the eyeopener- march 9, 2016
TRANSCRIPT
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
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Volume 49 - Issue 19March 9 2016
theeyeopenercomtheeyeopener
Since 1967
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
amp()+
+-+amp+A new space at Ryerson is giving a
voice to trans and queer artists P9
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
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2 Wednesday Mar 9 2016
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
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BOG elections student candidates pay their way
The winning candidates from FUSE slate featuring Cassandra Myers Victoria Morton and Mariam Nouser COURTESY FARHAN RIAZ
By Al Downham
Student member candidates in Ry-
rsonrsquos 2016 Board of GovernorsBoG) election are spending hun-
dreds on campaign materials out-
of-pocketFUSE mdash including candidates
Victoria Morton Mariam Nouser
and Cassandra Myers mdash was thewinning slate with candidatesarning over 1200 votes Yet
heyrsquore unhappy that BoG electionpolicies can potentially shut outow-income candidates
ldquoThis is ridiculous in my opin-
onrdquo said Nouser a third-yearmechanical engineering student
Nouser is vice-president student
ife at the Ryerson EngineeringStudent Society (RESS) vice-pres-dent external affairs at the Ryer-
on Muslim Studentsrsquo Associationand vice-president administrationat the Ryerson Mechanical Engi-
neering Course UnionMorton mdash the RSU Board of
Directorsrsquo (BoD) senate director
mdash said FUSE spent up to $700on campaign materials includ-ng posters handouts and $150
n chocolate mini eggs switchingrom Cadbury to no-name brando cut costs
ldquoAmong the student leadershipole [the electionrsquos] kind of re-erred to the Wild Westrdquo Morton
aid ldquoA lot of students donrsquot evenonsider running because they
know they canrsquot afford itrdquoMorton is also a Ryerson Stu-
dentsrsquo Union (RSU) vice-president
education candidate for the Im-pact slate and vice-president cor-
porate relations at the RyersonCommunication and Design Soci-ety (RCDS)
ldquoWe arenrsquot expecting any reim-bursementrdquo Morton said ldquoWewere able to get the money we
just wish we didnrsquot have to spendmoney to work for free to makethe school betterrdquo
Morton said slates ldquodidnrsquot makesenserdquo in the BoG election thatcandidates should come from dif-ferent backgrounds However
running as a slate helped poolmoney and voters
BoG Election Policies and Pro-
cedures state funds for posters
can be made available to can-didates at the discretion of the
Election Procedures Committee
There is also no cap on whatstudents can spend on their cam-
paign Morton says the posterfunding service wasnrsquot promotedprior to the election or during theall-candidates meeting
Outside of BoG elections sev-eral student unions and societiesenforce reimbursement and caps
The Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union(RSU) whose election continuesuntil March 9 has a reimburse-
ment process and raised caps forcampaign spending this year
ldquoTherersquos no submission of the
budget but they buy their ma-terials submit their receipts andthen they get reimbursed that
wayrdquo said RSU President Andrea
BartlettRSU campaign expenses cannot
exceed $500 for presidential and
vice-presidential candidates oth-erwise risking eligibility for reim-
bursement and finesStudent societies like the RCDS
have varying reimbursement pro-cesses and caps on campaign
spending Nouser said she will pro-pose a motion to introduce reim-bursements to RESS at its Annual
General Meeting in two weeksldquoEven when [students] cam-
paign it should never be some-
thing thatrsquos going to be a hin-drance to the personrdquo said RCDSPresident Casey Yuen ldquo[Reim-bursement] ensures anyone from
any background or financial back-ground is able to participaterdquo
BoG student member candidate
Angelo Robb spent $50 on posterssaying those who canrsquot afford post-ers ldquowonrsquot necessarily have as good
as a chance as those who canrdquoHowever not all 2016 BoG
election candidates think admin-
istration should reimburse studentspending
ldquoI think itrsquos better we had to pay
out-of-pocketrdquo said BoG electioncandidate Banin Hassan a third-year electrical engineering student
She said she doesnrsquot support RSUcandidates campaigning with lawnsigns photo booths and pancakes
ldquoThatrsquos kind of going to waste inmy opinionrdquo
Hassan said lack of reimburse-
ments motivates students to effi-ciently spend money and time oneffective strategies like candidate-
voter interaction BoG studentmember candidate Jamie Gallo-way for example said she spent
no money on her own campaign
Morton said therersquos too muchpaper wasted in the BoG election
but moving campaigns towards apaperless online strategy coulddecrease student awareness
ldquoIt terms of reality [posters]help in electionsrdquo Morton said
Although they didnrsquot promote
the issue as a campaign pointNouser and Morton said makingthe election accessible to student
candidates is something their slateplans to advocate for
ldquoTwo of us currently strugglewith financesrdquo Nouser said ldquoItrsquos
imperative we push for [reim-bursement or caps] We didnrsquot
want to push out loudrdquoThe winning candidates start
their BoG term Sept 1
Equity centre sponsorship in question
By Nicole Schmidt
A new equity sponsorship package was created last year PHOTO CHRIS BLANCHETTE
A four-month delay in putting out a sponsorship package for the equity service centre has created funding challenges staff say
A delay in sending out sponsor-hip packages has made navigat-
ng funding difficult within the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)quity service centres
In past years individual equityentres have compiled sponsorship
packages to help support staple
vents like Pride and the Reclaim-ng our Bodies and Minds Confer-nce These community sponsorsre often the major source of fund-
ng said equity and campaigns or-anizer Corey Scott This year theentres collaborated to create one
major packageEmployees started working on
he package in August which was
upposed to be sent out last Oc-ober according to RyePRIDE co-
ordinator Daniella Enxuga RSUpresident Andrea Bartlett said thatince this was a new initiativeompiling pictures budget break-
downs and content took time Be-
cause of this the package wasnrsquotsent out until mid-February
ldquoItrsquos really frustrating becausewersquove been working on them sincethe end of last summerrdquo said Enx-
uga ldquoTherersquos really no reason itshould have taken that longrdquo
The package is intended to at-tract both internal and externalcommunity sponsorships But last
month members of the RSU exec-utive team approached the univer-
sity asking for the full amount ofsponsorship that the equity servicecentres requested Ryerson sup-ported 100 per cent of the request
donating $27900
ldquoWe have a long history insupporting RSU initiatives with
regard to equity and inclusionrdquosaid interim president MohamedLachemi ldquoWe feel that creating
welcoming safe space and an ex-ceptional experience is for all stu-dentsrdquo
The university has supportedequity centres in the past butdonations were made in smaller
increments Scott has been work-ing in the equity centres for threeyears and said this is the highestamount of money Ryerson has
annually donated in that timeGiven the date the sponsor-
ship package was released some
equity centre employees haveexpressed concerns with secur-ing external funding for the year
ldquoAny money we get from the
sponsorship packages will nowgo to next yearrsquos budgetrdquo said
Enxuga whose contract ends ear-ly next month
The RSU is still waiting on Ry-
ersonrsquos internal transfer
Scott added that the equitycentres have only been able tosecure half of the external fund-
ing theyrsquove made in years past
Bartlett said shersquos made it clearthat employees are free to reach
out for sponsorship at any pointthroughout the year and that anyincoming sponsorship funds from
the package can be delegated ac-
cordinglyldquoMy hope is that [the equity
centres] will now be able to attract
more external sponsorship so that
they can go to local companiesand actually build partnerships be-
cause thatrsquos how the equity centreswill better sustain themselvesrdquosaid Bartlett
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 3
ldquoItrsquos frustrating
Therersquos really no rea-
son it should have
taken that longrdquo
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 412
Intern ArmyBen ldquoHoursrdquo Hoppe
Victoria ldquoTranscriberdquo SykesHannah ldquoInterviewrdquo Kirijianv
Lidia ldquoSafetyrdquo Foote
ContributorsZeinab ldquobyerdquo Saidoun
Jaclyn ldquoRelax womanrdquo TansilBrennan ldquoBean stalkrdquo Doherty
Sarah ldquoFranklin RooseveltrdquoKricehl
Brenda ldquoHarry Trumanrdquo Molina-Navidad
Dylan ldquoCircle of Liferdquo Freeman-Grist
Amanda ldquoSnipe showrdquo Skrabu-cha
Matt ldquoYour not my manzrdquo AmhaBrittany ldquoNice weather ehrdquo
RosenErica ldquoOn timerdquo SalvalaggioAnnaliese ldquoPolaroid expressrdquo
MeyerMitchell ldquoPhoto shootrdquo Thompson
Sidney ldquoHello againrsquo DrmayMiriam ldquoSee you at karaokerdquo
Valdes CarlettiRobert ldquoBlunderbussrdquo
Mackenzie
Ruty ldquoCalabashrdquo KorotaevLindsay ldquoCollywobblesrdquoChristopher
Playing the part of the AnnoyingTalking Coffee Mug this week are people that walk too slowly onthe sidewalk in big crowds Other people are using the sidewalks too guys And maybe those other peoplehave a place to be
The Eyeopener is Ryersonrsquos largestand only independent student news- paper It is owned and operatedby Rye Eye Publishing Inc a non- profit corporation owned by the stu-dents of Ryerson
Our offices are on the second floorof the Student Campus Centre Youcan reach us at 416-979-5262 attheeyeopenercom or on Twitter attheeyeopener
4 EDITORIAL Wednesday March 9 2016
Just a couple students caring a lot PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
BySeanWetselaar
Letrsquos talk for a moment about
egacy
When I started working at
The Eyeopener we often talked
bout student politics on cam-
pus mdash we may have been the only
ones Conversations about elec-
ions that year were not centred
round who would win mdash that
was a foregone conclusion The
ong-standing tight-knit group of
politically motivated students on
ampus who had been in power
or years were running effectively
unopposed
So disappointed were we by theack of interest from our campus
hat we decided to run our fun
ditor Suraj Singh for president
t wasnrsquot because he could win it
was to make a point about how
ittle the election process mat-
ered
Donrsquot stop campaigningtrsquos up to the campus to keep politics at Ryerson alive
This year the elections wonrsquot
have been called by the time that
this paper comes out (voting ends
Wednesday at 4 pm) but I can
honestly say that I am thrilled tobe able to tell you this
I donrsquot know who is going to
win
This is the second year that this
has perhaps been a true statement
the day election results will be an-
nounced And a big part of that is
thanks to a group of people who
last year were called Transform
RU
I wonrsquot bore you with the details
of exactly how we came to have
two bodies of political thought on
campus rather than one It had a
lot to do with harnessing student
leaders from the student societiesnot just from various levels of the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)
But this new group pledging a
new era of transparency and ac-
countability in the RSU surged
through the elections in 2015 to
displace the Unite slate in a win
Editor-in-Chief Sean ldquoAngry dadrdquo Wetselaar
NewsKeith ldquoMotor City The Gather-
ingrdquo CapstickNicole ldquoCat gif tearsrdquo Schmidt
Al ldquoSiblingrdquo Downham
FeaturesFarnia ldquoExistential crisisrdquo Fekri
Biz and Tech Jacob ldquoFree moviesrdquo Dubeacute
Arts and LifeKaroun ldquoHerbal Essencesrdquo
Chahinian
SportsDevin ldquoTicking time bombrdquo
Jones
CommunitiesAlanna ldquoNeeds more columnsrdquo
Rizza
PhotoAnnie ldquoWent homerdquo Arnone Jake ldquo5 am in Torontordquo
ScottChris ldquoFacetimerdquo Blanchette
FunSkyler ldquoBRB childrenrdquo Ash
MediaRob ldquoPasswords5rdquo Foreman
OnlineIgor ldquoThe championrdquo MagunTagwa ldquoCo-championrdquo Moyo
Lee ldquoCoachrdquo Richardson
General ManagerLiane ldquoToo much caffeinerdquo
McLarty
Advertising ManagerChris ldquoExasperatedrdquo Roberts
Design Director JD ldquoUntil morale improvesrdquo
Mowat
that was even to those of us fol-
lowing the process closely simply
stunning
Now Irsquom not going to get into
whether or not everything thatgroup has done has been perfect
Irsquom not going to tell you who
you should vote for with the few
hours you have left to do so But
there is one undeniable truth to
this whole thing mdash the competi-
tion that Transform (now running
as Impact) brought to campus has
been a big deal One that itrsquos hard
for me to accurately illustrate in
this short editorial
Over the years Irsquove been at this
paper Irsquove heard all the stereo-
types about Ryerson Itrsquos a com-
muter campus students come in
for class and they go home No-body really cares what happens
outside of those hours It may be
young vibrant and diverse but it
is utterly apathetic
If you go here yoursquove probably
heard all these arguments But
herersquos the thing mdash you can tell
anyone who tries to make that ar-
gument that clearly they havenrsquot
been paying attention Because
itrsquos bullshit
Ryerson may not have as long
a history of political involve-
ment on campus as U of T or
other older schools But if noth-
ing else in the last couple of years
wersquove proven that a large part ofcampus cares very deeply As as
a cynical old fogey who has prob-
ably paid attention to this whole
thing for far too long I can say
that this warms my heart
So why am I telling you all this
Why does it matter to you wheth-
er Ryerson has been far more apa-
thetic in the past or how the two
slates running in this yearrsquos elec-
tion came to be
Because we should all see
the days of old as a caution-
ary tale There wonrsquot always
be people on campus who re-
member those days and itrsquos up toall of you to make sure we donrsquot
have to
So get involved Join a club
chat up your student society or
course union and pay attention
to the student leaders who are
responsible for handling seri-
ous budgets made up largely of
student money These people rep-
resent and work for you
Maybe you want to be one
of them Maybe you donrsquot But
never ever forget that whether or
not yoursquoll be at Ryerson forever
these people matter And so does
the weird fun messed-up com-
munity wersquove built for ourselves
here
So keep on giving a damn
Ryerson And thanks to all of you
who have gotten us here
oo
elten amlll
P E E L
TAKE THESURVEY
$amp()+
-amp-$+01
Are you a 1st or 2nd generation
immigrant living in Peel Region
$amp () ()+amp ( $ amp-amp$
-)0 1 ampamp23amp $ 456 72 $08
$ amp ()$+) -)01
amp( ))+ -) 012 33)45163
655 Bay Street Unit 7(Corner of Bay amp Elm - Concourse Level)
416 595 1200bayelmdentalcom
FREE IN-OFFICEWHITENING WITH X RAYS CLEANINGamp NEW PATIENTEXAM
STUDENTDISCOUNTS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 512
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 5
RCDS VP finance is resigning
NewsBriefs
Former Ryerson Communication and Design Society (RCDS) vice-
president finance Luke Villemaire is stepping down from his positionfor mental health reasons The Eyeopener covered Villemaire when$20000 was approved for Goliath his upcoming film by RCDS
The Scope is ready to broadcast
The Scope Ryersonrsquos new campus radio station is ready to hit the air-
waves by the end of the month The station began their testing on Feb29 and is planning itrsquos official launch for March 31 The Scope will bebroadcasting at 1280 am on your radio dial
Transformed RUTransform Ryerson entered last yearrsquos Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU) elections as thefirst opposition group since 2011 Their slate founded on promoting transparencyunding student groups and fighting unpaid internships dominated polls Itrsquos been a
year of ups and downs mdash herersquos how Transform describes the state of the union
PHOTOS COURTESY ANAMATIS PRODUCTIONS
PresidentAndrea Bartlett
VP EducationCormac McGee
VP EquityRabia Idrees
VP Operations
Obaid Ullah
VP Student Life
Harman Singh
Achievements
In January McGee launched a peti-tion against unpaid internships thatgot more than 2500 signatures
The RSU met with the OntarioMinistry of Training Colleges andUniversities to discuss a possible
long-term investment ldquoThe biggestchallenge was getting the provinceto take us seriouslyrdquo said McGee
ldquoThe next step is to keep follow-ing up the more ears this gets inthe more likely something will hap-penrdquo
CriticismMartin Fox from the opposing RU
Connected slate has criticized theconsistency of lobbying for unpaidinternships ldquoIt wasnrsquot a sustainedeffort perseverance is keyrdquo he
said in a previous interview
AchievementsA focus on the topic of men-
tal health has been at the fore-front of student issues for yearsLast semester the RSU launched an
online tool mdash My Wellness portalmdash as a way to provide additionalsupport to students 2016 also
marked the first mental health lead-ership awards mdash a $30000 schol-arship initiative put on by the RSU
CriticismIdrees noted that equity initiativesare always relevant and that the
RSU could have done more out-reach beyond fall and winter ori-
entation Susanne Nyaga of RUConnected has criticized a lack offocus on mental health initiativessaying that there should be sup-
port year-round
Achievements
This year has seen a shift towardmore services online including
the health and dental opt-out pro-cess the wellness portal for mentalhealth and most recently online
voting mdash which Ullah said was hisbiggest accomplishment
