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Pastega Award winners announced By Jack Armstrong News Editor Western has announced the 2015 winners of the Pastega awards. Dr. Kevin Walczyk has been selected for the Excellence in Scholarship award and Dr. Maureen Dolan has been selected for the Excellence in Teaching award. The Pastega awards are an annual honor given to two professors selected by students, faculty and the administration. According to Western’s website, the awards were created by “noted Oregon philanthropist Mario Pastega.” Pastega donated to Western annually and part of that money was used to recognize educators who strove to push the students and the university to higher levels of excellence. The first recipients of the awards were honored in 1985, and it has been an annual ceremony since. According to the Pastega Award website, the Pastega family made a $40,000 donation that was matched by the Oregon University System in 1997 to maintain the awards well into the future. The Excellence in Teaching award is given to a professor who “engages, inspires and educates students to the greatest possible learning.” The Excellence in Scholarship award is given to a professor who maintains “significant and enduring scholarly or creative achievement,” alongside their professorial duties. This can include ongoing research or publishing articles. The decision on which professors will be honored is handled by the Pastega committee. Chair of the committee Tom Bergeron said, “the work of choosing is done by the recipients from the two previous years,” in addition to a member of student government, and President Mark Weiss. Last year’s winners were professor of history David Doellinger, awarded for Excellence in Scholarship, and the director of the writing center, professor of English Katherine Schmidt, was awarded for Excellence in Teaching. The award is accompanied by a $1,000 honorarium.
Dr. Kevin Walczyk: Professor of Music
Dr. Kevin Walczyk grew up in a musically diverse family, and as a result he was exposed to an array of musical knowledge and styles from an early age. This knowledge and exposure soon turned into a passion and he Continued on Page 2
VOLUME 15 ISSUE 22 | WESTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY| FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2015
2015-2016 SY Student Fees Per Term
Below is the breakdown of student fees per term for the 2015-2016 school year. Students will pay $327 per term, which will be allocated to the following funded areas. The values listed below are based on the average of the projected enrollment for the 2015-2016 school year and the final decision from the IFC. Values were rounded up.
This area accounts for the on-campus organizations that require less than $12 to operate per term.
$39
$20
$94
allocated to SLA
$21 $22
allocated to Athletic Department
allocated to ASWOU allocated to Creative Arts
Abby’s House
$ .61
Access
$ .91
Childcare
$ 3.99
Extraordinary Travel
$ .42
Student Media
$ 11.90
SAB
$ 4.29
Wolf Ride
$ 2.16
SLCD
$ .57
Club Sports
$ 3.17
Intramurals $ 8.76
$66
$67
allocated to Health and Wellness Center
allocated to Werner University Center
Computer Replacement Reserve
$ 2.15
DISCLAIMER: The Journal receives funds the IFC
IFC FINAL DECISION SETS FEES FOR 2016 ACADEMIC YEAR
New fee for 2016 increases to $327 per term By Jack Armstrong News Editor Western’s incidental fee committee has had their proposed budget for the 2016 academic year officially approved by President Mark Weiss. This version of the budget is now set to take effect fall term of 2015-2016. The IFC is a group of student leaders supervised by staff advisers. The only voting members of the process are the students who sit on the committee. Incidental fees are collected separate from students’ tuition every term and are used for student clubs and activities that fall outside the realm of academics. IFC voted through their final
version of the budget Monday, Feb. 16. The proposal was then ratified by the Associated Students of Western Oregon University senate Wednesday, Feb. 18. Once the budget was agreed upon by both student organizations, the decision was moved to President Weiss for final approval. “I respect the diligence of the IFC members and the role of student senate in reaching a conclusion,” Weiss said. He approved the budget on first viewing within the five days allotted to him though the by-laws. Now that the budget has been finalized by the administration, the per-term fee for 2015-2016 will increase $5 from 2014-2015 to $327, or $981 per year total.
