Issue 5 - Spring 2014

Student Newspaper of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts North Adams, Mass.

The Beacon

For more content, visit online at: Beacon.MCLA.edu Volume 78 ◆ Issue 5

Th u r s d ay, F e b rua r y 2 7 , 2 0 1 4

Bringing

Bowman

back to life Photo by Richard LaRocque/The Beacon

Renovation on the abandoned halls of Bowman are scheduled to begin sometime this April. Results of the bidding conference held on Feb. 19 will be announced in late March, according to James Stakenas, vice president of Administration and Finance.

Bowman is scheduled to be finished by summer 2015

By Gabriel Kogel Senior News Editor

James Stakenas, vice president of Administration and Finance, looks through the Bowman blueprints for the auditorium section area of the lower level, “here it is,” he said.

“It comes down to the two auditoriums,” he explained, pointing to a diagram of level one. “We’d like to fill them in and

make classrooms, but as it stands, we have a financial gap.”

The state of the art Bowman remake has been on the agenda ever since ’08, when the state floated a $55 million bond for numerous college modernization projects, $40 million of which was spent on the Feigenbaum Science Center.

The remaining $15 million was allocated for revamping Bowman, with

Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM), a state agency responsible for many of the construction details, including drawing the blueprints and hiring contractors and subcontractors.

According to the college website, the bidding process was scheduled to take place last year.

In the Feb. 14 “notes and news” section of First Class, a bidding conference happened on Feb. 19,

2015 SGA budget cut 13.7 %

By Jess Gamari Managing Editor

The budget finance committee has proposed a club budget for the 2015 fiscal year to be $244,675, which is $56,516, or 18.7 percent less than the club budget allocated for the 2014 fiscal year.

The total budget for the 2015 fiscal year is proposed to be $376,015, which is $60,106, or 13.7 percent, less than what was allocated as the total budget for the 2014 fiscal year. The committee presented the proposal at Monday night’s senate meeting.

This proposed budget awaits a final vote on March 3 at 7 p.m. in Murdock 218. Pending any updates or changes, the approved budgets for each club will be

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printed in the next edition of the Beacon. All but four clubs budgets were cut for the fiscal year 2015.

The 2014 fiscal year budget was higher because the former SGA treasurer James Wetzel suggested withdrawing $62,321 from the reserve fund under the assumption of receiving an 89 percent collection rate based on 1,400 enrollment.

Treasurer Kelley Bryant created the 2015 fiscal projection using numbers provided by the administration and finance committee from the past 5 years.

The 2015 fiscal year estimates a full time student body population at 1,471. This number was then multiplied by $300 (student activity fees paid by full time students for two semesters) and

with the results of that process to be announced “later in march.”

Stakenas acknowledged that the project has been delayed.

“The state doesn’t like to leave spaces unusable,” Stakenas said.

DCAMM engineers are trying to stretch the $15 million as far as possible, but plans to fill in the two lower level auditoriums, and transform them into classrooms, will take the project $700,000 over budget, according to Stakenas.

Photo by Jess Gamari/The Beacon

BUDGET, continued on page 2

By Alexander Moore Gloria Steinem, a lecturer, writer, and feminist activist will speak Tuesday in the Church Street Center auditorium at 7 p.m. A short question and answer session for students and faculty will take place at 5:15 p.m. in the Feigenbaum Science Center.

“The event gives students a chance to not only become acquainted with ideas, but also engage in timely topics and think about gender equality for the future,” Petra Hejnova, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Public Policy, said.

According to Cynthia Brown, vice president of academic affairs, The Steinem lecture is part of the Public Policy Lecture series.

Creating MVP’s on campus

A night of dreampop at The Parlor

Men’s basketball advances in MASCAC

Students learn about sexual assault bystander prevention

Shana Falana returns to perform this Saturday

‘Blazers pull through with a 89 67 score

Arts & Entertainment, page 6

Sports, page 9

News, page 3

BOWMAN, continued on page 3

Gloria Steinem to visit College Staff Writer

Treasurer Kelley Bryant spoke to the SGA cabinet and club members at Monday’s budget meeting.

“We could just block off the two auditoriums until we receive more financing, but we’re hopeful the bidding process may open up some options, especially if the contractors come back with a low bid,” he said.

Another source of financing is the million-dollar surplus from the construction of the Feigenbaum Science Center.

“I’m looking forward to the perspective she can bring as someone not only from that time, but also someone who still remains active in the feminist movement,” Brown said. “She’s able to give a long perspective.”

Brown said she believes students can benefit from going to the lecture even if they are unfamiliar with feminism or Steinem’s ideas.

“I do think it will be a crowded night. Students should plan to get there early,” Brown said.

Karen Cardozo, professor of Women’s Studies, said she believes that Gloria Steinem is relatable to students because she too was once nervous about public speaking and getting involved

STEINEM, continued on page 3

News Arts & Entertainment Sports Campus Opinion Local Events Photo Essay

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Thursday, February 27, 2014

Campus News

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Weekend Proposed SGA Budget reflects enrollment numbers Weather Forecast from Weather.com

Today, February 27

Afternoon Snow High: 25° Low: 0° Precip. Chance: 30%

Friday, February 28

Partly Cloudy High: 19° Low: 8° Precip. Chance: 0%

Saturday, March 1

Partly Cloudy High: 33° Low: 22° Precip. Chance: 20%

Sunday, March 2

BUDGET, continued from page 1

found the theorized budget to be $441,300.

Accounting for an 85 percent collection rate and potentially withdrawing $910 from the reserve fund, the committee proposed a $376,015 budget.

“The numbers that we use are all estimates, so it can never be completely perfect or accurate,” Bryant said.

Bryant said the SGA tries to keep as much money in the reserve as possible. Currently, the reserve contains $296,414 with minimum “floor safety net“ of $100,000. “The reserve is there, yes, but you don’t want to draw on it so much every year because, if you think about it as a savings account, which most of us have, you don’t want to spend everything in it. We want to keep it there, just in case,” She said.

In an interview following the meeting, Bryant stated that it’s important to keep future generations in mind when it comes to withdrawing too much from the reserve.

“If the money is spent, it should be used for an investment that will help the college and the student body develop more wholly,” she said. “I believe that if we were to use the money every year in order to give clubs the chance to go on more trips or have more student activities on campus, we would be satisfied with this result for maybe the next five years, but on the long-term perspective, we would hinder the possibilities for future students.”

Bryant said that she would support any investment that could help the College succeed. “I aspire to help this college thrive and I only hope to give perspective on how much change is possible,” she said.

Treasurer Kelley Bryant said various students on the budget finance committee (BFC) were chosen to represent the student body. BFC members include Anthony Cancilla, Danielle Bloh, Ibrahim Wanu, Jared Kahn, Michael Vogt, Nicholas Hernigle, Osakpolo Igiede and Taylo Krowitz. SGA currently recognizes 43 clubs on campus.

Following the club allocation presentation, President Jake Powers thanked Bryant and the BFC for their hard work over the last few weeks. Many of the clubs received significantly less funding compared to the current 2014 budget allocation. Dance Company, for example, received almost 51 percent less than what they received last year. Bryant said the club was allocated enough money to put on the fall and spring semester performances, stating the club will purchase their equipment this year and wouldn’t need as much money for equipment next year.

Powers reminded the club members in attendance about the benefits of clubs cosponsoring events to combine recourses.

“We’re a very small college and we don’t have the funds,” he said. Since the budget is primarily funded on revenue from student activity fees, lower enrollment numbers on campus are reflected in the lower budget allocations, according to Powers. “[The numbers] could go up but we have to plan for the worst case scenario.”

Senator Stephan Rochefort reminded the clubs to speak with Bryant or another senator as soon as possible if any club felt their proposed budget allocation would make their club unable to operate.

Additional transportation time

Few Snow Showers High: 29° Low: 17° Precip. Chance: 30%

President Powers met with Charlotte Degen regarding additional shuttle service hours.

“We’ve agreed to add another day to the schedule, which is going to be on Mondays from 6 to 9 p.m. starting in spring when it’s a little bit warmer out,” he said. “We figured that would be a good day for students in case they get assigned projects and they need transportation to Walmart.” Powers also mentioned he would be meeting with Diane

Photo by Jess Gamari/The Beacon

Advisor Jenn Craig shows the white towel with the mountain lion logo used at the White Out baskeball game on Feb. 22.

Manning to talk about issues discussed in a previous SGA meeting about the cost of parking passes. Since the issue came up, Powers has learned the revenue goes toward renovation and improvement. “For example in 2012, we had the Ashland Street parking lot redone.”

Changes to honors requirement and art flow chart During the most recent all college committee meeting, members decided to vote down requiring a “nature of human nature” class to graduate with honors. This request was sent back to the honors department for revisions, according to Senator Hernigle.

“We did accept the commonwealth scholar thesis as a course for the honors program, which will be a 500 level course you take all year round,” he said.

In addition, the committee changed the art course flow chart. Hernigle said the new classes added are sculpture and advance drawing courses, while the 299 portfolio assessment course was dropped because it was deemed unnecessary when the students met with advisors to discuss portfolios already. “These changes are from national art accommodation, where were meeting nationwide standards.”

