CayugaCollegian

THE

collegian@cayuga-cc.edu www.cayugacollegian.com Vol. 57 Issue 11 February 2, 2009

CCC BB Coach Resigns

continued back page

By Jesse Cases, Sports Editor

Lady Spartans Continue to Win! MORE SPORTS PAGE 3

The Spartans of Cayuga Com-munity College suffered their worst loss of the season January 10th to the visiting Lazers of Onondaga Commu-nity College. When time ran out the final score read 57-88. The game how-ever, was not the only loss the Spar-tans would end the day with.

After the game, men’s basketball head coach Marcell Fisher handed Cayuga Athletic Director Pete Liddell his letter of resignation. After a year and a half of coaching at CCC and an overall record of 9-31, it may have been time for Fisher to go.

After an abysmal first season which saw the Spartans go 2-21, Fisher completely reshaped the Spartan basketball team. Without a single player from last season’s team, Fisher recruited talents like Justin Sterling, Vance Kelley, Terry Harrison and Jovoun Webb.

After bringing in all the new talent, however, Fisher struggled to find

team chemistry and make the team gel. Fisher also struggled keeping his team together as several players quit both during season and before the season even started. Those players were Sean Desimone, Ryan Crane, John Applebee and Nick Chapman

After a 4-2 start, the team started slipping and lost eight of their next 11 games, including a stretch where the team lost four of six games. With the two wins coming against a mediocre North Country team by just 6 points and the helpless Word of Life College. The team’s record was 7-10 before Fisher resigned.

Fisher cited “personal reasons” in his letter of resignation. Assistant Head Coach Tony Borges will act as interim head coach for the remaining season.

“The schools coaching situation will be evaluated further after seasons end, and Borges has shown interest”, said Athletic Director Pete Liddell. The Spartans look to remain competitive the rest of the season with their next home game coming on February 4th versus Corning Community College.

Marcel Fischer

The Cayuga Men’s basketball team will be without leading scorer and rebounder Jovoun Webb for the rest of the season. After the Spartans suffered a 57-88 loss at home at the hands of rivals Onondaga Community College, Athletic Director Pete Liddell suspended Webb for the second time this season for what were cited as “conduct violations”.

“We have certain expectations for our student athletes,” said Liddell when asked about the Webb situation.

After his second suspension ,Webb fired back at Cayuga by quitting the team. Webb then withdrew from the college and transferred to SUNY Brockport, a division 3 school, and is now looking to play there.

Webb Quits CCC TeamBy Jesse Cases, Sports Editor

Jovoun Webb

By Natasha King, Editor-in-chief

Books and supplies, room and board, tuition and fees, transportation and personal expenses; college can cost one student thousands of dollars just for one semester! SUNY (State University of New York) schools can help cut most costs to offer a cheaper but just as good education. So what will happen if Government Paterson’s proposed Deficit Reduction Plan gets approved? The SUNY system could collapse, forcing all the student’s taking courses at each of the many schools to either pay more for their education or to just drop out period which jeopardizes the future of the state of New York.

But what is Governor Paterson’s Deficit Reduction Plan? The plan proposes taking 90 percent of the tuition from SUNY to help close the deficit. By doing this, the governor raises tuition $310 per students and will have taxed each student within the SUNY system $279 a piece. That is an additional $589 on your tuition bill!

The SUNY system already suffered this year after a reduction in state support. Students would be paying higher costs for fewer

Deficit Reduction Plan Equals Higher Tuition For Fewer Services

services.Taking student tuition and not

using it for academic purposes, increases the chances of tuition becoming politicized.

The state has been decreasing state support to SUNY over the years. In 1992, the state reduced their support by $107.7 million to which SUNY had to raise tuition $500 per student. In 1995, the state took away $155.5 million of their support, causing SUNY to raise tuition again by $750 per student. Then again in 2003, the state reduced their aid by $188 million; in response SUNY raised tuition by $950 for every student.

This year, the state cut another $146 million, raising tuition another $310.

Student Assembly launched an “aggressive campaign” in the favor of students and their families all over the state of New York. They are writing letters, making appointments and calling state Assemblypersons and/or Senators to keep the 90/10 tuition split from happening.

College students say they have enough financial frustrations without adding again to tuition.

