On November 20th, on a Wednesday, Oswego Theatre Department premieres their play “Dead Man’s Cell Phone” originally written by Sara Ruhl. 

This play, written in the early 2000s, focuses on the significance of human interaction and how technology plays a huge part in our daily lifestyle. 

Based on the playwright’s personal life, important topics such as mortality, interactions, relationships, technology, and more are all present in the show. 

With a small cast, in a total of 8 cast members and all in different years, they are putting on a absurdus play, which will put the topics in more of a comedic, interactive and exciting concept.

Ahmanee Simmons, Director of the play and senior tells her experience directing and the significance of the play. “Dead Man’s Cell Phone was definitely to highlight the human connection and the way we have kind of, sort of, lost that…And with the use of cell phones and technology, I kind of wanted to highlight that. But I also wanted to highlight the false perception of life that we get through social media and stuff like that. ” She said. “We have moved from that paper culture kind of society before and now, to this very digital, more efficient way to live our lives, and I think now it is about finding the balance between the two. Right now, everything is more digital, which is good as this does help us be more efficient as individuals in work, school, or social life, but there is also that boundary where we let it control our lives. This is also something that we address in Dead Man’s Cell Phone.” She also said. 

Giovanni Rodriguez, the assistant director of the play also commented about the production. “Working with the cast has been great. I enjoy working with my director, Ahmanee Simmons. With the play itself,  I believe the moral of the story is that we are all disconnected in our own ways and a simple ‘hello’ or ‘how are you’ can connect the most unlikely people in an instant. This is really about disconnection and what we don’t do due to technology. [In this play], I believe is going to open people’s eyes ” He said. 

“You should come see it!!”-Ahmanee Simmons

The play will take place in Tyler Hall’s Lab Theatre and will extend from November 20th to November 23rd.

To purchase the ticket online, you may visit https://oswego.universitytickets.com/w/default.aspx

For more theatre plays, you may visit https://www.oswego.edu/theatre/theatre-0

Oswego NY— Today is Election Day for towns and cities across the country. Oswego residents voted on City and Town positions such as Mayor, Ward Counselors, and Town Clerks. A major topic in Oswego politics is Billy Barlow’s uncontested re-election. This will be his second term in office. 

There are 7 Ward Counselors positions available across Oswego City. The following lists the different positions and the candidates running for that office. Winners will be stated in bold.

• 1st Ward Councilor: 
  • Susan McBrearty (D)
  • Andrew J Hall (R)

• 2nd Ward Councilor:
  • Maureen A Wills (D)
  • Shawn Burridge (R)

• 3rd Ward Councilor:
  • Jonathan Ashline (D)
  • Kevin Hill (R)

• 4th Ward Councilor:
  • Diane Zeller (D)
  • Shawn P Walker (R)

• 5th Ward Councilor:
  • John B Gosek (R)

• 6th Ward Councilor:
  • Matthew Fleming (D)
  • Ronald Tesoriero (R)

• 7th Ward Councilor:
  • Robert Corradino (R)

Oswego Town offers 4 positions open for elections; Supervisor, Town Clerk, Councilman and Superintendent of Highways. The following states the positions and their candidates. Winners will be stated in bold.

• Supervisor
  • Richard Kaulfuss (R)

• Town Clerk
  • Nikki Fowler (R)

• Councilman
  • Margaret A Mahaney (D)
  • Richard J Tesoriero (R)
  • Jonathan Fowler (R)

• Superintendent of Highways 
  • Robert Malone Jr. (R)

OSWEGO, NY— Earlier this week, students had the opportunity of meeting and speaking with Zully Ramirez. She is currently an investigative news reporter at Chicago Telemundo. The event was hosted by the PRSSA here at SUNY Oswego and was open to the general public.

Zully Ramirez originally hails from Guatemala, but she moved to Harlem, NY at a young age. Many students were intrigued by her success story and her honesty about being an investigative news reporter. 

After the event, I had the opportunity of interviewing Zully Ramirez and asked her what she would tell present and future students of SUNY Oswego. Her response was, “I would just say persevere. Persevere, listen to advice and put your heart and soul into everything that you do. Because when you persevere and listen to advice, and put your heart and soul into everything that you do, you can make it.”

