The Tower May 2014

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Human sexuality is not your average health class

By Andrea Parr

In a class on how to talk to children about sex, students discuss stages of sexual development and what parents should teach their children. So, should parents teach sexual skills?

“What if they aren’t skilled?” responds one student.

Human Sexuality is more than the typical sex-ed class as it delves past anatomy and into everything from relationships and having “the talk” with kids, to fetishes and porn.

“It changed my perspective because it made me feel so much more comfortable talking about sex,” said Christy Petillo, senior and communication major. “I’m able to talk to my younger sister, who’s 13, and I’m able to answer her questions in a very honest, but not vulgar way.”

The class provides less of the health class perspective and more of a reallife practical one. HED 3400, Human Sexuality, is designed to analyze the role of sex in society and its influence on relationships, including dating and parenting. The class can be explicit in content, but it gives students time for open discussion.

“When you are a little uncomfortable, that’s good because that’s when you learn,” said Dr. Shannon Bertha, who is a sexuality counselor and has been teaching the course at Kean since 2006. She starts the semester with a disclaimer, understanding that some students will be too uncomfortable to continue in the class.

“It’s not a math class and, if it was, this would be inappropriate,” said Bertha.

Students are given options for outof-class activities and assignments.

One option is to keep a journal for the semester in which they pick a sexual behaviour and do it. Students have tried new positions, accessories or even have gone without sex for the semester.

She says students are usually already thinking about it, and the project is “an excuse to do it.” The impact of the assignment often goes beyond the classroom.

“You did this. I just gave the assignment,” Bertha tells students that inform her of the positive affect the assignment had.

An activity option is to visit a sex store. The experience is often a first for students, who will report that the

store differs from expectations.

“They realize it’s normal, and see that it’s not just old men,” said Bertha.

“It’s just a regular place.”

Often students will say that they had to sit in their car before going in, or will go with their partner or friends.

“It’s not so much about going, but about starting the conversation,” Bertha said. She finds that most students don’t feel that they have someone they can talk with. Sometimes students will stay after class to talk to her.

“Surprisingly, I was about 15 when I knew I wanted to teach people about sex,” said Bertha. She recalls a teacher she had in high school for human sexuality, and the information just stuck.

She received her bachelor’s degree in public health from Rutgers.

Bertha initially started with the intention of teaching high school. However, as she continued through school, that changed.

“In college you can say what you like,” said Bertha. “I can construct the lesson plan how I want. There’s a different freedom.”

For example, at the high school level you can show diseased genitalia, but not healthy. Despite the belief that younger people need it more, Bertha says college students still need to know because there are so many myths.

“More than half of every class will think that birth control leads to infertility,” she said as an example of one such myth.

Pursuing the path to teach college required more school than she had initially planned. She went on to NYU for health education with a focus in human sexuality, and a summer abroad in Amsterdam for a course on sexuality and diverse cultures, before getting her Ph.D. in human sexuality in San Francisco.

“I am a sex doctor,” said Bertha, who also helps doctors and nurses become more comfortable with talking to patients about sex. Just seeing her talk about it as a normal subject in a professional manner can help.

“I really like this, I am doing what I wanted to do when I grew up,” said Bertha. The class and assignments can be life changing to some, and she often hears from students about the impact on their lives.

“It’s great to see the end result,” said Bertha. “To see that you’ve made a big impact on someone.”

Photos: Sreative Commons

The Rockettes perform in December of 2011.

From Rockette to Kean professor: The career of Corinne Tighe

By Erica Weiss

One look at Kean University professor Corinne Tighe is enough to tell that she is a dancer. Sitting in a hip flexor stretch on the floor in one of Kean’s stifling hot dance studios on a sunny April morning, everything from her lean, 5’7” frame to her long, curly, brown hair she kept up in a neat ponytail, to the black scarf with the white cartoon ballerinas she wore, gave her away as a woman with a passion for dance.

Inspired to dance by her older sister who took classes before her, Tighe started dancing at Tina Marie’s Dance Studio, which used to be located in North Plainfield, N.J., at a very young age. She fell in love with the art form and stuck with it into her college years, where she began to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance at Towson University in Towson, Md. During her freshman year at Towson, she still commuted into New York City to take classes and audition for jobs.

“The college I was in was too far away from where all the opportunities were,” Tighe said, alternating between typing grades into her MacBook and typing on her iPhone to reschedule a personal fitness client. Therefore, she continued, her plans for her sophomore year in college included a transfer to Rutgers University, which was much closer to New York City and the major dance companies, such as the selective Radio City Rockettes dance troupe.

Tighe first attempted to land a part with the Rockettes back in

2001 when she was 17. Although her first Rockette audition was not met with a job offer, she did not let that deter her and she tried again the following year when she turned 18. However, in 2002, just as Tighe was about to transfer to Rutgers University to continue her dance education, she got a call from the Rockettes offering her a role in the Branson, Mo. branch of the company. In the matter of one week, she withdrew from Rutgers, moved to her new job location in Branson, and found herself an apartment in the town.

“I basically became an adult in two months,” Tighe said, laughing in retrospect, “I had to start buying all my own groceries and everything!” Even with all of the changes in her life in such a short time, she only remembers ever being stressed when the work and rehearsal process started on the show she had to learn.

“Once you’re in the professional world, your life changes for sure,” she noted, unzipping her black warm­up jacket a little more as a blast of heat entered the studio through the open windows.

Despite the hardships of being a Rockette, which she comments were her jam­packed schedule and all of the physical demands of dancing many hours each day, Tighe still found the time to pursue her other passions. Once she was transferred into the Rockette New York City division, she was able to earn a degree in business, starting with an associate’s degree at a community college, and eventually a bachelor’s degree at (believe it or not) Kean University. She also began to get

Professor Corinne Tighe

certified for teaching a number of different fitness activities, including Pilates, group fitness, yoga, and CPR. She also began teaching dance at the Center for Dance Education (CDE) in Clark, N.J. to young children from all over the Union County area.

“I really know how to make use of my time, and I always try to avoid wasting time as much as possible,” Tighe commented as she continued to multitask on her grading and rescheduling.

Tighe retired from the Rockettes, after a 10­year career with them, in 2013. The spring semester of that year was when she began her job as a Kean professor. Her official title is adjunct professor for the Department of Theatre’s dance minor. This minor includes high continued on page 4

Kean student shot at fraternity party off-campus

By Tim Awojobi

A Kean University student was shot and critically wounded at a house party on the night of April 17 held by the Kean University fraternity Sigma Theta Chi on Conant Street in Hillside, NJ, about five minutes from the campus.

The victim is an upperclassman who lives in the dorms. Students who know him say he is recovering, but they did not know whether he was still in the hospital. Police withheld his name from the public.

The party was open to Kean University students, as well as their friends. Around midnight, the inside of the house was packed to capacity, filled with students and other Greek members from the university.

“When I came around 11:30 p.m, I barely made it through the front

door. There were so many people crowding the house,” said Elizabeth Foy, a Kean psychology student.

The house was an old, mansionstyle building on the 200-block of Conant Street where many families live. The surrounding area is very quiet and is also known as one of the “best” neighborhoods in Hillside.

At around 2 a.m, an argument ensued between the fraternity brothers and another man inside of the house, studetns said. The argument turned physical, and then escalated outside onto the front porch of the house.

According to a member of the fraternity, the suspect was asked to leave numerous times, and he did, but returned minutes later with a handgun.

“I heard a couple of sounds, but I thought it was firecrackers or glass The Hillside house where the shooting took place.

Photo: Tim Awojobi

breaking,” said a Kean University student.

A spokesman for the Union County Prosecutor Mark Spivey said in late April that he was told a suspect is in custody, but he had no other information.

A spokeswoman for Kean said it cannot comment due to privacy laws. A spokesman for Greek Life at Kean could not be reached by presstime.

The Hillside Police Department said the investigation is ongoing, and urged anyone with information to contact them.

“I just want the students of Kean University to not feel threatened by the situation. I want students to be aware of what is going on and to not be afraid if they have any information in regards to the shooting or the suspect” said a Detective in the Bureau.

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May 6, 2014

Kean student named youngest founder in the AAU league

One student’s solution to registration frustration

By Marisa Gallagher

When it comes to college, registering for classes isn’t always a piece of cake. It is not uncommon for a student to register for a class just to attend the first day and see that it is not the course that suits them and drops it.

Like many other full-time students across the country, Bryan Krajewski, would register for the maximum credit hours, attend classes and after reading the syllabus, drop courses until he found a schedule he was satisfied with. Had there been access to course syllabi prior to registering, the add/ drop nightmares could have been avoided throughout the semesters. Krajewski, who attends school at the University at Buffalo was a frequent user of ratemyprofessor. com, website where students can get an idea of a course and instructor prior to registering, and realized it wasn’t “thorough enough.” That’s when he came up with the idea for his website, Syllabus Rate.

“Syllabus Rate allows college and university students to view a syllabus before taking the class. This way, students can see grading policies, assignments, attendance policies, class expectations and more,” said Krajewski, when explaining the purpose of the website.

In January of 2013, Krajewski purchased the domain name, www.syllabusrate.com.

After taking almost a year’s time to decide if the site was worth the time and investment, he finally contacted a variety of web design companies and chose a company called Webty’s. Webty’s set-up the site in a way that allows Krajewski to make any updates he desires, all he has to do is contact them and they will make the changes immediately.

After drawing up exactly what he wanted for his beneficial-new website, it was designed in November 2013 and Syllabus Rate was launched by December. The website does not currently have any sponsors, but is partially financed by Krajewski’s brother, therefore there are no employees yet that work on the maintenance and upkeep of the website, other than Webty’s.

