THE WOOD WORDMarywood University’s Official Student Newspaper

Communication Arts Department

March 2013

thewoodword.org

New pope elected from the New WorldPage 3

Brigid EdmundsAssistant News Editor

Three parking spaces

behind the Sette LaVerghetta Center for Performing Arts parking lot have been reserved for music therapy clients. The change, which went into effect at the beginning of the semester, is due to congestion and confusion regarding parking in the past. The music therapy program has 16 to 18 clients who visit the facility Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Supervisor of the music therapy clinic, Maria Fay, outlined some of the problems of the program’s clients. “Often, mothers have two or

three kids with them when they come so it was really difficult for them to find a parking spot and to get in here,” she stated. Clients brought up their concerns to Fay, who then turned the issue over to Mike Finegan, chief of campus safety. Some of these concerns included parking in spots and being unsure of whether they would receive a ticket.

To solve the problem, Finegan spoke with Vice President for Business Affairs and Treasurer, Joe Garvey, about reserving three spots in the lot. Finegan explained that the parking spots were modeled after another campus clinic’s reserved spots for clients.

“The [Music Therapy]

department reached out asking if we would be able to reserve a couple spots for their clients, just as there are spots reserved down at the speech and hearing clinic for their clients.”

The fine for parking in the music therapy client spaces is $25.

News 3 2 News

University community remains largely silent on Mellow Center controversy

Marywood staff member receives award - Lauren Williams, director of military and veteran services, was honored with the Commander's Award for Public Service at the Royal Warrior Battalion's Military Ball on February 16 at the Radisson at Lackawanna Station Hotel. Visual Arts Center back door now locked - Due to continued security breaches, the rear door of the VAC will now remain locked. It will unlock if the fire alarm system is activated. For more information, contact Mike Finegan: finegan@m a r y u . m a r y w o o d . e d u . Career Development Fair will take place Wednesday, April 3 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. in the Fireplace Lounge, Nazareth Student Center. The fair will include interviewing, job search, resume-writing, career decision-making and more. Open to all majors. For more information, contact careerservices@m a r y u . m a r y w o o d . e d u . The Marywood University Employment and Internship Fair will be held Wednesday, April 17 in the Latour Room, Nazareth Student Center from 1 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. The fair will feature employers offering full-time positions and internships. Open to all majors. For more information, contact careerservices@

m a r y u . m a r y w o o d . e d u .Release the Light Sexual Assault Awareness program will take place Wednesday, April 17 in the Fireplace Lounge, Nazareth Student Center from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. For more information, contact Linda Cadugan: lcadugan@m a r y u . m a r y w o o d . e d u . The annual undergraduate research forum will showcase undergraduate student research on Wednesday, April 24 in the Liberal Arts Center. Work may be presented during the poster session from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. or read as a paper in the afternoon sessions from 2 p.m. - 4 p.m. A faculty member must endorse applications and attest to the quality of the work. For more information, contact Dr. Erin Sadlack: e a s a d l a c k @ m a r y w o o d .edu or 348-6211, ext. 2344. The annual graduate research forum will showcase graduate student research on Thursday, April 25 from 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. in the Rotunda, Liberal Arts Center. Standard academic research posters are encouraged and to be expected; however, participation is not limited to strict research projects. For more information, contact Beverly Mizanty: bmizanty@m a r y u . m a r y w o o d . e d u .

News BriefsNew pope elected from the New World

New parking spaces reserved for music therapy

Joseph Petro / The Wood Word

Robert SmithWeb Editor

Breaking with about 2000 years of Church tradition, the College of Cardinals elected Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Buenos Aires as the 266th Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church on March 13.

Bergoglio is the first pope to take the name Francis, the first pope from the Americas, the first pope from outside Europe in a millennia, and the first pope who was a member of the Jesuit order, according to The Guardian.

Many witnesses of Pope Francis' first public address noted its diversion from the norm, with the new pontiff asking the faithful for spiritual support.

"It really struck me how he asked for our prayers," said Annmarie Holler, resident assistant of the "Big House" spirituality-themed wing of Madonna Hall. "Asking for our help made everyone feel a part of the ceremony. It was really cool."

Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in

Buenos Aires, Argentina to a blue-collar Italian immigrant father and a stay-at-home mother. He was appointed Archbishop of his birth city in 1998, according to information acquired by Time magazine.

Bergoglio lived simply and focused his ministry on the poor, reports the Catholic News Service. As Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Bergoglio lived in an apartment rather than the Archbishop’s official residence, cooked his own meals, and rode the bus.

While his simple lifestyle is seen as a positive direction for the Church, Francis maintains conservative social views in line with traditional Catholic teachings. Sources like The New York Times report that as Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Bergoglio often clashed with the government and condemned them for allowing same-sex marriage and for allowing same-sex couples to adopt.

Despite this, many are hopeful that Francis will bring about progress in other areas.

“He shows great hope for the vision of the Church for the people,” said Sr. John Michele Southwick, assistant director of Campus Ministry. “His social justice stance is what the Church needs.”

However, Sr. Southwick and others remain cautious as the newly appointed pope has not yet touched on major issues such as the role of women in the Church and the priest sex-abuse scandals.

Sarah E. CruzNews Editor

On Wednesday, March 13, State Attorney General Kathleen Kane indicted former PA State Senator Robert J. Mellow, namesake of the Robert J. Mellow Center for Athletics and Wellness at Marywood University, in an alleged pay-to-play scam involving the PA Turnpike.

The charges include corrupt organizations, bribery, bid-rigging, and conspiracy. The one-time legislator has been serving a 16-month sentence in federal prison for tax evasion and mail fraud since last November.

These latest developments have reignited the debate concerning the many landmarks and locations in the area named after Mellow according to various media outlets.

Blakely borough council

voted at its Monday, March 18 meeting to remove his name from Mellow Park. Also, some businesses located on Senator Bob Mellow Drive in Jessup are calling for their street’s name to be changed as well.

Although the Board of Trustees of Lackawanna College voted in November to maintain the name of the Mellow Theater, they have stated that the discussion will resume at their next meeting scheduled for April.

Keystone College is considering changing the name of its Mellow Family Children’s Campus, a laboratory utilized by early childhood and elementary education majors.

According to the Marywood website, Mellow secured $2 million in funding for the construction of the university facility through his position as the Senate

Democratic leader. He was also awarded an honorary doctorate at the university’s 2002 commencement ceremony.

Marywood University constituencies have not officially taken a position on the matter nor have they made any recommendations as to whether the facility’s name should be changed.

The executive council of the faculty senate will discuss the issue and contemplate putting it on the general assembly’s agenda for their Friday, April 5 meeting, stated Dr. Edward O’Brien, chair of the faculty senate.

