A look at Student Government with Bob Bajek/Student Government Editor

Dear fellow readers,

Last night’s Student Senate meeting was the last of the academic year. Unfortunately, it was a grandiose version of what has happened–or not happened–this year.

In Student Body President Levi Bulgar’s State of the University Address, he said, “Leadership is action, not a title.”

Looking at what Student Government has done this semester, the only tangible accomplishments they had was creating the Students Distinguished Teachers Award and lobbying for the proposed Renewable Energy Center.

Student Senate Speaker Drew Griffin’s said in his State of the Senate Address that it has “been a good semester.”

How, Mr. Griffin?

Is it positive that senators Olivia Brauer and Ron Jordan resigned and other senators like Luis Alarcon and Paul Reid did not attend senate meetings?

Is it positive that Alarcon’s resolution for more volunteer work in the Charleston community was pulled and senate volunteering has been almost none existent outside of its own Panther Service Day?

Is it positive that Mike Whildin’s University Development and Recycling Committee only plants a tree for $150 instead of working with the Citizen’s for Recycling to improve off-campus collection of recyclables?

Is it positive that the recent Student Government election received only 6 percent of the student body vote while both parties broke election guidelines and the Election Commission lacked the power to correct anything?

Griffin said the senate serves the students. However, he criticized the student body for not attending the Student Government events and forums. Could a possible reason for this be the cutting back of Student Government advertising  and replacing it with unreliable word-of-mouth?

Please remember, readers, it is important to look at what your representatives do, not say.

By Heather Holm / Activities Editor

University Board wants student input

University Board is looking for suggestions for acts for Family Weekend 2010.
Students can email Tom Usher at tnusher@eiu.edu, UB concerts coordinator elect, with suggestions.

Usher will be concerts coordinator next year.

Family Weekend 2009

The band performing for Family Weekend 2009 is Styx, neutral ground for both students’ and parents’ enjoyment.

Some Styx songs include “Come Sail Away,” “Lady” and “Mr. Roboto.” Tickets will be on sale for $22.

“Styx was brought up a while ago,” said Sheila Hurley, University Board concerts coordinator. “We’ve been trying to get them and they have always been thought about, and it worked out for them to come in the fall.”

There will not be an opening act, however Styx will perform two shows.

Spring 2009 show

Artists for the spring show next year have yet to be determined.

“Artists don’t release tour dates until as early as December, January or February of that year,” Hurley said. “Bands really will not tell us a year in advance.”

Movies with Collin Whitchurch/Verge Reporter
It’s tough to discuss summer flicks because you can lump most into the same few categories: action, thriller, family.

So I won’t waste my time discussing how I’m excited for Angels & Demons because I think it translates better to the screen than Da Vinci Code did, how I could care less about Star Trek, Terminator Salvation, or the latest Harry Potter installment, or how Disney’s Up may be the next great Pixar invention.

Instead here are a few lesser-known summer releases that spark my interest:

Rudo y Cursi (May 8th)

Gael Garcia Bernel and Diego Luna star in their first film together since Y tu Mama Tambien, and this film is directed Carlos Cuaron, the brother of the acclaimed director of Tambien, Alfonso Cuaron.

The two have incredible on-screen chemistry (perhaps a little TOO much, for those who saw Tambien), and they play two brothers from a small Mexican town who are recruited to play professional soccer in the big city.

Away We Go (June 5th)

Sam Mendes’ first directorial role since 2008 hit Reservation Road is compelling, to say the least. It stars John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph as a couple traveling around the world to find a place to raise their child.

The biggest question in the film would be if Krasinski (of NBC’s The Offce fame), and Rudolph (of Saturday Night Live fame) can thrive in both serious and leading roles. The two are accustomed to playing comedic roles, so it will be interesting to see if they can do well in roles that are supposed to tug on the heartstrings.

Public Enemies (July 1st)

I’ve always been a huge fan of Michael Mann, and it’s pretty clear that with this film, he’s trying to create today’s Heat. Not in a story sense, as this film is set with 1930s gangsters, but 1994’s Heat pitted Al Pacino vs. Robert DeNiro, two of the biggest film stars in the world at the time.

Public Enemies pits Christian Bale vs. Johnny Depp, and what bigger film stars are there in the world right now than them? Throw in Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard, and there’s some real potential here.

Inglourious Basterds (Aug. 21st)

Quentin Tarentino’s war epic has been in the works for years, and it finally comes to fruition this summer starring Brad Pitt and Samuel L. Jackson, among others.

It promises to be bloody, crude, and downright entertaining, and not coincidentally is opening the Cannes Film Festival.