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This year’s decision was met with resistance from students and staff alike in departments who were chosen to take cuts. The athletics department received the heaviest cut, taking a 5 percent overall reduction in their budget. Many student-athletes reacted angrily to this cut in the series of open hearings held by the IFC Thursday, Feb. 5, and Monday, Feb. 9. In fact, the majority of the students at the meeting were athletes looking to affect change in the committee’s course When Weiss was asked whether this turn-out had made his decision more difficult, he said, “I was made aware of certain changes Continued on Page 2
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THE JOURNAL 345 N. Monmouth Ave. Monmouth, OR 97361 Student Media Department TERRY HOUSE NEWSROOM 503-838-8347
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SUBMISSIONS THE JOURNAL encourages readers to share their opinion through letters to the editor and guest columns. Submissions must be typed and include the writer’s name. Contact information will not be published unless requested. Unsigned submissions will not be printed and original copies will not be returned. Letters to the editor may be up to 300 words and guest columns should not exceed 500 words. THE JOURNAL does not guarantee the publication of all letters or columns. THE JOURNAL reserves the right to edit for punctuation, grammar, and spelling, but never for content. Please bring submissions to THE JOURNAL at Terry House or email to journaleditor@wou.edu. Submissions must be received by Wednesday at 5 p.m. to be considered for print. All opinions expressed in columns, letters to the editor or advertisements are the views of the author and do necessarily reflect those of THE JOURNAL or Western Oregon University.
IFC finalizes 2016 From Front Page to past funding levels, but I deferred to the democratic process in place.” In addition to looking at a reduced budget, the athletics department also had some requested enhancements turned down. Enhancements differ from the overall budgets because they are a one-term increase in funding for an organization to be put towards a specifically requested item. The athletics department had been initially approved to receive a replacement on-field headset for the football program with a one-time enhancement priced at $43,712. IFC decided to remove this enhancement in the final version of the budget in an attempt to keep the overall fee increase as low as possible. During IFC’s presentation to the ASWOU senate Wednesday, Feb. 18, IFC member Jessica Hand said, “We have a responsibility to the entire student body to keep costs as affordable as possible, and any enhancements we
approve should benefit as many students as possible.” President Weiss said, “My experience has been that the approved budget is representative of views for those students that participate in the process, but the result may not necessarily represent the views of the student body as a whole.” Similarly, IFC also decided against granting the enhancement that gives students free tickets to most of the school-run theater productions at Western. “There wasn’t enough data provided by the department about student attendance to provide approval,” Hand said. Now that the budget for next year is set, some clubs are already turning to fund raisers and other alternative forms of filling in the financial gaps. Weiss believes that this approach is a good compromise and said, “I encourage all clubs to fundraise as much of the cost of their programs as possible. Affordability for our students is paramount, and fundraising relieves the student body from increased cost to attend.”
CAMPUS BRIEFS
HIGHER EDUCATION TOWN HALL WITH REPRESENTATIVE PAUL EVENS Western graduate and State Rep. Paul Evans will be on Western’s campus Thursday, April 30, to lead a town hall style discussion on the current issues facing students and faculty in a collegiate setting. The discussion will take place in the Willamette room of the Werner Center from 7-8:30 p.m. All students, staff and faculty are welcome and encouraged to bring prepared questions for discussion. Admission is free. For more information please contact the political science department at 503-838-8536. THE COMING OUT MONOLOGUES Western’s Triangle Alliance and Stonewall Center will be hosting the first production of The Coming Out Monologues, a presentation by students and faculty about their experiences coming out as LGBTQ. The event is Thursday, April 30, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Pacific room of Werner Center. The event is free, but donations are appreciated. All proceeds will benefit the Triangle Alliance and Stonewall Center. For more information on participation or attendance,
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contact 503-838-8731 or visit the event listing on Facebook at Coming Out Monologues @ WOU. WIND DOWN WEDNESDAY Campus Dining presents Wind Down Wednesday, April 29, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. in the Willamette room of the Werner Center. Campus dining will be offering complimentary appetizers and drinks ranging from $1.50 to $5. This is an opportunity for faculty and students to stop by and enjoy a quick break in the middle of the week. For more information, please contact Campus Dining at 503-838-8382 or visit the event website at http://www.wou.edu/ student/residences/dining.php. VOTING FOR ASWOU ELECTIONS END Friday, April 24 is the last day to cast your vote for ASWOU candidates and bills in the 2015 elections. Voting is conducted by Orgsync through the WOU Portal website or at one of the voting stations in the Werner Center. Voting closes at 4 p.m. For more information concerning the elections, contact ASWOU at 503838-8553 or visit the ASWOU Orgsync page.
