Print journalism major, junior Allison Thibault, was taking part in the celebration as she stood by the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

“It wasn’t super packed, but there were still a lot of people…people were still watching, still cheering.” Thibault was originally behind the flags lining Boylston Street, however, they blocked her view of the race and the crowd was about “three rows of people deep.” She and her cousin then decided to move further down Boylston, where it crosses Exeter Street. They stood there for about two minutes when they heard the blast. “I was thinking ‘oh, they are shooting off a cannon.’ When I looked back over smoke covered the street, people were running and screaming…I did not process it, I just knew I had to leave.” Thibault and her cousin ran down Exeter Street. “People were sobbing, I saw a middle aged guy screaming a girl’s name.”

The two explosives were placed inside backpacks and dropped into trash cans about 100 yards away from each other, according to an Associated Press source. The first explosion occurred at the 600th block of Boylston Street in front of the Marathon Sports store, while the second bomb detonated ten seconds later at the intersection of Boylston and Ring Road, right in front of the Forum bar. The AP source released details on the explosives saying they were “homemade bombs” built out of pressure cookers filled with metal shards and ball bearings.

Suffolk alumnus Alex Pearlman, who is currently a Digital Product Manager at Boston.com, was at the Forum when the explosions went off. The building shook, the room became filled with smoke, and she was ordered to leave in what she called an “organized chaos.”

As she exited on the alley by Exeter Street. “people were running everywhere…they had no idea what was going on.” However, Pearlman’s adrenaline kicked in. “I didn’t think about it twice, I grabbed my camera and ran directly towards it.” Heading opposite from Thibault, she reached Boylston Street. What was once crowded by marathoners and cheering crowds was now littered with “blood, bodies and broken barricades.” Pearlman was taking pictures for a for a couple of minutes before she was ordered to leave the area by Boston Police.

“I have been in the middle of a gunfight…covered Occupy Boston, I have felt this adrenaline before, but never like that,” said Pearlman, “I have been looking at pictures of this kind of carnage, trying to decide which picture is the best. Looking at charred bodies, war victims, constantly looking at bloody pictures…it’s not the same when you live it and breathe it.”

The improvised explosive devices killed three people and injured 176 people at the time of this writing. One of the deaths is a Boston University Graduate Student while seven Emerson students, three Northeastern University students, three Tufts University students, two Boston College students, one Berklee College of Music student and another Boston University student were among the wounded, according to the universities.

Junior Dan Lampariello was stationed about 300 feet away from the finish line, by the Lord and Taylor on Boylston. When the explosions went off he thought it was fireworks or something, he was wondering what celebrity had crossed the finish line. He raised his camera to take a picture of the smoke rising after the first incident when he captured a shot of the second explosion. The picture has been circulated in major news outlets including Reuters and the Associated Press. Soon after though, the panic reached him. “People were trampling each other…my uncle and cousin were both shoved to the ground; it was definitely just a scene of chaos.” Lampariello took shelter in a hotel nearby. “You never expect to go through this in your lifetime especially as a college student.” The attack, which the White House has called an ‘act of terror,” happened roughly four hours into the oldest marathon in U.S. history.

Suffolk alum Derek Anderson who currently works as a Metro Correspondent at the Boston Globe was one of the many people inside a building when the explosions occurred. “I was working at my second job about half a block from the second explosion. [The explosions] shook the building so much I was worried the glass was going to blow.” By the second explosion, the manager of the store rushed everyone into the basement. “There were at least 100 of us shoulder to shoulder,” said Anderson, “I didn’t know what to think, all I knew was something was wrong, something was really wrong and we had to get in.” When they were evacuated into Massachusetts Avenue, Anderson said he saw “helicopters circling around” and “he was glued to his Twitter feed” for updates.

Emergency personnel stationed at the marathon finish were quick to respond to the incidents, providing medical care with the equipment available nearby. “As horrific as an event like this is,” said Anderson “so many acts of kindness, bravery, and just unity have been so bright…it’s really impressive.”

Suffolk University sent out an email to students roughly an hour after the attacks, warning students to remain clear of the marathon finish line. Once the gravity of the event was understood, a letter was sent out by President McCarthy.

The sun rose to a different Boston. The National Guard was stationed at every train station, armored police surround major landmarks, and the twelve blocks surrounding Copley Square have become the biggest crime scene in the city’s history. “I woke up angry,” said Anderson, “I’m not comfortable. I have a thirst to want to know why.”

While some people tried to go on with their normal routines, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Suffolk, Stephanie Lawson had a revelation. “I obviously had a lecture planned,” said Lawson “but I thought about it yesterday, ‘I can’t go in there and talk about consumer satisfaction when this thing just happened right here.’ There is a big service component to our job…I never want to forget what it feels to be their age.”

Lawson brought her 10 a.m. Consumer Behavior class to Dunkin Donuts instead of giving the normal lecture. Students were allowed to leave if they wanted but a small number came back to the class. “We talked about what happened and by the end everyone was laughing and everyone was in a good mood,” said Lawson. “I wanted to tell them that it doesn’t matter how you deal with this, everyone heals in different ways. Maybe your friend needs to post everything on Facebook, maybe they need to watch 24 hours of news.”

The university’s Counseling Services offered walk-ins and appointments all day on Tuesday and together with the Interfaith Center gave students an ability to express themselves and clear the air. “I hope that the culture at Suffolk changes,” said Lawson. “I read a story that people wanted to transfer because there is no sense of community and I feel like a day like today created a great feeling…a strong community.” The American Red Cross set up a blood drive at Suffolk as well and had to turn back donors as early as 12:30 p.m. due to an overwhelming number of volunteers.

“I try to see logic, I’m not going to speculate,” said Thibault, “I could have walked right next to this guy, he could have stood right next to me…I was standing next to a bomb and didn’t even know it, literally just chilling there for like ten minutes. It wasn’t until I saw the video at home…I was ten people away from getting my leg blown off.”

Pearlman understands she is “still in shock. The moment I decide to leave war corresponding, I run into a bombing.” She claims that she was scared to ride the T, “not even going to the office today. I’ll be ok though, time will heal.”

Anderson is confident Boston will grow from this event. “We are a gritty city, we don’t give up,” he said. “We won’t forget, but I am positive we can rebuild. I’ll have to go to work at the same place [when] they reopen…keep on going.”

Suffolk University will hold a Service of Remembrance at 10 a.m. in C. Walsh Theatre this Thursday, April 18.

Starting at 6 p.m. with light drinks and refreshments provided on the lower floor with an impressive performance from Rhythm, one of Suffolk’s student music groups, the university community gathered to begin a celebration that is held towards the end of each spring semester.

Corinne DeCost and Ashley Niemiec, who are both sophomores, hosted the ceremony which began around 7 p.m. and lasted almost three hours. The crowd, estimated in the hundreds, sat at tables in a big room on the third floor of the hotel located just a few blocks from the Prudential Center.

DeCost and Niemiec, who are also members of Suffolk’s Sketchual Misconduct, kept the audience entertained and amused throughout the show. Other talented student groups performed for the crowd, including two songs by the Ramifications and another hilarious improv skit by Seriously Bent. Students who attended were quite impressed with how the ceremony went and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Samienta “Sammy” Pierre-Vil, the out-going Suffolk SGA President, gave opening remarks at the awards ceremony.

“The best part,” she said, “was watching how happy each award recipient was as his or her name was called.” Pierre-Vil has attended the SGA Awards since she was a freshman, and even served on the committee her freshman year.

When asked if she was ever nominated, and what for, Pierre-Vil explained she was nominated last for both Junior of the Year and College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) student of the year, and she ended up winning Junior of the Year. She added that the “Suffolk community did nominate me this year for both Senior and CAS student of the year but I wanted to play a more active role in the awards so I asked to be removed from the running.”

Preparation for the event, as you can imagine, took quite some time. Pierre-Vil said that SGA began planning this year’s SGA Awards ceremony in the fall and in the spring time they met on a weekly basis.

Pierre-Vil, a student who will be joining her fellow seniors at graduation in a few weeks, also added that she “would like to thank everyone who helped make this night a success and congratulate all the nominees and recipients.”

Alyssa Perry, a freshman and SGA senator for the class of 2016, also attended. Perry said she went to the award ceremony because she was nominated for Outstanding Freshman of the Year (although she did not make it to the final rounds) and also because she is an SGA senator.

“The best part about the awards,” Perry explained, “was the improv group, they did an awesome job of acting and keeping people entertained.”

William “Billy” Cerullo, former SGA senator to the class of 2014 and newly elected SGA President for the 2013-2014 school year, took part in the official Passing of the Gavel, where Pierre-Vil handed over power to the student succeeded her as president.

Cerullo said thought “there were many great aspects of this year’s SGA Awards Ceremony, it’s hard to pick just one. Two things that I do love about the awards, and that go hand in hand, are the camaraderie and the recognition of leaders around campus.”

“I think it is important to recognize the hard work of students, organizations and faculty around campus,” he said. “It serves as a reminder of the amazing individuals within the Suffolk community. Even further, it is great to share all of the amazing successes that we have had over the year.” This is Cerullo’s second year in SGA, but this was his first time going to the SGA Awards Ceremony.

