Best of Brockport: The good, the bad and the ugly

By Angela Archunde
COPY EDITOR

It’s the end of another year, and what better time to reflect on the year’s past events? From the best of the police blotter to BSG (and let’s not forget Edward Tomassi sporting a sequined mini-dress on national television), this year at Brockport has brought about some unforgettable occurrences. And who could forget when 1,000 copies of The Stylus were stolen? So the following are broke down for you in an easy-to-follow guide of the good, the bad and the ugly: the College at Brockport 2007-08.

Changes at the ‘Port
• The college received a new logo and a new name in the fall. SUNY Brockport became The College at Brockport and Hartwell’s bell tower will no longer grace the covers of your academic planner. Instead, it will contain the shield and torch symbolizing knowledge and the high standards that have been set for Brockport.
• While construction plagued campus in the fall, it brought about some great renovations that have made this campus sparkle. The newly renovated Harrison Dining Hall created long lines for the anxious students and is now a treasured addition to the campus. Brockport Auxiliary Service Corporation continues to be No. 1 in the SUNY system. With the updated Harrison, it is no surprise.

Brockport Student Government:
• Randall Franklin was found not guilty of malfeasance at his impeachment hearing March 26. Franklin faced impeachment earlier this year when he was charged with one count of malfeasance due to past money owed to BSG. Franklin has since paid back the money.
• BSG’s programming department transferred more than $27,000 from three accounts including gallery programming, lectures and student services accounts. These accounts were zeroed out in order to cover the cost of the spring concert featuring Flo Rida and the upcoming costs for Brock the Port. BSG started the year off with a budget of $240,000, but continuously decreased with the cost of events for Wanda Sykes and Brock-tober Fest after little return on revenue.
• The BSG election was off to a good run until Darnell Pierce and Michelle Ford were disqualified from the election due to violations of numerous Election Commission guidelines although this was not their intent. Kyle Amendola will replace Pierce as BSG president and Bill Keating will be the vice president.

Athletics:
• The women’s basketball team won SUNYACs. They earned the title of best team in the conference. They were the only Brockport team to advance to the NCAA’s. They won two come-from-behind games against Cortland.
• The College at Brockport competition dance team won the trophy for Grand Champion and best choreography at the National Turn It Up Dance Challenge March 9. The team beat 151 other dances to win the competition.
• The Brockport Golden Eagles’ football team were the Homecoming heroes after defeating Cortland 28-14.
• The Golden Eagles football team won their season-ending game against the Buffalo State Bengals 55-13 in the I-90 Bowl game.
• Joan Schockow, head coach for the women’s soccer team, had her 200th win in a 4-3 overtime game against St. John Fisher Sept. 18.
• Shannon O’Keeffe won the triple jump at the national DIII indoor track & field championship, and is making great strides toward accomplishing the same thing for the outdoor championship. O’Keeffe has repeatedly increased her performance and has broken her own school record three times.

Performances:
• A big congratulations goes out to the Dance Department. DANCE/Hartwell and DANCE/Strasser always gives students a concert to remember each semester. Sankofa provided an upbeat cultural experience for all this past April. More than 200 people participated in the three-day mini festival Dance Awareness Days. Its purpose is to promote awareness of various dance forms by offering free classes to the greatest number of people. More than 40 classes were scheduled in the three-day period. Dance Awareness Days is annually supported by the Dance Department, Student Dance Organization and the Brockport Student Government.
• The Theatre Department also showcased incredible talent. The lighthearted plays Some Girls and I Hate Hamlet kicked off the fall semester with humor. The more serious yet equally enjoyable plays of the spring semester, Dancing at Lughnasa and the musical Hair which just wrapped up its final performance, led the students in anticipation for the talent to be showcased next year.
• Wanda Sykes brought in loads of laughter at her performance Sept. 15.

Concerts:
• Lady Antebellum, a country music band, performed Feb. 28 in Seymour College Union Ballroom. The concert was awarded to the College at Brockport due to the eighth annual Polar Plunge donations.
• Brockport welcomed a new Idol in the fall semester, Rebekah E. Nowak. Nowak also performed at the Lady Antebellum concert.
• Nearly 800 students came to the spring concert in Tuttle North Ice Arena, Thursday, April 17 to see Flo Rida.
• Back in October, Brock-tober Fest brought headliner Augustana along with Mat Kearney, locals The Hoodies and Black Violin.

Guest Speakers:
• In honor of “Love Your Body Day,” Joan Jacobs Brumberg, a professor in the fields of history, human development and women’s studies at Cornell University, spoke on campus Oct. 18 on the topic of her renowned book, The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls.
• Oct. 18 in Edwards Hall, Raheel Raza, an award-winning author, professional speaker, diversity consultant and interfaith advocate, talked to students about the fear that terrorism has been created in American lives.
• Azim Khamisa, author of Azim’s Bardo - A Father’s Journey from Murder to Forgiveness spoke to Brockport students April 1 about gangs, violence, revenge and the importance of becoming peacemakers. Khamisa established the Tariq Khamisa Foundation after his 21 year-old son was shot and killed by a 14 year-old gang member. The Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to breaking the epidemic of youth violence. Khamisa recently spoke to Virginia Tech University.
• We got to learn a bit more about Karen Haberger, the friendly face of Harrison Dining Hall who greets everyone with a “How ya doin’ buddy?”

Good Causes:
• More than 90 students rallied for “Take Back the Night,” an international program for victims of domestic violence, rape and other “crimes of silence,” Oct. 25.
• The Clothesline Project left a powerful impact on those who attended. The Clothesline Project is a public exhibit that displays a variety of T-shirts that are decorated by women who were beaten or abused. The women wrote about their experiences with violence on the T-shirts. The event is meant to raise awareness.
• The 2008 Brockport Relay for Life raised $20,000 for The American Cancer Society, April 24.

In other news…
• The Writer’s strike ended Feb. 12, 2008 when the Writer’s Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers reached an agreement. The strike began in November 2007 when the WGA went on strike against the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers due to percentages of DVD sales going to the writers, residuals going to writers from new media, such as Internet downloads via iTunes, and whether WGA guidelines should be applied to reality and animation series. Although some programs were cancelled entirely, others returned to the evening lineup or will continue next season making students very happy to have their television back.
• Juicy Campus takes Brockport by storm. After running an informational story from the Associated Press, a news story soon followed on closer details of the gossip Web site. After the site gained popularity, it brought itself to the College at Brockport campus creating much controversy.
• And who could forget former BSG President, Ed Tommasi’s appearance on “Deal or No Deal?” Named one of the craziest contestants, Tommasi wore a pair of high heels along with a short sequined mini-dress before taking a deal of $131,000.

Best of the police blotter:
• Smoke alarms were set off by steam, a lot of people smoked marijuana, and some people got hurt but these are the best but not so bright crimes of the police blotter—
• Wednesday, Oct. 10- Vehicle found wrapped in plastic wrap and shaving cream in Lot A.
• Monday, Jan. 28, Victim concerned about bluish tint to hands and was transported to Lakeside by private vehicle.
• Randall Franklin’s face on the cover of the Feb. 6 issue with the headline “Franklin Faces Impeachment” caused quite the stir. More than 1,000 Stylus’ were stolen and then found hastily thrown into trash bins.
• Wednesday March 12, Report of body-sized hole in wall in seminar room at Drake.
• Friday April 4, Metal cup burned in microwave at The Stylus office created a small fire and was removed by officer.

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Best of Brockport: the good, the bad and the ugly