Author: Amanda Ayers

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Speak UP targets bystanders

Jenni Whalen

Staff Writer

Approximately 30 University students and faculty members attended Speak UP Bucknell’s open forum in Trout Auditorium to discuss the issue of sexual assault on campus last Thursday night. The program was created both to address the fact that the University’s culture seems to foster an environment where sexual assault is likely to occur and to inform bystanders, people who neither commit assaults nor prevent them from happening. Tracy Shaynak of the Women’s Resource Center and Marie Shaw of Psychological Services founded the program this year.
Andrea Massa ’12 joined the program because she has a passion for sexual assault awareness.
“I have been a part of [associate] professor [of psychology] Bill Flack’s sexual assault research group for the past three years. However, I was not able to be proactive about the issue of sexual assault awareness until I joined Speak UP Bucknell. Now, I am not only able to help figure out what the problem is, but I can actively go out and spread awareness to other members of the Bucknell community,” Massa said.
In addition to Massa, Shaynak and Shaw, the Speak UP Bucknell group includes Nikki Shea ’12, Clark Bogle ’12, Sarah Hagerbrant ’12, Will Evans ’14, Alyssa Gockley ’13, Alyssa Henningsen ’14, Sarah Bella ’12, Meredith Dickson ’12, Mollie Morris ’12, Michael Higgins ’12 and Sam Lauer ’13.

The group presented a brief synopsis of the current research and definitions of sexual assault. It discussed bystander behaviors at length and explained that the purpose of their program is to capture bystanders, the people who don’t commit assaults but also don’t do anything to stop them. These bystanders can then create bubbles of cognitive dissonance in the University’s social culture. The presentation also incorporated group participation and a question and answer period.

“I think the most important idea that was presented was the fact that speaking up can implant an idea in someone’s head or [it] may be the first time that someone has told them that their behavior is not okay or not acceptable,” said Mark Paleafico ’13, an attendee at the open forum. “Speaking up and getting people to consider their behavior is a really important part of fostering a healthy and safe atmosphere on campus.”
“I’m so glad I went to the presentation and I think Bucknell is moving forward in a positive direction with the help of programs like Speak UP Bucknell,” Laura Neely ’13 said. “I think this discussion and topic is crucial not only here at Bucknell, but also necessary to carry on with us past our four years here. The awareness that this program brings should be heard by all.”
The Speak UP Bucknell program will continue to grow throughout the next year, potentially replacing the Transition to College classes for first-years. The members of the group will also continue to give presentations to anyone across campus who wants to start a discussion about sexual assault in their organization.

“The Speak UP Bucknell organization has the ability to create a safer environment on Bucknell’s campus,” Samantha Schindelheim ’12 said. “As we know from the Campus Climate Report and from further research being conducted, sexual assault is very prevalent on Bucknell’s campus. Students need to feel empowered to be positive bystanders and to help prevent sexual assault. Learning how to act as positive bystanders through programs like Speak UP Bucknell could change the statistics and decrease the occurrences of assault on our campus.”

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Meet the Suites eases nerves

Jason Pepe

Contributing Writer

First-year women gathered in Hunt Hall for the first annual Meet the Suites on March 6 from 6 to 8 p.m.  The event provided first-year women who are considering participating in Greek Life an opportunity to gain familiarity with each sorority in a more laid back and casual environment than the formal recruitment events. Meet the Suites was designed to help ease the nerves of first-year women going into the more formal Open Suites which is held in April.

Each first-year woman was given a “passport” that she had to get stamped at each sorority’s suite.  The women were allowed to spend as much or as little time as they wanted at a particular suite, but were required to visit all seven of them.  Each sorority offered snacks such as cookies and fruity drinks.

Meghan Marks ’13, Delta Gamma’s vice president of membership, enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere of the event.

“It was fun to just hang out and talk to the girls without all of the formalities of recruitment, and I think it was really helpful for them to see each sorority’s suite and rooms before the process starts,” Marks said.

Meet the Suites replaced previous years’ event called “Meet the Greeks,” and was thought to be a significant improvement.

“In its first year, I would definitely consider the event a success. Going forward, Meet the Suites will be an excellent opportunity for first-year women to meet each sorority in a casual setting before beginning the recruitment process,” said Kasey Hampton ’13, chief recruitment chair of Kappa Alpha Theta fraternity.

Even though Meet the Suites was held during midterm week, turnout was not substantially affected.

“[Meet the Suites] served as a fun study break for everyone,” Hampton said.

