The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Students

  • The best discounts for Cal Poly Humboldt students in Arcata

    The best discounts for Cal Poly Humboldt students in Arcata

    by Zack Mink and Jasmin Shirazian

    Student ID required at all locations.

    Food:

    Wildberries: 10% off every Saturday

    Romans Kitchen: 15% off everyday

    Cafe Brio: 10% off everyday

    The Couxp: $1.50 off of your order

    Blondies: 10% off everyday 

    Gyro Shop: 15% off everyday

    Fiesta Grill Cantina and El Chipotle: 10% off everyday

    Coffee and tea: 

    Northtown Coffee: 10% off everyday

    Coffee break: $5 bagel and 12oz coffee everyday 

    Moonrise Herbs: 5% off bulk herbs and teas

    Home:

    Ace Hardware: 10% off your purchase (ranges per item)

    Bubbles: 25% off any personal clean bottle refill

    Fun:

    Pacific Paradise: 10% off every Sunday

    Heart of Humboldt: 10% off every Sunday

    The Fireplace: 10% every Saturday 

    Heart of the Emerald: 10% off everyday

    Livity: 10% off everyday 

    Herb & Market: 10% of every Sunday

    Humboldt Premium: 10% off everyday

    Body High Pole: 15% off any class with code CALPOLY

    Adventures Edge: 10% off everyday 

    Hatchet House: $3 off everyday

    Thrift: 

    The Hospice Shop: 10% off every Saturday

    Youth Ability: 15% off every weekday (Monday-Friday)

    Eco-groovy Deals Clearance Outlet: no tax on purchases for the rest of January

  • President Jackson’s absence concerns faculty, student leaders, and media

    President Jackson’s absence concerns faculty, student leaders, and media

    by Brad Butterfield

    Since President Jackson’s first three months in office, he has not interviewed with student or community media, he has never met with the California Faculty Association, he does not attend University Senate meetings and has been unable to retain a consistent cabinet during his tenure. CFA polling from May of this year shows dismal support for Jackson by faculty at Cal Poly Humboldt.

    This story all catalyzed in the first week of the fall semester with a curiosity on who President Jackson is as a leader, and an aim to land an interview with him to hear him in his own words. Anytime Jackson’s name is brought up on campus, it is usually followed up with a sentiment regarding his absence on campus, lack of leadership or unwillingness to meet with students, faculty and even administrators. However, it would seem strange that the CSU system would increase Jackson’s pay from $336,996 (+ $50,000 for housing) to $396,150 (+ $50,000 for housing) in 2023 if he wasn’t doing at least a few things really well. So, I began to request interviews with Jackson through the normal channel on campus, News and Information. 

    Weeks of that were unfruitful, so I began visiting his office weekly. Also, I began submitting public records requests with regularity and conducting interviews both on and off the record with anyone who had knowledge of Jackson in an attempt to gain an accurate understanding of Jackson without being able to meet the man myself. It seems obligatory to say that this article is not and has never been an attempt to misrepresent Jackson. In fact, until speaking with countless administrators, faculty and students about Jackson, I remained optimistic that he may be a fantastic, albeit private, leader. However, Jackson’s team and circle became increasingly difficult to deal with and often, outright rude. If Jackson is a great leader, why is he reluctant to boast his successes to the press? If he has nothing to hide, then why does Jackson play hide and seek every semester? 

    Jackson Leadership Style:

    In an article written by Meg Godlewski, published February 22, 2022 on flyingmag.com Jackson is quoted as saying, “‘Just as you must always keep flying the airplane, you must always keep leading in the business world.’ And that’s what education is, he says, a business charged with shaping the future.” Understanding this business prism through which Jackson views education makes understanding his strange leadership much easier. Rouhollah Aghasaleh, PhD, Assistant Professor, School of Education and University Senate Executive Member points out that Jackson’s business centered view of education is in line with the larger CSU system.

    “My understanding is that the role of a president is more the external affairs of the campus and the provost mostly attends the internal issues,” Aghasaleh said. “The way CSU defines the role of president, to my understanding, is more of a CEO.”

    In some ways, Jackson is a CEO. He is leading an institution through a period of (hopeful) growth and has nearly half a billion dollars to put towards creating a world class polytechnic university. In other ways, Jackson’s style of leadership more closely resembles that of an authoritarian, according to Tony Silvaggio, speaking as CFA vice president.

    “We don’t have shared governance,” Silvaggio said. “We have governance from an authoritarian ruler, basically. He doesn’t keep us informed. He’s failed to keep us informed about very important faculty issues, because he doesn’t meet with the faculty. I think he’s failed to build relationships, positive, meaningful relationships with the community of Arcata specifically. He’s failed miserably. He’s created enemies, nobody wants to deal with this guy. He won’t even respond to city councilors requests for just consultation. It feels like again the divine right of kings, where he’s just going to do what he wants, and he’s not going to ask anybody for permission. He’s really failed at creating sustainable, positive relationships with community partners.”

    As Silvaggio points out, Jackson’s unwillingness to speak with anyone about anything is becoming a prominent component of his legacy here on campus. It appears that Jackson has attempted to create a team around himself, for which students, faculty and community members are allowed to talk to. Then the message will be relayed to our President. 

     One of my first interview requests with President Jackson, garnered this response from Marketing and Communications. 

    “At this time, the President’s Office prefers to focus on the regular meetings that the Lumberjack has scheduled with campus leaders, including the Chief of Staff and a member of the News & Information team. We’re hopeful that this will be an effective way of building trusting relationships, sharing information, and discussing potential topics for coverage.”

    This barrier of communication has created frustration within the campus community. 

    “It’s not effective at all. It isn’t because you know what? Again, it’s like telephone, right? The game of telephone,” Silvaggio said. “But you don’t get the urgency of the issue if you’re getting it second hand, or third hand, right. I mean, you need to hear what’s going on once a year for crying out loud.”

    Even if Jackson’s game of telephone worked perfectly, it’d still be less than ideal. Unfortunately, much of the time, the call gets dropped completely.

    Worth mentioning is the high turnover rate of the President’s Cabinet.

    Jenn Capps, Provost & Vice President, Academic Affairs (hired Aug. 1, 2020)

    Mark Johnson, Chief of Staff (hired Aug. 21, 2023)

    Frank Whitlatch, Vice President, University Advancement (hired — to the President’s cabinet — May, 2019) 

    Carla Ho’a, Interim Vice President, Administration & Finance and CFO (hired Oct., 2023)

    Chrissy Holliday, Vice President, Enrollment Management & Student Success (hired Jan. 1, 2023)

    Adrienne Colegrove-Raymond, Special Assistant to the President for Tribal & Community Engagement (hired — to the president’s cabinet — Spring 2022)

    Nick Pettit, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics & Recreational Sports (hired June 8, 2023)

    A continual revolving cast of characters makes playing telephone with the president much more difficult, and also speaks to his inability to form a cohesive, committed team of leaders.

    “They got to stick around for at least a couple, three years for crying out loud right?” Silvaggio said. “This is unprecedented. And that indicates lack of leadership and a lack of vision if you can’t bring in people here that want to stay here and make this place great.” 

    Both students and faculty alike are tired of Jackson’s complete absence from the campus community.

    “I believe that Jackson has refused to make himself a part of the campus community, and that he sits up in his ivory tower and does not know the situation of the people,” Ethan LeVering said, Associated Students appointee to the University Senate.

    Shockingly, many faculty at Cal Poly Humboldt have never even met Jackson.

    “It’s like, ‘Where’s Waldo?’ Right? I mean, where’s this guy? No one knows. He’s never even introduced himself to any of us in my department that I know of. He refuses to meet with us when our leadership has attempted to talk to him about labor issues,” Silvaggio said.

    Exemplifying his lack of campus engagement, Jackson does not attend the University’s senate meetings.

    “During my term as a Senator, he’s never showed up to the Senate meetings. There has been times that we invited him to come and chat with us about a few issues, he’s never accepted. He’s officially on the roster for the Senate, but he always sends a proxy,” said Aghasaleh.

    Most importantly, Jackson’s absence does not just create frustration in the campus community, it has adverse effects on his ability to effectively steer the multi-million dollar ship that he is captain of.

    “As a result of his authoritarian style, what we see is he’s making mistake after mistake, after mistake because he does not consult with the people that make this place run,” said Silvaggio before adding, “We’ve dedicated decades of our life to this institution and this guy barks orders from his ivory tower.”

    What does Jackson do? What is his vision? How has he succeeded?

    In an April 4, 2022 article written by Jackson for Higher Ed Dive, Jackson wrote, “The re-energization of our campus allows us to demonstrate how public higher education, with public support, can quickly scale to meet what the state government has asked of us and needs. At Cal Poly Humboldt, the return on the investment will impact generations to come.” 

    As Jackson played a large part in Humboldt State becoming Cal Poly Humboldt it is understandable why he feels the pressure to deliver. Without speaking to Jackson, it’s impossible to pin down a reliable ethos which he abides and leads by. However, it seems clear that Jackson’s overall goals as president lie in growth. By that metric, one may say that Jackson has already succeeded.

    The state investment brought on by the polytechnic transition is $433 million in one-time funds with $25 million in ongoing funds to support Humboldts transition to become California’s third polytechnic university.

    Additionally, during Jackson’s tenure, the university achieved a balanced budget for the first time in over a decade and doubled gift commitments from donors. Also during Jackon’s tenure, two campus stores opened in downtown Arcata and Eureka. These big money moves deserve credit, but don’t constitute success in and of themselves. 

    “Certainly, he could bring money in credit. He could find some money from some company, right? That’s the neoliberal model. But it’s not about money. Right? It’s about relationship building. And you can’t just throw a bookstore on the corner, and all of a sudden a relationship emerges,” Silvaggio said. “He doesn’t respectfully engage with faculty, staff and students.” 

    Further, it bears mentioning that just because it happened during Jackson’s tenure, doesn’t mean it is his success to take sole ownership of.

    “I think the campus achievements are ours collectively. I don’t know if we can attribute any success to one individual,” Aghasaleh said. 

    In an effort to understand where Jackson spends his time on campus, I submitted a public records request for his daily schedule from the period August 17 to September 7. The request was denied by public records assistant, Joy Finney who wrote in an email, “As an exempt employee, President Jackson’s daily work schedule on behalf of the University is not specifically defined. His duties as President require his work and attention on days, nights, and weekends.” 

    In a semester marred by budget cuts, tuition increases, and faculty pay stagnation, Jackson’s salary of $396,150 and $50,000 for housing has become increasingly concerning.

    “I don’t think anybody making over $300,000 needs to get a housing stipend,” said Marisol Ruiz, CFA Humboldt Chapter President. “They’re [CSU] all about the market rate. This market is a public university and public universities should be cared for as a public good, not as a corporate good.” said Ruiz.

