Monday, May 12, 2014
Volume LVII, Issue 27
Shawn Heilbron hired as Athletics Director for SBU
sbstatesman.com
By Joe Galotti
Assistant Sports Editor
After a nationwide search that took nearly six months, Stony Brook has finally found its new athletic director. Shawn Heilbron, senior associate athletics director for Development at Oregon State University, has been given the position and was officially introduced Friday at a press conference. “I’m ready to begin the process of moving Stony Brook athletics forward so we can represent this fine university in a way that all Stony Brook alumni, Long Island, and this country can be proud of,” Heilbron said at Friday’s press conference. “The road ahead is an exciting one. What is in place at Stony Brook right now allows us to have an incredible launching pad forward.” Heilbron replaces former Stony Brook Athletics Director Jim Fiore, who had his contract bought out by the school on Nov. 19, 2013. Donna Woodruff has served as Stony Brook’s interim athletics director for five months since Fiore was let go. She will now go back to her former position as executive associate director of Athletics. “I am very excited to welcome Shawn Heilbron into the Stony Brook family, to lead our outstanding athletics program into the next chapter of its compelling and competitive Division I history,” President Samuel L. Stanley Jr. said in a statement released on Thursday. For the past three years Heilbron has been leading the OSU Athletics development program and serving as a member of the management team for both the OSU Foundation and OSU Athletics. “His experience in Division I athletics, his interest in preparing student athletes, and his demonstrated success growing Division I programs offers Stony Brook the winning combination of attributes needed to take the Seawolves into the next era of competition and excellence,” President Stanley said. On Friday afternoon Heilbron took the podium at Stony Brook Arena to address his aspirations and goals for the program. One of the things he put a heavy emphasis on was the importance of improving the school’s football
HEATHER KHALIFA / THE STATESMAN
Shawn Heilbron poses with his family, Wolfie and President Samuel L. Stanley Jr. at a press conference on Friday. Heilbron was chosen to be Stony Brook University's new athletic director after a six-month nationwide search. program moving forward. “I believe football’s success is critical,” Heilbron said. “(Football) connects people with the university in the way that other sports don’t, because of just the sheer volume. So certainly that is something I will be working on with Dr. Stanley as we move forward, which is to get football where it needs to be." He also mentioned that finding the program’s new Women’s Basketball head coach is on the top of his to do list. “We’d obviously like to have that coach hired today,” Heilbron said. “We plan to talk Monday to discuss things and the process moving forward. But, obviously time is of the essence.” When asked to speak on his predecessor Fiore, Heilbron did not seem interested about bringing up what took place last November, but instead wanted to look ahead towards the future. “Really I’m just excited to be here and move forward,” Heilbron said. “I’m gonna work with Donna to really move forward, and make sure we’re doing the right things.” The biggest thing Heilbron stressed was his eagerness for Stony Brook’s athletics program to eventually be well known on a national level. “The Seawolves are coming,” he said. “You might not know what a Seawolf is now, but you will.”
News
Dean Stein announces retirement after 38 years of service
By Francesca Campione Contributing Writer
Jerrold L. Stein, the associate vice president for Student Affairs and dean of students, is retiring at the conclusion of this summer after an incredible 38 years of service to Stony Brook University. His contributions to the university will be forever remembered due to their high impact on the student body. He coined the “What’s a Seawolf? I’m a Seawolf” chant and helped found The Spirit of
Stony Brook marching band, which just completed its eighth season. According to Stein, he never intended the “What’s a Seawolf?” phrase to be a campuswide chant. Instead, the now famous cheer was part of a speech he was giving at an alumni event over five years ago. There, he claimed that he would know his job was done when all students and alumni would answer the question proudly with “I am a Seawolf.” Not anticipating the flight
the chant would take, Stein did not retire when he said he would. Instead he has been able to see just how much the simple “What’s a Seawolf” means to all Stony Brook students. As the Spirit of Stony Brook continues to give rise to an element of excitement and pride at Stony Brook, Stein can be thanked yet again for his contribution of helping create something that is so essential Continued on page 6
Safety concern prompts Nicolls Road speed limit change
By Ryan Wolf Staff Writer
Drivers and pedestrians alike received a surprise when Stony Brook University announced a recent change to a 45 mph speed limit from 55 mph on Nicolls Road between South Entrance and Route 25A. The new speed limit along Nicolls Road was prompted by a history of pedestrian and vehicle accidents that involved Stony Brook students. “As a result of previous incidents along the Nicolls Road corridor, the university began engaging in conversations with local officials to implement these changes,” Chief of Police and Assistant Vice President of Campus Safety Robert J. Lenahan said.
Arts & Entertainment
The previous incidents mentioned by Lenahan include a 2011 hit-andrun that killed student Seong Hoon Baek and a 2010 pedestrian accident that killed student Shubo Lin. The change was due to the efforts of Stony Brook administration officials, who were assisted by the University Police Department and Suffolk County officials, according to Lenahan. The hope is that the change will bring about a safer area for drivers and for pedestrians to both use. “We believe the reduced speed limit will ultimately make it safer for those who chose to walk across Nicolls Road,” Lenahan said. “Studies have shown that reduced speeds will limit the amount and severity of injuries suffered by occupants in vehicle on vehicle crashes.”
Opinions
The new change follows several other changes made by Suffolk County that are aimed at increasing safety, including adding curbs, sidewalks and guardrails during the fall semester. Despite these changes, Lenahan said he would still advise pedestrians use other means of crossing Nicolls Road, such as the underpass near the Life Sciences building. “We still encourage students and employees who wish to travel between east and west campus to utilize our Transportation Services, or to walk through the tunnel adjacent to Life Sciences,” he said. Commuter Student Association President Joy Pawirosetiko called the change “a step in the right direction” Continued on page 3 Sports
School of Medicine prepares for changes
The two students behind Enclave
#graduateschoolproblems
Heilbron raising the bar for SBU Athletics
MORE ON PAGE 3
MORE ON PAGE 7
MORE ON PAGE 11
MORE ON PAGE 16
Incoming students face a transitioning curriculum
Student music team opens up for thousand at Brookfest
Ph.D. students need better academic advising
SBU’s new athletics director expects big things
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NEWS SUNY board of trustees discusses Conference on Shared Governance By Diane Caruso Statesman Intern
HEATHER KHALIFA / THE STATESMAN
Stony Brook School of Medicine is adapting to health care system changes and the Internet age. Curriculum changes include transitioning to more group-based learning.
SB School of Medicine prepares for curriculum changes By Heather Khalifa
Assistant Multimedia Editor
Stony Brook School of Medicine is preparing for a drastic change in teaching curriculum come the Fall 2014 academic year, with other medical schools across the country following suit. Medical schools could no longer ignore the overwhelming transformations, both with a changing health care system and with how students learn in the age of the Internet. They all pointed to one thing: a system that has not been touched for over twenty years now needed a makeover. “I think that across the country, students have been acting very similarly, and now a whole group of medical schools are finally getting the message that the old way of teaching just isn’t working anymore, we just have to change,” Dr. Andrew Wackett, assistant dean of Medical Education at Stony Brook, said. The changes include condensing the first and second years of medical school into just eighteen months, as well as transitioning from classical lecture-style teaching to more interactive, group-based learning. Stony Brook School of Medicine is just one of the many schools who plans to implement team-based learning, which requires students to learn the material ahead of time, and then apply that knowledge with their small groups of eight students. Stony Brook is also not alone in its decision to cut the first two years of schooling into just eighteen months with the intention of allowing students to begin clinical work six months earlier than the old system allowed for. “This is a trend that’s just getting started at most medical schools,” Wackett said. “We are not the first ones to do it, but certainly we’re probably in the first 25 percent of schools who are doing so. And I think over the next ten years, you’ll see many more schools follow this same trend.” These overwhelming trends, as well as student feedback, revealed
that more focus was put on passing a Step One exam at the end of the second year of medical school, and less on actually attending lectures. “A lot of residency programs are focusing mainly on the grades of Step One over the grades of the first and second years of medical school,” Wackett said. “So the students started to value that Step One score more and more.” The Step One exam is the first of three steps in the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) system, which is a threestep process a future physician must undergo before receiving their medical license. Step One is taken at the end of a student’s second year of medical school. The exam is multiple choicebased, and tests only for students’ general knowledge in the areas of science, including biochemistry and microbiology. The uniformity of this test is what ultimately causes fewer students to attend lecture and instead focus on this exam that is standardized across the country, regardless of which medical school they attend. Wally Omar, a fourth-year medical school student at Stony Brook and member of the admissions committee, agrees that studying for Step One has less to do with attending lecture and more to do with garnering material online from external resources. “That’s why they’re moving towards this more interactive way of learning,” Omar said. “I think they saw that attendance at lectures is very low, and I would say for good reason, because there are certain days you are learning things that professors want to teach you just because they are researching it, and not necessarily because it’s going to help you in the future.” The intended changes seek to counter this negative feedback from students, and are proposing not just more hands on interaction for students, but also more time for students to explore what field they want to pursue before applying for residency matches. “A lot of us in our fourth year, we end the year and we realize
there were certain things that we never really were exposed to during those first two years,” Omar said. “This gives you extra time, if you’re interested in things like dermatology or ophthalmology, things that you weren’t necessarily exposed to unless you wanted to explore them. This gives you more time to route your options.” However, not all medical school students are thrilled about the prospect of having their first two years of medical school put on fastforward mode. “The pace that we need to learn at is extremely quick, and to speed it up any further, I don’t even know if we could do that. That’s really quick,” Briana Locicero, a first-year medical student at Stony Brook School of Medicine, said. Her class is the last to experience the old curriculum, as the new one is set to be implemented this upcoming academic year. “In team-based learning, doing cases by cases, you won’t have that level down deeper where you can consult your own knowledge and think about it actively," Locicero said. "So that’s what I think is the added benefit of lecture and science-based classes and going slow with it.” With these changes in medical school curriculum come the inevitable changes of the application process as well, with the two going hand in hand. One example is the new 2015 MCAT, which is now adding human and behavioral sciences with the intention of shaping future doctors, and not necessarily just scientists. “You have to know an awful lot of science to be a good doctor, but you also have to know how to talk to people, how to interact with groups, how to collaborate as teams, how to understand problems about patients beyond just medical problems, but also social issues,” Wackett said. “I think now is the time where the changes are starting, so it might not be five or ten years, but definitely twenty years down the line there’s going to be huge differences,” Omar said.
