the wright times: november 2011

wrighttimesnews.wordpress.com

INDEX

NEWS

OPINIONS

A & C

NEWS

A&C

VARIETY

OPINIONS

PAGE 2

PAGE 9

PAGE 10

PAGE 17

New Features!

Events Calendar on Page 2

•Rated Staff Picks

•on 2 & 13

Sudoku and Crossword

•puzzle on Pages 10 & 11

CheckoutConflicting

•

Views on Page 17

Student Polls on Page 18

•

Rash of thefts addressed at forum

Campus hat ban meets student

dissent

See No hat policy on Page 7 See Campus theft on Page 2

See Clerical strike on Page 3

Dr. G’s streetdedicationon Page 6

The Student News Organization of Wright College November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 The Wright Times

Music Profile & Interview

on Page 9

Local 1708 request a fair contract

By Stephanie MaddelaReporter In an effort to combat the recent rise in campus thefts, Wright College stu-dents, faculty and staff gathered at an open forum on October 13 in the Con-ference Room. Wright College Presi-dent Jim Palos welcomed the students and guided the meeting. Among the guests were District Vice Chancellor of Safety and Security Joseph Lopez and Wright Director of Security Jack Murphy. Wright student Erica Harlston

spearheaded the forum. Harlson is the Managing Editor of the Wright Times. When asked why she chose to hold the forum, she said “It raised a concern tome, and I figuredwhat betterwayto address the problem than to come together as students to show that we care? We want this problem to stop be-fore others are victimized by it.” President Palos emphasized the im-portance of student input in coming up with solutions. The forum was left open for anyone in the room to pres-ent ideas. Some of the major problem spots where theft occurs most often

Murphy, Palos and Lopez listen to student suggestions on improving security.

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By Erica HarlstonManaging Editor

On October 6, Wright College’s clerical staff marched around campus with signs reading “Don’t tread on us!” and “We deserve a fair contract.” These staff members are part of the Federation of College Clerical and Technical Personnel Lo-cal 1708, staging a protest because they have been without a contract since June 2010. An ongoing contract negotiation is in the works, but union members are growing up-set with the wait. The protest was or-ganized by the executive council of Local 1708 and took place at all seven City Colleges of Chicago

Four Wright clerks marched for a fair contract on Oct. 6.

Clerical union protest for higher wages, fair insurance Ph

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By Alex SanchezNews Editor

Thanks to City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) policy, bedhead is no longer an option. Signs sprung up around the Wright College Campus Center in-forming students that hats or other head coverings are prohibited from being worn inside of the building. Students that wear certain headwear associated with religious beliefs or medical condi-tions are exempt from this policy. Although the signs featuring a hat inside the circle and backslash symbol are new to the campus, the policy spans back a few years. Director of Security Jack Murphy said, “It’s been a policy with the city colleges…at least since 2006.” The policy likely stemmed from the tradition of men removing their hats as a sign of respect when entering any building, according to Murphy. “I don’t really know what brought it back,” Murphy said in regards to the stricter enforcing of the hat policy. Murphy believes it was a simple matter ofcollegeboardofficialsdecidingthatthis policy should be kept around and enforced more strongly. To ensure compliance in regards to the hat policy, Murphy says security now asks students to remove their hat. “I’m asking my guys to be polite, to

Bike lanereaction

onPage 17

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/42 NEWS

are high-traffic areas on campus, such as the cafeteria and the bookstore. “Students get restless in the bookstore line, and the bookstore is crowded, so students tend to get rowdy while they wait,” said Harlston. Murphy indicated that those types of areas are challeng-ing: “It is hard to keep track of who is coming and who is going,” he said. Murphy also said that Wright security has begun patrolling these areas on a frequent basis in order to help alleviate the situation. Lopez suggested a larger presence of security personnel in such areas, as well as more Chicago police-men on campus monitoring activities. This larger presence has already been

Campus theft forumcontinued from cover

implemented in the cafeteria, where security guards have been seen mon-itoring and speaking to students. Other problem areas included the Student Center (S100) where al-though students are required to sign in, they are not required to sign out. Harlston suggested that the aide at the front desk take students’ IDs upon entry and return them upon leaving. “That’s a way to at least monitor who was in the room at what time, so that you can narrow down who was in the room when something was taken,” said Harlston. She also suggested that the security department inform students of the consequences of theft. “Some

of these thefts have re-sulted in expulsions,” said Dean of Student Services Romell Murden. The groups that are

Director Murphy takes a serious look at the theft.

Wright staff and students discuss ways to protect students from theft.

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When carrying electronics, make sure to have the serial numbers written

down in a secure place.

If items are found you can proveownership of them.

When putting bags on the floor, place one of your feet through the straps.

If someone tries to take it they will be taking your leg with them.

Attach lanyards to your flash drives.When you are used to wearing

something around your neck, it is easy to notice when it is not there.

Report any incidents of theft.Security cannot find the culprit orprevent any incidents if they are

unaware of any.

Suggestions for preventing victimizationStudents’ suggestions Reasons

most often victimized are clubs who meet in open areas, such as the Video Game Club, who previously met in the cafeteria before changing their loca-tion due to the thefts. The idea is that if clubs were given a specific room to meet in, it would be easier to monitor traffic in smaller areas and identify stu-dents who do not belong there.

“It’s students taking from students…and we want those who are stealing to know that we are not going to stand for it,” said Harlston. Any club that is in-terested in having their meetings moni-tored by security guards can contact Director of Security Jack Murphy in the Security Office, room E108.

