by Michael Reilly
Oswego, NY- The Oswego State theater department’s production of Jon Jory’s adaptation of the Jane Austen novel Pride and Prejudice, directed by theater professor Mya Brown, begins this weekend. Alexandra Matsu stars as Elizabeth Bennet, a woman looking to break away from the strict social norms she’s expected to follow in 19th century England. Matsu says the play’s message is about staying true to your feelings.
“Open your heart and to keep your heart open and don’t allow yourself to be affected by the noise of outside life,” she said.
Stage Director Emily Stott says giving the show a more modern feel makes it more powerful.
“To incorporate a contemporary heartbeat allows us to revitalize the show,” she said. “It provides a relatability to the audience, a modern feel.”
Also starring in the production is Cadi Hannold as Mrs. Bennet, Evan Debevec-McKenney as Mr. Bennet, Logan Colby-Rowe as Jane Bennet, Marisa Miner as Mary Bennet, Kayla Bonesera as Kitty Bennet, and Sean Ryan as Mr. Darcy.
Pride and Prejudice’s first preview performance will be on Apr. 20 at 7:30PM at the Waterman Theater in Tyler Hall, with opening night on Apr. 21. Performances will continue on Apr. 22 and 29 at 7:30PM and Apr. 30 at 2:30PM. Tickets are $15 to the general public and $7 for Oswego State students with ID.
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SUNY Oswego leaders send call to action to Congress
Some leaders of the SUNY Oswego community are urging congress to pass legislation in response to President Trump’s decision to end the Delayed Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
SUNY Oswego president, Deborah F. Stanley, Faculty Assembly Chair, Lisa Glidden and Student Association President, Dalton Bisson composed a call to action to send to the NYS Congressional Delegation on Thursday.
According to US Citizenship and Immigration services, the DACA program was announced by the Secretary of Homeland Security on June 15, 2012. It stated that “certain people who came to the United States as children and meet several guidelines may request consideration of deferred action for a period of two years”. Under DACA they could could also renew this deferred action and it also made them eligible for work authorization.
Ending the DACA program would impact “nearly 80,000 individuals in our nation [who] now face devastating alteration to their lives and aspirations and do not deserve the fate unfairly placed upon them” Stanley, Glidden, and Bisson wrote in the call to action. The call to action was emailed to SUNY Oswego staff and students Thursday morning.
The email illustrated how much Stanley, Glidden, and Bisson value members of the DACA program, called “Dreamers”, at SUNY Oswego and across the country. “We, as Americans, must be willing to shoulder the responsibility to assure that our nation’s laws reflect highly moral and deeply ethical positions. To refuse to do so in this instance would seriously debase our heritage as a nation of immigrants and hope” Stanley, Glidden, and Bisson wrote.
For more information on the DACA program and to read the full announcement please visit https://www.uscis.gov/archive/consideration-deferred-action-childhood-arrivals-daca#previousdacaupdates -
Styrofoam and Smoking On Public Property Ban
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.
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Student Association Update: February 19th
SUNY OSWEGO – On Tuesday evening, the Student Association called their fourth meeting of the Senate to order. The quorum to start the meeting was met, and following the approval of the meetings agenda and minutes, the meetings was well under way.
Emily Cole, President of PRSSA was the first and only guest to the Senate for the evening. The organization was requesting funds to help with the costs of the tee shirts they will be purchasing from “Zink” for Com Week in April. PRSSA stated that they tie-dying event held that week will be free for students. Although they do have funds in their budget, they do not wish to use all of it as they need to purchase the supplies for the tie-dying. The requested funds from SA to help with the tee shirts. They feel this is a great and fun way for them to promote SUNY Oswego’s School of Communication. Two senators volunteered to write the bill which will be proposed and voted on at a later date.
