Issue 15

THE AMHERST

THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER OF AMHERST COLLEGE SINCE 1868

STUDENT VOLUME CXLIV, ISSUE 15 l WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2015

Women’s Hockey Defeats Williams See Sports Page 9 AMHERSTSTUDENT.AMHERST.EDU

Orientation Revamped for Fall 2015 Elaine Jeon ’17 Managing News Editor

Amherst College’s Robert Frost Library recently won the 2015 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award. The award committee praised Frost for its active collaboration between faculty, library staff and students.

Frost Wins Award for Academic Libraries Jake Pagano ’18 Staff Writer The college’s Robert Frost Library has been awarded the 2015 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award. A division of the American Library Association, the Association of College & Research Libraries, gives awards each year to university, college and community college libraries that it regards to be “outstanding in furthering the education missions of their institutions.” This year, Amherst College’s library, along with those of Purdue University and Santa Fe College, was granted the award.

The award recognizes the efforts of college librarians and staff to create academic libraries that further the educational mission of their parent institutions.

Frost, along with the other libraries, demonstrated “commitment to student learning, digital scholarship and data research services, with a focus on continuous innovation and

engagement with the campus community,” said Mary Ellen K. Davis, the director of the Association of College & Research Libraries.

The award committee’s press release said that Frost “impressed the committee with its transformation to focus on its objectives of teaching students research skills, promoting and enabling universal access to information and creating a new model of academic publishing.” Frost has also been recognized for innovations such as its collaboration with the Information Technology department to collect and preserve digital informational resources.

The committee also noted that Frost facilitates active collaboration between faculty and library staff.

“Frost librarians are truly teaching collaboratively with their faculty,” said Steven Bell, chair of the award committee. Last year, 86 classes visited Frost’s archives and special collections, while librarians taught 221 class ses-

sions. Moreover, several courses at the college are based entirely around exploration of the archives.

The Frost Library is also well-regarded for its “collegial group of staff who are working in concert with each other to have a common vision and a cooperative outcome,” said Bryn Geffert, the librarian of the college. “We pride ourselves on what we think is a pretty collegial culture in the library. Libraries are complex organizations with many different units — Access Services, Research and Instruction, Archives and Special Collections, Technical Services, among others — and they have a tendency to become siloed. We work really hard to have folks from different units in the library working collaboratively.”

Geffert said the award is a recognition of the work done by all library staff members.

“Our library has an extraordinary staff,” Gef-

Continued on Page 3

The college’s orientation committee is currently working on a new orientation schedule for fall 2015 and hopes to shorten Amherst’s nine-day orientation by two days. The committee, made up of 11 students and administrators, has devised a new mission statement for orientation in order to further clarify the week’s purpose. “[The mission statement] allowed us to clarify what the theoretical goals of orientation should be,” said Siraj Sindhu ’17, an AAS senator and member of the committee.

“For example, should orientation prioritize socializing students into the community or academic preparation? Should orientation explicitly engage the whole campus community?

To what extent should mental health and time management come up during orientation?”

The new mission statement emphasizes a need to welcome all students into a dynamic, diverse and supportive community. It also emphasizes collaboration between faculty, staff and students in order to ensure students’ intellectual and personal success.

Perhaps the biggest change to the proposed 2015 orientation would be its shortened timeline. The new orientation is tentatively scheduled to begin on Tuesday instead of Sunday, and thus will be two days shorter than last year’s.

“I think a shortened orientation will provide first-year students with an experience that is slightly less overwhelming in terms of the extent of programs that they will be required to attend,” said Scott Nelson ’18, a committee member and AAS senator.

Last year, the college organized LEAP programs for incoming first-years and transfer students for the first time. LEAP, an acronym for “Learn, Explore, Activate and Participate,” included programs from the past, such as First Year Outdoor Orientation Trips (FOOT) and Community Engagement orientation Trip (CEOT), but also introduced five new programs. First-year and transfer students will still be required to participate in a LEAP program.

Dean of New Students Rick López said that LEAP programs received generally positive feedback last year. He said that the newly introduced Book and Plow Farm program was

Continued on Page 3

Amherst Debate Team Attends World Championships Dan Ahn ’17 Managing News Editors

Two teams and one judge from Amherst’s debate team attended the 35th World Universities Debating Championships over interterm. Seniors David Walchak, Jeremy Rubel, Edgar Casildo, Timothy Yuan and Mary Byrne participated in the championships, which took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Nearly 400 debate teams from around the world competed at the event.

Rubel and Walchak, former presidents of the team, placed 63rd after nine consecutive preliminary rounds, in which teams debated topics such as whether a liberal arts education should be replaced with vocational training in

underprivileged communities, and whether the media should report crimes committed by those with mental illness.

The debate championships were held in the British Parliamentary style.

“Since the British Parliamentary form of debate is slightly different, a lot of our preparation involved practicing that style,” Walchak said. “We attended U.S. tournaments held in the style and had practice debates with the team. The style is a bit more informal, and it took some practice to figure it out.”

The Amherst team finished close to the 48th-place cutoff for the knockout rounds of the tournament.

“I’m really happy with the outcome,” Walchak said. “Of course it would have been

nice to advance to later rounds, but since we didn’t ever expect to be close, it was just nice to have a few exciting rounds toward the end. The rounds get harder as the tournament goes on, which meant we got to see some really great debaters in the last few rounds.“ Rubel said that the debate was a good learning experience.

“At a world tournament, debaters come from all over the world … everyone in the round takes for granted radically different nationally specific realities,” he said.

“Hopefully, over the course of the tournament, I got a little bit better at taking stock of my own cultural assumptions and speaking directly to judges on their own terms.”

Casey McQuillan ’17, one of the co-

presidents of the debate team, said he is optimistic about the team’s future.

“The success of our teams in the world tournament this year sets the bar for future years,” McQuillan said. “Our seniors almost made it into the breakout rounds, and I hope that our team will be able to match that success.”

The team’s other co-president, David Zhang ’17 agreed.

“To go to worlds in their junior and senior years has always been one of the things that Amherst debaters look forward to the most,” Zhang said. “It is an incredibly eye-opening and educational experience. I think the success this year definitely motivates our team members to become better.”

3

News

Amanda Folsom Fresh Faculty

Feb. 2, 2015 - Feb. 8, 2015 >>Feb. 2, 2015 11:25 p.m., South Pleasant St. Officers assisted at the scene of a motor vehicle accident on South Pleasant St. >>Feb. 3, 2015 11:29 a.m., The Octagon An officer responded to an animal complaint. >>Feb. 4, 2015 5:00 p.m., Morris Pratt Dormitory A student reported a harassing phone call. The investigating officer was able to identify the caller and is working with a Florida police department on the matter. >>Feb. 5, 2014 9:43 a.m., Hills Lot An officer investigated a motor vehicle accident. >>Feb. 6, 2015 12:42 a.m., Appleton Dormitory Officers responded to a complaint of a loud group of people in the first floor hallway. About eight students were found eating pizza in the hallway and they were advised of the noise complaint.

12:43 a.m., Stone Dormitory Officers responded to a noise complaint and issued a warning at a third-floor suite.

11:40 p.m., Morris Pratt Dormitory An officer investigated a smoke detector sounding and found it was activated by a hair straightener. >>Feb. 7, 2015 12:00 a.m., Powerhouse Officers were dispatched to the Powerhouse where access to an event was shut down due to capacity concerns.

Approximately seventy people were outside attempting to gain entry.

12:50 a.m., Charles Pratt Dormitory An officer checked on a man on a couch in the first-floor common room. The man was identified as a student, and although he had been drinking, he did not require medical assistance.

1:04 a.m., Pond Dormitory An officer discovered hard alcohol and a registered party in the basement. The alcohol was confiscated and the event was shut down.

1:21 a.m., Powerhouse Officers responded to a fight at a Powerhouse event and spoke to an injured visitor. The person was unable to identify who assaulted him.

2:29 a.m., Seelye House While in Seelye House, an officer detected cigarette smoke and traced it to a second floor room. Upon speaking with the resident, who admitted smoking, the officer noticed a covered smoke detector. The resident was fined $100 for the smoking violation and $100 for tampering with fire equipment. The matter was also referred to Student Affairs.

2:43 a.m., Morris Pratt Dorm Officers responded to a complaint of rowdy people in the first floor common room. No one was found.

3:34 p.m., Off Campus Locations An unauthorized vehicle was towed from College property on Walnut St. 4:14 p.m., James Dormitory An officer responded to a complaint about the odor of marijuana smoke on the second floor. Nothing was discovered.

7:34 p.m., Orr Lot A student reported his car was “keyed.”

10:39 p.m., Pond Dormitory An officer discovered an unauthorized party with alcohol in the basement common room. It was shut down, and the alcohol disposed of. >>Feb. 8, 2015 12:16 a.m., Stone Dormitory Officers and the Fire Department responded to an alarm and found that it activated when someone pulled an alarm station for no apparent reason.

12:31 a.m., Stone Dormitory Officers discovered hard alcohol present at a registered party in violation of the party regulations. The alcohol was disposed of, and the matter was referred to Student Affairs.

1:57 a.m., Lipton House Officers discovered evidence that hard alcohol was available at a registered party in violation of the party regulations. The matter was referred to Student Affairs.

2:07 a.m., Hitchcock House A visitor reported the theft of a grey North Face jacket which was left in the common room during a party. There was $65 cash in a pocket.

3:12 a.m., Seelye House Officers discovered evidence that hard alcohol was available at a registered party in violation of the party regulations. The matter was referred to Student Affairs.

1:19 p.m., Converse Hall Officers responded to a report of a man sleeping on a couch in the lobby. The man, who has no association with the college, was found to have a warrant for his arrest. The man was taken into custody.

2:43 p.m., Amherst College Police A man, who has no association with the college, was issued a written notrespass notice after being found in Converse Hall.

6:13 p.m., Frost Library Officers responded to assist a woman and a male involved in a domestic issue.

Both people are from a neighboring college. Assistance was provided.

6:23 p.m., Cooper House Officers and the Fire Department responded to an alarm and determined that it activated when water leaked into a detector. Facilities was notified.

9:23 p.m., Campus Center Loading Dock An officer investigated a motor vehicle accident.

Department of Mathematics

Associate Professor of Mathematics Amanda Folsom is originally from Boston. She received her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Chicago and went on to obtain her master’s degree and doctorate at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Folsom specializes in number theory, particularly in modular forms and mock modular forms.

Q: How did you know you wanted to be a mathematics professor?

A: I think, for me, it was a bit of a slow evolution. I tested out different majors in college, like many college students do. I tried out classes in computer science, physics, math and other sciences. I felt like I was always leaning that way, but I wasn’t sure that math was the one until I realized that what I really liked about computer science or physics was the logic and the mathematics behind the scenes. I really fell in love with math after I started taking some excellent courses as an undergraduate at the University of Chicago. I had some amazing professors and eventually majored. But even then, I wasn’t quite sure that I wanted to go to graduate school or that I wanted to be a professor. So, I actually tried out an undergraduate math research program after my junior year. I was curious about what math research was all about: What did math research even mean? And I got the experience to see it firsthand. The rest of it is almost history, at that point. I had an amazing experience and decided to apply to graduate school and went to graduate school. I thought a lot about other things, but around the third or fourth year, my internal reflections came to an end. And I decided that yes, I really love teaching, and I love my research. I wanted to teach at the college level and continue my research, so that’s what happened.

Q: What did you do immediately before you became a professor at Amherst?

A: I was a tenure-track assistant professor at Yale in their department of mathematics for four years. So there, in some ways, my job was similar to what it is here, but in some ways, it was a little different. I also taught a variety of undergraduate courses, but also some graduate courses there. I advised a Ph.D. student who is actually graduating with her Ph.D. from Yale this May. And I actively participated in their number theory research seminar, which we do actually also have here at Amherst — a joint program with the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Mount Holyoke, Smith and Hampshire. So that is something I continued here in a different location.

