Mount Hood

Western celebrates Arbor Day

By Katrina Penaflor
 Campus Life Editor

An Arbor Day celebration was brought to Western’s campus, Wednesday, May 20, thanks to the university’s arboreal advisory committee.

Arbor comes from the Latin words meaning tree, and the purpose of the day was to plant, honor and protect trees.

The celebration consisted of a tour around campus to three different memorial trees: Sharon Christa McAuliffe, Honor for WOSC parents, and Dr. HR Montana Walking Bull.

The arboreal advisory committee put on the event to fulfill part of the requirements for Tree Campus USA—which was created by the nonprofit, Arbor Day Foundation. Tree County USA, recognizes two-year and four-year colleges that show dedication to the upkeep of the environment.

The tour was led by the committee and students from Biology 321, systematic field botany. Presenters spoke about the history and origin of the trees, as well as their characteristics.

The first tree was in memory of Sharon Christa McAuliffe, and is a Kwanzan Cherry. Student Michael Calhoun said the purpose of the tree is to “inspire future educators,” to “reach for the horizon.” The tree produces flowers in shades of pink and white, and keeps a short trunk with long dense branches.

Junior education major Jacob Howard said the Kwanzan Cherry “does bloom very beautifully when you get a chance to see it.”

The second tree was a Katsura Tree, and is dedicated to all parents. Biology major Alexander Heenan discussed how the tree can grow up to 60 feet tall. It also cannot survive in long standing dry conditions, a problem not faced in Oregon.

“When the [leaves] fall, they put off a sort of caramel scent,” Heenan said.

The final tree on the tour was a giant Sequoia, which can grow to over 300 feet, presented by biology major, Joseph Reeder. The Sequoia is dedicated to former teacher, Dr. HR Montana Walking Bull. He was a member of the Cherokee tribe and his poem “Wolf Bird” was read by Calhoun during the tour.

The tour concluded with an inaugural tree planting in the grove with the help of Kevin Hughes, Western’s landscape supervisor. He prepped the tree for planting by scoring the edges of the hole was dug in preparation and trimming the lower branches of the tree. Both are tips he recommended for anyone planting trees.

The tree is a Mountain Hemlock that blooms cones instead of flowers, biology major Adam Jensen, said.

The tree “will be a great complement to our campus,” Jensen added.

RUN THIS TOWN

By Rachel Shelley
 Staff Writer

Born and raised in Ethiopia, Badane Sultessa and his 11 siblings walked to and from school, sometimes as far as five miles away. In a place with no transportation, they relied on their feet.

“It was really crazy. You’re on your own there,” Sultessa said. Because Sultessa and his five brothers and six sisters experienced a lot of fighting in schools, his family decided to travel to a new home in Portland in 2008.

It was within the walls of Centennial High School where Sultessa experienced the struggles of moving to a new country. Adapting to cultural differences, language barriers, an entirely new cuisine, new faces and, most importantly, a change of pace.

“Running helped me make a lot of friends; in my free time I hung out with my teammates,” said Sultessa. “It helped me learn English and get an education at the same time.”

Sultessa found solace in his high school running team.

“If it wasn’t for running, I don’t think I would have even gone to college,” Sultessa said.

Running didn’t just help his transition into a new country. His feet, which he relied on to get from home to school and back, were going to take him even farther than he ever thought possible.

In his first 800-meter race on the junior varsity track team freshman year, Sultessa won in 2 minutes and 17.01 seconds. By hissophomore year, he placed fourth at the Mt. Hood Conference Championships in 2:02.25. He also participated in the 1,500 at the OSAA 6A State Championships.

During the 2010 outdoor season, Sultessa joined the elite under-two-minute squad, breaking through the two-minute barrier of his 800 to win the 6A state championships in 1:57.04.

Three years after he started his journey as a distance athlete, Sultessa finished his high school career on the fast track to a promising collegiate career. He finished second at the state championships in both the 1,500 and the 800 races, with times of 3:59.64 and 1:53.75, respectively. His 800 performance at the state championships qualified him for a spot at BorderDuel Classic. At the BorderDuel, Sultessa ran the fastest 800 time of his career to place third in 1:53.42.

