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In This Issue
March 1, 2011
Staff EDITOR IN CHIEF Andrew Sheeler editor@uafsunstar.com (907) 474-5078 LAYOUT EDITOR Heather Bryant layout@uafsunstar.com (907) 474-6039
The Sun Star Volume XXX Number 20 March 1, 2011 The Sun Star’s mission is to provide a voice for the UAF campus and be a written record where news, people’s opinions, and events (whether extraordinary or ordinary) are expressed honestly and fairly. EDITORIAL OFFICES 101G Wood Center P.O. Box 756640 Fairbanks, AK 99775 Tel: (907) 474-6039 Ads Dept: (907) 474-7540 Fax: (907) 474-5508 www.uafsunstar.com
COPY EDITOR Rebecca Coleman MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Jeremy Smith web@uafsunstar.com AD MANAGER Alex Kinn fyads@uaf.edu (907) 474-7540 DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Daniel Thoman distribution@uafsunstar.com ASSISTANT DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Ben Deering REPORTERS Kelsey Gobroski Elika Roohi Amber Sandlin Jeremia Schrock COLUMNISTS JR Ancheta Jamie Hazlett Jeremia Schrock PHOTOGRAPHERS JR Ancheta Dillon Ball ADVISOR Lynne Snifka
The UAF Nanook Hockey Team poses with the Governor’s Cup trophy after defeating the UAA Seawolves in shootout to take the title. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/ Sun Star.
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The Sun Star
This Week Politics West Ridge A&E News Sports Campus Life Perspectives Editorial A busy week in national and world news and three new entries in to the blotter.
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Nookraker explores majors that should and shouldn’t be and we recap this week’s ASUAF senate session.
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An Ice Age child challenges much of what we know about ancient Alaska history plus a week full of other major scientific news.
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UAF graduate Chinonye Chukwu comes back to make a movie and the week of entertainment that was.
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An app for UAF, journalism students embed with the Strykers down in Cali., and why UAF’s power plant is starting to fail.
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UAF brings the Governor’s Cup home for another 98 year and a recap of game results.
The Community and Technical College gets downright “Cosmo”politan.
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Weekend Wanderlust concludes the Memorabilia Mishmash series and Random Errors brings you 14 another column dedicated to technology and modern life.
Leaky roofs. Nasty water. Asbestos. It’s time for the 15 Legislature pay for maintenance.
This Week
www.uafsunstar.com Domestic violence
Towing services end badly
A boyfriend and girlfriend got into a physical altercation on Saturday, Feb. 19. Although Alaska state law says if a domestic violence is called, one person must be taken to jail, the district attorney directed that no one be arrested. Both people had minor physical injuries that required photos to be taken and were removed from each other’s presence for the night.
One truck was trying to tow another to the Water Wagon to get it out of traffic since it wouldn’t run. During contact with the parties involved, an officer smelled marijuana. During questioning of one of passengers, a 24-year-old woman admitted to having marijuana and gave it to the officer. She was issued a summons to appear in court for MICS 6. The driver of the vehicle, a 25-yearold woman, was on parole for a felony and part of her conditions included no drugs and no association with persons who have drugs. She admitted to knowing about the marijuana and was arrested for violating her release conditions.
Drunken Wickersham Amber Sandlin Sun Star Reporter All persons referred to in the blotter are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Long nights
A man was found shivering and shaking with his pants unzipped in the main entrance of Wickersham Hall on Sunday, Feb. 20. The man was barred from Wickersham previously due to other alcohol related events. He was transported to FCC to the drunk tank and arrested for criminal trespass.
No weekends off
Stressful deadlines Angry letters
One day, this could all be yours…
March 1, 2011
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News Briefs
Compiled by Amber Sandlin Sun Star Reporter
Gaddafi’s last stand Col. Muammar al-Gaddafi’s roughly 40-year hold on the north African nation of Libya is rapidly dissolving. Protesters seized control of the city of Kufra in the southeast of the country, and the turmoil has spread to the capital of Tripoli. On Monday, Feb. 21, Ali El-Assawi, the Libyan ambassador to the U.S. resigned in protest of Gaddafi’s actions, including ordering fighter pilots to target the protesters. -New York Times
American hostages murdered by pirates Pirates off the coast of East Africa shot and killed four American hostages on Tuesday Feb. 22, after negotiations for the hostages’ release fell apart. Navy SEALs took control of the ship, killed two of the pirates and captured 15 more. After taking control of the ship, SEALs found two more dead pirates, evidence that the hostage-takers had turned on one another. - yourdailynewsfix.com
Apply online at www.uakjobs.com to be the next Sun Star Editor-in-Chief. Posting #0061414
New Zealand earthquake “Mommy, I got buried” was the first of many texts sent by a young woman trapped in the rubble of her college building on Tuesday Feb. 22, when a 6.3 magnitude quake hit Christchurch, New Zealand. With hundreds of people missing within the first few hours, more than 2,500 were injured. The current death toll has risen to 113. - MSNBC
Toyota recall On Thursday, Feb. 24, Toyota recalled more than 2 million vehicles due to a sudden-acceleration problem where the gas pedal became trapped in the floor mat. The problem has sparked around 3,000 complaints and dozens of lawsuits. - MinnPost
Obama will no longer defend DOMA Attorney General Eric Holder announced on Wednesday, Feb. 23, that the Obama Administration will no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act, a law passed in 1996 that defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman, against challenges to its constitutionality. “I have been to this point unwilling to sign on to same-sex marriage primarily because of my understandings of the traditional definitions of marriage,” Obama said, “Attitudes evolve, including mine.” - Washington Post
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Politics
March 1, 2011
ASUAF Weekly Update
Nookraker The apocalypse, SB 23 and the Art of Maiming Jeremia Schrock Sun Star Reporter Getting something changed at the university level can be a grind. It took the better part of three years for UAF to institute a film major and now there’s a good chance the program won’t begin accepting students until Fall 2012. Just in time for the apocalypse as foretold by the Mayan calendar. The new program (approved by the Board of Regents on Feb. 18) still needs to be developed, then reviewed and approved the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), the body responsible for accrediting the colleges in the UA system. For Chancellor Rogers, the major “is an example of how we can respond to a specific workforce need and focus an existing program to better serve our students.” The state and the university are making a concerted effort to help diversify Alaska’s economy by investing in cinema. Just look at SB 23, which, if it passes the State Legislature, will extend the state’s current film tax credit program for an additional 10 years, to 2023. Before the regents’ decision to move forward with the new major, no infrastructure existed to help Alaskans develop their cinematic muscles. With that in mind, I asked around campus to see what other programs and classes students would like to see added – or cut. The list was intriguing and, at times, brilliant, funny and surprising. In the perfect world of those polled, UAF would expand its foreign languages department to allow undergraduate degrees in Chinese and Arabic. Currently, UAF offers two elementary and two intermediate classes in Chinese and two introductory Arabic classes taught “as demand warrants.” In addition to languages, liberal arts students would like to see expansions in justice (to a doctorate), sociology (to a master’s) and women and gender studies (to a bachelor’s). In the sciences, students would like web development classes become a part of the computer sciences program. They’d also like to declare themselves majors in
The Sun Star
botany and paleontology. Speaking of paleontology, UAF already has the world’s foremost collection of polar dinosaurs and some excellent faculty members (Patrick Druckenmiller and Sarah Fowell among them) at its disposal. If there is one thing almost everybody living in a post “Jurassic Park” America loves to read about and see, it’s dinosaurs. If there was ever a way to attract people to the sciences at UAF (and to inspire charitable contributions to the university) it’s to make everything UAF does just a little more about dinosaurs. While there are plenty of courses and programs people want to see added, there are several that students wish to see axed. As far as programs go, the first that would be given over to the guillotine is communications. Several people who answered the survey felt that while communications is important, it doesn’t warrant its own program. Another program that inspired similar feelings was (and it hurts me to write because it’s my own minor) philosophy. Respondents felt that philosophy lacks practical value. Two classes that were met with equal disdain were Library Science 100X and Art/Mus/Theater 200X. On the flip side, two students were more then ready to begin taking Underwater Basket Weaving 100X and the Art of Maiming 201. I have a pretty good feeling that those classes would be both lucrative for the university, as well as totally awesome.
