By Heather Chase E-cigarette use, known as vaping, is popular among high school and college students. E-cigarette stands for electronic cigarette, which include “e-hookahs,” “vape pens,” “mods,” “tank systems,” and “ENDS (electronic nicotine delivery systems)”. E-cigs are the most commonly used tobacco product among youth. Media advertising glamorizes and down plays the risk of…
Author: USM
Letter to the editor: Kimberly Simmons
By Kimberly Simmons, Part-time Faculty, LAC, Sociology, and Women and Gender Studies I appreciated the recent article by Sam Margolin in the Free Press detailing the challenges that were posed by the 2014 retrenchments and the slow rebuilding happening today. One piece of the puzzle that was not addressed is the increasing reliance on part-time…
Letter to the editor: Above all else, I am to include and represent
By Chase Hewitt, Student Body President For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Chase, and I am a senior in the business program. Perhaps I’m better known for starring in the jeering, finger-wagging advertising campaign titled, “Join SGA Today.” As an homage to the early 20th century advertisements featuring “Uncle Sam,” I created posters to…
The comparison of graphic novels to ones with text
By Nora Ibrahim, Staff Writer Graphic novels have been considered a pretentious form of novels that are essentially comic books. It is important to first distinguish the difference between these two forms of literature. Comic books have been published for more than a century, dating back to the 1930s. The term “graphic novels” came a few…
Movie Talk: Foreign take on classic horror
By Emily Norman, Staff Writer One of the most popular movies in the horror genre on Netflix right now is Verónica, a Spanish film from director Paco Plaza. It’s easy to see why, as horror films featuring the supernatural and demonic are still incredibly popular with movie viewers today. Verónica, however, delivers us something a little…
Connections through reading and coffee
By Nora Ibrahim, Staff Writer Portland’s first silent book club has been gaining popularity among readers of all kinds. On the second Sunday of every month, Tandem Coffee hosts a Silent Book Club on 122 Anderson street Portland, ME from 2:00 to 4:00pm where readers of all kinds gather to read and enjoy tea or coffee….
Witty collection of stories by Portland local
By Sarah Tewksbury. Staff Writer Satire and wit are coupled together with fable and politics in an unlikely marriage in The Price of the Haircut. Designed as a collection of short stories, the 240 pages bound by a catchy graphic filled cover, is more than independent pieces. Author Brock Clarke wove common themes and stylistic elements…
Students are fighting back against sexual assault
By Sarah O’Connor, Staff Writer USM students have ditched silence about rape culture and campus sexual assaults, and have started a discussion with the #MeToo: The Fight Against Campus Sexual Assault event. Huskies for Reproductive Health, USM’s Queer Straight Alliance and the Portland Branch of International Socialist Organization (ISO) teamed up on March 20 for…
Women’s History Month widely celebrated in Maine
By Sarah Tewksbury, Staff Writer Women’s history month is celebrated each year through March. In the late 1970s, the United States began to observe parts of March as women’s history days and weeks, eventually nationally celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8. In 1980, President Carter declared there would be a National Women’s History Week celebrated…
USM athletics sees rising stars in students and faculty
River Plouffe Vogel, Sports Editor USM’s own BL Elfring inducted into the CoSIDA Hall of Fame USM has always had a strong tradition of athletics. However, for all of the achievements made on the field by athletes across all 22 of USM’s sport programs, it takes the work of an entire athletic department to make that…
Board of Trustees Rep. seeking feedback on Board Policy 214
Dylan Reynolds, Undergraduate Board of Trustees Representative This is a request for feedback on proposed Board Policy 214: Institutional Authority on Political Matters. My name is Dylan Reynolds, I am the Undergraduate Board of Trustees Representative for USM. In essence my role is to act as a liaison between the USM undergraduate students and the Board…
Plea bargaining should not be an option for offenders in sex crimes
Editorial Board, Free Press Staff In the U.S., individuals accused of sexually based crimes are legally able to accept a plea deal that allows them to have reduced sentencing penalties. This is wrong and should not be allowed to the extent that it is currently bargained for. When a sex crime is committed and being investigated,…
