Issue 9 (SP18)

Volume XXIV, Issue 9

March 7, 2018 PenmenPress.com

Manchester, NH

“Space Matters” – Penmen Stadium Changing the Community’s Consciousness Megan Palmer Editor in Chief Ginny Fagan Senior Copy Editor

March 7, 2018: National Cereal Day

Megan Palmer

Cyan Magenta

The ribbons have been cut, as Penmen Stadium had its grand opening on February 24 on a beautiful morning. Penmen Stadium is now home to the men and women’s soccer, lacrosse and tennis teams, as well as women’s track and field.

This newest addition to campus features a 1,500-seat stadium, six tennis courts and new track and field facilities, including an eight-lane track. While all

Penmen Stadium's ribbon cutting ceremony with SNHU Presidents LeBlanc and Lynott.

What's Inside: News | Front & 3-4

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Editorials | 2 Feature | 5 Penmen Passion | 6 Megan Palmer

Opinion | 7 Arts & Entertainment | 8-9 Penmen Abroad | 10

Campus President Patty Lynott speaks to guests at the ceremony.

Sports | 11-12

Featuring: Muslim Student Society | Page 3 Restaurant Spotlight: Daw Kun Thai | Page 4 The Unapologetic Project | Page 5 Penmen Passion: Patty Lynott | Page 6 Netlifx: FullMetal Alchemist Review | Page 8 Study Abroad: Location Highlight | Page 10

River Matis Staff Writer

of these are exciting for athletes and audiences, the thing most athletes expressed their excitement for? The locker room.

“We never had a locker room, so for us, having a locker room is outstanding,” said Tiago Fernandes, captain of the men’s tennis team. For him, the team having their own space to talk, prepare and keep their belongings is a big leap; it makes him feel as though their team now has a home.

This is not the only perk, however, as the tennis team will now have six courts as compared to four, meaning “game

flow is going to change, going to be quicker, faster,” said Fernandes.

In addition to these updates, the inside of the new facility “features media and productions suites, a custom, two-level, 5,200-square foot strength and conditioning center, a training room, equipment room, expansive locker rooms, 16 offices for coaching staffs and a Penmen Club space with sliding doors that open to a balcony with [great] views of the play. . . . . . . . . . .

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Global Café: A Taste of Culture

The International Student Services (ISS) has been running a monthly event called Global Café, in which they hope to better unite the SNHU community.

LeAnn Bowden, The International Student Success Coordinator for ISS, came up with the idea.

“It’s an opportunity for international and domestic students, staff [and] faculty to all come together and chat informally about each other,” she said.

The café usually includes an assortment of tea and coffee, as well as sweets. This February’s café featured an assortment of Lunar

New Year snacks and candies.

The café has a different theme each month, so that students and faculty never have the same experience twice. February’s theme had to do with the Olympics.

The students and faculty attending were tested on their Olympic knowledge and were given conversation questions focused on the globally renowned sporting event.

The café offers a chance for discussions about different aspects of life between domestic and international students.

“We talk about everything from your favorite foods to cook, to places in the world you’ve visited [to] things you like to do on campus. Students just make the

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connections with each other and that’s the best part,” said Dawn Sedutto, the Director of ISS. One student, Shukira Shinwari (’18), said, “It’s a great way to interact with people, make friends, meet new people and talk to the international student service team, and in the meantime you can just hang out and talk about whatever.”

For some students, it’s also a great way to talk about our different cultures, especially when it comes to food.

“It’s a good opportunity to learn some local culture, like global coffee and local desert,” said Guan Jiong-Hong, another student attending the event.

The ISS office is located in the Green Center in room 108. The office offers all sorts of resources and events for both domestic and international students.

The event is open to everyone on campus including domestic and international students, faculty and staff.

“I would just encourage all students who are interested in meeting other people to come, and you know, hang out and enjoy some coffee and goodies with us and meet somebody different,” said Sedutto.

The next two dates for the Global Café are March 15 and April 12 from 3-4 p.m. in the ISS office.

editorial

Happy Newspaper in Education Week!

the penmen press staff 2017-2018

From March 5 - 9, we will be celebrating the importance of journalism and our First Amendment right to educate society. Newspapers and other news media are often a constant in people’s lives.

People are constantly absorbing news; from longstanding routines like reading the morning paper with a cup of coffee, to more recent trends such as scrolling through Twitter during the day, journalism is hopefully helping people develop informed thoughts and decisions.

Newspapers have always been a critical part of our society, but the purpose of the newspaper today has since evolved far from how newspapers started. In the beginning, newspapers were the only widespread source of current events.

Today, now more than ever, the right to free speech is more in question than it has been before. Trust in the newspaper and other media has been compromised. Social me-

CO-EDITOR IN CHIEF Rebecca LeBoeuf rebecca.leboeuf@snhu.edu CO-EDITOR IN CHIEF Megan Palmer megan.palmer@snhu.edu ONLINE MANAGER

Nikki Fain nikki.fain@snhu.edu

SENIOR BUSINESS MANAGER Ryan Evaul ryan.evaul@snhu.edu JUNIOR BUSINESS MANAGER Sultan Akhter sultan.akhter@snhu.edu CO-NEWS EDITOR Rosa Valente rosa.valente@snhu.edu CO-NEWS EDITOR Thomas Cahalan thomas.cahalan@snhu.edu

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OPINION EDITOR Laana Depina elaana.depina@snhu.edu ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Troy Robinson troy.robinson2@snhu.edu

PENMEN ABROAD EDITOR Rachel Romeo rachel.romeo@snhu.edu

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SPORTS EDITOR Catherine LaChance catherine.lachance@snhu.edu SENIOR COPY EDITOR Gabe Carrio gabriel.carrio@snhu.edu

dia has begun to evaluate the role of news on their platforms.

Reading the news may no longer be a daily habit for most people, but it is crucial to be educated on current events.

Newspapers are a vital part of community, both at the local and national level.

In college, people are a little more removed from current events. Regardless, the importance of newspaper in the college environment is undoubtedly important. From the education staff members receive in improving their writing skills and styles to the growth for other platforms, such as web and social media, journalism has the power to change lives. In addition, college newspapers educate students and staff members on events and information that directly affect them and improve community.

For us, education has always been at the heart of our organization. For our staff, this means focusing on growth, goal setting and personal and

.......

professional development.

Our newsroom has never not been a classroom (except for the two weeks when we met in the Monadnock community room). Regardless of space, however, our staff is one that is always learning.

But more than this, Newspaper in Education Week is not about us. It is about our community, about education on a larger scale. As a part of SNHU, we recognize that our integral value of truth is really just about education and about being a resource for our community.

It's about maintaining integrity and honesty in tumultuous times and about being just a little bit disruptive, as truth and education ought to be.

