Non Arab villages have been the victims of general destruction, brutal killings, controlled starvation, burning, and the raping of men, women and children. Victims are often beaten, burned or mutilated beyond recognition. In a striking contrast, many Arab villages have been left untouched. The continued civil war and crimes against humanity have displaced millions and caused an unsustainable influx of people – over 100,000 – to seek refuge in Chad.

The United Nations placed pressure on Sudanese Government in July of 2004 stating that the Janjaweed must be held accountable for their actions and disarmed within a month. After failing to meet this deadline, the United Nations entered Sudanese with limited support from the African Union. Since receiving independence in 1956, Sudan has had a war-related death toll that exceeds all of the fatalities in result of conflicts and internal turmoil in Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Chechnya, Somalia and Algeria – over two million people. Recently, the United Nations estimated that 180,000 people have died in the last 18 months, while the British Parliament Reports found the death toll to be in excess of 300,000 since the start of the conflict nearly two years ago.

Our proud nation loves to impress democracy onto other subordinate nations during their times of need or only to serve our best interest, but it seems that rendering aid in the name of humanitarian interest is simply not a just enough cause. Sectary of State and Republican Collin Powell stated on Sept. 9, 2004, that genocide was indeed happening in Darfur Sudan. On Sept. 30, President Bush – who was then campaigning for reelection at the time – stated that aid would be committed to the region and also called the travesties in Sudan, genocide. As of now, The United States has not sent monetary aid or personnel to help stop the senseless killing in this African nation. It appears that humanitarian aid just doesn’t make the cut on Bush’s world domination crusade this year. Both the African Union and the European Union have devoted aid to unarming the Janjaweed and to committing to reconstruction of a mangled nation, and await the support of other industrialized nations. How many more deaths will it take before the situation in Sudan becomes serious and real enough for American politics to take notice?

I urge, liberals, conservatives and all walks of life, to write our representatives and senators and ask why stronger action has not been taken in the foreign arena to help stop the genocide within Sudan. Demand from them, that as a citizen of the United States of America, you wish to see our country promote democracy in the name of life, not death. Demand that you wish all people of all nations to have the ability to endure the life that we too endure, and demand that this choice be given to them in the form of food, medical supplies and diplomatic pressure on the Sudanese Government. Demand that aid be given in a more tangible form to countries in need, not as US bombs, not as US missiles or tanks.

I challenge you to write to our hired officials that work for us, and request change. It can be done. In fact, send your letters as an attachment to my first class account and I will personally mail them all out in one large packet to both our state representatives and senators. It is most important that people realize that this situation is real, is happening, and can be stopped.

I close with this quote from Sen. Paul Simon:

“What will really stop genocide is indignation. If every member of the House and Senate had received 100 letters from people back home saying we have to do something about Rwanda, I think the response would be different.”

Michael Dennett is a senior environmental science major.

Steve Hinkle, a student at the California Polytechnic State University, and a member of that campus’ local College Republicans, was charged with disruption of a student meeting and harshly disciplined by his school’s administration after posting a flyer promoting a speech by black conservative author Mason Weaver. The disruption charges themselves lacked support as the meeting supposedly disrupted had yet to start when Hinkle posted his flyer. But the administration wished for Hinkle to visit the school psychologist, write a public letter of apology to students, and threatened him with expulsion, all over his posting of a flyer. The school only dropped the charges after a civil-liberties organization, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, FIRE, sued the university under the claim that their actions were deliberate violations of the First Amendment. Although the charges have been dropped, the administration of that campus has yet to explain itself, its actions or even offer an apology to Hinkle for the incident.

Another case involves a University of Tennessee student, a Sikh convert named Sukhmani Singh Khalsa, who received death threats via e-mail over his conservative opinion pieces in the campus newspaper about the political bias of a student campus organization. However, when complaints were brought up against the author of the e-mails, the university did nothing to reprimand the author of the death threats against Khalsa, and even shut down an attempt by students to get a petitioned signed in support of him. Yet, if such an event were to happen on a high school campus, especially after Columbine and the most recent school shooting, the author of the death threats would have had to deal with much harsher consequences.

