April/May 2014 - Alvernia University

April/May 2014
Volume 52 Issue 6
what’s in
Alvernia’s Got Talent, Do
You?
THIS ISSUE
03
By Alysse Caparoni
Editor
Campus News
04
Photo courtsey of Amber Nikolaus
Spotlight: Susan
Guay
Campus News
Winner of Alvernia’s Got Talent, Chiara Marone.
There was a sense of
nervousness in the air as
the performers warmed
up backstage. At any given
moment you could hear 8
different songs at once, as
all the performers nervously
rehearsed. It was almost
time to begin as the doors
opened as people started to
crowd into Francis Hall Theater ready to see their fellow
Alvernians perform.
There were eight acts in
this year’s show. Alex Roche
and his sister Bethany Roche,
A New Year, a New Board
06
Reviews
49th Academy of
Country Music
Awards
08
Campus News
The Happiest Internship on Earth
By Amber Nikolaus
Editor
As students reflect on this
year’s Spring Fling, some may
wonder who was behind the
large-scale event.
The Student Government
Association (SGA) organizes
Spring Fling and other big
yearly events. SGA spends all
year preparing for big events,
as well as some smaller events
around campus, along with
the Campus Activities Board
(CAB) and Student Activities.
Alvernia held elections
for its 2014-15 SGA Executive
Board during the first week of
April.
Next year’s Executive
Board will be Erin Sheehan
(President), Jared Toll (VicePresident), Jenna Harper
(Treasurer), John Robinson
(Secretary), and Alysse Caparoni (CAB President).
The Student Government Association doesn’t
just sit around planning all
year. This group of students
spends their semesters devoting themselves to meetings,
finding ways to improve upon
Alvernia, and giving back to
the community.
Abby Swatchick, Asso-
ciate Dean of Students and
Director of Student Activities,
is the advisor for SGA. She
shared that these students
commit themselves to being
leaders on campus. Executive
board members attend meetings for Educational Affairs
and the Board of Trustees,
among other important issues
other students may not think
about.
During meetings the
Senate, along with the executive board, share concerns
that other students may have
Continued on page 3
Giving Back
to the Earth
with anything on campus and
also things the campus does
well.
Meredith Beavers has
been serving as CAB President for the past two years.
Beavers thinks that SGA is an
indispensable part of student
life at Alvernia.
“[SGA] is kind of the voice
of the students,” Beavers said.
She explained that SGA
acts as a liaison between the
students, faculty, and staff. It
consists of student leaders
Continued on page 4
Photo courtsey of SGA
Giving Back to the
Earth
Heather McNamara, Erin
Sheehan, Andrew Kaucher,
John Pena, Gabriella Messina
and Nick Roche, and Chiara
Marone all displayed their
vocal abilities and chose to
sing, while Harlee Ehrets did
a twirling routine.
All of the acts got loud
applause and positive feedback from the judges, which
this year included Resident
Director Joe Benyish, Associate Director of Admissions
and Transfer Coordinator
Shanna Bossler, and Associate Professor of Nursing
Deborah Greenawald.
There could only be one
The current SGA executive board. Left to right: Erin Sheehan, Jared Toll,
John Robinson, [advisor] Abby Swatchick, Meredith Beavers, and Jenna
Harper.
By Chris Casciotti
Contributing Writer
250 students Alvernia students took part in the annual
Earth Day of Service on April
12.
This year’s service project
focused on Angora Fruit Farm
near Lake.
The project was coordinated with the Berks County
Park Department to help prepare the farm to help teach
students about the environment.
The weather was beautiful and it made the conditions
easier to work in.
Sophomore Eli Benner said,
“It was a great day of sun, fun,
and working with friends to
help this farm.”
The students were giving
multiple jobs to help out
around the farm. They were
split into 4 main groups. One
group of students was pulling
metal poles out from trees,
which were used to support
fallen trees. Other students
were taking down trees in
front of the farm.
The trees were very heavy
Continued on page 4
April/May 2014
t he alverni a n
STAFF
Managing Editor
Billy Tharp
Layout
Amber Nikolaus
Billy Tharp
Advertising
Jarred Merriweather
Copy Editors
Billy Tharp
Ryan Shannon
Amber Nikolaus
Alysse Caparoni
Emily Geliebter
Dave Peffley
Lindsay Jones
Contributing Writers
Chris Casciotti
Shaina Dailey
Paula Woodruff
Kathryn Harris
Brian O’Shaughnessy
Liz Mejia
Matt Moran
Jess Weiss
Faculty Advisor
Dr. Ryan Lange
The Alvernian is the
official student
newspaper of Alvernia
University.
To contact newspaper
staff, the office
telephone number is
610-796-8358.
Articles submitted for
consideration into The
Alvernian should be
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style. Letters to the
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and questions may be
submitted to
[email protected].
The editors reserve the
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for clarity, accuracy,
and length.
The views expressed in
The Alvernian are those of
the individual writers and
do not necessarily reflect
the student body, faculty,
staff, administration,
or sponsors.
campus news
Vol. 52 Issue 6
Flynn Files: April/ May 2014
Personal connections
always matter. Especially as
opportunities to learn about
others whose backgrounds
and experiences are dramatically different from our own.
I still recall the first
veteran I came to know personally. His name was John
Slattery, and he was newly
returned from service in
Vietnam. I was a high school
student and the sacristan or
head altar boy at my parish
church, St. Ignatius of Loyola.
John’s role was less clear.
There already was a head of
maintenance, but somehow it
seemed as if John took care of
all sorts of things.
I don’t recall thinking it
strange, though it surely was,
that John lived in the church
basement, rather than in an
apartment or with his parents. I do recall his gratitude
to his “landlord,” Fr. Tom
Herlihy, the crusty old Irish
pastor with a heart of gold
and a voice that morphed into
a rich brogue when he sang
“Galway Bay” at every mass
on the Sunday nearest March
17. John didn’t say much
about his relationship with
his parents, nor did he ever
really talk about “the Nam,” as
he called that strange jungle
land where he had served
in the Marines. He prided
himself on being laid back,
always “going with the flow,”
but I knew he was anxious
and intense underneath and
plagued by bad dreams. No
one talked about PTSD in
those days.
When not working, John
wrote poetry and played
records in the church boiler
room. As the only son of a
single mother, living with his
grandparents, I had lived a
sheltered life. John talked
politics with me, made me
into a temporary poet, and
kindled a life-long love of
rock ‘n roll. We sat in row 7
for my first concert, The Who,
shortly after they released
their rock-opera, Tommy.
When at the end of the night,
Pete Townsend smashed
every piece of equipment on
stage, I turned to John and
solemnly announced that I
would never forget that night.
I haven’t.
It took me a long time to
realize that John permanently
influenced the way I view
our veterans. Several years
later, when I became an antiwar activist, I recoiled when
fellow protestors castigated
those returning from service.
Unlike my friends and me,
they had not had the protection of student deferments.