Suffolk’s new SGA President also said that he was nominated for Outstanding Sophomore last year, and was nominated this year for Outstanding Junior and Unsung Hero. Cerullo mentioned that the “awards night is a great example of how anyone can be involved on campus and become a leader thereafter. I truly believe that it is important for students to become involved on campus.”

The winners for each category are: Sketchual Misconduct: SU Sketch Comedy Troupe, New Organization of the Year; The Suffolk Voice, Most Improved Student Organization of the Year; Erin Bessette, CAS Student of the Year; Joseph Rebello, Sawyer Business School (SBS) Student of the Year; Judith Dushku, CAS Faculty of the Year; Stephanie Lawson, SBS Faculty of the Year; William Davis, Administrator of the Year; Ed Leyden, Coach of the Year; Jacqueline Vienneau, Female Athlete of the Year; Jhonneris Mendez, Male Athlete of the Year; Reycine Thomas, International Student of the Year; Aldiana Mujanovic, Freshman of the Year; Kleoniki Papadopoulos, Sophomore of the Year; Conor Finley, Junior of the Year; Brad Migliacci, Outstanding Senior of the Year; Avenue Q, Campus Sponsored Program of the Year; Black Student Union (BSU)’s Black History Month, Student Organization Program of the Year; Carolina Garcia, Unsung Hero-Faculty/Staff; Andrew Cataluna, Unsung Hero-Student; Coach James Nelson, Lifetime Achievement Honor; and, last but not least, Program Council, Student Organization of the Year.

During the ceremony, there was also a silent auction fundraiser where all proceeds went to a charity. John Silveria, faculty advisor to Suffolk SGA, gave the closing remarks.

This percentage rate matches last year’s tuition increase, the smallest increase Suffolk has implemented in 36 years. Greg Gatlin, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Suffolk, said the price hike was necessary to “make sure we are providing students with the best services and educational experience.”

Housing costs for living in Suffolk’s dorm buildings will stay flat for the fourth year in a row. Last year, the Journal reported that Suffolk’s housing costs were sixth most expensive in the nation, according to a list compiled by Campus Grotto. Meal plan costs will see an increase of between $88 and $110.

“We are making sure we keep costs low across the board,” Gatlin said. “We are very aware that students and their families have to pay the bills. We’re doing our best to keep Suffolk education affordable, but we recognize that $30,000 is expensive for students.”

Gatlin noted that Suffolk’s tuition increase is among the lowest in Boston, especially pointing out that Suffolk’s hike is the lowest dollar value amount compared to other area school’s proposals.

On the evening of April 13, students came from all over the Boston area to participate in Relay for Life, held at the Track and Tennis Center at Boston University. This Relay is one of many that are held all over the United States and the world. It was held from 6 p.m. on Saturday night into 6 a.m. Sunday morning. It is an event where people of all ages can come help support cancer research.

Suffolk University students were present at the event through campus Greek Life and a group comprised of Honors Program students.

Inside the Boston University indoor Track and Tennis Center there was excitement in the air. Students, families, and individuals came to help support their friends and loved ones.  Attendees were supportive and involved through the duration of this event, which can help prevent cancer in the future.

Sean Weldon from Suffolk University said that he came to help support the future prevention of cancer.

Another participant, Bianca Saunders, stated that she came for her family and friend who passed away at age 13.

The American Cancer Society is celebrating their 100th year and is The Official Sponsor of Birthdays. The Relay at Boston University was sponsored by Colleges Against Cancer. Most Relays are based off the same schedule of events every year. The event starts with an opening ceremony, where the Relay committee explains what relay for life is and some of the events that will be happening that night.

Next is the survivor walk. The individuals who have survived, or who are fighting cancer, wear purple shirts with the Relay for Life logo on the front.  They walk the “survivor lap” around the track, and after they have completed this everyone else joins in and walks with them.

After the survivor lap there were multiple other events that students could participate in: photo scavenger hunt, ‘feed me’ game, and step up Boston, among others.

At 10:15 p.m. there was the Luminaria Ceremony. This activity shows participants just how much cancer affects everyone. There were Relayers who shared stories about their experience with cancer, whether it affected them personally or if it affected someone in their family. After these testimonials everyone was given a glow stick; the lights were turned off and participants were asked questions about whether they knew someone who had had cancer. If an individual answered yes to the question they cracked their glow stick. After about 10 questions everyone’s glow stick was cracked and glowing bright.

The sound of each person’s glow stick cracking was eerie and scary.  Knowing how many people were affected by cancer hit participants close to home.  After the glow stick crack everyone watched as the word “HOPE” was lit up and displayed on the other side of the Track and Tennis Center. Then all the participants walked a lap for all the people who have been affected by cancer. As the participants walked around the track the word “HOPE” turned into the word “CURE,” showing that one day there will hopefully be a cure.

Relayers thought this was the most emotional part of the night. Many people were crying as they listened to the music and watched the pictures on the slide show go across the screen.

Thankfully right after this event the BU Jazz group came and helped lift everyone’s mood. The night continued on with a dodge ball tournament, liquid fun, zumba, Mr. Relay Pageant and performances where dance teams showed off their moves.

Some of the different clubs that participated in Relay for Life were Theta Phi Alpha, Delta Gamma, Kappa Delta, Tri Delta, BU Dental: Smile for Miles, PA Group, groups of supportive friends, and many more.

Eric Girouard, a sophomore at Boston University majoring in math and computer science said, “60% of the participants at this Relay are Greek Life.”

This year at the Boston University Relay there were 1,106 people who registered online to participate and the committee was expecting a total of 1,400 participants including walk-ins.

“Kyrena Krekel the President of the Executive Board of Colleges Against Cancer started planning this event in September of 2012,” said Girouard. He also stated that the biggest thing he wants participants to take away from this event is how much progress there has been since cancer research began and how much being here does help.

Thanks to American Cancer Society there have been nearly 14 million people who are celebrating another birthday this year and $3.8 billion has been awarded in research grants since 1946.

The ceremonies will be held at the Bank of America Pavillion in South Boston. There will be three different events, one for the College of Arts and Sciences, one for Sawyer Business School, and one for the Law School.

Unlike previous years, undergraduate and graduate students within the same school will attend the same ceremony and the events will happen over the course of two days, not just one.

“The events have been structured to provide for students and their families,” said Vice President of Marketing and Communications Greg Gatlin.

Kraft will speak to College of Arts and Sciences students on Sunday, May 19 during their joint undergraduate and graduate commencement that afternoon. As Chairman and CEO of The Kraft Group, he owns the Patriots, the New England Revolution, Gillette Stadium, and has assets in many other fields, such as paper and packaging and real estate development. Suffolk will also give Kraft an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree.

“I’ve grown up with my father donating platelets for Robert Kraft’s lab in Dana-Farber,” senior Dan Newall said, “Having him as the 2013 commencement speaker at our graduation is extremely meaningful and hitting close to home, making the event of graduation even sweeter.”

Fireman will address students of the Sawyer Business School earlier in the day on May 19 during their joint undergraduate and graduate ceremony. Fireman founded and served as chair of Reebok International. He will receive an honorary Doctor of Commerce degree from Suffolk.

Matthews will speak at the Law School commencement ceremony on Monday, May 20 at 10 a.m. The host of MSNBC’s Hardball and NBC’s The Chris Matthews Show will receive an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

This Earth Day, the Suffolk Sustainability office is putting together an event pushing the “Forward on Climate” movement.  Suffolk students are encouraged to attend to gain the latest information on current environmental issues and to learn about ways of creating cleaner energy.

The event will be followed by a luncheon, held on Monday, April 22 in the Law School’s first floor function room from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.  Students wishing to attend should email Careese Peters at cepeters@suffolk.edu to RSVP.

A discussion panel will include Suffolk University professors John Berg, Brendan Burke, Martha Richmond and Northeast Regional Outreach Coordinator, Carol Oldham.  They will discuss issues such as the Keystone XL pipeline, tar sands, and fracking, from the standpoints of the government, the Institute of Public Service, and Biochemistry.  Student organized presentations will also be present at the luncheon before the event, giving those who are unfamiliar with these topics a brief outline.

“Our goal is just to raise awareness,” says Careese Peters, 20, of Boston.  “We hope to provide some information on the repercussions of using things like the Keystone pipeline or tar sands, and just some general information on cleaner energy resources.”

As an environmental representative at Suffolk, Peters has worked to raise awareness about current environmental issues as well as putting together this event with Suffolk’s Sustainability Coordinator, Erica Mattison.

Much of the interest for this event sparked after the Forward on Climate Rally brought thousands of Americans to Washington, D.C. in February to protest the construction of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

“It’s a hot topic in the U.S. right now, and it’s something we thought students would be really interested in learning about,” said Peters.

On February 17, 2013, thousands of Americans rallied together on the Mall in Washington, D.C. in what is described as the largest climate rally in U.S. history.  According to an article by Andrew Rafferty for NBC news, the government argues that creating the pipeline will “provide the U.S. with a reliable energy source and create jobs during a period of slow economic recovery.”   However, those attending the “Forward” rally suggest that “the pipeline will release more carbon, further heating the Earth and causing more devastating events like droughts and extreme storms.”

