Whitman Pioneer Fall 2012 Issue 6 by Whitman College Wire

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Issue 6 | October 11, 2012 | Whitman news since 1896

Students create safe space for GLBTQ youth at school

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GSA a get by Sarah cornett Staff Reporter

ILLUSTRATION BY HWANG

alla Walla High School has over 25 active student-organized clubs, but until last year there was no Gay-Straight Alliance. Senior Gabe Gonzales and juniors Tegan Coleman and Rosa Tobin knew that their school lacked a unified safe space for GLBTQ-identified students. Last September, the three students came together to create the resource they felt their school community was missing. GSAs are found at many high schools across the United States, with the official title coming from the Gay-Straight Alliance Network, which works to establish these clubs in high schools. These groups serve as a support network and unified voice for both members that identify as GLBTQ and those who are straight. Students spearhead the process, working to create the clubs, serve in leadership and plan events. “We all had our own personal reasons, but overall we realized the school needed this,” co-

founder Tobin said at their Oct. 1 meeting. “We knew there were people that could utilize it, especially because we are a conservative town. When you enter the door, we’re not going to ask you, ‘are you gay, are you straight?’” Though they knew resistance could potentially be found, the administration was supportive of the club. Student body officers and the administration must approve clubs at Wa-High, and these two groups, according to moderator Casey Monahan, easily accepted the proposal of a GSA. However, some members of the faculty had questions about the legitimacy or the necessity of having the club on campus. “Our principal has always been supportive, but staff did approach him with questions,” said Monahan. “In a community like Walla Walla, there are going to be questions, but I haven’t encountered any outspoken opposition.” Students have encountered resistance on a more personal level, including instances of bullying. “We talked as a group on how to deal with that,” said Tobin.

At their Oct. 1 meeting, students made posters to advertise upcoming meetings and

events. Last year, they encountered silent resistance from students at Wa-High when many

of their posters mysteriously appeared ripped or torn away.

by clara bartlett

said, “I think everyone is a ‘crafter.’ For me, being crafty is so personal to the individual. Someone may like to build bookshelves, another may like to make sculptures out of old plywood and wine barrels, and then there is someone who likes to make mix tapes and decorate the covers. All three are crafty in their own way, and that is so RAD!”

But regardless of one’s selfadmitted “crafter” title, the propensity to craft or to simply be creative should not be hindered by the somewhat negative connotations of “crafting.” “I think so long as you allow your imagination and creativity to take over every once in a while, we all are creative crafters,” said Savino.

see GSA, page 3

Crafter label debated Globe Med HEALTH ED IN THAILAND E

Staff Reporter

by elise tinseth Staff Reporter

The GlobeMed club at Whitman is an organization headed by co-presidents junior Katherine Runkel and sophomore Arika Wieneke that raises awareness about global health issues through hosting educational events around campus. They also fundraise for their partner organization, Burmese Women’s Union (BWU) in Thailand. Nationally, GlobeMed is a nonprofit organization made out of chapters set up similarly at over 50 universities. GlobeMed at Whitman was founded last year, and according to the Whitman website, “aims to instill Whitman students with a sense of personal in-

vestment and efficacy in the broad fight for global health equity.” “Last year we raised $3,600 for BWU, which funded [a] threeday reproductive health training program in the refugee camps, 10 reproductive training/discussions among the migrant community and [provided] 40 women with birth control for one year as well as funds for a nursery for six months,” said Runkel in an e-mail. Some of the club’s efforts go to fundraising and directly impacting BWU’s work in Thailand, but they also focus on bringing knowledge of global health issues to the Whitman community. Events put on by GlobeMed around campus included three different awareness campaigns in the last year. see GLOBEMED, page 2

Whitman students traveled to Thailand last summer to support Burmese Women’s Union and educate women about sexual health. Photo contributed by McGrath

veryone is a secret crafter. Whether it’s giving a simple Valentine’s Day note to a loved one, tacking up favorite posters in an artful display or bejeweling a pair of your favorite True Religion jeans, we’ve all crafted at one point or another. You may be quick to deny your craftiness, but let’s face it, there is an inner crafter in all of us—or is there? This week, The Pioneer found crafters and non-admitted crafters alike. We polled them on their thoughts concerning the resurgence of craft culture as it relates to the popularity of websites like Etsy and Pinterest, marking a new hybrid of social media and crafting. Sophomore Annabelle Marcovici, having recently sold her Whitman t-shirt design to the student bookstore, discussed this hybrid. “Crafting’s pretty trendy right now, especially with the rise of Pinterest,” she said. “One trend within the crafting world is making your own versions of designer things. It’s related to self-sufficiency. Beyond just crafting, I think being able to make things yourself as opposed to having to buy everything is a really useful skill.” Senior Ryann Savino, who manages her own Etsy vintage store, further explored this idea. “Sometimes, I get a little overwhelmed with Etsy ... because the quality of some items on there [is] just out of this world,” said Savino. “I think the popularity issue is fine for me personally because I like to remind myself that crafting is so unique and one shouldn’t compare what they love and enjoy doing to what others are making.” But oddly enough, when asked whether she would consider herself a “crafter,” Annabelle Marcovici said, “No, I’m interested in crafts but I don’t do it often enough.” Additionally, when asked about her artistic habits, including cardmaking and collaging, sophomore Evelyn Levine said, “I don’t consider myself a ‘crafter’ because I have no dependence on crafting. To me, ‘crafter’ implies an addiction and not occasional dalliance. It communicates turkeys made of hand prints and neon oven mitts.” However, Savino disagrees. Having spent much time and energy re-vamping old vintage pieces and marketing them via Etsy, she

Many Whitman students take on a wide variety of DIY projects, often using old clothes and materials to create whimsical producs to sell and share. Photos by Felt

NEWS

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Fall break provides chance for relaxation, adventures by DANIEL KIM Staff Reporter

idway into first semester every year, faculty members and students of Whitman College are given a four-day break from classes and their daily rigors. Many take advantage of the time to travel or have an outdoor adventure; others see it as an opportunity to catch up on work or erase their sleep debts. All see it as a welcome shift away from daily pressures of college life. “We adopted the four-day weekend because we thought it was quite burdensome to ask students to go nonstop from late August until November,” said Provost and Dean of Faculty Timothy Kaufman-Osborn. Some colleges take one week off for their mid-semester break and have only four days for Thanksgiving, while some have four days in October and a week for Thanksgiving. Some students, such as sophomore Thomas Motzer, think that taking two days off in October is optimal. “Four-day allowed me to catch up on some work I had to do while allowing me to get some rest. I think it’s a neces-

sary break, but a week would be too much time off and would be better saved for

ILLUSTRATION BY JONES

Thanksgiving. So the two days extra is perfe c t ,” said Motzer. Senior biochemistry, biophysics and molecular biology major Ryan Nesbit, who went canoeing in the Cascade Mountains with friends during the long weekend, found four-day a great way to relax from school. “I needed to step back to take a break from schoolwork and not

think about it. I definitely needed that fourday break [to] rejuvenate, to get away and step back. I think that having a mid-semester break is incredibly productive ... even if you’re not working. You come back feeling better and want to come back with a fresh mind,” said Nesbit. Professors also get the chance to relax from school during this four-day break. Some spend time with their families by taking a short jaunt away

f r o m W a l l a Walla, while others stay at school to catch up on grading and reflect on the first half of the semester. “It’s a nice opportunity to check in with what I’m doing this semester. I don’t use it as a time to get away, but as a time to catch up on grading and think a little bit how the semester has progressed,” said Professor of Physics Kurt Hoffman. For both students and professors, four-day gives the freedom to everyone who wishes to take advantage of this short but beneficial time. “I also think about things I

need to address in class and how I go about doing that. If we didn’t have a fall break, then that’s a long stretch of time to stay energized, so I think it’s helpful to have a break of some sort,” said Hoffman. Nesbit agreed that the length is ideal to be at once refreshing and too short to allow study habits to slip. “I think that four-day is the perfect number of days. It is just the right amount of time to get a break, but [I] haven’t completely lost all motivation to get back to school work. If I had a nineday break, it would be totally hard to make that transition back into schoolwork mode,” he said.