Since there are no employees or side help with the running of the website, Krajewski himself is the “sole operator” of Syllabus Rate.

“I would like to have employees and help, but right now, being a broke college student, it’s not in the budget,” he said. “Syllabus Rate allows college and university students to view a syllabus before taking the class. This way, students can see grading policies, assignments, attendance policies, class expectations and more,” said Krajewski. “I do everything from marketing to managing finances.”

Since marketing is a major portion of

“Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”

keeping the website up and running, Krajewski spends most of his time traveling to schools across the country passing out flyers, giving away window stickers, t-shirts and more.

Aside from the circulation of marketing materials across campuses nation-wide, “Syllabus Rate is available on every social media platform there is,” said Krajewski, “Facebook and Twitter are personally my favorites because I can directly interact with my market, college students.”

Although Krajewski says that a key to his success is marketing, it is also a bittersweet part of the process.

“I would have to say that marketing is the most difficult at times, but the most fun,” said Krajewski. “I like meeting new people and talking to them about the site.”

Since late December, Syllabus Rate has had almost 25,000 syllabi views, with more than 150 schools with syllabi uploaded, including Kean. Some of the uploaded Kean syllabi include English, economics and interdisciplinary courses.

Any student can register for Syllabus Rate at www.syllabusrate.com with a valid email address. Students are welcome to upload any course syllabi and also have the option to write a brief comment and rate the course,

Spotlight on genocide awareness

- George Washington Carver

A meeting to discuss the Genocide Awareness Internship Fund.

Photos: Kean Lift

By Sonia Aquije

The Holocaust and Genocide Studies program has raised $2,026 so far to help finance Kean students who hope to work as unpaid interns at organizations fighting injustice such as slavery.

The site notes that the cause couldn’t be more urgent as today it is estimated that some 20 million people live as slaves around the world.

“This money will be distributed to our graduate students so they can spend time out on a volunteer basis with a human rights organization,” said Dr. Dennis Klein, director of the master of arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies. “It’s the first time Kean has raised money for graduate genocide awareness internships.”

The money was raised through Kean University’s crowd funding website, KeanLift, which uses social media and traditional media to raise monies for research and causes related to the university’s academic mission. The program is run by the Office of Research & Sponsored Programs.

The campaign will enable graduate students enrolled in field work and an internship seminar to work unpaid internships at organizations around the world like the International Rescue Committee, American Friends and Service Committee, The United Nations War Criminals Documentation Center, and US Holocaust Memorial Museum’s International Tracing services.

“Each $600 stipend will provide interns with local travel support, a per diem allowance, and a subsidy to relieve students from full-time work for the duration of their internship experience,” according to Kean Lift’s website.

The fundraising campaign coincided with Genocide Awareness month that ran the entire month of April and included a host of ac-

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tivities ranging from film screenings, lectures, workshops, graduate faculty and student panels. All the events were free and open to the public with a suggested donation of $10 at the door. The event sponsors were: Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide studies, Jewish Studies Program, Holocaust Resource Center and the Human Rights Institute.

Kean Lift’s genocide awareness internship fund, a campaign started by the Masters in Holocaust in Genocide studies, started on March 3 and ran through April 17 online.

Xirena Wormley, a senior majoring in Communication/Journalism interned as social media coordinator for the genocide awareness internship fund through Kean Lift.

“Though, I am not a Holocaust and Genocide studies student having, done research for the campaign taught me some valuable lessons in terms of [the] global state of human rights,” said Wormley.

“The campaign is ultimately about helping Holocaust and Genocide students through funded internships so that they can join human rights organizations and fight against genocide.”

The goal of the campaign was to raise $6,000 to fund ten graduate students for this summer. Dr.Klein is confident they will reach their goal before the summer.

“The campaign online is over but the campaign continues with direct contribution to the Kean University foundation,” said Klein. “The campaign is still open (through the foundation) and we welcome support as little as $10 and $25 so we’ll get closer to our goal,” If you want to learn more on how you can contribute to the fund contact Dr.Klein at dklein@kean. edu. Information about the now closed online campaign is at http:// keanlift.kean.edu/campaign/detail/2605

A typical snack for Cinco De Mayo

The real tradition of Cinco De Mayo

By Gillian Findley

Jaleel Taylor founded his own team as part of the Amateur Athletic Union.

By Dominique Vinas

It’s every 22 year old’s dream to be established, and to have a set plan after graduation. Some are lucky enough to have it figured out before. Jaleel Taylor, 22 and communication studies major at Kean, is already halfway up the ladder of success. Not only is he a full-time student, he is a professional arena football player for the AllStarInc Panthers in Philadelphia, PA. That’s not the most impressive part. What makes this student and athlete all the more noteworthy is his most recent accomplishment. He is now a coach of his very own basketball team that he founded as part of the non-profit organization Amateur Athletic Union. The team is called “The Jersey Heat.”

Taylor is enjoying his passion for sports and helping people all at the same time and this is very rewarding for him.

“I started this for the inner city teenagers in high school in New Jersey to help motivate and help them become better men, and help them get into college,” said Taylor. “One way of doing that is through the sport of basketball.”

Part of being a part of an Amateur Athletic Union league is traveling. The reason for this is so that the players’ talents are seen. Taylor, along with the other coaches, teach them building skills that facilitate teamwork.

“This is important to me because teenagers in the inner cities are getting caught up in the wrong things,” said Taylor. “We have more teenagers in the streets than in the classroom.”

Taylor is willing to do whatever it takes to change that. For three years now he’s been running his team and has had the privilege of putting 14 of his players into colleges on athletic and academic scholarships all over the tri-state.

To add on to all of this excitement, Taylor has been offered to do a workout on April 26 with the Philadelphia Eagles Organization, which is something he is looking forward to. He recently was also selected out of 60 college athletes to play in the international scout bowl in front of the NFL scouts, Canadian league scouts, Europe league scouts and arena league scouts.

His aspirations are endless. Taylor is focusing on graduating with and obtaining his bachelor’s degree in communication studies. However, he is trying as hard as he can to speed up that process.

“While being a full time student, traveling to Philly, and coaching my non-profit organization it is a lot of work. I have no time for myself,” Taylor admits. On April 19 he had his first tournament for his Amateur Athletic Union league in Wayne, NJ. They placed third, and they have four more tournaments to go for the season.

Taylor is currently waiting on a phone call from an NFL team on draft day, but if that doesn’t work out he always has his communication degree to fall back on.

“I would love to stay involved with sports, whether that’s being a sports broadcast journalist or coming back home to coach my high school and to continue coaching my non-profit org,” said Taylor.

Sticking around for more than 150 years, people still seem to confuse history behind the holiday of Cinco de Mayo.

In fact, the date May 5, 1862 is not Mexico’s Independence Day. Even though the calendar date May 5 is an important day in history and means more than just guacamole and alcohol, people who celebrate, celebrate because of the soldiers who fought against a powerful French army.

These soldiers had no training, poor equipment and still managed to win.

“The defeat was entirely unexpected,” Sara Hernandez, a freshman who majors in history, said. “A lot of people don’t know anything about Cinco de Mayo. People just celebrate to celebrate; and those are the ones who confuse the meaning of the holiday.”

According to Christopher Minster, a Ph.D literature professor and writer for About.com, Cinco de Mayo is

not a big deal in Mexico. The country celebrates their Independence Day on Sept. 16, which, according to Minster, is more celebrated and important than Cinco de Mayo.

“Cinco de Mayo celebrations are very important for Mexicans living outside of Mexico, particularly the United States,” Minster stated in his article “Seven Facts About Cinco de Mayo.”

“I’m a 100% Mexican, and I don’t know much about the holiday,” Juan Arriaga, a senior majoring in Physical Education, said.

Arriaga clarifies that his grandparents, who live in Mexico, only celebrate their country’s Independence Day. It’s only him and his friends that celebrate Cinco de Mayo, saying that the “holiday” is just hype and a misunderstanding of Mexico’s Indepe dence Day. “I celebrate Cinco de Mayo because other people do. Other people think it’s such a big deal, and I just go along with it for the good food and drinks.”

Sure the holiday gives people an excuse to eat foods like tostadas and nachos or chug down drinks like tequila and jimador, but according to Hernandez, people are celebrating the Cinco de Mayo for the wrong reasons.

“Every chance I get I tell people that Cinco de Mayo isn’t what they think it is. I like when my grandmother tells the story of the Battle of Puebla,” said Hernandez. “My younger brothers and cousins love it.

Hopefully they’ll do the same as me and relay the message to others who misunderstand.”

Hernandez explains that her family celebrates with Mexican dishes like posole and picaditas.

She described last Cinco de Mayo as “delicioso.”

“Of course my family follows the tradition of drinking tequila, and in my opinion they drink way too much. But hey, it is a celebration and everyone is entitled to celebrate in their own kind of way.”

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”

- Walt Disney

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KUTV to launch comedy sketch show courtesy of Cougar Radio

By Bryan C. Kuriawa

Before and after picture of a child with cleft palate’s surgery.

Photo courtesy og Operation Smile

Campus club ensures that every child deserves to smile

By Vera Boateng

In many places around the world people with craniofacial abnormalities like clefts of the lip and palate are shunned, rejected or abandoned to die at birth.

Dr. Christina Luna, speech-language pathologist and professor in the School of Communication Disorders and Deafness on East Campus, had first-hand experience working with children with repaired clefts while teaching the graduate elective course on Craniofacial Disorders and Syndromes.

