News

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Second professor speaks in hopes of becoming honors board director

New perspectives: "Women Without Men"

Western Washington University’s Reel World Film Series kicked off it’s spring lineup Wednesday, April 8, at the Viking Union with a screening of Iranian artist Shiran Neshat’s feature film debut, “Women Without Men.” The historical drama is a story about four women’s intertwining paths during the chaotic days of Iran’s 1953 U.S.-backed coup d’etat and is based off of a novel of the same name by Shahrnush Parsipur. “Women Without Men” touches on issues of gender roles, female independence, politics, sexuality, religion and freedom. It uses surrealist imagery of water and trees as well as graphic scenes of violence and conflict to help viewers get in touch with the characters and experiences they went through during the tumultuous times of Iran’s 1953 coup. The centerpiece of the story is a gated orchard on the outskirts of Tehran where all four women eventually end up through various means. The orchard plays the role of a rural sanctuary amid the chaos of the city which helps the women find their own unique notions of freedom, but that is ultimately unable to remain peaceful under the tremendous weight of all the events taking place around it. Due to it’s political nature, the film is banned in Iran and has been nominated for and won numerous awards. It won best cinematography and production design at the Austrian Film Award in 2011 and best foreign film by or about women at the Women Film Critics Circle awards in 2010. Western freshman Lydia Lee said “I’ve never really seen anything like it before. I wasn’t really expecting it to be that powerful. It was very emotional too, even not being involved in that culture.” Lydia also said that she hopes to attend more Reel World film screenings after seeing how much her perspective was opened and that she was disappointed more students did not show up. The Reel World Film Series is in its first year and is a monthly event held by the Western Center for International Studies. The series’ mission statement is “to raise awareness about other cultures and about global issues,” according to their website. Vicki Hamblin, executive director of the Center for International Studies, said Reel World chooses from submissions by faculty members and student groups that bring unique points of view from outside the United States that American Students may not typically hear. “All the films that we choose tend to be films have something that may be surprising to U.S. audiences and that will increase their knowledge base and help them empathize with other cultures and help them see other perspectives as opposed to just U.S. perspectives, especially in cinema,” Hamblin said. “Women Without Men” was submitted for Reel World by Western art professor Pierre Gour, who chose the piece due to it’s ability to show a perspective on Iran that is rarely seen due its strained relationship with the U.S. “This is certainly an introduction to another culture,” Gour said. “The more you know about another country, the less intimidating it is. So what I think is important, especially with Sharin Neshad, is introducing us to completely different Iran that I wasn’t aware of.” The Reel World Film Series’ next installment will take place at 7 p.m.Wednesday, May 6, at Old Main Theatre. The featured film is “Remote Control,” a piece by Mongolian director Byamba Sakhya. Remote Control tells the tale of Tsogoo, a rural teenage runaway who becomes infatuated with the female resident of skyscraper penthouse. As with all Reel World Film Series screenings, “Remote Control” has free admission and is open to anyone in the Bellingham community, not just Western Students. For more information visit http://international.wwu.edu/reelworld/.

Western professor talks about Bellingham's own Red Scare

Candidate for honors program director wants to expand STEM programming

Professor Spencer Anthony-Cahill, a final candidate for the Honors Program Director position, discussed expanding science offerings for honors students and the importance of ethnic and racial diversity in the program before a small group of students and faculty on Tuesday, April 7. Anthony-Cahill, a distinguished professor of chemistry and serving Faculty Senate President, is one of four final candidates applying for the Western Washington University Honors Program Director position that will be vacated by the retirement of current director George Mariz. As honors director one of Anthony-Cahill’s top priorities would be increasing student diversity in the program. “I think there is an argument made that the liberal arts model of higher education is one associated with privilege,” Anthony-Cahill said. “My vision for the program includes achieving greater racial and ethnic diversity.” According to Anthony-Cahill, simply providing access to the honors program is not enough. Faculty must be proactive in ensuring the success of all students. He said he looks forward to exploring different methods of encouraging diversity in the program, though he draws the line at admissions lowering standards. Another of Anthony-Cahill’s chief interests is improving honors graduation rates. “I was shocked to learn that only 60 percent of the students who enter honors graduate with honors,” Anthony-Cahill said. “I’ve talked to student’s who’ve left the program and I’ve talked to students who are still in and mostly the feedback I’m getting is that the selection of courses in the upper division simply don’t match up well with their programs.” Though Anthony-Cahill envisions an honors program where all departments can engage and contribute, he feels that honors science and math courses are lacking and that the program is failing that 35 to 40 percent of the program’s student body who are pursuing science, technology, engineering and math majors. “I want to acknowledge that this is a bias that I have,” Anthony-Cahill said, “My bias is that we could do more to increase the number of science offerings in the honors program.” For honors students Anna Magidson and Eli Sohl, Anthony-Cahill’s presentation hit many of the right notes. “I really did like his ideas about adding more sciences into the honors program,” Magidson said. “A lot of my friends go into the [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] majors and a lot of them do end up dropping out of the program.” Sohl, a math and computer science double major, agreed that the program would benefit from some growth but was concerned about losing sight of what makes the honors program special. “I love the classes that honors currently offers but I think there’s room to expand,” Sohl said. “I think it’s important also that we don’t lose focus in that expansion. The core of honors is that – if you stay with it – you’re going to read a lot of really great books and you’re going to learn a lot of things that you wouldn’t learn anywhere else really.”

