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ADMINISTRATION

Five candidates considered for open Regent spot Lawmakers have until May 21 to appoint the replacement for Regent Patricia Simmons. BY MADELINE DENINGER mdeninger@mndaily.com

State lawmakers are looking to elect a new member to the University of Minnesota’s Board of Regents before the end of the legislative session. Lawmakers must elect a candidate to

replace Regent Patricia Simmons — who announced her resignation last month — before the Legislature adjourns on May 21. If the Legislature doesn’t choose a replacement, DFL Gov. Mark Dayton will temporarily appoint a regent until legislators can do so next session. Rep. Bud Nornes, R-Fergus Falls, chair of the House higher education committee, said while the circumstances of the election are unusual, lawmakers plan to make a selection on time. “It’s not often we have somebody in the

middle of their term resign,” he said. Regent elections are typically held in budget years. Next session, four positions on the board will be up for election. If lawmakers don’t choose a replacement for Simmons, her seat will also be open in 2019. Nornes said the House and Senate higher education committees will meet in the coming weeks to discuss candidates, with a joint committee to elect a regent in May. Five candidates are currently vying for Simmons’s position: Brooks Edwards, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist

NEIGHBORHOODS

Jeanne Hankerson, an attorney from Owatonna, MN Wendy Shannon, director of the Graduate Induction Program at Winona State University Randy Simonson, director of Prairie Holdings Group in Worthington, MN Mary Davenport, interim president of Rochester Community and Technical College The Regent Candidate Advisory Council u See REGENT Page 3

DINKYTOWN

U alum transformed SE Como

Restaurants to replace Vescio’s, Espresso Royale Bonchon and Crisp & Green will open campus locations after spring semester ends. BY J.D. DUGGAN AND MICHELLE GRIFFITH jduggan@mndaily.com, mgriffith@mndaily.com

Two prominent Dinkytown businesses closed in recent months, and recent reports show what will fill their vacant storefronts. A new Korean fried chicken restaurant is moving into the heart of Dinkytown this summer, taking over the previous location of Vescio’s Italian Restaurant. Crisp & Green, a casual restaurant that sells nutritious food, will replace the space that was once home to Espresso Royale across the street. Bonchon is an international Korean fried chicken and Asian fusion restaurant that will open two stores in Minneapolis in late summer: one in Dinkytown and another in Uptown.

Crisp & Green hopes to go national

CARTER BLOCHWITZ, DAILY

Cody Olson talks about his time with the Southeast Como Improvement Association at Bordertown Coffee on Thursday, April 12. Olson began working for the organization through a service-learning class his freshman year at the U and went on to the become its executive director.

Cody Olson will leave SECIA after revamping neighborhood association. BY TIFFANY BUI tbui@mndaily.com

Cody Olson’s farewell party at Sporty’s Pub and Grill in Como on Monday was filled with lively conversation, recounting of old memories and a toast. Olson has led the Southeast Como Improvement

and resolve.” More students have joined SECIA during Olson’s time as director. The number of student representatives on the board increased from one to four, said Cody Hoerning, a University graduate student. Hoerning was elected to the board last fall.

u See RESTAURANTS Page 3

Hoerning said Olson’s experience as a student helped him resolve conflicts between longtime residents and transient student renters.

Association since 2016. Prior to this role, he was an

“Cody, being younger and a recent student, has

intern at SECIA while studying history and urban

been able to sympathize [with] some of the issues

studies at the University of Minnesota. His next

that students have, but he’s just a great people per-

job will involve community outreach work at Metro

son in regards to conflict management,” Hoerning

Transit.

said.

Olson became director during a challenging time for the association, said Karl Smith, president

Olson also helped hire four new interns, Hoerning said.

of SECIA. At the time, SECIA was “in a state of de-

Emily Anderson, SECIA’s community building

spair,” Smith said. The lease was up for the asso-

intern and a University freshman, said Olson provid-

ciation’s headquarters and a large amount of paper-

ed her with a balance of support and independence.

work needed to be done, among other issues.

Though she’s only been with SECIA since

“Without him, we wouldn’t be where we are today,” Smith said. “He did it with extraordinary grace

u See OLSON Page 3

CAMPUS

System-wide Wi-Fi upgrade brings faster browsing speeds The Minnesota Daily tested newly upgraded Wi-Fi speeds across East Bank buildings.

MAP OF AVERAGE DOWNLOAD SPEED, MbPS

BY MAX CHAO mchao@mndaily.com

60 - 150 MbPS

From Coffman Union, it would take about three seconds to download all 73.5 MBs of Cardi B’s debut album through Wi-Fi – up to four times faster than speeds a year ago. Got a cable? A wired connection could double that speed. For the almost 52,000 daily users at the University of Minnesota and the almost 66 terabytes of data they use every day, these high speeds come thanks to a recent internet infrastructure upgrade through the University’s Next Generation u See WI-FI Page 2

Construction on Crisp & Green will begin sometime this week, according to a press release. The restaurant is expected to open this summer before the 2018-19 school year. “As the demand for healthier, convenient meal choices continues to grow, we look forward to bringing our concept to many more Twin Cities communities, and ultimately across the nation,” said Crisp & Green CEO Steele Smiley in the release. The Dinkytown location is a part of a larger expansion. An additional restaurant will open in Edina as part of Smiley’s mission to make Crisp & Green a national brand. The restaurant primarily sells salads, grain bowls and smoothies. “We have ... received hundreds of

151 - 240 MbPS 241 - 330 MbPS

* No data for buildings in gray

SOURCE: MN DAILY REPORTING

RESEARCH

U researchers, local brewery work to preserve rainforest Partnership uses tropical nut to create new brew that benefits conservation efforts. BY KATRINA PROSS kpross@mndaily.com

After nearly 20 years of researching the Ramón nut, Dave Wilsey had an idea: use the protein-rich Central American seed to brew beer. He contacted Urban Growler Brewing Co. in St. Paul to set up a partnership last year. Now with a grant from the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment’s mini-grant program, the brewers and conservationists hope the brand-new brew will raise awareness about rainforest conservation efforts. Two beers that resulted from the collaboration became available for customers in mid-March, and one sold out in a matter of days. The second, a stout with “notes of chocolate, coffee and nuts,” is still available on tap. “The fact that this nut could bring global change really intrigued me,” said Jill Pavlak, Urban Growler co-owner. “The point of this is to bring awareness to this nut and to help sustainability in communities.” The Ramón nut is native to Central America, South America and the Caribbean, and has become symbolic of the conservation and development work happening in the Maya Forest, said Wilsey, director of the University’s Master of Development Practice program within the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. The region is facing deforestation, as large portions of the rainforest are cut down and destroyed to make way for cattle grazing land, Wilsey said. He hopes that encouraging widespread sale of the nut — which u See BREWERY Page 3

VOLUME 118 ISSUE 55

THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2018

Daily Review

MNDAILY.COM

MN DAILY

EXTENDED WEATHER FORECAST THURSDAY FRIDAY HIGH 48° HIGH 49° LOW 23° LOW 28° Partly cloudy

SATURDAY HIGH 52° LOW 34°

Partly cloudy

SUNDAY HIGH 60° LOW 40°

Partly cloudy

MONDAY HIGH 65° LOW 43° Mostly sunny

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

Thursday, April 19, 2018 Vol. 118 No. 55

An Independent Student Newspaper, Founded in 1900. 2221 University Ave. SE, Suite 450 Minneapolis, MN 55414 Phone: (612) 627-4080 Fax: (612) 435-5865 Copyright © 2018 The Minnesota Daily This newspaper, its design and its contents are copyrighted.

1897 On April 19, 1897, John J. McDermott of New York won the first Boston Marathon with a time of 2:55:10. HISTORYCHANNEL.COM/TDIH

Wi-Fi upgrade brings U U student group gets trashy in faster browsing speeds hands-on demo

Wi-Fi

u from Page 1

and stone walls, metal siding and high-efficiency glass windows inhibit radio frequencies. Drywall, on the other hand, is more signal-friendly. Wi-Fi speed is partially dependent on the processing power of the device it is

connected to. The Daily’s tests were done on a 2013 13-inch MacBook Air. The data collected by the Daily found the average campus download speed to be 232.6 Mbps— 209.91 higher than the average household in 2017.

