The Spectrum Vol. 67 No. 46

THE SPECTRUM VOL. 67 NO. 46 | APRIL 19, 2018

THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT PUBLICATION OF THE UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO, SINCE 1950

Futuristic smart corridor planned for Main Street

> SEE PAGE 2

Spring Gala ticket troubles Students wait in line for hours for limited tickets

OPINION: SA needs to develop better ticket sale system for gala

Spring check-in: UB football Bulls look to build off last season’s success

> SEE PAGE 3

> SEE PAGE 8

Puzzling Pathways: Students concerned with UB general education topics BENJAMIN BLANCHET SENIOR FEATURES EDITOR

EMMA MEDINA | THE SPECTRUM

Hundreds of students waited in line for hours on Monday hoping to purchase a ticket to Spring Gala. Students found the long wait at times frustrating and many went home empty-handed after waiting for more than three hours.

ERIK TINGUE FEATURES EDITOR

Students lined up to grab Spring Gala tickets as early as 7:30 a.m. Monday, despite tickets going on sale at 10 a.m.

Some students waited over four hours before tickets sold out by 3 p.m., but hundreds were left empty-handed.

As of Wednesday, Student Association sold 689 tickets to the general student body and 24 tickets to SA staff mem-

Getting the lay of UB Mark Alnutt begins as new athletic director

bers, according to Lorenzo Guzman, general service manager for the SBI ticket office. The final Spring Gala ticket price for students was $30, a guest ticket $44 and SA employees $5.50. Students were allowed to buy two guest tickets.

Tickets are currently sold out, according to SA President Leslie Veloz.

“SA is doing what they can to increase the amount of tickets available, but as of right now they are sold out,” Veloz said. > SEE GALA | PAGE 6

Students, faculty discuss U.S. attack on Syria UB community responds to Saturday morning’s airstrike MADDY FOWLER NEWS EDITOR

New Athletic Director Mark Alnutt isn’t satisfied with the Bulls’ historic success in recent years and wants to take Buffalo’s program to new heights.

Alnutt, who joined Athletics after two years as deputy director of athletics at the University of Memphis, started the position on April 11 and already has his plan in motion.

“My vision for the program is student-athlete-centered academic excellence, social development and competitive success,” Alnutt said in an exclusive interview with The Spectrum. “We have about 130 staff members and I am setting up one-on-one meetings with all of them.”

Early Saturday morning, the U.S. and its allies launched over 100 missiles, targeting chemical weapons facilities in Syria. The airstrike was a response to an alleged chemical weapons attack on civilians in a Damascus suburb.

UB students and professors are divided on the issue. Some support the strike because they believe Syrian President Bashar al-Assad needs to be held accountable for his reported use of sarin gas on citizens, while others are concerned the attack is a waste of money and could cause further problems in the Middle East.

Assistant political science professor Jacob Neiheisel said President Donald Trump is in an “unenviable” position with Syria. “[Trump] has criticized the Obama administration for refusing to add resolve to the infamous ‘red line’ that it drew regarding chemical weapons,” Neiheisel said. “If he did nothing, the narrative would turn to his hypocrisy, [but] doing nothing might lend the public to draw connections with the Russia investigation and lead charges that he is, in fact, a puppet of the Kremlin.”

Proponents of the attack will support it because the use of chemical weapons violates a longstanding international norm, according to Neiheisel.

> SEE ALNUTT | PAGE 8

> SEE SYRIA | PAGE 4

MADISON MEYER | THE SPECTRUM

UB Athletic Director Mark Alnutt sits down for an interview with The Spectrum Tuesday morning.

Alnutt is hoping to talk to multiple organizations within UB to have an understanding of Athletics’ situation across Amherst.

THOMAS ZAFONTE SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR

UBSPECTRUM

Electrical engineering students can take “Communication Systems I,” a class about transmitters and receivers, to understand racism.

Industrial engineering students can learn “Facility Design and Materials Handling” to understand ancient civilizations.

Civil engineering students can take “Hydrologic Engineering” to discover more about global conflicts.

The list goes on.

Some students see an arbitrary connection of Pathway courses to their assigned topic. Computer science students taking this year’s Understanding Racism topic can take courses like “Introduction to Machine Learning” to fulfill major requirements. Instead of taking “Queer Theory,” biomedical engineering students can take “Biomedical Instrumentation” toward the Social Problems and Social Policies Pathway.

Some professors say their classes relate to the Pathways, but others are baffled by what topics their classes are in.

Majors like mechanical engineering and industrial engineering are composed of 128 credit hours and rigorous coursework. Many students can “double-dip” Pathway courses with major requirements, according to Krista Hanypsiak, director of UB Curriculum.

But some students said UB needs to adjust the Pathways, which consist of Global and Thematic sections, each of which contains topics like global outlooks, health and humanities. The curriculum ends with the Capstone, a onecredit tutorial course for students to reflect on what they’ve learned through the Pathways.

Sarah Wagner, a freshman environmental engineering major, said her department allows her to take Pathways toward her major.

“The Pathways are pushing you to take classes that aren’t in your major.

When I first saw it, I saw it as a way to take classes to get out of the way so I could focus on my major, which I kind of regret. But I just did what would fit for me,” Wagner said.

There are over 1,800 courses in the Pathways this year, but next fall, students’ options will decrease by 600 classes, to roughly 1,200 options, Hanypsiak said. That’s a drop of onethird of all course offerings. The cuts, she said, came because students reported feeling overwhelmed by the number of Pathway topics. The new Pathway topics are broader, more inclusive and more reflective of the university, she said. Hanypsiak said several courses in the Pathways this year were offered only once or not at all the past two years, making planning a challenge for students taking the Pathways.

Most courses in 2017-18*: UNDERGRADUATE CATALOG

PATHWAYS CATALOG 1,689 total courses

4,541 total courses

HISTORY

(213 courses)

1 ENGLISH (96 courses)

MUSIC HISTORY (197 courses) 2 (95 courses) ENGLISH (157 courses)

AMERICAN STUDIES (151 courses)

MEDIA STUDY (135 courses)

MILLARD FILLMORE COLLEGE (118 courses)

3 CLASSICS (89 courses)

STUDY 4 MEDIA (83 courses) 5 POLITICAL (82 courses)

SCIENCE

6 ANTHROPOLOGY (70 courses)

ARCHITECTURE

7

SOCIOLOGY

THEATRE

8

PHILOSOPHY

PSYCHOLOGY

(97 courses)

9

CIVIL ENGINEERING

POLITICAL SCIENCE

10

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING

(112 courses)

(101 courses)

(95 courses)

(67 courses)

(63 courses)

(62 courses) (62 courses)

*not counting OBR and UBC courses

Certainly biochemistry has applications, as far as I can tell, to everything in life. Whether it directly deals with any of these is a different question,” Hutson said.

