Note from the Newsroom

NEWS

VIEWSLacking student diversity: Student Government just one example of Greek domination.

A&EKicking brass:NKU professor rises from small town to world stage.

Cover StoryThe Greek infl uence on SGA:How much is too much?

6 & 7

4 & 5

8

9

CRC feeling the burn:Despite large attendance, Campus Recreation struggles with budget.

3January 20, 2010

The NorthernerUniversity Center Room 335Highland Heights, KY 41076Editor in Chief: (859) 572-6128News & Sports: (859) 572-6677Features: (859) 572-5859Advertising: (859) 572-5232Fax: (859) 572-5772

E-mail: northerner@nku.edu

furtherdetailsEntire content is copyright of The Northerner and may not be reprinted without prior con-sent. Views expressed do not represent those of the administration, faculty or student body.The Northerner is considered a designated public forum. Student editors have authority to make all content decisions without censor-ship or advance approval. The Northerner staff respects the right to a free and open dialogue as allowed under the First Amendment.

PRINT EDITOR-IN-CHIEFMark Payne[paynem3@nku.edu]

WEB EDITOR-IN-CHIEFEmily Teaford [teaforde1@nku.edu]

PRESENTATION EDITORKarli Wood[woodk3@nku.edu]

VIEWS EDITORHeather Willoughby[willoughbh1@nku.edu]

A&E EDITORJeremy Jackson[jacksonj6@nku.edu]

PHOTO EDITORCharlotte Etherton[ethertonc1@nku.edu]

COPY EDITOREmily Christman[christmane1@nku.edu]

ADVISERGayle Brown[browng@nku.edu]

AD MANAGERWilliam Fisher[fi sherw1@nku.edu]

northernerstaff contactinformation

EDITORIAL CARTOONISTPatrick Delaney[delaneyp1@nku.edu]

ASST. PHOTO EDITORCassie Graves[gravesc2@nku.edu]

STAFF WRITERSMichael Willis[willism2@nku.edu]

Alex Owsley[owsleya1@nku.edu]

Brandon Barb[barbb1@nku.edu]

Jesse Call[callj1@nku.edu]

Vern Hockney[hockneyf1@nku.edu]

WHAT’S INSIDE

SPORTS 10 & 11Lady Norse drop fi rst at home:Winstel: ‘I feel like we were very inconsistent.’

COPY DESK CHIEFBetina Kemker[kemkerb1@nku.edu]

SPORTS EDITORDrew Laskey[laskeya1@nku.edu]

Getting involved on cam-pus is a crucial part of a stu-dent’s education. Here at Northern Kentucky Univer-sity the only students who are getting involved are Greek students. They make up a very small population of students, but represent the whole stu-dent body.

This situation can be viewed two ways: One, it’s good to have a solid, consistent group of students who continuously get involved. Two, we need a more diverse group of stu-dents joining student groups. By becoming more diverse, the market place of ideas will fl ow more freely, and the likelihood that one ideology dominates the majority di-minishes.

To get the full report, visit pages 6 and 7 to read Jesse Call’s story.

It’s also interesting to know how many Division I transfers are fi nding NKU. The men’s basketball team is becoming a hot spot for D-I players look-ing to make a big impact on a basketball program. The team is continuing to grow, so look for a run from the Norse.

To read the full report, visit page 11 for Kyle Biggs’ story.

- Mark PaynePrint editor-in-chief

EDITORIAL ADVISERRyan Clark[clarkr9@nku.edu]

NEWS

CRC feeling the burnDespite large attendance, Campus Recreation struggling with budgetVern HockneyStaff writer

4 Edition 45, Issue 2

Herophilus — the Greek physician who lived from 325-280 B.C. — said many years ago, “When health is absent, wisdom cannot reveal itself, art cannot manifest, strength cannot fi ght, wealth becomes useless and intelligence can-not be applied.” NKU stu-dents seem to have taken his warning to heart as 51 per-cent of students utilized the Campus Recreation Center during 2008-2009, according to the CRC Future commit-tee. But, despite good atten-dance numbers, the CRC is facing budget issues.

According to a presentation given to Student Government Association Jan. 11 by CRC Director Matt Hackett, “Stu-dents have come to expect high quality recreational pro-

grams, as well as state-of-the-art equipment and services.” Some of the issues brought before SGA were increasing CRC operating hours, as well as increasing student employ-ment, expanding the intramu-ral, club and outdoor adven-tures and — perhaps most importantly — increasing funding for sports clubs and establishing an equipment re-pair/replace fund.

Establishing an equipment repair/replace fund is one of the big issues right now for the CRC. They were given $150,000 last year by SGA to replace old equipment. Ac-cording to Hackett, “There were machines out of order or, in some cases, big holes where the machine was.” The CRC has replaced the broken

equipment, and in some cases upgraded, but Hackett also stresses that without a repair/replace fund the CRC will face the same problem again in the future.