    Former CFA Humboldt Chapter President and current Faculty Rights Chair Loren Cannon echoed a similar sentiment.

    “All the presidents of the 23 [CSU] campuses make similar wages, and also have a housing and a car allowance, usually that I and they’re all making about the same as President Biden. just seems to me like a mal distribution of state resources.”

    President Jackson’s failures:

    CFA Polling from May of this year shows that 72.5% of responding CFA members disagree that “President Jackson keeps me well informed about important faculty issues.” Only 12.5% are satisfied with the leadership of the President. Only 18.9% have confidence that Jackson builds sustainably positive relationships with community partners. 15% agree that Jackson suitably and respectfully engages in the life of the University.

    Jackson still has yet to meet with the CFA in any capacity.

    “Every prior President has met with us. Prior presidents have come into our department to just introduce themselves,” said Silvaggio. “He’s continually failed in his role as a leader. Time and time again. Again, what kind of leader refuses to meet with his employees and his students?”

    Jackson’s unwillingness to meet with the CFA is representative of his complete absence of dialogue across the board. One of Jackson’s most important and sensitive considerations through the Polytechnic growth is the effect growth will have on the tight knit community of Arcata. Though, here again, apparently Jackson has decided to bury his head in the sand cut off communications.

    “He said to me that he has basically given up on working with the actual community of Arcata. There’s really no relationship between Cal Poly Humboldt and the town of Arcata,” said Sam Parker, Associated Students President. “The focus is more on other places like Eureka and stuff because he said that Arcata tends to have kind of that, ‘not in my backyard attitude,’ to the development. So he’s kind of given up on trying to form ties with them,” Parker said. “That’s somewhat of a recurring theme. Just kind of giving up on communication.

    Jackson’s unwillingness to speak extends to the media as well, and not just The Lumberjack – though this semester we have submitted more interview requests than any other local publication. The current tally of interview requests from The Lumberjack stands at 27. Jackson never responded in any capacity to my interview requests. The North Coast Journal has not interviewed Jackson since his very first days on the job. The same is true for the Lost Coast Outpost. The Times Standard provides Jackson a column every other week, but similarly does not have a reliable avenue for access to Jackson, according to Times Standard Managing Editor, Ruth Schneider.

    Among Jackson’s most glaring failures as a leader is the palpable fear that the campus community has in speaking out against him, in any capacity. In writing this story, many folks who I interviewed spoke of a fear of being reprimanded for voicing their concerns. 

    “Rather than think creatively, like a 21st century leader, he just decides to stick his head in the sand like authoritarian rulers do and just, you know, externalize the problems to the larger community. It’s frankly embarrassing,” said Silvaggio.

  • Be open and honest for better dating

    by Kianna Znika

    We live in a time where most of us are liberated and independent enough to know that dating isn’t a necessity; we’ve done the work to be okay on our own. We pour love into ourselves, additionally surrounding ourselves with the healing, platonic love from our friends and family. 

    When I first started celebrating my independence as a single person, I had a couple of realizations. First was that I genuinely loved who I was and the life I was creating for myself. I couldn’t believe there was ever a time when I’d justify unsatisfying connections, convincing myself that kindness should compensate for a lack of genuine interest. I’d cling to situations that left me miserable, telling myself excuses like, “Well, they’re kind of nice to me, so it’s okay,” or “Maybe I’m just being shallow.”

    I was chipping away at my self-worth and esteem by invalidating my true wants and needs, accepting less than satisfactory situations when I knew, deep down, that my heart wanted more.

    Being brutally honest with oneself is a mantra I now live by. It’s the compass that guided me to the other realization — I am, at my core, a romantic soul yearning for genuine connection and love.

    Now, I’m not saying that this is something I need in my life; rather, it was a beautiful change in mindset towards dating. I will flow through my life and open my heart to love, but I will only involve myself in connections that match my own wants and needs.

    “I don’t need to be with someone. So if I am going to be with someone, it’ll be because it’s my dream scenario,” is what I told myself.

    And, although this isn’t the one-step cure to dating – I definitely still found myself in dissatisfying situations along the way – I am so grateful that I stayed true to what I wanted because I can now confidently say that I found that dream scenario. I am happily in a relationship with someone who aligns with my aspirations and supports my joy and independence.

    Now, imagine if I hadn’t been honest along the way?

    While I’m proud of the normalization of polyamory, I’ve witnessed some people force themselves into it when all they really want, deep down, is to focus on one romantic partner. Let’s keep celebrating all personal loving and dating styles, embracing the beauty of individual preferences. If you want monogamy, own it. It’s okay. Be honest and you’ll attract someone who wants to be monogamous with you, too.

    I hear people say they’re not looking for something serious, while continuously doing and saying things that prove to me that what they really want is a relationship. I believe they do this in order to “be chill” and protect themselves. It seems like everyone in the dating scene right now isn’t looking for anything serious. But, what if some people are only saying that because everyone else is?

    I’m grateful that I was honest with myself about the type of dating experience I wanted. I was unapologetically upfront about wanting a genuine relationship, even on the first date. Crazy? No, just emotionally available and confident.

    So, don’t settle. If you want a certain type of dating experience, odds are someone else out there wants the same thing. They exist, just like you do. Remember: dating isn’t a necessity, so might as well make it exactly what you want and deserve. Your dream scenario is not only possible; it’s worth it. 

  • University housing contract goes to Sundt

    by Andrés Felix Romero

    As reported in the Sept. issue of The Lumberjack, Clayco was in the running for the Health, Dining, and Housing project alongside other construction companies Swinerton and Webcor. These companies ultimately lost out to Sundt Construction, for the contract. In late October, the facilities department released the winners of the construction contracts for upcoming campus projects and repairs. Sundt also won the contract for the Craftsman Mall Student Housing project.

    Clayco was the subject of a protest campaign by the Local Carpenter’s Union 751 at the beginning of the semester. For weeks, Local 751 set up signs and built a wooden speaking judge sculpture around campus while handing and posting flyers condemning Clayco. Local 751 representative Ruhama Tereda also spoke at the public forum section at the CSU Board of Trustees meeting to speak against Clayco. Although the campaign wasn’t as intense, Local 751 also wrote letters and spoke at public forums to the CSU Chancellor and Board of Trustees condemning Sundt, citing a history of malpractice by the construction company.

  • Self-diagnosed autism is a trend

    by Kae Dennert

    I would like to preface this with the words: I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE WITH DIAGNOSES; I believe autism is incredibly real, and a struggle a lot of people deal with, but I also believe that with the internet these days, it has become trendy to have the newest popular mental illness. 

    I have been diagnosed with many things in the past few years, so I am aware how tricky getting a diagnosis is, so I’m not going to shut down self diagnosis as a whole, as it isn’t that black and white. Walking down memory lane, back in 2016 it was incredibly “quirky” to post about how depressed you are, and it became something where everyone tried to outstage each other, which also brought along people who felt they felt similarly to the creators posting about it, which led to people self-diagnosing. 

    This again happened in 2019-2020, where it suddenly became a trend to have anxiety, and that was once again followed in 2021 where it was a trend to have ADHD. Now where am I headed with this? Earlier this year there was an uptick in trending conversations on what symptoms could mean you are possibly secretly autistic. This led to many “oh my god maybe I’m autistic I keep seeing these videos” comments. 

    Now, there are certainly people who saw these videos, felt like they saw themselves, and decided to take steps to use tools to help them, or help them get diagnosed, and I think that it’s amazing that awareness online can help people, but I also think it has become hard to decipher who is pretending for attention, and who actually needs the help. It has been trendy to make videos about what symptoms are “autistic” (which also overlap heavily with other disorders, like ADHD, anxiety, depression, OCD, etc.) with no further context of what could be going on besides autism.

    These narrowings into one answer don’t take into account each person’s individuality and their struggles and what that can mean for them. Because diagnoses overlap, the trending diagnosis is the one that is going to stick. This can shut people down and discourage them from finding more answers that could have helped them more in the long run.

    It locks people in a corner, and they can believe there is no other option for them besides aligning with that determination. Because of this many people don’t search for answers that could lead them to help, because other illnesses become stigmatized while being “neurotypical” gets you scrutinized for not understanding the viewpoint of neurodivergence. I think that everyone should be able to be themselves without having to shape themselves into different people for others, but doesn’t everyone want that? 

    At the end of the day, a new trend will inevitably pop up, and people will swear up and down in their life that they “never had autism” and instead have the new hip trending illness.

  • Flush that fecal matter

    Flush that fecal matter

    by Jillian Wells

    Well folks, buckle up because we’re diving deep into the uncharted territory of unflushed mysteries on campus. I never thought my college experience would involve investigative journalism in the bathroom, but here we are. 

    Picture this: you just got out of class, you’ve been a hydrated queen all day and drank all 21 ounces of water from your HydroFlask, now your bladder is about to implode on itself, so you rush to the bathroom expecting a nice, clean, flushed environment. When all of a sudden, you peer into the stall and see a huge, nasty piece of feces. Every other stall is currently occupied, panic is starting to set in because you’re running out of time, sweat trickles down your forehead from the pain in your bladder and realization about what you’re about to go through, with no other choice, you brave the stall with nothing but a pile of shit. It’s a shitty situation, no pun intended.  

    Now that we understand each other and the situation a bit more, I’ve noticed an increasing amount of unflushed shit in public restrooms on campus. I truly don’t understand the reasoning behind the decision to not flush your fecal matter, and genuinely have so many questions. 

     What do you hope to gain? Do you enjoy it when other people see your poop? Is it some form of protest? Is there an underground society of non-flushers plotting world domination one unflushed toilet at a time? Are you at all concerned about the poor souls who have to see your waste? I really am curious about the why of it all, if you’re someone who doesn’t flush your poop in public restrooms, let me know.

    I can’t speak to this being an issue in men’s bathrooms, because as a female with she/her pronouns, I tend to avoid mens bathrooms like the plague. But, I hope for those of you out there who use men’s bathrooms, that the situation isn’t as shitty as it has been in the womens and gender neutral bathrooms. 

    I’ve probably seen the unwelcomed sight of unflushed fecal matter in just about every major public restroom on campus, the main offenders include Gist Hall, the Library and Founders Hall. This problem has gotten out of hand. 

    Not to shame those of you who don’t flush your poop, but it’s 2023 and we have more important issues to deal with than looking at your unflushed creations. I think I speak for everyone when I say, flush your poo, no one wants to see it! It’s not like we have to pay the water bill, that’s the school’s job (or whoever pays it), so flush that fecal matter!

  • Cal Poly Humboldt embraces ChatGPT

    by Carlina Grillo

    In recent years, ChatGPT and other generative artificial intelligence (AI) models have become mainstream, with many people having begun to wonder if this is something to fear, or something to embrace. Students and faculty at Cal Poly Humboldt have been testing the waters and, despite mixed reviews, it is apparent ChatGPT is here to stay. 

