The Sheaf - March 13th, 2014

Creative art works on display in Saskatoon at Wearable Art Exhibit.

CULTURE 9

THE sheaf

13 March, 2014 • The University of Saskatchewan student newspaper since 1912

Tuition hike draws ire of Students’ Union.

NEWS 4

Huskies women’s basketball team brings home Canada West glory.

SPORTS 6

Online networking is important for your future career.

OPINIONS 16

U of S childcare expansion plans could be in danger

SUPPLIED RENDERINGS

To fulfill its growing need for childcare space on campus, the University of Saskatchewan proposed building a new facility in McEwon Park. However, the project may now be on hold.

SCOTT DAVIDSON Associate News Editor University of Saskatchewan students wanting a new childcare centre on campus may have to wait even longer, as plans to expand the existing facilities appear to have stalled for the time being.

The latest plan to expand the number of childcare spots available on the U of S campus calls for the construction of an entirely new building directly west of Souris Hall in McEown Park. With the design of the building nearly complete and capital and operating grants from the provincial government in place, the project is only awaiting approval from the university’s Board of Governors.

But rather than receiving approval from the board, the project may become the latest victim of the university’s financial woes. Citing conversations with Vice-President Finance and Resources Greg Fowler, David Hannah — the associate vice-president student affairs— said the Board of Governors has serious concerns that the university will not be able to find the necessary funding for the project.

“We have been asked to take a serious look at what other options there might be to address the childcare problem without building a new building,” Hannah said.

In addition to a projected $44.5 million deficit for the 2015–16 fiscal year, the U of S is also facing $570 million in deferred maintenance costs to its existing structures. Facilities Management Division Associate Vice-President Colin Tennent said the Board of Governors is concerned with these costs and that they may look to address them before constructing new buildings on campus.

“One of the clear messages we got from the board at that time was that we had to have all the financial resources in hand,” Hannah said, citing the construction of the student health and counselling centres in Place Riel, which came in several hundred thousand dollars over budget.

Hannah will go before the Board of Governors with the current plan for childcare expansion in May. However, this meeting is “for information only” and it is unlikely that any decisions about the project’s future will be made.

Funding for the new childcare facility will come from four sources: grants from the Saskatchewan Government, student fees, the university itself and fundraising done by University Advancement.

A dedicated student fee to fund on-campus childcare expansion has already been approved by the U of S Students Union. Additionally, the university has received a $1 million capital

grant to aid in the construction costs of the new centre and a $350,000 operating grant from the Government of Saskatchewan.

The capital grant was initially awarded on the condition that the new childcare facility would open by June 30, 2015. However, when it became clear that the project wouldn’t be completed in this time frame, the university asked the provincial government for an indefinite extension for the grant, which Hannah said they received.

With childcare expansion in a state of flux, Hannah said University Advancement is hesitant to start an extensive fundraising campaign for a project that may not be actualized.

“The worst thing to do would be to go out and raise a million, a million and a half dollars and then finding out the project is not going to go ahead and then have to give it all back,” Hannah said. “So I think this is where we’re waiting for some clear direction from the board before we go out and start a major capital campaign.”

During and after a presentation to U of S Students’ Council by Hannah and Tennent on March 6, members showed their frustrations with the university’s slow progress on childcare expansion.

“They’ve been working on this childcare centre, designing it and implementing it for

years and now that it’s pretty much done, the university is backing out and saying they’re not committed to the building in a new location, so that does cause a lot of frustration because they made a promise to students years ago and now they’re not fulfilling their promise,” said Nour Abouhamra, USSU Vice-President Student Affairs.

Currently, the university has two childcare centres — one in the Education Building and one in the R.J. Williams Building — that have a combined 110 spots for children ranging from infant to preschool ages. However, in response to a growing demand from the campus community for more childcare spots on campus, plans to expand these facilities began in 2010.

The university has since examined a number of options for expanding its childcare facilities.

Options explored by the university include expanding the education childcare centre and renovating the seed barn. These possibilities all proved to be too expensive because of the province’s strict regulations for childcare facilities.

Tennent said the cost of renovating existing spaces on campus in accordance with these regulations is often higher than 60 per cent of building costs for a new facility.

Childcare • continued on 2

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NEWS

5 Days for the Homeless participants speak out

THE sheaf Editor-in-Chief: HenryTye Glazebrook, editor@thesheaf.com Production Manager: Samantha Braun, layout@thesheaf.com Senior News Editor: Anna-Lilja Dawson, news@thesheaf.com Associate News Editor: Scott Davidson, associatenews@thesheaf.com Photography Editor: Jordan Dumba, photo@thesheaf.com Graphics Editor: Cody Schumacher, graphics@thesheaf.com Culture Editor: Naomi Zurevinski, arts@thesheaf.com Sports Editor: Kim Hartwig, sports@thesheaf.com

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

Opinions Editor: Travis Homenuk, opinions@thesheaf.com Copy Editor: Tab Rahman, copy@thesheaf.com Web Editor: Carter Bryden, web@thesheaf.com Ad & Business Manager: Shantelle Hrytsak, ads@thesheaf.com Board of Directors: Pete Yee, Jenna Mann, Dan LeBlanc, Rose Lien, Liam Richards Index Photo: Katherine Fedoroff Office Numbers: Advertising 966-8688 Editorial 966-8689

The Sheaf is non-profit, incorporated and studentbody funded by way of a direct levy paid by all partand full-time undergraduate students at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S). Membership in the Society is open to undergraduate students at the U of S, but all members of the U of S community are encouraged to contribute to the newspaper. Opinions expressed in the Sheaf do not necessarily reflect those of the Sheaf Publishing Society Inc. The Sheaf reserves the right to refuse to accept or print any material deemed unfit for publication, as determined by the Editor-in-Chief. The Sheaf is published weekly during the academic year and monthly from May through August. The Editor-inChief has the right to veto any submission deemed unfit for the Society newspaper. In determining this, he/she will decide if the article or artwork would be of interest to a significant portion of the Society and benefit the welfare of Sheaf readers. The Sheaf will not publish any racist, sexist, homophobic, or libelous material.

Corrections • In “Ukraine recieves support on U of S campus” from our last issue we incorrectly stated that Viktoriya Kalchenko was an international student.

She is not an international student but is international studies.

We also published that the prayer was led by Father Tara Udod when it was led

by Father Taras Makowsky.

The “Light Up a Candle for Ukraine” event was not organized by the Ukranian Student’s Association but by Victoriya Kalchenko, Yuriy Kirushok and Natalia Khanenko-Friesen. We apologize for the errors.

• If you spot any errors in this week’s edition, please forward them to copy@thesheaf.com

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

Alex Denysiuk, Matt Brennan, Lane Banenrman, Amber Freistadt and Jordana Knobluach (left to right) are this year’s homeless participants.

SCOTT DAVIDSON Associate News Editor Five University of Saskatchewan students have been sleeping outside since March 9 as part of the annual 5 Days for the Homeless campaign.

The Canada-wide 5 Days for the Homeless campaign raises money and awareness for homelessness across the country. Participants sleep outside on their campus for five nights with only a sleeping bag, pillow and the clothes they are wearing. They must survive solely on food donations made to them.

All non-perishable foods and non-food items given to the U of S campaign are being given directly to Egadz, a local community-based organization that works to support at-risk youth in Saskatoon. Egadz runs a variety of programs including meal plans, teen-parent education, school support and street outreach initiatives.

“We’re so honoured. It’s really special that young people are trying to make a difference and to know they care about this issue,” said Don Meikle, acting executive director of Egadz.

The five U of S students involved in the campaign as homeless participants — Lane Bannerman, Alex Denysiuk, Jordana Knobluach, Amber Freistadt and Matt Brennan — were in high spirits at press time after their first two nights outside.

“It’s been pretty good. The first night we didn’t get much sleep, but it’s humbling to know what homeless people face and the different

challenges. It’s been pretty cold, but it’s been an alright week so far,” Bannerman said.

The group spent the night of March 9 between the Agri-Canada greenhouses, where their already restless night was cut short by the building’s automated lights early in the morning.

“We thought we had the perfect location, we were in between these greenhouses, it was pretty sheltered and it was dark,” Brennan said. “Then the greenhouse lights came on at 4 a.m. and lit up our spot.”

The group’s consensus was that sleep was a challenge, but everyone acknowledged that they’ve developed a new understanding for what Saskatoon’s homeless population experiences on a daily basis.

“It’s been tough getting to sleep. You’re lying there thinking, ‘Man, how can I get comfortable?’ and then you realize I’m doing this for five days and other people have to do this for however long,” Brennan said. “The tossing and turning, you don’t really get comfortable, you just make do with what you have.”

The participants expressed gratitude about the favorable weather conditions for their week outside. Temperatures during the day have been climbing above zero degrees, but have been dipping back into the negatives overnight.

“I think we’ve been fairly fortunate. I mean, in Saskatchewan, in comparison to what we’re used to, this is pretty nice,” Bannerman said.

“But even last night, it dipped down pretty low.

I think we can be thankful for the weather we’ve

had to this week.”

During the 5 Days campaign in 2013, temperatures dropped to as low as -27 C with windchill at night. Though the official campaign rules say participants can move inside if “inclement weather becomes a health risk,” the group took it as a challenge and slept underneath the law building anyway.

With this year’s warmer temperatures comes the challenge of melting snow. However, the participants said that staying dry hasn’t been an issue yet.

“It hasn’t snowed on us and we’ve been fortunate enough that nothing around us has melted.” Brennan said, adding that temperatures have been low enough at night to keep things frozen.

The campaign’s participants are required to attend all regular classes and extracurricular activities during the course of the week. Freistadt said that this has posed a challenge in itself.

“Class is pretty tiring, but once you’re outside of class, you get to come to the tunnel and raise money, so it’s been solid,” Freistadt said.

The participants said the campus community has been supportive of the campaign and attributed its success to the generosity of the U of S as a whole.

“The university’s been pretty sweet at raising awareness through people who aren’t involved in the campaign and continuing to support Egadz,” Freistadt said.

the 200 spots, 75 per cent would be allocated exclusively to student-parents.

The centre would include two rooms for preschool children, one room for toddlers and one room for infants, all of which have different requirements under the childcare regulations. The facility also has two additional “flex rooms” which can be adapted

for any of the three age groups.

With demand for affordable and accessible childcare spots on campus still growing and a reported three-year waiting list for existing spots, frustration from the campus community is also on the rise.

“If the data showed the need wasn’t there, I would understand, but the data shows that

the need is there and there’s going to be an increasing need for childcare spots,” Abouhamra said. “They’ve been waiting for this childcare centre for years and now it’s frustrating that they’re backing out.”

Childcare • continued from 1 Hannah said they received approval from the Board of Governors to pursue the construction of a new childcare facility in March 2013.

The proposed childcare centre at McEown Park would expand the university’s childcare spots by 90 — the maximum number of spots allowed for one facility under the province’s childcare regulations — to a total of 200. Of

3 Panel balances corporate and local interests NEWS

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

RAINER KOCSIS

Law students at the University of Saskatchewan are raising awareness about Canada’s human rights issues, most recently through a panel discussion on resource extraction.

The U of S chapter of Canadian Lawyers Abroad held a panel discussion titled “Resource Extraction and Corporate Social Responsibility: Aboriginal Peoples, Land Use and the Future of Saskatchewan.” The event took place on March 6 at the College of Law and was hosted in collaboration with the U of S Office of Sustainability, Corporate Law Club, environmental law student group Green Legal and event sponsor KPMG Enterprises.