Criticism
The current RSU has been regu-larly criticized by RU Connected
for a lack of transparency sur-rounding spending and budgets
Ullah said communicating withthe membership could be im-proved next year
Achievements
Singh played a key role in arrang-ing the 2015 Parade and Concertfeaturing Drake and Future mdash an
event that had people talking aboutRyerson for weeks He called itldquoone of the most successful events
in recent Ryerson historyrdquoCriticism
Rumana Fardaush of RU Con-
nected has said the concert was
not accessible At the RSU debateSingh was criticized for a less active
second semester Singh added thathe wished everyone was wearing ablue shirt for the concert
AchievementsBartlett said her team has accom-plished several things that have
been neglected since she started asstudent at Ryerson including a
hift to more online services an
mped up Parade and Concert andmproved student engagement
In September the RSU began a
25000 rebranding campaign withhe goal to differentiate the union
Part of the spending went towards
new logo and the $5000 signhat sits outside the student learn-ng centre ldquoThe RSU did need a bit
of a facelift to welcome itself into
he 21st centuryrdquo said BartlettHistorically the logo did change
very decade hellip but we were trans-parent about that this yearrdquo
Criticism
Last semester saw the eliminationof the executive director of com-munications and outreach union-
zed position in favour of a neweneral manager resulting in twoayoffs Although Bartlett standsbehind the decision she said she
wished the RSU had been moreransparent about the process Atatement released by the RSU ear-
ier this year said an assessment
done by a third party found thatestructuring would be more sus-
ainable Deficits have plagued theorganization for years and in a re-ent blog post on Medium Bartlett
wrote about $90000 in allegedlytolen funds ldquoI had all this stag-ering information that was diffi-
ult for me to deal with at the timehellip we were dealing with financialssues and finding out the difficult
eality of the organizationrdquo saidBartlett Members of RU Con-nected criticized the layoffs as be-
ng ldquounjustrdquo and said the decisioneflected poorly on the RSU
Going forward
Bartlett cautioned the RSU shouldnever be run like a business ldquoIpray to god that the next president
doesnrsquot have that mentality thatmentality is why wersquore in this messrdquo
amp()+ ( )-) -01()- 2-+-) 33345+(1+4(
$ ()(++ -(+ 0
0-1 (01 22 amp ( () +-0123 45 673812
3456789778lt9
)-)+ 2-+-) 33341())(15()67)-)4(
=$ ()(++ -(+ 0
$ gt++(++ A(B-A-B C(00 -(+
0-1 (01 229 amp ( ()37017lt =gt 2ltlt60123 45 673812
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) =-2+-)5 0 ))(3(4
A01 (01 2D amp ( + +1lt00123 45 lt737lt 601lt03
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) gtgt(+) =-2+-)54
I - -
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 612
6 Wednesday March 9 2016FEATURES
n a snowy grey Thursday distinct among
the clatter and slush of Eric Palin Hall is the
hushed peace of Cyndy Baskinrsquos office Itrsquos
quiet with a snug carpet and a tidy desk
All around the room are symbols of Indigenous culture
eathers artwork and displays that show her roots
Baskin is of the Mirsquokmaq and Celtic Nations mdash she
s of the Fish Clan and is known in those circles as The
Woman Who Passes on Teachings Fitting then that she
works as a social work professor at Ryerson where she
s also the academic coordinator of the Chang Schoolrsquosertificate on Indigenous knowledges and experiences in
Canada
While over the years she has been successful in help-
ng develop curriculums for various programs on cam-
us (social work midwifery early childhood education
utrition public administration) she notes that one of
he major hurdles in her work is the inflexibility of cer-
ain faculties whose coordinators have trouble justifying
pending resources on increasing Aboriginal content in
heir programs
ldquoItrsquos not easy to get a lot of the schools or programs
n campus to buy into this It takes a long time building
elationships with peoplerdquo Baskin says adding that the
ack of unity across the faculties makes pushing for more
Aboriginal content difficult
In September of this year members of Ryersonrsquos com-
munity looked to correct that by publishing A Call to
Reconciliation at Ryerson mdash a letter specific to the uni-
ersity asking administration to confirm the intended ac-
ions outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commis-
ion (TRC) Among other things they urged Ryerson to
support current students and work to increase the num-
ber of Aboriginal student applicants
But hard as it may be itrsquos become more crucial than
ever to encourage mdash and expect mdash that change In June
2015 after seven years of work the TRC (a holistic gov-
ernment response to the abuse and toxic legacy of Cana-
dian residential school systems) published a call to action
in part addressing post-secondary institutions Some of
these actions concentrate on support and reconciliation
mdash others are more academic calling on the government
to provide ldquoadequate funding to end the backlog of First
Nations students seeking a post-secondary educationrdquo
and infuse more Indigenous knowledge in every end of
this post-secondary education regardless of discipline
As chair of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal Education Council (a
board of students staff and faculty established in 2010
to encourage engagement and support of Aboriginal stu-
dents) Baskin has led the charge on this factor opening
up talks with faculties not traditionally associated with In-
digenous knowledge Her work ranges from the straight-
forward mdash the development of more Aboriginal teachings
in social work and midwifery mdash to the complex as in the
multi-year talks with the journalism school which is the
only program at Ryerson so far that has agreed to offer
a new course (on media and Aboriginal understanding)
next year ldquoI think [others] are just nervous because they
really donrsquot know much of anything and theyrsquore afraid to
admit itrdquo Baskin says ldquoThey donrsquot know where to startrdquo
obbie Nakoocheersquos dream graduate programwill thrust her head-first into Ontariorsquos park-
land Nakoochee a First Nations Cree whose
family originates from the lands surrounding
Fort Albany Ont received her admission to a two-year
term at Guelph Now in her final year at Ryerson she
wants to apply her environment and urban sustainability
degree to the intersection of Aboriginal communities and
Ontariorsquos park systems
Although she had a hunch that shersquod get the spot she
was still flooded with relief when she noticed the funding
package was larger than the one shersquod already received
from York Yet as her eyes paced over the details of the
congratulatory email she couldnrsquot help feeling a pang of
guilt mdash the same feeling that shersquod had upon admission to
Ryerson six years ago
ldquoI feel like Irsquom categorized as separate from the regular
student bodyrdquo explains Nakoochee Sometimes when she
succeeds at something she feels her efforts arenrsquot the most
important mdash but that her status as an included ldquoAborigi-
nal womanrdquo is what matters ldquoItrsquos almost like Irsquom just
the token nativerdquo
ldquoI FEEL LIKE IrsquoM
CATEGORIZED AS
SEPARATE FROM THE
REGULAR STUDENT BODY
ITrsquoS ALMOST LIKE IrsquoM
JUST THE TOKEN NATIVErdquo
$
amp RECONCILIATION
amp()
1047297 nding
at
ILLUSTRATION FARNIA FEKRI PHOTO COURTESY RASS
BY DYLAN FREEMAN-GRIST
AND FARNIA FEKRI
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 212
2 Wednesday Mar 9 2016
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
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BOG elections student candidates pay their way
The winning candidates from FUSE slate featuring Cassandra Myers Victoria Morton and Mariam Nouser COURTESY FARHAN RIAZ
By Al Downham
Student member candidates in Ry-
rsonrsquos 2016 Board of GovernorsBoG) election are spending hun-
dreds on campaign materials out-
of-pocketFUSE mdash including candidates
Victoria Morton Mariam Nouser
and Cassandra Myers mdash was thewinning slate with candidatesarning over 1200 votes Yet
heyrsquore unhappy that BoG electionpolicies can potentially shut outow-income candidates
ldquoThis is ridiculous in my opin-
onrdquo said Nouser a third-yearmechanical engineering student
Nouser is vice-president student
ife at the Ryerson EngineeringStudent Society (RESS) vice-pres-dent external affairs at the Ryer-
on Muslim Studentsrsquo Associationand vice-president administrationat the Ryerson Mechanical Engi-
neering Course UnionMorton mdash the RSU Board of
Directorsrsquo (BoD) senate director
mdash said FUSE spent up to $700on campaign materials includ-ng posters handouts and $150
n chocolate mini eggs switchingrom Cadbury to no-name brando cut costs
ldquoAmong the student leadershipole [the electionrsquos] kind of re-erred to the Wild Westrdquo Morton
aid ldquoA lot of students donrsquot evenonsider running because they
know they canrsquot afford itrdquoMorton is also a Ryerson Stu-
dentsrsquo Union (RSU) vice-president
education candidate for the Im-pact slate and vice-president cor-
porate relations at the RyersonCommunication and Design Soci-ety (RCDS)
ldquoWe arenrsquot expecting any reim-bursementrdquo Morton said ldquoWewere able to get the money we
just wish we didnrsquot have to spendmoney to work for free to makethe school betterrdquo
Morton said slates ldquodidnrsquot makesenserdquo in the BoG election thatcandidates should come from dif-ferent backgrounds However
running as a slate helped poolmoney and voters
BoG Election Policies and Pro-
cedures state funds for posters
can be made available to can-didates at the discretion of the
Election Procedures Committee
There is also no cap on whatstudents can spend on their cam-
paign Morton says the posterfunding service wasnrsquot promotedprior to the election or during theall-candidates meeting
Outside of BoG elections sev-eral student unions and societiesenforce reimbursement and caps
The Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union(RSU) whose election continuesuntil March 9 has a reimburse-
ment process and raised caps forcampaign spending this year
ldquoTherersquos no submission of the
budget but they buy their ma-terials submit their receipts andthen they get reimbursed that
wayrdquo said RSU President Andrea
BartlettRSU campaign expenses cannot
exceed $500 for presidential and
vice-presidential candidates oth-erwise risking eligibility for reim-
bursement and finesStudent societies like the RCDS
have varying reimbursement pro-cesses and caps on campaign
spending Nouser said she will pro-pose a motion to introduce reim-bursements to RESS at its Annual
General Meeting in two weeksldquoEven when [students] cam-
paign it should never be some-
thing thatrsquos going to be a hin-drance to the personrdquo said RCDSPresident Casey Yuen ldquo[Reim-bursement] ensures anyone from
any background or financial back-ground is able to participaterdquo
BoG student member candidate
Angelo Robb spent $50 on posterssaying those who canrsquot afford post-ers ldquowonrsquot necessarily have as good
as a chance as those who canrdquoHowever not all 2016 BoG
election candidates think admin-
istration should reimburse studentspending
ldquoI think itrsquos better we had to pay
out-of-pocketrdquo said BoG electioncandidate Banin Hassan a third-year electrical engineering student
She said she doesnrsquot support RSUcandidates campaigning with lawnsigns photo booths and pancakes
ldquoThatrsquos kind of going to waste inmy opinionrdquo
Hassan said lack of reimburse-
ments motivates students to effi-ciently spend money and time oneffective strategies like candidate-
voter interaction BoG studentmember candidate Jamie Gallo-way for example said she spent
no money on her own campaign
Morton said therersquos too muchpaper wasted in the BoG election
but moving campaigns towards apaperless online strategy coulddecrease student awareness
ldquoIt terms of reality [posters]help in electionsrdquo Morton said
Although they didnrsquot promote
the issue as a campaign pointNouser and Morton said makingthe election accessible to student
candidates is something their slateplans to advocate for
ldquoTwo of us currently strugglewith financesrdquo Nouser said ldquoItrsquos
imperative we push for [reim-bursement or caps] We didnrsquot
want to push out loudrdquoThe winning candidates start
their BoG term Sept 1
Equity centre sponsorship in question
By Nicole Schmidt
A new equity sponsorship package was created last year PHOTO CHRIS BLANCHETTE
A four-month delay in putting out a sponsorship package for the equity service centre has created funding challenges staff say
A delay in sending out sponsor-hip packages has made navigat-
ng funding difficult within the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)quity service centres
In past years individual equityentres have compiled sponsorship
packages to help support staple
vents like Pride and the Reclaim-ng our Bodies and Minds Confer-nce These community sponsorsre often the major source of fund-
ng said equity and campaigns or-anizer Corey Scott This year theentres collaborated to create one
major packageEmployees started working on
he package in August which was
upposed to be sent out last Oc-ober according to RyePRIDE co-
ordinator Daniella Enxuga RSUpresident Andrea Bartlett said thatince this was a new initiativeompiling pictures budget break-
downs and content took time Be-
cause of this the package wasnrsquotsent out until mid-February
ldquoItrsquos really frustrating becausewersquove been working on them sincethe end of last summerrdquo said Enx-
uga ldquoTherersquos really no reason itshould have taken that longrdquo
The package is intended to at-tract both internal and externalcommunity sponsorships But last
month members of the RSU exec-utive team approached the univer-
sity asking for the full amount ofsponsorship that the equity servicecentres requested Ryerson sup-ported 100 per cent of the request
donating $27900
ldquoWe have a long history insupporting RSU initiatives with
regard to equity and inclusionrdquosaid interim president MohamedLachemi ldquoWe feel that creating
welcoming safe space and an ex-ceptional experience is for all stu-dentsrdquo
The university has supportedequity centres in the past butdonations were made in smaller
increments Scott has been work-ing in the equity centres for threeyears and said this is the highestamount of money Ryerson has
annually donated in that timeGiven the date the sponsor-
ship package was released some
equity centre employees haveexpressed concerns with secur-ing external funding for the year
ldquoAny money we get from the
sponsorship packages will nowgo to next yearrsquos budgetrdquo said
Enxuga whose contract ends ear-ly next month
The RSU is still waiting on Ry-
ersonrsquos internal transfer
Scott added that the equitycentres have only been able tosecure half of the external fund-
ing theyrsquove made in years past
Bartlett said shersquos made it clearthat employees are free to reach
out for sponsorship at any pointthroughout the year and that anyincoming sponsorship funds from
the package can be delegated ac-
cordinglyldquoMy hope is that [the equity
centres] will now be able to attract
more external sponsorship so that
they can go to local companiesand actually build partnerships be-
cause thatrsquos how the equity centreswill better sustain themselvesrdquosaid Bartlett
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 3
ldquoItrsquos frustrating
Therersquos really no rea-
son it should have
taken that longrdquo
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 412
Intern ArmyBen ldquoHoursrdquo Hoppe
Victoria ldquoTranscriberdquo SykesHannah ldquoInterviewrdquo Kirijianv
Lidia ldquoSafetyrdquo Foote
ContributorsZeinab ldquobyerdquo Saidoun
Jaclyn ldquoRelax womanrdquo TansilBrennan ldquoBean stalkrdquo Doherty
Sarah ldquoFranklin RooseveltrdquoKricehl
Brenda ldquoHarry Trumanrdquo Molina-Navidad
Dylan ldquoCircle of Liferdquo Freeman-Grist
Amanda ldquoSnipe showrdquo Skrabu-cha
Matt ldquoYour not my manzrdquo AmhaBrittany ldquoNice weather ehrdquo
RosenErica ldquoOn timerdquo SalvalaggioAnnaliese ldquoPolaroid expressrdquo
MeyerMitchell ldquoPhoto shootrdquo Thompson
Sidney ldquoHello againrsquo DrmayMiriam ldquoSee you at karaokerdquo
Valdes CarlettiRobert ldquoBlunderbussrdquo
Mackenzie
Ruty ldquoCalabashrdquo KorotaevLindsay ldquoCollywobblesrdquoChristopher
Playing the part of the AnnoyingTalking Coffee Mug this week are people that walk too slowly onthe sidewalk in big crowds Other people are using the sidewalks too guys And maybe those other peoplehave a place to be
The Eyeopener is Ryersonrsquos largestand only independent student news- paper It is owned and operatedby Rye Eye Publishing Inc a non- profit corporation owned by the stu-dents of Ryerson
Our offices are on the second floorof the Student Campus Centre Youcan reach us at 416-979-5262 attheeyeopenercom or on Twitter attheeyeopener
4 EDITORIAL Wednesday March 9 2016
Just a couple students caring a lot PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
BySeanWetselaar
Letrsquos talk for a moment about
egacy
When I started working at
The Eyeopener we often talked
bout student politics on cam-
pus mdash we may have been the only
ones Conversations about elec-
ions that year were not centred
round who would win mdash that
was a foregone conclusion The
ong-standing tight-knit group of
politically motivated students on
ampus who had been in power
or years were running effectively
unopposed
So disappointed were we by theack of interest from our campus
hat we decided to run our fun
ditor Suraj Singh for president
t wasnrsquot because he could win it
was to make a point about how
ittle the election process mat-
ered
Donrsquot stop campaigningtrsquos up to the campus to keep politics at Ryerson alive
