2018: A year in review
A look at what happened at Sacramento State in 2018
December 31, 2018
2018 has been a year of unrest both in the nation and in Sacramento, filled with protests and other political movements. Sacramento State was not excluded from this: students protested after Sacramento police officers shot and killed Stephon Clark, joined the conversation around sexual assault and struggled with housing insecurity. However, 2018 was a year of growth for Sac State as well, as the university added buildings — and yes, one of them was a parking structure — received donations, expanded the course catalog and added a voting center on campus. Students played Pokemon GO or laughed at memes as Herky rose in popularity as an unlikely sex symbol while they lounged in hammocks or huddled in the library. Here are five State Hornet stories from every section that defined the year at Sacramento State.
Special packages
Sexual assault and Sac State: a special package
What was once rarely talked about and rarely prosecuted is now inescapable; issues of sexual harassment and assault have been at the root of all the country’s biggest news stories. Statistics on college sexual assault are staggering; one in three women are estimated to be assaulted during their years on campus. After a rape was alleged to have occurred in a residence hall three weeks ago, The State Hornet set out to document the experiences of sexual assault victims and survivors.
Students caught in the crosshairs of statewide housing crisis
A study unveiled earlier this month at the California State University Basic Needs Initiative Conference showed that 10.9 percent of CSU students have experienced homelessness within the past year. As California in general — and the Sacramento area in particular — face skyrocketing rents, The State Hornet looked at the causes of the state housing crisis, potential solutions and what the University is doing to help students who are struggling to keep a roof over their heads.
Sacramento State social work major Helen Quiej wakes up in her dorm in Sierra Hall, which she shares with a roommate, on Friday, Feb. 23.
Stephon Clark shooting sparks protests in Sacramento
The fatal police shooting of 22-year-old unarmed black man Stephon Clark in April sparked protests in Sacramento — some at Sac State — that shut down freeways, downtown roads and a Sacramento Kings game. The city is still in a state of unrest six months later as protests were sparked outside a statewide law enforcement expo.
Demonstrators scream at a police vehicle while stopping oncoming traffic in a Black Lives Matter demonstration in downtown Sacramento, Calif. on Friday, March 23, 2018. The demonstration was in response to the shooting and death of an unarmed black man, Stephon Clark, by Sacramento police on March 18.
The first year experience: a special package
The transition to college — whether it be from high school or community college — is often not easy. Students are faced with adapting to an unfamiliar environment, building new social circles and finding oneself in what sometimes feels like a completely different community. This is a look at how some Sac State students managed their first year on campus.
Peer mentors (from left to right) Wilsam Morrav, Jovanna Justo, Dhivya Valluvan and Sage Beamon talk in the First Year Experience Space early in the morning before students come in. The FYE program at Sacramento State welcomes first-year students with the help of two mentorship programs through meetings, classes and support.
Nearby Camp Fire prompts closures, other action from Sac State
Butte County’s Camp Fire sparked Nov. 8 and has turned into one of the deadliest wildfires in California’s history, killing 85, displacing tens of thousands and burning through an entire city. The fire’s close proximity to Sac State affected many students and has prompted multiple emergency actions from the university.
The home of Sac State criminal justice student Angelica Philpott’s cousin Justin Reinolds is pictured after it was destroyed by the Camp Fire’s blaze. The Butte County fire burned more than 6,000 homes, according to Cal Fire.
News
Sac State plans to offer new LGBTQ minor for students
Sac State is set to offer a new option for students during the 2019 academic year: a minor in LGBTQ studies.
The Pride and Women’s Resource Center is a place on campus where students can go for more information about identity and sexuality. A LGBTQ Studies minor is in the works and is planned for the 2019-2020 school year.
Potential East Area Rapist suspect graduated from Sac State with criminal justice degree
The Sac State Registrar’s Office confirmed that the suspect in the decades-old East Area Rapist case once attended the University.
Authorities would not immediately confirm that DeAngelo is the East Area Rapist suspect, but said a noon press conference would provide more information.
