Issue #96
Fort Lewis College News Magazine
October 11th, 2018
New President Begins Tenure by Engaging with Campus Community
Coo reno othe
Photo
Cooper Hall is closed for the 2018-2019 school year due to scheduled renovations, which forced 184 students to be moved to lounges and other available spaces in the dorms. Photo by Colton Branstetter
In This Issue After the Smoke Clears Mandy Lorenson 3-6
Cooper Hall Renovations Cause Housing Overflow Meritt Drake 7-8
New President Begins Tenure by Engagaing with Campus Community Benjamin Mandile
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Q&A with Root Routledge Max Rodgers
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Entertainment COVER: Stritikus rarely spends time at his desk but needed to check a few emails before the Staff Appreciation Banquet on Sept. 26.
Netflix Review Teal Lehto 12
Photo by Colton Branstetter
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After
the Smoke Clears
416 Fire
416 fire offers educational opportunties for FLC faculty and students
Mandy Lorenson 3
No homes were lost in the 416 Fire despite the fire reaching as close as some people’s back yards. Photo by Colton Branstetter
greater hazard than the fire itself,” he said. When fire burns the vegetation completely, the hillside becomes unstable because there are no longer plants to prevent erosion, Harvey said. When rain came towards the end of the fire, there were no roots to help stop the water from flowing down the hillside, causing severe flood damage to the area, Harvey said.
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he 416 Fire, which broke out 10 miles north of Durango and burned over 55,000 acres, impacted Fort Lewis College in numerous ways. The wildfire broke out on June 1 and subsequently burned over two months, leaving hundreds of people evacuated. However the trouble didn’t stop when the fire was fully contained. The flooding that came after the fire is the most concerning, said Jon Harvey, professor of geosciences. “I think of the flooding and the mudslides and debris flow as a
In the places where the roots are no longer functioning the way they are supposed to, the water can run free, picking up debris and other material as it makes its way through the burn area, he said.
Early Signs of Trouble - - A dry winter led to perfect conditions for a wildfire, said Kim Hannula, professor of geosciences. It was dry in the months of May and June and the little snow that was there melted early, Hannula said. The multiple fires that ignited in Southwest Colorado before the 416 Fire were signs that the fire season was starting, Hannula said. The Missionary Ridge Fire in
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The view of the 416 Fire smoke from campus. The college prepared to host firefighters who came in to fight the blaze. Photo by Colton Branstetter
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2002 is comparable to the 416 Fire because they both broke out after dry winters, Hannula said. During the years of both fires, the region was in a drought which caused the vegetation to be drier, she said.
Professor Involvement - - Although school was out of session for the summer, there were still some professors on campus working in relation to the fire.
independent study this semester who are using satellite images to construct maps and see the severity of the fire, Campbell said. The geoscience department is also reconstructing curriculum to allow students opportunities for field trips that would provide hands-on learning to see the impact of the fire, Harvey said.
Campus Impact - - -
“The 416 Fire presented a lot of interesting research opportunities for students and faculty alike,” said Mickey Campbell, a geosciences professor.
FLC is designated as an evacuation center for the community, along with Escalante Middle School and Durango High School, as part of an agreement with the
Campbell created an evacuation map for the fire officials to distribute to the public.
“I started thinking about what are
Officials wanted a location where people could go get accurate information, so when Campbell came to the fire officials team asking how he could help, they were more than willing to allow him to, Campbell said. “When I did notice and hear about the 416 Fire, right away I started thinking about what are the types of things I can do,” Campbell said, “and can this be a topic of research, and can I lend my skills to the county, or forest services, or to whoever to kind of help them out.”
city, said Hilary Brenneman, assistant director for Conference Services. FLC responded quickly, preparing the Student Life Center and available housing as an evacuation center, Brenneman said. On June 8 the college started to prepare the Centennial Apartments to house firefighters. However the campus never ended up hosting the firefighters because they were stationed closer to the fire, Brenneman said. The city of Durango closed its open spaces because of high fire danger, which included the Skysteps and other trails around campus.
the types of things I can do, and can this be a topic of research, and can I lend my skills to the county, or forest services, or to whoever.