Network Project. The threeyear, system-wide overhaul started in 2017 and has updated the campuses’ internet hardware. As a result, Wi-Fi speeds are up to four times faster AVERAGE LIBRARY WI-FI USAGE and wired network speeds are 10 times faster than before, said Louis Hammond, 3.08K 2.87K service owner of the University data network. “We upgraded to the very latest technology that 2.21K 2.06K this vendor has to offer,” Hammond said. Most of the Wi-Fi upgrades were completed in February 2018, and more routers, network switches 1.07K 882.07 and other security components are currently being 666.43 implemented. The project is 421.87 anticipated to be completed by June 2020. 112.73 “That will provide us network capabilities for the UNIQUE CONCURRENT UNIQUE next 10 years,” Hammond DEVICES DEVICES USERS said.

The Test The Minnesota Daily conducted speed tests at 75 buildings on the Minneapolis campus to measure their download speeds. The tests were conducted on the “eduroam” n e t w o rk , t h e p r i m a r y University Wi-Fi network, t h ro u g h a U n i v e r s i t y hosted website provided by the Office of Information Technology. To collect the data, three trials were done at each building in close, unobstructed proximity to a wireless router. The data presented is the average of the three trials. Testing took place on April 13, 16 and 17 between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Hammond said Wi-Fi connectivity is intended to be evenly distributed around campus, but some factors do impact performance. Things like the number of devices connected to the internet and proximity to light rail and transit routes, which have their own Wi-Fi access points, can cause interference, he said. A building’s construction materials can also affect performance. Concrete

Walter Library

Wilson Library

Magrath Library

* All numbers are daily averages and a sample of buildings provided by the University of Minnesota Office of Information Technology between March and April. SOURCE: OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

AVERAGE STUDENT UNION WI-FI USAGE 6.76K

5.25K

1.57K

1.32K

1.04K 169.83 UNIQUE DEVICES

CONCURRENT DEVICES

Coffman Union

UNIQUE USERS St. Paul Student Center

* All numbers are daily averages and a sample of buildings provided by the University of Minnesota Office of Information Technology between March and April. SOURCE: OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

AVERAGE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA WI-FI USAGE

83.12K

51.67K 40.65K

UNIQUE DEVICES

CONCURRENT DEVICES

UNIQUE USERS

* All numbers are daily averages and a sample of buildings provided by the University of Minnesota Office of Information Technology between March and April. SOURCE: OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

The group educated students about the University’s zero waste goals. BY WESLEY HORTENBACH whortenbach@mndaily.com

A University of Minnesota student organization put on a large-scale trash audit on campus Thursday, sorting through 780 pounds of waste. Minnesota Public Interest Research Group poured trash from the Coffman Memorial food court onto the ground at Williamson Hall’s Plaza, in coordination with Earth Day. The organization redistributed compostable and recyclable waste to educate students about recycling different materials and the University’s zero waste goals. There are four types of bins on campus for sorting waste: cans and bottles, paper, organic and trash. While some might have been concerned about the smell and mess caused by the audit, Eli Miller, co-chair of MPIRG, said it helped make a point. “I actually want it to smell to show off the horrors of it all,” Miller said. “I want it in people’s faces. We should have to face up to the waste we create.” This is MPIRG’s second annual trash audit, but the group hopes it will have a bigger impact. The location of this year’s audit was a high-traffic area, which drew more students’ attention, said Rachel Figueroa, an environmental science, policy and management senior. Figueroa said she was surprised by how many unopened

containers made their way into the trash. Clifford Hall, a freshman, stopped by to fulfill a requirement for a College of Liberal Arts course. “I could’ve just come here and signed my name on the sheet and [left],” Hall said. “But I decided to stay and help because this seemed like the bomb.” Shelby Swan, an environmental science, policy and management sophomore and task force leader, said while small actions like creating compostable coffee sleeves are a start, the University needs to improve its composting program before it can have a positive impact. “Even though there are compostable coffee cups on campus, it doesn’t make a difference if students still throw them in the trash because there isn’t a place to put them,” she said. “Right now, there aren’t many composting bins on campus or in most dorms.” Utensils from the Minnesota Marketplace are compostable, but plastic straws are not. The group also hopes the exercise will help students begin to identify compostable materials on their own. Through the event, MPIRG’s hopes to address the lack of student knowledge about the waste they produce. All of the University’s waste is brought to the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center’s incinerator. Swan said the incineration process is bad for air quality and hopes the zero waste goals can bring an end to it. MPIRG is hosting other events this week, with hopes that its efforts will expand beyond Earth Day.

Students and faculty connect over waffles Students and faculty shared knowledge and advice experiences. BY DAVID MULLEN dmullen@mndaily.com

Over plates stacked with warm waffles, a panel of University of Minnesota faculty and staff members recalled their experiences as first-generation college students Tuesday evening. A group of around 20 students attended the FirstGeneration Panel and Waffle Bar in Bruininks Hall, an event encouraging discussion and advice-sharing between faculty, staff and students with similar backgrounds. The event, organized by Multicultural and First Generation College Students, a program within the College of Liberal Arts, featured four panelists. The panel members were asked questions about their experiences and how they navigated college without much guidance from family members. “It’s our job to pay it forward to these students,” said Juan Telles, one of the panelists and an academic adviser in CLA. “I went through the same struggles as these students, and it’s important for them to realize that there is someone else out there who went through it too.” The purpose of the panel was to “provide students the opportunity to meet one-onone with these successful faculty and staff members who have come so far at the

University,” said Rebekah Charles, president of MCFGS. Panelist Leah Milojevic, assistant director for CLA Diversity Student Support Program, said she came to the University in 2002 as a firstgeneration student and never left. “The biggest challenge as a first-gen student was I didn’t know what to ask,” Milojevic said. Now, as a University staff member, Milojevic says she works to share her knowledge and give back to students with similar experiences. “It’s my calling, and I have a special place in my heart for first-gen students,” she said. Cydney Gaines, who spoke on the panel and is a multicultural associate within the Multicultural Center for Academic Excellence at the University, said she wants to give hope to first-generation students. “Just do whatever it takes to be successful,” Gaines said after she was asked what students should take away from Tuesday’s event. Melissa Koenig, panelist and professor in the Institute of Child Development, said she wanted to hold a discussion between first-generation students and faculty. “I was really excited to start conversations with students. I don’t want first-generation students to walk around in silence,” Koenig said. MCFGS was founded one year ago by siblings Eric and Rebekah Charles, first-generation students who felt they didn’t belong in other student groups. The group has since grown to 71 members.

OFFICE OF THE PUBLISHER Mike Hendrickson Editor-in-Chief mhendrickson@mndaily.com (612) 435-1575 Kathryn Chlystek Business Operations Officer kchlystek@mndaily.com (612) 435-2761 NEWS STAFF Nick Wicker Managing Editor nwicker@mndaily.com Cedar Thomas Managing Production Editor cthomas@mndaily.com Jack White Sports Editor jwhite@mndaily.com Gunthar Reising A&E Editor greising@mndaily.com Alex Tuthill-Preus Multimedia Editor atuthill-preus@mndaily.com Maddy Fox Assistant Multimedia Editor mfox@mndaily.com Sheridan Swee Copy Desk Chief sswee@mndaily.com Molly Tynjala Assistant Copy Desk Chief mtynjala@mndaily.com Harry Steffenhagen Visuals Editor hsteffenhagen@mndaily.com Jane Borstad Visuals Editor jborstad@mndaily.com Desmond Kamas Chief Page Designer dkamas@mndaily.com Rilyn Eischens Campus Editor reischens@mndaily.com Olivia Johnson Campus Editor ojohnson@mndaily.com Ryan Faircloth City Editor rfaircloth@mndaily.com David Clarey Features Editor dclarey@mndaily.com =

EDITORIAL BOARD Aleezeh Hasan Editorial Board Member ahasan@mndaily.com Ray Weishan Editorial Board Member rweishan@mndaily.com Mike Hendrickson Editor-in-Chief mhendrickson@mndaily.com BUSINESS Genevieve Locke Sales Manager glocke@mndaily.com David Keane Controller dkeane@mndaily.com The Minnesota Daily strives for complete accuracy and corrects its errors immediately. Corrections and clarifications will always be printed in this space. If you believe the Daily has printed a factual error, please call the readers’ representative at (612) 627–4070, extension 3057, or email errors@mndaily.com immediately. THE MINNESOTA DAILY is a legally independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization and is a student-written and student-managed newspaper for the University of Minnesota’s Twin Cities campus. The Daily’s mission is: 1) to provide coverage of news and events affecting the University community; 2) to provide a forum for the communication and exchange of ideas for the University community; 3) to provide educational training and experience to University students in all areas of newspaper operations; and 4) to operate a fiscally responsible organization to ensure its ability to serve the University in the future. The Daily is a member of the Minnesota News Council, the Minnesota Associated Press, the Associated Collegiate Press, The Minnesota Newspaper Association and other organizations. The Daily is published Monday and Thursday during the regular school year and weekly during the summer, and it is printed by ECM Publishers in Princeton, Minn. Midwest News Service distributes the 10,000 issues biweekly. All Minnesota Daily inserts are recyclable within the University of Minnesota program and are at least 6 percent consumer waste. U.S. Postal Service: 351–480.

