IT’S
BO, YO Bo Burnham visits gvsu in sold-out concert
GVL / Nicole Lamson
SOFTBALL
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Lanthorn Grand Valley
The STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT GRAND VALLEY
GVL / Nicole Lamson
M o nday, April 4 , 2011
What’s inside LAKER LIFE
COME ON DOWN
w w w. l a n t h o r n . c o m
Administration defends press
scrutiny of salaries Top 10 university president salaries in Michigan
Courtesy Photo / Gina Maniaci
GVSU freshman Gina Maniaci will appear on “The Price Is Right”
B6 lanthorn.com NEWS
NO CHANGE IN POLLING VENUE
GVL / Andrea Baker
Allendale Township temporarily tables consideration of a change to its voting venue
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By Anya Zentmeyer GVL News Editor
LAKER LIFE
‘Lethal Injection’ lecture
Courtesy photo / nodeathpenalty.org
Anti-death penalty panel comes to campus
A&E
‘Braggart Soldier’ Slideshow
series of local and state media reports last week detailing administrative salaries at Michigan’s 15 public universities has put the administration of Grand Valley State University under public scrutiny. The most recent report in The Grand Rapids Press Tuesday showed a 48.4-percent climb in administrative costs GVSU in the last five years with administrative salaries during the 2009-2010 school year around $48 million. According to a report compiled by the state House Fiscal Agency, that’s the sixth-highest among Michigan’s 15 public universities, with more than 71 members of administration paid in six figures ... I thought in 2010. Sala(the article) was ries for Preisdent Thomas maybe even J. Haas and deliberately Provost Gayle Davis break while perhaps the $200,000 factually correct mark. Matt McLo- conceptually gan, vice presiquite dent of univermisleading. sity relations, said the presi-Jim Bachmeier dent’s salary VP, Finance and is determined Administration by the Board
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GVL / Eric Coulter
$645,105
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MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
3
WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
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OAKLAND UNIVERSITY
$395,000
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CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
6
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY
$347,000
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EASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
8
GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
9
MICHIGAN TECH UNIVERSITY
10
SAGINAW VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
$520,000 $417,457 $366,500 $309,915 $279,409 $269,000 $267,150
of Trustees. President Haas sets the salaries of administrative officers, who in turn set the salaries of those who report to them. “When I read the article, I thought it was maybe even deliberately – while perhaps factually correct – conceptually quite misleading,” said Jim Bachmeier, vice president of Finance and Administration. “When someone says something about administrator salaries, I assume they are talking about people just like us over at the administrative buildings.” McLogan said the term “administrator” as used by both the Detroit
See Spending, A2
McLOGAN
DPS seeks individuals responsible for thefts By Chelsea Lane GVL Staff Writer
Grand Valley State University police are searching for information on two people of interest in a recent home invasion and theft case. On the weekend of March 25, at least two Laker Village apartments were entered by two individuals during the evening. All apartments were unlocked, and in some cases, residents were home. Electronic equipment was stolen from one residence. The owners were not home at the time of this theft. Witnesses described the individuals as two African-American males. One of whom was described as having a “youthful appearance” and could possibly have been younger than college age. Laker Village residents have been notified of the incidents via email, and all apartment residents are advised to lock their doors and sliders even when they are home. Anyone with information regarding the thefts or the people of interest are asked to contact Silent Observer at 1-877-887-4536 or the GVSU Department of Public Safety at 616331-3255. clane@lanthorn.com
Courtesy Photo / google images
Break-ins: Laker Village residents reported at least two thefts last weekend.
Senate turnout still low despite ‘competitive’ election By Samantha Butcher GVL Managing Editor
A3 Opinion A4 News B1 Sports B4 Laker Life B5 Marketplace
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GVL Graphic / Alana Holland
What’s Inside
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UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
»Police blotter
GVL Archive / Eric Coulter
Government: Student Senate President Jarrett Martus speaks at a past event. Senate elections commenced Friday.
The Student Senate elections drew a larger number of candidates despite an average voter turnout. The elections commenced at 11:59 p.m. Friday. Fifty-five students vied for the 44 open Senate seats. Of the 18 senators who ran for re-
election, 17 earned seats for the 2011-2012 academic year. Current Student Senate President Jarrett Martus said they have struggled to fill the ballot with 44 candidates in past elections. Six seats are kept open for incoming freshmen, graduate students and transfer students. Less than nine percent of the student body - or 2,125 students - voted in the elections. Historically, the Student Senate
elections garner votes from between eight and nine percent of students. “I’m not really sure (why turnout was low) because it was more of a competitive election,” Martus said. Martus, who opted not to run for next year’s Student Senate, said he hopes continued efforts to raise awareness of organization’s role on campus
See Student Senate, A2
News
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GRAND VALLEY Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
BRIEFS!
Student Senate continued from page A1
will help increase the numbers of both candidates and voters in future elections. “I hope they continue to build relationships because I feel if people in the university - faculty, staff, administration and community members - don’t know who we are, then our voice isn’t as strong as it can be,” he said. “That was something I worked on this year – was making sure those people know who we are and that we can continue that.” The current senators will remain in power until the end of the year. The new Senate will convene at 6 p.m. on Thursday for nominations to the 2011-2012 Cabinet. Voting for the Cabinet will take place at 4:30 p.m. on April 14. For more information, email senates@gvsu.edu or call 616-331-2333. managingeditor@lanthorn.com
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To view a complete list of 2011-2012 senators, www.gvsu.edu/ studentsenate
GV NEWS
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Seidman lecture and film series to bring experience to GV
GVL / Rane Martin
Budget blowout: A recent report by the House Fiscal Agency revealed that GVSU (pictured) has seen the largest increase in its administrative budget in the past five years at 48.4 percent, a revelation that has had GVSU administrators defending their salaries to news outlets across the state.