Some of them were patriots,
even if I saw things differently. In any event, they were
not the problem. Our leaders
were.
Most members of the
baby boomers generation
and those older than us now
recognize that the indifference and, often, scorn shown
our Vietnam veterans was
a historic national failure.
That is why the support for
those returning from Iraq
and Afghanistan provides a
redemptive moment for the
national conscience as well as
an opportunity simply to do
what is right.
Our veterans need and
deserve first-rate medical
care to help them achieve
as much psychological and
physical recovery as possible.
They also need and deserve
educational opportunity and
the caring support necessary
to succeed and pursue their
new lives. They need and
deserve places like Alvernia.
In a few short years,
Alvernia has become a “Military-Friendly School” and an
emerging national leader in
the education and support of
veterans. This is a missioncentered initiative, faithful
to the Bernardine Sisters’
historic commitment to serve
those most in need of educa-
PHOTO: SNAVELY
02
Alvernia University President, Dr. Thomas Flynn
tional opportunity . . . sons
and daughters of coal mining
families, working women
returning to school, local cops
and inner city youth, and now
our veterans. Over 75 already
study at Alvernia.
On April 30, at a ceremony attended by many
of our student-veterans, we
announced the launch of a
Veteran Center. It will include
gathering spaces for our veterans and will be the hub for
counseling, financial aid and
other university resources.
The Center’s services will be
enhanced by the expansion
of our current partnership
with the Veterans Administration who already assists with
orientation and faculty/staff
training on veterans’ issues.
The new Veteran Center
resulted from an “innovation grant” awarded to three
creative staff—Shanna
Bossler, Jason Dietz, and
Claire Murphy. Supported by
Vice Presidents Cicala and
McCloskey and by Ed Hartung
and other faculty and staff
who are themselves veterans,
this effort was made possible
by significant start-up funding from a trustee and proud
veteran, Carl J. Anderson, Jr.,
and his wife, Debbie. We hope
soon to more than double the
number of veterans studying
at Alvernia.
The official opening of
our Veteran Center next fall
will be a proud moment for
Alvernia and a wonderful
occasion to thank our veterans for their service. It will
also be for some of us a time
to remember long-ago veterans who touched our lives in
special ways.
Peace and All Good, Tom
Flynn
Mission Moment
The willingness of America’s veterans to sacrifice
for our country has earned them our lasting
gratitude.
© 2014 The Alvernian
-- Jeff Miller
Alvernia’s Got Talent, Do You? (continued from page 1)
By Matthew Moran
Contributing Writer
Guay has liked teaching all of her classes equally,
which surprises even her. “I
am amazed that after 34 years
of teaching I still feel the same.”
Guay has touched many
lives during her long teaching
career. She recalled a young
woman she taught early on at
her time at Alvernia.
“This young woman was
19 years old when she was
diagnosed with 4th stage colon
cancer,” she said.
“She was a positive force in
my speech course because she
found the good in everyone.
I was so impressed by how
mature and positive she was,
and how she supported so
many of the weaker students.”
The young woman’s condition didn’t keep her from
pressing onward with her education. She ultimately finished
her degree in Criminal Justice
and went on to work in the
Juvenile Detention Center as a
counselor.
Guay kept in contact with
Judges from left to right: Shanna Bossler, Joe Benyish and Deborah
Greenawald.
Spotlight: Susan Guay
Most people recognize
Susan Guay as one of Alvernia’s
speech teachers. What many
don’t know is that teaching is
only one of the many responsibilities that Guay holds. Guay
has been working for Alvernia
for 15 years. She spent five
years as a part-time instructor,
and has spent ten years teaching at Alvernia full time.
“Alvernia is a very special
community,” Guay said. “We all
share the same goals, values
and mission. I would have to
say that the faculty and student population make this an
amazing job. I have been able
to transform lives and to help
the university as it continues
to position students for success.”
Guay is teaching two
classes this semester. She first
got involved with teaching
because of her love of literature. Once she started teaching, Guay felt the calling to
continue.
“After having the opportunity to work with students,
I realized that this is my calling,” she said. “As a professor,
I spend a lot of time helping
students identify their gifts. It
is extremely satisfying to know
that you have made a difference in a young person’s life.”
“I am very fortunate to work with a wonderful committee of volunteers,”
Susan Guay said.
Photo courtsey of Susan Guay
how AGT worked.
“I enjoyed participating in
AGT very much,” Marone said.
“It was a wonderful experience, the people were a lot of
fun to work with, and I would
love to participate again next
year.”
“My favorite part of AGT
was not only being able to
perform, but also getting to
see everyone else perform. I
Photo courtsey of Amber Nikolaus
winner. The top three acts
consisted of junior Alex Roche
and first year Bethany Roche,
junior Erin Sheehan, and first
year Chiara Marone. After a
tally of audience votes, the
winner was first year theater
major Chiara Marone.
Marone has been performing since the fifth grade so she
is no stranger to the spotlight,
and was very pleased with
am in the university choir, and
not many students are in it,
so it was entertaining to see
what other talent the school
has to offer,”
Marone was very grateful
for the opportunity and the
support of all of Alvernia.
“I would just like to say
thank you to everyone who
came out to support all of
the performers on Tuesday
Night, and also to all of the
people who voted for me. It’s
so wonderful to have a lot of
support for something like
your singing voice, and I was
completely surprised that I
even made top three, so I am
extremely thankful to everyone who supported me.”
Alvernia’s Got Talent
is a talent show open to all
Alvernia students that happens every spring semester.
AGT began in 2009 when a
group of Student Activities
staff members from the area
decided to plan some events
that would bring the schools
in the area together. Berks’
Got Talent came first, with the
Alvernia version following.
Robyn Stuart, Assistant
Director of Student Activities,
plays a key part in helping
make sure AGT runs smoothly
every year. Stuart is an advisor for the Campus Activities
Board, the club in charge of
AGT. Stuart helps with a lot of
the planning for AGT, but she
mostly likes to have the students be responsible for the
show.
Stuart thinks that AGT is a
very important part of Alvernia.
“Seeing students come
the student throughout her
long struggle with cancer.
“After her diagnosis, I visited her in St. Joseph’s Hospital
and gave her a journal,” she
said. “My desire was to give
her a place to put her fears,
frustrations and emotions.”
“We would meet for lunch
and talk about the numerous
operations and loss of so many
organs. Still she remained
calm and hopeful. “
“One summer she invited
me to a church event where
money was being raised for
cancer research. I had no
idea that in her introduction
she would thank me for being
there for her every step of the
way. She also mentioned the
journal and how it helped her
cope.”
Eventually, the young
woman lost her battle against
cancer. “Several months later,
she lay in the arms of her
mother still trying to stay alive
for all of her loved ones. At
that point, she only weighed
90 pounds, and I whispered in
her ear that everything will be
fine. She died hours later.”
Guay also acts as faculty
advising coordinator, serves as
the chair of the annual literary
festival, and is the site director of the John Updike Society
Conference.
