http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/November 2, 2009en-usSat, 7 Nov 2009 10:49:23 ESTMon, 2 Nov 2009 14:04:11 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2178
Men s basketball head coach Frankie Smith doesn t necessarily buy into those numbers.

We had a number of close losses last season, Smith said. If we would have been able to pull a few of those ones out at the end, we would have been in the GLIAC tournament.

Some of the losses that Smith was referencing
were the 68-66 loss to Hillsdale, 74-70 to
Ashland, and a 79-75 setback to Indianapolis. In
close games such as those, free throws can be
the difference between winning and losing. In
most cases for the Cardinals, they seemed to be
something that held them back.

Something as simple as making freethrows,
or hustling to lose balls, the little things
like that all help determine who comes out on
top, Smith said. Too many times last year, we
found ourselves on the wrong end of a close
game.

While it will be difficult to replace the
loss of leading scorer Dante Williams, Smith is
confident that the team has enough weapons, in
particular senior guard Avery Stephenson, to be
able to put up points.

Avery is going to have a big year for us,
Smith said. It s tough to lose someone like Dante
who was not only a great player, but someone
who pushed guys to try their hardest. It is going
to be hard to replace Dante, although Avery is
the type of player that has enough talent to play
at an All-American type level.

In the preseason coach s poll, the Cardinals
were selected to finish in fifth in the GLIAC
North Division, although Smith isn t putting
much stock into that.

Before the poll came out, I told the guys
I really have no idea where we re going to be
placed, Smith said. The great thing about that
is that I didn t care. All that matters is where
you end up at the end of the season.

In each of the last two seasons, the Cardinals
have finished one game short of qualifying for
the GLIAC tournament. While Smith would be
quick to disagree with anyone who says the team
has been a failure the last couple of seasons, the
lack of wins is something that Smith isn t used
to.

Before coming to SVSU, Smith was an
assistant coach at Miami University where the
Redhawks won a regular season Mid American
Conference (MAC) championship as well as a
MAC tournament championship. Before that, he
was a high school coach in West Virginia where
he compiled a record of 125-35. Needless to say,
he has experienced success everywhere he has
coached.

I ve been blessed with having a lot of talent
on my teams, Smith said. No matter where I m
at, I ve always had a great group of players. I m
really excited about this team because it reflects
me. My first season here, I was playing with
someone else s players. Now I can say these are
all my guys.

Something that Smith hopes the Cardinals
can do this season is get off to a fast start. Last
season, they lost their first five games, putting
them at a disadvantage early on. The Cards
finished last season winning four of their
last six games, which has Smith hoping the
Cardinals can carry that momentum into this
season.

You never want to have long losing streaks,
especially like we did at the beginning of last
season, Smith said. We tasted success at the
end of the season and hopefully we can put
ourselves in better position for later on in the
season by winning early.

In addition to Stephenson, the Cardinals
also have two other starters returning in senior
forward Adam Gries and sophomore guard Greg
Foster. The experience the team has is something
Smith believes will help it through the season.

Greg came in and played a lot of minutes
as a freshman, Smith said. This is the most
experienced team I ve had since being here, and
I m excited about that. Everyone knows what to
expect now. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 14:04:11 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2178http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2182
The lecture was the fifth in the series dedicated to leadership in times of crisis. Mathur s focus was India s political relations with Poland, the Soviet Union and the United States during the Cold War.

The professor said the name of the lecture Elephants, Mangoes, and Spies: Foreign Relations between Non-aligned India and Communist Poland, 1947-1989 reflected non-aligned India s relationship with Eastern Europe. The Soviets loved Indian mangoes, and the Polish sent spies to India. (Also, one Polish leader rode an elephant in India, which led Dr. Mathur to develop the term elephant diplomacy. )
Mathur s lecture looked at Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, a pivotal figure in India s movement for independence. Nehru maintained India s autonomy from the Soviet Union and the United States. During his ministry from 1947 to 1964, Nehru traveled the world and met with presidents Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower and John Kennedy, and maintained India s nonviolence and non-alignment.

Nehru also met with Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev. The meeting led to propaganda depicting him as Russia s best friend outside of non-communist countries. But these relationships brought advantages to both countries: India gave the Eastern Bloc consumer goods in exchange for heavy capital machinery to invest in India s infrastructure.

Mathur say that, given the times troubled relations between Soviets and Americans, every leader s visit between countries was important.

I was in a crowd in New Delhi when President Jimmy Carter visited India, Mathur said. I remember waving to him, but I am sure he did not see me.

Biology sophomore Adam Simmons found the lecture very informative. I found the back-and-forth tug of war between these countries very similar to a giant soap opera, he said.

Mathur is working on a book about Indo-Polish relations during the Cold War.

My research is specialization in Eastern European history, my Ph.D. work was in Polish History and my dissertation was in Polish women and sports, Mathur said. I really looked at how communism used and abused women and sports to project the superiority of communism.

As Mathur researched political relationships in the East, she has been astonished by some of the things she s learned in particular, how many opportunities the United States had to do good in South Asia and failed to do so, she said.

The biggest surprise to me is that America, being a democratic nation, chose to support ruthless military dictatorships, Mathur said. Coming from that region and seeing this happen is very sad and makes you angry.

Mathur is the author of the book A Supportive Matka-Polka: Nationalism and Feminism in Women s Physical Culture in Modern Poland. She has written many scholarly articles and reviews and holds a doctorate in modern European history from West Virginia University.

The lecture was the seventh in the annual Hoffman/Willertz series, each year given by a member of SVSU s history faculty.
]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 14:00:23 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2182http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2181
Two teams of three competed at the University of Michigan Saturday for the qualifiers of the ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest, a worldwide annual competition that presents teams with at least six complex programming problems. Teams spent five hours huddled over a computer to finish and get no assistance from their coaches.

Around 100 students competed from colleges across Michigan.

Morteza Marzjarani, professor of computer science and coach for the two teams, explained that it is beneficial for students to apply what they learn in the classroom. By participating, they can see what will be expected of them in the real work world, he said, adding that the problems test the student s logic skills more than anything else.

The questions involve real-life situations. Each question is about a page or two long, with a helpful picture or diagram. Problems from previous contests are located on the event s Web site for students to study.

One past problem involved walking traffic in an airport. Contestants had to write a computer program that would determine which terminals should be placed next to each other to reduce traffic flow.

Past competitors have had to design a program to find the maximum number of trees that could be cut down without one touching another. Others devised programs to transpose notes from one major scale to the next, and determine how to open a circular combination lock.

SVSU s students were selected by the computer science faculty. Marzjarani said they look for students in their classes with promising talent and ask them to get involved.

Chad Stephens, a computer science junior, hadn t heard about the competition beforehand but said it sounded interesting, and he wanted to give it a try.

Rochelle Hand, a computer science junior, said before the competition that she knows it will be a challenge, but said, I will be interested to see what I can do.

Hand s teammates were computer science majors Nick Blessing and Spencer Biery. Stephens included computer science major Evan Schultz and accounting major Aaron Maturen.

The team that solved the most problems correctly in the least amount of time would go on to compete at the world finals in China.

This year s competition will draw more than 7,100 students from more than 1,800 universities in 88 countries around the world.

Marzjarani said he is always impressed that students are willing to sacrifice their weekends to represent SVSU and learn more about computer programming. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:58:09 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2181http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2180
She broke the previous career kill record of 1,240 set in the 1990s with 1,281 kills. She also had an outstanding 1,188 career digs, placing her at fifth in SVSU dig records.

After the awards ceremony, the
Lady Cards swept the Lakers off
their feet 3-0 in the match on Saturday.

