ECCObserver

ECC Bond Referendum passes narrowly

2009-04-08T14:24:00.000-07:00

ECC's Bond Referendum has passed; after a long night of ballot counting that carried beyond 1:00 AM, the referendum was approved by a margin of only 29 votes.

The vote total came to19,456 residents in support of the plan, and 19,427 opposing it. The $178 million plan will renovate the library and student resource center, build a health careers center and several other projects detailed in articles from our March edition, listed below.

More referendum and trustee election coverage to in the April edition of the ECC Observer, on racks and online on April 27.

Referendum in perspective: How ECC will spend the money

2009-03-31T08:45:00.000-07:00

Should the Bond Referendum pass on April 7, ECC will be granted
a total amount of $178 million from community taxpayers. This
chart breaks down ECC’s plans for the money (all monetary
amounts in millions).

Graph by Jessica Hagendorn

ECC to start weekend classes

2009-03-31T08:43:00.000-07:00

Chester Roush
Staff Writer
In order to better accomodate student availability, ECC will offer more weekend courses during the fall 2009 semester. These courses will range from Associates Degree to occupational courses, with visual and performing arts classes on Sundays.

“Coming to school [on] weekends, for a lot of people, is something they would prefer to do,” said Vince Pelletier, Vice President of Teaching, Learning and Student Development.

In addition to expanding its weekend class roster, ECC is also trying to extend its support services, such as the library or bookstore, to the weekend.

“We’ve had meetings with the library, meetings with the deans, and meetings with the cabinet,” said Pelletier. “We’re putting together all the support services. It’ll be more extensive than what we already have.”

The new weekend classes will mostly be taught by teachers who already teach on the weekend.

“It’s not really a new program, it’s just pulling existing things together into a new initiative,” said Sarah Dye, the president of the ECC Faculty Union.

Down to the wire: Referendum, trustees await voters’ decision

2009-03-31T08:38:00.000-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
The ATC Auditorium hosted a panel of moderated discussion between candidates running for two vacant seats on ECC’s Board of Trustees as well as about the upcoming District 509 Bond Referendum.

If passed, the referendum will provide ECC with $178 million, with $156.6 million going toward a new health careers center, a library and learning center, public safety training facilities for the region, a new multipurpose classroom center, and to renovate the Student Resource Center, which is the oldest building on campus.

The increase to tax payers will be minimal, with the tax level remaining below where it was five years ago. The property tax will be about 23 dollars more annually for those with property worth $200,000.

None of the money provided by the referendum would be used to pay for the operating costs of the new buildings; tuition increases, starting in 2011, will cover those costs.

As for the trustees, Both Robert Getz and Diane Stredde’s terms are ending, and while Stredde is not running for re-election on April 7, Getz is running to reclaim his seat, fighting newcomers Dr. Donna Schuring-Redmer, Rick Green, and Robin Lisboa.

At the panel each candidate was given ten minutes to introduce themselves to the audience. They also covered the most basic questions voters typically ask in that time slot: Why do they want to be part of the Board of Trustees? Can they put in the time? What would their strengths as a Board Member be?

“I just love ECC,” said Schuring-Redmer, a retired educator and ECC graduate herself. “It has given me the opportunity to develop my own career.”

Three of Redmer’s five children and her step-daughter have also graduated with degrees from ECC.

Green, also a graduate of the college, returned to teach in the automotive department and retired after 30 years. He’s now a part-time ECC student and takes classes with some of his former students.

“I try very hard to look at both sides of an issue, and ask the right questions of the right people,” Green said.

The incumbent Getz highlighted fiscal responsibility as a characteristic of a trustee.

“The reason I wish to continue to participate in the role of Trustee is to assist the college in supporting our state and nation as it recovers from the current financial crisis,” said Getz.

If reelected, Getz would enter his second six-year term. He said one of his goals for his second term is to build a ten-acre complex near the golf course adjacent to ECC’s main campus where soldiers can live with their families while attending ECC.

Lisboa is a local educator. She was the Director of Project S.T.E.P., has taught at both the elementary and college levels, and is currently a public policy administrator for the state.

“I want to be an ECC Trustee because I want to ensure my community provides every individual, who chooses to pursue a post-secondary education, the opportunity to attend an institution that is accessible, supportive and committed to helping them complete their educational goals,” said Lisboa.

After introductions, the floor was opened up to questions from the audience. The students did not ask questions of the candidates, but the faculty and staff had a lot they wished to know.

“What should [ECC] stop doing?” Sarah Dye, President of the Faculty Union, asked. “What should we continue doing? What should we start doing?”

Redmer had some very specific answers on what the college needs to do to improve, such as the need to start working with students as young as fourth-graders.

“There was a heavy concentration on [high school] seniors, and that’s way too late to get these students involved,” Redmer said.

ECC’s Director of Performing Arts Steve Duchrow wanted to know what the candidates’ views on acceptance into the college were.

“Does everyone have a right to education at this college or do we limit it to certain groups?” Duchrow asked.

“It’s a community college,” Getz replied. “It’s for the entire community.”

New course finds 'natural' strengths

2009-03-31T08:36:00.000-07:00

Stephanie Gotter
Staff Writer
The Establishing Leaders course at ECC kicked off on February 20. Led by Amy Beth Maurer, the class is designed to explore leadership qualities in students. The course approach is that student leaders don’t necessarily need leadership experience; more important are the leadership qualities within students.

Maurer, who works for Student Life at ECC, wants the class to focus on what qualities the students already have and expand on them. Maurer believes that too often bosses, teachers and elders tend to focus on the negative aspects of one’s performance, when attention to one’s strengths could make a huge difference in overall performance.

The class is a very intimate group of about ten. Maurer likes the class this size as the students come to know each other better and get more comfortable with themselves. Half of the class focuses on learning what strengths a person already has, while the next half of the class is spent on how to apply those strengths.

The class is also designed to show that anyone can be a leader.

In the book for the class, StrengthsQuest, by Donald O. Clifton and Edward Anderson, the theme is that one does not need to be well-rounded in every part of their life.

Instead, one should focus on what they are already good at and become stronger in that aspect, in turn making them naturally well-rounded.

Maurer emphasizes that “strengths are natural,” and said we need to build our connection with others in positive, strong relationships.

“The greatest leaders build healthy relationships with others,” Maurer said.

Alum returns to teach screenwriting class

2009-03-31T08:33:00.000-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
No ‘ing’ words or introductions allowed. This is just one rule students learned in a special screenwriting course recently offered at ECC. The classes were taught by Mat Elfring, who also taught a special class on comic books this time last year. Elfring noted the common student’s ignorance to screenwriting practices.

“Most people just know creative writing, novel writing, poetry,” said Elfring.

Originally a short story writer himself, Elfring was encouraged to pursue writing scripts by ECC English instructor Rachel Tecza when he was a student. Now he holds a degree in it as well as in critical film analysis.

The course was spread out over three sessions that covered the basics of screen writing and the industry. The first class focused on pre-writing, the second was about formatting and the last was about revising and selling a script.

“Here’s what a bad script looks like,” Elfring said as the last class started. “It’s one of mine.” Then he let the four students pick his work apart, exercising what they’d already learned.

“I wouldn’t mind it [the course] being a regular class,” student Jake Pauling said. Pauling is also taking a fiction writing class this semester.

Becky Teets, another student in the class, agreed.

“I think he has a lot of good information, more than he can share in three nights, unfortunately,” Teets said.

It is uncertain whether or not the course will be brought back next year, although Elfring is looking into the possibility of creating a critiquing group, not unlike the Creative Writing Club, specifically for script writers.

However, according to Elfring, writing a script and getting it made into a movie are two completely different things. In his opinion, the chances are near zero.

“You have to be amazing at what you do, and have a second job,” Elfring said.

Election Endorsements: Students should elect Redmer, Green and pass referendum

2009-03-31T08:30:00.000-07:00

Staff Editorial
With local elections coming on April 7, the Observer would like to endorse candidates for the election of two trustees to the ECC Board of Trustees. Four candidates are running for the seats: encumbant Bob Getz, Robin Lisboa, Richard Green and Dr. Donna Schuring-Redmer.

Green, an Elgin resident and a graduate of ECC, served the school for 30 years as an automotive professor, and is now a part-time student. There is no reason he should be limited to this role in our college.

As a trustee, students can expect Green to bring his three decades of hands-on experience with students and faculty to the table as a factor in his decision making. Being a student at the college will also bring a students perspective to the boardroom. Green has also expressed concern over college affordability and has supported working with state legislators and pursuing grants to help lower tuition.

Dr. Redmer is also a fine choice to represent the community in the Board.

Redmer, a retired teacher with a doctorate in Educational Leadership, graduated from ECC with an Associate degree in 1976, and is currently involved with Kane County’s Office of Education Support, as well as Dundee-Crown High School’s restructuring plan. Redmer not only worked in education as both a teacher and adminstrator, but is a co-owner of a family business.

Both Redmer and Green support the passing of the $178 million bond referendum, also on the ballot on April 7, and stress the need to renovate the library with the money, should the referendum pass.

This sentiment is undoubtedly representative of much of the student body and faculty. Our library is insufficiently funded and entirely too small. As Dr. Sam said at ECC’s Founder’s Brunch, our library is smaller than many high school libraries.

Also on the list of changes expected if the referendum passes, are a new health careers center, a library and learning center, public safety training facilities for the region, a new multipurpose classroom center and a renovation for the Student Resources Center, which outdates any other building on campus.

And while the referendum will result in a small tax increase, about $23 dollars for taxpayers with $200,000 in property, the tax level will still be lower than they were in 2003.

Our community colleges supposed to be partially funded by taxpayers in an effort to provide quality, affordable education to those very same taxpayers. There is no reason we, as students, should pass on the improvements we will surely see with the passing of the referendum, only because we want to save a few dollars a month.

Silence useless in provoking change

2009-03-31T08:29:00.000-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
I am a voice. In a world where there are so many things that people can’t say, it is the duty of those of us who can speak out to do so. Yet, there are so many times when I stand by and say nothing at all. What difference can my words make, I think.

If people don’t say something how will problems ever be brought to light, discussed, solved? It doesn’t matter if it’s spoken to a friend, discussed at an Amnesty International meeting, or published in a newspaper as long as we just say something.

“If the stories aren’t being told, then the discussion stops and that’s where we get into ugly territory,” said Leslie Berestein, an immigration reporter from the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Who are the silent majority? The people who can vote but don’t. Those who are in emotionally unhealthy relationships but remain silent. Christians who let the bigoted among them speak for the compassionate rest. So why do they remain silent? Why do we? Most of us are classified as part of a silent majority. What is the person in the next chair not saying, I wonder. Perhaps something amazing would happen if only he’d speak.

If Gandhi had decided it was better not to say a word perhaps India would still be controlled by Britain. There might have been no Martin Luther King Jr., at least not as we know him, and no Civil Rights movement, had King decided to remain silent. If Jason Russell, Bobby Bailey, and Laren Poole, three California college students, had decided to say nothing about what they saw in Uganda, the film “Invisible Children: Rough Cut” might never have been made. The non-profit group probably wouldn’t exist, and thousands of children might still be fighting. The band Barlow Girls has a line in their song “Million Voices,” that says “We’re the million voices breaking silence/‘til they’ll remember we were here.”

One voice can become an hundred voices, then a million, and then, maybe, something will change. If that single person never breaks the silence, though, and stays a part of the silent majority, nothing will ever happen. I am a voice. We are all a voice.

Much opportunity to be found in crisis

2009-03-31T08:24:00.000-07:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
Today’s unpredictable stock market, high unemployment rates, rising gas prices and escalating foreclosures can make one feel more emotional than rational.

A couple months ago I was talking to my friend about predictions Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and Actor/Filmmaker/Nixon speechwriter Ben Stein made when discussing the economy.

They predicted if things did not improve, we would soon be heading for a depression. One of my friends, who is not typically pessimistic, had this to say: “We are in times that we have not been in before. Therefore, it is impossible to predict what is going to happen.”

At first, I did not understand his optimistic philosophy. After all, Mayor Daley is the mayor of Chicago, and he has knowledge about the results of the kind of fallout we are facing.

My friend then explained to me everyone in life has the same opportunity as the next person to make money. Sure these are brave, heroic words to utter, but do they really hold true? In the following days, I gave our conversation much thought.

Then one day it hit me, and I understood what he meant. As I recounted in my journal, the Chinese word for crisis is opportunity.

Successful people are successful because they look for opportunities in times of crisis. Instead of feeling self pity, they take action. They look for ways to improve the situation. They take a rational approach instead of an emotional one.

Currently we are all in uncertain and perilous times. There is no telling when things are going to get better, or what it will take to turn things around. Keeping a positive attitude can help. If we steer clear of being emotional, we will be less stressed out, and this can result in fewer health problems.

By remaining rational and finishing our (albeit expensive) educations instead of dropping out of school, we can retain our opportunities to get better jobs when this economic crisis is over.

Not everything happening in these hard times is negative. We all hear about the big box companies (such as Circuit City) going out of business; this could be an opportunity for new, stronger businesses to open. Families have been in despair, but with this economic crisis, there has been a chance to bring the family unit together again.

In the past, the economy has always had its ups and downs. If we remember to keep a vigilant attitude by being rational instead of emotional, it will make us stronger in the process and get us through these hard times.

Facebook eligibility debate continues

2009-03-31T08:22:00.000-07:00

Maria Bourlokas
Staff Writer
Facebook has been a popular networking website since 2004. The website was created primarily for college students, but is used for professional networking, finding old classmates, and for anyone wanting to keep in touch with family and friends. Now in 2008, Facebook’s servers are home to 224 million users, aged from high school and college students to senior citizens. When it was created, Facebook required prospective members to have a college e-mail address, like johnsmith@ college.com. However, on September 26th 2006, Facebook opened their site to the general public.

The main reason many students are using facebook today is to keep in touch with friends from high school, and those who have gone away to a different college. When asked why they used facebook instead of MySpace, students gave several reasons.

“I use it more often cause it’s not full of too much junk and you can chat with whoever you want,” ECC student Casey Dezwijger said. “It tells you when people are online, It’s like AIM (AOL instant messanger) and MySpace mixed together, (like the) best of both worlds”

As the internet becomes more abundant in households, parents have begun to join Facebook to monitor their children. A debate has been raging since Facebook’s switch to public membership, and some students are a bit cautious about the idea of their parents, aunts or uncles and even their bosses being able to view their profiles.

“I really don’t mind having family members on Facebook, it’s a fun way to share pictures and stuff with family,” ECC student Jana Smith said. “But it’s also a little weird that your mom can see everything you’re doing.”

Some of the newly eligible adults agree with this idea. As ECC teacher Anna Lalley believes, for children under 17 that are still living at home, if the parents want to inspect their profile, they should be allowed to do so.

“Those 18+ should be allowed to display anything they may like, because they are an adult,” Lalley said.

Jake Burau, an ECC student who uses Facebook for convenience, agreed.

“Since I’m on my own, I don’t see my family very often, so having Facebook keeps us in touch without wasting so many of our minutes,” Burau said.

Bulls legend speaks at UBC

2009-03-31T08:14:00.000-07:00

All photos by Conor Clarke

Love enters the University and Business Center’s
Seigle Auditorium on March 18.

Love speaks with passion about his life struggles,
which he wrote about in The Bob Love Story: If It’s
Gonna Be, It’s Up to Me, published in 1999.

Bulls legend Bob Love signs a calendar for a
young fan after his motivational speech.

Love gives an autograph to ECC women’s basketball
coach Jerry McLaughlin

James Ayello
Staff Writer
Sometimes, certain stories only seem to exist in Hollywood. Only in a movie script would a man begin his life at the bottom of society, rise to its summit, fall back down to where he started and then rise to the top once more. But some men live those stories, and the Elgin community met one of them on March 18 when former Chicago Bull Bob Love came to ECC’s University Business Center. Love spoke to students, faculty and community members in a motivational speech that detailed parts of his life.

When he was a child, Love had a dream: he was dribbling by and scoring on the greatest basketball stars in the world. In reality, however, he was playing alone with a ball composed of his grandfather’s old rolled-up socks and stuffed with grass; he was shooting into a stretched-out coat hanger nailed to the side of a house in Bastrop, Louisiana. Love’s dream would be one that he would later make into reality. Imagination was never the problem for Love; if he wanted to, he could imagine himself as Doctor Martin Luther King or President John F. Kennedy, giving a speech to a mass of eager Americans hanging on his every word. This dream too would come true—just not as easily as his basketball one.

“All those (accolades) that I received when I was playing: the All-Americans, the All-Stars, the All-Pros,” Love said during his speech. “You know what, I would like to give it all back… for the mere fact that I’m able to stand here this morning before you and utter one single word… It’s a dream come true.”

Despite having basketball talent that granted him not only a scholarship to Southern University in Louisiana but a spectacular basketball career in the NBA (in which he set many records), Love kept a secret. In his documentary, “Find Yourself a Dream: The Bob Love Story,” it was said that many held a bad opinion about Love.

“He had a reputation of being unapproachable and not giving interviews to the press,” explained the film’s narrator. “In those days many thought he was inarticulate, angry or just plain ignorant. As a young child he was cursed with a debilitating stutter. It was so severe he could utter no more than two words without stuttering incomprehensibly. He rarely spoke in public and only family and close friends accepted him for who he was.”

After ten enormously successful years in the NBA, Love suffered a back injury and was forced to retire. One day, after his second surgery in which the doctor told him he would never walk correctly again, he came home to find his wife had left him and had taken everything of his. She left a note that said she did not want to spend her life with a cripple that couldn’t talk. He was devastated. He had no choice but to go out and get a job to support himself. He became a bus boy and a dishwasher in Seattle, Washington— not a normal career choice for a retired basketball superstar, but with his severe speech impediment, no one would give Love an opportunity.

Love’s obstacles would be enough to derail almost anyone.

However, he decided to stay on track and become the best at what he did. Blocking out all of the whispers of customers that recognized who he used to be, Love became so dedicated to his job that his managers began to take notice. They were so appreciative of his work ethic, they decided they wanted make him a permanent part of the company. They offered to pay for speech therapist to help Love liberate himself from the impediment that had imprisoned him his entire life. Love, waiting for this type of opportunity for his entire life, took the lessons.

Today, Love has made speaking his profession, as he talks to more than 250,000 young people each year, including those students that attended his speech at ECC. He is now the director of Community Affairs for the Chicago Bulls.

Budget decorating course offers solutions

2009-03-31T08:11:00.000-07:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
A small group of ECC students took part in a new non-credit class offering knowledge of budget decorating on March 5. The two hour, non-credit course is entitled “Decorating on a Budget.” Instructor Joyce Kocinski offered solutions on the “how-to” of no-cost and low-cost decorating.

According to Kocinski, no-cost decorating is redesign, cleaning the clutter and changing accessories, while low-cost decorating is painting, changing light fixtures or changing furniture at low prices.

Kocinski recommends hiring decorators to decide on a budget and purpose, taking photos of the room, using a design checklist, clearing clutter, rearranging and eliminating furniture, painting, improving lighting and accessorizing.

According to Kocinski, supporting the focal point of the room, improving the conversation area and having sufficient lighting are all using what you have.

The course also discussed eco-friendly decoration using recycled products. According to Kocinski, bamboo, cork and linoleum are all renewable, ecofriendly resources. Bamboo is extremely durable and harder than redwood or maple, while cork and linoleum have recycled content and are good for foot support.

There are also countertop options such as Icestone, Richlite, Kirei and Cambria that are recyclable materials, according to Kocinski.

Kocinski also offered solutions on decorating dilemmas and advised students where to find bargains in local thrift stores and hotel furniture liquidators in the area.

Besides teaching the Decorating on a Budget course at ECC, Kocinski instructs Interior Design with Feng Shui and Clearing Clutter with Feng Shui courses. She received her B.A. in education from the University of Illinois-Chicago, and also has a Master’s Degree in education. In addition, Kocinksi has a degree in Interior Design and has been practicing for more than 20 years.

Student Rachel Mascarella took the Budget Decorating class because she was remodeling her home.

“I’m getting great ideas for my home redesign,” Mascarella said.

Stranger than ‘Fiction:’ an odd but surprising collaboration

2009-03-31T08:08:00.000-07:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
Jon Foreman of alt-rock outfit Switchfoot and Sean Watkins of the acoustic trio Nickel Creek walk into a bar. No, this isn’t an overused joke. This is the story of how Foreman and Watkins formed their new collaborative project Fiction Family, whose debut album of the same name combines their respective styles in a way that gives rise to a unique form of cutesy folk-pop.

The disc starts off with its first single, “When She’s Near,” which is about as sickeningly sweet as one can get, although not particularly in an unfortunate way.

Some lyrical clichés aside, the song is still the musical embodiment of the feeling of driving your car around with the windows rolled down.

The contrast between Foreman’s and Watkins’ respective vocals plays out as an advantage for Fiction Family. The fifth and sixth tracks, “Elements Combined” and “War in My Blood,” show off that contrast the most effectively, with Watkins providing the lead vocals on “Elements” and Foreman taking the reins on “War.” Foreman’s vocals are subtle and quirky, carrying any and every melody in an almost nonchalant way. Watkins’ vocals, however, are crisp and clear, giving sustenance to a starving song.

Although not entirely dysfunctional, the Family is still not without its complications. Foreman sings the track “Betrayal," which chronicles a man’s confusing murder of his best friend, in a morbidly matter-of-fact way. While undoubtedly intended to be philosophically provocative, the song ends up feeling only disturbingly deranged, although it does feature breathtaking guitar. “Please Don’t Call it Love” presents another frustrating problem. Amid spot-on and impressive guitar, appropriately paired with melancholy vocals, the song still insists upon falling flat for no apparent reason.

Fiction Family does redeem themselves, however, on many of the album’s additional tracks. “Mostly Prove Me Wrong” stands out as one of its strongest, introducing a breezy melody coupled with lyrics that firmly lodge themselves into a listener’s head. On “Not Sure,” the longing inherent in the lyrics is also poignantly captured though Watkins’ vocals. The album ends on a perfect note with “Look For Me Baby,” a track that blissfully sums up the entire album’s retro feel.

Fiction Family gives off a light and airy vibe, which almost guarantees that it will be remembered by those who actually listen to it. However, it is doubtful whether Fiction Family will be able to attract any new fans and ascend from their moderate obscurity; more than likely, the current listeners of Fiction Family will be comprised of the previous listeners of Foreman’s and Watkins’ respective acts. Although their debut has its problems, Fiction Family still overcomes the initial strangeness of their partnership and surprises with a mostly pleasant collection of songs.

Blizzard Auditorium plays host to real ‘guitar hero’

2009-03-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

Chester Roush
Staff Writer
Use whatever metaphor you want, but Joe Bonamassa rocked the house.

The blues guitarist played in the ECC Blizzard Auditorium on Saturday, March 7, drawing a diverse crowd of young and old.

The audience responded to the show with great enthusiasm, erupting into applause after each solo, with a standing ovation when Bonamassa played the Gibson “Flying V” electric guitar. Bonamassa’s solo acoustic set also had the audience clapping in time with the rhythm, and throughout the performance people tapped their feet and hands to the music.

Accompanied by Carmine Rojas on drums, Rick Melick on keyboard, and Bogie Bowls on bass, Joe Bonamassa coupled his soulful vocals (filled with such lines as “slow gin, slow gin, wash away the pain, inside”) with truly virtuosic guitar to fashion a great performance. Bonamassa also took time to recall his early days playing at ECC.

“You always remember where you came from,” Bonamassa told the audience between sets.

Bonamassa and his band debuted at the Blizzard Theatre several years ago, an event recalled by Director of Performing Arts Steve Duchrow.

“I’ve had a long history with Joe,” said Duchrow. “[ECC] was the first performing arts center to ever present him back in 2002 or 2003, and this is the fourth or fifth time I’ve presented Joe.”

Refreshing comedy film worthy of plenty of love, man

2009-03-31T08:03:00.000-07:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
These days clever, original comedies are a rarity. How many Talladega Nights, Step Brothers and other half-aborted screen children of Will Ferrell must we sit through to get a deserving laugh?

The answer may be six or seven, but that’s what makes refreshing comedies like I Love You, Man so much more captivating. Following in the footsteps of movies like Knocked Up and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, I Love You, Man takes a common social phenomenon—in this case, male friendship—and explores it to the fullest, most bizarre and hilarious detail.

Paul Rudd plays Peter Klaven, a newly-engaged real estate agent who has been a ladies’ man his whole life. Thus, he has an array of underdeveloped social skills when it comes to his male peers. Between projectile vomiting during poker games and leaving awkward, drawn out voicemail messages, Peter finds himself at a loss for whom to name as his best man. Peter soon decides to search for a ‘best friend,’ if for only the sake of his wedding. After several failed, albeit humorous, ‘man-dates’ orchestrated by both himself and his gay brother, Peter is about to give up his search.

Then, at an open house for a property he’s trying to sell, he meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel), an observant, honest and laid-back investor. This intrigues Peter, and the two of them begin a series of bromantic liasons that include flamboyantly rocking out to Rush, disregarding public policy about pet droppings and picking fights with washed-up superhero actors. Rudd’s clumsy, awful brocabulary leads to situations that may have some squirming and wincing in their seats just from sheer awkwardness; thankfully, Segel’s character’s non-chalant, occasionally abrasive truthfulness and cool-guy lingo start to rub off on his friend as the film goes on.

I Love You, Man is unique in that it portrays long-term friendships as not all that different from long-term, romantic relationships—both require time, dedication and enthusiasm. Plus, as the film comically points out, there can be falling-outs that require the return of borrowed possessions. I Love You, Man also explores a question routinely wondered by couples: how much time is truly okay to spend with friends when you’re in a romantic relationship? With both having many of the same needs, conflict is inevitable.