As faculty advising coordinator, Guay spends hours in
03
Vol. 52 Issue 6
and express talents that I did
not know they had is one of
my favorite parts. It gives students an opportunity to do
things they normally wouldn’t
be doing,” Stuart said.
“Alvernia’s Got Talent
brings a sense of pride to
the students. It allows the
students to come together
and cheer each other on and
explore each other’s talents.”
If you missed out on
Alvernia’s Got Talent this year
be sure to check it out next
spring!
The top three performers nervously awaiting the results. From left to
right: Chiara Marone, Erin Sheehan, and Alex and Bethany Roche.
Photo courtsey of Amber Nikolaus
April/May 2014
campus news
the educational planning office
helping students who are
undeclared or students who
want to switch majors.
As chair of the literary festival, it is Guay’s responsibility
to research potential speakers and then work with them
to plan visits to the campus.
This is Guay’s ninth year being
involved with the literary festival.
“I am very fortunate to
work with a wonderful committee of volunteers,” she said.
Five years ago, Alvernia
hosted the John Updike Society Conference where scholars
from eleven different countries
were attracted. The society
chose Guay to be the site director of this fall’s conference. She
works directly with the president of the society and with an
Albright faculty member.
Guay looks forward to
taking on more challenges in
the future.
“I am constantly thinking
of ways to stretch myself,” she
said. “I would like to expand
my advising expertise by volunteering to help teens at
Olivet Boys and Girls Club. I
do hope to retire in a couple
of years, but am fortunate to
absolutely love my academic
career.”
04
April/May 2014
campus news
Vol. 52 Issue 6
who are elected to represent
the school.
“We are a student organization ourselves,” Beavers
said. “But all the other organizations answer to SGA.”
SGA works with all of
the other Registered Student
Organizations (RSO) to make
sure their groups are running
smoothly.
All concerns go back to
SGA and these student leaders extend their horizons to
become recognized.
The Student Government
Association, Campus Activities Board, and Student Activities work hard every school
year to make and plan events
for students. These devoted
leaders/students do not want
campus life to be boring.
Beavers said any student
who complains that they are
bored has not looked at one of
the event calendars because
each week is filled with activities to keep everyone around
campus busy.
Photo courtsey of Amber Nikolaus
A New Year a New Board(continued from page 1)
Reading students tell Santa what they want for Christmas at the 2013
SGA Christmas on Campus.
You have
every right
to a
beautiful life
- Selena Gomez
Sophomore Lakey Brathwaite digs
into the tree with an axe.
and needed some heavy tools
to take down.
“This day of service was
fun and it gave us hard work
to accomplish,” freshman Ian
Evans said. “I also enjoyed
cutting down trees with an
axe, that was fun to do.”
The two other groups went
over to the little lake and
worked around it.
Some of the students dug
very deep holes and made a
gazebo around the lake. This
gazebo was put all around
the lake which made it look
nicer.
The last groups of students were given the task to
build a small bridge near the
lake.
This was a very different
type of service. It was more
hard labor work and took
long to complete, but it was
well worth the time.
Many students made new
friends and worked with
people they never knew
before.
It showed the students
how to work as team and
developed teamwork skills.
Groups
of
students
worked together to get big
tasks done.
Most of the students
enjoyed the experience that
was given to them. It was
very different from the other
types of services that were
done before.
“Teamwork makes the
dream work,” junior nursing student, James Ragsdale
said, “Working in big groups
showed the students how
to work as a team to accomplish a task”
It was nice to see all of the
work that the students put
into this farm.
Photo courtsey of Chris Casciotti
Photo courtsey of Chris Casciotti
Giving Back to Earth (continued
from page 1)
Sophomores Eli Benner and Lakey Brathwaite helped James Ragsdale with cutting down the tree.
They showed how determined they will work to help
a cause. We were also able to
help and get the farm back
into good shape so it can be
used.
The farm is now going to
be used to teach students
about how the trees grow
and teach them about the
lake.
Teaching students how to
keep the environment safe
will benefit us in the future.
The head of the Holleran
Center, Jay Worrall, was there
and proud of the work that
we did. He enjoyed the time
that we put to help restore the
farm.
At the end of the service
he said, “All of you should be
proud of what you did.”
“Now all of you set your
own carbon footprint on this
farm and other groups will
continue to make this better
on the work you did.”
He also said, “We make it
into an important and vibrant
environmental
education
center for our community.
What a great joy to be part of
such a wonderful day!”
April/May 2014
campus news
05
Vol. 52 Issue 6
Stress Busters
By Liz Mejia
Contributing Writer
Photo courtsey of Harlee Ehrets
cial we set up steps to work
through our problems.
“School is extremely
With the end of the semes- stressful for every student,
ter comes stress and anxiety. especially if a job is added.
Students can fight stress with But sometimes we have to
a variety of “stress busting” take a deep breath, relax and
activities. Three of the most just figure out what can be
useful stress busters are are done to reduce the amount
prioritizing, exercising, and of stress such as techniques”
said first year student Grasocializing.
Having to juggle many cendy Mesamours, a student
responsibilities as a college in the nursing program.
The best way to handle a
student is normal. It is cru-
Shaina Dailey studies for finals as the semester comes to an end.
lot of work is to break tasks up
into individual steps. It is also
a good idea to write everything you need to do down
into a “to-do” list and order it
by priority.
Use effective management
strategies like setting deadlines, decide what to do first,
and breaking up assignments.
Procrastination is also
the enemy. Crystal Showl, a
sophomore psychology major
said, “Although I have no motivation to do assignments until
the day before, procrastinating adds stress that makes
simple tasks difficult”.
Organize early and start
working as soon as you can.
Don’t put things off, or you
might find yourself in a bad
situation.
Another way to address
stress is by exercise. Even
walking around campus can
relieve stress.
Exercising
helps to remove brain chemicals like coritsol. The adrenal
gland releases cortisol when
a person experiences stress.
Cortisol main function is to
return body to homeostasis
when. While cortisol can be
helpful in some situations,
too much cortisol impedes on
retrieving long-term memory.
Aside from helping your
brain work better, exercise
also delivers more oxygen to
muscles. Oxygenated muscles
will relax more easily. Exercise
also helps people experience
states of well-being.
Social time is also important for good brain function.
Taking a break from studying
to relax and laugh with friends
is important. Experiencing
extreme stress can cause
damage to different organs but
laughing with friends can help
the heart relax. Having a day
of fun with friends and attending an activity from school can
improve your mood and allow
you to be more positive.
Being in nature also helps
people relieve stress. Alice
Tang, a freshman forensic
science major said, “The outdoors is a very serene environment. Nature is relaxing
to me; being in places such as
forests is better for the health
than being in the cities.
Playing games that relate
to your major can help you
study, have fun and relax at
the same time. Invite friends
to play jeopardy or bingo
with important vocabulary
words.
Good study strategies
will also help reduce your
stress. Assign specific days
where you can concentrate
on one subject rather than
mixing different topics.