The discussion featured representatives from both industry and academia. The four panelists included the co-founder of the Idle No More movement Sylvia McAdam, attorney Larry Kowalchuk, former Cameco Corporation president and CEO Gerald Grandey and Chief Reginald Bellerose of the Muskowekan First Nation. Law professor Ibironke OdumosuAyanu moderated the discussion.

Bellerose was the first panel member to speak. He talked about his commitment to future generations through investments in education and long-term business thinking.

“The biggest thing that we’re doing in Muskowekwan is trying to focus on treaty and inherent rights implementation,” Bellerose said.

“The intent of the treaties was to share the land.

In 2014, First Nations are the poorest of the poor, in Saskatchewan and in Canada. That’s not what the treaties were for.”

Bellerose has worked to build a First Nations community that is competitive in business and his vision remains focused on enterprise in his community, primarily in the area of natural resource development and sustainability.

The second panelist to speak was McAdam.

A direct descendant of treaty people and hailing from Treaty 6 lands, she highlighted the failures of the Canadian government to adequately acknowledge the treaties and their implications.

“Canada is going through contortions trying to extinguish the treaty terms and promises that created the foundation of Canada,” said McAdam, “I am one of the treaty descendants.

I can go back to the treaty document and I can pinpoint to you my great-grandfather who took treaty. All of you are beneficiaries. You benefit from that treaty.”

McAdam has received several human rights awards and fellowships, including the Carole Geller Human Rights Award for her large contributions to the betterment of disadvantaged Canadians’ lives.

Grandey then offered a more practical and pragmatic view of the relationships between businesses and treaties. Grandey joined Cameco in 1993 as senior vice-president of marketing and became president and CEO in 2003, before stepping down in late 2012.

“People tend to talk about corporations as large, cold, monolithic, organizations. They don’t have a soul or a heart … a corporation is simply a gathering of people,” said Grandey.

Grandey’s view that corporations are simply groups of people helped him realize that Cameco could benefit its people and their communities.

“When I was trying to lead [Cameco], we realized we had a larger duty. Yes, we have to be profitable. Yes, we have shareholders. But we have other stakeholders. And those stakeholders are the communities in which we live,” Grandey said. “To me, that was the soul of the organization. Our employees cared about their children’s futures and making their communities a better place.”

Kowalchuk was the final panelist to speak. He called aspiring lawyers to action, asking them to

JEFF GLASEL

Sylvia McAdam spoke about how everyone is affected by treaties. commit to equality and ethics in their trade.

“When you are taking the responsibility to speak on behalf of human beings, which you do as a lawyer, or as an activist or as a human rights advocate, who are you speaking for? Yourself?

An ideology? An idea? It seems like that’s the case, but it’s not,” Kowalchuk said. “You’re speaking for human beings. The people who you’re working for, or with, should determine what you say.”

The CLA is a charity that uses law to improve lives, primarily by supporting rule of law, good governance and human rights work in the

developing world and Canada’s north.

“This year we have chosen to focus on corporate social responsibility, specifically, within the extraction industry and its impact on the environment, human rights and indigenous people at home and abroad,” said CLA CoPresident Linh Le. Grandey said that there is a strong connection between the people that work for corporations and their communities.

“I’ve yet to meet anybody who really doesn’t care about the air they breathe, the water they drink, or the community in which they live.”

She said the calculation looks at the direct costs of poverty: the intergenerational and the opportunity costs that are carried when a population is unable to fully engage in social and economic life.

Though the groups involved maintain that poverty should still be calculated in terms of the human costs rather than considered an inevitable facet of a growing economy, they show that the economic detriment cannot be ignored.

As Director of Community Development at the Saskatoon Food Bank, Alison Robertson wants to raise awareness of the economic costs of poverty in Saskatchewan because it is a proactive rather than reactive strategy.

“Evidence shows that it’s less expensive to address poverty at its root rather than paying the costly downstream effects,” she said.

The implementation of a plan remains a future goal as the campaign currently seeks to get the Saskatchewan government to commit to a strategy from which a number of possible policies could be used to reduce poverty. Poverty reduction strategies across Canada have involved raising minimum wage, had an emphasis on affordable housing or looked at increasing affordable childcare, social assistance rates or investments in early childhood education.

Saskatchewan and British Columbia are the only two Canadian provinces that do not have comprehensive poverty reduction strategies.

Upstream director Dr. Ryan Meili said that each province requires their own poverty reduction plan.

“Poverty reduction strategies need to be designed for the specific social and economic context of the province that will undertake them,” Meili said. “The key thing to remember is that [poverty reduction strategies] need to be comprehensive.”

He looks towards the municipal police forces of Edmonton and Calgary aimed at reducing poverty as examples for

communities in Saskatchewan.

Meili is hopeful that including Saskatchewan on the list of provinces with similar strategies will garner the attention of the federal government and motivate them to implement a national strategy.

A federal strategy could have a huge influence across the country, Meili said — especially in areas where provincial policies can lack like on reserves. However, the Saskatchewan organizations will remain focused on implementing a strategy provincially.

“We are very optimistic that by showing the Government of Saskatchewan just how much support there is for effective poverty reduction, we will soon see the first steps taken to create a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy.”

Malena said.

During the week of March 10–15, there will be a number of Poverty Costs events across the University of Saskatchewan campus.

For more information or to show your support for the campaign, sign on to their initiative at povertycosts.ca.

Provincial campaign finds the root of poverty A group of organizations in Saskatoon have banded together to lobby the provincial government for a poverty reduction strategy that addresses the root causes of poverty in Saskatchewan.

Upstream Institute for a Healthy Society, the Saskatoon Food Bank and Learning Centre, the Saskatoon Anti-Poverty Coalition and the Saskatoon Poverty Reduction Partnership launched Poverty Costs, a campaign which intends to persuade the Saskatchewan government to commit to creating a

comprehensive anti-poverty strategy for the province.

A newly formed group in Saskatoon, Upstream Institute for a Healthy Society has calculated that Saskatchewan loses approximately $3.8 billion annually due to improperly addressing the problems of poverty.

Helping to lead the campaign is Rachel Malena of Upstream, who said the method — which has been used to measure the costs of poverty in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Quebec — was developed by Nathan Laurie, a policy analyst from Ontario.

BRIT MACDONALD/SASKATOON FOODBANK

Poverty Costs is a campaign lobbying for a poverty reduction strategy in Saskatchewan

James Daschuk & cathy LittLeJohn

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UPCOMING EVENTS

NICHOLAS MARLATTE

Saskatchewan Book Award Shortlist Reading Clearing the Plains and Métis Soldiers of Saskatchewan: 1914-1953 March 16, 2:00

pm



GreG sestero & tommy Wiseau

sheaf mar 13, 2014.indd 1

Signing The Disaster Artist March 18, 5:30

pm

3/5/2014 1:44:48 PM

4 NEWS Saskatchewan water resources need to surface

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

TAYLOR BOROWETZ

With industry booming in Saskatchewan and the South Saskatchewan River supplying an essential resource, the Global Institute for Water Security has published a report outlining how the province can protect its freshwater for the future.

“We have to use water carefully,” said Howard Wheater, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Water Security and director of GIWS. One of the world’s leading hydrologists, Wheater says water is a surprisingly scarce commodity — even in Saskatchewan where there is an abundance of fresh water lakes and two major rivers.

The City of Saskatoon’s website says the South Saskatchewan River averages a flow of 12.1 billion litres per day through the city.

“We’ve got to think carefully about our priorities and how we manage our risks,” Wheater said. He points out that population growth will increase the demand for water

use in irrigation, mining and other industrial uses. Besides the fact that agriculture and manufacturing consume large amounts of water, industries can cause a lot of pollution and often use water as a solvent.

“Once [water] is contaminated, it is very hard to clean up,” Wheater said.

The City of Saskatoon’s webpage states that water is easily contaminated and that one gallon of gasoline can contaminate approximately three million litres of water.

With increasing stress on above ground water sources, Wheater said aquifers have become important sources of water.

“We could do a lot more to understand our groundwater,” Wheater said.

While floods and droughts are two extremes, Wheater said both are expected to increase as a result of climate change.

Floods have already caused extensive property damage in Canada and have proved to be dangerous — as seen with the flooding in Calgary and southern Alberta last year.

“Water is one of the big issues for the 21st century,” he said, referring not only to overuse of water but also water as a natural force.

The GIWS launched in March 2011 and works primarily on sustainable use of the world’s water and protection against natural hazards involving water — such as drought and flood.

With over 70 faculty and government scientists as well as 50 students and post-doctoral fellows, the institute has teams working to understand how climate change, land management practices and natural resource development affect water resources. The teams also work to improve the modeling tools that are needed to sustainably manage water.

The institute recognizes that humans and their activities are of critical importance for water science and management, combining the fields of natural sciences, social sciences and engineering.

The institute’s mission is “To undertake world-class research that enables and enhances water security — sustainable use and protection

of water resources, the safeguarding of access to water functions and services for humans and the environment and protection against waterrelated hazards.”

Visiting professor Denis Peach authored the institute’s most recent report, titled “Groundwater, Hydrogeology and Sustainability in Saskatchewan.” The report contains a series of key recommendations to gain an understanding of the state of groundwater research in the province and how it can progress.

case of Mateen, health science.

Thiessen said a lot of students have previous experience with model UNs from high school and want to continue pursuing that interest while they are in university. However, the U of S has been without a model UN club for over a decade.

“The only person I’ve talked to, who was an alumni that did model UN, was here in the late 90s. As far as I know, over the last 14 years, there hasn’t been a club active on campus, so we’re trying to fill that void,” Thiessen said.

Mateen said there are a number of reasons why students would want to participate in a model UN. “It improves your research skills and allows you to talk from different perspectives,” Mateen said. “It can put you in situations where you don’t necessarily agree with what’s being debated, but because of the country you’re assigned, you have to comply to that country’s procedures.”

The club is currently planning a mock debate scheduled for March 28 in Arts 133. The topic of the debate will be “protecting civilians in combat zones.” In advance of the event, the group is holding weekly training sessions to get participants familiar with the formal procedures

of a UN debate. This includes preparing the documents students will use throughout the debate, such as resolutions.

The Usask Model UN Club is currently not ratified as a campus club and is instead operating as a sub-group under the International Studies Student Association. Thiessen said they will be seeking ratification in the fall.

“That’s our ultimate aim — to become a ratified group and hopefully there are students willing to carry it on,” Thiessen said.

Without U of S Students’ Union funding, Thiessen said the club has mostly been doing promotion on social media. The Usask Model UN Club’s Facebook group currently has 25 members.

The club has enjoyed the support of several faculty members in the department of political studies. Associate professor Carin Holroyd and sessional lecturer Martin Gaal, who has previous experience with model UN clubs, have both offered advice to the group’s leaders.

Students wanting more information on the Usask Model UN club can email the group’s organizers at Usaskmun@gmail.com. The group also holds weekly training sessions on Fridays from 3:30 p.m. – 5 p.m. in Education 1039.

between four and five percent, professional colleges such as engineering, veterinary medicine, nursing and law all had increases of over five percent.

This year’s increase of 5.39 per cent for law students is relatively small in the shadow of last year’s hike of 15 per cent up to $11,400.

The College of Law supported two years of massive tuition increases to bring the college up to a comparable level with other law schools in Canada.

Dentistry tuition remains unchanged at $32,960 after a hike two years ago when the College of Dentistry was restructured and higher tuition rates were approved to maintain the program.

“Dentistry is the one program that we have where the tuition rate is higher than our peers … That was intended a number of years ago as part of a number of changes to their program,” Fairbairn said.

Professional colleges tend to have higher tuition and subsequent increases because their graduates often have better employment prospects and earnings than in other colleges, Fairbairn said.

