The Alestle Vol. 77, No. 9

THE

alestle

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

student voice since 1960

Thursday, October 26, 2023 Vol. 77 No. 9

insidE: Housing employee arrested on suspicion of prostitution PAGE 2

Students stand in solidarity for peace in Palestine P A G E

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Moayad Abuzaneh, a Palestinian student, waves the Palestinian flag from atop the Cougar statue in front of the MUC. Students showed up for a two-day protest where they painted the rock in the Quad and distributed information about the conflict in Palestine. | Chloe Wolfe / The Alestle

Wake up early with The Alestle for breakfast PAGES 4-5

Men’s soccer crowned OVC champions after victory PAGE 8

Thursday, 10.26.23

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Cougar Village community Palestinian, Muslim students director resigns, arrested protest war in Palestine on suspicion of prostitution BRUCE DARNELL managing editor

until a “plan for coverage” can be put together.

University Housing declined to comment. SIUE Police redirectCory Harlan, 43, the comed The Alestle to Univermunity director of Cousity Marketing and Comgar Village’s 400 Side, munications. has resigned from his “The university empost after being arrested ployee in question has on suspicion prostitution. resigned, and SIUE will The SIUE police blotnot comment on an open ter reported the arrest at 3 investigation,” Nicole p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, Franklin, director of comsaying Harlan was “finger- Cory Harlan munications, said. “It’s printed, photographed, not a matter that SIUE is going to processed and released with a No- have any jurisdiction over. There’s tice to Appear.” no more campus interaction.”

An email signed by MalBrian Brueggemann, a reprelory Sidarous, director of Uni- sentative from the Madison Counversity Housing, revealed Oct. ty State’s Attorney’s office, said the 25 that Harlan was no longer a case was most likely a misdemeanHousing employee. or and had not been received by According to the email, the office. the 400 Side’s “immediate suAs of the time of publication, pervisor” will be Assistant Di- the investigation remains ongoing rector for Residence Life at and no details about the arrest Cougar Village Brandon Perjak have been released.

DYLAN HEMBROUGH editor-in-chief

In an attempt to generate awareness about the conflict in Palestine, members of the Muslim Student Association gathered to hold protest signs and pass out informational pamphlets.

Some protestors, like junior business administration major Yousif Ashkar, asked passing students if they knew what was happening in Palestine. If any stopped to talk, he handed them one of the pamphlets and had a brief conversation.

Moayad Abuzaneh, a sophomore biology pre-med major, held up and waved a Palestinian flag in the crowd of protestors while standing on top of the Cougar Statue’s base.

Around two dozen people showed up in support of the protest with diverse representation.

Members of Student Government were also involved in the protest and showed support by holding

signs. They also directed people with questions to the main table.

The protestors also spray-painted the rock in the center of the Quad with the colors of the Palestinian flag. The rock was later painted over with Christian symbols.

The protest was done in opposition of the war between Israel and Palestine, specifically regarding events in Gaza. The two-week war has so far killed around 5,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis, with primarily civilian casualties for both countries. Almost half of Palestine’s casualties are under 18-years-old.

The protest was not spontaneous, and the protestors remained at their reserved table by the Quad’s Cougar Statue. It was held from 11:45 a.m. until 1 p.m., during peak traffic hours outside the MUC. The Muslim Student Association held another protest on Oct. 25 at the rock in the Quad. During the second protest, they re-painted the rock and gave speeches.

10.18.23 An offensive message was written on a whiteboard in Peck Hall. An officer erased the message and notified the B.I.A.S. team.

10.21.23 A group of people jumped a fence to play football at the RecPlex. An officer told them they couldn’t play on the locked field and issued the group a warning for tresspassing.

10.23.23 Campus police received two noise complaints about a preacher in the Quad. On the second complaint, the preacher told an officer they were getting ready to leave.

New ‘youthful, fun’ merchandise being sold in Cougar Store MICHAL KATE CASTLEMAN reporter The Cougar Store released new merchandise in September with the collegiate apparel designer Uscape.

Anna Pavlik, retail manager of the Cougar Store, said she began working with Uscape in March when she attended a national conference for college stores. Pavlik said she had been familiar with the brand for many years, but the licensing for the Cougar Store was more restrictive until recently.

Uscape states on their website that their mission for collegiate apparel is “creating one-of-a-kind designs paired with iconic styles to capture the unique spirit and energy of your school.”

Pavlik said the brand had set up a pop-up booth with apparel from Western Illinois University at the conference.

“I took a bunch of pictures and I was like, ‘If another state school that is sort of in our overall system can do something like this, then I want to try it again,’” Pavlik said.

Pavlik said the Cougar Store began discussing ideas with Uscape in March, with the brand providing Pavlik with templates to look over.

“They look at the campus,” Pavlik said. “I had to send them some pictures and tell them a little bit about SIUE, then they formulate the design and then it goes through licensing.”

Uscape has many designs for colleges to choose from, so Pavlik said she decided to play it safe with Uscape’s more popular designs. Pavlik discussed design choices with the brand’s co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Emily Nowlin. “[Nowlin] said, ‘These are our rockstar pieces that we always recommend you start with,’” Pavlik said. “We’re hoping that now that we’ve been able to get it in store, we’ll be able to expand.”

