Managing Executive Editor Kendall Pope reports on Republican Candidate Marco Rubio who came to Keene on Sept. 8, 2015.

Managing Executive Editor Kendall Pope reports on Democratic Candidate Hillary Clinton making a visit to Keene State College

Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton will return Keene, New Hampshire on Friday, October 16.  Clinton is holding a town meeting at Keene State College where she will be taking questions from the public and encourages people to ask her questions about her vision for America.

The event will held in the Mabel Brown Room on the second floor of the Student Center at 12:15 p.m. Press will be allowed in at 11:00 a.m. and final access time for all attendees will be 12:00 p.m.

Kendall Pope can be contacted at kpope@kscequinox.com

It’s a terrifying moment to feel frozen by fear – when your heart pounds in your eardrums and your breath hesitates in anticipation. For most, that’s exactly what happens when the threat of violence is nearby. This week alone there were two school shootings: one in Flagstaff, Arizona and the other in Houston, Texas.

Here at Keene State College, on Monday October 5, text messages and emails were sent to KSC students and faculty about a potential gun violence issue.

Director of Strategic Communications and Community Relations Kelly Ricaurte said KSC faculty, staff and students were made aware through email and/or text message of a firearm being shown inside a vehicle located just outside of McDonald’s near the Winchester parking lot.

Ricaurte said, “Campus Safety was informed about nine minutes after the incident at McDonald’s. Updates followed shortly with a vehicle description and partial license plate information, and further details that made it clear the situation did not pose a threat to people on campus.”

However, other times in the past have proven more serious. On April 1 this past year, there was an individual with a gun walking around neighborhoods near campus which lead to a college lockdown.

KSC sophomore Katy Glosser said she was concerned as soon as she received the emergency notifications about the college lockdown and immediately called her mother and then her boyfriend.

“During the phone call with my boyfriend, I remember hearing [a] distant gunshot, and an officer driving around campus talking to us through a megaphone to head into the nearest building. I knew then that this wasn’t just an ordinary drill; it was real.”

Director of Campus Safety Amanda Guthorn said, “I think the most important element is that we want to deal with things before they get to that point, so education and awareness are paramount.”

Ricaurte said there are certain processes implemented for new students and employees on how to recognize traits of instability. She said, “[In addition], faculty and staff are briefed on emergency procedures in addition to receiving the KSC Emergency Guidebook, an indexed and tabbed flipbook of instructions on what to do in different types of emergencies, including active shooter and lock down. Additional training is provided throughout the year on behavior identification and management for early detection of potential issues.”

As for training, Guthorn said, “When we do training, we do behavior intervention training, how to identify people who may be struggling or having a crisis.”

She said that there is almost always an outside reason for someone randomly changing their behavior. Guthorn continued, “Really, the bottom line [is], if you have that weird feeling that anything is amiss, just call and ask; talk with them. Not every person who’s struggling is a going to be an active shooter. But that person may be struggling in some other way, so maybe they’ve had a personal tragedy, or they’re failing, or their financial aid was turned down, or all three of these things happen, which really puts somebody, you know at risk.”You don’t know until you ask.

Staff Counselor Forrest Seymour said there are resources available at the Counseling Center for students and any issue they may have.

“The counseling center is a confidential place of support for whatever issues a student may have,” he said.Seymour also said there is an anonymous reporting form associated with the counseling center, available online. “[Anyone] can fill it out anonymously if they’re concerned about a student; also on the Campus Safety website, there’s another form called the ‘Silent Witness’ form. So there are ways a student can reach out to the counseling center that are completely anonymous, if they don’t want their name associated,” he said.Another issue is knowing how to protect ourselves in the event of danger. Gun rights advocates say that we should be able to have guns in case we need to protect ourselves. KSC alumni Melissa Benik said, “There was an incident in Pennsylvania where an assistant principal stopped a student who had a gun with the intent to hurt others. The assistant principal himself had a gun.” She said we forget that there is another side of the story because the media is so liberal and only takes the one side that we need to get rid of all guns.

As a new mother, Benik said she would do whatever it takes to protect her child, even if that means personally owning a gun so as to prevent someone from shooting her or her child.

“I mean, there were these shootings at the Batman movie, right? If someone had been there to shot the guy with the intent to kill all these people, a lot of lives could have been saved,” Benik said.

