To the Editor:
I have been reading the “Sleeping Around” column for the past three weeks and have found it trivial, juvenile, vulgar and badly written. For a time I thought this opinion due to my age: I am no longer a sexagenarian but a septuagenarian.
I asked a graduating senior, a good writer and a good friend, what he thought. He said: “Only The Bucknellian could make a sex column so boring.”
I rest my case. Thank God the semester is almost over.
Paul Archambault (Ret. Guest Faculty)
By Beth Eanelli, ’13
There is a city built around a mountain…
I spotted Table Mountain about 10 minutes before I descended into Cape Town, South Africa in January from a plane window. In the span of my semester abroad, which is quickly coming to an end, I have come to recognize that Table Mountain is more than just a natural wonder and environmental anomaly, but the center of culture in this city.
Right outside of the city center is Khayelitsha, Cape Town’s largest township, with homes made of metal scraps form neighborhoods complete with barbershops, convenience stores and schools. Although the townships are residual from the racial segregation in South Africa during apartheid, they still exist, and a staggering percentage of Cape Town’s population lives in these communities. The townships’ residents see the flattened top of Table Mountain and the city below as a symbol of the racial tension that plagues South Africa.
Some of Cape Town’s most beautiful places utilize the mountain as a backdrop, such as the beaches and gardens. Surrounded by mansions, five-star resorts and staggering beauty, these places are havens in Cape Town, but reminders of the disparities in South Africa. between the rich and poor, the townships and wealthy neighborhoods, the perfect landscape and perpetual poverty.
I walk up the base of the mountain every day to the University of Cape Town. I am taking classes about poverty and culture in the country and spend my days reading and socializing on the main quad, which has picturesque views of the city. I am surrounded by South Africans, Zambians, Namibians and students of every nation in Africa representing every sub-culture of this continent, speaking different languages, all with a common goal of greater knowledge.
I love the way the mountain looks different from every part of Cape Town, and from every form of transportation. When a taxi is stopped at a light, beggars come to the window, dirty palms held out in a plea for coins. Pickup trucks speed down the freeway, with people packed into the open back like sardines, clothes pulled taut from the wind and locomotion. I can see the geological mound change shape from a train window as it twists and turns around the mountain and as children laugh and run around. Locals dressed in all types of uniform sit and chat in Afrikaans, Zulu and isiXhosa as they make their way home from work.
I can see the mountain from the porch of my house. I wake up to the rising sun illuminating it in neon orange and go to sleep knowing the mountain is resting below a blanket of Southern Hemisphere stars. When I leave Cape Town to travel on weekends, the best part about coming back is seeing the outline of Table Mountain: a symbol of the place I have learned to call home.
My favorite place in all of Cape Town is the top of Table Mountain, where I can see the entire city sprawled in a semi-circle around the mountain. I love watching the sun set into the ocean and subsequently seeing the city lights turn on, transforming the city into a sparkling, luminous display. I first reached the summit on my third day in Cape Town. The top of the mountain reminds me of how much I have learned since that third day. I now can name most areas of the city, point out landmarks, and all of the restaurants, markets and museums I have grown to love. Being abroad in a developing country has taught me more than I ever could have learned in a classroom. Every day in Cape Town makes me question humanity, culture, race, equality, and my place in the world. From the top of the mountain, I can see how invaluable studying abroad has been for me.
By Rob Duffy
Former Editor-in-Chief
My first week as sports editor, sophomore year, I remember having to email a writer late Wednesday night to ask why on earth his article wasn’t in yet. His response (paraphrased): “Oh—when you gave me that assignment, you meant it was for this week?” The article wasn’t ever coming in, I realized, and we would be stuck with a blank half-page if I didn’t get to work. So I did: that week I ended up authoring four and a half of the nine articles in the sports section. The whole process was exhausting, but I was exhilarated to be able to leave my mark on the paper.
