Volume 88, Issue 8 by The New Paltz Oracle

NEW PALTZ ORACLE THE

Volume 88, Issue VIII

oracle.newpaltz.edu

EQUALITY MATTERS

Thursday, November 12, 2015

PHOTO BY FLICKR USER SHINYASUZUKI

Gov. Cuomo Issues Executive Order To Combat Transgender Discrimination STORY ON PAGE 3 | EDITORIAL ON PAGE 9

INSIDE THIS WEEK’S ISSUE OF THE NEW PALTZ ORACLE

•Neil Bettez Named New Paltz Town Supervisor Elect ................Pg 4 •English As Second Language Program Launched .......Pg 6 •Village Public Works Looks To Repair Local Fire Hydrants .....Pg 5 •Student Senate Receives Library Updates .....................Pg 7

Kristen Warﬁeld EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Nate Sheidlower

NEW PALTZ ORACLE THE

MANAGING EDITOR _________________

Melanie Zerah NEWS EDITOR

Karl Evers-Hillstrom FEATURES EDITOR

Russell Hartman

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Melissa Kramer SPORTS EDITOR

_________________

Holly Lipka David Khorassani PHOTOGRAPHY EDITORS

Stefanie Diers CARTOONIST

_________________

Sam Manzella Amanda Copkov Michael Rosen Jack O’Brien Jess Napp Monique Tranchina Anthony Orza Rachael Purtell Kintura Williams COPY EDITORS

_________________

Jackie Quaranto WEB CHIEF

_________________

Emma Savic

BUSINESS MANAGER _________________

Marisa Losciale

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER _________________

STAFF

FEATURES

P G. 2 B

About The New Paltz Oracle

A&E

The New Paltz Oracle is the official student newspaper of SUNY New Paltz. Our circulation is 2,500. The New Paltz Oracle is sponsored by the Student Association and partially funded by the student activity fee. The New Paltz Oracle is located in the Student Union (SU) Room 417. Deadline for all submissions is 5 p.m. on Sundays in The New Paltz Oracle office and by email at oracle@hawkmail. newpaltz.edu. All advertisements must be turned in by 5 p.m. on Fridays, unless otherwise specified by the business manager. Community announcements are published gratuitously, but are subject to restriction due to space limitations.There is no guarantee of publication. Contents of this paper cannot be reproduced without the written permission of the Editor-in-Chief. The New Paltz Oracle is published weekly throughout the fall and spring semesters on Thursdays. It is available in all residence halls and academic buildings, in the New Paltz community and online at oracle.newpaltz.edu. For more information, call 845-257-3030. The fax line is 845-257-3031.

Volume 88 Issue VIII Index NEWS THE DEEP END EDITORIAL C OLUMN Michael Rosen Melanie Zerah

SPORTS

Disclaimer: This is only a partial listing. For all incidents, please visit the University Police Department.

8B None 9 10 11-15

FOLLOW THE ORACLE

Sage Higgins, Matthew D’Onofrio

@NewPaltzOracle

Five-Day Forecast Thursday, November 12

Between Oct. 30 and Nov. 11 there were no reported University Police incidents. We made it through Halloween okay, who knows, maybe we’ll make it to Thanksgiving – maybe even all of November. Stay safe, SUNY New Paltz! SUNY New Paltz University Police Department Emergencies: 845-257-2222

Rain High: 56 Low: 45

Friday, November 13 Partly Cloudy & Windy High: 52 Low: 37

Saturday, November 14 Partly Cloudy High: 46 Low: 31

Sunday, November 15 Sunny High: 56 Low: 33

WANT TO WRITE FOR THE ORACLE?

PG. 12

oracle.newpaltz.edu

University Police Blotter

1B-8B

SPORTS

VISIT “THE ORACLE” ONLINE:

3-7

THE GUNK OP-ED

P G. 5 B

Monday, November 16 Sunny High: 58 Low: 37

The New Paltz Oracle

News

oracle.newpaltz.edu

Cuomo Advocates To Protect Transgender New Yorkers

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHINYA SUZUKI Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

By Sam Manzella

Copy Editor | Manzells1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently issued an executive action designed to protect transgender people from discrimination in New York State (NYS). At an Oct. 22 dinner with the Empire State Pride Agenda, an LGBTQIA+ advocacy group, Cuomo ordered an amendment to NYS’s current civil rights laws. The governor also advocated in favor of the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), which would operate as part of NYS’s Human Rights Law, according to his official news release. GENDA would affirm that transgender individuals are protected statewide, and that public and private employers, housing providers, businesses and creditors cannot discriminate against anyone on the basis of their gender identity. Despite Cuomo’s call for action, passing GENDA comes with a distinct set of obstacles— and for policymakers

in Albany, these obstacles aren’t new. The New York State Assembly, controlled by Democrats, regularly approved bills like GENDA in the past, only to “find [them] stymied by the State Senate, where Republicans are in charge,” reporter Jesse McKinley said in an article from The New York Times. To enact GENDA, the bill must pass through both branches of state government. During his speech at Pride Agenda’s dinner, Cuomo noted New York State’s history of progressive movements for equality, including the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention for women’s rights as well as the birth of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909. “We [New York State] are the national and international capital of diversity and inclusion,” Cuomo said. “Included in the premise of diversity is the promise of equality for everyone.” But for Cuomo, fellow Democrats

and activists in the LGBTQIA+ community, the state has yet to fulfill this promise. Previous legislation aimed to protect lesbian, gay and bisexual individuals excluded one key part of the famous acronym: the T, which stands for transgender. This was the impetus for his executive order, Cuomo said, and it’s the reason why his administration is urging policymakers in Albany to pass GENDA. The governor called NYS’s current human rights laws “not fair, not right, [and] not legal” for the transgender community. According to statistics found on Pride Agenda’s website, 75 percent of transgender workers in New York have experienced harassment at work. Seventeen percent of transgender New Yorkers have been denied medical services. These incidents of outward discrimination come with serious and palpable repercussions, too. A 2012 study from the Program in Human Sexuality at the Uni-

Thursday, November 12, 2015

versity of Minnesota Medical School found that transgender women are six times more likely to experience depression than the general population. Likewise, a 2005 survey of over 180 transgender people from the Health & Social Work academic journal determined that 30.1 percent of those surveyed had attempted suicide. Cuomo’s announcement at the conference also comes after increased visibility of transgender celebrities, and of violence against the transgender community. Transgender celebrities like Caitlyn Jenner and Janet Mock rose to fame in popular media as icons of the movement for transgender equality. Activists on platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr continue to push for public awareness of violence against transgender women by spreading the names of transgender women who are murdered in the U.S. across social media.

4 oracle.newpaltz.edu

NEWS BRIEFS WORLD

News

The New Paltz Oracle

Neil Bettez Wins Town Supervisor Election

GLOBAL PUSH FOR END TO SYRIA WAR SEEN AS MOST SERIOUS YET The international community is mounting its most serious effort yet to end the nearly 5-year-old Syrian war, rallying around a second round of talks in Vienna this weekend amid the emergence of a Russian proposal that calls for early elections. But the global push for peace so far excludes any of the Syrian players, and experts say any hasty decisions risk leading to even greater bloodshed. PRODUCT-LABELING PLAN BY EUROPE DEEPENS ISRAEL’S ISOLATION The European Union’s decision Wednesday to start labeling Israeli products made in the West Bank delivered a resounding show of international disapproval over Israel’s expansion of Jewish settlements and raised the pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to renew peace efforts with the Palestinians. THE LATEST: SWEDEN: BORDER CONTROL TO PREVENT ILLEGAL STAYS The latest about the flow of people traveling across Europe in search of a better life. Swedish officials say the introduction of temporary border controls will help it register new arrivals and prevent people from staying in the country illegally. Fredrik Bengtsson, spokesman for the Swedish Migration Agency, says the agency is currently picking up people by bus at the border and driving them to its offices, but “once they get there quite a lot don’t enter and get registered but disappear.” US TROOPS DIDN’T HAVE EYES ON AFGHAN HOSPITAL BEFORE ATTACK Immediately after the U.S. killed at least 30 people in a devastating airstrike on a charity hospital, Afghanistan’s national security adviser told a European diplomat his country would take responsibility because “we are without doubt, 100 percent convinced the place was occupied by Taliban,” according to notes of the meeting reviewed by The Associated Press. More than a month later, no evidence has emerged to support that assertion. Compiled from the AP Newswire

PHOTO COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

By Jack O’Brien

Copy Editor | Obrienj2@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

On Tuesday, Nov. 3, Neil Bettez won the New Paltz town supervisor race. Bettez, the Democratic nominee, defeated Republican nominee Robert Gabrielli and write-in challenger Deputy Town Supervisor Jeff Logan. In the other contested election, incumbent town councilman Marty Irwin won reelection alongside fellow Democrat Julie Seyfert Lillis. They defeated Republican challenger Ray Lunati. “It was pretty exciting,” Bettez said. “Now we get to move onto our goals for next year. We want to keep taxes low, address the tax cap and complete the review of our comprehensive master plan. We expect the process to last around a year or two, and hopefully it’s accomplished by the time my first term is up” Bettez said that he looks forward to working with both Irwin and Lillis, whom he actively campaigned with, and Logan, who is returning to the town board. After years of contentious activity and public ani-

mosity between members, Bettez said that he hopes this board can turn the page. “I want to set the tone as the person in charge,” Bettez said. “I’m really just asking people to put personal differences aside. I’m hoping that with the new blood, the issues of the past will be gone.” There are several changes and challenges ahead of the town board next year. In the town budget for the 2016 fiscal year, the salary for the town supervisor was reduced from $53,000 to $40,000. Now, the full-time position will pay less than the town comptroller. “I mean, no one likes to have their pay cut by 25 percent before they start,” Bettez said. “Having said that, I don’t think the job has been reduced. I don’t think Susan [Zimet] had any political motivations behind it. The supervisor still has to set the agenda and move things forward. The pay is not going to change the amount of work I do.” Former Deputy Inspector General of Frauds Robert Gabrielli, who ran on three separate lines for town supervisor, reflected on his campaign by pointing to the impor-

Thursday, November 12, 2015

tance of the Sept. 8 Democratic Party caucus at New Paltz High School. “Traditionally, New Paltz votes along party lines and the Democratic Party is the dominant party,” Gabrielli said. “I was told early on, ‘if you want to win, win at the caucus.’ This election was really won two months ago.” In spite of his defeat, Gabrielli was congratulatory toward Bettez. In a post on his Facebook account, Gabrielli lauded his opponent while thanking his supporters. “I want to congratulate Neil Bettez for his successful campaign for Supervisor of the Town of New Paltz,” the post read. “I wish him well and hope that he will do good things for the town.” Gabrielli said the reasons he ran for office was to “promote and civility and harmony and mutual respect.” Gabrielli added that having any bitterness would be “antithetical.” Going forward, Gabrielli said he aims to remain active in the New Paltz community, specifically with his involvement in a proposed town-and-gown internship program involving SUNY New Paltz.

