Mount Hood

Respect the pack

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

In the month of April 2017, two crimes involving racism occurred on campus and off, both towards Western students.

One incident, revealed in an all-campus email from President Rex Fuller, “involved a student being subjected to racist language while walking on campus.”

The second incident occurred at one of the Wolfpack Village apartment complexes, where sophomore Dwightaye Spears’ apartment door was vandalized with a racist slur on April 10, according to Fox 12.

“It was just a really uncomfortable experience,” Spears said in an interview with Fox 12.

Crimes involving discrimination at Western aren’t common. Western’s “2016 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report” crime-statistics show that the last reported hate crimes for campus and the surrounding community within a one-block radius, were two in 2013; the report has statistics for 2013, 2014 and 2015.

When asked in an interview what a student should do if they feel they have been discriminated against, Campus Public Safety director Rebecca Chiles explained that, ​“students can report incidents to Campus Public Safety, Office of Student Conduct, Monmouth Police Department, or local police department where the incident has taken place, Human Resources, Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs, and University Housing are just a few of the resources on campus that can take a report.”

Chiles offered Western’s Student Health and Counseling Center, Abby’s House, Veteran’s Services, Multicultural Services and Programs and the Stonewall Center/Safe Zone are resources available to students if they feel they feel unsafe or discriminated against.

“For students who are concerned for their safety or want to get support when making their way around campus or off campus, Campus Public Safety provides an on campus escort program where an officer can walk students to and from campus buildings; the Wolf Ride is another great resource for students to utilize for getting to off-campus locations,” added Chiles.

In the April 11 email sent by Fuller, he reminded everyone on campus that, “(WOU’s) practices are guided by…equity and inclusion; a fundamental basis in human diversity; appreciation for the complexity of the world; and strength drawn from our variety of backgrounds, abilities, cultural experiences, identities, knowledge domains and means of expression.”

Anyone with useful information regarding the above incidents are encouraged to contact the Monmouth police at 503-838-1109.

Students that would like to contact Campus Public Safety, for an escort or otherwise, can call their non-emergency number 503-838-8481.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

One day for one Earth

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

The 47th annual Earth Day will be observed on April 22, 2017. Earth Day was founded in 1970 by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson; the idea to dedicate a day to focus on the environment was triggered by a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California in 1969, according to earthday.org.

The creation of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts all resulted from the many rallies and protests that occurred on Earth Day 1970.

As explained on the EPA’s website, their mission is to protect human health and the environment. In order to accomplish their broad goal, the EPA works with Congress by writing regulations for any environmental laws they create. They will also assist states in making sure they meet national environmental standards when needed.

This year, there are many ways that people can be active in the environment on April 22 if they choose to.

A common Earth Day activity is planting trees. “Planting trees is one of the simplest and most effective ways of tackling climate change caused by greenhouse gas. As trees grow they absorb carbon dioxide (CO2), a major greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. When communities plant trees they can help to reduce the impacts of climate change in their local area and around the world,” states www.worldvision.com.

The Luckiamute Watershed Council is hosting a free event to plant trees and shrubs at the Luckiamute State Natural Area in Albany alongside the Central Lions Club of Independence and Boy Scout Troupe #38.

By planting native vegetation, the LWC is hoping to restore the natural area’s wetlands, which is explained in further detail on their website, http://www.luckiamutelwc.org/earthday.

The Oregon Gardens in Silverton will be hosting special activities, along with free admission from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Earth Day; however, parking for the event will be $5.

Locally, the Monmouth Public Library will be doing free Earth Day themed crafts from 2-3 p.m.

In addition to these events, many cities around the country will be holding a March for Science.

“What began as a Reddit conversation has grown into a movement of scientists and science lovers standing up for evidenced-based policy making and inclusivity in the science community,” states www.scientificamerican.com.

Corvallis will be holding its March for Science from 1-3 p.m. at the Benton County Courthouse on April 22. More details can be found on the event’s facebook page.

For those looking for more ideas on how to help the environment, information can be found on www.earthday.org.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

The cost of your browsing data

By:Darien Campo
Designer

Tuesday, March 29th, Congress met to pass legislation that has sent the internet into an uproar.

In one of the last moves made under the Obama administration, the Federal Communications Commission issued a rule which gave internet users a greater amount of control over how Internet Service Providers share their information. Data, like browsing history, app usage and shopping trends could not be given away until the ISP asked users for permission to do so.

The House cast the final vote of 215-205 to reject the rule.

This rule, which had not yet actually gone into effect, only affected ISPs and not internet companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon – who are given permission to collect your information when you use their services and agree to their terms and conditions.

