Fall 2014 Cynic Issue 10

The Vermont

CYNIC

The University of Vermont’s independent voice since 1883

10 Arts collective utilizes new space

W e d n e s d a y, O c t o b e r 2 9 , 2 0 1 4 – Vo l u m e 1 3 1 I s s u e 1 0 | B u r l i n g t o n , Ve r m o n t

Ridesharing app arrives in Burlington Jill Vaglica Staff Writer Uber, a carshare, private car and taxi service has arrived in Burlington.

The mobile phone application allows people to request rides to different locations around town, according to their site.

Not only can students and residents use the service, but they can also sign up to be drivers themselves.

UberX, established in 2009, uses local drivers in their own cars instead of taxi drivers, according to their site.

UberX connects riders with the closest available driver in town.

It also allows customers to track the driver on the app’s

map, according to a press release Oct. 9.

“I’m all for it,” said senior Shannon McGowan.

“I don’t take taxis, but if I ever need one, I’d probably choose Uber instead,” McGowan said.

“I probably would [use Uber], because I haven’t really figured out the bus schedule yet, and the buses are sometimes late anyway,” first-year Katherine Medley said. “This sounds a lot more convenient, especially for when it starts to get cold.”

However, ride reliability depends on how many people actually sign up to be drivers, and which hours they choose to work.

Drivers can set their own schedules, according to their

See UBERX on page 4

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ERIN LUCEY

Student apathy stalls ban Construction project gains first donation

Sam Heller Staff Writer The Carpenter Auditorium in the Given Building can accommodate 300 students.

Only four showed up to Tobacco-Free UVM’s open forum Oct. 23.

Tobacco-Free UVM announced the forum via an email to all UVM students, staff and faculty Oct. 15.

The forum was intended as an open discussion in which students, staff and faculty could learn more about details of the proposed tobacco ban, ask questions and provide feedback, according to the email.

Two of the four students present, seniors Allison Giroux and Morgan Mathews, are members of the steering committee itself.

A third student, junior Kelly Molloy, attended only to research her senior thesis and did not participate in the discussion.

Tobacco-Free UVM steering committee co-chair and vice president for University Relations Tom Gustafson expressed disappointment and frustration at the lack of attendance.

“Through conversations with President Tom Sullivan, he agreed that maybe we ought to take a little more time to get feedback from the community,” Gustafson said. “On the other hand, if we keep having open forums like this I’m not sure that’s the best way to spend our Like us on Facebook

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Taylor Delehanty Staff Writer

COLE WANGSNESS The Vermont Cynic

Senior Adam Lind smokes a cigarette outside Bailey/Howe Oct. 17.

Only four people attended the Tobacco-Free UVM forum Oct. 23. time.”

“We want to make sure that everyone has had a chance to voice their opinions,” Giroux said. “If people have strong opinions and they aren’t sharing them, that’s counterproductive.

The moderators waited 10 minutes for additional participants to show up before beginning the forum with a short video presentation and a powerpoint outlining background information on the TobaccoFree initiative.

“Do you even want me to go through the powerpoint?” said Jan Carney, steering committee co-chair, before beginning the presentation.

Despite the low attendance, Tobacco-Free UVM steering

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committee members responded to a number of questions and tried to clear up some of the ambiguities present in the draft of the initiative.

Joe Speidel, director of local government and community relations, said that the initiative would focus on education, signs and tabling in order to raise awareness about the dangers of tobacco use.

The initiative is also working closely with the Living Well program in the Davis Center to provide affordable, effective services to students who are trying to quit.

Tobacco-Free UVM’s proposal is based on similar tobacco free initiatives adopted

See TOBACCO BAN on page 4 F o l l o w u s o n Tw i t t e r

@ Ve r m o n t C y n i c

The Alumni Foundation recently received the first large donation to help fund the STEM ­— Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics — capital planning project.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $104 million, of which $26 million must be raised from non-debt sources, according to an October press release.

“Private philanthropy is a critical element that will demonstrate that there is broad support for this much-needed upgrade to STEM facilities at UVM,” said Richard Green, executive director of communications at the UVM Foundation.

The first major grant that the UVM Foundation has received is a $1 million gift commitment from UVM alumniRichard W. Barrett ‘66 and his wife, Elaine.

This is not the first time that Barrett has donated to UVM and has actually donated “more than $2.5 million over nearly three decades,” according to the press release.

Barrett is president and owner of Union Leasing Corporation which is based in Boulder, Colorado.

He is a long-time donor for the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences through

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“...There is broad support for this muchneeded upgrade to STEM facilities at UVM.” Richard Green Executive Director of Communications for the UVM Foundation the family’s Barrett Foundation, according to the press release.

“The Barrett gift is very significant because it demonstrates potentially significant private interest in the STEM Complex,” he said.

UVM’s largest-ever capital project to date will bring a state-of-the-art complex of labs, classrooms and research facilities to campus starting in 2016, according to the press release.

“It will establish a promising new academic and economic development vision for UVM,” according to the press release.

Construction and renovation of all buildings is expected to be completed by 2018, Green said.

Demolition of Angell Hall is expected to begin in May 2015 after graduation, he said.

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

Space created for alumni to assemble Sarah Olsen Assistant News Editor UVM’s Alumni House will open for Homecoming weekend next fall.

“It will be like a welcome space,” said Sarah Wasilko, associate director of alumni relations.

“Friends can meet there and go to the hockey game together. They can use the business center and have a cocktail,” Wasilko said.

The alumni house will be about 20,000 square feet, she said.

There will also be about 12,000 square feet of rentable space to use as a conference room, a cocktail party or weddings, Wasilko said.

The alumni house will use the former Delta Psi fraternity

house, she said.

“I think it’s a great idea,” first-year Kelly Lennon said.

“I think that the alumni house will be valuable to the community,” sophomore Abby Holmquist said. “It can be a way to bring people together and also give recent graduates of UVM a way to network.”

Alumnus Jack Silver ’64 and his wife Shirley donated $5 million to the Alumni House construction project, Wasilko said.

Plans for the house include a Silver Pavilion which will recognize the Silver’s donation, she said.

“I think the biggest thing is the history of the house,” Wasilko said.

Edward Wells, president of Wells, Richardson & Co. bought the house July 25, 1886,

according to the UVM Foundation website.

Construction on the house was not completed until Dec. 25, 1892. Wells died in 1907, according to the website.

In 1924, the property was sold to UVM’s Delta Psi fraternity, according to the website.

The Delta Psi fraternity was pronounced inactive in 2004 after their residence was considered “uninhabitable.”

In 2003 and members of the fraternity were evicted, according to a 2008 Burlington court case.

The case resulted from attempts of members of the fraternity to get the property to be tax exempt.

Since the city of Burlington told the fraternity in 2005 that as they were no longer “recognized” as a fraternity by UVM,

IMAGE COURTESY OF BREADLOAF CONSTRUCTION ARCHITECTS

UVM’s Alumni House will open for Homecoming weekend in fall 2015. The house will be a welcome place for various alumni to meet. the property was no longer considered tax-exempt, according to the case document.

The Alumni House will be

located on Summit Street and will open Oct. 2, 2015, Wasilko said.

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N ews

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

3

20 year-old department is celebrated Angel Yang Staff Writer The department of Community Development and Applied Economics — ­ CDAE — celebrated its 20th anniversary this week.

The CDAE department held a series of events, including a keynote address given by Howard Dean, former Vermont governor and James Marsh, a Professor At Large, according to the CDAE website.

The department’s mission is to support sustainable local and international community development through interdisciplinary research, education and outreach that serves the public interest, the website stated.

CDAE offers three original majors and seven minors.

It occupies students with holistic aspects of sustainable community development.

This includes consumer well-being, ecological health, social justice and effective communication with community partners, according to the website.

The 20-year celebration lasted from Oct. 20 to Oct. 24, and was highlighted by Dean’s speech “Community as a Foundation for Change.”

VICTORIA CASSAR The Vermont Cynic

Former Gov. Howard Dean speaks at the 20th anniversary of the department of Community Development and Applied Economics in Billings Library Oct. 21. The celebration took place Oct. 20-24. Marsh Professor At Large James Marsh also spoke at the 20th anniversary.

He addressed the important role CDAE played in the community cooperation and encouraged our “ideal” generation to make a change in the community.

The week-long celebration also included a variety of other

events.

A discussion called “A Peace Corps Evening: the Challenge of International Development,” which included sharing of Peace Corps volunteers experiences was held Oct. 22.

There was a screening of the

environmental movie “Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch” Oct. 23 with free popcorn and drinks.

The final event of the 20year anniversary was the Community Goat Roast.

It offered dinner and prize

giveaways.

Having attracted a large number of CDAE faculty, students and the public, the celebration for the 20th anniversary concluded.

Peer-mentors plan thrives One-in-four program out of the ‘man box’

Micheal Swain Staff Writer The College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences began a peer-mentoring program Sept. 3.

