The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Humboldt State University

  • We Still Need to Talk About Consent

    We Still Need to Talk About Consent

    Consent is crucial, but some just don’t get it

    Sexuality, sex awareness and sex etiquette are constantly in the spotlight, and yet, we still need to talk about consent.

    Humboldt State University recently experienced a disruption in its supposed safe space when allegations arose against a faculty member by a student. The investigation into that case is ongoing. Unfortunately, violations against consent aren’t limited to our own campus.

    Convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein’s case reveals consent still isn’t understood in the modern world. Weinstein was convicted of taking advantage of and sexually assaulting multiple women.

    Regardless of the circumstance, consent is crucial.

    Consent isn’t complex, but its idea continues to perplex those who fail to understand its simplicity. Yes means yes, and nothing else qualifies as a confirmation unless a yes is explicitly given.

    Affirmative consent needs to be practiced, not just by sexually active people, but by all people, whether or not it pertains to sexual activity. The ability to revoke consent also needs to be understood.

    Consent is far from a one-and-done response. It can be withdrawn at any moment.

    Even in professions where one uses their body for monetary gain, the right to revoke consent at any time remains. The refusal to take further action is linked to the right to control one’s body without interference from another.

    Everyone is born with this right. This universal entitlement to ownership of one’s body transcends all differences between individuals. All communities are entitled to their own bodies and to define consent in their own ways.

    In cases where verbal consent isn’t an option, written consent can suffice. Those in deaf and nonverbal communities can look to signing or reading a partner’s physical signals to help prevent confusion and facilitate mutual, nonverbal consent.

    It’s important to remember proper sex etiquette at all times. The following examples illustrate the ways in which consent is given and revoked:

    • Always ask your sexual partner if they’re ready and willing to engage in a sex act, without coercion.
    • You should cease sexual activities when someone says “Stop” or any other iteration of “No.” Expressing discomfort with an act is also a sign of hesitation, and should be considered before proceeding.
    • Anyone can withdraw consent at any time, even when a sex act is underway.
    • You should only engage in sex when all parties involved are in a coherent headspace, without the involvement of drugs and alcohol.
    • Body language doesn’t indicate consent to an act. Sexual arousal isn’t confirmation.
    • Do not use your position of power to persuade someone into any type of sex act. Professors, bosses, managers and even counselors have a responsibility to conduct themselves professionally, without sexual desires or encounters.

    Regardless of the circumstance, consent is crucial. You can never be too presumptive when asking about someone’s comfort, and you can never be too cautious when verifying consent.

  • Ask Evergreen: Respectful Rejector

    Ask Evergreen: Respectful Rejector

    Ask Evergreen is a weekly advice column by the students of The Lumberjack

    Dear Evergreen,

    How do I learn to say no?

    Dear Respectful Rejector,

    Sometimes it’s hard to say no for fear of disappointing someone or seeming incapable of accomplishing a task. But saying no is a healthy way to protect yourself from unwanted stress. There are a few ways you can retrain yourself to accept the art of rejecting.

    You shouldn’t feel ashamed to say no, no matter the question. You don’t have to please everyone, so don’t worry about letting someone down. You aren’t being selfish by declining a request. You’re being self-considerate.

    Have a solid reason for why you can’t agree to do something. We all experience apathy from time to time, but don’t let laziness be the cop-out for stepping away from an activity. Maybe you’ve spread yourself too thin and just need a chance to collect your thoughts. Remember to not overbook yourself by agreeing to things before recognizing the reality of your limited time and energy.

    It’s important to set boundaries when it comes to limiting your willingness to participate in activities you’d rather not do or don’t have the time for. Express your discomfort at a request. Maybe you don’t feel safe doing a task, or the person asking for assistance doesn’t truly appreciate you for your work. It’s okay to put yourself first.

    Don’t let people take advantage of you for favors, and don’t let people continue to do so just because you’ve agreed upon things in the past. Be kind and assertive with your decline, and make sure they understand how they’re making you feel obligated.

    Always remember you have the power to say yes or no to whatever you choose. Anyone who undermines your decisions or tries to convince you otherwise is a manipulative force who shouldn’t be allowed to deviate your conclusions.

    No, you can!

    Sincerely,

    Evergreen

    If you have any questions you’d like to send in, email us at contactthejack@gmail.com. We won’t publish any names and you don’t need to use one.

  • Polish Professor Melds Magic and Music

    Polish Professor Melds Magic and Music

    A dream of illusions and piano prowess with Igor Lapinski

    I know a little about magic. And by the end of Polish pianist and magician Igor Lapinski’s Feb. 22 show, I knew I had witnessed something good.

    “Your free will,” Lapinski said in an almost-cliché line that sounded much more convincing with his Polish accent and navy suit, “is just an illusion. A dream.”

    He then pulled a signed dollar bill out of an unopened kiwi.

    Lapinski interlaced illusions with piano pieces by Frédéric François Chopin, the Polish composer. Lapinski, originally from Poland, teaches as an assistant music professor at the University of Oklahoma.

    “He’s going to do something I think we haven’t seen in Humboldt,” music Professor Daniela Mineva and former teacher of Lapinski said before he took the stage. “I’ve been waiting 18 years to bring him here.”

    Hands, he said, are capable of both the sublime and the violent.

    The crowd of mostly older locals sat in a semicircle on the Fulkerson Recital Hall stage around Lapinski and his piano. Rather than have the crowd sit in the hall seats, Lapinski had chairs arranged around him for an intimate experience.

    Lapinski fluctuated between musical pieces of chaos and pieces of order. He rapped on “a haunting desire to belong.” In a three card monte-style routine with red solo cups and a single metal spike, he noted the opposing potentials within people.

    Hands, he said, are capable of both the sublime and the violent.

    He then shrugged off the thought and smashed his and an audience member’s hands down onto the cups in a game of Russian roulette.

    Multiple effects relied on the appearance and disappearance of letters—mostly written by Lapinski, with one supposedly written by his mother. The letters framed the performance in the idea of belonging, as Lapinski brought the audience along on an imaginary plane ride and read letters from home.

    I have to confess, because I know a bit about magic, I’m not a good judge of it. I spent about two of my teenage years learning magic tricks. I know the basics, and I can recognize standard sleight-of-hand moves.

    I’m no longer what magicians call a layperson. Even when I don’t know exactly how a trick is performed, it’s conceivable. It’s rare for me to see something inexplicable. But it does happen.

    • Piano-playing magician Igor Lapinski performing his routine in the Fulkerson Recital Hall at Humboldt State University Feb. 22. Lapinski combined sporadic piano playing with audience-involved illusions. | Photo by James Wilde

    Any attendee of Lapinski’s show can expect to exit with a smile on their face, or at least, a warm feeling in their mind. I can deduce how Lapinski performed his effects—but several of them I can only grasp loosely. For a layperson, his performance may be miraculous, not just puzzling.

    Magicians ultimately seek to produce miracles. The central argument of “Designing Miracles,” a well-regarded book by magician Darwin Ortiz, is that a magician should seek to produce an effect that doesn’t make the audience ask, “How do they do it?” Instead, the goal is, “How is that possible?”

    It’s slight, but this marks the difference between a trick and a miracle. A trick is a matter of deception that can be explained by a magician’s actions. A miracle is just that: pure magic that a magician merely facilitated. In the ideal, the performance transcends trickery and becomes magic.

