Whitman Pioneer Spring 2013 Issue 7 by Whitman College Wire

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Governing boards plan to increase student participation

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Issue 7| March 7, 2013 | Whitman news since 1896

HOW I MET

MY MOTHER’S MOTHER’S MOTHER

by EMILY LIN-JONES News Editor

ore students will be sitting on governing board committees alongside trustees, overseers and faculty next year, announced ASWC President junior Kayvon Behroozian at an ASWC Senate meeting on Sunday, March 3. Following conversations with several trustees last week, including the Board of Trustees’ chair Peter van Oppen and vicechair Nancy Serrurier, Behroozian said that plans have been confirmed to more than double the number of student representatives currently participating in governing board committees. “Student representation has been my goal this entire year with respect to the governing boards,” said Behroozian, who brought up the issue of student representation when trustees visited campus in February. Currently there is a student representative on the Student Life, Enrollment, Academic Affairs and Diversity committees. The change will add a student to each of those committees, as well as adding two students each to the Technology Task Force, Budgeting, and Buildings and Grounds committees.

“We didn’t abandon [the idea of a student representative]; we made it a compromise ... that’s not to say that we won’t pick it back up in the future, but first we need to prove that we’re capable of doing it [through student representatives on committees].”

ILLUSTRATION BY SCHUH

Kayvon Behroozian ‘14

by QUIN NELSON

ASWC President

Behroozian and the ASWC nominations committee are in the process of appointing the new representatives in cooperation with the governing committee chairs, and hope to have them selected by May 2. The selected students will be able to sit in on committee meetings for the remainder of the year and will be officially appointed to their positions over the summer. Though there was some discussion earlier in the year about having a student representative sit in on or participate in Board of Trustees meetings, Behroozian said that for the moment ASWC is focusing on building student presence in other areas of the governing boards. “We didn’t abandon [the idea of a student representative]; we made a compromise,” he said. “That’s not to say that we won’t pick it back up in the future, but first we need to prove that we’re capable of doing it [through student representatives on committees].” While the Board of Trustees does have voting power in decisions that affect the College, van Oppen noted that committees may play an equally important role in governing the school, citing the committeedriven creation of Whitman’s undocumented students policy. “The bulk of the work in the governing boards is done through the committee structure,” he said. “The committees are the functional governing units to a great extent.” In addition to adding student representatives, van Oppen and other trustees have stated their commitment to setting aside more time to interact with students and hear their thoughts while on campus. “It’s always easy in the crush of business to come to campus and not make time for students,” said van Oppen. “[But] students are why we’re there ... we want to incorporate their viewpoint as a key constituency on campus.” Though there are obstacles to appointing more students to committees, including the frequent turnover of student representatives due to graduation, Behroozian said he hopes that the dedication of the student representatives will establish increased student participation in governing boards. “It is a matter of setting precedent. Unfortunately I can’t say for certain that this will stick around for years to come, but what I can say is that it likely will,” he said.

Staff Reporter

ll I had to start was an address and a phrase: “Find Your Ancestors” at 1821 2nd St. Intrigued by the vague advertisement in the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, I set out to clear up my equally vague family history. Is my dad a nationality other than “white”? How many of my Filipino “aunties” am I actually related to? I had questions, and I hoped 1821 2nd St. could give me answers. I stopped at the address to find myself at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I walked through a side entrance into the Walla Walla Family History Center. The Center is a large room with a few bookshelves, tables and a row of computers. I was greeted by Lois Addington, who showed me to a computer where I could start my search. She started me off with Ancestry.com and excitedly explained, “Websites like these cost hundreds of dollars, but at the Center you can use them for free.” The Center also offers classes to help with ancestry searches, as well as indexing, the prac-

tice of compiling ancestry information in databases for everyone to use. All of these resources help people fill out pedigree charts, which are basically family-tree-type charts that help in organizing the data one can find. Apparently, ancestry has always been an important tenet of the Mormon faith. “It is very important that we know our ancestors, to know from whence we came,” said Addington. However, the Center is available for everyone, not only Mormons, and although most visitors are elderly, many young people stop in too. Noting Addington’s enthusiasm for her work with the Center, I asked her about her personal experiences in ancestry searching. “The first day I walked into the Family History Center, Betty [a coworker] brought out a book that had all of the states, towns and county seats in the [United States]. She opened it up and pointed it [out] on a page: Tacoma, Pierce County. I said, ‘That’s where I’m from!’ Where I was adopted. I didn’t know...” she trailed off. After a moment’s pause, she concluded with the advice I took for the rest of my trip:

“If you don’t look back, you can’t go forward.” I later learned that Addington’s search led her to meet her biological sisters for the first time, but I didn’t need to know that part of the story to understand her connection to the Family History Center. I saw the emotion evoked by her search, by finding out about herself and her newfound family.

If you don’t look back, you can’t go foward. I was able to trace my ancestry back a few generations, and it was a great experience to discover family history. Holding copies of my mom’s parents’ naturalization papers after emigrating from the Philippines and my dad’s parents’ marriage certificate, I understood the lives of those who came before me and felt the weight of the moments that brought me to where I am. If you don’t look back, you can’t go forward. To find out more about the Walla Walla Family History Center, visit www.wallawallafhc.org.

Photo by Vander Laan

Golf teams prepare to tee off spring season by COLE ANDESRON Staff Reporter

s the fairways at the Wine Valley Golf Club continue to thaw out and the sun begins to shine through the tree-lined greens once again at the Walla Walla Country Club, the Whitman golf team continues its hard work in preparation for the upcoming spring season. With two players back after a fall semester abroad and the

rest of the men’s team making progress in every aspect of the game, there is a great sense of optimism about how the season will progress. “The fall season went well, but I know we are capable of a better spring. We have all been working hard and I think we are all in the right mindset to play really well,” said Scott Martin, a sophomore who had Whitman’s best 2012 NWC Championships play with scores of 76 and 78.

Both the men and women had impressive performances in the Northwest Conference Fall Classic, the only fall competition counting toward the conference finals later this fall. The men’s team was able to rebound from a disappointing first round on Saturday and improve by a total of 27 strokes and tie for fourth place overall. The Whitman women were able to hold on for a second-place finish, putting them within reach of the leading George Fox

University team and an automatic berth in the national tournament. In an admittedly average performance across the board, the women’s team is confident they can improve and perform at a much higher level. “Our finish in the Fall Classic has motivated us because we know we are capable of playing better than we did, and we are ready to go out in the spring and prove that,” said senior captain Tate Head.

