By Justin Marr
To Central Michigan movie buffs, springtime might also mean film festival time.
The CMU International Film Festival has been underway since Thursday and has already been a hit, according to Film Society President Laci Wolever.
“When we showed ‘Into the Wild’ on Sunday the theater was packed,” she said. “I couldn’t believe it because I don’t even know the last time I saw Celebration Cinema that full.”
The attendance for the Oscar-winning film was over 75 people, the best showing thus far.
“Into the Wild” is only one of 22 films being projected, all of them independent films.
This is fewer films than were shown in previous years.
"We're bringing in fewer films this year so we could focus on making a more concerted effort to bring in more quality films ... more diverse and interesting films," said Stephanie Mathson, Film Festival executive board member and a faculty librarian.
The diversity of the films is vast. Films will be shown from France, Iran, United Kingdom, and Denmark, to name a few.
“Among other things, the committee tries to pick a wide range of films in terms of their origin or countries,” said Mark Poindexter, Film Society adviser and broadcast and cinematic arts professor.
Wolever said the Film Society picked the films to help educate with diversity and cultural awareness.
“We’ll usually reserve a few spots for films that have never been shown at Celebration! or Mount Pleasant for that matter,” she said.
The school of broadcast and cinematic arts is not the only film underwriter for the festival.
The Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe has influenced the choice of the film “The Canary Effect”, a film about the history and future of Native American life.
“"I've already previewed [the film],” Mathson said. “It's powerful."
The films can be seen at Charles V. Park Library Auditorium, the Broadway Theater, 216 E. Broadway St., and Celebration! Cinema, 4935 E. Pickard.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
CMU leads by example with charter school authorization
By Meredith Mayberry
Edited by Sarah Schuch
Central Michigan University is a leader in charter school authorization.
As the first authorizing university in the nation, CMU set the standards for the quality of education charter schools provide.
“CMU is a national leader when it comes to charter public schools,” said Scott Ray, external relations director at CMU’s center for charter schools.
The university authorized its first school in 1994 and now has its hand in 58 charter public schools.
As the first university to authorize charter schools, Central was under political pressure to make such an endeavor a success, according to the CMU Center for Charter Schools.
CMU had to develop its own strategies and policies, having no other university to model itself after.
“CMU has been pioneering new initiatives that improve educational options for all and set high standards for school accountability and oversight,” according to Central’s Center for Charter Schools Web site, www.cmucso.org.
The site says the university has made a promise by becoming an authorizer. It has promised to transform public education by providing parents with a choice of where to send their child. It also promised to drive schools to improve standards through competition and to hold schools accountable to higher standards.
“We’ve closed over 10 schools over the years for not meeting the standards,” said James Goenner, executive director of the center for charter schools.
Ray said, despite CMU’s involvement, the schools are not run by the university. Instead, Central ensures the quality of education they provide in order to raise the national level of education.
The schools are individual public schools, Ray said.
Almost 30,000 students are served through CMU’s authorized charter schools, according to cmucso.org.
Central has become a trendsetter, impacting other state universities to become charter school authorizers as well.
Seven other universities in the Michigan are following CMU's lead and have become charter public school authorizers, according to the Web site.
Edited by Sarah Schuch
Central Michigan University is a leader in charter school authorization.
As the first authorizing university in the nation, CMU set the standards for the quality of education charter schools provide.
“CMU is a national leader when it comes to charter public schools,” said Scott Ray, external relations director at CMU’s center for charter schools.
The university authorized its first school in 1994 and now has its hand in 58 charter public schools.
As the first university to authorize charter schools, Central was under political pressure to make such an endeavor a success, according to the CMU Center for Charter Schools.
CMU had to develop its own strategies and policies, having no other university to model itself after.
“CMU has been pioneering new initiatives that improve educational options for all and set high standards for school accountability and oversight,” according to Central’s Center for Charter Schools Web site, www.cmucso.org.
The site says the university has made a promise by becoming an authorizer. It has promised to transform public education by providing parents with a choice of where to send their child. It also promised to drive schools to improve standards through competition and to hold schools accountable to higher standards.
“We’ve closed over 10 schools over the years for not meeting the standards,” said James Goenner, executive director of the center for charter schools.
Ray said, despite CMU’s involvement, the schools are not run by the university. Instead, Central ensures the quality of education they provide in order to raise the national level of education.
The schools are individual public schools, Ray said.
Almost 30,000 students are served through CMU’s authorized charter schools, according to cmucso.org.
Central has become a trendsetter, impacting other state universities to become charter school authorizers as well.
Seven other universities in the Michigan are following CMU's lead and have become charter public school authorizers, according to the Web site.
