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Thursday, November 9, 2023 Vol. 77 No. 10
insidE: Unions protest at chancellor’s State of the University speech PAGE 2
STREET PREACHER SAGA:
Game Development Club begins month-long project
Students demonstrate against new campus preacher in the Quad
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Women’s basketball team prevails in exhibition game PAGE 8
Preacher gets noise complaint amidst conflict with students CHLOE WOLFE opinion editor BRUCE DARNELL managing editor
Street preacher Chris Svochak shouts his message without a speaker after SIUE Police informed him of the university’s Policy on Expressive Activity. Svochak was not received well by the students. | Maximilian Lenhart / The Alestle
Students gathered around the Rock in the Stratton Quadrangle Tuesday as street preacher Chris Svochak spoke. Tensions grew as SIUE Police told Svochak to turn off his speaker, the use of which violated a new policy regarding external speaker usage on campus. Svochak and a student were involved in a slight physical altercation as well. Dozens of people sat in the Quad as Svochak spoke. Svochak shouted things such as “Anuses are for defecation, not penetration,” and “Why are you judging
my judgment?” Svochak said he comes to SIUE to “tell people about the love of God so they can remove sin from [their lives] because [God] loves them so much he died for them.” Around noon, Svochak was approached by the police who told him he needed to turn off his speaker. Police remained on the scene after informing Svochak of the policy. The new policy states: “To further avoid conflicts or interference with the activities of members of the university community, external individuals or groups are prohibited from utilizing amplification at any level.” “They told me to turn off the speaker, which is against the see PREACHER on page 3
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Unions protest at chancellor’s ‘UNION’ State of the University address STATE OF THE
BRUCE DARNELL managing editor
Owing to recent tensions between the administration and workers at SIUE, the State of the University speech given by Chancellor James T. Minor was protested by AFSCME members and sympathizers on campus, many of which have gone 497 days without a new contract. Minor’s speech primarily gave an overview of the university and discussed different methods for improving the campus, such as the 283 retention plan. During the speech, a crowd of green enveloped the back of the Meridian Ballroom as protestors held up signs and heckled Minor. Minor spoke about the new Health Sciences Building, to which a building service worker protestor asked who would be cleaning it.
Minor said the mission of the university was not focused on a single individual, and he also added that it wasn’t focused on a singular contract. The protestors yelled out in disagreement over this statement. When Minor finished his speech, the protestors stood and chanted “Minor says give up, we say stand up” as attendees left the ballroom. The protestors continued outside the MUC, near the Cougar Statue. There, the protestors voiced complaints to a crowd about the university’s spending on aesthetic things such as the logo redesign and embroidered golf cart seats while they remained without a contract. “That golf cart is more important than someone who works three jobs to put food on the table right?” Amy Bodenstab, vice president of AFSCME Local
2887, said. “How is that golf cart not more important than my life or my kids?” Julie LaTempt-Brazier, president of AFSCME Local 2887, said she and the rest of the clerical workers want to continue working at SIUE. “We love the students here, or else we wouldn’t be here working for the wages we have,” LaTempt-Brazier said. “I love the students in my department and they love me because our department takes care of them, yet [Minor] doesn’t take care of anyone but himself.” Michael Malone, a building service worker, spoke on some of the issues that the building service workers were having in maintaining a clean campus. “In 2017, our department had 80 individuals in it cleaning the core campus split into three shifts,” he said. “We now have
37 people trying to do the same job … In a year or two — if not sooner — we’re going to be losing some of them as well.” When Malone asked how many of the other protestors had children, most raised their hand. Malone said this is due to the fact that BSWs earn minimum wage, making the job less appealing to those who could work in fast food or retail for the same pay. Tyler Toussaint, vice president of AFSCME Local 2232, noted the decrease in pay since he began working as a BSW. “When I started six years ago, the starting wage was 30 percent above minimum wage. I’m now making $50 less than I was a year ago because of rising insurance rates and three years without a contract. We should be getting a contract by now — this is way too long,” Toussaint said.
Lovejoy Library set to house new honors program
10.31.23 An officer reported that a person was carrying a fake knife that looked real in Lovejoy Library. They were told to return it to their dorm. 11.02.23 Outside a Cougar Village apartment, officers took a report of a suspicious box. The investigation is still ongoing.
11.05.23 An officer took a report of someone receiving videos of themselves walking around different areas of SIUE’s campus. The investigation is ongoing.
DYLAN HEMBROUGH editor-in-chief Any major restructuring has a host of logistical problems to solve, but for those overseeing Lovejoy Library’s growing pains, it’s worth it to better serve the students of SIUE. Eric Ruckh, interim dean of Library and Information Services, said the Honors Program — now called the John Martinson Honors Program — has grown considerably since he and his colleagues undertook research to overhaul it. “It wasn’t really much of a program at all — frankly, it was slightly embarrassing — and it was a way for students to avoid taking general education classes,” Ruckh said. “With the help of a bunch of other faculty, staff, students and some alumni … we undertook a redesign of the program to build a robust and vibrant general education program that would provide wide experience in terms of liberal education.” On Sept. 6, SIUE announced that 1975 alumnus John Martinson had decided to donate $4 million to the university to “expand and enhance the Honors experience at SIUE for students for years to come.” “[Chancellor Minor] told me right from the start that the university was interested in pursuing John Martinson for a large gift, and that I would be involved in that,” Ruckh said. “What the $4 million will allow us to do over four years is … to do the institutional work and the procedural work necessary to create a new academic unit on this campus.” The John Martinson Honors Program will be on the third floor of Lovejoy Library. This is an undertaking in itself, but the library also faces other issues, according to Interim Associate Dean of Library and Information Services Marlee Graser. “It will require us to rethink our plan for our physical facilities and space,” Graser said. “We are going to have to get more focused, more intentional, more creative and more flexible in how our physical facility space serves our students’ education, learning outcomes and retention.”
