friend was also allegedly assaulted outside by Subway after the suspect left the 7-Eleven following the initial attack, Leone said. Both told police they were probably intoxicated
sault was posted on the Philadelphia Police Department’s website on April 16. Leone said the delay between the incident and video being posted may
have been because Philadelphia police thought they had more leads immediately following the assault. “Usually you try other means [before posting the video],” he said. “You canvass the area, talk to those that were nearby, and interview neighbors who might know something about the individuals.” It also took a while for 7-Eleven to provide video, since it had to clear bureaucratic processes, Leone added. As of Monday, both Philadelphia and Temple police said they were still investigating the incident. * steven.bohnel@temple.edu T @Steve_Bohnel Joe Brandt contributed reporting.
ONLINE The video of the assault at the 7-Eleven on the corner of 15th Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue, released online by the Philadelphia Police Department, is available to view at temple-news.com. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Philadelphia Police at 215-686-TIPS.
NPHC Greek students pull out of Greek Week events Continued from page 1
SLUR
individual,” the statement read. In a joint interview with Reginald Becton, vice president of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, Ray said the NPHC Greek organizations decided to make the demonstration at Greek Sing to express dissatisfaction with the university’s and Delta Zeta’s responses. Student Activities sent an email to the NPHC organizations saying that they were looking into the incident, but Ray said she feels the other Greek organizations and Temple students should have been notified too. “We just felt that they were trying to get the issue in-house,” Ray said. “The initial email was only addressed to NPHC. We’re not the only black Greeks on this campus, we’re just predominantly black fraternities and sororities.” Becton said he felt the issue was not addressed quickly enough, but NPHC waited a few days before responding to give “the campus a chance to do something, see the steps they’re going to take. Once we felt like the necessary steps were not taken, then we took matters into our own hands.” The stage at Greek Sing provided a sizable platform, Ray said.
We are “ beyond upset
and hurt that this type of language is being used in this Greek body.
”
Julia Crusor | member, Delta Sigma Theta
“We could have easily put the press release that we ran out to all the [organizations], but I feel they saw it more when we said, ‘We’re not going to stand for this, we’re not going to participate,’” Becton added. “Up until that minute we walked on stage, they thought we were still performing.” A statement signed by Future TU leaders Ryan Rinaldi, Binh Nguyen and Brittany Boston, who will be inaugurated April 27, also condemned the use of the slur and encouraged those who experience discrimination to contact Temple Police or Student Conduct. “We do not condone this incident nor any use of racial slurs or intolerance,” the statement read. Nguyen, who is a Delta Zeta member, deferred comment to the sorority’s national headquarters, as did several other members. A Delta Zeta representative could not confirm the name of the student who used the slur, but said in an email that she is no longer a member of the sorority. Ray and the Temple statement both indicated that the member in question served in the chapter’s leadership, but neither revealed her name. * news@temple-news.com
EDITORIAL/OP-ED
PAGE 4 A watchdog for the Temple University community since 1921. Avery Maehrer, Editor-in-Chief Patricia Madej, Managing Editor Erin Edinger-Turoff, Chief Copy Editor Joe Brandt, News Editor Paige Gross, Opinion Editor Claire Sasko, Lifestyle Editor Emily Rolen, Arts & Entertainment Editor EJ Smith, Sports Editor Steve Bohnel, Asst. News Editor Andrew Parent, Asst. Sports Editor Alexa Bricker, Asst. Lifestyle Editor Albert Hong, Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor Patrick McCarthy, Multimedia Editor Kate Reilly, Asst. Multimedia Editor
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
FROM THE ARCHIVES... May 11, 1945: The Temple News ran an illustration by Garrett Price, an ode to Philly cheesesteaks.
Harsh Patel, Web Manager Tom Dougherty, Web Editor Kara Milstein, Photography Editor Jenny Kerrigan, Asst. Photography Editor Addy Peterson, Design Editor Donna Fanelle, Asst. Designer Justin Discigil, Advertising Manager Grayson Holladay, Business Manager Dustin Wingate, Marketing Manager
The Temple News is an editorially independent weekly publication serving the Temple University community. Unsigned editorial content represents the opinion of The Temple News. Adjacent commentary is reflective of their authors, not The Temple News. Visit us online at temple-news.com. Send submissions to letters@temple-news.com. The Temple News is located at: Student Center, Room 243 1755 N. 13th St. Philadelphia, PA 19122
EDITORIALS
Department with integrity Students should heed the advice of professors to be transparent and accurate above all else. Despite the disheartening nature of recent journalistic scandals, from the retraction of Rolling Stone’s “A Rape on Campus” to Brian Williams’ fall from grace as a respected NBC news anchor, Temple journalism students still have experienced quality within the field in their department professors. Several of those instructors who spoke to The Temple News this week demonstrated just how valuable it is to find teaching opportunities even in the missteps of their fellow professionals. Those professors provide excellent example to studentjournalists like those of us on staff at The Temple News. As a result, current students have the opportunity to – as journalism ethics and law professor Christopher Harper put it – help “recreate a connection between the press and public.” Temple students should heed the advice of their professors interviewed for this week’s issue and in the department at large, because it is derived from years of working experience and contemplation of journalistic integrity. They should work to achieve the most significant and reiterated suggestion of profes-
sors who were interviewed about how to learn from the Rolling Stone story’s discreditation: to place the highest of value upon fact-checking and verification, and to be transparent in their reporting, writing and personal presentation. The public depends on journalists – if the press is to truly be the fourth estate in our country, aspiring professionals in the field must remember to maintain their journalistic integrity and responsibility. That means doing the hard work of airtight research, tireless verification efforts and genuinely accurate representation of facts. The fact that Harper, who writes a column for the Washington Times, offered detailed personal information to give his readers full disclosure of his own biases is commendable. Journalism is an ever-exciting field for many young people. The opportunity to write meaningful, interesting stories is a source of adrenaline for many of us. But taking the time and responsibility to be accurate and transparent is the only way young journalists can effectively improve and advance the field they enter.
Safety, a special project A preview of our special project on campus safety, which will appear online and in print on May 5. In our next issue, our final of the semester, The Temple News will publish an in-depth look inside safety on Main Campus. It will tell the story of Temple’s situation, one that’s unlike many other college campuses. The university sits inside a community rich with culture, but one that also has an unfortunate crime rate. At the same time, Temple is admitting new students who live on Main Campus for four years, and move as soon as they get their diploma. With that, comes tension. We’ve talked to residents of the community and students who have been assaulted multiple times. But, we’ve also talked with administrators, school officials and student organizations who make it their mission to remedy the issue without creating a moat between Main Campus borders and the surrounding area. This is a project we’ve been working on for the duration of a semester, a collaborative effort that involved our entire staff, and will print as an insert in our May 5 issue. The project will also be published online
on longform.temple-news.com, which launched last fall, and will feature photos, videos and audio clips. For the past several years, The Temple News published a special project that looks at a prominent issue on Main Campus. Last year, it was a multimedia project that focused on the elimination of five Division I sports. Two years ago, it was a documentary that looked at the “Temple Made” campaign. Crime on Main Campus has been an issue that we’ve found expressed through many voices in countless articles. And even in this issue of the paper, we report on two separate assaults that police need the public’s help with. We hope that our project will bring even greater visibility to an issue that Temple and its surrounding community has seen for years, especially with the growth of off-campus living. It’s one that deserves as much focus as possible, especially since what we’ve found to be a theme through our reporting – campus safety is a top priority.
CORRECTIONS In a caption that ran in print on April 14, the man standing on the left in a photo on Page 3 was misidentified as Executive Director of Temple Center City William Parshall. The man at left is Chris Peterson, vice president of stores for Barnes and Noble College. An infograph that printed on April 14 incorrectly printed the meeting days of several groups combating addiction. Alcohol & Other Drug (AOD) Group, Temple Student Recovery Meeting and Adult Children of Alcoholics and Substance Abusers Group meet on Tuesday, Thursday and Thursday, respectively. They do not all meet on Monday. The Temple News strives to be a newspaper of record by printing factually correct and balanced articles. Accuracy is our business, so when a mistake is made, we’ll correct it as soon as possible. Anyone with inquiries about content in this newspaper can contact Editor-in-Chief Avery Maehrer at editor@temple-news.com or 215.204.6737.
Commentary | Academics
Main Campus is a breeding ground for ‘major teasing’ Temple’s diversity of majors allows students to advance stigmas.
C
ollege kids are not immune to the pack instinct of humans. We like to group ourselves together, apart, and chimpscreech at “the others.” We’ve all heard it before: English and Art Students better get used to asking people whether or not they want fries with their combo. For us non-Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics majors, COLTON TYLER SHAW the question is usually asked by someone resembling the ponytailed guy in the Harvard bar from “Good Will Hunting.” Conversely, how often have you heard non-STEM and non-business majors saying their counterparts better prepare themselves for a life of wellcompensated drudgery. The jokes don’t fall on deaf ears. To the average STEM or business student, those jokes probably seem to originate from some unscrubbed, van-dwelling, future beat poet. Interestingly, both forms of ribbing stem from a common source. Temple’s status as a behemoth university recognized for excellence in a variety of fields lends to a stratified student body, with many outlier groups unaware of what the others are up to. As a journalism major, I can attest to the fact that I often lose sleep worrying whether I’ll end up curating listicles of “Top 5 Hannah Montana GIFS That Describe My Existential Dread” for a clickbait website with my journalism degree framed over my shoulder. Many business students do feel pressure to work their way into a high-paying field, possibly sacrificing a passion of theirs in place of a baby lamb. I’m not suggesting all business students are members of the Illuminati or some other nefarious international society, but the fact that Fox School of Business and Management students are required to make a blood oath every semester is suspicious. In all seriousness, though, the stereotype that the average businessman or woman, including all the multitudes of professions that fall under that gray umbrella, is an intelligent drone, pushing pencils and the corporate initiative, is
oddly widespread and considered often as fact or an inevitable reality. The idea that the run-of-the-mill liberal arts, communications or art students will be pulling in, at most, a hefty $25,000 salary at 45 years old, too busy with finger painting or drum circles to work, is just as prevalent. Larry Mangan, an actuarial science student in Fox, said he chose his major not to sate outside pressures but because of a love of what it involves and the career options it presents. “I basically could have done whatever I wanted but I love math enough that I wanted a job where I could do it everyday,” Mangan said. “I didn’t feel like being a mathematician locked up in a classroom but I just wanted a job where I was paid to do math for a few hours. Different people are wired for different things.” With the economy slowly inching away from recession-level unemploy-
your neck, is difficult and involves many tiers of questions and considerations. What kind of job can I get upon graduation? Is this major marketable? Is this an actual monkey or a cliché metaphor? Is this a dying or blossoming career to pursue? We’re all worried that the jokes the opposite are making are based in fact. We have invested, or will soon invest, thousands and thousands of dollars and hours, only to hear someone who has a quarter of a clue as to what your major entails dismiss your choice with a wave of their hand and a wisecrack. Are they right? This is a stupidly serious column on a pretty innocuous issue that’s gone on for decades, but all the same, it’s time we appreciate the diversity present on our Main Campus and subvert the taken-for-granted notions we hold about certain majors.
ment, and college debt levels and tuition unlikely to change any time soon, these intra-school and inter-school jokes and teases sprout from a similar place: deep fear for the future. Tales of barista employment and mountains of college debt give me, and many others, a pit in our stomachs the size of a neon softball. Alex Bruce is a freshman graphic design student. He said while his family supported his decision to study art because his mother is an artist, he said he did feel some level of outside disapproval with his choice. “Moreso with people I don’t know as well, I’ll mention [my major] and they’re like ‘Oh good luck with that, you’re in for a s----y future’ just guaranteed because you’re an artist and the whole ‘starving artist’ stereotype is what people think of when you say ‘I'm gonna major in art,’” Bruce said. “People don’t really understand where the job opportunities are there so the assumption is you’re gonna paint pictures and sell them on the street and that’s your professional thing, like you pay $200,000 and then say ‘$40. Please, I need to buy milk.’” Choosing your major while this monkey is hanging on your back, cradling
As quaint an image it may seem, art students do not actually forage for berries barefoot on Beury Beach. And while we’re on the subject, Fox and STEM majors only inadvertently pay homage to goat-headed pagan gods. These types of juxtapositions of things that work in tandem in the real world is a bit confusing. Our talents and interests and goals exist on a gradient, not a two-sided scale that must be kept in balance. What someone decides to study and pursue intellectually should be celebrated and discussed, not torn down. I’m all for red-faced, blustering hate of people even remotely different from me, but come on. There’s plenty of time to nurture resentment for our peers during our careers, but for now, we should take the time to appreciate our differences. Now, I think these jokes should continue by all means and I think that censorship among friends is always a dead end to dialogue, but it’s important to find where these sentiments grow out of. Every time you blubber about others’ majors or courses of studies, you’re pulling back the curtain of your own insecurities.
Tales of barista employment and mountains “of college debt give me, and many others, a pit in our stomachs the size of a neon softball. ”
* colton.shaw@temple.edu
OPINION
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
PAGE 5
Commentary | housing
Commentary | tech
Education for leases needed Hyperlinks help
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ff-campus housing is usually the first real step into the responsibilities of adulthood a college student can take. Some of us leave the shelter of our homes or dormitories for a chance at independence. Others simply do it to save money. Whatever the reason, renting a first apartment leaves most college students vulnerable in their options and their ignorance. This allows many property owners to get away with cutting corners at the expense of often powerless IAN FLETCHER student tenants. Greg Keating, a senior advertising major, moved into his apartment on 15th Street in August 2013. He’s lived there for the past two years and has had more than his share of complaints about the condition of the property and its managers, Temple Villas. During his first year there, pipes burst in the building and caused flooding in every apartment. Rather than making any effort in diagnosing the problem, Temple Villas sent a worker that afternoon with a bucket of sealant and began patching up the areas of flooding. Residents were then asked to keep their heat running so the water-damaged walls can dry. Unsurprisingly, they developed mold instead and some of the drywall needed to be replaced altogether. It turned out that the flooding was caused by the apartment below Keating’s. “I think they came up with a diagnosis so that we would feel comfortable” Keating said. “But it was a misdiagnosis.” He said it’s characteristic of Temple Villas to offer BandAid solutions to immediate problems or often no solution at all. Rachael Barr, a senior Spanish major, has had such frequent problems with Villas that she said she and her roommates had made a drinking game out of it. She’s also complained about unexpected charges
for maintenance work done this year, despite her lease never mentioning them. “We are known for our quick response to maintenance requests and have received letters from tenants and parents praising the effectiveness and professionalism of our team,” Mike Rifenbury, an administrative assistant for Villas, said in an email. Alex Graziano, a lawyer who works with Keating’s mother looked at his lease before he moved in about two years ago. Graziano pointed out several issues with the language of Keating’s lease over email, including an automatic lease renewal that requires no prior confirmation or warning and a lack of consequence if the landlord fails to return the tenant’s security deposit. Temple has some resources available for student referral, specifically the OffCampus Services section of the University Housing and Residential Life website. The pages’ content ranges from advice before renting to where students can rent. Their information goes over the basics: what to look for in a lease before signing, rights and responsibilities as a tenant and how to start an off-campus housing search. While the Off-Campus Service site is a step in the right direction, with so much of Temple’s student body living off campus and renting from landlords and large housing companies, it is obvious that the site, and programs like it, need fixing up. Currently, the site is lacking. Only four of the 12 links actually work. There’s mention of an advocacy group for tenants, but little is said about why student tenants would need group advocating for them. Conor McGrath, a junior media studies and production major, has been living with Temple Area Rentals for almost two years and has little affection for his drafty house. His landlord initially promised h i m and his seven roommates last
year that if they signed on for another year at the house, he would lower their rent. When the new lease came, the rent had remained the same. Finding another eightperson house late into renting season was fairly out of the question, so they were forced to stay despite the bait-and-switch. “We were kind of strong-armed into paying the same [price],” McGrath said. McGrath spoke with his aunt, who works in Philadelphia’s Landlord-Tenant dispute court, and she told him there was almost nothing he could do about it, according to the lease. It’s little abuses like these that are hardest to fight, which is why they are so common among student housing companies and landlords. Most students won’t do much past complain because the next steps would be facing their landlords in court. The result is a community that has no choice but to tolerate their mistreatment. While it may not be devastating, it is certainly unfair. More needs to be done to warn students of common pitfalls of renting off campus. While technically not a responsibility of the university, promoting knowledge about reliable rental companies and landlords and warning students about the bad ones is something it should take on to protect a huge group of students who chose to live in the areas surrounding Temple. In the meantime, the trick to avoiding poor housing conditions may be as simple as proper precautions – being educated on signing a lease and what that entails, staying away from companies with bad reviews and reading leases thoroughly before signing them. And perhaps most importantly, keeping a record of everything of importance your landlord says. You never know when they might go back on their word.
