Author Archives | Danielle Walczak

‘It’s just a game’ (and the plight of females everywhere)

“It’s just a game,” I repeated to myself as I walked off the court after a one point loss in my co-ed intramural basketball game. It’s the mantra my mother gave me and I repeated to myself throughout my high school, collegiate — and now intramural — basketball careers.

We lost our game, but not because we didn’t get a shot off in time. No, my male teammate made a three-pointer right before the buzzer which, if it counted, would have put us two points ahead for a win. We lost because a female from our team failed to touch the ball on the final possession.

“It’s just a game.” I said to myself.  “An intramural game,” I added in an attempt to convince myself it wasn’t a big deal. In my 12 years of playing hoops, I’ve received my fair share of outlandish foul calls, but this felt different. This wasn’t something I did or didn’t do. This was my gender inhibiting my ability to play basketball in a way that allowed my team to win a basketball game. I was angry. I still am.

In a pre-season captains’ meeting, the group unanimously voted that there should be no additional rules outside the preexisting rules of the game.

People take intramurals seriously.

We wanted to play basketball. Each team had to have two people of each gender on the floor at the same time; fair enough. It’s co-ed basketball. That’s what we’re all here for. Personally, I have a bunch of male friends who I love playing basketball with. My friends. My peers. My equals. That’s it.

Yet, after the first round of games we received an email announcing the addition of a new rule: “Once the ball gets into the front court, a person from each sex needs to touch the ball at least once before a shot gets taken. This doesn’t include a fast break opportunity.”

The University of Maine’s non-discrimination notice states: “The University of Maine does not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, including transgender status and gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, genetic information or veteran status in employment, education, and all other programs and activities.”

So as the referees kindly pointed out, the new co-ed basketball rule was not sexist or gendered because it explicitly states that both “genders have to touch the ball.” Not “a female has to touch the ball.”

“It’s fair,” they argued with us.

I get it: they enforce the rules. They don’t make them. The existence of the rule itself is the issue.

When will my ability as a basketball player speak louder than my given organs?

Sports are possibly one of the most gendered activities. In formal settings, there are usually “men’s teams” and “women’s teams.” Co-ed teams are left for “fun” time, there are no official co-ed teams and a quick Google search will reveal a whole load of people who have opinions as to why there never should be.

Professional sports aside, what these opinionated people show a discrepancy between the societal validity of women’s and men’s sports.

“The majority of these issues have their root in the assumption that the male body is naturally stronger and ‘built’ for athletic competition,” Jennie Woodard, professor in the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Department and Honors Preceptor, said. “Though biological research does indicate that the male body might have certain advantages, the larger problem comes in how to legitimize the female athlete.”

Woodard is teaching a Woman and Gender Studies class next fall called “Gender and Sports,” that will discuss this issue and many others. One story they will pay close attention to is that of Dutee Chand.

Chand, India’s 18 and under 100-meter champion and a front-runner for the the Olympics. When she demonstrated a too-high level of natural testosterone she was banned from competing until she lowered it either through surgery or testosterone-suppressant drugs. The International Association of Federal Athletics ruled her testosterone level was that in the range of “male,” giving her an unfair advantage. Chand refuses to comply, telling the New York Times, “I feel that it’s wrong to have to change your body for sport participation.”

“The idea that the male body is naturally more athletic creates a condition where women often have to legitimize their position as athlete,” Woodard said. “If they are ‘too masculine,’ they have an unfair advantage, if they are ‘too feminine,’ they are not athletic enough.”

Many argue for the necessity of rules that give everyone a “fair chance” like the new co-ed basketball one or the necessity of government rulings like Title IX. As someone who has experienced the benefits of government mandates like Title IX, I feel a deep sense of gratitude for those who came before me and paved the way, playing in hallways instead of gyms and getting ridiculed for their athletic desires so I could get a fair chance at playing. I’m thankful for the opportunities it has provided me.

But rules like the co-ed basketball rule are not as much an attempt at equality but more an underlying mentality that females’ physical capabilities are less valuable than males and thus they must be tended to in order to play fairly. Letting me play fairly would be letting me get that “and one” on the guy defending me without blowing a whistle because I didn’t pass to a male on my team first.

Another anecdote for emphasis: Pick-up basketball at the recreation center. Nine male players, one female (that’s me). Everyone picks who they will guard. My team is on offense first and no one gaurds me. “Who’s going to guard her?” asks someone on the other team. Nothing. I play two possessions and score before someone picks me up — begrudgingly.

I wasn’t acknowledged as existing. It’s not rules but the opinion of people I was playing with that I don’t have value as a teammate, player — I wasn’t legitimized.

To begin addressing the issue, Woodard suggest that we realize athleticism and strength are not inherent or fixed.

“We tend to focus on individual factors like diet, workout regimens, and natural body strength in order to determine one’s athleticism, but we have to look beyond the individual to see the long term social effects. Like education or government, sports functions as an institution with a long history.”

Woodard provided the example of qualifying times to enter the Boston Marathon. Men age 18 to 34 have to meet a three hour five minutes time in a previous race to qualify. For women the time is three hours and 35 minutes — a 30-minute difference — that to Woodard might suggest men are naturally faster than women. Yet the race record holders in the male and female races are only separated by 16 minutes. The first Boston Marathon occurred in 1897 and women were not allowed until 1972.

“I’d say female marathoners have come a long way in a rather short period of time. If women had been given the space to compete from the start, imagine the records those early women might have set,” Woodard said.