A look at Student Government with Bob Bajek/Student Government Editor

Dear fellow readers,

I was informed by Student Body President Levi Bulgar outside of Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting that he is going to use his veto power for the first and last time this year.

Bulgar is using his veto to overturn the University Board marketing software, which costs $300, to purchase Adobe software updates. The senate approved the bill by a vote of 10-7-3.

“It was a close vote and there were some issues with people being confused,” Bulgar said. “After (the vote), I was able to find information that the UB Chair (Mike Usher), next year’s UB Vice Chair (Sheila Hurley) and one of the people going to be in that department were never consulted.”

Bulgar found out that the people who presented the additional allocation to the AB last Thursday were not the chair and vice chair of UB, which he said is not proper because the chief executive officer or advising officer have to present it.

The veto letter would be written after the meeting, Bulgar said. An email to the Student Senate would be sent out this morning.

A presidential veto has to be presented with reasons at next Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting. A two-thirds senate majority is needed to overturn Bulgar’s veto.

By Heather Holm / Activities Editor

There are only three weeks left and University Board and putting on some bigger events right before finals.

Some of the Events:

Aries Spears from MadTV will be at Eastern at 9 p.m. April 22 in the Grand Ballroom of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.
He was selected by UB because he was the top choice on a survey handed out to the student body at various comedian shows earlier in the year.

Open Mic finals are at 8 p.m. April 28 in the University Ballroom of the Martin King Jr. University Union. Students will have the chance to beat out other student competitors for prizes.

The Spring Fling theme this year is Wild Safari, which will be held at noon on April 30 in the Library Quad. This year will feature an artist doing caricatures of students, face painting, as well as ten exotic animals will be present at the event.

Pantherstock will be at 11 a.m. on Friday, May 1 in the Library Quad and the band Wrong Way will be performing the headlining act at 5:30 p.m.
Wrong Way is a Sublime cover band and comes from the Sublime song “Wrong Way.”

University Board Mainstage coordinator Lauren Phillips thinks since the crowd liked the Beatle’s cover band, American English, at last year’s Pantherstock, this one would get a big crowd as well.

The Battle of the Bands winners from the Fall and Spring semesters will also be performing as openers for Wrong Way, as well as the EIU Jazz Lab Band.

Friday’s musical lineup is as follows:

EIU Jazz Lab Band at 11:30 a.m.

Little Boy Jr. at 12:45 p.m.

Mugwump Specific at 2:15 p.m.

Staff Blues Band at 3:45 p.m.

Wrong Way at 5:30 p.m.

EIU Concert Band and University Band will also be performing at 6 p.m. in the Dvorak Concert Hall of the Doudna Fine Arts Center.

A look at Student Government with Bob Bajek/ Student Government Editor

Dear fellow readers,

I was excited to be a journalist at Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting. State Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon, addressed the Student Senate about the Renewable Energy Center.

Righter told the Student Senate about the importance of engaging Eastern’s student body in supporting Senate Bill 2009, a bill that would change the Higher Education Energy Conservation Act.

“One thing that almost every legislator cares about is students,” Righter said. “Every legislator I’ve talked to would listen to students carefully with anything they say about their education, especially finances.”

Righter said he wants Eastern students to write two letters—one to their local state representative and one to their state senator—to convince lawmakers to act in the students’ interests.

“The more letters we send and the more legislators we touch, the better chance we have to getting the bill on the governor’s desk to be signed,” Righter said. “If we get it to the governor’s desk, I’m highly confident it will be signed. But the process of getting there will be like going through a jungle.”

Righter also told the Student Senate the best time for students to contact their state senator would be early next week because the Senate will have a low traffic time. The Illinois General Assembly will meet again on April 21.
The current steam plant is about to go under. Mark Olendzki, student vice president of student affairs-elect, said if the plant breaks down in winter, the residence hall pipes could freeze within 30 minutes.

The time to act now has come, Eastern students. Righter came to remind you about the power your voice could have in the legislative process.  Please use it.

Sports Spot with Kevin Murphy/Sports Editor

The Eastern men’s and women’s tennis teams know what teams they will be playing in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament in Paducah, Ky.

The men, seeded sixth, play No. 3 Tennessee Tech in the first round at 2 p.m. Friday.
The women, seeded sixth, play No. 6 Murray State in the first round at 10 a.m. Friday.
The Eastern women’s tennis team lost to Murray State 6-1 Saturday. The Panthers have only five healthy players. They will forfeit their No. 6 singles match and No.3 doubles. Eastern’s only win came at No. 3 singles, a three-set victory. They also lost a three-set victory. They’re going to have to play inspired tennis to pull off an upset.

