Thursday 4/23/15

State News The

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I WAS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED ” They are jarring words but hold heavy meaning. For some survivors, it takes a lot of effort to prevent their trauma from becoming their identity. See pages 6-7 T HU R S DAY, A P R IL 2 3 , 2 015

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Opinion

Greg Monahan Opinion editor opinion@statenews.com @thesnewsopinion

LETTER: MSU club examines the neuroscience of rioting

MIKE HOLLOWAY

OPINION P O LL TU E SDAY ’ S R E SU LTS TOTAL VOTES: 65 AS OF 5 P.M. WEDNESDAY

How often do you recycle?

71%—As often as I can!

18%—When I get the deposit back.

11%—Rarely, if ever.

TO DAY ’ S Q U E S T I O N

Are you more excited for the Stanley Cup playoffs or the start of baseball season?

To vote, visit statenews.com

It was that time of year, and we saw it again.

In early spring, at the brink of the NCAA basketball season, a massive collective of students, faculty and alumni put their green and white on in order to support the members of our favorite basketball team — The Michigan State Spartans.

This basketball team of ours has garnered quite a lot of love and excitement over the past decade or so.

As a result, this excitement has lead a handful of fans to celebrate the accomplishments of this team as a collaborative group outside in the streets.

From couch burning to flying bagels, some students at MSU take pride in such post-win festivities. Although such activities are frowned upon by a large amount of our same fanbase, that doesn’t appear to deter the behavior of those wishing to display this level of enthusiasm.

Rioting, albeit in this case “recreational rioting,” is quite an interesting phenomenon when looking at the neuropsychological factors that contribute to it.

Your colleagues here at the Neuroscience Club Outreach Committee, we are trying to answer such complex questions

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in order to provide a new perspective into this cherished and controversial form of Spartan celebration.

Sports celebrations are developed by an igniting event, such as a win to make it to the Final Four. When a group of people assemble to unite over a common victory, this triggers a recently described phenomenon called interpersonal neural synchronization within the bunch.

The temporal-parietal junction, a part of the brain located just behind your ears, is an area important for “social mentalizing” tasks. It has been found that in assembled groups, the activity in this area becomes synchronized with the other members of this group.

This implies that we are actually able to synchronize our brain activity with that of the rest of the crowd through these unique and spontaneous opportunities.

This makes sense though, right?

Conor Peleman is a neuroscience senior and head of the MSU Neuroscience Club Outreach Committee.

READ THE FULL LETTER ON STATENEWS.COM

Contents INSIDE

Twenty-two seats vacant in ASMSU’s general assembly election

MTV Night brings members of the greek community together

MSU Rugby Football Club a tight-knit and energetic group of athletes

PAGE 4

PAGE 9

PAGE 10

13 DA I LY N U M B E R

“We made the most out of this past weekend to build for the future, since we lost to three unranked teams, we had to beat Indiana. Knowing that we beat Penn State and Iowa.”

MSU’s ranking in the Big Ten for faculty compensation.

The ranking is out of 14.

Read more on page 11.

Gene Orlando, men’s tennis head coach, on where his team stands. Read more on page 10.

Communication senior Sophia Busk dresses up as Superman March 27 in the playroom of Sparrow Hospital’s main campus. MSU’s Love Your Melon Campus Crew participated in a donation event last month. To read more, see page 5. PHOTO: KENNEDY THATCH

EDITORIAL STAFF (517) 432-3070 VOL . 105 | NO. 136

CONTACT THE STATE NEWS (517) 432-3000 NEWSROOM/CORRECTIONS (517) 432-3070 feedback@statenews.com GENERAL MANAGER Marty Sturgeon (517) 432-3000 ADVERTISING M-F, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

(517) 432-3010 ADVERTISING MANAGER Kelsey Taber COLOPHON The State News design features Acta, a newspaper type system created by DSType Foundry.

The State News is published by the students of Michigan State University, Monday through Friday during the academic year.

Subscription rates: $5 per semester on campus; $125 a year, $75 for one fall or spring semester, $60 for summer semester by mail anywhere in the continental United States. One copy of this newspaper is available free of charge to any member of the MSU community.

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Celeste Bott MANAGING EDITOR Anya Rath BREAKING NEWS EDITOR Simon Schuster TRENDS AND ISSUES EDITOR Olivia Dimmer SPORTS EDITOR Geoff Preston FEATURES EDITOR Casey Holland PHOTO EDITOR Erin Hampton COPY CHIEF Elena Cronick OPINION EDITOR Greg Monahan Copyright © 2015 State News Inc., East Lansing, Mich.

