informer 2-24-11
Content
Volume 34, Issue 18
The Informer
hartfordinformer.com
By Hayden Harrower Staff Writer The Hartford women’s basketball team won Wednesday over Stony Brook, winning its last away game of the season. After ending their six-game winning streak against UMBC Sunday, the Hawks (13-15, 10-5) traveled to Stony Brook, N.Y. to repeat their performance against the Seawolves (5-22, 2-13), who started the streak almost a month ago. Unfortunately, the Hawks couldn’t shake off their last game by the time the rst half began in Stony Brook and they began the game without scoring a bucket for the rst three and a half minutes. But the Hawks wouldn’t count themselves out as they had a 7-4 run of their own in the nal ve minutes of the half. With a missed three to beat the buzzer the women’s team had put themselves in a comfortable position to win, ending at 19-25. The longrange shots had been the downfall for the Hawks as they shot only 18 percent, 2-11. The only thing keeping the Hawks in the game were the 14 bench points that had come in the rst half alone. The women’s team quickly regained composure coming back out of the locker rooms for the second half and tying the game at 28-28. But each time the Hawks drew near the lead Stony Brook’s offense would surge out in front leading by as much as 10 at one point in the game. As the clock wound down to 7:13 it was solely a story of free throws, as 11 points in a four minute span, seven of which went under the Hartford section of the scoreboard. After the last set
sports: men’s basketball lose 79-73 to stony brook
February 24, 2011
Late free throws result in nal away win
of free throws by Nikkia Smith, the Hawks had pulled out a lead of 63-59. But the Seawolves would comeback with their own free throws to tie the game at 63. The game appeared to be turning in the Hawks favor, when senior guard Jackie Smith was fouled and sent to the line to shoot not two, but three free throws. Smith could not make a threepointer “the easy way” by missing the third freethrow, but with a steal and free throws by Daphne Elliot, the Hawks increased their lead to four with four seconds, which had been too much to ask from the Seawolves, who couldn’t even manage to get a shot up as the buzzer sounded. The Hawks’ next game is at home against New Hampshire Saturday, Feb. 26, whom they had previously bested back on Jan. 12, 57-50 in New Hampshire.
ADAM MANISON
The women’s team improved its conference record to 10-5 with the win over Stony Brook on Wednesday.
Rally planned to protest funding cuts
By Jeremy Stanley Editor-in-chief A rally on Monday at the Capitol in Hartford will coincide with an appropriations committee hearing on higher education. Gov. Dannel Malloy, inaugurated last month, proposed funding cuts to the Connecticut Consortium of Independent Colleges that would affect the need-based scholarships of 549 University students. The cuts would result in a 50 percent decrease in student aid coming from the state over the next two years. The current budget would be cut from $23.4 million to $17.6 million next year and to $11.7 million in 2013. In an e-mail sent to students potentially impacted by the budget cuts, Associate Director of Admission and Student Financial Assistance See “Cuts” on Page 4
SARAH WILSON
Peace vigils a Wednesday ritual
Staff and students participate in weekly peace vigils on the academic campus lawn each week. Read more on page 2.
News
Opinions
Entertainment
Sports
UHa’s competing in Recylemania to promote recycling on college campuses. Page 4
America East Basketball tourney is coming back to campus and spurring interest in UHa. Page 5
The Goldfarb Exhibit opened this week showing work submitted by students. Page 6
The annual Hot Stove Dinner hosted many ex-MLB players last weekend. Page 10
page 2
the informer
news
february 24, 2011
SARAH WILSON
SARAH WILSON
The weekly Peace Vigil stands outside Wednesday in protest of the ongoing war in the Middle East. Students, faculty and staff can be seen there every Wednesday between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m.
Persistence for peace: group advocates harmony
By Ben Gyurik Staff Writer “Peace,” “Pais,” “Damai” and fteen other translations send their message of tranquility to passerbys on the academic side of campus. Armed with a single blue ag piercing the snow, a small but devoted group stands in silent protest. Every Wednesday for the past ve years, regardless of weather conditions, Professor of Educational Leadership, Donn Weinholtz, has stood vigil for peace with a small group of students and faculty. In addition to Professor Weinholtz, faculty that regularly attends the weekly vigil include Associate Professor of Sociology Jay Stewart, Professor of Psychology Sharon Shepela, Professor of Biology Mary Dowst, and Professor of Education Nursing and Health Professions Peter Oliver. “The vigil’s purpose has been to serve as a reminder to people that the war in the Middle East has persisted for a very long time; and to provide as a motivator to people to take some kind of action,” explained Weinholtz. Any student or faculty interested in attending can go between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. on any Wednesday, where the vigil meets on the main campus lawn near the Auerbach Computer and Administration Center. “We haven’t had too many students that came to the vigil, it’s rare. But I have to say that the drum circle started by Hannah Kluger, a student who is a sociology major, and the circle has attracted some more attention to the vigil,” stated Stewart. Weinholtz expressed that the vigil isn’t just trying to keep people informed about the war, but as he explained, is “for those of us who do it it’s a reminder of what you should be paying attention to in terms of news, and we don’t do the vigil to convert people, but rather to keep them informed on the war.” Stewart and Weinholtz are both a part of a group on campus called the Campus Alliance for Progressive Politics and Action [CAPPA], and Stewart explains that Weinholtz originally got the idea to hold a silent peace vigil on campus to keep people updated on the war in the Middle East. “As soon as I found out about the vigil, I emailed people and we started to have the vigil weekly, and one day Donn and I [Stewart] were speaking at the vigil together, and we realized we should make it a vigil without silence so people can get a better message,” said Stewart. The vigil itself is more than just informing people, and updating them on the war, since it has been going on, it has inspired faculty that attend to continue informing the campus through other ways. “I actually started a blog because of the vigil, and is in relation to the vigil because it’s about transforming the military budget towards the war, and it’s interesting to see how the vigil has inuenced people towards keeping not only themselves, but others knowledgeable about what’s going on overseas,” explains Weinholtz. Weinholtz and the other faculty members are also working on a proposal to have a peace pole set up near the site of the vigil, where a four, or six sided pole would be erected, and would have the phrase “Let Peace Prevail,” be on each side of the pole in a different language. “Donn and I [Stewart] are really working on getting the pole put up because it bears a lot of meaning. We have the support of Walt Harrison and Norm Young on campus, but we are awaiting a conrmation from John Michalewicz, the senior director of facilities in order to have the approval to have it set up,” stated Stewart. The vigil goes on every week, and has even motivated Stewart and other faculty to work on proposing a minor on campus for peace studies and conict resolution. “I got the idea of working on a proposal because I think it would be helpful to people interested in being more educated through learning about various forms of conict resolution,” says Stewart. Since the beginning of the vigil there have been peace conferences held on campus and other areas due to discussions that occurred during and after the vigil. “The vigil means a lot, but it denitely had an inuence on how other things like the peace conferences, and peace pole came into being – and whether or not people can attend, by supporting the vigil there can be more opportunities to learn about what’s going on outside our own country,” said Stewart.
America East: What you need to know about tourney week
By Sarah Wilson News Editor With the America East Tournament coming to the University next weekend, anticipation of heavy trafc on campus will affect parking and Sports Center hours. Due to the large amount of attendees that will be entering the school during the tournament games, the university is asking students to move their cars from N-lot to free up parking for visitors. Students who move their cars from the lot sometime during the late morning and afternoon on Wednesday, March 3 will receive Hawk Cash in return for the inconvenience, as well as get entered into a drawing for prizes. The Sports Center will also be operating on alternative hours in order to accommodate the tournament. As the weight and workout rooms will likely be converted into press rooms, much of the Sports Center will remain closed to students and outside members. With the success of last year’s tournament, Vice President of Student Affairs, Lee Peters, and President Walter Harrison will be providing tickets to students. Last year, they set aside a number of tickets specically for students. More information will follow within the next week on price and how many will be available.
Sports Center Schedule During America East Week:
Monday: Pool: 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Free Weight Room- 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesday: Pool- 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday: Pool- 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday: Fitness Wing- 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday: Fitness Wing- 12 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday: Fitness Wing- 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday: Sports Center is closed
informer staff
Jeremy Stanley ‘11
Editor-in-Chief
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the informer
news
february 24, 2011
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page 4
the informer
news
february 24, 2011
UHa to compete in RecyleMania
By Sarah Wilson News Editor University of Hartford is competing along with 630 universities around the nation in a competition to promote recycling in college communities. “RecycleMania” is a 10 week program where students are urged to collect as many recyclables on campus as possible. The competition started on Feb. 13, but teams are still eligible to sign up and participate as the contest is running to March 27. Over the 10 week period, students are encouraged to sign up in teams, and bring all recyclables to commons every Sunday. Not only will the individual teams compete against each other, but the University as a whole will be competing against other schools as well. The schools will be ranked according to “who collects the largest amount of recyclables per capita, the largest amount of total recyclables, and the least amount of trash per capita,”
CONEST GUIDLINES
-all teams must register and make a banner with the team name to be hung in commons -all recyclables must be from on campus -recyclables must be brought to commons every sunday between 2 and 4 pm -each team will receive ve trash bags, more will be given out on Sundays if needed
according to the RecycleMania web site. In terms of individual teams on campus, the team who lls the most trash bags with recyclables by the end of the competition will win. The winning team will receive their choice of a pizza party or a six-foot sub for up to 50 people. Ongoing updates will be posted each week in commons so teams can track their own progress, as well as the school’s. The RecycleMania national competition aims to raise awareness of waste management on college campuses, as well as promote the waste management programs of individual schools. The competition, which began in 2001, is sponsored by the College and University Recycling Council, and has been seeing an increase in participation ever since.
Potential scholarship cuts spark debate
Continued from front page Shane Ciccarelli wrote, “We need our support and are asking all students like you that will be affected by these devastating cuts to join in a rally in Hartford.” Mackenzie Manning, a sophomore at the University said in an interview with the Hartford Courant, “I understand the cuts have to come from somewhere, but cutting out students who want to make Connecticut their home …I felt not angry, but disappointed.” The president of the CCIC, Judith Greiman, said the program might be eliminated in the near future, according to the Hartford Courant. For students who rely on state funding for attending the state’s higher education, a major source of it could be eliminated, meaning students may drop out or leave the state where it may be less expensive, Greiman said. According to the Courant, Benjamin Barnes, secretary of the state Ofce of Policy, said private colleges were not the only institutions affected by the cuts. State-wide, 6,000 students receive grants from the CICS. The rally will take place from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in front of the Capitol building.
Student Aid Rally y When: Monday Feb. 28, 3:30-6:30 p.m. Where: Conn. Capitol
Vagina Monologues to return to UHa
By Sarah Wilson News Editor The University’s drama club, Dramatis Personae will be holding the annual Vagina Monologues play this weekend. This Friday and Saturday the show will be put on at 7:30 at Auerbach Auditorium. Each year the production has a global and local sponsor. The global sponsor this year will be Haitian Relief Efforts in memory of Myriam Merlet, a leader in women’s rights for the country until she passed away in the 2010 earthquake. Lo-
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cally, the event will be sponsored by the Connecticut Sexual Assault Crisis Services (CONNSACS), who have also sponsored the event in years past. The event will also be sponsoring the annual silent auction. Half an hour before and after each production those interested can bid on the items, and donations are still being accepted for any person or group who would like to. Women for Change will also be fundraising by selling their annual calendars before the show. Tickets are available at the door and can be purchased for $7 for students and $10 for non-students.
Catch Up. Get Ahead. On Campus. Online.
uvm.edu/summer/hartford
SARAH WILSON
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Opinions
hartfordinformer.com/opinions/
Once again, the University of Hartford is hosting the America East Conference Tournament for both men’s and women’s basketball teams next week. Last year was the rst year the tournaments for both men’s and women’s teams were held in the same arena. The tournament being back in the Chase Family Arena again this year might be indication enough that the entire four-day affair went well and was great exposure for the University. The level of competition throughout those few days in the Sports Center and the frequency of games—after one game ended, another began a half hour later during the early rounds—is enough to satiate a sports fan’s tastes. Even with all of the criticism lobbed at something like a midmajor tournament, it’s still an incredibly fun experience, even when doing something like covering it as a reporter. Perhaps former sports editor Zach Wallens said it best when wrapping up his coverage: “The America East tournament occupied Hartford for just over 72 hours, but its enduring effect on the [University] and the conference could take years to comprehend. However, one thing is for sure: this weekend marked possibly the most important and most successful sporting event in the university’s history.” He’s absolutely right. As someone who shared part of the reporting duties during the tournament’s early rounds, seeing the amount of effort put in to the tournament is a testament to the America East’s ability to have compelling product that’s relevant not on the national scale. No, highlights of a seminal in the America East Tournament won’t get the breadth of coverage that the Big Ten Conference championships receive on ESPN.