Pavlik said it was a bit of a process to release the new apparel, but said it was exciting to have new merchandise for SIUE and to do something the Cougar Store had

ISRAEL Syrian military assets were struck by Israeli jets in what Israel claims to be a retaliation to Syrian rocket launches into the country. Syria’s rockets reportedly landed in open areas.

The Cougar Store, lit during closed hours by an overhead light, introduced their new merchandise at the beginning of the Fall semester. | Bruce Darnell / The Alestle never done before.

The new merchandise consists of apparel that does not have the typical SIUE logo on the front.

Instead, some of the items feature unique aspects of SIUE, such as the Fuller Dome and the cougar statue in front of the MUC. “I think in the past, some of the feedback I’ve heard is that some of the things look very homogenous, which I don’t necessarily disagree with,” Pavlik said. “But I think maybe people don’t understand that it’s not necessarily my decision—it’s coming down from the licensing companies.”

Pavlik said after having discussions with the licensing companies, there is more collaboration to expand the product offering so it can be “youthful, collegiate and fun.”

“Everything that I asked for is there,” Pavlik said. “There were a few tweaks, a few minor modifications, but for the most part everything made it through.”

The SIUE Uscape apparel is more expensive, but Pavlik said it bodes well to have a wider product offering at the Cougar Store.

“I think it’s good they’re expanding. It’s good to have a

variety. People like it when they release new merchandise, Frances Messina, a senior political science major, said.

Pavlik said the success of the new line of merchandise was instantaneous and she was happy to see people at Homecoming wearing and styling the pieces in their own ways.

“It isn’t just the standard logo,” Pavlik said. “They are quality pieces—they’re not made poorly. I think that’s been an intentional choice, to pick things you’re going to love when you’re twenty-two, and when you’re thirty and an alum.”

Ingrid Galeana, a freshman Spanish education major and student worker at the Cougar Store, said she thinks the new apparel is reflective of the students at SIUE. She said the colorful design and different logos match what she thinks students enjoy.

‘It’s very stylish—it’s designed in a trendy way that students like nowadays,” Galeana said.

“There are many students who want to represent our school and its colors.”

Freshman anthropology ma-

jor and Cougar Store student worker Evan Arnold said he thinks the Cougar Store did a good job choosing merchandise that represents SIUE. Arnold said the new Uscape merchandise is selling quickly, with the store having to restock many times since the release.

“If you don’t have things that connect with the students, no one is going to buy it, look at it or give it time of day,” Arnold said.

Arnold said everyone enjoys supporting their college, so merchandise is important to the university experience.

“It’s nice to feel included in something,” Arnold said. “It’s nice to visually connect to people with the sense of, ‘Oh, we all go here.’

It’s like a jersey for everyday life.”

Pavlik said along with the Uscape merchandise already released, the Cougar Store will release hats, stickers, blankets and additional clothing pieces soon.

To check out the new Uscape merchandise, visit the Cougar Store Monday through Friday or on their website. Other SIUE merchandise from the Cougar Store is also available on Amazon.

ICELAND Tens of thousands of women in Iceland went on a 24-hour strike over gender inequality. The country’s prime minister, Katrin Jakobsdottir, joined the protest.

CHINA China has ousted General Li Shangfu, the country’s defense minister.

No replacement has been named for Li, who has not been seen in public since Aug 29.

NIGER Niger’s former president Mohamed Bazoum reportedly attempted to escape custody on but was recaptured. Bazoum has been held in custody since the July 26 coup.

GERMANY Two freighters off of the northern coast of Germany collided with each other in the North Sea, leaving one dead and four missing.

Information courtesy of Reuters / AP

Thursday, 10.26.23

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STEM courses suffering low retention rates DYLAN HEMBROUGH editor-in-chief

As careers in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, grow in the U.S., so too does the need to address high dropout rates in these programs in college.

According to a study published in the Journal of College Science Teaching in late 2020, “STEM attrition” occurs when a student who initially wanted a STEM degree stops pursuing a STEM degree, either shifting to a non-STEM major or dropping out of college completely.

“Nationwide, of those firsttime postsecondary students who declared STEM majors and began attending four-year colleges and universities in the academic year 2011–2012, 31 percent left STEM by the academic year 2013–2014. In quantitative disciplines, such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and engineering, recent national statistics state that STEM attrition can be as high as 50 percent,” the study said.

Maurina Aranda, an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, said much of her research focuses on the issue of not only learning, but also teaching STEM courses.

“The whole premise of my research is that science is hard, and that we need to help prepare students to learn, teach students how to learn and also think about how we’re teaching science in order to promote a more productive learning environment,” Aranda said.

Aranda said STEM attrition is a multifaceted problem, but it does reveal some common threads.

“One of the biggest struggles … is that at a college level we go at a really fast pace that students are often not prepared for, because they’re just not used to it,” Aranda said. “What I cover in one semester is often covered in an entire year in high school. It’s at a really fast pace, and often we’re bringing back concepts students have not seen

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for four years.”

Woodall also said many stuAranda also said the rou- dents felt that getting to know tine of studying that high school the teaching style of their prostudents get used to often needs fessors would help them betto be overhauled once they start ter understand the content college. This disconnect be- being taught. tween high school and college “Lots of students ask for learning, according to Aranda, study guides or supplemental takes up class time that could be problems that are directly writused to learn material. ten by the professor, or whoev“How learning is assessed at er is teaching the class, so they a high school level is often not can have a feel for the language how learning is assessed at a col- and how they talk about the conlege level,” Aranda said. “We’re cepts,” Woodall said. also trying to get students to Autonomy, relevance and think critically about concepts. community are all cited in this We spend a lot of time in our study as avenues of engagement intro courses teaching students students can — and are willing how to learn in our discipline … to — take advantage of. and apply it in a novel context.”

