Transportation changes in fall 2017 â–ş Page 3
THE UMASS LOWELL
Serving the Student Body Since 1976
April 25, 2017
UMass Lowell means business
In This Issue
University celebrates opening of Pulichino Tong building
“Dancing at Lughnasa� play review
Marlon Pitter
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“The Room� review
Marlon Pitter/Connector
Connector Editor
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Men’s Lacrosse falls short against Stony Brook ► Page 11
Final River Hawk Scores Team
Score
Overall Record
Softball vs. Stony Brook
W 10-4
17-18
Baseball vs. UMBC
W 6-4
8-4
Men’s Lacrosse vs. Stony Brook
L 12-11 3-12
Women’s Lacrosse vs. Brown
L 12-6
6-8
Fast and Furious 8: Definitely not fate Owen Johnson Connector Staff
The plot line for "Fate of the Furious" is pretty straight forward: Dom (Vin Diesel) is forced to betray his team and work with a terrorist known as Cipher (Charlize Theron). There are no hidden character agendas, no plot twists and the audience can call how most aspects of the movie are going to turn out. While the predictability and generic nature of the plot is not a huge issue, it is only made worse by the appearance of several plot holes courtesy of brilliant terrorist mastermind Cipher suddenly acting like an idiot so that Dom can scheme behind her back. This movie, and the whole franchise for that matter, is superficial entertainment, and there is nothing wrong with that. That being said, there has to be something to latch on to. This movie tries to do that, but it fails. The best way to have something to latch on to is with the characters. A bad or dumb plot line can, at the very least, be tolerated if the characters in the plot line are well written and likable, but there is none of that here. These characters are supposed to be a family, but if one were to come into "Fate of the Furious" without any knowledge of the series, the only way one would know is because they say family at least 15 times. They talk at each other instead of with each other and there is no
In an era of rapid expansion and growth over the last decade, opening new buildings seems almost commonplace at UMass Lowell. Members of the UMass Lowell community gathered on North Campus on April 20 to officially open the Pulichino Tong Business Center – the 13th new building opened by the university since 2009 – and celebrate the individuals who helped make the project a reality. Alumnus John Pulichino and his wife, Joy Tong, were among those honored on the sunny morning as they shared their excitement
Brock Johnson/Connector
Chancellor Moloney and President Meehan join John Pulichino and Joy Tong in the ceremonial ribbon cutting.
for the opening of the new home of the Manning School of Business. “This is a wonderful day for UMass Lowell,� Pulichino said. “It’s
really a special day for the Manning School of Business, and most importantly, a day for those students who will now have the opportunity
â–ş See “New Building,â€? page 4
UMass Lowell wrapping up Division I transition Marlon Pitter Connector Editor
With every road trip comes a map. With every long-term goal comes a plan on how to achieve it. With the final weeks winding down on UMass Lowell’s transition to becoming a full NCAA Division I member institution, Director of Athletics Dana Skinner sees the university right where it needs to be heading into an era of increased
growth and prosperity. While the university has opened 13 new buildings since 2009 and is set to open the newly-acquired Perkins Complex as a residence hall in fall 2017, the foundation for UMass Lowell’s Division I era has also been under construction over the last four years. The four years of the River Hawks’ ascension to Division I competition have featured a myr-
â–ş See “Fate,â€? page 8
Sections News.............................4 Campus Life..................8 A&E.............................. 6 Sports..........................10
to pursue their dreams and aspirations in a facility that is clearly second to none.� A leader in the university’s rigorous
Courtesy of Gil Talbot
Athletics Director Dana Skinner and President Marty Meehan
iad of varying results among the competing programs, who left Division II’s Northeast-10 Conference to compete in America East. The men’s cross country team led the way to UMass Lowell’s first conference championship in the Division I era, winning an America East title in fall 2015, while men’s soccer captured a regular season conference title of its own the following year. On the other end of the spectrum, both volleyball and women’s lacrosse opened their Division I eras with winless seasons in fall 2013 and spring 2015, respectively, but the latter team has since bounced back to climb above .500 this year. While the rest of the teams have fallen somewhere in between competitively, Skinner said the jump to competing in Division I had less to do with athletics and more to do with academic association with many of the schools in America
Tim Clark/Connector with athletes.
â–ş See “UMass Lowell,â€? page 10