The Alestle Vol. 75 No.12

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THE

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Student studying language of COVID-19 receives tuition waiver award

SIUE band performs in Granite City to promote the arts

Women’s soccer takes home six OVC titles

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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

the student voice since 1960

Thursday, November 18, 2021 Vol. 75 No. 12

News in brief SIUE investigates reports of racism at Kappa Sigma

At Delta Chi’s Car Smash event, undecided freshmen Raquel Robinson (front) and Alyssa Wilson (back) of St. Louis, hit a donated car with sledgehammers. I Alex Aultman / The Alestle

Former congressman John Shimkus donates all of his career documents to Lovejoy Library GABE BRADY lifestyles editor

John Shimkus has had a varied career as a soldier, teacher and Congressman. “I was very fortunate to go to a military school, so once you do that, you have to serve, which I did,” Shimkus said. “I stayed in the military. I moved back to teach. I always wanted to teach high school, and I got a chance to do that for four years, and then I segued into trying to serve in political office.” Now, he is donating all of his documents from his political career to the Lovejoy Library here on the SIUE campus. “My family has a very close connection with the university. I went and got my master’s here, my wife got her master’s ... It’s like home, and so this is where they should be,” Shimkus said. Lovejoy Library Dean Lis Pankl is extremely grateful to Congressman Shimkus for donating his documents, hoping that they can be helpful in the future. “SIUE and the Lovejoy Library are honored to preserve the John Shimkus Congressional Collection and make this historic material available to students, the region and the world,” Pankl said. The John Shimkus Congressional Collection consists of photographs, records, and communications throughout the entirety of Shimkus’s political career. In a recent seminar, SIUE Chancellor Randy Pembrook interviewed Shimkus about his time in office and his life in public service. “At the heart of Congressman Shimkus, you will find a public servant that never forgot his small town roots and still possesses a positive view of our country,”

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Former U.S. Rep. John Shimkus donated documents from his political career to Lovejoy Library, dubbed the John Shimkus Congressional Collection. I Clair Sollenberger / The Alestle

Pembrook said. “The work Congressman Shimkus is most proud of includes passing bills that ensured every cell phone could dial 911 in an emergency, placing heart defibrillators in schools, and updating regulations regarding toxic substances.” After giving a brief biography of Shimkus’s life, Pembrook asked what inspired Shimkus to choose politics as a career path. “I was always involved in student government. I was student president of the eighth grade class, I was involved tons in high school. We had a great class rep program, along with the student council there,” Shimkus said. “So, working with people and getting along with people has always been part of the deal.” Shimkus is teaching a Political Sci-

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ence class at SIUE. He says he uses stories from his time in Congress to teach his students. “Well, my students know,” Shimkus said. “They heard me say that when you’re a member of Congress, you get assigned to a committee, and that’s kind of where you become a subject matter expert. There’s a lot of things you want to do and there’s some offsets of things that you can do, but I was able to go on the Energy and Commerce Committee, so that kind of directs the work you can do in energy, healthcare, telecommunications, environment issues.” Shimkus said that he’s truly most proud of the aforementioned bills that he had gotten passed.

SIUE officials are investigating reports that a campus fraternity harassed and hazed a Black student pledging the fraternity with racist and homophobic slurs. Arluan Van Hook, 18, of St. Louis told The Grio that he has to be escorted on campus by a police officer, after reporting Kappa Sigma’s SIUE chapter to the university in October and receiving threatening phone calls. SIUE’s Bias Incident Response Team issued a statement Tuesday that said they have been investigating since Van Hook filed the complaint in October, issuing a no-contact order between Van Hook and all members of Kappa Sigma. The fraternity has been placed on a cease and desist, and Van Hook was offered the chance to change living arrangements on campus. According to The Grio, however, he opted to move back home to St. Louis. “We regret that this student has felt unsafe due to this disrespectful behavior,” the statement read. “Actions of this nature are unacceptable and have no place at SIUE.” The SIUE Interfraternity Council also released a statement condemning the frat members’ behavior, as well as racism, homophobia and hazing in general – while recognizing that fraternities have “well-documented historical roots” in such practices. “We commit to doing our due diligence of speaking up and speaking out when we have borne witness to or made aware of such incidents,” the statement read, while calling on the administration to “fill these gaps in accountability.” In its statement, IFC apologized for the harm that has been caused, while recognizing that apologies may not be enough. “We understand that to create lasting and impactful changes in our community, we must be committed to becoming more knowledgeable about our history, individual implicit biases, and acknowledge privileges that can create inequities,” the statement read. Kappa Sigma’s national leaders told The Grio that the frat has suspended six members of the SIUE chapter. A hearing on the issue is expected to take place Thursday.