Most offered courses in Pathways 2017-18: EE 383 EE 336 CIE 439 DMS 333 IE 327 CE 408 DMS 213

(Communications Systems I) (Fundamentals of Energy Systems) (Transportation System Analysis) (World Cinema) (Facility Design & Materials Handling) (Chemical Engineering Plant Design) (Immigration and Film)

> SEE PATHWAYS | PAGE 4 GRAPHICS | PIERCE STRUDLER

NEWS

2 | Thursday, April 19, 2018

ubspectrum.com

Futuristic smart corridor planned for Main Street Olli buses researched at UB to be included in project by Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus MAX KALNITZ SENIOR NEWS EDITOR

A smart corridor is being planned for 2.5 miles of Main Street near the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, stretching from Goodell Street to Humboldt Parkway. The project comes in conjunction with the city’s $13 million reconstruction of Main Street –– including streetscaping –– that is set to begin construction in 2020.

The corridor will feature self-driving shuttles, dedicated bicycle lanes, a detached cycling lane parallel to the street and smart technology including parking alerts and

travel time. The project plan is expected to be complete by January 2019. Construction of the futuristic network will slowly be implemented over several years, ensuring that developers are staying up to date with the latest available technology.

The medical campus received a $75,000 grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to help fund the project. The authority also awarded UB researchers with roughly $210,000 of the $250,000 necessary to purchase a self-driving Olli bus in February.

William Smith, director of access and safety for the medical campus, said he’s excited

ELIJAH PIKE-LACLAIR | THE SPECTRUM

UB’s Olli bus researchers are partnering with the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus to create a futuristic smart corridor. The project is part of the city’s $13 million reconstruction of Main Street.

by university research on the Olli busses and plans to include them in the smart corridor.

“We’re looking at transportation services to the medical campus, parking and smart sensors built into the road, but also how to continue innovating Buffalo’s transportation,” Smith said. “We love the work UB engineering has conducted on autonomous shuttles and want to include them in our vision for a multi-modal envi-

> SEE CORRIDOR | PAGE 6

Faculty Senate passes academic integrity policy, amendments for undergraduate and graduate students Academic integrity policy, menstrual products discussed at meeting BRENTON J. BLANCHET MANAGING EDITOR

The Faculty Senate voted to amend UB’s academic integrity policies and create an office to handle academic dishonesty on campus.

During the senate’s meeting at the Center for Tomorrow on Tuesday, Elaine Cusker, senior associate dean for undergraduate education, and Graham Hammill, vice provost for graduate affairs, proposed changes to the undergraduate and graduate academic integrity policies. The Faculty Senate also discussed accessibility of menstrual products on campus. President Satish Tripathi attended the meeting and gave remarks,

discussing the new Athletic Director Mark Alnutt’s appointment and recently named UB distinguished professors.

Cusker reintroduced the integrity policy proposals, originally provided last February. She included six new amendments to the undergraduate policy and seven to the graduate policy. The proposals are the result of a two-year study done by Cusker and James Jensen, director of undergraduate studies. The Spectrum reported on this study and initial recommendation for an academic integrity office in March.

The changes proposed an academic integrity office with a professional staff and a facultystudent committee for judicial issues. The office will replace the current discipline process, which must go through the department chair, decanal and vice provost level, with a more centralized system, according to Cusker.

ronment on campus.”

The 12-passenger electric shuttle is composed of 3D-printed materials, fitting in with the corridor’s overall goals of reducing fuel emissions and improving energy efficiency. The shuttle will provide commuters with an alternative to the Niagara Frontier Transit Association buses once exiting one of the four metro stations along the stretch.

“The aim is to provide a policy that will allow greater consistency, greater fairness, we think, and eventually greater understanding because of a more robust educational effort,” Cusker said at the meeting.

The graduate academic integrity policy changes largely offered the same amendments, but had some exceptions. The graduate policy preamble now clarifies that degree programs have their own internal policies. Still, the office of the provost would play a role in the process if a student wants to appeal beyond the degree program.

The graduate policy also doesn’t include infractions taken out of the undergraduate level.

“When you’re dealing with graduate students in general, the expectation for understanding is at a higher level,” Hammill said.

Sharon Nolan-Weiss, director of Equity,

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Diversity and Inclusion, presented at the meeting and discussed what her department is focused on achieving.

Nolan-Weiss touched on “hot topics,” including accessibility, a religious-neutral calendar at UB, students with disabilities, preferred names and sexual misconduct on campus.

Before the presentation, Nolan-Weiss addressed physiology professor Susan Udin’s question about acessibility to menstrual products on campus, a topic The Spectrum reported last week.

“I’ve been speaking with our interim vice provost for inclusive excellence about what we can do to kind of provide the products in a way that is still free but discourages [misuse],” Nolan-Weiss said.

Earlier in the meeting, Tripathi addressed Udin’s concern as well.

“We are really working on it right now.”

Tripathi said.

The next Faculty Senate meeting is May 15 at 3 p.m. email: brenton.blanchet@ubspectrum.com

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OPINION

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Thursday, April 19, 2018 | 3

THE THESSPECTRUM PECTRUM Thursday, April 19, 2018 Volume 67 Number 46 Circulation: 4,000

EDITORIAL BOARD Editor in Chief Hannah Stein

Managing Editor Brenton J. Blanchet

Creative Directors Pierce Strudler Phuong Vu, Asst.

Copy Editors Dan McKeon, Chief Cassi Enderle, Asst.

Lauryn King, Asst.

Savanna Caldwell, Asst.

News Editors Max Kalnitz, Senior Maddy Fowler

Features Editors Benjamin Blanchet, Senior Erik Tingue Kirsten Dean, Asst.

Arts Editors Brian Evans Samantha Vargas, Asst.

Sports Editors Thomas Zafonte, Senior Nathaniel Mendelson, Asst.

CARTOON | ARDI DIGAP

Multimedia Editors Jack Li, Senior Shubh Jain, Senior Madison Meyer, Asst.

