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Opinion

Campus Climate forums proving constructive

By Jen Lassen

Contributing Writer

There is no question that the Campus Climate Task Force Report has caused many students to ask questions and discuss the contents of the 68-page document. President Bravman’s bold move to initiate a forum for students to attend first seemed a little dangerous to me, especially after I had observed students’ negative reactions to the document. Before I attended the forum last week I thought it would be a bunch of angry students back-lashing both the administration and the document for some of its more controversial topics. Especially as a first-year, I walked into the forum quite intimidated and unsure of how it would turn out. But I believe that in a world dominated by administrative hierarchies, giving students the chance to voice their opinions is always a good thing–especially with something that directly affects the students. A forum gives the administration a chance to rethink its original intentions for wanting to make University changes after students speak. Keeping an open dialogue between staff and students is healthy and productive, and in the case of the Campus Climate Task Force Report, the student body and administrators will be able to work together to improve campus from the discussions held.

I found myself surprised at how intelligent and constructive the students’ comments were. There were hints of anger in some students’ comments, yes, but overall I thought giving the students the ability to voice their own opinions turned out to be a good thing. As the president stood on stage, he certainly must have been listening to what the students had to say and analyzing their opinions about the report. I think this process of letting the students speak their minds helped everyone, especially the administration, realize how the students attending the University feel about a document that specifically targeted their actions.

Although on Tuesday students were not given the chance to ask questions about the document, only to voice their opinions, it turned out to be constructive because it allowed the president and his staff to gain insight from students and take students’ thoughts into consideration. Maybe the administration’s own opinions about what was written in the document were changed from the students’ comments, but we won’t know this until there is more collaboration between students and staff to improve the University.
Categories
Opinion

Society is past the days of street preaching

By Connor Small

Contributing Writer

Outside the Elaine Langone Center earlier this week, many passersby heard a man with a microphone reading Bible verses and preaching Christianity. The street-corner preacher was met at first with stares, then resistance. His presence and the opposition that followed raised the idea of freedom of religion. Across the street a student held a spiral notebook with the words “Hail Satan” etched onto a page. The student and the preacher traded words, and as I walked by, I was asked if I had “worshipped Satan yet today.” Personally, I saw this as no more than a joke; in my view, it was somebody simply calling attention to himself. But his actions very well may have offended a large group of people on this campus.  

I understand that the University prides itself on strong community and increasing diversity, and protests have historically been a part of many colleges, but as I thought more about the events that occurred earlier that day, something just didn’t sit right with me. It was not so much what the man said that upset me, but rather how he went about getting his message across.

The real question here is this: was there a better way for the preacher to get his beliefs across? Preaching on the streets has its pros and cons: you reach everyone who happens to walk by, but you risk persecution, as is the case here. When I talked to my fellow classmates and heard their opinions on the matter, I came to the conclusion that maybe the University is not as accepting as many think. Many I talked to were hostile towards the idea of a Christian preaching on a corner: “I really don’t want to have somebody telling me that ‘God is the only way’ over a microphone while I’m trying to have a conversation with my friends,” one student said. “He should keep it in the church,” another said. Others were more pragmatic about the issue: “He can do say whatever he wants, as long as I have the right to argue against it.” Any belief system is going to be met with some form of resistance, but in my opinion, there is a better way to reach college students than standing on a corner reading scripture.

College is meant to be a time of experimentation, of challenging your ideas and of self-exploration. There are many options available to fit pretty much any interest at the University. Everybody is different: some know what they believe, others are still searching. To me, it seems we are past the days of street preaching. While the preacher feels it is his duty to spread his beliefs (and he has that right), he might have been met with less resistance had he chosen a more passive approach. Everybody has the right to his or her beliefs, and everybody has the right to challenge those of others. People are encouraged to formulate their own opinions, but in letting them out, one should be aware of how others are affected by their methods of expression.
Categories
Arts & Life

Students to preform “The Zoo Story”

By Carolyn Williams

Staff Writer

Edward Albee’s “The Zoo Story” is set on a park bench in New York City’s Central Park. Peter, a mild-mannered publishing executive in his mid-forties, sits reading and enjoying a pleasant Sunday afternoon until he is interrupted by a strange young man named Jerry who wants to talk. As he interrogates Peter on the minutiae of his day-to-day life, Jerry exhibits biting sarcasm and frightening intuition but reveals his own isolation, loneliness, and desperation for some sort of human interaction. The reluctant Peter is drawn into this protracted conversation by the promise that, if he is patient, Jerry will share what happened to him at the zoo. But as the play progresses, Peter may wish he never found out.