Q: What do you like best about being here at Amherst?

A: I feel such a warm sense of community here. And I mean that with respect to the students, but also with respect to my other colleagues and the faculty — not only the mathematics department, but across campus.

I feel such a sense of community here, and I love that.

Q: What are your specific passions and research interests in your field?

A: I am a number theorist, and in particular, I think about modular forms and related functions. So, what on earth is a modular form?

It’s a function that takes on values in a complex plane, like imaginary numbers. Modular forms are functions that have complex values, in the sense of complex numbers. It looks just like when you’re graphing functions in calculus on a plane, right? The complex plane is exactly like that but the way you pinpoint the actual numbers is slightly different. They

are a little more special than that in that they obey certain symmetry properties, meaning if you evaluate the function at one complex number, it will equal the value of the function at an infinite number of other complex numbers.

So that all may sound a bit abstract, and in some ways it is. I am very much an abstract mathematician, so I often just think about these functions and their deep properties and structures for their own sake. But I’m also particularly interested in modular forms because you can prove theorems in many different areas using modular forms. For example, if you take the number 5 and I could ask you how many different ways can you partition the number 5. By partition, I mean rewrite 5 as a non-increasing sum of other positive integers. So 5, you could write as 5.

You could also write it as 4+1, 3+2, 3+1+1, 2+2+1, 2+1+1+1 or 1+1+1+1+1. If I counted all that correctly, there are seven different ways to partition 5. Studying modular forms can be a very efficient way to study certain properties of integer partitions, believe it or not. The connection may not seem obvious at all. On one hand, you have these funny symmetric complex functions, and on the other hand, you’re talking about numbers. How are these related? But that’s the beauty of modular forms.

Q: What classes are you teaching right now?

A: This semester, I am teaching Math 111, the first semester calculus course. And I’m also teaching Math 350, which is called Groups, Rings and Fields — also known as Abstract Algebra. It’s very much an abstract mathematics course that all math majors here must take.

Q: How do you plan to be an active part of the Amherst community?

A: Well, this is just the beginning of my second semester here. One thing that I am planning is to work with some undergraduate students over the upcoming summer. I’m actually seeking applicants to work with me on an original research project over the summer. Any Amherst undergraduate is eligible to apply, although most of them will probably be math majors or thinking about being math majors. I’m absolutely looking forward to working really closely with a group of students on a research problem related to modular forms and partitions.

Q: What hobbies do you pursue in your spare time?

A: I actually play in an adult women’s recreational soccer league. It’s indoor soccer, and we have games every Sunday night, so that is really fun. I do have a very busy schedule here at Amherst, but the soccer league has no practices. I’m actually a bit bruised up right now from my game. It’s not a big time commitment, and it’s recreational, so it’s not as serious as Amherst sports. I’m also big into music, and I like to go see live music. I’m actually into rock and indie rock. I picked up playing the electric guitar in middle school, so that’s another side hobby.

— Sophie Chung ’17

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

News

3

Orientation Reform Frost Library Continued from Page 1

also very well received, and the committee plans to expand the program so that more students can participate.

The committee also wants an increased emphasis on bystander intervention training. Committee members said that unlike last year, training sessions will be held before LEAP programs, in the hope that students can attend those programs feeling that they can take responsibility for each other as members of a shared community.

Another common discussion revolved around how to bridge what is commonly seen as a divide between athletes and non-athletes.

López said the college was aware that fall season athletes needed to start training early and that practices often conflicted with orientation. He wants to incorporate the voices of both athletes and non-athletes, while having all students be equally invested in orientation.

“We want team members to connect with the team, but before they do that, [we hope that athletes] realize that there are other kinds of communities here,” López said. “A lot of student athletes feel like there is the team and then nothing, which is not true at all.

Hopefully by introducing people to a range of communities, that could allow people to get straight into their teams, while still having other communities that they could connect to in the off-season.”

As a possible solution, the committee may organize new orientation into “blocks” of time.

“We will be creating more specific blocks within the orientation with moments when varsity and club athletes can practice and not worry about squeezing things,” López said. He also said that the schedule will include blocks of free time, which will help students relax

with new friends and not be anxious about always attending some orientation event.

Kari-elle Brown ’15 said more freedom and flexibility during orientation would help give “students more downtime to digest the intense experience that is orientation, as well as make students feel like they were learning about life in the Amherst community without feeling lectured at 24/7.”

Orientation 2015 will still have squad meetings, facilitated by upperclassmen as orientation leaders. López said he thinks there is great value in squads because they are microcosms of the diverse campus, and that the committee is discussing how to sustain relationships built within squads past the first semester of college.

“We don’t want to make it artificial or forceful, but we want to make a space for that,” López said.

Another change is that the “Flash Talks” introduced last year will be taken out of orientation and instead be made available online. Flash Talks were a series of 15-minute talks that provided information about campus resources, such as campus police, IT services and the Counseling Center. Furthermore, student organizations, such as a capella groups and club sports teams, can create flash talk videos as well, giving students previous exposure to the organizations before classes begin.

López said that the committee continues working toward building an orientation based around conversations rather than lectures.

“We are hoping to shift things so that it’s less throwing information at students,” he said. “We want students to feel that they are in control, so that they don’t feel like they are being delivered some sort of program or told what to think.”

Continued from Page 1

fert said. “They’re exceptional in every way: smart, adaptable, selfless, creative and tireless.

I take this award to be as much an ‘excellent library staff ’ award as an ‘excellence in academic libraries award’.”

Students also praised the library staff.

“I’ve always admired how dedicated the research and instruction librarians are to helping students succeed, and that holds for all the library’s staff members,” said Katharine Rudzitis ’15, who serves as a student representative of the Library Committee. “All of the library’s staff has a passion for making Frost an integral part of our college community … and ensuring that students have the tools to

learn and conduct research.”

In order to be considered for the award, schools must submit an application to the ACRL. Colleges are given the opportunity in the application to demonstrate how their library has effectively supported the educational mission of the institution and facilitated collaboration amongst the library’s different departments. Later this spring, the ACRL will send a delegation to the library to present the award along with the $3,000 prize. “We’re hoping to use the money for a celebration.”

Frost will also be honored at the ACRL President’s Program at the American Library Association’s annual conference in San Francisco at the end of June.

Summer Management

Catalyst

Program Introducing non-business majors to the essentials of management A 10-week program designed to provide you with the skills and knowledge you need to stand out in today’s job market.

For more information and to apply:

www.bc.edu/catalyst

Bloomberg Businessweek ranks the Carroll School of Management number 4 in its “Top Undergraduate Business Programs 2014”

Opinion Dangerous Weather Conditions Are Snow Joke Editorial Here’s a scenario every Amherst student is familiar with: You’re sitting at your computer late at night, skimming weather.com and avoiding writing that response paper or studying for that orgo exam tomorrow. Instead, you’re desperately searching for Facebook statuses, Groupme Messages, texts or even Snapchats with a hint of hope that classes will be canceling the next day. Your Hampshire, UMass, Smith and Mount Holyoke friends (and pretty much any college student in the Northeast) have already had class cancelled for the next day. Out of the Five Colleges, Amherst is by far the most cautious about cancelling classes due to inclement weather.

But in avoiding calling snow days for the sake of our intellectual endeavors, Amherst shows its institutional lack of insight and concern for some students.

Last Monday, the administration sent out an email that made it clear that classes were still on for most students, stating, “as academics are the primary function of the college, and we are a residential campus, we only cancel all classes under extreme circumstances such as when the governor of Massachusetts announces a state of emergency.” Amherst only unilaterally cancels classes during supposedly “historic blizzards.” Indeed, by this logic, Amherst takes its academics more seriously than other colleges who cancel classes whenever there are a few inches of snow. Often, when the administration reluctantly allows some professors to cancel class, most students still find themselves having to wake up for their 8:30 a.m. lab.

Yet, as we’ve seen by the snowfall of the past three Mondays, this federal distinction of “emergency” doesn’t mean much to students.

At the dorm level, there are still plenty of students who, either due to a temporary injury or permanent disability, are simply unable to walk to class in heavy snowfall. The administrators are aware of the issue: Every year, they send notes to RCs about particular students, and last year they even received a petition from members of the AAS expressing concern about the problem. In addition, many faculty and staff members faced hazardous road conditions as they tried to drive to work in the snow. Our institutional priorities must be in order: The safety and well-being of our students, faculty and staff should come first, followed by the need for more class time.

A crucial aspect of spring semester for the administration and faculty to remember is that classes meet for 14 weeks as opposed to 13 in the fall. While some science classes admittedly do require the extra time, many of the classes during second semester could easily fit into a 13-week framework. With the Day of Dialogue and an administrative snow day, a lot of fuss has been made about “falling behind,” but it is important to remember that the spring semester has this forgotten cushion. Snow days are nothing new; they happen every January and February in the Pioneer Valley. It’s true that the hours we spend in class are precious, but it’s time that the administration prioritizes health and safety. We should treat snow days as a necessary inconvenience rather than a sacrifice to be avoided at all costs.

Letter to the Editor: Day of Dialogue or Day of “Dialogue?”

To the Amherst community: We were pleased to attend and participate in the Day of Dialogue on Race and Racism which took place on Jan. 23. We thank the students who pushed for the day as well as the administration for its planning and execution. It offered a crucial and rare opportunity for students of color to share their experiences about the everyday forms of racism on this, and many other, college campuses. We understand the desires of many students, staff and faculty for these spaces of dialogue, especially in light of the fact that our herculean workloads prevent us from having the time and energy to share our stories and critically think about the issue of race. However, as President Martin and Provost Uvin both noted, the Day of Dialogue was not enough. Semesterly events like this would be more successful than the past two, which have merely reacted to crises.

That said, the day’s limited spatial and temporal form — eight hours in one building — ensured its inability to succeed in discussing, and ultimately

confronting, racism.

The Day of Dialogue was laden with many of the symbols of oppression that continue to prevent meaningful dialogue about race on this campus.

There was the image of the privileged white male not only hijacking a space for underrepresented students to address campus with lived experiences of racism, but doing so with the alleged intention of finding a space for the politically “underrepresented” right. Panelist Melvin Rogers ‘99 highlighted the need for reciprocated empathy in discussions of race, although the panel as a whole avoided addressing the emotional fatigue of racism. And when they did discuss race, the panelists opted to use jargon, leaving behind many members of the Amherst College community who did not understand words like “neoliberalism,” “colorblindness,” “micro-aggressions” and “post-racism.”

Indeed, the day’s dialogue focused less on racism and more on diversity, a term used ubiquitously by the opening panel.

Embracing, appreciating and recognizing diversity were actions which we all

were told we could do because of the importance of meeting people different from ourselves, of seeing the utility given to us by having others be (and stay) different from us. In this conception of diversity, we relate to each other in terms of our historically preordained roles.

Today, those roles have been determined by, as panelist David Eng noted, neoliberal multiculturalism. Ironically, the panel and group discussions not only fell short but fell flat.

The form of the day reiterated its very critique of neoliberal multiculturalism, which claims that diverse peoples are important insofar as they are useful in the march of global capital. That a panel comprised of minority exemplars in their fields (with very little to no understanding of the unique racial climate of the college) was brought together should not surprise us. Neither should the fact that a disproportionately large number of students of color are obligated by their financial aid packages to spend hours working. If we can employ people of color under the guise of diversity to ensure the economic viability and

public image of the college, we divert attention from racism, sexual assault and, to quote President Martin, “the long history” against which we must work.