OSWEGO, NY—On Monday, October 27, Mayor Billy Barlow and City Hall officials unanimously voted to ban the use of styrofoam and smoking on public properties. 

A concerned member of the community took the opportunity to speak about the effect of smoking on the community. 

“Discarding cigarette butts constitute the majority of litter on beaches, playgrounds, etc. The reduction of use results in reduced clean up costs for the community,” said the woman. 

Cigarette filters, e-cigarette pods and plastic wrappers all contain toxic chemicals that can leak into water supplies and are non-biodegradable. These products can also pose a major threat to children and small animals. 

“That’s the bottom line for me is quality of life. There will be improvement for us, as current residents as well as the future residents,” said Council Member Robert A. Corridino. 

SUNY Oswego students also expressed their support for the ban, but adding more can and should be done. 

“To have them all be more encompassing and have a more robust ‘Keep Oswego Clean Initiative.’ I feel like besides just banning styrofoam products they should too expand it to ban other single use plastic products as well…” said former Student Association President, Omar van Reenan. “Then we also have to take that responsibility to heart and act on that responsibility to protect not just the people but the environment of the city of Oswego as well.” 

Now that it has been passed, the initiative will go into effect on April 22, 2020, which is also Earth Day.

OSWEGO, NY— The time has finally come. Oswego’s own Taco Bell has finally opened and with promotions to celebrate. 

On Wednesday morning, locals attended the grand opening and ribbon cutting for the fast-food chains new location. The new addition to Oswego’s dining options has taken about 6 months to construct, and after numerous delays caused by weather conditions a gas pipe running through the property has finally opened on October 30. The marketing director, Jessica Woodburn has been waiting for this moment. 

“So I think that everyone here in Oswego has known that this has been a long time coming we’ve been working diligently to find a location and due to situations out of our control,” said Woodburn. “We had a couple of locations fall through but then we were able to get this fantastic location on George Street. We’re excited we’re finally open people have been very patient and we think that today is just going to be a phenomenal opening day.” 

A familiar face was seen at the grand opening, Oswego Mayor Billy Barlow. 

“Well it’s great to finally have Taco Bell in Oswego. We had a many years ago and it left Oswego, but now it’s back and it’s finally here and we’re so excited. There’s a huge demand here in the city. Between people in the SUNY community and people who just overall love Taco Bell and are tired of driving to Fulton or North Syracuse to get it. I think they’ll do really well and we’re happy to have them,” said Barlow. 

Some of their favorite Taco Bell orders? 

“Chicken Quesadilla with a Mountain Dew,” said Woodburn. 

As for Mayor Barlow, “I like the box of tacos, the cinnamon twists, and then the Baja Blast which I think you can only get at Taco Bell.”

OSWEGO N.Y.— Beyond Cyber Awareness Month, online scams continue to threaten identities. A cyber attack happens every 39 seconds in the United States alone, according to a study by the University of Maryland. 

Young adults appear to be a primary target. A report from the Federal Trade Commissions says that young adults are 20 percent more likely to lose money in an online scam than their senior citizen counterparts, who more often fall victim to telemarketing scams. 

SUNY Oswego’s Campus Technology Officer Sean Moriarity warned students to take precautions and explained how hackers can use your identity at any time, even decades from now. 

“Young people are young,” Moriarity said, “Some day they’re going to be more wealthy than they are right now, so it is important to stay vigilant.”

In light of Cyber Awareness Month, Oswego’s Campus Technology Services hosted a variety of events to educate students about cybersecurity, including an email-phishing quiz, two-factor verification contest, and a phishing derby. 

For week three of the annual SEFA Bake-Off at SUNY Oswego, 23 employees put out their finest baked goods for people to judge and enjoy.

All proceeds donated went to help the State Employees Federal Appeal (SEFA). Cathy Johnson, the manager of the Bake-Off competition, has been running the event for four years.

“Every year we work with employees on the campus to get them to donate a portion of their paycheck to our community for charitable contributions like the Humane Society or United Way or many others” said Johnson.

During the Bake-Off, the employees who baked them are not present.