“They appreciated profesZackary Woodall is a junior sors who were enthusiastic about biological scitheir subences major, as ject, clearly well as one of cared about the co-authors student enof a study pubjoyment in We spend a lot of lished earlier the course this year on the and contime in our intro problems facveyed the courses teaching ing STEM stuvalue of the dents and their work the students how to own thoughts students on what might putlearn in our discipline were help them learn ting in as it better. pertained to and apply it in a Wo o d a l l their desired novel context.” said the pacareers,” the per, which was study said.

Maurina Aranda Assistant Professor of Biology published as A r a nd a part of SIUE’s also said the STEM Ambasway STEM sadors program, was based on classes are structured only the “universal design for learn- gives students a few chances to ing” framework, the purpose of demonstrate their knowledge, which is to transform the class- often in an anxiety-provoking room environment into one all manner. students can thrive in, no matter “We have really high-stakes their background. exams, and that can provoke a Woodall said that, of the lot of anxiety and stress for stu26 students interviewed, many dents,” Aranda said. “I definitely of the responses reflected UDL had really bad test anxiety when principles, despite the research- I was a student, and that’s someers never mentioning UDL to thing I openly share with my any of the interviewees. students. Maybe in a class like “A big thing was multiple English or history, if you write a representations of material,” paper, you get feedback and you Woodall said. “Maybe you’re all get to modify and change it. We doing the same lab, but maybe don’t get that opportunity in you can reengineer it in your STEM classes.” own way. I think what [students] Gwen Mihlbachler, a sophwere really asking for was a sense omore biology medical science of autonomy in their classes.” major, said one of STEM’s

inherent issues is that much of it cannot be learned at a surface level.

“It’s a lot of challenging concepts — even math you can’t learn at a surface level,” Mihlbachler said. “I think getting that motivation to take extra steps to truly understand the information is one of the hardest things. We have so many things going on in our lives — work, families, thinking about the future — there’s so much on our plates.”

Mihlbachler is also a “peerled team learning” leader, a program SIUE implemented recently where a student who has taken a class guides students currently in the class through problems related to class content.

“A lot of people want to do it on their own, and they’re afraid to go ask their PLTL leader, or a professor, or even other students sometimes, and they’re struggling on their own instead of reaching out to others to get help,” Mihlbachler said. “People learn differently, so I just try to find a way for them to understand it.”

April Hornsey, a junior double majoring in business administration and biology medical sciences, said the studying she has to do for her science classes far outweighs that which she has to do for her business classes.

“I’m a lot busier than my friends who aren’t STEM majors,” Hornsey said. “[In] my business classes I still have a lot of assignments, but it’s just a lot easier. You have to study more for science classes.”

Kaleb Setzer, a sophomore pre-pharmacy major who is switching to chemistry, said the workload between different classes can stack up very easily.

“I’ve spent the last three semesters trying to play catch-up,” Setzer said. “[It would help to] coordinate exams so they aren’t stacking on top of each other in the same week.”

Aranda said out-of-class work should not exceed the amount of time spent in class.

“I tell students [that] for every hour I get you in class, I

expect an hour out of you out of class,” Aranda said. “If I get my students for three hours a week, I would expect that they’re probably spending three hours a week outside of class, and I think that three hours a week is pretty manageable.”

Aranda said out-of-class work does not need to consist purely of studying.

“That three hours a week is also doing your homework [and] doing your lab report,” Aranda said. “Doing 50 hours a week, your brain is not designed for that. More time does not equal better studying.”

Aranda also said many professors want students to succeed and excel in their classes despite the difficulty of the material.

“We don’t get bonus points if we have a high DFW [dropfail-withdraw] rate in our class,” Aranda said. “In fact, people look at us like, ‘What are you doing?’”

Aranda said SIUE has plenty of resources for struggling students, regardless of their major.

“They have a tutoring center, supplemental instruction for many of these classes and success coaches who are meant to help guide these students,” Aranda said. “We’re trying to think about best practices to be inclusive. I’ve been at other schools and you walk into a building and immediately feel so uncomfortable. It’s a completely different environment. That’s one of the things I like about SIUE — I feel safe.”

Aranda said if everyone worked together to help alleviate these issues, the result would be a much better learning environment and, eventually, a much better-educated workforce.

“We do have a problem in STEM. We need people to go to pharmacy school. We need dentists. We need doctors. We need people who are going to do research. We need all of these fields [and] people in order to do all of these jobs,” Aranda said.

“It requires work on everyone’s end, but I do think that we can get there.”

you know it’s a career but it wasn’t my original path, but [I] wound up just loving it.”

Fine also has an extensive background in sports in higher education. According to her SIUE bio, Fine focuses her research on the experiences of Black college students and the organizational and sociocultural aspects of intercollegiate athletics and higher education.

According to Fine, she began with developing the curriculum for the program before sending it through several different channels to get approved.

“It gets reviewed by the Department [of Education, Health and Human Behavior], the school, different committees on campus, the provost — like so many. Then eventually, it goes to the Board [of Trustees], the chancellor and a board for any new programs to get approved,” Fine said.

