BROKEN BYLAWS GATEWAY AT TEMPE

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1 Week of November 21, 2013 Vol. 100 Issue 14 StatePress.com PHOTO BY DANIELLE GROBMEIER, DESIGN BY VICTORIA HOWELL BROKEN BYLAWS ASU s undergraduate student governments have broken their own bylaws and may have violated Arizona s open meeting laws by not making documents related to their meetings publicly available. See page 4 GATEWAY AT TEMPE

2 Page 2 Weather The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 An independent weekly newspaper serving Arizona State University since 1890 EDITOR IN CHIEF Danielle Grobmeier dgrobmei@asu.edu Thursday Friday Saturday MANAGING EDITOR Julia Shumway managingeditor.statepress@gmail.com ASST. NEWS EDITOR Shelby Slade COPY CHIEF Carly H. Blodgett cblodget@asu.edu NEWS EDITOR Dulce Paloma Baltazar Pedraza news.statepress@gmail.com ASST. A&E EDITOR Maggie Spear DESIGN EDITOR Samantha Presley spresley@asu.edu A&E EDITOR Kylie Gumpert arts.statepress@gmail.com SPORTS EDITOR Nicholas Palomino Mendoza sports.statepress@gmail.com OPINION EDITOR Savannah Thomas opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com ASST. SPORTS EDITOR Justin Emerson ASST. DESIGN EDITOR Nathan Hammond ASST. PHOTO EDITOR Diana Lustig PHOTO EDITOR Dominic Valente photo.statepress@gmail.com MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Erin O Connor epoconno@asu.edu EXECUTIVE EDITOR Caitlin Cruz execed.statepress@gmail.com Sunday Monday Tuesday Views in this newspaper are not necessarily those of the ASU administration, faculty, staff or student body. One copy of The State Press is free. Additional copies cost $.25 each. Copyright 2011 The State Press at Arizona State University. State Press Newsroom State Press Magazine On the Web Letters to the Editor Display advertising Classified advertising really! opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com boost your career Earn a master s degree in as little as 9 months from a top ranked business school. Accountancy Business Analytics Finance Global Logistics Information Management Management Real Estate Development Taxation wpcarey.asu.edu/graduate Police Beat Tempe Police reported the following incidents Nov 13-17: A 21-year-old Tempe man was arrested Nov. 9 on Mill Avenue and University Drive on suspicion of possession of marijuana, drug paraphernalia and narcotic drugs, according to a police report. Officers said a black BMW was traveling southbound on Mill Avenue, and it appeared that the front seat passenger had a glass bottle of beer in his hands. Bike police officers caught up with the vehicle and contacted the front seat passenger, according to the report. The man was in the rear passenger seat, and a small amount of leafy green substance that appeared to be marijuana was next to him, police said. Officers removed the man from the vehicle, according to the report. He gave officers permission to search him and police found marijuana on his person, along with a package of Swisher Sweets cigars, police said. The man said he had smoked marijuana earlier that evening and used the wrappers when he smoked it, according to the report. A search of the vehicle revealed a burnt marijuana cigar in the ash tray, police said. The man was transported to Tempe City Jail, and when he was strip searched, a plastic bag with a usable amount of heroin was found in his rectum, according to the report. He said the heroin was his and that he consumes it by smoking it, police said. The man was transported to Tempe City Jail, where he was booked and released pending charges, according to the report. A 24-year-old Tempe man was arrested Nov. 8 on the 800 block of South Rural Road on suspicion of aggravated driving under the influence, according to a police report. Officers contacted the man during a vehicle stop when he failed to stay in his lane, the report said. Police said he had bloodshot eyes and there was a distinct odor of alcohol inside his vehicle, according to the report. When officers asked to see the man s driver s license and vehicle papers, he fumbled with his wallet to locate his ID card and could not find the papers, police said. Police asked the man if his license was suspended since he only had an ID card and he said it was, according to the report. Police asked the man if he had consumed alcohol that night and he said he had been drinking five Vegas Bombers. The officers asked the man to step outside his vehicle and he could not stand or balance without swaying and there was a distinct odor of alcohol emitting from his breath, police said. Police asked him if he was drunk and he said he was, according to the report. The man submitted to Field Sobriety Tests that revealed he was impaired, police reported. The man s license had been suspended last year as a result of a DUI conviction. There was a second suspension later that year, and a third suspension earlier this year with an indefinite end date, police reported. The man was transported to Tempe City Jail where he was booked and held, according to the report.

3 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Table of Contents 3 FEATURE 4Athletics fee bill violates USG rules ASU s student governments violated their own bylaws and may have broken Arizona law by failing to publicize documents related to an athletic fee. 6NEWS Former inmate opens up about prison Shaun Attwood, who came to Phoenix from England in 2000, spent six years in Arizona jails and blogged about his experiences. 12 OPINION If you re a 90s kid, you ll get it Columnist Zane Jennings discusses the tendency of 90s kids and Millennials to over-romanticize aspects of their childhoods. & ENTERTAINMENT Youth take over hip-hop genre Teenage rappers are dominating the rap game with their ability to 22ARTS set trends, gain followers and add some freshness to the industry. Rapid Tattoo Removal with In a hurry to remove that old tattoo? PicoSure is the newest, fastest laser in the world for tattoo removal and Phoenix Skin is the only practice in Arizona that has it! 10% OFF 10% Off with Student I.D. Free Consultation Medical Surgical & Cosmetic Dermatology 5056 N Central Avenue Phoenix, AZ Phxskin.com Botox Chemical Peels Dermal Fillers Laser Hair Reduction Dermatology Acne A Reason For Being Here Illustrated by Zoe Sugg, this week s strip shows that not everyone 26COMICS knows their reason for being here. Where s the degree for that? Football closes in on South title The ASU football team is one win away from realizing its goal of 28SPORTS winning the Pac-12 South. Standing in its way is UCLA. we have a web get tangled statepress.com

4 Feature The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Student gov ts break bylaws in passing athletic fee bill AMY ASU s undergraduate student governments have broken their own bylaws and may have violated Arizona s open meeting laws by not making documents related to their meetings publicly available. These include documents related to the newly passed athletic fee, Senate Bill 31, which all five student governments had approved by Oct. 29. The bill s passage is the first step toward the creation of a mandatory $75-per-semester student fee, which would be used to fund Sun Devil Athletics. The undergraduate student governments are in varying degrees of violation of their bylaws. Each campus government has its own set with unique stipulations. None of the governments have clearly accessible meeting agendas on their websites or OrgSync pages. Tempe, Downtown and West all have bylaws that state agendas must be publicly available before meetings by 9 a.m. the day of the meeting for the Tempe and Downtown campuses and 48 hours before the meeting for the West campus. Polytechnic s bylaws require all relevant information about upcoming votes and discussions be posted 24 hours before senate meetings. USG Tempe does not maintain a public calendar of meeting dates, times or locations on its webpage or its OrgSync. The State Press reported on Oct. 16 that USG Tempe had not updated the minutes section of its website since Sept. 25, That section has since been updated, but only through the Oct. 8 meeting. USG Tempe has had two regular meetings since Oct. 8. Minutes must be approved at the next meeting before they can be officially posted, but that still leaves USG Tempe one meeting behind. USG Tempe s bylaws also state that minutes from the last meeting are to be included in the public agenda for the next meeting. The legislation section of USG Tempe s website is also outdated. As of Monday, the last bills posted on the site were motions from early September to approve members of USG staff. The page does not provide a copy of SB 31, the Athletic Fee Bill, for students to read. USG Tempe Senate President Alexis Gonzalez said she puts all bills on the senators private Blackboard group and that she will provide any bills to students who a request for them. She said she didn t realize that USG bylaws require the senate secretary to release agendas to the public by 9 a.m. the morning of meeting days. It would definitely be our job to put it up on the website, she said.... I do take fault for that. State Law Title 38 of the Arizona Revised Statutes regulates public meetings within the state. A.R.S requires 24 hours of conspicuous notice to be given of any public meeting. The public body must post the notice to its website and can t cite technological problems as an excuse for not giving notice. Bodies must also post an agenda 24 hours in advance of the meeting. A.R.S requires minutes to be made available within three working days of a public meeting, and A.R.S nullifies any actions taken at meetings in violation of these requirements. Bodies can ratify those actions within 30 days of the violation s discovery and would have to give 72 hours advance notice of the new meeting. The Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the state universities, is held to A.R.S. 38 as a public body. ABOR Policy states that while the Board does not have approval power over associated students constitutions, it can submit the associations to review and has veto power over their actions. It also establishes that student governments are not separate legal entities from their universities. ABOR and ASU administrators declined to comment on SB 31 while it is still in the proposal stage. David Bodney, an adjunct professor of law at Sandra Day O Connor Law School and the managing partner for Steptoe & Johnson s Phoenix offices, said determining whether student governments are subject to Arizona s open meeting laws is a matter of deciding whether they are a public body. As of yet, there is no case history to definitively classify student governments as public bodies, he said. However, Arizona is clearly a state that favors open meetings, Bodney said. There s a strong presumption in favor of open and public meetings in Arizona, he said. He said it is a matter of sound public policy to provide agendas and meeting notices. Without a case example, it comes down to interpreting whether student governments should be following Arizona s open meeting laws, but it makes perfect sense for them to do so, he said. As a matter of public policy, it only makes sense for student governments to hold open and public meetings, Bodney said. I think the open meetings law is broad enough to encompass student governments. KATIE DUNPHY THE STATE PRESS ASU s Undergraduate Student Government meets in a conference room on the Tempe campus. ASU s five student governments may have violated Arizona open meeting laws by failing to publicize documents related to its athletic fee bill. The fee will cost students $75 per semester if ASU administration and the Arizona Board of Regents approve it. HECTOR SALAS ALMEIDA THE STATE PRESS Public service sophomore and Undergraduate Student Graduate Downtown President Frank Smith III (middle) works with other students on his computer on the Downtown campus. ASU s five student governments may have violated Arizona open meeting laws by failing to adequately inform the public about documents related to its athletic fee bill. Student Government at UA Associated Students of the University of Arizona s constitution requires that its senate follow Arizona s open meeting laws. However, ASUA s senate site hasn t posted minutes or an agenda since Oct. 22. ASUA President Morgan Abraham said the senate likes to conduct a full referendum when it proposes new fees. He said this is more of a preferred than a mandated procedure that ends with students voting on the measure. When the measures come from the executive board, as ASU s SB 31 did, the procedure is different, Abraham said. Instead of a referendum, the outreach team will create focus groups and hold open forums, he said. Abraham said ASUA struggles to reach all 30,000 of UA s students, so it likes to get students as involved in the process as possible. He said he likes the involvement that comes with a vote, though voter turnout at UA only ranges from 10 to 25 percent. We re definitely able to hit some cliques on campus better than others, he said. That s why we like to open it up to a formal election where people who are more opinionated on the issue can let their voice be heard. USG s Efforts at Communication USG Tempe Senator Devon Mills said USG did all it could to reach out to students, adding that is inaccurate to say USG didn t try to involve students. It s a very extreme assumption to say that, he said. USG reached out to college councils, held town halls and launched a social media campaign, he said. No s were sent out because there

