Even though the spring semester is wrapping up, there are a lot of opportunities for students to continue their education at UAF this summer. 

Summer Sessions and Lifelong Learning are offering 582 different classes in three different time schedules from May 28 through Aug. 16, with special weekend courses throughout the summer as well.

Taking classes here at UAF during the summer months can offer opportunities for shorter academic periods, deals on tuition in certain circumstances and class admittance is also not limited to current UAF students. SSLL’s mission stands as an opportunity “to provide support for our students to graduate sooner with less debt; partake in genuine, once-in-a-lifetime Alaska experiences and to offer unique, educational opportunities for our community.”

SSLL offers three main session lengths for classes this summer. The first session of classes is from May 28 to July 3 and is six weeks long. The second six-week session is from July 8 to Aug. 16. There is also a full summer session that extends from May 28 to Aug. 16.

In addition, there are weekend sessions that offer a different experience to cover smaller credit and non-credit courses over a single weekend. A few examples of classes offered are  “Understanding Your Digital Camera,” “Fly-fishing” and “Introduction to Alaska’s Flora.”

UAF students taking 10 credits or more during the summer sessions can qualify for the SSLL “Sweet Summer Deal.” The “Sweet Summer Deal” will pay for any credits beyond 10, up to 14 credits, that a student successfully completes. According to SSLL’s website the only catch to the program is that the student must complete their courses with a “C” or higher to ensure payment coverage.

There are two $500 “R.G. & Onnie V. Bouchum/La Shina R. Jones Memorial Summer Scholarships” available for UAF sophomores, juniors and seniors. In addition SSLL will offer three-credit tuition awards for qualifying continuing and new UAF undergraduate students.

For any additional information on these financial aid programs, students are encouraged to contact the SSLL office at (907) 474-7021 or stop by at 216 Eielson between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Summer sessions are also not limited to currently accepted UAF Students. As long as you meet the appropriate prerequisites, a course may be taken by anyone. SSLL reminds though that a student must be admitted to UAF degree program to become eligible for financial aid.

Courses offered through UAF’s Course Finder include specialized courses and general studies courses in majors ranging from Anthropology to Communications to Woman’s Studies. Important prerequisites like Human Anatomy and Fundamentals of Biology I and II for example, are being offered and allow students to finish a year of classwork in 12 weeks.

Classes are open for registration now through UAOnline and the SSLL website at http://www.uaf.edu/summer/students/faq/.

The choke cherry tree before it was cut down. Photo provided by JR Ancheta

At the groundbreaking site of the new UAF Engineering facility between the Duckering and Bunnell Buildings, lies the remnants of a chopped down choke cherry tree. The site served as a reminder of the tree Friday morning, as students and faculty scurried between work or classes.

Students and faculty lamented the loss of the tree though, many were sympathetic that with construction these things happen.

“The loss of the tree is a sad thing, because that tree has been there for many, many years,” said Laura Letuligasenoa, a telephone technician for OIT.

Many interviewed, like Computer Science student Chris Houck, were uncertain to why the tree had to be cleared. The position of the severed roots appeared not to lie within the boundaries of the proposed building.

“Why man, why cut it down,” asked Houck.

According to Facilities Services Contract Manager Scott Hulac, the tree needed to be removed because it encroached on the area of the foundation digging.

Petroleum engineering student Casey Hnilicka, said he saw an excavator parked at the spot where the tree had been days earlier digging for the foundation.

“They probably could’ve replanted it or something like that,” Hnilicka said.

Transplanting the tree was often mentioned by students and faculty as to a possible alternative to cutting it down.

The site where the tree was will be transformed over the summer, and building construction will begin during the daytime as soon as finals are over.

The new facility’s lobby will connect it with the Southwest Duckering entrance and the Bunnell building’s entrance where the Schaible Auditorium is located. No other inter-building connections will be made with the Bunnell building, but the construction plans show that first floor Duckering will be able to access the proposed high bay experiment testing area of the new facility.

The construction of the facility will be broken into two phases. The first phase, which is scheduled for completion by Jan. 1, 2014, would complete the outer shell of the building, enclosed and insulated. The second phase of construction focuses on the interior projects, such as flooring, classrooms and furnishings. The second phase would also include exterior landscaping. Current funding covers the expenses of the first phase of construction, Hulac said. The rest of the funding remains in question.

Engineering classrooms will be built on top of Bunnell’s Schaible Auditorium as part of the new building. The main entrance and fire exit locations will be changed in the auditorium. Offices and classrooms on the East side of Bunnell will look across an open air corridor to the new building.

Pedestrian access from Tanana Loop Road will go through the new building along the proposed high bay experiment area. The testing area will be a large open glassed room where engineering experiments can be viewed from along the corridor that goes through the building.

The new facility will connect to Duckering and stretch across what used to be the Southeast Bunnell parking lot, which had 51 mostly gold parking spaces.

According to Scott Bell, Associate Vice Chancellor for Facilities Services, Tanana Loop closure will extend from West Bunnell to East Duckering for the next two years, which is the duration of the proposed project.

The engineering facility project with a total cost of $108.5 million is aimed at the “expansion of undergraduate degree production,” according to a funding request to the 2012 state legislature.

Expanding education resonated in the words of Stacey Garbett when asked about the loss of the cherry tree.

“For eduction it’s worth it, I mean, we can plant another one once the building’s back up,” Garbett said.

Letuligasenoa took it a step further saying, “I’m hoping that when they finally get everything back together that we have three trees here.”

Remnants of the dead choke cherry tree lay inside the chain-linked perimeter of the new engineering facility. The new facility that broke ground last month is estimated for completion in July, 2015. April 28, 2013. Jason Hersey/Sun Star

Associated Students of UAF President-elect Ayla O’Scannell has big plans for the 2013-2014 school year.

O’Scannell and her running mate, Mickey Zakurdaew, won the president and vice-president seats in the ASUAF election two weeks ago. O’Scannell and Zakurdaew won with just 11 votes more than president candidate and current Vice-President Dillon Ball and vice-president candidate Michael Mancill. At the beginning of next semester, O’Scannell will replace current President Mari Freitag and Zakurdaew will replace Ball.

O’Scannell says one of her goals for next year is to increase student interaction and input with ASUAF through open houses and tabling with senators. Last fall, ASUAF held an open house with the student governance groups The Sun Star, Concert Board, KSUA and Review of Infrastructure, Sustainability and Energy (RISE). The open house gave students the opportunity to talk to the groups. O’Scannell wants to see this continue every semester in the future.