Although Sultessa’s high school career was impressive, it was only a preamble. His journey as an elite 800 runner was just beginning.

After leaving Portland State on a full ride, he headed to Clackamas Community College where he received his associate of arts Oregon transfer degree but struggled to excel as a runner.

Sultessa was given the opportunity to walk on as part of the University of Oregon track team but didn’t want to withdraw any loans. Finally, Sultessa was offered a scholarship at Western where he fell in love with the program and felt it fit with his goals.

“I like how the team is really close and really small,” Sultessa said. “It’s not a big university. We share everything; it’s like a family.”

Within his first year at Western, Sultessa qualified for the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships where he became the third All-American in Western track and field history. He entered the finals as the top-ranked runner and finished in fourth place overall with a time of 1:51.36.

Eager to earn a spot at the NCAA division-II outdoor championships, Sultessa spent the outdoor season racing towards a qualifying time. At the Mt. Hood Track Festival, Badane finished second overall but after a time mishap he was left unqualified for outdoor nationals, with just the GNAC Conference meet left.

“I was trying to qualify at Mt. Hood but they messed up my time; it might have gotten me in, but I was mad about that,” he said. “I told myself I was going to qualify at home at conference.”

As a result, Sultessa captured the Great Nothwest Athletic Conference 800 title in 1:52.31, which was .60 seconds shy of qualifying for outdoor nationals.

“The race went out slow, so I didn’t qualify,” he said.

Just missing the qualifying mark, Sultessa accepted that his season was over. Returning for one more year of school and athletic eligibility at Western for the 2015-2016 year, he continues to train and run.

“I was really mad and sad,” he said. “I tried to give everything I had. If I gave everything I had and ran 1:51 I would be happy, but it wasn’t everything I had.”

On May 17, Sultessa traveled home to Portland to race at the Portland Twilight Track Meet. Unable to use this meet to qualify for the national meet, Sultessa used the Portland Twilight Track Meet for training.

However, he finished the 800 race in 1:47.59 and become the No. 1 D-II runner in the country. His performance lifted himself higher into a slimmer category of 800 runners: ranking amongst the top 25 in all NCAA D-I rankings and hitting the B standard for the Olympic Trials.

“I always believe that everything happens for a good reason,” Sultessa said. “I was really mad and sad and went out to race to see what I can do. This is the first time running with the elite runners; the one thing that is different is this isn’t all I have left, I have more coming.”

With the Olympic trials now in sight, Sultessa has a new goal: qualify for Olympic trials.

“That’s my goal, to get into the Olympic trials. I want to race at a big meet and get a feel [for] running with the elite runners in a big place.”

Before his career concludes, Sultessa has dreams of breaking the 1:42 barrier. His family members also have dreams in the 800 realm as well. His younger brothers, Roba and Jalato Sultessa, are also elite 800 runners at the high school level.

Roba is a two-time state champion in the 800 at Cleveland High School. After winning his 6A PIL District meet, Roba prepares to race toward a three-peat this weekend at the state championships.

His youngest brother, Jalato is a junior at Parkrose High School and finished second in the 5A NWOC District Championships. Jalato will also race at state.

Student journalists receive high honors at Collegiate Newspaper Contest

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By Sydney Joa
 Staff Writer

Western’s Journal and its staff took awards in multiple categories in the 2015 Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Collegiate Contest.

Having not received any awards since the 2011 contest, the announcement of nominations was an exciting time for the members of The Journal team.

“I am very proud of all of the staff who work hard to produce such a quality paper; it’s a privilege to get to work with them week by week,” said Dr. Meg Artman, student media adviser.

The contest awards Oregon’s collegiate newspapers in a multitude of different categories including those for specific articles, and some for whole issues and volumes of the paper.

There are three separate groups of categories for schools within the contest; The Journal competed in group two, which consists of four-year colleges and universities with non-daily newspapers. Universities all throughout Oregon compete, as this is the only collegiate newspaper competition of its kind in Oregon.

The Journal was honored with first place in the Best Special Section category for its special issue on sexual assault awareness, published Oct. 31, 2014. The Special Section award looks at not only content, but also layout and general look of the paper.

