Photo by Katie Schliep

By Katie Schliep
Staff writer

Name: Victoria Wilmoth
Major: Fashion Design
Year: Fourth-year
Hometown: Indiana, Pa.

District: What the inspiration behind your collection?

Victoria Wilmoth: My inspiration was birds of prey. I basically got that idea from the beginning of “Burlesque.” I went more in depth with the use of feathers. I grew up in Colorado as a skier. One of the skis used by the US Olympic team is called “The Birds of Prey,” so through “Burlesque” and feathers it eventually went into this birds of prey idea, taking on a deeper meaning for me.

District: Was this a concept you’ve had in your head for a while?

Wilmoth: Well, the “Burlesque” idea I had since early summer. While looking at old photos of my childhood which reminded me of skiing, my concepts of burlesque and the birds of prey just came together and became my inspiration.

District: When did you decide to pursue a degree in fashion?

Wilmoth: Well, ever since I was really little, I wanted to do fashion design. It started with making Barbie clothes for my own dolls with my grandma. So when my grandma showed me how to sew, from then on I knew I wanted to be a fashion designer.

District: What are your future plans after graduation?

Wilmoth: I will hopefully venture into the bridal industry.

District: Do you have any advice for the upcoming seniors starting off on their own collections?

Wilmoth: Fabric sourcing. Get lots and lots of swatches. I was chosen for the mentor program, and Maggie [Norris] really took me under her wing and helped in deciding on what fabric to choose.

District: Speaking of Maggie Norris, how was it working with her?

Wilmoth: She’s marvelous, I love her to death. She’s the definition of elegance. She’s just really amazing.

District: How do you categorize your design aesthetic?

Wilmoth:I’ve always been couture or bridal focused. Ready-to-wear’s just not my forté.

District: Who would be your dream designer to work with and why?

Wilmoth: Elie Saab. He’s just amazing at everything he does. There’s not one collection that I can say I didn’t like. They’re all gorgeous.

Photo by Jake Will Hamilton 

By Adeshola Adigun
A&E Editor

Name: Emily Dawn Long
Major: Fashion Design and Fibers
Year: Fourth-year
Hometown: Atlanta, Ga.

District: When did you decide you wanted to pursue a career in fashion?

Emily Dawn Long: My whole family is very thin so I had to teach myself to tailor my clothing to fit myself. Then my brother starting asking [me to tailor his clothes] so I basically set up a little sweat shop in [our] house and starting making bags, quilts and cutting up random things to make clothes.

District: What was your inspiration behind your collection?

Long: I had the great opportunity to participate in the off campus program in Lacoste this summer, and I went to visit my brother in Amsterdam before I spent the summer in France. It was the beginning of June so the weather was constantly changing. One minute we would be biking around town; the next it would rain; then we would be in a cold museum; then it’d be sunny. So my collection is primarily transformable outerwear that you can wear backwards forwards and inside out while also unzipping different aspects of it to get a completely different look. The inspiration for the weavings comes from the geometric architecture in Amsterdam, which I then translated into my weavings.

District: What was the most challenging aspect of the senior collection process?

Long: I had originally planned to weave my whole collection, coming from a double major background in fashion and fibers, but due to time constraints I just didn’t have the time. So through some problem solving, the idea of digitally printing my wovens came up and I just ran with it. I think it was a happy and successful setback.

District: What are your future plans after graduating?

Long: I’d like to design my own textiles for one of my favorite designers: Kenzo, Missoni, Dries Van Noten, and Chris Benz. Call me!

District: Do you have any advice for future seniors when starting their senior collection?

Long: Don’t over think. Just keep moving forward. Stop redesigning once you have all six looks. And the no sleep thing sucks for a while, but the pay off is fantastic!

District: Who has been the most influential person when developing your collecting?

Long: I think my support system has helped a lot. My friends and family and professors have had my back the whole time and kept me grounded.

District: How do you categorize your design aesthetic?

Long: I would say it is women’s ready-to-wear, with somewhat of a masculine, tailored sense to it. I like the clean classic look of J. Crew mixed with the eccentrics of Watanabe and Issey Miyake.

District: Who would be your “dream” designer to work with?

Long: [My] dream job designing apparel would be for Celine or Chris Benz. [And my] dream job designing textiles would be for Dries Van Noten.

District: From your peers, whose collection is your favorite or what kind of designs are you most excited about?

Long: I adore everyone’s collection because I know first hand how hard everyone has worked. Our blood, sweat and tears are literally in our clothes. I would wear them all!

District: Where do you see fashion going in the next five years?

Long: I think it is going in a more ready-to-wear, laidback direction. Even more so with the economy right now and job lay offs. I think people are starting to dress more comfortable and casual with sweatshirts, jeans and cute sneakers, rather than heels and cheetah prints.

Photo by Jaquelin Gasc

By Jaquelin Gasc
Staff writer

Name: Alysha Caine
Major: Fashion Design
Year: Fourth-year
Hometown: Tucson, Ariz.

District: When did you decide you wanted to pursue a career in fashion?

Alysha Caine: I’ve always been interested in fashion, but in high school I took a fashion design class which made me know this was the path I wanted to take.

District: What was your inspiration behind your collection?

Caine: I was inspired by Japanese Pop-artist Takashi Murakami.

District: What was the most challenging aspect of the senior collection process?

Caine: Staying motivated and continuing to work even when there are hiccups along the way. Also staying flexible with fabric choices because sometimes it’s hard to find the perfect color/quality you have in your head and you just have to let it go.

District: What are your future plans after graduating?

Caine: I am moving to New York City directly after graduation for a paid post-grad internship with Macy’s. I am very excited.

District: Do you have any advice for future seniors when starting senior collection?

Caine: My advice is to start researching as soon as possible and to put in a lot of work on the summer senior project. Starting off Senior I with a strong concept and a good idea of what you want to do will help everything go smoothly throughout senior year.

District: Are there any aspects of your collection you wish you could change?

Caine: I believe I could have made some better choices on higher-quality fabrics.

District: Who has been the most influential person when developing your collection?

Caine: I was especially inspired by my internship at kicokids, a small children’s wear company designed by Tia Cibani.

District: How do you categorize your design aesthetic?

Caine: As a children’s wear designer my design aesthetic is quirky and whimsical with a touch of sass.

District: Who would be your dream designer to work with?

Caine: Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garcons is one of my all time favorite designers, so if she just did children’s wear that would be a dream.

District: From your peers, whose collection is your favorite?

Caine: Everyone did a really amazing job, but I am a huge fan of Erin Goodman’s collection and also Lindsey Smith’s.

The show ended with a final walk of designers with their models.Photo by Pablo Serrano-Otero

By Katie Schliep
Staff writer

After nearly a year of constant preparation, conceptual research, sketching and fabric sourcing, draping, sewing and nerve-wracking critiques, it all boils down to this…

One final week in a senior designer’s last quarter at SCAD.

The best collections earned one of the coveted spots in the runway line-up. This year, a mere 20 designers earned spots to showcase their entire collection, as opposed to last year’s 28.

For a fashion student, the amount of work that goes into the preparation for Senior Collection is no secret. From day one of introductory classes, professors make sure every student is aware of the time and dedication that is needed to make it through year four as a fashion major.

A recent book I purchased titled “Creating a Successful Fashion Collection” by Steven Faerm, opens up with a (perfect) description of an essential trait that all designers need to embody, but seldom do.

“Few potential designers have the insatiable passion that is expected by the fashion industry. Being a fashion designer is a lifestyle choice, often marked by long hours and an all-consuming devotion to perfection,” Faerm writes. Many believe that if you do not “eat, sleep and breathe fashion,” then it’s the wrong career for you.

Though scarce, these designers do exist. In fact, they are the very designers that showcase their collections at our annual SCAD Fashion Show.

In last year’s show, audience members were shown garments which featured a wide variety of design details. There were plenty of standout silhouettes, such as Lindsey Hopkin’s collection of pleated garments that took on various shapes. One dress resembled a Japanese fan, while another garment had vertical pleated details running up and down the sleeves.

Marlow Larson, a 2011 alumni whose collection is still talked about by current students, showcased a collection that featured billowing skirts paired with tailored jackets made of leather and fur. The combination of luxurious fabrics and warm hues of gold, cream and brown made the collection stand out among the rest.

The 2011 show boasted the fashion department’s talent with beautiful, wearable garments. However, it was a year for experimentation as well. One collection by designer Lauren Mayhew, featured garments made of synthetic hair extensions. Making use of this particular material was a risk, and Mayhew executed the construction well. This collection would have been more appreciated had the designer showcased the material on more practical garments.

A featured active wear collection by Merida Miller would have been better received if the design reflected the actual environment it would be worn in. Though this designer used appropriate cold-weather fabrics (nylon rip stop, goose down, faux fur) to create a collection for winter sports, not many snowboarders or skiers would be kept warm on the slopes while wearing a sleeveless coat.

With a senior fashion design class talented enough to call the attention of globally read Elle Magazine, last year’s fashion show will surely be hard to top.

But the class of 2012 designers are definitely up for the task.

Though only 20 full-collection and a handful of special-garment seniors made it to the final runway show, it’s hard to simply gaze past the dozens of senior designers who also possess the talent and drive to build a career in fashion. Even though the near future of 80 senior designers does not include the runway lights of the 2012 SCAD Fashion Show, they all embody the “insatiable passion” needed to a have a very bright future.

By Eric Ramirez
Copy editor

For the sake of anonymity, let’s call him Richard.

I met this guy a month or two ago. He was a friend of a friend, attractive and an all-around nice guy. Not to mention he had light blonde hair, which I happen to be a sucker for.

We had hung out a few times before “things” happened between us, and when they did I was pretty thrilled. I woke up with a smile on my face.

But a few days later, our mutual friend told me something that completely crushed the confidence high I’d been riding.

“I don’t want you to be scared or worried, but Richard has HIV.”

No matter how hard she tried to ease into telling me, I was scared, I was worried.

And while he did take precautions to ensure that I would not contract HIV, I was furious.