Spending
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Free Press and The Grand Rapids Press includes GVSU’s administrative and professional employees, or APs. APs include all nonteaching professionals, such as those working in admissions, records, counseling, advising centers, student financial aid, student employment office, student life, etc. “If they take away from that story - and I think it was, to the casual reader - was that university has larded themselves up with a bunch of pointy-headed administrators or gave them big raises, that’s just not true. We did not do
Grand Valley Lanthorn Volume 45, Number 54 The Grand Valley Lanthorn is published twice-weekly by Grand Valley State University students 62 times a year. One copy of this newspaper is available free of charge to any member of the Grand Valley Community. For additional copies, please contact our business offices. POSTMASTER: Please send form 3579 to Grand Valley Lanthorn, 0051 Kirkhof, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI, 49401
EDITORIAL STAFF Editor in Chief EMANUEL JOHNSON Managing Editor SAMANTHA BUTCHER News Editor ANYA ZENTMEYER Assistant News Editor MOLLY WAITE Sports Editor GREG MONAHAN Assistant Sports Editor DEREK WOLFF
that,” McLogan said. Dave Murray, the Grand Rapids Press journalist who wrote the article in question, said there were no concerns voiced when he spoke to members of administration before publishing the article. “They knew the numbers I had and were preparing to print,” Murray said. “Not once did any of them raise concerns about administrative definitions.” Fred Antczak, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, addressed similar concerns in an email sent to members of the CLAS alumni board last week. “Well, here’s the tyranny of percentages,” Antczak’s email read. “A tyranny I usually hate because of the way tuition increases get reported at a different time of year: the already expensive places have bigger dollar increases, but the media (for reasons I can’t fathom) report only the percentages. “So they’re off the hook, while institutions like Grand Valley that have been keeping tuition cots low are punished for their frugality. As we know, though the media
A & E Editor ELIJAH BRUMBACK Laker Life Editor SUSIE SKOWRONEK Photography Editor ERIC COULTER Multimedia Editor DAN KETCHUM Copy Editors SUSIE SKOWRONEK COREY FINKBEINER
evidently don’t, parents don’t pay percentages, they pay dollars.” McLogan said Antczak was not speaking on behalf of the university, but of his own opinions on state appropriations, which have been a consistent university concern. In 1987, 68 percent of GVSU’s budget was supported by state appropriations and with Gov. Rick Snyder’s new budget proposal, that number threatens to dip down to 17 percent while the university’s enrollment numbers continue to climb. According to President Haas’ accountability report, enrollment has shot up 53.9 percent in the past 10 years, the highest growth rate among public universities in the state. GVSU’s head count for Fall 2010 puts enrollment at more than 24,500, which McLogan said is one of the main contributors to the inflation in administrative costs – expanding programs and hiring more faculty and staff to serve the growing student body. McLogan said AP compensation per student is $2,162 at GVSU while the state average is $4,356,
Layout Editor ALANA HOLLAND
BACHMEIER which includes the number of employees and wages they receive. “In other words, Grand Valley spends 50 percent less on AP employment than the average Michigan public university,” he said. He also said GVSU has held a steady ratio of 8.2 APs per student – 25 percent fewer than the state average of 6.6. Despite criticism from some Michigan representatives, McLogan said he does not believe the information released will affect appropriations for GVSU in Snyder’s pending budget. “They fully understand that Grand Valley has the lowest per-student funding among all Michigan universities, but turns in one of the very best performances,” he said. ”Grand Valley’s tuition is ranked ninth out of 15 – below the state average, and our rate of change over 10 years ranks 11th. Yet our retention and graduation rates are at the very top, exceeded only by Michigan Tech, Michigan State and U of M. That we perform so well with so little funding is to be applauded.” Links to Antzcak’s full letter to the CLAS Alumni Board, the President’s Accountability Report and the Grand Rapids Press article can be found online at www.lanthorn.com. news@lanthorn.com
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Tom Seidman, an independent film producer and son of the late L. William Seidman who founded Grand Valley State University will bring two special events to the university that will focus on leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship. As part of the new GVSU Frederik Meijer Lecture Series, Seidman will present “What’s So Good About Being a Liberal (Arts Major)?” at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday in the Eberhard Center. A reception will take place at 5:30 p.m., prior to the lecture. Both the lecture and reception are open to the public and free of charge. The lecture will focus on the benefits of a cross-disciplinary, liberal arts education for success in both business and creative work. In addition to the lecture, Seidman, who director GVSU’s 2010 Summer Film Project, will attend the film’s premiere. “Horizontal Accidents” will be screened at 7 p.m. on Thursday at Celebration Cinema North, located at 2121 Celebration Drive NE in Grand Rapids. “Horizontal Accidents” features a week in the life of two modern-day grave robbers. It is a dark comedy about robbing the dead and rejoining the living. General admission is $5. For more information about the Frederik Meijer Lecture Series, please contact the Frederik Meijer Honors College at 616-331-3219. For more information about the Summer Film Project, contact Kim Roberts at 616-331-3607.
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Electric car gets first charge at MAREC Last month, a silver Chevrolet Volt visited Grand Valley State University’s Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center, which made it the first vehicle to be charged at the electric charging station. The charging station at GVSU can charge two cars at once, one with a 22-volt charge option and the other with a 110-volt charge option. For more information about the electrical charging station, contact MAREC at 616-331-6900 or visit www.gvsu.edu/marec.
The Grand Valley Lanthorn is published under the authorization of the GVSU Newspaper Advisory Board.
Corrections Miranda Cleary’s name was misspelled in the “Sports Shorts” in the March 28 issue.
Opinion
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
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Your voice at Grand Valley
EDITORIAL
see LANTHORN.COM to view a letter to the editor >>Meatless Mondays
EDITORIAL CARTOON
Two wrongs Recent media attacks on GVSU’s administrative budget have been unfair, but administration should take this opportunity to re-examine it.
I
n the recent debate between Grand Valley State University and mainstream media over the university’s administrative budget, there have been faults on both sides. First of all, the media took some of the numbers they presented out of proportion. Yes, the university’s adminstrative budget ranks sixth in the state with more than $48 million spent on administrative staff, but it isn’t as if a select group of individuals at the top of the ladder are inflating their own salaries. President Thomas J. Haas personally makes $279,409 each year, which is only eighth among presidents of public universities in the state. The rest of the money is disbursed among 70 other members of the administrative staff. Another public concern was the growth over a five-year period in the administrative budget, which is the highest in the state at 48.4 percent. But consider that GVSU also has the highest-growing student body in the state over the past decade, and a larger student population (raised in spite of having the lowest state aid per student in Michigan) will inherently demand a larger administrative budget. GVSU administration has been a vital component in the university’s success, and the individuals in place, namely Haas, who personally went to Lansing in order to lobby for more state dollars to go toward helping students at GVSU, have proven to students that they are willing to do what it takes to put the GVSU brand among the most elite universities that Michigan has to offer. The only problem with the administrative budget is that it has grown while other areas have been forced to decrease. Faculty at GVSU have willingly taken pay freezes that will keep their salaries at the same rate for next school year as well as been forced to shell out more money for health care. Academic departments have been told to do more with less, leaving faculty positions unfilled due to restricted budgets. Administration has also recently lowered block tuition rates from 12 to 16 credits to 12 to 15 credits, a move that could provide the university with an estimated $3 million boost while potentially restricting the number of credits a student can take without going over their financial limits. The current university administrative budget has not been as inflated as some may have you think, but administrators can afford to trim some of the fat if they want to show that everyone will need to cut back if the university is to thrive.
The student-run newspaper of Grand Valley State University
Editorial Page Board
Emanuel Johnson Kim Sander Samantha Butcher Anya Zentmeyer
Editor in Chief Business Manager Managing Editor News Editor
Valley Vote Should Grand Valley adopt a gender neutral housing policy?
Yes: 65% This week’s question: Are administrators at GVSU paid too much?
No: 35% Vote online at Lanthorn.com
GVL OPINION POLICY The ultimate goal of the Grand Valley Lanthorn opinion page is to stimulate discussion and action on topics of interest to the Grand Valley Community. Student opinions do not reflect those of the Grand Valley Lanthorn. The Grand Valley Lanthorn welcomes reader viewpoints and offers three vehicles of expression for reader opinions: letters to the editor, guest columns and phone responses. Letters must include the author’s name and be accompanied by current picture identification if dropped off in person. Letters will be checked by an employee of the Grand Valley Lanthorn. Letters appear as space permits each
issue. The limit for letter length is one page, single spaced. The editor reserves the right to edit and condense letters and columns for length restrictions and clarity. All letters must be typed. The Grand Valley Lanthorn will not be held responsible for errors that appear in print as a result of transcribing handwritten letters or e-mail typographic errors. The name of the author may be withheld for compelling reasons. The content, information and views expressed are not approved by nor necessarily represent those of the university, its Board of Trustees, officers, faculty and staff.
GVL / Jacob Bowen and Alan Headbloom
YOUR THOUGHTS
How much money should GVSU administrators make?
Good question. Payment should be directly related to their value to GVSU. Value is estimated to be their contributions to GVSU.
I think they should be paid well enough because I think they are working well.
GVSU administrators should be paid an amount based off the work they do and not necessarily their title. Just being a higher up doesn’t mean they deserve their salary. I think that faculty (professors) should be paid more and administrators paid less.
I think GVSU administrators should be paid somewhere between $150,000 and $200,000. They are important figures in our education and should be paid accordingly.
I feel like the administrators should be paid because they’re a job like everybody else. It is nothing different from the rest.
Doug Meekhuff Sophomore Finance Grand Rapids, Mich.
Kosei Yajima 2010 graduate Pre-engineering Wixom, Mich.
Catherine Kushner Fifth-year Senior Biomedical Science, Biology Barrington, Ill.
Sean Robenalt Junior Anthropology Ann Arbor, Mich.
Brandon Ross Junior Criminal Justice Detroit, Mich.