    “I do think that there is a role for ChatGPT and gen AI models in the classroom. However, I think my recommendation for its use varies according to the level of the student,” said associate professor of computer science and software engineering program lead, Dr. Sherrene Bogle. “As higher educators, we have a responsibility to teach our students how to use the technology effectively.”

    “ChatGPT is a tool applied in academia for diverse research like linguistics, psychology and computer science. It aids in hypothesis generation, language analysis and ethical exploration. Used in education and interdisciplinary studies, it’s showcased in conferences, with further advancements documented in recent academic publications,” according to ChatGPT itself.

    Bogle first heard about ChatGPT last year and, although reserved at first, has since embraced it. Cal Poly Humboldt students studying computer science were offered an elective course this semester that focuses on AI, CS 480, taught by Bogle. One exercise she instructed in the lab was to use a selection of AI technology such as ChatGPT, Bard or Claude and find examples of where the programs hallucinate. 

     Noah Zerbe, a professor in the department of politics, defined what the term ‘hallucinate’ means for generative AI programs.

     “Sometimes [generative AI] will just make things up for you,” said Zerbe. “Often, one of the problems a lot of people have noted is that it makes up citations. So, it’ll say that a quote comes from this source, or something like that, and that source may not even exist. Or, it can go down a rabbit hole of factually incorrect information.” 

    One mainstream example of ChatGPT ‘hallucinating’ is apparent in an incident where Colorado lawyer, Zachariah Crabill, was fired from Baker Law Group for using ChatGPT, and got caught when the program created fake scenarios in legal documents.

    Another example of a generative AI model ‘hallucinating’ took place in the Cal Poly Humboldt AI class. According to Bogle, two students were able to convince an AI chatbot that they had lunch with Michael Jackson and Tupac. 

    “They just said a few things, changed the prompt, and the technology apologized for saying that these people were dead and wanted to hear more about their conversation and was basically adding that to its database,” said Bogle.

    As an advocate for programs like ChatGPT in academia, Zerbe encourages students to explore the program, but introduces generative AI models into the classroom with a warning.

    “My approach to it is really centered on teaching students how to use it effectively,” said Zerbe. “It’s providing you feedback on your paper, trust it as much as you would trust feedback that you got from a friend down the hallway.”

    Professors aren’t the only ones exploring this new territory with caution. Maddie Haus, a junior at Cal Poly Humboldt majoring in environmental studies, was suspicious at first. 

    “I was stoked because it helped me so much, but I also found it scary because it seemed too good to be true,” said Haus. “I think it can be useful for achieving academic success. I do think there’s a thin line between doing the work yourself and just having ChatGPT do the work for you. Overall though, I think it’s a useful tool.”

    Mikey Crispin, a Cal Poly Humboldt graduate who now works for the PBLC and the university as a scheduling and support analyst, has used ChatGPT on and off. 

    “I didn’t really use AI for school because it didn’t explode until last November,” Crispin said. “By that time I was only taking the upper level computer science classes and could get all the info from professors.”

    Now that he’s graduated, Crispin uses ChatGPT mainly for troubleshooting while writing software. 

    “GPT doesn’t always know what you’re trying to do, but from a basic coding perspective, if you’re giving it info just to cover some gaps you might have, then it is a great assistant that can help you gain a better understanding of how something might work,” Crispin said. “I have no experience asking GPT for help for anything outside of a technological viewpoint. It did write a really good email for me once in the style of a Cat in the Hat book, so that was cool.”

    All in all, ChatGPT, along with other generative AI programs, seem to be the future of education, but using AI as a crutch is inevitably harmful. 

     Bogle illustrates her perspective towards generative AI.

     “If you think about it, we don’t want our elementary school students and kindergarten students to be using a calculator, because we want them to learn to count, to carry their hundreds, tens, and ones, etc., to be able to do long division,” Bogle said. “But, after they have mastered being able to do their basic arithmetic with pencil and paper, we’re comfortable with them using the calculator. So, it’s similar with gen AI, which is why I said I think students need to master honing the particular skill first, before they become reliant on gen AI. That way, I think we have the best of both worlds.”

  • Brand new birding club spreads its wings

    Brand new birding club spreads its wings

    by Griffin Mancuso

    An unusual new guest was spotted on the northern end of Brackish Pond in the Arcata Bird Sanctuary last Friday. Brandishing purple, blue, and green feathers with chicken-like feet, an adult purple gallinule had somehow made its way to the marsh from its native territory in the southeast U.S. There had been no prior documented sightings in northern California, so birders flocked from all different counties to catch a glimpse. Among those birders was Cal Poly Humboldt’s brand-new birding club.

    Photo courtesy of Cedrik von Briel. An adult purple gallinule walking among the reeds at Brackish Pond.

    Cedrik von Briel, the president of the birding club, arrived at Brackish Pond around 7:30 a.m. last Sunday, in the hopes of spotting the purple gallinule. Describing the bird as a standard chicken on LSD, this was an opportunity he couldn’t miss. Much to his luck, he was the first person to spot it.

    “The first thing I spotted was that you know, you see a bunch of reeds, a bunch of green,” von Briel said. “And then, a glint of purple and blue and green — it just all hits you at once. And then you’re like, ‘Yep, that’s the bird.’”

    Von Briel recalled the audible gasps from the crowd of around 20 to 30 people as the purple gallinule came into view. The bird emerged from the reeds into an open clearing, then went up into the nearby willows to feed. It was a spectacle in more ways than one.

    “It was up in the reeds, the willows, and the leaves, and it just fell at one point,” von Briel said. “You could hear the giggles and the audible gasps as people looked on, horrified. It’s a funny bird. It’s a stupid, stupid, funny bird.”

    Photo by Griffin Mancuso. Birding Club President Cedrik von Briel watching for birds near Brackish Pond with John Marchwick.

    The Origin Story

    The birding club, not even two months old, was started out of a pre-established passion for birding. Birders use a variety of tools to spot and document birds, including binoculars, telescopes, cameras, and the naked eye. They also learn to identify and track birds by their calls. Birding is both a hobby and a form of citizen science.

    The treasurer of the birding club, Kellen Apuna started his birding journey at a McDonald’s.

    “There was a stream that ran kind of adjacent to the parking lot, and I was looking in and I recognized a bird in there. I was like, ‘Hey, that’s one of the birds from the class.’” Apuna said. “I guess from there, it was just a matter of getting a field guide and kind of going through that, and learning what was in the area and then it just snowballed from there.”

    Vice President Sasha Cahill’s birding journey started with a western tanager at the Vista Vinita Park in Orange County. He went to his father’s birding book for answers, and his father helped him identify the bird. After that, he couldn’t help noticing the variety of bird species during his trips to the park.

    “My dad tried to look up the rare bird hotline, which was a thing in the 90s, but by this point, it had shifted to eBird,” Cahill said. “And using eBird, you can see rare sightings from your area and any area you want. So then we were able to chase rare birds and you know, just spirals from there. You notice things, you see interesting things, and it’s continued to this day for sure.”

    All three of the club’s officers were aware of each other through eBird in their freshman year. The popular birding app allows birders to upload their photographs to document sightings, creating a public database for researchers and fellow birders. Von Briel initially messaged Apuna through Facebook and invited him to go look for Allen’s hummingbirds in the bottlebrush plants near Founders Hall. They start pursuing a western flycatcher and try to coax the bird out with pishing.

    “Pishing is like a sound you make to imitate an angry call from a bird,” von Briel said. “It kinda locks birds in because they’re attracted to that stuff. And then, down the steps comes Sasha with his friends. He’s like, ‘Did I just hear pishing?’”

    Apuna recalled the moment when the two birders recognized each other.

    “[Cahill said] ‘Are you Cedrik?’… and Cedrick went, ‘No way, I just pished out a birder,’” Apuna said.

    Birding Tools

    Along with pishing, there are various tools a birder can use to lure birds into the open. Some birders use playback, where they play a recording of a bird’s call from a speaker to entice the specific bird they’re seeking. However, it is considered unethical to use playback for vagrant birds, birds in their breeding season, or both. Some birders resort to flushing to get a good view, where they make just enough noise (usually by clapping) to drive a bird out of the brush or reeds.

    Photo by Griffin Mancuso. A marsh wren resting in the trees near Brackish Pond.

    “We’ve definitely had our ethical discussions [for flushing],” Apuna said. “Is it worth it for us to basically disturb the bird into showing itself? And I don’t really think we’ve ever reached a solid resolution.”

    “It’s true that a bird doesn’t have an iron trap memory,” Cahill said. “It’s going to hear a slight disturbance, and then it’s going to go back to its busy-birding, but there’s a line you don’t wanna cross.”

    The club officers hope to discuss the ethics of birding along with other topics at future club meetings.

    “We want to host occasional meetings. We have people present on photography, ethical birding, trying to go out and find stuff, birding by ear — guest speakers or something like that,” von Briel said. “We can definitely make it what our eventual members want it to be, and that’s the beauty of it. We’re just starting; we have a future ahead.”

    Birding Trips

    The birding club goes looking for new birds almost every weekend. They spend most of their outings at the Arcata marsh or on campus, but they have also traveled to the lagoons, Ferndale, and the Jetty to complete their lists. They have also been lucky enough to go on several pelagic birding trips, where birders get on a boat and travel out to the open sea in search of that needle in a haystack.

    “This is the first year in — I think — about 20 years that Humboldt has had regularly scheduled pelagic trips for birding,” Cahill said. “Thanks to Rob Fowler, our local birding legend, and a boat that another fellow birder was able to find, he’s chartered many trips off of there this fall.”

    Cahill and Apuna witnessed the fifth documented sighting of Cory’s shearwater in the Pacific region on one of these trips. 

    “Lots of screaming, lots of freaking out because it was this huge,” Apuna said.

    Cahill showed a world map of all documented sightings of Cory’s shearwater on eBird, where almost all sightings were in the Atlantic Ocean, so a sighting in the Pacific was a notable event.

    “A lot of people who are usually soft-spoken were losing their minds,” Cahill said.

    The officers emphasized the accessibility of birding to beginners. Even if an aspiring birder doesn’t have access to a diverse population of birds in their area or a professional long lens, all they need to start is curiosity and a good eye. Patience and motivation are rewarded in birding.

    “It’s like what Ratatouille always said, ‘Anyone can bird,’” von Briel said. “You just gotta get out there and put your own spin on it and see some birds.”

  • Thanksgiving leftovers? No thanks!