The Informer
February 24, 2011
America East Back at UHa, great exposure
Jeremy Stanley • Editor-in-Chief [email protected] Twitter: @JeremyDStanley The excitement will be instead contained to the connes of the Chase Family Arena. There is a fan following for the teams coming to play in the tournament and Chase Family Arena attracted a lot of fans from every school that played in it. Sticking most vividly in my mind was seeing a pack of green-shirted fans walking toward the fan fest tents set up temporarily for the tournament as I handed out special editions of The Informer that acted as sort of an unofcial program for the tournament. The University of Vermont had chartered buses for supporters and they arrived as one of the most fervent fan bases from the conference’s nine schools. One can only assume that the draw of supporters from all over the conference to the city of Hartford did help, briey, the surrounding businesses and hotels in the city bolster income in a struggling economic time. Every single event like this, bringing tourism to the state, can really help. The tournament that takes place next week will forever be a part of the University’s legacy, especially if the conference and the school can get the execution as right as both parties did last year. It would be great to see an event like this be a mainstay as part of the University’s schedule. It’s a great way to cap off a rst half of a semester and to see it come around next year would be an exciting prospect.
COURTESY OF CNN.COM
Justin Bieber’s hair is not news
New Zealand’s earthquake, the ongoing protesting in Wisconsin, and Libya’s political strife were all issues covered in CNN’s breaking news section on Tuesday night. Unfortunately, (or apparently fortunately for many people), so was Justin Bieber’s haircut debut. But don’t be alarmed just yet. Read the following article and you’ll soon nd out that Justin wasn’t trying to upset his teen-dream facade, he did it for charity. Win the auction and all 2 inches of those luscious Bieber locks could be yours. And sure, while the fact that Justin Bieber gets hair cuts might be the rst thing on thousands of middle school girls’ minds, I can’t help but think about what news story could have been in it’s place had it not gotten bumped off the “latest news” section. More and more frequently, the latest developments in actor’s lives make appearances in local newscasts on slow news days, even days that aren’t slow. It’s clear that the line between hard news and entertainment is becoming increasingly blurred, almost to the point of inexistence. While it’s no surprise that the lives of those in the spotlight have become everyday conversation, there’s no Sarah Wilson • News Editor [email protected] Twitter: @swyzleh way Lady Gaga’s egg stunt at the Grammys is more important than Americans who were captured by Somali pirates. The ever-increasing uff in the news is only a reection of the nation’s disinterest in actual events. Sure, reading about negative events that make up the majority of the news can get a bit depressing, but what’s really happening here is that we’re losing sight of what’s important. Entertainment news shows such as Entertainment Tonight or Access Hollywood started out by giving us the regular updates on celebrity scandals or budding romances. But over the years those shows have transformed gossip to breaking news, programs racing like actual news afliates to break the story of Lindsay Lohan’s latest burglary rst. Better yet, those who were once unknown and become involved in news stories are becoming transformed into celebrity. Radio-voiced Ted Williams was just a guy who spoke in a low tone until he literally walked off the streets and into fteen weeks of fame. Meanwhile, former House of Representatives member Tom DeLay was sentenced to jail for money laundering, but people were more concerned about William’s entry into rehab. Unfortunately, in today’s news society people are losing sight of what’s important. We know less and less about what’s going on in the world around us as we immerse ourselves more and more in the lives of people we’ve never even met. News is essential. It brings issues to the surface and provokes change in communities and our nation as a whole. Charlie Sheen’s drug problems, on the other hand, are really only bad publicity for cocaine. If things keep going the way they’re heading, pretty soon Justin Bieber’s twitter is going to be the next BBC, and I don’t know about you, but news from a pre-pubescent singer isn’t my cup of tea.
Of all the stories CNN could be focusing on they choose to highlight the least newsworthy; Justin Bieber’s new haircut.
Sick of winter, spring break is right around the corner
After three months of frigid temperatures many are feeling that it’s time for the winter season to come to a close. Day in and day out of waking up to dark skies and slippery sidewalks can take its toll on the average person and lead to the feeling that it’s never going to end despite whatever Punxsutawney Phil thinks. What does Punxsutawney Phil know anyway; he’s just a groundhog. It’s frightening to see that on average 1 in every 4-college students and adults has a diagnosable mental illness, according to psychcentral.com. These range from eating disorders to depression. Danielle Huppke • Managing Editor [email protected] Twitter: @danielle618 Many of these cases of depression strike while the winter season is in full swing, due to the dreary nature of the season and it can drag on for quite a while. Often referred to as the “winter blues” or “cabin fever,” seasonal depression is not something to be overlooked, as the symptoms are just as debilitating as normal depression. Things to look for if you’re feeling a tinge of the “winter blues” are fatigue, persistent sadness, oversleeping, overeating, difculty concentrating and social withdrawal. Some may even have the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder and not even realize that’s the case. Even the mildest cases of seasonal depression can be reversed with increased exposure to sunlight or even light therapy. Although not a guaranteed x, tanning beds can be really helpful in the ght to avoid seasonal depression, however damaging they may be to you in other ways. “Cabin fever” can oftentimes be xed without any addition of antidepressant medication into your daily routine. Since the debate over whether anti-depressants drugs are actually a step in curing depression is forever going to rage on I’ll spare my thoughts on the subject, and leave that up to the Tom Cruz’s of the world to protest to. In any case there are many alternatives and just as effective options to get you out of your winter slump. A few great ways to beat the winter blues is to exercise, take a stroll around campus during your lunch hour, avoid alcohol since it is a depressant, get a full eight hours of sleep every night and spend at least 30 minutes outdoors each and every day. The countries fateful and oldest living groundhog to date, predicted that spring will come early this year, although he’s not an entirely credible source it’s enough hope to get me through the next few weeks of cold. So instead of dwelling upon the number of hours spent trying to dig your car out of the snow think towards the very near future and the warm, sunny beach weather that’s waiting just around the corner. There’s only two weeks until spring break after all.
While the Informer stands by its columnists and supports their right to free speech, please note that the columnists’ opinions are in no way representative of the opinions of the Informer or of the University of Hartford.
Page 6
Entertainment
hartfordinformer.com/entertainment/
The Informer
February 24, 2011
English Lit. major surprises at art exhibit opening
SPENCER ALLAN BROOKS
SPENCER ALLAN BROOKS
SPENCER ALLAN BROOKS
The Goldfarb Exhibit opened in the Joseloff Gallery displaying artwork submitted by students varying from painting, sculpture and photography. By Spencer Allan Brooks Art Director New artwork adorns the walls and oor of the Joseloff Gallery, after the annual Goldfarb exhibition opened Thursday. The opening reception brought in a dynamic crowd of students, faculty, parents and arts supporters. When rst entering the exhibit, you may nd yourself drawn to a large piece on canvas near the door. This piece, “Charles With Sneakers,” grabbed the attention of the audience with its large gure lling the entire canvas, and suggesting a sense of emotion. Students and faculty alike found themselves tilting their heads in amusement when reading the painting’s corresponding label, naming junior Tess Dudek as the artist. Why were the artists so amused? Well, Dudek is an English Literature major. If that wasn’t enough, she went on to take one of the $1,000 Alexander A. Goldfarb Purchase Prizes for another piece that was present in the gallery. Dudek has a minor in art after dropping out of the HAS after her rst semester at Hartford. She decided art school wasn’t for her, but with a strong love for creating, she said, “I really try to hold myself accountable for it.” When painting, Dudek tries to portray “the power of the people themselves,” she said. “I put a little bit of myself in every painting. I focus on the people in the portrait, if you notice there’s not a lot of background,” Dudek said. This energy is apparent in her “Self Portrait,” which won her the award. This piece is a mess of reds and oranges, but under closer observation portrays the artist in her room, apparently in pajamas, a state very familiar with the common college student. Freshman Dan Army took home a prize along with Dudek for his piece “A Dedication to Female Grafti Writers.” Displaying the words, “It’s not about being a female artist. It’s about being an Artist,” this painting grasped gallery-goers with its size and energy. Although still in his academic and artistic youth, the piece boasts some real talent. The rest of the exhibit ranged from the whimsical to political giving viewers much to talk about. Sophomore Lindsey Sniffin’s “Summer Rain,” an umbrella suspended from the ceiling, attracted the art curious and their cameras, as did “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” a colored pencil piece by senior Jamie McGann who was recently recognized by the Society of Illustrators. Senior Bryan Adams presented “BP: Bird Petroleum” which used clay and paint to depict three birds, native to the gulf coast, covered in petroleum. Placed in the back of the gallery where a gathering crowd concealed the work, the sculptures were unfortunately not focused on as much as the rest of the exhibit. The Joseloff Gallery took a leap into the 21st century with the addition of QR codes on several of the wall labels. Visitors were encouraged to download code scanners to their smart phones so they could access insight from artists and jurors posted on the gallery’s website. This new feature was a hit for the more technologically advanced visitors, mainly students. The annual Alexander A. Goldfarb Student Exhibition will be at the Joseloff Gallery until March 20, 2011, open to the public for free six days a week.
Take a break with free SCA movie nights in Konover
By Danielle Nielsen Staff Writer Going out and having a good night may be hard for some students on a budget and with no means of transportation. With prices of movie tickets generally starting at around $10 and factoring in another $10 for popcorn, candy and snacks, you are looking at around a $20 night for you, and $40 if you have a date. For a college student on a budget, a night out to the movies is not an affordable way to spend your Friday night. The Student Centers Administration right here on campus have been offering free movie nights to save students money. Comparatively, viewing a movie in a theater setting with stadium seating, Dolby Digital sound and a concession stand packed to the rim of everyone’s favorite junk food is all part of the movie going experience. Although Konover and The Suisman Lounge may not have all of the perks of a movie theater, the sheer fact of being able to save $10 on a ticket at Criterion Cinemas at Blue Back Square right here in West Hartford, is appealing all in itself. SCA offers free movie showings typically Thursday through Saturday nights. The movies that they show aren’t current ones playing in the theaters, however they are fairly recent releases. Showing new releases is great for movie fanatics that may have missed going to see when they were in the theaters. In the comfort of your own campus, you can enjoy a movie with your friends or signicant other. Recent movies they have played include “Tron,” “The Social Network” and “Burlesque.” Upcoming movies that will be shown include “Tangled,” a new animated Disney movie that puts a twist on the story of Rapunzel, and the comedy “Little Fockers,” the third movie in the “Meet The Parents” series. “The perks of the free movie nights is that it is convenient being right on campus, and nice for students to not have to pay for a movie ticket,” SCA employee Kelsey Barnes said. Not only do the students benet from this, but the university receives benets for showing these movies as well. If you are in a pinch for plans and not looking to spend a ton of money, take a look at the calendar in GSU for upcoming movies and times.