5 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Feature 5 ASU ELECTIONS: VOTER TURNOUT % % % % % % AVERAGE 6.6% MEDIAN 6.15% Numbers reflect undergraduate population KATIE DUNPHY THE STATE PRESS Members of ASU s Undergraduate Student Government meet on the Tempe campus. All five student governments endorsed an athletic fee which will cost students $75 per semester if its approved by ASU administration and the Arizona Board of Regents. is a long request process involved to send a mass to the student body, he said. USG tried to have individual colleges notify their listservs, but administration blocked them, Mills said. They shut out from us, he said. University spokeswoman Julie Newberg said requests for mass s to students must go through the provost s office and that on average, only one is sent every semester. Mills said he sent two s to the listserv of club leaders, which he does have access to, and only received one response. That response never went beyond an exchange, he said. It s easy to say we re not reaching out to all the students, he said. Reaching out to them is like reaching out to a small town. We do everything in our power to reach out to students. Tempe Undergraduate President Jordan Davis said in addition to holding town halls, talking to college councils and running a social media campaign, the government reached out to the representative Big Five student organizations for feedback. The Big Five are the Programming and Activities Board, Residence Hall Association, Greek Life, Student Alumni Association and Associated Students of ASU. The only group that didn t fully support the bill was Tempe s RHA, he said. We did it as transparently as we possibly could, he said. Davis ran on a platform of keeping fees and tuition low for students. He said he thought his administration has kept that promise, adding that a $125 per year fee is less than the usual tuition increase of 3 percent, or approximately $500. Initial news of the bill focused more on the fee than the positive aspects that will come from the resulting tuition reinvestment, Davis said. All (students) heard from reporters was fee, and that s a dirty word, he said. I would never push for something like this if I honestly didn t believe at my core that it would help students. PAB President Zac Donohoe said the diversity of PAB s members, which include graduate and international students as well students of many major affiliations, makes it adequately representative of the student body. He said Davis came to him a few weeks before the bill went public to PAB s thoughts and approval. They ve been pretty transparent through the whole process, he said. Which is good. I think that s what they needed to do when one of their big points for the bill is transparency. Donohoe said even PAB faces problems communicating with students. I think (USG) did all they could have without spending a ton of money, he said. You can engage the students, but it ultimately boils down to whether or not they want to come. Short Timelines Alexis Kramer-Ainza, a Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication senator at the Downtown campus, said she supports the fee but would have liked more time to get feedback from constituents. Kramer-Ainza withheld her vote when USG Downtown passed the bill, she said. She said she worries about the financial burden of the fee. I don t want it to be a sacrifice for students to pay that, Kramer-Ainza said. We re not going to please everyone, but I would at least liked to have gotten more feedback than what was given to us on such a short timeline. Katherine Lee, president of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences College Council, said opinion over the bill was split when CLASCC heard about it from its senators. It seemed abrupt and sudden, she said. It was definitely a surprise that this bill was coming forth, she said. Lee said the fee didn t seem fair after students were told tuition wouldn t rise and that the promised benefits seem hard to follow through on, adding that better ways, such as private donors, might have been found to fund Sun Devil Athletics. Sun Devil Athletics ran a deficit of $5.8 million dollars in 2012, despite receiving a subsidy of $10.3 million from the University, according to a report from USA Today. The Arizona Republic reported last August that the subsidy comes from the portion of ASU s operating budget that is not taxpayer-funded in other words, from tuition and grants. The Republic reported Friday that Sun Devil Athletics made a profit of $73,764 for fiscal year Lee said similar measures used to take weeks or months to move through the senate, but this bill seemed to pass quickly. While college councils are liaisons between students and senators, senators still need to reach out to constituents, because they have the most information about policy, Lee said. She said the council s opinion was still split over the bill when it was voted on, and at this point, it is hard to say if the bill will be good or bad. I am very anxious to see what they actually will do with it, Lee said. I don t think it should have to fall on the students to bail out the athletics system. ammedeir@asu.edu SEE MORE ONLINE M U L T I M E D I A Watch Undergraduate Student Government Tempe President Jordan Davis talk about a $150-per-semester student fee to subsidize ASU athletics and expand resources for other students at statepress.com

6 6 Local The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Students research how to teach autistic children LOGAN One out of every 88 children is diagnosed with autism. Researchers are developing new techniques to help teachers better meet the needs of these children. Juliet Hart, a professor at the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, has enlisted the aid of students in her classes to research how to better educate children with autism. Two of the students helping her are secondary education mathematics sophomore Shannon Cleary and journalism senior Tara Boyd. They both have really interesting ideas that they were able to generate and then talk through and clean, Hart said. Boyd has been researching apps that can help children with autism communicate more effectively. Children with autism often communicate by pointing at pictures or using sentence strips to form complete sentences. In the past, they ve used speech-generating devices that are kind of big and bulky and sometimes hard to manipulate, Boyd said. Boyd s experience with these students has predominately centered at a school that she has worked at throughout her college journey. I ve worked, for the past three summers, as a (paraeducator) in an autism classroom, she said. I just fell in love with the work. She has worked with first-graders and preschoolers. Boyd said often the children had behavior or speech issues, but it varied. Every day was kind of different, because it depended on the student and outside factors, she said. Boyd spoke of one boy who had with a speech problem. This is not rare, she said. In her research, Boyd is focusing on the communication facet. The boy used a bulky machine to help him communicate but often tried to play with an ipad. (I found out) that there were apps on the ipad that did the same thing that his other device was doing, Boyd said. That s kind of what sparked the interest in the actual research I did. This unique interest has made Boyd helpful to Hart s overall project on learning how to better teach children with autism. It s really been a great collaborative exchange, Hart said. (The student helpers) have particular interests in their own fields that I m not necessarily familiar with. The research can expand to a wider horizon of topics. Cleary s interest is focused on researching intervention strategies to help children with autism learn math skills. By using intervention techniques, researchers can determine if teaching techniques are useful in helping students learn and retain the material. The teacher will implement the strategy that they re using, Cleary said. Still in the beginning phases, Cleary is focusing on research. Next semester, though, she hopes to work hands-on with more children. We re hoping that next semester, I can implement an intervention strategy that we ve developed and actually see the results, she said. These techniques can be as simple as using number lines and mnemonics to remember numbers. Cleary has also found studies that incorporated a technique known as video-self modeling. The students would watch themselves on the ipad and then complete the math problem, she said. Cleary s work with children with autism stemmed when she visited her cousin, a preschool teacher who often works with children who have special needs. I visited her a couple summers ago, Cleary said. Seeing her in her classroom really solidified my decision to teach. Her research is moving forward. Cleary still has more than two years to complete her project. Boyd has also made forward progress. With the help of Dr. Hart, I put together a website, she said. The information is easily accessible for teachers to find online. She s not done, though. STATE PRESS STAFF THE STATE PRESS Juliet Hart, a professor at the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, has enlisted the aid of students in her classes to research how to better educate children with autism. One out of every 88 children is diagnosed with autism. (The website) needs to continue to be updated, she said. With technology, everything moves so fast, it s probably partially irrelevant already. lmnewma1@asu.edu Student moving on after being kidnapped on campus MARK Nov. 11 was a seemingly ordinary night for marketing senior Amita Padiyar. She drove to a parking lot near ASU s bookstore on the Tempe campus just after midnight to pick up a friend who works at Hayden Library. She had picked up her friend at that location in the past and said there wasn t anything unusual that Monday night. I was just sitting there with my doors locked, she said. My friend came up to my car, so I unlocked it for him. Padiyar said her friend got in the car and the two sat for a moment talking, but right as they were about to leave, they were accosted by two men. This man opens my driver s door and told me to get out (and) get in the backseat. They re taking my car, she said. Padiyar said she was in shock. I didn t have the impulse to run, and I was with my friend, so I just went in the backseat, Padiyar said. There she and her friend sat, unsure of what would happen. One of the men got in the driver s seat while the other sat in the back with them. Padiyar said she tried to covertly dial 911 on her cell phone between her legs, but one of the men told them to hand over their phones. She even tried to stall the man in an effort to get the call to go through but was unsuccessful. I tried to ask him if he could just take my car, take my money, or whatever, and just leave us, she said. Things are things, our lives are more important. But the men refused; the two were along for the ride. She said communication was difficult, and the two only had moments to whisper to each other. The longer they spent in the car, the fewer options they had. That s when she made a tough decision. We were driving down McAllister towards Apache so it was right by the dorms, and I manually unlocked the back door, Padiyar said. I looked at my friend, and I looked at the door so he knew I was going to open it and we were going to jump out. She counted to three, and they both jumped out of the moving car. Padiyar suffered severe road rash, cuts, scrapes and a concussion, while her friend was also injured. Some ASU students came to help the two and triggered a nearby emergency call box, she said. Paramedics arrived and treated both her and her friend, while police took their statements. Not long after, she said police had found her car and the two men. They had continued on in Padiyar s car, eventually crashing into a tree at the intersection of East 13th Street and South Farmer Avenue, where they were arrested, she said. Padiyar said in the week following the incident, her physical recovery has been going well, but the incident has taken a different toll on her. I m also dealing with flashbacks of being in that situation, of being in the car and thinking, How in the world am I going to get out of this? she said. Looking back, Padiyar said she wouldn t have done anything different but made no excuses that she and her friend were lucky. I m very lucky that everything is OK and we weren t harmed by jumping out of the car, she said. Padiyar said talking about the incident has helped, and she encourages students to not take their safety for granted. Especially at nighttime, there aren t that many people on campus, so I would just suggest being more aware of your surroundings, she said. She said having a strong support network has also helped her move forward from the incident. Linda, Padiyar s mother, said she was horrified to hear what happened to her daughter, but believes her daughter did the right thing. I m very proud of how they both reacted, Linda said. When it comes to the point (that) you don t have another option. It s one of those things where what is your choice? They did exactly the right thing. The ASU Police Department reported arresting Shaquille Davon Garner, 21, and Gregory Martel Williams, 26, on Nov. 11 in connection with the incident. DIANA LUSTIG THE STATE PRESS Marketing senior Amita Padiyar was picking up a friend near campus Nov. 11 when two men carjacked her. Padiyar and her friend were forced to move to the backseat but were able to escape the car and the two men totaled the car near South 13th Street and Farmer Avenue. Garner is facing charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, armed robbery and theft. Williams is facing charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, armed robbery, theft and unlawful flight from law enforcement. The men are scheduled to be in court next on Thursday, Nov. 21, according to Maricopa County Superior Court. ASU Police was not immediately available for comment on the incident. mark.remillard@asu.edu

