WOU – Page 7 – The Western Howl

Written by: Hannah Field | News Editor

Western’s campus will be kicking off December with the 56th annual Holiday Tree Lighting. The event will start at 6:00 p.m. outside of the historical Campbell Hall. In preparation for the occasion, the tree has been fitted with its giant decorations which will be lit at the event around 6:45 p.m..

“Our sequoia tree outside of Campbell Hall is rumored to be the second largest sequoia (in Oregon),” said Katelin Granger, the coordinator of student activities & inclusion. It was planted in 1887 by former students of Western and is the object of celebration for the Holiday Tree Lighting.

The annual event is expected to bring together the Monmouth-Independence community, alumni, students, staff and faculty at large, as it has in previous years. It begins with a few keynote speakers sharing some words for the public. Some speakers include the President Peters, parade narrators and student voices that Granger established for the sake of inputting student representation in the event.

In the past, the parade has featured around thirty floats and traverses through Monmouth. “We have the annual parade that goes from the Monmouth (Public) library to the middle of campus,” said Granger. “We see people line up down Main Street and Monmouth avenue to watch all the parade floats. It’s just a really fun time.”

After the parade, the Dean of Students, Malissa Larson, will say a few words which will be followed by speeches by the mayors of Independence and Monmouth. Local elementary schools have engaged in an essay-writing contest, where the winner will be announced on the night of the event and assist in lighting the tree alongside President Peters. Prior to the lighting, the winner of the essay contest gets to read their essay aloud to the public attending the ceremony.

The Werner University Center will host indoor activities like cookie frosting and a Santa Claus for photo opportunities and more fun.

“This year, Abby’s House is doing their silent auction and that is going to be open during the after-portion, in the Columbia room,” added Granger.

Tradition will continue on the first Friday of December as the Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony commences on campus. Granger encourages students to attend the event and join in on the holiday spirit that the festive night will entail.

Contact the author at howlnews@mail.wou.edu

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Since 1962

Written by: Hannah Field | News Editor

Western’s average first-year student would never pass by Campbell Hall and consider that something is missing.

The building blends in with the rest of the old architecture — a staple to Western’s image. Before 1962, however, it had a whole section of rooms and even a bell tower that was lost to the Columbus Day Storm that wrecked the West coast — blowing in dangerous winds and torrents of rain statewide.

Student Wes Luchau photographed the devastation in action, a photo blasted to national media that even ended up earning Luchau 400 dollars which would be equivalent to four thousand dollars in today’s currency.

There is more of this hidden history that exists in the Western archives — residing in the library archives and passed on in stories.

According to “Since 1856… Historical Views of the College at Monmouth,” a book kept shelved in Western’s Wayne & Lynn Hamersly Library, the enrollment in 1962 was at 1200 students.

The book states, “The College attracted a student body most of whom were first generation college-bound,” which corresponds today with Western program SEP., specific to first-generation students, a trait Western has incorporated for over 60 years.

At this time, Western was not yet Western Oregon University, but the Oregon College of Education, and would go by this name until the year 1981.

The sixties arranged a period of rapid growth for the college, tripling their numbers by the end of the decade. More educational programs were established, as well as programs related to the arts, humanities, natural sciences and social sciences.

The college underwent degree establishment requiring prerequisites for classes in elementary education, whereas previously, students could take the required classes in any order they desired, much unlike today’s system.

More staff were hired and more funding was given to Western so it would eventually become the school as we know it today. It was a long journey from 1962’s disaster-struck college to today’s successful university.

More of Western’s complicated history can be easily found on the Wayne & Lynn Hamersly Library’s website and archival materials. Books, such as “Since 1869…,” are easily accessible and available to be checked out.

Contact the author at howlnews@mail.wou.edu

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Cross country on a steady pace for the season

Written by: Jaylin Hardin | Sports Editor

Western’s cross country team is holding steady on course for this season. The team secured a pair of sixth-place finishes in San Francisco on Oct. 6 — following a pair of first-place wins at their home meet on Sept. 22.