This year the elections wonrsquot
have been called by the time that
this paper comes out (voting ends
Wednesday at 4 pm) but I can
honestly say that I am thrilled tobe able to tell you this
I donrsquot know who is going to
win
This is the second year that this
has perhaps been a true statement
the day election results will be an-
nounced And a big part of that is
thanks to a group of people who
last year were called Transform
RU
I wonrsquot bore you with the details
of exactly how we came to have
two bodies of political thought on
campus rather than one It had a
lot to do with harnessing student
leaders from the student societiesnot just from various levels of the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)
But this new group pledging a
new era of transparency and ac-
countability in the RSU surged
through the elections in 2015 to
displace the Unite slate in a win
Editor-in-Chief Sean ldquoAngry dadrdquo Wetselaar
NewsKeith ldquoMotor City The Gather-
ingrdquo CapstickNicole ldquoCat gif tearsrdquo Schmidt
Al ldquoSiblingrdquo Downham
FeaturesFarnia ldquoExistential crisisrdquo Fekri
Biz and Tech Jacob ldquoFree moviesrdquo Dubeacute
Arts and LifeKaroun ldquoHerbal Essencesrdquo
Chahinian
SportsDevin ldquoTicking time bombrdquo
Jones
CommunitiesAlanna ldquoNeeds more columnsrdquo
Rizza
PhotoAnnie ldquoWent homerdquo Arnone Jake ldquo5 am in Torontordquo
ScottChris ldquoFacetimerdquo Blanchette
FunSkyler ldquoBRB childrenrdquo Ash
MediaRob ldquoPasswords5rdquo Foreman
OnlineIgor ldquoThe championrdquo MagunTagwa ldquoCo-championrdquo Moyo
Lee ldquoCoachrdquo Richardson
General ManagerLiane ldquoToo much caffeinerdquo
McLarty
Advertising ManagerChris ldquoExasperatedrdquo Roberts
Design Director JD ldquoUntil morale improvesrdquo
Mowat
that was even to those of us fol-
lowing the process closely simply
stunning
Now Irsquom not going to get into
whether or not everything thatgroup has done has been perfect
Irsquom not going to tell you who
you should vote for with the few
hours you have left to do so But
there is one undeniable truth to
this whole thing mdash the competi-
tion that Transform (now running
as Impact) brought to campus has
been a big deal One that itrsquos hard
for me to accurately illustrate in
this short editorial
Over the years Irsquove been at this
paper Irsquove heard all the stereo-
types about Ryerson Itrsquos a com-
muter campus students come in
for class and they go home No-body really cares what happens
outside of those hours It may be
young vibrant and diverse but it
is utterly apathetic
If you go here yoursquove probably
heard all these arguments But
herersquos the thing mdash you can tell
anyone who tries to make that ar-
gument that clearly they havenrsquot
been paying attention Because
itrsquos bullshit
Ryerson may not have as long
a history of political involve-
ment on campus as U of T or
other older schools But if noth-
ing else in the last couple of years
wersquove proven that a large part ofcampus cares very deeply As as
a cynical old fogey who has prob-
ably paid attention to this whole
thing for far too long I can say
that this warms my heart
So why am I telling you all this
Why does it matter to you wheth-
er Ryerson has been far more apa-
thetic in the past or how the two
slates running in this yearrsquos elec-
tion came to be
Because we should all see
the days of old as a caution-
ary tale There wonrsquot always
be people on campus who re-
member those days and itrsquos up toall of you to make sure we donrsquot
have to
So get involved Join a club
chat up your student society or
course union and pay attention
to the student leaders who are
responsible for handling seri-
ous budgets made up largely of
student money These people rep-
resent and work for you
Maybe you want to be one
of them Maybe you donrsquot But
never ever forget that whether or
not yoursquoll be at Ryerson forever
these people matter And so does
the weird fun messed-up com-
munity wersquove built for ourselves
here
So keep on giving a damn
Ryerson And thanks to all of you
who have gotten us here
oo
elten amlll
P E E L
TAKE THESURVEY
$amp()+
-amp-$+01
Are you a 1st or 2nd generation
immigrant living in Peel Region
$amp () ()+amp ( $ amp-amp$
-)0 1 ampamp23amp $ 456 72 $08
$ amp ()$+) -)01
amp( ))+ -) 012 33)45163
655 Bay Street Unit 7(Corner of Bay amp Elm - Concourse Level)
416 595 1200bayelmdentalcom
FREE IN-OFFICEWHITENING WITH X RAYS CLEANINGamp NEW PATIENTEXAM
STUDENTDISCOUNTS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 512
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 5
RCDS VP finance is resigning
NewsBriefs
Former Ryerson Communication and Design Society (RCDS) vice-
president finance Luke Villemaire is stepping down from his positionfor mental health reasons The Eyeopener covered Villemaire when$20000 was approved for Goliath his upcoming film by RCDS
The Scope is ready to broadcast
The Scope Ryersonrsquos new campus radio station is ready to hit the air-
waves by the end of the month The station began their testing on Feb29 and is planning itrsquos official launch for March 31 The Scope will bebroadcasting at 1280 am on your radio dial
Transformed RUTransform Ryerson entered last yearrsquos Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU) elections as thefirst opposition group since 2011 Their slate founded on promoting transparencyunding student groups and fighting unpaid internships dominated polls Itrsquos been a
year of ups and downs mdash herersquos how Transform describes the state of the union
PHOTOS COURTESY ANAMATIS PRODUCTIONS
PresidentAndrea Bartlett
VP EducationCormac McGee
VP EquityRabia Idrees
VP Operations
Obaid Ullah
VP Student Life
Harman Singh
Achievements
In January McGee launched a peti-tion against unpaid internships thatgot more than 2500 signatures
The RSU met with the OntarioMinistry of Training Colleges andUniversities to discuss a possible
long-term investment ldquoThe biggestchallenge was getting the provinceto take us seriouslyrdquo said McGee
ldquoThe next step is to keep follow-ing up the more ears this gets inthe more likely something will hap-penrdquo
CriticismMartin Fox from the opposing RU
Connected slate has criticized theconsistency of lobbying for unpaidinternships ldquoIt wasnrsquot a sustainedeffort perseverance is keyrdquo he
said in a previous interview
AchievementsA focus on the topic of men-
tal health has been at the fore-front of student issues for yearsLast semester the RSU launched an
online tool mdash My Wellness portalmdash as a way to provide additionalsupport to students 2016 also
marked the first mental health lead-ership awards mdash a $30000 schol-arship initiative put on by the RSU
CriticismIdrees noted that equity initiativesare always relevant and that the
RSU could have done more out-reach beyond fall and winter ori-
entation Susanne Nyaga of RUConnected has criticized a lack offocus on mental health initiativessaying that there should be sup-
port year-round
Achievements
This year has seen a shift towardmore services online including
the health and dental opt-out pro-cess the wellness portal for mentalhealth and most recently online
voting mdash which Ullah said was hisbiggest accomplishment
Criticism
The current RSU has been regu-larly criticized by RU Connected
for a lack of transparency sur-rounding spending and budgets
Ullah said communicating withthe membership could be im-proved next year
Achievements
Singh played a key role in arrang-ing the 2015 Parade and Concertfeaturing Drake and Future mdash an
event that had people talking aboutRyerson for weeks He called itldquoone of the most successful events
in recent Ryerson historyrdquoCriticism
Rumana Fardaush of RU Con-
nected has said the concert was
not accessible At the RSU debateSingh was criticized for a less active
second semester Singh added thathe wished everyone was wearing ablue shirt for the concert
AchievementsBartlett said her team has accom-plished several things that have
been neglected since she started asstudent at Ryerson including a
hift to more online services an
mped up Parade and Concert andmproved student engagement
In September the RSU began a
25000 rebranding campaign withhe goal to differentiate the union
Part of the spending went towards
new logo and the $5000 signhat sits outside the student learn-ng centre ldquoThe RSU did need a bit
of a facelift to welcome itself into
he 21st centuryrdquo said BartlettHistorically the logo did change
very decade hellip but we were trans-parent about that this yearrdquo
Criticism
Last semester saw the eliminationof the executive director of com-munications and outreach union-
zed position in favour of a neweneral manager resulting in twoayoffs Although Bartlett standsbehind the decision she said she
wished the RSU had been moreransparent about the process Atatement released by the RSU ear-
ier this year said an assessment
done by a third party found thatestructuring would be more sus-
ainable Deficits have plagued theorganization for years and in a re-ent blog post on Medium Bartlett
wrote about $90000 in allegedlytolen funds ldquoI had all this stag-ering information that was diffi-
ult for me to deal with at the timehellip we were dealing with financialssues and finding out the difficult
eality of the organizationrdquo saidBartlett Members of RU Con-nected criticized the layoffs as be-
ng ldquounjustrdquo and said the decisioneflected poorly on the RSU
Going forward
Bartlett cautioned the RSU shouldnever be run like a business ldquoIpray to god that the next president
doesnrsquot have that mentality thatmentality is why wersquore in this messrdquo
amp()+ ( )-) -01()- 2-+-) 33345+(1+4(
$ ()(++ -(+ 0
0-1 (01 22 amp ( () +-0123 45 673812
3456789778lt9
)-)+ 2-+-) 33341())(15()67)-)4(
=$ ()(++ -(+ 0
$ gt++(++ A(B-A-B C(00 -(+
0-1 (01 229 amp ( ()37017lt =gt 2ltlt60123 45 673812
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) =-2+-)5 0 ))(3(4
A01 (01 2D amp ( + +1lt00123 45 lt737lt 601lt03
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) gtgt(+) =-2+-)54
I - -
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 612
6 Wednesday March 9 2016FEATURES
n a snowy grey Thursday distinct among
the clatter and slush of Eric Palin Hall is the
hushed peace of Cyndy Baskinrsquos office Itrsquos
quiet with a snug carpet and a tidy desk
All around the room are symbols of Indigenous culture
eathers artwork and displays that show her roots
Baskin is of the Mirsquokmaq and Celtic Nations mdash she
s of the Fish Clan and is known in those circles as The
Woman Who Passes on Teachings Fitting then that she
works as a social work professor at Ryerson where she
s also the academic coordinator of the Chang Schoolrsquosertificate on Indigenous knowledges and experiences in
Canada
While over the years she has been successful in help-
ng develop curriculums for various programs on cam-
us (social work midwifery early childhood education
utrition public administration) she notes that one of
he major hurdles in her work is the inflexibility of cer-
ain faculties whose coordinators have trouble justifying
pending resources on increasing Aboriginal content in
heir programs
ldquoItrsquos not easy to get a lot of the schools or programs
n campus to buy into this It takes a long time building
elationships with peoplerdquo Baskin says adding that the
ack of unity across the faculties makes pushing for more
Aboriginal content difficult
In September of this year members of Ryersonrsquos com-
munity looked to correct that by publishing A Call to
Reconciliation at Ryerson mdash a letter specific to the uni-
ersity asking administration to confirm the intended ac-
ions outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commis-
ion (TRC) Among other things they urged Ryerson to
support current students and work to increase the num-
ber of Aboriginal student applicants
But hard as it may be itrsquos become more crucial than
ever to encourage mdash and expect mdash that change In June
2015 after seven years of work the TRC (a holistic gov-
ernment response to the abuse and toxic legacy of Cana-
dian residential school systems) published a call to action
in part addressing post-secondary institutions Some of
these actions concentrate on support and reconciliation
mdash others are more academic calling on the government
to provide ldquoadequate funding to end the backlog of First
Nations students seeking a post-secondary educationrdquo
and infuse more Indigenous knowledge in every end of
this post-secondary education regardless of discipline
As chair of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal Education Council (a
board of students staff and faculty established in 2010
to encourage engagement and support of Aboriginal stu-
dents) Baskin has led the charge on this factor opening
up talks with faculties not traditionally associated with In-
digenous knowledge Her work ranges from the straight-
forward mdash the development of more Aboriginal teachings
in social work and midwifery mdash to the complex as in the
multi-year talks with the journalism school which is the
only program at Ryerson so far that has agreed to offer
a new course (on media and Aboriginal understanding)
next year ldquoI think [others] are just nervous because they
really donrsquot know much of anything and theyrsquore afraid to
admit itrdquo Baskin says ldquoThey donrsquot know where to startrdquo
obbie Nakoocheersquos dream graduate programwill thrust her head-first into Ontariorsquos park-
land Nakoochee a First Nations Cree whose
family originates from the lands surrounding
Fort Albany Ont received her admission to a two-year
term at Guelph Now in her final year at Ryerson she
wants to apply her environment and urban sustainability
degree to the intersection of Aboriginal communities and
Ontariorsquos park systems
Although she had a hunch that shersquod get the spot she
was still flooded with relief when she noticed the funding
package was larger than the one shersquod already received
from York Yet as her eyes paced over the details of the
congratulatory email she couldnrsquot help feeling a pang of
guilt mdash the same feeling that shersquod had upon admission to
Ryerson six years ago
ldquoI feel like Irsquom categorized as separate from the regular
student bodyrdquo explains Nakoochee Sometimes when she
succeeds at something she feels her efforts arenrsquot the most
important mdash but that her status as an included ldquoAborigi-
nal womanrdquo is what matters ldquoItrsquos almost like Irsquom just
the token nativerdquo
ldquoI FEEL LIKE IrsquoM
CATEGORIZED AS
SEPARATE FROM THE
REGULAR STUDENT BODY
ITrsquoS ALMOST LIKE IrsquoM
JUST THE TOKEN NATIVErdquo
$
amp RECONCILIATION
amp()
1047297 nding
at
ILLUSTRATION FARNIA FEKRI PHOTO COURTESY RASS
BY DYLAN FREEMAN-GRIST
AND FARNIA FEKRI
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 312
BOG elections student candidates pay their way
The winning candidates from FUSE slate featuring Cassandra Myers Victoria Morton and Mariam Nouser COURTESY FARHAN RIAZ
By Al Downham
Student member candidates in Ry-
rsonrsquos 2016 Board of GovernorsBoG) election are spending hun-
dreds on campaign materials out-
of-pocketFUSE mdash including candidates
Victoria Morton Mariam Nouser
and Cassandra Myers mdash was thewinning slate with candidatesarning over 1200 votes Yet
heyrsquore unhappy that BoG electionpolicies can potentially shut outow-income candidates
ldquoThis is ridiculous in my opin-
onrdquo said Nouser a third-yearmechanical engineering student
Nouser is vice-president student
ife at the Ryerson EngineeringStudent Society (RESS) vice-pres-dent external affairs at the Ryer-
on Muslim Studentsrsquo Associationand vice-president administrationat the Ryerson Mechanical Engi-
neering Course UnionMorton mdash the RSU Board of
Directorsrsquo (BoD) senate director
mdash said FUSE spent up to $700on campaign materials includ-ng posters handouts and $150
n chocolate mini eggs switchingrom Cadbury to no-name brando cut costs
ldquoAmong the student leadershipole [the electionrsquos] kind of re-erred to the Wild Westrdquo Morton
aid ldquoA lot of students donrsquot evenonsider running because they
know they canrsquot afford itrdquoMorton is also a Ryerson Stu-
dentsrsquo Union (RSU) vice-president
education candidate for the Im-pact slate and vice-president cor-
porate relations at the RyersonCommunication and Design Soci-ety (RCDS)
ldquoWe arenrsquot expecting any reim-bursementrdquo Morton said ldquoWewere able to get the money we
just wish we didnrsquot have to spendmoney to work for free to makethe school betterrdquo
Morton said slates ldquodidnrsquot makesenserdquo in the BoG election thatcandidates should come from dif-ferent backgrounds However
running as a slate helped poolmoney and voters
BoG Election Policies and Pro-
cedures state funds for posters
can be made available to can-didates at the discretion of the
Election Procedures Committee
There is also no cap on whatstudents can spend on their cam-
paign Morton says the posterfunding service wasnrsquot promotedprior to the election or during theall-candidates meeting
Outside of BoG elections sev-eral student unions and societiesenforce reimbursement and caps
The Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union(RSU) whose election continuesuntil March 9 has a reimburse-
ment process and raised caps forcampaign spending this year
ldquoTherersquos no submission of the
budget but they buy their ma-terials submit their receipts andthen they get reimbursed that
wayrdquo said RSU President Andrea
BartlettRSU campaign expenses cannot
exceed $500 for presidential and
vice-presidential candidates oth-erwise risking eligibility for reim-
bursement and finesStudent societies like the RCDS
have varying reimbursement pro-cesses and caps on campaign
spending Nouser said she will pro-pose a motion to introduce reim-bursements to RESS at its Annual
General Meeting in two weeksldquoEven when [students] cam-
paign it should never be some-
