61.10 Spartan Echo

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SPARTAN ECHO| Norfolk State University 700 Park Avenue Norfolk, Virginia 23504|NEWSROOM: 757.823.8200 E-Mail: [email protected] 03.28.14 V OL. 61, I SSUE 10 TOP STORIES I NSIDE In an exclusive interview with the Spartan Echo, In- terim President and CEO Ed- die N. Moore, Jr. spoke on his plans for the future of the uni- versity under his leadership. While President Moore does have some plans of his own for the university, he does plan on continuing some initiatives started by former president Tony Atwater. Moore says he thinks 15-to- Finish was “long overdue” and he “absolutely plans on continuing it.” He did men- tion, though, that he thinks it should be 18-to-Finish. Though he isn’t making plans to amend the initiative to 18-to-Finish, he encour- ages students to take 18 cred- it hours because of student teaching and other require- ments that limit the number of credit hours students can take during some semesters. He also said 15-to-Finish is especially important to NSU students because of the large P RESIDENT M OORE REVEALS PLANS FOR NSU’ S FUTURE By Brittany Elmore Many college students are bound to try anything to avoid being ridiculed all over social media, and the drinking game "Neknominate" is the new fad that is slowly making its way into American colleges. Thought to have originated in Australia, Neknominate is the newest drinking game that has so far killed five young Drinking game responsible for five deaths By Danielle Kirsh number of students using Pell Grants to fund their educa- tion. “This is a financial aid is- sue, plain and simple, with Pell Grants only being for eight semesters,” Moore said. adults, all under the age of 30. Challengers record them- selves drinking excessive amounts of alcohol in a short period of time, nominate a few of their friends and post it on social media like Instagram and Facebook. If the people who were nominated don’t accept the challenge, they are ridiculed on the Internet. Sophomore Kortrell Askew said he’s never heard of the game, but thinks drinking games are dangerous to an ex- tent. Most of the challenges in- clude downing a couple of pints of beer under a minute The Interim President and CEO of Norfolk State University spoke with the Spartan Echo to discuss plans for the future of NSU. Photo from www.nsu.edu/president/biosketch. Drinking has been a major issue and it has been the cause of death for many. Photo by Andrew Du- orte. See five deaths, page 3 See plans for NSU’s future, page 2 NSU football program welcomed 11 new members on Naonal Signing Day in early February to make up for a disappoinng 2013 season. See “Spartans add speed and depth with 2014 recruing classPage 4 Mass Communicaon and Journalism teacher Duanne Hoffler-Foster’s introducon to university life class is going to team up with EdgyKated, to collect and provide prom are for young adults in the community. See “Going against the norm to make dreams come truePage 6

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The Spartan Echo is the student newspaper of Norfolk State University.

Transcript of 61.10 Spartan Echo

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SPARTAN ECHO| Norfolk State University 700 Park Avenue Norfolk, Virginia 23504|NEWSROOM: 757.823.8200 E-Mail: [email protected]

03.28.14Vol. 61, Issue 10

TopSTorieSi n S i d e

In an exclusive interview with the Spartan Echo, In-terim President and CEO Ed-die N. Moore, Jr. spoke on his plans for the future of the uni-versity under his leadership.

While President Moore does have some plans of his own for the university, he does plan on continuing some initiatives started by former president Tony Atwater.

Moore says he thinks 15-to-Finish was “long overdue” and he “absolutely plans on

continuing it.” He did men-tion, though, that he thinks it should be 18-to-Finish. Though he isn’t making plans to amend the initiative to 18-to-Finish, he encour-ages students to take 18 cred-it hours because of student teaching and other require-ments that limit the number of credit hours students can take during some semesters.

He also said 15-to-Finish is especially important to NSU students because of the large

President Moore reveals Plans for nsU’s fUtUre

By Brittany Elmore

Many college students are bound to try anything to avoid being ridiculed all over social media, and the drinking game "Neknominate" is the new fad that is slowly making its way into American colleges.

Thought to have originated in Australia, Neknominate is the newest drinking game that has so far killed five young

Drinking game responsible for five deathsBy Danielle Kirsh

number of students using Pell Grants to fund their educa-tion.

