2015 vol 132 issue 11

Page 1

INSIDE

BURLINGTON, VT

VTCYNIC.COM

VOL. 132

Monkey House

Debate team

Winooski venue gives students alternative to Burlington nightlife

UVM’s champion debate coach takes skills to the Middle East

page 11 arts

ISSUE 11

page 7 life

Hockey Profile First-year Mike Lee keeps up with the men’s hockey veterans page 14 sports

W E D N E S DAY, N O V E M B E R 1 1 , 2 0 1 5

Is saying ‘too’ sexist? First-year’s column for the Huffington Post receives national attention

Headlines from around the web

The National Review Oct. 27

Squash Club member uses racial slur in email BY alexandra shannon amshanno@uvm.edu

BY bryan o’keefe bokeefe@uvm.edu

Although first-year Cameron Schaeffer has written for the Huffington Post before, she has not received anywhere near as much attention as her most recent column. The Oct. 26 editorial, titled “The 3-Letter Word That Cuts Women Down Every Day,” focused on how the use of the adverb “too” deprives women of self-satisfaction and appreciation, currently has over 12,000 likes and 2,000 shares, as well as responses from multiple conservative media outlets.

The

Word

THEWORD@VTCYNIC.COM

Come watch the Democratic debate 7 p.m. Saturday in the Davis Center Grand Maple Ballroom Class registration starts Nov. 17 for seniors, Nov. 18 for juniors, Nov. 19 for sophomores and Nov. 20 for first-years

Men’s hockey goes up against the University of Connecticut at 7:05 p.m. Friday at Gutterson Fieldhouse The Word is a weekly collection of reminders, interesting events on campus, news items and more. Submit suggestions or comments to theword@vtcynic.com.

facebook.com/ thevermontcynic

@vermontcynic

instagram.com/ vermontcynic youtube.com/ cynicvideo

Daily Wire Nov. 2

Infowars.com Oct. 28 (Right) Headlines from Internet columns reacting to first-year Cameron Schaeffer’s column about sexism that was published by the Huffington Post. (Left) Schaeffer discusses her article and the debate it started. COLE WANGSNESS/The Vermont Cynic Schaeffer has written two columns for the Huffington Post, but her first column did not garner nearly as much attention as her most recent article. “I’m just a college freshman,” Schaeffer said. “I’m not a full-fledged journalist or a PR specialist, so it’s been weird to try to manage this and figure out what my next step is.” Schaeffer’s editorial highlights the constant scrutiny women face to meet societal standards, while specifically pointing out damage she believes is caused by the word “too.” “I have determined that ‘too’ means you’re calling a woman ‘too’ far away from your idyllic version of what a woman should be,” she writes in the op-ed. “Something as small as calling a woman’s dress ‘too’ long or her muscles ‘too’ built has a much larger social construct.”

It’s been weird to try to manage this and figure out what my next step is CAMERON SCHAEFFER FIRST-YEAR

Schaeffer said that her inspiration behind the editorial came from a passion for combating intolerance, but she only feels comfortable speaking from her own voice and about issues she has experienced firsthand. Some students agree with Schaeffer’s point, but many also see flaws in her piece. “Although I agree with her that society’s view regarding

women is fucked, words don’t have any power and people need [to] change first,” junior Kelly Costello said. “I’m still paid less. I’m still far more likely to get killed by my male partner than vice versa. The word ‘too’ is honestly the least of my fucking problems as a feminist.” Junior Sandy Halbing had a similar reaction toward the piece. “I see the message she is trying to get across, and it’s important,” she said. “But I don’t think scrutinizing the use of one common adverb is the right approach to tackling the issue.” Nancy Welch, an English professor at UVM, said she feels Schaeffer’s article is powerfully written and important. “I don’t hear Ms. Schaeffer arguing that the word ‘“too’” is the cause of sexism and misogyny,” Welch said. “I do hear

SEE ‘TOO’ PAGE 2

The UVM Squash Club is on probation after SGA officials received word of an email that a club member sent out to the club which used a racial slur. A member of Squash Club sent an email to over 60 students through the club’s listserv Nov. 2, according to the email. The subject line: “Club Squash? Nah, it’s a squash team my nigga.” SGA President Jason Maulucci and Chair of Club Affairs Niki Brown were forwarded the email Nov. 3, Maulucci said. Within an hour of receiving the email, the club signers, senior Grant Robin and Will Vincett, were told that Brown and Maulucci were aware of the email and that the team was was being placed on interim suspension that night, he said. SGA is handling the matter internally and not giving out the name of the student who wrote the email, Maulucci said. They took immediate action by putting the club on interim suspension until the club signers could meet with them, he said. “That night we put them on interim suspension on the grounds that when we recognize every SGA organization the

SEE SLUR PAGE 4

Fund struggles to complete review BY michelle phillips mphill15@uvm.edu

The UVM Office of Sustainability is reviewing its progress in completing one of the University’s green initiatives. However, this project is behind schedule. The office is using the Clean Energy Fund, made up of $10 paid from every student’s tuition, to fund an evaluation of its own track record to make sure it can reach the Climate Action Plan commitment of carbon neutrality by 2025. This process started in May and is projected to be finished by December. However, it is only 20 percent done, according to the CEF website. When the CEF was created in 2008, the plan was to evaluate the fund every four years,

according to the CEF’s contract. However, they have yet to complete one, said Gioia Thompson, director of the Office of Sustainability. “It has been more than four years, and we haven’t done one,” Thompson said. “The language [in the contract] was unclear, though. Would it be every four years after 2008 or after projects started? It also hasn’t been at the top of our priority list because we have had staff shortages this year and STARS to deal with.” STARS stands for Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System. The Office of Sustainability is in charge of determining how well UVM does on this scale. “We will publish the [CEF evaluation] report in a few months. I think it’s better

to publish a report that says something about the future and doesn’t just look back,” Thompson said. “The next step we’re taking is our graduate student intern will be looking at pastprojects and how well they fit with the Climate Action Plan.” The SGA Committee on Diversity, Equity and Environmental Ethics will be working with the Office of Sustainability to evaluate the CEF, said Senior Dylan Letendre, the chair of the committee. “We have met twice with them but we’re definitely in the beginning stages,” Letendre said. “I think so far the CEF has done a good job of raising awareness of environmental issues. The [Energy Action Seminar] lecture series is really good, I’ve been to a few and

they have a pretty good turnout,” he said. “They’ve made some progress with campus infrastructure for renewable energy but maybe renewables might become more of a priority after the evaluation.” The CEF employs a number of interns to help with outreach and education. $25,000 of the CEF budget goes to employing these interns, according to the fund’s 2010-2011 report. “This year has been about revamping, redefining and restructuring the CEF’s strategy [toward gaining renewable energies,” said senior Patrick Mathon, a CEF intern. “We’ve been researching other schools’ CEF equivalents to see how we can make ours better.”

SEE CEF PAGE 4


2

THE VERMONT CYNIC

NEWS

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

RA email scandal in Converse by Ian Lund & Kelsey Neubauer ilund@uvm.edu—keneubau@uvm.edu

What began as a public service announcement quickly became a dorm-wide email chain when a residence adviser hit reply-all to an email. Converse residents were asked to stop propping open swipe-operated doors, citing security concerns in an email sent by Jacqueline Cid, the assistant residence director of Converse Hall, at 7:45 p.m. Nov. 2. The RA who replied, sophomore Mikayla Varunok, asked about the logistics for documenting a resident who was playing music. Her email was sent to every resident in the building. “It was about a student making a lot of noise and I was writing him up and I was emailing my boss about what documents I should use to write him up and I accidentally CC’d the entire building,” Varunok said. “We all received the e-mail, and from there the whole complex exploded [on the chain],” sophomore Luke Faulkner said. After a follow-up email asking the residents to “please disregard the last email,” some residents responded with emails regarding their experience in the hall. “At first it was just a lot of my residents responding and joking,” said Varunok. “It was all fun and fine and then one resident started complaining and saying that Converse was a jail cell and that the RAs are like prison guards.” Once residents started sending complaints about the hall, Varunok said she sent out an email encouraging residents to reach out to their RAs if they have any concerns. “I told everyone I wanted to

have a community meeting the next day,” Varunok said. “I told everyone I live here too and I have the same frustration.” She said she attempted to get as much information as possible regarding the concerns of the residents such as when the parking lot next to Converse will re-open. As a result of Varunok’s reply, residents of Converse began a 40 message long email chain:

Nov. 3, 9:57 p.m. “The construction is taking over the few spots we have left, we all got deceived by the university when we bought our parking passes” The student reception of the emails varied. Third floor resident Lydia Marchese observes that while there are benefits to “having an online space where you can vent

An officer saw a student walking down North Union Street with an open container of alcohol, and issued the student a ticket. 10:59 P.M. An officer found a student vomiting by the Christie-WrightPatterson complex. 11:33 P.M. RAs in Jeanne Mance called police to report a student vomiting. The student had been intoxicated, but not unconcious and was released. OCT. 31 1:57 A.M.

The third floor of Converse Hall is pictured Nov. 9. A public service announcement resulted in a complex-wide email chain where students could communicate in an online forum. RYAN THORNTON/ The Vermont Cynic

your feelings,” the nature of the forum means “[one] can often hyperbolize them because they feel like they can let more out.” Nov. 3, 2:53 p.m. “Converse is worse than a jail cell, the rooms are smaller than a cell, I can’t sleep cause the pipes sound like they are going to blow up at night. I can hear people walking around 3 floors above me. Not to mention the cage of construction basically surrounding converse. We shouldn’t have R.A.’s that act like prison guards because it’s making it a little too real.” Marchese, a sophomore, went on to say that even though

2012 Online Pacemaker 2011 Newspaper Pacemaker

116 Dudley H. Davis Center 590 Main Street Burlington, Vt. 05405 The University of Vermont’s Independent Voice since 1883

Executive

Editorial

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Cory Dawson editorinchief@ vtcynic.com

ARTS Sandi Omanovic arts@vtcynic.com

OPERATIONS MANAGER Cam Randlett operations@vtcynic. com

some people took it too far, the “emails were definitely productive” — a formal meeting was scheduled to address residents’ concerns, which likely would not have happened had the public channel of communication remained closed. Faulkner said that he felt the RAs were attacked during this chain. “People harassed the RAs about them ‘not doing their jobs,’ [during the email chain] but in reality they are trying their best and attempting to be college students too,” he said.