Though it didn’t stray from the typical comedy movie ending with a slapstick cast reunion, the plot of I Love You, Man was (for the most part) void of any radical, nonsensical turns. The film stuck with amusing portrayals of situations that common people find in their everyday lives while simultaneously dissecting the best-friendship under an entirely different, pseudo-romantic light.

Well, that and it had people stepping in dog poo.

Fighting keeps hockey safer...seriously

2009-03-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

Ian Neitzke
Managing Editor
Several general managers in the National Hockey League have debated at league meetings about removing legal fighting from professional hockey. The anti-fighting movement has gotten stronger following the death of a minor league hockey player in Canada. Don Sanderson, 21, of the Whitby Dunlops fell at the conclusion of a fight, hit his head on the ice and was killed. While this tragedy should cause us to look at fighting in hockey, it shouldn’t be used as a reason to remove fighting entirely. Fighting is a classic part of hockey. Die-hard fans love it; they understand it’s importance. Those who don’t enjoy the strategy of hockey can always enjoy some fist-on-face figure skating.

Fighting is often used to change the tempo of a game, swing momentum or get your team (and the crowd) riled up like Blackhawks penalty-minute leader Adam Burish asserted in his blog: “You may find your team down 2-0 just 10 minutes into the first period,” Burish said. “The crowd isn't into it, you look down your bench and guys are frustrated and a little sluggish. This is a great time to go look for a fight.”

The most common purpose of fighting, however, is to police the ice, to protect skill players. Several players have created careers for themselves by fighting skillfully. Bob Probert fought for the Red Wings, protecting stars like Steve Yzerman. Marty McSorley played in the NHL essentially to protect Wayne Gretzky, and was actually included with Gretzky in a trade from Edmonton to L.A. by request of the Great One himself.

The mission of a fighting ban is to make the game less violent, but removing fighting from the game would likely counteract it. Enforcers like McSorley, Probert and Burish rarely touch the ice in an effort to score goals, but will always be ready to strike when an opponent throws an elbow to the face of their team’s leading scorer. If fighting is removed, sticks, elbows and gloved fists will be more often used to exact revenge for these types of indiscretions. Believe it or not, fighting is the safest way to settle these disputes.

Some say that hockey is barbaric for allowing something that every other sport penalizes, but is it really any more barbaric than a pitcher hurling a 95 MPH fastball at an opponent who gloats after a home run? Possibly, but much like baseball fans, hockey fans understand the unwritten rules that dictate how unsportsmanlike or dangerous conduct is kept in check. Like major league pitchers know to throw at an opponents back (rather than his face), most NHL enforcers know the rules and the etiquette of fighting on skates. (Yes, I said “etiquette of fighting.")

For example, in a fight in December 2005, Anaheim enforcer Todd Fedoruk struck St. Louis forward Aaron Downey square in the face, knocking him backwards toward the ice. But Fedoruk held Downey’s jersey to prevent his unhelmeted head from slamming down like Sanderson’s head did.

In a fight on March 8, Boston’s Shawn Thornton ended a fight he easily could have won when his opponent, New York’s Colton Orr, had his jersey over his head. In the past, a jersey-covered head was an invitation to annihilate an opponent while he couldn’t see. Thornton, however, being a modern, seasoned enforcer, knew it was an unfair advantage, stopped punching and waved referees in to break them up. While these players were trying to hurt each other, they were not trying to kill each other, even if they had the opportunity.

The death of Don Sanderson is undoubtedly a tragic accident. But it was exactly that: an accident. It was not a result of fighting on ice, an activity that has been death-free since the NHL’s formation. It was a freak accident, and shouldn’t lead to reflexive, poor decisions.

Relax Bears fans, at least we can kick

2009-03-31T07:56:00.000-07:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
Stuffed. Matt Forte’s attempt to convert on 3rd and 2 is denied like Michael Vick at a dog shelter. The Chicago offense has once again fallen short of a first down and getting into the red zone. As a Bears fan, I’ve heard some rumors about the red zone, although I’m not completely certain what it is since the Bears treat it like they do traffic signals: red means stop.

Not to worry though; as fans of this team, we know this is the kind of situation the Chicago Bears excel in. Chants of “M-V-P” ring out in Soldier Field as number nine glides onto the turf. Good call, Lovie. Lock up those three points. They are as “good as Gould” we fans like to say. Thank God our offensive line couldn’t get more push on third down, or we would be in danger of exploring the red frontier.

We all know what awaits us there: trouble that resurrects fond memories of Curtis Enis and Cade McNown. That being the case, we’ll stay behind the 20-yard line, where we’re comfortable, prepared to ride Robbie Gould’s foot to three points.

This is the kind of situation that Bears fans appreciate because quite simply, it’s the best we can do. The biggest problem with Bears fans is we, as a whole, expect to improve every year. This is a mistake. With free agency ongoing and the draft weeks away, Bears fans are becoming more and more anxious about the potential moves that Jerry Angelo and his staff are planning to make to improve the team. They want to know if we will add a big-name free agent to shore up our secondary or add a stud through the draft to fill the hole at left tackle. These are going to be the same disappointed souls that get so upset at the final game of the year that they run onto the field just to prove they spent more time on it than Chris Williams did.

Some fans say they want change for the Bears in the form of a wide receiver. Not me. I’ve learned to enjoy what we already have: a kicking game.

I’ve seen what happens when we try that, and so has Jerry Angelo. I’ve not forgotten David Terrell and Mushin Muhammad. Fans want to see playmaking? They want a point-scorer? Gould rains threes on opponents like Steve Kerr. He scored 119 points last year. That’s good enough to lead the Bears' second-leading scorer (Forte) by 48 points and place him 10th in the entire NFC.

I know that some Bears fans want to trade for Denver’s Jay Cutler because they are worried about the accuracy of Kyle Orton. Fans wants accuracy? Look no further than Robbie Gould. He’s got a career accuracy rate of 86% going 110-128 on his attempts. If kickers were rated in the same fashion as passers, Robbie Gould would be posting numbers “Good Rex” could only dream of.

I’ve heard many fans are concerned about whether Angelo’s big money players will eventually live up to those huge contracts they signed last offseason, but who cares? Since Robbie signed his contract, his stats have done nothing but improve annually and he is a Pro Bowl candidate every year. And at 27, Gould is nowhere near losing his talent, let alone the ending his career.

So relax Bears fans and look on the bright side, because although our beloved team may have holes in just about every position, the kicker is not one of them. If that doesn’t help, be glad you’re not a Lions fan.

The Observer goes one-on-one with coach Bill Angelo

2009-03-31T07:46:00.000-07:00

Under head coach Bill Angelo (in his 12th season), the Spartans
have made five consecutive trips to the NJCAA DII World Series.
Photo courtesy of elgin.edu

James Ayello
Staff Writer
E.O: Being rated # 2 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Preseason Poll this early in the season, do you feel as though there is a target on your back?
B.A:Yeah, there always is. Everyone wants to beat us. Everyone is a little bit more excited to play baseball that day, you know, they definitely want to knock us off. With a high ranking comes high expectations.

E.O: What kind of expectations do you have for your team this year?
B.A: I just want our guys to realize their full potential. I want every team I coach to get the opportunity to play on the national stage because it’s such an awesome experience for these guys to take with them. Very rarely, do you get a chance to compete for a national title at any sport at any level… I want them to get a chance to compete for a national title. I feel like these guys could win without a doubt. These guys work hard. The talent is there, our pitching is there, offensively we’re pretty good, and our defensive will get there.

E.O: What does your pitching staff look like this year and who do you feel is the ace of the staff?
B.A: We've got a decent group of guys that are going to be able to carry the load pretty well. Jim Van Sycle is at the top of our staff; he’s throwing upper 80s/ low 90s with a pretty good slider and a pretty good changeup. He’s thrown the ball pretty well so far. Then we have Brad Allen and Curtis Hudson, who both transferred in from Division I schools. Brad Allen played at Northern Illinois last year and Curtis is a lefthander that played at Evansville last year. Those three guys are and the top of our staff and then we've got Rob Quick and Bob Diebold, who are both sophomores back from last year that are both right there in the four/five [slots], [and they accompany] Dan Francik, who’s another sophomore pitcher. We’ve got some pretty good arms. We feel like we’re pretty well off on the mound.

E.O: Offensively, what kind of team do you consider yourselves?
B.A: We’re a very well-rounded team. We’re not typically anything like a small-ball team or a power team or anything like that. We will manufacture runs when we need to. We will play a small ball game, but this team does have some pop. Our philosophy offensively is just to work counts and to hit fastballs. We want to get the count in our favor and hit the fastballs.

E.O: Steroids have become such a relevant issue in today’s baseball world; is that something you have to be on look out for at ECC?
B.A: I think we always have to be kind of aware. You know, you just try and educate your guys and try and tell them that there’s no honor in having success by cheating and hopefully they make good decisions about it and aren’t willing to sell their soul…just to have a little bit of success. You wish that the grown-ups that are playing pro ball…would have more integrity than to cheat to get the desired results. We don’t encourage that…[My players] know my opinion on all drugs and alcohol. I’m pretty outspoken that I’m strongly against [their use].

Gail Borden Library celebrates Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday

2009-02-24T16:12:00.000-08:00

Elgin City Council member John Steffen prepares to deliver Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address at the Gail Borden library on February 12. Photo by Conor Clarke

Blythe Meyer
Staff Writer
The parking lots and side streets of Gail Borden Public Library were packed with cars on February 12 for the celebration of Abraham Lincoln's 200th Birthday. Adults and children swarmed the library's community rooms, which were combined to seat over 150 attendees.

The program began with Lincoln impersonator John Steffen of the Elgin City Council reading the famous Gettysburg Address, followed by a performance by the Elgin Children's Choir. A brass ensemble performed a piece, the ECC Chamber Choir and Elgin Children's Choir sang a stirring rendition of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and the program came to a close with the chorus and audience singing "Happy Birthday" to Lincoln.

Steffen gave a closing speech reminding everyone of why it is important to keep the memory of the 16th president alive and well.

"We recited the Gettysburg Address because we thought that what Lincoln brought out in that speech from the Declaration [of Independence] to his time was what we wanted to bring out from there to today: the proposition that all men are created equal," Steffen said.

When the program adjourned, birthday cake was served in the library's main lobby while all present communed in celebration of the life of Lincoln. Sarah Block, was a performing member of the Elgin Children’s Choir.

“I thought it was really exciting and the Lincoln impersonator [played] the character of Lincoln very well,” said Sarah, a seventh grader at Prairie Knolls Middle School.

Immigration discussion seeks 'fresh perspective'

2009-02-24T16:01:00.000-08:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
On February 8, Elgin Community College’s University & Business Center was filled with the attendees of “Come to The Table: Who is My Neighbor?” an interfaith immigration discussion sponsored by the Coalition of Elgin Religious Leaders, Judson University, Elgin Community College, the Human Relations Commission of the City of Elgin and Unity in the Community. Joel Kline of the Coalition of Elgin Religious Leaders said the event’s purpose was to foster respectful and holy dialogue on the subject of immigration.

The event’s format included fifteen-minute discussion period related to one of three immigration stories told to the attendees. Each of these stories focused on a different issue of immigration, such as family separation, assimilation and legal considerations.

The questions asked in discussion were pointed at making attendees personally relate to the story before thinking about practical policy issues. Upon arrival, a guest was randomly assigned a table number where they would be able to take part in these discussions under the guidance of a facilitator.

"We will be a much stronger nation and city when everyone has equal access to conversation," said Judson University president Jerry Cain.

Since the event focused on an interfaith perspective and “holy” dialogue, the discussions followed three faithbased presentations. Included were perspectives from Baha’i, Christian and Jewish leaders.

“We’re not coming with an answer," Kline told the group. "We’re not coming with one solution. We have the conviction that our community will be better if we can have respectful dialogue if we treat one another as human beings, not as commodities or statistics.”

Closing the event, Kline provided the attendees with an opportunity for one last conversation with their discussion tables. This five-minute-long discussion gave attendees an opportunity to share things they may have learned or any sense of increased awareness gained through the event. Dean of Students Carol Cowles was hopeful attendees would leave the discussion with a fresh perspective.

Writers converge for 'coffee house'

2009-02-24T15:59:00.000-08:00

Blythe Meyer
Staff Writer
The usual business-conference-style perimeter of tables in ECC's Alumni room was swapped for several circular, more conversational arrangements as writers of all ages gathered on February 4 to share poems and stories in a series of spirited readings in another Coffee House event. Refreshments and coffee were served to guests, followed by the readings. The evening ended with the writers and audience socializing.

Writers were encouraged to sign in upon arriving, and then names of those writers were called in order by ECC student and Creative Writing Scholarship recipient Matt Fox, who was the host of the event.

“While many, if not all, of those who attend Coffee House events are unpublished and not professional writers, the material exhibited is very impressive and well-done,” Fox said of the event, which will be repeated on both March 4th and April 8th this semester. “Coffee House events are genuinely enjoyable and create a community of fellow writers so no one feels they are in this alone.”

Students read pieces about various subjects. Student Tonya Dietz read her poem, “An Evening’s Work” which referred to her job at a nursing home: "I take your dentures, leave you Vulnerable as an infant—you smile— Three yellow-white teeth Stand alone and glimmer In your mouth.” While the writers’ work certainly helped attract listeners, Fox admitted there was help in attracting attendees.

“The free pizza helps bring in a lot of people,” said Fox.

Referendum to appear on ballots

2009-02-24T15:57:00.000-08:00

Mia Bourlokas
Staff Writer
On January 27, the ECC Board of Trustees voted to place a referendum on upcoming ballots in District 509.

The referendum will ask voters whether to modernize and renovate select ECC facilities such as the Student Resource Center and the library, which does not meet Illinois standards.

If the referendum is passed, ECC will most likely add more nursing programs and training for safety jobs such as firemen and replace outdated math and science equipment in the MSC building. Many out-of-date roofs and walls will also be replaced.

Examining Needs and Creating Opportunities for Regional Excellence (ENCORE) has supported the referendum and has reached out to the community with campus open houses and surveys. In addition, ENCORE has informed all District 509 tax payers that their dollars in the end will all equal up.

“We have 100 reasons to go forward and one reason not to: the economy,” said John Jilek [Co-Chair of Encore]. "When it comes to education, some things are more important, even in the face of a troubled economy."

Film fest highlights environmental issues

2009-02-24T15:55:00.000-08:00

Chester Roush
Staff Writer
Several short films advocating solutions for environmental issues were viewed on January 30 as part of an environmental film festival sponsored by Friends of the Fox River and Phi Theta Kappa.

Among the films shown was a short allegory called Carpa Diem. Also shown were Against the Current, which was about restoring small streams in the Yellowstone, Wyoming area that have been drained by irrigation, and Fridays on the Farm, which was about eating organic, locally grown food.

After a brief intermission, the films Bugs of the Underworld, showcasing the many different kinds of insects that thrive in a river ecosystem, and For the Price of a Cup of Coffee, discussing waste management and paper products, were shown.

“We really appreciate Phi Theta Kappa for partnering with us for this event,” said Gary Swick, a member of the Friends of the Fox River. “They’re very generous and it’s a wonderful venue.” Other viewers commented on the mission of the film festival.

“I think it’s great for people to think about environmentalism,” said Jenni Kempf, a graduate of ECC who helped organize the event.

The event centered around the theme of water usage, a particularly important issue to the Friends of the Fox River, an organization dedicated to protecting a local water source. According to the group, the quality of the Fox River improved after the Clean Water Act of 1972 was passed, but has declined due to the damage to its tributaries.

All the films shown came from the Wild and Scenic Film Festival sponsored by the South Yuba River Citizens League, which took place January 9-11.

SETA petitions for dissection option policy

2009-02-24T15:52:00.000-08:00

Stephanie Gotter
Staff Writer
Most college students are required to take at least one science class. More often than not, it is a class with a lab, where dissection is sure to play an active role in the learning experience. For some, the dissecting lab is easy to work through, but for others, it is not easy for ethical reasons.

Jason Levy, President of Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (SETA), wants to change the classroom rules for dissection. He and others who believe dissection is cruel want to get a student policy passed that gives students the choice to opt out of dissection labs due to moral, religious or ethical reasons.

SETA has drawn up a six point policy they want ECC to follow. The policy states that students should be given alternative choices to dissection and protects the student from discrimination and penalization based on their decision to opt out of dissecting.

When asked what SETA will do if ECC rejects the policy, Levy stood firm and confident. “We are certain that in the face of wide student, faculty, and community support, ECC will enact our Student Choice Policy,” Levy said.

Levy said alternatives to dissection such as virtual dissections and computer CD-ROMs will save the school around $1,500, since virtual dissections do not need to be re-bought like the fetal pigs and dissecting tools do.

A week into circulation, the petition has many signatures, including at least a dozen faculty members of ECC, according to Levy, a vegan who has been working for the ethical treatment of animals for four years. Levy’s confidence radiates through as the conflict continues.

“We’re sure ECC will make the right decision,” Levy said.

Founders’ brunch doubles as award ceremony

2009-02-24T15:50:00.000-08:00

Judi Bauza
Staff Writer
Fox Valley Business Center hosted ECC’s Founder’s Day Brunch on January 25, an event that gathered the community and its leaders for one common cause: scholarships. Created to celebrate the 60th year of education at ECC, the Brunch welcomed its guests with an ice sculpture and live jazz piano.

There were displays set up for a raffle to help the student’s funds for education. Memorabilia was displayed, showing the schools rich history. One display showed alumni James Anderson, a scholar, and his graduating transcripts, accompanied by pictures of his graduating class.

Several attendees were having fun putting on props and taking pictures in a photo booth provided by the volunteers. Guests were served champagne and appetizers from the school’s culinary staff.

Guests were then invited into the banquet room, where President Dr. David Sam gave everyone a greeting dressed in a white suit, resembling the suits worn in the era when ECC was first founded. His speech included the topics such as the proposed new library.

“Our library is as small as most high school libraries,” Sam said. Volunteers led the guests to the brunch, which included scrambled eggs, blueberry blintzes, spare ribs, turkey and stuffing. Cakes and parfaits were offered for dessert.

After the meal, Sam presented the Pacesetter award, recognizing individuals who have recently completed a class at an Illinois community college, are successful in his/her chosen field, provide humanitarian service and support education in community colleges. Valier Spurlock was given the 2009 Pacesetter award.

“Consider the type of employment that you are suited for and would enjoy,” said Spurlock, in advice to students. “Find out what educational requirements are needed to gain employment for the position you desire. Set an educational goal.”

Take a SETA: ‘Right choice’ means wrong way to learn

2009-02-24T15:44:00.000-08:00

Staff Editorial
This page is apparently becoming a soapbox for rebutting the arguments of Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (SETA). This time it’s for something that potentially will directly inhibit the education of ECC students. The ECC chapter of SETA has been pushing the school for a dissection option policy, which would offer students an alternative to dissecting animals such as the fetal pigs dissected in biology classes. Jason Levy, president of ECC’s SETA chapter, showed great confidence in ECC’s science department accepting SETA’s proposition.

“We are certain that in the face of wide student, faculty and community support, ECC will enact our Student Choice Policy,” Levy said, going on to say that he is sure ECC will make “the right decision.”

While SETA’s goal in passing the option is understood, the consequences have been understated. The group has stated that alternatives such as virtual dissection CD-ROM programs will allow students to learn the same material and will save the school money.

This statement may sound true on the surface, but it is hard to believe under true circumstances.

Firstly, CD-ROM programs are not as accurate as looking at the true 3-dimensional anatomy of a dead animal—or in the case, an unborn animal (a fetal pig).

Secondly, the only way the school would fiscally benefit from CD-ROM programs is if the entire biology curriculum converted to virtual dissection, not merely the handful of students who find real dissection to be unethical.

Also, in addition to giving SETA supporters an option, the policy would give slackers the option to neglect dissection.

Little more than the words “I don’t want to dissect animals for personal reasons” would get a lazy student out of a vital lesson in life science, and to enact a cumbersome validity check on students would only infringe upon their wouldbe “right” not to dissect—in simpler terms, the situation would be clumsy at best.

SETA is also overlooking one of the most essential experiences of biology—the variety of life. All pigs—and any other living creature—are not born the same. They have similar anatomy, yes, but different organs and parts of one pig may grow larger or smaller than in another, and may not even be present in others.

This experience of biological uniqueness is a crux of the theory of evolution and allows students to comprehend all the varying details (and their causes) in life. That simply cannot be imitated, even with computer programs.

Furthermore, ECC only requires most students to take one “lab science” course, not specifically biology. So if students are so opposed to the idea of cutting open fetal pigs, why not study the earth in geology or study molecular structure in chemistry? The only people required to take biology are those who plan to study a form of biology, in which case they should either be open to the idea of dissecting animals or pick a different major.

Finally, we must realize that SETA takes much of their core philosophy from PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), a national organization that published literature encouraging students to “cut class, not frogs.” Any organization that follows those values cannot possibly want the best for our education.

United States should fund immigration

2009-02-24T15:40:00.000-08:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
Nobody truly knows how many illegal immigrants there are in the United States. I thoroughly enjoy reading the various internet comments and blogs about this fact; some say there are 13 million, some say there are three million and I’ve read just about every number in between. These all supposedly come from some “reliable” source like the U.S Census Bureau. However, it’s a nonfactor.

Whether there are three or 13 million illegal immigrants living in this nation, there is definite cause for concern, as these people are evading the laws and conduct of our country to service themselves.

But where most people see a problem in millions of non-tax-paying people migrating here every year, I see a tremendous opportunity for our nation (even as we struggle through hard economic times), and it’s buried by the complicated legislature and racist opinions surrounding illegal immigration: Let them come.

The United States is at one of its worst economic states in its history, yet Hispanics (who make to the majority of illegal immigrants) are flocking to this country. Why? Because the entire geographical realm of Central and South America is a tragic landscape of poverty and political indifference, and even the U.S at its worst offers them a chance at their dream life.

But the process to become a U.S citizen is complicated, expensive and (depending on an immigrant’s personal situation) may take as long as the better part of a decade to complete. Even if a potential immigrant has relatives who are U.S citizens, he must wait for their immigrant visas based on a “preference system,” which first grants visas to unmarried adult children of U.S citizens, then spouses and married adult children, and finally adult brothers and sisters.

The lower preference a potential immigrant is, the longer he waits. All of these citizenship road blocks make immigrating illegally all the more appealing.

Simplification of and mass funding for the U.S immigration process would dramatically reduce, if not crush, the incentive for illegal immigration. The Department of Homeland Security’s Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) should start by cutting any and all fees for application documents, fingerprinting and other essential elements for immigrating. A big chunk of federal funding should be allocated to the USCIS to open up dozens of new immigration processing offices across the country.

In addition to providing thousands of jobs for out-of-work Americans, more of said facilities would put a massive dent in application turnaround time, allowing more people to immigrate here legally. Also, the “preference system” of selecting relatives of U.S citizens should be abolished, and they should lump every category of U.S citizen relation together in one yearly quota.

The result of such large-scale action would be more people paying United States taxes (aka putting more revenue in the federal coffers), job creation in an ailing economic climate, and hundreds of thousands of new United States citizens willing to work for and invest in American businesses.

A greater exodus of people may also incur governments of povertystricken nations to act more swiftly to retain the confidence of their people.

The United States of America should use immigration to its advantage: to strengthen its economy and set a cultural example for the world by providing the opportunity for a decent life to as many people as it possibly can.

Sold...for how much!? Fellows prove frugal at annual auction

2009-02-24T15:35:00.001-08:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
I was sold for five dollars. I could have sworn the selling of people went out with the Emancipation Proclamation, but there I was, an item for sale in Jobe Lounge. In fairness, it wasn’t my person for sale, but rather my company for a date. The Lounge was filled with students bidding for their classmates, trying to get a date for Valentine’s Day.

“We take cash, checks, and credit cards,” announced Gabe Lara, the faculty advisor of the Organization of Latin American Students. OLAS sponsored the date auction and managed to raise over $700 for Relay for Life, ECC’s annual cancer benefit.

One would expect to notice something about how slaves may have felt from this experience, but I didn’t. What I learned from participating in the Valentine’s Day Auction is that guys are cheapskates.

One attractive lady after another took the stage to be sold for less than ten dollars. The highest any girl was sold for was $50. The guys, on the other hand, were going for much more.

I commend the ladies who weren’t afraid to put their money where their mouths were and go after what they wanted. Not only did they get a good-looking date of their choice, but they donated to a good cause.

What happened, gentlemen? I saw one group of men pressure one of their female friends into volunteering for the auction. Then not one of them would bid on her. They finally found their balls (or felt really guilty) and pushed her bid up to 14 or 15 dollars.

Come on, guys. Has the downturn in the economy really turned people into such moneygrubbers that they can’t donate a twenty to cancer research? Judging by the showing at the auction, I guess so.

Thank you ladies, for picking up the slack. Perhaps the men won’t be so cheap and will make a better showing next year.

Adyole celebrates Black History Month in Jobe Lounge

2009-02-24T15:32:00.000-08:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
As part of Black History Month celebration at ECC, three African-American artists sang and danced their philosophy of "it’s better to give than receive." The three artists who call themselves Adyole performed in the Jobe Lounge.

Nare Makhan is the lead dancer for the group while Baba Ellie and Prince are both drummers. Donning native West African costumes and performing on musical instruments such as the Dun Dun drum, Djembe drum and the Sekere, Adyole performed a free concert sponsored by the College Programming Board.

According to Stacey Perkins from Urban Gateway, the larger group from which the ensemble was recruited, the members of Adyole have spent their entire lives studying the art of West African music and dance and have practiced in the Chicagoland area with different companies.

Each of the songs performed had a powerful message with it. One was entitled “Bong bong fumiyeh,” translated to “be proud of who you are.” Another was a dance of the spirit honoring ancestors in which Makhan wore a mask known as the masquerade.

