The Spectator

THE SPECTATOR

THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-EAU CLAIRE’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1923

VOL. 92, NO. 1

FALL 2013

Thursday, Sept. 5

CHANGES ON THE HORIZON A large part of the campus mall is now accessible, yet construction may continue until spring >> MALL page 3

ELIZABETH JACKSON / The Spectator

OUT FOR A STROLL: As fall 2013 semester classes begin and students walk around campus, the education building’s construction is still a hindrance for many students trying to navigate to their classes.

SPORTS

NEWS

PAGES 8-9

PAGES 1-5

WE CAN SKATE! After much deliberation, Lakeshore Park is now home to a new skatepark

SHOW YOUR SPIRIT

CURRENTS PAGES 10-12

FRESH BEATS

UW-Eau Claire offers 14 Chief Copy Editor Zack different sports teams to show Katz’s critiques a new off your Blugold pride rapper in his weekly column

>> page 5

Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter (@spectatornews) for exclusive, up-to-date content!

>> page 8

>> page 12

Daily updates, breaking news, multimedia

www.spectatornews.com

THIS WEEK ON

OP / ED PAGES 13-15

BRANCHING OUT Venturing past your comfort zone in Eau Claire is a must for college students

>> page 14

STUDENT LIFE PAGE 16

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

Student senators handle an enormous workload to better themselves, campus

>> page 16

Would you support a citywide bike rental system implemented in Eau Claire?

LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD AT www.facebook.com/spectatornews

Exclusively this week on Spectatornews.com NEWS: Bridging gaps — New transit route allows for quicker travels between Eau Claire and Menomonie.

SPORTS: Finishing strong ­— Women’s soccer scores three times in final 20 minutes of game to win.

OP / ED: Redneck offensive ­— One staffer says song about stalking should not be allowed on the radio.

NEWS

NEWS EDITOR: Steve Fruehauf

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Thursday, Sept. 5

reaches out to students, faculty THE SPECTATOR Chancellor Summer work deals heavily on campus issues, legislative bodies

THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - EAU CLAIRE STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1923

EDITORIAL STAFF Editor in Chief Managing Editor News Editor Sports Editor Currents Editor Op/Ed Editor Chief Copy Editor Copy Editor Copy Editor Photo Editor Multimedia Editor Staff Writer/Graphic Design

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David Heiling Martha Landry Steve Fruehauf Nick Erickson Emily Albrent Katie Bast Zack Katz Nate Beck Brittni Straseske Elizabeth Jackson Haley Zblewski Karl Enghofer Katherine Macek Cori Picard Ellis Williams Rachel Streich Becky Olson Ryan Spaight Nicole Miller Courtney Kueppers

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John Enders Abigail Vidmar Rachel Simonet Alison Burdick-Evenson Scott Suring

David Heiling EDITOR IN CHIEF

Chancellor Jim Schmidt inherited several responsibilities when he was selected to become UW-Eau Claire’s eighth chancellor last spring.

Communicating with Board of Regents members in Madison in regards to a new legislative panel he will be serving on, getting updated on the newest involvements of the diversity program, and getting briefed on finance reports were all on the agenda before noon on Tuesday.

Schmidt said his Tuesday afternoon involved meeting with University Senate, conducting interviews for Channel 13 News and student radio on campus, and — a schedule something close to madness.

“My schedule today, I know is full,” Schmidt said. “You know what, I’ll have to actually look. My schedule fills up and without my gadgets here I might be lost.”

But Schmidt still finds time to talk to students and faculty members.

On Aug. 29, Schmidt went to upper-cam-

Business Manager Asst. Business Manager

John Pesavent Connor Rafferty

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ADDRESS: Hibbard Hall 104, Eau Claire, WI 54701 EDITORIAL PHONE: (715) 836-4416 ADVERTISING PHONE: (715) 836-4366 BUSINESS PHONE: (715) 836-5618 FAX: (715) 836-3829 EMAIL: spectator@uwec.edu FACULTY ADVISOR: Mike Dorsher - (715) 836-5729 Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter (@spectatornews) for exclusive, up-to-date content!

he talks with them.

“The genuine questions he asks really makes me believe students are number one in his eyes,” Major said. “He shakes their hands, asks them where they’re from, what field they are going into. It’s wonderful to see.”

It’s not just fun and games for Schmidt, however. He said he also addressed the Eau Claire City Council twice, met with the deans of all the colleges on-campus along with meeting with legislative bodies state-wide.

After appearing at the dorms to welcome freshmen, Schmidt attended Phase II Orientation Aug. 30 for the newest members of our university and was asked to speak to them.

At the end of his speech, Schmidt said Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Beth Hellwig, “let the cat out of the bag” that it was his birthday.

“Two-thousand freshman singing me happy birthday was a first,” he said. “I think I actually blushed.”

Heiling can be reached at 715-836-4416 or heilindc@uwec.edu.

Barstow Street construction continues Downtown businesses struggle due to street renovation Zack Katz

BUSINESS STAFF

pus to meet freshmen moving in and talk to resident assistants about different topics.

“It’s great to see the wide-eyed freshman, their parents, their grandparents,” he said. “Seeing the Hall Raisers, faculty and staff were volunteering and welcoming (students) to SCHMIDT campus. It just feels great.”

Senior information systems major Shane Meunier was a Hall Raiser assisting the move-in Aug. 29. He said moving in was a success and it was good to see Schmidt there on campus.

“I saw him for a little bit, he came up to me and the other RA’s of Sutherland,” Meunier said. “He was chatting with us a bit, super friendly guy. Seemed like he was really interested in what was going on.”

Chuck Major, director of housing and residence life, had a chance to talk to Schmidt on freshman move-in day and said it’s evident Schmidt’s priority is students based on how

CHIEF COPY EDITOR While summer may have flown by for those returning to UW-Eau Claire, local businesses on Barstow Street felt the strain of a $2 million construction project that dragged along for months until its early Aug. completion.

Kathy Tepaske manages Acoustic Café, a cornerstone business on Barstow that has been thriving for the past two decades. The café sits on the fringe of where construction occurred on the southern section of Barstow.

“We have a steady stream of regular customers mainly during lunch hours on weekdays,” Tepaske said. “A lot of people from surrounding businesses like law offices tend to make it their weekly or even daily stop.”

Tepaske said her business was especially down on weekends. Due to Acoustic Café’s convenient location, however, she acknowledges things could have been much worse.

“We consider ourselves so lucky considering our building’s side access and surrounding free parking,” Tepaske said. “I know there were a lot of businesses that were really, really hit by this … for a lot of people, particularly handicapped, you just couldn’t access some of these places.”

Billy Siegel, owner of Revival Records, has been operating his business on Barstow Street for four years as of Oct. Though his sales took a hit as a result of renovation, he said his community regulars are what kept him going — in finances and morale.

“Like any of the other business downtown, construction was definitely a factor for us this summer,” Siegel said. “I lost a lot of foot traffic but my local customers were very nice about finding their way through the mess.”

Though construction caused Barstow businesses a deal of monetary strain, they are anything but competitors. Instead, stores regulate as a collective in order to brave hardships such as this summer through community events like First Fridays.

During the first Friday of every month, many businesses downtown extend their hours to 9 p.m., and look to offer unique deals in an attempt to gather the community and stimulate sales.

Siegel said the close-knit atmosphere of downtown Eau Claire is crucial for his record store’s business.

“I do rely a lot on word of mouth … and I do just try to stay as involved with the local community as possible,” Siegel said.

Revival Records hosts sales, and occasionally a spinning wheel to hand out prizes — including

free albums. Siegel said events such as First Friday will be a benefactor in the process of revamping business in the southern Barstow area.

The university is in the process of working to familiarize Eau Claire newcomers to the renovated Barstow, as well as the downtown community as a whole. A shuttle will be available for freshman students to tour the city this Friday.

Senior Jennifer Pelton, a certified nursing assistant who cared for patients in the downtown area over the summer, sees this as a healthy opportunity to decrease the disparity between university and city interaction.

“Personally, I had no idea what downtown had to offer until my junior year of college,” Pelton said. “I never made it down to see when I was new to campus…but it’s nice to think this will help introduce freshmen to downtown and help stores gain a new business crowd.”

Barstow Street is estimated to be free of construction by mid-September. During the wait, businesses such as Acoustic Café and Revival Records will look to regain their normal flow of clientele.

Katz can be reached at 715-8364416 or katzzt@uwec.edu.

ELIZABETH JACKSON / The Spectator

CONSTRUCTION: Since Barstow Street went under construction at the beginning of this summer, local businesses said they have seen less customers.

NEWS EDITOR: Steve Fruehauf

NEWS 3

Thursday, Sept. 5

Widespread search for new dean ends in Wisconsin

CAMPUS CALENDAR

Joseph Abhold leaves UW-Oshkosh to take the reigns as new UW-Eau Claire dean of students Nicole Miller STAFF WRITER

When Vice Chancellor of Affairs, Beth Hellwig and her committee narrowed their search for a new dean of students, they looked for compassion in job candidates, boiling down their search from 48 to four.

“We posted it in the chronicle of higher education that goes out all over the world,” Hellwig said. “And we also sent announcements to colleagues around the whole state in case they knew somebody who would be interested.”

Joseph Abhold won the job, taking over as UW-Eau Claire’s dean of students Sept. 1.

