Monday, April 7, 20 14
Volume L X X V III, Number 47
w w w.mus t angne w s .net
BENJAMIN PU | UCSB THE DAILY NEXUS
THE RIOT | Law enforcement used tear gas to break up violent crowds this past weekend at Deltopia, an annual Isla Vista-based street party that resulted in more than 100 arrests and 44 hospital transports.
Violence erupts at Deltopia Aja Frost
Deltopia, an annual event held in Isla Vista, escalated into full-scale riots on Saturday. According to a Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office press release, the huge, alcohol-fueled party, which was attended by more than 15,000 guests, led to
more than 100 arrests and 44 people were transported to the hospital. “There were thousands of people everywhere, and everyone was drunk and/ or high out of their minds,” journalism freshman Arinee Rahman said. Violence erupted at
approximately 9:30 p.m., when a UC Santa Barbara police officer, responding to a report of two stabbings, was hit over the head with a backpack holding several bottles of alcohol. While authorities were making the arrest, hundreds of partiers formed a crowd several
Love and Theft gives Cal Poly a ‘Night That You’ll Never Forget’
@ajavuu blocks long and began throwing things at the police officers, including rocks, bricks and bottles. Kelly Hoover, a spokesperson for Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department, said three officers were injured during this incident. “Individuals also ripped
up stop signs, lit several small fires and damaged property, including several law enforcement vehicles,” the press release said. “It started to get pretty wild once it got really dark,” philosophy freshman Idean Moslehi said. “The police were shooting rubber bullets
at the crowd, and a lot of people kept trying to push empty trash bins into the police, but it was literally impossible with the bullets getting shot at us.” >>
see DELTOPIA, pg 3.
BASEBALL TOPS UCSB
Brenna Swanston
see BASEBALL, page 10.
@Brenna_Swanston PREVIEW
IAN BILLINGS | MUSTANG NEWS SHUTOUT VICTORY | Cal Poly baseball (26-5) blanked UCSB 1-0 in the series-finale and won the series 2-1.
JOSEPH PACK | MUSTANG NEWS COUNTRY CROONERS | Love and Theft performed a sunset, on-campus concert this past Thursday.
Country music duo Love and Theft brought some twang to campus this past Thursday with their concert in front of Campus Market. The band is composed of Stephen Barker Liles and Eric Gunderson. The show attracted passersby as well as fans, with many attendees singing along to the lyrics and donning cowboy boots. >>
The Hold Steady brings its own booze with ‘Teeth Dreams’ Parker Evans @parker_d_evans PREVIEW
see NIGHT, pg 5.
Meet the Orientation and Transition Board Kayla Missman @kaymissman
JOSEPH PACK | MUSTANG NEWS WOW | (Left to right) Mechanical engineering senior Justin Bautista, electrical engineering graduate student Christian Martens and business administration senior Lauren Heckendorn are three of the seven students responsible for coordinating Soar and Week of Welcome (WOW).
see WOW, pg 3.
Behind every coordinated dance by the orientation leaders, each Week of Welcome (WOW) activity and all the Soar groups, stands seven students: members of the Orientation and Transition Board, who are directly responsible for coordinating Soar and WOW. “I had a really rough transition, so my goal is to make sure that what we do give students an opportunity to have a better transition,” Board member and business administration senior Lauren Heckendorn said. “How big of a deal of what this program means to our school also means a lot to me. It’s cool when your school can rally around one big thing.” And rally they did — this year, approximately 970 students came to the first spring training meeting this past Tuesday to become Soar and WOW leaders. They are trained by the Orientation Team, which is also at its largest with 74 members. The Orientation Team is selected and trained by the seven students on the Board, said Jason Mockford, the coordinator of New Student Programs. >>
DAVID JANG | MUSTANG NEWS HOLD UP | In this week’s music column, Parker gives you the lowdown on The Hold Steady’s latest album.
Economics senior and Mustang News music columnist Parker Evans is at it again with his review of The Hold Steady’s latest album, Teeth Dreams. “The Hold Steady has been at cross-purposes with its own production for six albums now, but Teeth Dreams is by far the worst. The mix is all over the place, the guitars on ‘The Only Thing’ are a crime against rock, and the reverb on Finn’s voice throughout is an inexcusably terrible decision,” according to Evans. >>
see HOLD, pg 4.