RAs in Davis hall approached an officer in the building to notify them that other students in the building had been smoking. Police confiscated 0.2 grams of marijuana from a student. 3:02 P.M. A student in University Heights South 1 was arrested and sent to jail after holding his roommate hostage inside the room, where he physically assaulted and threatened his roommate.

CRIME TIPS

Do you know of crimes happening on campus? Send any and all crime tips to crime@vtcynic.com.

‘TOO’ CONT. FROM PG. 1

vtcynic.com

MANAGING EDITOR Stu Laperle newsroom@vtcynic. com

by Jill vaglica

OCT. 30 2:53 A.M.

Nov. 2, 11:50 p.m. “Can we get back to the real issues at hand? Who’s propping the god damn door open?!”

Nov. 3, 2:38 p.m. “I petition for new card readers, less black mold in our showers and less centipedes crawling around (especially in my room)!!!! $45,000 a year for bugs in my room at night! Not cool UVM!”

CRIMELog jvaglica@uvm.edu

Nov. 2, 9:23 p.m. “You CC’d the entire building. Rookie mistake. Perhaps bad karma for getting in the way of poor Mason’s glorious musical vibes.”

Nov. 3, 2:32 p.m. “If the card reader could read the card every time I swiped rather than trying to swipe...5+ times...I probably wouldn’t complain too much but the propped door is more of a convenience than a liability at this point.”

OCT.30 to NOV.6

B-SIDE Sam Heller bside@vtcynic.com COPY CHIEF Hannah Morgan copy@vtcynic.com ENTERPRISE Jacob Holzman enterprise@vtcynic. com ILLUSTRATIONS Ciera Libenson illustrations@ vtcynic.com

Operations LAYOUT Marissa Lanoff Eileen O’Connor layout@vtcynic.com

SOCIAL MEDIA Emma Oyomba socialmedia@ vtcynic.com

ADVERTISING MANAGER Mark Ciarcia ads@vtcynic.com

LIFE Charlotte Fisher life@vtcynic.com

SPORTS Cam Panepinto sports@vtcynic.com

NEWS Hannah Kearns news@vtcynic.com

VIDEO Molly O’shea video@vtcynic.com

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Miranda Gajda distribution@ vtcynic.com

OPINION Joseph Brown opinion@vtcynic. com

WEB Kylie Hearn web@vtcynic.com

PHOTO Erin Lucey photo@vtcynic.com

Advising FACULTY ADVISER Chris Evans crevans@uvm.edu

ASSISTANT EDITORS Marissa Lanoff, Katie Hickey, JP Riedel, Oliver Pomazi, Zach Giroux, Cole Wangsness, Joe Gallant PAGE DESIGNERS Kira Bellis, Allison Estey, Pablo Murphy-Torres, Ryan Thornton, COPY EDITORS Alyssa Handelman, Emily Magoon, Mariah Noth, Drew Pizzo, Nora Aronds, Mariel Wamsley, Linnea Johnson, George Seibold, Lindsay Freed, Ben Elfland, Brittany Miller, Zack Wetzel, Ellie Bodell-Kudla, Bridget Dorsey

JOIN THE CYNIC. General meetings held in Waterman Memorial Lounge, Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.

her arguing, persuasively, that ‘too’ is a marker of an unjust and sexist social order and a prime tool through which that social order is reproduced, justified and naturalized.” “ Con sc i o u sne ss- r a i si ng is an important task of feminism,” Welch said, “and I thank Cameron Schaeffer for raising the consciousness of Huff Post readers about the uses of ‘too’ in denigrating and subordinating women. She is not going ‘too’ far with this argument— not at all.” Responding to criticism over her article, Schaeffer said she mostly feels empowered, and feels a lot of the responses reinforce her overall message. “When you’re a woman and you put yourself out there with

a strong opinion, I thought those comments were just proof of the need for feminism,” Schaeffer said. Some responses to her article said she was “whiny”, and one even referred to her as a “sensitive slut,” she said. Paul Joseph Watson of InfoWars was among those to call her “whiny.” “Cameron Schaeffer, who describes herself as a ‘devout feminist,’ has succeeded in penning one of the most cringe worthy, whiny, ‘first world problem’ articles that you’re ever likely to read,” said Paul Joseph Watson, a columnist at InfoWars. InfoWars is an Internet News Show, according to their website.

CORRECTIONS vtcynic.com/apply

We are committed to accuracy in all of our work. If for some reason there is an error, please email us at corrections@ vtcynic.com.


THE VERMONT CYNIC

NEWS

3

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015 NOV. 3

SGA Updates by alexandra shannon amshanno@uvm.edu

Student Athlete Advisory Council

South Burlington Police received a report at 4:39 p.m. Nov. 3, of a man exposing himself to a female on the South Burlington Recreational path. The incident occurred near the UVM farm on Spear Street. COURTNEY CUNNINGHAM/The Vermont Cynic

Flasher cause for CatAlert by Courtney Cunningham cecunnin@uvm.edu

A man exposed himself to a woman running on the bike path near the UVM farm on Spear Street Nov. 3, according to UVM police services. “The majority of reports we have relating to sexual misconduct are sexual assault,” Deputy Chief of UVM police services Tim Bilodeau said. “As far as someone exposing themselves, we haven’t had that happen on campus in quite some time. Maybe a decade.” The man was reportedly blocking the bike path, but the

victim was able to move around him, according to a CatAlert sent at 8:44 p.m. Students who run the path said it’s peaceful. “I run the path weekly, and I’ve never seen anything like that,” junior Dakota Greenblatt said. The suspect was described as a white male between 18 and 20 years old, 5-foot-7 to 5-foot9 with a thin build, and reddish-brown, straight hair that fell to his jawline, according to the CatAlert. “These type of incidents really take team approaches to in-

vestigate,” Bilodeau said. “It’s not just police services.” “Students who experience incidents like this need to get the information to our team who works with the Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations,” he said. The Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations is a multi-team task force that works and trains to handle incidents like this, Bilodeau said. “It’s important for students to remember they are not alone,” he said. Bilodeau emphasized the importance of talking to the po-

lice in situations like this. “People need to remain aware of their surroundings,” Bilodeau said. “If you find yourself in that circumstance, the offender is always at fault, but it’s important to be a good witness. If you see something, say something.” Bilodeau said that handling these situations requires good communication between the public and the police. People who might know about the incident are encouraged to contact police services at 802-656-3473.

The Student Athlete Advisory Council was recognized as an official SGA club. The organization is made up of student athletes who work to improve the overall experience of UVM student athletes and build community inside and outside the University, according to their mission statement. Solidarity with Victims of Race-Base Intimidation A resolution was passed that states SGA’s solidarity with victims of race-based intimidation in Burlington. Last week, at least two Burlington residents received Ku Klux Klan fliers at their homes. SGA called for the entire UVM student body to reject racism and stand with the victims. Club Under Investigation An SGA club is under investigation for the use of a racial slur in one of their emails. The club is suspended, limiting the use of any resources or funds provided to them. No further details are available at this point.

Residents protest the KKK English department

adds concentrations

By Kelsey Neubauer kaneubau@uvm.edu

Church Street lit up as residents, students and workers stood symbolically with two people of color who found Ku Klux Klan fliers on their door Oct. 31. “We are not afraid,” the crowd chanted, led by Vicki Garrison, a Burlington resident who spoke at the rally. Many of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America union workers stood in black and red holding up signs. Chad McGinnis, the field organizer for the UE, said it was his union that organized the event. UE represents over 400 trade workers at UVM in addition to other Burlington businesses like City Market, McGinnis said. Various UE members and members of the local Black Lives Matter movement gave speeches in front of City Hall. “We are standing here in black and red, proud to be standing strong and united against racial injustice,” said Sanowa Mize-Fox, a Burlington resident and member of the UE. Mize-Fox said that racism in Burlington is not an issue that will just go away. “Racism is alive and well in Burlington,” she said. “It’s an uncomfortable topic, but we need to tackle it head on.” Thomas Grace, a grocer at

The UVM English Department is making changes to requirements for majors and minors by Jacob Holzman jholzman@uvm.edu

A solidarity march was held to stand with the Burlington residents who found Ku Klux Klan fliers on their doors Oct. 31. The march led by Burlington resident Vicki Garrison. FLIER COURTESY

OF UE WORKERS DEFENSE GUARD

the City Market CoOp, and a speaker during the rally, said he thinks racism is not confined to the overt forms such as the recent actions by the Klu Klux Klan, but also the systemic issues present in the workplace. “I worked in jobs where people of color were confined to the back of the store,” Grace said. The union organized the rally because they felt it necessary to be involved in the issue, McGinnis said.

Officers of the Burlington Police Department were at the rally as well. Burlington Deputy Chief of Police Bruce Bovat said he was happy to see people demonstrating peacefully. “I think it’s great when people can come and speak their minds in a peaceful manner,” he said. As people left at around 9 p.m., they hugged each other, echoing promises to continue the fight against racism.

The UVM English department is seeking approval from the College of Arts and Sciences for a change in the English major. Director of undergraduate advising for the English department Prof. Daniel Fogel made this announcement in an email sent out to all CAS students Nov. 5. He said that he was writing to all students to make sure that each had the “resources” they need to prepare for the upcoming semester, according to the email. The change requires that new English majors have a “concentration,” which can be in one of four subjects: British and anglophone aiterary

araditions, american literary traditions, cultural ctudies and writing. In addition, Fogel announced the proposal of a new minor in writing. The proposed minor in writing will be a “rewarding opportunity for intermediate and advanced study of writing, including composition and rhetoric, poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and screen-writing for film, television, and Web,” according to the email. The minor has to be approved by the board of trustees, but Fogel said that the department is “optimistic” it will be available fall 2016. The department decided to make this change after a review of English majors at other schools, such as Stanford, Dartmouth and Brown University, according to the email.