Before accepting the job at Eau Claire, Abhold was the director of the UW-Oshkosh Counseling Center. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Oshkosh and received his masters and doctoral degrees in clinical psychology from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Having a Ph.D is not required as part of the job description but Hellwig said it’s preferred.

Hellwig said his exemplary education and progressive experience working in higher education at Oshkosh qualified him for the position.

From August 2010 to March 2011, he served as the interim dean of students at UW-Oshkosh, according to a press release.

Abhold’s knowledge of statewide policies and procedures working within the system at Oshkosh gave Hellwig even further reason to believe he was the right person for the job.

“I was hoping to have somebody by Sept.

1,” Hellwig said. “I think he’s going to be able to step in and hit the ground running.”

Some of his responsibilities include supervising the Student Health Center and Student Senate. He’ll also serve on the chancellor’s cabinet and respond to crisis management and student discipline issues.

From the student body president to a student dealing with grief and loss, ABHOLD many will make their way to Abhold’s office.

“He’s been a director of a counseling center,” she said. “You have to have a lot of talents and skills and problem solving.”

As for his reaction to being chosen for the position, Abhold said he’s thrilled.

“I’m really looking forward to getting to know the Eau Claire community,” he said.

Freshman health care administration major Mason Narel said Abhold’s experience in counseling makes him more approachable when seeking support for problems.

“Most kids would go to the dean of students whether they had an issue regarding attendance or something involving academics,” he said. “With his background in counseling, students can go to him with issues other than academics, if they’ve experienced loss of a loved one or they are homesick.”

Getting to know students and hearing about their needs are among his top priorities and also the biggest challenge that lays ahead, Abhold said.

“I’d like people to introduce themselves to me and talk with me and let me know who they are and what they are doing and how they are involved and how I may be able to assist them in working together to make campus a better, more successful place,” Abhold said.

Abhold said developing a culture of support and challenge for students where everyone in the community feels like they have a responsibility to each other to make the campus a better place and to help everyone to succeed is his ultimate goal.

“To me, that’s the most exciting aspect of being an administrator in higher education,” he said. “You have the opportunity to do fun and creative things with smart hardworking people, and that’s really cool.”

Miller can be reached at 715-836-4416 or millernm@uwec.edu.

Mall still in progress CURRENTS EDITOR

Through all the dust and constant construction, UW-Eau Claire is starting to see a turn of events as more trees and grass are being added to the campus, but the construction isn’t over yet.

“I think we are going to see a replay of what happened in the other mall, unless the weather really cooperates and we have a lot of good luck,” Director of Facilities Management Terry Classen said.

If luck is not on their side, construction will continue into the spring. Although if things go according to plan, it could be done by the end of this fall semester.

Students will be seeing many additions to the campus mall including sidewalks, lights and the moving of the bronzed sculpture, the Sprites — but they won’t see the clock.

“It has to do with the scale of things,” Classen said. “The new mall has enough of a circle in it, that the clock would be dwarfed.”

Classen said students and faculty at the university have been reasonably receptive to the new additions and construction.

“We anticipated that if we didn’t get the sidewalk opened that leads to the mall, we would have gotten a lot of gripes,” Classen said.

Associate German Professor, Josh Brown is not too disappointed with the tree removal.

“It’s less aesthetically pleasing,” Brown said. “But I guess we’re getting more green space with the amphitheater.”

Brown said the most exciting aspect of this construction is the new education building because the foreign languages department will be moving from Hibbard Hall to Centennial Hall.

“It will be fun to get more light in our offices, to be in a newer building and to also get out more a little bit because we are always in Hibbard,” Brown said. “It will be nice to walk around and to see students outside and enjoying the sun or the winter.”

While others sympathize with the construction, some are not too sure about it taking so long to be completed.

“I wish they would just get it done and push that gate back, it’s congested,” Eau Claire junior Rachael Lionberger said.

One of her biggest struggles with the construction was last year when she injured her leg and had to walk around on crutches. She found it difficult to get around so many other students in such a small area.

“It was stressful because I had a huge boot on my foot,” she said.

“I was slowing everyone up and I felt bad.”

THURSDAY, SEPT. 5 7:30 p.m. - 9 p.m. — Foster Gallery “Art Faculty Show” Opening Reception, Haas Fine Arts Center

•

FRIDAY, SEPT. 6 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. — UAC concert: Teddy Geiger, Owen Park Bandshell, rain sight: Ojibwe Ballroom

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SATURDAY, SEPT. 7 10 a.m. - 10 p.m. — Chippewa Valley Rock-NRoll Kickball Classic, Cinder City Park

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SUNDAY, SEPT. 8 1 p.m. ­— UWEC Players: “Thieves and Bad, Bad Lies”, Riverside Theatre, Haas Fine Arts Center

•

•

Grass and trees reappear on campus this fall Emily Albrent

NOTABLE EVENTS HAPPENING BOTH ON AND OFF CAMPUS

MONDAY, SEPT. 9 7 - 9 p.m. — “Codebreaker” film and Q&A with producer, Woodland Theatre, Davies Center

TUESDAY, SEPT. 10 •

8 p.m. — Artisan Evening: Open Mic/Stage, The Plus

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 11 •

10 a.m. - 2 p.m. — Community Action Fair, Ojibwe 330C, Davies Center

ELIZABETH JACKSON / The Spectator

GREAT VIEW: Flowers are blooming and the trees are green, meaning it’s time to spend off hours on the campus mall. A pathway between Schofield Hall and Centennial Hall opened on August 30.

Some may want construction block sight lines.” to end sooner than later but ClasLionberger said she’s alsen said they are doing all they ready seeing a difference in can to accommodate students and the aesthetic value of the professors. campus mall.

“We are not going to be able to do “I definitely like it,” she said. better than what you see out there “I wish (trees) were bigger. That right now and I realize it’s not perwill take some years, but I like the fect, “Classen said. “I wish it were grass because it makes it a lot more wider, but I just can’t improve on it.” attractive to look at when you walk The renovations are meant to to class.” improve campus’ appearance and Along with the other additions provide more opportunities to host to campus, Classen said, gates events, Classen said. blocking off the parking lot in back “We didn’t plant a ton of trees, of Schneider will be opened allowbut we could plant more depending students to walk across by the ing on how we see people using the end of October. places,” Classen said. “For example, we probably wouldn’t do that in the Albrent can be reached at 715amphitheater area because it would 836-4416 or albrenec@uwec.edu.

Foster Gallery “Art Faculty Show” 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. — Mon. - Fri. 1 to 4:30 p.m. — Sat. - Sun. Runs from Sept. 5 to Sept. 26 Haas Fine Arts Center

UAC Film: “Big Fish” 7 p.m. — Fri. - Sat. 2 p.m. — Sat. - Sun. Runs from Sept. 6 to 8 Woodland Theater, Davies Center

NEWS NEWS EDITOR: Steve Fruehauf

Confluence runs into issues City has approximately one year to clear current hurdles Nate Beck COPY EDITOR

Michael Schermann grew up in Minneapolis, but came to UW-Eau Claire for its music and theatre program.

When he heard about the Confluence Project, a dorm and arts venue in downtown Eau Claire, he was thrilled.

“It’s a really cool project,” said Schermann, an Eau Claire sophomore theatre major. “The theatre spaces here are lacking. They’re very small compared to Minneapolis but still classic.”

Market & Johnson, along with Commonweal Development and Blugold Real Estate partnered last fall to form the Haymarket Group, which purchased land at the confluence of the Chippewa and Eau Claire rivers in downtown Eau Claire.

Since then, UW-Eau Claire has been working with Eau Claire City Council, Haymarket and the Eau Claire Regional Arts council to plan a $75 million arts complex in downtown Eau Claire.

The complex would house Eau Claire arts students and feature learning, living and performance spaces in the heart of downtown.

For the past few months, confluence backers worked with city, county and state governments to push the project forward.

VenueWorks, an Ames, Iowa-based consulting firm conducted an audit of the project in late May, finding it to be a good economic decision.

According to the audit: — The Confluence Project will run a $100,000 profit in its first year

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Thursday, Sept. 5

of operation.

— The project will also create $4.5 million in economic activity in its first year.

— In the first three years of operation, the Confluence Project will generate $1.1 million in additional tax revenue for the city and $444,000 for Eau Claire county.

— The project will create 525 construction jobs, 141 jobs from new downtown businesses and 40 jobs at the center itself.

But City Council Vice President David Duax said he isn’t sure the VenueWorks audit is end-all evidence of the project’s success.

“We’re still not completely comfortable with the numbers,” Duax said. “We feel like the VenueWorks audit made some risky assumptions, but we still have time to make sure the project will work economically.”

The Confluence Project is complex because it’s the biggest decision Eau Claire City Council has made in 50 years, Duax said. And while he’d like to see it all come together, he said the council needs to make sure it’s fiscally possible before anything can happen.

At a fiscal policy advisory meeting, Aug. 27, Senators Kathleen Vinehout, D-Alma and Terry Moulton, R-Town of Seymour said they’d organize a meeting between confluence supporters and stakeholders.

Confluence backers and developers will meet with representatives in Madison to work out legal issues that could train wreck the project.

The state wants the city of Eau Claire to shoulder deficits if the Confluence can’t turn

a profit.

The state is also stuck on who will own the Confluence, Duax said.

Confluence ownership would be split between private investors, the city of Eau Claire, the university and the state.

Eau Claire City Council Member Andrew Werthmann said the county has also shown more reservations on the costs of the project.