The issue included information on sexual assault compiled and written by Laura Knudson. It also included an anonymous personal account transcribed by Allison Opson-Clement, and an article by Jennifer Halley detailing Take Back the Night, a sexual and domestic violence awareness event. Shannen Brouner contributed all the photos, and Haunani Tomas designed the issue.

“This award was judged on many things and many people helped make it possible,” said Knudson, a senior communication studies major. “The award is such an accomplishment because so many people put forth tremendous effort to make it happen.”

Another writer taking first was Tomas, winning the highest honors in the Best Sports Story category for a piece highlighting a double overtime game won by Western’s men’s basketball with a buzzer beater.

The graphic for the story, also designed by Tomas, won third place honors for Best Graphic.

“I wanted to cover how well our basketball team was performing and write something that highlighted a moment in their season. They deserved it,” said Tomas, a senior business major.

Another first place win was taken by Knudson in the Best Writing category. Her articles on gluten and gluten-free lifestyles, a feature on the Three Legged Dog Pub in Independence, and a news story on divestment of alumni funds at Western helped secure her highest honors.

A third place award went to Knudson’s story on the new pub in Independence. This was awarded in the Best Feature Story category.

The Journal also received awards for the news section. News Editor Jack Armstrong’s story on a Western alumna who was jailed in Japan for shipping herself prescription medication took second place in the Best News Story category.

The Journal plans to enter additional national collegiate newspaper competitions soon.

Copies of The Journal are widely available across campus as well as at local businesses in the Monmouth-Independence area.

Baseball Wins GNAC

PHOTO FROM WESTERN ATHLETICS
PHOTO FROM WESTERN ATHLETICS

After winning three games in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament, the Wolves baseball team clinched its 14th consecutive championship in a 4-3 win against the Northwest Nazarene Crusaders. Left-handed pitcher Darrien Moran earned the title of GNAC Championship MVP.

Right-handed pitcher Jesse Pratt was named to the 2015 Daktronics, Inc. Division II All-West Region Baseball Team.

Pratt was also named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association All-West Region Team as an honorable mention selection, along with outfielder Matt Taylor.

The Wolves are waiting for word on whether they qualify for the NCAA Division II West Regional tournament, which will be announced this weekend.

New committee named to oversee in-state transfer students

By Jack Armstrong
News Editor

Western is among a collection of four-year Oregon universities that could soon see a shift in their policies concerning community college transfer students and their credit allocations in the coming years.

Recommendations for inter-college credit transfers and course requirements for possible transfer students were all previously handled through the Joint Boards Articulation Committee (JBAC) and the Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC).

According to their website, JBAC is an organization formed in 1992 by the Oregon University System (OUS) to “address issues related to student transfer and articulation.”

The committee played an integral role in the past decade with the creation of the Associates of Art Oregon Transfer degree (AAOT), and the Associates of Science Oregon Transfer degree (ASOT). They also helped plan the Oregon Transfer Module (OTM), which compiles community college courses and their corresponding four year credit labels.

These degrees allow Oregon students to gain the first two years of a four-year degree at a community college and then smoothly transition to a four-year university to complete their undergraduate work.

The dissolution of the OUS had left the future of the JBAC in doubt due to rapidly shifting standards during the transition, but recently the JBAC received permission from the HECC to be reorganized into the Joint Transfer and Articulation Committee (JTAC).

In its first iteration, JTAC will be chaired by Western’s own provost and vice president for academic affairs, Stephen Scheck.

“JTEC’s ultimate goal is to streamline the process of transfer so that students get the most out of the coursework they take at the community college prior to transferring to a four-year university,” Scheck said.

The new JTAC model will operate in a similar capacity to JBAC but will be focused on creating and maintaining a complete list of courses offered at the community college level, and the corresponding requirements at the four-year level.

According to the Provost’s report to Western’s faculty senate, “an immediate request from the JTAC is for the four year schools to identify essential pre-major courses to be taken during the first and second year at the community college so students can transfer directly into junior-level course work.”

This will require the dean of each department at the four-year level to compile a “request list” of required course work so that transfer students experience as little overlap as possible when making the switch from an associate program to a bachelor program.

Currently, Western is a popular transfer destination for Oregon students due in large part to the relative ease of transferring in.