GlobeMed students see results of partnership

GlobeMed members traveled to Thailand over summer 2012 to work with their GROW partner institution Photo contributed by McGraff from GLOBEMED, page 1

Abbey McGrath ‘12 (right) works with a local girl during a GlobeMed trip to Thailand. Whitman sent three students during summer 2012. Photo contributed by McGrath

“One [campaign] was for World AIDS day, one was a book club on ‘Half the Sky,’ and the other was a film screening of ‘Burma VJ,’” said Runkel. Along with raising local awareness on campus and in the community, students involved in the club can participate in Grass Roots Onsite Work (GROW) trips. “The purpose of going to visit BWU is to foster a stronger relationship with our partner and help them with some of their projects. The trips help increase transparency between us and our partner,” said Runkel. “GROW is an essential part of GlobeMed and ensures that our relationship remains a partnership that benefits both groups involved.” Alumnae Katie Miller ‘12

whitman + graze a place to eat

and Abbey McGrath ‘12 along with senior Colleen Bell were the first Whitman students to participate in GlobeMed’s GROW trip to Thailand. “There are particularly ridiculous adventures that stick out in my memory, like following our favorite taxi driver, nicknamed Apae (father), barefoot up a waterfall seeking a remote hilltop. But the trip was also colored by the emotional issues we were dealing with when learning about the health, social and educational problems in Burmese migrant and refugee communities,” said McGrath in an e-mail. At BWU meetings, Miller, McGrath and Bell heard firsthand accounts from the women about fleeing burned villages, destitution and the brutality of the Burmese mili-

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tary to escape to the border. “We listened to migrant women, who are enduring human rights abuses in factory and farm labor, explain to us that they wouldn’t know anything about reproductive health and birth control without the help of BWU,” said McGrath. “I’d say we experienced the whole spectrum of human emotion over the course of the trip. But I’ve come away with new friendships and feeling proud to be a continuing supporter of BWU and these women through GlobeMed.” Wieneke expressed her interest in seeing the club’s GROW trips impact the club’s efforts around campus and sentiments around campus itself. “Not everyone can go to Thailand and visit with the incredible women working at BWU, but everyone can hear about it, see pictures and videos of it and learn immensely from it,” said Wieneke. “We don’t want this to be just an experience that the club knows and hears about, but something that the entire campus and community can get involved in.”

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Corrections to Issue 5 The corrections box in Issue 5 should have read: “Corrections to Issue 4”

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IN THE NEWS by emily lin-jones News Editor

Percentage of Washington secondary school students surveyed by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in 2009 who reported hearing homophobic remarks in school on a regular basis. SOURCE: Glsen.net

Percentage of LGBT Washington students who reported being verbally harassed due to their sexual orientation during the school year.

SOURCE: Glsen.net

Students eating in Prentiss Dining Hall were given disposable plates, cups and bowls instead of reusable items due to a water heating issue in the kitchens. Photo by beck

Dishwashing problem pushes Prentiss Dining Hall to paper products for week by emily lin-jones News Editor

water heating malfunction forced Prentiss Dining Hall to replace their standard reusable tableware with disposable plates, bowls, cups and utensils for 10 days. Though the issue appears to have been at least temporarily resolved as of Oct. 11, and plastic plates have been restored to their place in the dining hall, maintenance workers and dining hall management are still working to identify the root of the problem. “It seems to be doing better, but we’re not exactly sure why,” said Susan Todhunter, manager of Prentiss Dining Hall. Dining hall staff first identified the problem on Sept. 21, when the rinse water used in the kitchens failed to heat to a sterilizing temperature of 180 degrees. According to maintenance supervisor Randy Coleman, the issue stems from mechanical issues with Prentiss’ high-efficiency boiler. “We’ve been in contact with the manufacturer, and we’re trying to get answers on how to fix it,” he said. “We’ve been doing several things to help, but the real solution is to find out why the boiler’s not putting out as much heat as it’s supposed to be putting out.” Temporary measures, like adjustments to prevent cold water from leaking into the system, seem to have helped alleviate the problem for the time being. According to Coleman, a more permanent solution should happen in the weeks to come. The under-heated water persisted for approximately a week and a half, preventing the dining hall from offering reusable plates to students during that time due to sanitation concerns. “We have a responsibility to keep everybody safe, and that was

my first concern,” said Todhunter. Paper products constituted the bulk of the replacement items. For a short time after the water heating problem began, Styrofoam bowls and plastic utensils were offered as well, though they were soon replaced by paper products and a return of reusable silverware. According to Todhunter, the kitchens devised a system early on to clean silverware by submerging it in sanitizing fluid, bypassing the need for rinse water. This allowed the dining hall to quickly return to using metal utensils, although they were unable to develop a similar method to clean dishes, cups and other items without sufficiently heated rinse water. The use of disposable products

“We were prepared to see posters ripped down, but it was still hard,” said Coleman, copresident with Tobin. This year, they are ready to fight back and have instituted a policy of ‘Poster-ception,’ according to member Malcom Gabbard. Posters will now go up in multiple stacks, so if a student decides to rip one down, he or she will be met by another waiting under it. Though these challenges occurred last year, the club has strong student support. “We probably had 50 people at our first meeting last year,” said Coleman. The GSA hopes to become more involved with Whitman’s groups pertaining to issues within the GLBTQ community, including Coalition Against Homophobia and the GLBTQ group on campus. Groups like WaHigh’s GSA can be extremely beneficial to youth questioning their sexuality, according to GLBTQ president Evan Griffis. “It’s important to have a social support group for teenagers who are queer or questioning,” said Griffis. “I think specifically in Walla Walla, you can feel isolated because it is kind of a conservative place, but having that group on campus is really important.” The GSA is not the only place for GLBTQ Walla Walla youth to express themselves. Triple Point, a program run through the Children’s Home Society of Washington, sponsors many ac-

the relative lack of concern in a student body whose members try to be as sustainable as possible. “It seems like Whitman students would be a little less apathetic,” he said. “[But] it’s understandable, because [bringing plates] is inconvenient.” Todhunter acknowledged the sustainability concerns raised by the dining hall’s use of disposable products and the cost of the materials to Bon Appétit, but said that there was no way around it due to sanitary regulations. “I don’t like using the paper [products] any more than people like me using it,” she said. “But my first responsibility is to make sure that we’re not serving anything on things that aren’t sanitary.”

Percentage of LGBT-identified students who reported skipping class at least once due to safety concerns, according to a 2011 nationwide survey. SOURCE: Glsen.net

45.7

Percentage of nationally surveyed LGBT-identified students who reported having a Gay-Straight Alliance at their school. SOURCE: Glsen.net

26.9

Percentage of LGBT students in small towns or rural areas who reported having a GSA at their school. SOURCE: Glsen.net

Percentage of Washington residents surveyed in 2011 who said they’d vote to uphold a law legalizing same-sex marriage. SOURCE: washingtonpoll.org

Percentage of Washington residents surveyed Sept. 2012 who said they were undecided as to whether Referendum 74, which aims to legalize same-sex marriage in Washington, should be approved or rejected. SOURCE: King5.com

105,000

Signatures obtained by Protect Marriage Washington to put Initiative 1192, which would create a statue defining marriage as between a man and woman, on the November 2012 ballot in Washington. SOURCE: reuters

132,000

Dollars raised by anti-samesex marriage group Preserve Marriage Washington as of July 2012. SOURCE: reuters

1.9 million Dollars raised by Washington United for Marriage, an organization dedicated to supporting the legalization of same-sex marriage, as of July 2012. SOURCE: reuters

Temporary repairs to water heating in Prentiss have allowed the dining hall to resume the use of plastic plates. Photo by beck

Local high school students push back against bullying, spread awareness with GSA from GSA, page 1

for such a long period raised the concern of several students, especially residents of Prentiss Hall and nearby Anderson Hall who often frequent the dining hall for meals. First-year Nick Hochfeld, a “Green Leader” for his section in Anderson, encouraged other student patrons of the dining hall to bring their own dishware while the shortage persisted. Hochfeld made announcements in his section meeting and on the Class of 2016 Facebook page, but said he was disappointed in the results. “Not as many [brought plates] as I would have liked. A few did,” he said. “There wasn’t a ton of response to [my post], which was too bad.” Hochfeld was surprised by

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tivities for GLBTQ teens in Walla Walla, including dances and other social activities. Last year, the GSA sponsored the Day of Silence, where students did not speak for a school day in support of students who have experienced bullying, and a No Name-Calling Day, with students writing down names they’ve been called and throwing them away. Both of these were in coordination with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) to raise awareness.