    In the moments after Lapinski’s show, the audience agreed on his excellence.

    “He’s totally amazing,” a woman behind me said.

    “He’s a delight,” Mineva, the professor, said.

    “He’s hilarious,” a man beside me said. “He’s great.”

    At the very least, you can escape into a dream for just over 60 minutes. Lapinski finished with one last letter and one last piece by Chopin.

    “And so with this piece,” he said, “I wish you all a good night.”

    The night, indeed, was good.

  • Chico State Softball Dominates Doubleheader vs. Jacks

    Chico State Softball Dominates Doubleheader vs. Jacks

    Chico State softball lived up to the hype in daytime doubleheader

    The Chico State Wildcats got their game going right away in the second inning when, after loading the bases and scoring two runs, third baseman Drew Rodriguez hit a bases-clearing double. The momentum shifted to Chico State in that moment, and they didn’t look back for rest of the day, culminating in back-to-back losses.

    Head Coach Shelli Sarchett reflected on her team’s performance.

    “Our team is too good to be playing the way we’re playing,” Sarchett said. “We’ve got to figure something out. We’ve got to turn it around right now. We have our moments of brightness, but they’re overshadowed by the moments of darkness.”

    Sarchett said their pitching has been struggling and it needs to get better if the team wants to compete.

    In the third inning of the first game, Chico pitcher Brooke Larsen clobbered a two-run home run to left field. The Wildcats followed this up with an onslaught of additional offense.

    Following five straight runners scoring, Rodriguez hit another bases-clearing double in the fourth inning. This felt like the exclamation mark on the game. The mercy rule came into mind as things were falling apart fast.

    Fast forward to the fifth inning Chico had a 17-0 lead. The Jacks didn’t get shut out, though, and managed to squeeze out a run when shortstop Adriana Chavez reached first on an error by Chico shortstop Kristin Worley, and third baseman Izzy Starr scored on an unearned run.

    • Sophomore shortstop Adriana Chavez makes a play during the Jacks game against Chico State on Feb. 22 at HSU Softball Field | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Junior second baseman Danica Grier slides into third during the second game of a double header against Chico State at HSU Softball Field on Feb. 22 in a game where the Jacks stole 5 bases. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Humboldt State outfielder Lauren Lipe runs into to make a catch off of a pop fly during the Jacks game against Chico State on Feb. 22 at HSU Softball Field. | Photo by Thomas Lal

    Unfortunately, the Jacks also ran themselves into an out on the very same play as right fielder Mariah Kalamaras was tagged out at third base to end the game.

    Jacci Crowe notched the only hit for the Jacks.

    The first game was one to forget, but the second game, while also a loss, was more engaging.

    Again, Chico scored first. But rather than fall flat, the Jacks managed to tie the game in their half of the first on a RBI bunt single by junior Danica Grier that scored catcher Micaela Harris.

    Pitcher Lexee Sheiring was a workhorse in the second game, going almost six innings in relief of starting pitcher Megan Escobar, who got tagged with five earned runs early on.

    “I think I just had to take a minute, regroup,” Sheiring said. “Then go out there and really dig through it and be there for my team and show up.”

    After trading runs in the following few innings, Chico blew the game wide open in the seventh when shortstop Karter Williams drove in two with a single and right fielder Amanda Metzger brought in Williams on a two run bomb to right.

    In their last half of the seventh inning, the Jacks put up a fight when Grier drove in Harris and Starr, and first baseman Anna Brondos followed with an RBI single of their own to bring their team within striking distance. But like the first game, Chico pulled out a victory and swept Saturday’s doubleheader.

  • Filling in the Fossil Record with Fungi

    Filling in the Fossil Record with Fungi

    Madison Lalica cracks open 400-million-year-old fossils

    Madison Lalica is a junior botany major researching ancient fungi in fossilized plants over 400 million years old. She is filling in the blanks of the fungi fossil record with her unique research.

    “Given their importance in current ecosystems, I support [that fungi] must have had such a fundamental role in ancient ecosystems,” Lalica said. “And that is what I’m trying to prove with fossil research.”

    Lalica said she had the privilege to work with a huge box of rocks on loan from the Smithsonian Museum filled with fossilized plants. The fossils came to Humboldt State University by way of the Smithsonian, but they were collected in the 1960s by a paleo botanist named Francis Huber at a rock formation called Battery Point in Canada.

    “We look at a bunch of plant fossils that are 400 million years old,” Lalica said. “They are preserved very beautifully and you can see all of their anatomical features.”

    Graduate botanist Megan Nibbellink works alongside Lalica. She is focusing on the anatomy and relationships of the host plants, called zosterophylls. The Battery Point fossils are preserved in a unique geologic formation that serves to make really good fossils.

    “It is a fluvial deposit,” Nibbellink said. “It was a bunch of pieces of fragments caught up in fine sediment at the end of a river. The reason why I like these fossils is because you can see the individual cells. And that’s also why Maddy is able to do what she does.”

    When the host plants were buried by fine river sediments all those millennia ago, their form was preserved as the sediment solidified over millions of years. The fine particles, though, essentially printed the fossils in high resolution with so much detail that Lalica found what she was looking for: ancient fungi.

    Lalica is scanning and investigating these plant fossils for any evidence of fungal material. Spores, fungal tendrils called hyphae and scars from fungal infection are some indicators she has found. Specifically, Lalica is working on identifying the fungi glomeromycota, a fungal group intimately symbiotic with plants today. She wants to learn how similar the ancient fungi are to modern fungi.

    “Why do you want to know about extinct life, then, one might ask. And to be honest, it is a pretty philosophical pursuit I guess. In the most direct sense, learning about extinct lifeforms helps us understand how the living lifeforms that we see around today evolved.”

    Alexandru “Mihai” Tomescu

    “The plant and animal fossil record is really well understood,” Lalica said. “Like they have a pretty clear timeline of ‘This happened and then this happened,’ but for fungi it is so sparse and incomplete that they have no idea what goes before what.”

    Lalica’s faculty advisor Alexandru “Mihai” Tomescu has made it his life’s work to figure out what goes before what. Tomescu explained that exploring the fossil record is important because fossils offer us the only way to look directly into life in the past.

    Tomescu was Lalica’s botany professor before she had switched majors, but she said she fell in love with the world of paleobotany after his instruction. Showing interest in the subject, Lalica took the opportunity to begin her own research as soon as Tomescu offered her the chance.

    “Why do you want to know about extinct life, then, one might ask,” Tomescu said. “And to be honest, it is a pretty philosophical pursuit I guess. In the most direct sense, learning about extinct lifeforms helps us understand how the living lifeforms that we see around today evolved.”

    The 400 million year old specimens are interesting to Tomescu and his team of researchers because the plants themselves represent the first wave of vascular plants, or plants that move water through special tissues, that evolved on Earth. Vascular plants constitute nearly every modern land plant, so these ancestors are significant. Fungi, too, are significant to life on Earth and may have been part of its foundation.

    “Fungi are probably, almost certainly I think, older than actual plants,” Tomescu said. “Fungi are a lot older. But because they’re just hyphae, since they’re flimsy, their fossil record is not that great.”

    Tomescu has been recruiting undergraduate students to research these fossils in his lab. Tomescu explained that HSU hosts a botany program that attracts a lot of students, but also that the students are enthusiastic to participate in research. He said HSU has students who are interested in the grey areas. Lalica was one of those students.