News... 1-3 | Arts... 4-6 | Opinion & Sports... 7 | Classifieds... 8 | Sports... 9-10
NEWS | 2
Monday, April 7, 2014
Cal Poly prepares for Common Core standards Kyle McCarty @KyleMMcCarty California’s implementation of the Common Core standards is changing the way K-12 education will be conducted. Cal Poly is preparing its future educators to teach these new standards, but is not trying to directly influence K-12 curriculum. The Common Core is a set of academic standards created by a group of educators convened by the National Governor’s Association. Currently, 44 states — including California — and the District of Columbia have adopted the Common Core. Jon Margerum-Leys, the dean of Cal Poly’s School of Education, sees the Common Core as a positive change for students. The Common Core seeks to emphasize critical thinking and task-based learning. This shift will likely help students, Margerum-Leys said. He saw these skills as particularly relevant at a university like Cal Poly, with its emphasis on Learn By Doing. Though Cal Poly’s School of Education is not formally involved with creating any curriculum for K-12 students, the faculty in the School of Education are involved with local schools and can provide their input on school priorities. Margerum-Leys cited his membership on a local school district committee as an example. “These are people who lead in their fields, but they also
have relationships at the local schools.” MargerumLeys said. “So they form this bridge between real expertise and practice, and also valuing the values and the expertise of the people that are in the schools.” Margerum-Leys highlighted the difference between creating a set of standards, as opposed to a curriculum. Standards give teachers and school districts the flexibility to design a curriculum they feel will best allow their students to meet the standards. A curriculum is more like a script for teachers, so trying to make one that fits all students’ needs isn’t the best approach, Margerum-Leys said. Lola Berber-Jimenez, the department chair for Cal Poly’s liberal studies program — for undergraduates who wish to become teachers — also sees the Common Core as a positive change. The liberal studies program already teaches its students the critical thinking skills emphasized in the Common Core, Berber-Jimenez said. The Common Core primarily covers English, history and mathematics standards. Another multi-state initiative, the Next Generation Science Standards, seeks to cover the sciences. California has chosen to adopt the Next Generation standards as well. The liberal studies program is working to adapt its science courses to complement these new standards, Berber-Jimenez said, which
JOSEPH PACK | MUSTANG NEWS
COMMON COURTESY | Jon Margerum-Leys, the dean of Cal Poly’s School of Education, views the Common Core favorably. place more emphasis on completing projects and applying scientific knowledge. Berber-Jimenez cited a recently added project in one of the major’s physical science courses. Students were tasked with designing a parachute that could be used to safely deliver food supplies. Students had to apply their knowledge to decide what materials and canopy size would meet the goal of the project. One of the goals of the new Common Core standards is
to make students more prepared for college. However, Mike Uhlenkamp, a spokesman for the California State University (CSU) Chancellor’s Office, said K-12 schools lead the way in deciding curriculum for their students. The goal of high schools is to graduate their students based on what they believe is necessary to earn a high school diploma. The goal of the CSU is to then provide access to college for the top third of these graduates,
Uhlenkamp said. Though there is not a formal mechanism for working with K-12 schools to design curriculum, there are some ways the CSU influences education at these levels, Uhlenkamp said. The CSU system provides education for the most teachers in California, Uhlenkamp said. As part of this education, future teachers are taught how to use and take advantage of new opportunities such as the Common Core. In addition, the CSU de-
signed a test — the Early Assessment Program — which tests high school students’ readiness for college. This test influenced the MAPP, the new standardized testing system for California’s K-12 students, Uhlenkamp said. The CSU also offers remedial courses students can take the summer before their freshman year of college. These courses allow students to stay on track and not become discouraged early on, Uhlenkamp said.
Dance program remembers volunteer dance instructor Norm Tiber Suha Saya @suhasaya Norm Tiber was passionate — so passionate that everything he did for Cal Poly’s dance program was voluntary. “He taught a full curriculum, unpaid, to simply increase the love of dance for students,” dance program
director Diana Stanton said about the 77-year-old Theatre and Dance volunteer lecturer, who died on March 28. Tiber, remembered for his humor, generosity and dance lessons in communities around San Luis Obispo, suffered a sudden death from a pulmonary embolism. However, his voluntary work at Cal Poly — where
he taught intermediate ballroom, tango and international folk dance — will never be forgotten, business administration junior Tiffany Davids said. “Only a select few of us knew that he chose not to be paid for his work, and I think that really shows a lot about his character,” she said. “He was really invested in all the stu-
dents and their well-being.” Originally a psychologist in Southern California, Tiber retired in San Luis Obispo — eventually teaching dance at Cal Poly from 2004 onward with his wife, Anne. “He was very engaged in learning new dance forms and being with students,” Stanton said. In addition, Tiber partici-
#TOPHARVARD JOIN THE MOVEMENT
pated in teaching methods classes to help future dancers become educated in social dances. For the past several years, Tiber taught both fall and winter quarter ballroom dance classes for the dance minor. “He was just a wealth of information,” Stanton said. “I liked to call him the encyclopedia of social dance, because he knew everything about it and took students through this journey of rich, theoretical material on how dance is about people and part of it is social.” But Tiber isn’t only remembered for his excellence in dance. As a person, he truly cared about the youth of Cal Poly, Stanton said. “He was in his 70s at the time, and that’s a huge gap between college students, but I know students thought of him as a friend,” she said. “He always made everyone feel like they were the best thing that ever happened to him.” Davids agreed. “Norm was always just such a caring person, always looking for students’ best interest in everything he could to make sure everyone learned as much as possible,” she said. “He had such a warm presence about him and (was) such a knowledgeable person as a teacher.” Wine and viticulture senior Melissa Emilie Paris, who
knew Tiber for the past two years, also worked with him as a student assistant. “I really admired that he made it super accessible for anyone to dance,” Paris said. “Despite the fact that ballroom dance was difficult for the guys to learn, they were still so excited and I think that was due to Norm and his teaching style.” Tiber liked to combine his signature teaching style with his gentlemanly, charming personality, Paris said. “He always relayed ballroom and the social aspect of it to things that were relatable to us — like dating,” she said. “He’d always say it’s similar to if you go to the bar, have a conversation, get to know someone, but you’re dancing … He was so passionate and just wanted everyone to love it as much as he did.” As of now, no memorial service is scheduled. Tiber’s family is awaiting his ashes to send out to sea at high tide, but no date is determined, Stanton said. “It’s a huge loss for the dance program,” Stanton said. “He really held up the whole ballroom and social dance aspect of the program, and that’s one of the parts that really makes our program diverse. I don’t know how we’re going to fill that hole — he really was the social dance program.”