Student Laura Masonick, who studies ballet and jazz at ECC, was selected by Makhan to dance along with him. Astonished audience members watched Makhan pick her up and balancing her above his head while twirling her around.

“I have cousins that live in South Africa,” said Masonik. “It was unexpected, but fun.”

Poet, songwriter featured in Writer’s Center series

2009-02-24T15:23:00.000-08:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
Wyn Cooper, a noted poet from Vermont, visited ECC earlier this month as part of the Writer’s Center’s author series. Cooper described his life as one of chance.

“My life has been a series of chance meetings with famous women,” said Cooper of himself. Joanie Mitchell sang at his elementary school. He went to high school with Madonna and his poem “Fun” inspired the song “All I Wanna Do” by Sheryl Crow.

“His poems are always an experience in sensory engagement,” said Rachel Tecza, head of the Writer’s Center, to a nearly full auditorium of almost 30 students and instructors. “Another thing he’s noted for is his precision of observation.”

“At home, your wife frowns, thinking you’re drunk. So you stand on a chair on one foot and juggle three apples until she leaves the kitchen,” Cooper read from his poem “Opal Wyoming.” Lines like this one, set into mostly serious pieces, mark Cooper’s work.

“Good fences, good neighbors, good day to die, and good riddance too, nasty old coot,” Cooper shared from a poem titled “Frosting” that bashed fellow poet Robert Frost.

Cooper shared 10 to 15 poems from his books The Way Back and Postcards from the Interior. Cooper and his partner Madison Smart Bell have made two CD’s based on Cooper’s work. Several of them have been aired on prime time shows like “Scrubs,” “The Unit” and “Men in Trees.” He played one song, based on the poem Postcard from a Painting, at the reading.

Only the first half hour was spent on the reading. The last half was a question and answer session for the students. Student George Stenitzer wanted to know of any tricks Cooper had for starting poems.

“As you’re driving down the street, write down the names of streets,” said Cooper. "I just mean anything. Anything can work.”

Another suggestion he had was just to pick a word out of the dictionary. That’s how he wrote his poem Gaposis, by looking it up to see if it was a real word. He found it in the largest of his five dictionaries.

Cooper also suggested having someone come up with a title, or having a friend pick six random words, three nouns, two adjectives and a verb, to start with. He wrote three sonnets--14-line poems-- based on a dictionary’s pronunciation key. He went through the key and used every example word in order. Cooper titled them “Pronunciation Keys.”

“If I’m writing a poem and I know it’s crap, I just keep writing because you never know--the last line might be a good line,” said Cooper.

Gospel Fest kicks off Black History Month: Photos by Conor Clarke

2009-02-24T15:02:00.000-08:00

In celebration of Black History Month, ECC brought Gospel music to the ATC Auditorium on February 6.

Ashleigh Branch, Vice President of the Black Students Association, brought in numerous Gospel choirs from the Elgin area to sing at Gospel Fest, an annual event hosted by her club. She believed that starting February month with gospel music was extremely important.

“This music is a way for our community to come together,” Branch said.

Choirs such as the Second Baptist Church Ensemble, the Bethesda Sunshine Band (a children’s choir), the Saint James A.M.E Church Choir and the Bethesda C.O.G.I.C Mass Choir all performed pieces of Gospel music in front of a large and energetic crowd.

The evening’s Minister of Ceremonies was Jeff Hughes, who also believed in the importance of the celebration of Gospel music as part of African-American culture.

“I think it’s natural that the first celebration (of Black History Month) would be a Gospel music celebration because it’s rooted in our history," said Hughes. "It’s a part of who we are as African- Americans. It was the right thing to do.”

On that evening, all of ECC was able to get a small taste of the power of Gospel music, and according to Hughes, anyone can get a lot out of that.

“You hear it all the time; music is the universal language,” Hughes said. “Even if you don’t understand or agree with (what’s being said), you can connect with [the music itself].”

The Second Baptist Church Ensemble starts off a heavy night of live Gospel music with a song of praise in the ATC auditorium on February 6.

The children of the Bethesda Sunshine Band please the crowd with their optimistic hymns.

A baritone from the Saint James AME Church Choir leads the audtorium in song.

An acappella song quiets the crowd.

The Bethesda Sunshine Band and Mass Choir bring the night to a close by combining for one final song

ECC alum appears on 'Hell's Kitchen'

2009-02-24T14:58:00.000-08:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
ECC Culinary Arts graduate Wil Kocol has been to hell and back as a contestant on season five of FOX network’s Hell’s Kitchen, a game show in which hopeful chefs compete for a culinary prize under the intense and unnerving gaze of renowned Chef Gordon Ramsey.

Kocol began attending the ECC Culinary Arts and Hospitality Institute in 2002. He graduated from the program in 2006 with a degree in culinary/restaurant management. He said ECC’s Culinary Arts program helped to prepare him for life.

Culinary Arts program coordinator Jill Russell agreed, saying “the greatest strength of the program is that we produce quality students.”

Kocol, who has had an interest in cooking for almost his entire life, auditioned for Hell’s Kitchen in the summer of 2007 at an open casting call in Chicago. Kocol watched the show for the first time in its third season, and said he initially wanted to audition because it sounded fun.

The audition process, he said, contained “surprisingly enough, no cooking at all.” Instead, the auditions consisted of interviews with casting directors, some call back auditions, a resume submission and finally a trip to Los Angeles to meet the producers for more interviews.

Once he was an official Hell’s Kitchen contestant, Kocol soon realized the show was first and foremost a game show, and as such the abilities to play a game were just as essential as the abilities to excel in the kitchen.

“You’re basically given the book of the menu and you have to try and cram everything in and learn everything for every single station with every single ingredient in only a couple of hours,” Kocol said. “Hell’s Kitchen is an extremely unique experience, being a competition.”

On the season premiere, Kocol nominated himself for elimination, which is something he said he has been experiencing much criticism for. Still, he said he wouldn't have done anything differently.

“The people who know me and the people who have worked with me know that it was completely in character with who I am,” Kocol said. "I took [the competition] as working in a professional kitchen. [When] you mess up [or] something goes horribly, horribly wrong, you own up and you take responsibility.”

When Kocol did own up on Hell’s Kitchen,Ramsey eliminated him that same night, showing that the same philosophy does not translate well into a game show setting.

“[Honesty] makes for really poor reality, [or] ‘television’,” Kocol said. To anyone who has ever watched the show, it would appear that Ramsey and his intimidating personality take up a huge source of stress for the contestants.

Due to the regulations on contact between Ramsey and the contestants during the show’s taping, Kocol and the other contestants were not allowed to really talk to him during breaks. Still, Kocol said “basically, everything that you saw [on the show] is pretty much true.”

All in all, Kocol said Hell’s Kitchen was a memorable experience through which he “learned how to deal with yourself in stressful situations.”

Springsteen’s ‘dream’ is a sweet one

2009-02-24T14:52:00.000-08:00

Nick Johnson
Staff Writer
Rock legend Bruce Springsteen may have hit on a different, sweeter note in his album Working on a Dream, but a hit’s a hit, and this newest one still has plenty of sun-drenched firepower despite being far more fluffy than previous work.

Only a year and a half removed from putting out the platinum album Magic in August of 2007, “The Boss” has noticeably had a change of heart.

He’s traded the heavy, tragedy-laced lyrics and low, driving rock sound of Magic for warm, gooey poetry and a bright splash of sonic experiment-- something you don’t have to go far to find as the album’s first track, “Outlaw Pete,” is a gripping, 8-minute long Western narrative with enough lyrical plot to make a short feature film.

Contrast that with Working’s very next song, “My Lucky Day”-- a sunny, rocking homage to a very “lucky” girl with a tempo that you couldn’t fit into any of Springsteen’s other discs this decade (Magic and 2002’s The Rising both had melancholy overtones)--and you’re on your way to discovering the true variety of this album.

Also mixed into Working are “Tomorrow Never Knows,” a beautifully crafted acoustic piece, “Good Eye,” a gently-muzzled, bluesy track and “Queen of the Supermarket,” a cloudhopping ballad to a grocery store clerk in which Springsteen’s sole use of profanity on the album delivers a heart-quaking punch to the song: “As I lift my groceries into my cart/I turn back for a moment and catch a smile/ That blows this whole f**king place apart.”

Even with all its experimentation, Working’s best song by far--the third and title track--is just classic Springsteen: chugging bass, extraordinary vocal harmonies and a foot-stomping, driving guitar bridge that smashes through to the final verse and outro.

However, for as refreshingly optimistic as Springsteen’s latest work is, a few of the songs are so packed full of sunshine and rainbows that they’re actually despicable. The glowing, happily-ever-after depiction of love in “Kingdom of Days” is an idea that Springsteen rarely touches, and when he does, it’s usually with a poignant realism and originality. But lines like “I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I do/You whisper: then prove it, then prove it, then prove it to me baby blue” just make me want to projectile vomit. Combine that with Bruce’s unwillingness to change and/or lower his pitch, and “Kingdom of Days” is one extremely regrettable addition.

Such high-sung, overly-jubilant writing is a theme for several other tracks as well; “Surprise Surprise” has a catchy tune, but its lyrics are terribly empty, with campy, predictable rhymes like: “When the sun comes up tomorrow/It’ll be the start of a brand new day/And all that you have wished for/I know will come your way.”

But thankfully, because it’s Springsteen, you can just skip the next two songs, and he will more than make it up to you with a lonely, gorgeously acoustic final track--a somber return to Earth for the album where Bruce sighs through the exasperated (but undeniably beautiful) tragedy of the main character of the Academy Award-nominated film, “The Wrestler.”

Having always been a politically active--and vividly liberal--man, Springsteen’s latest music has been profoundly affected by the election of Barack Obama, which is no doubt the primary reason for the shift from his heavy, downtrodden musical mood to one of seemingly uncontrollable optimism.

Working is a hopeful and lighthearted musical hodgepodge of that optimism, infused with its creator’s Boss-like swagger, playful experimentation and unending passion for putting on a show, both on his albums and in concert.

On the whole, Bruce Springsteen’s Working on a Dream is a glowing collection of never-give-up, and it will easily brighten your day--all you have to do is catch the stunning title track in mid-beat on your car radio. And to quote the album’s snappy fifth track, Bruce “can’t stop the rain,” or “turn your black sky blue,” but he can “show you what [musical] love can do.”

The Fray saves itself with new album

2009-02-24T14:46:00.000-08:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
Quick, guess this artist. Here’s your hint: they are willing to “Look After You” in a “Cable Car,” all the while providing detailed and vastly overplayed instructions on “How to Save a Life.”

If you guessed The Fray, congratulations. If you guessed anything else, you must have been living in a cave, caught under a rock or had something stuck in your ears for the past four years.

With their self-titled sophomore album, The Fray presumably attempts to make amends for the heinous crime of penning “How to Save a Life” in the first place. The new album features the already overplayed “You Found Me," which is basically the child of the aforementioned musical annoyance.

That said, the rest of the album hints that The Fray actually might be able to exceed all expectations and write some material that won’t find its way in between screen shots of Gray’s Anatomy or Scrubs, but can instead be heard by the average listener mostly cringefree.

The varying songs of most artists contain the similar element of a singer’s vocals.

While Isaac Slade provides the lead vocals for The Fray, the album’s coherency and strength really hinge on an inanimate object.

Every single song is intensely piano-driven, to the point where Slade’s vocals become like a shadow, still noticeable and a part of the music, but simply an effect, not the living and breathing cause. Slade’s vocals are the skeleton of the album, but the piano is everything else.

In Slade’s hands, the piano portrays the mood of every song in a way that even vocals cannot. That’s not to say that Slade’s vocals are lacking. The album does feature songs with vocals that are nothing short of phenomenal.

“Ungodly Hour” is easily the most beautiful five minutes and seven seconds on the disc due to a breathtaking collaboration between Slade’s vocals and piano. “Happiness” is another track that features exemplary vocals, as well as both thoughtful and sweet lyrics.

Lyrics, in fact, are a strong stand-out on the album. The lyrics brilliantly tackle difficult life experiences so that, together with Slade and his piano, a truly poignant song is born. The lyrics that comprise “Enough for Now" are heartfelt and intensely personal, all of which allow it to become one of the album’s better tracks.

Despite the melancholy nature of many of the album’s themes, there is still a light and breezy feel to it for the most part, making it enjoyable to listen to, and even on the tracks that might be lacking on the vocal aspect, the piano saves them completely.

The Fray’s second release is a strong effort. While a few of the songs may incorporate elements which are tellingly similar to their previously--ahem-- "celebrated" singles, The Fray’s latest album is a fitting (and oddly charming) apology letter for the many times “How to Save a Life” has crossed the airwaves.

An Da Union folks up ECC

2009-02-24T14:31:00.000-08:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
Mongolian musical group An Da Union filled ECC's Blizzard Theatre with the sounds of hoof beats and bird songs in a whimsical performance on February 7. At the start of An Da Union’s concert, Steve Duchrow, Director of Performing Arts, recited a poem.

“When I see my prairie grass in the vastness sway, I will see their faces dancing in the grass,” read Duchrow. “As horses gallop in my sun-filled pastures, I will hear the thunder and rain of their rhythm. When warm fingers brush my skin with summer wind, their music will pour over my face and through my hair.”

"Anda" is Mongolian for “good friends." An Da Union, formed in 2003, consists of fourteen artists who come from the Xilingol Grassland area of the Inner Mongolia region of China.

The musicians performing were Na Risu, Ao Tegenbayaer, Hao Sibayaer, Wu Rigen, Meng-Hejiya, Ba Ter, Qing Gele, Jin Yongming, Sai Hanniya, Qi Qigema, Bi Ligebater and Wen Li. All donned bright, colorful, hand-stitched costumes from their homeland, and displayed joyful expressions, desiring nothing other than giving a spectacular performance. The group's humble persona shone through as they performed.

The music of An Da Union, influenced by traditional Mongolian nomadic culture, is original, haunting, beautiful and ancient. They employed traditional instruments for their folk music such as the horse head fiddle or tsur, an ancient bowed instrument. They also played a maodun chaoer, a three-holed flute, as well as a dulcimer, zither, lute and mouth harp.

Khoomii, commonly referred to as throat singing, which replicates the sounds of nature, was the main singing style of the An Da Union vocalists.

Blizzard Theatre was the only formal theatre in all of Illinois offered the privilege of an An Da Union performance, according to Duchrow. This was due to Duchrow’s 23-year relationship with Arts Midwest, which represents nine states, Illinois among them.

During the week, An Da Union also performed free concerts at the Gail Borden Library and Sherman Hospital without any advance publicity.

Marc Healy, Professor of Anthropology and Human Geography at ECC, said it was thrilling to see two cultures come together with such positive results.

“While I was enthralled at the performance, I was genuinely moved at what happened in the lobby afterwards,” said Healy. “People were taking pictures of the musicians, and the musicians were taking pictures of the people, as if to say ‘Wait until the folks back in Inner Mongolia see this!’”

Though they cannot understand English, the musicians of An Da Union nevertheless connect with their audience via a bridge of timeless music.

Spartan ladies lose heartbreaker

2009-02-24T14:20:00.000-08:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
The ECC women’s basketball team suffered a crushing 50-49 overtime defeat at the Spartans Events Center at the hands of the Morton College Panthers on February 12.

Although an improvement from their first crack at the Panthers earlier in the season, (50-41 in regulation) leading scorer Lauren Gabler (12 points) was not left optimistic.

“Honestly, we played horribly in both games,” Gabler said. “We didn’t do anything well. I felt like this was one of the worst games we’ve played this year, because in my opinion, we should have [beaten] them both times, but we just didn’t make shots.”

Gabler’s assessment of ECC’s shooting was backed by the teams stats. She and her teammates shot a combined 6 for 40 in the first half. Coach Jerry McLaughlin echoed Gabler, saying his team’s missed shots were a huge factor in the loss.

“We missed way too many shots from the field and from the foul line,” McLaughlin said. “We did not put the game away in the first half when we had the lead.”

Despite the team’s poor shooting performance, the Spartans held a 23-20 halftime lead, mostly due to defense. Freshman forward Sophie Sterricker attributed her team’s first-half success to defense as well.

“Our defensive press was working wonderfully,” said Sterricker. “We made Morton turn the ball over a lot.”

While their defense kept the Spartans in the game, it did not help them enough to win. The Spartans held the lead 49-48 with 18 seconds left in overtime when they fouled a Panther player. Morton sunk both free throws to take make the score 50-49, a score that wouldn’t change. The Spartans put up two more shots in those final 18 seconds but couldn’t get either to fall. While McLaughlin was disappointed with the loss, he was proud of the effort his team gave.

“Our team did not give up until the final buzzer,” McLaughlin said. “And if we had made either shot at the end of the game, we would have won.”

Panthers outreach, outmuscle Spartans

2009-02-24T14:15:00.000-08:00

Daniel Polley (#24) leaps and passes to David Bernard (#31) as Morton College players watch.
Photo by Conor Clarke

James Ayello

Staff Writer
All season, the Achilles' heel for ECC's men’s basketball team has been height, and their final home game against Morton College proved no different as the men fell to the Panthers in a disappointing loss, 71-56.

The Spartans struggled in the early stages, falling behind in part due to the fast tempo, high-pressure defense applied by Morton College (8-4 in Illinois Skyway Conference). Morton’s three quarter court press, interchanging zone and man-to-man defenses stifled ECC’s offensive attack.

Head coach Reed Nosbisch cited the Panther’s athleticism as a key contributor his team’s lack of offensive production.

“I think their athleticism and their length hurt (us), and we struggled against the trap,” Nosbisch said.

Due to their lack of size, the Spartans were not able to take many high percentage shots in the paint and were forced to look elsewhere for scoring. Freshman guard Brett Manning commented on the difficulties of scoring with such a big size differential.

“It was hard to spread the floor because our tallest guy is 6’2 and we have to put him the middle,” said Manning. Nosbisch agreed.

“We have a lack of size,” Nosbisch said. “We have guys that are playing out of position. Nick Nohling and Dave Bernard and those guys are all having to post. I wish we had a 6’6” or 6’7” kid with a little bit of beef. He wouldn’t even have to walk and chew gum; he could just take up space.”

While a menacing defensive presence was lacking, the Spartans managed to somewhat overcome their disadvantage, limiting Morton’s high-powered offense to just 31 points in the first half. By forcing the Panthers to take low-percentage outside shots, ECC was down just two points at halftime.

The story was a bit different in the second half though; Morton’s size and strength began to control the game as the Spartans were outmuscled in the paint.

“We didn’t do that great on defensive rebounding, which was basically [how Morton scored] the bulk of [its] points,” said Manning. The Panthers went on an 11-0 run to begin the second half, extending the lead to 13. The Spartans made a few small runs in hopes of a rally but were never able to bring the game to within striking distance.

Students seek to understand poverty

2008-12-12T12:35:00.000-08:00

“Poor” students dig in to plain tortilla shells at the annual OxFam Dinner. Photo by Conor Clarke

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
On November 19, ECC’s chapters of Amnesty International and Phi Theta Kappa hosted the annual dinner for OxFam International, a coalition of thirteen organizations whose goal is to fight poverty. The dinner aimed to raise awareness about poverty and hunger in the world through demonstrating the difference between separate classes of society.

For the night, guests assumed the position of either upper, middle, or impoverished classes, dictated by the color-coded tickets they were given upon admittance.

Guests in the upper class sat at a nicely-spread table and were served their dinner. While the working class guests were provided with the same meal, they were served buffet style and with paper plates. The impoverished guests were seated on cardboard placed on the floor, and given rice and tortilla shells. Additionally, the impoverished class had to retrieve their own water from a drinking fountain down the hall, simulating the experience of carrying water from a well.

The dinner also included presentations from students. Attendees learned that among the 2.2 billion children in the world, 1 billion live in impoverished conditions, with one child dying of hunger every five seconds. While the focus of the evening was definitely on worldwide hunger and poverty, it was also acknowledged that there are 35.9 million people in the U.S. living below the poverty line, 12.9 million of whom are children.

After the first presentation, Amnesty International member Orion Pahl spoke to the group about ways they could work toward a change. Among giving money and raising awareness, Pahl also encouraged attendees to find ways they could use their own skills to contribute to the fight against poverty. Phi Theta Kappa officer Margarita Rosiles called the evening “shocking.”

“It was amazing to think how much I go shopping and how unnecessary it is for me to have those things when there are people who can’t eat,” said Rosiles.

According to Pahl, the goal of the dinner was more than only making people aware of a problem.

"We want people to leave with an understanding,” said Pahl.

Trustees' terms come to an end

2008-12-12T12:30:00.000-08:00

District 509 Board of Trustees are seen here (standing left to right): Robert McBride, Robert A. Getz, Clare Ollayos , John Duffy and (seated left to right) Ellie MacKinney, Phyllis Folarin and Diane Stredde. Photo courtesy of elgin.edu

Shane Gabler and Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writers
After serving six-year terms, two of the seven members of the Board of Trustees, Diane Stredde and Robert A. Getz, must either run for another term or resign from their posts and allow other Elgin citizens to campaign for their place.

The Board of Trustees makes high-level decisions, which are then spread throughout the college. As a way to connect to every aspect of the college, the Board also contains several committees that focus on specific issues. Stredde presently belongs to the Finance Committee, while Getz chairs the Student Learning and Teaching Development Committee.

Board meetings are held every second Tuesday of every month at 7:00 PM in the University and Business Center and aim to legislate the monetary affairs--such as tuition increase or decrease-- of the college and to manage the college’s administration (hiring and replacing deans and department heads).

Additionally, the Board of Trustees represents the college to the general public.

“Both [Getz and Stredde] are widely known in their communities and very active,” said Carol Cowles, Dean of Students.

The Board of Trustees are elected on odd numbered years on the first Tuesday in April. There is no limit to the number
of times a member can be elected, and the only requirements for these candidates are that they be U.S. citizens, 18 years of age or older by the election date, residents of Illinois and District 509 for one year prior to the election and not a member of a common school board.

“We try to encourage people to run for office [who] know something about [ECC], and [who] have attended board meetings or sat in the auditorium and observed,” said Secretary to the Board of Trustees John Brzegowy.

“[We look for] people [who] believe in the mission of the college--to improve people’s lives through learning.”

DePaul Professor discusses Cuban Revolution

2008-12-12T12:27:00.000-08:00

Chester Roush
Staff Writer
Dr. Felix Masud-Piloto came to ECC on November 18 as part of the college’s fall lecture series to speak about the history of the Cuban revolution as it approaches its 50th anniversary.

Masud-Piloto is a Professor of History and a director of the Center for Latino Research at DePaul University. He immigrated to the United States when he was ten years old, and recently received the Distinctión por la Cultura Nacional by the Cuban Ministry of Culture.

Among the topics covered were a history of Cuba-U.S. relations, the reforms enacted by the Cuban revolution, the impact of the U.S. embargo on the Cuban economy, the recently-passed Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba and hopes for the future driven by Cuba and America’s new leaders: Raul Castro and Barack Obama, respectively.

In characterizing the U.S. attitude towards Cuba, Masud-Piloto quoted John Adams, who said that Cuba was a “ripe fruit” that would “naturally gravitate” towards the U.S. The U.S. fought a war with Spain over Cuba in 1889, after which it occupied the country until 1902. The U.S. remained a major influence on Cuba until 1959, when the Cubans, led by Fidel Castro, overthrew the government run by Fulgencio Batista and created a new government that endeavored to be a “model state” for Latin America.

Among the Cuban reforms in the 1950’s and 60’s were the nationalization of all major industries, creation of universal healthcare and educational systems, and the elimination of the prostitution, gambling and organized crime that had previously controlled the island.

In response to the Cuban revolution, the U.S. enacted what has become the longest embargo in its history. In 1992 and 1996, a series of laws passed by Congress codified the embargo into law, and in 2004 the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, referred to by Masud-Piloto as the “Bush Plan,” made travel to Cuba even more difficult, especially for Cuban-Americans with family still on the island.

Overall, in characterizing the position of the U.S. toward Cuba, Masud-Piloto said, “for the last 50 years, the U.S. policy has been very clear. It is a regime-change policy.”

Recently, Cuba has undergone serious upheavals with the resignation of former leader Fidel Castro and the succession of his younger brother Raul, who Masud-Piloto described as more “realistic” and “pragmatic.” Cuba also faces serious problems after hurricanes Gustav, Ike, and Paloma battered the island this year, causing billions of dollars in damage as well as serious loss of life.

A lively discussion followed Masud-Piloto’s presentation, as students and community members discussed such topics as the effect of the embargo on Cuban disaster relief, the effect of the Cuban-American community on Cuban relations, and the part played by the American mafia in Cuban affairs.

“I [thought] the lecture was outstanding," ECC student Robert Barreto said. "[Masud-Piloto]’s an extremely interesting speaker, and he offered a good perspective on how the U.S. should deal with Cuba in the future.”

Dr. William Pelz, Professor of History and Political Science, agreed that the speaker was well worth his time.

“I thought it was very informed with good dialogue, and I think it’s the sort of program that enriches the cultural life of ECC and we should have more of it,” said Pelz.

Millsaps College professor explores causes of inequality

2008-12-12T12:25:00.000-08:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
Dr. Michael Galaty, an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Millsaps College, explored the origins of affluence through archaeology at Phi Theta Kappa’s last satellite seminar of the year. The seminar was presented in the Seigle Auditorium.

Phi Theta Kappa’s Honors discussion topic, “The Paradoxes of Affluence,” was the focus of the satellite seminar. In laymen’s terms, the discussion concerned the contradictions of wealth and prosperity. The Honors topic is decided upon by a national committee and changes every two years.

“[The committee] tries to pick a topic college students can think about,” said Amybeth Mauer, Phi Theta Kappa’s faculty advisor and the Director of Orientation and Student Life.