COURTESY OF FANPOP.COM
SCA hosts movie nights such as this week’s “Tangled.”
the informer
entertainment
february 24, 2011
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3-D not a ‘Great’ choice for Fitzgerald classic
The F. Scott Fitzgerald classic novel “The Great Gatsby” will be remade yet again except this time in 3-D. Scheduled to begin shooting in August, the 2012 release will star Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, Tobey Maguire as the novel’s narrator Nick Carraway and Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan. Having been made several times in America, the story is no stranger to the big screen and for most people, a minute memory of high school English class. The tragic American love story of Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan, as seen through the eyes of neighbor Nick Carraway, is a staple of the milieu of the ‘20s in America. However, the classic tale’s new twist is the director’s decision to shoot in 3-D, a style commonly reserved for cheesy kids movies and equally predictable thrillers. My problem with 3-D is not that the technology shouldn’t be applied to lms, because it’s a revolutionary new tool, it’s that it is becoming Andy Swetz Entertainment Editor [email protected] Twitter: @TheKineticKid hackneyed and negatively alters story lines. The interjection of 3-D at the movie theaters got really old really quick and seemed to advertise as compensation for a movie that couldn’t hold its own without it. Granted, having two versions available is always a viable option, shooting 3-D caters to the pallet of the short attention span of most Americans. If ever there were an actor to play the introverted millionaire Jay Gatsby, hands down DiCaprio would be my rst choice. Whatever DiCaprio touches turns to gold as his latest lms go and his ability to emulate a twentieth century American is unmatched in Hollywood today. It seems lately that the movie industry is suffocating when it comes to original and brand new material for box ofce cash cows. The theater’s lineups are littered with sequels, remakes and lms based on books. Taking such a powerful American novel such as “The Great Gatsby” and just cycling it through Hollywood again may prove to be the wrong move in the eyes of many, especially in 3-D. Although victim to the paradox of if a lm is done justice through a movie, this particular novel shouldn’t have to even be in the running for being better as a movie. People are getting bored at “the movies” and it is understandable that new inventive ways to create revenue, besides jacking up the price per ticket, are needed. My qualm comes in exploiting one of
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Leonardo DiCaprio has been cast as mysterious Jay Gatsby. my favorite books for the sake of making a movie. With the lm set to begin production in Sydney, Australia, later this year, the perpetual cycle of the movie business is continuing. Despite my beliefs and general distaste with making movies 3-D, the technology continues to rake in the dough at the box ofce proving people are easily amused with an altering effect.
Neeson displays brilliant performance in ‘Unknown’
By Kyle Rodgers Special to the Informer “Unknown” is two movies in one, it’s your high budget action movie with explosions and it’s also that quiet spy lm from the ‘70s and ‘80s. Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, whose previous films include “House of Wax” and “Orphan,” “Unknown” takes you on a ride with tunnels (dark ones at that) and 90 and 180 degree turns with loop-de-loops. However, don’t let his previous lms impact your decision to see his latest work. This lm is nothing like his previous two. “Unknown” is light years ahead of its time and it does so pretty well. The beginning of the movie has Dr. Martin Harris, played by Liam Neeson, and his wife, played by January Jones, land in Berlin for a science convention. Dr. Martin Harris forgets his briefcase at the airport and goes back to try and get it. On the way, his taxi gets into an accident and it drives off the bridge. The taxi driver is Gina, played by Diane Kruger. Thanks to quick thinking by Gina, Dr. Harris survives but not without a knock on the head. When he wakes up, he can’t remember anything or what’s going on. He tries to put the pieces together from what was in his pocket at the time. He had a watch with his initials and his wife’s, a journal that his dad gave to him with a serious of mysterious numbers on it, and his wallet with a picture of him and his wife in Paris from their honeymoon. After four days he remembers what he is doing in Berlin and tries to nd his wife, who hasn’t been looking for him. “Unknown” throws a lot of curve balls trying to confuse us. Does the briefcase matter? Do certain numbers matter? Does the journal matter? It’s up to you what you want to follow. Every question or mystery does come to a conclusion. Whether that conclusion satises you or not remains to be seen. Maybe they will or maybe not. The ght scenes were excellent. They were believable in that they weren’t two guys throwing kung-fu moves at each other. They were two guys trying to ght in a space that didn’t allow much of anything in the rst place. There were car chases, explosions, ghts and everything else you want in an action movie. Liam Neeson did an excellent job in keeping me alert to what was going on and keeping me wanting to know what happens next. Diane Kruger did just the same. Overall the movie tried to hit a thousand targets at once. It hit a lot but not all. It has elements from almost every type of action and spy lm. That might be its biggest aw or its biggest asset. “Unknown” is a movie that should be seen because it’s a movie that will entertain you. Isn’t that what a movie is supposed to do?
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the informer
entertainment
february 24, 2011
Gaga breaks iTunes record, releases new single
By Brandon Goncalves Special to the Informer Little Monsters all across the world are singing with the release of Lady Gaga’s newest single, “Born This Way.” After a prolonged hiatus, Gaga once again returns to the scene as she lands a well-deserved place within the playlists and iPods of fans alike. With over 15 million views on YouTube, “Born This Way” has gained great exposure and recognition since its highly anticipated Feb. 11 release, especially due to the excellent performance executed by Gaga herself at the Grammy’s on Feb. 13. Celebrities and television viewers alike sat patiently and anxiously for what this leading lady had cooked up after months of working on her third album of the same name. What they got was denitely an entrance worth remembering as the Grammy-winning artist, whose outlandish fashion choices spark controversy, was carried on-stage within the connes of a large egg that was carried down the red carpet earlier that evening. Intrduced by Ricky Martin who dubbed “Born This Way” as, “a very meaningful song about loving who you love and being who you are,” Gaga kept us in awe as she successfully paved the way for the next milestone within her career. Despite the single’s inevitable success, there has been much some are even comparing it to songs by other artists. “I instantly thought of ‘Express Yourself’ by Madonna, both songs sound almost the same. But I’ve listened to it a lot since it came out and it denitely grew on me,” junior Honora Beirne said. Even though some were less welcoming than others, it is certain “Born This Way” will be heard around campus as its popularity and publicity grows, while Little Monsters everywhere prepare for the release of Gaga’s new album. With the release of Gaga’s second album, “The Fame Monster,” over one year ago, fans have been growing bored of listening to the same material, especially with radio stations overplaying the same “Ra ra-ah-ah-ah” over and over again. However, given Gaga’s reputation of putting her heart and soul into her work, the May 23 release of her third album should be a pivotal day within today’s generation of music as it is highly expected to shatter records and top the charts. The single is already the fastestselling single on iTunes ever, hitting the number one spot in 23 countries and selling over 1 million tracks in just ve days. In a recent interview on Ryan Seacrest’s radio show, Gaga herself even said, the single “is just the beginning of this album. It’s certainly not the biggest hit on the album.” With that said, Gaga certainly is “on the right track, baby” as she continues to blow minds.
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Pop icon Lady Gaga is back with a brand new single, which is rapidly growing in popularity. controversy and speculation from students on-campus who felt indifferent upon hearing Gaga’s latest single for the rst time. Some feel the single does not match the stature of songs from her previous albums, such as hits like “Just Dance,” “Paparazzi” and “Bad Romance.” While others regard it as a “gay anthem” worthy of being played in dance clubs across the country,
RA programs designed by students for students
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Resident Assistant programs are designed to engage residents in a competitive, fun and educational way as seen above in the annual Hawk Hall Olympics. By Lisa Schwartz-Neubauer Staff Writer Programs organized and executed by resident assistants are highly underrated on our campus. They exist at the University of Hartford to provide residential students activities and co-curricular experiences that are not only engaging, but also educational and informative. Resident Assistant programming intentionally provides students chances to learn about our community, themselves and other topics that may or may not be covered in their academic career. RA programs are designed to directly relate to students because they are designed and created for students by students. RAs are trained on how to program and are also provided guidance on how to create programs that the residents are interested in or are in the best interest of the residents. In several instances, RAs will team up with their Hall Council leaders to create activities for the students in the convenience of their residential area. Depending on the oor, the interest of the residents and the time of year, RAs plan individual programs for their residents and also plan campuswide events, which are conducted by either themselves or other RAs and departments on campus. According to Shawn McQuillan, the Assistant Director of Residential Life for Community Development, RA programming is designed around the new Ofce of Residential Life Community Development Programming Model. This model was unveiled during the past summer and was designed throughout the course of the 09-10 academic year. Based on RA input, this model has RAs plan at least one program around the seven different dimensions each year. These dimensions include: Hawk Spirit and Pride, Committed to Community, Personal Safety, Campus Collaboration & Program Support, Life Skills, Intercultural Awareness and Health and Wellness. McQuillan is responsible for community development functions of the Ofce of Residential Life. This includes RA and Resident Director recruitment, selection and training. He provides administrative oversight for Residential Life programming and co-advises the Residence Hall Association. “I would love to nd a universal advertising method that works for all students that would ensure residents knew what programs were happening each day in each area. Often I hear students tell me they don’t look at yers or wish they knew that this program was happening. Currently the Ofce of Residential Life is working on putting a programming calendar on our website,” McQuillan said. Some of these large-scale programs include the E & F Luau, Sex in Konover, 21 Club, Hawk Hall Olympics, Haunted Basement and much more. All of the funding for these programs comes from student fees for housing along with a departmental operating budget, and they can get further nancial support for programs from RHA and Hall councils.
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the informer
sports
february 24, 2011
Post-traumatic stress disorders among athletes
The mat is a wrestler’s temple, but one wrong move can turn it into a total combat zone. When former Danbury High School wrestler Charlie Costanzo made a mistake while competing at the National Duels in Oklahoma a few years ago, the mat quickly became a brutal combat zone for the varsity athlete. In an instant, the torque of a move Costanzo made while on bottom twisted his left arm to break in three places. Blood spilled onto the mat as the combination of movements had caused his humerus to burst through his skin on impact. The excruciatingly painful compound, spiral fracture required emergency reconstructive surgery where Costanzo’s arm was pieced back together with a 10-inch metal plate and seven screws. “The surgeon told me I’d never be able to use my arm the same Jessica Rutledge • Sports Editor [email protected] Twitter: @InformerSports way again,” Costanzo said, but that wasn’t the worst of it. “He also said that if I broke it with the plate in there I’d lose all function of my arm.” For most people, that would have been more than enough to call it quits – not for Costanzo. This display of extraordinary mental toughness can be attributed in part to his DNA, but it was also the strong network of support that Costanzo received during the recovery period that helped him bounce back so fearlessly. “It really only took one day to gain my condence back,” Costanzo said, he was cleared to wrestle on the rst day of practice for the season. “I was mad that this happened to me, but I only allowed myself to think that way for a day or two before completely dedicating myself to winning everything again.” Costanzo was far from paralyzed with fear after his traumatic injury, instead he was inspired to step up his strength training and ended the season with a rst place nish in FCIACs, LL’s, Opens and a No. 2 nish in the New England’s in his rst season back. But this is not always the case. Many times, when athletes suffer severe sport-related injuries the trauma of the experience is crippling physically, but also emotionally. This often results in the athlete suffering from mental “blocks” impairing their athletic abilities, or more extreme cases leave some athletes so traumatized that they give up the sport completely. Psychologists have referred to the gripping fears and emotional instability of recovering athletes as a type of post-traumatic stress disorder. But the level of PTSD experienced by any given athlete is subjective. In the case of Costanzo, any level of PTSD he experienced was miniscule and did not impair his ability to wrestle. But the recent spike in the number of sport-related injuries has urged parents, coaches and athletes to consider the psychological welfare of injured athletes. According to Competitive Advantage Sports Psychology website, “Unless this consequent psychological pain is directly addressed and ‘treated,’ overall recovery will be slow and incomplete. Coaches and parents who are sensitive to the issues of the injured athlete help speed up the rehab process and signicantly lessen the mental anguish that the athlete must struggle with.” As youth athletic organizations continue to more closely resemble the pro-sport industry, the stress and stakes of the game are overwhelming. I think that it is important for coaches, parents and athletes themselves to stay realistic and always have the health and happiness of the young athlete at the forefront of their minds. An injury might seem devastating, especially when the athlete is a prodigal competitor – but the chances of recovery are substantially higher when the athlete is surrounded by a support system to help him heal emotionally, while his body recovers fully.
Whale Bowl brimming with hockey legends, fun
By Jeff Gould Staff Writer It was a windy, frigid day on the ice last Saturday, but Rentschler Stadium was electric for the CT Whale Bowl. The high energy hockey event took place on Feb. 19 and featured two games. The Whale Bowl event started off with the Legends game, played between the former Hartford Whalers legends and the Boston Bruins legends. The Legends game also featured a mix of celebrities including cocreator of “Dumb and Dumber,” Bob Farrelly. The legends took their sweet time to get the game going but eventually it turned into a back and forth scoring spree with the game ending in a 4-4 tie . Once the legends left the ice and the re works were blasted, the AHL matchup of the Providence Bruins and the Connecticut Whale was underway. In the rst period of the game, Connecticut got a lot of momentum going with a top left corner wrist shot dealt by Tim Kennedy that found the net. Defensive player Neimi followed up Kennedy’s efforts with a onetimer, giving the Whale the lead as the team headed into the second period. During the second period of play, the Bruins tallied a quick three goals, with fast passes and good angle shots. But towards the end of the period the CT Whale found momentum again; this time with a power-play goal by Williams and then a blue line slap-shot by Nightingale, making the end of the second period 4-3 Whale. Then, during the third period, after a lot of back and forth shooting, Arniel found a breakaway chance and capitalized it bringing the game into OT. During OT Hartford had a power play opportunity, but could not score, which resulted in a shootout. After all three starting shootout players missed, Maxim Suave aunted his playing ability with a big goal that won the Bruins the game. After a cold day of hockey, fans were thrilled with excitement and the overall success of the Whale Bowl.