While these two cases may come across as extreme examples, events like these do happen on college campuses everyday, ranging from administrations imposing strict speeches codes to professors intimidating students into complying with their views and beliefs. We are lucky that we live on a relatively balanced campus, and that we don’t have common occurrences of political bias in our classrooms. But questions still remain. Should professors really be discussing the political workings of our government in a class or challenging students’ opposing viewpoints where it is mostly likely off topic? Does every college administration really ensure that their students are treated equally or allowed to express their opinions, regardless of where they are on the political spectrum? While the current proposal for a student bill of rights may not be what is needed, the evidence suggests that a student bill of rights may be needed for both liberal and conservative students, not just Republican students.

Paul Goodman is a freshman new media major.

Time has come for the University of Maine to break ground for the once-proposed Recreation Center. It will soon become a reality, or at least for those students just arriving at UMaine.

The university has kept a steady pace for the past two-and-a-half years; students completed a survey about a proposed recreation center in the fall of 2002.

Like a number of construction projects students have seen at UMaine that have had delays, i.e. the Memorial Union expansion and Fogler Library steps, this project has kept its nose to the grindstone with its future Stewart Parking Lot location.

With 2007 penciled in as the completion date of the Rec. Center, we hope that this goal can be accomplished and this constant pace can be continued. The UMaine community should make sure they sharpie in the date of 2007, because delays shouldn’t be accepted.

Kudos to the 2005 Senior Council

The Bears’ Den is a quaint atmosphere to enjoy an afternoon snack or a late-night beer, and a gift from the Class of 1944. However, the barren walls lack a certain flair. Enter the Class of 2005, whose Senior Council has opted to improve the decorum of the Bears’ Den. The Class of 2005 has also created an endowed scholarship in its name to benefit future University of Maine students.

These two gestures are the first senior gifts to be bestowed upon UMaine in nearly two decades. The additions to the Bears’ Den will benefit current patrons, and the scholarship will enable education for prospective UMaine scholars.

The work of the 2005 Senior Council is appreciated by those graduating this May, and should be admired and emulated by future class councils.

Jay told the station’s Angie Martinez that West mixed his record about 14 times before he felt comfortable enough to put out the album.

West said “Diamonds” was inspired by memories of Jay-Z’s 2001 Blueprint Lounge tour and recollections of being a part of the Roc-A-Fella movement. He also said he’s still friends with former Roc CEO Dame Dash, whom he references in the song: “You know the next question, ‘Yo, where’s Dame at?’/ This track’s the Indian dance to bring our reign back.”

“Late Registration” is due July 12, according to Kanye.

Excerpted from MTV.com

*

Before “The Emancipation of Mimi” hit record stores last week, it had been three full years since Mariah Carey released new studio material. So it wasn’t unfair when several critics dubbed the vivacious pop diva’s latest a “comeback” album, one that – depending on its retail performance – could set the tone for the rest of Mariah’s career.

Well, how’s this for a comeback? First-week sales of almost 404,000 scored Carey not only the biggest debut of her 15-year career, but the coveted top spot on Billboard’s albums chart – unseating rapper 50 Cent as the top seller following “The Massacre’s” impressive six-week reign as retail champ.

According to SoundScan results, “The Emancipation of Mimi” shattered the star’s previous first-week sales record of 323,000 units, set back in 1999 with the debut of “Rainbow.” The album outperformed her most recent No. 1 showing, 1997′s “Butterfly,” by close to 170,000 scans. “Charmbracelet,” released in 2002, opened at No. 3 with sales of more than 241,000.