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wrong. He had been out of the house for several months, and was confused about why my mom wanted a divorce after 20 years of marriage. By that point, my brother, sister and I had witnessed dysfunction and fighting that had escalated during the past year. We all knew his alcoholism was worsening. Still, I decided to give my dad a chance to prove his worth that afternoon in 2011. “You have to start acting like a man,” I said to him. “I know,” he replied as tears started to trickle down his face. “I’ve been hearing that a lot lately, Steve.” Today, I still question the validity of his first two words. Nearing the halfway point of my college career, I can’t complain about life. I’ve had the great opportunity to work at The Temple News, and have met several fine individuals along the way. Honestly, many of their personal troubles are probably worse than mine. Last month, my mother called me and uttered a few words that provided our family closure, after more than three years of financial and personal heartache. “He signed, Steve,” she said. “He signed the papers.” She was referring to the official divorce papers that my father had refused to sign for about two years. My mom was worried she wouldn’t be able to adequately raise her three kids, even though she has helped me significantly in funding my education at Temple.
OPINION DESK 215-204-7416
Providing transparency ... “ allows for the reader to trust you as a writer. ”
* albert.hong@temple.edu
A student reflects on his parents’ divorce after a years-long separation.
The sad part is that my story is far from unfamiliar for most families in this state. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health statistics, 34,233 divorces and annulments – the latter of which legally wipes marriage from having ever happened – occurred in Pennsylvania in 2013. Meanwhile, there were 69,344 marriages recorded in the same year. This trend has stayed fairly consistent since 2002, showing that the issue of divorce has been prevalent throughout the state for about the past decade. But these numbers can’t describe the specifics of each case. For instance, the fact that my parents divorced is actually a positive milestone. If it weren’t for my mother’s strength, I wouldn’t be motivated enough to be pursuing a journalism degree, especially when my dad continued to doubt whether I would be able to make it in the business. But there are still hardships. My brother was the first to turn against my dad – and in hindsight, he’s a genius. On the other hand, my sister’s heart and forgiving nature tried to make amends for my dad’s behavior. I could never blame a girl who, in her developing teen years – she turned 15 earlier this month – tried to connect with her father. But through this decision, multiple family members have attempted to manipulate her thoughts and emotions, resulting in stress that would mentally break several people at her age. In this regard, my sister has more fortitude than my brother or I could ever even imagine to have. It’s understandable why part of my family has disrespected my mother during these past couple of years. However, target-
W
henever I tell someone I am majoring in journalism, it's no surprise anymore to hear people’s thoughts on the industry “dying” or being “in danger.” But as I learned from many of my classes at Temple, it is really evolving. Publications are increasingly needing to think about their online presence as much as their other platforms. The Internet brings its tools and applications for journalists to use, and one of the most important is the hyperlink. A hyperlink is anything on a webpage that, when clicked, takes the user to another part of the Internet. We have all seen the use of the hyperlink within articles – the oftentimes blue words or phrases that take us to a different page referring to what was highlighted. While these links may seem synonymous with articles on the Internet, the journalistic use of them still happens to be contested. At a meetALBERT HONG ing of the Asian American Journalists Association, I learned from a discussion that some local publications like the Inquirer and Daily News don’t use hyperlinks in their articles, only in their blog posts. Nicholas Carr, the author of “The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains,” criticized the hyperlink as being a distraction to readers in the way it spurs unnecessary cognitive activities like “evaluating hyperlinks” or “deciding whether to click.” He argues for the removal of links within articles, citing them as a problem of having created a culture where “skimming is becom-
* steve.bohnel@temple.edu
A positive parting: a story of divorce By Steve Bohnel
Some argue links in articles are distracting, but they represent evolution in journalism.
ing the youngest member of my immediate family is the act of a true coward, especially when my father can’t find the willpower to fight his own disease. For me, navigating life through the separation and divorce hasn’t proved difficult, because I shut myself out of the situation. I’ve lived life through a selfish philosophy – keep your head down, work hard, and focus on your own priorities. I’ve never tried to address my father’s problem headon, so the irony is that in our relationship, I probably am a coward myself. Then again, should a son ever be expected to take care of his father in his adolescent years? Whatever the case may be, I’ve tried to respect people for who they are, considering I’m extremely fortunate to be where I am. Both my parents attended community college, before becoming fully invested in a family retail business. If I play my cards right, I’ll be earning a bachelor’s degree from Temple in May 2017. This has been the most I’ve sat down and actually reflected on the issue of my dad and his alcoholism, at least in writing. I’m certain his alcoholism will be a disease that will be problematic for the rest of his life, given he doesn’t have the support group around him needed for change. Maybe if that potential group reads this, that could happen – or, they could see it as a rant from a 20-year-old who never gave his father a chance. The truth is, they’re right. After that conversation in the Trailblazer four years ago, I knew where I stood. And today, I’m damn proud of it.
THE ESSAYIST...
y father sat behind the wheel of his 2006 silver Chevy Trailblazer, gazing ahead, wondering what he had done
online journalism
ing our dominant mode of thought” rather than fully absorbing the information we read. While I, and many others, cannot argue with the fact that the Internet has certainly changed the ways information is given and taken, it doesn’t mean that “distractions” like hyperlinks should be removed altogether. George Miller, an associate professor who teaches Journalism & Society and directs Philadelphia Neighborhoods, said that journalists should adapt to the changing landscapes of the industry. “To me, I think it should impact the way you do journalism,” Miller said. Students taking the Philadelphia Neighborhoods course are required to use hyperlinks, and Miller uses them in the online version of his quarterly magazine, JUMP Philly. He said the links are there to serve the readers of the site. “Even in an 800-word story, we can’t be fully comprehensive and your audience is going to want more information,” Miller said. “So as a reader service, you provide them links to learn more about whatever those areas are.” Scott Rosenberg, a co-founder of Salon.com, wrote on his blog a three-part series defending hyperlinks, stating that comprehensiveness can also help opinion pieces by linking to the writers’ articles of which you are arguing against. “[Linking] provides a powerful check on bullying and misrepresentation,” Rosenberg wrote. “It’s the rant without links, the disconnected diatribe, that’s suspect.” Providing transparency not only promotes “honesty and fairness,” but it also allows for the reader to trust you as a writer, by providing instant access to the arguments that you are opposing. Linking in your articles also provides practical benefits to journalists as well, as Miller explained how search engines like Google determine how often web pages show up in searches, based on algorithms that take outside linking into consideration. However, Rosenberg also makes a good point when he said, “links, like words, need to be used judiciously” and that “conscious linking” is what journalists need to practice in order to display the effectiveness of the tool. “Overuse of links is usually a sign that the writer does not know how to link, which on the Web means he does not know how to write,” Rosenberg wrote. “But such abuse hardly discredits linking itself.” Connecting the local community as a whole is important for Juliana Reyes, the lead reporter for tech site, Technical.ly Philly. She said she uses links to make stories “actionable” – like giving readers information about events or how to RSVP. She said in the future she feels linking will grow as journalists notice them being used in proactive ways. “I feel like its just an adapting thing,” Reyes said. “If you see other people do that and you see value in it, you’ll start to pick it up too.” For the journalistic community and industry as a whole though, linking to publications other than your own, which news outlets like the New York Times often does not do, is healthy for all of us. As Miller stresses, hyperlinks help connect us all to one another and helps encourage the spreading of good, reliable information. “For what we do at a local level, because JUMP and Philadelphia Neighborhoods are both very hyperlocal websites. … I think that it’s important for us to link out and support the other hyperlocal, smaller publications,” Miller said. “To me, it’s just such a nobrainer. I don’t understand why people don’t do it.” I cannot doubt the usefulness of articles that employed links – I learned so much more on this topic than I would have thanks to people like Rosenberg who was sure to include hyperlinks in his posts. I don’t know what the next trend in online journalism will be, but it’s not too late for publications to jump on board with hyperlinks as an accessible tool.
* ian.fletcher@temple.edu
ADDY PETERSON TTN
The university could be doing more to teach students about off-campus housing.
LETTERS@TEMPLE-NEWS.COM
NEWS
PAGE 6
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
academics | rolling stone controversy
Retracted story addressed in classes
Since the article was discredited, classes have discussed ethics and responsibility. ERIN EDINGER-TUROFF
Chief Copy Editor
Washington Times columnist and journalism professor Christopher Harper believes the longstanding concepts of objectivity, fairness and balance have become outdated – particularly in light of recent media scandals after stories are revealed to be fabricated or inaccurate. He believes new tenets of quality journalism are needed. “Objectivity, fairness and balance are things that mean different things to different people,” Harper said. “I think we can agree on accuracy. I think we can agree on transparency.” Sabrina Erdely’s “A Rape on Campus,” published by Rolling Stone in November, told the story of an anonymous female college student who described
story was largely discredited; first by the revelation of several inconsistencies by the Washington Post and then through the Columbia School of Journalism’s extensive report about the Rolling Stone’s “failure of journalism,” as Rolling Stone managing editor Will Dana put it himself in a note to readers. Since then, Temple’s Department of Journalism has addressed the implications of its retraction and all the events proceeding. From editing to ethics courses, many professors have directly incorporated the Rolling Stone case into their curricula. Erdely, who previously taught magazine article writing at Temple as an adjunct, could not be reached for comment. Harper, who has taught both journalism ethics and law, is on sabbatical this semester, but has addressed the Rolling Stone situation and several similar scandals – like Brian Williams’ fabricated war-reporting story – in his Washington Times
[Confirmation bias], which is “generally used in psychology, needs to be used in journalism. ” Christopher Harper | Washington Times columnist and journalism professor
being brutally gang raped at a University of Virginia frat party. Though the described trauma suffered by the student, dubbed “Jackie,” – a shortened form of her true name – is not specifically disproved, the 9,000-word
column. In his most recent columns, which addressed “A Rape on Campus,” Harper condemned situations where “the facts didn’t stand in the way of a good story,” as he wrote on April 8.
A problematic trend in recent journalistic scandals, he said, is confirmation bias. Erdely displayed this action – seeking a situation that supports an existing belief or bias that a person has – in writing the UVA rape story, according to the Columbia report and Harper’s column. “I think that term [of confirmation bias], which is generally used in psychology, needs to be used in journalism,” Harper said in an interview with The Temple News. Some of his colleagues at Temple echoed his sentiments, including Karen Naylor, a working journalist and adjunct professor who teaches Editing the News. She said she asked her students to read the Columbia report in order to discuss what “missteps Rolling Stone had taken.” “I believe they had a story idea, and they were going to make sure the reporting fit that idea,” Naylor said, referring to Erdely and editors at Rolling Stone. She added that she thinks, based on the Columbia report, there were at least five or six “moments of pause” that Rolling Stone recognized, but chose not to act upon in terms of proper verification and testing of accuracy. “There’s an old adage in journalism that if your mother tells you she loves you, you better check it out,” Naylor said. “An editor’s job is essentially to ask the reporter, ‘Did you check that out?’” Larry Hanover, a profes-
sor who teaches Journalism Research, said he called the story a “ticking time bomb” due to the lack of fact verification at the time of its publication. “I mean, the main rule is verify, verify, verify,” Hanover said. “They had people to contact, people who were supposedly there right after the time of the attack. They didn’t contact them, they didn’t talk to the fraternity. You can be nice to the person you’re interviewing, but you have to be professional. You can say, ‘In order to go forward with this, I need to check on this.’” The professors also noted the retraction’s particularly damaging nature for victims of abuse. Naylor said she feels Rolling Stone’s first note to readers, which “sort of blamed the woman” who was the main subject, “causes all kinds of social problems.” The statement, she said, “lacks as much depth as their editing process did – sort of very superficial, very cursory. They did very cursory editing, and very cursory apologizing.” Harper wrote in his column about how to move forward from the event. On April 8, he wrote that “the Rolling Stone debacle provides an opportunity to recreate a connection between the press and public,” and reestablish quality of journalism – something he said has been lacking in recent years. Journalists must “step out of their private lives to provide people with what their biases are,” he said to The Temple News, explaining how that con-
nection can be regained. His most recent column, called “It’s time for journalists to come clean,” was his personal declaration of transparency. He described his own religious and political beliefs, campaign donations and compensa-
tion for speaking engagements. This, he wrote, is a good first step for journalists to “regain credibility with the public.” * erin.edinger-turoff@temple.edu T @erinJustineET
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NEWS IN BRIEF ed this year, but it’s unfortunate, it’s one of the few we’ve had where the victim knew the attacker,” Leone said. -Joe Brandt
BURGLARY REPORTED ON CAMAC STREET
A property on the 2200 block of North Camac Street was burglarized last Wednesday, a Philadelphia police spokeswoman told The Temple News. The spokeswoman said the residence was broken into through a gated bedroom window, and items were taken from each of the five tenants. The items included a MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, along with other valuables valued at a total of $6,500, she added. As of Monday, Philadelphia police are still investigating the incident. -Steve Bohnel
UNIVERSITY NEWS UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS SHOW OFF THEIR RESEARCH AT TURF-CREWS
ALLAN BARNES TTN FILE PHOTO
A sexual assault was reported in Morgan Hall on Thursday night.
