The first Earth Day occurred 47 years ago when America was in the height of its “ignorance is bliss” minset toward the environment and the anti-war movement.

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

Jimi Hendrix had just passed away, the Beatles released their last album and students were actively shunning the war in Vietnam.

Eight years prior to this, author and activist Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring was on New York Times’ bestseller list, enlightening the world about the real environmental issues the world was facing at the time.

The idea of Earth Day sprung after the massive oil spill in 1969, when Wisconsin senator Gaylord Nelson thought that he could get people to rally behind this important issue.

April 22 was chosen as the date since it was after most spring breaks, but before final exams.

The first Earth Day rallied 20 million people protesting and joining the movement to demonstrate the importance of a clean earth and the necessity for respecting our mother.

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

“Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. By the end of that year, the first Earth Day had led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts. ‘It was a gamble,’ Gaylord recalled, ‘but it worked,’” according to earthday.org.

Earth Day 2017 marked the 47th anniversary with a March for Science happening all around the country.

The idea behind this movement was that science protects everyone, including mother earth. This march was co-organized by Earth Day Network in conjunction with March for Science.

Concord, New Hampshire, hosted its own March for Science, which reportedly drew thousands to the state house.

This Earth Day at Keene State College (KSC), the annual Solarfest was hosted, featuring rock bands and allowing students to learn more about their environment through different clubs like Fair Trade Club, Campus Ecology and more tabling, which offered different activities for students.

Mary Curtin / ads director, Time capsule editor

April 22, 2020 will mark the 50 year anniversary of Earth Day and Earth Day Network states that is it committed to environmental literacy.

On its website it states, “Earth Day Network is launching a campaign for global environmental and climate literacy by Earth Day 2020. We are dedicated to ensuring that every student around the world graduates high school as an environmental and climate literate citizen, ready to take action and be a voice for change. This goal is not only an enormous undertaking, it is critical and timely… Education needs to be a key part of this effort.”

KSC offers a major around this type of education called environmental studies and delves into the idea of how the environment and people interact, as well as natural, social and political systems.

Earth Day has become widely celebrated by many and reminds humans to keep the earth clean, respect the land we’ve been given and remember how detrimental our actions can be to the earth.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

Two gunmen walked into Columbine High School, killing 13 people in 1999.

Now, 18 years later, the after effects are still pertinent in modern day society.

The massacre took place in Littleton, Colorado, on April 20, 1999, when two teenagers killed 12 fellow classmates, a teacher and injured over 20 others.

Their spree began just before 11:20 that morning and by noon, they had turned the guns on themselves.

Since this day, there have been 31 school shootings, with one hitting a bit too close to Keene State College students at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012.

Samantha Moore / Art Director

In this instance, a total of 26 people were killed, twice the number of the Columbine Massacre.

Most recently, in San Bernardino, California, a man shot and killed his estranged wife, who was a special education teacher at North Park Elementary School.

In this process, he also shot two young students, one who later died in the hospital.

The shooter, Cedric Anderson, then turned the gun on himself.

School shootings are no longer isolated instances and the extent of how many raises many issues and concerns.

According to ABC News’ review of reported cases, there had been an average of one shooting per week at a school or on a college campus in 2015.

The numbers reveal a lot about this nationwide issue and it has become more pressing as the issue of gun control and mental illness is evaluated.

FBI records indicated that there have been a total of 141 people killed in a mass murder or attempted mass murder in school shootings since that April day in 1999.

The reverberations and the impact of these tragic events have caused some action from schools and the government.

“This job of keeping our children safe and teaching them well is something we can only do together, with the help of friends and neighbors, the help of a community and the help of a nation,” President Barack Obama said on Dec. 16, 2012 in wake of the Sandy Hook massacre.

The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Research Center offered the following as a helpful solution of mass shootings: “Close gaps in mental health services for children with emotional and behavioral problems and to provide a broader continuum of mental health care, including exceptions to privacy protection policies to allow for better communication about the mental health needs of students.” This stems from the fact that there were 17 kids 15 years old or younger who have committed or attempted a mass shooting.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

A 3:30 a.m. alarm woke me from my half-sleep and I stumbled out of bed, turned on my coffee pot and began my day.

I was on campus by 5 a.m. Friday morning to board a bus to New York City (NYC) for a career tour of Condé Nast (home of Teen Vogue) and of Orion Worldwide, both companies headed by Keene State College alumni.

This event was put together by Sara Barrett, who is part of the Alumni Relations for KSC.