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SA needs to develop better ticket sale system for gala Students understandably frustrated over long lines, limited tickets EDITORIAL BOARD

PROFESSIONAL STAFF Office Administrator Helene Polley

Advertising Manager Ayesha Kazi

Graphic Design Managers Stephen Jean-Pierre JuYung Hong, Asst.

ABOUT THE SPECTRUM The views expressed – both written and graphic – in the Feedback, Opinion and Perspectives sections of The Spectrum do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board. Submit contributions for these pages to The Spectrum office at Suite 132 Student Union or news@ ubspectrum.com.

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CORRECTION VOL. 67 | NO. 45 An article published in Monday’s issue titled “GSA organizes living stipend rally on Accepted Students Day” incorrectly stated the protest was organized by the Graduate Student Association. The protest was organized by the Living Stipend Movement. A corrected version of the article is available online.

The Student Association’s annual Winter and Spring Galas have become increasingly popular since the events started in 2001, but SA is not doing enough to accommodate the growing interest.

Hundreds of students waited in a massive line that wrapped around the second floor of the Student Union for over three hours on Monday morning, hoping to score a ticket to SA’s annual Spring Gala. A similarly long line packed Harriman Hall on South Campus. Many students were turned away empty-handed.

While tickets went on sale at 10 a.m., many students lined up at 7:30 a.m. All 689 available tickets were sold out before 3 p.m. and hundreds of students who waited for over three hours were

unable to purchase a ticket.

This is ridiculous and unacceptable. Students should not have to miss class, work and other obligations to wait in a line for several hours if they want to attend an SA event. Many students do not have the luxury of missing class, and it is unfair they would miss out as a result. It is especially unfair that many students missed class to wait in line for a ticket and were still unable to purchase one.

Something in the ticket sale system needs to change.

A similar situation happened with last semester’s Winter Gala –– all 800 tickets sold out in two days. This is the first time a gala has sold out in just one day, according to SA President Leslie Veloz. She credits improved marketing for the increased popularity of the event. But given what happened last semester, SA should have anticipated an even larger turnout for the Spring Gala. And yet, the flawed ticket system has not changed.

The big comfy couch How The Spectrum’s old couch helps me survive college MADDY FOWLER NEWS EDITOR

Were it not for The Spectrum’s office couch, I probably would have dropped out of college by now.

Let me give you some context.

I have fibromyalgia, and one of the main symptoms is chronic, at times disabling, fatigue. While a combination of caffeine, moderate exercise and a balanced diet help keep my sleepiness to a minimum, most afternoons I still struggle to keep my eyes open.

In the past, I would have had no choice but to go home to catch a few hours of precious shuteye. This usually meant missing

a class here and there, but when that started to happen a few days a week, it became a big problem. I started to wonder if I would have to leave school as a result of this debilitating fatigue.

Then a certain lumpy old office couch entered my life, and just like that, everything changed.

I’ll be honest –– it wasn’t exactly love at first sight. When given the choice between a beat up, surprisingly comfortable old couch in a busy office and my queensized bed, memory foam mattress and the ambient fairy lights in my bedroom, little assistant editor Maddy chose the latter. And I mean, can you blame her?

But as time went on, I made close friends at The Spectrum, the office started to feel more like home than my lonely studio apartment and that old couch began to grow on me. Sure, she isn’t the prettiest of couches. She doesn’t have my bed’s beautiful floral comforter or decorative throw pillows.

It does not make sense that a university with an undergraduate population of over 20,000 only has around 700 tickets available for one of its most popular events. Veloz said SA has considered getting a larger venue, but it is “very difficult” to find spaces in Buffalo that can accommodate UB’s large student body with “quality” food and services.

If it is not possible to move the event to a larger venue, then at the very least seniors should be given priority to purchase tickets.

It is their last chance to ever attend a gala, and it is not fair that underclassmen with several more opportunities to attend were able to purchase tickets yesterday while seniors toward the back of the line were turned away.

Tickets should be released in smaller blocks with seniors given priority. This could pose some logistical and legal problems in letting SA access students’ credit hours. Still, this system would not only be more organized and

cut down on long lines, but it would also ensure seniors are not shut out of their last chance to attend a coveted school event.

And regardless of whether SA can obtain a larger venue or offer priority ticketing to upperclassmen, the planners should consider having the tickets available to purchase online instead, just like with Fall and Spring Fests. That way, students would not be clogging up hallways, causing potential fire hazards and inconveniencing those trying to walk by.

With this change, students would not have to waste several hours of their time waiting in a line.

The Spectrum editors agreed we would be much less frustrated if tickets sold out online rather than after wasting hours in a line.

After Winter and Spring Gala sold out so quickly this year, SA needs to stop making excuses and seriously re-evaluate the gala ticketing system.

But she admittedly had a sort of quaint and quirky charm.

Needless to say, she wasn’t really my type, but on one particularly sleepy day with only an hour and a half before my next class –– not nearly enough time to make it home and back for a quick nap –– I thought, hey, what’s the harm in closing my eyes for a bit on the office couch?

But after that first nap, I knew it was true love.

I was amazed at how easily I managed to drift off, wrapped up in our bright blue fleece UB office blanket, all cozy on the couch’s ultra-soft cushions and ill-fitting slipcover. My exhaustion put me in a deep sleep almost instantly. I remained blissfully in dreamland, unaware of any noise in the office. At first, my fellow editors were slightly puzzled by my office naps.

Now that more people have started to catch on to my tendency to doze in the office, no one notices my little workplace siestas. Although, I have ended up in a few embarrassing Snapchat

stories featuring my sleepy face at an unflattering angle, mouth agape, probably drooling –– but I mean, what are friends for, you know?

The Spectrum has undoubtedly been the highlight of my college experience for so many reasons.

It has helped me discover my passion for journalism, given me the opportunity to report on amazing stories, expanded my professional portfolio and introduced me to people who have become some of my best friends.

But if I am being completely honest, out of all these incredible benefits, the number one thing The Spectrum has given me is that precious lumpy old couch.

Because without her, I would not have the energy to finish my degree, report on stories or make friends at all.

So I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank the real MVP of The Spectrum office –– my beloved old office couch.

email: opinion@ubspectrum.com

email: maddy.fowler@ubspectrum.com twitter: @mmfowler13

4 | Thursday, April 19, 2018

FROM PAGE 1

PATHWAYS Roughly 12,000 undergraduates follow the UB Curriculum for their general education requirements, Hanypsiak said.