She is now the adviser to Operation Smile, a club at Kean University that was created in the fall of 2009. This club focuses on educating the campus student body by spreading awareness about children with cleft palate, cleft lip and any other craniofacial abnormalities in the developing countries of the world.

“It is important for people to understand that being born with cleft palate means more than just looking different, it affects the ability to speak, eat, socialize and simply smile,” Luna said.

The club also funds the surgeries for children to correct these issues in hopes of making a difference in their lives.

“OpSmile at Kean, is a unique group in that absolutely 100 percent of the monies we collect go directly to the OpSmile organization. Every $240 collected means a surgery will be possible for some child in the world,” explained Luna.

Rockette

She explained that in 2014 the club has raised more than $950. Other people in the club that play a big part in raising money and other affairs are Stephanie Leitner, former president of the club, Kylie Becker, the new president of the club, other executive board members and the members of OpSmile.

“They are so dedicated, active and so creative, I participate mostly as an advisor,” Luna said.

She provides moral support in club meetings, helps the group resolve administrative issues and participates as needed.

The members are students who are continuously brainstorming, looking for creative money making initiatives and spreading the word on the importance of the work of OpSmile.

Some activities that OpSmile participates in are bake sales, Relay For Life walks and scheduling meetings regularly.

The group will continue to be active for two more bake sales. The proceeds of these bake sales will be contributed to Relay for Life.

“Our last bake sale is on April 30, in The University Center (UC) from 1-4 p.m., and we are already beginning to plan for next year’s activities with our new officers,” said Luna.

May 5 is the club’s last meeting of the spring semester which according to Luna will be a wrap up the activities for the semester. This is the first year that Luna has been advisor for OpSmile. She plans to get guest speakers to come to the campus in the coming year to assist the club in raising awareness.

KUTV is set to launch a new comedy sketch show entitled “Kean Afterhours.”

Developed by Cougar Radio’s Phil Giannino and Alex Wisniewski, this show intends to give students a satire of campus life. For both students, this represents both a new medium to tackle and a similarly personal project.

“Alex is the one who had the general idea and he came to me and said, hey I know you like TV, so come on over,” Giannino said. “It was an excellent idea and that was my true passion, I love the radio station, and it was hard to really leave, but my true real passion that I have is television.”

As head of Cougar Radio, Giannino had implemented a series of updates during his tenure at the station. Once many of his changes were in place, he moved forward with Wisniewski on the show idea.

Yet in the process of developing the show, both found themselves fully into the creative process.

“When we originally had the idea we were going for more of a late night talk show format, but as we started production, we quickly realized that it was too difficult to maintain a show like that with the resources and the staffing that we have,” Wisniewski said. “Because in order to do a talk show like that you have to be really consistently topical, you have to stay on top of what’s going on. So we decided to change it over to a sketch comedy format.”

Developed as a 20 minute program, Giannino and Wisniewski intend to satirize university life in a variety of assorted sketches. Along with their two writers, both have already been in the process of planning their first filmed skit.

“We picked and chose what was good and we threw out what was bad and we are currently going to film a parking mockumentary in a Nat Geo style about the parking here at Kean,” Giannino said.

At the same time, in order to make the planned sketch work well, both of them developed the skit accordingly. Based on an idea about Kean’s parking, the skit will feature a student dressed in a stereotypical safari adventure outfit going around the lot.

“It’s a funny concept if you think about it, because we’re really making a wildlife documentary about people trying to park at Kean University,” Wisniewski said. “You go up and down the aisles all the time, you

Phil Giannino and Alex Wisniewski, creators of “Kean Afterhours.”

Photos courtesy of thephilgshow.com

see people stalking parking space like vultures.”

In this and other sketches, Giannino and Wisniewski plan to relate them back in a positive, yet satirical fashion. Presented in this manner, they don’t intend to paint a negative light, but instead want to present ideas people can relate to.

At the present time, both students hope to have the first completed episode by the end of the spring semester. Yet if all goes well, they hope to produce more episodes for the station over the next year and a half.

“My goal is to have 12 episodes by the time we graduate in the spring of 2015,” Wisniewski said.

“Kean Afterhours” is scheduled to air towards the end of the semester, and full episodes will be available on Giannino’s website at www.thephilgshow.com.

Kean students find their way into the music industry

By Annalise Knudson

Striving to become a musician has proven to be difficult, and trying to land record deals and even get noticed or gain recognition is what every aspiring musician dreams of, but it all depends on how willing the musician is to make that dream come true.

Kean student Andre Brito, who is 21-yearsold, smiled as he told the story of his journey to becoming the musician he is today and how he plans on making his dreams become a reality.

Brito said he never planned to become a musician. He played the piano as a child, but quit to pursue sports instead. It was only natural for him; after all, his dad was a professional soccer player in the United States.

It wasn’t until high school that Brito started to play guitar. He began after a sports injury kept him from following his love for soccer and baseball.

But once he picked up his acoustic guitar, Brito fell in love. However, Brito knew he had to pursue other things in life as well.

He studied at Kean University for two years as a Political Science major to become a lawyer, but decided the law professional wasn’t for him.

Then he started working in a hospital and decided to become a Biology major.

“Music wasn’t anything I was going to strive for,” Brito said.

A turning point came when his frient Ngubo Masongo, asked him to join a band in 2012.

So once again he switched majors. Now he’s a music major at Kean and really enjoys it.

As for that band he was asked to join? It’s still going two years later. Known as EVERYONE!, the group features Brito, Masongo, and two other members, all students at Kean University,.

They all have a mutual respect for each other and have come to develop a cloe relationship.

“Andre’s drive is incredible.” Masongo said.

“His love for music can never be questioned.

He’s always on top of things and his devotion to music has definitely played a role in how far we’ve come along as a band.”

They started out as a small band with covers of songs they created on their YouTube channel named youtube.com/every1official, which

Photo: Hqslapbass.com

from the Union County Academy for Performing Arts program, under the direction of Michele Mossay.

She credits her decision of returning to Kean to instruct to the passion for teaching that she found through her work at CDE. Her passion for teaching is very clear in the eyes of the students she teaches, both at Kean and CDE. “Corinne has always been one of my favorite teachers,” said Megan Dougherty, a senior at the Union County Academy for Performing Arts, currently taking Tighe’s Ballet Technique and Dance Styles classes here at Kean, as well as her jazz class at CDE. “She does not accept laziness and she always pushes me to do my best, but I never feel like I’m getting yelled at...she also makes an effort to know everyone in class and gives a lot of individual feedback.”

“The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.”

- William Morris

Photo courtesy of Andre Brito

Kean students in the band EVERYONE!

has eight videos.

One of the first covers the band took on was “A Team” by Ed Sheeran. For the 3-minute cover song, it took the band a total of 3 hours to put together. Brito said was worth every second.

The band started to gain recognition from Brito’s friend, fellow YouTuber, thecomputernerd01, who has over 1 million subscribers.

Brito was proud to say that their video received over 3000 views over one night when his friend promoted the band on one of his YouTube videos.

“It’s a first come, first serve when it comes to YouTube,” Brito said.

With the added attention, the band gained confidence and began making more videos.

Soon enough, they started to think about doing original music, including Brito’s singing in

some of their songs.

Brito blushed at the thought of his own singing, never knowing anyone thought he was able to sing well, as he was never one to sing much around his house.

With three songs in mind and the help of their studio producer, the band recorded their songs as an EP. Their songs were Waste Time, Tell Me (That You Love Me), and Brito’s favorite, Masterpiece. Copyrighting their EP and using Bandcamp, a website to promote music, they gained 1000 views along with handing out free CDs to friends at Kean, coworkers and family members. Their official Bandcamp website is everyoneofficial.bandcamp.com where fans can download the band’s songs.

After planning a photo shoot and writing a biography of the band, Brito was not embarrassed to admit he cried on the phone with the producer of Atlantic Records who asked to meet with the band to talk about their future.

The Vice President of Atlantic Records told the band “they have everything they need to succeed,” and the band is now currently recording a studio album including 10 songs, as well as a performance they headlined at Tammany Hall in New York on April 20th, 2014.

Brito continues to focus on his studies, while holding onto his dream to become a famous musician. With the support of his friends, family, and band members, Brito is striving to achieve his goals and ambitions in the music industry.

Taking an online course on the beach does have it’s advantages...

SUMMER 2014 ONLINE COURSES

(Continued from page 1)

at a community college, and eventually a bachelor’s degree at (believe it or not) Kean University. She also began to get certified for teaching a number of different fitness activities, including Pilates, group fitness, yoga, and CPR. She also began teaching dance at the Center for Dance Education (CDE) in Clark, N.J. to young children from all over the Union County area.

“I really know how to make use of my time, and I always try to avoid wasting time as much as possible,” Tighe commented as she continued to multitask on her grading and rescheduling.

Tighe retired from the Rockettes, after a 10­year career with them, in 2013. The spring semester of that year was when she began her job as a Kean professor. Her official title is adjunct professor for the Department of Theatre’s dance minor.

This minor includes high school students

THE TOWER 5

SUMMER I

SUMMER II

May 27 – July 14 Art History I & II Business Law College Comp I & II College Survival Skills Criminal Investigation Cultures and Values Exploring Multicultural Education Foundations of American Education General Biology Human Sexual Biology Intro to Computers & Computing Intro to World Literature I Introduction to Literature Marketing Practical Nutrition Principles of Macroeconomics Principles of Management The Juvenile Justice System U.S. History I & II

July 1 – August 18 Art History I College Comp I & II Cultures and Values Developmental Psychology Introduction to Film Introduction to Philosophy Introduction to Psychology Lifespan Development Principles of Macroeconomics U.S. History I & II World Literature I

HCCC online courses are affordable, accredited, and transferable.

