Tag Archives: Lone Mountain
"Green" Alternatives to Lone Mountain Lawn
Picture water 10 feet deep over the entire expanse of the next lawn you see. That is how much water that lawn will drink in the time of one year. If we add up all the lawns in the city, we’ve got a lake, and each year we decide not to change our lawns we take that lake and just throw it mindlessly on the ground.
Water is a hot commodity around the world and in California. A report by The Bay Area Economic Forum titled “Hetch Hetchy Water and the Bay Area Economy” states that our largest water reserve can supply 239 mgd (million gallons a day) yet it “currently operates 21 mgd above the assured supply capacity.” That is a whole lot of water that we don’t need when you consider that the average California residence uses more than half of its water on landscaping.
San Francisco is full of forward-thinking people, many of whom see the vast Lone Mountain lawn from the windows of the 31 bus each day and cringe just as I do to think of the wasted water. So why does USF showcase such an atrocity all around its front stoop?
“Think about how many years people have gone to school here, and this sort of expectation that the lawn will still be here,” considers Professor Melinda Stone. “When they reminisce they can still see it. What we’re starting to learn in the environmental movement is that people know what’s good, but to get them to shift their daily practices is really hard to do.”
If not lawn, then what? The bright side of the tragic lawn issue is that it’s an easy fix. Simply by eliminating the lawn, the problem disappears. If we replace the lawn with a garden full of flowers and fruit trees water can be saved. Any living landscape requires some water, but not nearly as much as a blanket of grass.
If grass is still the preference, then why not try out a local bluegrass instead. It’d be aesthetically the same, softer to the touch and would require virtually no added water because it is adapted to California’s climate.
Brittany Rowles, recent USF graduate, wrote her senior thesis with a proposal to change the space from the unused lawn into a vibrant and living place for learning and student engagement.
Rowles begins: “First we would take out the lawn, then we would divide the space into quadrants which would be given to different classes that are interested in the space. The garden classes could get a quadrant on which to plant fruit trees while an engineering class could get a quadrant on which to build temporary structures or models…The basic premise is to transform what is now just grass that no one uses, and make it into a space that students can engage in and make their own.”
Wouldn’t you feel much more involved in USF if you had even just a small section of the publicly visible campus which you could truly make your own?
My biggest complaint is that all of the change I see at USF is under the influence of a business motive which asks, “How can we expand, get more students, and make more money?”. I want to see change for the we-need-to-save-our-world motive which asks, “How can we use less and help more?”
Currently USF is going through the process of proposing a whole new development. The aim is to build one more dormitory on Lone Mountain. What will be done, will be done. I would just like to suggest that we can save a lot of water with just a little effort toward change. What do you think USF, are you with me?
Testing, Texting, 1, 2, 3
In the event of an earthquake or major power outage on campus, USF is prepared to send mass alerts to the entire university.
With an emergency notification system in place, the Department of Public Safety (DPS) conducted their spring test of the system last week, on the morning of Feb. 8.
DPS has established two different ways of notifying students. The first is the short message service (SMS/text) strategy, in which DPS contacts all students directly by phone call or text. DPS also sends an email to student USF accounts.
All students who possess a USFconnect account are automatically entered into the Emergency Notification Database. Students can choose to opt out of the database.
The second test, which took place on Thursday, Feb. 10 at noon, involved the citywide siren notification system, which is tested every Tuesday.
Having partnered with the City and County of San Francisco, USF’s Lone Mountain campus is one of nearly 70 buildings throughout the city that contain a siren.
“We have developed our own unique system in the event of a shooter on campus and that would be the only time we use the system,” said Daniel Lawson, the director of DPS. “The city may use it for catastrophic events announcing that there is food or water in a certain location or that help is on the way.”
After the Virginia Tech shooting in April 2007, many universities across the nation took major steps to tighten up their campus security measures, including USF.
The SMS notification was implemented shortly after the these shootings to notify students at USF of any serious emergency that might directly affect the campus. After testing emergency notification methods, DPS felt that the opt-out method, in which all students were entered into the database with the ability to withdraw, proved most effective.
While many students are particular about who possess their phone number, Lawson pointed out that the text message emergency notification method could mean “life or death” for any given student, especially in the event of a shooter on campus.
Eliza Hidalgo, a sophomore transfer student, praised the emergency test systems used by DPS. “Living in San Francisco where there is a lot of activity going on,” she said, “hearing the 12 o’clock siren is definitely a good thing.”
While a student at UC Santa Cruz, Hidalgo recalled a scenario in which the school notified her of a potential threat on campus. Thanks to a message sent to her phone by the university, Hidalgo escaped to a safe place and avoided any potential disaster.
Hidalgo sees no problem with the short message strategy, “as long as the messages are solely used in the event of an emergency.”
Lawson said the university “will not use the text message method as a means of sending out advertisements or asking for alumni support. It will strictly be used for emergency notification only.”
