Clay LePard (CL): Thank you for being with us Coach Marrone for this edition of 5 Questions with CONNECT. First off, how does the success of the football team affect the psyche of the Syracuse Community?

Doug Marrone

Doug Marrone: Well I think it’s important to me; it goes back to my days in New Orleans. When we first came there after Katrina, there was a lot of tough things going on economically within New Orleans and then coming across and having that season where we went to the NFC championship game. Just being able to pick up the spirits of the people, of where they were able to get away on a Sunday and forget about the problems of what Katrina caused really could pick up a community and really a whole area. So I think as far as the Syracuse football program, oh which we will do, have success on this football field. I think it will pick people’s spirits up and get them excited where they can go and be proud of their team.

CL: You went to school here, you played football here in the 1980s. How have you seen our school, but also our community, change over time?
Marrone: I know that from a university standpoint, we have done so much to increase our academic integrity as far as our schools are much more higher rated now, and Chancellor Nancy Cantor has done a great job on our campus. We’ve expanded our campus with new buildings and our professors are great; they were great when I was here, so I’m excited about that relationship we still have. And then the community – it’s been tough. We’re going through some tough economic times but we survive here in Syracuse; we got to work, we get our hands dirty and we get things done. So I’ve been very excited, you know, being on campus and being off campus in this community.
CL: When you applied for the job as head coach at Syracuse University, you kept a folder of current high school football players to keep an eye on in the Syracuse area. How important is it for you to recruit locally?
Marrone: Well I think it’s important for us to recruit locally obviously as a radius of 250 miles, starting here working our way out throughout the state. It’s important because it’s such an easy sell. We have a great school academically; we have such a great campus, we have great students here – people who go on to become leaders in the industries all over the country, if not the world. It’s an exciting standpoint for us to get someone close who can visit the campus multiple times, and it gives us a better chance to get those kids here.
CL: If you weren’t coaching football, what would you be doing?

Marrone: I’d be involved in athletics at some point. I don’t know if it would be coaching, it might be administration at some point. If it wasn’t that, it would be law enforcement. Growing up, I always wanted to be a state trooper. So, it would be one of those roles for me. 

CL: Even though so many people know your name and even though you’re so recognizable there has to be something people don’t know about you. So what would people be the most surprised to know about Doug Marrone?

Marrone: I would say it’s probably where I eat. I have three young children; they’re eight, six and four [years old]. So we go quite a bit to Red Robin, Friendly’s, to McDonalds. I probably visit those establishments more than any other ones because of the children. We go to bowling alleys, movie theatres. I’m out in the community quite a bit, and I know when I walk into Friendly’s or Red Robin, people always say “Coach, what are you doing here?” “Well I’m doing the same as you with your children.” I look for children friendly establishments and that’s what I look for with my children.

CL: Thanks Coach. This has been 5 Questions with CONNECT.

SYRACUSE, NY

Alyssa Raymond:  You say the modeling business is not so glamorous.  Why not?

Ann Marie Stonecypher

Ann Marie Stonecypher:  Ummm….because its really just like any other business. Its a marketing business.  And what I am doing is I am just marketing people.  Somebody calls and they want a model and I send a model.  Its just like ordering pizza or ordering anything else except its people.  So its not really glamy glamy and its Upstate New York so its not runway shows and things like that.  It might just be an ad for a little business to business flyer that no one is going to see but some industrial clients.

Raymond:  When people think of modeling…you usually think of high fashion and extremely skinny and tall females…this is not what your agency is about…why not?  And why might this be a good thing for Central New York?

Stonecypher:  Well to the question why not.  Umm because it is Upstate and we tailor our business to our clients that are here.  And because there’s no Victoria’s Secret or Calvin Klein here we tailor our business to the clients that are here.  The furniture stores.  The industrial clients.  And clients like that so they’re not going to higher long legged 16-year-old girls to be in their ad.  They’re going to hire a 35-year-old that might look like a doctor or a nurse or something like that.  So those are the type of people that I have to have in my business so thats really nice because those people have the opportunity to model.  And its just sideline.  Its not anything they’re going to make their daily bread from.  But its just a nice little extra bit of money.  I call it their shoe shopping, Turning Stone money not their pay their electric bill money.

