Mount Hood

Women of Culture event honors diversity

Sam Dunaway | News Editor

Education, awareness and celebration marked the various events and displays involved in Western’s annual Women of Culture celebration sponsored by Multicultural Student Union.

The purpose of the Women of Culture events are to honor the diversity of women from a wide variety of cultures and bring awareness to issues that affect these women.

As Western’s website explains, “This event is inclusive for any member of the WOU community in the pursuit of educating our campus on the importance of women’s rights within different traditions.”

MSU worked with several campus departments, including the Veterans Resource Center and Abby’s House, to make this week possible. The Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs presented the “I Am Not Invisible” exhibit which displays the stories of several women in Oregon who have served in the United States military and whose service is often forgotten. Abby’s House presented the Herstory Tour, an informative historical tour of women from various backgrounds and cultures.

In addition to these events, MSU itself hosted a dinner with keynote speaker Shelaswau Bushnell Crier. Bushnell Crier described her background and family life in Louisiana and the difficulties she experienced as a woman of color in the South. She was goal-oriented as a teenager and attended Rice University before moving on to Yale Law School and eventually working at Willamette University in Salem. She is an outspoken advocate, speaking at events such as the Salem Women’s March in 2017, and is continuing her community activism by running for the position of Marion County Commissioner.

Freshman Advocate for MSU and Western sophomore Chris Linares helped plan the events for Women of Culture. Linares explained that, “Women have faced many obstacles and challenges throughout history, and sadly there are still cases where in today’s date, they still do … Even the smallest victory can make an impact, so as a society, we need to celebrate everything that women have and still are facing.”

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Photo by: Sam Dunaway

Dear Ezi

Dear Ezi,


I have been struggling with self-confidence. I just feel worthless and ugly. I can’t find anything I like about me, even though all my friends constantly shower me with compliments. Any advice?

 

Thanks,

Confidence Conundrum

 

Dear CC,

I know that this is something so many people struggle with — I even have trouble with this sometimes! I have many tips, some I’ve read about and some I use, for you!

First of all, how you dress is as important as what your brain thinks. If you love your outfit and it’s something you rock, you will feel so much more confident. Wear something that you may not have worn before from your closet.

I know one thing I like to wear that can help me is a shawl cape thing. It makes me feel like a wizard! I also wear big hats from time to time. It’s kinda silly but it helps me feel tall and powerful! You just gotta find your wizard shawl and hat!

Next, fake it ‘til you make it! Posture is very helpful: stand tall, puff your chest out slightly, and — this is the only time I will encourage someone to be straight — stand straight and pull your shoulders back! It does wonders for posture and confidence.

Another tip is what I have seen called the “Murder Walk”. It’s a powerful tool for everyone and works for everyone. Walk like you are on a mission and walk with purpose. If you know superheroes, walk like the Winter Soldier. If not, walk like you are the most important person in the world and you have to get to your destination ASAP!

Remember you are a queen, king or royal and you are a wonderful and unique person. Nobody else can determine your self-worth for you. Friends are great but they cannot do everything.

Two final tips that I have for you is see the worth in others. Compliment people liberally! The person at the coffee shop who’s earrings you liked, tell them! The secretary sitting at his desk, tell him his tie is a great color! You’ll brighten other people’s day and start to see the silver lining. Finally, consider talking to the school’s counselors at the Student Health and Counseling Center. I am naught but a humble drag queen, but I personally know a thing or two about depression and this is a way I got support.

 

Hope this helped!

Recital showcases student talent

Byron Kimball | Staff Writer

As the rain hammered outside, Smith Music Hall played host to 15 music students on Thursday, March 8. Though the 11 a.m. recital received little advertisement, students who attended had the chance to enjoy musical feats across a variety of genres and grade levels.

Vetted by Dr. Diane Baxter, students participating in the recital were not required to perform as part of a class. Instead, participation was voluntary and, for many students involved, it became a chance to practice for upcoming recitals of their own. In tubist and music senior Josiah Glaser’s case, the performance was one of his first at Western.

“Going into today’s performance, I was looking for a solid first performance, not necessarily an extremely refined or polished performance, but a performance reflective of my progress thus far and a checkpoint towards my senior recital,” Glaser said.

The tubist performed “The Effervescent Ballroom,” a piano and tuba duet, but other students attempted varied genres — voice student Shaohao Wang took on opera; performing in the musical theater genre was Chuming Jiang, performing “I’ve Got a Lot of Living to Do” from “Bye Bye Birdie”; and classical music pianists Faerynn Glasscock, XuDong Yang, Lingyu Zhu, Levi Polasek, Li Jing and Yuzhou Huang played pieces from their collective wheelhouse. Pianist and professor Jackie Morelli provided piano accompaniment for the singers who performed: Marissa Sanders, Mengyuan Chan, Chuming Jiang, Jenny Yang, Virtue Cornelison, Shaohao Wang, Olivia Preciado and Scotti Matney.