SPAIN Barcelonan dockworkers refused to move cargo intended for military use in Israel. The dockworker’s union, called OEPB, said it opposed all types of violence everywhere.
The new honors program was set in motion before the $4 million donation, but the money will help expand the program. | Maximilian Lenhart / The Alestle Graser said much of the coming restructuring was planned before the Martinson donation, and all of it is intended to help students. “Much of our collection was never intentionally circulated — it was donated,” Graser said. “Librarians just chucked books in instead of collecting, so that was a big part of the deselection process — to make sure we are using our collection development policy [in a way] that is geared towards student success.” Workers are needed in order to realize these plans, according to both Graser and Ruckh. While the library has been chronically understaffed, Graser and Ruckh said these are “surmountable challenges” that will ultimately result in a more efficient and accessible library. “It has provided Marlee and I an opportunity working with colleagues in the library to find efficiencies or do some remodification of jobs so that we can be more efficient in the library,” Ruckh said. Ruckh said budgetary rearrangement is also a priority after research revealed problems for the long-term health of the library. “Previous deans had cut positions on the backside of the house in technical services to continue to support growing costs for electronic resources,” Ruckh said. “One of
the things I’ve been trying to do is rebalance the cost of electronic resources, [which are] critical for discovery. We can’t use resources in the library if we can’t discover, and we can’t discover it if it’s not properly described.” Graser said she is in the process of asking the university for additional positions to fill at the library in order to carry out the work needed for this restructuring. Four of these new positions are “forward-facing,” meaning they interact with the public more, and two are “backside,” meaning they take care of much of the unseen labor that goes into physically rearranging the library. “The shifting and inventorying and reconciliation work between what is physically on the shelf [and] what is in our catalog, the labor [and] project management that goes into that — there’s a lot of labor there,” Graser said. “We are very fortunate to have been able to hire a few undergraduate student workers who are doing phenomenal work for us. The library does not work without them.” Lamonta Swarn is an employee at Lovejoy Library and a teacher’s assistant who is pursuing a master’s degree in English literature. Swarn said she thinks the library will benefit from the restructuring and accommodation of the honors program.
“It definitely gives the library more people coming in. That’s important to us,” Swarn said. “No matter how understaffed or overstaffed, people keep us moving.” Swarn said she feels that her work at Lovejoy Library is fulfilling. “I love helping people learn how to use our space and our databases, because sometimes it can be a little daunting to navigate our online presence,” Swarn said. “It’s nice to be able to help people and be around for important questions.” Junior speech pathology major Brooke Blassingame agreed, saying the library has helped her retain information she may not have otherwise been able to in normal studies. “You do a lot better when you’re not studying in your bedroom,” Blassingame said. “It’s a nice way to get out of my comfort zone, because I associate that with sleep. I love going to the library.” Graser said her ultimate goal in her time as interim associate dean is to continue to extend the library’s services to the student body. “The only thing I’m interested in is continuing to build a relationship between students and the library so we can support student success, retention and outcomes,” Graser said.
SUDAN Darfur refugees that fled to Chad report that a new wave of ethnic killings have begun in Sudan’s West Darfur region after a paramilitary group took control of an army base. INDIA India’s Supreme Court has instructed officials in states surrounding New Delhi to stop burning crop residue because of its harmful effects to the region’s air quality. TURKEY The Turkish parliament has stopped stocking Coca-Cola and Nestle products. Their reasoning for the ban comes from the companies’ alleged support for Israel. VATICAN CITY Transgender people can now be baptized and serve as godparents in the Catholic church. However, the regulation remains unclear regarding same-sex couples.
Information courtesy of Reuters / AP
Thursday, 11.09.23
House GOP prepares a bill to stop shutdown ERIK WASSON MAEVE SHEEHEY Bloomberg News (TNS)
House Republicans are preparing a temporary spending bill to avert a Nov. 18 government shutdown and could vote on it this week, lawmakers said after leaving a meeting with newly-installed Speaker Mike Johnson. One option would create two new “funding cliff” dates of Dec. 7 and Jan. 19, according to Rep. Dusty Johnson of South Dakota, who attended the meeting. Under this plan, some parts of the government would be kept open through Dec. 7 to allow the House and Senate to work out full-year funding for those agencies. The rest of the agencies would be funded through Jan. 19. The Democratic reaction to the stopgap proposal will largely hinge on whether the GOP tries to attach immediate spending cuts or policy provisions to it or not. Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, Pete Aguilar, was skeptical of the two-step idea. “[It] sounds like they want multiple shutdowns spread out over different calendar years,” Aguilar said. Rep. Bob Good of Virginia, a member of the conservative Freedom Caucus, advocated adding items that the caucus favors. “We’ll focus on passing our spending bills. And if we need a little bit of time on that, I think you’ll see very short spending bills with some leverage points put in there for wins for the American people,” Good said. Other options under discussion are extending all agencies to Jan. 19, or negotiating a compromise with Senate Democrats, who are keen on attaching assistance to Ukraine, according to a lawmaker briefed on the plan. Johnson and party leaders plan to discuss options for the design of the legislation at a Tuesday morning closed-door meeting and intend to avert the internal dissent that brought down then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy after he allowed a vote on the last stopgap spending bill ahead of the Oct. 1 shutdown deadline. McCarthy in September was unable to get enough Republican votes for a stopgap that would have temporarily cut spending by 30 percent while making changes to immigration policies. In the face of an imminent shutdown, he allowed the House to pass a 48-day funding bill with Democratic support. Some lawmakers said they were eager to have the House vote on a stopgap to prevent the looming shutdown. “We’ve got to get on it, like now,” said Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan. Although a vote could take place this week, the chamber’s No. 3 House Republican, Tom Emmer, said next week was more likely.