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Research team presents assault findings

Christina Oddo and Amanda Ayers

Writer and News Editor

The University Sexual Assault Research Team, a group of students conducting research under professor of psychology Bill Flack, presented data regarding the results of its fall 2011 survey on Tuesday. Although females can be, and have been, perpetrators, these results primarily focused on issues surrounding female victimization and male perpetration on campus.
In its presentation, the group raised questions about the different perceptions of rape and consent, for example, with the hopes of achieving a better understanding of what is happening on campus and creating a safe and respectful environment for everyone. The data presented was based on a survey offered to 900 females and 900 males during October and November. There was a 36 percent response rate for females, and a 22 percent response rate for males.
Among other findings, the group shared that perpetrators tend to consume more alcohol than non-perpetrators. Perpetrators scored, on average, a 16 on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification test, which comes with a recommendation for “simple advice plus brief counseling and continued monitoring.” Non-perpetrators scored, on average, an 8. 
The results also delved into victim disclosure and the positive and negative reactions to sexual assault, including belief, information and aid, emotional support and blame.  Non-victims tend to perceive positive reactions upon disclosure of assualt, like finding emotional support, to occur more often than negative ones. When surveyed, victims responded that there was a lower rate of acceptance, belief and positive reaction to their assault than non-victims.
The group also found that there are a significant number of Greek women “facilitators” and that this female facilitation increases the risk of being sexually assaulted. Female facilitation is promoting risky behavior such as increased alcohol consumption, hooking up, hazing, and minimizing the gravity of events. Male peer support–encouraging women to drink with the intent of hooking up with them, etc.–increases perpetration, rape myth acceptance (“she was asking for it,” etc) and sexism. 
The team finally discussed topics relevant to the recent Campus Climate Task Force Report. While most students surveyed agreed with the Greek and alcohol findings in the report, they disagreed with student engagement findings. Additionally, women agreed with the findings on gender dynamics, but men disagreed.
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Author discusses impact of porn industry

Christina Oddo

Writer

Gail Dines, author of “Pornland,” expressed how the porn industry is leaking into mainstream media in a lecture with University students and staff on Tuesday in the Elaine Langone Center Forum. She explained how this industry is manipulating how teenagers think about their sexuality and how they interact with one another.

“The estimated revenue of the porn industry is $12 billion, while the estimated revenue for the box office for mainstream films is $9 billion,” Dines said.
Dines explained that while  her generation is “print-based,” the generation of today’s college students is “image-based.” Instead of reading things in print, college students are overwhelmed with images every day. Dines said many college students and teenagers are “image illiterate,” and perhaps absorb the wrong messages that are portrayed through images. The “gaze” that is often portrayed through images of women and men in magazines, on television and on the Internet is directly connected to the hookup culture found on college campuses and beyond. It creates gender constructions that form socially acceptable behaviors and etiquette.
Women, Dines said, constantly compare themselves to images of other women. In this way, the porn industry has manipulated women into hating their bodies. American capitalism and the success of many industries depends on women’s overall dissatisfaction with their bodies, as they go to great lengths for fashion, diet and cosmetics.
In the media, women are reduced to all of the same; women, in these images, are merely a series of body parts. Dines said when she starts seeing men wear Speedos to restaurants, then she will be okay with women wearing extremely exposing attire out to dinner. 
In fact, most images in the media that portray both men and women often show men fully clothed, while women are much more exposed. Dines said being naked in the presence of clothed people is to be in a state of vulnerability; why else are men who are admitted to prison immediately asked to strip when they first arrive?
Dines included discussion regarding women of color in the media, and how animals often accompany them in images. In this way, the media is portraying women of color as hypersexual. 
In regard to celebrities and the privileged white, Dines said people who are extremely rich and privileged, as well as white in color, have the ability to make the label of “slut” work for them. No matter how well one can carry that label, being called a “slut” is “a collective rape of all of your identity,” she said. This label is a social construct because an individual does not chose his or her label.
Dines explored the journey of young stars through adulthood, and how these young stars escape the stage of invisibility. What image do you have to portray to be noticed? The porn industry is marketing the youthful image more and more, she said. Is this due to a lack of creativity?
Pornography, Dines said, is completely debasing and violates women’s human rights. Promotion for online pornography sites alone is ridiculously degrading. Dines spoke directly to the men in the audience: “What turns you on? Are you really like this?”
“[The] world they [the porn industry] want is a world not worth living in,” Dines said. Where is the respect for others and for yourself? What does a dependency on pornography say about your sexual identity? Does sexual integrity exist today? Dines questioned the audience relentlessly. She said people need to claim sexuality on their own instead of letting the porn industry shape it.
“Words exist in a material reality,” Dines said.
In this way, Dines said, people need to reshape how they think about and act upon different words that relate to sexuality and gender.
For more information, visit Gaildines.com and stoppornculture.org.
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Frank Abagnale to speak

Amanda Ayers

News Editor

The Student Lectureship Committee has announced that it will host Frank Abagnale, author of the autobiography “Catch Me If You Can,” on Monday, March 19 at 7 p.m. in the Weis Center for the Performing Arts. The talk is free and open to the public.