I feel lucky and thankful UMaine Intramural sports has allowed me the opportunity to play with my male and female friends in the same setting. However, being able to play, and I mean really play, is to do so without special treatment because of my sex.

 

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Outdoors Month at the Maine Campus

Welcome back,

Over Spring Break, I took a week for a much-needed mental hiatus. As the final days of my vacation ran down and the impending completion of my thesis hung over my head, I looked down from the slopes of Sugarloaf on a sunny bluebird day. From the top of Gondi Line, I could see for miles. Everything looked within reach, but painted in the white, blue and gray that is winter, as we know it. The Bigelow Mountain range looked as though I could hold it in my hand. Before plunging down the headwall, I could see Sunday River and Mount Katahdin. As I moved down the side of the trail covered in drifts, my skis were barely touching the snow beneath them. It was one of the warmest days I’ve skied all season. I could finally drop a few layers as the warm air — a bittersweet tension between the best skiing of the season and the impending end of the semester (and ski season) — sifted past me.

In this moment, as I prepare to graduate, I feel a sense of gratitude for this place. For Orono, for Sugarloaf, the mountains, Acadia and the the coast in Rockland. I feel thankful for the Stillwater and the summer inner-tube floats it has allowed me or the Demerritt Forest trail system to ride my bike on. The outdoor opportunities in Maine, seem to me, the highest  reason I and many of you chose to study at UMaine in the first place. Throughout my years in Orono, I’ve been more attached to place. The Stillwater in October at sunset or The Mall when the grass first turns green and slack-liners return.

When your intentions for being here are place-based, it’s hard to say goodbye.

In our two remaining issues in March we celebrate the outdoors, with the coming of spring and the return of the warm-weather activities we love. Or the appreciation for Maine’s ability to prolong winter and allow us more skiing and ice climbing days — equally worthy activities. Although there still may be snow on graduation, I challenge you to enjoy it. Enjoy the place that provides a habitat, not only for us, but for so many other species and landscapes.

Although it’s not a booming metropolitan center, there’s always something to do in Maine. All you have to remember is: go out your front door.

 

Enjoy,

Danielle Walczak

Culture Editor

 

Look for Outdoors-themed stories this month with the logo at the top of this column.

 

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Student initiative garners support for School of Performing Arts

 

There was still a line in the entrance of Hauck Auditorium last year when Ben McNaboe told workers they had to stop selling tickets for an Evening of Rodgers and Hammerstein School of Performing Arts fundraiser. The 514-seat auditorium was full. McNaboe, a music education student who organized and created the event was shocked.

The event, which featured a full orchestra and vocal soloists comprised of students, later became the School of Performing Arts’ (SPA) biggest fundraiser, grossing over $10,000. What started as an idea among McNaboe and his faculty mentor, Liz Downing became a turning point in support for SPA. The event conjured a sense of community beyond the typical bond between SPA students — who share interest and a building in 1944 Hall — but with Orono and Old Town, with alumni and students. It was a change McNaboe had been orchestrating for a while.

In its second year, the fundraiser moved to the Collins Center for the Arts with around 1,000 more seats and higher expectations. On Jan. 23 at 7:30 p.m. students will take the stage as vocal soloists andmembers of full orchestra and big band, along with UMaine alumni, Merritt David James to sing “150 Years of American Song.” They will perform Sinatra classics and Ella Fitzgerald-staples, interspersed with modern day songs from jazz singers, Michael Buble, Amy Winehouse and Tony Bennett. The gala event is $12 for students and $25 for adults. All proceeds benefit SPA but for McNaboe the meaning behind his event extends it’s fiduciary draw.

“In my mind the most important and my initial hope would do something big and altogether,” McNaboe said. “There is something big about that that excites me and it’s not the money, the money is great but it’s the getting everyone together to work as one and creating these really great experiences for students to work together.”

For Alexis Gillis “150 Years of American Music” helped her feel welcomed to UMaine as a first-year Elementary Education student. “This event has made me feel even more like I am part of of a community. It’s a reminder that I am part of not just the group of people who are currently attending this school, but I am a part of a larger group of the 150 years worth of people who have attended this university too,” Gillis said of the event which resonates with the University’s 150 year celebration.

McNaboe is a conductor in all senses of the word. He conducts the event’s orchestra but as part of the fundraiser’s move to a bigger venue in the CCA, he conducts a team of people he recruited to help organize the event behind the scenes, which he said has been a lesson in delegating and surrounding himself with people he can trust. “This is such a big animal and you can’t do it yourself,” he said.

McNaboe’s family jokes that from a young age he talked like an adult. Though he’s appeared in various different TV spots and is always in meetings he doesn’t think he’ll get worn out. The idea of taking more than a few days off between semesters began to annoy him. He hates the word “settle.”

“Sometimes people don’t know what to think of you when you’re so laser focused to do something and passionate about something,” McNaboe said. However, his passion to enhance the community already apparent in the arts and SPA comes out through teaching, albeit not in a classroom, but through bringing people together.

“It’s not often that I’ve had the opportunity to play along with an orchestra and vocalists, so I think getting the feel of how everything will work could pose a challenge,” Jennifer Fletcher said. Fletcher is a third-year music education student and a saxophonist in the orchestra. “The only way to prepare is to know my music and trust Ben [McNaboe]. In the end, it’ll all come together.”

During a 700-call phone-a-thon, McNaboe realized the impact SPA has on it’s constituents. The phone-a-thon took longer than expected because the alumni on the other end of the line wanted to talk about SPA and it’s place at UMaine. “[It’s a] big statement about the community that not only SPA has, but the campus has,” McNaboe said.