Jeremia gives his opinion on university, state and national issues in the Nookraker: a weekly political column which tackles issues relevant to Nanooks both at home and abroad.
Jeremia Schrock Sun Star Reporter
Present Jesse Cervin, Robert Kinnard III, Sophia Grzeskowiak-Amezquita, Arthur Martin, Jennifer Chambers, John Netardus, Chelsea Holt, Ean Pfeiffer, Josh Cooper, Tachit Chairat, Ryan Duffy, Mary Strehl and Hollie Seiler.
Sen. Chambers stated that they were having difficulty finding a venue for this year’s Masquerade Ball.
Senate meeting cancelled
Next Sunday’s (Mar. 6) senate meeting has been cancelled. The Chancellor invited the senate over to his house for a pizza party during the senates regularly schedSenator confirmed Hollie Seiler, a journalism student, was uled meeting time. A special session may be confirmed to the senate. She stated that called. Sun Star funding although she is graduating this May, she The senate read SB 176-010: Sun Star intends to enroll in a class next year so she can continue to serve. When asked by Sen. Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2011, which Jennifer Chambers on what she wanted to would provide the Sun Star with an addo as a senator, Seiler responded that she ditional $15,000 from the ASUAF rollover intended to reach out to students in order to account. One projection has the Sun Star running $20,000 in debt by the end of the better understand their needs. semester. Sen. Arthur Martin moved to Smoking outside Hess Yuzhun Evanoff addressed the senate dismiss the legislation. By a vote of 7-4, the about a lack of smoking stands outside of legislation was not dismissed. A two-thirds Hess Village. Evanoff’s primary concern majority vote was needed. The bill has been was over the cigarette butts that he feels sent to the Executive Committee.
Alternative Spring Break are carelessly flicked around the area. Sen. SB 176-007: 2011 Alternative Spring Sophia Grzeskowiak-Amezquita stated that she believed such stands did exist and that Break was passed by a vote of 9-3. The bill alit was possible they had been removed for lotted $1,750 to the Alternative Spring Break program in order to help defray the cost. The maintenance. funding will come from Senate Projects. Masquerade Ball In her Executive Committee report,
Each week, the Sun Star does its best to bring you the highest quality stories, photos and commentary. We are able to provide this service primarily through funding from the ASUAF Student Government Fee. We receive approximately $32,000 a year from ASUAF, and we put that toward putting out the best-looking paper that we can week in and week out. Although we are a student paper, we strive for professional quality. Unfortunately, that level of quality is not cheap. We project that we will end this year facing a several thousand dollar deficit and may be forced to suspend printing unless ASUAF provides us with an emergency allocation of funding for $15,000. We’ve done everything we can to contain costs yet still provide you with a quality paper. Now we need your help. If you like what you read in the Sun Star, if the stories we’ve told have touched you, then we need your voice now more than ever. A bill is in the senate to provide the funds that the Sun Star needs. Please email the ASUAF senators and tell them to support it. Tell them what the Sun Star means to you. Tell them that it’s YOUR paper, and without funding it will go away. You can find a copy of the bill at uafsunstar.com and the email addresses for the ASUAF senators.
www.uafsunstar.com
West Ridge Report
March 1, 2011
Unearthed tot declared oldest Alaskan Kelsey Gobroski Sun Star Reporter
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ast summer, archaeologists uncovered the 11,500-year-old skeleton of a cremated Ice Age toddler, the oldest subarctic North American to date. UAF archaeologists discovered the remains inside a structure built 10,000 years before the region’s earliest known house. Older artifacts also rest on the site. Scientists worked closely with Alaska Native groups to preserve the scientific and cultural implications of the discovery. “People have been doing work up here for 80 years, and we’ve never found anything like this,” Potter said. The findings appeared in the Feb. 25 edition of Science. Authors Ben Potter and Joel Irish, along with Alaska Native community representatives Joann Polston and Jerry Isaac, announced the find in the Brooks Building Gathering Room last Thursday, Feb. 24. ver time, ancient Alaskan camps sprung up south of the Tanana River at a place known as Xaasaa Na’ [hawsaw naw], or Upward Sun River, beginning during a warm period about 13,000 years ago. Another temporary camp popped up during a cold snap 11,800 years ago. Three hundred years later, a family constructed a house and lived there until their toddler died. People here probably didn’t build villages in the Ice Age. The fact that this family even built a house challenges notions about the mobility of early Alaskans, Potter said. The family probably didn’t live in the house more than a couple months, but the usual shelters of the time didn’t last longer than a few days. Life back then probably centered around the hearth, Potter said. When the family’s 3-year-old died, they placed their child’s body in the pit, knees drawn up and back against the earth, Isaac said. They had transformed their hearth into a funeral pyre. Immediately after the cremation, they abandoned the house. The family may have moved elsewhere on the dunes, Potter said. The archaeologists found one other site, a fourth and final camp that was abandoned 10,000 years ago. esearchers credit Alaska’s most ancient human to a railroad survey. Xaasaa Na’ rested near a proposed route from Fairbanks to Delta Junction. In
2006, archaeologists flagged the area when they found traces of artifacts. They returned in 2007 and found three settlements. In 2010, the National Science Foundation’s stimulus funds provided $106,000 for further excavation, with an additional $13,000 for helicopter transportation, according to Potter’s website. They had three weeks. They discovered the house, and on the last day, a student stumbled upon the child, Potter said. The human remains changed everything. The scientists stopped working and applied for permission to continue digging in the area. When the archaeologists returned, they uncovered a skeleton mangled by fire. They used teeth to determine the child’s age and surrounding ash to date the cremation, Irish said.