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Volunteers educate locals on EITC by DANIEL KIM Staff Reporter

Speaker Anne Okkels Birk lectures on theDanish prison system. Photo by Bergman

Open prisons reflect cultural views on crime by DYLAN TULL Staff Reporter

pen prisons, where inmates can simply walk across a grass field back into society and spend the weekend at home, sound like an absurd concept here in the United States. The idea of open prisons sounds especially foreign in communities such as Walla Walla, where the Northwest region’s most violent criminals are held under the strictest guard in the Washington State Penitentiary. Anne Okkels Birk, criminologist and instructor at the Danish Institute for Study Abroad, spoke to students and community members in a lecture about Danish prisons at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 5. She began her lecture by asking a few questions of the audience: Do you ever restrict yourself in certain ways? Don’t you have to restrict yourself in some ways in order to function in society? She used these questions to kick off her discussion of Denmark’s philosophy of incarceration and how it differs so drastically from those of the United States. “You have to imprison yourself. Here you actually have to be your own prison guard,” she said. Prisoners are not allowed to leave, but there is essentially nothing stopping them from simply walking away. If a prisoner does leave, Birk said, then the police will be notified and the prisoner will be retrieved. More important prisoners will be rounded up promptly, but less important ones might be allowed to wander in society for a few days before they are forced to return. Denmark prisons differ in their goals for inmate reform as well. The purpose of these prisons is not to make the inmates’ lives as miserable as possible. Instead, Danish prisons strive for the goal of normalization. The prisons are designed to closely resemble life on the outside, an idea Birk called “re-socialization.” “Normalization is not about normalizing the prisoner; it is about normalizing the prison conditions, the way that things are inside the prison. People cook their own food. Cooking their own food means that they shop for their own food in the grocery store,” Birk said. So how can self-regulated, domestic prisons exist? Birk explained

that a prison system like Denmark’s open prisons could only function within the context of certain societies. Denmark is a small country, and violent crimes that occur in almost every corner of the United States are simply nonexistent. “Violent crime is not an issue in Denmark,” Birk said. “When there is, it is [almost always] late at night on the weekend, and alcohol is always involved.” How a society perceives crime also plays a huge role in how the offenders are treated. “We explain crime in a very different way. My understanding is that in the U.S. there is more of a tendency to say that the person is a bad person,” Birk said. In Denmark, the Danish tend to attribute crime to the social factors surrounding the criminal, such as whether or not they had a traumatic childhood. This alternative way of thinking allows Denmark to address the issue of crime through methods beside strict punishment. Speaking to this, Birk said that average 21-year-old Danish citizens pay no tuition for university schooling; they receive an allowance of $800 a month from the state if they are in school. They do not pay for doctors or hospital visits, and they do not share dorm rooms. The state is able to provide such a safety net for its people that citizens don’t have to resort to crime to get by. Birk was adamant in noting, however, that it is the specific culture of Denmark that makes these prisons possible. An open prison system simply couldn’t function in the United States, or many other countries. There is no positive or negative value in this; it is just a matter of societies operating differently. “I would like to say, ‘you should do what we do,’ but it wouldn’t be reflective of your society,” Birk said. The United States and Denmark are very different countries, and so different prison systems are necessary. Birk discussed the way the Danish interact with one another in order to illustrate this point. “We don’t smile [at one another]; we look into the earth. I think it is because we trust other people. We don’t need to show that we are good people,” she said.

hitman student volunteers recently teamed up with the Walla Walla Asset Building Coalition to combat poverty within the community. Large amounts of money under the Federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) go unclaimed every year, and are available to millions of lowand medium-income individuals and couples across the nation, particularly to those supporting children. Workers who qualify for the EITC first file their federal income tax returns and then can claim the credit. For low-income Walla Wallans, the EITC could mean gaining extra money to spend on necessary items like rent or medical emergencies. According to the IRS website, the 2013 preview maximum earned income credit was between $487 with no qualifying children and $6,044 for three or more qualifying children. The Walla Walla EITC campaign is spearheaded by Steve Dickerson, coordinator of the Walla Walla Asset Building Coalition. The coalition is comprised of local banks, schools and local government officials that all aim to fight poverty within the community. “The Walla Walla Asset Building Coalition as part of

both state-wide emphasis on asset building as well as national level is interested to see asset building as reducing the poverty rate in the community,” said Assistant Dean of Student Engagement Noah Leavitt. At Whitman, Community Service Coordinator Abby Juhasz organized the campaign for Whitman volunteers, who will help distribute educational materials about the EITC to community members. This is the first year that students have been involved with this initiative. The EITC campaign is set into three stages. The first stage was to advertise the campaign to the public, and the students did this by hanging posters all over Walla Walla. With the second phase, the campaign has hung posters and handed out handbills to targeted employers in town to share with their employees and clients, reaching to more targeted people of the campaign. The final stage has been to partner with the volunteers from Blue Mountain Action Council’s AmeriCorps to set up information tables at Wal-Mart and the Community College. Volunteers tabled this Tues. March 5 and Wed. March 6. Students handed out pie and educational pamphlets to community members to help individuals better understand the EITC and take advantage of it. Those who came to the table were also encouraged to spread word about the

EITC to reach even more people. Volunteering with the coalition gave many students an opportunity to be an active motivator for change in Walla Walla. “We are surrounded by people who are at an economic disadvantage in comparison to us and living here, being middle- to upper-class ... It’s an opportunity for us to give back to the community,” said first-year Katy Wills.

ASWC MINUTES 3/3 Voted to approve 2013 election rules; candidate spending limits for Executive Council set at $50, Senate at $25 – 16-0-3 Approved request by Whitman Direct Action for $4440 from Contingency and Service Learning Funds– 17-1-1 Officially recognized Whitman Composting and Juggling Club – 19-0-0 Approved changes to Sound and Lights Director bylaws and Club Director bylaws – 19-0-0

Sung’s Barbershop 347 E. Rose. 509-522-6393. Walk-in haircuts. Tues-Fri 9-5, Sat 9-4 Students get 20% off! PRODUCTION

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The Whitman College Pioneer is a weekly student-run newspaper published under the auspices of the Associated Students of Whitman College. The purpose of The Pioneer is to provide pertinent, timely news and commentary for Whitman students, alumni, faculty, staff and parents, as well as the Walla Walla community. The Pioneer is dedicated to expanding open discussion on campus about the issues with which students are most concerned. We provide coverage of Whitman-related news as well as featured local and regional events, and strive to maintain a standard of utmost fairness quality, and journalistic integrity while promoting freedom of the press. In addition, The Pioneer strives to be a learning tool for students who are interested in journalism. The Pioneer welcomes all feedback and publishes Letters to the Editor in print and online.

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Race symposium to bring Nobel Laureate to campus by MAEGAN NELSON

W Students and administrators discuss campus culture surrounding sexual assault on the FACE-sponsored panel. Photos by beck

FACE addresses sexual assault by KARAH KEMMERLY News Editor

hile browsing whitmanencounters.com one day, senior Kate Kight saw a post that really scared her. This post, written by a student whose friend had been sexually assaulted by an RA, contained responses from several students offering resources and support for the survivor, which Kight found heartening. Several responses, however, showed that students distrusted the administration’s ability to address issues of sexual assault. To address this crucial problem, Kight and other members of Feminists Advocating Change and Empowerment (FACE) are working to increase discussion of sexual assault on campus by giving survivors and other students the opportunity to share their stories. Early this month, FACE organized a panel in order to address some of the tensions between students and the administration when discussing sexual assault. “We wanted to provide a formal opportunity for students to say, ‘Here’s why I don’t trust the administration,’ and for the administration to respond,” said Kight. The panel was held on Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. in Reid Ballroom. On the panel were four students, Associate Deans of Students Clare Carson and Barbara Maxwell, Stuart Coordinator of Religious and Spiritual Life Adam Kirtley and Interim Assistant Director for Residence Life Anastasia Zamkinos. Senior co-president of FACE Gabriella Friedman was pleased to see a variety of voices on the panel. “I think it was good to have a combination of administrators and survivors. There was a good diver-