Raymond:  So why is that a good thing for Central New York?

Stonecypher:  Because it is just another little level of income.  Just a little extra something.  Ummm…you know its not millions of dollars but you know its helping families with a little something extra.  I had a woman for years and years and years that the money that she made with me every year was their vacation money.  Her family of four every year went to Florida and went to the theme parks on the money that she made with my company every year.  That always made me feel great.

Raymond:  The modeling industry has a reputation of causing eating disorders. What are you doing about that and how effective is it? Can you give us examples?

Stonecypher:  We have never ever told any body to lose weight for a job.  The way that someone comes to me is the way I’ve taken them.  I’ve never said well I would take you except you need to lose weight.  Because we are not a fashion market or a catalogue type of market there is no pressure that everyone has to fit a certain size.  Ummm because mostly what we are doing is business to business type of things.  Editorial type of things there’s no one set look.  Ummm…I am very much a proponent of healthy eating and healthy looking people.  I do charity work for Ophelia’s Place, which is a center that helps people with eating disorders.  And we work on their fashion show every year.  They are very good friends to AMS Models and vice versa.  but ya we have never told anyone that they needed to lose weight.  Absolutely not.  We are proponents of healthy living not skinny.  Absolutely not.

Raymond:  Why do you think the modeling industry should exist?  What do you think it brings to society?

Stonecypher:  Ummm its really just another segment of advertising.  And it definitely just helps people brand their product.  If you’re going to sell…like we have a client that has a line of pajamas and if you want to brand that line you’re gonna pick your models that kinda have a look that represents your style.  And if you can pick those models yourself and have the look that you want you’re establishing your brand.  And you’re helping promote the look that you want.  And the same with any type of company, whether its a certain widget you’re selling and you want that widget exposed to the world by certain types of people holding it.  The people looking at the ad are going to identify with the people holding it.  Its all part of advertising.  And if you use models versus stock photos you don’t have to worry about your picture or your brand being diluted and being seen in other places.  And people say, oh wow that photo looks like a photo I saw in someone else’s ad.  You get to choose the model.  You get to choose exactly the look that you want and the people you want.  And we have every ethnicity that there is and we have every age group.  So you really get to pick and choose how you want your add too look.

Raymond:  You are in your sixth year as a breast cancer survivor. What has the experience taught you?

Stonecypher:  Well umm I think that everything we are death teaches us something and if it doesn’t then we need to look at it a little harder or listen a little harder.  Umm…and its taught me that life is so precious and everyday is a gift.  And ummm…sometimes you just need to turn it around and pay it forward and I’m just so happy to be here for my children and the people I love.  Umm…and my way of paying it forward is that I have a pink ribbon circle reminder.  And I send it out to over a 100 women every month to remind them to do their self exams because its still important.  And ummm…I talk to other survivors to try to give them encouragement and tell them that they will get to the other side and this is all the treatments and how awful it is and losing your hair and all that stuff.  Its temporary and you’ll get to the other side and you’ll be back.  And you know I’m just so grateful to still be on the planet and get a second shot at being alive.  I try not to sweat the small stuff because I know I was given a second chance so it really taught me so much really.

Raymond:  Thank you so much Ann Marie

Stonecypher:  You’re welcome.

Latino students in the Syracuse City School District practice vocabulary with flash cards. The language barriers between them and the teachers make it difficult for them to succeed.

Written and Produced By Stephanie Claytor

This fall, Latino community leaders from Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo met at the Upstate Latino Summit. The summit– held in downtown Syracuse–  gave Latinos from all over Upstate New York the opportunity to discuss issues in their community, such as education.

Nationwide, Latinos have the highest drop-out rate. And according the latest statistics revealed on the New York State Report card, Syracuse City School District is following that trend– a concern for some local leaders.

” We all know that, based on demographics, if we do not change that drop-out rate… this country is not going to survive,” said Syracuse Common Council President Bea Gonzalez.

During the education workshop, Margarita Reyes, a representative of the Rochester City School District showcased a survey she conducted at Monroe High School in Rochester. She asked the Latino students why their peers failed to finish school. Reyes said work, absence of parental guidance, pregnancies and lack of support from faculty were the main reasons why students said their peers quit school.