    Moving forward, Tomescu and Lalica are preparing to publish a paper about her year-long investigation into the fossils. This summer, she is presenting her research at the Botanical Society of America’s annual conference.

    “It seems like in Humboldt opportunities are like, if you talk to the right person or if you become friends with the right person, it just kinda happens,” Lalica said, “And it just so happened that I fell into the world of paleobotany.”

  • “My Neighbor Totoro” at The Minor Theatre

    “My Neighbor Totoro” at The Minor Theatre

    View the magical world of Studio Ghibli animation with special showtimes at The Minor Theatre

    Jump back into the animated world of “My Neighbor Totoro” at The Minor Theatre from Feb. 28 to March 5.

    Hayao Miyazaki is a creator, animator, screenwriter, director and co-founder of Studio Ghibli. He is considered one of the most accomplished filmmakers in anime film and is an acclaimed storyteller through his films. Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli have given us classics such as “Spirited Away,” “Princess Mononoke,” “Kiki’s Delivery Service” and of course, “My Neighbor Totoro.”

    This 1988 masterpiece follows two young girls, Satsuki and her younger sister, Mei. The two arrive at a new house with their father as they wait for their mother’s recovery from an illness at a nearby hospital. Upon their arrival, the two girls find themselves befriending some unusual creatures from the forest, one being a huge, cuddly beast named Totoro.

    The Minor has select showtimes to watch in Japanese with English subtitles from March 2 to March 4 at 8:45 p.m. The rest of the showings will be in English. Ticket prices are $8 before 5 p.m. and $9.50 after 5 p.m. Those with a valid student I.D. can also purchase tickets for $8 for any show after 5 p.m.

  • Kirby Moss Illustrates the Significance of Black Joy

    Kirby Moss Illustrates the Significance of Black Joy

    Journalist and Professor Kirby Moss, Ph.D, presents new book on Black joy

    Editor’s note: Kirby Moss is a professor in the journalism and mass communication department. Moss has taught and currently teaches members of the editorial staff of The Lumberjack. The author of this article is a journalism student, but has not had any classes with Moss.

    Kirby Moss, a mass communication professor at Humboldt State University, held a talk on campus about black joy Feb. 20, a topic he is currently researching for his new book, “Black Joy.”

    Moss’s first book, “The Color of Class,” discussed the paradox of privilege and talked about race and class in ways that aren’t often discussed. The assumption that white privilege comes along with the absence of poverty is a significant topic in his book.

    “It’s so much more than overcoming a group of oppressors or getting past what they’ve categorized us as. It’s overcoming stuff within ourselves and being able to appreciate moments of joy and share those moments of joy.”

    Toni Maggi-Brown

    “We don’t normally associate poverty with whiteness,” Moss said. “We don’t normally associate joy with Blackness.”

    In his new book, Moss rejects the assumption that Blackness consists of unhappiness and tragedy.

    Toni Maggi-Brown, an HSU student who attended the discussion, supported Moss’s emphasis in liberating the narrative that surrounds Black culture.

    “It’s so much more than overcoming a group of oppressors or getting past what they’ve categorized us as,” Maggi-Brown said. “It’s overcoming stuff within ourselves and being able to appreciate moments of joy and share those moments of joy.”

    Moss acknowledged the struggles in his life, but argued that ultimately it’s been full of joy.

    “I’ve had a lot of fun times, joyful times, right in the midst of the hood,” Moss said.

    Moss’ focus is the unacknowledged pleasures of being Black, but he also talked about how his joy is sometimes seen as weakness or is unacceptable by his culture.

    “I ain’t Black enough because I’m talking about joy,” Moss said.

    Moss questioned the way we measure Blackness. With his new book, Moss is attempting to shed light on the joys of Blackness while emphasizing that embracing joy doesn’t make you any less Black.

  • Students Test Out the Voting Waters

    Students Test Out the Voting Waters

    Mock election prepares HSU students for local issues on ballot

    Humboldt State University’s Associated Students held a mock election with the help of the Politics Club Feb. 24 in the University Center Quad. On the ballot were candidates for both the Democratic and Republican primaries, as well as local election measures.

    “We’re gathering data from the student population about what would happen if we held the election today,” Legislative Vice President of Associated Students Jeremiah Finley said.

    The mock election gave students the opportunity to take a closer look at which candidates were on the ballot. When the results are released, students can gain a new insight into the perspectives of other students.

    “Some of the measures that were posted—I was like, ‘What is this?’”

    Tashenea Young

    “We’re trying to make sure our students at HSU are more educated about the decisions that they’re making,” Finley said. “This will give the students the opportunity to go back in and really investigate.”

    Tashenea Young is a computer science and math education major who felt more informed about the upcoming election because she participated in the mock elections.

    “Some of the measures that were posted—I was like, ‘What is this?’” Young said.

    Young said mock elections like the one on Monday are a step in the right direction for helping to inform the student body, but events like the mock election need more publicity to reach more people.

    “It’s better than nothing,” Young said.

    Real measures weren’t the only questions on the ballot. It also included a mock referendum on fluoridated water.

    Paul Hilton, an HSU politics major and member of the Politics Club, helped organize the mock election. He was curious about how students would vote concerning fluoride. He said that although there wouldn’t be a referendum on fluoridated water on the ballot in March, it was close to being on the ballot in November.

    “It was a step away from Arcata putting it on the Arcata ballot,” Hilton said. “After a whole lot of community city hall meetings and discussions, it was a 3-2 vote to not put it on the ballot.”

    Hilton hoped the mock election would help professors as well as students.

    “One of the questions was, ‘What day of the week is worst for you when it comes to nighttime deadlines?’” Hilton said. “So, one of those actually has informative results that we’ll tally up that might be able to go to professors.”

    Although Hilton was glad for the mock election, he thought there was room for improvement. The ballots were printed on colored paper and didn’t resemble voting material. Hilton said this may have discouraged potential voters.

    “People are more likely to pick up a pamphlet,” Hilton said. “If I was just going by, I’d be like, ‘What’s this kid’s construction paper kind of stuff just hanging out? I’m not interested in this.’”

    California votes Tuesday, March 3. Associated Students are now more experienced for their real elections, and students can take more knowledge on local issues to the polls.

  • Environment Takes Center Stage at Huffman Town Hall

    Environment Takes Center Stage at Huffman Town Hall

    Huffman talks greenhouse gases, sea level rise, salmon and more

    Jared Huffman, representative to California’s Second District, held a town hall at Eureka High School on Feb. 21 to engage his Humboldt constituents. After touting the progressive platform he’s pushing in Washington, D.C., Huffman answered questions spanning from immigration reform to the 2020 election—but the prevailing concerns surrounded the climate crisis.

    “You got about a decade—less than a decade—to dramatically transform the global economy to put us on a path of decarbonization that gets us to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2050,” Huffman said.

    Huffman sits on the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis along with 14 other representatives. Authorized in January of last year, the committee is set to release policy recommendations on March 31. The report will steer the current and upcoming Congress on legislation regarding the changing climate.

    “Sea level rise and resiliency in coastal communities like this are just a huge part of the climate crisis. We are gonna have to do a lot of planning and prioritization for critical infrastructure.”

    Jared Huffman

    Several Humboldt residents questioned Huffman about protecting infrastructure from rising sea levels. Much of the county would be at risk if the sea rose. Low bridges and roadways are at risk as well as economic infrastructure like fisheries and farmland.