The program connects students with upperclassmen mentors, providing career services, hands-on experience outside the classroom, professor Kurt Johnson said.

Math lecturer Joan Rosebush, along with Johnson, founded the program, he said.

At the time, Johnson was working with the Career Center, mostly for the college’s juniors and seniors, he said.

“I want to help students get a better idea of what interviewers are looking for,” Johnson said.

He said he then approached Rosebush and suggested they encourage students to start resume development sooner.

Shortly after, the peer-mentoring program began.

Peer mentoring was attempted three years ago school-wide, but was soon cancelled, senior Matthew Brand said, who took part in the first program.

The new mentoring program seeks to be “less formal,” Brand said.

With more control over how the program is run, Rosebush wants to do things differently by starting on a volunteer basis.

“We don’t want this to be a big thing; this is a pilot project right now. We don’t want just anybody off the street coming

Maggie Galagher Cynic Correspondent

OLIVER POMAZI The Vermont Cynic

Adviser Joan Rosebush meets with assistant Brandon Eagan Oct. 25. The new peer-mentoring program aims to create a community. in,” she said.

Rosebush selected students for their potential. This was “easy because there were some that were just so gung ho about it,” she said.

One of these students is first-year Chris Bratkovics, who was selected by Rosebush for his “drive.”

Bratkovics said he has gained a lot as part of the program and it has helped him make a smooth transition to college, especially as an athlete on the club football team.

“I’ve learned a lot about time management skills,” Bratkovics said. “I need to set aside time for everything.”

Plans for the program include a continuous stream of young students, mentors and alumni who can give professional tips, Johnson said.

“When I’m older and more involved, the things I’m learn-

ing now could be used to teach someone else,” Bratkovics said.

Apart from a focus on careers the program is concerned with developing support groups for “difficult classes.”

“The engineering school is extraordinarily difficult but I don’t think it’s impossible,” Brand said. “It can be made a lot easier with the peer mentoring program.”

At monthly meetings they go over “survival skills, getting internships and approaching people at job fairs.”

Lack of hands-on experience is another goal that the peer-mentoring program hopes to tackle for future students of the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences.

“The hard part is that you spend the first two years developing the tools but not actually using them,” Johnson said.

Over the past year, various members of the UVM community have worked to bring the male-driven group, known as One-in-Four, to campus.

“I feel reassured knowing there are male students out there actively trying to make a difference, and it’s not just left for the women to deal with,” first-year Shannon Drouse said.

The group is a nation-wide peer education program that advocates for the prevention of sexual violence of both males and females and also supports the survivors.

The name One-in-Four comes from a statistic that one out of every four female college students has survived some kind of sexual assault or rape.

The Men’s Program, a branch of One-in- Four, works to provide knowledge for men helping women recover from sexual assault or rape, to increase bystander intervention and to change the behaviors of men that may contribute to rape culture, according to their website.

The Men’s Outreach Coordinator, Keith Smith, suggested bringing the program to UVM in 2011 following an incident involving a chapter of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity at UVM. UVM made national news when members of the fraternity released a survey that included

a question regarding rape to other members of the fraternity, according to a Dec. 16 2011 press release from UVM. Following an investigation the fraternity ultimately chose to close their chapter at the University, the release stated.

Since 2007, Smith has provided support for male students.

He tends to emotional and physical needs of male students involved in campus judicial hearings.

Through workshops and presentations, Smith has spread the word about sexual violence involving men, whether they be the accused or the survivor.

The Men’s Program came to UVM in spring 2014 and now has 10 active members.

The group contains a collection of different young men, all from unique backgrounds with the shared goal of educating and supporting the UVM community on dealing with sexual violence.

“Not your average group of men,” Smith said. “[They’re] outside of the ‘man box,’ if you will.”

The Men’s Program will be hosting a 55-minute event Monday, Oct. 27 titled: “How to Help a Sexual Assault Survivor: What Men Can Do” at 7 p.m. at the Fleming Museum.

To learn more about The Men’s Program, contact Keith Smith at (802) 656- 4428 or Keith.Smith@uvm.edu.

4

N ews

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

CRIME LOG Oct. 17 8:41 p.m.

A student received a warning for shouting inappropriate words at a UVM hockey game at Gutterson Field House.

Since the incident, the Athletic Department released a video encouraging students to “support the Catamounts in a positive manner that’s appropriate for all ages.”

Oct. 18 12:49 a.m.

A police services officer issued a roadway crossing violation warning to a jaywalker attempting to cross at the intersection of Main Street and South Prospect Street.

3:13 a.m.

A student was cited for arson, resisting arrest and possession of cocaine at the Quarry Hill apartment complex.

A police services officer driving by noticed the fires from a distance, and as he drove closer, he noticed two individuals setting fire to the hay bales on the side of the road.

When police arrived, one individual fled the scene, and the other began his escape attempt as officers began to cuff him.

Living well means eating well Margaux Rioux Staff Writer College is a time where eating disorders can arise or worsen as students experiement with diets and meal options on campus, according to the National Eating Disorders College Survey.

One way that UVM is addressing mental health issues surrounding eating disorders on campus is through Counseling and Psychiatric Services.

“Oftentimes, we don’t recognize that eating disorders are a mental health issue,” said Anne Cressey, a mental health educator at Living Well.

Eating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a combination of longstanding behavioral, biological, emotional, psychological, interpersonal and social factors, according to the National Eating Disorders Association.

There are three diagnoses of eating disorder: anorexia, bulimia and compulsive or bingeeating habits, according to the association.

Anorexia is characterized by self-starvation and extreme weight-loss. Bulimia involes the consumption of large amounts of food and then self-induced vomiting. Binge-eating involving frequent consumption of large amounts of food leading to weight gain, according to the association.

An anonymous female se-

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY LUCI LOBE

nior suffers from binge-eating issues. She wishes to remain nameless.

“I can’t control my eating habits” she said. “I cry myself to sleep almost every night because I hate that I can’t control this and I hate the way I feel and look.”

The senior said she is seeking help from Counseling and Psychiatric Services and it has helped but she still feels “out of control.”

“On the college level, we know that [eating disorders] are an issue, and there are lots of different things that play into disordered eating behav-

This led to the officers pinning the individual against the cruiser. The individual was found to be in possession of cocaine. The Burlington Fire Department was called to put the fires out.

Students don’t show up to voice opinions ...continued from page 1

Stay tuned with the Cynic for updates on the developing story.

Oct. 19 12:50 a.m.

Hall staff in McAuley Hall contacted police services about a small party in a student’s dorm room, suspecting possible drug-related activities.

Upon entering, police services confiscated a marijuana pipe and a bong. Multiple students involved have been referred to the Center for Student Ethics and Standards.

Oct. 21 1:58 a.m.

Police services went to the Jeffords Center after receiving report of a suspicious unattended black bag, which had been left at the entrance to the building.

It was ultimately determined to be an empty pizza delivery bag.

—Jill Vaglica

workshop called The Body Project.

The project is centered around “promoting self-acceptance and preventing eating disorders,” said Cressy, who directs the discussion group.

The project is offered twice per semester. For more information call 802-656-0505 or email anne.cressey@uvm.edu.

Living Well also sponsors a Build a Better Meal program that meets with a nutritionist who helps educate students on how to make healthy choices in dining halls, according to their website.

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The student will be arraigned in court Oct. 30.

iors,” Cressey said.

Counseling and Psychiatric Services provides various services for the UVM community including short-term counseling, urgent needs counseling and group therapy, according to their website.

Students can receive up to 10 free counseling sessions.

Another way UVM is addressing student well-being is through Living Well.

Living Well focuses on information access, skill development and guiding students on how to make healthy choices, according to their website.

Living Well also offers a

OLIVER POMAZI The Vermont Cynic

Uber driver Jacquelin O’Harakin drives around Burlington Oct. 24.

She says she enjoys working with Uber because of flexible hours.

UBERX New private driver service comes to BTV ...continued from page 1 website.

Drivers must be at least 21 years old, with a personal license and personal auto insurance, according to the driver sign up.

Fares from Church Street Marketplace to the South End are around $8; UVM to Bank Street are around $9; and downtown to Burlington International Airport are around $14, according to the press release.

First-year Matthew Stevens, who lives on Trinity Campus, doesn’t see the use.

“Walking to Church Street isn’t that far. I just walked there and it took 20 minutes,”

Stevens said.

“There’s never been a safer, more seamless way to move around the city,” Uber stated in the press release.

However, some do question this claim, given that anyone over 21 with a license can be a driver.

“It could be a little creepy,” first-year Michelle Niland said.

Uber does face questions about its business practices, including accident liability, which a January 2014 article in the New York Times addresses.

Charlie Herrick, owner of Green Cab VT, said he welcomes any competition. He is planning to set up a mobile phone app for his company to compete with Uber.

successfully at thousands of campuses across the country, Carney said.

Details on ban-enforcement were also addressed at the forum.