CRIME SEXUAL ASSAULT REPORTED IN MORGAN HALL
A sexual assault said to have taken place in Morgan Hall in October 2014 was reported to Temple Police Thursday, Executive Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone said. The victim, a female student, knew the
attacker – a male student – “very well,” Leone said. Alcohol was believed to be involved in the incident. The victim was taken to the Philadelphia Police Department Special Victims Unit and can decide if she wants to pursue prosecution, Leone said. Temple has interviewed the suspect in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct. “We’ve had a few [sexual assaults] report-
On April 16, several undergraduate students presented research dedicated to a wide range of topics at the university’s annual Undergraduate Research Forum and Creative Works Symposium, according to a university press release. TURF-CreWS, now in its 22nd year, featured subjects ranging from fighting in ice hockey, the success of Korean pop bands and iris recognition in Android phones. Emily Moerer, assistant vice provost for undergraduate studies, said the annual event allows undergraduates to show off their hard work on a variety of subjects. “Part of the act of creating knowledge is also communicating it,” Moerer said in the release. “So we want to give our students the opportunity to showcase and communicate the wonderful work that they’ve accomplished under the mentorship of Temple faculty.” Students were nominated by their faculty mentors to participate in TURF-CreWS, and that the presentations are a result of research done in the classroom, as well as work done through a university-wide undergraduate research program, like the Temple Merit Scholarship and Educational Enhancement Stipends. -Steve Bohnel
FORMER EDITOR IS PULITZER FINALIST
Ali Watkins, a former reporter for The Temple News who served as assistant news editor for part of the Fall 2013 semester, was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist in the national reporting category. The results were announced Monday.
Watkins, along with Marisa Taylor and Jonathan Landay of McClatchy Newspapers, received accolades for their coverage of the Senate Intelligence Committee’s report on CIA torture. The Washington-based Watkins now works for the Huffington Post. In a brief phone interview on Monday night, Watkins said she was grateful to all the people she met along the way who helped her reach her potential, many of whom were active about the honor on social media. “When big stuff like this happens, you realize all these people, even five to 10 years down the road, are still following along,” Watkins said. “That’s just really humbling.” According to a press release from the School of Media and Communication, eight alumni have won Pulitzer Prizes. Three of them worked on “Assault on Learning,” a 2013 Inquirer story on violence in the Philadelphia School District. -Joe Brandt
IN THE NATION CHRONICLE ANALYZES CANDIDATES’ STANCE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Last week, the Chronicle of Higher Education released a report focusing on four declared 2016 presidential candidates’ stances on issues pertaining to higher education. Hillary Clinton, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul were profiled, as the Chronicle analyzed their positions on college affordability, immigration and science – three topics important to colleges. All four candidates declared their intention to run for the Oval Office during the past couple of weeks, according to multiple news outlets. Concerning the issue of college affordability, Clinton has endorsed President Obama’s plan for free community college, and criticized “for-profit” colleges that put students and families in debt. Rubio has also sided with Obama, calling for an updated federal student-aid system, and added that student debt is a major obstacle for current students in higher education. Cruz has also stated that student loans are a problem, but has not yet laid out a framework on how to lower higher education costs or how to manage student debt. Paul has focused more on K-12 education than higher education, but has opposed Obama’s free community college plan, while proposing that college tuition be made fully tax-deductible. -Steve Bohnel
lifestyle BIKE SHARE DEBUT
A LOOK AT BOLLYWOOD
The Ride Indego bikeshare will make its citywide debut on April 23. The bikeshare will operate from three locations on Main Campus. PAGE 17
English professor Priya Joshi recently released a book titled “Bollywood’s India,” which analyzes the country’s relationship with film. PAGE 17
temple-news.com
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
owlery.temple-news.com CSS TO HOST FOOD DRIVE
The Campus Safety Services is hosting a canned food and non-perishable goods drive in support of the AMOS Recreation Center, other news and notes. PAGE 18 PAGE 7
Student aims to set a second world record Sophomore Ben Baker wants to raise money for charity by covering 26 miles in an hour on a Slip ‘N Slide. JANE BABIAN The Temple News
COURTESY HAI-LUNG DAI
Provost Hai-Lung Dai (right), senior vice president for academic affairs, has conducted music across the world while balancing his career.
A PASSION FOR MUSIC
& a love of science
Provost Hai-Lung Dai has found a way to combine and pursue two of his passions. ALEXA BRICKER Assistant Lifestyle Editor
P
rovost Hai-Lung Dai didn’t see a piano until high school. Dai’s parents, who fled to Taiwan from China during the rise of communism post-World War II, worked as farmers. His home didn’t have running water, let alone access to music education, he said, though he was always fascinated by music. “I grew up in a countryside, basically among rice fields,” Dai said. “The house we
lived in was like mud, of course not spacious. And I remember in elementary school about half of my class didn’t wear shoes.” Though Dai did not have access to instruments, he said that by high school he realized he could use an “instrument that everyone has” – his voice. At 16, when he began college at National Taiwan University, Dai started a choral group and said he was later asked to be a student conductor. “As the student conductor, I had a lot of chances to conduct the chorus, and when I was there we were always national champions,” Dai said. “I always joked that my college studies major was chemistry, and my minor was choral music.” Since college, Dai continued to conduct through his service in the Taiwanese military
and after multiple moves to California, Boston and Philadelphia. While a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and while Dean of the School of Science and Technology, Dai has served in multiple choral groups, both conducting and singing. In 2008, Dai co-conducted a classical concert held at the Kimmel Center to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Temple’s School of Science and Technology. “I think I became an oddity in that a scientist can conduct an orchestra,” Dai said. “So I began to sometimes receive invitations to conduct concerts.” Five years later, Dai filled in as conductor for a performance by the private Chinese
DAI PAGE 8
Ben Baker is looking to receive his second Guinness Book of World Records plaque. The School of Tourism and Hospitality Management sophomore is currently preparing to make a 26-mile-long Slip ‘N Slide ride in less than an hour. On May 2, Baker and his friends will set up the 100foot slide at Camp Conquest in Denver, Pennsylvania. “The slide is 100 feet long, so every time someone goes down they check off 100 feet,” Baker said. “It doesn’t matter how many people go down a slide at once. They can check off 300 feet if three people slide down at the same time.” This won’t be the first time Baker is breaking a record – he’s been in the Guinness Book of World Records for riding more than 334 miles within 24 hours on a Razor scooter. Baker came up with the idea during his Ben Baker | sophomore freshman year at Messiah College when one of his friends purchased a scooter. Baker said he and his friends would ride their scooters up and down hills in the middle of the night, traveling as far as 15 miles. They became known as the “Night Razors.” The group hit more than 200 likes in two days after creating a Facebook page. Once they noticed they had a huge following, Baker said the group wanted to do something big. The Night Razors decided to ride on the coast of New Jersey, and Baker said one member thought of attempting to set a record for farthest distance covered on a Razor Scooter. But Baker is setting records for a reason. While preparing to set his first record, Baker said that proceeds from the attempt would benefit The Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland. He has a personal connection to the organization. At 10 years old, Baker was diagnosed with Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis of the liver.
The slide is “ 100 feet long,
so every time someone goes down they check off 100 feet.
”
BAKER PAGE 17
inside the classroom
English class focuses on the work of Tolkien Professor Andrew Ervin’s English 902 class centers on the famed “Lord of the Rings” author. VINCE BELLINO The Temple News When Honors Program director Ruth Ost asked students what author they would enjoy a class about, she found one of the most common answers was J.R.R. Tolkien. “Tolkien comes up over and over again [as an author] that students actually want to read,” Ost said. Professor Andrew Ervin, who Ost said was enthusiastic about the idea, now teaches an English 902 Analytical Reading and Writing course based on Tolkien’s work. “[Ervin] loves literature with a passion,” Ost said. Ervin’s class examines a wide range of Tolkien’s work in effort to gain a deeper understanding of the writing of the author of the “Lord of the Rings” triology. The class begins by reading “The Silmarillion,” a collection of Tolkien’s mythopoetic works, which was edited and published by his son, Christopher
in 1977. The class then progresses to works like the “Lord of the Rings” texts, “The Hobbit,” and Tolkien’s translation of “Beowulf.” There are also various essays about Tolkien’s work by other authors included. Ervin said despite the fact that “The Hobbit” is considered a young-adult work, it makes for good discussion because “everyone brings their lives to bear on this book.” “It’s really no different than if we were doing a writing class based only on Shakespeare,” Ervin said. Ervin said he considers Tolkien a more contemporary writer with a stilldeveloping body of scholarly work. “We wanted something that we could look at – a fairly common topic … and look at something with entirely new perspectives,” Ervin said. Ervin said this class is not an easy course – he said he is a tough grader because it is a foundational course for the rest of his students’ time at Temple. Tolkien’s works are comparatively lengthy, and students must complete a high volume of reading and writing. Ervin said he understands the demands of the class, though, and makes sure students are able to stay on top of ev-
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HARRISON BRINK TTN
Professor Andrew Ervin teaches an alternative English course with a curriculum centered on the work of J.R.R. Tolkien.
LIFESTYLE@TEMPLE-NEWS.COM
LIFESTYLE
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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
Bollywood culture links professor to childhood
Priya Joshi published a book on how Bollywood portrays Indian culture. EMILY SCOTT The Temple News
Priya Joshi connects with her childhood through Bollywood films. Joshi, an associate professor of English, explores the role of popular Hindi cinema in Indian culture through her latest book, “Bollywood’s India: A Public Fantasy,” which was published earlier in 2015. Joshi started working for Temple in 2005. Prior to then, she was teaching at the University of California, Berkeley. Joshi said one of her first projects at Temple involved a collaboration with former professor Ben Rifkin – the two created a new class within the Gen-Ed program, World Society. “[We] felt that one of the key ways that we as adults, and our students ... really grapple with the world is through media culture,” Joshi said. The course is called World Society Through Literature And Film. Joshi’s class focused on Indian culture, while Rifkin’s course looked into Russian culture. Joshi, who was born in Kolkata, India, left the country with her family at 14 to live in Washington D.C. She said relatives told her father the move was a better opportunity for his children. “D.C. in the 1980s, at least where we lived, was very monocultural ... and quite boring,” Joshi said. “And I think for most of us growing up, the only way to hold onto our memory of India was through cinema and Bollywood.” Joshi said that by the 1930s, a few decades after the invention of the moving image by the Lumière brothers, India had an up-and-coming cinema industry.
Bollywood is only a small part of the Indian film industry, Joshi said. There are films written in the Hindi language and also in Bengali. But something about the Bollywood industry is able to capture a wide array of audiences, and Joshi said that is what she looks at in her latest book. Joshi said the films are a way for her to hold onto her memories from India. One of the Bollywood films she addresses in her book and said her students love is “Kal Ho Naa Ho,” about a young woman living in a Brooklyn brownstone, whose life changes drastically after a new neighbor moves in. “It’s a very contemporary story, and those kind of films didn’t exist when I was growing up,” Joshi said. “I was watching what my parents watched, but I loved the music, the stories and the romance.” In her classes, Joshi uses Bollywood to talk about India and globalization. Through developing her class and seeing the student’s responses to Bollywood, it was clear to her that there was “something bigger that needed scholarly treatment,” which is how her latest novel came into play. After graduating from the University of Maryland as a double major in English and science, Joshi rejected medical school and decided to live in Paris, the city where “all the great writers,” like William Carlos Williams and T.S. Eliot lived, she said. Joshi said she used to read poetry in the metro subway of Paris and took on some part-time jobs in the city – she once translated a travel book for a man who needed French to Hindi translations and wrote for a man who started a foundation called Les Chemin des Enfants. She lived there for a little more than a year and then attended graduate school at Columbia University in New York. Joshi wrote her first novel in 2002,
JENNY KERRIGAN TTN
English professor Priya Joshi wrote Bollywood’s India: A Public Fantasy to explore the world’s obsession with Bollywood.
called “In Another Country: Colonialism, Culture and the English Novel in India.” It involved a study on how novels in the 19th century were able to bring ideas across cultures. “It’s easy to overlook the connections between ‘In Another Country’and ‘Bollywood’s India,’ but Priya’s work excavates the stories of common readers and viewers to reveal that both literature and film provide solace in a rapidly changing society,” said Daniel Morse, a 2014 Temple Ph.D graduate in global modernism. Morse worked with Joshi on a Bollywood conference at Temple in 2011. Joshi said she began to think about how ideas travel visually. Soon after, she started to see Bollywood as a tool for understanding culture. “Many of my students learn Bollywood or watch Bollywood living far
outside India or maybe not even being Indians, so there’s this weird way in which this hyperlocal culture oddly seems to travel very well,” Joshi said. In the past few years, Joshi has developed another Gen-Ed class called Detective Fiction In The World. The course includes a look at detective fiction as a popular genre. Rana Ashfaq, a sophomore mathematical economics major who took Joshi’s Detective Fiction course, said the books were made easy to comprehend. “I found this historical analysis amazing in that it illuminated many aspects of the work that could be glossed over as a pretty detail of characters are traveling from and why they would need to make that journey,” Ashfaq said. The first idea Joshi had for “Bol-
lywood’s India” changed dramatically, she said. Though she first intended for the class to take a look at Bollywood’s representation of crime in a criminal society, the book evolved. Joshi saw Bollywood as the “conscience of India.” For her courses on Bollywood, students watch films and read three to four novels a semester, Joshi said. For her next book, Joshi said she wants to look more into the detective fiction genre. “Cinema is a very efficient genre – camera light here, image there, and they’ve conveyed 200 years of history,” Joshi said. “The novel just pauses everything and slows down our perception.” * emily.ivy.scott@temple.edu
study abroad
A goodbye to Spain after spending a semester abroad A student who has spent the semester studying in Spain wants to embark on more trips before leaving the country.
N
ow that it’s April, it’s hit me. I will be leaving Spain in a little more than a month, and I still haven’t explored so much of the
country. After spending exactly two weeks backpacking through Rome and Greece during my spring break, I can barely explain how glad I was to be back in Spain. By this point of my study abroad experience, Spain practically feels like home. Because backpacking usually entails traveling through many cities on a low budget, it’s unlikely that one would want to SIENNA VANCE bring a 40 pound suitcase – when traveling, I’ve learned that less is more. One of my classmates and I began our two week journey in the city of Rome. We booked a cheap hostel for 8 euros a night in order to save money, which meant that we
Despite the “ thousands of tourists
and people attempting to sell us selfie sticks, Rome felt like an eternal city.
”
could spend more money on delicious Italian pizza and pasta. In about two and a half days, I had the luxury to indulge in the wonders of Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, the Roman Colosseum, the Roman Forum and many other miraculous monuments and piazzas. Overall, Rome is probably my favorite city in Europe. Despite the thousands of tourists and people attempting to sell us selfie sticks, Rome felt like an eternal city. Although we tiredly crammed in most of the city’s main attractions in a short time, there
is still much more to see. Apart from Spain, I could definitely see myself living in Italy because the two cultures are so similar. Greece, on the other hand, is a different story. After a rickety flight through a somewhat intense storm, we arrived in Athens at about 9 p.m. Once we got on the metro, I immediately felt like I was in another world. In Italy, I could somewhat understand the language because it is so similar to Spanish. Because of the Greek alphabet, navigating Greece was sometimes a whirlwind. Traveling to the ruins of Delphi, for example, proved to be a struggle when we were unable to find the bus stop due to our lack of understanding of the Greek alphabet. Plus, when we asked strangers for directions, few people could even understand us. Eventually, we made it to Delphi with a little help from our hostel receptionist and began to explore the rest of Greece. Although I loved the Acropolis of Athens and the fusion of Middle Eastern and European culture in Athens, my favorite part of Greece was probably Agistri Island. It’s not the most populous island in the world, but it’s striking – it has the bluest water that I have ever seen in my life. I also adored our last stop in Greece, which was Thessaloniki – a coastal Bohemian city in the north that is famous for its nightlife, delicious sweets and historic Byzantine churches. I enjoyed the beaches and the nightlife, but once I was back in Spain, I couldn’t really imagine leaving it again. Because I have been living in Spain so long, I now feel like a Spaniard. The culture, the customs and the food are all second nature to me, so living in Greece for a week was somewhat of an adjustment. I have my last big trip out of Spain planned at the end of April to Amsterdam and Germany – two other distinct cultures that I am very eager to explore. However, after that trip, I will be content in Spain until I have to leave at the end of May. From the Spanish friends that I’ve made, to trying new things and improving my language skills, my study abroad experience has been extremely worthwhile, and I am thankful to everyone who has helped support me through the trip. The experience has opened my mind, my heart and my spirit in a way like never before. * @sienna.vance@temple.edu
COURTESY BETSY MANNING
Provost Hai-Lung Dai serves as Temple’s senior vice president for academic affairs.