Working on Wellness: Healing from psychological trauma
Victoria Libby, M.S.Ed., Psy.D. What is Trauma? At its essence a trauma is a disturbing, often shocking experience that can threaten one’s feeling of safety. Trauma can be a single event such as an unexpected death, physical injury, sexual assault, threat to life, or a natural disaster. Trauma can also be a series of events or…
Advising Advice: Benefits of faculty advising from Dr. Rikki Miller’s perspective
Janis Albright, Advisor Students often ask me why they are usually assigned both a professional and a faculty advisor. Your professional advisor can help you navigate through the university, explore majors, and develop an academic plan. While faculty advisors do this too, they can help you progress further, since they are experts in their field. I…
Sure Sure talks about their expectations and experience as an opening band
Samantha Hallowell, Staff Writer Just off their first ever tour, opening for indie band on the rise Hippo Campus, California-based Sure Sure is an electrifying and upbeat sight to behold. Chris Beachy on keyboard and vocals, Charlie Glick on guitar and vocals, Kevin Farzad on drums, and producer Michael Coleman providing alternative percussion touches create a…
Locking Up Our Own offers new perspective
Emily Norman, Contributor Dr. James Forman Jr. came to USM to speak about his book, Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America. This was part of this year’s Gloria S. Duclos Convocation, following the theme of race and participatory democracy. The event was held on the Portland campus in the Abromson Center. Forman’s…
News Briefs
Sarah Tewksbury, Staff Writer Trash filled lot reveals the plywood home of three children Just outside of Joshua Tree, CA, police found three children, ages 11, 13 and 14, living in a makeshift shack on the same lot with 30 to 40 cats. They were living in the plywood structure with their mother on the trash…
Revisiting Retrenchment: Hardships of the past lay foundation for USM’s future
Sam Margolin, Staff Writer From 2007 to the present, five different presidents with slightly different visions of what a successful university looks and acts like took the helm of USM. In 2014, under David T. Flanagan, the University of Maine Chancellor’s Office announced that due to a $16 million budget deficit, system-wide cutbacks would have to…
Women’s indoor track and field wins LEC title
Sarah Tewksbury, Staff Writer and River Plouffe Vogel, Sports Editor USM has a rich history of athletic achievement. It goes without saying that the University of Maine Orono (UMO) is a Division I school that competes against some of the top Division I programs in the country. But, when measuring the success of any athletic…
People of USM: Susan Feiner
Charlie Wheeler, Contributor Does a straw have two holes, or one? According to Professor Susan Feiner, it has two holes, one for each end. Feiner is a professor of Women and Gender Studies, as well as Economics. She has a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and has been a long time…
Working on Wellness: It’s not too late to vaccinate!
Lisa Belanger, Director of Health Services Ken has the flu. Poor Ken. He’s feeling nasty and pretty wiped-out with fever, body aches, sore throat, runny nose, cough and headache which are the most common symptoms. He had thought about getting a flu shot but because he had never gotten one in the past and never…
Sustainability & ME: Burying stress in the soil
Tyra Howes, Sustainable Food Eco-Rep Eight in ten college students say they have sometimes or frequently experienced stress in their daily lives over the past three months. Gardening can help reduce that stress. Planting is about connecting to the earth and the rhythms of life. Gardening offers a reminder of what is important in life:…
A Canadian’s Perspective: About gun control in the U.S.
Maverick Lynes, Staff Writer The tragic event that took place Feb. 14, 2018 in Parkland, FL has yet again sprung the gun control debate among American citizens. The school shooting was carried out with an AR-15 assault rifle and left 17 dead and 15 injured. The shooting left America in a familiar debate regarding gun…
James’ ‘Gotcha Day’
James Fagan, Photojournalist My name has only been “James Fagan” for fifteen years now. If you’re wondering, no I’m not some genius who got into college at an incredibly young age, I was actually adopted when I was four years old. This past Feb. 14, Valentine’s day is the fifteenth anniversary of my adoption into…