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Campus preacher met with loud criticism, demonstrations from students in Quad PREACHER | COVER
law because they don’t apply it to everyone else. They only applied it to me,” Svochak said. “There’s somebody that comes every Wednesday [Pastor Tom Rayborn] that does this, and they told me specifically to turn it off or I would be trespassing and arrested.” Interim Vice Chancel-
lor of Student Affairs Miriam Roccia said Rayborn had not yet been told to not use amplification on campus because the policy was put in place Nov. 6. Around 12:30 p.m., sophomore Ahnyah Moon attempted to talk to Svochak. Through eyewitness accounts and video footage recorded by freshman Jabreah Liddell, Svochak appears
to have spilled a drink on Moon who, in turn, slapped him on the chest. Police stepped in to de-escalate the situation, but no one was removed from the scene. SIUE Patrol Sgt. Katie Kircher said there have not been any reports involving the incidents despite police being on the scene at the time of the incident. “I don’t plan on pressing
charges. I don’t feel comfortable with the police and today further confirmed my fears,” Moon said. Svochak refused to go into detail on the incident. Many tried to talk to the preacher, including members of the Real Adults Real Empowerment campus ministry group, Heather Taylor. Taylor said Svochak was “not showing the love of God at all.”
Chancellor Minor recognized for contribution to education, possible path for scholarships SAM MUREN reporter
Chancellor James T. Minor received a Stellar Performer in Education Award from the St. Louis American Foundation at the 36th Annual Salute to Excellence in Education Scholarship and Awards Gala. The gala was on Saturday night and recognized students and educators who come from diverse backgrounds and have made a significant impact in the education system. Selected students received scholarships from the St. Louis American Foundation presented by Publisher and Executive Editor Donald Suggs. The foundation gave away $2.8 million in scholarship funds. They gave educators a small grant with the awards they received. Minor was nominated and then selected by the St. Louis American newspaper for the Stellar Performer in Education Award. This was one of the top awards of the night, and he was one of two recipients. A committee on the newspaper selected Minor based on his roles, impact and how long he has been active in education. Minor became Chancellor of SIUE in March 2022, but he has served in other roles in the educational system throughout his career. He was formerly an assistant vice chancellor at California State University. Before his time in California, Minor was a deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Education during the Obama administration. Minor said he chose to work for SIUE partially due to his ties to the Midwestern region with family in St. Louis and also due to the value of institutions like SIUE. “I actually believe institutions like SIUE are really going to be the most consequential sector of post-secondary education,” Minor said. Now, he is SIUE’s 10th Chancellor and the first African American chancellor of SIUE. These past and present roles — along with Minor’s efforts while serving them — were commended when he received his award. A large group of SIUE personnel roared with applause from the crowd when Minor accepted his award. “It was really a proud moment for me to see that kind of response to the award, and the number of people from our
Chancellor James T. Minor accepts the Stellar Performer in Education Award from Raven Whitener, the director of the St. Louis American Foundation and Special Events. Minor is the first SIUE chancellor to win the award. | Francesca Boston / The Alestle SIUE community who showed up tonight was just phenomenal,” Minor said. SIUE had quite the crowd with a variety of people representing the university. Members of the SIU Trustee Board, including Board Chair Phil Gilbert, were present. Both directors and vice chancellors were present. Director of the East St. Louis Center Tim Staples and Athletic Director Andrew Gavin were both present, along with several other members of the SIUE administration. “I am honored to have the opportunity to work with such a gifted, visionary, and bold leader,” Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Jessica Harris said about Minor. Sophomore double major in psychology and sociology Albert Smith and sophomore cyber security major Joaquin Alexander were two students who also were in attendance to support the chancellor and SIUE. “It feels pretty thrilling, to say the least,” Smith said about attending the gala. “Borderline nerve-wracking, but it’s great.” Both were invited by Earleen Patterson, a professor and associate vice chancellor at SIUE. “Those two students are stellar representatives of SIUE.
They are students who are scholastically focused. They are students who are leaders and have impeccable character,” Patterson said. Patterson said that felt that the students brought great representation for SIUE and that the experience would have a major impact on them. “It also is a wonderful opportunity for them to see what giving forward looks like,” Patterson said. Although neither knew the chancellor personally, Alexander said he felt he could relate to Minor in other ways. “Most of my freshman year, I didn’t know who the chancellor was, but when I found out [Minor] was African American it made me feel a little safer and feel more welcome to SIUE,” Alexander said. Unlike other schools present, the SIUE students were only in attendance to support the chancellor. Other universities saw students receive scholarships from the St. Louis American Foundation. No students from SIUE received a scholarship from the St. Louis Foundation. Minor took serious notice of not seeing SIUE students on stage. In order for students to
receive a scholarship, universities must be a member of the foundation. “The university partners with us. [The university] decides the amount, the longevity of the scholarship, what it includes and what it doesn’t include,” Director of the St. Louis American Foundation and Special Events Raven Whitener said. Currently, SIUE is not a member of the program. “The short answer is we have to be the 14th institution on that list,” Minor said. “Early Monday morning and maybe even tomorrow, I’m going to be in touch with my team about how we might participate.” If SIUE were to join the foundation, students would be open to potentially receiving scholarships. The event overall recognized many different contributors to education. Minor said he was inspired by the other educators who were awarded and by his fellow SIUE community. “[The award] means a lot to me personally, but it also means a lot for SIUE and the number of people who show up every day to serve our students. For me, this award is really a reflection of what we do together and what we are able to accomplish together,” Minor said.