Senior, Caitlin Heldt, came in seventh place to bring the women’s team to 144 points and secure the sixth-place win — Heldt completed the 6k race in 22 minutes, 0.4 seconds. For the men’s team, Freshman, Konoa Blake, finished 28, completing the 8k race in 26 minutes, 3 seconds and bringing the team to 167 points.

Heldt and Junior, Olivia Flack, had positive attitudes about their team’s success and training environment.“Our team is very competitive and I think we work very well together in practices,” Flack said. This is Flack’s second year at Western. “This is the first year overall that we actually have been able to have a big group during workouts,” she also said. She feels it helps the team environment and fuels competitiveness.

“This year we’re a lot more positive in what we say to each other and ourselves,” Heldt added. She talked about how the team uses mantras and affirmations to remain positive. “We’re more competitive this year, so we’re always in packs and competing better than last year.”

Both Heldt and Flack have goals to race in Nationals and to place high in the GNAC championship race in Anchorage, Alaska and the NCAA West Regionals, hosted at home at Western.

“Zach is a great coach, he’s really good at knowing where we’re at and communicating with us,” Flack said about their head coach Zach Holloway — this is his first year as head coach, after four seasons as Western’s assistant coach.

“He’s very young, so I feel like it’s very easy to talk to him and I feel like he understands us,” Heldt said.

Flack was also among the 21 cross country runners named for the GNAC All-Academic Honors. To receive this honor, athletes must have a grade point average of at least 3.2 and have competed on an official course during the 2023 season. Three students on the list had a 4.0 GPA: Juniors Josie Ackerman, Kaitlyn Kruse and Rami Dear — Ackerman and Kruse had both been on the honoree list the previous year.

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

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What’s up next for athletics?

Written by: Jaylin Hardin | Sports Editor

Thursday, Oct. 19

12 p.m. — Men’s Soccer, HOME v. Northwest Nazarene University

3 p.m. — Women’s Soccer, HOME v. Seattle Pacific University

Saturday, Oct. 21

All Day — Cross Country @ GNAC Championships,Anchorage, Alaska

All Day — Women’s+ Rugby, HOME JAMBOREE

11 a.m. — Women’s Soccer, HOME v. Montana State University Billings

1 p.m. — Men’s Rugby, HOME v. Oregon Institution of Technology

1:05 p.m. — Football, HOME v. Midwestern State University Texas, HOMECOMING

Halftime — Western Oregon Dance Team Performance

4 p.m. — Men’s Club Soccer @ Willamette University

5 p.m. — Volleyball @ State Martin’s University

Thursday, Oct. 26

4 p.m. — Men’s Soccer @ Western Washington University

7 p.m. — Volleyball, HOME v. Northwest Nazarene University

7 p.m. — Women’s Soccer @ Western Washington University

Saturday, Oct. 28

All Day — Women’s+ Rugby @ Oregon State University

1 p.m. — Women’s Soccer @ Simon Fraser University, British Columbia

1 p.m. — Volleyball, HOME v. Central Washington University

1 p.m. — Men’s Soccer @ Saint Martin’s University

1 p.m. — Men’s Rugby @ University of Oregon

4 p.m. — Football @ The University of Texas Permian Basin

Sunday, Oct. 29

All Day — Cross Country v. Stumptown Youth Cross Country Championships

2 p.m. — Men’s Club Soccer, HOME v. University of Portland

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

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Men’s soccer on winning streak

Written by: Jaylin Hardin | Sports Editor

Men’s soccer is having a smashing start to their season. After going three and two in the preseason, the team did not let this stop them. Starting conference play with a 1-1 tie against the University of Simon Fraser, British Coloumbia, men’s soccer quickly bounced back and are now on a win streak of six — three of these six games were shutouts.

These wins come as a massive improvement from the 2022 season, where the team had only two wins compared to 13 losses and two ties. This improved record means higher points on season; giving the team 21 points on the season thus far. This is 11 points higher than their total of eight points from last season.