A Town Hall Meeting at CCCwith New York Stater Governor David Paterson was held Saturday, January 31st.The topic...the governor’s plan for the state budget.

Look for coverage of this event in the next issue!

CCC Students Torn Over ObamaBy Brandi St. John, Staff Writer

January 20, 2009 was a day to be recorded in the history books. Barack Obama, a first term senator from Illinois, took the oath to become the first African-American President of the United States. During the nationally broadcast inauguration, many Cayuga Community College students could be seen gathered around the various televisions sets the college placed throughout the campus buildings.

There were whispers from students crowded around the broadcast. One

student said, “Finally, Bush is out of office, maybe now this country will stand a chance.”

Another student whispered, “I can’t believe all the hype this guy has going for him, it’s not like anyone can fix the country these days. We’re screwed no matter who is in office. He doesn’t even have any experience, how did he win the election in the first place?”

The student sentiment at CCC about the new president matched

Editorial BoardNATASHA KING, Editor in ChiefJESSE CASES, Sports EditorANDY BROWN, Assistant EditorMARY G. MERRITT, Advisor

StaffKELSEY BROWN BRANDI ST. JOHNKEVIN COOL MIRANDA COLLSARAH BUSHNELL

PAGE TWO

The Cayuga Collegian welcomes letters from its readers. Submissions must be in a word document on a PC formatted disc. Submissions may be edited for content or length. Submissions must include your name, address and daytime phone number. All letters to the editor are copied exactly and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the Collegian office, its staff or advisors. All letters are simply the opinions of the writers themselves.

From the Editor-in-chief...Welcome Back!

Natasha KingEditor-in-chief

Welcome back CCC! I hope you’re ready for another wonderful semester. This semester there are so many more events already planned and being planned. These are great opportunities to get out and meet new people or celebrate the ending of another year coming.

Unfortunately, this is my last semester here at CCC, as well as for most of the staff at The Collegian. And you know what that means? We are looking for prospective students to fill our spots when we leave! This means paid positions, and I know that’s exciting.

This semester we welcome Sandra Bushnell and Brandi St. John as our newest writers. Everyone at The Collegian is excited to start working with both of these ladies.

Also, we are looking for some students at the Fulton campus that are interested in reporting on the events there. Please, if you are

interested, feel free to contact any one of the staff members!

If you are coming back next semester, make sure you get your FAFSA filled out and turned in early for more opportunities to get more money. The earlier you apply, the more scholarships and grants are available; it’s a win-win!

As graduation comes closer and closer, planning for what’s going to happen afterwards may start to feel overwhelming. Whether you are transferring or jumping right into the field, things might get crazy. Just remember, the faculty and staff here at CCC are more than willing to help you out! And, be careful of that “senioritis” that seems to hit me.

Plus if you need help in any of your classes remember that the Academic Support Center is just up the hall from the Library and you can get help. Or if your just bored, there are so many different clubs

or activities you could join in on to help take up some of that spare time you might have.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable semester!

What could they do better? Why? “Fairly report school news and activities on BOTH campuses”What is something you would like to see in an upcoming isue? Why? “Information and reporting of activities at Fulton like the Ghost Hunting, Club Activities,”If you could change on thing about the Collegian, what would it be? Why? “For it to be a fair paper. This college has ‘2’ campuses and both need to be represented equally”

WE NEED A FULTON CORRESPONDENT! PLEASE!

Fighting over swings on the playground at recess, walking in single file from one class to the next, carrying plastic lunchboxes, each with its own matching thermos. Some of the joys of elementary school will probably never change. But it has become an issue whether other things about elementary school, such as curriculum, should change with the times.

The main concern involves the teaching of cursive writing to young children who have mostly all been exposed to computers and typing for some amount of time. It has been discussed whether penmanship should be required still, or if schools should jump right into typing in the early years of adolescence. 18-year-old William Smith student, Meryl Enos commented “I don’t think it’s important, most people print anyway and it’s easier to read”.

However, many other people would say in opposition to that opinion, that learning to read and

Staff MeetingsMondays1:30 PMCollegian Office

CollegianCayuga

Elementary Schools Dropping Penmanship Requirements?By Kelsey Brown, Staff Writer

write cursive is an important skill to acquire. It looks more professional than regular handwriting and has a personal touch that type fails to possess.