Fine said the entire process took two years to complete and, once approved, she began developing the specific courses in

porting end because I often feel like she spends a lot of time supporting me. It’s really exciting to celebrate all the great work that she’s doing.”

The program is in its first semester with an inaugural class of six students. Along with the courses that Fine teaches, students also attend traditional higher education and student affairs courses.

“Students get a mix of both,” Fine said. “Students that go through this specialization are more interested in athletics, but it’s important to understand how colleges work too, so that’s why we have the blend and have them take some of the other classes too.”

Cassidy Ferguson is a firstyear graduate student and one of the six in the program.

She said the reason she came to SIUE was because of the specification in athletics.

“I was really wanting to do something [like] sports,” Ferguson said. “Eastern Illinois University has sports administration.

So I applied there, and then this was the other one that I applied for. It was higher education, student affairs and athletics -— the athletics piqued my interest. I thought it was interesting and different, obviously brand new, and I like being a part of things that are new.”

Ferguson said the classes she is taking right now are different than what she is used to, but she finds that being “guinea pigs” for the program is allowing her to learn more as she goes since classes are still developing.

Fine said the small class is allowing her to mold the courses to fit students better.

“I think one thing I’m excited about is getting input from the students because I want them involved in the process, giving feedback and seeing how we can enhance [the program] because their experience is very important to me,” Fine said.

“

Professor launches unique sports specialization program

CHLOE WOLFE opinion editor

Many college campuses have a master’s degree for higher education, but very few have a specialization in athletics. Assistant Professor Cherese Fine spent the last three years adding SIUE to that shortlist.

The idea for the program came from the Department of Education, Health and Human Behavior’s dean, Robin Hughes. Fine said Hughes hired her to develop the program in 2020 due to her research background in the role of athletics in higher education.

Prior to being hired at SIUE, Fine said she worked as a student affairs practitioner at Clemson University before moving to the faculty side. Fine said she did academic advising as well as work in recruitment and retention.

“A lot of my higher ed background is [diversity, equity and inclusion] work,” Fine said. “So it’s one of those things where

the program such as “Law and Ethics in Sport” and “Athletics in Higher Education.” She said she also focused on recruiting students through open houses, listservs and social media.

“Because this is a little bit different from programs you see, we’ve got to probably recruit a little bit differently, or show that we exist,” Fine said. “Typically, students might be looking for just a sports-only program.

So now, you have got to find students kind of interested in both areas.”

During the process, Fine said other faculty members in her department, such as J.T. Snipes, Candace Hall and Derek Houston, helped her brainstorm ideas for the program due to their background in traditional higher education.

“We spent a lot of time brainstorming and just dreaming together… I’m going to try not to get too emotional, but it’s been a joy to see her vision start to take shape,” Hall said. “It’s been exciting to be on the sup-

see PROFESSOR on page 7

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Thursday, 10.26.23

Header by Thea Weltzin

The classic American diner is the ideal breakfast place if you are looking for a delicious, filling meal.

We reviewed breakfast foods at local diners, trying everything from French toast to loaded hash browns.

While the food is the most important component, the perfect breakfast includes friendly service and good prices.

We rank based on price, taste and service, reviewing local restaurants to find your perfect fit.

Twisted Biscuit serves up twist on breakfast classics MADISON HUTCHINSON online editor

I Madison Hutchinson / The Alestle

Warm biscuits, crispy bacon and decadent waffles await SIUE students only a five-minute drive from campus.

Upon our arrival, we were quickly seated in a comfortable booth with menus and water. Inside, the large windows let in the warm late-morning sunlight, the artwork on the walls were funky and colorful and large TVs played NFL reruns and funny animal videos.

To drink I ordered the house coffee “Twisted Joe,” which is exclusively made for Twisted Biscuit by Goshen Coffee. It was fresh and hot and our server made sure to keep my mug filled.

The menu has a large selection of breakfast classics with a modern twist. I ordered “Which Came First,” a signature dish of a large crispy chicken tender, gravy, an over medium egg and cheddar

jack cheese served over a large bacon and cheddar-filled biscuit. For my side, I ordered the “Twisted Fries.”

The food took a while to arrive, but our server checked in with us often.

The biscuit was the real star of the dish, which is what I would hope for from a restaurant with biscuit in its name. It was fluffy, savory and served as a perfect base to absorb the egg yolk and gravy.

The food was amazing, the atmosphere was inviting and the service was great. My only real complaint with Twisted Biscuit was the price. My food cost $14 and my coffee was $4. Even though the food and coffee were great, the price point still felt a bit steep.

Overall, Twisted Biscuit is a great brunch spot for SIUE students to check out due to its close proximity to campus, its modern twists on classic breakfast favorites and the inviting atmosphere targeted towards young people.

Belleville Pancake House is well worth the wait, price AUDREY O’RENIC sports editor

I Audrey O’Renic / The Alestle

Just a few minutes from downtown Belleville, the Belleville Pancake House serves up delicious food for a great price.

After a long wait at the front, we were seated in a single booth facing the wall. It wasn’t my first choice for seating, but for a small local restaurant, it was understandable. It was quite busy and it seemed to be a little understaffed, so it took us a while to even get our menu.

Belleville Pancake House is known for their pancake flavors such as apple cinnamon, cheesecake and banana pecan.