sity of people speaking, in terms of their roles at Whitman,” she said. One student panelist, sophomore Sam Fischer, was selected to provide unique insight from the perspective of a male fraternity member. “I was trying to communicate that the goals of a fraternity are right in line with goals of promoting social well-being, that those things work together extremely well,” he said. The panel proved not only to be an opportunity to talk about administrative policies, but also a discussion of campus culture in relation to sexual assault. “It ended up [having] a really positive outcome. People seemed to really be interested in how we can change our culture and change our language to create an environment that fosters trust and care about each other,” said Kight. Similarly, Fischer believes that his time on the panel was more about listening to others than just about sharing his own input, and he hopes to take what he has learned to help encourage men to be part of this new environment. “The most significant thing has been people coming up to me ... and talking to me after the event, in particular working with one person thinking about how we can just talk more with men and get better representation of men at these events. Fraternities are a great way to pressure people to go do things,” he said. Junior and panelist Paige Joki also felt that one of the most important aspects of the panel was that it provided the opportunity for further discussion. “After the panel a few folks came up to me and we continued the dialogue several days later. I am proud to say that these necessary and productive conversations are continuing,” she said in an email.

Audience members were particularly struck by survivor accounts. “It was so brave that people shared their stories,” said first-year Ellen Ivens-Duran. First-year Emily Carrick agreed. “People talked [more] openly than I expected. There were a lot of different perspectives. It made me think of sexual assault policies differently,” she said. FACE hopes to continue dialogue about sexual assault in their annual Take Back the Night march. Take Back the Night is an event held all over the world to protest rape and sexual violence. Usually it consists of a public rally and march against sexual violence, and then a vigil where participants can share their experiences. This year, FACE plans to work with the leaders of community organizations, like the YWCA and Planned Parenthood, in order to encourage more non-Whitties to participate in the march. Co-presidents Friedman and senior Madelyn Peterson also emphasized the importance of using Take Back the Night as a chance to widen our understanding of sexual violence. “We hope to highlight how race, class, gender identity and sexual orientation are part of sexual and gendered violence, bringing a more inclusive and broad lens into Take Back the Night ,” said Peterson. The Take Back the Night march will be held on Thursday, April 18 at 8 p.m. For Kight, events that initiate dialogue about sexual assault, like the panel and Take Back the Night, are necessary for creating change. “This is an opportunity to validate however this touches your life, that you have a story to tell, [and] that every story is emotionally important.”

Crucible talks offer insight into real world social justice by KEENAN HILTON Staff Reporter

orward-thinking Whitman students gathered in Reid G02 on Feb. 27 to discuss the transition to the “real world” with alumnus Chris Garratt ‘00. About 10 students gathered to watch videos, ask questions of Garratt and discuss their own preparations for post-Whitman life. The Crucible Lunch Series, sponsored by the Student Engagement Center (SEC), aims to help students bravely face the coming transition to the work force. The SEC works to complement that education with information on the nitty-gritty realities of the imminent transition into the work force for those not directly entering into graduate programs. In the Crucible Lunch Series, Kyle Scott, technology & marketing fellow for the SEC, aimed to foster discussion of these details. “It’s about bringing together the experience of local alumni, the great nuggets of knowledge that the [iOnPoverty] videos have to offer and the students

to start a conversation about social entrepreneurship,” said Scott. Scott was excited when he found iOnPoverty.tv, a web series highlighting advice from successful social entrepreneurs. Social entrepreneurs actively seek out information and deploy the skills necessary for entrepreneurship, but hold social justice as their primary goal. Scott saw potential for this idea at Whitman, where discussion of social problems permeates many departments. Along the same lines as many SEC events, the Crucible Series complemented academic discussion of such issues by presenting students with more practical information about entering the job market. “It’s a disappointing experience when you graduate. I hate to say it ... it’s a rude awakening,” said Garratt. “At Boeing I had a very entry-level position on the accounting team, this team of like 300 people, and actually the majority of them didn’t even have their college degree. That was really frustrating to me that I went and spent four years but ... these people had been working for 15 years already, and they

spent 15 years to get to that point.” Garratt noted that Whitman students often find jobs out of college for which they are academically overqualified, but experientially underqualified. Agreeing with ideas put forward in the iOnPoverty videos, Garratt noted the necessity of students to understand the financial realities of socially-minded work. Senior Rachel Quednau, who attended one of the Crucible events, noted the shortcomings of the Whitman experience in this regard. “I know for me, my first two years here, I didn’t really do that much off campus,” she said. “Then I did an off-campus semester in D.C. and had a bunch of internships and ... really got energized about organizing and politics ... Coming back, it’s been really valuable to have an outlet like [the Crucible Series].” Scott hoped that, as an alumnus of Whitman, Garratt would hold credibility with an audience of current students, bridging the gap between peer and mentor. “I wish there was a series like this when I went to school,” said Garratt.

Chris Garratt ‘00 speaks about social entrepreneurship. Photo by Johnson

Staff Reporter

hitman’s first annual Power and Privilege Symposium will consist of two days of workshops, discussion and presentations to focus on its theme, “Why Race Matters.” To augment the experience, Nobel Laureate Rigoberta Menchú will be giving the keynote address. As a campus continuously promoting its commitment to diversity, there has been a lot of student effort to promote discussion of race. Many students, however, still believe that there isn’t enough of a campus-wide commitment to racial awareness and discussion. Organizers of the upcoming race symposium hope to encourage Whitman to see that race is still an important topic in the community. The symposium will take place on March 27 and 28. Senior Haverty Brown, the chair of the content committee for the symposium, is in charge of organizing approximately eight upcoming workshops dedicated to race. Brown said the workshops will be focused on race in the Whitman context and more specifically on the role of race in social life, such as interracial dating. In addition, there will be a section discussing how different perspectives on beauty are interpreted in the professional and social world. The talks will be led by both students and faculty, and discussions will be held to provide a wide range of ideas and opinions. “Then also, we want to talk about the Whitman bubble, and what race means outside of that,” said Brown. The symposium will address problems involving race in the workplace and also problems involving race in the Washington State Penitentiary, which is a topic close to the Walla Walla community. Senior Marcial Díaz Mejía has also been working diligently to make the symposium a success. “The symposium as a whole is talking about the issue of race and ethnicity from a more personal perspective. There are a lot of great classes at Whitman [about this] ... but this will be more peer-based,” said Díaz Mejía. Trying to create a symposium that reflects the racial issues on campus and outside the Whitman community, however, requires a unique approach. “Whitman is not reflective of what the population of Walla Walla is. We have different demographics than the people in the town ... the Latino population in Walla Walla is greater than in the Whitman student body. We are just trying to get people to talk about race and ethnicity in a way that they don’t do on a dayto-day basis. For many people on the panels, it’s about sharing their experiences and points of view. It’s a way to educate people ... by sharing experiences,” said Diaz Mejia. First year Ravneet Waraich, a member of the Black Student Union, believes that race is a matter that people need to be educated about. “Race is honestly just a way of identifying people physically and culturally. It shouldn’t hold much meaning ... sometimes it makes walls between people. But sometimes, it is a way to better your understanding of other people and where they come from and who they are,” said Waraich. Brown noted that the symposium is intended to promote involvement from as many people in the community as possible, particularly students. “People don’t realize that race is still a big deal,” said Brown. “We really want this to be something that is important and that people feel that they want to be engaged in. We go about our daily lives not thinking about race ... so we’ve been thinking about how to get people engaged.” Díaz Mejía added that he hopes the symposium promotes understanding of how race plays different roles in people’s lives. “I want people to understand the complexity of race—that race is not universal,” said Díaz Mejía. For example, growing up in Guatemala, Díaz Mejía never felt like a minority. It was only when he began to go to college in the United States that he was labeled as such. Therefore, as he and Brown stressed, the symposium will not just be focused on individuals who are labeled a “minority” in the United States. “We want to create a symposium that includes everyone ... not just racial minorities,” said Brown.