Reflections on Opening Day
By John Kennett
Journalism 312
The atmosphere was electric and anticipation filled the stadium as the Detroit Tigers opened their season Monday at Comerica Park.
But, for one newspaper reporter from Midland, the day was a struggle. It was a day that forced me to face those things in life that irritate me, like long lines and crowds.
With arguably the most potent line-up in Major League baseball, and solid starting pitching, the Tigers are picked by many to win this year’s World Series.
Being an efficiency freak, standing in lines is a waste of time. Everywhere I looked there were lines.
Lines to enter the park. Lines to eat. Lines to enter retail stores. Lines to go to the restroom. On and on it went.
At one point during the top of the fourth inning, the line of men waiting to get into the men’s restroom snaked around for 100 yards. In all my 50 plus years of attending sporting events that is the first time I’ve ever seen a line outside the men’s restroom.
The only place I didn’t see a line was at the Big Boy Ice Cream concession. I could have walked right up and purchase an ice cream cone.
It was tempting to buy a cone, even though the temperature was a balmy 57 degrees, just so I wouldn’t have to stand in line. But, spending $4.50 for an ice cream cone made my decision an easy one.
The capacity crowd of 44, 934 was excited to finally get the baseball season underway after a long winter of snow. Comerica Park was chaos due to the single-game record crowd on hand. The corridors were wall-to-wall people.
To me, it seemed like a mass of humanity stuffed into a bottle with me at the center. Being a first born, I love my space and enjoy being alone.
Everywhere I went Monday, there were tons of people, whether the press box, corridors where I had to sneak through lines, or the locker room where 25 people crowded around Miguel Cabrera waiting for an interview.
Even before I entered the park, I saw packed into Hockeytown Café like sardines. The café, right across the street from Comerica Park, had a waiting line approximately 20 yards long to enter. Its rooftop and patio were packed full of people.
While at the ballpark, it seemed easy for fans to escape the struggles the City of Detroit is currently experiencing. One could easily get lost in the party-like atmosphere and not worry about the ailing economic, or a mayor facing perjury charges.
But after the game, driving through the neighborhoods of Detroit and Highland Park quickly brought me back to reality. As I’m sure it did many of the fans.
Observing homes that were boarded up, empty 10-story buildings and storefronts with gates on the front was depressing.
Having grown up in Midland, a town that is 94 percent white with a household median income of $48,444, it’s impossible for me to imagine what those residents of Detroit are experiencing. My heart went out to those people. It was a saddening end to an already frustrating day.
Edited by Ben Evers
Journalism 312
The atmosphere was electric and anticipation filled the stadium as the Detroit Tigers opened their season Monday at Comerica Park.
But, for one newspaper reporter from Midland, the day was a struggle. It was a day that forced me to face those things in life that irritate me, like long lines and crowds.
With arguably the most potent line-up in Major League baseball, and solid starting pitching, the Tigers are picked by many to win this year’s World Series.
Being an efficiency freak, standing in lines is a waste of time. Everywhere I looked there were lines.
Lines to enter the park. Lines to eat. Lines to enter retail stores. Lines to go to the restroom. On and on it went.
At one point during the top of the fourth inning, the line of men waiting to get into the men’s restroom snaked around for 100 yards. In all my 50 plus years of attending sporting events that is the first time I’ve ever seen a line outside the men’s restroom.
The only place I didn’t see a line was at the Big Boy Ice Cream concession. I could have walked right up and purchase an ice cream cone.
It was tempting to buy a cone, even though the temperature was a balmy 57 degrees, just so I wouldn’t have to stand in line. But, spending $4.50 for an ice cream cone made my decision an easy one.
The capacity crowd of 44, 934 was excited to finally get the baseball season underway after a long winter of snow. Comerica Park was chaos due to the single-game record crowd on hand. The corridors were wall-to-wall people.
To me, it seemed like a mass of humanity stuffed into a bottle with me at the center. Being a first born, I love my space and enjoy being alone.
Everywhere I went Monday, there were tons of people, whether the press box, corridors where I had to sneak through lines, or the locker room where 25 people crowded around Miguel Cabrera waiting for an interview.
Even before I entered the park, I saw packed into Hockeytown Café like sardines. The café, right across the street from Comerica Park, had a waiting line approximately 20 yards long to enter. Its rooftop and patio were packed full of people.
While at the ballpark, it seemed easy for fans to escape the struggles the City of Detroit is currently experiencing. One could easily get lost in the party-like atmosphere and not worry about the ailing economic, or a mayor facing perjury charges.
But after the game, driving through the neighborhoods of Detroit and Highland Park quickly brought me back to reality. As I’m sure it did many of the fans.