Abagnale began as one of the most famous con men alive, posing as an airline pilot, attorney, college professor and pediatrician, as well as cashing in $2.5 million in fraudulent checks. He  is now respected around the world as one of the best authorities on forgery, embezzlement and secure documents. He has worked with and advised hundreds of financial institutions and  government agencies around the world for the last 35 years.

“The lectureship committee is really excited to be bringing Frank Abagnale this semester. He has been on our ‘short list’ for as long as I have been a part of the committee and has always generated great buzz around campus. I think what makes Frank so appealing is the movie-like nature of his life,” said Mike Kurban ’12, head of the Student Lectureship Committee.

“Catch Me If You Can” was made into a film in 2002. It was directed by Steven Spielberg and starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. Abagnale has also written numerous other articles and books such as “The Art of the Steal,” “The Real U Guide to Identity Theft” and “Stealing Your Life.”

“It’s easy to think of his story as something created in some Hollywood studio, especially because many of us are familiar with it because of ‘Catch Me If You Can,’ but it is all the more exciting to think that everything that happened in the movie–the deception and conning and secret lives–were all a part of his real life,” Kurban said. “I’m excited to hear about his experiences and also how he transformed from a con artist to one of the most respected security consultants with the FBI.”

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Alpha Male

Olivia Seecof

Writer

Alphi Chi Omega sorority sponsored its second Alpha Male competition last Friday in Trout Auditorium to benefit the Susquehanna Valley Women Transition, an agency that aids victims of domestic violence. One man from each fraternity on campus competed for the title in a variety of events throughout the night. The 400 available tickets sold out on the day before the event.
The second round consisted of swimwear modeling. Many of the competitors sported speedos while others took a more relaxed approach with a sun hat and a ukulele.

“They were all definitely ready for beach season!” Eliza Macdonald ’14 said.
Next came the talent portion where the men performed a talent of their choice.
“My favorite part of the competition was witnessing the different hidden talents that all the contestants had,” CK Kumah ’13 said.

These talents included ribbon dancing, interpretive dancing, rapping about each sorority, pizza making, solving a Rubik’s Cube, and many more.
The presidents of each sorority judged the competition.

“We were so pleased to have each chapter represented on the [judging] panel,” said Jenna DeLuca ’13, president of Alphi Chi Omega. “I was honestly very impressed with each and every one of the contestants! Each man confidently represented his chapter in a unique way.”

“My favorite aspect of judging Alpha Male was being able to take part in an incredibly fun and successful philanthropic event that brought the Greek community together. Watching the representatives from each fraternity eat up a spotlight was priceless,” said Dana Musulin ’13, president of Alpha Delta Pi.

Kumah of Phi Gamma Delta was the ultimate winner and crowned Alpha Male 2012.

“Personally I thought it was a 10-way tie because each and every one of the contestants was equally impressive and made it difficult for the judges to come to a conclusion. I was literally blown away when they announced me as the winner,” Kumah said.

Brottman presented Susquehanna Valley Women in Transition with a check for $2,000, 15 percent of which will go to Fiji’s philanthropy in honor of Kumah’s winning.

“It was such an amazing feeling to know that Alpha Chi was making a true impact on the lives of these victims,” Brottman said.

“My favorite part of the event was the involvement of all the people there and everyone being so excited. The guys who participated were great and we had so much fun working with them!” Lewis said.
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Spring Break Shuttle Schedules

By Amanda Ayers

News Editor

Need to get to either Harrisburg International Airport (MDT) or Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) for spring break travels? Card Services and Student Transit has posted its shuttle schedule on the University website. One-way transportation to or from Williamsport Regional Airport, Harrisburg International Airport or the Harrisburg Transportation Center is $36.00. One-way shuttle transportation to PHL is $76.00. Make sure to register online by March 7 at noon. 

Depart for Spring Recess

Classes end Friday, March 9 at 5 p.m.

Harrisburg and Williamsport
Friday, March 9 at 5 a.m., 7 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 2 p.m. and 5:15 p.m.
Saturday, March 10 at 5 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Philadelphia
Friday, March 9 at 5 a.m, 12:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m.
Saturday, March 10 at  5 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Return from Spring Recess

Classes begin Monday, March 19 at 8 a.m.