The CRC looked at fi tness centers from seven other colleges: Western Kentucky University, Eastern Kentucky University, University of Ken-tucky, University of Nebraska Omaha, Oakland University, Southern Illinois at Edwards-ville and Eastern Michigan. The CRC future committee then compared NKU to these other universities to see how NKU measured up. In addi-tion to being one of the larg-est employers of students — more than 95 of them — the center must maintain equip-ment, buy new equipment

and pay other staff along with a myriad of daily operational costs with a fraction of the budget of comparable univer-sities. The average operating budget for the other seven universities was $1.46 million. NKU is operating on nearly half of that according to the CRC Future Committee.

In addition to operating on half of the budget of oth-er universities, NKU is also working with about half of the recommended space per student. According to the National Intramural Recre-ational Sports Association, a university the size of NKU should have 9.8 square feet of space per student. NKU cur-rently has 4.4 square feet per student, which can result in some close quarters when the

facility is particularly busy. According to Hackett, the Master Plan for NKU calls for a new CRC to be built, al-though he is unsure of when that will be.

Hackett said that the CRC weathered the worst part of the fi nancial storm last year when gas prices were topping $4 a gallon. Now he says the center has plans, but is just waiting for funds to become available. He also stresses that right now, it’s about what SGA wants to do with the presentation. When Presi-dent Keith Kaseke was asked about the presentation and what SGA was going to do, he responded that SGA will support the CRC but that the specifi cs were still in commit-tee.

Vern Hockney/Staff WriterThe Campus Recreation Center gives students a wide variety of options when it comes to physical exercise. Unfortunately, they do not allow students to be photographed while using the recreation center.

NEWS

5January 20, 2010

Tuesday, Jan. 12

4:36 p.m. Speakers unlaw-fully removed from room. 11:46 p.m. Received a report of subjects arguing in room.

Wednesday, Jan. 13

9:00 a.m. Two vehicle accident on Nunn Drive; no injuries.

1:58 p.m. Report of a subject selling answers to homework

solutions in BEP.

Thursday, Jan. 14

7:49 a.m. Two vehicle accident on Kenton and University Drive; injuries reported.

6:49 p.m. Unattended text-books were taken from table

in Norse Commons.

7:24 p.m. Unwanted commu-nication. Subject left note on

victim’s car.

Friday, Jan. 151:28 p.m Light fixture dam-

aged on Circle Drive.

4:14 p.m. Parking decal removed from unsecured

parked vehicle.

4:44 p.m. Student and father upset about academic stand-

ing.

Saturday, Jan. 16

10:31 p.m. Subject had verbal altercation with ex-girlfriend

at Woodcrest Apartments; property damage.

Sunday, Jan. 17

9:30 p.m. Subject reported she had lost her checkbook and was unable to find it.

College of Arts and Sciences:The Psychology club will host a open house at noon Jan. 20 in Business, Education and Psychology Building room 331. The open

house will feature free pizza and pop, a fac-ulty versus students game of Picturades. If

interested in joining Psychology club e-mail Mei Mei Burr at burri@nku.edu.

The College of Arts and Sciences will also be hosting a Chemistry Seminar at noon Jan. 20 in Science Center Room 308. The semi-nar will feature a presentation by Dr. Allan

Butterfield from the University of Kentucky. The presentation will review Butterfield’s research on Alzheimer’s Disease. Students of all majors are invited to attend. Contact

Patrick Hare at harep1@nku.edu.

The Office of African American Student Affairs:

The Office of African American Student Affairs will present a panel discussion that examines President Barack Obama’s first

year in office. The event is titled, “365 Days Later: Change or Status Quo?” The event will be at 12:15 p.m. Jan. 20 in Student Union 104.

Chase College of Law: NKU Chase College of Law will be hosting

an Information Session at 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 21.Prospective students will learn about the

application process, the LSAT, the timeline for applying, and what it is like to be a law student. A tour of the law school will be

provided.

Offi ce of Health, Counseling and Prevention Services:

The Office of Health, Counseling and Pre-vention Services is offering the H1N1 Vaccine from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday in University Center 440. NKU now has the injectable vaccine. All NKU students, faculty and staff are able to receive the shot. The cost

is $5.

College of Education and Hu-man Services:

The College of Education and Human Services will hold an information session to

learn about admission, program of study, our cohort model, and how the civic engagement and action-research dissertation projects can

help you make a difference as a leader in your community. The session is at 10 a.m. Jan. 23. in the Otto Budig theater located in the Univer-

sity Center.

To announce something in your college, e-mail The Northerner at northerner@nku.edu.