Redefining the word "book"

The word “book” may seem stale or boring to some, but to Sandra Kroupa, books are everything but that. In fact, the books she accumulated over the 47 years as a book arts and rare book collector are nothing like traditional books. The books she brought in to display at Wilson Library’s Special Collections room all stood apart from each other. Many of the books didn’t appear to be books at all, but rather appeared to be more aesthetically artistic, yet stayed compelling in the writings. Kroupa said in her presentation on Tuesday, April 7, that the artists’ books can do a myriad of things, from changing your mood to making you feel certain ways. Each book in Kroupa’s collection is a unique masterpiece artistically created by many authors and artists around the world. Kroupa said she seeks to acquire books that will fit in her collection rather than adding books that she found to be good. A few of the different types of books Kroupa showed included books written on individual matches in a matchbook, books that looked like accordions, books that could be played like a board game, political playing-card books, Holocaust-feeling books and even books that looked like like various objects, like a box of white crayons. Conner Celli, sophomore, said he expected a presentation on old books from the 1600’s, but what he saw wasn’t even close. “I was surprised by how unique these books were and how interactive they were,” Celli said. “There’s more to a book than I assumed and there’s more than one way to create a book. It’s not just paper and a cover, it’s put it on a match and pull off a match and create a book.” Grace Sutherland, sophomore, said she was prepared to not care about Kroupa’s collection, but actually found it interesting. “In this day and age, with everything being digitized, there’s something about a physical book that can’t be replicated with a digital version,” Sutherland said. “I think especially with these books, there’s really no other way to do it except for just seeing [the book] in person, in its physical form.” Sutherland said she was also surprised to see the unique collection and even recommends checking out the books. “I didn’t even know these art books were a thing before this class, so I think [the collection] is really important because it’s a whole other way to think about books,” Sutherland said.

Record number of applications to Western

This year marked a record number of students applying to Western for next year, with significant increases in applications from first-generation college students and students of color.

Film store finds funds

Although the lights were dim, it was still possible to see the mass of bodies that filled Honey Moon Mead & Cider to capacity. Members of the Bellingham community came to a fundraising event to support Film is Truth, a locally owned video rental store.

New head for Honors Program

Candidates for the new director of Western’s Honors Program will showcase their goals and answer student questions in a series of open forums.

Discussing immigrant injustice

Harsh laws burdening immigrants in the U.S. and the issue of mass incarceration is on the agenda for Silky Shah, co-director of Detention Watch Network, this week at the Fairhaven College World Issues Forum.

New legislation addresses sexual assault

Sexual assault procedures and resources on Western's campus are under inspection as new measures proposed by the Washington State Legislature would enhance the existing resources for sexual assault victims on campus but also implement a task force to prevent campus sexual violence.

Cabbage toss throws spring into full swing

To mark the beginning of the Bellingham Farmers Market’s 24th annual spring season, Mayor Kelli Linville conducted the traditional opening day cabbage toss in front of Depot Market Square.

TEDx returns

Australian snakes and attitudes toward technology are among the lineup of 13 student-chosen speakers who will showcase their ideas at Western’s second TEDxWWU event.