After 23 minutes, we were finally able to order. The staff were friendly, despite the

fast-paced environment.

I ordered the egg sampler with two over-easy eggs, hash browns and buttermilk pancakes for a total of $9.99. The eggs were cooked perfectly with a nice, runny yolk. The hash browns were crisped nice on the outside with a soft potato on the inside, and with a little salt, it was delicious.

The buttermilk pancakes were the perfect level of fluffy and airy and seemed to almost melt in my mouth. They had the right amount of butter on them and the syrup was light and sweet.

Although there may be a little bit of a wait, the Belleville Pancake House is definitely worth it in terms of the quality and originality of their food.

Golden Oak Pancake House was absolutely golden MICHAL KATE CASTLEMAN reporter

I Michal Kate Castleman / The Alestle

Serving fan-favorite breakfast items, Golden Oak Pancake House provides a warm, friendly setting for your morning.

The restaurant has a lovely atmosphere with many breakfast and morning themed decorations. There was indoor and outdoor seating available.

My boyfriend and I went to Golden Oak together, and we chose to eat indoors. I chose the French toast combo, which featured French toast, eggs, bacon and sausage links. I also ordered hash

browns on the side.

The French toast combo was incredible, as were the sides. The price of my meal was around $17, mainly because I ordered a side. I would consider the restaurant affordable for an occasional breakfast outing, but not for regular dining.

The service was great, and the food was perfect. I do wish sides were not so much of an additional charge as I wanted a small cup of fruit, but it was $4.99.

If you’re looking for a local restaurant to go to for breakfast, I would definitely recommend Golden Oak Pancake House.

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Route 66 classic with cheap breakfast, vintage atmosphere BRANDI SPANN copy editor

I Brandi Spann / The Alestle

A hole-in-the-wall restaurant unique to Granite City, Teri’s Route 66 Diner is located on West Chain of Rocks Road with a large, open, loose rock parking lot in front of the tiny white building connected to a flea market that is only open on the weekends.

The inside of the diner has an inviting ambiance. The room has a vintage feel that aligns ideally with the long-established kitschy Americana legacy of Route 66. The walls are painted coral-pink. The counter is lined with a silver tile reminiscent of the sleek, classic look of a shiny new hub cap.

The woman behind the counter told us to take a seat wherever we wanted. We sat by the window while she got our water. We ordered the pancakes and

the dish that was intriguingly named the “Lawnmower Man.” The pancakes were listed on the menu as a stack of three. Our server made sure to inform us that the pancakes are about the size of the vinyl record that was sitting on our table as part of the centerpiece.

The pancakes were large, thick and fluffy, so we only ordered one. A single pancake was more than enough for one person.

The “Lawnmower Man” was a plate of biscuits and gravy covered in hash browns and eggs. The flavor was slightly bland, but it’s difficult to expect much out of a plate of warm, wet biscuits and potatoes. The plate was drowning in gravy, but was delicious nonetheless.

Both meals were filling and the bill was $16, which was reasonable for two people. Teri’s Route 66 Diner perfectly hit the mark for a warm American road trip breakfast.

Park Grill hosts a feast fit for a king at a peasant’s price DYLAN HEMBROUGH editor-in-chief

I Dylan Hembrough / The Alestle

Prompt and personable service plus scrumptious food at a discount price equals an incredible early-morning breakfast experience. Granite City’s Park Grill fits this equation perfectly.

The first thing I noticed when walking into Park Grill was the ‘50s aesthetic plastered all over the inside of the restaurant — license plates, old advertisements and empty glass bottles of Coke, just to name a few of the more common items. A lot of ‘50s-themed diners and bars are done up to the point where they almost look sterile, but Park Grill does not fall into this trap.

Park Grill, which doesn’t really advertise itself as a ‘50s-themed restaurant, feels lived in and loved by its patrons.

I ordered the “Four French Toast” dish, which comes with powdered sugar and a bottle of syrup. I also got a chocolate milk to go along with it, which I learned they hand-stir at the customer’s request.

The French toast is almost overwhelming in the best way possible.

French toast can be easy to mess up,

but Park Grill prepared it perfectly — nothing was burnt, and nothing was undercooked. There was just the right amount of powdered sugar that clumped up in the tastiest way when it met the syrup. The amount of food I got was astonishing for how little I ended up having to pay.

Our service at Park Grill was not only incredibly prompt, but also incredibly personable. The owner, Mike, personally takes orders alongside the other servers and checks on customers pretty regularly. I got the sense after observing enough that a lot of the customers had built up a rapport with the staff over time.

I went with my girlfriend, so we got two dishes of French toast, a coffee and a chocolate milk altogether. All of that — which, may I remind you, was more than filling — cost me $15. The one downside of Park Grill is that it is a cash-only establishment, but there is an ATM machine in the restaurant available for all customers to use if they don’t have cash on hand.

I don’t like to give perfect ratings very often, but for what I got at Park Grill for the price I did, as well as the stellar service, Park Grill deserves a 15/15.

Edwardsville’s Sgt. Pepper’s Cafe serves up cheap food fast GRACE GENTEMANN reporter

I Grace Gentemann / The Alestle

In downtown Edwardsville, you will find a Beatles-themed restaurant named Sgt. Pepper’s Cafe which offers a range of affordable options. I went with a large group of people and expected more of a crowd, but it was rather empty. With such a large group, I thought service would be slow. However, we were served rather quickly and the waitress swiftly attended to our needs.