While reading the newspaper may not be the most common past time, we hope that this week, you push yourself to stay educated, to celebrate the ability to stay engaged and to practice active citizenship every day.

penmen stadium opening

SENIOR COPY EDITOR Ginny Fagan virginia.fagan@snhu.edu

Continued from page 1

JUNIOR COPY EDITOR Nick VonSchantz-Ricci nicholas.ricci1@snhu.edu LAYOUT EDITOR Emma Sheehan emma.sheehan@snhu.edu PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Wyndee Man jingyin.wen@snhu.edu VIDEO MANAGER Eddie Sam eddie.sam@snhu.edu SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

Tyler Leighton tyler.leighton@snhu.edu

FACULTY ADVISOR Jon Boroshok j.boroshok@snhu.edu

The Southern New Hampshire University Penmen Press is a news publication produced by Southern New Hampshire University students and funded largely by the Student Government Association of the University. It is our responsibility to inform the SNHU community about events on and around campus.

The views published do not necessarily reflect the views of Southern New Hampshire University. The Penmen Press is published biweekly during the academic year and is printed by the Concord Monitor. To contact the newspaper, please e-mail us at penmenpress@snhu.edu.

Megan Palmer

EVENTS COORDINATOR Maddie Covino madison.covino@snhu.edu

The men's lacrosse team gathers in front of the newly opened Penmen Stadium.

ing surface,” according to SNHU Penmen.

At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, President Paul LeBlanc addressed the many athletes present for the ceremony, saying, “We make these investments to honor the work you do on the field and on the court.”

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University College President Patty Lynott, echoed the importance of space and its nebulous nature. “In my 11 years at this institution, I have watched this campus transform,” Lynott said “And here’s what I know.

Space matters. Space impacts how students learn.

Space impacts how our athletes perform. And space has the power to actually shape a community’s thinking.”

Penmen Stadium is now open for game play and was christened with a 14-11 victory over Georgian Court University by men’s lacrosse.

News

Muslim Student Society Change the conversation

Josh Warshauer Staff Writer

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Growing up, many people heard their parents say three things not to discuss at the dinner table: religion, politics and money.

The new Muslim Student Association (MSA) is taking their lunchtime to talk about religion.

For those who do not know, MSA is a brandnew organization that had its first general meeting Wednesday, February 21.

The club is open for both Muslim and non-Muslim students and aims to provide information on the Islamic faith and discuss stereotypes about Muslim people.

Club Secretary Katie Fiducia ('18) said, “It’s inclusive. Not only does it serve as the active Muslim community on campus, it serves as their active voice on campus.”

This first meeting was about both the new club and a discussion about women in Islamic society.

When the event oc-

curred, everybody was encouraged to keep an open mind to different ideas and to use statements such as “I think” or “I feel.”

The meeting started with a question on what people believed Islam is; it was followed by asking what religion is.

“In a way you are born into a community and your religion is a community,” said Event Coordinator Rachel Leviver ('21).

Other students had different responses, graduate student Alaa Sairafi said, “Islam the way I live and how I treat people the best I can. If I treat people well, they will treat me well.”

The next topic was on how people feel about hijabs.

A hijab is a headscarf worn by some Muslim women as a sign of modesty and is used to feel more devout as they practice Islam. The headscarf resembles other head coverings in other religions, such as a Sikh Turban or a Jewish Mitpachat.

MSA had both hijabi and non-hijabi students discuss

New Career OPportunities

Rachel Dembek Staff Writer

the topic.

Graduate student Bello Kaotharat, a student who does not wear a hijab, said “while not wearing a hijab makes me work harder to represent Islam, I am still a Muslim and still a person.”

Students also stated that whether or not someone wears a hijab, they are still prone to face the assumptions of others.

Kaotharat also describes the hijab as “an external representation of Islam. The hijab is not a necessity to me, as I represent Islam internally with love and compassion for others.”

At the end of the meeting, the attendees expressed their thoughts on the first meeting along with their favorite aspects of the club.

Club president Shukria Shinwari ('18) commented on the success of the event, saying she was "overall very happy and proud to be a part of it" and "would love to see MSA grow as it is for both Muslim and non-Muslim students and is exactly what SNHU needs in the current political climate."

There is a career opportunity for SNHU education students that is happening on March 29 on the second floor of the Dining Center, Teacher Career Day. The Job fair portion of the event will run from 10–11:30 a.m. If the student is selected and qualifies for interviewing, the interview portion of the event will take place between 12:45–3 p.m.

This event is open to all students who are in the School of Education. Schools as well as other employers will be participating in this event by having the students talk to certain schools and other employees in need of those with a degree in education.

The students will be able to talk to the employers and explore more of their specific areas of interest they want to pursue after they graduate.

There will be a workshop after the job fair portion that is dedicated to helping students through the interview process, so that they know

what to expect from the employers.

The interview process will be for those who are selected by the participating schools at the event. They will be able to sit down one on one with employers who are looking to hire, and even if students are not looking for work at the time, they can still participate in a mock interview with an employer so they will know what to expect in the future.

This event will hopefully be able to open students’ eyes about the many opportunities in the education field. Being a teacher in a school isn’t the only path that education students can take as there are many opportunities to explore, from administration to counseling and other roles.

This event is being run by career counselor Tracy Micali. If any student has questions about the event or wants to prepare they can either call The Career & Professional Development Center at 603645-9793, stop by the office in Gustafson or stop by Tracy’s walk-in hours at Belknap Hall on Mondays and Thursdays from 1:30–3:30 p.m.

of the performance, Blount stepped off stage and allowed the trio to entertain the crowd with melodies.

If a melodic tune wasn’t being played while Blount spoke, Parola would often strike the xylophone to create a dreamlike effect. At other times, the trio played upbeat jazz tunes while Blount spoke on the beat with stellar cadence.

While the musical aspect was prominent, the heart of the performance lies in the story of the Harlem Renaissance. Senior Dee Dube commented on the performance afterwards: “Of Ebony Embers put a lot of the poetry I’ve studied in the English program into a larger context for me. Experiencing a performance of the lives of authors

at the time with authentic jazz music playing in the background transported me to the Harlem Renaissance.”

The entirety of the hour and fifteen-minute-long performance was active. If Blount wasn’t speaking, the band was playing and vice versa. This made the performance roll along quickly until its conclusion.

"Of Ebony Embers" Return to the Renaissance

Travis Burke Staff Writer

Endicott College

On the evening of February 21 in Walker Auditorium, a packed house was treated to a performance of music and theater called “Of Ebony Embers: Vignettes of the Harlem Renaissance.” The show is a mix of music and theater that celebrates the lives of great African-American poets such as Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen and Claude Mckay.

The musicians comprising the core ensemble are Ju Young Lee on cello, Hugh Hinton on piano and Michael Parola on percussion. Actor Dracyn Blount assumed the roles of the poets. Blount has appeared in live theater,

film and TV, such as on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien.”