Freshman Center Back, Olaolowua Balogun, attributed the team’s success to the tight-knit environment the team has.

“We’re like a family and do everything together and no one’s left out,” he said. “Our coach treats us like family, like he’s our dad.”

Head Coach Michael Behonick started his first year of coaching for Western this season. Previously, Belhonick spent seven seasons as the assistant coach for the University of Pittsburgh men’s soccer team.

Balogun has high hopes for the team this season. “I see us winning GNAC and going to playoffs and going far and better things to come,” he said. Western’s men’s soccer has recently had a limited history in terms of GNAC competition — only officially becoming an intercollegiate team in the 2022 fall season.

“We had recruits come over and we treated everyone as family, even if we didn’t know who the person was, it’s a good environment to be in and everyone’s welcome,” Balogun said.

Against Western Washington University this last Thursday, men’s soccer won 2-1, officially bringing their win streak up to six. Both of Western’s goals were scored in the first 20 minutes of play and within five minutes of each other.

Junior transfer, Gabriel Silva, scored off an assist from Sophomore, Alex Gringon, and Junior, Andres Labate. Five minutes later, it was Gringon who scored the final goal for the team, assisted by Junior, Moises Cisneros, and Freshman, Yahir Ocampo.

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

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Abby’s House discussing plans for future Wolves Against Interpersonal Violence committees

Abby’s House discussing plans for future Wolves Against Interpersonal Violence committees

Gretchen Sims | Freelancer

Contact the author at gsims20@mail.wou.edu

Content warning: this article mentions sexual assault.

According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, 13% of all college students experience rape or sexual assault by means of physical force, violence or incapacitation — 23% of undergraduate female identifying persons and 6.8% of undergraduate male identifying persons.

These statistics are understandably alarming. Fortunately, Abby’s House is extremely aware of the critical need to push back against interpersonal violence.

The idea for the Wolves Against Interpersonal Violence committee began as a grant requirement during the 2010 school year. Although funding was renewed several times, it eventually dissolved in 2019. After that brief pause, Western staff expressed interest in continuing the program, which was previously known as the Campus Against Sexual Assault committee.

Although a finite list of objectives for WAIV has not yet been cultivated, Kristen Perry, Director of Abby’s House, envisions several for WAIV’s future.

“Personally, I’ve worked (in programs similar to this) at a few different campuses. I’ve seen things that work, and I’ve seen things that don’t work. My dream is to have everyone — across campus — on the same page on what prevention and education we offer, what training we offer, what our victim services are, how we can respond and what the conduct case management process is,” Perry stated. “But I can’t do that alone, I’m glad that the WAIV committee is here to help move along those types of goals — those dreams.”

Right now, many individuals are working together to make Perry’s visions come true. The WAIV committee currently includes individuals who specialize in conduct and Title IX, individuals from Residential Education, Student Health and Counseling, Public Safety, Abby’s House and select leadership members.

At current meetings, the committee discusses what is currently being done across campus to prevent interpersonal violence and what could be done to improve the experiences of survivors.

In the revised and finalized version of WAIV, the experts and committed people that compose WAIV will be split into three subcommittees.

The first will deal with prevention and education which will focus on consent education that is required for students. This committee will also focus on bystander intervention and other education that is offered across campus.

The second subcommittee will focus on policy. It will revise policies, ensure compliance and also educate the campus on some policies that they need to be aware of — such as Title IX and the Clery Act.

The final subcommittee will be a response committee — training faculty and staff on what to do if a student discloses to them. This subcommittee will also focus on the confidential advocacy offered in Abby’s House, qualified Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner exams offered at SHCC and how Title IX investigations are performed.

Sometime in the near future, Abby’s House will be searching for passionate students to sit on committees and help assist with the response to SA on campus. If interested, keep an eye out for more information or reach out to Kristen Perry or Abby’s House directly.

Abby’s House has two confidential advocates who can meet with students who have been affected by interpersonal violence such as sexual assault, dating violence, harassment or stalking. They can offer emotional support, reporting options, medical assistance, financial support, academic assistance, support around building coping skills and referrals to other resources both on and off campus.