Sac State students spend Election Day at new voting center
A line of Sac State students wrapped through and outside Modoc Hall Tuesday as they waited to cast their votes — many for their first time. Some students came by briefly to drop off already filled-out ballots — or in some cases, fill out their ballots anywhere they could find space to sit. Others came to register same-day and in person, or simply to fill out their regular ballots in exchange for the selfie-friendly “I voted” sticker.
Patrick Asberry (left), senior at Sac State, and Emily Franklin, sophomore at Sac State filling out their ballots inside Modoc Hall on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 6 2018. Asberry and Franklin are two of many Sac State students who used the voting center on campus, the first of its kind at any CSU campus.
Fight breaks out in school library, 1 person taken to hospital
Sac State police say a fight broke out at the University Union library after someone studying near the windows sneezed, and another person sitting nearby told him he needed to leave so he wouldn’t get other people sick.
Firefighters and paramedics make their way to someone who was involved in a fight in the Sacramento State library on Tuesday, March 6, 2018. The individual was transported to the hospital, though officials say he was not injured during the fight.
Suspects identified in 2017 Sac State laptop thefts
A suspect has been identified in the 2017 theft of 35 Dell Latitude laptops out of a Sac State classroom.
Room 131 in Calaveras Hall was remodeled over last summer and opened this semester with 36 new Dell laptops, 35 of which were stolen in Oct. 2017.
Sports
28 football players left Sac State after 2016 — here’s why
Since Jody Sears arrived at Sac State in 2014, 72 players left the Sac State football program — with most leaving after the 2016 season.
Sophomore Nate Ketteringham throws the ball against Western Oregon, Sept. 3, 2016. Ketteringham is one of many football players that transferred from Sac State soon after Jody Sears took over as head coach.
Jody Sears Q&A: What went wrong at Sac State — and what’s next
Sac State fired football head coach Jody Sears in late November after finishing with a 2-8 record in his fifth year with the Hornets. The State Hornet spoke with Sears following his departure, where he reflected on his time in Sacramento and shared insight on what’s next.
Sac State tennis program placed on 3-year probation following NCAA violations
The Sac State women’s and men’s tennis programs are under three years of probation through April 18, 2021, according to an NCAA report published in April.
Former Sacramento State head coach Vyacheslav “Slava” Konikov talks with former player and current volunteer assistant Christopher Clayton after a match at the Rio del Oro Raquet Club. Konikov resigned after 11 years with the men’s tennis program to coach professionally in Europe.
Sac State student-boxer punches his way to Team USA
Five months ago, Sac State student Kevin Montano couldn’t afford to compete in a boxing tournament on the other side of the country — now he’s cashed his ticket to fight for Team USA in countries around the world.
Kevin Montano lands a punch on his sparring partner while training at Midtown Fitness and Boxing in Sacramento on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2018. Montano, a junior at Sacramento State, secured his spot as a member of Team USA in December and now stays for weeks at a time with all expenses paid at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. in preparation for international competitions with other prospective Olympic athletes.
Dual-sport speedster outruns his competition on track, football field
Over a decade ago, Andre Lindsey stood and watched as the football he was supposed to be grabbing bounced on the ground — but now he’s picking up recognition as one of Sac State’s most impressive athletes.
Sacramento State junior Andre Lindsey warms up with some hurdles before track practice on Feb. 5 at Hornet Stadium. Lindsey competes in football as a receiver and indoor and outdoor track as a hurdler.
Arts & Entertainment
Meet the artist behind the intricate leaf art seen at Sac State every fall
Sac State becomes vibrant in color during the fall season: grounds become covered with fallen leaves and becomes a canvas for gingko leaf artist Joanna Hedrick.
Joanna Hedrick in front of her ginkgo art designs she created by Sequoia Hall on Dec. 6.
First-year homesickness: How do students manage?
Moving away to college can be a rough series of adjustments, be it from across the country or just from across the state. Alongside learning to live on their own for the first time, first-year students are confronted with needing to make whole new social circles while at college. This is a look at how some Sac State students managed their first year on their own.