“This is a financial aid is-sue, plain and simple, with

Pell Grants only being for eight semesters,” Moore said.

adults, all under the age of 30. Challengers record them-

selves drinking excessive amounts of alcohol in a short period of time, nominate a few of their friends and post it on social media like Instagram and Facebook. If the people who were nominated don’t accept the challenge, they are ridiculed on the Internet.

Sophomore Kortrell Askew said he’s never heard of the game, but thinks drinking games are dangerous to an ex-tent.

Most of the challenges in-clude downing a couple of pints of beer under a minute

The Interim President and CEO of Norfolk State University spoke with the Spartan Echo to discuss plans for the future of NSU. Photo from www.nsu.edu/president/biosketch.

Drinking has been a major issue and it has been the cause of death for many. Photo by Andrew Du-orte.

See five deaths, page 3

See plans for NSU’s future,page 2

NSU football program welcomed 11 new members on National Signing Day in early February to make up for a disappointing 2013 season.

See “Spartans add speed and depth with 2014 recruiting class”

Page 4

Mass Communication and Journalism teacher Duanne Hoffler-Foster’s introduction to university life class is going to team up with EdgyKated, to collect and provide prom attire for young adults in the community.

See “Going against the norm to make dreams come true”

Page 6

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SPARTAN ECHO| Norfolk State University 700 Park Avenue Norfolk, Virginia 23504|NEWSROOM: 757.823.8200 E-Mail: [email protected]

Laws are created with in-tentions to protect citizens but can sometimes be misinter-preted or misused. One such law is the Stand-Your-Ground law.

The Stand-Your-Ground law was created so that an individual is able to defend themselves without first try-ing to remove themselves from the life-threatening situ-ation. Previous to its creation, it was the responsibility of the person feeling threatened to remove his or her self from harm. Its main purpose is to provide protection to people who use self-defense in order to protect themselves.

What happens when self-defense is claimed in what may seem like a false case?

Over the last two years, two highly publicized cases have been tried and seem to bring attention to the

Stand-Your-Ground law and the flaws it may hold.

The trials of George Zim-merman and Michael Dunn both involved the death of two African American teenagers, Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis, by gun shot at the hands of adults who claim they felt threatened. In both cases, the teenagers were unarmed, and in the case of Jordan Davis, he was located inside of a vehicle with no direct contact with his shooter.

Based on the outcome of these two cases, where neither of the assailants was charged with the murder of these young men, what are the feelings of young adults as they go about their lives day-to-day?

Mass communications se-nior Travis Matthews says the ruling does have an effect on his attitude. "By me being a father, I worry about my son.

That these things can happen to African American children and it will get looked over."

"You have to be aware of what you wear sometimes. Like, if I put this on, will they think I'm a criminal? It’s raining and I have a black hoodie on, will people think I’m a threat?" says Daron Hunt, sophomore business major. “You think that if something happens to you that there will be justice, but at the same time, they [law enforcement] can just let the guy go like your life doesn’t mean anything."

Virginia, at one time, con-sidered having a Stand-Your-Ground law. You must be aware of the laws that are passed and practiced in your state of residence because you have some input of the laws put in place in your community.

Protesters observe five minutes of silence with their fists in the air during a Day of Outrage and Remem-brance for Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis near the Five Points MARTA station on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2014, in Atlanta. About two dozen protesters gathered for the event. The 2012 shooting death of 17-year-old Martin in Florida sparked a nationwide debate about race and self-defense. George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer at the time, said he shot the unarmed teen to protect himself. Davis, a black teen, was killed in a November 2012 shooting, but the jury couldn't reach a verdict on the first-degree murder charge against Michael Dunn. A mistrial was declared on that count earlier this month. (AP Photo/Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Curtis Compton).

The effecTs of sTanding your ground

By Ciara Simmons

“67 percent…of our [NSU] students get Pell Grants, which means that if 67 per-cent of our students don’t fin-ish in eight semesters, they lose a substantial part of their funding.”

Moore says he thinks this directly affects the universi-ty’s retention and graduation rates.