Rep. Michael Burgess, R-TX, argued that this gave an unfair advantage to unregulated internet companies and that rejecting the rule would, “… level the playing field for an increasingly anti-competitive market.”
Many users are outraged at the prospect of a company purchasing their private browsing information; when in reality it’s not individual’s browsing data they want, but the data trends of a large group of people – for marketing purposes.

As the Washington Post explains it, a marketer will ask a company like Facebook to advertise to a specific demographic, not individuals.

“The two companies will settle on a deal, and the marketer’s advertisements will be displayed on Facebook to that group, but the marketing company will never see specific information about those people,” explained Brian Fung of the Washington Post.

But many users and Democrat congress members fear that this gives ISPs too much power over private information.

Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-CA, argued, “I don’t want anyone to take my information and sell it to someone and make a ton of money off of it just because they can get their mitts on it.”

Democrats argue that while companies like Google and Facebook are not regulated, users have a choice to not use those services, while most users have little or no choice over which ISP they get to use.

Some have taken it a step further. Max Temkin, creator of the popular game “Cards Against Humanity” has promised to, “… buy the browser history of every congressman and congressional aide and publish it,” if the repeal of the FCC rule is passed by President Trump.

But it may not actually work that way.

“It’s highly unlikely that you’re going to see [ISPs] actually parsing out individual’s data and selling it person by person,” said Gabriel Debenedetti, Politico reporter, before adding on, “… not that they couldn’t.”

However, not much has changed now for everyday users; the FCC’s rule never actually went into effect, so ISPs are still allowed to sell data just as they were before. If a user feels uncomfortable with their data being used this way, most sources recommend using a virtual private network.

As PCMag explains, “… a VPN creates a virtual encrypted ‘tunnel’ between you and a remote server operated by a VPN service.” This helps mask a user’s identity and keeps an ISP from seeing their data.

The bill now awaits a signature from President Trump, who is expected to pass it, though many groups are urging him to veto.

“President Trump now has the opportunity to veto this resolution and show he is not just a president for CEOs but for all Americans,” said Neema Singh Guliani, legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union.

Contact the author at journaldesigner@wou.edu

Students could pay the price for low enrollment

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

In an email sent to Western faculty and staff on April 4, President Rex Fuller laid out upcoming changes and work going into the 2017-2019 biennial budget.

According to the message, Oregon’s seven public universities sent the Higher Education Coordinating Commission multiple scenarios regarding possible budgets.

The HECC is a 14 member volunteer commission responsible for advising the governor, Oregon legislation and the chief education office on higher education policy, as stated on oregon.gov. Some of the HECC’s duties include, “… the development of biennial budget recommendations for public postsecondary education in Oregon,” as well as, “… making funding allocations to Oregon’s public community colleges and public universities.”

President Fuller’s email relayed that the most optimistic budget scenario presented to the HECC, “… provided about $940 million for the four-year campuses -an increase of about $275 million over the 2015-17 budget. This budget represented the true increase in cost and increase of 20% for universities.” The scenario was then sent to the governor as part of the HECC request.

Fuller stated that, “The universities decided to convey this aspirational budget scenario to the HECC, in part, because of the possibility that the corporate gross receipts—Measure 97—would pass in November 2016. As we know, Measure 97 failed in the 2016 election.”

Had Measure 97 been passed, it would have increased the corporate minimum tax for corporations with at least $25 million in Oregon sales, as explained on ballotpedia.org. The goal of the measure was to use the increased revenue to fund education, healthcare and senior services.

Fuller’s email goes on to say that, “… the Governor’s recommended budget (GRB) set $667 million for the Public University Support Fund (PUSF), which is about $115 million below the amount needed to cover increased costs … the GRB also did not fund the Sports Lottery that is used by Western to support graduate student scholarships and student athletes.”

Because of this, Fuller explained, “It is likely that Western, like all public universities, will be facing a shortfall in PUSF funds. This will require each campus to consider a combination of tuition increases, use of reserves, and budget cuts.”

In January 2017, the Board of Trustees was presented a budget that assumed a 10 percent increase in tuition and enrollment; Western now has a clearer idea of what the admissions and expected enrollment for fall 2017 will be.

On March 1, Western’s first-time first-year student enrollment was 20 percent lower compared to last year at the same time. Overall, it’s estimated that the number of new first-year students from Oregon will be lower. Because of this, the modeled budget will reflect a 10 percent increase to tuition and a five percent decrease in enrollment, leading to an assumed deficit of around $3 million per year, as laid out in Fuller’s email.

Though work will continue to be done in an attempt to increase higher education PUSF funding, budget cuts are being planned out.

“The cuts will need to be conceived in light of the newly approved Strategic Plan and will not reduce our ability to enroll students in classes they need to graduate,” wrote Fuller. “However, greater care in matching our course scheduling to account for fewer students and changing student demand will, in all likelihood, lead to fewer sections of some courses and some reductions in the number and/or variety of some course electives.”