The first two matches concluded
with the same 25-17 score, and the
packed gym let their girls know they
were appreciated.

Senior setter Kait Harris, who
was chosen as the 2009 Week 8 GLIAC
North Division Player of Week
last week had a solid match with
35 assists. Sophomore libero Laura
Ward also had an impact from the
very beginning, immediately giving
SVSU an advantage. She managed 29
digs for the match.

The Cardinals' score was kept at
22 as the Lakers took 5 points until
senior middle hitter Jaclyn Carnago's
line hit rocketed past GVSU to break
the streak.

The Lakers were sloppy in the
second game, letting the Lady Cards
take the lead early. Sophomore
middle hitter Katherine Fitzgerald
had a good game, landing a cross
hit to kick start the girls and winning
the game point with a block.

She had help from junior opposite
outside hitter Jessica Treiber who
got the girls to game point with a
well-placed kill and had 13 kills for
the entire match.

In the third game, the Lakers
decided to put up more of a fight.
The two teams went point-forpoint,
always within 2 points of each
other. It didn't look good for SVSU
when the Lakers took the lead at 23-
24, but soon the game was back in a
struggle to pull ahead , tied up at 24
and then 25.

Treiber's kills stood out this
game as well as senior outside hitter
Allison Schlinkert (the Week 6
GLIAC North Division Player of the
Week), whose 11 overall match kills
aided the win, particularly one that
gave the girls the lead at 25-24. The
game went to 29-17, and the Lady
Cards triumphed overall.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:47:09 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2180http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2179Three rushing touchdowns lead SVSU past Findlay in GLIAC showdownFor the first time in three weeks, the Cardinals offense failed to score at least 38 points.

It didn t matter though, as they defeated Findlay in a pivotal match-up 24-16.

In a game that featured two of the three teams tied for second place heading into Saturday s games, the Cardinals accomplished what they have in all of their winning efforts this season: a successful rushing attack.

All three of the Cards
touchdowns were via the ground, as
junior quarterback Charles Dowdell
had two touchdowns. Junior running
back Xavier Walker had the other.

The game was a defensive
struggle throughout, as the Cardinals
led 3-0 after the first quarter on
sophomore kicker Austin Borchard s
35-yard field goal.

The second quarter played
out much like the first quarter did,
although Findlay was finally able to
score the game s first touchdown with
17 seconds left in the quarter on a
two-yard pass play, giving the Oilers
a 7-3 halftime lead.

Compared to the first half,
the third quarter was an offensive
explosion.

The Cardinals opened the third
quarter with a nine-play, 61-yard
drive that Dowdell capped off with a
three-yard run.

After a 40-yard field goal by
Findlay knotted the score at 10, the
Cardinals defense forced the Oilers
to turn the ball over on downs deep
inside their own territory. It was a
mistake the Cardinals offense took
advantage of, as Walker rushed in
from eight yards out to give the
Cardinals a 17-10 lead.

Dowdell led the Cardinals on a
ten play, 79-yard drive to begin the
fourth quarter that he completed
himself with a ten yard touchdown
run that gave the Cards room to
breathe.

They turned out to be points
they would need, as Findlay scored
a touchdown with 2:19 remaining to
bring the score to within eight points,
as they were unable to convert the
two-point conversion. However,
that would end the scoring for both
teams.

For the game, the Cardinals
had 182 rushing yards and 286 total
yards.

The Cardinals defense did
equally as good a job shutting the
Findlay offense down as the Oiler
defense did in shutting the Cardinals
offense down. Findlay managed only
294 total yards.

Like he has in many games this
season, Walker led the Cardinals in
rushing with 16 carries for 84 yards.
Dowdell was next in line for SVSU
with 17 rushes for 65 yards.

Even though the Cardinals kept
the ball on the ground for most of
the game, Dowdell had an efficient
game threw the air, going 12-18 for
104 yards.

The win was the Cards fourth
in a row, which is the longest streak
during a season in head coach Jim
Collins short tenure at SVSU.

With the win, the Cardinals
improved their record to 8-2 overall,
7-2 in the GLIAC. Hillsdale and SVSU
are now tied for second place with
identical records, one game behind
Grand Valley.

SVSU welcomes Ferris State to
town Saturday for a noon kickoff in
the regular season finale.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:40:33 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2179http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2177
With the work ethic the team displays, she believes the team is doing just that.

There isn t a whole lot I have to say to the girls, Baugh said. They don t want to go through another season like we had last year, as far as wins and losses go. They are all motivated to go out and work hard in practice every day.

While Baugh expects the team to perform better,
she realizes it is going to be difficult filling the
shoes of last seasons leading scorer, Tricia Everett.

Not only was Tricia a great player, she was
our leader, Baugh said.

I can t say that I expect one player to try and
replace her. It is going to have to be a team effort
to fill the little shoes of a player like Tricia, Baugh
said, jokingly referring to Everett, who Baugh said
was short in size, but big in heart.

One of the players who Baugh has high expectations
for is sophomore guard Marah Kyle, who
started in 22 of 27 games as a freshman.

Marah had a tremendous year as a freshman,
Baugh said. She came in and played a lot of minutes
and contributed a great amount. She is going
to be one of the players that has to step up with the
loss of Tricia.

Like the rest of the team, Kyle also has parts of
her game that can be improved. She shot 54 percent
from the free-throw line, a number that Baugh is
hoping will increase significantly.

As a guard, it is crucial that you have a high
free-throw percentage, Baugh said. She is a player
that likes to take the ball through the lane, so she s
going to get fouled. Last season, she had the most
attempts on the team. It will be important that she
converts on those more often this season.

Not only is SVSU facing an uphill battle after
losing its leading scorer, the team also happen to
play in the GLIAC, a conference that Baugh calls
one of the best Division II conferences in the nation.

When you look at the schedule, we play some
tremendous teams, Baugh said. Teams like Michigan
Tech and Grand Valley are some of the top
teams in the country. We have to come out every
single game ready to play because we know our
competition will be ready to go.

In the Division II Bulletin preseason poll, Michigan
Tech was ranked first, while Grand Valley was
ranked 13th, showing the depth of the GLIAC that
Baugh was referring to.

Last season, the Cards offense averaged
only 55 points per game, last in the
GLIAC. Baugh knows the Cardinals must put
up better offensive numbers if they hope to achieve
success.

Offensively, I would like to be able to push
the ball up the court and score points in a hurry,
Baugh said. Sometimes we will be able to do that,
but it all depends on the personnel that we have in
the game.

In order to score more points, Baugh is also
stressing to the team how important it is for them to
rebound the ball, something players struggled with
mightily last season.

In order to be a good rebounding team, you
have to want it, Baugh said. You have to have a
will to go up in traffic and come down with the basketball.
Hopefully, we do a better job of doing that
this season.

With a year under her belt, Baugh hopes the
team can put last season behind it and come out
better prepared to handle the difficulties of everyday
life in the GLIAC.

When it s all said and done, I would like to be
able to say that we came out everyday and competed,
Baugh said. Whether that shows in terms of
wins and losses, that will be determined later. If we
can give ourselves a chance at the end of the game,
we ll be able to come out on top more often. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:23:23 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2177http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2176
Through November, the art gallery will feature photographer Stephen Geffre s artwork.

Featured work includes multipleexposure shots of rural North Dakota. Geffre said he created these without the help of Adobe Photoshop or darkroom tricks.

With my artwork, I want to
expose you to an entirely new way
of seeing the supposedly mundane.
I want to take the photograph that
shows you how gorgeous [these] everyday
objects actually are, Geffre
says on his Web site.