    Thanksgiving leftovers? No thanks!

    by Zack Mink

    Thanksgiving, although controversial, is still widely celebrated in the United States. According to statista.com, 83% of Americans were projected to be celebrating the holiday in 2021 and almost 90 million tons of food waste was generated (ReFED.org). No, you don’t need to eat dry turkey for weeks after or scrape the stuffing off of a tray to limit your waste. Instead, you can repurpose your food scraps to create new and certainly improved meals that you will look forward to.

    “The Moist-Maker”

    The most famous Thanksgiving leftover that is widely recognized is “The Moist-Maker” from Friends. This is a sandwich filled with turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and other Thanksgiving classics. To make it moist, a gravy soaked piece of bread is layered in the middle of the sandwich. This method of simply putting leftovers between two pieces of bread or wrapping them up in a large tortilla might be delicious but can also get quite boring after eating the same things for days in a row. 

    Turkey Pot Pie

    Rather than making a Thanksgiving sandwich or what is essentially a Thanksgiving crunch wrap supreme, experiment with your cooking skills and make something like a turkey pot pie. With this, all you need to do is combine some of your turkey leftovers, whatever vegetables you have, mix in your gravy and some extra stock of any kind. Finally, top it with some buttery puff pastry because puff pastry really does make everything taste better and bake it at whatever temperature seems appropriate. With only a couple minutes of preparation and 30-45 minutes in the oven, you now have a not so Thanksgiving pot pie.

    Turkey Stock

    Aside from excessive amounts of leftovers adding to the tons of food waste, scraps from food prep also have a huge impact on the waste produced each year. Rather than filling up garbage bags with vegetable scraps or a giant turkey carcass, save all of these nutrient full foods to create a homemade turkey stock. This is a classic one pot recipe where you put all of your scraps into one pot, top it off with water, and let it simmer for hours. This process extracts the flavor from the vegetables and the collagen from the turkey bones creating a lucious and flavorful stock. With stock, you have endless options of meals to choose from. You can add this stock to your turkey pot pie or even make something like a turkey pho with some aromatics like lemongrass, ginger, and pho seasoning packets. 

    Utilizing food scraps not only pushes you to experiment and try new foods, but also contributes to minimizing food waste on a day that produces excessive amounts of it. If you are lazy and want to enjoy a classic Thanksgiving sandwich, go ahead! If you want to be a little extra, take the time to make a turkey stock using the entire turkey carcass and save that stock for future recipes. No need to toss out your leftovers, stretch your culinary limits and practice food sustainability even on Thanksgiving.

  • Circus? You hardly know us!

    Circus? You hardly know us!

    by Carlina Grillo

    Big shoes, small cars, red noses and life-sized giraffes filled the Gist Theater in the late nights of Nov. 15-17. The Cal Poly Humboldt Circus presented this semester’s show named, “Circus? You hardly know us!”. 

    Doors opened at 6:30 p.m. Students and community members alike packed into the cozy theater, and filled every single chair in the house. While the audience waited for the theatrics to begin, multiple acts took the stage in charge of keeping people entertained while waiting. To keep the stage warm, the pre-show consisted of music from their very own house band, balloon animals, juggling, (balloon) sword fights, fire twirling (minus the fire) and general tomfoolery. 

    Photo by Carlina Grillo. Circus members dressed as animals stand behind a cage while singing to the
    lion sleeping, “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”.

    After a colorful and entertaining pre-show, the circus commenced – promptly, as the poster suggested, at 7:27 p.m. It was clear from the introduction, this show would feature the coolest, craziest and most creative clowns this Cal Poly has to offer. With over 25 cast members, the theatrics these clowns put on were incredibly impressive. 

    The entire night was full of controlled chaos, but there were a few acts that got the audience particularly riled up. 

    In the first half of the show, the audience got to indulge in a high stakes game of hangman. An audience member was brought to the floor to guess letters, and every incorrect letter guessed was stapled onto a body part, of said audience member’s choosing, onto the “hangman” (yes, literally stapled onto bare skin. The performer came back out later with bandages covering the staple holes). 

    Other unforgettable acts in the first half included an ensemble of musical butt-slapping titled, “Ass Percussion,” and a live episode of “The Real Clown Wives of Humboldt.”

    Photo by Carlina Grillo. Performer embraces their feline side, staring off into the distance stunned by a giant ball of yarn rolling by audience members, down the isles.

    After a quick intermission for smoke breaks, vending machine hauls and bathroom trips, people regathered into the black box theater, and no one was ready for what would happen next. 

    The latter half of the show kept the audience on their toes with an aerial dancing cat named Damla the Feral, a deep-throat balloon dinner at a classy food joint, and – perhaps the act of the night – “Corno,” an X-rated performance that included a student and their “cornology” professor engaging in erotic behavior, like “sucking cob,” and a plotline that included raunchy archetypes straight out of “corn-hub.”

    The night wrapped up with a musical performance featuring a group of circus animals, and told the story of a lion getting revenge on his showman – in a rather violent way. 

    Overall, the Humboldt Circus Club went above and beyond for this performance, and proved that the group is overflowing with talent and creativity. 

  • This week in Lumberjack athletics

    This week in Lumberjack athletics

    by Vanessa Saltos

    MEN’S BASKETBALL

    Over Thanksgiving break, men’s basketball competed at home in Lumberjack Arena. On Saturday, Nov. 18, the ‘Jacks faced Cal Maritime. They were down in the first half with a score of 37 – 40. Humboldt took the game in the second half after a hard fought battle, the final score being 80 – 70. The following week, they competed against Northwest Indian College on Tuesday, Nov. 21. This was a high scoring game for the ‘Jacks. Rob Diaz III recorded 21 points and four steals, four other Lumberjacks also posted double digits. The final score was 104 – 71. Thursday, Nov. 30, they will be back in Lumberjack Arena playing against Cal Poly Pomona. Tip off is set for 7:30 p.m. Then, on Saturday, Dec. 2, Cal State San Bernardino will be traveling to Arcata for a game time of 7:30 p.m. 

    WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

    On Saturday, Nov. 18, women’s basketball had their home opening game against Concordia University Irvine. The ‘Jacks competed hard and took the game with a score of 72 – 63. Some standouts were Sara Ahmadpour leading the team with a career high of 21 points and nine rebounds, Emilia Long followed suit recording 20 points. In the fourth quarter alone the ‘Jacks recorded 30 points. After their home opener, Humboldt traveled to the Azusa Pacific Thanksgiving Classic. Friday, Nov. 24, they played Azusa Pacific. Despite coming off of a victory, the ‘Jacks fell with a final score of 64 – 87. Saturday, Nov. 25, they faced off with Biola, and their hunger to win showed by taking the game into overtime. The final score was 63 – 53. The ‘Jacks are back at home this week. Thursday, Nov. 30, they are opening CCAA play with Cal Poly Pomona, tip off is set for 5:30 p.m. Humboldt will also be playing at home Saturday, Dec. 2 against Cal State San Bernardino at 5:30 p.m. 

  • The Aquatic Center’s $412,000 facelift

    by Brad Butterfield

    To date, $412,000 has been spent on renovations at Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center (HBAC) to allow for half of the University Advancement Division to move their operations into the Eureka waterfront building. According to Marketing and Communications for the university,  this transition, which began in the Fall of 2020, led to a change in management of the building from the non-profit ‘University Center’ to Cal Poly Humboldt. 

    Marketing and Communication states that the relocation of the Advancement Division to HBAC has provided an easier landing pad for donors and Alumni to interact and opened up space on campus for the Associated Students to utilize. In effect, this move has forced many of the previous operations at HBAC to alter and many to exist as shells of their former selves. Additionally, the Advancement Division’s move to HBAC forced Center Activities employees out of their offices and workspaces without giving them a say in the matter. 

    The money spent:

    While Marketing and Communications Director, Aileen Yoo and Communications Specialist, Grant Scott Go-forth stated in separate emails that renovations and upgrades to the HBAC total $412,000 to date, public records requests submitted under the Freedom of Information Act, led to the release of only three construction contracts totalling $22,700, leaving $389,300 unaccounted for. 

    In an effort to establish a complete framework of work done at HBAC, a second public records request was submitted on Nov. 16, asking for all publicly disclosable records related to renovations/construction carried out at the Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center from 1/1/2019 – 11/16/2023. This second request was denied by Records Access Officer, Michelle Williams citing, “Balancing Test. Records where the public interest against disclosure outweighs the public interest in disclosure. Cal. Govt. Code §7922.000.” 

    The Advancement Division moves into the HBAC:

    Yoo wrote, on behalf of Marketing and Communications that, “The location improved accessibility for donors and alumni to interact with Alumni Relations, the Cal Poly Humboldt Foundation, and other areas of the Division. Having a more prominent presence in Eureka has helped improve community outreach.”

     There are now 16 University advancement employees working in the HBAC’s new cubicle spaces and pre-existing offices.

    Under its previous management, the HBAC was focused on aquatic equipment rentals, scenic tours, OLLI classes, education on local wildlife and Humboldt Bay and, critically, water safety. The moving in of the Advancement Division led to some of the HBAC’s equipment being stored off-site and a diminished ability for the Aquatic Center to continue its services to students and community as a waterfront property.

    Renovation’s cause chaos: 

    An employee with direct knowledge of the reworking of HBAC spoke under the condition of anonymity fearing repercussions for speaking out. They will be referred to as J. Doe in this article. When word came that Center Activities was expected to vacate the HBAC offices, there was confusion as to where that left them to operate from. After initially vacating their offices, Sherie Gordon, Vice President for Administration and Finance, paid a visit to the building to assess the situation.

    “Sherie Gordon came around to look at the situation on the waterfront. It was agreed that there is no reason why Alumni [Relations] would need a waterfront office when Center Activities was responsible for monitoring waterfront safety,” Doe said.

    After Gordon’s visit Center Activities was allowed to maintain use of the office for a couple of months before being kicked out again.

    Under HBAC’s new management, a creative solution was found for the employees who’d unwillingly forfeited their workspaces. 

    “They took what used to be a maintenance closet, and they turned it into an office. So, Center Activities doesn’t have a front door office anymore where people can come up to a counter and ask questions. They have this tiny, hidden little space that used to be a closet that is now an office without access to any of the other rooms or lobby. So they can’t do community services, program coordination or classes in other rooms unless it is reserved out in advance,” Doe said.

    According to Doe, Stephanie Lane, Executive Director of Alumni Relations, has the final approval on all reservation requests submitted for the building through 25Live.

    Yoo, on behalf of Marketing and Communications wrote through email that in addition to adding cubicle spaces for Alumni Relations, they would also be occupying two offices that didn’t require any updates. According to Doe, one office went to Lane who was adamant about getting it.

    “That’s one thing that never changed. She was gonna get that waterfront office.” Doe said.

    The second office went to one of the Advancement Departments VP’s. 

    Stephanie Lane declined to be interviewed for this article, deferring to statements from Marketing and Communications.