“This project is beneficial to the county as well,” Werthmann said. “If we put up a big project in Eau Claire, that doesn’t hurt the county at all.”

VenueWorks recommended the city put together a committee, made up of representatives from all interests, to handle all confluence-related issues. Council will meet Tuesday to discuss how to form the committee.

Assistant Chancellor for Facilities and University Relations Mike Rindo said a state and Eau Claire County decision hinges on backing from City Council. Council has been working out details in closed session with developers and investors and is expected to make a decision sometime in the next year.

“Until we fully know what the participation level and the role of the city in this will be, it’s still fluid enough that we’ll be making those hard judgments as we go along,” Rindo said.

To read more about the Confluence Project, go to spectatornews.com Beck can be reached at 715-836-4416 or becknc@uwec.edu.

SUMITTED PHOTO

PROJECT: The Confluence Project is still underway but has met several local and state issues that will need to be solved before the finishing of the building. Backers plan to seek additional state funding in 2015.

Foundation announces new disability fund Schneider said. “So the senior center could apply for a grant to provide an aide to help blind individuals use the offered programs.”

When Katherine Schneider of Eau The Eau Claire Community FounClaire attended a presentation at a local dation has 129 funds people can donate library several years ago, she found she to. For the Access Eau Claire fund, their couldn’t fully enjoy it. goal is to reach $10,000 by Sept. 30 so The speaker presented a slideshow they can begin the grant process in 2014. without any commentary, and for a blind They have raised $3,500 so far. individual such as Schneider, that creat“Before we start handing out these ed a problem. grants, we make sure these nonprofChallenges like this are what enits are in good standing and will use couraged Schneider to approach the Eau the money the way they should be,” Claire Community Foundation and proBornick said. pose a new fund dedicated to providing According to the Centers for Disease nonprofit organizations with funds to Control and Prevention, 21.9 percent of support the inclusion of disabled compeople in Wisconsin reported having a munity members. disability in 2011. Although this may not “I’ve lived in Eau Claire over 20 seem like a hot topic for college students, years and I worked at the university Schneider believes for 14 years and it’s important for as I went around young people to get the community, I involved and spread became aware of the word about peoall these access ple with disabilities. needs,” Schneider “If they learn said. “Some were about it here, they big, some were might donate a few little, and as a dollars,” she said. person with a dis“When they leave ability, I knew I here, they could could do something start something simabout this.” ilar somewhere else In the spring, and really expand Schneider sought this idea.” help from the Eau Scott Morfitt, Claire CommuniGrants and Public ty Foundation, a Relations Specialist grouping of donors for the Eau Claire throughout the comCommunity Founmunity who then dation, also believes give to nonprofit it’s important for organizations. students to know “The Eau about this population Claire Community of people.

Foundation acts SUE BORNICK “The purpose of as a bridge conExecutive Director of Eau Claire college is to develop necting donors and Community Foundation a well-rounded worlcharities,” said Sue dview and to develop Bornick, executive thought processes director of the founwhere you’re thinking beyond just your dation. “Donors contribute to the Eau own life way,” Morfitt said. “Even donatClaire Community foundation and in ing $5 will exponentially help the fund, so return we can either establish a family college kids who are on a tight budget can fund for them or we can invest all those still contribute.” dollars and then give those dollars out If people want to donate, they can as grants.” visit eccommunityfoundation.org and Schneider’s fund, called the Access click the Donate Online button on their Eau Claire fund, could go towards nonhomepage. The fund will always be open profits such as soup kitchens, museums, for donations. libraries and senior centers. These non“Disabled individuals need to be profits could then use the grants received included in the community so they can from the Eau Claire Community Founoffer their talents to better the life in dation to provide staff training, inclusive Eau Claire,” Schneider said. “These materials like adapted equipment, sign may be small grants but they can bring language interpreters and materials in big results.” other formats, like Braille.

“If I wanted to go take a yoga class at the senior center, listening to the instructor speak about yoga wouldn’t Picard can be reached at 715-836-4416 or cut it for a blind person like me,” picarcf@uwec.

Cori Picard STAFF WRITER

“Donors contribute to the Eau Claire Community foundation and in return we can either establish a family fund for them or we can invest all those dollars and then give those dollars out as grants.”

NEWS EDITOR: Steve Fruehauf

COMMUNITY NEWS Thursday, Sept. 5

Skaters shred new turf

Newly-opened skatepark gets a workout during Labor Day weekend skate contest Nate Beck COPY EDITOR

An announcer through a microphone wired to a small amp, bellowed at the 20-odd skateboarders cruising on concrete to clear the ramps.

But two months ago, you’d have been lucky to see a longboarder rolling past Lakeshore Park on the bike path.

Oregon-based Evergreen Skateparks completed Eau Claire’s first public skatepark at Lakeshore Park, July 30, after years of obstacles holding the Eau Claire City Council from approving the project. Last Sunday, an Eau Claire online skateboarding group hosted the first contest on fresh concrete.

“The park is the best we could get for what we have,” Dane Neville, a freshman at UW-Stout said. “The quality is very professional and it’s unique.

We don’t have many parks like this in the Midwest.”

The contest was divided into three different skill divisions: beginner, intermediate and expert. Toppers Pizza in Eau Claire donated a stack of free pizza and skateboard companies donated prizes for top-placing riders.

Nineteen-year-old Nikko Osterkamp won first place in the intermediate division, taking home a new skateboard, Toppers Pizza coupons and $25.

After his run, Osterkamp walked around the park, pizza boxes in tow, urging spectators and skateboarders to gobble up the last of the free pizza.

“To be able to skate was a privilege,” Osterkamp said. “I’ve been down

to the park every day since it opened. I hope to see all the kids stick to it and continue to ride.”

Gabe Brummett launched the Eau Claire Skaters Association when he moved to Eau Claire in 2009, the Facebook group that hosted Sunday’s contest. He said he started the group after he found out Underloud Skate Shop in Eau Claire was closing.

“It’s a way to get skaters to come together,” Brummett said. “Eau Claire didn’t have a park or a shop then, so there was nowhere for skaters to meet.”

City Council approved $55,000 for the 2,000 square-foot project in early June. Local skateboarders chipped in about 17 percent of the total park cost, Brummett said.

Brummett said the Eau Claire Skaters Association was also able to secure grant funding from the Tony Hawk Foundation, an organization that doles out money to towns and organizations interested in building skateparks.

Skateboarders also held fundraisers at restaurants and held small skate competitions to raise money for Lakeshore Park.

But the path to the construction of an actual skate park was a long one, Brummett said. It took about seven years for council to come to a decision on the project.

Thomas Kemp, an economics professor at UW-Eau Claire, grew up skateboarding in the mid-80s in Milwaukee, building backyard half-pipes and skating The Turf, one of the nation’s first indoor.

Kemp served on City Council for

CHAOS: Dane Neville pauses after a run between heats at Eau Claire Skaters Association’s Sept. 1 skate contest at Lakeshore Park in Eau Claire.

four years, and during his tenure, pitched a skatepark plan to the Parks and Recreation Commission. Building a skatepark was a tough sell, he said.

Council members were suspicious of the high cost of the park, and skateboarding culture.

“There are a lot of bad stereotypes with skateboarders,” Kemp said. “If you think of all sports, skateboarding is almost completely unstructured. There aren’t any adults in charge. And it’s a relatively new sport, so most of the decision makers have zero knowledge about skateboarding.”

Kemp said the city laid out several potential spots for small skate parks along the Chippewa River State Trail. The city will continue to work to map out plans for future parks. Brummett said he plans to use Lakeshore Park as a platform to raise money for future parks.

Kemp sat on a picnic table watching the contest and eating pizza Sunday. He doesn’t ride nearly as much as he used to, but watching the contest Sunday brought back strong memories.

“Skateboarding taught me persistence,” Kemp said. “You have to keep trying a trick over and over until you finally make it. If today is any indication, skateboarding has a bright future.”

Beck can be reached at 715-836-4416 or becknc@uwec.edu

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PHOTOS BY NATE BECK / The Spectator

THRASHER: Expert division competitor Taylor Gast pops a hardflip over a gap during his run at the Eau Claire Skaters Association contest last weekend.

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MISCELLANEOUS MISCELLANEOUS Volunteer Opportunity!

Seeking individuals who are interested in participating in the removal of invasive shrubs. Learn about the history of plants, how they spread, and why they’re harmful.

Come to a free presentation on identifying and eradicating the plant at 8 a.m. Friday, Sept. 13, at Carson Park, 101 Carson Park Drive, hosted by The Eau Claire Parks and Recreation Department and West Central Wisconsin Invasive Plant Management.

Contact for Roberta Kostka more volunteer information at 715-839-8285 or Roberta.

Kostka@eauclairewi.gov.

2 AKC REGISTERED ENGLISH BULLDOGS FOR FREE..

IF INTERESTED CONTACT;

spectatorads@uwec.edu

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Use the Spectator Classifieds to get rid of your stuff!

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SPORTS Be a part of the Blugold spirit SPORTS EDITOR: Nick Erickson

8

Thursday, Sept. 5

Coaches and athletes voice appreciation of fan support at events

Cori Picard STAFF WRITER

The stadium lights go on. The field is quiet as parents, students, friends and die-hard fans slowly fill the bleachers to create an extension of the team off the field.

As the athletes take their positions, the dull hum of the crowd turns into an excited roar. As so many announcers have said before, the crowd goes wild.