One impacted alumni was Merritt David James, the show’s featured vocalist. After graduating from UMaine in 2004, the now 33-year-old began a career as an actor performing in title roles in six Broadway National Tours. James, a former member of UMaine’s male a cappella group The Steiners, has also performed as a vocalist in places like Broadway’s Beacon Theater and Carnegie Hall.

James’ trip to UMaine marks his first time visiting in six years. In addition to his performance on Friday at 7:30 p.m., James will also be conducting a Master’s Class Thursday at 3 p.m. in Minsky Recital Hall, which is open to the public and a guest performance at a local school.

James was inspired to enroll at UMaine after attending Maine Summer Youth Music Program as a middle school and high school student. SPA soon became James’ home base at UMaine.

“It was the center of everything I did during my entire time in school,” James said. “A place and time where I gathered ammunition to exist and survive in today’s musical and theatrical performing arena.”

Along with James “150 Years of American Song,” combines talents from across the university, giving students a chance to play music they wouldn’t ordinarily have and allowing vocalist to perform on a big stage with them. Thomas Macy, a fourth-year Sustainable Agriculture Student typically plays in the University Orchestra, which focuses on the professional repertoire.

“Big band music isn’t a part of that,” Macy said. “This performance will draw on an unusual amount of talent within the University of Maine’s SPA student body, or at least more than I’m used to working with.”

McNaboe hopes these connections can foster, not only support of SPA but the community.

“The most important thing we can do here is build community,” McNaboe said. “It’s one of the fundamental building blocks for everything a University has to do.”

150 Years of American Song is one night only on Jan. 23 at 7:30 p.m. at the CCA. Tickets are $12 for students and $25 for adults.

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Top Five Slam Poems

Slam poetry finds us at the right times. Whether it’s a link off Facebook or a post on Upworthy — if YouTube is good for one thing besides cat videos, it’s slam poetry. Famous poet Neil Hilborn will be performing at UMaine on Friday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. in the North Pod of the Memorial Union.

The Boston-based poet became famous after his performance of his poem “OCD” went viral, gaining more than 8 million views on YouTube. Hilborn is a College National Poetry Slam champion, and a 2011 graduate with honors from Macalester College with a degree in Creative Writing. Neil was a member of the 2011 Macalester Poetry Slam team, which ranked first in the nation at the 2011 College National Poetry Slam. His work has been featured in publications such as Borderline Magazine and Orange Quarterly.

Hilborn consistently posts new slam poetry on his Facebook page perpetuating the idea of sharing words and ideas through slam poetry. In the spirit of this idea here are five great slams to check out. Reminder, there’s nothing like hearing a slam in person so be sure to see Hilborn in the Union on Friday.

 

1. “The Future” — Neil Hilborn  

Neil Hilborn went viral for a reason, his poetry has a way of remaining specific to his own experience but relating ideas to an audience that are accessible and applicable. In “The Future” Hilborn speaks about disordered cognitive functioning. Hilborn moves from satirical to serious while remaining inspiring. He points out the fragility in life. He relates that life isn’t perfect but the imperfections are the reasons to keep living, to see the future (also of interest: “OCD” and “Mating Habits of the North American Hipster”).

2. “More Often than Sometimes” — Shane Koyczan

Shane Koyczan’s gentle presence makes this poem intimate and subtle. While the subject of the poem is often forward, Koyczan does a great deal of work to build the character of his partner through scenes and small details. His anecdotal evidence builds into a poem that touches you on the shoulder, saying ‘remember that time you fell in love? Yeah, it felt good didn’t it?’ (also of interest: “To This Day”).

3. “The Nutritionist” — Andrea Gibson

Andrea Gibson grew up in Maine, occupying a special place in the hearts of Mainers who love slam. Gibson’s work focuses on issues of social equality and gender norms, however she tells many of these stories through relationships and love. “The Nutritionist” uses the speaker’s experience with doctors trying to “cure” her of being gay. She tells stories through metaphors, which bleed into her experiences. Gibson’s most recent album “Golden Bird” incorporates music with her poetry (also of interest: “Maybe I need you”).

 

4. “Pretty” — Katie Makkai, Man Up — Guante

Thematically, these poems compliment each other. They address media images of gender and the pressure to conform to those issues. Makkai talks about her mother’s pressure for her to undergo surgery, all to fulfill the image of being “pretty.” Guante approaches the concept of the term “man up” and the term’s detrimental nature (also of interest: “Smalltalk” Guante)

 

5. “No Child Left Behind” — Dominique Christina and Denise Frohman

This poem made the final stages of College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational. Christina and Frohman, who are both great poets individually, team up to create a stronger voice under the name “Sister Outsider.” Their voice speaks for all minorities who struggle to fit into the confines of standardized education under the banner of “No Child Left Behind.” They speak on a theme a lot of other slam poets address but do so in a way that says “we won’t take no,” and with a unified voice for a better future (also of interest: “The Period Poem” from Christina and “Dear Straight People”).

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Out of the Darkness brings suicide awareness, prevention

By Danielle Walczak and Cameron Paquette

As Roxy and Davey Easler stood facing a crowd on the University of Maine mall Sunday afternoon, they were surrounded by support. Several people joined the Easlers on stage, representing those who have been impacted by the loss of a parent, a sibling, a husband and a family member, along with a survivor. The Easlers were representing their son, Jonathan, who died by suicide in April 2007.