Percussionist Sam Wheeler closed out the show by performing a duet with a Macbook: a performance art piece titled “Stop Speaking,” which featured rhythmatic snare drumming alongside a speech-to-text program.

Huang, described preparing for the March 8 performance, saying, “I was not nervous until I was staying at the small room that is a path through to the stage. Then I got a little bit (nervous). But when I was walking into stage and seated at the bench, I was calm. Then I started to play with my heart.” Huang will be performing a solo graduate recital in spring 2019.

Glaser, who will be graduating in spring 2018, said of performing “The Effervescent Ballroom”: “This piece feels like the perfect ‘goodbye’ piece, sending off the previous chapter in my life (my undergraduate experience) and ushering in the next chapter in my life”.

Contact the author at bkimball16@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Two champions, every runner all-American

Simson Garcia | Sports Editor

Seven final runs for the indoor track and field season were completed by Western on March 9 and 10, as seven Wolf individuals took away all-American honors in the NCAA DII Indoor National Championships. Junior Dustin Nading ran to first place in the men’s mile, while his distance-medley-relay team also ran ahead of the field for first in the relay final.
The DMR win is a repeat of last years championship — a .001 photo finish victory. This year’s championship run was won by a few more strides.
“Emotions were put aside and we knew for a fact we were capable of doing it again. Physically we knew we were fit, capable and ready,” said senior David Ribich, who also finished third in the men’s 3k.
Emotions, last year’s win and other relay teams were all set aside. With seven runners out in front, Ribich led the Wolves’s anchor leg in a mile time of 3:55 and slowly picked off each runner ahead of him. In the miraculous climb from eighth to first, Ribich rallied his team of Nading and seniors Aaron Whitaker and AJ Holmberg, to the finish in 9:41.40 — just a few feet ahead of runner-up Colorado State-Pueblo.
After crossing the finish line, Ribich immediately ran over to hug his teammates who were ecstatic.
“Winning a national championship is one thing but defending it is a whole lot harder. We knew that so going into this weekend we tried our hardest to stay composed and confident because we had the targets on our back. Crossing that DMR finish line has been the most surreal one yet,” said Ribich.
The flare of the DMR win set in motion several more events that followed.
Senior Kennedy Rufener ran to an all-American finish, her first in the indoors, and two school records in the women’s 3000-meter and 5000-meter. For Rufener, the personal and school records have been piling up one after the other throughout the indoor season, and she set anew yet again with times of 16:49.68 in the 5000-meter and 9:41.54 in the 3000-meter.
The Wolves team continued collecting all-American honors as senior Suzanne Van De Grift got to the line in seventh for the women’s mile and, for her third all-American run in the women’s 800-meter, junior Olivia Woods finished sixth.

“Each accomplishment my teammates earned at Indoor Nationals was incredible and to be able to be there, watching the events unfold, was unforgettable,” said Woods.

“Last years accomplishments in the 800 gave me confidence that I could do it again,” she continued. “For me, one of the greatest highlights of the weekend was watching my teammate Kennedy fight to the end to receive her first All-American honor. Seeing more WOU athletes achieve to that level just further give recognition to where it is deserved.”

“Last year,” said Van De Grift, “I thought it was pretty amazing that 6 people competed and 6 people came back all Americans. Now this year 7 people competed and 7 people came back all Americans.”  
Ribich compiled another all-American run for the Wolves team in his third place finish in the men’s 3k with a time of 8:01.55
Finally, it was Nading, who stayed poised for the win in the men’s mile. After accomplishing the eighth best time overall in the prelims, it was good enough to get him into the final.
“My mile win was really about patience, running the best race in the field that day, and trusting in the things we do everyday at practice, which is run fast and enjoy doing it,” said Nading.

Nading soon picked up more speed in the final bell lap. 40 meters down the stretch, Nading paced the rest of the competition for gold in a time of 4:13.30.

“At that very track two years ago, nearly precisely where I kicked to win, Coach (Mike) Johnson and I stood and had our very first discussion — a discussion about taking responsibility and achievement here at WOU track and field, and the resounding belief that each and every one of us has the possibility of great achievements and that it lies within our grasp to accomplish,” said Nading.

“Both DMR championships mean an incredible amount and this one specifically because it remains proof of the possibilities yet to come.”

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Photo by: wouwolves.com

Student voices are heard by the IFC

Sam Dunaway | Sam Dunaway

The results of the Incidental Fee Committee’s final decision took a turn as the committee departed from their previously established preliminary budget allocations. Notable changes to the budget include a complete funding of both ASWOU and Student Media, which were preliminarily subject to a budget cut, and increased enhancements for Athletics.

This change of decision, stated by multiple IFC members, was influenced by over 100 students voicing their opinions on the proposed budget via open hearings and feedback forms. Additionally, the IFC chair Eric Frey voiced his opinions in a statement to the rest of the committee showing support for both ASWOU and Student Media, two of the three departments that were proposed cuts in the preliminary budget.