Geffre found photography an
easier way to convey a feeling or message
without words, as he suffers from
a condition much like dyslexia called
dysgraphia.

It s hard work finding the right
spot to let a story tell itself. But when
it works, there s nothing more rewarding,
he said.

Geffre began his career as a staff
photographer at the Minot Daily
News.

He has done freelance work for
national publications such as USA
Today, The New York Times and the
Minneapolis Star Tribune.

His artwork has graced multiple
art shows throughout the Midwest
and has been recognized by the Alternative
Press, North Dakota Press,
the Photographer s Association and
MSNBC.com.

Typically, artists find out about
the University gallery through advertisements
on the Internet, said David
Littel, art gallery coordinator.

Interested artists are encouraged
to send samples of their artwork to
an art committee that reviews different
artists work and collaborates on
which should be displayed in the gallery.

From there, Littell said that he
typically drives to pick up the artwork.

However, Geffre currently resides
in Minneapolis working as the
public relations photographer for
Augsburg College, which made it difficult
for Littell to obtain the framed
artwork.

Thus, it was shipped to the University
in crates and will be sent back
at the end of the month.

The art gallery is open from 10:30
a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday and Wednesday
and 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday,
Thursday and Friday.

The exhibit will remain open until
Nov. 24.

The artist reception for Geffre is
from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Thursday
Nov. 12. There is no charge for admission.

To learn more about Stephen Geffre
or view more of his artwork, visit
Stephen Geffre's Web site.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:16:05 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2176http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2175
Eric Gardner, the book s author, dissects this quote to emphasize the misconception that African American literature of this period rarely ventured from the template of the slave narrative or came from outside the Northeast.

Gardner, an SVSU professor of English,
debunks these fallacies through a revisitation
of (unexpected) areas from the
1840s through the 1860s.

Closer inspection of areas such as St.
Louis, Indiana and San Francisco during
this period reveals slave narratives were
just the tip of the proverbial iceberg from
the black literary community.

These writings covered other topics
like gaining broader civil rights, reuniting
families and black contributions to
pioneering the nation,
said Gardner.

Though African
American literature of
this era has garnered
more critical attention
and study in recent decades,
the scope of this
attention is typically
limited to books.

This tunnel vision
severely shortchanges
the genre, though, since
African American writers
often struggled to
have their work published
as books.

Gardner says black
newspapers of the time
are more indicative of
the range these writers
had because content included
anything from
poetry to serialized
novels.

These papers
change the way we look
at these writers because
we see how versatile a
lot of the writing was,
he said.

Unexpected Places
primarily calls for greater
acknowledgement
of this literature s geographical
and topical
versatility.

But it also reveals the genre as a relatively
untapped area of literary study.

As part of his research, Gardner ran
several searches of the Modern Language
Association s International Bibliography.
The searches showed a skewed amount
of attention toward black writers of the
20th century in comparison to those of
the previous century.

Gardner uses these findings to bolster
his argument that even many scholars
equate 19th century black literature
only to slave narratives.

Research from previous book projects
also helped serve Unexpected Places.

Gardner says he drew from his findings
of Jennie Carter: A Black Journalist of
the Early West to flesh out the section in
this book about San Francisco, where
Carter was a vital part of the area s black
writing scene.

Though Unexpected Places strives to
display the expansive nature of the genre,
Gardner doesn t look to undermine the
importance of literature concerning slavery
or racism.

The importance of these writings is
amplified by how slavery affected virtually
every person in the country.

Even if you lived in Michigan, and
you were wearing a cotton shirt or ate
white rice, you were connected in some
way to the slave system, Gardner said.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:11:33 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2175http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2174
Each October, I m reminded of one of my most trusted cantankerous nostalgic standbys: Halloween.

For years I ve insisted that Halloween just isn t like it was when I was a young scamp roaming the neighborhood and collecting enough candy to ensure abuse of the family dental plan.

In my eyes, the cheap, flimsy
costumes of today paled in comparison
to the ones we had.

Good Halloween fun had given
way to overprotective parents sapping
all the enjoyment from the lone
day of the year where taking from
strangers is encouraged.

But this year, I had a revelation:
all of my fuzzy Halloween recollections
have masked several key
realities.

I may scoff at the popular costumes
children wear today. But that
probably has more to do with me
having no idea who the Happy Tree
Friends are and less to do with the
cheapness of the costumes.

Let s face it, pre-made costumes
have always been terrible quality.
I m not sure I owned one that made
it through the entire night, let alone
could be used a second time.

I ll wager no one my age didn t
have at least one Halloween where
they made the trick-or-treat rounds
wearing some pre-made abomination
that came with a thin mask with the
consistency of a plastic plate.

Then there s my perceived notion
of overprotective parents of
today watering down the unabashed
Halloween antics my peers and I
enjoyed as youngsters.

But that memory of all this freedom
is a bunch of crap, too. We got
the speeches about not taking items
such as apples because they might
have pins or razor blades in them.

We weren t free to roam the
streets all night.

And while I can t speak for
everyone, I can certainly say I was
forced to compromise my already
shoddy Hulk Hogan costume by
covering most of it with my bulky
winter coat.

My cheap mask and costume
ordeal was slightly remedied in later
years when I made the upgrade to
those heavy latex masks.

So instead of hoping the eye slits
of the dinky plastic masks didn t
slice out my eyes, I tried my hand
at completing my candy grubbing
before I suffocated inside a nonbreathable,
latex Dracula mask.

Eventually I became so disillusioned
with these masks that by the
end of my trick-or-treating career I
was going as overweight kid with
glasses. Thankfully, that happened
to be a character I was familiar with
every day of the year.

This isn t to say I ve done a 180
and now have nothing but poor
memories of my formative Halloweens.

It s more of an admission that
even though some things have
changed for the worse, Halloween
for children isn t one of them.

Trends zip in and out as time
passes, but we can always relate to
the youths of today with our shared
experiences with overpriced costumes
and plastic masks that break
before the night ends.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:07:35 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2174http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2173
In a matter of hours, his 15-year role as the butt of jokes was changed and (almost) everyone suddenly remembered what had made Jackson a musical icon in the first place.

Anyone who paid any attention to the hours of
coverage that ensued following his death is wellversed
with circumstances surrounding Michael
Jackson s This Is It.

Originally the title of what of was to be his
final curtain call on the touring circuit, This Is
It is instead a two-hour collection of rehearsal
footage packaged as a gift for Jackson s legions
of fans.

But this is not a documentary intended to
mourn or ponder the loss of the King of Pop.

There are no post-mortem interviews. Interviews
of any sort are rare commodities here.

Instead, we get a stage-side seat to witness
the collaboration of a concert of grandiose proportions.

And that s where the magic happens.

The Michael Jackson we get does not at all resemble
the frail Jackson we d become familiar with
this decade.

The Michael Jackson who seemed almost incapable
of walking into a courtroom, let alone unleashing
his trademark Moonwalk is nowhere in
this footage.

We see a man with a revitalized sense of purpose;
someone who doesn t only want to glide
across the stage but is fully able to do so.

This Is It features several moments where we
catch Jackson s definitive knowledge of not just his
own catalog, but entertainment as a whole.

At one point, he halts Wanna Be Startin Somethin
to tell his bass guitarist precisely how much
funkier he needs the song s unmistakable groove to
be.

Though we never see the finished product, we
witness the meticulous planning Jackson put into
making each song of the concert set list a visual delight.

Smooth Criminal opens with a video of Jackson
edited into a shootout with Humphrey Bogart.
Video effects turn 11 dancers into a backdrop of
11,000 soldiers in They Don t Care About Us.