Issues like this and many more will be the topics of discussion on Earth Day at Suffolk.  While not necessarily a “debate,” Suffolk’s Earth Day event will fill students’ minds with information.  After all the main goal of the Sustainability office is simply to raise awareness.

“I’m excited to be putting on this event to talk about energy and climate issues with Suffolk students,” says Mattison.  “This is a really timely topic, with issues having to do with where energy comes from and the repercussions of that. We are also pleased to have the support of the Institute of Public Service and the support of Sodexo to help with the luncheon.”

Students are invited to enjoy good food, but more importantly, good conversation.

Apartment leases are close to ending and work visa laws are holding back students from earning income. The next question is always whether or not it is economical for a student to pay for an expensive roundtrip flight that can cost up to $2,500, which is what most students expect to earn in a summer.

Although spending time with family is alluring, international students have found themselves on the search for internship opportunities in the area to save themselves from footing the steep bill necessary to travel across continents. For any student, both from the U.S. and abroad, summer internships and jobs are always a hot topic the few weeks before the spring semester closes. Since conventional jobs such as café baristas or waiting tables are often too complicated to come across on account of visa laws, resorting to unpaid internships has been the best and safest bet for international students.

“I want to go back [home], it is not financially reasonable to stay. Can you imagine sitting around for four months?” Dauda Wague, ’14 from Mali, said. “If I was allowed to have a job and work, I would stay.” Wague finds his situation influenced as well by the opportunity to work at home, especially for the experience.

“The longer you are here the more you realize you may want to go back after graduation,” reaffirmed Wague. “Most African students at Suffolk had their views changed. They wanted to come here and work and find experience. But right now, it seems like if you can find a job in Africa, it is better. You feel more at home and your money is more useful.“

This business side of the decision showed itself as particularly attractive. “The market in Africa is still wide open, free from competition. It is so much easier to get into business in Africa,“ said Wague For Wague, living and studying in America has presented the opportunity to study at a first-rate university gaining international recognition, but his long-term intent seems to be working and taking his education back to Mali.

Reema Al-Ashgar, ’16, an electrical engineering student from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has been drawn to Suffolk for the summer via educational opportunity, but that does not mean she does not dearly miss her home country.

“I want to take two classes, English and Economy,” Al-Ashgar stated, “and I am planning to talk to my professor to see if he could give me a position to research at MIT. He needs to see passionate engineering students and the department gives the opportunity to three students to do research, but I still don’t know.”

Al-Ashgar still would rather be home and enjoying the family and culture she grew up with. “I want to go back; I miss my family; I haven’t seen them for a whole year.” She is even missing out on community events. “We have our holy month and holiday and I won’t be able to go there and it makes me feel bad,” she said. However, her sister has found the opportunity to go back because the Saudi Embassy pays a round trip ticket for students in the U.S. once each year. Al-Ashgar was more prone to take this trip during Christmas break.

Al-Ashgar commented on the summer sessions which allow students to stay on campus and study without their student visas expiring. “Most people take Summer One and then go back,” Al-Ashgar said, but it can become a hassle when traveling. Other international students have found themselves in a more convenient position for summer opportunities, but the realities with their family and friends do not always prove easy to understand.

Carol Leon, ‘15, a sophomore studying international affairs, is presented with a unique situation that brings perspective to the common conundrum international students are faced with having grown up in Mexico. As a dual citizen of Mexico and the U.S., Leon stated that she has “more opportunities than other international students. Friends of mine are going back because they cannot work here,” Leon said. Her situation was based on the conscious decision not to go back to Mexico because in the U.S. “there are more opportunities to get an internship.”

Leon saw how being a student on campus through the summer opened up potential opportunities. “A friend of mine from the Philippines who works in the undergraduate admissions office as a trustee ambassador said it was easier to stay and work than fly home” because of her job on Suffolk’s campus.

It can be “really stressful,” reiterated Leon, because “my brother was born in Mexico without U.S. citizenship and had to apply for Optional Practice Training (OPT),” which allots a one month period after graduation to find a job and stay in the U.S. for up to a year. OPT is a common theme among international students who wish to stay longer in the U.S. rather than immediately traveling and committing to a life in their home countries.

International students make up a great deal of the student population and their presence is welcomed and very much appreciated. The international diversity on campus is what sets Suffolk University apart from so many other institutions in the U.S. Unfortunately, their enrollment does not come without financial and family difficulties when making a decision to stay or go home over break. International students strive for better opportunities such as internships and work-study positions, but there are more factors for these students to consider that effect their future work and life possibilities.

Faculty and administrators of the Sawyer Business School and the College of Arts and Sciences are currently debating a potential “common” undergraduate curriculum. At the same time, Suffolk seeks to enhance its international presence and profile through a variety of programs and initiatives. It is essential at this juncture that the university reaffirm its commitment to instruction in foreign language and culture for all students. Sadly this contributor suspects that foreign language programs will fall prey to financial exigencies and “strategic” decision-making. This would be a grave error.

Suffolk considers itself an international university, and the composition of its student body reflects this outlook. While geographic diversity in the student body can certainly provide some alternative perspectives for indigenous students, it is simply not sufficient in our globalized environment. An in-depth exposure to foreign languages and cultures should be considered an imperative in curriculum development. A more parochial educational model fails students both as prospective job-seekers and as citizens of the Republic.

It is not a coincidence that European students in a variety of disciplines combine their vocational or intellectual studies with a foreign language concentration. Even though English is the current lingua franca (a phrase reflective of an earlier phase of French dominance) of global commerce and education, an increasingly multipolar world demands both perspective and expertise from beyond national borders. Even within the United States a wide variety of languages are spoken. It is hard to think of a desirable job in the future economy for which fluency or proficiency in a second (or third) language would not be of significant benefit.

In the international sphere, the old adage remains true: trade partners will happily sell products in English, but they are much more likely to buy products from those conversant in their language and culture. In a country where the trade deficit is a topic of near constant discussion (and complaint,) a commitment to furthering commerce through language and cultural interchange seems most necessary. Instead of viewing language courses as financial liabilities, the administration should see them as investments in the future success of university alumni. Conversely, students should not view the language requirement as some chore to be checked off on the program evaluation, but rather they should leap at the opportunity to study French or Spanish or Mandarin or Arabic.

While the German program to which I am personally so attached is headed towards elimination, I hold out hope that a (re)consideration of the role of language instruction within the Suffolk model may benefit the remaining elements of World Languages and Cultural Studies. Not long ago the very concept of the university was bound to the “humanistic” model of education, for which Latin was a prerequisite and Greek highly desirable. Those days are behind us. Nevertheless, a fresh perspective and exposure to other forms of thought which linguistic study entails cannot fail to produce better workers and more cosmopolitan citizens who will do their countries and their alma mater proud.

Kim Jong Un is missing. He has not made a public appearance in two weeks now, which doesn’t necessarily mean anything by itself. However, given the fact that he has been mouthing off to the western imperialists with vague nuclear suggestions, more or less everyday for the last two months, makes it somewhat suspicious; remember that Hugo Chavez disappeared for a few weeks right before he died. However, for all we know he is alive and well, relaxing over Moet & Chandon and a Woody Alan flick in a penthouse somewhere and therefore I will honor my own vague threat last week to discuss the Kony 2012 campaign.

I liked it. I admit it, this time about a year-and-a-half ago, without even thinking about it really, I just clicked the “like” button on Facebook when some casual friend I respect but don’t know well posted it. Maybe the source had to do with it, I just assumed it was another one of his political rants and liked it because I like him.

Little did I know I had become part of a fraternity of concerned Americans, millions strong, an uncompromising body with a single goal of bringing the devil reincarnate Kony to justice, and saving some African kids along the way. Did every single one of these idealists actually watch the whole 30-minute long video? Did I watch the video? Of course not. I am the product of a generation raised to absorb information in 30-second long blasts of aggressive advertising and was therefore personally offended at the suggestion that I had half an hour to spare for just one of the thousands of demands for my attention in just one day. I assume it was the same for many of my new peers.

If I had watched the video, I would have been confused. The Ugandan Overlord was the ‘subject’ of the video, per se, but the underlying current is a little more interesting. The ‘social media change’ rhetoric, the way they glorify the ‘idea’ and its movement through society, eclipses the minimal attention spent on child soldiers and the Uganda problem, which has been raging off and on since the 1960s.

The video really focuses on ‘telling your friends,’ using brief shots of kids holding cell phones and using keyboards to get you exited: you too can change the world! The underlying vibe is educational, not about Africa but how to tell your friends that they should care because you suddenly care. It was infectious, and a rousing success.

I mean, it’s a good video. It is just not about what it claims to be about. I can almost picture a couple of videographers with money and time to kill arguing about their respective social advertising skills. Dr. Seuss was bet by a friend long ago that he couldn’t write an entire book using only 50 words. The result was “Green Eggs and Ham,” a book we’ve all heard of. That’s exactly what I think happened. That poor publisher, before his infamous sexual meltdown in a parking lot in California was a truly gifted social engineer who won a bet that he couldn’t make a 30-minute long video explode around the world.

