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Task force aims to revitalize social life

By
Olivia Landon
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Students and administrators created the Social Life Task Force in response to the moratorium on dances last fall. The group aims to expand the variety of social activities available to a frustrated student body, including smaller on-campus events and school-sanctioned off-campus parties.

Undeclared task force member Jamie Stevenson (sophomore) emailed Director of Student Life Tamara Rice at the beginning of this semester, eager to change the current social conditions. He stressed students’ dissatisfaction with the college’s social environment since the implementation of the dance ban.

“There’s definitely been a lot of complaining from the student body. People aren’t happy about it. I’m not happy about it. But I do see why [Rice] did that,” Stevenson said.

Rice announced the dance ban after eight alcohol-related transports at the Oct. 26 Toga dance.

“I just wanted students to think differently about the social scene and to think differently about what we can do that’s fun, that a lot of people will enjoy, but just not get too crazy,” Rice said. “Yes, there is a ban on dances. But there’s not a ban on concerts, or poetry nights, or comedy shows or DJ show cases.”

There have been no transports associated with college events since Toga, according to Rice.

The task force set a goal to reintroduce dances next September or October, according to Stevenson. For now, the task force is brainstorming new ideas for social events. Taking inspiration from the well-received Jan. 31 Groove at the Glen hosted by KOXY, the task force is optimistic about creating smaller, more diverse social events on a more consistent basis.

Undeclared ASOC First-Year Senator Mary Fulham volunteered to lead the task force and has been considering what kinds of events will interest students.

According to Fulham and Stevenson, prompting consistent, diverse options on- and off- campus is the goal of the task force. Rice believes this will not be difficult, given the college’s location in a major city.

“The other thing is: It’s not like we live in Iowa. We’re in Los Angeles! And I know Bengal Bus does late night safe rides on the weekends, and they have like a 10 mile radius. And 10 miles gets you pretty far into L.A.,” Rice said.

For students, the cost of getting off campus is often a consideration in making plans and staying on campus is often easier, according to Fulham. The task force aims to strike a balance between encouraging students to go out into Los Angeles and providing frequent programming on-campus.

“I guess what I don’t want is for students to be just be sitting on their laurels and going, ‘Woe is me,’ and ‘There just is no fun and my social life is terrible,'” Rice said.

In addition to generating more events, the task force is also considering how to allow house parties more breathing room by having houses register parties with Campus Safety.

“What registering means is that the house will tell Campus Safety that we are having a party and it will go from 10 p.m. until 12:30 p.m. and Campus Safety will agree to shut down the party at 12:30 p.m., but we will let it go on until then. And ideally we could communicate that information with the residents of the house, Rice, Campus Safety and the residents of the neighborhood,” Stevenson said.

According to Rice, making Occidental a school where alcohol related transports are rare, if not nonexistent, will require students to take ownership of their personal and shared experience at social events.

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Plumbing project rushed in wake of backup, leaks

By
Manna Selassie
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Occidental is preparing to replace it entire sewage pipeline system after emergency repairs to the sewage pipe that backed up into Johnson Hall on Feb. 9. The move is part of a planned renovation of the college’s aging plumbing system.

“When [the pipeline] backed up in the bathroom, it was a surprise, but we were planning on the project for about six months. We finally got approval for it the Thursday before the back up,” Director of Facilities Management Thomas Polansky said.

The component of the pipeline that was damaged is part of a larger sewage system that stretches from Bird Road down through the Academic Quad and impacts a substantial part of the campus. According to Director of Communications Jim Tranquada, the whole piece needs to be replaced before there are more incidents.

“We have an aging infrastructure, so sometimes things break before we have a chance to fix them during the regularly scheduled maintenance. Occidental is a beautiful campus with a mature landscape, and one of the disadvantages of having a mature campus is that you have older infrastructure that can break down,” Tranquada said.

While the original system is made of outdated cast-iron pipes, the replacement pipes are made from acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic, which is much more durable than cast-iron. However, Polansky noted it is not necessarily environmentally friendly.

