NEWS IN BRIEF

Student Government senate vote to pass constitutional revisions

Revisions to the Student Government constitution, which were introduced have finally been passed by the senate. The revisions, which will introduce new, non-academic related senators to the senate, passed with a unanimous vote of 17-0 on Feb. 20.

02.07.23

A parking hangtag was stolen from a vehicle in Parking Lot 1.

02.08.23

An SIUE drone from the Engineering Building was lost.

02.10.23

A wallet was found in the MUC.

02.11.23

An egg was smashed on a vehicle in the Woodland Hall Parking Lot. There was no further damage to the vehicle reported.

02.13.23

A wallet was found in the MUC. A vehicle in the Prairie Hall Parking Lot was reportedly speeding and driving in loops. The vehicle was gone when the officer arrived.

02.15.23

A car reportedly drove by a student by Prairie Hall. The student thought the driver was yelling offensive things at them. After an officer arrived, it was revealed that the driver was a friend of the student, and it was a misunderstanding. A hit and run was reported in Parking Lot 9.

02.16.23

An offensive message was left on a desk in the Engineering Building. The message was removed and BIRT was notified.

New law allows Illinoisans to change sex on birth certificate without doctor’s affirmation

all universities and colleges compete. There were 21 competing schools this year. The staff won first place for Front Page Layout. Former Editor in Chief Alex Aultman won first place in the open division’s Headline Writing category for their headline “White tears were prioritized over Black pain” for a story about the handling of a racist and homophobic hazing incident on campus in 2021.

Managing Editor Gabriel Brady and former Sports Editor Brandon Wells won first place in the large school division’s new Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Coverage category.

“We don’t do it for the awards. I haven’t won any ICPA awards specifically in my name before. So, it’s nice on my way out that my work is recognized,” Managing Editor Gabe Brady said, adding that he is graduating in May.

Many of the staff’s collaborative efforts in 2022 were recognized. The staff won second place in the large school Opinion Pages category, third place in the Entertainment Supplement category for its Spring 2022 Metro East Eats: Donut edition and honorable mention in Feature Page Design for its Metro East Eats: Soup edition. The regular feature often does well in the entertainment supplement and design categories in state and national competitions.

The staff received an honorable mention in the large school division’s Entertainment and Culture Podcast category. Former Alestle Photographer Clair Sollenberger won third place in General News Photo in the large school division for a photo of campus protests about racial inequity.

Alestle Graduate Assistant Graphics Manager Kirsten O’Loughlin received honorable mention for Best Print Ad.

SPRINGFIELD – Illinoisans seeking to legally change the gender on their birth certificate will have an easier time under a new law signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker last week.

“Here in Illinois, we recognize that gender transition is a personal journey that doesn’t always follow a prescriptive medical path, but still deserves to be honored legally,” Pritzker said in a statement. “In a time of increasing violence and hateful rhetoric against the trans, nonbinary and gender non-conforming community, it is more important than ever to reaffirm our state’s commitment to recognizing the rights and dignity of LGBTQ+ Illinoisans.”

Under House Bill 9, which will take effect July 1, individuals will no longer need a medical professional to affirm they have undergone gender reassignment surgery or other clinical treatment in order to change their gender on their birth certificate. Once the change takes effect, they simply have to submit a statement expressing their intention to change their gender classification. Mike Ziri, director of public policy at Equality Illinois, said the policy change was important because individuals often do not have access to a provider and because providers sometimes refuse to consent to providing such a statement.

“The old requirement, it was a barrier to equality,” Ziri, whose organization worked on the bill with other advocacy groups, said. “Someone may not be able to afford a visit to a doctor, or there may not be an affirming provider.”

By removing the need of a health care professional to reaffirm an individual’s gender change status, the law makes it easier for a person’s documents to be consistent, according to a statement from state Sen. Laura Fine, D-Glenview, a lead sponsor on the bill.

The measure passed with only Democratic support in both chambers of the General Assembly. The law also waives the costs associated with acquiring a new birth certificate for previously incarcerated individuals, homeless people, youths under care of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, individuals under 27 who were previously in care and individuals living in domestic violence shelters.

“Access to your birth certificate will become a less onerous process for many Illinoisans, removing barriers for people who already face so many,” Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, D-Glenview, another lead sponsor on the bill, said in a statement.