There were many affordable options food-wise, with some dishes being only

$4.99. That being said, the food was nothing too incredible. I had ordered a sausage and feta omelet, which was fine.

I also ordered a side of biscuits and gravy that I personally disliked because it was too soggy and I prefer a thicker gravy. I feel as though the food does leave you a little unfulfilled food wise, but with the low prices, it can be excused.

Other than that, I feel as if there was nothing that necessarily stood out to me, and I feel that there are many other options breakfast-wise that could do the same job, if not better.

Red Apple, a hidden breakfast gem for college students TY HICKS reporter

I Ty Hicks / The Alestle

I was pleasantly surprised at Maryville’s Red Apple Family restaurant’s variety of breakfast options, and their quick and affordable meals.

Despite the place being pretty packed during breakfast hours, there was no trouble seating me as soon as I walked in the door.

The dim light that filters through the blinds onto the cool brown hardwood floors gives of a very comfortable and snug atmosphere.

After looking through the variety of what you would expect to be served for breakfast, I went with a specialty cherry pancake stack that came with three me-

dium sized pancakes, costing me $9.95, along with a side of ham costing me $4.15.

The ham was perfectly juicy and paired great with the pancakes, which were cooked to a golden brown, perfectly crisp and hot. The whipped cream and cherries were a great balance for them, though I was disappointed to discover that the cherries were not fresh, but came from a canned pie filling.

After my order was taken, I only had to wait 12 minutes for my food to arrive.

I definitely have plans to visit there again in the future and try some more of their delicious pancakes, as well as even more breakfast options at an affordable price.

OPINION

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DYLAN HEMBROUGH Editor-in-Chief

BRUCE DARNELL Managing Editor

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AUDREY O’RENIC Sports Editor

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Rameshwar Gundem Circulation Manager

College is stressful enough: Can we just have consistent Wi-Fi on campus?

Meghan Fosnock Damon Fowler Front Desk Clerks

THE ALESTLE STAFF editorial board

Shoba Swar Advertising Manager

Students rely on the internet for online classwork and resources. So, expecting SIUE to provide functioning Wi-Fi instead of barring students from doing their day-to-day things is a pretty reasonable request.

Wi-Fi is one of those things that is great when it is working.

Students at SIUE may have noticed that there are many days when the Wi-Fi does not consistently work however.

Sure, students have rough patches and aren’t consistently putting their best foot forward every single day. So students can understand if the Wi-Fi struggles every so often. However, the struggles this fall have been very agitating.

There have been too many

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Thea Weltzin Illustrator

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Maximilian Lenhart Pedro Henrique G-M Angie Trout Office Manager Photographers

HAVE A COMMENT? Let us know! opinion@alestlelive.com Campus Box 1167 Edwardsville, Illinois 62026-1167 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY: The editors, staff and publishers of The Alestle believe in the free exchange of ideas, concerns and opinions and will publish as many letters as possible.

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forced to ask their professors for more time on assignments and hope they understand the internet issues.

Not to mention, some of the programs or websites that assignments are on can be frustrating as it is — to throw a shaky internet connection into the equation is just infuriating.

It is not just homework.

Professors feel the frustration of trying to run their class with a struggling Wi-Fi connection.

Some may suggest buying an ethernet cord, but that would cost money. To combat the issues, students could try downloading certain media to enjoy in their off-time or contacting Information Technology Services for their suggestions or assistance.

The stress of not being able

to do schoolwork is very aggravating but the agitation doesn’t end there. If you want to de-escalate from the stress of classes, good luck. To be able to play on your phone, watch any show or movie or listen to music requires a consistent internet connection.

Any source of technological leisure is out the window on a bad Wi-Fi day.

The Wi-Fi isn’t always bad enough to make you want to throw all your devices out the window, but there are often WiFi blackouts all across campus.

SIUE needs to figure out these internet issues on campus so students can thrive in a leisurely and academic environment. .

If you notice a dead spot on campus, reach out to ITS or visit their office in the basement of Lovejoy Library.

should, for all intents and purposes, be covered when paying these large college costs is hard to stomach.

Looking at it from numbers alone, general student fees amounted to $3,346.50 this academic year. While many would look at this and expect things such as mandatory test booklets, laundry (to those who live on campus) or parking to be covered in this, that is not the case.

From my own experience living on campus, many freshmen look at you with shock, and some horror, when you tell

them that laundry will cost them $2.50 total for both a wash and dry cycle.

Assuming that there are roughly 16 weeks in a semester, and that students do laundry once a week, that cost is about $40. This is, of course, not including laundry detergent, laundry softener, dryer sheets and extra loads.

If students are expected to pay so much, for laundry we should at least have clean facilities.

Additionally, the price for a single academic year’s residential

parking pass was $196 this year.

While blue books and scantrons — which some professors require for testing — are not the worst offender on this list, having to pay 20, 60, 70 or 80 cents every time a test comes up can be pretty frustrating and tedious.

Having fees such as this for students who usually only have time for a part-time job — if time for a job at all — is unfair. Compound these costs with things such as food and hygienic products and it can make students’ stress much more volatile.

Petty costs are unnecessary and inconvenient TY HICKS reporter

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.

days of low to no Wi-Fi and terrible internet connectivity. We are expected to be at our academic best, but are then limited by the school’s internet service.