GVL STUDENT OPINION
An optimist’s view on breaking up in college Chris Slattery GVL Columnist
Dumpee: Don’t get too upset. Yes, the person who promised to love you for the rest of your life is gone. And she’s never coming back. But cheer up — it’s not the end of the world as you know it. Society has crafted this depressing stigma that goes along with being dumped. In fact, there is quite the silver lining to go along with this ordeal (which isn’t quite as good as a gold lining, but still pays pretty well). This is not some misguided, sentimental crap about how the other person is happier now because they were honest with themselves. No, screw that person. Instead, try to focus on the positives. Say by chance, you met in one of your classes this year (because we all know that Diagnostic Microbiology really turns
the ladies on). Now you have the perfect psychological revenge setting: silently show up to class every day looking as if Death punched you in the face to gain the sympathy from your peers, and your ex will wallow in their remorseful shell of lamentation. In the end, you win. Dumper: Sup, bra! You did good, right? Hit it and quit it? That’s my dawg! You just have integrity spilling out of your ears. Wait, you don’t feel good about the situation either? It’s understandable. It can be a challenge to tear someone’s heart out like Kano did in Mortal Kombat. What’s worse is that society has labeled you the evil one for destroying such a sacred union, otherwise known as “going out.” Even if you had the best of intentions, once you obtain the label of various four-letter words. But look on the bright side, just as there was a reason for coming
together in the first place (such as a good sense of humor or her being the first person in history to not say “no”), there was also a reason for ending things. And while some excuses are better than others “she’s completely insane” generally constitutes a solid reason - it gives you the right to have the “We need to talk…” conversation. Once again, you are your own boss. You call the shots (occasionally by calling for a few too many shots), and there really is no one else for you to disappoint other than yourself. This liberation from the confines of a relationship can be a bit overwhelming, but allows for some fun distractions. There is the cliché, “If you love something, let it go,” and while I regret giving up my copy of “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World,” I know it was the right decision… The same applies to people. In the end, you win? cslattery@lanthorn.com
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Gov. Snyder’s budget an ‘attack on our rights’
I was pleased to read Nicholas VanKlompenberg’s response to what I had to say in regards to protesting Governor Snyder’s budget proposal. It is reassuring to know there are others who does not feel apathetic to our current political situation. However, my statement that “these attacks on our rights are not just against us, it’s against every kind of oppressed group - women, racial minorities, the LGBT community, those living in poverty,” is not a “fallacious comparison of two un-concerning topics” and is indeed an attack on nearly all groups. The governor’s proposed budget plan includes large cut of funding to public universities and public K-12 schools, which would include many of the minority groups mentioned above. Campuses that have organizations facilitating to these groups would have less funds to allocate to the organizations. Grand Valley for example, has a wonderful and strong LGBT Resource Center. However, under Governor Snyder’s proposed budget plan, GVSU would receive less funding, along with all the other public universities, and would have to cut drastically back on such a vibrant
and helpful center to the LGBT community at GVSU. The budget also includes eliminating the Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit will add 25,000 people (14,000 of those people are children) to our ever-increasing communities living in poverty. I fail to recognize how Nicholas VanKlompenberg is able to call my statements “intellectually insulting and fallacious”, when they are indeed, informing, urgent to be heard and truthful. To address Nicholas’s second question, I am not implying any sort of difference between “us” and those in “oppressed groups”. In fact, I was implying quite the opposite; many students fall into those oppressed groups earlier mentioned in the March 28th article, having the “label” of “student”, “LGBT”, “women” and more. My point was, and is, that the cuts in the budget proposal are affecting all of us, not just us as mere students. Addressing Nicholas’s third point, the budget cuts are attack on our rights because I believe that every human being deserves the right to receive a free higher education, and these budget cuts are making that right harder to achieve. Another brief point is the
cut of 15% towards environmental funding would mean less cleanup of toxic sites, fewer inspections on businesses and corporations that spew poisonous waste and other forms of protecting our environment. Our environmental protections should be strengthened, not reduced. To address Nicholas’s final point asking where I would suggest we receive funding from? Well, how about, instead of raising taxes for the elderly, impoverished families and pretty much everybody but those making grandiose salaries, we reverse it. Let those that are not paying their fair share to our state, pay up and let those who are barely making the monthly payments, those who are slaving their lives away for barely enough to put food on the table, those that are sacrificing everything for their children, have a well deserved break for once. Governor Snyder wants to have a proposed budget plan that is a shared sacrifice? How much are you sacrificing Governor Snyder? Vince Panozzo
Want us to publish your thoughts? E-mail us at editorial@lanthorn.com
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
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News GRAND VALLEY
see LANTHORN.COM to view an online exclusive >>TOWNSHIP POLLING
Anya Zentmeyer, News Editor news@lanthorn.com
GVL / Andrea Baker
New buoy to help discover ‘what’s out there’ in Lake Michigan GVSU to team up with U of M, Michigan State for research project By Eric Higgins GVL Intern
The Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center at Grand Valley State University is about to embark on a three-year project to help to better understand the Great Lakes. The project will send a specially-made buoy to different parts of Lake Michigan to collect data. MAREC director Arn Boezaart said the wind assessment study will be a partnership with other universities and will use new technology to collect various types of wind data. “What we’re going to be doing in partnership with the University of Michigan and Michigan State University is we’re going to go offshore into Lake Michigan and evaluate wind resources and wind speeds and other wind related data and do it in a real time hub height sort of fashion, and we’re going to do this using a brand new laser technology that has never been used for that purpose before,” he said. Along with wind data, other types of data will be collected, said Jim Edmonson, project manager for the wind assessment study. “There are at least a dozen instruments on the buoy that measure wind and wave heights and weather data, currents in the lake, all kinds of stuff,” he said. The buoy, called the WindSentinel, was made
Courtesy photo / Arn Boezaart
Wind assessment: A WindSentinel buoy like the one to be used in the GVSU study floats off the coast of Vancouver Island.
by AXYS Technologies, Inc., of Sidney, British Columbia, and will be deployed in September. Before the project could get underway, MAREC needed federal approval to put the buoy in Lake Michigan, and Edmonson said several permits were needed.
“We need one from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corp. of Engineering and from the U.S. Coast Guard,” he said. To help with funding, the project received $3.1 million in grants and research funds.
