The VanCougar Volume 33 Issue 4

The VanCougar, a student-run newsmagazine, informs and engages the WSU Vancouver community while practicing the highest standards of timely, ethical journalism.

The VanCougar welcomes letters and commentary from members of the WSU Vancouver community on current issues. Letters must include the author’s full name, contact information and WSU affiliation: year and major for students, department for faculty and staff, degree and year graduated for alumni. The VanCougar does not publish anonymous letters. Send letters and commentary to van.vc.editor@ wsu.edu. Once received, letters become property of The VanCougar and are subject to editing for length, clarity and style.

The VanCougar’s October issue mistakenly was labeled as September.

In “Avantika Bawa explores color and modularity in ‘Charged Voids’ installation” Noah Matteucci’s exhibition dates were Oct. 8 to Oct. 22, not Oct. 14 to Oct. 22.

In “Carol Siegel and her transformative legacy,” contrary to the Washington State Employee Salaries website that claimed the professor’s salary was $97,000, she said her salary was actually $87,000 in 2021.

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Toxicityscape”. (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Photo courtesy of Laura Dutelle via WSU Vancouver Flickr. https://flic.kr/p/J7qcDc Products being prepared for

in the Cougar Food Pantry. (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

REPAYING A DEBT:

How does WSU serve those who have served us?

Setbacks in the GI Bill processing system are creating hurdles for veteran students to attend WSU Vancouver.

Pyles | Reporter

Delays in GI Bill processing due to insufficient staffing in the Veterans Affairs office on the WSU Pullman campus are leaving WSU Vancouver veterans with outstanding tuition bal ances and other financial stressors.

Besides funding tuition, the GI Bill also provides a stipend that helps fund housing and books. Like other students at WSU Vancouver, most veterans apply for funding given out by the state and other entities to help with their cost of living while in school. In the case of veteran students, funding from grants is held until their GI Bill is processed through a slow-moving system.

The Veterans and Military Affiliated Student Services man ager in Pullman, Penny Martinez, oversees the needs of over 1,100 military-affiliated students across multiple WSU cam puses, despite the recommended standard of one staff mem ber for every 200 students. Her office requested more staff as early as 2007 and was not given an additional staff member until 2022.

“You have the school, who are struggling to maintain staff ing. They may not have a budget that can afford my office of four people, and so my position has been one person for years,” Martinez said.

Veterans Coordinator Jaylene Wecks oversees collecting all documentation from veterans after certifying their classes with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and informing them of their benefits and opportunities.

Wecks said she must certify classes after registration and again after the deadline to add or drop classes. Thus, WSU Vancouver cannot submit the veterans’ full tuition cost to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs until after the third week of the semester (when the add-drop period is over) and an accurate tuition amount can be finalized.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs processes nation wide tuition requests based on the order they are sent in. This means WSU Vancouver student veterans must wait until af ter the third week of classes to get reimbursed — one veteran student’s documentation and payments could be completed much earlier than others and refunded much sooner.

The process, known as dual certification, is new to the WSU Veterans Affairs department as of spring 2022, making it hard er on an already overwhelmed staff, as Martinez explained. She is also anticipating an increase in veteran enrollments within the next year.

According to the Student Services Financial Office, after vet eran students’ tuition and fees were submitted to the Veterans Affairs department, they received an email that their GI Bill had been processed towards their tuition charges in Septem ber. However, veteran students still did not receive any of their grant money and were left with an overdue balance.

Kathleen Botello, a sophomore majoring in biology, served in the U.S. Navy for five years and spent one year in the re serves. She is one of the veterans at WSU Vancouver who ex perienced issues with the processing of her GI Bill.

“Last year it went through so quickly, I didn’t have any is sues. But this year, trying to pay for school supplies and all my books, that would have been the money I would have used to pay for [those materials]. I had to pull money from my other funds, like groceries, to pay for school supplies,” Botello said.

Martinez said if there are any changes she could make to fix these issues, a new digitized system to keep track of students using veterans benefits in real-time would remove 30 to 45 days of processing time.