“There’s kind of a mystique about who’s baking what because you’re supposed to have a blind system of casting your votes” said Johnson.

The winner of the competition will receive not only bragging rights, but an 18-piece nonstick baking kit.

Over two-hundred-and-thirty dollars was raised for the SEFA organization on Tuesday from the Bake-Off, the students and faculty enjoyed their baked goods, and the votes were cast to see who will win the grand prize.

Oswego, NY — With many Oswego students coming to Oswego from different parts of New York and other states, events like Friends and Family Weekend are a good way for residents to have their home come to them, and for their families to see their home away from home. 

As a celebrated tradition at SUNY Oswego, students are able to reunite with loved ones, and show them what the Oswego community has to offer. 

For some students, it is an exciting way to show their family the accomplishments they’ve made so far. Students Anyissel Hernandez and Breanna Walker have done exactly that. 

“I really miss them so when they come here I feel like supported and everything. Like it’s just nice to see them, hang out with them, just to see how I’m doing,” said Hernandez. 

As for the family and friends, it’s a good way to see how their student has settled in to SUNY Oswego, as well as becoming familiar with the campus and town. 

One family, the Minor, Callender, and Hechanova family, a blended family from New York City were excited to see some Oswego favorites. 

“We checked out the lake, the barbershop, yeah. Walmart,” said the family. 

One of the activities for the weekend, the Oswego Men’s Hockey Exhibition Game against Nazareth. 

“Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes, we are going to check the hockey game out,” the family said. 

A two-decade tradition, Friends and Family Weekend opens up opportunities not only for students, but for those who are unfamiliar with the town of Oswego. 

Between learning about Oswego staples and the exciting hockey games, for one weekend, the Oswego communities grows just a little bit bigger. 

“Go Lakers!”

OSWEGO, NY— Last Wednesday, a man named Saint Jesse Morrell unexpectedly visited the quads delivering his religious opinion. For roughly 20 minutes he was aggressively yelling to students his ideas of the LGBT community, targeting their lifestyle, calling it a sin. The students didn’t agree with what he was saying, retallying back in an argument until the police showed up. Since he did not have a free speech permit from the school, he was asked to leave. 

“He has freedom of speech,” Oswego student Sarah Novak said after he targeting her and her girlfriend. “So we also have freedom of speech, so we choose to kiss and fight hate with love”

The full video of the event was uploading by Jesse Morrell – Open Air Street Preacher on YouTube. The campus still has not responded on the situation.

OSWEGO, NY — It’s On Oz campaign is hosting Sexual Domestic Awareness events this month. Lisa Evaneski, Title IX Coordinator explains the problem of Domestic Violence we have on campus. “People don’t realize it’s happening.” Evaneski stated, “People don’t realize that their classmates could be going through this or that the employees of the college could be going through this.” 

Evaneski express how they are there for students on campus. She says, “We want people to know we see you, we hear you, we’re here for you because it is a private matter.”

With Evaneski and with student-run organizations such as “It’s On Oz” and “One Love Foundation”, this can benefit the people with the help they need and make the campus wide community a better and safer place.

Since the beginning of the semester, multiple clubs have had trouble with funding as they were not budgeted capital to support themselves. Vocal Effect, a show choir on campus, is one of those clubs.

“Vocal Effect is a SUNY Oswego’s one and only show choir. We do performances all over campus and in the town of Oswego. We meet every couple of days and just have fun, sing, and dance. It’s a lot of fun,” said President, Thomas Waizenegger.

Vocal Effect meets weekly and are about 30 members strong. This year Vocal Effect has had their funding cut right in half dropping from a $3,000 budget to a $1,500 budget.

“At the start of the year we started with about $1,500, we had about $3,000last year, and now our budget and now our budget was slashed in half over the course of a year,” said Waizenegger.

This is problematic for the club. Much of their funding is used for acquiring new material to perform and the rights to do so, as well as costuming and transportation to the multiple venues that the group performs at.

“It’s not fun, having your funding cut in half in less than a year. I understand that the Student Association had to make these cuts in order to start getting themselves out of the red, but for smaller clubs like Vocal Effect, it’s not fun and it’s not sustainable for us,” said Waizenegger.

