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Hilltop Players present: ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ Page 12
Framingham State University’s independent student newspaper since 1932 volume
83 • number 12
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FSU holds final Chief Diversity 175th anniversary and Inclusion celebration Officer hired By Sara Silvestro Editorial Staff
By Mark Wadland Editorial Staff
Jeff Poole/The Gatepost
US Rep. Katherine Clark [D-Mass.] addresses FSU community in front of the McCarthy Center.
FSU recognized for sustainability efforts By Corin Cook Staff Writer
Framingham State University has gained recognition as the 17 most ecofriendly and affordable school in the nation - a product of the University’s sustainability efforts over the past few years, and a motivation to pursue further eco-friendly efforts while getting students involved. The recognition, published on Best Choice Schools website, a site of lists designed to help prospective college students select schools, considered over 300 schools, according to the website’s editor Reese Bradley, but only the most affordable schools were considered in the final list of 50. This is not the first award FSU has received for sustainability efforts. “In the last four years we have been listed in Princeton Review’s list of 200 green colleges in the country, and we were also awarded a Leading by Example Award from the state in 2012,” said Carl Hakansson, University Sustainability Coordinator. “We have accomplished an extraordinary amount in a relatively short time compared to most other schools,”
U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark [DMass.] arrived at Framingham State University Monday to read a proclamation celebrating the University’s 175th anniversary from President Barack Obama. In the proclamation, Obama stated, “With hard work, nothing is beyond our reach.” Clark said, “We have so many wonderful universities [in Massachusetts]. … And that connection makes it a wonderful district and country.” The proclamation will be displayed outside the McCarthy Center Forum. - Continued on page 4
Educator and diversity trainer Sean Huddleston was hired as Framingham State University’s first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer (CDIO) last Friday. Huddleston will begin work Jan. 13, 2015 while students are on winter break. “As soon as classes start, I expect him to start working with students and faculty immediately,” said University President F. Javier Cevallos. The CDIO will report directly to Cevallos and sit on the executive team. The job description posted online described, the CDIO’s duties as including heading the FSU Leading for Change diversity consortium team, managing the Committee on Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) budget and measuring campus climate and use the results to drive strategic planning regarding - Continued on page 7
FSU football team adopts 6-year-old facing health issues
said Warren Fairbanks, Associate Vice President of Facilities and Capital Planning. FSU President F. Javier Cevallos said, “I am extremely proud of being part of a university that makes taking care of our environment a priority. There is an old Native American saying, ‘We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.’ I think that is what we are trying to accomplish.” FSU’s improvements were yielded from the University’s Climate Action Plan, initiated in 2010 by the Sustainability Committee. The plan, originally written by previous FSU President Timothy Flanagan, has been updated every year, and through these persistent efforts FSU has made great strides in sustainability. Since the initiation of the Climate Action Plan, “FSU has met a number of significant Climate Action Plan goals, most significant being the upgrades to the central steam boiler plant and the conversion from Number-6 fuel oil to natural gas in the plant,” said Fairbanks. - Continued on page 3
By Lauren Campbell Editorial Staff
As the FSU Football team captains walked out to midfield for the ceremonial coin toss on their Nov. 8 game against MASCAC rival, Bridgewater State, had their newest, pint-sized player holding on to the hands of safety Matt Mangano and Kevin Donahue. The FSU football team had an incredible season this year, finishing with a record of 10-1, winning nine in a row to end their campaign. They went undefeated in the MASCAC and were crowned ECAC North Atlantic Bowl Champions. Their biggest accomplishment, however, was adding a new player to their 86-man roster, 6-year-old Declan Cassidy. Declan was diagnosed with optic track glioma, a tumor that impacts the optic nerve, when he was just 2-yearsold. He uses a cane to get around, and reads Braille. He is legally blind in one eye. Rams’ head coach Tom Kelley reached out to Team IMPACT, a non-
profit organization which pairs children who have life-threatening illnesses with college athletic teams. He asked for the team to be connected with a child. Once Team IMPACT paired the Rams with Declan, they worked directly with Mary Welker, who worked as the liaison between the team and the child’s family. Last season, the football team worked with the organization and they paired the Rams with a child named Henry for the season, but it didn’t work out. “Henry came to a practice and to a game, but then he kind of disappeared,” Kelley said. “I got nervous we did something wrong. You always think it’s on your end.” It turns out, Kelley said, that Henry didn’t enjoy athletics and that he enjoyed music and the piano. “We were excited to try it again” this season, said Kelley. “They thought we did such a good job the last time with Henry that Declan would be a perfect match.” To get acclimated with Declan, Mangano said he, along with
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Inside Women’s basketball nets second win in a row 27
First Amendment in jeopardy 10
Football captures North Atlantic Bowl Title 27
FSU gets ink’d up 15