The New Paltz Oracle

News

Village Officials Examine Fire Hydrant Issue By Melanie Zerah

News Editor | Zerahm1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

The village is currently addressing the issue of fire hydrants in the community that need either replacing or repairing. According to New Paltz Village Mayor Tim Rogers, there are about 140 fire hydrants in the community. A vast majority are older models with 3-inch valves for fire truck hoses to connect to that need or may need repairs. Newer models vary in valve size and internal structure, according to Rogers. “On every truck, we have multiple connectors that would allow us to connect different types of hoses with different threads to the hydrants,” said Cory Wirthmann, second assistant chief of the New Paltz Fire Department (NPFD). “Each truck carries a specifically designated hydrant bag attached to the back of the vehicle containing everything a firefighter should generally need to connect to a hydrant.” “There are fire hydrant projects that are now sorted out,” Rogers said. “One of them was down on Huguenot Street across from Town and Country, the other expensive project was at Henry W. Dubois and Prospect Street.” According to Rogers, there is one remaining fire hydrant on 32 North Chestnut Street that is offline. He said that the parts needed to repair the fire hydrant on 32 North Chestnut Street are on order. The term “offline” means that the hydrant does not run water. According to Superintendent of Village Department of Public Works (VDPW) Bleu Terwilliger, this happens semi-frequently and is more likely to happen when the public works department flushes out the hydrant water system, this process is done twice a year. Fire hydrants may go offline also because they were damaged or if there is a water main problem. “I think that’s just the general nature of the responsibility of our public works department. If infrastructure fails they have to replace it,” Rogers said.

“We’ve had some infrastructure failures and they’ve been replacing them, so of the recent four challenging fire hydrants that we’ve had, there is only one remaining that we are waiting for parts on.” Terwilliger said that the fire hydrant situation in which fire hydrants go offline or need repairing or replacing usually causes anxiety for residents. However, it must be noted that there are fire hydrants on almost every block, therefore if one hydrant is offline, one which is in proximity of “throwing a softball” is there and able to be used. NPFD serves both the village and the town of New Paltz. According to Wirthmann, when a hydrant goes offline

dating other connectors to water mains; of which may be of different sizes or older vintages. There have been several water main failures during the last year, according to Rogers. “I think what’s fascinating about our water infrastructure in the village is that it dates back to the 1880s and 1920s, so we have a lot of approximately 100 year old infrastructure,” Rogers said. “We had a water main failure recently and replaced the pipe. It was an 8 inch pipe with 2 inches of buildup, essentially a 4 inch pipe because of 100 years of build up.” Rogers said that projects that concern protection measures such as the fire hydrants can be catalysts for the town and village to direct their attention to different water infrastructure issue. According to Rogers, there is a list of all possible water project the village could address. This list in its entirety sums up to a hefty $4.4 million. However, Rogers said that the village grant writer is attempting to get a PHOTO COURTESY OF FLICKR.COM grant from the New York Department of Environmental in the town a message is relayed to the Conservation (DEC). NPFD from the Town Highway Dep“We get that money because we tartment via the Town of New Paltz Pohave DEC consent orders because of our lice Deptartment When a hydrant goes offline in the village, the VDPW will aged out sewer infrastructure,” Rogers either contact the NPFD directly or tell said. “So the DEC comes into a commuTim Rogers and thereafter information nity and says ‘Hey your infrastructure is gets relayed through email or phone to old, you need to update it.’ That makes the NPFD. Wirthman added that if a fire sense because you have public health ishydrant goes offline on the SUNY New Paltz campus, they are notified directly sue with failing sewer systems.” During the summer the village reby the Associate Director of Fire Safety Scott Schulte. paired the sewer line on Plattekill AvAccording to Rogers, the rough enue—a project of which was part of cost estimate to replace a fire hydrant is and funded by a DEC consent order. $6,000. Although it may seem simpler to replace fire hydrants that date back According to Rogers, the DEC gives a to 1968, there are additional engineer- grant of either $600,000 or nothing. The ing fees that are necessary to excavate village has applied for it again, and will below ground in order to put it in place. find out in December if it is eligible for These engineering fees may include up- another $600,000.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

oracle.newpaltz.edu

NEWS BRIEFS NATIONAL

AFTER 2-YEAR WAIT, SOME ADOPTED CHILDREN REACH US FROM CONGO After a wrenching delay of more than two years, a few American families celebrated on U.S. territory Wednesday with children adopted from Congo who were finally granted long-stalled exit permits. There was a bittersweet welcoming ceremony at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C., organized by some of the more than 400 U.S. families who will continue to wait. Congolese authorities recently approved exit permits for 14 children adopted by Americans, and for about 58 adopted by Canadian and European families. But more than 1,000 other adopted children will remain in Congolese orphanages and foster homes pending completion of a new adoption law. ONLINE THREATS AGAINST BLACKS NET ARREST AT MISSOURI CAMPUS

A white college student suspected of posting online threats to shoot black students and faculty at the University of Missouri was charged Wednesday with making a terrorist threat, adding to the racial tension at the heart of the protests that led two top administrators to resign earlier this week. Hunter M. Park, a 19-year-old sophomore studying computer science at a sister campus in Rolla, was arrested shortly before 2 a.m. at a residence hall, authorities said. ATHLETES, BANDS TAKE STUDENT PROTESTS TO ANOTHER LEVEL

Few paid attention when a black student started a hunger strike at the University of Missouri to protest racial strife on campus. As soon as the football team supported that hunger strike by refusing to practice for or play in the school’s lucrative NCAA games, the university’s president and chancellor were forced out and changes were discussed. HOW VETERANS DAY IS COMMEMORATED AROUND THE UNITED STATES Ninety-seven years ago, an armistice ended World War I, which was then the greatest conflict the world had ever seen. Armistice Day became Veterans Day in the 1950s and now commemorates the spirit of all U.S. military members. Compiled from the AP Newswire

NEWS

6 oracle.newpaltz.edu

SUNY New Paltz Launches New ESL Program

PHOTO COURTESY OF COMMON.WIKIMEDIA.ORG

By Briana Bonﬁglio

Contributing Writer | Bonﬁglb1@hawkmail.newpaltz.

This semester, SUNY New Paltz introduced a new program: the Intensive Teacher Institute (ITI), for K-12 teachers in the Hudson Valley area. Through the state-funded program, teachers learn specific methods to teach students for whom English is a new language. Upon completion, teachers will be eligible to receive a certification in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). The program’s five courses are taught at Ulster BOCES, who partnered with the college to reach more schools in the area. Due to the area’s changing demographics, The New York State Education Department has had the program in mind for some time now. According to Carmen Vazqueztell, the program coordinator, there was a need to provide better services for the students to make sure they have full access to the curriculum and that they are prepared to graduate from high school. “[There was a need to] decrease the percentage of students that were dropping out of school and who were actually college and career ready,” Vazqueztell

said. To tackle this issue, the program strays from teaching English as a separate subject to speakers of other languages. Instead, the emphasis lies in teaching the new language through the teachers’ subject areas. “We are working with these teachers to ensure that they are able to help students who are learning this new language, English, to develop a level of competency in all subject areas, learning the relevant vocabulary,” Project Director Devon Duhaney said. We are not separating the learning of English from social studies, math, science and so forth.” In the courses, teachers learn skillful ways to teach students all aspects of the language: syntax, morphology, mechanics and literacy. However, the program reaches beyond this by utilizing mentors in the classroom where teachers are applying what they’ve learned. These mentors observe their practice and engage conversations with them about their teaching techniques. “[The teachers] are participating in a number of activities within their school buildings, putting into practice some of

what they’re learning at the same time they’re learning it,” Duhaney said. Additionally, the program aims to improve how teachers view their teaching. According to Duhaney, it is a matter of helping the teachers to develop the necessary skills, habits and attitudes to work with this population of students. The program’s goal is to stimulate professional conversations among teachers, which will manifest into improved learning communities. Ulster BOCES helped gain interest in the program from school districts such as Poughkeepsie, Sullivan, Kingston, Hyde Park and Dover. Teachers at Poughkeepsie Middle School and Kingston High School attended the program’s ﬁrst cohort, which ran from Sept. 16 to Nov. 7. New Paltz School District has not yet participated in this program but is aware of it. In the next two years, there will be two more cohorts. Therefore, the program is projected to reach hundreds of students. “It’s going to have a tremendous impact on how these children learn and on their teachers’ ability to better reach them and better teach them,” said Vazqueztell.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

The New Paltz Oracle

Want to write for The Oracle? Attend a story meeting in SU 417 on Mondays at 7 p.m.! Email us at oracle@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu for more information

News

The New Paltz Oracle

oracle.newpaltz.edu

Your Student Senate Brief By Sarah Eames

Contributing Writer | Eamess1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

The 60th Student Senate met on Wednesday to discuss matters concerning the structure and function of the body, including the means by which seats are filled on committees affiliated with the Student Association (SA). Currently, SA has over 20 committees, and there is no uniform process by which students are elected. As per the SA constitution, some committees require students to be elected through the Senate, while others mandate that a portion of the seats be filled through the Council of Organizations. Nicole Striffolino, the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Governance, admitted that there is no clear motive behind some of these mandates and rather than serving any administrative purpose, they continue to restrain efficiency in the election process. Striffolino also announced that she is now accepting candidacy forms from students interested in running for seats on the Senate next

semester. “We’re looking for motivated, committed people to join the table,” Striffolino said, urging senators to recruit prospective candidates in their classes and extracurricular activities. According to SA guidelines, any student may run for a seat on the Senate provided that they have paid the annual activity fee and are in good academic standing. Candidacy forms are available in the SA office (SUB 428) and are due on Tuesday, Nov. 17. Executive Vice President Kelsey Ryan reported on the matters discussed at the Campus Auxiliary Services (CAS) board meeting earlier in the day. According to Ryan, a representative from Coca Cola addressed concerns regarding the campus-wide ban on the sale of plastic water bottles. When members of the CAS board voted in favor of the ban last spring, it was stipulated that bottle refilling stations would be installed

in several locations on the campus, and that reusable water bottles would be made available to the student body. Concerns voiced to members of the board indicated that students were dissatisfied with the lack of new bottle refilling stations, as well as the minimal distribution of free reusable water bottles on campus. The representative from Coca Cola argued in favor of lifting the ban, offering instead to partner with the university to implement various green initiatives throughout the community. Though receptive to the proposed recycling initiatives, Ryan reported that the board ultimately elected to uphold its original decision and maintain the ban. W. Mark Colvson, the dean of the Sojourner Truth Library, presented to the Senate on the progress of the renovations to the library. The renovations to the library, which began in the fall of 2014, were deemed necessary in order to make better use of the space and to introduce

WHAT’S MORE

IMPRESSIVE THAN OUR STATS? OUR GRADUATES. At Quinnipiac University, our students are our main focus. It’s why we offer graduate degrees in fields ranging from business to health sciences. It’s also why Quinnipiac is ranked among the best master’s-level universities in the North by U.S. News & World Report. To find out how Quinnipiac can help you succeed in your career, call 1-800-462-1944, e-mail graduate@quinnipiac.edu or visit www.quinnipiac.edu/gradprograms.