Want to see your name in print? Join the Cynic. General meetings held in Waterman Memorial lounge, 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays. For more info, email editorinchief@vtcynic.com


4

THE VERMONT CYNIC

NEWS

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

Search begins for student trustee by Alexandra Shannon ashannon@uvm.edu

Each year the board of trustees student selection committee is responsible for choosing a student trustee. The new student trustee will be selected by Feb. 28 or before the February board of trustees meeting, Pat Brown, director of Student Life and the Davis Center said. However, the student will not start their term until March 1. A student trustee is a full voting member on the board of trustees and serves a two-year term, according to the position profile of a student trustee. The student trustee will use their experience as a student to make decisions with the board, but will also have to think about the entire university, according to the position profile. Once the applications are submitted, the selection committee must narrow it down to 10 applicants, and then conduct interviews. “We’re only allowed to have 10 interviews at most and then we have to make our selection,” SGA President Jason Maulucci said. The student trustee advocates for the University and does not represent the student body specifically. “Above any of your constituencies or above any of your own personal interests, you are acting in a manner that will help promote the best interest of the institution which you repre-

sent,” Brandt said. Brown held the first informational session Nov. 4. Over 30 students attended, and Maulucci said he received 15 emails from students who were interested but could not attend. “There were less than 10 applications last year. So our goal this year was to get at least 10 applications, more than that, maybe 20 to 30,” Maulucci said.

tion, or any other reason, according to the UVM board of trustees’ website. Each member serves a sixyear term with the exception of students whose terms are two years. The current student trustees are junior David Brandt and senior Samantha Lucas. The application is available on the SGA website and must be completed by Jan. 15. Appli-

There were less than 10 applications last year. So our goal this year was to get at least 10 applications JASON MAULUCCI SGA PRESIDENT

Sophomore Melanie Johnson said she thinks she would prefer a position that better represents the student population. “As a student myself, I would rather support the study body rather than the institution as a whole, because the study body composes a lot of which the institution is built upon,” Johnson said. The board of trustees consists of 25 members: nine legislative, nine self-perpetuating, three gubernatorial, two students, the governor and the president of UVM, according to the board of trustees website. Self perpetuating trustees vote to elect new trustees if any current board members leave due to health issues, resigna-

cants must be at least 18 years old, still be a fulltime student for two years following their initiation and not an employee of UVM, Brown said. In addition to completing the application, interested students must attend three informational sessions. “By law we have to hold three informational sessions after Nov. 1 and before the end of the semester, just to let people know what a trustee is and how they work,” Maulucci said. Interested students who cannot attend the sessions are able to email him and at a later time watch a video recording of the session, so that they are not eliminated from the pool of applicants, he said.

UVM study finds gas leaks by Katherine SMith ksmith59@uvm.edu

A new study by UVM has found sources of methane emissions that have not been accounted for. In a study funded by the National Science Foundation, the leaking of this greenhouse gas into the atmosphere from abandoned oil and gas wells near fracking sites contribute to methane escape not currently being measured Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a popular extraction process in which water and chemicals are pumped underground to break apart rock and gas. Environmental engineering professor George Pinder, a current member of the National Academy of Engineering, published the piece in the journal Water Resources Research. “The study was on calculating the probability that existing wells drilled for oil and gas extraction in New York State were encountered by hydraulic fracture,” said James Montague, a UVM doctoral student of environmental engineering, who cowrote the article with Pinder. “When you put in a new hydraulic fracturing site, you drill

Ph.D. Student James Montague explains his pipeline research in Votey Hall Nov. 5. The research shows that improper seals on wells could cause methane leaks, contributing to global warming. OLIVER POMAZI/The Vermont Cynic

horizontal well bores, which increases the permeability of the rock around it,” Montague said. “And if those fractured regions encounter an existing well-bore, there’s some probability that natural gas, specifically methane, will migrate up to the surface.” Up until now, none of the gas being released from the wells has been measured. Another study from Princeton University looked at existing wells in Pennsylvania and calculated the volume of methane being emitted. They scaled the emissions to be around 4-7 percent of the total methane emissions in Pennsylvania. There are also concerns beyond the greenhouse gases that

come from the release of methane. “There may be a probability the methane can get into aquifers, and we’ve seen in some cases where the methane can get into the drinking water and people can light their water on fire,” Montague said. Montague also highlighted the dangers of methane becoming trapped under buildings. “You also have the risk of methane becoming trapped under buildings, and then you have a pocket of explosive gas,” Montague said. He admits both of these are less likely to occur than gas leaking into the atmosphere, however they are still potential risks.

Patrick Brown, director of student life, explains how students will be represented on board of trustees in the Davis Center Nov. 5. OLIVIA CURTIS/The Vermont Cynic

Brandt said his interest was sparked at the first informational session. “Getting some of that historical background got me really excited, at another session

Samantha Lucas, who is the other current student trustee, was talking about her experience and from that moment on I knew it was something that I wanted to be a part of,” he said.

CEF CONT. FROM PG. 1 The CEF will not be soliciting new projects this year, according to its website. It will take time to align its goals instead. Previously approved projects like the Energy Action Seminar series will continue to be supported. “Originally we thought, ‘it’ll be great we’ll – just put solar panels on every building’ … but it’s not easy; it’s expensive and doesn’t make sense for every building,” Thompson said. The Aiken Solar Trackers that were installed in 2010 cost $200,000, according to the CEF’s project portfolio. The Clean Energy Fund accounts for about $225,000 every year, which is only a fraction of what UVM needs to complete

its $13 million Energy Efficiency Plan that was proposed in 2012. That is why the goal of the CEF is to figure out how, where and when it makes the most sense to implement projects like installing solar panels, according to Thompson. “It’s more about education than implementation,” Thompson said. For example, last year the CEF funded a new software called OSI PI that tracks UVM’s energy consumption. This will help to determine where the biggest energy efficiency problems are and how they can be fixed, according to the fund’s website.

SLUR CONT. FROM PG. 1 first clause of one of those bills, is you have to follow the code of conduct act that we passed” Maulucci said. According to the SGA’s code of conduct all clubs must “act in accordance with the university common ground,” he said. “The very, very first clause in the code of conduct is that you adhere to our common ground.

It’s the university’s kind of motto, and the number one thing behind it is you need to be inclusive,” Maulucci said. According to UVM’s Common Ground the institution aspires to be a community that values respect, integrity, innovation, openness, justice and responsibility. Robin and Vincett did not respond for comment.


OPINION

5

WEDNESDAY, NOVMEBER 11, 2015 THE VERMONT CYNIC

S TA F F E D I T O R I A L

Sustainability fund is just wasted B

ureaucracy notoriously loses direction from time to time. Here at this relatively large university, this is bound to happen. When an institution does lose direction, the only responsible course of action is to either correct it or scrap it. It’s clear that the student-supported Clean Energy Fund is a prime example of this misdirection. The Clean Energy Fund’s primary focus is education and “behavior change,” according to a major UVM plan designed to steer us toward climate neutrality. This goal is fundamentally flawed. It’s clear the time for mere education about climate change is over, yet the fund mainly supports climate change education. According to their website, five interns are specifically dedicated to “outreach.” The benefits of climate change education and outreach in a liberal college town in New England are far from clear. The benefits of providing over $200,000, taken directly from student pockets, are even less tangible. This isn’t to say that climate change education isn’t important — it is — but at this point, educators and experts here and across the globe have determined not only must we act on climate change, but it may be too late. Soon the the CEF will be re-

viewed by the provost’s office with an eye to put the fund in line with the University’s goals. We propose that such a comprehensive review is not needed, and if it must continue, the CEF be restructured to focus on tangible, practical climate solutions or absorbed into a part of the University that already focuses on tangible solutions.

The Clean Energy Fund's primary focus is education and "behavior change," according to a major UVM plan designed to steer us toward climate neutrality Planning, education, outreach, reviews, feasibility studies, social marketing campaigns and committees will not solve the climate crisis. Only action will. Let’s use the lesson learned from the CEF to refocus on how we can practically allocate this money. A study has shown that our water bottle ban has hindered our efforts to make campus greener, and has made us less healthy as a whole due to the availability of more convenient, but unhealthy choices like soda and juices. The money allocated to the Clean Energy Fund could easily supply every student, as well as

Illustration by CIERA LIBENSON

faculty and staff, with a reusable water bottle. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that some of our over

matic toilets that are being installed in our newer buildings, which repeatedly flush when only one is needed.

Planning, education, outreach, reviews, feasibility studies, social marketing campaigns and committees will not solve the climate crisis. Only action will 100 buildings aren’t properly insulated. Manual flush toilets have been repeatedly proven to be more efficient than the auto-

Climate change is an issue that requires action from the University and students alike. Feel free to make a tangi-

ble change right now — you’re reading this editorial on paper — please recycle.

Staff Editorials officially reflect the views of the Vermont Cynic. 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. The Cynic reserves the right to edit letters for length and grammar. Please send letters to opinion@vtcynic.com.

Donate action, not just empty charity Caroline Decunzo CDECUNZO@UVM. EDU

L

ast week, I was walking through the first floor of the Davis Center to get a snack at the CatPause. A group of men from a fraternity were tabling and asked me to buy a bracelet to help them raise awareness for breast cancer. My mom had breast cancer, my grandmother had breast cancer, my aunt had breast cancer; I am sufficiently aware of breast cancer. Why was a table full of men raising awareness for a disease that impacts more than 200,000 women and more than 2,000 men every year, according to breastcancer.org (statistics were not available for breast cancer rates among gender non-conforming people)? This interaction wonderfully exemplified my general disdain for charity and philanthropy. According to Havens, O’Herlihy and Schervish (2006), Americans donate about $315 billion dollars to charity every year, the majority of which comes from living individuals (other donors are dead individuals, corporate foundations and

philanthropic foundations). 90 percent of Americans donate to charity, mostly to religious institutions. Adam Myerson, the president of the Philanthropy Roundtable in Washington, D.C., spoke at a conference about charity from private citizens’ long history in supporting higher education, specifically citing Hillsdale College, the second institution of higher educa-

The school was able to adopt its progressive stances and inclusion, Myerson argues, because it was funded by working class families instead of the state tion in the U.S. to admit women (following Oberlin) and the first to prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, religion or sex in its charter. Hillsdale was funded by small donations collected on

horseback from working class people in northern Michigan. The school was able to adopt its progressive stances on diversity and inclusion, Myerson argues, because it was funded by working class families instead of the state. Yet if we look at the state of higher education today, it’s not clear that private donors are still footing the bill. Americans donate more than $30 billion to support higher education every year, yet tuition and fees remain exorbitant, and some state systems, most notably in Wisconsin, have all but eliminated tenure track positions to cut costs. Relying on private donors to support higher education doesn’t seem to be shaking out. In a world of increasing privatization and cutting of government programs, charity and philanthropy take the place of social services. Giving money to institutions of higher education or health centers is necessary because these services are not publicly funded. Giving to homeless shelters and food kitchens is necessary because the accumulation of wealth in the United States by a select few is so astronomical that many others cannot get by.

Worse still, argues anthropologist Erica Bornstein, though philanthropists donate money with the intention to end misery, they don’t, because they fail to address the long-term needs of those they donate to.

pitfalls of false solutions and colonial narratives? Those experiencing harm are best equipped to combat it. In practice, this means giving leadership positions to those most impacted by a problem.