On Oct. 5, the support the Easlers received at the sixth annual Out of the Darkness Community Walk, advocating suicide prevention, was a feeling they wish their son could have felt before he graduated college and took his own life in April 2007.

“I hope this event can give someone the courage to get the medical help they need to save their life. We need to bring awareness to mental illness. If we had cancer we’d go to get help,” said Roxy Easler, of Corinth.

Jonathan had been receiving help for depression through therapy and medication since the 10th grade. In the summer before his third year of college, Jonathan sent a note to his parents in an attempted suicide:

“I’m sorry, but I have to leave you now.”

Two years later he took his life.

According to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, 15 percent of graduate students and 18 percent of undergraduate students have seriously considered suicide in their lifetimes.

On a campus of approximately 12,000 students, that means 2,160 UMaine students could be dealing with depression on an unbearable level, a level that leaves no options for them but to end their own lives.

According to Kelly Shaw, a member of the UMaine Counseling Center and the Out of the Darkness event organizer, the stigmatism around suicide is what stops students from getting the help they may need.

“It’s a shameful secret for many people, which pushes them down and prevents them from getting help and the support they need,” Shaw said.

According to Roxy Easler, when her son died by suicide she said, “It was like people thought they were going to catch a bad disease from you.”

For Shaw, one of the ways to reduce the discomfort around suicide is to name it. She uses the “died by suicide” rather than “committed suicide.”

“‘Commit’ has many negative connotations. It eliminates people’s perception of being shamed by suicide,” she said. “Stigma is the main thing keeping people from getting the help they need, which keeps the problem going. It is important to support friends and loved ones so they feel valued.”

According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, one person dies by suicide every 13 minutes throughout the nation.

These statistics, along with the ways in which they can be reversed, are the impetus behind the creation of the annual Out of the Darkness Community Walk.

A national event, Out of the Darkness was co-sponsored by the UMaine Division of Student Life and St. Joseph’s Health Care. The event began with an opening ceremony, with a performance by UMaine a capella group Renaissance and an address from congressional candidate Sen. Emily Cain.

When Cain attended the University, one of her friends in the University Singers took her own life. The event spurred Cain to attend and speak at every Out of the Darkness Community Walk since its inception in Orono.

“It takes us not being afraid to talk about suicide, not being afraid to be there to listen. That’s what this event is about, that’s why I’m so humbled to be a part of it for so many years in a row now. To raise awareness of this issue that no one is immune from. We have the tools because we have one another to take on suicide in our community,” Cain said.

According to Shaw, there are late warning signs such as intense isolation, giving away possessions, vague goodbyes on social media, depression, feelings of helplessness and not seeing a future, which indicate the person may be at imminent risk of suicide.

Calling the University of Maine Police Department is the first step to take if you think the person is at immediate risk. Shaw said to ask the person directly, saying “I’m concerned; are you thinking about suicide?” According to Shaw, naming suicide can be a relief.

There are also many campus resources — such as the UMaine Counseling Center — for people struggling with thoughts of suicide or people trying to help them. Relationship training programs, faculty training programs and the student group Active Minds are offered as additional resources.

Active Minds is a student group that meets weekly to help spread awareness about mental illness.

For Russell Fascione, co-president of Active Minds, the importance is in “the willingness of students to learn how they can help others, not be a bystander and get the knowledge to help others.”

For Lois Holmes, whose husband took his own life after a six-year battle with three different types of cancer, the walk is a way that she can give and receive support with people who have experienced similar tragedies.

“We can hurt together, share together and smile together and work so others feel like this is something they don’t have to do [alone],” Holmes said.

One simple way to achieve this feeling of community is just saying hello to a stranger.

“Sometimes just looking up from our cell phones, texting on campus and saying ‘good morning’ could mean the world to someone. […] That’s just what makes the world better,” Holmes said.

For more information on suicide prevention, or to schedule a counseling session, the Counseling Center is open on campus at the Cutler Health Center from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday and can be reached at 207-581-1392. Sessions are free to UMaine students.

For Student Life relationship training programs contact Janice Grant on FirstClass. Active Minds, student group meets Thursdays at 5 p.m. in the Senior Skulls room on the third floor of the Memorial Union.

 

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GSS alocates money to student groups

In the General Student Senate (GSS) meeting on Tuesday, GSS began with $117,760.79 unallocated funds to distribute to students and student groups that they see fit. By the end of the meeting, there were upwards of $13,800 funds distributed throughout different student groups.

 

Clubs receive funding

The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) was awarded $3,200 to bring 16 students to the AIChE Conference.

Club Field Hockey was awarded funds for goalie equipment, travel and referee fees after their budget was mulled over by GSS members, who removed the money for warm-up uniforms from their budget.

“I’m iffy about paying for things that aren’t absolutely necessary,” Sen. Caroline Harvey said.

Sen. Donnacha Coyle added that passing the budget wouldn’t stop other teams from “wanting to come to us and wanting swag apparel for their teams.”

The Cyber Security Team received $2,550 to update its computer stations, which are used to simulate different company environments and problem solve. The team’s current computer stations are 10 years old.

The Society of Women Engineers were allocated $2,700 for their airfare and registration fee for nine groups members to attend their National Meeting Career Fair.

The UMaine Photography Club received $60 to pay for its entrance fee to Acadia National Park, where they spent the day taking photographs.

The Golf Club was awarded $830 to attend two tournaments in New Hampshire this fall.

UMaine Tennis Club was allotted $619 for a tournament at Harvard, which the group will send  its top six players.