All people, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, especially gay and bisexual men, should be aware and honest about their sexual health. Whether it be HIV, gonorrhea or AIDS, sexually active adolescents and adults take on a responsibility when they engage in any form of sexual intercourse.

To ignore that responsibility is not only a poor reflection on the character of those who do not inform others of known STDs or STIs, but it also puts the infected individual’s partner at a great and unfair risk.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were over 30,000 new cases of men being infected with the virus in 2006 alone. Another study found male-to-male sexual contact accounting for 61 percent of all HIV cases in the country, even though gay and bisexual men account for an estimated 2 percent of the population.

While HIV is treatable, a new drug is on the horizon that could possibly block the disease, it should not be taken lightly, nor should any other STD or STI. Sure, some can be treated and you can go the rest of your life as if it never happened, but there are others that stick with you, forcing you into a routine of pills and uncomfortable moments when you divulge the black marks on your sexual history to a partner.

The best thing you can do is be informed. Know the diseases and infections you are more susceptible to and learn which STDs are asymptomatic. Get yourself tested, know your status and the status of your partner before climbing into bed with them.

The obvious and most foolproof way to ensure you are safe is abstinence. But let’s face it, we are college students. We are young, in the prime of our lives, but that does not mean we have to be stupid about what we do.

Another study from the CDC shows that, from 2006 to 2009, there was a 21 percent increase in incidences of HIV. And 34 percent of those 21 were from gay and bisexual men.

Has our generation lost its respect for one another? Are we lazy? Are we such starving artists that we cannot afford condoms and would rather pay for endless prescriptions and medications?

Wear a condom, use whatever protection you need to. Be honest with who you sleep with. They’ve already seen you naked, so you should have little to hide from them.

Photo by Jaquelin Gasc

By Jaquelin Gasc
Staff writer

Name: Lindsey Smith
Major: Fashion Design
Year: Fourth-year
Hometown: Slidell, La.

District: When did you decide you wanted to pursue a career in fashion?

Lindsey Smith: My senior year in high school I decided that choreography wasn’t the smartest direction to go into. I really liked clothes and I really liked drawing so I figured fashion design sounded the best.

District: What was the inspiration behind your collection?

Smith: Usually my collections are print-driven, so I always try to look up things that can help me develop my prints and I decided to do graffiti and urban life.

District: What was the most challenging part of building your senior collection?

Smith: The late nights. Staying up all night. Staying up days at a time.

District: What are your post-graduation plans?

Smith: I’m going to go home for a while and work, save up money, and then, maybe, in January I’m going to try to head to LA and work for a juniors design company.

District: Who has been the most influential person when developing your collection?

Smith: Probably my favorite designer, Betsey Johnson, just because I always look at her for silhouette ideas. I usually like to do girly, flirty and fun silhouettes.

District: How do you categorize your design aesthetic?

Smith: I would say young, contemporary, colorful and fun.

District: Of your peers, whose collection is your favorite?

Smith: Patricia Garcia, and she is in the show.

District: Do you have any advice for future seniors starting their collections?

Smith: Make it simple. [laughs]

Photo by Katie Schliep

By Katie Schliep
Staff writer

Name: Kayley Norgan
Major: Fashion Design
Year: Fourth-year
Hometown: St. Claire Shores, Mich.

District: You’re one of the few children’s wear designers that will be featured, what was your inspiration behind your collection?

Norgan: It’s called “admit one” inspired by carnival tickets. Everything is bright and colorful. It’s for girls aged five to seven.

District: What was the most challenging aspect of the senior collection process?

Norgan: The most challenging part was creating garments that were completely wearable, while keeping things different than what is available in stores. I didn’t want kids to be uncomfortable, or wearing weird things, so it’s just basic clothes such as jeans, leggings, dresses and jackets.

District: Why did you focus your collection on children’s wear?

Norgan: I really love bright, colorful things. I’m inspired by different things that kids like, so it was really fun to incorporate that into my collection.

District: Are there any aspects of your collection you wish you could change?

Norgan: I thought it would be really fun to do an extension of my collection for boys. Maybe in the future, just change up the colors a bit.

District: Speaking of future, what are your plans after graduating?

Norgan: Right after I graduate, I’m actually going to Disney World to design costumes.

District: Do you have any advice for future seniors when starting senior collection?

Norgan: Keep moving forward. There are bumps in the road, but you have to find a way get past it. If you’re still stuck, change your direction.

Photo by Katie Schliep

By Katie Schliep
Staff writer

Name: Patricia Nora Garcia
Major: Fashion Design
Year: Fourth-year
Hometown: Fairfax, Va.

District: What was your inspiration behind your collection?

Garcia: I was inspired by the idea of Vincent van Gogh falling in love with a recluse. I found this article about a woman who died at 105, and she was a recluse. When they found her, she was surrounded by all these French impressionist paintings in her house. I thought it was nuts! So, that’s where it all branched from.

District: What are your future plans after graduating?

Garcia: Well, I still have one remaining class to take this summer, but as for after that, I’m really open to any possibilities. I would love to head to Europe. There are so many European couturiers that I would love to work with.

District: Which designers?

Garcia: I love the designer Iris van Herpen. She does the most crazy couture. She uses materials, like aluminum and wood and things that you wouldn’t normally wear. What I’ve made, my collection, is a more subdued version of what I wish I could do. I would love to be an architect with clothes.

District: Who was the most influential person when developing your collection?

Garcia: Well, Iris van Herpen for sure. Vincent van Gogh’s color palette is just awesome. He has some beautiful work that’s really modern. A lot of his color palettes really relate to today.

District: Are there aspects of your collection that you wish you could change?

Garcia: All of my pieces are laser cut. So, I wish I had more time to laser cut, and laser cut even more. It’s a lot of time. I wish there were 30 hours in the day!

Print experimentation was a huge aspect in my collection’s development. I collaborated with Toni Dammicci, a fibers major, and Emily Brodowski, a metals and objects major. They’re amazing. They dyed a bunch of the fabric for my collection.

What’s great about the environment here at SCAD is that you can make everything in-house. The fact that I can make these amazing prints that are so intricate, and beautiful, by hand, is nuts. You can’t find that anywhere else.

District: Any advice for the new seniors?

Garcia: Collaborate! But start early. Try to find someone during the summer. The whole process that I went through was so spontaneous, and almost a gift from God. I just happened to run into all the right people.

Dylan Travers’ character, Bill, suffers a faint after being weakened by his tumor.

Photo by Joseph Jacob

By Steve Drum
Staff writer

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Third-year dramatic writing major Tyler Stuart turns dark subject matter into a sharp comedy in his play, “The Practice Child,” which was shown at the Mondanaro Theater in Crites Hall last weekend.

The story of a young man diagnosed with a brain tumor becomes a raucous comedy of an eccentric, misguided family with opportunities for laughter found in the most dreadful circumstances.

Though the show is lighthearted, Stuart shows a clear respect for the subject of terminal illness in Bill, the story’s afflicted moral center. Played with a wry wink by fourth-year performing arts major Dylan Travers, Bill’s sense of humor gives the audience permission to laugh at the uncomfortable. Travers’ Bill is charming under duress, kind to the unkind and accepting of his fate. He is the best projection of ourselves, grounding the audience in a frightening sentiment that his story could be similar to anyone’s.

Tom Ciarleglio, a fourth-year performing arts major, plays Bill’s older brother, Blil (yes, that’s his name), with an adorable naivete, encroaching boundaries that come close to impersonating the mentally retarded before – thankfully – restraining himself. The titular “practice child,” Blil is the dry-run son of Stuart’s monstrous matriarch, Shirley.

Before Bill came along as Shirley’s golden boy, Blil was the neglected babe, with comic references to constant emotional and physical abuse, all of which supposedly prepared her to do right by her second child.

The problem is that Shirley is still a terrible mother to both of her children when we meet her in Bill’s hospital room. She is a caricature of bitterness and selfishness; ignoring the needs of the story’s structure that she favors one boy over the other. Shirley allows Bill’s brain surgery, the story’s climax, to be performed by a another caricature of medical malpractice who can’t remember his patient’s condition or name from one moment to the next.

It isn’t entirely clear what Stuart is trying to say with these infantile adults or the consummate trust and forgiveness our protagonist shows them. The play seems to want to live in the world of Nicky Silver or Edward Albee, where the dark and twisted are given an apocalyptic commitment, leaving its audience unsure of whether to laugh or cringe.

The stakes of Stuart’s comedy are colored with a similar drama. Too often, however, the comedy strays into the rhythm of a sitcom, getting the laughs it desires, while the meaning behind the farce is left to flounder.

Stuart’s writing is crisp and the jokes do work. But when his punchlines weren’t a matter of life or death, some of the humor started to feel like a laugh track.

Overall, “The Practice Child” hits all the major points one would expect of a comedy that leans toward the dark side. But one can only hope that for Stuart, practice will make perfect.

Photo by Media Commons

By Hayley Sylvester
Staff Writer

Classes stressing you out? Miss your family back home? Feeling “stuck” creatively? Having problems with anxiety or depression? Just need to talk?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, then the Counseling and Student Support Services (CS3) can help you.

We all face difficulties in our lives and sometimes we can’t deal with those problems by ourselves. Counseling and support can help students with homesickness, creativity blocks, relationship issues and also provide disability services and outreach programs.

According to the Director of CS3, Dr. Tamara Knapp-Grosz, the staff saw over 4,500 students last year. They employ a fulltime staff and 13 doctoral and graduate interns. Counselors have training in a variety of areas like substance abuse, cognitive or behavioral therapies and relaxation therapies.

Most students prefer one-on-one counseling to group therapy. Knapp-Grosz says, “Try group therapy twice. Students learn it’s fun after all. They also learn they’re not alone. Groups are accepting and provide support for each other, though it often means hearing difficult feedback. There is no judgment.”

Maybe you’re still hesitant. You’re worried someone might recognize you in the waiting room. You’re worried about discussing your feelings because you might get shipped off to a hospital. You’re uncomfortable about lying on a couch and sharing your daddy issues.