New travel course for art students, women’s study concentration now The curriculum committee had the idea to add another travel course for the spring semester. Students interested can travel to Madrid and Spain to learn more about art from the country, rather than just culture, Coordinating Vice President Hannah Sterrs said. The class will be taught by Associate Professor Melanie Mowinski and will be open to students of all majors although this course will focus on the creation of art and the committee is anticipating the course being dominanted by art students.

Sterrs said the committee also talked about the women’s studies major concentration, which has “traditionally been in the history department, but we decided to move it into the interdisciplinary studies department because the concentration takes classes from every department,” she said. She said the 15 elective credits needed to be from two separate majors.

“This has already been done in tradition but now it’s making it more formal.”

Upcoming Senior Day info and club nominations papers Advisor Jenn Craig announced information regarding senior days will be sent to students on first class within the next few weeks before spring break. Graduating seniors will have

Current 2014 Fiscal Year

Estimated full time students: 1,400 Collection Rate: 89% Student Activity Fee: $300 1,400 x $300= $420,000 $420,000 x .89 = 373,800 $62,321 taken from reserve Total budget: $ 436,121

Proposed 2015 Fiscal Year

Estimated full time students: 1,471 Collection Rate: 85% Student Activity Fee: $300 1,471 x $300 = $441,300 $441,300 x .85 = $375,105 Proposed $910 taken from reserve Total proposed budget: $ 376,015

a chance to discuss possible events before signing up and making a deposit.

All clubs are encouraged to respond to the email on First Class regarding club nominations. Craig also reminded everyone applications to become a peer advisor are due this week, and applications to become an orientation leader will be due next week.

Winter Week Success, Sam Gomez joins B21 The annual Winter Week was a success, according to Powers, noting that more than 140 students attended midnight skating.

Vice President Brendan Peltier announced the Sam Gomez race will be added to the B 21 race series. The Berkshire Running puts on 21 races a year for members and the group was looking to fill an opening. Peltier said there is no cost to for the addition of the Sam Gomez Classic to the running series. He hopes this addition will bring in more participants to the annual road race, which is held in October.

Corrections In the February 20 issue, the story titled ‘PRESS owner to present at Brown Bag Lecture’ should have identified Mowinski as founder, gallery chief, or coordinator of PRESS. The first paragraph should have stated Mowinski is an Associate Professor.

The statement in paragraph seven could not be confirmed by Mowinski. Mowinski graduated from Yale prior to University of Arts in Philadelphia.

Campus News

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Educational public art Mowinski talks PRESS project

By Nicolas Swanson Staff Writer

Beacon.MCLA.edu

3

Teaching bystander prevention Workshop teaches men to take active roles in preventing sexual assault on campus

By Gabriel Kogel Senior News Editor

Professor of Fine and Performing Arts Melanie Mowinski presented her project “PRESS: From pop-up to permanent.” as part of the Brown Bag Lecture series.

She is the founder and ‘gallery chief ’ of PRESS, an educational public art project that began as part of the North Adams Downstreet Art Series in 2011. PRESS is located at 49 Main St., North Adams.

“We’re not work for hire; we’re all about the education and teaching others how we create the print,” Mowinski said during her lecture.

Mowinski’s slide show to illustrated PRESS gallery’s evolution.

“In the beginning, so many things kept falling into place and I knew that I was on the right track,” Mowinski said.

So far at PRESS, the team has done more than 50 projects, 30 formal and non-formal letterpress demonstrations each year, 18 exhibits, and numerous community workshops.

Between 300 and 400 cards are given away for each exhibit., according to Mowinski, and more than 4,000 people visit the gallery each year.

Recently, the team participated in Winterfest, aiming to enthuse community participation in outdoor winter activities.

At the event, they gave out an inspirational card of February reading, in pressed blue letters: ‘Apricity (n.) – The suns warmth on a cold winter’s day.’

Mowinski gave out the same card before the lecture.

Earlier that week, they held a college and community workshop to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Currently, the gallery has 12 MCLA interns, two Berkshire Hills interns, and 10 community volunteers.

Other attractions include a print marathon on weather themes, poetry readings, visits from local artists and new calendar ideas.

According to Mowinski, 80 percent of the equipment and technology that PRESS uses was

Photo by Amy Modesti/ Beacon Staff

Professor Mowinski Stands beside print given to the project for free.

PRESS shares resources with neighboring Gallery 51 and also benefits from a partnership with MASS MoCA. “The location of PRESS is nice because as people are drawn to Gallery 51, they are also drawn to PRESS, which has been very beneficial for both places,” Monica Joslin, dean of academic affairs, said.

The middle of the gallery is a classroom and studio space for independent and group study.

However, Mowinski plans to centralize her teaching back in Bowman Hall after the renovations are complete.

“Once back on campus, I won’t have to spend as much time toward up-keep on the project, then I can think of new ways to integrate and link PRESS with new teachings,” Mowinki said.

Mowinski will teach an introduction to print making course in the fall semester.

PRESS now has webpages on Facebook and Flikr acounts in addition to a blog, all to keep those interested with up-to-date information on future events.

“This project has been a labor of love, and I’m looking for these next pieces to fall into place,” Mowinski said.

Frances Jones-Sneed is gives the next lecture entitled “Deconstructing African American Autobiography: The Life of the Reverend,” March 21.

The lectures are free and open to the public.

Renovations to Bowman coming BOWMAN, continued from page 1

the building came in below projected cost, those funds will eventually become available for Bowman, Stakenas said.

“The delay helped us figure out we have money coming from the Feigenbaum Science Center.

[DCAMM] has grabbed about all they can from that project, but it’s not immediately available,” he said.

The renovation is estimated to take a year, with construction to begin in late April or early May. Stakenas said the Bowman

renovation should be completed by the summer of ‘15.

“We’re planning to have a shakedown during the summer semester, to make sure everything works right,” he said.

The lower level will be the permanent home of the mathematics and computer science departments. In addition to classrooms, the lower level will have robotics, computer hardware and software laboratories, a faculty center and a redesigned café, according to the college website.

The issue of sexual assault is nothing new to college campuses.

To combat victim-blaming and assault altogether, members of the campus community recently attended a different kind of sexual assault prevention workshop.

Since men commit 90 percent of violence against women, Jackson Katz, founder and executive director of MVP Strategies, Inc., decided men should take a proactive role in preventing it.

“MVP” stands for Mentors in Violence Prevention. Katz, along with the MVP Program at Northeastern University, developed a workshop designed to help male student-athletes understand their position as role models, leaders and mentors in preventing male violence against women. Later, this workshop was adapted for all genders and non-athletes as well.

According to Heidi Riello, Director of Counseling Services, the model for sexual assault prevention had previously been focused on providing women with strategies to minimize their risk of victimization.

“Such as: Don’t walk alone, don’t drink too much,” Riello said. In contrast, “MVP puts the responsibility on all members of the community. It’s not just up to women to protect themselves, it’s up to everyone.”

Riello is one of three college staff members trained to give MVP workshops, along with Head Athletic Trainer Matthew Boillat, and Coach Amanda Beckwith. Together, they have given the workshop to the Inter-Greek Council, RA’s and peer advisors, along with the staff of student affairs.

The workshop is interactive,

Photo by Gabriel Kogel/ Beacon Staff

Junior Carrisa Sacherski attended the MVP Bystander Workshop. during which group leaders pose questions about realistic scenarios.

“Say you’re at a party and you observe a male student trying to drag an obviously drunk female student into a room [for sex],” Riello said.

This scenario is called “Illegal Motion,” and is taken from the male version of the MVP Trainer’s Guide. After the scenario is presented, participants read aloud an “internal dialogue” that lists the thoughts going through a bystander’s mind: “they’re both adults. But she can’t be fully consenting if she’s drunk, can she?

I’ve heard about too many cases of sexual assault that start like this,” etc. After that, options available to a bystander are explored.

“You could knock over a drink on the guy, there are a whole range of things you could do. Anything is OK, as long as you interrupt the behavior you’re concerned about,” Riello said.

Junior Carrisa Sacherski was part of an MVP workshop led by

Riello last summer. A veteran of numerous violence and sexual assault workshops, Sacherski found the MVP approach a valuable one.

“It’s good we’re looking at the role of the bystander,” she said. “It was definitely a great experience and I think anyone interested should take part in it.”

According to Beckwith, the Inter-Greek council found the MVP workshop so beneficial last year that it was requested again this spring.

“It’s an eye opening experience,” Beckwith said. “IGC said we need to do this again next year. Students graduate and new people join; it’s almost like we can’t do this too much.”

Riello and Beckwith said they would provide the workshop to any interested campus clubs or groups. In addition, individual students can take part in a workshop Beckwith plans to lead sometime in March, or early April.

Public Policy Lecture to host Gloria Steinem who think of Steinem as a hero.

Cardozo said it is nice to see different generations coming together to discuss issues. She also feels that the different generations allow us to see similarities.

“It will be a mixed audience, people will be shocked, and some people will be rejoicing,” Cardozo said. “She’s going to say the same talk, but it will be heard differently by many.”

STEINEM, continued from page 1 with activism.