Flat-rate tuition is another initiative of Atwater’s that Moore plans to continue. This may be another way to im-prove the retention and grad-uation rates of students.

“I was hired as an interim president. I was hired with a specific task, which was to get the financial ship in order. We are doing that, but I am also finding other things that need to be addressed.”

The “financial ship” Moore is talking about refers to the audits that were not complet-ed by the university, which is one reason the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools gave NSU a warning in September 2013. Moore says the audits have been completed and the university is awaiting a response from their auditor, but he antici-pates the university will have a positive revisit from SACS in September.

Other issues Moore said he thinks need to be addressed on campus include the fac-ulty.

“I think our high use of ad-junct faculty needs to be ad-

■Continued from front page

dressed, and we’re addressing that,” Moore said. “I believe actually the number of fac-ulty, which appears to be high for our student body, needs to be addressed.”

There are also plans to put more focus on the academics of the university versus the auxiliary activities. Moore says, though he could not provide specific details at the time, that students can expect to see a reallocation of funds from the auxiliary side to the academic side.

Plans for nsU’s fUtUre

“67 percent…of our [NSU] students

get Pell Grants, which means that if 67 percent of

our students don’t finish in eight

semesters, they lose a substantial part of

their funding.”

Moore says he has nothing new planned for the univer-sity, “just more attention to what we’re required to do, more efficiency, and hope-fully, better outcomes.”

Moore says he plans on up-grading and enhancing the university, but “we still have work to do.”

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while others show a deadly concoction of whiskey, wine, vodka and beer.

“You have to have somebody looking after you, but there is a limit to the drinks,” Askew said.

Medical adviser for the UK-based charity Drinkware Dr. Sarah Jarvis told CNN, “The point about alcohol is that it affects your ability to recog-nize that you’re in danger,

responsible for five deaths■Continued from front page

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and it absolutely affects your ability to react to danger.”

The dangers of this drinking game are apparent. Neknomi-nate is increasing the amount of alcohol poisoning deaths and some participants don’t realize they may be drinking their fatal last drink.

Askew said, “I think drinking games are peer pressure in the form of a game. It can be fun, but it can get out of control.”

So far, this drinking game has shown that it has no limits. Challengers whip up various cocktails in order to upstage one another. The mixing of the different alcohols and the weird ingredients contributes to the fatality of this game.

One participant recorded himself mixing a dead mouse in to his drink, while another participant poured his alcohol into a toilet to drink out of.

Neknominate is slowly popu-larizing and getting publicity from social media and is be-coming increasingly danger-ous.

Other parts of the chal-lenge are based on the ap-proach. One man participat-ed in the challenge by riding on horseback in the middle of a supermarket while downing the alcohol while another challenger downed a

pint of beer wearing a bath-ing suit in the bathroom of a McDonalds.

Junior Chrystal Kelly said, "It's always the stupid people doing ignorant things. Not only do you risk your life do-ing this, but what if future employers see it online? That stays with you forever."

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Hosting the MEAC tourna-ment for the second year in a row proved unkind once again for NSU basketball. Neither team was able to make it as far as the championship game of the tournament that was held at the Norfolk Scope Arena from March 10-15.

As the No. 6 seed, the Lady Spartans up-and-down season continued into the post-season as they were upset in their first round matchup against No.11 seed University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

Senior Rachel Gordon—who was named as an ALL-MEAC first team selection prior to the start of the game—finished the game with just seven points.

“Individually, I did not make all the shots I should’ve made and missed some key defensive plays that sort of hurt down the stretch,” said Gordon. “I was also in foul trouble early on. I played my hardest; we just came up short.”

The Lady Spartans led the game by as many as 13 points, but were unable to hold on to the lead and extend their sea-son.

“I blame a lack of focus and the fact that we got complacent when we were up,” said Gor-don on blowing the comfort-able lead. “We allowed them to keep scoring while they were able to get stops on us.”

Earning a No. 4 seed in the MEAC tournament, the men’s team also faced off against UMES in the first round who were the No. 13 seed.

The Spartans led the Hawks throughout nearly the entire contest and opened up to a 23-point lead early in the sec-ond half.