Across the universitynews briefs from around NKU

The fi rst Martin Luther King Jr. Day Reading began at noon Jan. 13 in the Student Union. The event was orga-nized by the African Ameri-can Student Affairs program and co-sponsored by the hon-ors program. Students from both organizations read many of the infl uential speeches and letters that Dr. King penned. Articles were also available for the public, if they wished to read a speech or letter that moved them.

The purpose of this event was “To expose as many ears as possible to the words of Martin Luther King,” said Honors Director Ernest Smith. By setting up a stage and PA system in the Student Union, it afforded a chance for Dr. King’s words to reach a large number of students, al-lowing them to refl ect on their meaning to them. It was ap-parent that Dr. King’s words and actions elicit different emotions from people. Mi-

chael Griffi n, African Ameri-can Student Affairs Coordina-tor, feels that Dr. King was the “Most complete champion of social justice,” constantly ad-dressing diffi cult issues such as civil rights, war, and pov-erty. He said that he was also a “Modern blueprint of social leaders.”

One of the readers present to honor Dr. King was Dr. Robert Wallace, of the English Department, read a selection by Dr. King entitled “Beyond

Vietnam.” Dr. Wallace was ac-tually at the Riverside Church in New York City on April 4, 1967 when Dr. King gave this speech. Surely the memories of the experience infl uenced Wallace’s own reading. “His voice totally fi lled the place and you were enraptured in his spirit,” Wallace said.

For Steven Johnson, one of the readers and a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Frater-nity, Dr. King has taught him that we must “Triumph over

circumstances, regardless of barriers…to create change in your community.”

One thing is certain, wheth-er you saw Dr. King give a speech or like so many of us have just read his works, there is something at once formi-dable, yet gentle about this man and his ways. Wallace compares Dr. King to Fred-erick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln in his ability to break very complex ideas down to a level anyone can understand.

Vern HockneyStaff writer

More than a day off workCelebrating the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr.

While some might say the recent impeachment scandals with the Student Government Association remind them of a Greek tragedy, others seem to think the real tragedy is the heavy involvement of Greek Life in student policymaking.

Among more than 15,000 students of Northern Ken-tucky University, only 40 are tasked with representing and defending the views of stu-dents to the University ad-ministration. Those students face the daunting task of rep-resenting the needs of all stu-dents on campus. However, the makeup of the SGA does not match the vast diversity of the student body. Some current and former SGA members are among those who question whether the organization can be effective in representing all students, particularly when so many of them are members of the same community, Greek life.

“I feel that Greek members are so involved because the Greek community is full of leaders, already having expe-rience in their own separate chapters,” said SGA Senator and Alpha Tau Omega mem-ber Chad Howe. “It could also be statistics. Greek life is larg-est on campus so ratio wise more people will be Greek.”

However, Greek Life stu-dents are actually a very small percentage of the entire stu-dent body.

Of the 33 positions that are currently fi lled in the SGA, 17 are fi lled by students involved in Greek life according to numbers released by the SGA, or 51.5 percent of the organiza-tion. However, less than half of one percent of NKU students

are involved in Greek Life, ac-cording to numbers provided by the Offi ce of Student Life.

Do student leaders in-volved in Greek Life think independently?

“I don’t know why Greek students are so involved on campus,” said SGA Senator Ebonique Moss. “However, I do feel as though it does oth-er organizations a disservice because the purpose of the organization is sometimes overlooked because of the letters worn by the student.”

Former SGA Vice Presi-dent Dennis Chaney said he thinks that because nearly two-thirds of the Student Senate is composed of Greek Life students, the risk is high that many of the few student representatives will tem-per their student activism to protect their fraternities or sororities. Chaney, who had been the only student on the Executive Board not involved in Greek Life, was recently removed form offi ce due to direct insubordination to the Executive Board.

“Now I’m not saying every Greek member on SGA is a robot that takes and follows instructions blindly without thinking,” Chaney explained, “but the culture of confor-mity and following the herd is ingrained in Greek life. Dress the same, associate with the same Greek circles and worry about what the (University) administration thinks because they are con-cerned with money for hous-ing, activities and recruiting more Greek members.”

Are Greek Life Students Natural Leaders?

However, most of those in-volved in Greek life and the SGA said they think other-wise.

“Student Government and the representation in it is not about who is Greek and not Greek,” said Student Senator Kevin Golden, who also serves as President of the Interfra-ternity Council (IFC). “It’s a nonpartisan organization where we are working for the advancement of the students and the university as a whole. We serve as the student voice to the administration and be-ing Greek doesn’t mean that we all have the same back-ground or ideas or even want all the same things.”

Some members of SGA’s executive board indicated that Greek life can contribute to effective student leadership.