GBCFacultySymposium@ 12:30 p.m.Theater

~~~~ PTK “Pledge to Completion” ~~~~Campus Center

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rocky Horror Show Preview ~~~~~~~~~~~@7:00 p.m. in the Theater

“The Tempest”@ 7:30 p.m.T.V. Studio



Flu Shots@ 9 a.m.-2 p.m.Atrium

Midwest SocialismConference@ UIC Pavilion

WSFRPresentation@ 7 p.m.Events Building

French Film@ 2:00 p.m.S-213

A Day at Wright@ 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Events Building

LastWithdrawal Date

Franz LisztPiano Concert@ 3:00 p.m.Theater

Vocal Ensemble@ 12:30 p.m.Theater

Thanksgiving Break

ImprovPerformance@ 12:30 p.m.Theater

November 2011

Salute tothe Vets@ 2:00 p.m.Brunswick Bowl

Veterans DayFestivitiesThrough the 11thArts Building Lobby

* Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE)open meetings for student leaders

every Tuesday and Thursday @ 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. & 4 - 5 p.m.

in room S100.

November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 3The Wright Times NEWSClerical strike

continued from cover

By Stephanie WhiteReporter

Does Wright College need to have Ghostbusters on speed dial? “Get out” is heard leaving the theatre. Doors slamming when there is no one around. Something wakes you up when there is nothing there. All this and more has been said to have happened at Wright. The possible reasons for these possible happenings are mostly because of the history the land has before Wright was built here. Wright now stands on what was once an Indian burial ground, potter’s field and a mental hospital, named the Chicago State Hospital for the Insane. As the school was being built at this location in the early 1990’s, dead bod-ies were uncovered from the earth. The amount of bodies, which numbered over 300 uncovered were so numer-ous that there was a stop work order on the site. The workers continued to find bodies and relocate them to Read Dun-ning Memorial Park, which is at 6443

W Belle Plaine Ave, just south of Wright. This is in honor of all of the unnamed people. The school’s contractors were allowed to continue their work and in late 1993 the school was opened to new students. Classes had started and people were en-joying getting an education for less, but what they did not realize was that just because you move the bodies does not mean that they are gone. There is a security guard that works at Wright that is a ghost hunter, Dave Olson. Dave has his own ghost hunting team that is called Chicago Paranormal In-vestigators (CPI). He investigated here at Wright College in Decem-ber of 2009 and found several in-cidents involving the supernatural. He also investigated Read Dun-ning Memorial Park, where they have also found some paranormal activity. CPI’s videos on these ac-tivities and more can be found on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/CPIGhostHunter. For more information on the paranormal activity here at Wright, go to www.facebook.com/thewrighttimes.

Paranormal pasthaunts Wright’s present

Bottom: The Chicago State Hospital for the Insane.

Illustration by: Erica Harlston

By Shane DunnEditor-in-Chief

On the morning of October 4, three members of Gideons International (GI) handed out small, green leather bound copies of the New Testament to Wright College students heading to classes at Montrose and Narragansett and the parking lot. According to GI’s Face-book page, they are a non-profit, non-denominational Christian organization that has distributed over 79 million copies of the Bible in the world. Some students politely accepted the hand-sized sacred text and thanked the vol-unteers. Other students flatly rejected them, sometimes taking a copy and dropping it on the ground. Many sim-ply walked past, whether late to class or apathetic. Regardless of the ups and downs, they soldiered on. After all, giving away Bibles is something they enjoy. “I have been doing this for ten years,” said Burr Koepsel, one of the representatives from GI. “We go to colleges and universities all over Chicago, just offering [the Bible] to anyone that would like one.” Their responses to the stu-dents have largely been positive as well. “It’s been kind of mixed,” Koepsel said, “but most of them are polite, and that’s the best part, whether they’re accepting or say-ing ‘No, thank you.’” However, many students had a different take. “They’re hypocritical,” Wright student Tina Delia said. “They’re nice people, but they follow the

Ten Commandments to a tee.” Anoth-er student, Lyanne Rivera, feels that they’re not doing enough to further their cause. “Their intention is good, but there’s more to being like Jesus than passing out Bibles,” she said. “You need to give something like a word of encouragement or counsel.” Milagros Hernandez, a volunteer at Wright’s Campus Ministry, offered a different take. “For students that are Christians, it’s good since regardless of sect, the New Testament is the same,” she said. “But it’s a public school, and other students may think they are try-ing to impose their view.” For more information on Gideons International, check out gideons.org.

Photo by: Erica Harlston

A Gideons International member offers a copy of the New Testament to a Wright

student.

campuses. Union representatives par-ticipated in the organization finding members who were able to take part in the protest during their lunch breaks. The protest occurred off the clock in order to avoid becoming a strike. Denise Banks, a College Clerical As-sistant in the Science Department and a full-time union represenative, said the purpose of the protest was “to let people know that we deserve a fair contract.” Without a contract, union members are stuck with the burden of wondering if more layoffs will take place and if their holiday and vacation days remain in jeopardy. Without a contract the future of the union members is unclear. Local 1708 cannot renegotiate their pay rate agreement for the next four years. Members are asking for “a raise comparable to the cost of living,” Banks said. “They changed our health insurance company without giving us a raise. Now the premiums will go up. In the end, they are actually taking more money away from us.”

The most recent attempt at a contract negotiation took place on October 20. Banks said, “What we are hearing from our negotiation team is that [District] doesn’t want to give, they just want to take away, and they are trying to take a lot from us. The situation with our health benefits is making us have to dig deep into our pockets. Without a raise, it forces us to dig even deeper.” This is not the first time that a protest has been staged. In September 2010, union represenatives went down to District office for a negotiation meet-ing. The board was informed of their attendance and they rescheduled the meeting for a different time. The Lo-cal 1708 represenatives stayed, staging a minor sit-in. In the event that a contract cannot be agreed upon, there are procedures that must take place before any drastic ac-tion can occur. “We are trying to avoid that at all cost,” Banks said.

A Local 1708 member brandishes a sign.

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Bible giveaway meets nonbelievers

Photo courtesy of snikle.wordpress.com

Campus built on former mental hospital


The sundial honoring Dr. Marvin E. Goodwin was rededicated on September 29. Located in the Wright College Prairie Garden, the old sundial was replaced. The updated

version now sits in its place, inscribed with the words“Onward and Upward Toward the Light.”

By Amy SaulnierReporter

Attention Wright College scholars: Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) awaits moti-vated students with service opportuni-ties. Though PTK’s president William Myroniak was unable to attend, Public Relations officer Jose Aviles officiated their first general meeting October 4, outlining this semester’s endeavors. PTK’s “Honors in Action” Com-mittee will attempt five-star status as a chapter, the highest national status of the organization. The committee’s un-dertakings include compiling scholarly resources for their database as well as joining President Obama’s Commit-2Complete program, a national cam-paign encouraging the pursuit of sec-ondary education.

PTK member Sunny Cortez dis-cussed the upcoming Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship nominations, a prestigious scholarship of up to $30,000 annually awarded to 60 PTK members. To qual-ify for application students must be nominated by their school’s committee, have unmet financial need, maintain a GPA of at least 3.5 and plan full uni-versity attendance the following fall. Though each chapter’s committee only nominates three to four members per year, many universities offer automatic transfer scholarships. PTK maintains a full list of their scholarships on their website, collegefish.org. Theta Omega, the organization’s chapter here at Wright, officially in-ducted all new members October 21. This semester will focus mainly on service, a pillar of PTK.

PTK offers new opportunites for members

PTK meets to discuss the Commit2Complete program.

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Scholarships that pay for four se-mesters at any of the seven City Col-leges of Chicago (CCC) were awarded to new students this month on October 5 at 3:30pm. The Harold Washington Scholars were honored in the faculty dining area in the Science Building. There were a total of 17 scholars awarded at the event. This was the first time that Wright College has had a reception for the scholars on campus. In order to become a scholar, students must have a GPA of 3.0 from high school or their previous college and an ACT score of 26. “We always wanted to have the receptions here, but it never

happened until Wright President Jim Palos came and made it happen,” said an advisor, who attended the reception and wishes not to be named. Family members also attended to support the scholars and to congratu-late them on all the hard work that they had put in to get there. Palos hopes that having the reception here on campus will become a tradition. Recipients of the scholarship must also be new students to Wright, allow-ing staff members in attendance to in-troduce the students to clubs they are able to join while attending classes. Counselors gave the students tips on how to keep their GPA up and other op-portunities these new students have to become the best students that they can be during their time at Wright.

Budding CCC scholars recognized at ceremony

Harold Washington Scholars smile for their free semester.

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By Stephanie MaddelaReporter

“We were never really dead,” says Nelson Rivera, Vice President of Video Game Club (VGC). In the early weeks of September, VGC members were vic-timized, having valuable items stolen from them. Within the first few weeks of the semester, a student’s backpack was stolen, containing a laptop and schoolbooks. A student’s PSP was also stolen. There are no leads as to who stole the valuables. “It’s basically gone, and we have no clue where it’s gone… it’s just one big ‘I don’t know’ right now,” says Rivera. The club currently awaits measures to be taken to ensure that their belong-ings are not at risk if and when they do meet. They have spoken with the Stu-dent Government Association, who is collaborating with the security depart-ment to find a solution. The club strug-gles with holding meetings, according to Rivera. “Nobody really wants to