The State University of New York’s (SUNY) board of trustees discussed the success of a conference held by SUNY Voice at the board’s open formal meeting at the Wang Center on May 7. Eighteen SUNY board members and seven others attended the meeting. SUNY Voice is an initiative to provide unique focus and support for “strengthening shared governance at the system level, at the campus level, and between and among the campuses and SUNY System Administration,” according to SUNY’s website. The Conference on Shared Governance, which was held from April 23 to 24 in Albany, brought together faculty, students, administrators, trustees and council members to discuss how systems of shared governance can create sustainable and innovative colleges and universities within the SUNY system. SUNY trustee Tina Good said she is hoping that these conferences will become an annual occurrence to encourage the positive ideas of shared governance. “It’s all about trust,” Good said. She said she believes the board can achieve positive shared governance throughout the SUNY campuses, and there must be an understanding between all the different members of a campus community to allow compromises to be made. Good said that if there was ever an instance that trust was lost between groups or across any campus community, constituents have to understand how to regain trust
amongst each other. Diversity must be a “complimenting force behind trust,” and the best decisions must be brought to the table by diverse perspectives on all issues, Good said. According to Good, over 150 people attended this first annual conference, and the most positive outcome was how the attendees were students, professors and faculty, as well as representatives from City University of New York. Laura Joseph, the associate provost at SUNY Farmingdale, came to the meeting looking to take information back to SBU’s local SUNY sister college after becoming the new associate provost. Joseph said Farmingdale has been implementing its own version of shared governance on their campus, and the campus community has responded well. There are campuswide, open-forum discussions among all the committees and groups on campus at least twice a semester. Jyll Yu, a freshman with an undeclared major, said she thinks implementing something similar to Farmingdale’s initiative would be useful in case there is anything that needs to be addressed on campus. “I think it would definitely be a good idea to try it out along side with the Undergraduate Student Government,” Yu said. Devon Maguire, a computer science major, said she does not feel like students even want to take control on campus, but that is the main issue behind more shared governance being a part of SBU’s campus community. “The people that should be encouraging us to take apart of that aren’t putting in the effort to make that happen,” Maguire said.
PHOTO CREDIT: STONYBROOK.EDU
Speed limit signs on Nicolls Road were changed from 55 mph to 45 mph to improve safety by campus entrances.
Nicolls Road speed limit change Continued from page 1 but added that more could be done to increase safety. “Nicolls Road is a very poorly lit; it becomes extremely dangerous at night, especially when it’s raining…I still think that the commute isn’t as safe as it could be,” Pawirosetiko said. Pawirosetiko said she has heard of many complaints regarding Nicolls Road with most of the criticism focused on visibility at night. “The one complaint I’ve heard would be how dark it is at night and how dangerous it can be to drive
on Nicolls Road when it’s raining,” Pawirosetiko said. According to Lenahan, Stony Brook is continuing to discuss future improvements on Nicolls Road to improve safety. “University officials will continue to explore opportunities to make Nicolls Road safer, and are committed to work with local officials in that endeavor,” he said. Pawirosetiko added that when pedestrians feel they are in danger, safety improvements need to be added. “If pedestrians don’t feel safe when crossing the street, something clearly needs to be done,” she said.
4
News
Monday, May 12, 2014
The Statesman
Campus Briefing: USG cracks down on professors and course syllabi Under the microscope: exam study tips By Arielle Martinez Copy Editor
The Undergraduate Student Government (USG) senate unanimously voted to pass a resolution stating that the senate will pressure Stony Brook University faculty and staff to conform to university policies on course syllabi and textbook requisitions at its final meeting of the semester Thursday evening. Each year, course material requisitions are due on April 5 for the summer and fall semesters and on Oct. 12 for the winter and spring semesters, according to Office of the Provost’s Liaison policy. USG Vice President of Academic Affairs Steven Adelson, who proposed the resolution, said that not all course instructors adhere to this policy, and not all syllabi conform to the Minimal Instructional and Student Responsibilities endorsed by the University Senate. The resolution also contains the senate’s request that course syllabi be reviewed by the Stony Brook Curriculum Implementation Group, the university committee directing the transition to the new curriculum that will apply to incoming freshmen in Fall 2014. Sen. Jawad Mourabet and Sen. Vincent Justiniano proposed a failed bill that would have required USG members would notify the USG president of any appointments to university committees outside of USG. The bill was a redraft of another bill Adelson had previously proposed, which would have given the University and Academic Affairs
Committee the authority to approve and remove appointees for university committees and to collect monthly reports from the appointees. Adelson presented his version of the act at the May 1 senate meeting, and the senate voted unanimously to send the act back to the Academic Affairs committee for further deliberation. Mourabet and Justiniano’s version of the act, which was originally titled the Steven Adelson External Committee Appointment Act, was renamed the Jawad Mourabet External Committee Appointment Act after Adelson said that he did not want his name attached to an act he did not write. Although the senate’s vote on this act was 10-6-4, the amendment did not pass by the majority of filled senate seats needed. The senate voted, 19-0-1, to pass another resolution in which the senate requests that the hours of operation for the Health Science Library would mirror those of Melville Library, and that the Health Science Library would offers extended hours during final examinations as Melville Library does. The resolution states that the senate requests extended hours of operation for both libraries during the winter and summer intersessions. The senate voted, 16-0-1, to pass an act that appropriated $30,000 from USG’s unallocated funds to SAB. Vice President of Communications Mario Ferone said that because SAB did not receive a significant amount of revenue from the Brookfest concert, the board will likely go over its budget without addition funds. President Adil Hussain briefed
the senate on his decision to veto the Full Disclosure Amendment to the Election Bylaws that was passed by the senate during its May 1 meeting. The amendment would have changed the deadlines for submitting rosters for party coalitions and for submitting party bylaws. Hussain said that Election Board had not been consulted about the amendment. The senate also recognized Esam Al-Shareffi, who is retiring as the senate’s parliamentarian. Al-Shareffi, who has been involved in USG since 2003, records the minutes of senate meetings and consults the senate on parliamentary procedure. Al-Shareffi said that he will continue pursuing his M.D. and his Ph.D. at the university.
Meeting in Brief
• President Hussain briefed the Senate on the repeal of the Full Disclosure Amendment to the Election Bylaws. • The Conformity to Course Instructors to University Policies Resolution was passed. • The Jawad Mourabet External Committee Appointment Act failed to pass. • The Extension of Library Hours of Operations Resolution was passed. • The 2014 Responsible Hall Council Funding Act was passed. • The Student Activities Board Bylaws Act was passed. • The Unallocated to SAB Appropriations Act was passed.