 

GSS passes procedural resolutions

The first act modified the Fair Election Practices Commission (FEPC) guidelines. Before the act passed, GSS could not make changes such as they had been in the same meeting they voted in. The act allowed them to make the changes and enact them in the same meeting.

Another act, which further modified the FEPC guidelines, was tabled until the next senate meeting due to a lack of paperwork provided to the senators.

There was an act to create a new standing committee within the UMSG Inc. The act passed and allows the group to provide information to students about “issues on the state, federal and local levels,” according to Donnach Coyle, the sponsor of the act. He said the act will help “enhance the undergraduate experience and help inform students.”

An act to change a senate resolutions rules was also passed. The act clarified where and how resolutions will be communicated.

 

President’s report

In UMSG Inc. President Justin Conant’s report, he said he is beginning meetings discussing the construction of a new astroturf field next to the field hockey field for Student Recreation teams.

He also mentioned that Student Athletic Advisory Committee Co-President Liz Wood is working on insulating the dome from 50 degrees to “something bearable.”

 

Student Entertainment hints at concert

A comedian will be visiting campus on Nov. 10, according to Vice President for Student Entertainment Patrick Fortier Brown.

 

Club reports back

The Crew Club thanked GSS for sending 16 members to their crew race in Merrimack, Mass.

 

Fraternity seeks new members

Austin Sellers spoke to GSS as “a little bit of a shameless plug for Pi Kap.”

Sellers was attempting to recruit members for his new fraternity Pi Kappa Phi.

 

New positions

GSS Sen. Randy Bosquette was elected as Sergeant In Arms. He is now responsible for the protection of senate, the flags and table cloths.

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Student groups report from Climate March at GSS meeting

The General Student Senate (GSS) gathered on Tuesday in the Bangor Room of the Memorial Union to give funding to student groups and hear from a guest speaker.

 

Wellness Resource Center speaker

 

Lauri Sidelko from the Student Wellness Center addressed GSS about the voting process for campus.

 

The Student Wellness Center’s program UMaine UVote helps students register to vote in the Memorial Union through Oct. 14.

 

A voter education period meant to keep students up to date will start Oct. 14 and stretch through to Nov. 4.

 

She said if anyone has any questions about how to vote, they should visit www.rockthevote.com.

 

Sidelko encouraged students to sign up for the Black Bear Attack on Oct. 4, a Tough Mudder-style race. It will begin at 11 a.m. at the New Balance Student Recreation Center. Registration is $15 and covers the cost of a T-shirt and for food.

 

Sidelko also mentioned that it was National Hazing Prevention Week.

 

“There have been a lot of alcohol overdose transports this year,” she said.

 

She encouraged students to be ambassadors of bystander interventions: “Don’t hesitate, act.”

 

Student groups report back

 

Fifty-four students travelled to New York City to participate in the People’s Climate March last weekend.

 

President of Maine Peace and Action Coalition (MPAC) Mike Bailey extended his gratitude to student government for funding two buses.

 

“Words can’t do justice to how great the event was,” he said. “A lot of the students [we sent] had never been involved in MPAC or Green Team, and then upon returning, are confident they will be more involved.”

 

MPAC, who organized the event, sent one bus to New York City. Bailey said he will refund GSS the money they were unable to use to get a second bus.

 

Bailey said there were at least 310,000 people at the event, which pushed Rockefeller to divest $860 million from fossil fuels.

 

The Maine Steiners also reported back about their spring tour where they traveled across Maine and as far as New York City to spread information about their group and UMaine.

 

The group has a new album and is starting an endowed scholarship.

 

Student Entertainment to have “blue out”

 

During the UMaine football game against Villanova on Oct. 4 will be a “blue out” game. The first 1,000 students at the game will receive a free T-shirt.

 

A comedian, who has not yet been announced, will be performing midway through November.

 

Faculty Senate report

 

According Lindsay Nutter, the GSS representative for Faculty Senate said they have a vision to save UMaine $18 million a year.

 

They are also discussing moving some labs from Tuesday and Thursday to Monday and Wednesday.

 

They also discussed the new hours at the Union and how they present a challenge to commuter students.

 

Student Athletic Advisory Committeeand homecoming

 

The Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) is organizing a 21-and-under tailgating for the homecoming football game. They will have a moon bounce; “power” pong, which uses Powerade; and a photobooth.

 

Student Group gains preliminary recognition

 

Women’s club soccer remains preliminary recognition. The team is currently playing intramurals and practicing every Sunday from 3:30 p.m to 5 p.m. while looking for schools to play against.

 

Student groups request funding

 

The International Student Association received $1,100 for food and supplies for their weekly coffee hour, which is attended by around 70 students each week.

 

Men’s Ice Hockey Club fundraised around $4,500 and received $6,000 from GSS for equipment and travelling expenses.

 

Ski and Snowboard Club received $5,895 from GSS for their trips to Saddleback, Sugarloaf and Sunday River. They also plan to have a Ski Movie Premiere on Nov. 6.

 

Alpha Gamma Rho received $513 for supplies from GSS for their annual Paint Wars Philanthropy event.

 

GSS names new positions

 

Randy Bosquet and Tory Lawrence were sworn in as senators.

 

Donncha Coyle was named president of the Political Activist Committee.

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Community Garden Installation at UMaine

Just off College Avenue, there is a white house which sits on a quarter-acre lawn surrounded by trees. It was originally an energy systems experiment conducted by two UMaine professors, a contractor and several graduate students and used for interdisciplinary research.