Thursday, April 19, 2018

Restaurants to replace Vescio’s, Espresso Royale Restaurants u from Page 1

requests from residents near the U of M, who want to see more healthy places to eat on campus, which is something this generation cares deeply about,” Smiley said in the release. Espresso Royale opened its Dinkytown location in the late 1980s. It closed Dec. 21.

With Bonchon, Asian dining trend continues

Marshall Nguyen is the real estate adviser for Sam Zheng, owner of the Dinkytown Bonchon and several other restaurants in the region. Nguyen helped Zheng secure the deal for the new Dinkytown spot. “There hasn’t been a Korean fried chicken concept yet in Minnesota,” Nguyen said. “So this would be the first one, and I think the best locations to kick it off are Uptown and Dinkytown.” Nguyen said the Dinkytown Bonchon will feature quick service, dine-in and beer. He said Bonchon’s concept is like “comfort

food but on a better scale”; the chicken is fried twice to make it “extra crispy.” Randal Gast, president of the Dinkytown Business Alliance, expressed concerns about another Asian restaurant opening in Dinkytown. The market has become “a little bit heavily skewed,” he said, as many of the neighborhood’s new businesses have been Asian restaurants. “The concern I would have is that any particular industry that gets too large in a particular area may start cannibalizing itself, but everybody eats,” Gast said. Camdi Phan is the owner of Camdi Restaurant, a Dinkytown Chinese and Vietnamese business of more than 35 years. She said the influx of Asian cuisine into the neighborhood will foster good competition. “It’s okay because even though another Asian [restaurant] will be here, [there are] many students,” Phan said. As a University of Minnesota graduate, Nguyen is familiar with Dinkytown’s competitive nature, but he said he isn’t concerned for the international

franchise’s success. Opportunities to move into Dinkytown are rare, Nguyen said. The new business’s proximity to the University and the growing Asian community near campus should help it succeed, he said. “I think every business, if you know how to operate well, will be successful there,” he said. “In order to survive, we have to have good concepts that [are] going to attract students.” Nguyen said Minnesota’s food culture is growing, and that people aren’t “just sticking with hamburgers or Italian food.” “[Bonchon is] unique, it’s fun … the community is really excited about it,” he said. According to Bonchon’s website, the franchise opened its first American location in 2006 in New Jersey on the heels of a successful South Korea store. As of July 2017, the restaurant had more than 236 stores spread over nine different countries, 63 of which were in the United States. Nguyen said the company hopes to find success with the flagship Minneapolis locations before expanding to the suburbs.

Uof M professors use their free time to write free textbooks Faculty spend their hours creating free books and other educational tools. BY MAX CHAO mchao@mndaily.com

Over the past few years, several University of Minnesota faculty members have spent hundreds of hours creating free online textbooks for their classes in lieu of traditional print ones. The free textbooks, which have been used by students in Minnesota and around the world, are written by professors compassionate about students who may face financial barriers. “When I was graduate student, I had to buy a book for basically $200 and then use it for one semester and then [never use it again]. So, I wanted to reduce cost for students,” said Bodong Chen, a University professor in the College of Education and Human Development and open textbook author. University Libraries offers grants to faculty members to create and adopt open textbooks, and have published over 30 works so far ranging in topic from data modeling to physiology. “For us, it’s part of our jobs … For me, teaching in this way is a [passion],” Chen said. Authors of these materials, who are often faculty members, spend time writing the materials on top of their day-to-day work, often only receiving relatively small grants as compensation. Completing a textbook

can take years. “Whether the book ends up being free or expensive, the process is pretty much the same,” said David Ernst, director of the Open Textbook Library, a Universitysupported database of open textbooks. The open textbook movement is growing across the country. Last month, legislation was passed in Congress that created a $5 million grant program for the creation of these materials. Professors write open textbooks to remove the cost barrier to students, but they also offer a greater element of control for instructors, allowing them to make routine updates to the text and design material for more obscure courses. “[Our] topic isn’t studying ancient Syrian pottery, it’s stuff that changes so much. And the idea of doing it electronically means that we can go in every semester and update the links and add things,” said Kathleen Hansen, a University professor who co-wrote a textbook on information gathering for the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Since the textbooks are free, University faculty are able to avoid a campus policy hurdle that requires explicit approval before using one of their own books in a course. “I think that [it’s] a way for people to create content and not have to worry about charging students for something they wrote, which might make them feel bad,” Hansen said. Open textbooks are free

“[Our] topic isn’t studying ancient Syrian pottery, it’s stuff that changes so much. And the idea of doing it electronically means that we can go in every semester and update the links and add things.” KATHLEEN HANSEN University professor

not only to University students, but all people. The University’s Open Textbook Library hosts over 450 works and helps share University-produced works around the country, to places like the Virginia Commonwealth University, Miami University and the University of Iowa. It has also opened up new curriculum possibilities for some professors. University professor Robin Murie teaches English as a second language and uses textbooks from the OTL to teach English more effectively. Murie said she uses excerpts from textbooks as real-life examples of academic texts in her class, something she couldn’t easily do three years ago. “My students seem to appreciate the fresh approach,” she said.

Five candidates to be considered for open spot on Board of Regents Regent u from Page 1

will interview candidates and make a recommendation to the Legislature, but these candidates could differ from those considered by lawmakers. Simmons served in executive positions at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. She recently told the Minnesota Daily that her replacement should bring medical expertise to the board. Sen. David Senjem, RRochester, said Edwards would make a good candidate to represent Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District. “I would say [Edwards] is an organizational leader over at Mayo,” Senjem said. “There’s a history with the University-Mayo

relationship. There’s a Mayo building on the University campus. That’s there for a reason.” Senjem said while the Mayo Clinic connection is only one factor the Legislature should consider, knowledge of the research collaboration between the two institutions has traditionally been a part of the role. “The collaboration does lend itself to it making some sense that [the regents] have high-level connections,” he said. “So there’s those long standing relationships, and it’s important, frankly, that they be sustained.” While the RCAC will be involved in the interview process, bills in the House and Senate would alter the committee’s role in the process or eliminate it.

Rep. Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona, said the candidates the Legislature chooses don’t have to come from the RCAC’s recommendation. “[The process] has traditionally been somewhat of a mess, and the mess starts with the Regent Candidate Advisory [Council], which has unfortunately become politicized,” he said. Pelowski said Davenport’s higher education experience will lend itself well to the position. Before her leadership role at Rochester Community and Technical College, Davenport served as Riverland Community College’s vice president of academic and student affairs. “Her higher ed background is superb, and I think she would make an excellent regent,” Pelowski said.

COURTESY OF AMANDA MAE DAVIES, URBAN GROWLER

Co-Owners of Urban Growler Brewing Company Deb Loch and Jill Pavlak pose for a portrait on Sept. 21, 2016.