“It’s important to have a social support group for teenagers who are queer or questioning ... Having that group on campus is really important.” Evan Griffis ‘15

The club has offered Safe Zone posters to teachers, indicating that a room is a safe place for expression, modeled after those found at Whitman, according to Tobin and Monahan. They’re planning to do these events again this year, in addition to meeting twice a week as a club. As an advisor, Monahan positively expressed her feelings towards her students and Walla Walla. “I’m proud of my students, and I’m proud of our community,” she said.

YWCA volunteers reach out to Latina public school students by Maegan nelson Staff Reporter

s local elementary school students settle into routines for the new school year, programs are beginning to look forward to integrating themselves into these student’s lives. One program, Mariposa, seeks to improve the lives of young Hispanic women in the Walla Walla community. Anne-Marie Schwerin, agency director for the YWCA’s Mariposa program, has been working diligently to expand and perfect the Mariposa program in the Walla Walla public school system. “The Walla Walla community has a lot of girls who are new to the country, a lot of girls who are the first in their family to go to school in the U.S.,” said Schwerin. “There’s a lot of diversity within the Latino community, but girls are still living in two cultures. So we meet for a fifthgrade girls’ night where we celebrate that! We work to identify and bridge [those gaps between cultures] by working on leadership skills, decision-making skills ... and to build a peer group that the girls can count on.” The Mariposa program works to accomplish all of this by meeting once a week for a few hours with girls of all ages and teaching a lesson usually involving how to improve the students’ self-esteem. “Research indicates Latinas 18 and under have lots of risk factors in their lives ... having fami-

lies early, dropping out of school, drugs and alcohol ... [and four years ago] the New York Times [found that] Latina girls replaced young black men with the highest suicide rate,” said Schwerin. The Mariposa program started working with the Walla Walla Farm Labor Homes in 1997, when it recognized the small number of minority members involved in such programs. That was when outreach programs were started and bilingual people were hired to help communicate with the community. This communal outreach extended to the schools, including Pioneer Middle School. “The Mariposa program has come and gone through the years and [been] sponsored by the YWCA ... some years we would have absolutely fantastic groups. [They] always would pick a day and then the girls would come after school ... they have really good Mariposa workbooks, and they have a curriculum that the leaders were trained to follow,” said Judith Anderson, counselor at Pioneer Middle School. The program covered everything from hygiene to accountability. “They would [also] have social outings outside of school ... [for example] take fifthgrade girls bowling ... When the leader was really good, we had great changes in students ... they were connected to another positive adult. Probably five years ago, there was a really excellent [leader]—I think she was a Whitman student— and she brought in a speaker ...

this lady happened to be a Hispanic woman who had done really well in her life, and she was really amazing,” said Anderson. In the past, Whitman students have become part of the program, either by acting as presenters within the classroom or assistants to Schwerin. “Mariposa is a program primarily for Hispanic girls in fifth grade that is currently taught at four different elementary schools. It is a chance for them to learn life skills, in a fun way, that they might not learn in the classroom. Some of the topics covered are [friendship], decision-making, drug and alcohol prevention, and communication,” said junior Cristela Delgado-Daniel, who volunteers with the program. Delgado-Daniel works closely with Schwerin and had positive things to say about her work for the program. “She has been a great mentor and a wonderful leader for the community. She truly cares about the well-being of the girls and goes to great lengths to make sure that we as directors have all the necessary tools to run the program,” she said. Delgado-Daniel hopes to increase the program’s presence in the community this year and encourage more of her peers to volunteer. “Personally, goal-wise, I would love for the program to gain more awareness and would especially like to work out a way to get more Whitman student involvement,” said Delgado-Daniel.

A&E

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Singing misfits spew chunks and humor in “Pitch Perfect” by nathan fisher Staff Reporter

fter a grueling and rather unpleasant week of midterms, I escaped to the theater for a good pickme-up and a mindless movie. My fried brain needed something predictable, silly and fun. Believe it or not, “Pitch Perfect”—that’s right, the a cappella version of “Glee”—hit the spot! “Pitch Perfect” follows Beca (Anna Kendrick of “Up in the Air”) during her first year of college. Beca has issues: She hates school, likes to be left alone and is only interested in mashing up her own music. After a PG13 singing-in-the-shower scene, Beca reluctantly agrees to audition for one of the college’s a cap-

pella groups, the Bellas. The Bellas are a “traditional” a cappella clan, but due to a lack of interest, they must accept “untraditional” misfits. The new Bellas include a sexaholic (Alexis Knapp), the self-named Fat Amy (the hysterical Rebel Wilson from “Bridesmaids”), and my personal favorite, quiet Lily (Hana Mae Lee). Lily whispers under her breath, making her teammates and the audience strain to hear her one-liners, which leave you howling (“I ate my twin sister in the womb!”). The story drags a bit, while the singing misfits compete for a chance to go to nationals and deal with their own personal issues. The supporting cast, especially Fat Amy and quiet Lily, really steals the show. The prim and proper leader of the Bellas,

ILLUSTRATION BY MEASE

Aubrey (Anna Camp), however, keeps this predictable movie off balance, by having several projectile vomiting scenes straight out of “The Exorcist.” Odd and totally unexpected for this type of film. I’m a big fan of Whitman’s a cappella groups—the Testostertones, Schwa, and Sirens of Swank—so I was a bit hesitant to see “Pitch Perfect”’s gimmicky, drama-filled perversion of allvoice music. However, the movie’s weirdness somehow kept me laughing for almost two hours. “Pitch Perfect” plays off of “Glee,” but weaves together “The Breakfast Club,” “Bring It On” and a few reminders of “The Exorcist.” This cheesy love story about misfits with great voices and personalities makes it a fun chick flick to see with a group of friends.

PIO PICKS Each Thursday, The Pioneer highlights several events happening on campus or in Walla Walla during the weekend. Here are this week’s picks: FeMENism Panel Feminists Advocating Change and Empowerment presents its annual student-faculty panel on the role of men in feminism, moderated by Associate Professor of Religion Melissa Wilcox. Thursday, Oct. 11, 7:30 p.m. in Jewett Main Lounge

Canadian Thanksgiving Meal Bon Appétit plans to serve a special dinner in honor of Canadian Thanksgiving, which will include traditional American Thanksgiving offerings as well as Canadian delicacies.

Websites such as Pinterest and Etsy have given rise to a resurgence of DIY culture. Knitting, paper crafting and “upcycling” furniture are only a few examples of how Whitties craft. For the full story on crafting on campus, turn to the front page. Photos by Felt

Monday, Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m. in Prentiss Dining Hall

‘A Discovery of Witches’ by Deborah Harkness by Dana Thompson Staff Reporter

fter reading the first few chapters of Deborah Harkness’ novel “A Discovery of Witches,” I sat back and thought to myself, “Aha. So ‘Twilight’ has finally grown a brain.” Fair warning: This novel does contain a vampire love story. The vampire is moody, overprotective and about sixty times older than his love interest. But, unlike “Twilight,” there would still be an interesting story to tell without the inclusion of a supernatural romance (and there’s no love triangle. I am so sick of love triangles). Instead, both main characters are specialists working at

Oxford University. Diana (historian/witch) spends nearly all her time in the fantastic Bodleian Library—bibliophiles, look this up stat—researching ancient alchemical texts, while Matthew (geneticist/vampire) conducts complicated experiments in his lab and harbors a secret passion for yoga. Harkness’ interest in both scientific history and modern-day scientific research makes itself evident within the pages of “Witches.” When reading this book, I found myself at times ... learning. And it was interesting stuff, especially because I’d never found myself even wondering about the history of chemistry. It turns out that early chemists pretty much thought of themselves as magi-

Style spotlight Every week, The Pioneer searches out Whitties who bring an extra splash of fashion consciousness and sartorial daring to campus. This week’s style spotlight: first-year Sofia Dawson. Style Soundbites: “I think every single thing that I got is from a different

cians, since certain chemical reactions that are now easily explainable would have been completely baffling to chemists in the 17th century. The reader is led to wonder: If what they thought was magic is now commonplace, what if what we think of as magic has an explanation, too? This is another thing I appreciate about “A Discovery of Witches” versus “Twilight”: It doesn’t just throw vampires and werewolves at you with a “pretend for a second that these are real” attitude—it actually tries to provide some evidence to back itself up. Maybe this is the “Lord of the Rings” fan in me coming out, but if you’re going to ask the reader to spend any amount of

time in a fantastical setting, you better try to make it believable. So, to provide a quick rundown of the plot: Diana Bishop, a witch who chooses not to use her powers (she views them as cursory shortcuts), one day discovers a strange text in her research of early alchemy: Ashmole 782. Immediately, she is stalked by every magical creature in the country (including this fairly attractive vampire geneticist) wanting access to secrets only the manuscript can divulge ... Although admittedly no great novel, full as it is of its fair share of insipidity and sappy romance, “A Discovery of Witches” is nonetheless an exciting read. Those of you about to crack open one of the “Twilight” series: Try this one instead.

place ... I pretty much just bought [the clothes] because I really like them; they just caught my eye.”

used to be pretty self-conscious about trying to wear things that I thought were trendy or something, and then I just realized that no one really cares and that you just gotta do you.”