NEWS | 3
Monday, April 7, 2014
Grad students poke holes in Google Glass security Samantha Sullivan @ssulli04 Malicious hackers could be spying on you — through your own eyes. That’s what two Cal Poly computer science graduate students proved was possible — albeit not likely — with their spyware proof-of-concept for Google Glass. Mike Lady and Kim Paterson created an application called Malnotes, which masquerades as a note-taking software, but actually takes a photo every 10 seconds without the wearer knowing. There are two reasons the graduate students decided to design this malware, Paterson said: partly to see if they could, and partly because of the privacy concerns surrounding Google Glass. Because someone simply has to wink or give a voice command to take a picture with Google Glass, it’s relatively easy to take a photo. However, it’s not as stealthy as people may think; whenever the camera is in use, the display is on, so someone could see the light from the Glass. At least, that is what’s supposed to happen. As Lady and
WOW continued from pg 1. How does the Orientation and Transition Board work? The Board members were selected through an intense application process, including several interviews, one of which was during an open forum, Mockford said. Mockford and Andrene Kaiwi-Lenting, the director of New Student Programs, serve as supervisors for the Board. They are the “custodians of the historical knowledge of the programs,” Mockford said, meaning they can inform Board members why previous decisions were made and help them narrow down their creative ideas into practical choices. In addition to Heckendorn, the members include graduate student Christian Martens, mechanical engineering senior Justin Bautista, graphic communication senior Sean Garnsey, history senior Sarah Le Duff, business administration senior Meagan Smith and recreation, parks and tourism administration senior Katie McGuire. Why join the Board? A major theme of orientation is growth — both for new students and leaders. “It’s really fun to start
Peterson found out, there is no enforcement for this rule. According to Lady, there are specific policies that tell developers what they can and cannot do. But it isn’t enforced by the underlying software Google gives developers to use when writing apps. Developers can still be malicious in code, he said. Theoretically, the review process should catch and stop the devious code from entering the Google Play store (where Android apps can be downloaded). It turns out the store is “terrible at reviewing apps,” Lady said. The two uploaded their Malnotes app onto the Google Play store and it was up in a couple of hours.
ing:” downloading an app off a third party website and installing it yourself. “That’s where the danger lies, because these apps can put up on a random website and look legit,” Lady said. Paterson and Lady did not submit their malware to the MyGlass store.
Google Play vs. MyGlass There is a difference between Google Play — which is just for Android phones and tablets — and the app store for Google Glass. The MyGlass store is the primary way Google wants you to get apps for your Glass, Lady said. According to him, this store is a closed, very heavily reviewed market. However, people can still put apps on their Glass without the MyGlass store through a process called “sideload-
Was this legal? According to Lady and Paterson, yes, but “very borderline,” Paterson said. The two felt comfortable submitting it to the Google Play store for a few reasons: They were obviously going to take it down, they didn’t propose any sort of functionality for it, it was obviously bogus and with the number of apps that are available, it was very unlikely anyone would download it, Paterson said. Lady said one could call the project a “white hack,” because it was simply for research purposes. They were not actively seeking to hack anyone; they just wanted to show Google what was possible and that they should fix it, Lady said. The app was only in the Google Play store for a couple hours, the two said. They unpublished it and Google went in and deleted it for them
spring training, because if you look at the leaders now versus how they’re going to be in September, when they have their groups and they’re confident, and they’re — quite frankly — rockin’ it, you see their leadership development grow,” Mockford said. “You see that moment when the little light bulb goes on and they get it, they get what they’re doing.” The program shapes Board members and the Orientation Team as well, which Martens said is one reason he decided to apply to become a member. “It’s partially selfish, because I’ve seen how much it made me grow and how much I’ve gotten out of it,” he said. “Every year it’s just been strides above the last, and I’ve gotten so much from it. But at the same time, most people wouldn’t think it’s selfish at all because you’re doing it for so many other people.” Everyone involved is passionate about orientation, which makes it a great experience. These students have found their niche, Heckendorn said, and the best part is being able to provide that opportunity for them. For Bautista, it was about making a difference. He wanted to make changes and ensure the program was moving in the right direction.
What are the drawbacks? Each member of the Board and the Orientation Team brings numerous ideas to the table, so it’s difficult to narrow them down, Bautista said. “It’s hard to say, ‘OK, this is the one we want to use,’” he said. “Working together as a team takes a little effort, but once it happens, it gets a little smoother.” The Board essentially works together for 18 months to put on orientation programs, which is very time consuming, Martens said. “It’s hard to just keep all of your hobbies and free time — well, you don’t have free time, so the things you would do in your free time,” he said. “We’re all very well-versed and good at time management because you have to be, but it’s difficult. You have to know when to turn it off and do other work.” Despite the kinks, each Board member is willing to help wherever needed to make new students feel comfortable, Heckendorn said. “Everything we do comes with hiccups, naturally, but the seven of us always have each other’s backs,” she said. “No matter what comes up or what problems we may face, it’s nice to have the support.”