Watching Jackson own the stage for the better
part of two hours is a bittersweet experience.
Here s a person who led a dual existence his
entire life.

On stage, there may have never been such an
electric entertainer. Away from the stage, we saw
a man who never seemed comfortable in his own
skin.

To that end, it s reassuring to watch This Is It,
knowing that Jackson spent his final weeks immersed
in the one environment where he wasn t
inhibited.

Toward the end of the documentary, Jackson
and the crew join hands in a circle. Jackson thanks
the crew for their patience, reminding them that the
preparation is not without a purpose.

This is escapism. We re taking them [the audience]
to places they ve never been, he tells them.

Jackson s death may have prevented that from
happening as he envisioned. But This Is It still provides
a slice of that escapism.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:02:20 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2173http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2172
Every week, millions of viewers text in votes for their favorite singer, dancer or entertainer. This creates an interesting relationship with the viewer and performers. I recently had the opportunity to attend an audition for the show America s Got Talent and see how much of reality TV is real.

The date was Sunday, October 18,
and the place was the McCormick Place
Convention Center in Chicago. My wife,
Heidi, was auditioning for the show.

We had received an e-mail five
days before the auditions inviting us
to participate. This made for a very
quick decision to go to Chicago and
commence in phase one of winning one
million dollars.

The audition time was set for 9
a.m. Sunday. When we arrived at 7:30
a.m., there were already 403 performers
waiting before us. All kinds of
people were there: musicians with
their hard-shell cases carrying guitars,
saxophones and trumpets, hundreds of
singers and dancers, men, women and
children.

Our first dose of reality was the
crowd shots, which open the show and
give the impression that thousands of
people are waiting to perform for the
judges.

We were filmed in a crowd of,
approximately 500 people, jumping up
and down like fools yelling, Chicago s
Got Talent! At one point, the director
split the group in the hallway to give
the impression on camera that there
were twice as many people. All of this
was done to create the illusion of thousands
of people waiting to perform
before the celebrity judges, who were
not even present at this stage of the
game.

I do have to hand it to the America s
Got Talent staff. They were very organized
and able to handle the assembled
crowd and kept things moving smoothly.

I watched the cameras interview
participants who were dressed in
the most flamboyant clothes or were
dressed most provocatively while the
plain jane types, who I thought had
more talent than the others, were overlooked
by the cameras. Is this reality?
I thought.

Around 3:30 p.m., Heidi s group
got called in to audition. She had her
sights set on winning over the producers
of the show to get a call back to
perform before the real judges.

Ninety seconds of a cappella singing
in front of the shows producers got
the response, Call backs are in January.
Thanks for coming.

This experience left me with one
thought: reality TV is not so real, but it
sure was a lot of fun.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 12:57:37 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2172http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2171
Was this my imagination? Had I simply seen one too many horror movies in which the weak and frail young woman gets kidnapped and murdered, or worse, sold into sexual slavery?

In the six year period between
1999 and 2005, more than 6,000 girls
and women were victims of murder
and often rape in Mexico, with over
800 murders occurring in 2004 alone.

When assuring my mother of my
safety, I threw these statistics aside
and often used the city of Saginaw in
my defense by pointing out that it, in
the past, has had one of the highest
murder rates in Michigan. After all,
violence occurs everywhere.

The problem with this logic is
the astounding difference between
the crimes in U.S. cities and those in
Mexican cities, some of which have
earned the nicknames of Femicide
Capitals.

When I picked up the paper
and when I say picked up I mean
surfed the msnbc.com news site, of
course I was ecstatic to read about
the new Pink Taxi program initiated
in Puebla, Mexico.

The new taxis, which are painted
pink go figure are designed
solely for women and are fully intact
with an alarm system and a beauty
kit. This new all-female industry was
created because of Mexican women s
demand for an alternative to the potentially
dangerous male taxi drivers.

This new system is receiving
outcries from feminine rights organizations
throughout Mexico. The
Network for Sexual and Reproductive
Health claims that this new program
defies modernity because it implies
that women have continued worrying
about beauty and nothing more,
and it therefore doesn t solve the
problem.

There is no doubt that the beauty
kit included within the taxis sends a
mixed message about the true needs
of Mexican females: safety. But focusing
on this aspect ignores the bigger
picture. This program offers a new
safe option for females when traveling.

In Mexico, I was strongly advised
to avoid sitting in the front seat with
the cab driver, simply because my
mere presence offered a cultural invitation
for promiscuity and violence.
What I would have given to have
climbed into a pink cab and arrive
home safely without having to plan
ways in which to escape the moving
vehicle just in case I was about to
become a statistic.

It is legitimately valid to say
that the Pink Taxis do not solve the
problem of violence against women,
especially since the appeal of the
service is the safety promised by the
separation of males and females.
But the problem is this: what should
women do while they are waiting for
a solution? Should they simply have
to keep placing themselves in danger?

Mexican Women s Rights organizations
have obviously proven
themselves useless in implementing
the education and social changes required
to create a long term decrease
in violence against women. What is
it then that gives them the right to
speak out against this safe option for
females?

I have been to Mexico and
experienced the fear that should be
felt by every Mexican woman when
she climbs into a cab alone, and it is
a terrible feeling that no one should
have to go through. Despite the
misplaced beliefs of women s rights
groups, this program is absolutely
necessary for Mexican women. It is
unfair to ask females to constantly
put themselves in potentially violent
situations simply because riding in
a Pink Taxi doesn t present a holistic
solution.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 12:49:30 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2171http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2170
I was once riding in a car with my grandma in Jackson and the weather smacked of the fulfillment of the apocalypse. Ferocious wind ripped branches from trees and blew sideways raindrops the size of baseballs; water rushed over the hood of the car as we drove up a newborn waterfall. Right at that moment, the voice of the weatherman over the radio warned aspiring picnickers that there was a 60% chance of rain.

After this, I decided that
anything a weatherman in Michigan
said I would interpret as the
opposite of reality. We can apply
this Michigan-weatherman
principle to other things such
Texas. I think the other 49 states
should adopt a law that says
something like this: any idea
deemed sensible by the people of
Texas shall be the considered by
all other states to be the opposite
of sensible. Were this principle
to be adopted, we would not be
insulting our own intelligence
by discussing the possibility of
allowing guns to be carried on
college campuses.

Last week the Vanguard
received an email from an angry
corporate goon who didn t
like the way I had portrayed
his company. I will be less surprised
if a representative from
the NRA sends a letter proclaiming
how little respect I have
for the rights and liberties of
Americans for writing this, but I
assure my readers that the only
interest I have while writing my
column apart from the $30
is to provide thoughtful and
informative dialogue that will
help people to protect their own
lives and the lives of the people
around them. On this particular
issue, I can see no better way to
do this than to explain the most
probable impacts of legislation
allowing guns to be carried on
campus.

In Louisiana (similar to
Texas, but smaller) some years
ago now, a trick-or-treater was
gunned down by a homeowner
who felt threatened by the
masked goon on his property.
This tragedy should ring as a
testament to the idiocy of the
rationale for this legislation,
which goes something like this:
the Virginia Tech massacre was
horrible; the students were
unarmed and powerless to defend
themselves; our Second
Amendment right to bear arms
is there so Americans can protect
themselves; if students were allowed
to carry guns on campus,
Columbine, Virginia Tech, etc.
would have been prevented by a
brave, armed citizen.

Here is why this idea frightens
me. I have watched dudes
play video games. Too often to
be accepted in reality, a terrified
secretary pops up and doesn t
say don t shoot fast enough to
prevent their brutal and tragic
assassination. I don t want to be
that secretary.

