Thursday, April 27, 2023

Carter named Madison House Executive Director

After seeing the positive impact of Madison House in the Charlottesville community while working as a teacher and principal in Charlottesville City Public Schools, Stephanie Carter will take office in June as the new executive director. With years of experience in education under her belt and a passion for serving the community, Carter said she strives to strengthen the organization’s relationship with local groups, further connect volunteering to academic pathways and increase student involvement.

Carter said during her time with the organization, she hopes to fulfill the core principles of Madison House — evaluating and improving the ways that students serve the community — while also increasing the center’s fundraising efforts.

Carter has previously served as the principal at Buford Middle School and director at Charlottesville-Albemarle Technical Education Center. As a secondary educator, she said she was inspired by Madison House’s mission to empower students and volunteers and foster the educational and personal growth of the Charlottesville community.

“Providing service to the commu-

nity is critical to my own professional satisfaction, so Madison House just seemed like a natural fit to me,” Carter said.

Madison House is a volunteer center for University students that organizes volunteers, educates leaders, forms community collaborations and encourages lifetime volunteerism, according to the website. More than 3,000 students currently volunteer with the center.

The executive director position oversees all operations of Madison House, including assisting the center in meeting the needs of the Charlottesville neighborhood and leading and guiding the team of staff and student volunteers.

Carter said she is excited to join the team of directors and to better understand Madison House’s operations. She believes it’s essential to understand the priorities of the center’s partners, which allow students at the University to volunteer and strengthen connections with Charlottesville families and school communities through charitable activities. Current partners include the U.Va. Health System, schools in Albemarle County and the Charlottesville community.

“Building relationships is at the heart of the work, and I think it’s really important to understand the priorities of community partners and then design programs and services to meet those critical needs,” Carter said.

Carter said she strives to strengthen educational activities such as tutoring, mentoring and child care in the Charlottesville neighborhood, as well as extend the University’s partnerships through programs such as animal and environmental services, human services and medical services.

Carter said she won’t make any significant changes as the incoming executive director because she doesn’t want to implement changes without first understanding the organization. In addition to familiarizing herself with new leaders, staff and rules, Carter said she values the relationship between students’ academic pursuits and opportunities in the real world.

“As an educator, I know that connecting doing to learning and increasing relevance of academic content is one of the best ways we can expand and deepen educational experience,” Carter said.

Currently, students who are especially interested in public service can take on a Public Service Pathway partnering with Madison House — a new program introduced this year, which incorporates public service into the University’s student experience through research and service opportunities, community partnerships, internships and mentorship. The program is meant to help students obtain experiences that support their dedication to public service.

“In addition to expanding faculty partnerships through community-engaged learning, we’re also seeking new ways to partner with U.Va. student groups and continuing our involvement with Public Service Pathways,” Carter said.

Outside of volunteering during the academic year, students can also become involved with Madison House in the summer. Madison House offers short-term placements for students who are staying in Charlottesville over the summer and wish to volunteer. Carter said there are many students who either begin or continue their volunteer placement over the summer months.

Carter also said there are op-

portunities for students to become involved if they aren’t physically in Charlottesville.

“If you can’t just be a full-time volunteer, you can engage with our social media or attend community events in the community,” Carter said. “Those are just more ways to be involved over the summer.”

Sherri Moore, co-chair of Madison House Board of Directors and McIntire professor, said in an email statement to The Cavalier Daily that the Board is excited to welcome Carter into the role — especially considering her well-known dedication to education in the Charlottesville community.

“She possesses a genuine passion for ensuring the success of students,” Moore said. “The Board looks forward to working with her, and we are confident that she will take Madison House to new and exciting levels.”

Carter will succeed interim executive director Emily Wampler and officially begin her new role in June.

Stephanie Carter, a former teacher, hopes to build community partnerships and prioritize growing educational opportunities

Diem Trinh | Senior Writer

ALISON PIKE | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Madison House is a volunteer center for University students that organizes volunteers, educates leaders, forms community collaborations and encourages lifetime volunteerism.

E-school looks to increase female representation

Female engineers and organizations at the University hope to promote the resources and opportunities in engineering to other women

Diem Trinh | Senior Writer

While 56 percent of University students identify as women, only 33.6 percent of the School of Engineering and Applied Science’s student body is female. Alongside national initiatives to encourage women entering STEM fields, SEAS has seen increases in the numbers of women admitted the past admissions cycle, along with student efforts to promote female representation both within the school and in the larger Engineering community.

