Mount Hood

Musings from a woman on the edge

By: Katrina Penaflor 
Managing Editor

My excitement for the “Full House” reboot “Fuller House” has completely flown off and disappeared somewhere far, far away.

I just watched the trailer for “Fuller House” and sadly, I’ve grown to be completely underwhelmed, and it left me questioning why I enjoyed the show so much in the first place. Also, no Michelle Tanner (I’ll get to that in a minute).

Shows that I long thought rested away in television heaven seem to be making their way back to our screen. “X-Files,” “Gilmore Girls,” (both of these I have zero complaints about), and, of course, “Fuller House.”

I’m pretty sure this idea reaches to people’s love of nostalgia, and how, for me, letting things you love go can be pretty impossible.

My anticipation for the show has been building ever since I heard about it through John Stamos’ Instagram. And, yes, of course I follow him, and all the people who don’t are severely missing out.

Unfortunately, after seeing the trailer (and if you haven’t seen it just go watch it or accept the fact that this article will make no sense) I have one word to describe it—cheesy.

But then again, “Full House” always did have that cheese-ball factor in the past. Maybe because I watched it when I was younger I didn’t think about it the way I do now.

I’d like to add adorable, yet at times mildly annoying, Michelle (played by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olson) is nowhere to be seen. She was mentioned via a voicemail by her sisters, but that was it.

My disappointment in her absence was a major part in my less than enthusiastic response to the trailer.

Who knows, maybe when I give the actual show a try I’ll take back everything I just said? Also, it arrives on Netflix on my birthday, which—because I’m super odd—always makes me feel really cool.

Get in Formation

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By: Stephanie Blair 
Copy Editor

For many, Beyoncé was the MVP on Sunday at the Super Bowl. Performing her new single, “Formation,” she took to the field and outshined her fellow half-time performers—side note: does anyone remember who they were? (I was distracted by Queen Bey’s glory.)

However, despite the brilliance of her message, Beyoncé is currently under fire in a debate “about whether it was appropriate for Beyoncé to inject politics into her performance” as the Washington Post phrased it.

Beyoncé and her dancers sported black leather jackets, black berets, and natural hair. This was in a salute to the Black Panther organization and also a tribute to the current Black Lives Matter movement.

Marni Senofonte, Beyoncé’s stylist for the Super Bowl, told Essence magazine that this was a way for her to honor and empower black women.

“The women of the Black Panther Party created a sisterhood and worked right alongside their men fighting police brutality and creating community social programs,” said Senofonte. “That image of women in leadership roles; believing they are a vital part of the struggle is undeniably provocative and served as reference and reality.”

However, not everyone shares this positive view of the performance. Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani said that he felt “it was outrageous that she used it as a platform to attack police officers who are the people who protect her and protect us, and keep us alive.”

There have been vast amounts of debate on this subject on social media. I have a few points of my own.

Beyoncé has been a longtime feminist. From her 2011 hit “Run The World (Girls)” to performing in front of the word “FEMINIST” lit up on her last tour, Queen Bey has never been too subtle about her views of gender equality.

I think this was simply a more specific channel for that same message. When the “Formation” music video was released (before the Super Bowl) Essence magazine described it as a “4:53 second ode to Black-girl-ness.”

So, yeah, there’s some race involved. But, and this is important here, it’s not about you, angry, white men!

So, can it Giuliani. This one is about building up one of the most oppressed demographics: black women, not tearing down the highest paid and least incarcerated.

Western talks equality with Merkley

By: Alvin Wilson 
Staff Writer

Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) visited Western’s Werner University Center on Feb. 5 to discuss his new bill, the Equality Act, with a small audience of students.

According to Merkley’s website, “The Equality Act amends existing federal civil rights laws to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in education, employment, housing, credit, and Federal jury service.”

Merkley’s visit started with a story about the events that eventually led to him writing the Equality Act.

In 2013, Merkley helped lead the effort to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in Congress.