When one applies for a concealed
weapons permit, they have
to take a firearms safety course.
While this training provides
ample understanding of how to
switch the safety on and off, how
to load and unload a weapon,
how to not shoot yourself or anybody
else on accident, and how to
handle ammunition, it shouldn t
be mistaken for counter-terrorist
training. It is instruction on how
NOT to shoot people, not how to
shoot people.

I think of an SVSU where
students could carry guns. I
frequently see loaded holsters
and must anxiously walk by
that person. If somebody starts
shooting, pretty soon there will
be others shooting back: bullets
from both directions. When the
police arrive on the scene, they
only see a bunch of students in
a standoff. Who do they shoot?
I quit writing for the Vanguard
because I don t want my antics
to anger some lunatic with a
gun.

People get dumped by
their girlfriends. They get fired.
Their friends die in Iraq. They
get made fun of for being fat or
redheaded. They get drunk. They
play too many bloody video
games. Their parents didn t love
them. I don t want to live in a
world where all those people
have guns on their hips. If some
crackjob goes on a killing spree,
I would like those with extensive
training to handle it without any
complications.

I would be OK with walking
through metal detectors, though.
Those won t fire wayward shots
or get depressed.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:34:15 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2170http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2169The Vanguard VisionThe city of Saginaw gets a bad rap sometimes. Some characterize it for its crime levels, joblessness and plight more so than for its achievements. What motivates people to speak unfavorably about our city can often be found in our headlines: Angry Saginaw mayor on city violence: Enough is enough. Fourth-grade student gunned down in Saginaw while asleep in his bed. Drug addicts, gangs used abandoned school as den.

Headlines such as these push a negative connotation on Saginaw that none of us hope for and many of us actively seek to change. Saginaw is home to plenty of hard-working citizens who care about the city s image and its future. And the proof, too, is in the headlines.

It s incredibly refreshing to see such
uplifting newsprint as Hundreds turn
out for Saginaw Arson Watch 2009.

Three years ago, Saginaw was lit
up for Halloween in the worst way
arsonists set 42 homes ablaze in a
single night. A sharp reduction has been
evident since the city s Arson Watch
volunteers said enough is enough.

Although the rain played a role in
discouraging arson, volunteers were
still on hand around the clock, fortunately
reporting just one fire on Devil s
night and a couple more on Halloween.

Thousands attended a Halloween
party put on by the Saginaw Police and
Fire Department on what has been
dubbed Angel s Night at the Dow
Event Center. Parents and children were
able to enjoy a fun and safe celebration
thanks to the efforts of many volunteers.

It s undoubtedly great to see a
community work together to serve its
citizens. It s especially great to see college
students who are willing to forego
the age-old Halloween tradition of
attending costume parties into the wee
hours of the morning and instead fulfill
an important safety role.

Those students who helped put on
the community Halloween party at the
Dow and who spent their evenings this
weekend patrolling the streets deserve a
pat on the back. A lot of college students
aren t willing to cancel plans to do this
type of thing, but those who do are doing
Saginaw a great service.

Events such as this, where a group
such as Arson Watch receives a call to action,
also serve as an important reminder
to those of us who don t venture too far
from campus to experience Saginaw.

For some of us, it s hard to picture
hundreds of abandoned homes, many
of which are damaged and serve as
hotbeds for crime. We have a beautiful
campus with some of the best living
quarters, if not the best, in the state. The
parts of Saginaw that need the most
help are parts that a lot of us have heard
about on the news or read about in
headlines, but have never experienced
first-hand.

In the aftermath of a rather successful
Arson Watch night, we shouldn t forget
about the work we have yet to do to
keep our community moving in the right
direction. We can t pretend the plight and
violence behind our headlines exist in a
separate universe from our university
bubble. And a lot of us don t.

Cardinals are some great contributors
to bolstering this city s image. Volunteers
from our Greek organizations,
our Habitat for Humanity chapter, our
Student Association and our Alternative
Breaks groups work hard outside campus
walls. The Vanguard hopes efforts
like those of Arson Watch volunteers
will encourage more Cardinals to pay
closer attention to their community s
needs and find ways to lend a helping
hand.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:34:06 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2169http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2168 launch a career.

But Michigan s recession has changed the job fair
formula, leaving attendees with heightened urgency as
they try to gain an advantage over one another. Meanwhile,
budget cuts lead to fewer companies sending representatives.

Friday s career fair at SVSU was no exception. Sponsored
by SVSU s Career Planning and Placement, the fair
brought in representatives from 16 companies and organizations.

Exhibitors included banks, government agencies
and health care and graduate school programs.

Recruiters in Curtiss Hall s second-floor banquet
rooms said the recession has increased students appreciation
for graduate programs and military service.

Some attendees focused on distributing r sum s
among potential employers. Others, including business
sophomore Derek Sweet, were looking for summer internships
and seeking information on advanced degree programs.

Graduate programs at the event included Saginaw
Valley, Northwood, University of Michigan Flint and
Eastern Michigan University.

Susan Anderson, an Eastern Michigan representative,
said interest has risen over the last year due to recessionbased
uncertainties. Students are going beyond a bachelor s
degree for an edge in competing for jobs.

Anderson also said that although interest in EMU s
programs is up, fewer people approached booths for graduate
schools. Potential students get most of their information
online, she said.

You really need a spiffy Web site to attract people,
she added.

Among the employers, scarce openings weren t universal.
Michigan Civil Service, a government agency, advertised
many openings within the state. Its spokesperson
noted that the agency was not accepting r sum s at job
fairs, but neither were many other companies.

The trend, she said, is increased Web interaction, and
it s better for both the employer and the job-hunter.

The most up-to-date listings are online, she said.

It s also much easier to submit your r sum there than to
have to print off lots of copies.

Sergeant Adam Jacobs, a recruiter for the U.S. Army,
said the recession has also boosted job fair interest in the
military.

More and more college graduates are enlisting with
bachelor s and master s degrees, he said, and choosing
not to enter officer training school, an option for recruits
with higher education.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:26:01 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2168http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2167
The group, called the Saggawockeez, won the Saginaw s Got Talent competition at the All About Women Expo on Saturday, Oct. 23.

The competition was amazing, said Eric Traub, a biochemistry junior on the team.

Fellow performer Lawrence Jones, a mechanical
engineering senior, said he d been nervous.

Anybody can beat anybody any day, he
said. I could have fallen off the stage.

The band s four other members are Adam
Lucio, mechanical engineering junior; Anthony
J. Lucio, chemistry
and Spanish
junior; Amanda
Mueller, theater
junior; and Young
Lee, accounting
junior.

The band s
initial inspiration
came from the its
brothers, Anthony
and Adam Lucio.
The two had
been awestruck
by a dance crew
they saw on MTV
called JabbaWockeeZ.

Months later,
the newly dubbed
Saggawockeez
even adopted a
similar uniform:
they wear white
masks and gloves during all their performances.

But neither of the Lucios had any formal
dance training.

It s just something we picked up in high
school; we found that we love to dance, Adam
said.

In fact, Mueller, the only female member, is
also the team s only formally trained dancer.

I love to dance, she said. I have had a
wonderful time getting down with my bad self.

The Saggawockees are still undecided on
how to spend their prize package.

We really wanted the title more than the
money, Anthony said.

The six members came together only seven
months ago.

We decided to dance for Intercultural Night
and represent America. It took off from there,
Anthony said.

Over the summer, the group performed in
Ann Arbor, in Midland and in Saginaw for Relay
for Life and other events. They said with each
performance, the response from the audience and
students pushed them to become an official registered
student organization.