Galaty’s main point was that affluence first came about when people made the transition from hunting and gathering to farming societies, and that an agricultural lifestyle provides the basis for inequality.

“It’s very difficult to have this transition to farming while staving off this inequality,” said Galaty.

According to Galaty, when people farm, surpluses are created and some people are going to have a larger surplus than others, creating the first signs of inequality.

“Wealth production then becomes the basis of inequality,” said Galaty.

This isn’t seen in hunting and gathering societies because ‘everybody eats’ is the rule they live by. No one gets more than anybody else. Farming also creates the possibility of debt because what a person doesn’t have, they have to get from another. People become more dependent on each other and less independent as a whole.

Galaty also claims that farming was the first major cause of war—often over land. Hunters and gatherers didn’t own land. They could just get up and leave if fighting broke out. The idea of land ownership caused the first wars.

Galaty also offered a few suggestions.

In order to reverse the trends of inequality, Galaty recommends decentralizing control of our surpluses, redistributing land and despecializing the economy to become less dependent on each other.

Phi Theta Kappa members from other area colleges attended, including McHenry and Kishwaukee Colleges.

Smoking policy could be improved

2008-12-12T12:21:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Gruba
Staff Writer
Smokers and non-smokers alike are dissatisfied with the smoking policy at Elgin Community College. The policy, which was instituted a year ago, has created more problems than solutions.

I think it is time ECC re-evaluates the smoking policy and comes up with new solutions for everyone at the school.

Being a smoker, I know the risk involved in smoking and understand why someone would be upset to involuntarily inhale secondhand smoke. Besides the health hazard, the smell of stale smoke gets on your clothes. I get it, as do most smokers. It is easy to understand why someone would be offended and disgusted by smoke. Most smokers do not want to offend anyone, break policies or purposely blow smoke in others’ faces. But they do want to smoke, as is their choice and right.

The solution will not be easy because it is important that students and faculty do not deny anyone their rights while striving to improve the student body through communication, education, and understanding. It is also crucial that a resulting policy is respected and enforced.

Non- smokers’ complaints are that placement of ashtrays and designated smoking areas don’t make a significant difference in the inhalation of second hand smoke. Another issue is many people smoke next to the doors and not 15 feet away from entrances, as the current Illinois regulation states. Also, many people only receive verbal warnings and not fines when caught smoking in nonsmoking areas.

Smoker’s complaints regard their right to smoke and also poor placement of designated smoking areas. The reason people are close to the doors is usually bad weather. I am not justifying policy violation, but maybe if we had sheltered smoking areas placed throughout the campus it would prevent people from smoking next to the door. Many have to walk long distances in between class just to get to an unsheltered designated smoking area, and can find it tempting to go to a non-smoking area and light one up. Many students feel like second rate citizens, being made to do our dirty deeds in our few designated areas, only still to be complained about and judged.

Instead of arguing over an idealistic policy of a totally smoke-free campus because, as history has taught us, bans and prohibition do not work, and financially threatening students who already pay tuition is unfair. ECC should start with the obvious. There are ashtrays and smoking areas that outline the parking lot, and non-smokers will likely have to pass at least one ashtray, and therefore smokers exhaling and possibly giving them second hand smoke. Smoking areas should be better placed throughout the campus to ensure a minimal amount of secondhand smoke, while at the same time be convenient to smokers. Providing shelter from the elements so there is no temptation to stand closer than 15 feet from the door, would keep smokers from feeling like a criminal.

A more valuable and effective punishment is to require policy breakers to attend free self- help classes to educate people on ways to quit the habit as well as being knowledgeable about the risk involved. If fines are imposed, this revenue could go to the new sheltered designated smoking areas.

Until the time of a reformed smoking policy, all who are concerned should do their best to remember ECC has a large and diverse student body with several different opinions; besides an academic education, we are all also learning how to function in harmony.

Getting away from nagging no easy task

2008-12-12T12:16:00.000-08:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
Everyone has the parent or relative who’s always on about something. Usually they’re about reasonable, or “for your own good” things, but that doesn’t make it any less annoying. My mother is the queen of this. I’ve come to the conclusion that she’s not happy unless she has something to nag someone about.

So with winter break approaching—and closer proximity to the naggers for most people—I thought I’d share a couple of my more effective battle tactics for dealing with that nitpicking relative:

-Try ignoring them, although the patience of a saint is required to do so.

Be aware that this strategy could backfire depending on the personality of the nagger in question. DO NOT practice this technique consistently, as very few of us are actually saints and don’t have the patience of one. Exploding at a parent out of sheer frustration at not saying anything will not help the cause.

-Appeasement is also a good tactic if used in moderation. Constant appeasement didn’t work for the Allied Nations with Hitler, and it won’t work now.

Since my mother always finds something to nag about I’ve found a carefully planned combination of the above strategies to be very effective. For example, my room is cluttered. Very cluttered.

In fact, I don’t pick it up very often on purpose. For it gives my mother something to nag about, constantly. I ignore her to the point that she fixates on the fact that I haven’t cleaned my room, and thus doesn’t bother me much over other, more important things. Then when I really need a break I appease her and clean it up. I can get an entire day of no nagging this way.

-But the most effective strategy I’ve discovered to deal with naggers is to hide.

If they can’t find you they can’t nag at you. I recommend guest bedrooms, basements, and offices if available. A personal bedroom works, but it’s the first place they’ll probably look.

If that’s the only place to go start keeping the door shut all the time. If one is quiet the nagger might assume the room is empty. I hide on the screen porch in warm weather. I can get hours of quiet this way.

So Merry Christmas, and Happy Hiding.

Letter to the Editor: SETA got slammed

2008-12-12T12:14:00.000-08:00

The editor of the ECC Observer really needs to do his research, because meat is the number one cause of global warming, and KFC is torturing animals.

According to the United Nations, raising animals for food causes more greenhouse-gas emissions than all the cars, planes, ships, trains, and SUVs in the world combined. Why?

The reason is simple: producing 1 calorie of meat uses more than 10 times the amount of fossil fuel that it takes to produce 1 calorie of plant foods such as beans, vegetables, and grains. As stated by the UN, raising animals for food is not only the number one cause of global warming, it is also “one of the the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems…,”--from wasted resources to pollution. Eating meat is like driving a whole fleet of SUVs around the block every time you sit down to dinner. For more information about meat and the environment, check out peta2.com/meatsnotgreen.

If KFC abused dogs or cats the way it abuses chickens, the company could be charged with cruelty to animals. More than 850 million chickens are tortured and killed each year for KFC restaurants. Birds are crammed by the tens of thousands into sheds that reek of ammonia so strongly that if you were to walk inside, you might pass out. Just imagine living there. Each bird is crammed into a space smaller than a piece of notebook paper, not even enough space to spread one wing their entire lives. Their legs often break because they are fed drugs that cause them to grow so quickly that they can’t support their own weight, and their wings get broken when they are thrown into crates by careless workers. Undercover investigators have even caught on videotape slaughterhouse workers who were stomping on chickens and throwing them around like footballs.

Once at the slaughterhouse, the chickens are shackled upside-down, and many are still conscious when their throats are slit and they are dunked into tanks of scalding-hot water for feather removal. Please visit KentuckyFriedCruelty.com for more about KFC and to watch the undercover investigations.

Jason Levy, President of ECC's Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

Culinary programs, OLAS fight hunger

2008-12-12T12:11:00.000-08:00

Shane Gabler
Staff Writer
Two campus groups spent the month of November running food drives to help families in need. The Culinary, Pastry, and Hospitality programs of Elgin Community College each ran a food drive for their respective department.

There were a total of six collection boxes located in the culinary classrooms, outside the Spartan Terrace Restaurant, and in the retail store next to the restaurant. This food drive was started by ECC student, Kevin Stebbins.

“My mother was the director of a food pantry in Woodstock for over fifteen years,” Stebbins said. “[The food drive] is something that is dear to heart.”

All food that was donated went to the Food Pantry at Lighthouse Community Church in Elgin.

Organization of Latin American Students (OLAS) began their food drive on November 3. Students were encouraged to give any non-perishable food they could. Ruben Toledo, a member of OLAS, was an active participant of the food drive donating such items as shrimp soup and canned corn.

“There are many people that are jobless right now,” Toledo said. “Helping them by giving them food is a great feeling.”

When the food drive ended on November 19, OLAS was able to fill more than two shopping carts of food to be donated to the Centro de Informacion in downtown Elgin. This organization is specifically geared to help Hispanic individuals in need. It runs a food drive year-round for its emergency food pantry.

Some of the most needed foods include beans, rice, pasta, canned fruits and vegetables, soups and cereals.

“I feel as if I have accomplished something,” Toledo said. “It’s a great feeling.”

Holiday goodies served at culinary class

2008-12-12T12:09:00.000-08:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
On a blustery November morning, 11 students donned aprons and learned how to make tempting holiday desserts and mouth watering hors d’oeuvres at a Saturday class, courtesy of Adrianna Costello of ECC’s culinary department.

“[I] thought it would be fun and give people ideas for the holidays,” said Costello.

At the start of the class, Costello handed out a 17-page handout to students consisting of recipes for drinks, appetizers and desserts.

Costello went over the recipes in the handout, which came from a variety of sources such as The Chicago Tribune, Parade Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens and Cuisine at Home. Since the drinks contained alcohol, they were not taught in the class. Next, the students drew the recipes they were going to prepare for the class. With that, students started sanitizing their work stations, washing their hands and getting their food and equipment needed. The sounds of chopping, dicing and food processors could be heard as students were busily preparing their recipes that included White Bean and Artichoke Dip with Pita Chips, Tiny Twice Baked Potatoes and Mini Gingerbread Pumpkin Pie with Streusel Topping.

Linda Castrogiovanni came with her friend Jennifer Frey, who purchased the class as a gift for her friend’s birthday. While Castrogiovanni prepared the Mini Chocolate Malted Milk Mousse Pies, which was Costello’s own recipe, her friend Frey learned how to prepare the Cheese and Walnut Stuffed Mushroom Bundles.

“It was cool, something fun to do together, and hang out,” said Frey.

Colleen Deverell, who prepared the Smoked Salmon Rolls, attended the culinary arts classes about eight years ago and loved it.

“I think [ECC’s] culinary art classes are really great,” said Deverell.

For student Megan Plaxton, this class helped her with her cooking fears. With the aid of Costello, Plaxton prepared Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms. Plaxton, who had time left over after her first dish, prepared a second dish, Banana Foster Mini Pies. She plans on using the recipes that were given for her holiday party.

“It was a good first-time experience,” said Plaxton.

After students prepared their recipes, they: taste-tested of all them. The recipe that received the most oohs and aahs from the group was the Gingery Cranberry-Pear Tartlets. Costello lauded the class for their enthusiasm.

“Everyone here came with a good attitude, wanted to learn and have a good time,” said Costello.

OLAS 'discovers' Puerto Rico

2008-12-12T12:07:00.000-08:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Staff Writer
Puerto Rico is a lush Caribbean vacation spot, but that’s only half the picture. The Organization of Latin American Students (OLAS) recently sponsored a presentation about the island nation in the Jobe Lounge.

“[OLAS] usually just focus[es] on Mexico and I think we should focus on other Latin American Countries,” said OLAS member Brenda Perez. Perez, along with member Marisia Vargas, narrated the program.

Talking over background noise and with an audience of less than 40 interested students, Perez and Vargas gave a whirlwind verbal tour of Puerto Rico.

Perez and Vargas also discussed the nation’s civics. The island of Puerto Rico, originally named San Juan Bautista, is a commonwealth of the United States and they celebrate many of the same holidays, such as Independence and Memorial Days, as well as the Comemoracion del Estado Libre Asociable (a day celebrating the creation of the commonwealth of Puerto Rico) and other holidays. Puerto Rico is one of the most heavily populated islands in the world. It contains 3.9 million residents, not including the continuous flow of tourists.

Perez and Vargas then turned a few heads as they demonstrated some of Puerto Rico’s music. Vargas, Perez and OLAS members Brian Vasquez and Katelyn Mucci performed several kinds of traditional and modern Puerto Rican dance along with the music. Bomba and plena music and dance were the most traditional.

Bomba was created by African slaves in the 1600s, and Plena music is a collaboration of all the different cultures that converge in Puerto Rico.

Salsa, actually invented in the Puerto Rican communities of New York City, is probably the most well known. Most popular today, and not hitting the States until 2004, is Reggaeton, a wide-ranging combination of American hip-hop, Reggae from Jamaica, and the classic rhythms of Puerto Rico. Vargas took pride in the Latin Culture-based, wide-ranging focus of OLAS.

“We celebrate Mexico, Brazil, all types of Latin American Culture,” said Vargas.

Texas comes to Elgin

2008-12-12T12:05:00.000-08:00

Conor Clarke
Photographer/Staff Writer
The lights at the Hemmen’s stage flicked on, revealing a typical 1953 Texas living room. Young Lu Ann Hampton (Kadyn Walther) scurried into the scene being playfully chased by her green-haired boyfriend, Billy Bob Wortman (Michael Lewis). Lu Ann feels she will be stuck in her small town of Bradleyville forever but she dreams of a life of adventure and travel.

The play, Lu Ann Hampton Laverty Oberlander, is part of playwright Preston Jones' "Texas Trilogy" series that presents life in the modest Texas town of Bradleyville.

The production, directed by Dr. Stephen Gray, premiered on Friday, November 7 and ran through the November 23. Jones actually wrote three plays about Bradleyville, Texas, a fictional town.

“There is quite a lengthy backstory,” said Gray. “There are a lot of stories that the audience doesn’t know about that are part of the history of this town and this character.”

The talented cast of only 11 actors do a wonderful job of delivering the Texas style dialect, but unfortunately for Lu Ann, and to the surprise of the audience, the story doesn't deliver the happy ending they are expected.

“Lu Ann just went downhill after high school,” said audience member Jeremy Murayama.

What gave this play such unique character was the fact that Lu Ann was played by two different actresses. In the first act, Lu Ann is a high school senior played by Walther, and in the following two acts, Jeannette Marquis played an older Lu Ann.

“We both had to coordinate a lot together,” said Walther. “We shared biographies that we did of them.”

Cast members believed that the production takes its time, but eventually comes full circle. Kate Mirsky, who plays Claudine Hampton, Lu Ann’s mother, said it best.

“As times change, we see generations change as well, and in the story of Lu Ann Hampton, the evidence was pretty clear from the start,” she said.

Goo Goo for GaGa: Glam Pop has a new queen

2008-12-12T12:01:00.000-08:00

Shane Gabler
Staff Writer
Imagine yourself in a dance club with strobe lights pulsing, surrounded by a frenzy of unpredictable dance moves and scantily-clad vixens tearing their clothes off. The song playing over the sweaty, thumping crowd is probably off Lady Gaga’s debut album, The Fame. Like a brain freeze, Lady Gaga’s songs hit you hard and without apology.

Her savage beats tear at your insides like a flesh-eating bacterium, and amidst all of this you still find yourself singing and dancing along.

Lady Gaga lives for the finer things in life, which she proves with her songs about glamour and fame. But she doesn’t just sing about these things, she creates a fantasy world where listeners can escape their mundane lives and imagine themselves as the victim of persistent paparazzi or as a wealthy millionaire hitting the beach in the Bahamas. Regardless of your fantasy scenario, one thing remains the same: Lady Gaga’s album is irresistible. Within the first few seconds of each song you are instantaneously hooked.

Most notable is the track “LoveGame” which begins with Gaga repeating, “Let’s have some fun, this beat is sick/ I wanna take a ride on your disco stick” until the perverse innuendo ends and an infectious melodramatic beat begins. Lady Gaga’s voice is the perfect fit for the erratic rhythms of her songs. Whether the instrument at hand is a synthesizer, a piano, or the snare drums, Gaga is capable of injecting her sheer sexuality into each note. Her unique style is creative and innovative. There is no one quite like her in the market today. She took pop music to the next level and then some.

Aside from her pioneering new music techniques, she has invented a new array of words for the English language such as “glamophonic”, found in “Boys Boys Boys” and “pimplade” found in “Paper Gangsta.”

Gaga is redefining the pop genre with her influential vocabulary and experimental sound. She also uses sexual insinuations to initiate vivid images in the listener’s head. “I Like It Rough” is about exactly what it sounds like; her love of being man-handled. Instead of sounding raunchy or demeaning, the song captures the instinctual sex drive that is installed in all human beings. Even the most subtle and innocent girls will find themselves chanting along with the lyrics, “Need a man who likes it rough / Likes it rough, likes it rough” as they free themselves of their inhibitions.

The Fame is a fairy tale album complete with dirty celebutante princesses and endless bottles of champagne; paparazzi creeps with insatiable appetites and boys with greased-back hair cruising along in their suped-up cars. One listen and you will be lost in the new sensation that is Glam Pop.

Spartan men seize second half, defeat Rams

2008-12-12T11:56:00.000-08:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
Thanks to a fantastic second half of forcing turnovers and scoring points in the paint, the Spartan men’s basketball team (2-6) was able to rebound from its string of losses and get back to winning ways by defeating the Wilbur Wright College Rams (0-8) at the Events Center, 73-61 on November 26. The Spartan offense came to life in the second half, scoring 43 points, many of which came in the paint, to seize control of the game.

Head coach Reed Nosbisch was impressed with his team’s offensive production, as the Spartans are averaging just 56 points per game.

“We’re not a very high scoring team,” said Nosbisch. “Tonight, we just felt like we should get out and run because we haven’t been shooting well lately, so we felt like we had to get a lot of lay-ups.”

The team capitalized on lay-up opportunities, and freshman forward David Bernard was able to score on numerous occasions in the post. Between his put-backs on missed shots, his ability to create his own shots and the passes he received from guards Johnny Paden and John Placeras, Bernard was able to lead the way to a Spartan victory.

“[Bernard] has been [really] consistent this year; his shooting percentage is about 56%,” said Nosbisch. “So he has been a kid that has just really helped. I thought he played phenomenal on the glass, on the offensive end, [and] on the defensive end, he did a lot of good things for us tonight.”

The Spartans were not quite able to put the game out of reach in the second half, but when Placeras knocked down a 3-pointer to increase the Spartan lead to eight, that sparked ECC to increase their lead to a much larger margin.

Ironically, according to guard Brett Manning, the margin was unfamiliar territory and made it hard for the team to finish out the game.

“We had a hard time executing at the end because we’re not used to being up by 19 or 20,”said Manning. “From that point on, [our defense] remained stingy, causing turnovers and forcing bad shots.”

The Spartans stifled a late rally by the Rams and held on for the victory.

Nosbisch said his team’s 2-6 record is a little misleading—the Spartan men have played top competition so far in games against Triton College and Illinois Valley College. Nosbisch also said their schedule will not get any easier.

“I made the schedule,” said Nosbisch. “I made it to prepare ourselves for the second half of the season, in January. We don’t play teams that aren’t any good and get a false sense of [ourselves]. Let’s play teams that challenge us,” said Nosbisch.

Spartans stay perfect at home

2008-12-12T11:46:00.000-08:00

The Spartans’ Lauren Gabler (center) looks for an open teammate as Brittany Hankes (left) and Krissy Kunavich (right) try to get into scoring position against Wilbur Wright College on November 25. Photo by Conor Clarke
James Ayello
Staff Writer
The Spartan women (2-8) have improved their home record to 2-0, edging a victory against the Wilbur Wright College Rams (0-8), 67-65, November 25 at the Events Center.

Despite getting out to an early lead, the first half was filled with 13 ECC fouls that put the Rams at the free throw line and ECC trailing, 29-35, at half. The Spartans employed a tough 2-3 zone defense and paired that with a zone full-court press; however their defensive toughness resulted in early foul trouble.

“We got in foul trouble with Sophie [Sterricker] and Krissy [Kunavich] and we don’t really have a lot of post players to start with,” said head coach Jerry McLaughlin.

Having to overcome a lack of post presence, the Spartans came out of the break on fire, scoring the first six points of the half and tying the game at 35. Their defense was forcing turnovers and their offense was converting those turnovers into points. Many of the Spartan’s points in the second half came from outside shooting, something McLaughlin encouraged. He said he told his team to establish focus defensively and to keep firing at the basket.

“I told [the team] to step up because we’re a really good three point shooting team,” said McLaughlin. “Lauren [Gabler, 13 points] can shoot, Brittany [Armato, 16 points] can shoot, [and] Jamie [Jara, 7 points] can shoot, so I just said keep shooting, but with more confidence.”

Confidence and focus were the keys for this freshman-laden Spartan team, as was getting adjusted to the 2-3 zone defense that Wilbur College was running. To overcome this zone, Armato—freshman guard and ECC scoring leader for the night—said her team adjusted in the second half by playing a more team-oriented game as well making better passes.

“We were really hitting our outside shots and swinging the ball more [in the second half],” said Armato.

Armato wasn’t kidding. While hitting two 3-pointers of her own, Gabler also contributed three 3-pointers, including two very important ones in critical situations in the game. She buried one of them with eight minutes left in the game to tie the score at 53-53, and she drained her third 3-point basket with two minutes left to play that extended the Spartan lead to 64-57. The shot was especially crucial because with less than two minutes to go, the Rams rallied back, taking advantage of a couple of Spartan turnovers and bringing the game to a 66-65 Spartan lead with under thirty seconds to go. Armato hit one of her two free throws to extend the lead to 67-65, and the defense was able to force one last turnover to give ECC the victory.

“We played as a team, and we played hard,” said Armano. “I think we had fun tonight.”

The Spartans’ ability to pull off wins on their home court should help them, as 12 out of their remaining 22 games are at the Events Center.

'The Human Element': Iraq veterans share war experience

2008-12-02T13:29:00.000-08:00

Nick Johnson
Editor in Chief
ECC student Michael Crosby doesn’t need a breaking CNN news report to tell him what’s going on in Iraq. He doesn’t need the newspapers’ fancy charts, statistics or columns, and he doesn’t need the U.S military posters or the rhetoric of salesmen disguised as recruiters. As a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and of the Iraq war, Crosby only needs his first-hand experience as a soldier.

"We’re not liberating, we’re occupying. Every day we’re [in Iraq], we are breeding more people to kill Americans," said Crosby, speaking to an over-crowded Community Room on October 29. Crosby spoke as part of a panel of Iraq war and U.S Military veterans, all of whom were members of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), an organization that advocates the immediate withdrawal of U.S troops from Iraq, reparations for the Iraqi people and better care for returning U.S soldiers.

IVAW’s presentation was sponsored by ECC’s Peace and Justice Group and consisted of the veterans sharing their first-hand experience with the U.S Military—their reasons for joining, the training they received, their role in the Iraq War and their general feelings about it.

Pete Sullivan, Chicago Chapter President for IVAW, voluntarily joined the National Guard Infantry in 1995 and said his training dehumanized enemies and stripped him of the emotional weight of killing another human being.

"We became so desensitized about the idea of killing someone that we were laughing and joking about killing babies." said Sullivan, fighting back tears. "We would sing songs about killing women and children. [And] I feel like I was led to a place, psychologically, where that was possible." Dr. William Pelz, a history professor at ECC, who routinely sponsors IVAW, said that their mission is about more than just protesting the war.

"I think it’s also going against the dehumanizing and racist ways that the U.S military trains our soldiers," said Pelz.

Pelz also said that it’s incumbent on U.S civilians to give support to people who fight America’s wars.

"It’s important to talk to people that actually were over there," said Pelz. "In all of these debates on whether a war is good or bad, you lose the human element."

That human element was poured into ECC via IVAW’s emotional monologues. Members of the audience, young and old, were visibly moved by the presentation. Several representatives from anti-war groups in the community stood and gave tearful expressions of thanks to the soldiers, while others shared their own views as relatives of military members or military members themselves.

"[The panel] was really eye-opening," said ECC student Samantha Sotiropoulos. "My mom’s boyfriend is a Vietnam War veteran, and a lot of [the Iraq War Veterans’] experiences made me aware of why he does things and what goes on in [Veterans’] minds. It’s really sad to hear how all of these men and women have to go through that every day for the rest of their lives."

Andrew Yep, another ECC student attendee, said the presentation offered a clear view of someone with first-hand experience.

"I thought it was a good presentation from [people] who [have] experienced what they’re talking about, and [haven’t] observed it from afar. It really points out the question ‘when is killing someone ever right or justified?"

Crosby said his comradery with members of IVAW has helped their mission to better the lives of veterans and end the war, and also benefited him personally.

"We had each other’s backs in Iraq, and now we have each other’s backs here," said Crosby. "There’s something very liberating in telling a story and having people listen, and you can see by the turnout [in the Community Room], that people are ready to hear us, and people want to do something. The movement has been initiated."

Generosity follows in wake of tragedy

2008-12-02T13:28:00.000-08:00

Nick Johnson & Jessica Hagendorn
Editor in Chief & Advertising/Marketing Director
On November 1, ECC student Marco Leon, 19, was killed in a head-on collision on his way to a friend’s house.

The tragedy, which shocked not only Leon’s friends and family but ECC students and faculty as well, has sparked an effort of tremendous generosity.

Andrea Andrada, Student Member of the Board of Trustees, is a friend of Leon is working with Leon’s mother to set up a permanent trust account with GCF Bank where donations taken by Lori Davy and Dr. Carol Cowles, Dean of Students, can be stored.

According to Andrada, the donations will be used to help Leon’s family with funeral costs and other expenses.

"[Leon’s death] was so sudden," said Andrada. "And they were tight on their budget as many people are these days. [It’s] just to give our support to [Leon’s family] and let them know that they’re not alone."

Andrada began her support by creating a Facebook group entitled "Help Marco Leon’s Family!" which already has over 300 members.

"There were so many people at his funeral," said Andrada. "It was amazing."