But that’s not always the case, especially in a college setting where so many sports are offered.

UW-Eau Claire offers students 14 different sports to play and the facilities used for those sports are spread across campus and the city. Some teams are known for their big crowds while others seem to fall short.

“One of our challenges here is that our sports facilities are all spread out,” said Eau Claire athletics director Scott Kilgallon. “We have volleyball, wrestling, swimming and gymnastics in SUBMITTED PHOTOS/ UW-Eau Claire Sports Information Department McPhee, men and women’s basketball in Zorn, women’s soccer out at Bollinger Field, and then Painting it blue and gold: Fans attending a football game at Carson Park go all out for a home game against we also have the facilities we share with the UW-Whitewater in 2004. The Blugolds have home events at six different venues all across the city, including city for ice hockey and football. With every- two on campus. thing so spread out, it’s not that convenient for student fans.” we’re having to come up with creative ways to junior and has played for the softball team since Leslie Huntington, head coach for the Blukeep the fans engaged.” she was a freshman. Although she knows her gold softball team, also believes the priorities of Even with this challenge, Eau Claire has an team’s away schedule makes it hard for student Division III schools affect the number of fans atimpressive fan base, especially being a Division fans to watch their games, she appreciates all of tending the games.

III school, Kilgallon said. the support from family and friends.

“The Division III philosophy is that we’re not “A lot of our student athletes have mentioned “We have a good fan base on the road and at supposed to cater to the fans,” she said. “It’s about that having fans there helps them in competing,” home,” Gilane said. “It means a lot to us as playstudent athlete participation. But unfortunately, he said. “We’ve had some great students dress up ers because they are investing time in us. All of in our world of instant access to everything, fans and attend these events, it’s just great to see.” our fans are important to us, and it’s awesome to come to expect to be entertained, which I think Deanna Gilane of South Milwaukee is a have that boost of confidence.” makes our job even more challenging because

Some coaches and athletes believe a correlation exists between the number of fans and the way the teams play, but it all depends on the individual person or team. Junior Cody Taubman is beginning his third year with the Eau Claire football team.

“I feel like people play better when there are fans there, there’s a lot more energy and it’s easier to feed off of,” Taubman said. “If there are no fans there, who are we really playing for? You want to make a big play because you know the crowd will get loud.”

His teammate, sophomore defensive back Jim Schroeter, agrees that fans help boost morale and make athletes want to play better.

“Most of the fans there are either family or alumni and most of the players who have played here before are in the stands,” Schroeter said. “We want to live up to what they’ve done and exceed that, but make them proud and happy to be at the games and not disappointed when they leave.”

Whether it’s a connected experience between fans and athletes, or just a boost of confidence, athletes and coaches alike value the time and support given from friends, family and Blugold students.

If students are interested in seeing a game, schedules and times can be found on blugolds.com.

“It’s so exciting for student athletes because it’s like ‘wow, we must have something special here if all these people are coming out to see us play,’” Huntington said. “You can see it in the way they carry themselves and you can see how much of a boost it gives them.”

Picard can be reached at 715-836-4416 or picardcf@uwec.edu.

A trip of a lifetime leads to experience on the court The 2012 volleyball roster hit the airways and headed for Europe last May, leading to team bonding for the 2013 season Brittni Straseske COPY EDITOR

Prague, Czech Republic. Vienna, Austria. Venice, Italy. A tour of Eastern Europe was checked off the UW- Eau Claire women’s volleyball players’ bucket lists on their 10 day summer trip spanning across those five countries.

The 2012 roster departed on their trip overseas on May 21.

In addition to Prague, Vienna and Venice, the team also visited Maribor, Slovenia and Rovinj, Croatia. The tour combined a whirlwind of sightseeing with six different volleyball matches for the team throughout the region.

“It helped us learn a lot about the different things we can work through,” said Carly Kempton, middle hitter for the team.

“We got off the plane and the next day was our first match. It was, ‘Alright, we’re here to play.’”

The most challenging match of the “trip of a lifetime” was against the Olymp Praha team in Prague, Kempton said. The Olymp Praha team is a youth national team and one of the best club teams in the Czech Republic. Her teammate, outside hitter Kelly Schuh, had similar thoughts.

“It was crazy because a lot of the girls are fourteen or fifteen but they are so good because they are training to play for the national team,” Schuh said. “So, it was really good competition even though they were younger.”

Between playing the six matches and travel time between cities, the team did get to do some sightseeing. Schuh said her favorite part of the trip was the beautiful nature they experienced in Slovenia on a two mile waterfall nature hike.

The trip also served as a major bonding experience for the team, both Schuh and Kempton said.

In addition to providing a necessary team bonding adventure for the team, the trip served as a learning experience similar to that of a study abroad opportunity, seventh year head coach Kim Wudi said. “(The) biggest thing is just to get experience in another country or another environment where you’re a little out of your comfort zone and have to adapt to different situations,” Wudi said. “A lot of our student athletes don’t have a chance to study abroad so just being able to help provide that opportunity was good.”

Straseske can be reached at 715-836-4416 or strasebn@uwec.edu.

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

EUROPEAN SWAGGER: The Blugold volleyball team traveled across five countries

over the course of 10 days in May. They had time for sightseeing along with playing.

SPORTS

Thursday, Sept. 5

SPORTS EDITOR: Nick Erickson

9

Getting yourself in the game Intramural sports can be a great way to find a social outlet Katie Bast

OP/ED EDITOR Transitioning to college can be difficult for anyone. For senior English education major Robyn Kozlowski, the solution was simple.

“Remember freshman year was just really tense?” Kozlowski said. “It was just a stressful time.

Not necessarily the academic side, it was just hard to foster relationships. I think that intramurals is one of those things that just brings people together for fun.”

Four times a year, UW-Eau Claire students have the opportunity to play intramural sports.

From softball to ultimate Frisbee and soccer to flag football, there’s something for everyone.

At the beginning and end of fall and spring semesters, a new intramural season starts. Each season runs for five weeks. Teams usually play once a week for five weeks and at the end, a championship game determines the winner of each league. Champions can be seen around campus sporting the coveted University Champion t-shirts. The sports offered change depending on the season, so students can play something different all year.

Jon Bollinger, sports facility student service program manager, said throughout the year, nearly 60 percent of the student body participates in various sports offered by the intramural program and university recreation.

“The program is really designed for the entire student body,” Bollinger said. “Our premise is based on participation. We try to provide something that’s going to hit everybody on campus.”

For freshmen wanting to get involved, intramurals offer the opportunity to sign up as a free agent and join a team as needed. Not only can new students find others with similar interests, but they

can also escape the daily pressures of college life, Bollinger said.

“It gets you out of the library and gets your mind clear from studying,” Bollinger said.

For just $25 per team, students can not only stay in shape and spend time with friends, but learn valuable lessons that translate well into the classroom and other areas of life.

Junior actuarial science major Mike O’Connor has been participating in intramurals since last year and has played three different sports. He said intramurals offer a fun way to stay in shape, but they have also taught him other lessons.

“Intramurals has taught me a lot about teamwork and how to (make) everyone work together,” O’ Connor said. “You don’t have a coach telling you what plays to run, so everyone has to collaborate. Someone usually steps up as a leader to organize the team, but it’s fun because you kind of get to make it up as you go.”

O’Connor and Kozlowski said intramurals have taught them a lot about time management, socialization, communication and leadership skills.

While the games can get competitive, O’Connor said when it comes down to it, it is just about having fun with friends.

“I encourage everyone to participate in intramurals,” O’Connor said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re good or bad at sports, it’s a great way for people to make friends.”

There are many ways for students at Eau Claire to be engaged on campus, but for those who want to have fun, stay in shape and reduce stress, look no further than intramural sports.

Bast can be reached at 715-836-4416 or bastkv@uwec.edu.

ELIZABETH JACKSON / The Spectator

GETTING READY FOR THE SEASON: Junior Jake Safstrom of the Blugold football team grabs a water break during a preseason practice on August 29. The first game is Saturday.

To get season previews on every fall sport in action this weekend or last weekend, including men’s and women’s cross country, golf, women’s tennis, volleyball and football, as well as coverage after Blugold sporting events, go to spectatornews.com.

Colleen McCullough women’s tennis

McCullough helped the Blugold women’s tennis team defeat conference rival UW-Stout 9-0, on Saturday at McPhee Physical Education Center in Eau Claire. McCullough won her match in a straight sweep, winning 6-0 both sets. For her efforts, she was selected as the inaugural Spectator Blugold of the Week.

GETTING TO KNOW MCCULLOUGH Favorite food: Chipotle Favorite movie: Shawshank Redemption Favorite professor: Dr. Robert Stow

(Kinesiology) Favorite thing about Eau Claire: Playing tennis for the school Dream job: Athletic trainer at a professional level

sophomore Maple Grove, Minn.

If you would like to nominate someone for Blugold of the Week honors, contact Nick Erickson at 715-836-4416 or ericksna@uwec.edu.

CURRENTS CURRENTS EDITOR: Emily Albrent

10

Thursday, Sept. 5

Hooked on “Big Fish”

University Activities Commission brings Tim Burton’s 2003 film to UW-Eau Claire Ryan Spaight

STAFF WRITER

Everybody loves a tall tale every once in a while. Sometimes, our relationship with storytelling is complicated when the lines between fact and fiction are blurred.

Such is the problem for Will Bloom (Billy Crudup) as he tries to piece together the life of his dying father, Edward — a life which Will knows nothing about.