Good news: Pat Mooney, a counselor and accommodation specialist, says, “We don’t judge. Records are confidential. No one will send you to the hospital unless you’re in imminent danger of hurting yourself or others. The environment here is safe.” Mooney also doubles as the Pizza Fairy who hands out pizza to frazzled students during finals week.

Knapp-Grosz agrees. “CS3 is a safe place to talk about your problems. Sometimes it helps to have an extra point of view to show your situation in a different way. A little feedback makes a big difference.”

The school’s counseling services are short-term, there is no waiting list and no one gets turned away. “Come in sooner rather than later before the problem becomes too hard to handle,” Mooney advises.

Ready to tackle that problem? Here’s information on how to contact CS3:

By phone: 912-525-6971

By email: counseling@scad.edu

In person: visit Room 124 in Bradley Hall to learn about the free services CS3 offers.

You can also connect with the Pizza Fairy on Facebook by searching for “SCAD Pizza Fairy.”

Jenny Mocef shows off her TOMSPhoto by Ingela Hartman

BOGO, or buy-one-get-one free, is a common sales tactic used to get customers to purchase products. But several companies are putting a charitable twist on this old technique with a buy-one-give-one philosophy.

This one-for-one movement is sweeping the nation, and TOMS Shoes has been one of its biggest champions.

“The initial reason I bought TOMS was because I had read [Blake Mycoskie’s] book,” said Marc Osborn, a junior illustration student and TOMS shoe owner.

In 2006, Blake Mycoskie founded TOMS after he saw the struggles of Argentinean children growing up without shoes. Shoes are a major commodity in many developing countries and wearing them can help prevent soil-transmitted diseases as well as injuries and infections. They can also help children get an education because they are often a required part of many communities’ school uniforms.

For every pair sold, TOMS, a name derived from the original concept Shoes for Tomorrow, gives a pair of shoes to a child in need. So far, the company has given away more than 1 million pairs.

“If there’s something I can do to help anyone, anywhere, that’s great, but it helps that they’re stylish and comfortable,” said Jenny Mocef, a sophomore metals and jewelry student who owns two pair of TOMS.

While Skechers has copied TOMS’ espadrille with its BOBS line that also gifts a pair, the one-for-one movement is expanding into other product categories. Roma Boots has joined the movement with rain boots, Blanket America with blankets, Smile Squared with toothbrushes and Warby Parker with eyeglasses.

Warby Parker says approximately 1 billion people don’t have access to affordable glasses which can increase a person’s income by 20 percent. Working with non-profit partners, the company’s “Buy a pair, Give a pair,” philosophy has already distributed 85,000 glasses to people in need.

“I think anybody is willing to donate if there’s a give and take, but I also believe that most people who do charity do it because they want to help,” said Osborn.

These companies are proving that no matter what your style is, giving to those in need is always fashionable.

April 16

7:30 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that at 8 p.m. April 15, while walking on Broughton Street, an unknown man asked her if she had any money. She stated that she did. The man then removed his hands from his jacket pocket. The student stated that she was scared and threw $20 on the ground and left the scene. The student did not contact Savannah-Metropolitan Police on the date of the incident because she did not want the police involved. Security contacted SCMPD to inform them of the incident.

8 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her roommate was threatening to harm her via a Facebook page. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police were notified of the situation, but the student did not wait for police arrival.

April 17

1:35 a.m. — Security responded to Boundary Village in response to a report of an intoxicated student. Upon arrival at the scene, security found the student sitting by the entrance. The student appeared highly intoxicated and was unable to stand. EMS responded to the scene and assisted the student in returning to her dorm.

4:03 a.m. — Security discovered graffiti on the Turner side of Kiah Hall. Maintenance was notified of the damage.

9:35 p.m. — Security received a call from a man stating that a female student was talking to him about suicide. Security contacted the on-call counselor. The counselor later called security and informed them that she had spoken with the female student and that she was not in any danger.

April 18

10:07 a.m. — Security responded to a fire alarm activation at the pizza shop in Turner House. It was determined that the alarm had been caused by contractors working on the overhead fans.

8:20 p.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Boundary Village involving a student who had fallen over on a scooter. The student declined medical attention.

9:04 p.m. — Security responded to a fire alarm activation at a room in Barnard Village. It was determined that the alarm had been caused by students cooking in the room. The alarm was silenced and reset.

April 19

2:50 a.m. — Security discovered the front door of Crites Hall was unsecured. Security conducted a patrol of the building and secured the door.

3:43 p.m. — The building manager found an unattended knife in the 310 space at Montgomery Hall. It was discovered that the knife belonged to a SCAD student who stated that she used the knife for personal protection. The student was informed that carrying a knife into the buildings was against college policy and the knife was confiscated.

5:03 p.m. — Security responded to a fire alarm activation at a dorm of Abercorn Terrace. It was determined that the alarm was false and the system was reset.

April 20

12:03 a.m. — Security responded to Jen Library in reference to a SCAD student being intoxicated and having urinated and vomited in the lobby area of the library. EMS responded to the scene and transported the student to Memorial University Medical Center.

1:15 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that the zippered door to her Jeep had been opened and someone had stolen a GPS unit from her vehicle. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

10:24 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that the rear passenger window of her vehicle had been broken while the vehicle was parked on Barnard Street. Nothing was missing from the vehicle. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

1:40 p.m. — Security responded to an alarm at Poetter Hall. The alarm was determined to be false, but the fire panel would not reset. Stanley Alarms was notified of the issue.

5:33 p.m. — Security discovered the River Street door to Adler Hall was propped open. A patrol of the building was conducted and the door was secured.

10:25 p.m. — Security responded to a smoke alarm activation at a room in Barnard Village. It was determined that the alarm was caused by a student cooking in the dorm.

10:27 p.m. — Security discovered the front door of Keys Hall was unsecured. A patrol of the building was conducted and the door was secured.

11:40 p.m. — Security responded to a general alarm activation at a room of Abercorn Terrace. The alarm was determined to be false and was reset.

April 21

3:05 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that she and a non-SCAD friend were robbed at gunpoint while walking on Jefferson Street near Taylor Street. After giving the suspect their belongings, the student and friend ran to her residence on Montgomery Street and notified police. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the residence and issued a report. There were no injuries reported.

3:35 a.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Abercorn Terrace in reference to a student who stated she wanted to harm herself. EMS responded to the scene and transported the student to Memorial University Medical Center.

April 22

2:32 a.m. — Security observed several students throw a bench from Turner Bridge into the Old Arch parking lot. The students fled the scene after throwing the bench.

4 a.m. — A security supervisor was attempting to contact a SCAD student in regards to her missing wallet when she noticed a bottle of wine in the student’s room. A residence director was notified and handled the incident.

10:42 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that someone had pushed in the window screen at her room in Turner House sometime between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. The student stated that the lock on the window had been broken for some time. Maintenance was notified.

2 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that his unsecured bike was missing from the Turner courtyard. The student did not wish to notify police.

3 p.m. — Security responded to a report of a broken window at a room in Turner House. The SCAD student stated that he and his roommate had been playing around in the room and throwing things at each other when they had accidentally broken the window. Maintenance was notified of the damage.

April 23

Noon — Security responded to a medical call at Eichberg Hall. The student called and canceled the request prior to security arriving at the scene.

2:15 p.m. — Security responded to a smoke alarm activation at a room in Boundary Village. It was determined that the alarm had been caused by a student cooking in the dorm. The alarm was silenced and reset.

April 24

1:15 a.m. — Security discovered the front door to Keys Hall was unsecured. A patrol of the building was completed and the door was secured.

1:26 a.m. — A SCAD student arrived at dispatch complaining of chest pains. EMS responded to the scene and, after checking the student, allowed her to return home.

April 25

2:25 a.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Montgomery Hall in reference to a student having a seizure. EMS responded to the scene and transported the student to Memorial University Medical Center.

11:36 a.m. — Security responded to a smoke alarm activation at a room of Abercorn Terrace. It was determined that the alarm had been caused by a student tampering with the smoke detector. Stanley Alarm Systems was notified to make repairs to the detector.

2:12 p.m. — Security responded to a smoke alarm activation at a room in Poetter Hall. It was determined that the alarm had been caused by maintenance working on the system.

5:26 p.m. — A SCAD professor reported to security that she had discovered scratches on the passenger side of her vehicle that she believes happened while her vehicle was parked at the Streamliner Diner. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

9:15 p.m. — Security discovered the front door to Keys Hall was unsecured. Security conducted a patrol of the building and then secured the door.

April 26

3:32 a.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Turner House involving a student who was having an allergic reaction to medication. EMS responded to the scene and transported the student to Memorial University Medical Center.

4:05 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that his bike had been stolen at an off-campus location while being in the possession of a friend. The student did not want the police notified.

5:59 p.m. — Security responded to a smoke alarm activation at a room of Abercorn Terrace. Security met the Savannah Fire Department at the scene and determined that the alarm was false.

6:50 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her bike had been stolen from Wallin Hall sometime in the last two weeks. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

7:39 p.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Turner House involving a student who was feeling lightheaded. The student did not want medical attention and returned to her room.

April 27

12:45 a.m. — A residence director requested security respond to a room in Boundary Village in reference to a student suspected of smoking marijuana in the room. The residence director conducted a visual search of the room and discovered a pipe and a green leafy substance. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and instructed the student to throw the pipe and substance in the Dumpster. The student was not charged.

1:40 a.m. — Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police notified security that they had arrested a SCAD student for aggravated assault and terroristic threats at an unknown off-campus location. SCMPD stated that the complainant was also a SCAD student but that they could not release her name.

2:47 a.m. — Security responded to Turner House in reference to a SCAD student who had spit in the security transport vehicle and was now lying on the sidewalk near Fahm Street. EMS and a residence director responded to the scene, but the student refused medical attention. The student was escorted to her room by a resident assistant.

2:55 a.m. — Security responded to a small fire on one of the stumps in the courtyard of Pepe Hall. Security extinguished the fire with a fire extinguisher. The cause of the fire could not be determined.

3:42 a.m. — An unknown man attempted to enter Weston/Dyson with a SCAD student’s ID. When security stopped the individual and indicated that he was not the owner of the ID the individual fled the scene. The actual owner of the ID was also attempting to enter the facility using a passport as ID; it’s believed that the student had given his ID to the unknown man to bypass security.