Special services vocational program seeks to build confidence

2008-12-02T13:27:00.000-08:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
Elgin Community College’s facilities have been used for twelve years as the home for a program called 300 Plus, which works with about 15 disabled students from District 300, helping them acquire skills needed for jobs and other aspects of life. The students involved in the program are between the ages of 18 and 22 and have cognitive disabilities, cerebral palsy or disabilities resulting from injury.

"We have a functional curriculum that gets the students used to society," said 300 Plus Vocational Coordinator Tammy Schuetz.

Since the curriculum is functional, its focus is on non-academic learning opportunities. While finding the students jobs and giving them job-related skills is the largest focus of 300 Plus, the program also offers workshops in budgeting, cooking, writing, scheduling, personal responsibilities and even shopping. All things that, according to Scheutz, other people take for granted.

On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 300 Plus uses the ECC main campus to have classes. In one of these classes, the students may go through mock interviews, in which they learn the elements of a successful job interview. The program also meets at ECC’s Fountain Square campus on Tuesdays and Thursdays for similar classes. Additionally, the students are given the opportunity to meet with one of 300 Plus’ five job coaches, who will assist them in finding prospective jobs as well as in the entire application and interview process.

According to Schuetz, the goal behind the program’s work is to help the students be as independent as possible.

300 Plus also runs a six-week summer program as a continuation of the school year’s vocational program. The summer program occurs at the job site, where some of the job coaches from the school year assist the students in maintaining their work skills.

Kristy Williams, who has been a 300 Plus job coach for the past eleven years, said "I enjoy watching the students become independent," she said. "I have seen students become employer-paid and able to leave our program, [which] builds their confidence."

A helping hand beyond the classroom

2008-12-02T13:24:00.000-08:00

Denisse Ayala
Staff Writer
ECC clubs and organizations aren’t the only active contributors to the community anymore. People around the Elgin area are starting to see the faces of ECC’s Faculty Association Volunteers (FAV) doing their share and sparing a bit of their time to make a difference in the community.

Formed two years ago, FAV aims to inspire ECC faculty to become more active in serving our communities.

According to Dan Kernler, mathematics instructor and FAV’s Vice-President, the original idea came from Martha Walz of the Speech department and Jason Kane of the English department. In e-mails sent to all ECC faculty, Kernler explains FAV’s goal to bring together as many faculty members from across the campus to lend a hand with community service projects throughout the year.

"There were some volunteer efforts in the past before I came to ECC, [but] we’re starting again," said Kernler.

Since the initiation of the FAV last year, a total of 14 faculty members have taken part in this volunteer group. These volunteers have lent a helping hand at various festivals held at a local elementary school.

"One of [our] past volunteer opportunities took place at a spring festival in a local elementary school, where the Northern Illinois Food Banks came to donate food to hundreds of families," said Kernler.

Because the distribution of food was during the school’s spring festival, the aid from FAV made it possible for the school’s staff to successfully run both the festival indoors and the food distribution outdoors.

FAV has no official meetings; however, news and volunteer opportunities are brought up during the leadership group for the faculty association or Faculty Senate meetings. Recruitment is then done via e-mail.

Kernler said FAV is always open to suggestions for service events.

"We are hoping to do another community service in time for Thanksgiving," said Kernler. "There may be people in the community [who] see a community college as inaccessible. If you have this personal attachment and you see or meet a faculty member at that associated organization it might make [the community college] seem more accessible. We want people to know that ECC is here and mak[ing] that personal connection."

Doctors should consult with dentists

2008-12-02T13:22:00.000-08:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
Comedian and co-host of The View Whoopi Goldberg recently confessed about her negligence of her own dental care and the effects it has caused her. Although she is not alone neglecting her own hygiene, it is shocking for someone such as Goldberg, who has the money to afford care, to forego taking care of her teeth.

For years and years I let my mouth go, and I am paying the price," said Goldberg. "I am losing teeth because I am losing bone. I could have prevented it. Your mouth is connected to your entire system. If you do not take care of your mouth, you are not taking care of your body."

According to the American Dental Association, periodontitis (the advanced form of gum disease that causes tooth loss) has found a correlation with other health problems such as heart disease, stroke and bacterial pneumonia. In addition, pregnant women are at an increased risk for delivering pre-term and low birth weight babies.

While I was interviewing Kim Plate, Program Director of Dental Assisting at ECC, I had an epiphany of what not taking care of one’s oral health can do. Imagine 9/11 in one’s mouth (stay with me here). There’s bacteria--Al Qaeda--who are practically invisible and terrorizing your mouth, causing your gums to bleed and other severe problems. There’s the dentist--FBI--and the doctor--CIA. They both know what can happen but choose not to speak to each other.

Therefore, the patient suffers undue health problems that could have been cured if the two communicated with one another.

In our age of medical technology, this miscommunication is unacceptable. The medical field has known that neglecting oral hygiene affects the overall health of a patient for the past 20 years. So why is this continuing to happen? After all, doctors take an oath to help people.

Currently, dental health care is not part of the National Health Reform movement, but I feel it should be since the issue of oral health relates to the entire body. We need more comprehensive health care.

An innovative program that would improve the entire healthcare community is an initiation of online medical records. This will make it easier to keep medical information organized, and physicians can cross-reference a patient’s care and hopefully cure perplexing problems easier and faster.

Many people may be concerned about online medical records and the privacy issue, but I believe this is going to be, and should be, the way of the future.

The right is wrong: Homophobic agenda is derogatory, counterproductive

2008-12-02T13:18:00.000-08:00

Staff Editorial
Contributors: Ian Neitzke & Shane Gabler
Recently at ECC, an EMBRACE (Eagerly Making Bridges Regarding All Cultural Experiences) gathering became a podium for hate speech from students. Several heterosexual male students complained that homosexuality made them feel uncomfortable because they don’t like being "checked out" by gay individuals. Not only is it arrogant for them to assume that they are attractive enough for a gay person to be attracted to, but it's absurd to assume every gay male would longingly gawk at them. It would be interesting if these students think women feel the same way when they are stared at by straight men.

One student commented that he would not befriend a homosexual because they are not normal. Sexuality aside, what makes someone who is gay any less normal than a straight person? Homosexuals are no less human than heterosexuals. No one should be treated differently for something that is apparently misunderstood. This student’s sentiment accented that homosexuality is viewed by many people as a choice. However, this idea has never been scientifically proven. It’s hard to believe that someone would ever choose to be gay knowing they would live a life of persecution and hate and, in extreme cases, be beaten or killed.

At EMBRACE, it was also revealed that lesbians were far more accepted than gay males. The media plays a large part in this. Lesbians are portrayed as thin and beautiful, while gay men are portrayed as flamboyant and feminine, which often makes straight men uncomfortable.

Homosexual celebrities also seem to be accepted because the media makes it seem okay, but this is not true of all celebrities. One student in particular said that if his favorite basketball player, Allen Iverson, were gay, he would no longer be a fan of his. It’s mind-boggling that an individual’s sexuality can spur such outrage. People should be respected for their talent, regardless of their sexuality.

At the national level, on November 4, ballot initiatives eliminated civil rights for homosexual couples in four states. California’s proposition 8, Florida’s proposition 2 and Arizona’s 102 were all passed to amend state constitutions to eliminate gay marriage.

While it is wrong to insist that homophobic people, no matter how bigoted or hateful they may be, should support gay rights, it seems necessary to question the intent behind their beliefs. The main argument against gay marriage (or homosexuality period), is that the definition of "marriage" should be a bond between a man and a woman, "as God intended it." However, throughout mankind’s existence, the definition of marriage has changed several times. In medieval ages, a man had to basically buy his wife from her family, and she was then given away many times against her will, to produce children, as long as the King approved. Early in our nation’s history, interracial marriages were illegal (and they still are in Tennessee). Traditions and definitions change over time, most of them for the common good.

Furthermore, there is no intent in any state to kick down church doors and insist that the religious definition of marriage be changed to include homosexual couples. Being that we live in a secular nation as our constitution demands, no one can do that, nor is that the intent of gay rights activists. Gay and lesbian couples are simply asking for the legal marital rights of straight couples: hospital visitation rights, insurance rights, etc.

The most puzzling ballot measure, however, is Arkansas’ proposition 1. This eliminated adoption rights to unmarried couples, but was aimed at the gay/lesbian community. This seems a counteractive mission for religious right-wingers, who insist that abortion should be outlawed because it can simply be replaced with adoption. So rather than support the spread of adoption, they have cut out a segment of society that could provide a large number of adoption clients.

This, at skin-depth, is blatantly counter-productive and, at its heart, narrow-minded and unfair.

Seton Hall professor discusses Russian race relations

2008-12-02T13:16:00.000-08:00

Ian Neitzke
Managing Editor
Seton Hall University professor Maxim Matusevich came to the ATC auditorium to give a presentation on interactions between Africa and Russia. A former journalist in St. Petersburg and current professor of Russian and Eastern European studies, Matusevich gave his presentation to a small audience of mostly instructors on October 30.

Matusevich’s presentation accented the differences in race relations in Russia and the rest of the world, and Russia’s transition from embracing Africans to disliking them.

Matusevich started his presentation with a portrait of Abram Petrovich Gannibal, an African prince who became a General in the Russian army. Gannibal was also the great-grandfather of Alexander Pushkin, who Matusevich considered "the most potent symbol of Russian culture."

Matusevich then posed the question that he answered throughout his presentation: "Africans [were] not particularly viewed as entirely human in the Western world [during Gannibal’s time]," said Matusevich. "Why are Africans denied human status in most parts of the western world in the 18th century while in Russia a person of African heritage achieves noble status?"

Matusevich attributed Russia’s appeal to native Africans due to their anti-colonialism during a time when Africa was being colonized by British and Dutch armies. Russian intellectuals praised Ethiopia for fending off the invading Italian military. Matusevich also pointed out that many Ethiopians were Eastern Orthodox Christians, just as Russians.

Matusevich also gave several examples of African-Americans who traveled to Russia early in the 20th century. These African-Americans were treated like royalty, but were drawn to Russia to be "free of Western-style racism." Actor Ira Aldridge, poet Langston Hughes and future Stalin-aid George Padmore all visited Russia during that time. Padmore became interested in communism while living in America, but was one of few men to live after standing up to Stalin and denouncing communism.

During the Cold War, however, Russia reversed its opinion on Africans. According to Matusevich, this was due to events that happened shortly after the end of World War II.

"[Russia] wants to be allies [in the 1950’s] with Africans because they’re waging the good wars against colonialism," said Matusevich. "But at the same time Africa [is associated with cultural elements] that are antithetical to the Soviet regime [such as] rock music [and] jazz music."

In the 1950’s, thousands of students from Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria and other African countries were recruited to study in Russia. According to Matusevich, the Russian government invited these students in an effort to open them to the idea of communism. However, the students came for inexpensive education, not to propagandize Marxism. They wrote letters to officials and, in 1963, Ghanaian students protested in Red Square.

"They actually undermined the Soviet idea," said Matusevich. "Africans, who were supposed to be the allies of the regime turned out to be the agent of cultural and political subversion."

Matusevich went on to show several images of what Russians called "idle Africans," particularly Chunga-Changa, a child music group that consisted of two dark-skinned children.

"On one hand, millions of Russians and Soviet children fell in love with a pair of adorable black youngsters," said Matusevich. "But there was also an underlying message: Africans, while adorable and very cute, don’t like to work; they like to dance and sing."

The few students who attended felt the presentation was educational.

Freshman Amy Ferrara said that Matusevich’s presentation showed a difference between Russia and the United States in race relations.

"It seems like [in Russia] it’s the complete opposite [of America]," said Ferrara. "We’re getting better about racism and before they were better and now they’re getting worse."

‘Muse’ showcases passion for creativity

2008-12-02T13:15:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Gruba
Staff Writer
For the price of only three canned food items, an array of local artists stimulated the thoughts of ECC students and all who attended The Muse, an artistic expession event in the Jobe Lounge on November 12.

Advertised as "an explosion of creative expression," good vibes and high spirits were present from both artists and attendees. The Muse was presented by ECC’s Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), College Programming Board, and Amnesty International. Anastasia A. Kutther, president of PTK, said the three groups came together because they wanted to give people a chance to express themselves and to show how creative and artistic ECC students are.

"That Man’s on Fire," a two-man acoustic set, started off the evening and entertained the audience with their comedic lyrics and stage performance. The crowd was excited to hear and see other forms of self-expression: poetry, short stories, monologues, and songs.

Russ Devereaux, "ECC’s Got Talent" winner, shared his poetry from memory and delivered it with passion. Devereaux captivated the audience with his thought-provoking ideas, and the attendees applauded for an encore several times. He appeared more than pleased to share more of his work.

Performing two interpretations and one original short story, Ryan O’Connell had the crowd’s undivided attention by telling his stories with deep conviction of their chacters.

The room went quiet when Kutther gave a speech that demonstrated her vocal and acting ability. Later, lighters and cell phones were raised as she sang acapella.

The night came to an end with the Beatles tune "With a Little Help From My Friends" sung by the audience, followed by four other closing songs.

Let’s do another one!" audience members shouted, not wanting the night to end. When asked what he thought of The Muse, O’Connell said Devereaux did a great job of organizing the event but said the best part was the food drive.

We have had some truly wonderful performers tonight," said Kutther after thanking everyone for coming and sharing.

EMBRACE talks sexuality

2008-12-02T13:14:00.000-08:00

Once every month, Gabe Lara gathers his supplies and takes his place in front of the projection screen in the Alumni Room. On November 4, the country’s Election Day, a plethora of students filled the seats and sat nervously as Lara prepared to begin his presentation on sexuality; a topic that undeniably makes many people uncomfortable.

This discussion was the third installment of the EMBRACE series led by Lara, a Student Life advisor on campus. EMBRACE is an acronym for Eagerly Making Bridges Regarding All Cultural Experiences, and aspires to educate students on such issues as racism and religion in our society.

"I hope that [students] leave with a better understanding of the topic and are more accepting," Lara said. "That’s when I think I’ve done my job."

EMBRACE is no stranger to covering controversial topics and gives students a place to speak their mind on the subject at hand without feeling like they will be attacked for their beliefs. Lara firmly stresses that EMBRACE is not to change people’s minds, but to allow them a different perspective on these issues.

Many students come prepared to share their views and are engaged in the conversation as well. Student Kim Shaw was present at the discussion on sexuality and had many thoughts about the events that took place.

"EMBRACE is great. It gives people a chance to talk about how they feel about certain situations," said Shaw. "I think this was the best one that I’ve been to."

EMBRACE enables students to think outside the box and explore ideas that may not seem normal to them. Almost every individual attending this discussion participated and offered their input on anything Lara threw at them. The responses were diverse and intelligent and there was no bickering.

"It gives an opportunity for people to discuss their opinions in a forum without fear of retaliation," said Naomi Brandner, an employee of Elgin Community College and an avid participant in the EMBRACE program.

Lara feels EMBRACE has proven to be an excellent source of diversity and has been a triumphant series thus far.

I think this was the most successful EMBRACE because of the discussion," Lara said. Hopefully students continue participating in these challenging and rewarding discussions and take with them the knowledge they will need when entering the world on their own.

Program preps future dental assistants

2008-12-02T13:13:00.000-08:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
In ECC's dental assisting lab, there are goggles, disposable gowns, gloves and masks, all of which are essential to its students. There is a refrigerator filled with chemicals students need to know. There is an x-ray room for those students to become familiar with, as well as many different models of skulls.

However, there is one thing that doesn't come standard in any of the dental labs, and according to Kim Plate, Dental Assisting Program director, her students provide it.

"It's all about that passion," she said. "What makes a dental student successful is to have the drive and love dental assisting."

According to Plate, though the class is 100% female, the program has a wide range of ages, ethnic cultures, backgrounds and extent of interest in the dental field. Some want to enter dental school and become a dentist. One former dental assisting student is employed at the Deputy in Coroner’s Office.

Ginger Fire, 22, a dental assisting student, served in the Navy in Kuwait, and chose this career path because as a senior in high school, she did hygienist work. Fire plans on becoming an orthodontist or pediatrician for children since she enjoys working with kids.

Danielle Leanna, 19, used to be an orthodontist assistant. She plans on becoming an orthodontist by furthering her education at the DePaul University Pre-Dentistry program.

"These women are amazing," said Plate.

One of Plate’s concerns is about the success rate of the program. Since the state of Illinois does not require educational training for dental assisting, many enter the field without any formal training and jeopardize the safety of the patient or themselves. According to Plate, ECC dental assisting students typically do well the first two semesters--it’s completing the third semester that is a challenge for most students due to financial obligations.

According to Plate, people who are low-income and don’t have insurance may get dental work such as fillings and extractions done through the program. They are also starting to do dentures and partial dentures. Prospective patients must go through the Greater Elgin Family Care Center in the Fox Valley area in order to qualify.

All Elgin resident Debbie Boynton wants is a beautiful smile and, after qualifying as a candidate, she is now being treated through ECC’s dental program.

"The people are great; [they’re] really nice [and] will work with you and [are] not very expensive," said Boynton.

Night of pop culture fit for connoisseurs only

2008-12-02T13:12:00.000-08:00

Denisse Ayala
Staff Writer
All savvies of pop culture gathered on Friday, November 6 for a chance to compete for a $300 grand prize during ECC’s "World Series of Pop Culture Tournament." Contestants attempted to correctly answer the numerous questions from a wide range of categories, from Saw movies to Presidential pets.

A total of eight teams of three signed up a week prior to go for the title of pop culture connoisseurs. All competing teams came in unique attires or costumes that clearly identified with their team names. Although the tournament was open to students, alumni, faculty, staff, administrators and supporters, this year the competing groups consisted mainly of ECC students and alumni.

Throughout the entire night, about 50 categories were used in the competition, according to Gabe Lara, Student Life Coordinator and MC for the night.

"We didn’t want to just leave it to stuff that [students] know now, but [from] back in the early days too," said Lara. "We wanted to give the competition well-rounded topics."

During each round, two teams were called on stage to compete. A category was then given and the representative of each team most knowledgeable in the category would attempt to answer the questions. If the representative from the team did not correctly answer the question, the opposing team would have the chance to answer and steal it. The team member with the most correct answers out of 6 questions would then stay in the game while the other was eliminated from the competition. Only if all three members of a team were eliminated would the opposing team move on to the next round.

After successfully passing through the preliminary and secondary rounds, Distinguished Gentlemen and returning champions Team Venture both moved on to the final round. Although they got stuck on the categories "Pixar Movies" and "Local Radio Stations and Stuff," Distinguished Gentlemen triumphed over Team Venture and were crowned this year’s connoisseurs of pop culture.

"There wasn’t any particular category that got me," said Jim Sauve from Team Venture. "I thought I did good in the round that I got up."

After Distinguished Gentlemen said they would be return for next year’s competition, Leo Perez from Team Venture said his team may return next year if Distinguished Gentlemen wants to go again.

"We know what it feels like to win and lose. We didn’t get embarrassed or anything like that," said Sauve. "[Gentlemen was] were just better than us."

Review: Ballet Folklorico celebrates Mexican culture

2008-12-02T13:11:00.000-08:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
Throughout the first weekend in November, the Ballet Folklorico Heuheucoyotl(BFH), an in-residence performance ensemble at ECC, brought Musica y Danza: Heuheucoyotl to the Elgin Community College Blizzard Theater stage. The performance showcased what the all-ages troupe has been putting together since January. Ballet Folklorico is a traditional Mexican form of dance, and as such the performance was a celebration of Mexican culture.

Musica y Danza comprised of ten dance numbers, each of which had its own distinct elements. The show’s first number set the standard as far as energy was concerned; the high-energy level was present in every number, even spreading to the audience on occasion, making the show more enjoyable. Some numbers were performed exclusively by the younger groups and others by the adult groups. There were even some numbers performed by all the age groups. Each number was colorful in its own individual way, whether through the costumes, set design, music or a mixture of all three. In fact, the costumes alone were fantastic and definitely drew distinction between the numbers.

While there was diversity within the dances, there was also a sense of unity among the individual numbers. The dancing itself was thrilling to watch.

For most of the dance numbers, the different age groups were paired off into couples. The performance hit its highest points when the adult group was on the stage and dancing as couples. However, every performance was of professional quality regardless of the performers’ age. The age differences of the performers was actually what made Musica y Danza so interesting to watch.

The entire show exhibited the amount of time the BFH dancers must have spent on practicing the dances. In each number, the expressed a different mood without ever speaking a word. While its primary goal was to celebrate Mexican heritage, Musica y Danza also contained strong, engaging performances from start to finish.

Classy restaurant resides on main campus

2008-12-02T13:10:00.000-08:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
Even the most fancy steakhouses don’t give you three different types of butter with your bread, but ECC’s student-run Spartan Terrace does. The whole restaurant reeks of classiness. Big band music plays, servers walk around in black and white wearing shoulder-to-knee aprons, and yet I still felt comfortable in my jeans and jacket.

Off a menu that includes everything from pecan chicken and grilled marlin to eggplant lasagna, I ordered the Tournedos Madeira (a cut of beef), Mulagatani (the soup of the day) and a caramel apple tart.

I was more impressed with the Terrace’s butter choices than with the Mulagatani, a kind of Indian curry soup. Expecting something spicy, I took a sip that was thick and sweet. There were rice, raisins, and some kind of sliced nut in it as well. It did not go well with Coke. If I had the chance to do it over again, I would definitely drink water with this one to cut the thickness. I’ve never had raisins in my soup before, and the curry didn’t make me a fan. The Terrace was kind enough to take it off my bill, however, due to my distaste. I didn’t even ask.

However, the Tournedos Madeira, served medium-rare, and its side dishes more than made up for the soup. The meat, once the fat was cut away, was savory, tender, and left me wishing I had ordered the full portion instead of the half. The sauce on the meat was phenomenal and I dipped both the steamed vegetables and the blue cheese macaroni into it.

Like most college students, I am a connoisseur of macaroni and cheese. I don’t think any of us could live without it. Spartan Terrace’s blue cheese version of this college classic is something I will be trying to recreate at home. Dip it in the meat sauce and it’s a meal worthy of any finals-stressed students’ computer desk, let alone Dr. Sam or another person of high importance.

The caramel apple tart was a heavier version of apple pie and it came with ice cream, which I wasn’t expecting. It was good, but not anything spectacular.

Dining at Spartan Terrace was a relaxing experience. No one rushed me or expected me to leave as soon as my plate was clean. It is not an in-and-out restaurant. Remember, it is student run and these students are still learning. You’ll have to expect to wait awhile for a server and the food. So take your time, watch the chefs through the window between the dining room and kitchen, and savor the three different types of butter.

Review: Keane perfect on Symmetry

2008-12-02T13:08:00.000-08:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
For the past four years, Britain-based rock band Keane has met substantial success in the United States, with over 8 million sales of their debut and sophomore releases combined. With each new addition to their musical legacy, the members of Keane – Tom Chaplain, Tom Rice-Oxley and Richard Hughes –have continually recreated their sound. The band’s third studio album, Perfect Symmetry, is no exception.

The album’s first track, "Spiraling," gives the listener an adequate idea of the elements contained in the remaining ten tracks. While it displays an insanely quirky sound (that no one would associate with the band who gave the world "Somewhere Only We Know" four years ago), the track grows on the listener, mostly due to the lyrics.

In fact, lyrics represent Keane’s strongest point. With the possible exception of "Pretend That You’re Alone," every single track is built around profoundly well-penned lyrics. The title track, "Perfect Symmetry," displays some of Keane’s best lyrical imagery, making it an ideal choice to have as the album’s namesake. Among Perfect Symmetry’s other outstanding lyrical achievements are "Black Burning Heart," "You Haven’t Told Me Anything," "Again and Again," and "You Don’t See Me."

Vocals, while not horrible, don’t stand out as exemplary in Symmetry. However, the album’s other elements manage to endear the album to the listener. Additionally, Chaplain possesses the rare ability to make his vocals captivating and charming even though they may be lacking in some other respects.

The album’s final track, "Love is the End," represents a beautifully simple side of Keane, in complete opposition to the opening. Instead of boasting a quirky, energetic sound, "Love is the End" is powered by a mellow piano and mood-capturing vocals. This track represents the album’s strongest points, which are apparent on the simplistic, piano- driven tracks.

While the majority of Perfect Symmetry is a slightly oddball effort to change a band’s sound, some things refuse to change. Keane is still most beautiful at their most simple.

Mauvais Sort bewitches Blizzard Theatre

2008-12-02T13:04:00.000-08:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
Days prior to Halloween, the French-Canadian music group Mauvais Sort cast a spell on their audience in their performance at Blizzard Theatre.

When the schedule of the performance events came out in August, this was the one performance I was looking forward to the most. I thought it would be good. I was wrong. It was great. This concert was a foot-stomping, head-bopping, hand-clapping and hip-swaying event.

Mauvais Sort, a name derived from French meaning "to put a spell on somebody," uses a blend of sounds from around the world. They have come up with their own original genre, referring to their music as "Folk’ n Roll." They are a four-person band and the only female is Stéphanie Richard, who plays the accordion (and can even play it backwards). Richard is the dancer of the group, and can shimmy to the floor and playfully pretend to be kicking Patrick Giroux, who plays the violin as if he’s seducing it. Then there’s Guillame Cộté who plays the drums enviably.

Finally, there’s Nicholas Geoffroy, who plays the mandolin, guitar, vocals, and has the feet of Michael Flatley when stomping them to the lively music.

To describe Mauvais Sort’s music, the closest comparison I can come up with is the song "The Devil Went down to Georgia" by The Charlie Daniels Band-- only faster, better and in French.

The gentleman seated next to me said to his friend when she arrived that it "keeps you awake." Indeed, it did. I could have sworn hours after the concert’s conclusion my feet were still stomping, and I was dancing in my sleep.