U, local brewery work to preserve the rainforest Brewery u from Page 1

only grows in the rainforest — will preserve the rainforest. Wilsey and his colleague Dean Current have been working with the Ramón nut since the early 2000s. During that time, the University has sent three teams to Guatemala with the Rainforest Alliance to study the nut. Wilsey hopes to organize a brewer exchange in the future and bring Urban Growler workers to Guatemala to teach people there how to brew the beer. “This partnership will help people learn about opportunities that might exist in forest conservation and livelihood development,”

Wilsey said. The Ramón nut is rich in nutrients like protein and fiber, said Collin Motschke, a graduate student whose master’s thesis is on the Ramón nut. He said he hopes the Ramón nut will become “the quinoa of the future” and a widely-used ingredient around the world. Wilsey’s ultimate goal is to have a major business use Ramón nut as an ingredient in a food product, creating marketing opportunities that will increase the rainforest’s value and protect its resources. “There is so much power in being a consumer, and the consumptive decisions that we make have an impact and have ripples throughout the entire world. This is a way that people can be intelligent,

compassionate and sustainable consumers,” Motschke said of the partnership. Pavlak said she explains the partnership to everyone who orders the beer to spread the message. “The beer is already good, but the story behind it makes people feel even better about ordering it,” she said. The Ramón nut could start an international conversation about conservation through this beer, Wilsey said. “We have this belief that we all want the same things from life, to be loved and accepted, and that goes beyond our community. It’s a worldwide desire and right. To be able to make some sort of impact in another country is really quite amazing,” Pavlak said.

U alum transformed SE Como Olson u from Page 1

February, Anderson said the work Olson has done makes her feel confident about the leadership transition. “In the end, it’s going to be OK. SECIA is still going to be such a great organization after Cody moves on,” Anderson said. Community, culture and a 24-hour work week SECIA could only afford to pay Olson for 24 hours of work each week. Faced with the time constraint and the amount of work that needed to be done, Olson said he relied on his time management skills and support from the

organization. “I took the job knowing full well where the organization stood,” Olson said. While director, Olson also worked with the LindBohanon Neighborhood Association, located in north Minneapolis. He noted the difference between the two neighborhoods’ communities and cultures, which affected the way he did outreach. “Engagement strategies for Como were much more event-based … things that people can see, can interact with. People can ask questions about whether they’re biking, busing or just walking through the neighborhood,” he said.

Olson was drawn to the neighborhood associations because they provide an opportunity to convey community needs to the city of Minneapolis. “I saw it as an interesting bottom-up way of planning to allow for more community voice to see what happens around them,” he said. Though Olson said there are some things he could have done differently, he’s proud of the overall work he accomplished. “My hope is that I almost act as a bridge between eras; that I kept [SECIA] stable and strong enough to survive and positioned it for greater growth in the next couple of years,” he said.

Sports

THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2018

MN DAILY

MNDAILY.COM

WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS

Lexi Ramler is U’s lone NCAA qualifier Ramler qualified for the all-around event and will be the only UMN participant. BY ERIK NELSON enelson2@mndaily.com

Freshman Lexy Ramler was anxious heading into her first NCAA Regionals on April 7. “When I get nervous, you have to breathe through it and focus in on what you need to do,” Ramler said. Her nerves, however, didn’t get in the way of her performance. She qualified for the NCAA championships in the regionals for the all-around, as the only Minnesota gymnast to qualify this season. The freshman heads to St. Louis this weekend after earning a score of 39.500 in the all-around at the Minneapolis regional. On Tuesday, Ramler w o rk e d o u t a t P e i k Gymnasium on campus before leaving for St. Louis. She said, heading into the championships, she is going to focus on having fun. “I normally perform better,” Ramler said about focusing on enjoying events. “I’ve noticed that if I think about it too much, I get nervous and stuff gets shaky.” The NCAA championships won’t be Ramler’s first

DAILY FILE PHOTO

Freshman Lexy Ramler competes on the balance beam at the regional NCAA gymnastics championship on Saturday, April 7.

high-stakes competition. Ramler has not only performed in the Big Ten and NCAA regionals, but she also won two Junior Olympic gold medals. In 2016, Ramler was the all-around champion at the L’international Gymnix Challenge.

Marlene Ramler, her mother, said she has worked hard to get to this point in her career. “She’s worked for years training as an elite [gymnast],” Marlene Ramler said. “That level of training puts you in these environments

that she’s currently in. These aren’t new environments, per se.” Ramler looks to become the Gophers’ first NCAA champion since Marie Roethlisberger won gold on bars in 1990. Roethlisberger is Minnesota’s only

NCAA champion. Minnesota’s failure to qualify for the NCAA championships this year made it the second consecutive season it has missed the cut. The Gophers last competed at the NCAAs in 2016, finishing 12th overall.

Head coach Jenny Hansen said Ramler has adjusted well to college gymnastics so far. “[Ramler] has learned a lot about what it takes ... to be as good as she wants every single weekend,” Hansen said. “That’s a learning process for freshmen.” Ramler finished first in the all-around in Minnesota’s first five meets. She won eight all-around titles this season. Besides all-around, Ramler’s highest average score this season was on vault. Her average score was 9.838. Hansen said Ramler does well in high-pressure situations. “She enjoys those environments,” Hansen said. “She tries to put herself in those positions, so when it comes time to compete in those big meets, it feels like she’s done it before and has been there before. The NCAA championships will be on Friday and Saturday at Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis. Marlene Ramler said she will be attending her daughter’s first NCAA championships and looks forward to seeing her compete. “It’s exciting for her to be on that podium. She should feel comfortable,” Marlene Ramler said. “We’re excited to see her. It’s a new venue.”

BASEBALL

Alex Boxwell brings consistent presence on defense Boxwell has only one error in his 137 games with the baseball team.

BASEBALL PREVIEW

BY JACK WARRICK jwarrick@mndaily.com

Outfielder Alex Boxwell’s senior season was getting off to a good start. He had a .357 average through the first eight games, with seven RBI for Minnesota. In that eighth game against North Dakota State, Boxwell ran down a shallow fly ball hit to center field and made a diving play. He recorded the out, but hurt his wrist in the process and exited the game. “It’s been a bit of an adjustment coming back from the wrist injury,” Boxwell said. “I kind of got to do things a little differently, manage the amount of swings I take before the game and just make sure I’m feeling good and do a solid tape job on it.” Boxwell missed nine games recovering. However, he is back on the field now and though his batting average has slipped with the wrist problem to a .270, he has stayed perfect in the outfield. He is the only regular

MINNESOTA 23-10 WHEN: 4:00 p.m. Friday, 2:00 p.m. Saturday, 1:00 p.m. Sunday

IOWA 22-11 WHERE: Friday and Saturday at Target Field, Sunday at Siebert Field SOURCE: GOPHERSPORTS.COM

starter to not have made an error so far for the Gophers (23-10, 7-1 Big Ten). He has one error in 137 games with the Gophers in his career. “There’s a lot of things he does that don’t show up in the hitting column,” head coach John Anderson said. “I think sometimes he gets too focused on his batting average and doesn’t realize all the ways he can help this team win.” Pitcher Nick Lackney said he feels more confident on the mound with Boxwell patrolling the outfield. “It takes a lot of stress off of us knowing our guys can just get to basically anything out there,” Lackney said. “It’s a nice thing to have in the back of your mind when you’re up there

on the mound.” In his last year of eligibility, Boxwell has had to struggle with not only the injury, but also with historic weather conditions that have not allowed the team to play at Minnesota’s home ball park, Siebert Field, this year. “It’s frustrating,” infielder Micah Coffey said. “That’s our home field, and that’s the place where we’ve put in a lot of time and energy.” Boxwell, who batted a .194 his freshman year, led the team in home runs last season with six and tallied a .253 batting average. Toby Hanson, a usual starting outfielder, has been out with a wrist injury, too. He had surgery and has been recovering since the game against Nebraska on March 25. Hanson led the team with

DAILY FILE PHOTO

Senior Alex Boxwell bats during the game against St. John’s University on Saturday, March 31 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

57 RBIs last year, and his absence has meant other outfielders have needed to fill the void. “Hopefully, we get him back as soon as possible,” Boxwell said. “He’s one of the better hitters in the country, in my opinion.” Boxwell knows he has a limited number of games left in his college career. But on top of that, Boxwell said the

injury has given him a greater appreciation for the game — he remembers what it is like to be watching instead of playing. “Definitely gives you a better perspective on your health and just the reason why you’re playing the game,” Boxwell said. “You love it, competing and being with some of your friends out there, doing what

you can to win some ball games.” Boxwell and the Gophers are scheduled for their home opening series against the Hawkeyes (22-11, 6-4 Big Ten) this weekend, but will open the first two games at Target Field on Friday and Saturday. The Gophers were scheduled to play their home opener on April 6, but weather postponed it.