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News Elections leave openings in ASMSU ASMSU general assembly election results

22 of 34 SEATS VACANT

8/14

COLLEGES HAVE REPRESENTATIVES IN GENRAL ASSEMBLY

EDUCATION CANDIDATES: 0 WINNER: NONE

ARTS AND HUMANITIES CANDIDATES: 2 WINNER: NONE

ENGINEERING CANDIDATES: 2 WINNERS: JILLIAN CO JA’DEL HUGHES-DAVIS

SOCIAL SCIENCES CANDIDATES: 2 WINNERS: JASON PORTER CHRISTMAS FIELDING

MUSIC CANDIDATES: 0 WINNER: NONE

NURSING CANDIDATES: 2 WINNER: NONE

COMMUNICATION ARTS AND SCIENCES CANDIDATES: 1 WINNER: ZICHUN QIN

BUSINESS CANDIDATES: 1 WINNER: JASON BARNETT

ARTS AND LETTERS CANDIDATES: 0 WINNER: NONE

LYMAN BRIGGS CANDIDATES: 1 WINNER: SHAYDA SORAYA

AGRICULTURE AND NAT. RESOURCES CANDIDATES: 1 WINNER: ASHLEY ANDERSON

VETERINARY MED CANDIDATES: 0 WINNER: NONE

JAMES MADISON CANDIDATES: 3 WINNERS: WYATT LUDMAN TYLER VANHUSE

NATURAL SCIENCES CANDIDATES: 1 OFFICIAL WINNERS: FELICIA JANSEN BRANDON DEMBS

GRAPHIC: RYAN LOGAN | SOURCE: ASMSU ELECTION BALLOT RESULTS

There are 1,264 undergraduate students out of 38,786 who voted in this year’s ASMSU general assembly election, which is a 3.3 percent turnout and more than 1,000 fewer voters than in 2013, when the State News reported a 9.2 percent voter turnout.

Members of ASMSU’s general assembly oversee the task of electing the new office of the president this week, which consists of six vice presidents and one president.

Only eight of 14 colleges in ASMSU’s general assembly will be represented in this week’s undergraduate student government presidential elections.

ASMSU’s general assembly comprises 14 degree-granting colleges and 11 Council of

racial and ethnic students groups, or CORES, and Council of Progressive Students groups, or COPS, which represent on-campus organizations such as the Black Student Alliance.

Representatives for those on-campus organizations are not voted on, rather they are appointed by their own leadership.

This year, 19 elected seats remain vacant in the general assembly, leaving six colleges unrepresented in the office of the president elections.

“It’s always more beneficial to have many colleges and people with many different backgrounds participating in presidential elections to make sure we get a fair representation of college students,” ASMSU James Madison College Representative Wyatt Ludman said.

“I feel as though the elected representatives that we have are very well qualified and will

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BY RAY WILBUR RWILBUR@STATENEWS.COM

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make a good decision,” he added.

Other members of ASMSU see the low candidate turnout as a bigger issue because it leaves a large portion of the voting responsibility on representatives from the CORES and COPS groups.

“I think there’s a huge problem there, because basically it’s just the CORES and COPS groups who are choosing the president, and a lot of the time those groups send different members at different times,” former ASMSU College of Social Science Representative Evan Schrage said.

With 19 vacant seats, ASMSU will attempt to fill its empty general assembly positions by the end of the year through an appointment process that is intended to take about three weeks.

An interested candidate must get 25 signatures from their college and then an ASMSU committee reviews the candidate’s resume and

application and finally the general assembly votes for the candidate’s approval.

The appointment process is designed to choose a candidate that will be engaged, instead of just filling the position blindly, Schrage said.

Although voter turnout has decreased steadily in the last few years, ASMSU members still see this year’s general assembly election as positive.

“We’re really proud of the candidates that did win and worked to engage students, and we did a good job of providing on-campus voting booths and places to give students information,” ASMSU public relations director Ava Jacobs said.

Jacobs also said ASMSU is hopeful that the new general assembly will introduce different legislation this session in order to engage more students and increase voter turnout in the future.

Olivia Dimmer and Simon Schuster Trends and issues editor Breaking news editor campus@statenews.com @thesnews

Living City Love Your Melon student reps aim to comfort ill children

BY KENNEDY THATCH KTHATCH@STATENEWS.COM

Hospitality business senior Melissa Lichota (right) and communication senior Sophia Busk dress up as Superman and Batman and play with children March 27, 2015, in the playroom of Sparrow Hospital’s main campus. MSU’s Love Your Melon Campus Crew participated in a donation in March. PHOTO: KENNEDY THATCH

“Without caring hospital staff, visitors and activities, a hospital room can feel like a prison. With Love Your Melon, I am on a mission to fix that.”

Love Your Melon co-founder Zachary Quinn — and many students following in his footsteps — want to make hospital stays more bearable for children fighting cancer.

Love Your Melon is a non-profit organization run by college students. Their mission is to put a hat on every “melon” battling cancer in America. For every hat they sell, one is given to a child.

“Without caring hospital staff, visitors and activities, a hospital room can feel like a prison.

With Love Your Melon, I am on a mission to fix that,” Quinn said.

He said no matter what he’s going through personally, it doesn’t come close to the weight of fighting such a deadly disease.

“It is fulfilling and satisfying and it puts things in perspective,” he said. “We all have things that we worry about every day — encounters that irritate us, responsibilities that keep (us) from what we really want to do

and events that set us back. But few of us have ever been stuck in a hospital room for months at a time.

“The amount of frustration, anxiety and sadness that children battling cancer and their families go through is unimaginable,” he said.

Education junior Chelsea Abbott picked up the torch in East Lansing in fall 2013. She became the campus ambassador for MSU and helped grow the organization.

Supply chain management senior Mallory Tyler said there’s a list of people waiting to join the organization.

“People want to contribute in any way they can,” she said. “The fact that there is a waiting line to be a part of the MSU Campus Crew is pretty incredible. People clearly are becoming as passionate about the promotion as we are.”

Recently the crew made a visit to Sparrow Hospital, where they passed out hats and played with children in isolation.