SARAH WILSON
A panel of ex-MLB players talked about the game and served as comic relief at the event.
Hot Stove Dinner, hot success
Francisco Giants). The Hartford baseball program was able to host such stardom due to a partnership with the MLBPA, which has raised over $17 million during its tenure by conducting events such as these all over the country to help instruct young scholar athletes on the sport of baseball and life as a whole. In addition to the MLBPA, several photographs and baseballs signed by MLB professionals such as Cliff Lee and David Ortiz were available for auction throughout the course of the night. Head Coach Jeff Calcaterra started off with an introduction of the spring 2011 coaching staff and players, which boasts 10 new freshman recruits, seven of which are pitchers. A spectacular dinner, served with two types of wines available for purchase, topped with a delicious
By Charlie Paullin Staff Writer Keynote speaker Bobby Valentine was only one of the many baseball greats who came out to support the Hawks annual baseball Hot Stove Dinner Saturday night. The Farmington Marriott welcomed the Hartford baseball team’s annual fundraising event, as the starstudded affair brought in big names in baseball, making the fundraiser a hot success. As members of the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, joining Valentine were Bud Anderson (Cleveland Indians), Ron Diorio (Philadelphia Phillies), Don DeMola (Montreal Expos), John Doherty (Detroit Tigers/Boston Red Sox), Bud Harrelson (New York Mets/Philadelphia Phillies/Texas Rangers), Steve Rogers (Montreal Expos) and Bobby Taylor (San
chocolate dessert followed, with the former MLB manager taking the oor next. “Pain is good, and rain makes you grow, but snow …we gotta get rid of that crap,” was only the beginning of the amusing banter Valentine shared regarding the Hawks pre-season work so far. The ESPN analyst also shared with the crowd some words of wisdom, “Use responsibility and respect with your understanding of reality, and I guarantee you will be successful.” After drilling his point of the “3 R’s” home, attendees were also able to hear the stories of the remaining MLBPAA members. A live auction of more MLB memorabilia brought the evening event to a close. The baseball team’s season home opener is on March 9 when the Hawks host CCSU at 3 p.m.
ADAM MANISON
Hockey fans from around CT ocked to Rentschler Stadium last Saturday to see new and old talent hit the ice.
the informer
sports
february 24, 2011
page 11
Lax comes up short
vs. Minutemen 14-10
By Tim Rizzo Staff Writer The Hartford men’s lacrosse season opened with a gritty game against the Massachusetts Minutemen, where it came up short, losing 14-10. In a game with the wind chill close to 10 degrees, the players and fans needed to muster up some courage to ght through the Minutemen’s assault and Mother Nature’s fury last Saturday. After leading at halftime 7-5, the University of Hartford Hawks came out cold in the second half allowing the Minutemen to come out ring to outscore the Hawks 6-1 in the third period, and would build a lead they would never relinquish. Freshman Gabriel Mills attended the game at Al-Marzook Field, looking for something to do on campus and it turned out to be much more than he anticipated. “It was so cold out there, I don’t know how the crowd could keep cheering, it was too much for me with that wind,” Mills said. “The game was awesome though and if it warms up a bit I’ll denitely be going to some more.” The Hawks have much to improve on after allowing their solid lead to slip away, but also much to be positive about this season. Junior linemates Ryan Compitello and Aidan Genik led the Hawks in the rst half with one goal apiece and an assist for the early lead. The sophomores took over in the second quarter with Jared Franze and Rory Nunamacher extending the lead that the Hawks had before the Minutemen took over the game in the second half. Senior captain and pre-season All American midfielder, Tim Fallon, did his job gathering 12 ground balls to lead the team. The Hawks will try to bounce back from this defeat in a big way on March 26 when the team travels to Holy Cross to take on the Crusaders.
ADAM MANISON
The Hartford men’s lacrosse team opened the season with a tough loss to UMass on Saturday.
Q&A with Hartford track, XC star Jonas Hampton
Dan Melrose, Staff Writer: Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from? How did you start getting into track and cross-country? Jonas Hampton: I’m from Pennsylvania. Actually Pottstown, Penn. and attended Potsgrove High School. It’s close to Valley Forge, Allentown, roughly a four-hour drive from here. I started getting into running when I was in seventh grade, mostly because I used to play soccer. But I stopped playing soccer because my dad used to run in high school, so I decided to run too. So I gured why not do what he did. Did you win any major awards during your high school career? I guess I would have to say the City Championship Award, which I won two years in a row. I think those were probably the most major. All-State or All-America titles? No, I actually didn’t make it to states. Mostly because Pennsylvania is such a competitive state, and it’s also very big. I was third in the mile for our conferences in my senior year, but other than that nothing too big. Which sport do you prefer? Cross Country or track? Why? Cross Country. It’s a change of scenery. I prefer running on grass, not so hard surface wise, and also the hills. This way I get to do something different. Some people feel more pain on the hills than I do, so I usually take off at the point. How has your season been going? Describe the good and the bad. It’s been really good actually. For the most part, I mean, everything seemed to come together a lot during cross-country. I started off kind of slow, in my rst meet I ran a PR and then my times started becoming faster and faster towards the end. And then I just kind of blew it out of the water from last year to this year. But for the most part this has been my biggest year for improving in everything. How has it been balancing school and sports throughout college? It hasn’t been too bad. I mean there have been some clubs that I wish I did, but I couldn’t just do the track practice at the same time. They aren’t too big of a deal. They’d be nice to keep them on a resume. But for the most part it’s been OK. Hasn’t been too much work or hassle to manipulate with both of them. What is your major? Do you have any plans for after college? Civil engineering. I’m trying to get a job around here. For the most part to see if I could work with the team like on weekends, and after work if I can. That way I could be close to here and help the guys out for the next couple of years. Do you plan on doing anything afliated with track or cross-country? Or in terms of you running yourself? Yeah, I’m still going to be running. There are a couple of meets during the fall in cross-country season that I would love to do. And then there’s one out in Colorado that would be fun. Maybe I could get sponsored out there. Then possibly next year I might try and go out for the Boston Marathon, see if I could run that, qualify and run a fast time for that. But for the most part I will be running. Any hobbies? I really like to read. I nd most of what I read to be interesting and fun. Sports activities are something I get active in. I love to play frisbee. What’s your favorite sport besides running XC and track? Probably basketball. I played once in high school and then I switched over to track. But my dad and I would play over the summer all of the time, so I would probably say basketball. Are there any specic teammates whom you feel can have a lasting impact with the Hartford Hawks track team next year? Well right now Andy Chalmers is running very well, and he’s a junior. There’s also Anderson, who’s a sprinter in the 200-400 meters. And he’s still got one more year left, so with both of them combined, they could help the team out a lot.
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Hawks y at indoor conference championships
meter of sophomore Robert Giuliani, sophomore Chris Rodriguez, junior Kevin Brandon and Lawrence came in eighth with an 8:15.94. On the women’s side, sophomore Priscilla Appiagyei broke the school record in the 400-meter preliminaries with a 57.31 to place sixth overall in Saturday’s nals. Her time of 57.48 put three points on the board for UHa. Jennifer Flores and Rebecca Mendes, both freshman, claimed sixth and eighth place respectively in the 1,000-meter run, with Flores breaking the school record by more than three seconds with a time of 3:05.95. Mendes came in shortly thereafter with 3:19.97. The 4x400-meter team consisting of sophomores Nicole McClintock and Grace Lawal, freshman Natalie Bonham and Appiagyei earned eighth place honors, coming in at 3:57.18. The 4x800-meter squad of sophomore
Hampton lives to run and plans to continue post-graduation.
Continued from page 12 previous school record of 8:41.23, with times of 8:36.85 and 8:39.74. Hartford had two relays that placed on Saturday. The 4x400 meter relay comprised senior Chris Carr, Lane, freshman Jared Casey and Emerole. They got the sixth best time, 3:20.54. The 4x800-
Kayla Koonz, senior Marisa Poleto, sophomore Stephanie Curcio, and Flores also came in eighth with a total time of 10:01.06. The Hawks will revisit Boston on Feb. 25 for the New England Championships, the hallmark even of the season for track and eld.
Volume 34, Issue 18
Sports
the informer
The Informer
sports
february 24, 2011
hartfordinformer.com/sports
February 24, 2011
Men lose 10-point lead, fall 79-73 in OT thriller
ADAM MANISON
The Hartford men’s basketball team played its heart out Wednesday night, but as a 10-point lead slipped away, the men ultimately fell to the Seawolves in OT. By Josh Batelli Staff Writer Hartford men’s basketball took to the oor against Stony Brook in Chase Arena for the penultimate game of the regular season on Feb. 23 in hopes of climbing the America East ladder. The game featured tough results for Hartford in an overtime thriller. The Hawks lost by a score of 79-73. Both the Hawks and Seawolves of Stony Brook came into the game at 6-8 in conference play. Hartford jumped out to an early lead, living by the three. Ryan Baker and Joe Zeglinski shot lights out in the rst half combining to go 5-10 from three point range. The Seawolves rallied and the action went back and forth through the rest of the half before Stony Brook took a one point lead and held the advantage 27-26 at halftime. Perimeter defense posed a problem for the University of Hartford men early in the second half. Stony Brook hit four triples and a 39-32 lead with 13 minutes left. The defense tightened up following a timeout and the Hawks allowed one eld goal in a ve-minute span. Hartford, who is second in the nation in three pointers attempted, caught re. The men went on a 19-4 to take a ve-point lead with eight minutes left. The Hawks led most of the second half but couldn’t manage to put Stony Brook away. Ryan Baker hit a reverse layup to give the Hawks the one point lead in the nal minute. After a pair of Hawks free throws, Stony Brook knocked down a three to tie it with three seconds remaining. Zeglinski’s buzzer beater try rimmed out and overtime followed. Bryan Dougher, who struggled in regulation, came to life in overtime scoring nine points, and the Seawolves led through the OT session. The late game rally wasn’t enough to close the score decit, as the Hartford men’s team fell by six points in a hard fought game. Up next, the Hartford men’s basketball team will stay right at home to play New Hampshire in the nal game of the season on Feb 27. Sunday’s game will be of great importance as the two are tied in the America East conference and try to position for seeds.
Hawks y high at championship
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The Hartford track and eld teams broke several school records in Boston last weekend. By Erica White Staff Writer Hartford men and women’s track teams captured the No. 8 and 9 spots, respectively, at the America East Championship last weekend. The indoor conference championship event spanned two days and was hosted by Boston University. The University of Albany dominated the competition, with both their men and women’s teams earning their sixth consecutive title. The men walked away with a total of 184 points; the women had 206.5. The Hawks got things going with a fourth place nish in the 400-meter run from junior Anderson Emerole. With his time of 48.40 beating the previous school record by ve tenths of a second, and the previous time held by Emerole. Senior Warren Lane scored fth in the 500-meter run, racking up four points for Hartford. He tied his school record in the Friday night preliminaries, and claimed a new one during Saturday’s nals with a 1:04.46. Junior Wayne Lawrence dropped two seconds Q&A with from both his senior cross personal and country runschool record times in the ner and track 1,000-meter run captain Jonas with 2:32.80. Hampton on This earned him page 11 a 15th place in the event. In the 3,000-meter run, junior Andrew Chalmers and senior Jonas Hampton earned 12th and 15th place respectively, outrunning the See “Hawks y at indoor conference championships” page 11.
ADAM MANISON
The CT Whale Bowl hit Rentschler Stadium last weekend as the astroturf was transformed into a super-sized ice arena. Hockey fans congregated to see their favorite players, past and present. See “Whale Bowl brimming with hockey legends, fun” page 10.