Provost balances passion for musical conducting with career Continued from page 7
DAI
orchestra, called “Accent,” in Beijing. Last year, his conducting took him to Shanghai, after he was invited by the Shanghai city government to hold a lecture on science and to conduct a concert with the Shanghai City Symphonic Orchestra. Dai said that although the combination of music and science may seem odd, people often compare musicians to scientists or mathematicians because both fields value precision and measurement. But he said he believes music should be about trying to break free and use imagination. “[Music] is like imagination with reason,” Dai said. “To me, there is no necessary connection be-
tween science and music. Actually, it’s a very different form of thinking and appreciation. It’s really like a distraction, but I do believe we all need a distraction.” Preparing for conducting a chorus or orchestra takes a lot of time and practice, Dai said, which can be a serious distraction, but also gives him something to look forward to. “In a way, conducting to me is like a serious hobby,” Dai said. “So when people ask me I say, ‘I’m a very serious amateur.’ A lot of our hobby life, if you really want to enjoy, you really have to get into it. The more you put in, the more enjoyment you get.” * abricke1@temple.edu
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT BOUTIQUE, A MULTIPURPOSE SPACE
ALUMNUS SPEAKS AT TEDX AT PENN
Aoki Boutique sells curated products on S. 22nd Street. Owner and alumna Alina Alter opened the store in 2012. PAGE 14
Eric Corey Freed, an architect and Temple alumnus, recently spoke at the University of Pennsylvania for a TEDx event. PAGE 11
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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
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NIGHTLIFE
MUSIC JD MOUSLEY TTN
A collaborative effort for girls in Philly scene “Girls to the Stage,” is a tape and show to benefit music program, Girls Rock Philly. TIM MULHERN The Temple News
BRIDGING THE GAP Temple alumna Rachel Fogletto is challenging the gender gap in comedy with Comedy-Gasm!, her new show. The production features comedians and performers of varying races, genders and sexual orientations.
R
ALEXA ZIZZI The Temple News
achel Fogletto said she likes her style of comedy to “expose the absurdity” of gender roles. Fogletto, a 2007 Temple alumna, received her Master of Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania in 2010. Now, Fogletto works as a health center assistant by day, and as a comedian, writer and entertainer by night. She started her own show, Comedy-Gasm!, in 2013 with other local comedians and entertainers to create a “diverse group of voices to keep things spicy.” Fogletto hosts Comedy-Gasm! every third Saturday of the month at 114 Market St. in Old City, at The Irish Põl. Fogletto said she likes to feature local comedians of varying races, genders and sexual orientations to show different points of view. “I’ll try to make it like the straight white dude is the token instead of the other way around, because often times there will be only one female or one black person on a show, and that can be a thing depending on where it is in the city,” Fogletto said. She said when she first got into comedy, she noticed the lack of diversity at comedy shows. “When I first came into the scene, it seemed like every showcase was like that, just all the same kind of guys,” Fogletto said. “I feel like [the diversity] works better because you hear different perspectives.” “Otherwise all the jokes would be awkward guys talking about how they’re having a hard time getting laid,” she added. Comedy-Gasm! celebrated its two-year anniversary on April 18. Fogletto hosted and performed her own set and featured four other comedians, a comedic storyteller and a musician. Growing up, Fogletto had a background in dance and performing on stage, but not performing theatrically or vocally. She studied women’s studies, psychology and political science at Temple, and it wasn’t until after graduating that she be-
I feel like if you’re a woman, “ and you’re feminine and you tell a
joke about sex, men feel like they can say whatever they want to you personally – well guest what, no you can’t.
”
Rachel Fogletto | comedian and creator of Comedy-Gasm!
gan to perform poetry and storytelling, which then turned into comedy. She began to perform at local open mic nights and read poetry at the Erotic Literary Salon at the upstairs lounge of the restaurant Time on Sansom Street in Center City, a venue that holds monthly erotic-themed mic nights. “I always liked things that were edgy so I thought, ‘Why not
A&E DESK 215-204-7416
The soon-to-be-graduates of the University of the Arts, Rachel Dispenza and Lauren DeLucca, always knew female representation was lacking in the Philadelphia music scene. During their senior project, a compilation tape and show benefitting Girls Rock Philly, the two were made aware of the scope of the problem. “Girls to the Stage” is the compilation tape set for release at a show on April 29 at the First Unitarian Church. Proceeds from the tape and show will benefit Girls Rock Philly, a music education and self-empowerment program for women and girls in the Philadelphia area. “It means more to us than just being a senior project,” Dispenza, a senior music business, entrepreneurship and technology major, said. “It’s something we wanted to do.” The tape is a celebration of female musicians, bands and artists in the Philadelphia music scene. As residents of the DIY space Milhouse in South Philadelphia, Dispenza and DeLucca experience firsthand the lack of female representation within the scene. “The scene is very heavily male-dominated,” DeLucca, also a senior music business, entrepreneurship and technology major, said. “Being a woman involved in the scene, [I am] seeing bills for all these shows and there are no women on any of them. It’s reflected in the people who play and the people who show up to the shows. It’s sort of discouraging.” For Dispenza and DeLucca, donating the proceeds of the project to Girls Rock Philly was an easy decision. The money will fund scholarships for the organization’s summer
REPRESENTATION PAGE 11
exhibit
Diversity displayed in Tyler exhibit
“Victory for Tyler” is a biennial exhibition that showcases an assortment of Tyler alumni. ANGELA GERVASI The Temple News
read my dirty poetry here?’” Fogletto said. “But I always liked adding my own little dry, funny anecdotes to it and people really seemed to like it, so I decided to try stand-up comedy and have been doing it ever since,” she added. Fogletto said she considers herself a feminist and said her comedy stems from her personal life, which she translates into jokes that can relate universally to many people, especially women. As the comedy scene has been known to be generally maledominated, Fogletto said she uses her raw humor and sexual exploitations to challenge the gender gap. “I feel like if you’re a woman, and you’re feminine and you tell a joke about sex, men feel like they can say whatever they want to you personally – well guess what, no you can’t,” Fogletto said. Her personal view on feminism is that women should have the same opportunities as a male would have. This includes the right to feel safe doing those things, she said. “It’s important to acknowledge that it is different for us and what we have to deal with,” Fogletto said. “For example,
When speech pathologist and Tyler graduate Paula Cahill was working toward her master’s degree at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, she wanted to focus on painting the human figure. Her professors, she said, had an unexpected piece of advice for her. “They told me, ‘If you really want to learn to paint, paint a fish,’” Cahill said. “So I painted a fish.” Several piscine portraits later, Cahill found an interest in not only painting the structure of the fish, but in tracking its movement through the water. A Detroit native who grew up on swimming, boating and watching Jacques Cousteau videos, Cahill said it seemed natural that she developed a passion for marine painting. Cahill’s recent works have explored both aquatic subject matter and abstract style, which led to “Pink Sharks,” a painting that was featured in Victory for Tyler, an alumni exhibition series, in 2013. “My daughter, who took a high school marketing class always says, ‘Mom, you’re never
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VICTORY PAGE 11
JD MOUSLEY TTN
Kate Nyx performs at the two-year anniversary Comedy-Gasm show on April 18. Nyx joked about her past experiences as a burlesque dancer and camera girl during her performance.
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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DANCE
The project, a mandatory class during a dance major’s senior year, shows what dancers at Temple learn throughout their time at the university. The seniors are tasked with the concept of creating a graded eight-to-10 minute piece of their very own. This class is fit into a senior’s demanding and distinct schedule as part of Temple’s dance department. The goal is to equip seniors for what to expect in a demanding and competitive market outside of the university. Brissette, one of nine in the program during Spring 2015, shifts nervously offstage. These showings are dress rehearsals for each senior in their work thus far. Each showing is presented in front of the whole class and the adviser for the program. The lights go down and the dancers collectively inhale. They look into the few scattered pairs of eyes in the theater and then simultaneously bow their heads to start again. “OK, take a breath. I want to hear you breathing this time. From the top.”
THE PROGRAM
Senior dance majors at Temple call Dr. Kariamu Welsh, “Mama.” Welsh, a professor who has taught at Temple for the past three decades, specializes in African dance. She is the professor serving as the adviser for the Senior Choreographic Project this semester. “In the African dance tradition, when someone has reached a certain level of expertise, they give them the title ‘Mama,’” she said, laughing. “So yeah, they all call me Mama.” Welsh has overseen four classes of seniors in the program so far in her time at Temple. This semester will mark her 30th year at the university. The specifics of the program are highly detailed – each senior is required to do all the work it takes to put on a full show. This includes auditioning dancers, choreographing the piece, making programs, marketing the show to students, coordinating schedules for their dancers, buying costumes, choosing music or having it composed, among other requirements. The goal of the class, Welsh said, is just as much about the creative process as it is about the final performance. “I want them to have the ability to have what it takes to do anything creatively and the kind of intelligence it takes to work creatively not only in themselves, but others,” Welsh said. “I want them to be good citizens of the world. Regardless of their aesthetics, I want them to recognize skill and craft when they see it even if that’s not their own kind of craft.” “I think for us at the department, it’s a way for us to send them off to their next challenge as prepared as possible in terms of what to expect in the dance world,” she added. Danzel Thompson-Stout completed his Senior Choreographic Project last fall, a semester before his graduation date this May. The dance major and president of campus dance organization, Dare To Dance, titled his piece “Why Do We Try?” “Life constantly happens,” Thompson-Stout said while looking into a mirror in a Pearson Hall dance studio. “I wanted to create a piece that felt that way. And my dancers got it. I had them think about why we try every day. What are the things that make you wake up in the morning and push through and want to be positive and progress in life?” During the process of producing his Senior Choreographic Project last spring, ThompsonStout said he learned the most from working closely with his auditioned and carefully selected dancers. “That was the moment when I thought, ‘Wow, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life,’” Thompson-Stout said. “This is what I want to do. I want to continue to teach and guide and create work and do things for our community so that people have something to look forward to – something to live for. They have a reason to try.” Welsh said advising seniors over the years has allowed her to see more than just what dancers at Temple learn in four years, but the kinds of dancers the project molds. “For me,” Welsh said, “it’s a joy to teach them, to see their beauty, their inner strength, to see how these are going to be people to go out into the world and make some sort of change.
MARGO REED TTN
Freshman Annalise VanEven rehearses Camille Gamble’s Senior Choreographic Project at the first showing on February 27.
MARGO REED TTN
(LEFT): Kailey McCrudden and Danzel Thompson-Stout rehearse McCrudden’s Senior Choreographic Project at the second showing on March 20. (RIGHT): On Feb. 22 in Pearson Hall, senior Rebecca Brissette records Marina Di Loreto as she practices phrases for Brissette’s final piece.
That pleases me, it makes me optimistic. It brings me joy.”
WORKING TOWARD GRADUATION
On any average day during a semester, Brissette has eight to 10 hours of dance classes or rehearsals fit into her schedule. Sometimes, Brissette said she runs across campus with minutes to spare, jumping from a technique class in modern dance to a math class in a lecture hall with little time to warm up and cool down. “We literally have days where we’re running from class to class to class,” Brissette said. “It’s like, throw your clothes on and run back to class, take off regular clothes, put on dance clothes and warm up. It gets to be hectic.” Her situation is not rare among dance majors at Temple. Dancers typically bounce between General Education classes and dance-specific classes. Dodds said year after year she has to deal with scheduling problems because dance classes are “off the matrix,” or not on the set 50-minute or 80-minute class periods. “They don’t always realize [students] run from studio to class and universities don’t understand,” Dodds said. Dance classes are typically an hour-and-ahalf long, due to how long it takes a dancer to prepare their body to engage in strenuous activity. This situation, however, complicates dance majors’ abilities to form coherent schedules outside of the dance department. Sherril Dodds, the chair of the Department of Dance at Temple, said it is consistently a problem for students to piece together schedules that make sense for their bodies. “As well as turning up for classes, they’re
MARGO REED TTN
Junior Jessica McGlynn, a dancer in senior Rebecca Brissette’s piece, goes up on her toes during a technique class with Jillian Harris on April 1.
not just sitting still,” Dodds said. “They are doing lots of dancing, lots of physical activity. I think they have to really manage themselves very carefully. The same way you might have to look after a computer carefully, they will have to look after their bodies carefully.” Dancers, Dodds said, have to negotiate how they can manage their bodies as a tool in their classes and put an emphasis on eating regularly, sleeping well and not over-committing to other physical activity. Injuries typically occur with first-year dancers in the program, Dodds said, because they are not used to the rigorous amount of dance that Temple requires in the department. “What we try to do is give them opportunities to learn about body conditioning, safe practice for the dancer and all of our instructors do that,” she said. “But I think it takes a while for students to actually really learn those skills.” Jillian Harris, who specializes in technical dance as an adjunct professor and adviser for Brissette, said that dance students are “giving of themselves” in the studio. “You are projecting feeling and emotion,” Harris said. “That requires a tight connection to the mind body and soul. … You get addicted to this in a good way. It’s intoxicating. It can be devastating if you’re derailed.”
TEMPLE’S FINE ARTS REPERTOIRE
Before coming to Temple, Dodds worked at the University of Surrey in Guildford, England. The difference between Surrey and Temple, she said, is that the Philly program is more of a fine arts program. “Although students do reading, writing and thinking about dance, they also do a lot of that through studio work and students do have ambitions to be performers or choreographers,” Dodds said. Many of Temple’s dancers, Dodds said, go on to not just be instructors or run their own dance companies, but to be performers in the competitive market. “They’re not just puppets that can move really well, but they are thinking artists,” Dodds said. “That’s really where our emphasis is.” Harris said Temple aims to equip students to understand the “logic of a full performance.” “You have to be able to wear many different hats,” Harris said. “It’s not a field for someone who cannot multitask.” Temple’s program is distinctive for dancers because the department does not require students to choose what kind of genre to explore, but rather encourages all dancers to dabble in modern dance, ballet and African dance. On top of that, students take improvisation classes, composition classes and theory. Brissette said her experience with a nonlimiting program broadened her horizons to make “not only a well-rounded technical dancer, but an artist.”
“I think it’s a whole different way of looking at dance,” Brissette said. “It’s not just what your body can do, but what it means and what other people can take from it. ... I like that a lot about the program.” Thompson-Stout said individual mindsets and voices, rather than an overall necessity to be put into specific genres of dance, was what made his experience with Temple’s program successful for his artistic growth. “Dancing is more than just doing movement,” he said. “You’re telling a story, you’re putting yourself on the line. You’re making yourself vulnerable. You’re pretty much stripping yourself naked and saying, ‘Hey I’m here, this is me.’”