“The plastic is probably recyclable, but that wasn’t a priority. The most important thing was it being super durable. It’s sort of a one time use thing. It’s quite possible that in a hundred years, they’ll be able to recycle it,” Polansky said. “We do think about sustainability all the time. It’s a huge factor in a lot of decisions, especially in facilities when you are going through products fairly rapidly.”

In addition to considering environmental concerns, Facilities wanted to ensure operations at the college would not be interrupted during construction. Smaller areas will be blocked off for five- to seven-day periods to accommodate the renovations, but workers will not block off the whole Academic Quad at one time. Thirty-foot-long paths will provide alternate routes, according to Polansky. Students may remember the fenced off parts of campus last week, which was for the emergency repairs to the compromised pipe in Johnson Hall.

One person in particular has been considerate of students and Occidental community members in this endeavor, according to Polansky.

“Particularly, there’s a Project Manager in Facilities named John Mortl. He’s been leading the effort for replacing the sewage system. He’s been incredibly diligent about avoiding disturbing people on campus. He came in right when we had the backup and got to work,” Polansky said.

The college is still waiting on permits from the city, but once they are received, the project is estimated to take about two months.

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CDC renovation in planning, fundraising phase

By
Clark Scally
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The Career Development Center (CDC) plans to expand its space to accommodate the growing student demand for employment assistance. The renovation will include a renaming of the CDC to the Center for Graduate Planning and Professional Services as well as the incorporation of the Office of National Awards (ONA) and Pre-Health Advising (PHA) to allow for greater accessibility and convenience. The timeline of construction will be determined at the conclusion of a campaign to raise $2 million in construction.

During the renovation, the CDC will be temporarily housed in trailer space on campus, although the precise location has yet to be determined.

In the 2012-2013 school year, 1,063 unique students took advantage of the help offered by the CDC, completing 833 scheduled counseling appointments and 385 registered drop-ins according to a report. The previous year, the CDC conducted 667 counseling appointments. Renovations will enable the CDC staff to meet rising student demand without having to move to a different site.

“We are glad to use an existing space instead of building from the ground up,” Director of the CDC Valerie Savior said. “One of the challenges of this space is that there’s no door to the exterior, which can make it kind of inaccessible and hard to find.”

Savior noted that other colleges usually base their career centers in their student life center or other highly visible common areas. She believes her department will be enhanced by working more closely with her colleagues in the ONA and PHA. Currently, ONA is housed in Room 1 of South Trailer B and PHA is located in Angela Wood’s office, also in the South Trailers.

While an extension of the CDC services is offered at the newly renovated Johnson Student Center, the AGC office has not been renovated in the nearly 50 years since its original construction in 1968, aside from occasional new furniture installation and asbestos removal. The planned renovations will include a patio, a seminar room and a lettered sign. According to Career Center Coordinator Ananda Dillon, the current CDC is not large enough to house its events and meetings for networking meetings and programs such as IMPACT, Walk in My Shoes job shadowing and InternLA.

The renovation will also add more space for full-time employees and student workers, who plan programming and help students visiting the CDC. The center currently provides two computers next to the CDC entrance for its six student employees.

“We will have private offices for eight staff members as well as work spaces for other staff and students,” Associate Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Brett Schraeder said. “We hope to start in the next few months. As with Johnson, it is a remodel, so we hope it to take less than one year from start to moving back in to the space.”

To be given the green light, the college still needs to secure enough donations and other appropriated income for the renovations, according to Schraeder.

“We are working closely with the fundraising office to raise the funds for the remodel. I think everyone understands well the importance of placing students in meaningful experiences after Oxy, and a space that shows off that importance is necessary,” Schraeder said.

If donors give enough money for the project, the new career center could bear a family name in their honor.

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World News Week of Feb. 24

By
William Stupp
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Kiev.
A day after being appointed interim president, Oleksandr Turchynov declared on Sunday that the country would take steps toward European integration. Taking the “European choice” will be a victory for protesters who were originally incited by the former President Viktor Yanukovych’s spurning an important deal with the European Union in favor of closer ties to Russia. Months of protests have shaken and divided the country. The true political results of the toppling of Yanukovych will not be clear until after elections, scheduled for May 25.