The Informer
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By Hayden Harrower Staff Writer The Hartford women’s basketball team won Wednesday over Stony Brook, winning its last away game of the season. After ending their six-game winning streak against UMBC Sunday, the Hawks (13-15, 10-5) traveled to Stony Brook, N.Y. to repeat their performance against the Seawolves (5-22, 2-13), who started the streak almost a month ago. Unfortunately, the Hawks couldn’t shake off their last game by the time the rst half began in Stony Brook and they began the game without scoring a bucket for the rst three and a half minutes. But the Hawks wouldn’t count themselves out as they had a 7-4 run of their own in the nal ve minutes of the half. With a missed three to beat the buzzer the women’s team had put themselves in a comfortable position to win, ending at 19-25. The longrange shots had been the downfall for the Hawks as they shot only 18 percent, 2-11. The only thing keeping the Hawks in the game were the 14 bench points that had come in the rst half alone. The women’s team quickly regained composure coming back out of the locker rooms for the second half and tying the game at 28-28. But each time the Hawks drew near the lead Stony Brook’s offense would surge out in front leading by as much as 10 at one point in the game. As the clock wound down to 7:13 it was solely a story of free throws, as 11 points in a four minute span, seven of which went under the Hartford section of the scoreboard. After the last set
sports: men’s basketball lose 79-73 to stony brook
February 24, 2011
Late free throws result in nal away win
of free throws by Nikkia Smith, the Hawks had pulled out a lead of 63-59. But the Seawolves would comeback with their own free throws to tie the game at 63. The game appeared to be turning in the Hawks favor, when senior guard Jackie Smith was fouled and sent to the line to shoot not two, but three free throws. Smith could not make a threepointer “the easy way” by missing the third freethrow, but with a steal and free throws by Daphne Elliot, the Hawks increased their lead to four with four seconds, which had been too much to ask from the Seawolves, who couldn’t even manage to get a shot up as the buzzer sounded. The Hawks’ next game is at home against New Hampshire Saturday, Feb. 26, whom they had previously bested back on Jan. 12, 57-50 in New Hampshire.
ADAM MANISON
The women’s team improved its conference record to 10-5 with the win over Stony Brook on Wednesday.
Rally planned to protest funding cuts
By Jeremy Stanley Editor-in-chief A rally on Monday at the Capitol in Hartford will coincide with an appropriations committee hearing on higher education. Gov. Dannel Malloy, inaugurated last month, proposed funding cuts to the Connecticut Consortium of Independent Colleges that would affect the need-based scholarships of 549 University students. The cuts would result in a 50 percent decrease in student aid coming from the state over the next two years. The current budget would be cut from $23.4 million to $17.6 million next year and to $11.7 million in 2013. In an e-mail sent to students potentially impacted by the budget cuts, Associate Director of Admission and Student Financial Assistance See “Cuts” on Page 4
SARAH WILSON
Peace vigils a Wednesday ritual
Staff and students participate in weekly peace vigils on the academic campus lawn each week. Read more on page 2.
News
Opinions
Entertainment
Sports
UHa’s competing in Recylemania to promote recycling on college campuses. Page 4
America East Basketball tourney is coming back to campus and spurring interest in UHa. Page 5
The Goldfarb Exhibit opened this week showing work submitted by students. Page 6
The annual Hot Stove Dinner hosted many ex-MLB players last weekend. Page 10
page 2
the informer
news
february 24, 2011
SARAH WILSON
SARAH WILSON
The weekly Peace Vigil stands outside Wednesday in protest of the ongoing war in the Middle East. Students, faculty and staff can be seen there every Wednesday between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m.
Persistence for peace: group advocates harmony
By Ben Gyurik Staff Writer “Peace,” “Pais,” “Damai” and fteen other translations send their message of tranquility to passerbys on the academic side of campus. Armed with a single blue ag piercing the snow, a small but devoted group stands in silent protest. Every Wednesday for the past ve years, regardless of weather conditions, Professor of Educational Leadership, Donn Weinholtz, has stood vigil for peace with a small group of students and faculty. In addition to Professor Weinholtz, faculty that regularly attends the weekly vigil include Associate Professor of Sociology Jay Stewart, Professor of Psychology Sharon Shepela, Professor of Biology Mary Dowst, and Professor of Education Nursing and Health Professions Peter Oliver. “The vigil’s purpose has been to serve as a reminder to people that the war in the Middle East has persisted for a very long time; and to provide as a motivator to people to take some kind of action,” explained Weinholtz. Any student or faculty interested in attending can go between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. on any Wednesday, where the vigil meets on the main campus lawn near the Auerbach Computer and Administration Center. “We haven’t had too many students that came to the vigil, it’s rare. But I have to say that the drum circle started by Hannah Kluger, a student who is a sociology major, and the circle has attracted some more attention to the vigil,” stated Stewart. Weinholtz expressed that the vigil isn’t just trying to keep people informed about the war, but as he explained, is “for those of us who do it it’s a reminder of what you should be paying attention to in terms of news, and we don’t do the vigil to convert people, but rather to keep them informed on the war.” Stewart and Weinholtz are both a part of a group on campus called the Campus Alliance for Progressive Politics and Action [CAPPA], and Stewart explains that Weinholtz originally got the idea to hold a silent peace vigil on campus to keep people updated on the war in the Middle East. “As soon as I found out about the vigil, I emailed people and we started to have the vigil weekly, and one day Donn and I [Stewart] were speaking at the vigil together, and we realized we should make it a vigil without silence so people can get a better message,” said Stewart. The vigil itself is more than just informing people, and updating them on the war, since it has been going on, it has inspired faculty that attend to continue informing the campus through other ways. “I actually started a blog because of the vigil, and is in relation to the vigil because it’s about transforming the military budget towards the war, and it’s interesting to see how the vigil has inuenced people towards keeping not only themselves, but others knowledgeable about what’s going on overseas,” explains Weinholtz. Weinholtz and the other faculty members are also working on a proposal to have a peace pole set up near the site of the vigil, where a four, or six sided pole would be erected, and would have the phrase “Let Peace Prevail,” be on each side of the pole in a different language. “Donn and I [Stewart] are really working on getting the pole put up because it bears a lot of meaning. We have the support of Walt Harrison and Norm Young on campus, but we are awaiting a conrmation from John Michalewicz, the senior director of facilities in order to have the approval to have it set up,” stated Stewart. The vigil goes on every week, and has even motivated Stewart and other faculty to work on proposing a minor on campus for peace studies and conict resolution. “I got the idea of working on a proposal because I think it would be helpful to people interested in being more educated through learning about various forms of conict resolution,” says Stewart. Since the beginning of the vigil there have been peace conferences held on campus and other areas due to discussions that occurred during and after the vigil. “The vigil means a lot, but it denitely had an inuence on how other things like the peace conferences, and peace pole came into being – and whether or not people can attend, by supporting the vigil there can be more opportunities to learn about what’s going on outside our own country,” said Stewart.
America East: What you need to know about tourney week
By Sarah Wilson News Editor With the America East Tournament coming to the University next weekend, anticipation of heavy trafc on campus will affect parking and Sports Center hours. Due to the large amount of attendees that will be entering the school during the tournament games, the university is asking students to move their cars from N-lot to free up parking for visitors. Students who move their cars from the lot sometime during the late morning and afternoon on Wednesday, March 3 will receive Hawk Cash in return for the inconvenience, as well as get entered into a drawing for prizes. The Sports Center will also be operating on alternative hours in order to accommodate the tournament. As the weight and workout rooms will likely be converted into press rooms, much of the Sports Center will remain closed to students and outside members. With the success of last year’s tournament, Vice President of Student Affairs, Lee Peters, and President Walter Harrison will be providing tickets to students. Last year, they set aside a number of tickets specically for students. More information will follow within the next week on price and how many will be available.
Sports Center Schedule During America East Week:
Monday: Pool: 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Free Weight Room- 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesday: Pool- 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday: Pool- 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday: Fitness Wing- 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday: Fitness Wing- 12 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday: Fitness Wing- 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday: Sports Center is closed
informer staff
Jeremy Stanley ‘11
Editor-in-Chief
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the informer
news
february 24, 2011
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page 4
the informer
news
february 24, 2011
UHa to compete in RecyleMania
By Sarah Wilson News Editor University of Hartford is competing along with 630 universities around the nation in a competition to promote recycling in college communities. “RecycleMania” is a 10 week program where students are urged to collect as many recyclables on campus as possible. The competition started on Feb. 13, but teams are still eligible to sign up and participate as the contest is running to March 27. Over the 10 week period, students are encouraged to sign up in teams, and bring all recyclables to commons every Sunday. Not only will the individual teams compete against each other, but the University as a whole will be competing against other schools as well. The schools will be ranked according to “who collects the largest amount of recyclables per capita, the largest amount of total recyclables, and the least amount of trash per capita,”
CONEST GUIDLINES
-all teams must register and make a banner with the team name to be hung in commons -all recyclables must be from on campus -recyclables must be brought to commons every sunday between 2 and 4 pm -each team will receive ve trash bags, more will be given out on Sundays if needed
according to the RecycleMania web site. In terms of individual teams on campus, the team who lls the most trash bags with recyclables by the end of the competition will win. The winning team will receive their choice of a pizza party or a six-foot sub for up to 50 people. Ongoing updates will be posted each week in commons so teams can track their own progress, as well as the school’s. The RecycleMania national competition aims to raise awareness of waste management on college campuses, as well as promote the waste management programs of individual schools. The competition, which began in 2001, is sponsored by the College and University Recycling Council, and has been seeing an increase in participation ever since.
Potential scholarship cuts spark debate
Continued from front page Shane Ciccarelli wrote, “We need our support and are asking all students like you that will be affected by these devastating cuts to join in a rally in Hartford.” Mackenzie Manning, a sophomore at the University said in an interview with the Hartford Courant, “I understand the cuts have to come from somewhere, but cutting out students who want to make Connecticut their home …I felt not angry, but disappointed.” The president of the CCIC, Judith Greiman, said the program might be eliminated in the near future, according to the Hartford Courant. For students who rely on state funding for attending the state’s higher education, a major source of it could be eliminated, meaning students may drop out or leave the state where it may be less expensive, Greiman said. According to the Courant, Benjamin Barnes, secretary of the state Ofce of Policy, said private colleges were not the only institutions affected by the cuts. State-wide, 6,000 students receive grants from the CICS. The rally will take place from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in front of the Capitol building.
Student Aid Rally y When: Monday Feb. 28, 3:30-6:30 p.m. Where: Conn. Capitol
Vagina Monologues to return to UHa
By Sarah Wilson News Editor The University’s drama club, Dramatis Personae will be holding the annual Vagina Monologues play this weekend. This Friday and Saturday the show will be put on at 7:30 at Auerbach Auditorium. Each year the production has a global and local sponsor. The global sponsor this year will be Haitian Relief Efforts in memory of Myriam Merlet, a leader in women’s rights for the country until she passed away in the 2010 earthquake. Lo-
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cally, the event will be sponsored by the Connecticut Sexual Assault Crisis Services (CONNSACS), who have also sponsored the event in years past. The event will also be sponsoring the annual silent auction. Half an hour before and after each production those interested can bid on the items, and donations are still being accepted for any person or group who would like to. Women for Change will also be fundraising by selling their annual calendars before the show. Tickets are available at the door and can be purchased for $7 for students and $10 for non-students.
Catch Up. Get Ahead. On Campus. Online.
uvm.edu/summer/hartford
SARAH WILSON
Page 5
Opinions
hartfordinformer.com/opinions/
Once again, the University of Hartford is hosting the America East Conference Tournament for both men’s and women’s basketball teams next week. Last year was the rst year the tournaments for both men’s and women’s teams were held in the same arena. The tournament being back in the Chase Family Arena again this year might be indication enough that the entire four-day affair went well and was great exposure for the University. The level of competition throughout those few days in the Sports Center and the frequency of games—after one game ended, another began a half hour later during the early rounds—is enough to satiate a sports fan’s tastes. Even with all of the criticism lobbed at something like a midmajor tournament, it’s still an incredibly fun experience, even when doing something like covering it as a reporter. Perhaps former sports editor Zach Wallens said it best when wrapping up his coverage: “The America East tournament occupied Hartford for just over 72 hours, but its enduring effect on the [University] and the conference could take years to comprehend. However, one thing is for sure: this weekend marked possibly the most important and most successful sporting event in the university’s history.” He’s absolutely right. As someone who shared part of the reporting duties during the tournament’s early rounds, seeing the amount of effort put in to the tournament is a testament to the America East’s ability to have compelling product that’s relevant not on the national scale. No, highlights of a seminal in the America East Tournament won’t get the breadth of coverage that the Big Ten Conference championships receive on ESPN.