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Life Skills Series encourages beyond-the-classroom learning

Bon Appétit’s Executive Chef Jim Cooley (above) teaches a group of students to make the perfect pizza. Making delicious pizza is just one of the many life skills taught by Whitman faculty in the Life Skills Series Photos by Doowa

by EMMA DAHL Staff Reporter

hitman College is a place where students learn all kinds of things. The vast majority of this knowledge, however, is academic and is attained in the classroom; we sit at desks and learn how to calculate parabolic trajectories, how to define gender theory or the history of politics in western Europe. But where do we learn basic life skills, that non-academic knowledge that may not help us ace our MCAT but will help us survive in our modern society? How will those of us without cooking skills survive living on our own? What if we get a flat tire, and our parents never bothered to catch us up on our mechanical skills? There must be a venue for Whitties to learn these important skills. This is a liberal arts school, after all! The answer lies with the Life Skills Series, a group of classes offered by Whit-

man College Student Activities. Recent additions to the lineup included a course on pizza making taught by Bon Appétit’s Executive Chef Jim Cooley, an afternoon of car repair lessons with employees of the local Les Schwab and even a class on planning epic road trips. Katharine Curles, assistant director of student activities, said in an email interview that the main reason for the birth of the Life Skills Series was a realization that a program teaching basic life skills could “fill a void in hands-on learning that many students feel.” Not surprisingly, Curles cited food-related classes as the most popular among Whitman students, especially classes on cheese and chocolate appreciation. “My goals are twofold: to give students and staff a chance to cooperate and relate outside of the formal office setting, and to teach students real ‘life skills’ that

they can use after Whitman,” said Curles. “Plus, a tertiary goal is to just give students a quality study break, something out of the norm of their everyday lives.” Students are attracted to the classes because of their practicality. “I get to eat great food and learn a lot, all for free!” sophomore Corinne Vandagriff said. “I took sushi making and Thai food. So I learned to cook food that I often go to restaurants to eat instead.” Upcoming classes in April include Gleaning, Birding, The Art of a Grilled Cheese and Budgeting. Classes on building a perfect first aid kit and off-campus living strategies are also being considered. In order to be notified about Life Skills classes as soon as possible, send a blank email to lifeskills-subscribe@lists.whitman.edu and subscribe to the listserv. You can also sign up for upcoming classes on the Student Activities Office Facebook page.

Spring break movies: Leave time for Netflix PIO PICKS by NATHAN FISHER Staff Reporter

his week, my marching orders from the A&E chief were to check out the movies premiering during spring break and see if any of them were a “must-see.” A great task because there’s nothing I like more than watching a new movie into the wee hours and then sleeping the rest of the day. Sadly, not a single movie opening in the next two weeks jumps out as a “must-see.” Two movies, however, make the “probably will see” list; but honestly, it looks like most of my viewing time will be spent with Netflix. The first movie of possible interest coming out the beginning of break (March 9) is the “The Wizard of Oz” prequel, “Oz the Great and Powerful,” starring James Franco. “Oz the Great and Powerful” follows the journey of a small-time magician who is transported to the magical land of Oz. I’m a huge

fan of the original “The Wizard of Oz” complete with the Lollipop Guild, flying monkeys and timeless characters, so the thought of a movie screwing with the Oz magic causes me pause. Regardless, the seemingly dark reboot of the Oz world in the 1939 classic could be a potential see for spring break. The second movie I am looking forward to seeing over break is “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” (March 15), about two magicians played by Steve Carell and Steve Buscemi. The duo has been performing in Las Vegas for years but recently has experienced declining admission. A new street performer (Jim Carrey) comes along and begins to attract huge audiences away from the dynamic duo. These actors seem like an odd mix, but the previews of them sporting shoulder-length hair shows some potential to be quite funny ... or possibly a huge flop. Sadly, the choices for movies coming out during spring break don’t excite me, and I’m

glad that I’ll be backpacking for the majority of the time. However, this absence gives me the perfect opportunity to start knocking things off my Netflix queue! After watching the first episode, I’ve been dying to finish the new series with Kevin Spacey called “House of Cards.” I’ve also been craving some good oldfashioned drama, leading me to become addicted to “Friday Night Lights.” Once I make it through television, I’m planning to move back in time to some of the classics like “The Grapes of Wrath” and the original “Cleopatra.” Just by going onto Netflix for this article, I already addILLUS TR AT ION B ed 10 movies to my Y EMO RY queue that I can’t wait to sit back, relax and enjoy.

Each Thursday, The Pioneer highlights several events happening on campus or in Walla Walla during the weekend. Here are this week’s picks: Little House on the Prairie: Eastern Jordan in the Late 7th Millennium B.C. A lecture conducted by Professor of Anthropology Gary Rollefson, whose fieldwork has centered on the deserts of southern and eastern Jordan, tracing the development of nomadic pastoral society.

Thursday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m. in Olin 157.

Walla Walla Guitar Festival This two-day event features 17 top Northwest Blues & Roots acts at four venues all within three blocks of downtown Walla Walla. These include Sapolil Cellars, Walla Walla Elks Lodge and Vintage Cellars. Friday, March 8 at 7 p.m. Ticket packages vary.

The SEC suggests: Find a job while on spring break! 1. Finalize or update your resume. 2. If you haven’t done so already, create a profile and upload your resume in iEngage, the SEC’s new advanced job-search and career development tool! 3. Network with alumni or potential employers for possible leads. 4. Watch the livestream recording of the recent workshop about making the most of the Whitman network. 5. Set a goal to establish contact with 2, 5, or 10 potential employers.

6. Can’t find a job that fits your interests? Develop the job of your dreams and apply to the Whitman Internship Grant (see step #9). 7. Set a goal to apply for 5-10 jobs or internships, and then follow up! 8. Be prepared for interviews. 9. Secured your summer internship? Complete and submit your 2013 Whitman Internship Grant Application. Complete applications are due at 5pm, Wednesday, March 27th.