As for the group currently, you can catch them on October 26th at 3 PM in The Space, Marano Campus Center free admission for all. 

OSWEGO, NY— Oswego residents can prepare for a boost in tourism as construction begins for a new indoor waterpark. 

After receiving $10 million for downtown revitalization, Oswego has numerous projects with a goal to make the town more active. 

“It would definitely reel in a lot of people. I love indoor water parks and I’m sure a lot of other people do too. Since it’s indoors people can go any time of year. It’s not just the summertime, it’ll attract more people,” SUNY Oswego student Ana Sanchez said. 

Sanchez said in a place that is known for its cold, snowy weather, the waterpark will give people in the town more options, especially in the winter. 

“I would definitely go any time of the season, no matter what it is. Definitely Christmas time when it’s cold, the snow is up here, the wind. I would definitely like to be in an indoor waterpark,” said Sanchez. 

The waterpark could be a great addition to the town of Oswego, and especially for the waterbugs who still enjoy a good swim in the freezing Oswego winters. 

Residents should prepare their bathing suits and water shoes for the opening, which should be determined soon. 

Other projects from the money awarded from the downtown revitalization fund are the riverwalk, and the renovation of the Children’s Museum of Oswego (CMOO).

OSWEGO, NY— City of Oswego Mayor Billy Barlow has proposed a $90,000 grant to increase police patrols within the Port City. The new patrols will be called “quality-of-life patrols” and will be conducted on foot by Oswego City Police Department every Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening. The proposal for more policing in the city comes after a recent increase in the number of night time disturbances reported to the Oswego City Police.

Some students from the SUNY Oswego fear the new patrols will be specifically targeting students. Julian Martinez, a junior finance major at SUNY Oswego said, “Why now? Why increase the patrols now? After all these years of having the college involved in the community what debauchery is occurring to make them increase the patrols?”

Martinez believed the patrols will be mainly focusing on student activity. He noted many Oswego State students are most active in the city on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night. The same nights the quality of life patrols will be conducted.

Other students feel the patrols will help make the city a safer place for students. Senior, business-administration major Az Wilson said, “ It’s going to be better. It’s going to make the city a lot safer. I think it would help protect some of our students who go out on those nights as well.”

Mayor Barlow said the quality-of-life patrols are not meant to target students and he feels having police walking the streets at night will benefit the city, as well as university students. Barlow said he wanted “boots on the ground” to make sure city codes were being enforced and to ensure no large disturbances affected the city on its busiest nights. 

Mayor Barlow also hopes the quality-of-life patrols will create a stronger relationship between the city police and the residents of the city.

Barlow said, “We know the relationship between police and public can be strained at times and I believe the best way to improve that relationship is to get the police out of the station, out of the cop car, walking in the parks, walking in the neighborhoods, and collecting data, but also forming relationships with our community members.” 

Mayor Barlow said the Oswego City Police Department already has a good relationship with the community it serves, but more outreach can always be done.

The quality-of-life patrols have been funded for the rest of 2019 and all of 2020.

OSWEGO, NY— Something on everyone’s mind: those cold Oswego winters.

It has been three weeks since the end of summer, and the cold weather is already creeping into Oswego. Many residents have started preparing themselves for the inevitable cold by wearing extra layers, like resident Azrien “Az” Wilson.

“Just a bunch of blankets, socks, sweats, kind of just taking care of myself. I’m not really worried about the room, as long as I’m warm,” said Wilson.

Other residents have been following suit and are starting to stockpile on winter clothes, including Ubong Udofa.

“Stocking up on my jackets, coats, and sweaters, sweatpants, my scarves, and my boots, too,” said Udofa.

With many residents being freshman and transfer students, it’s always good to know what tips and resources are available to help prepare for the winter weather from resident assistants, including Jessa Costa.

“We have heaters behind the desk that they can rent out, you can’t have them for too long but they definitely help temporarily in that moment,” said Costa. “Just make sure you’re bundled up, and hopefully the heating in the building is working well.”

Another good tip, don’t put any furniture in front of the radiator, because it will cause the heat to stay trapped.

For more information on further resources, talk to your resident assistant or hall director.