Furthermore, the Day of Dialogue itself served as a distraction from the lived experiences of racism on campus; it was a space where affected students, faculty and staff could release just enough anxiety to return to the job productive and happy the next day. Indeed, our biggest critique of the day was perhaps its biggest success from the administrative perspective: the ability to divert our attention from our contribution to these systemic problems. By pressing us to avoid gazing at the overt racism that hits closer to home (e.g. All Lives Matter, annual racial epithets on campus, support of the genocidal mascot) in preference for an abstract “discussion,” we forget about the institution’s culpability in the very systemic racism that it denounces at home and abroad.

Highlighting the limitations of diversity discourse, we call on Amherst to confront its racism, the

ways in which the college’s cultural and institutional norms systematically oppress and subjugate certain populations. We must question whose values we reify through our symbolic and financial decisions.

That there is still a sizable group of students defending our mascot Lord Jeffery Amherst, genocidal colonizer extraordinaire, means that part of the Amherst community still does not take seriously the dehumanization and killing of Native Americans.

That Amherst affirmed its alliance with Israel when the American Studies Association boycotted Israeli academic institutions in December 2013 suggests that we do not object to what Desmond Tutu called the apartheid occurring there. (We also note that Amherst did in fact indirectly divest from South Africa to protest their apartheid.) In that vein, we should begin analyzing Amherst’s investments, to see the extent to which we support, either directly or indirectly, the private prison industry, fossil fuel companies or Israel.

Inside the Amherst

Continued on next page

THE AMHERST

STUDENT

E X E C U T I V E B OA R D Editor-in-Chief Sophie Murguia Executive Adviser Brendan Hsu Managing News Dan Ahn, Sophie Chung, Elaine Jeon Managing Opinion Johnathan Appel, Marie Lambert Managing Arts and Living Marquez Cummings, Gabby Edzie, Evan Paul Managing Sports Lauren Tuiskula S TA F F

Design Editors Gabby Bishop, Megan Do, William Harvey, Sunna Juhn, Chloe Tausk Assistant News Editor Ryan Cenek Assistant Sports Editors Kiana Herold, Jeremy Kesselhaut, Jason Darell, Jason Stein Publishers Emily Ratte, Tia Robinson Photography Editor Olivia Tarantino

Letters Policy The opinion pages of The Amherst Student are intended as an open forum for the Amherst community.

The Student will print letters under 450 words in length if they are submitted to The Student offices in the Campus Center or to the paper’s email account (astudent@amherst.edu) by 12 p.m. on Sunday, after which they will not be accepted.

The editors reserve the right to edit any letters exceeding the 450-word limit or to withhold any letter because of considerations of space or content.

Letters must bear the names of all contributors and a phone number where the author or authors may be reached.

Letters and columns may be edited for clarity and Student style.

Publication Standards The Amherst Student is published weekly except during College vacations. The subscription rate is $75 per year or $40 per semester. Subscription requests and address changes should be sent to: Subscriptions, The Amherst Student Box 1912, Amherst College Amherst, MA 01002-5000 The offices of The Amherst Student are located on the second floor of the Keefe Campus Center, Amherst College. Phone: (413) 542-2304. All contents copyright © 2015 by The Amherst Student, Inc. All rights reserved. The Amherst Student logo is a trademark of The Amherst Student, Inc. Additionally, The Amherst Student does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or age. The views expressed in this publication do not reflect the views of The Amherst Student.

Connect to Us Email: astudent@amherst.edu Twitter: @amherststudent Instagram: @theamherststudent Like The Amherst Student on Facebook

Web Version The Amherst Student is available to read online at amherststudent.amherst.edu.

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

Opinion

5

Students Respond to Criticisms of Day of Dialogue Continued from previous page community itself, we must demand investigations into practices, and their intended or unintended effects, which implicitly value some lives more than others. These, of course, manifest themselves not only through race, but also through class and gender. According to the 2012 senior survey, 10 percent of students worked for pay for 11 or more hours a week, while almost 30 percent of students did not even study that much. About a third of students do not work at all (and some receive sizable allowances from their parents). Of the students that do work, some students’ wages go to pay their tuition, so they work effectively without pay, while others send what they earn back to their families. If we investigate who student workers are, no doubt we would discover that they are disproportionately students of color.

We also must celebrate and expand programs and institutions on campus which demand of us to con-

front and fight racism, power, oppression and marginalization. The MRC, QRC and WGC should expand to bring to campus more speakers, artists and activists to think with and train students at Amherst on these issues. Programs like the Community Engagement Orientation Trip, planned and executed by students, create an egalitarian space for profound dialogue and community creation. More theme houses, perhaps for religious communities, social justice advocates, the LGBTQ community and sustainability proponents, would allow students to develop solidarity with others who share interests and identity.

Finally, we must propose novel ways of tackling the systemic problems at Amherst by confronting the very structures which marginalize student voice. The Association of Amherst Students must redefine its work and mission to mirror the student self-governance that exists at colleges like Haverford. Senators hold no special title over other stu-

dents; they are merely the prostheses we use to represent us. Minutes from committees on which senators sit, such as the Committee on Priority and Resources, the Committee on Education Policy and the College Council, should be made available to all students. With the information from these committees, students will be able to see how seemingly bureaucratic decisions are intertwined in the ways in which this campus values some lives more than others.

The senate must demonstrate the students’ power, by actively advocating for student initiatives, such as forming a Latino/a studies major, hiring more professors of color and professors who study non-Western themes and creating more small, discussion-based courses, while providing assistance for students who struggle with Amherst’s rigorous standards. Further, the AAS should form a student-led committee investigating the intellectual and political viability of the open curriculum and the academic workload. Perhaps re-

quirements that students are intellectually exposed to the issues of power and oppression would help tackle the problems which the Day of Dialogue tried to confront.

These proposals and ideas may appear grandiose, radical or impossible. Yet much of our inability to confront racism comes from our limited political imaginations, our fears of dreaming what must be done in order to liberate ourselves from the forms systemic oppression takes on this campus.

Moderator Danielle Allen, a trustee of the college, noted that these conversations about race are hard. This letter contends that this “dialogue” about race was not hard enough. It challenges us to rethink the Day of Dialogue in a way that neither the panelists nor the facilitators pressed us to. This letter asks, “How are we as individuals and as an institution complicit with the forms of systemic discrimination that we actively denounce?” The answer is simple: more than any individual student, profes-

sor, staff member or the Amherst College administration as a whole, would care to admit and explore.

Ryan Arnold ’15 Jawaun T. Brown ’17 Thais Calderon ’17 Joel Campo ’17 Jesse Chou ’15 Ethan Corey ’15 Dane Engelhart ’16 Hasani Figueroa ’18 Raheem Jackson ’17 Alexander Jiron ’15 Caroline Katba ’15 David Keith ’17 Edward J. Kim ’15 Eva Lau ’18E Andrew Lindsay ’16 Mercedes MacAlpine ’16 Laura Merchant ’15 Juan Gabriel Delgado Montes ’16 Kali Robinson ’17 Samuel Rosenblum ’16 Arthur Roski ’17E Siraj A. Sindhu ’17 Marina Tassi ’17 Brian Z. Zayatz ’18

The Graying of Green: Infusing New Blood into America’s Aging Agricultural Sector Isa Goldberg ’17 Staff Writer In 1974, the average age American farmer was 51.7 years old. Today, after a steady increase over the past 30 years, the average farmer is 58.3 years old. Meanwhile, the number of America’s younger farmers — those below 35 years old — has plummeted from 16 percent in 1982 to a mere 5 percent in 2012. The American agricultural sector continues to age; meanwhile, fewer young folks are flocking to the fields. What is the future of America’s small farms?

Hoping to answer to this question, I spoke to several farmers from the Pioneer Valley.

According to Audrey Barker Plotkin, owner of Simple Gifts Farm in North Amherst, the problem of the dwindling younger farmer population is a financial one.

“It’s not just about acquiring affordable land, which is difficult in itself … it’s [also] about the cost of buying tractors, greenhouses and other equipment ... that’s the major problem,” Plotkin said. “Unless you’ve inherited land from your family, entering the farming industry racks up significant startup costs.”

Farmer Ryan Voiland of Redfire Farm in Montague agreed.

“It’s tough to afford land, if you can even find it,” he said.

Voiland said that the available farmland in the Connecticut River Valley has been shrinking due to housing developments and urban sprawl. “Now, it’s nearly impossible to find contiguous farmland, so we have several farms in Montague and Sunderland equipped with tractors,” he said. “If you look at any larger vegetable operations in the Valley, that’s the reality: All of the farmers are constantly commuting to different farms.”

The Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program (APR) — a state program — has helped resolve the

problem of shrinking farmland. APR buys a farm’s development rights so that when a farmer sells the land, it can only be sold to other farmers who plan to use it for agricultural operations. Housing developments and shopping malls offer the highest compensation for farmland, but since selling land to developments is not an option for APR-protected farms, APR steps in and compensates for the difference.

Nevertheless, for many beginning farmers, the initial return on investment is simply not there. If new farmers have to take out a mortgage to buy the land, or have to rent it along with low food prices, they will not be able to make a living. Without government assistance, growing specialty crops like herbs is the only thing that makes financial sense for startup farm operations.

In fact, specialization within small farms is becoming a major paradigm shift. America’s long-established farms (most of which have been in existence for more than 100 years), which constitute 50 percent of the sector, operate primarily in one of three categories: beef and cattle ranching, fruit and tree nut farming or “other crops” farming (2002 Census of Agricultural Data).

All three of those farming operations require extensive acreage.

In contrast, today’s startup farmers can only afford so much land and machinery. This is where specialization comes into play.

That being said, is it crucial nowadays for small farmers to pivot and specialize in niche products or services? Local farmer Ryan Karb of Many Hands Farm in Amherst seems to think so. “The conventional farms in the area, which greatly outnumber organic farms in number and even more so in acreage but get far less attention, seem to be run by older farmers, I’d guess mostly as old or older than my parents,” Karb said.

“A lot of people my age [30 years old]

and younger are starting niche businesses specializing in less common … or premium-added value products, [like] teas, tonics, herbal stuff, or, like me, are providing services to other farms.”

Many of these smaller farms are operating as models of community-supported agriculture, or CSAs. The first two CSAs were founded in Western Massachusetts in the 1980s.

In this type of business model, consumers fund a small farm’s operations by subscribing to a monthly box of produce for a small fee. In addition, when a CSA farmer encounters a tough growing season, the individuals and families who have bought shares into the CSA help alleviate the fiscal consequences of natural mishaps within small-scale agriculture.

Farmer Peter McLean of Amherst’s Book & Plow Farm spoke to the efficacy and relevancy of the CSA model.

“Last year, 490 billion pounds of food were grown, and one percent came from the CSA. Ten years ago, we had lots of CSAs popping up; now, we’re seeing half the rate of growth,” he said. “If we’ve been doing this for 30 years in this country, where only one percent of our food is grown CSAs, and we’re seeing that fewer and fewer CSAs are being started, do we think that CSAs are going to be the saving grace, or do there need to be other models?

That’s where the farm to institution model comes from.” Book & Plow is one example of the “farm to institution” (FTI) model, advocated by the USDA, in which farms forge networks of reciprocity with schools, government agencies, hospitals and other institutions. The initiative was so successful in Portland, Maine, that doctors are now prescribing vegetables to their patients — both ensuring the health of their patient and encouraging them to visit the local farmer’s market.

For the consumer, CSAs are very much a social experience. It is not unlike visiting Keefe to pick up a package once a month: You run into friends, ask what they got, and maybe may even make a new friend while commiserating over the exorbitant price of your matching Intro Geo textbooks. At CSAs, meaningful relationships are nurtured not only between consumer and farmer, but also between consumer and consumer. McLean attested to the consumer-consumer relationships facilitated by CSAs. “Instead of going to the grocery store and buying a tomato off the shelf that you don’t have any connection to, and to who grew it, you’re now going to a farm, you’re seeing what farmland looks like, and you’re talking to people,” he said.” Now, when you go pick up your tomatoes and broccoli rabe and escarole, you’re going to stand there and ask the person standing next to you, ‘What do you do with this? How do you cook this?’ CSAs help community members talk about their shared experience.”