In the digital age, assignments are often online. How are students supposed to complete expected work when they sit down and their devices will not connect to the internet?

Specific assignments like tests and essays could be drastically affected by a poor internet connection. All it takes is the Wi-Fi to die before students get the chance to save and lose all their work.

Students have to worry about where they are taking onetime tests since the Wi-Fi could just cut out and prevent them from re-entering to finish it. All this does is force more hassle for students because they are

Attending college is no easy trip to the store. On top of thousands upon thousands of dollars of student loans to simply attend — even more if you want to live on campus — making students pay for things such as laundry, test sheets and parking is frustrating.

While college gives us vital information for future careers, it also takes an obscene amount of money from us. However, adding on various extra charges that

Thursday, 10.26.23

PAGE 7

alestlelive.com

Sports specialization pioneered by professor of me, but how do I get student-athletes to know that they have an advocate for them?”

Although Fine’s students are not to “So checking in with them and seeing the point of beginning their practicums how they’re progressing is important.”

Although Ferguson is taking most- yet — which are similar to internships ly general higher education and student and a requirement for the degree, she has affairs courses right now, she said she is been working closely with Gavin to find still heavily involved with sports admin- placements for them. She said she is also istration. Ferguson is an athletic admin- reaching out to surrounding institutes istrator graduate assistant, meaning she with practicum placements.

“We’re excited about welcoming works closely with Director of Athletics [Fine’s students] and allowing them to Andrew Gavin. have some of that experience with SIUE Gavin is also in his first year at SIUE and has been working with Fine in her Athletics,” Gavin said. “Being able to work with Dr. Fine and creating some of new position as the NCAA Facthose [learning] experiences for ulty Athletic Representative, our students will be really great which she also began this year, and mutually beneficial.” as well as speaking to some of With a degree from the proher classes. gram, Fine said students will be Fine was appointed as the able to have careers in college Faculty Athletic Representative athletics. She also said some after Bill Retzlaff, who formerstudents could go into athletly held the position, stepped ic advising or athlete developdown in order to take a new Cherese Fine ment, among other things reposition as Vice Chancellor for lated to the “academic and wellness” side Administration. Retzlaff said that when Chancellor James Minor asked who he of athletics.

Ferguson does not know what she thought would be the best fit for the role, wants to do in the field yet, but she said he said Fine was the “perfect fit.”

Retzlaff said the Faculty Athletic the degree is broad.

“A lot of us want to go different Representative is the final sign-off to enroutes with it. One of my classmates wants sure student-athletes are eligible to play.

For the last 34 semesters, that has not to be on the coaching staff. Right now he been a problem. According to Retzlaff, is with our basketball team. And we have student-athletes have collectively main- some people that want to be academic advisors,” Ferguson said. tained a GPA of 3.0 or higher.

As of right now, the program is vir“They do pretty well here, so that tual.

In the future, Fine says she hopes to helps,” Fine said. “Now I’m just figuring out how to be more visible, attending offer in-person classes as well as expand games and letting students know who I the program.

“I would love to get more opportuam. I think more administrators know PROFESSOR | PAGE 2

nities outside of the classroom for some experiences,” Fine said. “I know it’s online, but I’m trying to figure out how to keep students engaged and see what they

N0

Will we make it to Thanksgiving break?

want. I’m looking forward to building more relationships in the athletic fields so I can have more opportunities for our students here.”

contact the editor: sports@alestlelive.com (618) 650-3528 PAGE 8

SAM MUREN reporter Two games at Ralph Korte Stadium had different emotions, as the women lost to Morehead State University and the men defeated the University of Southern Indiana on Sunday.

The women’s team held a pre-game ceremony for the 2024 graduating players. Senior forward Jay Viola, graduate goalkeeper Taylor Spiller, senior midfielder Mary Wessel, and graduate defender Sarah Magnoni all received a standing ovation with their families before the game.

The Cougars had a strong start to the game with offensive pressure on Morehead’s side of the field. They had multiple attempts early and held the Eagles in their own zone for an extended time.

Morehead created a quick turn of events when they scored 24 minutes into the half on a counter-rush goal to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead. Momentum shifted in Morehead’s favor after the goal as they continued with pressure in the Cougars’ half.

The Cougars fought back, and both teams shared multiple opportunities to score. SIUE hit the crossbar on one end, and Spiller and Magnoni both made saves to keep the score 1-0 at halftime.

The second half looked similar to the first, as SIUE came out strong and maintained strong offensive pressure.

Leading SIUE’s offense

sports alestlelive.com

was graduate midfielder Matea Diekema.

Throughout the game, Diekema moved the ball up the offensive zone and created multiple opportunities for the Cougars. “[Diekema] was the best player on the field,” Head Coach Derek Burton said.

Diekema led the team with four shot attempts and made several passes to the front of the net that could have gone in. Despite Diekema and the team’s efforts, the Eagles padded their lead on a penalty-kick goal with only 10 minutes left in the game.

“I think the game was a little bit frustrating for us offensively We keep getting chances and chances and we’re just waiting to get one in the back of the net. It’s definitely coming, and I think next game we’re going to pop off,” Diekema said.

The Cougars fell 2-0 and 3-2-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference. The women will play the winners of Eastern Illinois University and Southeast Missouri University at Ralph Korte Stadium on Oct. 29, to start their postseason.