Pathways, implemented in fall 2016, apply to freshmen, sophomores and transfer students. In 2016, the UB Curriculum received its first major changes since 1992. Andy Stott, former dean of undergraduate education, helped form the Pathways to replace the old general education requirements.

Pathways is composed of six courses, or 18 credits overall. Thematic Pathways explore broad areas of study like Communities, Populations and Spaces; and Human Nature. Global Pathways examine internationally focused themes, languages and study abroad options. Students must fulfill at least four study areas in line with SUNY general education requirements. Areas include arts, civilization and history, humanities, social sciences and languages.

Olivia Burgner, a sophomore accounting major, began the Pathways her freshman year and said she thought the curriculum would expose her to courses different from her major.

Burgner is taking courses in the Media, Innovation and Entrepreneurship topic.

She said she doesn’t feel any of them cover innovation or entrepreneurship. “[Classes of mine like] ‘Survey of Mass Communication’ and ‘New Media’ could be classified under the media part of this Pathway, but [my] geology class was about international business cultures. I do not see the correlation to the Pathway,” Burgner said.

Ann Bisantz, chair of the UB Curriculum Steering Committee, said the Pathways allow students to take courses that interest them.

Maintaining course This year, there are Pathway topics like Understanding Racism, described as a way for students to “[explore] the origin and role of race, racism, prejudice and discrimination in politics, the economy, communities, law, education, pop culture and social relationships,” according to UB Curriculum. Course offerings include: “Introduction to African-American Studies,” “Principles of Biomedical Engineering” and “Communication Systems I.” Elena Bernal Mor, an electrical engineering professor, is teaching “Communication Systems I” this semester and said she discusses transmitters, receivers, channels, information and design in the class. But she hasn’t included race in her lesson plans and students have not brought it up. She said her class “explicitly” or “implicitly” relates to all of this year’s Pathway topics.

Communication Systems I appears 20 times in this year’s Pathways, the most of any other course besides study abroad opportunities. The course appears in other topics like Cities and Societies, and Cultures in Rebellion and Avant-Gardes Innovation.

Mor said her class does not directly discuss racism, but the class discusses how communications are a tool to raise awareness of social problems.

“Social media, radio and TV are very important tools to make people aware it’s a problem and some people have to change their minds,” Mor said. “The students can discuss how communications are a way to educate and share the idea that we are all the same.”

FROM PAGE 1

SYRIA “Never mind the fact that far more people have died in Syria from more conventional weapons,” he added.

Roberto Williams, a junior political science major, said he is “cautiously optimistic” about the attack.

“I’m glad that the Trump administration has upheld the belief of previous presidents, such as President Obama in acknowledging that the use of weapons on civilians that contain sarin gas is unacceptable,” Williams said. “On the other hand, this administration has shown a willingness

FEATURES

flict, Violence and Resolution topic.

“I’m reading this as if I were a student, if a student were expecting for these things to be discussed explicitly,” Hutson said. “I looked briefly at the list of courses and it is really hard to see how a student will [understand] violence out of randomly selecting three courses under this pathway.”

Claire Schen, associate dean for undergraduate education, sits on the UB Curriculum Steering Committee and said the purpose of Pathway topics are to provide a thematic framework for students to find courses of interest.

“Therefore, there are no learning outcomes associated with Pathways topics,” Schen said in an email. “There are learning outcomes for each element of the [UB Curriculum] and all UB courses have learning outcomes as well.”

Hanypsiak said the Pathways emphasize how students make meaning out of the three-course track sequences, not on how they specifically relate courses back to the topic.

“This process helps students learn to think critically and link experiences and learning,” Hanypsiak said in an email. “We know from the research done by the Association of American Colleges and Universities that employers seek individuals who have experiences that teach them how to think critically and solve problems.”

Bisantz, who became the dean of undergraduate education this spring, said the curriculum is an innovative way of delivering general education.

Mor said before this academic year, Michael Langberg, co-undergraduate director of electrical engineering, told her to include a social perspective in Communications Systems I. Langberg said he and Mor have discussed presenting communication systems in the context of realistic constraints, such as economic, environmental, social and political means. Langberg said Communications Systems I frequently appears because UB agreed to let the department map, or place, certain electrical engineering courses in the Pathways.

Every Pathway has an engineering course as the third course in each topic, according to the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

“The programs in the [engineering school] are dense in content, especially the electrical engineering program, which has 126 credits,” Langberg said. “What is agreed upon with UB is the third course in each [part] of the Pathway can count both for the major and the Pathways, so we’re sort of double-dipping these courses.”

Any faculty member can propose a course for the Pathways, according to Bisantz.

New or revised courses must be submitted through the course proposal system. Courses move onto one of the curriculum’s subcommittees. From there, a course is approved by the department’s associate dean and a curriculum sub-committee.

Once the director of undergraduate studies, the department chair and the associate dean approve a course, it’s received by the associate deans’ council, according to Bisantz.

The UB Curriculum Steering Committee is the official Faculty Senate-appointed committee for curricular oversight, course approval, program implementation and authentic assessment, according to Bisantz. Bisantz said the committee meets once a month. Pathway courses are reviewed twice each academic year, in September and in January, to align with the spring and fall student registration periods, according to Hanypsiak.

Langberg said electrical engineering courses in this year’s Pathways are fundamental. He said students should find connections between the courses they are learning.

“Our courses are inherently technical courses and they do not directly deal with social aspects or many aspects of the Pathways,” Langberg said.

“They won’t provide it explicitly in class.

They may discuss very vaguely that this class appears as a third course in a number of Pathways and the idea is for the students to tie the topics of the class to those Pathways. For racism, prejudice and so on, communication in general plays a

to shoot first and ask questions later.”

Williams said he hopes the American involvement in Syria is “succinct” and includes clear objectives for what the strike will accomplish.

“The last thing we want is another quagmire in the Middle East,” Williams said.

Neiheisel said those who oppose the attack have likely “soured” on U.S. involvement in the Middle East and do not want the country to get drawn into another conflict in the region.

Erika Hollis, a junior political science major, said the situation in Syria is “hugely complicated.”

“What al-Assad is doing to his people is despicable. Do I think a few warned tar-

geted air strikes will deter Assad? No. But I am reassured that it is not ‘Team America World Police’ rushing in as it was a joint effort with France and the U.K.,” Hollis said.

She is concerned that Assad will create a power vacuum that cannot be filled.

“How many times has the U.S. propped up shadow governments in countries after we took out their leadership? Look at what we did to Iraq, Vietnam, Latin America,” she said.