15-Passenger Vans Available
By Mallory Locklear Staff Writer
Every other week Mallory Locklear, a graduate student at Stony Brook University’s Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, will take a look at Stony Brook-related research and science news. As final exams are quickly approaching, “Under the Microscope” would like to provide a few researchbased study tips to get you through the coming weeks. First, get rid of the notion that you are an “auditory” or “visual” learner or that you are more “left” or “right” brained. Research has found very little evidence to support those ideas. Though individual differences certainly exist, scientists have found that some general studying rules will benefit most people. Research has repeatedly shown that cramming is not the way to go when preparing for a test. Spacing your study times out is far more effective but, face it, that is not always an option. If you do need to cram, some research has found that packing all of your studying into one session is more beneficial if done closer to the time when the material was learned rather than closer to the test. If you learn material on a Monday for a test taking place on the Thursday of the following week, or ten days later, cramming would be most effective if done on the Wednesday after the material was first learned, or roughly 10 percent of the time between learning and testing. So, cramming is not totally useless, but its timing is crucial. Another mistake students often make is studying in the same location. People who switch study locations
have been found to perform better on tests than people who study in the same place. Similarly, switching study material improves retention. Studying different but related materials in the same study session may help you learn each of the materials better than if each one was studied separately. Practice tests are also often better than rereading the material. Trying to recall memories serves as a different type of learning than just reading the material alone. One final study tip is to review the toughest material right before you go to bed, as many scientists believe sleep is key to memory consolidation. Eating habits are just as important as proper studying habits and can affect testing performance. Highfiber, slow digesting foods like oatmeal are recommended for the morning of the test, but what you eat the week before is also critical. One study found that students who ate high fat, low carbohydrate diets the week before a test performed worse than students who incorporated fruits and vegetables into their diet. The brain needs a lot of energy, and fruits and vegetables provide more energy than junk food. Of course the most important aspect of preparing for a test is sleep. All nighters have been linked to lower grades and poor test performance, and lack of sleep actually inhibits the functioning of the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with forming and retrieving memories. One missed night of sleep can impair memory and reasoning for up to four days. Finally, do not wake up early to study. This can interrupt the sleep cycle thought to be essential for memory consolidation.
The Statesman
News
Monday, May 12, 2014
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Our food safety program is in full compliance with applicable federal government food safety and sanitation codes and regulations, as well as, all state and local health codes.
Campus Dining keeps food safe everyday! •Dining staff perform and record food temperature checks throughout the day. •Every month each dining facility has on-site inspections by independent food safety experts. •Our strict purchasing standards provide fresh and quality foods to our customers. •We have a dedicated sanitarian on campus every day checking that the food we serve is safely prepared. If you discover something wrong with your meal, please tell us about it right away! Speak with a manager or text 631-240-0515.
To learn more about food safety, visit our website www.campusdining.org/foodSafety Campus dining main office: 631-632-4367 On-site campus management: 631-632-4605 www.campusdining.org
SBUEATS
5
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Campus Spotlight: Dean Stein, the original Seawolf, says good-bye
JESSICA DESAMERO / THE STATESMAN
The Student Life Awards received a new moniker last week in honor of Dean Jerrold L. Stein as a retirement gift, to thank him for 38 years of service to the University. Continued from page 1 to our campus today. Commenting on his involvement with the band, Stein humbly said, “I was the one who facilitated the process and found the right people to get it done,” and that he did. Due to his involvement, The Spirit of Stony Brook has a membership of over 200 dedicated and enthusiastic students and plays at all kinds of events ranging from football, basketball and volleyball games to weddings, Bat Mitzvahs and the Columbus Day Parade in New York City.
Stein has also impacted the students in more than just school spirit by nurturing students social and mental well being through the creation of programs such as The Red Watch Band, The Community Pledge, Stony Brook University Undergraduate Colleges and the Sexual Assault Peer Education Program (SAFE). Through these contributions Stein has certainly showed a tremendous love for Stony Brook University but more importantly for those who attend it. Sugandha Gupta a current sophomore pursing a double major in Health Sciences and Psychology and a resident of
H Quad fondly recollects the incredible impact Stein has had on her short time at Stony Brook University. As a freshman, Gupta had her LDS 102 seminar with Stein in the spring. The seminar was called Rituals, Ceremonies and Traditions and was centered around understanding Stony Brook’s history. In reflection of her time spent with Stein, Gupta states “Dean Stein has demonstrated his love for the students by always being warm and welcoming. He encourages students by providing them with useful information as resources,” adding,
seen. Opera-goers are accustoming to watching the silhouette of the conductor from behind. But, the Live in HD series offers a perspective that cannot be experienced at the Met. Levine fills the screen, his arms swaying and his expressive face grinning a crooked, charming grin. By alternating between shots of Levine and the pit orchestra during the overture, the broadcast illustrates his legendary intensity. The overture’s dynamic swells create conversations between woodwind soloists and the full orchestra. Brimming with bravado, Ferrando and Guiglielmo, two young officers, strut around the stage. They proclaim that their fiances, Fiordiligi and Dorabella, are as “virtuous as they are beautiful.” Their mutual friend, Don Alfonso, a heavy-set, elderly man with hyperbolized, virile cynicism, convinces the two young men that, “it is a woman’s nature to be unfaithful.” Alfonso bets the two young men 50 gold coins each to prove their fiancees will be unfaithful. They accept. Their fiancees, Fiordilgi and Dorabella, who are sisters, are
seen lazing on the shore playfully describing their partners and envisioning their eventual marriages. To begin his devious plan, Alfonso tells the women that their fiances have been called away to war by their regiment. After a tearful goodbye, Ferrando and Guglielmo step aboard the ship leaving their partners devastated and alone. Despina, the sisters’ maid, tells the women that they should simply find new lovers and leave their despair behind. Alfonso bribes Despina to assist him without revealing his plan. Looking like two Arabic sheiks, replete with ornate costumes and facial hair, Ferrando and Guglielmo enter in disguise. The two “Albanians” express their love for Fiordilgi and Dorabella, each addressing the other’s fiance. The women remain faithful to their fiances and are not swayed by the affection of the two “foreigners.” After a series of flirtations and courtship gestures, the women finally give in to their Albanian suitors to the dismay of the men behind the disguises. Although distraught, the two men are counseled by Alfonso who
“The genuine belief Dean Stein has in each and every one of the students at Stony Brook has contributed to an overall sense of worth and efficiency in the student body. It is this worth and efficiency that has allowed the university to grow spirited and successful.” Gupta’s heartfelt sentiment regarding Stein is surely one felt by many students on campus. Another member of the Stony Brook Community who was able to offer kind words on Stein and his involvement with the students on campus is Adil Hussain, president of the Undergraduate Student Government. Hussain, a senior business, political science and pre-nursing major has worked closely with Stein during his four years as a student at Stony Brook. Hussain first met Stein through his work in the Dean of Students Office as the marketing intern for the Office of Multicultural Affairs and furthered their relationship when he became the President of the USG. When asked what he believes Stein’s greatest impact on both Stony Brook and himself Hussain replied, “Dean Stein has been a constant proponent for student life, student activism and promoting health awareness. Stein’s significant efforts to advocate on the organizations behalf have allowed us to provide the events and services for this year. He is an inspiring mentor who has guided me and the rest of us in USG to succeed in all that we do.” Stein’s is clearly loved by the students just as much as he loves them, which is important to fostering a strong community.
President Samuel L Stanley also has many kind words to share about Stein. When asked about Stein’s most important contributions to Stony Brook, Stanley, the president for five years, said that Stein's involvement has been “Transformative to the campus." Stanley also adds that he has tremendous confidence in Stein and that he makes his job easier at the university. Stein has earned many prestigious awards and honors ranging from the Scott Goodnight Award for Outstanding Service as a Dean, Presented by NASPA Region II to the Distinguished Alumni Award from SUNY Cortland. Stein has also won the Stony Brook President’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service. Stein will participate in the search for a successor to ensure that he feels they posses the same goals determination and vision for Stony Brook University. Although he is retiring and plans to take time to spend with his wife and children as well as to relax and travel, he plans to stay involved with Stony Brook University. After 38 years of incredible service everyone can be truly inspired by the wonderful man that we were so lucky to call our dean. Through all his effort he helped transform Stony Brook into the school we are all proud to be a part of today. When asked for the actual definition of a Seawolf, he replied “Everyone with a SB ID. A person who shows and gives respect, displays concern for others and is proud to be a member of our community. ”
Staller shows live broadcast of opera “Così fan tutte” By Robbie Cimino Staff Writer
The audience is seated and the curtains are raised, but instead of the customary set with a smattering of actors and pit orchestra behind it, there hangs a large screen. Miles away in Lincoln Center, James Levine, the illustrious conductor, raps his baton against a music stand in real-time. The Metropolitan Opera: Live in HD, a series of live, high-definition performances, broadcasted the Met’s production of “Così fan tutte,” on Saturday, May 3 at the Staller Center for the Arts. Renée Fleming, a veteran American soprano opera singer, hosted the live event. Levine, after going on hiatus for two years following surgery to correct a back problem, returned to the Met at the beginning of September 2013 to conduct “Così fan tutte.” Although seated in a wheelchair, Levine’s spirited conducting style has not diminished since the surgery. Usually, when seated in the Met’s acoustically-sound recital hall, the conductor’s face is seldom
BRANDON BENARBA/ THE STATESMAN
Wolfgang Mozart's "Così fan tutte" is one of nearly 10 operas that Staller airs live from the Metropolitan Opera. tells them that “all women are the same.” For this reason, Alfonso tells the men to embrace and marry Fiordilgi and Dorabella. On the same shore where they watched their fiances sail to duty, the women are wed to their Albanian suitors. Just as they sign the marriage license, Alfonso hollers that the regiment’s boat has returned back home bringing with it, to the women’s knowledge, Ferrando and Guglielmo. The "foreigners" scurry offstage
and Ferrando and Guglielmo step down from their ship in pristine, white uniforms. The men pretend to uncover their fiancées’ unfaithful transgressions and accost them, but ultimately forgive them because, according to Alfonso, “all women are the same.” By contemporary standards, this play is offensive to women. “This doesn’t work for today’s modern woman,” Matthew Polenzani, who played Ferrando in the opera, said. “But this isn’t real, it’s just entertainment.”