BBC

Uganda.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni signed into law a controversial bill introducing harsher sentencing for those found guilty of homosexual acts. The law states that citizens could face jail time for homosexual acts, and criminalizes the failure to report those suspected of being homosexual. Opponents of the law, including many Western nations, claim it is a human rights violation and a step backward for the country. Proponents urge other nations to not attempt to interfere.

Los Angeles Times

Washington, D.C.
With the arrest of Mexican drug-lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman last week, Mexican and U.S. officials must answer the difficult question of where the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel should stand trial. Several U.S. federal district courts have indictments against Guzman for his role in trafficking cocaine and heroin across the border. Mexico has not yet decided if it will extradite Guzman or try him in his home country.

Washington Post

Sochi.
 In the wake of the Olympics closing ceremony, officials within the Russian government must decide what to do with the facilities built for the games. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Olympic organizers have proposed the idea of using the Olympic facilities as a resort. Environmental activist Vladimir Kimayev, who criticized the environmental impact of building the Olympic facilities, does not want to see them go to waste now. However, with roughly $2.26 billion needed annually to maintain roads and city infrastructure, it is unlikely that a resort company will be able to afford to maintain the former Olympic village.

NPR News

San Francisco.
Federal officials announced on Friday that for the first time, farmers in California’s Central Valley will not receive any irrigation support from the government. The unprecedented step is a response to California’s driest year on record and will exacerbate its effects on farmers. With the nation’s biggest agricultural economy, the weather in California will affect both national and international food prices.

San Fransisco Chronicle

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Wilshire to break ground downtown

By
Noel Hemphill
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The Wilshire Grand Center, located in downtown Los Angeles, will be the tallest building on the west coast when it opens in 2017. Construction on the project began with a Feb. 16 record-breaking concrete pour.

The Korean Air-owned skyscraper will be first and foremost a luxury hotel but will also contain restaurants, shops and “attractive nightlife offerings,” according to the hotel website. The project is part of an effort to revitalize downtown Los Angeles.

The site where the Wilshire Grand Center will be built was originally held by the Hotel Statler. Constructed in 1952, the Statler eventually became a Hilton Hotel. The hotel changed owners several times and underwent multiple renovations before Korean Air bought the property in 1989. Within ten years, they had changed management and renamed the site as the Wilshire Grand Hotel. In 2013, an opportunity to re-develop the landmark Los Angeles hotel became a reality. The building was demolished and the design for the Wilshire Grand Center was revealed to the public.

The design for the Wilshire Grand Center will be a standout in the Los Angeles skyline. Each of Los Angeles’s downtown buildings were designed with a flat roof style as a safety precaution for helipad access in case of fire. The Wilshire Grand, however, will feature an angular rooftop, a design that was made possible by advanced fire safety and building technology in the architecture. The exception to a 1974 city ordinance mandating flat rooftops came from the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The Wilshire Grand remodel set the tone for further developments in the area. Downtown Los Angeles has emerged out of the recession despite many bankrupt properties, and according to Los Angeles Downtown News, there are 88 active projects. Developers Geoff Palmer and Saeed Farkhondehpour announced plans for the area, and quickly others joined in on the surge. Current plans for downtown include new apartment complexes and luxury condominiums, while a light-and-sign district similar to Times Square in New York City is planned for Figueroa Street.

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Occidental is first U.S. college to ban investment in gun manufacturers

By
Drew Jaffe
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In a move unprecedented by any U.S. college or university, the Occidental board of trustees will refrain from investing Occidental’s endowment in companies that manufacture military-style assault rifles. Implemented last January, the decision came as a response to a faculty resolution urging the school to address the string of mass shootings at schools across the country

Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy Peter Dreier and professor of Religious Studies Dale Wright led faculty efforts toward this change, drafting the resolution last year in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in Newtown, Conn. The shooting was one in a series of gun-related mass homicides that prompted Dreier and Wright to take action.

“National outrage about gun violence has been building over the last five or six years and began with massacre at Columbine High School in Colorado years ago, and Aurora and lots of other places, and with Sandy Hook killings in Newtown, Conn. it really reached a crescendo,” Dreier said.