And some of the students in Syracuse shared similar sentiments.

“I didn’t like the class scheduling, I didn’t like some of the teachers, they were very rude, “said Keisha Encarnacion, a 21-year old Latina who quit attending Nottingham High school in the last semester of her senior  year. “When you did need help there, it was very hard because the classes were so large.”

“There’s a lot of percent of them that drop out because they get picked on,” said April Keller, a student at Fowler High school.

Social worker Donna Lucente has assisted students at Syracuse’s Fowler High School for more than a decade. She said a lack of vision is the reason students quit school.

“A lot of students don’t have a vision for their future that they could go to college or that college could be affordable for them,” Lucente said.

The Syracuse City School District has around 20,000 students enrolled in school this year. About 1200 of them are Latinos. Fowler High School has the largest percentage of Latinos out of all of the high schools.  There, Latinos make up about a quarter of the student body.  According to the New York State Report card, which gives statistics and evaluates the performances of schools in the state, only 32 percent of the Latino students at Fowler High School in the class of 2007 graduated by August of that year. That’s about 22 Latino students out of the 68 students in the class.

Principal James Palumbo said the school’s dropout rate is “unacceptable.” He states the school’s six-year Latino graduation rate is somewhere around 50 percent. And he said he is willing to bet that if he had more Spanish speaking teachers, the graduation rate for Latino students would rise.

But, year after year, Palumbo said there aren’t any Spanish speaking certified candidates applying.  Syracuse City School Superintendent Lowengard echoed Palumbo’s concern.

“We believe in bilingual education,” Lowengard said. “But, it’s an issue for us, finding teachers that are certified and that speak Spanish. ”

**If you want to learn more about how your child’s school scored on the New York State Report card, click here.

Dan and BrandiLee Schafran graduated from SU three years ago. Three days after walking across the stage to accept their diplomas, they walked down the aisle to exchange vows.

Written and Produced By: Marlei Martinez

For many college couples, falling in love sparks thoughts about marriage. But in a society where youthful marriages are declining, love isn’t the only factor college sweethearts are looking for when deciding to tie the knot.

Anthony Kershaw and Deana Cater are 22-years-old. Anthony is a fifth-year senior studying civil engineering at Syracuse University. His wife, Deana, graduated from SU last year. They met during their sophomore year of college.

“His shoes were really dirty so I just noticed him and I said, ‘Oh, I saw you on the bus today,’” Deana explained. “And he thought I was making fun of him so he Facebooked me and the rest is history.”

They dated for two years. During Deana’s senior year, they decided to marry due to “extenuating circumstance.”

“Pretty much the school took away my financial aid because there was a discrepancy in my FAFSA tax documents [and] my parents were unwilling to change their documents,” Anthony explained.

One way to keep his financial aid was to become independent. So, Anthony and Deana got married.

Finances are often a reason why college sweethearts decide to tie the knot. According to the Yale Daily Times, 15% of college couples get married and 7% of college couples marry while still in school.

Dr. Suzanne Haas-Cunningham, a marriage and family therapist, said money means different things for different couples.

“For some couples, finances would be really, really big,” Dr. Haas-Cunningham said. “But sometimes if there’s one person who has more financial responsibility and the other person is the caretaker, then it evens out.”

***

Dan and BrandiLee Schafran graduated from SU three years ago. Three days after walking across the stage to accept their diplomas, they walked down the aisle to exchange vows.

“It was the perfect day,” BrandiLee said.

The Schafrans met during their sophomore year of college when Dan joined the on-campus organization, Campus Crusade for Christ. They said faith is the foundation of their marriage and it was the cornerstone of Dan’s proposal in the Adirondacks.

“I got down and had her sit on the bank there,” Dan said. “And I read the passage in scripture where Jesus talks about washing each other’s feet and serving each other. So I kind of washed her feet there in the stream and told her I’d love her and serve her for the rest of her life.”

Dr. Haas-Cunningham said practicing the same faith does help the success of a marriage. However, she says it’s not a necessity.

”You could have two people who have two different beliefs that are really passionate and say, ‘I get you’re as passionate about your beliefs as I am, that’s cool, I can respect that,’” she said.

There are many reasons why college couples decide to get married either during school or right after. And while some may think love is enough, others consider a bit more.