In a world of increasing privatization and cutting of government programs, charity and philanthropy take the place of social services Milton Cerny wrote an article about the “globalization of philanthropy.” He’s dealing mostly with tax codes, but is not the only scholar to notice a pattern of global giving; sociologist Ann Vogel lays a harsh critique of international giving, arguing that U.S. foreign charitable and philanthropic giving exports American conceptions of democracy. Domestically, foreign giving contributes to the formation of American moral identity and conscience, where the global winners of capitalism white-save the disenfranchised, non-specific global other. How can we think of ways to better our community and support others without falling into the

Rather than inserting U.S. dollars into foreign contexts, we can use our resources and time to organize and mobilize in our own communities around the struggles that impact us. We can act in solidarity with those struggling in other places, with the understanding that their liberation is tied up with ours. This is not giving and expecting nothing in return to maintain the structures of neoliberal capitalism; this is bettering our communities and ourselves in ways that destroy it.

Caroline DeCunzo is a senior global studies major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2012.


6

THE VERMONT CYNIC

OPINION

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

The Klan is dead. Trolls are alive and well.

Letter to the Editor

In DREAM program, men have a role to play

R

ecently, our organization hung a poster in the Davis Center with the statement “Put the MEN back in Mentoring” and we have since received notice that some students have reported concerns about the poster’s message. As co-chairs of the club, we are writing to respond to these concerns and to explain the message. DREAM is a nonprofit organization and a club on our campus that pairs college students with youth from low-income, affordable housing neighborhoods. One-on-one mentoring with youth ages 5 through 18 takes place within the setting of a group activity every Friday afternoon. Elm Street DREAM is one of three branches of the DREAM organization at UVM.

DREAM is a nonprofit organization and a club on our campus that pairs college students with youth from low-income, afforable housing neighborhoods

Illustration by MARISSA LANOFF

Joseph Brown OPINION@VTCYNIC. COM

L

ast week, two or so flyers, allegedly created by the Ku Klux Klan, had been put at the homes of two of Burlington’s residents of color, prompting, according to the Burlington Free Press, 200 residents to pour down Church Street in protest. Several Burlington residents created a petition, which supported “love” and stood against “hate,” and called for increased police and political intervention in the situation, ostensibly in order to prosecute the individual who distributed the flyers in question for the crime of, well, hate. The United Electrical Radio and Machine Workers of America — which sounds like a 19th century anachronism for an organization of people who refer to each other by the moniker of comrade or, as they do in their literature, “sisters and brothers” — published a flyer urging the Klan to “get out of town as fast as you can.” Certainly, it would be nice if the Klan got out of every town. But I’m not sure they actually live here in Burlington. According to the Southern

Poverty Law Center, the Klan has no active chapters in Burlington nor, indeed, Vermont. (“Active” meaning that they must hold meetings or rallies, not simply operate a website out of some loser’s basement.) The website Americans Against the Tea Pary reports a chapter near Morristown, an hour’s drive from Burlington; but that information is over a year old, and I couldn’t seem to find any information on them, not even web presence. I tried calling their national hotline, or “Klanline,” as they called it, to see if they had any active chapters in Vermont — but to no avail. Nobody seemed to man the phone lines. All of this seems to conform to the Klan’s national decline since the ‘20s. In the mid-twenties, when the Klan was at its apex — using generous estimates — the organization had around six million members. The American population, by way of comparison, had around 116 million people, meaning that around one in twenty Americans were in the Klan. No small sum. Today that number is down to — again, using generous estimates — 8,000 or so members. The total population in the United States today is around 320 million, meaning that maybe 0.000025% of the American population is in the Klan.

America’s largest terrorist organization — maybe then the world’s largest — is not exactly what is used to be. They largely stick to like-minded chat rooms on the Internet, occasionally dressing up in the secluded woods for meetings and enjoy

Certainly, it would be nice if the Klan got out of every town. But I'm not sure they actually live here, in Burlington no comfort in polite society (and rightly so). We no longer hear of their acts of terror. Even public cross burnings are an archaic rarity. That said, I’m led to believe that some very ambitious troll pulled this stunt. And if so, he definitely succeeded. As awful a joke as it may have been, he successfully pulled around 200 people from their homes to march around Burlington, muttering phrases about “love,” “hate,” “racism” and “justice.” If that’s the case, Burlington has a serious case of only-child

syndrome, being constitutionally unable to, as many Northeastern towns are wont to do, ignore obvious trolls, and elect to instead erupt in an uproar of protest and shouting through megaphones at an organization that, metaphorically, is gasping its last few breaths of air. I don’t mean to impugn the reasoning of these protests. After all, the people of Burlington are spot-on in their hatred for the Klan. Historically, the Klan has subjected blacks, Jews, Catholics and others to some of the worst terror and brutality imaginable, most of which publically sanctioned by supportive onlookers, and so it’s natural to worry that they might yet again reach the prominence of their ancestors of the twenties. Nevertheless, we can scarcely imagine that they will ever have a home in Burlington. Necessary condemnation aside, the reaction of the Burlington community — in asking for police assistance to presumably arrest the offender for what is, ultimately, free speech — was a tad overboard. Surely, we can dance on the Klan’s grave without asking our police to jail its corpse. Joseph Brown is a senior political science major. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2012.

As leaders in this organization, we aspire for a diverse group of individuals acting as role models for the youth we care so deeply about and we have noticed a lack of participation from male students. We see this as a detriment to our group as it limits the discourse within our community to predominantly female voices. Our aim of the poster is to remind the male-identified members of our campus how important they are as role models for our youth. We hope that by aiming recruitment efforts specifically at males, we could realign the balance of gender representation in our club community. While we see how aiming our recruitment effort only at males could have come off with an air of inequality, we only seek to balance out our overwhelmingly female dominated group of mentors. We also in no way mean to diminish the hard work of those already involved in DREAM. If you would like more information on the DREAM program or are interested in becoming involved, please send an email to frelmchairs@dreamprogram. org. Sincerely, Emma Young, Laura Burnham, Dylan Blanchard and Ali Houghten Co-chairs, Elm St. DREAM


THE VERMONT CYNIC

ADVERTISEMENT

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

7

GRAND OPENING NOVEMBER 12 8 A.M.

555 SHELBURNE RD. BURLINGTON

Discover the brands. Discover the savings. Discover a bigger life.

First 100 shoppers through the door on Thursday receive gift cards ranging from $25-$500.*

First 300 shoppers through the door on Thursday receive a complimentary tote bag.

Limit one per person. Must be 18 or older. See store for details.

APPAREL

GEAR

Limit one per person.

FOOTWEAR

SAVINGS

*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCE OF WINNING. Starts on 11/12/2015 at 08:00:00 am MST and ends at 08:59:59 pm MST, or once 100 customers have been awarded prizes. Open only to legal residents of the

50 United States and D.C., who are 18 years of age or older. Limit one (1) entry per person. See Offi cial Rules in-store for additional eligibility restrictions, prize descriptions/conditions, entry periods and complete details. Void where prohibited. Sponsor: Sierra Trading Post, Inc., 5025 Campstool Rd., Cheyenne, WY 82007.


8

LIFE

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11 , 2015 THE VERMONT CYNIC

Professor takes debating abroad Director of the Lawrence Debate Union is bringing debating to Palestinian schools by Emiilee Conroe eonroe@uvm.edu

UVM’s debate team, ranked the number 13 university debate team in the world, is taking their talents abroad. Alfred Snider, Edwin Lawrence professor of forensics and director of the Lawrence Debate Union at UVM, is helping schools in Palestine establish debate teams. “I think debating, as a skill that you develop, is profoundly empowering. It’s a more peaceful way to confront injustice,” said Snider, who calls debating the process of finding your voice. “There’s a tremendous explosion of debate going on in the world. Everywhere it’s happening.” Snider has held debate trainings in 45 countries, including Morocco and Nepal, he said. “I run the debate team and train [members] how to debate,” Snider said. “We enter them in competitions around the world. Most of the debating is done in English but we also do it in ASL, French, Spanish and Arabic.” Sinder said he will return to Palestine in January to establish the first English-speaking debate teams in Palestinian schools. “I think that sometimes Palestine can be a spooky issue for some people because it’s a conflict zone,” Snider said. “Some people don’t want to be involved. I think a conflict zone is where we need to go.” George Khalilieh, who is who is a member of the Palestinian

Professor Alfred Snider pictured with a student debate club in Palestine. Snider has helped start debate teams in 45 countries as well as being director of the Lawerence Debate Union at UVM. PHOTO COURTESY OF ALFRED SNIDER Debate Academy, said debating is changing his life. “With hard work and time we can not only make Palestine a better place, we can make the whole world a better world,” Khalilieh said. Snider said he was contacted by George Naber from the College des Feres of Bethlehem in September of 2014. This came after the school applied for a grant from the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem in order to start a debate program. The school got the grant, Snider said. “After a lot of questions, I was like, I’ll go there once,” Snider said. “So I went and the kids were pretty good. Everywhere I go the governments are all messed up, adults are ehh, and the young people are great.” The Palestinian debate club started with between 30 to 40

students and five trained teachers. Students were anywhere from 13 to 15 years old. The training teaches them skills like public speaking, how to build cases and critique arguments.

A business executive in Singapore funded Team Palestine, donating $25,000 to get them there, Snider said. “They had two wins and six losses, but they beat Germany who is quite good,” Snider

I think debating, as a skill that you develop, is profoundly empowering ALFRED SNIDER DIRECTOR OF THE LAWRENCE DEBATE UNION

Students then practice debating, starting with speaking for two minutes and then up to eight minutes, he said. The Palestinian team was sent to the World School’s Debating Championship in Singapore, Snider said.

said. “They [were] all 15, and for their first time through, they did quite well.” The headmaster of the school has since applied for and received a grant to build debate clubs in eight to 10 more schools in Palestine, where Snider will

work with trainers to start teams, tournaments and competitions, Snider said. Mulham Najajreh, a member of the Palestinian Debate Academy said, “I believe that the strongest weapon for Palestinians is education.” Snider’s most recent trip established six new clubs in other schools in Palestine. Snider and his fellow trainers hope to involve 600 students and 50 teachers in 30 schools and five universities in Palestine in the next three years. UVM students aren’t allowed to be part of this project, according to the University administration. “They don’t want students going there in any organized way,” Snider said. “But they can come to Lawrence Debate Union meetings and trainings here.”