Currently, budget plans are not set, and need to be reviewed. Once plans are reviewed, the budget proposals will be shared with the University Budget Committee. The recommendations from the committee will then be considered in the development of the final 2017-2019 budget which will be presented to the Board of Trustees for approval.

Fuller concluded his message to Western staff and faculty stating that, “In this environment of decreasing resources, we must begin planning for these expected budget shortfalls … by utilizing our Strategic Plan and the process I have outlined, I am confident that Western will make budget decisions that support our effort to achieve our mission and strategic initiatives that are described in our Strategic Plan.”

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Civil rights for all

By: Zoe Strickland
Managing Editor

On April 4, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit made the decision that workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation is in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“We conclude today that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is a form of sex discrimination,” Chief Judge Wood stated in the opinion release.

This decision was brought to court in an 8-3 vote.

When making the decision, the court tried to follow the intent of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. One section of Title VII focuses on unlawful employer practices, such as, “… to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual … because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; or to limit, segregate, or classify his employees or applicants for employment … because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin,” as stated by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The appeals case was kickstarted after a 2014 lawsuit by Kimberly Hively, an adjunct instructor at Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana, wherein the instructor claimed that her sexual orientation prevented her from being hired-on as a permanent member of staff and later let go from the adjunct position that she had held. Though the court found that discrimination based on sexual orientation is in violation of the Civil Rights Act, they didn’t make an official ruling in the case of Hively vs. Ivy Tech.

In Oregon, discrimination based on sexual orientation is already prohibited under the Oregon Equality Act of 2007: “The Oregon Equality Act forbids discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity or expression in several critical areas,” states the Lambda Legal website. These critical areas include discrimination in employment, public accommodation, housing and financial transactions, jury service, state institutions, foster parenting and public school education.

If you feel that you’ve been discriminated against in either of the above listed settings because of sexual orientation or gender identity, you can find out more about filing a complaint with the Bureau of Labour and Industries on oregon.gov.

Contact the author at journalmanaging@wou.edu

Vital information in the palm of your hand

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

Sexual Assault Awareness Month is here and, while it’s important year-round to know the resources available to survivors of sexual assault, April is dedicated to raising awareness of this issue.

According to http://www.nsvrc.org, one in five women and one in 16 men will be a victim of completed or attempted sexual assault while in college, yet more than 90 percent of sexual assault victims on college campuses do not report it. Additionally, 40 percent of colleges and universities reported not investigating a single sexual assault in the past five years.

Reach Out is a free application that is aiming to prevent campus sexual assault or provide resources for survivors of it. The application is available to download on Apple and Android devices. Currently there are 2,500 schools listed in the Reach Out database, each of which has their own customized resources available to users.

The creation of Reach Out was “somewhat unexpected” according to www.capptivation.com.

“During the summer of 2014, after graduating college, three of my friends from high school – Jack Zandi, Racquel Giner, and Zach Csillag – and myself often found ourselves hanging out at my house, talking about our post-grad plans,” explained Billy Sadik-Khan, a partner of Capptivation and one of Reach Out’s data maintenance team members. “Right around that time, the issue of sexual misconduct on college campuses was garnering more attention from the media and lawmakers … and so it started coming up in our conversations.”

Sadik Khan went on to say, “We discussed things like our experiences with sexual misconduct at our own colleges; if we had known anybody, what exactly the right thing to do is if someone tells you they’ve been assaulted; what resources are available to you, etc. We all came up with different answers, realized that we couldn’t possibly be the only people looking for this information. We identified a need for students to have all this crucial, hard-to-find, often difficult to understand information in an easy, intuitive and accessible format. What better way to provide this information than directly on someone’s smartphone?”

When searching Western Oregon University on the Reach Out application, users can find local safe places and emergency contacts, including the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, West Valley Hospital and the Monmouth Police Department. Sexual assault reporting options, information on Title IX and a guide on what you can do if have been a victim of sexual assault or know someone who has, can also be found on Reach Out.

Schools also have the ability to manage the customized information if they choose to through an online console on www.capptivation.com.

“We believe that the cost of college tuition for a young student should not implicitly include, on top of room and board and a meal plan, a significant chance of being sexually assaulted” stated Sadik-Khan.

For more information about Reach Out and ways to get involved, visit www.capptivation.com. The application can be downloaded for free on both the App Store and Play Store.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Merkley takes a 15 hour stand

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

On the evening of April 4, 2017, Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley took the Senate floor, and proceeded to hold it for the next 15 hours in protest of Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil M. Gorsuch.

The New York Times described it as, “It was the filibuster before the filibuster. Sort of.”

A filibuster is an action, generally a prolonged speech, that obstructs any progress in a legislative assembly, while not technically breaking the required procedures.