O’Scannell also wants senators to spend time in the Wood Center or Moore-Bartlett-Skarland to increase student discussion with ASUAF members. Senators have regular office hours but sitting at a table that students regularly pass by would make senators more approachable, according to O’Scannell.

O’Scannell thinks that more student interaction will make ASUAF a better voice for the students and, as a result, ASUAF will be taken more seriously by both students and UAF administration.

At the beginning of this semester, the Financial Aid Office changed their financial aid disbursement policy from distributing funding 10 days prior to the first day of classes to the day classes begin. ASUAF took a stand on this issue with Resolution 180-001 sponsored by several senators including Zakurdaew asking the financial aid office to change the policy back. Although the financial aid policy has not changed, O’Scannell wants to continue pressing this issue.

“I also take out student loans so I was one of many impacted by the change in the disbursement policy,” O’Scannell said. “It’s important that ASUAF take a firm stand on issues that affect students. ”

Another priority for O’Scannell is appropriating extra funding for student clubs. The budget is written by the president and submitted to the senate for approval. Freitag wrote the budget for next year which rearranged $1,000 to club council and club travel funding. O’Scannell plans to continue this. “I’d like to see where in the budget we can move things around and give more money directly to students. ”

“She’s very organized and did a very good job as senate chair,” Freitag said. There’s pressure and the president is responsible for the overall image of ASUAF and often has to make tough decisions that don’t please everyone. “She has a knack for administration. Overall, it’s been good,” Freitag said about her experience with O’Scannell.

O’Scannell has been a senator since March of 2012 when she was appointed to the senate. This year, she served as the senate chair. O’Scannell has traveled to Juneau to advocate for UAF program funding and has participated in the Coalition of Student Leaders, an organization of student government representatives from all UA campuses for promoting student needs and welfare. Zakurdaew has been a senator for two years and is currently the longest serving senator. Zakurdaew works for KSUA and is next year’s president of Alpha Phi Omega fraternity. “He’s very well-connected with campus and understands student needs,” O’Scannell said.

“Micky and I are both really excited for next year. We think we can do a lot of great things for the students. We look forward to working for students and working with them and getting new great ideas for UAF,” O’Scannell said.

Students at the UAF School of Management may have to pay a little extra for their education if a proposed tuition hike makes it through the Board of Regents later this summer.

A proposal for instating differential tuition of an additional 25 percent for upper level credits for SOM was delayed at the April 11 and 12, Board of Regents meetings. The board members said they needed more time to consider the proposal. Differential tuition means that certain programs within a larger university system charges different tuition rates based on the predicted earnings of graduates and the program costs. Differential tuition has never been approved for any school or college in the UA system.

In a Powerpoint presentation to the Board of Regents, SOM Dean Mark Herrmann explained that the school is in danger of having to cut classes and even departments if they do not find a new way to increase revenue. SOM enrollment has increased approximately 72 percent in the last five years while funding has declined slightly due to legislative pullbacks, according to Herrmann. In the presentation, Herrmann explained that about three quarters of the SOM budget comes from state funding and the other quarter comes from student tuition. Due to this and the flat legislative funding, the School has not been able to keep up with increased costs, not to mention increasing class offerings to allow more students to graduate in four years. Herrmann said that in surveys, business students most often complained about the shortage of class offerings, something he thinks a tuition increase would fix.

Board of Regents member and ASUAF president Mari Freitag, expressed concern about the proposal after her last BOR meeting. “I usually try not to pass judgement on things until I hear the story of the administration as well, but unfortunately the administration didn’t really reassure me much more than from what I read in the references,” Freitag said.

Freitag said one of her major concerns was that the proposal doesn’t ensure that other schools and colleges at UAF wouldn’t raise their tuitions.

According to a University of Nebraska study that Herrmann cited in his presentation, 37 states now have differential tuition for business programs. Before the next meeting, the Chancellor’s Office will have to determine which schools besides the SOM might have to raise their tuition to support their programs.

At a planning session last November, the SOM Executive Management Committee cut the SOM’s operating budget, which pays for things like office supplies and student travel, by 40 percent from $440,000 to $290,000. Since then, the SOM received money from the Provost to bring it back up to $350,000, a net decrease of about 20 percent. Herrmann said that in addition to operating budget cuts, the student business clubs were no longer funded by the operating budget and instead were funded mostly through private donors.

About 95 percent of the SOM budget goes to teachers salaries, which are among the highest at UAF. According to its website, the SOM is ranked among the top 1.4 percent of business schools worldwide because it is dually accredited in management and accounting. According to the 2011 salary database, the median salary for a full time professor at the SOM was about $106,000. The median salary for the College of Engineering and Mines was about $90,000, and the median salary for the Department of Anthropology was $58,000. According to Herrmann, these higher wages are required in order to attract talented faculty to Fairbanks. Since business graduates tend to have good opportunities in the private sector, UAF and other business schools must pay their faculty market wages. Herrmann said that if wages are cut, faculty will leave. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the average salary for a tenured professor in a business school is about $111,000 in 2011, while for UAF it was about $131,000.

Business students were divided about the tuition increase. Mats Eriksson, a sophomore in Business Administration and Journalism, said that increasing the number of classes offered wasn’t important to him since he and his advisor had already decided for the next few years. As far as the quality of his education, Eriksson said he had some great classes and some unsatisfactory ones. “Some teachers in the SOM shouldn’t be teaching,” Eriksson said, “Some teachers don’t put much time or effort into teaching.”

Bobby Deroschers, the president of Associated Students of Business who worked on the proposal with the Dean said that his club endorsed the proposal. He said that the thought of increased tuition scares a lot of students at first, but once it is explained to them they tend to support it. When asked about the quality of teachers, Deroschers said that like in every department there are teachers “who think that once they have tenure they don’t have to teach as well.”

Herrmann says he does not think that very many students will be negatively affected by the tuition increase in the long run. “In the long run this will benefit them,” Hermann said. “One or two students might decide not to go [if we raise tuition], but for most of them UAF is still an affordable choice.” Herrmann said that UAF SOM tuition is currently 30% lower than other western universities.

Herrmann said he thought the proposal had a 50-50 chance of passing at one of the upcoming Board of Regents meetings in either June or September. If it passes, tuition for 300 and 400 level classes would cost about 25 percent more, affecting mostly juniors and seniors.