JOSEPH PACK | MUSTANG NEWS
GLASS | Graduate students Mike Lady and Kim Paterson proved hackers can use Google Glass to spy. when they found out about it. No one downloaded the app. “Also, the Play store is a wasteland of malware,” Lady said. “Google is actively seeking out retribution against people who do upload malware. So we were pretty safe if we just took it down as soon as we saw it.” How Google found out The duo started this project in a computer security graduate course. Paterson is a Google Glass owner, and Lady has experience developing for Android. “We wanted to test the
boundaries and do things that Google tells us not to do, and see if we could,” Lady said. Peterson tweeted about the project, and that tweet got approximately 979 retweets and 325 favorites (he has just 238 followers). @googleglass responded, asking if they could “chat further over DM.” To make the situation stickier, after Paterson graduates in spring, she’ll be starting a job at Google. Paterson was worried about losing her job and “people making a bigger deal about it than it is,” she said. However, she emailed her recruiter
and went through the proper channels to make sure Google knew about it, that it was honest and that they were trying to improve the platform, not exploit it. According to Paterson, when someone doesn’t understand how the device actually works underneath, it’s hard to get a good picture of how big a security threat can be. And just because something is possible, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s likely to happen. “There are much cheaper ways to spy on people,” Paterson said.
BENJAMIN PU | UCSB THE DAILY NEXUS
BARRICADE | Deltopia resulted in more than 100 arrests and 44 hospital transports. DELTOPIA continued from pg 1. Law enforcement eventually forced a barricade and used tear gas to break up the crowds, while officers repeatedly announced those at the scene were participating in an “unlawful assembly” and should clear the streets. Backup was called in from the California Highway Patrol, the Lompoc and Santa Maria police departments and Ventura County. It took several hours for law personnel to restore order. Business administration sophomore Adam Lucero said he believed the police actions were justified. “There were so many people trying to start stuff with the cops,” he said. “I defi-
nitely don’t think (the police) were out of line.” Last year’s event, which drew a comparable amount of people, also ended in distress: Cal Poly sociology freshman Giselle Ayala was found dead on the beach after falling off the cliffs that stretch along Del Playa Drive. The coroner’s report indicated she was intoxicated and had marijuana in her system. On April 2, Dean of Students Jean DeCosta sent out a campus-wide email reminding students of this tragedy and asking them to not attend. “I understand that plans for another Deltopia are being spread on social media,” the email said. “The community of Isla Vista and UCSB are urging visitors to stay away and avoid the potential for unwanted events such as al-
cohol violations, fines and possible injury. Isla Vista Sheriff’s Department will be increasing officers and will maintain a no-tolerance policy for law violations.” Locals also expressed their frustration with tourists coming to Isla Vista. “This event clearly went downhill and downhill fast. All of us know the reason for this too, which are the outof-towners. These people do not live here and therefore hold no obligation to maintain our homes,” read one post on the event’s public Facebook page. Deltopia was known as Floatopia when it was held on the local beaches, but was moved to Del Playa Drive after police shut down the beaches because of environmental damage.
ARTS | 4
Monday, April 7, 2014
The Hold Steady brings its own booze with Teeth Dreams Parker Evans @parker_d_evans Parker Evans is an economics senior and Mustang News music columnist. Near the end of Teeth Dreams, frontman/poet Craig Finn provides a succinct summary of The Hold Steady’s career to date: “Sat in the back of the theater just drinking and talking / About movies and Krishna and hardcore and Jesus and joy.” One decade after the band’s whiskey-soaked, bruising debut Almost Killed Me, it’s exciting to hear The Hold Steady return to form. After the slight stutter that
was 2010’s Heaven Is Whenever and an inessential solo album from Finn, the band finally seems to be adjusting to the loss of keyboardist Franz Nicolay. The absence of that piano which lent so much drunken grandiloquence to an already boozy aesthetic is still noticeable, but Finn and company wisely decided to double down on the heavy, pairing original guitarist Tad Kubler with capable mercenary Steve Selvidge. The overriding tone of Teeth Dreams is a potent cocktail of suffocating anxiety, paranoia and threat of violence. Serious Hold Steady-heads will instantly recognize Finn’s first line on opener “I Hope This Whole Thing Didn’t Frighten
You” as a direct quote from Almost Killed Me’s “Sweet Payne.” Yep, the Cityscape Skins are kind of kicking it again, and they’ve finally got some discipline. After a slight hiatus, Finn’s back in his comfort zone, setting the album in the now-familiar shady underbelly of his hometown, the Twin Cities. Though characters from previous Hold Steady albums like Holly, Sapphire and Charlemagne are present, they’re not mentioned by name. Gideon (identified only by his tattoo and job in Bay City, Mich.) takes up the loose plot thread that runs throughout Teeth Dreams as he embarks on some criminal venture — either a robbery or a revenge bender. Either
The audio files way, blood, drugs and diamonds are mixed up in the whole business. Finn superfans will pick up on little pieces and the requisite inside jokes and references to the Hold Steady/ Lifter Puller discographies, but for first-time listeners, this is the band’s most accessible album since Boys and Girls in America. Lead single “Spinners” finds Finn earning the persistent comparisons to Springsteen with a textbook go-forth-into-thecity anthem for the barflies. “Once you’re out there, everything’s possible,” he sings. “There might be a fight / There might be a miracle.” The Hold Steady has a well-earned reputation as a banging, boozy bar band, but Finn’s softer ballads have always been album highlights. Fortunately, Teeth Dreams’ centerpiece, “The Ambassador” is the best ballad he’s written since “Lord, I’m Discouraged,” offering the gor-