    HBAC’s waterfront safety obligations:

    Regardless of who occupies which office or what departments operate out of the HBAC, there are a few operational guidelines that HBAC must adhere to. These guidelines stem largely from who owns the land, who paid for the HBAC to be built, and who owns the building itself.

    According to Scott-Goforth, the building is on land that is leased long-term from the City of Eureka, the HBAC was built with a grant from CA Boating and Waterways and it is currently fully owned and operated by Cal Poly Humboldt. 

    Pat Hyland, who has been a member of the women’s rowing team coaching staff for 30 years as well as lecturer in Kinesiology, provided valuable context that the HBAC was originally one of three CA Boating and Waterways safety facilities. With that, came an obligation to provide waterway safety.
    “[The university] may have been a little light on that,” Hyland said.

    From the perspective of the city of Eureka, Miles Slattery, City Manager, points out that operations at HBAC have been ever-evolving and have always included ancillary conferences and classes unrelated to water safety.

    “Our whole thing was the original permit for that [HBAC] needed to make sure that they did maintain a certain aspect of the boating safety requirements,” Slattery said. “From what I can tell on the outside – I’m not working there anything – the operations don’t seem to have drastically changed,” Slattery said.

    Center Activities struggles to continue operations:

    From the outside, HBAC sure does look peachy with her extensive (and currently unsafe for use) balconies and expansive windows which reflect the bay’s glistening, choppy waters. However, the situation within the building is much more complicated. Doe said the University Center’s space is down to about an eighth of the building, and approval is required before using any other part of the HBAC.

    “Our whole department was kind of being gunned for, and we felt very threatened. So, you know, we had to focus a lot on explaining to the university over and over again, through all of the different administration changes that we’ve had, there’s a valid reason for us to be a part of this campus community,” Doe said. “A lot of time was spent just justifying what we do and how we do it and why it’s important.”

    This constant fight to validate their right to exist took away from their ability to teach waterway safety and keep eyes on the dangerous waters of Humboldt Bay.

    Though the transition has been painful for some, there are some important silver linings. Most notably, Men’s Rowing has now joined Women’s rowing at HBAC. Hyland said that with the available space at HBAC, a good job has been done to optimize it.

    “Both rowing teams use it early and late. They don’t use it in the middle of the day. Then the center of the day is primetime and advancement uses it the whole time then.”

    Additionally, from the University’s standpoint, taking over management of the building has been a major victory.

    “HBAC is available at no cost for ad hoc meetings and events put on by campus and community groups,” Yoo wrote in an email.

     Previously, under the management of the University Center, the university would be charged a nominal fee to host events in the building in order to support the work that the non-profit was doing. Naturally, losing that income and the management of the building has been a huge blow to Center Activities.

    “When the Center Activities department would ask questions regarding funding to replace lost income, they received mixed messages and unclear guidance on what they should expect from the Athletics Department, which Center Activities is now managed by,” said Doe.

    With renovations yet to be completed at HBAC, Scott-Goforth provided a look into the usage of the building thus.

    “There have typically been two or more events occurring each week in the space. Examples include: multi-day placement orientation activity by the Social Work program; program meetings by the California Center for Rural Policy; one-day retreat for areas including Intercollegiate Athletics, Enrollment Management, University Advancement, Advising Center, and Financial Aid Office; Nursing alumni gathering; CSU,” Scott-Goforth wrote in an email on behalf of Marketing and Communications.

    Apparently the upper echelon of Cal Poly Humboldt wasted no time in using the waterfront property for one-day retreats.

    Who drove for this change?

    With budget cuts widespread at Cal Poly Humboldt, it seemed an unorthodox initiative, to Doe, to spend nearly half a million dollars to renovate the HBAC for the benefit of Alumni, Donors, and the University Advancement Division.

    “We were told that the changes at HBAC were happening due to initiatives set forth by President Jackson using presidential funds,” Doe said.

    Jackson’s involvement was corroborated by Hyland, answering who he thought drove for the changes at the HBAC.

    “That was all President Jackson.”

    Further, Marketing and Communications provided extra context for HBAC’s expensive facelift.

     In answering the question of which administrators had driven for the renovations at HBAC, Goforth wrote through email, “Frank Whitlatch, VP for University Advancement, in close consultation with colleagues and with President Jackson.”

    The winners and losers:

    The renovations at HBAC benefitted many people and departments, while hurting many others. It is, of course, a very nuanced topic. What can’t be overlooked is the effect this had on those involved. Of which, feelings are mixed.

    For Slattery and the city of Eureka, all developments that increase Cal Poly Humboldt’s presence in Eureka are beneficial.

    “The presence of the university here in the city of Eureka is extremely important,” Slattery said. “I think that having that influx of not only just people in general, but the diversity of that is something that Eureka would benefit from extremely and I think that Cal Poly would benefit from it as well.”

    Hyland said that practices for Women’s Rowing have not been interrupted because of the renovations and explained that the space is being divided as best as possible.

    “The men’s team would love to have more space, just as Center Activities would. I’d love to have more space and I’m sure that Advancement would love to have more space, but we’ve got a finite thing and I think we’re playing nice as far as sharing goes,” Hyland said.

    Unfortunately, for students and faculty who grew and learned through the courses and services provided by HBAC under its previous management, the renovations and addition of the Advancement department has been quite negative. 

    “This has seriously impacted students’ abilities to learn and have viable professional careers before leaving school. They used to hire a lot of students who would come down to work at the Aquatic Center, get professional experience and do internships down there,” said Doe. “They still try to have internships but they are not the same, people aren’t getting the same out of it. They’ve kind of pulled back on doing student based programming at the same level we used to because we just can’t function with less space, less ability to manage a building. There’s less for them to do honestly.”

  • Veterans find healing through the arts

    Veterans find healing through the arts

    by Andrés Felix Romero

    On a gloomy Thursday afternoon, a Gulf War Marine Corps Veteran brought a warm energy to the ceramics studio, nicknamed, “The Laundry.” The veteran, Ehren Tool, is the senior laboratory technician for the ceramics studio at UC Berkeley, and has created and given away over 26,000 ceramic cups. Tool’s art documents the pains that military veterans struggle with after their service. Tool smiled behind his bushy beard and told stories about his healing journey, from his time as a Marine to his time as an artist. Tool expressed how his ceramic cups convey aspects of military culture that are difficult to openly discuss.

    “The cups are an opportunity to talk about unspeakable things,” Tool said. “War is murder, and military sexual trauma is rape, that happens in the civilian world too. Where can you talk about that? Where in polite society do we talk about these things that happen with too many people and the effects they have on their lives?”

    Ceramic students in attendance to Tool’s demonstration, such as Jack McCann, were inspired by how veterans have found ways to express the grief they feel. 

    “I really felt like in the art there’s a lot of pain, every piece is almost like mourning,” McCann said. “It’s helpful to see people grow even after experiencing something like war.”

    The class that Tool was a guest instructor for was part of a weekend-long veteran’s day celebration, organized by Humboldt College Corps, Cal Poly Humboldt’s College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and College of the Redwoods. The events aimed to focus on how veterans can heal from their traumas in the military. Part of the weekend events was a dinner and panel by veterans at the Arcata Veterans Hall on Nov. 9. Tool was part of the panel alongside Air Force veteran Mark Walker. Walker is the East Bay Deputy Director for the veteran’s support non-profit, Swords to Plowshares. Walker and his wife Lynn were in attendance at Tool’s demonstration in The Laundry. Lynn Walker hopes that the arts can help veterans similar to how ceramics have helped Tool. 

    “For me, [art] allows you to open up [feelings] that are suppressing you, to things that you don’t want to say,” Lynn Walker said. “[Art] opens up your being to where there’s a healing process as you identify [your emotions] through art.” 

    Alongside Tool and Walker for the Nov. 9 panel were Air Force Veteran Joe Fox, Marine Corps Veteran Ryan Jensen, Veterans Affairs Health Nurse Ella Price, and U.S. Army veteran and Dean of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Jeff Crane. Crane shared his experiences on how education in his college has supported veterans.

    “I’ve thought about this in my own work,” Crane said. “Arts and Humanities have a critical role to play in veteran’s transition, in supporting veterans, and in educating people about the role of the military in American life and in the world.”

    Panelist Joe Fox is an interdisciplinary studies major at Cal Poly Humboldt and also facilitates a veteran’s ceramics class at College of the Redwoods

    “I found healing in significant ways through playing with clay,” Fox said. “My only plan in all of this [art] is that somehow I’ll be able to connect some resources in our community, and there will be space for other people to find [healing].”

    The main event was the 3rd annual Veteran’s Day at McKay Community Forest in Eureka, CA on Nov. 11. There was a five and ten kilometer walk/run, as well as free barbeque, music, and painting. There was an opportunity for attendees to decorate their own ceramic mugs to be completed later. On Nov. 13 and 14, there was another ceramic demonstration at College of the Redwoods by Jessica Putnam-Phillps.

    No matter how veterans try to overcome their traumas and suffering, Mark Walker holds onto hope that his fellow vets will find whatever sustainable means available to find their healing, art or otherwise.

    “Different veterans find different things of purpose, inspiration, and therapy,” Walker said. “Whether it’s formal or informal therapy. It’s just about what veterans find to be healthy, get healthy, and stay healthy.”

  • Teamsters union strikes against unfair labor practices and bad faith bargaining

    Teamsters union strikes against unfair labor practices and bad faith bargaining

    by Andrés Felix Romero

    Beginning at 5:30 a.m. in the cold rain on Nov. 14, members of Teamsters 2010 began their one day strike picketing outside of the College Creek Marketplace, the Library Circle and the parking lot of the J. It was the first official strike by any California State University union for the first time in 28 years, and the one day demonstration was performed by the other Teamster 2010 chapters across all 23 CSU campuses. The union members adapted to the weather by bundling up, sporting Teamster 2010 rain ponchos and covering their picket signs with plastic coverings. 

    The union’s picket line had two main goals. One, to establish that the unions are ready and willing to strike. Locksmith for Housing and Teamster member, Phil Bradley, said that the Teamsters are ready for more strikes.

    “The one day strike today is to show the CSU we are serious about this, and to come to the table and bargain with us,” Bradley said. “It’s to show that we have the resolve to do this if that’s what it comes down to. If they don’t show up and start working with us, we’re gonna have to do a longer strike.” 

    Teamsters 2010 represent skilled trade laborers across the CSU system such as plumbers, painters, mechanics and electricians. Campus painter Jeff Robinson shared his thoughts on how campus will be impacted if the Teamsters decide to strike for a longer period of time in the future.

    “Say you have a rainy day,” Robinson said. “You have old buildings on campus, so you’re getting leaky calls that aren’t getting attended to. [You’ll get] clogged toilets, lights that are out, or the heat’s not working.”