The Informer
February 24, 2011
America East Back at UHa, great exposure
Jeremy Stanley • Editor-in-Chief [email protected] Twitter: @JeremyDStanley The excitement will be instead contained to the connes of the Chase Family Arena. There is a fan following for the teams coming to play in the tournament and Chase Family Arena attracted a lot of fans from every school that played in it. Sticking most vividly in my mind was seeing a pack of green-shirted fans walking toward the fan fest tents set up temporarily for the tournament as I handed out special editions of The Informer that acted as sort of an unofcial program for the tournament. The University of Vermont had chartered buses for supporters and they arrived as one of the most fervent fan bases from the conference’s nine schools. One can only assume that the draw of supporters from all over the conference to the city of Hartford did help, briey, the surrounding businesses and hotels in the city bolster income in a struggling economic time. Every single event like this, bringing tourism to the state, can really help. The tournament that takes place next week will forever be a part of the University’s legacy, especially if the conference and the school can get the execution as right as both parties did last year. It would be great to see an event like this be a mainstay as part of the University’s schedule. It’s a great way to cap off a rst half of a semester and to see it come around next year would be an exciting prospect.
COURTESY OF CNN.COM
Justin Bieber’s hair is not news
New Zealand’s earthquake, the ongoing protesting in Wisconsin, and Libya’s political strife were all issues covered in CNN’s breaking news section on Tuesday night. Unfortunately, (or apparently fortunately for many people), so was Justin Bieber’s haircut debut. But don’t be alarmed just yet. Read the following article and you’ll soon nd out that Justin wasn’t trying to upset his teen-dream facade, he did it for charity. Win the auction and all 2 inches of those luscious Bieber locks could be yours. And sure, while the fact that Justin Bieber gets hair cuts might be the rst thing on thousands of middle school girls’ minds, I can’t help but think about what news story could have been in it’s place had it not gotten bumped off the “latest news” section. More and more frequently, the latest developments in actor’s lives make appearances in local newscasts on slow news days, even days that aren’t slow. It’s clear that the line between hard news and entertainment is becoming increasingly blurred, almost to the point of inexistence. While it’s no surprise that the lives of those in the spotlight have become everyday conversation, there’s no Sarah Wilson • News Editor [email protected] Twitter: @swyzleh way Lady Gaga’s egg stunt at the Grammys is more important than Americans who were captured by Somali pirates. The ever-increasing uff in the news is only a reection of the nation’s disinterest in actual events. Sure, reading about negative events that make up the majority of the news can get a bit depressing, but what’s really happening here is that we’re losing sight of what’s important. Entertainment news shows such as Entertainment Tonight or Access Hollywood started out by giving us the regular updates on celebrity scandals or budding romances. But over the years those shows have transformed gossip to breaking news, programs racing like actual news afliates to break the story of Lindsay Lohan’s latest burglary rst. Better yet, those who were once unknown and become involved in news stories are becoming transformed into celebrity. Radio-voiced Ted Williams was just a guy who spoke in a low tone until he literally walked off the streets and into fteen weeks of fame. Meanwhile, former House of Representatives member Tom DeLay was sentenced to jail for money laundering, but people were more concerned about William’s entry into rehab. Unfortunately, in today’s news society people are losing sight of what’s important. We know less and less about what’s going on in the world around us as we immerse ourselves more and more in the lives of people we’ve never even met. News is essential. It brings issues to the surface and provokes change in communities and our nation as a whole. Charlie Sheen’s drug problems, on the other hand, are really only bad publicity for cocaine. If things keep going the way they’re heading, pretty soon Justin Bieber’s twitter is going to be the next BBC, and I don’t know about you, but news from a pre-pubescent singer isn’t my cup of tea.
Of all the stories CNN could be focusing on they choose to highlight the least newsworthy; Justin Bieber’s new haircut.
Sick of winter, spring break is right around the corner
After three months of frigid temperatures many are feeling that it’s time for the winter season to come to a close. Day in and day out of waking up to dark skies and slippery sidewalks can take its toll on the average person and lead to the feeling that it’s never going to end despite whatever Punxsutawney Phil thinks. What does Punxsutawney Phil know anyway; he’s just a groundhog. It’s frightening to see that on average 1 in every 4-college students and adults has a diagnosable mental illness, according to psychcentral.com. These range from eating disorders to depression. Danielle Huppke • Managing Editor [email protected] Twitter: @danielle618 Many of these cases of depression strike while the winter season is in full swing, due to the dreary nature of the season and it can drag on for quite a while. Often referred to as the “winter blues” or “cabin fever,” seasonal depression is not something to be overlooked, as the symptoms are just as debilitating as normal depression. Things to look for if you’re feeling a tinge of the “winter blues” are fatigue, persistent sadness, oversleeping, overeating, difculty concentrating and social withdrawal. Some may even have the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder and not even realize that’s the case. Even the mildest cases of seasonal depression can be reversed with increased exposure to sunlight or even light therapy. Although not a guaranteed x, tanning beds can be really helpful in the ght to avoid seasonal depression, however damaging they may be to you in other ways. “Cabin fever” can oftentimes be xed without any addition of antidepressant medication into your daily routine. Since the debate over whether anti-depressants drugs are actually a step in curing depression is forever going to rage on I’ll spare my thoughts on the subject, and leave that up to the Tom Cruz’s of the world to protest to. In any case there are many alternatives and just as effective options to get you out of your winter slump. A few great ways to beat the winter blues is to exercise, take a stroll around campus during your lunch hour, avoid alcohol since it is a depressant, get a full eight hours of sleep every night and spend at least 30 minutes outdoors each and every day. The countries fateful and oldest living groundhog to date, predicted that spring will come early this year, although he’s not an entirely credible source it’s enough hope to get me through the next few weeks of cold. So instead of dwelling upon the number of hours spent trying to dig your car out of the snow think towards the very near future and the warm, sunny beach weather that’s waiting just around the corner. There’s only two weeks until spring break after all.
While the Informer stands by its columnists and supports their right to free speech, please note that the columnists’ opinions are in no way representative of the opinions of the Informer or of the University of Hartford.
Page 6
Entertainment
hartfordinformer.com/entertainment/
The Informer
February 24, 2011
English Lit. major surprises at art exhibit opening
SPENCER ALLAN BROOKS
SPENCER ALLAN BROOKS
SPENCER ALLAN BROOKS
The Goldfarb Exhibit opened in the Joseloff Gallery displaying artwork submitted by students varying from painting, sculpture and photography. By Spencer Allan Brooks Art Director New artwork adorns the walls and oor of the Joseloff Gallery, after the annual Goldfarb exhibition opened Thursday. The opening reception brought in a dynamic crowd of students, faculty, parents and arts supporters. When rst entering the exhibit, you may nd yourself drawn to a large piece on canvas near the door. This piece, “Charles With Sneakers,” grabbed the attention of the audience with its large gure lling the entire canvas, and suggesting a sense of emotion. Students and faculty alike found themselves tilting their heads in amusement when reading the painting’s corresponding label, naming junior Tess Dudek as the artist. Why were the artists so amused? Well, Dudek is an English Literature major. If that wasn’t enough, she went on to take one of the $1,000 Alexander A. Goldfarb Purchase Prizes for another piece that was present in the gallery. Dudek has a minor in art after dropping out of the HAS after her rst semester at Hartford. She decided art school wasn’t for her, but with a strong love for creating, she said, “I really try to hold myself accountable for it.” When painting, Dudek tries to portray “the power of the people themselves,” she said. “I put a little bit of myself in every painting. I focus on the people in the portrait, if you notice there’s not a lot of background,” Dudek said. This energy is apparent in her “Self Portrait,” which won her the award. This piece is a mess of reds and oranges, but under closer observation portrays the artist in her room, apparently in pajamas, a state very familiar with the common college student. Freshman Dan Army took home a prize along with Dudek for his piece “A Dedication to Female Grafti Writers.” Displaying the words, “It’s not about being a female artist. It’s about being an Artist,” this painting grasped gallery-goers with its size and energy. Although still in his academic and artistic youth, the piece boasts some real talent. The rest of the exhibit ranged from the whimsical to political giving viewers much to talk about. Sophomore Lindsey Sniffin’s “Summer Rain,” an umbrella suspended from the ceiling, attracted the art curious and their cameras, as did “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” a colored pencil piece by senior Jamie McGann who was recently recognized by the Society of Illustrators. Senior Bryan Adams presented “BP: Bird Petroleum” which used clay and paint to depict three birds, native to the gulf coast, covered in petroleum. Placed in the back of the gallery where a gathering crowd concealed the work, the sculptures were unfortunately not focused on as much as the rest of the exhibit. The Joseloff Gallery took a leap into the 21st century with the addition of QR codes on several of the wall labels. Visitors were encouraged to download code scanners to their smart phones so they could access insight from artists and jurors posted on the gallery’s website. This new feature was a hit for the more technologically advanced visitors, mainly students. The annual Alexander A. Goldfarb Student Exhibition will be at the Joseloff Gallery until March 20, 2011, open to the public for free six days a week.
Take a break with free SCA movie nights in Konover
By Danielle Nielsen Staff Writer Going out and having a good night may be hard for some students on a budget and with no means of transportation. With prices of movie tickets generally starting at around $10 and factoring in another $10 for popcorn, candy and snacks, you are looking at around a $20 night for you, and $40 if you have a date. For a college student on a budget, a night out to the movies is not an affordable way to spend your Friday night. The Student Centers Administration right here on campus have been offering free movie nights to save students money. Comparatively, viewing a movie in a theater setting with stadium seating, Dolby Digital sound and a concession stand packed to the rim of everyone’s favorite junk food is all part of the movie going experience. Although Konover and The Suisman Lounge may not have all of the perks of a movie theater, the sheer fact of being able to save $10 on a ticket at Criterion Cinemas at Blue Back Square right here in West Hartford, is appealing all in itself. SCA offers free movie showings typically Thursday through Saturday nights. The movies that they show aren’t current ones playing in the theaters, however they are fairly recent releases. Showing new releases is great for movie fanatics that may have missed going to see when they were in the theaters. In the comfort of your own campus, you can enjoy a movie with your friends or signicant other. Recent movies they have played include “Tron,” “The Social Network” and “Burlesque.” Upcoming movies that will be shown include “Tangled,” a new animated Disney movie that puts a twist on the story of Rapunzel, and the comedy “Little Fockers,” the third movie in the “Meet The Parents” series. “The perks of the free movie nights is that it is convenient being right on campus, and nice for students to not have to pay for a movie ticket,” SCA employee Kelsey Barnes said. Not only do the students benet from this, but the university receives benets for showing these movies as well. If you are in a pinch for plans and not looking to spend a ton of money, take a look at the calendar in GSU for upcoming movies and times.