THE PHILADELPHIA DANCE MARKET
Brissette said after graduation, her entire career is up in the air. “I am in Philly into August, but once graduation happens, I am pretty much going to every audition I can get to and figuring out a job,” Brissette said. “It’s a little scary, but I know I’ll get something. I just don’t know what yet.” The competitive market in the United States these seniors are entering into has shifted from larger companies that hire full-time artists to what Dodds calls “pick-up companies.” These companies are often looking for “bright, young dancers who aren’t just able to dance in a particular way.” Jobs are often obtained after a period of freelance work. In Philadelphia, Dodds said dancers are sharing resources in collaborative ways, so that dance is kept alive for young artists. “I think Philadelphia is a really exciting place for dance,” Dodds said. “Philadelphia has a smaller population, but a real commitment to arts and culture. It’s much more collegial than some of the other bigger cities.” The problem with the job market, however, is not uncommon to the arts in society in general, Dodds said. “Dancers are always going to face the problem that arts aren’t well funded and well subsidized so they really have to carve out their own distinctive careers,” Dodds said. “Socially the arts aren’t valued enough.” Thompson-Stout said the culmination of the skills he learned during the past four years and the Senior Choreographic Project was essential to shaping his perspective as an artist and to understand himself. “I will look back at it to remind me of what I want to do,” he said. “I learned a lot from being here as a person, an artist, a man. My values are now more spiritual than statistic. I feel very well prepared.” The Senior Choreographic Project will be held in Conwell Dance Theater on the fifth floor of Conwell Hall on April 24 at 7:30 p.m., and April 25 at both 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. * emily.rolen@temple.edu T @Emily_Rolen
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015 Continued from page 9
COMEDY if I leave a show late at night, I have to worry about a safety element that a guy doesn’t have to deal with.” Fogletto said just like topics of racism and homophobia, feminist views on sexism intersects with opinions that vary from one person to another. “All these things are going to be different from woman to woman, but for me, it’s all about having the same opportunity and acknowledging that it’s a thing,” she said. In addition to Comedy-Gasm!, Fogletto is performing at various local events like comedic writing sketches, MC-ing and hosting burlesque shows and making YouTube videos. She formerly ran a feminist podcast with two other female comedians titled, “Wait,
Wut?” which she hopes to get back up and running in the future. Fogletto is performing in an upcoming two-week series presented by Touch Me Philly Productions called “Reasonable Fear,” a theatrical exploration of rape culture and street harassment. Her comedic sketch, “Catcall Me Maybe,” was performed on April 18 and will also be performed on April 25 with two other comedians as a satirical piece about a woman who turns the tables on her catcallers. The sketch is based off real-life experiences, as are most of Fogletto’s comedy sketches and stand-up material. “That’s just what we like to do,” Fogletto said. “Take the stuff that makes us angry or upset and kind of make a joke out of it from our perspective.” * alexa.zizzi@temple.edu
Victory for Tyler showcases alumni Continued from page 9
VICTORY
going to get anywhere. People don’t want pink sharks, sharks aren’t pink in the first place!’” Cahill said. “I just laugh,” she added. Currently, two more of Cahill’s pieces are on display at the Icebox Project Space in the 2015 Victory for Tyler event. A collection of 45 works by 23 alumni will represent Temple’s artistic legacies at the exhibition space on 1400 N. American St. until April 26. Before moving to Philadelphia, Cahill was not a painter. Her first painting – a still life of blue teacups on a printed cloth – remains in her kitchen, a reminder of the initiation of an art career that happened “later in life.” She visited art schools in the area and finally chose Tyler. “I called it my night degree. I did all my homework after they went to bed,” Cahill said, referring to her three children. Like Cahill, Carmichael Jones, another artist in the new Victory for Tyler alumni exhibition series, didn’t head to Tyler for a degree right away. A native of Chester, Pennsylvania, Jones studied music, photography and glass at several community colleges before attending Tyler in 2009. “I always knew I wanted to pursue art,” Jones said. “I just wasn’t sure if I wanted to go to college.” Jones became an undergraduate student at 28 when he entered Tyler – Temple is the only four-year university to which he’d ever applied. In 2013, he emerged with a
bachelor’s degree in glass, a medium that Jones said is demanding but widely versatile. “It requires your full attention and does not reward the half-hearted,” Jones said. The exhibition will showcase Jones’s installation, “Can’t you see the world is on fire?” The piece is a thick mass of pink Mongolian faux fur encased in a ceruleanpainted wooden frame. “[It] is the culmination of thoughts on joy, grief, existential anxiety, gender and sensory input,” Jones said. “It also comments on the tension between the handmade and the ready-made.” Molly Clark Davis, the director of alumni relations for Tyler, Boyer College of Music and Dance, the School of Media and Communication and the department of Film and Media Arts, said she finds the diversity of the exhibit noteworthy. “I love that it really represents alumni who graduated 30 years ago and alumni who graduated last May, so it’s really all-inclusive of Tyler,” Clark Davis said. For Anthony Elms, the juror for this year’s show, working with biennial exhibits is not an unfamiliar prospect. A current associate curator with the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania, Elms also co-curated the 2014 Whitney Biennial. This exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York has formerly promoted artists as iconic as Georgia O’Keeffe and Jackson Pollock. Elms chose 45 works out of 180 submissions from Tyler alumni. “It was my pleasure, because I like having an excuse
to look through things and to look over things and to be exposed to new work,” Elms said. “It’s something I actually sometimes feel I have not enough time to do.” One of the selected 45 works is a creation by Jacqueline Nowakowski, a 2013 graduate who holds a BFA in sculpture and is now a member of the Tyler Alumni Board of Directors. “Being a Tyler alumni and hearing that Anthony Elms was the picked juror for the show, I felt it would be foolish not to apply and give it a shot,” Nowakowski said. Her piece in the exhibit, a silent-video piece titled, “Careless Whisperer,” discusses a year in her childhood when Nowakowski gave up candy for lent, and promptly began an “all day, all night candy binge to the point of becoming physically ill” when Easter arrived. The piece involves candies molded into the shapes of Ken Dolls that Nowakowski owned as a child. Diversity in the Victory for Tyler show is present not only in its works, but in the stories of the creators. Jones said his art may be misunderstood, but a diverse show like Victory for Tyler provides a platform to learn about his art personally. “If you are going to dedicate your life to making art, I think it’s important to realize that no one is going to understand, as a whole, what you do,” Jones said. “That doesn’t mean you won’t be loved or supported or appreciated, but it does mean that you have to know when to stick to your guns.” * angela.gervasi@temple.edu
PAGE 11
Architecture alumnus talks sustaintanibility at TEDx event Eric Corey Freed, who runs organicARCHITECT, spoke at Penn’s TEDx event on April 12. COLTON TYLER SHAW The Temple News Eric Corey Freed has some bad news. In terms of sustainability, he said, life is depressing. “Not only are you doomed but you’re really doomed,” Freed said. “For the last 15 years I’ve been speaking publicly about it. Humor started creeping in almost as a coping mechanism for me. How do you deliver bad news to the audience and what would be the point of delivering all this bad news? How do I make it memorable and how do I make it actionable?” “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down,” he added. The West Philly native has published several books and runs organicARCHITECT in San Francisco, an architecture firm focused on fullscale sustainability and nature-focused, responsible building. The University of Pennsylvania hosted its TEDx event at the Zellerbach Theater at the Annenberg Center on April 12. Freed was one of the speakers at the event, discussing sustainable architecture. Osama Ahmed, a junior studying biophysics, statistics and business at Penn, was in charge of marketing and public relations for this year’s event. Being the first year the school has a full license for a TEDx program, the student-run organization responsible for curating the talks and facilitating the technical aspects looked to upscale the attendance and present heady and relevant ideas with speakers who had an important idea worth spreading, Ahmed said. “The whole thing with TED is that we want to make it a very curated, holistic event so the first and foremost thing is that, in some way, each of the speakers has to be connected with our theme,” he said. “So we look for someone with a very interesting idea, someone who we'd want to give a platform to for sharing that idea.” Ahmed said the committee whittled the list of 180 possible candidates over the past nine months of planning down to the 16 who took the stage on Sunday. Despite being their first year as
a fully licensed TEDx event, Freed said the organizers were hyper-organized, having him rehearse his talk three times. “I think that’s very important that we get to hear these transformative ideas which, right now, in some cases, may even seem crazy but they might very well be what the future looks like in 20 years,” Ahmed said. “I think it’s extremely important for there to be a platform at universities, at institutions, to highlight these ideas and we’re very proud that TEDxPenn is one of those platforms right now.” Ahmed said the response to posting Freed’s speaker bio on the event’s Facebook page “spoke to the fact that he did generate a lot of interest.” Freed's speech, nestled in the second round of talks within the theme of “Spark,” used humor to engage with the audience and convey his ideas of green architecture and sustainability. Between sessions and after his talk, Freed signed copies of his 11th book, “Green$ense for the Home: Rating the Real Payoff from 50 Green Home Projects” for those interested. The book details the intersection between affordability and environmental self-sufficiency, two ideas Freed said run inherently parallel. “Not only are [self-contained buildings] possible, they benefit the bottom line,” Freed said. “The operational costs of these buildings are so cheap that you can’t afford to ignore these ideas anymore.” During his time at Temple, Freed took classes at Temple’s Rome campus, which he said forever shifted his view of the world and of design. “I went from being this kind of very academic kid to going to Rome and applying these ideas and it made me realize how big and interesting the world is,” Freed said. “I would say the lessons at Temple Rome stick with me to this day so I couldn’t wait to get out of Philadelphia and get moving and explore the world.” Freed said his professors at Temple in architectural history, methods and materials of construction and mechanical and electrical helped bring such relevant sustainability ideas to life. “I think I was fortunate, specifically for those three classes, that I had professors that made what could have been a boring subject really interesting and really enlightening,” Freed said. He brought that same concept to the stage, he said, and to more than 100 talks he has given on the subject. * colton.shaw@temple.edu
COURTESY MARK GARVIN PHOTO
Eric Corey Freed is a graduate of the School of Architecture and is now the author of several books.
Compilation tape to benefit music program Continued from page 9
REPRESENTATION
camps. The organization hosts two weeks of summer camp. A sliding scale is used to determine tuition for campers on a case-by-case basis. “Most of the money that we raise through these kinds of benefits goes toward making our summer camp accessible to as many girls as possible,” said Diane Foglizzo, program director for Girls Rock Philly. “Every family decides for themselves how much they can afford to pay.” Foglizzo said that many of the organization’s volunteers and campers learned about Girls Rock Philly through projects like “Girls to the Stage.” Dispenza and DeLucca utilized the connections they made through their involvement in the scene while putting together the tape and benefit show. The tracks were recorded at Milkboy the Studio, where DeLucca is an intern, and Headroom Studio, where Dispenza is an intern. The tape will be released through Girls Cartel Records, a label run by Dispenza’s and DeLucca’s friend, Stephanie DiBona. Michelle Krysztofiak, a senior printmaking major at Temple, created the artwork for the tape. Krysztofiak knew Dispenza through the shows she books at Millhouse. “Rachel picked the name, ‘Girls to the Stage,’ in reference to the riot grrrl theme ‘Girls
to the Front,’” Krysztofiak said. “Usually I do illustrations, but I found these cool images of a flapper and this little country girl in some old advertisement. It just fit the theme.” Krysztofiak noted the importance of increasing the visibility of women in the scene. “It’s not necessarily a problem that needs to be fixed,” Krysztofiak said about the actual creation of art by women. “Females, or anyone that doesn’t go by heteronormative representation, are always creating. They are always there. It’s just constantly bringing [them] to the forefront.” Roya Weidman, a sophomore ceramics major, is one of six artists to contribute a track to the tape. Recording at Milkboy the Studio was a new experience for Weidman, who said she typically records her own music. “I’m used to doing everything myself and [so] I had to get used to [not] being afraid to tell someone else to do something if I wasn’t happy with it,” Weidman said. “That’s what they were there for.” Dispenza and DeLucca hope projects like “Girls to the Stage” initiate change within the scene. “We can do something to get people aware of [the problem],” DeLucca said. “You sort of inspire women to pick up an instrument and start a band.” * tim.mulhern@temple.edu
KARA MILSTEIN TTN
Lauren DeLucca (left) and Rachel Dispenza, the organizers of “Girls to the Stage,” a compilation and benefit show, look through albums at Creep Records on Record Store Day.
PAGE 12
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
JENNY KERRIGAN TTN
On April 18, the fifth annual Philly Tech Week began with a kickoff event at Dilworth Park. The event featured video games, local apps, drones, robots and a circuit keyboard made with lemons and limes that produced sound bites. PTW, which will be held April 18-25, is sponsored by Comcast and Technical.ly Philly as a celebration of innovation and technology.
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This is your chance to be heard and to create change! April 10 – April 29 esff.temple.edu
Find additional information at www.temple.edu/ira
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
FASHION
Boutique provides a new ‘creative community and sense of sisterhood’
OUT & ABOUT PHILADELPHIA SCIENCE FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR FIFTH YEAR
The Philadelphia Science Festival returns this spring for its fifth year of scientific celebrations and activities over the course of nine days. Events are hosted at various museums, libraries, galleries and restaurants throughout the city, including a huge Science Carnival to be held on The Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Activities include star-gazing during Astronomy Night, scientific labs and experiments during educator workshops, tours of historic scientific artifacts and locations, and much more. The festival runs April 24 to May 2. The free carnival will be held on the last day from 10 a.m to 4 p.m. -Alexa Zizzi
PORTSIDE ARTS FESTIVAL TO BE HELD IN FISHTOWN
BREE HANSTEEN TTN
Aoki Boutique, owned by Temple alumna Alina Alter, focuses on themes of femininity, world travel and street style.