In Executive Reports, SA President Emily Nassir gave her first official report seeing as she was in a conference last week in Boston. Nassir revealed that the legislation for her first project as President “SA Assembly” has been laid out. SA Assembly will give organizations on campus a better opportunity to effectively communicate with SA, through monthly meeting where concerns and questions can be expressed. The legislation will be looked over and reviewed several times prior to voting by the Senate which will determine whether the bill passes or not. Nassir also stated that she is open to any suggestions or changes. Nassir also shared minor details of a new project she is working on with Auxiliary Services. The plan is to make student food favorites from the dining halls available in the express markets on campus. This project is just in the beginning stages and Nassir will provide more information as the project evolves. Nassir also discussed the use of the discount cards available to students on campus. The cards have expired, but are currently being renewed. Due to expenses, they will not be purchasing the cards, but instead the discount app. There are several store in town that work with the school to provide discounts to students. To finish off her report, Nassir proposed that funds be moved to the contingency account due to the lack of funds currently there. This allows SA to help the organizations on campus with their funds. By majority vote, all senators approved and the funds will be moved to the account.
Vice President Shelby Gallaro gave a short and brief executive report sharing the success of the town hall meeting and workshop that were both held last week. Gallaro said that the town hall meeting was informative and shared that SUNY Oswego is working on creating a common space in Sweatman gym, There is space that is not being used which can be a potential common are including but not limited to pool tables and a dance area. The workshop in which Gallaro and Senators attended was a great leadership and teambuilding experience.
Matthew Peters, Director of Finance concluded the meetings executive reports. Peters reminded senators that the budget for clubs and organizations opens on February 29th. Clubs and organizations can submit their budgets for next year and SA will begin reviewing them shortly after the date budgeting opens. Peters wanted to clarify a previous statement made about the ticket prices of OzFest. In the previous meeting Peters suggested that prices be reduced anywhere from $10 to $20 per ticket, however this was not an official statement revealing the price of the ticket. Peters was merely expressing his opinion, and stated Tuesday night that ticket prices will be determined by the overall cost of the event as well as how much funding they receive from the school. Peters closed his executive report by stating that SA does not currently know who the performer(s) will be, but hopes to know by the end of next week.
Following Executive Reports was Committee Reports. Finance Committee shared that the bill for the ASL Organization on campus has been written. They are currently working with the National Broadcast Society to reduce the amount of funds requested. The Men’s Rugby team is waiting for a response from the Women’s Rugby team to see if they will be willing to help fund the tournament hosted on campus in the spring. The Involvement Committee shared that the “Miss-a-Meal” date for this semester has been chosen. April 14th, students will be able to donate their meal to help veterans in the community. The committee is also working on making posters to be placed on bulletin boards in campus that will encourage students to vote yes for the mandatory student service fee. The poster will include some of the reasons why students are encouraged to vote yes especially since the service fee is what allows student shuttle services to run, fund SAVAC and also funds WNYO and WTOP on campus. These are just a few of the many things that the student service fee fund, which is why it is extremely important that the fee be kept mandatory.
In Hall Council Reports Oneida shared that their night in Hollywood event was a great success. All students who attended really enjoyed the program and had a great time. Johnson hall will be making a constitution committee which will serve to make sure that all rules of the hall’s constitution are being followed during their hall council meetings. Finally, Waterbury is in the process of re electing E-Board Member.
There were no special orders, therefore the meeting moved to the only general order for the evening. The National Association of Black Students Accountants requested funding for promotional materials, travel and lodging and guest speakers. The budget presented at the meeting included funding to help them sustain their new organization through promotions such as flyers to be placed around campus and a new banner to represent their organization. Funding for their events will be voted on at a later date because they are currently finding other ways to help with funding. The budget for the promotional materials was voted on and approved by general consent.
The meeting was adjourned following the passing of the only bill of the evening. SA holds their weekly meetings of the Senate Tuesday nights at 6pm, in Lanigan 106. Each meeting is open to the public. All students and organizations are encouraged to attend to express any concerns they may have.