“She would cancel events at the last minute,” Cardozo said.

“No one is born an accomplished icon, and I think students often rule themselves out of compelling roles.”

According to Gloria Steinem’s website, Steinem has been an activist for more than 30 years.

She co-founded Ms. Magazine in 1972, and has won several awards for her work as a journalist. As a freelance writer, Steinem has been published in The New York Times Magazine, Esquire, and several women’s magazines. As an author, Steinem has written many books, including Revolution from Within, Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions, and Moving Beyond Words.

“If you were a student who has never come across her thinking, I think you will be blown away by the life she has lived and the continuing relevance of her

For more information visit our website!

Photo courtesy of Bernadette Lupo

Feminist Gloria Steinem will speak as part of the Public Policy Lecture Series. ideas,” Cardozo said.

Cardozo is excited to see the audience at the lecture.

She said the audience will have young students who don’t know Steinem’s legacy and older faculty

4

Thursday, February 27, 2014

News

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Ukraine’s acting leader still seeking consensus MCT Campus

Hoping to reach a consensus that would heal some of Ukraine’s wounds, the country’s acting president on Tuesday delayed the seating of an interim government for at least two days, even as opposition colleagues appealed to the Hague criminal tribunal to put fugitive ex-President Viktor Yanukovich on trial for crimes against humanity.

Reports of mounting discord among ethnic Russians in eastern Ukraine and gunshot wounds suffered by a top aide to Yanukovich further heightened a sense that threats to Ukraine’s stability abound as politicians jockey ahead of a May 25 presidential election.

A multiparty transitional leadership had been expected to be announced Tuesday. But acting President Olexander Turchynov told lawmakers that it would take until at least Thursday to get con-

sensus on a Cabinet that would have the trust of the entire nation.

Visiting diplomats of the European Union urged those steering Ukraine through its current power vacuum to include deputies of Yanukovich’s Party of Regions, which has been decimated by defections to the opposition and lawmakers retreating to home territory for fear of retribution at the hands of their Western-leaning adversaries.

“It needs to be inclusive,” EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said of the elusive Cabinet in comments to reporters after two days of talks in Kiev.

In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin assembled his national security team for a Kremlin caucus on the turmoil in Ukraine, a former Soviet republic that Moscow has dominated for centuries.

Russia-24 television showed the top advisers gathering but gave no details about their deliberations.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov

later said during a Moscow news conference that Russia would refrain from interfering in Ukraine’s domestic crisis and expected other countries to do likewise.

Ukraine’s industries and economy are dependent on components and trade with Russian companies, and Russia’s Black Sea naval fleet is based in the port of Sevastopol, now part of Ukraine. Most of the eastern half of Ukraine had voted for Yanukovich and supported his decision late last year to continue strengthening ties with Russia rather than entering into an EU association agreement.

Though Russian officials have made disparaging remarks about those now running Ukraine’s government, Putin has said little about how he expects the power struggle and fight over Ukraine’s future to play out.

Lavrov seemed to be conveying a Kremlin message that it was taking a hands-off approach while watching to see what leadership

MCT Campus

With it’s high debt and low growth, Ukraine needs assistance. emerges from talks underway in about the circumstances in which Yanukovich’s former chief of staff, Kiev.

“We have confirmed our prin- Andriy Klyuyev, was wounded on cipled position to not interfere in Monday. Klyuyev’s spokesman, Ukraine’s internal affairs and ex- Artem Petrenko, said Klyuyev pect all (foreign powers) to follow had resigned his post with Yanukovich and was driving to Kiev a similar logic,” Lavrov said.

Little was immediately clear when he was shot.

In Ecuador, after the green men from Limits sought on weed killer Mars invaded, the real tragedy began to help monarch butterflies MCT Campus

When the green men from Mars landed in the central plaza of Cotocollao, Ecuador, a stunned nation listened as one of the country’s most famous radio personalities was vaporized by a death-ray, and firefighters and police rushed to the sleepy village to confront the invaders.

By the end of that night, 65 years ago this month, the announcer would still be alive but at least six others would be dead as irate mobs discovered they had fallen for a radio hoax, and embarrassed security forces either refused, or were unable, to come to the broadcasters’ aid.

When Orson Welles produced his now infamous version of “The War of the Worlds” in 1938, it generated a firestorm in the United States as thousands were duped by the realistic radio drama that depicted an alien invasion

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of Grover’s Mill, N.J. But the program, based on H.G. Wells’ classic science fiction novel, had a lesser-known and more deadly ripple effect throughout Latin America, where radio pioneers tried to emulate its success.

In 1944, in Chile, an adaptation of the radio drama was blamed for panicking thousands and giving an electrician in Valparaiso, named Jose Villaroel, a fatal heart attack, according to a Newsweek article from the time.

“Once more a radio dramatization of H.G. Wells’ imaginative novel, ‘The War of the Worlds,’ had convinced a gullible citizenry that the earth’s gig was up,” the magazine reported.

But in the tiny Andean nation of Ecuador, the stunt was pulled off so convincingly that even the authorities seem to have fallen for the story, with tragic results.

Jorge Ribadeneira was 19 when Radio Quito staged its own version of the alien invasion. It was Saturday night, and the station was broadcasting a live concert when the musicians were interrupted to announce that an enormous cylindrical object had crashed just north of the capital.

Moments later, Leonardo Paez, one of Quito’s best known musicians and radio personalities, was rushed to the scene. As Paez broadcast “live” from Cotocollao’s central plaza, a long “green arm” emerged from the alien craft, and then Paez was fried by a bolt of light.

What is known is that on the night of Feb. 12, 1949, the city was seized by panic as the show kept upping the stakes. Radio Quito patched in other broadcasters who were also “reporting” the arrival of alien craft, and an actor playing the archbishop of Quito only fueled the hysteria. But there were also real acts that added to the effect. With President Galo Plaza Lasso out of town, someone apparently ordered police and firefighters to head to Cotocol-

MCT Campus

Photo from Waroftheworlds.co.uk

The El Comercio building burns in the aftermath of the 1949 broadcast. lao. The Red Cross followed suit, according to Ribadeneira, who wrote a brief history of the event.

It didn’t take long for the radio station to realize that it had overplayed its hand, but when it shut down the show and tried to reassure the audience it was just a dramatization, it only enraged the crowd. Soon, a mob surrounded the radio station in downtown Quito, which also housed El Comercio newspaper, and set it ablaze.

“We saw an enormous fire,” Ribadeneira recalls. “And we could hear the announcer, whose name was Luis Beltran, calling for help. He was saying ‘Please let the firefighters through,’ but the people wouldn’t let them pass.”

Most of the key players, including Paez, Alcaraz and Beltran, survived. But at least six people died, including the radio’s pianist and violin player. Paez’s girlfriend was also killed in the fire, according to Ribadeneira’s account.

With monarch butterfly populations rapidly dwindling, a conservation organization this week asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement tougher rules for the weed killer glyphosate, first marketed under the brand name Roundup, to save America’s most beloved insect from further decline.

In a petition, the Natural Resources Defense Council argued Monday that current uses of glyphosate are wiping out milkweed, the only plant upon which monarch caterpillars feed.

The loss of milkweed is having a devastating effect on the life cycles of the large, fragile orangeand-black butterflies, which migrate through the United States, Canada and Mexico.

It takes several generations of the insect scientists know as Danaus plexippus to make the round trip because each monarch lives only a few weeks in the summer.

Since federal glyphosate rules were last updated a decade ago, its use has spiked tenfold to 182 million pounds a year, largely due to the introduction and popularity of corn and soybeans genetically modified to resist the herbicide, the petition says.

“The tenfold increase in the amount of glyphosate being used corresponds with huge losses of milkweed and the staggering decline of the monarch,” Sylvia Fallon, an NRDC senior scientist, said in an interview.

“We are seeking new safeguards desperately needed to allow enough milkweed to grow.”

California’s monarch population has fallen an estimated 80 percent over the last 15 years due to urbanization, drought, weed abatement programs and pesticides, according to the nonprofit Xerces Society, a Portland, Ore.based organization dedicated to

MCT Campus

The monarch butterfly population in California has fallen around 80% in the last 15 years. conservation of invertebrates.

The caterpillars are about 2 } inches long, with a pair of black antennae-like appendages at either end of a body ringed with black, yellow and white stripes.

They spend most of their three weeks of existence munching on milkweed leaves.

The EPA is scheduled to complete a new review of glyphosate rules in 2015. But “given the rapid decline in monarch numbers, the EPA should take immediate steps to review and restrict glyphosate’s uses,” the petition says.

The petition asks the EPA to consider preventing the use of glyphosate and other weed killers along highways and utility rights of way where milkweed could grow freely without interfering with maintenance or emergency crews.

It also asks that farmers be required to establish herbicidefree safety zones in or around their fields, and urges the EPA to ensure that any new safeguards on glyphosate don’t lead simply to more use of other weed killers that would be equally bad for monarchs and may pose health risks.

“The good news is that butterflies are resilient and can rebound quickly,” Fallon said. “All they need is milkweed on which to lay their eggs.”