The faculty resolution calls for the board to divest all stock holdings in companies that produce “military-style assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines for the purpose of sale and distribution to private citizens.” According to the resolution, continuing to invest in such companies would make the school complicit in the “violence and fear” that the guns cause.

This resolution against assault weapons echoes a letter signed by President Jonathan Veitch in Dec. 2012, calling for a ban on military-style semi-automatic assault weapons. Dreier believes divesting from companies that produce such weapons will ensure that the school upholds values exhibited in the letter, namely the belief that easy access to guns undermines the classroom experience by creating a potentially unsafe environment for students. Other faculty members agreed, with the resolution passing with 85 percent approval last February.

The faculty then presented its resolution to the board last spring, where an investment committee reviewed it. According to Board of Trustees Chair Christopher Calkins ‘67, the committee worked with faculty and the college’s investment advisers to address the issue. In crafting a response, the committee had to consider the board’s fiduciary responsibility to the school and its financial resources.

When the committee presented its final plan to the board, there was unanimous support. In a response to the faculty, Calkins noted that the college does not currently have any investments in assault weapon manufacturing companies and will continue this trend in the future.

According to Dreier, Occidental College is attracting praise as the first school in the country to ban investment in gun manufacturers. Drier noted that he has received commendations from other schools and national organizations pushing for stricter gun laws. Although the school’s endowment is small, Dreier believes the action will spur greater action on the issue of gun violence, which Dreier says is necessary for legislative changes.

“Public opinion alone doesn’t change laws, so taking an action like this is a way to start building a movement and translate public opinion into action” Dreier said.

Dreier is also confident that this action will catalyze a movement among colleges and universities across the country. He likens it to the efforts of academic institutions in the ’80s to divest from companies in South Africa during Apartheid.

“In some ways it’s modeled on the divestment movement of the 1980s when college students and faculty demanded colleges to divest from companies in South Africa. Eventually it gained a lot of momentum and grew and played a huge role in dismantling Apartheid, “ Dreier said.

But according to Calkins, while the board is happy to be able to do something in response to the issue of gun violence, the potential for future divestment is limited.

“There’s an unlimited number of causes, issues, concerns that could be raised, and should be raised, but whether they should be addressed in investment policy is a different question,” Calkins said.

 

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Robson, Chang, van Deventer defend SCIAC titles

By
Stephen Nemeth
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Swim 3 JulietThe Occidental swimming and diving teams finished the four-day SCIAC Championships over the weekend with the women placing fifth and the men seventh at the Brenda Villa Aquatic Center in Commerce, Calif.

“Most of our team had time drops and reached their goals,” Steven van Deventer (junior) said. “We ended on a great note.”

van Deventer, the reigning national champion in the 200-yard breaststroke, picked up NCAA “B” cut times in his signature event along with the 200-yard individual medley and the 100-yard breaststroke.

On the women’s side, Caroline Chang (senior) defended her 100-yard breaststroke conference title for the fourth consecutive time, touching the wall six one-hundredths of a second sooner than Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) newcomer Kelly Ngo. Chang registered a “B” cut time in the event as well as in the 200-yard breaststroke.

Although she did not literally make a big splash in the pool, diver Jessica Robson (senior) set conference and personal bests on the 1-meter diving board, scoring a 489.1 to win the event for the third year in a row and breaking her own record of 443.85 in the process.

Robson followed up the 1-meter title with a victory on the 3-meter board — her fourth title in the event — shattering the oldest SCIAC women’s record (previously held by Occidental alumna Marra Stankus ‘94) with a score of 491.85.

The men’s relay squads got off to rough starts with both the 200-yard freestyle relay and the 200-yard medley relay being disqualified for false starts after top-three finishes. However, the 200-yard medley unit rebounded in a time trial held on the final day of the competition, setting the Occidental school record.

The men’s 400-yard medley relay team — made up of the same core of Will Westwater (sophomore), van Deventer, Alex Najarian (sophomore) and Kevin Kuwata (junior) — earned second place with a “B” cut time of 3:24.52 minutes.