Aaron

“Instead of doing more with less, we should be improving our processes and trying to improve our staffing capacity,” Martinez said.

Until corrections are made to the pre-existing GI Bill processing system at WSU, veteran students using benefits can expect the long delay times to continue. If you are a veteran student needing assistance, contact Wecks in the Student Services Building at WSU Vancouver.

“I’m here to answer questions and be a resource and help, so if someone is struggling, I do want to talk to them. Even outside my drop-in hours, I will be happy to make appointments with people,” Wecks said.

,

“Instead of doing more with less, we should be improving our processes and trying to improve our staffing capacity.”

Student services center at WSU Vancouver. (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

CHWALISZEWSKI

Brings her art to life with ‘Things Becoming Things’ SHARA

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Configuration.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Norman Helgason | Reporter

Exploring an array of textures and colors that appear naturally in recycled materials, WSU Vancouver alumna, Shara Chwaliszewski, presents a collection of art pieces in her newest installation titled “Things Becoming Things.” Her work is currently on view to all who explore the ins-and-outs of the first and second floor galleries located throughout the Science and Engineering building on campus.

Chwaliszewski graduated from WSU Vancouver with degrees in English literature and fine arts, and is originally from eastern Canada. As stated on the “Things Becoming Things” WSU Vancouver Fine Arts Department web page, the artist has lived in the Pacific Northwest since 2006 and currently works as a tutor at the Writing Center — she also makes art in her backyard studio located in Camas. Using “...several mediums, she creates two and three-dimensional works that are non-objective but often biomorphic,” according to the website.

Within her “Things Becoming Things” exhibition, Chwaliszewski said having her art arranged throughout the building without being confined by glass gives each piece a sense of freedom and life. Her work can be found on the walls, on the floor and just inside the building’s entrance.

“I like the idea of these things sort of being free and then moving them around to give them some kind of agency,” Chwaliszewski said. “They kind of take on a character of their own.”

Chwaliszewski said she chose the name “Things Becoming Things” because every art piece was constructed from reclaimed and found objects. While her materials tend to take on a form of their own, the artist describes a sense of tension between herself and the objects, as they become “new things.”

Chwaliszewski uses an array of reclaimed items, from raw canvases to styrofoam, cardboard, packaging, paper and glaze, among many other things. Within her “Things Becoming Things” artist statement, Chwaliszewski explained how these materials are layered until they form a new object entirely.

“Reclaimed or simple materials and repetitive, almost meditative, processes characterize my approach. As I struggle against or am guided by the inclinations of the medium, working with intention but no preconceived direction, a story begins to tell itself. Manipulation of outward form makes inner doubts fall away, and all is reduced to a conversation between my hands and the material,” Chwaliszewski wrote.

One of the pieces in the installation, titled “Cephalopodcast,” is made of paper, screen and bamboo roots, forming the shape of a squid-like creature. Chwaliszewski uses the base materials as inspiration, letting the piece take its own form during the creation process.

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Lamina.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

“In order to make my studio, I had to physically clear a large area of bamboo, and when their roots grow together, they are these impenetrable kinds of connections…so, the roots themselves are really interesting to me, more interesting than the straight bamboo,” Chwaliszewski said. “A lot of what I do is covering things up with other things or connecting things together. …When I make a glaze, I just mix the paint with some glue and water and then put successive glazes over it to get different effects,.”

Next to “Cephalopodcast” is a piece titled “Spring Sprang Sprung” made from paper, clothespins and a metal trap. Chwaliszewski said that this piece is an example of “Things Becoming Things,” where a hazardous or toxic material is transformed into something new.

“I found an old metal trap in the meadow when I was walking one day, so I rendered it inoperable to hurt anything by means of art,” Chwaliszewski said.

Chwaliszewski hopes that viewers will stop to look at “Things Becoming Things” and feel inspired to add art to their own environments in unique ways.