“I would like to mention that Greek Life does prepare individuals to these leadership roles,” said SGA President and Student Regent Keith Kaseke, who also is a member of Pi Kappa Alpha. Kaseke thinks that leadership comes from within and Greek life just pre-pares students to take advan-tage of that leadership.

“In Greek life, we all strive to be leaders and student gov-ernment is an organization where you can really become that leader,” said Wade Miller, the vice president for commu-nication for the Interfraternity Council and SGA’s vice presi-dent for public relations, and is also a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon. “We strive to achieve goals and we have higher stan-dards.”

But Chaney seems to dis-agree that Greek life has a higher standard and reiterated that Greek life keeps students from thinking outside the box in determining solutions.

“NKU students I’ve met and got to know over the past four years generally view Greeks as acting like their still in high school while students are ex-pecting something better and more mature out of college,” Chaney explained. “Not sur-prisingly the Greeks had a high school prom themed dance this year. Greek cliques and popularity concerns develop into a culture of conformity of not thinking beyond the views of authority and popularly ac-cepted assumptions.”

But Miller said that one of the disadvantages of having so many Greek Life students in SGA is that they are subjected to inaccurate stereotypes.

Expert: Heavy Greek life in-volvement a sign of ineffective student representation

Having high involvement by Greek students in SGA is a com-mon scenario at colleges and universities, according to Butch Oxendine, the executive director of the American Student Gov-ernment Association, an orga-nization devoted exclusively to student governments and pro-viding them with networking, research and training resources. He also said that it is indicative of an ineffective student govern-ment that is unwilling to reach out to its constituents.

“Most student governments don’t promote themselves very well,” Oxendine said. “They are very poor at reaching out to their peers. The only time they

are good at it is during elections.”But, at least at NKU, Oxen-

dine seemed to indicate an inef-fectiveness in both.

Oxendine attributed NKU’s high amount of Greek life stu-dents in student government to the low voter turnout in SGA elections. In the most recent SGA presidential election, only 639 of the more than 15,000 NKU students voted for one of the presidential candidates on the ballot. He said Greek stu-dents tend to vote in blocks and are most likely to vote for candi-dates from their community.

In order to rectify the situa-tion and increase diversity in stu-dent representation, Oxendine said that every SGA member should be tasked with reaching out to a new student every day. He said they should meet face to face with students and ask them about their life as an NKU stu-dent and what they can do to im-prove it. Through this, Oxendine said he believes the SGA can reach out and increase diversity in the students that are impact-ing student policy. And, students will begin to see SGA as some-thing that works for and has an interest in them and not just in-terest of its members.

Nonetheless, Oxendine ad-mitted most SGAs do not really have an interest in doing that and are content with the way things are.

“Again, they are not some evil empire like Darth Vader,” Ox-endine said. “They’re doing what they do. They’re active people and involved people...They are involved much more than the general student body.”

Did Kaseke join Greek Life to gain votes?

Chaney indicated the Greek infl uence on the SGA might be more ominous. He alleges that Kaseke, his running mate, conspired during the campaign with Pi Kappa Alpha, or ‘the Pikes’, that he would join their fraternity in exchange for their votes, despite running on an an-ti-Greek ticket. Kaseke admits to running on an anti-Greek ticket, but he denies the allega-tion that he traded support for votes. Kaseke is now a member of Pi Kappa Alpha.

“No, that’s ridiculous. I don’t know what it is that (Chaney)’s trying to prove,” Kaseke said, adding, “I wish people could channel their efforts...to the stu-dents instead of things between two people.”

Serving Two Masters: Are they meeting all their commit-ments?

Many of the SGA leaders who responded to The Northerner in-dicated that one of the key dis-advantages to serving in both the SGA and being active in Greek Life was that the SGA took time away from their Greek obliga-tions and fi nding a balance to do both.

“I have had quite a busy sched-ule this week already. I have class until 9 p.m. on Monday and have an internship in Frankfort on Tuesdays and Thursdays on top of Homecoming Commit-tee stuff jumping in to full gear, and a full schedule of classes, so it is kind of funny you’re asking about involvement,” Golden said.

Even Miller admitted a “dis-advantage is that SGA is very time consuming and that can lead to not putting a lot of ef-fort in the organization.”

TheGreek influence on SGA:

Jesse Call Staff writer

How much is too much?

6 Edition 45, Issue 2 7January 20, 2010

While some might say the recent impeachment scandals with the Student Government Association remind them of a Greek tragedy, others seem to think the real tragedy is the heavy involvement of Greek Life in student policymaking.

Among more than 15,000 students of Northern Ken-tucky University, only 40 are tasked with representing and defending the views of stu-dents to the University ad-ministration. Those students face the daunting task of rep-resenting the needs of all stu-dents on campus. However, the makeup of the SGA does not match the vast diversity of the student body. Some current and former SGA members are among those who question whether the organization can be effective in representing all students, particularly when so many of them are members of the same community, Greek life.