thing thatrsquos going to be a hin-drance to the personrdquo said RCDSPresident Casey Yuen ldquo[Reim-bursement] ensures anyone from
any background or financial back-ground is able to participaterdquo
BoG student member candidate
Angelo Robb spent $50 on posterssaying those who canrsquot afford post-ers ldquowonrsquot necessarily have as good
as a chance as those who canrdquoHowever not all 2016 BoG
election candidates think admin-
istration should reimburse studentspending
ldquoI think itrsquos better we had to pay
out-of-pocketrdquo said BoG electioncandidate Banin Hassan a third-year electrical engineering student
She said she doesnrsquot support RSUcandidates campaigning with lawnsigns photo booths and pancakes
ldquoThatrsquos kind of going to waste inmy opinionrdquo
Hassan said lack of reimburse-
ments motivates students to effi-ciently spend money and time oneffective strategies like candidate-
voter interaction BoG studentmember candidate Jamie Gallo-way for example said she spent
no money on her own campaign
Morton said therersquos too muchpaper wasted in the BoG election
but moving campaigns towards apaperless online strategy coulddecrease student awareness
ldquoIt terms of reality [posters]help in electionsrdquo Morton said
Although they didnrsquot promote
the issue as a campaign pointNouser and Morton said makingthe election accessible to student
candidates is something their slateplans to advocate for
ldquoTwo of us currently strugglewith financesrdquo Nouser said ldquoItrsquos
imperative we push for [reim-bursement or caps] We didnrsquot
want to push out loudrdquoThe winning candidates start
their BoG term Sept 1
Equity centre sponsorship in question
By Nicole Schmidt
A new equity sponsorship package was created last year PHOTO CHRIS BLANCHETTE
A four-month delay in putting out a sponsorship package for the equity service centre has created funding challenges staff say
A delay in sending out sponsor-hip packages has made navigat-
ng funding difficult within the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)quity service centres
In past years individual equityentres have compiled sponsorship
packages to help support staple
vents like Pride and the Reclaim-ng our Bodies and Minds Confer-nce These community sponsorsre often the major source of fund-
ng said equity and campaigns or-anizer Corey Scott This year theentres collaborated to create one
major packageEmployees started working on
he package in August which was
upposed to be sent out last Oc-ober according to RyePRIDE co-
ordinator Daniella Enxuga RSUpresident Andrea Bartlett said thatince this was a new initiativeompiling pictures budget break-
downs and content took time Be-
cause of this the package wasnrsquotsent out until mid-February
ldquoItrsquos really frustrating becausewersquove been working on them sincethe end of last summerrdquo said Enx-
uga ldquoTherersquos really no reason itshould have taken that longrdquo
The package is intended to at-tract both internal and externalcommunity sponsorships But last
month members of the RSU exec-utive team approached the univer-
sity asking for the full amount ofsponsorship that the equity servicecentres requested Ryerson sup-ported 100 per cent of the request
donating $27900
ldquoWe have a long history insupporting RSU initiatives with
regard to equity and inclusionrdquosaid interim president MohamedLachemi ldquoWe feel that creating
welcoming safe space and an ex-ceptional experience is for all stu-dentsrdquo
The university has supportedequity centres in the past butdonations were made in smaller
increments Scott has been work-ing in the equity centres for threeyears and said this is the highestamount of money Ryerson has
annually donated in that timeGiven the date the sponsor-
ship package was released some
equity centre employees haveexpressed concerns with secur-ing external funding for the year
ldquoAny money we get from the
sponsorship packages will nowgo to next yearrsquos budgetrdquo said
Enxuga whose contract ends ear-ly next month
The RSU is still waiting on Ry-
ersonrsquos internal transfer
Scott added that the equitycentres have only been able tosecure half of the external fund-
ing theyrsquove made in years past
Bartlett said shersquos made it clearthat employees are free to reach
out for sponsorship at any pointthroughout the year and that anyincoming sponsorship funds from
the package can be delegated ac-
cordinglyldquoMy hope is that [the equity
centres] will now be able to attract
more external sponsorship so that
they can go to local companiesand actually build partnerships be-
cause thatrsquos how the equity centreswill better sustain themselvesrdquosaid Bartlett
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 3
ldquoItrsquos frustrating
Therersquos really no rea-
son it should have
taken that longrdquo
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 412
Intern ArmyBen ldquoHoursrdquo Hoppe
Victoria ldquoTranscriberdquo SykesHannah ldquoInterviewrdquo Kirijianv
Lidia ldquoSafetyrdquo Foote
ContributorsZeinab ldquobyerdquo Saidoun
Jaclyn ldquoRelax womanrdquo TansilBrennan ldquoBean stalkrdquo Doherty
Sarah ldquoFranklin RooseveltrdquoKricehl
Brenda ldquoHarry Trumanrdquo Molina-Navidad
Dylan ldquoCircle of Liferdquo Freeman-Grist
Amanda ldquoSnipe showrdquo Skrabu-cha
Matt ldquoYour not my manzrdquo AmhaBrittany ldquoNice weather ehrdquo
RosenErica ldquoOn timerdquo SalvalaggioAnnaliese ldquoPolaroid expressrdquo
MeyerMitchell ldquoPhoto shootrdquo Thompson
Sidney ldquoHello againrsquo DrmayMiriam ldquoSee you at karaokerdquo
Valdes CarlettiRobert ldquoBlunderbussrdquo
Mackenzie
Ruty ldquoCalabashrdquo KorotaevLindsay ldquoCollywobblesrdquoChristopher
Playing the part of the AnnoyingTalking Coffee Mug this week are people that walk too slowly onthe sidewalk in big crowds Other people are using the sidewalks too guys And maybe those other peoplehave a place to be
The Eyeopener is Ryersonrsquos largestand only independent student news- paper It is owned and operatedby Rye Eye Publishing Inc a non- profit corporation owned by the stu-dents of Ryerson
Our offices are on the second floorof the Student Campus Centre Youcan reach us at 416-979-5262 attheeyeopenercom or on Twitter attheeyeopener
4 EDITORIAL Wednesday March 9 2016
Just a couple students caring a lot PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
BySeanWetselaar
Letrsquos talk for a moment about
egacy
When I started working at
The Eyeopener we often talked
bout student politics on cam-
pus mdash we may have been the only
ones Conversations about elec-
ions that year were not centred
round who would win mdash that
was a foregone conclusion The
ong-standing tight-knit group of
politically motivated students on
ampus who had been in power
or years were running effectively
unopposed
So disappointed were we by theack of interest from our campus
hat we decided to run our fun
ditor Suraj Singh for president
t wasnrsquot because he could win it
was to make a point about how
ittle the election process mat-
ered
Donrsquot stop campaigningtrsquos up to the campus to keep politics at Ryerson alive
This year the elections wonrsquot
have been called by the time that
this paper comes out (voting ends
Wednesday at 4 pm) but I can
honestly say that I am thrilled tobe able to tell you this
I donrsquot know who is going to
win
This is the second year that this
has perhaps been a true statement
the day election results will be an-
nounced And a big part of that is
thanks to a group of people who
last year were called Transform
RU
I wonrsquot bore you with the details
of exactly how we came to have
two bodies of political thought on
campus rather than one It had a
lot to do with harnessing student
leaders from the student societiesnot just from various levels of the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)
But this new group pledging a
new era of transparency and ac-
countability in the RSU surged
through the elections in 2015 to
displace the Unite slate in a win
Editor-in-Chief Sean ldquoAngry dadrdquo Wetselaar
NewsKeith ldquoMotor City The Gather-
ingrdquo CapstickNicole ldquoCat gif tearsrdquo Schmidt
Al ldquoSiblingrdquo Downham
FeaturesFarnia ldquoExistential crisisrdquo Fekri
Biz and Tech Jacob ldquoFree moviesrdquo Dubeacute
Arts and LifeKaroun ldquoHerbal Essencesrdquo
Chahinian
SportsDevin ldquoTicking time bombrdquo
Jones
CommunitiesAlanna ldquoNeeds more columnsrdquo
Rizza
PhotoAnnie ldquoWent homerdquo Arnone Jake ldquo5 am in Torontordquo
ScottChris ldquoFacetimerdquo Blanchette
FunSkyler ldquoBRB childrenrdquo Ash
MediaRob ldquoPasswords5rdquo Foreman
OnlineIgor ldquoThe championrdquo MagunTagwa ldquoCo-championrdquo Moyo
Lee ldquoCoachrdquo Richardson
General ManagerLiane ldquoToo much caffeinerdquo
McLarty
Advertising ManagerChris ldquoExasperatedrdquo Roberts
Design Director JD ldquoUntil morale improvesrdquo
Mowat
that was even to those of us fol-
lowing the process closely simply
stunning
Now Irsquom not going to get into
whether or not everything thatgroup has done has been perfect
Irsquom not going to tell you who
you should vote for with the few
hours you have left to do so But
there is one undeniable truth to
this whole thing mdash the competi-
tion that Transform (now running
as Impact) brought to campus has
been a big deal One that itrsquos hard
for me to accurately illustrate in
this short editorial
Over the years Irsquove been at this
paper Irsquove heard all the stereo-
types about Ryerson Itrsquos a com-
muter campus students come in
for class and they go home No-body really cares what happens
outside of those hours It may be
young vibrant and diverse but it
is utterly apathetic
If you go here yoursquove probably
heard all these arguments But
herersquos the thing mdash you can tell
anyone who tries to make that ar-
gument that clearly they havenrsquot
been paying attention Because
itrsquos bullshit
Ryerson may not have as long
a history of political involve-
ment on campus as U of T or
other older schools But if noth-
ing else in the last couple of years
wersquove proven that a large part ofcampus cares very deeply As as
a cynical old fogey who has prob-
ably paid attention to this whole
thing for far too long I can say
that this warms my heart
So why am I telling you all this
Why does it matter to you wheth-
er Ryerson has been far more apa-
thetic in the past or how the two
slates running in this yearrsquos elec-
tion came to be
Because we should all see
the days of old as a caution-
ary tale There wonrsquot always
be people on campus who re-
member those days and itrsquos up toall of you to make sure we donrsquot
have to
So get involved Join a club
chat up your student society or
course union and pay attention
to the student leaders who are
responsible for handling seri-
ous budgets made up largely of
student money These people rep-
resent and work for you
Maybe you want to be one
of them Maybe you donrsquot But
never ever forget that whether or
not yoursquoll be at Ryerson forever
these people matter And so does
the weird fun messed-up com-
munity wersquove built for ourselves
here
So keep on giving a damn
Ryerson And thanks to all of you
who have gotten us here
oo
elten amlll
P E E L
TAKE THESURVEY
$amp()+
-amp-$+01
Are you a 1st or 2nd generation
immigrant living in Peel Region
$amp () ()+amp ( $ amp-amp$
-)0 1 ampamp23amp $ 456 72 $08
$ amp ()$+) -)01
amp( ))+ -) 012 33)45163
655 Bay Street Unit 7(Corner of Bay amp Elm - Concourse Level)
416 595 1200bayelmdentalcom
FREE IN-OFFICEWHITENING WITH X RAYS CLEANINGamp NEW PATIENTEXAM
STUDENTDISCOUNTS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 512
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 5
RCDS VP finance is resigning
NewsBriefs
Former Ryerson Communication and Design Society (RCDS) vice-
president finance Luke Villemaire is stepping down from his positionfor mental health reasons The Eyeopener covered Villemaire when$20000 was approved for Goliath his upcoming film by RCDS
The Scope is ready to broadcast
The Scope Ryersonrsquos new campus radio station is ready to hit the air-
waves by the end of the month The station began their testing on Feb29 and is planning itrsquos official launch for March 31 The Scope will bebroadcasting at 1280 am on your radio dial
Transformed RUTransform Ryerson entered last yearrsquos Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU) elections as thefirst opposition group since 2011 Their slate founded on promoting transparencyunding student groups and fighting unpaid internships dominated polls Itrsquos been a
year of ups and downs mdash herersquos how Transform describes the state of the union
PHOTOS COURTESY ANAMATIS PRODUCTIONS
PresidentAndrea Bartlett
VP EducationCormac McGee
VP EquityRabia Idrees
VP Operations
Obaid Ullah
VP Student Life
Harman Singh
Achievements
In January McGee launched a peti-tion against unpaid internships thatgot more than 2500 signatures
The RSU met with the OntarioMinistry of Training Colleges andUniversities to discuss a possible
long-term investment ldquoThe biggestchallenge was getting the provinceto take us seriouslyrdquo said McGee
ldquoThe next step is to keep follow-ing up the more ears this gets inthe more likely something will hap-penrdquo
CriticismMartin Fox from the opposing RU
Connected slate has criticized theconsistency of lobbying for unpaidinternships ldquoIt wasnrsquot a sustainedeffort perseverance is keyrdquo he
said in a previous interview
AchievementsA focus on the topic of men-
tal health has been at the fore-front of student issues for yearsLast semester the RSU launched an
online tool mdash My Wellness portalmdash as a way to provide additionalsupport to students 2016 also
marked the first mental health lead-ership awards mdash a $30000 schol-arship initiative put on by the RSU
CriticismIdrees noted that equity initiativesare always relevant and that the
RSU could have done more out-reach beyond fall and winter ori-
entation Susanne Nyaga of RUConnected has criticized a lack offocus on mental health initiativessaying that there should be sup-
port year-round
Achievements
This year has seen a shift towardmore services online including
the health and dental opt-out pro-cess the wellness portal for mentalhealth and most recently online
voting mdash which Ullah said was hisbiggest accomplishment
Criticism
The current RSU has been regu-larly criticized by RU Connected
for a lack of transparency sur-rounding spending and budgets
Ullah said communicating withthe membership could be im-proved next year
Achievements
Singh played a key role in arrang-ing the 2015 Parade and Concertfeaturing Drake and Future mdash an
event that had people talking aboutRyerson for weeks He called itldquoone of the most successful events
in recent Ryerson historyrdquoCriticism
Rumana Fardaush of RU Con-
nected has said the concert was
not accessible At the RSU debateSingh was criticized for a less active
second semester Singh added thathe wished everyone was wearing ablue shirt for the concert
AchievementsBartlett said her team has accom-plished several things that have
been neglected since she started asstudent at Ryerson including a
hift to more online services an
mped up Parade and Concert andmproved student engagement
In September the RSU began a
25000 rebranding campaign withhe goal to differentiate the union
Part of the spending went towards
new logo and the $5000 signhat sits outside the student learn-ng centre ldquoThe RSU did need a bit
of a facelift to welcome itself into
he 21st centuryrdquo said BartlettHistorically the logo did change
very decade hellip but we were trans-parent about that this yearrdquo
Criticism
Last semester saw the eliminationof the executive director of com-munications and outreach union-
zed position in favour of a neweneral manager resulting in twoayoffs Although Bartlett standsbehind the decision she said she
wished the RSU had been moreransparent about the process Atatement released by the RSU ear-
ier this year said an assessment
done by a third party found thatestructuring would be more sus-
ainable Deficits have plagued theorganization for years and in a re-ent blog post on Medium Bartlett
wrote about $90000 in allegedlytolen funds ldquoI had all this stag-ering information that was diffi-
ult for me to deal with at the timehellip we were dealing with financialssues and finding out the difficult
eality of the organizationrdquo saidBartlett Members of RU Con-nected criticized the layoffs as be-
ng ldquounjustrdquo and said the decisioneflected poorly on the RSU
Going forward
Bartlett cautioned the RSU shouldnever be run like a business ldquoIpray to god that the next president
doesnrsquot have that mentality thatmentality is why wersquore in this messrdquo
amp()+ ( )-) -01()- 2-+-) 33345+(1+4(
$ ()(++ -(+ 0
0-1 (01 22 amp ( () +-0123 45 673812
3456789778lt9
)-)+ 2-+-) 33341())(15()67)-)4(
=$ ()(++ -(+ 0
$ gt++(++ A(B-A-B C(00 -(+
0-1 (01 229 amp ( ()37017lt =gt 2ltlt60123 45 673812
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) =-2+-)5 0 ))(3(4
A01 (01 2D amp ( + +1lt00123 45 lt737lt 601lt03
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) gtgt(+) =-2+-)54
I - -
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 612
6 Wednesday March 9 2016FEATURES
n a snowy grey Thursday distinct among
the clatter and slush of Eric Palin Hall is the
hushed peace of Cyndy Baskinrsquos office Itrsquos
quiet with a snug carpet and a tidy desk
All around the room are symbols of Indigenous culture
eathers artwork and displays that show her roots
Baskin is of the Mirsquokmaq and Celtic Nations mdash she
s of the Fish Clan and is known in those circles as The
Woman Who Passes on Teachings Fitting then that she
works as a social work professor at Ryerson where she
s also the academic coordinator of the Chang Schoolrsquosertificate on Indigenous knowledges and experiences in
Canada
While over the years she has been successful in help-
ng develop curriculums for various programs on cam-
us (social work midwifery early childhood education
