by Jihad Yarber

Oswego, NY- Tapestries, curtains, and flags are just a few of the items prohibited from the residence halls in Oswego State. The items are promptly confiscated if they are discovered in any of the dorms. Onondaga Assistant Hall Director Chris Lewand says wall decorations are a risk to fire safety.

“Tapestries, curtains, and flags lead to more fire hazards than your typical poster would,” he said. “However we do have restrictions on posters, they’re only allowed to be on 10 percent of the wall they’re not allowed to be within two feet of the ceilings. So there are restrictions in place, but overall it comes down to what the fire marshall has deemed to be more flammable.”

While posters are considered to be safe for students to have in their possession, some disagree with the claim that one is more hazardous than the other.

“I feel like they take up about the same amount of space on the wall and they’re made of similar flammable materials,” student Cooper Lee said. “I just don’t see how one person can specifically say how a poster is that much more safe than a tapestry,”

Other students are accepting of the rule, but also think a change in policy may lead to a better solution, feeling there needs to be more trust in the on-campus residents.

“I understand why tapestries would be not allowed in rooms,” student Julia Gaudio said. “However I think that there are many flammable things that people don’t focus on and most kids have tapestries anyway,”

“I think there’s a lot of tapestries that are hung up and there hasn’t been a fire started yet,” student Lilia Grucza said. “I feel like they just need to give us a little more credit for knowing to be safe with fire safety instead of just banning anything that could potentially start a fire.”

For more information on what items are prohibited in the dorms, visit Oswego State’s website or contact Residence Life and Housing at 315-312-2246.  

        This past weekend, members of the Police Department along with investigators from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, SUNY Oswego police officers and local business owners; worked together to try and combat underage drinking and the use of fake ID’s.

        Over 24 people were issued citations for attempting to use fake identification on Friday night. All fake ID’s were confiscated by DMV investigators.

        The operation was conducted at three bars on West Bridge Street; Alley Cat’s on 23 W. Bridge Street, The Raven on 39 W. Bridge Street and The Sting on 49 W. Bridge Street.

        This initiative is part of Governor Cuomo’s “No Excuses” Campaign which has conducted sweeps called “Operation Prevent” across the state to prevent underage drinking in New York State and keep New York Roadway’s safe.

        Mayor Billy Barlow has been outspoken about the efforts made to prevent underage drinking, saying “The collaborative effort between local law enforcement, DMV investigators, local bar owners, SUNY Oswego and the city of Oswego, emphasizes the importance of these types of sweeps in our community.”

by Ilyssa Weiner

Oswego, NY- Today meteorologist Al Roker (‘76) will be returning to his alma mater to break a world record. Oswego State will be the last stop on “Rokerthon 3” and Today’s “Storming Into the Madness” college tour.

Roker will be returning to campus to break the Guinness World Record for the longest conga line on ice.

The current record is 353 skaters, held by the Ice Rink Canary Wharf in the United Kingdom. They have been holding this record since 2013.

Oswego State is looking for more than 400 students to help break this record. It will be broadcasted live on Today on Mar. 31. Participants are asked to arrive at the Marano Campus Center arena by five a.m.

To sign up, fill out this Google form with your Oswego State email. 
If you are not interested in skating but still want to see the record broken, fans will be able to watch from the arena seats in their green and gold gear from seven to nine a.m.