DPS noted that they encountered very few problems during the emergency testing and both practice events ran smoothly.
Editor-in-Chief: Heather Spellacy
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Goodbye Trailers, Hello Masonic Building
The second floor of 281 Masonic is buzzing with the activity of its new occupants—the Performing Arts and Social Justice (PASJ) department. Students are coming by to declare a major or minor, asking about classes or simply checking out the new space.
“We didn’t have half this much activity last year,” said Francesca Rivera, assistant professor and co-coordinator of the music program.
The new school year takes the Performing Arts department from their five-year stay in their trailers on Lone Mountain to a new home on a portion of the second floor in the building that was formerly the College of Professional Studies. The building is now called the Masonic building (abbreviated MA).
The move was a long process that began when the department was moved from the third floor of Lone Mountain to the trailers.
“A number of possibilities were analyzed, but none was ever well suited for a variety of complex reasons,” said Marcelo Camperi, interim dean for the College of Arts and Sciences and professor of physics and astronomy.
Ellen G. Maloney, program assistant, and Rivera discussed what it was like being housed in the trailers.
“From my perspective it wasn’t so bad in the trailer, but what I am grateful to have now is, first of all, to be in a building that is accessible to anyone with a physical disability. Second, to have bathrooms that are right in the building; to not have to do the dash half way across LoMo,” said Rivera.
“Or schedule when to go to the bathroom,” said Maloney. Due to the fact that the trailer was right out in the open and unprotected by concrete structures, the staff had to figure out ways to countersome problems. For Maloney, it was dealing with her office being extremely cold.
“One thing you heard in my office all the time was a small under-the-desk heater that was running all the time,” said Maloney. “There was nothing anybody could do to prevent that we were just right there in the elements.”
The trailers could be a struggle, but being housed in a close contact space with most of the other faculty in the department was beneficial in many ways.
“If you’re close to your colleagues, you learn maybe how they create their syllabus and maybe they created it in a quicker manner and maybe they know a shortcut. And so that makes working a lot easier,” said Maloney.
The trailer had everything the staff needed to do their jobs.
“We sort of had everything that every other office had. It was more that we were hidden behind dumpsters, we weren’t ADA [Americans With Disabilities Act] compliant and there were no bathrooms,” said Rivera.
Rivera and Maloney felt that students and parents reacted more to the idea of trailers than anything.
“I think a lot of students were shocked to hear that you were in a trailer because psychologically that seems like, ‘Why are you in a trailer?’ I think also it sends a message about impermanence,” said Rivera.
“Really the only reason we were there was lack of space, not because the administration didn’t want to support us,” said Rivera. “I think it’s a really nice move and I think if the administration could have done it earlier they would have. I didn’t feel dissed to be in the trailer.”
The process to get the department in a permanent place began when they were moved from Lone Mountain in 2005. Different placement prospects were considered and in the spring it was decided that the department would move to their new location.
“That freed up some space in 281 Masonic. In particular, the area where PA is now located offered us the right number of offices and other needed spaces to fulfill most of the needs of the department. Thus, the decision was made to move them there,” said Camperi.
After five years the move has brought much excitement to the department which is reflected by the buzz and excitement on the floor.
“It’s a beautiful building and we’re very grateful. Little touches like the break room downstairs so that students can sit and hang are nice,” said Rivera.
It is also now in an easier access location for students who are already in the program as well as those who are interested in declaring either a major or minor.
“It’s worse if you’re farther away from the students. So if they want to stop by and pick up literature or posters you’re like six steps closer for that student to come in,” said Maloney.
“We hope that this building becomes a one-stop shop for theatre, dance and music,” said Rivera.
Rivera and Maloney emphasized the help the department received during the move and how thankful they are for everyone’s help and generosity. Among the few they mentioned were Maggie Roberts, the building coordinator, Susan Davidson and her crew, as well as Facilities, who moved everything from their old home to their new one in a matter of weeks.
Editor-in-Chief: Heather Spellacy
Chief Copy Editor: Burke McSwain
News Editor: Ericka Montes
Assassins Game a Killer Time for Lone Mountain Residents
It’s a quiet October morning on the fourth floor of Lone Mountain. The halls are almost empty, with a few cautious students walking to the elevator or wandering groggily to and from the bathroom.
Amy Taylor walks out into the hallway, closing the door of her room behind her. A few minutes pass. A silence hangs over the hall. Suddenly, the sound of frantic footsteps. A piercing shriek. A dull whack. Silence returns.
Taylor hurries back into the room. “Shahed died,” she announces.
“What?” her roommate gasps in shock. “Seriously? When?”
“Oh,” Taylor laughs, realizing her mistake. “I meant in ‘Assassins.’”
Assassins, a live action game that is often popular on college campuses, took over Lone Mountain Hall during October. Senior and resident adviser (RA) Veronica Roberts ran the game, which, she said, she learned at summer camp during high school.
“Residents of Lone Mountain arranged their own games last year, and it was a rousing success,” said Roberts. “I shamelessly admit to copying them.”