In this case, “Mr. Merkley’s effort was not technically a filibuster, as the senator was not actually delaying anything” the New York Times said of the event.

According to ABC News, “Gorsuch’s nomination was marred by partisan battle in the Senate, during which Democrats attained enough votes to block him until Republicans employed the ‘nuclear option’ to end floor debate on the judge by a simple majority rather than by 60 votes.”

As of Friday, April 7, the United States Senate confirmed that Judge Gorsuch would be the 113th member of the Supreme Court with the final vote being 54-45 in favor of Gorsuch; after almost 14 months since the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, all nine chairs of the court are filled.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Thanks, Obamacare

By: Stephanie Blair
Editor-in-Chief

On March 24, fewer than 20 days after its initial release to the public, the bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and replace it with American Health Care Act was pulled from the House floor before being put to a vote.

“We did not have quite the votes to replace [Obamacare],” said Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-WI. “We are going to be living with Obamacare for the foreseeable future.”

The Affordable Care Act was passed in March 2010 and has provided insurance coverage for 20 million adults in its first six years, as estimated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The proposed bill would have discontinued the individual coverage requirement, which would also provide the demise of the ACA’s famous penalty for those who can afford coverage but do not have it. As stated on healthcare.gov, “The penalty is 2.5% of household income or $695 per adult … whichever is higher.” Penalties are paid through federal tax returns.

Students do not receive a special exemption from the aforementioned penalty. For students who are not listed on their parents’ insurance plan, finding healthcare coverage is required. Because Western does not offer a student health plan to domestic students, any uninsured U.S. students should either attempt to be added to their parents’ plan or fill out an application for insurance using the Health Insurance Marketplace.
Regardless of Oregon residency status, students should apply for insurance in the state they attend school in. The Oregon Health Plan has open enrollment, year-round.

Special coverage is available for those who cannot afford insurance and meet certain criteria: Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. These programs, “… provide free or low-cost health coverage to millions of Americans, including some low-income people, families and children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities,” as stated on healthcare.gov.

The Oregon Health Plan and Medicaid can both be applied for online at oregonhealthcare.gov.

For more information about healthcare penalties, exemptions and more, visit healthcare.gov.

For information about resources specific to Oregon, visit oregonhealthcare.gov.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Reflecting on the life of Mary Maples Dunn

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

March 19, 2017 marked the death of 85-year-old educator, scholar and historian Mary Maples Dunn. She is regarded as, “… a champion for women- and women’s history” according to Smith College.

Dunn did her graduate work in U.S. colonial history at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania and began teaching there as she worked to complete her Ph.D. Her career at the women’s liberal arts college was extensive. Among other positions she held, Dunn took on the role of Dean in 1978, and ultimately became Academic Deputy to the president in 1981.

From 1985 until 1995 Dunn served as Smith College’s eighth president. During her time at Smith, she faced multiple challenges but left a positive impact by the end of her presidency.

The Smith College Archives note that the time of Dunn’s presidency was, “… an economically troubled period for the college. Campus diversity, internal communication flow, and socially responsible investment were also significant issues.”

Dunn’s hard work at Smith paid off: she helped the women’s college raise more than $300 million during her time there, which helped allow the opening of the Bass Science Center and the Young Science Library on campus. Five majors were added to the curriculum as well as the improvement of on and off campus communications. Her tenure at Smith saw the introduction of the internet, email and voicemail on campus as part of her process of getting Smith on the “Information Highway,” explains the Smith College Archives.

Approaching retirement in 1995, Dunn stated that, “… it’s true that acquiring budgetary accountability is among my most important achievements, but I hope I’ll be remembered as a president who helped open the college up to a more diverse population,” according to Grécourt Gate, Smith College news.

The New York Times reports that her work in diversity at Smith was partially prompted by a number of racist incidents that had occurred on campus. Following those incidents, Dunn’s administration instilled a number of programs, one of the most notable being the 1988 Smith Design for Institutional Diversity.

“By the time she stepped down in 1995, minority enrollment had risen to 571 from 342, out of a student body of about 2,800. And minority representation on the faculty had increased by about six teaching positions,” the New York Times stated.

The programs primarily dealt with race, but also touched on derogatory language, race and physical disabilities as noted in the Smith College Archives, adding, “… Dunn maintained a cheerful image and a sense of humor throughout, and persevered through the trials of her difficult position.”

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Sanctuary city proposal update

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

On Feb. 21, the proposal to make Monmouth a sanctuary city was brought to the City Council for a third time.

Unlike the two previous city council meetings where the proposal for sanctuary status was met with less than two motions, and as a result further discussion was unable to take place, a promising turn of events took place for those pushing to have the proposal go into effect. This time, many members of the community were present and ready to discuss the topic.