7 The State Press Week of November 21, Local Student helps Maricopa County identify skeletons ALLY When anthropology graduate student Andrew Seidel was in the third grade, he discovered his love for archaeology while digging up the foundation of an old building that was buried under the playground of his elementary school. It wasn t until years later, however, when he excavated his first set of human remains during an internship at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History that he stumbled upon his real passion. During his free time, Seidel works with Laura Fulginiti at the Maricopa County Forensic Science Center to help identify skeletonized or otherwise unrecognizable human remains. I m being trained pretty much better than anyone in the country right now, Seidel said. Even people who are getting their doctorate specifically in forensic anthropology are not seeing as many cases as I am. So I am exceptionally lucky that she has taken me under her wing. During a typical day working with Fulginiti at the Maricopa County Medical Examiner s Office, Seidel works mainly on biological profiles. This means that when a set of remains comes in that police can t identify, they look over the remains to find approximate age, sex and ancestry of the individual. We give that information to law enforcement, he said. Even if we only give them sex, that eliminates half of the missing person s files. That helps them to be able to sequentially narrow their missing person s files and match a person from there. Their work acts as a guide for the police, Seidel said. Then the police use other evidence and dental records to make a positive match. We have to figure out who we think it is before we get the dental records, he said. Seidel has been volunteering his time at the medical examiner s office for the past three years, and it does take a toll. It s a hard job, he said. And I think a lot of people don t realize that. There s a lot of glamor attached to forensic anthropology and it is cool. I like it. It s fun. But it s a hard job. There s a lot of stuff that you see that nobody else sees. Emotional Toll Seidel works on remains found in Maricopa County that can t be identified for some reason. These remains can belong to individuals who were burned, murdered, in a car accident or got lost hiking in the desert and have no identification. It really opens your eyes to a lot of unpleasant things that are out there that you aren t really aware of, and how you choose to deal with that is your individual decision, Seidel said. Seidel said the situations he is exposed to often cause him to detach emotionally. Sometimes you build up a little bit of a wall, he said. Or you don t really connect with people that well anymore because you ve seen things that they haven t and that you can t talk to them about. Or even if you do talk to them about it, they won t understand it. Seidel said he likes to focus on people being nice to each other. It helps to balance all the things that he sees that aren t nice. You never know what it s going to be that sets you off, he said, You develop a tolerance. You re like, Oh, it s another blunt force trauma case, and it doesn t faze you at all. And it should, right? This is a brutal act that ended somebody else s life and in a very violent way. That should affect you. While many things don t faze Seidel, he said sometimes a case will be especially difficult. Then maybe you see a scene photo or maybe it s something specific about that victim, and suddenly one of those cases gets through all of your defenses, and you re a wreck for a couple days, he said. It s a lot of weight to carry around. And I don t think people focus on that when they are like, That s so cool that you do that! But the job is not all bad. Seidel said he has been lucky enough to see the look on parents faces when their kids are returned to them, and what it does for that family. He is doing some amount of good, and for that family at least, a lot of good, he said. There s a balance to it, Seidel said. You see a lot of crap and a lot of ugliness, but you also see a lot of beauty and potentially do a lot of good. It s high risk, high reward. Seidel is on his sixth year of graduate school studying human osteology, bio archaeology and anthropology, but despite what he learns in the classroom, he said it is the field experience that will prepare him for a career. After seeing many cases that look the same, people start keying in on different things they don t learn in the classroom. Not everybody can do it, he said. And I was not aware if I could do it or not. I jumped into the deep end and came out OK. And since I can do it, I feel like I have a responsibility to do it. Glamorizing Death Christopher Stojanowski, a professor at ASU who teaches introduction to forensic anthropology, said forensic anthropologists also work after catastrophic situations like a plane crash, train crash or a bombing. The goal is identification when a simpler means of identification is impossible, he said. He said he has a few warnings for those who wish to enter the field. First, after a decade-long career in the field there are long-term, psychologically scarring effects of dealing with those grim aspects of modern life. Second, there is a disconnect between TV and real life, so don t expect the reality to be like CSI or Bones. There is no doubt that the popularity of CSI, Bones, or on the fantasy side of things, Skeleton Stories on the Discovery Channel, has helped enrollment, Stojanowski said. When he taught the class in person, he had 500 students, and now that it has shifted to online enrollment it is closer to 350 students. People who are doing forensic research can work in human rights work or military work as well, recovering G.I. s in foreign countries or identifying individuals after war crimes or genocide, he said. Cassandra Kuba received her doctorate from ASU in anthropology and now works teaching forensic anthropology at California University of Pennsylvania and also works as a consultant for cases on a parttime basis. Forensic anthropologists assist investigators with the search, recovery and analysis of skeletal remains or remains that are decomposed to the point that an autopsy can t be done, she said. Then, forensic anthropologists take the remains back to the lab to determine identifying characteristics, as well as any trauma related to the death. Kuba said certain parts of the job are harder than others. In the very beginning, it was difficult when looking at that decomposing mess that was once human, she said. Particularly children and the elderly. You get used to the smells and the feeling and the texture of death, but you don t get used to knowing that something horrible happened to the people we are supposed to protect. It s sometimes tough, but you learn to cope. akcarr@asu.edu Identifying the Unknown What a case may look like Bones found in desert. If human, bones are collected, extensive notes taken about how bones were found. Forensic anthropologists analyze bones. Look at pubic bone, skull, or sternal end of 4th rib to estimate sex. Bones are examined for signs of surgery, healed fractures to compare to medical records Bones examined for trauma to determine how individual died Law enforcement eliminates those who don t match, narrow down search Identity returned to remains(bones) if all goes well Forensic anthropologists go to site to determine if bones are human or animal. Bones are sent back to lab, glued back together. Look at pubic bone, teeth or skull to estimate age at time of death. Look at the skull to estimate ancestry/race. Bones are also examined for signs of past disease. Information sent to law enforcement who compare to missing persons records. Dental records of matches are compared to teeth of remains(bones). If the person was murdered, investigation begins, if not their remains(bones) are returned to family.