His performance reflected his immense experience and professionalism. He conveyed different personalities for each as he recited and acted out monologues. Blount managed to create unique mannerisms for each character so that each were highly distinguishable.

Additionally, the performance pays homage to some of the great jazz musicians of the time. The musical score includes works by Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, Billy Strayhorn, Thelonious and Charles Mingus.

Blount took the lead for the majority of the performance, and kept the narrative moving forward. For portions

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News news

Nicholas VonSchantz-Ricci Junior Copy Editor

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Amy Sumsion Staff Writer Student debt is becoming an increasingly large issue with 44.2 million Americans with student loan debt, as reported by the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States. Of that 44.2 million, the average monthly student loan payment is around $351 every month.

In addition to student debt, many students often have various other debts as well, including credit card payments or car payments, in addition to other monthly financial obligations including groceries, phone bills, rent and more.

Paying off debt sooner

Tok Nua, a marinated grilled steak salad with fresh herbs and a spicy sauce.

The menu also includes a variety of Thai curries,

fried rice, soups and noodle dishes, including Pad Thai, the famous Thai dish consisting of chicken or shrimp with egg, bean sprouts

and ground peanuts. Diners can compliment their meal with a refreshingly sweet Thai iced tea or coffee.

Due to the authentic-

Nicholas VonSchantz-Ricci

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In the United States, Thai cuisine has evolved from an obscure and unfamiliar style of Asian food to a nationwide obsession. Authentic Thai food is the specialty at Daw Kun Thai, a quaint restaurant located near the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport.

Husband and wife team Desmond and Nipaporn Holman opened Daw Kun Thai on May 5, 2017. “My wife, who is the head cook, is from Thailand. She was the head cook of another restaurant in Salem, NH for six years and she wanted to have her own [restaurant],” said Desmond.

The couple uses authentic Thai recipes and ingredients in the preparation of their dishes, the most popular being Pad Ka Prao, also known as basil sauce. This spicy sauce, made with Thai basil, is served with pork or chicken, assorted vegetables and steamed jasmine rice.

Desmond Holman’s favorite menu item is Num

Daw Kun Thai Brings Bold Flavors of Thailand to Manchester

Pad Ka Prao Lunch Special at Daw Kun Thai.

tackle debt with a variety of methods rather than later will help eliminate financial burdens and allow more room to save for emergencies and retirement. Deleting debt takes patience and a plan. Most plans require a commitment to stick to it to achieve results.

There are many methods or plans to pay down debt.

Most methods are effective.

It is dependent upon the financial situation of the individual to determine what works best for them.

Debt Stacking is a method that recommends prioritizing debt in order from highest interest rate to lowest, not the overall balance. It is critical to maintain paying the minimum payment on all

debts, but while doing this, pay an additional amount of money towards the debt with the highest interest rate.

Keep paying the additional amount of money towards that debt until it is completely paid off and continue to work down the list with this method until all are paid off.

This method will help to eliminate additional money spent on interest rates as time progresses. However, it will take longer to pay off debts with higher balances.

Debt Snowballing is a method that recommends creating a list of all debts in order from lowest remaining balance to the highest balance, regardless of the inter-

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est rate.

Then, while paying the minimum payment for each loan every month, put any additional money possible towards the debt with the lowest balance.

Continue with this payment method until the lowest debt is completely paid off and then move down the list to the next highest debt.

The idea behind this method is less about saving more money in the end but rather feeling a personal victory when being able to pay off a debt, regardless of how little it may have been. This feeling will, in theory, motivate people to keep following this method and motivate people to keep saving money

ity of the recipes, many of the dishes on the menu may seem unfamiliar. To eliminate confusion and guesswork, Holman decided to feature a picture of every item on the menu.

Despite its growing popularity, Thai cuisine remains off the radar for many people. Holman advises those who are hesitant to “come in and talk to me. I’ve helped a lot of people out.” Diners can choose to enjoy their meal in the bright, cozy dining room, simply adorned with Thai art or opt for takeout.

“We have a possible future plan to have a patio and we want to do something called shabu shabu. It’s Thai’s version of Chinese hotpot.

You get the broth and a griddle. It would be done all on your own. You cook it yourself with chopsticks,” said Holman, regarding his future plans for the restaurant.

Freshness and authenticity are taken seriously at Daw Kun Thai, a recommended eatery for anyone searching for a healthy and satisfying meal.

and paying off larger debts.

However, this may cost more money in the end because the debts with higher balances may potentially have the highest interest rates and will continue to multiply.

While it may seem obvious to choose the plan that requires less money to be paid overall, that is not necessarily the best plan for everyone. People should choose the method that best works with their monthly budget, level of motivation and financial goals.

Start paying off debts today, or start tomorrow, but either way have a plan and stick to it, even when it's difficult.

feature news

Anna Laugelle Staff Writer

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Creative mind behind the project and student associate at the Women’s Center, Amy Mercedes (’18), shared her inspiration and motivation for putting together something like this.

“The inspiration for the Unapologetic photoshoot came from last January when I got signed into a modeling agency based outside of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. That entire experience – being able to get signed on, to be photographed and have my makeup done – was so incredible and moving to me that I wanted to redo that for students here on campus,” said Mercedes.

Mercedes also elaborated further on her decision to focus the project around women of color.

“Over the summer, with what happened in Charlottesville, it occurred to me to do an event to raise the confidence of the women of color within our community,” said Mercedes.

“I was actually also inspired

by Rihanna’s latest release of Fenty. Her line of makeup just covered so many different women’s skin colors and that was something that I also really wanted to show throughout the photoshoot,” Mercedes shared.

Leland LaRochelle

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Students gathered in the Deborah L. Coffin Women’s Center for the unveiling and final showcase of the portraits from the Unapologetic Project on February 27. The Unapologetic Project is a photographic celebration of black women’s visibility and voices at SNHU. Beginning around 5 P.M., SNHU students and faculty were welcomed into the Women’s Center with hors d'oeuvres and beverages. They were then free to walk around and look at the portraits which were displayed on a large scale throughout the space.

Students whose portraits were on display arrived in formal attire. They then stood beside their pictures and discussed their experiences from the photoshoot with anyone who was interested.

One student whose portrait was a part of the showcase, Princess Sebo (’19), said of her experience, “I definitely enjoyed the process just because it made me feel like I was a part of something bigger than myself, and it was just really awesome to bond with the girls and just see where this would lead.”

The unapologetic Project

The name of the project itself also takes some inspiration from singer, Rihanna. Not only does the title, “Unapologetic” encapsulate Mercedes’s message that everyone should be unapologetic in their own skin, but it is also the title of Rihanna’s seventh studio album.

For Mercedes, “it was a really great opportunity to bring visibility and confidence to women of color – black women – on campus and I just wanted them to feel beautiful, empowered, and to just express them-

selves wholeheartedly because I just believe that our melanin is something we should be unapologetic of.”