“The process was super easy and there is a high volume of acceptance for some students,” said Juan Esparza, a 2015 Western business school graduate who transferred from Blue Mountain Community College (BMCC) in Eastern Oregon.

“I knew coming in that I would probably be accepted because I had completed all of my LACCs at BMCC,” he added.

While students from in-state schools have an easy time transferring to Western, some out-of-state transfer students have had a more complicated experience.

“I had to go to each department individually and argue for my transfer credits to be counted,” said Elizabeth Aldrich, a third-year public policy major transfer student from Front Range Community College in Fort Collins, Colorado.

“I have about 12 credits still that have not transferred over from my junior college in Colorado,” she said.

Western’s administration has voiced their intention to focus on making the transfer process easier regardless of student origin.

“Western has a diverse student base, and a lot of our population comes from community colleges in the area seeking further education. We will look to continue strengthening this tie with local community colleges moving forward,” incoming Western President Rex Fuller said.

CAMPUS BLOTTER

Bark Dust Fire
At 4:24 p.m. May 7, Campus Public Safety discovered a bark dust fire in Parking Lot Q.
Criminal Mischief/Graffiti
At 9:00 a.m. May 8, Campus Public Safety took a report of graffiti located at the Werner University Center Patio.
Electrical Fire
At 6:46 p.m. May 5, Campus Public Safety was contacted regarding an electrical fire at 584 Knox St.
Harassment
At 10:38 p.m. May 4, Campus Public Safety responded to a harassment call near Ackerman Hall.
Informational
At 6:19 p.m. May 5, Public Safety was contacted concerning an altercation in Hamersly Library.
Theft – Bicycles
At 8:12 and 8:45 a.m. May 6, Campus Public Safety was contacted regarding two separate bike thefts in Butler hall and Landers hall. The value of the bikes was unknown.

Just Do It: President Obama in Portland

By Jenna Beresheim
Staff Writer
Courtesy of whitehouse.gov

President Barack Obama arrived in Portland May 7 as part of a multi-faceted trip, including a fundraiser and a visit to Nike.

According to OregonLive.com, after the fundraiser, Obama was to “give remarks on free trade at Nike headquarters near Beaverton.”

Routes and specific plans were undisclosed for security reasons. Traffic in Portland intensified with the president’s 20-car escort navigating through the area during May 7 and 8.

“We have to make sure that America writes the rules of the global economy,” Obama said in his speech at Nike, “and we should do it today while our economy is in the position of global strength.”

A 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact with correlated fast-track legislation plan was proposed. The agreement would open up commerce amongst the U.S. and 11 other Pacific Rim countries.

The trade pact could potentially open up over 10,000 new jobs for American workers through Nike. Reducing tariffs in the U.S. and other countries would allow Nike to manufacture more shoes in the U.S., which in turn would create more manufacturing and engineering jobs locally.

“Nike has factories all around the world, and let’s face it, some of these countries, they don’t have the standards for wages and labor conditions that we have here,” Obama said during his speech.

The hope would be to cause these countries to raise their labor standards, setting a minimum wage and passing safe workplace laws to protect their workers. It would even allow workers the freedom to form their own unions if they chose to do so.

This became a plan that immediately had backlash from the public, and those within the government as well.

Opponents of this proposal planned to protest outside of Nike, while Oregon Senator Ron Wyden joined in the mix by voting against the fast-track proposal.

Wyden, who was mentioned in Obama’s speech, was unable to attend.

Wyden was not the only one fighting this proposal.

The Statesman Journal reported, “more than a dozen other pro-trade Senate Democrats voted against a Republican proposal to begin consideration of legislation that would give Obama fast-track authority to negotiate trade agreements.”

60 votes were required for the proposal to pass, with the overall score falling to 52-45, canceling out the President’s ability to fast-track the proposal.

The main focus was not even on the fair trade proposal, but in the way it was proposed by the President. Many people took offense in how Obama addressed individuals, particularly liberal Democrats.

Labor unions were also skeptical of the move. U.S. News quoted Eric Hauser, an American Federation of Labor and Congress Industrial Organizations spokesman who stated that past trade agreements “have taught us that corporate-driven trade policy too often accelerates a global race to the bottom.”