Over the next two years, the crises never went away. There were the recurring newsroom floods, the constant fights to get the newsroom printer and internet to work, the time when we realized on Thursday afternoon that we had accidentally entirely deleted an article and it needed to be rewritten. Sports usually turned out fine—at The Bucknellian, we love sports and don’t care who knows—but the rest of the paper was often an adventure, one that I got increasingly involved in as I progressed to managing editor and then editor-in-chief. There were also the long-term issues, like the nagging question of how to keep an all-volunteer staff motivated and the infamous hole in the ceiling. My friends from outside the paper thought I was nuts to put up with it all.
They were probably right, but I still maintain that it was a good sort of “nuts.” As far as I’m concerned, my whole newspaper experience was completely worth it, and I don’t regret any choices I made along the way. The process of putting a newspaper together was grueling at times, but the setbacks made it all the more triumphant when things finally did come together. The last issue of my run as EIC, when we both ratcheted up the quality and packed 11 articles onto the front page, is something I’ll always be proud of.
But what really makes being part of the newspaper staff worthwhile is the connections you make with your fellow staff along the way. The newspaper introduced me to some of the most friendly, talented and driven people I know and gave me the opportunity to develop friendships I’ll never forget. The newsroom camaraderie was always the best thing about being involved with the paper, and for every memorable crisis there was a memorable positive experience as well: the time we watched Pulp Fiction, the Sheetz runs, the New York City trip, our absurd postings to the newsroom walls, the list goes on. I wish a heartfelt thanks to all the great people who were part of these experiences.
I’ve also gotten to witness the revitalization of the paper’s staff. Two years ago, as our numbers were dwindling, we were utterly convinced that the paper would be dead in two years. It obviously isn’t, and I’m excited about the newfound possibility of emphasizing quality and not just quantity, now that the paper finally has enough people. I have confidence in the ability of a dedicated staff to not just report on things that are easy to cover, but to investigate and shed light upon the big issues that affect campus; to address controversial but important topics like sex, drugs, and role of the Greek system on campus in a thoughtful, dignified manner; to write stories that grab readers, not just stories that fill pages; and to package everything together with memorable and eye-catching layouts. Some of those things the paper is already doing well; others can still use a bit of work. What’s important is that the newspaper’s potential is the greatest it’s been in years.
Meeting this potential is never easy, but if my experience with the paper has taught me anything, it’s that the more you put into it, the more you get out of it. I wish future staffs good luck in creating experiences and newspapers they can be similarly proud of.
By Kristen Allen
Chief Copy Editor
On my first Wednesday night working in Roberts basement three and a half years ago, I somehow thought that The Bucknellian hadn’t yet made the transition to modernity. I brought different colored pens with me, thinking we would be editing printed versions of the articles with traditional editors’ markings. How naïve I was! Since then, I’ve seen The Bucknellian transition from working entirely on the server to working mostly online, the creation of a website for the newspaper, the proper format of that word change from “Web site” to “website” and, most recently, even the creation of a Bucknellian app. But my favorite feeling is still picking up a fresh copy of the latest issue from Robert L. Rooke Science Center on Friday mornings, knowing that I had something to do with its creation.
The Bucknellian has come a long way in the past four years, and so have I. As a first-year, I was shy, timid and not at all confident in my intellectual abilities. Using my newfound knowledge of AP style to edit my peers’ articles gave me confidence because I could use a skill set that very few people on campus had. Even though most of the technical things I’ve learned—strange state abbreviations, the “official” names for every building on campus and which way the apostrophes before class years are supposed to face—are things no one else would ever notice, knowing them made me feel skilled and therefore confident in my ability to edit, which eventually translated to confidence in other areas.
Now, as a soon-to-graduate senior, I have been chief copy editor for two years. My name has been on the masthead for 48 issues, and I’ve hired and trained many capable successors to my position. I’ve met some awesome people that I wouldn’t have otherwise, and had the opportunity to create something I was proud of each week. How many students can say that?