The photographer for the project, Leland LaRochelle, is currently a student at Rochester Institute of Technology and is studying photography. He was unable to make it to the showcase, but the project could not have been completed without him.

“If funding allows,” said Mercedes, “I hope to be able to continue the series in the

Leland LaRochelle

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spring and that once I graduate it also continues.”

She concluded the event with a few words to the group of students and faculty that had been mingling in the Women’s Center, admiring the art and the project as a whole.

“I really believe that we should all be unapologetic in our skin, I think that melanin is beautiful, I think that black lives matter and this photo shoot was everything to me. It meant the whole world,” said Mercedes.

penmen passion Rosa Valente News Editor

Patty Lynott: A Visionary for Change

Nikki Fain Online Manager

SNHU

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Patricia “Patty” Lynott grew up in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. She attended Trinity College in Illinois for her undergraduate degree and then moved on to the graduate program in Northern Illinois University before finally receiving her PhD from Loyola University in Chicago.

She has dedicated more than a decade to SNHU as Provost and in November 2017 she became the President of University College.

Before coming to SNHU, Lynott worked at Elmhurst College in Elmhurst, Illinois.

She began as a speech teacher before moving up to an administrative position. Lynott decided that being an administrator was in the best interest of her and her son, since she had recently become a single parent at the time.

“As soon as I got into administration, I thought, ‘you know, I’m pretty good at this.’

And a lot of people aren’t. And good academic administrators make it better for faculty and students in the classroom, that’s the mark of a good academic administrator,” Lynott said. “If you can improve what’s happening in the classroom, then you’re doing a good job.”

Patty worked at Elmhurst College with a tenured position for 14 years and made many accomplishments there, including being one of two women on the administrative board and helping to establish the Elmhurst Learning and Success Academy (ELSA) program, which is one of her most prideful accomplishments.

“I fought like hell to get that program up and running, and now if you actually go to the Elmhurst website, their ELSA program, the Elmhurst Learning and Success Academy, is really, really a wonderful program that serves college age kids with special needs in a re-

Patty Lynott, SNHU university college president, at 2013's commencement ceremony.

ally great way,” she said.

Lynott moved to New Hampshire from Chicago in 2007 after meeting Paul LeBlanc at a conference. Each of them had to present to the conference, and after seeing Lynott’s presentation, LeBlanc approached her with a proposal that she could not refuse.

“This guy, he really says he’s going to change higher ed. So, he’s either really good at what he does, or he’s crazy,” Lynott said as she reminisced on the memory. “I literally packed up everything I own - didn’t know anyone, didn’t have a friend, didn’t have a family member in New England - packed up and moved here, and within two weeks, this was home.”

Throughout her career, Lynott faced many struggles with her leadership. Particularly, she found it difficult to find strong female mentors and equal representation. At the time, it was not part of the culture and was a factor in her decision to come to SNHU. “Look at the senior leadership at SNHU. It’s Paul, but he has as many female leaders as he can and that makes a difference.”

For Lynott, it may be a little late to find that female mentor, but her value for the work she does has made her aware of the

opportunities given to her as university college president.

“Something that I’m now committed to at my age now is I want to be that grownup mentor that I wanted as a young person,” she said. “I look at some of the incredible, women faculty and administrators here and I want to be a role model and mentor to them because it’s really something I wish I had more of in my career.”

Lynott expressed how grateful she is to be a part of this environment and the fact that the workplace has evolved so much throughout the years.

She reminisced on her childhood and the beginnings of her career as far as what was expected of women at the time.

“The whole ‘Me Too’ movement, can I tell you something? When I was young, like in my 20’s in the 70’s - I started high school in ‘69 - it was just a given, we were just taught that ‘men are gonna be that way,’ it was inculcated in us that it was our responsibility not to let anything torrid happen in the workplace. I cannot believe that that’s how the world was,” she said.

Lynott shared her gratification for the fact that this generation has been working to make so many improvements

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in society as far as tolerance and acceptance. She expressed her appreciation that SNHU is so open and welcoming to everyone.

“We have to accept people for all the ways they want to express themselves in terms of gender. . . I really think it’s this generation coming up that’s gonna fix a lot of these problems,” she said.

For Lynott, working at SNHU has also been a welcome challenge. Higher education can present many obstacles during a time when the future of it is constantly debated, and Lynott is proud to be working in a place that embraces change.

“We do things like nobody else in higher ed. . . We take risks, we’re not afraid to fail. If we make mistakes, okay that’s how we learn. And we are relentless about delivering education in a way that meets the needs of the individual person.”

SNHU aspires to revolve their design around each of their students. With the redesigning of curriculums, the success of the online college and other programs, like educating Rwandan refugees, SNHU’s impact to increase the accessibility of education stands apart from other higher

education institutions.

“There’s something about knowing that you’re having an impact on a person’s life, particularly on a young person’s life. That is what’s cool about the university’s overall mission: we actually deliver something to people that has the ability to transform them, whether intellectually, socially or monetarily, but it can change their life for the good,” said Lynott. “If you can get up and go to work everyday and know that what you do makes a difference in somebody’s life, how do you have a better job than that?”

Lynott then talked about how her role in the university has changed since she became President of University College. As Provost, her duties were centered around making difficult decisions concerning students and trying to help make President Paul LeBlanc’s vision for SNHU a reality.

“I don’t follow policies, I don’t follow procedures, I follow people. I still believe in people. And the leaders I have known in my life are who have inspired me and who have probably helped me forge my career paths. Paul and my belief in his vision is what made me take this job,” she said.

“What I’m looking forward to now is that I’m gonna be invited to participate in more things than are just for sheer joy and pleasure and pride, and I really love that.”

Lynott wants students and faculty to understand the sentiment that SNHU holds in her life and that the change in leadership will not affect the atmosphere here.

“I love this place, I really do. I think because I’ve always been in the background making the trains run, I don’t know that the kids know me enough to know how much I do love this place. I mean the kids who know me do, but I don’t know enough of them, so that’s something that I want to correct in the coming months and years is to make sure that I’m at more things with our students,” she said.

OPINION

Revenge of the Automatic Lights: Monadnock Edition

Megan Palmer Editor in Chief

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The building of Monadnock upped the style and quality of living at SNHU in many ways. The bathrooms have two sinks, the toilet and shower are in two different rooms and the windows let in sunlight that would brighten anyone’s day.

Now, I will be clear and be quite upfront: I don’t actually live in Monadnock. I have never lived in a building on campus that was built any time after 1970. So I do not know the ins and outs of Monadnock and I will never claim to. But what I WILL say, is that the automatic lights in the living rooms will haunt me for the rest of my on-campus, sleeping at a friend’s days.

Imagine this.

You have just spent an incredibly long evening studying with a friend, being diligent scholars, and it’s gotten very chilly as the night has grown old. Maybe you wore shorts because it was 60 degrees earlier and

er the next time I roll over to the lights back on, me turning them off and the cycle continues.