A couple of hours later, the men clinched the first seed and regular season champions in the OVC with a decisive 4-0 victory over USI. The first half was a one-sided affair owned by the Cougars.

They made eight shot attempts, five of which made it on goal.

They held the Screaming Eagles to zero shot the whole first half.

Even though they controlled the game, the score remained at zero for both sides. SIUE continued their strong performance into the second half.

USI got their first shot attempt near the 57-minute mark, but the shot went wide.

Graduate goalkeeper Samuel Gomez made two big saves to keep the Screaming Eagles off the board.

Halfway through the 62-minute mark, the Cougars broke through to get on the score sheet. Graduate forward Jacob Bilyeu scored to put SIUE up 1-0.

A minute later, junior forward and midfielder Stephan Moreira scored a goal assisted

by Bilyeu and senior defenseman William Harris. USI subbed goalkeeper Braden Matthews out after the Cougars went up 2-0.

SIUE added another two quick goals 20 minutes later when junior forward Jacobo Sanfeliu scored his first of the season and first as a Cougar to put SIUE up 3-0.

Graduate forward Pavel Dashin padded the lead just two minutes after Sanfeliu’s goal. Junior defenseman Nic Muench led the team in assists with his third of the night on Dashin’s goal.

“I haven’t had an assist or a goal in probably six or seven games, so it was really big for me,” Muench said.

The Cougars held off USI to help Gomez earn the shut-

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From left: Senior midfielder Andres Delascio, freshman defender Bobby Pauly and graduate forward Pavel Dashin celebrating their triumph after being awarded OVC Champions at the end of the Oct. 22, game at Korte Stadium. | Pedro Henrique G-M / The Alestle out and clinch the first seed in the postseason with a 4-0 victory. SIUE will play their second-to-last game against Lindenwood at Hunter Stadium on Oct. 26.

Lindenwood is the only OVC team the Cougars have tied this season.

“It’ll be a heated, chippy game. They’re fighting for second place still. It’s a local rivalry; I respect their team and their coaches. We’ll have to be ready for a fight because they’re not [going to] back down, but we’ll be ready for them,” Head Coach Cale Wassermann said.

New Eddieville intended to amp up basketball gameday experience SAM MUREN reporter As basketball season approaches, First Community Arena will look slightly different this season with the opening of Eddieville, a new area for fans to enjoy SIUE basketball games.

Eddieville will include four new attractions in one convenient location.

The beer garden that was behind one of the baskets will now be relocated to Eddieville and will be renamed Eddie’s Tap House. Fans can enjoy a beer and watch the game from a new angle.

An extension of the Cougar Store, Eddie’s Apparel, will provide fans with merch.

Eddie’s Kid Zone is a new area that will give kids a new place to play during the SIUE basketball games.

“We’re working on [having] some arts and crafts and

some other games. It’ll have turf flooring. So, it will add a different element there.

Maybe some things where [kids] can compare their hand size to the hand size of one of our [basketball players],” Director of SIUE Athletics Andrew Gavin said.

Concessions will remain available for fans from seasons prior, but the addition of Eddie’s Eats will give fans an opportunity to buy a meal or other snacks during the game. “[We’re] adding an additional concession stand because the one downstairs gets really clogged and it’s hard for one concession stand to serve the [number] of fans we want to have in here,” Gavin said.

Eddieville’s purpose is to help First Community Arena feel more like a professional sports arena.

It will not only give fans an

upgraded game-day experience, but it will also add to the SIUE atmosphere.

Minus the loss of some seats for maximum capacity, expectations are for a more engaging atmosphere.

“I think that [the atmosphere] will be just more of an energetic vibe about the place and the game-day experience,” Women’s Basketball Head Coach Samantha Smith said.

Smith said Eddieville, combined with the new student section, will add to the Cougar’s home court advantage.

“That student section brings some life into the arena, and then, obviously, them getting to experience the upper Eddieville setup , ... It changes the way it feels,” Smith said.

Men’s Basketball Head Coach Brian Barone said fans create a home court advantage.

“The fans are of tremendous value to our success. I think

that when you have a bunch of people that are wearing their red, they’re cheering for SIUE, they’re engaged, they’re consistent — that allows us to get through some of the lows that inevitably are going to happen throughout a game,” Barone said.

Barone said he feels the fans contribute to his team’s success in each home game.

“We count on the fans, and I’m very comfortable saying that. We are all here for one another. I like the fact that when we walk off the court — hopefully with a victory — it’s our victory, not just the 14 guys that were wearing the uniform,” Barone said.

The Athletics department introduced Eddieville as a commitment to the fans and basketball teams to create the ultimate game-day experience.

“Upper administration is really finding the value in what athletics can bring to an

institution and a university.

Eddieville is a start and a move in a really great direction, from the standpoint of making this a really fun game-like experience for people,” Smith said.

Barone said he felt similarly, saying the team’s job is to have success on the court, and this new development will support the team and the community that is cheering for the team.

“The vision, the support of the administration — Andrew Gavin, our athletic director, and Chancellor Minor — really being invested into the experience for the student, the student-athlete and the community is really going to take us to the next level,” Barone said.

Eddieville will be open for the men’s exhibition home game at 7 p.m. on Oct. 29, and the women’s exhibition home game at 7 p.m. on Nov. 2.