TO REGISTER

Contact Admissions Office admissions@hccc.edu www.mystart.hccc.edu www.hccc.edu/onlinelearning/ 201-714-7200

COL Summer2014- Kean B&W 9.75x10.indd 1

CENTER FOR ONLINE LEARNING

162 Sip Avenue, C232 Jersey City, NJ 07306 Email: col@hccc.edu

3/28/14 12:19 PM

May 6, 2014

By Yayona Bangura

THE TOWER 7

3. Nine Inch Nails/Soundgarden On March 8, 1994, Nine Inch Nails and Soundgarden released their breakthrough albums “Superunknown” and “The Downward Spiral.” Now, 20 years later, the bands announced a co-headlining tour. The bands will play two shows in New Jersey, July 30 in Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, NJ and August 2 at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ.

By Adilene Rodriguez

fashion

music

May 6, 2014

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

6 THE TOWER

4. Fall Out Boy/Paramore Another co-headlining tour, Paramore and Fall Out Boy team up for the first time to let us relive 2007 in a tour their calling “Monumentour.” Their first Jersey stop will be on June 27 at the Susquehanna Bank Center. Then they will hit the PNC Bank Arts Center on June 28.

Photo: Courtesy of Kelsey Landsgaard

5. Governor’s Ball

Casablancas performing in his secret show at The Handlebar in Pensacola, FL.

Students: stay in style on campus this spring

1. Arcade Fire The semester is coming to an end, which means more free time for you.

Summer also means summer concert tours. This year there are a number of artists embarking on tour, here is a list of some of the hottest summer tours that will be nearby:

Students: Stay in style on campus this sping The season of spring is upon us at Kean University and as the weather warms up, ladies may anticipate throwing their heavy jackets and dark colors to the side to make room for flirty skirts, shorts, dresses and tanks to express their personality through style.

From local thrift stores to mall retails like Forever 21, H&M, or Zara, you can spot cute, chic threads for affordable prices. If you’re a little more high maintenance, brands like Free People, Rag and Bone, or Acne Studios may suit your taste, while other brands like Hellz Bellz and Dimepiece provide a more street-wear look.

This year’s spring trends can be summed up as ‘girly meets biker chic,’ with many light and airy pastel-colored clothes being paired with masculine touches like sleek leather jackets, boots and comfy sneakers.

Minimalist ensembles paired with bold statement pieces are also in trend and give more of an effortless, “I threw this on and still look fabulous” look.

“I threw this on and still look fabulous” look. If you haven’t found your fashion niche

television

yet, don’t fret. Here are a few staple pieces you should consider this season: Bustier dresses extenuate curves in the most subtle-meets-sexy way and are available in both form-fitting and loose-fitting bottom styles.

They’re perfect for spring and can be worn casually with tennis sneakers or converses, a light jacket and a few accessories, as well as with heels and lipstick to a major event.

Florals have been in style for a while now, but from billowy long skirts and short shorts to Kimono-style cover-ups, Asian floral print is currently providing the perfect bohemian-chic look.

“I love floral print for spring, especially with pastel colors,” says Kean student Stephanie Kodia. “That’s the best part about spring fashion!”

Chelsea and cut-out boots are wearable during any season because they stop low at the ankle and are a great choice for girls who want to add a bit of edge to their outfits this spring.

They can be paired with anything—from hard, black ripped denim jeans to a flirty, pink chiffon romper.

Joggers, also known as fitted sweats, are su-

per comfy, can be dressed up or down and are usually made of light material so they don’t weigh on you or feel heavy.

“When I feel like dressing down, I usually throw on a graphic tee and a button up tied around my waist with fitted sweats from Zara and some heeled sandals,” says Kodia.

In two short years, crop tops have come a long way. Last year’s billowy neon crop tank wave has given way to many styles like the geometric and polar crops, along with cut out and sheer crops that can be paired with a lace or caged bralette for a festival or night out.

“They’re simple and can make you feel and look sexy if worn right,” says Kean student Uchenna Okosa. “I would style a crop top with a long African-print skirt or with a pair of highwaist shorts and Doc Martens for my feet.”

Spring is the perfect time to come out of neutral fashion hibernation and blossom as the semester comes to an end. Maybe you’ll even attract a potential crush and get a few compliments along the way. So even if you didn’t ace that final or pass that class, at least you looked cute while you tried.

By Jasmine Leach

New “Teen Wolf” season more engaging with audiences MTV’s “Teen Wolf ” is one of the most widely viewed supernatural shows this year and is high up on the success ladder along with HBO’s “True Blood.”

“Teen Wolf ” changed this season and increased in its drama, action, and romance.

It also threw its viewers for a psychological loop with one of the main characters, Stiles (Dylan O’ Brien).

Scott’s (Tyler Posey) best friend, Stiles had constant issues with sleeping at night and was being haunted by a creature called Kistune that took over Stiles life in order to turn him into a killer.

Throughout the entire season, Stiles best friends, Allison (Crystal Reed), Isaac (Daniel Sharman) and Lydia (Holland Roden) all struggle to save their possessed best friend, and get him back to normal.

Due to the new storyline this season, the amount of views increased dramatically compared to season 2. In an article on Variety.com, entitled “MTV’s ‘Teen Wolf ’ Hits Series High, Tops Timeslot in Target Demos” that was published Jan. 7, 2014 by Rick Kissell, it described the changes in “Teen Wolf ” viewers for season 3.

“According to Nielsen estimates, “Teen Wolf ” averaged 2.43 million viewers on Monday, beating the show’s previous high of 2.35 million

Director Alejandro Jodorowsky and documentarian Frank Pavich

set with the premiere of its third season last June,” said Kissell. “The uptick seemed to be driven by teens, as Monday’s telecast set a series high among the 12-17 crowd (3.6 rating/12 share, or about 877,000 people in this age group).”

In addition to many teens, there are many young adults in their 20’s that watch as well, including Kean University student and fan, Daris Mendez.

“My favorite character would be both Allison and Stiles. I originally loved Allison because of her sweet personality as well as when she shows her strength,” said Mendez.“I enjoyed the crazy

plot twist and how they took the story where you would not expect it to go. For example, the whole Stiles transition although sad was an interesting plot twist.”

Season 4 of “Teen Wolf ” is on its way and if you would like to catch up, you can occasionally catch some repeats through television. You can also watch some clips, or sometimes even full episodes of “Teen Wolf ” on YouTube.com. these screenings, “Jodorowsky’s Dune” gained several awards.

“To sit in that audience and hear people laughing at the funny parts, cheering at other parts and silence where you could hear a pin drop dur-

Photo: Press.sonyclassics.com

ing serious moments, that’s the ultimate prize I think,” Pavich said. “It’s to get that feeling that you’ve transformed people, Jodorowsky’s whole point in all of his art is to transform people.

So what’s the point of making a movie if an audience goes in there and then they walk out two hours later, exactly the same?”

“Jodorowsky’s Dune” is in limited theatrical release by Sony Pictures Classics, and Pavich said he’s not sure what his next film subject will be at the present time. Considering his work, it will truly be something of a personal nature.

theater

2. Lady Gaga

Straight after their Grammy win in 2011, the six-piece band went off to Jamaica and recorded their new album “Reflektor” which was released last year. Now they’re embarking in a hefty arena world tour with more than 50 dates. They’ll be playing three of those shows in Brooklyn’s Barclay Center on August 22, 23, and 24. Tickets are still available for all three dates.

books

By Marisa Gallagher

Cinderella on Broadway Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” is the newest show playing in New York City, and it’s a comicalfairy tale that is suitable for all.

With direction from Mark Brokaw, the show is based on Rodgers and Hammerstein’s adaptation.

Whether you’re an adult or a child, this show is enjoyable, with a modern twist on the original Cinderella story.

Carly Rae Jepsen as “Ella” is a sure star, playing a kind and gentle character. Some modern twists on the original fairy tale include the classic moment where Cinderella leaves her glass slipper behind at the ball for her “Prince Charming.”

This anticipated moment is modified into Ella running back and keeping the Venetian-glass slipper with her, leaving no trace behind. “Prince Topher,” played by Joe Carroll, arranges a manhunt for the princess and when that failed, a banquet was held to find the mystery girl of his dreams.

Another twist on the original Cinderella story is the character of the fairy godmother, portrayed by Victoria Clark.

Clark starts off as a crazy-homeless woman. She is first introduced in the beginning of the play as “Crazy Marie,” who lives in the forest near Ella’s cottage. “Crazy Marie” wanders from the forest to Ella’s house on many occasions and Ella is the only character who is ever kind to her.

In return for Ella’s kindness, “Crazy Marie” later becomes the magical-fairy godmother.

Fran Drescher, as “Madame,” the character of the evil stepmother brings comedy to the show, with her sharp and sarcastic humor. Drescher comes to the stage with such wit and class, although she plays the part of an insensitive and selfish evil-stepmother.

The cast and orchestra brought such excitement to the show with the music and song performances that included, “In my own little corner,” and “Impossible/It’s Possible.”

Orchestrator, Daniel Troob, was nominated for a Tony award in 2013 for orchestrations of the musical.

After experiencing the nearly invisible costume changes that took place right on stage during the performance, it may actually be magic.

Arguably the most successful pop star today, Lady Gaga has announced a North American tour in support of her new album “Art Pop.” Known for putting on eccentric live shows, Lady Gaga is calling this tour, “Lady Gaga’s artRave: The ARTPOP Ball.” Prepare to be wowed by the wild costumes and breathtaking stage design sets on June 28, when Lady Gaga stops in Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall.