8 8 Local The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Practice makes perfect for ASU marching band JOEY It s Saturday night in Tempe, and eager fans have finally found their seats inside Sun Devil Stadium. An energy of anticipation is pulsing throughout the stadium as the fans fervently wait for the Sun Devil football team to take the field. Deep inside Tillman Tunnel, another kind of energy is felt. Nervousness and excitement surround the members of the Sun Devil Marching Band, adorned in maroon and gold uniforms, as they pack the tunnel, checking their instruments and going over their routines for the evening one last time. Then, over the speakers they hear the announcer s voice presenting The Pride of the Southwest to the crowd. The tunnel door opens to thousands of screaming fans, the nervous energy disappears and the performance they have been practicing for all week begins. Behind the half-time performance are weeks of preparation, dedication and hard work. Head Drum Major Joshua Beedle said people don t understand the amount of time the band rehearses, and it takes a lot of effort to put the final product on the field. I believe most people s perception of the marching band is we do the half-time show and are in the stands and that is all we do, he said. In reality, the band practices every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for two hours each day to prepare for what people see during the halftime show. With only a few home games each year, the number of performances may seem small, but a lot of work is required to keep up the standard the Sun Devil Marching Band has come to expect. We do five shows a year for every football season, and we put a whole show on in two weeks from two-hour practices three days a week, Beedle said. So it s a huge commitment, and we are very productive, and we get stuff done really quick and have to because we don t have much time. Beedle, a communication junior, said he sees performing for The Pride of the Southwest as an honor, because it means much more than halftime shows and performances in front of crowds at University games. So many other bands, high schools, universities from around the country know us for what we do and what we re about, he said. It s an honor to be known for what we do and our hard work, and it feels really good knowing that people, not just ASU fans and people that attend ASU games, not only do they appreciate us but people from across the country see what we re doing and appreciate us for what we do. The band s purpose at ASU serves more than pumping up the crowd and providing entertainment to the fans in Sun Devil Stadium on game day. The purpose of us is to do our best to rally the student section and the fans at games but to do that, since we re so large we re able to go around and meet the needs of many The ASU marching band practices at Wells Fargo Arena before an event on campus. people in our organization, Sun Devil athletics as well as school organizations that want to come out and need us for support of their events, Beedle said. Drum Major s Life Being one of the three drum majors for the Sun Devil Marching Band can be the most taxing position, as they re in charge of field activities and making sure everyone is on the same page. The most difficult part of being a drum major at ASU, with a band this size, would have to be the persistent communication and work ethic, Beedle said. To keep up the hard work at the beginning of the season when it s still fresh and you want to do it but also keeping up the hard work and the passion near the end. The drum majors are the leader of the marching band and are like the band director s right hands, Beedle said. We assist him with everything he needs whether it s on the field or off the field, he said. Paper work, administration stuff, running rehearsals, conducting, people are used to seeing us conduct on the podiums or on the field, but we do a lot of behind the scenes work that no one sees. Drum Major Riley Molloy said sacrificing oneself for the team is an important part of being a drum major. It means commitment to a program that deserves my utmost respect, attention and dedication, and I do all I can to sacrifice my- STATE PRESS STAFF THE STATE PRESS STATE PRESS STAFF THE STATE PRESS Percussionists in the ASU marching band play a number as they practice before a football game in Tempe. The band consists of percussionists, horn players, dancers as well as a full drum line.

9 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Local 9 self to The Pride of the Southwest and putting on a show for a crowd that deserves it and a team that deserves it, he said. Entering the Field Coming out of the Tillman Tunnel this year has been a great experience, Molloy said. It adds an extra dimension to what it means coming through that door. The craziest part is when we step out of the tunnel and onto the field because it is like you re stepping into a different reality, he said. Drum Major Robert Mattix s first time running on the field didn t come from the Tillman Tunnel, but he said he remembers it fondly. Coming out the first time was really terrifying and thought it would be so cool, but I didn t even listen to hear my name even though I thought about it all week, he said. His first time out of Tillman Tunnel later in his career was a different experience. The biggest thing I remember about running out of the Tillman Tunnel was all of the alumni being in the marching band and returning to the traditions of the past, he said. The College Experience The preparation for game day and other performances stem from Sun Devil Marching Band Director James Hudson s unique style of motivation. He is an unbelievable band director, Molloy said. I think a lot of people don t appreciate him as much, because he seems distant and seems removed, but the truth is he cares so much. (He) has such a specific mindset of how the band should work and how to stimulate the program.... A lot of people just overlook it, and it s a naïve viewpoint in my opinion. Molloy said preparation is everything, and it all begins with the director. The way he prepares for rehearsal is so specific and so well-tuned, he said. He can afford to not ride us for a huge chunk of rehearsal since we have prepared so much and he has prepared so much. Hudson said his imagination and musical talent drive each member of the Sun Devil Marching Band to strive for perfection week in and week out, and the band represents ASU as whole. The purpose of the marching band at ASU is multifaceted really, he said. I always tell the kids we are ASU and we re a real cross section from the Poly campus all the way to the West campus, Downtown campus and of course Tempe campus. Hudson said he hopes the band represents the college experience when people hear the band play. We really represent ASU at all the sporting events we play, whether its football or basketball or volleyball, he said. Representing ASU is a difficult task, and Hudson s drive for perfection as the creator of the shows has extra meaning to him. When you write the music and write the formations, you know what it s supposed to sound like and supposed to look like, and if it s not perfect, it drives me crazy, Hudson said. It s just so important to put on a good show. Representing the school in the best light is the most important aspect, he said. If we are really what we say we are, which Trombone players in the ASU marching band stand in formation during a performance at an ASU home game at Sun Devil Stadium. is one of the top 5 college marching bands in the country... then every time we go out we have to be great, and if it s not perfect, for me it s not great, he said. Although the band has previously won the coveted Sudler Trophy, presented to the best collegiate band in the nation, it still has a lot of work to do, Hudson said. Members strive at every practice and every performance to be better than they were the day before, he said. The staff and the students are really the ones that make it work, and I m just a little speck in a great big organization, he said. The day you figure out how to be a band director... well, you ll never figure it out. jshanco2@asu.edu SEE MORE ONLINE M U L T I M E D I A Listen to Sun Devil Marching Band Director James Hudson talk about what it means to be in the band at statepress.com flutxes clarinets alto saxophones tenor saxophones baritone saxophones trumpet mellophone trombone baritone euphonium tubas snare drums bass drums tenor drums cymbals front ensemble dancers twirlers.. 02 drum majors STATE PRESS STAFF THE STATE PRESS 2013 Marching Band Members 352 Total Members

10 10 Local The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Explosives detection dog helps protect ASU, Valley SAVANNAH Every day, ASU police Detective Parker Dunwoody comes to work with his best friend, a 55-pound yellow labrador retriever named Disney. No ordinary dog, Disney can detect more than 19,000 different combinations of explosives, according to her Facebook page, and is a certified Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives explosives detection canine. There are three ATF dogs in the Valley, Dunwoody said. These are single purpose explosives detection canines. Before Disney arrived at ASU in 2009, she served in Puppies Behind Bars, a program where inmates train and care for puppies. After graduating from that program, she went into ATF training, Dunwoody said. She did her six weeks of imprinting training after (Puppies Behind Bars), he said. And then we did another 10 weeks of handler-canine training. That covered everything. Any possible scenario they tried to cover so that the dog and the handler are aware of what s going on out in the real world. Dunwoody said at first, Disney backed away from him, as she was previously located in a women s prison. I go up to the kennel, and Disney backs away, he said. So I get down in there, and I put my hand down and let her smell it, and then her ears kind of perk up and she starts wagging her tail, and then I let her kiss me on the face and from there on we were best friends. Dunwoody cares for Disney 24/7. She stays in his home and rides with him to work every day. He said she easily fit into his family alongside his two-year-old son, dog and, until recently, a cat. My cat set the tempo, he said. Disney had never really seen cats before, but when she came into the house, she realized that my cat was the boss, so that was kind of interesting. But all of my animals they get along great. They play, and they re all part of the family. Disney s day-to-day duties include inspecting the Metro Light Rail, training and patrolling events, depending on the day, Dunwoody said. We assist the U.S. Marshals Service a lot with a lot of protection details, he said. Sometimes we have special events, like football games. Disney and I ve worked the Cardinals games. We ve worked ASU football games. We worked the Super Bowl in We ve done protection details for former presidents. We ve done large scale venues like the U.S. Open. It could be anything that happens. Disney trains multiple times a day, every day of the week so that she can maintain a healthy diet, Dunwoody said. Disney is a food reward dog, so she only gets fed when she finds something, he said. So I have to work seven days a week to make sure that she gets her daily complement of food. During training, Disney sniffs for odors that could be explosives or weapons. When she finds one, she is rewarded with food. Dunwoody said he also hides distracting odors that might throw Disney off, but she has always been fast at recognizing the correct odors. She s got a great nose, he said. One of the biggest cases involving Disney was the J. T. Ready murders, Dunwoody said. In 2012, police believed Ready killed four people and himself in a Gilbert home. Disney was called to support that crime scene, and we actually located explosives in the garage, he said. Disney was also called down to support the Gabrielle Giffords shooting in Tucson, but the FBI took over the crime scene by the time they got there, Dunwoody said. Although Disney resides with the ASU Police Department, she also assists in local, state and federal affairs because she is an ATF asset. Because she is an ATF dog, she is a federal asset and she can be called to go anywhere, he said. Disney works local events in the Valley and even works with other dogs, like Tempe s dualpurpose canines, Dunwoody said. We support anything local, he said. If anybody has anything that we need to help out with, we do. Christopher Speranza, Police Commander at the Downtown campus, put together the ASU canine program. I was lucky enough to have fun and put it together, he said. Creating the program took a great amount of research, Speranza said. I had to do a lot of research and contact various other agencies to figure out what they do, what worked well, what didn t, what they would do next time different, he said. And then (I had to) write a policy that coincided with what ATF believed how we should be handling the dog. Speranza said Disney is a good resource for ASU police, not just for her practical uses but for the added relationship with the community. Sometimes it s nice to be walking around with a dog and have people actually stop and they want to talk to you, where sometimes when you re actually walking around in a uniform, they kind of want to shy and turn away from you, he said. The original decision to start a canine program at ASU came from Chief of Police John Pickens. I was contacted by the Special Agent in Charge (at the) Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives about the program and partnership in 2009 to see if I was interested, Pickens said in an . Due to the fact that ASU hosts a large number of sporting events and other activities, it provided another method of providing security. Pickens said Disney offers a further connection to the community. Disney has had a very positive impact on ASU and Valley communities, he said. She does more than detect explosives; she allows people to play with her. She is like a rock star on campus. After Disney retires, Pickens said he hopes to have another explosives detection canine at ASU. It is my hope that the partnership continues with (ATF) and we get a replacement, he said. Disney still has a few solid years left until she KATIE DUNPHY THE STATE PRESS Disney sits while Detective Dunwoody explains the training and testing Disney had to go through to become an explosives detection k-9. Disney and her handler Parker Dunwoody must train everyday to keep their skill in top shape in case an emergency comes around. KATIE DUNPHY THE STATE PRESS Disney takes a break after a training exercise sniffing for explosives. She trains multiple times a day seven days a week. must retire, which usually happens around the 10-year mark, Dunwoody said. Until then, Dunwoody will continue his daily routine with Disney. That is the whole reason why I got into law enforcement, he said. I m a dog person. I ve had dogs all my life. And to be able to go to work with a dog is not work, it s just having a good time and gettin stuff done. savannah.harrelson@asu.edu