“During that battle, it was really interesting because it was very hostile, very emotional,” said Merkley. “I remember driving into the underground parking at the Capitol and having people kind of tap on my windshield, hold up placards to my windshield, yell and scream at me, tell me what a horrible person I was.”

“But I felt like a very good person,” he continued. “I felt this was the right thing not just in terms of our constitutional vision of fairness, opportunity and equality, but in terms of fundamental human rights.”

But that bill didn’t pass because the House of Representatives refused to debate it on the floor.

“The House of Representatives was led by the other party, the Republican party, which was not willing to do this,” said Merkley. “We felt that we had the votes in the House of Representatives, but to win the vote it has to be held, and the leadership of the house refused to do so.”

This prompted Merkley to write a new piece of legislation.

“We decided it was time to talk differently about this,” he said. “It was time not to talk about chipping away here or there, it was time to simply say our LGBT community deserves the same fundamental laws against discrimination that are enjoyed by Americans in regard to gender, ethnicity, and race.

“The bill that I wrote is about utilizing the 1964 Civil Rights Act as a foundation.”

The Equality Act already has 40 cosponsors, but it hasn’t passed yet.

“I don’t think that my Republican majority colleagues are going to hold a hearing on the bill,” said Merkley. “So, what are we doing in the meantime? We are building a stronger coalition.”

He said they are recruiting companies to endorse the bill, and they already have 20 Fortune 500 companies on board.

“We’d like that to be 200 Fortune 500 companies,” he said.

Merkley said one Republican recently agreed to cosponsor the bill.

“Mark Kirk of Illinois, who had been a partner of mine with the Non-Discrimination Act, endorsed it,” he said. “So, we can now call it a bipartisan bill.”

So, what’s next for the Equality Act?

“Really, the next step right now is building awareness of it, getting citizens to lobby their house and senate members to become cosponsors, and getting the corporate world to endorse it,” said Merkley.

End to negotiation draws near

By: Alvin Wilson 
Staff Writer

Negotiations have been winding down as President Rex Fuller and his negotiating team look for ways to settle with WOUFT.

Fuller has been criticized by the union for not yielding in his effort to keep the operating revenue above 15 percent. Because of the volatile nature of university revenue streams, Fuller said they are still trying to stay within the boundaries they previously set.

“University funding really only consists of two components these days,” said Fuller. “One would be the state funding, which is based upon state allocation, and the other is tuition. Tuition accounts for a greater percent today than it did 40 years ago, so it does matter.”

The university compiles information about future state funding, projected enrollment rates, tuition rates, and other expenses, and then bases budgetary decisions off of the projections.

Tuition is expected to increase by three percent every year. Enrollment is expected to be flat next year, but by 2018 it is expected to begin increasing again.

“Even with those three percent forecasts, and even with enrollment growth reversing the trend, we start to have a situation where we begin to erode into our 15 percent reserve,” said Fuller.

The 2016 Operating Budget for Western includes everything in the university’s most current proposal, and it shows Western’s operating revenue falling below 15 percent by next year.

Fuller and his negotiating team both see this as a risk, but Fuller believes it will be worth it, saying “I believe that gives us time to rebuild the enrollment pipeline. The bet I’m making as a president, if you will, is that we’ll actually exceed these enrollment figures.”

Fuller said that there’s a problem with most of the school’s funds coming from tuition, since the Western Promise has locked in the tuition rates for about half of the students.

This means that when the university increases tuition rates, it will be hard to predict how much of an increase in funding it will bring.

“Therein lies the financial risk, which is part of the reason why we have the 15 percent reserve,” said Fuller.

Fuller admits that a compromise must be made to settle with WOUFT, but he doesn’t agree with some of the claims the union has made about his side of the negotiations.

“I think one of the things that has been said is that the university is stalling,” said Fuller. “I would say that’s contrary to all the evidence I’ve seen.”

Fuller says that he and his negotiating team have been active in trying to resolve the negotiations from the beginning.

“We have changed proposals to be responsive to the concerns of the union,” he said. “We were prepared to go to mediation in January; the union was not.”