Swathi Shekharan, president of Engineering Student Council and third-year Engineering student, said her major, Biomedical Engineering, is the only concentration with majority female students. She said that an environment with more female students and teachers has supported her learning experience.

“No one wants to feel like their voice doesn’t matter as much or that they’re not getting representatives,” Shekharan said. “I do think that increasing the representation of wom-

en just in general, especially within our professors and our administration, is the best way to improve the experience of women in school.”

While the University’s overall spring admissions cycle acceptances were 57.7 percent women, SEAS acceptances were 39 percent women — an increase from 37 percent last year. This admission cycle reflects a small increase in female representation, given that the current SEAS student body is 33.6 percent female.

Anne Kromkowski, senior associate dean and chief operating officer, said SEAS cites diversity as a core value. According to Society of Women Engineers data, SEAS’s tenured and tenure-track faculty is 23 percent women, compared to a national average of 19.2 percent.

“Our women faculty are worldclass researchers and teachers,” Kromkowski wrote in a statement to The Cavalier Daily. “These role models are one of the reasons that U.Va. Engineering is the top U.S. public engineering school for per-

centage of women graduates.”

Nationally, only around 22 percent of engineering degrees are awarded to women. SEAS saw a slight reduction in offers made — from 1,975 in 2022 to 1,882 in 2023 — but the number of female engineering students increased from 727 to 734.

Although many female students reported overall satisfaction with Engineering programs, some said they would like to see more increases in female representation within the school, citing the male-dominated culture within many classes. Second-year Engineering student

Natalie Bretton said the number of female students involved in STEM education was not what she initially hoped for when she came to the University.

“As a mechanical engineer, I’ve been in classes where there’s around 40 people and only one other girl,” Bretton said. “I think it’s just like a gradual change over time, as hopefully more women join STEM and

slowly make those numbers even out a little bit.”

Bretton said the University’s representation of women in engineering classrooms is also dependent on the students’ majors — her major in Mechanical Engineering is less likely to have female students than other SEAS concentrations.

Both Bretton and Shekharan are members of the Society of Women Engineers, an organization on Grounds that promotes women in engineering through community-building events and outreach programs at local public schools. As the representative body for undergraduate students in SEAS, Engineering Student Council also plays a large role in advancing women in engineering.

Shekharan said that the council hopes to promote women in engineering through STEM education and nurture it from a young age, such as volunteering opportunities with Buford Middle School, high school visitation programs and an

Engineering exploration day event for younger girls.

ESC also collaborates with other organizations such as Women in Computer Science and Advocates for Medical Equality to increase the representation of female engineers.

“That’s a great way to help promote STEM education, especially to underserved populations and women in general and get them excited about it from a young age,” Shekharan said.

Through inspiring more women to enter the field, Shekran said she hopes more women in the Engineering school can find female role models like she has encountered within biomedical engineering.

“I think that’s part of the reason I love the major so much is that I see myself represented every day by the professors,” Shekharan said. “And, of course, there’s room to improve just because there aren’t as many women in the school as I think there could be.”

U.Va.’s Environmental Institute expands its mission

The Institute’s expanded mission will be commemorated with an event hosting Washington Post journalist Chris Mooney

Haylee Ressa | Senior Associate

From decarbonizing healthcare to creating earthquake-resilient architecture, research projects led by the University’s Environmental Resilience Institute focus on understanding humans’ role in the natural world. Moving forward, the center has been renamed the Environmental Institute to better encompass its expanded mission — helping combat climate change through student and community engagement.

The formerly-named Environmental Resilience Institute was founded in 2017 to support work across Grounds on climate change and environmental solutions. Allison Carter, communications manager of the Environmental Institute, said the goal of the new name is to reflect the Institute’s expanded mission to include broader environmental services for the University and Charlottesville community and specifically increased funding for climate focused community research.

“We’re trying to think of ways to take all the amazing research being done and explore its impacts in whatever avenues and tools we have available to us,” Carter said. “Thinking through impact means trying

to get the story out there about climate change and environmental resilience work.”