Now living there, I’m

sure it’s nice to wake up and wander into your living room to lights that turn on and greet you. Maybe. All I can say as a frequent guest,

it’s the worst. If you live in Monadnock and you respect your couch-crashing friends, invest in some painter’s tape to cover the motion sensors.

students. The frantic scrambling to compile research and the inability to edit the following word vomit is

bound to happen to everyone at some point.

I have experienced this difficulty on multiple occasions. Luckily, I am someone who tends to print my papers early to avoid being caught off guard in such a crisis.

I had an assignment due, and I decided to print it out in the printing room in Robert Frost. The threepage paper printed perfectly, but when I went to staple it nothing happened. I tried to see if the automatic stapler was unplugged, it was not. I tried to see if there was a manual stapler somewhere else in the room, there was not. I then tried searching the rest of the building for a solution.

I found it in the student center. It took me about ten minutes to locate the nearest stapler. It took another five to find staples.

Staplers On Campus

Laana DePina Opinion Editor

Misfit Sabbath

There is a real problem on SNHU's campus: a staple problem. It has come to my attention that there is a startling lack of staples in printing labs across campus, and it is causing strife within the paper-writing community.

We are now entering midterm season, and with it, students are required to write papers for the majority of their classes. The places to print across campus are amazing and convenient, but they are constantly missing something that is crucial to their function. Staples.

There are many stories of students printing out essays, and, after taking the hot paper from the printer, they discover that either the stapler is devoid of staples

Jaelle Matthieu

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you were catching some rays hucking some friz with your pals.

But now it’s late. And cold. And it is a long walk back to your apartment down in the Townhouses.

Your friend, out of the kindness of their heart, offers you some space on their couch or air mattress in the corner of their living room. How kind!

You snuggle down and tuck yourself in. You pat yourself on the back for doing homework and for choosing such nice friends with cushy Monadnock apartments.

You close your eyes as you drift off to dreamland.

Until the lights come back on. In the middle of the night.

Now, being from the Townhouses, I’m used to things being haunted. Lights flickering and weird noises don’t tend to bother me.

But in Monadnock? It’s way too early for that place to be haunted.

So I get up, turn off the lights, go back to sleep….

And wake up an hour lat-

or the stapler is broken.

This causes much distress to the student, especially those who are in a rush.

Waiting until the last minute to print (and write) a paper is a time-honored tradition among college

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arts and entertainment Netflix’s “Fullmetal Alchemist” Breaks the Adaptation Curse Samantha Aguilar Hernandez Staff Writer

in what they go through in the movie, specifically Lena, the protagonist.

The film begins with Lena (Natalie Portman) learning that her husband Kane (Oscar Isaac) has returned from a covert Army operation that she had assumed left him killed in action. But something's off, and Kane falls ill.

Lena seeks to discover the cause of the illness by em-

barking on the same mission, bringing her to "the shimmer."

She's joined by a team of combat trained and skilled scientists, all female. What follows is a trek unlike any in a film before, and the adventure proves to be more than rough for the adventurers.

Part of what makes this movie especially unique is the story that is told within it. It's told rather abstractly, going

“Annihilation," Unique, Thoughtful and Haunting

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Not only does the film do a great job with Roy Mustang and his ignition cloth cloves or with Lust’s ability to transform her nails into claws, the film does an excellent job with Alphonse Elric’s looks.

“FullMetal Alchemist” shows that an adaptation can be done well when the right team produces it.

The film has an all Japanese cast and is written entirely in Japanese. Though, there’s an almost unavoidable feeling that something is missing or wrong. With the lack of jokes about Edward’s size and goofy moments between him and Mustang which made the original series stand out from others, the film becomes a boring adaptation.

Although the idea of an adaptation might not sound good at first, “FullMetal Alchemist” is seriously worth watching.

Netflix

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Films like “Dragon Ball Z,” “The Last Airbender” and “Death Note” work as the perfect examples of why live action adaptations are generally a bad idea.

However, Netflix has been giving adaptations a chance by letting Japan take over the business.

Different from previous anime adaptations, “FullMetal Alchemist” (FMA) was originally produced in Japan by Warner Bros Studios in collaboration with Oxybot and Square Enix Company. The film first premiered in 2017 in Japan and was made available to all Netflix users on February 19th, 2018.

The “FullMetal Alchemist” adaptation tells the story of the Elric brothers, Edward and Alphonse, who learn alchemy in or-

der to bring their deceased mother back to life. However, with the number one rule of alchemy being "equivalent exchange,” the two brothers pay a painful price when Alphonse loses his body.

Edward, who loses his arm and leg after linking his brother’s soul into a suit of armor, embarks on a journey with him to find the Philosopher’s Stone, the only artifact capable of restoring their bodies. The film adapts the beloved shōnen manga and anime series by Hiromu Arakawa in a way that is almost as good as the original series. However, it ends up creating a wave of mixed reviews.

“FullMetal Alchemist” is well known for being a series full of fantastic creatures, unnatural manipulation of objects and alchemy, which cause the film to overflow with high quality CGI.

Kevin Guimond Staff Writer

"Annihilation," released February 23, truly set itself apart from other films released this year. It's unique in the sense that the events that take place over the course of the film are as unexplainable to the characters as they are to the audience. It makes the viewer feel empathy for the characters

DuckDuckGo

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back and forth in the timeline throughout the movie. Much of the plot is told through the perspective of Lena attempting to explain what happened while she was inside "the shimmer," making it clear to the viewer that she had gotten out of the area alive when no one else had. What happened however, was something only the movie, and not Lena or anyone else, could really put into words. "The shimmer" alters the way people and everything else exist both physically and mentally.

The ending to "Annihilation" is one that will leave viewers contemplating what it is they just spent nearly two hours watching. Just when the viewer thinks they've figured out everything that has happened, just one minute near the end of the movie will keep the audience contemplating for days about what really happened, or what is going to happen after the credits roll. It serves as an ending that is both open to interpretation, yet extremely satisfying for the viewer.

There was not very much to dislike about "Annihilation." One thing that stood out,

though, was some of the characters’ failure to believe what was happening when they were inside "the shimmer."

At one point, the characters were all watching a video of something very abnormal happening to a soldier. One of the characters called what was going on “a trick of the light," and refused to believe it.

This seems like an awfully poor excuse for not wanting to believe that. Also, at this point, it seems very cliché for characters to not believe something they’re seeing, as so many movies have done this time and time again. Filmmakers need to learn to occasionally allow their characters to suspend their disbelief when witnessing an unnatural phenomenon, especially while living through one.

"Annihilation" is definitely a different type of film for viewers to open themselves up to.

With its non-linear way of telling its story, as well as the extremely abstract findings that the characters discover, the film offers a fresh new take on story that is intense, emotional, and thought-provoking all at the same time.

Arts and Entertainment Does "Dragonball Fighter Z" Live up to the Hype?