As a biology and psychology double major, I appreciate the chance The Bucknellian has given me to release my inner perfectionist when it comes to the written word. My favorite part of any English class has always been peer editing, and getting paid to do it on a weekly basis has practically been a dream come true. It’s incredibly hard to believe that this is the last issue of The Bucknellian I’ll ever work on, and probably the last time I’ll ever work for a newspaper, since I’m going into healthcare. Even though they made Thursdays difficult, I’ll always remember late Wednesday nights in Roberts fondly, because it was one of the few places on campus where I felt I was truly in my element.
By Stacy Lace
Columnist
My dearest Jack,
All semester, journalistic chemistry has been building between us. You’ve felt it; I’ve felt it. From the moment you offered me a shout-out in your column about “Bucknell girls,” I couldn’t take my mind off of you. I feel the time has finally come for me count the ways in which I love you. Since I really only know you from afar, I’m mainly focusing on the way you have entrapped me with your column. However, I will of course reference our few non-Bucknellian almost-interactions.
So long, Jack. Next year, I’ll have to find a new “sex god” to worship from afar. Any suggestions?
Chris McCree
Sports Editor
Player Profile:
Laura Sandford
Junior
Second base
Hometown: New Egypt, N.J.
Major: Political Science and History
Season Statistics:
Avg: .226
GP: 40
Hits: 19
Runs: 3
RBIs: 7
Behind the strong offensive performance by Bison second baseman Laura Sandford ’13, the softball team was to earn its first Patriot League series win this weekend over Holy Cross. During the four-game series, Sandford was able to hit an impressive .533, recording eight hits along with two RBIs. After dropping the first game of the series to the Crusaders, the Orange and Blue were able to snap their 13-game losing streak behind a walk-off RBI by Sandford in the ninth. Sanford went two-for-five in the game and drove in two of the team’s four runs. For the first time in her career, Sandford was able to record three multi-hit games in a row, and her current four-game hitting streak ties a career best mark she set a year ago.
In the midst of a tough season thus far, Sandford’s hot streak could not have come at a better time for the Orange and Blue. Currently sitting at 3-13 in the Patriot League with one series remaining, the Bison will look to rally through the end of the year and try and make a postseason push, but their success will be largely dependent on their ability to put runs on the board. During their 16 league games this season, the Orange and Blue have managed to score three runs or more in just five games.
This weekend, Sandford and the Bison will travel to Lafayette for their final regular season series.
To the Editor:
Mr. Klaus makes an interesting claim regarding the fact that poor parenting led to the tragic drowning of Assunda Rotolo and Les Davis Jr., more so than the lack of public support for access to the Lewisburg community pool (Letter to the Editor, April 20, 2012). Unfortunately, we find this point of view one that is commonly leveled against low income parents alone. For instance, newspaper accounts from the June 2002 abduction of Elizabeth Smart, the affluent 14-year-old from Salt Lake City, do not mention her parents’ lack of responsibility with their failure to set their home alarm prior to bedding down for the night as a cause for Elizabeth’s subsequent kidnapping. We know from our interactions with the families that every day, Assunda and Les’s parents feel guilt over the loss of their children and what they might have done to prevent it.
As a community, we have little oversight over the parenting practices of individuals. We do, however, have the ability (and we might go so far as to say responsibility) to construct the kind of healthy, supportive community we envision. We imagine a community where children have opportunities for safe and accessible play with their families. That is why we organize the Pool Pass Project. Each recipient makes a financial contribution to their pass–-whatever they can afford. Last year, we helped 16 families safely play. We hope we have helped to create a system where a parent does not have to choose between providing food or supervised family play. We go to bed feeling good about this commitment. We hope that Mr. Klaus is equally as comforted by his position.