SOFTBALL

Sydney Smith returns home to Minnesota, finds the “best place” for her Smith lived abroad for four years in Brazil with family in the first grade. BY DREW COVE dcove@mndaily.com

University of Minnesota pitcher Sydney Smith is welltraveled with trips abroad and across the country. Smith just recorded her third victory with the Gophers in the series finale Sunday over Iowa, clinching a sweep for the weekend. For Smith, it was a long journey to find herself pitching for Minnesota. “Once I came on a visit to Minnesota, I realized that [it’s] the best place for me,” Smith said. From going 54-1 on varsity at Maple Grove Senior High School to pitching at Louisiana State University, Smith is back in her home state, in what she said is a good fit for her. “I think I just kind of

outgrew my position at LSU and was ... looking for something to challenge myself at a different university,” Smith said. Smith left LSU after her sophomore year and was able to play immediately at the University this season as a junior. “I think she’s adjusted really well,” sophomore pitcher Amber Fiser said. “Being able to come back last weekend, she just absolutely killed it. We needed that a lot and I know that she needed the confidence in herself.” Moving different places is familiar territory for Smith. Before she took the more than 1,200-mile trek down to Baton Rouge, Louisiana for her two years at LSU, she and her family made an even bigger move. They moved to Brazil when she was in the first grade after her dad landed a job there. “My dad wanted to try a new experience and see how far he could go in [his] work,” Smith said. “Just having that

SOFTBALL PREVIEW

VS MINNESOTA 24-14

NEBRASKA 30-14

WHEN: 6:30 p.m. Friday, 1:00 p.m. Saturday, 3:00 p.m. Sunday

WHERE: Jane Sage Cowles Stadium

softball field. Smith is majoring in business and marketing education and has ideas for postcollege life. “I could see myself two places, either coaching ... or probably somewhere in business consulting,” Smith said. “[Business consulting is] what I got brought into with my dad. He owns his own consulting company. It’s really cool to see how he could go in and change businesses and make them better than [what] they were.” Smith acknowledged the similarities between both

coaching and consulting. She said they revolve around sharing experiences to help others improve. Besides her on-the-field performance, head coach Jamie Trachsel said she sees Smith helping her teammates every day. “Usually you’re hoping your upperclassmen can always contribute and help your younger players,” Trachsel said. “I think the difference is that she has a different way of doing it, she’s very nonthreatening ... a lot of them will gravitate towards her.”

SOURCE: GOPHERSPORTS.COM

DAILY FILE PHOTO

Pitcher Sydney Smith warms up before a game on October 7, 2017.

experience ... and being able to say I’ve been in a different country and lived there and enjoyed it, not many people can say that — that shaped me into who I [am].” Initially, Smith said the experience was different. She experienced a culture shock because she was so far from home, but the international school she attended taught in English while also teaching

Brazil’s official language, Portuguese. She came home after four years abroad, and then played softball for several years in the Twin Cities. After this, Smith moved to LSU and experienced the similar feeling of being in a place that wasn’t the same as home. Now, the junior is back in Minnesota and is thinking about her future beyond the

THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2018

MN DAILY

MNDAILY.COM

SPRING JAM

MUSIC

Meet the contenders for UMN’s 2018 Battle of the Bands The winner will play as the opening act at Spring Jam on Saturday. BY MADDY FOLSTEIN mfolstein@mndaily.com

n Friday, after four rounds of preliminary battles that took place throughout spring semester, five bands will compete to perform at Saturday’s Spring Jam. A&E spoke with each group still competing in Battle of the Bands — here’s a glimpse of what the showdown has to offer.

Last Import

Last Import describes themselves as “a surf-punkalternative indie group,” according to lead vocalist and guitarist Emily Bjorke. The three members of Last Import all have distinct music tastes, ranging from The Beach Boys to My Chemical Romance. “We all hit different ends of rock music, and then when we all come together, it’s something that’s a mix of all

of that,” Bjorke said. For the final round of Battle of the Bands, Last Import plans on bringing a set that’s fun and high-energy — it’s the end of the school year, after all. “The weather kind of sucks, and everyone is hanging in there, so I think using every bit of energy and rock sound we have is going to be our secret weapon,” Bjorke said.

Papa Velvet & the Good Ghost

Papa Velvet & the Good Ghost draws on neon pop, R&B, jazz and electronic music, and the group is built on a narrative about Papa Velvet, a wistful lounge singer character. “He’s like a Frank Sinatra-meets-David Bowie, glittery personality,” lead vocalist Papa Velvet himself said. For the final Battle of the Bands performance, Papa Velvet & the Good Ghost plans on bringing out new

COURTESY OF ATOMIC CAFE

songs and arrangements. “We’re trying to get more vocals in than just Papa Velvet. I’m going to do some stuff, and then our saxophonist Dante has an amazing voice too. So, we’ve got these harmonies going that we’ve been working on,” said Megan Gunderman, a University student, pianist and vocalist. Papa Velvet & the Good Ghost hopes their theatricality and wide emotional range will make for an unforgettable performance in the Battle of the Bands final round. “We have a chance to let out all those emotions that we all have been building up throughout going through the motions of day-to-day life,” said Ghosty, producer and percussionist. “Then we just get to leave everything else on stage. … You get a whole scope of emotions that let you refresh afterwards.”

Dreams We’ve Had

“Dreams We’ve Had is a compilation of some pop songwriting with some synth … and really intense songs and ethereal, longing songs,” said Bennett Blum-

berg, a University student who plays synthesizers for the band. Dreams We’ve Had draws inspiration from bands like Beach House and Tame Impala to produce a dream pop sound. “They blend psychedelic and synth sound and really interesting music with pop writing. … I really like that sound. … I think it’s more interesting than a normal top 40 hit,” Blumberg said. For their set, Dreams We’ve Had is planning on bringing out their favorite songs from their repertoire. “We want to showcase who we are as a band, but also play our most relatable songs, to sort of give the audience an idea of who we are,” Blumberg said.

FEED // US

Musicians Jonathan Fuller and Benjamin Peterson, both students at the University, first started playing together at the age of 13. After years of preparation, the two formed FEED // US, a synthesis of hip-hop, rock and electronic. “Ben does most of the

rapping, and I do most of the singing,” Fuller said. “Then we use a lot of electronics, as well as guitar, bass and drums.” The two referenced influences like rap group Doomtree and alternative rock bands. “I really like The Flaming Lips. … I’ve listened to a lot of classical composers [because] I’m studying music at the U. … That definitely influences my music and my artistry for sure,” Peterson said. After releasing their most recent album, “Delete Your Account,” in 2017, the group is ready to share their work at the Battle of the Bands final round and, hopefully, the Spring Jam stage. “We’re just ready for the exposure. We’ve been working on our music for years, cooking up all this stuff, and we know we have something to say,” Fuller said. “We have something to offer. We’re just ready for people to see it.”

Atomic Cafe

The five-person band Atomic Cafe has been playing together since 2017. “I think it’s really hard to

COURTESTY OF FEED // US

describe our sound because we get a lot of influences from different places,” said Nathaniel Essma, lead guitarist of Atomic Cafe. Vocalist and guitarist Harry Miles cited “acid jazz, garage rock, psychedelic, maybe a little bit of indie” as primary influences. For their Battle of the Bands set, Atomic Cafe plans on bringing high energy to amp up the crowd. “As far as the set we’re planning, our strategy is to have a lot of energy and play a really fun show for the audience,” Miles said. If chosen to open for Spring Jam, Atomic Cafe promises to bring the same energy. “We’re a little bit off the wall when we perform,” Miles said. “We like to have fun and engage the audience. … We want to hype people up for Lil Yachty.” What: Battle of the Bands: Final Battle When: 4:30 p.m., Friday Where: Coffman Union Front Plaza, 300 Washington Ave. SE., Minneapolis

COURTESTY OF LAST IMPORT

A&E’s guide to Spring Jam Free food, fun rides and something about a boat? BY MARAYA KING mking@mndaily.com

he University of Minnesota will host Lil Yachty, Cashmere Cat and tons of other attractions this Saturday for Spring Jam. Parking lot 37, where the event takes place, can be hectic at times and hard to navigate. A&E is here to make sure you make the most of your student services fees. What: UMN Spring Jam When: Saturday, doors open at 4 p.m. Where: Parking Lot 37 Cost: $25 for students; $40 for nonstudents

What to listen to

Headlining this year is Lil Yachty, and whether he opens with “Minnesota” or closes with it, or plays it on repeat for his entire set, it will make an appearance. Other hits of his include “Forever Young,” “One Night” and “Like A Star.”

