UPD’s Crime Alert seeks information from anyone who might have seen or heard anything unusual in that location on Sunday morning, and any information regarding the identity and whereabouts of the man depicted in the sketch.

The alleged suspect is described as a slender white male in his early 20’s with brown “dreadlock” hair to his shoulders and baggy clothing, about 5’9” tall, weighing about 150-160 pounds.

The survivor, who did not suffer serious physical injury, first reported the incident to authorities on Monday afternoon. She said she saw the suspect at an off-campus party on Saturday evening, and encountered him again at the gazebo between Sunset and Redwood Halls early on Sunday. There, the man approached her and engaged her in conversation. They continued talking as they walked toward Jolly Giant Commons.

UPD Chief Thomas Dewey recounted, “The survivor had had some past off-campus social interaction with the alleged perpetrator, but she does not know much about him, where he lives, or if he is a student or not.”

She described to UPD investigators acts of sexual assault perpetrated against her will in the outdoor area between Sunset Hall and the Jolly Giant Commons. No weapons were reported involved.

University Police is actively pursuing the case. Late Monday and into Tuesday morning, UPD staff worked overtime investigating a particular person of interest, but by mid-day Tuesday, investigators and the survivor were unable to determine conclusively if this individual was in fact the perpetrator.

“Once we had run out that lead as far as we could, we released the Crime Alert,” Chief Dewey said. “We try to get public information out as soon as we can, without jeopardizing the viability of the investigation. We found the person of interest, interviewed him, and we are continuing to work the case. What we need now is a tip about this man’s identity or a witness statement from the public about what happened up there at 3:00 a.m. Sunday.”

The survivor has been connected with a variety of support services including on-campus Health and Counseling and the North Coast Rape Crisis Team.

Paper copies of the Crime Alert have been posted around campus and anyone with information about the case is asked to contact University Police at 826-5555 or to email the UPD at hsupd@humboldt.edu.

Rani Ram received the 2008 William Randolph Hearst/California State University (CSU) Trustees Award for Outstanding Achievement.

Ms. Ram now will compete with her 22 CSU counterparts for an additional scholarship of either $10,000 or $6,000, contingent on scores made by an official selection committee.

The initial $3,000 scholarship assists financially distressed students who demonstrate superior academic performance with a minimum 3.0 GPA average and outstanding volunteer community service. The award also recognizes those who have achieved success in spite of severe personal hardship.

Ms. Ram’s academic field is wildlife conservation and anthropology. She is a campus volunteer with HSU’s Global Connections Club and a community volunteer at Sequoia Park Zoo in Eureka, where she provides environmental education and animal care. She won the 2007 Morris K. Udall Scholarship for environmental achievement.

A native of Los Angeles, Ms. Ram traveled to South Africa and Kruger National Park to earn her certification from the Field Guild Association, dealing with poaching and wildlife population management.

She plans a career in world conservation, serving as a liaison between wildlife and human indigenous and urban populations.

“I aspire to bridge the gap between science and the humanities, to research how human encroachment affects wildlife behavior and populations,” Ms. Ram says. “By combining field techniques in wildlife management such as population counts, radio collaring and habitat management with an academic background in sustainable resource alternatives and cultural understanding, I will have the full spectrum of tools necessary to engage in a future career in international conservation.”

Ms. Ram is a recent transfer student to HSU and performed community service in Los Angeles, where she worked at Wildlife Waystation and the Agoura Hills Animal Shelter.

Of her experiences at Sequoia Park Zoo, she says they are rewarding not only because of her proximity to the animals but also because “in such a small zoo, my contribution has a greater impact on the welfare of the animals and the engagement of the surrounding community, on a scale one could not hope to dent in Los Angeles.”

Ms. Ram is the first-generation daughter of an unemployed immigrant, a minority female in the sciences and a survivor of serious medical problems. “I understand all too well the challenges that face low-income minority students,” she says.

Approximately 100 students, faculty and guests attended the buffet dinner which was preceded by a no•host social hour.   

Ken Fulgham, Department Chair, was the master of ceremonies for the evening.  The program started with introductions and a thank you to the various guests and faculty members.  

Dr. Fulgham gave high lights of the department for the year such as:
• The addition of Dr. Steve Sillett to the list of faculty

• Dr. Morgan Varner receiving the 2008 McCrone Promising Faculty Scholar Award

•The retirements of Dr. Bill Bigg and the ending of Dr. Bill Sise’s FERP term

• And the announcement that the Department of Forestry and Wildland Resources will be working in partnership with the Redwood Region Logging Conference to host the Association of Western Forestry Clubs Conclave in March 2009.

Over $43,000 in scholarships were presented to undergraduate and graduate students of the department with each student receiving recognition of their accomplishments.  

Many of the benefactors of the various scholarships were on hand to make their presentations to the students.  The highlights of the evening were the presentations to Bonny Hammons for the Academic Excellence Award for highest GPA, Rosemary Records for Most Outstanding Student Award in Rangeland Resources and Wildland Soils and Michelle Dudley for Professional Promise Award.  