Boezaart said over the course of three years the buoy will be placed in different areas of the lake to collect data. “We want to go to three different locations in Lake Michigan to capture data sets for each of those different points,” he said. “This fall, if everything goes according to plan, the buoy will be deployed close to shore in the Muskegon region someplace – perhaps four miles out. The year after that, the buoy will spend the season in the middle of Lake Michigan – the mid-lake plateau – and that will provide a whole different set of data. And then the third year after that, it will come back into a closer to shore location – perhaps six miles out – but that exact location still has to be worked out.” The buoy will be unique because unlike a meteorological tower, which is fixed in place, the buoy will be mobile and more flexible, so it will be able to collect different types of data. According to a GVSU press release, once the data is collected, it will be sent to the Padnos College of Engineering and Computing to be evaluated and analyzed by researchers. The data will then leave GVSU and be sent to Michigan State and the University of Michigan for further analysis. Possible outcomes of the research would be to see if wind farms are an effective form of energy production for Michigan and to find out what kind of animals actually live out in the lake. “I think we’ll get a beginning understanding about the resource of Lake Michigan in terms of wind and what’s out there,” he said. “There will be a lot of new environmental information learned about the Lake Michigan Environment.” news@lanthorn.com
Student Senate passes resolution for gender neutral housing By Molly Waite GVL Assistant News Editor
Gender-neutral housing has been widely discussed on the college campuses across the country, and the student leaders at Grand Valley State University have stepped forward in support of bringing this option to the GVSU on-campus housing complexes. At the Student Senate meeting on Thursday, student senator Zach Conley presented a resolution to encourage adopting a preliminary gender-neutral housing program. The resolution was unanimously passed the day of its presentation in a surprise move by the Senate. Student senator Kirsten Zeiter, who sponsored the resolution with Conley and senators Kyle Lower and Jessica Young, said a resolution is required to be on the agenda for discussion one week before it can be voted on, as prescribed by the Senate bylaws. Zeiter said the Senate had several reasons for voting to suspend the bylaws and vote on the resolution early. With the semester coming to a close, the senators wanted to see the resolution passes quickly and to respond to what Zeiter described as an overwhelming show of student, faculty and staff support. Before the resolution was
presented, two students spoke in support of gender-neutral housing. Johnnie Thompson, president of Transpectrum, the student organization for transgender students and allies, spoke to remind the Senate of the need for gender-neutral housing and to give presence to the 805 students, faculty, and staff who signed a petition to bring this housing option to GVSU. Thompson listed some of the more 50 campuses in the U.S. that have some form of gender-blind housing, a list that recently grew to include Rutgers University in New Jersey, where a student committed suicide in September after being harassed by his roommate for being gay. The student, freshman Tyler Clementi, committed suicide by jumping off the George Washington Bridge. “Tyler was driven to kill himself after his homophobic roommate humiliated him by live streaming his sexual encounters over the Internet,” Thompson said. “Since then, Rutgers has taken action. They have implemented gender-neutral housing on their campus to combat homophobia and discrimination to cultivate a safer, more inclusive campus.” Turnout at the meeting included Colette Seguin Beighley, director of the LGBT Re-
source Center, and members of the student-run Gender Neutral Housing Coalition. The coalition was responsible for creating the petition for gender-neutral housing. Zeiter said that gender-neutral housing is critical for inclusiveness at GVSU. “It ensures that students from all gender expressions and sexualities are recognized, safe and comfortable in their housing experiences on campus,” Zeiter said. “It is problematic to continue a housing policy based around heterosexual identities and biological sex alone. The current policy doesn’t accommodate or embrace lesbian, gay, bi, transgender or queer students who may not feel as comfortable in a single-gender housing situation. Gender-neutral housing will address these issues while recognizing students’ ability to make mature choices about their living arrangements.” Zeiter said the next step will be to take the resolution to the attention of Housing particularly to demonstrate the initiative has received significant student support. “Two students spoke during public comment to articulate their support, and numerous others attended the meeting to show their support,” Zeiter said. “It’s not very often that we see this type of demonstra-
GVL / Eric Coulter
Inclusive housing: Transpectrum President Johnnie Thomas addresses the Student Senate on gender neutral housing. Student Senate bypassed their bylaws Thursday to produce a resolution in favor of the petition.
tion at our meeting, and we wanted to recognize that by addressing the matter and moving into a vote at this week’s meeting. The motion to suspend the bylaws was met with little to no opposition by other Senators, which indicated that there was a large agreement about the importance of this initiative.”
Andy Beachnau, director of Housing, was unavailable for comment. By passing the Gender Neutral Housing Resolution, the Student Senate responded directly to Thompson and the students for whom Thompson spoke. “Senators, join us in taking
action and work alongside us to shape this campus and this community into a safe place for all students, where every individual is given the validation, respect, and self-determination to choose something as simple as who they live with,” Thompson said. assistantnews@lanthorn.com
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
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SPORTS SHORTS No. 1 seeds feeling ‘elite’ as Ultimate Bracket down to eight teams
Sports GRAND VALLEY
Greg Monahan, Sports Editor sports@lanthorn.com
see LANTHORN.COM to view an online slideshow >>LUBBERS CUP REGATTA
GVL / Eric Coulter
L a t e - i n n i n g r a ll i e s l e a d G V t o
Saturday sweep
Grand Valley State University’s Ultimate Bracket has thinned to just eight teams and athletes remaining, which leaves the four remaining No. 1 seeds feeling elite. The overall No. 1 seed, the 2002 national championship football team, continued to roll in the Irwin region as it resoundingly thumped women’s golf great Melissa Sneller. The team will take on the 2005-06 national champion women’s basketball team with a trip to the final four on the line. A potential champions and No. 1 seed, the 2010 women’s soccer team defeated the 2003 football national champions to advance to the elite eight in the Selgo region. Voting for the Final Four can be done at www.gvsulakers.com/ ot/ultimatebracket.html.
Men’s golf
finishes 13th
GVL Archive / Eric Coulter
The Grand Valley State University men’s golf team finished 13th this weekend at The Jewell, a 25-team invitational played at the Cherry Blossom Golf Course in Georgetown, Ky. Junior Nick Gunthorpe lead the way for GVSU, as he came in a tie for fifth overall at the tournament with a one-overpar 145 during the two-day tournament. GVSU got off to a slow start on day one, where the team carded a 311. But Sunday they were able to turn things around a bit, shooting 11 strokes better for an even 300 on the afternoon. The women were in Belle Vernon, Pa., but still competing in a two-day tournament that spans through Monday. GVSU was tied for third place with a 319 (+31), 11 shots back from host California University of Pennsylvania. The Lakers will be in Noblesville, Ind., next weekend for the Great Lakes Region Invitational No. 3.
GVL / Nicole Lamson
Rally time: Junior Carli Raisutis catches the ball during Saturday’s game against Northwood. Despite being rained out of their Sunday doubleheader, the Lakers asserted their GLIAC dominance Saturday.
Offense puts up 21 runs in 14 innings of play led by 5-for-5 performance from Jackie Teutsch By Brady Fredericksen GVL Senior Reporter
Despite cold and rainy weather, the Grand Valley State University softball team pulled out consecutive come-frombehind wins over Northwood University at home on Saturday before losing Sunday’s doubleheader to a washout. The Lakers (21-4, 7-1 GLIAC) used a four-run sixth inning in game one and a ten-run seventh inning in game two to sweep the Timberwolves (9-9, 3-3 GLIAC) and stretch their early-season lead in the GLIAC North to a game over Saginaw Valley State University. “I think the comebacks speak highly of our confidence,” said GVSU head coach Doug Woods. “It shows that they can get behind and in the last innings still
can have a great chance to come back- it says a lot about their hitting ability.” That hitting ability was put on display early in the day as GVSU put up 21 runs on the day. Led by sophomore outfielder Nellie Kosola’s three hits in the first game, the team out-slugged Northwood late and used five hits in the sixth inning to score four runs to take the lead. Coming with the success of the recent stretch of comeback wins is the confidence instilled in the younger players. “We don’t look at ourselves as a young team. Just because we have freshmen doesn’t mean we look at them to play worse because of that,” Kosola said. “But it’s definitely is a confidence booster when we‘re all playing well together like this.” The good vibes from game one con-
of Teutsch in game two. Teutsch’s five-hit game was the first for GVSU since 2005 and all five of the hits were infield singles or bunts. The team has been carried by their power hitters, but the importance of small-ball offense is important, Teutsch said. “Obviously, having someone on base when you hit a home run helps, but the girls that play small ball do help a big hitter when they come up,” the outfielder said. “As a hitter, you can sometimes see if the defense is playing farther back, but you have to try to read them to see what you can do for bunting.” Sunday’s games were rained out, but the team’s success on Saturday was just another step in the their chase for a conference title. The Lakers will travel next to Hillsdale on Wednesday. bfredericksen@lanthorn.com
Ryan Garman fires no-hitter against Ashland University Junior righthander dominates Ashland for first no-hitter since Danny Richard’s perfect game on March 3, 2009
STANDINGS SOFTBALL:
By Greg Monahan
1. Tiffin (8-1, 17-7) 2. GVSU (7-1, 21-4) 3. Ashland (5-1, 13-9) 4. Saginaw Valley (6-2, 19-8) 5. Ferris State (5-3, 8-12) 6. Wayne State (4-3, 16-13) 7. Northwood (3-3, 9-9) 8. Hillsdale (4-4, 8-15) 9. Findlay (2-4, 14-7-1) 10. Ohio Dominican (2-7, 7-20)
GVL Sports Editor
BASEball:
1. GVSU (6-0, 17-2) 2. Wayne State (6-2, 14-6) 3. Saginaw Valley (4-2, 8-9) 4. Ohio Dominican (5-3, 8-10) 5. Northwood (3-3, 8-8) 6. Hillsdale (4-4, 8-14) 7. Ashland (3-4, 12-8) 8. Tiffin (3-4, 6-15) 9. Lake Erie (1-5, 8-10) 10. Findlay (0-8, 2-15-1)
tinued in game two, a 13-5 GVSU win. The play of freshman third basemen Miranda Cleary has been a key to the sustained success of the Lakers this season. Cleary smacked her 10th home run of the season, tying her for fourth most single-season home runs all-time at GVSU. She is also the youngest player to reach double digits. “We need the run production because we are giving up a few on defense, so it’s awful important,” said Woods. “To get that great run production from a freshman can really keep you in ballgames.” Along with the big-play ability of Cleary, the Lakers’ success on Saturday can be attributed to the small-ball play of sophomore Jackie Teutsch and Kosola. The one and nine hitters in the order, the duo combined for 11 hits during the twin bill- five of which came off the bat
Courtesy Photo / gvsulakers.com
One up, one down: Junior Jared Cowan takes aim at a pitch. The Lakers swept Ashland this past weekend on the hells of a no-hitter from junior Ryan Garman.