The Westcott Theatre is located on Westcott Street, just blocks from Syracuse University

Written/Produced by Lara Bryn Greenberg

Syracuse, N.Y. – There are many different names for the same building on Westcott Street: The Westcott, The Westcott Theater, The Westcott Cinema and The Harvard Cinema. Nowadays, it’s called The Westcott or The Westcott Theater, and it’s one of the go-to concert venues in Syracuse.

The theater opened as The Harvard Cinema in 1926, and for more than eighty years, it showed independent and foreign films on a single screen.  But in October, 2007, this historical building closed down. Then-owner Nat Tobin kept the theater alive for more than ten years—along with his other building, The Manlius Cinema.

“Between utilities and rent, [The Westcott Cinema] was draining the profits of both theaters, and the only way that I felt that art as a medium in Syracuse could survive is if I gave up that theater and concentrated on Manlius again,” Tobin said.

But it didn’t take long for the space to be picked up by someone else.

Dan Mastronardi is in charge of booking bands in Central New York.  He shares his company, Hollerback Productions, with his partner Sam Levey. The two completely renovated the space themselves.

“It was long and tedious. It was not as expensive as most people would think because we did all the work ourselves,” Mastronardi said. All that work included tearing out seats and installing a 36-by-16 foot stage and a bar. The venue now has a maximum capacity of seven-hundred people. They generally have one hundred to two hundred guests per show, but have sold out at least a dozen times Mastronardi said.

Venue connects S.U. campus with Syracuse community

As a concert venue, The Westcott adds to the neighborhood—providing the “Westcott Nation” with a venue that Syracuse University students and community members can enjoy.

“It’s a big step to open a venue. And they’re taking those steps and they’re still improving things as we go now a year out,” said Ulf Oesterle, owner of Aux Records and host of iROCK at WKRL in Syracuse. He praised the venue for its closeness to the community, explaining that “the fact that you can just head out and see a show just down the street that’s national acts, that’s great.”

Oesterle explained that it’s an all-age venue. Meaning that while it has a bar, most of the shows allow people under the age of eighteen to attend. He said that makes parents feel more comfortable about letting their children go to shows and mingle with students from the nearby SU campus. He said it’s a nice spot where people are “looking out for each other.”

But the theatre is also a launching pad for new talent. Though Mastronardi brings in national touring acts, he usually has local Syracuse and Central New York bands open for them. This gave him his first piece of national press coverage on the music site, Jambase, which has information about bands, concerts, and tours.

Other local venues can’t compare

Adam Gold frequents the theater to see concerts and perform with his band, Sophistafunk. He also owns his own venue called Funk N Waffles on Marshall Street near the SU hill. It’s a coffee shop and waffle restaurant that books bands to play at night. He said he would never be able to book bands like The Westcott because his café is small and simply can’t hold the national touring bands that The Westcott gets.

“I’m really glad The Westcott’s here. You know, there’s really no venue like it in this city. And I think we really need it to help build the music scene,” Gold said.

Adults and teenagers alike packed the theater in early October when Gold and his band opened for the band Soulive. The unusual, yet comforting venue brought a well-balanced combination of young and old music lovers. And that’s exactly what Mastronardi said he aims for.

Anthony Lewis

Written By Sierra Jiminez

Syracuse, N.Y.—Twenty minutes. Twenty minutes was all it took for Angelik Mitchell’s life to change.

On August 15^th, 2009, Anthony Lewis went downtown to the Latin American Festival in Clinton Square. Later that evening, police said there was an altercation at the festival between a group of teenage girls—and Lewis was asked to leave.

Lewis ran down South Salina Street amidst a mob of more than 200 people. As he crossed the intersection of Fayette and South Salina Street, police said he was surrounded and stabbed in the heart.

He was 20-years-old.

In twenty minutes, Mitchell lost her only son. Now, she and the rest of Lewis’ family protest on the streets where Lewis was killed.

“That day we were moving here and we stopped and went to the festival,” Mitchell said as she sat on her son’s bed in their new apartment. “We probably stayed maybe 15, 20 minutes… I had wanted him to come home with us, but he was like ‘I’m ok, I’m good. ’”

“I just wish he would have come,” Mitchell said. “I wish I would have made him. If I would have known, I would have made him.”