Hollis said continued efforts coordinated with NATO allies and the EU will force Assad to come to the table and stop the chemical attacks on his people without creating another Vietnam or Iraq.

Lara Hutson, a professor in the department of biological sciences, will teach BIO 305, Fundamentals of Biological Chemistry, this fall. The course covers the chemistry and biology of biological macromolecules like protein, DNA and RNA. The course is in all of the Thematic Pathway topics next academic year, including Communities, Populations and Spaces; Cultures, Art and Imagination; and Economy, Business and Society.

Hutson said it’s hard to imagine her class relating to some of the topics in the Pathways.

“Certainly biochemistry has applications, as far as I can tell, to everything in life. Whether it directly deals with any of these is a different question,” Hutson said.

Hutson said some topics explicitly relate to her class like Human Nature, and Health, Sexuality and Society. But Hutson said it was “interesting” that her class is under the Con-

[Classes of mine like] ‘Survey of Mass Communication’ and ‘New Media’ could be classified under the media part of this Pathway, but [my] geology class was about international business cultures.

I do not see the correlation to the Pathway,” said Olivia Burgner, a sophomore accounting major.

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major role in how people shape their ideas on different topics including racism.”

Students struggle with the Pathways Wagner said the course choices can be expanded in future versions of the Pathways.

“There are a lot of history courses and, no offense to history majors, I’m an engineering major. I’d like to see more diverse classes. You can do classes related [to culture], but [they don’t] have to be history courses,” Wagner said.

She said the topics in the Pathways are important for students to recognize but doesn’t know if they connect to the courses well.

Dana Casullo,* a senior communication major, said Pathway topics like Human Nature are “confusing and random.”

“I see no connection with how my Spanish class and English film class relate,” Casullo said. “I think as a person, if you really want them to relate to you, then you have to make it work for you inside the class. But it’s not possible for UB or professors to specifically relate courses to each student.”

Burgner said her Global Pathway –– Business, Economy and Society –– is cohesive and goes along with the Pathway topic. She said students should be able to pick courses from any topic to complete the Pathways.

“The Pathways limit the exposure to different classes I could’ve taken if I was just given the option to take six electives from anywhere,” Burgner said.

“If I could make a recommendation to give to UB to better implement general education requirements, it would be to have students take six classes that could be from any [topic], as long as they are from three different levels.”

Casullo said the Pathways are a good tool for freshman who aren’t sure what they want to do when they get to UB. “The Pathways aren’t useful for people who are juniors, who know what they’re doing when they transfer here,” Casullo said.

“This is useful for freshmen, but it’s not useful for [upperclassmen]. I think it’s a waste of their time.”

Hutson said it’s important for the UB community to care about how the Pathways are structured.

“The good thing is there are a lot of options so students are going to be able to graduate. The bad thing is they’re not necessarily going to get what they bought into,” Hutson said.

Hutson said students are going to pick what they want to learn and if they choose courses that are most relevant to a topic, those classes could overfill.

“And then they won’t be able to achieve [the requirement]. I haven’t looked into this in great deal, but it’s hard for me to imagine that each student will get what is described in each Pathway,” Hutson said.

“I understand what they’re trying to achieve with the UB Curriculum. I’m just not sure if this is going to accomplish it without making it impossible to graduate.” email: benjamin.blanchet@ubspectrum.com twitter:@BenjaminUBSpec

*Dana Casullo is a former writer for The Spectrum and was published between March and November of 2017.

Kevin Kohut, a sophomore political science major, is also skeptical about the attack. He said the bombing was “pretty predictable” and sees it as a foreign policybased move to assert global dominance.

“I mean it was pretty predictable, but it’s nothing unusual –– more of a foreign policy based and trying to assert dominance,” Kohut said. “It’s a waste of money. It costs thousands, if not millions, to produce these weapons. We’re wasting them in a country that’s already destroyed and can’t be rebuilt –– we could be using [them] elsewhere.” email: maddy.fowler@ubspectrum.com twitter: @mmfowler13

ubspectrum.com

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

BRINGING PROMISE TO POP

Thursday, April 19, 2018 | 5

people love it too. I tried to do the whole writing generic pop songs about nothing but it just doesn’t really [work] for me.

Q: What do you want fans to take away from this new record?

Scottish pop singer Nina Nesbitt on variety, Taylor Swift and upcoming Town Ballroom concert

A: It’s kind of a journey start to finish.

It starts off quite sad and then there’s a turning point, which is “Somebody Special.” It’s kind of empowering by the end of it. … It’s kind of like a little bit of a self-help album.

BRENTON J. BLANCHET

Q: I know Taylor Swift was a big inspiration early in your career, and she just recently put you on one of her playlists. What’s the feeling when you see support come full circle in this sense?

MANAGING EDITOR

When Nina Nesbitt asked Ed Sheeran for musical advice in 2011, she left with an opening slot on his tour. Since then, her career has evolved into that of an honest and experienced pop songwriter.

She’s traveled the world, gone independent and caught the eyes of some of pop music’s most dominant forces. On April 29, Nesbitt brings her feel-good pop anthems to the Town Ballroom’s Leopard Lounge for her first-ever headlining tour.

Nesbitt discussed the show, her songwriting experience and her upcoming record in an interview with The Spectrum in preparation for her upcoming Buffalo concert.

Q: Looking through your discography, you offer a lot of variety with your work. Combined, your last three singles have 15 different versions. You have acoustic versions, remixes and track commentary. What inspired you to have this much variety with your work?

A: I like a lot of different styles of music. Obviously, I’ve got the original versions and I love dance music, so I was like “I want to get a few different remixes.” [There’s also] acoustic versions. I think

COURTESY | HIGH RISE PR

Pop singer Nina Nesbitt is hitting Town Ballroom on April 29. The rising star talked to The Spectrum about her songwriting, industry recognition and finding success in the US.

if it’s a good song, it should be able to go through lots of formats. [That’s what] I try and challenge myself to do when I write music. It’s just a way of –– you give a song life and you’re giving it more life as well.

Q: Coming from Scotland, how does it feel to find success in the U.S. like you have?

A: It’s surreal. I’m getting more radio play here than I have in my own country, which is crazy. … There’s so many opportunities. You wake up in any city every morning and feel like you’re in a different country. That’s really exciting. And also meeting people that have been listening to the music for a little bit is amazing –– getting to meet them face to face finally. Yeah, I’m really grateful to be given the opportunity to come here, and I think it’s good coming here and trying to start out is a challenge but it’s an exciting one.