Ella went from rags to a royal ball gown in a single spin. A fox and raccoon prop start off as animals that lived near the cottage and then turned into human drivers for the horse and carriage, all while resting on a tree branch. The character transitions and costume changes were amazing.

In the last four weeks, the show has cumulated roughly $4.2 million in sales. The average ticket runs for $87 and the top selling ticket price is a whopping $297.00.

After seeing the show in my own little corner of the theatre, from an orchestra seat only three rows from stage, it comes highly recommend.

Whether you watch the show from the mezzanine or front row, this show is a must see.

Now get out there, and enjoy some summer music.

By Yayona Bangura

5 books to read this summer

As the semester slowly comes to a close and finals week rears its ugly head from around the corner, what better way to take a break from reading with more reading.

This mixed-genre list of books and magazines ranges between sports, psychological thrillers, romantic comedies and heartwrenching memoirs, and may just help make your testing days bearable. Relax and unwind a bit from your studies with these suggestions:

Photo : Marisa Gallagher

The closest music festival near us, The Governor’s Ball has proven to be one of the most promising US music festivals.

This year with not three but four headliners including OutKast, Jack White and The Strokes, this year’s festival is not one to miss.

There’s something for everyone this year, the full lineup can be seen on the festival’s website, governorsballmusicfestival.com. Single day and three-day passes are still up for grabs, but tickets are selling out fast. The festival will be from June 6 to June 8.

Title: The Book of You Author: Claire Kendal Description: Rafe is an extremely intelligent, likable and respected university teacher, but only his colleague Clarissa has seen his psychopathic and manipulative side. After date-raping Clarissa, he stalks her endlessly and refuses to leave her alone.

When Clarissa is assigned jury duty, the courtroom’s violent kidnapping and abuse case sounds strikingly similar to her own situation. She then realizes that although no one may believe her, she must fight for her life in order to prevent becoming a court case herself, or worse.

Title: Rules of Inheritance.

Author: Claire Bidwell Smith.

Description: Claire Bidwell Smith was 14 when both her parents were diagnosed with cancer. By the time she reached 25, they would both be gone. A brutally honest and detailed memoir of her harrowing struggle to cope with an only child’s grief, Smith tells the story of how her attempts to navigate through life with alcohol, sex and anonymous travelling, while battling depression, were futile until she found strength, healing and fulfillment through

acceptance. Actress Jennifer Lawrence is both producing and starring in the film adaptation.

Title: Wallbanger.

Author: Alice Clayton.

Description: The walls in Caroline’s new San Francisco apartment are very thin, so thin that she’s losing sleep due to the nightly sexual romps that occur in her promiscuous neighbor Simon’s bachelor pad. In this romantic-comedy novel, Caroline’s strongwilled hiatus from dating and sex weakens with fantasies of her neighbor and sexual tension erupts one night as Caroline, clad in only a tiny, pink nightie, marches over to Simon’s place to give him a piece of her mind and much more.

Title: Wax Magazine Publication: Wax Magazine Description: A New York City-based biannual, this magazine captures the balance of the big city’s art world and its growing surfing culture. Said to be “the magazine for urban surfers,” Wax includes interviews and features from New York artists, designers, and authors, all of whom surf the state’s surrounding beaches.

Title: Man of the World Magazine Publication: Man of the World Description: This quarterly magazine is dedicated to the men of the world who value “style, travel, food, art and culture,” says its publisher Alan Maleh. A refreshing look at a more upscale life with covers of famous men like James Franco and Jake Gyllenhaal, Man of the World seeks to reconnect the once effortless poise and class of men in the 1960s and 70s to our modern day guys.

8 THE TOWER

May 6, 2014

May 6, 2014

What place does the e-cig have at Kean?

Kean PD bites back

By Roman Gerus

The Kean University Police Department bites back against crime with a new K-9 unit aimed at sniffing out explosives.

Kean University has been awarded a grant for a new K-9 unit that specializes in detecting explosives before they can be detonated. The grant covers the purchase of the dog and the preliminary start-up costs.

The Kean Police Department is only one of three departments in New Jersey that received the grant in 2013 after applying through the “NJ Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness”. Kean University Director of Public Safety and Police Adam Shubsda believed that Kean had a unique situation that called for the grant. “[It was] our ability to articulate a need due to our location, growing footprint and the number of people on campus,” said Shubsda.

With a large student population in an even larger metropolitan area with areas of high crime rates, Kean was a likely candidate for the grant.

Louis Campanero is a student at Kean University and, therefore, would be among those under the watchful nose of the new unit.

“The K-9 bomb sniffing dog is only beneficial to Kean University since we earned him from a grant,” said Campanero.

The dog, named Gunner, is a German Shepard originally from a breeder in the Czech Republic. He migrated to Rhode Island and made his final stop at Kean University with his handler Mark Anacker. Anacker is a 10-year veteran of the Kean University Police Department who became a detective in 2007. “[Mark Anacker] was chosen as the handler because of his experience as a patrol officer and his investigative prowess as a detective,” said Shubsda.

At one-year-old, Gunner has great potential for a long career. Gunner’s breed, the German Shepard, is the perfect dog for the job because of the breed’s long work-life expectancy. Together, Anacker and Gunner make a powerhouse duo capable of tackling a large magnitude of explosive situations.

On March 10, Gunner and Anacker began their extensive 14 week-long training program at Fort Dix in Burlington County in Southern New Jersey. The team is scheduled to graduate in June.

Detective Anacker and Gunner

Photo: Cougar’s Bite

Local lawyers mentor students

By Gillian Findley

The exhibition of Seven Selves on display at Kean University Seven artists from Kean University have put their art and personalities on display in the Seven Selves exhibition as their graduate thesis in the James Howe gallery.

Angkana “Bee” Dellith, Alicia Bynoe, Julie Barkin, Matthew McCarthy, Celeste Regal, Brian Nicewicz and Perry Tyroler shared the space and made their own nook unique next to their fellow colleagues’.

The exhibition was accurately named since with every artist’s work, a feel of their inner selves are shown. The graduates took risks and were unafraid to delve into touchy subjects.

Colors immediately take over once in the exhibition.

Warm, highly blended earthy tones to the left, blues, blacks straight ahead and dramatic water-color paintings to the right, making every turn one to wonder about.

All of the works ranged in style and genre. Paintings glorifying the Buddhist religion by Dellith are assembled in a story-telling manner with over 30 individual paintings used to make up the whole work.

Bynoe used dark and gloomy water-colors in order to show her perception of a neighborhood, while McCarthy uses gloomy colors to display the story of the death of three birds.

Both artists displayed their view of the two topics with a series of paintings, making the meaning more defined.

Regal took her portion of the exhibition and centered it on the topic of rape. There were several angles she

Attorneys and experts speak at “Road to Becoming a Lawyer” at Kean.

By Sade Cox

health Are you stressed?

By Dr. Josh Palgi

The ladies of Black Rose Society

Photo: Sade Cox

took in demonstrating the pain and struggle women go through after being tormented. Two short-read books, three separate framed depictions of an insect signifying an invading predator and a photograph of a woman who was disfigured by a man each tell similar stories in different, stimulating forms.

Other artists used color and form as their main expression. Nicewicz uses figures of enlarged alcoholic cells in his prints.

With the use of color and swayed strokes, his works seem to be in motion for the viewer. Nicewicz focused on blending science and art to create vivid, but unconventional portrayals of the human body.

Tyroler’s prints involve vibrant colors and various shapes to conceive settings or figures which are assembled to be aesthetically pleasing.

Circles are mostly used throughout the prints and Tyroler places the shapes in “Landscape” as both the circle of the sun as well as the circles of a bicycle.

Barkin brings to the exhibition a unique approach to landscape paintings by taking the viewer underground to caves. Four separate paintings show the “inner cave,” “jogged cave,” “cavernous,” and the “outer cave.” The thick colors in the paintings insinuate all of the layers of Earth and the dimensions it creates.

The seven artists revealed their pasts, passions, interests and beliefs through their creations. They bring to light their purest definition of art, which is expression of the true self.

Puffs escape and disappear from the mouths of students standing and chatting in front of Kean University buildings like the CAS, the UC and the library.

Students and faculty loosen their day by smoking either cigarettes or the now trendy: E-cigs. As the weather gets warmer, the more mists and clouds of smoke are exposed.

Electronic cigarettes, known as e-cigs, are the new and the improved cigarette. They come in different sizes, colors, and flavors. People who thought smoking cigarettes were cool are outdated; vaping has become the new cool.

Carrying a battery and an LED light, e-cigs, also called vape pens, have become the go-to device to help quit smoking. According to the Huffington Post, people who use e-cigs breathe in water vapor infused with nicotine or other chemicals and exhale what looks like smoke.

Student Kenneth Meiers, a junior majoring in psychology, was asked to put his vape pen away in class. It became an ethical issue for Meiers when he thought the sole purpose of having a vape pen or an e-cig was to be able to smoke it anywhere he pleased.

“I was embarrassed when my professor told me in front of my classmates that I can smoke wherever else, but not his classroom. I wanted to tell him off, but I didn’t, because I didn’t know the law of e-cigs in N.J.,” Meiers said.

When class was dismissed Meiers explained that his professor told him that state law restricts the use of ecigarettes in workplaces and other indoor public places.

The lookalike cigarettes are tobacco free, which means that they are currently allowed in the United States. According to the Huffington Post, cities like Boston, Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles have restricted e-cigs.

Utah, New Jersey and North Dakota have banned their use wherever smoking is prohibited.

