by Daniel Manou

Oswego, NY- Today Show TV personality and Oswego State alum Al Roker returned the college on Mar. 31 as part of Rokerthon Three. Oswego State was the last stop on Rokerthon Three, which sent Roker to four other colleges during the week to break a Guinness World Record.

Oswego State’s world record was to have the world’s longest conga line on ice. The original record was held by the Ice Rink Canary Wharf in the United Kingdom with 353 people. Oswego State broke the record with 593 people.

Having Roker’s final stop be Oswego State, the visit had a little more meaning than the rest.

“It’s very exciting to end up having a week in Oswego. It’s very exciting and the school came through” he said.  

In order to officially break the record students had to follow strict rules. The students must step in unison while holding the hips of the person in front of them for five minutes. If at any point the line broke, someone fell or messed up the moves, the attempt would be disqualified.

Organizing such an event took more effort than meets the eye, which Del Sarte President Allison Anthony learned when tasked with choreographing.

“It’s important that we all came together and found one pace and one way to communicate that works for everyone” she said. “Doing that with 500 plus people was challenging but we got it done”.

Before the conga line could even happen, Anthony and the school advertised the recruitment of skaters and held practices to teach them the moves. Making the decision to participate in the record breaking attempt was easy for most people but were based on several different motives.

For students like Ethan Magram, the thrill of being having a world record in his back pocket was enough.

“I can’t wait to look back and say I broke a world record with some of my best friends, met one of the most favorite news personalities, and I’m going to remember this forever” he said.

Others such as freshman Hannah Enigh, had a strong admiration for Roker. She saw him as a role model in her pursuit to become a broadcast meteorologist.

“I was very excited to want to be a part of something Al Roker was a part of because that was one of the main reasons I came to Oswego, to be a meteorologist and broadcasting major” Enigh said.

In the NFL, news out of Foxborough today is that the New England Patriots star tight end Rob Gronkowski will undergo back surgery this Friday.

After leaving last weekend’s game against the New York Jets and not returning, Gronkowski was diagnosed with a herniated disk in his back. This will be the third time since 2009 that Gronkowski will undergo surgery on his back for a herniated disk, with the recovery time this time expected to be approximately two months.

This isn’t the first time this year that ‘Gronk’ has been bit by the injury bug, as the 27 year old missed the beginning of the season dealing with a hamstring injury, and missed the Patriots’ game two weeks ago against the San Francisco 49ers with a punctured lung.

Gronkowski has appeared in eight games this season, only starting in six of them, but has still recorded 25 catches for 540 yards and three touchdowns this season.

Even if the Patriots were to advance to Super Bowl LI, the game is scheduled for February 5^th; meaning Gronkowski’s season is likely over, barring a New England playoff run.

by Samantha Dominique

Oswego, NY- “Perk Up” is a new campaign started by the Office of Sustainability at SUNY Oswego. Their goal is to reduce plastic waste on campus through reusable coffee cups.

The campaign was introduced at the beginning of the spring semester after last year’s “Tap In” campaign helped to reduce plastic water bottle waste on campus

Student Outreach Intern Brielle Jodeit says the campaign has been very effective so far.

“We have saved almost 2,000 coffee cups from entering the landfills,” she said.

Through the app Cupanion, users are able to receive free coffee on Fridays from 10am-1pm at the Office of Sustainability located inside Hewitt Union. All users have to do is bring their reusable cup or pick one up at the office and scan the code. They also have a chance to win other prizes through the Cupanion app itself.   

“Perk Up” will be continuing in the fall with a fresh face ready to further reduce plastic waste on campus.

The Office of Sustainability tables every Wednesday in the Marano Campus Center.