Q: You have a history of writing songs for others. Actors do a lot to prepare for roles, whether it be talking to addicts or trying to pursue a new lifestyle. How much effort, practice or research does it take to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and write from their perspective?

A: A lot of the time I just write for myself and just write about my own life, but I don’t want to keep the songs because maybe it’s too poppy or doesn’t fit the album or whatever. … When I cover a song, I want to sing songs that feel like a real song that I can get emotional with. But sometimes [artists] tell me about their life and what they want to write about, and you’ll just sit and chat for a while and from that, you’ll write a song about it. It’s never like having to pretend to be someone else. … [I write] about things that I love so hopefully other

A: That was so surreal because she was literally the reason I picked up a guitar at 15. …To see her put “The Best You Had” on her playlist was incredible. I couldn’t believe it. Anyone that does their thing for that long as an artist and manages to stay at the top for that long is such an inspiration. And yeah, I’m a big fan of her writing so that was really great.

Q: Does a solo tour give you freedom to do things you may shy away from as an opener?

A: Yeah, for sure. As a support I wouldn’t play much from my back catalogue as I’d want people to discover the new music, but as a headliner I play stuff from the very beginning in case people are at one of my shows for first time. You can also design the stage and do production, which is fun. But they’re both equally as fun shows. Support slots present the challenge of winning people over, which I love.

email: brenton.blanchet@ubspectrum.com twitter: @BrentBlanchSpec

SHUBH JAIN | THE SPECTRUM

Bill Bruford, former drummer of Yes and King Crimson, spoke at Baird Hall on Monday about his new book, “Uncharted: Creativity and the Expert Drummer.”

Bill Bruford takes on creativity behind the drums Former Yes, Genesis drummer presents lecture in support of new book BRIAN EVANS SENIOR ARTS EDITOR

From Bill Bruford’s perspective, the drums are everything.

Whether it is touring as a member of Yes, Genesis and King Crimson, the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductee has drummed around the world over a 40-year career.

More recently, Bruford has tested the waters of academia.

Bruford appeared at Baird Hall on Monday afternoon to give a lecture in support of his new book, “Uncharted: Creativity and the Expert Drummer.”

Bruford spoke about what creativity is and the technical aspects of creating music.

“Is creativity perhaps in the product or perhaps the thing itself ?” Bruford asked the audience. “Is this prize-winning art instillation somehow more creative than that prize-winning art instillation over there?”

After receiving a doctorate from the University of Surrey in 2016, Bruford examined a discourse of drumming and explored the creative aspect of several prominent drummers.

Bruford performed case studies of four drummers and outlined his findings through three sections: creativity, music performance and putting the four case studies in context.

His case study examined the place of drums in the creative outlet of group performance, a place he is no stranger to himself. He said drumming often becomes marred with unimportance, often being pushed to the back rather than reigning supreme at the front.

“What I’m interested in is the people in the lower picture,” Bruford said. “The intersection of my creativity and yours to make something the two of us didn’t know we were going to get –– often a surprise.”

Bruford emphasized the importance of group performance above all else as the quintessential source of creativity. He spoke towards the psychological mindset behind drummers, adding that drummers are often thought of as uncreative and merely a background member of the collective.

Jon Nelson, a music professor and the director of the UB concert band, said he felt Bruford’s music and experiences are important to both students and the department.

“I was telling Bill that a lot of the music we played with the students are a part of the curriculum,” Nelson said. “To have someone who was so instrumental in creating that music is really a fantastic thing

for our students and our curriculum.”

Bruford discussed his findings from the four case studies, adding specific labels to drummers Paul Bonney, Blair Sinta, Asaf Sirkis and Max Roach. Each drummer represents an aspect of drumming both individually and collectively, as well as the appeal of each drummer’s individual style.

Bruford used each case study to examine specific areas of creative efforts, with each drawing from different genres like jazz or contemporary rock music. More prolific drummers like Max Roach, Bruford argued, have a “hard compositional” approach, which begins a conversation of musical exchange within a group.

Bruford stressed Roach’s need to “find solution to problems” within a group.

Roach came from a jazz background and uses it to take the music in a new direction.

In contrast, Bruford said drummers like Paul Bonney lack a specific component of creativity in covering music. Bonney looks to play the notes to the exact specifications of the original recording, Bruford said, as opposed to bringing a new element to the composition.

“If you insisted that I had to tell you what I think creative performers do, I would say that I think they affect and communicate significant difference,” Bruford said. “Some of these ideas have been expanded in a wonderful book ‘Uncharted.’”

The lecture ended with the UB concert band performing a set of works of Bruford’s own compositions, with playing tracks taken from his time with Yes and King Crimson. email: brian.evans@ubspectrum.com twitter: @BrianEvansSpec

NEWS

6 | Thursday, April 19, 2018 FROM PAGE 1

GALA The SBI ticket office does not have information regarding how many tickets were made available, but Guzman said Winter and Spring Gala usually fit about 800 to 850 people.

“The size and availability of different rooms for the venue determines how many tickets we actively put on sale,” Guzman said.

SA is waiting until the timeframe expires for staff members to claim their Spring Gala ticket. Any unclaimed tickets after that will be made available to anybody, according to Guzman.

If this happens, SA will send out a notification on social media, and the tickets would be available for purchase the next day.

Joseph Ramos, a junior exercise science major, waited on South Campus in Diefendorf Hall. Ramos said he waited for over an hour before someone told him tickets were sold out.

“The line was not terribly long, but there

FROM PAGE 2

CORRIDOR Adel Sadek, a civil, structural and environmental engineering professor, said Olli could provide researchers with data that will help explore the need of riders. When implemented, it will also help ease traffic congestion and improve safety, while providing transportation to visually impaired citizens.

“We’re looking at travel demand and how many people use the metro. How can we serve that population with Olli? How many do we need? What’s the wait time for people until they call an Uber to pick them up?” Sadek said. “All of these factors indicate the cost of the shuttles, but we also look at the benefits. Olli will allow less people to drive downtown, so there will be

ubspectrum.com

was only one person trying to take care of 40-plus people, so the process took forever,” Ramos said. “I was in disbelief at the disorganization displayed, and I don’t understand why they could not do a simple count of people in line to see if they had enough tickets for everyone instead of wasting their time and making me miss class.”

Guzman said the proccess was not the ideal way for students to obtain their Spring Gala ticket, but he is working with SA to change the policy and satisfy the general public.