geously idiosyncratic Finnism, “the nights were hot and hissing like an iron / the days spent climbing walls like a vine.” Even so, there’s a tense undercurrent to the song with the traditional Hold Steady themes of hard drugs and trippy pseudo-Catholic mysticism making their expected appearances. For all the improvements in the songwriting and confidence, the production on Teeth Dreams does its best to undo all that goodwill in what has somehow become a running theme. The Hold Steady has been at cross-purposes with its own production for six albums now, but Teeth Dreams is by far the worst. The mix is all over the place, the guitars on “The Only Thing” are a crime against rock, and the reverb on Finn’s voice throughout is an inexcusably terrible decision. It’s a testament to the work of Finn, Kubler and Selvidge that The Hold Steady fights through all of this to turn out
a solid album with little bursts of brilliance. Closer “Oaks” is the longest song in the band’s career to date, clocking in at a touch over nine minutes. On Heaven is Whenever, that runtime would have been a death knell, but the outro on “Oaks” earns every second as Kubler’s country-tinged guitar eventually runs into Selvidge’s stunning wall of sound taken straight from Neil Young’s playbook. Teeth Dreams isn’t a reinvention of The Hold Steady’s sound, but it does mark the next stage in the band’s logical progression. After 10 years of drinking and drugs, Kubler got clean this past year. Finn’s years of emerging onto the stage with an empty bottle of whiskey and some curious dance moves are probably numbered. More than anything, it’s a relief that The Hold Steady is still capable of telling stories and getting us to sing along.
“Teeth Dreams isn’t a reinvention of The Hold Steady’s sound, but it does mark the next stage in the band’s logical progression.”
ARTS | 5
Monday, April 7, 2014
Love and Theft
gives Cal Poly a ‘Night That You’ll Never Forget’ Brenna Swanston
@Brenna_Swanston
JOSEPH PACK | MUSTANG NEWS
COUNTRY BOYS | Country duo Love and Theft, composed of Stephen Barker Liles and Eric Gunderson, performed on campus this past Thursday. The duo is notably known for its song, “Angel Eyes.” The clouds rolled in, the air cooled down and an open trailer, empty except for a collection of music equipment, stood waiting in front of Campus Market this past Thursday evening. At 5:15 p.m., a trio of men entered the trailer and took their places behind a guitar, bass and drum kit. They settled quickly before kicking off a chord progression, exuding country vibes. A man with facial scruff, a nose ring, a black leather jacket and an oversized belt buckle slid across the stage to stand front and center. His partner, sporting a grey v-neck, jeans and an acoustic guitar strapped around his torso, closely followed. The duo was Stephen Barker Liles and Eric Gunderson, the men behind country group Love and Theft. Liles and Gunderson took to a pair of microphones and, in an eruption of vocal harmonies and country twang, officially launched into their set for the evening. At the musicians’ feet stood a drove of Cal Poly students, many of whom donned their line dancing outfits a few hours early for the concert. Some front-row observers staked out their spots long before the concert began, while others, whose class-to-class commutes were interrupted by the temptation of live music, wandered in after the show’s start. Most listeners, regardless of how they’d happened upon the show, danced and sang along for its duration. A space opened up behind the crowd
for a group of line dancers. After the duo’s second song, “If I’m Fallin’,” Liles welcomed the audience. “Thanks for letting us play on your campus,” Liles said. “We’re called dropouts — we’re not proud of it, but at least we’re here.” He introduced their next song, a new single titled “Night That You’ll Never Forget.” Its lyrics tell a story of a fun, drunken, “hard-to-remember” night out. “See, I wish we were here, because we’d have a night like that,” Liles said after the song ended. “You all better have a night like that. There better be someone passed out with beer cans all over.” Agricultural science sophomore Beth Boss said she appreciates Love and Theft’s lyrics because they relate well to college students. She was impressed with the show’s turnout, she said. “It’s amazing,” she said. “If you ever want to get the whole (College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences) over to something, just bring a country music artist and you’ve got them.” Having only listened to Love and Theft’s recorded music, Boss was pleased with the quality of the band’s live performance. “It matches what you hear,” she said. “There’s nothing fake about it. There’s nothing altered about their CD compared to their live version, which is really nice.” The show progressed for approximately an hour and a half, consisting primarily of new songs from Love and Theft’s
upcoming album, to be released this summer. The group also threw in occasional covers of music by Johnny Cash, The Allman Brothers Band and The Doobie Brothers. Gunderson said the band’s summer album will include “more drinking songs,” “more party songs” and will be overall more mature than its previous releases. “We were just trying to have our music grow with us,” he said. “We’re excited about it. It’s the best music we’ve ever recorded.” In the past, Disney Records prevented the duo from writing songs that represented their actual lives, Gunderson said. Now, the group wants its lyrics to be real. “We didn’t really want to put out music that portrays us as something we’re not,” Gunderson said. “We wanted it to be real and about our lives, and I think we accomplished that.” As the concert wound down, Liles announced its last song of the evening would be “Angel Eyes,” a weekly line dancing favorite at local club The Graduate. The crowd’s initial excited screams quickly settled into a chorus of voices, singing along to every word. Love and Theft then rewarded its faithful audience with a couple encore songs before retiring behind the trailer for a meet and greet. Students assembled in a massive line to meet the musicians. Students’ interactions with Liles and Gunderson included grilling the duo for failing to play line dancing regular “Girls Love to Shake It,” asking to give the men piggyback rides