Mickey Campbell,
“
geosciences professor
One challenge Campbell faced while creating this map was keeping it updated day-to-day, he said. There were also instances where there were miscommunications between sources and information was posted hours before officials wanted the information publicly released, he said. The Geographic Information System program will be looking at the maps Campbell created and will provide students the opportunity to use real world applications as part of their certification, he said. There are two students who are working in the program as an
The 416 Fire caused smoke-filled evenings in Durango. The fire burned for two months and stretched over 55, 000 acres.
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Cooper Hall Renovations Cause
Housing Overflow Meritt Drake
S
ome residents in on-campus housing have been placed in rooms not typically used for housing, like lounges and study rooms, due to overbooking. Cooper Hall has been closed for renovations for the 2018-2019 school year, resulting in the shortage. Student Housing and Conference Services has placed students in rooms that would be similar in size to a traditional double occupancy room, said Margaret Watts, associate director of student housing. The renovations of Cooper Hall, which entered the planning phase in June 2017, were always scheduled
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to occur during the 2018-2019 school year, said James Estelle, assistant director of facilities and overseer of the renovations. The project is too big to be done during the summer, Estelle said. The work being done involves changing the HVAC systems, plumbing, insulations and updating finishes and floorings, he said. “Fixing any one thing at once would be hugely expensive,” Estelle said. “Many things are still in working shape, but we wanted to take the opportunity to upgrade it all at once.”
HVAC
HVAC is short for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning. HVAC is most often used to depict the whole heating and cooling system consisting of the duct work, air filters, humidification controls and registers www.serviceexperts.com
Closing Cooper resulted in a shortage of 184 beds. “Being short on housing space is not new to colleges or housing,” Watts said. Housing uses predictive models that measure how many applications come in along with what the current occupancy is at to determine how much space they have available, she said. “This year there were a lot of people applying later in the year which threw off what we were expecting,” Watts said. Housing notified the students who were put in the nontraditional rooms a couple of weeks before they moved in, Watts said. In West Hall there are six students living in converted lounges and other students living in triples which are not normally filled, said Maddie Bellew, resident director of West Hall.
These students use restrooms located in other residents’ suites down the hall from the lounges, said Bellew. “We framed it as a disconnected suite,” said Bellew. There is less space available in housing this year, Watts said. Room changes are still being offered to those who want to change rooms and to those living in the lounges who would like to move to a traditional room, but it has been harder to fulfill room change requests than in years past, she said. There are also fewer public lounge spaces available in the affected halls this year. Because of the lack of lounge spaces, certain halls did not have their lounges converted because it would make more of an impact on that hall’s community, Watts said. The renovations are expected to be completed in August 2019, Estelle said.
“this year there
were a lot of people applying later in the year which threw off what we were expecting.” Margaret Watts,
associate director of student housing
This is a developing story. As of press time, we are still gathering student perspectives. Check out theindyonline.com for further updates on this issue.
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New President Begins Tenure by Engaging with Campus Community By Benjamin Mandile
“I think we’re already trying to make sure that people know about the school, some of the goofy things that I’ve done like the Skylar video.” Tom Stritikus
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Fort Lewis College President
om Stritikus, the new president of Fort Lewis College, wants to make students a priority in his work to ensure their success. People around campus, including student and faculty leaders, say they feel that he is open to listening and understanding the campus community and that they are excited to see what happens during his tenure.
President Stritikus and Provost Jesse Peters discuss long-term stratgic enorllment before the Staff Appreciation Banquet
The President’s Vision The first goal Stritikus had when he arrived at FLC was to learn and understand the different perspectives of the institution, he said. “We want to make sure everything we are doing really is serving students before they come to FLC, ensuring there is an inclusive and effective community while they are here and that they are successful going off and doing what they want to do when they leave,” he said. Through discussions with students, the president was exposed to the diverse community on campus, he said.
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Photo by Colton Branstetter
in February, he said. To improve retention, FLC needs to look at academic supports, financial barriers, advising services and its academic standards to make sure students are receiving the support they need, Stritikus said. The institution is also looking at recruitment, Stritikus said.