When: 9:30 p.m. Cost: included with ticket fee Cashmere Cat is a musician, producer and DJ who has worked with Selena Gomez, The Weeknd and Ariana Grande. His set will likely be an eclectic mix with famous collabs such as “Trust Nobody” and “Miss You.” When: 8 p.m. Cost: included with ticket fee Ella Mai is a relatively new artist with hints of Beyonce and SZA in her voice — but make no mistake — she is a genre all her own. Mai’s most popular song, “She Don’t,” features Ty Dolla $ign and will likely be a crowd favorite. When: 7 p.m. Cost: included with ticket fee The opener for these artists is Remo Drive, a newage boy band. Check out their song, “Yer Killin’ Me,” to get a feel for them. When: 5:45 p.m.

Cost: included with ticket fee

Battle of the Bands

The Battle of the Bands final round will be in the Coffman front plaza on Friday. Winner of Battle of the Bands will perform at 5 p.m. at Spring Jam.

Carnival rides

This year’s Spring Jam will be one for the books with more carnival rides than ever before. If sitting atop the Ferris Wheel isn’t your cup of tea, then check out 1001 Nachts and try to keep your dinner down. Oh, and of course, the rainbow slides will be available for the competitive types.

Food

From tots, frozen yogurt and burritos, to classic kettle corn — Spring Jam will have it all. Kettle Mania will be giving out free kettle corn and

JANE BORSTAD AND CEDAR THOMAS, DAILY

cotton candy, arguably the two most important food groups. Meanwhile vendors including El Burrito Mercado, Fro Yo Soul and Tot Boss will have dishes for purchase ranging from $4-$9. For the 21+, the beer garden will be offering four

select brews for $6.

What to wear

In true Minnesota fashion, the weather will be as unpredictable as a Gopher win. A projected high of 49 degrees could mean melted snow and the chance to

break out your Chacos. But with a low of 31 degrees and a chance of rain, maybe a cute umbrella should be an accessory. Either way, waterproof shoes will be a necessity. Be sure to bring your U card on Saturday to save time, and only small purses will be allowed into the area.

6 THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2018

MN DAILY

MNDAILY.COM

Editorials & Opinions

COLUMN

EDITORIAL

Disarming the UMPD is a pointless cause

UMPD budget should remain untouched

There is little reason to call for disarming and disbanding the UMPD, and the cause isn’t noble. n April 12, the Students for a Democratic Society student group staged a protest advocating for the disarming of the University of Minnesota Police Department. The stu- ELLEN SCHNEIDER dents gathered next columnist to the department’s headquarters in support of a nationwide movement to disarm all campus police departments. Demilitarization of United States police is not an unpopular sentiment. In fact, it’s not one I disagree with. However, this protest is extremely misguided. The group preaches for carving a progressive path in society, but its cause feels fruitless. This is because guns in the hands of the UMPD is a nonissue. A UMPD officer has shot a gun only once in the last decade. And no, it wasn’t shot at a student, or person at all — it was shot in 2012 to put a dying raccoon out of its misery on the St. Paul campus. Despite this apparent lack of reason for the demonstration, students still felt the need

to gather in the cold and promote the complete dismantling of the UMPD. This is not only incredulous, but is also completely out of touch with reality. As college students, we often tout a ‘save-the-world’ mentality and feel compelled to take on a myriad of worldly issues. This is by no means a bad thing; college campuses have a history with kick-starting causes that translate to society more broadly. The protestors’ cause, however, has no realistic footing and disregards the vital role our police department plays. As much as I’d like to say that I feel safe walking home from night classes on campus, I definitely do not. I walk quickly, clutching my pepper spray that’s disguised as a tube of lipstick. Our University continues to experience an uptick in crime, both on campus and in surrounding neighborhoods. We’ve experienced everything from stolen laptops, to stolen cars, to a 38-hour standoff and hostage situation. Why would we want to dissolve the institution whose sole purpose is keeping us safe? While I find the argument that the UMPD should be demolished ridiculous, this group isn’t alone in arguing that campus police should be disarmed. While instances of campus police opening fire on students are few and far between, two shootings at University of Chicago and Georgia Tech have gained significant attention. Both instances spurred outrage

DAILY DISCUSSION

COLUMN

Keep politics and politicians out of classrooms

Humanities matter everywhere

A dispute in the Edina public schools that turned into a political cause celebre now threatens to come to your local school district, thanks to a bill pitched by Rochester Sen. Carla Nelson. The dispute in Edina last year had to do with politically conservative students who felt their free speech rights were not being respected. Some teens told legislators last month that they were bullied and harassed for political reasons by teachers and classmates. The Edina Young Conservatives Club eventually went so far as to file a lawsuit against the district, which was settled last month with no acknowledgement of wrongdoing. Not surprisingly, Edina officials have denied that they’re brainwashing students and they take exception to how critics have characterized discipline, bullying and academic issues there, but thanks to the attention from conservative media, what was an isolated local issue became a hot-button political theme. Enter Republican Sen. Nelson, who is the chief sponsor of a bill that she and her allies say would address a problem that, aside from Edina, doesn’t seem to have riled other districts. Senate File 2487 calls for every school board to produce an “academic balance policy” that prohibits teachers and school employees from “requiring students or other school employees to express specified social or political viewpoints for the purposes of academic credit, extracurricular participation, or as a condition of employment.” Among other requirements, it would demand “caution from classroom teachers when expressing personal views in the classroom and prohibit the introduction of controversial matters without a relationship to the subject taught, especially matters in which the classroom teacher does not have special competence or training.” In other words, it would require school districts to take away any inclination that teachers may have to discuss current events and invite dialogue with young people on potentially controversial issues — and if you’re a math teacher, for example, don’t even think about talking about current events in your classroom. Nelson says her bill, which has been approved by one Senate committee and now goes to the Education Finance Committee, which she chairs, would protect students from having to express political views if they don’t want to, and it would require teachers to present a full range of political opinions. If it sounds like that’s already the law or already the professional practice in schools, it is. Education Minnesota, the Minnesota School Boards Association and the Association of Metropolitan School Districts all have said the bill is unnecessary and would chill free expression and discussion of ideas in classrooms. Teachers are trained professionals, they’re accountable to parents and school leadership, they have a code of ethics and they’re aware of laws against discrimination. They also know that some of the most important teaching moments are when students and teachers freely exchange and debate ideas. Teacher and student try to find the right words to express complex opinions, they listen closely and hopefully learn from each other. Does it sometimes happen that a teacher leads a conversation or a classroom exercise that gets into issues that some students or parents find inappropriate? Sure, and the place to take that up is in the principal’s office, with the school board or with the state board that licenses teachers. A local concern of that kind is best addressed at the local level, not with more rules required by St. Paul that likely would have a negative impact on education. This bill may be well-intentioned, and it may be good politics for Nelson, who’s running for the 1st District House seat being vacated by Tim Walz, but as public policy, it doesn’t make the grade. Editor’s Note: This editorial was originally published in the Rochester Post Bulletin

A neighboring school of ours has its humanities at risk, and it’s more than just a campus issue.