“I really love this necklace. It was a graduation present.” “This [ring] Walla Walla,

All the World’s A Stage As part of Multicultural Week, students will perform monologues, poetry and scenes in a multitude of languages. Wednesday, Oct. 17, 5:00 p.m. in Kimball Theatre

“Small, Beautifully Moving Parts” The Film & Media Studies program’s Cinema Arts Series presents a comedic film codirected by Whitman alumna Annie Howell ‘90, followed by a Q&A session with Howell. Wednesday, Oct. 17, 7:30 p.m. in Kimball Theatre

Sarrah Lynne Havens Exhibition Brasserie 4 is currently exhibiting a series of paintings by Whitman alumna Havens ‘00, whose work has previously been shown at Portland’s Heidi McBride Gallery. Ongoing through November at Brasserie 4 (4 E. Main St.)

is from actually.”

“I actually noticed that I felt like I was wearing a lot of solid, boring stuff and that these pants are really cool ... They’re just different. Every time I wear them, I always get compliments on them because they’re really unique.” “When it comes to style, I

Sofia Dawson ‘16 combines solid colors, unusual patterns and a variety of accessories to complete her trendy-but-comfortable ensemble. Photos by McCormick

Meet recruitment coordinator Mitch Swanger at the October 11 Graduate Fair!

WSU MBA

Find the best option for you:

1-Year Pullman MBA • Executive Online MBA • Online MBA MBA Tri-Cities • MBA Vancouver

Learn more at mba.wsu.edu

SPORTS 5 Men’s tennis seeks sixth straight title Oct

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11 2012

by KYLE HOWE Staff Reporter

ast spring, the Whitman men’s tennis team kept the dynasty rolling. The team swept through the Northwest Conference regular season undefeated en route to winning its fifth consecutive NWC title and ultimately rose to number eight in the nation. The team has not lost an NWC match since April 2006, and looks to continue this record as the players work their way towards the national championship in the spring. Whitman is led by head coach Jeff Northam, the 2012 ITA West Region Coach of the Year, who is in his 19th season at the helm of the tennis program. “We want to have a good conference season that sets us up to host the conference tournament. When we play at home we have amazing support, and it certainly motivates us to raise our level of play. If we can host the conference tournament we are in a great position to make the NCAAs,” said Northam. Every year the team produces standout players who have a tremendous impact upon the team and the conference as a whole. In the spring of 2012, alumnus Conor Holton-Burke ‘12 was named to the Academic All-American First Team, a team consisting of only 15 players representing all Division III sports. Also last season, current junior Andrew La Cava was selected as the NWC Player of the Year. Even with Whitman’s past dominance of the NWC, this upcoming season will be no stroll in the park, as many teams in the

division have gotten stronger. “I think everyone on our team would agree that our conference got much stronger this year and there are a couple teams that are looking to push us for the conference title. And you know a team would absolutely love to end our six-year win streak!” said Northam. With such great success in the past, the team expects nothing less. “As a team, we know the importance of taking each and every match seriously. This being said, we’re in great condition to take home another NWC title and keep the streak alive. We’re working extremely hard to make this goal a reality. Anything less would be a massive disappointment for us,” said sophomore Colton Malesovas. Malesovas continues to train in preparation for the USA/ITA Fall National Championship after taking the singles title at the Fall Regional two weeks ago. Despite losing last year’s seniors Holton-Burke and Adriel Borshansky to graduation, the team has not slowed down. Whitman players took the top positions at the USA/ITA Fall Regional: Malesovas won the singles division and sophomore James Rivers and junior La Cava won the doubles division. Rivers and La Cava beat their Whitman counterparts senior Matt Tesmond and junior Andy Riggs 6-0, 6-2. Malesovas, Rivers and La Cava earned All-American status with their performances. With these victories, Malesovas, Rivers and La Cava will be traveling to Mobile, Ala., on Oct. 14 to play their respective USTA/ITA Southwest Fall Regional winners for the chance to enter the USTA/ITA

Whits host youth basketball clinic

James Rivers ‘15 and his tennis teammates prepare to defend their 2012 NWC championship and extend their streak to six consecutive titles. Photo by Woletz

Whitties hit hard, play harder in flag football by KYLE HOWE Staff Reporter

Last Saturday, the women’s basketball team hosted dozens of young players at Sherwood Center, developing new skills and honing old ones. Photo by Bowersox

by MATT TESMOND Staff Reporter

his past Sunday, the Whitman women’s basketball team put on its first skills camp of the year at Sherwood Center. The camp provides an important opportunity for the team to pass on their knowledge and skills to Walla Walla youth. In the first of a series of four Sunday skills camps put on by Whitman women’s basketball in the month of October, the team hosted around thirty girls, taking tips and having fun as they bettered their games. Although fun is ever-present, the true purpose of the camp is player development. “The Sunday clinics are meant to be about individual development. We focus on individual skills and try to work at each player’s skill level, so everything is very individualized,” said head coach Michelle Ferenz. “We received girls from every age and skill level and were able to challenge them with drills that tested their basketball skills and mental toughness. The camp was set up in a five-minute station rotation where the kids would learn/ do something new every five minutes,” said junior Meghan White. As is the case with any outreach program, there was more than

just basketball skills to be gained. “The clinics have been a very positive experience for the participants and for our players, who really enjoy working with these young players,” said Ferenz. The clinics also serve as a way for the team to extend the Whitman athletics brand beyond the edges of campus and into the greater Walla Walla community. The team emphasizes generating an enthusiastic and fun atmosphere, which is crucial to keeping the girls interested in basketball. “We do the clinics to reach out to the [Walla Walla] community and be a resource for girls who want to improve as basketball players,” said Ferenz. The camp also provides a unique tangible benefit for the women’s program: loud, excited fans. “These campers also are the cutest supporters and they come to our games with signs, cheers and smiles that make me so happy to play this awesome sport,” White says. This attitude is what makes the camp great and beneficial not just for the participants, but for the players and coaches who run them. The next camp will be put on by the women in Sherwood this Sunday, Oct. 14 from 1-2:30 p.m., and the team is expecting an even better turnout. Like this past weekend, the event looks to be another slam dunk.