“I’m so good I even let you name the subject of the video.”

“Anything I want?”

“Sure.”

“Child Soldiers in Africa.”

“No problem.”

Twelve hours earlier, I had been hanging out in the alleys of Harvard Square before heading to the Sinclair to see the Pennsylvania-based band Pissed Jeans, a band which has consistently put on some great performances. I had been speaking to my friend Adric about Boston: I’ve been seriously thinking about moving to the west coast after visiting San Francisco with the Journal and being impressed. Oakland, in particular, had captured my imagination: what a perfect example of the type of community and solidarity between neighbors. “Planet Oakland,” as they called it, was the opposite of what Boston felt like at the time. The DIY music community was thriving, but eventually the law got in the way and forced what were once safe-spaces hosting friendly gatherings to shut down. Before Monday, this was on my mind more than anything else.

Once inside Forum, I decided to turn back around and hike up a block to Walgreens, where I purchased lens cleaner, cloth, and a pouch of pistachios. On the way back, I made quick eye contact with former Journal editor Derek Anderson, who was helping a runner’s family decide which Apple product to buy. I thought about finding him later in the afternoon, and as I walked back into the restaurant I ran into Adam XII, former-WFNX and current RadioBDC DJ. He greeted me smiling, asking how I was. I told him about the frustrations of navigating around the Marathon site, and he concurred, noting that a similar thing had happened to him a couple of years ago.

Then, I went to work. And, decided to smoke a cigarette five minutes later. Great work ethic, huh?

As we walked out the back door of the bar, I took out a Marlboro Red and raised it, touching my lips. Lighting it, I looked down both ends of Public Alley 441. It was pretty barren.

An hour before the blast, Alex Pearlman and I posed in the party booth machine.

When you take photos for an event, it can be trying getting everyone into the frame. I had asked four women if they’d like to be on RadioBDC.com, which they promptly gave positive reactions to. Sammy, the dog, was just lying in the window with her head down. Of course I got her seldom look in the photograph. I took down the four names, from left to right, and walked to the far end of the second floor, where I quickly snapped a picture of the runners on my phone from above, and tweeted it.

Seven minutes later, I stood by the front of the bar behind a table with mixing equipment on it. Alex Pearlman, also a former Journal editor and current employee for the Globe and RadioBDC, was nowhere to be seen. I peered down at my phone to lookup NBA news, as I hadn’t since the Mavericks went over .500 the night before.

A flash went off in the front of the restaurant. At least that’s what I thought; I hadn’t been the only photographer there. A second flash went off along with a huge boom.

“Get Down! There’s a gun!”

I couldn’t see, there was so much smoke. Glass blew by my face. A pretty heavy-set guy, I was the easiest target in the room. I had to get out. I couldn’t see Alex Pearlman anywhere, and in the pandemonium, I took the first chance I could to push the table forward and jolt out the back door. Those fifteen seconds or so have become a blur. I had never felt total hysteria before. Quite a sensation, it split my brain and my body, and without much processing, I felt my body move like I was jumping from one side of a mosh pit to the other, into a friend’s chest — but instead it was the side of the bar. I hadn’t even thought about the bag I left, the cherished lens I’d had since I was 16, or the ATM card I had just opened a tab with. It was survival or nothing.

Public Alley 441 was no longer the devoid strip of asphalt in dire need of repairs. Instead, it became a stream of runners without bibs, and instead with infants, fathers, partners, mothers, and just about any type of person you could think of. Thankfully, there was enough room to jolt down the street without having to crawl over another person, although I cannot say that for every other location. It was then that I realized this wasn’t a gunman — this was a widespread catastrophe in the Back Bay.

I began to shoot people running before I spotted Pearlman through my lens. Within a minute, we were racing around the corner and onto Boylston, into the action, to do the best we could at what we do, report the news.

“Something’s seriously wrong,” I thought to myself. “Your job is to find the facts, be skeptical, and do everything to not exploit the situation.” The Metro desk at the Globe picked up Pearlman’s phone call.

“What happened?” she asked, but the person on the other line could only ask her the same question. “A bomb went off at the marathon, at least one. People are running around crying, wondering where to go.” That was the first moment I realized that this was a terrorist attack. I quickly texted my mother that I was safe and turned off my phone to save battery.

The next ten minutes were spent taking as many photos of the scene as I could without getting in the way. That was the most important thing: do not, in any way, obstruct someone trying to help. The police were expanding the perimeter, and as I tried to tell them I was press, one officer told me to “F*** off, I don’t care who you’re with.” Of course, he was right — I should have never even asked. I told them that I respected what they were doing and that I’d do anything I could to be neither seen or heard while doing my job. The officer nodded and ran off to get the next barrier. This was a terrorist attack. I put the camera down and looked around. It hasn’t left my mind yet, the gruesome scene. It wouldn’t be right to try to describe other peoples’ condition in this editorial.

For the next twenty minutes, my phone was back on and became a livestream that the Globe had been actively trying to get spread, except the termination of cell services in the area had crushed it to the point of no connection, and in turn, left me with one percent battery life.

We found Chris Faraone, former staff writer for the Boston Phoenix, who I had worked with during the lead-up to the death of Andrew Breitbart a year ago. He was coming to meet us when the explosion happened. Standing on the curb with face in phone, he was tweeting like a machine, figuring out as much information as possible. One of my roommates, a pedicabber who was working down by Mass Ave, reached us to check in before heading back to the South End bike shop.

Adam XII and the rest of the RadioBDC staff were standing close to their van on Newbury Street when we finally reached them. Before long, Garrett Quinn, of Mediaite and Reason Magazine, appeared out of nowhere. Pearlman, Faraone, Quinn, and I started to walk towards Commonwealth Avenue where the marathon route had been diverted.

One older man, who had been running in the race, walked up to us. His face was blank as he explained that his wife and family had been sitting on the bleachers next to the finish line, and that he hadn’t heard from any of them since the morning. Quinn took out his phone and texted the number the man provided. His eyes were in terror for ten minutes before she texted back that he should come home, they were safe. The terror turned into tears of relief.

Lola Bar on Commonwealth Avenue had become our home for the next hour or so. Journalists seemed to pile in, as it was as close as we could get to the scene. We found few power outlets and a 4G netcard to attempt to send the Globe the photos taken. No luck. Too slow. Deval Patrick and Ed Davis spoke from a hotel on the other side of Boylston, and as we watched, shushes attempted to shut up the drunkards raging about 9/11 in the back corner.

Anxiety about getting the photos out set in, and before long Pearlman and I were on our way down the mall, up Beacon Street, and onto Temple Street, where we quickly lit cigarettes and decompressed for five minutes. We had frequently shared cigarette breaks at this spot right in front of Donahue, but this time was different.

If you had the opportunity to help, you did. Random volunteers raced down the street with wheelchairs and water. Bostonians offered up their homes, cars, and communication devices to complete strangers. Restaurants offered free food and drinks to anyone dislocated. As the Boss sings on last year’s album Wrecking Ball, “we take care of our own.” I don’t have to move all the way to the west coast to experience Oakland, because this is “Planet Boston,” when it needs to be.

Thank you to the SUPD officer who we pleaded our case to after showing our expired student IDs, for allowing us to get into our office. This office has become my absolute comfort zone in the past five years, and while my mental health was struggling to grasp what had just happened, I could relax a bit while looking around at the memorabilia collected on the walls of D537.

I entered Suffolk University during the last few months of the Bush administration. I covered the 2008 and 2012 elections. I was here during the forced resignation of President Sergeant, and virally f’d up the first issue with President McCarthy on campus. (Yea, sorry about that.) I’ve seen Seriously Bent get funnier and funnier. I’ve seen the College Republicans awesome care package drive become the most popular, successful event on campus.

It had never once crossed my mind that I would be spending my last night on the staff of the Suffolk Journal, as its editor-in-chief, after almost 100 issues, covering a terrorist attack which, if I was fifteen feet closer to the street…who knows.

I love you, Suffolk, and although I may be hot-headed at points, you’ve treated me well. You’ve given me so many opportunities and allowed me to meet so many people who I cherish. It is terrible that this happened in our city, but life will continue. Fear is meant to destroy your faith, don’t let it.

After 46 years working within Suffolk University, longtime athletic director Jim Nelson will retire at the end of the 2013 spring semester. Nelson announced the news on April 10 at the Student Government Awards upon receiving the lifetime achievement award.

“I’ve given serious consideration the last several years and made the decision back in September. President McCarthy came [last year] and…I felt it was not appropriate to leave until I knew him and shared the uniqueness of the program and told him I would stay at least a year longevity,” said Nelson regarding the decision.

The Boston College graduate came began his time at Suffolk in 1966 when he was named assistant director of athletics and assistant basketball coach.

“When I first got to Suffolk, it was just one building and was largely a commuter school. We only had the Archer building and the Donahue building opened up my first year,” Nelson said.

After nine years at the university, the former college basketball player was named athletic director and head men’s basketball coach in 1975. Nelson served as head coach and athletic director simultaneously until 1995, when he hung up his coaching whistle and focused solely on his other role with Suffolk.