niversity of Wisconsin, Stevens Point is likely eliminating 13 humanities majors in order to expand 16 ‘more-marketable’ programs. The endangered majors include UMA VENKATA English, history, phicolumnist losophy and political science. The reason is fiscal. UW schools are cash-pressed; in 2015, Gov. Scott Walker cut them by 11 percent ($250 million) in state subsidy, after already having slashed hundreds of thousands of dollars the previous ten years. UWSP itself is staring down a $4.5 million structural deficit in the next two years, due to declining enrollment. Something’s got to give. UW’s mission, the Wisconsin Idea, is its sacred text. I truly laughed out loud at the Washington Post’s report that “Walker tried — unsuccessfully — to change the wording … in 2015, dropping ‘search for truth’ and ‘improve the human condition’ and replacing them with ‘meet the state’s workforce needs.’” Where are we, Brave New World? Harry Potter, where Voldemort’s cronies take over Hogwarts? When we divest from the study — nay, the luxury — of human introspection, in favor of cultivating machines primarily of efficiency, the ending’s already given way. UWSP is a central Wisconsin stronghold. Its cuts would bear pronounced local effects. Eliminating humanities programs restricts freshmen. UWSP’s humanities cut increases investment in more-practical majors — to attract more freshmen a la Walker Amendment. This may backfire because the target demographic could just go to technical, vocational or trade schools. They may get the same or better exposure and apprenticeships, and spend much less money while they’re at it. It’s even easier to make that decision without UWSP’s heavily endangered academic array. But UWSP certainly isn’t alone.

and begged questions of use of force by campus police. In Chicago, the student who was injured charged at officers with a metal pipe that he had been using to smash windows when police arrived. In Georgia, the student who was killed by police reportedly yelled “shoot me” while wielding a knife. It makes sense to question force used by police, but not in this context. Instead of sinking into extremism, a more productive conversation would be advocating for the adoption of non-lethal weapons by campus police. Neither officers at the University of Chicago nor at Georgia Tech were equipped with Tasers, which undoubtedly would’ve been an asset in deescalating the situations. However, UMPD officers do carry Tasers. Former Minneapolis mayoral candidate and Rep. Raymond Dehn, DFL-Minneapolis, made similar semi-outlandish remarks about disarming police in Minneapolis. While the Twin Cities have been at the center of the debate surrounding police use of force, his proposals still didn’t sit well with the public. This is because an unarmed police is simply impractical. We should spend our time, as students, advocating for issues that are really pertinent on our own campus. Ellen Schneider welcomes comments at eschneider@mndaily.com.

UWSP is a central Wisconsin stronghold. It cuts would bear pronounced local effects. Eliminating humanities programs restricts freshman. Everyone’s unsure of their humanities, even wealthy Ivies. There’s reason to worry about enrollment numbers, a very pronounced reality everywhere, but the problem’s crux lies off campus. We need humanities majors. Last week, the Conference on Jewish Material Claims against Germany released a survey reporting sickening statistics. In a follow up on the survey by The New York Times, the article said, “Thirty-one percent of Americans, and 41 percent of millennials, believe that two million or fewer Jews were killed in the Holocaust; the actual number is around six million. Forty-one percent of Americans, and 66 percent of millennials, cannot say what Auschwitz was. And 52 percent of Americans wrongly think Hitler came to power through force.” This shortcoming is inexcusable — and it’s here because of the gaping difference between where humanities education is and where it should be. It’s a very real consequence. As philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” We can never forget. UWSP’s humanities students remain vocal, resilient and generally valiant despite impending program cuts. Olivia De Valk, an Appleton native and UWSP senior in English, deeply advocates for the humanities. “It’s really important for universities to champion their humanities and their liberal arts educations, because no one outside of the university is really going to do that.” My challenge to you is to do it. I believe in humanity — and in our humanities. I want to live in a village that takes all kinds. Uma Venkata welcomes comments at uvenkata@mndaily.com.

DAILY DISCUSSION Laws need to eliminate wage disparities

Last week women were given some hope that pay equity might come easier, as a federal appeals court decision said employers cannot pay women less than men for the same work based on differences in their salaries at previous jobs. Then again, the Equal Pay Act was passed way back in 1963, and women still make about 81 cents for every dollar men earn, census figures say. And the outlook doesn’t seem to be improving: Between 2016 and 2017, the gap for female fulltime workers with weekly salaries grew wider by 0.1 percentage points, according to the Institute for Women’s Policy and Research. Although this state is known for its progressive work environment, Minnesota women get just 83 cents for every dollar paid to a man — a yearly pay difference of $9,068, according to the nonpartisan nonprofit the National Partnership for Women & Families. The days of a female manager tasked with distributing paper paychecks and discovering hers is less than the employees she supervises are supposed to be long gone. Instead, the battle for fair wages continues. The situation is even more dire for women of color. For every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men, black women get 63 cents, Hispanic women 54 cents and

Asian women 87 cents, although some ethnic subgroups of Asian women fare much worse, according to the partnership. Besides stronger federal help through passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would help break patterns of pay discrimination and establish stronger workplace protections for women, and the Fair Pay Act, which would diminish wage disparities resulting from gender-based occupational segregation, more could be done at the state level. Nine states, not including Minnesota, have laws that prohibit employers from asking about salary history. Women especially suffer the consequences of this kind of questioning because they historically have been underpaid. Employers against such legislation have said they don’t want to “overpay.” But salaries should be based on experience and qualifications, not on what an applicant was paid in the past for a different job. Every manager involved in hiring knows there is a way to talk about pay without requiring salary history. The Minnesota Legislature should pass a law that strives toward strengthening pay equity by banning employers from asking job applicants for salary history. The 50-year-old Equal Pay Act alone isn’t getting the job done. Editor’s Note: This editorial was originally published in the Mankato Free Press

mid a relatively peaceful yet frigid spring semester, the University of Minnesota Police Department continues to serve the University community and keep our expansive campus relatively safe. Although UMPD has handled campus safety smoothly, questions have surfaced regarding UMPD funding and the limit of its capabilities. Administrative cuts across the University have been prevalent. However, the UMPD budget largely remains untouched, according to a recent Minnesota Daily article. This may seem trivial because we expect trends to remain similar throughout the University. But the UMPD budget remains the same for a reason and should be upheld — ensuring a continuation of the same level of safety that has been enjoyed thus far on campus.

It takes a great deal of manpower to cover the more than 1,150 acres that the University occupies, and it would be irresponsible to cut officers with the sole intention of simply limiting the UMPD budget. There are many reasons the UMPD budget has remained untouched, with the most prominent being that officer salaries take up a large portion of the budget. The University is a large campus settled right next to downtown Minneapolis, (and in St. Paul), which includes easy access in and out of every area of campus. It takes a great deal of manpower to cover the more than 1,150 acres that the University occupies, and it would be irresponsible to cut officers with the sole intention of simply limiting the UMPD budget. During fall and spring semesters, campus alone comprises enough people to be considered the fifth largest city in the entire state. Given relatively low crime rates compared to other Big Ten schools, the UMPD budget, and thus its officer numbers, should remain untouched in order to ensure the same level of security moving forward. Recently, the Students for a Democratic Society organized a rally calling for the disarmament of the UMPD. Although we support the group’s effort to organize and voice its opinion, we disagree with its message. Given that crime statistics remain low and the only incident involving a discharged firearm in the last 10 years was to put down a dying raccoon, the UMPD has offered no evidence of larger problems regarding use of force. We’ve previously acknowledged larger problems regarding policing in the Twin Cities and on a national level. However, these issues may be more prevalent on a city, state or national scale, rather than on a campus scale. If reforms to the UMPD were determined to be necessary, we believe the best way is through community engagement, rather than defunding, disarming or even dismantling. A great first step in a reform process was initiated by Minnesota Student Association’s University of Minnesota Police Department Student Engagement team, which creates a board responsible for holding UMPD student body ambassadors roles. By engaging with police and creating open lines of communication through the ambassadors positions, we can create an environment in which the student body and the UMPD work together to ensure student needs are met and safety on campus is better than ever. We should continue communicating with the UMPD, whether through MSA, University resources or individually. The responsibility of keeping campus safe falls on the shoulders of everyone, and budget cuts are not the one-size-fits-all solution that it often seems to be.