“In the 10 years I’ve been growing, I’ve mostly noticed growers who are about 10 or 20 years older than me running CSAs, but also some growers who are my age — I’m turning 30 next week,” Karb said.

In order to increase the dwindling number of younger farmers entering the agricultural sector, several legislative reforms must take place.

One important initiative would be to grant new farmers affordable access to farmland, possibly by providing them with low-interest loans to cover startup fees. Another solution would be to have a training program for new farmers, one that teaches them how to employ smart farming practices.

Fortunately, the 2008 Farm Bill, in a direct effort to bring younger farmers into the agricultural sector, made significant progress in both

areas by creating the Office of Advocacy and Outreach. The office provides small and beginning farmers with grants, loans and training in resource management.

It will be critical to expand the Farm Bill and other state and local initiatives aimed at preparing our next generation of food producers.

One such program exists close to our college. According to Karb, there is a “diaspora of farmers coming from early established CSAs, most notably Brookfield Farm, located here in Amherst. Brookfield Farm hosts a program each summer in which farmers learn sustainable farming practices.” McLean and Tobin Porter-Brown of Amherst’s own Book & Plow Farm are successful examples of some of Brookfield’s alumni. Less successful farms, said Karb, don’t seem to have as great success inspiring their employees to start their own offshoot farms.

But policy change can only help those who have already decided to pursue the farming lifestyle. What we really need is a shift in our cultural mindset, from where it is now into one that honors the college graduate who decides to join one of the oldest occupations on Earth.

David Keith ’17 has spent numerous hours working at Book & Plow.

“When I started working at Book & Plow, I considered farming to be a skill that everybody should learn to develop gratitude and an understanding of its necessity, “he said.

“While my primary interests remain in politics and activism, plans always change. Farming is an alternative I could envision that would provide fulfillment, and I think it’s a career everyone should consider … I often daydream about starting a farm in the Middle East — olive oil over everything, after all — so maybe I will pursue that if/when I develop an insurmountable pessimism about changing the world through politics.”

Arts&Living

Images courtesy of Notable Alumni

Seniors Julian Boykins and Andrew Nwachuku manipulate traditional rap and R&B sounds in order to nourish their unique and groundbreaking style.

Notable Alumni: An Amherst Duo’s Pursuit of an Original Sound Gabby Edzie ’17 Arts & Living Managing Editor Two Amherst musicians, Julian Boykins ’15 and Andrew Nwachuku ’15, are trying to realize a dream that lies dormant within essentially every Amherst student. The duo, called Notable Alumni, make music inspired by the idea of greatness. Notable Alumni, are striving to be just that: notable.

Boykins, an economics major from Atlanta, and Nwachuku, a pre-med psychology major from Maryland, met their first year in Charles Pratt, through a shared appreciation for the intricacies of rap music.

The two quickly became friends, and they soon came to share a quirky tradition. The pair were not interested the cheap beer available at the socials, instead gravitating toward the wonders of America’s favorite juice pouch.

Boykins said that they would carry boxes of Capri Sun to the social dormitories, chanting, “ice cold Capri Suns.”

“We had the socials going up,” Boykins said. “It was so corny but people loved it. A few weeks later, people would come up to us and say ‘Oh, you guys are the Capri Sun kids.’”

That was just the beginning of their legacy, which Nwachuku said he “doesn’t ever want to die.”

The first-years quickly began working on song concepts, though they didn’t actually record anything until their sophomore year. They said the work they believe really encompasses their ideology didn’t take off until their junior spring.

Boykins and Nwachuku explained said that Notable Alumni originated because they wanted to surround themselves with peers who rapped, created innovative beats and shared their driven mentality.

“We want to be recognized, not just based on what school we go to; we want to leave a mark,” Nwachuku said.

Notable Alumni’s first release was “Sean Taylor,” a song Nwachuku called their “most dynamic song thus far.” The song, quickly taking over the iPhones of Amherst students, and a variety of notable music blogs, received an impressive 1,000 plays in two days, and 2,000 in a week. The original is a quintessential demonstration of the group’s collaborative process.

“The second hook I sing made it more sing-songy and R&B,” Nwachuku said. “Julian thought that sounded weird with the beat, so I decided I was either going to change the hook or rework the beat.”

They collectively decided to alter to beat to support the R&B vibe of the vocals, and the

result was a sound that is both smooth and hard-hitting.

What renders the group’s sound unique is that there is no one, singular sound, and the sounds that they do utilize are far from familiar. They reject the tendency to maintain one repetitive vibe and have instead chosen to change the texture with each song.

“The three songs we’ve dropped are all different. We want to make a ‘turn up’ song, but we don’t want to get lost in fads. We don’t want to make a song that’s hot just because that’s what’s hot at the time,” Nwachuku said.

“I’m happy ‘Sean Taylor’ was our first release, because it has elements you’re familiar with like the 808 or a snare, but then the way the beat builds is like nothing you’ve ever heard before.”

Notable Alumni hope to create truly original rap music. ”When’s the last time you heard real singing in a rap song where the beat completely switches up to match the type of stuff you’d hear on a R&B album?” Boykins asked.

“We have soft sounds like strings, and then it goes right back to Julian going hard over the beat and with a song like ‘Day One,’ the way we utilized that sample isn’t like anything I’ve ever heard before,” Nwachuku said.

“There’s a difference between most singsong rappers and the rapping Drew does,” Boykins added.

“I’ll have parts of a verse where ill layer it with a harmony out of nowhere. We are very conscious of what’s happening in rap.

And we are very sensitive of making sure to not sound like that and that’s something we take seriously. We want to make sure to be as authentic to us as we can. But at the same time we want to be able to make something that makes everyone move and that’s hard to do, especially out of the gate. It’s easy to make 10 songs we know will work. We have so many songs we won’t drop just because,” Nwachuku said.

Following “Sean Taylor,” Notable Alumni released “Day One,” the track that, although slow to gain listeners thus far, is the one they consider to be their best. “It’s kind of slow because the high hat isn’t really there, but the drums hit and the samples good. I think it’s our catchiest one,” Boykins said.

The most recent track is “Pretend.” The song was actually recorded far before their previous releases, but reflecting the duo’s pursuit of reflection, they weren’t ready to release it until now. Notable Alumni consistently repeats the painstaking process of recording and re-recording, mixing and remixing. In fact, Boykins and Nwachuku do it all.

“The only thing we don’t do is shoot stuff and that’s about to change,” Boykins said. The Amherst musicians hinted at a music video shoot in the near future.

The organic nature of the process is what they say makes their musical pursuit such a feat. Even while operating within the realm of unyielding Amherst demands, the two said they still refuse to cut corners.

“Going to this school makes it hard to get things done music wise,” Nwachuku said.

“We have work. If we went online and got beats already made and just worried about writing, it’d be different. We worry about writing, making the right beat, making sure the beat doesn’t sound like this guy, making sure my verse doesn’t sound like that guy. We care a lot.”

“That’s why it takes forever,” Boykins added.

Notable Alumni’s next release is “Drink in Hand,” which features fellow Amherst musician Louis Read ’16. The song was actually the first one they ever intended to release, but they were not happy with the song until now. They said that the recording process for the new track was especially fun.

The two friends say their talents complement each other well. Nwachuku is known as the one with impressive vocals, while Boykins describes himself as the Kanye West of singing, “There is no reason ever to outsource singing,” Boykins said. “Kanye got infinitely better at singing because he ever let anyone else sing his stuff. So I think that’s what I should do.”

Boykins also plays clarinet and saxophone and can read music, an ability many modern musicians lack.

“I want to be able to actually play some of the stuff that’s on my record,” he said. “I’ll get funky on you real quick.”

When asked about their inspirations, the duo responded, “We try to draw from all great artists, because there’s a reason they’ve touched so many people. Like, I think ‘Fuck Up Some Commas’ by Future is the best song of 2015. There’s a reason why Drake’s songs are always paid attention to. There’s a reason why Kendrick Lamar can make one album and people are still waiting for his next one after three years. Childish Gambino is great too. We’ re similar in the way that we like our songs to build. It’s a dynamic journey not just a song.”

“I look up to Michael Jackson in that way too,” Nwachuku added.

Boykins said that they like music that keeps things “real and simple.”

“That’s something I learned from Julian,” Nwachuku said. “Like I came in freshman year with very lyrical stuff, and Julian said ‘That’s cool, but can you say all that in less?’

I can rhyme words for days, but I want to be able to say a line that resonates with you for a reason you can’t explain, but also that you can.

I want there to be mantras you can ascribe to.

That’s harder to do than make a dope, miracle, spiritual, lyrical thing.”

Notable Alumni recently performed at Cornell, and they have an upcoming performance at Amherst College, with a group called Cypher League that originated at Milton Academy, where Nwachuku attended high school. They are also scheduled to perform at Yale on Feb. 20.

What has allowed the group to be so successful?

“I just believe,” Boykins said “I thought I wasn’t going to cross the stage for high school, but then I believed. Am I going to be a rapper? Yes. Is there a doubt in my mind? No. If you keep that mentality, it’s already been ordained.”

“I have a phrase,” Nwachuku said. “I’m trying to outlast Outkast.”

He explained: “The only way to get to where we want to be is to keep that mindset. I come from a background where my parents don’t want me to do this, so if I’m going to do it I’m going to be the best at it.“ Both said that outside of a lifelong friendship, the best part of the experience thus far has been their consistent improvement.

“We’ve come a long way,” Boykins said.

“Now we’re like, ‘Forget a regular career.’

We’re different than most duos because we have experiences that are different from the norm. I just think we’re different. We’re going for gold.”

Boykins said that he thinks all Amherst students can relate to the “Notable Alumni” mindset.

“If you strive to be as great as you can be its possible you’ll be in that notable alumni list,” Boykins said. “You know — this scientist got the Nobel Prize, this teacher got that award, this writer wrote this book. I think it is a mindset we can all relate, we can all stand behind it. We want to grow, and we want people to be a part of it.”

Boykins also said that he wished Amherst had a more vibrant music scene.

“It’s cool to talk about Drake, but there’s a lot of people at this school making music,” he said. ”I would like to see the school support more musicians coming from their school …

It would be sad if nobody was supporting us in the beginning.”

Arts & Living 7

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

“Better Call Saul” Series Premiere Shows Tremendous Potential Marquez Cummings ’16 Arts & Living Managing Editor When I initially heard the announcement for “Better Call Saul” — a spinoff series of Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould’s epic crime drama, “Breaking Bad” — I had a tidal wave of emotions crash through me.

Part of me was fearful for my beloved series, one that had provided me with the single most rewarding television experience of my life; another part of me believed that this idea would be dead on arrival once production started. Despite this internal struggle, one thing was for sure: I was excited to make the trip back to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Fast forward to two years later as I sat in my bed in absolute dismay — this week’s episode of “The Walking Dead” was a gut-punch to say the least — and I noticed the bump at the bottom of the closing credits; “Better Call Saul” was finally up next.

Let me be perfectly frank: I am probably the most biased reviewer for this series premier. I could not even tell you how many times I have proclaimed “Breaking Bad” to be single greatest show on cable television (“The Wire” and “Game of Thrones” are premium television shows, so do not get me started here people). Despite this caveat to my review, trust me when I make this statement: Gilligan and Gould have once again struck gold with this one. Many seem to expect this series to be pure fanfare; a last love letter to Walter White and Jesse Pinkman before their story dims down to sweet nostalgia and the countless awards begin to collect dust. This isn’t the case however; not only does “Better Call Saul” support itself with the DNA of its predecessor — you could also call it a sequel, as I’ll get to later on — but the first two episodes demonstrate the extent of the universe that Gilligan and Gould have carefully and expertly designed since 2008.