We performed for Cardinal Idol, and afterwards
we realized that students on campus really
enjoyed us and maybe this is something we can
keep going, Anthony said.

Each person brings something to the group,
he added, whether it s personality or new dance
moves.

Adam comes up with a lot of the choreography,
his brother
said.

Traub lays
out the music.
The songs at the
Oct. 23 performance
included
work by the
Beastie Boys, DJ
Shadow, Kanye
West and the
Black-Eyed Peas.

I had some
previous experience
with it
as a member of
the Forte dance
group, Traub
said.

Any training
secrets?

It s all
about the You-
Tube videos,
Adam said. I watch them to understand how the
body is supposed to move and will replay them
over and over until I have a move down.

All the members say the best part is coming
together with friends and enjoying themselves.

The next event for the Saggawockeez will
be an orientation at SVSU on Nov. 6 for students
from Arthur Hill High School in Saginaw. The
dancers will perform a short routine before a Qand-
A session, in which they will talk to the visiting
students about college and goals.

We want them to know there are all kinds
of outlets for self-expression and creativity, Mueller
said.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:18:50 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2167http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2166
Mike Holliday at the ITS Support Center sent out a campus-wide message last week about a Microsoft sale.

The sale includes deals on several software products, including the productivity suite Office 2007. But the biggest bargain is Windows 7 Professional, the latest operating system from Microsoft.

Buying it anywhere else will cost
at least $100, and more advanced versions
will clear $200. Right now, it s
available to SVSU students for $30.

The University is preparing to
upgrade to Windows 7. At this point,
the idea is still in testing, but students
could start seeing the system on campus
as early as next fall.

For now, the upgrade is personal,
and clearly the deal is a steal. But is it
worthwhile for students?

For anyone with Vista, incentives
to upgrade are numerous. Windows
7 improves upon all of Vista s weak
points and makes its strong points even
stronger.

The new system runs better, and
improved driver support makes a new
computer even easier to set up. Windows
7 is also stabler than Vista: its file
indexing has improved and compatibility
mode has been expanded, making it
easier to run older programs.

Users with Windows XP may have
a harder time deciding. Windows 7,
like Vista, has made significant changes
since XP, and an upgrade may take
some time to adjust. But Microsoft
has made it clear they will stick with
the new release, which means that XP
will be phased out within the next few
years.

Windows 7 makes more changes
to the taskbar. Quick links now double
as icons for open programs, reducing
clutter onscreen. Users more comfortable
with XP will still have options for a
more retro look.

The Sidebar, first introduced in
Vista, has changed, too. Now, the bar
no longer runs down the side of the
screen: instead, the gadgets that used to
be there can be moved to wherever the
user likes them.

Another new cosmetic feature is
the option to cycle desktop wallpapers
automatically. Users can choose from
preset image themes such as architecture,
landscape and nature. Users can
also compile their own photo streams
to personalize their desktops.

Potential buyers with older computers
may want to simply buy a new
computer. New PCs can come with
Windows 7 pre-installed.

Windows 7 runs better on old PCs
than Vista did, but if your PC is more
than five years old, it still might be time
to buy fresh. Older PCs will always run
slower than new ones. With the cost of
desktop and laptop computers decreasing,
it might be more cost-effective to
replace the computer.

Ultimately, students will have to
make up their own minds.

Do your homework, Holliday
advises. Spend some time researching
Windows 7 and considering your
digital situation, he says.

Students who want to keep their
computers can check their hardware s
compatibility online. To run the free
test, CLICK HERE.

Microsoft s Ultimate Steal program
will end Jan. 30, 2010, so students
have time to decide.

And with the cost of trying it out
at $30, it seems like a sure choice.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:14:23 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2166http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2165
The Organization of Black Unity hosted a panel on the topic Wednesday, Oct. 28 in the Malcolm Field Theatre for the Performing Arts.

The question under discussion was simple: How do you stay true to yourself academically, professionally and personally?

Officers in the organization came
up with the idea for the event after
having a summer retreat with associate
professor of sociology Dr. Dawn
Hinton.

Her focus was keeping it real
at school and in the workplace, said
Darrin Flowers, a history graduate
student. We decided to get the
student body involved and bring in
some accredited sources who have
been down that road and would give
insight into separating the realities of
where you came from and functioning
in the real world.

The panelists were Tony LaDrig,
an SVSU history senior; LaDonna
Young, an SVSU graduate with a
bachelor s degree in public administration;
Dr. Desmon Daniel, chief
executive of Motivating Factor, an
organization focused on inspiring
others to excel; and Marcia Thomas,
director of Minority Student Services
on campus.

To set the stage for discussion,
planners played a video clip from
black standup comedian Dave Chappelle.
In the skit, When Keeping It
Real Goes Wrong, Chappelle played
a company vice president. When a
white board member poked fun at
Chappelle s character, he attacked the
man.

The discussion that followed
included topics that ranged from how
to keep it real, maintain professional
dress and see the difference in how
society views its celebrities and its
professionals.

The panelists kept their responses
lighthearted but serious. A
common theme began to emerge:
students should develop an idea
of who they are by increasing their
knowledge and handling themselves
responsibly on campus and in the
workplace.

Tidbits of advice included students
need to research the companies
they want to work for and to
present themselves as a good match
for its corporate attitude. For example,
applicants looking for a job in
a particularly conservative company
may need to adapt their approach to
be the best candidate.

On the other hand, panelists
said, students shouldn t put
themselves in a position that makes
them feel uncomfortable or as
though they re abandoning their
principles.

Undecided freshman Tony Dyer
said, I decided to come tonight on a
whim with some friends, and I really
enjoyed the general vibe. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:11:20 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2165http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2164
But there is a silver lining to enduring bad roommates, as long as they are not affecting your learning. As the saying goes, without hate, there would be no love. Well, without annoying people, there would be no opportunity to gain patience or understanding.

In the following stories, students
who wish to remain anonymous recall
their experiences with the bad
roommate blues.

There are all kinds of people who might
drive you crazy, but two are most notorious.

The Clingy Roommate This one
would follow you every time you left your
dorm and never allow you any alone time.

The Alcoholic This roommate would
spend all night partying, vomit all over the
room and regularly black out.

These extremes are not the norm but in
the rare times you get into a bad situation, what
should be done? It s best to not live in a war
zone. This means making the effort to at least
get along with your roommate.

Methods to follow:

1. First, if you don t want to flat out say
they annoy you, try dropping hints for them to
pick up on.

2. Talk to your resident assistant. (That s
what they re there for.)

3. Still not getting the picture? Then tell
them directly what s going on. Word to the
wise: stay calm. After this conversation you
still have to live with your roommate for a
while.

4. Compromise. Give your comments and
let your roommate respond with his or hers.

In a worst case scenario where none of
these attempts work you can talk to your
housing service to get a room change.

If you can tolerate a less-than-perfect roommate,
the benefits of putting up with them can
last a lifetime. Here are some positive payoffs
Alice, Tom and Kelly say they have gotten from
their experiences.

Terrible roommates help you build resilience,
flexibility and adaptability. No one gets
good at compromise and diplomacy without
practice.

Bad roommates encourage you to leave
the dorm room, get out there and meet new
people.

Terrible roommates make you re-examine
your own behavior. A roommate s dirty laundry
and questionable hygiene motivate you to do
laundry and take daily showers.

Despite the horror stories surrounding
freshman year roommate pairings, chances
are your roommate will not be a psychopath
or a maniac or a lunatic or a total jerk with no
redeeming qualities. Most likely, your roommate
is just a normal person. And, as many normal
people find when trying to survive in a shared
space, odds are pretty good that you will drive
each other crazy occasionally, or for some cases,
quite often.