Meghan Cruciani, president of the professional staff senate, said that the matter was not a scheduled item on the agenda for their March 25 meeting, but that it might be discussed as new business.

“I suppose there is the

possibility of that being brought up, but no one has brought that issue to my attention as of right now, so I don’t really have any indication that it will be addressed,” she stated.

Sherry Frable, president of the support staff senate, said that the assembly had already had its scheduled meetings for the year, and therefore “will not be taking action or making recommendations on this issue,” she stated.

The Marywood Alumni Association (MAA) will not decide whether to take a stance on the issue until their Saturday, April 13 meeting said Bob Ide, vice president of the MAA.

Nicholas Pesarcik, president of the Student Government Association, said that while the decision whether to rename the center is challenging, it is one that should be reached

following a transparent university-wide conversation.

“We feel the best solution would be to have open discussion across the university community, for the facts to be clearly explained to all stakeholders, opinions formed, and a decision made. The SGA is certainly open to hosting a university forum and would welcome dialogue about this issue,” he stated.

The next Marywood Board of Trustees meetings are scheduled for April 19-20.

“I am confident that the naming of the Mellow Center will be discussed, understanding that the board will take this matter seriously and consider the many nuances involved in making such a decision,” said Juneann Greco, communications director.

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Graphic Credit: Melissa Foligno

New parking spaces for music therapy clients.

Catholics place their hope and faith in Francis

4 News

Sarah E. CruzNews Editor

University officials are in the process of filling two upper-level administrative positions that will soon be vacated by retiring administrators, Dr. Clayton Pheasant, vice president for university advancement, and Dr. Mary Anne Fedrick, dean of the Reap College of Education and Human Development.

Dr. Patricia Dunleavy, assistant vice president for human resources, provides consultation to every major faculty or administration search committee at the start of their duties.

“What I generally do is go and talk to each search committee as they begin

the process and talk about procedures that I suggest to them as best practices so that all search committees are consistent, and [ask] job-related [questions and are] well-documented.”

Once an open position is made known to the public and applications are received, the standard process includes reviewing resumes, followed by phone interviews, and on-campus interviews. The search committee then submits a comprehensive report of the final applicants to the appropriate university official to make the final decision – the president of the university for the new vice president; the vice president for academic affairs for the new dean.

Dunleavy advises search

committee members on matters such as choices that could be perceived as biased or unfair to candidates, such as the same individual checking all of a person’s references. Rather, she recommends that all of the committee members share the responsibility. She also informs them of the type of questions that can and cannot be asked according to law, and the appropriate way to gain the information needed to make a fair judgment of a candidate.

The search for the new vice president for university advancement began at the end of last year. In February, four finalists met with various members of the university community. Dunleavy stated that the committee is looking for an individual who has both

the quantitative and qualitative skills needed to fill the position and one who will “move [the university] forward, especially considering that we’re in the middle of a campaign."

Mr. Collier Parker, dean of the Insalaco College of Creative and Performing Arts, is the chair of the search committee for the new dean. After sending out the advertisement to national professional publications in late October and whittling down the pool of applicants, three finalists were brought to campus for interviews last week.

“[We are looking for qualities in] each candidate [such as] problem solving, effective decision [making], whether they can build trust and resolve conflict, their

vision, and how they can relate that to the Marywood mission and vision. We also give them a chance to expound on their experience and how [that] relates to the university,” said Parker.

The new vice president for university advancement and dean of the Reap College of Education and Human Development will be announced before the end of the semester.

“We want a process that’s as efficient as [can be]," Dunleavy stated.

Marywood anticipating two major administration appointments

Student Activities to implement new rules for clubs and organizations

Mackenzie WarrenCorrespondent

This fall, the Office of Student Activities and Leadership Development is initiating new rules for clubs and organizations on campus with the goal of making things run more smoothly and efficiently.

There are several registered clubs at Marywood, but many are inactive and others have an unknown number of active members. Also, until recently, clubs were allowed to hold events with no limits on how much money they would cost, as long as the events were approved.

Though basic club rules will

remain the same, all clubs will be required to complete and update paperwork in order to be re-recognized and to receive $200 in seed money. Any club that does not comply by Friday, Sept. 20 will not be seen as an official student organization and will not receive funding.

Clubs that comply after this date will receive a 25 percent deduction from their budgets.

All club leaders will also be mandated to attend a leadership training session on Wednesday, Sept. 25. Club leaders who do not attend will receive a 25 percent cut from their budget.

Additional club funding decisions will now be made by the Student Government Association executive cabinet.

Callie Frieler, the interim director of student activities and leadership development, said that the Student Government Association is behind the changes.

“[The SGA] wanted a better grasp on what money they were giving to certain organizations because right now, they don’t have a lot of tracking resources for that. So this is stemming from [them] wanting a little more hand in where their funding is actually going,” stated Frieler.

Chris Carl, graduate assistant for student activities and leadership development, said that the new rules will improve efficiency.

“With the changes in

technology and growth of the amount of clubs, the new rules will make for a more convenient structure and more user-friendly process,” said Carl.

Students who would like to start a brand new club on campus can do so at any time during the school year.

Bob Hannon/ The Wood WordMembers of the Health Professions Society gather for their meeting

Opinion 5

Have an opinion you want to share? Submit a letter to the editor.Letters must be 300 words or less. The Wood Word reserves the right to edit letters for length and grammar. Send name, title, and a phone number where you can be reached to: thewoodword@m.marywood.edu.

The Wood WordEditorial Board

In the case of the Robert J. Mellow Center for Athletics and Wellness at Marywood University, its name-sake is a former state senator who has been convicted of tax evasion and mail fraud and has now been indicted for bribery and conspiracy.

For 40 years, Robert Mellow did what any state senator was supposed to do, bring state funding back to his area to benefit his constituents. First elected in 1970, the young accountant turned legislator had a promising career ahead of him. Mellow pushed for the creation of the state lottery, backed countless bills supporting money for schools, and favored cutting state spending instead of raising taxes.

And if the area needed funding for a project, Mellow delivered.

In 2006, Mellow was re-elected for the last time after obtaining $35 million for The Commonwealth Medical College. He announced his retirement in 2010 as his life began to unravel.

In June of that year, federal investigators raided Mellow’s Archbald home and Peckville office. On May 9, 2012, he pled guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and filing a false income tax return.

In the last few weeks, Northeastern Pennsylvania has learned of Mellow’s involvement in another scandal, this time involving the PA Turnpike.

Attorney General Kathleen Kane explained how taxpayer money was used to line the pockets of politicians and others involved to sway elections. C o n t r i b u t i o n s were secretly given to public officials by turnpike vendors, adding up to large sums of lost public funds. Mellow has been charged with corrupt organizations, bribery, bid-rigging, and conspiracy, just to name a few.