Upcoming stress busting
events: 4/28 Big Prize Bingo
in BH at 8pm 4/30 Cookies, Milk & Music with Jeff
LeBlanc in Crusader Café at
8 p.m., 5/4 Late night Bowling at Berk Lanes, 5/6 Late
Night Breakfast 9:30 to 11
p.m. Game show: Crazy’s
Bob’s Money Mania 9 p.m. in
the Student Center, 5/7 Off to
the movies with CAB.
For more tips about controlling stress, contact Health
and Wellness in Veronica
Hall at 610-568-1467.
get bigger every year. Over the
last three years, the club has
raised over $11,000 for different organizations that fight
cancer. It has grown from 10
students to 60 active members, and is always looking
for ways to get more people
involved.
“We joined forces with
the men’s soccer team this fall
and helped run the Kicks for
Cancer game,” she said. However, they also sold T-shirts
and sweatshirts which raised
$1,758 for breast cancer. In
addition, there was a dance
held in the fall for the No
Stomach for Cancer organization and donated $642.
The CURE-sader Club also
hosted the 2nd Annual Awareness Night Thursday (March
20), where Liz Scott, mother
to Alex Scott of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, and 6
other speakers of whom were
impacted by pediatric cancer
were involved. On April 6, the
club was able to raise $5,500
with their CURE-sader Walk
for Cancer.
Every member gains
something different from
the club. The president herself, Katherine Heinmiller, is
happy to have established a
club fighting cancer here at
Alvernia.
“It’s pretty cool to think
that something I helped
create from scratch is probably going to continue for
a very long time because of
all of the awesome students
dedicated to finding the cure
for cancer.” Heinmiller said.
Sophomore Jessica Newcomer is actively involved in
the club and raising money
for cancer awareness, as her
family has been hit hard with
cancer.
“Raising awareness for
all different types of cancer
is a cause that’s near and
dear to my heart,” Newcomer
said. “Being able to say that
I’ve been a part of this amazing club for two years is a
great feeling. We’re making
a difference and that’s what’s
important.”
For more information,
contact President Katherine
Heinmiller at [email protected] or the
CURE-sader Club adviser Dr.
Dolores Bertoti at dolores.
[email protected].
By Shaina Dailey
Contributing Writer
Alvernia
University’s
CURE-sader Club does a
lot every semester to raise
money and awareness to help
the fight against cancer.
Dr. Dolores Bertoti serves
as the CURE-sader Club’s
advisor. Dr. Bertoti is a cancer
survivor. She was diagnosed
with stage three breast cancer
at the age of 31. Medical professionals found ten tumors
total, which led to surgeries,
chemotherapy, and radiation
treatment.
For her, there was a less
than 30% chance of a five
year survival, but Bertoti was
determined to sustain life as a
mother and wife.
Twenty-nine years later,
she is cancer free, and motivated to help others. So when
she was asked to advise the
CURE-sader Club, “it was a no
brainer,” Bertoti said.
“I enjoy working with
students of so many varied
majors because it allows me
to get to know students outside of the area within which
I typically teach,”
“It is also a pleasure to
work with students outside of
the classroom and to witness
how their commitment to our
core values and to service
changes them.”
The club initially began
in fall 2012 as a small group
of students involved with the
CURE-sader Walk. The club
then grew out of the original CURE-sader Walk to help
a variety of worthy cancerrelated causes. The club is
raising money to fight breast
cancer, stomach cancer and a
variety of childhood cancers
this semester.
CURE-sader Club President Katherine Heinmiller
intends for the club’s impact
in the fight against cancer to
The CURE-sader Club poses at last year’s Awareness Night!
Photo courtsey of Club members
Alvernia Fights Cancer with the CURE-sader Club
06
April/May 2014
reviews
Vol. 52 Issue 6
49th Academy of Country Music Awards
The 49th Annual Academy
of Country Music Awards
was held on Sunday, April 6.
Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan
reprised their co-host duties
from last year.
The Band Perry, who won
Vocal Group of the Year, opened
the show by performing their
song “ Chainsaw”. Blake and
Luke, better known as Bluke
within the social media world,
did a good job with their opening introductions.
The chemistry between
them is always great, the way
they laugh and joke around
with each other. They even
mastered taking a selfie of
the both of them. They also
got the chance to make a big
announcement that next year
for the 50th Anniversary of
the ACM’S the show will be
held over at AT&T Cowboys
Stadium In Dallas Texas.
During the show there were
live performances over at the
ACM Fan Jam at The Manda-
lay Bay Hotel, which was
shown via remote satellite
by top-tier music act. Florida
Georgia Line opened up the
concert by performing their
hit song “Stay.” Later at the
Fan Jam, they performed
their hit song “Round Here”.
Florida Georgia Line won the
first award of the night Vocal
Duo of the Year.
There are a number of
awards that were recognized
throughout the night. Two of
the four fan-voted awards of
the evening were male vocalist of the year and female
vocalists of the year.
This year female vocalist went to Miranda Lambert, who also won song
of the year for “Mamma’s
Broken Heart.” She sang her
song “Automatic” during the
show. Male vocalist went
to Jason Aldean who said,
“Really Unexpected. Was
shocked to win it last year
and even more shocked to
win it again this year.” Jason
also got to perform his hit
song “When She Says Baby”
during the show. Vocal event
of the year went to Miranda
Lambert and Keith Urban
for their song “We Were Us”.
Keith got a chance to perform his newest song “Even
the Stars Fall 4 U” during
the show. Album of the year
went to Kacey Musgraves
for Same Trailer Different
Park. Video of the year went
to Tim McGraw featuring
Taylor Swift and Keith Urban
for the song “Highway Don’t
Care.”Song of the Year went
to Lee Brice for “I Drive Your
Trucks.”
The most prestigious
awards that are given out
each year are for Artist of
the Decade and Entertainer
of the Year,which was presented by Dodge Ram who
are also the big sponsors for
the award show. This award
went to George Strait. Strait
said, “I always said I have the
best fans, and I heard this is a
fan voted award, so I rest my
case.” Strait did a good job
with his performance of his
song,”I Got Your Car”, which
he performed over on the
MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Another important one is
New Artist of the Year,which
is one of the four fan-voted
awards handed out throughout the night, was presented
by Kohl’s department store.
The three artist who were
nominated in this category
were Brett Eldredge who
performed his song “Beat of
the Music,” Justin Moore who
performed his newest song
“Letting the Night Roll” and
Kip Moore who performed
his song “Something About a
Truck”. Their performances
were over at the Fan Jam.
The one who took home the
award was Justin Moore, “I
was worried there would be
a height restriction for this
award,” said Moore during
his acceptance speech.
There were a number of
other great performances
throughout the night. Eric
Church who sang his newest
song “Give Me Back My Hometown.” Tim McGraw performs his song “Meanwhile
Back at Mamma’s.”Darious
Rucker with the help of Lady
Antebellum performed his
hit song “Wagon Wheel.”