Photo contributed by Sara LaFleur

A total of 32 communication, management and journalism students took part in the trip and were able to ask questions and be a part of the excitement for the afternoon.

According to an e-mail sent by Barrett, career tours “connect faculty and student groups with successful alumni who are willing to host a career tour of their company to provide students with exposure to a range of occupations, companies and industries; to share their career path and career expertise; and to create informal networking opportunities with alumni and students.”

The ride to the city was stuffy, rainy and I was in and out of sleep for those six hours confined to the inside of a bus.

When we finally arrived at our first destination, a tour of Teen Vogue at One World Trade Center, the rain was coming down, we hustled for two blocks and went through the tough security to finally make it in.

When we arrived, we were greeted by Mary Leonard, the assistant to KSC alumna from Class of 1997 Amy Oelkers, who is Head of Revenue at Teen Vogue.

We were taken to the conference room, where there were piles of New York bagels and a glorious view of the city, where we could spot the yellow taxi cabs lining the streets of NYC.

Here, we were able to hear different stories about Oelker’s experiences when she was at KSC and learn a little bit about how candidates are chosen to be part of the Teen Vogue company.

Photo contributed by Jocelyn Lencki

After this, we got a tour of the fashion rooms and were taken to the 64th floor of One World Trade Center, where we could see a 360 degree view of the city.

It was here that I decided I would definitely be able to live in a city of that caliber; the hustle and bustle of cities excite me anyway.

I was even able to get some face time with Oelkers and talk about what her favorite part of working at Teen Vogue and working in NYC.

“My favorite part of New York is just the city and the difference of it every day, nothing is the same. My favorite part about Teen Vogue is what we stand for, standing for the next generation of strong girls, women, feminists who are going to have a seat at the table, and it’s completely bad-ass,” Oelkers said.

Oelkers really hit the nail on the head with that one.

The next stop in NYC was Orion Worldwide, which is headed by class of 1984, Brian McMahon.

McMahon is the Chief Executive Officer of Orion Worldwide and he gave some helpful hints to the students on the trip about following our dreams.

His number one tip? “Be unafraid.”

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

Talent. Talent everywhere.

On Saturday, March 25, the Night Owl Café at Keene State College (KSC) was booming with energy, laughter, applause and tears during Saturday Night Jive with a total of eight acts.

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

The Social Activities Council (SAC) hosted Saturday Night Jive at KSC where students could showcase their talents, ranging from acts with a service dog, to stand up comedy and all the way to some punk rock and singer-songwriter acts.

SAC events coordinator Sean Jablon said, “The nice thing about Saturday Night Jive is we can pretty much have anyone [perform].”

The show had two hosts, Tim Peterson and Mason Robbins, who introduced each act with the help of Hootie the Owl, KSC’s mascot, who was also involved in the show at different points.

Prior to this event, students were required to audition to become a part of the night in front of judges in the Mabel Brown Room.

“It starts off with auditions. We usually hold two nights of auditions and from there, the planning is ‘do we want food, do we want drinks,’ things of that nature, the more practical things and then we figure out the order and we find hosts,” said Jablon.

The audience was able to vote on their favorite acts and the winners took home cash prizes.

First Half

The show opened with an act by KSC’s improv club, 3 Ways ‘til Sunday. This club is comprised of 12 members, seven of who participated in Sunday night’s show: Andrew Bennington, Brendan Callery, Dominique Pascoal, Haley Monahan, Jessica Chapman, Patrick Regan and Alexandria Saurman.

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

Their act was based largely around the ideas of people in the modern world with the use of comedy.

The set lasted about 10 minutes and by the end, many people were laughing and there was a loud applause at the end. 3 Ways ‘til Sunday was part of the three way tie for second place.

Also in the first half of the show was Mackenzie Donovan and her service dog, Rue.

Next was Justin Mahan in “Justin Mahan’s Magical Mayhem,” where he performed psychic magic with the help of some audience members.

3 Ways ‘til Sunday President Regan was brought back on stage where he performed a stand up comedy set around some darker jokes. He was also part of the three way tie for second place.

During the intermission, two students, Marisa Benson and Hannah Soucy, said that they both were enjoying the show and while they were there to support everyone, they are also close friends with Regan.

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

Second Half

The second half of the show began in an upbeat way with the band Riverlight playing a three-song set. Some people in the audience could were seen bobbing their heads and tapping their feet to the beat of the music.

Riverlight was also part of the three way second place tie.

Following Riverlight was another standup act by Nick Tocco.