Fall National Tournament to play for the ITA Fall National Championship. After strong performances in the past few years, the team has only grown in experience, including the additions of junior Riggs and first-years Noah Lee, Hunter Nelson and Alex Noyes. “The core of the team this year is older [and] more experienced because we have four new additions to the team and lost [only] two seniors,” said La Cava. Despite technically being in the off-season, with the official NWC season starting in the spring, the team is practicing and working hard in preparation for the spring. “Even though our actual season does not start until second semester, during the fall we have around three to 3.5 hours of practice five to six days a week. That is factoring in a generally twoto 2.5-hour practice and an hourlong workout,” said La Cava. After building a strong reputation for themselves, the team looks forward to continuing the dynasty and continuing to better themselves. “Our team has had plenty of experience at both a conference and national level, so we’re not lacking in that department. Because we only lost two players, our team’s depth remained virtually untouched,” said Malesovas. As the team shows no signs of slowing down, their goals are continuing to grow, and with their past success, the goals might become a reality. “Our team’s expectations this year are to get to the Elite Eight in Nationals, something that has not happened in many years,” said La Cava.

very fall, Whitties don mouth guards, strap flags to their waists, put on their cleats and head out to play one of the most popular IM sports offered at Whitman: flag football. This year there are 15 total teams in both the men’s and women’s divisions, with six men’s teams and nine women’s teams. Teams come from all across campus, from the Greek systems to first-years, as well as upperclassmen with a love for the game. The season has just begun; with only a few games completed, anything is possible for the competing teams. Teams of all experience levels play either for fun or for the cultivated blue “Champions” shirt. “Some teams are in it just to learn a new sport, and they often have the greatest attitudes. For those girls, it’s a chance to become part of a team and even discover athletic abilities they didn’t know they had,” said sophomore Molly Emmett, who plays for the Kappa Alpha Theta team. The atmosphere of the game depends upon each individual playing, as some people and teams can be very competitive, while others just want to get outside and have fun with their friends. “The atmosphere of flag football varies from team to team. There are some teams out to have a good time, while others are very focused on their assignments and end goals,” said sophomore Ward Hoskins, a player for the Phi Delta Theta fraternity team and coach of the Switchblades, one of the women’s teams. Flag football attracts a variety of players who come together in the fall for fun and for glory. “I really like that flag football gives students, especially female students, a chance to learn about and play one of our country’s most popular sports—a sport that few of us played or even watched before coming to college. I’d played basic football a few times before and watched it on TV sometimes with my family, but until I joined a team at Whitman I had very little knowledge or skill,” said Emmett.

Sports weekly factoid Check out www.whitman.edu/ content/athletics/intramural/ imfootball/2012football for both men’s and women’s complete and updated standings for the 2012 IM football season.

Many flag football teams are well-organized, as most even have a designated coach to lead the team and to help train new players. Most coaches are former high school football players who have brought their passion for the game to Whitman. As coaches, they can try out strategies that they never could, as well as help their friends. “Flag football is fun. For me as a coach, I love how creative I can be with plays. We only have seven girls out there at a time, and as a coach you really need to figure out the absolute best way to get the most out of each player, oftentimes with trick plays or funny formations. I also just love football in general. I think it’s a pure team sport, where no one person can carry a team. To be successful in football at any level, you need a group of individuals that are willing to commit themselves solely to each other, not to their own personal interests. That’s an amazing thing that still inspires me to go out and coach,” said sophomore Sam Fischer, coach of the Kappa Alpha Theta team.

Even the coachhave a great out on the field, as they enseeing their team and friends play, win or lose. Another reason for the popularity of flag football is for former high school football players to get back out on the field and play in a new environment.

“My favorite moment as a coach is seeing my girls really smile [and] laugh, while also taking the game into their own hands and playing at the best of their ability,” said Fischer. “I play flag football because it is the closest thing Whitman has to real football. I am also a fan of Whitman flag football because it gives a lot of people the opportunity to play football who have never tried it before,” said Hoskins. Flag football is very popular at Whitman for a variety of reasons, but one of the more noticeable reasons is the fact that there is no football team present on campus. Therefore, flag football comes into play, allowing all students to fill those football needs. “I think IM flag football is so big on campus because we don’t have a varsity or club team, so it’s the only opportunity students have to participate. Also, football lends itself to big teams, since you have offense and defense, so more people can join, like a whole dorm section. And there’s a wide range of skills necessary for all aspects of the game, so whether you’ve got speed, strength or even a good arm, you can help out,” said Emmett. Furthermore, flag football is an exciting game to watch and it is easy for friends to watch friends play and cheer them on. “Flag football gets people on campus excited because it is a contact sport. It is also easy for a group of people to stand behind a big group pushing towards a common goal. It is motivating and exciting,” said Hoskins. With so many athletic people and people who just want to get outside and have fun playing football, this is a great experience for all, as you never know what may happen. “Football tells a great narrative. You gain yards, you lose yards, you constantly struggle, one group pitted against another. Rivalries are there, friendships and team bonding is there. The game is popular in general for the same reason it’s popular here. It engages people at an individual level [so] that it’s fun to play, fun to watch, and tells a great story,” said Fischer.

SCOREBOARD

upcoming

SOCCER

ILLUSTRATION BY PETERSON

es time joy their

Men’s v. Whitworth Oct. 6: L 1-0 Women’s v. Linfield Oct. 7: L 2-1 v. Whitworth Oct. 10: T 1-1

volleyball v. Linfield Oct. 5: W 3-1 v. Pacific Oct. 6: L 3-1

Men’s & Women’s v. PLU Oct. 13: AWAY v. UPS Oct. 14: AWAY

golf

Men’s Pacific Lutheran Invitational Oct. 14,15: AWAY

Cross country

Men’s & Women’s Inland Empire Championships Oct. 13: AWAY

Oct

11 2012

FEATURE

PAGE

Homing in on Walla Walla by Talia Rudee Staff Reporter

fter many Whitman students graduate, they don’t want to leave the vast wheat fields, quaint Main Street and friends and faculty who have enriched their lives so much over four years in small-town Walla Walla. After attending Whitman himself, alumnus John Bogley ’85 experienced an initial draw to Walla Walla due to a job offer at Whitman as director of admission, but Walla Walla became more than a place where he lived because of a job. Walla Walla quickly became home. “I didn’t know how long I was coming back for, but I haven’t looked back since,” said Bogley. “It was fun to be able to carve out a life in a community that had been all around me while I was at Whitman but I knew very little about.” And that’s exactly what many graduates have done lately. Today, Walla Walla has more to offer to recent graduates than during Bogley’s time directly after graduation. Students are now realizing that staying in Walla Walla is worth more than just a job. “There is an allure in Walla Walla today ... there is a vibrant downtown community, a growing professional network with people early in their career and a peer network that is pretty invigorating,” said Bogley. The vibrant downtown consisting of food and wine certainly reflects the decision of alumnus David Hancock ’12 to stay in Walla Walla. Aside from his decision to stay with his significant other—about halfway through his time at Whitman—Hancock ultimately decided that his true calling was to a be a chef. Hancock

realized that sit-down meals at home were a small but very important part of his childhood. “A real meal was a given, and now that I think back, it was a really important part of growing up,” said Hancock. “I had a subconscious desire to make good food for myself and I don’t mind putting a lot of time into it.” With his discovered passion, Hancock began to research programs, and Walla Walla Community College hit the spot. The director of the program has had extensive experience, such as working at the Space Needle, and had many ideas for getting the program involved with local restaurants and wineries, the essence of the upand-coming downtown scene. “He really got me energized to do it,” said Hancock. Hancock now takes culinary classes at Walla Walla Community College, where he still plays the role of a student, but in moving on from Whitman, he has found a new way to open up to the community. “Whether it’s something as big as the fair or just an event at the winery or a fundraiser that an Americorps friend is putting on ... there’s such a variety of things ... As much as there is a variety of things going on at Whitman, there’s that much, if not more, going on in Walla Walla,” said Hancock. The additional peer and professional networks reflect the post-grad experience of alumna Amy Liechty ’12 in Walla Walla. Liechty found herself back in her college town after securing a job at the Kirkman House following an internship dealing with her recently found passion of urban planning and architecture that she held during her senior year at Whitman.