The men’s team, which played senior Jordan Nestrud against Murray State, plays a TTU team that crushed them 7-0 earlier this season.

The Panthers, though, lost two three-set matches, and came close to picking up the doubles point.

Only time can tell.

Sports Spot with Sports Editor Kevin Murphy
Former Eastern assistant men’s basketball coach Kwanza Johnson joined the Georgia coaching staff.

Johnson was an assistant coach at Nevada for the past three seasons along with current head Georgia coach Mark Fox. Fox had the same position at Nevada.

Johnson, 37, had spent the previous three seasons coaching alongside Fox as an assistant for the Wolf Pack program. Before coaching at Nevada, Johnson had served previously on the coaching staffs at Eastern (2006), twice at his alma mater Tulsa (1997-99 and 2001-05), Arkansas-Little Rock (2001) and Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo (2000).

Sports Spot with Sports Editor Kevin Murphy

Hey Eastern sports fans.

Keep on eye on this minor league baseball player this season.
Erik Huber.

Huber is a former Eastern baseball player that was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2007. He is now with the Class A West Virginia Power. West Virginia’s season begins today.

Huber made his full-season debut with Class A Hickory, hitting .259 (125-for-483) with 12 home runs and 60 RBIs in 127 games in 2008. He played in 45 games for Class A Short-Season State College, hitting .227 (34-for-150) in 2007.
He was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 12th round (368th overall) of the 2007 amateur entry Draft.

In case you’re wondering here how the current Panthers are stacking up against the rest of the conference:
OVC Standings
Men’s Tennis

Team / Overall / OVC

E. Kentucky / 15-8 / 6-0

Tennessee Tech / 10-6 / 5-1

Jacksonville State / 16-2 / 4-1

Murray State / 6-8 / 3-3

Morehead State 8-6 / 3-4

E. Illinois / 10-10 / 3-4

Tennessee Martin / 5-10 / 3-4

Austin Peay / 3-12 / 1-5

Tennessee State / 0-10/ 0-6

Women’s Tennis

Team / OVC / Overall

E. Kentucky / 7-0 / 18-5

Tennessee Martin / 6-1 / 10-6

Jacksonville State / 5-1 / 11-5

Tennessee Tech / 5-2 / 6-7

Murray State / 4-3 / 10-7

E. Illinois / 3-4 / 7-11

Morehead State / 2-6 / 10-10

Austin Peay / 2-5 / 3-14

SE Missouri / 1-6/ 1-17

Tennessee State / 0-7 / 0-11

Baseball

Team           /  OVC  /  Overall

Eastern Illinois   /     7-0  /     22-5

SE Missouri      /    8-1  /   18-11

Eastern Kentucky  /   6-3  /   18-10

Jacksonville State  /   5-4  /   17-12

Morehead State  /   3-6  /   10-19

Austin Peay    /     2-4  /   14-18

Murray State     /    1-4  /   18-12

Tennessee Martin  /   1-5  /   10-17

Tennessee Tech  /   1-7   /  13-12

Softball

Team     /        OVC  / Overall

Jacksonville State   /     9-1   /    24-9

Tennessee Tech  /   9-4   /  21-21

Eastern Illinois  /   6-3   /  20-14

Tennessee State   /  7-7   /  15-17

Tennessee Martin  /   6-7   /  22-17

Eastern Kentucky  /   5-6    / 14-17

SE Missouri    /    3-4   /  12-15

Morehead State  /   5-7   /  21-14

Austin Peay     /    2-10   /  10-27

By Heather Holm / Activities Editor

Lupe Set List

Lupe performed a set of 17 songs, with some off of his albums “The Coolest” and “Food and Liquor” with some new songs mixed in. He also performed an encore at the end of the show.

Here is the list of all the songs Lupe performed in Lantz Arena Saturday night:
1.Intro
2.Instrumental
3.Hello Goodbye
4.Coolest
5.The Cool
6.Hip Hop Saved
7.Free Style
8.Go Go Gadget
9.High Definition
10. Little Weapon
11. Streets On Fire
12. Kick Push
13. I Gotcha
14. Paris Tokyo
15. Free Style 2
16. Superstar
17. Day Dream

University Board Reaction

Lupe Fiasco performed at Lantz Arena on Saturday evening along with Shwayze and Ian “I2K” Winston.

The set-up for the show started around 4 p.m. the Friday and at noon the day of the show.

According to Ceci Brinker, director of Student Life, and Sheila Hurley, University Board Concerts Coordinator, the show went smoothly.
“I thought the show went well,” Hurley said. “The energy was crazy, especially toward the end of the show (with Lupe Fiasco). It seemed like everyone enjoyed it.”