We begin the series with a familiar face in an unfamiliar setting. Soon enough, through a monochromatic montage of close-ups and static shots of food employees preparing pastry dough for a Cinnabon in Omaha, Nebraska, we realize where we are: Saul Goodman’s (played brilliantly by Bob Odenkirk) post-Walter White fate. Clad in an apron and wearing a nametag that reads “Gene,” this new Saul sulks throughout his shift at the chain restaurant, eventually ending his miserable day with a tumbler of

Scotch as he watches reruns of his previous law firm back in New Mexico. Then, in a burst of color and energy, the title card “Better Call Saul” appears across the screen, sending us 15 years before the events that sealed Saul’s fate.

This opening scene and time transition struck me for a number of reasons that range from the technicality of the framing to the construction of cuts, but what floored me the most was the parallel narrative that Gilligan and Gould immediately teased for viewers. It’s like that feeling you get when a really good movie ends and all you can think during the credits is, “What happens next?” Although I could be entirely wrong to assume that future episodes will propel us to the “post-Bad” timeline — during which we can truly see if Saul accepts his new identity as a mundane Cinnabon employee — the potential for this once closed story arc leaves me spinning with expectation. A boy can dream, anyway.

Those who are completely new to the “Breaking Bad” universe (and this is an entirely possible position from which to view “Better Call Saul”) may not find the events of episode one particularly exciting. As a public defender, Saul, called “Jimmy McGill” back in his early days, does some lawyering with little to show for his efforts (you try defending the acts of the three college kids who defiled a biology class cadaver).

Yet, it’s within these scenes of “inaction” where Bob Odenkirk shines as the wily McGill. Throughout the episode, Odenkirk’s energetic delivery takes center stage, a striking balance of comedy and drama that gives us the Saul we remember while revealing an entirely new character in Jimmy, who struggles to balance public service with a desire for fortune. It’s this character dynamic that literally steals the show, which becomes even more clear during episode two when Jimmy finds himself in a tense moral dilemma.

Even though most of us know which path Jimmy elects to follow — let’s call it the “Saul” path — based on “Breaking Bad,” the friction of this dichotomy will undoubtedly take several twists and turns that will leave viewers in plenty of suspense.

Aside from Odenkirk’s performance, which will unquestionably land him with Emmy’s and Golden Globe awards for years to come, the surrounding cast and narrative of “Better Call Saul” teem with a range of riveting characters and the patented pacing that graced “Breaking Bad” for five seasons. Chief

Image courtesy of boomtron.com

Although many will compare the series to “Breaking Bad,” Gilligan and Gould’s extension of the series distinguishes itself as an entirely unique tale. among the new faces to the series is Chuck McGill (played by Michael McKean): Jimmy’s older brother who has come down with a mysterious affliction that has forced him out of his law firm and into reclusion.

The relationship between the brothers becomes the emotional focal point to Jimmy’s moral dilemma; as a straight arrow lawyer, Chuck pushes Jimmy to remain a public defender in order to help those without the means for proper defense before setting out to begin a firm of his own. Although Jimmy clearly respects the integrity of his brother — which becomes put to the test during a montage of Jimmy’s countless courtroom losses in episode two — we can sense the inner Saul lurking beneath the surface of Jimmy’s optimistic countenance.

Then, on the other side of the coin, Gilligan and Gould introduce a favorite villain from “Breaking Bad” in the final moment of episode one: Tuko Salamanca. In a scheme gone wrong, Jimmy literally comes face to face with his future endeavors as Saul Goodman. Chilling as ever, Tuko exhibits the sadistic volatility that pushes Jimmy to the brink of death and

back, allowing the wit and quick thinking of innerSaul to both save our hero and propel him further away from the path that Chuck has set for him. This quickened pace — an almost complete departure from episode one — was a brilliant touch by Gilligan and Gould, who will without question continue to raise the stakes next week as the first conflict of the show materializes.

Although I wish I had a full week to really tease out the many brilliant moments of each premiere episode, the promising beginning to “Better Call Saul” can speak for itself. As you have probably noticed from the many references throughout this article, it becomes difficult to perfectly distance this prequel/sequel from “Breaking Bad”; to do so would be a disservice to the series’ universe. Yet, this series also manages to avoid competing with its predecessor, allowing us to experience how a lowly public defender named Jimmy McGill becomes the ruthless yet comical “criminal” lawyer.

Check out “Better Call Saul” on AMC every Monday at 10 p.m.

“The Other Side” Kicks Off Senior Thesis Season With Ambition Claire Jia ’15 Staff Writer “The Other Side,” written by and starring Pepper Dee ’15 and directed by Ron Bashford, played this weekend in Holden Theater. All three nights were sold out, with dozens of students turned away. Dee’s play is the first of four senior theater and dance theses this semester, and Dee has set the bar high for the three performances to follow.

The set of “The Other Side” is an amalgamation of the two worlds that the play encompasses: that of the real world (the

unnamed protagonist’s bedroom), and the fantastical mountain that he must climb in order to get over the also-unnamed tragedy that has rendered him bedridden for a full 24 hours. A 12-foot tiered platform rises in the background and mountain images are projected on three panes of plexiglass.

Combined with focused lighting, it really does feel as if our hero is climbing. Dee promised that “The Other Side” would be a total sensory experience, and he delivers. The play, with its impressive set, expressive acting and entirely original soundtrack played by a live band, stimulates the audience’s senses in

Image courtesy of Amherst College Theater and Dance Department

“The Other Side” is one of the many thesis projects premiering this semester.

unexpected ways.

The play unfolds with a restless Dee – known only to us as The Guy — on his bed, tossing and turning. His friend (Jamie Sandel) attempts to get him out of bed, but he yells at him to leave. In Sandel’s measured knocks and careful tone, we understand that a tragedy has occurred and that Dee’s character is having trouble coping with the loss. After he has crossed the 24-hour threshold of solitude, he is suddenly awakened by Peanut (Lauren Carter), a Texas Ranger and physical manifestation of a character from his childhood bedtime stories.

Peanut is joined by Slim (David Green), his older, wiser counterpart. They are characters, real and unreal, and their purpose is to help our hero surmount the tragedy. The situation is ridiculous and endearing, unbelievable enough to be completely believable, and the appearance of the two Texas Rangers solicits the appropriately skeptical reaction from Dee. Peanut chases the Guy around, whipping him with a blanket. The three climb a mountain together. Dee bursts into song every few minutes. As a musical illiterate myself, the subtleties of the songs were lost on me, but the musical element of the play certainly amped up Dee’s tragic-hero, boy-next-door charm and the sensorial experience as a whole.

The acting from everyone was fantastic. Dee is a frustrated but sympathetic protagonist.

Carter, jumping on the Guy’s bed clad in a red, white and blue-striped onesie and carrying a milk bottle, is a perfect child.

Peanut is up when the Guy is down, and Slim mediates between the two, shifting from sober to comical within a matter of seconds. Carter and Green are perfect foils and their duet is perhaps the highlight of the play. Sandel and

Dee make an equally in-sync pair as Friend and Guy. The pleading friend dismissive mourner set-up between the two becomes a bit tiresome after the third time, though I suppose that’s what tragedy is: a sadness that just keeps repeating.

Although the metaphor of climbing a mountain is (even Dee admits it) a bit cliché, the best thing about the play is the straightforward and unpitying way it deals with grief. The ambiguity of the play’s unnamed tragedy makes it relatable. It is not necessarily important what happened, but the question of whether or not our hero will be able to set foot outside his room, and get to the other side.

After each scene, “The Voice” (Rebeka Rosales) stands and narrates Dee’s climb up the mountain. The onstage manifestation of Dee himself, Rosales gives the audience insight into the mindset of a mountain climber, while tying together the real and unreal facets of the play. Although her monologues were wellwritten and well-delivered, I thought that The Voice was kind of a shortcut plot device, present only to make up for plot holes and to add in often-unnecessary melodrama and emotional punch. She did give us some helpful mountaineering tips. I kept hoping that the play would drive the metaphor further, but by the end the message didn’t seem to convey more than just — if you’re in a rut, climb your way out of it. For a senior thesis, however, the performance was enough. It was aesthetically beautiful, it was touching, it was well-acted and well-written, and it demonstrated the impressive range of Dee’s and the rest of the cast’s talents. It was an ambitious start to a hopefully illustrious senior thesis season.

Arts & Living 8

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

Predictability and Questionable Acting Taint 2014’s “Jessabelle” Evan Paul ’18 Arts & Living Managing Editor Set in present-day Louisiana, “Jessabelle” tells the story of a young woman, Jessie, who is forced to move from an unnamed place back to her hometown, St. Francis, Louisiana. Once there, Jessie must confront what seems to be an evil spirit that has been waiting for her return for years. Within the first five minutes of director Kevin Greutert’s 2014 horror movie “Jessabelle,” it’s clear that nothing will happen in this film that we haven’t seen before.

A young girl and her fiancé are preparing to move in together. They are driving to what I assume is their new house, laughing and talking, when suddenly a truck smashes into the driver’s side of the car. Fast forward to our main character lying on a hospital bed, learning that not only is she temporarily (how convenient) paralyzed from the waist

down, but also that her fiancé died and she has suffered a miscarriage as a result of the accident. So far, “Jessabelle” hasn’t done anything that many horror movies before it have not done. Unfortunately, the predictability does not stop there. Of course, Jessabelle’s only living relative is her father, from whom she has been estranged for years.

If that wasn’t predictable enough, cue the revelation that her mother has been dead for over a decade after a struggle with cancer that began while she was pregnant with Jessabelle.

Perhaps if “Jessabelle” had not relied on the most generic horror movie tropes to set up its plot, the film could have been at least a little interesting. Regrettably, the director’s decision to give into the horror genre’s overuse of unsurprisingly static-y radios, discovery of lost tapes, rekindled high school romances and sorry excuses for scares soil the film from the start. To make matters worse, the main

Image courtesy of bloody-disgusting.com

Sarah Snook’s (pictured above) is lackluster at best in her role as Jessie, the film’s protagonist.

character, Jessie Laurent, played by Australian actress Sarah Snook, relies on a horrible Southern accent to do her acting for her.

Snook’s terrible accent only makes it harder to listen to her parrot out her horrible dialogue.

How are you supposed to enjoy a film if the title character’s voice grates on your eardrums?

Greutert attempts to make up for the film’s predictability by incorporating a tale of forbidden love between Jessie’s mother Kate (played by Joelle Carter) and an AfricanAmerican member of her mother’s not so shockingly voodoo obsessed church, Moses (played by Vaughan Wilson). It is revealed later in the film that Jessie’s mother had a child before she had Jessie, a child whose father was Moses. Outraged by Kate’s actions, Jessie’s father violently acts out against the small infant and her father. However, this “twist” is not enough to save the film. Newsflash to Greutert: We’ve seen forbidden love and voodoo for centuries now.

One of my biggest issues with the film, however, is not its horrible plot or horrible acting. My issue is with how much potential this film had, and how much that potential was wasted. It seems reasonable to assume that the film’s title, “Jessabelle,” is a direct reference to the biblical figure Jezebel. Much like Jezebel, Jessie’s mother Kate dabbles in an unpopular and non-accepted religion.

Similarly again to Jezebel’s story, the actual Jessabelle in the film dies a horrible death.

At the most basic level, Jezebel and Jessabelle are also both vengeful women who would do anything to get what they want, even if it means killing the innocent.