Fuller says the university is close to settling with WOUFT and that he is ready to consider any proposal they might offer.

“One of their emails said they believe that we could solve it within the amount of money on the table, and I stand ready to consider something we haven’t considered yet,” said Fuller. “We work on this every week—anytime that there’s an opportunity to adjust.”

Mark Perlman, president of WOUFT, says there is no risk of a faculty strike, suggesting that they are working on reaching an agreement as well.

Former WOU students convicted of rape and sexual abuse

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By: Jenna Beresheim
News Editor

Two male former Western Oregon University students were recently convicted of rape and sexual abuse of a female student in 2014.

According to the Statesman Journal, Robert Godeaux Savoy III, 23, was convicted of first-degree rape, first-degree sexual abuse, and third-degree sexual abuse.

Christopher James Weekly, 23, was convicted of first-degree sodomy, first-degree sexual abuse, second-degree sexual abuse, and third-degree sexual abuse.

The two-day trial took place in the Polk County Circuit Court before Judge Norman Hill.
Both first degree rape and first degree sodomy are considered Measure 11 offenses, and as such they carry mandatory minimum prison sentences of eight years and four months.

Both Savoy and Weekly are not considered students at Western as of 2014 and are being held in Polk County Jail.

Their official sentencing took place Feb. 11 at 4 p.m. in Polk County Circuit Court.

“In my role, I feel that justice is being served for this victim,” admitted Dr. Mary Ellen Dello Stritto, the Director of Abby’s House on Western’s campus.

“We’re the victim advocates here, it’s a positive outcome,” continued Dello Stritto.

Abby’s House is a resource and referral site on campus that supports individuals in any trouble they are experiencing in their life. Some examples listed were sexual harassment, pregnancy, mental health, stalking, housing, substance abuse, LGBT*Q issues, and more.

There are currently fourteen trained student advocates to respond to crises by supporting an individual, aiding them in considering their options, and allowing them to make educated choices about the next step in handling the issue at hand.

“Our assistant director Andrea Hugmeyer, and myself are confidential advocates who can support a victim without needing to be mandatory reporters,” said Dello Stritto, “that’s something we can offer, whereas our student advocates are still mandatory reporters.”

Abby’s House is a non-discriminatory safe zone for all students that is open Mondays and Wednesdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. the other three days.

“We’re here to support survivors – which means all students, survivors are men as well,” encouraged Dello Stritto.

Another campus support system that works closely with Abby’s House is the Student Health and Counseling Center.

“Our professional staff provides students at WOU with quality primary health care, information, referral services, counseling, and educational services,” said Jaime Silva, Director of the Student Health and Counseling Center.

“In situations of rape and sexual assault, we provide students with compassionate, confidential, and supportive services to help them feel validated and also to help them make informed decisions about their situation,” continued Silva.

The Student Health and Counseling Center is open during school hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and offers emergency appointments as well as a host of resources and hotlines for support during weekends or closed hours.

“We talk to students about the resources available to them and help them be in as much control of their situation as possible,” said Silva.

One final resource, as means of prevention, can be found in the on-campus club Green Dot.
“A green dot is any behavior, choice, word, or attitude that promotes safety for everyone and communicates utter intolerance for sexual violence, partner violence and stalking,” reports the Green Dot website.

Green Dot offers multiple trainings to aid in prevention of these intolerances, as well as hosting weekly club meetings.

For more information regarding Green Dot, contact club president Dacota Ashwill at dashwill12@mail.wou.edu.

“Turning the Tide” on college admissions

By: Katrina Penaflor 
Managing Editor

The expectation levels for college admissions varies across the field. Typically, schools take a balance of GPA, SAT or ACT scores, and an accumulation of extracurricular activities.

In a recent New York Times article, OP-ED writer Frank Bruni addressed a study titled “Turning the Tide,” which discussed the flaws in the college admission process, primarily at the Ivy-League level. He went on to say how a university’s expectations and approval process may not benefit students at every income level.