In light of these offenses, officials in Blakely have already voted to rid Bob Mellow’s name from Mellow Park. Lackawanna College has already voted once to keep the name on its Mellow Theater.

The time has come for Marywood to make a decision regarding the Robert J. Mellow Center for Athletics and Wellness.

Does what Mellow did for this area, and for this campus, outweigh his scandal and wrongdoing? Without him, it is possible the Mellow Center would not exist. But is it right to continue to honor someone who has dishonored his constituents in so many ways?

One of Marywood’s core values is respect for each person, which requires we demonstrate “ethical and just interactions.”

Our values of empowerment and service also say that at Marywood, we prepare and expect members of our community to be “conscientious citizens” who promote “social responsibility.” Our mission statement says that our goal is to prepare students to “live responsibly in an interdependent world.”

Many of Mellow’s actions were not ethical, just, conscientious, or socially responsible. He acted with self-interest. He betrayed the trust of those he was elected to serve.

Having former Senator Mellow’s name attached to a building on our campus betrays the core values we live and learn by.

The Board of Trustees of Marywood University should remove Mellow’s name from the Robert J. Mellow Center for Athletics and Wellness. Doing so is the only way to demonstrate Marywood’s commitment to its core values.

thewoodword.org

The Wood Word thewoodword@m.marywood.edu

Molly BoylanEditor-in-chief

Autumn GramignaManaging editor

Sarah CruzNews editor

Brigid EdmundsAssistant news editor

Kelly Rickert Opinion co-editor

Vikki HarttOpinion co-editor

Autumn GranzaCommunity editor

Ashley PadulaAssistant community editor

Mandy ScritchfieldAssistant community editor

Katie OwensArts & entertainment editor

Owen KaroscikAssistant A&E editor

Erica NealonSports editor

Evan FelserAsst. sports editor

Holly DastalfoDesign editor

Diana D’AchilleAssistant design editor

Eric LiPumaAssistant design editor

Melissa FolignoAssistant design editor

Robert E. HannonPhotography editor

Joseph Petro Photography editor

Robert SmithWeb editor

Natasha LeeAsst. web editor

Justin WahyMultimedia editor

Afton FonzoSocial media editor

Janice RichardsonCopy editor

Kelsey HealeyCopy editor

Monika LoeffladCartoonist

Caitlyn CusterAdvertising manager

Lindsey MatylewiczAd sales representative

Dr. Lindsey WotanisAnn L. WilliamsFaculty advisers

Mellow’s name inconsistent with core values

Joseph Petro/The Wood WordRobert J. Mellow’s name currently adorns the outside of the athletic center on Marywood’s campus.

6 Opinion

No

Bob Hannon/The Wood Word

Yes

Opinion co-editors Vikki Hartt and Kelly Rickert face off over the decision by the postal service to no longer deliver mail on Saturdays.

Kelly RickertOpinion co-editor

The United States Postal Service deciding to discontinue delivering mail on Saturdays is apparently meant to help cut the losses that the postal service has had in recent years. However, this change is not going to make much of a dent in the deficit the USPS has incurred.

By ending mail delivery on Saturdays, the USPS is projected to save about $2 billion. While this change could help mitigate a percentage of their deficit, their overall losses will still be upwards of $10 billion. According to The New York Times, USPS lost $15.9 billion last year. In order to decrease their debts, the post office made the decision to end Saturday deliveries and also increased the cost of stamps to 46 cents.

These changes, however,

are not enough to make up for the two biggest reasons they are losing money. As stated by post office officials at a recent news conference, the two biggest costs they are facing are “a requirement that [the USPS] pay nearly $5.5 billion a year for health benefits to future retirees, a mandate imposed on no other government agency…[and] the fact that since 2007, first-class mail volume has declined by 37 percent as use of email and online payment services has soared.” Despite the idea that saving $2 billion will be a great benefit, it will not make much of a dent in their overall budget deficit.

It will, however, hurt the USPS customers and many small businesses that rely on Saturday mail delivery. Having to wait an extra two days to send and receive checks and bills will hurt those people in a big way.

Vikki HarttOpinion co-editor

On Wednesday, Feb. 6, the United States Postal Service announced that mail will no longer be delivered six days a week. As of Aug. 1, it will deliver Monday-Friday, thus eliminating mail delivery on Saturdays.

Major media outlets have reported mixed reactions from consumers about this announcement from the United States Postal Service.

Personally, I think the USPS chose the best option they could to save money in such a stiff economy. According to The Washington Post, the USPS is financially struggling to keep paying their staff to work six days a week. The elimination of Saturday deliveries will result in a whopping $2 billion save per year for the USPS.

Postmaster General Patrick

R. Donahoe was quoted at a news conference saying, “The postal service has a responsibility to take the steps necessary to return to long-term financial stability and ensure the continued affordability of the U.S. Mail.”

Post offices will still continue Saturday package delivery, and some post offices will be open on Saturday for customers to access post office boxes and drop off mail or packages. The only thing people will not be able to do is go out to their mailboxes on Saturdays and pick up their first class mail.

As a college student, I rarely use the post office. Times have changed and technology, like email, has taken over the communication platform. It’s fast and free. Email does not require a paid stamp and the recipient receives the email almost instantaneously.

Should the USPS cancel Saturday deliveries?

Robert SmithWeb Editor

Historians call the geopolitical conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union the “Cold War” because there was no direct fighting; rather, it consisted of satellite wars and espionage. Now, it seems there is a new superpower conflict on the horizon that will be fought behind the scenes: the cyber war between the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China.

For more than two years now, the U.S. and other Western powers have been the targets of cyber-attacks that have been traced back to China. In February 2011, the computer security firm McAfee reported that six multinational energy companies had been infiltrated with, and had data stolen by Malware that originated in China.

In December of the same

year, the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s computer network had been breached. The hack was discovered late, with the culprits potentially having had access for an entire year. The masterminds behind the attack were, once again, our friends to the east.

Now one might say that this could simply be an example of corporate espionage, Chinese companies trying to gain an upper hand on their Western competition, but one of the most recent attacks paints a much different, more concerning picture.

In February of this year, cyber-security experts at Mandiant Corporation working alongside U.S. intelligence officials traced a number of these cyber-attacks back to a division of the Chinese military, specifically, Unit 61398 of the People’s Liberation Army.

The report released by Mandiant said Unit 61398 has stolen data from “at least 141 organizations.” It also claimed 115 of those were U.S. organizations.

The spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry responded saying, “To make groundless accusations based on some rough material is neither responsible nor professional.” In a March ABC News interview, President Barack Obama said, regarding the Chinese hacks, “What is absolutely true is that we have seen a steady ramping up of cyber-security threats. Some are state-sponsored. Some are just sponsored by criminals.”

So America is the victim here, right? Well according to a February statement by Chinese Defense Ministry Spokesperson Geng Yansheng, several websites of the Chinese military have suffered multiple cyber-attacks,

and nearly 63 percent of them have originated in the U.S. There is some precedence of America resorting to cyber-warfare tactics.

In 2010, an Iranian nuclear enrichment facility was crippled by a sophisticated cyber-attack. The computers that controlled the automated facility were specifically targeted by what came to be known as the Stuxnet worm. Computer security firms Sophos and Kaspersky released statements that the development of such a complex and advanced piece of software was likely “state-sponsored.” International fingers pointed to its creation being a joint U.S.–Israeli operation, though neither country has admitted to being the culprit.

Since March, cyber-security has replaced terrorism as the greatest threat to our nation according to U.S. Intelligence officials. This echoes back to

a time when America fought a silent war with the USSR. However, back then, spies were just a few men and women lying in wait, risking their lives to collect information.

The spies in today’s cold war are more capable. They’re in our homes, our schools, and our businesses. We carry them in our pockets. Computers are the spies now. And they’re everywhere. What can we do? Our best offense in this cyber conflict is defense. Short of an overhaul of our corporate and governmental data security systems, individuals need to educate themselves on how to avoid traps on the web. Never open suspicious emails, make sure anti-virus programs are up to date, and make sure your most sensitive information isn’t accessible through cloud-based storage sites like Skydrive and Dropbox.

Electronics Extraordinaire: The Cold War of the web

Community 7

Autumn GranzaCommunity Editor

Marywood alum fighting brain tumor with faith, loveBill Loughney

Correspondent

Photo Courtesy of www.Dustrhodes.comDustin recently celebrated his twenty-ninth birth-day with his wife, Rebecca, and son, Michael.

Swanchak’s article is chosen as PA Research Article of the Year

Dr. Lori E. Swanchak, program director of the physician assistant (PA) program , was recently honored when her article “The Effect of Early Geriatric Exposure upon Career Development and Subspecialty Selection Among Physi-cian Assistant Students” was selected as the 2012 Research Article of the Year by the Physician Assistant Education Asso-ciation. The article was published in the journal of Physician Assistant Educa-tion in 2012. The award was announced

at the annual Forum for PA Educators in Seattle, Washington in November 2012.

Q: What exactly is the article, “The Ef-fect of Early Geriatric Exposure upon Career Development and Subspecialty Selection Among Physician Assistant Students,” about? A: The research project was to determine if early exposure to geriatric patients would influence PA students to enter ge-riatric practice after graduation. This was initiated, in part, due to the fact that we know the elderly population is increas-ing and so too is the demand for geriatric

medical care. Currently, there are too few practitioners to meet the expanding need for geriatric health services.

Q: How long did it take you to conduct your research and what type of re-search did you conduct?

A: This was a descriptive, quantitative study assessing PA students of five re-gional PA programs and their level of geriatric training and subsequent career specialty selection. The study took ap-proximately one year.

Q: Did you have any assistance with your research?

A: Absolutely. This was a master’s thesis project involving two senior PA students, Kathleen Terry and Joyce George, who both graduated in 2011.

Q: How did you feel when you won the award?

A: I was surprised yet thrilled to have this project be selected. It is a great honor to be recognized by your peers for doing something you enjoy while also contrib-uting to the profession.

Seven years ago, Dustin Rhodes and his wife Rebecca were seniors at Marywood. The week before graduation, they cooked dinner together in Bethany Hall and Dustin proposed to her. They eventually moved to Florida where their son, Michael, was born in March 2012.

On Nov. 29, 2012, Rebecca took Dustin to an emergency room after he fell at work. He had also been complaining of fatigue, loss of balance, forgetfulness, slight numbness in his left fingers and foot, and difficulty typing with his left hand.

A CT scan showed that Dustin had several tumors in his brain. A bi-opsy done two days later revealed that the tumors were part of a brain tumor pattern called Glioblastoma Multi-forme. Dustin has stage 4 of the disease.

Glioblastoma Multiforme is a fast-growing glioma, or tumor, that develops in the nervous system from glial cells. These cells support the nervous system and help the main nerve cells, called neurons, bet-ter perform their functions. Gliomas are the most invasive type of known glial tumors as they are rapidly growing and commonly spread to surrounding brain

tissue. Dustin and Rebecca have spent many days and nights on the road trav-eling to doctors’ a p p o i n t m e n t s around the coun-try. He has had several surgeries to remove parts of the tumors in his brain and treatments to pre-vent them from growing again or spreading. Sev-eral weeks after his diagnosis, Dustin and Re-becca left their jobs and home in Florida to return to Pennsylvania.

Rebecca has been constantly at her husband’s side through surgeries, treat-ments, and recovery. Her parents have been helping take care of Michael for the past few months while Dustin has been receiving treatment. The Rhodes’ have had to sacrifice greatly to fight this fight, at times being able to see their son

for brief peri-ods at a time.

“This was probably the hardest part of going through something like this, the fact that our family was separated right now,” said Rebecca.

While this experience has been trying for the family, some silver lining has been found to this dark cloud.

“ W h i l e this has been some of the worst of times we’ve ever

had to experience, and it has certainly tested every ounce of strength and faith we have both physically and mentally, it has really brought Dustin and I closer together in our marriage,” said Rebecca.

Rebecca recalls spending a few nights in the hospital right af-ter Dustin began his treatments, stay-ing awake all night talking to him.

“Looking back on this, I re-

alize I felt closer to Dustin than ever before,” she stated.

A source of strength for the fam-ily has been their deep faith and prayer, a strength they nurtured during their days at Marywood. While students, they were involved with Campus Min-istry and participated in several service trips. The Rhodes’ recall serving a Na-vajo parish in Chinle, Arizona, and cel-ebrating the Eucharist at sunrise with former university chaplain, Fr. Jim Raf-ferty, on top of a canyon while there.

Fr. Rafferty remembered the young couple that came to Mass every week and often participated in services.

“I remember Dustin and Rebec-ca being very much in love with each other,” he said, “and very much con-cerned for the well-fare of others.”

Dustin celebrated his 29th birthday on March 11 by enjoying the day out with his family. On March 19, he suc-cessfully received his last dose of radia-tion and chemotherapy for the six week trial and is currently out of the hospital.

Family and friends have been ral-lying in support of the Rhodes’ holding fundraisers and other events. Rebecca runs a Facebook page, “Dustin Rhodes- the Fight against Brain Cancer,” and a website “www.Dustrhodes.com,” where she posts updates about Dustin’s condi-tion and where donations can be made.