National News

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Nation and World Briefs

Nation Supreme Court sides with LAPD in warrantless house search WASHINGTON --The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that police officers may enter and search a home without a warrant as long as one occupant consents, even if another resident has previously objected.

The ruling based on a case involving a Los Angeles Police Department search gives the police more leeway to search homes without obtaining a warrant, even in situations where there is no emergency.

-Tribune Washington Bureau Testimony begins in trial on Michigan’s gay-marriage ban DETROIT--A federal judge on Tuesday heard opening statements in a case that will decide what marriage means in Michigan, and whether voters have a right to exclude gays and lesbians from forming that union and raising a family.

-Detroit Free Press

World China engulfed in toxic smog BEIJING--A huge swath of northeast China more than 10 percent of the country’s landmass is again engulfed in toxic smog.

Beijing’s air quality index, as measured by the U.S. Embassy, hit “hazardous” territory for a sixth day running Tuesday. No relief is expected in the capital until at least Thursday.

-Los Angeles Times Former Guantanamo Bay detainee suspected in terrorism LONDON--A former Guantanamo Bay detainee, Moazzam Begg, was among four people arrested Tuesday in central England on suspicion of Syria-related terrorism offences, British police said.

-dpa

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Coal waste failure under fire after giant spill MCT Campus WASHINGTON--A massive North Carolina coal waste spill into a major river is increasing pressure on the Obama administration to start policing the more than 1,000 such waste storage sites across the nation.

The federal government doesn’t regulate the disposal of “coal ash,” the dustlike material that’s left over when pulverized coal is burned to fuel electrical power plants. Pennsylvania leads the nation in coal ash production, followed by Texas, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.

Coal ash can contain toxic materials such as arsenic and selenium, but the Environmental Protection Agency has left it to the states to decide what rules to put in place. The result has been an inconsistent patchwork of regulations that the EPA acknowledges is full of gaps.

The agency promises to come out with long-delayed rules by the end of the year, but it’s likely to leave the enforcement in the hands of the states.

State coal ash enforcement is under particular fire in North Carolina after a Duke Energy spill this month poured coal ash into the Dan River. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has estimated that up to 39,000 tons of the waste traveled 80 miles downstream and coated the river bottom in a layer of sludge.

It’s endangering aquatic life in the river, and health officials warn against eating fish caught in the contaminated stretch.

“If this doesn’t prove you need to have a strong federal regulation, then what proof does it take?” said Frank Holleman, attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, which has challenged state oversight of coal ash dumps.

The U.S. Justice Department has launched a criminal probe of North Carolina’s environmental agency in the wake of the spill, with state regulators receiving subpoenas to appear next month before a federal grand jury. Among the subpoena demands: State officials must bring any records they have of gifts from Duke Energy.

Other states also have come under criticism for their coal waste oversight. The environmental group Earthjustice has singled out Texas and Georgia as having particularly lax regulations, and the group documented 208 coal ash storage sites in 37 states with contamination or spills.

According to the EPA, without sufficient protection the contaminants in coal waste can leach into groundwater and migrate to sources of drinking water.

The agency identified more than 40 wet ash storage units nationwide as having “high hazard potential,” meaning they’re sites where the failure of the impoundment probably would lead to the loss of human life.

Coal waste burst into public consciousness in 2008, when a dike rupture at a Tennessee power plant spilled more than 1 billion gallons of ash slurry that covered 300 acres and

5

MCT Campus Photo

Swirls of coal ash accumulates in waters appear gray in the Dan River in Danville, Va. down stream from the Dan River Steam Station in Eden, NC. flowed into two rivers. The EPA subsequently proposed the first federal rules for handling coal ash, but the Obama administration has delayed implementing them for the past four years.

That led environmental groups to sue and a judge to order the EPA to come up with a timeline. The agency said it would release new regulations by the end of this year, but it’s unclear what the rules are going to be.

The EPA said it was finalizing the rules by Dec. 19 2014.

More frigid misery on the way for much of the US MCT Campus

Spring is less than a month away, but be prepared to first pay the toll for its arrival with the return of the polar vortex.

Frigid air will be back in much of the nation this week, with temperatures expected to plummet by more than 30 degrees in some major cities in the Midwest and the East. The expectation is for even more snow in a season that has already seen record accumulations.

“A cold mass of arctic air will bring temperatures that are 10 to 30 degrees below normal across the northern third of the U.S. on Monday,” the National Weather Service warned. The coldest air will be in Montana through North Dakota and into Minnesota “where highs will be in the single digits. The cold air will slowly move eastward by midweek. Meanwhile, snow,

heavy at times, is expected across the northern third of the U.S. on Monday.”

Even though parts of the hardpressed East had a brief warming last week, the harsh winter weather is back and expected to continue through the end of the season. The cause, once again, is the aptly named polar vortex.

The polar vortex is a wellknown and respected phenomenon, but as far as the popular imagination is concerned, it could very well have been a science-fiction creation. This year, it has become the major weather predictor for much of the nation. This week’s cold wave is just another manifestation of its disruption.

The polar vortex is a mass of very cold air that is normally kept above the Arctic Circle by strong winds. Sometimes, however, the winds weaken, allowing the cold to move south.

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Check out photos in our galleries Scan the code to find more at Beacon.MCLA.edu

MCT Campus Photo

Pedestrians have been fighting the cold winter storms.

“An intense sprawling surface real cold, real fast. Temperatures high will dominate the nation in the teens and single digits are east of the Continental Divide expected in cities from Minthis period, with some spillage neapolis and Chicago to Detroit into the northern intermountain and Buffalo.

West,” according to the weather In addition to the cold, the service. “The air mass should Northeast including the Bostonbe pure arctic over the northern to-Washington corridor could Plains, and continental polar over see a significant snowstorm by the southern Plains, gulf states midweek. and Southeast.”

That arctic air means it will get

MCLA SPIRES Literary Arts Magazine is accepting SKETCHES submissions!

ART POETRY

Submissions are open to current students and Alumni

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6

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Arts & Entertainment

Photo courtesy of Ed McCormick/Hill Haints

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Photo by Amy Modesti/Beacon Staff

Photo by Shannen Adamites/Arts & Entertainment Editor

Gritty punk, psychedelic pop, whimsical folk: Hill Haints (left) and 17 Gentlemen Callers (right) open for Shana Falana (center) on Saturday night at The Parlor Cafe.

Dreampop duo returns to Berkshires Brooklyn’s Shana Falana returns to North Adams for a night of eclectic music at The Parlor Cafe

By Shannen Adamites

Arts & Entertainment Editor The Parlor Café will showcase a night of psychedelic and alternative pop/rock music this Saturday at 8:00 p.m., featuring Brooklyn’s dreampop/shoegaze duo, Shana Falana.

Hill Haints, a North Adamsbased garage punk band, and one-person folk act, 17 Gentlemen Callers, a project initiated by junior Jondavid Shetler, will open the night.

After opening for Ryder Cooley and the Dustbowl Faeries at Downstreet Art’s Halloween street festival, Shana Falana returns to the Berkshires to engage their audience in their otherworldly sounds.

“My music is ethereal and in some ways driven by the Bulgarian music I studied in San Fransisco,” Falana said in an e-mail interview. “It’s also droney, and pop-influenced, inspired by PJ Harvey and the Breeders.”

The shoegaze genre is characterized by its heavily distorted and reverberated guitars, creating an eerie, low-fi and cave-like atmosphere. With Shana Falana’s airy vocal quality and diverse instrumentation, the duo has made a name for themselves after a successful internet marketing campaign promoting their exclusive digital album, “Shana Falana Sings Herself to Sleep,” which will fund the duo’s European tour this spring.

Hill Haints is a garage rock band with a sound based on New York City’s no-wave and punk scene from the 1970s and 80s. The band is influenced by renowned acts such as The Wipers and The Saints, and avant-garde musician Rhys Chatham.

No-wave is an underground genre focusing on atonal, distorted sounds that focuses on the overal “feel” of a song rather than the melody.

Guitarist and vocalist Ed McCormick said, “The three of us,

Peter Celentano on bass, Caleb Miner on drums, and myself, used to jam at the parlor on Mondays.

One night after playing along to somebody’s Pink Floyd-styled jam music, something broke and we started playing a fast punk rhythm.”

The Parlor Cafe presents 17 Gentlemen Callers:

soundcloud.com/jondavidshetler

Hill Haints:

facebook.com/hillhaints

Shana Falana:

shanafalana.com

8:00 p.m.

Free admission According to McCormick, after being satisfied with the outcome, the trio wrote four songs and played their first show a week later.

17 Gentlemen Callers (Shetler),

Photo by Amy Modesti/Beacon Staff

Shana Falana performing at Branch Gallery on Halloween. a musician specializing in what they call “DIY Folk Rock,” is a regular at The Parlor Café’s open mic nights and expressed enthusiasm about opening for Shana Falana, one of their favorite bands.

“It’s a huge honor,” they said. “I saw Shana Falana performing at Downstreet Art and they were fantastic, which makes opening for them that much more exciting.”