1-800-462-1944 | Hamden & North Haven, Connecticut 005292_03_QUI_Grad_1025X525_NP.indd 1

Thursday, November 12, 2015

more natural light on the main floor. In his presentation, Colvson highlighted some of the improved features of the library, including 10 group study rooms, a late-night study area, as well as a gallery space for displaying art. Peet’s Coffee & Tea, a California-based company, will occupy the newly-expanded cafe annex near the main entrance. Renovations to the library are slated for completion over the upcoming winter break. Colvson hopes to see the library open its doors to students and staff in January, kicking off a semester-long series of events to celebrate the reopening. Eager to begin plans for the celebration, Colvson is making an appeal to students and organizations eager to collaborate in the events. “The library is the center for creative and scholarly work,” Colvson said. “We are looking to host events that highlight the importance of collaborative learning and creative expression.”

Education Elementary Secondary Educational Leadership Instructional Design* Teacher Leadership* Communications Interactive Media* Journalism** Sports Journalism** Public Relations Health Sciences Biomedical Sciences Cardiovascular Perfusion Occupational Therapy (post-professional)* Pathologists’ Assistant Physician Assistant Radiologist Assistant Social Work Nursing Adult Gerontology or Family Nurse Practitioner Care of Populations* Nurse Anesthesia** Nursing Leadership*

Business MBA*** MBA - Chartered Financial Analyst®*** MBA - Health Care Management*** MBA - Supply Chain Management*** JD/MBA Business Analytics* Organizational Leadership* Arts & Sciences Molecular & Cell Biology Law JD – Juris Doctor JD/MBA JD/MELP LLM in Health Law Medicine MD – Doctor of Medicine Anesthesiologist Assistant * Program offered only online ** Specific program tracks offered either on campus or online *** Program offered on campus and online

10/26/15 12:02 PM

8 oracle.newpaltz.edu

The New Paltz Oracle

DECEMBER 28 – JANUARY 17

GET AHEAD CATCH UP THIS WINTER

EARN 4 CREDITS IN 3 WEEKS S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y O F N E W Y O R K

Registration begins November 2

newpaltz.edu/winter Thursday, November 12, 2015

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Oh christmas

TREE Story on page 2B

PHOTO BY KRISTEN WARFIELD

The New Paltz Oracle

oracle.newpaltz.edu

FEATURES

The Season Of Giving

LOCAL TREE DONATED TO ROCKEFELLER CENTER By Kristen Warfield

Editor-in-Chief | Warfielk1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

When retired SUNY New Paltz facilities worker Albert Asendorf and his family moved to their home on Route 44 55 in Gardiner in 1957, the tree in their front yard was a mere 6 feet tall. Over the past 58 years, however, it has done a lot of growing – so much that the now 78-foot tall Norway Spruce has earned a new home for the 2015 holiday season: Rockefeller Center. On Wednesday, Nov. 4, Rockefeller Center officials, hoards of reporters and community members alike descended upon the home of Asendorf and his long-time partner Nancy Puchalski to watch the tree be cut down and hauled off to 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Though it has spent many Christmases outside the home, Asendorf said the 80-year-old tree has never before been decorated – a factor that is quickly set to change as it will soon don 45,000 multi-colored lights and 25,000 gleaming Swarovski crystals by the end of the month. The couple’s relationship with Rockefeller Center began over the summer when Asendorf submitted photos of the tree online “as more of a joke than anything.” “It is such a beautiful tree that we decided to reach out to see if Rockefeller Center was interested,” Asendorf said. And they sure were. Just a few months later, the head gardener showed up at their door – and from then on out, they visited frequently to ensure the tree remained healthy until cutting day. The day the tree came down was an emotional one for the couple, as over the years the tree has become a known staple for four generations of the family – many PHOTOS BY KRISTEN WARFIELD of whom reside in separate homes on the of sap,” Puchalski said. “It’s kind of emosame property. “All the kids used to come around to tional, but at least around the world everyplay in the tree, climb it and go home full one will get to see how beautiful it is.” At the tree cutting, Gardiner resident

Cathie Naclerio said she and her husband had been following every detail of the occasion, noting that it has become a hot topic of conversation for the small Hudson

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Valley town. Naclerio said the community excitement over the tree was clear. “We had a little boy in front of us in the crowd when it was getting cut down – and he was just mesmerized,” she said. “The fact that this is a New York tree is really a big deal.” The tree from Gardiner is only the sixth Rockefeller Christmas tree in 58 years from New York. In past years, trees have been donated from New Jersey, Vermont, Connecticut, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Following its cutting, workers loaded up the nearly 10-ton tree onto a flatbed trailer to begin its journey to midtown Manhattan. It arrived in the city two days later and was hoisted up onto its position over the plaza, which will serve host to the thousands of visitors that travel there each holiday season to view the tree. But just because the tree is a big-name now does not mean this is goodbye for the Gardiner couple. The two will sit front and center, along with their family, when the tree is illuminated in the Dec. 2 tree lighting celebration. The two-hour ceremony will be nationally televised on NBC from 8 to 9 p.m. “There are decades of family memories with this tree,” Asendorf said. “I think it is safe to say seeing the tree lit at Rockefeller Center will be the highlight.” Once the tree has spent the holiday season at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, it will be taken down and milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity – a nonprofit dedicated to building homes for low-income and homeless families around the world. Tishman Speyer, the company that owns and operates Rockefeller Center, has been donating its Christmas trees to Habitat since 2007. Since then, the lumber has been used in projects as local as Newburgh, New York. This article was previously published on thelittlerebellion.com.

The New Paltz Oracle

Features

oracle.newpaltz.edu

Hustle And Bustle BURLESQUE PERFORMER SPEAKS ABOUT BODY POSITIVITY By Sam Manzella Copy Editor | Manzells1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu Donning red lipstick, a purple feather boa and a rose-printed dress, Lillian Bustle urged a crowded room of eager onlookers to redefine beauty and celebrate their bodies. Bustle, an award-winning burlesque performer, was always “the fat girl” growing up. Cultural messages and media influences taught her to hate her body, she said. The performer never saw girls with bodies like hers in her favorite TV shows or movies. She grew up feeling isolated from her peers, who teased her about her weight at school. Bustle’s story is not unique. According to statistics cited by Bustle, only 5 percent of cisgender American women are born with the light-skinned, slender, tall ideal body type found in popular media.

It was only in her adult life that Bustle found her “tribe” among burlesque performers. Channeling lessons she learned from the burlesque community and her psychology studies during college, Bustle spoke to SUNY New Paltz students on Monday, Nov. 2 about strategies she uses to love and celebrate her body. It’s a practice everyone should do, she said, and it doesn’t involve validation from others. “Beauty can be in the eye of the beholder, sure,” she said. “But that’s not what I’m talking about. When I talk about beauty, I’m talking about inherent value.” For context, Bustle explained the psychological concept of a heuristic, or a simplified shortcut the brain uses to come to quick, easy conclusions. These shortcuts can come in handy, giving the brain a rest to expend more energy un-

derstanding complex problems later. But conclusions aren’t always as simple as these shortcuts lead us to believe. According to Bustle, one of the most common results of these psychological shortcuts is known as the “halo effect.” The halo effect convinces us that once we observe one trait of another person, we can then judge all of that person’s traits. This is why we tend to believe that conventionally beautiful people are smarter, or better parents, or more successful, Bustle said. And she believes it’s time for a revolution of mental reprogramming. Enter the burlesque community, where Bustle saw and met women of all sizes and shapes who celebrated their bodies onstage. Burlesque performances allowed Bustle and her colleagues to flaunt their bodies in three to five minute comedic skits or dance sets. Suddenly,

the performer was exposed to women of every physical variety imaginable who danced, sang and shook their bodies with no shame or fear of judgment. Slowly, Bustle began to un-learn and re-learn what beauty meant — a phenomenon she attributed to neuroplasticity, or the brain’s natural ability to grow and change. This was the mentality behind Bustle’s most heartfelt piece of advice. “We have to look for [more diverse] bodies,” Bustle said, smiling. “We have to seek them out.” Bustle encouraged audience members to find blogs and websites that celebrate diverse bodies. Consciously exposing ourselves to diversity allows us to appreciate the beauty in others — and in turn, learn to appreciate and celebrate the beauty in ourselves.

Making History Accessible For All RESEARCHER DISCUSSES HISTORY DATABASE By Monique Trachina Copy Editor | Trachim1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu Recent SUNY New Paltz graduate Carrie Allmendinger discussed Historic Huguenot’s database website and the advantages of having local historic letters online for the community to access. Much of her lecture focused on the website’s advantages, and she proved with printed copies of Civil War letters, that history could be preserved and appreciated with close attention to first-hand sources. When asked why she chose to present this lecture, she said, “I thought, ‘sure, why not?’ It’s an opportunity to try something different and that’s not new to me.” This opportunity affirmed her willingness to show college students the information available for pleasure-learning or required study. She said to young students early on, “we can find more stuff, like letters, photographs, quilts, clothing and other items online,” from Historic Huguenot Street with this treasury database. “Hudson River Valley Heritage (HRVH) is

where we house the digitized collections, this is where we take the physical items and make them accessible to users online,” Allmendinger said. She also stressed that HRVH isn’t the sole site to use to uncover local gems. Similar information can be found on the HRVH website, which also offers more information on past local inhabitants and artifacts. Many other Hudson Valley libraries, museums, historical societies, etc. have collections on this site. We also have items on Digital Public Library of America through HRVH. In conjunction with other sites, the Historic Huguenot’s database has connections all the way down to Cedar Creek and beyond, Allmendinger said. Since Huguenot received information of a soldier who died in Cedar Creek but lived in upstate New York, their institution has contacted Historic Huguenot to add a copy of his photo on their memorial wall. Comparable to other common databases, Allmendinger recommended to do a field search, a gen-

eral topic search, or general keyword search on the HRVH website. Time traveling has never been so quick or reliable to modern explorers who use computers daily to gain knowledge. Allmendinger said that most of the documents could be found through a Google search, though a more refined search would probably necessitate HRVH’s database. Allmendinger felt that nearly all of the documents are useful. “Pretty much everything in there is important: letters and documents that helped establish the town, Revolutionary War records, etc.,” she said. According to Allmendinger, even after the Revolutionary War era, many things were re-used, including paper and cloth for letters. Though this eco-friendly practice did not conserve bits of history, most of these documents are currently recognized as priceless and donated from descendants or locals unsure if they are the best owners of history-rich records. A lot of donors also want to share what they

Thursday, November 12, 2015

have, and think the museum is the best way to make that happen. “[Most of] the letters are donated, sometimes by descendants who found them in their home or admit they aren’t the best person to keep it, as poor storage can make the items fall apart,” she said. And if Historic Huguenot Street researchers decide a given artifact does not hold local value, Allmendinger said they sometimes give the letters to other institutions if we believe they belong somewhere else. First-year education major Rachel McLaughlin said she learned a lot about the history and what the historical site does for us as a program. While she hasn’t used this site before, she intends to use it for research purposes. Publication of these letter online allows the public to access them without damaging the papers. Copied handouts showed students the types of documents that are online and allows them to read pieces of history in an easy-to-read typeface.