well, but this site was full of them. The archaeologists would sometimes dig as long as light allowed. “We were trying to get in all the work that we could,” Blood said. oann Polston is Healy Lake Traditional Council’s first chief. The Salkachet Band eventually settled Xaasaa Na’. Many of the band’s living descendants are members of Polston’s council, according to press materials. The scientific findings solidify Polston’s oral history. Her grandmother told her that people would cremate their dead when the weather was too harsh for a burial. This Ice Age family “used what they had available,” and transformed their home into a burial site, Polston said. Polston serves on the Tanana Chiefs
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Science Briefs
Compiled by Kelsey Gobroski Sun Star Reporter
Bears hibernate cozily Black bears drop their metabolism instead of their temperatures when they hibernate. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game captured nuisance black bears and brought them to artificial dens to be studied. While metabolism dropped to 25 percent the normal rate, the bears’ temperature barely dipped, the study found. A reduced metabolism normally brings temperature down with it. If science can unlock how bears can lower their body temperature so minutely, the findings could solve the mystery of how to induce short-term body temperature decreases in stroke patients. - New York Times
Permafrost heats up In 20 years, permafrost that’s stuck around since the Ice Age will begin to melt. In 210 years, 60 percent of the Northern Hemisphere’s permafrost will have melted. Scientists in Boulder, CO stamped these numbers onto a phenomenon that once again brings the Arctic to the forefront of climate change concerns. As permafrost melts, frozen roots begin to decay and release carbon. This will release amounts equivalent to a fifth of the carbon that is in the atmosphere today. The process will add to the world’s warming trend, and is irreversible.
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- Discovery News (L-R) Justin Rains, Kevin Bartley, Rob Bowman, Katie Blood, Danielle Ellis, Jill Baxter-McIntosh and Lisa Smith work on excavation at the Upward Sun River site in Alaska. Summer 2010. Photo courtesy of Ben Potter/UAF.
“This individual represents the second youngest individual found for this time frame in the western hemisphere,” Potter said. Katie Blood, an anthropology senior, traveled with about a dozen people to Delta Junction to attend a field course near Gerstle River last summer. The experience prepared her for Xaasaa Na’, Blood said. Blood worked for Northern Land Use Research Inc., which sent her to help Potter’s team when he returned to excavate the child. The mood there was different than Gerstle River, she said. There was an underlying tone of awe. “It took a while for it to sink in, exactly how significant this find was,” Blood said. Each student excavated a square meter, she said. Later, she worked with a doctoral student to identify animal remains. Bird and fish bones are fragile and rarely preserve
Conference (TCC), a consortium of Interior Alaska Natives. “I am truly impressed with the level of respect and honor that the remains have been given to date,” Polston said. o one knows whether the child’s family has any living descendents. Scientists are waiting to see whether DNA extraction is possible. The actual skeleton could be dated, instead of just the surrounding ashes. They could find out the toddler’s sex. Scientists could track the diet of the mother if the child was weaned, Potter said. Ecosystem dynamics could be recreated. Potter plans to return this summer for another three weeks. Only 42 square meters have been excavated on one dune. “This is the beginning of the story,” Potter said. “We’ve got a lot of good information, but stay tuned.”
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Reefs bleach under pressure Thirteen years of fishing noticeably destroyed polyp communities responsible for the health of coral reefs. Researchers recently revisited coral reef sites from the 1998 Reefs at Risk project. Warming temperatures and ocean acidification will play a part in the death toll soon. Both the temperature and ocean pH changes are side effects of high atmospheric carbon dioxide. Only five percent of the world’s coral reefs will remain unbleached 40 years from now. - BBC
Camera changes focus after shot A cell phone camera in development by Pelican Imaging will rescue image quality by holding to the adage of safety in numbers. The new camera splits up the work by taking 25 overlapping fragment photographs of a larger picture. This method makes it possible to adjust a photo’s focus after taking the shot. - Popular Science
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Arts & Entertainment
March 1, 2011
A & E Briefs Compiled by Elika Roohi Sun Star Reporter
It was her bacon first A bacon enthusiast is seeking a lawsuit against her former agent for stealing her cookbook idea. Lisa Skye, author of “I Love Corn,” came up with the idea to write an “I Love Bacon” cookbook. She and her agent, Jayne Rockmill, worked to come up with the book. Over the course of the negotiations, Skye became disenchanted with Rockmill’s aggressive style and fired her. A year and a half later, Skye found a copy of “I Love Bacon” authored by Rockmill on the shelf of a San Fransico bookstore. Skye is seeking legal action forcing Rockmill to withdraw the book. -New York Post
Mominees tweet the Oscars The Academy Awards are going for a more family friendly approach this year. As a part of that approach, the mothers of Oscar nominees have been asked to tweet about it. These Moms, dubbed “Mominees” will include host James Franco’s grandmother as well. -CNN
J.D. Salinger liked Burger King
The Sun Star
Feature film coming to Fairbanks, seeks actors Jeremy Smith Sun Star Reporter Former Fairbanksan and UAF student Chinonye Chukwu is returning for two weeks to film her first full-length feature, “alaskaLand.” Approximately six speaking roles and 200 extras will also be cast in the film. Chukwu is Nigerian-born and Alaskaraised. Previously she had taken a film class at UAF, and decided to build upon that introduction and venture out into the world of film-making. She enrolled at Temple University and earned her masters in film and media arts. Chukwu’s early work included 2009 Diamond Screen Festival winner Igbo Kweno!, a comedic drama about what it can mean to be a part of a second generation in America. Her most recent film, The Dance Lesson, was a Regional Finalist for the 2010 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Student Academy Awards and received an Honorary Mention at the Los Angeles International Film Festival. The Dance Lesson concerns a 13-year-old black girl who wants to be a ballerina in her gentrified community of North Philadelphia. According to Chukwu, artistically she is most concerned with, “images that are rich with cultural nuances.” Her themes often deal with the complex and contradictory
issues of ethnic identity, dual identity, and cross-cultural interaction. Her first feature-length film, “alaskaLand,” is a story of a young NigerianAmerican man attempting to find his place between cultures in Fairbanks, Alaska. According to a recent announcement, the film will be casting for the following speaking roles: • Anthony - male of color between the ages of 18 and 22 • Anthony’s Little Sister - 14-year-old girl of color • Assistant Dean - white female in her 30s • Dean - black female in her 40s • Stranger - white male in his 50s - 70s, an “Alaskan Man” • Emily – Alaskan Native female that is between the ages of 20 - 22
Chinonye Chukwu
Approximately 200 extras from Alaska will also be cast in the film. Auditions are open to the public and will be held at the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus in the Fine Arts Complex, Regent’s Great Hall on Saturday, March 5 from 12 – 6 p.m. “alaskaLand” will be shooting between March 27 and April 10 in and around Fairbanks. You can learn more about the film, the casting announcement and the director by searching Facebook for AlaskaLand: the Movie or visiting www.uaf.edu/film/news1/.