Pastega award winners From Front Page continued his musical pursuits throughout his time in college at Pacific Lutheran University and University of North Texas. While attending university, Walczyk shifted his interests from playing and enjoying music to composition. Walczyk said that composition seemed “unexplored and invigorating.” Upon his graduation, Walczyk looked for a way to translate and convey his passion for composition to the younger generation, which pushed him to move into teaching. As a first generation college graduate for his family, Dr. Walczyk said he chose to teach at Western in 1995 largely because of its reputation for excellence in serving first generation college attendees such as himself. He also said he expressed interest in helping to build Western’s fledgling music program, and as a result he was given the opportunity to help orchestrate program development. The chance to involve himself in the new program featuring modern music composition and jazz techniques was both challenging and intriguing. Walczyk said, “I am not only training future musicians, I am training future teachers, future mentors, and future role models of our society who will pass on their passion to future generations.” Speaking about the award itself Walczyk said “this is a very humbling honor, particularly when one considers the number of outstanding faculty on the WOU campus.”
Dr. Maureen Dolan: Professor of Sociology
Earning a Ph.D. in Sociology in 1993, Dr. Dolan specializes in Latin American studies, class analysis, state theory, and gender studies. Having graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Maureen made her way to Western in the
same year, and she began teaching a wide range of classes under her umbrella of specialties. Many of these attribute back to her interest in Latin America, which stems from a study abroad opportunity in Chile taken during her own years as a student. Being taught by exiled Brazilian scholars was just the start of an in-depth trip in the South American country. While there, Dr. Dolan immersed herself in the local customs and agriculture, collaborating with the Nicaraguan Ministry of Agriculture in regards to agrarian development. In this case, agrarian development is a set of factors, including technological and economical, that may have an effect on agricultural practices. In relation to the entire trip, Dolan said “it was important in my formation of an understanding of sociology as a discipline that is critical, public, and engaged in the practice of social justice.” Today, Dr. Dolan lives in Salem with her family following the creation of a service-learning course known as the Latino Mentor Program in 1996. Through educational and community outreach like the mentor program, Latinos are helping areas in Oregon that are underserved. This community movement can involve tutoring programs in schools locally, and now even internationally since the program has spread to Mexico, Nicaragua and Argentina. The groups working with the international segment of the program focus on incarcerated youth and even the LGBTQ community. “It is also a great honor to work with WOU students who bring their energy and insight to the Latino Mentor Program,” Dolan said. “In the development and expansion of the program, I have listened to my students and followed their lead in identifying our involvement in community projects.” Dolan said she considers the Pastega Award “a great honor to be recognized by the WOU community for developing a curriculum that links teaching, research and service in the Latino Mentor Program.”
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NEWS SPORTS PHOTO BY OLIVIA DEJANVIER
Senior Sunday Softball celebrates last home game of season play By Jacob Mitchell Staff Writer
Western’s softball team celebrated Senior Day this past Sunday by sweeping conference competitor Central Washington University in a close two-game series. With two wins, the Wolves hope for a playoff berth remains alive, and the Wolves go up three games on the Wildcats of Central Washington, with both teams scheduled for four more regular season games. The Wolves offense was spearheaded by the bat of
Amanda Evola, with five hits in eight at-bats, three runs scored, and two RBIs. Evola’s efforts earned her GNAC player of the week honors. Zoe Clark and Kelsie Gardner added to the Wolves’ offense with four and three hits, respectively, while Clark equaled Evola with two RBIs. Jourden Williams picked up her seventh win of the season on the mound in game one, pitching a complete game and giving up
only a solitary run. In game two, the Wolves were led by the arm of Alyson Boytz, finishing the weekend with two, one-run victories. This coming week, the Wolves will be traveling to Montana for a four-game series to take on fellow GNAC competition Montana State University Billings for the first time this season. “This past week our focus has really been mainly on our hitting, defensively we have been strong both
Four meets bring out the best in Wolves By Rachel Shelley Staff Writer The men and women’s track team split up this past weekend to take on four separate meets along the West Coast in California and Portland. At the Bryan Clay Invitational hosted by Azusa Pacific, Kaleb Dobson started the meet with a win in his section of the 110 meter-hurdles in 15.37 seconds, finishing 13th overall. Bailey Beeson ran a personal best and ninth all-time program history mark in the 800 in 2:14.07. Kenny Klippel threw a personal best in the shot put with 14.01 meters, improving his mark by 0.06 meters. In the Mt. Sac Relays in Walnut, Calif., 1,500 competitors Rachel Crawford and Sam Naffziger both hit personal records with Crawford running 4:34.93 and Naffziger, 3:51.76.