“I feel that Greek members are so involved because the Greek community is full of leaders, already having expe-rience in their own separate chapters,” said SGA Senator and Alpha Tau Omega mem-ber Chad Howe. “It could also be statistics. Greek life is larg-est on campus so ratio wise more people will be Greek.”

However, Greek Life stu-dents are actually a very small percentage of the entire stu-dent body.

Of the 33 positions that are currently fi lled in the SGA, 17 are fi lled by students involved in Greek life according to numbers released by the SGA, or 51.5 percent of the organiza-tion. However, less than half of one percent of NKU students

are involved in Greek Life, ac-cording to numbers provided by the Offi ce of Student Life.

Do student leaders in-volved in Greek Life think independently?

“I don’t know why Greek students are so involved on campus,” said SGA Senator Ebonique Moss. “However, I do feel as though it does oth-er organizations a disservice because the purpose of the organization is sometimes overlooked because of the letters worn by the student.”

Former SGA Vice Presi-dent Dennis Chaney said he thinks that because nearly two-thirds of the Student Senate is composed of Greek Life students, the risk is high that many of the few student representatives will tem-per their student activism to protect their fraternities or sororities. Chaney, who had been the only student on the Executive Board not involved in Greek Life, was recently removed form offi ce due to direct insubordination to the Executive Board.

“Now I’m not saying every Greek member on SGA is a robot that takes and follows instructions blindly without thinking,” Chaney explained, “but the culture of confor-mity and following the herd is ingrained in Greek life. Dress the same, associate with the same Greek circles and worry about what the (University) administration thinks because they are con-cerned with money for hous-ing, activities and recruiting more Greek members.”

Are Greek Life Students Natural Leaders?

However, most of those in-volved in Greek life and the SGA said they think other-wise.

“Student Government and the representation in it is not about who is Greek and not Greek,” said Student Senator Kevin Golden, who also serves as President of the Interfra-ternity Council (IFC). “It’s a nonpartisan organization where we are working for the advancement of the students and the university as a whole. We serve as the student voice to the administration and be-ing Greek doesn’t mean that we all have the same back-ground or ideas or even want all the same things.”

Some members of SGA’s executive board indicated that Greek life can contribute to effective student leadership.

“I would like to mention that Greek Life does prepare individuals to these leadership roles,” said SGA President and Student Regent Keith Kaseke, who also is a member of Pi Kappa Alpha. Kaseke thinks that leadership comes from within and Greek life just pre-pares students to take advan-tage of that leadership.

“In Greek life, we all strive to be leaders and student gov-ernment is an organization where you can really become that leader,” said Wade Miller, the vice president for commu-nication for the Interfraternity Council and SGA’s vice presi-dent for public relations, and is also a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon. “We strive to achieve goals and we have higher stan-dards.”

But Chaney seems to dis-agree that Greek life has a higher standard and reiterated that Greek life keeps students from thinking outside the box in determining solutions.

“NKU students I’ve met and got to know over the past four years generally view Greeks as acting like their still in high school while students are ex-pecting something better and more mature out of college,” Chaney explained. “Not sur-prisingly the Greeks had a high school prom themed dance this year. Greek cliques and popularity concerns develop into a culture of conformity of not thinking beyond the views of authority and popularly ac-cepted assumptions.”

But Miller said that one of the disadvantages of having so many Greek Life students in SGA is that they are subjected to inaccurate stereotypes.

Expert: Heavy Greek life in-volvement a sign of ineffective student representation

Having high involvement by Greek students in SGA is a com-mon scenario at colleges and universities, according to Butch Oxendine, the executive director of the American Student Gov-ernment Association, an orga-nization devoted exclusively to student governments and pro-viding them with networking, research and training resources. He also said that it is indicative of an ineffective student govern-ment that is unwilling to reach out to its constituents.

“Most student governments don’t promote themselves very well,” Oxendine said. “They are very poor at reaching out to their peers. The only time they

are good at it is during elections.”But, at least at NKU, Oxen-

dine seemed to indicate an inef-fectiveness in both.

Oxendine attributed NKU’s high amount of Greek life stu-dents in student government to the low voter turnout in SGA elections. In the most recent SGA presidential election, only 639 of the more than 15,000 NKU students voted for one of the presidential candidates on the ballot. He said Greek stu-dents tend to vote in blocks and are most likely to vote for candi-dates from their community.

In order to rectify the situa-tion and increase diversity in stu-dent representation, Oxendine said that every SGA member should be tasked with reaching out to a new student every day. He said they should meet face to face with students and ask them about their life as an NKU stu-dent and what they can do to im-prove it. Through this, Oxendine said he believes the SGA can reach out and increase diversity in the students that are impact-ing student policy. And, students will begin to see SGA as some-thing that works for and has an interest in them and not just in-terest of its members.