lifestyles
NEXT WEEK: ASL CLASS TO BE TAUGHT NEXT SEMESTER BY DEAF PROFESSOR
contact the editor: lifestyles@alestlelive.com (618) 650-3528
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Game Development Group emulates former success in new game creation project BRUCE DARNELL managing editor The Game Development Group has entered the early stages of its next group project after a successful attempt at hosting its own GameJam earlier this semester. The members intend to create their own game within a month. GameJams are events where teams or individuals compete to make a game in a short amount of time that follows a central theme. According to Gavin Witsken, a senior computer science major and president of the group, the GameJam format has proven successful for the club and he hopes this new project will further develop the group members’ skills. “So far this semester, we haven’t done much hands-on development outside the CougarJams,” Witsken said. “We do workshops where we practice using a certain tool or a specific technique, such as how to make a basic platform game.” Witsken described the workshops as tutorials for people, where the members will follow along with a presenter. Witsken said these workshops are useful, but he wants the club to pursue the passionate environment that the CougarJams created. “It was really cool to see what people were able to accomplish, especially because a lot of [the attendees] had never done anything like this before,” Witsken said. “[The environment] allowed them to learn and create … So we want to keep that momentum and foster this active developing environment.” The new project will be spread out over six days during November and is following the theme of “two” or “too” player, which was left open to interpretation for the members. Cole Warden, a senior computer science major and vice president of the group, is the main organizer of this cur-
rent project. A similar project occurred in the spring semester, but because of time constraints, it had to be scaled down. “We would have this big game where you can cycle through everyone’s mini games, but as time went on and we started getting busy, we didn’t have the time to fully integrate that,” Warden said. “[The club] thought ,‘Why not just bring it back this year?’ But since we have very little time, it’s just going to be small, separate games that we go around the room and play.” The members could choose whether they wanted to work in groups or individually. They are also allowed to work on the game in their own time, though Warden and Witsken agreed that working together is a completely different feeling compared to working alone. “I think us blocking out our meetings to work on stuff is going to make it a lot easier,” Witsken said. “A part of the reason we have this group is so we can communicate, share ideas and talk to other people that are interested in it, and we really want to foster that.” Around 10 people showed up to the first meeting, which was a smaller showing than usual. Witsken said this was because the meeting was suddenly announced. One of the members in attendance was Emmorie Brown, a sophomore computer science major and financial advisor for the group. Brown said she primarily enjoys creating the art for games. “The hardest thing is creating a theme,” Brown said. “I sometimes get stuck on making a color palette because I like creating them and being able to find colors that match each other. Then, going off of that to try and figure out the overall design of a game that I want.” Brown said the combination of workshops and hands-on learning is helpful.
Anderson’s artistic legacy lives on
A painting of Daniel Anderson portrays the ceramicist in his element. The Dan Anderson Memorial Retrospective & Alumni Exhibition honors the work and legacy of the ceramics artist who massively contributed to the success of SIUE’s ceramics graduate program. The exhibition features work, often inspired by Midwestern architecture, as well as pieces by his students and alumni from the program. The exhibit ran from Oct. 12 through Nov. 10. I Maximilian Lenhart / The Alestle
see GAMEJAMS on page 5
Weather Club a sunny skies paradise open for anyone to learn MATTHEW WOLDEN copy editor The Weather Club provides fun meteorological activities for its members, as well as new ways to dive deeper. Ryan Frisch, a senior geography major, talked about some of the casual activities that the club does to hang out. “There’s been bad weather movie night,” Frisch said. “Bad weather movies as in bad movies about weather.” Vice President and senior geography major Makenzi Keller talked more in-depth on the movie nights they hosted as she said these nights are fun and it’s nice to hangout with other members. She spoke about how they made a bingo game out of the movies. “We did a weather movie bingo,” Keller said. “Almost kind of critiquing them, but, all the same, making a fun game out of it. We watched ‘Sharknado’
— which was a very bad weather movie — but [it] was very fun to play bingo.” Keller also talked about some of the more informative things they do with the club. “We do little interactions with the National Weather Service in St. Louis,” Keller said. “Last year we also had some meteorologists from the National Weather Service come over here. I believe it was the American Meteorological Society that had a chapter meeting over here one night and Zoomed in with a larger meteorologist at Purdue [so] we could learn more advanced things with their meeting here.” The Weather Club goes further than just teaching students new information about meteorology. The club also gets help from Alan Black, professor and Weather Club advisor, by finding possible opportunities within the meteorology field for hands-on experiences.