For the majority of the past 10 years it was vacant, until three inspired graduate students coveted the house with one major goal: sustainability.

Since April 2012, three resident members have been living in the Terrell House Permaculture Living and Learning Center and organizing potlucks, along with gardening and educational classes.

On April 27, they will be installing a community garden at a public volunteer-based event. All are welcome to participate. The garden will feature a 32-foot mandala with eight keyhole garden beds, which will be managed by different groups.

The free public event will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 491A College Ave. in Orono. The community garden will provide a space for permaculture demonstrations and community engagement. Breakfast will be served at the event from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and lunch will be potluck.

The event aims to teach students and community members low-maintenance, sustainable cultivation techniques that will be used in the community garden.

“This is a significant milestone for permaculture education at UMaine and an opportunity to celebrate as well as work together to build the community garden. It’s also a much more visible aspect of all the work that we have been doing,” said Dee Clark, an intermedia M.F.A. student and Terrell House resident who drafted the house proposal.

Permaculture, a derivative of the words permanent and culture, matches the word’s implications. The intentional living approach takes a holistic approach to landscape design and human culture while integrating a whole-systems approach of biology, ecology, geography, agriculture, architecture, appropriate technology, gardening and community building.

Eileen Hagerman, Terrell House Resident Steward and Grounds and Research Coordinator, describes permaculture as a holistic and ethical — but also common sense approach to design.

“Permaculture designers often see problems as design challenges,” Hagerman said. “An overabundance of something, like water, for example, means that you’re not fully utilizing it as a resource. Instead of trying to get rid of the excess, why not find a better way to make use of it?”

Emily Markides, a peace and reconciliation professor who teaches courses about intentional communities at UMaine, had the three to-be residents in her class where they originally connected. Their class project became a reality after Markides, who has been working for 10 years to introduce UMaine to permaculture, had a conversation with Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration Janet Waldron. She told Markides, “that the university might be ready for its first on-campus permaculture site.”

When a proposal was approved, Clark, Hagerman and Mike Emery began living at the Terrell house and starting its transformation to a permaculture learning center.

The community garden started in 2013 as a 15-by-25-foot fenced garden used by the residents of the Terrell House and some neighbors. Residents also planted a pollinator garden to attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.

The plots to be planted at the event are held by different organizations such as the student groups The Environmental Studies Coalition; Green Team; Sustainable Agriculture Enthusiasts; and Sustainable Education & Ecological Design. Community plot-holders are Friends of Edith Patch; University of Maine alumni; and the Terrell House residents.

As a testament to the Terrell House’s core tenet of community, the garden was made possible by Graduate Student Government who donated the funds along with the Intermedia MFA Program and Environmental Studies Coalition. UMaine Facilities Management and Argyle Acres Farm donated manure, Wells Dining Commons has donated buckets and the Bangor Daily News contributed cardboard and newspaper.

Besides the garden, the Terrell House provides a location for interdisciplinary learning and research, events, workshops, and a resident community, which was made possible through collaboration between UMaine Office of Sustainability, and the nonprofit Stillwater SHIFT Inc.

The Terrell House was first built in the 1980s by engineering professor Richard C. Hill, poetry professor Carroll F. Terrell and builder R.W. Estela. The energy systems experiment includes a passive solar heating system, wood stove, solar water collector and radiant floors.

Terrell occupied the house until he died in 2003. Hill continued to use the house for educational purposes but it was largely unused until 2012 when Terrell House PLLC began.

Each resident has different reasons for joining the Terrell House PLLC; Dee Clark sees the opportunity as an alternative.

“Rather than complaining or protesting about what is wrong, unhealthy or unsustainable about our society, I feel that it is important and ultimately more effective to create viable alternatives and models to show what else is possible,” she said.

For more information about volunteering contact Mike Emery, Terrell House volunteer and outreach coordinator, at 207-215-7441.

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Adapted Swim and Gym celebrates 30 years

Miranda is 9 years old. She loves the color pink. She loves coloring. She loves art. She does not like exercising. Physical activity is a matter of uncertainty for the adapted physical education participant.

Miranda would shut down at the prospect of running backwards. She’d move to the corner of the MAC court in the New Balance Student Recreation Center. She did not want to go through an obstacle course. In her mind she couldn’t do it, and therefore, she wouldn’t try.

This was until her instructor, Holly Stewart, a third-year exercise science major, discovered the power of pictures.

“We had a breakthrough day when I got all the pictures together and had the visual aid.”

Stewart printed photos showing activities like “kicking” and “running.” She showed Miranda the visual plan ahead of time, and it worked. Miranda ran backwards.

“She needs to see things as opposed to me telling or demonstrating,” Stewart said.

To get Miranda, who has high-functioning autism, warmed up, Stewart runs with her student to different stations where they pretended to jump like a kangaroo or swim like a shark.

“It teaches you to adapt to situations,” Stewart said of her class. Developmental motor and aquatics laboratory teaches adaption in more ways than one.

Adapted Physical Education, more conversationally known as “swim and gym,” is a required class for all kinesiology and physical education students at the University of Maine. Each college class member is paired with a student who has a mental or intellectual disability ranging from autism to ADHD. Students range from age 3 to 30. Each partnership is different. Each is unique, just like the class.

In Adapted P.E., students manipulate the environments of the gym and pool to help their partner participate in physical activity just as any other student would.

“I think it was that the dynamic interaction between the person, the task and the environment. I’m not going to change your physiology,” said Steve Butterfield, the class instructor. “I’m not going to change you. But I’m going to change the environment and the task so you can participate better. That core principle has stood the test of time.”