Troy Robinson Arts and Entertainment Editor

For those that don’t know who these characters are, Broly is a legendary Super saiyan that has an insatiable thirst for destruction, but more importantly the destruction of Goku.

Bardock is Goku’s father and essentially one of the sole protectors of Planet Vegeta before it

“I, Tonya” Sticks Its Landing

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Zach Meisel Staff Writer

American girl, all while having to claw past a family that beats her down, is empowering.

What’s even more interesting is getting to hear the story from the other side, as most people only had the media to form their opinions. The movie doesn’t try to persuade the audience of what is true, it simply shows what Tonya and her family says is true.

Nominated for three Oscars,

including Margot Robbie for Best Actress, Allison Janney for Best Supporting Actress for her role as LaVona Harding as well as an Oscar for Best Film Editing. Robbie and Janney deserve their nominations for their fantastic and uninhibited performances.

Sebastian Stan, best known for playing Bucky Barnes in Marvel movies, gives a great performance as Jeff Gillooly,

LuckyChap Entertainment

With the winter Olympics coming to an end, it is interesting to looking back at the controversies and scandals that have come from the age-old sporting event. “I, Tonya” tells one of these stories in a powerful yet delicate manner without glorifying events to persuade the audience.

Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) is an American girl who spent most of her life training in ice skating. Since the age of four, Tonya devoted her life to skating, leaving her education to focus more on the sport. Growing up with an abusive mother and falling for an abusive boyfriend, she struggles to create balance in her life. Tonya eventually climbs through the ranks, reaching a peak through many rises and falls when a huge scandal befalls her after an attack happens to fellow skater Nancy Kerrigan (Caitlin Carver), leaving Tonya as a suspect.

The story that surrounds Tonya’s journey to and removal from the podium as well as her family life is thoroughly interesting. Watching her struggle to find herself as the judges want her to become a picture-perfect

The character pool iis relatively small, but it has been confirmed by Arc System Works that more character will be implemented into the game via DLC( Downloadable Content). The first two characters that have been revealed for this list are Broly and Bardock.

GameSpot

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On January 26 of 2018 Dragon Ball Z had released their next title that was showcased at E3 of 2017.

The game was said to be different and more grounded compared to past titles such as Dragonball Xenoverse and Xenoverse 2. The storyline for this game would be something new and refreshing instead of the same old story arcs such as the Buu Arc, Saiyan Arc, and Frieza Arc. But is was actually good?

The Story mode for Dragon Ball Fighter is solid, but the execution in with how you travel and move is awful. Essentially you have a set number of turns and every movement costs at least one turn. This type of design is relatively old school dating back to the earliest PS2 games like Naruto Uzumaki Chronicles 2.

The game sends you through

endless fights totaling at least 100 potential battles a story arc.

That is simply too many. And to make things worse for the first half of the first arc most of the battles are tutorials that either have the AI do the same move or ability over and over or they just stand there altogether.

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Tonya’s abusive husband. Paul Walter Hauser also deserves some recognition for his portrayal of Shawn Eckhardt, Jeff’s delusional friend who believes he is a counter-terrorism expert.

While the movie tends to take its time explaining all the intricate parts of the story, it does a great job of defining all the characters and making moments feel important, rather than just boring information before the

was destroyed by Frieza.

The gameplay itself is nice, There are two ways to counter opponents and the combos are different for all characters. Some characters have better fighting patterns than others, but overall everyone in this game is playable. Due to the lack of fighting games or lack of new content for these fighting games many Pro players, such as Honeybee (Injustice 2), SonicFox (Injustice 2, Mortal Kombat X) have given the game a chance and have been streaming it and making videos on the game since its release.

The game has a social space where you can interact with tons of people and their avatars. The overall feel of the social space is relatively positive and the customization options are some of the best we’ve seen in a game to date. It isn’t over the top, giving too many options, like Injustice 2, but it isn’t overbearingly lackluster.

good parts. Plus, the transitions between time periods and scenes are done interestingly enough to keep the audiences entertained rather than an abrupt skip.

“I, Tonya” is both a wellmade and well-acted film, and an interesting look back into one of the Olympics’ most talked about scandals. This movie deserves all the awards it has received and, hopefully, it can land a few more.

penmen ABROAD

Learning the Language in a Foreign Culture

Tyler Leighton Social Media Manager

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ing, “I tried to do Duolingo every day for the month before going abroad, but the app really only starts out teaching you certain small objects, when I really needed help with the conversational part of the language.”

Both women took language courses while abroad. Schoenbeck took Spanish in Chile while Diaz took Italian in Italy. The pair credited those classes and the lessons they taught as helpful when immersing themselves in the local culture.

Diaz mentioned a specific assignment from one of her language classes, “we had to go up to random strangers and practice what we had learned that day.

I was so nervous. I already had bad anxiety and now to talk to a stranger in a language I was not

confident in? Forget about it. I found these two college looking girls sitting at the café, talking, laughing and I just went for it. I asked them in Italian first if they spoke English, the one girl said, “yes,” but the other didn’t. I explained what I had to do and they were so welcoming! I sat down, asked the questions, took down the answers and ended up finishing a coffee with them.”

For Schoenbeck, learning Spanish was more of a necessity, “My ignorance led me to believe that because English is a universal language, everybody would know some of it, but I only ran into three random people on the street that spoke English my entire time in Chile. So it really came down to having to know the language to get around on a daily basis, com-

municate with my host family and two of my classes were in Spanish, including my Spanish language class, so that gave me a tremendous amount of motivation to practice it everyday.”

And practice she did, “At the end of my time in Chile I had about two weeks until my flight home, so I decided to travel to Patagonia by myself to test my Spanish. It shocked me how well I was able to get around and communicate with people. For one day there I did a boat tour of some glaciers, and I sat next to these Chilean grandparents who were with their middle-aged daughter and her friend, and we talked all day long. I was able to crack jokes, and we had deep conversations about climate change and belief in God and the current Presidential

troduction to Swedish and Film History.

“I did also go [to Sweden] because it was a study abroad program for my major of game design, however that was mostly secondary to the main fact of I just wanted to shake things up,” Ordway said.

Brillant cited an issue with the current program at the University of Skövde. “The biggest problem right now is that we would like to see more of the advanced courses taught in English,” Brillant said. “Intro to Game Design was really just a paper prototyping class as in we just would make board games with really tight restrictions,” Orway said.

While Brillant thinks the University of Skövde is a great game design school, most of the

courses and programs, such as Computer Game Development Design, Game Writing, Graphics Programming and Sound/ Music, are taught in Swedish and are unavailable for international application, according to the university website.

SNHU is working with the partnership to open up more game design courses to English-speaking students, according to Brillant. “We are trying to get more course equivalencies; because our program is so rigorous, we would like to see more of our students’ major courses equate when they study abroad,” Brillant said. This will prevent students from falling behind when they return. “[The study abroad program is] not only a great way for students to experience another

country, but to be a part of one of the best game design schools in that country is a great opportunity,” Brillant said.