bring their stuff in, because it’s a huge risk of it getting stolen…we haven’t met since the incident where the PSP and the backpack got stolen,” he says. “We miss all the excitement from those nail-biting moments we had during our gameplay,” says VGC President Tristan Caliboso. VGC is pushing past these ob-stacles. Rivera says that they are still accepting new members, but are ask-ing for patience while waiting for the meetings to recommence. “We never push people away, once we officially start with meetings again, bringing the games and stuff, then we’ll make one big announcement,” says Rivera. He also mentioned that a plan for a large gaming tournament is in the works. Students who wish to join VGC can usually find the members including Vice President Nelson Rivera, in either S100 or the Cafeteria playing trading card games such as Magic: The Gath-ering. Students can also email Rivera at [email protected].

Video Game Club gets an extra life

VGC members take a break to pose for the Wright Times.

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November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 5The Wright Times NEWS

By Veronica IbarraReporter

Under the guidance of Wright Bi-ology professor Kurt Leslie, student volunteers tend to plants in the Service Learning Garden located near the cam-pus parking lot, they can earn credit hours as part of service learning. According to Leslie, the goal of working in the garden “is for stu-

dents to get out and learn how to plant and do it on a simple bud-get.” Currently, stu-dents grow a variety of organic produce such as tomatoes, pumpkins and basil. All plants are grown without the use of chemical aids. Par-ticipants learn agricul-

tural processes like composting, transplanting, ro-tating crops and harvesting. Learn-ing these tech-niques allow students to apply them at home. The idea for the garden was brought up by students from Leslie’s Environmental Biol-ogy class, who proposed the idea of having an organic gar-den at Wright as part of the ser-vice learning component. The garden received the approval of former Wright president Dr. Charles Guengerich and 38th

Ward Alderman Tim Cul-lerton. The garden started

in mid-March this year with help from students and the surrounding commu-nity. Wright’s maintenance crew and neighbors of the college continuously help out by bringing soil, woodchips and leaves. Chicago Streets and Sani-tation also assisted this project by sup-plying hoses. Wright’s Garden has future proj-ects in mind, namely planting prairie plants and growing a row of produce dedicated for food pantries. One of these projects involves the creation of a farm, which was proposed by Leslie.

A Wright student pushes a wheelbarrow in the garden.

He said, “With a farm we can put more people to work, grow more food and we could sell in the Farmer’s Markets.” Students will decide what to plant next year. Some of these options include carrots and squash. The garden currently needs labor from students and the community. Vol-unteers work on the garden Fridays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. or Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Anyone inter-ested in helping the Service Learning Garden can contact Leslie at [email protected]. Professor Kurt Leslie farming with students.

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Editor-in-ChiefShane Dunn

Managing EditorErica Harlston

News EditorAlex Sanchez

A&C EditorRemy Spencer

Opinions EditorKristopher Long

Photo EditorJackelyn Sigaran

Comic EditorWillie Lee Ikerd

Layout ArtistsJackelyn SigaranWillie Lee Ikerd

ReportersAmy SaulnierJose Capetillo

Jessica ZaehringerMiguel Martinez

Sonia Soto Stephanie Maddela

Stephanie WhiteVeronica Ibarra

PhotographersDanielle De Vera

Christian NivilinszkyJuan PenaOliwia Pac

Makini HarrisonMarcella Hilton-De Vincent

Nathaniel Velde

CartoonistsAmanda MartinezCristina BenavidesDominique Price

Juleesa Torres

WRIGHT TIMES STAFF

Faculty AdvisorTerrence T. Doherty

Business ManagerHector Camacho

Internal & Public RelationsShadia Massoud

The

Wright

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EST. 1995


On October 4, the Wright College lobby was flooded with representatives from twenty private Illinois colleges. Some of the schools present included Loyola University, natural medicine studies at the National University of Health Sciences, Columbia College and Shimer Great Books College. Ev-ery university boasted new facilities, scholarship statistics and nationally popular majors, business, psychology and education. Due to a lack of student interest, however, most recruiters sat idly, texting or shuffling through end-less supplies of fliers. Upon approach they came to life, bombarding students with brochures and business cards. “It feels like they’re trying to sell me

the school instead of talk to me about my education,” said Wright student Deirdre Murray. “And I wish they had more schools [from] far away. Having a bunch of colleges in the area doesn’t give students any opportunity for travel or being independent.” Recruiters recommend potential transferees to work with their schools’ advisors far in advance to ensure they are enrolling in classes relevant to their major and earning acceptable credit hours. Attending an open house is not enough – prospective transfers are ad-vised to sit in on a class, talk to current students and read the school’s newspa-per. “Every college has a unique vibe,” said one representative. “Don’t get stuck attending one that wasn’t what the brochure made it out to be.”

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Wright students wait to talk to a college recruiter.

New garden has a growth spurt

Private colleges flood campus, recruit students


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During my four years atEast-West University I had anexcellent experience-- not onlyacademically, but also in terms of student life. Enrolling at East-West University was one of the best decisions in my life.

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www.eastwest.edu

By Kristopher LongOpinions Editor

“This is the only honorary street sign in the 38th Ward,” Alderman Tim Cullerton announced at the ceremony renaming the intersection of Mon-trose and Neenah Avenues in honor of former Wright president Charles P. Guengerich. The ceremony took place on September 30 in the Events Build-ing Atrium, where Guengerich was recognized for his service to Wright

and the surrounding community with honorary street signs. “It makes us feel good that he is finally being honored for the work he has done for all these years and the improvements this col-lege has gone through under his leader-ship,” says Wright Speech and Theater professor Maria Jaskot-Inclan. Dr. Guengerich worked for the City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) for 34 years. Despite his retirement on June 23, he remains dedicated to the Wright community. Biology professor Roberta

Following Dr. Guengerich’s waysGunderson said, “He’s very passionate about the school and the community and has brought a lot of knowledge and enthusiasm [to both].” Guengerich’s efforts in helping improve his neigh-borhood through the posi-tions he held in his career at Wright have allowed him to become an icon for the col-laborative community. “We are not the largest city college by accident; we’re the largest city college because of the work you all do, providing all of the op-portunities,” Dr. Guengerich addressed to Wright’s faculty and staff during the ceremo-ny. Additionally, Guenger-ich noted that community colleges are the schools doing the heavy lifting in higher ed-ucation. “The college serves the community,” says Jaskot-Inclan. “Therefore, the college has to be com-prehensive and offer many programs so that our community is served.” “Maybe ten years from now, students will say ‘Who was that guy?’” jokes Guengerich. He wishes a great future for the Wright community. “I hope it

[the sign] inspires others that giving service is a worthwhile thing; it isn’t all about the money,” he says. “There are so many opportunities to help oth-ers. It’s a way of paying back in honor-ing those who helped you.”

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Guengerich stands with his family proudly accepting his honorary street sign.

Guengerich unveiling his own street sign.

Inaugural Turkey Bowlpits students against faculty


Football finally comes to Wright College—flag football that is. The Stu-dent Government Association (SGA) is sponsoring the Turkey Bowl, a tourna-ment that will take place in the Wright gym on November 23. The sporting event will pit eight teams of seven players, comprised of students and teachers, against one another in order to earn bragging rights for the whole semester and to strengthen ties between each other. SGA Vice President Sara Bustaman-te proposed the idea of a casual football game in celebration of Thanksgiving during the summer. “I’ve been plan-ning it for, give or take, about a month, setting up the fliers, establishing the rules and the numbers of players per team,” she said. The event has since changed from its original intent. “The original idea was to get a student team and a faculty team to play [a game of] flag football the day before Thanksgiving.” As interest started to grow, though, SGA decided to turn the single game into a tournament. “As word got out I started to notice more and more people were interested in it so we decided to turn it into a tournament,” Bustamante said. “[Students] can either sign up by [themselves] and get drafted by a team that maybe needs a player, or [they] can sign up as a team.” To get in on the action, students and faculty can sign up at the Activi-

ties Office (S134) or at the SGA office (S106). “[Students] have to be signed up by November 14 so that there’s enough time to set up the brackets and set up the time frames for the games,” said Bustamante. SGA hopes to see a high number of names on those sheets from both sides. In or-der to get faculty to play, SGA will place invites in the teach-ers’ mailboxes. “Ev-erybody’s getting re-ally excited about it. Faculty and students already have started to [say] ‘Bring it on!’ or ‘I’m going to beat you.’” Less athletically inclined students are also invited to the event. “I know that there are some peo-ple who don’t want to play but I encour-age them to come in anyway,” Busta-mante said. “We just want to bring everyone together and give it that fam-ily friendship atmo-sphere.”

November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 7The Wright Times NEWSNo hat policy

continued from cover

By Shadia MassoudReporter

Wright College enrollment for the Fall semester has increased 37 percent since 2007. According to Assistant Dean Brian Trzebiatowski, a main fac-tor for the rise and enrollment is the poor economy which makes students sign up for classes. Enrollment for Fall increases more than other semesters due to incoming high school gradu-ates. For instance, in September 2007, 7,159 students enrolled in college credit classes, 70 students enrolled in vocational skills and 3,577 students en-rolled in continuing education. In September 2008 the appearance of students had increased. 7,708 students have enrolled in college credit classes, 102 students in vocational skills, 3,570 students in adult education, and 1,756