Hector Virgen-Marquez, one of the six Western students that have been working on getting the community involved with the proposal, said, “I am immensely proud at how quickly and efficiently our community is willing to mobilize for topics of this matter.”

The city council decided that rather than declare sanctuary status right then, a work session will be held on March 21, which will be open to all members of the community. During this session, the details on what a sanctuary city looks like, as well as what needs to be done to follow the proper procedures will be examined.

Following the work session, another city council meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 4, at 7 p.m. to discuss whether sanctuary status will be implemented in Monmouth or not; community members are welcome to attend and speak their minds during this meeting.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Incidental Fee Committee reaches final decision

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

After the extensive process of preliminary decisions and open hearings, the Incidental Fee Committee has reached their final budget decisions for the 2017-2018 school year. The final meeting took place on on Friday, March 3 and was approved by ASWOU Senate on Monday, March 6.

At the start of the process, the IFC committee didn’t have a set plan on what they wanted to increase, with the fee or specific program budgets. However, they did respond positively to groups that focus on student employment.

The total incidental fee that students will owe each term for the upcoming school year will be $349, an $8 increase from the current academic year; the summer 2018 fee reflects a $20 increase compared to the summer 2017 fee, which will bring the total to $153. Regarding the club’s and organization’s individual budgets, only a few faced significant changes from the preliminary decisions to the final one. ASWOU received an $11,793 increase from the preliminary decision, giving them a total budget of $277,132 for the 2017-2018 year. Student Engagement received an increase of $6,570 from their projected budget, putting them at $1,289,707 for the 2017-2018 school year.

Rather than seeing a significant increase, Athletics faced a $5,841 decrease between the preliminary and the final decision. Athletics will have a budget of $1,284,159 for the upcoming academic year.

A big change that came up during the final decision process was the enhancement that was granted to Campus Recreation. The purpose of the enhancement was to upgrade an existing part time position to full time. This enhancement was one that was not included in the preliminary decision; it was also one that received no discussion from students during the open hearing process.

Campus Recreation was given the enhancement, which added $37,126 to the final incidental fee budget: this will reflect in a $3 increase to the fee paid by students each term in 2017-2018.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Western’s distinguished women alumni

By: Jade Rayner
News editor

March has been observed as Women’s History Month since 1987, as designated by Congress through Public Law 100-9. Since then, the National Library of Congress, National Gallery of Art and other notable locations use March to “… join in commemorating and encouraging the study, observance and celebration of the vital role of women in American history,” according to womenshistorymonth.gov.

Western has had numerous alumni that have made a difference either as educators, politicians and artists among other professions. Actress and painter Ariana Richards is among Western’s distinguished alumni.
Ariana Richards attended Western in 2006. Her career as an actress is expansive; one of her most famous roles being Lex Murphy in “Jurassic Park,” she has also played parts in “Tremors” and “Spaced Invaders” to name a few.

She won the Young Actors Award for “Best Young Actress Starring in a TV movie” both in 1991 and 1992 for her parts in “Switched at Birth,” and “Locked Up: A Mother’s Rage.” The Internet Movie Database credits Richards as, “… one of the most accomplished young artists of her generation.”

In addition to Ariana Richards career as an actor, she is also recognized as an accomplished painter. She is a member of both the Portrait Society of America and the California Art Club. Artists that she credits for her inspiration include John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn and Mary Cassatt. She focuses on working in a more traditional style with oil paint as her primary medium.

Richards has earned the Art of the West Award of Excellence at the Oil Painters of America Western Regional Competition in 2006; in 2013 she was named the “Official Artist for the Children for Children Organization-Interpretational Painting of Music.”

She has created work for multiple exhibitions, although her current focus is on painting specially commissioned pieces for individuals. Her work can be viewed online at galleryariana.com.

Nawwal Moustafa, a recent graduate of Western, is the creator of Dreamboat Productions, and works as a teacher at Elevate Oregon, a program aimed at building relationships with urban youth to promote education and leadership skills through year-round mentoring.

Moustafa created and self-published a 54-page coloring book titled “Chin Up, Dreamboat!” in 2016. The production of her coloring book was completely crowdfunded on Kickstarter within five hours, according to chinupdreamboat.com. The coloring book gained recognition from Buzzfeed, The Daily Dot and Bustle to name a few.

In an interview with metro.co.uk, Moustafa stated that, “I had this idea after I ended a relationship where we rushed into some serious commitment … It was a typical, over-committed too soon relationship. So, I created this. As a tool for others, and a tool for myself.”

She went on to explain that she chose a coloring book as an outlet to share her story because it’s interactive, and that “… coloring in the images works as the perfect self-therapy to process all the crappy parts of a breakup – gay or otherwise.”

More information about “Chin Up, Dreamboat!” including how to purchase the book and other available products can be found at chinupdreamboat.com.