OSWEGO, NY— On October 1, 2019,  parking boots became effective as it is now used as a new method to regulate parking violations. With the collaborative decision of University Police and College Administrations, this has now become a new approach to handle parking issues. These issues include parking in reserved or handicapped areas or to drivers who have acquired more than 10 tickets or violations. It’s purpose is to encourage drivers to do the right thing and to urge them to pay their fines.

Kevin Velzy, Assistant Chief of University Police and staff member for 30 years, tells us the other reasons why the parking was implemented and why it is crucial for drivers to follow the rules. 

“Instead of towing the car, we are going to put the parking boot on the car and that will ensure that the fines are collected. It’s actually beneficial to draw backs of towing are the cost. Tow operators now charge over $200 for a tow, so the costs go away for the offender. And also for the hassle of getting your car back, your car will be where you left it; it’s just a matter of going online and paying the fines, calling us, and saying you know ‘this has been paid for’ and we will come and remove the boot.” Velzy said. 

According to Assistant Chief Velzy, about 8,000 parking tickets were issued last year and for annually, it is closely around the ballpark of that amount. Due to this result, this also weighed on the result of the decision. 

He also added on about the financial aspect of the boot.“We are not going to charge an extra or additional fee to have the boot taken on or taken off….. All you are paying for is the ticket basically…. I think it is effective in terms of eliminating those drawbacks to having your car being towed..this is going to save you money.” Velzy explains. 

If the boot was applied to your car, you may go online to pay or go the University police office to pay off your accumulated parking tickets and following from that, University police will remove the boot from the car.

Student drivers on campus had mixed thoughts when hearing the news as they stated that this is “A great idea”, “Unfair”, “Understandable”, “Harsh” and “Excessive”. 

As of right now, a boot has not been applied. 

For more information about this new parking enforcement, you can visit https://www.oswego.edu/police/new-york-state-university-police

OSWEGO, NY— Oswego Residence Life and Housing has registered a new door access policy. On-campus students are only allowed to enter their own residence hall. For students who live on campus, This has limited who can access the building, but that is just the beginning of the new policy. 

“It’s just a first phase, so whether it be the student’s petition or students that have emailed, this won’t be the final change” said Shaun Crisler, Service Assistant Vice President of Residence Life and Housing. This step is to see the responses not only from students, but from the whole campus community.

Tylissa Cortis, who is currently staying at the Village responded, “Living in The Village I go from dorm to dorm to dorm with the tunnel system, so I’m less exposed to the elements when I miss the bus. Now I can’t do that.”

Residence Life and Housing is now working on the feedback and adjusting from it. Crisler is glad with the responses he’s getting, but he wants to remind everyone that not all policies are perfect. Crisler said, “Anytime you have a policy it is typically never perfect, but what you have to be open to is feedback”

OSWEGO, NY— This past weekend, SUNY Oswego students prepared for homecoming week from shopping at Marano’s Clothing Store to performances from a local band named Squonk Opera. The band hails from Pittsburgh, PA, and their name gives them a satirical feel because, well you guessed it…they’re not an actual opera group. 

Maggie Schmuhl, who is an Assistant Professor at SUNY Oswego said, “The Squonk Opera was super fun! It was very entertaining. They had lots of special effects and the kids loved dancing with it. It was a good time all around.”

Tickets were free, and the general public was also welcomed to watch their performance. 

Another well-known artist named Young MA performed Friday night at the Swetman Field. The event was hosted by SAPB at SUNY Oswego. She performed her popular songs such as “Petty Wap” and “BIG.”

OSWEGO, NY — Earth Day 2019 marked a time of service for SUNY Oswego. Students from all across campus had united to take part in the “Shining Waters” Lakeside clean-up in celebration of the preservation of the earth. The Department of Community Services had sponsored the Lakeside cleanup, which took place at the very edge of Lake Ontario itself. Students collected trash and non-recyclables on the ground to dispose of and help to make a difference on campus.

“I feel like a lot of more people need to get involved, it needs to be put out there more,” student David Hagen said. “It’s actually pretty good that we’re actually helping our environment on its most important day.”