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BY THE NUMBERS

COVID-19 at SIUE

New confirmed positive cases (from tests conducted by SIUE and self-reporting):

Nov. 5 - Nov. 11: 16 students, 2 faculty/staff Oct. 29 - Nov. 4: 9 students, 0 faculty/staff

14-day new positive tests: 25 students, 2 faculty/staff All prior weeks positive tests (Aug. 6 - Oct. 28): 192 students, 36 faculty/staff Total positive cases: 217 students, 38 faculty/staff

Thursday, 11.18.21

Madison County confirmed cases by day

225 200 175 150 125 100 75 50 25 0

11.09.21 7

NOV

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

Source: Madison County Health Department COVID-19 Dashboard under the Cases by Day tab as of Nov. 16

Percentage of isolation/quarantine space available on campus (as of November 16): 100 percent Source: Health, Reporting, and Testing page on SIUE’s COVID-19 website, as of Nov. 16

Tests conducted by SIUE Nov. 5 - Nov. 11: 1,739

COVID-19’S impact on Madison County

14-day new tests conducted: 3,568

All of Illinois’ regions remain under Phase 5, which went into

Oct. 29 - Nov. 4: 1,829

All prior weeks tests conducted (Aug. 6 - Oct. 28): 20,133

health and hygiene practices permanently in place: • •

Positive cases identified by SIUE testing: Nov. 5 - Nov. 11: 12 Oct. 29 - Nov. 4: 7

All prior weeks positive cases (Aug. 6 - Oct. 28): 157 Total: 176

• •

Large gatherings of all sizes can resume. All sectors of the economy reopen with businesses, schools and recreation resuming normal operations with new safety guidance and procedures. Conventions, festivals and large events can take place. On June 30, Illinois returned to mandated masks indoors regardless of vaccination status. Source: dph.illinois.gov

| Kirsten O’Loughlin / The Alestle

Graduate student studies language of COVID-19

SHIMKUS I COVER

“The one that my students hear me talk about all the time is the Toxic Substances Control Act,” Shimkus said. “That was a bill that took five and a half years. President Obama signed it.” As a Congressman, Shimkus has met all kinds of people working in government, including a few Presidents. He was even in office when George H.W. Bush

11.10.21

Officer assisted Edwardsville PD with traffic control on a traffic stop. Officer assisted Metropolitan Enforcement Group of Southwestern Illinois with locating a subject. Officer provided information to a resident about how to obtain a Order of Protection.

11.11.21

Officer assisted Edwardsville PD with traffic control on a traffic stop.

FRANCESCA BOSTON reporter

The Competitive Graduate Award, which waive tuition for a year and comes with a $984 stipend, were given to 19 students this year from a variety of disciplines. One of the recipients was Kayode Amusan, a graduate student from Nigeria studying linguistics. He is currently studying the language of COVID-19 and what linguistics strategies that were and are being used by political leaders, scientists and everyday citizens. “Initially when COVID started, there were lots of leaders of the world and they were perplexed as to the dangers, there were lockdowns everywhere,” Amusan said. “I was very much on Twitter and Facebook and there were lots of discussions going on. So I discovered the fact that many people were projecting their thoughts using different linguistic strategies.” Amusan said he realized that people were speaking about the virus as though it was some kind of enemy and using language of “attacking” the virus, approaching the conversation using metaphors to describe the virus. He plans on studying speeches from current and former presidents, governors and other officials, to see what metaphors and other figures of speech are being used when talking about the pandemic. “The approach towards the virus was a kind of war,” Amusan said. “The virus is an enemy, and the approach to combat, it’s like a war, so they have launched a war against the enemy. In a nutshell, my topic is communicating language during COVID-19, looking at the use of various linguistic strategies to communicate meaning.” Amusan studied in Nigeria for his undergraduate and has received a master’s from the University of Ibadan in English language. He is currently working on his second master’s here in the United States. Jill Smucker, director of graduate studies, said the Competitive Graduate Award is given to students who have

Officer took a report regarding two male subjects writing with chalk on the sidewalk about job opportunities at the Woodland Residence Hall Circle.

effect June 11. All sectors of the economy reopened with new

Total tests conducted: 23,701

14-day new positive cases: 19

Officer took a report regarding a student receiving a job opportunity scam email at Woodland Residence Hall.