“As a coach, you are first and foremost a teacher. That was the aspect I enjoyed most during coaching. Each day in practice I would be teaching the fundamentals of the game but also civility, discipline and commitment, loyalty and sacrifice. To be successful, you will need to sacrifice a great deal to time commitment,” he said.

Considering Nelson’s many contributions to the university, it’s safe to say there are few better to teach the value of sacrificing time for a greater cause than him.

Up until 1991, Suffolk athletics were played largely at the Cambridge YMCA where Nelson spent plenty of time during his first decade-and-a-half as head coach and athletic director. The Cambridge native recalls many days spent at his hometown YMCA where he “was fortunate to have student athletes who had a similar commitment and love of sport and respected quality,” as he saw during his time as a player for the Boston College Eagles.

Thanks to the help of former university President Daniel Pearlman, Nelson and others, Suffolk opened the doors to its first ever athletic facility, the Ridgeway Gym, in 1991. Nelson remembers encouraging the former president and other Suffolk administrators for years about how a gym would be a help for his department and the school as a whole.

“It’s something that has given us enormous benefits. It’s allowed the basketball and volleyball teams facilities to play games and practice and students to come and cheer those teams that are made of their friends, classmates or roommates. It doesn’t take many to have a sellout at Ridgeway and our teams have been able to play in front of big crowds. Ridgeway also gave me my first and last office!”

With the Ridgeway building as a whole currently on the market, Nelson explained that the goal for Suffolk is to have another athletic facility with enhanced resources sometime in the future.

In addition to his work bringing the school its first ever athletic facility, Nelson helped Suffolk sports become a full-time member of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference during the 1999-2000 school year. Since becoming members of the GNAC, the university has won a combined 11 conference championships and qualified for eight NCAA tournaments.

Nelson helped shape Suffolk athletics into what it is today but he didn’t accomplish these goals by locking his office doors and diving into paperwork.

“Coach Nelson is the Mayor of Suffolk,” said baseball coach Cary McConnell in a press release given to the Journal. “He knows everyone’s name and when he stops and talks with you, he really cares about what’s going on in your life.”

Suffolk athletic trainer Jim Stone was given his current title with the school from Nelson in 2005. Stone explained that Nelson remembered him from his days in the 1970s as a trainer for high schools and colleges, taping up his players at away games.

“Guys like him are hard to find. He has a cache of trust and a solid reputation. He’s legendary, Suffolk’s version of New Hampshire’s ‘Old Man in the Mountain’…he’s universally admired,” said Stone.

Nelson has seen and been an interregnal part in Suffolk’s growth from a small, largely male-populated commuter school into a university with three dorm rooms, a gymnasium and a sprawled-out campus dominating the northeast side of Beacon Hill.

“I’m immensely proud of my association with Suffolk. I’ve always said I had a great four years at Boston College but I’ve had a lifetime at Suffolk. Three of my five children hold degrees from here and that speaks to the level of education here. Suffolk has allowed me to travel extensively to represent its interests on both a national and international scale and I am truly grateful,” said Nelson.

“Since I’ve made my decision, every day has been a closing event for me and there’s been great nostalgia in each of those. I will miss it 100 percent…I was struck by the comment Tom Menino said in his retirement speech when he said ‘I’m leaving the job that I love,’ because I’m leaving the job that I love. Health-wise, I am thankful for the good health I have been blessed with and I could go for 50 years but this is the time. With a new president and my years of service and the fact I’ve been collecting social security the last few years, I realize I am now a senior citizen,” Nelson said with a chuckle.

As for who will fill his shoes as the university’s third-ever athletic director, Nelson hopes it’s someone who is a visionary.

“I hope they will bring their own experiences but will also capitalize on the goodwill that we’ve accomplished with Boston, sister institutions and surrounding cities and towns that have allowed us to present a competitive athletic program.”

Should that new athletic director want to get to know the person who paved the way for them however, Nelson hopes to not be too removed from the Suffolk campus in the years to come.

“I hope to continue teaching my history of sports in the Olympic Games course and will be active in alumni activities,” said Nelson.

Press Party, a weekly show created by the Boston Herald in conjunction with Suffolk University’s Studio 73, started on Friday, Mar. 22. Alongside the host each week are a handful of panelists from various backgrounds in the news media, the political scene around Beacon Hill and Boston, and as well as a person from Suffolk. The show can probably be compared to a local version of NBC’s Meet the Press. Rosenthal explained that “the Herald contacted Suffolk through members of the administration saying that they would be interested in developing a partnership with us” to create more opportunities for internships and that they were contemplating a TV program.” In his words, Rosenthal said that the idea of Press Party is “we analyze the media on a weekly basis and how the media has done things.”

Last week, the show’s second episode, the panel included Boston City Councilor Michael Ross, Dr. Bob, and the Boston Herald’s chief political reporter, Hillary Chabot. The discussions varied on topics ranging from a controversial Twitter account at University of New Hampshire, the media’s response to Mayor Tom Menino’s announcement that he will not be running for re-election, the battle over gay marriage and whether or not the news media has a bias or slant when reporting on it, and the possibility of CNN considering a new show co-hosted by Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin.

The interaction and connection between the panelists has gone really well so far. After only previously meeting once, Rosenthal said the panel “really gelled. Groups develop a personality, and I think, right off the bat, we sort of all hit it off because at the end of the program we were following up on each other’s answers and we were discussing more than just answering the questions.”

The show gives many opportunities to students here at Suffolk – anything from producing the one-minute intro videos for each episode to interning with the Herald and making the packages that lead into all of the stories. As they move farther into developing Press Party and moving it out of its beginning stages, they plan to make a virtual studio and have communication with the Herald newsroom for Suffolk’s journalism students.

When asked how he hopes Suffolk students will respond to the show, Rosenthal said “I hope some…will actually view the show because it’s pretty hip. The way it’s posted on the website is it’s posted in four sections, so if you click a segment you get five minutes…rather than a half hour program which is what it’ll be when it shows up on television.” He added that there are also places for people to respond with their opinions in a comment section on the page below the videos for each of the weekly episodes.

In an article that appeared on the Suffolk University website last month, Patrick J. Purcell, President and Publisher of the Boston Herald, explained that “Press Party is a natural next step as we continue to extend the Boston Herald brand.”

The show is filmed during Friday afternoons and is published online, every week, a few hours later in the day. Once each episode is finished, Battenfeld writes a type of follow-up blog post each week known as “After Party.”

The employers were there looking to meet with students to talk about summer co-ops and internships,” said Paul Tanklefsky, director of Career Services and Co-op Education. “It was a great opportunity to start engaging with employers and start delivering the students’ message to employers, their ‘30-second elevator pitch,’ and make contacts, and then follow-up with those employers.” Over 400 students attended the event to explore job options from 48 employers. They were provided with plenty of options for both summer and cooperative employment. The open positions for both internships and regular employment included real estate agents, research analyst interns, beauty consultants, and census workers among numerous others. There were opportunities available for any major and the fair included both paid and unpaid internships as well as standard job opportunities.

“Every student here should, before they graduate, be able to secure at least one internship or co-op,” said Tanklefsky. “It does a variety of things like nothing else. One, it helps refine your career interests. Two, it gives you real experience. Three, marketable skills that employers value. Four, it provides you with a professional readiness, having worked in the work place and had that kind of exposure. Five, it establishes a ready-made network for you to capitalize on through your employers and fellow coworkers.”

Students were greeted at the door with an Employer Fact Sheet that provided them with basic knowledge about the employers in attendance, letting them decide which booths to visit and giving them time to prepare their introductions to potential employers.

“If you’re looking for competitive advantage, that comes through,” Tanklefsky said. “It allows our students to compete,and compete successfully, for career opportunities.”
Tanklefsky said he encourages both students who attended as well as those who didn’t to set up an appointment with the co-op internship counselors.
“We’re getting postings every day,” he added. “There are still a lot of opportunities, we can help get them started.”

The Suffolk University International Affairs Association(SUIAA) participated in a week-long conference in New York City.  This year, 22 student delegates represented Spain in different committees facing issues in the global community.

Once the conference began last week, 193 countries with representatives in all committee groups worked together to resolve a specific issue.  Committees included a Human Rights Council, the Committee on Trade and Development, and more.  Other, more in-depth problems were also addressed, such as Israeli settlements in Palestine in terms of the economy, the infrastructure, and the agricultural sector.

In the months before the conference, student delegates were assigned three topics for discussion within their committee.  They conducted research on these topics and collaborated to effectively discuss them with representatives from all 192 other countries within their committee at the conference.  Then, groups of countries, or blocks, got together to write a resolution paper to solve one of the three assigned topics.

This group is lead by first-year President Carol León.  During a team meeting held on Tuesday April 2, delegates discussed the high and low points of the conference including ways to improve their methods for next year.

“I didn’t know how well I did at first,” said first year member Andrew Fallon.  “Initially, I was disappointed in my performance, but after thinking about it—I know what I need to do next time.”

The team also discussed ways to improve research and how to be better prepared.

“This was one of the best conferences we’ve had,” said León.  “It was definitely a life changing experience; I learned to become a better leader.  It was not only a good time, but a great learning experience.”