Most of the film’s potential comes from the thought-provoking way in which it translates the Jezebel story to contemporary times. But why did Kevin Greutert waste any time with Sarah Snook’s character, Jessie? It would have been far more interesting to watch if not

so much time had been spent on Jessie’s relationship with her father and her high school sweetheart Preston (played by Mark Webber). Instead we get scenes detailing the animosity between Jessie and Preston’s wife, and scenes with awkward conversations between Jessie and her father Greutert should have shown us more of what Jessabelle could do besides spew black goop all over everyone and yell at the top of her lungs. (When will this monster cliché ever stop? It’s seriously overdone.) Seriously, why tell us all about how vengeful Jessabelle can be and then leave us waiting for her to actually do something to prove your claim? You’re wasting both our time and yours, Greutert.

Nevertheless, despite its universally horrible reviews (the film received a 25 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes), “Jessabelle” is one of few horrible movies to come out of the Blumhouse Productions production company.

Blumhouse is responsible for the “Paranormal Activity” franchise, the “Insidious” franchise and the “Purge” franchise, as well as the 2014 film “Whiplash” starring Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons, which has received five BAFTA nominations, five Academy Award nominations and won one Golden Globe Award. Hopefully Blumhouse will stay away from churning out films like “Jessabelle” and instead turn back to their more successful franchises and standalone films. It would be a blessing for the production company and viewers alike.

Overall, if you’re looking for a film with even just subtle variations on classic themes in the horror genre, you will not find them within “Jessabelle.” If, however, you want a similar film that avoids clichés, you should probably try out director Mike Flanagan’s 2013 horror film “Oculus,” which stars Karen Gillian and Brenton Thwaites. Or perhaps you could just rewatch Paranormal Activity?

Shonda Gives us a Reason to Thank God it’s Thursday Paola Garcia-Prieto ’18 Contributing Writer You’ve probably encountered the #TGIT hashtag on Twitter, or heard the screams coming from your common room every Thursday night. What is this phenomenon? It is nothing less than the magic of Shonda Rhimes, the creator, writer and executive producer of three incredibly successful ABC prime time shows.

If the name Shonda Rhimes doesn’t ring a bell than the titles “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Scandal” and “How to Get Away With Murder” might.

These shows are so popular that ABC decided to put all three shows back to back in one of the most coveted slots of prime time TV, Thursday night.

Shonda Rhimes Thursdays didn’t start until 2014, when “How to Get Away with Murder” debuted. But Rhimes has been dominating ABC’s primetime ratings for a decade now.

It’s scientifically proven that even if you don’t watch “Grey’s Anatomy,” you know someone who does. “Grey’s Anatomy,” a medical show created by Shonda Rhimes in 2005, is now on its 11th season. Yep, 11. The show has been so successful that it may be medically unsafe for you to try to binge watch it on Netflix at this point.

When she first wrote “Grey’s Anatomy,” Rhimes avoided using physical character

descriptions so that when it came time for casting the process was completely colorblind.

Rhimes didn’t want “Grey’s” to be just another show with a mostly white cast and one token minority, she wanted three-dimensional characters that everyone could relate to regardless of race. Throughout all 11 seasons Rhimes has you falling in love with each and every one of the interns and residents as they fall in and out of love with each other.

The drama is ever present among this group of doctors, and although makes medical people look like sex-crazed workaholics, it also shows the doctors’ humanity. The medical terminology is accurate, and the cases brought in are quite interesting. But if you have any uneasiness about seeing fake blood and guts on a daily basis, this show is probably not for you.

After her success with “Grey’s Anatomy,” Rhimes applied her feminist views and created two more kickass shows about kickass women, “Scandal” and “How to Get Away With Murder”. Rhimes said this was because she wanted to create a show in which women from multiple racial backgrounds were portrayed as real women as opposed to carbon copies of one another.

“Scandal”, currently on its fourth season, stars Kerry Washington, a beautiful AfricanAmerican actress who plays the role of Olivia Pope, Washington’s D.C.’s go-to problem fixer.

Want to be the voice behind The Amherst Student’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages?

She’s a genius at handling any issue faced by a politician or diplomat. She’s a superhero with a white cape, except with one major weakness.

Olivia Pope is in an on-and-off affair with the (married) President of the United States played by actor Tony Goldwyn. Their tumultuous romance, the neverending D.C. scandals and the government conspiracies that arise will have you hooked. This isn’t another White House show where you see the president and his staff in action. It’s a show about the dirty work that may or may not be going on behind the scenes.

If you don’t want to fear the government’s power or have heart problems, then I don’t suggest you binge watch all four suspensefilled seasons on Netflix. Honestly, the show’s fast-paced action has me so stressed I need to remind myself to breathe normally during the commercial breaks. My fellow gladiators know what I’m talking about.

But if medical marvels, government conspiracies and all that drama and sex interweaved isn’t good enough for you, then perhaps I may interest you in Shondaland’s newest drug, “How to Get Away With Murder.”

Starring Academy Award winner Viola Davis, “How to Get Away With Murder” is centered around a law school where Davis’ character, Annalise Keating, is a professor. She’s also an attorney who specializes in — you guessed it — helping people get away with murder.

Be a Social Media Editor!

If you are interested, email: smurguia17@amherst.edu

Working with five students she defends the guilty, while also getting her students entwined in a complicated murder plot. If you can stand putting your morals aside for a few hours, then give this show a chance. My only problem with this show is that Shonda Rhimes is not the writer. Her influence as executive producer is evident, but the characters are not as threedimensional as those in “Grey’s” and “Scandal.”

Still, it may be premature to judge this show, since the first season isn’t even over. It really would only take a day to watch the entire current season of this murder mystery show, so if you have time you should tune in. The lessons might be useful some day. Who knows?

But Shonda Rhimes represents more than just an excuse to procrastinate on work. She is an inspiration to me and to many others. Her work as a black feminist screenwriter has had a huge influence on the media. As prime time TV currently stands, it’s not so easy to find women of color represented in such a human way. Her leading female characters are strong fighters with emotions. This doesn’t make them any less kickass as characters; it simply makes them more human. These characters are women who aren’t too perfect for us to identify with and look up to.

That is why we should thank God it’s Thursday, because real women, of all shapes and colors, are making TV history.

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

Sports

9

Women’s Hockey Earns Two Crucial Victories Over Williams Nell Patterson ’15 Senior Staff Writer The Amherst women’s hockey team continued its dominant season this weekend with two wins over rival Williams. The wins kept Amherst at second place in the highly competitive NESCAC, still trailing behind first place Middlebury. The Jeffs’ in-conference record is an impressive 9-1-2. Their overall record stands 14-2-3. Two different national coaching polls have placed the Jeffs at No. 9 and No. 7 in the country.

Williams entered the weekend ranked just behind Amherst, with a record of 5-3-2. The Ephs’ losses on Friday and Saturday at Orr Rink bumped them down the rankings to fifth in the conference. The NESCAC rankings remain crucial in the upcoming weeks as the regular season comes to a close and home-rink advantage is decided for conference post-season play.

“Our league has gotten so competitive from top to bottom,” head coach Jeff Matthews said.

“With Williams being one of the top teams in our league, defending NESCAC champs and our biggest rival, the challenge was even that much greater this past weekend. We are grateful for coming out on top in both games.”

On Friday night, the Jeffs skated to a 2-0 victory over the Ephs. Senior captain Tori Salmon, also the team’s leading scorer, scored for the Jeffs. Emma Greise ’18 and Caitlyn Ryan ’17 fed Salmon the puck. A few minutes later, Amherst attacked the Williams defense once again. Erin Martin ’16 fired a shot at the Ephs goalie, which rebounded to Brenna Sullivan ’18. Sullivan corralled the rebound and shot the puck to give Amherst a two-goal lead.

Sullivan has been a key component to the Jeffs’ offense all season, as she is often able to find scoring opportunities from many places on the ice. Her nine-goal total this season leaves her tied for second in the category with teammate Emily Flom ’15. Salmon leads the team

with 15 goals.

The first-year commented on her impact performances. “It’s obviously fun to score goals that help my team get the win, but one of the major reasons I am able to score is because of the help from my line mates and the other people on the ice with me,” she said.

The first period ended with the Jeffs up 2-0.

The second period featured spurts of excitement as Williams attempted to fight back. The Ephs had the advantage in shots in the second frame, but the Jeffs’ defense remained staunch.

Goalie Yuna Evans ’17 recorded eight saves during the second period and 34 for the duration of the game. The end of the second period was especially trying, as the Jeffs found themselves in a man-down situation for five minutes.

The penalty extended into the third period, but Williams could not take advantage. The game ended as the first period did, with the Jeffs up 2-0.

With one victory already under their belts, the Jeffs were fired up to send Williams home definitively. On Saturday, unlike the previous matchup, the Jeffs could not find the back of the net early. The first period whisked by with neither team finding good scoring opportunities.

The Jeffs outshot the Ephs in the first period 13-9.

“Offensively, goals are hard to come by in a league like ours, especially when you face a team with a hot goalie,” Matthews said. “With the paces of the games being what they were, there wasn’t a lot of space or time on the ice to be fancy.”

Moving into the second period, the Jeffs wasted little time getting on the board. Ryan fired a shot off of the Williams goalie, which first-year Emma Greise was able to gather and slip into the net. The goal was scored just 35 seconds into the second period. With the 0-0 tie broken, both teams bumped up the pressure.

Ten minutes after Greise’s goal, another firstyear, Alex Toupal, tipped in a shot by Lynndy

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Forward Eileen Harris ’16 has contributed 4 points for the Jeffs.

Smith ’17. The score would remain 2-0 for the rest of the game, securing another Amherst win. Evans proved stalwart once again notching 24 saves in the game.

“Scoring chances were hard to come by, and on many occasions, both goalies were there to make big saves. Overall, we were very happy with our defensive effort,” Matthews said. “This time of year, games are typically low-scoring affairs in our league, especially in big games.”

With Saturday’s win, the Jeffs closed out their series against Williams. “The top moment of the weekend was the fact that the team battled hard for all six periods, which is what it takes to beat a team like Williams twice,” coach Matthews said. “We were very proud of how everyone contributed to the success of our group.

It was a total team effort, both days.”

Additionally, Evans was graced with individual honors for her impressive weekend.

The sophomore goalie was named women’s ice

hockey NESCAC player of the week this past Monday, Feb. 9.

“Yuna played amazing,” classmate Caitlin Ryan remarked. “She definitely kept us in the game and we couldn’t have had such a great weekend without her between the pipes.”

The team effort will need to continue if the Jeffs want to see success in the postseason.

The next two weekends are booked with NESCAC opponents. Amherst will have to win these games to stay atop the NESCAC and earn home-rink advantage for the NESCAC quarterfinals on Saturday, Feb. 28.

“We just have to keep trying to improve and fine tune different parts of our game,” Matthews said. “To win games this time of year, you have to stay healthy and energized, and be focused and in the moment when you step on the ice.”

The Jeffs travel to Trinity this weekend for two games. They return back to Orr Rink on Feb. 28 against Bowdoin.

Men’s Hockey Goes 1-1 on Squash Competes at Weekend Trip to Maine NESCAC Championships Greg Williams ’16 Staff Writer

Kiana Herold ’17 Assistant Editor

courts. The Amherst women return to play Feb. 13-15 at the WCSA Howe Cup.

The men’s ice hockey team had a road trip up to Maine this past weekend to play Colby and Bowdoin at their home rinks. The Jeffs split the two games with a win against the White Mules on Friday and a loss to the Polar Bears on Saturday, both of which were tightly contested match-ups.

Friday night Amherst came out fast and strong as they outshot the hosts 9-3 in the first, despite racking up three penalties in the frame.

First-year David White continued his current hot streak when he found the back of the net for the first score of the game. Topher Flanagan ’16 got the assist, his seventh of the season.

Four minutes later, it was again the purple and white as Conor Brown ’16 scored what would become the game-winner. Flanagan and White recorded the assists for their second points of the game. Danny Vitale ’15 made 22 saves in the win, and the shot total was almost equal for both teams.