utrition public administration) she notes that one of
he major hurdles in her work is the inflexibility of cer-
ain faculties whose coordinators have trouble justifying
pending resources on increasing Aboriginal content in
heir programs
ldquoItrsquos not easy to get a lot of the schools or programs
n campus to buy into this It takes a long time building
elationships with peoplerdquo Baskin says adding that the
ack of unity across the faculties makes pushing for more
Aboriginal content difficult
In September of this year members of Ryersonrsquos com-
munity looked to correct that by publishing A Call to
Reconciliation at Ryerson mdash a letter specific to the uni-
ersity asking administration to confirm the intended ac-
ions outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commis-
ion (TRC) Among other things they urged Ryerson to
support current students and work to increase the num-
ber of Aboriginal student applicants
But hard as it may be itrsquos become more crucial than
ever to encourage mdash and expect mdash that change In June
2015 after seven years of work the TRC (a holistic gov-
ernment response to the abuse and toxic legacy of Cana-
dian residential school systems) published a call to action
in part addressing post-secondary institutions Some of
these actions concentrate on support and reconciliation
mdash others are more academic calling on the government
to provide ldquoadequate funding to end the backlog of First
Nations students seeking a post-secondary educationrdquo
and infuse more Indigenous knowledge in every end of
this post-secondary education regardless of discipline
As chair of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal Education Council (a
board of students staff and faculty established in 2010
to encourage engagement and support of Aboriginal stu-
dents) Baskin has led the charge on this factor opening
up talks with faculties not traditionally associated with In-
digenous knowledge Her work ranges from the straight-
forward mdash the development of more Aboriginal teachings
in social work and midwifery mdash to the complex as in the
multi-year talks with the journalism school which is the
only program at Ryerson so far that has agreed to offer
a new course (on media and Aboriginal understanding)
next year ldquoI think [others] are just nervous because they
really donrsquot know much of anything and theyrsquore afraid to
admit itrdquo Baskin says ldquoThey donrsquot know where to startrdquo
obbie Nakoocheersquos dream graduate programwill thrust her head-first into Ontariorsquos park-
land Nakoochee a First Nations Cree whose
family originates from the lands surrounding
Fort Albany Ont received her admission to a two-year
term at Guelph Now in her final year at Ryerson she
wants to apply her environment and urban sustainability
degree to the intersection of Aboriginal communities and
Ontariorsquos park systems
Although she had a hunch that shersquod get the spot she
was still flooded with relief when she noticed the funding
package was larger than the one shersquod already received
from York Yet as her eyes paced over the details of the
congratulatory email she couldnrsquot help feeling a pang of
guilt mdash the same feeling that shersquod had upon admission to
Ryerson six years ago
ldquoI feel like Irsquom categorized as separate from the regular
student bodyrdquo explains Nakoochee Sometimes when she
succeeds at something she feels her efforts arenrsquot the most
important mdash but that her status as an included ldquoAborigi-
nal womanrdquo is what matters ldquoItrsquos almost like Irsquom just
the token nativerdquo
ldquoI FEEL LIKE IrsquoM
CATEGORIZED AS
SEPARATE FROM THE
REGULAR STUDENT BODY
ITrsquoS ALMOST LIKE IrsquoM
JUST THE TOKEN NATIVErdquo
$
amp RECONCILIATION
amp()
1047297 nding
at
ILLUSTRATION FARNIA FEKRI PHOTO COURTESY RASS
BY DYLAN FREEMAN-GRIST
AND FARNIA FEKRI
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 412
Intern ArmyBen ldquoHoursrdquo Hoppe
Victoria ldquoTranscriberdquo SykesHannah ldquoInterviewrdquo Kirijianv
Lidia ldquoSafetyrdquo Foote
ContributorsZeinab ldquobyerdquo Saidoun
Jaclyn ldquoRelax womanrdquo TansilBrennan ldquoBean stalkrdquo Doherty
Sarah ldquoFranklin RooseveltrdquoKricehl
Brenda ldquoHarry Trumanrdquo Molina-Navidad
Dylan ldquoCircle of Liferdquo Freeman-Grist
Amanda ldquoSnipe showrdquo Skrabu-cha
Matt ldquoYour not my manzrdquo AmhaBrittany ldquoNice weather ehrdquo
RosenErica ldquoOn timerdquo SalvalaggioAnnaliese ldquoPolaroid expressrdquo
MeyerMitchell ldquoPhoto shootrdquo Thompson
Sidney ldquoHello againrsquo DrmayMiriam ldquoSee you at karaokerdquo
Valdes CarlettiRobert ldquoBlunderbussrdquo
Mackenzie
Ruty ldquoCalabashrdquo KorotaevLindsay ldquoCollywobblesrdquoChristopher
Playing the part of the AnnoyingTalking Coffee Mug this week are people that walk too slowly onthe sidewalk in big crowds Other people are using the sidewalks too guys And maybe those other peoplehave a place to be
The Eyeopener is Ryersonrsquos largestand only independent student news- paper It is owned and operatedby Rye Eye Publishing Inc a non- profit corporation owned by the stu-dents of Ryerson
Our offices are on the second floorof the Student Campus Centre Youcan reach us at 416-979-5262 attheeyeopenercom or on Twitter attheeyeopener
4 EDITORIAL Wednesday March 9 2016
Just a couple students caring a lot PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
BySeanWetselaar
Letrsquos talk for a moment about
egacy
When I started working at
The Eyeopener we often talked
bout student politics on cam-
pus mdash we may have been the only
ones Conversations about elec-
ions that year were not centred
round who would win mdash that
was a foregone conclusion The
ong-standing tight-knit group of
politically motivated students on
ampus who had been in power
or years were running effectively
unopposed
So disappointed were we by theack of interest from our campus
hat we decided to run our fun
ditor Suraj Singh for president
t wasnrsquot because he could win it
was to make a point about how
ittle the election process mat-
ered
Donrsquot stop campaigningtrsquos up to the campus to keep politics at Ryerson alive
This year the elections wonrsquot
have been called by the time that
this paper comes out (voting ends
Wednesday at 4 pm) but I can
honestly say that I am thrilled tobe able to tell you this
I donrsquot know who is going to
win
This is the second year that this
has perhaps been a true statement
the day election results will be an-
nounced And a big part of that is
thanks to a group of people who
last year were called Transform
RU
I wonrsquot bore you with the details
of exactly how we came to have
two bodies of political thought on
campus rather than one It had a
lot to do with harnessing student
leaders from the student societiesnot just from various levels of the
Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU)
But this new group pledging a
new era of transparency and ac-
countability in the RSU surged
through the elections in 2015 to
displace the Unite slate in a win
Editor-in-Chief Sean ldquoAngry dadrdquo Wetselaar
NewsKeith ldquoMotor City The Gather-
ingrdquo CapstickNicole ldquoCat gif tearsrdquo Schmidt
Al ldquoSiblingrdquo Downham
FeaturesFarnia ldquoExistential crisisrdquo Fekri
Biz and Tech Jacob ldquoFree moviesrdquo Dubeacute
Arts and LifeKaroun ldquoHerbal Essencesrdquo
Chahinian
SportsDevin ldquoTicking time bombrdquo
Jones
CommunitiesAlanna ldquoNeeds more columnsrdquo
Rizza
PhotoAnnie ldquoWent homerdquo Arnone Jake ldquo5 am in Torontordquo
ScottChris ldquoFacetimerdquo Blanchette
FunSkyler ldquoBRB childrenrdquo Ash
MediaRob ldquoPasswords5rdquo Foreman
OnlineIgor ldquoThe championrdquo MagunTagwa ldquoCo-championrdquo Moyo
Lee ldquoCoachrdquo Richardson
General ManagerLiane ldquoToo much caffeinerdquo
McLarty
Advertising ManagerChris ldquoExasperatedrdquo Roberts
Design Director JD ldquoUntil morale improvesrdquo
Mowat
that was even to those of us fol-
lowing the process closely simply
stunning
Now Irsquom not going to get into
whether or not everything thatgroup has done has been perfect
Irsquom not going to tell you who
you should vote for with the few
hours you have left to do so But
there is one undeniable truth to
this whole thing mdash the competi-
tion that Transform (now running
as Impact) brought to campus has
been a big deal One that itrsquos hard
for me to accurately illustrate in
this short editorial
Over the years Irsquove been at this
paper Irsquove heard all the stereo-
types about Ryerson Itrsquos a com-
muter campus students come in
for class and they go home No-body really cares what happens
outside of those hours It may be
young vibrant and diverse but it
is utterly apathetic
If you go here yoursquove probably
heard all these arguments But
herersquos the thing mdash you can tell
anyone who tries to make that ar-
gument that clearly they havenrsquot
been paying attention Because
itrsquos bullshit
Ryerson may not have as long
a history of political involve-
ment on campus as U of T or
other older schools But if noth-
ing else in the last couple of years
wersquove proven that a large part ofcampus cares very deeply As as
a cynical old fogey who has prob-
ably paid attention to this whole
thing for far too long I can say
that this warms my heart
So why am I telling you all this
Why does it matter to you wheth-
er Ryerson has been far more apa-
thetic in the past or how the two
slates running in this yearrsquos elec-
tion came to be
Because we should all see
the days of old as a caution-
ary tale There wonrsquot always
be people on campus who re-
member those days and itrsquos up toall of you to make sure we donrsquot
have to
So get involved Join a club
chat up your student society or
course union and pay attention
to the student leaders who are
responsible for handling seri-
ous budgets made up largely of
student money These people rep-
resent and work for you
Maybe you want to be one
of them Maybe you donrsquot But
never ever forget that whether or
not yoursquoll be at Ryerson forever
these people matter And so does
the weird fun messed-up com-
munity wersquove built for ourselves
here
So keep on giving a damn
Ryerson And thanks to all of you
who have gotten us here
oo
elten amlll
P E E L
TAKE THESURVEY
$amp()+
-amp-$+01
Are you a 1st or 2nd generation
immigrant living in Peel Region
$amp () ()+amp ( $ amp-amp$
-)0 1 ampamp23amp $ 456 72 $08
$ amp ()$+) -)01
amp( ))+ -) 012 33)45163
655 Bay Street Unit 7(Corner of Bay amp Elm - Concourse Level)
416 595 1200bayelmdentalcom
FREE IN-OFFICEWHITENING WITH X RAYS CLEANINGamp NEW PATIENTEXAM
STUDENTDISCOUNTS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 512
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 5
RCDS VP finance is resigning
NewsBriefs
Former Ryerson Communication and Design Society (RCDS) vice-
president finance Luke Villemaire is stepping down from his positionfor mental health reasons The Eyeopener covered Villemaire when$20000 was approved for Goliath his upcoming film by RCDS
The Scope is ready to broadcast
The Scope Ryersonrsquos new campus radio station is ready to hit the air-
waves by the end of the month The station began their testing on Feb29 and is planning itrsquos official launch for March 31 The Scope will bebroadcasting at 1280 am on your radio dial
Transformed RUTransform Ryerson entered last yearrsquos Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU) elections as thefirst opposition group since 2011 Their slate founded on promoting transparencyunding student groups and fighting unpaid internships dominated polls Itrsquos been a
year of ups and downs mdash herersquos how Transform describes the state of the union
PHOTOS COURTESY ANAMATIS PRODUCTIONS
PresidentAndrea Bartlett
VP EducationCormac McGee
VP EquityRabia Idrees
VP Operations
Obaid Ullah
VP Student Life
Harman Singh
Achievements
In January McGee launched a peti-tion against unpaid internships thatgot more than 2500 signatures
The RSU met with the OntarioMinistry of Training Colleges andUniversities to discuss a possible
long-term investment ldquoThe biggestchallenge was getting the provinceto take us seriouslyrdquo said McGee
ldquoThe next step is to keep follow-ing up the more ears this gets inthe more likely something will hap-penrdquo
CriticismMartin Fox from the opposing RU
Connected slate has criticized theconsistency of lobbying for unpaidinternships ldquoIt wasnrsquot a sustainedeffort perseverance is keyrdquo he
said in a previous interview
AchievementsA focus on the topic of men-
tal health has been at the fore-front of student issues for yearsLast semester the RSU launched an
online tool mdash My Wellness portalmdash as a way to provide additionalsupport to students 2016 also
marked the first mental health lead-ership awards mdash a $30000 schol-arship initiative put on by the RSU
CriticismIdrees noted that equity initiativesare always relevant and that the
RSU could have done more out-reach beyond fall and winter ori-
entation Susanne Nyaga of RUConnected has criticized a lack offocus on mental health initiativessaying that there should be sup-
port year-round
Achievements
This year has seen a shift towardmore services online including
the health and dental opt-out pro-cess the wellness portal for mentalhealth and most recently online
voting mdash which Ullah said was hisbiggest accomplishment
Criticism
The current RSU has been regu-larly criticized by RU Connected
for a lack of transparency sur-rounding spending and budgets
Ullah said communicating withthe membership could be im-proved next year
Achievements
Singh played a key role in arrang-ing the 2015 Parade and Concertfeaturing Drake and Future mdash an
event that had people talking aboutRyerson for weeks He called itldquoone of the most successful events
in recent Ryerson historyrdquoCriticism
Rumana Fardaush of RU Con-
nected has said the concert was
not accessible At the RSU debateSingh was criticized for a less active
second semester Singh added thathe wished everyone was wearing ablue shirt for the concert
AchievementsBartlett said her team has accom-plished several things that have
been neglected since she started asstudent at Ryerson including a
hift to more online services an
mped up Parade and Concert andmproved student engagement
In September the RSU began a
25000 rebranding campaign withhe goal to differentiate the union
Part of the spending went towards
new logo and the $5000 signhat sits outside the student learn-ng centre ldquoThe RSU did need a bit
of a facelift to welcome itself into
he 21st centuryrdquo said BartlettHistorically the logo did change
very decade hellip but we were trans-parent about that this yearrdquo
Criticism
Last semester saw the eliminationof the executive director of com-munications and outreach union-
zed position in favour of a neweneral manager resulting in twoayoffs Although Bartlett standsbehind the decision she said she
wished the RSU had been moreransparent about the process Atatement released by the RSU ear-
ier this year said an assessment
done by a third party found thatestructuring would be more sus-
ainable Deficits have plagued theorganization for years and in a re-ent blog post on Medium Bartlett
wrote about $90000 in allegedlytolen funds ldquoI had all this stag-ering information that was diffi-
ult for me to deal with at the timehellip we were dealing with financialssues and finding out the difficult
eality of the organizationrdquo saidBartlett Members of RU Con-nected criticized the layoffs as be-
ng ldquounjustrdquo and said the decisioneflected poorly on the RSU
Going forward
Bartlett cautioned the RSU shouldnever be run like a business ldquoIpray to god that the next president
doesnrsquot have that mentality thatmentality is why wersquore in this messrdquo
amp()+ ( )-) -01()- 2-+-) 33345+(1+4(
$ ()(++ -(+ 0
0-1 (01 22 amp ( () +-0123 45 673812
3456789778lt9
)-)+ 2-+-) 33341())(15()67)-)4(
=$ ()(++ -(+ 0
$ gt++(++ A(B-A-B C(00 -(+
0-1 (01 229 amp ( ()37017lt =gt 2ltlt60123 45 673812
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) =-2+-)5 0 ))(3(4
A01 (01 2D amp ( + +1lt00123 45 lt737lt 601lt03
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) gtgt(+) =-2+-)54
I - -
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 612
6 Wednesday March 9 2016FEATURES
n a snowy grey Thursday distinct among
the clatter and slush of Eric Palin Hall is the
hushed peace of Cyndy Baskinrsquos office Itrsquos
quiet with a snug carpet and a tidy desk
All around the room are symbols of Indigenous culture
eathers artwork and displays that show her roots
Baskin is of the Mirsquokmaq and Celtic Nations mdash she
s of the Fish Clan and is known in those circles as The
Woman Who Passes on Teachings Fitting then that she
works as a social work professor at Ryerson where she
s also the academic coordinator of the Chang Schoolrsquosertificate on Indigenous knowledges and experiences in
Canada
While over the years she has been successful in help-
ng develop curriculums for various programs on cam-
us (social work midwifery early childhood education
utrition public administration) she notes that one of
he major hurdles in her work is the inflexibility of cer-
ain faculties whose coordinators have trouble justifying
pending resources on increasing Aboriginal content in
heir programs
ldquoItrsquos not easy to get a lot of the schools or programs
n campus to buy into this It takes a long time building
elationships with peoplerdquo Baskin says adding that the
ack of unity across the faculties makes pushing for more
Aboriginal content difficult
In September of this year members of Ryersonrsquos com-
munity looked to correct that by publishing A Call to
Reconciliation at Ryerson mdash a letter specific to the uni-
ersity asking administration to confirm the intended ac-
ions outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commis-
ion (TRC) Among other things they urged Ryerson to
support current students and work to increase the num-
ber of Aboriginal student applicants