Tocco kept the crowd laughing during the entirety of his set, making jokes about his dietary habits and Keene’s newest attraction, Chipotle Mexican Grill, and the fact that his last name is Tocco.

Tocco ran home with the $500 first place prize for his comedy set.

“I felt really good, I felt really relieved after I got done because I was nervous going in because I had done stand up comedy before because I used some material I knew kinda worked, but I was also working in some new stuff, so when I do that I’m always nervous,” Tocco said.

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

Despite his nerves, Tocco made the crowd visibly and audibly laugh continuously, and he received a loud applause with some whistles when he was finished.

Tocco said, “I went towards the end and I was pretty intimidated after seeing some of the other acts, but after I got off the stage, I felt like I had a decent shot.”

Tocco said one of his role models and inspirations is Chris Farley because of the way he owned the room during his time.

“I think the biggest thing for me because I haven’t done stand up in so long, [winning] gave me way more confidence now and it worked. I hadn’t done it in so long, I didn’t know if I had it anymore,” said Tocco.

Following Tocco was another standup act, Dominique Pascoal. Pascoal said “the energy of performing” is her favorite part about getting up on stage and feeding off the crowd.

Pascoal said she hopes to get to Tocco’s ability at some point in her comedy career.

The last act of the night was Joe Mucci who sat on the stage with his guitar and sang a song which brought visible tears to some audience members’ eyes.

Audience member KSC student Ashley Hoffer said after the show, “I thought it was really awesome; I didn’t know how much talent we had on campus, so it was really cool to see everyone get on stage and show everyone [their talents.]”

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

For the rest of the calendar year, Keene State College (KSC) will not be allowing the startup of any new clubs on campus.

Keene State College offers many clubs and has always offered students the liberty of starting clubs and submitting proposals to the Constitution Committee to begin these student organizations.

However, it is now the case that there is a freeze on the implementation of new organizations due to an overflow of some organizations that could potentially not be active anymore, and there is currently no way to tell if a club is active or not.

Coordinator of Student Activities and Organizations Britany Gallagher said she feels that this freeze is the best way to get the current situation back under control.

“My goal is to make sure we are not duplicating efforts [organizations]. That resources; so money resources, space resources, time resources are being shared as equitably as possible and as long as we can avoid duplication, that’s what will be best for student body,”  Gallagher said.

When students want to start an organization, they are required to submit a proposal to Gallagher, as well as to KSC sophomore Kenadee Cadieux, constitution committee chair.

When asked for an interview, Cadieux directed the reporter to Britany Gallagher for all questions regarding this topic.

According to KSC’s Student Involvement website, it states that this will also allow us time to implement a new system for maintaining this information online with the goal of providing our student body the most accurate record of the student organizations available to them.

This also means that Student Assembly will not review any new and potential student organizations for official recognition at KSC.

As for any organization that submitted proposals prior to this new mandate, they will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis until the end of March.

The potential organizations that are submitting for review through the end of March have been granted recognition and will be placed on a probationary status consistent with Student Assembly’s recognition policy, according to the Student Involvement website.

Danielle Cobleigh, student body vice president, also directed all questions to Britany Gallagher when asked for comment.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

For many current and recent alumni at Keene State College (KSC), the ideals of the liberal arts college is all they have ever known.

It was not until March 1965 that The Monadnock (The Equinox’s former name) reported that KSC would offer Liberal Arts degrees.

The Board of Trustees of the University of New Hampshire voted for the approval of the bachelor of arts degree curriculum in five subject areas.

At this time, KSC was set to offer degrees in the major fields of English, history, mathematics, biology and psychology for students who would enroll and be accepted for the 1965-66 academic year.

This liberal arts program was in response to New Hampshire General Court which constituted KSC and Plymouth State University as autonomous categories within the University System of New Hampshire.

The intention was to drive both colleges to steer away from teacher’s colleges and look towards becoming multipurpose colleges.

Alongside these revisions, Dr. Roman J. Zorn, the president of KSC during this time, said that, “the liberal arts curriculum will produce stronger academic departments throughout the college which inevitably will make our teacher programs ever better.”

While the changes to college were to expand the programs, the main focus was still to be on teacher education.

Much like the requirements for students at KSC today, students that were enrolled in the new bachelor of arts program had to complete general education courses, much like the integrated studies courses as well develop a field of concentration. The total program required 122 hours of studies with a “C” or better.

Of these 122 hours, 55 of them were to be part of the general education courses where students would take courses in English composition and literature, history of civilization, modern foreign language, social studies, humanities, sciences and physical education.