“I decided that I couldn’t pass up such an incredible opportunity to get experience in a field I really wanted to enter, and I don’t think I would have an opportunity like that too many other places,” said Liechty. Although they have moved on from Whitman, the graduates that stay in Walla Walla do not completely abandon their past lives. People from Whitman can be a comforting community as well as valuable resources. “The peers and professors at Whitman are some of the most incredible people I’ve had a chance to meet,” said Liechty. “[These are] friendships and various relationships that I really cherish, and I hope [they] stay in my life for years to come.” That very sort of connection can give some students a sense of community unique to anything else in their lives that is great to keep around. Alumna Tillie Gottlieb ’11 has moved to different places her whole life, living in five different countries for the first 18 months of her life, and then moving around to various countries and throughout the rest of the United States. Walla Walla provided a kind of intimacy in a town that Gottlieb never had the chance to experience. “I had the impulse to stay and build the community and feel more like I was part of one because I haven’t really felt this deeply connected to any one place in

For many Whitman graduates, Walla Walla goes from being their second home to their fixed residence. What reels alumni back to town? the world before,” said Gottlieb. Gottlieb now works in the admissions office, building a professional life in Walla Walla. She also tends to a community garden plot with boyfriend Hancock where she extends her roots beyond the workplace. For alumna Alegria Olmedo ‘12, Walla Walla and Whitman were her only cohesive communities in the United States as an international student from Ecuador. She came to realize the value of this by first trying out big city life in Seattle, where she worked on a summer internship. “Even though Seattle had been very fun and it was definitely good to get outside the bubble and have a new environment for a few months, I just liked Walla Walla better,” said Olmedo. Olmedo is in Walla Walla on a work permit that holds for another three months and wanted to make the most out of her stay abroad. “If I just have three months left

in the States, I’d rather be here than anywhere else,” she said. “I was really excited to come back to Walla Walla [and] not [be] back at school. I was excited to meet new people.” Overall, all graduates have reflected on positive experiences living in Walla Walla after undergraduate study but have not dismissed Whitman completely. A balance between the Walla Walla community and the Whitman bubble has allowed for the most fulfilling lives. While Whitman alumni may find themselves back in Walla Walla for many big reasons, what can ultimately inspire a person to stay can be something simple. Gottlieb realized her love of Walla Walla after working at the local restaurant Graze during a summer. “I love living here and I think that just being here for a summer and enjoying what Walla Walla has to offer is one of the best things you can do for yourself as a Whitman student living in Walla Walla,” said Gottlieb.

Life with Whitman daniel clark ‘65 notes college, city growth by Hannah Bartman Staff Reporter

or some, participating in the small-town community of Walla Walla is not a vital part of creating a home away from home at Whitman. However, Walla Walla has created an imprint on the lives of some Whitman alumni, such as alumnus Daniel Clark ‘65. Born and raised in Walla Walla, Clark has lived in Walla Walla for roughly 60 years. After attending the University of California, Berkeley for a post-graduate degree in 1968, Clark returned to Walla Walla with his wife Barbara in 1971 and has lived here ever since. When deciding where to live after moving around the Bay Area, Walla Walla provided the perfect community for Clark and his wife. “We said we wanted a small college town that was far away from the cities and that would have its own culture. Barbara fell in love with Walla Walla and living here has been wonderful,” said Clark. Clark was involved with many activities on campus and also began many activities that are still engaging students today. In 1963, Clark started Whitman’s first men’s soccer team, challenging Walla Walla Community College. He also began both a chapter of President Eisenhower’s People to People program and the intercultural club at Whitman, encouraging cross-cultural intelligence for students. A political science major, Clark was also a part of Whitman’s Political Union club, which staged mock political debates. Whitman had five fraternities and five women’s fraternities when Clark attended, and he participated in the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. “Everything revolved around the fraternities and sororities. As a townie, that was my integration into campus,” said Clark. The fraternities at that time were involved in intramural sports, planning dances and other college activities, but were not as involved with community service as they are now. The college as a whole was also less involved with the community and the world at large than it is now. “There was not a lot of community service in those days, so the folks at Whitman could not get plugged in with the community nearly as much as they do now, which has been a great change,” said Clark. Living a mere two blocks from campus has allowed Clark to witness how the layout of the campus has changed. When he attended Whitman, Clark helped build what is now Jewett Hall. Penrose Library and the Hall of Science

buildings have drastically expanded, and the Student Health Center has moved three times. Clark’s son was even born in Walla Walla General Hospital, today North Hall. When Clark moved back to Walla Walla in 1971, he began to witness the gradual change of the Walla Walla community at large. While he was growing up, Walla Walla had a downtown that was the center of the community. When he moved back, the malls started to come in, and the unity of the town center began to collapse. However, with the development of the wine industry, the town has gathered itself and created a bustling town center. “There are some people who say they want the community to grow, but what do they want to be? Yakima? The quality of life that we have in Walla Walla is very rare, and those who think that increased population size is the way to the good life, I think, are very mistaken,” said Clark. Both Clark and his wife have been highly involved in the development of the community. Barbara developed the Walla Walla 2020 program, which is a fourpart plan that has provided programs that have been the backbone of the Walla Walla community. “We try to brainstorm what we would like our community to look like in the year 2020. We look at what elements of that are already here but might be degraded, and what elements aren’t here that we need to bring,” said Clark. This program has four integral goals: Create a green community through planting trees and landscaping, create a more human-centered community through public transportation and walking and biking paths, create a strong civic center, and create a city that lives lightly on the land by recycling and instituting waste reduction. These plans have created the Farmers’ Market, have made recycling available to the community, have created bike trails and walking maps, and have helped restore the historical significance of Walla Walla. “I have undertaken, along with Barbara, many civic initiatives over the years, and many have been successful. If we were in Seattle or Portland, we would not have had the chance to take those opportunities,” said Clark. With approximately 60 years of Walla Walla residency, Clark has been an integral part of forming the community and has also observed the transformations within Whitman over the years. Walla Walla has made an immeasurable imprint in Clark’s life, just as it may for current Whitman students.

Alegria Olmedo ‘12 (left) came back to Walla Walla after trying to live in Seattle and is looking to teach English as a second language. Jamie Kennedy ‘97 (right) returned and now works as the college’s director of planned giving. Photos by Brayton

Alumni drawn towards Whitman employment by Kaili Masamoto Staff Reporter

“I

had drunk the Whitman Kool-Aid,” said Assistant Professor of Astronomy Nathaniel Paust ‘98. KoolAid or no, an almost magnetic attraction seemingly compels alumni to return to Whitman College as faculty or staff members. At Whitman, meeting students who are the second or third child from their family to go to Whitman, or even the second generation, is common. Senior Lecturer of Chemistry Deberah Simon ’72 exemplifies this Whitman family effect. Not only did her husband, son and daughter-in-law all attend Whitman, but her son also teaches here now as an adjunct instructor of music. “He graduated exactly 30 years after my husband and I did,” said Simon. “It’s very exciting to see his name on the faculty roster.” Each alumnus’s life followed a different path after graduation, but somehow all roads eventually led back to Whitman. Simon graduated with a degree in chemistry and worked as a quality control engineer for Boeing on the aluminum production line where she was the only woman among four thousand men. “I was just scared to death, basically,” said Simon. “I didn’t think about [taking science classes and being a woman] while I was in school, but when I got to Boeing, it was shocking to me how sexist it was.” Afterwards, she did medical research for a decade at the University of Chicago and worked as a professional calligrapher from the ‘70s through the ‘90s before returning to Whitman and earning a teaching certificate in 1992. “I taught the gifted education program for the school district called Explorers, and then I came back and started teaching a few labs and then more and more and then I’ve been here since 1994,” said Simon. Paust graduated with an astronomy and physics combined major, and immediately moved on to graduate study. “I was one of the Whitties who

thinks that grad school is the automatic answer after Whitman, so I went to [New Mexico State University] and left there with a master’s degree in 2000,” said Paust. Through teaching at a community college in the Seattle area, he discovered his love of teaching but wanted more of a challenge. “I realized that if I was going to teach at a higher level, I was going to have to get a Ph.D, so I then applied and went back to graduate school at Dartmouth,” said Paust. Upon graduating from Dartmouth in 2006, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship with the Space Telescope Science Institute before becoming a stay-athome dad for six months. When a visiting position opened up, he returned to Whitman and eventually got on the tenure track. “After a year, they decided to hire another tenure-track person because the person I was temporarily replacing decided they weren’t coming back,” said Paust. This magnetic phenomenon does not just apply to professors. Current staff members were just as affected by their time here at Whitman. Director of Planned Giving Jamie Kennedy graduated in 1996 with an environmental studies and sociology combined major. His first job after graduating was working for Wells Fargo in Portland. Seven years and a few jobs later, he and his wife were living in Sacramento and decided they were just not happy. “We decided we were at the perfect point [in our lives] to make a major change and try something completely different,” said Kennedy. “Many people thought we were crazy to move to Walla Walla, but we absolutely love it here.” Having been Whitman students themselves gives professors a unique perspective on their current work for Whitman. “The emphasis on quality teaching has definitely rubbed off on me, so that as a professor now, I feel a responsibility to my professors who were here before to carry on the tradition of quality teaching,” said Paust. However, while faculty may feel a burden to live up to their