Sue Ellen Henry, Associate Professor of Education
Selected members from EDUC 318/618, spring 2012
To the Editor:
I would like to thank Sue Ellen Henry and Bucknell University for their continued dedication to the Lewisburg Pool Pass Project. As the principal of Linntown Elementary School, I have witnessed how this event benefits many of my students who would have otherwise not had affordable access to a safe swimming environment. I have heard parents cry with gratitude when they were told that their families would be receiving pool passes. Not only does it offer a way for students to stay cool and have fun during the summer months, but it also provides them with the ability to stay connected with their schoolmates and peers while school is not in session.
I am also grateful for how the event continues to honor the memory of Assunda Rotolo and Les Davis, Jr. It saddens me to see that there are individuals who still wish to point fingers in this tragedy and blame the parents of these children. Having known Assunda for the two years she was at a student at Linntown, I saw firsthand the love and devotion that her parents felt towards her. She was truly the center of their universe. Assunda was one of the most genuine, caring and compassionate children I have had the pleasure of knowing. She always sought to take care of others and, no matter what she herself might need, was always generous and giving. This was not something that happened by accident and is a testament to her parents for instilling those traits in her. Anyone who knew the family would never question their parenting or that the safety of their child was important to them. Sadly, there were many who chose not to know them because of their economic situation and lack of resources. While there were many children at school who had far greater material items, there was no child who was loved more by her parents.
While I want to be angry when I hear the judgmental comments being cast, I do try to understand the source of those sentiments. I think it is a way for us to try to feel safer, to believe that something like this couldn’t happen to our families and those we love. If we can find fault or a way to place blame, then just maybe we are somehow immune to tragedy. Sadly, this is not the case. We are all vulnerable to the many things that can go horribly wrong in life. The parents of these children should not be cast as villains. They have already suffered the greatest heartache anyone could face.
Paula J. Reber
Linntown Elementary School Principal
By Julian Dorey
Columnist
There are plenty of cliché quotes in sports. One that I hear (and say) seemingly every April is: “There’s nothing like playoff hockey.”
What does that really mean, though? All four major sports have a postseason, and all of them are exciting. So what is it about hockey?
It’s simple: a hockey game has the quickest ups and downs. Contrary to a sport like basketball, a goal in hockey means a lot. A simple basket in the NBA is just two or three points out of 100. In hockey, a goal might be one of two.
When you compare hockey to a sport like baseball, it’s easy to say baseball can be just as exciting—the final scores often look similar to hockey (4-3, 5-2, etc.). But in baseball, it’s very clear as to when a team can score: when it’s up to bat. In hockey, a power play for one team can easily culminate with an errant pass leading to a breakaway goal for the shorthanded team.
In the playoffs, especially—with blood pressure and nerves high, and tenacity at a new level—the typical NHL game is “back and forth.” Every time a player approaches the blue line fans move up in their seats a little bit. Each shot is met with some kind of verbal reaction. The nerves and emotions of every fan shift faster than the skates of every player on the ice.
There’s no other way to explain it. Playoff hockey brings something out of fans that no other sport can. If I had a nickel for every time I watched a playoff hockey game with a non-hockey fan and watched them slowly get into the game like it was life and death, I would be a millionaire.
Two years ago, an NHL team pulled off something in the playoffs that had been done only once in the history of any other sport (and just two previous times in hockey). The Philadelphia Flyers came back from a three game deficit to beat the Boston Bruins 4-3 in a best-of-seven-games series. What was even more shocking was the Flyers were down 3-0 in the first period of game seven in Boston and came back to win the game 4-3 in regulation. If that doesn’t get you going, I don’t know what does.
Results like that tend to make the case for me. And, trust me, there are plenty more great examples.
There are also the traditions. Perhaps the most well-known one is the playoff beard. Each spring, most of the NHL players in the playoffs relegate their razors to the bottom cabinet. It’s supposed to be a “team unity” thing or something. To most fans, it’s just another funky, off-beat part of the playoffs that adds a little flavor. By the conference finals, most of the remaining players look more like cavemen than athletes. It doesn’t seem to affect their play, though.