KSC would also accept up to 60 transfer credits from junior colleges as long as the credits that students wanted to transfer received a “C” or better for those credits. At the very least, one year the student’s academia, 30 to 32 hours of credits, had to be completed while in residence at the college.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

In 1972, the Boston Bruins won the Stanley Cup, Richard Nixon was Time Magazine’s Man of the Year and in the United States, The Equal Rights Amendment was passed.

This was first proposed by the National Women’s political party nearly 50 years prior in 1923 that wouldn’t allow discrimination on the basis of gender.

According to National Council of Women’s Organizations, “The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was passed by Congress in 1972 and sent to the states for ratification. It was ratified by 35 of the necessary 38 state legislatures, but even with an extension of the ratification deadline from 1979 to 1982, organized anti-equality political, economic, social and religious forces prevented any further state ratifications.”

Adam Urquart / Opinions Editor

Hawaii was the first state to ratify this amendment, but it was not able to be ratified due to a backlash of feminism.

While it took a while in the 20th century to get the final proposal on this amendment, it is was eventually written as follows on history.com, “‘Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.’”

In recent months, there have been Women’s Marches, International Day of Women and numerous occasions of feminism prevailing.

Women and men are still fighting some of these same rights in the 21st century.

For example, women’s rights in the workplace have been long fought over with the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and the right for everyone to receive the same money for doing the same job.

However, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), “On average, women today earn just 78 cents for every dollar that men earn—an increase of only 17 cents on the dollar since the Equal Pay Act of 1963 was enacted. The figures are even more dismal for women of color. Black women are paid only 64 cents and Latinas only 54 cents for every dollar that white men earn.”

While it has been 35 years since The Equal Rights Amendment was passed, the struggles for gender equality and equality for all minorities seems to be an ongoing battle.

Moreover, this is not just a battle being fought in the U.S., it’s consequences can be felt all around the world.

The Equal Rights Amendment, in its most recent form, now reads, “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.”

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

While drinking green beer, eating green food and singing and dancing through parade routes and toasting in cheer of the luck of the Irish is the modern way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, this tale did not always have the same cheery connotation.

On March 17, 461 A.D., the man known as Saint Patrick passed away after a life of enslavement and poverty. It is presumed that Saint Patrick was born in Scotland and was captured by Irish marauders at the age of 16. One night, as his story of Confesio states (the memoir he wrote in his last few years), he heard a voice that prompted him to escape the marauder’s internment and return home to his family in Britain.

Samantha Moore / Art Director

However, he claimed to have been summoned back to the Irishmen by another dream where he claimed that these Irishmen wanted him to come back and walk with them in their country once again.

Patrick then devoted his life to priesthood, soon becoming an ordained bishop, and lived for 40 years in poverty where he taught and worked.

There are many legends on why St. Patrick’s Day has become widely celebrated, one of which is that he drove the snakes out of Ireland, which is how it is commonly portrayed in art.

Technically speaking, according to National Geographic, “Snakes likely couldn’t reach Ireland. Most scientists point to the most recent Ice Age, which kept the island too cold for reptiles until it ended 10,000 years ago. After the Ice Age, surrounding seas may have kept snakes from colonizing the Emerald Isle.”

It wasn’t until 1995 that St. Patrick’s Day went global, according to history.com. It actually began when Irish troops paraded through New York City in 1762. By 1995, the Irish government thought of this as a good way to promote their  country and market the day.

According to wallethub.com, in 2017, the celebration continues on and is widely observed, with Boston, Massachusetts ranking in third for best celebration in the United States. It is also celebrated in many ways that are close to Keene State College.

Just 63 miles shy of KSC is the Holyoke, Massachusetts road race and parade generally celebrated over the course of the weekend after St. Patrick’s Day. In 2017, almost 6,000 runners participated in the 42nd race with the temperatures barely reaching mid-40s.

A bit further away from Keene, NH is Chicago, Illinois, where the city is known for the idea of turning the river that runs through the city green.

The city pours 45 pounds of vegetable based oil into the river to give it this green color.

According to wallethub.com, 56.1 percent of the United States population celebrated in the St. patrick’s Day traditions.

Of these celebrators, 82.5 percent of the wore green, on average they spent $38 each and overall $5.3 billion was planned to spent for St. Patricks Day 2017 according to wallethub.com.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

While exercise may be good for the heart, the most complex organ in our body benefits from it as well.