UMES clawed their way back late in the second half thanks to some costly NSU turnovers and tied the game with just over two minutes remaining.

The crowd grew anxious

as a meltdown similar to last seasons MEAC tournament seemed on the horizon.

“There was definitely a little deja vu on that sideline, but we made the plays we needed to down the stretch,” said Head Coach Robert Jones.

Thanks to clutch foul shoot-ing by senior Pendarvis “Pen-ny” Williams—who led all scorers with 22 points to go along with seven rebounds and three assists—the Spartans were able to survive 78-74 and move on to the quarterfinals.

“It was either win or go home. I wanted to win,” said Williams. “Being 6-6, most guards in the MEAC are around 6-2 so I can shoot over the top of them, post them up and do a lot of other things.”

In their second round match-up, NSU took on No. 5 seed Savannah State University who they beat by seven on the road in late January.

Both teams played stifling defense in the first half, which led to a tight contest early on. The Spartans took a one-point lead into the half and knew they were in for a fight.

The second half proved to be a game of runs with NSU lead-ing by as many as 14 points. SSU constantly battled back, but could never get within clos-er than seven points as NSU ad-vanced to the semifinals.

Williams again carried the bulk of the load for NSU with 20 points and three steals.

Senior Malcolm Hawkins—who led the Spartans in scoring during the regular season—managed just one point on 0-of-9 shooting from the field.

“I think at times I was rush-ing my shot,” said Hawkins. “They did a good job of chas-ing me around and making me think too much. My teammates

The NSU football program welcomed 11 new members on National Signing Day in early February. The recruiting strategy was clear from the be-ginning as the Spartans look to bounce back from a disap-pointing 3-9 finish in 2013.

“You always want to fulfill areas where you have needs. We wanted to improve our speed on offense, and we did that,” said Head Coach Pete Adrian. “We have three guys coming in at the skill positions who are really fast; they run in the 4.4, 4.5 range in the 40-yard dash. We also needed a few more offensive linemen which we were able to get three. It’s a real solid recruiting class that we’re looking at.”

Highlighting this year’s class is 6-foot-3-inch quarterback Terrance Ervin from L.C. Bird H.S. in Chesterfield, Va. Ervin finished his high school ca-reer with two state champion-ships—in his junior and senior seasons—and a 29-0 record as a starter. Adrian believes he has the potential to have the

biggest impact on the Spartans going forward.

“You have to start with the quarterback. He’s [Ervin] never lost a game. He can run it, and he can throw it,” said Adrian. “It’s hard to win back-to-back state championships in Virginia, so we’re very pleased about that.”

Running back Terry Polk is another big pick-up on the of-fensive side of the ball. Polk, out of Venice H.S. in North Port, Fla, rushed for 1,840 yards and 22 touchdowns in his senior season.

“He’s just a gifted athlete and extremely fast,” said Adrian. “He’s a kid that any time he touches the ball, he has the po-tential to go all the way. He’s got breakaway speed; plus, he’s very shifty.”

The coaching staff is also excited about wide receiver Darius Wilson out of Amherst County H.S. in Amherst, Va. His combination of size and speed should help open things up for the Spartans offensively.

“He’s a big guy, at 6 feet 3

inches, who can catch the ball over the middle as well as go deep. He presents that deep threat that will definitely help us,” said Adrian.

Defensively, Adrian looked to add depth with linebackers Kyle Archie (Portsmouth, Va./Norcom H.S.)—whose grand-father was the Athletic Direc-tor at NSU over twenty years ago—and Ricky Haley (Nor-folk, Va./Maury H.S.), along with defensive back Ebenezer Agyemang-Kusi out of Forest Park H.S. in Woodbridge, Va.

The Spartans will begin spring football on April 2. They plan to hold 15 prac-tices and have inter-squad scrimmages on April 12, 19 and 26. Their first order of business will be a familiar one.

“The first thing we want to do is try and establish a number-one quarterback,” said Adrian. All three will be back from last year, but hopefully someone will surface and become the starter.”