After Mauvais Sort took their bows and left the stage, they got everyone in the audience up and out of their seats to dance to an encore.. The one thing ECC can do to improve the performance of Mauvais Sort, if they should return, is to remove the seats, because the audience didn’t seem to need them.

The evening came to an end too soon for me. On the way home, it seemed the music of Mauvais Sort would not leave me. I realized what it was like for the generations before me to experience the phenomenon of Elvis or the Beatles, because this was the way I felt. It’s now the CD that I listen to faithfully that I enjoy.

Merci, Mauvais Sort.

Spartan women fall short in Regional Championship

2008-12-02T13:02:00.002-08:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
With only four returning players from last year’s squad and an empty bench, the #2 seeded Spartan women’s soccer team (10-7) lost the regional championship on November 1 to the #1 seeded Waubonsee Chiefs, 1-0. For new coach Kyle Walter, this season was something to be proud of.

"Finishing second in the division is not a terrible thing. It is definitely something to build on. I was very pleased with this season," said Walter.

The Chiefs' lone goal came just six minutes into the first half.

"They ended up getting in behind us one time," said Walter. "The ball came across and was knocked around by about four or five people and ended up in the back of the net. There was nothing we could really do about it." Walter was a very proud of the defensive effort put forth by his players, especially forward Denisse Ascencio, who was filling in as goalkeeper for an injured Jenni Ferrara.

"Denisse fills in as a goal keeper, but she is not a goal keeper," said Walter. "She tried hard and she did what she could, but unfortunately the ball just found the back of the net."

Other than the early goal, both teams played a tight defensive game. The Spartan defense kept the ball out of harm’s way for most of the game, but both teams were unable to finish several scoring opportunities in the final 76 minutes.

Walter believes he has a promising core of players returning next year..

"We’re hoping to have back seven, maybe eight players for next year," said Walter. "Plus, we have a couple of recruits in the works already. We’re looking good for next year, and hopefully we can make ourselves a little bit more available for district."

The ladies’ efforts this season did not go unrewarded. Veteran midfielder/forward Amy Schmitz was named first team All-Region. Schmitz finished 22nd in the nation among the NJCAA Division I scoring leaders, rounding up 21 goals and 11 assists. Forward Rebekah Haberkost was also honored by being named to the second team All-Region with 11 goals and 6 assists.

Men’s soccer wraps up developmental season with playoff loss

2008-12-02T13:02:00.001-08:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
The men’s soccer team certainly had its up and downs this year.. Finishing with a record of 5-5-1, the Spartan men showed they are an enormously talented group that still needs time to develop as a team.

"Our early playoff loss was disappointing, but our season on the whole was impressive," said head coach Dean Smith.

Their year began with a close 1-0 loss to College of Lake County in what Smith called a very good performance. After that, the Spartans lost another close game, this time by the count of 3-2 against then-undefeated Prairie State College. 0-2 was not how the men were looking to start, but the Spartans managed to storm back, going 3-0-1 in their next four games. They tallied wins against McHenry County College, Kishwaukee College and Moraine Valley. Later in the season, the Spartan men battled hard to a 0-0 tie in late September against the team that would eventually end their season, Morton College. With a record of 3-2-1, the Spartan men would go on to lose three of their next five including their season-ending quarterfinal 4-1 loss to Morton.

Injuries to several key players, including midfielders Jose Rico-Acevedo and Joel Lopez, hampered the Spartans' efforts.

"The [playoff] loss was disappointing," said Smith in a statement on the ECC Athletics page. "In the regular season game, we more than competed. I just wish we could have come to terms with the ball like Morton did. I have no doubt that with another year of experience and without injuries, the result [would have] been different."

Smith, however, was careful not to take any credit away from Morton.

"They were the better team that day. They deserved to win," he said.

Smith said earlier in the season that his team was young and developing and this year was the time for young players to develop their skills as individuals while working together to become a more complete and dynamic team.

At season's end, Smith said he hopes to return eight to ten players from 2008, notably freshman forward Taylor Bond and goalkeeper Vince DiNuzzo.

"DiNuzzo was the best keeper I have had in my six years [at ECC]. He’s got all the attributes to be great," said Smith. He also commented on Bond’s scoring prowess.

"[Bond] caused problems for opposing teams in almost every game," said Smith.

Bond’s accomplishments (7 goals and 6 assists) were recognized on a larger scale when he was named to the second team of the Region IV All-Region Men’s Soccer Team, and was named as an All-Conference Forward.

Smith clearly has a lot to look forward to next year.

Spartans turn over against Hawks; lose first home game

2008-12-02T13:01:00.001-08:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
A two-point halftime lead for ECC's men's basketball team didn't hold out in its home opener at the Events Center on November 8 as they fell to Harper College, 69-57. In a stop-and-go game where at one point the two teams were averaging a combined two fouls per minute, the Spartans (1-2) turned the ball over far too many times, according to head coach Reed Nosbisch.

"We had a hard time handling the basketball," said Nosbisch. "[The turnovers] took us out of the game."

After a hot start by the Hawks (2-0), the Spartans rallied to tie the score at 16 with and went to the locker room winning 29-27. ECC, however, had 4 fouls in the opening 4 minutes of the second half and was still plagued offensively by turnovers, which paved the way for a 23-10 Harper run. The Spartans struggled to get within ten points of the Hawks for the rest of the game.

"I think [Harper] turned up the pressure [in the second half]," said Nosbisch. "They took the passing lanes away and we didn't do a very good job of screening each other. They didn't give us a lot of open looks."

Guard Johnny Paden said the Spartans felt the pressure all game long.

"When we get double teamed, [we] just hold the ball [too long]," said Paden.

Though Harper drew 24 total fouls, ECC was penalized 14 times in the second half--twice as many as in the first.

"At the beginning, when I saw [the referees] calling fouls, I got a little intimidated," said Paden. "But then I realized I had to lay back a little bit."

Sophomore forward Steve Bilisko said the Spartans weren't focused enough.

"[The coaches] said it best: we came out and played like we practiced this past week," said Bilisko. "We didn't take care of the ball [and] we missed a lot of short, easy shots."

Though their offense struggled against Harper's press defense, Nosbisch said one of the Spartans' main goals this season was improved defensive play, a goal that so far has been met. As opposed to a point-per-game (PPG) allowance of over 80 last season, ECC is allowing just 67.3 PPG through three games.

"Once we saw the athletic ability we were going to have, the main focus through the month of October was on the defensive end," said Nosbisch. "The offense we ran [against Harper] was a very basic offense.."

Bilisko said the offensive key for the Spartans this season is quick scoring.

"If we can get going and get fast breaks and get easy points against bigger teams, that's the way we need to play," said Bilisko.

While Nosbisch said ECC has yet to reach its mid-season stride, he was quick not to put the loss against Harper all on his young team.

"The refs aren't in mid-season form, either," he said with a smile.

Room to grow: Library renovations will give students more space, resources

2008-10-28T10:01:00.000-07:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
Earlier this year, Elgin Community College began laying out the plans for a three-story, state-of-the-art separate library building with local architectural firm Burnidge Cassel, its 40-year project partner.

The library project is still in the planning stages and the exact completion date is yet to be determined, but Jennifer Betancourt, Project Manager with Burnidge Cassell Associates, said the new library will be more accessible to students, since the current location is somewhat out of the way.

“It’s our goal to make [the library] at the heart of the campus,” said Betancourt. “We’re designing the library to be a crossroads of the campus, so that [students will be] drawn to it.”

The new library will be a separate building attached to the Student Resource Center for convenient access. Additionally, the building will be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified, using the latest in environmentally-friendly and efficient building materials and technologies.

Also included in the new library design is a café, more student study rooms and student gathering areas.

As part of the planning process, ECC’s Library Expansion Taskforce visited many other community college libraries to reach a better understanding of what would be wanted in the renovated ECC library.

According to Mi Hu, Dean of Academic Development & Learning Resources, one of the Taskforce’s foci was “to learn from other libraries and their experience during renovation— planning, construction, and [building the] new facility: what works and what doesn’t.”

Hu has also noticed that the current library is very crowded most of the time, which makes it difficult to serve students in the best way.

"Ideally, the new library’s mission will be the the next place to learn besides the classroom, said Hu. "The idea is to make the library a place students will want to be."

ECC librarian Gretl Kramer hopes that, after its completion, the ECC library will be a model library for other schools.

“We want it to be a space that is inviting and makes students want to be here, and stay here,” Kramer said, going on to refer to the new library as a student’s “living room” at school.

As part of the overall goal of improving the student learning experience, Hu said she wants to see the new library make many new technologies, like media production resources, available to students.

“The library planning is focused on student learning; specifically, helping students engage in intentional learning,” Hu said.

Kramer said ECC hasn't yet developed a plan for the exterior of the building.

“As we’ve worked with the architects, we haven’t [yet] told them what we want the new library to look like,” she said. “We’ve [only] told them what we want to happen in the library.”

Kramer also said she wants the new library to better facilitate student success, particularly in three specific areas.

"Students are most successful when they are collaborating with other students, collaborating with their professors outside of class and spending more time on their tasks," she said. "I hope the new library will help these things happen."

SPIRE wins literary magazine competition

2008-10-28T09:58:00.000-07:00

Chester Roush
Staff Writer
The ECC literary magazine SPIRE recently took first place in the central division of the Community College Humanities Association’s Literary Magazine Competition.

According to English professor and magazine advisor Rachael Tecza, all those involved in the magazine’s production are incredibly excited.

This is the first time SPIRE has placed in the competition, which it has entered for several years. The award is given by the Community College Humanities Association, an organization dedicated to the study of the humanities in community colleges across the country.

SPIRE is a literary, art, and design magazine run both by the Creative Writing Scholarship, headed by Tecza, and the Spartan Design Club, headed by professor Connie Orbeta. The magazine has submissions of poetry and prose writing, as well as paintings, drawings, photographs, digital images and other forms of visual art, all submitted by students.

“The 2007/2008 edition of SPIRE contains poems and essays by 28 students and artwork by 15 students, which is a wonderful reflection of our creative community,” said Tecza.

Submissions are sent in from the fall into early February. The writing is edited by the Creative Writing Scholarship and sent to the Spartan Design Club. The visual art submissions are selected, and the magazine is formatted in consultation with the Hagg Press in Elgin. The result is sent back to the Creative Writing Scholarship for proofreading, proofread again by the Spartan Design Club, and sent to the presses. After a final “print proof,” the magazine is printed by Hagg Press and comes out around May each year.

The competition has both one national winner and three regional winners from each section of the country. Other magazines that placed in the central division were Fusion of Delta College in Michigan and Cedar Valley Divide, from Kirkwood Community College in Iowa. The national winner was The American River Review, from the American River College in California.

ECC Work-Study Program Benefits from $32,000 Grant

2008-10-28T09:56:00.000-07:00

Denisse Ayala
Staff Writer
The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) awarded Elgin Community College a $32,000 grant aimed at helping students gain work experience in their chosen area of study.

The grant is awarded to both private and non-private educational institutions whose goal is to increase internship opportunities, lessen dependence on loans, construct relations between academic programs and employment and encourage the permanent employment of graduates within the state of Illinois.

"With competitiveness in the workforce, students will benefit from work experience in their fields of study through the program," said Peggy Gundrum, Director of Career Services at ECC. "The funds given through the Illinois Cooperative Work-Study Program gives the local employers a fifty percent reimbursement so they can basically hire college students at half the cost."

For a period of six months, research and with thirty-two letters of intent from local businesses that were willing to participate in the work-study program were collected and submitted with an application. According to the IHBE, the cooperative work study program’s allocation of $2,058,000 for the 2008 fiscal year was distributed to 53 private and non-private educational institutions from where it is estimated that it will benefit 1,975 Illinois undergraduate students.

Any student who is a permanent resident of Illinois and is registered for academic credit within ECC is eligible to participate in the program. Beginning its first year this semester, the program currently has work-study fields in culinary arts, graphic design, nursing, office administration, education, engineering, and welding.

“We can look for opportunities as well,” said Gundrum. "If any ECC students wanted to participate in the program but there were no current employers in the student’s area of study, then together we could look for opportunities."

Gundrum said a work-study program is a great boost to any resume.

“It opens up the door to students [and] to the employer who would not [have] otherwise been able to hire them,” said Gundrum.

Fashion Show displays international styles, customs

2008-10-28T09:51:00.000-07:00

Denisse Ayala
Staff Writer
Student volunteers, along with members of the United Students of All Cultures (USAC) and Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) took the stage on October 13, modeling various outfits of many colors, styles and fabrics from various parts of the world.

A total of twenty-five various traditional dresses and outfits from thirteen different countries were modeled in honor of International Week, a celebration of ECC’s diversity. Represented countries included Cambodia, China, Japan, India, Pakistan, Iran, Poland, Russia, Cameroun, Liberia, Puerto Rico, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico and Ghana.

“The outfits were donated by faculty members and students,” said Vany Wells, advisor to USAC and Retention Specialist in the Career & Technical Education Program. “There were some that I bought, but mostly they were all donated by ECC faculty members or students.”

All twenty-five outfits demonstrated the type of attire used in both everyday life and special occasions. Although many simple everyday outfits from many countries were modeled, the unique range of colors, patterns, designs and fabrics still made them appealing and interesting.

Running annually for at least fifteen years, “the fashion show’s purpose is to raise awareness of the other cultures through their traditional costumes, music and historical background [as well as] celebrate diversity,” said Wells.

The highlight of the show was the re-enactment of a traditional wedding in Ghana. Before its conclusion, ECC students Mario Ruch and Kristina Ostrowski interpreted the Ghanaians’ tradition and customs.

The wedding outfits, belonging to ECC Assistant Dean for College-Wide Retention Sharon Baker, were made to fit loosely on the bride and groom. However, designers today are tailoring their afro-eccentric wear to a more fitting western style. They still maintain the ethnic accents through the hand-stitched embroidery, cowrie shells, trims and beads, and small pictures used to decorate colorful patterned cloth known as adinkra symbols.

During the re-enactment, the groom first presented various gifts to the bride’s family upon entering her home. Along with that, the groom’s mother presented a separate gift to the bride’s mother; by the bride’s mother accepting the gift, the groom is accepted to be part of her family. With the permission of the bride’s family for matrimony, a ring is then given to the bride and the wedding then takes place. At the conclusion of the wedding, relatives and friends throw confetti on the bride and groom to celebrate the prosperity of their future lives together.

“I had the idea about introducing the idea of an interracial and international marriage based on my own life experience,” said Wells. “Because [the] International Week theme was the celebration of cultural diversity, I thought that an international and interracial marriage would be the perfect grand finale for the International fashion Show."

Editorial: Animal rights group needs to cut the propaganda

2008-10-28T09:44:00.000-07:00

Nick Johnson
Editor in Chief
ECC’s Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals group has officially become just as wasteful and illogical as its radical parent organization.

Signs around campus posted by the group ask students to ‘Sign the Petition to Ban KFC from Campus,’ and proclaim that ‘Meat’s not green.’

In refuting such an abundance of misinformation, it’s tough to know where to begin. But I will start with the KFC issue. As recently as August 11, students of SETA staged a protest outside an Elgin KFC, urging potential customers to boycott the restaurant because of their policies regarding treatment of chickens, and I have no doubt they plan to continue such rallies. Fortunately for those restaurants, SETA is wasting its time and resources. Its demonstrations won't impact the restaurants' profits and won't change many minds. Companies that sell chickens to KFC (Perdue Farms and Tyson Foods) have been sharply criticized by PETA for such practices as beak trimming, cage crowding, and animal mistreatment by employees. SETA echoes that criticism, but, just like their extremist parent group, refuse to consider basic logic and instead spout off moral nonsense about how “animals are just like us.”

For the sake of brevity, I won't even get into the defunct logic of that statement, but I will say that chickens’ beaks are trimmed so they will not peck each other to death in cages, and they are in cages because it is the most efficient means of containment. Keeping chickens in giant barns or acres of land with hundreds of thousands roaming around would be far too costly and completely inefficient froman agricultural, industrial and economical standpoint. As for those employees who commit animalcruelty, they are clearly acting on individual will and not filling any demands of the companies. Furthermore, SETA’s primary goal in protesting KFC is to stop KFC from opening a chain on the ECC campus, an idea that has never been funded, supported or even proposed. They did manage to turn in a 'petition' to Student Government, but unfortunately for SETA, Student Government has no authority to prevent any restaurants from coming to ECC, so SETA's cause is still hopelessly lost.

SETA's “Meat's not Green” posters are basically propaganda, wrongfully proclaiming that 'meat is the leading cause of global warming.' I don't think I could ever stress how much of a ludicrously misinterpreted and fallible argument that is because, again, PETA's extremism goes beyond that of rational comprehension. If anyone does even the slightest bit of research on global warming, he or she would find that it is the burning of fossil fuels- -most notably coal--for electricity that is the absolute leading cause of global warming. I challenge you, the reader, to visit sites like timeforchange.org, causesforglobalwarming. net, ecobridge.org and globalwarming.org.in, just to name a few. You will find that out of all those sources, which are all organizations of people dedicated to the study and prevention of global warming, none of them attribute global warming to the consumption of meat products. Not one. Now, a recent study by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization did find that 18% of human-made greenhouse gases come from livestock production and that raising animals for meat accounts for more of such gases than the emissions of all the world's cars and trucks combined. Is this report credible? Absolutely. Is it evidence for PETA's claim? Absolutely not. For one, it's not surprising that raising animals produces more greenhouse gases, as there are many, many more of such animals than there are vehicles. Secondly, the demand for meat is not a problem of practice; it is a problem of population. There is a world population of more than 6 billion people, most of whom are omnivores. Meat is the most naturally abundant source of protein, and second most abundant source of calories, for those 6 billion people. This leads to high-demand. If the world population were 600 million, meat consumption wouldn't be contributing to global warming.

Think of it this way: Say SETA and PETA get their wish, and everyone in the world stops eating meat right now. Aside from the economic and cultural ruin that would ensue, we'd now have to tear down even more forests (don't tell me you eat trees, members of SETA), commit even more land to crops and divert all of our research and technology to developing some pharmaceutical wonder-protein that will keep us from going extinct in favor of other animals, who would still eating each other.

So SETA, if you're going to blame global warming on anything, blame it on the reproductive success of the human species. There is absolutely nothing wasteful, wrong, or cruel about eating meat. It is what humans have evolved to do, it is what we are anatomically designed to do and furthermore, it is what we like to do and it is an integral part of hundreds of thousands of cultures worldwide. As someone who is against animal cruelty and all for the freedom to have the thoughts and belief that SETA has, there is a line that has been crossed. To claim that everyone in the world would be better off without meat and that everyone should follow their faulty, exorbitant displays of factual manipulation is not just infuriatingly arrogant--it's absolutely wrong.

Fashion Show proves 'diversity is a possibility'

2008-10-28T09:40:00.000-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
“Diversity is a possibility,” said Claire Dabandons of the United Students of All Cultures (USAC) International Dance Troupe. She couldn’t be more right.

Getting up early to cover the opening of the USAC’s International Week, I wasn’t planning to be a fashion model. However, when a few of USAC’s models for their international fashion show were late, I went from taking pictures of the participants to becoming one. After tentatively volunteering, I was hustled to the SRC hallway to find a dress that fit. Within 15 minutes I was in line wearing a gold cheongsam, a traditional Chinese dress, talking to a girl in a German outfit.

I am a white descendant of German immigrants and Irish horse thieves and a small town Illinois native, and I ended up walking through Jobe Lounge in a cheongsam, barefoot, as a representative of China.

The International Dance troupe performed a Cambodian Blessing Dance before the fashion show. Not one of the troupe members is from Cambodia. Dabandons was born in France and grew up in Laos. Tina Tran is Vietnamese. Gisela Mengalle is from Cameroon, and Kristina Ostrowski from the United States. Talk about diversity.

Really, what’s so strange about Tran studying Cambodian classical dance?

Why can’t Ostrowski model a wedding dress from Ghana?

Why shouldn’t I be a representative of China?

It’s when people immerse themselves in the cultures of others that we truly begin to understand how different we all are, and can begin to live together. That’s when “one world, one dream,” can become a reality. That’s when diversity becomes more than a possibility.

ECC grad leaves home to join AmeriCorps

2008-10-28T09:34:00.000-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising/Marketing Director
Earlier this month, Stephanie Sears walked in the door of the Koch’s home where Evidence, a local bible study group, meets. She hugged her boyfriend and was bombarded with greetings from people sitting on the stairs, at the piano and lying on the living room floor.

As people moved from group to group eating, talking, and laughing, Sears was the center of conversation, and understandably so. The recent ECC graduate has put her life on hold to serve others with AmeriCorps. She departed on October 6 for Sacramento, California where she will train for two months before beginning her service work.

“I think it’ll be really fun,” said Sears. “It will be a lot of work, but I enjoy it.”

Sears will be doing everything from working with impoverished children as a tutor to building houses with Habitat for Humanity.

“There’s a big focus on disaster relief,” said Sears. Although she’s stationed in California, she expects to be on the Gulf Coast a lot, working to get cities hit by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike functioning again.

“I’ll probably spend about half of my time in New Orleans or the Gulf Coast,” said Sears.

Sears will not be working alone. There are about 1,100 people involved in the NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) branch of AmeriCorps. During their first two months of training, the participants will be split into groups of eight to twelve individuals. Sears will work on about five projects, each about six-weeks in length, with that group.

Transport and housing are arranged and paid for by AmeriCorps. The individual teams also get a food budget.

There are four NCCC campuses; the one where Sears will train in Sacramento, California, Perry Point, Maryland, Vinton, Iowa and Denver, Colorado. Most of the projects, aside from disaster relief, are located in these campus' regions. A single region includes six or seven states, so the teams don’t always live at their home campus.

“I might end up staying in different camps, or the basements of churches, or other random places,” said Sears.

Schools, towns, churches, national and state parks, and non-profit organizations are all eligible to host AmeriCorps teams. The requirements to volunteer for AmeriCorps are few.

“Well, you do have to graduate from high school, and I’m pretty sure you have to be 18,” said Sears.

The NCCC branch limits involvement to those between 18 and 24. They also look for people who are CPR certified and bilingual, although neither skill is required.

“A really important quality is to be flexible, because they change things around a lot,” said Sears.

Sears got countless hugs throughout her final night at home. Friends watched as she opened a box of goodbye gifts from her boyfriend and his family: a key chain loaded with digital pictures of home, a bag she can use as a carry-on and bobby-pins (because her boyfriend knows she likes them). She had already put together a list of addresses so she can send everyone postcards.

Sears is scheduled to return home August of 2009.

Students shine at ECC’s Got Talent

2008-10-28T09:29:00.000-07:00

Jim Ayello
Staff Writer
Some of ECC’s most talented students competed for a $500 prize on October 2 in the Organization of Latin American Students' annual "ECC’s Got Talent" show.

The audience was given all it could handle on a Friday night, experiencing all kinds of acts ranging from singing to flare bartending and everything in between. With 15 acts performed, there was nonstop action from 7 to 11 PM.

The winner of the competition and the $500 prize was sophomore Russ Devereaux. Devereaux, a current member of the ECC improv comedy troop, wowed the audience and judges with his energetic performances of his self-written and memorized poetry. To win, Devereaux first had to be chosen by the judges as one of top five best acts of the night. He then had to perform again, against the other four acts selected, in a second round, where he was eventually declared the winner. Russ performed high intensity and poetic pieces entitled “Xbox” and “I Stand,” in the first round, and his winning piece was entitled, “A Call to Arms,” a provocative poem that called for all writers to stand up for what they believe in and try to make a change.

"There are enough things wrong with this world that I think we need to do something about it,” said Devereaux of his poetry.

Devereaux’s stage presence and poetry engrossed everyone in the audience, including judge and current Student Life Coordinator Amy Beth Maurer.

“I really liked that it felt like he was tackling issues that are really serious, but yet bringing them to a level that a college student [would] understand,” said Maurer.

While Devereaux put on a fantastic show, it should not go unmentioned that the other four acts in the top five were phenomenal as well. Finishing second in "ECC’s Got Talent" was a group of performers that called themselves “The Magnificent Five”--a dance group made up of five different couples; however saying that they just dance is a vast understatement. These agile performers amazed the audience with their incredible athleticism and endless energy in their act.

“It made me feel like I was on a roller coaster,” said Judge Katie Storey.

Entertained with flips and twirls and twists and turns, the audience loved “The Magnificent Five” and the group gave Devereaux quite a competition.

Sophomore Matt Fox earned a third place finish for his performance of two original one-man acts, in which he portrayed an entire five-person news team and he an irregular family of five eating dinner. Both acts had audience members laughing hysterically, though Fox felt his finish was well-deserved.

“I was blown away by the acrobatics of the Magnificent Five," said Fox. "They were incredible.”

Culinary program gets new head chef

2008-10-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

Merika With
Contributing Writer
Lead Chef Jill Russel, culinary professor and recent recipient of the American Culinary Federation Presidential Medallion, will be the head chef of ECC’s culinary program next semester, as Chef Michael Zema is retiring.

Russel, who has taught at ECC for four years, got her first taste of cooking when her mother was the manager of her high school’s cafeteria. She first started out working in the high school’s kitchen to pay for her lunch, and then in her sophomore year of high school, Russel got a job at the Marriott as a dishwasher. After high school, Russel decided to pursue a career in nursing. When Russel’s first year of school ended, she decided that nursing was not the right profession for her. Russel then enrolled in the culinary program at Triton College and received her Associate’s Degree in Culinary Arts. She has also earned Bachelor’s in Science and Hotel Management and Restaurant at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. Russel also earned a Masters Degree in Finance from Dominican University.

Russel said she wants to bring more international cooking to the program.

“The world is global, and the US has become a melting pot of various nationalities,” said Russel. “We cook from our heart and our heritage, which makes us global. We need to know for example, what kind of food my neighbor from Morocco might enjoy.”