5:45 a.m. — Security observed the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police questioning two students on Turner Street in front of the SCAD Museum. SCMPD stated that they had observed one of the students lose control of his bike and strike a parked vehicle. The student was arrested for underage drinking. The other student was released and given a ride bake to her dorm at Oglethorpe House. SCMPD issued a report.

5:55 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that, while walking on Turner Street, she had been approached by an unknown man in a red van who stated that he had been following her and had asked for her personal information. The student refused to give the man any information and immediately went to Turner House. Police were notified of the incident and security increased patrols in the area.

8:58 p.m. — Security responded to a call box activation at Eckburg Hall. The alarm was determined to be false.

9:40 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that she had lost her cell phone somewhere in the Dyson lot. Security took the student’s contact information in case the phone was turned in to security.

April 28

No activity was reported.

April 29

4:24 a.m. — Security was notified of a man attempting to sell a bicycle near the SCAD museum. Police were notified. No one fitting the description of the man was found during a patrol of the area.

8:22 p.m. — Security responded to a trouble alarm activation at Wallin Hall. The trouble alarm would not reset. Stanley Alarm Systems was notified of the problem.

April 30

12:04 a.m. — Two SCAD students notified security that they had observed an unidentified man peeping into dorm windows on the third and sixth floors of Oglethorpe House. The students recognized the individual as a student, but did not know the individual’s name. Security completed a patrol of the premises, but could not find anyone matching the description provided. The residence director was notified and stated that they would have the resident assistant watch for anyone matching the description.

4:50 p.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Anderson Hall involving a student who was having an allergic reaction. EMS responded to the scene and transported the student to Candler Hospital.

8:24 p.m. — Security responded to a call box activation at Arnold Hall. A patrol of the area was conducted and nothing out of the ordinary was found.

May 1

5:50 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her bike had been stolen from the Ex Libris bike rack between 12:45 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

9:06 p.m. — Security discovered the front door to Keys Hall was unsecured. Security patrolled the building and secured the door.

9:21 p.m. — A student reported to security that there had been a suspicious-looking man loitering around the bike racks at Pulaski Hall. The man departed the scene when he noticed the student watching him. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police were notified and given a description of the individual. Extra patrols of the area were scheduled for the remainder of the night.

May 2

3 p.m. — A SCAD coach reported to security that his laptop was missing from a room in Bradley Hall. The coach stated that he had last seen the laptop on April 30 when he had left the laptop in the unsecured room. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

May 3

1:50 a.m. — Security responded to an alarm activation at the SCAD Museum of Art. The alarm had restored itself prior to security arriving.

2:46 a.m. — Security discovered the eastside fire door to Turner Annex was unsecured. Upon investigation it was determined that the door was not swinging shut properly. Maintenance was notified of the situation.

May 4

6:15 p.m. — Security responded to an alarm activation at the SCAD Equestrian Center. The alarm was determined to be false, but would not reset. Stanley Alarm Systems reset the alarm remotely and a work order was placed to have the system checked.

May 5

12:15 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her wallet had been stolen from a room of Eichberg Hall. The student stated that she had left her wallet lying near her project pieces and that the wallet disappeared between 7:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. on May 4. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

2:38 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her bike had been stolen from her off-campus residence. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

10:36 p.m. — Security responded to an alarm activation at Wallin Hall. Upon arrival at the scene, the alarm pane read “All Systems Normal” and the alarm was determined to be a false alarm.

May 6

12:34 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her bike seat had been stolen while her bike was locked at Pepe Hall. The student did not wish to file a police report.

1:30 a.m. — Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police notified security that they had found an intoxicated student passed out on River Street. SCMPD stated that they were leaving the student in the lobby of the Hyatt hotel and requested that SCAD security escort her back to her dorm. The student was not in the lobby when security arrived at the scene and the concierge did not know where the student had gone.

2:05 a.m. — Security discovered graffiti damage in the space between Propes Hall and the next building. Maintenance was notified of the damage.

May 7

7:45 a.m. — Security received a call from a nurse at Memorial University Medical Center asking to speak with an on-call counselor. Security contacted the counselor and passed on the contact information.

8:05 a.m. — Security responded to a medical call at Arnold Hall involving a student who was having trouble breathing. EMS responded to the scene and transported the student to Candler Hospital.

1:50 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that the rear window of his vehicle had been broken while the vehicle was parked at the Alexander Hall overflow lot between 10:50 a.m. and 1:40 p.m. Nothing was missing from the vehicle. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

3:49 p.m. — The building manager at Gulfstream reported to security that a computer monitor had been vandalized sometime between 2 p.m. and 11 p.m. on May 5. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

6:27 p.m. — Security discovered the rear alley door to Trustees Theater was unsecured. Security patrolled the inside of the building and then secured the door and set the alarm.

6:36 p.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that his wallet had gone missing from a locker at Club SCAD between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. The wallet was later found and arrangements were made to return the item to the student.

9:56 p.m. — Security responded to a room of Turner House at the request of the residence director. A residence director had received an anonymous call that there was marijuana in the room. Upon arrival at the scene, an operations manager and the residence director smelled the odor of marijuana coming from the room. There was no answer at the door. An on-call manager instructed the residence director to conduct a visual inspection of the room. The inspection provided negative results.

May 8

4:50 a.m. — Security discovered the front door to Keys Hall was unsecured. Security conducted a patrol of the building and secured the door.

11:31 p.m. — Security discovered the front door to Keys Hall was unsecured. Security conducted a patrol of the building and secured the door.

May 9

5:56 p.m. — Security responded to a smoke alarm activation at a room of Barnard Village. The alarm was determined to have been caused by a student cooking in the room.

9:04 p.m. — Security received a call from a student at Abercorn Terrace stating that she was concerned about fellow student that had threatened to hurt herself. Security passed on all information to the on-call counselor who stated that they would handle the incident.

9:20 p.m. — Security received a call from an off-campus student in reference to a friend who had threatened to hurt herself. Security passed on all information to the on-call counselor who stated that they would handle the incident.

May 10

2:06 a.m. — A SCAD student reported to security that her car had been struck by an unknown vehicle while it was parked at the Streamliner Diner between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police responded to the scene and issued a report.

7:10 p.m. — Security discovered a side door to Corbin Hall was propped open. Security patrolled the building and secured the door.

8:20 p.m. — Security was notified that a large amount of water was backing up from the main drainage pipe at Turner House causing three basement rooms and the fitness room to flood. Security notified maintenance.

By Kenneth Rosen
Editor-in-Chief, District and Port City Review

What’s the point?

What’s the point of creating another literary journal? What’s the point of trying something new when everything has already been done?

In Savannah we have student-produced and school-produced photography magazines, a fashion magazine, a literary magazine, two literary journals for graduates and undergraduates, a former literary arts magazine, not to mention the other start-up publications that come and go with the ebb of funding.

So why us, why now?

We’ve noticed an absence — a clear, neglected void. The embodiment of robust artistic talent is prevalent in every building, throughout every hall. Students’ work in varying mediums are hung, installed, played on small screens, large screens, strutted down runways and flown over airfields.  These works of art need a home of their own, a place where extraordinary talent is archived and passed as a tradition from one class to the next.

That’s why we’ve created Port City Review, an annual journal that highlights student work in every medium: comics, illustrations, motion media and animations, written work, industrial design, fashion lines and accessories, paintings, etchings, sculptures and installations, graphic design logos, ad campaigns and web design. If you’ve designed, built, drawn or written anything for a class or as a side project we want to feature it with our award-winning content.

We are student-run, and editorially independent. We are Port City Review, and this is only the beginning.

Submissions:
Deadline is Nov. 8, but early submissions have a higher rate of inclusion in the first edition.

Send all submissions as attachments to submissions@scaddistrict.com with a cover letter in the body of the email. Written work cannot exceed 2000 words in a .doc file and images/screenshots/artwork must be submitted in either PDFs or JPEGs at 300 dpi.

For any questions, contact the editor at editor@scaddistrict.com

By Amy Desselle
Staff Writer

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

If there’s one constant in Washington, it is that nothing is ever constant.

Politicians bicker. Offices are redecorated. Bills are written and rejected and written again. And at least every eight years, the president changes.

“The Presidents Club,” a new book by Time Magazine journalists and editors Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy, goes behind the scenes in Washington, D.C. to expose the personal relationships between our presidents, past and present. The book highlights the many moments in history when partisan politics and personal agendas were put on hold in service of the nation.

It all began just after the Great Depression when newly inaugurated Harry Truman reached out to the shunned Herbert Hoover and asked for his help with the food crises in Europe after World War II. After many successful ventures together, the “two men who by all rights should have hated each other” joked about creating a former presidents club, and so it came to be.

The Presidents Club has never had more than six members, at times falling as low as one, disappearing entirely after Richard Nixon’s reelection in 1972.

Having just convinced an entire country that they know better than the current president, every president-elect believes they know best, until the Oval Office is actually theirs.

The purpose of the club is simple: only ex-presidents can understand the pressures and challenges of the presidency, only they can provide the shoulder to lean on. It is the ultimate in exclusive clubs.

The president can call upon any of the members at any time and for any reason. These men look beyond their personal political beliefs and somehow manage to form deep, lasting friendships that benefit the government and the country.

Of course, these relationships aren’t without their darker periods. There have been moments of backstabbing and political treachery throughout the history of the club, but for the most part, they put the Oval Office first.

Gibbs and Duffy launch into presidential history and the history of the nation without a moment of hesitation. From the relationship between Truman and Hoover to the moment when Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush welcomed Obama into the fold, the narrative is packed with intimate details and face-to-face interactions.

The writing and the stories are engaging and flow from one presidency into another. The plot unfolds in a chronological manner that is simple and straightforward. However, since the presidential relationships spanned many decades, it can become confusing and seem out-of-order. Regardless, it is a fascinating glimpse into the political world.

Drawing heavily on personal and presidential correspondences, public and private meetings and a little bit of gossip, this research-based book paints the picture of these presidents as the men they were and are, not just as politicians at the podium.