Nonetheless, Oxendine ad-mitted most SGAs do not really have an interest in doing that and are content with the way things are.

“Again, they are not some evil empire like Darth Vader,” Ox-endine said. “They’re doing what they do. They’re active people and involved people...They are involved much more than the general student body.”

Did Kaseke join Greek Life to gain votes?

Chaney indicated the Greek infl uence on the SGA might be more ominous. He alleges that Kaseke, his running mate, conspired during the campaign with Pi Kappa Alpha, or ‘the Pikes’, that he would join their fraternity in exchange for their votes, despite running on an an-ti-Greek ticket. Kaseke admits to running on an anti-Greek ticket, but he denies the allega-tion that he traded support for votes. Kaseke is now a member of Pi Kappa Alpha.

“No, that’s ridiculous. I don’t know what it is that (Chaney)’s trying to prove,” Kaseke said, adding, “I wish people could channel their efforts...to the stu-dents instead of things between two people.”

Serving Two Masters: Are they meeting all their commit-ments?

Many of the SGA leaders who responded to The Northerner in-dicated that one of the key dis-advantages to serving in both the SGA and being active in Greek Life was that the SGA took time away from their Greek obliga-tions and fi nding a balance to do both.

“I have had quite a busy sched-ule this week already. I have class until 9 p.m. on Monday and have an internship in Frankfort on Tuesdays and Thursdays on top of Homecoming Commit-tee stuff jumping in to full gear, and a full schedule of classes, so it is kind of funny you’re asking about involvement,” Golden said.

Even Miller admitted a “dis-advantage is that SGA is very time consuming and that can lead to not putting a lot of ef-fort in the organization.”

TheGreek influence on SGA:

Jesse Call Staff writer

How much is too much?

6 Edition 45, Issue 2 7January 20, 2010

VIEWS

8 Edition 45, Issue 2

Brandon BarbStaff writer

Lacking student diversityStudent Government just one example of Greek domination

Where is the diversity? If Greeks are the only people joining the Stu-dent Government Association and other groups, then there isn’t a real student voice being heard. Take the aforementioned SGA, the majority of student government members are Greek. Now, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it only allows for a very tight-knit group to have say over is-sues that affect the rest of the student population.

That leads to the question: does one have to be Greek to join SGA? Some might say yes but actually, in my eyes, no. Being Greek should have no af-fect on whether a person should or shouldn’t be in a group organization.

Conformity is dangerous because it destroys the idea of the individual. And isn’t that what college is all about

— fi nding one’s self and being an in-dividual? But when freshmen fi rst get to college, they fl ock to Greek life be-cause that is the “norm” portrayed in movies and television. There is more out there but the blinders are put on as soon as that freshman foot touches campus.

But back to the issue at hand — Greeks in organizations.

I think the fact is that not every stu-dent knows about campus organiza-tions and what is going on within said organization, including SGA. That also plays into the fact that SGA and other organizations don’t work at at-tracting the average student. There has to be some effort to get students involved, or run the risk of getting people with the same views in the group. A group full of Greek life is

a perfect example of that recurring trend. Having the same people with the same views is driving away from the idea of diversity and being chal-lenged by something different. Con-formity — thy name is Greek life.

Now being part of Greek life isn’t all bad — they do contribute to the community and give back to those in need. Aside from that, what else is there? Bags and shirts with Greek let-ters? I’m not one of those people who say being in a fraternity or sorority is paying for friends, but something else happens: once someone is in a frat or sorority they began to drift into a world full of the same people, leaving those not in Greek life by the wayside.

Joining a group like a fraternity is destructive to one’s individuality. The defi nition of conform is “similar in

form or character.” Walking around campus, similar forms can be seen; all of the Greek letter bags and T-shirts are similar in form. Similar charac-ters can be seen as well — physi-cally speaking. I would rather save my breath on this issue because that would lead me on a wasted tirade. The evils of conformity are everywhere and they can be seen walking around Northern Kentucky University.

In SGA, there is a strong Greek life presence, meaning similar form and character from members. I am not one to say that is good or bad, but not having a different voice and opinion is most certainly a bad thing. Really, I think a different voice and opinion scares some of the people in SGA and it scares some on campus. Diversity — thy name is unknown.

She’s been playing the trumpet for more than half her life. From orchestral transcriptions, to Tejano, a traditional hybrid of country and Mexican music— the 35-year-old has crisscrossed the United States with some of North America’s most prestigious brass bands—performing

everything from jazz to classical. And although her talents have transported her to the doorsteps of many impressive musical ven-ues, she calls Cincinnati her cur-

rent home, and Northern Kentucky University her present passion.