To see a video, visit statenews.com/multimedia

Zachary Quinn, Love Your Melon co-founder

Latin Xplosion lights up Kellogg Center with culture

BY ZOE SCHUBOT ZSCHUBOT@STATENEWS.COM

Wednesday night the stage in the auditorium of Kellogg Center lit up with songs and dances of traditional Latino cultures.

The 21st annual Latin Xplosion event, held by CRU, MSU’s Latino student organization, was held in order to showcase various Latino groups from on and off MSU’s campus.

Before the event, Latin Xplosion coordinator and mechanical engineering junior Pablo Lopez said it sheds light on the diversity which exists within the Latino community.

“I just want (audience members) to take away the diversity amongst the Latino community, because we have different performers that are from all parts of Latin America,” Lopez said prior to the event. “We have a Brazilian group coming to perform, we have a Puerto Rican dance group coming to perform, we have a Mexican mariachi

group, so basically I just want them to get a full understanding of the different cultures that are of Latino descent.”

Lopez said he also hoped students who attended the event will understand that stereotypes they might believe regarding the Latino community couldn’t be further from the truth.

“It’s not just one stereotype like ‘Oh (Latinos) are just Mexicans.’ I want to try to diversify the campus and get them exposed to different Latin American groups through the performance,” Lopez said.

The event featured MSU students as well as professional groups. Open auditions were held earlier this year for any student who wanted to show off their unique talents.

“We just want to bring as much awareness and exposure to Latino culture through music and dance, and other talents, as we can,” Lopez said.

To read more and see a video of the event, check online at statenews.com.

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Spotlight Stories of

BY MARIA BRAGANINI MBRAGANINI@STATENEWS.COM

survival

Rape — the most common violent crime on college campuses — victimizes one in four women and one in seven men while at college.

Each year, many survivors bring personal experiences of sexual invasion, violation and abuse to MSU’s campus, utilizing domestic and sexual assault services to begin their healing process.

As a survivor of rape myself, I was able to reach out to other members of that community at MSU. Three survivors, who were sexually assaulted off campus, shared their on campus experiences of substance abuse, self-exploration and growth, which shaped them to be the survivors they are today.

PHOTOS BY ERIN HAMPTON, ALICE KOLE, HANNAH LEVY

A story of healing Doctoral student Emily Nichols didn’t acknowledge her rape until nine years after it happened. Through therapy and MSU’s sexual assault services, she is now the happiest she has ever been

EMILY NICHOLS Doctoral student

“I’m always going to be a survivor.

It’s a part of me, but that rape was not me.”

Emily Nichols is determined to create a future without violence on university campus.

Nichols, a human development and family studies doctoral student, has worked on every committee on campus raising awareness on sexual assault.

“I’m always going to be a survivor,” Nichols said. “It’s a part of me, but that rape was not me.”

Nichols said she was raped in high school at a party by a friend.

“We were never taught what rape was growing up,” she said. “Instead of people being sensitive about it, (my friends) didn’t understand and they just called me a slut.”

Nichols said she shut down for the rest of high school and just wanted to get out of the situation.

During Nichols’ Academic Orientation Program session at MSU, a relationship violence and sexual assault theater group performed a skit that opened her eyes to her abuse.

Nichols said her undergraduate years were a growing experience where she made really good friends but opted not to tell anyone about her abuse because of the negative reactions she received in high school.

Nichols officially acknowledged her abuse nine years later, after she reached her lowest point, which was triggered by loneliness. Nichols began visiting a therapist.

Nichols said she is now the happiest she has ever been and she is grateful for MSU sexual assault services and the support system.

“I’ve had a very positive experience,” Nichols said. “Positive experiences get lost in the mix with more people who have negative experiences.”

After telling her mother and best friend her experience one year ago, Nichols finds strength through friends, family and her boyfriend.

“Happiness can happen,” she said. “It can come without significant interventions. Those things can happen.”

A story of fullfillment Doctoral student Apryl Pooley was raped her senior year of high school and again in college. Her experiences caused her to be self-destructive and be isolated until she sought help She woke up in the clothes she wore the night before, covered in vomit and unable to move.

Apryl Pooley, a neuroscience doctoral student studying post-traumatic stress disorder, was raped her senior year of high school by her best friend’s boyfriend.

Pooley said she had a couple of beers, then was offered a mixed drink that tasted like fruit juice. Sixteen hours later, she woke up disoriented as her rapist began undressing her.

“Then he raped me,” she said. “I remember seeing blood all over his hands, all over his bed and I was confused by all the blood. It was my first time.”

Returning to school, Pooley was quickly exiled from her friend group and labeled a slut, forcing her to suppress every detail from that night.

“I didn’t realize it was rape for a year,” Pooley said. “I kept telling myself that’s what happens when you drink, maybe 6

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you wanted it, any excuse to mask what happened or what it really was.”

Overnight, like a switch, Pooley began skipping school and drinking heavily, constantly thinking about the sequence of events leading to her rape, and began searching for other answers.

“It was like I was reading my story but it was other people,” she said after discovering she had been the victim of date rape. “I didn’t think I was the only person this happened to anymore. I acknowledged it was rape. I wanted to do something about it.”

Pooley said her mother became angry after disclosing the truth of what had happened. As a result, she decided she wasn’t going to talk about it anymore and that there was nothing more to do.