Western Alumni Association opens office in Downtown Bellingham

Washington State Legislature reviews sexual assault procedures and resources

Sexual assault procedures and resources on Western Washington University’s campus are under inspection as new measures proposed by the Washington State Legislature. The measures would enhance the existing resources for sexual assault victims on Western’s campus and also implement a task force on campus sexual violence prevention. These new measures are proposed to the Higher Education Committee in Bills 5518 and 5719. Under Bill 5518, Washington public universities would be required to report all sexual assaults to “the governor and the legislature with recommendations for improving state oversight of campus sexual violence policies and procedures.” The bill also requires the university to make information regarding campus sexual violence confidentiality and reporting available to current and prospective students and employees. Universities are also asked to refrain from establishing different disciplinary processes based on the status or characteristics of the student involved in the case. Bill 5719 would work toward reducing and preventing sexual violence by developing collaboration between campuses and law enforcement. Strategies to promote sexual violence awareness and improving student safety are also noted in the bill. The bills passed through the Senate with unanimous support, said Western Assistant Director of Government Relations Joe Timmons, in an email. Vice Provost for Equal Opportunity and Employment Diversity Dr. Sue Guenter-Schlesinger said the bills are a way of increasing the reporting and the understanding sexual assault options and resources. “In addition, increased and more effective prevention efforts may result from the work of a state-wide task force that would aim to decrease and eradicate sexual violence from our campuses,” Guenter-Schlesinger said. The Consultation and Sexual Assault Support group, also known as CASAS, is the main resource for Western students affected by sexual violence. It provides support for reporting incidents and academic, medical, financial, and emotional care. Western students were also required to complete the EverFi Haven online course for training in understanding and confronting sexual assault this year. The course also offered links to Western’s rules on residential living, the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Support and the student code of conduct. Human services and Spanish major Shanni Hupf saw EverFi as an informative tool concerning sexual assault resources on campus. “I thought it was good that Western is taking measures to help everyone know more about those topics,” Hupf said, “It’s better to be safe than sorry.” Bills 5518 and 5719 could change how people understand and confront sexual violence on campuses, Guenter-Schlesinger said. “These [bills] will hopefully increase institutions’ and the entire community of students, faculty and staff’s awareness of sexual violence and the state’s commitment to ensuring campuses are most effective in their efforts at preventing and responding to it,” she said.

Pedaling for a purpose

Western drafts new parking plan

An evening of brains and brews

Behavioral neuroscience instructor Blair Duncan will bring beer and brains together at her lecture “Epigenetics: How Experience Changes Your Genes,” at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 6, at Glow Nightclub downtown.

WWU police address indecent exposures

Last quarter, multiple Western Alerts were sent out reporting incidents of indecent exposure on and around campus. Although three notifications involving indecent exposure have been issued in 2015, University Chief of Police Darin Rasmussen said he wants to assure Western’s campus is safe.

Rep. Larsen speaks at Western

Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Everett, hosted a well-attended town-hall discussion on Western’s campus Thursday, April 2. Students and community members gathered to discuss local and national issues such as the Gateway Pacific Terminal, oil train safety and the impact both issues have on Bellingham. The Gateway Pacific Terminal issue was on the minds of multiple community members, as was the increase of potentially dangerous oil trains running through Bellingham – a hot topic following several recent train explosions across the country. "I support the terminal … because I saw it as a way to create good high paying construction jobs... in a county that has thousands of people out of work," Larsen said in response to several challenges from community members. "I don't have a decision-making role in it at all.” Though Larsen is no stranger to the area, having represented Washington’s second district since 2001, the community forum was his first hosted on Western’s campus. "I did want to have more students involved," Larsen said. "And we had a good turnout." Roughly one third of the audience members were students, which was a step upfrom last year said Associated Students Vice President for Government Affairs Sarah Kohout. “[Last year] it was downtown and I think I was one of the only young people in the room,” Kohout said. “So hopefully this will be an opportunity for more young people to be able to go and be able to ask him questions and also learn about what other issues are important to other members in the community.” Larsen agreed hosting the event on campus made it easier for students to attend. However, the veteran congressman and senior member on the House Transportation Committee had another reason for locating the event at Western. "I think sometimes when I do it in town, it ends up being a group of folks who organize around one or two sets of issues and the message of the student community can get lost in that," Larsen said. The majority of attendees who contributed to the discussion were established community members. Their questions and comments were primarily focused on immediate local concerns. At one point, a fiery dialogue erupted among several audience members. "Folks, really," Larsen said, attempting to ease the building tension in the room. "As my good friend, Derek Kilmer, representative from Port Angeles said, “If this is going to turn into the “Jerry Springer Show” it will be a very short meeting." The meeting was not short. In fact, it ran half an hour over the estimated timeframe. For those who did not get a chance to address the congressman, the discussion was over quickly. "It was obviously good to have a town hall that was centered on campus, because students aren't represented very much," said environmental policy major Patrick Eckroth. "But it was disappointing that it was pretty brief and that he cut a lot of people off. It makes it hard to be engaged and represented when no one will listen to you, which is really concerning as a student."