Both of the hosts got to perform as well. Luke sang one
of his newest songs “Play it
Again” and Blake performed
his song “My Eyes.”
Overall the show was a
big success and the artists
had a great time performing.They were so happy and
honored to win their awards
and the other nominees in
the different categories were
very happy for the artist and
bands that won the award.
Looking forward to watching the show again next year
to see what the Academy of
Country Music Award people
have up their sleeves for the
very special 50th anniversary.
was the best part of the concert, it was the variety of fans
all in one arena experiencing new bands while being
there to support their favorite
bands.
Next, Third Day took the
stage starting the set with
a short video on the four
screens above the stage.
Included in the video were
the many accomplishments
the band has made over their
years together.
In addition to being
together for 20+ years, they
have released 8 albums, their
most recent being “Rise.”
Yet Third Day was not
the main draw for this coheadlining tour. Third Day’s
lead singer Mac Powell asked
the crowd who was there to
see Skillet. Most of the crowd
cheered affirmatively.
Third Day did something
a little different when they
welcomed Skillet’s guitarist, Seth Morrison, on stage
to play with them on a few
songs. The band stepped
away from their typical worship sound and rocked out a
little bit before leaving the
stage.
A familiar face joined
Third Day at the end of their
set. Peter Furler, the former
lead singer of Newsboys, performed one song with the
band.
Furler has been pursuing a solo career since 2009.
As Third Day took their final
bow, Peter Furler along with
bandmates Dave Gharazian
and Jeff Irizarry made their
way to the walkway that
came out from the center of
the stage.
Furler performed an intimate set despite the size of
the arena. His performance
made it obvious why he left
the Newsboys.
The Newsboys are all
about the show, while Furler
is more about the music.
Though some might
argue that he has fallen down
the ranks of stardom due to
his exit from the Newsboys,
others will say his musical
goal is sharing his religion.
Finally after a long night,
Skillet’s set began. “Hero”
played on the big screens to
get the crowd amped up.
Despite having seen this
video in September, it still
managed to get me excited for
Skillet to take the stage.
Opening with “Hero,” one
of their well-known songs,
allowed all their fans to sing
along and enjoy the energy
that Skillet brings to the stage.
The rest of the show
included songs from their
new album “Rise,” as well as
many older songs.
Though Skillet did not
come out for an encore, the
concert did not disappoint.
The band used their
unique violinist and cellist
to add to their one of a kind
show.
In addition, the band
had two areas on either side
of the drums that raised
approximately 20 feet in the
air. Guitarist Korey Cooper
and bassist Seth Morrison
rose up as they played. Cellist Tate Olsen and violinist
John Chu also rose on platforms
during the show.
Overall, this concert was a
perfect example of how different music can bring people of
very different groups together.
The show flowed incredibly well considering the difference of sounds for the various
artists. Skillet and Third Day
co-headlining is a match made
in heaven.
Skillet and Third Day Perfect Match
By Tarryn Griffith
Contributing Writer
Skillet didn’t disappoint
March 22 at Santander Arena
despite leaving the pyrotechnics at home. As Third Day is a
lot mellower and leans towards
the category of worship, Skillet
toned down their usual explosive antics to keep the night’s
focus on the music.
The show opened with
John Cooper of Skillet’s side
project, We As Human. We
As Human has a very similar
sound and the same rock qualities that Skillet has on stage,
with their strong rock sound
and crazy antics.
Though Cooper is not a
part of the band, he does contribute lyrically. Cooper also
sings on one song on their selftitled album, “Zombie,” but We
As Human did not perform
“Zombie” that night. Major letdown.
After We As Human’s set,
Mandisa and Brandon Heath
took the stage. After We As
Human’s loud and crazy set,
this was a completely different
experience.
The duo sang worship
songs as they danced around
the stage. The night was definitely full of different styles of
music, making it a unique experience.
Ultimately, the atmosphere
Photo courtsey of Tarryn Griffith
By Kathryn Harris
Contributing Writer
A view of Santander Arena during the Third Day/Skillet show on March
22.
lifestyle
April/May 2014
07
Vol. 52 Issue 6
Working Hard Is Always “inVogue”: 14 Questions
I recently had the opportunity to speak with Nicholas
Moore, vocalist for the posthardcore band Before Their
Eyes and CEO of inVogue
Records, a Findlay, Ohio based
label.
During the label’s 5 year
lifespan, inVogue has inked
deals with the big named acts
such as Akissforjersey, Being
As An Ocean, The Plot In You,
Liferuiner and City Lights.
1.) How did you get
involved in the music business? I was the lead vocalist
in a band called Before Their
Eyes. We got signed to Rise
Records after our first show
and ever since then I’ve been
involved in the music industry
in one way or another.
2.) Which artist(s) influenced you the most in your
career? I listen to a really
wide range of music, anything from country to metal.
I think that Relient K, Blink
182, and Linkin Park all
played a pretty big role from
the start.
3.) What made you consider starting a record
label? Being an artist, I realized I probably wouldn’t
make a very good living being
in band. If anything, the life
cycle of a band in today’s
world just isn’t long and the
odds are stacked against
you even if you are selling a
couple hundred thousand
albums (which we did not). I
did know that the label was
making a lot of money off of
us so I used my experience to
create a brand and company
Before Their Eyes, Nicholas Moore’s (center) band
I could potentially make a
living off of.
4.) What do you think
people would be surprised
to learn about the music
business? Artists do not
really make as much money
as you might think, even the
bigger ones.
5.) What is the most
important
thing
that
helped you make InVogue
Records a successful label?
Consistency, and never stopping. Nothing happens overnight even if it seems like it.
You have to keep pressing
on even when things aren’t
looking good.
6.)
Since
InVogue’s
inception until now, which
has been your personal
favorite release? I really
think that Being As An
Ocean’s album Dear G-d…
was a very special release. I
did not think it was going to
be the success it had became.
I was just a HUGE fan of it and
I didn’t know how it would
be received.
7.) What sets you apart
The Luck of the Irish
By Jessica Weiss
Contributing Writer
Would you take the opportunity to study abroad for a
semester in Ireland? Being
alone in a foreign country
while trying to adapt to their
way of life might sound challenging to some people, but to
others it is a chance of a lifetime.
Grace Butow, a sophomore
Occupational Therapy major,
decided to take on the challenge of study abroad. Grace is
the only OT student who chose
to study abroad during the last
10 years.
“I have always wanted to go
to Ireland, since I am at least
50% Irish,” Butow said. “So
when I was initially looking at
colleges I made sure that there
were study abroad opportunities.”
It is very difficult for OT
majors to study abroad. Students can only study abroad
second semester of their
sophomore year, and only as
long as they can find a kinesiology course to take over the
summer.
As soon as Butow found
out she could take kinesiology
over the summer she bought
her plane ticket, packed, and
left for Ireland on January 26.