As Mark Nowak, a second year student here at Cayuga said “I don’t think putting a kid in front of a computer at age 5 is good.” He also commented that learning to read and write in cursive allows growing children a fun way to exercise their developing brains.

High school senior Guine Thompson said she thinks cursive writing should continue to be taught, even if its only purpose is for signing our names.

The transition from penmanship to strictly typing is not a sure one, and if it ever does take place, it most likely will not happen for a long time. There are a lot of positive things about learning to read and write in cursive, and it does not hurt to know a little something extra.

Still looking for a date for Valentine’s Day? The Non-Trad club here at the college may be able to help with that. They will be holding a human auction that will have a group date for those without them. The auction will take place on Wednesday February 11, 2009 during the student activity hour from 11 AM to 12 PM in the cafeteria. Opening bids for each of the participants will start at $2.00 and the bidding

An Answer to our Recent Reader Survey

Valentine’s DayBy Jared Smith, Staff Writer

will increase as needed. The money raised from the bids will

be used to pay for a group date at a local bowling alley. (I will have the information on which bowling alley and times of

the date tomorrow) The group date will

take place on Saturday February 14, 2009. Those

interested in being auctioned off should contact David Calkins by email: munkeyman@seneca24.net by Thursday February 5, 2009.

PAGE THREE

By Kevin Cool, Staff Writer

SPARTAN SPORTSLady Spartans Still on TopBy Jesse Cases, Sports Editor

Spartan’s Suffering Multiple LossesBy Jesse Cases, Sports Editor

Since Webb quit and Head Coach Marcell Fisher resigned, the Spartans are 1-3, with close losses coming against the likes of Corning, Finger Lakes, and Jefferson Community Colleges.

Versus Finger Lakes, after taking a 4-3 lead early, the Spartans struggled offensively and trailed the rest of the first half. Great defense kept the Spartans in the game and the halftime score read 32-35. Even after trailing most of the first half the Spartans came out looking to

The Ladies basketball team at Cayuga Community College has improved their record to 17-4 overall with their most recent victories over #8 Nationally Ranked Finger Lakes Community College and also Jefferson Community College. Before the wins over FLCC and JCC, the ladies avenged a loss earlier in the season to #4 nationally ranked Onondaga Community College.

On January 10th against OCC, the Lady Spartans found themselves down 15 points in the second half. A barrage of 3-point field goals lead the Lady Spartans back and eventually to a 78-74 home victory of the #4 Lazers of Onondaga. Corissa Quattrini led the way for the Spartans with 23 points and 13

rebounds while National scoring leader Caitlyn Dillard finished with 22 points, followed by Shakeema Green with 15 points. Quattrini and Green are also ranked nationally in scoring at 5th and 37th.

Following a win versus Corning Community College and a loss against a talented Broome Community College team on the road, the Ladies next big game came at home versus Finger Lakes. After an 8-2 run to start the game off, the Lady Spartans struggled offensively missing several shots from close range and also going just 7-21 from the free throw line in the first half, and found themselves down 24-38 at halftime.

The Lady Spartans first half woes

continued into the second half and Cayuga soon saw the Finger Lakes lead balloon to 21 points at 29-50. Soon after the lead was stretched to 21 a Dillard basket ignited a 18-7 run for Cayuga which ended with a Quattrini basket and the Lady Spartans found themselves down only 47-55.

The Lakers of Finger Lakes answered back quickly with a 3-pointer to extend the lead back to double figures at 47-58 with just over seven minutes left in the game. Dillard once again answered back with six straight points, igniting yet again another run which ended with a Ryan Iannello put back cutting the lead to 61-63 with 2:58 left in the game.

The Lakers once again answered back with another 3-pointer to make it a five point game with just over two minutes left but a Quattrini free throw and Dillard basket cut the lead to 64-66 with just over a minute left. A quick steal and Shakeema Green fast break basket tied the game with one minute left in regulation. The Lady Spartan defense then forced a turnover with 32.1 seconds left and after a Laker foul, Shakeema Green sealed the 67-66 come from behind victory for Cayuga with a free-throw.