The College of Arts and Science received an increase of 4.15 per cent — just under the average. Fairbairn said the lesser increase is due to it being an entry college that needs to remain accessible to students.

International students’ tuition will increase at the same rate as domestic students.

Undergraduate international students will continue to pay 2.6 times what domestic students pay while graduate international students will maintain 1.5 times of domestic graduate student tuition.

The Board of Governors sets tuition at the U of S each year based on comparison with peer programs, accessibility and affordability and enabling quality. Primarily, data is collected to compare with peer institutions and then discussions with college deans lead to a decision as to how tuition should be adjusted for the following year.

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

The South Saskatchewan River flows through Saskatoon.

Model UN club back after more than a decade SCOTT DAVIDSON Associate News Editor

A group of internationally-minded students at the University of Saskatchewan have started a model United Nations club to simulate the procedures of the real-life organization.

The Usask Model UN Club began in the fall of 2013 as a means of organizing U of S students for a trip to the North American Model UN in Toronto. Four students from the original group attended this year’s conference from Feb. 20–23.

Beth Thiessen, Usask Model UN Club deputysecretary general, said the NAMUN had a steep learning curve but was a worthwhile experience.

“It was an interesting experience because it was my first one so I didn’t necessarily participate as much as a seasoned model UN-er, but now I’m a bit more comfortable with the procedures,” Thiessen said.

“It’s hard to know what to do without having ever done it, so there was a lot of observing involved in terms of picking up what the procedures are.”

Thiessen said the group was originally intending solely to organize the trip to

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

Momina Mateen and Beth Thiessen hope students take interest in the model UN club.

Toronto, but continued on because of growing student interest.

“It started out with us going to Toronto and I really didn’t think it would continue on after that, but it has and there’s interest on campus and we’re still trying to reach new people,” Thiessen said.

As the club’s secretary general, Momina Mateen said the group has attracted interest from all over campus. While the group was originally made up of social science students, it has grown to include others from engineering, biology, chemistry and, in the

U of S Students’ Union opposed to latest tuition hike ANNA-LILJA DAWSON Senior News Editor

Tuition for the 2014–15 academic year at the University of Saskatchewan has been met with disappointment from its student union.

Although University Provost and VicePresident Academic Brett Fairbairn said that 2014–15 tuition doesn’t stray from recent tuition trends, U of S Students’ Union Vice-President Academic Affairs Jordan Sherbino has taken issue with yet another year of increases.

“Tuition is obviously one of the largest barriers for [accessibility]. When we see year after year, increase after increase, that doesn’t just pose as a little speedbump on the road — it’s actually a major wall that impedes many students from being able to come here in the first place,” he said.

Sherbino paired recent cuts to academic programs and support services — secretarial positions, the University Learning Centre, the student enrolment division — with rising tuition and said students are not receiving what they pay for.

“If it were improving programs and if it were improving the academic nature of them and having more students and admin positions, that’d be an entirely different situation. But the university is not in that situation. Students are being expected to pay more and more and they’re getting less and less.”

The USSU issued a statement immediately following the tuition announcement calling on the university to project student tuition in the

same ways as budget shortfalls. The students’ union suggests in the release to follow the Consumer Price Index — the increase in price of a set bundle of commodities over time.

Sherbino said the USSU’s request for tuition to follow the CPI is reasonable because the price of living and other resources follow the index and because it is a stable number that tends to average around two per cent each year.

“We believe that our stances are very reasonable, very plausible with the government and with the university. To keep it tied to something very stable so that students don’t have to continue to pay more and more and more for services that aren’t really changing that much.”

The 2014–15 tuition rates at the U of S sit just under the tuition median of the U15 — a benchmark group of 15 research intensive universities in Canada — with the exception of the dentistry program.

“We think about comparisons in a variety of ways. We compare tuition fees, we compare programs and teaching quality, we compare research between universities as well so it’s similar comparisons for all activities,” Fairbairn said of comparing the U of S to other U15 schools.

However, Sherbino said comparing the U of S to other universities isn’t always a good fit.

“I don’t think that we necessarily should be always comparing ourselves to others. When we’re comparing ourselves to other universities that have higher tuition and have larger class sizes, that’s not necessarily the best benchmark.”

While most programs have received a hike

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

Brett Fairbairn said tuition hikes are ordinary.

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13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

DEFEND ACADEMIC FREEDOM IN A TIME OF CRISIS! Thursday March 27, 2014 2:00 - 4:30 p.m.

Room 241 Arts, Neatby-Timlin Lecture Theatre Master of Ceremonies: Dr. Richard Julien, Department of Religion and Culture

Corporate Universities and the Bottom Line 2:00 p.m.

Dr. Gaye Tuchman Professor Emerita of Sociology, University of Connecticut 3:00 p.m.

Panel Discussion: TransformUS as a Solution to a Crisis? What Crisis?

Chair: Dr. Howard Woodhouse, Department of Educational Foundations Dr. Claire Card, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences Dr. Franz-Viktor Kuhlmann, Department of Mathematics and Statistics Izabela Vlahu, Vice-President Academic, Graduate Students’ Association 4:30 pm

Wine and Cheese Reception, University Club, Fireside Room

All Sessions are Free and Open to the Public Sponsored by the University of Saskatchewan Faculty Association Co-sponsored by Aboriginal Business Students’ Society, Aboriginal Students’ Centre, ASPA, CUPE 1975, CUPE 3287 Sessional Lecturers, Education Students’ Society, Graduate Students’ Association, Indigenous Students’ Council, ITEP Students’ Society, SUNTEP Students’ Society, USSU

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SPORTS

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

Huskies are top dog in Canada West KIMBERLEY HARTWIG Sports Editor

The Huskies women’s basketball team proved they are the best in the west after claiming the Canada West title, and will advance to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport championship to face off against the best teams in the country.

The Dogs defeated the University of Regina Cougars in the semifinals and the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades in the final. The final four tournament took place at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alta. on March 7 and 8.

Friday’s semifinal game pitted the Huskies against their provincial rivals the Cougars. The teams had split their

previous meeting, each coming in with a 1-1 record.

Right from tip-off the teams matched each other basket for basket. The Huskies were only able to gain a slight three-point lead after the first quarter and at the half held a five point advantage.

Although they were never able to gain a large lead, the Huskies were able to keep their nose in front until the buzzer. The Dogs advanced to the final with a 64-52 victory.

Dalyce Emmerson led the Huskies with 17 points and seven rebounds. Riley Humbert chipped in another 10 points.

In another exciting contest, the Huskies clashed with the Fraser Valley Cascades in the final.

The teams exchanged leads in the opening half, with the Cascades eventually gaining the upper hand to lead 34-30. The Huskies didn’t stay behind for long, going on a 12-0 run to start the third period. The Cascades were not able to match the Dogs’ level of play and the Huskies went on to win 67-56.

Kabree Howard led the Huskies with 20 points and six assists.

“My shot was feeling good. Everyone contributes on every night and that just happened to be the night I was able to contribute,” Howard said.

Emmerson had another big night, recording a double-double with 19 points and 22 rebounds.

Heading into the national championship

the Huskies will look to continue the stellar play that led them to the Canada West title.

“We’re playing as a team so well,” Howard said. “Everyone’s contributing and everyone is able to execute the game plan. It really comes down to our defence, that we’re stopping teams.”

This is the third time in team history that the Huskies have claimed the Canada West title and the seventh time in nine years that they have advanced to the CIS championship. The Cascades also join the Huskies in the tournament as Canada West representatives while the University of Alberta Pandas, who finished third, received a wildcard.

The Huskies are seeded third and will face the sixth seed Queen’s University Gaels in the quarter-final. The Gaels finished first in the Ontario University Athletics’ Eastern division with a 16-6 record.

The CIS championship takes place from March 14-16 at the University of Windsor in Windsor, Ont.

Canada West Standings Women’s Basketball

GOLDEN BEARS AND PANDAS ATHLETICS

The Huskies defeated the University of Regina Cougars and the Unversity of the Fraser Valley Cascades to claim the Canada West title.

Upcoming Huskies Games Women’s Basketball • March 14 at CIS championship in Windsor, Ont. vs. Queen’s University Gaels at 3:00 p.m.

• March 15-16 at CIS championship in Windsor, Ont. vs. TBA Women’s Hockey • March 13 at CIS championship in Fredericton, N.B. vs.

University of Montreal Carabins at 7:00 p.m.

• March 14-16 at CIS championship in Fredericton, N.B. vs. TBA Men’s hockey March 21-23 at CIS championship

- Home Game

GP-W-L 22-20-2 22-20-2 22-17-5 22-13-9 22-12-10 22-6-16 22-6-16 22-5-17 GP-W-L 22-17-5 22-16-6 22-15-7 22-13-9 22-6-16 22-5-17 22-3-19 22-2-20

Prairie Division 1. Alberta 2. Regina 3. Saskatchewan 4. Calgary 5. Winnipeg 6. Brandon 7. Lethbridge 8. Manitoba Pacific Division 1. UFV 2. UBC 3. Victoria 4. Thompson Rivers 5. UNBC 6. Trinity Western 7. UBC Okanagan 8. Mount Royal

*Top four teams from each division qualify for crossover playoffs

Men’s Basketball

Prairie Division 1. Alberta 2. Saskatchewan 3. Lethbridge 4. Winnipeg 5. Calgary 6. Brandon 7. Manitoba 8. Regina Pacific Division 1. Victoria 2. UFV 3. Thompson Rivers 4. UBC 5. Trinity Western 6. Mount Royal 7. UNBC 8. UBC Okanagan

GP-W-L 22-20-2 22-15-7 22-15-7 22-14-8 22-7-15 22-6-16 22-6-16 22-5-17 GP-W-L 22-19-3 22-17-5 22-13-9 22-11-11 22-10-12 22-9-13 22-5-17 22-4-18

*Top four teams from each division qualify for crossover playoffs

Women’s Hockey 1. Alberta 2. Saskatchewan 3. UBC 4. Manitoba 5. Regina 6. Calgary 7. Lethbridge 8. Mount Royal

GP-W-L-OTL 28-20-5-3 28-18-4-6 28-20-6-2 28-17-7-4 28-11-13-4 28-12-14-2 28-7-16-5 28-7-18-3

*All eight teams advance to playoffs

SPORTS

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

7

Huskies women’s hockey gets set for CIS championship HENRYTYE GLAZEBROOK Editor-in-Chief Coming off an exciting season that saw them win their first ever Canada West trophy, the University of Saskatchewan women’s hockey team is looking to ride their success into a Canadian Interuniversity Sport championship title.

“The unbelievable part is how it happened,” said head coach Steve Kook of their CanWest victory. “We had 22 onegoal games in regular season; we had 11 overtime games; during the first round of playoffs two out of three went to overtime and of course in the last series we played 17 periods in three games.”

From the beginning, things looked uncertain for the young team. Of the 24-person roster, only Cami Wooster, Chelsey Sundby and Kandace Cook are considered senior players. Rounding out the rest of the squad are 10 rookies and a pack of second and third year players — but Kook doesn’t see the team’s relative inexperience as a setback.

“There’s no hiding the fact that we’re young in age,” Kook said. “The bulk of our team is third year and younger, so that whole group is going to get more experienced, get more confident and be able to do more things as a group over the next couple years. That’s the rewarding thing, that’s the thing that we look down the road towards.

“It’s gonna put some strain on us recruiting-wise two or three years down the road because there’s a lot of kids we’ve got to replace. But for the next two, three, four years it looks pretty good if we can keep this group of kids together.”