This Maine Day will conclude the 30th year of swim and gym, a class Butterfield began when he arrived at UMaine.

“When I went to college, I wanted to be the world’s greatest basketball coach, but that wasn’t in the cards,” he said. Butterfield got a job at a school for the deaf as a gym teacher and basketball coach.

When the deinstitutionalization of special education laws was passed, suddenly Butterfield’s classes were filled with people who had multiple disabilities. Realizing his own unpreparedness, he decided to “retool.” After attending graduate school at Ohio State, he returned to his deep roots in New England, got a job at UMaine and swim and gym was born.

Adapted P.E. is an opportunity for students in kinesiology and physical education to glean skills that will help them in whatever field they work in — “real world” skills, as many people involved in the class refer to them.

“I truly believe that all good physical education is adapted. Whether you’re working with someone with a severe disability or a gifted athlete,” Butterfield said. “Principles of adapted physical education are kind of universal. And if you master that, you can see that and apply that. Whether you’re a coach, athletic trainer, teacher.”

Each pairing is unique — Butterfield labors over the right groupings. He believes each student has an “Aha” moment at a different time. For Stewart and her student, that breakthrough came with visual aids.

“When I see [Miranda having] fun and enjoying things she said she wasn’t going to like — seeing her do things she thinks she can’t — [it] is really rewarding,” Stewart said.

The moment is typical and a common occurrence among Butterfield’s students, whom he said go through five stages throughout the class: first, fear, apprehension and uncertainty; next, anger at their instructor. Then comes the third stage where they “figure it out and become competent.” Fourth is confidence. “They get their kid and clipboard [and] go to work”, and finally the fifth step is ownership, “where [college students] start referring to them as ‘my kid.’”

“What comes out of it? The change, because my students change more than the kids they serve,” Butterfield said. “They change a lot”

However, for participants in swim and gym, it means more than gym class.

Bryce Kennedy, 29, has participated in swim and gym since he was in high school and describes the class in one word: helpful.

“And I’ll tell you why,” he said. “If it wasn’t for everyone here, I don’t know where I’d be. The college students devote their time and effort to be with people who have special needs.”

For Lynn Farber, a Greenhouse Nursery School aide who comes with the participants, the class is all about altering perspectives.

Farber said people approach her and comment on how much taller Bryce is standing, both physically — he’s been working on lifting upper and lower body with his college student partner — and emotionally.

“They say, ‘I can’t believe how much straighter he’s walking.’ It’s about teaching the individual what’s important in their life,” Farber said.

It’s connections like this that string together the class’ existence and impact not only the college students’ lives but the community as well.

“I don’t think any of the students ever forget or lose sight of [the experience], which is a huge gift Steve’s been giving, and he’s been giving this gift for 30-plus years,” Farber said.

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The Student Housing debacle

When University of Maine junior-to-be Charlotte Roe decided to live on campus for the 2014-15 school year, she thought it’d be like every other.

She’d get the convenience of on-campus housing, meal plans and community. On Feb. 18, she received an email that would change that. As part of a new procedural change, juniors and seniors with less than 40 credits would have to find off-campus housing. Roe had 39. A few weeks later, the 20-year-old journalism student from Bellport, N.Y. found herself signing one of the five remaining leases at Orchard Trails.


“It’s disappointing,” Roe said. “You look forward to going to college and a true college experience and having your college tell you there’s no room for you here — I personally think it’s a loss because I really do enjoy being here.”

Roe isn’t the only one. Before spring break, UMaine Housing Services sent an email to students in the residence halls notifying them of a change in housing placement procedures. Now, sophomores will be given priority based on their credit hours, while juniors and seniors have the options of Oak, DTAV and Patch. Previously, sophomores, juniors and seniors were placed based on credit hours.


First-year students continue to receive guaranteed housing. Starting in Fall 2014, York Hall will become a first-year dorm. Honors’ housing — a mix of first-year, sophomores, juniors and seniors — will not change.


With 173 students still on a waitlist for on-campus housing, time is running short. Between Orono and Old Town, upwards of 43 properties and some single rooms remain available for rent, according to off-campus listings and local housing property managers. However, only 3,264 beds will be available through UMaine Housing in 2014, 21 less than in 2013.

To account for a growing first-year class, Housing Services increased their first-year housing by 121 beds from the Fall 2013 semester. Sophomores were allotted 118 more spaces while juniors and seniors lost 296 beds. According to UMaine’s Office of Institutional Research, enrollment in 2012 was 7,477, while enrollment in 2013 was 7,874 students, with a total first-year enrollment of 2,166 people.

Despite an increase in allotted sophomore housing, a larger increase in first-year classes created a “domino effect” leaving 149 of the sophomores who applied without housing.

Ashley Thibeault, a senior who received housing, was nervous about her prospects when she saw the email announcement. She sees living on campus as a way to get involved. 


“[While living on-campus,] I was able to interact with more upperclassmen. They have experience,” Thibeault said. “Involving your upperclassmen is a good plan. They lead groups and improve campus life.”

Shawn Berry, a senior Journalism student, has one more semester in his undergraduate career. Campus housing was necessary for him, enabling him to move for employment upon graduation in December 2014.

“[I thought,] ‘Am I going to have a place to live?’” he said. “It’s something I have to brace for.”  

The announcement has left students feeling lost in their housing search in what Daniel Sturrup, Executive Director of Auxiliary Services, called, a painful situation but a good decision for the institution.