Although 50 Cent was forced to relinquish his Billboard throne, settling for the chart’s No. 3 slot, week seven wasn’t all that bad for “The Massacre.” A 15-percent sales dip notwithstanding, the rapper’s LP did manage to transcend the 3-million-sold milestone.

Excerpted from MTV.com

*

After last year’s false start, Lollapalooza has stacked the deck for its return. Among the acts who will headline the now-sedentary two-day affair in Chicago on July 23 and 24 are Weezer, the Killers, the Pixies, a reunited Dinosaur Jr., Widespread Panic and Dashboard Confessional.

The show will take place at Hutchinson Field in Grant Park with around 30,000 fans expected each day. Also on board are former Chicagoan Liz Phair, the Dandy Warhols, Cake, The Arcade Fire, Billy Idol, Kaiser Chiefs, the reunited Digable Planets, Tegan and Sara, Kasabian, The Bravery, Louis XIV and the Walkmen.

The revival of Lollapalooza comes one year after the festival was canceled due to poor ticket sales for a bill that was to feature Morrissey, PJ Harvey, Modest Mouse, String Cheese Incident, the Flaming Lips and Sonic Youth. Its resurrection comes at a time when two-day “destination” festivals such as Bonnaroo and Coachella have become increasingly popular.

Excerpted from MTV.com

*

American Head Charge guitarist Bryan Ottoson died Tuesday before the group’s performance in North Charleston, S.C.

According to a spokesperson, the guitarist was found dead in his bunk on the group’s tour bus. The cause of death is unknown, pending an autopsy.

The Minnesota-based group was in the midst of a North American tour with Mudvayne, Bloodsimple and Life of Agony. Its latest album, “The Feeding,” was released in March via Nirus/DRT and peaked at No. 11 on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart and No. 15 on Billboard’s Top Independent Albums chart.

Tuesday night’s show was postponed.

The Mudvayne tour is scheduled to continue tonight in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., but no announcement has been made about the show’s status. It is also unclear whether American Head Charge will rejoin the outing at some point.

Excerpted from CNN.com

*

DMX was arrested following an accident on a Bronx expressway that injured three people, including two police officers, police said Monday.

DMX, whose real name is Earl Simmons, was driving southbound Friday evening on the Major Deegan Expressway when his car struck a vehicle being driven by an unidentified woman, police said. Her car then hit an unmarked police cruiser carrying two officers.

The woman was taken to Lincoln Hospital with minor injuries, while the officers were taken to Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital, also with minor injuries. All three were treated and released.

Simmons wasn’t injured.

Police said the 34-year-old rapper was given a desk appearance ticket and was expected to appear in court sometime next month. Simmons’ lawyer, Murray Richman, wasn’t available for comment, a woman who answered the phone at his office said Monday morning.

Excerpted from CNN.com

Midtown, the headlining pop-punk band from New Jersey, began their set with the high-energy single, “Give it Up,” off their latest album, “Forget What You Know.” Though 20 minutes behind schedule at 11:05 p.m., the band quickly won over the crowd with their enthusiasm and gusto.

Formed in 1998 by three Rutgers students, Midtown became a quartet shortly after, and soon attracted a following from the lush New Jersey Punk scene. The band consists of Gabe Saporta on vocals and bass, Rob Hitt on drums, Tyler Rann on guitar and Heath Saraceno on guitar.

The band performed a variety of songs off their three albums, “Save the World, Lose the Girl,” “Living Well is the Best Revenge” and their latest.

Midtown’s crowd included a mosh pit and some crowd surfing, but the true entertainment came from the band’s many antics, one of which included a T-shirt.

Rann wore a shirt which read, “The Next John Travolta,” the meaning of which he explained to the crowd.

“It means one day I’m going to be very sad, overweight and washed-up,” he said.

Apparently the shirt didn’t provide enough warmth on the chilly 40-degree evening because Rann asked audiences members to loan him a jacket. A man offered his, and later lead singer Saporta discovered that a cell phone was in one of the pockets. He responded by browsing the phone’s list of numbers and calling the one entitled “Home.” No one on the other end answered, unfortunately.