4B oracle.newpaltz.edu

Features

An Ominous Parade

NEW PALTZ CELEBRATES HALLOWEEN By Amanda Copkov Copy Editor | Copkova1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu All Hallow’s Eve in New Paltz is ghouls and goblins, witches, and vampires marching down Plattekill Avenue in the town’s annual Halloween parade, as they have for the past 58 years. Everyone congregates at the New Paltz Fire Department to schmooze with friends and neighbors over candy treats and apples. Six different Hudson Valley apple farms: Apple Hill Farms, Dressel Farms, Hurds Family Farm, Jenkin-Leukins Orchards, Minard’s Family Farms, Tantillo’s Farm, and Wright Farms provided the refreshments. Halloween has become such a New Paltz tradition that people from surrounding towns have heard about it and joined in on the holiday festivities. Mia Rossino, a resident of Rifton who dressed up as a dog this year with her husband, said she and her family have been coming to the Halloween parade in New Paltz for 15 years. “The whole community comes together and it’s joyous and fun and always such a pleasure,” she said. “It’s an event everybody comes out for and it’s something we all enjoy seeing every year.” New Paltz resident Paul Cristaﬁ agreed, saying that Halloween might be the most important holiday in town. “So many people come out for the parade,” he said. “Halloween is all about creativity and what you see here [at the parade] are a lot less costumes that are store-bought and a lot more handmade costumes. People put a lot of thought into it.” Not only do students, children and families get to have fun on Halloween, but the parade offers the town’s emergency services a bit of a break from their serious, everyday emergencies as well. The New Paltz Fire Department, Police Department and Rescue Squad all attended the parade in some capacity. “Usually we’re all in serious mode when we’re all together,” said New Paltz Fire Department Chief Dave Weeks. “But now we’re here to have a good time with all of the people and residents we know in

The New Paltz Oracle

ESK D Y COP KOFF: COO Peanut Butter and ʻNana Toast By Sam Manzella Manzells1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

One of the members of The Oracle shares their culinary chops with you. Bon appetit!

the community.” Further downtown, a second Halloween party of its own went on: The Bakery’s annual Night of 100 Pumpkins. According to Maeve Dougherty, an employee of The Bakery, some of this year’s ﬁnest pumpkins included Donald Trump-kins and Drake “Hotline Bling” pumpkins. Employees of The Bakery dressed up and handed out free pumpkin bread, hot apple cider and hot chocolate to the townspeople who walked around admiring the pumpkin-carving artistry. Little kids got to trick-or-treat too. In a white feather coat, black tights, a white painted face, eyes painted black and rainbow lights draped around his costume danced Jason Shelton to the loud rhythm of the authentic African drums played at this event each year. This was his ﬁrst year attending night of Night of 100 Pumpkins and he agreed that there is a real sense of community during Halloween in the village. “A community is something you can think about, but it’s extremely important for people to be together and actually feel that there is a real community rather than just an idea of one,” Shelton said. “There is such a freedom of expression and kindness everywhere on such a freaky night. People should feel free enough to dress up like this every day, but it’s nice that we get permission on Halloween,” Shelton said. The third annual event hosted in town was the New Paltz Youth Organization’s

PHOTO BY DAVID KHORASSANI

(NPYO) 26th haunted house. Children, staff and volunteers from NPYO dress up in spooky attire to scare their friends, families and neighbors. This year, the children at NPYO decided on a theme entitled “The Hunt,” where they brought attendees from scene to scene, room to room for a “cult” experience. four-hundred people attended this year over the two-days the haunted house was open. Jose Formoso, an employee of NPYO, said that all proceeds from the event go towards funding the haunted house. He said 30 to 40 children get involved, along with volunteers from SUNY New Paltz, New Paltz Middle School and New Paltz High School. “The haunted house adds to the spirit of Halloween,” Formoso said. “And New Paltz is such a liberal town that people encourage others to express themselves and to show off their creativity.” SUNY New Paltz hosted a haunted house of its own on Old Main Quad on Oct. 27, the Tuesday before Halloween night. This creepy crib was organized by the Union Programming Council (UPC) to get the campus into the festive season. Events Coordinator of UPC Brendan O’Brien said Halloween in New Paltz is unique. He said that Halloween in Albany, where he went to school isn’t nearly as celebrated there as it is in New Paltz. “Halloween in New Paltz is a good kind of crazy,” he said.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Breakfast. It’s a meal we all know and love, some more intimately than others. I’m one of those people. You know, the person who orders breakfast at the diner at four in the morning. Or the poor bloke who kicks themselves when they sleep in too late on the weekend and miss the breakfast sandwich hours at the local bagel shop. That’s me. I’m here with a solution for my fellow weekend nappers and breakfast connoisseurs. It’s a delicious, nutritious breakfast I miss sorely in my dorm-living daze. It’s so simple that you can’t mess it up, and it’s so delicious that you’ll kick yourself for not thinking of it before. Ready for this? I call it peanut butter and ‘nana toast. You’ll need: Two slices of your favorite toast (I like whole wheat) Two spoonfuls of your favorite peanut butter (none of that Skippy stuff here ... I go for the good, chunky natural kind) One whole banana, cut into small slices Honey to drizzle Cinnamon to top Toast your bread to crunchy, browned perfection. Spread two spoonfuls of peanut butter on each half — no more, no less. Use one half of your sliced banana on one piece of toast, and the other half on the next. Drizzle a generous layer of honey on top and sprinkle with cinnamon to garnish. Wham bam. Simple but satisfying. You’re welcome.

oracle.newpaltz.edu

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT “Art Collides” At The Dorsky The New Paltz Oracle

STUDENT PERFORMERS BRING ART TO LIFE

By Sam Manzella

Copy Editor | Manzells1@newpaltz.edu

Student artists and performers took to the galleries at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art to participate in Art Collides, an event that showcased the performance art skills of New Paltz students across all disciplines. Held on Saturday, Nov. 2, the event included performances by 10 students and concluded with a reception with the artists, student museum ambassadors and Dorsky staff members. For their performances, students were told to react to a piece of their choice currently on display at the Dorsky. Some students chose to base their performances off of works by Jervis McEntee, a Hudson River School artist whose collection of landscape paintings are featured at the museum. Some chose to react to works from different collections, including the Dorsky’s “Reading Objects 2015” exhibit and more. Students like Josh Kinney, Johnny “Stickerboy” Owen and Aditya Malladi, among others, played musical interpretations of the pieces they chose. Kinney, a second-year jazz studies major, performed an original composition in reaction to Frank Paulin’s 1956 piece “Automat, Times Square.” He collaborated with two friends from Kinnetics, Kinney’s musical trio. Kinney played the saxophone with passion and vigor, capturing the rapid pace and urgent feel of New York City. Owen, a fourth-year visual arts major, played a melancholy guitar piece inspired by McEntee’s painting, called “View Facing The Catskills,” from 1863. Malladi, a graduate student and electrical engineering major, performed a keyboard piece in response to artist Marcia Due’s photographs “Untitled (from the ‘Sea Series’).” Other students enacted performance art pieces in front of their chosen works, including interpretative performance and spoken word poetry. Fourth-year visual arts major Samm Kim performed an elegant reaction to Lilo Raymond’s 1973 photograph “Dress.” In his standout performance, Kim stripped down to his underwear, meticulously folding his clothing and accessories in a straight in front of him. He started his performance holding a bouquet of

PHOTO COURTESY OF DANNY PEREZ

pink flowers, which he lay on top of his clothes at the end of the performance. Shane Kelly, a third-year computer science major, performed an autobiographical spoken word poem about traveling to western America. Inspired by McEntee’s “The Far West,” Kelly drew from his personal experiences to compose his poem. The piece was almost entirely improvised, he said. “It was different last night,” he added, eliciting a laugh from the audience. Malladi was also inspired by his life and personal experiences when he composed his piece. The performer was born and raised in India, where he lived on the coast for most of his life. Malladi said he was instantly attracted

to Due’s photographs of people in the ocean, which reminded him of his life back home. Other student performers included Sara Shameem, Steven Roberts, Emily Glascott, Alex Futtersak and a group called Headlong Snipers. According to Sara Pasti, director of the Dorsky, this was the museum’s second iteration of Art Collides. Student ambassadors from last semester came to Pasti and collaborated to encourage students to use artwork on display as sources of inspiration. Art Collides’ first show in April 2015 was the product of their hard work and passion, Pasti said. “It was curated by the students, for the students,” added Patricia Backman, a fourth-year

Thursday, November 12, 2015

French major and student ambassador for the Dorsky. Zoe Baker, a fourth-year sculpture major and fellow ambassador, said she and her student colleagues wanted to find ways to engage the student body with the artwork and resources at the museum. Pasti and the ambassadors hope to make Art Collides a regular feature at the museum. Ideally, Pasti wants to host one event per semester at the museum. However, she understands if students need more time to formulate performances or compose pieces to play. Students, faculty and local art connosieurs can check the Dorsky’s website for future events at newpaltz.edu/museum.

oracle.newpaltz.edu COME JAM WITH SAM! By Sam Manzella Manzells1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

Rarely does a single song capture the heart, soul and undivided attention of a generation quite like Drake’s “Hotline Bling.” I’m only kidding. But I’d be lying if I said Drake’s July 2015 hit hasn’t taken the world and the web by storm. A quick Google search of the song’s title receives 32.5 million results, some of which include the song’s infamous music video, YouTube and Vine parodies of the song and articles from prestigious publications covering the song’s explosion over social media. It’s a phenomenon only found in the 21st century, the digital age. I’m here to ﬁgure out how “Hotline Bling” grabbed the Internet’s attention, and why it won’t relent. The song spells out Drake’s regrets after leaving behind an ex-girlfriend. He worries about his ex with lyrics like, “You got a reputation for yourself now / Everybody knows and I feel left out.” He wonders if she’s “rollin’ up a backwoods for someone else / Doing things I taught

Arts & Entertainment

The New Paltz Oracle

“Hotline Bling” you, gettin’ nasty for someone else,” when frankly, this girl “don’t need no one else, no.” I suppose the rapper’s lyrics are relatable ... that is, if you’re a wealthy rapper with a penchant for kinks and an irreparably broken heart. Yet the track’s beat is catchy and addictive. The song is an earworm ideal for radio play with its short refrain and lack of slurs or curses. However, I believe that the song truly stole the spotlight when the rapper released its namesake music video on Oct. 26, 2015. The video is nothing short of hilarious, featuring Drake singing along to “Hotline Bling” in colorfully-lit rooms with sexy female backup dancers. Drake himself puts on a memorable show, dancing in a way that can only be described as bizarre. His awkward gyrating begs for context: why is Drake dancing like that? Is he one of those performers who just can’t dance? Who are all of these women? What’s up with all the outﬁt changes and scene switching? How is Jimmy Brooks from Degrassi getting his groove on without his wheelchair?