This year is already off to an incredible start. More than 10 games across all of the first round series have gone to overtime. Upsets are brewing everywhere.
The only thing that remains the same from last year is the feeling everyone gets watching the drama unfold.
Tune in—it’ll be worth your while.
By Courtney Bottazzi
Senior Writer
Constantly, we see students at the University becoming involved with projects outside of the classroom and beyond their homework assignments.
Kenia Lobo ’15went on the B.A.C.E.S. trip to the Dominican Republic this past spring break. As a biology major, Lobo found this trip changed her entire perspective as a student on this campus.
After hearing about the trip during orientation, Lobo decided she wanted to do something productive with her spring break. She left for the Dominican Republic with 15 strangers and came back with a renewed energy and 15 close friends. “You need a certain mentality to be able to face it; you would never see that amount of poverty here. But we didn’t want to leave. We had so much chemistry as a group,” Lobo said.
They packed medical supplies, gave out toys and helped paint the school they had raised money to open, while simultaneously creating a lasting bond together.
“During the food drive, we made teams. I was on ‘The Sugar People.’ It was so silly and so much fun. We also got to go around to classrooms in pairs and the kids were amazing. They had a talent show where one student knew all the words to Justin Bieber songs,” Lobo said.
Phil Kim ’12, who also went on the B.A.C.E.S. trip, was able to participate in the progress of the school from the very first construction stages.
“Four years ago, I went on the second B.A.C.E.S. trip and got a chance to assist in building the walls to the schoolhouse that today teaches nearly 200 students in a poor community called Cabòn. It’s an absolutely incredible feeling to literally see the school build itself up each year–a feeling impossible to describe in words,” he said.
Kim found that in order to make these trips successes, he had to hone every skill that he will need upon graduation, including leadership, communication, organizational and networking skills. When asked if he has any advice for other students, Kim urged them to travel themselves.
“Do it … at least once before you graduate. It doesn’t have to be B.A.C.E.S., but there is something so selfless and real about going on a service trip that forces you to rethink how you think and how you live. It’s a beautiful experience,” Kim said.
Lebo Letsie ’12 created her own philanthropic project when she went home to Botswana for this past winter break. She sent out a Message Center request and a few emails to professors, asking if they had any extra clothes of growing children that they could give away.
“I was only expecting a few responses, but my email was flooded with responses,” Letsie said.
In the end, Letsie was able to donate two cars full of clothes to a small orphanage, La Modimo or ‘Light of God.’ Letsie was able to help make a safe environment for orphans and neglected children to go to and be with people who will take care of them.
“I loved being able to see both the giving and the receiving sides of this project. Something that’s so small to you can mean so much to someone else. I hope to help inspire other people to help but also to inspire the youth in Bostwana; to tell them to stay in school and stay focused and then they can continue to do this type of work,” Letsie said.
Letsie received a Projects of Peace grant of $10,000 that she will use to fund youth camps. These camps will be a place where young kids can learn about culture and leadership.
Danielle Alaimo ’12 has traveled to Nicaragua three times with the Bucknell Brigade and also fundraises at the Student Calling center. She says that these have changed her perspective of how she wanted to shape her college experience.
“After the Brigade trip my freshman year, it changed my perspective of community, how I wanted to connect with and communicate with other people. It changed how I wanted to spend my time here–-I found I had a lot of resources,” Alaimo said.
By working at Student Calling, Alaimo was able to talk with alumni from many different backgrounds and varying age groups about what they got from the University and what we should do while we are here.
“It was amazing to hear stories from alumni. Everyone should take advantage of Bucknell’s resources to challenge themselves and grow. Pay attention to the little mailbox notices or to Message Center, stop by the Civic Engagement office. Everyone can benefit from these projects–you just have to be open to it,” Alaimo said.
These philanthropic projects have made all the difference for students’ experiences on campus and have allowed them to give back beyond the “bubble.”