In the coming years, the Institute will expand climate change and environment-related research and engagement on-Grounds through the new $10 million Climate Collaborative, a program to fund four to six interdisciplinary research teams to lead climate-related projects at the University.

Leon Szeptycki, associate director of the Environmental Institute and law professor, said the projects will center on place-based research around climate change solutions in specific communities in and outside of Virginia.

“How could the community be made more resilient to the impacts of climate change?” Szeptycki said.

“How could the transition happen in a way that doesn’t disproportionately impact economically disadvantaged communities? All of those things are on the table for the climate collaborative.”

The Institute also plans to expand research and engagement opportunities for undergraduate students. Karen McGlathery, director of the Environmental Institute and

professor of environmental sciences, said one of these opportunities will be the Decarbonization Corps, an initiative where an undergraduate student, a faculty member and a practitioner in the field will work together on a project to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere.

“This is a new program that we’re piloting this summer,” McGlathery said. “We’re pretty excited about it and hoping that it will grow.”

The Environmental Institute conducts their research with an emphasis on interdisciplinary climate change research, bringing collaborators together across schools and departments to work on research projects. The Institute also partners with the University Career Services to provide environment-related summer internships and J-term externships to students. It also partners with community organizations like the Community Climate Collaborate and Virginia Clinicians for Climate Action.

The center will host Chris Mooney, Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist at The Washington Post, for a Rotunda Dome room event May 1 at 4 p.m. to mark the official

changing of the name. Pre-registration is not required, but seating is limited to the first 100 attendees.

Explaining the story of climate change research and data in a way the general public can understand is important to the impact of climate change research, Carter said. Mooney will speak on this topic at the renaming event during his talk “How Data & Narrative Work Together to Inform the Public” in the Dome Room of the Rotunda.

Mooney reports on climate change, energy and the environment for the Washington Post and is a lecturer at the Yale School of the Environment. As part of a Washington Post team, Mooney received the Pulitzer Prize for a series of articles investigating areas in the United States that exceeded the two degrees Celsius increase in temperature described by scientists as a marker of climate change. Mooney works at the interface between scientific data and communication.

“I believe that all kinds of powerful and important stories are sitting there in datasets that journalists often are not even looking at,” Mooney said. “Scientists look at them but they often don’t look at

them the way we look at them.”

Mooney said he plans to discuss two specific articles that successfully told the story of research to readers. In one article on the rising water temperatures around the Denman glacier in Antarctica, Mooney focused on how a seal and a robot provided researchers with data that indicates signs of potential climate disaster. Mooney said that communicating this research can have a big impact by engaging readers on serious concerns in the world.

“[These stories] can really work powerfully and as we do more, especially of data journalism that is becoming very important to journalism, we need the help of experts more than ever,” Mooney said. “We depend on the research community and we need… to work together to get these stories out.”

The new Environmental Institute will have offices on the Downtown Mall in Charlottesville and hold student events on-Grounds. In August the Institute plans to host the Environmental Futures Forum to highlight the environment and climate-related research being conducted at the University.

Top 10 things to plan for now that graduation is coming up

These may not be the most exciting things, but here is what I’ve been thinking about between now and graduation as a fourth year.

Anna Mason | Top 10 Writer

4. Move out

1. Diploma frames

Our diplomas will be delivered to our mailing addresses a few weeks or months after graduation. Framing your diploma is completely optional, but deciding how you’ll store it and keep it in good condition is something that we have to think about. The bookstore sells diploma frames that are specific to the University, but frames are also available at Michael’s or other retail stores — I am personally very excited to hang my diploma.

Degree ceremony planning

Speaking of degree ceremonies, the schedule for major-specific ceremonies is currently on the final exercise website for all of the schools within the University. Each department breaks apart across Grounds to hold their own ceremonies after everyone participates in the procession down the Lawn either Saturday or Sunday. I personally have a ceremony at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. and getting my family to both ceremonies without losing anyone along the way might pose a challenge. I think I will have to review a map of Grounds with everyone to make sure we’re all on the same page.

3.

This is one of my more stressful points of the next month. I only have four days of overlap with my two apartment leases and have to move for the summer the day after I graduate. I have to be packed before I walk down the Lawn, so I will be starting as soon as I finish my final exams. Hopefully you all have time to figure out your moving out plans. I know it’s an extremely sad and stressful thing to plan, but it’s better to start early.