Nearly a year after the reclusive author’s death, letters between Salinger and a friend shed some light on what J. D. Salinger might have been like. Salinger liked Burger King better than other fast food chains. He also enjoyed being a tourist, taking bus trips to Nantucket, Niagara Falls, and the Grand Canyon. Salinger was a tennis fan, with strong political feelings. Did Salinger dupe the media and his fans into believing he was a recluse so he could enjoy fast food and watch tennis? -The Week
There are gnomes in NYC Gnome Life sounds like your typical Tumblr. A guy in plaid posts a lot of pictures of himself staring meaningfully into the distance. But there’s a twist: he’s a 108 year old gnome in Brooklyn. Every entry features a dramatic entry with a cryptic caption about the struggle of fitting into to New York while being a gnome. -NPR
Northern Alaska Tour Company is a Fairbanks-based
tour operator specializing in excursions featuring the natural history and cultural heritage of Alaska's Arctic. Our one-day and multi-day excursions combine Dalton Highway ground touring with air and river experiences. Destinations visited include the Yukon River, the Arctic Circle, Coldfoot, Wiseman, Anaktuvuk Pass, Deadhorse, the Arctic Ocean and Barrow.
Stop by to meet us at our booth - UAF Wood Center:
Wednesday, Mar 2th - Career Expo 2011 APPLY ONLINE: www.northernalaskajobs.com
We are now recruiting guides, guest services, reservationists, bookkeepers and cleaners for the upcoming summer visitor season. Ideal positions available for high-energy, people-oriented, hard-working individuals eager to share love of Alaska with visitors. Guide candidates must be 21 years old and have a good driving record. Guest Service candidates must be 19 years old.
www.uafsunstar.com
News
March 1, 2011
There’s an app for UAF
Sports Briefs
Elika Roohi Sun Star Reporter There is an app for everything. Including UAF. UAF Mobile is an application that has been around since the beginning of this semester. It allows students to access the UAF directory, look up courses, view a map of campus, watch videos, browse the news, call the shuttle and more. The first college campus app was originally developed by students at Stanford, according to Karl Kowalski, the Executive Director of User Services at OIT. From there Blackboard, the UAF online class supplement, started working with the students at Stanford to develop a standard interface for college apps. The UAF app is far from being finished. OIT has some big plans on what will happen A screenshot of the mobile app available in the iTunes app store. next. “We’re currently working with the liAnother future addition to the UAF brary and incorporating the catalog,” said mobile app will be an app designed by John Kowalski. OIT is also working with oncampus dining services to get menus to be Pender, a junior computer science major. OIT held a contest in the fall to design the a part of the app.
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Compiled by Rebecca Coleman Sun Star Reporter best UAF-related app. “There was a lot of feedback on it,” Kowalski said. “But there ended up only being two submissions.” The first was Pender’s app, which presents a searchable course catalog that allows students to save the schedule of potential classes to their phone. The other app was submitted by the drama department, and gave a virtual tour of the department. Pender’s app should be a part of UAF Mobile soon. “It’s not ready to go against live data yet,” Kowalski said. For students that want to check Blackboard from their smartphones, there’s a Blackboard mobile app. The app only works with certain platforms at the moment, but it should work with everything by spring break. Anyone with good app ideas should get in touch with OIT. “By all means, bring it forward,” Kowalski said.
National rifle team chosen To determine the final member of the five-member rifle team for Nationals, coach Dan Jordan held a match on Feb. 19. The match was essentially between Scott Franz and Aaron Holsopple, but other team members also shot for the fun of it. At the end of the day, Holsopple out shot Franz 576-574 in air rifle and 582-573 in smallbore. He will join teammates Cody Rutter, Cole Bures, Anna Hjelmevoll and Mike Liuzza in Georgia, March 11 and 12. Ida Peterson used the match as her key to qualifying as an individual All-American in the smallbore competition. Before this match, she had been one meet shy of qualifying. Being an All-American means that she is one of the top four shooters in the nation for smallbore. -Alaskananooks.com
Women’s basketball ends with loss to rivals The Nanooks women’s basketball season is officially over, ending with a 70-40 loss to the UAA Seawolves on Feb. 24. Alaska kept the game close throughout the first half by playing extraordinary defense. They held the lead until 7:12 in the half, but lost momentum after that. What kept the Nanooks down was their shooting. As a team, they shot 20.4 percent for the game. Senior Nicole Bozek led the team with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Alaska ended the season with just one win: a 76-71 victory over Central Washington on Jan. 6. -Alaskananooks.com
Men’s basketball gives seniors a sad farewell The Nanooks men’s basketball team lost to the UAA Seawolves in the rivalry games Feb. 22 and 23. Feb. 22 was Senior Night for the Nanooks. Alaska kept the game even with the Seawolves throughout the first half, but UAA was able to take over the second half and win the game 74-65. The following night, the Seawolves, fueled by the energy of their 721-member crowd and home-court advantage, dominated the perimeter and took a 118-82 win against the Nanooks. This loss knocked the Nanooks out of playoff contention, so their season is now over. -Alaskananooks.com
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March 1, 2011
Governor’s Cup
The Sun Star
www.uafsunstar.com
Governor’s Cup
March 1, 2011
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Sea Wolf Run, Sea Wolf Lose Governor’s Cup stays home ‘where it belongs’ Rebecca Coleman Sun Star Reporter Once upon a time, 143 games ago back in 1979, the University of Alaska Anchorage and University of Alaska Fairbanks hockey rivalry began. At the time, neither UAA nor UAF was a part of an NCAA conference, so they played each other as often as eight times per season due to a lack of opponents. In 1993, UAA became a member of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, and UAF joined the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Being members of different leagues posed a problem for the rivalry: both teams had very full schedules and were allowed few non-conference games. But it would be unheard of for Alaska’s only college hockey teams to not face off throughout the year; thus, the Governor’s Cup was born. The inaugural series took place during the 1993-94 season, with one game played at the Carlson Center in Fairbanks and the other at the Sullivan Arena in Anchorage. The UAA Seawolves won game one in Fairbanks, but the Nanooks would take game two, led by the opening goal of then-sopho-