Saporta’s charisma was evident throughout the set as he wildly spun his guitar and sang with animated hand motions. He sprayed the crowd with bottled water, and at one point, even hopped off the stage to hug people.

Perhaps no one enjoyed Midtown more than the band’s very own roadie Skyler. Clad in a red sweatshirt and matching bandana, he could be seen thrusting his fists into the air from the stage’s rear throughout the entire show. His excitement overcame him enough at one point to run forward on the stage and swing off his shirt, air thrusting to chants of “Sky-ler, Sky-ler!”

The cold seemed to get the better of the crowd as midnight came and went, and eventually numbers trickled down to just over 200 people. The poor sound setup may have also attributed to the thinning crowd, as it was very difficult to discern Saporta’s vocals over the thundering guitars. The band didn’t seem to mind the dissipating crowd, though, and even went so far as to invite the audience back to the University Inn after the show to sing karaoke with them.

The band performed for roughly an hour and ended by informing the audience they were going to play a cover of a Guns N’ Roses song. After busting out the opening guitar riff of “Sweet Child of Mine” the band stopped to the disappoint of the crowd and informed the audience that they had just been told they only had time for one more song.

The band next performed “Just Rock and Roll,” a high-octane, guitar pounding tune.

“Hey, it’s just rock and roll, even though you might think you lost it all,” sang Saporta, who fittingly could have been singing about the size of the depleting crowd.

“The crowd was great,” said Saporta in a post-show interivew. “Sometimes you’ll get a bad one, but this one was lots of fun.”

The band drove up ten hours from New Jersey and will return there in two days to play after a stop at another university.

“It’s a weekend of college shows,” Saporta said.

*

Bumstock kicked off at 12 p.m. when the gates opened, but the first band of the afternoon, Plan B, didn’t start playing until 1 p.m.

Plan B continued to warm-up on stage before they welcomed the rather small crowd of about 15 people.

“Ladies and Gentleman welcome to Bumstock 2005,” said Plan B lead singer.

He followed it with a “Wake-up” call to UMaine students to come down to the field. By the end of the band’s first song, more than 30 patrons had gathered in front of the stage.

Plan B, despite minimal lyrics, had a funky, fun sound. The band was composed of a keyboard, two guitars, a bass, drums, a saxophone and a trombone. Despite the cold weather, the band managed to warm up the crowd with their fun sound that resulted in plenty of foot tapping and head bobbing. The best part of the set was the fact that the guitarist managed to keep a cigarette in his mouth for the entire first song. Now that is talent.

*

Following Plan B was the slightly different sound of The Emilia Dahlin Trio.

The band from Portland opened up with the song “Bound to Be” off of their second self-titled album. Emilia’s powerful vocals are strikingly similar to Ani Difranco on this tune amidst her acoustic guitar playing. The two other members of the band accompanied her on bass and drums. Emilia introduced each song with a little background about the song. She seemed very at ease on the microphone. Dahlin said she was excited to be playing at Bumstock, even though the weather was cold and wet.

She sang a combination of new and old songs from her collection, and “Candy” was an older song which stuck out sweetly as one of the best of the set. The song was about a girl who broke boys hearts and could not stomach any love. “Candy” had a folk sound mixed in with some blues provided by the drums and bass. The vocals on this song were bold and catchy. Some songs highlighted off of their latest album, were “Blackwater,” “No End” and “Infatuated.”

Most of Dahlin’s songs were about love and relationships, but not all of them. “Blackwater” talks about a flood in Virginia where it rained for four days and covered the land.

There was a good mixture of tunes from both their albums and a new song thrown in during the middle of their set, called “God Machine” where her vocal ability seemed to shine and intensify. Even though the crowd was small, the Emilia Dahlin trio was well received. CDs were on sale, as well as T-shirts after the show.