PHILLY PHLASH LAUNCHES SEASON, EXTENDS SERVICE
Aoki Boutique in South Philly incorporates street style and international influences into its clothing, trinkets and original paintings. JENNY ROBERTS The Temple News Upon entering Aoki Boutique, customers can see strings of paper hearts, glowing fairy lights and the color turquoise cleverly accented throughout the store on South 22nd Street. After all, Aoki is a Japanese word, which means, “blue tree.” “I just thought it was a whimsical and quirky name and kind of suited the vision for my brand here,” said Alina Alter, Aoki’s owner and founder. Alter opened Aoki in 2012, just two years after she graduated from Temple with a tourism and hospitality management degree. This spring, Aoki celebrated its three-year anniversary. For the anniversary, Alter’s lifelong friend, Drew Feith Tye, sought to capture the essence of both Alter and Aoki in original paintings, which are currently on display throughout the boutique. “Whenever I walk into Aoki, I feel like I’m walking into [Alter’s] mind,” Tye said. “It’s interesting, it’s cultural, it’s eclectic, it’s strongly female, but also very open to all.” Alter’s own tastes have heavily influenced the overall vibe at Aoki, as well as the types of clothing, home décor and trinkets sold there. “I just kind of buy with an eye for my personal taste and kind of hope that translates,” Alter said. “It’s a little bit of everything. It’s very eclectic, but cohesive in a way.” Alter describes her personal style, which drives the vision behind Aoki’s products, as “feminine with an edgy kind of taste, very street style driven.” In fact, international street style inspires many of Alter’s product choices for Aoki. Alter draws creative inspiration from style and fashion in many countries like Iceland, South Africa, India and China. Alter said she has been especially influenced by the street style she saw in Tokyo during her time spent abroad at Temple’s Japan campus in the spring of her junior year. “They’re much more influenced by subculture, [like] the whole cosplay thing in Japan where they dress up in actual costumes,” Alter said. “[There is] a lot more risk-taking, a lot more mix and match [and] mixing prints.” Alter was charmed by this juxtaposition of bright colors with wild patterns and textures common to Japanese fashion, but also by the use of style as a means of expression. “[Americans] dress for comfort or to look cool, but not so much to send an actual message,” Alter said. “It’s just cool to see people really taking risks and really expressing sort of like a backlash against societal repression through fashion. It just really shows that style and fashion aren’t trivial.” Alter has continually strived to incorporate this notion of style and substance into the way Aoki operates. “I use [Aoki] as a multi-purpose space, not just a boutique,” Alter said. “It’s not just about making money for me here. It’s about fostering
BREE HANSTEEN TTN
Owner Alina Alter updates the clothing racks daily with her favorite clothing pieces.
a creative community and a sense of sisterhood.” Jordyn Shaffer, a local fashion blogger, began frequenting Aoki when the boutique first opened while she was a student at the University of Pennsylvania. Shaffer said Aoki can serve as a creative escape for young women. “Not only do the college students need a boutique like this, but [they] need a really amazing creative space like this,” Shaffer said. “I’m obsessed with the idea that every time I go into the store, I feel like I’m in a secret garden shopping.” Alter aims to foster this creative atmosphere by holding events at her boutique, like coloring parties and live painting. She also exhibits
It’s just cool to see people really “taking risks and really expressing
”
sort of like a backlash against societal repression through fashion. Alina Alter | owner of Aoki Boutique
the work of a different local female artist every few months, free of commission. Alter tries to use Aoki as a forum to creatively empower not only shoppers, but also local female artists, bloggers, stylists and designers alike. Aoki is very much a place where different styles, cultures and modes of expression converge. “[Alter] is so generous with her community and wants to collaborate and build relationships,” Tye said. “She gives women the opportunity and the space to explore their identities through fashion.” * jennifer.roberts@temple.edu
TRENDING IN PHILLY What’s happening this week in Philly – from news and event coverage to shows and restaurant openings. Based on Philly area: food, music, stores, etc. For breaking news and daily updates, follow The Temple News on Twitter @TheTempleNews.
Formerly known as the Lehigh Avenue Arts Festival, the Portside Community Arts Festival celebrates its eighth annual year by introducing its first year held at Penn Treaty Park in Fishtown. For the past seven years, Portside Arts Center hosted the community event on Lehigh Ave. and due to its growth, the organization has decided to relocate to a bigger venue with more events. The festival will include dozens of food trucks, artisan vendors, live music, workshops, a sculpture contest, children, teen, and adult art activities, and more. The event will be held April 25 from noon to 5 p.m. -Alexa Zizzi
900-POUND GORILLA STATUE AT PHILADELPHIA ZOO
@phillymag tweeted on April 17 that a new eco-friendly exhibit, “Second Nature: Junk Rethunk,” is on display at the Philadelphia Zoo featuring animal sculptures constructed of recycled materials. Highlights from the exhibit are a 13-pound, 900-foot gorilla constructed of car hoods and an 8-foot, 200-pound crocodile constructed of chewing gum.
Phlash, a tour bus service, will kick off its 2015 season on April 23 with free service for all riders through April 26. Phlash is a shuttle service designed for transportation to and from 22 Philadelphia attractions, historical sites and other points of interest. Standard admission is $2 per person, per ride or $5 for a day pass. Past Phlash seasons have run until Labor Day, but daily service is extended until Sept. 7 this year. Pickups along the route are every 15 minutes from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. -Tim Mulhern
“NOW NOW OH NOW” AT FRINGEARTS
Austin, Texas-based theater troupe Rude Mechanicals is presenting “Now Now Oh Now” at FringeArts from April 22-25. The show combines scientific themes with humor and mystery Each performance is limited to 30 audience members, who are encouraged to participate in the show by physically interacting with the performers. Tickets are $15 for students and anyone 25 and younger, and $25-36 for general admission. -Tim Mulhern
INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL DEBUTS LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS
From April 17-25, the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival will showcase a globally diverse array of filmmakers, as well as filmmakers based in the Philadelphia Area. The festival began eight years ago under Media Bureau, a Philly-based digital media agency. Since 2007 it has annually displayed dozens of submitted films in theaters, churches, outdoor locations and basements throughout the city. The films are categorized into 12 different genres, including “RealTime Documentary,” a category that is unique to the festival. This year’s nine-day festival will also include discussions on hotbutton topics ranging from social media trends to digital propaganda to crowdfunding for filmmakers. -Angela Gervasi
CHOP’S DAISY DAYS CAMPAIGN IN MAY
@ChildrensPhila tweeted on April 17 that anyone interested in getting involved for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Daisy Days Campaign can do so in a number of ways. Having begun more than a half century ago, the Philadelphia tradition continues with a month-long series of events in support of CHOP. People can also donate and start fundraisers for CHOP.
NEW LIVE NATION REPLACES FORMER AJAX METAL COMPANY
@phillydotcom tweeted on April 16 that the abandoned Ajax Metal Company factory in Fishtown is set to be redeveloped into two music venues that will make up a $32 million entertainment complex. The House of Blues Entertainment division of the live-events company Live Nation is running the project, which includes a 2500-personcapacity concert hall called the Fillmore Philadelphia and a separate Foundry club, among other additions. Completion is set for this fall.
EXHIBIT TO DISPLAY TRASH COLLECTED
@phillynewsnow tweeted on April 19 that a new exhibit is opening on April 22, Earth Day, at the Fairmount Water Works. The exhibit, called “One Man’s Trash,” was created Bradley Maule, who spent the last year of 2014 collecting litter in Fairmount Park. “One Man’s Trash” will run until June 26 and will be free to the public.
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
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PAGE 15
THE DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS IS PROUD TO PRESENT THE
2015 DIAMOND AWARD WINNERS Each year the Division of Student Affairs presents a select group of students with the Diamond Award. It is the highest recognition given by the Division to deserving juniors and seniors who exhibit leadership, academic excellence, service, and impact on the campus, community, and the world.
Katherine Ament School/College: College of Liberal Arts, School of Environmental Design Major: Environmental Studies Hometown: Swarthmore, PA Thomas M. DiAgostino School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Spanish, Women’s Studies Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Alexandra M. Fleming School/College: College of Liberal Arts, School of Media and Communications Major: Communications, Italian Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Lindsey M. Hildebrand School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Psychology Hometown: York, PA Tyler M. Horst School/College: School of Media and Communications Major: Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media, Spanish Hometown: Lititz, PA Jenelle Janci School/College: School of Media and Communications Major: Journalism Hometown: Alpha, NJ Molly T. Lawrence School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Political Science Hometown: Media, PA Bokun Li School/College: School of Media and Communications Major: Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media Hometown: Philadelphia, PA
Madeline E. Luebbert School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: English, Spanish Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Kelly I. McArdle School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Greek and Roman Classics Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Gaelen McCartney School/College: Tyler School of Art Major: Fibers & Materials Studies Hometown: Newburgh, NY Lori B. Moore School/College: College of Health Professions and Social Work Major: Kinesiology Hometown: Chambersburg, PA Kevin J. Murray School/College: School of Media and Communications Major: Theater Hometown: Langhorne, PA Nadia C. Ouazzi School/College: School of Media and Communications Major: Communications Hometown: Mountainside, NJ Kristine M. Polizzano School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Psychology Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Charles Ries School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Criminal Justice Hometown: Havertown, PA
Alexa B. Segal School/College: College of Health Professions and Social Work Major: Public Health Hometown: Doylestown, PA Julie E. Seidman School/College: College of Liberal Arts, School of Media and Communications Major: Communications, Russian Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Katey S. Steinberg School/College: College of Science and Technology Major: Biology, Spanish Hometown: Huntingdon Valley, PA Melissa S. Tucker School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Criminal Justice Hometown: Lansdale, PA Jenna L. Wandishin School/College: Tyler School of Art Major: Architecture Hometown: Monmouth Junction, NJ Elizabeth A. Yazvac School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Political Science Hometown: Monroeville, PA Alisha N. Zafar School/College: Media and Communications Major: Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media, Spanish Hometown: Newton, PA
Nathan T. Rost School/College: College of Liberal Arts Major: Neuroscience; Cellular and Molecular Hometown: Philadelphia, PA
Awards will be given on Wednesday, April 29, 2015 at the Diamond Awards Ceremony at 5:30 pm in the Student Center, Room 200.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2015 DIAMOND AWARD WINNERS!
PAGE 16
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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
PAGE 17
Professor uses horticulture knowledge to build rain garden Dr. Mary Myers, an associate professor of landscape architecture and horticulture, built an extensive rain garden in her own front yard. FINNIAN SAYLOR The Temple News Dr. Mary Myers turned her front yard into an experiment. In Spring 2012, Myers, an associate professor of landscape architecture and horticulture, built a 200-square-foot rain garden in her front yard to absorb excess storm water on her property, much of which comes from her roof, she said. Drawing from her experience as a landscape architect, Myers said she wanted to ensure the garden would sustain both function and form. She incorporated 153 native plantings into the design. In Fall 2014, Anne Raver of The New York Times wrote an article about her rain garden after Doug Tallamy, a colleague of Myers’ at the University of Delaware, made the publication privy to Myers’ green efforts. In Myers’ northern suburb of Wyncote, she said neighbors often pass by the rain garden and say, “Oh, it’s really beautiful.” As a professor of sustainable design, Myers examined her own property and questioned what she could do to incorporate methods of sustainable design into her suburban landscape. She said she asked herself, “What can I do to walk the walk and talk the talk?” Her rain garden is comprised of a series of 18-inch ponds that hold the storm water on her property. According to Myers, houses, roads, sidewalks and so on, fragment the sprawling landscape of the earth. The hydrologic cycle, a vitally important biogeochemical cycle of the Earth, is highly contingent upon the proper absorption of water into the soil and plants, which is then released back into the atmosphere. However, as a result of ‘urban sprawl,’ much of the Earth’s soil is covered with hardscape – like homes or roads – Myers said, and water is not absorbed properly. The hydrologic cycle “is a very healthy cycle until it’s disrupted,” Myers said. The ponds and the plantings she selected for the garden aim to promote the natural cycles of the earth and serve as
a means by which to increase biodiversity on her lot. Upon moving into her home in 2005, Myers said she found only 23 different species of plants on the property – 70 percent of those plantings were non-native. When researching plantings that would best suit her rain gardens, Myers said she focused not only on regionally native plantings, but also plantings that are native to the U.S. Myers said her property now hosts 153 unique species, 85 percent of which are indigenous to the U.S. From a local nursery, she selected wetland plants that absorb water and release it back into the atmosphere. “People like to look at it [the rain garden] because it’s constantly changing,” Myers said. She said the plantings selected have flourished in the wet environment and create a beautiful sight. “The majority of homeowners want and think they need a green, grassy lawn,” said Professor Bess Yates who teaches Green vs. Grey Urban Ecology. “They’re great for recreation and picnics. But unfortunately are very financially and environmentally expensive to maintain.” Implementing and installing sustainable landscape features like Myers’ rain garden could be advantageous for homeowners at different levels, Yates said. “Philadelphia … has a special problem with stormwater, because it causes overflows from the combined sewer system,” said Dr. Daryl Carrington, who co-instructs a sustainable design course with Myers. “Managing stormwater with green infrastructure is substantially less expensive in first cost and maintenance cost than sewer systems.” As both Myers and Carrington discuss in their classes, understanding the processes of the earth and learning how to work with the earth to promote its healthy function is vital to maintaining the garden. Implementing green infrastructure like a rain garden can help reduce stormwater problems. Myers said her mother, an ecologist, taught her to love the environment. Myers said she and her siblings were encouraged to play outside and were encouraged to interact with their environment. Myers studied landscape architecture at the University of Wisconsin, completed graduate studies at Harvard University and obtained her Ph.D. from Heriot-Watt University in Scotland. “Dr. Myers is a leading researcher in understanding and measuring the benefits ecological services provide,” Carrington said. * finnian.saylor@temple.edu
Student attempts second world record Continued from page 7
BAKER
“The liver is scarred from birth,” Baker said. “You’re pretty much born with a fluke.” Because he was often in and out of the hospital for blood work, Baker said he frequently missed school. Doctors prescribed him 22 pills a day, he said. Though he said he was able to live a relatively normal childhood, he was barred from playing contact sports because of his enlarged spleen. Baker said he went through a phase of denial when he was about 11 years old. He would repeatedly tell himself, “I’m not sick. I’m not sick.” He said his attitude further affected his health and his energy. In May 2013, Baker was told he had liver failure. “Once you’re told your liver is failing [and] you have 60 days to live, you see yourself melting away until you get a new liver,” he said. The Living Legacy Foundation worked closely with John Hopkins Hospital to push Baker toward the top of the transplant list and identified a match for him. He said the transplant gave him an appreciation for life and that he “had a heart for giving back.” ADVERTISEMENT
A year after his successful 13-hour transplant, Baker was diagnosed with posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease, or PTLD. Baker said it’s a type of cancer that only 1 percent of all transplant recipients get. He added that he is currently in remission. If he can go another year without a resurgence, he said he will be deemed cancer free. The Night Razors received many donations to aid their efforts. Razor, the company that makes the scooters, donated scooters and jerseys, and Baker said other companies sent cameras. The group doesn’t earn money through Guiness, but they were able to raise more than enough through YouCaring. Not only did they beat the longest distance traveled on a scooter record by 18 miles in May 2014, they were also able to raise enough money to pay off expenses and to donate $7,000 to the Living Legacy Foundation. The Night Razors are currently beginning to fundraise for the Slip ‘N Slide event. Although Baker is excited for the event, he was just released from John Hopkins after having his spleen monitored for a little over a week. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to slide, so we’ll have to wait and see,” Baker said. * jane.babian@temple.edu
HARRISON BRINK TTN
Ride Indego installed a bike stand at the intersection of 13th Street and Montgomery Avenue, across from the Student Center.