But hard as it may be itrsquos become more crucial than
ever to encourage mdash and expect mdash that change In June
2015 after seven years of work the TRC (a holistic gov-
ernment response to the abuse and toxic legacy of Cana-
dian residential school systems) published a call to action
in part addressing post-secondary institutions Some of
these actions concentrate on support and reconciliation
mdash others are more academic calling on the government
to provide ldquoadequate funding to end the backlog of First
Nations students seeking a post-secondary educationrdquo
and infuse more Indigenous knowledge in every end of
this post-secondary education regardless of discipline
As chair of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal Education Council (a
board of students staff and faculty established in 2010
to encourage engagement and support of Aboriginal stu-
dents) Baskin has led the charge on this factor opening
up talks with faculties not traditionally associated with In-
digenous knowledge Her work ranges from the straight-
forward mdash the development of more Aboriginal teachings
in social work and midwifery mdash to the complex as in the
multi-year talks with the journalism school which is the
only program at Ryerson so far that has agreed to offer
a new course (on media and Aboriginal understanding)
next year ldquoI think [others] are just nervous because they
really donrsquot know much of anything and theyrsquore afraid to
admit itrdquo Baskin says ldquoThey donrsquot know where to startrdquo
obbie Nakoocheersquos dream graduate programwill thrust her head-first into Ontariorsquos park-
land Nakoochee a First Nations Cree whose
family originates from the lands surrounding
Fort Albany Ont received her admission to a two-year
term at Guelph Now in her final year at Ryerson she
wants to apply her environment and urban sustainability
degree to the intersection of Aboriginal communities and
Ontariorsquos park systems
Although she had a hunch that shersquod get the spot she
was still flooded with relief when she noticed the funding
package was larger than the one shersquod already received
from York Yet as her eyes paced over the details of the
congratulatory email she couldnrsquot help feeling a pang of
guilt mdash the same feeling that shersquod had upon admission to
Ryerson six years ago
ldquoI feel like Irsquom categorized as separate from the regular
student bodyrdquo explains Nakoochee Sometimes when she
succeeds at something she feels her efforts arenrsquot the most
important mdash but that her status as an included ldquoAborigi-
nal womanrdquo is what matters ldquoItrsquos almost like Irsquom just
the token nativerdquo
ldquoI FEEL LIKE IrsquoM
CATEGORIZED AS
SEPARATE FROM THE
REGULAR STUDENT BODY
ITrsquoS ALMOST LIKE IrsquoM
JUST THE TOKEN NATIVErdquo
$
amp RECONCILIATION
amp()
1047297 nding
at
ILLUSTRATION FARNIA FEKRI PHOTO COURTESY RASS
BY DYLAN FREEMAN-GRIST
AND FARNIA FEKRI
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 512
Wednesday March 9 2016 NEWS 5
RCDS VP finance is resigning
NewsBriefs
Former Ryerson Communication and Design Society (RCDS) vice-
president finance Luke Villemaire is stepping down from his positionfor mental health reasons The Eyeopener covered Villemaire when$20000 was approved for Goliath his upcoming film by RCDS
The Scope is ready to broadcast
The Scope Ryersonrsquos new campus radio station is ready to hit the air-
waves by the end of the month The station began their testing on Feb29 and is planning itrsquos official launch for March 31 The Scope will bebroadcasting at 1280 am on your radio dial
Transformed RUTransform Ryerson entered last yearrsquos Ryerson Studentsrsquo Union (RSU) elections as thefirst opposition group since 2011 Their slate founded on promoting transparencyunding student groups and fighting unpaid internships dominated polls Itrsquos been a
year of ups and downs mdash herersquos how Transform describes the state of the union
PHOTOS COURTESY ANAMATIS PRODUCTIONS
PresidentAndrea Bartlett
VP EducationCormac McGee
VP EquityRabia Idrees
VP Operations
Obaid Ullah
VP Student Life
Harman Singh
Achievements
In January McGee launched a peti-tion against unpaid internships thatgot more than 2500 signatures
The RSU met with the OntarioMinistry of Training Colleges andUniversities to discuss a possible
long-term investment ldquoThe biggestchallenge was getting the provinceto take us seriouslyrdquo said McGee
ldquoThe next step is to keep follow-ing up the more ears this gets inthe more likely something will hap-penrdquo
CriticismMartin Fox from the opposing RU
Connected slate has criticized theconsistency of lobbying for unpaidinternships ldquoIt wasnrsquot a sustainedeffort perseverance is keyrdquo he
said in a previous interview
AchievementsA focus on the topic of men-
tal health has been at the fore-front of student issues for yearsLast semester the RSU launched an
online tool mdash My Wellness portalmdash as a way to provide additionalsupport to students 2016 also
marked the first mental health lead-ership awards mdash a $30000 schol-arship initiative put on by the RSU
CriticismIdrees noted that equity initiativesare always relevant and that the
RSU could have done more out-reach beyond fall and winter ori-
entation Susanne Nyaga of RUConnected has criticized a lack offocus on mental health initiativessaying that there should be sup-
port year-round
Achievements
This year has seen a shift towardmore services online including
the health and dental opt-out pro-cess the wellness portal for mentalhealth and most recently online
voting mdash which Ullah said was hisbiggest accomplishment
Criticism
The current RSU has been regu-larly criticized by RU Connected
for a lack of transparency sur-rounding spending and budgets
Ullah said communicating withthe membership could be im-proved next year
Achievements
Singh played a key role in arrang-ing the 2015 Parade and Concertfeaturing Drake and Future mdash an
event that had people talking aboutRyerson for weeks He called itldquoone of the most successful events
in recent Ryerson historyrdquoCriticism
Rumana Fardaush of RU Con-
nected has said the concert was
not accessible At the RSU debateSingh was criticized for a less active
second semester Singh added thathe wished everyone was wearing ablue shirt for the concert
AchievementsBartlett said her team has accom-plished several things that have
been neglected since she started asstudent at Ryerson including a
hift to more online services an
mped up Parade and Concert andmproved student engagement
In September the RSU began a
25000 rebranding campaign withhe goal to differentiate the union
Part of the spending went towards
new logo and the $5000 signhat sits outside the student learn-ng centre ldquoThe RSU did need a bit
of a facelift to welcome itself into
he 21st centuryrdquo said BartlettHistorically the logo did change
very decade hellip but we were trans-parent about that this yearrdquo
Criticism
Last semester saw the eliminationof the executive director of com-munications and outreach union-
zed position in favour of a neweneral manager resulting in twoayoffs Although Bartlett standsbehind the decision she said she
wished the RSU had been moreransparent about the process Atatement released by the RSU ear-
ier this year said an assessment
done by a third party found thatestructuring would be more sus-
ainable Deficits have plagued theorganization for years and in a re-ent blog post on Medium Bartlett
wrote about $90000 in allegedlytolen funds ldquoI had all this stag-ering information that was diffi-
ult for me to deal with at the timehellip we were dealing with financialssues and finding out the difficult
eality of the organizationrdquo saidBartlett Members of RU Con-nected criticized the layoffs as be-
ng ldquounjustrdquo and said the decisioneflected poorly on the RSU
Going forward
Bartlett cautioned the RSU shouldnever be run like a business ldquoIpray to god that the next president
doesnrsquot have that mentality thatmentality is why wersquore in this messrdquo
amp()+ ( )-) -01()- 2-+-) 33345+(1+4(
$ ()(++ -(+ 0
0-1 (01 22 amp ( () +-0123 45 673812
3456789778lt9
)-)+ 2-+-) 33341())(15()67)-)4(
=$ ()(++ -(+ 0
$ gt++(++ A(B-A-B C(00 -(+
0-1 (01 229 amp ( ()37017lt =gt 2ltlt60123 45 673812
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) =-2+-)5 0 ))(3(4
A01 (01 2D amp ( + +1lt00123 45 lt737lt 601lt03
87(-1 ( )-) 3-)6 5 95+8( 0 )6 (1 (0( lt+ ) gtgt(+) =-2+-)54
I - -
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 612
6 Wednesday March 9 2016FEATURES
n a snowy grey Thursday distinct among
the clatter and slush of Eric Palin Hall is the
hushed peace of Cyndy Baskinrsquos office Itrsquos
quiet with a snug carpet and a tidy desk
All around the room are symbols of Indigenous culture
eathers artwork and displays that show her roots
Baskin is of the Mirsquokmaq and Celtic Nations mdash she
s of the Fish Clan and is known in those circles as The
Woman Who Passes on Teachings Fitting then that she
works as a social work professor at Ryerson where she
s also the academic coordinator of the Chang Schoolrsquosertificate on Indigenous knowledges and experiences in
Canada
While over the years she has been successful in help-
ng develop curriculums for various programs on cam-
us (social work midwifery early childhood education
utrition public administration) she notes that one of
he major hurdles in her work is the inflexibility of cer-
ain faculties whose coordinators have trouble justifying
pending resources on increasing Aboriginal content in
heir programs
ldquoItrsquos not easy to get a lot of the schools or programs
n campus to buy into this It takes a long time building
elationships with peoplerdquo Baskin says adding that the
ack of unity across the faculties makes pushing for more
Aboriginal content difficult
In September of this year members of Ryersonrsquos com-
munity looked to correct that by publishing A Call to
Reconciliation at Ryerson mdash a letter specific to the uni-
ersity asking administration to confirm the intended ac-
ions outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commis-
ion (TRC) Among other things they urged Ryerson to
support current students and work to increase the num-
ber of Aboriginal student applicants
But hard as it may be itrsquos become more crucial than
ever to encourage mdash and expect mdash that change In June
2015 after seven years of work the TRC (a holistic gov-
ernment response to the abuse and toxic legacy of Cana-
dian residential school systems) published a call to action
in part addressing post-secondary institutions Some of
these actions concentrate on support and reconciliation
mdash others are more academic calling on the government
to provide ldquoadequate funding to end the backlog of First
Nations students seeking a post-secondary educationrdquo
and infuse more Indigenous knowledge in every end of
this post-secondary education regardless of discipline
As chair of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal Education Council (a
board of students staff and faculty established in 2010
to encourage engagement and support of Aboriginal stu-
dents) Baskin has led the charge on this factor opening
up talks with faculties not traditionally associated with In-
digenous knowledge Her work ranges from the straight-
forward mdash the development of more Aboriginal teachings
in social work and midwifery mdash to the complex as in the
multi-year talks with the journalism school which is the
only program at Ryerson so far that has agreed to offer
a new course (on media and Aboriginal understanding)
next year ldquoI think [others] are just nervous because they
really donrsquot know much of anything and theyrsquore afraid to
admit itrdquo Baskin says ldquoThey donrsquot know where to startrdquo
obbie Nakoocheersquos dream graduate programwill thrust her head-first into Ontariorsquos park-
land Nakoochee a First Nations Cree whose
family originates from the lands surrounding
Fort Albany Ont received her admission to a two-year
term at Guelph Now in her final year at Ryerson she
wants to apply her environment and urban sustainability
degree to the intersection of Aboriginal communities and
Ontariorsquos park systems
Although she had a hunch that shersquod get the spot she
was still flooded with relief when she noticed the funding
package was larger than the one shersquod already received
from York Yet as her eyes paced over the details of the
congratulatory email she couldnrsquot help feeling a pang of
guilt mdash the same feeling that shersquod had upon admission to
Ryerson six years ago
ldquoI feel like Irsquom categorized as separate from the regular
student bodyrdquo explains Nakoochee Sometimes when she
succeeds at something she feels her efforts arenrsquot the most
important mdash but that her status as an included ldquoAborigi-
nal womanrdquo is what matters ldquoItrsquos almost like Irsquom just
the token nativerdquo
ldquoI FEEL LIKE IrsquoM
CATEGORIZED AS
SEPARATE FROM THE
REGULAR STUDENT BODY
ITrsquoS ALMOST LIKE IrsquoM
JUST THE TOKEN NATIVErdquo
$
amp RECONCILIATION
amp()
1047297 nding
at
ILLUSTRATION FARNIA FEKRI PHOTO COURTESY RASS
BY DYLAN FREEMAN-GRIST
AND FARNIA FEKRI
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 612
6 Wednesday March 9 2016FEATURES
n a snowy grey Thursday distinct among
the clatter and slush of Eric Palin Hall is the
hushed peace of Cyndy Baskinrsquos office Itrsquos
quiet with a snug carpet and a tidy desk
All around the room are symbols of Indigenous culture
eathers artwork and displays that show her roots
Baskin is of the Mirsquokmaq and Celtic Nations mdash she
s of the Fish Clan and is known in those circles as The
Woman Who Passes on Teachings Fitting then that she
works as a social work professor at Ryerson where she
s also the academic coordinator of the Chang Schoolrsquosertificate on Indigenous knowledges and experiences in
Canada
While over the years she has been successful in help-
ng develop curriculums for various programs on cam-
us (social work midwifery early childhood education
utrition public administration) she notes that one of
he major hurdles in her work is the inflexibility of cer-
ain faculties whose coordinators have trouble justifying
pending resources on increasing Aboriginal content in
heir programs
ldquoItrsquos not easy to get a lot of the schools or programs
n campus to buy into this It takes a long time building
elationships with peoplerdquo Baskin says adding that the
ack of unity across the faculties makes pushing for more
Aboriginal content difficult
In September of this year members of Ryersonrsquos com-
munity looked to correct that by publishing A Call to
Reconciliation at Ryerson mdash a letter specific to the uni-
ersity asking administration to confirm the intended ac-
ions outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commis-
ion (TRC) Among other things they urged Ryerson to
support current students and work to increase the num-
ber of Aboriginal student applicants
But hard as it may be itrsquos become more crucial than
ever to encourage mdash and expect mdash that change In June
2015 after seven years of work the TRC (a holistic gov-
ernment response to the abuse and toxic legacy of Cana-
dian residential school systems) published a call to action
in part addressing post-secondary institutions Some of
these actions concentrate on support and reconciliation
mdash others are more academic calling on the government
to provide ldquoadequate funding to end the backlog of First
Nations students seeking a post-secondary educationrdquo
and infuse more Indigenous knowledge in every end of
this post-secondary education regardless of discipline
As chair of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal Education Council (a
board of students staff and faculty established in 2010
to encourage engagement and support of Aboriginal stu-
dents) Baskin has led the charge on this factor opening
up talks with faculties not traditionally associated with In-
digenous knowledge Her work ranges from the straight-
forward mdash the development of more Aboriginal teachings
in social work and midwifery mdash to the complex as in the
multi-year talks with the journalism school which is the
only program at Ryerson so far that has agreed to offer
a new course (on media and Aboriginal understanding)
next year ldquoI think [others] are just nervous because they
really donrsquot know much of anything and theyrsquore afraid to
admit itrdquo Baskin says ldquoThey donrsquot know where to startrdquo
obbie Nakoocheersquos dream graduate programwill thrust her head-first into Ontariorsquos park-
land Nakoochee a First Nations Cree whose
family originates from the lands surrounding
Fort Albany Ont received her admission to a two-year
term at Guelph Now in her final year at Ryerson she
wants to apply her environment and urban sustainability
degree to the intersection of Aboriginal communities and
Ontariorsquos park systems
Although she had a hunch that shersquod get the spot she
was still flooded with relief when she noticed the funding
package was larger than the one shersquod already received
from York Yet as her eyes paced over the details of the
congratulatory email she couldnrsquot help feeling a pang of
guilt mdash the same feeling that shersquod had upon admission to
Ryerson six years ago
ldquoI feel like Irsquom categorized as separate from the regular
student bodyrdquo explains Nakoochee Sometimes when she
succeeds at something she feels her efforts arenrsquot the most
important mdash but that her status as an included ldquoAborigi-
nal womanrdquo is what matters ldquoItrsquos almost like Irsquom just
the token nativerdquo
ldquoI FEEL LIKE IrsquoM
CATEGORIZED AS
SEPARATE FROM THE
REGULAR STUDENT BODY
ITrsquoS ALMOST LIKE IrsquoM
JUST THE TOKEN NATIVErdquo
$
amp RECONCILIATION
amp()
1047297 nding
at
ILLUSTRATION FARNIA FEKRI PHOTO COURTESY RASS
BY DYLAN FREEMAN-GRIST
AND FARNIA FEKRI
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 712