Observing homes that were boarded up, empty 10-story buildings and storefronts with gates on the front was depressing.
Having grown up in Midland, a town that is 94 percent white with a household median income of $48,444, it’s impossible for me to imagine what those residents of Detroit are experiencing. My heart went out to those people. It was a saddening end to an already frustrating day.
Edited by Ben Evers
Annual Students for Life of Michigan Conference attracts 40
By Sheri Krotzer
Edited by John Kennett
Silent No More Pro-Life advocate Michelle Yax presented on the “Post-Abortive Women and the Abortion-Breast Cancer Link” for the annual Students for Life of Michigan Conference in Ann Arbor Saturday.
Speakers from all different backgrounds presented on Pro-Life topics. Four students represented
Yax shared her story and offered numerous statistics.
“One out of five women, who are given birth control, comes back pregnant, that’s 20 percent,” said Yax.
Yax continued with her story while some in the audience shed tears.
“After having the abortion, I thought I had given up my only chance of ever having a child of my own. I had robbed my child of his or her life; I believed that because of that, I didn’t deserve to be happy.”
Yax was experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition that 19-20 percent of women undergo after an abortion.
Yax did not only address abortion. Breast cancer was the other main topic in her presentation.
“Ever since abortion became legal there has been a 52 percent increase of breast cancer in the
Yax said researchers have slowly been releasing information on the link between abortion and breast cancer.
According to Yax, the link has to do with the body not fully completing its natural cycle of pregnancy and being stopped short by abortion.
Researchers claim to have discovered this link but are still studying to find out more.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Will there be an increase in university funding in Michigan?
By: Amanda Crabtree
The process is long and hard, but Michigan lawmakers are trying to increase state funding for our 15 public universities.
In order for this to happen, a number of steps must be taken, according to Steve Smith, director of media relations at Central Michigan University.
First, the Governor has to make a proposal. Then, the senate has to make and pass a proposal, and then the house has to do the same. It is then negotiated and a bill may be passed, but it may not be as well.
The Michigan Senate has passed a plan to increase the funding to all 15 universities equally, according to the Associated Press.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm believes the increase should be based on factors, such as amount of research done at the university and amount of graduates. This would give certain schools more than a 6 percent increase than other schools.
CMU is sitting back, watching and waiting for the outcome from Lansing, Smith said.
“It is too early to speculate government funding” Smith said. Historically universities do not find out how much they receive until late fall, or even the end of the year.
The fiscal year for CMU is July 1 through June 30, the State of Michigan’s is from Oct. 1 through the end of September. They are out of sync, therefore the budgets do not come from Lansing in time for CMU to depend on an increase in funding.
The process is long and hard, but Michigan lawmakers are trying to increase state funding for our 15 public universities.
In order for this to happen, a number of steps must be taken, according to Steve Smith, director of media relations at Central Michigan University.
First, the Governor has to make a proposal. Then, the senate has to make and pass a proposal, and then the house has to do the same. It is then negotiated and a bill may be passed, but it may not be as well.
The Michigan Senate has passed a plan to increase the funding to all 15 universities equally, according to the Associated Press.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm believes the increase should be based on factors, such as amount of research done at the university and amount of graduates. This would give certain schools more than a 6 percent increase than other schools.
CMU is sitting back, watching and waiting for the outcome from Lansing, Smith said.
“It is too early to speculate government funding” Smith said. Historically universities do not find out how much they receive until late fall, or even the end of the year.
The fiscal year for CMU is July 1 through June 30, the State of Michigan’s is from Oct. 1 through the end of September. They are out of sync, therefore the budgets do not come from Lansing in time for CMU to depend on an increase in funding.
Zogby predicts the future
By Kelly Morse
Edited by Sarah Schuch, Meredith Mayberry, and Amanda Crabtree
John Zogby, president and CEO of Zogby International, announced who he thought will win the presidential election.
He gave his predictions to a full audience in Anspach Hall Friday afternoon.
“I don’t think Hilary is going to win, but she’s also a Clinton and she goes by a different book” Zogby said.
Zogby International has been tracking public opinion since 1984 in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, and Europe, according to the website www.zogby.com.
He made the joke that when Hilary does make it into the oval office she will serve two terms and will eventually work her way up to the position of Pope.
Two groups support Hilary: women over 45 and Latinos. About 10 percent of Latino voters said that they would vote for McCain over Obama if Hilary didn’t make it.
Barak Obama has about 93 percent of the African American votes along with the young voters.
"For the African Americans, it’s all about a sense of history," Zogby said.
After examining the polls, Zogby predicts McCain will win the presidency. He said that the Republican party has a good chance because they can cast fears and anxieties into middle America. Plus, the party has a strong agenda whereas the Democrats seem more divided.