Having students come to FLC and succeed is a collective responsibility of the institution, he said.
“I think we’re already trying to make sure that people know about the school, some of the goofy things that I’ve done like the Skylar video,” he said.
The administration is planning on spending the fall semester forming a plan to increase the retention rate of FLC, Stritikus said. A strategic plan will be put together and likely voted on by the Board of Trustees
FLC is also reaching out to college counselors at high schools, going to receptions and reaching out to local superintendents, he said.
“My sense is if we can get people to campus, really tell our story clearly, that we will address a good chunk of our enrollment woes, because this is an amazing place,” Stritikus said.
By being transparent, avenues are created for ideas from the larger community to be incorporated into decisions Stritikus will make as president, Stritikus said.
Communication and Transparency During the beginning of the semester, Stritikus went around campus on a listening tour to hear the voices of the Fort Lewis College community which included faculty, students and staff. Stritikus talked with about 30 faculty, about 30 staff members and many RSOs on campus as well as having informal conversations with community members on campus, Stritikus said. “It’s fun,” he said. “To be honest with you, every time I go and have a conversation with a student group, I get asked a question that’s really difficult, that really pushes me as a leader, and you want to grow as a leader, and the students are why we are here.” FLC student body president Chance Salway said that Stritikus is making an effort to receive student input. “He’s really making that attempt to engage directly with the students,” Salway said. “He’s reached out to multiple student organizations, and ASFLC is really just another one of them. However, he wants to see, he wants to be able to accumulate that info from all different sides of campus so that many student voices are heard.” The institution is going to form a process, led by the provost, to receive student, faculty and staff input about the future strategic plan of the college. Stritikus hopes to have a proposal to the Board of Trustees at their February meeting, he said. Stritikus made it clear to the Board of Trustees that he wanted to have complete understanding and hold the knowledge required to make informed decisions, Board of Trustees member Steven Short said. There are already community building ideas being implemented, Salway said. At ASFLC, increasing school spirit is a goal for the year, he said. Stritikus is also engaging with faculty government. He told the Faculty Senate that he is accessible both at meetings and inbetween meetings, Faculty Senate President Michael Martin said. “Tom offered, and we have accepted to have him come once a month to do a little, short, president’s report,” Martin said. “So he’ll come to Faculty Senate at the very beginning, just kind of give us an update of what’s going on, and field some Q&A.”
Stritikus speaks during the Staff Appreciation Banquet on Sept. 26. Faculty members say Stritikus brings a noticable change to the college.
Photo by Colton Branstetter
The Search Process
Stritikus was named the new president of FLC in April after a search process that attracted more than 100 applicants, Board of Trustees member Steven Short said. The Board of Trustees chose Stritikus for his vision, the projection of strategic opportunities and his background knowledge in higher education and administration, Short said. There were three faculty members and two students who served on the presidential search committee.
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Q & A with Root Routledge Story By Max Rodgers
Q: How long did you attend classes at FLC?
Root Routledge is a Durango resident who has audited eight different classes at Fort Lewis College from 2012-15. A class audit is when a resident who isn’t registered for classes sits in on lectures and keeps up with the readings, but isn’t graded. He received a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Washington State University in 1968; a master’s in Statistics from Colorado State University in 1976; a master’s of Business Administration from the University of Montana in 1984; and a doctorate in Industrial Engineering from Oregon State University in 1991. The Independent sat down with Routledge for a Q & A regarding his experiences.
Q: How long have you lived in the Durango area? A: I landed in Bayfield in 1994 and lived in Bayfield for 14 years. Most of what I was doing was in Durango, especially when I was coming to the college and stuff, with an hour-round trip. So eventually I discovered this house in Durango and ended up buying it and it’s a sweet ten minute walk to town.
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A: I last attended lectures in 2015. And I actually audited classes, where I didn’t do any assignments or tests or get a final grade, but I attended all the lectures and read all the articles and books for my own knowledge. I was there for a three-year period from 2012 to 2015. Sitting in some classes is pretty fun, and I love the millennial generation. I would be in college for four years, get a degree and go out and work for another four or five years and go back to college; it was always fun. So I was always close with the younger generations because I was never really far from them.