According to Russel, foreign cooking classes would be offered every semester and the chefs would come from different countries. Russel will also make online classes available for the program.

“The classes that will be offered on D2L are going to be [solely] lecture classes,” said Russel. “This will help speed the graduation process.”

Another change that Russel would like to make is for the baking classes.

“I would like to expand the baking lab,” she said. “Right now there are two small kitchens. We need more space [and] more equipment for our expanding classes.”

Other changes include culinary nutrition classes and a wine and spirits class.

Russel hopes the new changes to the program will prepare students for the new culinary hotspot that Chicago has become.

Opinion: Election Perspective

2008-10-28T09:16:00.000-07:00

Ian Neitzke
Managing Editor
On November 4, I will be voting, as most young voters will be,
for our junior Senator Barack Obama. The Democratic nominee
for for president represents the change that America desires, and
the change we need after 8 years of travesty under George W.
Bush and failed policies John McCain has claimed he will continue.
Even though McCain and his supporters claim Barack Obama
will raise your taxes, Obama actually supports tax cuts for 95%
of Americans, essentially everyone making less than $250,000
a year. In fact, for middle-class and lower-class individuals, tax
cuts under Obama would be three times larger than John Mc-
Cain’s proposed tax cuts. He also wants to eliminate income taxes
for seniors making less than $50,000 a year, and simplify the
tax code. On spending, McCain claims Obama’s spending will
be wasteful. This is entirely untrue. As our senator says, Mc-
Cain wants to “use a hatchet on something that needs a scalpel,”
speaking of “earmarks” that represent less than 1% of federal
spending. Earmarks are often worthy spending such as roads,
education or museums. So while McCain claims 1 in 5 government
programs don’t work, that means 4 of 5 do work. So why
cut those 4 of 5 successful programs entirely? Obama’s proposed
new spending is paid for by raising taxes on the wealthiest
Americans, currently under-taxed by George W. Bush and who
would continue to pay incredibly low taxes under a McCain/
Sarah Palin administration. Obama also supports heavy regulation
of banking and lending practices, as well as job creation in
“green industries.”
On foreign policy, Barack Obama wants to end the war in
Iraq, and vocally opposed invasion before the war started. In
January 2007, Obama introduced legislation to end the Iraq war
systematically. Obama says our resources need to be better spent
by putting more troops in Afghanistan and possibly Pakistan,
if entering Pakistan would yield Osama Bin Laden’s capture.
Obama supports restoring our image in the world, and has said
he would provide more diplomacy, and sit down with dictators
from countries like Venezuela, Iran or North Korea.
On energy, both candidates support ending our dependence
on foreign oil. The difference is that voting records destroy John
McCain’s argument. McCain has voted against renewable energy
several times in his long senate career. On a December 13, 2007
vote, a bill opting to spend $13 billion on renewable energy was
shot down by a vote of 59-40 with 1 vote absent. McCain, an oftabsent
voter, having missed more votes in the last 2 years than
any other senator, said he would’ve voted against the bill.
Barack Obama has always supported “green jobs,” wanting to
“help create five million new jobs by strategically investing $150
billion” to build a better future for clean energy. He also wants
to ensure that 10% of our energy comes from renewable sources
by 2012, because he doesn’t believe we can drill our way out of
our energy crisis, as McCain proposes to do. Despite what Mc-
Cain supporters will say, Obama voted for responsible drilling
offshore, as long as it leads to lower dependence on foreign fuel.
Obama also supports a “use it or lose it” policy for oil companies,
because the oil companies that are currently demanding more
acreage for drilling already have 60 million acres they use for
minimal drilling, including some space next to ANWR, another
space oil companies are foaming at the mouths to exploit. He also
wants to tax oil companies’ windfall profits, because he finds it
unfair that Americans are getting killed at the pump while oil
companies bring in record profits.
So let’s make change happen, ECC. Tell America you will not
stand for failed policies and divisive politics and elect Barack
Obama to be our 44th president.

Jessica Hagendorn Advertising/Marketing Director

John McCain is the best choice for president. Not because he
appeals to the masses, or cleverly inserts the clichés “Wall Street”
and “Main Street” into every issue, but because of his policies.
“Drill baby drill,” was the rallying cry at the Republican National
Convention. Drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf is a
major element of McCain’s energy plan, an element that Barack
Obama is extremely opposed to. Our country imports millions of
barrels of oil from hostile countries in the Middle East each year,
straight from the people who don’t like us. By drilling more of
our own oil, we will be decreasing our dependency on foreign oil,
creating more jobs, and giving our scientists time to create new
technology that will reduce our dependence on oil altogether.
McCain has also proposed an incentive of $300 million to the
person or company that creates a car battery that will substantially
increase the availability of electric and hybrid cars. This incentive
will get affordable hybrid cars into the markets much faster, making
this country more energy efficient and less dependent on oil. It
will also create jobs in the auto industry.
Obama wants to put one million hybrid cars on the road. Sure,
it helps one million people, but there are a lot more than a million
people in this country. McCain’s plan will help all of us.
Jobs, like the ones created by his energy plan, are one aspect of
McCain’s economic policy. He also wants to lower taxes, which is
something most people could use right now, and he will be able
to do so by decreasing “earmarks,” the useless spending of our
government.
Did you know that one in five government programs don’t
work? McCain hopes to eliminate those programs, thus saving
hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars. Obama may
laugh and say that those sums are paltry in comparison to other
spending; maybe this is true. However, if you stop spending on
the things this country doesn’t need, that money adds up really
fast.
By decreasing current spending and keeping spending growth
at 2.4 percent, McCain also wants to balance the budget by the end
of his term. I didn’t see anything about balancing the budget in
Obama’s plan.
Barack Obama voted against the 2007 troop surge in Iraq,
which worked. He refuses to look at history and admit his poor
judgment.
I am not for the war, and I want our troops back as much as
anybody, but the fact of the matter is that we’re there. Now we
have to deal with it. Recalling our soldiers without finishing the
job, as Obama proposes, will only create more problems, much
like it did in Vietnam. Should we have been there? Probably not,
but we were. When we didn’t finish the job, the negative economic
and international repercussions were extraordinary. Not to mention
the morale stateside. Obama will create these same problems
by pulling our troops out of Iraq too early.
McCain will not make that mistake. He is a veteran himself and
knows better than most of us about the realities and consequences
of war. He plans to stay in Iraq until the job is done, despite the
war’s unpopularity. I have to admire that desire to do what is right
for this country vs. what everyone wants. If we don’t do what’s
right the first time, we’re just going to end up right back in the
Middle East in another decade or so.
McCain’s policies are sound and have the potential to start
great change. Obama’s ideas, while good, have no foundation and
won’t make the drastic changes that he’s claiming they will. I can’t
tell you who to vote for, but on November 4th I will be voting for
John McCain because he is the best choice.

AIDS panel addresses students

2008-10-28T09:11:00.000-07:00

Gabriel Gruba
Staff Writer
A rapist infected Abraham Rose with HIV in 1991. Before she knew she had the virus that leads to AIDS, she infected her husband.

She learned the hard way; that no one is immune to the virus that is passed through sexual contact or the shared use of needles.

“It can happen to anyone,” said Rose.

Rose told her story to ECC students, teachers, administrators and anyone who attended the AIDS panel presentation on Wednesday, October 8. As part of AIDS awareness day, the purpose of the forum was to educate people on what AIDS and HIV are and how to prevent infection. The presentation was sponsored by G.L.O.B.E.S (gay, lesbian or bisexual students & supporters) and Student Life.

As part of the event, the AIDS memorial quilt was put on display for the public to remember those who have lived with AIDS and to raise awareness of what HIV and the AIDS virus is.

“There are people with HIV who hide it,” said Karen Smith, a mother of six who contracted HIV 20 years ago while using illegal drugs. Smith explained at the forum that in the 1980’s, people did not have the knowledge we have today on HIV and AIDS. Many who were infected felt ashamed or would ignore it.

“People were dropping like flies,” said Smith.

Smith advised students to not make the same mistakes she has.

"We need to be knowledgeable, cautious, and get tested regularly," she said.

Rose told her story of living with AIDS, how she copes with it, and how anyone can get it. She has been living with AIDS for 18 years, and explained that technology and knowledge of the disease provide promising treatments and medications.

“What you don’t know can kill you,” said Johnny Ellis, husband of Abraham Rose.

"Everyone is at risk of getting HIV," he said, adding that people need to understand what it is in order to prevent it.

Marcos Bostho, case manager for the Open Door Clinic in Aurora and Elgin, also provided attendants information on free HIV and AIDS testing.

AIDS TESTING LOCATIONS
Open Door Clinic
164 Division Street
Suite #607
Elgin, IL 60120
Phone: 847-695-1093

Open Door Clinic
157 S. Lincoln Avenue
Room K
Aurora, IL 60505
Phone: 630-264-1819

Website:
opendoorclinic.org

Review: Brickman brings balance to Blizzard Hall

2008-10-28T09:06:00.000-07:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
After tumultuous weeks in the investment realm, the music of Jim Brickman was a take-me-away retreat.

Before the start of the Brickman concert, something very special was taking place at Elgin Community College Blizzard Hall. There were refreshments being sold by our Food Services and warm smiles from Gail Jones and Alex Browning making everyone feel welcomed. With tables set with white linen tablecloths, it gave the event an air of an elegant occasion.

Brickman is a composer known for his solo piano compositions. His genre of music is romantic and new age. Brickman performed a two-hour concert, during which I was amazed that he performed each song without the aid of any sheet music in front of him. In addition to his romantic music, Brickman played a few unique pieces, including a brand new song (the only lyrical song he played), and selections from Disney, Sesame Street and Christmas music—all of which brought a smile to my face.

Brickman was at ease with his audience and able to relate to his audience personally. It was as if the stage were his home. He injected humorous stories along with his music, much of them about his life growing up in Ohio, his life with Disney, Jim Henson and Sesame Street.

There was a story he told about his parents, who got divorced when he was eight years old. Forty years later, they remarried after Brickman took them on their third cruise, and informed them he would no longer be paying for their separate cabins and this time would have to share one together. The object, he explained, was for them to meet people.

Another story was about one female soldier fighting in Iraq, who asked him to send her any kind of music. She said she wanted something from Brickman because music brings balance into their lives, and that’s what Brickman did for me that night. He brought balance into my life after a stressful week of what was going on in our economic world. I felt as if I had taken a mini- vacation.

One of the surprises about the Brickman concert was the diversity of the audience, from the very young concertgoers— who I thought would have much preferred seeing the Jonas Brothers—to the older, Lawrence Welk listening era. The audience was dressed in every style, from casual and comfortable to dressy. For those who attended the concert with a significant other, Brickman’s romantic musical style had them cuddling.

Before I knew it, the evening soon came to an end, and I had to face the world again. But after Brickman’s performance, I was able to view my own realm of that world with balance and harmony.

Review: Thrill is not yet gone for B.B. King fans

2008-10-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

Conor Clarke
Staff Writer/Photographer
After 50 plus years of singing the blues and putting out more than 30 records, you'd expect nothing less than a first-rate album from Riley B. King, better known as "Blues Boy" or "B.B" King. King is widely respected as one of the great blues guitarists of our time. He can practically do no musical wrong, and that has made him a legend.

One Kind Favor is King's 24th studio album and it sounds exactly like it should. It starts with a cover of "Blind" Lemon Jefferson's "See That My Grave Is Kept Clean." This is the strongest song of the entire disc. King sets the tone for the rest of the album by stepping back and letting the band drive the essence of the songs, but when King takes center stage on one of his many expressive solos, he is anything but overshadowed. The album as a whole feels balanced, with King's signature, smooth guitar tones contrasted nicely against the sharp- produced feel of the rhythm section.

It seems as though King becomes increasingly more expressive with his guitar riffs with age. He has his very own way of saying more with less. There are a nice variety of songs filled with talent from a great group of musicians.

King's backing band is nothing short of spectacular. It includes Jim Keltner on drums, Dr. John on the keys, and Eric Clapton's bass player, Nathan East, on the upright. Not to mention T-Bone Burnett mixing all the tracks together into a dynamic, polished sound. It is not an easy task to make an 82 year-old legend sound fresh, but Burnett found a way.

B.B. King's latest release, One Kind Favor, shows audiences that for him, the thrill is not gone.

Review: Solange mediocre despite potential

2008-10-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
Solange Knowles, best known as Beyonce’s younger sister, doesn’t want to be confined. She begins her sophomore project, SoL-AngeL and the Hadley Street Dreams, with this declaration: “Get me out of this box/ I feel so claustrophobic in here”.

Does she succeed or does she only crawl further into the aforementioned box? While the album definitely has its own unique Motown-esque sound and creativity, that does not necessarily make Hadley Street engaging. It is an album that is full of potential, but very little else.

Lyrically, Solange demonstrates her creativity on a number of the thirteen tracks on the almost hour-long disc. While there are many tracks that should be exceptional, they end up only falling flat, mostly due to Solange’s middle-of-the-road ability. She keeps her lyrics, music, and voice from coming together in the right way to form a smoothly blended song. The songs fail to engage and leave a boring impression on the listener.

One of Solange’s biggest weaknesses
is her tendency to overdo things. For example, the track, “Cosmic Journey (featuring Bilal)” should have been one of the strongest on the album. In fact, at about three minutes and thirty seconds into the song, it still is a strong track. Unfortunately, the song extends itself for almost three minutes longer, ending itself on a tired, overplayed note.

Vocals also pose a problem for Solange on much of Hadley Street.
The listener is left with the feeling that she is simply trying too hard on half of the tracks and holding back on the other half. A couple tracks do showcase Solange’s vocals in an appealing way, however. “Sandcastle Disco," “This Bird" and “I Decided- Pt. 2” display vocals that are surprisingly stout.

On the whole, however, the largest problem that Hadley Street has to overcome is not in any of the songs' elements. The problem is that the songs are forgettable, with perhaps only a few exceptions. If the album were completely awful, it would at least be memorable. Solange is neither terrible nor wonderful; she is simply mediocre, and that is one of the worst things an artist can be.

Review: Sedaris better on radio than on stage

2008-10-28T08:55:00.000-07:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
I have to confess I had never heard of David Sedaris before attending his show. So, I really did not know what to expect when he came to the Blizzard Theatre on October 8. Sedaris, the author of several humor books, has a large fan base from his radio shows, is small in stature, has a nasalsounding, southern voice and a wicked, mischievous glint in his eye while recounting his comical stories to an audience.

Sedaris appeared on stage with a folder and pencil; my impression was that he was a professor about to give a lecture. He read his essays straight from the paper appearing stiff and not having any interaction with his audience. The essays were from his personal life experiences; I felt that since his readings related to him personally, he should have been able to recount these stories from memory and not from the aid of paper.

Sedaris spoke of his gay partner Hugh Hamrick, life in Paris, his various travels to other European countries, his book tours and his family life. But as I listened and thought throughout his performance, there was nothing that stuck out in my mind, in following days about him or his show that made a lasting impression; except for his offensive, vulgar language.

In my short time here at Elgin Community College, I have been to several performances on campus, and I usually know what to expect. Sedaris did not meet up to my expectations of what an ECC performance is, and I was sadly disappointed. I would have preferred Sedaris on radio or CD.

The majority of the people in Sedaris' audience were older and could probably afford the steep $52 ticket price. There were audience members who obviously loved him and sometimes busted out laughing so hard that I thought they were actually going to fall out of their chairs. I didn't see how; maybe they went to the dinner beforehand at Spartan Terrace and had a little too much wine.

Even though there were times that I caught myself laughing at some of Sedaris’ lines, I just did not appreciate his humor. Sedaris just was not my cup of tea, and I found myself continuously checking my watch, waiting for his "performance" to end so I could go home.

ECC women extend winning streak

2008-10-28T08:50:00.000-07:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
It appears that all theECC women's soccer team needed to start playing excellent soccer was a little time. After a rough month of September in which the Spartans went 1-5, they have rattled off four consecutive victories. The fourth of these victories came in their October 9 game at the Elgin Sports Complex, in which ECC dominated the South Suburban College (SCC) Bulldogs, 7-3.

Having control of the ball for most of the first half helped the Spartans jump out to a 3-1 lead before halftime. Forward Rebekah Haberkost opened the scoring with a shot from the right side of the box that stung the back left corner of the net. This would be the first of three goals for Haberkost, whose second hat trick in a row helped the Spartans build an insurmountable lead. She scored two of ECC's three goals in the first half.

“I was able to use my speed to get around the defense, which is nice because my teammates gave me balls over the top and I could just run on goal,” said Haberkost.

The slight break in action for half time did nothing to prevent the Spartans from coming out with the same focus and intensity they had in the first half. Their lead increased to three early in the second half when midfielder Abbi Palmer added the fourth goal of the game, and what turned out to be the game winning goal. Palmer’s goal came on a chip shot that ricocheted off the SCC keeper’s outstretched hands into the back of the net.

The Bulldogs managed to add two goals in the second half, but with goals off the feet of ECC's Sarah Sester, Amy Schmitz and Haberkost, the women from South Suburban College didn’t stand much of a chance. Palmer was pleased with the Spartans' progress from September to October.

“[In September], we were still getting used to playing with each other," said Palmer. "A lot of us are freshman and a lot of us haven’t played together before and now in October, we’re all a lot more comfortable on the ball individually and as a team.”

Coming together as a young team is something both Palmer and coach Kyle Walter stressed as a key factor in the team’s recent success.

“The girls are becoming more mature," said Walter. "In the beginning of the season they were having trouble connecting their passes and figuring out how each [teammate] is going to play. Now, we’re doing a much better job of finding out how [the teammates] all play. We’re starting to knock the ball around to feet [and] starting to get the ball into space.”

Spartan men’s soccer outlasts Chaparrals in upset

2008-10-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
Second-half goals from Taylor Bond and Nathan Parks helped the Spartan men’s soccer team topple regional powerhouse College of DuPage, 3-2, on October 10 at the Elgin Sports Complex.

The Chaparrals (8-6-1) jumped out to a 2-1 lead before halftime, only to see it negated by Bond’s breakaway boot and then surpassed by Parks’ sliding kick with 8 minutes left.

“The keeper went for the box, and [Forward Jose] Sanchez got a head on [the ball], put it over the keeper and it was just right there in front of the goal for me to put it back in,” said Parks of his winning goal. Bond attributed the Spartans’ second half success to renewed intensity.

“In the first half, we came out a little slow,” said Bond, who rolled an ankle going up for a header just minutes after scoring the tying goal with 17 minutes left. “We weren’t connecting our passes. [After] halftime we came out a little more ready [to play].”

Bond’s injury was minor, and he played out the rest of the game.

“It’s going to [take] a lot to keep him out,” said head coach Dean Smith of Bond. “He’s our main forward. I was just hoping he was going to get back up, and he did.”

Smith said it was important for the Spartans (5-4-1) to take advantage of the faltering Chaparrals at halftime.

“We felt it was there for the taking after the first half,” said Smith. “They weren’t [playing] as strong as they usually are.” Parks said a high intensity level is imperative for future victories.

“We’ve got to play every game as hard as we did [here] in the second half,” said Parks. With the end of the season in sight, Smith said the biggest takeaway from the Spartans’ upset victory was confidence.

“We know the best teams in the playoffs [and] when we come against them, we can definitely turn them over,” said Smith. “I think that’s the biggest confidence boost—that we know, mentally, that any team we play we can beat on any given day.”

Women’s tennis claims regional crown

2008-10-28T08:36:00.000-07:00

Shane Gabler
Staff Writer
After a perfect regular season, the only challenge left for ECC’s women’s tennis team was to conquer this year’s Regional Championships at Waubonsee Valley on October 3.

The stout Spartans (10-0) left little doubt they were the class of the eight-team field, taking the Regional title by 11 points over second-place Waubonsee. Head coach Clark Hallpike was confident early on that his team would do well.

“There’s really no competition here for us today,” said Hallpike on Day 1, as he watched his top two singles players take the courts. ECC’s lineup this year has been a family affair, with the Hegel sisters—Rachel, Sara and Rebekah—notching the top three singles positions
on the team and their cousin, Dana Altieri, playing on the #3 Doubles team. This is the first year at ECC all four have played together.
“I love playing with [my sisters],” said Rebekah Hegel. “We’ve been playing together since high school, [and] it’s fun to play with Sara again.”

Sara Hegel, the oldest and most experienced player on the team, played at #1 Singles, and started off Day 1 of the two-day tournament with a breezy win over Desiree Morris of Oakton
and lost only once the rest of the day.

She was quickly followed with wins by the rest of her team, #2 Singles Rebekah Hegel, #3 Singles Rachel Hegel, #4 Singles Kim Miller, #5 Singles Megan Joyce, and with a first round bye, #6 Singles Maria Ballester.

Of the five matches played, the ladies lost only three games altogether.

After Ballester gave the Spartans their only loss in the second round of singles matches, the Hegel sisters took the court again to play doubles. ECC’s #1 Doubles team of Sara and Rachel Hegel failed to capitalize on the team’s momentum and fell just one match shy of the next day’s Doubles finals.

Day 3 saw ECC represented in seven out of the nine finals. Joyce was the first to finish her match, crushing her competition with scores of 6-2 and 6-1. Joyce’s animated personality entertained the crowd.

“I keep myself going by cheering myself on,” said Joyce. “The more positively I talk, the more focused I stay,” she said after her match. “My mom usually cheers me on, so when she’s not there I have to make sure I don’t start putting myself down.”

Rachel Hegel and Miller won their matches shortly thereafter, 6-3, 6-3 and 6-2, 6-2 respectively.

The eldest Hegel sisters had mixed fortunes however, as Sara Hegel lost a very
close match, 4-6, 5-7, while Rebekah Hegel narrowly escaped defeat with a 6-4, 6-4 win, securing a 4-1 record in Singles finals.

In ECC’s final two Doubles matches, Rebekah Hegel and Miller dominated the opposing team from the first point, racing through the first set, 6-0, and taking the next, 6-3. Their seemingly
effortless victory was followed by the #3 team of Altieri and Sum, who played equally impressive against the Illinois Valley tandem of Jill Crull and Rachel Hoffman. Sum and Altieri smiled the entire match, cheering each other on as their adversaries grew increasingly frustrated. They blew the other team away with a 6-2, 6-2 win over IVCC that gave the Spartans their sixth win out of seven finals.

“The best shot of the match was the last,” Sum said. “[Altieri] hit a solid forehand return that skidded off the baseline. The other team called it out and looked so disappointed when they realized it was in.” Coach Hallpike has high expectations for his team
and promised ECC will not be disappointed. “This is the best women’s tennis team ECC has had in 23 years,” said Hallpike with a smile.

Volleyball places 9th in tournament

2008-10-28T08:32:00.000-07:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief

Struggling through a shuffled lineup, height disadvantages and problematic serving, ECC’s volleyball team endured a 1-win, 10-loss outing at the Harper Tournament on October 11 in Palatine.

The Lady Spartans dropped their first 3-game match to Schoolcraft College (Michigan) by a combined score of 75-38 before losing a close match to Highland. ECC picked up its only victory in a match against South Suburban College and finished the tournament with a 2-loss match against Moraine Valley.

Outside hitter Mallory Masciola was kept out of the Spartan lineup due to an illness. Masciola’s 131 kills are second only to middle hitter Jaclyn Brannon’s 154 on the season. Head coach Andy Jaszczurowski said Masciola’s absence severely hindered the team’s ability to score.

“When you’re missing your number one outside hitter, you’ve got make changes and put people
where they’re either not comfortable or haven’t played the position,” said Jaszczurowski. “We just didn’t have enough of our good players out on the court to make a difference, and the close games that we should have won escaped us.”

Defensive specialist Kelly Fischer, who recorded 16 digs in three games against Schoolcraft, said
the Spartans suffered from a low energy level. “A lot of people were playing positions that
weren’t theirs,” said Fischer. “So I don’t think they had the confidence level. When we’re up,
we’re up.”

Brannon said the Spartans need to overcome nerves when serving.

“We work on serving a lot, [but] we still get a lot of default serves,” said Brannon. “When you’re playing, you don’t want to miss [the serve], but then you end up missing it. I know I [go back] to the end line and think ‘I’m going to get this serve.’ We’ve just got to think positively and just play.”

Jaszczurowski said the absence of key players resonates more because of team size. “With a small squad, it’s felt a little harder,” said Jaszczurowski. “Obviously, you don’t have the options to go to, so people get thrown into a situation that they’re not familiar with. That’s what we have to work on right now, is filling the void until [Masciola] gets back on her feet.”

Constructing crossroads: New road makes transit easier for students, faculty

2008-09-29T14:43:00.001-07:00

Keirstin Westfallen
Staff Writer
This summer, the City of Elgin and ECC each paid $2 million in order to construct a new 1.3 miles of road mainly through wet lands, in order to provide an alternative entrance into the campus. This work gave Spartan Drive an outlet to Randall Road.

Planning for this specific project began in 1996, and the road was partially built in 2001. The remainder of the road took from October 2007 until August 2008 to complete. Along with the improvements of Spartan Drive, a new road, which was also partially built in 2001, was completed this summer. The new road, named Duffy Drive, was previously a dead end, but it now connects College Green Drive and the new portion of Spartan Drive.

Duffy Drive was named after ECC’s most senior trustee John Duffy, who has held a board position since 1975.

“[Duffy is] one of the most genuinely interesting people I’ve ever met,” said Dr. Carol Cowles, ECC’s Dean of Students.

According to ECC Managing Director of Facilities Paul Dawson, the road improvements were necessary because District 509 has experienced a growth mainly concentrated to the west of campus.

“In order for us to accommodate students coming in from the west, we needed easier access into the campus,” said Dawson.

And for many students and faculty members, the new road does that and more. For them, not only is the road an easier way to get to campus but it also is an easier way to get to places from campus.