    “Sea level rise and resiliency in coastal communities like this are just a huge part of the climate crisis,” Huffman said. “We are gonna have to do a lot of planning and prioritization for critical infrastructure.”

    Huffman also sits on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Huffman aims to focus some of the funding for infrastructure on coastal communities that would be impacted by rising seas.

    Some audience members expressed concern about Pacific Gas and Electric’s role in California’s power supply. After months of sporadic power outages, many Californians are looking at the possibility of de-privatizing the utility company.

    “I’d be fine if [PG&E] were reinvented into some type of not-for-profit entity as well,” Huffman said. “It would be nice to take that profit motive out of the situation to convert it from an investor-owned utility, where they gotta meet Wall Street’s expectations, to something that was publicly-owned or possibly a cooperative.”

    Huffman then shifted his focus to the diversion of water from the tributaries that feed into the Trinity River to farmland in the San Joaquin Valley. The Trump administration is working to release a new biological opinion that will allow for significantly more water to be diverted from flowing down the Trinity. This would override the previous finding that diversion of water would drastically impact the salmon population.

    A similar decision was made by the Bush administration in 2001. Restrictions on the natural flow of water down the Klamath River led to the mass salmon kill in 2002.

    Huffman is hoping to hold the previous finding up long enough for a new administration and Congress that would prioritize protecting native species.

    “You get the picture, right?” Huffman said. “The deck is pretty stacked right now against protecting our rivers and fisheries here on the North Coast. And it’s a fight I will continue to fight.”

  • Report Reveals Shortcomings in Lawson Case

    Report Reveals Shortcomings in Lawson Case

    National Police Foundation identifies issues and makes recommendations

    By Grace Caswell and James Wilde

    The National Police Foundation assessment team reviewed the first 72 hours of the Josiah Lawson homicide case and released a 65-page review on Feb. 20. The report included NPF’s response to the case and feedback for the Arcata Police Department.

    NPF said APD responded professionally to the crime scene at 1120 Spear Ave. on April 15, 2017, but the crime scene lacked proper security and management.

    “Many basic tenets of crime scene security and management were not followed in this case,” NPF said.

    The Arcata City Council commissioned the report in September 2018 for $30,000. NPF is an independent, nonpartisan organization that analyzes police cases.

    From August 2018-2019, NPF conducted 24 interviews and reviewed reports, transcripts and court procedures, including 50 hours of recordings and 6 hours of APD dashboard camera video. Due to the ongoing status of the case, NPF couldn’t interview any witnesses or partygoers other than first responders.

    NPF said APD personnel weren’t trained or given access to necessary equipment, which are common issues in small law enforcement teams. As a result, APD couldn’t sufficiently manage the crime scene and investigation.

    NPF recommended APD do more to communicate and build relationships with the Arcata community.

    “The APD chief has an opportunity to institute a culture of ongoing evaluation of the department’s performance—especially in critical incidents or unusual responses,” NPF said. “This is how organizations grow, evolve, learn, and improve.”

  • Remembering Evelyn: A Ray of Sunshine in Humboldt

    Remembering Evelyn: A Ray of Sunshine in Humboldt

    Members of the community rally to celebrate the life of Evelyn Andrews

    When Evelyn Andrews came to Humboldt State University, she had already beaten cancer once. In her senior year of high school, Andrews successfully fought off lymphoma and made the decision to redshirt her freshman year to recover fully. She expected to be back on the field for her sophomore season.

    Things changed in late September when a bad hop at practice hit Andrews in the face, causing continuous bleeding. After spending time at Mad River Hospital, Andrews went to University of California, Davis, where she was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia.

    Andrews underwent chemo treatment and beat leukemia. Following the treatment, she went back to the hospital for 10 days due to a blood infection that caused additional blood clots throughout her body. Andrews died after being taken off life support Feb. 17.

    Roommate and teammate Morgan Brant took Andrews to the hospital after the injury at practice and knew her since they were both 12 years old.

    “She would just go into a room and light it up.”

    Morgan Brant

    “It crushed her to redshirt her freshman year,” Brant said. “She was just the type of person to put her head down and work and to get the job done. She was always there. She gave you the brutal truth even if you didn’t want to hear it. But you then found out that it was coming from a place of love and a place of compassion. She wanted the best for everybody.”

    Brant said that this was even more clear knowing Andrews off the field.

    “She would just go into a room and light it up,” Brant said. “She had the best sense of humor. She had the best smile and she was just like everybody has said, like a ray of sunshine. She really held a lot of love for everybody in her heart.”

    One thing Andrews brought to the team that has been embraced by the whole organization has been a ‘Don’t Suck’ mentality. Brant said this is something that originally came from Andrews’ family and spread to the rest of the team.

    “It was kind of like a thing that they said when she was struggling at bat,” Brant said. “She said it to Shelli one time and it just kind of became her thing. It was her thing since she was little kid and it just kind of stuck with the team and it showed that brutal honesty. Don’t suck as a person, don’t suck as a player and then you’re going to be successful.”

    Head Softball Coach Shelli Sarchett said the ‘Don’t Suck’ mentality has really been accepted by the whole team, especially when Andrews began cancer treatment for the second time.

    “Once this happened to her we adopted it as a team,” Sarchett said. “It doesn’t mean don’t suck, don’t be afraid to lose. It just means go out there and give your best. And even if your best isn’t good enough at that time, doesn’t mean that you did wrong.”

    • Members of Evelyn Andrews’ family applaud after a speech at her celebration of life ceremony at Lumberjack Arena on Feb. 23. | Thomas Lal
    • A small picture frame stands in the entry to Lumberjack Arena before the Humboldt State Athletics Department holds a celebration of life on Feb. 23 for Evelyn Andrews. | Thomas Lal
    • Members of the Humboldt State softball team and other programs comfort each other at a celebration of life for Evelyn Andrews on Feb. 23.

    As her coach, Sarchett also observed Andrew’s ability to be caring and honest with people as she interacted with her teammates.

    “She was the first person to hug you when you were down and the first person to kick you in the ass when you needed it,” Sarchett said. “She was a role model pretty much and she’s a superhero in our books. She’s a fighter and I think we could all take a little bit from Evelyn and learn about her spirit and use it to our advantage and to help us be better people.”

    Another thing that stood out to Sarchett was how much Andrews cared for the people around her, whether that was her parents and brother or her teammates.

    “It’s been amazing. The outpouring of support from not only the community but the softball community in general.”

    Shelli Sarchett

    “She loved her family,” Sarchett said. “It was all about family for her. Whether it be her actual family or her softball family. She defines that sense of family, that culture that we want here when it comes to family and she’s the daughter that everybody should want. If my daughters have half the heart she does, I’ve done pretty well.”

    Sarchett also said she had never been through anything like this before, but the support from Humboldt State Athletics and the softball community as a whole has been fantastic as herself and the team work through this hard time.

    “It’s been amazing. The outpouring of support from not only the community but the softball community in general,” Sarchett said. “How many coaching colleagues of mine reached out to me and to my assistants. And former coaches of my players reached out and her story has gone a long way, and we can only hope that it’s a lesson in just how to fight for things.”

    Andrews never got the chance to take the field for the Lumberjacks for a game, but her memory will remain with the people she played with and interacted with during her time among the redwoods. Brant was confident that she would remember Andrews for the rest of her life on and off the field.