11 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Local 11 British author shares experience in Arpaio s jails KELCIE Shaun Attwood came to Phoenix in 2000 from a small industrial town in England with the intent of becoming rich stockbroking. However, after feeling burnt out from the stressful job, Attwood began using Ecstasy. That choice would change his life forever. We were so arrogant when we were running around and doing these drugs, he said. We used to joke around that were above the law, and we felt we were living like this Pulp Fiction style of life. Attwood was later arrested and spent six years in Arizona jails, which prompted him to start a blog and, after his release, publish books. Attwood said England was in a recession when he finished school. I had two aunts living in Phoenix, and they said, It s booming out here, just hop on a plane, and you ll easily get a job with your accent, he said. I just came here with my student credit card. Attwood said it took him five years to be the biggest producer in the office where he worked. He was grossing $500,000 in commission annually. I became a millionaire, he said. I had enough money to retire. Attwood said he started to feel burnt out from the stockbroking business. It made him want some kind of relief. Party time Attwood said stress pushed him into the party scene. I started to remember doing Ecstasy as a student, and I wanted to get that feeling again to sort of relieve some of the stress I was having, he said. Attwood said he started dealing Ecstasy in Tempe. Attwood said more and more people started showing up to parties and that he was practically giving the drugs away at first because he wanted to show off. I thought I was Mr. Cool Guy from all the attention I was getting, he said. At the time, I had more money than common sense. Attwood said he started to see the business potential from drug dealing and applied everything he had learned from his business studies to dealing Ecstasy. Under the influence of drugs, he was having the time of his life. When Attwood started getting death threats from competitors, he began to realize the dangers of his new lifestyle. He said the money he was getting wasn t worth jeopardizing his safety. Locked up Attwood said it wasn t his brightest idea to break the law in Arizona. A year after he quit the Ecstasy business, a SWAT team came and arrested him at his apartment in Scottsdale. I was naïve to the statute of limitations at the time, Attwood said. Attwood was sentenced for nine-and-a-half years and served six. If I had gone to trial and lost, they would have stacked all my charges to a maximum 200- year sentence, he said. Attwood said his parents had to remortgage their house to come up with $100,000 to get a private lawyer. If you don t have a private lawyer, you re basically hung out to dry, he said. Jail was all about raw survival. Attwood said he was crammed into cells where violence was constantly breaking out. People s heads were getting smashed against toilets, bodies (were) thrown around and everything you had in your everyday life just goes straight out the window, he said. Attwood said in the beginning, he pined for his old lifestyle and resented getting caught. However, he said that over time, jail did him a lot of good. It made me see the harm drug dealing causes people, he said. Most of the guys in jail were all drug addicts, and they were further down the road of drug use than me. Attwood said two-thirds of those incarcerated were shooting up heroin and crystal meth and that many of them had Hepatitis C from sharing needles. I was constantly worried that someone was going to smash me, he said. I m not a tough guy, and if I had been there on my own, I would not have survived. Former ASU student Allan MacDonald was in jail with Shaun. He said he had heard that there was an Englishman in the yard and people wanted to scam him. There was a man who went by the name of T-bone who said he would protect Shaun, Mac- Donald said. Shaun was under the impression that this was true, but that was not the case. MacDonald said that he asked Attwood to start going to dinner with him. In jail, that means, He s with us, MacDonald said. MacDonald said he thinks Attwood is a good guy and that he simply made a mistake. He is an honest person who is trying to make amends for what he did, he said. His only weakness is that he is naïve and will believe anybody. Joe s Jail MacDonald said he has sued Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio several times. He is a piece of work, he said. He doesn t think the Constitution applies to him. Arpaio is known for his tough stance on crime. He has proclaimed himself America s Toughest Sheriff. According to Maricopa County Risk Management, more than 6,000 claims and lawsuits have been filed against Arpaio since he was elected in Maricopa County has had to pay $1.5 million to settle two federal lawsuits against Arpaio after he was accused of unethical and unconstitutional tactics. MacDonald said despite everything, he is not angry with Arpaio anymore. Attwood said green bologna and moldy bread was breakfast. Sometimes they were these crazy psychedelic colors and they looked like works of art, he said. But we were so hungry that we just brushed off the mold and put it in water to get it down. During the 26 months he was in jail, Attwood said he lost 28 pounds. I was basically living off peanut butter and Snickers bars, he said. Attwood said whenever Arpaio came into the jail with his bodyguards, everyone would yell obscenities at him. Some of the guards said they couldn t stand the guy, he said. One of them came up to me and said the real world doesn t understand what s going on in here. That s what motivated him to write about his experiences on a blog, Jon s Jail Journal, under a pseudonym to hide his identity. Attwood said he wrote what he saw and smuggled the journal entries to his aunt. His family members typed what he wrote into the blog. Journey through literature Attwood said he went through a big psychological journey and read many different books to understand himself. In the jail system, it was very difficult to get books, he said. Attwood said he was only allowed seven books in his cell. At one point, readers of my blog sent so many books, they were delivered to me in a wheelbarrow, he said. The guard who brought them to me said he would turn the other way and let me have them all. Attwood said thanks to the kindness of blog readers around the world, the prison library was filled with quality books. Attwood said his sister has a degree in classical literature, and when he told her in 2006 that he had read 264 books that year, she couldn t believe it. Her exact words were, You lucky bugger, he said. English lecturer Rosemarie Dombrowski read Attwood s blog, which she found when it was named Best Prison Blog by the Phoenix New Times. He could craft a narrative and tell a human PHOTO COURTESY OF LIBI PEDDER story with humor and authenticity in a way that I ve never really read before and my thought was, I have to talk to this guy, she said. Dombrowski said they talked a lot about writing, philosophy and spirituality through letters. I felt like we were peers and we were friends, and we were both struggling to become vegetarians, she said. After I got to know him a little bit, I started to recommend books to him. Dombrowski said she recently reconnected with Attwood on Facebook and was happy to do so because upon his release, he was deported back to the U.K. I was pretty certain that I was never going to meet him face-to-face at that point, she said. Freedom Attwood said people coming into and leaving prison get this crazy expression on their faces because of all the emotional undercurrents. I m wondering how I m going to adjust, he said. When I was finally released, it took me about a year to finally start thinking normally again. Attwood said in jail, he was conditioned to react to certain things and he had to readjust to everyday life. He said he remembers following his mother around like a puppy dog awaiting orders. Today, Attwood gives more than 100 talks a year at schools and colleges. Kids don t listen to their parents or teachers about drugs, but they seem to pay attention when I tell them my own story, he said. Attwood said talking to schools has helped restore his karma from all the mistakes he has made in the past. I can t change my past, so all I can do is move forward, he said. kgrega@asu.edu

