News

By Ella Frazer and Casey O'brien Organizers estimated that over 450 Puget Sound students and faculty walked out of their classes on Thursday, Nov. 19, to stand in protest and advocate for improving treatment of marginalized identities at the university and nationwide. The rally took place on the steps of Jones Hall and was organized by the Advocates for Institutional Change (AIC), a coalition of groups on campus calling for an array of  diversity- and inclusivity-related institutional changes. The walkout was held in solidarity with marginalized students at universities across...

By Olivia Langen Three years after the Black Lives Matter movement began in Florida, after George Zimmerman fatally shot black teenager Trayvon Martin, the movement remains prominent as various cases of racial violence prompt protests nationwide. University of Missouri (Mizzou), UCLA, Yale, Arizona State University, University of Oklahoma and Lewis & Clark College are among the many campuses which have recently been sites of racial tension and student protests. The Mizzou student group Concerned Student 1950, named after the year the first black student was admitted to the university, stopped...

The article printed in the November 6, 2015 issue entitled “Students march, boycott ​Sakuma Bros. Farms” inaccurately stated that Sakuma Bros. had declined to interview. While the writer did make efforts to contact Sakuma Bros. representatives, The Trail recognizes that a greater effort to contact the company should have been made. We plan to address this with a more thorough version of the story, with remarks from Sakuma included, in one of our Spring 2016 issues....

By Emily Schuelein On the heels of ASUPS’ funding for extended hours at Counseling, Health, and Wellness Services (CHWS), the office of the Dean of Students has committed additional funds to extend counseling hours by 8-12 hours a week. Four extra hours on Friday afternoon and four hours on Tuesday afternoon are already in effect through the new psychologist Thomas Roe. When another psychologist is hired there will be an additional 4 hours a week. According to Mike Segawa, the Dean of Students, the funding for these new psychologists is...

Photo Courtesy Presley Reed Student athletes have taken the initiative to speak with their coaches in order to advocate for athletic teams to undertake Green Dot education. While all students at the University go through the Green Dot program as part of orientation, it is only a one and a half hour long training session. In contrast, the program that student athletes are seeking is a six-hour training program, which is more comprehensive. “We feel this is a very important issue for the campus community, and all the students I’ve...

In light of pressure outside and within the Greek community, the National Panhellenic Council (NPC) and the National Interfraternity Council (NIC) have withdrawn their support for the Safe Campus Act, but remain in favor of the Fair Campus Act. According to congressional records, the NIC and the NPC have spent at least $210,000 lobbying for both the Fair and Safe Campus Acts. If implemented, these acts would change the process through which cases of sexual misconduct on campuses are reported, adjudicated, and resolved, limiting universities’ ability to act unilaterally to...

Photo Courtesy Makaylaa Clancy   When he heard the shots beginning to fire, the security officer took cover behind a nearby house a block away from the shooting. He immediately reported the danger to a student security dispatcher, who then related the incident to authorities. Soon after, assistance arrived on the scene to help take care of the situation. South Sound 911, the agency that handles 911 calls for Pierce County, praised the student security workers on duty for how they handled themselves in the midst of a dangerous situation....

Written by the members of the Advocates for Institutional Change. 1. We demand that the University of Puget Sound build a Cultural Center in the space that will be available where Warner Gym currently resides. The current space given to students in the SDC is insufficient and limited. It is unable to meet the needs of marginalized students on campus as over 30 clubs battle for time and space, it often is overcrowded and presents safety hazards, and the building itself is badly in need of repairs and additions. Student...

By Olivia Langen While Dia de los Muertos traditionally signifies a day of remembrance and celebration of lost family and friends, the Latinos Unidos club sought to provide a platform for marginalized groups with an altar in the piano lounge. This altar, organized by Latinos Unidos consisted of student artwork, narratives and photographs from students in clubs including the Black Student Union, the Asian Pacific American Student Union and Queer Alliance. “We wanted to make a statement this year with the altar,” sophomore and president of Latinos Unidos Amanda Diaz...

Photo by Makaylaa Clancy   Every  two minutes, someone is raped in the United States, and a third of women in Washington State have been raped in their lifetime. 90% of college-aged  survivors know their attacker, according to the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs.   According to  Security Services’ Annual Report, 7 rapes were reported on or near campus alone, and according to the RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), 68% of rapes go unreported. It is statistics like these that Take Back the Night (TBTN) aims to...

The intersection of 13th and Alder where the incident occurred. Photo courtesy Makaylaa Clancy.   Gun violence on college campuses has become a reality for many people in the United States, and the Puget Sound community is no exception. According to The News Tribune, 21-year-old Alex Kjellesvik, not a student at the University, has been charged with two counts of first-degree assault. The security alert sent by the University to students states that Kjellesvik fired  10 shots at campus security officers around 3 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Kjellesvik began...

Photo credit Presley Reed The Tacoma Police Department and City Management have recently held five discussion events for community members in the city of Tacoma. Through a new Program called Project PEACE (Policing Equity and Community Empowerment), the Tacoma Police Department has made themselves accessible to diverse members of the community in order to address tensions between the people and the police. Project PEACE held a discussion at the University of Puget Sound on Oct. 21. Using a network of community activists from groups like the Black Ministerial Alliance and...