5.

Graduation announcments

I have heard from a lot of my friends that graduation announcements are more common in this area than out of state. The bookstore sells graduation announcements that are specific to the University and are what I decided to use. For me, I have a decent amount of cousins that live in other areas of the country, so sending these announcements is important because they won’t be able to travel for graduation.

8. Graduation outfits

What you wear underneath your gown on graduation day doesn’t necessarily matter, you but it is a good idea to think about it ahead of time. The main thing to remember is that it will most likely be very hot on graduation day. I personally am going to wear a white sundress — as are my roommates. Having comfortable shoes are important too, especially for anyone who may consider wearing heels on the Lawn.

6.

Reservations for meals

The weekend of graduation is going to be a very hectic few days, so planning meals is very important. Reservations are strongly recommended for dinner at restaurants throughout Charlottesville and many restaurants also have fixed menus for graduation weekend, such as Fig, Orzo or Mockingbird. You should even plan when you and your guests will eat lunch the day you walk the Lawn. Currently, I am struggling to figure out if my family and I will be able to wait in the long Bodos line between my ceremonies.

Graduation photos

Graduation photos can be as serious or as silly as you want. I had my graduation photos done last week and am so excited to see them. There are many students and groups around Grounds that are advertising professional graduation photos, but you can also take them with a phone camera. This can be a fun activity for you and some friends to dress up in your graduation garb and go to the Lawn.

7.

Extra-curricular graduation cords

A lot of student organizations and school departments have graduation cords or stoles for their graduating members. It is a great idea to start checking your emails or checking in with people who run your organizations to see when you should collect your graduation cords. It is great to be able to celebrate all that you have been involved in and accomplished throughout your years here. So far, I have a cord for my major, my sorority and The Cavalier Daily.

9.

Final Exercises tickets

Just because Grounds isn’t back to normal doesn’t mean you can’t visit it. The Rotunda, the Lawn and even the set of picnic tables outside Nau Hall that are never open are still there. Find a spot outside and take some time to relax. Even if it’s just studying or attending class via Zoom, there’s something better about doing it from a new location.

10.

Nostalgia

This is by far the biggest and most important thing you need to prepare yourself for. It may not have hit you yet, but it will soon. The University has been such a large part of our lives for the past few years. I am having so much difficulty coming to terms with the fact that I will not be able to walk to see my roommates from my bedroom to the kitchen, or be able to see my classmates in lab every week. I am planning a nostalgic walk with some of my friends to visit our old dorms and make sure we can see all of Grounds one more time before we walk. I am going to be a mess for the next three weeks, and no amount of time can prepare me for it. Soon, we will wear the honors of Honor and will walk the Lawn with all of our colleagues, friends and future alumni of the University.

2.

MAYA KALIDINDI THE CAVALIER DAILY

MAYA KALIDINDI THE CAVALIER DAILY

MAYA KALIDINDI THE CAVALIER DAILY

Savor the moment at El Puerto Mexican restaurant

The perfect spot for friends to share classic Mexican delights

Shriya Nambula | Food Writer

After a long week of midterms, my friends and I decided to treat ourselves to dinner — we were in search of a chill atmosphere, mouth-watering food and great company. Since we were all craving Mexican food, we ventured to El Puerto Mexican Restaurant, not knowing this would become our new favorite spot to eat.

Located off-Grounds on 2045 Barracks Road, El Puerto Mexican Restaurant offers guests a classic Mexican culinary experience filled with vibrant colors, mouth-watering aromas and pleasant customer service.

The warm and homey atmosphere is immediately evident, with colorful walls adorned with cultural artwork and sombreros, cut-out arches decorated with plants and rustic paneling along the booths. The air is filled with a blend of spices and the sizzle of freshly grilled ingredients, with the soft hum of mariachi music playing in the background, promising a memorable

dining experience. El Puerto’s menu boasts a vast selection of Mexican dishes that cater to every palate, such as vegetarian options, seafood, soups, delicious desserts and everyone’s favorite classics. They offer a wide range of drinks, such as horchata, a refreshingly sweet, milky beverage flavored with cinnamon, vanilla or other spices.