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Campus Voices: sharing their feelings on the mask mandate lifting

Western students answer the question: “What is your raw, honest, unfiltered, opinion about the recent lifting of the mask mandate?

Gretchen Sims | Freelancer

Contact the author at gsims20@mail.wou.edu

Name: Ruth Simonsen

Class standing: sophomore

Major: psychology

Pronouns: She/her

“I like seeing people’s faces. I like knowing when I smile at them that they will smile back. I like seeing the faces of people in my clases. Of course there are still fears, but I like being able to put a face to a name and a name to a face. I feel like when you can see people’s faces and can smile at them, it is easier to be friendly. It’s just a better vibe.”

Name: Makaela Calonder

Class standing: first-year

Major: pre-education

Pronouns: She/her

“Personally, I am very excited about not having to wear masks. I work at a pool, so in general — in my daily life ⏤ it is nice because it gets very hot and sweaty in the mask. Here at WOU it is nice not having to worry about not having one on me at all times. Of course I respect everyone who still chooses to wear a mask, but for me it is really nice.”

Name: Kamryn Bolan

Class standing: first-year

Major: business

Pronouns: She/her

“So far this year, especially as a freshman, I have felt very distant from the community of students here. Over the past two years, it’s like we have forgotten how to socialize. I think there is so much personality revealed in a person’s face, so when you cover half of it up, you have trouble connecting with the person you just met. Going into spring term with masks off has given me a new sort of motivation for going to class. It’s crazy how much seeing the teacher’s face can amplify your engagement.”

Name: Sienna Painter

Class standing: junior

Major: American Sign Language studies

Pronouns: She/they

“Throughout the pandemic, I have been very cautious through shutdowns. (I) was not going anywhere other than like the forest during the shutdown. I started wearing a mask in January of 2020 — long before everything. I already had masks because I have been wearing masks since like 2018 whenever I felt sick or whatever, so I was already really comfortable with masks to begin with. For mask mandates being lifted, right now, I am very skeptical–mainly because of Spring Break. We lifted the mask mandate in all of Oregon, California and Washington right before Spring Break — right where all of WOU students would be traveling too. That’s why I am still wearing a mask to all of my classes and will be especially more cautious over the next two weeks. Also, I am like f—–g scared of COVID because of all of the variants and waves and stuff. I have never really minded with masks, but I do think because of our (WOU’s) high vaccination rates, and WOU is a pretty small campus, and people are fairly responsible, I am fairly comfortable with other people not wearing their masks. I also have not felt pressure to take my mask off. I was afraid I would be the only person in my classes not wearing a mask, but people have been pretty chill.”

Name: Max Brayton

Class standing: first-year

Major: psychology

Pronouns: They/Them

“My parents are more conservative and Republican so they have been against the masks since the beginning and it’s nice to not hear s–t from them anymore. But, you know, with them as my parents, I see different perspectives which is interesting. Although I don’t agree with them, it is nice to have that perspective. I am from southern California and even down there, they are not being as safe as we are (in Oregon). I feel more comfortable not having my mask on here because I know, at least at our school, that more than ninety percent of people are vaccinated. Everyone has been really safe and respectful. Like I feel comfortable wearing, or not wearing, my mask here. I feel like this community has been very welcoming and inclusive and I feel like it’s about time (the mask mandate was lifted). I am a little nervous though. I saw a New York Times article this morning that a new COVID wave is hitting, but I feel like as long as everyone is being safe, I like to have my mask off ⏤ you really connect to people more.”

Western Oregon University’s Land Acknowledgement
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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WOU prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Retaliation is prohibited by WOU.

Tree lighting ceremony

Since 1962

Cross country on a steady pace for the season

What’s up next for athletics?

Men’s soccer on winning streak

Abby’s House discussing plans for future Wolves Against Interpersonal Violence committees

Campus Voices: sharing their feelings on the mask mandate lifting

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