They may not have a clubhouse or be considered an official unit, but that does not make them any less of a club. From personal feuds and reconciliation decades later, to moments of solidarity at the funerals of their fellow president club members, and through wars and challenges that have faced the country since WWII, these men have ties that are much stronger than the average American citizen.

They are bonded by the club protocols of “support and silence and solidarity.”

With another upcoming presidential election, it is reassuring to know that our politicians can put aside their disparate beliefs for the greater good of the country.

Illustration Editor

Contributing Illustrator

Contributing Illustrator

Contributing Illustrator

follow on twitter (@sequentialmac)

Contributing Illustrator

(click to enlarge)

Contributing Illustrator

Contact Mike Cerminara.

Photo courtesy of Desoto Row Gallery

This past weekend, 43 artists contributed their works to create a gallery show they called “These Friends: A Culmination of our Collective Consciousness.”

“These Friends” was the brain child of Katie Dunkle and Clinton Edminster, and displayed 142 artworks by local artists at an estimated value of $34,444.

The artists fit all 142 works into 234 square feet of space at the Desotorow Gallery located at 2427 De Soto Ave.

Artworks were hung on the wall and dangled from the ceiling. Photo by Karen Briceno

“These Friends” offered a variety of artwork including painting, photography, sculpture and mixed media. Following the mindset of original Dada style artists, Dunkle and Edminster held an open call for work, hoping to attract a large variety of styles, techniques and mentalities.

Edminster, a painting major, was overwhelmed after realizing how much artwork they actually had to work with. “It was so intuitive and organic the way all of it fell into place – like someone behind the scenes was directing it all.”

On Friday evening, more than 150 show goers mingled between the walls of the overflowing gallery and the secluded alleyway outside. Upon entering the gallery, artists and visitors alike were barraged by art hanging off the walls, dangling from the ceiling and even clipped up by clothespins on lines of string.

“I didn’t think it was all going to fit. The artwork definitely transformed the space,” said Dunkle, a fourth-year photography student. Edminster agreed, saying that the “self-volition on behalf of the participating artists to submit work was outstanding,” considering that it was their personal choice to contribute.

Edminster and Dunkle originally pitched the idea for “These Friends” to their close group of friends, who told their friends, who continued to spread the word. “We were really relying on word of mouth to spread the news about the show,” said Dunkle, who was initially shocked at the response. “As artists, we reached out, and so many artists reached back.”

Both Edminster and Dunkle recently completed their own solo exhibitions and wanted to use “These Friends” as an opportunity to step away from their personal work in order to connect with the artistic community.

Artists use the gallery walls effectively. Photo by Karen Briceno

“We thought so much more positively about this show compared to our own because this show was about everybody else,” said Dunkle, who was inspired by the amount of art featured in the exhibit that varied from the artists’ usual styles. “We had advertising majors submitting paintings. For many people this exhibit was an outlet to feature work that they will never be able to show in their portfolio.”

With so many pieces in such a small gallery, the walls of Desotorow were transformed into one giant collage of images. “Unserious pictures became more serious due to the proximity of the serious works around them and vice versa. The context of each image became cellular,” said Edminster. “It is amazing how we are all connected.”

To see the works that were displayed visit here

By Nicholas Lawrence
Audio Specialist

This weekend, District talked with two fashion majors for the upcoming Fashion Show on May 19.

The participants of the 2012 SCAD Fashion Show are revealed Monday, so we spoke with Alexis Asplundh, a fourth-year  fashion design major from Bryn Athyn, Penn. to discuss the process and benefits of this event.

“At this point I am among 60, or 65, 70 who are going to the jury show, which is tomorrow, and then after the jury show on Sunday they all sit down and decide who’s going to be in the fashion show, and then the fashion show. So we find out if were in the SCAD fashion show on Monday. If I did get in I’d be one of 25.”

Industry professionals will be there such as Ralph Rucci and Andre Leon Tally, but aside from the experience and networking opportunities that this event provides, she says that it is also a point of pride.

“It’s also just like a sense of pride. You know, we’ve been working on these collections since last summer so nine months you know we’ve been working on these collections that’s a long time to put like that’s a lot of time that you’re putting into 6 looks and it’s a fun way to show the rest of the school what you’re doing. It’s kind of the way that you know animation and stuff they do the little senior films and stuff that’s – the fashion show is our like this is what we’ve been working on for nine months like be proud and its fun. It’s just fun to show.

Having worked in a few fashion shows herself, she strongly recommends that under classmen get involved in events like these.

“I would tell them definitely try to be involved in the fashion show go to it maybe not, I mean it’s a cool thing to go to but definitely it’s nice to know kind of what’s going to happen so definitely I’d suggest going your junior year if you don’t go all the years.”

We also spoke with Kristin Shore, a second-year fashion major from Elkin, N.C.  She told us why she is attending the event and what she’s expecting to gain.

“I like looking at the different seniors and I want to compare it to last year and I’m sorta just…I really want to see Eduardo Calvo I think is his name, he won the Project Runway’s scholarship, so I really want to see his designs. I think it’s important for me to go because I just love to absorb any kind of like, information I can from SCAD that has to do with fashion because I mean it all pays off later.”

This is a huge SCAD event every year with a lot of experience and networking opportunities. Be sure to take advantage of it and tune in for our coverage of the Fashion Show on May 19. Savvy in Savannah this has been Nick Lawrence reporting for District.

Earlier this week, Amendment 1 passed in North Carolina banning same-sex marriage, an astounding 61 percent of votes in favor of the ban. This makes North Carolina the 30th state to include such an amendment in their state constitution. The outcome led President Obama to publicly identify himself as an advocate for same-sex marriage, and while he is the first president to back same-sex marriages, marital laws remain in the hands of state governments.

Same-sex marriage was already illegal in North Carolina before the amendment, but there was concern that the initial law was at risk of being changed by judges, something that has already occurred in other states.

And with this new amendment, not only are same-sex marriages banned in North Carolina, but civil unions and domestic partnerships are also invalidated.

The amendment will also take its toll on some heterosexual couples. The North Carolina amendment states that the “marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized …”

This creates a gray area for unmarried heterosexual couples in North Carolina by possibly invalidating domestic violence, custody and hospital visitation rights and laws.

This begs the question, what were the positive effects of the amendment being passed? Were there any?

In a recent article from the New York Times, Campbell Robertson reported the chairwoman of the executive committee Vote for Marriage NC as saying, “… the whole point is simply that you don’t rewrite the nature of God’s design for marriage based on the demands of a group of adults.” And half a million other North Carolina residents unfortunately agreed.

Being a state in the South, it wasn’t unexpected that religious conservatives would be against same-sex marriages. In a recent poll from Gallup, 38 percent of Protestants and 51 percent of Catholics were in favor of same-sex marriage.

And those with no religious identity – 88 percent in favor.

But for those of us that remember the principal of  separation of church and state, and acknowledge that U.S. citizens have various religious beliefs, the claim falls flat and unsubstantiated.

The only winners in the decision were conservative fanatics, the amendment using the morals and religious beliefs of some to stop others from obtaining rights that coincide with a lifestyle they do not agree with.

But had the vote gone the other way, had same-sex marriages not been banned in North Carolina, only those behind the times would have been affected negatively, and even then in an intangible way.

Back in 1996, the same year North Carolina passed their original law banning same-sex marriages, more than two-thirds of the country was still opposed to same-sex marriage. Today, the number has dropped to fewer than half, 71 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 29 support equal rights for same-sex couples.

Clearly, the times have changed since then, and they continue to do so.

The Tarheel State may not be up to speed on the nation’s evolving views on social issues, but one can only hope that the state will not remain stuck in the sludge forever.

Beating the summer heat has always been a challenge, especially here in Savannah. So instead of going to a public pool where you risk seeing old men in tight speedos, save the strain of your eyes and watch something more pleasant. I am speaking of course about summer movies.

There are a plethora of opportunities to catch a movie in the summer of 2012. So there won’t be a lack of date opportunities to woo a summer love interest (without having to talk). Plus theatres provide air conditioning that you won’t have to pay extra for.

Here are some of the most anticipated movies to be released this summer:

June 8: “Safety Not Guaranteed”

From the producers of “Little Miss Sunshine” comes another off-beat comedy. It starts with an ad stating “*WANTED* Someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You’ll get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. Safety not guaranteed. I have only done this once before.” Three magazine employees investigate the man whom posted this classified for a partner in time travel.

June 15: “That’s My Boy”

While still in his teens, Donny (Adam Sandler) fathered a son, Todd (Andy Samberg), and raised him as a single parent up until Todd’s 18th birthday. Now, after not seeing each other for years, Todd’s world comes crashing down on the eve of his wedding when an uninvited Donny suddenly shows up. Trying desperately to reconnect with his son, Donny is now forced to deal with the repercussions of his bad parenting skills.

June 22: “Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter”

This nation’s vampire craze isn’t quite over yet. And now the 16th president of the United States has been deemed a hunter of the bloodsucking beasts. It’s his mission to eliminate them from our country before they prevail in their plan to take it over. Find out how Lincoln handles these vampires on top of what seems like lesser diplomatic issues in comparison.

June 22: “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World”

Set around an incoming asteroid threatening to end life on Earth, Steve Carell stars as a man whose wife leaves him amidst the ensuing panic. This prompts him to seek out his high school sweetheart, who yearns to be with him when doomsday arrives. Keira Knightley plays the female lead, a neighbor of Carell’s character who accompanies him on a romantic road trip to find her.

July 3: “The Amazing Spider-Man”

It’s time to twist another Marvel tale; this one in the vision and direction of Marc Webb. “The Amazing Spider-Man” is the story of Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield), an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben (Martin Sheen) and Aunt May (Sally Field). Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be that person. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone), and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents’ disappearance – leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans), his father’s former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors’ alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

July 13: “Ted”

This movie follows John Bennett (Mark Wahlberg), a grown man who must deal with the cherished teddy bear who came to life as the result of a childhood wish … and has refused to leave his side ever since. Seth MacFarlane donates his talent, direction, and voice to create a vulgar little bear who keeps his owner in a childish state, with adult humor. Similar tastes in humor is a test to romantic relationships; this movie would be a good date movie to put it to that test.

