Month: April 2016

Everyone, please, let us have a moment of silence for Tunesday.

Thank you.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the last Tunesday of the semester. It’s been a great run, and I hope you all have enjoyed reading this column as much as I enjoyed writing it. However, we’re not going to end this on a melancholic note. As a matter of fact, it’s going to be the complete opposite. I want this to be a joyous occasion. Let us not mourn the impending death of Tunesday but rather celebrate its short but plentiful existence.

No, I’m not sorry for being overly dramatic. This column is my baby.

1. Donnie Trumpet – In Your Light (featuring Sima Cunningham)

Coming from the description of the song written by Donnie Trumpet himself:

“One of my best friends and musical mentors, Maceo from the band The Omys, gave me a mix CD when I was going through a tough time with a song called “Donna” by Prince. I listened to the song over and over … This was a really powerful inspiration for me … In honor of that song and all songs like it, and the earth claiming one of the greatest humans to ever grace its land, Prince … I dedicate this to everyone who will ever hear it.”

You know, it’s always incredible to see how much people cherish their idols and what they create as a result. If approaching heaven’s gate had a soundtrack, it would be “In Your Light” without question. This song embodies the feeling of warmth people experience when they’re in their happiest moments. It’s shining like the sun, burning bright like a star, and reaching the summit of internal bliss.

Listen to more Donnie Trumpet here.

2. Flume – Say It (featuring Tove Lo)

It’s almost irritating how good Flume is. Someone needs to check his ancestry.com and see if he was related to King Midas in anyway.

“Say It” is a tune off Flume’s upcoming “Skin LP” slated to drop May 27. Tove Lo features on the song and tip toes through the track, reminiscing about being heartbroken and facing temptation to go back to an old lover who probably wasn’t the best for her but definitely delivered in other ways, if you know what I mean.

What’s up with Australia having such amazing musicians? Tame Impala, Flume, Cut Copy… It really makes me wonder if Iggy Azalea is actually from there.

Listen to more Flume here.

3. Mac Demarco – I Was a Fool To Care

I know I said I wasn’t going to make this installment of Tunesday melancholy, but hey, it’s Mac Demarco, man.

Actually, Mac Demarco isn’t melancholy at all. His music may be “downtempo,” giving off that sorrow vibe, but, at the end of the day, it’s honest music. You and I both know when musicians are sincere and genuine in and about their music, it typically tends to resonate with us as listeners. 

DeMarco’s “I Was a Fool To Care” follows this idea.

Have you ever been in love with someone but was never able to have them? It’s not as if they’re distant or have abandoned you — you’re close with them but just not in the way you want them. Day in and day out, you always have these eyes of admiration on this person, but, with every step they take, you’re always one behind. It’s a never-ending race you cannot win because, well, love isn’t fair like that. So you drift away in the waves of regret and become nothing but a skimmed page in your desired lover’s favorite novel.

That’s what this song is.

Listen to more Mac Demarco here.

4. Tennyson – XYZ

Tennyson is a brother-sister duo from Canada comprised of Luke Tennyson and Tess Pretty.

I originally came across the group after hearing the light-hearted “With You” in 2014, and I’ve been trying my best to follow their progress as closely as I can. As a fan, it’s amazing to see the development and strides they’ve made since they started to put out music for the public to hear.

On “XYZ,” listeners are gifted with a spiritual, jungle-esque sounding tune. There are an abundance of sounds that come onto the song to tip-toe over the main instrumental before they disperse. These include a flute, car traffic, water pouring, zippers and more. 

What impresses me the most is, even with all these sounds making their way onto this song, in no way is there a compromise with the overall initial mood of the song. It’s a lively, happy song that would fit in an role-playing video game or a feature film. It’s nothing short of brilliance to create something so versatile and expressive.

Listen to more Tennyson here.

5. Kaytranada – Bus Ride (with Karriem Riggins and River Tiber)

Here we are. We’re officially starting to bury the Tunesday coffin six feet deep. 

Kaytranada, the Haitian-Canadian maestro, links up with drummer Karriem Riggins and producer River Tiber to deliver an immaculate piece of music.

The title of the track coincides with how it sounds perfectly. This song feels like catching the late bus after school on a Friday afternoon. The sun paints an orange glaze over the city as it prepares to amend the neglect it has given the opposing hemisphere. The week is finally coming to a close, and you made it through another one. All you can do is relish in the relief you have of being able to get away from the expectations and trials of the world and just be able to enjoy yourself however you choose to do so.

You can’t help but reflect on where you once were, where you are now, and where you’ll be one day while listening to this track. You know it’s all a process, and you’ll figure it all out maybe one day. However, until then, just sit back and enjoy the ride while you can.

