By Stefanie Sciolaro
GAINESVILLE, F.L.– Richard Spencer, a white supremacist and President of the National Policy Institute, spoke at University of Florida in Gainesville today. He began his speech by declaring that all individuals have the right to free speech regardless of the ideology of it. As Spencer continued it was clear the audience was more against than for his words.
Audience members began to drown out Spencer’s words with chants such as “go home” and “Nazi’s are not welcome here”. Participants in the crowd held fists and middle fingers in the air.
“I’m not going home, I will stand here all day if I have to,” Spencer said.
The university and law enforcement were prepared for the worst before the event began. They had barricades and roadblocks set up prior around the area that the event had taken place. Police began to suit up in riot gear as tensions grew both in and outside of where the event was being held.
According to NPR, Florida’s Governor Rick Scott previously denied an earlier request by Spencer to give a speech at UF because of the events that occurred in Charlottesville, North Carolina.
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Fruit Valley Orchards-Family Fun For All!
Local family owned orchard closes after a great crop season but continues to sell their delicious apples throughout the winter to the public and to SUNY Oswego as well. Not only do they sell apples but they also sell vibrant red cherries. Along with selling to the public and SUNY Oswego Fruit Valley Orchards also picks and produces apples for popular apple-based products brand Motts.
Although the Orchard has been around for many years it has recently been under new ownership for the Gfeller family from Northern Virginia. Owner and farmer Craig Gfeller said that he came to upstate New York to raise his family on a farm much like he did in Rochester. They purchased the land last July in 2017 and have been roaring ever since.
They’ve been able to rake in tons of families to their beautiful orchard with their U-pick program, when asked what family friendly activities they offer at the orchard Craig responded with “We offer a lot of activities here, mostly just U-pick right now,we have families that come and have picnics here, just a great way of spending the afternoon as a family.”
The crop season has been a little short this year due to the fact that not much rain had been around Oswego in the early fall months. However the orchard was still able to grow a great crop under the conditions they had. They grew and sold some of the same apples like Macintosh but also sold new apples to the orchard like Snap Dragon bred by Cornell University where Craig is an alum from.
If you would like to check out Fruit Valley Orchards you can visit their website www.fruitvalleyorchard.com or call them at 315-342-3793. They open again next fall but continue to sell their remaining crop throughout the winter. Get the while they last!
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2016 Oswego Media Summit
With the Media Summit just one week away, there are many reasons why students and faculty at SUNY Oswego are anticipating this year’s event. The Media Summit will return to the newly renovated Tyler Hall for its twelfth year. The Summit was founded by alumni Lou Borrelli and Al Roker in 2005, to give students the chance to network with professionals in the media industry.
In years past, there was mainly a focus on connecting students with professionals in broadcasting, but this year, that theme is going to change. This year’s theme is “Digital, Social, Mobile: How Media Trends Impact Theater, Art and Music.”The theme strives to bring the Schools of Communication, Media and the Arts together, to broaden the topics the Media Summit covers. With a more unique and diverse panel than ever before, the Media Summit is now an event that appeals to students not only in the School of Communication interested in media, but also the School of the Arts and the Theater department.
The moderator for this year’s Summit is alumni Sean McAllister, Class of 2001. After earning his bachelor’s degree in Journalism, McAllister joined the Fox5 team in 2005 as News Producer. He quickly moved into his role as Executive Producer in which he launched the Emmy nominated show “MORE.” He has made a name for himself in Las Vegas as an entertainment reporter. While Sean McAllister serves as role-model for students in journalism, the panelists serve as role-models and mentors to students in the fields of music, theater and the arts.
Panelist George Nick Gianopolous, used his passion for classical music to launch his career as a composer. Now, a multi-award winning artist, Gianopolous travels the world, sharing his love for music with others. His passion for music and the arts is mutually shared with fellow panelist Diana Priesler, the star of the Lifetime Television series “Pitch Slapped”.
After Priesler earned her bachelor’s degree in theatre performance and directing at SUNY Oswego, she used her voice to make an impact in the world of acapella music. Priesler is not only featured on her own television show, but she also is a member of an acapella band Blue Jupiter. When she isn’t using her talent on television or in her band, she hosts “SingStrong,” an international music charity event.
Third panelist Mya Brown also shares a background with Diana Priesler in theater. Brown is an actor, director/playwright and current visiting assistant professor in acting/directing and voice/diction here at SUNY Oswego. She is using her experience and expertise from performing in over 30 regional and national productions to reach the students in theater and music. Her passion for theater and the arts is not the only thing that keeps her going, but her love for technology and incorporating the use of it into theater is something that inspires her to match the advances with technology to theater.
The final panelist for this year’s Summit is former marketing and communications coordinator for SUNY Oswego’s Department of Campus Life, Michael Yoon. During his time at Oswego, Yoon also earned his Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design. With the skills he developed, Yoon found his passion for working with print and design. After graduation, Yoon moved on to become the communication manager for University Services at Princeton University.
This year’s Media Summit is devoted to including all schools that make up SCMA. The decision to involve all the schools was suggested by Dean Julie Pretzat, to unite all students from the schools at one of the biggest events on campus, the Media Summit. Co-event director Kalie Hudson describes the panelists for this year’s event as being heavily entertainment based, but is hopeful the discussion is something that will engage everyone in communications, music, theatre and art and will be a discussion all can find interest in.
While inclusion of theater and the arts was essential in choosing this year’s panelists, the goal was to have communication remain at the heart of the event. Although the panelists are from different fields, there are overlapping interests in the fields of communication, media and the arts, so the decision to include all three schools was not a difficult decision at all as Hudson states.
The theme of this year’s event, “Digital, Social, Media”, is something that affects all students whether it is in the School of Communication or the School of the Arts; it is a discussion that can engage all students and a discussion in which all students can take something away from and apply it to their own field.
On October 27 at 3:00pm, all students are invited to gather in the Waterman Theater in Tyler Hall for a discussion with current professionals in the fields of communication, the arts, theater, and music. Each panelist has made a name for his/herself in their chosen fields and are prime examples of what students can achieve beyond graduation from SUNY Oswego.
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Lakers win exhibition game over CCHL
The Oswego men’s hockey team started their new season with a win over the CCHL All-Graduate team by a final score of 3-1.
Mitch Emerson, Michael Gillespie, and Chris MacMillian registered the Lakers’ goals in the exhibition while Travis Broughman tallied CCHL’s only goal.
The Lakers went 1-6 on the power-play and were 4-5 on the penalty kill.
Oswego starts their regular season on Saturday at home against Elmira.