Spartans add speed and depth with 2014 recruiting class

By Jason Gill

From left to right: Conner Dorris (Navy), Justus Reed (Florida), Clearwater Central Catholic coach John Davis, Caanan Brown (Virginia), Ethan Thompson (Black Hills State) and Diquan Walker (Holy Cross) pose at Clear-water Central Catholic's NCAA college football National Signing Day, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Jim Damaske).

Both men and women fail to

capture MEAC titleBy Jason Gill

See fail to capture MEAC title, page 5

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fail to capture MEAC title

Being the lone senior on the team, Rachel Gordon had the weight of the basketball world on her shoulders this season. Although difficult at times, she embraced all that came with it and the times she had with this team the last four years.

“I’ve been through so much with this team and my coaches; they were like my second fami-ly,” said Gordon. “I’m going to miss all the fun times we had.”

Gordon’s choice to follow in her parents’ footsteps was not originally a forgone con-clusion. Her Mother Cher-ise—who was a cheerleader at NSU—and her father Jeff—also NSU alumni—were not initially sold on Rachel coming to NSU.

With scholarship offers from Mt. Saint Mary’s, Colgate Uni-versity, Coppin State Univer-sity and American University, her parents felt it was best for her to weigh all of her options.

“My parents were a little “iffy” when I first told them I wanted to go to NSU,” said

Gordon says farewell to NSUBy Jason Gill

Rachel Gordon showing why she deserves to be on the court. Photo by Donte Hayden.

Gordon. “Once I came for a visit on campus, I loved it here and knew that this is where I wanted to go.”

The Woodbridge native will surely go down as one of the greatest women’s basketball players in NSU history. In a road victory against Howard University, Gordon became the all-time career rebound-ing leader in NSU history with 1,015.

“It feels great to know that I made history and that I will be in the record books for a long time,” said Gordon. “I want to be remembered as a differ-ence maker and that I was an important factor for my team’s success.”

A psychology major, Gordon has begun to contemplate the possibility of life without bas-ketball. She has also not ruled out the opportunity of continu-ing to play overseas next year.

“I want to go to grad school and get my masters in sociol-ogy. I might also consider play-ing basketball at the profes-

sional level. It’s something I’m looking into now, so we’ll see,” said Gordon.

With the conclusion of her final collegiate sea-son, Gordon values her

journey throughout NSU, and her only regret is not having enough time to do more.

“I just wish I had more time available to get in-

volved with more school activities,” said Gordon.

She will certainly be remembered for the posi-tive impact she has had on NSU athletics.

stepped up and had a good game; they picked up the slack for me.”

Unfortunately, the Spartans run would end in the semis at the hands of No.1 seed and eventual MEAC champions North Carolina Central Univer-sity.

Attempting to avenge a six

point home loss to the Eagles just a week prior, the Spartans battled hard in the first half as neither team could gain any separation.

“Defensively, we held them to 38 percent in the first half, which is a good number. 40 percent for the game, which is not a bad number, but offen-

sively, we just couldn’t get go-ing,” said Jones.

The second half however was a different story. NCCU used its physical defense and caught fire on offense to pull away from NSU in front of a Spartan heavy crowd 68-45.

“They were being physi-cal with us,” said Jones. “We

weren’t able to get the position-ing and spacing on the court as we normally get.”

Williams—who will cer-tainly go down as one of the all-time great Spartans—scored a team high 12 points as his lus-trous college career came to a disappointing end.

“Norfolk State gave me a

great opportunity. Coach Jones and other coaches as well did a great job developing me into having a good career,” said Williams. “I didn’t want to end my career like this. I know all my seniors and teammates didn’t want to go out like this. We wanted to win a champion-ship.”

■Continued from page 4

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Building professional rela-tionships and networking in college are some of the most important goals of college students. Lifelong friends are made in the classroom, but one of the most important re-lationships that can be forged throughout your college career is with professors.

Most students think that they’ll only see this profes-sor for one or two semesters, but what most fail to realize is when you start your ma-jor courses you may have the same professor multiple times. Building healthy relationships with your professors early can be very beneficial. They can guide you in the right direc-tion and provide information on what steps to take to benefit students after their college ca-reer.