Freitag said she is generally very supportive of the SOM was concerned that not enough options had been examined before the differential tuition proposal is tried. “I think that if they really wanted to save their school they might try to look at other ways besides tuition increases,” she said. “I’ve always said that tuition increases should be the last thing that you should do.”

Newspaper reporters were recently ranked as having the worst job in 2013, outranking lumberjacks and janitors by CareerCast.com.

“I don’t find the results to be a complete surprise, as CareerCast themselves pointed out, newspaper reporters have worked long hours in high stress situations and for little money for years,” said Journalism Professor Lynne Lott.

“The things that CareerCast doesn’t take into account, criteria such as personal fulfillment and satisfaction, the fact that reporters can expose wrongdoing at government and corporate levels, shed light on social problems and tell inspiring stories make the last-place rating a bit misguided, I think,” said Lott. ”There are many ways to measure job satisfaction.”

“In some ways, this is an exciting time for news. People are trying out new reporting techniques, new methods of delivery. Stories break on Twitter or Facebook,” Lott said. With real time social media websites like Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit publications have a hard time. During the Boston bombing, Reddit was at the forefront in conducting a crowd-sourcing initiative by citizen journalists in an attempt to identify the bombers and provide help to those who needed it. Because of this, CNN was forced to take whatever new information in as the story developed. Often the information was based on the crowd-sourcing and at times false.  At one point they were told that the Boston Police Department had a suspect in custody, an hour later after the twitter page for the department commented,  they said that there was no suspect at the time.

“Today’s journalism students are, in many ways, creating the future of their profession. That’s a pretty great position to be in,” Lott said. Social media reporters and data scientists are new positions in journalism relating to the vast and expansive world of online news. Even non-journalists can stumble upon journalism with real-time stories, just by collecting crowd-sourced information across the internet.

“It’s a little frightening to see so much change happen so quickly, but I think in another five or 10 years, we’ll have a better idea of where we’re headed,” Lott said. “Right now, I couldn’t even venture a guess.”

Student Activities Office Assistant Director Cody Rogers (L) goes over final details with SAO student staff members Allie Bateman and Juan Cruz before the Theophilus London concert at the UAF SRC on Saturday, April 27, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

When asked how to describe Student Activities Assistant Director Cody Rogers, “organized” was the word most often used.  With Brooklyn hip hop star Theophilus London marking her fifth  Springfest show, it would be hard to guess that concerts aren’t her favorite thing. “I’m not a promoter, I’m a student affairs professional. And just by way of what my job description says, I just happen to be a promoter three months out of the year.”

Planning and coordinating concerts is just one of her roles. Rogers works across departments to improve UAF’s student community through the three programming boards;  Nanook Traditions, Student Activities Office and the Concert Board. At other universities, these roles might be separated into three different positions, but at UAF it’s all combined into one, according to Rogers.

On a Traditions weekend which includes annual events Starvation Gulch, Winter Carnival and SpringFest, Rogers and her four to six person student staff work  anywhere from 60 to 85 hours each, most taking place during the weekend. “I think all the events have some level of stress,” Traditions Board co-chair and Student Activities employee Juan Cruz said, “But just working with her and the team, it’s always much easier because she’s making sure we’re okay mentally and physically. She’s very active in her role.”

Like Cruz, Rogers also worked in Student Activities as an undergraduate at UAF, which was one of the reasons she first got into student affairs. Rogers would later earn her graduate degree in the subject at Western Washington University before returning to her alma mater.

“She’s really interested in getting students involved,” said current Concert Board member Olivia Bowen who had volunteered with the organization for a semester before Rogers encouraged her to run for a senate seat. “Even when I found out I was going to have an opponent, she said, ‘No, you can do this.’” Bowen won her seat last fall and has been serving on the concert board since. “She was really helpful in keeping me going,” Bowen said.

As Concert Board advisor, Rogers says the shows have been getting bigger in both production and student attendance. Rogers makes an effort to utilize local companies to make these events happen. “She’s got her stuff together,” said sound engineer Josh Bennett who owns the Fairbanks concert production company Sound Reinforcement Specialists. “If we have kinks she rolls with the punches,” Bennett said during takedown after the Theophilus London concert.  He’s worked with Rogers on over 20 shows and credits their success to Rogers organization and ability to motivate her team. “She’s seen enough quirky issues, she knows how to work through them.”

“I really love working with students, I know I’ve said this before,” Rogers said. “That’s why I do it, and I want to keep doing it for a while.”

UAF students from the Psychology Department’s Psychology in Action class are raising awareness about mental health issues.

At the beginning of the semester, students in the class were split into four groups of four or five and brainstormed ideas of projects to work on.

The PostSecret group’s project is based on the global community art project in which people mail postcards containing a secret they’ve never told anyone.  These secrets are then posted on a blog by the project creator, Frank Warren.

The UAF PostSecret group started a similar project limiting it to Fairbanks.  “Basically, the point of it is to break down the walls of isolationism and get people to talk,” said Kara Perkins, a senior Psychology student and PostSecret group member.  The group left boxes on campus and around town and encouraged people to drop a postcard with their secret written on it in the box.  The postcards will be on display in the Wood Center from April 29 through May 3.  “It makes you realize, ‘I’m not the only one who has something dark in my life,’” Perkins said.

The group will also have the secrets displayed at a First Friday event at the River City Cafe on May 3 from 6 to 9.  Counselors, resources and hotlines will be available during the event at the cafe for anyone who needs help.  “I think the best way it’ll help is to tell them it’s OK to admit that things aren’t perfect because that’s human,” Perkins said.

In the past few weeks, the group has been confused with the UAF Confessions Facebook page.  “The point is not to encourage free speech.  There’s a difference between telling a secret or feeling from endorsing hate toward a specific group.  We don’t want negativity,” Perkins said.

The AMCAN (Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, Navy), group’s project is focused on helping veterans.  The group has gathered a list of resources aimed at helping soldiers transition from soldier to student.  Organizations such as the Student Health and Counseling Center, the Psychology Department’s counseling center on the second floor of Gruening and the Student Veterans Association are included on the list.

“Basically, we want to gather this information into a pamphlet that we can hand to the soldiers to give them a little more knowledge about what’s out there for them,” said Jess Hampton, a sophomore Psychology student and AMCAN group member, “We want to help our specific part of the community by enlightening them, making sure that they have all the information, that they have every possible chance to succeed.”