The staff at El Puerto is excellent — it was evident that they truly care about customer satisfaction. We were promptly seated and our orders were taken quickly. As we began to eat, we couldn’t help but order more delicious food, and the staff speedily delivered any additional sides or extras needed.

My friends and I decided to order the queso as an appetizer to eat alongside the complimentary chips and salsa. We were served a basket of warm, freshly made tortilla chips alongside their delicious salsa and queso. The salsa is just right — it’s not too spicy but still packs a punch

of flavor. I like to dip my chips in both the salsa and queso, for a spicy, cheesy kick.

The food came out at the perfect time, right when we finished our chips, salsa and queso.

For the main course, I ordered the arroz con pollo, which was perfect for someone who has a hard time trying new dishes like myself. This dish showcases the delicious blend of flavors and textures that characterizes Mexican cuisine. The tender, seasoned chicken comes nestled on top of a bed of fragrant, perfectly cooked Mexican rice, infused with a medley of spices, and topped with their delicious queso.

I had never tried arroz con pollo before, but it didn’t fail to impress me, quickly becoming a favorite of mine. I like to order the arroz con pollo with refried beans and hot salsa on the side. Fair warning though if you order the salsa — it is very spicy and will leave you sniffling and downing all your water, but the addition of it elevates the

Hoos in sync?

With the development of advanced technology and techniques in the past 20 years, psychologists have delved deeper into the broad phenomenon known as interpersonal synchrony. Interpersonal synchrony between individuals, as explained by University psychology professors, is a common behavior present in relationships that helps them cultivate bonds and resolve conflicts. Their research can help students better understand the dynamics within their own relationships and how to navigate them.

Interpersonal synchrony is considered a necessity for smooth social interaction and can be expressed in a physiological, behavioral or affective manner. The symmetric movement can be amplified or reduced based on factors relating to people’s energy and attitudes. In romantic relationships in particular, synchronous behavior can instill consistent feelings of intimacy.

Second-year Architecture student Caleb Birnbaum noticed that he’s started to share a similar sleeping pattern with his girlfriend, third-year College student Zoe Van Winckel ever since they started dating.

“Before I started dating Zoe, I slept in a lot more,” Birnbaum said. “But she wakes up really early, so I feel like my circadian rhythm has changed and I

can’t sleep as late as I used to.”

Sleeping in sync for Birnbaum and Van Winckel — and other behaviors that couples may find themselves mirroring as their relationships develop — is an example of what is called physiological interpersonal synchrony.

Quantitative Psychology Prof. Steven Boker runs the Human Dynamics Laboratory at the University which works to measure and understand these types of dynamics and changes in human behavior. Boker said that interpersonal synchrony follows unique rhythms, noting how a couple might find themselves at sync in certain times and at other times less connected — it ebbs and flows.

“People will establish synchrony and then break it and then establish synchrony and then break it over and over again,” Boker said. “This synchrony is not exactly like a mirror, in which things that are synchronous happen at the same time.”

In a similar vein, Asst. Psychology

Prof. Adrienne Wood explores interpersonal synchrony and several types of social dynamics responsible for how people connect in the Emotion and Behavior Lab. This lab attempts to examine the development and maintenance of social connections at the level of singular interactions, social

dish, making it my favorite by far.

My friends all ordered combo dinners, which came with chicken and cheese enchiladas, beef burritos and chiles rellenos. All the dishes came on a warm plate, and their yummy aroma filled the air around us. The enchiladas were drenched in flavorful sauces and topped with gooey cheese. The beef burrito was filled with ground beef, which my friend described as tender and flavorful. The chile relleno was another friend’s favorite, who said it came with a yummy breading coated on the outside and filled with queso, which paired together perfectly. My friends and I all gobbled up our dishes in no time, leaving our plates spotless.

For dessert, we tried the churros. These golden, deep-fried pastries are sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and served with a chocolate dipping sauce. I wasn’t a fan of the chocolate sauce as it started to separate in the dish, but the churros were delicious. The crispy exterior

gave way to a soft, fluffy interior, creating an irresistible balance of textures.

Despite the order of churros coming with only three churros, the staff gave us a complimentary additional churro for our group of four so that none of us was left without a churro or forcing us to split. We were surprised and especially grateful for their generosity, further encouraging us to return for the delicious food and warmhearted staff.