But it s worth the effort to work it out,
because sharing your first dorm room with your
first roommate is a unique rite of passage; it
should be nothing less than memorable.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 01:09:06 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2164http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2163
A non-student was found passed out in a parked car on campus Sunday, Oct. 25, and received a minor in possession citation.

Students from Living Center North found the man in his car in J-3 Lot. They brought him to their room and called the police.

The man has a family member who lives in the Townhomes. He will not be allowed back on campus.

Four minors in possession in Living
Center South were issued citations
Friday, Oct. 30. The resident assistant
on that floor received a noise complaint
around 12:30 a.m. and found
alcohol in the room. Campus police
were dispatched, and the students
were given breathalyzer tests.

An 18-year-old male received
a minor in possession citation on
Saturday, Oct. 31, at 12:25 a.m. The
resident assistant at Living Center
Southwest could smell alcohol outside
the student s door. Campus police
gave the suspect a breathalyzer test,
which he failed.

Larceny

A laptop was stolen from a room in
First Year Suites on Monday, Oct. 26.
The room was unlocked and when the
student came back the item was gone.

An investigation is ongoing.

Tickets issued

A driver was pulled over with a car
resembling a stolen one and received
a ticket for driving with a suspended
license.

On Tuesday, Oct. 27, University Police
stopped the vehicle at the corner
of East College and Collins drives.
The driver was told to park his car. A
warrant for his arrest will be sought.

Suspicious behavior

On Tuesday, Oct. 27, a student reported
a male stalking her in Zahnow
Library.

According to the report, every time
the student moved and set her belongings
down, the male would do the
same. She returned to her Townhomes
apartment and called the campus
police. Officers found the male and
told him to stay away from her.

Property damage

Two hit-and-run incidents with
parked cars were reported this week:
one in the E-lot and the other in University
Village. Both parked vehicles
had damage done to their bumpers.

A campus street sign was damaged
during the Women s Expo on
Saturday, Oct. 24. The sign is on the
corner of College Drive and Davis St.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:55:49 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2163http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2162
Burglaries, the most common campus offense, dropped to 25 instances from the 42 reported in the previous year. SVSU had 9,837 students last year.

By comparison, Grand Valley State University, with 23,892 students, reported 10 burglaries last year in its annual crime report.

Most of the reported burglaries are preventable,
says Chief Ron Trepkowski of University Police.

The most common lead-ins to these offenses include
people leaving their dorms or offices unlocked or
leaving valuables unattended in public areas.

We seldom have a burglary where a door or window
is broken, said Trepkowski.

While criminal offenses on campus have dwindled,
arrests and judicial referrals have not.

Campus security made 134 liquor law related arrests
and issued 130 judicial referrals in 2008. This represents
a small boost from the 108 arrests and 112 judicial
referrals made a year prior.

At a glance, one might correlate the increases with
the growing resident student population.

But a look at the 2006 arrests and judicial violations
made for liquor law violations suggests the lower numbers
for 2007 were anomalies.

That year, campus security made 112 liquor-related
arrests and issued 176 judicial referrals for alcohol violations.

The figures pale in comparison to Ferris State,
where alcohol-related judicial referrals alone nearly hit
400 in 2008. Ferris had 13,532 students.

Trepkowski says he has noticed more cases involving
marijuana in recent years, which is reflected in the
steady increase of drug law violations during the last
three years. Even with the increase, such reported infractions
remain low in comparison to Ferris State, which
had more than double SVSU s total in 2008.

Despite the number of drug and alcohol violations,
Trepkowski said students are generally cooperative
when campus security does break up a party. He attributes
that to an instilled idea of personal responsibility.

I think Residential Life does a nice job of setting
expectations and making our residents accountable, he
said.

More serious offenses, such as robbery or arson,
seem nonexistent . Trends for these offenses are common
among SVSU s sister universities, including Ferris State,
Northern Michigan and Grand Valley State universities.

Trepkowski sees the maintenance of safety as a
shared responsibility.

The more we can build partnerships with others
on and off campus, I feel the better we ll be, he said.
But we ll never say, Our campus is safe. We don t have
to do anything more.

Campus security releases its annual report not just
to share its record of the previous year, but also to create
awareness of crime prevention programs.]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:51:58 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2162http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2160
Cell phone reception might remain the same, but more changes to wireless Internet access are on the way.

The wireless Internet runs pretty well, considering all the students connected, but it s a hassle to log in every time, said Christina Leal, a health science sophomore.

That hassle won t last long. An
upcoming upgrade to the network will
only need students to register their computers
once.

The vendor hopes to get the system
set up in two weeks, but it might be
longer, said Kenneth Schindler, executive
director of Information Technology
Services.

The upgrade won t be the first big
change to hit wireless users. Last January,
SVSU switched its Internet provider
from Campus Manager to SafeConnect.

The change brought many benefits.

With the new system, we can see if
a machine is getting a good wireless signal,
what access point they are connected
to, what IP they have, said Brandon
Smith, computer information systems
and management senior.

But it doesn t eliminate the need
for security. Smith recommends that
students run an antivirus scan once a
week.

On campus, the new service offers
about 300 hotspots for wireless connection.
These are placed in the areas most
commonly used by students.

In addition, the new Arbury wing
and the Health Science Building will increase
the number of wireless hotspots.

The switch to SafeConnect also afforded
a better connection, so now all
residential halls have Internet access.

When freshman moved in this fall,
the number of problems connecting was
cut in half from previous years.

Overall, SafeConnect was the
best option to switch to, said John
LaPrad, manager of network services.

The upgrades to residential housing
cost about $164,700, while the total
price tag for upgrading to SafeConnect
was about $90,000. The costs covered
training, equipment and increased
coverage.

If students have issues with their
computers, Schidler says to call ITS or
the Student Technology Center. Their
hours and location are on SVSU s Web
site.

But cell phone problems remain.

Jason LaPrad, manager of Network
Services, explained that the
school has not blocked service in
any buildings: the buildings materials
(including concrete and reinforced
steel) and the walls thickness interfere
with reception.

In addition, the school does not
have deals with any providers, though
SVSU employees receive a 5 percent
discount on Verizon plans.

Education sophomore Dayna Desjardins,
an AT&T user, says her service
has improved since last year in Curtiss.

Despite this, chemistry sophomore
Alyssa Adams, who uses T-Mobile
for her cell phone needs, said, Service
is bad in Saginaw in general.

The school could spring for repeaters,
devices that would amplify
cellular providers signals. These machines
tend to be high-priced.

Not everyone seems to mind the
reception.

Jason Shaw, mechanical engineering
sophomore, said that, overall, service
is good.

Outdoors and the dorms (the
University Village), it s perfect, but
only mediocre in the academic buildings. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:48:17 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2160http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2159
For the economics junior, the job fair in Curtiss Hall on Friday was just the beginning. Business majors at SVSU have many opportunities to start their future now, including internships, training programs, business fraternities and networking events.

For Akowuah, the job
fair was a place to market himself for
internships and his career at a time
when global economies are unstable.

When an economy is going
down, everyone becomes conscious,
Akowuah said. That is when
businesses start thinking. That is when
schools become very effective. Now,
everybody is in the career office and
getting out there.

Mark Potts, assistant dean for
undergraduate programs in the College
of Business and Management, prepares
business majors such as Akowuah
for working in the competitive and
innovative world of business.

Akowuah said his
passion began in the
family.

My father started
two businesses, and I
got interested in how he
was helping his business
grow, he says.