Arts & Entertainment
The Statesman
Monday, May 12, 2014
7
College gal cooking: celebrating Taking a closer look at the the university's Strawberry Fest students behind Enclave By Nicole Bansen
Arts & Entertainment Editor
Stony Brook University’s Strawberry Fest is one of my favorite annual experiences on campus. You buy a ticket before the festival and the day of, you get to sample different strawberry themed dishes. This year, there were a few new choices. In honor of Strawberry Fest, this week’s College Gal Cooking is dedicated to talking about how each of the featured dishes came out. So if you are a fan of strawberries and you are interested in trying some of the dishes for next year, you are going to want to hear what I have to say about each one. The first stand I went to was the stand that featured a small spinach salad with grilled chicken, strawberries and mandarin oranges. It sounded pretty good, but the main reason it was my first stop was simply because it had the shortest line. However, once I actually tried the salad, I wanted to go back for
another. It was a great first choice. The vinaigrette used was not too strong and really complimented the sweetness of the fruit. This dish has been featured in previous years and I hope they continue to serve it in the future. As I munched on my sweet salad, I decided to go to the nacho line next. The line had to have been triple the size of the salad line. When I finally got to try the nachos with strawberry salsa, I was not really sure if it was worth the wait. I really liked the salsa, but there were only about eight chips in my container and that seemed a little stingy. The salsa was sweet and spicy and overall very good, but if this dish is featured next year, the school may want to reconsider the portion size. After the nachos, I waited on line for the strawberry ice-pop. The line went by much faster than the nacho line. The ice-pop was very refreshing on the warm sunny day and it was not too watered down or
MANJU SHIVACHARAN / THE STATESMAN
Strawberry Fest featured a new strawberry shortcake recipe. The strawberries arrived from the West Coast last week.
overly sweet. Compared to the ice cream sandwiches served in the past, I much prefer the ice-pop. The next dish I went to was a popular returner, the strawberry shortcake. Sadly, it was not quite as good as it has been in the past. The cake that was used this year was very thin and covered with a buttery oil. Most of the shortcake consisted of whipped cream and there were few strawberries in between. If the school plans on continuing having the strawberry shortcake, hopefully next year, it will actually have strawberries. Lastly, I went to the lemonade stand, which as always, was set up in the cutest manner. A white picket fence surrounded the booth and the line went very quickly. The lemonade was a little watery and overpowered the strawberry flavor, but it was sweet and cool and refreshing. Contrary to last year, there were not particles of fruit floating around in the cups and I personally preferred the lemonade without that. Some foods that have been featured in the past that were not featured this year include the strawberry smoothies, strawberry candy, strawberry ice cream and strawberry quinoa salad. I like that the school has been shifting to healthier choices, I just hope that they fix the portion sizes and consistency of strawberries in the food for upcoming years. If you are looking to make your own strawberry treat, here is a recipe for a strawberry mango smoothie. Dice up a few mangos and strawberries and throw them into a blender. Add eight ounces of plain yogurt, a half-cup of mango juice and blend until smooth. Enjoy!
Macaulay Culkin performs at SBU By Joe Malone Statesman Intern
The Graduate Student Organization hosted the semester’s last Stony Brooklyn concert on Friday at the University Café. More than 150 students—mainly graduate students—were packed into the UCafé to see Milk Dick—a New York City based rock trio who played RockYoFaceCase last spring—and The Pizza Underground, a comedy band featuring “Home Alone” star Macaulay Culkin. The band covered songs by The Velvet Underground but changed the lyrics to focus on pizza. The Pizza Underground’s lineup is Matt Colbourn on guitar, Phoebe Kreutz on glockenspiel—a hybrid between a xylophone and keyboards—Austin Kilham on tambourine, Deenah Vollmer on pizza box (she hits a pizza box with a drumstick) and Culkin on kazoo and percussion. All of the members do vocals. The show was initially scheduled for 8 p.m. and pushed to 10 p.m. due to an event taking place next door in the Union Ballroom. There was free pizza for students who showed up early. Stony Brooklyn shows take place
at the UCafé every other week. “We had a lot of RSVPs on Facebook, and there are lots of people here two hours before the start,” GSO President Jen Sidorova, a political science PhD student, said. GSO Secretary Mallory Locklear, a neuroscience PhD student, brought The Pizza Underground to GSO's attention. According to Locklear who is also a staff writer of The Statesman, the booking process took five months. She credits GSO Productions Manager Mary Garvey for booking Milk Dick, and many previous Stony Brooklyn bands. Locklear refers to booking The Pizza Underground as “the crowning achievement of my graduate career.” “I just handed in my dissertation today, so this is like my reward,” Locklear said. Milk Dick consists of Mike Delaney on guitar and vocals, Megan Luz on drums, and Brian Indig on bass. The members named The Velvet Underground, the B-52’s, R. Stevie Moore and the Grateful Dead among others as musical influences. “The students are all openminded and well-receptive to our type of music. They are all very excited,” Delaney said about the Stony Brook crowd. The Pizza Underground took
the stage around 11:30 p.m. They changed The Velvet Underground’s “One of These Days” into “Cheesy Days,” “I’m Beginning to See the Light,” into “I’m Beginning to Eat the Slice,” to name a few. The Pizza Underground declined an interview. In fact, Culkin has not spoken publicly about his involvement with the band since their formation earlier this year. The band just completed a tour around the United States, and will soon perform in the United Kingdom. Milk Dick plans to tour the East Coast this summer.
ANUSHA MOOKHERJEE/ THE STATESMAN
Milk Dick's Mike Delaney said they were a hit with the crowd.
PHOTO CREDIT: USG
Opening for this year's Brookfest were Kameron Myers and Tzvia Pinkhasov, two pre-med students known as Enclave. By Krysten Massa Contributing Writer
“I have bad news…you’re opening for Brookfest!” Garry Lachhar said to Kameron Myers. “I literally tackled him to the ground,” Kameron said. He was just given the biggest opportunity of his life thus far. Kameron Myers and Tzvia Pinkhasov are two graduating pre-med students at Stony Brook whose musical talents gave them the opportunity to perform as an opening act for this year’s Stony Brook Brookfest. The name Enclave was inspired by Myer's favorite video game, "Fallout 3." The name means a small group of people or small colony — a name that suits the dynamic duo. Myers, 22, is from Potomac, D.C. He has played music for the majority of his life, starting at the age of four. “I don’t like being told what to do,” Myers said about the piano lessons he received as a 4-year-old. In middle school Myerswas able to explore his musical talents. He taught himself how to make music. In 2012, Myers and Pinkhasov teamed up to form a group called Enclave. She wrote the lyrics and he wrote the melodies, and they were a good team together, Myers said. He described the type of music that they made as “beautiful.” Pinkhasov, was born in Queens but moved to Nassau County. She came from a musical family. Her father was a drummer, and her mother was going to be a conductor. She described having a family band, where she would sing, her younger twin brothers would play the bass and guitar and her father would play the drums. They played Led Zeppelin together. Although Pinkhasov has a very musical family, she said she is the one who takes it seriously. When Myers told her that he was given the opportunity to perform at Brookfest, her response was: “I’m going to sing something, right?!” Pinkhasov was excited about sharing the stage with famous musicians Childish Gambino and Diplo. But, she admitted that she was more nervous to meet Diplo than to actually perform at the
concert, despite the fact that it was the largest performance she had ever done. For Pinkhasov, balancing her passion for music and studying is hard. She said if something is your passion then you make time for it. She always tries to find various ways to stay involved with music as much as possible. She collaborates with other artists and sings jazz on campus. “I would rather keep it in my life even if it meant I wouldn’t get a 4.0 GPA,” Pinkhasov said. She said that during school time, music is something that helps to keep her sane. However, with Pinkhasov focusing more and more on her studies, Myers received the opportunity to work on his own music and create a sound different from the music the two would play together. He describes this new sound as more energetic, saying it is “something you can nod your head to.” Brookfest was definitely the biggest show he was able to play. He often performs at the University Café, where he met his manager, Danny Vykhopen, back in 2012. “He’s a great manager and a great friend,” Myers said. Both Myers and Pinkhasov said that their parents are very supportive of their music, but Pinkhasov thinks that her family would prefer her to be a doctor. “I always want music in my life in a way that is more than a hobby,” she said. She is not certain about a music career because she knows it is difficult, but she plans on keeping that door open. As far as Myers is concerned, there are two paths that his life can go down at this point. “If I could do music for the rest of my life, I would be the happiest kid,” he said. His dream job would be anything to do with music, preferably performing 365 days a year. Pinkhasov feels a similar way. She described how she has such a strong passion for music. Both Myers and Pinkhasov intend to continue their way to medical school in the near future. But, music will still be in their lives regardless.