Listen to more Kaytranada here.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who lent their ear every other Tuesday this semester to come into my world and hear what I hear. Being given an outlet to put the thoughts and visions I have while listening to music has been therapeutic for me. It’s also a bonus knowing there are some of y’all out there who have dug Tunesday, and that makes me happy.

Spread positivity and love. Be genuine and sincere. Good luck on your finals. I’ll catch y’all later.

Earth Day was Friday and the sustainability club came together with the Rugby team to encourage signatures for a petition. The hope is Dixie will receive more financing for sustainable practices.

Tracy O’Kelly believes the University can do more. She said, “we could do more sustainability projects, not as much grass, and do more recycling. When we build buildings we could put solar on them.” President of the sustainability club Chloe Lichtenberg has a petition going with almost 900 signatures to show the administration that the students want more funding to go towards recycling, solar panels and many other sustainability projects.

“The petition basically says you would support more sustainable practices on campus. It is to show the administration that this is something students and staff would like to see.”

Dixie State University is making strides to be more sustainable. Many may be un aware of the 60 panel solar array on the roof of the Science building. Energy Controls Manager Bart Peacock says there is great potential for using more solar technology in the future. On the contrary, Peacock believes the University is green and becoming even more green. He admitted we are not to the level of sustainability of other universities but we are on our way.

Bart said they have an ESCO project going and the University is in a contract with Johnson controls for making improvements on campus to be more sustainable. The payments are being made over a 16-year time.

According to Dixie State University’s annual energy report for fiscal year 2015, the university has become increasingly energy efficient. The EUI (energy usage intensity) shows a drop from 85.85 to 61.46. The total kBtu/year has dropped from $80,349,715 to 71,822,906. Bart Peacock said, “Annually, we’re using about 17 million gallons of water for culinary and irrigation.”

In the same report Peacock wrote, “DSU continues to make strides toward better use of energy and its resources … We plan to further implement strategies and technologies to become more sustainable, energy efficient and better stewards of those resources.”

The Utah Board of Regents approved tuition hikes earlier this month that boast of the lowest in the nation.

The current 2015-16 annual tuition amount for a Dixie State University student is $3,908. At a 5 percent, $195 increase for each student, the 2016-17 tuition amount approved by the board is $4,103.

DSU is within the top four universities that experienced the highest increase state-wide; however, its overall 2016-17 tuition amount also falls within the top three least expensive in the state, trailing Snow College and Salt Lake Community College. 

Paul Morris, vice president of administrative services, said DSU is still a great value for its students. 

“Our goal is to keep the tuition as low as we can,” Morris said. 

With this increase, based off flat enrollment, DSU will profit $1.3 million in tuition for the upcoming year. The extra funds have already been allocated for faculty compensation, student services programs and faculty rank advancements.  

The tuition increases determined by DSU administration begin with a list of needs. Morris said the university council, which is made up of about 40 administrators, assesses the list and determines which needs have the most priority and which will receive the extra funding. 

“The needs always way outweigh the funding we have,” Morris said. 

President Biff Williams said, because DSU is still a “baby institution,” it will be able to solicit more funding from the state legislature once its enrollment and academic programs grow.

“I can guarantee you that, if you ask any department on campus, every single department will say they’re underfunded,” Williams said. “There’s just never enough money.” 

About $260,000 of the compensation increase was for faculty. DSU had the lowest rate of compensation in Utah for adjunct faculty two years ago, President Biff Williams said.

“We know, if the adjuncts aren’t happy, our students aren’t going to be happy, and they won’t get the education they want,” Williams said.

Morris said DSU implemented a four-year plan to increase adjunct faculty compensation, and this tuition increase is working toward achieving that goal. Budget Director Bryant Flake said the university has received a small amount of state funding for this effort, but tuition has been the primary funding source. 

Six out the eight universities in the Utah System of Higher Education also allocated large portions of their tuition increases toward faculty compensation. 

“When we hire a professor, it costs the us the same as it does other schools because we compete in a national market,” Morris said. “Our costs aren’t lower. We will lose our buying power to provide quality programs, and that’s not a sustainable model.” 

When DSU administrators asses an allocation plan for the tuition increase, they always base their figures on flat enrollment, and they typically budget one year behind, Morris said. 

If administrators overestimate enrollment, departmental budget cuts and depletion of reserve funds may occur if the university isn’t conservative enough, Flake said. Other universities in the state have made it a habit to cycle through laying off one year and hiring the next because they overestimated their growth, Morris said. 

“We’ve always been about consistency and stability,” Morris said. 

Flake said prioritizing the budget is both enjoyable and challenging. 

“Since the identified needs invariably exceed available resources, it can be quite difficult to determine the top priorities that will actually be funded from the tuition increase,” Flake said.