The Let’s Talk group is working to de-stigmatize mental health through humor and social media.  “We noticed that a lot of the ads and commercials concerning mental health are very dark and depressing.  We didn’t think that was the right direction to go when talking about mental health,” said Roger Thomas, an English student with a minor in Psychology and Let’s Talk group member.  His group believes that even just learning about mental health should make people happy, not bring them down.  They’ve created memes, YouTube videos and a Facebook page.

Thomas’ group wants to encourage people to talk to their friends, family and co-workers about what they’re struggling with.  A lot of people don’t really want to talk to a professional and a lot of people don’t even need one, they just need to talk, Thomas said.  “They see talking about anything that’s bugging them, the problems weighing them down.  They see it in a comical form and laugh and think ‘maybe it’s not so bad.’”

The Mighty Outreachers group’s project focuses on educating the community about the resources that are available in the area of mental health.  At the beginning of the semester, the class was asked what resources were available.  “A couple people came up with a couple ideas but most of us were like ‘that’s a really good question,’” said Tom Cox, a junior psychology student and Mighty Outreachers group member.

The class was also asked if they knew that, among other things, the Student Health and Counseling Center fee paid by every student taking at least nine credits covers six sessions of counseling.  “For most of us, no one knew that.  We said, ‘wow, that would have helped a while ago,’” Cox said, “For us, it was kind of shocking how little people knew about what resources were available at their disposal.”

His group has created a Facebook page and a website that lists resources available in the Fairbanks community.  They created fliers with tear-off strips directing people to the website.  “Putting a lot of it online made it accessible at people’s leisure,” Cox said.

The four groups will have a table in the Wood Center on Thursday, May 2 from 1 to 2 p.m.   There, they will have their pamphlets, videos, fliers and postcards.  They will also be available to talk to students and direct them to help.

Schichnes is proud of what her students have done.  She said that she directed them and gave them creative license and they have run with it.  “It’s a new class, I didn’t know how it would go.  This group has been terrific,” Schichnes said.

The general objective behind UAF PostSecret is to "bring community awareness to the stress and anguish of silence" and it was part of a larger Psychology in Action projects by four groups from the class. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

UAF PostSecret hosted by UAF undergraduates (L-R) Suzie Avant, Lara Hendley, Marit Rjabov, Miriam Robbe and Kara Perkins began as a psychology project and has bloomed into a First Friday exhibit taking place May 3, 2013. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

The Fairbanks community was invited to submit their secrets to these dropboxes with the hopes of freeing individuals from their secrets, fears, or problems. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

Theophilus London performs during soundcheck at the SRC on Sunday, April 28, 2013. The concert was hosted by Concert Board and UAF Traditions. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

On the final night of Springfest, New York based hip-hop artist Theophilus London took the stage to an excited crowd of over 400 fans. London’s performance ranged from his own songs, covers and a finale that saw groups of women invited to dance on stage. After the show, I asked London questions about breaking in, performing live and what’s next for him.

The Sun Star: How’s Alaska so far?

Theophilus London: Alaska was great. I like it here. I was trying to get used to the climate, the time zone. I was in Los Angeles doing Coachella, so I told my booking agent “Look, before I go back home to finish the album, I want to do three big universities and you pick them.” She picked Alaska, she picked Minnesota and a university in LA. Now we’re here.

TSS: The name Theophilus London, where does that come form?

TL: It’s my birth given name. I’m named after my great grandfather, so I’m the second officially. Theophilus means “Lover of God” and that’s what that means.

TSS: How did you get started?

TL: I got started because I wanted to travel the world. I wanted to meet tons of sexy women and man whats the best way to do that? Should I be a basketball player, should I be a hockey player, should I be a rapper and singer. I said fuck it, I’m going to write music and I started writing music. I started finding myself and started performing and it just took off for me.

TSS: Being from Trinidad, how did the music scene of Trinidad influence your style?

TL: I didn’t really influence my style at all. I mean I love my homeland and the food is amazing and the women are sexy, man.

TSS: If Trinidad didn’t influence your style, what are some of the people you grew up idolizing or looked up to?

TLL: As a teenager I was lookin up to Morrissey. I was lookin up Jay-Z. I got into a lot of DJs early on like I-Emerge, A-Trak, like Diplo, these guys early on. Glitch mob was the first niggas on the scene and that’s where I got my waffle crisp from.

TSS: How did you get discovered?

TL: I didn’t really get discovered, I just discovered myself in my bedroom. I put out three mix tapes and the first one was called “Jam!” [sic] 2008 and it was a mix of things like Prince craftwork. All these mix of different music and I put out this other mix tape called “This Charming Mix tape”. It was like mix of Elvis Costello, London pop, flirty music, like charming music about sex.

TSS: You’ve collaborated with a lot of different people like A$AP Rocky, what were some of your favorite collaborations?

TL: Some of my favorite collaborations are Mark Ronson. Great British guy, great musician, great family, great guy. I also did a song with Busta Rhymes, like a low key song. You know, it really wasn’t my favorite. Another good colab I’ve had was “Big Spender” was a good one with Rocky. I also did one with Sam Sparro who did black and gold, he’s a sexy guy and that worked really well. Now I’m doing new stuff with Adam Pavao and that’s what the future holds.

TSS: One of the Colabs that I thought was pretty cool was with Sara Quin of Tegan and Sara. They have such a contrasting style to your style, how was it working with her?

TL: First of all were label mates and I got a Tegan and Sara album as soon as I signed to the label, Sire records in 2009. Upon signing I wanted to write an anti-love song for Valentines Day cause I hate Valentines Day. It’s the worst day to make everything serious. Everything should be toned down on Valentines Day, It should be just whiskey, wine, sex, movies, you know that type of stuff. So I made a song with Sara Quin called “Why Even Try” like, why even try to put on makeup, like why even try to be sexy, like don’t try at all. Just be cool, be cute and Sara Quin played a great roll in the song. It’s produced by Ariel and we performed it on David Letterman on Valentines Day with Sara and that was a big highlight of my career.

TSS: About a week ago you played at Coachella and débuted your song Rio, how was it performing their?

TL: Performing at Coachella honestly was too much going on. Too many bands, too much sun. I mean I’m making it sound like a horror story but it really was a lot of preparation, a lot of hoping, I’m just happy its all over. It’s just to hectic in the desert It’s a good festival, but it’s a whole big thing and you know as an artist you have to go with the rules so I’m happy its over and moving on to the next, Lollapalooza in August.