“It wasn’t really hard knowing I wouldn’t see my friends
and family for a long time
because I’m not much of a
homebody,” Butow said, “It
was such an amazing opportunity that if I let that factor
determine my decision I
would have missed out on a
chance of a lifetime, which I
would have regretted.”
Once she arrived, she met
the three other people she
would be rooming with for
about the next 5 months.
Butow is attending the
National University of Ireland, and is living on campus
in an apartment called a flat.
“I’m living with three
other people, two boys and
one girl,” Butow said, “We all
have single bedrooms with
our own bathrooms and we
share a dining/living room
and kitchen area. The housing assignments are random
so I could have lived with
other Irish students, but the
three I live with are all American, just from different parts
of the east coast.”
When Butow started
school, she noticed a variety of differences compared
to the schooling in America.
Most students graduate high
school at the age of 16, so the
students she attends classes
with are very young. Butow
also mentioned that it only
takes 3 years to get a Bachelor’s degree, which means
most of the working population starts out extremely
young.
Besides attending class,
Butow and her friends find
time to do plenty more activities. “Everyone just goes
into downtown Maynooth
to the clubs and bars during
the week,” she said. “Everyone goes home on the weekends for “family time” and
to catch up on school work,
which is why everyone goes
out during the week.” “On the
weekends, I travel to either
different parts of Ireland or
out of the country.”
Besides this, Butow has
also joined the Volleyball
Club, which practices at least
twice a week. Since Butow is
a member of Alvernia’s volleyball team, she felt it would
be an amazing opportunity
to be able to play while in
Ireland.
Butow described the
highlight of her trip in three
words, Saint Patrick’s Day. In
Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day isn’t
just a day event. They start
celebrating it the Thursday
before and stop the day after
St. Paddy’s.
“I spent the whole day in
Dublin and saw the parade,
and then spent the rest of
the day going into different
pubs,” Butow said, “Because
it is a family holiday, stores
from the other labels in
this scene such as Rise,
Fearless, etc.? I think that
the genres that my label
covers and the quality of
each genre. I think we are
pretty much top notch.
8.) What do you look for
in an artist/band? Amazing
music, good band members,
and a VERY hard work ethic.
9.) If you had one piece
of advice to give to an aspiring artist or band about
how to be a success, what
would it be? Drop everything and focus on making
your band a success. Give it
everything you have. DO NOT
STOP. The music industry is
not a race to who can sell the
most records the quickest, it
is a marathon.
10.) Recently you signed
Whether, I and Until We
Are Ghosts. How do you feel
the reaction from the fans
have been? The reaction has
been amazing. Both bands
are beyond talented for new
bands it’s a no brainer for the
fans.
11.) If ten years from now
you had to choose which
album from your discography do you feel would
still make an impact, which
would you choose? I think
that the Being As An Ocean
Dear G-d album will still be
that album for a lot of people
that put IVR on the map.
12.) How do you feel
about digital distribution
platforms like Spotify or
Pandora? I think they are
awesome. Great ways for
people to find new music and
very convenient.
13.) What do you think
the industry will look like in
ten years? I don’t even know,
it will be completely different
than it is now though. I know
that. That is one thing that
I love about music and the
business, it’s always changing.
14.) What’s the secret
of your personal success?
I won’t stop no matter how
hard things get. I’m in it for the
marathon, not the race. That is
what makes a businessman
dangerous.
Photo courtsey of Grace Butow
By Dave Peffley
Editor
Grace and her friend Annie in front of the Blarney Castle in Blarney, Ireland.
and many pubs are closed
and do not sell alcohol until 4
p.m., which I thought shows
how the Irish culture always
respects and puts their families first.”
There is not one regret
from Butow when it comes
to her decision of studying
abroad. She said if given the
opportunity, she would definitely choose Ireland again.
“I did miss all of my friends
at Alvernia, but studying
abroad gave me the opportunity to branch out on my own
and experience things I never
imagined I would be able to.”
For more information about
study abroad contact Sabrina
Logozzo at sabrina.logozzo@
alvernia.edu or visit www.
alvernia.edu and click study
abroad under the student life
tab.
08
April/May 2014
lifestyle
Vol. 52 Issue 6
The Happiest Internship on Earth
By Scott Dressler
Contributing Writer
Q: “Was the application
process difficult?”
A: The application process
for the Disney College Program is broken up into three
different sections.
The first section is a background information questionnaire that also asks whether
you intend to go to Walt Disney
World Resort in Florida or Disneyland Resort in California.
During this first section,
the applicant indicates their
interest in what role they want
to explore when participating
in the College Program.
If a candidate moves on to
the second segment of the process, a web-based interview is
Q: “Was it hard leaving
Disney?”
“What time is the the three o’clock parade?”
Q: “Where did you live
down in Orlando?”
A: Disney has four different apartment complexes
that they use for the College
Program; Vista Way, Chatham
Square, Patterson Court, and
The Commons.
I lived in Chatham Square
for the first half of my program until a pipe burst in our
wall flooding the girls’ apartment below us.
This did not endear my
roommates and me to them
at all. I finished the rest of my
program living in Vista Way.
The Disney College Program is a paid internship.
DCP deducts your rent from
your weekly pay.
Q: “Did you have to pay to
get into the parks?”
A: All Disney employees
get into all four parks and
waterparks for free.
We don’t pay for parking, we don’t pay for admission, and we have a certain
number of free guest passes
that we can use annually.
I waited my whole life for
the moment I was able to get
into Disney for free, so this
was a big selling point.
A: Was it hard leaving
Orlando and coming back to
below zero weather?
Yes.
Was it even harder not
having the world’s biggest
playground five minutes
from my apartment anymore?
Definitely yes.
However, I still work for
Disney, so coming back after
such an amazing journey and
looking forward to my next
trip has been incredible.
I have the best of both
worlds coming back, getting
my education, playing hockey
for Alvernia, and spending my
summers working for Disney
and living in Florida. Now
that’s compromise.
Overall, the Disney College
Program was an unforgettable
experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Working for Disney has
opened so many doors for my
future career path. I am still
with the company and have my
foot in the door for a long-term
profession is something that I
take great pride in.
I highly encourage anyone
interested to apply for the DCP.
Ask yourself what Walt
would do. I can guarantee you
that he’d apply to the DCP.
Q: “Was it difficult being
a lifeguard?”
A: Lifeguarding is probably one of the most important roles at Walt Disney
World.
Between
Typhoon
Lagoon, Blizzard Beach and
all of the resorts, lifeguards
make up a big chunk of the
employees for Disney.
I worked at Disney’s
Contemporary Resort, which
is the one the monorail goes
through.
Disney makes sure you’re
on your toes and always
rescue ready. We had regular
vigilance awareness tests or
VAT’s, which is where one of
coordinators would slip into
the pool without us knowing
and lay a silhouette of a body
on the bottom of the pool. We
have ten seconds to blow our
whistle and get in the water
and “save” the VAT. Disney
doesn’t play around.
Q: “Did you get asked a
lot of “tourist” questions?”