Can’t decide what you want to do? Learn about career possibilities with iEngage (especially the career explorer!) Take a self-assessment test on MyPlan to discover your interests, skills, values and how they fit specific careers.

whitman.edu/student-life/studentengagement-center

SPORTS

Mar

2013

Baseball player balances athletic, artistic passions by tristan gavin Sports Editor

omewhere between his cleats, mitt, jerseys and schoolwork, Whitman College first-year John Lee finds space on the bus to take his cameras with him on the road to indulge his other passion. Lee is a finesse pitcher who has been coming out of Whitman’s bullpen this spring to relieve the starters, but off the field he finds his own relief through the artistic expression of his photography. Baseball came first for Lee, who began playing in first grade. His love for photography wouldn’t come until much later, when his first camera sparked his interest. Once a camera was put in his hand, photography grew to become a large part of his adolescent life. “I’ve had a camera since I was in seventh grade, but the first time I sold one of my photos was in the fall of 2010,” said Lee. Lee acknowledges that the two passions are markedly different, but both play major roles in his life. “There is definitely an overlap at times, but for the most part they both remain separate, very distinct parts of my life,” said Lee. Lee’s two interests become

SCOREBOARD Basketball

Women’s v. Cal Lutheran Mar. 1: W 61-37 v. Lewis & Clark Mar. 2: W 66-57

tennis

Men’s v. University of Puget Sound Mar. 1: W 9-0 v. Whitworth University Mar. 1: W 8-1 Women’s v. Whitworth University Mar. 2: W 6-3 v. University of Puget Sound Mar. 3: W 5-4 v. Pacific Lutheran University Mar. 1: W 8-1

Baseball

v. University of Puget Sound Mar. 2: L 4-2 v. University of Puget Sound Mar. 2: L 5-4 v. University of Puget Sound Mar. 3: W 9-3

one on baseball road trips when he combines his eye for the aesthetics with his love for sports. “Sometimes when the baseball team is traveling, I take pictures after our games during my free time,” said Lee. While Lee’s focus on the baseball field is strictly limited to the game, in photography he is able to open his scope to get perspective on other aspects of life. “I like taking pictures of anything and anyone where the emotions that I experienced when taking the picture can only be re-experienced when you look at the photograph. I definitely find the pictures I take of people in urban areas to be the most rewarding, despite the fact that they aren’t necessarily the most beautiful, because of their ability to expose the audience to people they wouldn’t necessarily have ever noticed had I not taken the picture,” said Lee. On road trips and between classes, Lee uses his time out of baseball to try to capture the human experience through his photos. For the purpose of traveling lightly, Lee avoids larger cameras, but the smaller cameras also cater to his style of photography. “I also use a smaller camera for a more practical reason. When I’m out on the street taking pictures of candid people it is much

PAGE

First-year pitcher John Lee ‘16 (above right) always keeps his cameras at hand to capture images off of the baseball field, even if it means crawling under bleachers to get the right lighting. Photo of Lee by Doowa, other photos contributed by Lee

less obvious that I’m a photographer if I can conceal my camera in my pocket before taking the picture. If I used a larger camera I’d be instantly seen as a photographer and it would be much harder to take pictures of people without them noticing. I’d rather come across as a tourist than a serious journalist or professional photographer,” said Lee. While Lee does not like to flaunt his cameras or draw too much attention to himself with a camera in his hand, he takes a certain pride in his work. Likewise, Lee is not a flashy baseball player, but uses his unassuming presence to his advantage. In both baseball and photography, Lee keeps a low profile but does not reject the idea of either blossoming into something larger, like a career. “It’s hard to say what the future will hold, but if I have an opportunity for either I could definitely see myself taking it,” said Lee. For now, Lee will continue to play baseball as long as the opportunity to continue his childhood passion exists and keep taking photos as long as there are experiences to be captured. “I generally have a camera on my person at all times. You never know when you’ll find a great picture,” said Lee.

Golf season reaches full swing from GOLF, page 1

With three seniors and three juniors leading only two underclassmen into play, the emphasis for the women has been on refining individual skills through a strong team mentality breeding healthy competition within the squad. Sophomore Kelly Sweeney and junior Catelyn Webber teamed up to provide key performances, leading the women with a big round on the Sunday of the Fall Classic. Sweeney finished in fifth place overall and Webber ended in eighth in a field of 38.

“I think with any underclassmen on a team, it puts pressure on the older teammates to keep their standing on the roster. It pushes us all to be competitive with each other,” said Sweeney, referring to how her performance helps other players improve. The team is constantly competing on the course, but remains close despite the individual focus of the sport. “The fact that as a team we are so close on and off the course will provide dividends in the spring,” noted jun-

ior Elaine Whaley. “We really want each other to play well.” A supportive setting on the relatively young men’s team has been important in helping the younger players succeed and improve as much as possible. With talent at every level, there is tons of potential for big rounds throughout the year from any player on any day. “We have the talent to start winning tournaments on a regular basis. Overall, the team is extremely young, and with each round we will only get better,”

first-year Daniel Hoffman said. Hoffman has been working hard and trying to glean as much as possible from his older teammates. “I hope to learn from them. The last couple of weeks we have been practicing six days a week until dark,” Hoffman said. When asked about the goals for the men’s team this season, junior Andrew Welch put it simply. “We’re just trying to get it in the hole in as few tries as we can,” said Welch.

Students, alumni rafting Grand Canyon by tristan gavin Sports Editor

ver spring break, senior Devin Kuh, three other students and a group of 11 Whitman alumni will be rafting through 277 miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. For Kuh, the trip is a culmination of interests he has fostered during his time at Whitman and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lead his dream trip. The trip—which will take 21 days and forces the four Whitman students to miss a week and a half of classes—began this week, but has been in the planning stages since Kuh was a raft guide in South America at this time last year. One of the most difficult parts of planning a trip like this one is the paperwork that needs to be filled out. Because the Grand Canyon is such a desirable location to raft, permits are distributed through a lottery system. “Last December I signed up for the lottery system but decided I didn’t want to apply for

a permit because I was in South America and couldn’t really plan. But then Adam Michel [‘12] asked how to do it. I told him, he applied and won a permit,” Kuh said. The trip began to fall into place, but still faced a lot of logistical obstacles. Because the trip is

ILLUSTRATION BY MEASE

not through Whitman’s Outdoor Program, the funding was done independently and the food and rentals were done through a company. “It’s funded through all of our savings,” said Kuh, only half-

joking. “Although doing all of our rentals and food through a company is expensive, I definitely think it is worth the time saved in planning and logistics.” When Kuh realized just how realistic the prospects of the trip were, there was no doubt in the senior’s mind that he would be willing to miss a week and a half of classes to make it happen. “I worked really hard the week and a half before, finishing writtens, orals and a thirty-minute thesis presentation, along with all my classwork for these three weeks,” said Kuh, who will graduate with degrees in both economics and mathematics this May. Kuh takes his academics

seriously, but knew this was a unique opportunity and refused to pass it up. “Knowing the first time I see the Grand Canyon will be from the bottom with a group of great people and 21 days of adventure to come is a great feeling,” said Kuh. Kuh, who is about to enter the working world, sees the timing as perfect for the trip. “After school, I’ll have work and more financial obligations that will not always allow for a three-week vacation,” said Kuh. Kuh has been looking forward to the trip since it became a reality, and is particularly excited by the prospect of spending extended time with schoolmates and alumni. The other current students joining Kuh are juniors Jake Gavin and Forrest Epstein, as well as senior Heather Domonoske. Kuh and his companions will be rafting by day and sleeping under the stars at night, making the most of their spring breaks in one of the country’s most wondrous places. “Simply put, it is the Grand Canyon,” said Kuh.