Officer took a report regarding equality stickers being placed on a trash can near Parking Lot 10. Officer assisted Edwardsville PD with crowd control on an incident in their venue.

11.12.21

Person was arrested by Wood River PD on an SIUE Warrant for Failure to Appear – Driving on a Suspended Driver’s License. SIUE Officer served the warrant at Alton PD due to Alton PD having charges against subject.

Denise Cobb, provost and vice-chancellor for student affairs (right) and Jerry Weinberg, associate provost for research and dean of the graduate school (left) awarded Kayode Amusan (center) the Competitive Graduate Award. | Howard Ashes / University Marketing and Communications

written up a research proposal, worked with a mentor at the university and who are highly qualified. Students are given a 10-hour a week research assistantship position, which includes the waived tuition and stipend. “Another piece of it is that students who received the CGA are then asked to present the results of their research during our spring symposium, which happens in early April every year. It provides them with an opportunity to share with the campus community the goals and status and results of their research projects,” Smucker said. Larry LaFond, a linguist professor in the English department, is Amusan’s mentor for his graduate studies. He said that Amusan sought him out as a mentor a while ago before coming to SIUE and he has enjoyed working with him.

“We’ve had a good working relationship. Victor [Amusan] is very self motivated and had this idea for this project from the beginning, and it’s interesting questions that he’s asking. We have worked together back and forth with him producing drafts and coming up with research designs, and it’s gone quite well,” LaFond said. Amusan and LaFond plan on completing a rough draft by the end of the winter semester with the hopes of publishing at the end of the spring semester. “Our intent is not to have it completed by the end of the semester, but to at least have a draft of the paper, and then working in the spring on revising, filling in gaps or making corrections and then possibly sending it out for publication. That’s kind of the scope of what we’re going for,” LaFond said.

passed away. “I was in Lambert. It was the year that George H.W. Bush passed away. I was going to Washington D.C. We were arranging a reception there, and so I was in the airport and I look up and Congressman Shimkus is across the aisle, ready to get on the plane. We had met each other a couple of times, so we kind of wave to each other and he got up and said, ‘So you’re going to D.C., huh?’” Pembrook said. “We go in-

side, and he gives me a tour of the whole Congress building, I mean, he took a couple of hours and just walked me around.” Pembrook said Shimkus arranged for him to attend former President Bush’s viewing and pay his respects. “I will never forget that kindness,” Pembrook said. “Here is a guy who just really appreciates the constituency, and works hard for them, and shows every kind of kindness.”

Officer took a report of a sweatshirt being stolen at Prairie Residence Hall.

11.13.21

Officer assisted Edwardsville PD with crowd control on a call in their venue. Officer assisted Edwardsville PD with crowd control on a possible fight. Officer took a report of a student receiving an email from a subject that was talking about drugs. Officer assisted Edwardsville PD with searching a female subject.

11.14.21

Officer assisted Pontoon Beach on trying to located a vehicle. Officer advised vehicle was not located. Officer assisted Housing with speaking with roommates regarding non-criminal incidents that were occurring at Prairie Residence Hall. Officer responded to a report of a suspicious odor of cannabis at Woodland Residence Hall. Officer advised there was not a smell of cannabis.


Thursday, 11.18.21

alestlelive.com

GABRIEL BRADY lifestyles editor

With over 14,000 students at SIUE, there’s a very diverse and interesting population of people who go to school here. So, The Alestle has decided to begin to highlight some of those students with a recurring column — Cougars in the Wild. Tylor Dove, a graduate student in sociology from Winfield, Missouri, has been involved in fighting against the climate crisis for a long time. Dove said he got involved in the issue through volunteering and working with many different environmentalism organizations. “I worked for about eight months with the Sierra Club, which is the United States’ largest conservation organization. I previously was a community organizer for the Clean Energy Jobs Act, which basically focused on making sure communities of color were being represented fairly in the discussion of [the] environment, and also making sure those underserved communities were the first ones to get access to sustainable businesses, like solar panels,” Dove said. “They would be the first ones asked to go in and install and operate them.” According to Dove, he feels particularly connected to the Sunrise Movement, since he started a chapter of it at SIUE. “Beyond that, I was really introduced to environmental issues and how impactful they are on people by an organization called the Sunrise Movement, which is a youth-led organization. The biggest population of theirs is from [ages] 16-25, and they are now a national organization with chapters all across the country in plenty of major cities,” said Dove. “They work really closely with people like [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] and [Sen.] Bernie Sanders.” Although support from politicians for these groups is vital, Dove said he wishes it wasn’t necessary in order to make these issues heard. “Most of my work has been political work, but things like the climate crisis shouldn’t really be a political topic since it’s based on science,” Dove said. “It’s just really bizarre that it’s still debated upon, whether or not it’s factual, when we see real life consequences of our actions.” According to Dove, bringing people together for a cause and building those connections is crucial for an issue like environmentalism. “With Sunrise, we started a chapter at this school, with a focus on education and outreach, as well as voters’ rights issues, like building up young people’s voices,” Dove said. “I did a lot of community-building like that with the Sierra