Wednesday March 9 2016 7FEATURES
he statue of Egerton Ryerson that stands at the
meeting point of Gould and Bond streets restson land once settled by the Mississauga na-tion It was a land of water and trees known
or its passages connecting what we call Lake Ontariond Lake Simcoe In the book Mapping Torontorsquos First
Century 1787-1884 the 18th century land deals made
between the British Crown and the chiefs of Mississauganation are documented through a series of maps and de-criptions All together it was a messy affair mdash whatrsquos
known is that the tract of land starting at Ashbridge Bayn Toronto Islands and extending many kilometers northof Torontorsquos waterfront was handed over for a caravanrsquosworth of supplies and approximately $60 in todayrsquos
money Nearly two centuries later the flaws of the ldquopur-haserdquo ended with a $145-million deal being worked out
by the government and todayrsquos Mississauga chiefs Now
most students scratch their heads in ignorance of the uni-ersityrsquos history as speakers at some Ryerson events ac-
knowledge their presence on Mississaugarsquos New Credit
First Nations landRyersonrsquos location in a thriving downtown core can be
raced to this deal But the universityrsquos name draws its
oots from a separate matter the man it honours EgertonRyerson was partly responsible for many things amonghem the free public education system and residential
chools in CanadaldquoI would like to see more of that truthfulness on cam-
pus in like a physical hard-copyrdquo says Nakoochee who
tresses the need for acknowledging Egerton Ryersonrsquosies to the residential school system just as much as his
work in Torontorsquos early educational development
Investigating these residential schools which trauma-ized generations of Aboriginal children and families for20 years before being closed in 1996 was at the core of
he TRC The official commission formed in 2008 withhe mandate of uncovering the truth about Canadian resi-
dential schools and collecting research and survivor testi-
mony of the atrocities committed in the system It detailedystemic cruelty widespread abuse and a resounding
multi-generational impact on communities brought on
by the forced assimilation that tore away the identitiesof children mdash all of it sanctioned by the government of
Canada and tied inevitably to Ryerson
ecades later issues faced by Aboriginal com-munities and students still remain on the
sidelines mdash for some Ryerson students thisis not only cultural but physical One of the
most pressing issues to Mark Szkoda the student affairs
director of the Indigenous Studentsrsquo Association is theirtudent space mdash specifically the site of the Ryerson Ab-
original Student Services (RASS) office
ldquoIts location the way I describe it is like wersquore on theeserve of Ryersonrdquo he said in a Feb 23 panel about ex-
periences on campus ldquoWersquore tucked in on the third floorof Kerr Hall] just in the corner and I donrsquot know I think
more central location would be better because some-imes we feel disconnected
ldquoA lot of the Indigenous students here come from dif-
erent communities all over you know They donrsquot knownyone here so that space offers a sense of communityhat offers the difference between flunking out and suc-
eeding in schoolrdquoThat crucial need for community is familiar to Reacuteal
Carriegravere a PhD student in Ryersonrsquos policy studies pro-
ram Carriegravere a Nehinuw from the Northern Saskatche-wan village of Cumberland House was on a campus tourof Simon Fraser University (where he studied as an under-
raduate) as the guides marched groups past various stu-dent services and resources He remembers his tour guidehappening to point out the space for Aboriginal students
before the group quickly moved onldquoI thought in the back of my head lsquoI want to go therersquordquo
he recalls ldquo[But] they didnrsquot tell you anything about the
tudent services offered there After the tour I went backhere and it became my home mdash those were my friendsrdquo
Itrsquos a trend Carriegravere would repeat again when he beganhis masterrsquos at the University of Regina and again whenhe began his PhD mdash seeing the space for Aboriginal stu-dents at Ryerson RASS as the point of access where hersquod
meet his first friends in Canadarsquos largest city
he space to gather to celebrate and to heal is
fundamental for Aboriginal communities Atsuch a gathering on Feb 16 sitting beside herdaughter and in front of her grandson Joanne
Dallaire is explaining some of the rituals meant to help inthe process of self-healing and honouring Canadarsquos miss-ing and murdered Indigenous men and women
After the cleansing smudging ceremony the smells ofburning cedar and sage rise from the middle of the twocircles of seated participants Aboriginal and non-Aborig-
inal community members alike They face the red blackwhite and yellow medicine wheel but almost all eyes areon Dallaire mdash she is the elder Shadow Hawk Woman ofthe Wolf Clan the respected core of Ryersonrsquos Aboriginal
communityHer knowledge and expertise made her an obvious
choice to co-chair a community-consultation initiative in-
troduced by interim-President Mohamed Lachemi whosays itrsquos the best thing the university can do before issuinga response
The president has asked Dallaire and Denise OrsquoNeilGreen (the assistant vice-presidentvice-provost equity
diversity and inclusion) to lead this set of consultationssays Tracey King who is Ojibway and Pottawatomifrom the Otter clan King whose work at Ryerson has
made her the countryrsquos first Aboriginal Human ResourcesConsultant in post-secondary education is a committeemember of an earlier group mdash a working-group headed
by Julie-Ann Tomiak which began its work through acampus dialogue event (for the Truth and Reconciliation
Commissionrsquos Call to Action) in OctoberThese groups are collaborating in their efforts to help
Ryerson as the administration tries to reflect TRC de-mands into programs and policies King says ldquoThey both
have the same aim mdash they want to ensure that TRCrsquos callsto action are implemented in the best wayrdquo
And Ryerson is well on its way to doing that she adds
Through the support system of RASS the introduction ofthe Aboriginal Education Council in 2010 and the cre-
ation of the Office of Aboriginal Initiatives which intro-duced strategic plans the university has taken ldquopositivesteps towards reconciliationrdquo King says
These steps in May 2012 were recognized through oneof the highest forms of honour mdash the symbolic and pres-tigious Eagle Staff
ldquoThe Eagle Staff is a one-time only gift which Ryersonwas given for its leadership in terms of Aboriginal learn-
ing and educationrdquo King explains Made with a five-footwooden pole carved with the Seven Grandfather Teach-ings (Wisdom Love Respect Bravery Honesty Humil-ity and Truth) and adorned with 13 eagle feathers anda dream catcher this Eagle Staff was designed especially
for RASS and Ryerson mdash the first and only university inOntario to receive one
ldquoItrsquos present during every convocationrdquo King says
ldquoWhether there are Indigenous students or not Andthatrsquos really transformativerdquo
ldquoTHAT SPACE OFFERS A
SENSE OF COMMUNITY
THAT OFFERS THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
FLUNKING OUT AND
SUCCEEDING IN SCHOOL
Clockwise from left Cyndy Baskin (Photo courtesy Cyndy Baskin) Tracey King (Photo Annie Arnone) Robbie Nakoochee (Photo Anie Arnone)
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 812
8 BIZ amp TECH Wednesday March 9 2016
What do you do when the worldround you doesnrsquot fit to your
needs
You redesign itThatrsquos what Ryerson School of
Early Childhood Studies profes-
or Jason Nolan is doing withhis work on the Adaptive Designnternational (ADI) project in Bo-
iviaThe goal of the ADI project is
o create custom adaptable de-igns of things like furniture for
hildren with special needs No-an said the idea for the projectame slowly as he was beginning
o create some custom designs Heealized other people around the
world were creating designs like
hese but there was little opportu-nity to share them
ldquoBecause I had a strong back-
ground in informal learning envi-ronments and online learning en-vironments I realized that I could
use these skills to develop a socialmedia environment where peoplecould learn techniques of creat-
ing annotations for special needschildren teach others about what
they had done or just share the de-signs they createdrdquo said Nolan viaemail
The project a part of the Ex-
periential Design and GamingEnvironments (EDGE) Lab mdash ofwhich Nolan is the director mdash
received a $100000 grant fromGrand Challenges Canada fund-ed by the Canadian government
to build a lab in CochabambaBolivia The lab is set to help or-phanages in the area by creating
designs that will help the childrenbased on their needs Nolan saidthe lab could then connect with
EDGE back in Canada to sharetheir ideas
ldquoThis is a slow process of build-ing shared understanding and
trustrdquo Nolan said ldquoInitial proj-ects include things as simple asseating devices and basic thera-
peutic devices made out of card-
board all the way up to low-costcustomized augmented and alter-
native communication devices thatwill help nonverbal children withlimited mobility to communicaterdquo
Though Nolan himself hasnrsquotbeen to the lab in Cochabambayet his colleague and Ryerson
associate professor of early child-hood studies Aurelia Di Santowent down to work directly with
the team there He plans to traveldown in May and is ldquovery excit-ed and looking forward to meet-
ing face-to-face people who Irsquovebeen communicating with [for]
so long onlinerdquo
Nolan is autistic which he sayshelps him with his designs becausehe views the world from a differ-
ent perspectiveldquoI find that my attention always
shifts towards the edges and gaps
of things Irsquom always aware of
what is forgotten ignored or leftbehind Irsquom always thinking about
the assumptions that we makeand I question those assump-tionsrdquo he said
Nolan said hersquos always beenuncomfortable with how disabledpeople are marginalized by soci-ety and hersquos aware of how designs
focus on a standard definition ofa person
ldquoCombining these two notions
has led to a sense that we need tobe able to create tools that will al-low everyone to create things that
they need in their lives without
Remodelling the world to fit your lifeAdaptive Design International looks at simple designs like rocking chairs and remakes them to adapt to children with special needs
yerson professor Jason Nolan is director of EDGE and running the Adaptive Design International projectPHOTO COURTESY DAVE UPHAM
By Jacob Dubeacute
having to wait for someone else to
design for themrdquo Nolan said ldquoIthink the design should be radical-ly individualizable and the design
processes should start with the [in-dividuals] who use an object andnot with the designer or engineer
who merely wants to create thingsfor othersrdquo
At EDGE Nolan and his team
launched the Responsive Ecolo-gies Lab (RELab) The lab usesfields like engineering architec-ture and health sciences to ldquoen-
sure that technologies become amore meaningful and useful partof our livesrdquo by creating things
like learning-based games andbuilt environments like the ADIproject
ldquoI think my approach hasemerged because of who I amas an autistic and how I see the
worldrdquo Nolan said ldquoYet at thesame time I think that we all canexpand our awareness towards
the margins and the marginal-ized and see new opportunitiesto imagine and invent new tools
and technologies that will helpus create solutions for ourselvesThat is a really interesting chal-
lengerdquoThe ADI projectrsquos goal for the
future is to help locals in Bolivia
develop a design lab of their ownwhere they can learn to create
advancements for special-needschildren
ldquoIrsquove never had the opportunityto have a lab such as we are es-
tablishing in Bolivia where we canhave direct and sustained interac-tion with a number of children
over many yearsrdquo Nolan saidldquoIrsquom very excited for this phase tobegin so that we can move from
short one-off experiments to along-term sustained design projectthat will help to put these ideas tothe test and hopefully represent
improvement in the lives of thesechildrenrdquo
App of the
WeekBy Brittany Rosen
I always used to suck at gym andwas always at the bottom of my
lass If I just had someone to coachmerdquo said Marissa Wu co-foundernd CEO of Onyx Motion
Several years later she and a fewothers created their app Swishwhich was a part of the DMZ
Swish is a smartwatch app byOnyx Motion that acts as a virtu-
al basketball coach for users Theapp according to Onyx Motionrsquos
website uses customized coachingbased on ldquopast performance andmachine learningrdquo to help a variety
of people with different skill levelsSensors in the smartwatch help
the app calculate the info it needsfor you to improve your game Byusing data videos tips and mod-ules from NBA players therersquos a
chance that users will improve their
basketball skills Users can also
compete with friends and completechallenges all while gaining valu-able professional insight from a se-
lection of professional playersThe app has increasing support
from the NBA as Onyx Motion
has Ben Gordon former pro bas-ketball player for Orlando Magicas an advisor He joined Onyx
after the company pitched theidea to him and showed his sup-port by sponsoring their crowd-
funding campaign for Swish Thecampaign ended up surpassing its
$10000 targetSwish became a part of the
DMZ through a competition heldin early 2015 in which the DMZ
partnered with Rogers to find new
developments for the sports world
The app made it to the final 10 ofthe competition
Wu says the app currently has
over 600 usersAlthough anyone can use the
app Onyx Motionrsquos target demo-
graphics are younger people inter-ested in tech and amateur basket-ball players
According to Wu the app is
being promoted by making part-nerships with different camps inCanada and the US as well as
the University of Toronto and
NBA Fit campsWu has been on Dragonsrsquo Den
where she made a deal with in-vestor Michele Romanow whoagreed to a partnership only if
Onyx Motion included golf coach-ing in their app
She also mentioned the impor-tance of Swish as a wearable rath-er than just a regular phone app
She said that if Swish were tobe a phone app there would beno difference in comparison to
other mobile apps Wu describesthe coaching as a ldquovirtual realityexperiencerdquo and ldquoplaying a video
game but in real liferdquoThey want to expand their coach-
ing platform to include tennis and
beer pong Wu says the goal is to
make a ldquoplatform for physical edu-cationrdquo and incorporate ldquodance
music and physiotherapyrdquoSwish is available on Android
Wear and Apple Watch
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 912
Wednesday March 9 2016 ARTS amp LIFE 9
ylan McArthur fourth-year Ryerson photography student PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
QampA with photographer Dylan McArthur
The Eyeopener sat down with
ourth-year photography student
Dylan McArthur to talk about his
passion for photography his expe-
ience studying at Ryerson and his
photo exhibit ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo
being featured at the Ryerson
Artspace from March 10 to April
You can check out the full inter-
iew on wwwtheeyeopenercom
Q How did you get into photog-
aphy
At first I had no interest in the
arts I went away lived in Italy
for a year where I picked up the
habit of photography for the
sake of tourism I was hooked
in the sense of being fascinated
with images and seeing the re-
sult I decided to pursue that
because it seemed like the right
thing to do I saw myself pro-
gressing with photography so I
Iooked at OCAD and Ryerson
got accepted to both but Ryerson
was more suited for me because
it was more targeted to photog-
raphy
Q What is ldquoLife and Shadowrdquoabout
ldquoLife and Shadowrdquo is a three-
year almost four-year body of
work Itrsquos been taken mainly in
Toronto in the financial district
[and] is about the big questions
in life like life and death I am
interested in photography as a
medium and the possibility pho-
tography presents itself ldquoLife
and Shadowrdquo is a representation
of how images change the world
The images decide how pho-
tography acts as a transforma-tive tool by nature I am using
certain aesthetics to enhance the
pictures The world doesnrsquot look
like that itrsquos about ways of see-
ing ideas around representations
with the use of photography
My livelihood is predestined
with duties attuned to going for-
ward with the day from waking
up to getting ready to leave the
apartment to walking to com-
muting to working to learning
to experiencing mdash to experience
in order to live and to live in or-
der to experience
Q Where did your idea for ldquoLifeand Shadowrdquo come from
I wander around the streets and
photograph strangers so things
come naturally I was fascinated
not by the financial district but
it is coined as a place of big busi-
ness which it is at certain hours
of the day But at 5 orsquoclock most
people commuting from different
parts of the GTA all get together
Q Why did the process take solong
The shortest thing Irsquove done
has taken eight months Itrsquos be-
cause of the way I work itrsquos all
really by chance I can go out
one day and not get anythingand the next Irsquoll get a great pic-
ture I donrsquot think the project is
complete I think itrsquos one of those
things Irsquoll always continue work
on
Q How do you feel about being
featured at the Ryerson Artspace
Irsquom very excited about it Hap-
py to have all my work in one
space usually itrsquos been single im-
ages The images by themselves
are a different context than when
you see them all together in one
space
In the statement I want toachieve itrsquos important to see