TSS: You also perform a lot overseas, what do you find different about playing overseas to an American crowed?

TL: I mean you just have to create a good vibe and really there is no difference. The only difference is I’m playing for French women or Alaskan Women. And dudes too.

TSS: I noticed you stopped the crowed and songs a couple times to try and get the crowed up and running, do you consider yourself an artist that really feeds off the crowed?

TL: Yeah, I really feed off the crowd, but half the time my eyes are closed on stage. Eighty-five percent of the time my eyes are closed tonight so I was singing and someone touched me and I almost died on stage cause I’m high in my own way on stage and someone touched me on stage and it threw me off. I feed off the crowed energy but most of all, I deliver a calm, somber, solitude to the audience that can get them hyped so I don’t have to scream so much to get them hyped and stuff. It’s the small things that come.

TSS: Is there a planned release date for your début album?

TL: I have a release date but I’m not trying to promote it right now. I have two months to finish the album and I’ve chosen to finish it in Palm Springs. I’ve been working on the album since December in Paris, two months in New York, and I think its time to finish in Palm Springs. Paris and New York are super busy, I’m always distracted, all these people trying to call me, all these emails and shit, these people to hang out with. That’s made some good music though and I’ve made some good stories about that. I now want to go out to the desert were I’m not on anyone’s time and I’m on my own time and I’m barbequing and shit in my boxers and recording next door in my house so that would be great.

TSS: Besides your album and Lollapalooza, do you have any other big plans for 2013?

TL: Yeah, I’m going to shoot a movie at the end of the year. Somebody wrote a script with me in mind and it’s a brilliant script from a brilliant writer/director. I was over at her house last week in LA and you know the script was great. It’s about a story in New York, its about music, and I fall in love with this girl that gets raped and I have a blind son, but that’s all I can say.

TSS: Do you have any final words for say for UAF?

TL: Yeah, I’m totally down with Alaska and let’s come back out here and chill.

Fans cheer for Theophilus London at the SRC on Saturday, April 27, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

Theophilus London performs during soundcheck at the SRC on Sunday, April 28, 2013. The concert was hosted by Concert Board and UAF Traditions. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

Theophilus London performs to a screaming crowd during SpringFest at the UAF SRC on Saturday, April 28, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

Female students pulled onstage attempt to get a picture with Theophilus London at the UAF SRC on Saturday, April 17, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

Theophilus London flew from New York to Alaska to perform at UAF on Saturday night in the Student Recreation Center. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

The bright lights illuminated New York based rapper Theophilus London on Saturday night at the UAF Student Recreation Center concert. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

New York based rapper Theophilus London found his way up to Fairbanks, Alaska to perform at UAF on Saturday night at the Student Recreation Center. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

SpringFest 2013 Field Day was held inside the Student Recreation Center due to bad spring weather. It did not deter students from sumo wrestling as the stage for the Theophilus London concert was being erected on April 26, 2013. Cordero Reid/Sun Star

Several Springfest activities experienced changes due to the cold temperatures last week. Field day moved indoors, mud volleyball was swapped out for ice dodgeball and the 3rd annual quidditch tournament was cancelled. These events took place at noon on Friday and Saturday, and a rugby tournament began at 1 on Saturday.

The field day was split between the Lola Tilly Commons and the Student Recreation Center. An all-you-can-eat buffet-style dining of burgers, hotdogs, potato and pasta salads were provided in the Tilly.

Student Activities Organization student assistant and Nanook Traditions Chair, Juan Cruz, greeted students entering the SRC with a punch card stamp in hand. The field day was one of the five events students could attend to receive a punch for the Alaska Airlines ticket drawing, not including the bonus Latenighter event last Thursday. The “bouncy stuff” consisted of an inflatable obstacle course, running track, wrecking ball and sumo wrestling suits.

Since snow was still on the court besides Nenana parking lot, ice dodgeball replaced mud volleyball from 12 to 4 p.m. Dodgeball kept the same rosters as mud volleyball, and the activity was moved into the Patty Center Ice Arena for ice dodgeball sessions.

Ice dogeball was a alternate activity At Winterfest earlier in the year as well.

“The board came up with many alternatives, and that [ice dodgeball] was the one they liked best,” Cruz said.

Two teams at a time faced off with the center lined with rubber and foam dodgeballs. Some teams were dressed in themed outfits such as superheroes, backward gender types, or ’80s fashion. There were 24 teams in all.

During the first few rounds, students slipped after throwing or dodging a ball. After getting used to the court conditions, students used the floor to their advantage by sliding.

“No injuries yet,” said Mining Engineering student Kristoffer Nystrom.

At the same time the next day, the Anchorage men and women’s rugby teams came to the soccer fields to play the Fairbanks team in a tournament for Springfest. Since only half of the field had melted, teams were shortened to ten players instead of the standard fifteen. The Fairbanks Red Hackle Pipe Band gave a performance before the women’s match between the Anchorage Foxes and Fairbanks Ravens. The band formed a circle with three bagpipers and two drummers and played a final composition while walking off the field.

A golden cleat trophy attached to a wooden base with “Springfest 2013″ etched in, was given to the tournament champions, and the Golden Days Rugby Tournament will be held later this summer. In ice dodgeball, the team led Gavin Meggert received a golden flamingo trophy for winning first place. Quidditch was ultimately cancelled because of the weather and responses from students have been neutral.

“One of the girls in my COMM class gave a presentation on Quidditch, and that was cool,” said Julita, a student assistant handing out root beer floats at the Student Offering Leadership Development.

With mud volleyball cancelled, teams showed up for some sweet ice dodgeball instead in the Patty Center ice rink. Cordero Reid/Sun Star

In the final double elimination showdown, (L) Gavin Meggert faces off Hunter Boroman's team. Ice dodgeball was played instead of mud volleyball due to the climate. Cordero Reid/Sun Star

Several students who never voted in this spring’s ASUAF election received email confirmations thanking them for their vote late on Friday night.  Four of them reached out to ASUAF Office Manager Anne Williamson and VoteNet, the site that ASUAF hosts their online election on, expressing their concern about voter fraud.

Williamson investigated and found that the four ballots in question had identical first pages.  She expanded her search, and discovered a total of 20 ballots that were exactly the same.  Williamson then called the students with the questionable ballots, 14 of whom responded saying they had never voted.