The restaurant’s welcoming, homey ambiance, exceptional customer service, and mouth-watering dishes create an unforgettable experience each time. I would recommend El Puerto to Mexican food lovers and especially to University students. They deliver large portions of food for a very fair price — a new go-to spot for my friend group.

networks and societies.

Wood explains how observable or physically visible synchrony is useful in the beginning stages of romantic relationships, such as is the case with first dates where people may unconsciously foster common ground by mimicking each other’s behaviors or interests.

“Because two independent strangers don’t know if they have anything in common, they need to somehow establish that they have something in common because similarity is so important for connection,” Wood said.

Fourth-year Commerce student Joe Beck explains how when he first started dating second-year Engineering student Madison Gallagher they began watching a TV show that Beck really liked, but Gallagher hadn’t seen.

“I’m a really big fan of the show Downton Abbey and so I think maybe Madison convinced herself that she actually did enjoy it during the first month or two of us dating,” Beck said.

In contrast with the almost necessary synchrony observed during the earlier stages of romantic relationships — like engaging in your partner’s interests to feel closer to them — physically observable interpersonal synchrony can decrease the longer a relationship persists, according to Wood. Boker

agrees, but said that it may not be a bad thing and is completely natural. This is likely due to the fact that a connection is already established between the people in a relationship and it is unnecessary to frequently display similarity or symmetry.

“It does happen that as people get to know each other better, they will synchronize less even though they might trust each other more,” Boker said.

Gallagher describes her initial shared interest with Beck, reading, and how her fondness of reading has evolved throughout the duration of their relationship to the point where they may not share that interest so much anymore. Changes in synchrony like this can happen in long-term relationships as couples fall into different rhythms over time.

“On the very first date, Joe was talking about his interest in reading and I said [that] I like reading too, but he reads way more than me,” Gallagher said. “I wouldn’t say that reading is something that we still have to bond over at this point in our relationship. I think we complement each other and I don’t think we try to be something we’re not at this point.”

Wood also points out the fact that the effectiveness of interpersonal syn-

chrony is context-dependent. Birnbaum has observed that synchronization with his girlfriend may not come easy all the time. For example, when he or his girlfriend are having a bad day, they sometimes struggle to find an effective method to comfort the other.

“I feel like we both try to make each other feel better in the ways that we ourselves would want to feel better and they’re not synchronous since we don’t have the same reactions to things,” Birnbaum said.

Research in Wood’s lab demonstrated that affective synchrony, or the embodiment of another person’s emotions in oneself, enables two people to effectively share new information with one another, regulate each others’ emotions and build social bonds. Van Winckel talks about the type of affective synchrony present in her relationship with Birnbaum.

“I would say maybe we’ve become more in tune to each other’s emotions as our relationship has progressed in terms of recognizing more subtle signs of not being perfectly content,” Van Winckel said.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Students on air at U.Va.’s underrated freeform radio station

WXTJ and its vital role in the University arts scene

Sophie Hay | Staff Writer

Operating out of a snug studio one mile west of the Rotunda, University students are on the air from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily on 100.1 FM. WXTJ is the University’s freeform student radio station, and it’s been a beloved home to student DJs for nearly 10 years.

WXTJ began in 2013 when diminishing student membership at WTJU — a local radio station owned and operated by the University — encouraged station manager Nathan Moore to found a student-only branch.

“It’s fully student staffed, and student run,” said Ashley Park, WXTJ director and fourth-year College student. “Now we have over 200 student volunteers.”

Although WXTJ adheres to rules outlined by the Federal Communications Commission — including mandating against onair swearing before 10 p.m. — DJs still have a lot of autonomy. Unlike WTJU, which divides shows by genre, WXTJ operates under a free-form programming format, meaning students are free to play music of any genre that might interest them.

Similarly, students are free to find their own balance between chatting and playing music. DJs remind listeners that they’re lis -

tening to WXTJ on the hour — other than that, students might spend their entire slots in conversation, or they might play their songs in silence.

Park shares a two-hour slot with Ella Fesler, co-host and fourth-year College student — Fesler is also the organization’s programming manager. Their show — MUSIC BOX N’ TALKS — is on the air from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. Wednesdays, and their approach to DJing is loose and personal.