“I already spoke with SA about making an online reservation for gala tickets just like we do for Spring and Fall Fest, and we are willing to move in that direction,” Guzman said.

“We are here for the students, and the primary goal is to reduce the wait times. So, we are trying to figure out different methods, but we have to follow the ticket industry-standard rules, because we are a ticket office.”

Veloz said SA has considered getting a larger venue, but it is difficult to find spaces in Buffalo to accommodate students

with “quality food and services.”

“This is the fastest gala tickets have ever sold,’’ Veloz said. “I think interest in gala has peaked this year compared to previous years, especially because of all the promotion SA has been giving to SA events and the addition of announcements in the student wide emails.”

Other students had ideas regarding how tickets should be distributed to the general public to make the process less stressful.

Jessie Caprino, a senior biological sciences major, said there should be more places on campus to get tickets and more than one person should be selling tickets.

“Seniors should have the opportunity to receive tickets first because it is their last opportunity to go and it is not fair that freshmen get tickets before them, especially when they are under 21,” Caprino said. “They should also have more staff to watch the line if they are going to allow so many people to wait, because people are obviously going to cut.”

There is one transaction register on

South Campus located in Diefendorf Hall and two in the Student Union ticket office, but they are not independent of each other and take from the same pool of tickets, according to Guzman.

“For us to invest more money to sell through Ticketmaster or obtain more registers would be a waste of student money because Spring and Winter Gala is the only time of the year when the lines are like they were Monday,” Guzman said. “I don’t think students want to spend $8,000 for registers that would be used twice a year.”

Anthony Malloni, a senior Spanish major, is hopeful gala tickets will be available online in the future.

“I don’t understand why gala is one of the only major events at UB where you cannot get tickets online,” Malloni said. “It is extremely difficult waiting in line for hours when people have classes or other obligations, so you should be able to reserve your tickets online and pick them up.”

more free parking spaces. Maybe less people will feel the need to own a car if they have reliable public transport.”

Sadek said if the buses prove to be feasible and laws change, there’s a real possibility of Olli buses expanding to downtown.

If driverless buses are implemented, some worry jobs may be taken away from transportation workers who sit behind the steering wheel. Smith said there might be fewer jobs for drivers, but the initiative will help improve the quality of life on the stretch of Main Street, where certain areas are still underdeveloped.

“Creating that high-tech and innovative environment on this stretch of the campus, that’s an economic development incentive,” Smith said. “We can collect transit, bike and vehicular data to make those neighborhoods more safe. Plus, the economic development throughout the en-

tire corridor improves quality of life. If you can bike safely, catch transit easily and have easier accessibility, that all improves quality in terms of safer and greener streetscape. Additionally, it raises property values to some extent. There’s lots of benefits beyond transportation.”

Some students are excited the university is continuing to positively affect the downtown corridor. Sandeep Chakravarthy, a junior economics major, said he’s slightly worried about autonomous busses after the most recent Tesla X crash on March 23. But, if laws and regulations are put into place, he said it seems like a good idea.

“With every innovation there’s always going to be some critiques about how it’s not safe, but once you look past that it’s really helpful and innovative for our lives,” Chakravarthy said. “As long as the researchers don’t skip out on any of the safe-

ty measures and make sure that it’s absolutely street ready, then it will be a great addition to the growing downtown area.”

Stephanie Acquario, a senior communications and environmental studies major, said she appreciates the corridor’s efforts to be environmentally friendly.

“It’s a dope idea. The buses are super ecofriendly and don’t go too fast, so it’s a safe alternative to the normal buses, which emit a lot of fumes,” Acquario said. “The current bike lanes downtown aren’t the most efficient, so I’m excited to see developers taking that into consideration, too.”

Later this month, a team from the medical campus will attend a summit in Columbus, which has its own $500 million smart transportation initiative. They’ll also visit projects in Cleveland and Pittsburgh.

email: erik.tingue@ubspectrum.com twitter: @TingueErik

email: max.kalnitz@ubspectrum.com twitter: @Max_Kalnitz

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8 | Thursday, April 19, 2018

SPORTS

ubspectrum.com

MADISON MEYER | THE SPECTRUM

Freshman running back Jaret Patterson finds the hole during the annual Blue & White Scrimmage. The Bulls are looking to build upon their success this fall.

SPRING CHECK-IN: UB FOOTBALL NATHANIEL MENDELSON ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

Seven overtimes against Western Michigan, two one-point losses, three different starting quarterbacks and an upset win over Ohio made up the Bulls’ third bowl-eligible season in school history. Despite a threegame winning streak to end last year’s season and producing over 400 yards of offense per game, they weren’t selected for a bowl. UB was one of the three eligible teams in the country that wasn’t selected.

“Our coach really preached to us that we weren’t really snubbed,” said sophomore quarterback Tyree Jackson. “6-6 isn’t guaranteed, so we got to show the rest of the country that we deserve a bowl game and the only way to do that is to win more and more games.”

The football team finished 6-6 this season and reached bowl eligibility for the first time under head coach Lance Leipold. This season’s success comes one year after 2016, where the team went 2-10.

Jackson, along with junior wide receiver Anthony Johnson and junior linebacker Khalil Hodge, know what it will take to make it back to be bowl eligibile.

FROM PAGE 1

ALNUTT A “key goal” for Alnutt is to turn UB sports into a recognizable brand across the country and get more exposure for the university. To start, Alnutt said he is hoping to get a “lay of the land” by meeting with groups both within and outside of Athletics.

Alnutt plans to have every Athletics staff member fill out a survey, identifying strengths and weaknesses within the department. Alnutt hopes to incorporate the information he gets into his future plans.

Alnutt said he has already met with the Division I football, tennis and basketball teams to give them a better sense of who he is and what his goals are for the program. Alnutt said he hopes to meet with every team in the coming weeks.

“He is very well-spoken and wants to continue the success that UB has generated these past several years,” said senior trackand-field thrower Devon Patterson. “Not just academically and athletically, but with the community and across campus. I believe he is the best fit out of all the candidates.”

Patterson, the vice president of the UB Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, was a part of the search committee for a new AD. Patterson said Alnutt scheduled a meet-and-greet for all UB teams Wednesday at Alumni Arena.