    “I think we should remember Evelyn as a ray of sunshine,” Brant said. “We were saying it all last weekend when we played Chico. We were playing home games in February. We don’t do that here with the rain. So we really knew that she brought out that sunshine for us and she’s just this positive light and this big ball of energy. She had this beautiful smile and a beautiful mind and she was just always happy. I want people to remember that.”

    Brant pointed out that Andrews wouldn’t have wanted to be remembered as a patient.

    “She wasn’t a cancer patient,” Brant said. “She was someone who just fought cancer. So separating that from who she was as a person was very important to her. She was a ball of life, a ball of sunshine.”

  • Travel Back in Time in ARCADA

    Travel Back in Time in ARCADA

    ARCADA opens soon for lovers of video games and drinks

    Correction: this story previously implied ARCADA serves liquor. ARCADA only serves beer, cider and wine.

    If you thought Humboldt State University’s parking meters had a strong appetite for your coins, it’s time to put your pocket change to better use, because Humboldt’s first bar arcade is set to open soon.

    The team work of Kristen “P-Nut” Thompson and Amber Saba went above and beyond to create an establishment for arcade fans. Thompson and Saba are well renowned for running local restaurant A Slice of Humboldt Pie, and the next step was to introduce Humboldt’s bar arcade.

    Thompson and Saba have been working on the ARCADA project for some time. They chose 6th and K Street in Arcata for their location.

    “In our minds this project has been in development for five years, but physically we have been working on that building for a year,” Saba said.

    The arcade machines are budget friendly, so there is no need to break the bank trying to finish a level. An urge to break a machine might arise, but that’s the joy of vintage games.

    Arcada held a preview opening Feb. 23 and invited a limited number of people to check out the establishment. Thompson said even though their credit card machines weren’t set up, it helped give off an old school arcade vibe.

    “Due to our credit card processing company we get to pretend that it’s the 80s,” Thompson said. “So we are only accepting cash transactions.”

    The arcade machines are budget friendly, so there is no need to break the bank trying to finish a level. An urge to break a machine might arise, but that’s the joy of vintage games.

    • Kristen Thompson and Amber Saba presenting a welcoming environment for their preview opening of ARCADA Feb 23. | Photo by Alberto Muro
    • A Jurassic Park-themed pinball machine to match the vintage theme of ARCADA. | Photo by Alberto Muro

    When it comes to playing video games, people tend to enjoy the experience by themselves. Saba had those people in mind while developing ARCADA.

    “We have some introverted gaming people in the community who are very excited to have a public hangout space,” Saba said. “Where they don’t necessarily have to talk to someone, or if you go alone you don’t have to sit and be awkward.”

    ARCADA will be open for business Feb. 26 from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., so don’t be alarmed if you come across heavy traffic from people waiting to get in.

  • Humboldt County Coronavirus Case Update

    Humboldt County Coronavirus Case Update

    Department of Health and Human Services quells concerns

    The Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services informed the public Feb. 20 via press release they had received confirmation of one confirmed case of coronavirus in Humboldt County. A close contact of the confirmed patient has symptoms and is also being tested for the disease. 

    Information has come, and will continue to be provided from the California Department of Public Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    The DHHS has since been fielding questions from the concerned community.

    The Lumberjack spoke with Hava Phillips, the supervising public health nurse at DHHS. If you are concerned that you may have contracted the disease, she asked that you call them before visiting their department.

    For now, the county is not considering this a public outbreak, and the ill individuals are self-isolated and under close watch by the Public Health Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control Unit. This doesn’t mean they’re not prepared for the disease to spread.

    “We are making sure we have the infrastructure in place if this were to become a larger outbreak,” Phillips said.

    Phillips said because it’s also flu season, people should be following basic precautions to prevent the spread of communicable diseases of all varieties, summed up by these tips from the DHHS press release:

    • Stay home when you are sick.

    • If you have a fever, stay home or go home if you are already at work or school, and stay home for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (without the use of fever-reducing medicine).

    • Wash your hands frequently and particularly before eating or drinking.

    • Promote good hand hygiene in your home by educating household members and making sure soap, hand sanitizers and tissues are available.

    • Avoid touching your face, particularly your eyes, nose and mouth.

    • Encourage proper cough etiquette. Cough or sneeze into a tissue, sleeve or arm. Do not use your hands.

    • Perform routine surface cleaning, particularly for items which are frequently touched such as doorknobs, handles, remotes, keyboards and other commonly shared surfaces.

  • What It Means When You’re “Going Through It”

    What It Means When You’re “Going Through It”

    Breaking down the common modern phrase

    Being a college student, adult and overall human being on this planet can be very difficult sometimes. Whether we can explain what we’re going through or not, we very well know that we are going through it.

    “Going through it” is a phrase that has come up in today’s culture and is spelled on social media as “going thru it.” Regardless of how it’s spelled, it usually means a certain aspect of your life, or maybe everything in your life, is getting the best of you and you’re feeling weighed down.

    “Usually when I’m going through it there are a lot of things going on around me and it makes things harder to do. My mind is taking over everything.”

    Emily Lopez

    “When I say I’m going through it, I’m just kind of not feeling it,” Xochilt Reyes said. Reyes, 22, believes the phrase has a lot of emotion behind it. Reyes said you can usually tell someone is going through it before they tell you that they are.

    “You can hear it in their voice and see it in their face,” she said.

    Emily Lopez, 20, is a third-year criminology and justice studies major at Humboldt State University. Lopez agreed when she is going through it, it’s a state of being overwhelmed or sad that makes everyday tasks hard to do.

    “Usually when I’m going through it there are a lot of things going on around me and it makes things harder to do,” she said. “My mind is taking over everything.”

    Going through it is just a simple way for us to share how we’re feeling without having to go super in-depth into how we’re actually feeling. It’s three words that explain why we might have been slacking. This three-word phrase says enough to where we are able to understand our friend either needs a little space or a little help to get through the day.

    Going through it is an unpleasant experience, but one that we have all gone through at least once.

    Although this phrase has a negative connotation, the brand Viva La Bonita, who is known for creating clothes to empower women of color, turned the phrase going thru it into growing through it. The growing implies things might be rough right now, but they lead to a learning experience from which we grow and move forward. We use the experience to handle futures in which we find ourselves going through it again.

    Personally, it makes me look back at times where I was going through it and evaluate how I’ve grown from those times.

    Going through it is an unpleasant experience, but one that we have all gone through at least once. The important thing to know is that you’re not alone and that almost everyone knows what you mean when you say you’re going through it. Resources are out there if you ask for them, and friends are almost definitely there when you need them.

  • New MLB Rules Come Out of Left Field

    New MLB Rules Come Out of Left Field

    MLB rule changes go against what the game is all about

    America’s pastime. The phrase has become synonymous all over Major League Baseball. As baseball evolves into new seasons, rules are being implemented in an effort to quicken the game and appeal to a younger audience. Many of the rules aren’t too debilitating to the way the game is played, but several key rule changes will do more harm than good.

    There are the more radical, long-term rules like getting rid of the shift or implementing a pitch clock, and then there are the more pressing rules like forcing pitchers to face a minimum of three batters and totally changing up the structure of the postseason.

    Three-batter minimum rule:

    Baseball is all about strategy. One of these strategies involves using a left-handed reliever to get one or two batters out and then bring in another reliever to close out an inning or game. A new rule, which will go into effect beginning this upcoming season, will make it so all relievers need to face at least three batters before being able to leave the mound.