them all together This is the first
time they are being shown all to-
gether
Q How has your experience beenat Ryerson for photography
Itrsquos been a very good experi-
enceThe most important thing
about Ryerson is having the abil-
ity to connect with different pro-
fessionals from different fields
who are critiquing you and view-
ing your portfolio
Q How has the university helped
you achieve your goals
It has helped me in my prog-
ress of my bodies of work theguidance of the professors and
the opportunities that opened up
through artspace Itrsquos all in the
professors and how much moti-
vation they have and theyrsquove all
been very motivated and helpful
Q What advice would you give
to those who are passionateabout photography
Just go out and take pictures
Shoot a lot and work hard Itrsquos
that simple I shoot every single
day I go out Having a good
working method and knowing
the history goes a long way Lookat other photographers study
them and go from there Treat it
like any other profession yoursquore
involved [in]
Ryerson art residency creates safe space for trans artists
By Zeinab Saidoun
Trans and queer artists at Ryer-
on will be given the chance to get
unding for their projects partake
n workshops and be featured in a
ormal exhibit through the newly-
aunched Trans Artist ResidencyEvan Roy the curator of the
Trans Artist Residency and one
of the coordinators of the Ry-
rson Trans Collective said the
esidency is ldquoused to empower
tudents by focusing on trans and
queer issues and on the issues that
re affecting their lives mdash such
s identity and power and how
hese things intersect with artrdquo
They began planning the resi-
dency in September and it took
hree months to realize their vi-
ion by going through an approv-
l process and recieving funding
pproval Starting in early Mayhe residency will provide pro-
essional workshops art fund-
ng and a formal exhibition at
he Ryerson Artspace near Pride
weekend on June 30 The appli-
ation deadline for the residency
was formally set to Feb 26 but
pplicants may still be accepted
until their start date
ldquoThese [types of] residencies
re so rare and infrequent itrsquos
really the only one Irsquove heard of
for studentsrdquo said Roy ldquoIt is
great for the applicants to have
some income Have some train-
ing because they are so financially
strained already We also realized
that there isnrsquot much opportunity
not to show work but to gain aneducation That was the real key
focus of this residencyrdquo
The art workshops will be se-
lected by the residency applicants
and Roy will hire local trans and
queer artists who specialize in cer-
tain fields to conduct them
Roy approached Ryerson Art-
space a faculty and student-run
gallery on Queen Street West to
take part in the residency and
help provide the exposure needed
for trans and queer students to
exhibit their pieces
ldquoThe hope is that hellip trans and
queer artists can hellip exhibit workwhile engaging with like-minded
artists and individualsrdquo said
Robyn Cumming the faculty ad-
visor and gallery director at the
artspace ldquoWe hope to help make
this work visible to a larger audi-
ence especially an audience that
may not normally have exposure
to the dialogue and issues present
and important within this com-
munityrdquo
The Trans Artist Residency was
funded from various sources with-in Ryerson one of them being the
Faculty of Communication and De-
sign and another being the Student
Initiative Fund
Markus Harwood-Jones a resi-
dency applicant and a co-coordi-
nator of the Trans Collective said
they are looking forward to the
residency to meet new artists
ldquoI applied because I thought it
would be a great opportunity for
trans artists to connect with other
queer and trans artists and to de-velop my work in a new wayrdquo
said Harwood-Jones ldquoI am not a
formally trained artist and I am
not an art student and I thought
it would be really nice to learn
some technique and make a con-
nectionrdquo
Harwood-Jones is also planning
on finishing their original film
Mosaic along with collaborating
with other painters and writers
ldquoBecause I am already really
involved within the trans com-munity in Toronto Irsquom kind of
hoping that the trans and queer
residency will introduce me to
some new people and offer some
more opportunities to revisit those
old connectionsrdquo said Harwood-
Jones
ldquoI try to use my art to try and
tell stories and I am excited on tak-
ing my work as an author and il-
lustrator to the next levelrdquo
By Jaclyn Tansil
PHOTO ANNIE ARNONE
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1012
Wednesday March 9 2016SPORTS10
Academics volleyball and the need to succeed
By Devin Jones
For her entire first season playingwith the Toronto Diamonds vol-
eyball club Theanna Vernon mdash
4 at the time mdash couldnrsquot serve
he ball over the net Seven years
ater shersquos a silver medal-win-
ning first team OUA all-star for
he Ryerson Rams womenrsquos vol-
eyball team
ldquoI went back for a serve and
could not get the ball over the
net at allrdquo Vernon said ldquoIt took
me all season to get it over and
once that finally happened I felt
o very accomplishedrdquo
And for Vernon just like that
her love for a sport she barely
knew beganIn her childhood she ran track
nd field alongside her siblings
until the age of 13 Vernon had
never paid the slightest atten-
Bringing youth basketball to TO
tion to volleyball It wasnrsquot until
a friend suggested she give the
sport a try that the leather balland net came into frame
ldquoI knew nothing about the
sport didnrsquot really know how to
play even but after trying out I
fell in love with it and from there
it just took offrdquo she said
Early on Vernon engaged with
the sport the way any teenager
would enjoying a newfound
hobby with friends It wasnrsquot un-
til Toronto Diamonds head coach
Clayton Carimbocas saw her po-
tential and began working more
exensively with the now two-time
all-star that her skills took off
Vernon cites Carimbocasrsquo fair but
tough attitude as a factor in herearly development pushing her
mdash whenever she stepped on the
court mdash to be a better player
ldquoHer mom brought her out
and was convinced her sister
[Kadeshia] was the volleyball
player I had to say lsquoNo itrsquos The-
anna whorsquos going to be the real
playerrsquordquo Carimbocas said ldquoThe-
anna I kinda knew was going to
be specialrdquo
Vernon reminisces about themoment she realized volleyball
was more than an extracurricular
activity mdash something she could
know inside and out a sport that
she could dominate if she dedi-
cated the time
ldquoWhen my club team finally
won our first gold medal in the
premier division the top division
in the OVA (Ontario Volleyball
Association) at the time I just
felt amazingrdquo Vernon said ldquoA
lightbulb went off and I realized
I could see myself doing this for
the rest of my liferdquo
From there she chose Ryer-son because it had both the pro-
gram she was interested in (social
work) and allowed her to play
for long-time Rams coach Dustin
Reid
Yet her transition to Ryerson
was met with initial disappoint-
ment as a struggling grade point
average made her ineligible to
play for her entire first seasonldquoI think she knew what she was
getting into but whatrsquos more sig-
nificant in my opinion is that she
was willing to do itrdquo Reid said
ldquoShe was willing to go a year
without being able to compete so
she could focus on her academic
side Very few athletes would
have the patience or desire to do
thatrdquo
Vernon found herself watch-
ing from the sidelines But after
readjusting and continuing to
train in both the gym and on the
court Vernon came back with a
vengeance And at the end of her2014-2015 year at Ryerson mdash
her rookie season with the team
mdash Vernon came away with the
countryrsquos highest attacking aver-
age the title of OUA east rookie
of the year as well as a spot on
the OUA rookie all-star team
ldquoHe (Dustin) makes you want
to be a better player and a bet-
ter person when you arenrsquot play-ing and I donrsquot think you can find
that everywhererdquo Vernon said
ldquoHe is such an awesome coach I
donrsquot think therersquos anyone better
to represent me or the team as a
wholerdquo
Following a quarter-final play-
off loss to the University of Ot-
tawa and a season that saw the
team finish with an overall record
of 18-8 the pressure was on for
Vernon and the Rams to produce
next season
And produce they did with a
season that culminated in the
team achieving their first silvermedal since 2001 and four differ-
ent players receiving OUA hon-
ours On a personal level Vernon
surpassed her own achievements
earning a higher attack average
than the one she had set before
ldquoItrsquos easy to see how dominant
she is as a volleyball player but
when I look at what shersquos doing
away from the court Irsquom even
more proud of her for thatrdquo Reid
said
And as Vernon continues to
dominate the OUA one day plan-
ning on playing professionally in
Europe overseas one thing is cer-
tain Theanna Vernon will con-tinue to be successful in the best
way she knows how by setting
her form and serving that leather
ball over the mesh net
By Chris Blanchette
When Ryerson womenrsquos basketball
assistant coach Kareem Griffin isnrsquot
coaching one of the best CIS bas-
ketball teams in the country hersquos
spending his time organizing and
coordinating events that showcase
some of the Greater Toronto Arearsquos
brightest basketball talent
Over the last four years through
his organization Incharge Sports
and Entertainment Griffin has
been finding ways to engage with
the community and help to grow
the sport of basketball in the GTA
Among the events that Incharge
runs includes ldquoShoot for the Curerdquo
a showcase for girlrsquos basketball
The event is run in the fall and allof its proceeds are donated to the
Canadian Breast Cancer Founda-
tion Griffin says that they are also
going to be organizing an all-star
game for high school girlrsquos basket-
ball some time in the near future
ldquoIrsquove been around the game of
basketball for 15 or 16 years so I
know the basketball community
and I saw that there was a need for
events to be produced So a couple
of my colleagues and I created this
organizationrdquo said Griffin
Incharge also runs basketball
camps during the dead spots of the
year such as over Christmas break
March break and in the summer
Itrsquos through these camps that they
are able to stimulate youth devel-
opment through basketball theirv
involvement in the sport
With the popularity of basket-
ball in Canada at an all-time high
and more Canadian stars in the
NBA and the NCAA than ever
before Griffin feels that in order
to grow the game further athletes
will need to be getting opportuni-ties to bring their skills to a wider
audience
ldquoThe way that things are going
for basketball in Toronto and in
this country we have to start ex-
posing our athletes a little bit bet-
terrdquo Griffin said ldquoThese events
give an opportunity to people like
yourself or students who go to Ry-
erson (or anywhere else) who want
experience in the field of sportsrdquo
Griffin joined the Ryerson wom-
enrsquos basketball team as an assistant
coach two years ago when head
coach Carly Clarke gave him the
opportunity to coach alongside
her Griffin had been coaching at
the Eastern Commerce Collegiate
Institute but ultimately made the
decision to take a year off to tran-
sition to university-level coaching
Since arriving at Ryerson Griffin
has seen a winning culture become
stabilized as Ryerson teams have
begun to thrive in their new home
at the Mattamy Athletic Centre
The womenrsquos team has gone from
a first round playoff knockout to alegitimate OUA championship and
CIS championship contender after
finishing first in the OUA East this
year with a 16-3 record
ldquoIrsquom heavily engrained in the
basketball community Prior to
2010 I never would have come
to a Ryerson Rams gamerdquo Griffin
said ldquoBut now with this building
being renovated and built for Ry-
erson and the historical aspect it
has really changed the scope of bas-
ketballrdquo
Griffin says the Mattamy Athlet-
ic Centre is a great place for athlet-
ics to grow in Toronto And as the
popularity of basketball in Canadacontinues to grow so too will the
hype surronding the Ryerson Rams
womenrsquos basketball team and
Incharge Sports and Entertainment
PHOTO NICK DUNNE
PHOTO COURTESY THEANNA VERNON
PHOTO COURTESY ALEX DrsquoADDESE RYERSON
ATHLETICS
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1112
Wednesday March 9 2016 FUN 11
ellie Ritter with a song and a dream PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
Irsquoll call him maybeBy Skyler Ash
A girl is homeless after her room-mates kicked her out for playing
the same song on repeat for 34days
Kellie Ritter a fourth-year phi-
losophy major had been play-ing Carly Rae Jepsenrsquos Call Me
Maybe ever since she dropped
her iPod on the ground and theautomatic shuffle switched herplaylist
ldquoThe first time it came on I
was just jamming because whata throwbackrdquo said Ritter ldquoThenI played it again because itrsquos just
so goodrdquo It was so good that Rit-ter said shersquos listened to the song14688 times in just over a month
ldquoYou canrsquot put limitations onartrdquo said Ritter Her roommatesTanya Oliveri and Rebecca Joyce
disagreeldquoYou can put a limitation on
artrdquo said Joyce ldquoWe told her after
the first five repeats that she couldonly listen to it five more timesbut she just didnrsquot listenrdquo
Oliveri said that she shares aroom with Ritter in their smalltwo-bedroom apartment at Car-
leton and Jarvis streets ldquoHear-
ing the song in our room was badenough but the walls in our place
are really thinrdquoOliveri said that after two weeks
of Ritterrsquos ldquosick obsessionrdquo con-
tinued she just had to leave theirapartment She stayed with her
parents in Brampton where sheldquolet the sweet relief of silence andwhite noise wash over my bleed-ing earsrdquo
ldquoShe [Kellie] has problemsrdquosaid Joyce ldquoShe keeps running upto me and screaming about some
deeper meaning and mutteringunder her breath It got to thepoint where Tanya [Oliveri] and I
just had to take actionrdquoOliveri and Joyce told Ritter
that she had to either turn off the
song or find a new home ldquoI chosethe latterrdquo said Ritter
ldquoI canrsquot silence Carly [Rae Jep-
sen] The song speaks to me and ifI have to lose my house over some-thing that I love then so be itrdquo
Ritter said the song makes her
think of her ex-boyfriend whoshe never called back ldquoItrsquos toolate to call him but the song gave
me hope Maybe maybe I can callhimrdquo Ritter hasnrsquot seen her ex inseven years and said they dated
for ldquonine beautiful daysrdquo that Rit-ter ldquowill never forget and some-times [still] fantasize about when
Irsquom alonerdquoRitter stayed with her parents
after she was forced out by her
roommates but after three days
her parents also asked her to leaveldquoI appreciate a good song but
this is just utter garbagerdquo saidRitterrsquos mother Judy ldquoWe told herto go somewhere else to listen to
that so-called lsquomusicrsquo Also wersquoremoving to Florida in two weeksand we donrsquot want her to know so
she had to leave before the moverscamerdquo
Ritter has been couch-surfing
for the last week and hasnrsquot beenable to stay in one place for morethan a day because of her music
taste Ritter is currently staying ata Holiday Inn in Toronto because
none of her friends will take herin
Ritterrsquos plan is to track downher ex-boyfriend and live with
him ldquoIf itrsquos meant to be itrsquos meantto be you know And I know wecan rekindle that magic from allthose years ago We just have to
Because like Carly says lsquomaybersquoand I like those oddsrdquo
RECESS
ACROSS
The gangrsquos new kid _____Griswald
Schoolyard snitch (first name)7 Head honcho TJ ______ Who has the voice of an angel
first name)
DOwn
1 Game they play at recess2 The literal worst teacher Miss
_______4 The Ashleysrsquo catchphrase5 Badass girl in the striped tights
(nickname)
Drop off your completed crossword with your name contact info and
avourite colour to The Eyeopener office (SCC 207) for your chance towin a $25 Cineplex gift card
THIS wHOMPS
My name is Willhelm TungstenYou probably donrsquot know mebut I bet you know my father
Burkhart Tungsten who is ofcourse famous for discovering theelement tungsten
What was it like growing upwith a famous father Well itcertainly wasnrsquot easy My ac-
tions were always closely fol-lowed by paparazzi and I washeld to higher standards in sci-ence classes
But it wasnrsquot all that bad Living
with the worldrsquos foremost tung-sten expert meant that the Tung-sten family was always very well
off Really more money than youcould even imagine
Unfortunately my father passed
away several years ago Ever sincethen the fame has slowly fadedA few ldquoinvestmentsrdquo gone wrong
and next thing you know the pe-riodic table is threatening to kick
you off and you have to sell Tung-sten Manor just to meet your peri-odic payments
So Irsquom here to remind you of
how great tungsten is It can go on
jewellery it can go in a showcaseand it can even be welded intohigh-performance weaponry
Remember the good olrsquo dayswhen everybody was buyingtungsten Well therersquos no need to
leave those days in the past Letrsquosall get us some fresh tungsten andkeep the good times rolling
Listen Irsquove never worked a dayin my life Irsquove never not had a for-
tune to my name The Tungstenfamily is used to a certain lifestyleand with your help we can keep itthat way
With files from Robert Mackenzie
By Willhelm Tungsten
Funvertisement Willhelm TungstenWillhelm Tungsten begging for money PHOTO JAKE SCOTT
The Tungsten family is in trouble and needs your help
OPOP
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612
8192019 The Eyeopener- March 9 2016
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullthe-eyeopener-march-9-2016 1212
Wednesday Mar 9 201612