Another distinguished woman is Western’s College of Education Alumni of Special Note Kate Dickson. Since graduating from Western in 1977 with a master of science in education, Dickson has had an active career as an educator.

Her work as vice president of education policy for the Oregon Chalkboard Project has led her to become head of an initiative to instill what’s learned through the Chalkboard Project to teacher preparation programs.

Oregon’s Chalkboard Project is an initiative of Foundations of a Better Oregon. According to their website, the project’s mission is, “… to help create systemic transformation in the quality, accountability and stable funding of Oregon’s K-12 public schools.”
Previous to her work on the Chalkboard Project, Kate Dickson has also been in the roles of Oregon Deputy Superintendent of Public Instruction, principal and teacher in the Salem-Keizer school district.

Reflecting on her education, Dickson noted that, “… my graduate work at Western was high quality and established a strong foundation for valuing intellectual rigor, critical thinking, and problem solving complex public education issues.”

More information about her, and other distinguished alumni can be found at wou.edu/education/alumni.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

National Women’s March takes Salem

By: Stephanie Blair
Editor-in-Chief

On Jan. 21, protesters around the world gathered in major cities to join in sister marches of the Women’s March on Washington. Despite the thunderstorm warning, approximately 4,200 people gathered across the street from the capitol steps to join the Salem Women’s March. Men, women, children and dogs filled the crowd holding up nearly as many signs as umbrellas.

An hour long rally was held before the mile-long march began. Speakers, such as Gov. Kate Brown and Salem city councilor Cara Kaser, advocated to the crowd about LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive rights and health care reform, as well as other women’s issues.

Though the Portland march lost attendance due to racial tensions and a dropped NAACP endorsement, the Salem march’s numbers were bolstered by hiring ASL interpreters for the rally and choosing a level march route.

Those in attendance ranged in age; some marchers were unable to walk because they had yet to learn how, while others were restricted to wheelchairs in their old age. At the front of the rally, one such woman held a sign which read, “Proud to be 94 and ‘nasty.’”

Haley Morris, a junior psychology major, was also in attendance. When asked why she chose to march, Morris replied, “I think it’s extremely important as the “building block” generation to be involved in the national and global conversation, especially on topics of injustice and inequality.”

Many signs at the event held messages such as, “Hate has no home here,” “Hear our voice” and “We must be vigilant, not vigilantes,” which held to the goal of the march as set by the organizers. On the Facebook event page organizers stated that, while signs were welcome, no hate speech would be permitted.

Political commentary and satirical caricatures, however, were rampant in the crowd’s signs. Some held fairly general statements, for example, “It’s not about politically correct, it’s about mutual respect.” Others were more pointed towards President Donald Trump, with signs reading, “Keep your tiny hands off my healthcare!” and “Make America think again.”

Similarly, the crowd was smattered with pink: eared hats referred to as “pussy hats” and signs that read “this pussy grabs back” in response to the president’s comment made in 2005.

“For me personally, I went to the march with less of an anti-Trump sentiment and more of a pro-people and pro-rights standpoint,” said Morris. “You can argue about who you think is the best leader, but you can’t argue over someone’s human rights.”

The event was coordinated with the Salem Police Department and was entirely peaceful; no arrests and no property damage occurred.

“All in all, I think the march went great. Almost double the number of people expected to come showed up and marched and cheered and danced in the cold and the pouring rain,” said Morris. “I think we accomplished our mission to peacefully but assertively stand together in solidarity to show our leaders and the world that we will not back down or remain voiceless in times of uncertainty and fear.”

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

ASWOU Senate meets to discuss potential changes

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

The Associated Students of Western Oregon University held a senate meeting on Monday, March 6. The meeting went over various topics including, but not limited to, hiring senate secretary, parking meters and drone usage on-campus.

A proposal to discuss a safe place on campus to fly drones was brought to the ASWOU Senate meeting because, “There is no safe place on campus for students to fly radio-controlled drones … there are at least 20 students and some faculty that would support there being a safe place on campus to fly … there are currently no guidelines for where students can fly their drones,” among other concerns.

A majority of the discussion on drone usage was centered around rules that would need to be put in place for on campus drone flying. One senate member was concerned about drones being used for inappropriate reasons.

“Even the cheapest drones that we sell at Home Depot, they have a mile radius. So it could be very easy for somebody to do something promiscuous or inappropriate with drones, which is why I’m bringing up this conversation; it’s one we need to have,” they went on to say.

Near the end of the senate meeting, a request that the ASWOU Senate President Corbin Garner attend the Monmouth city council meeting on behalf of Western students was placed. Specifically the meeting taking place on Tuesday, April 4, that will be discussing whether or not to declare Monmouth a sanctuary city.