A new birth certificate request usually costs $15, plus $2 for each additional copy. The law is the latest passed in Illinois that expands protections for transgender individuals, following protections for gender-affirming care and a measure allowing people previously convicted of felonies to change their name “due to marriage, religious beliefs, status as a victim of trafficking or gender-related identity.”

With the new law, Illinois joins 11 other states in allowing self-attestation of gender on birth certificates, according to Equality Illinois.

“We’re really excited that Illinois is moving on this issue on the topic of birth certificates into those ranks of those affirming states,” Ziri said.

WOLFE photographer

Many people visit the campus Quad weekly. Occasionally the sound of a fiddle can be heard across campus. But where is the music coming from?

James Trevarthan is a computer science graduate student and he began fiddling when he was only 9-years-old.

“There was this guy on PBS called André Rieu, and he was playing the violin,” Trevarthan said. “He played this tune called ‘Irish Washerwoman’ and I was like, that’s really cool, I want to play that. And I didn’t realize at the time that it took a lot of work to get to that point.”

Trevarthan began classes as soon as he could. He described pestering his teacher to teach him “Irish Washerwoman” but was told he “had to learn the notes first.”

Now, Trevarthan can play both the fiddle and the violin. Which are the same instrument, just played differently. He said that the way you move your wrists while playing makes all the difference. Notes are played differently as well.

Now, Trevarthan can play multiple types of music.

“So I started classical,” Trevarthan said. “I still occasionally play it. I play Irish, oldtime or bluegrass some people call it. I was part of an orchestra and we would do stuff from Harry Potter, Star Wars and all sorts of things.”

Before going to college, Trevarthan struggled with what he wanted to study.

“It was either physics or music,” Trevarthan said, “It’s been so long. I think I might have just chosen physics because I was afraid I wasn’t gonna be able to sustain myself on music.”

While he chose science over music, he still believes that music plays a big role in his work, as well as all of STEM.

“It’s strange,” Trevarthan said. “A lot of engineers turn out to be musicians. I don’t know if music rewires your brain-like music is all beats and counting

At one time, Trevarthan hoped to start a “jam session” where different musicians would bring music to play so that others could learn the songs along with them.

“I think it’s important to play an instrument or even enjoy music, because it just brings joy and you know, having more music around is never a bad thing,” Trevarthan said.

Trevarthan first began fiddling on the Quad in the spring of 2022 as a way to gain more confidence.

“I used to be really scared of playing in public,” Trevarthan said. “So the only way to get over that fear was playing in public. And so I keep doing it because I still always have a little bit of nervousness.”

As he kept playing in the Quad, Trevarthan noticed that people liked it.

“I’m just glad that I can bring a little bit of joy, that makes me happy,” Trevarthan said. “It’s always cool when suddenly somebody just starts clapping. I’m like, ‘Oh, I didn’t even realize that they sat down.’” and that’s math.”

To reach more people Trevarthan prefers to play mid-day in between classes.

“I try to play when people are going to be crossing through because then they can hear it as they’re walking to the next class,” Trevarthan said.

Trevarthan usually plays his favorite styles, old-time and Irish, while out in the Quad, but he plans to start playing jazz and swing.

He also described playing the violin as a way for him to decompress, which was another reason he was worried about majoring in music for college.

For his undergraduate, Trevarthan attended Eastern Illinois University where he studied physics with a specificity in aerospace engineering. After graduating, Trevarthan began working as a librarian, until parts of his job became automated.

“I was kind of like, ‘Oh, work within libraries as the Grad Assistant at Lovejoy Library.

Despite his interest in music, Trevarthan is attending SIUE to receive a master’s degree in computer science. | Chloe Wolfe / The Alestle cool. Where do I go from here?’” Trevarthan said. “Then I was like, ‘Go to computer science because there’s a lot of jobs in there and there’s less likelihood that it will get automated away again.’”

Trevarthan ended up at SIUE where he is currently working on his master’s in computer science. He also continued his

Although he is not involved with the music department on campus, he combined his job and passion last semester when he organized a concert in the library during finals week, which he hopes to be able to do again this semester.

“I was worried that if I did it all the time, I would start hating it. I don’t want to hate playing music,” Trevarthan said.

As the weather gets warmer, Trevarthan hopes to continue playing in the Quad until he graduates in the fall semester of 2023.

“Whenever I feel sad or anything, music has just carried me through my life. It’s like a foundation,” Trevarthan said.