*

The Murder Weapon, a local Orono band performed after Dahlin. The crowd was made up of a mixture of hardcore fans and students who were interested. They have a punk-rock sound and four band members who play the bass, electric guitar, keyboards and drums. The lead vocalist plays the electric guitar, and for their first song, he stepped on the bass while on its side to entertain the crowd. Some of their songs are heavy punk sounding and some start off light and then pick up on speed. Their fans showed up with full punk attire and spiked hair.

Some of the songs played were “The Narrative of Lost Souls,” a cover of the Offspring song “The End of the Line,” “He’s Gone,”" The Burning” and “The Moon 2.”

“You can move around you know,” said the band’s vocalist, “and then you won’t be so cold.”

The crowd of about 55 students sang along and jumped around trying to keep warm.

Some of their songs had a swing-punk beat and couples in the crowd danced. The Murder Weapon had a fun time with their crowd and left them shouting for more until the end of their set.

Maine Steiners Annual

Spring Concert

7:30 p.m.

Thursday, April 28

MCA

Bang on a Can

3 p.m.

Saturday, May 1

Hauck Auditorium

Brigham Young

University Singers

7:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 7

MCA

$10

ART

“Student Art Exhibition”

Through Friday, May 6

Carnegie Hall

Free

“Persian Impressions”

Through Friday, June 10

Hudson Museum

Free

“Across the Sands of Time:

Art and Artifacts

from the Middle East”

Through Friday, June 10

Hudson Museum

Free

THEATER

“Noises Off”

7 p.m.

Thursday, April 28

Bangor Opera House

ENTERTAINMENT

Maine Day Tug-O-War

Wednesday, April 27

Memoria Gym

Free

Bull’s Comedy Caravan

8 p.m.

Friday, April 29

Ushuaia

“Sky Odyssey”

7 p.m.

Friday, April 29

Wingate Hall

Dance Concert

7:30 p.m.

Friday, April 29 and

Saturday, April 30

Hauck Auditorium

Anah Temple Shrine Circus

7 p.m.

Saturday, April 29

Bangor Auditorium

$6

Climbing Night

3 to 10 p.m.

Weekdays

MaineBound Outdoor Education Center

$1

Bars

College Night

9 p.m.

Thursdays

Bear Brew Pub

$1 Bear Brew beers

College Night

10 p.m.

Thursdays

Ushuaia

50-cent drinks

College Night

Thursdays

The Chocolate Grille

Half-price entrees

If you would like an event posted on the Style Calendar, contact Matt Kearney on FirstClass.

The Black Bears brought a young team to Rhode Island but held their own. In the first match against rugby powerhouse Hartford, the Black Bears held the Hawks to 10 points. Unfortunately for UMaine, the Hawks held them without a try all game. A three-point field goal by senior Bill Reichl was the only score the Black Bears could get against the tough Hawk team. Hartford won 10-3.

“We only had a few vets and a ton of rookies, so it was a great learning experience for them,” said junior Jason Jendrasko. “It was our first time playing a game this semester, and we had only been outside two times before the tourney, so we hadn’t gotten to practice all the aspects of the game.”

In the second match of Saturday’s first-round matchups, UMaine took on Stony Brook. This time the Black Bears fell 20-7.

“We brought down about 24 players,” said Jendrasko. “We were just throwing in a lot of rookies, giving them a chance to play.”

With the two losses over the weekend, UMaine started its spring season 0-2. They will have another chance to get out and play this weekend, this time much closer to home. The Black Bears will take part in the Maine Cup on Saturday in Cumberland, right outside of Portland.

Jendrasko says his team will build on their two games in Rhode Island for Saturday’s tournament in southern Maine.

“We were really happy with the way we played in our games and now we know what we need to work on,” said Jendrasko. “Hopefully we will do well in the Maine Cup this weekend.”