The evening was capped off with door prize drawings.

“We have had great pitchers in the history of this program and Lizzy is one of those,” HSU head coach Frank CHeek said. “She’s a coaches dream.”

“This what we have wanted ever since I have been here,” Motzny said. “The homerun really took this pressure off of Liz. I’ve never been to Texas before.”

Hosting for the first time since 2004, No. 1 seed Humboldt State took the hard road to the title, winning six straight after falling 10-1 in the Jacks’ opening game against No. 8 seed Cal State San Bernardino. Western Oregon had cruised through its first three games unbeaten, but lost 1-0 to the Jacks on Saturday to force a true championship game Sunday.

The win sends the Jacks to the national tournament for the first time since 2001. Making the program’s fifth appearance overall, Humboldt State will take on Mid-Atlantic Regional winner and the 2007 national runner-up Lock Haven University in its first game.

Humboldt State’s athletes had to pack their bags quickly in preparation for the NCAA-provided Monday afternoon charter flight out of Arcata Airport. They’ll arrive in time for Tuesday’s practice sessions, coaches meetings, and the festival’s opening ceremonies at the Houston Downtown Aquarium.

All of Humboldt State’s games will be broadcast live locally on KATA Radio, 1340 AM, and also webcast on the hsujacks.com web site. The first broadcast gets underway at 11:45 a.m. Wednesday.

The Lumberjacks (53-18) put up five runs in the first, two sacrifice flys preceding Motzny’s blast, and added four more in the seventh to earn the mercy-rule victory. Western Oregon (33-18) stranded runners on the basepaths in all but the second inning, and left six runners in scoring position.

Humboldt State got its bats going quickly, starting the game with singles from Nikki Ketteringham, Caitlin Klug and Natalie Galletly to load the bases against starting and losing pitcher Katie Fleer. Marissa Slattery and Ashley Oltjenbruns drove in a run each with sacrifice flys, and after a walk to Franny West, Motzny unloaded to complete the scoring.

“”(Lizzy) presents herself so well in the circle and with such ease. I love playing behind her,” West said.“Our hard work is finally paying off and the feeling is so great.”

Humboldt State 9, Western Oregon 0 (May 11, 2008 at Arcata, Calif.)

Visit the HSU Jacks’ homepage for more Athletics at HSU.

Only 7.7% of eligible students, 599, voted in the last runoff, versus 823 (12%) in the first poll. Pereira captured 58.4% of the vote, Ferrari 41.2%, according to official figures released by Gail Wootan, Associate Director of Student Life.

The presidency was the only contested post in the 2008-2009 elections. Accordingly, all of the other offices were filled in the initial vote, without opposition. The new AS officers are:

—Nikki Kovalcheck (670 votes), Administrative Vice President
—Jesse Hughes (645 votes), Legislative Vice President
—Gabe Shames (630 votes), Student Affairs Vice President
—Corey Fenton (1 vote – write-in), College of Professional Studies Representative
—Rachel Cooke (159 votes), College of Natural Resources & Sciences Representative
—Kale Roberts (155 votes), College of Natural Resources & Sciences Representative
—Elizabeth Weissbart (20 votes – write-in), College of Natural Resources & Sciences Representative
—Dina Haigounian (205 votes), College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences Representatives

(Note: each college can have up to three representatives.)

University Center Board of Directors, Student Representatives
Jason Martinez (357 votes – fills open seat)
Michael Fisher (317 votes – fills open seat)
Michaela Miller (189 votes – alternate)

The contest was organized and judged this year by Professors Jeff Haag and Martin Flashman of the HSU Mathematics Department.



In the A category (for beginning math students) the first prize of $100
was won by Calandria Castro, the second place prize of $50 was won by
 Sarah Smith, while the third prize of $25 awarded to Michael Stobb.


First prize of $100 in the B category (for advanced math students) was won
 by Michael Campbell, the second prize of $50 was won by Nathan (Alf)
Skinner and third place prize of $25 was awarded to Michelle Gledhill.

Winter’s presentation, titled “Protection From Neuronal Copper Toxicity by Dopamine or the Dopamine Reuptake Blocker Nomifensine in the Aquatic Annelid Lumbriculus Variegatus,” was based upon research she conducted in the laboratory of Prof. Bruce A. O’Gara of HSU’s Biological Sciences Department.

The conference was held on April 12, 2008, at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego.

“Genomics and the Future of Medicine and Society” was the title of a plenary talk delivered by Francis S. Collins, the Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute. Dr. Collins led the effort to sequence the human genome.

“California State University as a whole will get $16 million, divided among 15 campuses in the 23-campus system,” HSU President Rollin Richmond said. “The scholarships probably will start in the Fall of 2009. They‘ll likely amount to about $2,500 per student
each academic year.” CSU will allot the monies to the various campuses.

Mike Reilly, HSU Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management, said, “These scholarships will provide much needed financial assistance to our transfer students, many of whom struggle to find the resources to continue their studies.”