Study abroad: a breakdown of classes Hunter Colvin HUNTER.COLVIN@ UVM.EDU

I

The Millennium Bridge on the Quayside, pronounced “Keyside”, in Newcastle is pictured. HUNTER COLVIN/The Vermont Cynic

t’s approaching essay time here in Newcastle, and as I take a couple of moments to freak out about the growing stack of books I have to read, I realized I never explained how classes here work. First of all, classes are called modules. Your major is called your course. Most non-science modules consist of two hours of lecture each week, divided into either two hour-long lectures or one two-hour lecture and one hour seminar. The seminars are mostly what you would expect: a small group of students sitting around a table uncomfortably waiting for someone to be the first one to speak. It’s not as bad as it sounds; in fact, the seminars are my favorite part of each module.

Homework is much more self-directed. For example, in my Islamic history module, each week we are given around five different articles or book chapters and we are told to pick two to read before the seminar. Since the grades I get over here don’t affect my GPA, I just read two, or at least one and a

about the freedom abroad making self-directed learning pretty terrifying. This because I only have two grades in some of my modules, an essay and a final exam. No attendance grade, no participation grade. Just those two. Also, being an actual professor is uncommon.

How much or how little you read is completely up to you. I suppose that's pretty similar to at home, but there's something about the freedom abroad half, and I am done with it. Other people — like me if I was at home and being my typical overachieving self — will read all five. I mean, they usually focus on two and skim the rest, but still. How much or how little you read is completely up to you. I suppose that’s pretty similar to at home, but there’s something

Unlike in the States where we call anyone who is teaching us “professor,” here they are module leaders and referred to as “Doctor”. I should probably start reading now. Hunter Colvin is a senior history major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2015.


THE VERMONT CYNIC

LIFE

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

Students promote culture of consent by jackie flynn jflynn@uvm.edu

About 1 in 5 college students will be victims of sexual violence during college, but it’s also the most underreported crime, junior Jamie Herold said. Herold is a member of Students Against Sexual Violence, a coalition of UVM students who provide education and resources to help promote a culture of consent, according to the UVM website. These resources include on-campus presentations and support for victims of sexual violence. It’s estimated that around 63 percent of sexual assaults go unreported, according to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. Title IX is a law that prohibits gender-based discrimination in federally funded educational programs and activities, according to the U.S. Department of Education website. The law holds schools responsible for responding to reports of sexual violence against students both “promptly and effectively,” according to the department website. Almost 100 universities across the country were under Title IX investigation in 2014 due to improper handling of sexual assault reports, according to the Department of Education. UVM complies with Title IX policies and has never been under investigation, but Herold said sexual violence education is really only offered during the

Week of Welcome to first-years. “SASA assembled because we found a major gap in our education,” she said. “Students didn’t know what to do after experiencing sexual violence.” Herold said sexual violence affects communities in different ways and the coalition wants to provide education that the University may not be providing.

We found a major gap in our education. Students didn’t know what to do after experiencing sexual violence JAMIE HEROLD JUNIOR

SASA also organizes on-campus events and campaigns to further education to students. Past events included the “Carry That Weight” campaign, Sexual Assault Teach-In, the “It’s On Us” campaign in collaboration with SGA and the Naked Bike Ride safe walk-home system. “I think it’s important to educate college students on the reality behind sexual violence and to recognize that it can happen to anyone,” first-year Loren Fillmore said. In addition to organizing presentations and campaigns, SASA provides a categorized list of sexual violence resources with specific contact information.

Members of Students Against Sexual Violence support the Carry That Weight movement to end sexual violence against students. PHOTO COURTESY OF STUDENTS AGAINST SEXUAL VIOLENCE’S FACEBOOK PAGE

RAPE STATISTICS ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES

1 in 5

Women are sexually assaulted while in college

2 in 3

Of college students experience sexual harassment

90% Of sexual assault crimes on college campuses are never reported

1 in 16

Men are sexually assaulted while in college

9 in 10

Victims of sexual assault knew the person who sexually assaulted them

As a college student in Vermont, you have access to low-cost education financing that others don’t have. Looking for second semester financing? Take advantage of the great rates and local service of the state’s nonprofit Vermont Student Assistance Corporation.

illustration © Doug Ross

9

VSAC’s Vermont Advantage student loan offers a fixed interest rate as low as 5.50% APR. Any Vermont student — including out-ofstate students attending UVM or other Vermont colleges — can apply. Learn more and apply online:

vsac.org/VTadvantage


10

THE VERMONT CYNIC

LIFE

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

Safety: walking around construction Efforts are being made to ensure students and faculty are kept safe during the construction by Katie Hickey & Charlotte Fisher kahickey@uvm.edu—cofisher@uvm.edu

With cranes, steel beams and large construction trucks around campus, UVM is working to make sure students are safe. “Given the magnitude of the construction, I have been asked to spend some of my time focusing on operational safety, like on our major construction sites,” said Al Turgeon, chief risk officer at UVM. Aside from the safety measures set by UVM, the construction companies hired are required to come up with safety plans around their construction activity as well, Turgeon said. “Anything you see inside the wires is their direct responsibility,” he said. “They develop safety plans and monitor safety by hiring a safety person who is

A construction sign on Central Campus is pictured. Safety concerns have been raised by students about the ongoing campus construction. RYAN THORNTON/The Vermont Cynic on site all day long and monitors construction activity.” Students and faculty also have some responsibility. “We as individuals walking around campus also have some responsibility,” Turgeon said. “You can’t eliminate all of the risks, there are inherent risks in these activities.” Turgeon encourages every-

one to avoid creating an unsafe situation, which he said often arises from bikers and skateboarders traveling too quickly. “Think about slowing down, especially when the conditions are changing,” he said. Turgeon said he looks at two potentially unsafe areas every day: the area in front of the library and between Votey Hall

Students discuss Converse life by Marissa Lanoff Mlanoff@uvm.edu

Converse Hall is the only residential building on Central Campus. Many students said they were drawn to the hall because of the closeness to classes and the modern gothic exterior that some say resemble Hogwarts. But Converse Hall may not be all these students had hoped for, particularly with the construction on Central Campus. “It ends around 6 p.m., and because of that we don’t get interrupted during the evening and late hours of the day,” sophomore Julia Torra said. “It can, however, be loud and somewhat obnoxious noisewise,” Torra said. “Another issue with the construction has been that getting to class has been difficult with construction taking up more and more space,” she said. Junior Justin Sell recently attended a meeting focused on student complaints and said construction was one of the biggest complaints. “Living in Converse is ... different. It has it’s ups and downs,” Sell said. “The construction is annoying in terms of making it harder to get places. It also has taken almost all of the parking for Converse which has people furious,” he said. In addition to the construction, there have been numerous complaints of alarms going off in the early hours of the morning causing students to evacuate for hours at a time. “The fire alarm has been rather screwy recently,” Torra said. “The statement released said that part of the problem

and the new construction. Turgeon is looking for any obvious safety issues. Junior Amanda Carr said she feels safe around construction but traffic around Bailey/Howe Library is more dangerous. “I feel like someone is going to get hit by a bus,” Carr said. Turgeon said signs have been added throughout campus,

Professor researches dairy effects on students by Megan Fahey mfahey@uvm.edu

Converse Hall on Central Campus is pictured. Approximately 164 students call Converse Hall home. KAT WAKS/The Vermont Cynic may have been due to dust from construction messing with the sensitive alarm systems and cre-

Getting to class has been difficult with construction taking up more and more space JUSTIN SELL JUNIOR ating messages that were very difficult to pinpoint.” Sell said he has been forced outside multiple nights because fire alarms went off due to faulty wiring. But Torra said there are also

some benefits to living in Converse. Those with the unlimited dining plan who are residents of Converse Hall or Jeanne Mance Hall have access to 14 dollars worth of food free of charge in the Davis Center’s market place between 4:30 and 8:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, Torra said. Cook Commons Dining also changed its hours. The dining hall is now open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and 10:30 a.m. to 7:00pm on Sundays. It is closed Saturdays, according to the UVM dining website. “For dinners and during the weekend, those on unlimited meal plans had to truck it to Harris Millis dining or Redstone,” Torra said. “Not fun, especially with the cold weather coming up.”

there have been changes to traffic patterns and bus drivers have been briefed on the need to slow down. He said bus drivers aren’t supposed to be operating at speeds above five miles an hour in front of Bailey/Howe Library. Junior Duncan Gamble said his main concern is not construction or buses themselves, but traffic. “What is more dangerous is the new path wrapping around Bailey/Howe Library because of skateboarders, the bus and people walking,” Gamble said. Bob Vaughan, director of capital planning and management said in certain areas, including the area just south of the Bailey/Howe Library, sections of concrete were added to accommodate both the buses and people. Vaughan said the sites and barriers already surrounding the new first-year dorms and STEM site are “pretty much the way things will be for the next two years.” “Help us help you by thinking about safety,” Turgeon said.

One UVM professor may make you think differently about the milk you pour into your cereal each morning. “I choose nonfat milk because my mom always kept nonfat milk in the house when I was growing up as she believed whole milk was fattening,” firstyear Colleen Duddy said. Jana Kraft, Ph.D., assistant professor in the department of animal and veterinary sciences, said she is always surprised by the incorrect answers she gets when she asks people about whole milk. “The problem goes back to the word ‘whole’,” Kraft said. “When in reality the fat content in whole milk is 3.25 percent.” Kraft said milk is not a beverage but rather a food. “It contains all macronutrients such as protein, carbohydrates and lipids,” Kraft said. “Milk is a healthy food.” Kraft, her post-doctoral assistant Helen Walsh and master’s student Allison Unger are currently conducting a human intervention profile in which UVM students volunteer to test as to whether whole milk is more healthy than its nonfat counterparts, Kraft said. “My hypothesis is that milk fat is actually beneficial to our health,” Kraft said. Fifteen volunteers have completed the study so far. The volunteers participate in a “feeding study” consisting of one week of a control diet, followed by one of two “experimental diets.”

One experimental diet consists of three daily servings of whole yogurt and the other involves three daily servings of fat-free yogurt. Both the student and Kraft are unaware of which treatment the student is receiving: whole or fat-free. The goal of this project is to understand the effects of full-fat dairy on insulin action, calorie needs, fats and immune function. “When you look at the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, they recommend three servings of nonfat or low-fat dairy,” Kraft said.

The problem goes back to the word ‘whole’ JANA KRAFT ASSISTANT PROFESSOR “My goal is to provide data that will be useful for government, nutritionists and health professionals in refining and updating the dietary guidelines policies and recommendations regarding the health effects of milk fat.” Five more volunteers are needed to complete the trial. “The student can be part of research that brings our knowledge forward,” Kraft said.

If you are interested in participating in the study, please email Foodstudy@uvm.edu.