“Since I read up on e-cigs and the laws, I also found out the potential hazards of vaping,” Meiers stated.

Meiers explained that just like cigarettes, e-cigs also have their risks. He also stated that the e-cigs are better than smoking cigarettes.

The Huffington Post includes a statement that involves evidence in e-cigs: “Though the toxicant levels of e-cigs may be ‘9-450 times lower than in cigarette smoke,’ levels of formaldehyde and metals have been found to be comparable to, or higher than, those found in conventional cigarettes. Silicate particles, which are a cause of lung disease, have also been found in e-cigarette vapors.”

Meiers said that the user chooses whether or not to have nicotine in their e-liquid, and if they want nicotine, they have the option to choose the level of it. Showing the mouth piece of his vape pen, he began explaining the parts of it.

“The tank is where you put the liquid, that piece is called the coil. The coil heads the liquid up and turns it into water vapor. The base of it is usually called the model, and that is powered by the battery,” Meiers said while pointing at the device.

Meiers went from smoking two packs a day to about five, and his goal is to quit completely. Meiers stated that the good thing about the vape pen is the liquid. He says he can control his nicotine intake.

“I want to be able to smoke just hookah for the oral fixation which would be zero nicotine in the liquid.”

Photo: Jazzmin Cox

The Black Rose Society blooms in the Kean community What started as “just an idea,” is blossoming into a different kind of womanhood on campus. The women of The Black Rose Society of Kean University offer an excellent opportunity for women of all nationalities on campus to change society’s views on women today.

The club was first introduced in Fall 2013 and has been going steady this semester. The Black Rose Society’s purpose is to build up women intellectually and financially through developing a support system for young woman in college. Tiara Lewis, a Nathan Weiss graduate student studying conflict resolution and communication, is the president and the founder of the club.

“When I first started Kean in 2006, I didn’t really know anything about Kean,” said Lewis. “But when I came here I had a faculty member who was a really good mentor to me, and she helped me get through the earlier years.

I thought maybe it would be better if someone else was able to help the younger women to understand that you can actually go further than what people think you are capable of.”

The club invites all women of every ethnicity and grade level to join. Their mission is to educate, enlighten, and uplift young women of all ethnicities from a high school freshman to a college senior by mentoring younger women.

“A rose comes in a variety of colors; women come in all walks of life,” Latysha Gaines, club advisor, said. “I encourage women to join clubs on campus to meet new people and build a sisterhood while you are in college.”

The Black Rose Society covers a variety of topics includ-

Photo :Jennifer Deligne

Julie Barkin’s “Jogged Cave”

By Jennifer Deligne

ByJazzmin Cox

“Road to Becoming a Lawyer” kicked off on Wednesday, April 2 as Kean University Pre-Law Society Organization’s first event. The event was held at Kean University’s Center for Academic Success Building Lecture hall as an endeavor to help inspiring lawyers understand what is needed to succeed in a career in Law. The event was held in the evening from 8 to 10 p.m. The Pre-Law Society reached out to local attorneys in the state of New Jersey to come and speak on their experiences as a lawyer as well as any valuable advice one may find necessary to follow in order to acquire success in the field of Law. Three experienced attorneys, one being a visitor and two being teachers at Kean, were present. A Statutory and constitutional Law attorney in the country of Columbia, Professor Juan Carlos Orejarena who has been teaching business ethics at Kean for over 12 years, A former public defender of the state of New Jersey and adjunct professor of Criminal Justice at Kean, Yvonne Segars and an Attorney who has experience as a Public Defender and Prosecutor in the state of New Jersey, Joan Richardson spoke.

The event was said to cover the cost, the different types of law schools, the variety of attorneys that you can be and bringing intro into the legal profession. “It doesn’t matter what your major is you can go to law school with any major, President of the Pre-Law Society Basimah Caldwell states,” you can do it if you really believe in yourself, it just takes a little hard work, you can make anything happen.” At the beginning of the event all the officers of the organization introduced themselves and proceeded to open the event for the speakers. Basimah the president, Sarah the secretary, Kendra the treasurer and Stacey the Public Relations specialist of the organization stood as they did their introduction.

“I love what I’ve chosen to do with my law degree,” says Attorney Joan Richardson,” the law degree itself is a very versatile degree, it opens up the door to politics, policy, courtrooms, understanding and interpreting the world around you. It’s an honorable and noble career. It can open the door to other areas that you may or may not be interested or have propensities for.” All three lawyers sat in front of the lecture hall in a straight line and after every attorney told their story of how they became a lawyer the audience applauded. The lecture became a discussion as the students asked plenty of questions.

THE TOWER 9

ing finances, societal issues, double standards amongst women, success tips, how to uplift one another, and hosts of topics about campus life.

The club currently has 17 active student members. The Black Rose Society executive board members are Danielle Ingram as vice president, Deanna Hailstork as secretary and Brittany Fortson as public relations representative.

The Black Rose Society is at its early stages here at Kean, and the club represents the rose and separates into three parts to represent the transitional stages of going from a girl, to a young lady, to a woman. The club is a mentorship program for sisterhood and assists in equipping young ladies today to become women of tomorrow.

The mentors of Black Rose Society instill in young women the importance of embracing, building up, and encouraging one another through sisterhood and community service. The club strives to develop better peer to peer relationships while preparing young ladies with the knowledge and preparation for everyday living in college.

The club motto derives the lyrics of an Aretha Franklin song, “A rose is still a rose, but baby girl you’re still a flower.”

The Black Rose Society desires young women to become better women, leaders, and friends. Students interested in finding more information on the Black Rose Society are encouraged to inquire through the Cougar Link account.

The club meets every Thursday for their general body meetings from 3:30-4:30 p.m.

Stress Awareness Month has been held every April since 1992. Stress Awareness Month is a national cooperative effort to inform people about the dangers of stress successful coping strategies, and harmful misconceptions about stress that are prevalent in our society.

Survey findings illustrate that Americans consistently experience stress at levels higher than what they think is healthy on a scale of 1 to 10 (where 1 is “little or no stress” and 10 is “a great deal of stress”) adults report their stress level is 4.9.

Women continue to report higher stress levels than men (5.3 vs 4.6).Both genders agrees that 3.6 is a healthy level of stress. Almost 72% of respondents say that their stress level has increased or stayed the same over the past five years and 80% say their stress level has increased or stayed the same in the past year. Only 20% said their stress level has decreased in the past year.

Top sources of stress include money (69%), work (65%), the economy (61%), family responsibilities (57%), relationships (50%), family health problems (52%), and personal health concerns (51%). High and contrast stress levels can negatively affect a person’s physical and mental health. Approximately seven in ten Americans report that they experience physical (69%) or non-physical symptoms (67%) of stress. Symptoms include irritability or anger (37%), fatigue (37%), feeling overwhelmed (35%), changes in sleeping habits (30%) and others.

What is stress?

Stress is defined as a normal physical response to events that make you feel threatened, upset or unbalanced in some way. Either real or imagined stress causes our natural defenses to kick in, resulting in what is known as a

stress response but the body can’t handle stress overload. Too much stress is destructive for the body and mind.

Why do we get stressed?

For each person the answers are different. Even though stress has a dozen common causes each person’s response is unique depending upon the stressors and how they interact with the individual’s personality and are affected by his or her lifestyle. The amount of stress experienced is determined by lifestyle situations.

No one is immune from stress, but those entering college are particularly vulnerable to it. When you get to college, its usually a fairly sizable life change.

Common stressors in college life include: • Greater academic demands • Being on one’s own in a new environment- with new responsibilities • Changes in family relations and one’s social life • Financial responsibilities • Exposure to new people, ideas and temptations • Being away from home, often for the first time • Making decisions, on a higher level than one is used to • Substance abuse • Awareness of one’s sexual identity and orientation • Preparing for life after graduation A 2012 study by the American college counseling association found that 37.4% of college students seeking help have a severe psychological problem, up from 16% in 2000 of the 228 counselors surveyed, more than three out of hour reported an increase in crises in

the past five years requiring immediate response 42% noted an increase in self-injury and 24% have seen an increase in eating disorders. By far depression and anxiety are the most prevalent mental health problems students confront.

If you feel like your brain is melting under the crush of books, classes and papers, don’t freak out. Follow the stress management tips to help relieve the pressure.

1.

Get enough sleep 2.

Eat well 3. Exercise 4.

Avoid unnatural energy boosters 5.

Get emotional support 6.

Don’t give up your passions 7.

Try not to overload yourself 8.

Avoid relaxing with alcohol 9.

Go to class 10. Get involved with campus activities 11. Maintain communication with your family 12. Take advantage of campus resources 13. Form health relationships 14. Get to know your professors 15. Get a massage A final work on stress If you are experience or someone you know seems to experiencing stress that markedly affects or impairs functions on a daily basis, seek professional help.

Talk with a counselor Talk with a health care professional Talk with a pastor chaplain Dr. Palgi is a professor in Kean’s Department of Physical Education, Recreation & Health.

May 6, 2014

May 6, 2014

Saying goodbye: Our final thanks

Department of Communication Kean University Center for Academic Success 1000 Morris Avenue Union, NJ 07083 Telephone: (908) 737-0460; Fax: (908) 737-0465 Email: thetower@kean.edu; www.keantower.com

The Tower is an independent, laboratory newspaper of Kean University’s journalism option in the communication major program.

It is published monthly through the regular academic year and supported by advertising and the Department of Communication.

The Tower is not responsible for claims made by its advertisers. The Tower is a public forum and is free from censorship and advance approval of content by the university administration. The Tower staff is responsible for its content.