Gallery 51 opens outsider art exhibit

“Oscar and Felix” directed by Doug Jenkins

Continues tonight, Friday, and Saturday

at 8:00 p.m., with a matinee on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Venable Theater

$5 General admission/Free with MCLA ID Reserve at boxoffice@mcla.edu or call 413-662-5123

Gallery 51 will present, “Inside the Outside: Reconsidering Our Views about Art.” The exhibition, on display from Feb. 27 to March 23, will feature a variety of outsider and self-taught art, as well as contributions from professionally trained artists and teachers.

An opening reception for this exhibit, sponsored by the Department of Fine and Performing Arts and organized by students in the fall 2013 “Museum Studies” class, will be held on Thursday, Feb. 27, 5-7 p.m., in Gallery 51. The event is free and open to the public.

Self-taught and outsider artists are considered to be outside the typical artist spectrum; this includes, but is not limited to people living in isolated or marginalized communities, artists with mental or physical disabilities and those who are not influenced

by much, if anything, in the established art world, according to Tony Gengarelly, Ph.D., professor emeritus of art history and museum studies.

The work of artists and teachers Renee Bouchard and Ilene Spiewak will be displayed with selected artworks by students from the Lee Massachusetts College Internship Program, alongside other art by selftaught artists from the private collection of Jamie Franklin and Renee Bouchard.

“The art on display is intended to spark conversation about the conditions under which art is made and the circumstances that determine its appreciation,” said Gengarelly, the project director of the exhibition.

The show also features the work of outsider artists Jessica Park and Michael McManmon. A new art biography written by Gengarelly, “A

World Transformed: The Art of Jessica Park,” will be introduced at the Feb. 27 opening reception.

On Tuesday, March 18, from 5 to 7 p.m., Gallery 51 will host an evening discussion, “Art and Biography.”

“Art and Biography” will feature Jamie Franklin, curator at the Bennington Museum.

Franklin’s interest in outsider art started as a teenager, and has evolved as he grew into adulthood and became a collector. With his marriage to Bouchard, his interest in outsider art deepened.

On Thursday March 20, 5-7 p.m., Gallery 51 will host a second evening discussion, “Art Education and the Education of the Artist,” featuring art therapist, teacher and artist Ilene Spiewak. This event will include both a discussion and question and answer session about self-trained artists.

Arts & Entertainment

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Contemplations of a former art student

Beacon.MCLA.edu

7

Junior aspires to work in performance and lighting design Lance Ruggiero, ‘15, explores his passion for performance and lighting in “Oscar and Felix”

Making business beautiful

By Shannen Adamites

Arts & Entertainment Editor

I

remember back when I was applying to colleges and deciding on a potential major, I was torn between studying visual art or theater.

I was frequently nagged that I should take on a more “worthwhile” profession, like business or corporate communications, because, like Sally Bowles said, “Money makes the world go around.”

Four years, three major switches later, I’m a public relations & journalism duo-concentration and the biggest thing I’ve taken away from this is that art, business, and the art of business, always end up merging together at some point.

Attractive visual designs, whether through print, web, video, or photo, can make the biggest difference in appealing to audiences and bringing in potential consumers and contributors.

The magic of a cleanly designed web page not only provides accessibility to the viewer/client, but instills a sense of confidence within them. A sleek sense of minimalism screams efficiency and adaptability.

More importantly, it shows that this practitioner can work with very little resources and still make something beautiful, professional, and beyond adequate.

A successful PR campaign utilizes all forms of multimedia, from Photoshop to typography to videography. While mastery isn’t necessary, proficiency is key, and having a desire to continually improve technical skills is absolutely crucial.

Along with this comes the ability to articulate -- the art of business is one that revolves around people, and being able to improvise, adapt, and speak clearly and confidently, all of which are taught in theater, can make or break a business deal, or in some cases, a professional reputation.

I encourage all students involved with business to take a moment to hone their creative skills. You might not be a “traditional artist,” but taking a few minutes to paint, or going out for a night at the theater, might result in something deeper than just appreciating art.

Creativity is absolutely necessary in all fields of study. Just because your major doesn’t explicitly dive head first in to the art world, does not mean it should be ignored.

By Jenna O’Connor

Arts & Entertainment Writer Within the three years he’s been here, Lance Ruggiero, a Fine and Performing Arts (FPA) major, peer advisor, orientation leader, and a member of numerous clubs on campus, has been a part of every main stage production, and has gotten his feet wet with the many different aspects of theatre.

“Growing up, I was always an actor,” he said. “But when I came to the College, I got into lighting, and I actually really love both.”

Having to split his responsibilities for the upcoming production of the comedy Oscar and Felix, Ruggiero will be the lighting designer for the show, as well as portraying the character of Murray the Cop. Ruggiero expressed how he loves the concept of “making things come alive” on stage through lighting.

“You can really feel certain emotions with the color and I love being able to emphasize that.”

According to Theatre Production Designer and Technical Director, Andy Hoar, Ruggiero has come along way in his studies as a technician since his freshman year.

“He said he wanted to do lights, and I’m a big fan of what I call, ‘trial by fire,’” he said. “You say you want to come in and learn something, I’m going to put you to the task from day one because that’s how you learn it.”

“You can really feel certain emotions with the color and I love being able to emphasize that.”

-Lance Ruggiero After struggling to climb up a ladder, Ruggiero conquered his fear of heights and now focuses lights 18 feet off the floor.

“He was terrified of heights, and now he flies,” Hoar said. “It relates back to how he’s grown as a student and a technician.”

If you don’t see Ruggiero acting in one of the productions put on

by Harlequin or Yorick, you’ll see

Photo by Kayla Degnan/Photo Editor

Ruggiero is a theater major and the lighting designer for the upcoming production of Oscar and Felix. his name in the program for the would be my dream.” behind the scenes work he does.

Ruggiero’s continued success “It has been great working with marks how much he has grown Lance,” junior Joshua Baker said. over the past three years, and will “He has really grown since fresh- be increasingly evident in the fuman year. I think working in the ture. scene shop has brought us to“I have three people that regether more—we know how each ally influenced me,” Ruggiero other works, and when we need said. “Andy Hoar, who has really to step in and help the other one pushed me far, Lisa Lepoidevin, out.” who has taught me basically evHard work really does pay off— erything I know about lights, and Ruggiero aspires to be a lighting Celia Norcross, who has really designer with Pittsfield, Mass.’s showed me how to be a leader.

Barrington Stage Company.

The three of them have really “In the future, ideally, I would shaped me, and my maturity, as just love to be a lighting designer well as helped me grow.” and actor,” Ruggiero said. “That

Surrealist Chilean director returns to cinema

By Raanan Sarid-Segal

Arts & Entertainment Writer This year, two films, “Jodorowsky’s Dune” and “The Dance of Reality,” are being released, making it the first time grand master of the bizarre, Alejandro Jodorowsky, has been seriously involved in a movie since 1990.

This is a time to be absurdly excited for those of us who know who Jodorowsky is, and a time for the rest of the world to ask who this person is.

Jodorowsky is a Chilean director who got his start with a theater company he created that toured Chile. He then moved to France and wrote surreal routines for Marcel Marceau and other famous surrealists like Fernando Arrabal.

After seeing one of Arrabal’s plays, he was inspired to make a film version out of what he remembered of the play, which became his first feature length film “Fando y Lis” (1968).

“Fando y Lis” follows the titular couple as they wander through an apocalyptic wasteland in search of the city Tar, where all their dreams will be made true. What they find are endless trials, and though they fail some, they ultimately achieve something like enlightenment.

Much like most of Jodorowsky’s passion projects, and noticeably

absent from the features he does for work, “Fando y Lis” is both transcendent and ugly, filling the scenes with moments of beauty and obscenity at every turn. This conflict between high minded ideas and sleazy, vile execution led the Mexican government to ban the film.

This trend would continue in Jodorowsky’s next film, “El Topo,” (1970) an acid western of the highest order. The movie follows a gunfighter who abandons his son, and goes on a journey to become the greatest gunfighter in the world. But instead, he learns the secrets of the universe and transforms into a blonde guru, and misfortune follows him.

It is not an easy movie, full of blood, guts and otherwise offensive or exploitative imagery. People with weak stomachs are advised to stay away. Jodorowsky’s work plays on the principle of imagination unbounded by convention.

He stuffs so many ideas into a work that it becomes difficult to talk about them in any meaningful way. Every scene defies all sense, and by traditional standards fails to provide any kind of through line, yet the energy and thoughtfulness which fills the work buoys the movie.

“The Holy Mountain” (1973) is even more difficult to describe.

It is something even harder, even nastier than “El Topo,” as well as being a more mature piece. It’s almost plot lacking structure makes it impossible to describe.

It is about two men who recruit various people who represent the planets of the solar system to hunt down and kill the council of gods who secretly rule the earth, but that does not even begin to capture the oddities on display.

It is the kitchen sink approach to satire, with every aspect of the modern life parodied in the most bizarre way possible.

Jodorowsky’s career floundered after this, when he tried to make “Dune” into a movie. The project never came to fruition, but it is still one of the most influential movies of all time, affecting the look of Star

Photo from alejandroseri.wordpress.com

Wars, Alien, Blade Runner, and a many other famous projects.

The documentary coming out this year, “Jodorowsy’s Dune,” focuses on this failed production.