“Big Fish” is a charming film with a simple premise: For Will to understand and forgive his father before he dies. Based on a 1998 novel by Daniel Wallace (also called Big Fish), Tim Burton’s film revolves around Edward (who in old age is played by actor Albert Finney) and his chronic storytelling.

A unique aspect of “Big Fish,” though, is that even as Edward is telling stories on his deathbed, we see those stories played out by a younger Edward (Ewan McGregor) in the form of flashbacks.

The primary storyline follows a 19-year-old Edward Bloom as he outgrows his hometown and sets out to meet the woman of his dreams in a larger than life adventure.

The film is the perfect hybrid between “Forrest Gump” and the “Wizard of Oz,” which makes it uncharacteristically light and fun for a Tim Burton film.

When I see a film is directed by Burton, I usually know, with a degree of certainty, what I’m getting myself into. Fair warning: “Big Fish” is not one of those films. Jack the Pumpkin King is nowhere to be seen, nor is there any gothic, macabre aesthetic to speak of.

There are some things which are pretty consistent with what you might expect from him, though. It’s become a Burton staple to feature his partner — Helena Bohnam Carter — as a quirky, eccentric female role in his films.

“Big Fish” is no exception as Bohnam Carter plays a witch with the power to show young Edward his death through her glass eye.

The soundtrack fits the film perfectly ­­­­­­­­­— it glides through the film like a trance and really aids in intensifying some of the more emotional parts of the film.

It was composed by a regular collaborator with Burton, Danny Elfman, and there is also an original

song by Pearl Jam. Burton’s tone is unmistakable: “Big Fish” is a fanciful exploration of storytelling and human self-delusion; it’s about fact and fiction; and perhaps most affectingly, it’s about father-son relationships.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

At this time, I think an obligatory shout out to young Miley Cyrus is in order; she gets a brief cameo as an 8-year-old vehemently pursuing Edward Bloom, and it is definitely something to watch for.

“Big Fish” has its fair share of quirky humor which comes in various forms, such as Mr. Soggybottom, a circus clown by day, werewolf by night and a conjoined set of Korean twins named Ping and Jing that prove two of Edward’s most steadfast allies. (I don’t get it, either.)

The film is a vivacious visual marvel that brings Edward’s tales to life. I’m not going to guarantee you’ll cry and I’m not going to spoil anything, but there’s definitely some potential for a nice sob towards the end.

“Big Fish” is worth watching again and again, and I would unreservedly recommend you watch it.

New and returning student organizations take center stage at biannual event Becky Olson STAFF WRITER

As students began pouring back onto campus for the start of the new school year, many parts of the construction opened back up including the campus mall.

The Blugold Organizations Bash took place Wednesday on the newly constructed UW-Eau Claire campus mall. Student organizations were the center of the biannual event, trying to gain students’ interest in joining extracurricular activities at the university. There were a variety of clubs from Gamers Guild to Johnball, a new club created this year that combines dodgeball with baseball.

Joe Haferman BOB coordinator said student organizations fill out a short form online to attend BOB and then check in on the day of BOB to claim their spot.

Senior Kevin Culhane, who is in the marketing fraternity Pi Sigma Epsilon, said BOB helps people get to know one another.

“I’ve definitely met a lot of really good, motivated people,” Culhane said. “I guess it’s the best

way to surround yourself with good people and help you succeed in college.”

Culhane said that Pi Sigma Epsilon is a great way for marketing or management majors to meet connections and get experience about their field. It is the only marketing, management and professional sales coed fraternity

Photo illustration by BECKY OLSON / The Spectator

NEW CLUB ON CAMPUS: The Johnball Club makes an appearance at BOB this year to gain new members. (From left to right: Andy Petz, sophomore, Eric Fronzem, senior, Don Mazola, senior, Cody Fisher, senior, Michael Frank, senior)

Big Fish 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept.7 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 8 Woodland Theater, Davies Center

said a lot of the interest came from BOB and that the equestrian team will have the biggest team ever this coming year.

“Definitely get involved in something that you’re passionate about because you’ll not only enjoy it but you’ll gain friends who are also interested in the same things as you,” Eghdam-Zamiri said.

Haferman said the different organizations are a great part about Eau Claire.

“The most beneficial thing about BOB is the vast diversity of student organizations that are on campus and the numerous opportunities that the students have to get involved outside of the classroom,” Haferman said.

“Through these experiences, students can learn invaluable tools that they can utilize in the future and can often times build relationships in their organizations that can last a lifetime.”

Olson can be reached at 715-836-4416 or at olsoreb@uwec.edu.

Welcome back, students!

Students voice their opinion on where the best places to eat and study are on and off campus. Not seeing your favorite place? Head on over to The Spectator’s Facebook page to post your own.

Compiled by: Katy Macek, Rebecca Olson Rachel Streich STAFF WRITERS

Study “I like to study in the lower level of the library because it’s bright and cheerful and colorful, and there’s plenty of good children’s books to get distracted by.”

-Kaitlynn Heil, senior, education major

Spaight can be reached at 715-836-4416 or spaighrj@uwec.edu.

in the nation. The organization traveled to San Diego last year for a national sales competition and they fundraise and do marketing projects around the Eau Claire area.

Senior Alexandra Eghdam-Zamiri, captain of the Eau Claire equestrian team, said everyone should join the club. She

“(Half Moon Tea & Spice) has a really chill atmosphere, and the employees are really nice, and it’s usually a pretty quiet place to get away and study.”

-Sarah Curley, senior, history major “I enjoy studying in my room because it’s comfortable. You can spread out and have all your books around you.”

-Emily Broden, junior, communication sciences and disorders major

Eat “I like Mancino’s because it’s really easy to just walk there because I don’t have a car on campus, and the sandwiches are super good. It’s fast and it’s relatively cheap and you can get those punch cards and then get a free one.”

-Hannah Geis, junior, psychology major “I like to go to Racy’s to study and drink white hot chocolate.”

-Kendra Kitchens, junior, kinesiology major “My favorite place to eat on campus is Erbs and Gerbs because I love the sandwich, ‘The Spartan,’ and I’m usually kind of a deli guy.”

-Mekuria Zemede, sophomore, biochemistry and molecular biology

CURRENTS EDITOR: Emily Albrent

Thursday, Sept. 5

CURRENTS 11

What the students had done was they had all put the alarms on every three minutes. It happened two or three times, and after the third time, they all went off. That might be more in the prank category, but I sure got a kick out of it.

KB: What’s the most valuable thing that teaching has taught you?

BW: Oh, that’s a great question. The most valuable thing it has taught me is how exciting the classroom is and how valuable students are. It’s just so unpredictable. In some ways, I like to think of myself as a very organized person but having a diverse group of thinkers in one room has the potential to be almost magical. I feel really fortunate to be able to be in that situation; to go into that room often. I love that.

GRAPHIC BY KARL ENGHOFER / The Spectator

Every week, The Spectator staff will choose a professor and ask them unique questions to help bridge the gap between students and teachers.

Katie Bast

OP/ED EDITOR Katie Bast: What is the weirdest thing that’s happened in one

of your classes?

Blake Westerlund: I think I court the weird fairly regularly … (After much hemming and hawing Westerlund finally settled on this anecdote). We were looking at texts as symbols and that kind of thing, and everyone took out their cell phone, and we were looking at it in a semiotic way. ‘What does this cell phone say about you? What does it say about our culture?’ I had them displayed on the front table, kind of like a gallery. I’d forgotten some handouts and I said I’d be back. So when I came back, everything was set and the cell phones were all on the front table.

KB: If you weren’t teaching, what would you be doing? What’s your dream job?

BW: My dream job? Absolute dream job? Oh, okay, well let’s think big here. I would love to be a rhythm guitarist for the band Wilco.

KB: What do you hope students take away from your classes?

WB: A sense of other people’s stories; other people’s narratives.

Not just the ones we read, but the ones that are shared between students. I think stories are certainly extremely significant but when you talk about literature you think of literature as just a story. But what it really is, it often talks about what makes people tick as well as the potential for greatness.

KB: Now if I remember correctly, you did your undergrad here.

BW: I did. I am an alumni.

KB: What is one thing as an alumni that you recommend to current students?

BW: Study abroad. And if you aren’t going to study abroad, go and study somewhere else in the United States. Use NSE, the National Student Exchange, but by all means, come back to Eau Claire.

KB: What’s your favorite thing about Eau Claire? Either the

UW-Eau Claire professor’s book makes a splash David Soll spills the details about his plan for “Empire of Water” Ryan Spaight STAFF WRITER

David Soll is an assistant professor in the Watershed Institute for Collaborative Environmental Studies program at UW-Eau Claire and is a self-proclaimed water guy.

Released in April, Soll’s book, “Empire of Water: An Environmental and Political History of the New York City Water Supply,” an extension of his dissertation, was published by Cornell University Press.

“The story of the book is largely how New York had to give up some of its power in order to maintain its water system,” Soll said.

An amendment to a federal law called the Safe Drinking Water Act passed in 1986 offered an ultimatum to New York City. The city had to either filter its water or embark on a watershed protection program that involved making sure the water was safe and potable on its path from the Catskill Mountain streams to the thirsty mouths in Midtown Manhattan.

Soll said the decision was a $1.5 billion price tag for watershed protection versus $8

campus or the city as a whole.