With eight strikeouts on the day and in complete control throughout, Grand Valley State University junior Ryan Garman pitched his way to a no-hitter Sunday against Ashland University GVSU’s 7-0 win. The Cedar Rapids, Iowa native faced 26 batters and needed less than two hours to get the win, striking out each of the last two Eagles to lock up the no-hitter. “I was shocked,” said Garman of his reaction after striking out the final batter. “Once he swung through it, I kind of watched it and it took me a second to realize it. Once I saw my catcher Zach Laupp running out, I realized I had just done it. I was so excited.” Garman’s gem was the seventh no-hitter in school history, as the righthander capped off a weekend sweep with the first hitless game of his career at any level. “This is definitely the best game I have ever pitched,” said Garman, who is in his first season as a Laker after pitching two years at Johnson County Community College in Kansas. “I’ve never had one before, so it was exciting.” GVSU head coach Steve Lyon, in his 13th year as the team’s skipper, said he had a good feeling about Garman’s chances when he looked up and saw all ze-
roes halfway through the game. “About the fourth inning he kicked it into another gear,” he said. “His velocity seemed to increase, and he’s got such a devastating breaking ball, once his arm gets loose and he starts to increase his velocity he can be pretty tough.” Garman had a similar feeling as Lyon about midway through, but GARMAN said he was able to keep it out of his mind until the later stages of the game, which was well in hand by the time he reached the mound in the bottom of the seventh. “I really didn’t try to think too much about it,” he said. “I just went in each inning and got locked in with my catcher and I just kind of kept going at it.” Garman’s day had an inauspicious start, as the righty plunked the leadoff man in the first inning, but he was able to set down the next six batters in order. His only blemishes were two hit batsmen, a couple of walks and one batter reaching by an error. Garman only allowed one man to reach second base all game long. “(GVSU pitching coach Gordie) Alderink wants our pitchers to pay attention when they’re not pitching, and I’m sure Ryan did during the first two games to get a good feel for their lineup,” Lyon said. “He certainly went to work with that and executed his game plan very well.” The Lakers will next see action when they take on Hillsdale College in the team’s home opener Tuesday. sports@lanthorn.com
Sports
B2
GRAND VALLEY
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
LACROSSE
GVL / Andrew Mills
Dominating streak: Martin Schultz of the GVSU men’s lacrosse team plays against Calvin College in Grand Rapids Saturday. The Lakers have outscored their opponents 71-10 in the past three games of their undefeated season.
Lakers say ‘good knight’ to Calvin Undefeated Lakers cruise to 8-0 mark after Calvin victory By Derek Wolff GVL Assistant Sports Editor
The conference season is underway for the Grand Valley State University men’s lacrosse team, and just like in the team’s first Central Collegiate Lacrosse Association match-up, GVSU poured it on and rolled to an easy win. On the season so far, the Lakers (8-0, 2-0 CCLA West) are outscoring opponents 177-51 and sit tied atop the CCLA West standings at 2-0 with rivals Ferris State University, all sitting undefeated on the season. Their latest victim, Calvin College, suffered a 27-2 pounding on Saturday as
GVSU cruised to another easy win. “It’s another huge victory for us,” said junior attacker Jack Dumsa, who tallied four goals and two assists against the Knights. “Games like this really boost our confidence, and we are meshing together well. We are playing to our potential but still have a lot to accomplish this year.” While wins have come easy in the last few games – the team has outscored its opponents 7110 in its last three games – the nation’s No. 1 team knows that it has a long way to go before it can say it has accomplished anything truly important, said sophomore midfielder Tyler Farmer. “We need to stay focused on the task at hand,” he said. “Coach Murray stresses every day that we still haven’t accomplished what we want to accomplish: a national championship. I think the main thing is to focus and push each other each
day while continuing to work hard to reach that goal.” Junior midfielder Daniel Mac Donnell echoed his teammate’s sentiments by saying that despite beating both the good (Davenport University, University of St. Thomas) and the bad (Siena Heights University, Calvin) this season, the Lakers still have a lot to prove in the four weeks before CCLA Playoffs begin. “Our first half of the season was excellent — everyone had a chip on their shoulder and were working hard and were out to prove something,” Mac Donnell said. “Now that we’re No. 1 in America, we still have something to prove, and the season is not over. The mentality that we will have over the next couple weeks will be like what we had before our No. 1 ranking.” For the time being, however, the team is hav-
ing a lot of fun and hopes to continue to as it begins the home stretch toward playoffs. “We’re having a great time, and I think it comes down to our team chemistry,” Mac Donnell said. “It’s phenomenal. Everyone is friends with everybody off the field, and I think that constitutes to how well our season is going and how much fun we’re having. I’ve always said that lacrosse is fun but only if we’re winning, and I think that holds true this year.” GVSU has certainly done its fair share of winning, but the Lakers have a few tough match-ups in April. These games start with Grove City College in Pennsylvania on Friday and continue with the University of Dayton on April 16. The Lakers will also face Southern Connecticut State University on Saturday. dwolff@lanthorn.com
COLUMN
NFL Lockout? It’s all on the owners By Greg Monahan GVL Sports Editor
This is going to get worse before it gets better. There is no reason to be optimistic. If you’re hoping to see
football this fall, I hope you like the college game. Because, at least right now, you couldn’t get the NFL owners and players to agree on what shape the football should be, much less a collective bargaining agreement. And it’s completely the fault of the owners. Their hypocrisy is dumbfounding. The owners say ‘We want to protect our players!’ and then push to add two more games. They also say ‘We are poor! We need more money!’ and then build
billion-dollar stadiums and report $9.3 billion in revenue for 2010. Greed is the name of the game. An 18-game season, which the owners proposed, will bring in more money for the teams, but will inherently lead to more concussions and injuries league-wide. The mental and physical issues retired players have faced due to head trauma from their playing days have been well documented. Ex-NFLers have extremely high rates of dementia, depression and
chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain disease caused by hits to the head. I don’t think the cure for that is playing two more games each season. The players like the status quo. They are ready to simply renew the current CBA and play football come September. And that seems logical considering the owners were making plenty of money with the old CBA in place, but are looking to shake down the players to a tune of a $1 billion decrease in player salaries. The owners say they are losing money, but they are not. If they were, they could prove it by opening their books and showing the red ink. But they refuse to do so. Even worse is the fact that the current CBA was supposed to last through 2012, but the owners reneged on the deal in 2008, unanimously agreeing to opt out after the 2010 season. When that happened three years ago, some experts were already circling March 2011 on the calendar, knowing that a new deal was likely not going to come