August 3: “The Bourne Legacy”

The fourth installment of the Bourne franchise based on an original story, (but Matt Damon isn’t in this one). As writer/director Tony Gilroy said to members of the press, “This is not a reboot or a recast or a prequel. No one’s replacing Matt Damon. There will be a whole new hero, a whole new chapter…this is a stand-alone project.” Jason Bourne will not be featured in the film; Jeremy Renner will play another assassin trained in the same program as Bourne. The new assassin; Aaron Cross. And with the initials of A.C. it will be a challenge to live up to the bad-ass agents of the initial J.B.’s (Jason Bourne, James Bond, Jack Bauer).

August 10: “The Campaign”

With the amount of comedic entertainment going on in the real political world right now, why not hit the theatre for an intentionally funny depiction of elections. When long-term congressman Cam Brady (Will Ferrell) commits a major public gaffe before an upcoming election, a pair of ultra-wealthy CEOs plot to put up a rival candidate and gain influence over their North Carolina district. Their man: naïve Marty Huggins (Zach Galifianakis), director of the local Tourism Center. At first, Marty appears to be the unlikeliest choice possible, but with the help of his new benefactors’ support, a cutthroat campaign manager and his family’s political connections, he soon becomes a contender who gives the charismatic Cam plenty to worry about. As Election Day closes in, the two are locked in a dead heat, with insults quickly escalating to injury until all they care about is burying each other.

August 17: “The Expendables 2”

The Expendables are back, and this time it’s personal. Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone), Lee Christmas (Jason Statham), Yin Yang (Jet Li), Gunnar Jensen (Dolph Lundgren), Toll Road (Randy Couture) and Hale Caesar (Terry Crews) – with newest members Billy the Kid (Liam Hemsworth) and Maggie (Yu Nan) aboard – are reunited when Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) enlists the Expendables to take on a seemingly simple job. The task looks like an easy paycheck for Barney and his band of old-school mercenaries. But when things go wrong and one of their own is viciously killed, the Expendables are compelled to seek revenge in hostile territory where the odds are stacked against them. Hell-bent on payback, the crew cuts a swath of destruction through opposing forces, wreaking havoc and shutting down an unexpected threat in the nick of time — six pounds of weapons-grade plutonium; enough to change the balance of power in the world. But that’s nothing compared to the justice they serve against the villainous adversary who savagely murdered their brother. Warning: this amount of awesomeness is not for the faint-hearted.

August 31: “Lawless”

During the Prohibition era, a moonshine gang operates in the bootlegging capital of America: Franklin County, Virginia. The three brothers eventually are shot down in December 1930 after they refuse to join the illegal cartel set up by the Commonwealth’s attorney Carter Lee, grandnephew of Robert E. Lee. Carter Lee is subsequently tried for conspiracy. During all of this, a writer is on the trail of the bootlegging story, reports on the moonshine trade and the trial for “Liberty” magazine and even does research for his novel.

After topping off the summer with a Prohibition tale, it will serve as a reminder that school is back on but no worries, there will be no shortage of alcohol to celebrate the bittersweet moments of summer’s end. But, for now, we have the whole summer ahead of us; and the adventures of summer are coming soon … to a theater near you.

Contact Chrystal Lopez.
Editor’s note: District does not condone the consumption of alcohol by minors.

By Jireh Maddox
Editorial Assistant

May 3 saw a blast from the past – the ‘90s, to be exact. Students mingled on the bottom floor of the Student Center in anticipation of good vibes and bad dancing at the school’s second annual ’90s Prom hosted by Resident Life.

Students wore a wide variety of old school costumes, from the beloved flannel and Backstreet Boys paraphernalia, to ruffled dresses and pink tutus.

Walking up to the second floor, students entered into a helter-skelter ’90s collage complete with pastel colored balloons, Push Pops, pizza and Kool-Aid.

When asked what she expected out of the event, first-year visual effects major Emily Overfelt from Bedford, Va. said, “Bad music and nostalgia, boy bands and Britney Spears and good ‘90s decorations.”

There was energy and enthusiasm as people loudly sang-along to “Wannabe” by the Spice Girls and danced to “Can’t Touch This” by MC Hammer. Resident assistants created a three-hour long playlist for the event, fraught with many students’ favorite ’90s hits.

Third-year sound design major Alex Previty from Cleveland, Ohio edited low quality online videos so that they could be enjoyed in a high quality mash-up.

“It’s a cool experience to see people dance to the video I made,” said Previty. “I usually do the sound design for events like this.”

Sound design was not the only major represented at the ‘90s Prom. Second-year photography major Alexis Lodson from Washington, DC and third-year photography major Steve Moraro from Colorado Springs, Colo. were positioned in the back to take photographs of students. Lodson and Moraro volunteered purely for fun and the experience.

“Will Tempher sat for Portrait for Studio, and he liked my work,” Lodson remarked with a smile when asked how she was recruited to volunteer for the event. Moraro was picked the same way. Despite being in a glass booth separated from the dancing, both  had a great time at the throwback.

All in all, everyone in attendance enjoyed returning to the ’90s – even if just for one night.

The coverage of this year’s Sand Arts Festival went well. We had a kite camera filming students at work, photo essays and audio pieces. Oh, and a blooper reel:

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

By Eric Ramirez
Copy editor

Discrimination within the gay community is nothing short of disappointing and embarrassing. And while I hate to call out the boys, it is mostly our fault.

I worked in retail during high school. One day, this guy came in looking for skinny jeans … girl’s skinny jeans. It wasn’t the first time a guy came in looking for a tighter fit, but when I was ringing up his purchase, I heard a rather masculine gay couple in line behind him say “fag” under their breaths.

I’ve said it before: it all comes down to the gender binary, that stupid societal virus that dictates the lines between masculinity and femininity. And while this isn’t the case, it is assumed that masculinity is cold, strong and runs low on emotion, more unlikely to reject homosexuality.

Does it really matter if one gay guy likes to go off-roading while the other would rather get his nails done? Who cares if one wears cargo shorts and the other wears salmon-colored jorts? Apparently some of those more masculine gays do. They call themselves “straight acting,” as if they weren’t just as gay as the more feminine guy. Hell, I love going to shooting ranges and I had glitter in my hair during my senior prom. It’s very possible to have both masculine and feminine aspects to your personality, most gay guys do, and its important to respect those varying levels.

It is commonly seen in dating, guys saying things like “if I am going to be with a guy, I want him to actually be a guy.” That’s fine, great. Everyone has a type. But discriminating against another gay guy because he is more feminine is wrong. You don’t have to date feminine men if you don’t want to, but you do have to accept them.

And it isn’t just feminine gay guys; bisexuals are discriminated against as well. Some people believe that bisexuality isn’t even a real thing. Seriously? They aren’t mythological creatures. Is it so hard to imagine that people out there are attracted to both men and women? Is it so hard to understand a sexuality other than your own?

How is it that we can discriminate amongst ourselves when we have enough to deal with outside of the LGBTQ community? We don’t yet have the right to marry in all 50 states and homophobia is still a very real issue. The last thing LGBTQ people should be doing is discriminating against others that are in the same LGBTQ community.

The fact of the matter is that there are still people in the world who hate members of the LGBTQ community. It has gotten exponentially better in recent years, but there is still a long way to go. So why on earth would we hate the people we should be looking out for?

By Carlos Serrano
Social Media Coordinator

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

It’s here. Four years and four movies since the first post-credits tease in “Iron Man” and we finally have the Avengers movie we were promised. Does it live up to the hype? In a word: yes. In two words: hell yes.

The film wastes no time getting to the meat of the story. Loki (Tom Hiddleston), finds his way to Earth after falling into the void of space in the 2011 film “Thor.” In one swift maneuver, he steals the Cosmic Cu — I mean, the Tesseract, and leaves the facility that housed it in ruins. These early scenes set the tone for Hiddleston’s portrayal of Loki, an improvement upon his performance in “Thor.”

In that film, Hiddleston seemed to overact at times and didn’t seem very comfortable in his role. But in “The Avengers,” it’s an entirely different story. He acts exactly like the mischievous, borderline cruel trickster god that he is supposed to be.

His propensity for awkward and sometimes unsettling smiles, “creeper smiles” some might call them, adds a mania to his performance that was sorely missing in his earlier portrayal of Loki. When the god runs off with the Tesseract, it feels like a genuine catastrophe in the making.

Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), the director of espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D., realizes the threat that the world faces should Loki possess an energy source with unknown potential. He activates the Avengers Initiative (hold for celebratory yelling in the theater). And here is where the movie really defies expectations.

As the different superheroes that make up the Avengers are gathered, the star power in this film becomes increasingly apparent. Alongside Hiddleston and Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson return as Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and Black Widow, respectively. That is a lot of bang for your buck.

Yet, director Joss Whedon has the superhuman power to allow all of these actors to share an almost equal amount of screen time. Not only that, but they all shine in scenes together.

Midway through the movie, the characters are at their lowest point. Manipulated by Loki into being distrustful of each other, everyone is on edge. In a small laboratory, the heroes begin to squabble and argue with each other, and everyone gets some good hits in. More than the times when they are getting along perfectly, this scene illustrates the chemistry between all of the characters.

They know how to work their often overpowering personalities to become a cohesive unit. Mirroring, in a way, the characters they portray.

The newcomer of the group, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk, steals the show in the end. Ruffalo brings a human nature to the character of Banner that goes beyond the previous portrayals of the character.

Ruffalo plays Banner as an almost charmingly nervous and shy genius. In a way, his attempts to draw attention away from himself and get people to leave him alone make him easier to connect to. In a room full of superhumans, he stands out as a relatively scruffy guy — a near everyman.

And then the Hulk comes out to play.

More than Banner’s characterization, the idea behind the Hulk seems to have finally been understood in “The Avengers.” The way to get people to respond to Banner’s shift to Hulk in a positive way is to first get them to care about Banner himself.