“I think it’s important for students to have a relation-ship with their professor," says sophomore criminal justice major Antwan Bynum. "Pro-fessors can provide you with connections outside the class-room such as internships and after school clubs and they can open doors of opportunity for you. You can also seek men-torship from them and gain an abundance of knowledge.”

Instructors value relation-ships with students as a way to bestow wisdom to their stu-dents beyond the books.

Gerald Thompson, profes-sor of African American mu-sic, said, “The professor’s

perspective is to enlighten the students to the idea to go be-yond the classroom. I think it’s very important to build healthy relationships because I like to provide my students with 'ac-celerated wisdom.’ If I can provide them with wisdom to progress, I believe that’s the general idea of the professor-student relationship.”

All college instructors want to see you succeed, but it’s up to the students to show up to class on time, ask questions, visit during office hours and make appointments with pro-fessors. Remember, they are here to help.

Developing relationships is also about trust.

“We all need help some-times, so it’s important to form a bond so you can better teach that student. I can relate a lot to my students so it makes it eas-ier for me to relay information to them, and they don’t have to research certain material be-cause they can trust what I’m telling to them,” says Lateef Gibson, mass communication professor and video specialist.

Of all the relationships formed on a college campus, the one developed with profes-sors is the most important. Just by talking to them, you may find that you have a lot more in common than you originally thought.

Taking the time out of one semester to develop and un-derstanding with an instruc-tor could turn into a lifelong friendship in the future.

Professor-student relationships:

a college stUdent’s Most iMPortant relationshiP statUs

By Stephanie Cousins

Going against the norm to make dreams come true

By Ciara N. Simmons

Every semester, students of freshman introduction cours-es have to develop and com-plete a community recycling project. Normally, that would involve activities along the line of cleaning up the trash that may litter the surround-ing area, but this semester, one class decided to do things a little differently.

Teaming up with EdgyKat-ed, Duanne Hoffler-Foster’s introduction to university life class is going to collect and provide prom attire for young adults in the community.

EdgyKated is an event planning and community out-reach organization. Founded by five educated young pro-fessional women, their mis-sion is to “empower and edu-cate mislead youth and adults to be productive members of society while looking virtu-

ous.” This program will help them begin to accomplish those goals.

The “Prom Queens with Dreams” program was devel-oped by EdgyKated with the purpose “not only to make a teenager’s dream of going to prom more accessible, it is also to build self-esteem.”

“The prom apparel drive is also an effort to make prom more affordable for the low-income family,” says the group.

There are a few require-ments for involvement in the program.

“You must be a junior or senior enrolled in high school planning to attend their junior/senior prom. You must also be willing to meet with the ladies of EdgyKated to retrieve prom apparel as well as be open to discuss your educational and

career goals, long and short terms goals and how you will pursue them.”

“Although this project is going to be ventured through NSU, we are opening it up to the community,” says Hoffler-Foster, student advis-er and university life instruc-tor.

If you or anyone you know has any gently used prom dresses and/or suits that are no longer being used, please contact Hoffler-Foster by email at [email protected], by phone at 757-823-2443 or in her office in Madison Hall, room 241 to make a donation.

If you have any question about the program, you can reach the coordinators at [email protected], Le-ticia Latham at (757) 351-5888 or Shana Simmons at (757) 701-0762.

Teacher Duanne Hoffler-foster speaks to the students students of freshman introduction courses. Photo by Danielle Kirsh.

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e d i t o r s

JasonGillSports Editor

BrittanyElmoreEditor-in-Chief

DeVanique RileyOnline/Managing Editor

RobertHaydenMultimedia Editor

TrentonFouche’Entertain-ment Editor

CiaraSimmonsLifestyle Editor

703.28.14 Spartan Lifestyle

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DanielleKirshNews Editor

It’s not too late to get involved with the Echo!

We meet every Tuesday and Thursday in room 344 at 12:30

pm. ALL majors welcome.