Q: What attracts you to higher education? A: First of all, intellectual curiosity. I love to learn. I’ve done a bunch of stuff on my own from climate research and writing articles to running for congress, so I’m engaged in the community and what’s going on in the nation. But in the case of college, I like young folks and I like students and it’s fun to sit in classes and participate.
Q: You ran for a representative position in the Colorado General Assembly in 2016. Do you have any future political aspirations? A: I actually ran in 2018 as well. The platform I was running on had the four main points of a healthy democracy, a healthy environment, a healthy population and a healthy economy. If we can just take care of these issues, we can completely fix all of our national problems and fix everything else. Like if we
don’t put a price on carbon, our planet is toast. There is no coming back from that. If we don’t address those problems first, nothing else will matter because the planet will no longer be recognizable as we see it today. And we are losing our democracy fast. We have this charade in our political system right now that is so gerrymandered and so polluted with money that if we don’t fix it now, it will never be fixed.
“Before you get in a hurry to climb the ladder you want to make sure it is leaning against the right wall.” - Root Routedge Q: What advice would you
give nontraditional students who are attending or considering attending classes? Any advice for the FLC student body as a whole?
A: To me, it’s a life journey, as opposed to you’re trying to get somewhere and you’re there. So I encourage students to not be in a rush in selecting a major .You don’t know or aren’t sure what you want to study? Own it. There are so many general studies classes that you have to take anyway, that you should check things out and explore stuff. You may stumble across something you never knew about that may excite you. The other thing I would say is that there is no race. If there is a race, what’s the finish line? Before you get in a hurry to climb the ladder you want to make sure it is leaning against the right wall. If you’re going to spend eight years working up to middle management and once you get there and find out you hate everything about what you are doing, you should have given more thought to what you want.
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Netflix Review Teal Lehto
To All the Boys I’ve Loved
A+
This movie is a total banger. A 17-year-old girl named Lara Jean is subjected to a number of awkward encounters when letters she wrote to each of her childhood crushes are accidentally delivered to their recipients. This movie encompasses a concept many young women will find relatable: how a girl’s adolescent experiences and search for love can be shaped by the innate need to impress her peers and gain followers on social media. This may not be the best movie for a house of bros however, it’s the perfect chick-flick to watch with ya gurlz while you all totally ignore it to scroll through Instagram.
This show starts off on a great foot! It stars Debbie Ryan, who we can all remember from our preteen years watching cheesy Disney Channel shows such as “Jessie!” and “The Suite Life on Deck.” Ryan plays a teenager who is quite overweight and has significant self confidence issues as a result, but quickly loses a shocking amount of weight in a brief time period due to breaking her jaw. She becomes a beauty pageant contestant and seeks revenge on anyone who scorned her before her transformation. Besides the obvious fact that the show tries to make humor out of an issue that is very real for many people, they also chose to cast an actress that has never once been “plus size.” Regardless, I stuck with it until episode nine (the remote was all the way across the room, ya know?) but then I had to bail when they began performing an exorcism on Ryan’s character. Don’t bother watching this show unless you really just want to look at Debbie Ryan’s perfect hair the whole time.
Insatiable
“The Twilight Zone” is a familiar household name, so I highly doubt many of our readers have never experienced its eerie vibe. “The Twilight Zone” is the OG “Black Mirror.” So like “Black Mirror,” every episode features a totally new (and totally creepy) plotline and a different cast. This show has hundreds of episodes to choose from, which makes it a great throwback for your Thursday viewing pleasure. This show is only given an A- instead of A+ because all episodes are lacking color, which is an eyesore for many millennial viewers.
The Twilight Zone
A-
August Rush is a slow and unengaging film. It’s all about this weird, nerdy little orphan that plays piano all the time and is constantly searching for his family. This description does not do justice to the terrible acting and long, drawn-out script that this movie forces its viewers to endure. To be honest, I saw this movie in theaters when it came out and I hated it then too, so maybe I’m a bit biased. In any event, I do not recommend watching this movie.
C-
August Rush
D
For more Netflix reviews, check out:
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