This performance of “The Zoo Story” is directed by Diego Chiri ’12, who was inspired to mount an Albee production after the playwright’s visit to campus last semester to receive the honor of Janet Weis Fellow in Contemporary Letters.

“Peter and Jerry are more real that you could imagine. There is a Peter inside all of us who has found comfort and security in our everyday lives and suppresses the need to break out of the mundane – but the Jerry inside us.. Jerry challenges our thinking, our life, our habits. Who should you choose? Peter, who desperately resists change, or Jerry who urges us to connect with anyone or anything at any cost,” Chiri said.

Preston Perrin ’15 stars as the politely normal yet intrinsically unhappy Peter, and Nicolas Muoio ’15 as the charismatic and troubled Jerry.

“This play is one that has more than just a literal meaning. There is more to this show than what meets your eye. There are ideas and beliefs thrown around during the hour we are performing so pay attention and really open your mind to hear and see what it is Peter and Jerry are trying to get across to one another,” Perrin said.

Part of the strength of “The Zoo Story,” which has captivated audiences since it was written in 1958, is the universality of the characters’ problems. Some people are always going to labor under the misapprehension that they are happy in their own mediocrity, and others are bound to be fighting a losing war against their own loneliness. With a Spartan set (it literally consists of one park bench in a black box theatre), and two frighteningly real characters, “The Zoo Story” is a coldly realistic portrait of humanity, both then and now, and Chiri’s production executes it admirably.

The show is open to the public tonight and tomorrow at 8 p.m. in Tustin’s Studio Theatre. Tickets are $5.

Categories
News

Market Street Deli to return under new management

By Ali Carey

Writer

Market Street Deli will soon reopen under new management after its temporary closure in June 2011.

“After closing after Alumni Weekend in June, plans were to reopen in early August but the owner decided to sell the deli instead,” deli manager Donnie Mapes said.

The switch in owners hindered the deli’s return, but new owners Alex Rosenblatt and Evan Erdberg hope to get the deli up and running by October.

Rosenblatt and Erdberg promise to keep the deli’s old hours and possibly even extend hours of service. The deli will continue to be open seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will serve their famous breakfast all day.

The owners want to be open “at least an hour after Domino’s closes” as a late-night option for hungry students. The deli will continue to reopen from 12 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The owners are considering adding Thursday to their late night breakfasts.

“The thing I miss most is that Market Street Deli was always open late, so after spending long hours hitting the books, I could always stop by at 3 a.m. for a meal,” Wally Watkins ’12 said.

The deli will now have a regular delivery option “so studying students won’t have to leave their dorms,” Rosenblatt said. “There will be modest improvements to the menu everyone has grown accustomed to. Expect new surprises in the future.”

The reopening of Market Street Deli will allow new students who have heard of the deli’s reputation experience it themselves.

“Everyone tells me how good the food was; I was disappointed when I realized it was closed,” Elizabeth Carnicom ’15 said. “I will definitely check it out when it reopens.”

Market Street Deli will continue to serve their famous breakfast sandwiches, subs and hoagies.

“Students here deserve to have a good sandwich,” Rosenblatt said.

Categories
Arts & Life

Discovering Our Professors: Shara McCallum

By Mackenzie Halfhide

Writer

As students at the University, we are fortunate enough to have professors who are invested in our education as well as our personal growth. This is atypical for most universities, where the majority of professors focus primarily on their personal academic projects. The University has the privilege to employ professors who do it all, even though their contributions to academia are not always well-publicized on campus. In order to learn more about professors’ involvement on campus and their recent academic accomplishments, I had the pleasure of interviewing Shara McCallum, associate professor of English and director of the Stadler Center for Poetry.

As director of the Stadler Center, it is McCallum’s job to provide opportunities for poets and poetry lovers on campus. The most well-known function of the director is to organize the Writers Series, which brings acclaimed writers to campus so they can read excerpts from their latest projects. McCallum is looking forward to a reading from this year’s Sojka Poet, Tony Hoagland, whose poetry is exceptionally smart and funny, and surprisingly attainable for readers of all levels. He will read in Bucknell Hall on Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. McCallum is also in the process of starting a slam poetry series that is slated to begin this year; for next year, she is organizing a “Poetry Path,” which will set up a walking trail that connects the landscape of downtown Lewisburg and campus through a series of poems. She also manages the Stadler Fellowship, which offers internships to two writers who are looking for an “opportunity to receive professional training in arts administration and literary editing.”