As part of his Storm Chasing and Assessment Field Course, a May-term class, Black takes his students out west to Oklahoma to storm chase. Students are responsible for planning the storm chase after learning storm safety. In June, The Alestle published a story on the storm chasing class. The story can be found on the The Alestle’s website. “I’m on all these email lists where I’m seeing all these job opportunities and people who reach out to me and say, ‘Hey, do you have any students who are interested in this kind of thing for an internship?’ So I just put it all in [Discord],” Black said. Black said he believes Weather Club helps students get positions from these opportunities and these students enjoy seeing more about weather-related fields. He also said it also helps students see more opportunities that are out there. Emily Stanton, junior geography major and president of the Weather Club,
said it is a friendly club for anyone to join. “Even if you don’t know that much about weather — even if you’re slightly interested, even if you just want to go because it sounds like it’s a fun thing — it’s not like we’re there to belittle people,” Stanton said. “It’s just a fun experience. If they have questions, answer questions for them.” Stanton also said that when the club members have questions about anything related to meteorology, they ask their advisor. “He is the meteorology professor — he knows so much stuff about it too and he is usually at the meetings as well,” Stanton said. More information on the Weather Club can be found on its GetInvolved page. The group also has a Discord which they mostly use to communicate and share information about upcoming events and job opportunities.
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Game Development Group bring artists, programmers together
GAMEJAMS I PAGE 4
One idea she had for her game involves the life and death cycle of a frog, from being a tadpole to a full-grown frog. Jo Mayorga, a junior computer science major, was also at the meeting. Her plan is to create a level for a game she’s
already been working on. “The game I’ve been helping [create] is like a Mario platformer called ‘Super Tux Classic,’” Mayorga said. “It’s open source, so I’ve been helping with the development of it. I had an idea for a level where a thing chases you, and if it touches you
it kills you.” Mayorga said she has only been involved with game development since March, but has always been interested in it. “I’ve listened to a lot of talks about game development, which made it easier to get into, but I hadn’t really committed to it,”
Mayorga said. “If you go into game development blind, you’re going to be lost, but listening about game development is different from actually doing it.” Mayorga said attending the meetings has helped her learn a lot about game development. She said the CougarJam was the
experience she had building a game from scratch. The group plans on meeting every Tuesday and every Friday until Dec. 1, where they will play the final versions of their games. For more information, visit their page on GetInvolved to get a link to join their Discord.
REVIEW: Taylor Swift revamps confessional on spectacle of love
BRANDI SPANN copy editor
Perhaps the most definitive album in the first decade of Taylor Swift’s discography in terms of awards and chart topping singles, “1989” (2014) grew from the success of “Red” (2012) and resulted in a significant boost of recognition and international success, solidifying her legacy and impact on pop music. As of Oct. 27, the long awaited re-recording is finally here and making waves. After a legal battle over master’s rights to her first six studio albums, “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” is owned entirely by Swift and is the fourth release of her re-recording project. The project began in 2021 and fans have embraced her efforts for ownership of her music by putting her nostalgic hits right back up on the top of the charts. An anthem-filled record celebrating and contemplating a young person relocating to the city, Swift opens the album with
an ode to New York, marking a rebirth of her sound and her legacy. Using her birth year as the title of the album, these tracks have become Swift’s namesake. The original deluxe version ends with “New Romantics,” a call to ignore one’s inhibitions and celebrate the freedom of guilty pleasure, self-fulfillment and embracing one’s self within the crowd. In a world where people compete for the most impressive scarlet letters to wear on their sleeves, Swift claims that “the best people in life are free.” The re-release of “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” ends with “Is It Over Now?,” a track oozing with desperation to move on from the loves that haunt. Heartbreak, she observes, is just as integral and natural to a person’s experience of the world as every other form of love. She finds herself in the moments and interactions that leave her frozen in place and, from those, she discovers who she is. The initial release was met with some hesitation and disgruntled first impressions, as
fans reported feeling as though the new vocals and sonics were emotionless, sounding like the droning of an early morning alarm. Most significantly, the introduction sequence of “Style” now includes a heavier underlying metronome, a thick rumble carrying the foundation of the track. While it’s tough to find things about her music to dislike, as Swift sings in “New Romantics,” “the rumors are terrible and cruel but, honey, most of them are true.” However, the longer the album marinates, these opinions have disappeared from the conversation and the overarching consensus is one of celebration and camaraderie between fans reliving the memories of their 2014 lives in the current day. Each of Swift’s albums contains significant lyrics that have contributed to her notoriety as a powerful songsmith and lyrical poet. This album is no different. The lyricism she embedded in these songs have produced a multitude of fan favorites and lyrics that are continually ref-
erenced in discussions about her art. Track 15, “You are in Love (Taylor’s Version),” features the lyric, “And you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars, and why I’ve spent my whole life trying to put it into words.” With love comes vulnerability — supposed weakness is actually the most formidable strength. In track 13, “Clean (Taylor’s Version),” she says, “the drought was the very worst, when the flowers that we’d grown together died of thirst” and “just because you’re clean don’t mean you don’t miss it.” Addiction, and recovery from it, will never fully erase its enticing qualities, but there is peace to be found in living on without it. With each re-recording, Swift releases extra tracks “From The Vault” that were written during the original time of the album’s production. The five vault tracks on “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” are a blend of her 2014 sound and the newer spirit of her recent album, “Midnights”
(2022). She added a modern day touch while still capturing the heart of her signature pop sound. Resounding, echo-like and whimsical, these tracks have a kaleidoscopic beat giving you no choice but to cup your hands around your headphones and nod your head along. The iconic 2014 album underwent a makeover. Swift’s full face is featured on this version and the seagull imagery was pulled from her shirt on the previous album cover and placed in the background. The photoshoot ran with the beachy theme and provided fans with a plethora of classy, timeless photos of Swift digging her toes in the sand. We are living through a monocultural, homogeneous pop scene dominated by Swift’s musical and cinematic empire. Her widespread impact on music is indisputable. A quintessential and contemporary summertime cult classic, “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” maintains its seat at the top of the charts and its permanent place in our hearts.