8

Sports

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Fair territory

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Baseball team holds clinic for local kids

By Kelsey Marini Sports Writer

NBA mocks competitive play

By Jesse Collings Sports Editor

In society, we tend to celebrate excellence above everything else.

When someone is doing something better than everybody else, we stand up and take notice. This is especially true in sports, where nearly everybody can name the last five Super Bowl champions, but only a few could name the last five Super Bowl losers.

This is why the stories that circulate around the NBA trade deadline are so odd. While the teams that are favored to contend for the championship in the spring stayed mostly pat, the leagues bottom feeders were the real movers and shakers of the NBA. Teams like Philadelphia looked to trade away any assets in hopes of not getting any better, but in hopes of getting worse.

In a vacuum, that previous statement sounds absurd. A team couldn’t be trying to lose games on purpose, right? But in today’s NBA, we applaud those GMs who try to lose those games, because the widely held perception is that you have to get really bad before you get really good.

The worse thing to be in the NBA is mediocre. Right now, there are a couple of really good teams, a few middling teams, and then everyone else is a mix of bad ranging from poor to unwatchable. While organizations like Philly are admired because they trade everything they have for second round draft picks, we scoff at teams like Cleveland, who make trades that might actually help them win games this year.

Why would someone want to scrape into the playoffs in order to get demolished by Miami or Indiana in the first round?

The gap between the have and the have-nots in the NBA is as large as it has ever been. And while in the past it has been because of things like league expansion, this time the gap has been totally created by choice. What that means is that a few teams’ fans have something to cheer for, while everyone else sits and awaits the future where they will have to hope for a million things to go their way. The NBA today is based more on hope, with GMs trying to build for the future and to hope a rebuilding effort actually goes well. Sports shouldn’t be based on hope, they should be based on quality management and competitive play, and right now, the NBA isn’t really about that at all.

The men’s Baseball team held their annual winter skills clinic on Monday, Feb. 17 through Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the Amsler Campus Center Gym. The team has been holding the winter clinic for over a decade. The clinic is set up to help local North Adams youth ranging from 7-12 years of age improve their baseball knowledge.

This year, 21 children came out to participate in the clinic, a lower number than past years. According to Head Coach Jeff Puleri, in past years an average of 35 kids signed up for the event. Each child paid $100 to work on all assets of the game with the Trailblazers. The kids who participated were introduced to all aspects in the game.

“We do everything we would do in practice,” said Puleri, “from throwing mechanics to hitting.”

The players worked alongside the Photo by Richard LaRocque/The Beacon kids, helping them improve on their Sophomore pitcher Nate Alibozek pitches soft toss to an enthusiastic batter during the clinic. skills. Stations were set up to work on learning about the different styles of pitching, faces when they travel down to Winter haven, specific positions for the kids such as pitching, the kids worked on correcting and perfecting FL on March 6 to start up their spring season. infield play, and outfield play. their pitches like the curve ball and knuckle Coyle and Gersch explained that the clinic Sean Coyle is the Trailblazer’s current first ball. not only served as learning experience for the baseman. He worked with kids who wanted to “It’s nice to see them learning,” said Gersch, kids, but also a chance to practice for the team. learn about infielding. Coyle, along with the “and it’s a good experience for us by getting in“With the drill work, we try to refine every other infielders, put the kids through drills volved with the community.” detail and perfect them,” said Coyle. that specifically had to do with short plays and Undoubtedly, the favorite part of the day for Both the players and the kids had a posifast reaction. the players and participants was the wiffle ball tive experience from the event. They had “A lot of these kids are returners,” said Coyle. game. The team used the game not only to fun learning and playing the sport they love.

“It’s a great feeling to pass on my baseball have fun with the kids, but to also tie in all the What the kids took away from the drills will knowledge to kids who might one day be in drills previously worked on. The hopes were be worked into their upcoming seasons. The my shoes.” to see improvement from the beginning of the players are excitedly waiting for their trip to The kids who wanted to learn more about clinic to the end.

Florida to kick off what they hope to be a great pitching were sent to senior Jared Gersch’s The money earned from this event will go and successful week of games. drills. He gave a more in depth explanation to the Baseball team’s program fund. The proabout the importance of the position. After gram’s fund will help with expenses the team

Women fall short on Senior Day

By Jesse Collings Sports Editor

The Women’s Basketball team dropped it’s final game of the season at home Saturday, losing to Salem State, 74-68. MCLA finished the season winless in the MASCAC, falling to 0-12 on the season and 4-21 overall. Salem improved to 12-13 overall and 7-5 in the conference.

MCLA played strong during the first half, and took a 34-32 lead into half-time. However, Salem clearly ouplayed MCLA in the second half and sported a 66-57 lead with just 5:30 to play in the game.

Looking to end the season on a positive note, MCLA then went on a 10-2 run to bring the lead to just one, 68-67, with a little more than a minute left to play. After trading free throws, Salem would go on to score five straight points and secured the victory over the Trailblazers.

Playing in her final game for MCLA and in front of a large crowd of friends and family, senior Kaitlyn Chenevert led MCLA with 15 points and 5 assists. Chenever also led all players with 4 steals. Also playing in her final game, Danielle Scolpino had a strong performance, scoring 13 points and notching 3 steals for the Trailblazers.

Salem State was led by two out-

standing performances from junior Rachel Carter and senior Ginny Flemming. Carter had 24 points, 8 rebounds and a team high 7 assists. Flemming also scored 24 points, and had an impressive showing on the glass, recording a game-high 15 rebounds.

Salem will move onto the MASCAC tournament, but for MCLA the season is over. The season was a learning experience for the Trailblazers, with over half of the roster comprising of freshman, with many of them large roles for the team.

Freshman Kayla Hotaling shined for MCLA after missing the first half of the season because of injury. Hotaling was second on the team in scoring and led the team with 8.9 rebounds per game and 2.5 blocks per game. Freshman Michaela Siver and Ashley Clawson also played major roles on the team despite being rookies.

MCLA will have to quickly replace the loss of Chenevert, who led the team in scoring with 11.2 ppg and in steals with 2.6 steals per game. Chenevert also brought certain intangibles and leadership to the team that will be hard to replace.

Next season, MCLA will still be young with only 4 upperclassmen slated to return, but Photo by Kayla Degnan/The Beacon will hopefully be helped by the Freshman Ashley Clawson lets a shot fly Saturday against Salem St. maturing freshman class.

Sports

Thursday, February 27, 2014

9

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Men advance to semi-finals Scores

By Kaleigh Anderson Sports Writer

MCLA came out on top Tuesday night defeating the fourth seeded Westfield State Owls 89-67 in the quarterfinal round of the 2014 MASCAC Men’s basketball championship.

With the win, the Trailblazers will move on to face top the seeded Salem State this evening.

So far this past season MCLA and Salem have been neck and neck as each time took a game in conference game only winning by a single point.

John Jones and Paul Maurice combined to score 46 points in leading MCLA. Maurice used his three point advantage to sink six three point shots in the contest. Ray Viches also had a hot hand ending in double figures with 16 points.

Westfield was paced by Grant Cooper’s 16 points. Jesus Sanchez finished with 11 points.

MCLA was 12-25 from three point land and shot 53% from the floor, while Westfield shot 38%.

Aaron West opened the scoring for the Owls, but the Blazers picked up quickly from there.

Paul Maurice put back up a missed shot and then drilled his first three of the night. When Ramon Viches scored after an assist from DelRosario, it was 7-2 MCLA and after a quick Owl timeout MCLA controlled the lead the rest of the contest.

MCLA would eventually lead 40-24 at halftime, and would continue on to take the victory when Westfield State could not come back from the deficit as the lead widened for MCLA reaching up to 25 points late in the contest.

The win may have come as a surprise for some, as in the two previous matchups against Westfield, MCLA was defeated handily.

On Januarry 25th, the Trailblazer fell on the road to Westfield, 83-60. On February 18th, the Owls traveld to North Adams and defeated the Trailblazers at home, 80-63.

MCLA will move on to face top seeded Salem State tonight in Salem. Tip off is set for 7pm.

‘Blazers fall during last game of season After a much heated battle MCLA fell to rival Salem State on Senior Day saturday in

play much got an opportunity to show what they could do out there on the court,” senior Rashard Taylor said.

MCLA was paced by Jeremic Bennett’s 15 points and Ramon Viches who ended the night with 14 points. The Vikings received 15 points from Hamed Akanni and 11 points from Ryan Salvador off the bench to lead the team.

After Salem led 23-18 at the end of the first half, the Trailblazers opened the second half on a 14-0 run to take charge. At one point MCLA held Salem without a point for over eight minutes. With the score at 32-23 in favor of MCLA, the Vikings embarked on a 14-0 run of their own to steal back the lead with a score of 37-32 with 11:20 left to play.

Salem was up by 11 points with 4:02 left to play before MCLA made a closing run. MCLA held Salem to just one point over the remainder of the game.

“It felt great for the seniors and I to put the team in position to win the game down the stretch,” Rashard Taylor said.