Others argue we also need stricter gun policies.

Photo Illustration by Jake Coughlin / Administrative Executive Editor

Clai Lasher-Sommers, Westmoreland resident, advocate for gun safety and survivor of a gunshot incident said, “We need to have federal background checks (with no loopholes), at all gun sales and shows. It’s easier to get a license for a gun than it is to get a license to drive.”

She continued, “The work of more gun safety laws will be done by policy change state by state across the nation.”

Advocating for gun safety is personal as well as political for Lasher-Sommers, as she was only 13 when she was shot in the back by her stepfather. He went to prison for one year for aggravated harassment. The year was 1970. Lasher-Sommers didn’t let that gunshot stop her. When she was a bit older, she became the first coordinator of the Columbia-Greene County Rape Crisis Center in Upstate New York, and then went on to become the first Director of a Domestic Violence program and Shelter in Upstate New York. She is now a gun safety advocate and Fellow as well as a Survivor Engagement Lead with Everytown for Gun Safety and MOMS demand Action for NH. “I think I’m still recovering;” Lasher-Sommers said. “What we do as survivors of gun violence is to learn to walk beside the trauma and the resurgence of PTSD when there is a ‘trigger’ moment.” Lasher-Sommers said coming back to NH eight years ago, where the shooting occured, to live and attend KSC where she finished her degree in English and Writing was very difficult. When she was shot, the Elliot building was the Keene Hospital, which is where she was brought before being transferred to Mary Hitchcock in Hanover, NH.

Lasher-Sommers said, “I never realized that I would have such severe PTSD just walking on campus, and walking into Elliot.”  She said she is relieved and thankful for KSC campus safety protocols as there are too many universities that do not have specific protocols or trainings for gun safety.  According to everytownresearch.org, there has been “149 school shootings in America since 2013.”

“We need a society that doesn’t think that gun violence is the new normal. We need to come together as a nation and say that gun violence anywhere in our nation is unacceptable,” Lasher Sommers said. Glosser also said we need to all come together for a solution on how best to provide safety. She said, “We need more adequate protection that does not scare or punish innocent bystanders.”

She continued, “We forget to recognize this isn’t just the college’s battle; this is the area surrounding our college too. We should stop punishing ourselves for the mistakes of others and instead make sure the town can look beyond these struggles.”

Dorothy can be contacted at dengland@kscequinox.com

As many may already know, October is known as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to nationalbreastcancer.org, Breast Cancer Awareness Month is “an annual campaign to increase awareness of the disease.” Now, initially this may seem like a funny sentence. One might question what awareness there is to raise. Breast cancer is a fairly well-known form of cancer. The difference is that this campaign aims to spread awareness about taking the necessary steps to detect breast cancer and fight it early on.

Interestingly, October is also known for many other monthly observations including: adopt a shelter dog month, American cheese month, AIDS awareness month, class reunion month, caffeine addiction recovery month and celiac disease awareness month, among many others.

Seems like a lot to focus awareness on for one month. The Equinox would like to take a certain position regarding this issue. While we acknowledge the importance and significance of all these issues, we believe it’s tough to really make a difference and do our part to recognize all of these monthly observations.

Our editorial is focusing on breast cancer awareness month. We want to ask this question: How much are we really helping? Are we really doing our part? What could be done better?

Phot illustration by Jake Coughlin / Administrative Executive Editor

“Think before you pink” is a project on breast cancer action. They promote the idea that we need to focus on action instead of awareness. According to their website, the project aims to “stop the distraction of pink ribbon marketing and culture.” Their website goes on to state “Pink ribbon products spread empty awareness.” ‘Awareness’ has failed to address and end the breast cancer epidemic. Who isn’t aware of breast cancer these days? Pink ribbon trinkets on store shelves that promote ‘awareness’ ultimately change nothing. We have more than enough awareness, but not nearly enough action that will make a significant difference to whether women get breast cancer or survive it.”

We’ve all seen pink ribbons floating around on social media, but how often does this actually prompt us to be proactive and do something that will actually make a difference in putting an end to breast cancer? More times than not, we come across a pink ribbon and do nothing more than notice it. This is the type of behavior we believe needs to change.

This is not to say that anyone in particular is a bad person if they don’t find the cure for cancer. We don’t expect miracles out of anyone. We do believe, however, that as a collective society we could be doing more.