without a lengthy battle between the NFL and NFLPA, and it hasn’t. The unfortunate part is that, in the end, the owners will probably come out as the ‘winner’ in this entire debacle. Because they have a guaranteed broadcasting contract, which means even if there is not one single snap during what would have been the 2011 NFL season, the owners will still collect on the multi-billion dollar agreement between the league and the television networks. So even without football in 2011, the owners could still make a profit. On the other side, the players have little room to bargain. When the lockout began on March 11, it voided the players’ contracts and health coverage. So in addition to the owners’ ability to sit back and collect guaranteed broadcasting revenue, they also do not have to pay a penny of their players’ salaries or health care while the lockout is still in effect. There is litigation in the works (Tom Brady v. National Football League) that is looking to end the lockout through the courts. However, even if the players were to win the case, the NFL would almost certainly appeal and draw out the process much longer than the scheduled kickoff date of September 7. We could see anywhere from a full season of football in 2011 to a complete wasted year, like the NHL saw in 2004-2005. Right now it’s too early to tell, but my money is on the owners playing the waiting game until the players can hold out no longer. The 2011 NFL season is in major jeopardy, and it’s only going to get worse from here. sports@lanthorn.com
Sports
B3
GRAND VALLEY
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
TRACK AND FIELD
MEN’S TENNIS
GV battles poor weather conditions Lakers take the in first outdoor meet in Michigan show on the road Team makes three stops in three days during 880-mile road trip through the Midwest
By Zach Sepanik GVL Staff Writer
For the Grand Valley State University men’s and women’s track and field teams, the Spartan Invite was just a meet to get a race under their belts, but the cold weather in East Lansing on Saturday made for poor race conditions. Cold weather or not, the Lakers had a solid day at the unscored meet with seven provisional marks from individual performances. “Most people did well because it was our first race of the [outdoor] season,” said Simon Nyang, a senior distance runner. “We wanted to start off on a good note. As of today, we were just getting our legs going. The key is to try to improve each week as the season goes on.” Nyang finished in seventh place in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3 minutes, 56.25 seconds. The relay teams served as the highlight on the men’s side. The 4x400 team of freshmen Deonte Hurst, Logan Hoffman and Mohamed Mohamed and senior Eric Lowe finished first with a time of 3:20.20. Later on, the 4x100 team of freshmen Aaron Dewberry and Nathaniel Hammersmith, junior Xavier Parnell and senior Jovon Faulk finished in second place with a time of 42.01. The field events also saw strong performances, especially from sophomore Donny Stiffler, who earned an NCAA provisional mark in the discus throw with a toss of 162 feet, 11 inches. “Today, everyone went for it,” Nyang said. “They ran fast to try and make the travel squad, and what I saw was everyone giving it their best. We had to show that we have the potential to run in conference. If you can make the travel team, then you are able to run in conference.” On the women’s side, sophomore thrower Sam Lockhart led the way by claiming the top spot in the shot put with a provisional mark of 48-2 1/2 and finishing third in the discus with a provisional throw of 149-11. The relay teams were also a strong point for the women. The 4x400 team of red-shirt freshman Aileen Lemanski, junior Jade Hull and seniors Adrienne Chandler and Kayla Vallar finished in
By Jon Adamy GVL Staff Writer
Courtesy photo / sportsimagewire.com
Push it to the limit: Junior distance runner Tyler Emmorey runs in the Spartan Invite Saturday.
first place with a time of 3:54.72. “Everyone was performing really well, and considering all the conditions, we did really well as a team,” said freshman distance runner Madie Rodts, who ran the 1,500-meter race for the first time Saturday. “We are still going strong and working toward another national championship. It was pretty good for the first meet.” Weather conditions is something the team will have to adjust to in outdoor season that weren’t a factor during the indoor season. Even with the time off from the last race of the indoor season, however, the team did not seem to lose a stride in their first outdoor meet. “It’s not always going to be perfect conditions,” Rodts said. “You can only do your best. We train and work harder, we will get stronger, then the team will improve and times and jumps will improve as a whole. So hopefully we will perform well at conference and at
nationals.” Although it was the first meet and early in the outdoor season, both squads look forward with high expectations. “After we came back from the Indoor National Championships, let’s keep this rolling, and let’s have the goal to win two more GLIAC championships and make it six for six for the year,” said GVSU head coach Jerry Baltes. “We want to get as many people to the national championships and get our men in the top-10 and our women back on the podium. That is the carrot way out in front of us. We have the talent, ability and experience that if we work hard and prepare and get better and better, we can accomplish all those goals.” Both teams will next see action when they send athletes to compete in the Miami Invitational and Bulldog Invitational this weekend. zsepanik@lanthorn.com
On a map, Grand Valley State University and Lake Erie College are about 350 miles apart, but when it comes to tennis, the Lakers are on another planet. On a recent road trip, the Lakers kicked things off by annihilating GLIAC conference newcomer Lake Erie on Friday in a 9-0. The Storm only recorded six points on the Lakers in both singles and doubles matches combined. There was little rest, however, for the Lakers, who got back on the road after Friday’s win and traveled three hours south to Old Dominican University. The team faced more stiff competition against the Panthers on Saturday but still took home a 6-3 victory with both senior Philipp Claus and freshman Andrew Darrell extending their personal win streaks. Claus has now recorded 11 straight victories while Darrell sits at 10. The two players are now a perfect 7-0 against GLIAC foes. On Sunday, the Lakers served Wayne State University with its first GLIAC loss of the season in a 5-4 win. GVSU head coach John Black said the team used its abilities in singles matches to take the win against Old Dominican University. He noted how last week’s 5-4 loss to Ferris State University came down to doubles matches, a facet of the game that the freshmen on the team are still getting used to. “The biggest challenge for us right now is working on improving our doubles, because I do have so many young players that really haven’t played much doubles before,” Black said. “If we keep working at it, particularly in the off season, I think in another year or two we’ll have the doubles at the same level as our singles.” Even the young players on the team are already used to a schedule that includes being on the road for a majority of the season and playing back-to-back games on weekends.
GVL Archive / Andrew Mills
Backhand: Junior Josh Kazdan swings in a past practice. Kazdan helped the Lakers pull a 6-3 victory over Ohio Dominican.