This last year has been particularly rewarding for McCallum as she is one of the recipients of the 2011 Fellowship for Poetry, which is a grant awarded by the National Endowment of the Arts to support her continuous work as a writer and to promote her future contributions to the poetry world.

Her hot streak of recognition began when President Bravman asked McCallum to write a poem for his inauguration in 2010, an honor that felt daunting since she had never been asked to write a poem for a specific event. She typically concentrates on personal connections to landscapes in her poems, and since central Pennsylvania does not evoke the same warm feelings as her homeland of Jamaica, McCallum began researching Lewisburg and the surrounding area, which helped inspire the poem “Susquehanna.”  She discovered she could write a history that was not hers, and in a fairly short time, though she knows poetry is not something that can be rushed.

“I’m very invested in revision,” McCallum said. “For me, that’s where the writing happens.”

It has been eight years since the publication of her second book, “Song of Thieves,“ and McCallum has been persistently writing and revising poem after poem for her third book, “This Strange Land.”  As a poet who prefers to write at night, it is difficult to find the time and energy while her attention is divided between classes and two young daughters. Luckily, her sabbatical last fall gave her the opportunity to finish editing her book of poems for the April release date.

In the midst of the book deal, Peepal Tree Press in the United Kingdom reached out to McCallum and offered her a chance to publish a collection of her poems. Scheduled to be released at the beginning of October, “The Face of Water: New & Selected Poems” includes her latest work and some of her best poems as selected by herself. McCallum will kick off the Writer Series for the fall semester with a reading of her poetry on Tues., Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. in Bucknell Hall.

Categories
Arts & Life Review Television

“New Girl” proves herself among famous FOX lineup

 

By Courtney Flagg

Editor-in-Chief

The most anticipated season premiere of the fall was the fan-favorite and Ryan Murphy brainchild “Glee.” To be completely honest, the season premiere didn’t blow me away. Yes, it was cutesy and full of show tunes and Sue Sylvester’s hilarious and politically incorrect one-liners. But the episode had very little substance. It seemed to serve more as a filler and preview of promising things to come than a real great episode. So when Glee ended at 9 p.m. and I was left wanting more, I was pleasantly surprised by Fox’s new series “New Girl.”

The premise is simple: a freshly single Jess (Zooey Deschanel) becomes the new roommate to three bachelors who are not at all competent in dealing with women. The show starts with Jess riding in a taxi in only a trench coat, ready to engage in some surprise sex with her boyfriend, only to find out that he’s been cheating on her. After this traumatic experience, and sick of sleeping on her model friend Cece’s (Hannah Simone) couch, she takes matters into her own hands and moves in with three “guy’s guys,” Schmidt (Max Greenfield), Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.) and Nick (Jake M. Johnson).

I knew this show was a winner when Coach and Nick made Schimdt put money into their communal “Douchebag Jar” after he makes an arrogant and idiotic comment about how “ladies love the Schimdt.” The show also impressed me with its accuracy in portraying both the obvious and subtle intricacies of both male and female behavior. Of course this idea isn’t revolutionary. How many times have we seen TV shows where guy and girl roommates engage in various shenanigans? This show comes with something different. Like its main character, “New Girl” is quirky, funny and quite the breath of fresh air. The pilot showcases the witty writing and the actors’ clever performances, all of which add to the show’s culturally relevant theme of the sexual politics between men and women.

Congratulations, Fox, you’ve made a fan out of me.

Categories
Arts & Life

“Modern Family” was show to beat at Emmys

By Michelle Joline

Writer

This year’s Emmy Awards made for spectacular weekend TV, our favorite stars plastered across our television screens and computers. Jane Lynch hosted, promoting the “Glee” season premiere that aired on Tuesday, Sept. 13. Whether or not you were watching the red carpet broadcast from E! News or ABC, there was certainly a buzz over the hit comedy “Modern Family.” Within the first few minutes of the primetime broadcast, “Modern Family” gained four awards without a break.

Julie Bowen, Claire Dunphy on “Modern Family,” snagged the outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series award and her co-star Ty Burrell (Phil Dunphy) took the male equivalent, beating out three of his fellow male cast members.

A surprise but deserved win was Melissa McCarthy’s award for her character Molly Flynn from “Mike & Molly.” Anyone who enjoyed her performance in 2011’s hit comedy “Bridesmaids” was rooting for her to win for her role as Megan.  Hopefully after the back-to-back success of “Bridesmaids” and “Mike & Molly,” we will get to see more from her as a leading comedienne in Hollywood.