Year i n Revi ew
857 articles One year later, university remains silent about accident Although it is more than a year since student Brianna Bifone was pinned under a police car driven by UPD officer Salvatore Casaccio, the university never released a statement on the incident.
Anusha mookherjee / the statesman
Storm of students stalls Back to the Brook concert Students stormed past security and rushed the Staller Steps before the concert could begin. It caused a delay with the performances and took almost 20 minutes to push students back. photo credit: usg
West Side Dining initially disappoints students In the first few weeks after the phase one opening, a lack of seating and what was seen as a downgrade in terms of food quality caused many students to lament the closing of Kelly Dining for West Side Dining. Basil john / the statesman
Jim Fiore forced to leave as Athletic Director Former Stony Brook Athletic Director Jim Fiore was forced to resign on Nov. 19. An ESPNW report revealed sexual discrimination among athletic personnel. He was replaced by Scott Helibron. statesman stock photo
designed by will welch
27 issues 124 comments
1013 tweets
388 shares Crackdown on illegal offcampus rental housing This year, local residents expressed concern over code violations by landlords housing students. Some allowed more than four unrelated renters in a home, which is against town code.
Gul Berktas / The Statesman
Photo credit: Ashley Tymann
Wendy’s nailed with Campus Dining investigation
SUNY Tobacco-Free Policy Goes Up In Smoke
Students were outraged when sophomore English major Ashley Tymann posted on Facebook that she found a rusty nail in the bun of her hamburger from Wendy’s at Roth Cafe.
Stony Brook discontinued an effort to become a tobaccofree campus after the state legislature did not pass a law that would have banned tobacco on SUNY campuses. The law is still pending.
Jesus Pichardo / The Statesman
Successful Brookfest has students pumped up Childish Gambino and Diplo both served as the headline performers for this year’s Brookfest. According to Diplo, students also broke the twerking world record during the concert.
Efal sayed / the Statesman
Photo credit: Mike pedersen
New campus food pantry provides for students
Seawolves fall to Albany in America East tournament
The School of Technology and Management partnered with Campus Residences to open a campus food pantry in the Gray College for students, faculty and staff with a valid Stony Brook ID.
Stony Brook had the homecourt advantage for the America East championship game, but lost 69-60 to the Albany Great Danes. The season ended with a CBI loss to the Siena Saints.
Nina lin / the statesman
Snowstorms tripled work for Facilities and Services
Rape reports in police log increase at Stony Brook
This semester, Stony Brook was slammed with three separate snowstorms, which resulted in three snow days and class cancellations. A reading day was canceled to make up for missed classes.
The 2013 annual campus security report showed 17 incidents of sexual assualt on Stony Brook’s campus in 2012, which was double the seven reported in 2010. Many assaults go unreported.
Hanaa’ tameez / the statesman
nina lin / the statesman
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Editorial: ending the year As the temperature warms up and flowers begin to bloom on campus, the sun is setting on another year at Stony Brook — and what a year it has been. There was never a dull moment on campus, from Homecoming and Brookfest to Jim Fiore leaving and an unrelenting winter. As we finish final exams and go our separate ways, it will be hard to leave campus and our fellow Seawolves behind. Stony Brook, for better or for worse, has been our home. While the majority of students will be returning in the fall, there are many others who will be graduating and moving on to bigger and better things. To you, we say good luck. Leaving the safety net of college is not an easy thing to do, but you could not be better prepared than you are with four years at Stony Brook behind you. We know you will achieve everything you set your mind to. And if you need it, Stony Brook will always be here to welcome you home. On behalf of those of us at The Statesman, we thank you all for sticking by our side and continuing to pick up our paper and visiting our
website. Delivering the news can be challenging and exhausting, but there is nothing else we would rather be doing. Many of our current editors are graduating this year, and walking away from both The Statesman and Stony Brook will be difficult. The majority of us have spent the last four years dedicated to this organization and becoming a family. Despite the fact that we know it is time to leave, it feels like it is too soon. We will miss you all. We hope you have a fun and exciting summer that takes you to new places. Come back with stories to tell, tanlines to show off and a reinvigorated desire to learn. For those graduating, there will always be a place for you here. It has truly been an honor to report, cover, photograph and document the achievements of our fellow Seawolves over this past year. Thank you. Here’s to the future. SincerelyThe Editorial Board
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Opinions
The Statesman
Monday, May 12, 2014
11
Advising? A lack of advising #gradschoolproblems Got puts SBU grad students behind Graduate students in need of a more competitive salary
By Tomasz Bakowski and Anusha Mookherjee Contributing Writer and Assistant Opinions Editor
ANUSHA MOOKHERJEE/ THE STATESMAN
The Graduate Student Organization during a monthly meeting to dicuss issues. By Tomasz Bakowski and Anusha Mookherjee Contributing Writer and Assistant Opinions Editor
It is an exciting time at Stony Brook University. With the SUNY 2020 and Project 50 Forward initiatives coupled with the transformative Simons gift, Stony Brook is poised to grow by leaps and bounds. The current plans at Stony Brook are to increase the faculty by 250-300 people over the next few years. As touched upon in the piece on graduate student housing, this massive expansion would also result in a large expansion of graduate student enrollment. But there remain many questions. We have already asked “where will they live?” in our previous piece, but now we must ask and even more basic question, “how will they live?” Graduate students have a mixed role - that of student and employee. During the length of their doctoral studies, which typically take between five to seven years, they depend on salaries or stipends to live and eat. When a graduate student first enrolls, they are guaranteed nine months of funding, which is paid directly by the Graduate School. In return for the stipend support, and in addition to any classes or research they perform, graduate students serve as teaching assistants.
ANUSHA MOOKHERJEE/ THE STATESMAN
Tomasz Bakowski is a fifth year Ph.D. student in Biomedical Engineering. Former Speaker of the Senate and Vice President of the Graduate Student Organization. For his PhD work, he is working on better understanding the physics of DNA molecules under confinement on the nanometer-scale.
After the first year, typically, a graduate student must find a professor or Principal Investigator (PI) who will fund them. As such, it is necessary that graduate students have a conversation with their prospective thesis adviser to guarantee that they have the funds to support them for the duration of their studies. This money come directly from research grants awarded to professors and is administered by the Research Foundation, the SUNY organization responsible for administering grants. Students in the humanities often continue to be supported by teaching assistantships. All graduate students are guaranteed a minimum level of funding support. This level was set at $15,145 for teaching assistants (TA) and research assistants (RA) for at least half a decade. Compared to other universities, both public and private in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU), Stony Brook ranked near the bottom of the bottom third in terms of minimum stipend support. Only in January 2013 did the minimum finally increase to $17,145. This raise was automatically applied to all TAs by the Graduate School; however, the minimum increase only applied for new grants, resulting in an increase in pay only for new RAs. Graduate student RAs on already funded and budgeted grants were not guaranteed any increase. The administration planned on continuing to increase the minimum stipend levels by $1000 per semester through the end of the 2014/2015 academic, up to a level of $20,145. An increase to that level would have increased Stony Brook’s ranking among AAU universities near the average from several years ago. Unfortunately, even this plan has not been followed through on by the administration, despite many promises made to the graduate student leadership. Money budgeted for TA stipend increases was instead utilized to pay for mandatory faculty salary raises as negotiated by the United University Professions (UUP), the faculty union. Currently there is no concrete plan offered by the administration for when the minimum stipend increases will be reinstated. Graduate salaries vary
tremendously at the department level and even between labs in the same department, with differences of over $10,000 over the course of a year between students in the same department. Some students are paid better with individual departments and PIs offering salaries significantly higher than the required minimums; however, this is not guaranteed. Many graduate students work for near the minimum, with many students in the social sciences and humanities being affected the most. This creates an extremely large disparity in the quality of graduate student life on campus, with some faring significantly better than others while performing similar work. Increasing the minimums would help to alleviate the economic disparity and hardship faced by hundreds of students. The cost of living on Long Island is over 30 percent higher than the national average. Despite this, the graduate student stipends offered to many are still below those offered at many other research universities.