ARTS

11

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2015 THE VERMONT CYNIC

Winooski venue attracts new crowds UVM students are starting to explore music venue options in Winooski by Maddy Freitas mmfreita@uvm.edu

A small venue in downtown Winooski has been attracting UVM students looking for an alternative to downtown Burlington. The Monkey House hosts four to five events a week, local and national bands and a variety of other shows. Kristina Lafferty, a UVM graduate, bartends at the Winooski bar. “The Monkey, in addition to being a cool dive bar with an awesome staff, is a music venue and we bring in some very talented people,” Lafferty said. The venue has hosted a variety of local bands. “It’s great for seeing any upand-coming bands,” said firstyear Lily Sevin after seeing local band Bison play there. In the past, the Monkey House has hosted bands such as Beach House, Ex Hex and Tallest Man on Earth. Part of what sets the Monkey House apart from other venues is its location. “Winooski bars for the most part aren’t as packed with college students as Burlington, so

The outside of Monkey House, a popular live music venue in Winooski, is pictured Nov. 4. The Monkey House hosts four to five events every week ranging from local bands to bigger national names. RYAN THORNTON/The Vermont Cynic in general it’s a less rowdy atmosphere too,” senior Kirsten Beard said. “Plus they’ve got a retro Pacman/Gallaga game that’s great to have a beer and play for the sake of nostalgia.” Ali Fogel, a manager at the bar, described the versatility of the venue. “We are open to anything, we host open mic nights, storytelling and comedy,” Fogel said.

“As a small venue, we usually host the type of bands that are on their way to stardom,” she said. “If you just want to go and have a drink you’re going to run into a band that you’ve never heard of and end up really liking them.” “We have a really great staff, everyone is really friendly, and we are not downtown Burlington,” Fogel said. “Everyone is

always really respectful and fun and wants to be in a bar to enjoy themselves and listen to good music.” Winooski offers a quieter, more laid-back atmosphere that downtown Burlington lacks, she said. “In Winooski, in general, we have a really great community feel and we just try to create a different atmosphere for peo-

ple,” Fogel said. “We try to make it a really feel-good vibe of just having fun.” Fogel said most college students who go to the Monkey House have been polite. “We’ve been noticing more college-age crowds on the weekends,” she said. “When they are here, they’re here for the music and pretty respectful.”

Jam group grooving back to Higher Ground by Katie Lazarus klazarus@uvm.edu

An array of colors and sweet licks are jamming their way into Burlington within the next couple weeks. “We throw ourselves into the jam band genre. We’re funkrock that improvises a lot with heavy, almost progressive rock and electronic elements,” drummer Scotty Zwang of Dopapod said. Zwang is the latest addition to Dopapod. He replaced former drummer Neil Evans in 2013, and joined keyboardist Eli Winderman, guitarist Rob Compa and bassist Chuck Jones to create the current line-up. Winderman, Compa and Jones all came together while attending Berklee College of Music in Boston. Zwang attended community college with the idea of transferring to Berklee, but in his second semester he decided it wasn’t for him. Instead, Zwang played music, toured, and teched. Winderman started the band and coined their name. Dopapod comes from the word dopamine and the fact that Winderman likes palindromes, Zwang said. “Eli is a fan of symmetrical objects, and likes that it says the same thing forwards and backwards,” Zwang said.

Dopapod performs their classic funk-rock sound. The Boston-based band will be performing for the third time at Higher Ground Nov. 13. PHOTO COURTESY OF AMANDA SANDWICH PHOTOGRAPHY This will be Zwang’s third time with the band at Higher Ground and the band’s fourth visit. They have played in Burlington before, at venues like Nectar’s. “I love Vermont,” Zwang said. “It’s so beautiful, especially in the fall. I’ve been going for years. My girlfriend and her family are from Burlington so I’ll be back for Christmas.” Compa writes the majority of their songs and comes up with a lot of ideas for them, he said. The first song that they all

We’re funk-rock that improvises a lot with heavy, almost progressive rock and electronic elements SCOTTY ZWANG DRUMMER

wrote together was “Nerds.” All of the band members have separate musical works, but Dopapod is their main focus “Doing something outside of Dopapod helps build our character as musicians,” Zwang said.

The set lists are completely different each time, he said. “We try not to play anything twice at the same city or venue or the night before,” Zwang said. Touring hasn’t always been easy, Zwang said.

There have been many times where they’ve had to sleep on couches and have even woken up next to dog feces a few times. “In most sense of touring and what we’ve been doing, we’re pretty happy,” Zwang said. “It would be really nice to play some bigger venues.” The drummer’s favorite song varies night-to-night, depending on how much he has been performing a particular one. “My ultimate favorite is ‘Brain Dead,’” Zwang said. One of the band’s most exciting venues was Morgantown, West Virginia. “We couldn’t say goodbye because they wouldn’t stop cheering,” Zwang said. That’s kind of our plan, to have our audiences like that. This is typically the case in college towns,” Zwang said. Dopapod recently played at Hulaween in Florida, unique because of all of the costumes, he said. “We have this one fan, I guess he goes by Ray Ray, who has been at the front row for a lot of our Colorado concerts,” Zwang said. “He’s great, he just goes crazy.” Zwang said to get to the show nice and early in order to see the opening. Dopapod will be performing at 9 p.m. Friday Nov. 13. at Higher Ground.


12

THE VERMONT CYNIC

ARTS

W E D N E S DAY, N OV M E B E R 11, 2 015

Baha Men release new album BY Adam Mitrani

Classic flick adds music

Amitrani@uvm.edu

When asked how to follow up a huge hit like “Who Let The Dogs Out,” Dyson Knight of the Baha Men simply said, “You don’t.” Fifteen years after “Who Let the Dogs Out,” and 13 since their last studio album, the Baha Men are coming out with their new record, “Ride With Me.” This album is all about having fun, Knight said. He described the album as “feel good music.” “The best way to describe it would be to introduce more happy music,” Knight said. “More fun, less business; sing about things that make people feel good.” Knight was not a member of the band when they released “Who Let the Dogs Out.” He initially joined the band as a temporary replacement for a sick member. “I was with a local band called XTRA,” Knight said. “They’d seen me on stage, one member got sick, and they were doing a small tour in Asia and they needed a replacement. Unfortunately, that member passed away and I became a permanent member.” Having performed all over the world, Knight disagrees with the idea that the Baha Men are a one-hit wonder. “Are we one-hit wonders? In the U.S. market, yes. European market, no. Japanese market, no. ‘Move It Like This’ was pretty big. ‘Best Years of Our Life’ was in the movie ‘Shrek.’ ‘Dogs’ was just a different level,” Knight said. Most people aren’t familiar with the band’s extensive discography. “I only know them from ‘Who Let the Dogs Out,’” firstyear Peter Ackerman said. “I don’t know any of their other songs, and probably the last time I heard that song was ten

Colin Kamphuis CKAMPHUI@UVM. EDU

Nosferatu

W

The Baha Men are pictured sitting together. Fifteen years after the release of “Who Let the Dogs Out,” the Baha Men are releasing their new record “Ride With Me.” PHOTO COURTESY OF DOUG WEBER years ago.” Other students expressed a similar feeling. First-year Jon Kilian said he recognized the name “Baha Men,” but he had not heard any songs by them, other than “Who Let the Dogs Out.” While they enjoy performing everywhere, Knight said performing in their home country of the Bahamas is a unique ex-

perience. “It’s totally different performing at home,” Knight said “They watch before they’re willing to participate. Knight also said he is still not used to the fame of the band, “Any crowd we get goosebumps before, but stadium performance is a bit more thrilling,” he said. Knight describes himself as

the interactive member of the band. “I like to jump into the crowd, bring a person up on stage; that’s my role as far as the performance side goes,” he said. “I write for the band and do behind the scenes business work as well.” The Baha Men are accepting shows, but are not on tour.

Aspire to Inspire

THE QUINNIPIAC MASTER OF ARTS IN TEACHING prepares students from almost any

undergraduate major to become effective teachers, leaders and the inspiration for future generations. Our all-inclusive 5-semester program provides: • Preparation to become a certified teacher — elementary or secondary • Coursework that connects theory with actual classroom practice • Student teaching and internship included within the program • Significant tuition reduction for your internship participation • Small class sizes and personal attention Learn more: www.quinnipiac.edu/gradeducation graduate@quinnipiac.edu

1-800-462-1944 | Hamden & North Haven, Connecticut

Colin Kamphuis is a senior Russian major. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2014.

Fully accredited by the CT State Department of Education and the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation.

005547_02_QUI_MAT_788x5.indd 1

hile the prospect of watching a silent, black and white movie from 1922 might sound frighteningly boring for some, “Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror” proves that even films approaching their 100-year anniversary are highly watchable. For those familiar with “Spongebob Squarepants,” the Halloween episode centered around the “Hash Slinging Slasher” briefly featured Nosferatu as the source of the flickering lights. While the general reaction was one of relief for Spongebob and his coworkers, Nosferatu is actually far more terrifying than any murderous fry cook with a rusty spatula for a hand. Even after Halloween season, many may find themselves in search of a good horror movie to set the mood. While “Hocus Pocus,” “Friday the 13th” and “Halloweentown” are great options, all fans of horror should watch the criminally unknown masterpiece “Nosferatu” at least once: especially if one gets the opportunity to watch it in the theater accompanied by a live musical ensemble, as the Roxy provided recently. The Andrew Alden Ensemble, based out of Rochester, New York, have established themselves as the gold standard for contemporary electronic chamber music. Their live performances accompany movies from the silent film era and beyond to provide a unique moviegoing experience that has long since been lost. In the case of “Nosferatu,” the chilling musical performance intensified the horror on screen. Too many scary movies are dependent on jump-scares and over-the-top special effects to frighten the audience. The genius of “Nosferatu” is that the film is able to convey suspense and fear through visuals alone, although an eerie orchestral accompaniment certainly helps. While it could be argued that “Nosferatu” abounds with clichés, it is only because this constantly imitated but yet incomparable film served as the source material for these very clichés. Motifs and special effects that were revolutionary at the time may seem dated or corny by today’s standards, but to properly understand the evolution of the horror movie genre, one must be familiarized with its rich history.