The team’s younger players are already proving to be invaluable. In a stellar season that saw her net 11 goals and 14 assists, first year Kaitlin Willoughby was named Canada West rookie of the year in women’s hockey. Scouted during her time playing Midget AAA in Prince Albert, Kook sees her addition as an asset to the team.

Willoughby “was highly sought out after midget hockey, from all of the colleges across Canada and even into the United States,” Kook said. “She’s had a lot of offers. We were really fortunate to have her come here.

“She was a natural goal-scorer and an explosive player in midget and that hasn’t changed here” at the U of S. Likewise, Kook looks to team captain Cami Wooster’s leadership moving forward. As the only team member with experience at a national tournament — Wooster helped the University of Alberta Pandas to a fourth place finish their 2007/08 season — her experience has proven vital as the teams prepares for upcoming games.

“It’s fantastic,” Kook said. Wooster “doesn’t have to say a lot of things and often she doesn’t, but as the only player on our roster that has ever gone to a national championship, that experience and insight is invaluable.”

Aside from Willoughby and Wooster, Kook identifies offensive players such as Kandace Cook and Sara Greschner as well as goalies Cassidy Hendricks and Karen Lefsrud as integral to the the team’s success this season. Still, Kook believes there are Huskies in the lineup that are going unrecognized for their contributions.

“I personally think we have the best third line in the conference,” Kook said.

“Our third line is Paige Anakaer, Chelsey Sundby and Cassandra Jorgenson — those are the players that start a lot of the games for us. They’re our go-to line as soon as a goal gets scored. That’s our energy line, they play against a lot of the top teams in the league.”

Seeded fourth in the CIS championship, the U of S will be facing off with universities from outside of their conference. Though they haven’t faced these teams yet this season, Kook isn’t concerned that the Huskies will need to change up their training in preparation.

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

After capturing the Canada West title, the Huskies women’s hockey team hopes to bring home more hardware from the CIS championships.

“We’ll rely on videotape and game film when we get there, but as far as we’re concerned we’re too late in the game to change the things we do — and I don’t think we’d want to,” Kook said.

Built on a foundation of campus community and the strength of all Huskies athletic programs, Kook sees the campus’ historic skill in athletics as a driving factor for the team.

“Every year we go into the season talking about the same thing: it’s a national championship expectation,” Kook said. “And it’s not a women’s hockey expectation; it’s a University of Saskatchewan expectation.”

With all the work both he and the team have put into their season, Kook said that it’s all made possible by the behindthe-scenes involvement of the U of S community.

“There’s a lot of pieces and parts that go unnoticed here … from our trainers, the medical staff behind us that people don’t see, the people that take care of the equipment, the people that take care of the rink, the guys that do the ice for three hours before we get on for a game to make sure the ice is perfect for us, the professors,” Kook said. “We get such tremendous support from the university.”

Though this past season marked his third time being awarded CanWest coach of the year, Kook attributes his success to the abilities of the athletes.

“Coaches get awards based on the performance of their players.”

The Huskies hit the ice at 7 p.m. on March 13 against the Université de Montréal Carabins at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, N.B.

Huskies men’s basketball finish 5th at nationals AUSTIN ARVAY The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s basketball team returned home from Nationals with a fifth place finish. Following the team’s bronze medal at the Canada West championships, they received an at-large bid to appear in the National Championship in Ottawa, Ont. The tournament features eight of Canada’s top university basketball teams competing to be named best in the country. This year’s tournament featured the University of Ottawa, Carleton University, University of McGill, McMaster University, Saint Mary’s University, University of Alberta, University of Victoria and our very own Huskies.

The Dogs drew a tough first round matchup as they took on the number one seeded Ottawa Gee-Gees. The Huskies kept it close against Ottawa and trailed 43-40 at the half. Stephon Lamar had 12 points in the first half as well as five assists. The Huskies shot an impressive 44 per cent from the field and seemed poised for the upset, but things fell apart in the second half.

The Gee-Gees outscored the Huskies by five points in the third quarter and then by 13 points in final frame as Ottawa advanced with a 94-73 victory.

Matt Forbes had a huge second half as he pulled down eight rebounds and scored 11 points on 5-6 shooting. He finished

with a double double in the game with 18 points and 10 rebounds. As a team, the Huskies shot a disappointing 32 per cent in the second half. Rookie Alex Unruh chipped in four points in four minutes off the bench.

The Huskies were then moved to the consolation side of the bracket, where they

played the fifth seeded McGill Redmen.

The Huskies used a dominant first quarter to take control of the game and upset the Redmen 75-59.

The Huskies shot an astounding 62 per cent in the first half and were led by Lamar and Forbes, who both recorded double figures. McGill shot an abysmal

VALERIE WUTTI

The Huskies made good use of their wildcard into the CIS championships, defeating the McGill Redmen to finish fifth.

21 per cent and found themselves in a big hole, down by 19 points at the half.

The second half saw McGill make a small run and close the gap to 13, but that is as close as they would get.

Lamar added 12 more points in the second half to finish with 25 and was awarded player of the game for his efforts.

The Huskies defence was solid as they held the Redmen to just 59 points and 27 per cent shooting in the contest.

The win gave the Dogs a 1-1 record at nationals and a fifth place finish. The Carleton Ravens went on to win the title for the third consecutive time, defeating Ottawa 79-67 in the final.

The Huskies entire roster is eligible to return next season and Stephon Lamar is very optimistic about their chances.

“I most definitely think we have another shot at another title,” Lamar said to Carleton University Athletics after the win over McGill.

Head coach Barry Rawlyk was proud of his team’s efforts.

“These are tough games to be playing in and you always wonder about the psyche of that whole thing, but at the end of the day it’s our last game of the season and we wanted to come out and obviously as well as we could,” he said.

The Dogs ended the season with a 28-11 record overall — the second best finish in team history.

8

Dog Watch: Kendall McFaull SPORTS

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

KIMBERLEY HARTWIG Sports Editor

Kendall McFaull is enjoying his first year on the ice with the Huskies men’s hockey team.

The defenceman was named to the Canada West All-Rookie team for his efforts this season, highlighted by one goal and seven assists.

“I was pretty excited,” he said. “It’s a great honour.”

McFaull also garnered attention because of his ability to frustrate the opponent’s offence.

“I’m a shutdown defenceman,” he said. “I’m not a flashy guy that’s going to go out and score a bunch of points. My main job is to make sure the other team’s top line doesn’t score. It’s not the most glorified job but it’s the job I’ve always had and I enjoy it.”

McFaull is in his first year studying engineering and had to learn to balance hockey and academics.

“The first semester was definitely tough,” he said. “Now I’m starting to ease into it and it’s getting better.”

McFaull learns from the experience of other players — such as fifth-years Brennan Bosch and Andrew Bailey — when it comes to handling a demanding schedule.

“The way they handle school and hockey is definitely something to take into account,” he said. “The thing I was most worried about was being able to do engineering and have the time for hockey. Watching those guys and seeing how they balance it has helped me along the way.”

Before suiting up for the Huskies, McFaull played for the Moose Jaw Warriors in the Western Hockey League. Facing players that are more experienced, faster and stronger has pushed McFaull to play even better.

“Anytime you move up a level the play is that much faster and you have to adjust, you have to get better,” he said. “I think I’ve definitely grown as a player.”

Coming from the WHL, McFaull is used to dedicating a large part of his life to sport. Now that he splits his focus between school and

hockey, he takes advantage of all the ice time he gets.

“When you’re in the WHL your focus is only hockey. You work out in the morning and practice in the afternoon and that’s really all you do,” he said. “Here you only have a limited amount of time to practice and prepare. I think we go a little bit harder because we don’t have as much time.”

The Huskies have been spending a lot of time in the rink and at the gym since being eliminated from playoffs in the first round. As host of the University Cup, the Huskies are assured a spot

in the tournament and are looking to rebound from their playoff performance.

“We’ve got a statement to make that us losing out in playoffs shouldn’t have happened,” he said. “We’ve got people to prove wrong.”

McFaull is looking forward to playing in his first ever national championship and is ready to face off against the best teams in the country.

“With hockey the more you prepare the less nervous you feel,” he said. “I think we’re going to be pretty prepared going in.”

Being supported by the home crowd during the championship is something McFaull is

Police investigate alleged sexual assault involving U of O men’s hockey team SPENCER VAN DYK The Fulcrum (University of Ottawa)

OTTAWA ­— The University of Ottawa has suspended its men’s varsity hockey program due to allegations that certain members of the team were involved in a gang sexual assault.

According to Thunder Bay police, some team members were allegedly involved in the sexual assault of a female university student in Thunder Bay several weeks ago, though the incident was only reported to the U of O administration by a third party on Feb. 24.

The university reported the incident to police the following day and said they will be cooperating with the investigation and launching an internal review. The review will be conducted by a third party outside the university.

The team played two games in Thunder Bay on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.

Until the review is complete, it is unknown whether the team will participate in the 2014–15 season. In the interim, members are suspended from all team-related activities, but are still able to attend classes.

The investigation is being led by Thunder Bay police’s sexual assault unit. Ottawa police will assist in any follow-up investigation the Thunder Bay police may need.

The female involved in the assault is now cooperating with Thunder Bay police.

“These are serious allegations,” said Patrick Charette, director of corporate communications at the U of O, at a press meeting. “You will also appreciate that there are all kinds of legal rights, including privacy of all innocent parties involved.”

Charette said the university was asked by

MARC JAN/THE FULCRUM

Members of the U of O hockey team are being investigated after allegations surfaced of a sexual assault during the team’s trip to Thunder Bay on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. police not to communicate publicly about the investigation until March 3.

The university will not reveal how many of its student athletes were involved in the incident.

Police also notified administrators at Lakehead University of the incident, primarily to say that none of the Thunderwolves players are alleged to have been involved. According to Lakehead spokesperson Toby Goodfellow, police have told the university that the alleged incident did not take place on campus.

Nicole Desnoyers, vice-president equity for the Student Federation of the University

of Ottawa, said the federation has very little information about the incident at this point.

She said the SFUO, joined by the Graduate Students’ Association and other student groups, is launching a taskforce to look at how to improve and build upon support structures currently in place as well as how to engage students in the discussion surrounding rape culture.

“This is pointing to a much larger, systemic issue on campus,” she said. “It is extremely pervasive.”

The Gee-Gees’ season ended Feb. 21 after they lost to the Queen’s Gaels in the provincial playoffs.

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

eager to experience.

“I’m pretty excited about the University Cup and the fact that they’re giving out free tickets to the students,” he said. “I think that’ll really show the support. Our first game there we’ll get a lot of fans out. It should be exciting.”

Hailing from Rosetown, Sask. the support McFaull feels from the Saskatoon community helps him feel at ease both on the ice and off.

“The first day I stepped in there I felt at home,” he said. “Being an athlete, I felt as soon as I came here I was a part of the university.”

Huskies collect five medals at track and field nationals KIMBERLEY HARTWIG Sports Editor The Huskies track team brought home two golds, two silvers and one bronze from the Canadian Interuniversity Sport track and field championships. In team standings the Huskies women’s team finished fifth with 50 points while the men’s team placed twelfth with 18. The event was held from March 6-8 at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alta.

Taryn Suttie claimed two medals, a gold in women’s shot-put and a silver in weight throw.

Suttie’s shot put throw of 16.83 m broke the previous CIS championship record which she had set in 2011.

“It’s a little more satisfying breaking someone else’s record, but it was definitely still very exciting to break my own record,” Suttie said to U of A athletics. “I knew I was capable of breaking that record and punching it out as far as I did, so it was definitely on my mind and a goal of mine this weekend.”