“It would be like any other policy. Let’s take an example of dogs on campus. Occasionally you’ll see somebody with their dogs in our buildings,” Gustafson said. “It’s not a crisis, but if they do it every day you’d have a disciplinary issue.”

He did not explain how such an issue would be addressed, who would address it or how often one would need to violate the tobacco ban in order to qualify for a disciplinary hearing during the forum.

After the forum, Gustafson suggested that the issue might be handled situationally.

“It depends on the situation,” he said. “If there’s 20 people smoking cigarettes in front of the library, maybe somebody would send campus police over to ask them to put them out.”

Later, Gustafson compared the tobacco policy to the existing alcohol policy, and admitted that repeat offenders may be issued citations.

When asked about Gustafson’s uncertainty regarding specific enforcement procedures, Giroux and Mathews said that the responsibility of coming up with a disciplinary policy lies with the school itself, not with Tobacco-Free UVM. “The initiative is a social change, but as a university, there’s still a disciplinary policy. If you violate any university policy, the school decides the repercussions,” Mathews said.

The initiative still faces months of discussion and review before being presented to President Sullivan at the end of the semester, but with the community remaining largely absent from the discussion, major roadblocks or changes to the proposal seem unlikely.

“If people don’t start showing up to these things,” Gustafson said, “Maybe it won’t be a big deal.”

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Life

Students help with therapy horses Eileen Parks Staff Writer Just 20 miles from UVM, those with four legs are helping out.

Champlain Adaptive Mounted Program is a therapeutic riding program that is “changing lives one ride at a time,” according to their motto.

“We have riders from age 2 up into their 70s with all kinds of different challenges: physical, emotional and cognitive,” said Mary Willmuth, clinical associate professor of psychiatry at UVM and certified instructor at the program.

Several students, such as junior Sara Griswold, are volunteers for the program.

“Anyone can help, and there’s a wide array of things for us to do,” Griswold said.

Volunteers do a variety of jobs, from barn chores and grooming to leading the horses during lessons, she said.

“If you have horse experience, you can lead the horse,” said alumna Grace Levy, a longtime volunteer.

But experience is not necessary, according to the program’s website.

Griswold said the riders’ reactions are the best part of volunteering.

MAEVE CUTTS The Vermont Cynic

Julie Horrigan, co-founder at Champlain Adaptive Mounted Program, poses with a therapy horse in a barn at Good Hope Farm in South Hero, Oct. 24. Several students volunteer with the program and perform jobs such as barn chores and leading horses during lessons.

“The smile on their faces as they’re riding the horse… it’s a connection you don’t normally have,” she said.

Located in South Hero, Vermont the barn offers lessons designed for each student’s needs.

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Riders participate in numerous activities while riding, from throwing a basketball to taking mail out of a mailbox.

“This helps get them engaged,” Willmuth said.

“We think we can get almost anybody on a horse

and keep them there,” she said. “When they get on a horse they’re independently mobile and they have not two legs but four legs.”

Willmuth emphasized the emotional connection that riders can form with the horses.

“One father said, ‘I look at these as big furry animals and for my daughter they’re her friends,’” she said.

There are only two fulltime employees at the Champlain Adaptive Mounted Program since most of the instructors are volunteers.

Tales of UVM hauntings Emilee Conroe Staff Writer The clock struck 7 p.m and a dark figure carrying a lantern appeared from behind the trees at the center of Burlington’s Dewey Park.

Queen City Ghostwalk’s Darkness Falls tour had officially begun.

“Burlington is so filled with ghosts,” said Thea Lewis, a guide for the hour-long tour around Burlington.

“Stand anywhere in Burlington, throw a stone and you’ll hit a haunted restaurant.”

The tour touches on haunts such as “The Flynn Ghost” and “The White Woman,” and features stops at Red Rocks Park, the T.D. Bank on Main Street, Burlington Town Center, Nectar’s and American Flatbread.

Lewis also mentioned stories of UVM alumni including prominent lawyer Timothy Follett and H.H. Holmes, America’s first serial killer who was rumored to have killed more than 200 people at the Chicago World’s Fair, she said.

But UVM’s spirits don’t stop there.

“There are 14 presumed haunts at UVM,” Lewis said.

“Survivor’s own Mark Burnett was even interested in featuring the college on his show, ‘School Spirits.’”

OLIVER POMAZI The Vermont Cynic

Queen City Ghostwalk guide Thea Lewis tells a ghost story Oct. 24.

The tour ventures to Burlington’s most notorious haunted places.

Of these “presumed haunts” is Converse Hall and the legend of suicidal student “Henry” that has haunted students there for years.

“He thought he failed his midterms, called it quits on life and hung himself,” said sophomore Sam Desrochers, a Converse Hall resident. “He actually ended up passing all of his tests too.”

Desrochers said he does believe in ghosts after living in the hall.

“One night I heard whispering two inches from my ear for no reason. Shower doors have slammed shut when I’m the only one in the bathroom,” he said.

Sophomore Jack Fiztpatrick has also had a few experiences.

“I’ve been pretty sober and awake and things have happened,” Fiztpatrick said.

“I’ll put something down and it ends up in a different spot. There have been knocks on the door and no one there.”

Other students are a bit more skeptical.

“I really don’t believe in ghosts,” sophomore Asha Fuad said. “I do sometimes when I’m high, but usually no, although the first floor of Williams Hall is creepy.”

The Bittersweet House, the Allen House, the Center for Counseling and Testing, and the Grasse Mount House are other UVM sites of paranormal activity, according to TheShadowLands.net.

6

Li fe

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

Professor chats about performing aren’t many universities that offer dance.

I listened to my father, and became a chemical enDance, love and chemical gineer, but it was not my engineering. thing.

Paula Higa, a UVM dance When you are young, instructor and performer sometimes you listen too from Brazil, spoke with the much to your parents — sorCynic about her career in ry parents. dance, her degree in chemiSometimes, you have to cal engineering and love of make your own decisions. people — superheros and VC: Secret skills or talotherwise. ents?

PH: I like to do things Vermont Cynic (VC): with my hands — What is your dance histhere was a time tory? when I made Paula Higa jewelry, and I (PH): I started like to paint my dancing when I house and renwas 14 years old, ovate. I think I with jazz. would be a very Then I decided nice carpenter. to take ballet.

VC: If you I fell in love with could meet anyone modern, and later on Professor who has since died, with improvisation and Profiles who would it be? then I started to choreoPH: I think I would like graph. I decided this is what to meet Fred Mercury.

I wanted to do.

VC: Astrological sign?

VC: What was your moPH: Cancer. tivation for getting a chemiVC: Favorite movie cal engineering degree begenre? fore pursuing dance?

PH: I like superhero PH: In Brazil, there Rebecca Potter Staff Writer

movies. I love X-Men. But I also like comedies. I like documentaries. I’m very flexible.

VC: Favorite thing about teaching dance?

PH: The students. I really enjoy interacting with them and I enjoy making them laugh and seeing that they are having a great time.

VC: What advice would you give dancers outside of the professional sphere?

PH: Sometimes I feel that people want to dance, but they are shy or afraid of their bodies.

I think, just forget all these negative thoughts, and go for it. Nobody’s there to judge, just be you and that’s it.

VC: Anything else you want the UVM campus to know?

PH: I want the UVM campus to know that we have a dance program and that we are open to everyone.

All bodies, all colors, all kinds of people.

We just want to fill their lives with a little more dance.

ANABEL SOSA The Vermont Cynic

Professor Paula Higa discusses the role of dance in her life Oct. 23.

Fight for reproductive rights Marissa Lanoff Staff Writer

RENA MEISLER The Vermont Cynic

Campus recruiter Abraham Rash talks in Morrill Hall Oct. 21.

Peace Corps app gets easier Heather Rankine Cynic Correspondent If you’ve ever considered joining the Peace Corps, the process of applying just got easier.

The previous application took seven to eight hours to complete and included six to eight essays, said Abraham Rash, UVM’s Peace Corps campus recruiter.

Now the application takes around one hour and includes one essay.

The Peace Corps is an international service organization that provides Americans with the opportunity to travel abroad to tackle the “most pressing needs of the people around the world,” according to their website.

UVM ranked fifth for the most volunteers from a medium sized college in 2012, according to their website.

Senior Olivia Smith is reapplying for the Peace Corps

this year and said she likes the new process.

“It gives more people a chance to fill it out completely without starting and restarting it a thousand times,” Smith said.

The number of applications rose 70 percent this year since the application change, Rash said.

“The process seems a lot more approachable with the new changes,” first-year Ari Katsoulis said.

Another change is that applicants have direct interviews via Skype to Washington, D.C. and now recruiters can provide more help in the application process.

This change is “rewarding for both the applicants and the recruiters,” Rash said.

In regard to why students should join, Rash mentioned confidence.

“It gives you the kind of confidence you can’t get anywhere else,” he said.