Junior Josh Kazdan said being on the road is actually a positive. “It always makes you play better because you do so much traveling, so your anticipation the whole time you’re in the van is just kind of thinking, ‘Alright, I’m getting ready for this match,’” Kazdan said. “If you’re going to travel that much, you might as well win.” Claus said the team got a chance to practice new techniques and tactics against Lake Erie, and the victories have left it feeling very confident in its abilities as the season finishes with the GLIAC tournament on the horizon. “We’ve been improving in the last two weeks,” he said. “I think everybody knows if we play well in the conference tournament, we can definitely make it to the final and then qualify for nationals.” The team will next compete when it travels to Northwood University on Wednesday to play against what could be its toughest conference opponent as the Timberwolves sit atop the GLIAC at 6-0. jadamy@lanthorn.com
Susie Skowronek, Laker Life Editor lakerlife@lanthorn.com
lakerlife
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
B4
Your life at Grand Valley
see LANTHORN.COM
It’s Bo, yo to view an online slideshow >>BURNHAM CONCERT
GVL / Nicole Lamson
Burnham seLls out the fieldhouse
A
By Kendal Pektas GVL Staff Writer
s soon as doors opened, more than 4,000 fans who had been waiting in what seemed to be a never-ending line rushed into the Grand Valley State University Fieldhouse Arena in hopes of getting the best seats possible. Musical comedian Bo Burnham, who gained fame recording YouTube videos from his bedroom, performed Thursday night in a free show hosted by student-run programming board Spotlight Productions. The show sold out. Although doors did not open until 8 p.m., some dedicated fans started waiting in line for their seats as early as 9 a.m. Once Burnham energetically got on stage, the crowd went wild as they applauded and cheered him on. Some fans wore Bo Burnham shirts while others yelled out to him, “I love you Bo!” Burnham repeatedly thanked the audience for the support and referred to GVSU as “a beautiful school,” despite poking fun at university mascot Louie the Laker by comparing him to a Popeye character. “Bo seems to be a very conceited guy on stage, but almost in a sarcastic way,” said warm-up comedian Greg Monahan, a senior. “I think it’s because he knows that it’s funny.” Although Burnham typically does not have any opening acts for his programs, he made an exception for the GVSU show. After watching a comedy video of Monahan, a Last Laker Standing finalist for the past four years, Burnham agreed to let Monahan be the warm-up comedian for the night. Monahan said he had never performed in front of such a big crowd. “I don’t think the show could have
gone any better,” he added. “I was freaking out on stage and I kept thinking, ‘Wow, this is actually happening right now.’” Burnham talked to a few audience members during the show by asking their names and inviting one fan up to the stage. “He was a great performer,” said Tanisha Kuykendall, a freshman Spotlight member. “Even when things got messed up, he kept on going and made it funny, so no one really noticed.” After performing some of his old and new acts, Burnham finished off the night with “Nerds,” a popular tour exclusive, which led to a standing ovation from the audience. “We had several requests last year for Bo to come to Grand Valley, so we just called his agency, got a price and booked him in January,” said senior Alyson Greenwell, comedy and speaker chair for Spotlight Productions. “We were fortunate because Jason Derulo was such a huge success, so that is why we were able to make the tickets for Bo free.” Although fans lined up 12 hours to grab the best seats for Burnham’s show, Greenwell said the comedian most likely will not make another appearance at GVSU for awhile. “We definitely like to bring a diverse selection of comedians, music shows and other types of events to Grand Valley,” Greenwell said. “If we do have Bo come back, it probably won’t be for a couple more years.” kpektas@lanthorn.com
GVL / Nicole Lamson
Stand-up successses: (Left) Senior Greg Monahan opens for comedian and YouTube star Bo Burnham. (Above) Burnham performs in the Fieldhouse Thursday in a show organized by Spotlight Productions.
Friends bike America for cure By Marc Maycroft GVL Staff Writer
The words “road trip” take on an entirely different meaning to Grand Valley State University freshmen Tim Layer and Steve Krauss. Their cross-country trip will not be by car, train or bus: it will be on bicycles. Layer and Krauss have been friends since kindergarten. They and five of their friends from colleges and universities throughout the Midwest will journey across the country to raise awareness for Huntington’s disease, a rare degenerative disease. Huntington’s disease, a hereditary neurological disorder known to damage nerves inside the brain, is most commonly diagnosed in
Courtesy Photo / Google Images
people who are middle-aged, but symptoms can surface at any age. The disease is characterized by symptoms like uncontrollable movements, mental deterioration and emotional disturbances, all of which worsen with time, according to an article published by the Mayo Clinic. Huntington’s disease hit Layer and Krauss close to home. In 2005, a member of their group, Camp Earth, lost his father to the disease. In 2009, the member’s older brother was diagnosed. He and his younger brother have a 50 percent risk of contracting the disease themselves. “We just want to do all we can to help our friend and his family,” said Patrick Dimpsey, a student at Winona State University and the brains behind the bike trip. Dimpsey took the Camp Earth motto, “Do Something,” to heart. The journey across the country will start in Sandy Hook, N.J., and travel 3,600 miles to San Francisco. Dimpsey will ride the entire distance. The other members of the group, including Krauss and Layer, will each take a leg of the journey to bike alongside their friend. Dimpsey said the idea came to him without much flair. “I wish I had a good story,” he said. “Really I woke up one Saturday morning in September and came up with the idea. I then called A.J. Fisher, one of the riders, asked him if he wanted to join me. Without hesitation, he said yes. From there, we added more people, and it has grown into what it is today.” Layer will ride the stretch from South Bend, Ind., to the suburban area that sur-
rounds Chicago. “I am excited to get more people knowing about this disease and gaining more support,” Layer said. “Also the challenge of biking long distances.” Krauss, the last rider to mount the bike, will take over in Salt Lake City, Utah and ride to the final destination of San Francisco. “A cross-country bicycle trip is ideal for spreading the word because it is without a doubt an impressive feat,” Krauss said. “And many people from across the entire nation will hopefully be more educated on and donate towards Huntington’s.” The group spends its free time preparing for the journey, building muscle and endurance for the long, strenuous ride. Camp Earth continues to reach out to businesses for sponsorship and donations to their trip and to the Huntington’s Disease Society of America, but a majority of the funding has come from individuals. “We will be using mostly gear we already own,” Dimpsey said. “It may not be the best, but it will work just fine. Plus it saves a lot of money.” The group also reached out to newspapers in the cities along the bike tour in hopes of media coverage to help spread the word about their cause. “I wish more people knew about how bad Huntington’s was,” Layer said. “Also, if we cured this disease, it could help cure other diseases.” The trip has brought the group international attention. Camp Earth received emails from people in England thanking the group for their effort and determination, cycling advice from Morocco and
Courtesy photo / Cathy Krauss
Cycling for a cause: GVSU students Steve Krauss (left) and Tim Layer will participate in a team bike ride across the United States with friends to raise awareness for Huntington’s Disease.
an offer to have dinner while they bike through the state of Colorado. The ride will take almost two months to complete, and the riders hope to cover 70 to 80 miles each day. Their departure is scheduled for May 11, a date Dimpsey eagerly awaits. “Even if both my legs break, we have already succeeded,” Dimpsey said. “We have informed hundreds of people about this terrible disease, and we won’t stop until there is a cure.” More information, including donation information, can be found on the Camp Earth Facebook page or on the website, mycampearth.com. mmaycroft@lanthorn.com
B5
MARKETPLACE
Monday, April 4, 2011
Announcements GV Car Show! April 9th from 2pm-6pm. GVSU Allendale Campus Lot H. Proceeds to benefit Companions in Courage. Free attendance but donations are encouraged.
Want GVSU news now? The Lanthorn has it covered. Visit our website, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter for the latest GVSU campus and sports news. www.lanthorn.com
Wanted The 2011-12 GVSU Women’s hockey team in looking for a hockey individual to be the team manager. The team manager would help organize HOME game day activities as well as travel with the team to AWAY games. Anyone interested in the position should email Coach Cory W h i t a k e r a t whitakco@gvsu.edu or call him at 616-299-8713.
Employment College Pro is now hiring painters all across the state to work outdoors with other students. Earn $3k-$5k. Advancement opportunities. 1-888-277-9787 or www.collgepro.com
Grand Valley Lanthorn
Work on Mackinac Island. Make lifelong friends. The Island House Hotel and Ryba’s Fudge Shops are looking for help in all areas this summer: Front Desk, Bell Staff, Wait Staff, Sales Clerks, Kitchen, Baristas. Housing, bonus, and discounted meals. (906) 847-7196. www.theislandhouse.com
Housing Female Roommate Needed for 2011-2012 school year at 48 West. $450 per month. 4 bedroom/4.5 bath townhome. Please contact for more information horvate@mail.gvsu.edu Grand Valley’s best kept deal. University Townhomes & Apartments guarantees the lowest price per person. Enjoy a quiet atmosphere with a variety of home styles to choose from less than 2 miles from campus. Call Tim today 616-477-5511 Livin’ Large. Copper Beech townhomes and apartments have up to 2000 ft of square space. Enjoy big style without the price. Call 616-895-2900 or visit www.copperbeechtownhomes.com 48 West is now leasing for Fall 2011. Rates start as low a $395 per month. There is variety with 1, 2 and 4 bedroom units. 616-895-2400 www.48west.com
STRANGE BUT TRUE
By Samantha Weaver
• It was French novelist, essayist and critic Marcel Proust who made the following sage observation: “There is nothing like desire for preventing the things one says from bearing any resemblance to what one has in one’s mind.” • The city of Denver holds the distinction of being the first major metropolitan area to allow women to vote in elections, back in 1893. • Connectivity may finally be going too far. Way too far. Beyond death, even. It seems that someone has now invented the solar-powered eTomb, a headstone that stores information from the deceased’s social networking
• Section Editors
Look for Sudoku answers online at
LANTHORN.COM
sites. Visitors to the grave can use a laptop or a smartphone to download photos, blog posts and even videos via a Bluetooth connection. • Famed screenwriter and director Woody Allen started his career in show business in the 1960s as a writer for the TV series “Candid Camera.” • In a traditional Moroccan wedding, the bride must be purified in a milk bath and have her hands and feet painted with henna before the ceremony. • A man named Stephen Burns holds a rather odd world record: He managed to hitchhike through all of the contiguous 48 states in less time than anyone else -- 26 days and 6 hours. • You might be surprised to
learn that the largest supplier of foreign oil to the United States isn’t Saudi Arabia, Libya, Iraq or Kuwait. In fact, we buy more of our oil much closer to home: from Canada. • Between 70 percent and 80 percent of all the world’s fresh water is frozen, stored in Arctic and Antarctic glaciers. • Not all black bears are black; individuals in some populations around the world can be brown, white, cinnamon or even blue. *** Thought for the Day: “I envy people who drink. At least they have something to blame everything on.” -Oscar Levant (c) 2011 King Features Synd., Inc.