8 9

Senior mathematics secondary educa-tion major, Lauren Thorne, 21, and her fian-ce, Justin Roote, 22, senior, music education and music performance major, met at Mary-wood and were engaged on Dec. 14, 2012.

"She, thankfully, said 'yes' pretty instantly," said Roote.

Thorne said she knew she want-ed to spend the rest of her life with Roote and is glad to have met him now.

"I am extremely grateful that we found each other when we did because I get to spend that much more time with him," said Thorne.

Roote said that he and Thorne are not alone. He knows many other young people who are "taking the dive," as

he put it, and making lifelong commit-ments before receiving their diplomas.

"Getting married is one of those next big steps, and it feels good to have that part of my future locked in. I wouldn't want to share it with anyone else," said Roote.

Being engaged has not steered this couple away from their goals of completing their undergraduate educa-tion. They both look at school as a step-ping stone to a successful future together.

"Yes, we're young, and yes, we got engaged pretty quickly but frankly, I was sure around two months in that this was the girl I wanted to marry," said Roote.

"Every time I glance at my left hand, I'm reminded of how lucky I am to be marrying my best friend," said Thorne.

The wedding is set for Dec. 29, 2013.

In 2012, 29-year-old divorcee and Huffington Post columnist Jennifer Nagy wrote a bitter article, "Why I believe mar-riage shouldn't be allowed before age 25."

In the article, Nagy describes the reasons behind her ugly di-vorce. She married at 24, though she met and dated her ex since age 19.

Nagy argues that people under 25 are still "figuring out what their relation-ship 'deal-breakers' are and who their most appropriate partners would be."

Though societal trends for marry-

ing young are changing--according to The National Marriage Project, the majority of women now marry for the first time at age 26 and men at age 28--there are plen-ty of young people asking, "why wait?"

At Marywood, several student couples are planning to take the plunge before or just after they graduate.

Marywood couple Justin Roote and Lauren Thorne plan to wed. "Yes, we're young, and yes, we got engaged pretty quickly but frankly, I was sure around two months in that this was the girl I wanted to marry," said Roote.

Another Marywood couple, Kel-ley Teeple and Anthony Roma believe

that being engaged younger is good. "We feel lucky that we found each other at a younger age," said Teeple. "We have more time to grow together and plan for the future before we start a family."

But, like Nagy, there are plenty of other skeptics who ar-gue young marriages won't last.

Johns Hopkins University professor and author of “The Marriage-Go-Round: The State of Marriage and the Family in America Today," Andrew Cherlin said young marriages fail because people are more concerned with their own self-devel-opment than they used to be. People are marrying later to get their lives "in order"

before making a lifelong commitment.Regardless of age, statistics show

that nearly 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. But, that number increases to 60 percent for couples who marry between the age of 20 and 25, according to the Na-tional Healthy Marriage Resource Center.

But, there are some benefits to getting hitched in your twenties. According to a study by The National Marriage Project, un-married twenty-somethings reported higher rates of depression and drinking, and lower life satisfaction than their married peers.

So, to each, his (or her) own. Read on to learn more about the Marywood cou-ples who are determined to defy the odds.

Autumn GranzaCommunity Editor

Chelsea Martin, 21, and her fiance Brandon Kenyon, 21, got engaged on August 6, 2010. Kenyon, works in construction and asked Martin, senior inte-rior architecture major, to mar-ry him when she was just 19.

Being engaged young has given Martin a whole new experience and outlook.

"You stop thinking about only you in life and you have this oth-er person to make decisions with about your lives together," said Martin. "We still have complete-ly different lives because I am in school and he is home working, but we are always there for each other."

Martin and Kenyon are happy together and agree that

they would not want to be with anyone else. But being engaged so young has created some chal-lenges for the couple. Since Ke-nyon is in the work field, Martin agrees that being engaged while in school can have some difficulties.

"We had planned to not get married until I was done with school but being away from the one you love every week is really hard," said Martin. The couple will not be married until after Martin graduates.

Kenyon lives in Equinunk, outside of Honesdale, which is 50 miles from Marywood. Martin trav-els to visit Kenyon on weekends.

"I would say that I get a lit-tle side-tracked from my school work, but only work that I have to do over the weekend. Since I go see my fiancé every weekend, it is very hard for me to sit there and do

my work when I have to leave the next day to go back to school," said Martin. "But I have managed and learned ways that work for me."

Despite the difficulties, Martin said that being engaged young will benefit the couple in the long run.

"When you are 19 years old, you still have a little grow-ing up to do, so you are a little immature. We have had the petty fights that every couple has, but we have gotten through them all with flying colors," said Mar-tin. "We really know each other and I think that is a good thing."

Martin will be walking in May for graduation but will not be done with her courses until De-cember. Martin will continue her education at Marywood in the fall when she begins graduate school.

Autumn GranzaCommunity Editor

Autumn GranzaCommunity Editor

Engaged at a young age

Lauren Thorne and Justin Roote

Kelley Teeple and Anthony RomaTisdale Frederick and Christine Mushal Nicole Macedonio and Brad Higgins

Chelsea Martin and Brandon KenyonBob Hannon/The Wood Word Photo Courtesy/ Chelsea Martin

“We feel lucky that we found each other at a younger age,” said Kelley Teeple. “We have more time to grow together

and plan for the future before we start a family.”

“I don’t think I would have wanted to be any younger when we got engaged,” said Nicole Macedonio. “My fiance and I have been together for over

seven years and we always knew we had plans of getting married

and getting engaged, but we said we would get engaged once

we were out of college.”

“I think it is nice in that we are still in school and do

several of the same activities together,” explained Chris-tine Mushal. “If anything, I

think it gives us more time to get to know each other and plan a beautiful wedding, instead of rushing through

things haphazardly.”

Photo Courtesy/ Kelley Teeple Photo Courtesy/ Nicole Macedonio

For the full story of these three and other couples, go to www.woodword.org.

Going against the odds: Marywood student couples get engaged

Chelsea Martin, 21, to wed Brandon Kenyon, 21

Justin Roote, 22, to wed Lauren Thorne, 21

Photo Courtesy/ Christine Mushal

10 Community

What was your first reaction when you learned you were awarded the scholarship?: I felt honored when I learned I was the scholarship recipient. I was so grateful for the award. Student Spotlight

The Physician Assistant Student So-ciety (MUPASS) is a Marywood organiza-tion that is comprised of Physician Assistant (PA) students and has been active since 1998. Through MUPASS, the students promote health and wellness on campus, in the community and on a national level.

“We want to incorporate Marywood University’s goal of learning to live and practice medicine responsibly in an in-terdependent world,” said John Strickler.