    On its own website, MLB called the rule an effort to reduce the number of pitching changes and cut down the average length of the game.

    On the surface, it seems MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and his entourage are making the game run more smoothly. Digging a little deeper reveals that this is far from the truth.

    Again, baseball revolves around strategy. To mess with the strategy of the game is to play with fire—a big, multi-billion dollar fire. As Sports Illustrated put it, “Messing with strategy to attempt to solve a pace of game problem is a wrong-headed approach.”

    Take the San Francisco Giants for example. In the 2010s, they would frequently use left-handed relievers like Javier Lopez and Jeremy Affeldt to get critical outs against left-handed batters.

    If the three-batter minimum rule was ushered in back then, it would’ve been a different ballgame for all involved. The Giants may not have even won all three of their World Series titles.

    Bringing in the new rule would not only be a strategist’s nightmare, but also would fail to accomplish the initial goal to make the game go faster. It’s an odd rule all around, and other stats weren’t taken into account before its inception.

    Altered postseason structure:

    The details of the new postseason format are very intricate, but to put it in broad terms, the number of teams in both leagues making it to the postseason would increase from five to seven. Opportunities to automatically advance to the next round and manually pick their opponents on a live television show would come to fruition.

    No words can describe the sheer ridiculousness of these new postseason rules. It seems as if Rob Manfred has lost his mind.

    Baseball is already becoming a money-grab reality TV show. The powers that be don’t need to add insult to injury.

    The point of the postseason is only a select few make it in, and an even smaller number move on to higher rounds without weird caveats. Luckily, these new postseason rules are just proposals, as they would destroy baseball from the inside out.

    Yet again, baseball has been and should continue to be about enjoying the game for what it is and not trying to throw curveballs into the mix. These rules are ambitious, but aren’t beneficial to anyone except the people at the very top of the totem pole. It’s in the best interest of Rob Manfred and his cohort to leave the game alone and stay faithful to the notion of baseball being America’s Pastime.

  • We Need the Wisdom of Wikipedia

    We Need the Wisdom of Wikipedia

    Wikipedia shows collaboration is crucial for accuracy

    We’ve all been there. You’re sitting in a class. Your professor wants you to write a paper on the different types of asexual reproduction of the Sanderia malayensis jellyfish or some other arcane drivel. Your first reaction is to hit up Wikipedia. Then comes the kicker. You can’t cite Wikipedia. You scowl and snarl under your breath.

    Wikipedia deserves more credit than we give it. Turning a blind eye to Wikipedia as a reliable source is shortsighted and has implications beyond the realm of encyclopedias. Distrusting Wikipedia represents academia’s unwillingness to open the gates of collaborative truth-seeking.

    Scientific papers, meanwhile, are far from perfect.

    Contrary to what your professors may tell you, Wikipedia, as a source, is statistically just as accurate as published encyclopedias for most of its content. A 2005 study by the Nature research journal, “Internet encyclopaedias go head to head,” found errors in both encyclopedias, but among the entries tested, the difference in accuracy was small.

    Wikipedia, in their signature self-aware style, has reported on their own reliability as well. Wikipedia does not guarantee validity, but it is an invaluable research resource.

    Inaccurate information on Wikipedia is usually corrected quickly. Hyperlinked citations back up nearly every claim made on an entry. The Sanderia malayensis jellyfish’s page hosts six sources from international professionals, biologists and a handbook on poisonous jellies.

    Scientific papers, meanwhile, are far from perfect. Soft sciences have suggested cures to unhappiness or boosts to confidence through simple behavioral change, but as other researchers try to replicate the experiments, their conclusions are significantly different. This indicates a serious error in the scientific method. If science isn’t replicable, science is null.

    In the last few years, a plethora of papers have fallen under criticism after researchers have failed to reproduce their results—it’s been called the replication crisis. The crisis may have a few sources.

    Mistakes happen on Wikipedia too and it is always essential to be critical of anything read.

    First, it’s not hard to get published. The University of World News said in 2018 that too much scientific research is being published. It estimated nearly 30,000 scientific journals are in circulation, publishing approximately two million articles each year. They said the volume burdens the peer review system and makes it dysfunctional.

    Second, the media likes to be the first to report on news, including science news. Journalists can be wrong and often are when it comes to reporting on science, especially when they’re grasping to be the first to report on new findings. These bad practices report inaccurate, unconfirmed, flawed science to their audience before the study can be replicated.

    Mistakes happen on Wikipedia too and it is always essential to be critical of anything read. Search around, find supporting articles for any claim made and be aware that there may be flaws. But be able to recognize valid and sound knowledge.

    Critical review by the editors of Wikipedia—who can be any person—is what makes Wikipedia so powerful and so accurate. It’s the world’s largest encyclopedia—about 50 times larger than Britannica—with over six million entries and over 200,000 contributors. Wikipedia should serve as a banner for collaboration—especially between diverse groups.

    In “The wisdom of polarized crowds,” a 2019 study from Nature Human Behavior, researchers found politically-diverse teams created more accurate entries than teams with less political diversity.

    Wikipedia comes in clutch, often. Using it as a source may be frowned upon by professors, but a short chat with most of them and they’ll say Wikipedia is an excellent place to start. The website is a tool, not a cheat code. It would be ignorant to ignore it, but if it’s used appropriately, maybe, just maybe, we could learn something about jellyfish.

  • Digging in the Dunes

    Digging in the Dunes

    Making a difference in the dunes by hand, plant-by-plant

    Volunteers visited the Manila Dunes in Arcata Feb. 15 to tug invasive grasses from the sands in a monthly gathering facilitated by Friends of the Dunes. The volunteers of all ages from youthful college students to gray-haired, retired locals removed beach grass to allow native plants to repopulate the dunes.

  • Ask Evergreen: Busy Bee

    Ask Evergreen: Busy Bee

    Ask Evergreen is a weekly advice column by the students of The Lumberjack

    Dear Evergreen,

    How do I manage my time when my schedule is jam-packed with work and school?

    Dear Busy Bee,

    It’s always good to be productive and a hard worker, but don’t run yourself ragged by foregoing a much needed break. You can schedule in some “you time” by organizing and maintaining a healthy and punctual schedule.

    Do your homework before relaxing and turning on Netflix. You should reward yourself only after accomplishing certain tasks. Set realistic goals for yourself, like reading two pages from your textbook before checking your phone notifications.

    Find a space where you can feel comfortable and concentrated. If you are able to complete your school work in a stress-free environment, you might power through it faster and be able to relax sooner.

    Don’t go home straight after class if you know you won’t work on homework once you get there. It’s easy to get distracted or lazy in a home-setting, so make sure you commit yourself to finishing, or at least starting, assignments before you leave campus.

    When it comes to work, don’t work more hours than you possibly can. We all need money, but don’t sacrifice your time by working more and focusing on school less.

    Communicate with your boss or manager about your time restraints because of school. Don’t agree to work more and neglect your school priorities. Give yourself time to breathe in between work shifts and classes.

    If your employer isn’t as forgiving to you as a student, then it could be wise to find a more respectable employer. If that isn’t an option, you should still set boundaries, even if that means taking less hours or bad shifts at work.

    The ultimate time management tool is a planner. You can plan your weekly schedule hour by hour to see when you’ll have downtime to get other things out of the way or even relax.