There are no official rules for Assassins, and the game varies, but one of the basic tenets is that players are assigned targets, whom they must eliminate, or “kill,” by touching them with a designated “weapon” such as a spoon or water pistol, or, in the case of USF’s version, a pair of socks.
Roberts, taking on the title of Gamemaster, made all the decisions regarding gameplay. “I created the target pattern, made the rules, sent out daily emails reporting “deaths” of the day,” she said. She was also “prepared to settle disputes, but no one had any.”
The rules, outlined on a series of posters put up throughout the dorm and designed by junior and RA Bethany Goodrich, were simple: “You cannot kill someone while they are working. A kill cannot be completed during class. You cannot kill someone while they are in their personal residence hall room.”
Regarding the weapons: “A complete pair of socks must be used. These socks must be clean! These socks may not be the socks you were just wearing.” In addition to this, “Any way in which the target touches a pair of socks counts as a kill, whether you throw it at them, ask them to hold it, or secret it in a place they are likely to touch.”
Each player was given a card with the name of their target player on it. After killing this target, the assassin would take the card belonging to his or her victim, making the target on the card his or her new one.
Amy Taylor, sophomore nursing major and Lone Mountain resident, was one of the participants. “I loved the game! It was really exciting,” she said.
The night before Assassins officially began, envelopes with the names of targets were slipped underneath players’ doors. The game was on.
“During the first few nights the halls were crazy,” said Goodrich. “People were running, hiding, dodging socks, yelling and having a blast. The residents really took the game seriously.”
Over the course of the next week or two, the lives of the residents, particularly the 60 players, began to feel the effects of the game. Gamemaster Roberts grew more “sleep-deprived,” she said, and the players “got a little paranoid.” Some of them, said Goodrich, refused to leave their rooms. Suspicions arose, and measures of caution were taken.
“I know a bunch of people who took their names off their Facebook profiles so that their assassin couldn’t find out who they were or what they looked like, and a bunch of residents took their name decorations off of their door,” said Goodrich.
Taylor said, “I remember on the first day of the game, my friend was paranoid of everyone who walked by with their hands in their pockets and he kept checking his back.”
This paranoia proved infectious. “I became nervous too,” said Taylor. “On our walk back up to Lone Mountain we were wary. I watched people as they came toward me to decide if they were a threat.”
As time went on, the participants soon found that neither friends nor even RAs could be trusted.
“I actually had to kill one of my own residents, from my floor,” said Goodrich. “I had just spoken with her the night before about the game and felt incredibly guilty about having to kill her. I socked her in the elevator and therefore secured my status as worst RA ever.”
Assassins began going in for the kill. Some struck silently, and others engaged in pursuit.
Taylor said, “I made my first kill in Outtakes, which, as the game went on, proved to be a dangerous place for assassins. It wasn’t that dramatic but my heart was racing!”
“There was some kind of chase down in Outtakes around the shelves. It sounded rather Wile E. Coyote to me,” said Roberts.
Taylor’s second kill required more plotting. “She lived on the other side of my floor, and I decided that a good place to kill her would be in her bathroom,” she said. After going in and out of that bathroom a few times, waiting for her prey, Taylor said, “Finally, I saw her and made the kill.”
However, Taylor’s streak didn’t last, and eventually she fell, as did many others. Walking out of the dorm past Outtakes, Taylor saw her assassin coming towards her, texting. As she approached, the girl put her phone down, smiling at her. “I knew I was in trouble,” said Taylor, “but I had no route for escape.”
Taylor froze. “Are you Amy Taylor?” the girl asked.
“I shrieked while trying to shield myself with my bag,” Taylor said. “She showed no mercy.”
The assassinations went on, continuing past Fall Break. Finally, of the original 60 assassins, one remained: sophomore Omar Elmasri.
Elmasri was declared the winner and the Lone Assassin. “Besides the accolades and respect of his peers,” Roberts said, “he won a silver iPod shuffle engraved with his title.”
Life has returned to normal in the hallways of Lone Mountain. However, the game is not entirely over.
“The next game is going to be next semester,” said Roberts. “A lot of people felt that since it is so time-consuming, it would be better spread out.”
During the next game, the place of Gamemaster will be taken by another Lone Mountain RA. The rules may see some minor changes. “I am working on some way of allowing for self-defense kills, which is pretty hard with the card system,” said Roberts. “Also, I am also going to impose a rule that says you must make your first kill within three days of the game starting.”
However, what adjustments are made will be minor, because, as Goodrich said, “The game really went so smoothly that I don’t know if we can do anything to make it much better.”
“I was very pleased with the game. Most people seemed to enjoy it, and we managed to play without destroying campus life too much,” said Roberts. “Even residents who weren’t playing the game got interested as spectators, and many who didn’t play in this round expressed an interest in the next game.”
The exact dates of the next game remain undetermined; however, those who are interested may seek information by contacting [email protected].