“I love playing music, but I also love teaching it,” said Dr. Raquel Rodriquez, assistant professor of Trumpet. “I’m lucky that NKU af-fords me both those opportunities.”

Rodriquez grew up in the small Texas town of Kermit, where oil and

high school football are kings. She displayed a knack for music-making at an early age. But it was during a trumpet lesson, administered by her grandfather, where the family dis-covered the enthusiasm and talent pent up in the young girl, and how that precociousness could one day land her far from the arid, oil-well susurrus of her hometown.

“I had a passion for the trumpet early on,” Rodriquez said. “And it was through playing which gave me the ability to stand out in a small town.”

But more than standing out, the ability to play the trumpet allowed Rodriquez the opportunity to at-tend college, eventually leading her to graduate with a bachelor, master’s and doctorate degree in music. The degrees and musical talent ultimate-ly gave way to a stint in teaching that spanned across universities in Kan-sas and Oklahoma.

“I really wanted to see how far I could go in my education and to also see how good I could get at playing,” Rodriquez said. “But I also wanted to become a professional musician.”

And it would be touring with the Synergy Brass Quintet (touted as one of the busiest brass ensembles in the country) that Rodriquez gained a sense of what playing professional-ly was all about. But it was also while touring in which she was reminded of how she longed for the days in which teaching music was her chief vocation.

“I taught at universities in the past and wanted to really get back to affecting young, outgoing minds,” Rodriquez said. “It was during this time that NKU was doing a national search for a music department posi-tion.”

Rodriquez applied for the job, and eventually got it. And although the conclusion of last semester marked her first year at NKU, her position is one which requires the donning of many hats, to include: teaching applied trumpet, brass methods and beginning conducting. On top of that, this spring she will conduct the Con-

cert Band (which is made up of stu-dents from any discipline of study at NKU, in order to afford them the op-portunity to play in a college band).

In conjunction with teaching these days, Rodriquez is still highly en-gaged in the brass band experience, traveling with a Kansas City-based ensemble called the Fountain City Brass Band, where she plays the cor-net (a trumpet-like instrument).

“Raquel is a passionate musician, and a person for that matter,” said Lee Harrelson, artistic director and solo euphoniumist in the brass band.

The group, which recently em-barked on a prestigious tour of the United Kingdom, in which they com-peted in various high level brass band competitions, returned with top honors in the Scottish Open Brass Band Championship.

“We are the first American band to ever win a major competition on UK soil,”Harrelson said.

“All of us were very excited to go there and win,” Rodriquez said. “But for me teaching is where I cur-rently want to be. It is the best job in the world.”

9January 20, 2010

A&E

Jeremy JacksonA&E Editor

Kicking some brassNKU professor rises from small town to world stage

• Dr. Raquel Rodriquez will be performing on

March 25 & April 22 in Greaves Hall.

• Rodriquez can play all of the traditional brass

instruments. (Trumpet, horn, trombone &

tuba.)

• She also play more exotic instruments

such as the Didgeridoo, from Aboriginal Australia.

?Did you know

Photo courtesy of: Raquel Rodriquez

SPORTS

10 Edition 45, Issue 2

Drew LaskeySports Editor

Lady Norse drop fi rst at homeWinstel: ‘I felt like we were very inconsistent’

Tim Downer/Staff PhotographerKelsey Simpson was one of the strong players that helped the Lady Norse defeat UW Parkside. Women’s basketball will be playing at home Jan. 23.

A few pairs of free throws in the final minutes gave Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville women’s basketball team the slight lead over NKU Jan. 13 — one NKU would not overcome in their loss 56-53.

Ashley Bey of SIUE (3-15) sank two free throws with 36 seconds left to play to give the Cougars the lead. Bey then connected on two more with only seconds remain-ing to secure the victory. She finished the game with 12 points, five assists and six re-bounds.

The lady Norse are now 11-6 overall with a Grand Valley Lakes Conference re-cord of 5-3, tied with Quincy for fifth place. This was the first home loss for the lady Norse this season.

Sophomore guard Casse Mogan led the lady Norse in scoring with 16 points and

gathered five rebounds along the way. Senior guard Rachel Lantry added 13 points, sev-en rebounds and two blocks.

NKU shot out to an early 8-2 run to start the game and led well into the second half, but inconsistency prevented the Norse from maintaining that lead to the end, Coach Nancy Winstel said.

“I felt like we were very inconsistent,” Winstel said. “I think good teams rebound and play solid defense ev-ery day, all the time and we don’t do that on a consistent note. We play defense and re-bound like we shoot the ball — and that’s very inconsis-tently,” Winstel said.

NKU had its fair share of foul trouble in this game, too. The lady Norse gave SIUE 18 free throw attempts and 6-foot junior center Kendra Caldwell received her fifth foul only 12 minutes into

the second half, giving her an early exit from the game. The Black and Gold commit-ted 15 turnovers in the game, one less than their average of 16 per game, which Winstel says kept them from staying in rhythm.