Ride Indego stations come to Main Campus On April 23, the Ride Indego bikeshare system will become available for city-wide use. SHANNON HURLEY The Temple News Ride Indego, Philadelphia’s new bike share program, is set to launch on April 23 with stations in more than 60 locations throughout the city – three of which will be on or close to Main Campus. The bike docks will be available from University City in West Philadelphia to the Navy Yard and from South Philadelphia to its northernmost locations around Temple. According to the official Ride Indego website, locations “were selected based on proximity to community resources, employment centers, bike infrastructure and transit in consultation with partner agencies, institutions, community groups and the public.” One bike share is located on 10th and Berks streets, next to the Temple
University SEPTA Regional Rail station. Another can be accessed on the corner of 13th Street and Montgomery Avenue, across from the Howard Gittis Student Center. A third bike station is located on the edge of Main Campus at the intersection of Broad and Oxford streets outside of the Fresh Grocer. Nina Hoe, a postdoctoral fellow for Temple’s Institute for Survey Research, worked with the Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Utilities to conduct a market test to predict how the bike share program will function on campus. “I think it will have a great impact to help students be able to easily access other neighborhoods in Philadelphia that have typically been more difficult to access,” Hoe said. Each Ride Indego station includes a touchscreen kiosk, where a credit card or an Indego membership key can be used to pay for a bike. Non-members can pay per trip at $4 every half hour. More frequent users can purchase an IdegoFlex or Indego30 membership for better deals. * shannon.hurley@temple.edu
LIFESTYLE
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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
AROUND CAMPUS CAMPUS SAFETY SERVICE TO HOST FOOD DRIVE
Campus Safety Services is hosting a canned food and non-perishable goods drive in support of the AMOS Recreation Center New Community Food Bank located at the intersection of 16th and Berks streets. Examples of possible donations include peanut butter, jelly, breakfast cereal, hot cereal or macaroni and cheese. Locations for drops off include 1101 W. Montgomery Ave., Temple Towers, Morgan Hall, 1300 Residence Hall, 1940 Residence Hall, Peabody Hall, Johnson and Hardwick Halls, White Hall, the Student Center, Tuttleman Learning Center, the Community Education Center and the police headquarters on 1801 N. 11th St. The drive will run until April 24. No registration is required. -Jessica Smith
NORTH CENTRAL VICTIMS SERVICES TO HOST TABLE
GRACE WILSON TTN
WALKING THE RUNWAY
On April 15, the Fox School of Business’ Center for Student Professional Development held its fourth annual “Work Your Wardrobe: A Fashion Show for Young Professionals.” The event was held in Alter Hall and featured outfits styled and worn by business students, which featured different types of attire like business casual, business executive casual and business professional attire. Audience members could vote on the best outfits.
Temple grad finds success in law career Temple graduate Marilou Watson was recently appointed chair of a diversity committee. FINNIAN SAYLOR The Temple News Marilou Watson, a 1991 Temple graduate, was recently appointed chair of the Montgomery Bar Association’s Diversity Committee. But Watson said she’s come a long way to get where she is today. “I ran up against my share of brick walls, but I refused to give up,” Watson said. Watson was raised by a single mother of four in West Philadelphia, where finances were tight, but her mother always stressed the importance of higher education for her children, she said. Now, Watson wants to share the same message with others. In 2013, she created the Day in Court program, which gives local high school students the opportunity to observe court proceedings, explore a career in law and learn about the functions of the judicial system. The Day in Court program affords students the opportunity to meet legal figures like judges, investigators and the public defender. This year, the program took place on April 13. Fifty students from Cheltenham High School attended. Last year, 95 students from Lower Merion High School attended the event. Watson also works as a patent practitioner – she practices law in regard to the patenting process of the medical industry. As an undergraduate at Temple, she attained a degree in biology.
She continued at Temple with pharmacy, and she went on to law school at Villanova. Her career is a unique intersection of pharmacy and law, she said. She has received numerous awards that acknowledge her successes, like the Temple’s Gallery of Success Award in 2010 and the Minority Business Leader Award in 2014, as presented by the Philadelphia Business Journal. In 2013, she delivered the commencement address at Temple’s School of Pharmacy. Watson said she praises Temple for the opportunities it provided her. Dr. Peter Doukas, now the dean of the School of Pharmacy at Temple, instructed a course Watson took as a pharmacy student: Medicinal Chemistry.
She was and is the “ Temple mission made
manifest, overcoming obstacles to create a better future for herself.
”
Dr. Peter Doukas | Dean of the School of Pharmacy
“I thoroughly enjoyed the class, so much that I took his advanced medicinal chemistry class,” Watson said. “He made that class so interesting.” Doukas said he acclaims Watson for her determination and scholarship as a student at the pharmacy school. “She exhibited a singular maturity about her studies and was able to balance the expectations
of a demanding academic program with an intense work schedule outside of school,” Doukas said. “She was, and still is, a model of focused energy and commitment to a worthy outcome for herself and for others.” Watson said faculty members like Doukas made her experience at Temple fulfilling. “Indeed, she was and is the Temple mission made manifest, overcoming obstacles to create a better future for herself as well as others who come within her orbit of activity,” Doukas said. Watson said she always admired Temple for its proximity to her home and for its reputation, so she pursued it. Even though her mother was working two jobs, her family did not have the funds to send her to college, but a conversation with the financial aid office at Temple changed that, Watson said. “I distinctly remember having a conversation with someone in the financial aid department,” Watson said. “She asked me, had I ever heard of the Russell Conwell program, and I had not.” She said she applied for the program and became a Russell Conwell student – her tuition fees were completely covered. “That moment was really a pivotal moment in my life and, frankly, a game changer,” Watson said. “[Temple is] like a family, it’s not just an institution,” Watson said. * finnian.saylor@temple.edu
English class centers on ‘Lord of the Rings’
ALUMNUS TO PERFORM SHOW
Temple alumnus Danny Alotta will perform his one-man show, “Joy Juice: A Young Man’s Story About Chemo, Cancer & Good Fortune,” tonight in the Great Court of Mitten Hall. Alotta’s tale follows a young man who gets diagnosed with cancer during his senior year of high school. Alotta has previously established the Joy Juice Foundation, which provides fashion makeovers for teens with cancer. A reception for the show will be held from 5-6 p.m., and the performance and book signing will take place from 6-8:30 p.m. -Jessica Smith
EARTH DAY FUN RUN TO BE HELD WEDNESDAY
The College of Engineering and Temple’s chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering are sponsoring the 2015 Earth Day Fun Run tomorrow at noon. The run will begin at the intersection of 13th Street and Polett Walk. Runners will receive a free T-shirt for participation. While this is a free event, registration is required at engineering.temple.edu. The run is open to all students, faculty, staff and alumni. -Jessica Smith
OFFICE OF SCHOLAR DEVELOPMENT TO HOST EVENT
The Office of Scholar Development and Fellowships Advising is hosting “Scholarships and Fellowships 101: Strategies for Finding and Winning Funding,” tomorrow from 4-5 p.m. in Suite 201 of the Tuttleman Learning Center. This session will help students and alumni find competitive opportunities and scholarships. Both undergraduate and graduate students are welcome. -Jessica Smith
Continued from page
TOLKIEN
erything. “It’s easy to fall behind, so I will slam on the breaks from time to time,” Ervin said. Ervin said he has received a positive reaction from students in the two semesters he has taught the Tolkien course. He said students have been enthusiastic and interested in the material. With students who are engaged in the literature, Ervin said there is a “willingness to understand the surface of what’s behind the works.” “A great conversation can make books even more exciting,” he said. Ost said she feels that Ervin’s class is not in danger of ruining Tolkien for students because of the workload. “In the hands of a great teacher, you come out wanting more,” Ervin said. “You’re more excited by the text.” In-class discussions include topics like racism and sexism in Tolkien’s works, and Ervin said the class often has intelligent discussions that do not often end in a consensus. Because Tolkien’s works are still popular today, Ervin is able to
The North Central Victims Services will host an information table, called “Help Bring a Voice to Victims’ Rights,” through April 23 from 1-4 p.m. in the Student Center atrium. The participants will distribute information about victims’ rights and services, encourage attendees to sign up for newsletters and win prizes. Temple’s student-run radio station, WHIP, will host a discussion with North Central Victims Services and Women Organized Against Rape Tuesday and Wednesday from 9-10 a.m. The events are part of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, sponsored by the Department of Criminal Justice undergraduates. Both events are free and open to all. -Jessica Smith
WRIGHT STATE UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR TO SPEAK
HARRISON BRINK TTN
Professor Ervin speaks with freshman Sebi Santiago-Rivas about “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”
use various forms of media to examine the texts. Recently, his students played the video game “Middleearth: Shadow of Mordor” and discussed whether or not the game was faithful to Tolkien’s ideas.
Beyond teaching, Ervin is a book critic and published fiction writer, and said these occupations help him as a professor. “I have some sympathy for the decisions an author makes on the
page,” Ervin said. “We want to remember the authors we’re reading are human beings.” * vince.bellino@temple.edu
Dr. Jonathan Winkler will present the final Center for the Study of Force & Diplomacy colloquium of the semester on Thursday from 3:30-5 p.m. Winkler’s discussion, “The Historical Roots of the Snowden Revelations,” will describe the steady development of the global communications grid. Winkler believes the “grid” is overlooked and essential to understanding the recent revelations about the NSA’s monitoring of global communications. Winkler is an associate professor of history at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. The colloquium will take place on the ninth floor of Gladfelter Hall. -Jessica Smith
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
SPORTS
PAGE 19
SPORTS BRIEFS
Walker, Owls set sights on spring game April 23-25.
-Tyler DeVice
GOLF THIRD-PLACE FINISH CAPS REGULAR SEASON
The golf team placed seventh in the Wolfpack Spring Open on Sunday, the final round of the two-day competition. The Owls finished the tournament at 24-over par, collectively. While Temple shot a 26-over a week ago at the Princeton Invitational, the Owls placed second in that event. Junior Brandon Matthews finished at 3-under 68 for the tournament en route to placing third overall, snapping his run of three consecutive tournament victories. In Sunday’s final round, Matthews carded the second-lowest score of the day at 4-under par. “There were a lot of putts from about five to 12 feet for birdie that I didn’t make but I was still very happy with the way I played,” Matthews said. Senior Matt Teesdale ended the event as Temple’s No. 2 finisher, ending in a tie for 22nd at 3-over. The tournament, hosted by North Carolina State, marked Temple’s final regular-season event. The Owls will compete April 26-28 in the American Athletic Conference Championship in Lecanto, Florida. -Greg Frank MARGO REED TTN
Redshirt Freshman defensive lineman Michael Dogbe lines up against the offense during the football team’s spring practice last Saturday at Chodoff Field. The Owls annual Cherry and White game is set to be held next Saturday.
OWLS NEAR CHERRY AND WHITE GAME
Temple is nearing the end of its 15 NCAA-mandated spring practices, which will conclude this weekend with the annual Cherry & White game at the Edberg-Olson Complex. The Owls, who began their spring schedule on March 23, will have practiced 14 times before the 1 p.m. kickoff at the facility’s Chodoff Field. The team will practice a final time on Friday before the Cherry & White game. The university will host a pregame street fair at 11 a.m. that will include music, food, clowns and face painters among other attractions. Gates will open at noon, and all fans will have free admission. In last season’s spring game, the White team defeated the Cherry team by the score of 10-9 at Cardinal O’Hara High School. -Michael Guise
TRACK & FIELD TRACK DUO SETS NEW TEMPLE RECORDS
Two new Temple records were recorded by the pair of graduate-junior Blanca Fernandez and senior Jenna Dubrow at the Larry Ellis Invitational at Princeton, New Jersey on Friday. Fernandez’s time of 2 minutes, 8.15 seconds in the 800-meter run broke the previous school record of 2:08.34 set by Victoria Gocht back in 2011. Fernandez’s performance awarded her sixth in the event, finishing first among collegiate runners. This is the fourth Temple record Fernandez has added to her collection of performances, now including the outdoor 800 and 1,500, along with the indoor 1,500 and 3,000. Dubrow’s 5,000-meter time of 16:58.84 shattered her own record of 17:17.77 that she set back in 2012. Dubrow’s performance awarded her 15th place in the event. The next event for the Owls will be the Penn Relays, the biggest meet of the regular season, which will take place from
GOLF OWLS COMPETE IN KERR CUP
The rowing team’s Varsity 8 boat had its lineups shuffled prior to the Kerr Cup, but that didn’t stop it from capturing a silver medal at the Kerr Cup on Saturday. Coxswain Kelsey Franks led the Owls to a heat victory, but Drexel eventually topped Temple, who finished in 6 minutes, 57:35 seconds, in the grand finals to swipe gold. The Varsity 4 A boat solidified a spot in the finals by winning its heat in 7:38.41, and took a silver medal with a mark of 8:01.19 behind Lafayette. The Varsity 4 B boat had the fifth-slowest time out of 16 Varsity 4 competitors as it slipped out of contention for the finals. In novice action, the Owls’ Novice 8 boat took gold with a mark of 7:58.31. Next week, the Owls look to compete again on the Schuylkill at the Kelly Cup City Championship. -Danielle Nelson
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SPORTS
PAGE 20
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
MARGO REED TTN
Junior captain and defender Kara Stroup defends against Villanova junior attacker Kelsey Denihan during the Owls’ 9-7 loss to Villanova last Wednesday at Geasey Field.
LACROSSE
Owls eliminated from postseason on Senior Day
The lacrosse team’s four conference losses knocked it out of tournament consideration this season. MATTHEW COCKAYNE The Temple News
Last Wednesday afternoon, as the sun shone brightly on Geasey Field, the four graduating seniors on the Temple women’s lacrosse team walked to midfield with their parents to take pictures. Captain defenders Molly Seefried and Carli Fitzgerald, attacker Macie Hauck, and goalkeeper Rachel Hall smiled for the camera, wearing their home jerseys for the final time. Two hours later, the Owls dropped a 9-7 contest to conference foe Villanova,
eliminating them from the playoff race. “I haven’t really thought of it [like it is my last home game] yet,” Hauck said following the game. “I don’t know. I really expected to be going past more games, and there are a lot of emotions right now. I think that for the end of the season we need to come together and finish out strong.” Seefried was sidelined this spring with recurring concussion symptoms that stem from a blow to the head in the team’s final game of the fall season. Seefried, who is taking a limited number of credits due to her injury, is not considered a full-time student. Due to NCAA regulations, the former fulltime starter is barred from attending any team functions. She was a vital part of Temple’s defense in 2014, causing 10 turnovers
and finishing second on the team with 23 ground balls. Hall, a Mullica Hill, New Jersey native, served as the backup goalkeeper to junior Jaqi Kakalecik this season, appearing in three games this season and recording three saves. After she started the first six games of 2014, and picked up one win during that stretch, the team decided to switch to Kakalecik in net. Fitzgerald, who hails from Abington, has been a key member of the Temple defense this year, collecting 17 ground balls and causing nine turnovers. She has played in nine out of 14 games in 2015, and is part of the Owls’ five-player defensive rotation. Hauck, a Hatfield, Pennsylvania native, has played in each game this season as the team’s lone senior attack-
er, tallying nine goals and four assists. Junior Nicole Tiernan talked about the impact the four seniors have had on her. “I have loved playing with all the seniors on this year’s team,” Tiernan, the team’s leading goal scorer, said. “I am a junior, so I haven’t known anything other than them. Having them here with us now is bittersweet because we know how soon they have to leave. Carli, Macie, Rachel, and Molly are such important parts to our team. They are all so important to us.” “They brought a lot of leadership and experience,” junior captain and defender Kara Stroup added. “Their class has gone through a lot, and I definitely look up to a lot of those players for a number of different reasons.” With only four players graduating
this year, including two who aren’t part of Temple’s regular lineup in Seefried and Hall, the Owls could feature an experienced rotation next spring. While the team was mathematically eliminated from Big East Conference tournament eligibility following the defeat to Villanova, coach Bonnie Rosen said she wants her team to continue improving through the last two games. “We are playing to finish out the season as strong as can be,” Rosen said. “Right now, I will take winning [our last two games] and getting better. We have [improved] this season and we also have to get better. This entire team returns pretty much for next year, but we’re playing as much for now as we are for the future.” * matthew.cockayne@temple.edu
tennis | season wrap-up
Despite tourney loss, women’s tennis sets new school record The women’s tennis team posted a 19-win season, stealing the all-time win record for the program. DALTON BALTHASER The Temple News After two seasons of sub-.500 finishes, the women’s tennis team capped a breakout season with a historyclinching rally. Wrapping up the regular season with 18 wins, the squad dropped its first three matches to Cincinnati in the American Athletic Conference championships last Wednesday, and nearly said goodbye to the prospect of reaching a single-season mark of 19 wins. Stuck in that three-goal deficit, the Owls rallied off four straight singles wins from freshmen Alina Abdurakhimova, Monet Stuckey-Willis, Yana Khon and sophomore Anais Nussaume. They went on to win 4-3, in turn, breaking the school record for wins in a season set by Temple teams in 1987 and 1989. “I am really happy for our girls,” senior Rebecca Breland said. “We worked really hard for this, and we came together for this. This is a true team record. As a team, we wanted to
be around each other and I felt that this year we were all about the team atmosphere … we worked our butts off.” A team consisting of seven underclassmen and three upperclassmen reeled off seven consecutive victories to break the 27-year-old record. The Owls start five underclassmen in singles, while its Top 3 players, statistically, are freshmen. “To have the most wins in a Temple women’s tennis season is a great accomplishment,” coach Steve Mauro said. “Breaking the record with a lineup that consists mostly of underclassmen is remarkable. This just shows that there are good things to come from this program.” The main reason for the team’s success this season comes from Mauro’s recruiting class of Stuckey-Willis, Abdurakhimova and Khon. The freshman trio has amassed a 56-21 record in singles this season and posted a combined doubles record of 30-17. “I would say [Khon, Abdurakhimova and Stuckey-Willis] were the backbone of our team this season,” Mauro said. “For next year, having them a year older, and with a full season under their belts, bodes well for our team. I feel that next year we can be a better team in our conference.” Mauro’s squad didn’t lose backto-back matches all season, and had
two separate winning streaks of six or more matches, the latter being the seven-game run that ended with a seasonending loss to No. 2-seeded Tulane in a second-round conference-tournament matchup. “We had strong team chemistry,” Mauro said. “All of the girls enjoyed being around one another whether it was at team meals or community ser-
“This season could be described as an ambitious season,” Stuckey-Willis said. “Everyone wanted to perform at their best and I think that we did that. Everyone wanted to improve during the season and we did.” The Owls finished with a 19-7 record (1-5 The American). While the team struggled in conference play this season, Mauro said the trials his team
I’m really happy for our girls. We worked “ really hard for this, and we came together for this. This is a true team record. ” Rebecca Breland | senior
vice. When you are enjoying one another’s company, it makes for a better atmosphere. I believe that is another reason for achieving 19 wins, because if the team is unhappy, then you won’t play well together.” The women’s team is expected to return all players from this season excluding Breland, who will graduate in May. As the year comes to a close, Stuckey-Willis said the team’s historic season represented its willingness to take a chance.