“Colby was a hard fought game where we were solid,” head coach Jack Arena said of the Friday night match up. “They played well and limited our opportunities, but we did the same to them. We haven’t had a lot of success in their reink recently, so getting the win was rewarding.”

Saturday afternoon the Jeffs found themselves in Maine again, this time in New Brunswick. Bowdoin was 11-5-3 going into the matchup, and they came out firing. John McGinnis scored the first goal of the game when he beat Vitale on an impressive individual effort while killing a penalty. Bowdoin scored again 10 minutes later to give the Polar Bears a 2-0 lead heading into the next period. Amherst recorded nine shots and had solid chances on each of them, but could not find the back of

Women Women’s squash kicked off the week with a strong start against Mt. Holyoke on Wednesday Feb. 4, winning 8-1. This win propelled them into competition last weekend at the NESCAC championships hosted by Williams.

Saturday, Feb. 6 opened with tough play against Bates resulting in a 6-3 Amherst loss.

Highlights included back and forth play on the fifth court by Ericka Robertson ’16. After falling in the first set the junior battled back to take the second, third and fifth to win the match overall.

Moving into the consolation round, Amherst bounced back defeating Colby 6-3. Haley McAtee ’18 took the third court in five sets, while teammate Tiana Palmer-Poroner ’17 took the fourth court in four sets. Taryn Clary ’16, Meyha Sud ’16, Aggarwal and Johnson swept the sixth through ninth courts.

On Sunday the Jeffs beat Hamilton 6-3. McAtee, Palmer-Poroner and Robertson took the third through fifth courts, while Sud, Aggarwal and Johnson earned the seventh through ninth

Men Friday Feb. 6 the Amherst team faced off against Connecticut College earning an 8-1 win to kick off the NESCAC tournament. The men then advanced to the quarterfinals against rival Williams, falling 6-3 to the host Ephs.

The next match-up of the day was against Wesleyan in the consolation round. Scott DeSantis ’15 on Court No. 2 won his match in five sets. The senior captain dropped the first two sets only to battle back and take the next three to win the match. Fellow captain Max Kardon ’15 also played a drawn-out five set match on the sixth court to earn a win for the Jeffs. Alex Southmayd ’15 and Darian Ehsani ’17 both took home wins on the fifth and eighth courts.

On Sunday Amherst matched up against Bowdoin to fall 5-4. Noah Browne ’16 defeated his opponent in three straight sets on the first court. DeSantis earned a victory on the second court in four sets. On Court No. 5 Ehsani won in four sets while Southmayd took the eighth court.

The team plays on Feb. 20-22 at CSA Teams.

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Junior Conor Brown has amassed 19 points this season. the net.

Amherst’s hard work paid off in the second, though, as the Jeffs managed to tally three goals. Bowdoin took a three-goal lead early on, but then White, Flanagan and Mike Cashman ’15 found the back of the net all in a short sixminute span and were able to tie the game at three. The Bowdoin offense wasn’t finished yet, however, as they were able to score with just seven seconds remaining in the second period to take a 4-3 lead into the third.

The final period proved scoreless, and Bowdoin claimed their sixth NESCAC win of the season when the buzzer rang. Bowdoin held a shot advantage 40-26 in the game, although Amherst had more power play opportunities. Vitale made a whopping 36 saves, but it was not enough in the end. Amherst fell to 14-4-2 for the year, which still leaves them at second in the conference. The road trip will continue next week, as the Jeffs will be competing at Conn. College and Tufts next Friday and Saturday.

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Haley McAtee ’18 earned a 3-1 win out of the No. 3 spot against Hamilton.

10

Sports

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

Men’s Basketball Extends Winning Streak to Five Games Jason Stein ’16 Sports Section Editor The Amherst men’s basketball team built on its winning ways with a strong showing in two road NESCAC games this past week. Amherst came away victorious in both contests, mostly a credit to the team’s stellar shooting. With the wins, the Jeffs now stand at 17-5 overall and 6-3 in the NESCAC, and they sport a five-game winning streak.

A pair of 3-pointers in the opening minute for the Jeffs to kick off Friday’s night game against Connecticut College proved to be a sign of things to come, as Amherst dominated the Camels throughout the contest. The Jeffs started the game on a 19-2 run and drained five 3-pointers in the opening four minutes. Thanks to strong shooting throughout the half, the Jeffs would continue to build their lead.

The Jeffs led at 35-10 less than nine minutes into the game. They managed to push the lead to as many as 27 points, at 50-23, with 3:34 remaining, following a jumper by junior forward and captain Ben Pollack. In the final stretch of the half, the Camels mounted a little bit of a rally to finish before the break on an 8-2 run.

In the first half, the Jeffs’ 52 points came from shooting 48 percent on field goals and 50 percent from 3-point range (12-24 from beyond the arc).

Many of Amherst’s scores from long distance came from junior guard/forward Connor Green, the reigning NESCAC Player of the Week, and guard Jeff Racy ’17. Green scored 16 points in the first half, hitting four 3-pointers, while Racy notched an incredibly efficient 15 points on 5-6 shooting from 3-point range in 11 minutes.

Racy, Green and the Jeffs were not finished, however, as Amherst’s hot shooting continued into the second half. The Jeffs continued to preserve a commanding lead in the second half of play and never looked back.

With 13 minutes remaining, the Camels cut the Jeffs’ lead to 16 points, but that was as close as they would get, as the Jeffs outscored the Camels 34-17 over the final 13 minutes of the game to secure a 94-61 victory.

The sharpshooting of Racy and Green certainly carried the Jeffs on the night, as the duo combined for 54 points. At one point during the second half with about nine minutes remaining, Green and Racy exploded for 11 points in about 90 seconds, as a jumper and 3-pointer by Green was followed by back-to-back three-point shots made by Racy.

Racy hit another five triples in the second half, on 5-8 shooting from long range, to finish with a career-high 30 points and a program record of 10 3-pointers.

“Jeff has always been a lights-out shooter, but now that we’re getting him good shots and his confidence is rising, he is a real threat,” Pollack said. “He rarely misses open threes, and put on an incredible performance the other night.”

Green scored another 8 points in the second half, including hitting two more 3-pointers, to finish with 24 points. Sophomore guard Reid Berman led Amherst’s passing efforts with 11 assists.

As a team, the Jeffs hit 20 3-pointers, accounting for a point total just one shy of the Camels’ overall scoring production. Amherst shot an impressive 45 percent on all field goal attempts and 47 percent on 3-pointers.

Racy’s breakout weekend continued the next day as the Jeffs faced Wesleyan the following afternoon, their second matchup with the Cardinals this season.

While the Jeffs were victorious in front of the home fans earlier on in the season, a road matchup against the Cardinals (who entered play with a key win against Tufts in the week leading up to the game) would prove to be a far more difficult test.

In the first half, the Jeffs appeared to be in control. They built a 19-10 lead midway through the half and grew the lead to 30-19 with about five minutes remaining. However, an 11-2 run by the Cardinals in the final portion of the first half sent the game into halftime with the Jeffs leading by a narrow margin of 32-30.

For the past several games, Amherst has shot the ball particularly well, and they continued to do so against the Cardinals, especially in the second half. As a team, the Jeffs shot 12-27 on field goals and 6-13 from beyond the arc over the final 20 minutes of game action.

Amherst’s strong shooting propelled them over the Cardinals, as the Jeffs outscored Wesleyan 44-29 in the second to finish with a key 76-59 victory.

Green, Racy and first-year guard Jayde Dawson combined for 35 points and six 3-pointers in the second half, as Green scored 14 points, Dawson had 12 and Racy had nine points.

Overall, Green, Dawson and Racy led the offensive production for the Jeffs. Green finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds to earn the double-double. Dawson had 16 points, and Racy posted 12 points on four 3-pointers. In two games this weekend, Racy scored 42 points and hit 14 3-pointers. Sophomore forward David George (9 points) and first-year guard Johnny McCarthy (8 points) were also important offensive contributors against the Cardinals.

In the week ahead, the Jeffs will close out the regular season. Wednesday night, the Jeffs host Lasell at 7 p.m. in LeFrak Gymnasium. For Amherst’s final regular season game, the Jeffs will travel to Middlebury for a key Sunday afternoon matchup against the Panthers at 2 p.m.

“We need to take care of business against Lasell, a team who we should beat but cannot take lightly,” Pollack said. “We also have to finish up strong at Middlebury, which is always a tough place to play. If we beat Middlebury, we can secure a home NESCAC game for ourselves, and that is huge for us.”

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

Jayde Dawson ’18

Megan Robertson ’15

Favorite Team Memory: The senior banquet Favorite Pro Athlete: Chris Paul Dream Job: Owner of a prestigious business Pet Peeve: When people step on my shoes Favorite Vacation Spot: Hawaii Something on Your Bucket List: Sky diving Guilty Pleasure: Re-gifting Favorite Food: Poutine (French dish with consists of fries, gravy and cheese) Favorite Thing About Amherst: Valentine Dining Hall

Favorite Team Memory: Cutting down

How He Earned It: First-year Jayde

the nets in Lefrak Favorite Pro Athlete: Greg Stiemsma Dream Job: Statistician for an NBA or MLB team Pet Peeve: Tardiness Favorite Vacation Spot: California Something on Your Bucket List: Travel to Italy Guilty Pleasure: “Gilmore Girls” Favorite Food: Chocolate Covered Pretzels Favorite Thing About Amherst: The relationships I have been able to make with professors and fellow students

Dawson had a stellar week, aiding the Jeffs

How She Earned It: Since coming back

in wins over Rhode Island College, Conn.

from injury, Megan Robertson ’15 has been a

College and Wesleyan. Dawson contributed

crucial factor in each of the Jeffs’ match-ups

nine points and three assists in the win

this season. The senior made her 200th ca-

over RIC. His standout performance came

reer block this weekend, an accomplishment

against Wesleyan as the guard contributed

that accompanies her 1,000 career points

a career high 16 game points. Dawson has

and 700 career rebounds. She averages an

averaged 7.8 points per game in his first-

impressive 20 minutes per game and also

year campaign, and sports a 38.9 shooting

contributes 8.9 points on average. Robertson

percentage.

was also spotlighted in the NESCAC Friday feature this past week.

Have a passion for sports, stats and writing?

Write for the sports section!

Contact ltuiskula17@amherst.edu to learn more.

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

David George ’17 is averaging 11 points per game this season.

The Amherst Student • February 11, 2015

Sports

How Does Josh Gordon’s Latest Incident Shape the NFL Policy Conversation?

The Darell Deal Jason Darell ’18 Columnist /Assistant Editor This week football fans were shocked by the announcement of yet another drugrelated suspension for Josh Gordon. This is not Gordon’s first, second or even third such suspension overall. So far in his career he has missed 12 games due to substance abuse and one game for violating team rules. While this may not seem like that many games, considering he has only been in the NFL for three seasons, he has effectively missed a quarter of all games for which he would have been eligible. Unfortunately, Gordon’s problems with various substances did not begin once he became a professional. During his time at Baylor, Gordon was twice suspended for marijuana use, the second of which being indefinite.

This last suspension, however, has nothing to do with marijuana. As a result of being charged with DWI after testing .01 over the legal alcohol limit, Gordon was given a zerotolerance alcohol policy. Immediately upon landing in a private plane, Gordon received a message from the NFL mandating an alcohol test. As he had consumed two beers and two drinks during the flight, Gordon knew he would fail, and he did. As a result, the NFL has suspended him for a year at minimum.

There is no question that what Josh Gordon did was wrong. In his first-person letter published on the website Medium, he recognizes as much when he says “I make mistakes — I have made a lot of mistakes.” What is not clear is if these lengthy suspensions are warranted, and whether or not the NFL needs to revamp its disciplinary processes to better reflect the severity of the discretions.

Before this past December, the punishment for a first-time personal conduct offender (including domestic violence) was between two and three games. This is opposed to first-time substance abuse offenders, who received four-game suspensions the majority of the time.

