TECHNICIAN
thursday october
18 2012
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Ferrera draws crowd for diversity week Jessie Halpern
New education plan focuses on innovation Sara Awad
News Editor
Staff Writer
America Ferrera delivered a speech about making an impact on the world to about 400 people in Stewart Theatre Wednesday night. The even was sponsored by campus organizations for diversity week. “I’m so glad to be on a college campus, because I know I’m among people who value and appreciate their education as much as I did,” Ferrera said. Ferrera studied at the University of Southern California while pursuing an acting career. She eventually took a leave of absence to play the role of Betty Suarez in the television show, “Ugly Betty.” Upon entering college, Ferrera said she quickly became the “stereotype of the emotional freshman” when she realized her 4.3 high school grade point average meant nothing. “Many of the tears I shed were selfish and they were bitter,” Ferrera said. “They were for myself—I really mourned the discovery of my ignorance.” Seven years after her leave of absence from college, Ferrera has started to complete her undergraduate degree. “I believe that being a student again is deepening my understand-
ing of what I’ve seen in the world and I also believe that in order to make the biggest impact one can, it is necessary to be a perpetual student,” Ferrera said. She spoke about her experiences both on and off screen and told sto-
Alex Petercuskie
which can be both physical or psychological in nature. Studies show that veterans overwhelmingly may A panel of four, including three experience mental health problems, former servicemen, met Wednesday like post-traumatic stress disorder night in Withers Hall to discuss the and depression. diverse difficulties many veterans In addition, The Department of face upon returning home from war. Veteran Affairs has reported the The panel included Russell Sny- number of veterans who suffer from der, a former army psychological post-traumatic stress disorder has operations specialist and author increased in recent years. of “Hearts and Mines: With the The panelists were emotional as Marines in al-Anbar.” Snyder was they shared their experiences and joi ne d by Ti m philosophies reVirgilio, a clinigarding war and cal social worker t he role of t he for veterans, Sam United States govWinstead, a World ernment. They enWar II veteran and couraged audience founder of Amerimembers to ask cans for Peace, and difficult questions John Heuer, presiabout the influence dent of the Eisenof U.S. governTim Virgilio, hower chapter of ment, politicans clinical social worker Veterans for Peace. and various media Interdisciplinary outlets. studies professor Carol Lewald said Snyder, author of “Hearts and she was inspired to organize the dis- Mines,” talked about being a ninecussion after reading Snyder’s book teen-year-old drop out and joining about his struggle with trying to the army with an optimistic outlook reconcile his duty as a soldier with of the military. Once stationed in his worldviews. Jesse Crane-Seeber, Korea, he said he was hated, and his international studies professor, perception of U.S. military involvemoderated the discussion. ment in war had changed. Once home from war, veterans Snyder went on to say that while TECHNICIAN face a multitude of challenges, the U.S. has been fortunate to not Staff Writer
“Veterans are great at solving problems and working in groups.”
ries of her travels abroad. “[After] hearing from a twentysomething Iraq war veterans who can’t find housing or a job, the problems in my life seemed low-stakes,” Ferrera said.
fight wars on U.S. shores since 1865, this has also been its downfall. “We have no national sense of what it means to suffer,” Snyder said. According to Snyder, brining back the draft would be a positive thing. Snyder mentioned the lack of discussion about Afghanistan in the recent presidential debate, noting that war in U.S. society has become normalized. Sam Winstead, a World War II veteran, said upon returning home from war, he attempted to “divorce himself from war”, and called the devastation of war a “mental lapse in the history of mankind.” One young woman in the audience, and member of N.C. State’s ROTC program, said she felt discouraged after the panel’s discussion and sought its advice, in which clinical social worker Tim Virgilio assured her of the military’s great potential for good, telling her that ultimately she has control of her actions as an individual. Virgilio discussed the powerful role veterans play in shaping the
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PAGE 5 • THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012
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Social shift: forefather style
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Early voting starts today See page 2.
AMERICA continued page 2
BOARD continued page 3
KATHERINE HOKE/TECHNICIAN
America Ferrera signs a card for senior in communication and president of Lambda Pi Chi, Jenn Bollman at a meet and greet. This was a small session held before Ferrera spoke at the Diversity Dialogue in Tally Student Center on Wednesday, October 17. The note was a suprise for Bollman’s best friend who “always looked up to America Ferrera.” “She is the girl she always wanted to be” Bollman said.
Panel discusses peace after war
insidetechnician
Ferrera also spoke about overcoming adversity—something she had to do as a lower-class Latina trying to make it in Hollywood. “I find that when I embrace my
The North Carolina Board of Public Education adopted a new vision for public education on Oct. 4. The vision is entitled “Vision of Public Education in NC: A Great Public Education System for a Great State.” According to Angela Farthing, Director of Instructional Advocacy and Organizing for the North Carolina Association of Educators, the vision statement was constructed after the State Board met with over 100 “stakeholder groups” like the NCAE. The whole process took about a year and a half to complete and was developed by Helen Ladd from Duke University, Farthing said. The State Board created the new vision in order to relay to the outside world “that public schools are not broken and failing,” Farthing said. The vision also allows the State Board to be more strategic in the plans they develop for the public school system, and creates a “lobbying platform” for the
t’s becoming glaringly obvious as of late that technology dominates a large part of the average college students’ life. We stumble around campus in a perpetual haze, iPhones attached to our hands, fancy and overpriced cases decorating them, and often equipped with the users’ choice of headphones streaming out the top. We trudge to our classes with our choice of distraction in tow; a heavy and cumbersome Dell for the studious, a sleek iPad for the trendy, a practical Nook for the curious theater readers or merely a cell phone for the late-risers who failed to plan accordingly. We carry these technological burdens without much thought; they have become ingrained in our routines and simply impossible to live without. With-
out our trusty satellite readers, we would often find ourselves lost and without answers to such burning questions as, “When did Britney shave her head” or, “how to make a seagull spontaneously combust”. Without this type of knowledge at our disposal, progress would be entirely halted. As a civilization, we would undoubtedly cease to progress entirely. However are we to communicate without instant e-mail alerts? How does one handle personal and professional commitments without the crucial organizer that is Google Calendar? We don’t lean on these tools; we hold their hand. We embrace them with the love we usually reserve for long lost childhood pets and one dollar Jimmy John’s sandwich days.