A year later, distracted with grades and drinking, Pool-

THURSDAY, APRI L 2 3, 2 01 5

APRYL POOLEY Doctoral student

“The recovery is rough but I’m glad I’m alive because I can help people.”

Anya Rath Managing editor arath@statenews.com @thesnews

A story of triumph Elementary education senior Patrick Harris experienced sexual trauma at the hands of someone he considered to be a brother figure — until he had enough “My story isn’t stereotypical or the portrayed image of sexual assault,” elementary education senior Patrick Harris said.

Harris’ story first began when he was 18 years old and working as a counselor at an overnight summer camp in West Michigan.

Living on campsite, after a day of training before camp officially started, Harris and his supervisor, the assistant camp director, had a long and meaningful talk.

“I have never had male friends,” he said. “I always hung around women.

I wasn’t big into sports as a kid. I’m not extremely hyper-masculine, so I didn’t connect naturally with the male community.”

Despite this being the first man Harris ever connected with, Harris was still hesitant to accept the assistant camp director’s offer of a mentorship.

His intuition served to be right.

“From there it turned ugly,” he said.

“He was intentional about manipulating others as director. He pushed me to be where I was alone or could not say no.”

After lunchtime at the camp, the

campers and counselors participated in “chillax time,” which was an hour spent in cabins to take naps. Lying down in his bunk, Harris was joined by the assistant camp director.

“At first I thought he was just chilling,” he said. “Then he starts talking to me and his leg starts going up my leg and genital area. My mind was absent.

Do I scream? Do I yell? Do I make a scene in front of all these kids sleeping in the cabin 2 feet away from me?”

Harris’ sexual trauma became a trend, and he repeatedly began to wake up with the assistant camp director molesting him. Despite the experience, Harris returned to the camp again the following year.

The same trauma continued that year.

But Harris was done letting it happen and told another counselor about the trauma. The assistant camp director, who was revealed to be molesting other children, was immediately removed from the camp after admitting to all accusations.

“It was humiliating and embarrassing but I felt happy that I released it,” he said.

Through self-exploration and therapy, Harris discovered he was also the victim of sexual trauma at a young age.

Harris acknowledged his trauma head on and began his healing process by speaking out about male sexual assault.

“I confronted the first assault, sexuality, family relationships, power dynamics, masculinity and still took 14 credits,” he said.

A f ter telling his stor y, Har r is received a lot of backlash from family and friends because he had returned for a second year. It was hard to explain for Harris.

“He had my trust, I didn’t know what to do,” Harris said. “There was a strong power dynamic, feeling alone and under someone’s spell. The trust, being my first big brother.”

Harris now identifies as a survivor and has learned a few things to pass on to other survivors of sexual assault.

“You have more power than you think that you really do, you have a voice that echoes,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to use it. You don’t have to settle for a particular kind of friend.”

PATRICK HARRIS Elementary education senior

“He had my trust, I didn’t know what to do. There was a strong power dynamic, feeling alone and under someone’s spell. The trust, being my first big brother.”

The showtimes for April 23-26 are as follows:

ey’s rapist contacted her and showed up at her doorstep. Seeing him again triggered an emotional breakdown and Pooley attempted suicide. Her mother caught her just in time and stopped her.

The next year, Pooley and her cousin went to a party. Soon after arriving, Pooley caught the interest of another man and when she refused to go home with him, she said he forced her into a room and raped her.

“It lasted two to three minutes,” Pooley said.

“It was horrible. Afterwards he said to me, ‘Wow thank you, that was the best orgasm I’ve had in a long time.’”

Despite her substance abuse, that began as a result of her experiences, Pooley graduated with bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She came to MSU with hopes for a fresh start in a Ph.D. program.

Within a week, she started going out every night and having sex with random strangers when she didn’t want to.

“It was a common theme,” she said. “I didn’t

make the connection why I was doing things that were ruining my life because I’ve been raped twice.”

Each time a man took an interest in Pooley, she hid herself emotionally as a means of protecting herself and hit another roadblock.

After doing some research and discovering she had post-traumatic stress disorder, Pooley couldn’t leave her apartment.

For the first time in five years, she went a day without a sip of alcohol, and instantly began to experience severe withdrawal. Shaking and sweating, Pooley sought help and found herself in the Olin Health Center.

Today Pooley consistently goes to therapy, working on healing and understanding herself. Through therapy, she discovered that she is a lesbian. She later met her wife, whom she married last year.

“Together we have made friends who are supportive,” she said. “It gives purpose to it all.

The recovery is rough but I’m glad I’m alive because I can help people.”

Jupiter Ascending Fri, Sat & Sun Wells 8:30 PM Project Almanac Fri, Sat & Sun Wells Hall 7:15 & 9:15 Spongbob Squarepants 2 Sponge out of Water Thurs 119 B Wells Hall 8:45PM Fri, Sat & Sun Wells Hall 7:00 & 9:00 Aarat Fri & Sat-122 Wells Hall 7:10 & 9:10 PM

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www.rha.msu.edu ccc@rha.msu.edu 517-355-8285

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Crossword

L.A. Times Daily Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis

News

Power plant seeks coal alternatives

ACROSS

1 “Carrie” Oscar nominee 7 Letters about time 11 __ Fit: video exercise game 14 Acid neutralizer 15 Restaurant chain named for a Mozart opera 16 It’s often cured 17 *Skedaddling 19 Physician’s org.