This seems to be a defining year for SUIAA.  All Board members agreed that even with the large percentage of new team members, everyone did an outstanding job.  Spain was prosperous in each of the committees thanks to the teamwork skills of Suffolk’s student delegates.

“We had a lot of new students this year,” said Head Delegate Kaila Millett.  “They threw themselves into the committees so I was really proud of everyone.  Overall, we’ve done the best we’ve ever done.”

The SUIAA would like to thank their sponsors for this year’s conference, Vice Provost Royo, WLCS, the Sawyer Business School, Suffolk’s SGA, Walter Caffey and the Government Department.  The group is also in the process of planning another conference to be held at Yale University in the fall.

At the end of World War II, as historians began to sift through the chaos of information that awaiting them, Japan topped this list of wartime atrocities committed against the notion of human rights. Japan did a lot of bad stuff to a lot of innocent people, and they were duly punished for it in many ways, one of which was the institution of Article 9 in their constitution, which reads as follows: “To accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph (peace), land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized.”

The preceding clause discusses the prohibition on acts of war by the Japanese military, which is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, perhaps intentionally, because the Article goes on to ban any military expenditure by the Japanese government, which in turn means no military.

Regardless of the fact that World War II and anything like it now lies firmly buried 70-odd years in the past, this Article is becoming rather problematic on two fronts. Firstly, the Japanese economy is the third largest in the world, which makes them a “power,” or depending on how you choose to define it a “super power.” As history has shown us, international “powers” as a rule need to expand to feed their hungry economies. For example, economic expansion like the American neo-imperialism we see today, or good old fashioned geographic expansionism that got Japan into the predicament it is today back in WWII.

As Japan’s tiny mainland begins to run dry, the economic pressure to expand will only increase, and there is no current solution in place to relieve that pressure, short of economic stagnation, which is of course unacceptable for any nation. Regardless of how this expansion plays out, not having a military will be a problem. Not necessarily for invading Manchuria like they did two generations ago, but for hefting power when coming to a head with other expanding powers (China/Taiwan) over resource procurement.

As the Cold War shows us, sometimes having the military heft to discourage outright conflict is enough to actually prevent military answers to problems between powerful nations. Currently, Japan’s only heft is the very, very close relationship they have with the United States, the only current real, indisputable military super power. This leads nicely into the second aspect of the Article 9 problem, the American side of it.

Imagine China and Japan actually get to the point where their disagreements over those random mineral rich islands in the South China Sea become military prone. There is a debate about what the US involvement in Japan’s military, as well as China’s economy, will come to. The majority consensus is that the United States will serve as a buffer between disagreement and actual conflict, because no one wants to piss off the Americans to the point where they’re loading weapons.

China has too much to lose, (all out debt, for instance) to sever ties with the US, and would likely downgrade from outright hostility to stalemate with Japan should the US really start flexing our muscles. But when do we flex our muscles? We owe Japan a lot of loyalty, but we owe China a lot of money. Supposing they just can’t reconcile? Who do we go in behind? How badly will our commitment to Japan hurt us? The answer is tough to put in black and white, but what’s obvious is the potential for a real issue.

So here’s what we do. We help Japan cut Article 9 out of their constitution, sell them a ton of weapons, make a lot of money out of the whole thing, and cut our downright obligation to protect them, letting them once more protect themselves. We keep it friendly of course, and still intimidate China whenever we can, if only because being friendly with Japan is still economically important, but at the same time we cut our loses a bit and step back. So we’re not quite beholden to protect a nation that, really, could happily and easily protect themselves.

Dr. Merry White, professor of anthropology at Boston University, captivated an audience in the Poetry Center Friday morning describing her journey of a growing appreciation of Japan’s coffee culture. Her knowledge of the culture surrounding enjoyment of coffee in Tokyo has been carefully refined over five decades, beginning even before the 1964 Olympics, which restaged Japan as a world-class city.

The opinion that Japanese people eat sushi, drink green tea, and practice zen would likely be quickly dismissed as a stale stereotype by Professor White. While green tea occupies a well-established place on the Japanese palate, it is savored distinctly and often alongside coffee. Green tea “is like the air they breathe, you don’t pay for it,” she describes. Coffee, on the other hand, is enjoyed all out. White recalled an experience in which she was given green tea along with the menu of coffee at one shop. “It’s not like if you drink one you won’t have room for the other,” she describes, “they are enjoyed separately.”

White highlighted Japan’s surprisingly vibrant and revolutionary coffee history. In the 1870’s, before coffee was leisurely enjoyed, it had early medicinal use and became the drink of choice among Nagasaki prostitutes. In the early 1920’s, the Japanese coffeehouse was a symbol of modernity “where people expressed political ideas and personal ideologies,” White described. The coffeehouse created an alternative place of being for the Japanese people away from the traditional teahouses and apart from the constraints of institutions and daily life.

Today, Japan is the world’s third largest importer of coffee after Germany and the US. Coffeehouse culture remains an art, and one’s proper conduct must strictly adhere to the formalities of the space. However, the coffeehouse is an area of freedom from the rigidness and expectations surrounding people in the rest of their lives. The coffeehouse is not where you go to work on a laptop – they have Starbucks for that. Conversely, these places can allow urbanites to escape the busy and loud day-to-day city life and enjoy silence and alone time. “What you’re paying for is not just a cup of coffee,” White explains “but a real estate piece to own for yourself for a while.” Consequently, these fine drinks are drunk in the space, not for take away.

There is a value piece placed on handmade items in Japan, as described by Merry White. The hand of the master doing a meticulous pour-over is valued more than a machine-made espresso. At some cafes, coffee is ordered and roasted a day ahead of your arrival. Master baristas roast and blend coffee beans by the cup, creating incomparable and unforgettable experiences for the drinker. Her vivid journey through this culture conveys the listener’s attention to another world she recalls fondly.

Dr. White will be speaking again on April 14 at the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s annual event at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC). Her latest book Coffee Life in Japan was released last year. The Barbara and Richard M. Rosenberg Institute sponsored this lecture for East Asian Studies at Suffolk University.

The third annual Bridging the Gap social media conference was hosted last Friday by the Sawyer Business School Department of Marketing and sponsored by the Professional Marketing Association (PMA). Students, alumni and professionals attended in the law school conference room for this year’s focus on mobile marketing.

Presenters included Mobee’s Founder and CEO Prahar Shah and Community Manager Erika Gordon, Jumptap’s Vice President of Marketing Matt Duffy, HubSpot’s Product Manager Anand Rajaram, and Dave Wieneke, digital strategy practice director at ISITE Design. Panelists included Janet Aronica, content marketing manager at Localytics, Jill Avery, assistant professor of marketing at Simmons College and Dusan Koljensic, creative director/experience design at SapientNitro.

“Email is still the killer app for mobile.” 

Key Metrics to Focus On  (via Anand Rajaram, HubSpot)

• Database size
• Email opt-out rate
• Delivery rate
• EMail open rate
• Clickthrough rate
• Campaign conversion rate

3 insights from Dave Wieneke, ISITE Design

1. Being a source of authority isn’t as useful as being a source of influence.
2. Without humanity, content is nothing.
3. Mobility changes the way we connect with people.

5 Steps for Creating a Personal Social Strategy (via Erika Gordon, Mobee)

1. In-depth analysis of similar [businesses/companies]
2. Give your users a way to reach you
3. Make every interaction a personal one
4. Utilize tools and analytics to view what matters
5. Be proactive

Panelists discussed their advice for students entering the career world.

Janet Aronica of Localytics said she looks for candidates who are good writers and are willing to produce content; they need to have the ability to create content and measure its effectiveness.

In regards to the job market over the next few years, Simmons College’s Jill Avery thinks a lot of job opportunities will be on the data analytics side and that LinkedIn will be the first place recruiters will research candidates. She advises to network at conferences and American Marketing Association events and providing value before asking for help with the job search.

“There’s an emergence of people able to tell stories digitally,” said Dusan Koljensic of SapientNitro. He believes qualitative is still as important as quantitative and recommends creating an engaging experience in which you can understand the moment.

Boston has always attracted students from around the world. Suffolk University, located in the heart of the city, has become a major part of that attraction. This year alone, the university is home to more than 1,300 international students.

The university invests major resources in recruiting foreign students. With an international student body representing six continents and 108 countries, the university strives to increase this number. Jonathan Darden, the assistant director of undergraduate admissions, is responsible for recruiting students from every country. “At Suffolk we have about 18 percent international students,” he said. “Right now, the countries that send us the most applications and actually enroll are Saudi Arabia, China, and Venezuela. Those are really the main countries, but the list goes on.”

The list includes major countries such as Spain, India, Russia and Australia, as well as smaller countries such as Nigeria or the small island of Curacao. “We are very fortunate to have such a diverse population here at Suffolk,” says Darden.

International students claim to enjoy this diversity. “First, when I came to America, I was not one hundred percent sure that I would stay here,” explains Vassili Stroganov, a student from Russia. “I am one hundred percent sure now that I made the right choice because here at Suffolk there is so much diversity and thanks to that I am more open-minded and I see the world from another angle.”