“If there is any Republican that can distance himself from Bush, it’s McCain,” said Zogby. “Some say that a Democrat will inevitably win just because a Democrat is change. What some don’t realize is that McCain is change too.”
His predictions did not come without opposition, however.
“I think he’s mostly right,” said Amanda Powel, a freshman from Bloomingdale. “I think he ignores some things though. He understated that it will be progress either way [with Clinton or Obama]”
Although Zogby believes he knows who will win, he does not know by how much. He said the election could be between a couple 100 thousand votes, but it could also be a blowout.
Number one issue is the economy. Seventy-four percent say our country is in a recession. About one-third of all voters with some form of employment based health insurance is afraid of losing all or some of that.
“This is what separates the middle class from the lower class,” said Zogby.
The second issue is the Iraq fatigue. Almost three quarters of the U.S. population wants the troops to come home.
Number three is the environment. Americans have bought into the notion that global warming is real. A growing number are adopting the view that we leave a carbon footprint, which is the amount of carbon that is emitting during daily activities.
Zogby not only stopped by Central Michigan University to speak to the campus community, but to also pay a visit to an old friend.
Tim Hartshorne, a psychology professor, first met Zogby while working for a high school in Utica, New York. Hartshorne later moved to Michigan.
“About eight years ago I heard him being interviewed on NPR’s show ‘All things Considered’ and I was like, ‘I taught at the same high school as him,’” Hartshorne said. "Today Zogby is a little bit harder to get a hold of, I'm glad he could make it though."
Zogby travels all over the United States giving speeches about polling and has given over 100 this past year.
“I was very pleased with the turnout. It’s something I wish the whole campus could’ve heard” Hartshorne said.
By Kelly Morse
Edited by Sarah Schuch, Meredith Mayberry, and Amanda Crabtree
John Zogby, president and CEO of Zogby International, announced who he thought will win the presidential election.
He gave his predictions to a full audience in Anspach Hall Friday afternoon.
“I don’t think Hilary is going to win, but she’s also a Clinton and she goes by a different book” Zogby said.
Zogby International has been tracking public opinion since 1984 in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, and Europe, according to the website www.zogby.com.
He made the joke that when Hilary does make it into the oval office she will serve two terms and will eventually work her way up to the position of Pope.
Two groups support Hilary: women over 45 and Latinos. About 10 percent of Latino voters said that they would vote for McCain over Obama if Hilary didn’t make it.
Barak Obama has about 93 percent of the African American votes along with the young voters.
"For the African Americans, it’s all about a sense of history," Zogby said.
After examining the polls, Zogby predicts McCain will win the presidency. He said that the Republican party has a good chance because they can cast fears and anxieties into middle America. Plus, the party has a strong agenda whereas the Democrats seem more divided.
“If there is any Republican that can distance himself from Bush, it’s McCain,” said Zogby. “Some say that a Democrat will inevitably win just because a Democrat is change. What some don’t realize is that McCain is change too.”
His predictions did not come without opposition, however.
“I think he’s mostly right,” said Amanda Powel, a freshman from Bloomingdale. “I think he ignores some things though. He understated that it will be progress either way [with Clinton or Obama]”
Although Zogby believes he knows who will win, he does not know by how much. He said the election could be between a couple 100 thousand votes, but it could also be a blowout.
Number one issue is the economy. Seventy-four percent say our country is in a recession. About one-third of all voters with some form of employment based health insurance is afraid of losing all or some of that.
“This is what separates the middle class from the lower class,” said Zogby.
The second issue is the Iraq fatigue. Almost three quarters of the U.S. population wants the troops to come home.
Number three is the environment. Americans have bought into the notion that global warming is real. A growing number are adopting the view that we leave a carbon footprint, which is the amount of carbon that is emitting during daily activities.
Zogby not only stopped by Central Michigan University to speak to the campus community, but to also pay a visit to an old friend.
Tim Hartshorne, a psychology professor, first met Zogby while working for a high school in Utica, New York. Hartshorne later moved to Michigan.
“About eight years ago I heard him being interviewed on NPR’s show ‘All things Considered’ and I was like, ‘I taught at the same high school as him,’” Hartshorne said. "Today Zogby is a little bit harder to get a hold of, I'm glad he could make it though."
Zogby travels all over the United States giving speeches about polling and has given over 100 this past year.
“I was very pleased with the turnout. It’s something I wish the whole campus could’ve heard” Hartshorne said.
Journalism students honored for their achievements
By Sarah Schuch
Edited by Amanda Crabtree, Meredith Mayberry and Kelly Morse
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