Both women and men gathered to hear about reproductive justice in Memorial Auditorium Oct. 21.

Feminist Loretta Ross gave the presentation that described reproductive justice as the “cross section” between social justice issues and reproductive health.

The term “reproductive justice” was coined in 1994 by African-American women, Ross said.

She was one of the creators of the term.

Ross said she accidently became a feminist after going through some life-changing experiences.

“I really appreciated how she incorporated her own stories,” first-year Ella Overfield said.

Ross became pregnant after being raped at 14.

She was then faced with an assortment of what she described as “OMG questions.”

“My mother thought birth control was holding a bible between your legs,” Ross said.

Though she was planning on giving the child up for adoption, Ross decided against it.

“It is very hard to carry a baby for nine months and then give it up,” she said.

Ross teaches the three pillars of reproductive justice, including the right to have a child, not have a child and to parent a child.

“It’s important for women in college to think about reproductive justice because this is a subject that directly affects us,” first-year Sage Ryan said. “We are the generation of women who will soon be making these decisions and living with the outcome. Women need to be educated on the topic and stick together or it won’t work.”

“Women need to be educated on the topic and stick together or it won’t work” Sage Ryan First-year Ross aims to bridge the gap between men and women on the topic of feminism, as well as the one between woman of different racial backgrounds.

“We, as women, believe the world should be fair and equal…oops. We have to stop dividing. This is a human rights movement,” she said.

Ross is co-founder of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, an organization of women of color founded in 1997 in the fight for reproductive justice, according to her website.

Health Corner

Don’t let Halloween treats trick you Allison Carey Candy is easily my favorite part of Halloween, but the sugar hangover the next day is not. Here are a few ways to avoid the regret but still get your chocolate fix.

1. Grab a Now and Later instead of that caramel treat.

These candies are lower in calories and fat than their chewy counterparts, according to Fitness Magazine.

2. Try a York Peppermint Pattie.

They are the healthier choice when it comes to chocolate with only three grams of fat and less than 200 calories for a full-sized bar, according to Reader’s Digest.

3. Jolly Ranchers are another great choice. They have a low calorie count and last a while so you probably won’t eat too many.

4. Reach for fruit leathers and ropes. They satisfy a sweet tooth while avoiding the high calorie and fat content, according to the Huffington Post. Just watch out for added sugars.

5. Indulge in dark chocolate. This chocolate has antioxidants and fiber that may actually help your gut and contribute to heart health, according to Scientific American.

Allison Carey is a senior English major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2014.

A dv ert i s em en t

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

Things to do in Burlington this Halloween

By Kate Lipman

Nightmare Vermont Looking for a good scare this Halloween? Check out Nightmare Vermont.

The interactive theatrical event offers cinema-level visual effects, engaging characters and wild Halloween fun, according to the Nightmare Vermont website.

If you like to be scared and love Halloween, come enjoy a great performance by a very talented cast. It’s happening at the Champlain Valley Exposition, 105 Pearl St. in Essex Junction. Tickets can be purchased every half-hour from 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 30, 31 and Nov. 1.

Queen City Ghost Tour People will gather on the steps of city hall in downtown Burlington for the Queen City Ghost Tour which begins at 7 p.m. Oct. 31.

Queen City Tours was chosen for “Best Scary Stroll” by the editors of Yankee Magazine, and is known for sharing frightening stories about Burlington and UVM to those who sign up to be spooked.

The tour ambassador takes the groups on a historical walk, telling groups about everything from UVM’s deadliest student to madmen and smugglers who lurked in Burlington in the past.

If you are looking for a great time, head down to the Queen City Ghost tours. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 for walk up.

Monster Mash Check out the Monster Mash Oct. 30 at 6 p.m. It starts at 30 Bright St. in Burlington, where people will gather for a huge bike race, with everyone decked out in costumes and with treats, prizes and a big after party at Arts Riot in downtown Burlington.

If you like biking check out this awesome event that will be sure to be a fun time for everyone attending.

The race includes many stops along the way with various activities at each stop, even including a “dance stop on Decatur Street,” according to culturecycles.com.

Rocky Horror Picture Show Love movies? Love Halloween? Love musicals? Then come see Rocky Horror Picture Show.

This classic film follows a newlywed couple who find themselves lost on a rainy November evening.

Their story has become a cultural phenomenom and followers usually dress up as their favorite character for showings of the film.

It will be playing on the big screen in the Davis Center Grand Maple Ballroom at 7 p.m. Oct. 30.

Illustrations by Ciera Libenson and Phoebe Sheehan

ARTS

Rubblebucket ready for two-night bash Eliza Giles Cynic Correspondent Halloween is coming, and Rubblebucket is ready.

“We really love Halloween and this year we’re dressing up with a Spiderman theme for a show in Chicago,” said Annakalmia Traver, lead singer and saxophone player for Rubblebucket.

The band consists of Traver, Alex Toth on trumpet, Adam Dotson on trombone, Ian Hersey on guitar, Dave Cole on drums, Jordan Brooks on bass and Darby Wolf on the Hammond B3, Juno, Moog and Clavinet.

With popular singles “Came Out of a Lady” and “Carousel Ride,” Rubblebucket is an indie-dance band from Brooklyn, New York.

The band began when Traver and Toth met as music majors at UVM. “I met him on the very first day. I was walking across campus and I saw this little guy with blonde hair and a giant zit on his chin,” Traver said.

“He was playing a panpipe in this huge crowd of cheering students. He was just ripping away on his little wooden flute thing,” she said.

The two became good

FiILE PHOTO BY MAX LANDERMAN The Vermont Cynic

Rubblebucket drummer Dave Cole performs Dec. 30, 2012. The band has two upcoming shows featuring the new album “Survival Sounds.” friends and years later Toth met other band member Dotson in a marching band.

“We were just marching around the greater Boston area drunk, playing marching tunes in silly outfits,” Traver said.

Rubblebucket is putting on a two-day show Nov. 6 and 7 featuring music from their new album “Survival Sounds,” which was released this past August.

The shows will feature the gender-free animal/

monster on the cover of the album, named Vashti (you can follow Vashti on Twitter @Vashtiflower) in puppet form created by Branden Collins.

Vashti is important to the band because it represents the healing and recovery of Traver, she said.

Last year, Traver was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

She continued to tour throughout her treatment and completed chemo last

September.

Her recovery process greatly influenced “Survival Sounds,” Traver said.

Despite hair loss from chemotherapy, the band continued their Halloween tradition last October.

“Last year we dressed up as the cast of ‘Breaking Bad.’ I was Walter White because my hair was gone from chemo,” she said.

Traver said her favorite place to hang out in Burlington was Radio Bean. She

called it her “second dorm” and said the performers she watched there greatly influenced her.

Although the band resides in Brooklyn, Traver said they come back to Burlington whenever they can.

“I love Brooklyn for many of the same reasons I love Burlington,” she said.

“They’re very similar in a lot of ways but Burlington will always be a home to me.”

Brother Ali talks justice Artist exhibits grief Sandi Omanovic Cynic Correspondent Hip-hop fans will have their chance to tune-in when rapper Brother Ali comes to Higher Ground Nov. 1.

Brother Ali, also known as Ali Newman, describes himself as being an “artist, dad, small business owner, husband and friend” and believes “this is enough work for one lifetime.”

The work that Ali has completed in his lifetime transcends into his five albums, four EPs and multiple song appearances.

Ali focuses much of his work on social justice issues.

“My music is about life and hip-hop, things that make me feel strongly and that are the most painful,” Ali said.

Songs such as “Uncle Sam Goddamn” and “Dorian,” reflect this type of subject matter.

His most recent album “Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color” is a message to people that “we need to be more participatory,” he said The stand for social justice is a communal one, one of people uniting together to achieve a goal.

“Anytime the people are a strategic part of a movement, it’s a beautiful thing,”

Ali said.

Ali and multiple others were arrested in 2012 for occupying the foreclosed home of a resident that was being evicted.

Using his celebrity status, Ali was able to put the housing issue back on the table and force people to really listen and pay attention to a problem that was almost forgotten.

The artist draws his inspiration from the 80s rap decade, he said.

One of Ali’s favorite shows that he has played was with Rakim and Ghostface Killah in Minneapolis, Minnesota, he said.

Ali said he enjoyed playing with the rap legends along with having the privilege to use a live band on stage.

Having played in Vermont multiple times in the past, he last toured with friend Immortal Technique on their “War and Peace” tour.

“I’m glad to be coming back to Vermont,” Ali said.“ The venue there has always been really good to us and I’m looking forward to more good experiences,” he said.

Brother Ali is returning to Burlington as a stop on his “Home Away From Home” tour.

Molly Duff Staff Writer

PHOTO COURTESY OF CORY DEWALD

Who - Brother Ali Opening acts - Bambu, DJ Last Word Where - Higher Ground Showcase Lounge When - Saturday Nov. 1 @ 8 p.m.