prior teachers, they also have a large responsibility to the students. For these returning alumni, this is their favorite part of the job. “I love the students. They are so special here and I know that is a really trite answer but it’s really true,” said Simon. “I teach in the summertime a class that’s a National Science Foundation workshop that’s for other professors and when we talk about the things that our students are able to do and the kinds of expectations we have for them, the Whitman students are just so amazing.” Whitman College is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” and for many faculty and staff members, the title rings especially true. From finding love to realizing their true passions, they give credit to Whitman. “Whitman nurtured a habit of lifelong learning and trained me to approach situations analytically and not to accept assumptions,” said Kennedy. Students should take comfort in faculty members’ assurances that the best preparation they ever received for the “real world” was at Whitman. Stressed seniors may dread the oral and written final exams, but Paust says that they actually make everything easier later on. “Once you’ve been through that experience, however painful it might be, going and doing master’s exams or Ph.D. exams and thesis defense stuff at other schools, it’s not that big of a deal,” said Paust. “Having had the experience of standing up in front of four of my professors [whom] I really respected and having to not be an idiot made that whole process easier [later].” Sometimes describing the Whitman experience makes a person sound like they were living inside a Disney fairy tale. People wax nostalgic about talking fish statues, cute ducklings in the springtime, tranquil snowy mornings and the angelic voices of Sirens. But it is the overall lure of Whitman which draws alumni back onto this campus. Like migratory birds, they spread their wings and fly thousands of miles away, only to eventually return home.

OPINION

Oct

11 2012

PAGE

Open relationships demand nuanced view of cheating Spencer Wharton Senior

SEXCETERA My boyfriend and I are LDR [long distance relationship]. We are in an open relationship, but chose to not tell each other anything until the semester is over. Is it okay for me to have cybersex with someone else?

-Seeking Online Seduction

f you’re uncertain, SOS, then wait until you’ve clarified with him. Do anything else, and you run the risk of cheating—even if you do it with the best intentions. Your situation is a great example of how much there is to learn from open relationships, even for people in more traditional closed relationships. By thinking about open relationships as well as closed, for instance, we can come up with a more nuanced understanding of cheating. We like to think of cheating in very black-and-white terms. Have sex with someone outside of your relationship, and you’re a cheater. Getting naked with

someone outside of your relationship is cheating. Making out with someone who’s not your significant other is, too. Sexting, having cybersex, flirting—a person who does any of these outside of their relationship has cheated. This black-and-white view, however, overlooks the multiple shades of gray to cheating and relationships. To be sure, everything listed above could count as cheating, and for many people, it does. But there are also relationships where everything listed above is okay. Saying sex outside a relationship is automatically cheating ignores open relationships where it may be perfectly fine, even encouraged. Like so much else about sex and relationships, you can’t make assumptions about cheating. The definition of infidelity varies from person to person, and a single person may even have different feelings in different relationships. The only constant when it comes to cheating is the betrayal of your partner’s trust. It’s up to you and your partners to figure out, on a caseby-case basis, what that means. Remembering this lets us take a more nuanced approach to cases like yours, SOS. You mention that you’re in an open relationship. It’s easy to misinterpret the meaning of that and assume—either as someone in the relationship or an

observer from the outside—that an open relationship means sex with anyone is okay, and if we

take the “c heat i ng is just unfaithful sex” view, then cheating in an open relationship would seem impossible. But this, of course, is absurd, since cheating is violating your partner’s trust, and that can happen in open and

closed

IL L

AT IO

relationships alike. Luckily, you can easily avoid unwit t ingly cheating by making sure you and your p a r t n e r (s) are on the same page. You mention that you and your boyfriend h a v e

YZ IN

agreed not to tell each other anything until the end of the semester. Many people in open relationships choose to go this route, and as long as you communicate everything necessary beforehand, it can work. In your case, however, it sounds like some topics were left untouched before agreeing to go incommunicado. As long as you don’t definitively know how your boyfriend feels about you cybering with someone else, hold off. Better safe than sorry. I don’t know the terms of your relationship, SOS, so it’s possible this is u n fea sible, but I would strongly suggest talking to your boyfriend soon if you can, even if you previously agreed to remain silent on the issue. Don’t give him more information than he wants, but figure out whether he’s cool with you cybering with someone else. Not only will it be a relief to clear up your uncertainty, but if he approves, then you can have the cybersex you want to have without worrying about betraying his trust.

Anonymously submit questions for Spencer at http://is.gd/sexcetera/

Kickstarter useful despite projects’ failures Blair Hanley Frank Senior

TECH TALK

’m currently waiting for a package of hot sauce from a guy who owns a pizzeria in Brooklyn. His name is Youngmahn, and he wanted to raise a few hundred dollars to share his sauces with the world. I’m one of over 1,000 backers who pledged a total of more than $40,000 to his cause. Kickstarter is designed to be

a new form of patronage: Creators come to the site with a project in need of funding and start up a page that allows them to collect pledges from backers in exchange for predetermined rewards. If the pledges for a project meet the preset goal amount, the creators get all of the funding collected. If they don’t make their goal, the project isn’t funded. I’ve been backing Kickstarter projects since 2010. My first pledge was $5—enough to get me access to exclusive updates from a woman who wanted to travel around the world tasting coffee and writing a book about it. Since then, I’ve backed 47 different projects including films, comics, lockpicks, museums and even my high school history teacher’s second hip-hop album. All told, 44 of the 47 projects I’ve backed have come to a satis-

fying conclusion. And that seems to be a trend for the entire site. Project creators are often building from whole cloth: Often, they need funding to do something they’ve never done before, or at least never done on a scale like that provided by Kickstarter. If a project goes viral beyond a creator’s wildest dreams, well, now they’re left doing something they’ve never done before and trying to provide it to thousands, if not tens of thousands of people. Often, Kickstarter functions as a pre-order system for a product, whether that’s a DVD, a watch or a stylus for your smartphone. But that pre-order mentality can be dangerous. While saying you’re pre-ordering something may be true in the long run, the short term is a good deal more complicated. The results can be difficult,

Sam Chapman discusses hydroelectric dams and environmentalism online in A Moving Forest: Check it out at whitmanpioneer.com/opinion

Voices from the

Guest Columnist

What is your favorite recreational activity away from Whitman? Poll by TANNER BOWERSOX

Matthew Morriss

Courtney Lawless

Senior

Sophomore

“Just doing homework off campus, like going to the Patisserie or Starbucks.”

John Lee

Katie Gray

Junior

Sophomore

“I like taking trips to the Tri-cities or back to Portland or Seattle with friends. Another really good way to get off campus for me is to walk to the wheatfields or bike to Bennington Lake.”

“During basketball season, the team gets to travel to other schools and go play other teams and that’s really fun. It’s a great break from Whitman.”

While Towne is a great lockpicker and a brilliant speaker, the past two years have revealed that he doesn’t have much of a head for large-scale manufacturing. For the past two years, I watched as he struggled with suppliers and manufacturing methods, trying to perfect the picks he promised. Towne is now broke. The project is in the hands of a board of similarly-minded folks who are working feverishly to make sure it gets completed, or at least finished to some degree. This is the unfortunate reality of Kickstarter. While it’s great to talk about new business models and supporting creators, the success of a project can often be a cost unto itself. So, if you’re thinking of getting started on Kickstarter, know this: Your pledge is not a guarantee, but either way you’ll probably be happy with the result.