Internet users have parodied and played off of Drake’s dancing to no end. Some of my favorite parodies include a pug dressed up in a turtleneck sweater and red puffer coat bopping from side-to-side to the song’s beat. Another classic is presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’ likeness superimposed onto the music video, brought to us by none other than the hilarious Ellen Degeneres. Regardless of your niche interests or comedic preferences, there’s a “Hotline Bling” spoof right up your alley. Alas, the question still stands: how in the World Wide Web’s name does a music video go from chuckle-worthy to meme famous? Jonathan L. Zittrain, a digital media scholar and law professor at Harvard University, reﬂected on this very topic in a 2014 essay from the Journal of Visual Culture. According to Zittrain, Memes take on a shared, iconic quality that pair with a resonating message. A meme in its prime exposes a fundamental truth about

something. The transposability inherent to memes allows Internet users to channel that truth and apply it in new situations. Zittrain’s analysis leads me to believe that there is a larger truth to be found in Drake’s single, which explains its leap to iconic Internet meme royalty. I’m still grappling to ﬁgure out what that truth is, though. Is it the sting of jealousy and bitterness after a breakup, which is evident in “Hotline Bling?” Is it the painfully poor dance skills of the rapper himself, something most of us can relate to? Who am I, a lowly writer with a music column, to think that I might have the answer? There’s the answer, I suppose. I don’t know. And I’m presuming with great faith that the “truth” found in Drake’s hit and its coordinating music video is up for endless interpretation, too. But this answer-less question doesn’t preclude us from enjoying Drake’s songs or music videos, nor does it preclude us from searching YouTube for “Hotline Bling” parodies on a lazy afternoon.

Artist Presents Unique Represenation Work FEAR AND LOVE INSPIRE CERAMIC MASTERPIECES

By Jess Napp

Copy Editor | Nappj1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

“In my work I’m always looking for a balance between the things I love and the things I fear,” so said a revered ceramicist to a room full of aspiring artists. On Wednesday, Nov. 4 the SUNY New Paltz Student Art Alliance continued their annual Visiting Artists Lecture series with a presentation by the innovative artist Lauren Gallaspy. Prior to Gallaspy, the artists Hilary Greenbaum and Dread Scott came to speak and three more artists will follow in these renowned creators footsteps. According to ceramics professor Bryan Czibesz each speaker specializes in a different art medium. The Student Art Alliance is a student run organization. At the beginning of each semester, they create a slideshow presentation consisting of a few artists that they would like to see in the lecture series. The “slide slam” is then presented and

eight artists are chosen. “The students set up everything from contacting the artist to organizing the arrangements for the artist once they are in town,” Czisbesze said. Gallaspy began by introducing herself and her body of work. She received her BFA in ceramics at the University of Georgia and her MFA from Alfred University. Her vivacious work has appeared in numerous galleries, museums and even at international and national conferences. She creates drawings, vessels or pots, and sculptures. Her slideshow revealed her hauntinglybeautiful masterpieces. Through the succession of a few images she discussed a series that she did about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. According to Gallaspy she could not bear to look at the terriﬁed people so instead she looked at the destitute houses, which eventually took on a life

of their own. This concept of something going from “whole to broken” intrigued her and she put together the sculpture series “Transﬁguration.” The abstract creations convey a sense of utter destruction and they quite literally appear as if Gallaspy violently smashed her artwork in a ﬁt of rage and later tenderly glued every bit back together in an orthodox way. “In the end I’m just trying to make something beautiful, which is a bit embarrassing to admit,” she said. As a young girl growing up in the rural south she became inspired by storytelling and myth, which can be seen in not only her artwork but also in her presentation style. Gallaspy spoke eloquently as she seemingly plucked copious amounts of gem stone quotes from thin air. She name dropped literary geniuses such as Emily Dickinson and Annie Dillard and then word-for-

Thursday, November 12, 2015

word recited lines of prose, poetry and simply wonderfully wise words of wisdom. “How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives,” Dillard said. At the end of the event a captivating question and answer session took place as the clearly well versed art students asked thoughtful questions. One student asked Gallaspy what material she uses to produce beautiful smudged illustrations on the surfaces of her various ceramic wonders. Gallaspy immediately retorted that she uses china paint on the surface of the glaze. Fourth-year graphic design major Dan Wolf was one of the students in the audience and he found Gallaspy’s work to be incredibly intriguing. “It’s interesting and different than the type of work that I’m used to,” Wolf said. The Visiting Artists Lecture series will continue for the next few weeks every Wednesday at 11 a.m. in Lecture Center 102.

Arts & Entertainment

The New Paltz Oracle

oracle.newpaltz.edu

Making The Cut NEW PALTZ COMES OUT ON TOP OF SUNY-WIDE FILM FESTIVAL By Nate Sheidlower Managing Editor |

Sheidlon1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

Six schools, 48 hours, barely any sleep, 2,000 votes, one contest and we won! The first ever SUNY-Wide 48 Hour Film Festival ended last week crowning SUNY New Paltz’s submission, “The Crypto Diaries: Part One - Lizard Man,” the victor. Directed by sixth-year Aaron Brander, this film then went up against eight others made here on or around campus to be viewed by four judges who picked which was sent to face off against the other schools. All the videos can be seen at film48.weebly.com. While individual universities have definitely held competitions like this in the past, this is the first of hopefully many semesters that schools from across the state take part, according to third-year digital media production major Ryan Percy who organized SUNY New Paltz’s involvement. The other schools that competed in this Film 48 were SUNY’s Binghamton, Buffalo, Oswego, Plattsburgh, Alfred State and Cayuga Community College.

“I was worried people wouldn’t jump in, knowing it was a busy weekend,” Percy said. “It wasn’t until that Wednesday at the last minute groups signed up and it all came together.” Nine digital media production students got together over the weekend of Oct. 16 and had “so much fun” filming and producing the six minute mockumentary set in The Gunks. The rules were simple. Each film had to be two to six minutes long, each group could only have two to 10 people, and each film had to incorporate three elements picked at random: a single flip flop, the name Jesus and the line “You’re tearing me apart.” We follow Seth, a cryptozoologist played by third-year digital media production student and President of New Paltz’s Improv Club Seth Gliksman, on a script-less endeavor to convince us of the existence of the half lizard half human entity that is Lizard Man. “Once Seth got involved it really began to take on a mind of it’s own,” producer and camera operator Heather Mezynski said. The film opens on Seth, who knows the in-

ner workings of the lizard-man, slapping a flip flop on a tree and calling out to the wilderness. He says he’s seen the lizardman and he tries and tries to bring the lizardman out of hiding for the camera. “When we got to Salvation Army Saturday morning, Seth was already there getting into character before we even knew exactly what we were going to film,” producer and camera operator Casey Silvestri said. Dan Williams plays the character of Dan, Seth’s friend and the director of the documentary they are ‘filming’ throughout the picture. With a straight face, he supports Seth and cinematographer Jesus, played by the film’s director of photography Chad Kofahl, who has serious doubt that there is anyone or anything to be found. This group, which also included camera operator Dany Ramdhanie, audio engineer Joe Pallotta and sound designer Matt Brueckner, was put together by a Facebook post from Brander. After the kickoff event Friday night, they went back to Brander’s place and immediately began sifting through ideas to find the one that would

consume their weekend. “Everything that ended up in the film was something that we all agreed on as a group and something we all liked,” Brander said. “We decided to go with no music in the end, but there are five songs that were actually composed over that weekend by Joe and Matt. We did use one of Matt’s in the trailer.” Of course the weekend was no walk in the park. With only two days, the crew had to pick an idea, film it and then edit the footage and audio clips, much of which was done Saturday night and Sunday. “One challenge was definitely the audio because we didn’t have the final cut until 5:30 p.m. on Sunday leaving us with only an hour and a half to clean up the audio,” Pallotta said. But the work paid off. While they did receive $500 in rental equipment from LensProToGo and t-shirts from Muckles’ Ink, both fest sponsors, the group agreed that the real prize was the experience and all-around great time. They hope New Paltz will keep up the winning tradition.

Do you want to write for the New Paltz Oracle? Email Us at oracle.hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

Thursday, November 12, 2015

The Deep End

oracle.newpaltz.edu

The New Paltz Oracle

THIS WEEK IN

THE DEEP END S

Major: Drawing and Painting Year: Fourth Inspriation: Soey Milk, Ivan Alifan, Alyssa Monks, Andrew Salgado, Kim Jung Gi, YDK Morimoe “I’m especially interested in how artists unconventionally situate a figure in a space through layering and distortion to reveal some inner conflict and contemplation.My work is mainly diaristic, and I’m currently working with ideas of desire, vulnerability, and sexuality.”

Photos courtesy of Samm Kim| Captioning by David Khorassani

The New Paltz Oracle

Editorial

oracle.newpaltz.edu

C u o m o ’ s GENDA A gen d a

CARTOON BY STEFANIE DIERS

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced his newly-issued executive order protecting transgender people from discrimination. The order takes the same initiative that is found in the proposed bill, Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) as a plan to protect transgender people from discrimination in New York State. This law is intended to safeguard transgender people from unfair treatment and harassment in the workplace, academic institutions and in situations where they should be judged only on their financial standings, such as bank loans or housing. According to the Empire State Pride Agenda, 74 percent transgender New Yorkers have been harassed or mistreated on the job, 19 percent denied a home or apartment and 53 percent harassed in public areas, of which includes public transportation and

restaurants. Given the prevalent discrimination transgender people face on a day to day basis, the law aims to curb the casual hatred and prejudice which has plagued the community. High levels of suicide or attempted suicide have been reported in the past decade due to aggressive transphobia. We at The New Paltz Oracle, believe that this is a justifiable piece of legislation that will be beneficial to the transgender community as well as all citizens statewide. We commend Cuomo for his progressive and dutiful action. The prominence of the gender identity discussion is important and should be considered by all New Yorkers including our assembly members and senators. In 2002, New York passed major legislation of which protects the rights of gay and lesbian New Yorkers. With increasing pub-

lic awareness of transgender individuals — brought upon by transgender celebrities and social media activism — it is only natural that this would follow suit with the development of LGBTQIA+ protection laws. The workplace and academic institutions should not be hunting grounds for those who are different, but instead should be a safe haven where work is the priority and all are treated equal. This is not to say, however, that the transgender community will be receiving “extra rights,” as Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson said in an interview regarding the implementation of gender neutral bathrooms for transgenders. They will, however, be treated with the decency and respect as everyone should be given. It is likely that if this law were to be passed as protection in the workplace as well as academic institutions, it could extend

Thursday, November 12, 2015

into public spaces. This is another step to a fully inclusive workplace; this is not unlike sexual harassment statutes and civil right safeguards that are already in place. Considering this is one of the most liberal and progressive measures in the country, Cuomo is against the odds in getting this law passed in the Senate which is traditionally Republican. However, we believe he should continue with his fight for equality for all New Yorkers. Editorials represent the views of the majority of the editorial board. Columns, op-eds and letters, excluding editorials, are solely those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the views of The New Paltz Oracle, its staff members, the campus and university or the Town or Village of New Paltz.