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OPINION
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DYLAN HEMBROUGH Editor-in-Chief
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The name Alestle is an acronym derived from the names of the three campus locations of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville: Alton, East St. Louis and Edwardsville. The Alestle is published on Thursdays in print and on Tuesdays online during the fall and spring semesters. A print edition is available every other Wednesday during summer semesters. For more information, call 618-650-3528 For advertising, email advertising@alestlelive.com
Feeding wild animals is completely unethical FRANCESCA BOSTON lifestyles editor
Do not feed the wild animals on this campus, no matter how much you want to. It is bad for their health, our health and the environment. Our campus is known for its beauty and wildlife, and most students are used to walking to and from class surrounded by geese, deer and other wild animals. No matter how cute or cuddling a wild animal looks like, they are wild animals and deserve to be treated as such. Feeding or encouraging the feeding of wildlife is unethical. Raccoons are scavengers and, sadly, that means they often end up eating human trash, which is detrimental to their health. I am not above thinking the videos of raccoons eating cotton candy dipped in water is cute, but that doesn’t undermine the damage human food does to wild animals. Keeping animals safe and healthy is more than just not deliberately putting out food, it is properly disposing of your trash. Trash should be placed in bags, tied tightly and placed in bins with lids. If you have leftover food, specifically veggie scraps, consider composting rather than just throwing them out or giving them to wild animals. Even fruit and vegetable scraps can have a negative impact on wild animals. Animals may become reliant on human-given food, rather than hunting or scavenging themselves.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture strongly discourages feeding or encouraging the feeding of wild animals, and lays out multiple reasons other than the health of animals. Leaving food close to humans has shown to cause an increase in animal hostility, and damage to animals as a result of cars and traps. Chances of disease transmission between humans and animals also increases as wild animals move in closer to humans to find food. Leaving food out also encourages larger populations of animals to gather, leaving behind their feces, which pollute human walkways and sources of safe water. There are campus cats, and I do not have an easy answer for those. I discourage feeding them cat food, as it is very likely raccoons and other wild animals will also consume the pet food, but it is hard to see cats and not want to care for them. Those cats deserve safe, warm homes where they can be fed without having to fight with wild animals for food. As winter arrives, I encourage knocking on the hood of your car before driving, as cats will often curl up in car to stay warm, and a simple knock can help save a life. Geese and ducks should not be fed bread, raccoons should not be fed marshmallows, squirrels should not be fed fries and deer should not be fed anything. Do not feed wild animals, you are putting not only the animals at risk, but yourself and your community.
We should be helping out our wildlife with healthier food options TY HICKS reporter
Helping feed wildlife may indeed have some glaring downsides. However, hungry animals will get our scraps one way or the other, we might as well help them out. SIUE’s beautiful, nature-focused campus is one of the most appealing aspects of attending and living here. Many look to the foliage, trees, and flowers while disregarding our scavenger wildlife such as skunks and raccoons. There is no denying the indisputable negatives to feeding wildlife, like an increase in animal hostility or creating a dependency on humans. At home, there are many ways to keep your trash safe at night, such as employing locks or keeping it somewhere inside. However, we do not have such luxuries on campus. Our trash cannot be locked after a certain time and it is out in the open at all times. As stated by SIA Wildlife Control, certain foods found in our trash like onions, garlic and chocolate can make the one of the most common SIUE critters, the raccoon, very sick and can even cause death. A potential way to keep our furry friends alive and healthy
could be providing them with the nutritionally healthy meals they need to live happy lives. Occasionally giving them healthy food could give them that energy boost they need to get through the night. Raccoons, and skunks to a degree, can eat just about anything and have a wide variety of healthy choices on their plate. Feeding them leftover vegetables or nuts can be a great way for them to get their much-needed fats and protein, as well as carbohydrates. This way, we know exactly what they are eating and do not run the risk of them gobbling up some leftover garlic bread or chocolate bars out of the trash. Keeping them well-fed could drastically decrease the time they spend rummaging and dragging out our trash, which would in turn help our campus look much cleaner. It is important to note that animals such as deer or foxes can get along fine on their own, and do not usually find themselves scavenging trash to survive. Our wildlife is not going anywhere. Making sure they are getting fed healthy, nutritional food could help save their lives, and reduce the occurrence of dumpster diving or trashcan hopping that many raccoons and skunks do to survive.