Photo by Kayla Degnan/The Beacon Tyriq Rochester’s follow up slam Ray Viches launches a shot over a Salem St. defender. brought the Trailblazers within a their last regular season match up 54-53. point of obtaining the lead with “As a team I felt we played very intensely to- 1:09 remaining. The Trailblazers had possesgether on the defensive end. That comes with sion of the ball but lost it on an attempted drive focus and also with the trust of our defensive from John Jones, however MCLA regained schemes,” senior Tyshawn McGee said. possession when Salem was called on a travel The Vikings now finish the MASCAC season charge with just 10 seconds left. The ball was at 9-3, and have earned the top seed in next passed around the perimeter and kicked out week’s conference playoffs, MCLA has earned to Viches who had a wide open look at a game the fifth seed and finish off the conference winning three, but it was off the mark. MCLA with a record of 5-7. got the rebound, but didn’t have enough time Ramon Viches ignited MCLA’s fire starting left on the clock to get a final shot off. the contest off with a highlight reel dunk to MCLA was 6-25 (24 percent) from the floor, give MCLA their first basket of the game. He while the Vikings were 9-29 (31 percent). The then continued to score the first 9 points of Trailblazers committed 12 first half turnovers the game, and his 3 point explosion brought while Salem had 8.

MCLA to tie the game at 12 apiece in the first “We are looking forward to going on a huge half. run in the playoffs, hoping to win 3 games in The starting five seniors continuously led a week including the conference championMCLA down stretch, “the seniors that do not ship,” said Tyshawn McGee.

Women’s Basketball February 22nd, 2014 Salem St. 74, MCLA 68 Men’s Basketball February 25th, 2014 MCLA 89, Westfield St. 67 February 22nd, 2014 Salem State 54, MCLA 53

Standings

Final Regular Season MASCAC Standings Men’s Basketball Salem St. Bridgewater St. Westfield St. Worcester St. MCLA Fitchuburg St. Framingham St.

9-3 8-4 8-4 8-4 5-7 2-10 2-10

Women’s Basketball Bridgewater St. Westfield St. Framingham St. Salem St. Fitchburg St. Worcester St. MCLA

8-4 8-4 8-4 7-5 6-6 5-7 0-12

Jones named to second team All-MASCAC Schedules

By Jesse Collings Sports Editor

MCLA senior forward John Jones was named to the second team All-MASCAC on Wendsday. Jones finished off his final season playing for the Trailblazers in grand style, leading the team with 16.5 points per game and 8.2 rebounds per game. He also made a tremendous impact on defense, leading the conference in steals with 2.5 steals per game.

Jones hit his season high in scoring twice, dropping 25 points against both Williams and Fitchburg State. His best game however, probably came against Castleton State, where he scored 22 points and grabbed a season-high 18 rebounds.

Within MASCAC, Jones was as wellrounded as anybody. In addition to leading the conference in steals, Jones was fifth in scoring, fourth in rebounds and fourth in field goal percentage.

During the 2013-14 season, Jones’s greatest improvement came from shooting. Despite not being known as much of an oustide shooter, Jones was steady and confident throughout the season from outside, knocking down 34.4% of his three point attempts.

Jones was joined on the second team

by Bridgewater State foward Kyle Gibson, Salem State guard Bryan Ortiz, Worcester State guard Brendan Rios and Bridgewater State guard Brendan Monterio.

The Conference Player of the Year award went to Worcester State senior forward Dane Jobst. Jobst led the Lancers to the third-seed in the MASCAC tournament and led the conference in rebounds per game with 13.5 and was fourth in points per game with 16.7.

The All-MASCAC first team was comprised of Jobst, Westfield State forward Grant Cooper, Bridgewater State forward Michael Lofton, Fitchburg State guard Mike Ingram-Rubin and Salem State guard Andrew White.

Worcester State center Paul Brooks was named MASCAC freshman of the year. Brooks finished third in the conference in field goal percentage and was an intimidating presence under the basket for the Lancers.

Salem State coach Chris Harvey was named the Champions Choice Coach of the Year. Harvey led Salem State to a 16-8 overall record and the number one seed in the MASCAC tournament.

February 27th Men’s Basketball MASCAC Semi-Final MCLA @ Salem State 7 PM March 7th Softball Olivet vs MCLA @ Fort Myers, Florida.

9AM MCLA vs Newbury @ Fort Myers, Florida 11 AM Baseball East Mennonite vs MCLA @ Auburndale, Florida 2:30 PM March 8th

Photo by Kayla Degnan/The Beacon

Jones led MCLA this season in scoring and rebounding.

Baseball Becker vs MCLA @ Auberndale, Florida 9 AM

10

Opinion

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Beacon.MCLA.edu

“How do you feel about minimum wage potentially going up to $10 per hour in the US?” “I would say as long as it wouldn’t affect how higher positions would be paid, it is fine where it’s at now.”

“I feel like it would be a negative thing because of inflation since we’ve had some economic problems in the past.”

– Adam Genest, 2014

– Elizabeth Brisebois, 2014

The Beacon The Beacon is published Thursdays during the academic year and is distributed free to the College community. The Beacon is funded by the Student Government Association, the English/Communications department and from ad revenues.

Contact information: News desk number: 413-662-5535 Business number: 413-662-5404 E-mail: Beacon@mcla.edu Web site: beacon.mcla.edu Office: Mark Hopkins Hall, room 111 Mission Statement The Beacon strives to provide timely and accurate news of campus and local events.

“I think minimum wage should be increased because it should be something that a worker can live off of if they’re working full time.”

“I think it’s a good thing because there are a lot of low income families and it would be easier in starting out after college.”

– Tyler Scatliffe, 2014

–Amanda Olsen, 2014

“I’m all for it if they pass it because minimum wage doesn’t cut it these days.”

“I think it would be a good thing to have extra money for people to spend.”

-Jake Bonenfant, 2015

– Zack Page, 2016

Editorials Policy Unsigned editorials that appear on these pages reflect the views of The Beacon’s editorial board.

Signed columns and commentaries that appear on these pages reflect the views of the writers.

Letters Policy The Beacon welcomes Letters to the Editor. Deadline is noon on Mondays for that week’s newspaper.

Letters should be kept to 500 words or less and are subject to editing for grammar and content. The Beacon will not publish anonymous or libelous letters.

Letters must be signed by the writer and include a phone number. Letters may be dropped off at the office or e-mailed to Beacon@mcla.edu.

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Submissions should be dropped off at the office by Monday at noon or e-mailed to Beacon@mcla.edu.

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Editorial Board

Photos compiled by Andrew Ricketts

In my humble opinion...

Oppression or bigotry?

By Nicholas Arena Editor-in-Chief

Last week, senators in Arizona passed Senate Bill 1062 (SB 1062), as an expansion to the 1999 Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The bill would allow business owners to deny service to gay and lesbian customers, but this would only be okay if the owners were denying the service for religious reasons.

A report from CNN yesterday got into a bit of detail about the debate now surrounding this bill.

The opponents feel that the supporters are bigots, while the supporters feel that the opponents are oppressing them.

I might say that the supporters of this bill are crying the same sob story that you might have gotten from a white supremacist more than 60 years ago when they were making the argument that businesses should still be allowed to deny black customers service.

Not being allowed to tell someone that their completely natural lifestyle is wrong and that they are not allowed to be within the vicinity of your business suddenly makes you the victim? I apologize if I am not very sympathetic to that “plight.”

Now, I completely understand that this country was founded on the basis of freedom of religion and I would never go out of my way to deny someone their rights to do so. That being said, one thing that many religions really need to come to terms with is the fact that not everyone agrees with them. Religions don’t deserve to be discriminated against and neither does someone who believes that same-sex marriage is okay.

If you don’t support same-sex marriage, fine, don’t marry someone of the same sex. To go so far as to deny someone service at a business is outright discrimination, there is simply no nicer way to say it.

Again, a number of decades ago I don’t doubt that this would have gone completely unnoticed and that it probably would have been widely accepted, but this is not how we as a society function anymore. Certain religions are proving themselves to be nothing more than antiquated devices from a far more conservative era.

It doesn’t even fit into a good business plan. According to CNN, fortune 500 companies are already beginning to warn Governor Jan Brewer of the ramifications of this bill, especially in terms of hospitality and travel.

In today’s world, who would want to give business to a person or company that would so blatantly discriminate against someone for their sexual orientation?

I still ask the question: why is this something we’re even talking about anymore? Have we not evolved to a point where religion does not hold the ground to determine who can legally marry who?

This is a legal issue, and last I checked religion still does not have the power to influence the government like this.

I hope to see the day that the religious right finally gives up the ghost and stops trying to control every aspect of everyone’s lives based on an ancient text that means very little to a good portion of the world.

If we continue to waste all of our time arguing issues like this, or the abortion issue, then we are not going to accomplish much as a country in the years to come.

I hope that Governor Brewer is smart enough to realize what a detriment this will be to her state in terms of citizenship, business and travel. That being said, it’s no secret how backwards politics have been in Arizona over the years, so I cannot say I would be all to surprised to see SB 1062 written into law.

“I’m a lot of fun at parties, I swear!”