BW: The easy answer there is the beautiful campus. Place is significant, but people are even more so. I was very lucky as an undergraduate to find a good group of people and now that I’m back in the English department, those are my friends. I think it’s the people. You get to carry that over through your occupation. I think our university, at the risk of sounding like a cheerleader, I think we attract a really fine caliber of students. I feel a little awkward saying that because I went here. You know, I don’t mean that to be a narcissistic thing, but I’m often humbled by the students that I get to teach.

billion for filtration systems; for New York the choice was clear, and the time to act was immediately.

Without the Safe Drinking Water Act, New York City may have acted, but the federal regulation helped propel the city to the watershed protection solution they chose, Soll said.

“One thing I really latched onto that I thought was outstanding was how important the water system was to the way the geography of the city developed,” Soll said. “Reservoirs within the city were no longer needed, so as an outcrop of the water system, they were turned into places such as the New York Public Library, for example.”

Prior to teaching at Eau Claire, Soll taught at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. Located just 75 miles from New York, Soll’s location allowed him to take the plunge and add an entire chapter devoted to interviews he conducted with those in connection with the water system.

“Something I liked about the book is that it brings my history background and environmental studies background together,” Soll said. “It’s definitely a history, but it goes up until 2010, so it’s pretty contemporary, too.”

Potential new chapters are surfacing every day because the city’s water system is ongoing, Soll said, so it’s not a story with a clear endpoint;

WESTERLUND

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

KB: What’s one thing students should know about you as a professor?

BW: I hope that they know that I am gentle. I generally try to be accommodating and approachable and I always feel once that’s established and students feel they’re in a comfortable environment to learn, they excel. They work harder than you always think they’re going to. And then you get to read great papers and stories.

Bast can be reached at 715-836-4416 or bastkv@uwec.edu.

this is a huge reason why Soll has decided to focus on other things after the book’s publishing.

And his interest in water systems is not exclusive to that of New York City. There was a lack of residential water metering in New York City until the late 1990s, which left the use of water in the city relatively unchecked, Soll said.

“That was something that, no pun intended, flowed over into the Sustainable Cities class I teach within the Honors program,” he said.

In the class Sustainable Cities, there were class discussions about New York’s watershed, but Soll taught an entire unit on Chicago’s water system, too, said Sydney Flottum, sophomore English literature and graphic design major who took the class.

Heather Spray, junior history and Spanish major also took Sustainable Cities with Soll, and she is his research assistant.

In class, Soll’s prior research in the field helped her to grasp the material more clearly because he was very passionate and knowledgeable about what he teaches, Spray said.

“In our research, we’ve been looking at water system supply and sanitation in really big cities in the developing world, so we’re looking at Bangalore, India, specifically,” Spray said.

Soll, Spray and one other student are traveling to Bangalore during winterim 2012-2014 this year where they will research the water system there firsthand, as well as analyze the system’s effectiveness.

“The traditional equation says that environmental protection means economic sacrifices; there is this sense that there’s an irresolvable conflict between the two,” Soll said.

“What happened in New York proves this isn’t necessarily true.”

Spaight can be reached at 715-836-4416 or spaighrj@uwec.edu.

CURRENTS CURRENTS EDITOR: Emily Albrent

Faculty show first at Foster Professors hoping to connect with students outside of class Martha Landry MANAGING EDITOR

While geology professors are researching rock compositions and English professors are writing short stories, professors in the Haas Fine Arts building are sculpting, drawing and creating art.

The Foster Art Gallery is opening its doors up for a new school year, opening tonight, is displaying UWEau Claire’s annual faculty art show.

Gallery Director Tom Wagner said each artist typically displays one to three pieces of art, meaning there are 30 to 40 pieces on display for this show.

“It gives our students the opportunity to see what our faculty are up to in their own art,” Wagner said. “All of our studio faculty are artists in their own right.”

Typically, the gallery features a theme among the art but this show is an array of mediums and subjects from watercolor paintings to sculptures and sketches and everything in between.

“We have paintings, printmaking, illustrations, ceramics, sculptures, you name it,” Wagner said.

He said one of the artists is a professor from the computer science department, but otherwise the artists are all located in Haas Fine Arts Center.

The Foster Art Gallery has been on campus since the 1970s, Wagner said. The faculty show typically starts off the season to give students a chance to get to know their professors outside of the classroom.

“You can go to your classes and see what your professors have to say

and make some art during class and when you are done, you know a lot about art,” Wagner said. “But if you take advantage of art exhibitions and really immerse yourself in art you suddenly become a whole lot more knowledgeable.”

Sculpture Instructor, Kate Casanova first started at Eau Claire in the fall 2013 semester and is displaying a two-dimensional work called “Floating World in Purple,” a combination of crystals and sea life.

“I think the show will be a great way to connect with students and faculty,” Casanova said. “I just think it’s going to be a great collection of work. I know I’m with some talented individuals.”

Casanova said she is hoping to connect with students and faculty at the show.

Associate lecturer, David Brock, is displaying two acrylic on panel called “Parcel.” This will be his fourth show in the four years he has taught at Eau Claire. Brock said he likes the opportunity to humanize himself with the students.

Wagner said students of any major can come to the show and opening reception to gain connections and learn from the art.

“By going to art exhibitions, even if you are a math major or a science major, you learn critical thinking skills, you learn observation skills, you really learn how to critique artwork,” Wagner said. “And it starts making you start thinking about what’s important to you in a visual sense.”

Landry can be reached at 715-836-4416 or at landrymm@uwec.edu.

12

Thursday, Sept. 5

Every week, Chief Copy Editor Zack Katz will be listening to albums over a variety of genres and voicing his opinion on them.

A$AP Ferg, Trap Lord 6.5/10

As of August 20, Harlem hip-hop up-and-comer A$AP Ferg has taken his most significant step in distinguishing himself among the hard-hitting A$AP Mob with his debut album, “Trap Lord.”

Since the memorable 2012 release of A$AP Mob’s “Lords Never Die” mixtape, Ferg has continually proven to nay-sayers his voice will not be overshadowed by the colossal success of his counterpart A$AP Rocky, and at times could offer a refreshing alternative to the Flacko flow we’ve become so familiar with over the past several years.

The album boasts a generally impressive group of features considering Ferg’s relative newness to the rap scene, including household names such as Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Cypress Hill’s B-Real — with which Ferg proves to be unsurprisingly complimentary on the track “Lord.”

Ferg’s hosting of crowd-pleasers like Schoolboy Q and

Waka Flocka Flame seems to validate a sort of trend this year has seen on albums such as Kanye West’s “Yeezus” (which, lest we forget, somehow managed Eau Claire’s own Bon Iver and Chief Keef on the same track).

Sure, there’s no question of impressive production and collaborations being easy repertoire-boosters, but my interest in the album lies in whether or not he can prove himself multi-faceted enough to stand alone.

Judged strictly on lyricism, there’s no question of effort or emotion demonstrated by the new guy — especially in comparison to recent singles. Like the rest of A$AP Mob, Ferg’s quick, breathless sound is an adrenaline rush.

Where the album tends to fall short, however, is in the overuse of Ferg’s sung hook trademark. For me, it just seems to bleed out a little too generously. I can appreciate experimenting with it as an element of his flow, but it feels monotonous when spanned over full tracks.

“Trap Lord” is available now on A$AP Worldwide.

Katz can be reached at 715-836-4416 or katzzt@uwec.edu.

OPINION / EDITORIAL

OP / ED EDITOR: Katie Bast

13

Thursday, Sept. 5

•

Construction is great, but don’t forget about green spaces

• •

Online this week!

Staff writer Courtney Kueppers reacts to this summer’s country hit, “Redneck Crazy.”

Staff writer Nicole Miller reflects on the value of working for a print publication in college.

Multimedia Editor Haley Zblewski writes about Miley Cyrus’ attempt to break away from her Disney past, but how she instead mocks black women.

Check out these stories and more at spectatornews.com.

Greenery in cities helps improve quality of life

Elizabeth Jackson PHOTO EDITOR

After all this construction on campus, I’ve begun to wonder if UW-Eau Claire would ever have the same lush, green mall that it once did. For roughly the past year and a half, the mall went from being a lush oasis (more or less), to trees being chopped down, to being almost completely blocked off, to just a large patch of mud and snow.

The lack of green on campus made me a little blue, and I wondered if campus would still look that way for my last year here. But happily, it looks like the mall is going to be a green space, only with smaller trees.

It’s not only campus that has construction currently going on or slated, but quite a bit of the city of Eau Claire. In a few years, Eau Claire may look a lot different than it does now.

But then, I’m always a bit apprehensive about any major construction projects. I understand that usually the end project of any major construction (i.e., buildings going up, art centers being planned) is going to be nice, but I tend to worry about the lack of prettiness that comes with the construction process and the potential loss of a space that maybe was once a nice, unadulterated green space.

It seems that more often than not, construction projects seem to overlook the importance of trees and grass in the design and opt for cutting them down. In fact, green spaces (parks, little community gardens, heck, even a few trees in an unused patch of land) are equally important to a city as buildings, roads and parking spaces are. Too often, developers, city planners and citizens overlook the importance of a green space. Besides just looking nice, there are other benefits to greenery in our cities.

In recent years there have been studies done to examine the health benefits green spaces offer. According

to the University of Delaware’s report, “Human Benefits of Green Spaces,” these spaces can help reduce stress and reduce violence. The report goes on to say green spaces can also help boost concentration of those in the space.