The E.L. Hamm Fine Arts Building is filled with the sounds of music from the Con-cert Choir under the direction of Dr. Carl Haywood to the Symphonic Wind Ensemble under the direction of Mr. Paul Adams. However, one ensem-ble in particular is filled with a musical zest that only com-petition can bring out. That ensemble is the NSU Jazz En-semble under the direction of Ms. Stephanie Sanders.

The NSU Jazz Ensemble

is preparing for their annual trip to Villanova University for its Jazz Festival on March 29 and 30. “I feel pretty con-fident about it, we are having sectional rehearsals and do-ing a lot of sight reading to get prepared for the competition,” said Sanders.

All bands that compete in the competition have four songs they can play and are allotted 20 minutes to perform. Sanders will choose songs from differ-ent styles of jazz, these styles

including: Latin Jazz, 1940s Big Band and Avant Guard.

“It is important to play dif-ferent styles of music, it makes your presentation more excit-ing,” said Sanders.

Last year’s festival was can-celled due to a major snow storm, so students and directors from all the schools are prepar-ing to win this year’s festival.

“I’m excited about go-ing; we didn’t go last year. I’m ready to prove myself,” said Michael Minix, lead

alto in the jazz ensemble.“I’m excited and ready to go

and have a good time and show NSU’s true musicianship,” said trumpeter Briscoe Davis.

There is a special feeling that students in Sanders’ jazz ensemble get every time they perform. Whether it’s playing for kids in kindergarten or at a major jazz festival on the East Coast, the jazz band is always ready to excite, educate and en-tertain its audience with a high level of musicality.

NSU Jazz Ensemble hits a high noteBy Ephraim Pinckney

Spartan Echo accepting applications for fall 2014The Spartan Echo is accepting applications now for all editor positions (listed below). Editors will serve during the fall 2014

semester and receive a performance grant for their service. Amounts vary by position. Some work—done from home—will be necessary during the summer to prepare for the fall semester. Contact the faculty adviser at [email protected] or 757-823-2444 for more detailed information.

Students with previous professional or student media experience are strongly encouraged to apply, but previous experience is not necessary. Students from any major may apply. Applicants, however, must meet the minimum qualifications for all positions (listed below).

Applications are available online from Student Activities and Leadership. https://www.nsu.edu/Assets/websites/student-activities/Student-Publication-Forms/Spartan-Echo-Publication-Application.doc

Applications will be accepted via e-mail at [email protected], or in-person at MAD 282, through April 4.All potentially qualified applicants will be interviewed by the faculty adviser and must supply work samples at that time. Follow-up

interviews and grammar testing may apply. Positions are awarded by the Student Publication Board after spring semester grades are posted.

Preferred Qualifications for All Positions- previously published as a journalist

- medium-to-advanced computer literacy- leadership experience

- ability to take photographs and email them- WordPress experience

- Adobe Photoshop and In-Design experience- ability to shoot and edit video

Minimal Qualificatons for All Positions- pre-registered as a full-time NSU student for Spring 2014

- 2.5 cumulative GPA or higher- 2.0 GPA or higher for spring 2013

- agreement to adhere to journalistic standards- ability to follow instructions

and meet deadlines- time and dedication to perform staff duties

Minimal Position Qualifications

Managing Editor:- leadership experience- copy editing experience- previously published as a journalist- mastery of Associated Press style- medium-to-advanced computer literacy- WordPress experience

Editor-in-Chief:- leadership experience- administrative experience- student organization experience- copy editing experience- previously published as a journalist- mastery of Associated Press style- medium-to-advanced computer literacy- WordPress experience

Section Editor:- ability to gather information accurately from authoritative sources- ability to write journalistic material in Associated Press style- ability to edit copy according to Associated Press style- ability to recruit and supervise volunteer reporters- WordPress experience

Multimedia Editor: - photography/videography experience- experience writing captions with accuracy and clarity

Graphic Design/Layout Editor:- Adobe In-Design and Photoshop experience- newspaper layout/graphic design experience

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803.28.14Spartan Entertainment

SPARTAN ECHO| Norfolk State University 700 Park Avenue Norfolk, Virginia 23504|NEWSROOM: 757.823.8200 E-Mail: [email protected]

Before reality shows invad-ed the airwaves, the big thing on television was talk shows. Plenty daytime talk shows ex-ist with loyal viewers and ex-cellent ratings, but late-night shows have often been able to grab a younger demographic.