The other Maine schools that will take part in the Maine Cup are UMaine-Farmington, who also competed in the Beast of the East, Bowdoin, Bates, Colby and Maine Maritime Academy.

The teams will face off to decide Maine’s top team. The Black Bears played all five teams in the fall, and finished 0-5 on their fall season. They hope that their strong appearance in Rhode Island is a sign of good things to come.

Now those are not the questions players ask themselves before deciding to declare early into the NBA Draft, but maybe these are the things that they should consider.

Then again this may go to show why players leave college early, not so much because of their amount of talent but their lack of intelligence. By now everyone knows that the chances of North Carolina repeating as National Champions are about as good as the chances of 50 Cent winning that NAACP Image Award. This week, Ray Felton, Sean May and Marvin Williams all declared for the draft, which leaves Quentin Thomas as the only player who even started a game for UNC last season.

So they won a national championship. OK, they were probably one of the best recruiting classes Chapel Hill has ever seen, but they damn sure ain’t the brightest. All three along with Rashad McCants really have no business going into the NBA. No, this is not me hating on them, but it’s more or less, looking at reality.

See, for those of us who have actually been watching Carolina since the days when Kenny Smith was running the point instead of TNT, we know that three years ago, hell, even last season, this was not a team that would have had a single first-rounder. Now, you mean to tell me that they now have four guys, one of which came off the bench for most of the season ready to go at it in the NBA?

I know money is a wonderful thing but so is common sense. Felton realistically may be the only one who is ready. It’s safe to say that without Ray, that team does not function, and if you think I’m wrong, just ask Santa Clara. As for May, McCants and Marvin, stay in school. Take Marvin for example. There were times during the tournament when he was in the post, he couldn’t handle the ball.

My final reason for why none of these guys aren’t leaving is this: Roy Williams. In case these guys hadn’t noticed, it’s not as if Roy is a newcomer to the task of coaching awesome talent and making them better.

Plus, unlike most coaches today, Roy played at, coached at, lived at, breathed at and will probably die at Carolina. All the man has done everywhere he has gone, whether it be as an assistant to Dean Smith or taking over for Larry Brown at Kansas, has been grooming and winning with some of the game’s best talent.

So please Roy, for the love of Chapel Hill, stay at Carolina. The NBA will always be there but getting better at the game by learning from one of the game’s greatest minds, doesn’t happen that often.

UMaine split a double header at Hartford Sunday, winning 8-5 and losing 3-2 in the night cap. As of press time, game stats were unavailable.

Friday, UMaine toppled the Eagles in a marathon game that lasted three hours and 25 minutes. According to the New England College Baseball Coaches’ poll the game featured the top two teams in New England, The Black Bears were ranked second behind the Eagles, who topped the poll receiving all six first-place votes.

Sophomore Ross Cantara was the catalyst for UMaine, going 4-5 with six RBI. Cantara’s double in the top of the first plated senior Greg Creek and sophomore Joel Barrett to give the Black Bears the early 2-0 lead.

Cantara’s fireworks continued in the third, where he hit a three run homer to extend UMaine’s lead to 5-0. It was the first home run of Cantara’s career.

Boston College cut the lead to 5-4 in the fourth. Eagle senior Jason Delaney blasted his sixth homer of the season to make it 5-2, and made it 5-3 on senior Marco Albano’s RBI single. Albano then scored on an errant pick-off attempt by UMaine catcher Matt McGraw.

The Black Bears responded in the next inning by sending 12 men to the plate, and scoring eight runs on eight hits. UMaine loaded the bases on a pair of singles by Creek and Barrett, and junior Ryan Quintal was hit by a pitch. Cantara then hit an RBI single and McGraw walked to force home a run. Freshman Curt Smith, senior Mike Ferriggi, sophomore Steve Gambale and junior Joe Hough all had single RBIs in the inning, as the Black Bears took a commanding 13-4 lead.