FEATURE

PAGE

MAR

2013

In the

NET The internet is integral to our college experience, but how much is too much? Whitman students are finding that lines that must be drawn before computer and internet use becomes an addiction.

RA TI

Video gamers find support to overcome addiction by Hannah Bartman Staff Reporter

ddiction usually conjures images of substance abuse consuming and transforming lives. Video games have the same capacity for addiction as any substance, even at Whitman College. Gaming is most commonly seen as a simple pastime, an activity to be enjoyed casually in dorm rooms with friends. However, in some cases, according to Kimberly Young, PsyD, clinical director of the Center for On-Line Addiction, gaming can turn into “a clinical impulse control disorder.” “The gamer in you believes in nothing but the game. In your mind, he is stronger, smarter and more capable than you in every way; the real you is weak and shameful. There is no easy way out. To win the fight, you have to silence every thought having to do with the game for weeks. You have to starve a part of your own mind into submission,” said first-year Lucas Wright.* This issue is one that Director of Academic Resources Juli Dunn is attempting to bring to the public conscience. Beginning on Feb. 6, Dunn created Whitman’s first Healthy Gaming Support Group, which meets every Wednesday at

4:15 p.m. upstairs in the GAC. “I’ve worked with students in the past whose gaming addictions or obsessions literally ended their academic careers at Whitman, so it is real and the consequences can be significant,” said Dunn in an email. Currently, the group has three consistent members. One of these members is senior economics major Yifan Yang. Yang experienced that his gaming, most specifically his use of World of Warcraft, affected his schoolwork beginning last year. Yang moved to Walla Walla from China in 2007 and games with his 30 or so friends that still live in China. “There are relationships within the game that I want to keep, but I have to find a balance between real life and gaming life and that can be hard,” said Yang. “Once you get too obsessed with the game and it consumes your time, that’s when things can go wrong.” The group focuses on posing questions such as: “What is a healthy amount of gaming in terms of time? When does it cross the threshold into unhealthiness?” It is “a tight-knit group [that] really support[s] one another,” said Wright. “I hope students that participate in this group come to know a larger world and community in real life and recognize that

they have talents to contribute in person to the Whitman community in ways that are equally rewarding and lasting,” said Dunn. Some members are constantly fighting with their addictions, and attempting to overcome them is an everyday struggle. “I lied to my roommate and I lied to myself, saying I had it under control. I didn’t, and I still am a gaming addict,” said Wright. Gaming can turn into a mental dependency just like any other addiction. Addiction is defined as any sort of habit that is formed and can be extremely painful to quit. “I have an addictive personality. It’s predictable, really, with my family history of alcoholism and drug addiction,” said Wright. “I often struggle with self-control, which exacerbates my issues with gaming and self-discipline in general.” The Healthy Gaming Support Group serves as an escape for members to discuss these issues with a group of peers that can sympathize with these difficulties. Discovering that there is a supportive community that understands the “benefits” of gaming, as Yang describes, can be very comforting. “It’s good to know you’re not alone with these problems and that there are people on this campus that deal with the same issues,” said Yang.

These games take up a large portion of students’ lives, but for some, like Yang, they show unforeseen benefits. More specifically, there are aspects within the World of Warcraft world that have provided Yang with insights into his interactions in his real world. In World of Warcraft, Yang has served as Guild Master, a high-ranking position that puts him in charge of 30 other characters in the game. Through this, Yang has learned to cooperate and collaborate with people to work towards a common goal. “In real life, you learn your duty within your society or within your class or club. In the game I learned to be reliable and communicate with people so [that] we can all reach a common goal,” said Yang. However, this unique type of communication can also pull one farther from real-life interactions, and it is this type of communication that Yang believes would help him control this addiction. Resisting the need to play the game is easier if more commitments are made outside of the game world. “One thing is forcing myself to go out to social gatherings. Things that put my attention away from the game definitely help,” said Yang. These things for Yang include dinner with friends, work-

Students sense hazard in social media outlets by Emily williams Staff Reporter

he quiet room echoes with the soft sound of many busy fingers on keyboards, but among the rows of students hard at work, a few students surreptitiously check their notifications, while others respond to a chat with a friend from home while working on as essay. Facebook is a study break, a distraction, a vortex, as it pulls people into the virtual world of friend requests, tags and wall posts. Whether students hate it, love it or some combination of the two—Facebook is a huge presence in many people’s lives. However, most people are reluctant to admit that they are hooked on the social networking website, avoiding the negative label of “addiction.” “Addiction implies that you need it, and I don’t need it,” said first-

year Ziggy Lanman when asked if she was addicted to Facebook. Facebook might more of a habit than an addiction, as people go on not because they need to, but because it is mindlessly convenient. Many first-years find that with the extra discretionary time that college provides, the draw of Facebook seems ever-present and oftentimes unavoidable. “Facebook is a perpetual habit; the more I go on, the more I feel like I want to go on,” said first-year Michael Augustine. Often what causes students to go on Facebook is the urge to procrastinate, even though what might be best for preparing them to trudge forward is time away from the computer screen. “My least favorite part of it is that I go to it when I get super bored and distracted and want to procrastinate,” he said.

How do students work around Facebook? Read the rest at whitmanpioneer.com/feature

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ing at his job at the theatre, going to the Healthy Gaming Support Group and finding other creative outlets. One class that has significantly helped him is his Advanced Composition course, an offering in the English department. He creates stories every week that center around personal experiences. Thus far some of these stories include experiences that have significant cultural significance for Yang, such as stories about stereotypes of Asians and Chinese hot-pots. The issue that the members of this club and those who struggle with this addiction deal with is not a problem indicative of video games in general. “One of the very important thing for readers to understand would be that gaming itself is not bad; it’s the addiction that’s bad,” said Yang. Gaming can provide many positive assets for players, but overuse and abuse can lead to negative impacts in one’s life. The Healthy Gaming Support Group hopes to provide a haven for those who have acknowledged their gaming addiction. Through the catharsis of human communication, other forms of healthy dependency can be fostered, and this minority struggle can be solved. *This student chose to remain anonymous.

OPINION

MAR

2013

PAGE

ILLUSTRATION BY VAZQUEZ

Wearable tech must be made relevant Blair Hanley Frank Senior

TECH TALK

o hear the pundits tell it, we should be entering the age of wearable technology. Pebble, a smart watch that was funded through Kickstarter, currently holds the site’s record for

most funded project with a total pledge of more than $10 million. Rumors are swirling about the potential of an Apple smart watch, and Google is working on rolling out its new Google Glass hardware to a small group of handpicked “Explorers” who are willing to pay $1,500 for the privilege of being on the cutting edge. In short, wearable tech is big in the hype business right now. As we begin to spin up the hype machine for the proposed iWatch, it’s important to remember what came before. Remember Microsoft’s SPOT watches? How about the Fossil FX2008? They were smart watches that were supposed to revolutionize the way we interacted with our wrists. (They are also but two examples

of the growth of the smart watch idea, which has roots in the calculator watches of decades past.) Those watches are long gone, and for good reason: They underperformed for their price. They were small, slow and bulky without providing enough functionality. As we look to the future of wearable computing, it’s important to keep these failures in the back of our minds. We’re not all wearing smart watches today because they have been a losing proposition in the past. But since then, a lot has changed. Wearable tech doesn’t need to be capable of doing everything, because we’re carrying around these computers in our pockets that rival the capabilities of some of the best tech of the last dec-

ade. With a Bluetooth connection, a smart watch can act essentially as a second display for the processing package in a smartphone. Fitness trackers are a great example of that symbiotic relationship at work. Nike, Jawbone and Fitbit have all created what are essentially enhanced pedometers that can interface with your smartphone, and they seem to be catching on. As a part of the ongoing hunt for an iWatch, observers noticed that Apple CEO Tim Cook tends to wear a Nike FuelBand in his daily life. But even though wearables are able to do more with less, tech firms that want to sell them as consumer products need to be ready to pitch them as valuable consumer goods. I’m not sure that wearable tech is quite at that stage yet.