Tickets - $20 advance $22 at the door “The hardest part about touring is leaving your loved ones behind,” he said.

Ali urges people to remember, “human beings are very precious” and to “question things we assume are true,” he said.

This upcoming Allen House exhibit might make viewers feel sad, but it might show them that it’s okay to be sad as well.

Junior Sydney Triola is being featured in the Allen House gallery with her exhibit “In a Ghost’s Arms,” which will be on display from Nov. 3 to 21.

Triola is an art history major with a ceramics background.

“The main focus of my artwork is grief and loss and losing my dad at 13,” she said.

For Triola, grief and loss is a process that she’s been going over for the last seven years, though the art work in her show is only from the past three years, she said.

Attending UVM has also had an influence on her work. “[UVM] was so important in my journey because it let me be sad,” Triola said.

She was able to find a supportive community that let her be herself.

Triola learned to “cry it out, it’s gonna be all right,” she said.

The title of the exhibit comes from her “go-to” cry song, Triola said.

When feeling “emotionally constipated, I go to Sarah McLachlan’s ‘Arms of an

Angel,’” she said.

Being sad has become important to Triola, because “when we cry and we’re sad... we still get to have [ones we lost] in that moment,” she said.

For Triola, the exhibit is about more than just her own personal feelings.

The hope is to open a dialogue about mental health in order to let others know that being sad is really okay, she said.

“Being sad and missing people is something that we all try and fix and maybe instead of fixing it we could acknowledge that its there,” Triola said. “Invite it to the dinner table.”

The current focus of the Allen House gallery is marginalized identities.

Triola describes the identity represented in her exhibit as “being a sad person,” she said.

The right to be sad is something with which Triola grapples.

“My experience in the white community is that we do not talk about [sadness],” she said. “Being a white woman, people want you to be happy and cheery.”

Triola feels that sadness is an important part of her identity however.

“When you invite me to the table, invite my sadness with me,” she said.

10

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

SKYLER VESELIS The Vermont Cynic

A member of the UVM choreography and composition class performs a dance routine at ONE Arts Oct. 19. ONE Arts Collective is a new facet on the Burlington local arts scene.

Arts collective utilizes new space Maggie Richardson Staff Writer The Old North End has welcomed a new neighbor, one who is becoming a major presence in the Burlington arts scene.

ONE Arts Collective is a collaborative effort to support and promote local artists, and is co-directed by Margaret Coleman and Becca McHale.

The collective has been up and running at their Old North End location since October.

“The space is a great landing ground for our artists,” Coleman said.

Before they had the space, the collective held events at Pizza on Earth’s farm in Charlotte, ArtsRiot and North End Studios.

“We held events anywhere we could find the space,” Coleman said.

By chance, their Old

North End landlord was looking for an art space, and so emerged a neighborhood arts center.

“Artists have a home base here,” Coleman said of the studio/gallery hybrid.

Coleman also noted the studio’s variety of artistic involvement.

“It’s individually tailored to each artist,” Coleman said. “Every artist who joins is a part of the collective, but everyone chooses their level of involvement.”

Some artists come with the intent to sell their art, some come to teach classes and others want to join for the studio space and simply the exposure they gain from being part of the collective, she said.

ONE Arts also has close ties with UVM. In April, an alum artist will have an installation at their studio.

The UVM choreography and composition class held

a show at ONE Arts Oct. 19.

“This performance is one of three projects this year,” senior class member Carolyn Connor said.

Other projects include one solo project and another group exposition.

Both the dancers and professor said they were ecstatic to be a part of ONE Arts.

“It’s in town, and they have this new space, so it was a natural jumping off point for organizing the show,” said Paul Besaw, associate professor of dance.

“We didn’t have to negotiate into the space,” Besaw said. “They knew what we were trying to do.”

Just like the collective artists, the dancers had complete creative liberty with the show. “[The logistics] were assigned, but everything else came from us,” Connor said.

During the performance each dancer told her own

SKYLER VESELIS The Vermont Cynic

Students dance at ONE Arts Oct. 19. The space functions as a place for local artists to brainstorm, create, sell and teach their trades. story through motion, resulting in a dynamic saga of emotional experience.

The show ended just as it began, with three dancers feet-to-feet, reaching out for each other in a triangular formation.

“Tonight, we’re present-

ing movement and a new perspective,” Coleman said.

“Art reminds people to make something, to think about the world in a different way,” she said.

With the ONE Arts Collective, nothing could be more true.

WRUV DJ PICKS

WRUV DJ graduate student Tyler Goeschel – DJ name “Sherman” – plays a variety of indie and alternative music. His show, “Organic Bribery,” runs Wednesdays from 6 to 9 a.m.

Artist: alt-j Song: “Tessellate” Album: “An Awesome Wave”

Artist: Modest Mouse Song: “Interstate 8” Album: “Interstate 8”

Artist: Devendra Banhart Song: “Shabop Shalom” Album: “Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon”

Artist: Mason Proper Song: “Fog” Album: “Olly Oxen Free”

Artist: Cherry Glazer Song: “Grilled Cheese” Album: “Papa Cremp”

A RTS

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

11

Arts events in November MONDAY

SUNDAY

WEDNESDAY

TUESDAY

THURSDAY

SATURDAY

FRIDAY

NOV. 1 VTIFF Closing Night Party with Swale and Ryan Miller @ Signal Kitchen 8:30 p.m.

NOV. 2

NOV. 3

NOV. 4

NOV. 5

NOV. 6

NOV. 7

NOV. 8

Del McCoury Band sings Woody Guthrie @ Flynn Center 7 p.m.

A Special Metal Monday ft.

Wolvhammer @ Club Metronome 9 p.m.

The Pretty Reckless concert @ Higher Ground 7 p.m.

RL Grime concert @ Higher Ground 8 p.m.

“Our Town” opening performance @ Royall Tyler Theatre 7:30 p.m.

The Cush and Paper Castles concert @ Signal Kitchen 8 p.m.

Afro-Latin Dance Party @ ArtsRiot 8 p.m.

NOV. 9

NOV. 10

NOV. 11

NOV. 12

NOV. 13

NOV. 14

NOV. 15

Ryan Power ft. The Hydrothermal Vents @ Radio Bean 10 p.m.

Maureen Dowd guest lecture @ Davis Center 5:30 p.m.

Horse Lords concert @ The Monkey House 8:30 p.m.

Ryan Hemsworth concert @ Higher Ground 8 p.m.

National Theatre Live: “Of Mice and Men” @ Palace 9 Cinemas 2 p.m.

Raphael Xavier performance @ Flynn Center 8 p.m.

UVM Figure Skating Club Fall Showcase @ Gutterson Fieldhouse 2 p.m.

NOV. 16

NOV. 17

NOV. 18

NOV. 19

NOV. 20

NOV. 21

NOV. 22

“Our Town” final show @ Royall Tyler Theatre 2 p.m.

Return of the Fly (A Misfits Tribute) @ Club Metronome 9 p.m.

“Note by Note” screening @ BCA Center 6 p.m.

Kat Wright and the ISB concert @ Signal Kitchen 8 p.m.

A2VT presents: “Bomba!” @ ArtsRiot 7 p.m.

Martha Graham Dance Company @ Flynn Center 8 p.m.

The Big Bang Bhangra Brass Band @ Radio Bean 9 p.m.

NOV. 23

NOV. 24

NOV. 25

NOV. 26

NOV. 27

NOV. 28

NOV. 29

The Music of J.S. Bach @ St. Paul’s Cathedral 3 p.m.

Dark Star Orchestra concert @ Higher Ground 8 p.m.

Stunt Night performance @ Flynn Center 4 p.m.

Lotango concert @ Radio Bean 7:30 p.m.

Generator Membership Mad Robbin Contra Orientation Dance @ Memorial @ First Congregational Auditorium 6 p.m.

Church 7:45 p.m.

ABB’s “The Nutcracker” performance @ Flynn Center 3 p.m.

NOV. 30 Flatbush Zombies and The Underachievers @ Higher Ground 7:30 p.m.

Your Weekend Fix

Looking forward to an arts-filled HalloWeekend Sam Heller It’s Halloween weekend, and you’ve never been more ready.

The Jack-o-lantern is carved, the candy stash is full and your costume game is on point.

But something’s missing.

Where will you get your local arts fix?

Well trick-or-treaters, here’s the Cynic’s handy guide to quality events for the weekend.

Friday Oct. 31: When you were younger, Halloween used to be thrilling.

Now you’re a grownass person, desensitized by years of constant exposure to “Criminal Minds” and the “Saw” movies.

Your great-aunt Gretchen’s spooky witch costume just doesn’t do it for you anymore.

Fear not, Halloween enthusiasts, and head down to ArtsRiot to hear doom metal pioneers Pentagram give you that sweet, sweet taste of the macabre you desperately crave.

Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and tickets range in price from $22 to $27.

Saturday Nov. 1: It has

provided us with weekend after weekend of entertainment, insight and super pretentious first dates.