Crawford’s time puts her third all-time in program history for the Wolves. Naffziger’s time placed him eight all-time for the Wolves program history and earned him a provisional time for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships. “It feels good to have a provo,” said Naffziger. “It makes me feel really good that all my hard work is paying off. It motivates me to keep working hard to improve my time and get into the national meet.” Stephanie Stuckey also competed in the 1500, finishing in 4:40.28. Josh Hanna and Badane Sultessa finished the 800 in 1:51.62 and 1:51.74, respectively. The following day, the Wolves competed at the Beach Track & Field Invitational, hosted by Long Beach State. Twenty-three personal bests were run on
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Saturday. “Mentally, it was huge for me to finally see improvement from all the work I’ve been putting in,” Beeson said. “The last eight races in a row I had run within .3 seconds of the same time which was so frustrating. Nothing huge happened in the race that led me to the time, I was just feeling good and able to hang on to the girl in front of me.” Back in Portland at the Lewis and Clark Open, 16 lifetime bests were set with the women’s side taking care of nine and the men’s posting seven. The Wolves slow down for their last week before GNAC championship on May 8-9. The Titan Twilight at Lane Community College was hosted on Thursday, April 23 and the GNAC Multi Championships will be hosted in Lacey, Wash. on April 27-28.
pitching wise and fielding,” Evola said. “These past few weeks our girls have really come together with the bats and have been producing offensively as a unit much better, but we place the focus there because it is such a critical part of the game, and we want all the insurance runs we can get.” The Wolves are 20-25 in regular season play, and 12-8 in GNAC contests. The Wolves need to win at least one game against the Yellowjackets in order to clinch
the fourth and final spot in next month’s GNAC Tournament. In the event of a threeway tie for the final playoff spot between Western Washington, Western, and Central Washington, the Wolves would still advance to the postseason, thanks to its single win against Saint Martin’s earlier this season. The Wolves are slated to start the series off Friday, April 24 at 1 p.m. in Billings, Montana.
This week in baseball: L
4/17 4-5 9 inning game
L
4/18 3-4 7 inning game
W 4/18 5-0 7 inning game W 4/19 8-3 9 inning game GNAC Standing:
#1
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A WWII Survivor’s Tale Speaker shares the impacts of living through WWII
Gentle House’s Third Annual Bridal Show A
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Multiple colored flags, each representing different cultural groups, were placed along Monmouth Avenue on Western’s Holocaust Remembrance Day, on Tuesday, April 24. PHOTO BY SHANNEN BROUNER
By Haunani Tomas Editor-in-Chief In honor of Western’s annual Holocaust Remembrance Day, students and staff flooded the Willamette room of the Werner University Center to hear the story of Rosina Lethe. The event, organized by the Student Leadership and Activities board was held on Tuesday, April 21. Lethe, a WWII survivor, felt the obligation to share her story to explain “the amount of suffering wars can cause.” Nearly 100 students and staff combined listened as Lethe began telling her survival story to her biggest crowd yet. Lethe clarified that she was not involved with Hitler’s almost successful termination of the Jewish peoples. Her involvement was just the opposite; Lethe and her family were put in a concentration camp because they were German. Lethe’s story took place over the course of three years, in which she was separated from then happily reunited with her family. Seventy-one years ago, the Germans occupied Yugoslavia, now Serbia, until the Russians came to claim territory. When the Russians arrived, Germans retreated without gunfire because they realized they would cause more harm to the German population in Lethe’s town. Strategically, the Germans withdrew tanks and allowed Russians to take the town. Lethe was 15 years old. Lethe said that three Russian officers used her family’s home as their living quarters. Her uncle, who was fluent in Russian, often played chess with the officers and made sure to let the officers win. Then, one day, the townspeople were instructed to pack food for three days and meet by City Hall. Her town population neared 15,000 people and by the end of the war it had dwindled to 5,000. The townspeople were driven out at gunpoint and “driven like cattle” on the road. They walked for 12 miles to the closest town, near the Hungarian border. People “who couldn’t walk were shot on the side of the road,” Lethe said.