Williamson followed up with VoteNet to find out the IP addresses the potentially fraudulent ballots had been cast from.  VoteNet responded, saying there were three different IP addresses used.  VoteNet also informed her they flagged five more ballots as questionable, bringing the count of potentially fraudulent ballots up to 25.

All the ballots were identical, with identifying features such as voting for Christian Burns-Shafer as president and Sophia Grzeskowiak‐Amezquita as a write-in for Senate spelled the same way on each ballot, said ASUAF President Mari Freitag.  Freitag also said that the students with questioned ballots were all from two different academic programs.

The presidential race is unaffected, but Sophia Grzeskowiak‐Amezquita no longer has enough votes to keep a Senate seat.  The way the current unofficial results stand, Sarah Walker will take the seventh Senate seat.

The online ballot requires students to submit their student ID numbers and birthday to access the ballot, and there is a page at the end of the ballot that students must read and affirm that they are who they say they are before they hit submit.

“This is using someone else’s information,” Williamson said. “It’s identity theft.”

ASUAF hasn’t dealt with voter fraud of this nature before, but both Freitag and Williamson said they wouldn’t be surprised if it has happened.

Williamson said she heard secondhand stories floating around last year about things like this, which is why ASUAF implemented the confirmation email with VoteNet in case someone was committing voter fraud.  Which is exactly what happened, Williamson said.

ASUAF has narrowed down their search, but they’re following up before any allegations are made.  They are looking for links between the ballots and students who would have access to the information, probably university employees, such as TAs, RAs or employees who have access to BANNER, the software filing system the university uses.  Consequences for the culprit could include academic and employment discipline.

The UAF campus has proven time and time again to be full of compassionate and caring students.

Last Monday, April 15, two separate bombs exploded at the finish line of the 117th Annual Boston Marathon. The explosions killed three people and injured 130 more. Not only did this tragic event receive immediate attention from both national and international news organizations as well as an address from President Obama, it also received a heartfelt response closer to home from the UAF community.

UAF service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega members, Lauren Bradley and Ashley Crowe, organized a candle light vigil at very short notice, posting a Facebook event only a few hours before 9 p.m., when the event was scheduled to begin.

“I asked Lauren and others to help me organize this because I can’t imagine what those people are going through.” Crow said, “I knew I wasn’t the only one on this campus who empathized with this terror attack and I wanted to show as much support as possible and as quickly as possible to show that we, UAF, are there for Boston.”

Regardless of the last minute nature of the event, at 9 p.m. approximately 30 students gathered in Constitution Park located between the Fine Arts Building and the Gruening Building.

“Ashley and I really just wanted to show that even though we may be in Fairbanks, that people this far away still care and are effected by these types of events,” Bradley said after the event.

Bradley and Crowe and passed out candles to each person as they arrived. Once a large enough group was gathered, recently appointed APO President Mickey Zakurdaew thanked everyone for attending and APO Chapter Advisor Jesse Manchester began the event by also expressing his appreciation for the turn out and remorse for those affected.

“As a generation, we have been raised in a dark time when these tragic events sweep our nation and the only way to combat the hate that runs rampant today, is to continue to love one another as much as possible,” Manchester said. ”If this event in Boston shows us one thing, it’s that we never know what life will bring us; but what matters is that we love with everything we have, as much as possible.”

As well as expressing his heartfelt regards to those affected, ASUAF Public Relations Director Fred Brown explained that students could also help those in need by donating blood to the Blood Bank of Alaska, which is running dangerously low, during UAF’s upcoming blood drive. He also shared his reflections on an inspiring news story about unwounded athletes in the race continuing to run, even after passing the finish line, to a near by hospital to donate blood to those injured in the blasts.

Following Manchester’s opening, other students in attendance had the opportunity to share their sentiments until the group came together for a moment of silence to commemorate the dead and injured. At the end of the vigil, Manchester led a prayer circle that many of the vigil attendees stayed for. 

While each student who spoke expressed their regards in their own unique words, the over arcing sentiment of the vigil was not just remorse and heart ache but positive encouragement for Boston and the country as a whole and very clear hope for the future.

UAF and UAA received partial funding from the Alaska State Legislature for new engineering buildings May 14.

On March 30, UAF held a groundbreaking ceremony for their new facility, located between Duckering and Bunnell buildings, despite still needing $48.3 million, which had been requested from the state along with a similar amount for UAA’s engineering building. When the Senate Finance Committee released its capital budget five days later, it did not include any money for either building. On April 14, the Senate added $15 million for UAF and $15 million for UAA into the budget, passed the budget and adjourned, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

After the last-minute additional funding, UAF needs $33.6 million to finish the building. State funding and a revenue bond cover the rest of the $108.6 million cost. Finance Co-Chairman Kevin Meyer said that everyone supports the new buildings but they simply couldn’t add enough money, over $100 million, to finish both buildings, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported.

Senior Project Manager Cameron Wohlford said that even without the $15 million, UAF had enough money to get the facility enclosed, dry and warm. Construction completion is expected by March 2015, according to Jenith Flynn, Marketing Coordinator for Davis Constructors and Engineers, the Anchorage-based company hired to build the facility. A ribbon cutting is scheduled for July 3, 2015 with the building opening for the Fall semester, according to the construction timeline on the College of Engineering and Mines’ website.

But without the remaining funding, the building will likely be delayed. “This means that construction … will shut down when the current funding runs out, probably by the end of the year,” stated The Capital Report, a University of Alaska publication that provides information to UA supporters about university budget issues and legislation. This was published before UAF was given the additional funding. “We’re assessing what we can do with the $15 million,” Wohlford said. UAF plans to put the remaining $33.3 million in their 2015 budget request from the state Legislature.

The construction for the Duckering building should be underway in the next two years. April 17, 2013. David Spindler/Sun Star

The construction for the Duckering building should be underway in the next two years. April 17, 2013. David Spindler/Sun Star

Construction underway for the engineering building has also cut off road access on Tanana Loop. April 17, 2013. David Spindler/Sun Star

The university powerplant has construction on its way for improvements. April 17, 2013. David Spindler/Sun Star

Editor’s note: this story contains explicit language expressed by users of the UAF Confessions Facebook Page.

A screen shot of the UAF Confessions submissions page where users anonymously enter statements that are reposted on the UAF Confessions Facebook community page.