By Dan Canova

By Ryan Gaydos

As I’m sitting home on my couch and writing this final piece for “The Tower” here at Kean University, I can’t help but think about how fast my four years in college have gone.

It’s a blur.

I began as an Athletic Training Major, switched over to Physical Education, and finally discovered myself becoming a Communication/Journalism Major a semester later; it was by far the best decision I could have made.

The friends that I’ve crossed paths with throughout my four years here, I cannot thank enough for the constant support, encouragement, and motivation they have brought me.

With friends also come those who walk in and out of your life, and I cannot thank enough the people who’ve doubted me, and said I couldn’t do it.

I want to thank my advisor, and mentor over the last four years, Professor Pat Winters Lauro.

Without her, I certainly would not have matured into the writer, and person I am today. Thank you for believing in me and giving me the opportunities to be successful.

Finally, I want to thank my family. Without the people who’ve been the backbone for me since the day I was born, I’d be spineless. I appreciate what each of them have done for me, and molding me into the man I am today.

Because of all of you, I eventually became the Sports Editor of our school newspaper, The Tower; I landed an internship with the Home NewsTribune/Courier News; and now I’m living the dream interning at SportsNet New York (SNY), in the world’s greatest city; I hope I never wake up.

Thinking back over my four years here, I’ve realized how many faces have come and gone, and now my time has come to say good-bye. It feels so unreal reading this over and over again, but to sum up life in three words: it goes on.

The last three years of my life has gone by way too quick. I keep asking myself as graduation approaches, where did the time go? Did I make the most of my time at Kean University and specifically on The Tower? The more and more analysis I give to those questions, the easier the answer becomes.

The time spent in Union on campus working either on the paper or in the radio booth made my sophomore through senior year go by as quickly as possible.

I know that’s what college does to you.

The classes you take and the extra curricular activities you do are supposed to prepare you for life after you step off that Prudential Center stage. I think the professors who taught me in my three years at Kean and the students I have encountered at the paper have helped me to make the next big leap into a real job.

What the future holds for me next is unclear. Jobs in print news are scarce and with the direction of online media being as unknown as life on other planets, it makes the future a bit scary. Luckily, the tips from my Kean professors have helped me prepare for the unknown. Diving into the journalism pool is something I have always wanted to do and being on this paper and learning everyday about what it takes to survive out here is going to help me rise to the top instead of sink to the bottom.

I have watched students come and go and I have watched editors come and go and now it is my turn to leave. After three years at Kean and one at another school, I can fully say I have made the most of my college experience.

Tower wins statewide awards

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: CHRISTY PETILLO MANAGING EDITOR/ FEATURES EDITOR: ANDREA PARR NEWS EDITOR: ALEX ANDRIA ADDESSO

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR: BRYAN C. KURIAWA SPORTS EDITOR: DAN CANOVA HEAD ONLINE EDITOR: RYAN GAYDOS ONLINE EDITOR: KYLE LAWRENCE

STAFF SONIA AQUIE KEANU AUSTIN TIM AWOJOBI YAYONA BANGURA ELIZABETH BRACEY JENNIFER DELIGNE SHELSIE DUCHEINE GILLIAN FINDLEY MARISA GALLAGHER JUSTIN GEORGE ROMAN GERUS

ANNALISE KNUDSON JASMINE LEACH GERALD LIMA ANTHONY MUCCIGROSSI MAK OJUTIKU TAN PASHA ADILENE RODRIGUEZ TATIANA SNEAD CARL STOFFERS DOMINIQUE VINAS

OPINION PIECES AND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Tower welcomes guest columns and letters to the editor from any source. Such material should be submitted to thetower@kean.edu or left at The Tower’s offices. To verify sources of written material, submissions must include the writer’s name and contact information. Students should include their class (sophomore, graduate, etc.) and major. Faculty and staff should include campus title or position. On request, names may be withheld from publication if The Tower staff determines there is a legitimate reason to do so, but no anonymous letters will be accepted for publication. The Tower reserves the right to edit, and refuse publication of any submission.

DISPLAY AND CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Deadline for space reservations for display advertising is two weeks before the publication date. Ads submitted after that may be used on a space-available basis. All ads are run-of-the-paper unless an extra fee is collected for a paid position. Deadline for art work and copy is one week before the publication date. Classified advertising can be submitted up to the Thursday before publication as long as the payment is made at the same time. Call (908) 737-0461 or email thetower@kean.edu for a rate card.

Best wishes to the Class 0f 2014 from The Tower Staff

Tower students accept awards.

Students Dan Canova (left) and Brian Konchalski with John J. O’Brien, director of the New Jersey Press Association.

The Tower received two awards from the New Jersey College Press Association at its annual conference and luncheon last month.

Brian Konchalski, who has served as The Tower’s news editor and editor-in-chief, received second place in Editorial Writing for his piece in Fall 2013 headlined “Stronger than the Storm.” The commentary highlighted Kean’s many positive attributes in the face of several years of tumult.

Dan Canova, the Tower’s Sports Editor, garnered third place honors, also in Editorial Writing, for his article titled “Sports offer the power of healing after Boston horror.” His April 2013 piece was a passionate account of the value of team sports in reaction to the Boston marathon bombing last year, This is the sixth consecutive year that the

association has honored The Tower with awards for its journalism. The Tower has previously won honors for photography, sports writing, feature writing, opinion writing, news writing and general excellence.

The Better College Newspaper contest includes hundreds of entries from both public and private colleges and universities, such as Rutgers University, The College of New Jersey, Seton Hall University and Rider University. Professional journalists judge the contest entries.

The NJCPA is funded by the New Jersey Press Association. The Tower is an independent newspaper and website that is run by students under the guidance of advisers as part of the journalism concentration in the School of Communication, Media & Journalism at Kean.

THE TOWER 11

THE TOWER

SPORTS

10 THE TOWER

Yard’s perfect game sparks softball to strong season

By Carl Stoffers

Kean softball pitcher Courtney Yard took the mound on April 1 with the same approach she always does. But it wasn’t long before she knew something special was brewing against New Jersey City University.

“I didn’t approach that game any differently,” said Yard, “but, as the game was going on, my arm felt good and I was in the zone. All the girls behind me were doing their jobs, too. We were all just playing hard, but once I knew that I was on that roll I had to remember to stay focused and keep throwing the game I was throwing.”

The game she was throwing was a gem, and it turned out to be the first perfect game in Kean softball history. In the 9-0 shutout of the Gothic Knights, Yard struck out seven batters while cruising through the NJCU order.

“That day, she was on with all of her pitches,” said head coach Margie Acker. “Plus, you factor in how hard she throws the ball and that, in combination with her ball movement, made her that much better that day.”

A superstitious athlete, Yard adhered to the time-honored baseball edict that says a perfect game should not be mentioned while it’s in progress for fear of “jinxing” the performance.

“All the girls know how I am about that stuff,” said the junior pitcher, “so no one said anything about the perfect game as it was

happening. We all knew, but we didn’t want to say it. I’m the most superstitious person you’ll ever meet.”

Yard’s perfect game was just the highlight of a spectacular season in which she’s recorded a sparkling 1.17 ERA. She leads the pitching staff in all major categories, including wins (13) and strikeouts (125).

“Courtney Yard is a special athlete,” said coach Acker. “Coming out of high school, she was the pitcher of the year in state of New Jersey, so when she committed to Kean we knew we were getting something special that doesn’t come around all the time. Her hard work and work ethic alone make her very good, and then put the talent on top of that, she is a special kind of athlete. She excels at everything she does, both on the field and in the classroom.”

The softball team has lofty goals as the regular season winds down, and Acker is confident about the direction the team is heading. Kean is currently fighting for the top spot in the NJAC standings with an impressive 25-9 record.

“The regional tournament is where we want to get to first, and then the College World Series,” said Acker. “I believe that if we keep our composure and work hard, if we control the controllables, we definitely have a chance to get there.”

Photo: Carl Stoffers

Courtney Yard on the mound during her perfect game .

Kean baseball looks for another postseason berth

By Carl Stoffers

It’s been another successful campaign for Cougars baseball, and Kean is once again in the fight for a postseason berth and an eventual trip to the College World Series this spring.

“We hit a rough patch a few weeks ago, and we put ourselves in a tough spot,” said head coach Neil Ioviero, “but we’ve been battling back, we’ve won seven of eight conference games right now, so it’s going to take our best week of the season. We’re going to have to win every game to have a chance at it, but that’s really all we can ask for, to be playing the last few games of the year with a chance to come in first place.”

The Cougars (26-8) will face rival Rowan University in a doubleheader on Saturday, April 26, two games that will likely decide the NJAC conference champion. Kean will send ace Charles Thielmann to the mound in the first game before Matt Mantione pitches game two.

“I like to think of every game as just another game,” said Thielmann, “but this one is going to be a big one. Just knowing how far this team can go is all the drive I need.” The junior right-hander overcame an injury earlier in the season to record a 3-2 record, with a minuscule 1.88 ERA and 34 strikeouts.

“He pitched the last three weeks in a row,” said Ioviero, of Thielmann. “That’s a good sign.

We think he’s built up his arm strength again, and he’s ready to make a push these last few weeks because from here on out every game is really big.”

Thielmann and the pitching staff will rely on a strong defense, led by sure-handed second baseman Tyler Smarslok and shortstop Ryan Reitmeyer.

Photo: Carl Stoffers

Tyler Smarslok (L) and Ryan Reitmeyer have been strong up the middle for the Cougars this season

Photo: Carl Stoffers

Sal Taormina has led the Cougars offensively.

Kean has been a consistent and solid team defensively this year, a hallmark of Ioviero-coached clubs.