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The very next day, the townspeople walked another grueling 12 miles to a German village, surrounded by C guards. The house the townspeople were told to stay in was E stripped of all furniture. “So many people were in there,” Lethe said. “We were packed in there like sardines. There was barely room to walk.” In addition to the claustrophobic living conditions, food D supplies were low. The food that was available was unwholesome. This was the first Gentle House’s third annual of Sweet Petites, can be reached concentration camp, or as Lebridal show, held Sunday, April at 503-383-5179 or jenirose@ D) Danner and Soli Event the referred to it “starvation 19, featured 20 local vendors minetfiber.com. For more inforRental offering a broad range of sermation about Sweet Petites, visit Danner and Soli Event Rental, camp,” that she stayed in. vices. From pastries to portable their webpage at www.sweetpeowned by Shirleen Bell, special“People began dying. Every bathrooms, the event covered titesbyjenirose.weebly.com. izes in vintage and unique items, day a wagon pulled by horses all components of a wedding similar to the antiques seen on would come to collect the dead checklist. Targeted toward couB) Deepwood Strings Pinterest. Bell explained that the ples planning their special day Upon stepping into Gentle items featured at the bridal show bodies,” Lethe said. on a budget, the Gentle House House, guests were greeted by and online at www.dannerandsoRussian officers demanded lured couples in with a special the live melodies of Deepwood li.com have been acquired over the townspeople to hand over promotion: the first 10 brides Strings, a Salem-based quartet. the years. their valuables, specifically to attend the show received The quartet included members $100 off of their Gentle House who also play for the Salem E) Events Planned Perfectly any money and jewelry. booking. Shurisa Steed, a Gentle Chamber Orchestra. For more Debbie Ego, certified wedding Lethe said, “the people who House staff member and bridal information about the Deepwood planner and owner of Planned hid some [of their valuables] show event coordinator, said “the Strings, visit their webpage at Perfectly, offered her planning purpose behind our annual bridal www.deepwoodstrings.com. services to couples wishing for a were shot and killed and show is to demonstrate how a stress-free planning experience. left in the road for people to bride can have an absolutely C) Ovenbird Bakery Ego’s objective is to take away see.” One of the victims was fantastic wedding while staying Ovenbird bakery, an Indepenthe stress couples experience her father’s cousin, who was on a budget.” dence-based pastry vendor, also during the wedding planning prooffered samples of their two most cess to allow for a more enjoyshot and killed in from of his A) Sweet Petites by Jeni Rose requested wedding cakes: vanilla able tying-the-knot experience. 6-year-old daughter. Sweet Petites, a dessert cake with lemon filling and chocFor more information, visit www. The Russians began searchbusiness based out of Monolate cake with raspberry filling. eventsplannedperfectly.com. mouth, offered bite-size cupcake For more details on cake specials ing for workers to harvest samples of her signature Cheror to schedule a wedding cake PHOTOS BY LYNN MARTINEZ corn. Lethe was chosen as a ry-Chocolate and French Vanilla tasting and consultation, call worker and taken back to the cupcakes. Jennifer Rose, owner 503-837-0109. first town they stopped at on their way to the concentration camp. This marked the at home cooking. Her friend’s mother of her face.” first time she was separated from her explained that people of Yugoslavian After crossing over the borders mother and sister. The workers lived or Hungarian blood were released. of Hungary and Austria, Lethe was in a transit camp and slept in wooden Over the course of the next two somehow reunited with her mother, barracks that were made for soldiers. years, Lethe lived with different fami- father and sister. By then, Lethe was “The food there was a little better lies who assisted in her endeavor to re- 18. because they wanted people to be able unite her family. Lethe made multiple Years later, Lethe met her husband to work,” Lethe said. secret trips into the camp her mother and moved to Germany, then CaliforLethe was lucky enough to meet a and sister were held in to deliver food nia and finally settled in the Willafriend who was also away from her to her malnourished sister, who Lethe mette Valley. mother and family. One night, Lethe describe as unrecognizable. “The Willamette Valley really felt and her friend decided to escape. They “I saw my sister and didn’t even rec- like home, just like the farmlands we walked all night along the Danube, Euognize her,” Lethe said. “Her head was grew up on,” Lethe said. rope’s second longest river, and made it shaved to keep the lice out, and her all the way back to their hometown. To eyes looked like they were falling out their surprise, her friend’s mother was
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Embracing the human body in the stillness of a pose Open life drawing in Campbell Hall By Evelina Ramirez Staff Writer Western’s Art Club invites all students, art majors or not, to attend free open life drawing sessions every Tuesday and Thursday until June 2. The sessions will be held from 7-9 p.m. in Campbell Hall, room 111. “This is the third year we host an open life event, and it’s something I always did as an undergrad,” said Gregory Poulin, non-tenure track assistant professor of art. “I think it is important for students to come and have a stress-free environment where they can explore whatever direction they want to go for. It’s open to anybody, and not only art students can come in, everybody’s welcome.” With music playing quietly in the background, students and other attendees alike are able to focus on drawing the live model in a welcoming and non-judging environment. Poulin added, “I understand that sometimes people feel intimidated, but the atmosphere is very relaxed and mellow. Everyone’s super nice and supportive.” Bryan Wright, a studio art major, recalled the first time he attended an open life drawing session. “At that point, I had never drawn a model before, and I was surprised at how laid back it is and how comfortable everyone seems to be,” Wright said. “If you’re interested in drawing, it’s a great experience; I totally suggest it.” Artist Diane Elizabeth Wilson was in attendance.