So we’re sad to see the Vermont International Film Festival come to a close.

Yet, like the Shel Silverstein’s “Giving Tree” sacrificing itself so that snotty kid can have a boat or whatever, the Vermont International Film Festival’s dying act will provide us with an awesome closing party hosted by indie rock band Swale.

The event will also feature special guest Ryan Miller of Guster fame.

The show will be at the Signal Kitchen at 8:30 p.m. and is free to the public.

Sunday Nov. 2: Have you

ever won a Grammy?

Probably not, but bluegrass virtuoso Del McCoury has, and he’s playing a set at the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts this weekend.

The show will consist of McCoury and his string band putting music to asof-yet unreleased lyrics by hippie-folk messiah Woodie Guthrie as well as a multimedia presentation featuring Guthrie’s poetry and drawings.

The show takes place at 7 p.m. and tickets range in price from $15 to $40.

Sam Heller is a sophomore English major. He has been writing for the Cynic since spring 2014.

Events this weekend

Friday Oct. 31 - Pentagram Halloween Concert ArtsRiot 7:30 p.m.

Tickets: $22-$27

Saturday Nov. 1 - Vermont International Film Festival Closing Night Party with Swale ft. Ryan Miller of Guster Signal Kitchen 8:30 p.m.

Tickets: free Sunday Nov. 2 - Del McCoury Band sings Woody Guthrie The Flynn Theater 7 p.m.

Tickets: $15-$40

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Rise of female leaders at UVM

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STAFF EDITORIAL UVM has seen an influx in female leadership in the past year.

This has been both in the administration and among student leaders.

Deborah McAneny became the chair of the board of trustees March 17.

Before McAneny, Robert Cioffi served as the chair from 2010 to 2014. McAneny was the first female chair in quite some time.

Aya Al-Namee is the first female SGA president since Kesha Ram who served from 2007 to 2008.

Ram has since continued to have a successful career in politics. She is currently a Vermont State Representative and serves in other roles in the community.

When our current student media adviser came to UVM in 2006, the Cynic’s edi-

torial board was comprised of all men with the exception of one female editor. Today, nine out of 13 editors identify as women.

We are also proud to say that it is the first time in recent times that we have had a female editor-in-chief and female managing editor at the same time.

This is an awesome opportunity for women at UVM. It is important for young undergraduates to have strong female role models and for all students to have the same opportunities, no matter how they identify.

But this improvement is only the first step.

There is still an underrepresentation of women in leadership roles in Vermont.

Burlington has never had a female mayor and there hasn’t been a female governor in Vermont in 30 years.

The first ever Undergraduate Women in

Leadership Summit was held Oct. 22 in the Waterman Manor.

The summit was organized by Aya AlNamee and SGA, and was co-sponsored by President Tom Sullivan.

Vice Provost for Student Affairs, Annie Stevens, was the keynote speaker for the event.

This was presented as an opportunity for student leaders who identify as women to gather and discuss the issues that affect them.

We are excited to see the increase in female representation in top roles at UVM and would love to see more in the future.

But this is just the beginning.

Despite our strides thus far we have a lot more to do both in gender equality and other social justice issues on campus.

So let’s keep it going, let’s see what we can accomplish.

Sullivan with the students Kate Lipman A couple weeks ago I wrote a column about my belief that President Tom Sullivan and the administration should be more accessible to students.

I wrote that the administration needed more exposure to students because, as a firstyear, I had yet to see the President or any administrators around campus.

That doesn’t include the convocation ceremony, for which I was stuck at the very top of a crowded bleacher sec-

tion in the sweltering heat of the Patrick Gym, or the various emails I have received.

After my column was published, President Sullivan asked to sit down with me personally to discuss the ways he does just that.

I found him to be a man very interested in the student experience at the University.

In terms of interaction with students, President Sullivan told me he often attends dinners with sororities and fraternities, club meetings when invited and meets with the head of the SGA every month.

President Sullivan and his wife live right off campus, surrounded by Greek life and student apartments.

They attend sporting events such as club baseball and men’s and women’s basketball, and

even have meals in the dining halls a few times a semester.

Each month he hosts an event called “Conversations with the President,” where students have the opportunity to sign up to sit at his table and have a conversation with him personally.

President Sullivan expressed that he’s very committed to not only making a positive impact on the UVM community, but also wants to be very accessible to students and interact with the student body on a daily basis.

From attending meetings of student-run clubs, to cheering at sporting events, to meetings with students about issues on campus (including meeting with the Editor-in-Chief of the Cynic every month), he said that he spends close to two

Unsigned editorials officially reflect the views of The Vermont Cynic and its staff. All signed opinion pieces and columns do not necessarily do so.

The Cynic accepts letters in response to anything you see printed as well as any issues of interest in the community. Please limit letters to 350 words. Send letters to cynicalopinion@gmail.com.

We are also committed to accuracy in all of our work. If for some reason there is an error, please send all letters of correction to cynic@uvm.edu.

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hours a day directly on student issues.

President Sullivan emphasized his wish for UVM to be a student-centered university, understand exactly what that means and be able to reach out and hear a variety of student voices within the UVM community.

I appreciate the President asking to meet with me and it’s nice to know that he is willing to make a conscious effort so the students of UVM feel that this is a place where they can learn, live, grow and really make this place their own in a positive way.

Kate Lipman is a first-year political science major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2014.

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opinion

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

The riot that wasn’t

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

The pitfalls of trapping Dear Editor,

Jon Zinter I was there at Keene State College last weekend for the socalled Pumpkin Festival “riots” that took place.

The only things there that resembled a riot, however, were an overturned Volkswagen and the mass of police donned in riot gear.

I guess by the 2014 New Hampshire definition of “riot,” the word is appropriate.

At KSC, a riot consists mostly of needless destruction, a few brawls and no looting.

What would the students loot for anyway? They appeared to have been given everything already.

This is what happens when a northeastern college campus sees its population more than double over the course of a few days. Masses of flannel-wearing, highly intoxicated students took to the streets without a real care in the world.

No one was angry about anything.

These students hadn’t just been evicted. Their friend hadn’t just been wrongly shot.

Let’s face it. If you go to a college in New Hampshire for around $30K a year, you probably have nothing to riot about.

Still, masses of hundreds of students gathered, each marked by the flying bottles and cans above them.

Those standing in the crowds were forced to turn an attentive eye to the sky or eventually be nailed by a half-full beer or worse yet, an empty handle of rum. The projectiles

Illustration by Ciera Libenson

made the area totally unsafe for those not participating in the mayhem.

In order to disperse the crowds, police in full riot gear and eventually a SWAT team used tear gas and pepper spray pellets.

These methods were successful in breaking up the dangerous backyard crowds, but the groups of destructive students then made their way to the streets.

Here, lamp posts, street signs and even a car were destroyed. The car suffered four broken windows while being overturned by eight or so proud young men. Few of them were stopped.

I witnessed four male students tear down a lamp post, and then proceed to use it to damage other property. All in front of a police officer in full riot gear, who stood there and watched.

It seemed the police had no problem working in groups to deal with large crowds of mostly innocent students.

When presented with an obviously guilty few people however, they stood aside clubs drawn, but with no real intention to use them.

Keep it in its strap next time officer; it only serves to threaten.

As KSC mostly sleeps hung over while the aftermath is cleaned by townspeople and the few hundred students who want to make it look like they care, its students dream about who to blame.

Many of them place the blame entirely on their guests and the “outsiders,” like me. I didn’t destroy anything however, and I witnessed KSC undergrads throw glass bottles into crowds numerous times.

In the end, pointing blame will do nothing to repair what has been damaged in terms of both property and the school’s reputation.

Jon Zinter is a sophomore English major. He has been writing for the Cynic since spring 2014.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Resident desire for communication

Dear Editor, I read the recent article on noise complaints against students and want to respond.

As an older downtown homeowner whose house is surrounded by rental houses filled with students I have some experience dealing with this.

Let me say that I believe in mixed housing and have had several pleasant student neighbors who introduced themselves, gave me their phone numbers (and I gave them mine) and encouraged direct communication. But most of the time student neighbors have not responded to my hellos or smiles or made any effort

to be neighborly.

I am kept awake until 2 or 3 a.m. on weeknights (and I have to work the next day) at least ten times over the summer, not just with normal party noise, but by screaming, fights, obscenities and sounds of glass breaking in the street, which I usually have to pick up the next morning.

I pull plastic cups, beer and liquor bottles, used condoms and hypodermic needles out of my gardens weekly. This wears my good will down!

What I would prefer is direct communication with student neighbors, exchange of numbers and some consideration at least on work day nights so

I can sleep.

I understand that young people need to have gatherings and to blow off steam, and I am as tolerant as possible of this on weekends.

I would much prefer never to call the police with a noise complaint, but if the party noise is very rowdy and clearly a lot of alcohol is involved, I feel pretty nervous going over in the middle of the night to chat.