in continuing education. Throughout September 2009, 8,728 students enrolled in college credit classes, 150 in vocational skills, 3,703 in adult education and 2,090 in con-tinuing education. For September 2010 the number of students had expanded, 9,050 students enrolled in college cred-it, 107 students in vocational skills, 3,194 in adult education and 2,190 in continuing education. In September 2011 the progress in registration has increased the most so far, 9,232 students has enrolled in col-lege credit classes, 76 in vocational skills, 3,122 in adult education and 2,133 in continuing education. Although the numbers of vocational skills, adult education and continuing education increase and decrease in the past five years, college credit students continued increasing each year.


In recognition of 100 years of edu-cation, the City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) have created the Centennial Scholarships, which will award a total of $50,000 to each recipient, to support current and prospective CCC students pursuing an Associate's degree or pro-fessional certificate. The first scholarship opportunity is the Scholarships for New Students. These are only available to students who are not currently enrolled in a CCC school and looking to register for certificate or credit programs. To qual-ify, students must be a resident of the city of Chicago, enroll as a full-time student (12 credit hours per semester)

and maintain a full-time status and a GPA of 2.7 or higher for renewal. The second scholarship is aimed at current students. The scholarship can be used towards the completion of their current certificate or degree pro-gram. Students must have a minimum 2.7 GPA, must be a Chicago resident, enrolled in 12 credit hours, pursue a degree and maintain full-time status for renewal. Both scholarships cover full tuition for completion of a degree or certifi-cate. Both scholarships also require students to write two essays and sub-mit a letter of recommendation. The deadline is Nov. 18 and the recipients will be notified by Nov. 22. More in-formation can be found at www.ccc.edu/100yearscholarships.

New CCC scholarships offering $50,000

By Remy SpencerArts & Culture Editor

Love creative expression? The new Music Club at Wright College seeks budding virtuosos looking for a place to meet and collaborate with other mu-sicians. Secretary Alex Rivera says, “The purpose of the Music Club is to get musicians to network with each other, help each other out and motivate each other. It’s a place for [students] to gain courage and continue with music if they’re really passionate about it.” Meetings are held at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesdays in the Student Center or Faculty Dining Room where members discuss music and networking opportu-nities for fresh student artists. “When

you go to school, it’s easy to socialize. We want to provide that for musicians specifically,” Rivera says. He explained that the club hopes to host sessions in which musicians can practice and col-laborate with other students. The ses-sions are planned for 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. on Wednesdays. President Brandon Atilano says that the club already has over 20 members, but they are searching for more. “The club has open mics planned, as well as meetings. I want to start getting our music out there so we can get recog-nized. We get to learn from each other and other musicians,” says Atilano. For more information, students should con-tact Atilano or Vice President Khyyan Tolliver through Facebook.

The Music Club poses in the Student Center (S100).

By Jessica ZaehringerReporter

Almost 50 percent of children in low-income communities will drop out of high school. City Year aims to change that. This is a program where volunteers work throughout the school day alongside teachers and students to help improve the benefits of education in the classroom setting. City Year corps members will work one on one with other students lead mentor groups to help children think positively about going to school and organize activities. There are several benefits when participating in City Year,

including a living stipend, $5,550 AmeriCorps Ed-ucation Award, health insurance and Samsung cell phone with ser-vice provided by T-Mobile. Participants will also gain leadership experience and eligibility to exclusive scholarships at dozens of colleges and universities. The first application deadline is November 30. Two later dates are at February 15 and April 30. For more information and to apply visit www.cityyear.org.

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New club sounds the trumpet for student musicians

City Year program offers disadvantaged teens a hand

Fall semester enrollment at a five-year high

not come up to somebody and demand the hat be removed,” Murphy said. There are repercussions for students who refuse to take their headwear off. According to Murphy, an incident re-port would be written up and referred to Dean of Instruction Kevin Li. “At this point, the students have been understanding and in most cases remove the hats,” said Murphy. “If we took a walk right now out to the lobby I think you’d find our compliance is re-ally good.” Indeed, students do seem to be fol-lowing the rule. Jacob Reyes, a student at Wright, said, “If anyone asks me to take it off, I’ll do it. I’m not going to

cause an issue. Most of the time when I’m in class I take it off anyway.” How-ever, despite Reyes’ acceptance of the policy, he does not fully agree with it. “I know it’s polite and all. Personally, I’d just like to be able to wear it,” said Reyes. While students may not see eye to eye with District on this new policy, Murphy agrees with them wholeheart-edly. “I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask somebody to remove a hat, unless it’s for religious or medical purposes,” he says. “We’re trying to do something to make Wright College and the City College system better.”

A Wright student mocks the hat policy enforcement.

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1 You’ll find a welcoming community. “I fell in lovewith Elmhurst the first day I visited,” says

Julie Provenza. “Everyone I met tried to makeme feel at home. I was nervous about transfer-ring, but people here are so friendly that it wasan easy transition.”

2 Elmhurst ranks among the best in the Midwest.We’re “top tier” in U.S. News, and The

Princeton Review cites our “excellent” intern-ships, “gorgeous” campus and “intimate academic experience.”

3 You’ll have your choice of 50-plus majors.Whether you’ve chosen a major or are still

exploring the possibilities, we’ll provide youwith an ideal environment to plan your future.

4 As a transfer student, you’ll fit right in. Aboutone in three of our students comes to us

with experience at another college or univer-sity. We understand your academic needs andhow to help you reach your goals.

5 An Elmhurst education is intensely practical.“Elmhurst has a lot of programs that

prepare you for a career,” says Anar Akhundov. “I have an internship now, and my professor hasconnected me with people who can help me finda job after graduation.”

6 It’s easy to get involved. Transfer students atElmhurst can get involved in more than 100

campus activities, including 18 athletic teams, anaward-winning student newspaper and an activestudent government.

7 The application process is free, easy and personal. Our admission counselors will

advise you on the course credits you’ll need to make a simple transition to Elmhurst.

8 Your professors will know your name. “I spenttwo years at a big university, where classes

were huge and there was no personal interaction,”says Sonia Pedapati. “Elmhurst is a good fit forme, because the professors talk to you and theyknow who you are.”

9 An Elmhurst education is affordable. We have astrong commitment to helping our students

pay for college. Approximately 85 percent ofour entering students receive some form of financial aid.

10 You’ll expand your horizons. Your ElmhurstExperience will enable you to change,

grow, think, act and encounter the world in awhole new way. It will challenge you to developyour talents and make a difference.

1o Great Reasons toTransfer to Elmhurst

Contact us (630) 617-3400 [email protected] www.elmhurst.edu/transfer

190 Prospect AvenueElmhurst, Illinois 60126 facebook.com/ElmCol

November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 9The Wright Times ARTS & CULTURESoma Sound transcends its mortal coil

Baez shows off his Hot Doug’s tattoo.

By Shane DunnEditor-in-Chief Embark a trip through the aether-filled cosmos where cha-otic beings rest in nirvana and send psychosomatic revelations to mere Earthlings. While such wild imaginings exist primarily in the minds of science fiction writers and conspiracy theorists, Soma Sound brings listeners as close as possible to attaining that pinnacle. Formed in October 2010, the local psychedelic/progres-sive rock trio is comprised of Gio Senes (guitar, vocals), Matt Puhr (bass, vocals) and Dave McConnell (drums and percus-sion, main vocals).The band name comes from “Brave New World,” a novel by Aldous Hux-ley. “Me and Dave thought of it inde-pendently and thought it was kind of funny that we both thought of it. Soma Sound just came naturally. People al-ways ask us what it means.” The band takes a cue from bands such as Pink Floyd, the Flaming Lips and Led Zeppelin. “A lot of 70’s stuff is the basic foundation of our sound,” Puhr said. “We all pretty

much worship those dudes.” Despite sounding like a pothead’s paradise, drugs aren’t required to enjoy Soma Sound. “It’s not like we’re trying

to be some sort of drug band,” Puhr said. Soma Sound comes across as a spiritual jour-ney across neon strawberry fields and frolics along

the Milky Way. “It’s all dreamy, psy-chedelic and existential,” Puhr said. He used the song “Code of the Robot”

as an example. “It’s about a robot with human feelings, but it’s also a metaphor for someone trying to fig-ure out their path in life.” The music fits the concept perfectly with a sorrowful guitar wail and pounding drums flowing in a sparse yet powerful track. Soma Sound’s small yet growing number of songs on Soundcloud incorpo-rates other moods as well. “Holes of Reality” evokes a macabre feel with low Bassist Matt Puhr plucks strings in the studio.

“A lot of 70’s stuff is the basic foundation of

our sound.”

tuning and a rumbling bass reminiscent of Black Sabbath. The song gradually builds up until the instruments go wild as if injected with adrenaline, paint-

ing a picture of a malevolent force unleashed on the world. On the oppo-site pole, “As-trally Astray” features a pri-

mal chant akin to “Feels”-era Animal Collective that traps listeners in a hyp-notic trance and guides them through a dreamy, relaxing episode of Carl Sa-gan’s “Cosmos.” The band is in the process of re-cording new material. For more infor-mation, Like their Facebook page or download and stream their music on http://soundcloud.com/soma-sound.

“It’s all dreamy, psychedelic and existen-

tial.”

Soma Sound (from left to right): Puhr, McConnell and Senes.

Photo by: Shane Dunn

By Remy SpencerArts & Culture Editor

GoodLife artist and producer Alex Baez sat down for some “grilling” on mixing, inspiration and his “cheesy” tattoo. He cited Kanye West, the Dream and Prince as some of his favorite pro-ducers, saying, “I love big sounds.” His self-proclaimed genre, “Hipster R&B,” is expressed through 80’s references and just a tad of AutoTune. “It’s kind of tongue-in-cheek,” he explained. The