After nearly 42 years, To-night Show returned to New York City with its current host Jimmy Fallon. Fallon is best known for being a Saturday Night Live cast member for six seasons and as former host of NBC’s Late Night.

According to Nielsen.com,

on the debut week of Monday, Feb. 17, Tonight Show racked up 11.3 million viewers. Be-cause of the Winter Olympics coverage in Sochi, Fallon had temporarily taken the mid-night slot following the pop-ular sports competition. On the week of Feb. 24, Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon re-turned to its original 11:35 p.m. slot.

Thus far, Fallon’s guests have included actors Will Smith, Cameron Diaz, Reese Witherspoon, Will Ferrell, Bradley Cooper and more.

Although Fallon has changed his hosting duties, he will continue using the same format he used on Late Night, with segments such as “Late Night Hashtags” and “Thank You Notes.” Fallon makes an account of realizing that chil-dren sometimes sneak around their parents’ permission to stay up late to watch his show. Fallon condones such behav-ior because he wishes to put a smile on viewers’ faces be-fore bedtime.

If you loved Fallon then, you will adore him now.

In a hip-hop genre full of copy cats, Kid Cudi has re-mained unique. After being placed on the cover of XXL’s magazine in 2009’s freshman class of hip-hop artists at the time, Cudi has maintained a cult following. With the debut of his first album, Man on the Moon: The End of Day, up until his most recent album, Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon, his growth as an artist has become apparent.

The album’s first song, “Go-ing to the Ceremony”, seems a celebration of life while remi-niscing on his past substance abuse.

“Drinking again, drinking again bottles up. I'm in to win but none of my friends just me and this bottle.” He continues “People say that I'm on, say that I'm off I wouldn't doubt it.

Tonight Show finds its way back to NYC

By Jamal Chatman

If you were me free as a bird, flying over mountains.”

Although much of the 10 track album touches on his per-sonal demons, Kid Cudi makes an attempt to find a balance. In the album’s title track, “Satel-lite Flight”, he seems more re-flective on his success.

“Take a second to adjust to the ride. They say if this was a crime, it’d be federal. Lately I’ve been feelin’ invincible. As I’m tryna find my way can’t nothing hold me though.”

Although some casual lis-teners may not understand his unique approach, Kid Cudi has always remained honest with himself and with his fans through his music, and his lat-est offering is no different. Al-though the album is relatively short, it’s worth a listen.

Kid Cudi Satellite Flight: the Journey to Mother Moon

By Trenton Fouche’

First Lady Michelle Obama gave some motherly advice to pop-star Justin Beiber dur-ing her recent interview with Univision Radio host Enrique Santos.

When asked about Justin, Michelle said “I would pull him close. You know, I don’t know if it would be advice as much as action. I would be very present in his life right now. And I would be probably with him a good chunk of the time, just there to talk, to fig-ure out what’s going on in his head, to figure out who’s in his life and who’s not, you know?”

Recently Bieber had been charged with a DUI, drag rac-ing and resisting arrest while yelling profanities at police officers. He had been the topic of discussion on several televi-

sion and radio shows. A petition was filed for the pop-star after his arrest stating that people of the United States wanted him deported back to Canada and his green card revoked.

Although, Michelle Obama was not one to judge, she un-derstood how the current gen-eration is different from past and had a different perspective of Bieber.

“I found that to be the case with my kids,” she said. “They just want you near, you know they want that advice from a parent. They want to see you on a daily basis, you know? Because the thing is, he’s still a kid. He’s still growing up. So, I would pull him close.”

The star, known for hits like “Girlfriend” and “Baby” could face a trial in Florida in March.

Michelle Obama offers advice to Justin Beiber

By Ra'chel Crider

Graphic photos from www.facebook.com/300Moviev www.facebook.com/Official.NeedForSpeedMoviev www.facebook.com/MuppetsMostWantedMovie

The tonight show returns to New York with Jimmy Fallon as host. Photo from www.facebook.com/photo.php.