Students can expect to see these art pieces change locations within the building, and some pieces may be altered throughout the semester. “Things Becoming Things” will remain featured in the Science and Engineering Building until Dec. 9.

“Take some time to slow down and look at things, think about things and make some art,” Chwaliszewski said.

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Peony.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Creature.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Shara Chwaliszewski’s standing next to one of her pieces in her exhibit “Things Becoming Things.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Toxicityscape”.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Creature.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

Shara Chwaliszewski’s “Rust Never Sleeps, but Styrene is Forever.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

From left to right Shara Chwaliszewski’s “”Spring Sprang Sprung” and “Cephalopodcast.” (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

FREE THE SNAKE RIVER AND NIMIIPUU CANOE PROJECT

Tabari | Reporter

The Snake River is the Columbia River’s largest tributary and an essential regional water source. Today, the waters are drying up, salmon are dying and the remaining waters are being polluted by blockages in the dams that obstruct the river’s natural flow. For tribes such as the Nimiipuu, the Snake River’s current condition has devastated their people and culture.

Held on Oct. 13 in recognition of Native American Awareness Week, “Free the Snake and Nimiipuu Canoe project: A Healing Journey and Talk with Julian Matthews,” was sponsored by WSU’s Native American Programs and WSU Vancouver’s Collective for Social and Environmental Justice. The presentation featured several short films created by the Nimiipuu Protecting the Environment Project and the nonprofit organization Earthjustice.

A significant point of contention between the Nimiipuu and the federal government is the right to fish. Matthews believes the agreement between his tribe and the government is being violated by the existence of four major dams on the Snake River, negatively impacting salmon populations.

“Dismantling those dams would set in motion one of the greatest river restorations ever, opening free-flowing access to some 5,500 miles of pristine salmon-spawning habitat, the best remaining salmon incubator in the lower 48 states and one that will remain relatively cool and productive even as the climate warms,” according to Earthjustice’s website.

Shawyan

“The salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest are in extreme crisis. …There’s plenty of data that shows unless major action is taken, like breaching dams, the salmon will become extinct and wild salmon will become extinct.”

– Desiree Hellegers

“It’s really up to us as a nation to make sure that we can take salmon from that river from now into the next generation. It’s really important that we can keep this going, that we can keep fishing and gathering. The Snake River is a really big issue that we’re working on now to get those dams breached and removed,” Matthews said.

English professor Desiree Hellegers is the co-founder and director of the CSEJ at WSU Vancouver. The organization’s focuses include ecocriticism and social justice, surrounded by many ongoing projects, including the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Initiative and the Food System Justice Action Research Project.

“The salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest are in extreme crisis. …There’s plenty of data that shows, unless major action is taken, like breaching dams, the salmon will become extinct and wild salmon will become extinct,” Hellegers said.

The actual efficacy of dams as a form of clean energy has been debated in recent years. One of the common arguments for keeping dams is that they generate hydroelectric power. According to the Bonneville Power Administration, the four dams on the lower Snake River produce enough energy for over 800,000 homes in the region.

“There used to be a belief that hydro-power was a sort of environmentally clean form of energy, that it wasn’t nearly as damaging as other forms of energy production and I think that narrative has really been called into question easily over the last decade,” Hellegers said.

Hellegers points to the example of Celilo Falls being drowned for the construction of the Dalles Dam on the Columbia River in 1957 as one of many instances of dams devastating the local ecosystem and impairing tribal culture.

“Celilo was the longest continuously occupied site in North America, so it was a major, major cultural sacred site, a site of tremendous interest in terms of tourism. People used to go to watch people fish off the platforms there. It was a sacred site to many Pacific Northwest tribes and a very important trading site,” Hellegers said. “I don’t know how you sort of assess the value of the longest continuous site in North America. That was incredibly damaging. It can’t be overstated how much these dams damage the history and heritage of the people existing there, for marginally little benefit.”