Any ideas how to make this work for us all?

Sincerely, Lauren Berrizbeitia Burlington, Vermont

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13

Official trapping season is upon us in Vermont so it’s important for Vermonters to be aware of the indiscriminate nature of traps and their inherent danger to dogs, cats, endangered and even federally protected species such as eagles.

The national organization Born Free USA estimates that 300,000 times a year, nontargeted animals are captured in traps throughout the United States.

Traps and snares, which are currently illegal in Vermont, cannot differentiate between a cherished family pet or a raccoon or an endangered lynx or a bobcat.

The lynx is an endangered species in Vermont and I find it appalling that trapping offers us no guarantees that one won’t end up either injured or killed by a trap set for another

animal.

Even more worrisome, at least two Vermont dogs were killed over the past year at the hands of these body gripping traps.

Animals captured in traps can suffer dehydration, physical trauma and predation by other animals among the horrors.

The state of Vermont requires trappers check their traps every 24 hours but that is a very difficult regulation to enforce and therefore animals may suffer even longer periods of time.

While we can’t protect our wildlife from these traps, we can do our best to keep our pets safe by keeping cats indoors and dogs leashed.

Sincerely, Jackie Tauberman Burlington, Vermont

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Anticipations for movie Dear Editor, We’re anticipating a reaction from the showing of the movie “Dear White People.”

The movie, written and directed by Justin Simien, depicts the lives of four black students attending a predominantly white college.

We haven’t seen the movie, but assume it will attempt to engage a dialogue on how we’re perceived, as white people, by our peers of color.

This is likely to be done through the use of satire while punctuating a very serious set of concerns.

To state it plainly, this isn’t reverse racism. Perhaps we’re about to be generalized as “clueless white people.”

That isn’t an act of racism.

Noticing reliable trends in the behavior of white people and discussing how they impact a person of color’s daily experience is merely a step toward dialogue.

An opportunity for us to realize that we’re having a collective impact that is being perceived as hurtful.

Let’s appreciate another person’s willingness to take a brave step forward while telling us how our behavior is impeding our relationships.

The truth of the matter is that we will need to consider race for a long time to come.

We need to consider race differently than how we’ve considered race until today.

Then we’ll need to consider it differently again.

That’s how we evolve as a society. Race still matters.

Your whiteness matters.

We’ll never know what it’s like to be a person of color on a predominantly white campus.

That’s not an experience that we will ever have. If we want to get a sense of what

that experience might be like, our only choice is to believe the stories told to us by those who know. Believe.

The people who live that experience are tired of telling those stories to clueless white people. Mostly, we’re assuming, the tiredness is due to the absence of our belief.

That absence of belief is conveyed in countless ways that accumulate. Daily.

If we don’t feel like our story is going to be heard, we’re less likely to tell it. That’s a common defense mechanism for how we protect our truths.

Fair or not, we’re collectively defined by the least of ourselves.

We understand why that happens. People that look a lot like us consistently disbelieve these important stories.

“Dear White People” will offer a humorous look at our collective behavior that is impacting our collective identity.

This is a wonderful opportunity to just sit there and listen. Don’t plan your response.

Just keep asking yourself “what if?”

What if this story told to us represents an accurate perspective? What would that mean for how we had previously been viewing our campus? What if it’s true? Wonder.

First, you have to watch.

You have to put yourself deliberately into the place where a story is told to you.

We want white people to become deliberate about listening. We want to talk about what we hear together. Do that with us.

Sincerely, Annie Cressey & Troy Headrick Co-directors of the Examining White Privilege Retreat Planning Committee

Sports

Cats selected fourth in preseason poll Owen Parr Staff Writer As head coach for men’s basketball, John Becker has had a 20-win season every season in his coaching tenure.

With seven incoming firstyear’s this year, the young team hopes to achieve the same feat this season.

With six seniors who graduated after the 2013-14 season, Becker and his coaching staff had to figure out where to go from there.

The Preseason Coaches’ Poll results were announced on Oct. 23 and UVM was picked to finish fourth in the America East conference.

Following last year’s result as the Conference Champions, this is not something they would want to hear.

“My expectations for this season are for our team to play hard and be the best team that we can and not to settle for anything less than that,” first-year Cam Ward said.

Past success in win column under Becker’s leadership will not cause the Catamounts to let up this season.

“We want to win as many games as possible. We want make it to the NCAA tournament and we also want to

PHOTO COURTESY OF LISA CHAMPAGNE

First-year members of the basketball team (from left to right) Davis Urso, Trae Bell-Haynes, Brandon Hatton, Drew Urquhart, Zach McRoberts, Cam Ward and Ernie Duncan pose for a group photograph. continue coach’s 20 plus win season streak,” first-year Drew Urquhart said.

“The Catamounts will face six teams that advanced to a postseason tournament last year and 10 of the 13 squads posted at least 18 wins, including seven that recorded 20-win seasons in 2013-14,” according

to the announcement released with their 2014-15 schedule.

Adding seven new players to the roster isn’t an easy task, because having seven players coming from different schools and programs in different areas of the country means needing time for adjustment.

“In the basketball aspect,

I feel like the style of play is a little different than what I was used to from playing in high school, and it requires learning a lot of new plays that are totally new to a majority of the team,” first-year Zach McRoberts said.

“I don’t see it being a problem but I think we just need to

get used to playing with each other,” McRoberts said.

The first-years have had a great amount of help with the adjustment from the multiple returning players on the team.

“I think the veterans have really done a great job of teaching us and helping ease the transition from high school to college,” Urquhart said.

The Catamounts have multiple players returning to the team.

Among them are senior Hector Harold, junior Ethan O’Day and sophomore Kurt Steidl, who were the top three leading scorers following the five out of six seniors that graduated last year.

Of those players, junior forward Ethan O’Day is the only returning member of the starting lineup.

O’Day, Harold and senior Ryan Pierson have been named tri-captains for the 2014-15 season and hopefully they can lead the Catamounts to further success.

After months of build up with many practices and even a early August five-day trip to Canada, the Cats will start their regular season Nov. 1 in an exhibition game against Concordia at 7 p.m. at Patrick Gym.

Cross country races toward America East competition Freddy Fields Staff Writer The end of the 2014 season is approaching for Vermont’s cross country program, and both the men’s and women’s teams are making leaps forward.

Through the team’s five meets thus far, the men have claimed first place three times while the women took gold twice.

Most recently, the men won the Rothenberg Run at Brown University, while the women’s squad earned second at the meet.

The season started with the women running to a first place finish at the UMass-Amherst Invitational, while the men took second.

Both teams defeated UMass-Lowell in a dual meet, after which came the New England Championships, where the women took sixth out of 38 teams, and the men 10th out of 39 teams.

The women’s team is led by senior captain Sydney Durand, as well as junior captains Amber Peirsol and Alicia Clark.

Clark was named America East Female Performer of the Week for the week of Sept. 10.

That week she was the highest placed America East competitor at the Minutemen Invitational.

On the men’s side, junior Dan Maroney and senior Dylan Souder have led the squad,

“All I know for certain is that the competition for the America East Championship is going to be fierce.”

Dan Maroney Junior co-captain with three first place finishes between them on the season.

At the Rothenberg Run Oct. 17, Maroney broke the course record on his way to claiming first place, finishing the eight kilometer race in 24:43.

“Dan set a course record with his win and we got the team win for the men. It was great to see Dan look sharp,” head coach Matt Belfield said in an interview with UVM Athletics.

The Catamounts will look to their recent successes to motivate them down the home stretch of the season.

The teams still have the America East Conference Championship Nov. 1 in Orono, Maine to look forward to, as well as NCAA Regionals Nov. 14 in New York, New York and that NCAA Championships Nov. 22 in Terre Haute, Indiana for qualified competitors.

Look to see the Catamounts run through the competition this November.

I.J. IDRIZAJ The Vermont Cynic

Cross country members run together during their meet against UMass-Lowell Sept. 27. The Cats will compete in the America East Championships in Orono, Maine Nov. 1 and the NCAA Regionals Nov. 14.

Q & A WITH JUNIOR DAN MARONEY Q: You’ve had a really good year so far, taking first place at both the UMass Invitational and the Rothenberg Run. Do you feel you have some momentum going into the America East Championships?

A: It’s hard to say. Cross country is a tricky business, all that matters is what you’re prepared to do on race day.

Momentum might not be the right word for it. But I am definitely confident in the work Joe Gingras has had us

do this summer and fall.

Plus we already raced at UMaine at the Pre-Conference Meet and raced well, so I feel confident about the course.

Q: You placed 42nd at the America East championships last year. How much higher do you feel you can finish this year?

A: America East’s last year was definitely not a good race for me, so I’m aiming to be much higher than 42nd.

I have a lot of family in Maine who will be coming to the race, so I want to run well for them.

Q: The men’s team took seventh place last year at

the championships. Do you feel like the team is ready to make a huge leap up the standings in November?