The officers of MUPASS are: president John Strickler PA-S, vice presi-dent Kara Cordaro PA-S, treasurers Me-gan Branche PA-S and Valerie Dressel PA-S and secretary Molli Bash PA-S. All officers are first-year Physician As-sistant graduate students. The club is advised by Dr. Lori Swanchak , PA-C.

The students involved in MU-

PASS participate in health fairs where they provide medical information to the community. They aim to educate and in-crease awareness about health issues. Through increasing awareness, they hope to increase the probability of early detec-tion and screening of serious illnesses.

“We have provided information re-garding colon cancer, skin cancer, blood pressure screenings and information about blood pressure, along with providing in-formation about the profession,” said Cordaro, first-year PA graduate student.

MUPASS students also participate in local and regional health fairs.The club has participated in the Lackawanna County Medical Society Health Fair, a Marywood health fair, recognized Physician Assistant Day, and supported a health fair in Jermyn,

Members of MUPASS plan to hold a self-defense class and a 5K walk/ run supporting the Women’s Resource Center in the upcoming fall semester.

Q: Although your major is art eduction, what inspired you to get into English educa-tion as well?

A: I have always loved English and even considered English education as a major before deciding on art. My high school had a really great English department, so I was able to take some advanced classes with some excellent teachers. I would definitely have to say that a few particular English teachers were the source of my inspiration to excel in English.

Q: Not everyone who loves a subject can teach it. What do you like about teaching?

A: I like teaching because it gives you the opportunity to share something you love with others. By teaching abroad, not only will I be teaching a subject that I love, but I will also be informing my students about my language and culture while simultaneously learning about theirs.

Q: Why did you want to enter the Fulbright contest?

A: The main reason is that the Fulbright program offers a grant to teach in Latvia. I am half Latvian and I was also extremely close with my Latvian grandmother, so it has al-ways been a dream of mine to rediscover my heritage in the country that my grandparents so often recalled. The Fulbright grant is a perfect opportunity because it will not only offer me a chance to use my love for teaching and the English language, but it will also allow me to envelop myself in the culture of my family’s roots.

Q: When you found out that you were a finalist for Fulbright, how did you feel and what was your reaction?

A: When I found out I was a finalist, I was very excited, but at the same time, I tried my best to be grounded because I knew that it was only the next stage and I had not secured the grant.

Q: If you are awarded this grant, what will be the biggest thing that you will want to gain from this experience of teaching English education in Latvia?

A: There are a ton of things I would like to gain from this experience, but I would really like to immerse myself in the culture and see the world through a new perspective. I hope to make a difference to those whom I meet, and I am certain that the Latvian people and culture will make a significant impact on me. I have grown up listening to stories of Lat-via and now I want to create a story of my own there.

Student: Ilze Spidle

Major: Art Education

Year: 2013

Mandy ScritchfieldAssistant Community Editor

I am hearing stories around cam-pus of increased violence against prop-erty. I find that hard to believe since our students have a deep respect for our campus and what it stands for. I also find it hard to believe that other students would allow this to happen. Our students have always been proud of Marywood’s campus and the beauty and cleanli-ness of it. It would seem that students would step up to the plate and stop those who would even think of harming it.

Then, there is the monetary end of it. When something is damaged, some-one needs to pay for it. Where does that money come from? It comes from the students! It comes from each student, whether they have done the damage or not. Plus, who wants to look at holes in the walls, or broken windows, or broken door locks? Every day we have poten-tial students touring the campus. Would you come here if you saw those things?

Let’s find our respect, our excel-lence, because if we don’t stand for something, we will fall for anything.

Sr. John Michele Southwick, I.H.M.Special Contributor to The Wood Word

Sister John Says: “Let’s find our respect, our excellence.”

Students look to increase awareness of the physician assistant profession

Bob Hannon/ The Wood WordMarywood’s Physician Assistant Student Society members discuss future activites that will be held during the fall semester.

Autumn GranzaCommunity Editor

Cooking with Katie: Key Lime Pie

Entertainment 11

The power of plastic: shopping with your student IDErica Nealon

Sports Editor

Between eating large amounts of mac and cheese and late nights filled with studying, college students are always trying to find a way to save a few extra bucks. With the rising cost of college (and everything else), students are always struggling to make ends meet. Yet, what many of them don’t know is that the little plastic card with their school, picture and name on it can help them save that extra cash.

Many businesses actually give discounts to students with a current student ID. Big companies like Apple and Microsoft offer deals for students buying computers. Certain car insurance companies, like Geico or Allstate, offer discounts to college students as well.

“I do think about using my student ID, but I probably don’t use it as much as I could,” said freshman Kate Grow. “I only know of a few places, like Charlotte Russe, and that is only because they have a sign at the checkout.”

Looking for something to do on a Friday night? Cinemark offers discounted movie tickets to those who show their student ID. Even some cell phone companies offer a 10 percent discount on monthly bills for students. AT&T and Verizon both offer anywhere from 10-18 percent discounts for students.

When strolling the mall, not many students think to pull out their ID while shopping. Students can save up to 20 percent at most retail stores. Stores like Ann Taylor, J. Crew, Charlotte Russe, Banana Republic, Club Monaco, even Barnes and Noble

offer discounts to students who show their student IDs.

Eating on campus can fill a person with great joy, but sometimes it’s good to get out. Places like the Waffle House, McDonald’s, Burger King, Dairy Queen, Arby’s, Chipotle and Subway all offer 10 percent discounts to students with a school ID.

“Not many students know that McDonald’s offers discounts to students,” said Marywood student and McDonald’s employee Dennis Ramos. “Sometimes people will ask if we offer discounts, but not very often.”

The Bistro also offers a 15 percent discount to students and Marywood employees.

The moral of the story here for students is to always bring out the student ID. One never knows where the discounts may lie.

Katie OwensEntertainment Editor

Spring break has come and gone, and while you can’t be in Florida, you can bring some of it home with you in the form of Key Lime pie. This classic dessert is actually incredibly easy to make. As it is one of my personal favorites, I’ve spent a lot of time trying out different recipes over the years and have always returned to this

simple but effective version.Here’s What You’ll Need: 1/2 cup lime juiceOne 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk3 eggs, separated9 inch graham cracker pie crustWhipped cream (if desired)

Here’s What You Do:Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.Beat egg whites until peaks form, and set aside.Combine the egg yolks, lime

juice and condensed milk.Fold the egg whites into this mixture.(I added green food coloring here for effect. Pros will tell you the Key Lime pie shouldn’t be green. But no one here is claim-ing to be an expert.)Pour mixture into the pie crust.Bake for 10 minutes.Chill in the refrigerator for a little bit before serving.Add whipped cream around the edge or to individual pieces.The finished product with a healthy helping of whipped cream.