“Graduate students have a mixed role- that of student and employee.” This forces graduate students with stipends near the minimum levels to often live paycheck to paycheck, barely being able to afford housing and food. As the university continues its expansion, we must be wary of the costs of growth. Although increasing faculty hires by nearly 300 is a lofty goal, it is important to remember the costs attached to that goal. More faculty means more graduate students. This will only cause more pressure on an already cracked system that barely holds up students today. The university should aim not just for quantity, but focus on increasing quality as well. Long term growth should be measured by not just numbers, but the productivity of the departments and ability to match higher institutions outside the lab. Continued on page 13
The average graduate student pursuing a Ph.D. spends around six years of his or her life working towards obtaining a doctorate. After expending such tremendous time and effort, newly minted doctors often find themselves asking, “what’s next?” With a lack of structure and appropriate advising within the graduate departments at Stony Brook University, for many, the answer remains muddled. Many graduate students do not seriously consider what their employment opportunities would be during their graduate studies and often find academic positions unavailable, alternative careers that they are unprepared for, or worse still, unaware of entirely. A significant part of this disconnect stems from the deficiencies in academic advising, that are reinforced by the structure and culture of graduate school. When one decides to join a department as a new graduate student, one works independently to find a position within the department. Generally, prospective students, if they come for a visit before they accept the offer, are advised to have in mind two-three professors or principal investigator (PI) who they would be interested in working with and contacting them before accepting an
in the employment outcomes and placement of their students, others play an absentee role in their advising roles. Others still do not entertain discussions of careers outside of academia, with an academic culture still occasionally viewing such paths as “lesser.” Furthermore, every department within the graduate school is independent of the others, so the requirements for and quality of advising and mentorship in each program varies widely as well. During the course of a Ph.D., graduate students are either unaware of or unable to pursue internship opportunities. There is little incentive for PIs to allow their students to pursue internships. While they can directly broaden and improve career prospects for current students, internships pull students from their primary job: research. That puts pressure on PIs who would face an economic and productivity loss. Many newly minted Ph.Ds go on to postdoctoral positions. In theory, one utilizes a postdoctoral to broaden one’s research experience and potential by working in a new institution and laboratory, and after two-three years finding a tenure track academic position. The reality of the situation is much more dire, with many young researchers toiling away for over half a decade through multiple post-docs for barely twice the pay of a graduate student, in what many have recognized as form of disguised
“Many graduate students do not seriously consider what their employment opportunities would be during their graduate studies and often find academic positions unavailable, alternative careers that they are unprepared for, or worse still, unaware of entirely.” offer of admission. Most departments at Stony Brook offer funding for the first nine months of one’s graduate career, starting when you arrive until around the first week of June. At that point, one needs to have found a PI willing to take on and pay a new graduate student in their lab. It is often advised among graduate students that one picks a lab/PI with a good or mediocre project, but a helpful and concerned PI rather than a possibly amazing project with an uninvolved PI. In the end, the exact content of one’s thesis does not matter as much as the “fit” between student and adviser given the close working relationship necessary over the course of a five plus year project. However, advising goes beyond getting help in obtaining a degree. Any degree is useless if a student does not have a place to apply his or her education. In terms of career advising, there is no assigned "mentor.” Rather, one’s PI serves a multi-functional role as your thesis adviser, employer and mentor all in one. Discussing future career opportunities with one’s adviser can be hit or miss. Professors are trained to be good academic researchers, and, as a result, typically are only capable of advising and training their students to pursue a similar academic career path, however, the number of available academic jobs has been steadily diminishing for decades. While many PI’s take a vested interest
unemployment. Fewer than one in five Ph.Ds in postdoctoral positions find tenured faculty positions. The National Science Foundation compiles data highlighting the employment problems of Ph.Ds in the sciences through their Survey of Earned Doctorates illustrating that less than 40 percent of students have committed jobs at graduation with large increases in the percentages of students either pursuing postdoctoral positions with unclear results or worse, remaining unemployed. A significant part of the problem regarding Ph.D advising and employment rests on prospective students themselves. Many incoming students do not have a clear career goal as to why they are seeking an advanced degree. When asked, many students claim that they will either pursue a career in academia or “industry”— an ambiguous term that fails to appreciate the many distinct career paths outside of academia often titled as “alternative careers.” This results in unmet expectations and unclear answers. The importance of preparing oneself for a broad range of career opportunities has started to become more obvious to many graduate students, with students beginning to work together to educate themselves on the possibilities out there. One Continued on Page 13
12
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Opinions
The Statesman
Monday, May 12, 2014
13
Less students, more pay? Graduate student advising lacks uniformity Continued from Page 11 Areas such as the cost of living and inflation, should be factored into the salaries given to students. Some have argued for stipends to be decreased or minimums reduced. The reasoning behind such an argument is twofold. First, if more students are willing to work for less to earn their doctorates, then they should be allowed to. The incentive for faculty is that they are able to increase the quantity of students working for them for the same amount of money. Second, if students are paid less than the required minimum they do not receive tuition waivers from the Graduate School because they are considered part time graduate students. Therefore, it is
over whether there is enough money to eat. Second, increased graduate student support levels attract competitive, quality applicants. This would only benefit the university in the long run by creating a workforce capable of producing higher quality research and academic papers. Third, increased support levels change the financial incentive for departments and PIs by encouraging them to focus on quality of students rather than quantity. With finite resources, departments are forced to be more selective in those who they admit into their programs. This only benefits all parties involved as the students who enroll are more committed to their work, PIs gain a higher quality student pool, and the
“As the university grows, and climbs in ranks as a research institution, it is vital to keep long term goals of growth in mind. ” argued that their should be no limits so as to not force students to pay for tuition as well. Arguments for not raising, or worse, decreasing minimum stipend levels for graduate students are insincere. Minimum graduate student support levels serve multiple important purposes, and should only be increased. First, they allow graduate students to have a decent standard of living during their graduate studies, allowing them to focus on their research, rather than stress and worry
university increases its reputation for research excellence. As the university grows and climbs in ranks as a research institution, it is vital to keep long term goals of growth in mind. Though in theory hiring hundreds of new faculty is an admirable and worthy endeavor, it must be done responsibly. The reality of the situation is more graduate students will be put into financial situations that will only take away from the quality of research and learning at Stony Brook University.
Continued from Page 11
graduate student club, The Graduate Career Association, has organized dozens of seminars, panels of alumni and networking sessions. The Graduate School and Career Center at Stony Brook have only in the past few years began to truly recognize the depth of the advising and employment problems faced by graduate students, starting to attempt to address them. These initiatives include organizing more events catered specifically to graduate student career opportunities, highlighting resume building and starting a new office within the graduate school, the Integration of Research, Education and Professional Development (IREP). The graduate school also hopes to have all students begin to plan and fill out their own Individual Development Plans (IDP), modeled on those available at http://myidp.sciencecareers.org/, to help students set short and long terms goals related to their professional careers, whether they be inside or outside academia. Such initiatives led by both student organizations and the Graduate School should be applauded. However, much more needs to be done to start setting career expectations for graduate students. One recommendation would be to have graduate students have additional mentors, not associated with their thesis advisers, focused primarily on discussing professional and career goals. This would allow students multiple perspectives and help guide students more effectively
during their studies. Another important change would be to require graduate students to take writing courses focusing on writing for non-expert audiences. Going one step further, including broader communication courses in the curriculum for all graduate students would be a boon for all involved parties. These courses could be modeled after those offered by the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science’s curriculum. It would help students not only become better presenters of their own scientific work, which bolsters their lab’s and the university’s reputation, but also better communicators to non-experts and future employers. Finally, the university should establish a centralized way to track student employment outcomes and placement post-graduation. Publishing this data for the use of current students, and even advisers, would be of immense value. Currently, any tracking of outcomes is done at best at the department level or at the level of individual labs or groups. At worst, not at all. This is a huge untapped resource for potential networking for current students and resource for hosting more career events on campus. Changing the academic culture is also important. Faculty and administrators must come to appreciate the fact that according to the NSF’s own statistics less than 14 percent of Ph.Ds will end up in tenure track positions more than five years after graduation. “Alternative careers” is a misnomer. Non-academic career paths are not
ANUSHA MOOKHERJEE/THE STATESMAN
Evgenia Sidorova, GSO President the alternative, but rather what the majority of graduates will pursue. Academic careers are the alternative, and in many places they are very hard to even obtain. Incoming and current students must also more seriously ask themselves why they want to obtain an advanced degree and how it will benefit their careers. If we intend on being a top tier research university, we cannot maintain the status quo when it comes to graduate education, training, and advising. The realities of the job market demand that students are prepared to tackle a wide range of career opportunities outside of traditional academia. Expectations need to be set, programs need to be improved and information needs to shared more widely.
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Sports
Monday, May 12, 2014
The Statesman
Master of Arts in
MEDICAL HUMANITIES, COMPASSIONATE CARE AND BIOETHICS Not just for healthcare professionals, this program serves students from a wide range of disciplines and professional backgrounds, building on a commitment to medical humanism and ethics that has defined education for Stony Brook students for more than three decades. The 30-credit Master of Arts program can be completed in as little as one year.
“It is through my Master of Arts in Medical
“The MA program opened my eyes to new avenues
Humanities, Compassionate Care and Bioethics that
to connect to our patients with respect and
I was able to enrich my knowledge base to include
compassion. It inspired me to pilot a program for
an ethical, medical and legal approach to often
Arts in Medicine, which has made my staff more
challenging situations.”
receptive to the non-medical needs of their patients.”
