A6 NEWS Name change program used to reflect identity ADWISR Center working on next Preferred name reflected in residence life, classes, press releases generation wireless technology THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, Sept. 8, 2017
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Title IX coordinator. “I think it will help our students and employees because class rosters, ID cards, etcetera, will have their name listed on them and they will not have to explain that their legal name is different.” Eventually, students will be able to fill out an automated application online. However, until the systems prove to work correctly and efficiently, those interested in using a preferred name must fill out a brief form in the Dean of Students Office declaring their legal name and their preferred name. A meeting then occurs with the Dean of Students, Dr. Jerri Howland, to clarify the limitations of the policy. “Our hope always is that we understand that representation matters, we understand that being able to use the name that reflects who you are is important and we hope that the policy and our procedures thus far is doing that,” Howland said. “People come in for various reasons of why they want a preferred name and we are, as a campus, happy to be able to provide this service for them.” The need for the Preferred Name
Policy was realized over a year ago, but until the systems that include the information of students and faculty could accommodate the preferred name, it could not be done. A committee including Howland met during the year to make the changes happen. “I’m excited that we finally got our systems up and running to be able to accommodate the request and I know that our students that have requested a preferred name have been very happy,” Howland said. A committee reviewed when the policy would be used in internal and external communication. Wayne Westervelt, chief communication officer in the office of communications and marketing, served as a member of the committee to review and present the policy. “It gives an individual the option to change their name and to support selfexpression,” Westervelt said. Westervelt said the policy would be used through the office of communications and marketing in news releases and on the office’s news and events website. “I wanted to make sure that, internally and externally, we were mindful and respectful of that and we followed the policy out of my office according-
ly,” Westervelt said. The policy is available to anyone who uses a different first name in place of their legal name on a daily basis. Butch Hallmark, the resident hall director of Funnelle Hall, applied the first day of the fall semester and was approved just a few days later. Hallmark has always gone by ‘Butch’ but had to use his legal name for his email address on campus, which often confused residents who contacted him. “I applied for this change because since before I was born, my parents wanted to call me ‘Butch.’ They wanted to legally name me after my father, but I have always been referred to as Butch by family, friends, teachers, professors and coaches,” Hallmark said. As a resident hall director, Hallmark believes the Preferred Name Policy can have a positive impact on someone, even just for seeing their preferred name on their door decoration when they first move into their room on campus. “I have spoken with a few students who stand to benefit from this policy, and the look of excitement they have in response to it is making this change worth it,” Hallmark said.
OzSpeaks discusses activism, politics in sports Students, faculty share thoughts Kaepernick, race relations
Kassadee Paulo Assistant News Editorr kpaulo@oswegonian.com A panel of four speakers discussed the intersection of race, sports and activism in the Marano Campus Center auditorium at Oswego State Wednesday evening. Last year the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, Colin Kaepernick, received national attention for kneeling during the national anthem to protest the oppression of people of color in the U.S. This sparked several similar statements by other athletes and discussion regarding race. As part of the OzSpeaks program, four speakers gave attention to effects of Kaepernick’s statement and opened the floor to students and faculty to ask questions and give their own comments to address the ongoing issue of race in the U.S. The speakers included Brent Axe from ESPN Radio Syracuse and Syracuse.com, Dr. Bonita Hampton from the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Kenneth Marshall, an American history associate professor, and as the
moderator of the discussion, Brian Moritz, a digital media production and online journalism assistant professor. “I think it’s a really important topic that students can learn a lot from. For a lot of students, you can take an issue that they know about: Sports,” Moritz said. “They care about it. They know about the NFL and Colin Kaepernick, and now that’s used as a springboard to talk about activism, about Black Lives Matter, about race relations and even going deeper than that, how we perceive a black athlete protesting and how we react to that and how that’s portrayed in the media.” The discussion began with the panelists’ initial reactions to Kaepernick’s statement last year. Marshall described his reaction as thinking it was about time someone with a large public platform such as the NFL took advantage of it to address race. “He has brought race front and center. It is the one topic that most Americans regardless of race, class, gender, political affiliation have much difficulty talking about,” Marshall said. “It is the thing that makes us, but is also the thing that divides us.”
Taylor Woods| The Oswegonian Brian Moritz, Bonita Hampton, Brent Axe and Kenneth Marshall paneled the OzSpeaks event on Wednesday.