Katie Owens/The Wood Word

Owen Karoscik/The Wood WordPlaces like McDonald’s advertise the discounts at store locations.

Ashley PadulaAssistant Community Editor

The third season of “Duck Dynasty” premiered on Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 10 p.m. on the A&E Network.

Fans definitely think the two new episodes of the season were a hit. According to Nellie Andreeva of Deadline.com, “Duck Dynasty’s” back-to-back season three premiere episodes “were the most-watched telecast of all time at the network in total viewers and all key demos.”

Based in West Monroe, La., “Duck Dynasy” follows the everyday lives of the Roberston family and the workings of their family business, Duck Commander. The Robertson family consists of 39-year-old CEO of Duck Commander, Willie Robertson, his wife, Korie, their children, Willie’s parents and siblings, Willie’s Uncle Si, and the other men who work in the warehouse making duck calls.

According to Neil Genzlinger, staff writer for the New York Times, the Robertson family founded the duck-call-making business known as Duck

Commander. The Robertsons’ family business is now a multi-million-dollar company, says Celebritynetworth.com. This company manufactures many hunting related products such as duck calls, duck decoys, cooking DVDs, and apparel.

Before the television show “Duck Dynasty,” the family had videos mainly made for hunters, then they became a subject on a show seen on the Outdoor Channel and now they are what the show “Duck Dynasty” is all about.

The show focuses on the duck commander/buck commander warehouse, the men making duck calls and all of the crazy situations they get themselves into, family bonding, and life lessons. Every episode ends with a blessing while the whole family is seated around the dinner table.

Why is the show so popular? Some believe it’s because of the Robertson family’s Uncle Si. He is always up to something during the episodes. At one point during the season three premiere, Uncle

Si is shown hunting in the field with his poodle. Unlike most hunters who use a hunting dog, Uncle Si uses a poodle to retrieve the doves that he shoots. Si is always up to some kind of activity that causes his family to wonder what he is truly thinking, but in the end causes much laughter.

Sophomore nursing major Sarah Lutat watches the show and said she finds Uncle Si hilarious.

“He is very witty and catches you off guard because he says things you would not expect him to say and he does

things you would not expect him to do,” said Lutat. “He’s definitely my favorite character.”

Along with Lutat, sopho-more hospitality management major, Samantha Czerwonka also finds Uncle Si hilarious.

“He’s so funny and just says the most ridiculous things that he honestly believes are true. He’s definitely a down south redneck.”

Another reason may be that when the Robertson men are together, their ideas do not always go as planned, which causes quite the entertaining outcome. During season three’s premiere episodes, all of the men from the warehouse plan to go camping in tents. When Willie shows up at the campsite with an RV, the other men are shocked and refuse to join him. As some time passes, the mosquitoes become annoying and the idea of sleeping in comfort wins over most of the men.

Stay tuned for new upcoming episodes at 10 p.m. Wednesday nights on A&E, and also stay up to date on Twitter, @DuckDynastyAE.

Entertainment 13 12 Entertainment

“Duck Dynasty” is back for anticipated season 3

Marywood jazz ensemble raises money for a good causeAfton Fonza

Social Media Editor

Marywood’s jazz ensemble held a jazz dancing night to raise money for Kenny Brader, former Marywood trumpet instructor, on February 9.

According to Thomas Heinze, jazz ensemble director, the band tries to host a free dance night once a month. This event, however, was a bit different.

The jazz ensemble asked

patrons to make a donation of $5, which would be donated to Brader.

“Life has dealt him a tough hand with his diabetes and so we’re trying to help out and respect him. Every little bit helps when you have no health care at all,” said Heinze.

Along with the students, many Marywood alumni came back to play with the band and raise money for Brader.

John Andrews, Marywood student and guitar player for

the jazz band, reflected on his favorite part of the night.

“Playing with Kenny Brader, the guy that we featured, who’s out of this world incredible, playing the tunes that we played with him [was the best part of the night],” said Andrews.

In addition to the performance by Kenny Brader, the jazz ensemble performed as well. They played everything from renditions of Glenn Miller, the sounds of the big band from

the ‘30s-’50s, to current music.“The band sounded great.

A lot of the tunes [from] that night we sight-read, which means we’ve encountered them before. Sometimes it’s a new tune, but they’re general dance tunes, so we throw them together really fast. It’s an impressive bunch of guys in the ensemble, too,” said Andrews.

Older guests showed off their best swing dancing moves while teaching the younger

attendants all of the dances. People of all ages came out to dance.

“Our main outcome with this one is to give this guy a little help with a trying time in his life,” said Heinze. “With our talent, which is God-given, we can do good.”

The Feb. 9 event raised almost $1,000 for Kenny Brader.

The jazz ensemble will be host the Cole Porter Jazz Festival on April 5, 6, and 7 in the Sette La Verghetta Center for Performing Arts.

Eric LiPuma/The Wood Word

Sports 14

Marywood Pacers pitch for cancer at PNC Field

Resident Assistants host dodgeball tournament

Joseph Petro/The Wood Word Team Thompson plays against Team Shades On during a match in the dodgeball tournament on Sunday, March 24 at the Mellow Center. The dodgeball tournament was organized to promote campus wellness.

Evan FelserAsst. Sports Editor

Marywood Universi-ty resident assistants hosted a 5-on-5 dodgeball tourna-ment at the Mellow Center to help promote campus unity and physical activity.

The tournament, featur-ing seven-minute games, was held on Sunday, March 24.

Each five-member team included at least one fe-male. Every team played five games. The teams with the best records after the ini-tial round made the playoffs.

Resident assistants cre-ated the dodgeball tourna-ment to provide the campus with a fun activity that sup-ports their mission of creating community-building activities that help promote student life.

The resident assistants who planned the tournament were excited for this event. Dominique Kozuch, a third year residence assistant at Ma-

donna Hall, helped organize the tournament and was ex-cited to participate. Resident assistants have to set up week-end programs so students can have fun activities on campus.

Ross Novak, direc-tor of residence life, watched over the tournament and believed the event will be successful. Novak listed entertainment, physical activ-ity and friendly competition as

goals for the event.“I hope that students get

good social interaction out of this event,” Novak said.

Emily Osborne, another residence assistant involved in organizing the tournament, was upset about her inability to participate in the actual games.

“I really want to play, but on the day of I’m going to be refereeing,” Osborne said.

In addition to referee-ing, Osborne also enforced the rules, operated the score-board, and made sure the tournament ran smoothly.