Editor-in-Chief Nick Arena Sports Editor Jesse Collings

Managing Editor Jess Gamari Photography Editor

A&E Editor Shannen Adamites

Kayla Degnan Web Editor Michael Dahlroth

Copy Chief Avery Finnivan Advertising Manager Darcie Sosa

Senior News Editor Gabriel Kogel

Staff

Orange ya glad?

By Jess Gamari Managing Editor

When it comes to naming new foods, man isn’t always a creature of wit. Many fruit and veggie lovers question why the citrus orange is named for its color even though the carrot shares the same pigment.

The color “orange” was named after the citrus fruit, not the other way around. Before this time, the color was known as “geoluhread” which translates to “yellow-red.”

The word orange entered the English language from the Spanish word, “naranja.” Over time, the word was used to refer to the citrus fruit and later the color.

The earliest reference to carrots dates back to temple drawings in ancient Egypt in 2000 BC. Carrots were typically used for medicinal purposes and could be orange, deep red or purple, even dirty white.

Citrus oranges win the permanent orange title because of its color consistency.

Staff Writers Kaleigh Anderson Rachel Fitterman

James Hunter Marc Latour Chunyu “Judy” Leng Kelsey Marini Makayla-Courtney McGeeney Alexander Moore Jenna O’Connor

Photographers Nathan Buchanan Richard LaRocque Amy Modesti Andrew Ricketts

Design Team

Shannen Adamites* Nick Arena* Jess Gamari* Raanan Sarid-Segal Nicole Ngoon Nick Swanson Copy Editors Yvonne Camacho Rominda DeBarros Nicole L’Etoile

Advisers

Jenifer Augur Gillian Jones Jim Niedbalski

*Holds more than one position

Online at: Beacon.MCLA.edu Facebook.com/MCLABeacon Twitter.com/MCLA_Beacon

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Bigger than biceps

What not to do at the gym

By Makayla-Courtney McGeeney Staff Writer

The snow is beginning to melt, but your jeans are still feeling tighter, and so will that bikini if you remain on the couch. One way to break a sweat is to bust some moves in your dorm room, run outside in the slush, or man up and head to the campus’ fitness center.

What do I bring to a workout?

-Proper attire (supportive sneakers, shorts or sweatpants, comfortable top) -Water -Towel -Headphones If you are a respectable citizen with common sense, then there should be no problem in explaining how to act in a gym environment. But, if you’re the opposite, there are numerous things you should not do while working out.

Socializing is fine, considering most students workout with a buddy anyway, but keep it to a

Opinion & Announcements minimum in case you’re standing in the way of others passing, or blocking an empty space where someone likes to stretch.

Another thing is spacing issues. When stretching or doing abdominal exercises, try to create your own small area that is out of the way of others. A mat, medicine ball, and a kettle bell is all you need. Even if there isn’t enough room in the fitness center, try the hallway for lunges or strenuous stretches.

As a gym rat, one of my biggest pet peeves is resting on equipment in between sets. At the fitness center, there aren’t as many machines to do this with, but at a bigger facility it is important to always leave your equipment open to others when not in use. If you want to keep the machine after leaving it, simply place a water bottle or towel on it to save it.

An alternative to this would be to switch exercises at the machine.

For example, if you are using a chest press machine and then go to do crunches elsewhere, bring the mat and do crunches next to your machine, that way you don’t have to go far and risk someone stealing your machine.

One last thing is judgment. We all have our own ways of performing exercises, and the last thing a newbie needs is a group in the corner whispering about him/ her. If you truly think someone is wrongly approaching an exercise and could potentially cause injury, then speak up and suggest the proper way in a kind manner.

Enter the gym as if you would any other foreign establishment, with manners and good judgment. In most cases, everyone is there to better themselves, and any nonsense added on is completely unnecessary. Avoid bad behavior by making your workout experience positive and fun.

Under the bodhi tree

Making peace with our worst enemy

By Gabriel Kogel Senior News Editor

I’ve received positive comments about this column, and I’m grateful to have this forum, where I can write what I believe is truthful and helpful.

For me, the path of mindfulness and compassion has given me respite from my worst problems: relentless self-criticism and low self worth.

As a writer, I’ve thought a lot about how the way we write represents our character. My selfcriticism extends to my writing, and my editing can verge on the neurotic. When I doubt my self-worth, I doubt my capacity to write, despite having proven myself, to myself, over and over again.

I’ve relied on chemicals, like

nicotine and caffeine, to get myself to write, all the time thinking I needed to be better than my normal self. I spent a long time believing that I could only write with so much adrenaline pumping through my veins it felt like my heart would burst.

But by forgiving myself, remembering to accept myself, just as I am, I’m starting to realize the world isn’t nearly as unforgiving and judgmental as I feared it was.

We all feel self-critical and inadequate sometimes. It’s not merely “my” pain, it’s “our” pain.

I don’t have a have a monopoly on these feelings; we’re all in the same boat.

My point is that through meditation, we can begin to realize our connection to other people, and all life. So much damaging behavior, whether to ourselves, or to others, can be traced to the suffering of believing we are isolated and alone.

Rather than waging war against everything I didn’t like about myself, I’ve decided to accept my faults and do the best I can in spite of them. Consider how the world would change, if instead of fighting unending wars against “enemies,” we decided to see their humanity and forgive them instead.

The Beacon now has an email edition of the newspaper!

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FINANCIAL AID ANNOUCEMENT IT’S TIME TO REAPPLY FOR FINANCIAL AID FOR 2014-2015! *MARCH 1 PRIORITY DEAD1LINE*

Visit TheOnlineBeacon.com to sign up today!

Log onto www.fafsa.ed.gov to complete the federal form.

Note that we no longer require an institutional application for financial aid.

File early and don’t miss out on money!

Any questions?

Call the Financial Aid Office at 662-5219 or visit us on the main level of Eldridge Hall. *** Scholarship Opportunity Polish Junior League Undergraduate Scholarship A scholarship for students of Polish heritage living in Western Massachusetts who are sophomore level or above.

Deadline May 1, 2014 Applications available in the Financial Aid Office.

Are you in a club?

Beacon.MCLA.edu

11

Check it out!

Upcoming events on campus!

Today, February 27

Students for Senisble Drug Policy Tabling Amsler Campus Center Marketplace noon - 7 p.m.

Love Yourself Amsler Campus Center Marketplace 11 a.m.- 2 p.m.

Green Living Seminar Murdock Conference Reception Room 218 4:30 - 6:30 p.m.

The Write Stuff Amsler Campus Center Sullivan Lounge 3- 5 p.m.

Gallery 51: Inside the Outside 5 p.m.

Come see this student curated show reconsidering our view about art.

Good Vibes Amsler Campus Center Dance Complex 8- 10 p.m.

Students for Senisble Drug Policy Presents: Open Mic Night Amsler Campus Center Sullivan Lounge 7- 9:30 p.m.

Friday, February 28 BSU Extravaganza Amsler Campus Center Sullivan Lounge 7- 10 p.m.

BSU’s “All Black Everything” Party Venable Gym 11 p.m. 2 a.m.

BSU Event Church Street Center Social Hall 5- 9 p.m.

Art Sale Amsler Campus Center Marketplace 9 a.m.- 6 p.m.

Dance Company Workshop w/ dysFUNKcrew Amsler Campus Center 3/1/2014 at 4:00 PM 5:30 PM

Saturday, March 1 Cosplay Workshop Amsler Campus Center CC 324A and CC 324B 1- 3 p.m.

Monday, March 3

The Beacon wants to help promote your club!

We will print one free advertisement per semester.

Keep us updated on club events!

We want to cover you!

Email your press release or story ideas on First Class to “MCLA Beacon Mailbox,“ or message us on Facebook!

Room Change Process RPS Central Office Room Change Paperwork is due to the RPS Central Office (Townhouse 89) no later than 4 p.m.

Tuesday, March 4 Public Policy Lecture Series: Gloria Steinem MCLA Church Street Center Eleanor Furst Roberts Auditorium 7 p.m.

Tricks of the Trade: The Creative Ecomony: Advocacy IS183, Stockbridge, MA 6 p.m.

Creative Economy - Beyond the Pie Chart Artists, designers, cultural organizations and for-profit companies are all part of the creative economy - one of Berkshire County’s four key economic scetors.

Wednesday, March 5 Tricks of the Trade: The Creative Economy: Economic Impact Lichtenstein Center for the Arts, Pittsfield, MA 6 p.m.

March: Creative Economy - Beyond the Pie Chart Artists, designers, cultural organizations and for-profit companies are all part of the creative economy - one of Berkshire County’s four key economic scetors.

12

Photo Essay

Senior Day Thursday, February 27, 2014

Beacon.MCLA.edu

Final Home Game for Men’s and Women’s Basketball

Photos By Kayla Degnan

Freshman Ashley Clawson manuevers the ball past her opponent.

Junior Anthony Barbosa keeps the ball away from his opponent while racing toward the basket.

Senior Danielle Scolpino scoops under the hoop, trying to make a basket.

Junior Jeremic Bennett battles through Salem State opponents to get under the hoop.

Sophomore Katherine Paddock takes contact, while an opponent tries to deflect the ball.

Sophomore Paul Maurice hoists a shot.