12 Opinion The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 EDITORIAL Todd Graham has earned his contract extension Win or lose on Saturday, ASU football coach Todd Graham has earned his contract extension. Saturday s game will be one of the biggest ASU has had in recent memory. A victory on the road against UCLA will clinch the program s first Pac-12 South Championship. Graham received an extension on Sept. 18, locking him up and giving him a pay raise each year through Some thought it was too soon, while others said he hasn t proven enough. The extension was more than a reward for the team s performance on the field this season, though. It also reflected a change in the program s culture, something Sun Devil Athletics hopes to further develop. What s impressive about the on-field product is that very few Sun Devils are Graham s players. He inherited a young team, including stars such as redshirt junior quarterback Taylor Kelly, senior defensive tackle Will Sutton and senior running back Marion Grice, from former coach Dennis Erickson. All three have become superb team leaders and have bought what Graham is selling. As a result, the rest of the team has followed, and the wins are adding up. Meanwhile, Graham s biggest recruiting success last offseason has immediately become a force. Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jaelen Strong, a junior college transfer, has become Kelly s favorite target, and the success rate of their nearly-impossible-to-guard back-shoulder passes has been incredible. The difference between Erickson and Graham has been obvious and measurable, but just as important is the differ- Plea for letters ence between Graham in 2012 and Graham in Last year s bunch started 5-1 but then went on a four-game losing streak to fizz out the hot start. This year, his team started out 3-2, with two losses on the road but rebounded with a five-game winning streak, including two on the road, which has the Tempe faithful smelling roses. ASU is 16-7 during Graham s two seasons, including 10-2 at home with the last home loss coming more than a calendar year ago (against UCLA, ironically enough). Last year, ASU finished one game away from winning the Pac-12 South. Had the Sun Devils beaten UCLA at Sun Devil Stadium, they would have won the division on the last day of the season, when they beat UA. This year they have a chance for redemption. It s simple: Win on Saturday, and the Sun Devils will at the very least play in the Pac-12 title game. A loss wouldn t completely ruin their chances either, but they would need to beat UA and hope UCLA falls to USC in the last week of the season. If everything goes as Graham planned, ASU has four games remaining on its schedule, all of which would be monumental: a potential Pac-12 South clincher against UCLA, a home Territorial Cup game, the Pac-12 title game and the Rose Bowl. Graham and the Sun Devils still have work to do, but everything he has done up until now has been worth every dollar. All we can do now is hope the Sun Devils win and pray he doesn t take a position at UT. Everyone likes to receive letters, and we at The State Press are no exception. Now more than ever, an engaged and informed student body is essential for the well-being of our community and our world. The State Press wants your input. As our readers and fellow ASU students, your thoughts are invaluable. We abide by an ethos that emphasizes the role of our audience in the creation of our content. We especially want to include our readers in that creative process, from beginning to end. We could measure our success as a student media organization by hits on a website or number of newspapers printed, but these metrics are ultimately empty if the ASU community as a whole does not benefit from what we do. Hearing from you is how we gauge our success: Have we made a positive impact in the lives of the people here at ASU? If we have had an impact on your university experience, please write in. If we ve published a comic that made you laugh or a news story that made you cry, write in. Did you completely disagree with one of our columnist s take on gun control or tax reform? Write to us. We look forward to reading your thoughts. Please keep all letters under 300 words and include your name and University affiliation. Anonymity will not be granted. Send your letters to opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com. Let s talk about virginity LORRAINE In an era of progressive movements and rapidly expanding attitudes toward women s rights to their own bodies, the dialogue on female sexuality, and in particular virginity, seems to have hit a wall. Last week, The New York Times ran an oped piece by Amanda McCracken, a 35-yearold self-described token virgin among her group of friends. I knew I would much rather endure the pain of missing WE NEED TO SHATTER ANY DELUSIONS WE HAVE THAT FORCE US TO PLACE THESE RITES OF PASSAGE ON A PEDESTAL. out than suffer the deeper loneliness of having given myself out of love only to realize that the feeling wasn t reciprocated, Mc- Cracken explained to readers of her decision to remain a virgin. McCracken s story is nothing new. In a global context and amid our own swiftly changing social climate, it s difficult to define what even constitutes a virgin anymore. At one point, McCracken notes that feminists are likely to fault her for not taking advantage of her sexuality. McCracken s narrative opens up a door for conversation about our society while simultaneously highlighting a core problem: There is still a disturbing lack of real dialogue occurring for young people regarding their own sexuality and virginity. According to the Center for Disease Control, almost 10 percent fewer 15- to 19-yearolds are having sex now than they were in Additionally, individuals are putting off other important milestones such as TONY PELLUM THE STATE PRESS leaving home, finishing school, marrying and bearing children. These figures may not mean much to many people, but they do provide a stark contrast to the idealized picture of sex and the widely-held notions of when we are expected to begin having it and living our lives. As it stands, the reinforced concept of virginity seems to have clear emotional divisions among men and women. For women, it is an internalized process to be gifted to another. For men, it is an external experience to be lost to finally gain entry into manhood. Of course, this is a broad generalization that in no way sums up each individual s unique experience with virginity. Then again, isn t that the way society has evolved to make us feel about our own, unique sexual experiences? In an effort to break the mold on the stagnant conversation about sex, filmmaker Therese Shechter explores the issue in her documentary How To Lose Your Virginity. The film premiered Nov. 17 in New York City and attempts to debunk the myths and misogyny surrounding a rite of passage that many obsess about but few truly understand. Instead of turning young people s virginity into a gift or a burden to be shouldered, we should continue opening up avenues for conversation, as McCracken and Shechter have done. Reach the columnist at llonghi@asu.edu.

13 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Opinion 13 Is downtown Phoenix really ageist? DOMINIC ZANE Nostalgia is in the air, and there is nothing you can do to stop it. If you have been on the Internet recently, you have likely seen a link from BuzzFeed, an online media site that is host to a number of pop culture lists and articles pertaining to culture and news. BuzzFeed has been the online center for culture for a while now. The site s content is easy to digest and usually tugs on the nostalgic heartstrings of its readers to the dismay of others. In addition to hating on BuzzFeed, many artists have taken to disparaging the Internet in general. This act is one of desperation to preserve the perpetually dying sanctity of the past. Why? This obsession with an antiquated past has left some upset and with a sour taste in their mouths. This hipster-esque obsession with what has come and gone, to some, only serves to halt forward motion. Recently, NPR published an article written by Linda Holmes on the subject. Holmes says, (Nostalgia) is often just a dumb dance in which we pretend not to have learned what, in fact, we have learned. It is literally to pretend to be young and dumb. Is she right? Sure, but this cynical view is ignorant of the benefits and necessity for escapism. The social conscience of our generation is undergoing a very familiar process: romanticization. Romanticism of the past is the state of the The city of Phoenix s Office of Community and Economic Development has recently indicated its intent to recommend an award to a housing developer whose blueprints of a new complex are more than controversial. The empty lot on Second Street north of Roosevelt Street is the location in question, and the developer has plans to restrict the proposed living complex to those who are 55 or older. This, in effect, will cut out younger people and those who make less than $36,000 a year. Many members of the community as well as newspapers are speaking out against this proposition, proclaiming that the idea is ageist and goes against the ethos of an inclusive and eclectic downtown Phoenix. Wayne Rainey, owner of the monorchid Art Gallery and advocate for all things downtown Phoenix, has started a scathing petition, urging downtown residents to question the idea of an age-restricted apartment complex in an area that is so vibrant and everchanging. The idea of an age-restricted complex is an ageist idea in and of itself, and it is the antithesis of what downtown Phoenix represents. What s more, the apartment complex deters students from living downtown. In a market where the housing prices are beginning to creep up again and housing choices THE PLANS FOR AN AGE- RESTRICTED APARTMENT COMPLEX GO AGAINST THE ETHOS OF AN INCLUSIVE AND ECLECTIC DOWNTOWN PHOENIX. are already restricted for students (Taylor Place is far too expensive for a permanent living space, as is the over-priced Roosevelt Point), this apartment complex would take away from students as well as other people who want to live in the immediate area. If you re a 90s kid, you ll get this WHEN THE SOCIAL CONSCIENCE LOOKS BACK, IT CHOOSES WHAT TO REMEMBER. social conscience that transcends any generation. It serves as an escape from the harsh realities of today and provides a point of reference to when things were not so bad. Of course, things are always pretty bad and when the social conscience looks back, it chooses what to remember. Take the most recent obsession with the 90s, for example. The 90s were host to a number of great things. Grunge music wasn t calculated. Sitcoms, such as Boy Meets World, actually had soul and substance to them, unlike the onslaught of garbage we are presented with today. George W. Bush hadn t been elected yet, and passing notes was the primary method of communication during class. These attributes of the 90s make it very attractive for the 20-something who sees the world changing in ways that are unfamiliar and frightening. It provides a sense of security. The downtown Phoenix area has a problem of extremes. There are a few apartment complexes for the retired community, as well as low-income living for those who cannot afford to live at places like Roosevelt Point. On the other side of the spectrum, we have a handful of extremely expensive living options like Orpheum Lofts (where purchasing a two-bedroom condominium can run up to $100,000, or more than $800 a month for rent). We do not need another restricted housing complex, and we certainly do not need it to be on Second Street near Roosevelt Street. Those who live in the area, as I do, will agree that downtown Phoenix has a problem with empty lots. Acres of unused land riddle the area as a result of stagnant business growth, as well as apprehensiveness to build in a place that is not as dense as New York City or Chicago. Phoenix, you can do better. Don t build an age-restricted complex in this area. If you really need to build one, I m sure there are plenty of other unused lots that would be glad to have you. Reach the columnist at dvalente@asu.edu. This fear of change is normal among any generation, but the speed of change happening with our generation is unprecedented in history. Most of us are either Generation Y or Millennials. Regardless of where you fall on this spectrum, the two cohorts have witnessed the most rapid expansion of technology in the history of civilization. With this incredibly fast-paced technological development, we have lost the wonderful simplicity of earlier times. Members of older generations see this and are scared as well. On Sept. 13, award-winning author Jonathan Franzen wrote an essay for The Guardian that aired grievances he has with the ever-connected world of the Internet. In addition, Franzen also sees the threat of digital media consuming sacred art forms. Franzen s worries predate many of our concerns, but the fear is still there: things are changing. Although Franzen would disapprove of our seeking refuge at BuzzFeed and other media outlets for nostalgic relief, I am sure he can empathize with our longing for the past. This nostalgia-obsessed culture that is being cultivated can be viewed as a bad thing, but it is a great thing. It offers people an oasis from the ironic environment developed by snobby music blogs, shoddy try-hard sitcoms and the general caustic nature of society. Reach the columnist at zjenning@asu.edu. BOOS & BRAVOS Bravo to the ASU football team for remaining undefeated at home this season and more importantly, for putting itself in position to achieve one of its season goals by winning the Pac-12 South title at UCLA this weekend. Boo to Top Dawg Entertainment, who criticized GQ Magazine and subsequently removed Kendrick Lamar from a GQ performance, even though GQ put Lamar on the front cover of their latest issue. Bravo to Lady Gaga for her Saturday Night Live host/musical guest appearance. Gaga s costume choices and musical performances, which included an R. Kelly guest spot, were were second to none while her sense of irony and acting skills were flawless. Boo to the economic situation in the European Union. In the past five years, the unemployment rate for people 15 to 24 years old increased by more than 15 percent in several European countries, including Greece, Spain, Ireland, Portugal and Italy. Greece had the highest unemployment rate for those aged 15 to 24 at 58 percent. Bravo to the Make-A-Wish Foundation for turning the city of San Francisco into Gotham for a night while a 5-year-old boy with leukemia dressed up as Batkid for his wish. Boo to the alleged public executions of 80 people in North Korea on Nov. 3. A South Korean newspaper received information from an unidentified source that public executions were carried out in seven North Korean cities for crimes such as watching smuggled South Korean TV shows and possessing a Bible. Bravo to MSNBC for suspending talk show host and actor Alec Baldwin after he allegedly used an anti-gay slur against a paparazzo. Baldwin apologized, saying, I did not intend to hurt or offend anyone with my choice of words, but clearly I have and for that I am deeply sorry. Words are important. I understand that, and I will choose mine with great care going forward. Boo to Liz Cheney, Wyoming Senate hopeful and daughter of the former vice president Dick Cheney, for her comments about gay marriage. Cheney s sister, Mary, has been married to her female partner since Bravo to conspiracy theories in general because they test our ability to critically analyze situations and information. From JFK s death to theories that Elvis and Tupac are still alive, conspiracy theories range anywhere from dramatically serious to over-the-top hilarious, and at the very least keep us entertained. Boo to the practice of denying undocumented immigrants the fundamental right to marry as outlined in the U.S. Constitution. Multiple cases of this have been popping up in Alabama where lawful immigrants have been turned away after applying for a marriage license.