10 oracle.newpaltz.edu

MICHAEL ROSEN Copy Editor

Rosenm2@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

Ah November, what a great time of the year. Fall is at its peak, leaves are everywhere, football season is in full swing and Thanksgiving awaits us at the end of the month. So why in the hell is everyone talking about Christmas, which is still weeks away? Now don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas as much as the next bad Jew who celebrates both Christmas and Chanukah, but why do people willingly choose to ignore such a wonderful time? I understand that the hype for Christmas begins in September for some people – after all it is the most wonderful time of the year. But we are able to ignore the hype for the most wonderful time of the year in October, when all people talk about is Halloween. So why can’t that carry over into November? Here is something I really don’t understand. Throughout all of the end of summer and September all you hear about is how excited everyone is for all the wonder autumn will bring them. Sweater weather, the pretty colors that the trees become and of course, pumpkin spice

MELANIE ZERAH News Editor

Zerahm1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

It seems as though the only way to be truly selffulﬁlled as a college student is to be truly stressed out. The more you take on, the more you have to offer to yourself as far as opportunities go. That might be joining more clubs, getting a job (or a second one), heading to the gym more often or maybe even just going the extra mile on project or paper for a class. Momentum is key. You are the mass, and the drive for success is the velocity; you just have to keep going. You, the independent, impeccable example of Newton’s ﬁrst law of motion is “doing college” like no other. But what happens when you are acted upon by an unbalanced force? The funny thing about wanting to be independent and essentially have all your shit together is that there is always that one shit you don’t have in the togetherness of your other shit. That shit is the lack of acknowledgement of and preparedness for something that will throw you completely off course. Basically, you’ve missed the “shit happens” shit. I can speak for this concept genuinely because this has been my life for the past two weeks. The unbalanced force which launched my vector onto a negative plan was something pretty simple: I got sick.

OPINION

COLUMN

The New Paltz Oracle

Give Autumn Some Thanks lattes. Many people, including myself, will tell you that fall is their favorite season for all of these reasons and more. So why are we so ready to forget about fall once Halloween ends? Do people know that fall is not just the month of October? In fact, the ﬁrst week or two of October is usually just as warm and barren as September. It’s such a contradiction that everyone claims to love fall, yet in November – when fall is at its height – everyone ignores it. Why not focus all of the holiday joy on Thanksgiving? Poor Thanksgiving is treated like all of those other lame holidays. I’m looking at you, Arbor Day. But other than the fact that Christmas is a month afterward, why else would you ignore such a great holiday? Thanksgiving is all about spending time with people you love, eating delicious foods until you just can’t anymore and watching football (preferably seeing the Cowboys lose in the process). It’s like Christmas, but warmer and with football. Just instead of getting gifts, you get food. Can you really complain about getting food?

Okay, maybe you can make the argument that there is no such thing as Thanksgiving music, but there are just as many Thanksgiving specials on television as there are Christmas specials. Go watch Joey from “Friends” get his head stuck in a turkey, or watch Marshall slap Barney on “How I Met Your Mother” and sing a beautiful song about it afterwards. If sitcoms aren’t your cup of tea, sit down and enjoy the “Peanuts” Thanksgiving special that all of you are currently ignoring and watching the Christmas special instead. If a show has a Christmas themed episode, I guarantee you they have a Thanksgiving themed one as well. Stay in season, folks. Again, I am most certainly not hating on Christmas and all of the other holidays that are in December. The holiday season is one of my favorite times of the year, and I do admit that I enjoy Christmas more than I enjoy Thanksgiving. But I’m still taking a stand for November and Thanksgiving, who don’t get as nearly as much love as they deserve. So take down your

Christmas lights, throw on that fall sweater, go get a pumpkin spice latte and listen to Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong sing “Autumn in New York” during your walk through the leaves. The holiday season will be here soon enough, folks, and by all means get excited. But don’t ignore the wonder of autumn in the process. You’re missing out on the best that the season you claim to love the most is offering.

His transcript will tell you that Michael is a second-year communications major and journalism minor, but he is pretty much majoring in sports. He can often be found at the Athletic and Wellness Center doing work for Brian Savard or Coach Righter. When he’s not working, he likes to spend time with his big brother Jack O’Brien.

A Spoonful Of Self-Love It is that time of year where everyone is getting sick, I did recognize that. All the girls in my suite were getting sick, a lot of my other friends were too. I didn’t think I could possibly fall from the grace of full health and even if I did I thought “Hey, how bad can it be?” I failed to recognize that getting sick in an environment where you have to keep going and going is no small deal. I had a lovely sinus infection one week, and the very next week (thank you Halloweekend) I contracted a delightful case of strep. I missed classes, used up a considerable amount of money for tissues and medicine, cancelled interviews and replaced going to the gym every night with quarantining myself in my room with my only immune companions, Michael Scott and the rest of Dunder-Mifﬂin. If you’re like me, a lack of schedule and a lack of independence is detrimental to your everyday contentment. Having to ask friends to drive me to Rite Aid for various items and asking class project team members to pick up my slack for missing class really killed me. I got really down on myself and felt guilty for being unable to maintain autonomy and be my own leader.

With self-determination being my state of mind, I rarely will reach out to my parents for guidance because of my own pride and stigma for independence. But when I called my dad for questions about my health insurance, I broke down over the phone and spilled all of my emotional trauma over being incapacitated from everyday life. Of course he listened and reassured me that it is okay to ask for help and take a rest when I need it, because that is what happens in life. Shit happens. When I expressed my guilt over asking friends to drive me places and help with work I missed, he replied: “Well, wouldn’t you do the same for them?” And yes, yes I would. So, not only through this catharsis to my dad did I realize I was being a bit overdramatic, he helped me remember that there are reasons why we have friends in life, and it’s not only for laughs and good company. It is also the justiﬁed ability to ask for help and receive the answer of “Yeah sure I can do that for you!” because I would no doubt respond the same way if roles were reversed. Whatever the unbalanced force is in your life that causes you to forgo your prized self-reliance and fast-paced schedule for a while, those who care about you are there to get you back on your feet. A

Thursday, November 12, 2015

short conversation with my dad completely turned around my mood and encouraged me to keep moving foward. Not only can you look to the help of others, you can still have a degree of self-sufﬁciency through self-love; don’t beat yourself up – breathe – and take a break. I’ve never written anything personal for my newspaper, so this was new for me. The advice that I am giving here has been hard for me to apply to my own life. However, I now realize that it is important to absorb and accept the care others will give you and have self-love for yourself, no matter how productive you are. If you are having trouble believing that this advice is actually helpful for your own life, you should know something else about me—I would never print anything under my name that is not the absolute truth.

Melanie is a second-year journalism major and political science minor with fantastic hair. While she struggles hoplessly to decide on a hairstyle to keep it tame, but wil probably give up soon . Her email is in the byline, let her know what you think.

The New Paltz Oracle

SPORTS

oracle.newpaltz.edu

The New Paltz Oracle

The Women’s volleyball team fell short of defending their SUNYAC title against The College at Brockport.

By Melissa Kramer

Sports Editor | Kramerm2@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

The Women’s volleyball team was unable to defend their State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) title as they fell to The College at Brockport in this year’s SUNYAC final. New Paltz advanced to the finals in way of defeating SUNY Oswego in the semifinals 3-0 in a straight-set sweep (25-13, 2513, 25-22) on Saturday, Nov. 7. Hawks fourth-year outside hitter Becca Borquist and third-year middle hitter Morgan Roessler led the Hawk attack with 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Second-year setter Maddie Zwickl dished out 28 assists. Defensively, third-year libero Anna Paulik tallied 12 digs, while Roessler, third-year middle hitter Brittany Tyack and third-year right side Katy Braddon totaled four blocks each. Hawks Head Coach Matt Giufre said the feeling as a team is not the greatest as a result of the season’s end. “We felt that we were destined to have a better season,” he said. “We feel like we underperformed and definitely fell short of our expectations. We worked really hard over

the last 12 months to win another championship and get back in the national tournament and it just did not happen this year. I am proud of the team for their commitment, working hard and giving it their all. I am certainly not disappointed in the people, just disappointed in the outcome.” The following day, the Hawks fell to the Golden Eagles 3-1 (17-25, 12-25, 2624, 20-25). The Golden Eagles hit .229 as a team. They also outblocked New Paltz, 11-6, while the Hawks held a 10-6 edge in service aces. In the third set, the Hawks took the lead 17-12 and were able to hold on. The Hawks were able to tie the fourth set at 13 apiece after third-year libero Rachel Pierson landed three-straight service aces. Borquist and Hawks second-year libero Veronica Matedero were selected to the AllTournament Team as a result of their performances during the course of the weekend. Roessler said she is disappointed in the way the team ﬁnished their season. “I thought that we had such great talent this year and was hoping we would come out with a conference championship or at least

SEASON’S END

PHOTO BY HOLLY LIPKA

a bid to the national tournament and unfortunately we did not.” she said. “We lost too many important games throughout the season that would have helped us. I am upset that the season ended earlier than we all had hoped but this season was amazing and I loved everyone and every part of it.” Giufre said the Hawks were enthusiastic and positive going into the final against their Brockport opponent who held a 32-1 record. “We felt like they were due for another loss and like we were good enough to beat them,” he said. “Doing that is very difficult. They are very good and well-coached. Their offense is really powerful and their defense is fast. There are not very many flaws in their game and in their team. They are just an exciting team to watch. We wish them a lot of luck going forward in the NCAA Tournament. But we felt like we had a good plan and that if we executed it and played good volleyball, we would have a chance to beat them and we just were not able to do that.” Borquist, the team’s lone fourth-year, finished her career as one of top studentathletes in the history of the New Paltz

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Women’s volleyball program, as she is now ranked among the program’s all-time leaders in kills (1,744, second), digs (1,647, fourth) and service aces (200, fifth). She also is one of only two student-athletes in the history of the program to tally at least 1,500 kills and 1,500 digs. She said the feelings are tough to handle right now because of the finals loss. “Our team is very close and talented, so it’s never easy in these situations,” she said. “I think the team is going to work even harder for next season in the gym and the weight room. There are eight seniors with a lot of great experience, talent and leadership.” After finishing the season with a record of 22-11, the Hawks will work out and recruit to improve their team during the offseason, Giufre said. “The coaches are going to learn some new things to bring to our team,” he said. “We are going to recruit and improve our team that way. The same as any other offseason. That process does not really change too much. We will come back strong. This is a good group. We will come back stronger and ready to win more.”