sophomore Dallas Ferguson, UAF’s current head coach. The series would be determined by a shootout, which UAF won. “The Governor’s Cup games are some of the greatest memories I have had in college hockey,” Ferguson said. “The competition it brings and being part of a game that means so much to our university and community is very special. Fast forward to 1999. The coaches of UAA and UAF determined that there was room in both of their schedules to play each other four times instead of just two. The 1999-2000 season’s Governor’s Cup would be determined by a weekend played in Fairbanks in October, followed by a weekend played in Anchorage in March. UAA would take the cup the first year of this change, but UAF would soon outshine their domestic enemies, earning a five-year winning streak. Two years ago, the series went back to being the best out of two games instead of four. This brings us to today. Throughout the 17-year course of Governor’s Cup history, UAA has won the cup eight times to UAF’s nine. The weekend of Feb. 25 and 26, both
teams were determined to take the cup. UAF was the current owner, having won the cup last season, but the Seawolves had owned it for three years prior to last and wanted it back on their campus. “It’s exciting because it is a big event for both communities,” said captain senior Kevin Petovello. “It’s such a rivalry, and the fans show a lot of passion.” “Everyone knows how important it is,” said assistant captain senior Derek Klassen. “It’s a weekend of pride, so we want to put our best foot forward.” “This is our biggest rivalry,” said UAA head coach Dave Shyiak. “We’re playing for bragging rights.” “Let’s beat the Seawolves!” said assistant captain senior Bryant Molle. Friday night was Senior Night for the Nanooks, so the night began with senior introductions and a starting lineup comprised of mostly seniors. UAA made a quick effort to thwart the positivity of the Nanooks by scoring a goal only 25 seconds into the first period. It took the Nanooks a little while to get into the groove of the game, but they
UAA’s #13 Quinn Sproule demonstrates proper stick usage to Nanook #14 Adam Henderson in Friday night’s Governor’s Cup game in Fairbanks. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.
came back in the second period with lots of scoring opportunities. Just when it seemed that all of Alaska’s efforts were for not, “Captain Kevin” saved the day by putting the Nanooks on the board after a pass from junior Carlo Finucci. In the third period, Alaska faced a 5-on-3 penalty kill for two minutes, but successfully held the Seawolves at bay. Petovello said this was the “turning point” of the game. Not long after the penalty kill, freshman Colton Beck put the puck behind UAA goalie Rob Gunderson. Seconds later, sophomore Andy Taranto picked up another goal. With more than six minutes left on the clock, the Seawolves pulled Gunderson to have a six-man advantage, but the only advantage was to the Nanooks. Taranto and freshman Cody Kunyk wrangled the puck away from the Seawolves and gave it to Beck, who easily skated to the empty Seawolf net, flipping the puck in with gusto for his second goal of the game. To close out the night, after receiving a pass from sophomore Jarret Granberg, Petovello fired the puck into the net for his second goal of the
game, giving Alaska a 5-1 victory. Hundreds of Fairbanks students made the pilgrimage to Anchorage for Saturday’s game and were given many warnings from building security not to pound on the glass. This didn’t affect the mood or cheers of the loyal Nanook crowd, even when the game opened with a three-goal first period for the Seawolves. “It was a lot of little mistakes on our part,” said junior Joe Sova. “They were capitalizing on every shot.” UAA picked up another goal in the second period, giving them a 4-0 lead. Kunyk took advantage of a power-play opportunity in the third period to put the Nanooks on the board, preventing a shutout for UAA goalie Chris Kamal. At the end of the night, the Seawolves claimed a 4-1 win. “The 4-1 loss was a downer,” said goalie junior Scott Greenham. “But we knew we still had a chance to win [the Governor’s Cup] with the shootout.” The shootout is the standard tie-breaker of the Governor’s Cup
in the event that each team wins a game. Each team picked three shooters. Beck was up first of the Nanooks, and he made his shot with ease. Jordan Kwas made an attempt for UAA, but was shut down by Greenham. Petovello’s shot was turned away by Kamal, but Greenham blocked UAA’s Tommy Grant’s shot, keeping the Nanooks ahead. Taranto took the final shot for Alaska and bested Kamal, giving the Nanooks the shootout win and continued ownership of the Governor’s Cup. “It was a great feeling to get that shootout and having our name on the cup for the second year in a row,” Molle said. “Now we’ll bring it back to Fairbanks where it belongs, and we’ll celebrate,” Sova said. Next up for the Nanooks is the first round of the CCHA playoffs against Michigan State on March 4 and 5 at the Carlson Center.
Find Meaningful Work. Earn money, help others and learn about a growing industry— all from a part-time position. Helping others can be meaningful work. Flexible hours are available—full-time or part-time—while you’re in school. Job opportunities are available all over Alaska. Jobs where you will make a positive difference for people of all ages who have developmental disabilities, mental illness, chronic alcoholism, or Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Nanook #17 Jarret Granberg and Seawolf #19 Nick Haddad square off in the second period of the final game of Gov. Cup. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.
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Tina Woods, Anchorage and Saint Paul Island. UAA graduate, Ph.D. student in UAF-UAA Joint Ph.D. Program in Clinical-Community Psychology.
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UAF’s #27 Derek Klassen and UAA’s #11 Mitch Bruijsten duke it out for the puck in the Sullivan Arena during the second game of the Governor’s Cup Saturday Night. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.