“Pitching and defense has been strong and has given us a chance to win almost every

game,” said Smarslok, who won a Rawlings National Gold Glove award last season. “The team chemistry is great and that’s important, especially at this time of the year with the playoffs coming up.”

Ioveiro echoed his second baseman’s sentiments about the pitching staff, which has tossed three shutouts this season, including a 1-0, 12-inning complete game gem by Matt Mantione vs. NJCU on April 12.

“Pitching has always been our strength,” said the coach, “if we can’t pitch, we won’t get very far. If you look at the games we won, our pitchers threw some very good games and kept the score down for us to get a win.”

Kean heads into the last week in April having won five straight games, including eight of its last nine contests.

The offense has come alive of late, led by sophomore first baseman Sal Taormina, who is hitting .331 with 12 extra base hits this season.

“Sal Taormina is one of those throwback players,” said Ioviero. “He could play in any era; he’s got tremendous moxie, he’s not afraid of whoever we’re playing. He’s very consistent, and he comes to play every day. I’m very proud of him and how he’s come along this year.”

After taking on Rowan in the doubleheader on April 26, the Cougars will face York College and Farmingdale State to close out the regular season.

With the team peaking at the right time, Ioviero is cautiously optimistic but knows the goal is within his club’s reach.

“The guys on the team put a lot of pressure on themselves because the expectations are so high,” said the coach. “We’re facing a lot of good pitching and teams coming at us with their best, but we’re at the point right now where we can break out. We’re looking for an NCAA tournament bid and, thankfully, we’re in a position to achieve it.”

May 6, 2014

Kean’s spring sports recap

SPORTS

12 THE TOWER

Photo Mak Ojutiku Photos: Mak Ojutiku

By Mak Ojutiku

May is beginning now and that means the year for Kean’s spring sports team is just about over. Some teams are in the midst of post season tournaments while others are finishing their last regular season games. As one would expect, the last few weeks have been very important, for every team. Here’s a look at how the teams have fared.

Baseball The regular season might be winding down for Kean’’s baseball team but their play is still solid. They kicked off their NJAC conference play on March 29, in a 3-0 losing effort against Rutgers-Camden. The setback didn’t keep them down long though. They got another crack at the Scarlet-Raptors the following Monday and they took advantage of it, winning the game 7-5. Sophomore Ryan Reitmeyer, who hit a two RBI single in the sixth stanza to tie the game and came home later in the inning off of a wild pitch. That win gave them a 15-4 overall record and a 1-1 NJAC record going into April.

The Cougars started off April strongly with a 6-1 home win over the College of Staten Island. All but one of their next 14 games were against NJAC teams. The team went 9-3 in those games, winning at least one game against every team met. In their win over New Jersey City University, Junior Matt Mantione posted a complete-game 12 inning shutout. That performance got him an NJAC Pitcher of the Week award, making him the third Kean player this season to win the award.

The team recently won their seventh straight NJAC winning streak, which rose their overall record to 28-10. They’re ranked second in NJAC and eighth in the nation.

Softball It’s safe to say that the last few weeks have been pretty good for Kean’s softball team. The team closed out March in a pretty big way by beating DeSales University 5-2. On the surface, a win over the 6-5 Bulldogs might not seem that significant but in context it certainly was. That win gave Head Coach Margie Acker her 300th career win for Kean’s program. Acker, who has coached the team since 2000, is the first and only coach in school history to reach the 300 benchmark.

The team opened up April with a doubleheader against New Jersey City University.

It was Kean’s first look at NJAC conference play. It also featured a historic performance from junior Courtney Yard. In the first game of the doubleheader, Yard threw a perfect game, the first perfect game in Cougar softball history. 44 out of the 58 pitches she threw were strikes and she had seven strikeouts. Yard started in the second game, and was perfect until she was relieved in the third inning. After a homerun was given up in the sixth inning, Yard returned to the mound and struck out the next four batters she faced. She gave up only one hit in the game. Yard’s performance helped the Cougars sweep NJCU, winning 9-0 in the first game and 4-2 in the second.

Yard was also instrumental in handing Montclair State University their first NJAC loss of the season. The No. 2 ranked Red Hawks came into the game with a 29-1 regular season record and a 12-0 conference record. Yard retired ten hitters in nine innings, giving up only four hits. Yard also hit a double that sent senior Megan Cegielski home.

Kean won the game 2-1.

The Cougars finished their regular season with a 29-9 overall record and a 14-4 conference record.

Women’s Lacrosse The women’s lacrosse team has had a pretty back and forth season so far. In the second half of the season, the team didn’t win or lose more than two games in a row. The head coach of the team Jordan Trautman, says that consistency is one thing the team has been working on. “We’ve talked a lot about consistency this season.” Trautman said.

“While we’re not a young team in how old the kids are, we’re definitely a young team in terms of experience. Some of our seniors just started playing this season so with our consistency, one day we come out to practice and no one can stop us, and then the next day we’re fighting to focus on the fundamentals, so consistency has been one of the things we’ve really focused on this season. That’s been our biggest challenge and something we continue to improve on.”

The team opened up April with it’s first entry into NJAC play. The team was faced up against 7-2 Rowan University. The Cougars lost 14-8 but it did feature a hat trick from senior captain Ciara Mastrodomenico.

Their next game was against 12-0 Montclair State University. After finding themselves in a 5-0 deficit midway through the first period, the Cougars went on a run, scoring five of the game’s next six goals. It was a 8-5 game in Montclair’s favor going into the second. With nine minutes left in regulation Kean got the lead down to one thanks to an unassisted goal from senior Carly Seidel. Montclair managed to hold on though and won the game 11-9. “We had an awesome game” coach Trautman said. “Unfortunately time just got away from us” The Cougars got their first conference win of the season in a 14-8 victory over Stockton College. Kean overcame the 9-3 Ospreys thanks to hat tricks from Mastrodomenico and fellow senior captain Julie

Photo: Mak Ojutiku

Knodt. “She just an exceptional kid, she embodies everything a student athlete should be.” said coach Trautman on Mastrodomenico.

“She’s not just a great kid to coach but an exceptional teammate.”

After the win over Stockton, the team went on to win it’s next three conference games. The team currently has a 9-7 record but Trautman says the record undersells the team. “Although our record doesn’t show that we’re a top team, I think we’re playing like a top team.” she said. “We’ve improved our strength of schedule this year by a lot and the kids have really risen to the challenge. We’re very fundamentally sound. We’re doing things that very elite teams do. They’ve definitely exceeded my expectations in terms of what I was projecting for this season.””

Men’s Lacrosse Despite losing seven seniors to graduation last year, Kean’s men’s lacrosse team has been red hot this season. Head Coach Shelley Sheiner says the losses didn’t affect the team because of his philosophy of teaching “program” over “team”. “If you’re a college team sometimes when you lose guys they affect you, he said. “But we’re a program so what we do is we bring our guys in as freshman and they work really hard and they understand our system, then when they’re given their time a lot of them step to and rise to the occasion” Going into April, the team was on a seven game winning streak.The Cougars opened the month with their first entry into Skyline conference play, against SUNY Maritime College.

The Cougar’s offense utterly obliterated Maritime for the entire game. Kean scored 14 goals in the first two periods of play. The game ended 20-0 in Keans favor, the largest margin of victory in the programs history. Sophomore Anthony Carpenter lead the team with four goals, while fellow Sophomore Jeff Christiano notched a hat trick, his first for the school.

The team used that momentum to push their winning streak to eleven. Sheiner attributes that streak to the team’s upperclassmen.

“The leadership of our eight seniors, that’s really been the key.” said Sheiner. “Specifically the three senior captains we have, Joey Voto, Rich Cheifitz and Zach Williams. They’ve been kind of like the catalyst of the team and the other five seniors have been excellent all season.”

Cheifitz has been having a very productive season. He currently leads the team in goals with 44 and points with 63. One game he really shined in was their April 9 battle against Skyline rival Farmingdale State College. The Cougar’s found themselves trailing 4-0 after the first period. Cheifitz scored the team’s first goal early in the second period. After goals from sophomores Matt Speciale and Anthony Perrotta, the Cougars found themselves down by two. Cheifetz scored Kean’s next two goals, tying the game. Kean went on to win the game 13-9 and Cheifetz finished with five goals. “(Cheifetz is) very calm in high pressure situations, and a tremendous scorer” said Sheiner.

“When it’s all said and done, he’s probably going to be the most decorated player to ever come through the program here at the university.”

The team’s streak was snapped by no. 12 Montclair State in a back and forth 10-8 game. With the regular season done, the team has a 15-2 record and is currently playing in the Skyline tournament.

Men’s Volleyball On April 25 in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, the men’s volleyball team’s impressive season came to an end. In the opening round of the NCAA tournament, Kean was bested in a competitive five set match by No. 3 ranked Juniata College.

Even though it didn’t end in the best of ways, the team’s last few weeks featured some undeniably impressive play. The Cougars went into the tournament with an eleven game winning streak. On April 12 the team secured its third straight Skyline Championship in a 4 set win over Ramapo College. Senior Bez Arslani lead the squad with 21 kills.

Arslani had a remarkable season this year. He lead the team with 329 kills on the season. He was fourth in the Skyline in hitting percentage (.290) sixth in points (4.14 ppg.) and seventh in kills (3.35 kpg).

Those numbers helped the Cougars go a perfect 14-0 in the conference. It also lead to him being named the Skyline Conference Player of the Year as well as an American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American. He’s only the second Cougar to be named an AVCAA All-American, the first being Steve Vahalla who won it last year and the year before.