The real question becomes whether the proposal will go through, fast-track or not, and what the impact will be, not only in the U.S. as a country, but in our own home state of Oregon, where Nike’s headquarters lies.

Obama reinforced the idea by echoing Nike’s common slogan of “Just do it.”

Consent is Sexy

By Evelina Ramirez
Staff Writer
PHOTO BY EVELINA RAMIEREZ
PHOTO BY EVELINA RAMIEREZ

Abby’s House and Western’s Campus Against Sexual Assault (CASA) invited the Sexual Wellness Advocacy Team (SWAT) from University of Oregon to interact with students and give them insightful information about sexual assault and violence.

The workshop took place Monday, May, 11 in the Werner University Center.

SWAT is a sex-positive program that values all sexual relationships as long as they are healthy.

SWAT organized their presentation in workshops that included a sexual assault’s survivor monologue followed by interactive discussions with other characters involved in the narrative.

They also mentioned how and how not to support a survivor of sexual assault. To help sexual assault survivors, SWAT said that one must believe them, tell them it is not their fault, and lead them to other helpful resources.

Additionally, they provided resources for survivors of sexual assault and a demonstration of healthy and unhealthy communication.

“I like the interactive nature of this workshop because not only do they give the information, but they give the skills and then you actually get to use what you’re learning,” said Mary Ellen Dello Stritto, director of Abby’s House.

Michele De La Cruz, SWAT member and sociology major, said: “Being a survivor myself, who has dealt with a lot of the things that we discussed in the workshop such as slut shaming, I think I am able to add aspects of realism and more depth to it.”

According to their website, swat.uoregon.edu, sexual assault, dating violence, and sex positivity encompasses many other issues, therefore is it not uncommon for SWAT’s workshops to touch on other topics such as: sexism, racism, homophobia, and more.

“What I love about this group is that it’s a serious topic, yet they make it really fun,” Dello Stritto said.

Their moto being “Consent is Sexy,” SWAT reinforced that consent is mandatory regarding any sexual relations.

Incoming first-year students see tuition rates rise

By Jack Armstrong
 News Editor

Western is expected to experience another rise in tuition for the incoming students of the 2015-2016 academic year, beginning Fall term 2015.

According to the faculty senate minutes, incoming first-year students can expect to see a rise of around 2 percent for the total cost of tuition for the typical school year.

This increase would see entering students with Oregon residency paying $1,976 in tuition and fees for a 12-credit, full time enrollment.

Currently enrolled students with the WOU Promise program will not experience a rise in tuition, and will continue to pay their existing level of tuition.

This increase, while not insignificant, it is about half of what other students at many other universities in Oregon can expect to see.

“Tuition increases are the lowest at WOU out of all the Oregon public four year institutions,”
Western president Mark Weiss said. “2 percent for next year compared to an average of 5 percent for others.”

Part of the lower than expected tuition increase comes from a higher than expected amount of funding granted by the Higher Education Coordinating Commission.

According to their website, the HECC is a 14 member volunteer board who is responsible for “advising the Legislature, the Governor, and the Oregon Education Investment Board on higher education policy.”

“There are two pieces of information used by the HECC in making funding decisions,” Eric Yahnke, Western’s vice president of finance and administration, said. “The first factor is enrollment level and student credit load while enrolled, and the second is a the graduation rate of students with a degree.”

“We expect that Western will receive a higher amount of state funding under the new outcomes-based formula based on information provided by the HECC,” Weiss said. The increase in funding is said to be around 20 percent compared to previous years.

Western’s administration has also been working as a unit to reduce the costs across the university in an attempt to curtail rapidly rising tuition costs. President Weiss made it a focus of his time at Western.

“It is imperative that we lower the relative cost of attending a university for Oregonians,” Weiss said. “I believe that affordability and student debt load are among the highest priorities that we must address in providing a college degree.

Students also play a vital role in keeping costs down. Western students are particularly active in voicing their opinion at the legislative sessions in Salem.

“I believe that Western Oregon students are the most active in the legislature when the tuition rates are up for debate,” Yahnke said. “During the most recent presentation to the Oregon State Board of Higher Education, we had by far the most students in attendance representing their cause.”