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News
March 1, 2011
The Sun Star
Power struggle with UAF plant Daniel Thoman Sun Star Reporter A new and horrible screeching noise pierced the afternoon. An email was sent out with a cursory explanation and a request to conserve power. These were the only clues that most at UAF had that something had gone wrong at the university power plant. According to Charles Ward, Director of Utilities at UAF, the power plant’s issues started on Monday afternoon. One of the circuit boards that monitors the voltage regulation of the main turbine failed outright. This led to the turbine having to be shut down; thus, no electricity or heat could be generated. Ward said that while this was the biggest problem the power plant has faced, he also cautioned that the power plant was
going to have more issues as it is in the 47th year of its original projected 50-year lifespan. “Life-extending” procedures have been done in some areas and are underway in others, but the ultimate determining factor for the plant’s life is the state of the pipes. It is unknown exactly when they will fail. While no one off-campus receives power from the UAF plant, the campus receives almost 97 percent of its heat and 85 percent of its electricity from the plant. The rest of the power is bought from Golden Valley Electric Association. As the plant was down, all of the power and heat had to be bought, resulting in a bill of more than $130,000 to the University. Ward also said that the university
has been looking into various alternative sources of power for some time. Options include not only solid fuel, but also natural gas, which would be significantly cheaper if the proposed gas pipeline becomes a reality. UAF isn’t the only group interested in changing how the power plant functions. The Northern Alaska Environmental Center is also looking at the impact that a coal-fired plant has on the environment especially in a location that is “the epicenter of climate research,” according to Jessie Petersen, the Renewable Energy Program Director at the Center. Petersen pointed out the large amounts of sulfur and other pollutants that the power plant puts out daily. She hoped that UAF would pursue a green energy program, but admits that finding a workable
energy source was a “billion-dollar question.” She also said that biomass, solar during the summer, wind, and even tidal energy could be looked at as possibilities. Petersen expressed hope that this would be one more step that UAF takes on its road to being a greener university. One thing everyone agrees on is that any of the changes that will take place cannot and will not happen overnight. Either a major renovation or a completely new building would be required, which would be expensive. Petersen said that the university should look at the overhaul as an investment rather than anything else because they are protecting themselves from the environmental hazards of the plant and the cost of future repairs.
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March 1, 2011
11
The ‘Cosmo girls’ of Fairbanks Amber Sandlin Sun Star Reporter UAF Community and Technical College is currently conducting a review of the pilot program for cosmetology. Seven months into their third year, the new class of 18 students is driven by a passion for the art and community of hairdressing. Due to it being a pilot program, the university is looking at cosmetology to determine whether they are going to continue it in the future. The program, directed by Tina Christopher, began three years ago. Members of the Fairbanks community asked UAF to start the program due to the lack of training facilities for future cosmetologists. Before, aspiring cosmetologists had to ask licensed beauticians and barbers to accept them as an
apprentice for a minimum of two years. Only one apprentice per licensed cosmetologist is allowed. In order to become a cosmetologist, one must take the State of Alaska Board of Barbers and Hairdressing Exam. Not just anyone can take this exam. One must first complete 1,650 hours of practical and theoretical training. That is approximately 218 days, seven and a half hours a day. “It’s been a challenge [because] this is not an easy program,” Christopher said, standing in a room filled with busy women affectionately nicknamed “Cosmo girls.” In the program, the women learn as they are allowed to work in the beauty much about the human body, such as musworld. In the classroom, every student is cles and bones, as nurses in the nursing properforming some task. Nobody is sitting, all gram; they must learn anatomy before are in uniform. “This is my community and I love [the community],” said Louise Morris, an instructor at the cosmetology program. “That is why I do it.” This 13-month program starts in July and ends in August the following year. They hope to change start the program to September, and end in July or August, completing exactly 11 months. Community is a main drive and passion of these students and instructors. In previous years, they have traveled to Nenana for a day and provided perms and cuts for the local community. The students discovered a girls’ boarding school and proclaimed, “We want to go there!” Tina Christopher said. “So they went, and had a blast!” Helping small cities and towns with no salons has been just a small amount of what the students have done for the community. They have helped in the “Connect homeless connect” program in Pioneer Park, and did a half-time show for the Roller Derby girls, among other things. “[Cosmetology] isn’t an easy thing, you know,” Christopher said, “You’ve got to be
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tough as nails.” She told a story of a woman from the Dominican Republic, a janitor and mother of six children. The woman had started off speaking broken English, and by the end of the 13 months, she was determined to take the State of Alaska test in English “She said ‘I’ve already learned this in English, I’m not going to re-learn it in Spanish!’ Now that woman was tough as nails.” Her husband and children had moved their schedules to support their mother in her dream of becoming a “Cosmo girl”. Mothers who pursue their dreams are common in the beauty industry. Susan Merrill, a 37-year-old wife and mother of four, had dreamed of becoming a cosmetologist since she was in high school. Originally from Colorado, she married young to a man rooted in Alaska. The timing wasn’t right to return to school until now. “It was a family decision,” she said. “It wasn’t just my husband and I, the whole family agreed.” She hopes to turn her rental home in Salcha into a salon, naming it “Salcha Cuts.” Most cosmetology students are looking for the freedom to break away from the traditional nine to five standard jobs, to take control of their schedule and work when they want. “Every student that wants a job, gets a job,” Christopher said. Of this program’s alumni, three are now managers of salons around Fairbanks. Last year, every student graduated from the program. Christopher has full confidence that every student this year will graduate as well. The cosmetology program is difficult to get in to. Out of the 200 prospective students Christopher sees in a year, only 50 will be interviewed and only 18 will be admitted.
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March 1, 2011
News
The Sun Star
From snow to sand, UAF students embed in Stryker training in Mojave Desert Special to the Sun Star
On Feb. 17, Cheryl Hatch, this year’s journalism department Snedden chair, took three students, JR Ancheta, Matt Anderson and Jeric Quiliza, on an embed exercise with the 1-25 Stryker Brigade in Fort Irwin, Calif.
Cheryl Hatch Snedden Chair Bright and early Friday morning, our first day “in the box,” we met with Col. Todd Wood, commander of the 1-25th Stryker Brigade, in the Tactical Operating Center, a series of connected tents, in Forward Operating Base Denver in the Mojave Desert. He welcomed us, answered questions and assured us we would have unfettered access to the soldiers and their training. The students walked out of the tent and into the sunshine. Inspired by their access to the colonel, they were excited to get to work. The colonel rolled away in a Stryker convoy for a meeting with provincial Afghan leaders. And we spent the rest of the morning and well into the afternoon waiting for our rides, waiting to embed. Over the next few hours, we had several test runs at embedding. We’d run and gather our gear for an imminent departure, only to learn plans had changed. We rearranged our two-person reporting teams several times. At one point, we had Options A, B, C and D. By early afternoon, Matt Anderson and Jeric Quiliza embedded with the 3-21 Infantry Battalion, “The Gimlets.” They piled into a Stryker, the ramp closed and the convoy headed southeast toward the scenario’s Pakistani border. JR and I eventually embedded with the 1-5 Infantry Battalion, “The Bobcats.” We met LTC. Brian Payne, the commander, late Friday afternoon when he and his soldiers returned from a successful mission after recovering a missing United States State Department official. A mission we’d missed because we were sitting in an office, waiting. We were upset we’d missed the story. He was upset, too. We learned that LTC. Payne had sent a convoy through a “kill zone” earlier in the day to pick us up, only to be told we had left with another unit. We assured him we’d been waiting for them and had been told they’d left without us. Due to a series of miscommunications, he’d uninten-
UAF students Jeric Quiliza, from left, John Robert Ancheta and Matt Anderson pose on the rocks outside Fort Irwin, California. They stand over the marker for the 1-25th Stryker Brigade from Fort Wainwright, AK. The students spent four nights and three days on an embed with the 1-25th, covering the soldiers during exercises at the National Training Center in the Mojave Desert. Cheryl Hatch.