Reasons for this request include “sanctuary cities are currently a pertinent topic … some WOU students may feel unsafe coming into the city of Monmouth for school … WOU is a sanctuary campus that is meant to help people feel safe and included … some WOU students have expressed their support for making Monmouth a sanctuary city” as summarized by the senate.

The request was examined, but not voted on during the senate meeting.

All ASWOU Senate meetings are open to students to bring up any issues, or discuss anything on their mind about Western. The ASWOU Twitter account advertised this opportunity using the hashtag #WOURantAboutIt on March 6. They can also be contacted by email at aswou@wou.edu.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Breaking down gender stereotypes

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

A small, but lively group gathered at the Lord and Schryver Conservancy in Salem on Friday, March 3, to attend one of the final installments of the Oregon Humanities’ Conversation Project.

“Mind the Gaps: How Gender Shapes Our Lives” a discussion led by Jade Aguilar, an associate professor of sociology at Willamette University, discussed the ways in which gender affects every aspect of people’s lives from the moment they are born.

The event was centered around participation from those attending: Jade Aguilar kicked off her presentation by telling the room, “it is a conversation, so I’ll do a lot of talking but I really encourage you to jump in at any time … so prepare to speak as well.”

At times the conversation would go beyond questions about gender, and expand to discussing many other factors. In response to this, Aguilar said, “That’s what makes this both so fascinating and so complicated … we map gender on things, but sometimes it’s about size, or institutional level power … or it’s about power within families. It’s hard to unpack it all, because it’s not just one of those, it’s about a lot of things.”

Aguilar pointed out the way in which everyone, even those that regard both women and men as equals, has internalized sexist thoughts. She explained this by using a study done on a baby playing with a jack-in-the-box toy as an example:

“they took a baby, and dressed the baby in yellow … of course it’s a baby so you can’t tell [the gender], and they took a little video of it, and they did the jack-in-the-box. The jack-in-the-box popped up, the baby was startled, it made out a large cry.”

The video was then shown to two different classrooms; one class was told that the baby was a girl, the other a boy; both were asked to describe what the baby was feeling.

Summing up the results of the experiment, Aguilar continued, “The students that thought it was a little girl were more likely to say that they thought she was scared … and the ones that thought that it was a little boy were more likely to think it was angry.”

One participant added that she felt uncomfortable the first time she had a female dentist; Aguilar responded to that explaining, “There’s no way you can’t be sexist. Even if you’re a woman and you know women can do anything. We have stereotypes, we’ve internalized them, we have a conscious bias … so you see your female and you think ‘oh, I hope she knows what she’s doing;’ it’s deep in you.”

This was the last talk in the Oregon Humanities’ Conversation Project schedule to take place in Salem. The next free community discussion will be “In Science We Trust?” in Stayton, Oregon on March 22 at the Stayton Public Library. For more information about the project go to oregonhumanities.org.
Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Safe restrooms for all humans

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

At Western, there are multiple all-gender restrooms that can be found across campus. However, finding gender neutral or all-gender restrooms becomes increasingly difficult when wandering beyond campus.

In 2014, REFUGE Restrooms was created “to provide restroom access for transgender, intersex and gender nonconforming individuals,” as stated on www.refugerestrooms.org. The service began as a website originally, but has recently become an application that can be downloaded for free on both Android and Apple devices.

As explained in further detail on their website, the purpose behind creating REFUGE was, “one of the biggest battlefields upon which the fight for transgender rights is taking place daily are restrooms. It seems that every other week a transgender child is made the center of a national news story because they used the restroom assigned to the gender they identify with. Obviously, we believe that every transgender person should have the right to use the restroom they want to. However, we also realize that despite legislative victories in recent years regarding restroom usage, many transgender individuals still face both verbal and physical harassment simply for using the restroom. Nobody should have to face that.”

A similar online resource, Safe2Pee, was created in 2005. When the website stopped working in 2014, REFUGE gathered their first 4,500 resources from the Safe2Pee database and continued the effort to locate safe bathrooms.

REFUGE Restrooms continues to be a growing, collaborative resource between the designers and users of the application; it is encouraged that users pin locations of safe restroom locations, meaning all-gender or unspecified single-stalls when they come across ones that have not already been added to the map.

For more information regarding the application, and for ways to get involved visit www.refugerestrooms.org or download the application for free.

Those who would like a list of all-gender restrooms at Western can find them at https://wou.edu/wp/safezone/on-campus.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Incidental Fee Committee makes preliminary decisions

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

The Incidental Fee Committee held their preliminary budget decision meetings for the 2017-2018 school year on Friday, Feb. 10 and Friday, Feb. 17. As of now, the projected incidental fee cost for the 2017-2018 school year is $345 per term, a 1.17 percent increase from the current school year. As part of that fee, the Health and Wellness Center cost per term will remain unchanged at $67.