In her essay “An Artist Model’s View,” she said, Students who attend are asked to bring their own “The art of modeling comes naturally and free of art supplies. conflict for some. Yet, like many people, art models For more information about the open life drawing can struggle with self- doubt and insecurities. No sessions, contact the Art Department at 503-838matter how we perceive our own body image, an art- 8241. ist will see you through their own eyes.” Attendees get to draw a live model who takes on various poses during the session. “They are not really judging me; they are looking for shapes and contours, and for textures like tight skin verses wrinkly skin,” said Nicole Larsen, a live model and anthropology major. “I think it can be really invigorating for anyone to be in this position.” On the subject of nudity, Marylyn Weatherly, a forensic Chemistry major, said, “This is a really interesting and expressive way to step into the human figure in a really awesome environment. It’s a good way to experience nudity, not how the world sees it as bad, PHOTO BY EVELINA RAMIREZ but more like an art.”
“Insurgent” major plot changes leave series devotees disappointed Film adaptation creates a stunning visual plot while leaving its written counterpart scratching its head By Conner Williams Editorial Editor
WARNING: THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS SPOILERS.
Those loyal fans of the “Divergent” book series likely walked out of the film adaptation of “Insurgent” a bit confused, if not angry. “Divergent” left us off with Tris and Four riding off into the sunset on one of the famous Dauntless trains after having defeated the evil and corrupt Jeanine Matthews in her attempt to become supreme ruler of the factionbased government. If you have no idea what any of that means, go read “Divergent” or see the movie – you won’t be disappointed. While the first film adaptation followed the book fairly well, the second did not do its book equivalent enough justice. In an interview with Vulture in
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March, Veronica Roth – the author of the “Divergent” series – said that she “found it jarring to have such a major change to her books written without her.” But, she also said that she thought it was the right choice, since the plot of the book is very complex and the film adaptation did a good job of simplifying it. In the movie adaptation, the Divergents are hunted down by the Dauntless traitors on orders from Jeanine Matthews in order to find the one person that is “most” Divergent. This person (obviously it was going to be Tris) would then be put through a series of simulations representing the values of each faction and, upon completion of each simulation, the sacred “box” found in the Priors’ house would then open, revealing a message to Jeanine from the world outside the
city. This is a cool concept and all, but it couldn’t be further from the book plot. Firstly, in book one, Tris only tests positive for three factions, not five. So, she is not actually 100 percent and would therefore fail the simulations of Amity and Candor, the two factions that she did not test positive for in book one. Secondly, there is no special box in the book. There is, however, a hard drive that Tris stole from Erudite headquarters which had evidence that Jeanine created the simulation serum that placed the Dauntless under mindcontrol for the purpose of murdering the entire Abnegation population. This hard drive had no such message contained in it, however. It was simply evidence against Erudite’s evildoings. In a movie review by James Berardinelli for reelviews.net, he comments on the inception of the idea of the simulations to open the box by saying that “the sequences resemble levels in a video game and are devoid of any sort of suspense or tension.” While two of the simulations did actually happen in the book, they were for the purpose of gaining access to Jeanine’s private quarters and not to open the magical box. Jeanine was hunting Divergents not
for the purpose of finding the one with a perfect Divergent score, but rather so that she could test and torture them in order to create a serum that could control the Divergents along with the rest of the population. The message inside the box (which was really just a file on Jeanine’s computer in the book) revealed that the faction-based society inside the wall is, in fact, an experiment created by government scientists outside the city. The catch is that, in the book, Jeanine already knew this. She just did not want the population to know because she knew it would lead to revolution and jeopardize her tyrannical rule. The added conflict is surely just another way for filmmakers to draw a more action-hungry crowd for boxoffice dollars. The film focuses more on the unnecessary action and less on the powerful emotional connection between Tris and Four in the book. The character development between the two is substantial in the book, but almost nonexistent in the film. The ending of the film – which I will leave for you to see – completely differed from that of the book, which makes me wonder what direction the “Allegiant” adaptation will take. Nevertheless, I will be one of the first in line to see part one next year.