Banner has to be the audience’s ego/superego in order to appreciate the freedom of Hulk as the id. And as Banner transforms in the final battle and begins to do what he does best (spoiler alert: he smashes things), the rush is enough to make people cheer.

Enough gushing. There are still problems in the movie that need to be addressed. Let’s talk Hawkeye.

Jeremy Renner actually gives a commendable performance as the bow-wielding hero. The problem is that the script gave him the short end of the stick. He gets cool scenes, especially in the climactic final battle, but he spends the entire first and second act distanced from the audience.

Not being a part of the main cast of characters from the beginning, even though it makes sense for plot reasons, makes it harder to connect with the character. What’s left is a few cool scenes and lines, but a sense of wasted potential. Ah well, there’s always the sequel.

What faults the movie has never ruined the experience however. It’s safe to say that Avengers fans (and everyone else) should assemble and see it.

Editor-in-Chief

Facebook: 687 friends and 11 followers.
Twitter: 686 tweets and 123 followers.
Twenty-four people have me in their Goggle+ circles while I have 19 in my own.

Just when I thought the counting stopped, I discovered Klout.

Not on purpose you see, I was bamboozled, hoodwinked into logging in. Once there, a white number set against an orange background rated my social network behavior on a scale from 1 -100.

Did that post garner “likes” from your followers? Did they share your post? Did it start a conversation among those in a different network? All of these insignificant numbers are taken into consideration to give a rating that seems obscure and inconsequential.

Another stupid website to check, I said to myself.

While looks are deceiving and numbers are just digits, the higher you are on the Klout score, the more privileged and pampered you’ll become.

Seth Stevenson wrote in May’s Wired that users who have scored higher than 70 get perks such as all-expenses paid trips, smartphones and luxury car rentals. One user highlighted in the article, Calvin Lee, has a score of 74 and receives these perks regularly. Then again, Lee tweets an average of once every 32 minutes.

Now we’re talking. My 36 (up from 24 last week) doesn’t seem too far away from being showered with gifts as companies try to entice me into using their hashtags or praising their products. This is why companies are now catching on to Klout. They’re looking for people who have influence over a wide casted social network to talk, tweet and post about their products.

I’m ways away from Bieber status (100) or even some of my professors and friends (mid-50s), but maybe that’s best. And it seems that another social media-driven addiction is not something I can or want to handle.

While the furthering of our self-created-celebrity-hood perpetually worsens, the story behind Klout is an endearing one. Its founder, Joe Fernandez, used social media to express his thoughts when he physically couldn’t — his mouth was wired shut for three months following a surgery.

And so Stevenson’s article was humbling and humanizing, but he too finds it overwhelming to maintain such high scores (he’s a 46). He’s left gawking at the fact that a teen idol ranked higher “than the leader of the free world.”

I guess I’ll get back to counting.

The Savannah Yoga Center is offering “pay what you can” classes for a cause.Photo by

By Jennifer Fuller
Staff writer

The Savannah Yoga Center is offering “pay what you can” donation classes to help you balance your chakras and get your fair share of good karma.

The center will be donating the earnings to Liam’s Land, a local nonprofit dedicated to advancing research and identifying possible causes of lymphatic malformation.

“Janet and Joe Steffen, the founders of Liam’s Land, live in Savannah,” explained Kelley Boyd, owner of the Savannah Yoga Center. “Joe is a student here. We want to help them raise money for Liam’s Land and help bring awareness to this condition.”

The Steffen’s son, Liam, was born Jan. 5, 2010. After finding an unexpected mass on his neck, doctors diagnosed his condition as a lymphatic malformation, a condition which affects one in every 6,000 births. While the exact cause is unknown, doctors believe the lymphatic system does not connect properly during fetal development. The most common cases of lymphatic malformation affect the neck, tongue and mouth causing problems with eating, breathing and facial deformities.

“Any donation is welcome and everything is going directly to the organization,” said Boyd.

Classes are offered Monday through Friday, 2:30 to 3:30 p.m., and are open to everyone from beginners to advanced yoga participants.

“The classes are being taught by students in our Teacher Training program who are about to graduate in May. This is part of their training, to get up in front of a class and teach, but they are also doing some good at the same time,” says Kat Jones, a yoga instructor at the center. “People get to experience different teachers and some different styles of flow yoga, which is basically moving, or flowing, with your breath. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

Students are encouraged to arrive early to sign in. Mats and props are provided or available for sale in the center’s boutique. All you have to do is show up.

The Savannah Yoga Center is located at 1319 Bull St. For more information on yoga classes, visit savannahyoga.com, and for more information about Liam’s Land visit, liamsland.org.

What: The Practice Child, a new comedy written and directed by dramatic writing student Tyler Stuart:

When Blil was born, his mother spelled his name wrong on the birth certificate, mixing up the “I” with one of the “L’s”. Rather than correcting the mistake, she decided just to have another child, and name him “Bill”. Twenty some years later, Blil is still living in the shadow of his younger brother, Bill, who is perfect in every way but one: he has a malignant brain tumor. To make matters worse, when Blil meets his brother’s fiancé, he falls madly in love. If he is to have anything with her, Blil will have to ensure that his brother doesn’t survive; all the while dealing with his bi-polar mother, Bill’s senile neurosurgeon, and a homeless man claiming to be Blil and Bill’s biological father…

Cost: FREE ADMISSION. (Optional donations for the Cancer Research Institute encouraged at the door.)
Where: Mondanaro Theater in Crites Hall at 217 Martin Luther King Blvd.
Why: For your entertainment
When: May 10 through May 12 at 8:00pm and May 13 at 3:00pm.

A few of our local treasure troves.Photo by Ingela Hartman

By Ingela Hartman
Staff writer

We have all heard the great adage, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

Though it may seem that the cliché is rarely true, some students have made exciting discoveries in Savannah’s trash.

Elizabeth Farrar, a graduate illustration student, got her first taste of Dumpster diving while working on her undergraduate degree at the University of Louisville. She became involved with a group called GRASS, Group Recycling and Sustainable Solutions, a campus organization that strives to improve recycling and reduce waste.

“We became zealots about this entire movement, and it got to a point where we said, ‘College students are so wasteful. They are disposing of practical items so let’s go to the Dumpsters and see what we can find in there.’”

Farrar’s accusations were dead on. Working with GRASS, she discovered that students had tossed out a ton of recyclable items, as well as other usable goods.

“We found an entire Sam’s Club box of granola bars that had only recently expired,” said Farrar.

With Americans generating about 250 million tons of trash every year, there is an abundance of potential, and Farrar isn’t the only one who is diving in. Lauren Schwind, a junior illustration student, has found the school’s dumpsters to be gold mines.

“I’ve found paint, powered charcoal, pretty much anything gets thrown out of the dorms,” said Schwind.

Schwind’s advice for the best place to look? “The freshman dorms because they have no idea what value is.”

Through Dumpster diving, Schwind has found a wealth of coveted and expensive art supplies. She has also procured a working lamp with the light bulbs still intact, an oscillating fan and an aloe vera plant.

With the quarter ending May 31, students will be going home for the summer or moving to new apartments, and the Dumpsters will be filling up quickly with abandoned items. So if you’re game, get your gloves on and get ready to go on a new kind of treasure hunt!

By Susan Kemp
Columnist

I get that we’re on the opposite side of the country and everything, but can we take a moment to reflect on the absolute disaster that is the California education system?

Let’s just say things have gone from bad to worse ever since west coasters parted ways with the Governator.

Just in the past year, UC Berkeley, UC Davis and Santa Monica College protests attracted national attention when police broke up crowds with pepper spray; and this past week California State students announced a hunger strike as a reaction to tuition spikes, among other things.

I know it’s easy to disregard the complaints of a bunch of 20-somethings as “much ado about nothing,” but as a California-to-Savannah transplant, I really think the rest of the world just might not fully grasp the hit that California colleges have suffered in the last decade.

I can understand the disconnect. It’s like when I first heard about the lotteries to get into Pre-K programs in New York. I couldn’t believe it. I mean the anxiety these parents go through before their kids are even five years old is  dumbfounding. But speaking of nonsensical headaches, let’s talk about what’s going on over there on the west coast.

So let’s say you’re a recent high school graduate in California opting to be financially scrupulous and spending your first two years at a community college.

For most Americans, this isn’t an issue. But for the 300,000 Californians turned away last year due to budget cuts, access to higher education has gotten a little more complicated. There is literally not enough funding. Can we let that sink in? People can’t get into their local community colleges.

Then say, you do get in. High-demand general education classes like algebra and composition fill up so fast that thousands of students can’t get the classes they need in order to transfer into the California State or University of California systems (which by the way, also suffer from budget concerns and only accept junior-level transfers with prerequisite course work completed).

A good friend of mine attended Santa Monica College in 2010 and was actually considering paying out-of-state tuition to take calculus online at another school so she could still transfer to a four-year university on schedule. It’s outrageous. But it’s also increasingly common.

It’s in response to this problem that Santa Monica College proposed earlier this year a two-tier tuition system that would let students take these high-demand courses during the summer for a higher cost per unit. But oddly, SMC students didn’t want to pay four times as much for the same class. When a group of students entered a board meeting to protest this in April, police pepper-sprayed them. Others were arrested.

Oh, but we’re not done yet.

In spring 2013, the California State system plans to freeze enrollment – as in no new students will be admitted that semester. At all. For fall 2013 and onward, all strong applicants will be wait-listed and let in as funding allows. Can we pause again? Am I the only one whose mind is completely blown by this? And you have to realize we’re not just talking about one school. The California State system consists of 23 universities.

We’re not even talking about affordable higher education anymore; for some students, we’re talking about access to an education at all. Is it not fair to say that maybe – just maybe – the cuts have gone a little too far?

I can’t help but make parallels between California and the national debates on cutting funding for the Pell Grant and raising interest rates on federal Stafford Loans. We can’t both increase tuition, while at the same time decreasing federal relief intended to fill in the gaps.

While making decisions in the upcoming weeks on doubling Stafford Loan rates, Washington should glance over at California and take a second to reflect. How well did cutting $970 million in state funding over five years work out? How great is the quality of life for the adjunct staff (now the majority) getting paid half as much as tenured professors? How did we get to a point where a whole school system is freezing enrollment?