— Robyn McKeefrey, MA Program Graduate
— Linda Bily, MA Program Graduate
APPLICATION DEADLINES FOR FALL 2014 U.S. Residents: July 1, 2014 International Students: May 15, 2014 For more information or to apply to the program, visit stonybrook.edu/bioethics/masters or email Michael.Ortega@stonybrookmedicine.edu
Stony Brook University/SUNY is an affirmative action, equal opportunity educator and employer. 14031065
The Statesman
Sports
Monday, May 12, 2014
15
Women's Lax eliminated in second Hot bats carry Stony Brook to three round of NCAA Tournament game sweep against UMBC Retrievers By Andrew Eichenholz Staff Writer
After defeating Towson for the second year in a row in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Stony Brook Women’s Lacrosse team succumbed to arguably the best team in the country, Syracuse, by the score of 13-6. Senior goalie Frankie Caridi, also a Tewaaraton Award nominee for the best player in college lacrosse, has stood up to everything that has come her way throughout her illustrious career on Long Island. For two straight seasons, Caridi has led the country in goals against average and save percentage. But she could do nothing to stop Tewaaraton Award finalist Alyssa Murray along with the rest of Syracuse's team. Murray delivered a massive blow early, leaving the Seawolves stumbling to their feet the rest of the way, but not in time to defeat the second-seeded Orange. Murray scored the first four goals of the game for Syracuse, all within the first 8:36 of the game, beating Caridi with bounce shots in the bottom corners of the net. After the quick flurry, coach Joe Spallina tried settling down his team with a timeout. From then on, Stony Brook played a somewhat even game against a team that may end up with the national championship. Junior Amber Kupres got things started with a goal, after she led the Seawolves in both the America East Championships and the team’s first round NCAA win. Kupres did not add any more numbers to the stat sheet, but she
did a great job marking Murray for a good chunk of the rest of the game, holding her goalless the rest of the way. Freshman Courtney Murphy, who led the country in goals scored by freshmen dominated the second half for the Seawolves. She was able to outscore Syracuse all by herself 4-3, adding the four goals to her astounding 61-goal total for the year. Kristin Yevoli, another one of the team’s dynamic freshmen also contributed to the effort for Stony Brook, adding a goal of her own to help keep the Seawolves in touch. Senior Alyssa Cardillo finished up her college career with a strong performance. She dished out three assists to help the goal-scorers bury the ball in the back of the net. Once the Stony Brook defense settled down as the game went on, they returned to the form they showed all season long, which held opponents to less goals than anybody else in the country. Caridi contributed four saves in the effort, which held Syracuse scoreless the final 18:13 of the game. The Seawolves finished their banner year with 17 wins, a Tewaaraton nominee and las but definitely not least, an America East title. Key pieces will be departing this spring. However, the young group of freshmen which has led the Seawolves all season long, including Murphy, Yevoli, Dorrien Van Dyke and Alyssa Guido will have three more years to show the country, “What’s a Seawolf?”
By Catie Curatolo Assistant Sports Editor
The Stony Brook Baseball team dominated UMBC this weekend, sweeping them in three games. This is the sixth straight win for the Seawolves, who have won 25 of their last 30 games. SBU had 34 hits on the weekend, scoring in double digits for the sixth time in the last nine games. They improved to 31-15 overall and 16-4 in the America East, while UMBC dropped to 16-26 overall and 7-14 in the conference. The Seawolves took Friday’s games 5-3 and 11-3, and won Saturday’s rubber match 10-3. Senior pitcher Frankie Vanderka retired the first 12 batters he faced in game one on Friday, keeping the Retrievers hitless until the fifth inning. With the score tied at one, a big seventh inning helped SBU break the game open. A double from junior Cole Peragine moved senior Kevin Courtney to third and set the Seawolves up with two runners in scoring position. Freshman Casey Baker hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Courtney. Sophomore Johnny Caputo followed with another double to score Peragine. He would later score on a UMBC fielding error. From then on, it was easy going. Vanderka allowed the Retrievers one run each in the eighth and ninth inning, but finished his fourth complete game of the season. It was also the 16th complete game of the year. He allowed three runs on
seven hits, striking out three and walking none. The second game went the same way for the Seawolves, who opened the first inning with four runs. Junior Kevin Krause, who went 5-for-9 on the day, hit an RBI single to start the scoring. Baker then hit into a fielder’s choice, driving home a run in the process. Courtney then scored on a throwing error and Caputo doubled to score Baker. Caputo would go on to drive in four runs in game two. RBI singles from Krause, Peragine and junior Robert Chavarria in the fourth made the score 7-0. A Krause double and Chavarria walk in the sixth set Peragine up for an RBI single to center, and a three-run homer over the centerfield fence from Caputo made it 11-1 and blew the game open. The Retrievers did not have a chance against pitcher Brandon McNitt and his defense. The senior allowed only two runs on six hits over six innings, striking out nine batters. The Seawolves had 24 hits on Friday, with 15 of them coming in game two. Peragine, Baker, Krause, Chavarria, Caputo and sophomore Jack Parenty all had at least one multi-hit game in the doubleheader. Peragine led the Seawolves offensively, going 6-for-8 on the day. After a rain delay halted Saturday’s game in the second inning, Stony Brook had a six-run third inning. Senior Josh Mason started the inning with a leadoff infield single, and ended up on third
after back-to-back UMBC errors loaded the bases. Krause hit an RBI single to center, and Peragine followed two batters later with an RBI single to right. The Seawolves scored another run on a wild pitch, and backto-back RBI base hits from Baker and Caputo drove in two more. Another wild pitch brought Baker home for the final run of the inning. SBU led 6-0 after sending 11 batters to the plate in the inning. In the fifth, with the score 7-2, Krause blasted a bases-loaded triple to left, scoring all three runners and making it 10-2. Sophomore starter Tyler Honahan and three relievers kept the Retrievers in check, retiring 21 of the last 23 batters they faced. Honahan allowed three runs on three hits over six innings, and sophomore Tim Knesnick, senior Bryan Tatelman and freshman Cameron Stone each added one scoreless inning of relief. The Seawolves had 10 hits to UMBC’s three on Saturday, drawing three walks and leaving only six men on base. Krause had four RBIs on the day. After the three-win weekend, the Seawolves are 16-4 in the America East. This means that they can finish no worse than second place in the conference. Stony Brook is currently a half-game ahead of Hartford in first place, and the two teams will finish the regular season with a three-game series at Joe Nathan Field next weekend. The winner of the series will be the No. 1 seed in the upcoming America East Championship.
Former Women's Basketball head coach O'Boyle prepares for new challenges at VCU By Hanaa’ Tameez Assistant News Editor
Former Stony Brook Women’s Basketball coach Beth O’Boyle may be 395 miles away at Virginia Commonwealth University, but part of her is still in Stony Brook. On April 28, the Stony Brook Athletics department announced O’Boyle’s resignation. That same day, VCU informed its campus of her arrival and formal introduction on April 29. But as Stony Brook sports teams have become somewhat accustomed to management changes this year, O’Boyle’s choice to accept the position as VCU’s Women’s Basketball head coach was partly a personal one. “VCU is an opportunity for me where one of the biggest things is to get closer to home,” O’Boyle said in a phone interview. “My family is all in Maryland, less than two hours from here. The opportunity for them to share in my coaching a little bit more and be a closer to them was really a big part of the decision. “I absolutely love my players at Stony Brook and I couldn’t even imagine not coaching them next
year,” she continued. “It was extremely difficult and it was really important to me that they hear my decision from me and not on Twitter.” O’Boyle was hired in April 2011 and with three years of coaching Stony Brook’s team under her belt, she turned the tables, going from four wins in the 2011-2012 season to 24 this year. This past March, she guided the Seawolves into their first America East Conference Championship final since 2002 with a 13-3 record. Later on that same month, she was named the Met Writers Coach of the Year. Proud of the development of the basketball program and her relationships with the Stony Brook players, O’Boyle said the team is ready to take on more challenges, even though she will not be there. “I think the culture is established so that the players are going to excel in the classroom and also work extremely hard in the weight room and on the court,” she said. “They’re competitors. Their
goals are to compete for the America East Championship. The foundation is there for them to take the next step.” Although she has not started coaching at VCU due to NCAA regulations, O’Boyle said that working with a young team in a bigger conference and the program's previous successes were what attracted her to the position. “I think [it was] the opportunity to compete in the Atlantic 10 Conference,” she said. “Shaka [Smart] and the men’s program have been extremely successful and they’ve been to the final four and they’re investing in an incredible $25 million practice facility for the men’s and women’s basketball teams.” With new challenges ahead, O’Boyle said there was one goal that she could not quite fulfill during her tenure at SBU. “I was really looking forward to the opportunity to play in the arena,” she said. “I think that that is going to be an incredible experience for the players and obviously the goal is always to win the America East Championship and I think we
PHOTO CREDIT: AMERICA EAST
O'Boyle led the Seawolves to 24 wins in the 2013-14 season were really close this year.” In the official Stony Brook presentation, newly hired athletic director Shawn Heilbron addressed the vacancy O’Boyle left behind. “The next step for me is to get here, to get started, to hire a women’s basketball coach, which is definitely on top of the list,” he said. O’Boyle said she is confident that the Athletics department will find someone to keep pushing the
team forward. “It is very difficult when your coach leaves and you’ve been used to a certain system and there’s a little bit of an anxiety,” she said. “I think [assistant ] coach [Mitmesser] and also Donna Woodruff have done an excellent job of making sure the players are very focused but also understand that finding the next coach is very important and that they’re going to do everything possible to bring in another great coach.”