tionally put his soldiers at risk and stranded a reporting team. A lesson learned, LTC. Payne said. Learning from mistakes is an essential part of training, for the soldiers at the National Training Center and the students embedded with them. The military has its own culture: its language, its customs and its terrain are just as foreign to the student journalists as Afghanistan’s culture is to the soldiers. Over the four nights and three days on the “embed,” the students and soldiers learned they share common ground. As the soldiers seek to conduct an effective counterinsurgency campaign, they need to establish rapport with local Afghans. They learn to establish trust and build relationships. All the while, they maintain situational awareness and adapt to any changes. The students had to do the exact same things—build rapport, created relationships and adapt to changing circumstances—to bring home stories for their readers.
Sam Harshbarger (left) and Donavin Smith (right) enter a stryker at a Combat Operating Base in Fort Irwin. JR Ancheta/Sun Star
www.uafsunstar.com
News
March 1, 2011
13
During full-spectrum training excercises, Pvt. Edward Crocker (left) and Pvt. Josh Knight (right) keep watch at a guard post overlooking a mock Afghani village located inside the National Training Center in the Mojave Desert. JR Ancheta/Sun Star
JR Ancheta Sun Star Reporter Before leaving I wanted to know how photographers create intimate photographs. I was curious on how to establish rapport with people in a small amount of time. In most situations, I am always reserved when I am uncomfortable. The beginning of the trip was no different. In our first night, it didn’t help that a sergeant confronted me while trying to build rapport with a private at the dinner table. “No. You need to ask permission first before photographing a soldier’s personal equipment,” he said while I was shooting at the table. He sounded irritated and his demeanor was very intimidating. My professor attempted to resolve the situation by explaining the total access we were given, but the sergeant wasn’t convinced. I apologized to the private for putting him in that situation. I was photographing his hat. The following days were easier once we embedded with the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, “Bobcats.” In Bravo Company, I first met Pvt. Josh Knight and Pvt. Edward Crocker on a guard post and started talking. It was a start to building that relationship and trust while helping me become confident of my objective. Establishing rapport wasn’t that difficult; they were the same age as my 18-year-old brother. I could relate to them easily. I learned their names and I remembered them. Identifying them with or without their uniforms was challenging, but it was manageable. They shared their stories and I will share my photographs in return. This exchange between photographer and subject is essential in making these intimate photographs.
After singing Garth Brook’s Friends in Low Places, Private Chris Whatley, poses in a stryker vehicle during a roleplayed mission. JR Ancheta/Sun Star
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Perspectives
March 1, 2011
The Sun Star
Weekend Wanderlust Memorabilia Mishmash Part II: The Intelligent Consumer Jamie Hazlett Sun Star Columnist Whether you begin your trip with $50 or $50,000, the one thing you are more or less condemned to find plenty of on your vacation is spending opportunities. Traveling guarantees that you will be confronted with schlock-filled storefronts or street-side souvenir sellers aiming to drain your wallet and leave you holding a handful of garbage that you will probably never look upon fondly. You don’t need a snow globe from Tahiti; not only will you have no place to put it when you get home, it also makes no sense. Unless you’re buying it specifically for the anachronism, put it back. Many people make the mistake of thinking they have to bring back something from every place they stop to go to the bathroom on their trip. Each item should preferably be emblazoned with the locale’s name in an annoyingly bright color or unreadable font, and must be either exorbitantly overpriced so the buyer thinks they’re purchasing quality or so cheap that we crafty tourists won’t be able to wait to brag about the deal we got. But what are you going to do with what you’re preparing to pay the equivalent of several hours of labor at your boring/annoying/stressful job for? If you can’t think of a legitimate use or reason why that particular item will bring a smile and good memories to you or the person you’re intending to give it to, walk away. You can do better. A big part of intelligent consumerism while on vacation is tailoring your wants to fit your needs. Are there things that you could use or have wanted for a long time now that your destination is known for producing? Do you have an interest, skill or talent that is important to you? Look for things that speak to that need or characteristic. If you find something that has a history of being made locally in a traditional style, that’s even better. A musician might plan on buying a Glockenspiel xylophone in Munich; a tea aficionado might search for a unique service set in Tokyo or Beijing. The possibilities are as endless as your interests.
This isn’t to say that you won’t get pleasure or use out of photo books, funny t-shirts, or other dime-a-dozen items you can pick up on your travels. Sometimes those things do have sentimental value. The idea is to shift your focus towards buying mostly or only those items that really move you, the things that you know you will regret not getting for the rest of your life. There are natural limits to this procedure – namely your budget, since no matter how much owning the original Batmobile might make you grin, you’ll probably never be able to afford it – but practicing it on vacation is a great way to begin using it in everyday life. Yes, vacation is a time to let go and do what makes you happy, but that’s why it’s such a powerful time to hone skills like smart shopping. If you can manage to do it on holiday, you can do it anywhere.
If the idea of having things of great sentimental and, in some cases, monetary value around you isn’t enough to get you to give intelligent consumerism a chance, try thinking of it this way: the more money you save by not buying worthless or meaningless garbage at home and abroad, the more money you can put towards planning your next trip. Besides, who wants to fork over a hundred bucks to ship home a suitcase full of pewter statues of every semi-famous building you saw on your Grand Tour? The baggage handlers will loathe you eternally, and so will your back after you finish lugging that thing up the stairs. Don’t be tempted by trash on your next trip – only bring home the things that inspire you.