There is a common misconception that breast cancer is only found in women. Many don’t realize that a person doesn’t need to have a set a breasts to get breast cancer. What many don’t know is that breast cancer can also be found in men. According to the American Cancer Society, “Breast cancer is a malignant tumor that starts from cells of the breast. A malignant tumor is a group of cancer cells that may grow into (invade) surrounding tissues or spread (metastasize) to distant areas of the body. Breast cancer occurs mainly in women, but men can get it, too. Many people do not realize that men have breast tissue and that they can develop breast cancer.”

It goes without saying that pink is a color often associated with women. It is stereotypically a feminine color. Just think, when you were a baby, what color was your room, your bib, your clothes? More than likely, if you’re a girl, pink was the default color for you. For boys, the default color is typically blue.

With that said, when people see pink ribbons they immediately think “girls.” Or, more specifically, in  this case “women.” That is not a fair assessment to make. Yes, more women are diagnosed with breast cancer than men, but just because the statistics show higher rates of women experiencing breast cancer doesn’t mean we should discredit those men fighting the equally tough battle.

By associating the cancer with a specific color, we are placing it in a certain category of masculine or feminine. This is not the case. Both men and women suffer from the cancer and deserve equal representation.

Think before you pink argues that the ribbon isn’t a helpful symbol for those battling breast cancer, instead it acts as a burden to it. “Where once the stated aim of the pink ribbon was to draw attention to women with breast cancer, now the pink ribbon itself is the center of attention and overshadows the women living with, dying from, and at risk of the disease. After twenty years of pink ribbons and awareness campaigns, the pink ribbon is now a distraction, diverting attention away from the critically important work of addressing and ending this breast cancer epidemic.”

While this view may seem a bit extreme, parts of it hold true. The Equinox encourages people to participate in National Breast Cancer Awareness month, but we want to encourage people to go beyond the pink ribbon. After all, what does changing your profile picture on Facebook to a pink ribbon really do for those fighting the battle?

At this week’s student assembly, KSC student government approved a new student organization, discussed Pumpkin Lobotomy and voted in a new member. The Keene State College Alive Poet Society requested to be recognized as a legitimate student organization. Their proposal included forming a team and having slam poetry competitions with other clubs. With no conflict their proposal was accepted.
With fall season upon us, the organization of the Pumpkin Lobotomy tradition was discussed. Student government emphasized the importance of appropriate behavior and using this event as an opportunity to show that Keene State is a positive environment. Pumpkin lobotomy is likely to experience a name change to avoid any possible negative impacts the current name could have. The number of pumpkins that will be used in the event will drop substantially from the usual 1,500-2,000 to 500 pumpkins. The group spoke largely about the need for volunteers for the set up and clean up of the event. Instead of one large pumpkin display, many other smaller pumpkin displays will be set up during the day into the afternoon. There will be no evening events. Unused materials will be donated including the pumpkins, and the remaining remanence will be composted and recycled.
Bridgette Normandin made a proposal to become student government’s new treasurer. After an explanation of her qualifications for the position the committee was immediately impressed. Normandin was voted in as the new student treasurer.

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It goes without saying that Keene State College has gained a reputation as a party school. As proved during the 2014 Pumpkin Fest, parties at this college can get completely out of hand. The question has been raised: is KSC capable of partying responsibly?

The Equinox would like to say, yes — this weekend as whole proved that our college can have a good time without having things get too out of control. Of course, there were some minor exceptions, with some students getting too intoxicated or other various instances of misbehavior. However, compared to Pumpkin Fest, the overall atmosphere on the campus was much more relaxed.

As soon as the weather reaches warmer temperatures, students love to gather together in yards of students’ houses for something referred to as a “darty.” In other terms, these are day parties. This year, students gathered at various houses in yards, where everyone stood around together.

From what most of us heard and saw, the atmosphere was very under control. There were no bottles being thrown, no music that was insanely loud, no overcrowding with people spilling out into nearby streets. Overall, the parties were pretty tame. On one street police officers were even throwing a football with partiers, both showing one another respect.

Partying in college is inevitable. No matter what school you go to, no matter what decade it is, college students are going to want to party. It would be out of the question to assume that the entire weekend would be completely silent.