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alestlelive.com
Thursday, 11.09.23
view: We should treasure our beautiful campus THE ALESTLE STAFF editorial board
In the depths of the semester, it’s wonderful to remind ourselves just how gorgeous our campus really is. As most students are aware, the Edwardsville campus is located on a nature preserve. With 2,660 acres of protected woodlands and plains, it is the largest campus in Illinois by land area. A large appeal for many students, faculty and staff of SIUE is how conveniently located we are to a major Midwestern city while still maintaining the natural
beauty of Illinois flora and fauna. Designed by Gyo Obata, late American architect from St. Louis, the campus was intentionally laid out to steer away from an institutional style and emphasize human livelihood and well-being. The parking lots were paved far away from the main Quad, emphasizing a close-knit, community-centered space where people studying, chatting and having lunch in this intentional proximity are meant to interact with each other and the natural elements of the area. The Gardens at SIUE, a 36-acre bo-
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Campus climate harmful to Black faculty and staff This letter is to address the disruption that occurred on Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023, during the State of the University address. One of the goals of the Black Faculty and Staff Association (BFSA) is to identify and persistently respond to issues that affect the welfare of Black faculty, staff and/or students at SIUE (especially as it relates to the mission of the university). Due to the current climate, we are concerned for the safety of Chancellor Minor and for Black faculty and staff at large. The increasing and escalating vitriolic discourse aimed at Chancellor Minor throughout the university community has been ongoing and disturbing to many in our membership. Such behavior is an illustration of data in the Spring 2022 SIU System Campus Climate Survey: • Black Faculty and Staff reported higher levels of experience with bias and stereotypes than White and Asian/Asian American peers. • Racism, bias and stereotypes create isolation, elevated stress and distress, alienation, indignity and invalidation for faculty and staff of color.
• Research has shown faculty and staff of color are less likely to persist at institutions where racism is prevalent and perpetual. Most recently, Thursday’s disruption during [Minor’s] university address was reminiscent of what many of us have experienced on varying levels at this institution, which has caused us to question our belonging and safety as Black faculty and staff on this campus. Given the current social context, many members are bothered by the level of continued disrespect aimed at the chancellor as he works to move the institution forward. As an institution committed to striving towards anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion, BFSA feels it is necessary to address this matter publicly. The university address represents a special time for the campus community to gather and reflect upon our achievements and embrace the bold direction in which the university is headed. There is much work to be done. It is our hope that we can have such an environment where we can have necessary conversations where we can hear each other and collectively move towards change to transform our institution. CANDACE HALL President of BFSA
Alestle After Hours (Taylor’s Version)
Michal Kate Castleman Hannah Ledford Brandi Spann
tanical garden located between the main campus and Cougar Village, supports sustainability efforts and celebrates student sculptures and artwork. The gardens are scattered with memorial benches, peaceful trails, pollinator gardens, a pond and many other amenities that provide a gorgeous and natural environment for members of the Edwardsville community to bask in. The dark brick buildings coordinate with one another providing a cohesive feel across campus and student art and unique structures decorate the lawns. The trees
on the Quad glow a vibrant orange-yellow in October and then don brilliant white, flowering petals after the rainy days of April. Every student has a story to tell of a time in which they got within a few feet of a deer or a goose. The Edwardsville campus is a charming and inviting space, enhanced by the changing seasons and the bustling weekday afternoons. As it gets cooler and dreary with the onslaught of winter, it will be all the more important to appreciate the beautiful things that nature has to offer like the snow on the trees and the hills students can sled on.
The Alestle wins big in national college media competitions The Alestle, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s student news organization, recently won several national awards during the 102nd annual Associated Collegiate Press/College Media Association National College Media Convention. This year marks the most national awards that The Alestle was nominated for and received. For the first time since the 1990s, The Alestle was a finalist for the ACP Pacemaker for its website — alestlelive. com. The Pacemaker is the highest honor in collegiate media, and to be a finalist is a high honor in itself. The Alestle placed 4th in the Best of Show competition at the convention in the Newspaper/Newsmagazine category of four-year schools with less than 15,000 students. Schools in the Top Three were California Baptist University, Ithaca College and Northwest Missouri State University. Besides being recognized as a Pacemaker finalist for its online presence, The Alestle placed 6th in the ACP Best of Show competition at the convention in the website category. Schools in the Top Five were California Baptist University, Vanderbilt University, Loyola Marymount University, Wake Forest University and Eastern Illinois University. Many current and former Alestle staff members also won recognition in the College Media Association’s national Pinnacle Awards. The Alestle competed in the division with other schools with undergrad populations of 3,000 - 10,000. Former Managing Editor Gabriel Brady won second place for Best Coverage of Faith with his coverage of street preachers on campus. Lifestyles Editor Francesca Boston and the staff brought home a second place award for Best Newspaper Entertainment Page for the Metro East Eats: Soup edition. Former Multimedia Editor Damian Morris and former Online and Opinion Editor Nicole Boyd won third place in the Best Photo Package category for their coverage of the area’s 2023 Jazz and Wine Fest. The staff brought home third place Pinnacles for Best Website Front Page and two third place awards for Best Special Section (reporting) and Best Special Section (advertising) for its Spring 2023
mental health “zine.” The staff won third place in the Best Special Section Cover category for its 2023 Survival Guide. Managing Editor Bruce Darnell received an honorable mention for his Best Breaking News in diversity coverage of an Iranian student demonstration. Illustrator Thea Weltzin also received an honorable mention for Best Editorial Cartoon. Graphics Manager Kirsten O’Loughlin won honorable mention for her design of The Alestle’s nameplate — her second time being honored for the publication’s nameplate. “I was glad for The Alestle to be nominated for all the awards, especially the Pacemaker. To be nominated for and win more awards than any year previously, I’m excited about it and hope it becomes a trend. I’m really proud of the staff and all the hard work they put in,” Alestle Editor-in-Chief Dylan Hembrough said. Hembrough mentioned that this year’s staff is a very young one and has had a bigger learning curve than in some years past. “They have done exceptionally well at adapting and learning on the job,” he said. “The 2022-2023 year and Fall 2023 have been such an exciting time for The Alestle with being recognized for so much more of its work and in new awards competitions that it hasn’t been in before or in a long time,” Student Publications Program Director Tammy Merrett said. “I’m so very proud of them, especially being finalists for a Pacemaker, an award that is like the Pulitzer of college journalism.” The Alestle has placed several times in recent years in the CMA Pinnacle awards, and national ACP Best of Show competitions, as well as the ACP Individual Awards. The publication is consistently an American Scholastic Press Association top-ranked publication and regularly wins several top awards in the annual Illinois College Press Association contest as well. Alestle students were also finalists for several and won two regional Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence Awards for the first time earlier this year.