Wright Times visited GoodLife Studio for the rundown.

Wright Times (WT): How did you get involved with producing?Alex Baez (AB): When I was a kid, I started playing on an old Casio [key-board]. It had a little recording system on it so I would play the piano, the drums and stuff. During high school I was in a rock band and I was the one who recorded the band. From there I really got interested producing music.

WT: What do you draw your inspiration from?AB: Day-to-day life stuff, like being down on your luck, be-ing happy or seeing a girl with a big ass (laughs). On one side, I love hip-hop, rap and R&B. On the other side, I love really weird music like indie. What I wanted to do was lump those together. Being at GoodLife has given me more opportuni-ties to fully envision that.

WT: What’s your favorite part about mixing?AB: When I’m working with others’ music, it’s really grati-fying when they hear what I did with the song and they’re

like ‘Oh, it sounds awesome!’ My job here is to make the

music as exciting as I can. I also re-ally like control-ling pitch. I can actually make people have parts in their songs that haven’t even been recorded.

WT: Do you think your spon-taneity translates into how you mix?AB: I think it’s usually spontaneous as far as the tracks. Sometimes just a sound will bring the whole melody out. The only thing I ever have planned is cleanup. It gets down to just feeling the music, listening to it. Every song is different.

WT: Tell me about the hot dog tattoo.AB: I wanted to get something that meant a lot to me. One of them is mu-sic and the other is food. I love eating (laughs). I showed the owner of Hot Doug’s and he was laughing his ass off. He was like, ‘Dude that’s probably the most flattering/creepiest thing I’ve ever seen. You’re good for life.’

WT: Is there a certain kind of mood

“There’s a soundtrack to everything.”

that inspires your creativity?AB: If I’m not feeling too great, I’ll make a sappy song. I made a song about how I didn’t want to go to work 5 minutes before going to work (laughs).

That’s what music really is. It connects with aspects of life. There’s a soundtrack to everything.

WT: Is there anything else you wanted to add?AB: If I had to tell someone

interested in producing or engineering, the #1 thing is do it all the time. If you have to not go out one night to finish a song, finish the song. Confidence too. I used to be kind of modest but when I started hearing other people say ‘Check this out,’ I would think well, my song’s cooler than that. Always take as much time as you can to perfect your craft.

Take a bite out of Alex Baez:He’s fedorable!

Alex Baez in the GoodLife studio.


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The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/410 VARIETY SPREAD 11

Migi By Juleesa Torres Wreckmates By Amanda Martinez-Rivera

The Real Thanksgiving By Willie Lee Ikerd

Answers to October’s Sudoku

Turkey’s Thanksgiving By Juan Pena

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/412 ARTS & CULTURE

Staff Picks

Ratings Scale:

= Outstanding

= Excellent

= Average

= Disappointing

= Terrible

Not sure what new media to check out in this postmodern society? Never fear, the Wright Times staff is here! Every month, staff

members write reviews on the newest albums, movies, books and many more.

Find something appealing to you without buying it first!


For a grand total of 309 seconds, Wormrot’s new EP “Noise” gleefully launches from headphones like bacon greased lightning to the face. Granted, this short length may turn off fans of 23-minute Dream Theater-esque epics. However, brevity meshes flawlessly with this Singapore-based grindcore trio with a penchant for the old-school. Like a colony of flies around a carcass in summertime, “Noise” buzzes, dodg-es and dies in little time. There’s also a lot of variety unseen in many same-genre bands. For example, “Loathsome Delusions” spends 22 seconds as white noise before breaking into a pleasantly troubling cacophony capable of both empower-ing and breaking listeners. “Outburst

of An-noyance” m i x e s t e m p o s and pro-gressions

within a mere 58 seconds. “Breed to Breed” makes a direct connection to the past, featuring nothing but the violent screams of mouth-to-curbing stomp action. “Perpetual Extinction” takes every element in the EP and throws them in a dissonant blender of fury. There’s a wealth of different beats, cymbal crashing, guitar riffs and cook-ie monster vocal variations. Ignore the auto label on the front, download “Noise” off the Scion A/V Metal web-site now and experience this awe-in-spiring five minutes of glory. Remem-ber: don’t blink, or you’ll miss the storm.

Wormrot: Noise

The LIon King 3-D

By Jackelyn SigaranPhoto Editor

No matter how “The Lion King” is presented it retains its timeless touch. Viewers of all ages will enjoy this movie about a young cub who transi-tions to adulthood and learns how to take his place in the circle of life. The movie opens with a memorable scene of various animals bowing to Simba, the newborn prince of Pride Land. His life seems incredible until his uncle Scar comes up with a tragic plan to murder Simba’s father, Mufusa. Scar’s plan eliminates Mufusa so that

he can become the new king. After Mufu-

sa’s death Scar convinces the young cub to run away

and never return to the Pride Land. The 3-D effect makes the experience more realistic; Scar practically jumps out the screen. The sound effects are excellently enhanced than the 1994’s version. Heartwarming songs such as “The Circle of Life,” “Hakuna Matata” and “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” reminds the viewers of childhood. The movie left the audience applauding and singing along to the music. The nostal-gia had a mother in the audience hug-ging and crying to her children. The Lion King remains one of Disney’s most popular animated musicals that will touch everyone’s heart.

By Remy SpencerArts & Culture Editor A raggedy wagon jostles along muddy roads. Inside broods a mirror that transports users into their own imagi-nation embodied. There they must choose: ecstasy or damnation? Director Terry Gilliam fuses Vic-torian and modern elements in “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.” He creates a fantastical rendering of a sim-ple plot: a deal is made with the Devil and antics ensue. Doctor Parnassus, an immortal monk played by Christopher Plummer, hosts a suspicious carnival sideshow out of a theater that folds out of their wagon. He shares the space with his daughter and two others. The caravan is joined by Tony (Heath Led-

the imaginarium ofDoctor parnassus

ger), who suffers from amnesia. Flashbacks are key and help build drama. Parnassus helps his troupe col-lect customers to enter his Imagi-narium and for-feit their souls. Tony even joins one woman as

she fantasizes about giant shoes and a gondola ride. A lilting, orchestrated soundtrack accompanies the intricate set and col-orfully vintage carnival-style ward-robe. Dark, surreal lighting emphasize a creepy atmosphere, sending chills up spines. Though the story develops confusingly at first, the thrilling visu-als and bedazzled costumes captivate throughout the film. A haunting tale told in symbols and metaphors, this film satisfies cravings for whimsy and adventure alike.

By Miguel MartinezReporter

British math rock band Foals’ 2008 de-but album “Antidotes” enthralls listeners with its complex, jazzy take on typical five-piece indie rock. The group carries on the genre’s unconventional song struc-tures and irregular time signatures with transcendent gusto and ease. To judge the album on a per-song basis would cheat one of the whole-some art of this album; it’s quite a melancholy romantic theme which is characterized by “Cassius,” “Bal-loons,” “Olympic Airways” and “Big Big Love (fig 2).” However, these are far from the only good tracks. “Two Steps Twice” still provides the same progression as

“Cassius,” but with a different

approach, build-ing its speed through

stopping and regain-ing momentum again,

instead of a burst of energy like in “Cassius.” Foals provides a tempo to dance to but also evokes feelings of nostalgia, especially in “Red Sock Pugie” and “Olympic Airways” where the listener drowns in the songs’ inherent shock and sorrow. “Antidotes” serves as an excellent gateway into the math rock genre, pro-viding a basic overview of it. It’s an album that asks listeners to dance and be true to themselves. To fully appreci-ate this, one must accept the music and emotions that come along with it.

Foals: Antidotes

November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 13The Wright Times ARTS & CULTURE


McGill’s Bar and Grill is nothing short of a modern day Cheers complete with friendly patrons greeting custom-ers by name. The establishment pro-vides a welcoming environment with strangers and friends alike. Offering exactly what its title entails, booze and food, McGill’s is great for students on a budget. The aroma of mouthwatering buffalo sauce fills the air making it impossible to leave without sampling. Items on the menu include a variety of chicken wings, juicy burgers and crispy french fries. To wash the meal down a diverse selection of drinks are available (most

beer starts at $2 and mixed drinks

range from $3 to $5).

Yearning for dollars and change, a modern

jukebox hovers in the cor-ner housing a variety of music. Occa-sionally one of the bartenders will DJ, encouraging customers to get up and move to the sound waves, leaving the stress of life at the door. Located on 4553 N. Pulaski Rd. and open Monday through Saturday, the venue supplies a getaway from an exhausting week filled with work and classes. The only thing that prevents this from being a regular hang out spot is the lack of live entertainment. How-ever, frequent visitors don’t seem to mind.

McGill’s Bar

By Sonia SotoReporter

In “Trifles,” a murder mystery captures charac-ters in a web of intrigue. Minnie Wright is suspect-ed of killing her husband, John. The County Attorney, the Sheriff and a neighbor, Mr. Hale, enter the Wrights’ house to search for any evidence that might prove Mrs. Wright guilty. While they inspect the house, Mrs. Hale and the Sheriff’s wife discuss Minnie’s relationship with her hus-band. The two women discover quilt pieces with uneven stitching that sug-gest Mrs. Wright was anxious or upset. They also find a canary with a broken neck.

Glaspell leaves the reader to wonder whether it was Mrs. Wright who strangled the bird as prepara-tion for murder, or if it was the impatient Mr. Wright who killed the bird and paid with his life. The clues could be used against Mrs.

Wright so the two wives take some items that they think Mrs. Wright might want from her home, including a box containing the dead canary and quilt pieces. Ironically, the men simply label the women’s business as unimportant. Their ignorance allows their wives to hide the evidence they were looking for. So men, don’t underestimate wom-en and the power of sisterhood.


Until someone invents a time machine, Kouk’s Vintage Café is the next best thing. Or better, because they serve fresh coffee. Nes-tled between Nagle and Bryn Mawr at 5653 Northwest Highway, this eclectic little gem has it all. Between the godly cannolis, piping hot pizza by the slice (spinach & ricot-ta is where it’s at) and mouthwatering handcrafted beverages, Kouk’s is abso-lutely addictive. Feud not, coffee and tea lovers! This odd shop has some-thing for everyone: mochanut yerba maté tea (even better to drink than it is to say), customizable Italian sodas, the “Chitown” (coffee + brownie = sheer glory), a chai smoothie that can only be