Erica NealonSports Editor

Marywood baseball will take on Keystone College in a new setting this year all for a good cause. The Pacers will play the Giants at the newly renovated PNC Field during the Bill Howerton Inaugural Strikeout Cancer Weekend.

For 16 years, Bill How-erton gained immense respect in the area as the head coach of the University of Scranton’s baseball

team, retiring in 2002. Howerton spent a season playing for the San Francisco Giants and then returned to the Scranton area to manage the Scranton Red Sox and Wilkes Barre/Scranton Twins be-fore coaching the Royals in 1986.

Howerton passed away in August 2012, but his legacy lives on. (The Times-Tribune)

Marywood will be the host school for this CSAC game on Saturday, April 13. High school baseball will take the field first when Pocono Moun-

tain East takes on North Pocono at 11 a.m. before the Pacers and Giants take the field. The Gi-ants are the four-time defend-ing conference champions.

“This is a great opportunity. It is the biggest game of the sea-son, plus we are playing for a great cause,” said management major and Pacer player Erik Pulkkinen.

This game isn’t just about winning for many on Mary-wood’s baseball team. For some, it means a lot more.

Sophomore Pacer An-

drew Rabel, for example knows this game is more than just trying to take down the four time conference champions.

“Cancer affects so many people, whether from having it to knowing someone that goes through the treatments, such as my mother, who has gone through it twice,” Rabel said. “To know we are doing this event to help raise money to fight, it makes me happy.”

There will be no charge to get in the games. Instead, ads

are being sold for a game pro-gram and t-shirts will also be sold. There will also be raffles and collection buckets at the event. All money raised goes to the American Cancer Society.

The Bill Howerton Inau-gural Strikeout Cancer Week-end will be April 13-14 at PNC Field, home of the Scranton/Wil-kes Barre RailRiders, the AAA team of the New York Yankees..

Sports 15

Policy to sideline coach and student-athlete relationships

Photo Courtesy: Ann Williams

Marywood men’s and women’s basketball teams played in wheelchairs to raise money for St. Joseph’s Center in Scranton.

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Marywood hosts charity wheelchair basketball game

Joseph PetroPhotography Editor

For many student-athletes, the thought of “safety” typically centers on protective equipment such as helmets, padding, or some other insulating apparatus. But this January, Marywood has instituted a new “Amorous Relationship Policy” to ensure a safe and healthy environment for student-athletes.

The intent of this new policy is to prohibit faculty, coaches, and other authority figures in the athletics and recreation department from pursuing romantic or sexual relationships with student-athletes.

The policy was adapted from a template crafted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in order to better address the specific needs of Marywood’s community. This adaptation was a collective effort between Sr. Anne Munley, president of the university; Attorney Mary Theresa Paterson, secretary of the university and general counsel; the university cabinet; Dr. Raymond Heath,

vice president of student life; Dr. Mary Jo Gunning, director of athletics and recreation; and Tara Macciocco, assistant director of athletics and women’s basketball coach.

Marywood took this step in an effort to set the boundaries between its student-athletes and staff in order to prevent incidents of inappropriate conduct or abuse of authority.

Considering the various abuse scandals that have been brought to the public’s attention at institutions such as Penn State and Holy Redeemer, a high school in Wilkes Barre, Scott Dalgliesh, head men’s lacrosse coach said Marywood is taking a proactive approach.

“I don’t think it’s really been an issue amongst coaches and students and student-athletes here on campus that I’m aware of, and so it’s never hit a head. But now, with the Jerry Sandusky incident, you know it’s all come to the forefront for everyone around the country and I think that’s the real impetus behind the policy,” said Dalgliesh.

Because of the close, friendly relationships coaches and student-athletes share, bonds tend to form naturally and easily. According to administration, this new policy is not meant to prevent healthy professional relationships from evolving, but to help clarify the roles of faculty and students in these types of relationships.

“The policy was initiated with the purpose to really affirm student’s rights in a relationship that occasionally can be difficult--the relationship between a faculty member and a student, between a coach and a student, a relationship between a trainer and a student,” said Dr. Raymond Heath, vice president of student life. “Often times there is a relationship of power or influence over some consequence, whether you play or whether you do well in a course and so on and so forth.”

P r i o r to instituting this policy, M a r y w o o d

did not have a specific policy regarding these concerns, but the university does have less explicit policies that apply to employees as a whole.

“I’ll be honest, I was a little bit surprised to have found out that it hadn’t been in place already,” said Jeremy Phelps, assistant men’s lacrosse coach. “I think if you look at most institutions, most institutions do have one in place, but [it was] certainly something that was obviously addressed and handled pretty well in my opinion.”

According to administration, many other institutions have similar polices in place for their overall community concerning student/faculty relations, but very few have policies in place that focus

on a small, segmented group within that community. According to Heath, if the policy is violated and warrants university involvement, there is a detailed process that has been constructed to address the issue. When a report is made, the university will conduct an investigation and then pass it to the conduct board for review. Human resources and the director of athletics may become involved in the process as well.

“We wouldn’t be investigating any relationship unless it was brought to our attention by a student, by a student’s parent perhaps, or by a teammate who believes so-and-so might be receiving preferential treatment or something. We don’t troll Facebook… [and] we don’t

16 Sports

1) When did you start playing lacrosse?

3) Who is your favorite professional athlete?

6) Do you have any pre-game rituals before you go on the field?Usually I will just listen to my iPod to try to get focused for the game.

2) What music do you listen to before the game?It depends, but Mumford & Sons usually will get me motivated and ready to play.

The first time I picked up a stick was my freshman year of high school and I’ve been in love with game since.

Justin Tuck, defensive lineman for the New York Giants. He is just an all around good person. He’s a smart athlete on the field, while also being someone other players can look to for guidance. 4) What is your most memorable lacrosse moment?When our team was undefeated in all of our conference games. The team worked really hard and it was a great accomplishment for the sport at Marywood.

5) What is a valuable lesson that you have learned from playing lacrosse?Definitely the importance of teamwork. I believe if you can work well together on and off the field, it makes for a stronger team.

7)What are the strong points of your game?

I like to take into account what’s happening on the field and look for the best opportunities on when to attack the goal.8) What skills can you improve to make your game better?There is always room for improvement in this sport, but sometimes I struggle with being confident in the decisions I make on the field.9) How has lacrosse helped you become the person you are today?It has definitely helped me to come out of my shell. I am usually a fairly quiet person, but playing lacrosse allows me to come out of my comfort zone.10) What do you plan on doing after Marywood?I plan on continuing on to the social work master’s program at Marywood.

Hometown: Hopatcong, NJ

Year: Senior

Majoring: Social Work

Graphic Credit: Diana D’Achille

Evan FelserAsst. Sports Editor

Joseph Petro/The Wood Word