20 Snack brand creator Wally 21 Karaoke option 22 Take one’s sweet time 24 Half a score 25 Auction cry 26 Lamp emission, if you’re lucky 27 *Food often served with ranch dip 30 __ Navidad 33 First-line national anthem word 34 Prefix with caching 35 With 38-Across, band with the hit “Radioactive,” and a hint to the ends of the answers to starred clues 38 See 35-Across 41 First-line national anthem word

42 Pigs out (on) 44 __ attitude 45 *Weigh, with “at” 50 Sensible 51 Stats for Mike Trout 52 Meditator’s intonations 55 Sand bar 56 Appear 57 Purveyor of many flat packs 58 Burst 59 *Real ordeal 62 Part of UCSD: Abbr.

63 Cheese that’s sometimes stuffed 64 Begin gently 65 Cut 66 Smashes 67 They’re often ruled

DOWN

1 Occupied, as a table 2 Nice pen 3 Firestone Country Club city 4 Spam holders 5 Lilly of pharmaceuticals 6 In a way 7 Played the part of 8 Asset in a castle siege 9 Chi follower 10 Shower problem 11 Beating heavily, as with a sledgehammer

12 Post-apocalyptic Will Smith film 13 “Perhaps” 18 __ of Mexico 23 Young Darth’s nickname 25 Singer Quatro 26 Church attachment?

27 Popular 28 Took charge of 29 Just fair 30 __ bump 31 Phishing scam, e.g.

32 Church attendees 36 “O Holy Night,” for one 37 Journalism VIPs 39 Far from fails 40 It’s often bought at an island 43 Horror movie sounds 46 Dam-building org.

47 __-skelter 48 First fratricide victim 49 Loosen (up) 52 1930s migrants 53 Worthiness 54 Composer Saint-__ 55 Org for strays 56 Place that gave its name to a cat breed 57 “Say that’s true ... “ 60 No for the healthconscious 61 Retired NBAer Ming

Ernest Tisdale, a fuel systems operator III, pushes a pile of coal with a bulldozer March 16 at the MSU Power Plant.

Behind the power plant, coal is dropped through grates, either from trains or by bulldozer, onto a conveyor belt where it is taken to the plant to be used. STATE NEWS FILE PHOTO

BY MEAGAN BECK MBECK@STATENEWS.COM

Get the solutions at statenews.com/puzzles Level: 1

2

3

4

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit www.sudoku.org.uk SOLUTION TO WEDNESDAY’S PUZZLE

4/23/15

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© 2015 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.

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In an attempt to meet Environmental Protection Agency requirements, MSU’s power plant is looking at coal alternatives and is hoping to utilize natural gas, among other sources, to meet federal standards.

On April 8, MSU announced it will move toward completely cutting the use of coal at the MSU Power Plant by the end of 2016.

This decision is partly in response to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations launched in 2014, officials said.

In June 2014, the EPA introduced the Clean Power Plan under President Barack Obama’s Climate Action Plan. The plan is meant to assist with cutting pollution and maintain an affordable energy system.

Since 2009 MSU has reduced coal use by 65 percent, which means it is en route to reaching benchmarks set by the Energy Transition Plan framework.

The reduction of coal use has lead to a reduction of carbon emissions by 18 percent, which is more than halfway toward one of MSU’s goals.

Robert Ellerhorst, director of utilities for Infrastructure Planning and

Facilities, said the EPA regulations are just one factor in the decision to cut coal use by 2016.

Other factors include capacity, reliability and the health of the MSU community, he said.

“Can the university incorporate wind or solar? We are looking at that.

There is no firm info to release.”

Robert Ellerhorst, Director of utilities for Infrastructure Planning and Facilities

Ellerhorst said MSU will still be required to follow the regulations, but looking at the EPA’s provisions for natural gas as opposed to those for coal use.

Jennifer Battle, director of MSU’s Office of Sustainability, said the power plant is currently at a 70 to 30 percent ratio of natural gas and other energy sources. Seventy-one percent of the energy supply comes from natural gas, 28 percent from coal and 1

percent from biofuel.

Battle said the move is just one of many steps toward having a sustainable energy supply.

“It’s the ending of an old technology. The exciting part is the new options we are exploring,” Battle said.

In addition to ending coal use at the power plant, Ellerhorst said the university is currently exploring options for renewable energy.

A wind analysis done on the south end of campus found the wind in the area is viable for turbines, but a lack of space on south campus, where there are already research buildings, and farms also impacts the decision.

Ellerhorst said solar power would also be beneficial during the day when there is enough sun to use for energy, but the university also needs energy at night.

The MSU Energy Transition Plan, approved by the Board of Trustees in 2012, set a benchmark for MSU to be powered by 15 percent renewable energy by July 1, 2015, but it seems unlikely the university will meet the goal.

“Can the university incorporate wind or solar? We are looking at that. There is no firm info to release,” Ellerhorst said.

Features

Casey Holland Features editor features@statenews.com @sn_features

MTV Night, Songfest wrap up Greek Week

BY LAUREN OWINGS LOWINGS@STATENEWS.COM

On Tuesday night Breslin Center was packed with hundreds of screaming students, dressed up and waving glow-in-thedark sticks to support their fraternities and sororities in the annual MTV Night dance competition.