The Lady Spartans next home game will be on February 4th at 6:00 PM versus Corning Community College.

take the lead, and finally did so with just over six minutes remaining in the game at 52-53 thanks to a Terry Harrison free-throw.

Back to Back 3-pointers by A.J. Hobson extended the lead to 58-55 before Finger Lakes answered with a 3-pointer of their own, tying the score at 58. A Rahommod Trotter free-throw and Isiah Watkins basket put the Spartans up 61-58, but after some clutch free throws by Finger Lakes closed the lead to 61-60 with 1:22 left, Cayuga failed to find the

basket. Ending the game on a 9-2 run the Lakers took the game 69-63 over Cayuga.

The Spartans then played their next game versus Jefferson CC at home on Monday Jan. 26th. The Spartans played tough against a good Jefferson team and found themselves tied 18-18 halfway through the first half. Jefferson however, turned on the jets and ended the half on a 31-14 run to take a 32-49 lead into the locker room.

After an embarrassing end to

the first half the Spartans came out looking for redemption. Isiah Watkins scored a quick eight points and along with a Rahommod Trotter put back the score read 42-51. The Spartans continued to play hard but after a Terry Harrison steal and layup cut the lead to 78-82 with less than 20 seconds remaining, the Spartans wouldn’t score again and the comeback fell short as Jefferson would escape with a 78-84 win.

The trip included a day of travel from Newark Airport on Virgin Atlantic Airlines to London Heathrow Airport, then to the site of nearly thousand-year-old Windsor Castle with more than 1000 rooms.

Our hotel, The Vanderbilt, is an old family home of the Vanderbilt’s that was changed into a luxurious hotel with a maze of hallways and stairs and an accommodating breakfast each morning of our two week trip.

The mornings came on fast and the evenings were long with no time for jet lag as we set off to see St. Paul’s Cathedral and West Minister Abbey. Pictures were taken of these old buildings; inside only a few were allowed. Many Kings and Queens were buried there in the Abbey along with poets and statesmen.

The Tube, as the subway it is called, brought us to various places of notoriety in the greater part of London. This subway system is the oldest and largest in the world. The Thames River boat ride was cold on deck, but was valuable as we learned about places along the river’s edge.

The London Eye is a large ferris wheel with gondolas that doesn’t stop so you can get on and off. It took about an hour to rotate around.

At its base is a monument of

the 2012 Olympics that London will host. The Eye was to come down after the Millennium but the city chose to take a different building down instead.

The next day, we toured the famous Tower of London and saw the captive ravens and their old usage of war implements and torture rack. This was a prison for many people during the years of the monarchy. The Beefeaters were the guards on hand at various points around the Tower.

We also visited the British Film Institute Archives especially the part where they hold viewings.

The next stop was at our hotel for a couple of lectures by the BBC’s Michael Hollingsworth and Forbidden Technologies Film Company’s Steven Streeter. Hollingsworth told us about his career reporting for the BBC and Streeter told us about the film editing innovations his company has brought to the Internet and their video editing software programs.

Our Media group went to a play, August: Onsage County, a theatrical production at the National Theater.We also got a tour of the three stage facility. The night of a tragic comedy was very well produced.

Then it was off to the BBC

Studios.a The tour of one studio offered a look behind the scenes where television and films are produced. Then we visited the BBC World Headquarters, where all the planning for 470 stations are planned and administrated for broadcasting.

We then made a two-hour bus ride to Stonehenge. On frost-covered ground, we viewed this marvelous Wonder of the World. Then we toured Bath, where the Roman Baths are located. The community was out for a festive time. There were magicians and musicians performing in the squares

Then we were off to West Ferry were publishers print ten different kinds of newspapers including The Daily Telegraph, The Star, The Sport and The Financial Times. A James Bond flick was shot there too, adding excitement to the tour of an automated paper print shop with state-of-the-art technology.

Renowned cameraman Colin Skinner gave a lecture at the hotel and the media group participated in the conversation about the similarities and differences between

our society and the UK. Skinner won the prestigious Bath Award.

The Museum of Film was all about film and animation throughout time, with many exhibits including Star Wars, Batman, 007, and even Dr. Seuss.

The Science Museum had various exhibits from space technology to actual aeronautic machinery. These were very enlightening.