The most recent incarnation of the UAF Confessions page instructs users to “Tell us all your deepest, darkest UAF secrets, or whatever else you want the world to know,” on its Google Form submission page.  The Facebook community page with 575 “likes” hosts anonymously submitted “confessions” reposted by the page administrator whose identity remains unknown. The page follows a similar format to the UAF Compliments page where students and community members have posted anonymous compliments to each other.

Though some posts serve as an open discussion for Facebook users to offer advice, discuss relationships and commiserate about college experiences, other posts could have been perceived as harmful by Facebook users.

Female Student Singled Out

On Tuesday Apr. 16, the UAF Confessions page administrator posted a “confession” that crossed the line for some of its audience. The post read, “Like if you’ve fucked Liz Wallace. Comment if it was a 3 some!” The post immediately received criticism from users surprised that the page administrator would allow the sexually explicit content targeted at UAF communications student and graduate teaching assistant Liz Wallace.

“This seems pretty close to some form of libel or slander…” wrote Fairbanks resident Zachery Howdeshell.

Geology student Ephy Wheeler also commented on the post, and later called the page a forum for “anonymous hate speech,” citing previous posts containing derogatory remarks about Alaska Native students.

The post was eventually taken down but not before a screen shot was taken at 1:11 a.m. on April 17.

A screen shot captured Apr. 17 at 1:11 a.m. on UAF Confessions shortly before it was removed by the administrator of the Facebook page.

Wallace did not know about the “confession” until a student sent her a picture of the post. “I hold no ill will to anyone that has created this page or message, but it did make me stop think: Here I am, a graduate student at UAF with so much to feel good about in my life, and an anonymous person calls me out on a UAF public forum for my sexuality,” Wallace said in reflection. “Mostly, I think it is interesting that calling out a woman for her sexual activities is still the way that men (and women) put other women down.”

Other students were more critical of the activity. “I just think the page is for cowards,” Psychology student Jacob Tigner said following the post’s removal. “The guy is trying to be Hunter Moore with the post he made and obviously that doesn’t work,” Tigner said, regarding the page administrator.

A History of Controversial Language

This is not the first “confessions” page for UAF. Last week a Facebook page bearing the same name appeared and was taken down after the presumed author allegedly received contact from the provost’s office. The purpose of the page and reasoning for removal is documented in a “manifesto” apparently written by the student. In the “manifesto,” which is linked to on the UAF Confessions page, the author takes fault for posting the “confession” which caused the previous page to be shut down. According to the manifesto, it read, “I am disgusted by the native population in Fairbanks.” The author described post as achieving the discussion they hoped for, “The post revealed tensions that are not completely racist in nature and that, again, I do not think should be ignored.”

Though some users were upset with the content of the Tuesday night’s post, it wasn’t the first time UAF Confessions took on topics that could be considered offensive. Past posts explored potentially harmful themes including violence against women, assumptions about the LGBT community and sexualized statements about female students.

A screen shot captured on Apr. 17, 2013 shows Facebook user Nick Brenner instructs the poster to punch their pregnant roommate in the stomach. 

Screen shot captured on Apr. 17 targets “poor girls who don’t know how to pay for college.”

Screen shot captured on Apr. 17 trivializes bisexuality.

Screen shot from UAF Confessions page names a UAF female student while insinuating wanting to have sexual relations with her.

A screen captured April 17 describes females students as sexually promiscuous.

Frequent page commenter, Justice student Joshua Mattacchione  doesn’t believe any of the posts are offensive but did think the Tuesday night post should have been removed. “I think the post was far too personal of an attack to be posted,” Mattacchione wrote in a Facebook message. “It honestly doesn’t even fit the criteria of a confession,” he wrote in a Facebook message.  “It is asked the audience to confess, which isn’t the point of the posts.”

The Price of Anonymity and Censorship

Some may wonder if any of the submissions are vetted and according to  the page administrator, some are.

“A few submissions are thrown out without ever being posted, but others make it through and ‘start fires,’” said the page creator, who has been identified as a male UAF student in two separate Facebook messages. “Initially it was feared by fans that censoring posts would result in a ‘watered down‘ version of the original,” he said. “These will normally be left alone unless it’s specifically requested that they be removed, in which case they’re deleted as soon as possible.”

When asked why he could not reveal his identity, the administrator said the site could not function without anonymity on both ends. “The anonymous format allows the community to offer their input on things which would normally be kept very private – or worse, never expressed at all,” he said.

Mattacchione agrees, “The admin needs to remain anonymous for the page to work.”

But when names are named, Wallace believes that the anonymity of the page is called into question. “I think that the idea of an anonymous page is an interesting and beneficial concept, however the moment my name appeared on that page, it was no longer anonymous,” she said. “I am thankful that I live in the United States of America where I do not have to fear that my father and brothers will be honor killing me later tonight due to this public post.”

The page administrator who believes the net effect of the site has been positive, does not expect the page to be shut down for any reason.  ”The possibility of pressure from University officials has been discussed regarding certain offensive content and the fact that the page has the University’s name attached, but the level of concern about any sort of official regulation is currently very low,” he said.

“The only thing I’d really want UAF officials to know is that I’m extremely open to their input. If there’s something about it they don’t like, I’d appreciate it if they’d contact me to discuss the matter,” said the page creator can be reached directly through the UAF Confessions Facebook page messages.

Through the experience Wallace remains unfazed by the anonymous dig directed at her. “I would be offended if someone commented that I was not a good instructor, that my thesis defense was not strong, that I am not a good friend, or that I am lacking intellectually,” Wallace said. ”It’s 2013 and the most hurtful comment that this anonymous person could come up with was the fact that I have sex? This does not offend me.”

A screen shot captured Apr. 17 at 1:11 a.m. on UAF Confessions shortly before it was removed by the administrator of the Facebook page.

A post on the UAF Confessions site

A post on the UAF Confessions site

A post on the UAF Confessions site

A post on the UAF Confessions site

A post on the UAF Confessions site

A screen shot captured April 17, 2013 at 1:11 a.m. on UAF Confessions shortly before it was removed by the administrator of the Facebook page.

A screen shot captured on Apr. 17, 2013 shows Facebook user Nick Brenner instructs the poster to punch their pregnant roommate in the stomach.

Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra Director Eduard Zilberkant starts the race at the Beat Beethoven 5K on Saturday, April 13, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

On a crisp Saturday morning, runners and Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra supporters met at the UAF Patty Center to “Beat Beethoven” in below freezing temperatures The five kilometer race marked its 19th year with over 800 runners participating in the annual spring fundraiser, according to Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra Music Director Eduard Zilberkant.