Sociology graduate student Tylor Dove, though a passion for environmentalism, started a chapter of the Sunrise Movement on campus, who advocates for global warming. | Clair Sollenberger / The Alestle

Club as well, in cities like Roxana, East St. Louis and Alton.” This concept of community was something that Dove said he learned from the sociology department at SIUE. “In general, I would say that the sociology department is a very community-based staff on this campus. Everything there is structured around the idea of wanting to build students into being successful, and I would say people like [Assistant Professor] Corey Stevens and

[Instructor] Megan Arnett, they’re very focused on empowering young voices and challenging them,” Dove said. “Both of them have really pushed me to be like a young professional, and to try and make change.” However, Dove also said starting the SIUE chapter of the Sunrise Movement was not a completely simple process. “I think that beyond just the bureaucracy of setting up an organization, which is usually somewhat straightforward, the

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biggest issues that me and my friends had when bringing the organization here is just that this campus isn’t super involved when it comes to organizations,” Dove said. “In general, I think the campus isn’t too friendly when it comes to things like direct, nonviolent action or political work.” Dove said another hurdle that the Sunrise Movement had to tackle was the COVID-19 pandemic, since the Sunrise Movement at SIUE was started in the spring of 2020. “It’s very hard to have an organization that’s very much built to be within the community, like working with people face-to-face, going fully remote. That’s a challenge,” Dove said. “This past semester, we’ve been working a lot on rebuilding and rebranding.” With the organization rebuilding, Dove said it’s also nice to see SIUE rebuilding — not just to repair from COVID-19, but to also create new solutions for climate change. “I think SIUE’s on the track to do much better. There’s the Climate and Sustainability Advisory Board that’s been more active in the past few years and just made sure there was more of a push for these issues,” Dove said. “In general, I think SIUE could be doing a lot more, like with carbon offsetting and putting a lot more resources into doing that, especially with institutions all across Illinois that are doing that right now.” As for post-graduation plans, Dove said it’s not fully fleshed out yet, but he wants to keep working on the climate crisis. “I would love to run for public office in the future. Before then, though, I would love to do work with the United Nations in work with the environment, or work with the Peace Corps when it comes to sustainability in other countries,” Dove said. “I have really no idea, I just know that I want to be in communities that I’m helping, and work with people.” In order to enact change, and handle the climate crisis head-on, Dove said we’re at an important point. If people want to change, the best way to get it is to make sure they’re being heard. “I think one of the biggest things that people fail to realize is how much your voice matters. Like, literally just calling your representative in your district and telling them how much these bills and issues of climate really matter to you really does say a lot, especially among young people,” Dove said. “This is a pivotal moment in history, and in students’ lives at a university. I think now is the best time to just be involved and actually speak your truth and challenge power when it comes to these issues.”


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contact the editor: lifestyles@alestlelive.com 650-3527 Thursday, 11.18.21

With jack-o’-lanterns beginning to rot, there is a need for somewhere to dispose of the decomposing gourds. Luckily, Student Government had a solution, with their Pumpkin Smash, which promoted disposal of pumpkins, giving back to nature and community. | Pumpkin Smash photos by Clair Sollenberger/ The Alestle

Paige Sheedy (left), a freshman in biology from Morrisonville Illinois, destroys the pumpkin pitched at her.

Sheedy (right) and Riley Brown (left), a biology freshman from Morrisonville, Illinois, use hammers to smash the pumpkins.

Shawn Gilles, a graduate student in computer science from Troy, Illinois, whacks an already demolished pumpkin into even smaller pieces.