Mitchell said her son made an impact on almost everyone he met—including his girlfriend at the time of his death.

“It’s just hard. I didn’t think I would be here like this,” said girlfriend Ana Dourdas as she sat in his room. “I knew I would be here but I didn’t know I’d be here without him.”

“I really do miss him because I spent every day with him. I don’t know who’s gonna call me in the middle of the night. I don’t hear his ringtone anymore. And I never will. I want him to call me, I’m waiting for his phone call,” Dourdas said.

Lewis’ family said they believe his murder was an act of racial violence. And they said they know who was involved. They’ve even gone as far as to look them up on MySpace.

But police said without a witness to come forward, there’s nothing they can do.

“I feel like his life was cut short. I really do,” Mitchell said. “He wasn’t hurting anybody… I mean they all got chased because they were black.”

Ana Dourdas kneels by her boyfriend's vigil a month after he was stabbed to death in Downtown Syracuse.

Mitchell said police have tried to stop her protesting multiple times, stating it’s time to move on. But every Tuesday and Thursday, Lewis’ support group is back out on the streets—fighting for justice.

“Were not going anywhere so they might as well just arrest the people and do what they have to do. Because we’re gonna still be here,” Mitchell said. “We’re gonna be rallying and we don’t care if the officer said we’re making people mad. So what!? I really don’t care. I’m mad because they murdered my son. If they didn’t want to be made mad, then they shouldn’t of murdered my son. I don’t care how other people feel right now. Because my son is not here. So what if I’m making people mad? So what?”

Written by Sierra Jiminez

At-Large Common Councilor Stephanie Miner made Syracuse history Tuesday after winning the 53^rd Mayoral race—the first female to win the election. Miner pulled a victory over Republican mayoral candidate Steve Kimatian, gaining 50.1 percent of the vote.

According to unofficial tallies of Tuesday’s election, Miner, a Democrat, received 11,237 votes. That’s 2,454 more votes than Kimatian who received 8,783 votes. Conservative party candidate Otis Jennings received 2,313 votes.

Miner has been vocal in her campaign about topics such as “Say Yes to Education” and Destiny USA. Her campaign goals include stimulating job growth in the city and increasing neighborhood services and public safety.

“Tonight, we have triumphed in our efforts to convince people that we share that belief, and we will fight to make the city of Syracuse a better place,” Miner said after the results came in Tuesday evening. “But together we have tremendous obstacles to overcome. We all know the challenges of our educational system and economic development and quality of life in our neighborhoods. And we know that together, we have to work to solve these problems.”

Contributing reporting by Shayna Meliker

SU Mock Trial Team

Danielle Waugh

After a year of arguments, this group of SU students calls themselves best friends.

The SU undergraduate Mock Trial Team spent the year competing in trial competitions, traveling across the country. They ended their successful season in Des Moines, Iowa where they competed at the National Championship from April 17 to 19.

Team members include seniors Michelle McClafferty, Brian Mueller, and Michael Schaefer, junior Matthew Cujak, sophomores Andrew Rice and Danielle Waugh, and freshmen Ken Alter and Amanda St. Hilaire. They are coached by a local attorney, Bob Smith, along with two SU Law alumni, Iman Abraham and Meghan Bashar.

“Of the eight years I’ve been in mock trial, this was the best team I’ve ever been on,” Brian Mueller said.

Mock Trial is an undergraduate competition sponsored by the American Mock Trial Association. Students are given a fictitious case to prepare arguments and cases for both sides.

This year’s case was a libel case. The plaintiff, a gubernatorial candidate, sued a national news organization for a story they ran accusing him of murder.

In preparation for the case, the students practice roles as attorneys and witnesses to put on a real trial in front of jury members that evaluate them and determine a winner.

“You have to be charismatic, that’s all there is to it,” Andrew Rice said. “If you have some charisma and a work ethic, you can succeed and win trials.”

Out of the 600 collegiate teams in the country, the Syracuse team was one of 48 that advanced to the national championship in Des Moines.

The road to Des Moines was not an easy one. First, a team must be one of the top 8 teams in their regional competition. In Syracuse’s regional tournament on February 14, they placed first.