Since 2004, Humboldt State also has received continuing financial support from the Osher Foundation for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). Under the auspices of the university’s Office of Extended Education, OLLI offers non-credit classes to learners over the age of 50.

A recent report by the WASC’s visiting team encouraged Humboldt State to augment its institutional strengths with streamlined budgeting and decision-making, a major reduction in the number of committees and more cohesive curricular oversight.

The WASC team also encouraged the University to proceed with program prioritization, buttress student writing proficiency and create an Office or Director of Diversity, Equity and Retention to foster the success of underrepresented students.

It further urged the campus to develop alternative revenue sources, “including targeted marketing efforts and additional investment in fundraising.” The University has initiatives of several years standing on both fronts.

Providing additional time to HSU to meet these objectives, the WASC Visitation Team postponed the University’s Educational Effectiveness Review until Spring 2010 from Fall 2009.

President Rollin Richmond said, “This is a continuation of a long process for the continuing improvement of HSU. Many faculty and staff spent countless hours over the last two years on the first phase of our WASC proposal. In a very real sense, this process never stops—it is not a one-time test.”

The President noted that the goals WASC has set forth “are in complete alignment with our 10-year strategic plan to provide our students with the best hands-on education, comprehensive faculty mentoring and greater diversity. Every university is asked to improve itself in the accreditation process; that is commendable and we are fully committed to doing so.”

The full text of the WASC report is posted at http://www.humboldt.edu/~wasc.

Live Stats: All of this week’s tournament games will feature LiveStats provided online. Play-by-play and boxscore statistics will available in real time on the hsujacks.com web site. Visit the softball page and click on the LiveStats link in the right menu to access the service free of charge.

Listen Live: Humboldt State’s postseason games are broadcast locally on KATA, 1340 AM, and also webcast on the hsujacks.com web site. J.B. Mathers will call the action and former HSU player and current College of the Redwoods head softball coach Maggie White will add commentary. The first broadcast comes on the air with the pregame show at 4:15 p.m. Wednesday.

Lumberjacks Notes: A new week, and hopefully a new approach, provide the Lumberjacks with a chance to redeem themselves after last week’s disappointing two-and-out finish at the California Collegiate Athletic Association Championships. To change the outcome, HSU head coach Frank Cheek plans a straightforward approach in his preparation. “There were lessons learned last week,” Cheek said. “We know more about how we have to approach the game, especially against those teams we saw here last week.”

One small modification Cheek will make to the lineup includes the Jacks’ hottest hitter, third baseman Francesca West. The junior the tournament in RBIs, jacking two three-run homers in the finale against Cal State San Bernardino. The second long shot cleared the scoreboard and dropped into the woods, providing the Lumberjacks with a two-run lead with two outs in the top of the seventh. West will be moved up into the No. 4 spot in the batting order this week to take advantage of her hot streak at the plate

Joining West in selection to the all-CCAA Tournament team was center fielder Chrissy Motzny, who had three hits in six at-bats and contributed stellar defense.

Humboldt State makes its 18th appearance in the NCAA postseason in the past 19 years. Humboldt State’s first appearance came in 1990, and its only absence was the 1992 season. Cheek has been head coach for all of those seasons.

The Lumberjacks have won the regional title four times, the most recent in 2001. They have only won the championship once on their home field, that occasion happening in 1995.

Humboldt State has played every team in this week’s tournament at least once this year, and has defeated every one of them. The Jacks have also lost to five of the West Region qualifiers this year, all except Cal State Stanislaus and Seattle University.

In last week’s announcement of all-conference honors, several Lumberjacks were honored, including Pitcher of the Year Lizzy Prescott and Freshman of the Year Nikki Ketteringham. The next round of awards begins Wednesday when the Daktronics all-region teams will be announced. Also coming up is selection of the NFCA all-region squad, followed by the All-America teams.

Coach Frank Cheek: In his 20 years with the Humboldt State softball program, head coach Frank Cheek has compiled an 970-243-2 record. His teams have earned 16 conference championships, four West Region titles and one national title. Cheek has been named conference Coach of the Year nine times and West Region Coach of the Year twice.

Opponents’ Notes: In its first game, the Jacks face a familiar opponent – Cal State San Bernardino, the team that eliminated them from the CCAA tournament last week. The Coyotes’ impressive run through the league tournament helped them gain selection to the regionals, and they bring a 34-30-1 record into the event.

Cal State Stanislaus finally ended the Coyotes’ CCAA challenge, defeating them 4-1 in 11 innings in the title game Saturday. CSUSB’s Jordan Dahl, Priscilla Curiel and Tawni Baker were selected to the all-tournament team.

Cheek’s Thoughts: “Our defense has to rise to the occasion. We’ve been up and down, defensively, and we can’t make those same mistakes.”

“We’ve had wake-up calls earlier this year, and last week was another wake-up call. We’re hot and cold.”

“Our three freshman starters have now had a chance to see what a West Region atmosphere is like, and the stress that goes with it.”

“After last week, we have no place to go but up. That should take some of the pressure off of us.”