“We made a ‘B’ cut by about half a second, and we have to see how the other teams have done before we know if we’ve been invited [to nationals],” Najarian said. “It was what we were kind of shooting for all season, and that was exciting to finally grab what we missed last year.”

Distance swimmer Rose Seabrook (first-year) made a big improvement on the last day in the 1650-yard freestyle, placing fifth in the event and missing out on a “B” cut by 10 seconds. She did, however, break the Tiger record in the 1000-yard freestyle on her way to setting a new mark in the mile.

“Everyone looks at swimming as kind of an individual sport, which it is,” Seabrook said. “But it is very much a team sport. You swim for your team, you’re trying to do well for your team and your coach, and everyone is really supportive. It is a group effort.”

Robson will compete in the NCAA Regional Diving Championships this weekend in Grinnell, Iowa. Meanwhile, van Deventer has already qualified for the NCAA Division-III National Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., on March 19-22. Chang was on the bubble at the time of publication, with her nationals bid being decided as of 7 a.m. this morning.

 

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Ukeleles, songstresses, dancers descend on Thorne Hall for Apollo Night

By
Clark Scally
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Apollo Night, Occidental’s annual talent show, filled Thorne Hall with cheering crowds and 15 different musical acts on Friday night. Most of the performances were mellow but the stage always stayed energized, with no dearth of deft dance interludes. The Black Student Alliance coordinated a watertight show hosted by sociology major Edward Jackson (sophomore) and economics major Marielle Peña (sophomore). A winner for the most popular performance was chosen by the hosts based off the avalanche of applause the audience gave each performer.

“I feel a lot of responsibility,” Peña said. “As a host, I think it’s important for everything to run smoothly, coordinating with the acts. Most important is that we make the audience feel that they’re actually watching a show. The hardest part is being out there and making everybody laugh. The easiest part is just walking off stage.”

A roar of audience applause chose undeclared Micah Garrido (first-year) the winner of the show. Garrido played the ukulele in two separate acts, appearing first in the group Random Strangers, a three-piece band including a vocalist and additional strings. Garrido used both feet simultaneously to play a step drum and cymbal. After the intermission, he appeared onstage to play a solo stylized version of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”

The show also included full bands Bourbon Theory and My Boyfriend. Bourbon Theory played a solid original jazz piece, and My Boyfriend featured a powerful alto saxophonist, music major Alyssa Cottle (junior). The skills of the stage crew and the sound mixer were highlighted during My Boyfriend’s set; the sound level remained in check with the big band, which also fielded a piano and a drummer.

“The tech crew always does a solid job mixing each act,” economics major and My Boyfriend’s drummer Nick Gallagher (senior) said.

Apollo Night was the first time Gallagher’s band had played together on stage, as was the case for many of the other acts. The hosts made a point to celebrate each debut act, and promoted much of the original content produced by the student artists.

Psychology major Linneen Warren (sophomore) played the piano in two acts. In her second number, she accompanied Media Arts and Culture major Grace Centauro (sophomore) in an original take on a John Legend cover that featured spoken word.

“This is actually our first performance, but we have been collaborating for the past year and a half. It was all Grace’s conception,” Warren said.

The various performances were well-organized and the show moved fluidly from act to act. Amidst the vocal and instrumental performances were pieces of original choreography from members of Hyper Xpressions that electrified the stage and kept the energy going from act to act. The night ended a great success, with audience members leaving with the voices and dance moves of their peers running through their minds.


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Campus entrance to go from gray to green

By
William Stupp
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A $1.5 million recent trustee donation will fund a renovation to the campus main entrance to commemorate the 100th year anniversary of Occidental’s relocation to its current campus. The construction, scheduled to be completed this summer, will replace part of the driveway with green space. College planners hope the renovation of the entrance will be a highly visible start of a larger campaign of sustainable landscaping and development with the aim of pedestrianizing the campus.

The new space will be an extension of the hillside around Gilman Fountain and the main steps. The paved area of the driveway above the entrance to the Bell Field parking lot will be replaced with grass. A footpath lined by 40-year-old olive trees and other drought-resistant plants will extend to the fountain, replacing the circle drive and parking spaces

President Jonathan Veitch believes the renovations will provide visitors with a better representation of the campus’s beauty.