I m someone who
naturally likes to come up with ideas
to see how best we can make a change
in society. And I know that the best
way to make money is to have ideas
to solve society s problems. I realized
that business was the perfect place for
me to go.

According to Potts, one of the
keys to building a future in business is
early preparation.

Do the things that you need
to do to get the job you want upon
graduation, he said. Lay that
foundation from your freshman year
because your senior year will come
soon enough, and then it is too late.

One of the ways business majors
are laying that foundation is through
internships. Akowuah now holds one
with Aramark s Dining Services, and
he said the majority of his business
learning comes from this kind of
extracurricular involvement.

You re able to put your learning
into practice amid real challenges, he
said.

Many students intern according
to their department or their major.

They are at a number of CPA
firms in the area, Potts said.

They re at Dow Chemical. They re at Dow
Corning. We also have students working
with Saginaw Children s Museum . . . [or
doing] the accounting work for Cardinal
Racing.

Potts said internships open doors for
students and give them practical work
experience.

[Students] will have references, and
it may not be who you are working for
who hires you, he said. They may know
somebody, or you now have a reference
within the community.

Another way business majors are
planning for the future is through the
Business Entrepreneur Skills Training
program, known as the BEST program,
now in its fourth year.

Lindsey Zion, international business
and management junior, says the BEST
program helped her to recognize her
potential as a manager by giving her the
hands-on and problem-solving skills she
wanted.

Freshmen do the basic learning
program, which involves meeting with
Career Planning and Placement and
working on interviewing and networking
skills, Zion said. Sophomores work
on hands-on community serve projects
with businesses. The upperclassmen are
encouraged to meet with entrepreneurs to
start up a business plan with them.

Potts said the BEST program is where
business major and minors are working
with the Saginaw Children s Museum,
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program
and the YMCA. Students are certified as
tax preparers who can assist low- and
moderate-income families in the Saginaw
Bay region.

They do tax returns and are preparing
a video to help educate clients, both on and
off campus, about financial responsibility,
budgeting, saving and avoiding scams.

In addition to internships and
community involvement, business honors
societies such as Beta Gamma Sigma, Delta
Sigma Pi and Alpha Chi offer students
many opportunities. Students at the top
of their classes have the chance to attend
skill-building conferences, network with
employers and entrepreneurs, and stay
up to date on business trends.

One trend that business majors are
watching closely is the growth of the U.S.
economy. The Department of Commerce
estimated Thursday that the GDP rose
at a 3.5 percent annual pace in the third
quarter, due to the government stimulus
package.

The economy is improving,
said Alok Jain, a master of business
administration student. The U.S. is out
of recession now. By the time I get out
of graduate school, I ll be getting a good
job.

Jain said he plans to work in a
small company after graduating with his
master s degree.

I ll get more experience, he said.

When you work at a small company,
there are very few people, and they do all
the work, so you get to know every part of
the business.

Melissa Reinert, former president
of Delta Sigma Pi, earned a bachelor s
degree in business administration in May.
She de...]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:47:45 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2159http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2161
The scholarship offered up to $4,000 to assist qualifying students who would pursue at least two years of higher education.

More than 1,400 SVSU students and 96,000 students statewide are saddled with a broken promise as a result of the $140 million sum not making the cut.

But a promise is a promise to
SVSU.

Cardinals already received their
financial aid award letters earlier this
semester, complete with $500 credits
for the Michigan Promise Scholarship.

The University says it will
honor the award letters and cover the
cost for this semester.

We thought it was really more
than unfair to go back after nine
weeks into the semester and say to
people who thought they paid up
You owe us 500 more, said SVSU
President Eric R. Gilbertson.

Gilbertson said the University
will swallow the roughly $700,000
problem it faced upon the budget s
completion.

The alternative was not acceptable,
he said. It could have put a
new roof on the Ryder Center but we couldn t bring ourselves to ask
people in good faith who thought they d paid
up for the fall semester to come up with the
money because the state reneged on grants.

The University can t do much beyond
this semester, however. The scholarship program
is dead unless the state can produce the
money for it.

If the state funds it, that s great, Gilbertson
said. It would be wonderful if they
did, but I wouldn t urge anybody to count on
that.

Student Association President Ryan Kanine
said the issue will likely come up at the
Student Association of Michigan house meeting
scheduled for Nov. 14 and 15 at SVSU. The
conference brings Student Associations from
around the state together to combine student
voices.

This is something we need to continue
voicing to our state Legislature, Kanine said.
It s such a large cost that we can t expect
SVSU to cover it again for the following semester.

Kanine said he is proud to be an SVSU
student after receiving word of the scholarship s
demise.

I think it speaks volumes for how much
our university cares about its students when
they are going to get the money they were
promised for the fall. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:47:10 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2161http://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2158
Three years after 42 house fires characterized Devil s Night in Saginaw, the city was dark Oct. 30 with the exception of a single blaze at 139 S. 14th.

Kevin Kattoula can attest to this.

The criminal justice sophomore
joined other members of
SVSU s Criminal Justice Society
who aided in patrolling the streets
throughout the night on the lookout
for trouble.

Karroula found that wind and
rain might have been a determining
factor for those who may have
considered playing with matches.

You re not going to have a lot
of people walking around outside
trying to start a fire with weather
like that, he said.

Burk Foster, the university s
ombudsman and adviser to the
Criminal Justice Society, patrolled
with a city detective Friday night.

The lone fire, he said, was a result
of arsonists entering the house
and setting the floor ablaze until
flames reached the ceiling. He believed
fire officials were able to put
out the blaze with an extinguisher.

Only a couple more fires were
called in Saturday night, Foster
said, as improved weather conditions
had more people venturing
outdoors.

Volunteers began their Devil s
Night shifts around 9 p.m. after the
Saginaw Fire Department fed and
debriefed the crew.

Five groups of Criminal Justice
students set out to patrol the East
side of Saginaw with yellow beacon
lights atop their vehicles into
the early morning hours.

Kattoula encountered a stormrelated
blackout and plenty of deserted
streets, but no fires.

Reporting curfew-breakers
was an easy task, because there
weren t any to be spotted in Kattoula s
zone.

Criminal Justice senior Shandria
Davis zone was a slightly
different story. She and two other
volunteers reported a group of
adolescents who were braving the
elements and roaming the East side
after 1 a.m.

The students spotted more
night walkers throughout their
shift.

We were wondering why they d
be out that late, Davis said.

The number of abandoned,
boarded-up homes along the route
was greater than Davis had expected.

I would say, in our patrol zone,
at least ten houses had big holes in
them from fire damage, she said.

Equipped with flashlights, Davis
and the others investigated a few of
the abandoned sites.

The students had spent Wednesday
morning volunteering to help
board up abandoned homes. The goal
was to make it difficult for arsonists to
enter houses and set fire to them.

Saginaw s chief inspector, John C.
Stemple, told the Saginaw News that
it took 600 sheets of wood to board 102
vacant houses out of 800 in the city.

Foster investigated a few homes
Friday night where boards had already
been torn down but did not find
anyone inside.

Pre-patrolling volunteer efforts
also came at a Halloween party for
the community at the Dow Event
Center. Thousands turned out for
the Saginaw Police and Saginaw Fire
Department-sponsored event despite
the weather.

Kattoula manned security posts
while Davis operated a money machine
for a never-ending line of visitors
who tested their skills at grabbing
a few floating dollars.

Kattoula said he was happy to
put in volunteer time for his community.

Plus, just looking at the little
kids faces when they re having fun is
priceless. ]]>Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:20:20 ESThttp://www.svsu.edu/vanguard/stories/2158