The brain is made up of billions of cells called neurons, which are all in charge of the way the body thinks, feels and acts.

According to Harvard Medical School, “Many studies have suggested that the parts of the brain that control thinking and memory (the prefrontal cortex and medial temporal cortex) have greater volume in people who exercise versus people who don’t.”

Not only do exercise and eating well-improve overall mental health, academic achievement is also linked to a healthy lifestyle.

While there have been many studies on academic achievement and physical health for school-aged children, these numbers do not necessarily reflect that of a college-aged student, and fewer studies have been done on this age group.

One study of school-aged children by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) found that more participation in physical education classes correlated with higher standardized test scores and better classroom behavior along with higher academic achievement.

Coordinator of Wellness Education at Keene State College (KSC) Tiffany Mathews said, “There is a correlation between physical health and mental wellness and the dimensions of wellness and how we should look at students holistically. We realize they are not just a reporter, they’re not just a student; they’re comprised of all of these different pieces of themselves.”

It is recommended that people get at least 30 minutes of exercise on average each day, which can sometimes seem to be a daunting task.

Dr. Jeffrey Timmer, associate professor of human performance and movement sciences at KSC, said he believes that exercise is often undervalued when it comes to mental health.

“I think that more psychologists are starting to prescribe exercise, and I think there have been some recent studies that exercise can have just as good of an effect as medication for depression and because the longer you can stay off of medication, the better,” Timmer said.

Exercise has an effect on the brain and the physical well-being that is difficult to replicate anywhere else.

One common chemical that is released during exercise is endorphins, and this gives a feeling of euphoria or a certain so-called “runner’s high” that makes people feel good after or during exercise and/or physical activity.

“In response to exercise, your body has to make a lot of changes to either continue that exercise or progress, and, more importantly, your body wants to progress, and that’s from head to toe and in addition, you have other things that are released during exercise like endorphins, but they give what some people call a euphoric effect,” Timmer said.

For college students, it can sometimes be difficult to find the time and the balance to live the healthy lifestyle that they want to.

However, Timmer said he feels that people, including students, need to set obtainable goals and not hit hurdles too big, which could cause them not to see the success in their efforts when they may try to do too much at once.

Senior exercise science major Brooke Bennett said, “Exercise is the one way that I can take my mind off of everything and just focus on my workout and clear my head for a while.”

While there is much research out in the world about these specifics, there is a growing plethora of studies that still need to be conducted and completed.

Timmer said, “We want to think we know everything [about exercise], but we don’t; it’s a difficult thing to figure out, but we do know the effects and how it works.”

Some students feel that by studying within this field, they can share what they enjoy about their healthy lifestyles with others.

Bennett said, “Exercising helps me a lot, so it’s cool being able to pass on what I know to other people.”

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

Just as Malcolm X began to influence more people and gain more followers from his ideas and non-violent practices, his life was cut short at the age of 39.

52 years ago, African-American nationalist and religious leader, Malcolm X was assassinated by Rival Black Muslims in New York City on Feb. 21, 1965.

Malcolm X was addressing his Organization of Afro-American Unity at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights when he was killed.

His advocacy in the early 1960s conveyed the idea that the white race was not the greatest foe of people of color, rather that racism caused issues among race and ethnicity.

This notion is what gained him followers and is when he decided to create the Organization of Afro-American Unity.

It became a framework of non-violent civil rights movements and he especially gained traction and influenced the leaders from the leaders of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, according to history.com.

While he did not live to see what his legacy brought for people of color, his legacy has stuck in the eyes of civil rights.

“I am not a racist. I am against every form of racism and segregation, every form of discrimination. I believe in human beings, and that all human beings should be respected as such, regardless of their color,” said Malcolm X during a speech in NYC two months prior to his assassination.

In 2017, much of what he fought for is still applicable in the United States.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), in 2016 there were 917 hate groups counted across the U.S.

These numbers include a 197 percent increase in anti- Muslim groups since 2015, 663 anti-government groups, 130 total active Ku Klux Klan groups and 193 black separatists groups.

While 917 may not seem like a large number of groups, just 10 years ago in 2007, there were 888 groups, and the number has been steadily rising since, with the exception of a small drop in 2014.

The SPLC reported, “[The SPLC] has documented an explosive rise in the number of hate groups since the turn of the century, driven in part by anger over Latino immigration and demographic projections showing that whites will no longer hold majority status in the country by around 2040.”

Despite all of the efforts from civil rights activists over 50 years ago, it seems that violence and hate against minorities is still a pertinent issue in America.