faced during its conference schedule could spark an improvement for next season. “I think now we feel that we can compete with any of our conference opponents now after two seasons in The American,” Mauro said. “I think a year’s more experience for our freshmen will make a huge difference because they now know what it takes to win. They have improved so much this season and we are looking forward to next year. We can be a special team next season.”
The men’s team, meanwhile, finished the season with a 15-10 record, but struggled against stiff competition, posting a 2-9 record against nationally ranked and conference opponents. Unlike the women’s squad, the men’s team consists of seven upperclassmen and four underclassmen. The Owls will return all players except for senior Hernan Vasconez, who missed the spring semester due to injury. The Owls finished the season at 8-0 on their home courts, but struggled on the road, compiling an 8-9 record away from home against teams like No. 21-ranked South Florida and No. 49 Memphis. In the future, players are looking to use this year’s conference tournament as a stepping stone. “The experience that the guys have after playing against a lot of tough competition will help,” Mauro said. “In the past we never really played top ranked teams and in some years we didn’t play any. We are giving the guys the opportunity to play against the best players in the country and hopefully they will want to improve to compete better.” * dalton.balthaser@temple.edu T @DaltonBalthaser
SPORTS
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
PAGE 21
Forde to finalize relay team for upcoming Penn Relays Continued from page 22
RELAYS
[and] when it comes to a relay, you have to do a lot of things together so you have that chemistry when it’s time to run.” Due to the high demand for top relay runners, it is typical for more than four athletes to compete for spots on a relay. Relays can change each week and are seldom set in stone, and that is something St. Fleur said she understands. “Track in general is all about pressure,” St. Fleur said. “Everyone is always watching you [and] you have to be on your ‘A game’ every single week. I like the thrill of knowing that someone can take my [relay] spot, it just makes me want to work that much harder.” “A relay team only fits four, but there are about six of us who compete for a spot,” senior Kiersten LaRoche added. “It’s constant motivation, constant pushing each other and [the fact that] somebody can always come in and take your spot, and that just makes you hungrier.” LaRoche made her way onto the 4x400-meter relay team after mostly competing solo throughout the winter season, and said relay competition brings about a different form of pressure to perform well. “When it comes to the relay, you want to do well for your team,” LaRoche said. “You always want to be in the best shape and bring about a good and strong leg for the relay.” Coming down to the last days before competition, Forde
AARON WINDHORST TTN
The women’s track & field team convenes following a practice on April 1 at the Geasey Field Complex.
said he hopes that the chemistry he has helped the teams build throughout the year will allow them to perform even better
than the 2014 Penn Relays. In the end, however, Forde said it’s going to come down to how much the athletes want to
win.
“I’m looking forward for them to be better than what they were last year,” Forde said. “It’s
not so much what I do in terms of putting them through training, it’s their desire. They have to have a desire to be success-
ful.” * tyler.device@temple.edu
Defensive members expect sustained success Continued from page 1
Continued from page 22
with Temple and its football team in January 2014. Earlier this semester, the NCAA granted Martin-Oguike’s request for a sixth year of eligibility, now giving him two remaining collegiate seasons to prove his worth on the pass rush. He’s come a long way. Before his return to the program last year, Martin-Oguike was entrenched in a battle that would cost both him and his family substantial amounts of time and money. “I was just confused,” MartinOguike said. “That was the main thing. I was just confused. I didn’t know why she would say something like that.” “Everything was spinning,” he added. “It was a mess.” As the case was set to enter its first day of trial on Oct. 7, 2013, the prosecuting attorney announced the commonwealth would drop all charges, ending the 16-month legal process. Martin-Oguike’s defense was handled by attorney James Funt, who is currently representing suspended football members Dion Dawkins and Haasan Reddick as they await a second preliminary hearing on April 29 for assault charges. According to a report from The Temple News following Martin-Oguike’s clearance, his defense included text messages exchanged between Martin-Oguike and the complainant that proved a motive to accuse Martin-Oguike of the charges, Funt told The Temple News after the charges dropped. “It was stressful, just to see my mother crying and stuff,” MartinOguike said of the process. “Everything we all went through – we lost a lot of money, our family name, all the articles and stuff that was out there – and you know how bad news travels fast. I was on a high, and then everything was as low as it gets.” Martin-Oguike was found not responsible regarding the case from a Student Conduct Panel on Jan. 20 of last year, and was then granted readmission to the university after an 18-month suspension. “I respect some of their policies and I respect that they voted me back in the school. I don’t really have any
a defense unit that allowed 347 yards per game and ranked 19th in thirddown defense. The Owls will also be adding heralded recruit Kareem Ali to the mix. The Pennsauken, New Jersey native was the state’s No. 2-ranked defensive-back prospect of 2015 and a fourstar recruit, according to rivals.com. “It’s really clicking and this is going to be a great year for us,” Ioannidis said. “This year is going to be the year we turn it and it’s really coming
PRAISE
DEFENSE
are so many “There different fronts.
It’s a mystery to me. [Phil Snow] is a magician on the whiteboard.
”
Matt Ioannidis | senior
HUA ZONG TTN
Redshirt-junior defensive lineman Praise Martin-Oguike (second to left) celebrates alongside defensive teammates during the Owls’ 35-24 win against Tulsa at Lincoln Financial Field on Oct. 11, 2014.
animosity toward that,” Martin-Oguike said of the university’s decision to suspend him following the initial charges. “I just have a problem with the way it was handled, at first. Just the investigation and charging [me] without any information.” Though time elapsed since his return to Temple, Martin-Oguike said the wounds have healed, despite a lasting impact. Lessons he learned the hard way, he said, will always stick. “It taught me how much of a lie that ‘innocent until proven guilty’ stuff was,” Martin-Oguike said. “People are going to think what they want to think. … It just taught me who to trust. Knowing that you can’t trust everybody, that not everybody’s in your corner.” “People want what you have, and if they can’t get it, they’ll try to take it from you,” he added. “Know who’s there for you, and put family first.
Know who to trust.” Last April, Martin-Oguike received his chance to suit up for the Cherry & White game, a moment, he said, was “overwhelming.” He trained with the team during summer workouts, took part in training camp, all part of preparing for his first football season since he played seven games for the Owls in 2011. Once again, the soft-spoken Martin-Oguike was back on the field. After missing two consecutive Temple seasons, Martin-Oguike paced a reinvigorated Owls defense with his 7.5 sacks, a mark that put him in a three-way tie for second among American Athletic Conference competition. Now, with the NCAA having granted him a sixth year of eligibility, MartinOguike will have even more opportunities to make an impact on the field. “The way he came back, I hope I would have that maturity,” Owls coach
Matt Rhule said following a spring practice session on March 31. “He was never bitter when he came back, he never carried a grudge. He came back and went right to work.” After his extended absence from Division I football, he’s been offered a second chance to pursue the game at its highest level. As long as he fulfills his longtime dream of breaking into the NFL, he doesn’t care where the opportunity presents itself. “When I knew I was back at Temple with coach Rhule, who came from the NFL, and [coaches] with NFL experience, they were telling me it was possible to [make the NFL],” MartinOguike said. “I always knew what I wanted, so being able to have that opportunity, it just means a lot.” * andrew.parent@temple.edu ( 215.204.9537
together well. It’s real evident through film and practice that this is going to be a dominant year.” Temple will also look to redshirtjunior Praise Martin-Oguike to help lead the defensive unit. The Woodbridge, New Jersey native led the team with his 7.5 sacks last season and forced five fumbles, which tied for fifth-best in Division I. “[Martin-Oguike is] a tremendous pass rusher,” Rhule said. “He’s got a ferocity to him. Just a natural, physical relentlessness that you want.” Ioannidis said the the redshirt junior – who recorded a sack in seven of the team’s final nine games last fall – is soft-spoken, but not in a bad way. “He’s not quiet in the sense he doesn’t say anything or contribute to the group,” Ioannidis said. “He’s always with us every step of the way. We bring him along and he brings us along.” * michael.guise@temple.edu T @Michael_Guise
SPORTS TREADING NEW WATER
Freshman rower Charlotte Forman made her way onto the Varsity boat despite only discovering the sport a year ago. ONLINE
Our sports blog
thecherry.temple-news.com
ONE FOR THE AGES
RECORD SETTERS
The women’s tennis squad tallied 19 wins this season, which broke the all-time record set in the 1980s. PAGE 20
Two women’s track & field members break school records, the football team gears up for the spring game, other news and notes. PAGE 19
temple-news.com
PAGE 22
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015
Women’s track & field
Athletes prepare for Penn Relays Several Temple runners will compete in the 121st Penn Relays this week.
I
TYLER DEVICE The Temple News
n his last trip to the Penn Relays, Elvis Forde was a much younger man. In 1982, the member of the 4x400-meter relay team hailed from the Atlantic Coast Running Club from Portsmouth, Virginia. He didn’t own a car, but at least he
countries and will feature more competitors than the Olympic Games. Now, with only a few days to spare, Forde has been utilizing this season’s past meets to finalize his relay entries for the three-day event. “I’m always going to continue mingling and running some people at different places [to] try and find the four best [runners] that fit each relay,” Forde said. “Where you are [in age] has no bearing on me. I’m just always going to look for the best athlete.” While speed and ability play significant roles in a relay team’s performance, there is another factor that is
I’m always going to continue mingling and “running some people at different places [to] try and find the four best. ” Elvis Forde | women’s track & field coach
A BITTER ENDING
MARGO REED TTN
Sophomore midfielder Morgan Glassford cradles the ball during the lacrosse team’s 9-7 loss to Villanova at Geasey Field last Wednesday. The Wildcats handed the Owls their fourth conference loss, knocking them out of postseason contention. PAGE 20
had a “nice, clean haircut.” He spent the trip awaiting the event at the relays, and the moment he could taste his first Philadelphia cheesesteak. His team took gold, but the cheesesteak didn’t satisfy. “I couldn’t have one until the competition was done,” the first-year women’s track & field coach said. “You couldn’t leave Philadelphia [without eating one], and they loaded it with onions.” “The No. 1 thing I don’t like a lot of is onions.” More than 30 years later, Forde still cherishes the memento from his victory that day. “I still have my Penn Relays championship watch knocking around somewhere,” Forde said. “It has still been [ticking] after all these years.” Celebrating its 121st anniversary, this year’s competition will host athletes from more than 60 different
vital to the success of a group. Sophomore 4x100-meter relay teammates Bionca St. Fleur and Jimmia McCluskey both agree that chemistry between a relay team is what could make or break a race. “Our team has great chemistry and it’s easy to do well because you have so many supporting girls on the team,” St. Fleur said. “Even though track is an individual sport, when it comes to our team we’re very teamoriented. We just push each other to be the best we can.” McCluskey said that chemistry is something built both on and off of the track, and both are important to create a long-lasting bond between batonhandlers. “Even outside of track, we have a bond,” McCluskey said. “We hang out with each other pretty much 24/7
RELAYS PAGE 21
football
Snow, defense face challenge to stay at the top The Owls are set to return 10 starters on the defensive side of MICHAEL GUISE The Temple News When Matt Ioannidis first saw Phil Snow’s defensive playbook three years ago, he was taken aback by its complexity. The senior defensive lineman knew it would take time to master the defensive schemes drawn up by Temple’s defensive coordinator, and was unsure what to think. “We didn’t know what we were looking at … there is so much to it,” Ioannidis said. “It really is an NFL playbook.” Now Ioannidis finds himself anchoring the defensive line of a Temple defense returning 10 of 11 starters and was toward the top of the rankings in multiple Division I Football Bowl Subdivision categories last season. Along with defensive captain and senior linebacker Tyler Matakevich, Ioannidis leads the defense as one of the longest
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The football team practices at Chodoff Field at Edberg-Olson Hall Football Complex. The squad went 6-6 last season.
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tenured members in the Front 7. The Owls ranked fourth in the NCAA in scoring defense, allowing 17.5 points per game compared to 29.8 a season ago, and tied for second with six defensive touchdowns. The defense also ranked 11th in takeaways, forcing 30 turnovers, 19 of which were fumble recoveries, which tied the group with Florida International University for second-most in Division I. Ioannidis attributed the increase in turnovers to Snow, who has been coaching since 1976, including four years in the National Football League with the Detroit Lions. He has coached current and former NFL players including Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs. “There is so much we can run,” Ioannidis said. “There are so many different fronts. It’s a mystery to me. He’s a magician on the whiteboard with X’s and O’s … he understands so much of the game.” With last season behind them, Ioannidis and his teammates will look to improve on
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