contact the editor: sports@alestlelive.com (618) 650-3528 PAGE 8
GRACE GENTEMANN reporter SIUE women’s basketball defeated the Maryville University Saints during their home opener on Nov. 2 in the First Community Center. The Saints quickly gained control at the start of the quarter. After a few plays, the Cougars were able to catch up to the pace of the game, ending the first half 19-17. The second half was controlled by SIUE. Maryville University came out with ferocity, but SIUE was able to regain the pace of the game. Junior guard Molly Sheehan was a spotlight in this quarter with an incredible breakaway finish with only six minutes left. The Cougars were able to break away more this quarter, popping off numerous shots to solidify a lead of 43-34. In the third quarter, the Cougars seemed to struggle with their defense against the quick pace of the Saints. Once the Cougars were able to set the pace of the game, things went smoother. The Cougars pulled further away with a 10-point lead of 63-53. In the fourth quarter, SIUE came out with more aggression, pulling out a 19-point lead to finish the final quarter of the game. SIUE defeated Maryville University with a final score of 85-66. Two dominant players in this game were junior guard Sofie Lowis and graduate guard KK Rodriguez. Lowis was the top scorer for the night with 16 points. Rodriguez was not too far behind with 12 points with five assists and three steals. Lowis said an important factor in the game was being able to work as a team. “Finding each other
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and getting more open looks [gave us] a lot of assists today, and that helped a lot,” Lowis said. Head Coach Sam Quigley Smith said one of the aspects that led to victory was being able to recover and take the lead after a rough first quarter. “When things go wrong … we have to bounce back in a really positive way, and we really did that,” Quigley Smith said. She also said the energy for this home game was different from other years — there have been many new aspects and a new vision when it comes to athletics that they are all excited about. The addition of Eddieville gives fans an upgraded game-day experience and adds to the SIUE atmosphere. “We have a new floor and the Eddieville game day experience,” Quigley Smith said. “Seeing everyone out here for the first time in uniform … is just so fun to get on the ‘stage’ underneath the lights.” Six student-athletes took the court for the first time: Freshman guards Ava Stoller and Ava Gugliuzza, sophomore forward Brianna Wooldridge, junior forward Halle Smith, junior guard Lezauria Williams and senior guard Alexis Legan. Gugliuzza contributed nine points during her first-ever game at SIUE. She said she felt the energy from the crowd that also had an effect on the game. “Having the energy [from the fans] helps the people on the court keep going, even if they are tired, and I think that really translated [to this game],” Gugliuzza said. SIUE women’s basketball will play the Eastern Kentucky University Colonels in the next home game at 5 p.m., Nov. 9.
MEN’S SOCCER PLAYS IN OVC CHAMPIONSHIP SEMIFINAL ROUND Thursday, 11.09.23
Maryville defenders attempt to stop SIUE guard Molly Sheehan (left) as she drives to the basket. | Maximilian Lenhart / The Alestle
SIUE guard KK Rodriguez (left) runs a play in SIUE’s exhibition game against Maryville Nov. 2. | Maximilian Lenhart / The Alestle
Women’s soccer loses by penalty kick during OVC Championship AUDREY O’RENIC sports editor Third-seeded SIUE women’s soccer fell to seventh-seeded Southeast Missouri State University in the Oct. 29 home game during the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Championship. The Cougars were given a bye for the first round of the series, playing the winner of the sixth and seventh seed. The first goal was scored by SIUE nearly four minutes
into the first half of the game. After taking a corner kick, red shirt junior midfielder Sidney Christopher was assisted by graduate midfielder Matea Diekema and sophomore midfielder Taryn Moore in securing the 1-0 lead. The score remained 1-0 throughout the majority of the game, with SEMO attempting nine goals and SIUE attempting 10. The second goal was scored at the 87-minute mark by SEMO
sophomore defender Alayna Jakul, assisted by sophomore forward Cayla Koerner. With a score of 1-1, the teams went into overtime. Neither team scored in overtime, which sent the teams to rounds of penalty kicks. SEMO secured advancement in the OVC Championship after winning 5-4 in penalty kicks during the sixth round by junior defender Emma Tucker. Despite the loss for the Cougars, three players were
honored as part of the 2023 AllOhio Valley Conference Women’s Soccer Teams. The award, voted on by the league’s head coaches and communications directors, recognizes the top players across the OVC. Diekema was named OVC Defender of the Year and All-OVC First Team for the second consecutive season. She led the Cougars this season with a total of 26 shots. Christopher, the Cougars’ top scorer with 10 points
on four goals and two assists, earned a spot on the All-OVC second team. Freshman defender Taylor Babb was honored as part of the All-Newcomer team. Babb played a total of 1279 minutes this season — more than any other newcomer for the Cougars. The Cougars completed their 2023 season with a 5-6-6 record overall and a 3-2-4 record in the conference, finishing third in the OVC regular season.