Then, they competed at the Open Round Championship Site in Easton, Penn. on March 13 to 15. In order to advance to nationals, a team had to place in the top 6 at their ORCS. Syracuse placed fourth, knocking out Harvard University who was highly favored to win the championship title.

In Des Moines, Syracuse competed against The University of Iowa, Drake University, The University of Richmond, and Eastern Kentucky University. “I think we were on par with everyone we competed against at nationals,” Matthew Cujak said. They ended their season with a record of 17-6-1.

“We all work very, very had and that’s why our team was so successful,” Ken Alter said.

Throughout the year, the team practiced a mandatory 12 hours a week, and met for individual sessions outside of team meetings.

“Part of the reason winning is so rewarding is because the commitment is so high,” Mueller said. “When you beat someone, you really earned it.”

The rewards of mock trial go beyond the courtroom.

“The social dynamic was incredible,” Alter said. “I’ve made friends with everyone on our team, and friends from other teams we’ve competed against.”

Amanda St. Hilaire agreed, “When you see people that often, it’s hard not to get close to them.”

Coming off a year that exceeded their expectations, the team hopes to continue their success next year. “My prediction is that we’re going to continue to compete on the national level, and hopefully take the title,” Alter said.

Donna Ho

Syracuse, N.Y.— Military journalism student Nick Kurtz has covered stories from all over the world. He has been a radio DJ overseas and an anchor and reporter for American Forces Network. One of his favorite stories took place a few months ago here in Central York. Kurtz explains why he enjoyed producing the story about the Dickens’ Christmas event in the town of Skaneateles.

“It was a lot of fun because I got to take my family we me on the shoot and we hadn’t been that far out of Syracuse yet so it was kinda neat to see the Finger Lakes area and that old town feeling,” Kurtz said.

Syracuse, N.Y. —Patrick D. Aherns is known in the Syracuse community as “a true son of Ireland.” As Grand Marshall of the 2004 St. Patrick’s Day parade, a news report claimed that if you scratched his skin, shamrocks would fly out.

Aherns says Irish cultural is flourishing in Syracuse now more than ever.

“When I was a kid, I’d drive around and I couldn’t find an Irish flag in the neighborhood. I couldn’t find any Irish things,” Aherns said.

He says the growth in the number of Irish dance schools illustrates the change in the attitudes of the Irish people in Syracuse. When his daughters were growing up, there was only one dance school in the area. Now, however, there are nine Irish dance academies to choose from.

“The community always knew it was Irish, but they didn’t know what that meant,” Aherns said. “The local community now, the Irish American community, is getting more involved, sort of knows their history more.”

“And it’s a sad history,” Aherns said. “But their grandparents—the immigrants, they didn’t talk about Ireland because it was so painful. So their families were raised without the Irish culture, basically without the history and things like that”

Aherns said that is not the case in his family. He recalled a story his grandmother told him about how her 15-year-old sister was killed by members of the British military force sent into Ireland to suppress revolutionaries as she was riding her bicycle down the road.

“That kind of bitterness and that kind of hatred doesn’t go away,” Aherns said. “That’s the way a lot of us were raised, with that kind of memory, so we [did] what we could for that situation in Ireland.

Aherns says he’s been involved in these organizations to aid the Irish republicans and to foster Irish culture in America for most of his life.

Among the numerous organizations for which he has held positions, Aherns was an officer in the Irish American Cultural Institute, chairman of the Knights of the Red Branch, and president of the Syracuse chapter of the Ancient Order of Hibernians for four years.

“I was raised in the Ancient Order of Hibernians hall,” Aherns said. “They had dances every Saturday night and all the immigrants would come there and find out about America.”

But, Aherns says because there are far fewer Irish immigrants coming into the area than in the past, Irish culture in Syracuse has changed.

“There’s no Hibernian hall anymore, you know,” Aherns said. “Those days are gone. The younger generations don’t have to go to a certain place to find a job from other immigrants. They don’t have to go to another place to find friends, and socialize, and dance, and things like that.”

Aherns is confident that although the reason for Irish cultural pride has changed, the renewed pride and involvement in the culture is not going anywhere.

“You can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube anymore,” Aherns said. “I think it’s only going to grow and grow and grow.”