Ordway notes an opportunity students have taking game design courses in Sweden. “Unlike SNHU's Game Design program, Skövde starts with just the raw principles of game design, whereas SNHU starts by teaching people how to make games (programming, art etc.).”

The University houses a Game Incubator, which is a government funded organization that supports gamedev startups, according to the Game Incubator website. Ordway had hoped he would have access to this Incubator because notable companies like Coffee Stain Studios, who made

Goat Simulator, and Stunlock Studios, who made BattleRite, were located in this Incubator.

“I wanted to talk to the developers inside and make some connections and so on.”

Opportunities exist to bring SNHU and University of Skövde students together, according to Brillant. “I would love to see it [the partnership] grow of course, but I would really love to see some collaboration between our students and theirs on game projects or game jams,” Brillant said.

Though this program is strictly geared toward game design majors, specifically those interested in programming, art and design, Brillant suggests that additional programs including computer science and IT could be a future possibility.

Sarah Schoenbeck

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Studying abroad is a unique experience in a student’s college career. The experience involves students exploring different cultures and meeting new people while learning to rely on themselves. The opportunity can build character unlike any other. It can be pretty intimidating based on language and cultural differences.

Two students who jumped head first into an unfamiliar situation were Sarah Schoenbeck (‘19) and Breana Diaz (‘18), both of whom studied abroad during the 2017 Fall semester in Chile and Rome, respectively, with a beginner’s knowledge of the languages.

“Prior to going abroad, I knew zero Spanish,” Schoenbeck said.

“I come from a very small high school in northern New Hampshire, below the Canadian border, so French was the only language offered in school. I had done some alternative breaks in Spanish speaking countries, but I only remembered a few words.”

Diaz started out in a similar position, not knowing more than a few Italian terms she was able to pick up through Duolingo like, “boy, cat and pizza,” but she had one notable advantage, “I am fluent in Spanish, and prior to leaving, everyone told me not to worry too much because the languages were a bit similar."

Schoenbeck also used Duolingo, but found the app to be lack-

election that was going on. By the end of the day my head hurt from mentally translating, but I had walked away with a family that had felt like my own.”

Even though Chile and Italy are such different countries, both women shared advice for any students who were thinking about studying abroad in a country with a different first language.

“Do not wait until last minute to try and learn,” said Diaz, “as soon as you know where you’re going get into the habit of learning key phrases, that way you won’t be too lost when you arrive.”

Schoenbeck took a different approach stressing immersion in the language as soon as the plane touches down. “I think it should be required to at least take a language class in your host country.

You're there to travel and explore, but you’re also there to be immersed in the culture, and I think if you refuse to learn the language you can't really get the full circle experience of going and living abroad.”

Even if you don’t speak a single word, there was one language that Schoenbeck translated easily.

“My biggest takeaway from my language experience abroad, out of everything I learned, was that kindness has no language barrier. You don’t always need to communicate to be kind, and it is something that is universally reciprocated in the same way. English is not the universal language, kindness is.”

Sarah Schoenbeck, who studied in Chile, learned Spanish during her time abroad.

Push to Change Game Design Program in Sweden

Rebecca LeBoeuf Editor in Chief Derek Smith Staff Writer

The University of Skövde is a college located in Skövde, Sweden where game design students have the opportunity to study abroad and take classes based on their major alongside Swedish peers and other international students.

According to Game Design Coordinator Ed Brillant, students studying abroad here often take drawing and introductory programming courses, in addition to general electives.

Thomas Ordway (‘19) attended the program abroad in 2016 where he took courses like Introduction to Game Design, In-

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Sports

Men’s Ice Hockey Caps Off Season, Looks to Next Season Catherine Lachance Sports Editor

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overall save percent average.

Slatky broke over 2,000 goalssaved during the matchup against Stonehill and is just the fourth Penmen goaltender to do so. Second-string goaltender Kurt Gutting (’20) saw action in 10 games, saving 321 shots, accounting for a .942 save percent average, locking up the starting goaltender position next season.

“We had lots of guys who had career years,” said Walsh.

“Timmy Baylis had a career high in goals, along with Chris Moquin. We had fantastic goaltending with both Ryan Slatky and Kurt Gutting. We also had great leadership with Chris Moquin, Matt McLelland, Alec Cochran and Brett Strawn.” Moquin stood as the head captain for the Penmen, while McLelland, Cochran and Strawn were alternate captains.

McLelland, who was the team’s best defender, capped off his collegiate career during a season that saw him make 12 assists and one goal. He led the team’s defensive line and was a key asset on the penalty kill.

“Matt McLelland will be next to impossible to replace,” said Walsh. “Matt was fantastic on the ice. Matt was our best player. He skates well, he’s physical, played a ton, hard to play against and made good choices. He was a night-

SNHU Penmen

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The Southern New Hampshire University men’s ice hockey team concluded their 2017-2018 winter season Saturday, February 24, when they fell 3-1 to Saint Anselm College during the Northeast-10 conference semifinals. The loss amounts the Penmen’s overall record to 12-9-3 and their conference record to 6-7-2.

First-time head coach Sean Walsh is immensely pleased with the success of the team during his first season with the Penmen. Although the loss to Saint Anselm was disheartening, he is impressed with the quality of play seen throughout the season and believes the Penmen played their best against the Hawks.

“You always want to end the season with a win,” said Walsh, reflecting on his season. “We fell short; however, I was very happy with our team’s effort. It was the best we played against St. Anselm this year. Looking back at it, I am happy with the progress we made throughout the year.”

“From the start to the end, we improved a lot,” said Griffin Connor (’21), who scored three goals and made five assists in his first season with

the Penmen. “I think for the upperclassmen, it was a tough way to go out. But we all had a good time. We all progressed really well. It was a good start to my freshman year.”

Senior Chris Moquin totaled a phenomenal 20 goals this season, including the lone goal in Saturday’s loss.

His 20-goal season topped the Northeast-10 and is the highest single-season goal total by an SNHU athlete in nearly 10 seasons. He also registered his second hat trick of his career during a 6-2 victory over Stonehill on February 9.

In addition to Moquin, many Penmen had standout performances on the ice this season. Brett Strawn (’19) led the Penmen in points. He registered 29 points accounting for seven goals and 22 assists, while classmate Artem Efimov-Barakov registered six goals and six assists for a total of 12 points. Jared Goudreau (’20) filed 20 points off of eight goals and 12 assists, which was the most of his collegiate career. Timothy Baylis (’18) logged a career-best 19 points, 12 goals and seven assists, while D.J. Goldstein (’20) racked up 17 points off of eight goals and nine assists.