Furthermore, second-time offenders of the drug policy were unfailingly given an eight-game suspension. According to the website FiveThirtyEight, this discrepancy is even reflected in the literature.

While the NFL’s Policy and Program For Substances of Abuse numbers 32 pages, the Personal Conduct Policy is a measly two.

This past December, the NFL finally decided to formally revise their Personal Conduct Policy, which now mandates a six-game suspension for any act that includes “assault, battery, domestic violence, and sexual assault that involves physical force.” Now that the punishment for violence fits the crime, I believe it’s time for the NFL to reevaluate, and reduce their suspensions for substance abuse.

In this day and age, marijuana use is slowly losing the stigma it has carried for the entirety of his modern existence. Scientists have conducted a lot of research that has shown that marijuana is potentially less harmful to long-term health than both cigarettes and alcohol.

Taking an even further step back, why does the NFL even have the ability to monitor athletes’ actions in the offseason? Sure, many employers require drug tests to ensure employee reliability, but how does that factor into a player’s offseason choices?

While I do believe that in-season drug testing should be condoned, I do not think that the NFL should have the right to monitor athletes’ personal lives during the offseason. Smoking marijuana or abusing any drug can and will affect an athlete’s performance during practice and games. NFL teams have a right to a player’s best possible performance

level, and therefore testing them during the season is justified. Once the season ends, however, it’s a whole new situation. If an athlete is maintaining his fitness, and using these drugs only socially, how could there be any long-lasting negative effects?

What is even more appalling about the NFL’s treatment of Gordon, and its drug policy as a whole, is the difference between the players’ and the owners’ treatment. When Jim Irsay, owner of the Indianapolis Colts, was stopped by a police officer last March, he was found intoxicated, and carrying various prescription drugs along with $29,000 in cash. The NFL not only waited almost six months to levy its punishment, but also suspended Irsay for only six games and fined him $500,000.

Josh Gordon, however, was suspended for a full calendar year only six days after his failed drug test. Not only was the suspension levied exponentially faster, Gordon was also given a much stiffer punishment, mostly because of his status as a stage three drug offender. As a stage three offender, Gordon has to be drug tested 10 times a month. In addition to this stringent stipulation, each failed drug test carries a mandatory one-year suspension. Based on this suspension, Irsay should have at least been suspended for a full season, and potentially more. His decision to drive while under the influence of prescription drugs not only was dangerous, but also reflected negatively on the league’s reputation. An owner should be held to a higher standard than the players, not a lower one.

Not only are the NFL’s policies concerning drug use outdated, its testing process is also unreasonable. When Josh Gordon failed a drug test in the spring of last year, only one of his two urine samples was above the threshold, 15ng/mL. For reference, the World Anti-Doping Agency’s threshold is 150ng/mL, exactly 10 times that amount.

Unfortunately, it was Josh Gordon’s first sample, or sample A, that registered as 16 ng/ mL. His second, or B bottle, was under the threshold, at 13.6 ng/mL. If the order of the two had been switched, then the NFL would not have determined that Gordon failed the test, and he would not have been suspended for 10 games of the 2014 NFL season. Even the average of the two tests would have been below 15ng/mL. The NFL eventually did raise the testing limit to 35ng/mL, but this change was too late to invalidate Gordon’s suspension.

While the NFL has made significant strides toward ameliorating these discrepancies, there is much work to be done. First of all, owners and players must be held to at least the same standard when they violate NFL policy. Both represent “the shield” in their personal lives, and must be treated as such. Second of all, player punishments resulting from marijuana use should almost certainly be reduced.

As stated earlier, marijuana is no longer the drug it once was. It’s even legal in two states! Ideally, the NFL should treat marijuana use as it does alcohol use.

Finally, there is Josh Gordon’s situation.

As a stage three substance abuser, Gordon is treated almost worse than a criminal. In his three-year career, Gordon is estimated to have taken upwards of 70 drug tests. It’s time to stop treating recreational drug users like criminals, and instead focus on what really affects athletes’ performance. Given the NFL’s recent track record of effectively dealing with issues, one can only hope that it will take action this time.

11

Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track Compete at Tufts Cupid Challenge Lauren Tuiskula ’17 Managing Sports Editor Men Amherst men’s indoor track and field competed at the Cupid Challenge, hosted

by Tufts this past Saturday, Feb. 9. Amherst placed fifth out of the 20 teams present at the competition.

Coast Guard Academy placed first overall at the event with 91 points, followed by the hosts, Tufts, who came in with 85 total points. Amherst finished with 70 points, being beaten by MIT with 83 and Worcester State University, who had 77.

In the 400-meter dash, David Ingraham ’18 and Jamie Sandel ’17 finished in closely contested fourth and fifth positions, respectively. Ingraham crossed the line at 51.83 while Sandel followed just tenths of seconds behind at 51.86.

The Jeffs also amassed a wealth of second- place finishes on the day.

Brent Harrison ’16 ran the 600-meter in 1:24.54, a performance that earned him second place in the field.

Additionally, Kevin Connors ’17 raced to a 2:33.68 finish in the 1,000-meter, good for another silver for the Jeffs.

Craig Nelson ’18 rounded out the second place finishes for the Jeffs as he finished the mile in 4:22.01.

In longer distance events, Mohamed Hussein ’18 completed the 5,000-meter run with a time of 15.12:91, good for third place in the field.

Amherst’s distance medley team gave the Jeffs their sole first place finish on the day.

The unit consisting of Romey Sklar ’15, Nick Codola ’15, Harrison and Greg Turissini ’15 completed the race with a time of 10:06.16.

“I’d say Tufts marked a turning point in our indoor season in terms of performance,”Sandel said. “Coach Miller and Coach Ned are starting to shift their focus from hard training to race preparation as we head into the post-season, and as a result people are starting to see times seriously dropping.”

The Jeffs return to action with the Valentine Classic, hosted by Boston University, this coming Saturday, Feb. 14. Last year, Amherst fared well at the meet, racing to multiple top three finishes.

“I’m pretty excited about next weekend at Boston University, because BU has some of the best indoor facilities in the nation and we’re ready to take advantage of them,” Sandel added.

Photo courtesy of Amherst Athletics

Senior Romey Sklar ran the first leg of the distance medley relay and the 800-meter run.

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Captain Olivia Tarantino ’15 continues to lead the team as they head into the final stretch of the season.

Women Amherst women’s indoor track and field also traveled to Tufts to participate in the Cupid Challenge. The women raced to an impressive third-place finish in the field of 17.

MIT earned first place on the day with 190 total points. Amherst was just edged by host Tufts who earned 115 points compared to the Jeffs’ 108 points. Little Three rival Wesleyan came in fourth with 65 points and Merrimack trailed far behind in fifth with 36 points.

In the shorter distance events, Karen Blake ’17 took home a first-place finish in the 200 meter dash. Her time was an impressive 26.20. Blake also raced in the 60-meter dash, this time placing in second at a time of 7.86.

Taylor Summers ’16 also raced in the 60 -meter dash, earning fourth place with an 8.05 finish.

In a longer distance race, Cat Lowdon ’17 and Kelli Ellingson ’15 took second and fourth respectively in the one-mile run.

Lowdon finished in 5:20.88, while Ellingson followed just 10 seconds after at 5:30.04.

“It’s great to see everyone reaching their peak performances at this point in the season,” Lowdon said.

First-year Nicky Roberts competed in the 3,000-meter race, finishing third in 10:16.33.

Amherst nearly swept the 5,000-meter race, instead taking the second through fourth places. Savanna Gornisiewicz ’15 led the pack at a time of 17:32,65 while Lizzy Briskin ’15 (17:39.78) and Lexi Sinclair ’16 (17:41.14) finished in third and fourth respectively.

In team relays, Amherst’s 4x200 team earned first place with a time of 1:48.94. The team featured Summers, Louise Atadja ’16, Kiana Herold ’17 and Blake.

Herold continued her winning ways in the high jump, leaping to a 1.65 meter mark to earn first place.

“I’m really happy with our team’s performance this weekend,” Summers said. “It really showed how competitive we can be with the top teams in the NESCAC when we push ourselves.”

“The team pulled off some stellar performances and PRs at Tufts as a result of many hours practicing in the cage,” Lowdon said.

The women will also compete at the Valentine Classic this coming Saturday, Feb. 14.

“I think everyone is looking forward to compete next weekend on a banked track at BU,” Summers said. “I am excited to see how much more we can improve individually and as a team.”

Sports

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Megan Robertson ’15 continues to lead Amherst women’s basketball this season, surpassing the 200 career blocked shots mark last Saturday.

Women’s Basketball Continues to Dominate, Picks Up Two Weekend Wins Over Conn. College and Wesleyan

Ashlyn Heller ’17 Staff Writer

Two Connecticut-based colleges came to LeFrak this past weekend to take on the Amherst women’s basketball team, and two Connecticut-based colleges were sent home with a loss. The Jeffs come out of the weekend with two crucial wins, one against Connecticut College on Friday evening and one against Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon.

Friday evening was a team effort as three Jeffs scored in double digits. Ali Doswell ’17 provided the first spark for Amherst, scoring 8 of her 14 points in the first half. Sophomore

Meredith Doswell and Junior Marley Giddins followed close behind with 12 points each on the game.

While sophomore Elizabeth Malman of Conn. looked to pick up the Camels offensively with 15 points, it would ultimately not be enough. The Jeffs’ offense was supplemented by outstanding rebounding, led by first-year Hannah Hackley’s nine boards. Amherst outrebounded Conn. 50-36, ensuring the home court win.

While Saturday also proved to be a team effort, senior Megan Robertson stole the show as she reached 200 blocked shots total for her career.

This accomplishment is tacked on to the 1,000 points she has already scored and 700 rebounds she has already pulled down in her career. Her incredible play helped to shut down the Cardinals on Saturday as she scored eight points. Giddins lead the scoring with 10 points, pulled down 11 rebounds, and blocked six shots.

Amherst’s defense also highlighted the day, as they prevented every single Wesleyan player from reaching double figures.

The offense also got started early, jumping out to a 37-17 lead heading into the intermission. The second half would prove to be more interesting, but not enough for Wesleyan.

Amherst’s shooting percentages were un-

characteristically low from the floor with 25.4 percent as well as from the 3-point line with 17.4 percent, they overcame this deficit at the foul line, shooting 81.8 percent. The Cardinals’ shooting percentages were even lower across the board and they went home with a loss of 52-33.

The Jeffs are now 20-2 on the year and look to finish out their regular season this week home against Middlebury on Sunday and on the road against Wesleyan again on Tuesday.

As post season tournaments rapidly approach, the team looks to finish strong and end on a high note, as the Jeffs currently stand at third in the NESCAC behind undefeated Tufts and Bowdoin.

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

THU GAME SCHE DULE

Men’s Basketball vs. Lasell, 7 p.m.

FRI

Women’s Squash Women’s Squash Men’s Indoor Track @ WCSA Howe Cup, TBD @ WCSA Howe Cup, TBD and Field @ Valentine Classic, TBD Women’s SwimWomen’s Swimming & Diving ming Women’s Indoor at NESCAC Champion@ NESCAC ChampionTrack and Field ship, TBD ship, TBD @ Valentine Classic, TBD Men’s Hockey Men’s Hockey @ Tufts, 4 p.m @ Conn. College, 7 p.m.

TUES

SUN

SAT

Women’s Hockey @ Trinity, 7:30 p.m

Women’s Squash @ WCSA Howe Cup, TBD Women’s Swimming & Diving at NESCAC Championship, TBD

Men’s Basketball @ Middlebury, 2 p.m.

Women’s Basketball vs. Middlebury, 3 p.m.

Women’s Hockey @ Trinity, 4 p.m

Women’s Basketball @ Wesleyan, 7 p.m.