    Write down your class times and work schedule, and fill in the gaps with study sessions and break times. If you can visualize your week, you’ll be able to discern the best times to be productive or peaceful.

    Don’t waste the little free time you may already have. Use your free time wisely by getting ahead of assignments. Chip away at projects bit by bit when you have the chance. You’ll thank yourself later when you’re in a time crunch.

    You’ve got this!

    Sincerely,

    Evergreen

    If you have any questions you’d like to send in, email us at contactthejack@gmail.com. We won’t publish any names and you don’t need to use one.

  • Ja’Quan Gardner Rushes into the XFL

    Ja’Quan Gardner Rushes into the XFL

    HSU adds another pro football player to its record, but not for the league you think

    The XFL is back after a 19-year break and is the next football league to try to fill the gap between NFL seasons. Former Humboldt State University running back Ja’Quan Gardner has joined the Seattle Dragons along with former NFL prospects and players.

    This isn’t the first professional league that Gardner has played in. A story by the Lost Coast Outpost said he spent a short time in the NFL after being signed as a non-drafted free agent by the San Francisco 49ers, only to play one preseason game in 2018 before being waived. He also played for another rival league to the NFL, the now-defunct Alliance of America Football where he led the league in rushing on the San Diego Fleet before having to undergo shoulder surgery.

    It may seem like just another NFL, but the XFL does have some aspects that make it stand out.

    The XFL originally started in 2001, and ran for a season with poor ratings as it tried to turn football into a reality show similar to the WWE. After learning his lesson the first time, WWE Chairman and founder of the original XFL Vince McMahon has brought the league back with familiar faces.

    In October, Gardner was drafted to the Seattle Dragons, who lost their opener 31-19 against the D.C. Defenders with Gardner rushing for only 36 yards in nine attempts. In their second game against the Tampa Bay Vipers on Feb. 15, they came out victorious with the Dragons winning 17-9. Gardner rushed for 27 yards in 10 attempts.

    It may seem like just another NFL, but the XFL does have some aspects that make it stand out.

    An NPR article explained the league has a few notable rule changes that make it unique.

    In the NFL, nearly every score ends with an extra point try. In the XFL, they have ditched the kick and replaced it with 3-point, 2-point and 1-point tries from the 10-yard, 5-yard and 2-yard line, respectively. Paired with this is a so-called comeback period where the clock will stop after every play in the final two minutes of each half. This will give trailing teams a better chance at making a comeback.

    The play clock has been shortened to 25 seconds, teams only have two timeouts, halftime is only 10 minutes and the clock doesn’t stop after incomplete passes and out-of-bound plays like in the NFL. These time changes are in an attempt to shorten the three-hour-long games the NFL is accustomed to and limit the downtime in the game.

    These are just a few of the new rules the XFL is changing to try and become a reasonable substitution for the NFL during the spring.

    You can watch Ja’Quan Gardner and the Seattle Dragons take on the Dallas Renegades Feb. 22 at 5:00 p.m.

  • Before You Forage: Sea Lettuce

    Before You Forage: Sea Lettuce

    Everything you ever wondered about sea lettuce

    Learning to forage for sustenance is a convenient and exciting way to spend a day. In Humboldt County you can find your next snack or meal on the coast or in the forest—if you know what to look for.

    One easy item you can forage for is sea lettuce, an edible green algae scientifically known as Ulva lactuca. Sea lettuce looks similar to garden-grown lettuce, as it has ruffly, thin leaves that bunch together, forming a head.

    This vibrant green algae is found along coastlines worldwide, typically in tidal zones on rocks and docks. Ollie Relfe, a British blogger and self-professed nutrition expert, says sea lettuce offers antioxidant qualities and is a great source of vitamins A, C and E, to name a few.

    Sea lettuce thrives in areas with high levels of nutrients or pollutants, which makes harvesting for consumption depend on water quality. A bushel of sea lettuce from a remote beach is surely more pristine than a bushel harvested from the mouth of a boat harbor.

    According to Capital Regional District, a Canadian governmental sustainability organization, sea lettuce is a valuable food source to numerous creatures. Grazing sea animals, including snails, amphipods and sea urchins, all rely on seaweeds like Ulva lactuca to provide nutrients. Too much sea lettuce can inhibit the growth of other seaweeds, especially when large, floating blooms block sunlight from reaching other oceanic plants below the surface.

    As sea lettuce decomposes, it releases hydrogen sulfide, a chemical compound which smells like rotten eggs. The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration says this toxic gas can be harmful to humans and animals alike, and can even be deadly in high amounts.

    When foraging for anything, it’s important to take only as much as you need. Harvesting sea lettuce is no different. However, foraging for sea lettuce can help reduce its decomposition and subsequent toxic contamination.

    It’s important to verify the safety of any body of water you plan on foraging in. You can do so by checking local biotoxin warnings. During hotter months, steer clear of consuming coastal collections due to potential red tide contamination.

    You don’t need a fishing license to recreationally collect seaweed in California. The daily limit is 10 pounds of wet seaweed, and you must carry a scale with you to ensure you’re within regulation standards.

    To collect sea lettuce, one needs a sharp knife and a bucket. Only harvest bushels that are large enough to leave some behind after collecting. Be sure to leave a good amount to ensure you don’t affect the holdfast of a sea lettuce head so the algae can grow back next time.

    Before heading out to the coast to collect sea lettuce, check local regulations and make sure you aren’t harvesting on protected land.

  • Third Athletic Director Candidate at HSU

    Third Athletic Director Candidate at HSU

    On Feb. 11 HSU welcomed its third potential candidate for its next athletic director

    Jane Teixeira intends on bringing her 25 years of experience working with higher education as an administrator, coach, student-athlete and leader to Humboldt State University. Upon her arrival, Teixeira personally greeted everyone in attendance and made them feel comfortable. In return, staff took it upon themselves to show her the view of the College Creek Field from the Great Hall balcony.

    Once everyone got to their seats, Teixeira introduced herself and began speaking on the importance of establishing a connection with student athletes.

    “Cultivation is important. I’m a relationship builder and I have constructed my career on that,” Teixeira said. “I want to know about people I interact with. I want to know what you bring to the table and how I can help.”

    Athleticism is not the only concern Teixeira spoke about. She also reached out to student athletes at HSU with concerns of life outside of their sports. Whether the concern is athletics or socializing, Teixeira has shown that she can incorporate her goal of unification between students and the community.

    “I also want to see us build championships, not only from wins and losses, but being a champion in the community. And by that I mean leadership.”

    Jane Teixeira

    “I spoke with student athletes yesterday about job interviews,” Teixeira said. “I told them, remember the skillset you bring. Time management and organization as athletes are beneficial in the workforce.”

    Her next talking point was about being competitive––whether it’s on the field or in the classroom. Student athletes at HSU experience obstacles such as going on the road for games, which hinders their focus on academic work. Teixeira also talked about championships, but not in the tone of filling trophy cabinets.

    “I also want to see us build championships, not only from wins and losses, but being a champion in the community,” Teixeira said. “And by that I mean leadership.”

    After introducing herself and the ideas she has planned if she were to become athletic director, Teixeira began taking questions from the audience. The first question involved her unique experiences that she would bring to HSU.

    “Humboldt State Day would be great and you can have it at the plaza or the quad.”