described as a vacation to a frozen tun-dra of cinnamon deliciousness for your tongue and a pumpkin latte to end all pumpkin lattes. The café doubles as a resale shop, a wander-worthy labyrinth of treasures – jewelry, comic books, pipes, clothing and hilariously awkward old toys. Un-fortunately, Kouk’s is only open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. everyday. Probably to keep charmed patrons from senso-ry overload. Come get your caffeine/snack/free Wi-Fi fix without buying from certain overpriced corporate le-viathans. Beware, readers: you will be back.


Watching a movie and masochism are practices that should have no correlation at all. Yet in “The Room,” distinguishing between them would be a challenge as watching the movie is a painful experience. Howev-er, the film which strives to tell a tale of romance, betrayal and friendships, also leaves audiences dying with laughter. Directed, written and produced by Tommy Wiseau (who coincidentally stars as the main character, Johnny), this attempt at a drama unofficially receives the Worst Movie of All Time award. However, this does not stop the movie from actually having entertain-ment value.

As pain-ful as it is to watch because

of its horrible presentation, the film re-deems itself by providing ninety-nine minutes of poor acting and ridiculous, awkward dialogue (“I definitely have cancer”) that leaves viewers bursting at the seams with laughter. Despite the bad reviews, “The Room” manages to live on even eight years after its creation because of its hilarious and less-than-mediocre deliv-ery. It has developed an odd cult fol-lowing who watch it purely for the fact it is awful. Smaller venues, such as The Music Box Theatre in Chicago, offer midnight showings. It seems, unlike the cancer in the movie, this disaster will not disappear.

Kouk’s cafe

trifles

the room

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/414 ARTS & CULTURE

By Jose CapetilloReporter

These days it seems like comic shops come and go. Not Challengers Comics + Conversation. Located in Chicago’s Bucktown/Wicker Park area, the store has quickly become the place to be for its popular events and the gracious hos-pitality from co-owners W. Dal Bush and Patrick Brower. “I never wanted to open up a store. I always liked working in the indus-try but I never wanted my own store, I never wanted to be responsible or have to worry about taxes or payroll or all that kind of stuff,” said Brower. He had worked with Bush at a previous store before Bush left to work a regular office job. After a few months away Bush called Brower and explained an idea he had for a better way to run a comic store. Brower explained,

“It’s the complete opposite of what I’ve been doing for the 17 years before that. So today, the focus is mainly graphic novels with single issue comics being a secondary product.” Walking into Challengers, custom-ers can immediately see this isn’t their father’s comic shop. It’s clean, bright, well organized and spacious. Immedi-ately you will find their huge graphic novel selection down the center and recent issues along the walls easy to browse and search for whatever you may be looking for. They also have instructional books for aspiring artists and writers as well as supplies both for artist and comic collectors. Through their website, one can join a close cus-tomer network of the store and give book reviews, participate in discussions


October 1, 11 a.m.: the clock starts running. For the fourth year in a row, Challengers Comics and Conversation hosts The 24 Hour Comic Day event like no one else can. 22 artists face the iron man challenge of writing and drawing a complete 24-page comic within 24 hours. The day starts off well. Every artist eases into their assigned seats and their task at hand. Unfortunately artist Ryan Browne and Chris Burnham’s idea of writing and drawing every other page of each other’s books never came to fruition. Co-owner W. Dal Bush ex-plains, “We were pretty excited about it but Chris has got a lot of stuff he has got to do at DC Comics and Ryan had an injury a few days prior.” After a couple of hours, everyone has found their rhythm and works smoothly. All the participants joke around and laughs are heard consis-tently as everyone has a good time. “It’s cool to see the amount of people returning year after year and the differ-ent kind of stories they are doing,” said Bush. “We have a lot of differ-ent art styles, a lot of different story telling attempts. Some new people and some people

who have been here four years in a row.” Walking around, one sees artists working with traditional methods, us-ing pencils then inking over it. Artist Tom Kelly uses different techniques in his pages but does a lot of painting. Marvel and DC Comics artist Mike Norton drew everything on a tablet. Freelancer Matt Brady created a photo comic of the entire experience. October 2, 11 a.m.: the clock stops. 12 participants actually completed their books. In no time they are gone, but co-owners Patrick Brower and Bush must continue because their day doesn’t end until the close of business in the eve-ning. Are they willing to do another? “Yeah I think so. It always gets a little more difficult each year we done it. But while we were aware what risks there were ahead of time,” Bush said with an exhausted smile. For anyone interested in next year’s event, visit challenger-scomics.com.

and be kept up to date with the numerous and diverse events that they host. One feature that separates C h a l l e n g e r s from the other shops is its Rogues Gal-lery. The gal-lery showcases one artist a month and 30-50 pieces of their work. “I’ve always been a huge fan of comic art. So many people don’t get a chance to see it up close and you don’t realize how much love, care, effort and craftsmanship go into it,” Brower continues. “When you see a

Co-owners W. Dal Bush and Patrick Brower (left photo) of Challengers Comics + Conversation.

full page, you get to see everything.” The gallery showcases one artist a month and 30-50 pieces of their work. Challengers is not a comic store with gaming or action figures, but a comic book store that caters to a gen-uine comic book fan. To learn more, visit their website at challengerscom-

ics.com.

Challengers Comics invite you to join the conversation All photos courtesy of M

egan Byrd

Challenge accepted: artists tackle “24 Hour Comic Day”

Photo courtesy of Challengers C

omics

Mike Morton (bottom left) is in the zone. A filmstrip of color played during the exhibit (left). “Trickster Mechanism No.3” is displayed at Columbia College (right).

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Color defines what we love and who we are. Columbia’s Art Show “Color: Fully Engaged” shows through hand-made pieces that color makes the world what it is. Bright shades of pink, orange, green and others streamed the walls of the gallery. Some pieces inspired thought and seemed to transcend human cre-ation. Jamilee Polson Lacy curated the art show. She says that the exhibition “came into being as a result of [her] love for experiencing, remembering and describing color’s cliches, intrica-cies and all-out mysteries.” Dan Gunn’s “Trickster Mechanism No. 3” makes this idea apparent. This multimedia piece of work used ply-wood, pine slat, fabric, hardware and glitter. “The strength of color is that it,

like materials/qualities, is transitive. It moves nimbly across categories and creates associations that link disparate contexts,” Gunn said in an interview. He also says that the reason he choos-es the materials he does is that “[he] seems to stock pile consumer items, rarely junk, especially fabrics in specif-ic colors textures, and items that traf-fic in the spectacular.” Gunn said that he understands the difference between junk and art. “Junk in a gallery is art, unless the viewer needs more to justify it,” he added. Gunn based his artwork and other pieces on this ideal, which makes his pieces his own. Gunn’s and others’ artwork was highlighted against a multicolored filmstrip. The exhibit will run until November 5 at Columbia College in Chicago.

“Color: Fully Engaged” a beacon of light in city

November 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 15The Wright Times ARTS & CULTURE


Wilbur Wright College Veterans and Service-members Association (WW-CVSA) has been activated and ready for mobilization. Although the club is in its infancy, members have already brought the strong work ethic and lead-ership skills they developed while serv-ing in the United States Armed Forces, allowing the club to get off to a running start. Ideas for events, fundraisers and activities seem limitless. Under the guidance of Veterans Ser-vice Specialist Edward Davis, the club officially gained recognition this past September after its founding in Spring 2011. The club has big plans for the week of Veterans Day after only a few meetings. “Here at the campus, we are looking at having a Veterans Day celebration recognizing and honoring our student

veterans but also our veterans in general,” said Davis. “We are look-ing at having the Veterans Resource Fair [on] November 9. That’ll be in the Events lobby area and we are hoping to have anywhere be-tween 12 or more resource vendors for veterans, [as well as] different agencies that explain the different services they have for veterans.” The WWCVSA will also support and participate in the Brunswick Zone Niles “9 Pin No Tap” tournament on Sunday, No-vember 13. Their next meeting will be held at 4 p.m. on November 1 in S100. Wright Veteran students interested in joining the WWCVSA or looking for more information may contact them at [email protected] or follow their Facebook page as well.

Photo by: Jose Capetillo

Ed Davis discusses the club’s agenda at a meeting.

The Order is Given, Wright’s Veterans Club is a Go!!

By Shadia MassoudReporter

The new season of Northwest Chica-go Symphony Orchestra (NCSO) com-menced at Wright College on Sunday October 9. The orchestra performed powerful yet charming music that con-nected the 21st century with the old romance of Spain. The blend of the violin and guitar stood out the most. The breathtaking music touched audi-ence members as they closed their eyes and swayed side-to-side, enjoying the wonderful concert. The appreciation of

music was not expressed in words, but by living in the moment of joy with the expressive enchantment of Spain. The audience experienced a whole new environment characterized by modern Spanish classical music. The symphony started with very authoritative and sensational music that awaked the audience, then slowed down into fascinating sentimental mu-sic. Highlights included great songs such as the “Concierto Andaluz,” which had five different parts. Each segment was unique and beautiful, starting as an emotional love story but then became

happier and more alive. “Aria and Cantilena” began with a soft, sad tone that increased in inten-sity with the sound of violins, eventu-ally slowing its tempo. Many instru-ments were accentuated such as guitar, violin, flute and clarinet, however the guitar was the most popular. The Avan-ti Guitar Trio virtuosos performed with NCSO, adding another dimension to the concert. The violin played a big role, with more than half of the musi-cians and different age groups helped to make the songs more expressive. Many songs that were written between