and throwing up sorority hand signs for a photo. Even a husky puppy waited its turn to say hello to the band. Gunderson said he was pleasantly surprised by students’ reaction to the on-campus show. “We had a blast,” he said. “It’s not every day you get to play a show outdoors at a university and that many people show up. We were pleased with the turnout. It’s a Thursday, so we were really surprised and everybody was really welcoming. We had a great time.” Though Love and Theft plays at college campuses often, its shows are not usually smack dab in the middle of campus,
as was the case with Cal Poly, Gunderson said. He enjoyed playing somewhere so central to the university. Gunderson also appreciated performing in an agricultural area, he said. “The smell of horse and cattle poop — we love that,” he said. “It brings us back to the country.” Neither Liles nor Gunderson had spent time in San Luis Obispo before. “It’s awesome here,” Gunderson said. “The drive was beautiful.” Liles said part of Love and Theft’s success is owed to Grammy-winning record-
ing artist Taylor Swift. “Taylor was the first person to bring us out on the road with her on a tour,” Liles said. “We’ll always be grateful to her for that.” As if the tour itself wasn’t enough, Swift also wrote a song titled “Hey Stephen,” which she publicly admitted was about Liles. “It was a really nice song, so I’m on the short list there,” Liles said. “And then she put my name in it and told everyone it was about me, so that was a really nice thing to do. Not many girls have done anything close to that for me.”
Congrats Mustang News! This past weekend, at the CNBAM conference in Austin, TX Mustang News won a variety of awards! Student media organizations from around the nation attended the conference. The Mustang News team won 10 awards, not including additional awards for contests during the conference. Keep up the great work!
Best Marketing/PR Manager
Best Sales Representative
Taylor Riley, 1st place
Rachael Burnham, 3rd place
Best Newspaper Marketing/Promo
Best Advertising Manager
Plan
Bianca Galvez, 3rd place
4th place Sell-A-Thon Winner Best Social Media Strategy
Rachel Burnham
4th place Sales Pitch Contest Best Mobile App Strategy 3rd place Best Event Plan 1st place Best Designer Albert Chang, 2nd place Best Display Ad Black/White 5th place Best Multi-Media Ad Campaign 3rd Place
Kalei White
OPINION & SPORTS | 7
Monday, April 7, 2014
Rethinking education reform Eric Stubben is a mechanical engineering sophomore and Mustang News conservative columnist. These views do not necessarily reflect the opinion or editorial coverage of Mustang News. There are three things you’re never supposed to talk about at the dinner table. One of those things is politics. As much as I try, I’ve never been very good at following that rule. Over spring break, I used way too much of my free time reading up on politicians, trying to decide who I want to run for president in 2016. As I came across Jeb Bush, one of my favorites, his resounding support for Common Core education standards set me back. Most Republicans despise Common Core, but maybe there was something beyond all the Republican banter that I couldn’t see. After all, both parties strongly support education reform; it’s just their ideas of how to go about it that differ. Back at the dinner table, I bounced my thoughts off of my mom, a public school teacher herself, and one of my good friends. They both have vastly different opinions on Common Core Standards, and I needed to come up with an opinion of my own. My final thoughts don’t stray much from the Republican establishment, but nonetheless are somewhat moderate. From the outside looking in, Common Core Standards make sense. A student who moves from Fairbanks, Alaska to Orlando, Fla. should expect to move into equivalent classes without suffering educational consequences. National common
standards would allow this student to pick up where they left off without missing much of a beat. When I delved deeper, I realized what most right-wingers, including myself, despise about Common Core. First of all, Common Core is developed to teach straight to a test. Each Common Core subject culminates with a nationally regulated test. Here at Cal Poly, we know that binge-learning followed by splurging all of our knowledge onto a test probably isn’t the best idea. We are constantly building off of previous knowledge while being inundated with projects and research papers that ask us to be creative and think outside the box. This type of critical and analytical thinking needs to begin at younger ages, and more standardized testing doesn’t do that. The development of Common Core Standards is also troubling. Its development is fairly one-sided, with most support coming from Democrats. However, there is also strong support from other elites, including Bill and Melinda Gates, who poured millions into the development of Common Core. It’s important to note, however, that when Common Core Standards are adopted by a state (all but six have done so), public schools are required to use these standards. However, private and charter schools may adopt the standards, but are not required to. President Barack Obama’s daughters attend a private school that has not adopted these Common Core Standards while the private school that the Gates’ daughter graduated from also has yet to adopt Common Core.