As I’m sure Californians will agree, ignoring the problem doesn’t seem to work out so well after all.

Double Take is a weekly column re-evaluating issues that affect college-aged students.

By Shannon Craig
Copy editor

There is a saying commonly referenced when opinions are discussed. To avoid being cliché and offensive, which I have tendency to do, I will refrain from stating it here.

I will say that opinions about opinions and whether they are opinions is more prevalent than ever nowadays.

My brother Trey was a member of a little league baseball team when he was a kid. Despite years of playing, he never became that great at it, bless his heart, but every year he received a trophy just like everyone else. As a matter of fact, every child, on every team, in every level of little league received a trophy, regardless of ranking. All of the trophies were the same size, even for the team that should have technically been considered “the best” based on scores.

This was my first experience with the Millenial-style mindset that anyone and everyone deserved to be praised and considered important, even if it’s just for showing up. Children who grew up with this sense of entitlement (which is really what it was in this case, a trophy) have grown to believe that their voices or opinions, to be entirely specific, are worthwhile regardless of their amount of education or personal reflection and study of the subject.

The question is whether they can be held entirely responsible for their behavior, or does someone or something else deserve the accountability?

With the advent of social media, the rate at which opinions can be shared has reached a speed above and beyond what many of us can conceptualize. If you have a computer and an account with a social media website, you have access to the opinions of all other users,  and you certainly have the outlet to provide your own commentary.

Sure, social media feeds into what many consider a need to be heard, but it can’t take the whole of the blame for the overwhelming number of opinions crowding the internet.

The Latin phrase ex cathedra, literally meaning “from the chair,” refers to an idea that basically states that the opinion of a person in a position of authority (politicians, priests, judges, teachers, the pope himself, you name it) is the word or doctrine which defines the beliefs of an entire society. Though the roots of ex cathedra are practically ancient, its fundamentals have  branched out into our own practices in the 21st century.

Fortunately, even before the practice of ex cathedra, there were skeptics. But those skeptics were a rare group and were expected to do their research before they formed or argued their rebuttals, often having to perform their own experimentation to challenge universally accepted facts.

So does that mean that in today’s society we are all skeptics, even if we do not do the adequate research when debating an opinion or fact? Or are skeptics merely practicing ex cathedra from the other end of the spectrum?

I will reference a statement that I hear a lot, “I don’t listen to (blank) News, it’s biased.” I normally ask what outlet they choose for news instead and they will tell me another anchor’s name, another network, another newspaper or radio program. The internet is a popular and unspecified answer. They have formed an opinion that said network is biased, but on what grounds? Normally the only source of this opinion is another source of opinion which if that source of opinion is formed from another source of opinion…the facts have tendency to get lost.

Holy Leonardo DiCaprio, where do we end up?

Even the definition of what makes an opinion a fact and a fact not an opinion has been questioned by authors of critical thinking texts. From Howard Kahane to Robert T. Carroll, the definition can be interpreted from a similar angle but different perspectives.

There are an enormous amount of questions that I choose not to answer either because I have yet to understand them or I feel that my opinion doesn’t matter. That’s not an emotionally charged statement either. In the grand scheme of a question, what would my opinion matter were I to provide one that did not have grounds in developmental research or broad study along the spectrum of universal thought.

When did we decide that our opinions were correct? When did it become acceptable to have an opinion on anything and everything, especially when one’s opinion is just the mimicked opinion of someone else? Who cares?

I don’t think any of these are questions that can be answered in truth.

That’s my opinion, anyway.

Illustrations Editor

Contributing Illustrator

Contributing Illustrator

Contributing Illustrator

Contributing Illustrator

The coast at Tybee Island was lined with artists during this year’s Sand Arts FestivalPhoto by Joseph Jacob

By Nicholas Lawrence
Audio specialist

Yesterday was Tybee Island’s annual Sand Arts Festival. Participants could go to the beach of Tybee Island and compete to win monetary prizes in multiple categories. Patrick Moore, a foundations study professor who has been with SCAD for 6 years gives some insight to this years event.

“Well we have sand castles and we have sand sculpture and we have relief and we also have some wind projects, and each category usually has a project that is really quite large.”

Quite large is an understatement if you’re only used to the generic sand castles children make. The event drew just as many onlookers as it did artists for the sheer size and detail displayed.

“I was just passing sand castles which usually is pretty big and the teams usually four people and a couple of helpers participate, and I’m watching a castle go up right here that’s really quite large and I think will be you know probably in the mix in the competition. I also observed some thematic projects some of the sculptures included a piece from the Titanic and there’s also a really nice crab developing over here that’s very anatomically correct and shows a lot of detail.”

District talked with some of the individuals and teams participating. One team called, “Save the Sea Turtles” , used sand to sculpt an enormous turtle. However other artists like Madison Burger, a SCAD alumni from Allentown Pennsylvania, had other visions.

“I had in mind what I was gonna’ do but I’m kind of winging it right now. It’s gonna’ be a face with like a giant beard and then something’s coming out of the beard. I just like to do crazy weird creatures so something like that.”

It is a great event for SCAD students after midterm exams as Patrick Moore explains.

“It’s really a wonderful event for SCAD students, lots of fantastic projects on the beach usually every year. I think SCAD students really go all out and it’s kinda a lot of fun. I think especially coming right after midterms gives students a chance to blow off some steam and have some fun which is well earned and deserved.

Sandy in Savannah this has been Nick Lawrence reporting for District.

By Steve Drum
Staff Writer

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

“Where I come from” is the refrain throughout SCAD Performing Arts’ production of “Anon(ymous),” held in the Arnold Hall auditorium. And each bizarre step further into the world of this production feels like a backward glance at where we come from and how we’ve arrived.

Loosely adapted from Homer’s “The Odyssey,” the play sends its nameless hero (called “Anon” in the program) adrift on a strange journey through sweatshop labor, Indian cuisine and one terrifying butcher shop. The world is both contemporary and surreal, an imagined hybrid of a far-off third world and a post-apocalyptic America.

Directed by performing arts professor David Storck, the production’s visuals move beautifully between the odd and the intimate. A churning sea created by the actors’ bodies, a two-person goddess moving as a single creature and a starry sky twinkling from beneath the stage are just a few of the show’s dazzling feasts for the eyes.

The script, written by Naomi Iizuka for the Minneapolis Children’s Theatre in 2006, can be a little heavy-handed in its emotion. The metaphors of American imperialism and the preservation of immigrant culture are powerful enough to stand on their own. Too often, Iizuka’s script doesn’t seem to trust the audience to see the connections and saddles an actor with the task of explaining what should be left beneath the surface.

Some are more successful than others at bringing life to the weight of the text. Second-year Ian Mather plays Anon with a youth and optimism that seems to sidestep his character’s transformation. First-year Anne-Marie Trabolsi, on the other hand, brings a strange and surprising reality to Calista, an over-confident archetype of American privilege. The scene is brief, but Trabolsi takes Calista through a wild identity crisis, capturing the best of the play’s intentions in just a few moments on the stage.

As with their March showing of “Spring Awakening” at the Lucas Theatre, the Performing Arts Department has made another brave choice of text to perform for the stage.

“Anon(ymous)” is playing through May 5 at 8 p.m. and May 6 at 3 p.m. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $5 with valid senior, student, military or SCAD ID.

To reserve tickets, call the Savannah Box Office at 912-525-5050 or visit savannahboxoffice.com

By Zeus Pyle
Staff Photographer
Hosted By Daniel Alvarez
Student Life Editor

District was at Tybee Island on May 4 covering this year’s Sand Arts Festival. Didn’t make it out? Our student life editor was on the scene, see what happens when artists leave the studio and hit the sand.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

In honor of Audrey Hepburn’s birthday, the Lucas Theater is showing three movies starring the actress in her most memorable roles. Tonight at 7 p.m. the theater will be showing the 1963 film “Charade.” The 1957 film “Funny Face” will be shown on May 5 at 3 p.m. “Roman Holiday released in 1953 will be shown immediately after at 5 p.m.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Turns out that the “University for Creative Careers” can live up to its name, even in the sand.

Students have not only been getting creative with their sand designs, but the tools they are using to build them. We’ve seen everything from handmade buckets to shovels resembling prison shanks. We also caught up with Matthew Toole, a professor of foundation studies, who graciously posed with our own sand design devices.

Professor Matthew Toole enjoys the Sand Arts Festival Photo by Zeus Pyle

Calvin Au, freshman industrial design student, shows off his shoveling skills.Photo by Adeshola Adigun

August Harris-Early, junior IGTM student, sprays his sculpture for display.Photo by Adeshola Adigun

To see the universe in a grain of sand …

Photo by James Lough

Photo by James Lough

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

By Shannon Craig
Copy editor

Beach days only have one major drawback: thirst. Spending so much time in the sun and the sand can lead to dehydration and irritability, but thankfully we have found a cure for both.

Tybee Island has its fair share of restaurants with fully stocked bars offering drink specials throughout the day. The following is a compiled list for your convenience:

Santiago’s Mexi-Cali: 402 First St., 912-472-4018

Two-for-one margaritas $5 through $12, frozen and traditional. Top shelf included if you feel like paying a little extra.

Tybee Island Social Club: 1311 Butler Ave., 912-472-4044, tybeeislandsocialclub.com

Another option for two-for-one margarita specials. If you favor sangria they offer a special blend with blood orange.

Benny’s Tybee Tavern: 1517 Butler Ave., 912-786-0121

Ever wonder where the coldest beer in America is sold? Stop into Benny’s and find out.

Doc’s Bar and Grill: 10 16th St., 912-786-5506, docsbartybee.com

For a local Tybee atmosphere, check out Doc’s for modestly priced beer and hula hoops.

Stingray’s Restaurant: 1403 Butler Ave., 912-786-0209, stingraysontybee.com

Extensive collection of craft beer specials for the connoisseur.

Editor’s note: District does not condone the consumption of alcohol by minors.
Copy editor’s note: If you are of age, drink up. Stay thirsty my friends.