The ASWOU budget was approved for full funding, with a recommendation by the IFC that a referendum be added to the spring term ASWOU elections. This allows the student body to vote on whether they’d like to stay or leave the Oregon Student Association, the main topic of the proposed cut.

The IFC approved fully funding all departments with the exception of a 0.3-percent cut to Student Engagement Operations to reduce the evening hours of the Werner University Center. Enhancement requests from Student Engagement, Student Activities Board, ASWOU and Wolf Ride were granted. Several enhancement requests for the Athletics department were approved by the committee including new helmets and uniforms for the baseball team, hurdles and poles for track and uniforms for the volleyball team.

After the approval of these budgets, the total Incidental Fee for fiscal year 2019 is $363 for fall, winter and spring, and $167 for summer term. This is a 4.01-percent increase from 2018.

While increasing the overall fee is difficult for many already struggling students, Frey believes that this can be resolved by an increase in enrollment.  He explained in a statement to the committee: “If we all can reach out and bring more enrollments to the university we can continue to fund these areas and hopefully ensure that all IFC funded areas receive the funding required to sustain the community our university has created.”

Students made their voices heard throughout this process and ensured that the Incidental Fee Committee made decisions that best represent the needs of Western students.

 

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Giving back to Western students

Sam Dunaway | News Editor

In a time of rising tuition rates and unpredictable government funding for higher education, several departments on Western’s campus rely on donations from outside sources. Western’s Giving Day on March 6 played an important role in fundraising over $40,000 for Western students and programs.

Giving Day is an annual event sponsored by WOU Foundation that aims to collect donations from Western alumni, donors, staff and students. The donation goal set by Annual Giving Coordinator Emily Swart was $34,500, mirroring Western’s address at 345 N Monmouth Ave. This was nearly $13,000 more than was raised in 2017, but Swart was confident that the campus-wide event would be a success.

“We had donors out there that wanted to support Western, we just needed to reach them in the right way,” she explained.

WOU Foundation set out to achieve this goal by reaching out to alumni as well as individuals that had supported Western in the past. Additionally, activities such as Java Match — where staff and students we asked to match the price of their coffee from The Press — and Giving Day Happy Hour — where the Alumni Board increased all donations by $18.56 — promoted the philanthropic nature of the day.

Giving Day donations were gifted to a multitude of different departments, from Abby’s House to Athletics. Swart expressed excitement that many individuals donated to unrestricted scholarships. This allows Western to award scholarships to a wide range of students without academic restrictions. She emphasized that every dollar donated on Giving Day is going back to students.

Swart’s passion and excitement for Giving Day was instrumental in making it more successful this year than ever before, but she attributes the achievement to each individual that came forward to enrich student life at Western.

“I have this feeling that faculty, staff, students – we walked a little taller that day and we were a little prouder of our university,” said Swart. “At the end of the day, it was all about Western Oregon students.”

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Grain Station Brew Works remodels familiar venue

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

For any student of Western or individual who has resided in Monmouth,  the name “J’s Cafe” is a familiar term. An ideal spot for Sunday morning brunch and catching up with friends, the restaurant offered both comfort and appetizing meals. That is why in 2017 when the location was temporarily closed, there was confusion and worry. To the joy, and continued confusion, of many, the restaurant was reopened and renamed “Grain Station Brew Works”.

A full remodel including a center-stage bar, new lighting, some re-painting and flooring all took place to alter this well-known location. The hours changed as well. Previously closing early in the afternoon, this new restaurant now stays open from 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, and 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on weekends, offering those in search of late night bites another option to add to their list.

Being fond of J’s Cafe and all they had to offer, I was a little wary about a complete change of restaurant. That being said, I decided I should probably try Grain Station and see if I would enjoy it half as much as I enjoyed the original eatery. They did not disappoint.

I love the new interior; the lighting is bright and welcoming, the bar makes the restaurant more appealing across generations and the best part is the menu has much of the original fare.

I decided to order the Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast. Not long after my order went in, the waitress came back with a smile on her face and a plate carrying my huge meal.

I thoroughly enjoyed the breakfast. The combination of the berry and cream cheese flavors sitting on top of perfectly prepared french toast was phenomenal. The waitress checked back frequently enough to make sure that everything was served to my liking and always made sure my glass of water was full.

I was extremely satisfied with my visit to Grain Station Brew Works. While I will always love J’s Cafe and the feeling I had when I would sit in one of those booths, I am excited about the modernization of the new restaurant and how it was able to still stay true to much of their original menu. Overall, it was an exceptional dining experience and I would recommend it to anyone who has been hesitant to check it out.

Contact the author at chealy16@wou.edu

Photos by: Caity Healy, Paul F. Davis

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Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR is located within the traditional homelands of the Luckiamute Band of Kalapuya. Following the Willamette Valley Treaty of 1855 (Kalapuya etc. Treaty), Kalapuya people were forcibly removed to reservations in Western Oregon. Today, living descendants of these people are a part of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians.

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