    The second goal is for the Teamsters to draw attention to unfair labor practices.

    “[We want] to bring awareness that the CSU has been conducting unfair labor practices,” Bradley said. “There’s rules on what the [CSU] can and can’t do such as, retaliation, delaying, and bargaining in bad faith.”

    Maintenance lead Daniel Bouchard crosses the street in the rain in front of the Jolly Giant Commons parking lot. Photo by Griffin Mancuso.

    The Teamsters have expressed frustration at what they feel are continued practices of bad-faith bargaining by the CSU Chancellor’s office.

    “[The bargaining team for the Chancellor’s office] show up to meetings completely unprepared, and they keep canceling negotiating sessions,” Bradley said. “They’re basically just doing whatever they can to delay and obstruct.”

    Although the primary focus of the strike wasn’t financial, some on the picket line highlighted their grievances with a lack of an adequate wage-increase structure. Campus Building Service Engineer Steve Brands felt lucky that he was able to receive some increase in wages during his time employed with the CSU, but he feels frustrated that his colleagues haven’t had the same opportunity.

    “We used to have a very defined step-structure,” Brands said. “As long as you were getting good evaluations and things were going well, you got the raises until you moved to the top of the range. And now, nobody really moves through the range.”

    Teamsters such as campus automotive mechanic Ryan Moore explained how they have struggled with a lack of increase in wages, especially as inflation continues to rise

    “I live out towards Willow Creek and I have kids to commute to school and sports,” Moore said. “Fuel and [groceries] goes through the roof just trying to raise a family. I never thought I’d actually be out on the picket line here at the college.”

    On Nov. 9, Cal Poly Humboldt released a statement addressing the Nov. 14 strike. The message clarified to the campus community that the Humboldt and other CSU campuses have contingencies in case of an event such as a strike. As promised in the email, the Humboldt campus remained open and operational on the day of the strike. The email also promised to not pay any of the employees who participate in the strike. The email also asks the campus community to remain patient as the Chancellor’s office continues the bargaining process with the Teamsters 2010 and the other CSU unions.

    The Teamsters weren’t the only union on the picket line that day. Members of California State University Employees Union (CSUEU) were there with picket signs and chanting alongside the Teamsters. The California Faculty Association (CFA) also showed solidarity that day. Some members joined the picket line and some faculty even refused to host class. CFA Faculty Rights Chair and philosophy lecturer Loren Cannon is excited to work alongside other lecturers.

    “CFA is fully in solidarity with the teamsters right now, and with our other sister unions,” Cannon said. “We’re all in this together. Without the teamsters doing their work, without teachers doing their work, without staff doing their work, this place can’t run. And so we are together, supporting each other’s rights to a fair contract to make sure that we don’t have unfair labor practices.”

  • The campus parking patrol sucks

    by Brad Butterfield

    I have this old 1978 Mercedes 300d named Cocoa. I spent somewhere around 100 hours over summer repairing her rust-holes and fixing a plethora of engine issues. Cocoa runs pretty well now, and most of the holes are patched – most, but not all. As a result, I’ve been covering her during Humboldt County’s rainy days. Throughout summer and the fall semester, Cocoa has been parked on campus, covered, without issue. She is properly permitted to park on campus.

    Then, on Monday, Nov. 13, along with two parking citations on my RV, Cocoa had a nasty $40 citation taped to her cover. The RV parking tickets list “no use of vehicle for living/overnight” and “beyond designated lines,” as reasons for citation. The comment section of the $53 “overnight” violation reads, “windows covered,” as proof I was occupying the RV overnight. My RV, Tibby, was parked within the designated lines, as shown by the Parking Patrol’s own photos. 

    That’s $173 in parking fines for properly parked and permitted vehicles in two days.

    Monday marked the first morning of the university’s sudden enforcement of the regulation against overnight sleeping in vehicles on campus. Three weeks of meetings with administrators on this issue resulted in more confusion than clarity. I had been told by Lt. Peter Cress of university police that multiple days of probable cause and/or reasonable suspicion proving one’s vehicle was being used for sleeping would have to be established before citation or other disciplinary actions like academic probation, suspension or arrest could be considered. Cress was either misguided, misinformed or purposefully misleading, as nearly every van, bus and RV was cited on the morning of Nov. 13. Even van-dwelling students who had accepted the university’s offer for temporary dorm housing received parking citations. Most of us vehicle dwellers, aware of the university’s attempt to evict us, were not in our vehicles when given citations. We stayed at friends’ houses, on gym floors and in dorms. No attempts were made to discern if the vehicles were actually occupied. The university went ahead with a blanket citation for all potential vehicle dwellers citing ‘windows covered’ as reason for the expensive citations.

    In black sharpie on an old pizza box, I wrote my permit number and placed it on Cocoa’s (covered) windshield so as to avoid further citation on the 14th. Despite this I, again, awoke to a $40 citation on Cocoa taped next to my blatant pizza-box-sign showcasing my permit number. 

    Whether or not I have been targeted for my weeks of advocacy for Cal Poly Humboldt’s homeless students is difficult to prove –  especially with an administration that governs like a closed-off dictatorship. Particularly suspicious are the citations on Cocoa, which had been parked and covered, in the G11 lot adjacent to the Parking Patrol kiosk during most of the fall semester without issue. Regardless, four parking tickets totalling $173 for properly parked and permitted vehicles is ludicrous. 

    After Cocoa’s second citation, I asked Krista Paddock (Transportation & Parking Services) questions to clarify the reasoning behind the citation. Paddock was immediately hostile, wholly unhelpful and displayed a total lack of professionalism and respect.

    I attempted to set up a meeting with Cris Koczera, Director of Risk Management & Safety Services, and Mark Johnson, Chief of Staff, mediated by university Ombuds, Suzanne Pasztor, to discuss parking enforcement and the creation of a safe parking program on campus. Kozcera agreed to the meeting, but Johnson did not.

    “I heard back from Mark Johnson this afternoon.  He is stating that neither he nor Chris Koczera will be meeting with you. He is indicating that the university’s policy on this, and its stance on the options presented is clear. For this reason, he thinks that no constructive discussion is to be had,” Pasztor sent in an email on Monday evening.

    Johnson introduced himself to The Lumberjack team as the “relationship builder,” and said he would commit to being available during a presentation on Sep. 28. So far, every meeting I have attempted to schedule with the grand relationship builder has been ignored, canceled or cut short. 

    Every conversation with parking patrol officers regarding these unjust citations has resulted in them repeating, “You’re welcome to contest the citation online.” Well, that’s not good enough for me. I’ve been wrongly cited four times in two days. I’ve paid to park on campus and should not be cited without just cause.

    Hey Parking Patrol, leave me alone – please!

    Your Friend,

    Brad Butterfield

  • Triathlon ends season in Arizona

    by Vanessa Saltos

    Swimming, cycling, running; all great sports on their own, but some people tackle all three at once. For Cal Poly Humboldt, seven triathletes took on this challenge. On Saturday, Nov. 11, the Lumberjacks traveled to Tempe, Arizona for the NCAA National Championship. 

    After their last race on Oct. 1, they had about four weeks to prepare to finish out their fall season. Head Coach Kinsey Laine wanted to ensure she was getting the best out of her athletes for this last stretch of the season. What Laine wanted to focus on in practice was speed and maintaining health. 

    “The deeper you get into the season, the greater the chances are for injury and illness. After regionals, I did have them take a week where it was easier,” Laine said. “They had an extra day off, just because I wanted to make sure they were healthy and not go right back into challenging training, and maybe compromise their immune system or put them at a higher risk for injury.”  

    This is the second season Cal Poly Humboldt has had a triathlon team. The growth from the players and the team is evident. Last season, they finished 12th out of 12 teams. Going into this race, they have earned the 7th spot out of 13 teams. Laine attributes this growth to the culture shift she has seen within the team. She notices her athletes wanting to not only get the best out of themselves, but out of each other in a positive way. 

    “It’s been phenomenal. It’s been such a joy to watch this team grow and improve,
    Laine said. “I think probably the biggest difference is that the new athletes that are here this year came in knowing part of the reason they came to Humboldt was to do triathlon.”

    One of the new athletes this year is Sierra Erlandson, a freshman majoring in environmental resource engineering. Erlandson had no experience with collegiate triathlon, and didn’t know what to expect when joining the team. She was pleasantly surprised to be a part of what she now calls family. Erlandson understands that the deeper you get into the season the more mental strength it takes. 

    “Right now, we’re just supporting each other, and we’re just so proud of how far we’ve come so far as it is, that we’re not looking for some miraculous outcome from nationals,” Elandson said. “We’re looking for strong finishes and smiling faces”. 

    Six out of the seven Lumberjack athletes crossed the finish line in Tempe, Arizona this weekend. Leading the way was freshman Eve Wendley placing #137 out of 208 athletes. Racers were either from division I, II or III programs. As a team, Cal Poly Humboldt placed 10th out of the 12 division II teams in attendance. 

  • Cal Poly Humboldt issues parking citations to students living in vehicles

    Cal Poly Humboldt issues parking citations to students living in vehicles

    by Jillian Wells

    On the morning of Nov. 13, students living in alternative housing such as vans, RVs, campers and motorhomes on campus awoke to parking tickets on their vehicles. The parking tickets each cost between $40-$53, with some students receiving multiple citations. 

    The enforcement of parking regulations came 19 days after the university sent out an initial email, notifying students that they would be enforcing a previously overlooked policy that prohibits overnight camping.

     This decision to enforce this policy sparked community backlash and has gained national attention, as there was a Los Angeles Times reporter interviewing students this week. 

    The citations issued to students outlined various violations, including “No Use of Vehicle for Living/Overnight” and “Beyond Designated Lanes.” Additionally, comments on the tickets highlighted specific infractions such as “windows being covered.”

    Cris Koczera, the Interim Director of Risk Management & Safety, did not respond to requests about further clarification about the criteria for determining if a student is sleeping in a vehicle by press time.

    Student Derek Batty lived in a vehicle on campus, but made the decision to move into temporary housing to avoid receiving a citation.

    “I feel more homeless in this place [temporary housing] than I did before,” Batty said. “I’m grateful for it for sure, but I wish we just didn’t get kicked out.”

    Batty also said that despite moving into temporary housing, he received a parking ticket on the morning of Nov. 13 because his windows were covered up. 

    “They can’t prove that we’re sleeping in the vehicle based on having [the windows] covered,” said Brad Butterfield, vice president of the Alternative Living Club, in an impromptu meeting on Nov. 13.

     They expressed frustration and asserted that just because their windows are covered up isn’t evidence that they are sleeping in their vehicles. 

    Ethan LeVering, an Associated Students (A.S.) delegate for the University Senate, pointed out a lack of consideration in the enforcement process.