Case in point: Google Glass. While the technology behind it may be revolutionary, Google needs to actually make a case for why consumers should bother to plunk down hundreds upon hundreds of dollars on an experimental piece of tech to stick on their faces. Early adopters already picked up earlier iterations on the smart watch concept, and it seems Glass has already piqued the interest of people who are interested in technology. While I’m living proof of the success of wearables (I can’t get enough of my Fitbit One), I’m still not certain that the world is going to take the leap to using wearable tech. While it’s certainly becoming more prevalent, only time will tell if this is just a fad directed at nerds, or a new frontier in consumer tech.

Letter to the Editor: Thank you Aesthetics of schools for Lincoln High School Support offer learning benefits Thank you, Whitman College, for inviting Lincoln High School to come to Maxey Hall and share about our trauma-sensitive model. We appreciate all the Whitman students that have come to Lincoln to volunteer as well as those choosing Lincoln for senior projects. I know you have a very busy testing schedule coming up, and that will take a lot of hours of studying and focus. When you get some breathing room, we sure could use some advocacy for 16,000 Washington seniors that are on track to graduate, have met all graduation requirements, have passed

2/3 state standards, but struggle with math and abstract concepts. These students that do not pass the state math exam will be denied their high school diploma and forced to drop out by the state. This is one of the most punitive policies I have ever seen come through Olympia. There is no research that can support that if you fail [algebra], it is a predictor that you will fail at life. However, we know that each high school dropout costs the tax payer $292,000 over their lifetime. I had a student break down in my office yesterday and shared that

she could hardly handle all the stress in her life. She went on to share that she is all stressed out about passing the state math exam. She not only has that anxiety to deal with, but she is homeless as well. Many need your help and compassion to write our legislators and let them know you don’t allow a student to run the whole race and then pluck their diploma out of their hands. Good luck on your upcoming exams, and thank you for your outreach to Lincoln. Sincerely, Jim Sporleder

Have an opinion to share? Send guest columns or letters to the editor to: editor s@ w hitmanpioneer.com Cartoon by Asa Mease

Voices from the Community Corinna Whitehurst

Sam Hinkle Sophomore

Weekend Circulation Supervisor at Penrose

“I would miss email because it involves communication. And that would include either for work or family or friends.”

“I think that if I didn’t have access to a computer, I’d miss my ability to have all my work in one place. If I have papers they tend to go everywhere, but they can’t go everywhere on the computer. Plus, there’s the search bar. I think I’d miss the search bar.”

Sayda morales Sophomore

mind the gap

he middle school that I attended, KIPP Academy, occupied half a floor of a building that housed two other public schools. And even though the other kids joked that KIPP stood for “kids in prison program,” it was their hallways that resembled a prison and not ours. At KIPP, every single classroom was colored brightly and positive mantras such as “Knowledge Is Power” were written everywhere. I did not know it at the time, but the aesthetics of my learning space made learning fun and easier. In high school, I volunteered with a program that painted murals and walls bright colors in public schools. That organization understood what not enough public schools in our country acknowledge: Aesthetically pleasing schools can make students happier, healthier and more inclined to go to school with a desire to learn. Because private schools can afford to have aesthetically pleasing campuses, the students there are already at an academic advantage as soon as they step foot onto their schools than those students at uninspiring public schools. Aesthetics do matter and have a significant impact on the way we learn. An aesthetically pleasing school consists of outdoor spaces, maximum natural light coming into classrooms and hangout spaces, presence of nature inside the buildings and bright and colorful walls filled with art. All of these design features come together to create a school that fosters community and school spirit.

What would you miss most if you did not have access to a computer? Poll by susie krikava

Flora Sheppard

Allan Okello

First-year

Senior

“I’d miss being able to access random information instantly. Having to wait would be something to get used to.”

Studies have shown that bright and natural spaces lift people’s spirits. Many inner-city public schools resemble prisons with their blandcolored walls, classrooms that all look identical and even windows with bars on them. It is no wonder that these kinds of schools have the highest truancy rates, because no one likes to go to a school where they feel trapped and confined. Also, it is in dismal, asphalt spaces where bullying occurs at a higher rate than in places where the surroundings interact with one’s senses and make students feel more confident. Schools re-designed with aesthetics in mind have seen improvements in their students’ academic success. Investigations have shown that students in classrooms with a lot of natural lighting learn up to 21 percent more than students in classrooms with less. If building new windows is not a possibility, then taking a class outside once in a while can be enough. The point of schools is that they should be places where learning can take place, but the reality is that a space that is both unappealing and uninteresting makes whatever is supposed to happen in that space seem like that, too. If any new public school is being built, aesthetics should be included in the budget in order to maximize student happiness and learning capacity. Currently, aesthetics are not usually included in public schools’ budget. The idea is that function is what should matter and everything else that looks nice is simply a luxury. But that should not be the case. Function does not have to mean boring. It cannot be denied that most public schools simply cannot afford to repaint their walls when they may be struggling to buy books, but there are ways to bring a classroom alive on a tight budget: Students can come together to paint murals from paint donated by community members, students can work and learn in community gardens or teachers can have plants in classrooms and put up works of art to make drab walls look fab.

“If I didn’t have my computer I would miss my music, but I think more so I would miss the movie capabilities and emailing and Skyping my parents because that’s the only way I can reach them.”

For more community responses visit www.whitmanpioneer.com/category/opinion

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BACKPAGE

2013

Whitman goes green

Grateful Norovirus apologizes for what it did to Whitman baseball team

s the Whitman Missionaries baseball bus sped back from Caldwell, Idaho like a potato in a slingshot, catcher Mack Harden ‘15 looked behind him and laughed as yet another one of his teammates doubled over and began vomiting. “Back of the bus!” he jeered without mercy, pointing towards the quarantine area the baseball team had created in the back four rows. As expected, his 11 gastroenteritis-stricken teammates raised a salute of middle fingers. Seven minutes later, Harden joined their ranks, clutching his stomach in pain. “Back of the bus!” the back of the bus yelled, and Harden raised a middle-finger salute to the back of the bus. A visibly distressed, gaunt and pale Harden appeared the following morning in the Pioneer media room. No, actually he didn’t, and The Pioneer doesn’t have a media room. He appeared in the Welty Health Center. Well, maybe “appeared” isn’t the right word, because he was sleeping there. He sat up in bed and coughed moistly. “I’ve literally eaten nothing but chewing tobacco and yellow Vitamin Water for two days,” Harden groaned. The Pio asked a clarifying question, as this dietary habit is not unusual for Harden. “Well, usually I have some sunflower seeds too. But I can’t even keep the seeds down.” Harden, like much of the Missionaries baseball team, has suffered from a violent outbreak of the infamous Norovirus. Known also as the “winter vomiting bug,” the Norovirus proliferated without warning and without sympa-