A: All I know for certain is that the competition for the America East Championship is going to be fierce.

Almost every team in the conference has a shot at taking the title. This year, we have a stronger pack up front, and I think we also have a big advantage with our depth.

We’ve had an underdog’s never-slack-off work ethic since last year’s championship, and I think we’ll see it pay off in Orono this year.

Q: Do you feel like you’ve

had more responsibility due to being a co-captain this season?

A: In some ways, yes. I go into every race knowing that my teammates are counting on me to be at the front.

But our team is highly motivated, we all do crosscountry because we love it.

So the day-to-day captain’s responsibilities are small.

Q: What’s the biggest takeaway from the season so far?

A: We’ve been a young team with potential since my freshman year, and now we’re just starting to see how good that team can be.

S Po rts

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

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Catamounts stay poised despite record David Brandt Staff Writer Despite a two week slump that resulted in a five-game losing streak, ambition seems to be contagious among the men’s soccer team as it prepares for postseason play.

After starting the season with a 5-1 record, the Catamounts quickly gained national recognition, but the high expectations became hard to meet.

The team struggled against non-conference opponents and even dropped its first America East match to the Albany Great Danes — a loss that forced the struggling Catamounts to move in a more positive direction.

Senior goalkeeper Conor Leland said the loss to Albany “woke the team up.”

“We figured out from there that we needed to push harder, practice harder and get the guys in order. We’ve created a dynamic that’s been successful ever since,” Leland said.

The “dynamic” that he describes has produced promising results.

In their last four games, the Cats are 2-1-1. In the net, Leland has allowed one goal in his last four appearances.

He cites an early-upset loss in last year’s America East tournament as a key motivator in the team’s quest for postseason success.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHELBY FERRY

Senior goalkeeper Conor Leland grabs a shot on net as senior Brad Cole and junior Nile Walwyn look on during a home game against the University of Hartford Oct. 25. The Cats fell to the Hawks 1-0.

“Last year ended kind of abruptly and that stung in a lot of our hearts. Now we know that we have the talent to advance,” Leland said.

Now, as the season nears its end, he is using the team’s rough patch to his advantage.

“It gives you perspective.

Being a fifth-year senior, I know what it takes to get to the next stage,” Leland said.

His teammate at the other end of the field, sophomore

forward Brian Wright, was also able to find a bright side in the team’s winless streak.

“I thought it was good that when we lost, it was mostly out of conference. We’ll be okay,” Wright said.

Wright, who leads the America East with seven goals, believes that both he and the team “were working really hard and staying fresh at the beginning of the season. We’re looking to pick it up again.”

NFL Picks

Week 9: Cynic predictions Armin Milak Every week, members of the sports section will predict who will be victorious in their NFL match-ups.

Broncos vs. Patriots As the midway point of the NFL’s season passes, a few teams have set themselves apart from the pack and expect to continue to do so.

Two of those teams are the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, who will face off Nov. 2 in what will be one of the most anticipat- NFL ed matchups of the regular season.

Denver boasts the number one offense in the league, averaging an impressive 32 points per game on the feet of standout players such as Peyton Manning, Demaryius Thomas and breakout receiver Emmanuel Sanders.

Standing in the Broncos way are Tom Brady and the Patriots. Sitting at 6-2 and first place in the American Football Conferences East division, Brady and the rest of the Pats are destined to put up a fight.

It will be a very close, competitive game, but the Patriots are on a roll and they have the weapons, both offensively and defensively, to pull out the win.

Broncos: Andrew, Freddy, Owen, Stu and Zach Patriots: Alex, Armin, Cam, Colby, Dave and Jack

Cardinals vs.

Cowboys The biggest surprise team of the season has been the Dallas Cowboys, who boast a dominating 6-2 record.

PICKS They will be put to the test playing against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 9, who have also turned some predictors’ minds upside down with a surprising 6-1 record and a first place standing within their division.

Mix the number one running back in the league with Tony Romo throwing to Dez

Bryant, and you have a team that is going to be tough to defeat.

If anyone can pull it off, it will be the Arizona Cardinals.

The Cards will use their defense to scrap out a tight win.

Cardinals: Armin and Andrew Cowboys: Alex, Cam, Colby, Dave, Freddy, Jack, Owen, Stu and Zach

Saints vs. Panthers Predicted by many to have great seasons, the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers will be stacked up against each other in a game of underachievers.

Cam Newton is an explosive player, who can take over a game any week, but the Saints are a more balanced team who posses the potential to turn their season around any week.

The Saints will take this one home.

Saints: Alex, Armin, Andrew, Colby, Freddy, Jack, Owen, Stu and Zach Panthers: Cam and Dave Armin Milak is a junior business major. He has been writing for the Cynic since spring 2013.

Alex- 14-7 Andrew- 12-9 Armin- 14-7 Cam- 13-8 Colby- 11-10 Dave- 14-7 Freddy- 13-10 Jack- 12-9 Owen- 13-8 Stu- 15-6 Zach- 15-6

Both Leland and Wright related a common team goal of winning the conference tournament.

“If you’re not top 25 in Division I, then you have to win your conference to go to the NCAA tournament,” Leland said.

Head coach Jesse Cormier agreed. He said the goal is to “always finish further along than the year before.”

The Cats can do this by ad-

vancing deep into the America East tournament.

As a coach, however, Cormier has to address regular season concerns before thinking about the postseason.

“We had to change and change for the better,” Cormier said. He believes that “the guys are picking up speed,” and “giving themselves a chance to win.”

Outside of the locker room, UVM students share similar goals for their hopeful men’s soccer team. First-year Willem Rossi has been following UVM soccer for his entire life, and “this year’s team has more talent than before,” he said.

“Starting out 5-0 was fantastic. They were playing fastpaced, exciting soccer and they had avoided injuries,” Rossi said.

He also said he feels that fan support is important.

“It’s tough, you’re standing along a fence, but it’s getting better,” Rossi said.

Whether it comes through fan support or an injury-free roster, the UVM soccer community is hoping for the Cats to look past their midseason decline and move forward into the postseason.

The Catamounts will travel to University of Maryland, Baltimore County Saturday, Nov. 1, as they look to climb the conference standings in this America East matchup.

Women’s Ice Hockey Playlist “Fireman”- Lil Jon “300 Violin Orchestra” - Jorge Quintero “Tsunami”- Steve Dubbs & Bourgeous “Drunk In Love (Remix)”- Diplo “Somebody Loves You”- Betty Who “I Chose You”- Timeflies “Na Na”- Trey Songz “Love On Top”- Beyoncé “What Now”- DJ Reflex

“Loyal”- Chris Brown “Foreign (Remix)”- Justin Bieber & Trey Songz “Animals”- Martin Garrix “Dont Tell ‘Em”- Jeremih “Partition (Radio Edit)”- Beyoncé “Earthquake”- DJ Fresh “Booyan (Lyric Video)”- Showtek “Headlines”- Drake “X”- Chris Brown “Yeah Yeah Yeah”- Chris Brown “Turbulence”- Lil Jon

athletetweet “If Steve Nash didn’t do what he did, theres not a chance Canada Basketball would be where its at now #CanadianBasketballIcon.”

Drew Urquhart - first-year forward for men’s basketball @Durquhart11

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S po rts

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014

Relay team sets new freestyle record in pool Freddy Fields Staff Writer At their most recent meet against New Hampshire, the UVM women’s swimming and diving team came up big, toppling the hosts 157-143.

While the win highlights the team’s achievements, it was a new pool record in the 400 x 100 freestyle relay that gained the most recognition for the team’s victory.

Clocking in at 3:30.09, the team, which incluces juniors Andrie Blasser and Christa Weaver and sophomores Courtney Gray and Sarah Mantz, beat the old time by more than two seconds.

“Breaking a pool record this early in the season just shows all the hard work the team has put in since the end of last season, and it shows how strong we can be for the rest of the year,” Gray said.

“I think that breaking the record is a reflection of how hard we have been working this year,” Mantz said. “We wouldn’t have been able to break the previous pool record by so much if it weren’t for how hard each of us has been working.”

“Training every day is not easy, but it’s accomplishments like this one that really proves that the hard work is worth it,” she said.

The team’s leadership is

BECCA ADAMSThe Vermont Cynic

Members of the women’s varsity swimming and diving team jump off the block at their meet against the University of Maine at Forbush Natatorium Nov. 9, 2013. The team earned the win and a record-setting 400 x 100 freestyle relay time at their meet against UNH Oct. 18. optimistic in their accomplishments from the meet.

“The ladies breaking the record so early in the season by three seconds was exciting.

This shows that the team as a whole is ahead of where they were last season,” head coach Gerry Cournyoer said.

“I do feel that this team will

have the opportunity to break numerous records throughout the season,” Cournyoer said.

If the team plans to break any more records this season,

they can look to do so Nov. 1 at Siena College.

So far, this season seems like it could be a year that will be remembered for decades.

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