A: “Which monorail
brings you to the airport?”
“Does the sun come back
around the building at 5
p.m.?”
“What do you mean my
son doesn’t get in for free!?
He’s 2!” (Meanwhile he looks
Photo courtsey of Scott Dressler
conducted where applicants
answer questions regarding
the type of work environment
they prefer, as well as answer
basic questions centered on
courtesy.
For instance, “Do you
prefer working in a team
environment or an individual
one?”
The final part of the application is the phone interview.
Here, a DCP recruiter has
an interview with the applicant where candidates state
their top 3 role choices and
answers questions based on
different scenarios their role
may encounter.
My recruiter asked me a
lot of questions about my previous work as a lifeguard, so I
had a general idea of where I
might end up. After the phone
interview, it’s usually about
three weeks until you hear
back on a decision.
Photo courtsey of Scott Dressler
When I first applied for
the Disney College Program in
February 2013, I had no idea
that the next step I was about
to take in my life would end
up leading me into a future
career.
Life throws curveballs
sometimes, and the hardest
decision you have to make
with these pitches is whether
to swing at the thing. In this
case, I knocked it out of the
ballpark.
The Disney College Program was an incredible experience I wouldn’t trade for
anything. I met lifelong friends
from all over the world, even
countries I’d never even heard
of, got to work in an environment I absolutely loved, and
lived in one of the most exciting places on the face of the
planet, Walt Disney World.
I decided to stay with
Disney upon completion of my
program, and now spend my
summers working for the Happiest Place on Earth. I also get
to live in Orlando (just as long
as I wear a lot of sunblock,
because otherwise my mom
gets ticked).
When I returned to
campus for the Spring 2014
semester, I got to reconnect
with my friends from school,
as well as share my experiences and what it was like
working in such a diverse
environment.
While sharing these stories with my friends and
anyone who asks me about
the Program, I’ve noticed a lot
of the same questions are on
people’s minds about what the
DCP entails.
Here’s a short Q&A session about the College Program highlighting some of
your questions.
like a high school senior.)
“What time is the three
o’clock parade?”
“Can you tell me where
Peter Pan is?”
“Does Mickey sign your
paychecks?”
“Hablas Español?”
Cinderella’s Castle! The site Scott had the opportunity to see every night.
Who’s the leader of the
club that’s made for you
and me? M-I-C-K-E-Y
M-O-U-S-E!
BERKS EYE LASIK
IZZOVISION
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Call Us For a FREE
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BE203_CollegeCampaign_NEWSPPR_alvernia.indd 2
9/19/13 10:29 AM
10
April/May 2014
entertainment
Vol. 52 Issue 6
A Haunting in Francis Hall Part Two
Many skeptics would say the stories aren’t true. Go in and see for yourself -- if you dare!
Anthony Carr, a senior
and business major, used to
live in the dorms in Francis
Hall. His experience in the
dorms of the old building
has led him to believe that it
is haunted. Car shared one of
the many stories he had from
the years he spent in Francis.
One night, Anthony was sitting on his bed watching TV
when he suddenly heard a
strange noise.
“The desk drawer at the
bottom of my bed kept opening and closing by itself,” he
said, “At first I thought it was
my roommate, but I realized
he wasn’t even in the room.”
A Phantom Unlike Any Other
By Brian O’Shaughnessy
Contributing Writer
A new version of “The
Phantom of the Opera” premiered in Philadelphia at the
Academy of Music in March.
The Broadway favorite now
features new scenery, costuming and special effects.
The updated show will travel
across North America this
year. The new production continues the play’s record-setting 26-year run.
Cameron Mackintosh, the
play’s producer, announced
the new version last year.
The play comes to North
America after the revised version sold out venues across
the United Kingdom.
The darker, more visually striking show brings the
Broadway favorite into the
21st century.
A revised cast also gives
“Phantom” new energy.
Cooper Grodin plays the
Phantom. Grodin’s performance differed in many ways
from past portrayals of the
Phantom. Grodin plays a very
young Phantom than other
portrayals.
Hugh Panaro, who plays the
Phantom currently on Broadway, is 50 years old. Grodin is
in his twenties.
The youngest person to
ever play the Phantom is
Ramin Karimloo at the age
of 28.
Grodin also didn’t appear
to be that haunting and scary
for a guy that plays a Phantom. Unlike former Broadway
Phantom Howard McGillin,
Grodin did not have a very
terrifying presence when
he was on stage. Grodin did
show a very deep emotional
connection to Christine.
During the Phantoms
solo, The Music of the Night,
Grodin displays a very emotional Phantom who shows
Christine his world of music.
Grodin may not have been
the best Phantom, but he
definitely played the role in a
very original way.
New Jersey native Julia
Udine plays Christine. Udine
played the role of Christine
as an innocent victim as so
many others have before. She
plays the role of Christine as
a girl who is sweet, innocent,
and still grieving over the
loss of her father. She is looking for guidance from anything she can find.
Udine played the role as
an innocent girl unlike the
other Christine’s such as
Sierra Boggess and Sarah
Brightman.
Boggess and Brightman
portrayed their roles as
dancers turned singers with
poor acting abilities.
Udine has a sweet voice
but her acting was one of the
greatest portrayals of Christine.
Together, Julia Udine and
Cooper Grodin have tremendous chemistry. Their acting
abilities and singing skills
match up perfectly together.
Together, they make a great
Phantom-Christine combination just like the famous
combinations of Michael
Crawford-Sarah Brightman
and Sierra Boggess-Ramin
Karimloo.
The key to make a show
like Phantom so great is to
have actors who can feed off
of each other.
Julia Udine and Cooper
Grodin definitely are a great
combination and definitely
captivate an audience when
they are on stage together
with their acting and their
singing of their duets
together, such as The Phantom of the Opera and The
Point of no Return.
The Phantom of the Opera
concluded its run in Philadelphia on April 12. It will
make stops in Boston, MA
and Schenectady, NY this
summer. For more information about the show and
tickets, you can visit: www.
t h e p h a n t o m o f t h e o p e ra .
com/ustour.
Carr’s experience isn’t
the only student ghost story
on campus. Night shift workers who have done things
in Francis sometimes have
unexplainable stories of
spooky events.
Katie, a sophomore and
a Health Science major, has
been working night shift for
a year. One night while working a shift in Francis Hall, her
house manager heard his
name being called close to
the chapel. But after asking
everyone that worked on the
shift no one had called his
name, hinting to everyone
that they weren’t alone.
“I believe it is haunted.
I get a weird feeling like I’m
being watched or see something out of the corner of my
eye.”
Although students have
lived and worked in Francis,
no one else seems to have
ghost stories. Knowing a little
more about the layout and
history of the building could
tell us more about the reason
for the rumors. Interestingly
enough, the majority of where
the orphans lived is now where
the students lived while Francis Hall was open. The orphans
also lived what are now classrooms on the fourth floor and
the faculty offices. There also
used to be a ward, which was
probably used as an infirmary,
in the faculty offices across
from the Provost’s offices.