Moving away to college can be a rough series of adjustments, be it from across the country or just from across the state. We talked to three students on how they deal with homesickness.
‘Hometown Hero’ Anthony Sadler on playing himself on the big screen
On Aug. 21, 2015, then-Sac State student Anthony Sadler and his two childhood friends, Spencer Stone and Alek Skarlatos, were on a train from Amsterdam headed for Paris. It was then that a terrorist boarded the train armed with an AK-47, a pistol, and 270 rounds of ammunition. We asked Sadler about his past, that day on the train and his role in the film’s production.
Anthony Sadler poses at Hornet Stadium on Sept. 26, 2015. After Sadler and two friends helped stop a terrorist on a train from Amsterdam to Paris, the three men play themselves in a film directed by Clint Eastwood.
YouTube stars The Minorities make Sac State go viral
Sacramento-based YouTube personalities Zebadiah Juniel and Jason Simpson — known for their channel The Minorities — tweeted a clip from their own YouTube video titled “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? | Sacramento State Edition” which amassed over 169,000 retweets and 323,000 favorites.
Sacramento-based YouTube personalities Jason Simpson (left) and Zebadiah Juniel receive tens of thousands of views on their videos. They tweeted a clip from their video titled “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? | Sacramento State Edition” that garnered over 170,000 retweets and 323,000 favorites.
Sac State students showcase staggering steel stegosaurus
The newest product of Sac State’s art department also happens to be its most ancient. “#Poppy” is a 16-foot tall steel sculpture of a colorful stegosaurus created by senior Sac State studio art majors Chris Duffy and Tiffany Boddeker and the first of what they hope to be many public art projects coming straight out of Sac State.
Sacramento State student artists Chris Duffy and Tiffany Boddeker are surrounded by school administrators, faculty and city councilmen as they cut a ribbon Friday, Nov. 2, 2018 at the unveiling of “#Poppy,” a 16-foot steel sculpture of a stegosaurus they created as a public art project.
Opinion
OPINION: 50,000 displaced for your campus holiday
I don’t care if you are happy that school is canceled. The only reason your classes are dismissed is because thousands of my fellow community members are now homeless and forced to rebuild their lives from the ground up while living in the Chico Walmart parking lot.
I cried tears while driving past the Paradise junction on my way through Oroville. All roads to Paradise and Magalia are completely blocked while emergency personnel work through the aftermath of the Camp Fire.
Sierra’s Spicy Takes: The State Hornet’s new advice column
In September, The State Hornet’s launched its advice column “Sierra’s Spicy Takes,” featuring distribution editor Sierra Savage. The NSFW column delved into topics ranging from sugar daddies to sex toys to workplace relationships.
Meet the face behind the new advice column at The State Hornet “Sierra’s Spicy Takes,” Sierra Savage.
OPINION: Jump Bike riders are polluting the streets of Sacramento
Bros hailing from Natomas are using the motorized, candy-colored bikes emblazoned with the word “JUMP” as a fun, booze-fueled means of getting from one brewery to another, and more and more I see Sac State commuters using them to get to campus.
A bicycle from the company JUMP sits in at a bike rack between Del Norte and Mendocino Hall. JUMP announced to increase their on-demand bicycle services by over 50 percent in the Sacramento area.
OPINION: It’s time for Herky to get some hot new looks
But the absolute best thing about being a Sac State student is that our mascot is a muscle-jacked bee who runs around looking like a living meme. And there are plenty of thicc memes about Herky to be had.
OPINION: The takedown of Hobo Johnson
Since Hobo Johnson’s rise to semi-stardom in Oak Park, now buoyed by his NPR Tiny Desk Concert music video, which currently boasts four million plus views, I can’t contain my genuine perplexity at the prospect.
Hobo Johnson, right, really named Frank Lopes, poses with bandmate Derek Lynch in a photo taken for a previous State Hornet story.