Suffolk officials say that the school offers great opportunities for international students, in both the classroom and the professional world and according to Darden, one of Suffolk’s privileges is its location. Located in the heart of the city, the University offers new opportunities and challenges.

“Our location is one of the things that appeals and attracts foreign students the most. Just look at the campus; there is not a campus; we are an urban institution. The moment you get out of 73 Tremont you are in the city and there is a lot of opportunity and students like that,” explains Darden.

According to Darden, another of the main reasons most international students to come to study in the US, especially those whose countries are suffering from a bad economic or social situation, is to ensure themselves a professional future. “When reading their essays, many say that they want to come here for the opportunity, gain that knowledge, get that degree that’s worth something and take that back to their country to hopefully make a change for the better,” he says.

International students like Ismael Soumare, originally from Mali, agree with this. “There are many businesses here in Boston,” he says. “Boston is known as a vibrant business center, and because of that, you can get more opportunities and internships; and that I couldn’t it in my country.”

Darden says the school focuses on building and improving their relationship with universities in other countries. And, once foreign students get to campus, the challenge is to help them adapt to the culture and the demands of classes. For this, Suffolk offers international students help through different programs and departments such as the Writing Center, the Second Language Center, and the Ballotti Learning Center for personal tutoring.

International students say that this is another of the things they appreciate about Suffolk. “Not only are the opportunities that Suffolk offers for help with internships incredible,” says Genesis Yong, a student from Ecuador, “but also the help with class work by having tutors and other helping departments; stuff like that you don’t get in Ecuador.”

Despite these types of difficulties that many foreign students encounter while studying in the US, most say their experience at Suffolk has great value. “I feel homesick, but on the other hand it’s worth it,” explains Jesus Portillo, an international student from Spain. “This experience made me grow and mature both, personally and professionally. Every day is a new challenge; it is simply great.”

Darden believes that the reason for the students’ satisfaction is the way Suffolk treats them; like adults, rather than like students. “We treat students like adults, and that’s what you are,” he says.  “As I said before, the moment you walk outside 73 Tremont, you are in the city. As a result, our students mature a lot faster based on the experience that they are living. And, I think that that is priceless. The reason simply is we want to prepare our students for success here at Suffolk.”

The world is comprised of a total of 194 countries, which means that over half (55%) of the world is represented here at Suffolk University!

•  -Asia accounts for about 57% of the International Student body, with the majority of students hailing from China (~300) and Saudi Arabia (~140).
•  -South America speaks for about 13% of the International Student population, with the majority of students from Venezuela (~85) and Colombia (~20).
• -Europe is responsible for about 13% of the International Student body, with the majority of students from Spain (~30) and Russia (~20).
•  -Africa represents about 12% International Student population, with most students from Senegal (~55) and Nigeria (~19).
• -North America claims about 5% of the International Student population, with the most amount of students from Mexico (~30), Panama (~10), and Canada (~10).

The meeting started off with Finley asking the candidates what the most pressing issue is for the commonwealth of Massachusetts and the 8th Suffolk District. Dawson said that he “want[s] to make Boston the best place to work, live, and raise a family” and the best way to go about this is to “fund infrastructure like the T.” Tracy was more focused on revenue for state services. He believes that the “Governor’s plan is not progressive enough…T fares will go up overtime.” At the same time, helping fund early education and reducing inadequacies in public schooling will lead to a brighter future for the district, according to Tracy. Similar to his fellow candidates, Livingstone is focusing on increasing the quality of life through better funding for education and guaranteeing that people “stay in the district after their kids turn five.”

Further focusing on bettering the infrastructure of the district, the candidates pushed for more focus on Massachusetts’ industries. As Dawson put it “I cannot tell colleges to lower tuition, but I can try to tell companies to produce the products they sell in the Commonwealth.” Along with that came the argument on how to make college more affordable. Tracy believes in taking federal grant money and putting it into work study, making it “possible to pay your way through college,” and also believes that all internships should be paid. Livingstone spoke on loan forgiveness programs for public service jobs as a suitable option to invest in.

After the discussions, the floor opened up for members of the Suffolk Dems to ask questions. Junior Sherelle Wu asked what each candidate would do to support women in Massachusetts. Dawson talked about encouraging women to run for office and supporting organizations with similar goals. Livingstone and Tracy both took the more humanitarian approach in wishing to give women reproductive freedom and stronger laws against sexual harassment.

Overall, all three candidates focused on similar issues, yet, each with varying ways approaching them. Infrastructure stood out as the major focus, with comments about building a functional public school in the downtown Boston area as an important goal for all of them. The ability for people to send their kids to an affordable institution near where they live and work acts like a catalyst for developing a neighborhood. Furthermore, all three candidates wanted to fight for helping the MTBA update itself and provide better hours and fares. Though their positions on the issues are similar, the candidates hope that their differing backgrounds can act as a barometer for who will do the better job in office in the next couple of months.

The elections for the 8th Congressional District will be held on May 28.

The Suffolk University SUPERs are constantly around campus trying to educate their peers.  This week their goal is to spread information and resources through programs they call “Sex and Love Week.”

The group was inspired by a conference for peer educators in Orlando last semester.  They noticed that lots of other campuses have a whole week dedicated to sex and love education, and they wanted to bring these ideas and events to the Suffolk campus.

“That’s where it started and it’s grown,” says SUPER Mari Leclerc.  “We wanted to cover a lot of different aspects,” says the sophomore who is expecting a great turnout this week.

On Monday, the SUPERs chose not to have an activity because of Passover. The first two days of Passover are the holiest.

But, on Tuesday, the activities were on.  During the day the SUPERs teamed up with the Interfaith Center’s Rev. Amy Fisher to have a program on love and religion.

“We try to be really open and diverse in all of our programs,” says Leclerc.  Tuesday night featured an event on “hookups” and “booty calls.”  The SUPERs had students discuss what these terms meant to them and then spoke about the importance of consensual relationships.

“Sex in the dark” is Wednesday’s Sex and Love Week feature.  The SUPERs have held this event before and hope to receive the same great results.  In a small, dark room on campus the SUPERs will create a more intimate, but comfortable, setting where students can get their sex questions answered without having to feel awkward or embarrassed face to face.  The SUPERs will come prepared with glow sticks and glow-in-the-dark condoms to make the event fun, while showing students resources they have.

“Sex programs normally go really well cause they’re more appealing…they’re edgy,” says Leclerc.

The rest of the week will follow the “love” aspect of the program strongly.  Thursday’s feature is “What’s love got to do with it?” where the SUPERs will team up with the university counseling center.  The duo will discuss the chemistry behind sex – what chemicals are emitted during sex that alter one’s sexual moods and desires.

“I’m excited to see that one,” says Leclerc.

On Friday the group will be tabling instead of holding an event.  The SUPERs plan to talk with students on the ways people express love differently, with a focus on the book Five Love Languages.

“It shows you how you can accept love and how you can give it out,” says Leclerc.

Sex and love education will continue in April when the SUPERs will co-sponsor with the Student Government Association and Residence Life a guest speaker to talk about how to be kind sexually and using sex to empower and eliminate violence.

The Suffolk Journey Leadership program travelled to Barbados for a six day excursion that provided student members with opportunities to meet important leaders in a global exchange, study foreign trade first hand, and connect with other student leaders in another part of the world.

After a very successful first year trip to Ireland last March, this spring break trip was sure to be filled with new and appealing experiences for all Suffolk students involved.

“Meeting the Minister of Foreign Affairs was fascinating,” said Journey member Yna Beltran, 19, of the Philippines.  “From a practical standpoint it was great, especially being an economics major. I could see myself doing something like that.”

One of the highlights of the trip, for many students, was the chance to meet the Minster of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Barbados, Maxine McClean.  In keeping with the theme of “global exchange,” those students interested in pursuing a career in that field were very fortunate to gain a much greater insight.

Students also visited the University of the West Indies and Barbados Community College to learn about higher education from a student’s point of view.

“It was interesting comparing both institutions,” said Bianca Bellot, 21, of Boston.  “Gaining knowledge of how they both had different ways of funding and access was great.”

According to Dave DeAngelis, the director of Student Leadership & Involvement program, students also visited important government buildings, including the parliament, as well as other important leaders of Barbados.

“With Barbados being a relatively young country, [SU students] learned about the leaders that got the country where it is today,” said DeAngelis.

In addition to learning opportunities, Journey members also experienced life.  Students got the chance to swim with sea turtles, go zip lining, and visit tropical islands.  Overall, an exciting opportunity to bond with one another was perhaps the most important thing that students took back to the States with them.

“Journey was a great way to end my leadership experiences at Suffolk,” says Bellot. “It offered me a lot of opportunities to interact with other students.  Journey is all about collaborating with your peers and has been one of my most rewarding Suffolk experiences.”

Essentially, the main mission of this program is to gather a community of student leaders throughout Suffolk and allow them to experience unique opportunities together.  DeAngelis says that, while there is an application process for new, incoming participants, the program is welcoming of students with all majors and especially those who are highly involved on campus are encouraged to join.

It’s back! Restaurant Week has arrived in Boston for another delicious two-week-spread.