ECC student Rachael Caise said that when she needs to get to Randall Road from, the improved Spartan Drive is the best way to go.

“It cuts off my driving time by ten minutes,” she said.

Campus security bolstered for 2008-2009 school year

2008-09-29T14:42:00.001-07:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
Just a year removed from the attempted abduction of a woman in the ECC parking lot and seven months from the shootings at Northern Illinois University, a number of the safety features planned for ECC last February are being put into place:

ECC Student Alert System:
Already in place, this system allows ECC students to register their contact information with the college online, entering them into a database to automatically receive text messages sent out during emergencies.

"The promise is, it won't be used for anything except for emergencies," said Carol Cowles, Dean of Students. "And that would include a snow emergency."

Additional Security Cameras:
The expansion to the campus network will also allow the expansion of the IP security camera system already in place on campus. On September 9, the Board of Trustees approved a $158,650 purchase to extend the system, which will include cameras on the exteriors of all buildings as well as in the parking lots.

"It's a fairly complex system of cameras that are pan, tilt and zoom so they're not just focused in one place," said Ned Coonen, Managing Director of Technology and Services. "The police officers in their control rooms can operate the cameras via a web interface."

LCD Monitors:
In another project slated to roll out later this semester, LCD monitors docked on the walls around campus will provide ECC students, faculty, and visitors with scrolling information regarding club events, sporting events, and general campus news, while doubling as a flashing alert system during emergencies.

"In the case of an alert, like a tornado alarm, that sort of thing, [the monitors] would direct you where to go and what to do," said Coonen.

In addition to safety-geared equipment and technology, Cowles and other members of ECC faculty and administration have begun developing the BIT program--a behavioral intervention team that will respond to faculty reports of unusual student behavior.

"[BIT] is a response to anyone who sees something that's concerning," said Cowles. "This [will] give us an opportunity to gather more information and work with the student [in question] to ascertain whether there is something going on with the student that needs to be addressed so the student can stay in school, or whether the student needs to leave school to address the situation."

Network renovation to give students 24/7 support

2008-09-29T14:41:00.000-07:00

Nick Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
Students at ECC will soon be able to manage all aspects of their college-related internet experience from one easy portal, thanks to recently-completed renovations to the campus network.

ECC's entire network infrastructure on and off-campus has been replaced, with newer, faster gigabit-connected equipment taking the place of 10-year old equipment, according to Michael Chahino, Director of Network Operations.

Most recently, the Board of Trustees approved a $56,324 purchase of Cisco networking switches to help finalize the expansion.

According to Chahino, the faster network allows for the construction of a brand new ECC student interface that enables students to access Desire2Learn online courses, Access ECC, private student e-mail accounts, and private data storage for students using one username and password.

"We are in the process of implementing new technology to support [that] infrastructure," said Chahino, who sees the new interface up and running by next semester. "We worked hard for almost a year to have one single user ID to log into all of our systems, [and] now it will be easier for the students to use our systems."

Two of the newest online features that will be available to students will be private e-mail accounts and secure network storage, which allows students to upload term papers, powerpoint presentations, and other documents to remote hard drives that can be accessed via the ECC network on or off-campus. Student data will be secured and backed up nightly.

"[The data will] actually be on disk to disk backup that then goes to tape the following day, so we can do fast recovery if necessary," said Ned Coonen, Managing Director of Technology and Services. "Our primary data centers have UPS [uninterruptible power supply] that [are] good for at least 2 hours units in the room with the equipment, [and those] are also connected to the emergency generator on campus that runs elevators [and] emergency lighting."

In addition to the new student interface, the network expansion has allowed the college to replace its 20-year old phone systems with VOIP (voice over internet protocol) systems.

"Now, the phone system runs strictly on the network backbone," said Coonen, who submitted the 56K expansion purchase for board review. "Bringing all that stuff together on one network makes maintenance much simpler. It also means expandability is much easier, because we're able to add new phones wherever there's a network jack. Ultimately, we will probably be deploying some wireless phones using the wireless network we have now."

Not only are campus phones all linked via an ethernet connection, but they are all powered by one as well, using another feature of the new network--POE, or power over ethernet.

"[Devices like] the telephone on my desk [don't] have a power cord," said Coonen. "It's able to grab the electricity right off the ethernet connection. It means that when we want to put up a new wireless access point, we can plug it in anywhere we can get a network jack. You don't need to have an AC outlet nearby."

Coonen said the main benefit of a POE phone system is that it allows the campus to stay connected when a blackout occurs.

"If there's a power failure on campus, we want the phones to work," said Coonen. "All of the network closets now have UPSs in them big enough to provide 90 minutes of service. If we have a campus blackout, we have at least 90 minutes of phone service."

Among the more subtle changes with the new campus network was enhanced wireless network coverage, but, according to Coonen, that along with the expansions to the wired network could produce a need for more bandwidth.

"[Wireless] coverage is better," said Coonen. "We still have some throughput problems during the day. Overall, we're bound by a 20-gigabit connection to the internet. The wireless network is contending with the classrooms to use that bandwidth. We're probably going to raise that 20-gigabit limit soon because more coursework involves computers going on the internet."
Carol Cowles, Dean of Students, said she has high expectations for ECC's IT department and the new student interface.

"Everything [is] all lined up on a single student portal," said Cowles. "So whether you're going to D2L or whether you're using it for Access ECC--we've seen the change in the way students register. We're setting ourselves up to support technology, which is supporting students 24/7 instead of supporting students 8-5."

Campus Cafeteria embraces vegan lifestyle

2008-09-29T14:40:00.002-07:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
The student lunch menu got a shade greener this semester with the addition of a new vegan stand to the Campus Court Cafe.

According to Alex Browning, chef at Campus Court, there is one different vegan meal served per day Monday through Thursday from the hours of 10:30 AM until 1:30 PM, for $5. The person responsible for implementing the change is Chef Maria Terry, Director of Food Services.

There are vegan salads, soups, wraps and stews being served. Included on the menu are: Vegan Spinach Wraps, Moroccan Vegetable Stew with Couscous and Grilled Portobello Mushrooms and Vegetable Fajitas. There are 16 different menus, which rotate every four weeks.

“So far, the most favorite dish is the Asian Spinach Salad with Orange and Avocado,” said Browning. “People have commented on how well the flavors went together. There has only been positive feedback and nothing negative. Substitutions are [accepted], and if someone wanted to add meat to the dish that is also [accepted] for the same $5 price.”

There are other vegan options available besides those available at the vegan stand, such as veggie burgers on the grill, veggie sandwiches from the deli and the salad bar. Mostly faculty and staff order from the vegan stand with a few students, which averages to about ten sales per day from the stand. According to Browning, this figure makes the vegan bar a success and will keep it going.

“Being a vegan means boycotting cruelty. Vegans choose not to eat animals or animal products [like eggs, milk or cheese],” said Jason Levy, student and president of Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Levy became a vegan in May of 2005 after experiencing health problems such as high blood pressure, which would have led to heart disease. He managed to lose 40 pounds and keep it off. He was surprised to find out how easy it was becoming a vegan. Levy adds that the rewards of being a vegan are protecting the environment and putting an end to world hunger.

Levy has tried the new vegan menu at the Campus Court Café and said it is delicious.
“I challenge anyone who thinks vegan food isn't good to try it,” said Levy.

Enrollment, credit hours increase

2008-09-29T14:40:00.001-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising & Marketing Director
The ECC student body has increased by 205 students this fall, a 2.1 percent increase from last year.

Trevell Eddins, the Director of Admissions and Recruitment said that the increase in students challenges administration in a good way and involves the community.

“I think it’s a good thing overall,” said Eddins. “I think it’s [the student increase] actually enhancing the quality of the classroom experience.”

Associate Dean of Enrollment Mary Perkins echoed Eddins’ sentiment.

“As a community college, one of our missions is to increase access, and from that perspective [increased enrollement is] a very good thing,” said Perkins.

With the economy in its current state, Perkins added that community colleges are beginning to look more and more appealing.

“The economy is certainly a part of [the increase] as people’s budgets [have gotten] tighter,” said Perkins. “You look at your pocket book and see you can get a high quality education here for a fraction of the cost [of a university]. For a lot of people, that’s not quite a question.”

It costs about a third less to go to ECC than it would to go to a four-year school, so for many people community colleges are becoming a more practical option.

Both Eddins and Perkins believe that the number of students at ECC will only continue to rise in the coming years.

“I think we’re poised right now for enrollment to go up in small increments,” said Eddins.

Cumulatively, there are 9,818 students at ECC, including the Fountain Square Campus.

The number of full time students—students pursuing 12 credit hours/semester or more—is also adding to the noticeable difference. There are 3, 622 students enrolled full time this fall, an increase of 10 percent over last year. The total number of credit hours being taken has gone up as well. Students are enrolled in 764,072 more credit hours than this time last year.
The increased enrollment has had no effect on tuition rates, which are holding steady at 91 dollars per credit hour.

“We’re proud to say tuition didn’t go up this year,” said Kimberly Wagner of the Student Accounts office. “We hope not to raise tuition; that’s always our goal.”

There are no specific plans for the revenue increase brought in by increased enrollment and additional hours. The revenue increase is approximately $69,536,552, according to Wagner.
Despite the difficulties of having a higher concentration of full-time students, ECC student Tiffany Mikhail-Wright said she likes the change.

“I think it’s better because more people are going for education,” said student Tiffany Mikhail-Wright.

Student Jorge Garza said that ECC’s increase in students give it more of a college feel.
“It’s like a big university environment,” said Garza.

Voter registration held outside student life

2008-09-29T14:39:00.001-07:00

Denisse Ayala
Staff Writer
ECC’s office of Student Life welcomed voter registration on campus each Wednesday for the month of September.

Every Wednesday in September, students, faculty and staff who had not yet registered to vote had the chance to do so outside of Student Life. According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, voters must be a U.S. citizens, be at least 18 years of age by the Election Day, and must have been a resident of their respective precinct at least 30 days prior to the day of election.

According to Student Life Coordinator of Student Volunteer & Community Outreach Programs Katie Storey, in order to register to vote at ECC the person needed to provide some basic information, such as mailing address, the number of his/her Illinois state driver’s license, state ID, or the last four digits of his/her social security number. The initiative began September 3rd and concluded on September 24th.

“It’s important to register now because you have to be registered with[in] your county 28 days prior to the election day, which is right around the beginning of November, [that is] the reason why we are really trying to promote this as school starts,” emphasized Storey. Those who missed voter registration at ECC can still register online at the Illinois State Board of Elections website.

ECC is not the only one emphasizing the importance of voter registration. Various organizations aimed specifically at youth voters have been working hard since the beginning of the year. The most famous voting campaign, Rock the Vote, has actively been trying to persuade young Americans to cast their vote and take their part in the upcoming elections.

The U.S. Census Bureau has recently pulled together statistics of the past voting turnouts from the years 2004 and 2006, that is believed to make a huge impact on these upcoming presidential elections.

According to the bureau, “Overall, 136 million people were registered in 2006, an increase of approximately 8 million over 2002,” something that helped surmount the overall record of votes cast since the 1996 presidential elections.

ECC remembers 9/11, honors victims and heroes

2008-09-29T14:38:00.000-07:00

Denisse Ayala
Staff Writer
This year marked the seven year anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that shook the nation. Although the nation has come a long way since then, ECC continues to remember this life-changing day.

Students, faculty, and staff all gathered together for a remembrance ceremony by the flagpole on September 11th to honor and remember all of those who lost their lives that day in 2001.

The remembrance ceremony began with a welcome from Student Government President Mario Ruch. The welcome consisted of a quote from President George W. Bush addressing the 9/11 attacks and its significance to the nation. After the welcome, Phi Theta Kappa Fellowship Officer Russ Devereaux recited the lyrics from a well-known song to a crowd of at least 75 people. These lyrics emphasized the importance of unity between all people regardless of their race, points of view, or economic standing.

Heads were then bowed down in a moment of silence; a sign of respect and remembrance to all those who lost their lives in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the hijacked planes.

Remembrance was also paid to the firemen, policemen, and the average men/women who risked their lives in order to help others.

Not only were the victims of the terrorist attacks remembered in this ceremony but the soldiers abroad who have fought, or are fighting, were remembered as a student took the microphone before the conclusion of the ceremony, to express her thoughts and feelings.

“Even though, I was not directly affected by the events of September 11, my boyfriend was deployed to the Iraq War for a year,” explained Shey Garland, a first-year student from St. Charles.

“He came home a year ago, but he has never been the same,” said Garland. “I just wanted to thank him and all the other soldiers who have fought for us, for our safety and our freedom.”
Other students took the microphone to express their thoughts and feelings regarding the events of 9/11 before the conclusion of the remembrance ceremony.

“We should never forget [9/11],” said Andrea Andrada, the Student Member of the Board of Trustees. “And we should support our troops no matter what our views are…we should never forget.”

Editorial: Economic crisis should inspire us to vote

2008-09-29T14:37:00.002-07:00

Contributors: Nick Johnson and Ian Neitzke
In recent months, the economy has fallen to shreds, with investment banks plummeting, and in the end, our government decided to bail them out. Starting with Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac, banks have been given loans, secured by our tax dollars.

Both Democrats and Republicans have pounced on the issue. Most Republicans have mentioned the need to bailout Wall Street. Democrats have called for regulation and have blamed the Bush administration.

“When the Federal Reserve and the Treasury have evaluated a particular enterprise and conclude that its failure will hurt more people in this country than the bailout would cost… the right course is to help those enterprises stay alive,” said former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

“[The Bush administration] has refused to regulate an industry where apparently all of the gain is privatized and all of the risk is nationalized,” said Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“I just don't think that is a fair deal for the American people.”

Recent polls will tell us that, despite low approval ratings, more Americans agree with Pelosi on the bailout. According to Rasmussen reports, only 7% of voters believe tax dollars should be used to bailout banks. Yet, these same Americans voted for the current administration and congress that has made the decision that only 7% of them agree with.

This is not the time to look around at each other saying, “Well I didn’t vote him in.”

This is a time to realize the opportunity we have on November 4th, when we will be asked to choose the leaders who will resolve future crises, much like the one we face today.

No one should be more inspired to vote on our next economic leaders than our generation. College and high school students will be affected more than anyone by the current economic problems. Every bank bailout, every regulatory measure, every war-funding bill, every tax decrease or increase will have a direct effect on our future. Now, before we even graduate out of our nation’s flawed educational system with mountains of debt, our financial futures are already in jeopardy. Get in the booth, students of ECC. If you do not get out and make an educated decision on the leaders of our country and our economy, what hope do we have? How will our generation be able to lead the country if we are mired in the economic tripwires laid by previous generations? Unless every single one of us is represented in the polls, we won’t be able to.

The only thing worse than people who grovel about the current state of the nation are those who grovel and choose to do nothing about it. Whether it’s retail or politics, people in this country have a terribly high frequency of buyer’s remorse, and the only way to lower that frequency is to become aware and educated consumers and, more importantly, well informed voters.

Opinion: Debate over drinking age offers fuzzy solutions

2008-09-29T14:37:00.001-07:00

Kathrine Moser
Staff Writer
What started in the summer of 2007 as a quiet movement, the proposition to lower the drinking age from 21 to 18 is quickly gaining momentum and sparking a huge controversy.

There have been many arguments raised in favor of having the drinking age lowered. For example, 18-year-olds can enlist in the military and die for our country but cannot legally drink. European teens can drink at age 18 or before. And we can't forget the classic excuse, "the fact that it’s illegal won’t stop me from drinking if I want to."

I don’t feel the argument regarding soldiers going overseas, fighting for us and possibly dying for us justifies an 18-year-old's right to binge drink all in the name of having a good time. That argument exploits our soldiers. Our brave men and women are putting their lives on the line so that we may have freedom, like any soldiers of the past. Once a soldier is deployed overseas, they fall under the jurisdiction of that country’s drinking laws. So, if they were stationed in Germany or France they would be legally allowed to drink.

While it is correct that European kids are able to drink before the age of 18, they don’t have the obsession with alcohol as American kids do. European kids are more responsible for themselves and their friends. In European countries, alcohol is displayed and sold next to soda and crackers, not separated in a different aisle as it is here in the states.

In the 1970s, the legal age to drink in Illinois was 19/21. One could consume beer and wine at 19, and hard liquor at 21. The law was changed so that it would make it more difficult for the kids under the age of 18 to gain access to alcohol. If states did not comply with this law, they would lose ten percent of federal highway funds.

While I am not in favor of the drinking age to be lowered to 18, I also feel that the current drinking age of 21 is unreasonable. For starters, we should change our drinking age to 20/21.
At the age of 20 it should be legal to drink beer and wine, and it should be legal to consume hard liquor at 21. This would eliminate the binge drinking that 21-year-olds partake in that can cause lethal alcohol poisoning.

In order for the drinking age to be lowered, a few things need to happen. We need to change our perception that alcohol is evil and learn how to drink responsibly.

One might ask: what difference could it make by changing the law only by one year?

In all things, one always has to compromise and be reasonable--there’s always a give and take in these issues. Just as there is currently a quiet movement in lowering the drinking age, there’s also a quiet movement brewing in regards to raising the driving age to at least 17, which is what it is in New Jersey. The drinking and driving issue seems to be a concern for both parents and the government. What every 18-year-old needs to ask themselves is this: Do I want to be able to drink, or to drive?

Student begins 56th year at ECC

2008-09-29T14:35:00.000-07:00

James Ayello
Staff Writer
While most students spend their academic years trying to figure out the quickest way to leave school, Jack Putignano has done everything he can to stay in attendance.

Putignano, a student of ECC since 1952, thinks it would be amusing to make a bumper sticker for his granddaughter that reads, “My Grandpa is on the Dean’s List.”

As amusing as that may sound, it is also true. The Bartlett resident has been on the ECC Dean’s List for over 50 years and currently possesses a 3.86 GPA.

“I like to learn stuff,” said Putignano bluntly, when asked why he still attends school at the age of 84.

That was just one way he described his unique situation.

“[School] makes me get out of the house; I could sit home and listen to YouTube, get fat and die,” said Putignano.

Sculpting has recently caught Putignano’s eye; he is currently working on making a steel guitar in his Independent Sculpture class. Independent Sculpture would bring his tally of total classes to 43. The class would join a list that includes fire science, WordPerfect, bronze casting, EMT, keyboarding, algebra, and jewelry. With all of these classes, his GPA translates into 35 A’s and 7 B’s. In his career, Putignano has received 109.5 credits from ECC, and when asked how long he plans on continuing, he simply replied, “for as long as I can move.”

Putignano’s academic interests may seem all over the board to some people, but in actuality, it fits his life perfectly. His wide variety of interests does not just apply to his academics. He is what many would call a Renaissance man. Putignano is man with a great knowledge of history. He has memorized the names and terms of presidents, important dates in U.S history, and seemingly every official that has served in Chicago since 1924, the year he was born.

It makes sense that Putignano has a passion for history, since he was so much a part of it. He fought in World War II when he enlisted with the United States Army, and fought in the Korean War in the U.S Navy.

“The Army is fun as long as you don’t get hurt,” said Putignano of his service.

After returning from the war, Putignano decided that engineering was a field he was interested in. From that point on, he worked at a Manufacturing Engineering company called Flexonics for 40 years with time off during the wars. This may seem like a great career choice, but it would not be enough for Putignano. In 1945, before he went to Korea, he took flying lessons at the old Elgin Airport. Since learning to fly, he and his friend bought themselves an airplane and Putignano became a part-time flight instructor. He was also a fireman. In 1955, he joined the ranks as volunteer, and he just recently retired as a Deputy Chief in 2005. Putignano became a paramedic in 1960 and retired from that profession in 1965. As if all of this weren’t enough, he has a fond interest in photography and film. Putignano used his spare time photographing and filming for many of the local news channels and newspapers. He took pictures of “death and destruction” as he likes to say. If pictures needed to be taken at crime scenes and accident sites, Putignano was the man to call.

Most people would think that taking those kinds of pictures would be undesirable, but not Jack Putignano.

“I’m nosy. I like to know everything that’s going on,” he said.

That probably explains the three fireman scanners that he owns and frequently listens to.
With this long list of accomplishments, Putignano certainly does not qualify as a “dull boy.”

“I enjoy life, I do a lot of things. I [have] had an interesting life,” said Putignano.

He certainly did and he still does. Putignano plans on coming back next semester to continue his study in sculpture, and if someone is lucky enough to pull up next to Putignano in the ECC parking lot, he or she might catch him listening to Cajun music or Dixieland on his MP3 player.

“I like anything I can tap my foot to,” he said.

Jack Putignano is simple. He says what he thinks, and he’ll have no qualms about it. He has learned a lot, and the way he has led his life can be a great inspiration to the many people around him.

When asked if he would ever consider teaching at ECC, Putignano's response was about as straight-forward as it gets.

“No, they got teachers,” he replied.

Norden talks about the Auto department with ECCO

2008-09-29T14:33:00.002-07:00

Conor Clarke
Photographer
Not many students know that Elgin Community College has an Automotive Department that offers a complete education to prepare graduates to work almost anywhere in the wide range of the automotive industry.

Gary Norden, one of three full-time automotive professors, has a passion for what he teaches and passes it on to all the students that take his classes.

"What we provide is basically broken into two components," said Norden. "[We teach] the educational component on the fundamentals and basics, [as well as] the hands-on skills that individuals need to obtain jobs."

Norden always encourages students to go for an Associate Degree in applied science, with automotive as their major. When the process of 69 credit hours is completed, the student walks away with not only the Associate Degree but also five vocational certificates. However, students may choose to just complete the vocational certificates of their choice without taking all the other "gen eds." This 2-year program has a wide range of students because classes are offered in mornings, afternoons, nights and Saturdays.

"My dad owns a shop in Streamwood," said student Tyler Burd. "I’m planning on taking over, so I have to get all my training and certifications. This is my first class and the teachers have been great."

The program harbors students from every generation.

"I'm one of the older guys in the class," said student Andy Cabin. "I'm just looking for a career, and [a career in] automotive makes sense because I've loved cars my whole life."

Norden likes to teach students in a very balanced manner. The classes are approximately 50% bookwork and 50% hands-on work.

"Our program is built upon the general public donating their vehicles," said Norden, "They range from 5-10 years old and may not be mechanically sound. They usually have [at least] 100,000 miles, are rusty, and that's perfect for us. They're new to us and that's what's important."

On the other hand, students are allowed to bring in their own cars to work on if what they want to do matches what is being taught. Norden said the program focuses on the fundamentals and basics even as vehicles are becoming more complex.

"Electricity is still electricity and friction is still friction," said Norden. “Some things will never change. The buzz word we're hearing all the time is hybrid, but if you understand gasoline engines and electricity separately, placing them together should be easy to a student that has a solid foundation in both.”

Each automotive class starts from ground zero, so the level of prior knowledge doesn't matter.
"There's nothing you can't fix without going back to the fundamentals," Norden said, recanting a quote that has long been a part of his memory.

And that’s exactly what he teaches.

Kaibigan gives gifts away in the Philippines

2008-09-29T14:33:00.001-07:00

Jessica Hagendorn
Advertising & Marketing Director
Mother Theresa often said, “Calcuttas are everywhere if only we have eyes to see. Find your Calcutta.”

Andrea Andrada, this year’s Student Member of the Board, and others of Student Life did just that this summer.

The Asian-Filipino Club, joined by Phi Theta Kappa and the Spanish Club, collected over 1,200 toys, school supplies and amenities and a $260 donation for impoverished children in the Philippines.

The students call themselves Kaibigan International. Kaibigan means ‘friend’ in Filipino. “1,000 smiles from 1,000 miles,” is their motto.

The drive began at the end of March last year and lasted a little over a month. Although the drive was based in District 509, participants also contacted friends and family in other states.
“So we got donations from [places] like Colorado and Florida,” said Andrada. “It was really cool.”
Andrada, who spearheaded the drive, first went to the Philippines on a family trip when she was ten.

“I had a big culture shock,”Andrada said, adding that children would come up to her asking for money and food. She had nothing to give them.

“So I told myself next time I come to the Philippines I’m going to have something to give back to them,” said Andrada.

She got her chance to go back when her grandmother invited her on a five week trip this past summer. Andrada chose to go to the Philippines instead of on a work study program to Cuernavaca, Mexico as she had originally planned.

The toys were distributed in the city of Igan in three waves. After talking to the mayor to see where the toys would do the most good, Andrada decided to give them away at her Grandmother’s farm in LaLa, and at Igan’s Center of Abused Women and Children. Andrada and her friends walked the streets of Igan giving away the rest to the children they found there.
Kaibigan International is a project that they plan to continue and expand annually. Janis Devicais, last year’s president of the Asian-Filipino Club and a native of the Philippines, is heading the project this year.

“Our goal really isn’t that complicated,” said Devicais. “We just want to give toys.”

Devicais is currently in the process of talking to a lawyer about making Kaibigan International an official non-profit organization.

“We want to make it an actual non-profit organization so we don’t limit ourselves,” said Devicais.
If they become a non-profit group, Kaibigan can set up their own bank account separate from ECC, and can legally solicit for monetary as well as toy donations.

Monetary donations are needed to help offset the costs of shipping 1,000 toys halfway across the world, and possibly to help the students of Kaibigan go there.

“We don’t want to ship the toys,” Devicais said. “We want to deliver them personally.”
While no official toy drive has started yet this year, Andrada said that anyone can bring donations to her office in Student Life. Kaibigan International is aiming to collect another 1,000 toys and school supplies this year.

“We’re really excited about how successful it was. It was a wonderful experience,” said Andrada.
Devicais has high hopes for future charities.

“I want to focus on this,” said Devicais, who is still involved in the Asian-Filipino Club as well as the College Programming Board. “Andrea and I, this is something we can see ourselves doing after school.”