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ENTERTAINMENT
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Dance concert
springs
to life Next month’s concert will be last for professor Deborah Jones By Stephanie Blair Staff Writer Coming to Rice Auditorium for its annual run, the Spring Dance Concert by Western’s theatre and dance department will be May 7-9, with performances beginning at 7:30 p.m. The concert showcases senior student projects, professors Deborah Jones, Sharon Oberst, and Darryl Thomas, as well as a special guest artist piece choreographed by Lauren Edson of lauren edson + dancers, based in Chicago. With over 40 Western students performing in the dance concert, it’s the most important event for dance students each year, as the other two are shown in the studio Maple Hall. “This is our only dance concert that we’re able to perform on stage; we take it very seriously,” said Paige Scofield, a sophomore dance major. “It allows students and faculty members to display their work to family, friends and dance enthusiasts.” While there is no set theme for the concert each year, the “theme or idea for each piece is a personal creative choice by each choreographer,” Jones said. This is Jones’ last year with Western before she retires. As she has been an integral part of the dance world on campus, the students are using this concert as a way to give thanks for her years at Western. “We want to make it run as smoothly and as professionally as possible, all while obtaining wonderful memories,” Scofield said. The concert holds pieces ranging from the abstract and personal, to light comedy. The department said there will be no opportunity for boredom. So whether you are a seasoned dance professional, or someone who has only seen “The Nutcracker” on DVD, all are in store for a great show. Tickets are free to Western students. For more information, please call the box office at 503-838-8461 or email the theatre and dance department at eliassl@ wou.edu.
THE JOURNAL | FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2015
PHOTO BY JENNA BERESHEIM Gaymer night participants play a round of “Settlers of Catan,” in which players compete to collect resources such as wheat and livestock.
Stonewall Center hosts allinclusive Gaymer Night By Jenna Beresheim Freelancer A group of students gathered in the Willamette room April 15 to participate in the first-ever Gaymer Night – hosted by Western’s Stonewall Center. This Gaypril Event was created as an early celebration of pride month, which typically occurs in June as a celebration of the 1969 Stonewall riots, in which hundreds of members of Manhattan’s gay community fought back against the police raid of a popular gay club in Greenwich Village. The riots were a turning point in America’s gay liberation movement. “I chose to create this event because there aren’t a lot of people on campus during Pride Month,” said Gabbi Boyle, Stonewall Center coordinator. “I wanted Western to be
able to celebrate Pride Month while we are all here to celebrate.” While the focus was on creating an LGBTQ-friendly environment, all individuals were welcome to participate. Starting at 7 p.m., students began to pour into the room, stacking towers of board games onto each table. It was not long before the projector was hooked up to play Wii, with four people bartering for controllers to participate in Mario Kart. Three separate tables were garnished with their own games: “Cards Against Humanity,” “Settlers of Catan” and “Machi Koro.” “It was a welcoming environment and it was also a great group of people,” said Justin Oehler, a third year
student playing “Settlers of Catan.” Throughout the evening, students filtered in and out, some popping in for a few rounds while others stayed for the whole event. At the end of it all, Oehler said: “I’m glad Stonewall reached out to this branch of the community and I hope they do it again.” Boyle, who oversaw the proceedings of the gaming night, said: “That was the biggest turnout for a weekday evening event I’ve ever hosted through the Stonewall Center. I’m beyond amazed and thrilled that we got that many people together to just hang out and play games. I will definitely be hosting more Gaymer nights.”