10/28/15 11:13 AM


THE VERMONT CYNIC

ARTS

13

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

Canadian rock band to play Higher Ground for Toronto artists. “They have cinematic minds and the band was able to use that,” Fay said. The sonic and visual elements come together in July Talk’s live shows.

by Maggie Richardson marichar@uvm.edu

An innovative sound is coming to the Higher Ground stage this month. July Talk formed in 2012 after vocalist and guitarist Peter Dreimanis left his former band. “It was baptism by fire,” Dreimanis said. “There was this chaos, our lives were turned upside down.” The band consists of Dreimanis, vocalist Leah Fay, guitarist Ian Docherty, bassist Josh Warburton and drummer Danny Miles. They released their first album in March. “We were touring for two years, stopping every few months to grind out a batch of songs and we were seduced by these clean sounds once we moved into the studio,” Fay said. “That’s kind of the Frankenstein baby of how we came to be,” she said. The band’s sound, though influenced by blues and classic rock, refuses to be categorized as either. “We don’t give a fuck about genre,” Dreimanis said. “It’s very easy to fall into a repetitive theme, so we’re subverting and making it more modern.” Dreimanis doesn’t want the

We don’t give a fuck about genre IAN DOCHERTY GUITARIST

Canadian rock band July Talk is pictured. July Talk is performing at Higher Ground Nov. 16 alongside Little Hurricane and the John Daly Trio. PHOTO COURTESY OF STEVEN KOWALSKI band to become a blues-revival cliche. “We’re not just a bunch of white kids who like Howlin’ Wolf,” he said. “One of our video producers always says as an artist, everything you do has to never have been done before,” Dreimanis said. “We kind of live by that.” Sticking to experience is key for July Talk. “We’re not going to sing about boots or trucks or babies

running away, because that’s not our experience,” Dreimanis said. “In terms of influences, you can’t reinvent the wheel,” Fay said. “As long as you’re doing something that’s honest for you, it’s about intention and striking some sort of balance.” Accompanying their music, July Talk has a visually striking collection of black and white photos, music videos and doc-

Band’s album includes crudity Maggie Richardson

Chunks

MARICHAR@UVM. EDU

T

hey call themselves the “stupidest band in the world.” Their Twitter picture is their band name illustrated as the Taco Bell logo. They are Portland-based rock band White Fang. The neo-grunge, skate-punk group formed in 2005 and have been incredibly prolific ever since. White Fang released their eighth album, “Chunks,” Oct. 30. “Chunks” is a wild ride of an album, as a product of the resurgence in West Coast surf rock culture. Their sound is reminiscent of FIDLAR, Wavves and Cloud Nothings, all contemporary alternative rock staples. White Fang brings a hearty serving of ridiculousness and the proverbial “gnar” to the surf-rock scene with samples of absurd conversations from the band members themselves serving as preludes to energetic rock songs with real muscle. The album kicks off with “Full Time Freaks” and “Wrecked,” both chock full of classic punk riffs and playfully bizarre lyrics. In the “Wrecked” intro, two hammered band members brag about kicking down doors and ripping the fridge off the wall. And we’re only two songs in. “Bong Rip,” captures the essence of White Fang and their delightfully drugged-up hilarity as they chant: “the weed, the lighter, the bong, the weed…”

The vocals are laid over an energetic backbeat and roaring rhythm guitar to create one of the grungiest atmospheres on the album. The album’s seventh track ushers in the harder-hitting second half with a gritty lead guitar and even more yelling.

over grainy rhythms and angry vocals mix to create a smooth progressive rock song in “Doing the Damn Thing.” That is, of course, after a spoken-word sample intro of someone recounting “passing out on Susan’s front lawn” and yelling about beef jerky. White Fang wraps up “Chunks” with the cheerful, crooning “Thank You,” followed by slow-jam “Shit on My Shoe.” Both tracks are filled with

Overall, "Chunks" is a massively enjoyable ablum. It's homemade skate video soundtrack bait, it's emotive and silly, and will hit close to home for many college students “Tear it Up” is a textbook punk rock jam about skating, snowboarding and hating school; refreshingly reminiscent of classic bands like Rancid and Black Flag. White Fang carries the same traditional punk themes of angst and resistance to conformity in “Turning Square,” a lighter track that stands out with its playful mood. The track exudes a Brit-rock vibe similar to that of the Rakes or the Wombats with quick, upbeat lead guitar and smoother, more melodic vocals. “Doing the Damn Thing” and “Pissing in the Driveway” bring back the sheer grunge of “Bong Rip,” to the album’s second half, minus the sloppiness. Crisp lead guitar riffs laid

youthful frustration about being broke and sad, but also heartfelt gratitude for the fanbase that have supported them album after album. Overall, “Chunks” is a massively enjoyable album. It’s homemade skate video soundtrack bait, it’s emotive and silly, and will hit close to home for many college students. Even for those without an existing taste for skate-punk, the album’s musical depth is likely to impress. Shred on, White Fang.

Maggie Richardson is a sophomore English and enviornmental studies major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2014.

umentary footage of their tour. “Once we finish tracking, we then take a step and create a visual,” Dreimanis said. “There are blurred lines between the visual side and the songs — they’re multi-display projects.” Dreimanis and Warburton are to credit for these gorgeous visuals. Before forming July Talk, the two dropped out of film school and made music videos

“The shows are what we feed on and what allow us to breathe each day,” Fay said. “[During live shows] we’re able to look people in the eyes and push them out of their comfort zone,” she said. “We’re highly sensitive to what’s going on and that’s been the inspiration for the new album.” For Dreimanis, the live shows carry the same weight. “They’re a process of learning,” Dreimanis said. “The best part of our live shows have always been focused on the human element — they’re a chaotic mess, kind of like watching a car crash.” No cars will be crashing onstage, but guitars will roar and vocals will rage.

Loveable actor’s flick is an actual disappointment colin kamphuis

Rock The Kasbah

CKAMPHUI@UVM. EDU

E

ven a predictably funny performance from Bill Murray isn’t enough to save this promising movie from disappointing mediocrity. Murray plays Richie Lanz, a washed up band manager who takes one of his clients (Zooey Deschanel) to Afghanistan for a United States Open tour. However, after seeing the danger and poverty of Afghanistan, she flees the country, stealing Lanz’s passport and money in the process. A series of quirky events eventually bring Lanz into contact with Salima (Leem Lubany), a Pashtun girl with an incredible voice. Lanz then spends the rest of the movie trying to overcome tradition and get her on “Afghan Star,” the Afghanistan version of American Idol. Murray plays his usual lovable loser, a flawed character that is down on his luck whose tenacity endears him to the audience. Salima is a strong-willed girl with an incredible voice who is willing to risk her life to pursue music. It would seem impossible to find a way to ruin this movie. Yet, the cast and crew manage to do just that. Despite a promising concept and a talented supporting cast

including Bruce Willis, Kate Hudson and Danny McBride, “Rock The Kasbah” falls utterly short of anything that resembles a good movie. The most interesting characters are either not given enough attention or abandoned with no explanation halfway through the movie. Plot lines are picked up and dropped almost immediately, and dialogue takes all weight out of dramatic moments. More than anything it seems like there were three versions of “Rock The Kasbah” and the editors decided to splice them together with no rhyme or reason. Gaping plot holes are never resolved and uninspired dialogue leaves the audience bored and frustrated. Despite a relatively short runtime of an hour and 40 minutes, “Rock The Kasbah” succeeds in feeling like one of the most drawn out movies of the year. For a movie that features gun smugglers, warlords, mercenaries and Kate Hudson as a prostitute, “Rock The Kasbah” is boring and muddled to a fault.

Colin Kamphuis is a senior Russian major. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2014.


14

SPORTS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2015 THE VERMONT CYNIC

Young defender earning ice time By Shane Town stown@uvm.edu

UVM men’s hockey welcomed some young talent to the team this year, including one player who chose UVM over many other schools. This is first-year defenseman Mike Lee. Originally from Hamden, Connecticut, Lee played at Gunnery Prep, where he also played football, lacrosse and baseball. After Gunnery, Lee played one season for the Penticton Vees in the British Columbia Hockey League before coming to UVM. While playing in Penticton during the 2014-2015 season, he led the Vees is assists in 34. Lee also scored two goals with the Vees. The team went on to win the Fred Page Cup and the Western Canada Cup with Lee playing on the top defensive pairing. Lee chose UVM over a long list of schools, among them last year’s national champion, Providence College. “I loved it here,” Lee said. “The rink and everything reminded me of my old high school team.” He also loves the Burlington waterfront, she said. Out of the first-years, Lee is tied with Liam Coughlin for most games played this season with eight overall. Though he has quickly adapted to the speed of the college game, head coach Kevin Sneddon said he still has improvements to make. “He still has a long way to go strength-wise,” Sneddon said. “No matter how hard he has

First-year Mike Lees skates down the ice during a game against the University of North Dakota, Oct. 24. Lee played in the British Columbia Hockey League before coming to UVM. PHOTO COURTESY OF UVM ATHLETICS trained, he is still a young player.” Lee agreed with his coach’s thoughts. “I’m not the biggest guy so sometimes in the corners guys will out-muscle me,” he said. His primary defensive partner this season has been senior captain Yvan Pattyn, which may be due to the players’ differing styles of play. Pattyn is known for his tough physical defensive zone play, while Lee’s game is more focused on offense and puck movement.

“Mike Lee has got a very bright future ahead of him,” Sneddon said. “I think he does things offensively that you can’t teach.” Pattyn has been a role-model for Lee this season. “He teaches me things every day,” Lee said. “He’s been bringing me along and he’s very good with the details.” Lee’s desire to learn is known throughout the locker room. “He listens to his teammates and coaches,” senior defenseman Alexx Privitera said. “Being

coachable is extremely important and Mike is willing to and wants to learn.” Lee’s skills with the puck have even landed the 19-yearold defenseman on one of UVM’s powerplay units. “Mike’s biggest strength on the ice is his poise with the puck. He does not get nervous with the puck on his stick regardless of the situation,” Privitera said. “He also works the offensive blue line well and has the ability to get pucks to the net from the blue line.”

Lee, who describes himself as “more of playmaker than a goal scorer,” has only one goal through eight games, but feels like he is “playing solidly.” Privitera is not worried. “The points will come for Mike,” he said. The UVM men’s hockey team plays again this weekend at Gutterson Fieldhouse. At 7:05 p.m. Nov. 13 the team plays the UConn. Then 1 p.m. Nov. 15 they play the UMass-Amherst.