But by the same token, we understand that as students, we should be holding each other accountable to party in a way that is respectful and under control. We understand that there is more to Keene than just the college. There is a community full of families and businesses that we as students need to consider and keep in mind when trying to have a good time.

This weekend there were cops that monitored a party at Proctor Court. The officers stood in the yard with the students,

Bethany Ricciardi / mANAGING eXECUTIVE EDITOR

watching the party and making sure no one was getting too rowdy and that the crowd size was under control. From how it appeared to us, the students and police were able to be at peace with each other. Clearly, KSC has shown itself to be irresponsible when it comes to partying and being respectful of the community and public property. But this weekend proved differently.

That irresponsibility was the past, and we believe the student body would like to leave those kinds of behaviors behind them. This is not to say that some students didn’t get out of hand.

There will always be a select few who go too far, get too intoxicated and end up doing something immature.

But we believe these few students should not be representative of our entire school as a whole. They should not be the face of KSC. Speaking for this past weekend alone, we believe the behavior of the students was not anything concerning or too wild. As a whole, we would like to attempt to rebuild our reputation as a college. We acknowledge that partying is going to happen no matter how many rules are set in place, but we should seek ways to party without getting police officers involved.

From our experiences with the police officers in Keene, they do not enjoy getting the students in trouble. They are not out to get us, yet they also need to act professional and do their duty of enforcing the law and ensuring the safety of the overall community.

The picture next to this editorial was taken at the Day of Clarity, which was put on by Greek Life. The event promoted not relying on drugs or alcohol to have a good time and focused on being yourself.

This event is an example of KSC students having fun without drugs or alcohol present. This weekend certainly involved drinking, but, for the most part, everything was under control and kept respectful.

The Equinox is hopeful that we can maintain this responsible behavior during weekends to come. We would like to encourage both having a good time while at the same time, keeping it respectful, to ensure happiness for all.

If there’s one word students hear floating around campus during all times of the year it’s Adderall. Adderall is the brand name of a prescription medication used to treat a number of different things. However, it is most commonly used here at Keene State College to help students stay engaged. Here’s the twist: some students on this campus are using it to stay engaged with certain activities when there is no medical necessity for them to do so. The Equinox would like to tackle a prominent issue that we believe has been around this campus for a prolonged amount of time now.

Let us first clarify that our issue is not with Adderall itself, our issue is with how and why some students seem to be using it. There is no doubt that a number of the students on this campus have been rightfully prescribed to this drug and use it for the actual cause of staying focused. But, like any other drug, there is a high demand for Adderall by people who are not prescribed it. Students who are not actually prescribed to it are accessing it from friends.

The bigger issue at hand here is when and how students are using it. We believe an appropriate time for a student to use Adderall is when they have been prescribed it by a doctor and they need help focusing on their school work. Conversely, we believe an inappropriate time to use it would be before going out to a party. All too often we hear our peers joke about popping Adderall before going out so they can be alert and have fun much longer than they could without it. Our problem with this is there are dangerous side effects in taking a drug that isn’t prescribed to you, especially at a time that isn’t appropriate. According to an article on the Everyday Health website, the use of Adderall has surged in recent years. The article also states that the number of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder) medications prescribed to children increased 45 percent from 2002 to 2010.

Photo Illustration / Administrative Executive Editor Jake Coughlin

Of these drugs, Adderall was the second most prescribed. These facts and figures prove that Adderall use is booming and it’s becoming something children are being exposed to at a younger and younger age.

There are a number of issues surrounding the drug itself. Perhaps most dangerous of these issues is the drug’s known ability to increase the risk of heart problems, blood pressure and stroke. Adderall can also impact someone mentally. It can lead to depression and severe mood swings, among other things.

With that said, we encourage people not to use the drug unless they have a serious need for it. Students who truly need and depend on the drug are oftentimes caught up in situations where their peers are asking to buy some of the medication off of them. We ask that the student body makes an effort to be more conscious of the fact that Adderall should be carefully used only by those who are prescribed to it by a doctor. If you feel you need help staying focused, consult a doctor about it instead of asking your friends to provide a drug for you.

Keene State College is buzzing with news about three former employees: Eugene “Gino” Vallante, Charlie Beach and Peter Thomas.