Panhellenic Council v ice-president of communications and jour nalism junior Faith Krogulecki said her favorite aspect of the night was all the teams coming together for a common purpose.

She said this event, along with Songfest, concludes all the work the greek community did this semester to raise money and help out in the community.

A big part of MT V Night for Krogulecki is the way it brings fraternities and sororities together. A chapter cannot have the same partner, so every year people are paired up with somebody new.

“That’s awesome because it’s a whole new opportunity to make new friends and new connections,” Krogulecki said.

She said M T V Night is i mpor ta nt because when someone joins a chapter, they also join the greek community. This event brings everyone together for a night of dancing and fun.

For education f reshman Olivia Kraeuter, this was her first year performing at MTV Night.

She said it was a little overwhelming at first, but the energy from the crowd quickly got her pumped up.

“This is probably the biggest audience I’ve ever performed in front of, but it’s just so fun because everyone you know on campus is in this room watching,” Kraeuter said.

The performance was bittersweet for Kraeuter. She said although a big weight has been lifted because of all the hard work they put in, it’s sad that it’s done because they all got so close over the course of the semester.

“I’m going to miss the practices and all the people that we saw every day for the past four weeks,” Kraeuter said.

“But I’m really proud of what we did tonight.”

She said her favorite part of MTV Night was performing, because her team finally had that moment they’d been working toward for the past three months.

“To finally have that feeling of leaving it all on the dance floor and giving 110 percent and hearing the crowd react to what we’ve worked on, that’s an indescribable feeling,” Kraeuter said.

She said she loves how many people come to MTV Night, going all out by dressing in their team’s theme and bringing signs and other things to cheer each other on.

K raeuter said they were cheering for people they’d never met and teams they’d never worked with just because they did something awesome.

“It’s fun to see all the greek community in one room supporting each other and having fun,” Kraeuter said.

Marketing freshman Geneva Swanson also experienced her first MTV Night performance.

“At first, I was terrified because it’s a bunch of college students and people I’m going to see every day for the next four years,” Swanson said.

But her fear didn’t last long.

She said as soon as she got on stage the adrenaline kicked in, and she got energy from hearing the greek community cheering her on.

Having been a dancer her

Members of greek life dance onstage Tuesday during MTV Night at Breslin Center. MTV Night is an event during Greek Week where sororities and fraternities compete in a technical dancing competition. Kappa Alpha Theta won the competition.

PHOTOS: ALLYSON TELGENHOF

whole life, Swanson said she never remembers the performance afterward because it all happens so fast.

“As soon as you’re done with it, it’s so rewarding to know that’s what we worked hard for, and no matter the outcome, we’re all proud of what we did,” Swanson said.

As an upperclassman, political science senior Daniel Swartz’s enthusiasm hasn’t faltered.

He said although a lot of seniors don’t participate as much, he always has a great time being out there supporting greek society.

“I’m going to miss the practices and all the people that we saw every day for the past four weeks. But I’m really proud of what we did tonight.”

Olivia Kraeuter, education freshman

Despite his ex per ience, Swartz still feels anxious before a performance.

“It gets ner ve-w rack ing when you’re sitting on deck,” Swartz said. “You hear everyone screaming and everyone chanting for your fraternity and sorority.”

Once Swartz gets onstage, he said it feels just like another practice.

A f ter t he per for ma nce,

he said he feels bittersweet because of how quickly it goes by, and because of the connection he made with his teammates.

“But you get to relive the memories, which is always the best part,” Swartz said.

ONLINE To watch a video about MTV Night, visit statenews. com/multimedia

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Members of Alpha Phi dance onstage Tuesday during MTV Night at Breslin Center.

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Sports

Geoff Preston Sports editor sports@statenews.com @thesnews_sports

Rugby club accepts all to try unique sport

BY RYAN SQUANDA RSQUANDA@STATENEWS.COM

When applied engineering sciences senior Nawar Dimitry came to MSU as a freshman in fall 2010, the former high school football and basketball player was looking for a team that would allow him to stay active and compete.

It wasn’t long before Dimitry stumbled across the MSU Rugby Football Club. At the time, Dimitry had no clue how to play the sport.

Fast-forward five years down the road and Dimitry is now one of the club’s top players.

“It was unlike anything I had ever played before,” Dimitry said of his first time experiencing the sport. “It’s kind of a hybrid between football and soccer. … There’s a lot of new rules you’ve got to learn as a new guy. … It’s just a lot different than anything I’ve ever played. It’s a lot of fun, though.”

The MSU RFC is broken into two seasons of 15-on-15 80-minute games in the fall, and 7-on-7 14-minute games in the spring. MSU RFC president Todd Else said the name of the game can be boiled down to this: run forward, pass backward and if you’re on defense, tackle the man with the ball.

The club practices three times a week at 5:30 p.m., with many of those practices taking place on their pitch at Service Road field on the east side of MSU’s campus.

Although rugby is not an officially recognized sport by the NCAA, the club competes in a league known as NCAA Division I-A, the highest level of collegiate competition.

The club has its own coach and travels across the country to compete in tournaments and championships.

During the season, the club

Members of the MSU Rugby Football Club play a game Tuesday during practice at the Service Road field located by the Bott Building for Nursing Education and Research on Service Road. The Rugby Football Club practices rain or shine Tuesday through Thursday. PHOTO: ALICE KOLE

is broken up into three different teams — an A side for the most experienced players, a B side farm team, and a C side training team.