It may make sense that
spirits or ghosts would live in
the old college dorms, but it is
strange that no faculty or staff
claims to have had any encounters with the supernatural.
They too work late hours in
offices where orphans used to
live, even the old ward in in the
second floor faculty offices.
The question of whether
Francis Hall is haunted is still
an unsolved mystery. Both faculty and students cannot seem
to come to an agreement, so the
question is left unanswered.
Please report any unauthorized ghost sightings to
Public Safety.
Photo courtsey of Brian O’Shaughnessy
Is Francis Hall haunted?
Students believe so, but neither the nuns nor the professors who work in Francis Hall
believe it is haunted.
Sister Christen, who has
been a nun at Alvernia for
a number of years, seems
to remain neutral about the
rumors that have been circulating about the supernatural
experiences.
“I personally do not know
of any stories about Francis
Hall being haunted,” she said.
“Several years ago, when students lived there, a few of them
believed that Francis Hall was
haunted by a ghost.”
Yet some students who
have lived in Francis Hall
insist the building is haunted.
Although students do not
live in Francis Hall any more,
Alvernia students can still hear
ghost stories lingering from
students that have previously
lived there.
Photo courtsey of Gabrielle Cox
By Gabrielle Cox
Contributing Writer
The Phantom of the Opera played at the Academy of music in Philadelphia from March 19 through April 12.
April/May 2014
entertainment
11
Vol. 52 Issue 6
Let the Movies Begin
By Marisa Then
Contributing Writer
What will be the biggest hit
film of the coming summer?
Some people think that
“Godzilla” will be the big hit of
the summer. Gareth Edwards
has put together another must
see monster movie after his
blockbuster hit movie “Monsters.”
Featuring famous actors
such as Aaron Taylor-Johnson
and Elizabeth Olson, “Godzilla”
will take the audience for an
exciting adventure as the notorious creature resurfaces and
fights against malevolent creatures created by scientific ignorance.
This monstrous tale is due
to air on May 16.
“The Maze Runner” may
have less heat than “Godzilla,”
but may be a sleeper hit.
Featuring young and rising
actors Dylan O’Brien and Kaya
Scodelrio, “The Maze Runner”
is a sci-fi mystery movie based
off a series written by James
Dashner. Every 30 days a new
teen boy is placed in a giant
maze called “The Glade.” The
boys must live off the agriculture and supplies within
the maze in order to survive
until they can find a way out.
However, everything changes
when a girl arrives with a
message.
“The Maze Runner” jogs
into theaters on September
19.
“Lucy” stars Scarlett
Johansson and Freeman in
this action packed film. Lucy,
a city girl, is kidnapped and
used as a drug mule. However, the drug package inside
her starts to leak, causing
her to develop superhuman
powers. While humans are
said to only use 10% of their
brain, “Lucy” wonders what
we might do if we could use
it all. The drugs allow Lucy to
freeze time and learn Chinese
in an hour.
“Lucy” gets high on life on
August 8.
Not every film this
summer features heartpounding or mind-altering
action. “The Fault in Our
Stars” is a love story based
on John Greene’s novel. Two
teenagers, Hazel and Gus,
meet at a cancer support
group and instantly hit it off.
As with most teen movies,
their friendship quickly blossoms into a love like no other
as the two bond over a lifealtering disease.
It will be cancer’s fault on
June 6.
“Godzilla,” “The Maze
Runner,” “Lucy,” and “The
Fault in Our Stars” are bound
to be huge hits in theaters
across the country.
The best part?
These are only four out of
dozens of movies planned to
come out within the next few
months.
Get ready for another trip
to the movies starting this
May!
Everything
I learned, I
learned from movies
- Audrey Hepburn
Shaun White and the “Bad Things”
Shaun White left the Sochi
Olympics without a medal,
disappointing him and fans
everywhere.
White had the goal of not
only winning two gold medals
for the first time in the winter
Olympics, but was also determined to be the first winter
athlete to win three consecutive gold medals in the same
event in the Olympics.
White spent a lot of time
and many months preparing
for his Olympic events. However, he was also doing “Bad
Things”. Just months before
the Olympics, White and his
band, “Bad Things” signed to
Warner Bros. Records. The
band’s first single, “Anybody,”
was released on August 13.
The band released their
self-titled album on January
21, just weeks before White
left for Sochi.
“Bad Things” consists of
lead singer Davis LeDuke,
bassist Jared Palomar, guitarist Anthony Sanudo, drummer
Lena Zawaideh and Shaun
White as lead guitarist.
The
band
originally
started with White, Sanudo
and Zawaideh. LeDuke and
Palomar joined last year and
quickly began writing songs.
The timing of the band
Photo courtsey of Bad Things’ Twitter
By Paula Woodruff
Contributing Writer
“Bad Things”: Top from left to right Jared Palomar, Lena Zawaideh and Anthony Sanudo
Bottom from left to right Davis Le Duke and Shaun White.
starting up may have interfered with White’s practice
time.
In almost every preOlympic interview, White
mentions “Bad Things”. His
performance in the Olympics
could suggest that White is
becoming more interested in
the music industry and less
interested in his snowboarding career.
Many people observed
that White is very competitive, and one would think it
would transfer into his music
career as well. However, that
is not the case.
LeDuke is the front-man
of the band and White seems
happy being in the background. It seems as if White
is getting tired of always
being in the spotlight and just
wants to do what he loves
without being the center of
attention.
When the band performed
on The Tonight Show with
Jimmy Fallon, LeDuke takes
center-stage and captures
everyone’s attention. During
the performance, White was
the only member of the band
without a microphone and
the camera angles made it
seems as if White was just
fading into the background.
White chose his band over
the Burton U.S. Open.
On Sunday March 2, many
of snowboarding’s greatest
competitors headed to Vale,
Colorado.
White sat the Burton U.S.
Open out to play a show in
New York with “Bad Things”.
White’s lack of presence
on the slopes did not turn his
fans away because the show
was sold out. Most people
went to the show to see if the
band was legitimate and not
just a gimmick. To their surprise, the band was good and
sounded professional.
White has not expressed
any plans to retire from snowboarding. He continues to post
pictures from his GoPro on
Instagram and Twitter for his
fans.
“It’s a huge career change
for me to be doing music,”
White posted to his Facebook
page and Instagram on March
27, “but I think my roots still
will remain in the sports side
of things.”
Graduate and Adult Education
Summer
Sessıon
Starts May 12,
June 16 & July 3
r
e
t
s
i !
g
e
R day
To
Alvernia’s Summer Session offers Undergraduate and Graduate courses in accelerated Online and Blended formats. With three
start dates to choose from—May 12, June 16 and July 3—we make it easy for students to get ahead in a short amount of time.
Register today at alvernia.edu/summer
Courses are accredited and readily transferable. Financial Aid may be available; please contact Student Financial Planning to discuss your options.
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