Grand Valley Lanthorn Monday, April 4, 2011
B6
Laker Life
GVL / Eric Coulter
see LANTHORN.COM
Your life at Grand Valley
to view an online slideshow >>braggart Soldier
GV student to appear on
Price is Right Courtesy photo /gomemphis.com
Search for the truth: Rebecca Skloot (pictured) spoke about her book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” at the Fountain Street Church Monday night. The book, GVSU’s sixth community read, was the result of a 10-year effort.
Courtesy photo / Gina Maniaci
Competing in California: GVSU freshman Gina Maniaci (right) poses with friends on the set of the game show “The Price Is Right.” Maniaci competed on the show during spring break in an episode that will air Thursday at 11 a.m.
Come on down
By Samantha Arnold GVL Staff Writer
Freshman Gina Maniaci represented Grand Valley State University on an episode of the game show, The Price is Right, which will air at 11 a.m. Thursday on CBS. She stood on stage as a contestant on the game show during the filming on March 5. “I don’t really remember exactly what I said because it was all kind of a blur, but I remember saying something about Grand Valley, and then I think I said, ‘Go Lakers’ at the
end,” Maniaci said. Beth Donovan, sophomore and friend of Maniaci, also attended the game show. “On the show, I wore a GVSU t-shirt to show support for our school,” Donovan said. “It was an amazing experience and so fun. I would do it again in an instant.” Maniaci went to Los Angeles to visit her sister for the first time after she and her husband were stationed there by the military. The first day, Maniaci and Donovan went to watch a taping of The Price is Right. The two GVSU students received
front row seats, and a producer chose Maniaci to be a contestant on the show. The producer selected her by interview from everyone in line for the show. Maniaci said she had opportunity to spin the wheel and talk to Drew Carey. “I can’t believe I hugged (him), like, six times,” Maniaci said. “It was a very beneficial experience, and it is still so unreal to me.” Maniaci said she cannot disclose any information regarding what or if she won anything on the show, but said she was happy with the results. sarnold@lanthorn.com
Community Read culminates in Skloot’s Conversation
‘Henrietta Lacks’ author speaks downtown By Susie Skowronek GVL Laker Life Editor
The Tuskegee Institute grew up to 6 trillion HeLa cells each week in an assembly line for mass distribution, and one scientist has estimated about 50 million metric tons of cells have grown from the first culture. But until Rebecca Skloot investigated the woman behind the cell line, the so-called immortal woman remained an unknown in an unmarked grave. The Conversation with Rebecca Skloot, author of the 2011 Community Reading Project selection “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” began at 7 p.m. on Monday in Grand Rapids. The Fountain Street Church filled with members of the community, students, faculty and staff, most of whom had read Skloot’s book. A book signing followed the talk, sponsored by the Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies, the GVSU Library and the University Bookstore. Provost Gayle Davis gave an introduction to elaborate on the Community Reading Project. “The program is now in its sixth year providing an opportunity for faculty, students, staff and community members to read a common book and examine it from multiple perspectives,” she said. “Each book that’s selected asks one or more of life’s big questions.” Davis explained the premise of Skloot’s book simply. “Ms. Skloot’s ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’ addresses such issues as the power of narrative, the potential to lose sight of humanity and the noble pursuit of knowledge and the resulting, sometimes exploited, history of medical research,” she said. “The book reminds us that although science offers hope in the face of disease and death, there is a need for vigilance in retaining our humanity and respect for those who have little voice in society.” Skloot read two condensed excerpts from her book to familiarize the audience with the story of Henrietta Lacks, her family and their ethical dilemma. Skloot, like many other students, first heard about the HeLa cells in a science class. But she became obsessed with the story of the women behind the culture, so she pursued the story. Despite obstacles, including members of the Lacks family, who
were hesitant to speak at first, Skloot unraveled the story, a process that took ten years. She sympathized with the Lacks family because her father, too, went through medical trauma. “He got a virus that caused some pretty severe brain damage,” Skloot said. “He went from being this marathonrunning dad to being a guy who couldn’t get up off the couch and lost his memory and couldn’t walk anymore. And he volunteered for a research study, and my job as a 16-year-old kid was to drive Dad to the hospital four times a week.” She said having encountered the clinical research during her youth helped her connect with the Lacks family. To pay for her research on the book, Skloot wrote freelance stories that took her to the Lacks family in either Baltimore or southern Virginia – publications compensated her travel costs, and she could work on her book in her free time. However, the Lacks family had reason to distrust Johns Hopkins University and its researchers who used Henrietta Lacks’ cells without her or her family’s consent. As a precedent, the Lacks family looked at the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, conducted between 1932 and 1972. During the study, scientists watched black men die of the preventable disease for the sake of research. But Skloot said in the case of HeLa cells, the scientists considered their ethics fair practice. Whatever they did to Henrietta Lacks, they had already practiced on themselves. “George Guy along with scientists all around the world had been trying to grow human cells outside of the body for decades, and it had never worked. All of the samples would die – they would last a few days, maybe a week, but eventually they would die,” Skloot said. “But Henrietta’s cells just never died.” The cells removed from a tumor multiplied at an alarming rate not only in the lab, but also in Lacks. She died within a year of her cancer diagnosis. Because of Lacks’ story and other stories of cell snatching from poor families in the 1950s, some black urban communities still have a bias against Johns Hopkins University, Skloot said. “To this day, if you grow up in the neighborhood surrounding Hopkins, which is a predominantly black neighborhood, you grew up hear-
“Ms. Skloot’s
‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’ addresses such issues as the power of narrative, the potential to lose sight of humanity and the noble pursuit of knowledge ... The book reminds us that although science offers hope in the face of disease and death, there is a need for vigilance in retaining our humanity and respect for those who have little voice in society. -Gayle Davis
”
GVSU Provost ing that you don’t go outside at night because Hopkins will snatch you off the street and take you into the basement and do research on you,” Skloot said. “And you will never come out.” To some extent, the Lacks family has found peace with the HeLa cells. Skloot said the family members take pride in the fact that Lacks has been able to help so many people. But to this day, the family receives no compensation for the use of HeLa cells in research. “There is a concern that if anyone does anything to the Lacks family - if they give them money - that it will set a precedent,” Skloot said. “Then what about the millions of other people whose cells have been used in research? In part, that hasn’t happened because there’s a concern of either setting a precedent or looking like an admittance of guilt that would open up some sort of liability.” Next on the agenda, Oprah Winfrey and Alan Ball will produce an HBO movie of the book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.” The Henrietta Lacks Foundation will receive a portion of the proceeds, and members of the Lacks family will act as consultants for the film. lakerlife@lanthorn.com