The Eagles wouldn’t go down quietly though. They battled back in the bottom of the inning with 11 hitters. BC produced five runs on six hits, including a two-run double by Albano, cutting UMaine’s lead to 13-9. The Eagles plated three more in the bottom of the sixth, cutting UMaine’s lead to one.

Junior Scott Robinson stopped the bleeding, allowing just one hit over the final three innings to record his fourth save of the season for the Black Bears.

The Black Bears now stand at 21-11 on the season, 5-3 in America East play.

To most athletes, today would be an unexpected day off. Not so for Morgan. He steps into the competitors circle and stretches his fingers across the disc. Letting out a deep breath, his body tenses and he shuffles forward. With a grunt, he spins and lets loose a fury, sending the disc flying through the air.

Morgan is a crucial cog in the University of Maine Track and Field program. A native of South Berwick, Maine; Morgan has seen much success in his throwing career. He throws the shot, the discus and the hammer.

“I started track the outdoor season of my junior year,” said Morgan, a seven-year veteran of the track and field world.

Starting off as strictly a shot put performer, Morgan quickly found success in his new sport. His senior year he garnered an Indoor Western Maine Class B title. Overcoming injury, Morgan was able to throw the discus for a fifth place finish in the outdoor state meet that same year.

“The transition to college occurred at the 2000 Dartmouth relays, when I met Mark Lech. That day was the first time I had thrown the indoor weight, and after talking with Mark, I told him it was something I thought I would be very good at,” said Morgan. Morgan had the talent, will and dedication to compete at the Division I level, and this led him to be recruited to UMaine.

Morgan was drawn to track and field because of its purity. He spoke of how track is the purest of sports.

“Sometimes in team sports the best player can lose every game if his team stinks, but in track, the best man wins and is able to prove they were the best on that day,” said Morgan. “The winner always runs faster, jumps higher or throws farther than everyone else.”

It also makes it one of the most difficult in which to succeed. To Morgan, the hardest part is, “hitting that perfect throw that is going to go farther than all of my other throws. It is very mentally taxing to try and always perform at a level better than you have ever performed.” Once a track athlete reaches a certain plateau, say gets a personal record, the rejoice is quickly silenced by the fact that one can always be better. It is a very humbling experience.

Morgan has reacted well though and becoming a better athlete because of it. In just his sophomore year of college Morgan was able to boast two top-10 finishes in the weight throw, and a third place medal at the America East Championships. After his success, Morgan decided to try and throw hammer, discus and shot put. This is a regret in Morgan’s eyes, as he bit off too much at once and none of his events truly improved. He has rebounded over the past few years, however, and after a red shirt junior year and a successful senior year, his fifth year is going extraordinarily well. He was named the America East Male Field Performer of the Week for his performance during an indoor track meet against UNH, as well as the UMaine Male Student Athlete of the Week. In an amazing performance at the Indoor Conference Meet, Morgan placed second in the weight throw with a distance of 57 feet, 10 inches, a throw that also landed him as third best all time at the UMaine. For Morgan, it is a dream come true.

“I think that every athlete dreams of competing at the highest level they can, and for a college athlete, Division 1 is that level,” said Morgan.

Morgan is going to be concluding his final season as a UMaine track and field athlete, but is not leaving without having an incredible impact on the program, and being quite affected himself.

“UMaine track and field is what I lived for here during my time at UMaine,” said Morgan. “It was what I got up in the morning for, what I thought about in class, and what I dreamed of at night. If you truly want to do something, willing yourself can get you 90 percent of the way there.”

Morgan’s goal is to become a track and field coach at the Division 1 level and is starting off with becoming an assistant coach here at UMaine next year.

As Morgan prepares to end his athletic career and begin his coaching one, he leaves some advice for upcoming athletes.

“Work hard, work really hard,” said Morgan. “Savor the moments and make your memories worth remembering.”