The deer on SIUE’s campus enjoy eating some grass and hopefully the pumpkins later on. According to North American Whitetail magazine, deer typically eat seeds, like the ones in pumpkins.


Thursday, 11.18.21

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SIUE Steel performs with Age of Treachery to raise awareness for musical arts in Granite City NICOLE BOYD social media manager

The SIUE steel drum band opened at the Alfresco Performing Arts Center in Granite City, Illinois, for classic rock band Age and Treachery, in an event for the Missouri Illinois Musical Arts Consortium. Bryson Collier, a senior music education major from Bloomington, Illinois, plays the drum set for the band. Collier said he thought the performance went well. “I think it’s always a good time to get to come out and play. Hopefully next year we would be happy with more of a large size crowd,” Collier said. Collier said he thinks live musical performances like theirs raise awareness for the arts. “In times like these there are [some] trying to cut programs. So the more [we’re] out here, the more they can see us, [the] more arts can stay in our school,” Collier said. Dan Smithiger, percussion director and co-founder and president of MIMAC, said the band performed at the Alfresco as part of their calendar of events throughout the greater St. Louis area. According to Smithiger, the events include ensembles, individuals and festivals. “We’re planning a vocal festival, actually here at SIUE in February, co-sponsored by MIMAC. We did a marching percussion festival, which was cosponsored by MIMAC and we’ve got other festivals in the works in the planning stages,” Smithiger said. “We also host recitals or clinics, or just partnering with other organizations, just on music of all types.” Smithiger said he started MIMAC because he wanted an organization to fund and promote the musical arts, and the performance was part of their concert series. According to Smithiger, the performance was originally scheduled for September, but had to be rescheduled due to a break-in. “What I’m trying to do is do things in the various parts of the area. We started in Troy and then in July I did my recital out [at] Grace St. Louis Church,” Smithiger said. “We had a marching competition in Granite City.” Joe Cacciottoli, stage name Dirty Giuseppe, is the frontman of Age and Treachery. Cacciottoli said the band mostly plays

Age and Treachery have been performing in the comminity for a long time, and they are pictured here performing at the Alfresco Performing Arts Center in Granite City, Illinois this past weekend. | Nicole Boyd / The Alestle benefit gigs, as they like to play original “We just said, ‘Hey, let’s just play material. Cacciottoli played alongside his and see what happens.’ Then we startwife, Queen Anne, who plays the rhythm ed to play and then when the three of us finished, we’re guitar, and like, ‘Wow, that bass player Mark sounds pretty Landon. good.’ I think “My influwe all had a ences are basigood time and cally [the] blues everybody in and classic rock. the audience I kind of cut my seemed to be teeth back in smiling,” Cacciottoli said. the ‘70s, with Cacciottoli a lot of guitar said he thinks band type stuff, it’s cool to so we’re heavy see people of on the guitar,” all ages enjoyCacciottoli said. JOE CACCIOTTOLI ing his music, C a c c i - frontman of Age and Treachery as music cuts ottoli said across cultural they were more unplugged than usu- and socioeconomic status. al because the Alfresco had lost “We all come together and that’s some of their sound equipment what [the] Community Center is all during the break-in. about, is a place for coming together and

“We all come together and that’s what [the] Community Center is all about, is a place for coming together and forgetting your differences and focusing on your commonalities

forgetting your differences and focusing on your commonalities,” Cacciottoli said. “We all are humans and we all have a lot in common, let’s celebrate that.” Chuck Noud, a member of the board of directors for the Alfresco Center and band director for the junior high school, said MIMAC was looking for venues for their monthly performance. “Alfresco came up as a place for us to perform because it’s a wonderful venue, and I try a lot of times to bring groups to that venue, to showcase and to get more people to spend some time in downtown Granite City,” Noud said. Noud said he was taken aback by realizing he hadn’t listened to live music in a year and a half. “Obviously music is a part of everyday life for a lot of people, but actually sitting and listening to someone performing live, there’s nothing quite like that,” Noud said. “Forwarding that opportunity to as many communities as possible is only going to further musical experiences that people are able to have.”