    Jane Teixeira

    “I have worked with 14 institutes and their presidents, their athletics directors, SWAs, their coaches and student athletes on various levels,” Teixeira said. “My claim to fame was cleaning the Reggie Bush mess, not only by myself.”

    The Reggie Bush mess she mentioned involved University of Southern California football player and Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush and basketball player O.J. Mayo accepting gifts from agents. This act resulted in Bush relinquishing his trophy. Sanctions were also placed on USC athletics.

    The next question focused on the discontinuation of HSU’s football program and the effect it has had on homecoming. Other sports are capable of hosting the event, which would alleviate any concerns. Teixeira responded with alternatives to homecoming.

    “You can center it around any sport, or any big time of the year for the community,” she said. “Humboldt State Day would be great and you can have it at the plaza or the quad.”

    For the last question, Teixeira was asked if non-traditional sports like esports would have a place at HSU. She said she believes technological growth is important and she wouldn’t disregard esports.

    “Esports is a hot trend right now,” Teixeira said. “In fact the Peach Belt Conference is the first NCAA Division II conference as a whole to have esports. I believe there are six or seven institutions in that conference and we have to be on that innovative technology side. We don’t know if it’s good or bad unless we try it. I’m gonna have to learn it too so it’s exciting.”

  • Sweet Songs, Fancy Feathers, Birds Bang

    Sweet Songs, Fancy Feathers, Birds Bang

    The sex life of a bird is no simple thing

    Sex is a heck of a thing in the animal kingdom. Species of birds, insects, mammals and fish have developed a whole bunch of strategies to get laid. From mating dances to beautiful plumage to carefully engineered bachelor pads, the birds have come up with all sorts ways to strut their stuff.

    Wildlife junior Hannah LeWinter commented on how much effort birds put into reproducing. She remarked on the McGregor bowerbird’s tower—a three-foot-tall structure made of carefully placed twigs, attesting to the bird’s dedication.

    “When we think of animals, we assume they do the basic things like mate and get food and make shelter, but they really do have complex [behaviors] too,” LeWinter said. “They make these intricate structures to impress females to say that they are the best suitors but those structures serve no purpose besides attracting a mate.”

    “We think of animalistic sex of doing it only because you need to reproduce, but there are these animals that create these gestures like a pebble or a structure or a dance.”

    Hannah LeWinter

    Commitment to the craft is just the first step of courtship. The picky female bowerbird inspects her suitor’s structure, carefully judging sturdiness of the construction before joining the male on the forest floor. Then, the show really starts.

    The male bowerbird possesses the ability to imitate sounds and begins a showcase of what he’s learned. His voice can emulate everything from birds and animals in the forest to the sounds of human civilization.

    Once she’s satisfied with his performance, the male begins his dance. A chaotic shuffle from one side of his tower to the other, darting towards the female while flashing a bright orange haircut at her. Once he’s done with his groove, she submits and they do their thing.

    “We like to think we’re the only people or the only species who do that,” LeWinter said. “We think of animalistic sex of doing it only because you need to reproduce, but there are these animals that create these gestures like a pebble or a structure or a dance.”

    The McGregor bowerbird works every year to maintain his tower, but there is no expectation in the species to mate with the same female every year. Jeff Black, a wildlife professor at HSU who studies birds, published a collaborative book with 20 other ornithologists titled “Partnerships in Birds: A Study in Monogamy.”

    “We asked the question, ‘How special are bird partnerships or pair bond?’” Black said. “We asked, ‘How long do mates stay together?’ ‘Are they really faithful?’ ‘Do the faithful ones fare better than the ones that alternate and are less monogamous?’”

    The answer: it depends. Black and his fellow ornithologists quantified bird fidelity on a sliding scale ranging to very faithful to not at all faithful. They also investigated the behaviors between social pairs—pairs who spend their time together raising the young, foraging and nesting together—and genetic, or mating pairs.

    “Birds lay their eggs in a basket,” Black said. “When you look at all the 10,000 different types of birds, some birds even though they’re monogamous, when you look at their babies, the genes come from someone else.”

    “When you look at all the different studies, you can plot out how faithful they are. Swans are 100% faithful, the jays would be about in the middle and other species are just having sex everywhere.”

    Jeff Black

    Faithfulness or lack there of may have a couple of purposes, although the hypotheses are not totally fleshed out. One hypothesis is that, if a female searches for a new male mate, she may be looking for a more fit male than her social partner, and engage in what Black called extra-pair copulation.

    HSU River Ecologist Alison O’Dowd explained fitness is a measure of the ability for an individual to pass on their genes. Similar to natural selection, sexual selection is when a female looks for certain characteristics in their male partner, ranging from vibrant feathers to well constructed towers to perfectly executed dances.

    Black endorsed fidelity in birds. He said in geese and swans for example, more faithful pairs are more likely to successfully reproduce. Their offspring are also more fit for when they’re looking for a mate of their own. There may be a case for faith yet.

    “When you look at all the different studies, you can plot out how faithful they are,” Black said. “Swans are 100% faithful, the jays would be about in the middle and other species are just having sex everywhere.”

  • New Grant Spurs CAPS Growth

    New Grant Spurs CAPS Growth

    CAPS will provide 36 more appointments per day by next year

    On Jan. 9, the California State University Office of the Chancellor gave Counseling and Psychological Services a grant of $150,000 under the California Budget Act of 2019 to provide Humboldt State University students with more counseling services to combat mental health issues.

    Director of Counseling and Psychological Services and Associate Director of Student Health and Wellbeing Services Jennifer Sanford was closely involved in the acceptance of the grant.

    “I’m most excited about the pilot project to get innovative programs off the ground that’s focused on high-risk students,” Sanford said. “In developing this program we will be doing some specialized training that we’re doing research on now to launch next year.”

    “Mental health doesn’t get the recognition that it should. When you’re not mentally well, your body reacts to that. If you’re stressed out, you’re only going to make it worse. More people should pay attention to it.”

    Danele Quijas

    Lobby areas will be built to hold more students and allow for an increase in counseling appointments. The grant will also fund two new therapy offices in the Behavioral and Social Sciences building, which will allow therapists to extend their hours. More tables and chairs will be added to the waiting areas to eliminate standing-room-only appointments. Construction will begin this summer.

    The funds are expected to help students learn life skills, cope, regulate stress and manage moods. CAPS says improving these areas can improve class attendance, retention in school and promote graduation. With anti-stigma campaigning, CAPS hopes to make students feel comfortable talking about their problems.

    Danele Quijas, a 22-year-old biology major, said students don’t pay enough attention to their mental health.

    “Mental health doesn’t get the recognition that it should,” Quijas said. “When you’re not mentally well, your body reacts to that. If you’re stressed out, you’re only going to make it worse. More people should pay attention to it.”

    A pilot project of $25,000 was also accepted by CAPS and will allow the growth of an intensive treatment program for high-risk students with disabling and chronic mental health issues. This treatment plan will include individual and group therapy as well as the highly-researched dialectical behavior therapy. CAPS hopes to continue this growth by providing other California State Universities with the tools to rebuild their own programs to be as effective as possible.

    Casey Pederson, a senior majoring in business marketing, said HSU should do more to make resources clearly available to students.

    “In a case like this with mental health, there can never be too many resources—so I definitely think it would help,” Pederson said. “I also think a big issue about it is getting people to know. Like I said, I had no knowledge that this was happening, and the big thing with mental health is the lack of knowledge and getting help. And there are resources available.”