12 oracle.newpaltz.edu

Sports

The New Paltz Oracle

Hawks Field Hockey Hosts First By Michael Rosen

Copy Editor | Rosenm2@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

The field hockey team has won its fourth-straight State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) title after defeating SUNY Geneseo in the semifinal and SUNY Cortland in the final of the SUNYAC Tournament. “It’s an amazing feeling to graduate and be able to say that I was a part of a program that won its conference four years in a row,” Hawks fourth-year co-Captain Jessica Caruana said. “Not many programs or people are able to say that they’ve made such accomplishments. It was also a proud moment because I remember freshman year talking to [Dani Ackerman] about winning SUNYACs for the first time and her and I both agreed to each other that we need to do this every year until we graduate, or else.” In the semifinal game of the SUNYAC Tournament, No. 2 seed New Paltz faced off against No. 3 seed SUNY Geneseo on Wednesday, Nov. 4. This was a rematch of last year’s SUNYAC title game, which the Hawks won 4-0 in a shutout on Nov. 8, 2014. The Hawks eliminated the Knights from the SUNYAC Tournament for a thirdstraight year. The Hawks entered the second half down 1-0 after Knights second-year midfielder/forward Diana Ruggiero scored a goal off a penalty corner at the 32:19 mark. About eighteen-and-a-half minutes into the second half, Hawks third-year back Colleen Roemer scored her first goal of the season to tie the game at 1-1. A little over two-and-a-half minutes later, Caruana scored her ninth goal of the season on a penalty stroke to give the Hawks a 2-1 lead that they would not surrender. New Paltz held a 27-10 advantage in shots and a 13-6 cushion in penalty corners. Knights fourth-year goalkeeper Dayna Mercer notched 14 saves in a losing effort. The Hawks then defeated the No. 1 seed SUNY Cortland on the road on Saturday, Nov. 7 by a score of 4-1 to clinch their fourth-consecutive SUNYAC title. Entering the game, the Red Dragons held an 8-1 home record on the season, while the Hawks were an even 4-4 on the road. Cortland had defeated New Paltz at home

earlier this season on Saturday, Sept. 26 by a score of 1-0. “Beating Cortland in the finals felt incredible,” Hawks fourth-year co-Captain Dani Ackerman said “This is a team we have always struggled against during regular season play. We played as a solid unit and poured our hearts into that game. This game was a total team effort and I am so proud of each and every one of my teammates for the effort and heart they put into every last minute of this game.” Similar to the game against Geneseo, New Paltz entered the second half trailing 1-0 after Cortland’s second-year midfielder/back Megan O’Brien found the back of the cage at the 8:59 mark. Less than six minutes into the second half, Ackerman tied the game at 1-1 with her fifth goal of the season. Hawks first-year forward Serena Capsello would put New Paltz ahead with her third goal of the season at the 43:31 mark. Second-year midfielder Hayley Kim would make it a 3-1 game with her second goal of the season, thanks in part to an assist by Caruana. Capsello would score her second goal of the game at the 62:44 mark, thanks to an assist by second-year forward Sam Eberle. In total, the Hawks scored four goals in the second half. Entering the game, the Red Dragons had allowed only eight goals in the second half all season. “I have heard stories from my teammates about their past SUNYAC title games which made me want to play in one as well,” Capsello said. “I was nervous about playing in such a big game as a nonstarter, but was excited to get the chance to contribute towards the win and be a part of such a big game. When I scored the go ahead goal it was the best feeling and I could not believe it happened. I could hear our sideline going crazy and my teammates all ran to me in excitement on the field. It was an experience I will never forget.” The Red Dragons outshot the Hawks 15-13 and held a slim 7-6 advantage in penalty corners. Hawks fourth-year goalkeeper Alayna Wageman tallied nine saves in the victory, while Red Dragons firstyear goalkeeper Kailynne Reinoehl made seven stops. Entering the game, Reinoehl ranked first in the SUNYAC conference with a goals-against average (GAA) of .755, a .867 save percentage and seven

Hawks’ Hayley Kim celebrates after scoring the lone goal of the game.

shutouts. The four goals Reinoehl allowed against New Paltz was the most she had allowed all season. This was the third time in history New Paltz defeated Cortland in the SUNYAC title game, as the Hawks were victorious against the Red Dragons in 2012 and 2013 with double-overtime shootout wins. Ackerman was named the SUNYAC Tournament MVP as she fired off three shots, two of which were on goal, and scored the game-tying goal in the SUNYAC title game. “It really meant a lot to earn the SUNYAC Tournament MVP award,” she said.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

PHOTO BY HOLLY LIPKA

“I am grateful to be surrounded by such an amazing support system. From my talented, hard-working teammates, our amazing coaching staff, my teammates going wild on the sideline, the fans that drove hours to see us, and everyone who tuned into the live-video at home. I have received enormous levels of support and encouragement throughout my career. These are the people who have made it possible for me to become the athlete I am today. I am so thankful for every last cheer and word of encouragement that have driven me to reach for new levels of greatness.” -Continues on page 13-

The New Paltz Oracle

Sports

oracle.newpaltz.edu

NCAA Tournament Game In Program History -Continued from Page 12-

Caruana, Wageman, third-year forward Kayla McKeveny, and Hawks fourth-year back Sarah Sansone joined Ackerman on the AllTournament Team. After the game, it was announced that Ackerman and Caruana were named SUNYAC Offensive and Defensive players of the Year, respectively. Ackerman and Caruana were also named to the All-SUNYAC First Team for the second time in their careers. McKeveny and Roemer were named to the All-SUNYAC Second Team. This is the second time McKeveny has received this honor and the first time for Roemer. Hawks Head Coach Shanna Vitale was named SUNYAC Coach of the Year for the fourth-time in her career at New Paltz. On Wednesday, Nov. 11 the Hawks defeated Simmons College 1-0 in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament. This is the first time any team from SUNY New Paltz has hosted an NCAA Tournament game. “[Hosting an NCAA Tournament game] was definitely one of the most exciting things ever, especially for seniors, because we didn’t think we had another home game left,” Ackerman said. “To get that home game back and to have our fans here as a support system and to see the way our campus came together for us was amazing. We had so much support and the energy level really helps us in these kind of games. To be here, our senior year, it was one of the most amazing things that we really didn’t expect. That surprise made it even more awesome for us.” Less than four minutes into the game, Kim scored her third goal of the season off a defensive save from Simmons’ third-year midfield-

er Amy Wilson. That goal broke a streak of 323:38 scoreless minutes of defense from Simmons, as the Sharks had not allowed a goal since Saturday, Oct. 17. The Hawks defense of Caruana, Sansone and Roemer kept scoring opportunities at a minimum for the Sharks all game. Wageman made just two stops in the cage, but one of those saves came at the beginning of the second half in a one-on-one situation with Wageman as the last line of defense. Sharks second-year forward Julie Saltamartini broke past the New Paltz back line at the midfield, but Wageman charged out of the goal and met Saltamartini at the top of the circle, knocking the ball away to avert the Shark scoring chance. Just a few minutes later, Saltamartini nearly scored again but her shot was stopped thanks to a defensive save by Ackerman. The win improved the Hawks’ record to 16-5, tying the program record for wins in a season. The Hawks advance to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament for the thirdstraight year and will face No. 9 Messiah College on Saturday, Nov. 15 in Ewing, New Jersey. Caruana said the team has learned from mistakes made in the second round of the tournament the past two years and they are aiming to learn from those mistakes this year. “From past experiences, there have been times we were strong the whole game and at the very end we just got frantic and lost,” she said. “We know what to expect by keeping our goals in mind and staying strong around the goal. Remembering what happened the year before but moving on from it and building from it.”

PHOTOS BY HOLLY LIPKA

Do You Want To Write About Sports For The Oracle?

Send us an email at Oracle@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu for more information! Thursday, November 12, 2015

14oracle.newpaltz.edu

Sports

The New Paltz Oracle

Swimming Starts Season Strong By Rachael Purtell

Assistant Copy Editor | Purtellr1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

After competing against Vassar College and Ramapo College in addition to making an appearance in the New York University (NYU) Fall Invitational, both the Men’s and Women’s swimming teams are sitting on a record of 1-1. Hawks Head Coach Scott Whitbeck said it is nice to get up and race against decent competition in October. “Going back-to-back meets in October is pretty tough and I’m happy with our performance and with our effort,” he said. On Friday, Oct. 30, the Hawks faced Vassar College on the road in Kregse Pool. The men’s team captured seven events in this meet leading them to a 149-132 victory over the Brewers. The foursome of second-year swimmer Caleb Treadwell and fourth-year co-Captains Ryan Lindgren, Ethan Cooke and Will Koenig began the meet by winning the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:40.48. The meet ended with another relay victory in the 400 freestyle relay by the team of third-year Austin Kowalsky, Treadwell, Cooke, and Koenig with a time of 3:22.77. Hawks third-year swimmer Rob Cahn won the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:52.03 and the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:08.15. Second-year swimmer Barrett Celecki made his collegiate distance debut in the 1,000 freestyle and captured a first-place finish with a time of 10:40.62.

Other individual first-place finishes included second-year swimmer Marc Piliero in the 100 backstroke with a time of 58.14 and Kowalsky in the 50 freestyle with a time of 22.55. “Vassar was closer than we thought it would be because they decided to score diving against us despite the fact that we don’t have divers,” Lindgren said. “That win felt good.” On the women’s side, the Hawks fell to the Brewers 163-128, without the points from diving, the Hawks kept a close score of 134-128. The next day, the women bested Ramapo College with a score of 150-107. Kaefer won both the 500 freestyle and 200 medley with times of 5:28.27 and 2:15.95 respectively. Her second event however, was marked as exhibition. Other winning individual events against the Roadrunners were third-year swimmer Ann Fici in the 1,000 freestyle (11:28.20), fourthyear co-Captain Cassidy Griger in the 200 free (2:01.26), first-year Kaleigh O’Halloran in the 100 backstroke (1:03.57), second-year Megan Joseph in the 100 breaststroke (1:11.51), fourthyear co-Captain Maggie Heaton in the 200 butterfly (2:18.64), fourth-year Casey O’Connor in the 200 backstroke, and first-year Katie Donlevy in the 200 breaststroke (2:33.59). The foursome of Lee, second-year Megan Joseph, Heaton, and Griger also won the 400 medley relay with a time of 4:10.02. “We have great team unity,” Women’s

fourth-year co-Captain Ella Graffin said. “Our women’s and men’s team train together and we are close friends and supportive of each other. This really shows at our meets because throughout the duration of the meet we are cheering each other on during races, and pumping each other up. We keep each other positive and motivated to swim fast.” On Friday, Nov. 6 and Saturday, Nov. 7 the Hawks made an appearance at the NYU Fall Invitational. Both the men and the women placed third out of three teams at NYU’s Palladium Athletic Facility. “NYU and Stevens are ranked second and seventh in the country respectively so the competition was really tough but I think we stepped up and made the best of it,” Lindgren said. Graffin also felt that the teams swam well. “I’m really excited for this season,” she said. “Our team has great depth on both the men’s and women’s side, and it’s a special group that I feel lucky to have spent the past three years with, and into my final year as a senior.” Whitbeck said some highlights of the Invitational included the relay races, particularly the foursome of O’Halloran, Donlevy, third-year Aimee Del Favero, and Griger in the 400 freestyle relay. They finished second with a time of 3:44.04 besting both foursomes from Stevens Institute of Technology and the “B” relay from NYU. Lee, O’Connor, McCulloch, and Griger also recorded a third place finish in the 200 med-

ley relay with a time of 1:55.36. “We had some decent individual swims throughout the weekend, I think we definitely faced two of the best teams in the country,” Whitbeck said. “Relay-wise, we didn’t challenge them too much on the men’s side, but we actually beat Stevens’ in a couple of the women’s relays.” Whitbeck said that he was happy with the performance of both teams this past weekend. “Don’t get too caught up in the wins and losses, this is all about us getting better every week and facing good competition and practice better racing,” he said. “I’m not concerned with how we win or how we lose, but how we step up and race and how we motivate ourselves and how we keep ourselves focused on our goals for the end of the season.” On Tuesday, Nov. 10, the Hawks participated in 10th Annual Ted Mullin “Leave it in the Pool” Hour of Power Relay for Sarcoma Research, sponsored by Carleton College swimming and diving teams. During the event, participating teams swam continuous relays with the stroke of their choice for an hour in honor those who are or have struggled with cancer including former Carleton swimmer Edward H. “Ted” Mullin, who passed away from synovial sarcoma, a rare soft tissue cancer, in September 2006. The Hawks will next host Pace University in their final home meet of the 2015 calendar year on Saturday, Nov. 14 at Elting Pool.