Michelle Young was the only other gold medalist for the Dogs. Young ran the 60 m hurdles with a time of 8.29 s.

Kendrick Hanna’s time of 6.69 s in the men’s 60 m earned him a second place finish just behind York University’s Dontae RichardsKwok’s run of 6.61 s. Lauren Taylor finished third in women’s pentathlon with 3,667 points behind University of Calgary’s Rachel Machin and Rachael McIntosh with 4,165 and 4,063 points respectively.

The University of Guelph claimed first in the women’s team standings with 96 points. The University of Toronto finished second with 93 points and Trinity Western University placed third with 64.

York University topped the men’s team standings with 103 points, followed by Guelph University with 97 and the University of Windsor with 81.

CULTURE

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

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Wearable Art Exhibition reveals a distinct artistic experience K. S. McCUTCHEON The Wearable Art Exhibition at the Saskatchewan Craft Council’s Affinity Gallery presents extraordinary works of art. Each piece captures the artist’s perspective on the participatory theme, with works ranging from dresses to capes and headpieces.

While the art pieces no longer grace the bodies of models and dancers, they are now displayed on mannequins. The exhibit is running at the Saskatchewan Craft Council from Feb. 23 to April 12.

Alexa Hainsworth, the artist who created the “Agave” and “Lycogala” pieces, recognizes that movement is an integral aspect of the wearable art. However, Hainsworth remains excited that the event did not end on the runway.

Hainsworth’s art is inspired by theatre, stage design, films, fashion and nature.

Many months were dedicated to designing and sewing colourful synthetic textiles to create sculptural pieces.

Hainsworth began by drawing the potential pieces and then created armatures made of wire and woven by hand. Many elements were taken into consideration for Hainsworth’s work — including choosing all of the fabric based on its texture and feel.

She often finds the right fabrics, ranging from repulsive to glamourous, in the bridal section.

The wearable art is not always flattering and Hainsworth’s work morphs and disfigures the body through her pieces.

“I aim to create a fantasy that is appealing, shocking and not an everyday occurrence,” Hainsworth said.

But the fantasy must also be balanced and Hainsworth is careful to not overload a piece to the point where it cannot be understood by the audience.

KATHERINE FEDOROFF

Corsets and codpieces was one of the art categories at SWAG.

There are notable differences between wearable art and fashion. Fashion maintains an expectation of beauty, the aim to sell products to consumers and the importance of the designer’s name. In contrast, wearable art intends to make the model look strange and uses diverse materials to express a viewpoint.

The pieces were first displayed at the Saskatchewan Wearable Art Gala held in October 2013 as a fundraiser for the envisioned Jack Millikan Centre, which will be an eco-friendly building located in an area of forest in Ness Creek, Sask.

The multi-purpose centre aims to host musical events and art conferences outside of a city setting and will provide an environment for nature explorations as well

as expressions of arts and culture.

The fundraiser in October was a successful event for artists, whose pieces were revealed by models and Alma Flamenca dancers. An element of competition was also included in the fundraiser, giving awards to artists for different categories.

The attentive audience was exposed to a range of works that fell into one of three categories — headpiece, corset/codpiece and an open category. Each piece was made with a variety of materials including seed pods, a recycled metal cage, vinyl records, cutlery, a bicycle seat, chicken wire fencing and photographs.

One of the event organizers, Arnfinn Prugger explained that the works were required to be both wearable and well constructed.

“The best pieces took common materials and used them in cool and innovative ways,” Prugger said.

Jolene Dusyk took home the Best-inShow award for “Mabel’s Equity”, which was constructed with chicken wire and 195 glass pieces. The winner of the open category — “Photographic Memory” by Nisha Rocamora — was created using coffee filters and photographs.

The SWAG submission form states its purpose: “SWAG is not about fashion or clothing, it is about creating a new approach to what is worn on the body.”

Organized by Lindsay Embree, Arnfinn Prugger and Carlie Letts, SWAG also included artists from across the globe. For events in conjunction with the Wearable Art Exhibition, a number of the artists will speak at the Artists’ Talk on March 22. The wrap-up reception will also include the artists on April 12.

The organizers intend to host a second SWAG in the fall of 2015. Members of the community are invited to attend the events

KATHERINE FEDOROFF

Many interesting works of art were designed for the open category at SWAG.

and to participate in the excitement SWAG brings to Saskatchewan.

“A wearable art show is different, funky and fun. We can do it right here and do a great job of it,” Prugger said.

Both SWAG and the Jack Millikan Centre compliment one another with their shared artistic emphasis. The exhibition and centre stress the importance of gathering people together and creating art that is unique in a supportive space.

The Wearable Art Exhibit will be on display at the Saskatchewan Craft Council’s Affinity Gallery located at 813 Broadway Avenue until April 12. Visit saskcraftcouncil.org for gallery viewing times and to see images from the Saskatchewan Wearable Art Gala.

10

CULTURE

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

Art exhibit in Delta Bessborough proves to be a hidden gem

Colorful and textured paintings on display at the Delta Bessborough.

KATLYNN BALDERSTONE It may not be the most obvious place for a fine art exhibit, but the eighth floor of Saskatoon’s Delta Bessborough hides a gallery impressive in both its small size and large scope.

From abstract paintings to detailed and expressive castings, the Bronze Sculpture and Modern Contemporary Art display at the Kehrig Fine Art venue will leave you taken aback at the amount of fantastic art they’ve fit into such an intimate area.

The exhibit features selected works from various local and international artists, each with their own unique style and approach — creating a display that is diverse and appealing on many levels.

Representing the bronze sculpture side of the display are artists like Michel Anthony, who creates smaller and beautifully organic abstract pieces. The appearance of Anthony’s sculptures are smooth and organic, almost fluid-like in contrast to such hard materials. Anthony also uses different mixtures of bronze alloys — including the addition of silver to create white bronze — which functions to improve the finish on his pieces and add colour.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is work from Saskatchewan artist Tom Schultz, whose animal sculptures are packed with very fine and realistic detail. Several of his bronze castings are featured at the display, including a polished animal skull and a small deer in which even the teeth are carved out with skill and care.

As for the contemporary art portion of the exhibit, one can find many abstract paintings from European artist Raphaël Gyllenbjörn.

These paintings have a great energy to them — with splatters and strong brushstrokes — but also hold enough care to shape the paint and

JORDAN DUMBA/ PHOTO EDITOR

colours. The strong texture and shape of the paint allows for a fantastic feeling of depth.

The display also features the surreal paintings of Tim Johnson, an American artist with an eye for colour and texture. Johnson’s large painting of a chick shows his care for detail through the expressiveness of his brushstrokes. One wishes the gallery was larger just to see more of his work.

Bridging the gap between paint and sculpture is William Prettie, an artist from Alberta who works using layers of paint and text within heavy resin. The feeling of depth is more than enough to pull the viewer in and search for any hidden meanings. Unfortunately, the lighting of the display space tends to mar the effect.

A different set of lighting would allow these works to shine and reveal what lies beneath, but they are still extraordinary to view.

This space was only recently converted to a gallery, in January 2014, though Kehrig Fine Art has existed for some time prior. Functioning as a way to support both the owner’s love of art and the artists themselves, Kehrig allows potential buyers to look through the collected works in order to purchase a piece they find appealing or to select an artist to commission pieces from.

While the floor size is small, the collection of work on display for this exhibit is certainly not.

The intimate space allows for a more condensed arrangement that is appealing without being overpowering.

The Bronze Sculpture and Modern Contemporary Art exhibit is on display through Kehrig Fine Art on the eighth floor of the Delta Bessborough. Open Monday to Wednesday from 5 p.m. – 9 p.m. or by appointment, it will be available for viewing until April 30.

CULTURE

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

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The Greenery invites local bands to its house party ANDREW COOPER

A new venue for Saskatoon’s music scene, The Greenery is quickly becoming a popular centre for musicians and fans alike.

Saskatoon is a hotbed for musical talent and any new venue tends to be welcomed with open arms.

The Greenery is hosted out of the main floor of a house in Riversdale, giving it a unique setting. Anyone skeptical about this should refrain from judgement before attending — the sound and calibre of performance attained is smashing for a house show.

Events hosted by The Greenery occur every full moon, a date that contributes to the mystic decorations of past shows and adds to the individuality of the venue.

The Greenery’s founder, Adam Logan, started the venue with the intent of networking personally within the Saskatoon art scene.

“Innately, I am a person who would like to collect people together,” Logan said.

“I like doing that kind of stuff; it fills me with energy. Initially it was just my way of meeting Saskatoon. It’s constantly changing and evolving into something a little bit different than it was initially.”

The musical acts that have performed in the last five shows at The Greenery are a testament to the flexibility of the venue, ranging from acoustic to thematic and even psychedelic material.

“It’s a space where dialogue can happen between musicians that aren’t normally connected,” Logan said.

The rosters at past shows have been a testament to this. Nowhere else in Saskatoon will you see acts as dynamically different as

The Greenery hosts its events on the main level of a house in Riversdale.

Slime Street and Caves rocking out on the same stage.

“You know, Jon [Vaughn of Slime Street] said, ‘You’re the only person with balls to book us all together,’” said Logan.

The Greenery has featured Saskatoonbased bands Castle River, Minor Matter, The Shooting Guns and Slow Down Molasses.

While the monthly events showcase Saskatoon’s local music scene primarily, it has also given spoken word a new stage for expression. Brendan Flaherty performed some spoken word pieces the night of the Slow Down Molasses show.

The venue itself is symbolic of local artists because it is hosted in a house where

BARBARA REIMER

several musicians live. The piano against the back wall, the art leaning haphazardly in the hallways and the general ambience and good vibes from those in attendance contribute to the wayward, artistic environment of The Greenery.

Though the venue itself has the feel of a house party, the audience varies from old to young. Many of those in attendance at The Greenery’s last show are part of the Saskatoon art scene, from music to poetry.

Elsa Gebramichael and Ash Lamothe of We Were Lovers have attended in the past as well.

Members of the Saskatoon community have also been eager to help out. Almost every

member of Young Benjamins has volunteered in one way or another and every show seems to have a new photographer, the most recent being Barbara Reimer — a photography technician from the fine arts department at the University of Saskatchewan.

The location and locality of The Greenery allows it to provide a unique experience for artists and audience members alike.

“The main focus of the Greenery is to create an eclectic blend,” Logan said. “You go to a music festival and the festival houses all these different kinds of people and it’s not just a niche crowd. A normal promoter would book heavier acts.”

The venue will host only four more shows and Logan has big plans for where The Greenery will go from there.

“We’ll probably take The Greenery on the road and kind of rework the idea into touring The Greenery as a party,” Logan said. “So you’d tour The Greenery to Montréal and you’d book a well-known venue in Montréal and you’d book bands specific to Montréal.

Think of it as a touring gallery.”

Essentially, Logan wants to form a traveling exposé of Canadian music, creating a nine-month series in each major city before moving onto the next one.

Right now Logan is thinking of keeping The Greenery in the prairies, perhaps moving to Regina or Winnipeg. Whatever the case, the last four shows of The Greenery are not to be missed.

Information on the next show is not currently available but will be released on The Greenery Facebook page in the future.

U of S Music Theatre Ensemble to perform The Beggar’s Opera NAOMI ZUREVINSKI Culture Editor

On March 15 and 16 the University of Saskatchewan’s Music Theatre Ensemble will be putting on a production of The Beggar’s Opera.

A ballad opera in three acts, The Beggar’s Opera was originally written by John Gay in 1728 with music arrangements by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It was later rewritten in 1948

by Benjamin Britten.

“This show is a little bit different because it’s early Broadway,” said Erica McFadden, one of the members of this year’s Ensemble.