EDITORIALS & OPINIONS DEPARTMENT Editorials represent the voice of the Minnesota Daily as an institution and are prepared by the editorial board. SHARE YOUR VIEWS The Minnesota Daily welcomes letters and guest columns from readers. All letters must include the writer’s name, address and phone number for verification. The Daily reserves the right to edit all letters for style, space, libel and grammar. Letters to the editor should be no more than 500 words in length. Guest columns should be approximately 350 words. The Daily reserves the right to print any submission as a letter or guest column. Submission does not guarantee publication.

letters@mndaily.com Fax: (612) 435-5865 Phone: (612) 435-1578 Letters and columns to the editor 2221 University Ave. SE Suite 450 Minneapolis, MN 55414 THE EDIT ORIALS AND OPINIONS DEPAR TMENT IS INDEPENDENT OF THE NEW SROOM

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HOROSCOPES Today’s Birthday (4/19): Partnership brings good fortune this year. Make long-term plans. Update skills and knowledge through higher education. Reassess assumptions and preconceptions.

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle CROSSWORD Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis

To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging. Written by Nancy Black

Aries (3/21 - 4/19): Today is a 9 — This month has profit potential under the Taurus Sun. Find creative ways to increase income. Don’t fund a flimsy scheme. Avoid risk or speculation.

Libra (9/23 - 10/22): Today is a 9 — Plan and invest to grow shared accounts under the Taurus Sun this month. Avoid unnecessary expense. Handle paperwork, filing and taxes.

Taurus (4/20 - 5/20): Today is a 9 — Stand up for truth, justice and beauty. You’re especially powerful this month, with the Sun in your sign.

Scorpio (10/23 - 11/21): Today is an 8 — Strengthen the bonds of partnership. Reconnect with each other over the next month, with the Sun in Taurus.

Gemini (5/21 - 6/21): Today is a 7 — Finish old business over the next month under the Taurus Sun. Keep a low profile. Seek out peaceful hideaways.

Sagittarius (11/22 - 12/21): Today is a 9 — Your physical performance is on the rise this month under the Taurus Sun. Regular practices energize.

Cancer (6/22 - 7/22): Today is a 9 — You’re especially popular this month. Contribute to a group effort or community project, with the Sun in Taurus. Keep everyone on track and on target.

Capricorn (12/22 - 1/19): Today is an 8 — You’re especially lucky in love this month. The Taurus Sun inspires romance, fun and laughter. Share your passion.

Leo (7/23 - 8/22): Today is a 9 — Career matters move to the front burner. Advance your professional agenda this month under the Taurus Sun.

Aquarius (1/20 - 2/18): Today is a 9 — Fill your home with love. Take on domestic renovation projects, with the Sun in Taurus for a month. Invest time, money and energy for your family.

Virgo (8/23 - 9/22): Today is an 8 — Expand your boundaries through travel, research or higher education over the next month. The Taurus Sun inspires your curiosity. Explore new frontiers.

Pisces (2/19 - 3/20): Today is a 7 — Stick to practical objectives. Communication projects come together over the next month. Write and get the word out under the Taurus Sun.

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I’ve got a really gross, embarrassing problem, so I’m only going to talk about it in an anonymous college dating column. Lucky you. Here it goes: Long story short, no matter how hard I try during sex, I can only finish if either I or the girl puts her finger … you know where. I know this is a problem some other guys have occasionally, but for the life of me, I don’t know how to fix it. First of all, I can’t even begin to explain how frustrating it is to not be able to finish most of the time. I want to enjoy sex just like everybody else, but it just takes so much more effort for me. Never mind adding in how annoyed some of my partners have gotten in the past that I take so long; it’s utterly humiliating. And to top it all off, it’s too embarrassing to ask for what I want in bed because I know I’ll get judged as a weirdo. I can’t help it; it’s just how my body works. I wish it wasn’t this way, but it is. Here I am. Can you give me any advice?

—Up There

Up There,

It’s always tough feeling like what you need is either unreachable or difficult to achieve, and this goes double when it comes to the vulnerability of a game of body Twister. I know you feel weirdly about asking for what you need, but I’m willing to guess there are some gals out there that are down to help you out. Something I’ve learned about sex is that a lot of people like trying new things over time, sometimes enjoying things they wouldn’t normally admit to their buds on the Quidditch team. Keep doing what you do to make sure it’s a great time for your sexual partners, but don’t be afraid to ask for a little help pushing your magic button. Not every girl will be into it, but it’s worth a shot. Hell, some might even like it. What matters at the end of the day is not being afraid to go for what makes you feel good. You won’t get anything you don’t ask for. Just maybe skip the post-sex high-five until she washes her hands.

—Dr. Date

DOWN 1 Macroeconomics abbr. 2 Bering, for one

4/19/18

By Mark McClain

3 Footwear brand 4 Wrath 5 Easily peeved 6 Very, to Schumann 7 Candle emanation 8 Catcher Joe with a trio of consecutive Gold Glove Awards (2008-’10) 9 Fretful feeling 10 Indefinite ordinal 11 Heineken brand 12 Parlor piece 13 Finally 18 Material flaw 21 LPN workplaces 22 __ for gold 23 Open-handed hit 24 Fem. advocacy group 25 City WSW of Bogotá 27 Expensive 29 Where it’s at 33 2008 biopic starring Benicio del Toro 34 Blow it 35 Arthur with two Emmys and a Tony 36 Concerning

Last Issue’s Puzzle Wednesday’s PuzzleSolved Solved

38 Met or Nat 39 Signed off on 40 Refrain syllables 41 Stop talking about 44 Legendary Giant 45 Quick squirt 46 __ d’hôtel 47 Decides to join 48 Mauna __ 50 “All the Light We __ See”: 2015 Pulitzer novel

4/19/18

52 Woodworking, e.g. 53 Despised 54 “With this ring, __ ... ” 55 Bad check letters 59 Lubricates 61 Photo 62 __-wop 63 Roxy Music co-founder 64 Fix badly? 65 Observe

SUDOKU

DR. DATE Dr. Date,

ACROSS 1 Space station wear 7 “Walk Like __”: Four Seasons hit 11 Sharp-tack link 14 Stage of intensity 15 Pitch a fit 16 Happened upon 17 *Look for a specific passage in, as a book 19 It’s near the midpoint of the Miss. River 20 Rap sheet data 21 Place Sundance liked to see 22 “Gotcha!” 26 *About 22% of an average 18-hole golf course 28 Every time 30 Key 31 Salt formula 32 Sprain application 37 *Point where it starts to hurt 42 Watch creepily 43 Corn syrup brand 45 Chimney plumes 49 Largest cat in the genus Leopardus 51 *Like baklava layers 56 Change as needed 57 Musical meter maid 58 Exposes, in a way 60 Gender-neutral possessive 61 Explorers ... and ones who can determine what the answers to starred clues have in common? 66 Numeric prefix 67 Tête output 68 Canadian dollar coin 69 Buddhist school 70 Give up 71 Con target

Dr. Date,

I’ve been dating my boyfriend for about two years now, and we both agree we’ve exhausted our sexual repertoire pretty well at this point. We both want a little more variety in bed, but how do you make that happen with someone you’re already so familiar with? He told me at the end of our last sleepover that he wishes I’d be a little more spontaneous. My first thought was that that’s a great idea, but my second was that I have no idea how to make that happen. Like I said before, I’ve tried pulling out all the stops I know about when it comes to doing it, so I feel like I’m at the end of my rope. I really want to be more spontaneous, but first I need some help. This girl needs to learn some new tricks because I’d love to make things a little more fun with the guy I’m in love with. I mean, we spend enough time with each other that it might be worth it, right?

—Spontaneous

Spontaneous,

I don’t know what kind of date expert your boyfriend is; he hasn’t been at the meetings. But I’d say he’s onto something for sure. The tough thing about being spontaneous is that it’s like, planning to do unplanned things. It’s kind goofy that way. But what this really boils down to is you doing things differently in terms of mixing up the routine. Shif ting up the foreplay is a pretty good place to start. Offering a hot massage with candles lit and Drake playing in the background is basically as reliable as counting on the sun to rise: It’ll not only work a billion years from now. Beyond that, talking dirty or doing it on dinner tables or whatever else you saw on “Twin Peaks” is cool too. Just do what feels right but not routine. Oh, and just making sure you don’t forget — he better be trying things out too. He can’t just ask for you to bring a new A-game while he’s sitting there like a sex walrus. Doing it with each other is always more fun when you do it together (aw).

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve sudoku, visit sudoku.org.uk. 4/19/2018

Last issue’s solution

—Dr. Date

Need relationship advice? Email Dr. Date at drdate@mndaily.com.

Thursday, April 19, 2018