the 1880s and 1990s by famous Span-ish composers, such as Joaquin Turina Perez and Joaquin Rodrigo Vidre, were highlighted Michael Holian. The musical director did a marvelous job on directing the Northwest Chicago Symphony Orchestra by making sure the songs could be communicated phe-nomenally. Northwest Chicago Symphony pre-sented a special thanks to Wilbur Wright College and President Jim Pa-los for the support and encouragement to bring classical music to the North-west Chicago areas.

Photos by: Oliw

ia Pac

The Northwest Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Wright College on October 9.

NCSO plays colorful tribute to Spanish composers

BE TRANSFORMED.

TRANSFER TO

LOYOLA,ATTEND A TRANSFER INFORMATION SESSION

10 a.m. • Nov. 12 and 19 • Lake Shore Campus

Adult learners interested in completing their bachelor’s degree are encouraged to apply. To schedule a visit or apply, visit LUC.edu/transfer.

Veterans Service Specialist Ed Davis.

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: Jos

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illo

Join our family. Make DePaul your next step.

As a student at DePaul, you’ll have access to more than 200 degree programs and become part

of a tradition in excellence. You’ll gain a degree that is recognized nationally, where our faculty

incorporate real-world experiences into the classroom for an education that can be immediately

put to work. Classes are made up of a highly diverse student mix, which reflects the richness of

our community. Since more than 35 percent of our undergraduates are transfer students, you’ll

feel right at home. And when you graduate, you’ll be part of our extended family, more than

145,000 strong.

LEARN MORE by attending our Fall Visit Day on November 6 at DePaul University.

For more information, visit depaul.edu/transferinfo or (312) 362-5551.

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 ARTS & CULTURE16

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 17OPINIONS

Illustration by: Willie Lee Ikerd


Late September, male students walked into the Wright College Cam-pus Center and were greeted with a white slip of paper. The paper read, “Students entering City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) buildings are required to remove all head coverings unless such coverings are associated with re-ligious beliefs or documented medical conditions.” Many were angered and whispered obscenities. The Student Policy Manual’s head covering policy serves two purposes. The first indicates a sign of respect. Nonreligious head garments were origi-nally created as a way to shield workers

from conditions such as harsh sunlight and blowing sand. Though the roots of proper hat etiquette are unknown, according to advancedetiquette.com an individual may wear a hat indoors as long as it is in a public place. Last checked, Wright is a public place. Another reason for the policy was to initiate a form of gang control through-out the CCC campuses. Surprisingly, gang activity has never been a major contribution to Wright North campus crime in the past, hence why the rule was overlooked for so long. Interest-ingly, there was no need to enforce a rule meant for gang control until a rise in campus crime was noticed. Is Wright’s security trying to imply that the recent rise in campus thefts are due to gang activity? Regardless of the reasons the en-forcement continues. Wright student Russell Taylor voices his concern say-ing, “I have attended this college for over a year and there has never been a problem with me wearing my hat before. I don’t understand what the is-sue is with it now, and I feel that it is pointless to implement something that has been ignored for years.” Taylor’s peer, Steve Johnson, joined by adding, “How does security expect students to care about a rule they forgot about for over a decade?” Being ignored for so long, the hat policy appears to have been abolished by time.

Hats on against policy enforcementConflicting Views

By Jackelyn SigaranPhoto Editor

The new hat policy at Wright has students thinking twice about wearing hats. Removing hats in the building shows courtesy for being in an adult environment. The policy applies to students, staff and visitors, prohibiting head coverings in all City Colleges. The only exception for wearing hats in school is for religious or docutented medical purposes. Students are com-plaining about how ridiculous the hat policy is, but no one notices how well this rule benefits both them and their environment. The policy makes every city college safe, regardless of crime rates. There has been no report from security of such affiliation on campus and the no-hat policy is a surefire way to make sure that gang affiliation stays off campus. In the last three weeks, President Palos had three people com-plain to him about their safety on cam-pus. Palos’ main concern is to have every student at Wright feel safe when coming to school. Wright student Ce-dric Giles said, “I think the policy is dumb because I’ve been wearing hats in school for the last three years and I have nothing to do with gangs.” Many students are complaining that they feel they are back in high school with this new policy. They believe that since they are an adult environment, they should be allowed to wear what-

ever they like. By simply taking off head cover-ings when entering the building, the college environment instantly becomes more professional. Palos said, “The policy has to do with fostering profes-sional habits and behavior.” Hats, doo-rags and hoodies are not acceptable in a professional setting. When the City Colleges of Chicago board discussed this issue, they felt the policy will help students become responsible in preparation for the work place. Stu-dents should not fight the hat policy and should instead focus on their edu-cation. As Wright Director of Security Jack Murphy said, “Teachers have ap-proached me and thanked me for en-forcing the new policy.”

Hats off to adulthood

By Kristopher LongOpinions Editor

In less than a month, Wright Col-lege’s Environmental Club has accu-mulated 725 signatures from students and staff petitioning to extend bike lanes near campus. The club aspires to extend the bike lanes on Narragansett Avenue to make commuting safer for Wright’s cyclists. With assistance from 38th Ward Alderman Tim Cullerton, an extension seems promising. Environmental Club faculty advi-sor Mila Simeonovska and Graduation Coordinator Stephen Gulyas met with Alderman Cullerton to discuss the ex-tension. Unfortunately, their discussion steered itself into a dead end. Cullerton

noted that with the proposed extension entering Harwood Heights, state offi-cials may need to approve this as well. Another dilemma surfaced while determining the community’s involve-ment with this project. If Wright’s neighbors are ruled away from partici-pating in the extension, citizens may protest for not being informed of the change. Such rebellion can lower the school’s overall reputation. Cullerton’s solution? Give the people a chance. “One thing that I generally like to do is to approach the people that live in this area,” Cullerton states. “It’s good to in-volve the community because if you do it ahead of time, they feel like they’re part of it.” The Environmental Club will notify

Extending the environment’s lane spanthe community before any activity proceeds. “We’ll be sending letters to the community,” says Siminovoska. Distribut-ing newsletters in a door-to-door fashion allows the college to interact with members of the commu-nity directly. “If there’s enough interest, we could have a meeting at Wright College with the neigh-bors,” suggests Cullerton. This proactive engage-ment will boost Wright’s image and promote its in-tentions in improving the entire community.

The po-tential bike lane exten-sion plans to emerge during spring of next year, which seems fitting given the current transi-tion of seasons. Besides, cycling with the unpre-dictable weather con-ditions that fall during this time of year will only bring rise to other safety concerns. When sunshine and leaves begin reappear-

ing outside, many will eagerly accom-pany nature’s presence with their bi-cycles. Also with new beautiful lanes to cruise in, many more will have the opportunity to safely enjoy their com-mute to campus. Even Wright President Jim Palos anticipates the extension. “Maybe I’ll bike here one day myself,” he jokes. “It would be a long ride, but doable.” Let’s just hope there’s enough room for 725 of us.

38th Ward Alderman Tim Cullerton favors a bike lane extension.

Simeonovska, Alderman Cullerton and Gulyas discuss bike lanes at Cullerton’s office.

Photo by: Danielle D

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The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/418 OPINIONS

Socialize

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Illustrations by: Rem

y Spencer

Give clerks the new contract they deserve

Voices of WrightIllustration by: W

illie Lee Ikerd

The City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) now boast “100 years of edu-cation.” To honor this occasion, CCC is offering Centennial Scholarships to both new and current students. On October 20, the CCC released information regarding the grants and requirements necessary to qualify for the new scholarships. Up to $50,000 is being offered to all students, includ-ing those who have yet to even regis-ter for classes. The grant covers adult education students and recent high school graduates who are planning to enroll. Those intending to apply for the scholarships must maintain a full-time course load as well as a minimum GPA of 2.7 on a 4.0 scale. Two essays must also be submitted with applica-tions. Students are to answer, in 250 words or less, “What do you want the world to say about you in 100 years?” They are also asked to discuss person-al goals and achievements. Addition-ally, a letter of recommendation from a non-relative should accompany ev-ery application. The press release states, “The City Colleges of Chicago were founded with the purpose of providing a high quality affordable education to the

residents of Chicago.” The Centennial Scholarships mark a major milestone in the history of CCC while at the same time giving back to the Chicagoans that made reaching 100 years possible. By extend-ing the grant to new students, CCC helps to open the door to higher education. The scholarships account for full tu-ition payment up until the Spring 2014 term, which is no laughing matter. The CCC is putting up a lot of money in an effort not only to reward all current students but to attract prospective ones. Such an opportunity is rarely presented, especially for so many years. In 2007, 32 percent of about 7,000 students received either financial or federal aid at Wright College. On average, each student was awarded $3,082 in federal aid and no students used loan funds. The Centennial Scholarships will help ensure that no stu-dent will have to take out loans in order to pay for their classes. Wright student Ashley King says, “I think it’s a good opportunity. Not all students qualify for financial aid and be-cause of that, they aren’t able to attend classes.” Because CCC is so diverse, these scholarships present a priceless chance that could change the lives of students across the city.

EditorialCentennial Scholarships reignite the ‘Spirit of Success’

Undecided

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Turkey