COURTESY OF FANPOP.COM
SCA hosts movie nights such as this week’s “Tangled.”
the informer
entertainment
february 24, 2011
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3-D not a ‘Great’ choice for Fitzgerald classic
The F. Scott Fitzgerald classic novel “The Great Gatsby” will be remade yet again except this time in 3-D. Scheduled to begin shooting in August, the 2012 release will star Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, Tobey Maguire as the novel’s narrator Nick Carraway and Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan. Having been made several times in America, the story is no stranger to the big screen and for most people, a minute memory of high school English class. The tragic American love story of Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan, as seen through the eyes of neighbor Nick Carraway, is a staple of the milieu of the ‘20s in America. However, the classic tale’s new twist is the director’s decision to shoot in 3-D, a style commonly reserved for cheesy kids movies and equally predictable thrillers. My problem with 3-D is not that the technology shouldn’t be applied to lms, because it’s a revolutionary new tool, it’s that it is becoming Andy Swetz Entertainment Editor [email protected] Twitter: @TheKineticKid hackneyed and negatively alters story lines. The interjection of 3-D at the movie theaters got really old really quick and seemed to advertise as compensation for a movie that couldn’t hold its own without it. Granted, having two versions available is always a viable option, shooting 3-D caters to the pallet of the short attention span of most Americans. If ever there were an actor to play the introverted millionaire Jay Gatsby, hands down DiCaprio would be my rst choice. Whatever DiCaprio touches turns to gold as his latest lms go and his ability to emulate a twentieth century American is unmatched in Hollywood today. It seems lately that the movie industry is suffocating when it comes to original and brand new material for box ofce cash cows. The theater’s lineups are littered with sequels, remakes and lms based on books. Taking such a powerful American novel such as “The Great Gatsby” and just cycling it through Hollywood again may prove to be the wrong move in the eyes of many, especially in 3-D. Although victim to the paradox of if a lm is done justice through a movie, this particular novel shouldn’t have to even be in the running for being better as a movie. People are getting bored at “the movies” and it is understandable that new inventive ways to create revenue, besides jacking up the price per ticket, are needed. My qualm comes in exploiting one of
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Leonardo DiCaprio has been cast as mysterious Jay Gatsby. my favorite books for the sake of making a movie. With the lm set to begin production in Sydney, Australia, later this year, the perpetual cycle of the movie business is continuing. Despite my beliefs and general distaste with making movies 3-D, the technology continues to rake in the dough at the box ofce proving people are easily amused with an altering effect.
Neeson displays brilliant performance in ‘Unknown’
By Kyle Rodgers Special to the Informer “Unknown” is two movies in one, it’s your high budget action movie with explosions and it’s also that quiet spy lm from the ‘70s and ‘80s. Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, whose previous films include “House of Wax” and “Orphan,” “Unknown” takes you on a ride with tunnels (dark ones at that) and 90 and 180 degree turns with loop-de-loops. However, don’t let his previous lms impact your decision to see his latest work. This lm is nothing like his previous two. “Unknown” is light years ahead of its time and it does so pretty well. The beginning of the movie has Dr. Martin Harris, played by Liam Neeson, and his wife, played by January Jones, land in Berlin for a science convention. Dr. Martin Harris forgets his briefcase at the airport and goes back to try and get it. On the way, his taxi gets into an accident and it drives off the bridge. The taxi driver is Gina, played by Diane Kruger. Thanks to quick thinking by Gina, Dr. Harris survives but not without a knock on the head. When he wakes up, he can’t remember anything or what’s going on. He tries to put the pieces together from what was in his pocket at the time. He had a watch with his initials and his wife’s, a journal that his dad gave to him with a serious of mysterious numbers on it, and his wallet with a picture of him and his wife in Paris from their honeymoon. After four days he remembers what he is doing in Berlin and tries to nd his wife, who hasn’t been looking for him. “Unknown” throws a lot of curve balls trying to confuse us. Does the briefcase matter? Do certain numbers matter? Does the journal matter? It’s up to you what you want to follow. Every question or mystery does come to a conclusion. Whether that conclusion satises you or not remains to be seen. Maybe they will or maybe not. The ght scenes were excellent. They were believable in that they weren’t two guys throwing kung-fu moves at each other. They were two guys trying to ght in a space that didn’t allow much of anything in the rst place. There were car chases, explosions, ghts and everything else you want in an action movie. Liam Neeson did an excellent job in keeping me alert to what was going on and keeping me wanting to know what happens next. Diane Kruger did just the same. Overall the movie tried to hit a thousand targets at once. It hit a lot but not all. It has elements from almost every type of action and spy lm. That might be its biggest aw or its biggest asset. “Unknown” is a movie that should be seen because it’s a movie that will entertain you. Isn’t that what a movie is supposed to do?
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the informer
entertainment
february 24, 2011
Gaga breaks iTunes record, releases new single
By Brandon Goncalves Special to the Informer Little Monsters all across the world are singing with the release of Lady Gaga’s newest single, “Born This Way.” After a prolonged hiatus, Gaga once again returns to the scene as she lands a well-deserved place within the playlists and iPods of fans alike. With over 15 million views on YouTube, “Born This Way” has gained great exposure and recognition since its highly anticipated Feb. 11 release, especially due to the excellent performance executed by Gaga herself at the Grammy’s on Feb. 13. Celebrities and television viewers alike sat patiently and anxiously for what this leading lady had cooked up after months of working on her third album of the same name. What they got was denitely an entrance worth remembering as the Grammy-winning artist, whose outlandish fashion choices spark controversy, was carried on-stage within the connes of a large egg that was carried down the red carpet earlier that evening. Intrduced by Ricky Martin who dubbed “Born This Way” as, “a very meaningful song about loving who you love and being who you are,” Gaga kept us in awe as she successfully paved the way for the next milestone within her career. Despite the single’s inevitable success, there has been much some are even comparing it to songs by other artists. “I instantly thought of ‘Express Yourself’ by Madonna, both songs sound almost the same. But I’ve listened to it a lot since it came out and it denitely grew on me,” junior Honora Beirne said. Even though some were less welcoming than others, it is certain “Born This Way” will be heard around campus as its popularity and publicity grows, while Little Monsters everywhere prepare for the release of Gaga’s new album. With the release of Gaga’s second album, “The Fame Monster,” over one year ago, fans have been growing bored of listening to the same material, especially with radio stations overplaying the same “Ra ra-ah-ah-ah” over and over again. However, given Gaga’s reputation of putting her heart and soul into her work, the May 23 release of her third album should be a pivotal day within today’s generation of music as it is highly expected to shatter records and top the charts. The single is already the fastestselling single on iTunes ever, hitting the number one spot in 23 countries and selling over 1 million tracks in just ve days. In a recent interview on Ryan Seacrest’s radio show, Gaga herself even said, the single “is just the beginning of this album. It’s certainly not the biggest hit on the album.” With that said, Gaga certainly is “on the right track, baby” as she continues to blow minds.
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Pop icon Lady Gaga is back with a brand new single, which is rapidly growing in popularity. controversy and speculation from students on-campus who felt indifferent upon hearing Gaga’s latest single for the rst time. Some feel the single does not match the stature of songs from her previous albums, such as hits like “Just Dance,” “Paparazzi” and “Bad Romance.” While others regard it as a “gay anthem” worthy of being played in dance clubs across the country,
RA programs designed by students for students
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Resident Assistant programs are designed to engage residents in a competitive, fun and educational way as seen above in the annual Hawk Hall Olympics. By Lisa Schwartz-Neubauer Staff Writer Programs organized and executed by resident assistants are highly underrated on our campus. They exist at the University of Hartford to provide residential students activities and co-curricular experiences that are not only engaging, but also educational and informative. Resident Assistant programming intentionally provides students chances to learn about our community, themselves and other topics that may or may not be covered in their academic career. RA programs are designed to directly relate to students because they are designed and created for students by students. RAs are trained on how to program and are also provided guidance on how to create programs that the residents are interested in or are in the best interest of the residents. In several instances, RAs will team up with their Hall Council leaders to create activities for the students in the convenience of their residential area. Depending on the oor, the interest of the residents and the time of year, RAs plan individual programs for their residents and also plan campuswide events, which are conducted by either themselves or other RAs and departments on campus. According to Shawn McQuillan, the Assistant Director of Residential Life for Community Development, RA programming is designed around the new Ofce of Residential Life Community Development Programming Model. This model was unveiled during the past summer and was designed throughout the course of the 09-10 academic year. Based on RA input, this model has RAs plan at least one program around the seven different dimensions each year. These dimensions include: Hawk Spirit and Pride, Committed to Community, Personal Safety, Campus Collaboration & Program Support, Life Skills, Intercultural Awareness and Health and Wellness. McQuillan is responsible for community development functions of the Ofce of Residential Life. This includes RA and Resident Director recruitment, selection and training. He provides administrative oversight for Residential Life programming and co-advises the Residence Hall Association. “I would love to nd a universal advertising method that works for all students that would ensure residents knew what programs were happening each day in each area. Often I hear students tell me they don’t look at yers or wish they knew that this program was happening. Currently the Ofce of Residential Life is working on putting a programming calendar on our website,” McQuillan said. Some of these large-scale programs include the E & F Luau, Sex in Konover, 21 Club, Hawk Hall Olympics, Haunted Basement and much more. All of the funding for these programs comes from student fees for housing along with a departmental operating budget, and they can get further nancial support for programs from RHA and Hall councils.
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the informer
sports
february 24, 2011
Post-traumatic stress disorders among athletes
The mat is a wrestler’s temple, but one wrong move can turn it into a total combat zone. When former Danbury High School wrestler Charlie Costanzo made a mistake while competing at the National Duels in Oklahoma a few years ago, the mat quickly became a brutal combat zone for the varsity athlete. In an instant, the torque of a move Costanzo made while on bottom twisted his left arm to break in three places. Blood spilled onto the mat as the combination of movements had caused his humerus to burst through his skin on impact. The excruciatingly painful compound, spiral fracture required emergency reconstructive surgery where Costanzo’s arm was pieced back together with a 10-inch metal plate and seven screws. “The surgeon told me I’d never be able to use my arm the same Jessica Rutledge • Sports Editor [email protected] Twitter: @InformerSports way again,” Costanzo said, but that wasn’t the worst of it. “He also said that if I broke it with the plate in there I’d lose all function of my arm.” For most people, that would have been more than enough to call it quits – not for Costanzo. This display of extraordinary mental toughness can be attributed in part to his DNA, but it was also the strong network of support that Costanzo received during the recovery period that helped him bounce back so fearlessly. “It really only took one day to gain my condence back,” Costanzo said, he was cleared to wrestle on the rst day of practice for the season. “I was mad that this happened to me, but I only allowed myself to think that way for a day or two before completely dedicating myself to winning everything again.” Costanzo was far from paralyzed with fear after his traumatic injury, instead he was inspired to step up his strength training and ended the season with a rst place nish in FCIACs, LL’s, Opens and a No. 2 nish in the New England’s in his rst season back. But this is not always the case. Many times, when athletes suffer severe sport-related injuries the trauma of the experience is crippling physically, but also emotionally. This often results in the athlete suffering from mental “blocks” impairing their athletic abilities, or more extreme cases leave some athletes so traumatized that they give up the sport completely. Psychologists have referred to the gripping fears and emotional instability of recovering athletes as a type of post-traumatic stress disorder. But the level of PTSD experienced by any given athlete is subjective. In the case of Costanzo, any level of PTSD he experienced was miniscule and did not impair his ability to wrestle. But the recent spike in the number of sport-related injuries has urged parents, coaches and athletes to consider the psychological welfare of injured athletes. According to Competitive Advantage Sports Psychology website, “Unless this consequent psychological pain is directly addressed and ‘treated,’ overall recovery will be slow and incomplete. Coaches and parents who are sensitive to the issues of the injured athlete help speed up the rehab process and signicantly lessen the mental anguish that the athlete must struggle with.” As youth athletic organizations continue to more closely resemble the pro-sport industry, the stress and stakes of the game are overwhelming. I think that it is important for coaches, parents and athletes themselves to stay realistic and always have the health and happiness of the young athlete at the forefront of their minds. An injury might seem devastating, especially when the athlete is a prodigal competitor – but the chances of recovery are substantially higher when the athlete is surrounded by a support system to help him heal emotionally, while his body recovers fully.
Whale Bowl brimming with hockey legends, fun
By Jeff Gould Staff Writer It was a windy, frigid day on the ice last Saturday, but Rentschler Stadium was electric for the CT Whale Bowl. The high energy hockey event took place on Feb. 19 and featured two games. The Whale Bowl event started off with the Legends game, played between the former Hartford Whalers legends and the Boston Bruins legends. The Legends game also featured a mix of celebrities including cocreator of “Dumb and Dumber,” Bob Farrelly. The legends took their sweet time to get the game going but eventually it turned into a back and forth scoring spree with the game ending in a 4-4 tie . Once the legends left the ice and the re works were blasted, the AHL matchup of the Providence Bruins and the Connecticut Whale was underway. In the rst period of the game, Connecticut got a lot of momentum going with a top left corner wrist shot dealt by Tim Kennedy that found the net. Defensive player Neimi followed up Kennedy’s efforts with a onetimer, giving the Whale the lead as the team headed into the second period. During the second period of play, the Bruins tallied a quick three goals, with fast passes and good angle shots. But towards the end of the period the CT Whale found momentum again; this time with a power-play goal by Williams and then a blue line slap-shot by Nightingale, making the end of the second period 4-3 Whale. Then, during the third period, after a lot of back and forth shooting, Arniel found a breakaway chance and capitalized it bringing the game into OT. During OT Hartford had a power play opportunity, but could not score, which resulted in a shootout. After all three starting shootout players missed, Maxim Suave aunted his playing ability with a big goal that won the Bruins the game. After a cold day of hockey, fans were thrilled with excitement and the overall success of the Whale Bowl.