LGBTQ campaigns hide other abuses by Jade PONCY

Community

“My favorite recreational activity away from Whitman is rock climbing and I always look for a good excuse to climb on the weekends, or in the afternoon, or anything to get out of town.”

if not disastrous, to deal with. Diaspora, which was touted as an open alternative to Facebook, finally handed over its code after two years of development. In an interview with The New York Times, one of the people behind the project called the massive influx of cash after their project became popular “crippling.” My experience as a backer reveals its own cautionary tale: that of Schuyler Towne, whose “Open Locksport” project received over $87,000 in funding. I was one of over 1,000 backers to pledge. Towne, who had competed internationally in lockpicking tournaments (yes, they exist) wanted to bring the joys of locksport to the masses with a set of picks and introductory locks. I got my locks last month. It’s unclear whether or not the picks will ever be made.

or a small isolated town, Walla Walla has a surprising number of clubs and programs for the Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/ Queer community. Whitman, Walla Walla Community College and Walla Walla High School all have clubs working to build alliances between LGBTQ and straight communities. I have respect for all of these organizations. They are necessary, especially for middle- and high-schoolers who may have nowhere else to turn. My concern lies with the youth and adults who do not want to assimilate into these groups or are unaware that assimilation is what is happening. The United States has a long history of squashing the revolutionary potential of oppressed peoples. The Black Power Movement was pacified by weak political promises and small concessions. The right to vote was a huge victory but the votes of people of color are still suppressed to this day. Civil rights made it possible for children of color to attend school with their white peers. It also made it possible for the schools to indoctrinate them into white, capitalist culture and learn the white male version of their own histories. The women’s movement was repressed in much the same manner. The LGBTQ community is now being indoctrinated in much the same way. On the surface, gay marriage seems like a good and necessary fight. Of course everyone should be treated equally. Except, maybe, when everyone is equally oppressed. Marriage itself is an oppressive institution rooted in patriarchy and ownership of another human being. It oppresses people’s natural sexual inclinations and sets a

societal moral standard that people are rewarded for following with tax breaks and social acceptance. In larger cities radical queer groups are bringing these issues to the gay community. Slowly but surely, these things are being analyzed and discussed in oppressed communities. Fitting in and assimilating are not the only options for young people. As a community, Walla Walla has an odd diversity. The colleges and the wine industry both bring a fair amount of metropolitan influence. But instead of isolating ourselves from the rural demographic, we should be bringing our ideas and perspectives to the community. My worry for the youth of Walla Walla, and small communities nationwide, is that they are getting one side of the story. Are they learning about the Stonewall riots? Are they exposed to non-mainstream queer theory? Will they grow up knowing the real struggles for life and freedom that all oppressed communities face? Or will they slip into mainstream culture, waiting their whole lives for the crumbs of dignity the Democrats throw their way? I am truly glad this town offers safe spaces for young people to get to know themselves and understand their sexuality. However, freeing yourself from oppression is not “safe.” The youth are, and should be, angry. Angry that the society that was forced upon them oppresses the “other.” It stomps out the different. My only hope for the youth of Small Town America is that they are heard, not molded into normalcy. The fight to end oppression does not begin or end with marriage equality or safe spaces. As queers or allies, we need to use our experience and our relative privilege to ask the tough questions and continue the fight against all oppression.

BACKPAGE

Oct

11 2012

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Sexism on Whitman’s campus: fallacies or phalluses?

ILLUSTRATION BY ZINSER

hitman’s campus has been called many things: beautiful, small, diverse, not diverse and infested with adorable squirrels. As of last week, however, you can go ahead and add “sexist” to that list. Amongst a whirlwind of accusations, Whitman’s extreme feminist group, “Rhymes with Lyman,” aired concerns that our beloved campus is sexually repressive. The group began airing grievances after a Jewett sexuality workshop opened their eyes to the gender spectrum. Their complaints ranged from the landscap-

ing to the architecture of some of Whitman’s most notewor t hy buildings. Their accusat ions were voiced during a lunchtime protest of Prentiss’ third corn dog lunch in a week. “Memorial Hall was erected to recognize men and exists as a shrine of masculinity in the center of campus. Its location across from Prentiss is distasteful and offensive,” said sophomore Christina Perkins, obviously referring to its phallic nature. Senior Brianna Choe was more blunt about her qualms with the campus’ more priapic architecture. “The power plant? Phallic symbol. You can see that pillar of testosterone from across Isaacs.” First-year Jenna Ohgushi fought back tears when she described having to walk to Harper Joy Theatre from Prentiss every day. “Have you seen that fountain in front of Sherwood? It’s overflowing with virility. Definitely phallic.” Sophomore Johanna Masla

added, “Why is there a Lyman, but no Lywoman? Riddle me that. Also, Styx? More like Phallyx.” “I don’t know what the plural of phallus is—phalli, phalluces, fallacies? Either way, our campus is full of them. I don’t even know where Alpha Phi section is, but I bet that is phallic, too,” said first-year Nat Sany. The feminists really dropped the shaft on the administration, putting them in a defensive stance. President Bridges has been diligently trying to quiet the uproar before it garners the attention of any reputable news sources, choosing only to divulge the processes by which he aims to silence the feminists. “I hate sexism. Just hate it. As soon as we realized the gravity of the situation, we took immediate action by removing several of the more phallic trees from the campus,” said President Bridges through a trembling, chiseled jaw. “Gender is a spectrum, and our campus is definitely leaning towards the phallic end of that spectrum,” said Barbara Maxwell, Associate Dean of Students and Student Programs and Activities. “When we think of genderequal campuses, we look at what Stanford did with their ‘Sunk-

The disturbing influences of A

Gangnam Style

recent study done by a bunch of overly enthusiastic teenage YouTubers from around the world has revealed that the music video for “Gangnam Style” is in fact a realistic portrayal of everyday South Korea. More disturbingly, however, is what the YouTube “researchers” are referring to as “The Gangnam Style effect.” Essentially, once a listener has heard the song (voluntarily or involuntarily), multiple symptoms start to take effect. First, the infected listener becomes spellbound by the song and listens to it more often than the White House listened to “99 Problems” after Bin Laden was killed. Next, the unfortunate Gangnam Victim (as they are known) is led to believe that they are a chub-

by, adorable Korean man with funny sunglasses and no swagger. This dangerous illusion causes victims to dress in pastel colored suits, overwhelm their hair with gel or some kind of sticky lubricant and limit their use of English to “Oopan Gangnam Style,” “Eh, sexy lady,” and “Bebe bebe.” The final and most horrifying effect on the infected listener is their insistent need to share or challenge strangers to participate in an odd dance routine that weakly resembles a cowboy holding on to the reins of a horse followed by a feeble attempt to do push-ups in between the legs of the terrified stranger. The poor victims usually choose crowded public spaces to confront others to partake in their insanity. But wait! It gets much, much worse. Recent in-

vestigations by the Backpage have found that not only is Whitman teeming with Gangnam Victims, but they have spread to every level of the college. One trembling first-year student noted that he knew about a kid from North Hall who tragically heard the song playing from a distant car and in just a mere two hours all of North had been reduced to a bunch of “sunglass-wearing, Korean-sounding, cowboy-dancing buffoons.” When President Bridges was asked how he planned to stop this Gangnam Style invasion, he stood up from his desk with a glazed expression, put one hand on his hip and the other above his head as if holding a lasso and sadly began to lumber from side to side as he sang, “EEEHHHHH, SEXY LADY” rather abrasively.

Scattered all around campus exist many examples of blatant phallic imagery. The most notably phallic symbol is The Memorial Building, pictured here.

en Diamond’ and hope to emulate that sort of stoic feminism.” The balls are in Administration’s court, and drastic changes may be the only answer to appease the feminists. Perhaps one day Whitman

Whitman College:

one big experiment

hy is psychology so easy? After stumbling into a psychology professor’s office after hours last week, this reporter was appalled to find documents implicating that Whitman was just one big psychological experiment. It seems that psych teachers are simply too busy trying to slog through the data to make their classes hard. The genius of this experiment is astounding. Looking down the list, I was shocked to see that the college is a social experiment to measure how individual manipulations in variables dictate student niceness to each other. With the psychology department being the only real department on campus with ulti-

Dubblebaby by Toby & Sam Alden

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toot fanny fart fart vaccuum

rum schooch boggy queef

varts fun doggy cooch toots

will be the tunnel-filled utopia we dream about, but for the time being Prentiss Hall is a lone X chromosome on a campus where just about everything is phallic if you squint your eyes and cock your head to the side.

mate control over the affairs of all others, it is no surprise that Whitman is looked at as a utopia. Ex-childhood actor and current Whitman President Jeff Bridges is listed as the head of the department. He has every part of campus under observation from his laboratory by North Hall. With Greek-affiliated students and independent students in two separate control groups, it seems that the real reason why the two compete to see who is happier has deeper, much more sinister implications. When will the brainwashing stop? Next time you hear a funny joke or think about cracking a smile at that girl you like, think again: You are just conforming to the experiment.