It’s troubling when government officials create a law, such as Common Core or the Affordable Care Act, which exempts themselves and their families from its use. In this case, they are literally experimenting with education at the expense of the common child’s public education. Common Core and its standardized testing ultimately lead up to teacher evaluations, which President Obama has supported for years. Teacher evaluations in primary and secondary schools however, are nearly impossible. But just for fun, I’ll run through a few hypothetical scenarios. The most side-by-side, standardized evaluation would be to compare standardized test scores of each teacher’s classes. However, this method has significant flaws. All teachers are subjected to teaching classes with different backgrounds and demographics, and a teacher that simply has worse students overall would be unjustly punished. This method also relies on the assumption that all students have the same base or background in the given subject. That assumption unfairly requires teachers to rely on their colleagues’ teachings. It’s entirely possible that a student could have low test scores simply because they have a poor background, not because their teacher failed. More importantly, teachers that don’t teach Common Core classes would be exempt from evaluation because there is no standardized test. Peer evaluations are currently the most common evaluations in education. Whether they come from co-
It’s been nearly three weeks since the men’s basketball team’s improbable run to the NCAA Tournament, and little has changed on Cal Poly’s campus. Even though the Mustangs came out of nowhere to win the Big West Conference Tournament, capturing consecutive victories over higher-seeded opponents UC Santa Barbara, UC Irvine and Cal State Northridge, the postseason fervor was limited to a minority of Cal Poly’s student body and a handful of March Madness-crazed parents and alumni. Following the team’s firstround victory over Texas Southern — and the myriad of mispronunciations by color commentator Reggie Miller that came along with it — I still found that my continual “Nwamba” references didn’t register with, well, anybody. Bad jokes aside, I expected the school’s first birth into America’s annual month-long basketball frenzy to be a bigger deal, but as I have come to understand, this initial postseason experience is only the first step toward gaining greater recognition within the school and among other toptier programs. When I sat down to talk to head coach Joe Callero, he was getting ready to leave for the Final Four. It was, no doubt, a business trip the basketball-crazed Callero didn’t mind skipping town for, and it wouldn’t have been as lucrative if it weren’t for the memorable Mustang postseason run. I asked him what effect the NCAA Tournament experience has had
on the program. “It already has impacted us and it has impacted us in three different ways immediately,” Callero said. “One is recruiting.” When students make their decisions to attend Cal Poly, surely academics and location are among the major considerations. And while prospective student-athletes choose their schools with those factors in mind, athletes with top-tier talent are often more attracted to schools that have a culture of winning. And Callero can’t wait to speak to potential recruits about this year’s taste of NCAA stardom. “Recruits that we are recruiting for the class of 2015, we have great stories to talk to them about,” Callero said. “What it’s like to be at the big dance, from charter jets to police escorts to staying at the Hilton to Nike sending us new pairs of shoes … We think it continues to open recruiting doors, and we are excited to hear about that.” While recruiting players will be important in the years to come, Callero talked about another way the basketball program has benefited from their March play. “The second way it has impacted us is with the boosters and the alumni group, the people that have reached out and contacted us, the enthusiasm they have to help support the fundraising efforts for a new scoreboard,” Callero said. A scoreboard shouldn’t be too much to ask for for a team that just taught a good portion of the country the name of our school. Last March, another school making its NCAA Tournament debut went on to gain
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the right angle workers or students, these evaluations are completely subjective and require a high amount of maturity and fairness from the evaluator. Plus, is it fair to base a teacher’s “grade” on the results of their students’ evaluations? We know from experience that many students here at Cal Poly don’t even take evaluations seriously. What needs to happen in terms of education reform is much different than what Common Core Standards provide. While many educators are hailing the standards for their rigor, cookie-cutter students don’t make great college students. It’s time to stop limiting teachers’ innovation and creativity and put
our trust back in them. Innovation in academics is what inspires students to learn and builds a drive that propels them into college and beyond. Lawmakers and educators need to work together to keep these high standards, but allow teachers to creatively teach to them. Allow grades to determine graduation and let the SAT and ACT standardize college readiness. If we want to see the best and brightest students attend Cal Poly and other universities across the country, it’s time to ditch the cookiecutter mold and use other methods to spark innovation and determination.
NCAA tourney bid impacts program, campus Keenan Donath @CPMustangSports
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keenan’s corner nationwide attention and, in return, saw a steep increase in revenue and undergraduate applications. Florida Gulf Coast University, a school that didn’t even exist until 1991, saw their fledgling basketball program go all the way to the Sweet Sixteen in the 2013 tourney. The school went from being barely a blip on the radar of mainstream college athletics to numerous SportsCenter appearances as well as the proud owners of the tournament’s most infamous hashtag, #dunkcity. But perhaps Florida Gulf Coast’s most substantial gains from their first appearance could be seen in the 1,000 percent increase in sales at the campus bookstore or the nearly 30 percent increase in freshmen applications the year following their NCAA Tournament run. Though the Mustangs didn’t go deep into the tournament — they were humbled by an oversized and
at the time undefeated Wichita State team — their appearance on the NCAA’s brightest stage is sure to garner nationwide intrigue. When trying to decipher the greatest impact of the Big Dance, the third part of coach Callero’s statement seems fitting. “The third thing that I think it is going to affect — and I just got to experience it today for the first time — is the student body enthusiasm,” Callero said. “I got a sandwich at the Avenue and I had four different students congratulate me and mention what a great run we had.” Cal Poly has never been — and most likely never will be — a basketball school along the lines of Kentucky or Duke. For one thing, the Division I program is approximately as old as your average college sophomore (the Mustangs started playing Division I games in 1994), which is young consid-
ering the length of time the aforementioned basketball institutions have been March Madness regulars. But in the meantime, the program is working to improve its facilities and expand recruiting so one day Cal Poly will be busting brackets like it’s nobody’s business. After speaking with Callero, it’s clear the future of Cal Poly basketball looks bright. While we all hope that there will be a plethora of net-cutting ceremonies in seasons to come, the head coach already sees this year’s experience as a turning point for the program and the school. “It’s the energy that you can create when you have 500 students in Chumash Auditorium, that goosebump stuff is what gets me excited,” Callero said. “It gives you a greater pride to your own school.”