Sleep

Other Caffeine


October 6 was the day that four Wright College clerks took their signs and marched for the rights that every human being should have: a fair con-tract, wages to match the steadily ris-ing standard of living and the ability to live without fear of being handed a pink slip. These demands are so simple and basic that it boggles the psyche as to why City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) has yet to give them a new contract. The issue of a new contract is noth-ing new. Just last year, union represena-tives were to meet with District officials about renegotiating their contract. Instead of making contact with the union leaders, the meeting was reassigned to a different day. Rescheduling meetings has been a key tactic in delaying discussions with dissatisfied in-dividuals. On May 26, a public meeting at Malcolm X meant to discuss the Reinvention intia-tive was also postponed – not once, but twice – and those that had gathered were told to leave. Clerks are not the existen-tial cogs in the machine that Kevin Smith’s films have por-trayed them as. Rather, these men and women are the very lifeblood of not only CCC, but all companies and orga-

nizations. Clerks are the ones that deal with endless red tape; the ones that file a neverending steam of paperwork for thousands upon thousands of students; the ones that deal with angry custom-ers and plodding bureaucrats every day. Without these underappreciated employees serving as the foundation of our society, the entire economy as we know it would crumble into ruins. To their credit, District has taken baby steps towards cleaning up the negative im-age they have acquired

since the launch of the Reinvention intiative. Clubs have received funding they need to thrive, they have responded to queries on the CCC Facebook page and the new Centennial Scholarships

have opened up fresh opportuni-

ties for students whom otherwise may be denied the funding needed for at-tending college. But right now, a great leap is needed if they sincerely wish to show the students, faculty and staff of CCC that they are truly on their side. Take the plunge and give the clerks the contract they truly deserve.

Clerks are vital to the success of CCC

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/4 19OPINIONS

By Stephanie Maddela Reporter

Ghosts in the Student Center! Zom-bies in the cafeteria! Strolling the halls of Wright College, one can hear students sharing their paranormal ex-periences within these very walls. The Wright campus was home to an insane asylum in the mid-1800s, and with these spooky surroundings, many students are convinced that Wright is home to restless souls. Students have long told tales of knocks at the door, an object moving, or a voice of someone speaking to them. These claims are supported because there are definitely a few eerie things happening at Wright. For example, some kind of a ghost haunts the second floor women’s bathroom in the Science building. Five of the six toilets clog as if an evil spirit goes into each one, jams it with toilet paper and sits laughing. Whipping stall doors open furiously while women sprint anxiously from toilet to toilet in search of a working stall while holding their bladder. Another bizarre case occurs in the parking lot. As soon as drivers enter the Wright lot, they forget everything they

learned in driver’s ed. Suddenly, drivers can no longer see stop signs, and the rule of right of way is erased from their memory. While the idea of poltergeists haunting the library does not seem completely ridiculous, students should not be so quick to believe it either. Stories about ghosts and ghouls seem believable: students occupy the building all day long, making “ghostly footsteps” or “vicious knocking” reasonably explainable. A student walking or a teacher knocking on the door can create these sounds too. People should think about what in the building is actually mak-ing frightening noises. Before jumping to conclusions, students should take the time to analyze these situations logically. While faulty toilets and awful drivers constitute as “haunted” as Wright gets for me, I don’t discourage those who believe that spirits plague the campus. Who knows? Maybe these believers will catch a glimpse of the toilet-clogging ghost.

Illustration by: Willie Lee Ikerd

Grants to black majority city collegesgood finanicially, bad socially


This month, three of the colleges under the glorious City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) umbrella hit the jack-pot, receiving an $8.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Educa-tion for up to the next five years for a grand total of $42.5 million. Ken-nedy-King College (KKC), Malcolm X College (MXC) and Olive-Harvey College (OHC) received these green-backs to, as the CCC press release states, “better serve low- and middle-income African-American students.” Now, how does this relate to Wright College? Consider the following: The scholarship is certainly for a no-ble cause. However, why are Wright students excluded from this? A mere cursory glance at the environment re-veals that many African-Americans are on campus. According to a 2010 report by the CCC Office of Research and Evaluation, 9 percent of Wright

students are black, or 1,295. That’s no drop in the bucket. The three recipients of the grant have a larger black popu-lation, certainly – KKC, MXC and OHC’s African-American populations add up to 89 percent, 58 percent and 82 percent respectively. This terrible over-sight does needy students at Wright a disservice. After all, community col-lege’s appeal stems from the fact that it’s cheaper than typical four-year in-stitutions. There exists another, though perhaps unintended, effect of this. The fact that schools with a majority of black stu-dents receive a particular scholarship while non-black majority schools are left out implies that African-Americans need this grant, which can be seen as a type of welfare. Stereotypes in the United States – certainly Chicago – have roots tied into the very fabric of society. A 2009 article from The Liv-ing Consequences website states, “It is well known that racial prejudice and stereotypes still persist...this racializa-tion of welfare has been tied to the portrayal of the poor.” Given the high amount of students relying on financial aid to attend school, not spreading this money to schools that are non-majority black only helps to reinforce this awful assumption. Rather than distribute it to a few se-lect colleges, these scholarships should be made available to all of CCC. Hope-fully in the future, other schools with a more even distribution can also partake in the benefits.

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Stereotypesare being

indirectlyreinforced

Supernatural assumptionsfail against logic

The Wright TimesNovember 2011 Vol/Issue 18/420 OPINIONS

Wright’s AnglesThe Wright Times staff answer the questions

everyone is asking about popular culture, sports,

entertainment andcurrent events. Find out what’s on our mind with

Wright’s Angles.

What will you do to fight Black Friday

crowds?

All pie, all the time, so long as it’s not rhubarb.

Reintroduce thepopulation to the Black

Plague.

Deathspell Omega,because avant-garde black

metal from Franceperfectly embodies what

MNF is all about.

White meat. The purest, most divine form of the

sacred chicken.

Shop naked.

You had me at dessert....

Thanksgiving is an excuse for everyone to be aglutton. I’ll eat it all!

Harry Carry! Awww man, I forgot that he’s dead.

Apple or pumpkin pie?

I vote Hank Hill.

Who doesn’t like breasts?

Give each of them a blan-ket sown with love, care

and smallpox.

Hank Aaron! No - Robin Williams! No - Robert

Downey Jr.!

For dinner or leftovers?

Apple pie is the most American food ever. So,

pumpkin pie.Doesn’t matter. It all comes out the same hole anyway.

Carry a leftover turkey leg and bang people in my way

over the head with it.

ESPN nixed Hank Williams Jr.’s Monday Night

Football intro. Who should replace him?

White or dark meat?

“WTF!” is the reaction given bymultiple disgusted students.



Students should think twice before shaking hands with buddies or borrow-ing pens from a neighbor. According to an article in the Chicago Tribune, there was a major rise in hand sanitizer sales due to the swine flu outbreak in 2009. This makes it unsettling to imagine where those hands have been. A study conducted in 2010 by the American Society of Microbiology hits close to home. In Chicago and three other cities, both men and women were observed to see if they washed their hands after us-ing the bathroom. A shocking 15 per-cent of the people studied did not lather up after taking care of business. With such information in mind, I began to wonder: how many people at Wright College actually wash their hands after relieving themselves? In a recent campus poll, 100 students were asked if they felt the washrooms were sanitary. Approximately 65 percent of the students agreed that the bathrooms on campus are filthy, increasing the amount of germs that can be spread.

Students noted that they have seen blood on the toilets in the women’s bathrooms, as well as smeared feces on the wall in one of the men’s wash-rooms. Instead of washing the feces off the wall it was merely covered with tape. The same students were asked on average how many times a week pa-trons were noticed exiting the bath-room without cleansing. 70 percent noted that between five and eleven people never even wet their hands after leaving a stall. Many complained that it was due to the ice-cold water that pours from the faucets. The last thing we need is our com-munity in a frenzy over another health epidemic, especially when washing our hands can save lives. The Center of Disease Control and Prevention states, “[Hand washing] is one of the most ef-fective and inexpensive ways to pre-vent diarrheal diseases and pneumo-nia, which cause more than 3.5 million deaths worldwide in children under the age of 5 every year.” Not washing hands after using the washroom can spread a range of infec-tious diseases. These include Hepa-titis A, a viral infection which causes fatigue and nausea or Shigellosis, a

bacterial infection that causes diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps. The list of possible sicknesses continues and range in severity. We no longer live in the age of dune buggies and wagons. We are not park-ing our horses or ringing the dinner bell. The Mayflower has long since sailed and it’s time to get with the times. It takes less than a minute to rid hands of pesky germs. Thanks to the 21st centu-ry, all that’s needed is soap, water and a case of hand sanitizer.

Illustrations by: Erica Harlston

Illustrations by: Cristina Benavides

Get With The TimesStudent sanitation awareness

at a low point

How many times in the past week have you noticed students leaving the bathroom

without washing their hands?

Do you feel that Wright College restrooms are unsanitary?

70%

10%

20%

65%

35%

Looking for a hot topic?Don’t go to your local shopping mall!

Instead, flip to the Opinions section of the Wright Times where every month, Managing Editor Erica Harlston

dishes out her opinion on topics piping hot and obscure alike.

the wright times: november 2011

Documents

wright clerks

wright colleges clerical

wright college campus

wright student erica

gs streetdedicationon

hat policy

wright college students

campus thefts