14 14 Opinion The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Common Core will address holes in public education PETER The Common Core State Standards Initiative, a program rolled out by the U.S. Department of Education, is a good start for standardizing the expectations of students, teachers, parents and administrators. This initiative came to be during the fallout of the Bush administration s No Child Left Behind program. The Obama administration gave waivers to most states to get rid of the penalties for not reaching 100 percent proficiency by next year, as the law requires. In Arizona, the CCSI was adopted in 2010 and will be implemented during the school year, albeit under a different name Arizona retitled them it the College and Career Ready Standards. Truly, the future is now for Arizona schools. Although we should continually be improving access to quality education in this country, we seem to have halting and inappropriate means to solve this crisis. CCSI, I hope, will fix this superficial approach to solving the education crisis in this country that NCLB only furthered. The irony of this situation, however, is that CCSI was instituted as a patch for NCLB and not meant to be an entirely new program. The best to come of the old law, and the most applicable lesson that I think we have learned, is that success cannot be mandated from Washington. It must come from the communities that education serves. Success and by extension, education, must be a priority culturally and not just bureaucratically. In a recent address to state superintendents of education, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan made some controversial remarks about the idea of communitybased education policy. Some of the pushback is coming from, WE SEEM TO ONLY HAVE HALTING AND INAPPROPRIATE MEANS TO SOLVE THE CRISIS IN PUBLIC EDUCATION. sort of, white suburban moms. Their child isn t as brilliant as they thought they were, and their school isn t quite as good as they thought they were, Duncan said. The main reason for those controversial remarks is the American aversion to focus or control. The three tenets of the CCSI include focus, coherence and rigor. There s a focus here that allows for goals to be set and achieved without direct control from Washington. The CCSI for Arizona recognizes that by emphasizing required achievements, the Standards leave room for teachers, curriculum developers and states to determine how those goals should be reached and what additional topics should be addressed. Our education needs these things, mostly because there must be expectations for teachers and students. There should be a goal of, at least, being able to put together a cogent, coherent argument by the time you graduate high school. Opposition to the CCSI exists, for the most part, because it seems like just another Washington mandate. Here in Arizona, a group appropriately called Arizonans Against Common Core articulates the revolt against mandates. A document produced by the group attempts to liken CCSI to an international conspiracy. The group draws connections to the Obama administration, Intel and, most terrifying, the U.N. The group s claims are absolute malarkey and could use some common core itself. What this group does not understand, unfortunately, is that we need leadership in education policy today. If the federal government did not create an inclusive goal for this nation s education, who would step up and give us a vision? Reach the columnist at pnorthfe@asu.edu. Reliance on technology creates high expectations BECCA As technology continues to advance, upcoming generations are developing new expectations for their mobile media experience. From Netflix to Nintendo, companies are beginning to tailor their products and services to keep up with this demand. Digital video recorders, more commonly known as DVRs, allow users to record shows to view later. In 2013, this is the expectation. Kids are becoming impatient with live TV as they lack the ability to fast-forward through commercials. Kids today don t know a world where they had to wait for a program, Tara Sorensen, vice president of children s series development for Amazon Studios, told The New York Times. The idea of TV my way is the next step for the technology-driven generation. In response, Netflix developed a Just for Kids section geared for children 12 and younger. KIDS OF THE 90S ARE QUICKLY GETTING LEFT BEHIND IN THE DUST OF MODERN MEDIA. The idea of Netflix and other outlets that let kids skip past commercials has become so ingrained in our culture, we have to wonder what may come of watching TV with that added anticipation, let alone the laborious process of reading through an entire book to come to a conclusion. A Common Sense Media study found that 72 percent of children age 8 and under have used a mobile device for some type of media activity such as playing games, watching videos, or using apps, up from 38 percent in Kids of the 90s generation once ruled the digital world but are quickly getting left behind in the dust of modern media. The Gameboy, one of the first handheld gaming devices, is now a hasbeen compared to the Nintendo 3DS, which is equipped with a camera and the ability to browse the Internet. Companies like Samsung and Leapster have created tablets specifically designed for kids, developing a whole market of games that often teach math, reading or writing skills. But because of this, kids would rather pick up a stylus than a pencil when it comes to practice. Smartphones have also become more childfriendly, as the digital market is swamped with apps geared toward entertaining tiny toddler fingers. Classics such as Angry Birds and Cut the Rope have provided countless hours of amusement for kids of all ages. However, has this once leisurely trend become a crutch for personal independence? Maybe Angry Birds is like potato chips: fun to eat occasionally, but not a lot or often or as breakfast. And definitely not in bed, wrote Dr. Claire McCarthy, a pediatrician. While the lure of evolving technology seems promising, this may be hurting future generations. Kids are most creative in their elementary age, however being consumed by surrounding media seems to be stifling this freedom. Lately, kids, including college kids, seem to be calling the shots in the world of technology. This digital generation is due for a lesson is originality and personal imagination, not prompted by animations on a screen. Reach the columnist at rsmouse@asu.edu We provide the stage, you provide the rage... Write us a letter to the editor at opiniondesk.statepress@ gmail.com

15 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Opinion 15

16 16 Opinion The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 TODAY S BEST DEALS, ALL IN ONE PLACE. SAVING YOU MONEY AND TIME TO CRAM. Text SAVE to FREE COUPONS APP Attracting attention in selfie culture SEAN Have you ever taken a selfie? You know, a self-portrait that you ve uploaded to a social media website? Odds are good that you have, in fact, taken a selfie. The term selfie is so popular that it was recently deemed the Oxford English Dictionary 2013 word of the year. Yes, I have taken a selfie before, I ll admit it. I have three selfies on my Instagram account, for example. My selfies, however, were part of an innocent attempt to poke fun at one of my good friends who uploads selfies almost constantly. I maintain the fact that I have never taken a selfie for the sake of taking a selfie. My personal history aside, the concept of the selfie has begun to change this generation. On the surface, such a harmless Internet post seems trivial. I mean, what could be so wrong with a simple self-portrait? It has become, for many people, a means of self-glorification and a new avenue for them to self-promote their own physicality. I cannot even count the amount of times I have seen a selfie tagged with #selfiesunday, #nomakeup or #dolledup. People mostly girls, in my experience will upload selfies seemingly for the purpose of just uploading selfies. But they do have a purpose for posting them: We have a purpose in all that we do, whether we know it or not. Those who post selfies have a simple purpose: They want the likes. They want the attention. They want to broadcast to their followers, or friends, or whatever people on whatever social networking platform that they use, that they look good THE EMERGENCE OF THE SELFIE HAS ILLUSTRATED OUR CULTURE S CONSTANT DESIRE FOR ATTENTION. at that moment. It s a form of projecting physicality and an indirect acknowledgement of self-indulgence in an attempt to attract attention. You can quote the above sentence as my definition of the selfie, but wherever I go, the selfie seems to follow me. In my experience, it is now a rarity to find a woman without a selfie on her social media site. When you do find her, dear God, do not let her go. The discovery that a woman does not feel the need to daily project her beauty to her entire friend list should not be taken for granted. The growing popularity of the smartphone application Snapchat has somewhat alleviated this, by allowing selfies to take on a more private persona. With Snapchat, the pictures are shared not with an entire friend list but with specific individuals. I suppose this is better. I suppose the desire for attention does not necessarily apply here, at least in full force. However, the emergence of the selfie has illustrated our culture s constant desire for attention, and the lengths in which they ll go to get it. Ultimately, the selfie is a reflection of what our culture is continuously glorifying: attention. Just think of Kim Kardashian and what she represents: a fascination with easy money and one s physical beauty over other considerations. Whenever I see a selfie, I cringe because I know what it may represent and I am very saddened by the emergence of degrading Internet trends. Consider this my plea to you: Ask yourself why you are taking and posting your selfies before you post them and make sure you have an adequate reason. Reach this columnist at spmccaul@asu.edu. Copyright 2013 Voyetra Turtle Beach, Inc. (VTB, Inc.) All rights reserved. Turtle Beach, the Turtle Beach Logo, Voyetra, and Ear Force are either trademarks or registered trademarks of VTB, Inc. Made for ipod, Made for iphone, and Made for ipad mean that an electronic accessory has been designed to connect specifically to ipod, iphone, or ipad respectively, and has been certified by the developer to meet Apple performance standards. Apple is not responsible for the operation of this device or its compliance with safety and regulatory standards. ipad, iphone and ipod touch are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the US and other countries.