Harrisburg and Williamsport

Saturday, March 17 at 11 a.m., 3 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. 
Sunday, March 18 at 11 a.m., 3 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.

Philadelphia

Saturday, March 17 at 2 p.m., 7 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 18 at 2 p.m., 7 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. 

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Frank Abagnale Jr. announced as speaker

Amanda Ayers

News Editor

The Student Lectureship Committee has invited Frank Abagnale to speak on campus March 19 at 7 p.m. in the Weis Center for the Performing Arts. This event is free and open to the public. Beginning as one of the world’s most famous con men (posing as an airline pilot, doctor and lawyer) Abagnale later became one of the most respected authorities on forgery, embezzlement and secure documents. He has worked with hundreds of financial institutions, corporations and government agencies. He was made even more famous through director Steven Spielberg’s 2002 film, “Catch Me If You Can,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, which was based on Abagnale’s best-selling autobiography.

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Athletes succeed on and off field

By Ali Napoli

Contributing Writer

 

During the 2011 fall semester, 252 University student-athletes earned Dean’s List honors, achieving GPAs equal to or higher than 3.50. Of those honored, 141 were accepted to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, which requires a GPA of 3.2 or better during the team’s competitive season.
“One of the special qualities of Bison Athletics is that our student-athletes are truly students, first and foremost. They take tremendous pride in their class-work, just as all Bucknell students do, and it is great that the Patriot League finds several different ways to recognize the academic achievements of its student-athletes,” said John Hardt, director of athletics and recreation.
Twenty-five of the University’s 27 varsity sports teams have a team GPA of 3.0 or higher. The men’s cross-country team recorded the highest GPA out of all the male sports with a 3.32 average. The women’s swimming and diving team and the women’s golf team share the highest team GPA of all sports with an impressive average of 3.40.
A number of the student-athletes who achieved Dean’s List honors are team captains, representing various teams, from men’s basketball to women’s track and field.
“Being a captain on the team makes you want to do your best to set an example, especially for the younger guys on the team. I try to do my best in the classroom just so they know what to do, and just be there if anyone else on the team needs anything,” said Bryson Johnson ’13, captain and guard of the men’s basketball team.
Spencer Richley ’12, captain of men’s water polo, expressed similar feelings.
“[I’ve] found that being a captain of the water polo team actually helped [me] achieve a higher GPA because the two go hand in hand. Both require an increased amount of responsibility and forced me to effectively manage my time,” Richley said.
Leadership and encouragement to succeed on and off the field is not only fostered by team captains.
“The four members of our senior class are all tremendous examples of what it means to be a true scholar-athlete at Bucknell while pursuing excellence in their chosen fields in the classroom and on the field.  They represent what we want from all of our leaders, titled as captains or otherwise, and I’m extremely honored to have coached them all,” said Ben Landis, head coach of women’s soccer.
All in all, the athletics department is very proud of these numbers, and it believes that statistics like these are integral to the student-athlete experience at the University.
“Balancing Bucknell’s exacting academic demands with the rigors of being a Division I athlete is very difficult and takes determination and excellent time-management skills. They deserve all the recognition that comes with their accomplishments both on and off the playing fields,” Hardt said.
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Week aims to combat eating disorders

By Carleen Boyer

Writer

 

This week, the Women’s Resource Center planned events for National Eating Disorder Awareness Week on campus, which featured in-depth forums and panel discussions that focused on the effects and treatment of eating disorders. According to Mental Health America, a nonprofit organization seeking to helping Americans live mentally healthier lives, approximately eight million women and men in the United States suffer from an eating disorder.

The week began with a call for awareness and reflection. The events that followed focused on empowering individuals to have a positive self-image. Dustyn Martincich, assistant professor of theatre and dance, led an hour-long dance session in McDonnell Ski Lounge on Feb. 28.
There was also a dance program entitled “Womanifesto,” organized by Aliyah Johnson ’14, on Feb. 29. Held in Walls Lounge, this was meant to provide an opportunity to dance and celebrate the body through movement. It was open to all students.
To conclude the week, Activities and Campus Events (ACE) will host a spa day called “The Spa Spectacular” tomorrow. It will feature hair styling, make up, facials, manicures and yoga from 12 to 4 p.m. in the Terrace Room. This is all part of the effort to reinforce positive body image and to fight eating disorders on college campuses.
Psychological Services also promoted its free and confidential online eating disorder screening this week. Even though the screening is available throughout the year, the announcement highlights awareness in the spirit of the week. The screening can be accessed by going to the Psychological Services website and clicking on Online Mental Health Screening.