“We have an extraordinary campus and we’ve basically turned our entrance into a parking lot,” Veitch said. “You could arrive at Oxy and not know any of the college’s beauty.”

Veitch puts the project in the context of a broad-based effort to develop more sustainable practices and make the campus more accessible to pedestrians through the expansion of green spaces, which reduce runoff and promote water capture.

“This is one of those projects where we put our money where our mouth is in terms of sustainability,” Polansky said.

According to professor of biology Gretchen North, removing an area of asphalt will reduce the amount of water that flows off campus property through the entrance. By increasing the amount of water which is absorbed back into the ground, the college will decrease the strain on the city’s drainage system.

Polansky said the digging of a bioswale, a trench designed to collect rainwater, could reduce levels of silt in runoff.

“The best design marries together tightly sustainability and aesthetics. And I think this does that quite nicely. We should be able to use minimal amounts of irrigation,” Polansky said.

North advised the project during the planning phase and sees it as a step in the right direction.

“I would have liked to see more native plants in the design, but they are often more expensive and harder to establish,” North said. “I was glad to be a part of the thinking and I do believe it represents a new commitment to more sustainable landscaping.”

Future plans include the expansion of lawns and gardens along Bird Road, which will reduce parking spots available on lower campus, and the replacement of water-needy plants with counterparts more suited to the climate.

“Sustainable growth occurs with big projects and incremental process,” Director of Communications James Tranquanda said.

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Student talent flourishes at New Play Festival

By
Wellesley Daniels
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Student writers and audience members packed the house of Keck Theatre for the sixteenth annual New Play Festival.

“This year, with student and professional involvement, there were over 50 creators in the fest. Our audiences, over the five shows, numbered in the hundreds,” Professor of theater, head of the festival and award-winning playwright Laural Meade said. “Factor in some themes of the work – war, death, love, mayhem, technology, spirituality – and you have a lot of people exploring and exchanging powerful ideas and images through the mercurial filter of live artistic expression. That’s what brings us back to the theater time and again, yes? It’s a phenomenal gift we give to each other.”

English And Comparative Literature Studies (ECLS) and theater double major Sarah Martellaro (senior) opened the festival with “In the Garden of Eden,” an innovative, side-splitting meta-farce inspired by the board game Clue. The play combines the excitement of murder mystery with delightful absurdity and self-referential theater jokes.

“I just wanted to write something silly and nonsensical. That’s
about it,” Martellaro said.

Student and professional talents work together to produce each play, generally with a director and one or more hired actors working alongside Occidental students on each play.

“I thought Sarah’s play, when we sat around the table and read it, was really funny and I thought we’re not really going to know if its working or not until we get it on its feet. So that was our main goal, the pop up. We just had to get up and be fearless,” “In the Garden of Eden” director Michael Sargent said.

“Jack Courage in the Land of Olives,” by theater major Nina Carlin (junior), and “Face Time,” by undeclared Griffin Wynne (first-year), followed. Carlin’s “Jack Courage” earnestly tells the story of a woman named Dinah-Lee who exacts justice for Jack, played by theater major Grace West (sophomore) and music major Nick Gallagher (senior) respectively, in western-Biblical stylistic mash-up. Wynne’s “Face Time” bid the audience goodnight with gut-busting giggles as it told of a future dystopia in which humans only interact with each other through social media and Siri is the reigning deity.

“Working [as an actor in] “Face Time” made me more aware of the huge role technology really does play in my life and made me cognizant of the future of technology, of the path we could very well be headed down,” undeclared Georgia Tankard (first-year) said.

“Conference,” written by theater major Emily Bragg (junior), and “Fire, Brimstone & 401k” by theater and Diplomacy and World Affairs double major Reza Vojdani (senior) closed the festival on Sunday with a bang. In “Conference,” two best friends from high school are reunited at a student-teacher conference after nine years apart. “Fire, Brimstone & 401k” tells a more fantastical, comedic tale of unemployed Don and his strange encounter with Satan.

“Each of the five writers truly developed and improved her/his script. It’s a kind of magic – prying a play off the page and on the stage,” Meade said.

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