Incidental fees are used to pay for on campus organizations including, but not limited to, Abby’s House, Athletics, WOLF Ride and Service Learning and Career Development. A total of $4,376,199 will be made from those fees for the 2016-2017 school year, and it is estimated to raise up to $4,437,195 for the 2017-2018 academic year.

Preliminary decision meetings consist of the IFC setting the tentative budgets for on-campus organizations and events before open hearings begin. Once open hearings begin, individuals can make a case on behalf of their organization for additional or continued funding, if necessary.

In addition to setting the base budgets, enhancements were also discussed. When a club or organization on campus is asking for an enhancement, they are requesting additional funding beyond their budget for a specific event, trip or job that is needed.

The largest projected budget cut for the upcoming academic year is going to ASWOU, with a 10 percent decrease, which is much smaller than a previously proposed 18 percent cut. Part of the reason behind the large budget cut is the confusion about what exactly ASWOU accomplishes for students through their day to day operations. The cut will be reflected by taking their requested budget of $294,821 down to $265,339.

Another organization whose necessity was discussed was the Creative Arts department, specifically the Smith Fine Art Series. IFC members criticized the program because of the imbalance between how much students are paying for the series and the lack of student attendance at the events. The series will be facing an 11 percent cut, which will take the $329,541 budget they asked for and leave them with $322,891.

Organizations that are proposed to receive enhancements are ASWOU, specifically the Student Veterans of America, Campus Recreation and Student Engagement.

Students who would like to make a case to the IFC on behalf of a club or organization may do so at the second open hearing this Friday, Feb. 24 from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. in the Werner University Center. The first open hearing took place on Tuesday, Feb. 21 from 8 p.m. until 10 p.m. Individuals are allotted three minutes to speak; groups receive five minutes.

More information about the IFC process, including policies and meeting minutes, can be found at wou.edu/ifc.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Monmouth community and Western students join to create a safer city

By:Jade Rayner
News Editor

The movement to declare Monmouth, Oregon a sanctuary city is one that began roughly two months ago by a concerned member of the community and has gained a growing amount of support since then.

HOMESTEAD, FL – NOVEMBER 16: Demonstrators including students from local high schools as well as a college rally in front of Homestead City Hall against President-elect Donald Trump and are asking that the city be used as a sanctuary city and their respective schools be sanctuary campuses on November 16, 2016 in Homestead, Florida. Mr. Trump has said he will crack down on so-called Òsanctuary citiesÓ or cities that donÕt help federal authorities seize undocumented immigrants. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

There is no concrete definition for what it means to be as sanctuary city; it varies from place to place. For a city to declare sanctuary status, it’s stating that it will protect its citizens from unlawful prosecution from federal immigration, relating to the Oregon law ORS 181A.820 that states: “No law enforcement agency of the State of Oregon or of any political subdivision of the state shall use agency moneys, equipment or personnel for the purpose of detecting or apprehending persons whose only violation of law is that they are persons of foreign citizenship present in the United States in violation of federal immigration laws.”

According to information provided by Western student Hector Virgen-Marquez, the proposal to make Monmouth a sanctuary city was brought to Monmouth City Council by Patty Dixon, a concerned member of the community that was trying to help other community members. She was met by a motion from city council member Laurel Sharmer, but it was not met with a second. Therefore, the proposal did not pass.

Upon hearing about this, Virgen-Marquez explained that, “Marshall Guthrie the director of the Student Enrichment Program had heard of this, and rallied a few students together to make a second proposal. He contacted students from MEChA de WOU, and UNIDOS and brought six motivated students together to propose, for a second time, that Monmouth declare sanctuary city status.” The students involved were Evelyn Guzman, Sandy Estelle, Juan Navarro, Jaime Hernandez, Aminadab Diaz and Hector Virgen-Marquez.

Additionally, Western student Erika Azua and Dr. Maureen Dolan, Professor of Sociology led an outreach committee to reach out to other members of the community, Western administrators, businesses and clergy leadership.

During the Feb. 7, 2017 Monmouth city council meeting, the six Western students brought up the sanctuary city proposal. Much like the first time with Dixon, the proposal was met by a motion from council member Sharmer, but no second was offered by the remaining city council members. “Needless to say, this was a great defeat, as we had failed to prove to our council members that this is an important topic that deserves discussion in a public setting such as this. But regardless, that only helped fuel energy to push us to try again,” Virgen-Marquez stated.

When asked what it would mean to the Western community for Monmouth to declare itself a sanctuary city, Hector Virgen-Marquez replied, “… it will show the students at Western that the city they live in also cares about them, and for those who are currently under a degree of fear – it shows that they are able to go out to the city without feeling uncomfortable and anxious of federal prosecution.”

These students will be bringing the proposal to the Monmouth City Council again on Feb. 21, 2017.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

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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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