    “They did not knock on the vehicles, they did nothing to check if anyone was in there,” LeVering said. “They simply left the little ticket and ran off.”

    The University Police Department (UPD) declined to comment. LeVering also criticized the university’s approach.  

    “These students have not been given a presumption of innocence, which is outright un-American,” LeVering said.

    Carrie White, a student who lives in their vehicle, emphasized the economic ramifications of the parking citations.

    “That’s what they’re [Cal Poly Humboldt] working on, the economic punishment,” White said. “They know we don’t have any money, so they’re going to ticket us until we have no choice. They’ll break the bank before they break our will.”

    Caleb Chen, another impacted student, expressed his concerns about the timing of the ticketing. He believes that the university is starting the citation process just before fall break to limit potential media coverage and keep the ticketing discreet.

    “They could tow us at the beginning of fall break… to remove the vehicles silently while all the students were gone,” Chen said.

    Chen added that while he appreciates the option of temporary housing, he’s not interested.

    “At this point, it’s about making sure there’s a solution for future students and all their [Cal Poly Humboldt’s] solutions only go until December 18.”

    Brad Butterfield is a member of The Lumberjack. He did not help write or edit this article.

  • Pool budget drained by Associated Students

    Pool budget drained by Associated Students

    by Valen Lambert

    Since the Associated Students cut nearly $500,000 from student programs in September because of the administration’s faulty admission estimate, students and faculty are enduring the collateral damage. The cut of the campus pool’s budget from $25,000 to $7,500 means a big shift for its 15 employees and the hundreds of students and faculty that recreate in it, and pool staff claim that the AS correspondence has been less than professional.

    The budget cut isn’t anything new to the pool’s programs, which are a part of the School of Applied Health. Lawre Maple, who has been the pool’s program director for nine years, notes that the pool hasn’t had full budgeting since COVID. Every year the program struggles to stay open, and every year staff have to fight to get the funding they need.

    “We’re only open right now because the [Dean of Professional Studies] came in and found us some funding and gave us $10,000,” said Maple. 

    This year, however, according to Maple and student lifeguards, A.S. confused the pool program with an entirely different department. Initially, A.S. reached out to the pool program that sent over the necessary paperwork about what the budget will be used for. When A.S. came back to clarify the budget, they reached out to Paul Wells, who is the Recreational Sports Coordinator and totally unaffiliated with the pool programs that got their budget reduced. 

    “A.S. had accidentally included drop-in pool hours with the same funding as drop-in sports when we first applied for funding,” said Wells. “I believe the similar naming convention caused the confusion when I first applied for funding earlier this year, during the spring semester.”

    “To verify the information or to gain more information about the pool, we were not told that they reached out to a faculty member [Paul Wells] in [Rec Sports],” said student lifeguard Kaden Tobin. “A.S. claimed they were a part of our staff, but they are not and in no way connected to the staff that works at the pool. A.S. claimed at the board meeting on Oct. 13 to have contacted the pool staff directly, but only through email. Only one member [Andres Olmos] of the A.S. board ever came to the pool in person to talk, which was on Oct. 12. All it takes is a simple search on Google or the school website to figure out who to talk to.”

    This miscommunication resulted in Maple not hearing about the budget cut until Oct. 4, five days after they passed the cut. At an A.S. meeting on Oct. 13, The Marching Lumberjacks also claimed A.S. failed to notify them of the Sep. 20 budget meeting where they would have had an opportunity to fight for their funding. Student lifeguard Sam McLane attended the Oct. 13 meeting where he asked the A.S. board if they even knew where the pool was.

    “I asked the Board of Associated Students ‘How many of you know where the pool is?’” said McLane. “I think two out of nine of them knew.”

    “There were some mistakes made,” said A.S. President Samuel Parker. “We had to make the budget in such a short time frame. We could have done better. We went with the allocation that the previous board had suggested.”  

    Interim executive director of AS Kendra Higgins commented on the budget discrepancy.

    “Last year, the Board of Directors collected budget applications for A.S. funding for the 23-24 school year,” said Higgins. The application had incorrect contact information for the swim program that had been copied from previous years,” Higgins said in an email statement. “Upon realizing this discrepancy, our Administrative Vice President, Andres Olmos, personally visited the pool for further clarification, apologized for any confusion, and invited representatives from the pool to participate in our board of directors meetings and the finance sub-committee, where the recommended budget for the next year is discussed.” 

    The budget cuts are not affecting the classes that take place in the pool, but the hours of its open lap time are affected. Decreasing from 25 hours to about 12 hours of open lap swim each week means that its 15 employed lifeguards have significantly reduced hours. Grace Kasberger, a student lifeguard, is seeing her hours diminish from around 15 hours a week to just four, and is scrambling to make up for the loss.

    “This is one of my only jobs, and the only job that can work because I’m also a student athlete,” said Kasberger. “Most other places on campus aren’t very lenient with an athletic schedule as well as my school schedule. This all happened in the middle of the semester. I had the security and now I don’t, and so it’s kind of a little bit of a panic.” 

    Student staff aren’t the only ones affected by the significant cut. Students of the nationally acclaimed scientific diving minor rely on the open hours of the pool to practice their diving in a safe space instead of in Humboldt’s dangerous and unpredictable ocean. Student athletes utilize the pool for cross training or training with their PT’s if they have an injury. According to Tobin, they’ve already had at least 950 people recreate during lap time in the first eight weeks, when usually they’ll get that many in a whole semester, and the amount of faculty passes sold this semester is already above average. All of these people will be affected by the diminishing open hours.

    “You have people that swim for wellbeing, mental and physical,” said Maple. “People that can’t do traditional workouts. They have different needs. They have different bodies. Swimming is one of the only sports that everybody can do.”

  • Men’s Basketball starts the season in Lumberjack Arena against Simon Fraser

    Men’s Basketball starts the season in Lumberjack Arena against Simon Fraser

    By Vanessa Saltos

    Roaring fans and clapping hands fill Lumberjack Arena, as player #44 Cam Timmons scores the first basket of the ‘Jacks home opener Friday night. Cal Poly Humboldt is stepping into a new culture being led by first year Head Coach Chris Tifft. This new team is composed of eight freshmen, six transfers and two returners. Since the start of school in August, men’s basketball has been working hard in the weight room, conditioning and practicing leading up to their first game of the season. 

    In a press conference interview posted by Humboldt Jacks on YouTube on Oct. 31, Tift gave some insight on team values and what to expect this season. With having almost a whole new team this season it has been a huge priority to connect on and off the court to keep the team moving in the same direction. 

    “I think everything is connected. How you do anything is how you do everything. We really try to do things as a team. We talk a lot about our presence, our image, away from the floor, on the floor, just our image on campus [and] in the community.” Tifft said. “We want to make sure we are a program that is on the same page and moving in the same direction, and I think the more times we can do things like that, the more it will help us when things get tough.”

    Point Guard Emanuel Steward (left) sidestepping Simon Fraser University defender’s during the season opener on Nov. 10. Photo by Alex Anderson.

    During the first half, fans were able to see that preparation and connection shine as the ‘Jacks jumped on top early with a score of 37-21 in the first half. After the break they continued to work hard but Simon Fraser started inching their way back. The last five minutes of the game is when it started to slip away for the ‘Jacks. The Red Leafs player, Elliot Dimaculangan, tied the game up at 68-68 with a steal followed by a layup in the paint. Simon Fraser’s Nigel Hylton went for a rebound and was able to take the lead with a layup. Then the Lumberjacks’ very own Pejan Slater responded back with a dunk that energized the crowd but wasn’t enough to take the lead. The Red Leafs continued to score and ultimately took the game in a 83-75 victory. 

    Going into this game Tifft talked with Humboldt Jacks about not looking at losing as a do or die situation for the team. He was excited to be able to start the season in Lumberjack Arena with fans cheering and supporting the team.

    “We’re fortunate to have the opening challenge on our home court and you know even though it’s important for us to have home games and try to have some success, we can’t look at it as if we lose a game that it’s a do or die situation for us,” Tifft said. “I mean we’re obviously a brand new program with a lot of new faces and for us we just need to put the blinders on and keep moving forward. The results will take care of themselves.” 

    Some Lumberjack standouts for this game: Emmanuel Steward led the team with 20 points and eight rebounds; Rob Diaz III followed with 13 points; Pejan Slater had one dunk and tied with Liyongwei Xie at 10 points for the game. 

  • Should we own pets?

    Should we own pets?

    by Griffin Mancuso

    Many of us consider our pets to be our children. And like children, they become a focal point in our lives. Some of us may have social media accounts dedicated to our furry, feathered, or scaly children and our experiences raising them. Some may have shirts or bags proudly declaring our status as pet parents. Some even spend hundreds of dollars a month on toys, gear, and other enrichment for their pet. We make the choice to let a living being into our lives and take care of them, giving us a sense of fulfillment and joy. We would give them the whole world if we could.

    But is the world you’re giving your pet making them happy?

    There are limits to what we can provide our pets. Unfortunately, we are raising our animals in a world made for humans. For dog and cat owners, we cannot let them run free outside without the risk of them getting hurt or ending up in the back of an animal control van. Reptile owners cannot give their pets a perfect replica of the desert or jungle they were meant to live in. Bird owners can’t give their feathered companions the sky to explore and rodent owners have to keep their pets confined to cages and pens for most of the day.

    Does that mean we should trash the collars and cages and set our animals free? Not necessarily.

    The most common household pets like dogs, cats, rabbits, or hamsters are domesticated species and, at the very least, tolerate human interaction. Independent bioethicist and writer Jessica Pierce suggests that dogs and cats in particular may have been active participants in their domestication process. 

    For example, a study headed by psychologist Juliane Kaminski with the University of Portsmouth, UK, found that dogs evolved to have “puppy dog eyes” as a means of communicating with humans. Cats also developed a unique way of communicating with humans—meowing. Cats rarely meow at each other, but rather use it to ask their humans for attention, food, or other needs.

    Having a pet isn’t inherently unethical, but the way in which we love our pets and care for them needs to come from a place of well-researched knowledge and compassion for them.

    Research and reflection is a critical step before adopting a pet. If you want to adopt a pet, do you have the financial means to take care of one? What type of pet will you get? How will you obtain this pet ethically? Are you ready to handle potential physical or mental health issues your pet may experience? Does the type of animal you want live better alone, as a pair, or in a group? How much space will they need? Are you able to take them to the vet regularly? What physical and mental stimulation will this pet need and do I have time to give it to them? If you go out of town, should you hire a pet sitter or board them in a facility?

    Once you have obtained your pet, you are making a commitment to take care of them for their entire life. Now the second-most difficult part of pet ownership begins. Some requirements for pet ownership are objective, like giving them adequate food, water, shelter, and not causing them unnecessary suffering. But like children, everyone raises them differently. 