17 DECEMBER 18, 2013 ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY find us here!

18 18 Graduation The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Career Services help seniors plan for the future SAVANNAH Every week, global health senior Govind Sanjay Nayar visits the career services at the Tempe campus to meet with his adviser, go over his future job and school options and use the computers located there. On Thursday, Nayar sat down with Jennifer Rhodes, his adviser, for his weekly visit to discuss his future. He said he dreams of someday becoming a hospital administrator, but after he graduates in December, he wants to work for two years before attending graduate school. I was getting my résumé looked over and we were discussing my future options with grad school, Nayar said. Nayar said he uses Career Services at the University because the department has the newest information on job markets. They have well-informed advisers who know what they are talking about (and) who work with this stuff every day, he said. Their perspective is much better than mine. Scott Berren, assistant director of research and assessment at the Tempe campus Career Services, said the one-on-one appointments are a way students can have access to the career development services at ASU. We have individual advising appointments for students to work on their résumés (and) work on their interview skills, he said. One challenge the department has is accommodating the multitude of students at ASU, Berren said. What we really try to do is say How can we reach the greatest number of students with our programs? he said. A lot of that has to do with Sun Devil CareerLink. We want to have every student have the opportunity to take advantage of career development and job postings with employers. Sun Devil CareerLink is an online website where students and alumni can register, see job descriptions and apply for jobs, Barren said. Career Services also offers webinars, workshops, employer panels and career fairs. The spring semester career fair will take place in February 2014 and will include 200 employers, Berren said. ASU alumni are not only allowed, but also encouraged to attend the fairs, he said. Workshops and webinars include How to Write a Winning Résumé and How to Successfully Interview, Berren said. I always like in-person interaction, so I think that coming to an in-person workshop is really helpful as well, he said. Berren said that while he sees more student appointments focused on graduation as it gets closer, the focus of career services never shifts. KATIE DUNPHY THE STATE PRESS Global health senior Govind Nayar meets with his adviser Jennifer Rhodes in Career Services. Nayar is looking at applying for graduate school, and Rhodes is walking him thorough the process. Our mission and focus stays consistent and that s to provide career development services and techniques all year round, he said. Seniors entering the job industry should apply for multiple jobs and not just set their sights on a single job, Berren said. Make sure that you give yourself a lot of opportunities, he said. savannah.harrelson@asu.edu NURTURE YOUR CALLING We learn to take the health of the whole person into account at Bastyr. Nadia Kharas, ND (2013) Create a Healthier World Degrees Include: Naturopathic Medicine Psychology Herbal Sciences Human Biology Exercise Science Learn more: Well.Bastyr.edu BASTYR Seattle San Diego on the fly twitter.com/statepress wall-to-wall facebook.com/thestatepress

19 The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Graduation 19 Students work to become first-generation graduates LOGAN Psychology and sociology senior Lesley Rodriguez did not always think she would one day graduate from college. In December, Rodriguez will become the first person in her family to get an undergraduate degree. I set up a plan for myself and went for it, she said. A California native, Rodriguez and her family moved to Guatemala when she was very young. She spent 11 years in the Latin American country. (The poverty level there is) a lot more clear, she said. It s a third-world country. I could see the constant need to help people. Rodriguez s family often needed help. She said that to attend college, she had to find extra finances. I was working, most of the time, it was full time, while I was going to school full time as well, she said. With work in the mornings and school in the evenings, Rodriguez fit homework in when she wasn t learning at school or teaching at an elementary school. Rodriguez said time management, however, was not the most difficult part of completing college. It was adapting to the American culture. My Hispanic culture is different from the American, she said. Business senior Yonathan Vivas, who will also graduate in December, is the first of five siblings to graduate from college. Vivas lived in Venezuela until 2008 when he moved to Arizona with his wife to attend university. Vivas said he too had a hard time adapting to a new culture. I feel very fortunate to have this opportunity to study in the U.S., he said. I m really, really proud of coming here and getting to this point. During his time at ASU, Vivas has interned at US Airways and APS, and has been actively involved in multiple clubs. Vivas did this while maintaining a 4.0 GPA through college. He was successful while learning the language. A lot of (English as a Second Language) students have to put in a lot of effort, he said. It requires a higher level of effort from people like me. He said that he had difficulty formulating a paragraph when he arrived. Vivas was the salutatorian in high school. He said the effort he put into high school studies, though, was minute compared to that of learning English in college. The level (of effort) I ve had to put in here is way beyond that, he said. Vivas said he would have liked to see more native English speakers be understanding of how hard it is to learn a new language. Try to understand a little bit, what a challenge it is for (ESL students), he said. lmnewma1@asu.edu MURPHY BANNERMAN THE STATE PRESS Supply Chain Management senior Yonathan Vivas will be the first of five brothers to graduate from college. Vivas would like to work for Dell after graduation and stay in the U.S. Graduation new experience for international students EMILY For most ASU students, graduating means looking for a job and continuing the work that they ve just begin in college. But for international students, graduating means going back home, and returning to their old ways of life for the first time in four years. Abdul Bukshaisha, a senior civil engineering major from Qatar, said coming to the U.S. for college completely changed everything about his lifestyle. He communicates with his family through Skype, though he misses traditional Muslim holidays, during which his entire family would gather to celebrate. I ve never experienced Thanksgiving here but back home, it s huge, he said. Even second cousins I don t know well I still got to see at gatherings, and I miss that. Bukshaisha said he relies on many of the Middle Eastern restaurants in Tempe to get traditional food and give him a taste of home during these holidays. After graduation, Bukshaisha plans to return to Qatar to work with his father, who is also an architectural engineer. Communications senior Abdul Hussain is also from Qatar and said he plans to return home after graduation for work as a public relations official for an airline company. Staying four years away from everyone back home (and) traveling across the world just to get a degree makes me very proud, he said. What makes me even more proud was because I got my degree in English and not in my native tongue. Despite this pride in returning to Qatar, Hussain said he has mixed feelings about returning home. He felt that because of the vast amount of diversity in the U.S., he was able to fit in. I ve never felt like an international student here, he said. After four years (I m going to miss) the way of living here I don t like to say it, but there are a lot of people I probably won t see again after they graduate. Meshari Al-Aradi, an industrial engineering senior from Kuwait, said he worked very hard to make his way to ASU, as he took the English proficiency test six times, each time falling half a point below the passing rate. Finally, on his seventh try, he received the passing grade. But he said his experience at ASU has been worth all his perseverance and more. I would describe this experience as the most important experience I have ever had in my life, he said. This is the most important age, I have learned about things like self defending, a second language, seeing a second culture and living in it, challenging yourself to be self-dependent. After Aradi graduates, he plans to work for his father, who owns the Kuwait Oil Company. He said though he has missed his family, he feels going to college internationally was the best possible decision for his own personal growth, to better his English, and to VOTED BEST JEWISH DELI Readers Choice 2013 Phoenix New Times Best of Phoenix make himself more independent. I m enjoying every moment here, he said. It s a good feeling to know you re almost about to be done, achieving my goal, making myself and my family proud of me, and earning a degree you ll have for the rest of your life Hopefully my mom will visit me for my grad ceremony. 4 Locations - elmahone@asu.edu BREAKFAST-ALL-DAY, LUNCH & DINNER 7-DAYS A WEEK Featured on Travel Channel s Man v. Food! CONGRATULATIONS, GRADUATES! 1160 E. University (Between Rural & McClintock) COME HUNGRY! For Special Offers and News:,,,, & club at

20 20 Graduation The State Press Week of November 21, 2013 Graduating students worry about student loans KAREN Graduation marks the end of a college career, and for some the beginning of the 10-year student loan payoff period. Melissa Pizzo, ASU s financial aid and scholarship services director, said 64 percent of ASU students have some kind of student loan. This year, there was was only a 1.8 percent increase in the amount of students borrowing money, down significantly from the 11 percent increase last year, Pizzo said. In our mind that s saying, Oh, students really aren t borrowing more, she said. They re actually finding other sources or finding other ways to pay. She said she attributes this to the economy, families finding stable economic footing and students finding other sources to pay for school. Families may be getting a little more on stable ground that they might not need to borrow, or might not need to borrow as much, she said. Pizzo also said the amount of private and parent loans students take has decreased by $5 million. New data for the academic year will be presented to the Arizona Board of Regents this week. It states that average undergraduate loan debt is $22,848. The College Board reports that the national average nation for public university student loan debt in the academic year was $25,000. This places ASU below the national average. Resident students, Pizzo said, are borrowing even less. They borrow $21,940 or 21 percent below the national average. Economics senior Nick Lowman will graduate this December. He took out $12,500 in federal subsidized loans for all four years of school and said he will pay it off by working immediately after graduating. I ll be working independently in Asia, tutoring English on the side, he said. Lowman is fortunate to have a job opportunity lined up after graduation. In April, the AP reported that half of 2012 college graduates are unemployed or in jobs that don t use their skills they gained in college. Pizzo offered some ways that students can avoid taking out too much money in loans. If students submit a FAFSA by the March priority date, they can obtain need-based aid. There are also scholarships available through ASU s scholarship search, which was just updated with more than 200 scholarships with deadlines beginning February She also said that many students work 20 hours a week, even at minimum wage, which can pay off half of a year s tuition. We want (students) to understand all that is available to them, she said. kloschia@asu.edu DOMINIC VALENTE THE STATE PRESS Many students who are graduating in December are worried about student loans. Sixty-four percent of students have some sort of student loan. Carry on the ASU tradition. In your wallet. Congratulations, Graduates! Get your ASU card today. midfirst.com/asu