SUNY Oswego has already attempted to promote sustainability and proper disposal of materials on campus. The students hope that those on and off campus can still contribute to improving the campus community and the world for the better.

“We can all do, like, little cleanups like this. Like, this only takes about an hour to clean up just a little bit,” student Kristie Reitz said. “There’s parts in Oswego that need cleaning up that other students may not know about. Everybody could just do a little bit in their own area and that’ll make a big difference.”

For more information about sustainability on campus at SUNY Oswego, visit oswego.edu/sustainability.

Earth Week may be coming to a close, but what did you miss? Quite a bit tobe frank. This past week SUNY Oswego celebrated everything that earth does for us and demonstrated support for environmental protections. This week the campus celebrated and presented the contributions that students and faculty have made thus far in order to preserve our schools beauty and environment.

On Monday we discussed how the removal of plastic and wastes from around campus and the dining halls has genuinely made a big impact on the amount of plastic that is discarded on a day to day basis.

On Tuesday we participated in reducing car usage by being able to use amenities provided to us through the Sustainability office such as bike share where you can rent a bike from the office located in Hewitt and bus share which provided alternate transportation for commuter students.

On Wednesday a climate change panel co-hosted by the Environmental Advisory Council and the Sustainability office discussed the challenges within the concept of climate change which will feature multiple different faculty members all representing a different program of study at Oswego.

On Thursday we focused on using alternate search engines that give back to the planet such as Ecosia which has been using their profits since 2009 to plant trees which has resulted in over 54 million trees being planted. We also focused on our new printing program Lakerprint which is projected to save around 120,000 sheets of paper a year due to getting rid of banner pages and sheets with our names.

However on Friday Lucas Grove a senior philosophy-psychology major will present the progress he has made in the “Fresh Water for All” project.

If you would like to learn more about Earth Week or simply would like to get involved around campus you can email the Director of Sustainability on campus Jamie Adams at jamie.adams@oswego.edu or call the office at 315.312.2500.

The University Police Department is participating in an intensive campaign to ensure that students and faculty buckle-up during their commutes. The program has been a success for the past twelve years.

Police are looking for violations on campus, although the traffic stops may be made off campus.

As part of the nation-wide ‘Buckle-Up Day And Night’ campaign, University Police will have special patrols out looking for motorists who are not wearing their seatbelts.

People not wearing a seatbelt are 30 times more likely to be ejected from a vehicle. Assistant University Police Chief, Kevin Velzy, has been involved with university police for thirty years.

“Because we are a Police Department on a college campus, the majority of our drivers are of college age. We do have some older people, older drivers, that are employees or some people just passing through campus,” said Kevin.

According to the New York State University Police Department, Motor Vehicle accidents are the number one cause of death for those aged up to fifty-four in the United States.

It has been proven that just wearing a seatbelt reduces the risk of death or injury by fifty percent. As a matter of fact, airbags are not a substitute for seatbelts.

More than half of teens aged thirteen to nineteen and adults aged twenty to forty-four who died in crashes in 2015 were unrestrained at the time of the crash.

Men are more likely than women to be unbuckled.

“The crashes have dropped. Our compliance rate, what they also look for in these grant programs, has gone way up. When we first started our compliance rate was about seventy-five percent, which means seventy-five percent of the people that are required to wear a seatbelt in the front seat of a vehicle. Seventy-five percent of them were, and twenty-five percent were not,” said Kevin.

The compliance rate on campus currently lies at ninety-three percent.

A ticket for unrestrained motorists is fifty dollars with no points initially deducted from the license, whereas distracted driving is worth five points on the license in addition to a fine between fifty and two-hundred dollars.

According to the New York State University Police Department, unrestrained motorists involved in a crash are almost four times as likely to suffer a traumatic brain injury compared to those wearing a seatbelt.

Tomas Rodriguez was born with a medical condition called Hydrocephalus, the condition means he was born with water in his brain. Rodriguez was treated with it since birth and has had six brain surgeries.

The Spain native held 16 Madrid records in 16 different events, even breaking those broke multiple times. He was also the national record holder in the 200 IM. Rodriguez said his greatest achievement didn’t come as a win, but for his effort.