“It was written in 1728 when English music started coming into its own and so The Beggar’s Opera is the beginnings of Broadway,” McFadden said.

The Ensemble’s work is largely done in excerpted scenes from full-size works, taking the form of either opera, operetta or Broadway.

With two shows each school year — one at the end of each term — the performances can vary vastly. The first term takes the form of an

opera or operetta show, with themes like “Mozart Operas” and “Bad Boys of Opera.”

“It’s all opera but it will be a specific composer and then we take excerpts from different operas and put them together,” McFadden said.

For the second term, the Ensemble’s show takes the direction of Broadway. The Beggar’s Opera is still classified as a Broadway show but is what McFadden describes as “opera style.”

The Music Theatre Ensemble has been in existence for 30 years at the U of S. It came under the direction of Dr. Garry Gable 17 years ago, who also serves as the Director of Music Theatre at the U of S. The Ensemble is an auditions-based class that counts as one university credit per year of involvement. It is also open to students outside of the department of music, as anyone is welcome to audition.

“It is auditions-based because you do need to have a level of musical knowledge to be in the class,” said McFadden. “We do try and make it on a level of professional performance.”

McFadden is in her fifth year at the

The Ensemble’s past shows have included opera, operatta and Broadway.

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The Music Theatre Ensemble includes students from many areas of study at the U of S. U of S pursuing a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance. This is her third year of involvement in the Ensemble and she describes it as a great learning experience.

“It’s a class that you get credit for and you learn how to be a solo singer in an ensemble,” McFadden said. “It’s an opportunity to learn how real theater works.”

While it is based out of the department of music, members come from many different areas of study at the U of S. “We have 22 people this year. We’ve had a nursing student, an agriculture student, English students, drama students and then vocal and instrument majors,” McFadden said.

The Ensemble practices three days a week, with extra intensive weekend practices occurring twice a year.

“The intensive weekends are to get the bare bones staged so that we can have the beginnings of a show developed,” said McFadden. “We’re expected to do a lot of work outside of class as well.”

This is the first year that the U of S’ drama department is helping out with costumes and some of the sets.

“We have costumes, we do our own make-up and we have props. We do as well as we can to stage the entire thing. It’s usually very simple

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sets, but we do still have sets,” said McFadden.

The Beggar’s Opera is accompanied by pianists Eric Bews and Kathleen Gable, the latter being the musical director and rehearsal pianist for opera and musical theatre productions in both Canada and the United States.

The Ensemble is additionally partnered with The Opera Troupe of Saskatoon, which allows its members to participate in productions with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra.

Aiming to deliver an enjoyable live theatre performance, the Ensemble provides entertainment in a relaxed atmosphere.

“It’s family-friendly, fun and it’s a chance to see good theatre for cheap,” McFadden said.

Overall, McFadden said her favorite part of the Ensemble is its great learning environment.

“I really enjoy the people that I work with in the class. It’s fast-paced but laid back at the same time and it’s a lot of fun,” McFadden said.

“It’s really the only ensemble where there is any kind of solo aspect that you can actually get solo performance work that is close to what you would get in the professional world.”

The Music Theatre Ensemble will be performing The Beggar’s Opera on March 15 and 16 at 7:30 p.m. in the U of S’ Quance Theatre. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for students and are available at the door.

12

CULTURE

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

Gunner & Smith release full-length album BRADEN HURSH After four years and two EPs, Saskatoon’s Gunner & Smith independently released their first full-length album He Once Was A Good Man on Feb. 25.

As mainstays of the Saskatoon music scene, it’s fitting that Gunner & Smith recorded and produced their album at The Avenue Recording Studio located above Amigos Cantina, a popular venue for live music in Saskatoon.

Gunner & Smith’s sound is a warm combination of indie, country, folk and rock — making it difficult to give them a genre. Geoffrey Smith’s deep and driving vocals are both complemented and contrasted by the female vocals of Olya Kutsiuruba and Rachel Melena.

The deliberate pace of the lyrics found on He Once Was A Good Man is accentuated by short guitar solos, instrumental breaks and haunting harmonies that emphasize the tone of the music as a whole. Although Gunner & Smith’s music is not consistently upbeat or happy, it is honest and beautiful in its simplicity.

The combined genres of country, folk, indie and rock have started becoming more popular through acts like The Wooden Sky, Dan Mangan, The Head and the Heart, The Avett Brothers and Saskatoonbased The Deep Dark Woods.

Ryan Boldt, frontman for The Deep

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Thursday March 13

• Jazz Jam: The Kim Salkeld Trio at The Bassment • Latin Dance Night at Louis’ • The Mavericks at O’Brians • The Residuals at Amigos

Friday March 14

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Gunner & Smith’s first full-length album was recently released on Feb. 25.

Dark Woods, produced He Once Was A Good Man. Boldt has a lot of first-hand experience and his influence can be heard throughout the album both lyrically and musically as he also played guitar on several tracks.

The songs found on He Once Was A Good Man examine topics that are personal and easy to relate to.

Opening track “Ease My Mind” talks about the inevitability of change experienced through time, while the title track “He Once Was A Good Man” speaks about dealing with situations that one has no control over.

A recurring theme of the album is the trials and tribulations of being on the road, as heard in tracks like “The Traveler” and “Drifting.” The latter borrows the lines, “Oh I hear my train a-comin/Rollin’ down the line/I have forgotten all my troubles/ Like smoke drifting in the sky,” from traditional blues song writing.

The experiences of living on the road in close confines with bandmates and being away from home for extended periods are

undoubtedly fertile ground for emotional songwriting.

Much of Gunner & Smith’s music is based around simply dealing with daily life. The feel of many of their songs relates to Saskatchewan in mid-winter and the lasting cold.

Lyrics like, “I can handle rejection/I can handle the night/And I can handle the cold winters too/But some things never change,” show that their music is not meant for a summer day. The colder, melancholy tone is balanced by a hopeful warmth that permeates through the music.

Currently wrapping up a tour that began at The Folk Alliance International in Kansas City on Feb. 21, Gunner & Smith then moved through Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan — playing in Regina, Saskatoon and Moose Jaw last week.

Visit gunnerandsmith.com for more information on the band, upcoming shows and their new album. He Once Was A Good Man is available on iTunes.

Old becomes new at The Hollows NAOMI ZUREVINSKI Culture Editor

Located on Avenue C in Saskatoon’s Riversdale area, The Hollows provides a unique dining experience in an environment where the past meets the present.

Situated in the building that was previously the Golden Dragon restaurant, The Hollows has a historic and cozy feel.

The owners have kept some of the Golden Dragon’s décor and furniture, which functions as a charming background.

From the outside, it would be difficult to tell that The Hollows even existed — the Golden Dragon sign, lights and parking lot marking are all still there. One has to peer closely to even see the sign for “The Hollows” on the window of the building.

With the tables neatly laid and soft music playing, the atmosphere is relaxed.

The inside decor combines old Chinese lanterns and wall decals with a rustic flair — including country-style wall ornaments and animal skins draped over what appears to be the Golden Dragon’s upholstery.

This unique blend of the former restaurant with the current one allows for a quaint, endearing and attractive setting.

Prompt and efficient, the service was of good quality. After much personal deliberation over the menu options, I ordered what I thought to be a salad — this was hard to confirm as the menu items did not have titles and instead were simply ingredient lists.

Upcoming Events

My meal consisted of cooked beets, grapefruit slices, caramelized pistachios and pieces of goat cheese, all combined in an interesting design on the plate and drizzled in basil oil. With no lettuce in sight, it immediately became obvious that this was not a traditional salad.

Other menu options were equally unique. One item was simply described as, “Roasted grass fed beef bone marrow, squid ink, black garlic, grilled bread, horseradish,” while another read, “Quinoa, lentils, tomato, greens, poached farm egg, ricotta.”

A member of my party ordered a beef ravioli dish that was under the “large’ category on the menu. The dish came with five rather average-sized pieces of ravioli — there was nothing large about it besides the price.

The beverage menu did have many delicious options, from an excellent selection of wine to delightful loose tea blends. Delicate touches like mismatched vintage teacups and teapots gave a homey and charismatic impression.

The menu changes regularly, meaning that The Hollows offers a variety of choices and options including brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. Additionally, they have gluten-free and vegetarian options, catering to the needs of a variety of customers.

The Hollows boasts the fact that they use local ingredients from Saskatoon.

The chefs cook with cultivated plants and sustainably raised and pastured meat

as well as poultry and eggs from small farmers. The overall food focus is on delivering natural and seasonal products to consumers.

The building’s interior and exterior provided a captivating old-meets-new contrast, but the menu items and names could both use a little bit of normalizing.

Visit The Hollows at 334 Avenue C South Wed-Sat from 5:30 p.m. – 10 p.m. and weekends from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. for brunch.

• The Classy Chassys at Rock Bottom • The Faps, Bad Decisions, Myles & the Blanks at Vangelis • Fiddle Series: The Fretless at The Bassment • Piano Fridays with Martin Janovsky at The Bassment • Young Benjamins with Scenic Route to Alaska, John Antoniuk at Amigos

Saturday March 15

• Andie Nicole: T’works of Art reception at the Green Art Collected Home • At the Movies: An Oscars Wrap Party at TCU Place • Band Wars X at Rock Bottom • Concert for Change featuring Wolfen Rabbits, The Northern Lights and Wizards at Amigos • The Music Theatre Ensemble featuring The Beggar’s Opera at Quance Theatre (first night) • Sleepy Sun with The Moas at Vangelis • The Diana Panton Quartet at The Bassment

Sunday March 16

• Electric Six with The Mohrs at Amigos • Martin Sexton at The Broadway Theatre

Monday March 17

• A Ghost in Drag, Harmful Effects and Exes for Eyes at Vangelis • Family Feud Live at TCU Place • Scene Slam at Louis’ • Wenches and Rogues with Across the Pond at Amigos

Tuesday March 18

• Matt Webb with Fake Shark – Real Zombie!, Jessica Lee and Amy Hef at O’Brians • Toonie Tuesdays at Louis’ • Trivia Night with Chris Smith at Vangelis • The Room with guests at the Broadway Theatre (first night)

Wednesday March 19

NAOMI ZUREVINSKI

The interior of The Hollows provides a relaxed and charming setting.

• Celtic Woman at TCU Place • Kyprios, Cquel, and Animal Nation and Stage at Vangelis • Our Country’s Good at the U of S John Mitchell Building (first night)

CULTURE

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

13

Saskatoon’s community enhanced by Big Brothers Big Sisters NAOMI ZUREVINSKi Culture Editor

Big Brothers Big Sisters provides the Saskatoon community with an experience that is based on friendship — something everyone desires and identifies with.

Their mentorship programs offer a break from schoolwork and the daily grind by creating the opportunity to connect with people from different backgrounds and walks of life.

“It’s good for people to have an understanding of other communities and other cultures and even just to reconnect with the elementary level,” said Cheyenne Lawton, a volunteer of the Big Brothers Big Sisters In-School Mentorship program.

Lawton is a first year student in the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan. She started the program during the winter 2014 term and meets once a week with a grade six girl from St. Michael’s elementary school. They spend an hour together doing various activities like board games, crafts or cooking.

“Every time I leave, I leave feeling really grateful that I’m able to be a part of the program because it’s a different experience from what I experience in school and my regular life,” Lawton said.

Josh Howie, a sixth year Kinesiology student at the U of S, is another volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Howie is involved in the traditional mentorship program and has been paired with his little brother — currently in grade 12 — since 2010.