Matthews emphasized that there are bigger ways to help than through donations. The best way to keep up on the advocacy efforts surrounding the Snake River is to educate oneself on the Nimiipuu Canoe project to free the Snake River, subscribe to Matthews’ Facebook for more information on the issue and keep up with local Indigenous-centered events.

“We can’t lay back and rest during winter or anytime for this issue. It’s that important. Online campaigns will be critical as well. We’re not looking for thousands or millions. If you want to donate 5 dollars that’s cool too. But the people getting involved is what is critical. Get people voting to support the candidates that support the issues that we’re working on,” Matthews said.

The still waters and rolling hills of the Snake River, near Baker, Oregon, courtesy of Bonnie Moreland. https://flic.kr/p/26AHsLC

Social Sciences

Jessica unruh

Jagger Norris

Alexis Schole

Sawyer tuttle

Bethanie Collette

Sorya

Josalyn ortiz

Norman helgason

SEAN juego shawyan Tabari

Olivia eldredge

Gracie Newberry

COUGAR FOOD PANTRY RELIEVES FOOD ANXIETY

Sean Juego | Reporter

The WSU Vancouver Cougar Food Pantry offers non-perishable food items to students free of charge and hosts fresh food events throughout the year. Located in the Student Services Building above the Bookie, students can request food on the Cougar Food Pantry website and pick up the items in person.

The pantry stocks a wide variety of foods, including canned meat, beans, fruits and vegetables, soups and more. Alternative milks like almond and soy are also available, along with breakfast options like cereals, pancake mix, oatmeal and peanut butter. White and brown rice, quinoa, pasta and gluten free pasta are a few examples of starches offered by the pantry as well — so students and community members with special dietary restrictions are accommodated by the pantry’s food options. Snacks and other kid-friendly foods are also provided, and a full list of other available options can be found on the request form on their website.

Cyle Malcolm, a senior majoring in Environmental Science and the Cougar Food Pantry coordinator, is solely in charge of the pantry’s daily procedures. As its manager, he oversees the pantry’s budget, while organizing food, and unpacking and repackaging the orders he receives.

According to Malcolm, 30 to 40 orders are sent to the Cougar Food Pantry per week. In this semester alone, he projects that over 500 orders will be received by students, doubling the 250 orders of last semester’s student requests.

The availability of food comes from the combined amount delivered by donations, and is funded by the Service and Activities fees portion of student tuition. This fee helps pay for recreational clubs, the Associated Students of WSU Vancouver, Office of Student Involvement and other student-focused organizations on campus. Last year, the Cougar Food Pantry was allocated $60,560, or 2.75% of student Service and Activities fees, according to the Services and Activities fees website.

“Currently, you can order [food for] up to a family of six people. Each bag tries to stay around the $30 range, but if you have four people in your family, we might throw in a couple extra cans if we can afford it,” Malcolm said.

With such a dramatic increase in students utilizing the service, Malcolm said the pantry might have to expand.

“If the pantry continues to grow, the institution will just need to adjust resources in order to continue because I may run out of space,” Malcolm said.

In consideration of the need for food during the upcoming holiday season, The Thanksgiving Fresh Food Event, which will happen this November, is an example of one of the events that the Cougar Food Pantry hosts for WSU Vancouver students and their families.

“Students can often walk out with a whole turkey, with this year’s prediction being up to 12 to 14 pounds. This will also come with side dishes such as potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauces and more fresh food items. Each student can expect to walk away with about $60 worth of food,”

said.

To submit a request for food or learn more about what the Cougar Food Pantry offers, visit their website at https://studentaffairs.vancouver.wsu. edu/cougar-food-pantry.

Malcolm

“If the pantry continues to grow, the institution will just need to adjust resources in order to continue because I may run out of space.”

– Cyle Malcolm

Cougar Food Pantry coordinator, Cyle Malcolm, stands in front of the packaged food items available to students. (Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

The Cougar Food Pantry’s shelves, filled with grains, pasta, oils, potatoes and oat staples.