“I also achieved, something I’m proud of… the bronze medal in the open body swim, that was huge for me.” Rodriguez said.

He moved to the United States in 2017 with his family. He’s been part of a club team in Florida, the U.S. Paralympic team and as of recently the Oswego State Lakers swim team.

Rodriguez trains with teammates without disabilities. His coach Michael Holman has positive things to say about him.

“He is far more put together and on top of managing his daily life and school and other activities than athletics, he more kids I deal with, he’s on top of it.” Coach Michael Holman says.

“So, what may seem to be my disability out of the water become my ability when I dive off the block/six brain surgeries didn’t change my life, you know swimming did.” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez is training for the 2019 Can-Am Para-Swimming championships in Vancouver. He is also going to train with his club team in Florida, hoping for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

OSWEGO, NY- Student employees at Littlepage Dining hall are expressing concerns about the conditions they work in. According to student employees, a letter was sent out by Auxiliary services addressing a student who came forward on behalf of multiple students. Many of whom had problems with the way managers treated them during their shifts.

The unidentified managers allegedly presented themselves with bad attitudes and frequently took out their frustration on student employees.

“I don’t want to be around in a workplace that’s negative, and sometimes, it gets a little too negative.” said Anisha Melton, a concerned student employee at Littlepage Dining Hall.

In a response to the allegations, Oswego’s Director of Dining services, Ruth Stevens, sent a mass letter to the student employees at Littlepage. The letter asks for feedback while providing resources for students including herself, for students who are unhappy. The letter is an effort to maintain a positive work environment and students can choose to remain confidential.

“I can learn, (and) our managers can learn.” Stevens said. “We can become better at what we do and we can find a better way of doing things. I think communication is key.”

Auxiliary services is the largest student employer on campus with over five hundred student employees serving it’s five residential dining centers.

In honor of April being national child abuse prevention month Oswego’s Child Advocacy Center, located in Fulton, New York,  has set out to spread awareness through Oswego County by placing blue and white pinwheels around the area.

These pinwheels are a part of a national campaign that multiple organizations take part in, in order to spread awareness of child abuse through communities and get the conversation started that children need to be looked out for not only by their families but their community as well.

Executive Director of Oswego County Child Advocacy Center, Karrie Damm, gave some insight as to why the Pinwheels are placed throughout the County “The pinwheel gardens that you see throughout the community are intended to start a conversation. We would like people to see those and have a conversation amongst themselves, amongst their friends, and especially with their children.” Although the conversation may seem touchy Karrie stressed how important it is to begin having conversations about serious issues such as this one. Because the first step to preventing incidents is spreading awareness, which the conversations help to achieve.

Although the child advocacy center is not well known throughout Oswego County it is an important organization that more people should get involved with. Take Craig Stewart for example, he is an electrician for the building, but STILL volunteers and aids the employees there because he does it for the unfortunate children that have to seek help at the organization.

If you would like to volunteer as well you can visit that website at oswegocac.org, Facebook message them, or call them. If you are not able to volunteer and would still like to help out this organization you can make a donation right on their website.

OSWEGO, NY — Visiting professor Sara Burch made an appearance on campus in a public lecture to educate students on her research concerning predatory dinosaurs, specifically the evolution of their forelimbs. The students who had attended this lecture were given a new way of thinking about our evolutionary predecessors

“The past of, like, you know, dinosaurs, all this kind of stuff, is more complicated than we thought about when we were kids,” said student Michael Fontana. “But it’s a lot more in-depth than what we previously thought of.”

Professor Burch’s research had started since her undergraduate degree.  Her discoveries were accompanied by the research of her Geneseo students, who had made their own in-depth discoveries about the dinosaurs, and she is hopeful that students may rethink the stereotype of the dinosaurs’ forelimbs

“I think what I would hope to take away is to kind of challenge their ideas of what dinosaurs might have been doing with their forelimbs,” Professor Burch said. “So, you know, the T-Rex, everyone knows they have tiny forelimbs, they weren’t using them, but hopefully, maybe I convinced some people that they were maybe using them, and that there’s a lot more behind the story.”

Professor Bursch’s research with her students at SUNY Geneseo still continues to this day.