With the end of “Friday Night Lights” there was no better time to have Kyle Chandler recognized for his role as Eric Taylor in the hit series. The expression the series coined, “Clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t lose,” was never more relevant. The win made a great end to the series after many fans were upset to see it go.

Kate Winslet’s win for outstanding lead actress in a miniseries or a movie in “Mildred Pierce” came as no surprise.

“Mad Men” took the award for best drama and “Modern Family” won best comedy. It only seemed appropriate to have the 2011 Emmy Awards end on the same note it started, applauding the work that goes into making “Modern Family” a huge success. If you have not had the chance to view the series yet, the new season of “Modern Family”  just aired this past Wednesday, Sept. 21 . Next year’s Emmy Awards have a lot to look forward to with new shows like “The New Girl” and “Pan Am.” Luckily, these shows are coming just as the weather is getting colder on campus.

 

Categories
Arts & Life Music Review

Astronautalis teaches life lessons in newest album

By Rob O’Donnell

Writer

The genre of Astronautalis’ fourth album “This Is Our Science” is hard to describe. He’s a rapper, but sings his choruses with a voice as gravelly as Tom Waits. With a blend of acoustic folk, heavy punk bass riffs, hard snare drums, melodic piano and electronic beats, the music  gets inside  your head.  Just like the name suggests, the album has an intellectual theme: science. Songs dedicated to Dmitri Mendeleev, the inventor of the Periodic Table of Elements, and Thomas Jefferson’s scientific work dominate the album.

As an English major, I miss a good amount of the references, but that’s the brilliant part about Astronautalis. He’s singing about obscure intellectual topics, but the songs aren’t really about the science. He makes it personal, connecting those references to his life and the sacrifices of pursuing what he loves. It’s a message that we can all relate to in some way, especially in college when we’re trying to decide what to do with the rest of our lives. In his album, he struggles to make a living and has to be on the road constantly to support himself, but he loves every second of it.

Although he references little-known Greek mythology, the message is clear:  if you’re not living for what you love, you’re turning your life into a prison. Long, winding stories and carefully researched facts drive this straightforward principle home to the listener. In that way, along with his unusual singing voice, he reminds me of the great folk musicians like early Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie, who perfected the art of ballads.

The music is  powerful and makes the lyrics even more potent and hard-hitting. As his first album with a backing band, the emphasis is more on the melodies than in his previous works. His vocal delivery is fiery and intense, especially on songs like “Holy Water,” but soft and gentle at times like on “Lift The Curse.” The choruses are stirring, usually with incredible drums and pianos mixed with his raspy voice in a catchy melody. This album is much more polished than his others, but still captures his passion and raw emotion.

No matter what kind of music you’re into, I can guarantee you’ll find something to love in this album. As for the genre, just call it whatever you want.

Categories
Editorial Opinion

Editorial: Campus Climate

The recent release of the Campus Climate Task Force Report by President Bravman has many students up in arms about the suggested changes to the University’s current academic and social conditions.

At The Bucknellian, we have been in communication with students, faculty and the administration throughout the past year about issues concerning campus climate. Last fall we dedicated the majority of an edition to the sexual assaults reported on campus. While we understand where the administration is coming from, and we can agree with the task force in some areas, we believe that some of the results may have been skewed out of proportion to highlight the negative aspects of our campus community.

One of the concerns we have with the report is lack of diversity from the pool from which the administration pulled statistics. According to the report, the task force used data majorly collected from members of the 2007, 2009 and 2010 graduating classes on a voluntary response basis. A large amount of the students polled in these surveys were also incoming first-years. Why wasn’t there a fairer representation of the student body in the task force data? How many sophomores, juniors and current seniors were polled during this time period? Obviously first-year students and outgoing seniors will have radically different perceptions of their time at the University. It only seems necessary to fill that gap to get a clear picture. Although data collection is hard, especially when a very limited amount of students participate, it is important to get a broad spectrum of statistics. That means encouraging students to answer these surveys truthfully or else no one can really take the statistics seriously.

In addition, the Sexual Experiences Survey was administered to an overwhelmingly female majority. Only 114 students out of the 1,023 surveyed were men. This doesn’t leave a large response bias. It would have been more accurate to include more male students. What was the non-response rate of these surveys? The fact that the task force only polled those students who were willing to go out of their way to submit their responses creates a response bias that cannot be overlooked.