The concert had to be rescheduled due to a break-in at the Alfresco Performing Arts Center, but the concert eventually happened, featuring the SIUE Steel Band, pictured here. | Nicole Boyd / The Alestle


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ALEX AULTMAN Editor-in-Chief

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Registering for classes shouldn’t be a headache

THE ALESTLE STAFF editorial board

Registering for classes is not fun, and during a pandemic where Wi-Fi is widely in use and classrooms are shrunk, trying to register now can be even more stressful. The Fall 2021 semester has been rough in terms of wifi, leading to rough registration and crashes. Among the numerous complaints against virtual infrastructure, one of them comes from the issues surrounding registration for classes with constant crashing and glitches. Honors students in particular have been hit by this issue multiple times, due to the nature of their registration compared to other students. As a part of the honors program, students would register early to get into their classes, but due to a limited number of spots in these classes available, stu-

dents who have technical difficulties have to have their schedules forcibly rearranged. Although the process has varied across majors, the common trend amongst these students has been concern about not getting into their classes because of the limited space available, or because of technical difficulties. As with standard registration, honors students also struggle from early morning crashes due to hundreds of students trying to register for classes at once. This can cause classes that have already been checked off by the student to potentially not be finalized because the process didn’t go through and someone might have taken the spot. This can happen with all classes on Cougarnet due to glitches, but this issue is especially bad when all honors students are competing to get into the same or similar classes.

When Wi-Fi or servers fail during the registration process, it’s understandable that it causes unneeded headaches. What could take even a few minutes to resolve and reload could take away the possibility for someone to register for a class because of the high volume of students registering for the same class. When these issues can lead to a struggle to get into classes required to graduate, a bigger problem emerges. Due to the honors curriculum, students have to be able to get into honors classes that are required for them to graduate. If they’re not able to, they have to take them during different times through their college career, which might result in not being able to get into other classes and then the process continues. STEM students suffer more stress from this as well, with students kept out of needed class-

es, and with the honors process also having its own issues related to registration, students ended up being waitlisted. Honors classes as a whole need to have more spots open, but all students need better registration processes. Not all students can get into the classes they need to graduate, and due to some fields having higher numbers of students, having limited classes can be a problem. With technical issues related to server stability being a common issue with registration, it’s clear SIUE should invest more money into server stability to handle the massive influx of students on all registration days. With limited space for all classes, we at The Alestle believe registration as a whole needs to improve and the server stability for registration shouldn’t stop students from getting into the classes they need.

we are introduced to the program during freshman year, leading to social exclusion for other students. Some students are also alienated by the ‘honors’ moniker due to experiences with high school honors classes. The program should have a name that is more representative of its goals. One issue is that the honors program lacks non-traditional students, which feels counterintuitive to the program’s mission. The program that seeks to embrace diversity, inclusion and to expose us to a variety of experiences and viewpoints, only recruits 17 to 18 year-olds. There have been so many discussions in my honors classes that would have benefited from the input of someone who was coming back to school after a few years — even a student parent. The honors program has had issues with classism as well. In one course, our professor expected us to buy seven books out of pocket for the class, at a school where textbooks being included in tuition is a selling point for

many. Not everyone can afford to buy seven separate books, even with the used copies in the Cougar Store. Students were also expected to get the exact version the professor was using, which is difficult when classic novels have many different versions that some students may already have. It’s not reasonable to expect them to buy another copy. I’ve also had a professor in the honors program go on rants against audiobooks and ebooks, even prohibiting us from bringing them to class because it’s not the experience of reading a real book. There are numerous issues with that. Personally, I use audiobooks as an accommodation for my ADHD and not being able to use them would harm my ability to learn. Audiobooks and ebooks are also cheaper in most instances. It would be easier for a lower-income student to obtain those than seek out physical copies. They also save space when you’re stuck in a tiny dorm room or apartment, as is the nature of college living. While these are isolated in-

stances, they’re just a couple examples of the overarching issues with classism and ableism within the University Honors Program. However, things don’t have to be like this and there are tangible ways for students and faculty to improve the program. Honors students, get to know people outside of your friend group — whether those students are in the honors program or not. Make an effort to know them instead of just knowing of them. The diversity of experiences is supposed to be what we’re all about, so make an effort to include others. Honors faculty and administrators need to take the issues outlined above into consideration. Non-traditional students should be allowed into the honors curriculum and recruited like any other student. That principle of diversity and inclusion should be put into practice by considering the needs and abilities of the students as well. In accordance with the principles of a liberal education, it should be accessible to all.