“When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary to give the people guidelines. These suggestions, nay, essential facets of human life, are imperative to the happiness and prosperity of our nation. These FOREFATHER FEED: guidelines have @TJdeclares: Hard work has gone to waste. Can’t believe some been written people. #idohateit @TJdeclares: Disgusting how in the most people think they can treat me concrete fashion after everything. possible; I have @TJdeclares: #icandobetter #lovinmyself #hatersgonnahate penned them in @TJdeclares: Guess now I know the document who my real friends are. @JAdams @AccidentalPrez henceforth @TJdeclares: I’m so over this. @ known as the JAdams want to get a cold Samuel? Declaration of Independence. And yet, despite my valiant efforts, there are those who
Social shift: forefather style
THOMAS JEFFERSON
See page 5.
farthest point I can think and set off, optimistic that my silver box of destinations will chart the appropriate course. Hours pass, and still I am unaware of what surrounds me. I slowly become wary that while the streets match up with my tool, the social aspects seem to be far from desirable. Creeping slowly down dark roads teeming with native life, my breath is beginning to catch. I am alone with nothing but the silver box and my intuition, something I left behind many journeys ago. As the predators start to loom from behind the treetops, I increase my speed. Lost as I have ever been, I panic as my box dies. If only I had possessed the foresight to bring its’ charger. “
“Directional abilities are not something every human possesses naturally; some of us are born without the natural talent to find our way around this world. In most cases, this is not a detrimental fact; we have created many tools that help us to find our way. In some cases, however, it is simply unsuitable for one to examine a map for hours on end or search for minor astrological tools to answer our directional questions. Today, for me, is one of those unacceptable cases. I am on the outs with many because I chose to stand against alien forces over taking our precious soil. Some say it is inhumane and cruel; I say it is necessary. My fear for the opposition has consumed me this day, and I find it prudent to flee as far and as soon as possible. I charter a journey for the
PANEL continued page 3
Looking at our great desire, nay, compulsion for these tools we have come to adore so much, it’s natural that we would wonder how those before us could have possibly succeeded in anything without them. How did Columbus come across our seas to find seemingly new, or at least impressionable, land? Didn’t citizens realize someone could have sold Benedict Arnold out on Facebook far before any legitimate problems could arise? How is it that Henry’s wives never formed some sort of online forum to figure out how to keep living for more than ten minutes in his castle? Today, we explore similar questions to these. Going straight to the source of where we all began, we’re taking technology to the forefathers. doubt my words. Congress wishes to change my impeccable words; they wish to tarry with the principles I have slaved so diligently over. This, this simply cannot be. My Followers on the secondary universe of Twitter and Facebook will not stand for such reprehensible intrusion. I must alert them of the great injustice that has befallen me. I will not lie down and be trampled over those who hold a higher power; I shall not be afraid to speak my true feelings. This outlet we call public announcement will fuel my intentions to say what is on my mind. Those who wish not to hear it be damned!”
Jóvenes comparten un verdadero Grito de Dolores See page 6.
FOOD CAKE DAY
GEORGE WASHINGTON CONTRIBUTORS Elise Heglar Taylor Cashdan Tony Hankerson
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THE FIFTH IS THE TECHNICIAN’S FIRST PARODY SECTION BASED ON OF COLLEGIATE LIFE. IT IS IN NO WAY A REFLECTION OF THE TECHNICIAN OR A
JOHN ADAMS
“The people often believe they know best, and this is certainly no exception. There has been talk of my taking a position so new that we are currently uncertain how it will even fare. I fear some division will come of this newfound system we have created and I need to find a way to warn my fellow man. Before one can inform however, one must learn. I have turned to a myriad of informational places to comfort my fears. PoliticalBs has shown me every potential outcome that has befallen those who lived before me; I have learned of failed religious conversions, triumphant over takings and painful symptoms I never would have considered if merely left to my own devices. This research has far from quieted my fears; it has propelled them to an
Trying to quell the worries inside me has become impossible; horrendous images of mistakes past haunt me during waking hours and fraudulent convincing statistics march through my dreaming ones. I am left with an overload and nobody to unburden it to. Stoic and alone is how I must accept my fate, over informed though I may be. I must triumph o’er the smaller things so my fellow man may possess the freedom to over search for another day. I will accept the potentials and somehow prevent the risks from consuming my every move, despite how my nerves quake at the thought of even one of the possibilities I have found. I bow to the varied and perhaps fabricated truths I wanted too desperately to discover.”
TAKING A SHOT AT IT
NATALIE CLAUNCH/TECHNICIAN
Kayla Dennis, junior in zoology, fires an arrow in an attempt to pop balloons during the Beginning Target Archery class offered at N.C. State. Dennis enrolled in PE 251 because her parents bought her a recurve bow and she wanted to learn how to shoot with it. The class is taught by Wayne Pollard, who claims the class is “the coolest class you’ll ever take at N.C. State.”
viewpoint the fifth features classifieds sports Tennis prepares for ITA regionals See page 8.
October 18 4:30 - 8:30 p.m. Fountain and Clark Dining Halls
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