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OPINION
An economic approach: how everyone benefits from an increased minimum wage By Conner Williams Editorial Editor
Background
The push for an increased statemandated minimum wage in Oregon has been happening for a few years, and it is beginning to gain some steam as a new ballot measure proposed Friday, April 17 by the advocacy group 15 Now has been put forth to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour across the state by the year 2019. The City of Portland has already passed a bill to raise the wages of about 173 city contractors and fulltime workers to $15 per hour, and the rest of the state wants in as well. Seattle set the precedent for the country by passing the first bill that requires businesses to increase the wage gradually to $15 per hour over a number of years. According to the Office of the Mayor of the City of Seattle, small businesses (those with fewer than 500 employees) must reach the wage requirement in seven years, while large businesses (those with 500 or more employees) must reach the wage in three years. Employees that receive healthcare benefits must reach it in four years.
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Economic Impact
When discussing raising the minimum wage, there are generally three main topics that take the podium for debate: costs, employment rates and inflation. 1. Decreased Business Costs Business owners have voiced concerns over the increased wage, claiming they will be forced to cut back hours, lay off employees, and raise prices. Paul Krugman, an expert in macroeconomics – which refers to national, regional, and global economics – and columnist for The New York Times, said the “market for labor isn’t like the markets for soybeans or pork bellies... Workers are people; relations between employers and employees are more complicated than simple supply and demand.” The laws of supply and demand state that when the price of something goes up, the demand for it goes down. This is not the case, however, for labor. Employers that pay their workers more tend to see increases in productivity and, according to the Department of
Labor, “higher wages sharply reduce employee turnover which can reduce employment and training costs.” People who make more money also have a greater opportunity to spend more money, thus stimulating the economy and bringing in bigger profits for businesses. 2. Decreased Unemployment Also according to the DOL, “a review of 64 studies on minimum wage increases found no discernable effect on employment.” In addition, over 600 economists, including seven Nobel Prize winners in economics, have signed a letter in support of raising the federal minimum wage. 3. Inflation Will Not Necessarily Increase Increased wages do not directly cause increased inflation. In fact, the reason most states raise their minimum wages is to keep up with rising inflation, which is something that is not done with the federal minimum wage. According to the DOL, President Obama has called for the federal wage to also “automatically adjust with inflation.” In addition,
Arthur MacEwan of dollarsandsense. org said, “any inflation generated by an increase of the minimum wage is likely to be small.” It all depends on the actual supply and demand for goods once the wages do increase, which is difficult to anticipate, since even small amounts of inflation “affect different goods and thus different people very differently,” MacEwan said.
Redistribution of Wealth
Last week, Dan Price, the founder and CEO of Gravity Payments, a creditcard processing company in Seattle, decided to cut his own wages and reallocate the funds to his 120 person staff in order to increase their wages to $70,000 per year over the next three years. Price was taking in about $1 million, and he reduced his own salary to equal that of his employees. It is hard to tell whether this is a publicity stunt or not, but either way, it sets the precedent for other companies whose executives make upwards of 300 times as much as their average employee.
THE JOURNAL | FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2015
TAIL-END
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Celebration of Native American Customs
PHOTOS BY MATT COULTER
Multicultral student union’s annual Pow Wow celebration was held Saturday, April 18 and included, among many other activities during the 12-hour long event, dancing competitions, vendors, Native American-inspired food and a raffle.
Letter to the Editor By Carter Craig A college degree has become a necessary commodity in today’s job market. A college degree has also become expensive. Ideally, an organization would exist that could effectively lobby the government to spend more public money on lowering tuition costs for students. Unfortunately for students in higher education, no such organization exists. A few, many of whom have used this paper as a launch pad for their arguments, hold that Oregon Students Association is such an organization focused on lowering the cost of tuition. They claim OSA has a proud 40-year history of lobbying in Salem, but in those 40 years, we have seen tuition increase by over 600 percent (Bureau of Labor Statistics). OSA’s most recent
THE JOURNAL | FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2015
accomplishment, a scant twoyear tuition freeze, is a step in the right direction, but we are owed a leap. Senate Bill 04.15 is a wakeup call. Long have we been asleep in the tired delusion that OSA is effective and accurately represents our interests. You and your fellow students pay OSA $26,000 a year; or as the writers last week so delicately put it, $1.49 a term. Have you felt those returns? That money should be spent on things that actually impact you: events you can attend, food you can eat, or left in your pocket so you can use it however you wish. Vote yes on Senate Bill 04.15 so that our student government can spend money on you, not on wooing Salem politicians without result.
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