The race began at 11 a.m. when KSUA General Manager Rebecca File began the live radio 10 second count down to the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra recording of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony. As the music started, runners took off in hopes of finishing before the 18th century composer.

“There’s going to be somebody dressed up as Beethoven who has the actual symphony time which is about 30 minutes, 30 seconds and if everybody finishes ahead of him they beat Beethoven and that’s basically the point of the event,” Zilberkant said. Finishers receive a voucher to attend next season’s symphony performances if they beat Beethoven.

Racers ran 3.1 miles traveling around Westridge, above Moore-BartlettBS Complex, past the Taku Lot and up the hill back to the UAF Patty Center.

“Along the track there are a lot of places where people are standing with boom boxes or car radios so that runners can hear it throughout the entire course,” Zilberkant said.

While some racers were in it to beat Beethoven, others were hoping just to avoid embarrassment.

“The most humiliating thing is when you’re running along and a mother with two kids in a stroller passes you,” said Music graduate student Emerson Eads, who finished before the final note of the symphony recording.

After the race, finishers were met with refreshments of Gatorade and fruit outside of the UAF Patty Center where the finishing chute was set up.

“I didn’t beat Beethoven last year either,” Geology graduate student Gabrielle Vance said after the race. “It’s just for fun. If I get a ticket great, but if not, no worries,” said Vance laughing.

Children and adults signed up for the race online and day of with three different price structures: early bird registration costing $20, late registration costing $30, and day of registration costing $40. All participants received a t-shirt with their entrance fee.

Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra Director Eduard Zilberkant starts the race at the Beat Beethoven 5K on Saturday, April 13, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

Runners take their position at the starting line for the beginning of the 20th annual Beat Beethoven 5k Race on Saturday, April 13, 2013. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra Director Eduard Zilberkant starts the race at the Beat Beethoven 5K on Saturday, April 13, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

A child finisher at the Beat Beethoven 5K receives a medal from race volunteers on April 13, 2013. Annie Bartholomew/Sun Star

UAF undergraduate Sam Herreid was spotted pounding the pavement during the Beet Beethoven 5k on Saturday morning, April 13, 2013. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

Not only are racers battling each other, but they are attempting to finish the race prior to the end of Beethoven's 5th symphony during the 20th Annual Beat Beethoven 5k Race held on April 13, 2013. Adam Taylor/Sun Star

Alaska Comedy and UAF Student Activates Office is bringing another night of comedy to The Pub with Lachlan Patterson. Patterson has performed on The Tonight Show,  Legit for FX, Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham and a half hour special on The Comedy Network.  Patterson will be performing Wednesday night at The Pub.

Sun Star: How long have you been doing Stand-Up for and How did you get involved?

Lachlan Patterson: I’ve been doing standup for 15 years this month.  I took a night school class called “standup comedy clinic” when I was in college and it was the only class I liked.  I sucked at everything else so I figured I should keep going.

SS: What are some things you want people know about yourself?

LP: I want people to know that I’m going to be around for a long time and I’m going to continue to push myself to get better so watch out for me.  I love what I do and I don’t imagine I will ever retire or quit.

SS: Is this your first time in Alaska?

LP: This is my 3rd time in Alaska.  Last time I saw a moose and I through a snowball at it.  Apparently that is frowned upon but whatevs, the moose was cool with it.  I also went to a Fred Meyer and hung out all day and bought some shoes.

SS: Have you done many college shows? What do you like about them?

LP: I have performed at many colleges.  The one thing I love about them is having to do a show in front of people that would never come to see me in a comedy club environment.  A lot of the students are too young to go where I perform so it’s awesome to get a chance to show them what I do.

SS: Who are your influences?

LP: My influences are Steve Martin, Louis CK and Seinfeld but the only thing I took from them is their work ethic when it comes to creating.  I write what makes me laugh.  It’s great to hear people laugh at it cause it’s like “hey, they agree with me. cool”.

SS: You’ve performed on The Tonight Show, what goes in to prepping for a show like that?

LP: Prepping for the Tonight Show is very boring.   I remember running the set like 14 times to make sure it was perfect for the show and it just wasn’t funny to me anymore.  Then they told me to just hold and they would get me a date within the next couple of months.  I had been in L.A. for a while and heard similar things from industry people so I wasn’t convinced it was true and I didn’t tell anyone in case it was all B.S.  Then, about two weeks later I was in court contesting a traffic violation and I got a message on my phone saying something like “It’s the tonight show, we had a last minute fallout, how fast can you get here?” and a few hours later, I was on stage doin my thing with Jay sittin in the chair behind me.  It was pretty awesome.

SS: Besides being filmed, how different from a regular stand up gig is being on a talk show?

LP: Performing on a talk show is fun but TV people always treat you like you’re a moron.  On one talk show I performed on there was a guy who’s job was to make sure I knew about the two steps I had to walk down before I got to the stage.  That was the only thing I ever saw him do.  I just smiled and said thank you but come on man, I can step down stairs, I’m not 90.

SS: You’ve been on an episode of Legit for FX, is it challenging to do a scripted program compared to stand-up?

LP: Scripted television is very challenging for me and that is why you don’t see me in a lot of it.  Filming Legit I was lucky because Jim Jefferies is a friend of mine and he helped coach me through the whole episode.  I had like ten lines in that episode and they chopped it to three which was a relief.  Three is great!  I do try and practice my acting in my stand up.  Like sometimes you’ll see me doing a bit and I’ll really get into it.  Sometimes the audience is like “wtf?” but other times it really pays off and it’s fun.\

SS: Do you think it’s easier for you to get noticed nowadays because services like Podcasting, Pandora and others?

LP: Definitely, podcasting and internet media has made it way easier to gain notoriety in stand-up. More times than I can count, people have come up to me after shows and mentioned that they heard me on a Podcast or watched me on the Internet and that is what brought them to see me live.  It’s great to hear people are listening.

SS: What do you want people to know about the show?

LP: As far as how to prepare for my show, people should be warned that I do a ton of really high brow fart jokes.  Some of my fart jokes might be a bit confusing to the less educated crowd but if you read or are intelligent I think you will love the show.

Patterson will be performing as at The Refinery Lounge in North Pole Thursday, Friday night at The Blue Loon and Saturday night at Kodiak Jacks and all are over 21 events.