For those who don’t know, Restaurant Week is a semi-annual event hosted by the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau and American Express that takes place in metropolitan cities across America. The concept is simple: 200 mid-range and high end restaurants in Boston and surrounding neighborhoods offer standardized, reduced-price lunches and dinners.

What this means is that for two short weeks this March, poor college students have the chance to try different cuisines that would normally be beyond their budget. The special is open to everyone, but it is a particularly great opportunity for the hordes of struggling college students throughout Boston.

The appetizers, entrées, and desserts offered at the reduced menu price are limited, but restaurants tend to include their best and most popular selections. Want a juicy filet or New York strip from Ruth’s Chris Steak House? Both of those are included in their Restaurant Week menus.

Local favorites include Grotto, No. 9 Park, Scollay Square, Mistral, Capital Grille, Max Brenner, and Golden Temple, among many others.

So, how does it work? There are three standardized pricing options. A three-course dinner at any of the participating restaurants is priced at $38.13 a person. A three-course lunch is priced at $20.13 and a lighter, two-course lunch is priced at $15.13 a person. These prices do not include beverages or tax and gratuities, but they are still very reasonably priced.

Even more enticing is the fact that the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau and American Express are donating over $5,000 to First Night Inc., a community-based outreach and arts education program, in honor of Restaurant Week.

There are no coupons needed to take part in this special. All one has to do is make a reservation and show up on one of the listed days. The waiter will then provide a regular menu and a Restaurant Week menu for you to choose from. When going for lunch, just be sure before you go that the restaurant offers a lunch menu. Some participating restaurants only offer a special dinner menu during the two weeks.

Suffolk students are already taking advantage of Restaurant Week. One of those students, Katelyn Hin, a senior and regular participant in Restaurant Week, has already made her reservations.

“I always try to go to the Melting Pot, FuGaKyu, and Ruth’s Chris,” says Hin. “My birthday is this week, so it’ll be nice to go to all of them.”

Hin also offers advice to others interested in giving Restaurant Week a try. She says that one shouldn’t go anywhere without first researching which restaurants are good and which ones have the best deals. Some restaurants try to disguise Restaurant Week prices as a deal when, in reality, they are barely below regular price.

Restaurant Week began last week on March 17 and ends this Friday,  so there is still time to enjoy all that it has to offer. For more information, check out RestaurantWeekBoston.com or follow them on Twitter @RestoWeekBoston. If you can’t make it this week, don’t fret. Restaurant Week will be back for another round in August. Bon Appétit!

Crossing the state from Abington and Attleboro, to Lynnfield, to Shrewsbury, Springfield and Weymouth, the five candidates from both political parties are touring the many towns and cities through Massachusetts in order to garner support and, eventually, votes in the statewide primary on April 30. Therefore, one Democrat and one Republican will be lucky enough to win the primary and the nominee from their party.

In the meantime, while the primary is still a month away, all five Democratic and Republican candidates are going full-steam ahead with their campaigns and efforts to reach out to voters. Each of them seems to be taking a different approach, but they are all using the same grassroots tactics that produced a nearly eight-point victory for U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren in her first election last November against then-Senator Scott Brown.

Michael Sullivan was the only Republican able to get on the ballot, acquiring at least 10,000 valid signatures, without any assistance from a hired group. As such, the Massachusetts Democratic Party quickly realized Sullivan’s backing and potential and they held a press conference to discuss Sullivan’s views against same-sex marriage.

In a state that marked the history books when it was the first to truly legalize same-sex marriage a decade ago, and in a race where he is the only candidate still opposed, the Massachusetts Democrats made sure that people were aware of his stance on this issue.

However, Sullivan is not at all alone in the Republican party primary race.  Joining him are State Rep. Dan Winslow and Gabriel Gomez, a former Navy SEAL and Cohasset investor.

Winslow has been known for his efforts in the General Court, as well as for several interesting events that have occurred during his time as a state legislator. These events include a water pong fundraiser and sending some of the marshmallow food product known as fluff to Governor Deval Patrick as a witty technique to tell him to get rid of the “fluff” in the budget.

Gomez, who is considered a political newcomer, is settling in to the reality of campaigning every corner of Massachusetts. His staff is alert and by his side, and Gomez is traveling the state just like the rest of his competitors. Unlike the trio of Republicans seeking their party’s nomination, there are just two Democrats running.

U.S. Representative Ed Markey and his fellow colleague U.S. Representative Stephen Lynch are both battling for the chance at a U.S. Senate seat alongside Senator Warren. In the Democratic primary, endorsements go a long way and, so far, the two congressional Democrats are racking up support left and right: environmental groups like 350.org’s 350 Action Fund, the Sierra Club, and League of Conservation Voters have all endorsed Markey while many state legislators have publicly announced their support for Lynch. Still up for deliberation are the numerous unions that play a significant role in Democratic politics, both during campaigns and once their respective candidates win office.

All five candidates are working day and night to reach the ultimate campaign finish line in the end of June, but one concern is voter turnout. In special Senate elections, the only people who typically vote are die-hard Democrats and Republicans who follow the campaigns from start to finish.

In 2010, there was a special Senate race, like the current one, after the late Senator Ted Kennedy passed away. Then-State Senator Scott Brown beat Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley by a little less than 110, 000 votes.

After Kerry joined the U.S. State Department as Secretary of State, Governor Patrick appointed William “Mo” Cowan, his former counsel and then Chief of Staff, as the interim U.S. Senator to fill the vacant seat until the next Senator is eventually selected on the June 25 election day.

Gun violence lead to the deaths of 32,000 Americans last year, including 19,000 suicides.

Panelists Rosenthal and Charlton McIlwain, an associate professor of media, culture, and communications at NYU Steinhardt, along with moderator Edward Powell, the executive director of StreetSafe Boston, stressed that the event was not meant to start a pro- or anti-gun conversation. Instead, participants hoped to analyze how and why the media covers violence.

McIlwain believes the media portrays only the extremes of gun violence because “they don’t want to talk about moderate, safety measures because that makes bad TV.” The media’s choice to frame violence this way highlights rarer mass shootings and largely ignores the everyday issues of gun violence in cities and towns across the country.

“There is too little coverage on the deaths of inner city youth,” Powell said. At StreetSafe Boston, Powell works on reducing gang violence in neighborhoods of the city most affected by violence.

“There is a strong correlation between consuming media violence and committing violence,” McIlwain said, “Almost as strong as the link between smoking and getting lung cancer.” He quickly noted that while the media doesn’t directly tell people what to think, it can still have a significant influence on the way public discourse on issues plays out.

Rosenthal, whose non-profit organization displays provocative gun control advertisements on the billboard above the Massachusetts Turnpike just outside of Fenway Park, was more controversial in his assessment of the media’s coverage of instances of violence.

“Congress has this notion that only poor, non-white people die from guns, so why should we care? If white kids were dying at the rate black kids were dying [from guns] you’d see more coverage in the news,” Rosenthal charged, “Newtown showed that, guess what, [gun violence] might even be rich white people’s problem too.”

Both panelists also advocated for safe gun ownership practices, like locking guns in the home at all times and locking ammunition in a separate place. This safe storage principle is the law in Massachusetts but not federally. Rosenthal says this state statute has “dramatically decreased toddler and teen gun-related deaths [in the state.]”

When asked by audience members what citizens can do to help stem gun violence, Rosenthal urges all in attendance to call their congressmen and demand change. “It’s the uniquely unregulated gun industry who has bought republicans and intimidated democrats in congress” that allows so many Americans to die from gun violence, Rosenthal said, “But before we blame anyone, we have to look in the mirror. We are giving up our democracy.”

Contention has risen on the international stage since Kenyatta, who has a pending trial date set for July, was recently elected president. International opinion has suggested this position should be reconsidered and has projected Kenyatta’s role in Kenyan politics as prominently negative.

Suffolk has not been immune to this conflict of international rhetoric surrounding Kenya. One student, Catherine Kinyua of Nairobi, Kenya, commented on the role of nationalism and biased international discussion since the election of President-Elect Kenyatta.

“My family isn’t sure how it will go,” Kinyua said, “I doubt that he will step down. [He] would’ve done it before elections; [this is the] first time with a president going through this.” Regardless, Kinyua stressed that all people of Kenya “knew what was going on during [the] election.” In the case of the election, Kenyatta’s prevalence of power and support was because “he comes from a well-known family. [He was elected] for the good he has done for the country,” as Kinyua stated.

Kenyatta comes from a family in which his father was Kenya’s first president and prime minister, and has been deemed the founding father of Kenya. His family has a strong rapport and has played a pivotal role in politics in the latter half of the 21st century. A great deal of strife resonant in this year’s elections and public opinion within Kenya was because of tribal disputes and affiliations.

In an article written in Foreign Policy Magazine, the situation in Kenya was paralleled to that of post-Nazi Austria. The moral of the argument, put simply, was that Austrians were inclined to elect politicians with proven Nazi affiliations and distinct histories of abhorrent practices during the war. Nevertheless, because they represented unity, forgetting the past was justifiable for Austrians at the time, specifically under Kurt Waldheim who was elected secretary general of the United Nations and ran for the presidency in Austria. This sentiment was a product of “diplomatic isolation,” helping to ignore