MAR

thy, causing abdominal pain, loose stools, nausea, huge whiffs on hanging curveballs and a deluge of Norovirus-related Twitter posts. “It was chill, though, ‘cause we made a snowman and put all our chews in its mouth,” said French exchange student and third-baseman sophomore Francois Mathieu, speaking about the effects of the Norovirus on the team’s play. The Pioneer caught up with the Norovirus that afternoon in 2-West’s media room. That’s simply not true—2-West doesn’t have a media room either. The Pioneer caught up with the Norovirus that afternoon in the 2-West bathroom. Well, that’s not exactly right, because The Pio didn’t really intend to speak with the Norovirus. The Pioneer caught the Norovirus that afternoon in the 2-West bathroom. The single-stranded RNA non-enveloped member of the Caliciviridae virus family apologized, but expressed gratitude toward Whitman’s newly-thriving baseball program. “I feel really blessed,” said the recently-aerosolized virus from genogroup I, poised to start another outbreak of epidemic gastroenteritis. “That weekend was so much fun. Not every infectious agent gets the chance to build up inside members of Whitman’s baseball team—what an honor! The night I spent in Mack’s stomach was unforgettable. I mean, he’s the catcher on the baseball team!” The virus lamented, however, that its remarkable performance was overshadowed by the fact that Whitman’s baseball team won a game that weekend, ending its losing streak against the College of Idaho.

hitman College has been fighting for the environment for years. In the past month, however, environmental awareness has reached a new high. Students have been trying to help save the trees in every way possible. When asked if Whitman is green enough to compete with other liberal art colleges, President Bridges pointed out many “green” aspects of campus. “We’re definitely pretty green. Ankeny is green 11-anda-half months of the year. Most of the trees are green. The area of Mill Creek where we dump leftover Bon App soup and all of our garbage has a murky, greenish tint to it,” he said to a Pioneer reporter whose face grew progressively greener. As he continued, it became evident that Bridges may be colorblind. “We use a lot of green bricks to build buildings. The tennis courts are all green. Hell, we have green stop signs,” he said confidently. The school has a lot of recycling bins that are green, but “recycling” is a vague term that gets tossed around casually. “We recycle a lot of paper and stuff,” ranted Bridges. “It gets recycled into all sorts of things. Mostly trash, but also paper hats and spit wads. Sometimes if we have too much we burn it to heat Memorial Hall. Those gray stones are horrible insulation.” One of the campus’ most promising environmentally aware additions was the introduction of Dyson hand-dryers to the bathrooms in the library. The air-dryers save fuel

and paper, but are not the perfect substitute for paper towels. “I blew my nose in one once and it broke. The machine. Not my nose. But my nose still tickled. I still think paper towels are better,” said first-year Kim Nelson. Nelson is currently being investigated for destruction of school property after tearing an air-dryer off the wall to clean up a puddle of spilled latte. Even the Greek system has gotten the green bug, and that is not a reference to the plague of the Norovirus. Tau Kappa Epsilon signed a survey to divest in Greek yogurt because, well, we’ll let Chef Daniel Gerry explain. “Greek yogurt is from Greece. Greece is across the Atlantic. We don’t want to waste oil on our food,” said Gerry while double-frying some bacon in its own grease. “We instead invest-

ed in grapefruits. Think about it.” The Beta Theta Pi house has responded by using recycling water bottles as tobacco-spit receptacles. “I shower with this stuff,” said senior Eric Herst, not specifying whether he was referring to the dip spit or Fiji bottled water. Not all students are so certain that the environment is something worth their awareness. “Sometimes I sauna with the door open. It’s like, is that global warming? Maybe, but it is really funny when people walk by,” said Emma Logan, a junior Kappa Kappa Gamma. Other students have focused on positives when it comes to climate change. “I like it when it’s warm. Like summer all year. Global warming sounds awesome,” said junior John Zacharson.

ILLUSTRATION BY JONES

Ten things that will get you weird looks or cause people to question your convictions

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If you think your degree will help you have a career in the field you studied.

If you wear high heels, fur coats, spray-tans and bronzer. Caveat: The fur coat was your grandmother’s or you bought it from a thrift store. If you are in heels and you aren’t going to a function, people will be thinking, “Oh, poor her, she’s succumbed to the pressures of the gender binary and constructions and is subjecting herself because she’s been told it’s beautiful by the media.”

ILLUSTRATION BY LUND

If you supported Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan with pin, poster, shirt and other paraphernalia. If you supported Romney/Ryan here, you are in the minority at Whitman. You may be blamed for perpetuating sexism, stealing rights away from women and ignoring global climate change. We all have the rights to our own opinions, but if you go around displaying your Republicanism, you might have to explain yourself (and you might get tarred and feathered). As the “token Republican” in any given class, you may get asked for the “Republican opinion” on matters.

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If you have purple, blue, green, pink, yellow, orange hair: “Are you doing a gender studies project? Are you in ‘The Tempest?’”

If you admit that you don’t go to the gym, don’t work out, don’t play a sport, don’t do yoga, meditate, climb or any other physical activity and don’t want to and you aren’t Kyle Seasly. Prepare for judgment. I’d suggest you start a coalition to protect each other.

If you love Bon App. We all like to think we could cook more healthy meals with vegetables we picked from our own gardens and eggs from our own chickens, but college students who live off campus eat eggs and quesadillas. No salad bar. No POG.

If you talk about the hefty price of your Patagonia. We like to think we are super utilitarian. We are under the delusion that our clothes are the best because they are comfortable, warm and good for running, scaling mountains and camping. But what the average Whittie owns is not cheap and sometimes

comparably priced with office wear. Birkenstocks, at least one hundred bucks; the fleece, rain shell, polypropylene shirts, running shoes— even more money. It would be stupid to wear Carhartts to an interview at Morgan Stanley, even if you think that they may have you doing hard labor carrying file cabinets. Don’t make the excuse that your office building will be the first attacked during the zombie apocalypse. It won’t.

If you sport Prada, Gucci, Burberry, Juicy, people will wonder why you paid so much for a brand that “means nothing,” that you are trying to display your wealth because that is what will get you more popular: status. At least that is what we have been taught.

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If you don’t like thrift shopping. (And you don’t like Macklemore either!)

If you say that you identify with the capitalist system and intend to make a lot of money when you leave Whitman. “Why would you want to make money when you could live an honest life in the wilderness with those whom you love?”

Canada Crossword ACROSS 1- last name of the current prime minister 3- the only official bilingual province 5- Canada’s biggest trading partner 7- the 2nd major ethnicity behind English 9- the main symbol of Canada, it’s on their flag 10- derogatory name, “America’s ____” DOWN 2- Canada’s national sport 4- the nickname for a major western chain of mountains that goes through both the U.S. and Canada 6- the province known affectionately as the bread basket 8- the continent that explorers were aiming for but found Canada instead

ILLUSTRATION BY SCHUH