According to an article recently published in the Keene Sentinel, “these three reports portray a pattern of alleged inappropriateness by authority figures to students — sexual harassment in two of the cases — spanning two college campuses and well over a decade. They chronicle communication breakdowns, warning bells heard yet not heeded and mistakes and failures both systematic and individual.”

The Equinox as a student organization feels very strongly about this matter. We believe the “look the other way” culture is an epidemic on college campuses all over the globe and is now hitting close to home. This is a dangerous culture, and its establishment at this college has been brought to light by the recent McLane investigation and reports. We believe the athletic department and administration needs to own the mistakes that have been made and assure that they will never be made again. As college-aged students, whether in the classroom, at work or in sports, authority figures such as teachers, bosses, and coaches have a lot of influence on our lives.

We realize the importance of respecting authorities, but we also believe that authorities must respect students. We cannot minimize the severity of Vallante, Beach and Thomas’ behavior, nor can we overlook the negative impact this behavior has had on students. We cannot be afraid to investigate reports of sexual misconduct. We cannot sweep them under the rug. We want to stress that we have zero tolerance for the oversight. The McLane reports detail times when victims have gone for help and were ignored. We believe no voice should be hushed when it comes to an issue of this magnitude. When students came forward with their complaints, they should have been able to trust the schools ability to take action right away. Sexual harassment is not something that should be taken lightly or shrugged off. Any signs of sexual misconduct should have been handled much more efficiently and professionally by those in charge at this college.

The reports stated Keene State’s administration offices, athletic programs and academic schools “contributed to a lack of communication and failure to share important information at key moments that would have made a difference.” This type of failure cannot happen. We encourage the Keene State College student body to take a stand and help establish a culture of responsibility and accountability. There is strength in numbers and if the student body comes together and raises our voices we can fuel change for the overall well-being of our school. Every student is a valuable member of this community, and each should be valued and protected.

Photo illustration / Administrative Executive Editor jAKE cOUGHLIN

It is important to note President Huot, since her arrival in April 2014, has been the driving force behind completing the investigation. It is also worth noting that the college is looking to hire a full-time Title IX coordinator, who would be responsible for the oversight of any misconduct and making sure it is properly taken care of.

While we acknowledge this to be a step in the right direction, we believe this position should have been established long ago. Current Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management Kemal Atkins has previous experience as a Title IX coordinator. His biography on keene.edu states, “For the past four years, Mr. Atkins served as vice president for student affairs and Title IX coordinator at Delaware State University. In this role, Mr. Atkins provided leadership in the areas of student learning and outcomes, student recruitment and retention, staff development, crisis management and Title IX compliance, among many others.” Why aren’t Mr. Atkins’ Title IX skills and experience being utilized? How can we expect the college to handle these types of cases properly when we don’t even have a specific person in the position yet? This certainly raises red flags about how the administration is doing the bare minimum in relation to Title IX protocol. Vallante, Beach and Thomas held their coaching positions for long periods of time. It is possible then, that they had been conducting things a certain way for many years and that this behavior may have become accepted as “normal” by athletes and students. But students should realize that just because someone has been doing something a certain way for years, does not mean it’s right. We want any student or athlete who feels like they have been violated by a coach or professor to feel comfortable with coming forward.

The McLane report includes a great detail of information about all three men and their alleged inappropriate behaviors. Every situation differs in nature. It is important to note that not everyone is in agreement about the guilt of these coaches. However, that is not the point. The point is that student concerns are finally being brought to the forefront — where they belong. They have belonged in the forefront all along instead of sneakily ignored.

When any suspicion is raised about inappropriate behavior between a coach, faculty, or staff member and a student, we need to be confident in the school and its ability to investigate the problem in a timely manner.

Any administration that had an idea about what was going on and didn’t immediately act upon the issue has failed to properly handle these situations. These men are being investigated years later instead of having been dealt with when the alleged misconducts actually took place. The Equinox would like to reiterate the notion that this college needs to treat the students with the care and concern that they say we deserved to be treated with.

The safety of students should be a primary concern of the college. The last thing they should be doing is hiding things for the sake of our reputation as a school. Reality is not always a glamorous thing.

Students need to be educated about where they can go when they need to report an incident. They need to know that they will be heard and that action will be taken.  Students should not be afraid to seek help, nor should coaches, faculty, or staff fear doing the right thing. There is no shame in being a whistleblower.