    There are endless choices of enclosures, gear, food, enrichment, training, and medical decisions to make. You can ask an expert like a veterinarian or trainer for advice or do research on your own time.

    The first and most painful part of owning a pet is the guilt. There will always be someone telling you that you aren’t doing enough, and usually that someone is yourself. You may spend hours researching and hundreds of dollars buying the best food and toys, but the brief rush of dopamine is ever fleeting. 

    I find that spending some quality time with your animal baby helps combat the random surges of panic and guilt—take your dog out on a hike, play with your cat, give your rodent or reptile an extra piece of fruit and give them very gentle pets if they are up for it. If you have a fish, stare lovingly at them through the glass.

    Education is a powerful thing, and by taking the time to learn how to keep your pet fulfilled and happy, you are helping shift the tide in today’s pet industry. Your pet is a responsibility and a living being with feelings and wants, and you need to treat them as such. If you were a couple inches or a couple feet tall, you wouldn’t like being ignored and stuck inside with nothing to do all day. 

    While more people are adopting pets, there is also a greater number of people advocating for responsible pet ownership, and you can be one of them. You may not be able to give your pet the world, but you can get pretty darn close.

  • A woman’s sanctuary is a man’s cave

    by Valen Lambert

    Guys, give a shit about your rooms. I’m looking at you Mr. Floor-mattress who sleeps next to the dirty laundry you throw on your bed. I’m not kidding around. Get a plant, thrift some art, perhaps invest in some fine linen. Us ladies (or whoever) are tired of “going back to your place” and it smells like wet dog and Mountain Dew.

    You’ve ever been in a girl’s room? It’s like entering a church where she worships herself. Candles, incense, the world’s biggest comfiest bed, ambient lighting, art on the walls, succulents, a healthy and thriving monstera. If it’s messy, it’s messy in a cool, hot, sexy way. When a man’s room is messy it’s just gross. A girl will spill a glass of wine on her bed but a guy will straight up vomit on his carpet. 

    Our bedrooms should never be taken for granted. It’s a safe space where we can truly be ourselves and feel at home. It gives us a space to really express ourselves through the way that we decorate it. It takes us out of the homogeneity of society and into the fantasy of ourselves. 

    In it we can display the artifacts of our lives. The mementos from our travels, photographs, notes from our loved ones, anything of emotional significance can go on our walls and remind us of how alive we are. Give it a shot fellas! Embrace your tenderness and sentimentality! Get soft and self-reflective! And then maybe your mess will be as cool, hot and sexy as a lady’s. 

    I will say I’ve been in some vibey ass rooms belonging to men. Not every guy is sleeping on the ground in a fluorescently-lit sensory deprivation chamber. I’ve also been in some whack girls’ rooms. Things aren’t black and white. So honestly no matter who or what you are, give a shit about your room. It’s the only place you get to call your own. Do something about it! Because you won’t be able to decorate your coffin. 

  • Think of the critters

    Think of the critters

    by Jake Hyslop

    Ah, the rainy season is upon us. Despite the odd sunny, muggy day that Humboldt likes to shuffle into the fall and winter seasons like a wild card, it is getting cloudier and more drizzly, slowly but surely. 

    I quite like rainy weather, so I couldn’t be happier in that regard. With an umbrella or other rain gear, the inconvenience can be diminished into an enjoyable aesthetic. Sometimes I be out here just raw dogging the downpour with a T-shirt and shorts. Yes, swampy shoes are the worst, but watching where you step is an easy way to avoid that nightmare. 

    Speaking of watching where you step, that brings me to the point of this ramble. I am not the only creature who thrives in the rain (as are many of you, excluding the rainphobic). Allow me to paint a picture for you. 

    Thousands of students, staff, and faculty traverse campus on foot to some degree, day-in and day-out. They avoid puddles and stroll along the sidewalk to their class or job. Every once in a while, someone hears a crunch or a pop underfoot, but often it’s so small they think nothing of it. Little do they know, the blatant endangerment they are causing.

    Yes dear reader, from the arboreal salamander to the simple snail, and all the slugs, worms, and more in-between, there is an entire ecosystem of creatures that love the rain more than we do. In fact, rain is an outright necessity for these creatures. 

    Snails and slugs rely on moisture to survive, making them extremely active during the rain. All kinds of worms use rainy days to migrate, as above ground is normally too dry for them. Salamanders and frogs migrate and breed in the rain as well. 

    These creatures have no choice but to sometimes venture onto the cold, wet pavement in order to fulfill their quests. But often, too often, they never make it. 

    That’s right. Martha the earthworm travels the equivalent of many human miles in order to meet her lover, Jim, only for her soul to be snuffed by a single checkerboard Adidas slip-on. 

    The worst thing about these literal crimes against nature, is that they are crimes of negligence. It is incredibly easy to not step on and crush a helpless critter. All it takes is a little look down every few steps.

    Unless you have some sort of neck mobility issue, there is no excuse not to look where you’re stepping and avoid crushing a snail into paste. No, they cannot move to a new shell. That is a myth. Snails ride or die for their shell. 

    We cannot blame the critters for getting in the way. After all, there didn’t used to be concrete on their path. We must be better. Next time you’re out on your travels during a particularly damp day, think of the critters and watch where you step.

  • Ultimate frisbee makes the world go ‘round: a sport built on community and spirit

    Ultimate frisbee makes the world go ‘round: a sport built on community and spirit

    by Griffin Mancuso

    The pristinely green field of Hiller Park, normally home to gophers, was taken over by pirates last weekend. These pirates were not armed with swords, but sturdy, white frisbees. After warming up with expert frisbee throws and swift catches, they gathered in a circle on one side of their playing field. They started a lively chant to match their pirate attire, jumping with their fists in the air:

    “Yo-ho yo-ho, a bug’s life for me!”

    The ultimate frisbee teams of Cal Poly Humboldt, the Buds and the Hags, came together for the weekend as the Bugs for a community tournament, the Humboldt Harvest. Humboldt Harvest is one of the longest running ultimate frisbee tournaments in Humboldt County, and it isn’t surprising to see why. The presence of young alumni and older alumni teams made it clear that ultimate frisbee is a lifelong passion and community.

    Ultimate frisbee is a no-contact sport that consists of two teams of seven players trying to get the disc to their end zone. Players cannot run with the disc and must pass it to other players to get it to the goal line and score a point. If a pass is not made successfully, it is turned over to the other team. The disc can be taken back if a player fails to catch the disc, or if a defense player knocks it out of the air.

    Ultimate frisbee sets itself apart from other sports by upholding the spirit of the game. The sport has no referees and requires its players to hold themselves and their team members accountable. Players must be able to call out fouls, retract unnecessary calls, have good sportsmanship and discuss outcomes for fouls. This integrity-based system fosters a unique bond between teams and their opponents.

    Photo by Griffin Mancuso. Old alumni team member Mason Banner makes a leaping dive for a frisbee at the Humboldt Harvest tournament.

    Both the Buds — the men’s ultimate frisbee team — and the Hags — the women’s ultimate frisbee team — grow stronger with the foundations of teamwork and trust that ultimate frisbee provides.

    Cate Roscoe officially joined the Hags as their coach this semester, but also offers some assistance to the Buds. She played ultimate frisbee professionally for 34 years and previously coached for the Hags for a couple years during grad school. She feels that her specialties have been a good fit for the current team. 

    “I really like to teach foundational skills, the biggest one of course being throwing,” Roscoe said. “But then also things like defensive footwork and positioning, offensive cutting and positioning, communication, a little teensy bit of strategy, two different styles of offense and a couple different defensive strategies.”

    She also emphasized the sense of community that ultimate frisbee players have, no matter how far apart they are.

    “There’s a lot more genuine friendship and camaraderie across teams and throughout the country,” Roscoe said. “I literally had a friend who played community in Tacoma who needed heart surgery in Kansas City. I was able to contact the Kansas Ultimate group through other connections of Ultimate I had. They picked her up at the airport. They housed her for over a month, fed her, drove her to all her appointments and took care of her while she had heart surgery. They had never met her — they had never even met me. But we all played ultimate [frisbee], and we’re in that same community.”

    Andre Sargissian, the current captain of the Buds, has been playing ultimate frisbee for two years at the university and has great hopes for the newer team members this semester.

    “We have so many [promising rookies], man. It’s been so exciting,” Sargissian said. “I feel like a lot of our soccer people who played soccer in high school, they always really succeed. I don’t know, it’s really cool because anyone can pick it up, anyone can throw the frisbee, anyone can run a cut, so anyone can be really good all of a sudden.”

    The Hags is a gender-inclusive team that aims to empower their players. Captain Jillian Snowhook has been a Hag for five years, becoming captain in the Spring 2023 semester.

    “From last semester to this semester, there were only five returning players, and there are five officer positions, and I was the only one who had played for more than a year,” Snowhook said. “I had also been one of the co-captains the previous year, so I took on the presidential role as well as captain because I do love this team, and there’s no way that I could let anything happen to it by not stepping into that role.”

    Roscoe described the Hag name as a subversion of a term that has historically been used to oppress women who held power and knowledge. Today, many of the team members take pride in being a Hag.

    “It means being burly. We are the burly Hags, and that basically means you show up for your team, for the game, in all conditions, with all you have, with your whole heart, with all the energy you have,” Snowhook said. “It’s really just being a part of a community that loves to do the same thing together, which is chase down frisbees like golden retrievers.”

    Natalie Christenson, previously a soccer player, is in her first semester with the Hags. There has been a sharp learning curve, but the support system built into ultimate frisbee has helped.

    “It’s super different to be a new person on the team and trying to learn what I’m supposed to be doing, as well as how I’m supposed to be communicating, so it’s kind of a lot of overwhelming things all at once,” Christenson said. “I’m mostly looking to the veteran players, and also our captain, Jill, who really takes hold of the team and coaches us.”

    Otto Berndt, a long-time member of the Buds, emphasized how ultimate frisbee has given him a solid support system.

    “The reason I have good grades is because I come out to ultimate [frisbee] and have a support group of people that care for me, and I care for them,” Berndt said. “We exercise, we have fun and we get to travel to other schools, and it’s just like — it’s a family, and anyone can be part of that family.”

    Christenson has greatly enjoyed her time with the Hags and encourages other students to consider joining.

    “I love the team so much and I cannot recommend it enough for anyone that is a little scared to try out or anything,” Christenson said. “I mean, I’m a first year and it has been a great experience. Everyone’s so welcoming that there’s no fear in trying something new.”

    Roscoe suggests ultimate frisbee for people who might not feel like they fit into traditional sports communities.

    “It’s a place where you can really surprise yourself and you can come for a lot of different reasons,” Roscoe said. “It doesn’t just have to be about the sport, but, um, it’s amazing to discover what our bodies are actually capable of.”