This task is certainly easier said than done. Oregon has seen a decade of steady divestment in higher education, which coupled with a rapidly rising enrollment rate contributed to an overall increase in tuition costs for incoming students.

Slightly lower enrollment can also have a temporary effect on Western’s tuition prices. According to the faculty senate, “enrollment has declined this year about 4 percent overall.”
“Enrollment can have an effect on fixed costs and the current services offered by the university,” Yahnke said.

“Higher enrollment keeps current faculty engaged, and we have an administrative staff that is set up to deal with a certain number of full time students,” he added.

This dip in enrollment is expected to reverse moving into the 2015 academic year with “a potential 10 percent rise in enrollment with the 2015 entering class.”

Western’s new independent university board could also have an effect on future rates of tuition.

With the Oregon University System no longer retaining voting control over Western’s budgetary future, the costs facing the entering class of 2016 will be decided by the new board and incoming president Rex Fuller.

“The WOU institutional board will approve or modify the administration’s recommendation,” Weiss said. Western students are also asked to participate in the discussion when it is possible.

“A student tuition fee committee is apprised of the university budget and is offered the opportunity to voice their opinion on the recommendation,” Weiss said.

Looking at a smaller increase than usual has left Weiss feeling like Western’s efforts to provide the best education at the lowest price possible has been a success.

“Our students get a top notch education from faculty and staff dedicated to their success,” said Weiss.

Even at a lower price than expected, higher education does come with its pitfalls.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the national average of debt for students upon graduation with an undergraduate degree hovers around $29,856. This is the highest it has ever been, even accounting for the effects of inflation.

“I encourage all students to receive the necessary advising assistance to graduate in a timely manner and avoid the cost of extra years to degree completion,” Weiss said.

He added: “Lastly, I encourage students to take responsibility for themselves to appropriately manage their debt load, and make certain they graduate with a degree to launch their futures.”

Kellen Hendrickson recognized for Staff Excellence

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By Jenna Beresheim
Staff Writer

Kellen Hendrickson, a Trades Maintenance Worker 2 on campus, has been announced as the winner of the 2015 Pastega Award for Staff Excellence.

According to the Western Pastega Award homepage, the Award for Staff Excellence “recognizes classified or administrative staff members who demonstrate exceptional service to the university.”

Similar to the Pastega awards for Excellence in Scholarship and Excellence in Teaching, the Staff Excellence award winner also receives a $1,000 honorarium.

A trades maintenance worker is hired through the physical plant on campus. Work orders are sent in through the Portal, allowing both students and staff to notify workers of issues around Western — specifically the dorms and Valsetz.

“I work exclusively on the housing side of campus doing repairs of any kind,” Hendrickson said, explaining the physical plant’s type of work. “An example of a typical day includes repairing lighting fixtures, heaters, furniture, plumbing, and I also do patching and painting work.”

Hendrickson is a Tillamook, Oregon native and began attending Western as a student in fall 2001.

By Spring Break 2003, he had begun working for the paint crew at the Physical Plant, and said he found the flexible schedule and understanding staff a blessing for a student with an ever-changing schedule.

Hendrickson graduated from Western with a social science degree in history, remaining on campus to extend his time at the physical plant.

“After I graduated, I was asked to continue working as a temporary full-time employee,” said Hendrickson. He was given the opportunity to attend electrical school for two years, moving up in rank at work from TMW1 to TMW2.

“I never thought about working here after college, but Western has given me so much,” he said. “I’ve been able to meet and work with some amazing people here.”

After spending years working at Western since graduating from the university, Hendrickson said he finds joy in his work every day.

Outside of work, two children keep him busy for the time being. Once they are older, Hendrickson would like to become more involved with campus activities outside of work.

Working amongst exceptional mentors as well as a previous Pastega Award recipient, Hendrickson was honored to receive such recognition for the work done for the campus community.

“This award tells you that the campus community has noticed your hard work and wants you to know it’s appreciated,” Hendrickson said. “I don’t come to work every day hoping for an award. I come here because I enjoy what I do and who I work with.

“My hope is that each one of the students here finds something that makes them happy,” Hendrickson added. “For me, just helping out the students and the staff makes me happy. Ensuring that their day goes better is the only award I need.”

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