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SPORTS | 9
Monday, April 7, 2014
Tucker to rejoin Cal Poly football Mustang News Staff Report @CPMustangSports Cal Poly football’s top threat at wide receiver may be sticking around after all. Junior Willie Tucker was granted his release from the team earlier this year and expressed interest in transferring to Football Bowl Subdivision schools for the final year of his collegiate career. Tucker was recently reenlisted on the Mustangs’ roster, but won’t participate in spring practice to rehab a knee injury suffered last season against Yale. Tucker was originally in talks with Fresno State and Oregon State, but with Cal Poly’s 2014 Spring Football
Camp looming on Saturday, he had a change of heart, he said. “After sitting back and looking at the decision, I decided that this is the best place for me to be education-wise and school-wise,” Tucker said. “Everything is working out now, so why change it?” Tucker led all receivers last season, averaging 17.3 yards per catch and was second on the team in total receiving yards with 312, despite missing seven of Cal Poly’s 12 games. “He’s one of the best receivers in the Big Sky (Conference),” head coach Tim Walsh said. “So we’re hoping he can return to that.” Cal Poly’s run-based offense ranked No. 1 in the
Football Championship Subdivision, averaging 301.9 yards per game in 2013, while its passing threat ranked near the bottom with 134.5 yards per game. That was part of Tucker’s reasoning for shopping around for a more pass-heavy program. “At the end of the day, I’m not the coach, I’m a player,” Tucker said. “If I don’t get the ball as much as I’d like, it doesn’t matter. I’m not the coach. I’m going to help our team get that national championship.” Cal Poly opens spring drills on Saturday with the annual Spring Game slotted for May 3 in Alex G. Spanos Stadium. Stephan Teodosescu and Evan Morter contributed to this report.
JOSEPH PACK | MUSTANG NEWS
SWEEP | Senior Jennifer Cornea won her singles match in straight sets, 6-2 6-2, on Sunday.
IAN BILLINGS | MUSTANG NEWS
BACK | Willie Tucker will return to Cal Poly after considering a move to FBS football in the offseason.
The Cal Poly women’s tennis team picked up its first Big West victory with a 7-0 sweep of UC Riverside at Mustang Courts on Sunday afternoon. The win snapped a four-match losing streak for the Mustangs. Check MustangNews.net for a full recap.
SPORTS | 10
Monday, April 7, 2014
Cal Poly blanks UCSB 1-0, wins series Keenan Donath @CPMustangSports A dominating, 10-strikeout performance from sophomore right-handed pitcher Casey Bloomquist propelled Cal Poly to a 1-0 win and a series victory against UC Santa Barbara on Sunday. Each team entered the series with a top-15 national ranking — Cal Poly at No. 5 and UC Santa Barbara at No. 13 — and each team picked up a win in the series’ first two games. Clutch hitting by several Gauchos carried UC Santa Barbara to an 8-6 victory in the series opener on Friday and senior catcher Chris Hoo’s single in the bottom of the ninth in Saturday’s game gave the Mustangs a victory in game two. For Sunday’s rubber match, it was shutout pitching from Bloomquist that helped give Cal Poly a win in the series finale. “I had a lot of stuff working today,” Bloomquist said. “I was able to establish the sinker and hit spots with my fastball.” A season-high 2,489 fans turned out to watch Bloomquist’s seventh start; he pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings and scattered five hits. “You could tell in the bullpen that he had all his pitches working; he used both sides of the plate and threw a good changeup to right- and left-handed hitters,” head coach Larry Lee said. But it was the sinkerball, a pitch the 6-foot-3 righty has become synonymous with, that proved most effective. He forced UC Santa Barbara’s hitters into several groundballs in addition to his 10 strikeouts. “Because (Bloomquist) is
IAN BILLINGS | MUSTANG NEWS
LEADING OFF | Sophomore second baseman Mark Mathias went 6 for 12 with three runs scored in a three-game series against UC Santa Barbara this weekend. right-handed, I went into the game knowing that I will get a lot of groundballs to third, and it pumped me up,” senior third baseman Jimmy Allen said. UC Santa Barbara starting
pitcher Shane Bieber did his best to match Bloomquist. The freshman right-hander struck out six Mustangs in 5 2/3 innings of work — the sole run he allowed came on Allen’s triple in the 4th inning.
Allen’s RBI was just enough for reliever Taylor Chris to finish off a potent Gaucho lineup. The junior would collect the final four outs to pick up the save, giving Bloomquist (7-0) his sev-
enth win in as many starts. While Bloomquist dazzled for much of the game, Lee was especially appreciative of the effort Chris put in. “Taylor’s been our savior in some important games this
season,” Lee said. The Mustangs look to carry the momentum into their Tuesday matchup vs. St. Mary’s. The 3 p.m. game will mark the finale of an 18-game home stand.