Alnutt is moving forward on a new weight room to accommodate student athletes and help alleviate other fitness locations on campus. It will be the first construction project Alnutt plans to start at UB. Alnutt also

Bulls look to build off last season’s success Friday concluded the football season until August, with the annual Blue & White Scrimmage. It was offense versus defense with the ball placed at various downs and distances to showcase the talent for the upcoming year.

“It feels good to see the young guys scoring touchdowns, making plays on some of our starters,” Johnson said. “Talk trash to them, get pumped up and get the new guys hype and ready for this year.”

Star duo Johnson and Jackson are returning on offensive, along with sophomore running back Emmanuel Reed and sophomore wide receiver K.J. Osborn.

The anchor of the offensive line, junior center James O’Hagan returns after being named to the All-MAC third team last season. Coming out of the Blue & White Scrimmage, there are still available starting positions.

“What you’re going to see is a really good battle at the running back position,” Leipold said. “We’ve seen flashes from every one of the guys this spring. That makes us very encouraged that there will

be heavy competition in August.”

The running back position runs deep with Reed, junior Jonathan Hawkins, incoming redshirt freshman Kevin Marks and mid-year enrollee Jaret Patterson, all competing for snaps.

Wide receiver coach Rob Ianello saw the passing game rely on long passes to Johnson last season. He would finish with 800 more yards than the second leading receiver Kamathi Holsey. The three redshirt freshmen from last season of Isaiah King, Charlie Jones, and Rodney Scott III all showed promise in spring, according to Leipold.

Defensively, the Bulls have returning All-MAC players in junior Khalil Hodge and junior defensive end Chuck Harris.

The defensive group will have to fill the voids left by safety Tim Roberts and Demone Harris, another All-MAC selection who led the team in tackles last year.

“I don’t know about solidifying, I think what we like is the group of rotations,” Leipold said. “I think Myles Nicholas and [Malcolm] Koonce had some excellent springs. Taylor Riggins is another guy that

said that the Murchie Family fieldhouse was on time to meet its scheduled spring 2019 opening and is under budget.

“So far my time here has been very good. I have met some great people,” Alnutt said. “I got to meet with donors and fans who have all been very nice. I look forward to meeting with student government in the future to talk about their needs. It is about what people want to see from UB and getting that vision to be able to move forward.”

Alnutt said he has a planned meeting with the Student Association to negotiate its needs and advertising. This past semester, SA decided not to advertise with Athletics after having been a sponsor for years. Alnutt said it’s a relationship he is hoping to improve.

“We really look forward to seeing what director Alnutt can do for the university and what we can do for each other,” said SA Vice President Ben Harper.

Gunnar Haberl, the SA president-elect, said he has not been contacted yet by Athletics to set up a meeting. That doesn’t surprise him, however, as he expects to have a meeting sometime after May 21 when he takes office.

“Over the years, we have seen this divide between Athletics and SA because of the mandatory fees and how the money is being used,” Haberl said. “It is important that we make sure that the money is being put to good use –– for all students, not just a select few.”

Haberl’s other main concern was making sure SA’s 32 club sports teams would have less difficulty finding practice space.

Currently the teams have to pay for prac-

tice space and field services even though they pay the athletic fee. Haberl said he feels this is the best time to improve relationships, as a new athletic director tends to be “more open for discussion.”

“I hope our new athletic director is willing to actually sit down and not just meet with the incoming e-board,” Haberl said.

“I hope they listen to what we are saying and advocating for and follow through with action. We have seen administration take meetings and they will listen, but nothing will happen.”

Alnutt stressed throughout the interview that input from beyond Athletics was crucial for his department’s success.

The fan experience was something Alnutt felt UB had done well but hopes to improve moving forward. One of Alnutt’s top priorities for creating that environment is working with True Blue. Alnutt said the club is essential to growing student interest and bringing in a “high energy” to games.

“He seems to have done a good job of making himself available,” said junior UB True Blue member Kevin McCormick.

“He has been at most of the sporting events, and I think that’s important early on, just to be present.”

McCormick said the fact that Alnutt has started contract negotiations with women’s basketball head coach Felisha LegetteJack shows he is listening to fans. McCormick said at times the community has had a rough relationship with Athletics, but if Alnutt could keep the program successful, the community will be pleased.

“True Blue is super optimistic about the future of UB Athletics,” McCormick said.

“Between volleyball and football in the

continues to impress us. Ledarius Mack is definitely going to have a role in passing situations. That makes us feel good.”

Mack, who played two seasons at ASA College, is the younger brother of former UB standout Khalil Mack and wears the same number 52. He treated Bulls fans to a familiar sight with a sack in the scrimmage.

“As a whole I think some of the new guys stepped up,” Hodge said. “The new guys Tim Terry, Kadofi Wright, Jordan Collier, a lot of the linebackers. The cornerbacks had a good day, the defensive line, we’re all working and getting ready for the season.”

The Bulls are expected to have their best season since 2013 and find some consistency. Since joining the MAC in 1998, the team has failed to do .500 or better for two consecutive seasons.

“I was on that 2-10 team and for some of the guys we take both seasons into account,” Hodge said. “With the 6-6 record and each game being so close, we know what it takes to get into that fourth quarter and finish. We have a veteran group of guys this year and we understand what we have to do.” email: nathaniel.mendelson@ubspectrum.com

fall, we are expecting to see a lot of big crowds because of the success. We think it will be a big year for the teams.”

With basketball season over, Alnutt has started looking for opportunities to grow the teams currently playing and the upcoming fall sports. For Alnutt, that starts with creating a family-friendly atmosphere for all UB events that still caters to students. To do that, Alnutt wants to turn not just Athletics, but UB as a whole into a brand associated with success.

“So from a football standpoint, in the way the NCAA is laid out, we are what you call a ‘Football Bowl Subdivision’ program,” Alnutt said. “Which means it is very important for us to elevate this program so it is in line to win MAC championships and go to bowl games. And when you’re competing at a high level, it acts as exposure for not just the teams, but more importantly, the university.”

Even with pressure on the football team to succeed, Alnutt does not feel it is the most important sport in the department.

“It is definitely an important part of our program, but so [are] our basketball teams, so [are] our Olympic sports, which provide opportunities for student athletes,” Alnutt said.

Alnutt’s plans aren’t specifically oriented around one sport. Instead, he is looking for opportunities to grow every team, whether it’s by upgrading facilities or using other means to improve the programs. Alnutt now has the “opportunity” to attempt to achieve his goals, he said, less than a month after he was announced as the new AD. email: thomas.zafonte@ubspectrum.com twitter: @Thomas_Spectrum