Goaltender Ryan Slatky (’18) saved 448 shots in his final season with the Penmen, bringing his career saves to an impressive 2,068 and a .919

Senior Captain Chris Moquin takes control of the puck.

mare for opposing teams to play against. He ran our first power-play unit and was a key asset on the penalty kill.

As much as we will miss him on the ice we will miss him off the ice even more. He is a leader by example, he is extremely dedicated, works his rear end off and was a coach’s dream to have.”

The Penmen lose seven seniors, all of whom demonstrated outstanding skills on the ice this season and seasons past. They include McLelland, Slatky, Baylis and Cochran, as well as Sam Jenkins, Kyle Valliere and Griffin Rogers. Moquin will return to the ice in the fall as he works on earning a master’s degree in business administration. The team will also keep leaders like Goldstein, Strawn and Goudreau, who will combine their talent and experience with new in-

comers next season.

Despite the loss of key players, however, Walsh and the rest of the coaching staff are looking to embellish the skills of the underclassmen and gather talented recruits for next season. They plan on teaching the new players the fundamentals and rules of the team so they can properly fit into the roster.

“Next year is a whole different team,” said Walsh, looking to next season. “We will have some big shoes to fill. We are losing some guys who will be hard to replace.

We also have some guys who had career years that are going to need to do the same, if not take another step forward.

We will have a whole new group of [incomers] which will be a different dynamic and will have to get everyone on the same page.”

SNHU Penmen

Members of the men’s ice hockey team celebrate after scoring a goal.

Senior alternate captain Matt McLelland takes the puck up the ice.

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SPORTS

END of an era: stan spirou retires after 33 years

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Stan Spirou poses with athletics director Anthony Fallacaro, wife Patricia and SNHU President Paul LeBlanc after his retirement announcement.

Catherine LaChance Sports Editor Tyler Leighton Social Media Manager

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During a press conference Wednesday, February 28, tears could be seen rolling down the cheeks of emotional SNHU students and faculty as head men’s basketball coach Stan Spirou announced his retirement from his 33 year-long coaching career that included over 640 wins, eight conference championships, five Elite Eight births and a pair of Final Four appearances. He steps down in an effort to spend more time with his family.

Spirou will step away from his career at SNHU with a 640-341 cumulative record during his 33 years.

He has a .652 winning percentage over a total of 981 games. He is currently the 11th longest tenured active head coach in NCAA Division II, with only three others having been at the helm of their current team for longer than Spirou and only one of those featuring a higher winning percentage. His 640 victories rank 25th against

active NCAA coaches at all three divisions, while they place him fourth amongst active Division II (DII) coaches and seventh all-time in DII. Spirou is the coach with the most wins in New Hampshire basketball history, regardless of division, while he ranks fourth all-time in New England, including first for DII. “It’s been a great ride, a great journey,” said Spirou at the conference. “I’m not sad… I’m happy those 33 years happened and to happen at a place that I can consider one of the best academic stories, and to be part of it, and to be given this opportunity, I couldn’t be happier.

Being a part of that story for the past 33 years and watching it evolve has brought me great joy and given me an immense amount of pride for Southern New Hampshire University. The support I have had from the administration and campus community over the years has made it easy for us to enjoy our success. But, in terms of me, it’s time to turn a new chapter in my life.”

Spirou, who averaged an impressive 19.4 victories per season over the length of his

career, recorded 17 20-win campaigns and finished at .500 or better 27 times in 33 seasons. He produced a record of 43-22 (.662) in conference tournament games, capturing NECC championships in 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998 and 1999, as well as Northeast-10 titles in 2013 and 2016. Spirou qualified for 18 NCAA Tournaments, going 23-18 (.561) against the best of the best.

Five times he won regional crowns to advance to the Elite Eight (1987, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2015) and twice his teams earned a spot in the Final Four (1993, 1994).

“It is hard to put into a few words what Stan means to the men’s basketball program and to SNHU,” said SNHU Director of Athletics Anthony Fallacaro, who sat alongside Spirou at Wednesday’s press conference. “He is one of the all-time greats, both on the court and off it.

He is so much more than a hall of fame coach; he is a hall of fame family man and someone I consider a good friend, now and forever.”

Spirou was inducted into the Queen City Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995. He was also named to the New England

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Basketball Hall of Fame in October 2009, inducted into the AHEPA Hellenic Athletic Hall of Fame in July 2011 and enshrined in the Boys & Girls Club of Manchester Hall of Fame in November 2015.

Spirou was a four-time NECC Coach of the Year (1993, 1994, 1995, 1999), the 2015 NE10 Coach of the Year, a three-time National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Northeast Coach of the Year (1990, 1994, 1995) and the 1994 Division II Bulletin National Coach of the Year.

Spirou was named the head coach at Southern New Hampshire University, then known as New Hampshire College, on July 2, 1985, and led the Penmen to a 24-7 mark, as well as a spot in the conference finals, in his rookie season. A year later, he would earn New England Division II Coach of the Year honors after piloting his team to a 24-8 record and its first NCAA Regional title. Spirou’s first league title would come in 1990 with a team that finished 26-6.

“It’s hard to think of SNHU without Stan,” said Paul LeBlanc, university president of SNHU. “His larger-than-life personality filled any room he walked into; his steadfast dedication to our student-athletes is unmatched, and he’s overall just an amazing person who will be truly missed. As Stan steps aside from basketball to spend more time with his family, he leaves behind a lasting legacy that will continue to inspire student athletes for years to come.”

In 2013-14, Spirou passed longtime University of Bridgeport head coach Bruce Webster (549-405 from 1965-99) for the most victories among New England Division II head coaches. He then returned the Penmen to regional and national prominence in 2014-15, posting a 24-8 record, capturing the NCAA East Region title and

advancing to the Elite Eight for the fifth time in Spirou’s tenure and seventh time in program history.

The 2016-17 Penmen reached the conference title game for the third time in five years and earned NCAA Tournament appearance No. 20, as well as the 18th and final for Spirou.

“This place is so special because of the heterogeneous group that we have on campus,” said Spirou, reflecting on the SNHU community.

“You go to many other campuses. Everybody looks alike, everybody dresses alike, everybody thinks alike.

This school has never been about homogenous, and I think that learning [and] experiencing with kids is something I take pride in.”

He and his wife Patricia, a marketing professor in SNHU’s School of Business, have three children and six grandchildren. Twin daughters Kelly and Christina are graduates of the University of New Hampshire, while Chuck is a graduate of SNHU, all of whom he plans to spend tremendous amounts of time with in retirement.

“I think it’s time for me to get back to reality and get back to my family,” Spirou said.

SNHU is now conducting a national search for a new head men’s basketball coach.

Until the university finds a replacement, Spirou agreed to stay in the position, but they look to find someone as soon as this summer.

Spirou’s legendary Penmen career will be recognized Friday, May 4 at the SNHU Fieldhouse. More information will follow once plans have been finalized.

For full stats and quotes, please refer to our indepth article at penmenpress.com