According to Sturrup, Residence Life approached him in November 2013 to discuss a change in student housing that would allocate more beds for sophomores in order to provide better advising and support through a Second Year Experience (SYE) program.


“The SYE began two years ago, because we find that many second-year students continue to face both academic and social struggles,” said Kelly Beers, Assistant Director of Residence Life. “It has been hard to program to the needs of second-year students when they are scattered throughout various residence halls. By consolidating them into a few buildings, we are better able to meet their needs.”


Continued access to advising and on-campus housing has been shown to increase retention rates for sophomores, while access to on-campus housing has shown no significant change in retention rates among juniors and seniors, Jimmy Jung, Vice President of Student Enrollment, said.

At UMaine, about one in five students leave school between their first and second year, while only one and 10 leave between years two and three, according to Assistant Vice President for Student Life Kenda Scheele.

After looking at the retention models and Jung’s enrollment projections, Sturrup decided that he “didn’t want to suddenly push that many juniors and seniors off-campus. So I agreed to increase the space for sophomores.”


Even though the plan was in the works since the fall semester, Sturrup could not move on any change in the housing procedure until Jung confirmed the number of incoming students in January.


“We didn’t know what our demands were going to be [for on-campus housing],” Sturrup said.

Confirming the size of any incoming class is difficult because many students wait to pick their university until they have had a chance to review all the offers from competing schools, and with an increasing number of out-of-state students coming to the university, exact estimates come later in the spring, Jung said.


“We don’t know how the students are going to behave,” Jung said, who mentioned an increasing number of out-of-state students often take longer to commit to UMaine.

Once projections were finalized, Housing Services sent out an email on Feb. 18 informing on-campus students of the change. The announcement, which usually comes after spring break, came early due to a push from Sturrup to get the information to students quickly.

According to Barbara Smith, staff associate at the Commuter and Nontraditional Student Program, most good properties are leased by January or February, making March sign-ups for on-campus housing complicated for students.

Smith, who has 25 years of experience in Residence Life and nine years in the Commuter and Nontraditional Student Program, keeps an online listing of local available properties.  

There are currently five properties available in Orono totaling at six beds, compared to 15 houses in Old Town coming to 33 beds. Additionally, according to The Maine Campus’ research, there are four apartments still available though Cross Properties and five beds available at Orchard Trails. Numbers for The Grove are unavailable, but the property was confirmed to be over three-fourths full. 


As of Friday, Housing Services’ waitlist totaled 173 students: five seniors, 19 juniors and 149 sophomores.


According to Smith, her office has received more calls from students and parents regarding off-campus housing than in years past. The calls also came sooner.

“I think the parents who called me were distressed, even before March break,” Smith said.

Sturrup said most of his complaints came from sophomores who did not receive housing.


Yet Scheele, Smith and Sturrup believe there are resources available for students who did not receive on-campus housing.

Scheele encourages any students who are struggling with housing to meet with her.

“Our goal and hope is not to push people off campus,” she said. “[We] always want to help students as they reach and push for their goals.”


According to Beers, at the end of February there was a renter’s fair, which allowed students to meet local landlords.

Beers said if students did not attend the Renter’s Fair, the Commuter and Nontraditional Student Program’s website has “a lot of great information for students looking for off-campus rentals.” There is also a “Housing” folder on FirstClass where students can find listings for apartments, sublets and students seeking roommates.

In another attempt to help students, Sturrup lowered cancellation fees for room agreements. From May 1 to June 30 the cancellation fee will be $150 and from July forward there will be a flat fee of $250. In years prior, after the academic year began cancellation fees were on a sliding scale starting at 30 percent of total room rate — increasing as the year continued. 


According to Smith, moving off campus can be a challenging decision some students aren’t ready for.


“I think earlier would have been better than later. People go through that [frustration] when major changes happen in their lives and where you’re going to live can be that way. You have to go through a, sort of, process in your head, rearranging and rethinking that and getting all those questions in,” she said.

Sturrup said he realized there were some “unintended consequences” for students when the procedural change was made: “I do think we could have gotten [the email] out a little bit better but, it was not from malice and not from being crass about it.”

“We really want to do the right [thing] for students. I still stand behind our decisions — I think they were the best decisions for this institution but there are unintended consequences and I do feel bad about that. I don’t take it lightly.”
 Sturrup said.

A potential aid to students looking for off-campus housing may come in the form of a new complex similar to the Grove. 


In February, the New York-based Park 7 Development LLC proposed a student housing development behind Washburn Drive, which, once approved by the Orono Town Planning Board, would be ready as early as fall 2015, housing up to 900 students.


Sturrup acknowledged the need for more beds on campus, and hopes to present a proposal to the board of trustees once a footprint has been identified.


“We’ve identified the York [Hall] area as the [location] we’d like to revitalize,” Sturrup said. “We know we’re growing, and we’ll time it [the residence hall] when we think it will be most successful.”


The proposed residence hall may encroach on the York Village Complex, which stopped housing students after Patch Hall opened in 2000 and no new housing developments have been built since. Any new residence hall in the York area would require installation of necessary utilities, including steam lines, and Sturrup is working with Sasaki Associates to ensure a new complex would fit within the campus master plan.


New beds would be phased in 450 at a time and increased to meet students’ rising demand for on-campus housing, according to Sturrup.


The Blue Sky Plan projects that the total student population could rise as high as 15,000 in five years. President Paul Ferguson hopes to maintain the same ratio of students on and off-campus, which means housing “needs to grow by around 1,200 [beds],” Sturrup said.

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