“I wanted to add more to my life other than just going to school and going home,” Howie said. “I wanted to be committing more to my community than I had previously.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters offers many different programs, suitable for varying commitment levels, interests and personality types.

The In-School Mentorship program calls for adult volunteers who meet once a week for an hour at the school with the child they are partnered with.

“The really neat thing about that program is that the school identifies the kids that need the mentor in their life,” said Kim Megyesi, executive director for Big Brothers Big Sisters in Saskatoon.

For the traditional mentorship program, big brothers and sisters are matched to a little brother or sister and are required to commit to a minimum of three to five hours a week for a year-long period.

“They do things in the community and go and hang out and just build a relationship in the way that you would with a friend,” Megyesi said.

Big Brothers Big Sisters also offers the Youth In Care program, designed specifically for kids in foster care, the Club Connect program, a program that began in fall of 2013 for children who are new to Canada and the Go Girls! and Game On programs to provide an athletic twist on mentoring.

One of the stronger assets of the program is the matching process, which takes age, gender and interests into consideration.

“It’s based on best fit, so we find out what

the mentor’s activity interests are, we find out what the little’s activity interests are and then we [match] based on that,” Megyesi said.

Due to the thorough matching process, the likelihood of partners forming a friendship is very high.

“I see a lot of similarities in myself and her when I was her age. I’ve really found it easy to connect with her,” Lawton said.

“They do a great job.”

The matching process makes for a pleasant experience as partners move into building a relationship.

“It’s not as abrupt a process as people think it is. It’s very smooth because they set it up that way,” Howie said. “Your match is going to be great and you’re going to be set up for a smooth transition.”

One of the largest challenges with the program is the wait list for the little sisters and little brothers. For little sisters the wait time is approximately six months from registration. However, little brothers have a very lengthy wait time — up to three years before they are matched up.

“We currently have a 200 person waiting list for the littles,” Megyesi said. “There are more kids that are coming in that need big brothers and there are less male volunteers.

It’s frustrating for a parent when they come in and apply and they find out that it’s going to be three years before their son is matched.”

While mentorship might not be for everyone, there are a variety of benefits that Big Brothers Big Sisters offers mentors, mentees and the wider Saskatoon community alike.

“For these kids it’s having someone that

THE sheaf

CODY SCHUMACHER/GRAPHICS EDITOR

supports them and that mentally they know throughout the whole week that they’ve got somebody who cares about them. They’re going to show up to see them and that’s what it’s all about — it’s about that support,” Megyesi said.

For kids who have mentors, there is an increased likelihood that they will stay in school longer, graduate high school and are less likely to be have certain behavioral issues.

“One of the most staggering statistics is that 78 per cent of kids who came from a social systems background no longer rely on that form of income when they have a

mentor in their life,” Megyesi said.

For volunteers, the benefits are also numerous — especially for university students, who currently make up 18.5 per cent of the total volunteers.

“We make it fit for university students, we make it easy on them since its during the school day. It’s easy access and it’s in a controlled environment,” Megyesi said.

Working with someone of a different background and age category also has a significant impact on volunteers’ lives.

“It has solidified my choice in career path.

I shifted into medicine and it really drove home that medicine would be the way for me to go because you get to help people on a whole new level and I’m really interested in that,” Howie said.

Lawton plans to continue with the program as long as she can fit it into her schedule and recognizes the importance of letting kids know that university education is a future possibility.

“If there’s a kid that maybe doesn’t know somebody who’s going to university, they can just learn a little bit about what it’s all about,” Lawton said. “I think any experience getting to know somebody is a learning experience.”

As a learning experience where all parties gain, the program is very well-rounded.

“We both benefit immensely. It’s not as one-way as people think it is,” Howie said.

While mentoring another person might seem like a large responsibility, building relationships — which is what mentorship is all about.

“I think a lot of people are nervous because when they hear the word ‘mentor’ they think that they have to be perfect to do it. It’s not about perfection; it’s about having a friendship,” said Megyesi. “We all have friendships and we all know what it looks like to be a good friend or to have a good friend. It’s really about just being a friend and hanging out with somebody.”

Visit bbbssaskatoon.org for information on Big Brother Big Sister programs, events and to apply as a volunteer.

956-7777 FOR RESERVATIONS

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Bring your ideas and write for the Sheaf!

Contact culture@thesheaf.com for more information on getting involved in the Culture section.

Steak Night & Silent Auction - Wednesday, March 19th Sutherland Bar & Grill - 810 Central Avenue Cocktails 5:30pm Dinner 6:00pm (Chicken, veggie burgers and gluten free options are available) Tickets are $20 each, available from Becky Austin 306-384-3170 (by Monday, March 17th) or preferably from Christies Il Secondo Bakery & Pizzeria - 802C Broadway Avenue (just off Broadway, near Crave Cupcakes - available until Saturday, March 15th, 306-384-0506).

For more information, please contact Dr. Mel Hosain at hosain@sasktel.net

14

OPINIONS

Get connected to your future career 13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

CHIEDZA PASIPANODYA

Regardless of what your area of expertise is, it would be unwise to disregard “it isn’t what you know but who you know” as a cliché — especially when looking at the job market.

Experts say 80 per cent of jobs aren’t advertised and can only be accessed through networking. The “hidden” job market can be tough to enter and the required networking skills don’t come naturally to everyone. In an era where who you know determines where you’ll go, it becomes necessary to pull out all the stops and use all the tools possible to procure the job you need.

I joined online networking sites because of my severe fear of missing out. This system of networking seemed to be the next big thing and I thought, why not? Working as a Student Assistant at the Student Employment and Career Centre here at the University of Saskatchewan changed my views on networking and lead me to enhance my student profile.

People in the office at the SECC seemed to take online networking — sites like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter — pretty seriously and it was then that I began to realize the importance of a strong online presence. These sites could actually be critical tools to help students build the networks needed to launch their careers.

I find it difficult to approach people, especially those that I need to be talking to in order to get where I want to be in life — but using the Internet makes it easier.

Becoming a conversation starter isn’t that hard, though it requires a dedicated effort. Inviting someone to connect on a site like LinkedIn is more than just sending a generic message, but a matter of making a personal connection. This is great practice for squeezing your way into a warm conversation with prospective employers.

Any online networking site is the perfect place to build a profile that will probably serve you

well throughout your career because you can continuously update your network and respective profiles.

The restrictions of a one to two page resumé can be frustrating for someone who has worked a myriad of jobs and volunteered for a number of organizations. Making a presence for yourself online is an opportunity to do what you can’t do on your resume — showing what else you do besides what’s listed on those two pages.

Lindsey Pollack, author of the bestselling Getting from College to Career, goes as far as calling LinkedIn, “an online resume on steroids.” This site is only one example, but having a strong, professional online presence is clearly one of the best ways to market yourself in the best light possible without the restrictions of resume and cover letter etiquette.

Using social media provides you with the opportunity to put a whole lot more about you and your experiences out to employers. It allows for you to create your personal brand and offers itself as a kind of sales letter to potential employers. While businesses have brochures, people have online profiles.

CODY SCHUMACHER/GRAPHICS EDITOR

One of my favorite aspects of LinkedIn or Twitter is that you can follow organizations that you are interested in working for. In doing so, you can gain access to job postings and tips from recruiters.

Because you can follow who you want and receive subsequent alerts on these networking sites, this also presents you with the opportunity to connect with the recruiters and members of the hiring committees. This gives you the upper hand when you go into the interview. Not only will you have extensive company research, but you will have some knowledge about your interviewers.

LinkedIn reports that approximately 200,000 college students join the site every month. This encourages companies to use the site to recruit internships and entry-level positions. This makes it all the more important to keep your Facebook, Twitter or other personal accounts professional.

Let’s face it, you’re not going to land your dream job right out of university. But starting a career with an entry-level position at a business you want to work for is a great step towards achieving that dream career.

There is no need to wait until you have a real career or until you graduate to create an online profile — regardless of what site you choose. It is more beneficial to do it now to increase your network base. Relationships take time to build, so waiting in this case is a bad idea.

If you’re looking to land an international job, there is no better place to find a position halfway across the world than through a professional or social networking site like LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter. You never know what may come from these connections.

Obviously there are no instant remedies to the dreaded job search, but there are definitely online tools that can make the process simpler.

You can recommend or be recommended by classmates or colleagues for future jobs all by using resources found online.

Employers prefer to hire someone that comes recommended by someone they know and trust, so the more recommendations you receive, the more you expand your network online.

Tracey Mitchell, Saskatchewan coordinator for the Next Up Leadership program, highlights that, “Social media is what you make it.” Thus, it is important to use social media to make real connections in the outside world, which can in turn be used to step away from the computer and make real human contact.

You have to make your online presence work for you — tap into alumni networks with the alumni tools, connect with other students, use it as an opportunity to meet as many people as you can — you never know who might connect you to your next employer.

Get connected with your co-workers, follow companies you have an interest in working for or whose causes you support and join groups that align with your interests. The larger your network and the more knowledgeable you become about emergent issues in your field, the more you increase your employability.

OPINIONS

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

15

Bedford Road redmen logo change positive for education TRAVIS HOMENUK Opinions Editor

Let’s all say goodbye to the Bedford Road Redmen team logo and say hello to an education system that enacts anti-racist and anti-oppressive teaching methods and policies.

In a move that brought tears to the eyes of those passionate about the cause, the majority of Saskatoon Public School Division’s Board of Trustees voted in favour of changing the Redmen name and logo of Saskatoon’s Bedford Road Collegiate on March 4.

This marks a significant change in the Bedford Road neighbourhood as the team name had been around since the 1920s. There has been — and still is — a strong connection to the name for the Bedford Road community. That being said, this is not the first time the team name and logo have come under review.

In 1996, 2005 and 2011 the team name and logo were discussed for revision by SPSD, but there was never enough momentum to spark a change.

Because strength within the Aboriginal community continues to grow in Saskatoon, it’s not surprising that the change was finally implemented — and only 28 days after it was brought forth by a delegation who presented to the SPSD, highlighting research that suggested the logo and team name are not positive for students.

The primary argument against logos like the Redmen mascot is that they are not healthy representations of indigenous peoples, and these images maintain a deep connection to a racist discourse. As noted by Dr. Diane Miller from the College of Education in an interview with CTV news in Nov. of 2013, “It is time to stop pretending that stereotyping is an honour. It is racism.”

Students in the College of Education are now required to take classes in anti-racism and antioppression. Rightly so, the College of Ed wants to produce teachers who will treat all students with the dignity and respect they deserve.

Ryan Matthews, a first-year teacher candidate at the University of Saskatchewan, said that “Although the results were positive there is still the issue of confronting discrimination against a culture coming down to a vote. It sends a message that racism is

only a problem if a majority says so.”

Matthews is right in pointing towards this problem, especially because the SPSD board of trustees passed the motion made by trustee Linklater to retire Bedford Road’s team name and logo with an eight-to-two majority. Two out of 10 trustees who represent thousands of students in Saskatoon voted against a motion that attempts to deconstruct institutionalized racism.

Trustees Kevin Vaugh and Donna Banks were the two naysayers who voted against the motion. According to an article in the StarPhoenix, Banks didn’t want to vote in favour of the change because the Redmen name means so much to so many people. As a result, the article reported that Banks’ heart

“told her to vote against the change.”

It is this strong sentimental connection to the Redmen name that has made the change difficult for many to accept — but according to those who were avidly seeking the name change, this sentimental connection is inherently rooted in racism .

Wendy Li, another teacher candidate from the U of S, is excited about the change but wonders why it took so long to happen.

“There have been people in the past that expressed concern,” Li said in an e-mail. “If the College of Education is wanting us to be antiracist and anti-oppressive, why haven’t teachers in the past tried to change the mascot?”