Sports
Heilbron looks to put Stony Brook Athletics on the map By Andrew Eichenholz Staff Writer
Head to any sporting goods store and you will see plenty of Gators, Longhorns, Tarheels, Blue Devils and Wildcats apparel. After the introductory press conference for new Stony Brook Director of Athletics Shawn Heilbron, it is apparent that the former Oregon State Senior Associate Athletic Director has the lofty goal of having a Seawolf on those shelves right next to the rest of the nation’s powerhouses. What does this mean to Stony Brook fans, athletes and students? It means their athletic program’s new leader no longer wants to settle for being the team that has a mysterious mascot that is completely unknown if one leaves the tristate area. From recruits to fans, students to spectators, Heilbron wants to get the Stony Brook program to the point where the question of “What’s a Seawolf” is no longer necessary. Dean Jerrold L. Stein, who recently announced his retirement, was quietly sitting in attendance at the back of the press section for Heilbron’s introduction. Stein had many accomplishments, including coining the phrase “What’s a Seawolf?” “No one coast to coast will have to ask, ‘What is a Seawolf ?” Heilbron said. “They will know who we are.” The idea of having an athletic director who wants his university’s name to be known has to inspire the student population, especially the student-athletes.
At the end of the day, although administration, coaches, support staff and the students are important in an athletic program, the driving force will always, 100 percent of the time be the student-athletes. With most of the team and its coaches in attendance, hearing aspirations of pushing our brand across the country must be music to their ears. “The sky is the limit for the Seawolves,” Heilbron said. “I am so thrilled to help work together to increase our heights and make sure that everybody knows what a Seawolf is.” Today, Stony Brook’s football team is in the Colonial Athletic Association, which is within the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), the lower end of the Division I football spectrum. From what Heilbron led the crowd to believe, he wants the school’s football program to lead the way to national prominence, with recognition amongst the LSUs and Alabamas of the college sports world. However realistic or unrealistic that is at the moment, the thought that Heilbron wants Stony Brook to get there has to give student-athletes confidence. If Stony Brook’s new leader is willing to set such a steep goal of recognition for the school, one has to think they would take that challenge and run with it. Big time recruits want to go to a school that they recognize with success, one that they can identify with a brand. More times than not, from football to basketball and beyond, the recruiting lists show time and
time again that the same schools get the highest quantity of toplevel recruits. Why? They have heard of the school, and associate it with success. If Stony Brook shows recruits that they are shooting for the stars, they will be more inclined to jump into that rocket and blast off with the rest of the Seawolves. Sure, it is unrealistic to think that when we wake up tomorrow, Stony Brook will be on SportsCenter getting mentioned by the analysts of College Gameday, First Take and so on. But the attitude which Heilbron displayed at his
introduction left an optimistic taste of where this program is aiming to go moving forward. To get there, we need to win. “That’s what I am here to do. I am here to win,” Heilbron said. “I want to win in everything that we do.” Something that should not go unnoticed was a comment Heilbron made about Donna Woodruff, who acted as interim director of Athletics during the search. “I don’t think enough has been said about her leadership, and class and dignity with which she’s led this program over the last six months,” Heilbron said.
For all intents and purposes, Stony Brook’s department could have done an about-face and started trending in a negative direction after the buying-out of our previous Athletic Director Jim Fiore’s contract. Instead, Stony Brook has advanced to multiple NCAA Championships, won multiple America East titles and established itself as a mid-major powerhouse. Let us remember this press conference years down the road as the day that Stony Brook made its move, from not only being an academic powerhouse, but a sports powerhouse as well.
another from Jessica Combs. Also, 11 of their 15 hits in the game came in this inning. Pisciotta started the inning with a solo shot to center, getting back the run that Allison Cukrov gave up in the third. Back to back RBI singles from Mintun and Giosia made it 7-1 in the inning. Zeilman then got two more RBI when she reached on an error by UMBC third baseman Kaelin Jackson. After Green scored Giosia with an RBI double, it was 10-1 Seawolves, the game was out of reach, and everybody had batted in the inning. Pisciotta, facing a new Retriver pitcher in Nicole Casagrand, came back up to the plate and sent her second home run of the frame into the left center field bullpen, making it 13-1 Stony Brook. The home team would then get three more in the inning. Cukrov didn't allow a baserunner in the top half of the fifth, ending the game 16-1, pushing UMBC to the brink of elimination. “This was a statement game,” Bryant said. “We really swung the bats well.” Cukrov also pitched well, allowing three hits while striking out five in the complete game effort. Stony Brook started strong again
on Friday against their in-state rivals, putting a run up in the bottom of the first courtesy of Zeilman. Mintun got a one-out single and then while Zeilman was up, stole second. The right fielder then lined one through the right side of the infield and Mintun scored to go up 1-0. With Mintun and Giosia on base in the bottom of the third, Green smoked a home run over the center field fence, upping the Seawolves lead to 4-0. In the bottom of the sixth, the bases were loaded for Mintun, the senior third baseman. She hit a grounder through the left side of the infield, scoring Pisciotta and making it 5-0. With the bases still loaded, it was Giosia. Flashback to 2013. In game one of the two the Seawolves needed to take the crown last year, Giosia smoked a grand slam to left to give her team a 4-2 lead, against the same pitcher she faced today, Brittany MacFawn. She did the same again in this one, smoking one over the left field fence, clearing the bases and ending the game 9-0 in six innings, giving the Seawolves a berth in the championship game. Cukrov was dominant yet again, only striking out a pair in this one but
still holding a potent Albany offense to just three hits in the shutout. Albany beat Binghamton for the second time, setting up a rematch on Sunday for the America East championship. However this time the roles are reversed, as it is Albany who needs to win twice to take the crown. And they did just that, but were pushed to the very edge. Cukrov and MacFawn battled and both were up to the task. Cukrov finished with seven strikeouts through the 9.2 innings of work, while throwing 193 pitches. MacFawn did just as much damage, striking out four in her 10 full innings, throwing 148 pitches. The Seawolves started the game strong, loading the bases with one out. They were unable to score though, as Green hit an infield fly and Pisciotta grounded out. It was a game filled with great pitching and defense, with the pitchers leading the way. In the top of the tenth, Combs broke the deadlock with one swing, smoking a home run into the leftcenter field bullpen, putting Stony Brook up 1-0. Zeilman would add a sacrifice fly, making it 2-0 and that looked to be a safe lead. Not safe enough for Albany catcher Elizabeth Snow, however. With a 2-0
count, she hit a high fly over the left field fence by a mere couple of inches, propelling the Great Danes to a 3-2 win and deflating the Seawolves. Stony Brook put up 10 hits in game one, but left 10 runners on base. That deflation would carry into game number two, and Albany would start strong. “It was tough to get the team up for game two.” Bryant said. “These are 18-22 year olds. Pro athletes haven’t figured it out yet,” she added on coming back after a deflating loss. Albany would get two runs in the top of the first, and those seemed to take all hope away from Stony Brook. Maggie Cocks singled in McFarland, and Cocks would score on a Marlin Solano single. Albany scored four in the top of the sixth, and then two more on a Charlise Castro home run to right in the seventh, making it an insurmountable 8-0 Great Dane lead. Green would add her tournament-leading third home run in the bottom of the seventh, but it was too little too late. “We need to use this sadness to drive us over the summer to become bigger, faster, stronger,” Bryant said. “We’ll be back.”
HEATHER KHALIFA/ THE STATESMAN
Shawn Heilbron (left) was introduced as Stony Brook's new Athletic Director on Friday.
Softball loses pair to Albany in attempt to repeat as AE Champs By Cameron Boon Assistant Sports Editor
“Our goal all season has been to repeat, which is tough to do in any sport, at any level,” coach Megan Bryant said on Thursday after her team’s opener against UMBC. Well, that tough goal was proven as such, as the Seawolves lost a heart-breaker to the Albany Great Danes 3-2 in ten innings, then could not rebound in the second game, losing 8-1. Mother Nature also played a role in the games this weekend, pushing back all three sets of games. “You can’t lose your focus,” Bryant said. “This team did a really good job of staying locked in.” Stony Brook got on the board early Thursday, putting up four in the bottom of the first. After a Shayla Giosia single scored Olivia Mintun to start, Bria Green brought home Giosia and Jessica Zeilman with a home run onto the hill in left. Danielle O’Neill tried to get some momentum back into the young Retriever team when she sent her 11th homer of the year over the center-field wall. Little did they know what was about to happen. Stony Brook put up 12 runs in the bottom of the fourth, including two homers from Alexandra Pisciotta and