We also think the task force has skewed the statistics towards a more negative angle. The task force places a heavy emphasis on the negatives of drinking, but it should be noted more clearly that drug use at the University is lower than comparable institutions. In addition, first-year students were over-represented in these samples. College freshmen tend to experiment with drinking a lot more than sophomores, juniors and seniors. We would have appreciated a more diverse statistic.

Through the climate report, President Bravman and the task force have expressed their severe dissatisfaction with Greek life and the way it impacts campus. Yes, Greek life can split the campus and create social divisions. However, an overwhelming amount of the philanthropic activities conducted on and around campus are done by Greek members. Although members of the Greek life here at the University are required to complete a certain number of ‘hours’ for philanthropy, the fact of the matter is, this is how it gets done. If it were not for the Greek system, philanthropy at the University would almost cease to exist. Although the Office of Civic Engagement offers many opportunities to students, many people aren’t aware of how to utilize it to its fullest.

We agree with the task force in that the University should be advertising more student-based activities, like Bingo, karaoke and other events at Uptown and in the ELC. However, it’s often the case that students don’t find going to Bingo as appealing as going to a fraternity party. While we know that there are students on campus that don’t participate in Greek life, the majority of them do, and the majority of them drink. This is not surprising in the least considering students drink when in college and there is a certain party atmosphere on campus. We don’t think the administration can change this. Even if the administration decides to eliminate Greek life all together, students who want to have fun by partying will find ways to do so. What’s more is that a large amount of alumni donators were members in Greek organizations on campus. If the administration gets rid of Greek life, alumni will stop donating to the University and the University’s College Rankings will lower.

We also have to disagree with the idea that Greek life is unsafe for men and women on campus. When fraternities decide to host parties on or off campus, they are legally responsible for all those attending. It is their best interest to keep things safe. The same goes for sororities and events that they host. It is in both organizations’ best interest so they can stay clean in the eyes of the Panhellenic and Interfraternity Councils. And closing Greek Life parties to first-years? Doesn’t that counteract Bucknell’s mission state of community? How are first-years supposed to feel a part of campus when they are forbidden from attending certain parties or events?

We understand the task force has good intentions and that there are issues on campus that need to be addressed. That being said, the skewed statistics and goals the University is proposing are extreme. Punish members of the community who need to be punished. The administration did that with the Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Kappa Delta Rho fraternities. All others, those Greek organizations and students who are following the rules, should not be penalized.

Categories
Featured News

Academic West moving forward

By Sara Matthews

Contributing Writer

Construction on the Academic West quad is set to begin in late March or early April of 2012, assuming the trustees and senior administration give the go-ahead.

According to Project Manager Angelo Vieceli, the University looked long and hard at how best to use the 50 acres on site. The Academic West structure will be the first building constructed in the new quad and the first housing step taken on the farm property as it will double as a learning and a living environment.

Master planning for construction began in 2006, and specific plans for Academic West started in 2009. 

“We call the construction of Academic West an enabling process,” said Dennis Hawley, Associate Vice President for Facilities.

Some faculty members are currently isolated from their departments, and the administration hopes the new construction will bring entire departments under the same roof.

The site will also feature apartment-style living halls. The current design for the new housing involves four four-story apartment-style buildings that will house 89 students each. This housing is mainly targeted toward upperclassmen.

“The goal of this project is to make everyone happy. We want to satisfy the needs of the University, and at the same time we want these buildings to be inviting and timeless,” said Jim Hostetler, Director of Construction and Design. Hostetler also wants the project to finish on time and under budget.

“[Academic West] is the first building for the new quad, and it will set the stage for future architecture and the growth of the University,” Hawley said.

The construction is set to be a 15-month project. Workers will work from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. during the week and will only add extra hours if they are behind schedule. Hostetler believes that around 100 workers will be working every day. He thinks they will cycle through a few hundred workers over the course of the construction process.

Hostetler said that there were some setbacks because of the recent flooding in the area. Because the ground was wet, they were unable to move the soil to shape the ground for construction. They were also unable to get materials onto campus during the flood.

Project coordinators have planned in advance for seasonal weather disruptions such as snow, sleet and hurricanes.

This construction is deemed a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) project. This is an internationally-recognized green building certification system, and it is the first project for the campus that conforms to LEED orders.

According to its website, “LEED provides building owners and operators with a framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions.”

During the construction decision-making process, the final decision was made with the environment in mind. Natural plants will also be implemented to help clean runoff rainwater.

“The University wants to make sure it is spending money wisely and meeting academic needs,” Hawley said.