But despite the high level of competition, Else — an offensive lineman in high school who first got involved with the sport when he discovered he could run with the ball — makes it known the club

is welcome to athletes of all backgrounds.

“We take everyone,” said Else, who has been playing the game since he was a junior in high school. “At least half, if not a majority of the kids on the team came on with no experience. … We’ve had kids coming out where this is their first sport ever played, to having played anything in high school.”

And it’s this kind of acceptance and patience that’s had new members falling in love with the club.

“They are incredibly accepting,” said media and information freshman Josh Leppert, who had no previous rugby playing experience when he joined the club. “That was one of the strongest points for why I kept coming back to practice

because their philosophy is that there is always something that you can learn about rugby … the coaches treat everyone fairly, the veterans help out with the fundamentals. … It’s great how everyone is treated so fair.”

But if there’s something else to make note of when assessing the MSU rugby squad, it’s just how close-knit they are.

Many of the members on the team have been friends for years, and are even roommates with many of their teammates.

“Being part of the team has by far been my favorite part of college,” MSU RFC vice president and finance junior Andy Boyd said. “The camaraderie of a rugby team is by far greater than anything I’ve ever seen in any sport I’ve played.”

Men’s tennis prepares for Big Ten Tournament The road to the NCAA Tournament has been paved with a schedule that has been hard for the MSU men’s tennis team to overcome.

“I thought we played well against some good teams,” head coach Gene Orlando said. “We had some matches against good teams where we weren’t able to get the quality wins that we needed to help us get into the tournament.”

Five straight losses in East Lansing before coming away with two quality victories on the road against Purdue and No. 43 Indiana over the weekend has locked in the Spartans at No. 7 in the Big

Ten Tournament this week, where they’ll face No. 10 Nebraska in the first round.

The mindset among the players and coaches is to win it all, regardless of the competition they’re expected to face at the University of Illinois’ Atkins Tennis Center.

If MSU can exact revenge on the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Thursday, they go head-to-head with No. 2 Ohio State, who took the regular-season matchup against the Spartans, 7-0, back on March 22.

They’re excited about having the opportunity to close out on a high note after suffering through periods of disappointment and frustration.

As for their seeding in the tournament, Orlan-

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BY ZACH LIBBY ZLIBBY@STATENEWS.COM

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do said that it’s due to his team not capitalizing on golden chances.

“We played a very challenging schedule, five teams ranked in the top 10,” Orlando said. “But when you put the schedule together, they weren’t top 10 two years ago. We were excited about the opportunities, but we weren’t able to compete and collect that quality win.”

In terms of how pleased Orlando is about where his team sits in the bracket, considering where MSU sat after dropping their fifth consecutive defeat to No. 32 Minnesota, he said he’ll take it and run.

“We made the most out of this past weekend to build for the future,” Orlando said. “Since we lost

to three unranked teams, we had to beat Indiana.

Knowing that we beat Penn State and Iowa, we knew that match meant a lot.”

Orlando is expecting big things from his senior class in the tournament, who have been a major factor in helping out the Spartans persevere through moments of struggle during this trying season.

That includes Gijs Linders, who has stepped up and elevated his game with John Patrick Mullane out of the lineup.

Thursday and Friday’s first round and quarterfinal matches will begin at 11 a.m., while Saturday’s semifinals and Sunday’s championship match will begin at 1 p.m.

Quick reads Advocating for pro-abortion rights

Faculty Senate increases merit pool

BY CAMERON MACKO CMACKO@STATENEWS.COM

Prenursing sophomore Alicia Geniac and zoology junior Darren Incorvaia talk to students about MSU Students for Choice on April 16 in front of the rock on Farm Lane. Students for Choice is part of the 1 in 3 Campaign, which works to reduce the stigma around abortion.

PHOTO: ALLYSON TELGENHOF

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Employment ASBESTOS ABATEMENT/ Demolition. Reputable contractor seeks dependable hard working ind. for asbestos abatement laborer positions. No exp necessary.

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In an effort to prevent MSU falling to last place in faculty compensation rates among Big Ten schools, the Faculty Senate approved a relatively high faculty merit and market pool increases for the 2015-2016 school year Tuesday afternoon.

MSU is currently ranked 13 out of 14 in the Big Ten in faculty compensation, and the University Committee on Faculty Affairs presented its recommendations to the Faculty Senate on Tuesday, suggesting a 4 percent general merit pool increase, between 1 and 2 percent higher than the rest of the Big Ten. The merit pool exists to reward faculty members for good performance.

The 4 percent increase will maintain MSU’s position and prevent the university from sliding lower, according to a memo sent to provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs June Youatt from UCFA Chairperson Phylis Floyd.

Floyd said at the meeting that financial difficulties had been the reason for MSU’s slip, as it had ranked two positions

higher for the 2003-2004 school year and has ranked as high as eighth since then.

Based off a more stable financial situation, UCFA recommends this as a good time for an increase in the merit pool.

“There is also a concern about the long-term impact on faculty compensation with the ongoing erosion of university-funded health benefits,” the memo read, including a number of changes to faculty healthcare.

UCFA also recommended a raise of the provost’s market adjustment pool of 1.25 percent. This pool is a separate pool managed by the provost’s office for abilities such as a supplemental raise to exceptional faculty, Floyd said.