“Voluntary attention, the exhausting focus required to ignore distractions and remain intensely devoted to work or study must be employed throughout the traditional workday,” the report states, adding that involuntary attention is a more enjoyable, effortless way of taking in the environment.

The report also said, “Focusing on natural scenes gives voluntary attention a rest and allows involuntary attention to take over and recharge the human psyche.”

So perhaps the campus mall and the surrounding greenery aren’t just there to make Eau Claire Wisconsin’s most beautiful campus, but to give us students a little extra attention boost?

Of course, there are more potential health benefits green spaces, or at least greenery, can provide. Studies done in places like the Netherlands and Japan show that citizens with easy access to green spaces have better health and lower mortality rates.

Roger Ulrich, a professor at Texas A&M University, has studied the benefits of green spaces. In his paper “Health Benefits of Gardens in Hospitals,” Ulrich states, “many views of vegetation or garden-like features elevate levels of positive feelings (pleasantness, calm), and reduce negatively toned emotions such as fear, anger, and sadness. Certain nature scenes effectively sustain interest and attention, and accordingly can serve as pleasant distractions that may diminish stressful thoughts.”

Ulrich has done studies on surgery patients and how window views can affect recovery. The findings showed that those who looked at trees, rather than a brick wall, remained in

“Construction projects seem to overlook the importance of trees and grass in the design.”

the hospital for a shorter time, had weaker painkillers, and had fewer post surgical complications.

There are a myriad of other benefits to green spaces in cities, including raising property values and preventing erosion.

Maybe it’s my rural background, but I feel that green spaces are immensely beneficial to a community. It looks like some people in Eau Claire think so too. The Eau Claire Health Chapter created a comprehensive plan in 2012 to help boost the health of the city, and part of that plan includes a parks objective that aims to “help improve community appearances, property values, and quality of life.”

While Eau Claire is doing pretty well, it’s always important that nature be considered in any future designs.

Jackson is a senior journalism and history major and photo editor of The Spectator. She can be reached at jacksoec@uwec.edu

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OPINION / EDITORIAL Thursday, Sept. 5

OP/ED EDITOR: Katie Bast

More to Eau Claire than Water Street

Students shouldn’t limit themselves to campus Brittni Straseske COPY EDITOR

After interning at an organization called Downtown Eau Claire, Inc. this summer, I have a disheartening suspicion: A number of UWEau Claire students are secluded from many of the areas of Eau Claire.

As an underclassman, I was one of them. I didn’t venture much farther than the Water Street area, unless it was to make a trip to Target.

As it turns out, this seems to be a trend. I am here to tell you, don’t be like me. There is life outside of campus. Don’t be afraid to stray from the confines of Water Street and the surrounding area. Sure, the further away from campus you venture, the stranger the townies become. Yeah, if you don’t have a car, downtown might be a little challenging to access.

Bum a ride, take the bus, it will be worth it.

It wasn’t until I moved off-campus that I realized how much of the outside world I had been missing. I imagine it is the same for most people.

It is so easy to get caught up in campus life that we kind of forget campus is only one part of a much larger city.

There is a plethora of restaurants, shops and things to do away from campus. And the best part? They are locally owned, tailored especially for the people of Eau Claire.

‘But Brittni, local businesses are too expensive. I’m just a college student,’ I usually hear at this point of my argument. And to that, I say ‘False!’ If they were too expensive for all but the rich and famous, would they still be in business? What’s more, privately owned local businesses have a lot more freedom to do specials and sales. And they do those things often. So, without further ado, here are some awesome places downtown that won’t break the bank.

Frogiyo: Although the only other frozen yogurt shop I’ve been to is Raspberry Reign, I feel confident in saying this is the best frozen yogurt shop in Eau Claire. I say that because they charge by the cup not by the ounce. You want to buy a cup and fill it to the brim with just chocolate sauce? You can do it! Want to load up that yogurt with every single topping in the place without worrying how much it weighs? You can do that too!

For just $3.00, you can put whatever you desire into that cup. It really doesn’t get better than that.

Downtown Micon Cinema: You get the movie theatre experience for a fraction of the price. Normally $3 for a movie ticket, but $2 on Tuesday.

Granted, the movies play in the other theaters first before being moved to

this budget theatre. But for the price it costs to rent a new movie from Family Video, you get a real movie theatre experience. Also, the popcorn and concessions are much cheaper at this theatre, too.

Acoustic Café: Their hoagies would beat up Subway’s if they had arms. Live entertainment every Wednesday through Saturday.

Acoustic won Volume One’s “Best of the Chippewa Valley” categories “Best Sandwich” and “Best for Open Mic” for 2012.

Mousetrap Tavern: They have live music all the time! Unlike House of Rock, there is never a cover charge.

And, any place where Justin Vernon tends to pop in and hang out is obviously going to be an awesome place!

Phoenix Park: The park serves as the trailhead of the Chippewa River State Trail and has a walking labyrinth, the farmer’s market (turns out it’s cheaper than the store. Can’t beat a 50 cent cucumber!) and concerts during the warm months.

That should be enough to get started. And when you’re wandering around downtown, check out Tangled up in Hue (art and jewelry), explore all Banbury Place has to offer (numerous art studios and vintage shops) and stop by Pilar Fashions for some unique retail. Venture forth, friends.

Straseske is a senior journalism major and Copy Editor of The Spectator. She can be reached at strasebn@uwec.edu.

Bike sharing system a must

Economically reasonable and sustainable friendly, stations would provide alternative mobility David Heiling EDITOR IN CHIEF

While I was out east for the trip of a lifetime this summer, I saw a bunch of recurring similarities throughout most of the cities I visited.

One of those similarities was a bike sharing system. They are taking hold of those big cities, and it’s time Eau Claire hops on board.

When students come to the UWEau Claire campus, one of the things that intrigues them is the beauty of the city; at least it was a big factor for me personally. What better way to explore this great city in its entirety than on a bike, breeze whipping through your hair?

Bike sharing systems, such as Hubway in Boston has great perks.

You swipe your card through the lock on the bike rack and drive away with the bike. Every half-hour or so, you

rack up a bigger bill.

This would be great for sightseeing, but could also be useful for a variety of other reasons.

Imagine you are going to a class and you forgot your notebook at home.

These bike sharing stations could be around campus or across the walking bridge for our convenience. Swipe the card, take the bike and zoom home.

The price for this service is minimal and does way more good than harm.

I, for one, like to have complete control over my day. I don’t like waiting around for the bus or a ride. Walking is fine, but if you need to get somewhere fast bikes are the way to go.

Eau Claire is a sustainable city, a “green city” if you will. Bike sharing makes a bunch of sense. This could save you money on gas, oil changes and maintenance to your car along with bettering our environment.

According to thehubway.com,

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CYCLE SHARING: Bike sharing systems like Hubway in Boston would make a practical and useful addition to the city of Eau Claire.

Housing agencies taking advantage

Early signing leaves students in the balance Steve Fruehauf NEWS EDITOR

GRAPHIC BY KARL ENGHOFER / The Spectator

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For UW-Eau Claire students who have lived off campus before, it’s no secret that landing a place near the university for the following year can be challenging. It’s becoming more obvious as I continue my education here that the sooner students start thinking about signing a lease, the better.

But how soon is too soon? In my opinion, I find it troubling that as I’m newly moved into my home for this school year, I’m already contemplating whether I should live there the following year or pick a new spot altogether.

Ultimately, I don’t find it fair to the students. But who’s left accountable? I think the housing agencies are

the ones most at fault. They are so eager to fill the space between Chippewa and Lake Streets because it’s the closest off-campus housing area to the university.

While this may be good for different agencies’ businesses, it’s leaving students in an uncomfortable position.

They could enjoy their current home and wait to sign, but if they wait too long and decide they don’t want to live in their current place anymore, they are at a big disadvantage since others have already been looking and signing for new housing.

Also, what if the roommate they have now turns out to be someone they’re not interested in living with the following year? What if they find out the place they thought was the diamond in the rough actually has

there are a lot of different financing options available. You can pay $85 to use the bikes unlimited year round, a month pass costs you $20 and a day will run your bank account down $6.

That information is from the Boston shared bike program, but I don’t see how it would be hard to start something like this up in our great city of Eau Claire.

With the implementation of a system like this, local business sales could increase. When you are traveling from point A to point B, it is a lot easier to hop off at a local business when you are on a bike than to find a parking spot with your car.

According to we-cycle.org, “When San Francisco made its Valencia Street less conducive to automobile travel and better for bicyclists and pedestrians, nearly 40 percent of merchants reported increased sales and 60 percent reported more area residents shopping locally due to reduced travel time and convenience.”

Oh, and as it turns out, humans need exercise to stay healthy. Biking is a great way to exercise so you do not become a slob.

You never know, you might have some fun while you are venturing from place to place. You could find something about this city you never knew, all while doing a solid for yourself and Mother Nature.

Heiling is a senior journalism major and Editor in Chief of The Spectator. He can be reached at heilindc@uwec.edu.

mold growing all through the walls?

There are so many questions left in the balance.

Unfortunately for students, it’s too late by that time. They have already filled out the paperwork for the following year and have signed an agreement saying they would stay where they are now. The reality is, housing agencies are taking advantage of their monopoly in the surrounding area.

For example, Clearwater Real Estate, a popular college housing agency in the Eau Claire area, already has a number of houses and apartments open to rent starting September 2014 up on their website www.cwree.com.