The University Honors Program has to change its environment ALEX AULTMAN editor-in-chief

For those who are unaware, the University Honors Program is an academic program that provides alternatives to gen-eds through socratic seminars and other discussion based classes. Its goal is to teach students — through a liberal education — how to be a good citizen and challenge ourselves. While that is a noble goal, in practice it has excluded certain types of students and perpetuated inequalities — whether that is through the social culture or the rules of the program itself. The name of the program itself is an issue. Having classes for ‘honors students’ feels very high school which is reflected in the attitudes of some of my peers and the faculty. There is also an air of superiority and pretentiousness that comes with the position. We’re told we’re special. We get matching shirts and priority registration. It doesn’t take long for cliques to form, especially when


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Women’s soccer earns six OVC titles

FRANCESCA BOSTON reporter

The women’s soccer team brought home several Ohio Valley Conference awards, including two players winning Player of the Year awards and two freshman earning spots on the All-Newcomer team. The team had six players earn the OVC player spots. Four of the players earned a spot on the AllOVC First Team Andrea Frerker, a fifth-year midfielder, MacKenzie Litzsinger, a senior forward, Lily Schnieders, a redshirt sophomore, and Maria Haro, a junior forward. While two other players earned a spot on the All-Newcomer Team, Kaitlyn Nichols, a freshman forward, and Grace Cobb, a freshman midfielder. Frerker was awarded OVC Midfielder of the Year, while Litzsinger was awarded OVC Forward of the Year. Frerker has played for the Cougars for five years, and is well deserving of the OVC Midfielder of the Year award, according to Derek Burton, Head Coach of the women’s soccer team. Frerker is the first women’s soccer player to earn the OVC Midfielder of the Year at SIUE. “[She] does everything well. She’s the ultimate leader. In terms of example [and] just one of the hardest working players I’ve ever coached. She has a ton of ability to get out of trouble and beat defenders which really opens up the game for the rest of [her] team,” Burton said. Frerker said it feels good to get recognition for individual work and knowing all her hard work has paid off, but ultimately her value to the team matters the most. “But in the end, when we’re

out there playing, we’re playing for each other and the individual recognition kind of goes behind us. Just to say that feeling of winning OVC [Championship game], nothing compared to that feeling over an individual award any day. The team atmosphere, the team love, that’s really what pushes us to want to succeed in future games,” Frerker said. Litzsinger was awarded the OVC Forward of the year becoming the first ever student athlete in the OVC to ever win the award twice in a row as well as her second ever spot on the OVC-First Team. Burton said Litzsinger has the ability to create scoring opportunities for other people while still having the skill to score herself. “MacKenzie [Litzsinger] obviously goes [to] score. She brings just relentless pursuit of scoring and creating scoring opportunities to the field,” Burton said. Schnieders was one of the players on the OVC-First Team as well. This is the first time she has been awarded this honor. “Lily [Schnieders] is just a really good facilitator. She has a great feel for the game. She’s able to get other people involved and create scoring opportunities. She possesses a tremendous shot, tremendous finishing ability,” Burton said. Haro was also awarded OVC-First team for the first time in her career, after a season with five goals and numerous assists. “She [has] really blossomed the last six months and been super effective in terms of how she attacks the other team,” Burton said. Two newcomers on the team were also awarded a spot on the

All-Newcomer team. Cobb and Nichols have earned their first OVC recognition this year. Burton said both girls have really adapted well to the game and have really supported the team this season. “Kaitlyn [Nichols] grew into more of a role of work and understanding as a year went along and scored some big goals for us down the stretch. Grace [Cobb] has really just jumped on board with what it takes to be a midfielder and be effective in our team with her work, just relentless pursuit of the ball, really high energy, high motor type of player,” Burton said. Cobb said that while it’s a great accomplishment to make the All-Newcomer Team, she wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support of her teammates. “I want to give a lot of credit to our upperclassmen because they

really helped mentor me. Without them, I just don’t think that that would have been possible because they just showed us and communicated really well what the team expectations are and what to do on the field,” Cobb said. Burton said he is happy his players are getting recognition and that success as a team usually brings the spotlight to more players individually, but that team goals are the most important. “Every year you have people that from within our program, who we know are super influential and very impactful and great players, but don’t get the recognition they deserve. But when you have a year like we did, finish co-champs usually that helps bring the spotlight to more people. That being said, I think we still had some players that didn’t get the recognition that they deserve,” Burton said.