MSU also ranks at the bottom regarding salaries for assistant professors, according to an attachment to the agenda, something a Faculty Senate member brought up as a concern Youatt, commenting on what she thought President Lou Anna K. Simon might say, said that chairs are hiring them at unacceptably low rates.

“Particularly for assistant professors, we should be hiring them at a higher rate than we see here,” she said.

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11

Sports Senior leadership the reason for baseball’s recent hot streak Head coach Jake Boss Jr. draws parallels to other sports’ group of leaders

BY MATTHEW ARGILLANDER MARGILLANDER@STATENEWS.COM

All season baseball head coach Jake Boss Jr. has made clear the importance of his seniors. He’s said before that much like the football and basketball teams, success starts with the players that have been on the team the longest.

“Our seniors have got to lead us, and we’ve talked about that before.

It’s no different than football or basketball and Coach (Dantonio) and Coach Izzo saying it,” Boss said. “It’s the same thing for us.”

The MSU football team has had its fair share of important seniors and upper classmen leading the way to winning the 2015 Cotton Bowl, much like the basketball team had its juniors and seniors step up on their way to the Final Four.

As they did for basketball and foot-

ardson) and guys like that,” senior catcher and first baseman Blaise Salter said. “We’ve played a lot of games since our freshman year, and we’ve put in a lot of hard work. And it’s good to see all the hard work pay off.”

Salter believes that the team is a close group of very motivated guys that play for each other, but sometimes it takes a few guys to bring it all together. Salter believes the team’s strong leadership has been evident as of late.

“We have a lot of guys who have played a lot of baseball for Michigan State,” Salter said. “We’re a pretty tight-knit group and pretty self-motivated as a whole, but it always takes a couple of guys to light the fire underneath people and get people going. We’ve got pretty strong leadership this year, and I think it’s showing as of late.”

ball, it is the upperclassmen leading the way for baseball as well.

As of April 19, the team had 195 RBI. Seniors on the team are responsible for 121 of the 195, and junior outfielder Cam Gibson has another 21. In total, juniors and seniors are responsible for 143 of the 195.

“Our seniors have got to be our guys. They’ve played a lot of ball here, and they’re very talented players, and we need those guys to contribute. And they’re doing a good job of leading us,” Boss said.

Four of the Spartans batting .300 or higher that have played enough for it to matter are upperclassmen. Senior infielder Mark Weist is hitting .331, Gibson is hitting .331 as well, senior outfielder Anthony Cheky is hitting .324 and senior first baseman Ryan Krill is hitting .308.

“We’ve played a lot in our days (at MSU). Me, (Ryan) Krill, (Ryan Rich-

Senior catcher/first baseman Blaise Salter swings the bat April 9 at the Crosstown Showdown at Cooley Law School Stadium in Lansing. The Lansing Lugnuts defeated the Spartans with a score of 9-4. PHOTO: ALLYSON TELGENHOF

Redefining the way you think about health.

Register Now! Active Stretching Deb Popp, Personal Trainer Thursdays, beginning May 21 (see health4u.msu.edu for all dates) 12:10-12:50 pm, IM East, Room 101 $36.00 per person fee for 12-week series Chair Massage Samplers Marilyn Cady and Deby Stuart, Certified Massage Therapists Tuesdays, visit health4u.msu.edu for dates and locations 11:30 am – 1:30 pm The Healing Power of Guided Imagery Lisa Laughman, LMSW, ACSW Wednesdays, beginning May 27 12:10-12:50 pm, Abrams Planetarium Kitchen Skill Drill: “Marinades & Rubs for Grilling” Peggy Crum, MA, RD, and Chef Kurt Kwiatkowski Tuesday, June 2 12:10-12:50, McDonel Hall Test Kitchen

Living Abundantly Lisa Laughman, LMSW, ACSW Thursdays, beginning May 21 12:10-12:50pm, Location TBD Recipe for Health Cooking Series Peggy Crum, MA, RD and Chef Kurt Kwiatkowski Wednesday, May 6: Chives Wednesday, June 10: Yellow Perch Wednesday, July 15: Blueberries Wednesday, August 5: Cauliflower 12:10-12:50, Brody Square Demonstration Kitchen Relaxing Under the Stars John French, Abrams Planetarium Wednesday, May 20 Thursday, June 18 Tuesday, July 21 12:10-12:50 pm, Abrams Planetarium Rest with Music Jon Novello, LMSW, ACSW Monday, May 18: Rich Illman and Western Medicine Monday, June 15: Blue Jello & The Ukulele Kings 12:10 – 12:50 pm, Abrams Planetarium

MSU Breathe Easy:

Tobacco & Nicotine Cessation Program Want to quit smoking? Register to attend a pre-enrollment Orientation: Wednesday, May 13, 2015 1:30-3:30 pm Olin Health Center, Room 247 Open to MSU faculty, academic/support staff and benefits-eligible dependents. Register by email health4u@msu.edu or by calling 517-353-2596.

Do something terrific for yourself, your family, your friends, and MSU – we can help!

The MSU Breathe Easy: Tobacco & Nicotine Cessation Program is being offered through a partnership between Human Resources, Olin Health Center, and the Office of the University Physician-Health4U Program.

Michigan State University/University Physician’s Office/Health4U Program All classes require registration prior to the first class session. All series provided free of charge, unless otherwise specified.

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