But why blame them?

To read more about the downfalls of early signing, go to spectatornews.com Fruehauf is a junior journalism major and News Editor of The Spectator. He can be reached at fruehasl@uwec.edu.

OPINION/EDITORIAL

OP / ED EDITOR: Katie Bast

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Thursday, Sept. 5

A (private) first class media blunder Big media struggle to gender Chelsea Manning properly Ryan Spaight STAFF WRITER

Army Pvt. Chelsea Manning (previously known as Bradley Manning) has the media in a frenzy again — this time because of her gender identity.

“As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me,” Manning wrote in an open letter read by her attorney on NBC’s “Today” show. “I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female.”

For those who don’t know, Manning has been in the media since April 2010. She is a former Army intelligence analyst who, after witnessing horrendous war crimes, released documents and other such sources of military intelligence that exposed these crimes. She gave this information to WikiLeaks and is known widely as the “WikiLeaks whistle-blower.”

The most notable pieces of military intelligence include the Iraq War Logs, the Afghan War Logs and the “Collateral Murder” video — all

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of which are available for the public to feast their eyes upon and, for the most part, to shake their heads in disgust at.

If you haven’t seen the video and can stomach how atrocious the crimes are, I highly recommend watching the “Collateral Murder” video. Despite being three years old, it may be the single most profound piece footage I’ve ever watched.

Jump forward to present, and Manning has been sentenced to 35 years in military prison and was also demoted from the rank of Pfc. to Pvt. On Aug. 22, a day after that sentence, Manning released the aforementioned statement about her gender identity.

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This launched a ridiculous tirade of media outlets essentially gawking at Manning and misgendering her like it was their job. (Actually, it’s their job to gender her correctly.) But that didn’t stop the slew of ‘he’ and even ‘it’ pronoun usage. It also didn’t help the name “Chelsea” appear more often in articles.

Many people attribute this misgendering to widespread confusion about which pronouns one should use when referring to her — those recognized by readers or those of her personal preference.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about establishing continuity of identity; “Bradley Manning” is a household name. But it’s ridiculously simple to establish that continuity in a respectful way by saying Bradley on first reference. After that, simply continue on your merry way, using feminine pronouns like I did above.

With that simple linguistic solution in mind, I don’t buy the argument that the public won’t recognize the name shift. So why can’t

the media just call her Chelsea Manning?

It’s not like the Associated Press has no regulations on what to do in such a situation. The “AP Stylebook” — the usage guide that governs the news industry — is explicit SPAIGHT in its rule to “comply with the gender identity preference of an individual.”

So if it’s not because it would be too confusing to call her Chelsea, and it’s not because there aren’t any crystal clear regulations, what’s the issue with referring to her in the feminine?

In my mind, it boils down to transphobic tendencies. Predictably, those tendencies are far more rampant in conservative media — evidenced by Fox News’ egregious decision to play the Aerosmith song “Dude (Looks Like A Lady)” as they aired a photo of Manning. It un-

derscores how much still needs to be done.

In spite of all the opposition she faces in the media and otherwise, Manning’s candidness continues to inspire transgender individuals and allies. Her recent attention also serves as a reminder of how politically important her whistle-blowing still is.

Morally, it’s not even a question of whether Manning was right to release the information. It was her moral obligation. Legally though, it was wrong for Manning to have released it, and she will serve 35 years in prison as a result.

There is something wrong with the law surrounding whistle-blowing if there is a discrepancy between what’s moral and what’s legal. The exact space between the two is the amount of law reform we ought to have.

Spaight is a sophomore Spanish major and Staff Writer at The Spectator. He can be reached at spaighrj@uwec.edu.

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STUDENT LIFE STUDENT LIFE EDITOR: David Heiling

UW-Eau Claire student senators gain valuable knowledge and experience away from the classroom David Heiling EDITOR IN CHIEF

For the students involved in on-campus politics, it is more than just business meetings, letters and agendas.

For these three students, they go beyond just playing around with money and using mock government systems.

Their schedules are filled and they wouldn’t have it any other way.

Cora Fox “I’m honestly the jack of all trades in a way,” she said. “On call if you will, I’ll get the call and I’m out of there. I really do have to switch gears and change my frame of mind for the day.”

Senior Cora Fox, Chief of Staff for UW-Eau Claire’s student senate said she is always working closely with Student Body President Bryan Larson and Vice President Jason Rector to assist them in any way they may see fit. If they need someone to go to a committee meeting or talk to a group of students about anything, Fox said she is their girl.

“Bryan and Jason are really busy,” Fox said. “I pick up the pieces.

I go there, and I go there, I make sure everything is smooth.”

For student senate members on campus, life is challenging work. Numerous meetings, initiatives, committees and responsibilities rule their lives, Fox said she is no exception.

A transfer student from Anoka-Ramsey Community College (Minn.), Fox was the public relations director and vice president of her student senate for two years before coming to Eau Claire.

Once she arrived on campus, she immediFOX ately stepped into a

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Thursday, Sept. 5

new role.

Fox said she was involved with eight or nine different committees last year including the Student Office of Sustainability, Advisory Committee on Non-Traditional Students, was involved in the student finance committee, student arts and sciences committee along with a few others.

She said she doesn’t mind “running around everywhere” during the school year when things come up unexpectedly.

She said it makes for a fun, fulfilling semester and she thoroughly enjoys being busy; it keeps her motivated.

As a behavioral analysis major, Fox said she doesn’t know how she got so involved with on-campus politics, but suspects it is because she can’t get enough of being active at Eau Claire.

“When I’m at home … I just want to be back at school because I like being busy,” she said. “I thrive when I am busy. I know it seems like a very hectic lifestyle while I’m doing all of these things, but I love it. I love being involved, I love knowing that I am making a difference. I love it.”

Fox said she questions what kind of experience she is gaining going into her field of study after her education ends by being involved in so many extra-curricular activities.

“What I’m doing has nothing to do with my field, but the organizational skills and leadership I am gaining by doing this has to help at least a little,” Fox said.

Jacob Wrasse “I love being busy,” he said. “I love to have a lot of plates spinning in the air at one time. If there’s not enough pressure on me I can’t thrive … because I thrive under pressure.”

Sophomore journalism major and Intergovernmental Affairs Director Jacob Wrasse said he got the idea to get involved on-campus after former Student Senate Vice President Patrick Martin pitched the idea to him his freshman year.

Wrasse did not get the position that time around, but has since become an advocate of lobbying statewide for the betterment of students on the Eau

Claire campus.

“What Intergovernmental Affairs does, is it is basically lobbying specifically for this campus,” Wrasse said. “We are state liaisons, we can meet with state legislators and representatives who directly work with UW-Eau Claire.”

He said IGA will venture to Madison at least three times during the school year to talk to legislators about different topics that regard the university’s students, its plans and the city of Eau Claire as a whole.

Wrasse said there is much to be done and discussed this semester, especially regarding the Confluence Project and how much it would give name recognition to the city of Eau Claire.

The Confluence Project would help us alleviate some of our overpopulation, we’re currently at 108 percent capacity in the dorms,” he said. “They are going to have state of the art facilities to use for our thriving music and arts community.”

Being a journalism major, Wrasse said he thrives under pressure because it is embedded into his personality.

He is a journalism major because he likes to have deadlines, feels better about himself if he WRASSE is constantly busy and performs best when he knows there are concrete things to be completed.

When not in class or researching different aspects of his responsibilities in senate, Wrasse participates in the award-winning forensics program here.

“One of the things I did get involved with because of that journalism background and that I was passionate about was forensics,” he said. “One of the main reasons I come to Eau Claire is because of the forensics team, which is absolutely stellar.”

Wrasse also attributes his start in senate to forensics and said if it wasn’t for the meetings, he would have never met Martin, which started his career as a senator.

Christian Paese “If I am going to be involved in something and put my name on something, I’m going to do it well,” he said. “I’ll put my stamp on it and really give it everything I have.”

Junior accounting major Christian Paese serves as the Director of Information Technology as well as an on-campus senator and said he is very happy about how last year turned out.

As director, he said he is allotted approximately $1.2 million and a portion of that is budgeted for innovative technology. Last fiscal year, the innovative technology initiative launched two active learning classrooms.

Paese said hopefully the new learning technology will enhance students’ learning abilities in a new way not seen before on campus.

Along with the active classrooms, the Information Technology commission was in charge of allowing students to receive Microsoft Office for free with a Eau Claire ID. In regards to how he balances 15 hours of outside work, being the Director of Information Technology and taking a 15 credit course load, he said organization is key.

“It’s a balancing act, and prioritizing,

and managing correctly, all of those sort of cliche things you hear about, are absolutely essential,” he said.

Being an accounting major, Paese said that the experience he has already received with his time on senPAESE ate has given him knowledge and insight into things he could not learn in a classroom.

“Its tough, but is it worth it? Absolutely, yes. No questions asked,” he said.

Politicians Not Required Student senators are not limited to being politicians or political science majors. A dedication to bettering yourself, your community and your university are common themes all three of these senators share.

Even though these three do not necessarily plan to work in politics when they move on from Eau Claire, they all said being involved with senate has been a great kickstart to their individual fields for different reasons and will utilize the lessons they’ve learned in the outside world.

DAVID HEILING / The Spectator

TAKING A BREAK: In between classes and meetings, on-campus senator Mat Riedel brainstorms different ideas with senator Jake Wrasse in the Student Senate office in Davies.