Senior defenseman Corban McAvinew from Canal Fulton, Ohio, said the team handled setbacks well. “We bounce back really well when we faced adversity. We had a lot of difficult games and setbacks, but were able to get some really positive performances and never gave up,” McAvinew said. McAvinew said one of the team’s strengths is their ability to possess the ball. “We have a very technical team that is always looking to play on the ground and it allows us to see a lot of the ball,” McAvinew said. Sophomore defenseman Max Broughton from Rawtenstall, England, said there were specific plays that stood out to him about the loss to Bradley. “The penalties we should’ve been given stand out to me, as well as the tackles I made,” Broughton said. For McAvinew, there was one particular part of the game that stood out to him.

“Bradley made some crucial saves in the first half that could have changed the course of the game. In the second half, we had a good goal immediately following Bradley’s goal to equalize. For myself, this goal was assisted by me, so it particularly stood out,” McAvinew said. McAvinew said his experience playing for SIUE is something he will remember. “The thing I will miss the most is the camaraderie of the team and just going out and being able to compete with my friends every day. The trips and experiences will always be remembered,” McAvinew said. Broughton said he is excited about next season. “I look forward to meeting new players and creating a new team,” Broughton said. Wassermann looks forward to the spring season, which hasn’t happened in a while. “We haven’t had a true spring season in the last two years. I’ve only been here for about two and a half years so most of my

time being here we haven’t had the opportunity to have a spring season. For me, the spring is a huge opportunity for building team cohesion, training and individual and small group development,” Wassermann said. Wassermann said his team’s goals will remain the same going into next season. “People might think after a year like this, that the goals should change and you should lower your standards, but really for us, we aren’t satisfied. So, our goals will remain the same. We want to compete, our goal is to make a run at the National Championship and be in the NCAA tournament, to give ourselves a chance to do so,” Wassermann said. “I think we should be a team that is competing for the Missouri Valley Championship every year. We finished third this year even battling through some adversity. So our hope is that we are competing next year for the Missouri Valley championship and that starts today.”

ANDREA FRERKER

The SIUE Men’s soccer team took a tough loss at home in the Missouri Valley Conference quarterfinals against Bradley, losing 2-1. Head Coach Cale Wassermann, said the team’s ability to handle adversity is one of the things that stood out to him about the season. “We don’t really make excuses so, at the end of the day, we’re a little disappointed with how the season went. However, we had like five to six starters or key contributing guys out injured for a lot of the year. We had quite a short-handed group, and even with that adversity, we lost eight games by one goal,” Wassermann said. “Our guys never backed down, they continued to fight, they continued to push. They fought through a lot of adversity, and I’m proud of that because I think other groups might have buckled.”

PAGE 8

SIUE STANDINGS WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

OVC Midfielder of the Year

OVERALL OVC

SIUE Murray State UT Martin Belmont Tennessee Tech Southeast Missouri Austin Peay Eastern Illinois Morehead State Tennessee State

MACKENZIE LITZSINGER OVC Forward of the Year

LILY SCHNIEDERS All-OVC First Team

Maria Haro

All-OVC First Team

0-2 2-1 2-1 2-1 2-0 1-1 2-1 1-0 0-1 2-1

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Grace Cobb

OVERALL OVC

AVC All-Newcomer Squad

Kaitlyn Nichols

OVC All-Newcomer Squad

| Kirsten O’Loughlin / The Alestle

Men’s Soccer ends season with tough quarterfinals loss ANDREW CROWDUS reporter

THE ALESTLE WILL NOT BE PUBLISHING NEXT WEEK DURING FALL BREAK

SIUE Belmont Austin Peay Southeast Missouri Tennessee Tech UT Martin Morehead State Tennessee State Eastern Illinois Murray State

1-2 2-1 1-2 1-1 1-2 1-1 1-2 1-2 0-3 3-0

VOLLEYBALL

OVERALL OVC

Morehead State Murray State Belmont Austin Peay SIUE UT Martin Eastern Illinois Tennessee Tech Southeast Missouri Tennessee State

18-11 17-11 9-19 20-11 6-23 15-16 11-17 16-13 23-7 10-17

All stats are from the OVC Website

UPCOMING Men’s Basketball at The J. Arnold Wealth Management Company Tournament Nov. 19 - 21 Wrestling at Lindenwood Open 9 a.m., Nov. 20 Women’s Basketball at Butler 11 a.m., Nov. 23 Men’s Basketball at Creighton 5 p.m., Nov. 27 Women’s Basketball at SIUE vs. Purdue Fort Wayne 2 p.m., Nov. 28 Men’s Basketball at Omaha 7 p.m., Nov. 30


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