Jeremy Smith Sun Star Columnist
This year’s Oscar information goes to… It’s Oscar night as I write this column and I felt a little reflective on the whole nature of the internet. Not that the Oscars make me reflective. It’s more how I am able to learn about the Oscars, and how quickly I learn that information, that best illustrates just how much the online world has changed our expectations regarding news. Back in 2002, an interview with a current president of the Society for Professional Journalists was asked how the internet has changed reporting. At that time, few newspapers were online, but this president worked at a newspaper that was. One of the big changes she saw was the speed at which news was being reported and posted online. It was no longer a matter of days before a story was available online, but hours, if not minutes. After looking at my Facebook feed, I saw that Trent Reznor won the Oscar for Best Score for “The Social Network.” They haven’t even begun broadcasting the awards show in Alaska. As I was growing up in Fairbanks watching the Oscars, I would often have to wait a few days until the information was disseminated in the newspaper. Of course I can watch it and see who won what, but the Oscars is not a quick affair. You have to sit through hours of poorly ad-libbed jokes just to find out which film takes home the Best Picture. This doesn’t include all of those awards that are announced as an aside and aren’t even televised. The full list of winners was never available instantaneously and definitely not on-demand. A tweet just came in that said, “Toy Story 3, best animated feature, official.” The internet has changed not only how we access information, but how quickly we
expect to receive it. How many websites have you stopped visiting when you learned that they updated only once a week? What about a breaking news site that only offers updates daily? We go somewhere that is updated regularly, if not obsessively, with all of the information we want, exactly when we want it. Without IMDB.com, how would I know that Annette Benning has no Oscar but has been nominated four times… and continues her losing streak this year, thanks to the gritty ballerina film featuring newly dubbed Best Actress Natalie Portman. There were newspapers and magazines live blogging the Oscars, posting every scrap of award-soaked information as it was announced. Looking at my Facebook feed after the event reminds me of a Varietyfueled minefield filled with explosions of “UPSET!” and “BREAKING OSCAR NEWS” and “WHO IS MELISSA LEO?” For those who don’t know, People.com informed me that Melissa Leo, from the TV show Treme, is the winner of the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her work in The Fighter, not for her role as Sally Jansen in 2007’s Mr. Woodcock. It’s amazing how much information we can summon with just a few keystrokes or swipes across a screen. Less than an hour after the event ended, all of the winners (and losers) were posted on the Oscar website at oscar.go.com and message boards at Entertainment Weekly were already howling with a mix of naysayers and well-wishers. For good or bad, the internet has forever changed our expectations regarding information dissemination… and made all of us Oscar and movie trivia experts. Jeremy talks and takes on technology at gpfault.org.
www.uafsunstar.com
Editorial
Letters to the Editor Have something to say? Say it here. The Sun Star welcomes reader commentary. rape, and suicide. The slippery slope argument comes in right here. I don’t know what the University’s specific qualifications are for inclusion in the NDP, so I will use yours. You argued that the documented evidence The slippery slope fallacy of transgender victimization “means that Dear Editor, they deserve to be protected.” With this as I would like to point something out our qualification for inclusion in the Univerin defense of the two Regents who voted sity’s NDP (and I suspect this is very close against the LGBT legislation, and their to their own reasoning), it is not at all great stated reasoning (at least, their reasoning leap to conclude that this will indeed open as I understand it from your editorial). You the door for future amendment. dismissed the argument presented by FacWhether or not that is a bad thing reulty President Dehn as a “slippery slope mains to be seen, it’s entirely possible that fallacy.” I felt the need to get up on my little there will be future amendments that bring electronic soapbox and address the idea of about positive change. My point here is that the slippery slope argument as a fallacy, so Faculty President Dehn’s argument was not here goes! a fallacy, and that a slippery slope argument You outlined a few excellent reasons (like any argument) is only a fallacy if it isn’t that transgender students should be consid- founded on sound reasoning or evidence. ered among this legislation as well, such as Thanks for your time! disproportionate instances of violence, Forrest Andresen Letters to the editor should be no more than 250 words in length. Please include the author’s full name and contact information (phone number, e-mail or address). E-mail your letters (preferred) to editor@uafsunstar.com, fax them to 474-5508, or mail them to to PO Box 756640, Fairbanks, AK, 99775. Letters must be received by Friday at 5 p.m. in order to run in the next issue. All letters are subject to editing for brevity and grammar.
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xkcd
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March 1, 2011
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Deferred maintenance Deferred maintenance: just the words make my eyes glaze. How can a term be so dry yet so critically important for the university and the people who make it their home? According to the University of Alaska, there are more than $750 million worth of unfunded, necessary and overdue repair projects throughout the university system. That is deferred maintenance. In practical terms, it is the leaks in the Wood Center roof as snow seeps through cracks in the concrete and rains down on the heads of students, staff and faculty trying to eat lunch. Deferred maintenance includes repair or replacement of boilers, pipes, sprinkler systems, labs and ceiling and floor tiles. In reality, it’s the reason our water tastes so bad, why many of our ceilings and floor tiles are full of asbestos and why the university was forced to spend more than $100,000 to provide campus electricity when the power plant broke down. It’s clear the university has an infrastructure that could be described as “decaying.” There’s work that really needs to be done. Less clear is why money for these overdue projects has yet to appear. Every year, the Board of Regents goes to the State Legislature requesting money to pay for these long-needed projects. Since asking for just shy of a billion dollars is considered something of a faux pas in Juneau, the regents ask for a substantially smaller amount. For the fiscal year 2012, which begins this July, the regents requested $37.5 million. That’s not nearly enough. At that rate, it would take 20 years to get all the existing deferred maintenance taken care of. By that time, we’ll have accumulated 20 years worth of additional deferred maintenance. This is unsustainable. A university with leaky roofs, water that tastes like it has been sitting in a rusty pot and asbestos in the floor and ceiling is a university that will repel the potential students and faculty we should be striving to attract. So what is to be done? It clearly isn’t so simple as asking for more money. The State Legislature, or at least certain powerful elements of it, has made it clear they are not interested in expanding government largesse toward the university. If anything, they seem focused on weaning the university off the government teat. The university is told to find more private donors, more federal grants, make do with less. This is unacceptable. When the Alaska Constitution was signed, the University of Alaska was enshrined within it. We are one of the few state universities in the country to be protected by a constitutional mandate. The framers considered the university to be critical as the home of Alaska’s only true renewable resource: our young women and men. It is the responsibility, the imperative, of our Legislature to protect that resource and that means cultivating and maintaining the best possible state university. It means lawmakers stop hemming and hawing and open up that $20 billion “rainy day” bank account we have and start spending it on the thing that will not only keep young people here but attract new ones as well: the university. It’s time we dropped this stupid regional feud and remembered we’re all in the same (leaky) boat. It’s time for student governments on all three campuses to speak up. A visit to Juneau is a great start, now let’s see some protests. Let’s see some action. I call on the Northern Light student paper at UAA and the Whalesong at UAS to join the Sun Star in holding our state government accountable. Let’s spend less time asking “What’s a SeaWolf?” and more time asking why people in power seem to think it is acceptable for students to have to drink putrid water or for people to work in leaky classrooms and offices. This rare issue bridges faculty, student and staff. It affects every single one of us. We must speak with one voice, or else how can we expect anybody to understand us?
Andrew Sheeler Editor-in-Chief UAF Sun Star