Li brings forth a compelling point in that

hundreds if not thousands of teachers, students and superintendents alike all accepted the name and logo throughout the many years it has been in use. Because the logo has been under debate before, there of course have been those who noted the racist and oppressive nature of it, but no one was able to bring about change.

It does take a lot of active work to achieve change in a society that is quite set in its ways.

I commend the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students who were active in the fight against the Redmen name and logo.

The future looks better for incoming educators and students, though there will always be work to be done in creating anti-racist and antioppressive learning environments.

Optimism is key in surviving graduation NATAHNA BARGEN

For those of us in our final year of our undergraduate degrees, we have passed the halfway point of the last semester and graduation seems to be rushing towards us.

This is not a message for those of us who are graduating and have their whole life mapped out before them from the second they triumphantly whisk off their graduation robes — you know who you are.

This is a message for the rest of us who are beginning to realize that graduation is a cliff that we are about to jump off of and we were too

CODY SCHUMACHER/GRAPHICS EDITOR

optimistic, distracted, confident, lost or involved to figure out how we were going to make it to the bottom without splattering into a thousand pieces.

To add insult to impending injury, everyone seems to care so much about how we plan to be a successful human being after graduation.

They want to know how we plan to survive this colossal free fall jump.

For four or more years people have been asking us the same question: “What are you going to do?” They always say it with a sweet, interested smile spread across their face, but in the glint of their eye we can see a reflection of

MIKE TREMBLAY

our flailing, falling body and it convinces us that behind our back these overly involved persons are slowly drumming their fingers together waiting for our inevitable failure.

The problem with this age old question of “What are you going to do?” asked by mainly well-intentioned people is that it tries to apply a formula to life. It makes the assumption that you know what will be happening in your life three months, a year or five years from now.

While there are a select few people who this formula works for, you are probably not one of them. So, what is to be done about you?

First of all, it may be healthy to adopt the attitude of “[expletive] everyone” for awhile. As you fall from that graduation cliff, you are going to have people trying to catch and contain you with their advice and opinions.

Listen to your own intuition. Do not panic and latch on to your first safety net. Learn to not care too deeply what other people think of you.

Ultimately you are the only person responsible for the outcome of your life. Know what you love and chase that — no matter what you believe people are saying about you in whispers.

Do you know what you love? Maybe you know your dream already or maybe you are learning what your dream is. Whichever the case, in the words of the Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o, “Your dreams are valid.”

These are hard words to remember if you are dealing with a recent graduate school or dream job rejection. They are hard words to remember if you have no sense of what direction to go in the pursuit of your dream.

However, your dreams are valid, and they are worth fighting for. They are worth going off the

beaten path for. Your self-worth is not the sum of your successes and failures. It is how you react to and move forward from these events in your life that prove your character.

This kind of relentless pressing on requires you to be a bit of an optimist. It requires you to crawl out of the safe womb of self-pity and allow yourself to be hopeful, confident and eager for all the opportunities and possibilities before you.

Perhaps there are those who graduate with you that seem to be living your dream more effectively than you are. While life is not a formula, it is also not a competition. Find your own niche, make your own goals and do not allow the apparent success of others to cripple your own ambitions.

Your dreams continue to be valid even when they are not being fully realized. Your dreams continue to be valid even when someone else seems to have your same dream. Your life will likely not be a straight path.

You will have obstacles, detours and doors closed in your face. To return to the falling metaphor, keep building your makeshift wings or your patched together parachute. Pity the smug so-and-so’s whose lives will not be as interesting as yours.

When your Plan A falls through, make a Plan B — and probably a Plan C and D. Try to give yourself a sense of direction, but do not smash to pieces when that direction inevitably changes.

Allow yourself to be an optimist. Believe in your intrinsic self-worth and acquired skills. Let life surprise you. Your life is not a formula and there are plenty of clever, intriguing ways to make it out of this cliff jump alive.

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OPINIONS

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

Show us pay cuts for top U of S officials MATTHEW CHILLIAK

Four of the University of Saskatchewan’s highest paid executives earn over $300,000 per year. The highest paid of these is the university’s president, Ilene Busch-Vishniac, whose salary is $400,000. Given the university’s current financial problems and the program and service cuts that are sure to come, these executive salaries should be reconsidered.

ANDREW MARESCHAL

On top of the $400,000 as the president’s base salary, Busch-Vishniac also receives travel expenses, a $12,000 vehicle allowance, $7,500 for obtaining tax-planning advice, accomodations that include paid utilities and cleaning services, six weeks of paid vacation and a guaranteed job at the university when her time as president is finished. These extra perks are more than some working on campus earn in an entire year.

The recent defeat of a University Council non-confidence vote has put the final nail in the coffin for the opposition of the TransformUS process, the goal of which is to avoid a projected budget deficit of $44.5 million in 2016.

University executives blame this deficit on a reduction in annual provincial funding from 5.8 per cent to 2.1 per cent. Why were they betting on continuing to receive such an increase? A prudent budget would have planned for this.

To date, $15 million in savings have already been found through “workforce planning” — which have so far involved the elimination of 248 jobs at the university held by people who helped our university function on a day-to-day basis.

Some of these job eliminations allegedly involved “perp-walks” for staff members who were suddenly and unexpectedly laid off.

Of course, hard decisions need to be made when facing such a large budget deficit. But why are these hard decisions coming at the expense of ordinary working folk on campus?

Were they the ones who led us into this deficit?

I have yet to hear of any hard decisions being made at the expense of the highest paid

executives who got us into this situation.

The large salaries and generous benefits contained in top-level executive contracts are defended as necessary compensation for obtaining high-performing individuals — the idea being that we will only get as good as we’re willing to pay for.

Have we got what we paid for though? The salary of the university president has increased by over $100,000 in the past 15 years, but what do we have to show for it?

In the Maclean’s 2014 university rankings, the U of S places 12th among Canadian medical doctoral universities. Ranked in the top spot is McGill, whose president earns slightly more than ours, at $400,499. Apparently $499 goes a long way.

In Busch-Vishniac’s defence, the current budget problems are largely the result of decisions made before her recent arrival under former president Peter MacKinnon.

MacKinnon left his post just in time to avoid having to deal with this budget deficit, yet he continues to receive a salary for two years after leaving the job.

While MacKinnon’s golden-parachute compensation package may seem crazy, it was stipulated in his contract — as was the $92,000 he expensed in travel in 2012, some of which included first-class air travel. Such expenses are seen by Susan Milburn, the chair of the U of S’ Board of Governors, as making “perfect sense,” as she noted in an interview with the CBC in Oct. 2013.

During the austerity process of TransformUS, the attitudes and acceptance towards executive

effects are modest and short term.

Many argue that it should be left entirely up to parents to teach their children about sex, but is that how we approach other facets of education?

The simple answer is no.

So why should we withhold the opportunity for students to acquire knowledge that will empower them to make informed choices regarding their own sexual and reproductive health?

According to the Canadian Guidelines for Sexual Health Education, sex-ed should be accessible to all people and should be provided in an age appropriate, culturally sensitive manner that is respectful of an individual’s right to make their own educated choices.

The guidelines recognize that Canada is a pluralistic society in which different people have different perspectives and values regarding sexuality. With this is mind, the framework for many of our school-based sex ed programs is based on an educational philosophy that is inclusive, respectful of diversity and reflective of the fundamental principles of education in a

democratic society.

Abstinence-only programs veer away from providing a comprehensive education and purposefully do not teach the importance of consistent contraceptive and condom use. There is a substantial amount of evidence which clearly indicates that teaching abstinence-only is an ineffective approach to reducing adolescent sexual behaviour. Why do you think teen pregnancies are an issue? It’s easy to make the connection here.

The Public Health Agency of Canada states that in order for sexual health education programs to be effective, they have to support informed decision-making by creating opportunities for individuals to attain the knowledge, personal insights, motivation and behavioural skills that are consistent with one’s own personal values and choices. It is important that the topic of abstinence is included as a component of a broadly-based program.

A solid sexual health curriculum needs to encompass a multitude of learning modules — a few of which are self image, sexual diversity,

contracts which involve high levels of pay and extra perks needs to be reconsidered. No one working in a publicly-funded industry — whether they are a university president or a Canadian senator — should be flying first class. And no one in charge of overseeing this spending should describe it as making any sense.

No proposal to re-examine or reduce exorbitant executive compensation has yet to be covered by TransformUS or the executives themselves. Apparently it is not within either of their mandates.

Obviously allowing the executives to set their own pay could cause problems, although I think this is more of a protection against individuals giving themselves pay raises as opposed to pay cuts. However, it is the Board of Governors who set executive pay and they have already stated that no plan to re-examine or reduce executive pay currently exists.

So why don’t these top-paid executives ask for a self-imposed, even temporary pay cut as a show of solidarity and good faith? In a time of austerity, who would be opposed to this? It’s doubtful that any complaints would come from the university employees who are fearful of further job eliminations, or the students whose education may be affected due to program cuts and rising tuition.

If the university is expected to “transform” itself, this must include reducing excessive executive contracts. Besides, it is the top-level executives who placed us in this deficit situation to begin with.

Sex education is non-negotiable Should Busch-Vishniac take a pay cut in light of TransformUS?

CASEY BALON

The provision of sexual health education in the elementary and secondary schools has ignited a substantial amount of debate over the years.

Our school system has a responsibility to ensure that all Canadian youth have access to sex-ed, and this should be non-negotiable. The public, private or religious basis of a school should not play a role in whether sex education is provided.

Several conservative and religious groups argue that providing this information corrupts young minds. The notion that allowing students to learn aspects of sexual health promotes earlier or more frequent sexual activity is ridiculous and wrong.

There is strong evidence from health agencies worldwide demonstrating that programs do not accelerate or increase sexual behaviours and actually delays or decreases these behaviours while increasing the use of protective measures, such as condom and other contraceptive uses.

In a review carried out by Kirby, Laris, and Rolleri, from the United States National Library of Medicine, 83 studies measuring the impact of curriculum-based sex and HIV education programs on sexual behaviour amongst youth under 25 years of age were assessed. Twothirds of the programs had a significant positive impact on behaviour, with many delaying or reducing sexual activity, increasing condom and contraceptive use, or both.

The review also found that in general these programs did not have negative effects. Out of the 52 studies that measured program impact on initiation of sex, only one study found accelerated initiation of sex. It is noted that due to the large number of studies and tests of significance for that outcome, that one could have occurred by chance.

In another study carried out by the Canadian Education Association, adolescents who received comprehensive sex education had a lower risk of pregnancy than those who received abstinenceonly or received no sex education. Programs that focus on abstinence without discussing safer sex behaviours also do not appear to reduce the risk of HIV. Some abstinence-only programs can decrease teen sexual behaviours, although the

CODY SCHUMACHER/GRAPHICS EDITOR

applicable anatomy and physiology, pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection prevention strategies and discussion of the legislation surrounding age of consent.

Ultimately, the provision of sexual health education in a school setting is non-negotiable.

If we refuse to provide the next generation with information that they have every right to, we are refusing to enable them to make the best possible decisions regarding their own health.

HUMOUR

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com

17

Campus Chat Who is your celebraty crush and what would you like to do with them?

I’d go bowling with Jennifer Lawrence.

Adam Van Rees

I’d solve wordly problems with Russell Brand.

Andrew Cooper

DAN

I’d have a conversation with Ghandi.

Matthew Donaver

I’d travel through Europe with Emma Watson.

Jessica Goddard

MIKE T.

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BACKPAGE

13 March, 2014 • thesheaf.com