Athletics video staff strives to keep growing By Ben Hakim bhakim@uvm.edu

Any video of UVM athletics likely depicts a university team, but there is another team involved with the production. Nich Hall and Pete Estes are recent graduates and are responsible for the filming of UVM sporting events. They stream hockey games on CatamounTV and all other sports on the America East Digital Network, AmericaEast.TV. Estes and Hall aim for CatamounTV to become the in-house television coverage provider of all UVM sports, but they admit there are obstacles in the way of their goal. The issues they identify are a lack of resources and the age of Gutterson Fieldhouse itself. Gutterson opened in 1963. Through CatamounTV, Hall and Estes are able to show game previews, press conferences, broadcasts and weekly features of all UVM sporting events. Estes serves as the assistant director, while Hall oversees all production. This is Estes’ third year working at UVM, and Hall’s sixth, but his third as CatamounTV’s direc-

Nich Hall and Pete Estes speak to sophomore basketball player Katie Lavelle. CatamounTV started six years ago to cover UVM sports. PHOTO COURTESY OF CATAMOUNTV tor. Both agree that since working for CatamounTV, they have enjoyed the personal relationships they formed with athletes and coaches. They said the job allows them to get to know the people they cover on a personal level, rather than just working with them in a professional setting. Hall said CatamounTV started six years ago while he was an intern for UVM athletic commu-

nications. Outside of television coverage, filming “would be basically what you could shoot with your phone at the baseline of basketball games,” he said. CatamounTV was originally influenced by the University of Michigan. Michigan’s coverage had previews, a traveling videographer and other professional elements that Vermont lacked. Since its creation, CatamounTV’s main

influences have been a variety of big sports schools, Hall said. In terms of resources, the team believes that offering more academic majors specific to sports broadcasting and journalism would be beneficial. Hall mentioned that schools like Syracuse and Boston University have bigger teams because they rely on its communication or broadcast majors. This year, the athletic department helped to develop a sports

management minor. They also said Patrick Gymnasium, which opened in 1963, is challenging to film in due to its age. They also noted that the court’s setup makes filming a challenge. Hall added that like Gutterson Fieldhouse, it needs more modern technology. Big schools have 10 to 12 person communication teams to cover their variety of sports, Estes said. “Our conference is actually pushing to more of an Espn3 model for our online streaming,” Hall said. “Having the conference behind that [and the athletic directors in the conference] we are trying to move towards it. UVM athletics is trying to keep up and stay with the times through their videos and multimedia. “It will mandate that we head in a direction that’s positive and we’ll have those resources,” Hall said about America East Conference. The CatamounTV on-demand content can be found on youtube.com/uvmathletics.


THE VERMONT CYNIC

SPORTS

15

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

Award recognizes athletes for performance by Locria Courtright ccourtri@uvm.edu

UVM athletes constantly set personal records or score goals. One award recognizes these feats on a weekly basis. The TD Bank Student-Athlete of the Week Award was established last year to reward the University’s student-athletes and their accomplishments, CatamounTV Director Nich Hall said. The recipient is selected by members of the UVM athletics communications staff each Monday, said Lisa Champagne director of social media and website development. UVM looked to the University of Hartford and University of New Hampshire for inspiration, conference peers who award exceptional student-athletes on a weekly basis, Hall said. The award was first won by former men’s soccer goalkeeper junior Brad Cole in September of 2014. There is no voting, but the award is a two-man collaborative decision made by Hall and Pete Estes, his assistant director of CatamounTV, Hall said. This past week junior forward Brian Wright of men’s soccer won the honor. He won it after his perfor-

mance against UNH last week in which he scored one goal and assisted another. Wright received this award two other times this season. He won the award for the weeks of Sept. 14 and Oct. 19.

TD Bank is synonymous with Vermont athletics. The Student-Athlete of the Week is an extension of that relationship NICH HALL DIRECTOR OF CATAMOUNTV UVM ATHLETICS

Only two student-athletes have won the award more than once. Women’s lacrosse player Jess Roach won it twice last year during her senior year, for two straight weeks in March 2015. As for the sponsorship, Hall said that it is just the latest connection between TD Bank and UVM athletics. “TD Bank is a long term partner of Vermont athletics,” Hall said. “They have supported our annual soccer, basketball

Freshman Anne-Marie Farmer (right) blocks a UNH player. Farmer was named TD Bank Student Athlete of the Week for the week of Oct. 26. The winners of this award are selected by members of the UVM athletic communications staff each week. PHOTO COURTESY OF UVM ATHLETICS and hockey tournaments for the many years.” TD Bank also recently sponsored the first year student event, the “Catamounts All-In Pep Rally,” which introduces first-years to UVM athletics,

Hall said. Men’s hockey forward sophomore Jarrid Privitera won the award Nov. 2 after posting a pair of goals in UVM hockey’s series with Northeastern University.

“TD Bank is synonymous with Vermont athletics,” Hall said. “The Student-Athlete of the Week is an extension of that relationship.”

75004

OUR FUNDS HAVE A RECORD LIKE A BROKEN RECORD. TIAA-CREF: Lipper’s Best Overall Large Fund Company three years in a row. For the first time ever. How? Our disciplined investment strategy aims to produce competitive risk-adjusted returns that create long-term value for you. Just what you’d expect from a company that’s created to serve and built to perform. 1

Learn more about our unprecedented, award-winning performance at TIAA.org/Perform BUILT TO PERFORM. CREATED TO SERVE.

The Lipper Award is given to the group with the lowest average decile ranking of three years’ Consistent Return for eligible funds over the three-year period ended 11/30/12, 11/30/13, and 11/30/14 respectively. TIAA-CREF was ranked among 36 fund companies in 2012 and 48 fund companies in 2013 and 2014 with at least five equity, five bond, or three mixed-asset portfolios. Past performance does not guarantee future results. For current performance and rankings, please visit the Research and Performance section on tiaa-cref.org. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Teachers Personal Investors Services, Inc., and Nuveen Securities, LLC, members FINRA and SIPC, distribute securities products. ©2015 Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America–College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA-CREF), 730 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017. C24849B 1

1

The Lipper Awards are based on a review of 36 companies’ 2012 and 48 companies’ 2013 and 2014 risk-adjusted performance.

Consider investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. Go to tiaa-cref.org for product and fund prospectuses that contain this and other information. Read carefully before investing. TIAA-CREF funds are subject to market and other risk factors.

5021A0058 C24849B Fall B2C Print BROKEN RECORD_10x9.56_nwsprnt_2.indd


16

W E D N E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 11, 2 015

SPORTS

THE VERMONT CYNIC

BUSCH LEAGUE BANTER

The role of the student-athlete Shane Town STOWN@ UVM.EDU

T

here has been a lot of debate in recent years about the emphasis that should be put on the first word of the oxymoronic phrase “student-athlete.” Years of “one and done” collegiate basketball players and countless academic scandals have made many of us question just how far this charade can be taken. At the start of the calendar year the NCAA was investigating 20 different schools for “academic fraud.” In the world of hockey, aspiring young players have the option to forgo their acting roles in the arena of academia and focus on business itself. This option is major junior hockey. The Canadian Hockey League, also known as major junior, is made up of three different leagues: the Ontario Hockey League, the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. To join this league, a player must be between the ages of 16 and 20. After joining a CHL team, players are ineligible to play in the NCAA. The players receive small stipends for playing on these teams, so technically they are professionals already. There is a long appeals process that is very strict if a play-

er wants to play in the NCAA on playing in one of the CHL leagues. These leagues are modeled directly after the NHL. The regular season varies between the leagues, but is around 70 games, while the typical NCAA season being a measly 36. Because of this, there is usually a much faster adjustment to the long and gruelling NHL season which is 82 games long not including preseason and playoffs. They wear helmet visors instead of cages and are allowed to fight. They even hold drafts to acquire new players who can be traded like in the NHL.

selections. McDavid came out of the OHL, after having an outstanding season for the Erie Otters. Eichel took the college route and played one year at Boston University, where he won the Hobey Baker award. For decades the CHL has represented the largest piece of the NHL player pie, but that trend might be changing. They still represent over half the league, but NCAA players have been on a steady increase, making up over 31 percent of players on NHL active rosters this year, according to collegehockeyinc.com. But is this really a good thing?

scoreboard LAST WEEK

W 3-1 Men's Soccer at UNH Durham, NH Nov. 4 L 5-2 Field Hockey vs Stanford Albany, NY Nov. 5 L 1-0 Men’s Hockey vs UMass-Lowell HOME Nov. 7 W58-56 Women’s Basketball vs Saint Michael’s HOME Nov. 7 W85-56 Men’s Basketball vs Saint Michael’s HOME Nov. 7

NEXT WEEK Men’s Soccer vs UMBC HOME Nov. 11

7 p.m.

Men’s Hockey vs UConn HOME Nov. 13

7:05 p.m.

Men’s Basketball at Eastern Michigan State Ypsilanti, MI Nov. 7 Women's Hockey vs Providence HOME Nov. 14

It would be a travesty to someday see a league that is honest and pure be replaced as the professional standard with one that is a foggy educational facade Hockey is the major sport that is least tainted by the American need to unnecessarily synergize academia and athletics. It would be a travesty to someday see a league that is honest and pure be replaced as the professional standard with one that is a foggy educational façade. Shane Town is a senior English major and public communications minor. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2014.

4 p.m.

Men’s Basketball at Purdue West Lafayette, IN Nov. 15 • • •

They still have an education program for the players, but it doesn’t pretend to be anything more than it is. The CHL operates with much more freedom. A player can definitely be successful no matter which path he or she chooses. The ongoing debate over this subject was reignited last June with the top two prospects in the NHL draft. Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel were seen by analysts as the unanimous top two

Visit vtcynic.com for more coverage and uvmathletics.com for schedules and tickets

• •

2 p.m.

The women’s swimming team beat the University of Maine 180-110 Nov. 7. Sophomore Shannon Cowley set a pool record in the 100 meter breaststroke with a time of 1:05.18 at the Forbush Natatorium. UVM field hockey lost to Standford University in Albany, NY Nov. 5 in the America East playoffs to end their season. First-year Lauren Tucker scored the most points for field hockey over the season with 21. She scored seven goals and seven assists. Junior Brian Wright of men’s soccer leads the team in points with 22. He was eight goals and six assists.

RECORDS

Men’s Soccer 9-6-3 Women’s Soccer 8-8-2 Field Hockey 4-16-0

Men’s Hockey 2-6-1 Women’s Hockey 2-8-0 Women’s Swim 3-2-0

SUPERCUTS STYLISTS DELIVER CUTS WITH AN ATTENTION TO DETAIL SO YOU FEEL READY TO GO. THE GATEWAY SHOPPING CENTER 570 Shelburne Rd South Burlington, VT 05403 802-651-1000

CLEAN. SHARP. READY.

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK WEEKNIGHTS UNTIL 9PM

supercuts.com


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.