The time to explore on your own was also very pleasant, to venture to the local pubs and casino to eat. There is so much to experience on a trip like this and it is highly recommended to take so talk to your advisors for more information.

The British Experience with Media Arts

Buckingham Palace

DID YOU KNOW?

Celebrity Birthdays

Joke of the Week

WDWN Top Ten

COLLEGIANWORDSEARCH

February 1 - Lisa Marie Presley 1968, Lauren Conrad 1986

February 2 - Christie Brinkley 1954, Shakira 1977

February 3 - Morgan Fairchild 1950, Crockett Frizzell 1959

February 4 - Gavin DeGraw 1977, Cam’ron 1976

Febraury 5 - Bobby Brown 1969, Sara Evans 1971

February 6 - Bob Marley 1945, Natalie Cole 1950

February 7 - Steve Nash 1974, Ashton Kutcher 1978

J In a lifetime, an average person walks the equivalent of 5 equators.

J Your nails grow faster in outer space. J The average person makes over 1000 phone calls a

day. J On average there are 180 sesame seeds on a bun of a

BigMac. J Women blink twice as much as men.

WDWN Top 10 Playlist (as of 1.20.09) 1 LOS CAMPESINOS! We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed Arts And

Crafts

2 DAVID BYRNE AND BRIAN ENO Everything That Happens Will Happen Today Todo Mundo-Todomundo

3 MATT DUKE Kingdom Underground Rykodisc

4 BLACKMARKET The Elephant In The Room No Office

5 BANG BANG ECHE Bang! Bang! Eche! [EP] Self-Released

6 ISOBEL CAMPBELL AND MARK LANEGAN Sunday At Devil Dirt Fontanta

7 TEREOPHONICS Decade In The Sun Fontana

8 WEATHER MACHINES Bones And Brains [EP] Tigers Against Crime

9 DILLINGER FOUR Civil War Fat Wreck Chords

10 DEARS Missiles Dangerbird

Check out these songs and more on Win 89 FM!

the opinions of most Americans. Many are hopeful that he can change the state of the country and economy. Some expressed fear that his inexperience is going to drive the United States into more turmoil than it is already facing.

“Obama played it extremely smart on the youth vote. Are people our age as politically charged now as they were prior to Election Day? No. Do they care about the issues they claimed held so much weight? No. They just wanted to prove all the older generation wrong. They wanted to prove that they were responsible and informed, so they flocked to whoever played the cards better and that was Obama,” said CCC freshman Craig Keidel. “Our generation just liked acting like they were informed and then forgetting about it all after the media stopped pushing them. It was a brilliant plan. Because now everything the teens wished/hoped/etc. would happen doesn’t necessarily have to. Because they don’t have the drive to keep pressing the issues, they have too much apathy. Now he’s free to do whatever he wants in office and doesn’t feel the pressure to please those who voted for him because they don’t even care anymore.”

Most young people say they are hopeful, yet weary, of the impending Obama administration. They say they’re looking at him with a new light, skeptical because he has promised so much change. They say they learned through the Bush administration not to get their hopes up too high. At the same time, youth voters still hold Obama on a pedestal in a sense of pride because he is the first president they ever helped to bring to office and they want to believe

CCC Students Torn Over Obamacontinued from front page

that he can change the world, as promised during his campaign.

“It worries me that he messed up on the inauguration itself. I mean, he forgot the words and had to redo the oath. If he can’t even memorize the oath, he might be a little ill prepared to take on the entire country,” said CCC sophomore Dustin Young. “He has exactly what the country needs in a president right now though. He gives people hope, has good people skills, is charismatic, and maintains his composure well. His lack of experience is something to be concerned about though, he had all the right people making up his cabinet, but some of them are a little sketchy, as far as taking money from other countries and tax evasion. I’m just wondering what these people will do with the power they have now.” It seems there is a sense of relief that Bush no longer controls the state of things among CCC students, but also a sense of apprehension at the lack of experience Obama possesses.

“He’ll be a good president, but only if he keeps all the promises he made,” said CCC freshman Scott Weaver.

“He’ll be a good president, but only if he keeps all the promises he made.”

-CCC Freshman Scott Weaver