SARAH WILSON
A panel of ex-MLB players talked about the game and served as comic relief at the event.
Hot Stove Dinner, hot success
Francisco Giants). The Hartford baseball program was able to host such stardom due to a partnership with the MLBPA, which has raised over $17 million during its tenure by conducting events such as these all over the country to help instruct young scholar athletes on the sport of baseball and life as a whole. In addition to the MLBPA, several photographs and baseballs signed by MLB professionals such as Cliff Lee and David Ortiz were available for auction throughout the course of the night. Head Coach Jeff Calcaterra started off with an introduction of the spring 2011 coaching staff and players, which boasts 10 new freshman recruits, seven of which are pitchers. A spectacular dinner, served with two types of wines available for purchase, topped with a delicious
By Charlie Paullin Staff Writer Keynote speaker Bobby Valentine was only one of the many baseball greats who came out to support the Hawks annual baseball Hot Stove Dinner Saturday night. The Farmington Marriott welcomed the Hartford baseball team’s annual fundraising event, as the starstudded affair brought in big names in baseball, making the fundraiser a hot success. As members of the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, joining Valentine were Bud Anderson (Cleveland Indians), Ron Diorio (Philadelphia Phillies), Don DeMola (Montreal Expos), John Doherty (Detroit Tigers/Boston Red Sox), Bud Harrelson (New York Mets/Philadelphia Phillies/Texas Rangers), Steve Rogers (Montreal Expos) and Bobby Taylor (San
chocolate dessert followed, with the former MLB manager taking the oor next. “Pain is good, and rain makes you grow, but snow …we gotta get rid of that crap,” was only the beginning of the amusing banter Valentine shared regarding the Hawks pre-season work so far. The ESPN analyst also shared with the crowd some words of wisdom, “Use responsibility and respect with your understanding of reality, and I guarantee you will be successful.” After drilling his point of the “3 R’s” home, attendees were also able to hear the stories of the remaining MLBPAA members. A live auction of more MLB memorabilia brought the evening event to a close. The baseball team’s season home opener is on March 9 when the Hawks host CCSU at 3 p.m.
ADAM MANISON
Hockey fans from around CT ocked to Rentschler Stadium last Saturday to see new and old talent hit the ice.
the informer
sports
february 24, 2011
page 11
Lax comes up short
vs. Minutemen 14-10
By Tim Rizzo Staff Writer The Hartford men’s lacrosse season opened with a gritty game against the Massachusetts Minutemen, where it came up short, losing 14-10. In a game with the wind chill close to 10 degrees, the players and fans needed to muster up some courage to ght through the Minutemen’s assault and Mother Nature’s fury last Saturday. After leading at halftime 7-5, the University of Hartford Hawks came out cold in the second half allowing the Minutemen to come out ring to outscore the Hawks 6-1 in the third period, and would build a lead they would never relinquish. Freshman Gabriel Mills attended the game at Al-Marzook Field, looking for something to do on campus and it turned out to be much more than he anticipated. “It was so cold out there, I don’t know how the crowd could keep cheering, it was too much for me with that wind,” Mills said. “The game was awesome though and if it warms up a bit I’ll denitely be going to some more.” The Hawks have much to improve on after allowing their solid lead to slip away, but also much to be positive about this season. Junior linemates Ryan Compitello and Aidan Genik led the Hawks in the rst half with one goal apiece and an assist for the early lead. The sophomores took over in the second quarter with Jared Franze and Rory Nunamacher extending the lead that the Hawks had before the Minutemen took over the game in the second half. Senior captain and pre-season All American midfielder, Tim Fallon, did his job gathering 12 ground balls to lead the team. The Hawks will try to bounce back from this defeat in a big way on March 26 when the team travels to Holy Cross to take on the Crusaders.
ADAM MANISON
The Hartford men’s lacrosse team opened the season with a tough loss to UMass on Saturday.
Q&A with Hartford track, XC star Jonas Hampton
Dan Melrose, Staff Writer: Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from? How did you start getting into track and cross-country? Jonas Hampton: I’m from Pennsylvania. Actually Pottstown, Penn. and attended Potsgrove High School. It’s close to Valley Forge, Allentown, roughly a four-hour drive from here. I started getting into running when I was in seventh grade, mostly because I used to play soccer. But I stopped playing soccer because my dad used to run in high school, so I decided to run too. So I gured why not do what he did. Did you win any major awards during your high school career? I guess I would have to say the City Championship Award, which I won two years in a row. I think those were probably the most major. All-State or All-America titles? No, I actually didn’t make it to states. Mostly because Pennsylvania is such a competitive state, and it’s also very big. I was third in the mile for our conferences in my senior year, but other than that nothing too big. Which sport do you prefer? Cross Country or track? Why? Cross Country. It’s a change of scenery. I prefer running on grass, not so hard surface wise, and also the hills. This way I get to do something different. Some people feel more pain on the hills than I do, so I usually take off at the point. How has your season been going? Describe the good and the bad. It’s been really good actually. For the most part, I mean, everything seemed to come together a lot during cross-country. I started off kind of slow, in my rst meet I ran a PR and then my times started becoming faster and faster towards the end. And then I just kind of blew it out of the water from last year to this year. But for the most part this has been my biggest year for improving in everything. How has it been balancing school and sports throughout college? It hasn’t been too bad. I mean there have been some clubs that I wish I did, but I couldn’t just do the track practice at the same time. They aren’t too big of a deal. They’d be nice to keep them on a resume. But for the most part it’s been OK. Hasn’t been too much work or hassle to manipulate with both of them. What is your major? Do you have any plans for after college? Civil engineering. I’m trying to get a job around here. For the most part to see if I could work with the team like on weekends, and after work if I can. That way I could be close to here and help the guys out for the next couple of years. Do you plan on doing anything afliated with track or cross-country? Or in terms of you running yourself? Yeah, I’m still going to be running. There are a couple of meets during the fall in cross-country season that I would love to do. And then there’s one out in Colorado that would be fun. Maybe I could get sponsored out there. Then possibly next year I might try and go out for the Boston Marathon, see if I could run that, qualify and run a fast time for that. But for the most part I will be running. Any hobbies? I really like to read. I nd most of what I read to be interesting and fun. Sports activities are something I get active in. I love to play frisbee. What’s your favorite sport besides running XC and track? Probably basketball. I played once in high school and then I switched over to track. But my dad and I would play over the summer all of the time, so I would probably say basketball. Are there any specic teammates whom you feel can have a lasting impact with the Hartford Hawks track team next year? Well right now Andy Chalmers is running very well, and he’s a junior. There’s also Anderson, who’s a sprinter in the 200-400 meters. And he’s still got one more year left, so with both of them combined, they could help the team out a lot.
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Hawks y at indoor conference championships
meter of sophomore Robert Giuliani, sophomore Chris Rodriguez, junior Kevin Brandon and Lawrence came in eighth with an 8:15.94. On the women’s side, sophomore Priscilla Appiagyei broke the school record in the 400-meter preliminaries with a 57.31 to place sixth overall in Saturday’s nals. Her time of 57.48 put three points on the board for UHa. Jennifer Flores and Rebecca Mendes, both freshman, claimed sixth and eighth place respectively in the 1,000-meter run, with Flores breaking the school record by more than three seconds with a time of 3:05.95. Mendes came in shortly thereafter with 3:19.97. The 4x400-meter team consisting of sophomores Nicole McClintock and Grace Lawal, freshman Natalie Bonham and Appiagyei earned eighth place honors, coming in at 3:57.18. The 4x800-meter squad of sophomore
Hampton lives to run and plans to continue post-graduation.
Continued from page 12 previous school record of 8:41.23, with times of 8:36.85 and 8:39.74. Hartford had two relays that placed on Saturday. The 4x400 meter relay comprised senior Chris Carr, Lane, freshman Jared Casey and Emerole. They got the sixth best time, 3:20.54. The 4x800-
Kayla Koonz, senior Marisa Poleto, sophomore Stephanie Curcio, and Flores also came in eighth with a total time of 10:01.06. The Hawks will revisit Boston on Feb. 25 for the New England Championships, the hallmark even of the season for track and eld.
Volume 34, Issue 18
Sports
the informer
The Informer
sports
february 24, 2011
hartfordinformer.com/sports
February 24, 2011
Men lose 10-point lead, fall 79-73 in OT thriller
ADAM MANISON
The Hartford men’s basketball team played its heart out Wednesday night, but as a 10-point lead slipped away, the men ultimately fell to the Seawolves in OT. By Josh Batelli Staff Writer Hartford men’s basketball took to the oor against Stony Brook in Chase Arena for the penultimate game of the regular season on Feb. 23 in hopes of climbing the America East ladder. The game featured tough results for Hartford in an overtime thriller. The Hawks lost by a score of 79-73. Both the Hawks and Seawolves of Stony Brook came into the game at 6-8 in conference play. Hartford jumped out to an early lead, living by the three. Ryan Baker and Joe Zeglinski shot lights out in the rst half combining to go 5-10 from three point range. The Seawolves rallied and the action went back and forth through the rest of the half before Stony Brook took a one point lead and held the advantage 27-26 at halftime. Perimeter defense posed a problem for the University of Hartford men early in the second half. Stony Brook hit four triples and a 39-32 lead with 13 minutes left. The defense tightened up following a timeout and the Hawks allowed one eld goal in a ve-minute span. Hartford, who is second in the nation in three pointers attempted, caught re. The men went on a 19-4 to take a ve-point lead with eight minutes left. The Hawks led most of the second half but couldn’t manage to put Stony Brook away. Ryan Baker hit a reverse layup to give the Hawks the one point lead in the nal minute. After a pair of Hawks free throws, Stony Brook knocked down a three to tie it with three seconds remaining. Zeglinski’s buzzer beater try rimmed out and overtime followed. Bryan Dougher, who struggled in regulation, came to life in overtime scoring nine points, and the Seawolves led through the OT session. The late game rally wasn’t enough to close the score decit, as the Hartford men’s team fell by six points in a hard fought game. Up next, the Hartford men’s basketball team will stay right at home to play New Hampshire in the nal game of the season on Feb 27. Sunday’s game will be of great importance as the two are tied in the America East conference and try to position for seeds.
Hawks y high at championship
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The Hartford track and eld teams broke several school records in Boston last weekend. By Erica White Staff Writer Hartford men and women’s track teams captured the No. 8 and 9 spots, respectively, at the America East Championship last weekend. The indoor conference championship event spanned two days and was hosted by Boston University. The University of Albany dominated the competition, with both their men and women’s teams earning their sixth consecutive title. The men walked away with a total of 184 points; the women had 206.5. The Hawks got things going with a fourth place nish in the 400-meter run from junior Anderson Emerole. With his time of 48.40 beating the previous school record by ve tenths of a second, and the previous time held by Emerole. Senior Warren Lane scored fth in the 500-meter run, racking up four points for Hartford. He tied his school record in the Friday night preliminaries, and claimed a new one during Saturday’s nals with a 1:04.46. Junior Wayne Lawrence dropped two seconds Q&A with from both his senior cross personal and country runschool record times in the ner and track 1,000-meter run captain Jonas with 2:32.80. Hampton on This earned him page 11 a 15th place in the event. In the 3,000-meter run, junior Andrew Chalmers and senior Jonas Hampton earned 12th and 15th place respectively, outrunning the See “Hawks y at indoor conference championships” page 11.
ADAM MANISON
The CT Whale Bowl hit Rentschler Stadium last weekend as the astroturf was transformed into a super-sized ice arena. Hockey fans congregated to see their favorite players, past and present. See “Whale Bowl brimming with hockey legends, fun” page 10.