The topic shifted to the culture of society in which Sunday football is considered sacred to many Americans and they want to stick to the entertainment rather than being engaged in politics and societal issues. “We are in a fascinating society where Kaepernick has more avenues to get his point across. I can ignore that, shut off his Twitter feed, I can not read that article or listen to that interview. NFL one o’clock on Sunday, there’s no escaping it,” Axe said. “Whether you agree or disagree with his actions, it worked because we are here a year later still talking about it.” After much discussion from the panelists, the floor was opened up to students and faculty of varying viewpoints. Topics that were brought up included the Blue Lives Matter movement in relation to the Black Lives Matter movement, double standards in regards to patriotism and how the meaning of the national anthem and the nation’s flag can mean different things to everyone. A large part of the discussion included how Americans view the flag due to different experiences and histories and that everyone experiences differing emotions toward the national anthem and the flag. According to Axe, there is no one thing that the flag stands for, noting that some see pride and joy and others see pain and oppression. “The flag is bloodied and I’m trying to rinse it,” Marshall said. Oswego State student Tyler Singleton spoke of false perceptions of black celebrities in contrast to everyday black Americans. This sparked a discussion regarding institutional racism in sports and stereotypes of black athletes. “People like to speak about things they are comfortable about so I feel like in essence the conversation was informative, timely and relative to everything we are facing right now,” Singleton said. Following the panel discussion, Hampton reflected positively on the turn out including the attendance and the content of the conversation. “This to me was a wonderful opportunity to hear what other people think about these particular issues, especially our students. This place was packed with students and I love that,” Hampton said.
Alexander Gault-Plate News Editor aplate@oswegonian.com
Director of the Advanced Wireless Systems Research (ADWISR) Center Dr. Patanjali Parimi and his team have received a grant from State University of New York and the Research Foundation for SUNY for their work on a next generation piece of wireless technology. For the past six months, Parimi and his team in the ADWISR Center have been working to develop a new method of wireless data transfer that would improve both the speed and security of wireless data travel. “We are trying to develop a technique which would transfer high data rates compared to existing communication devices,” Parimi said. This can be achieved by using a technique called orbital angular momentum modulation, according to Parimi. “This is a new type of modulation we induce onto the wireless beams so that they can carry higher [amounts of] data,” Parimi said. This technology can potentially be used for the next generation of wireless data communication. Known as 5G, the move to this standard is expected by the year 2020. According to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the 5G network generation is expected to provide enhanced performance and capabilities. 5G is also expected to be able to handle the growing demands of the Internet of Things. A term for the range of connected devices and appliances used today that do not easily fit the description of a computer or mobile device. In his research, Parimi noted the development of this technology would allow for greater flexibility in the medical field. “Because of the Internet of Things, the paradigm in medicine is changing. Doctors want to treat the patient remotely,” Parimi said. The technology also allows for more secure connections between devices, which means wireless connections will become safer for the transfer of private data. The connections would also work with any device made to support them when connecting to the internet. “Any device that could be connected to the internet is where this technology could be used,” Parimi said. These potential commercial applications are what drew the attention and support of the Technology Accelerator Fund from SUNY
and the Research Foundation for SUNY. “The Technology Accelerator Fund helps faculty inventors and scientists turn their research into market-ready technologies,” according to the Research Foundation webpage. The fund which provides support for the development of a commercially-viable device can provide up to $50,000 to this project specifically provided the research makes certain milestones.
With the Technology Accelerator Fund grant, we will be developing hardware, a demonstrative unit." - Patanjali Parimi Director of the ADWISR Center
“With the Technology Accelerator Fund grant, we will be developing hardware, a demonstrative unit,” Parimi said. Though Parimi has worked with undergraduate and graduate students, he says that there are certain difficulties associated with not having doctoral students on campus. “We don’t have PhD students on campus, and to do this research work over a long period of time we need people in the lab working for one to two years,” Parimi said. During the summer, undergraduate students can work for two to three months, but then have to leave to return to regular student life. To get access to PhD-level students, Parimi made use of an exchange program. “We had a PhD-level student, who came here on a global exchange program,” Parimi said. Parimi and the ADWISR center have had corporate interest in the technology research. Two Syracuse-based companies, SRC. Inc and JMA Wireless submitted letters expressing an interest in potentially co-developing the technology alongside the Oswego State team.
Greg Tavani | The Oswegonian The ADWISR center in Shineman Center does research into potentially groundbreaking wireless technology.