“Taking care of the ball has to be there every game and unfortunately it hasn’t been a consistent factor for us all year long,” Winstel said. “You have to give SIUE a lot of credit -- they only had two wins but they have played a very, very tough schedule and they weren’t intimidat-ed by the situation by any means. They knew they had a chance to win the game to-ward the end and they went and took it from us.

“Generally, the team that makes the least mistakes wins the game and at the end of the game Edwardsville made plays and we didn’t,”

Winstel said.Although the 18 free

throw attempts by SIUE isn’t a mind-boggling statis-tic, a number of those fouls coming in the final few min-utes played a huge role in the outcome of the game. And although a 66.7 percent free throw percentage for SIUE also isn’t so startling, their ability to sink clutch foul shots is what ultimately sealed the win.

Being shorthanded from not having the post de-fense of Caldwell, the Norse seemed to have difficulty de-fending the paint against SI-UE’s imposing frontline and guard penetration.

“I thought that we played hard, but other times we played like we were tired and we didn’t have our legs under us,” Mogan said. “We had a tough time fighting against their bigger post players. At

times we had to go with a smaller line up and that hurt us in the rebounding battle. They were a very good Divi-sion I team and I think this game made us realize that if we don’t come ready to play every game it would be diffi-cult to win,” Mogan said.

The lady Norse will have a chance to rebound Jan. 23 game against Bellarmine, and Mogan thinks the team will be more than ready to make up for Wednesday’s loss.

“Because of our loss we need to take this and fuel the fire,” Mogan said. “We need to take our loss and turn it into something positive— and that loss showed us what we needed to work on to make our team better.

“Our team is very close to each other and we know what we need to do to get the job done,” Mogan said.

SPORTS

11January 20, 2010

Kyle BiggsContributing Writer

Transfer players land at NKUMen’s basketball team attracting Division I athletes

The Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team has eight new players on the roster this year, and fi ve of those players started their col-lege careers elsewhere.

The fi ve transfer athletes who hope to make an impact will be led by three that have come to NKU from Division I programs. Senior center Da-vid Palmer is one player that journeyed through several pro-grams before landing at NKU.

“I originally attended Se-ton Hall University in the Big East,” Palmer said. “Then I transferred to the University of Iowa.”

Palmer is one of the three Division I transfers along with junior forward Yan Moukoury from the University of Hous-ton and junior forward Chris

Knight from Bowling Green State University. The other two transfers are junior guard Mike Hester from Union College and junior center Brandon Cal-lahan from Marian University.

The fi ve transfer athletes have a chance to contribute this season, with hopes to re-peat the recent success of the NKU men’s basketball pro-gram within the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The team won the GLVC Championship last season and hopes to repeat the accomplishment. Palmer is hopeful for more than just a conference championship, however.

“I hope we are in strong con-tention for a national champi-onship,” he said.

Palmer’s hope actually helped lure another one of the

Division I transfers to NKU. Knight attributes his transfer-ring to Palmer — telling him that the team would be a con-tender at the national Division II level.

“I decided at the end of summer,” Knight said. “David Palmer told me we had a good chance to win a D-II title.”

Palmer attended the Univer-sity of Iowa, a Division I school in the Big Ten conference. The enrollment at Iowa for this aca-demic year is around 30,000, signifi cantly larger than NKU’s enrollment of about 15,000. Av-erage attendance for an Iowa basketball home game last sea-son was 12,000. Again, larger than the crowds that NKU teams bring to the Bank of Kentucky Center. He says the school size is much more com-

parable to NKU than Iowa.“NKU compares almost ex-

actly to Seton Hall,” he said, “but is a lot smaller than Iowa was.”

Knight also attended a school slightly larger in Bowl-ing Green State University — with an enrollment of more than 20,000 the school still has a signifi cant edge in size on NKU.

“Bowling Green was a col-lege town,” Knight said. “NKU is in its own small area.”

Despite the recent success and the opportunity to sustain it, the appeal of NKU to trans-fer athletes does not lie solely with the idea of basketball championships. For example, despite the size differences between the players’ former schools and current school, the athletic facilities are no com-

parison.“Part of the appeal of NKU

was the brand new facility,” Palmer said about the two-year-old Bank of Kentucky Center. “It is state of the art.”

Other things Knight and Palmer mentioned that make NKU appealing were the tra-dition of the program, a great coaching staff, and very intense effort despite the smaller level of competition. All of these things come together and make NKU a very reasonable desti-nation for a student athlete.

Knight’s explanation was simple when it came to de-scribing NKU in general, leav-ing little to be said of the total package.

“It’s a great place,” he said.And all of the other transfer

athletes agreed on that.