(Josalyn Ortiz/The VanCougar)

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ALTERNATIVE POP

The VanCougar knows music is a college student’s best friend –on this page you can find our monthly Spotify playlist, an album review and the best local concerts to attend this month.

Olivia Eldredge | Editor-in-chief

Standing on a powerful, globally-recognized music platform, The 1975 have continuously called out major ironies in Western society, as the band’s singer-songwriter, Matty Healy, maintains a knack for developing the most thought-provoking lyricism in the modern-music era. Their newest album, “Being Funny in a Foreign Language,” released this year on Oct. 14, applies their traditional sound and lyrical roots, as the record transitions into a multifaceted fresh new form for the band’s current tonal ex pression.

“Being Funny in a Foreign Language” combines Jack Antonoff’s production genius with the band’s long-standing relevance in the alternative pop-rock scene. Healy analyzes the collapse of society while combining heavy existential invocations with ro mance-centered songs filled with heart, loss and most impor tantly, unrequited love. Starting with their signature opening track, “The 1975,” the band begins the record with a piano solo paralleled by dramatic lyrics; the punchiest and most repetitive being “I’m sorry if you’re livin’ and you’re seventeen,” hinting at the doom-and-gloom dangers young people are likely to face as socio-political institutions disintegrate around them. A variety of trumpets and jazz-inspired tunes appear on the forefront of this album, a slight contrast to the indie and electro-pop beats used on previous records. The lead single for “Being Funny in a Foreign Language,” “Part of the Band,” is arguably one of the best songs on this album and becomes the core of its track list. Using playful alliteration amidst detailed storytelling, Healy sings about his imagination and recalls the emotional complexities he once experienced between youthful innocence and adulthood. In another memorable track, “Human Too,” Healy preaches that people are all generally flawed, but that does not make them less human — mistakes are only natural. The 1975 also address themes of loneliness and dealing with unstable relationships in the album — Healy recalls fond memories and reaches toward the feelings of nostalgia with the absence of a person he once loved. These recollections ring true in the track “About You,” featuring vocals from lead guitarist Adam Hann’s wife, Carly Holt, as she sings, “And I’ll miss you on the train, I’ll miss you in the morning. I never know what to think about, I think about you. About You.” The 1975 examines the romanticization of the world’s downfall as people navigate their struggles by search ing for a sense of hope. “Being Funny in a Foreign Language” is certainly worth listening to indulge in those “eat your heart out” feelings and is one of the best and most unexpected albums produced this year.

LIVE EVENTS SCHEDULE:

Nov. 1: Charlie Burg & Genevieve Stokes, Holocene

Nov. 3: Post Malone & Roddy Ricch, Moda Center

Nov. 5: Dave Matthews Band, Moda Center

Nov. 7: Santigold, McMenamins Crystal Ballroom

Nov. 9: Dominic Fike, Roseland Theater

Nov. 11: Lucy Dacus & Haley Heynderickx, Roseland Theater

Nov. 17: Men I Trust, McMenamins Crystal Ballroom

Nov. 19: Tegan and Sara & Tomberlin, McMenamins Crystal Ballroom

Nov. 23: Beabadoobee, Roseland Theater

Nov. 26: Turnover, Yumi Zouma & Horse Jumper of Love, Wonder Ballroom

Nov. 29: Peach Pit, McMenamins Crystal Ballroom

Cover of The 1975’s album “Being Funny in a Foreign Language.”

Veterans Day

Campus Closed Re-Imagined Radio, “Hearing Voices”

Oregon Coast Day Hike

8 a.m. - 6 p.m. Sign up at the Rec Office, located in the Annex, to participate. For more information, contact van.osirec@wsu.edu or 360-546-9532.

Native American Heritage Month Celebration with Rodolfo Serna

11 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Firstenburg Student Commons

WSU Town Hall

2 - 3 p.m. Via Zoom. A reception will be held at 4 p.m. in Dengerink Administration Building, Rooms 129 and 130.

1 - 2 p.m. Listen on KXRW-FM and KXRY-FM Thanksgiving Day