Western’s application process, in comparison to non-Ivy-League or private universities, is primarily standard, meaning that when a student applies, Western takes into account their transcript, SAT or ACT scores, and a completed application.

SAT and ACT scores are not required for the WOU admissions process if the universities GPA requirement of 2.75 is met, but they are beneficial for scholarship purposes.

Like Western, “a growing number of colleges have made the SAT or ACT optional,” said Bruni in his article.

“Some of those alterations would simultaneously level the playing field for kids applying to college from less advantaged backgrounds,” said Bruni, who continued to point out the correlation between household income and standardized test scores.

An additional point “Turning the Tide” made was the negative effects college admissions have on high school students.

Not only can they cause a heavy workload with additional Advanced Placement (A.P.) courses—which are not available in all high schools—and extracurricular activities, but the pressure of becoming an ideal candidate can bring increased anxiety.

“Poorer high schools aren’t as likely to offer A.P. courses, and a heavy load of them is often cited as a culprit in sleep deprivation, anxiety and depression among students at richer schools,” said Bruni.

Western has tried to combat the stressful application process by heading directly to high schools and having students apply in an environment familiar to them.

“Something that we do to make it more convenient, and reduce that stress and make it more WOU focused, is we do instant Wolf onsite,” said Luanne Carrillo, admissions counselor and multicultural recruitment coordinator.

This means the university will work with the students’ counselors and faculty to ensure the necessary paperwork is acquired and the students only worry about their application and application fee.

This provides the opportunity for any questions about the processes to be directly answered and students will receive an admissions decision the same day.

Possible changes or reassessments can even go back to what is acceptable on a high school level.

Carrillo suggests, “looking back at the high school concept and saying ‘should you all still offer D’s?’ because D’s are not passing for a university.”

As “Turning the Tide” suggests, finding well-rounded students goes beyond the number of club activities and SAT scores. It is a university’s job to see how their admissions requirements can shape the behavior of potential students, and if that is happening in a positive or negative fashion.

Sing Hallelujah for the Old Machine

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By: Darien Campo 
Staff Writer

Three Blind Wolves is a three-piece indie rock band that hails from Glasgow, Scotland. Though they’ve not been active long, they have quickly proven themselves to be a stellar group that is well worth listening to. Their unique sound, self-described as “folk-tinged psychedelic blues-rock,” is brought to life in their first full-length album “Sing Hallelujah for the Old Machine.”

Released in 2013 under Scottish indie label Instinctive Raccoon, “Sing Hallelujah for the Old Machine” is a piece brimming with a tremendous amount of power and emotion.

The tracks are a fantastic blend of driving guitar rock, backed by a complex orchestra of instruments. Mandolins, slide guitars, and horns fill out the sound on this album, bringing a very country/folk feel to the music. Almost like The Decemberists meets Arcade Fire.

Listeners are served with a wide array of arrangements on “Sing Hallelujah.” From songs like “Parade,” which pound the crunching guitar and hit us with a rousing chorus, to songs like “When the Garden Gets Near,” which features no more than Ross Clark and his acoustic guitar. And even with the diversity in dynamics, all of the songs seem equally compelling.

The album spans 11 tracks of raw humanity, poured out into your headphones. We’ve all listened to sad music, but you’ve probably never heard it sung like Ross Clark.

Clark’s vocals soar from soft whispers, mumbled into the microphone, all the way to roaring screams of power. Clark’s lyrics weave a gorgeous tapestry of wanting. Each song is a thread through different aspects of loss and loneliness, all penned by Clark himself.

“Sing Hallelujah for the Old Machine” is less about wallowing in our own sadness, and more about rejoicing in it. These songs almost seem to celebrate our human ability to experience such emotional pain. It brings a delightful edge to what could have just been a series of sad songs.

On the album’s single, “Parade,” Clark said: “Times are hard just now. You’ve got to keep yourself moving on.”

If you’re looking for a new rising band to keep an eye on, it’d be hard for me to find a better recommendation than Three Blind Wolves, and their album “Sing Hallelujah for the Old Machine.”

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