She ran the six-kilometer course in 23:27.0 for a 30th place finish. Second-year co-Captain Nick Cruz earned a third place finish with a time of 27:06.9 for the Hawks men’s team in the eight-kilometer course and fourth-year co-Captain Danielle Halikias finished second for the women’s side with a time 23:52.2 in the six-kilometer course. Hawks Head Coach Mike Trunkes said he felt good about the team’s performance despite the injuries some of the runners suffered on the women’s side. “I thought the team did a good job running up to their potential,” Trunkes said. “This year we ran much better in our three, four and five positions.” The Hawks look to improve their

performance, as they go on to compete in NCAA Div. III Atlantic Regionals Tournament in Geneseo on Saturday, Nov. 14 at noon. Last year, the men finished 16th out of 41 teams at the NCAA Regionals in the eight-kilometer race and the women finished 14th out of 40 teams in the six-kilometer race. For this year’s tournament, Cruz said he feels like the team can move up in the regional rankings and believes the runners can keep improving along the way. “Almost everyone on the team is getting faster and stronger as the season goes on,” Cruz said. “I fully expect our team to move up in the regional rankings and end the season on a great note. I feel that the team, and myself included, has learned a

lot this season. After the NCAA’s we will all be paying more attention to doing all the little things we can do to prevent injury as well as staying healthy and not getting sick. Injury and illness were two of the biggest things that affected the team this season, so in the future we will learn to move past these two obstacles.” The Hawks look to improve on last year’s finish on both sides, as they are looking to have some of their runners qualify for the NCAA Championships that will take place on Saturday, Nov. 21. “I believe that when you achieve a goal it validates a lot of the hard work and sacrifice you put into pursuing it,” Trunkes said. “It helps to keep our runners motivated to continue to train at a high level year-round.”

Cross-Country Particpates In SUNYAC Championships By Anthony Mitthauer-Orza

Copy Editor | Mitthaua1@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

After their performance in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Championships, the Men and Women’s cross-country teams look to carry their momentum into the NCAA Atlantic Regionals Tournament. On the men’s side, the group placed fifth out of 10 teams in the SUNYAC Championships Tournament and the women placed seventh. Third-year co-Captain Galo Vasquez had the best finish for the Hawks on the men’s side, finishing in 19th place with a time of 26:01.5 in the eight-kilometer course. For the women, third-year runner Rebecca Verrone was the team’s top finisher.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

SPORTS

The New Paltz Oracle

Blueshirts Blueline Rhartman@hawkmail.newpaltz.edu

Hello fellow Rangers fans! It’s been a while and boy do we have a lot to get to. With that said, welcome back to Blueshirts Blueline, let’s get started. Last season the Rangers were hoping that they would, as it said on their training camp shirts last fall, “Change the ending.” Unfortunatley they didn’t and got shutout by the Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final at Madison Square Garden and got to celebrate on the Rangers’ ice. The feeling after that game … goaltender Henrik Lundqvist bent over in sadness with Cam Talbot having to comfort him, the rest of the players looking absolutely dejected and the air being completely sucked out of the Garden … it made for one horrible scene, Rangers fans. But if there was any silver lining with that game, it’s this: The Rangers have more motivation now than they ever have to get back to the Stanley Cup Final. During the offseason, it was clear moves needed to be made and the look of the team has changed quite a bit since last spring: Gone are Carl Hagelin, Martin St. Louis, Matt Hunwick and Cam Talbot. In their places, the Rangers welcomed Emerson Etem, Jarret Stoll, Viktor Stalberg, Antti Raanta, Oscar Lindberg and Dylan McIlrath to the team. Lindberg was one of the Rangers’ top prospects for the past few seasons and made the team out of training camp and McIlrath, who was the Rangers’ first-round pick in 2010, made the team out of camp as well. Stoll, who the Rangers signed to a one-year deal, has immediately helped the Rangers in the faceoff circle. He has a career average of over 50 percent in the dot and along with Dominic Moore, the Rangers now have two solid centermen who they can trust to win a faceoff if they need it, especially in the defensive zone. Stoll has performed admirably in his role on the team and has become a vocal leader. He has scored one goal and assisted on two others this season. Etem, who was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Carl Hagelin, has shown flashes of the player many thought he could be when the Ducks drafted him in the first round in 2010. He hasn’t produced many highlights for the Rangers yet, but in recent games when he has been inserted into the lineup, he has started to show the consistency Head Coach Alain Vigneault has been looking for. If he develops into the player that tore up major juniors or some resemblance of it, the Rangers will be that much better. Etem has assisted on two goals this season. Stalberg, was signed this offseason after playing the past few years with the Nashville Predators. He previously won a Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013. Stalberg has great speed and while not exactly top-six forward material, he makes for a very

oracle.newpaltz.edu

New Season, Same Goal

Henrik Lundqvist looks on during warmups.

good third-line guy with an impressive shot. He has scored one goal and assisted on three others this season. Raanta, who was previously a member of the Chicago Blackhawks, was brought in to replace the departed Cam Talbot, who is now a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Raanta previously won a Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks. The Rangers traded prospect Ryan Haggerty to Chicago to get Raanta and he has proven that he is more than a capable backup to Lundqvist. In three appearances so far this season, Raanta has a .976 save percentage and a 0.67 goals against average (GAA) with one shutout. That’s pretty good. McIlrath, has ﬁnally shown signs of the defenseman the Rangers had in mind when they drafted him. He hasn’t played in every game this season but when he has he has looked solid and is providing solid third pair minutes. McIlrath is a huge player at 6’5” and 230 pounds, so when he delivers hits they are bone-crushing. If McIlrath can improve his defensive play further, I believe he will be starting games over the elder statesmen Dan Boyle as the team’s sixth defenseman. After having an absolutely solid preseason and after performing admirably when called upon during the regular season, McIlrath has a good future ahead with the organization. Finally, we get to Oscar Lindberg — and boy has this kid been a revelation this season. In the 15

PHOTO COURTESY OF FLICKR USER DINUR

games the Rangers have played so far, Lindberg has seven goals and four assists which is good for second on the team in points. He has performed better than anyone could have hoped to this point and has looked like the star prospect the Rangers wanted when they traded for him a few years back. Lindberg was originally a draft pick of the Arizona Coyotes. In his third-line center role, Lindberg, along with Stalberg and J.T. Miller who are usually ﬂanking him on the wings, has ﬂourished and given the Rangers a great defensive and an unexpected offensive punch. Now that we’ve talked about the new faces, let’s get up to speed on how the team has been doing this season. During the offseason, many hockey analysts were saying that the Rangers would slow down this year and that they wouldn’t win the division after moves made by the Washington Capitals, Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets to improve their teams. Well, 15 games into the season and which team is on top of the division again? That’s right, the Rangers. The Rangers won the Presidents’ Trophy last season and were the best regular season team and it seems many analysts forgot that when your team is coming off one of the best seasons in franchise history, you don’t exactly need to make a blockbuster trade or signing. Let it be known

Thursday, November 12, 2015

that the Rangers are and will continue to be the best team in the Metropolitan Division despite the moves made by the other teams. This season the Rangers are 11-2-2 so far and have come out of the gate with fire in their eyes. Lundqvist is on top of his game and is having one of the best stretches of his career. The Rangers are getting contributions from up and down their lineup. Rick Nash is just beginning to score now, which is a great sign for the team, but the fact that they have found ways to win without their top goal scorer contributing is huge. Chris Kreider, who many thought would breakout even further this season has been relatively quiet but he has all the tools to catch fire soon. One of the Rangers strengths the past few seasons has been their defense but this season, their defense is going through a bit of a, for lack of a better word, rough patch. This is not to say they haven’t been good and haven’t been helping the team win hockey games but Dan Girardi and Marc Staal haven’t been playing up to their usual standards. The play of Kevin Klein, and Keith Yandle have been exceptionally good but the Rangers’ defense as a whole can be much better. Dan Boyle needs to be taken out of the sixth defenseman spot and Dylan McIlrath should consistently start over him from now on. He is younger, and his physical presence on the ice will help the team. I believe over the course of the season the defense will get back to it’s usual top-notch standard. Another great storyline of the Rangers season so far is the comeback of Mats Zuccarello. “Zucc” was injured during the first round of the playoffs last season after getting hit in the head with a slapshot by captain Ryan McDonagh. His injury was so severe that he briefly lost the ability to speak. Fast forward to this season and Zucc is leading the team in points and has looked like the dynamic playmaker he has consistently been for the Rangers. This early in the season the Rangers are looking every bit like a team on the warpath. That elusive Stanley Cup title, that for the last few seasons has been ohso-close, may finally head back to New York this year if the Rangers keep up their play and remember that sinking feeling of being so close yet far away. Two years ago the Kings celebrated on Staples Center ice with the Cup while the Rangers headed back to the locker room. Last year, the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrated on Madison Square Garden ice after advancing to the final while the Rangers headed back to the locker room. This season, it’s time for the Rangers to truly “Change the ending” and make that other team walk back to the locker room while they celebrate with the chalice known as the Stanley Cup. Let’s Go Rangers!

Sports The New Paltz Oracle

WHAT’S INSIDE

Swimming Participates In NYU Invitational PAGE 14

DYNASTY

ALL PHOTOS BY HOLLY LIPKA

Women’s Volleyball Drops SUNYAC Final PAGE 11

FIELD HOCKEY ADVANCES TO SECOND ROUND OF NCAA TOURNAMENT : PAGES 12 & 13