“We want people to feel comfortable playing what they want,” Park said. “We just talk about the songs we like, and also our lives, and just have really vulnerable conversations on the air.”

This approach is shared by fourth-year College student Naomi Wren. Along with fourthyear College student Abby Adams, Wren hosts “Window Seat Radio” from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Fridays.

“Sometimes we do say that the music is going to be better if you’re looking out a window,” Wren said. “[We] report on whether the moon is out, and how it’s looking and the weather.”

When they’re not encouraging their listeners to skygaze, Wren

said the duo picks a different theme each week to guide their song selection. They get creative with their themes, curating playlists that feel like looking at Klimt paintings or lying in the grass.

Third-year College student

Grace Guinan and her co-host, first-year Architecture student Olivia Quintero, once created a playlist evoking a plant growing in the sun. Their show “Goodness Gracious! Live a Little!” airs Sundays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and is the second show Guinan has co-hosted on WXTJ.

Unlike Park and Wren, who conceived of shows with friends, Guinan first applied to the station on her own during her second year and let the programming manager pair her with a co-host based on availability.

“You have a two hour slot, and you can split it up into one hour each and just do it by yourself, but both times I was just like, ‘I’m willing to meet a new person,’” Guinan said. “So I decided to do the two hours with strangers, and it worked out both times.”

Guinan’s experience is representative of the connections WXTJ creates between involved students and the friendships that come out of collaboration. As

station manager, Park noted her goals in reinforcing a supportive WXTJ environment.

“Because there’s so much freedom, people feel like they can be themselves and bring to the radio station what they have to offer,” Park said. “But I also think, because it’s rooted in the community, you get to meet so many cool people … For me, personally, it keeps me very creatively fulfilled.”

WXTJ tends to fly under the radar at the University — its listeners represent a minority of the student body. The size of the station’s audience varies — Park estimates 100.1 FM’s online stream might see hundreds of listeners in a given week, or it might see thousands. The station hit a record high in October of last year, when 3,500 unique listeners tuned into the stream.

Still, the organization’s support of the University’s arts scene shouldn’t be understated — in addition to radio, WXTJ hosts house shows and other live music events and produces videos showcasing local and student acts in their studio space. Students involved in WXTJ have the opportunity to share their interests on air and form close connections with their listeners.

“I think it’s a really special form of media,” Wren said. “I mean, not a lot of people tune in, at least from what I’ve seen, but the people who do, it’s kind of intimate. My friends will tune in, and they’ve said it feels like I’m talking to them.”

“It’s a place where a lot of people can find a safe space, and it’s just so free and open,” Guinan said. “Music is a very personal thing, so we’re just letting people be who they are on air.”

WXTJ accepts applications for new members at the beginning of each fall semester. The station’s active airtime adds up to about 112 hours per week, but the availability of these hours varies from year to year depending on the number of returning DJs. While not everyone who applies is accepted, Park estimates that the organization welcomes approximately 90 new members per year, both DJs with designated time slots and subs trained to take over when DJs have to miss their shows.

“I feel like it’s a little [secret] code in the University,” Park said. “Like, once you discover it, it’s really cool.”

ELLA FESLER THE CAVALIER DAILY

Ashley Park, WXTJ director and fourth-year College student, co-hosts MUSIC BOX N’ TALKS each Wednesday from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m.

Luke Richard Powers is finding his sound in Charlottesville

After releasing his most recent single “Red/Blue,” Luke Richard Powers talks about the importance of songwriting in his life

Siona Pathak | Staff Writer

Third-year College student Luke Richard Powers is a rising star in the Charlottesville music scene, coming off not only a recent performance at The Southern Cafe & Music Hall but also the release of his new single “Red/ Blue.” On a particularly windy April evening, Powers sat down to talk more about his long-held love of music, his writing process and his biggest inspirations.

Hailing from Herndon, Va., Powers said that he has been performing since the age of 13. Along with being a part of his middle school choir, he would sing along to tunes his older brother played on his guitar in his bedroom. After his older brother left to attend the University in 2016, Powers began picking up guitar himself, tinkering with new melodies and eventually writing his own songs as a way to push himself to become better at guitar.

Around this time, music and songwriting also became a creative outlet for him as he experienced health issues that hindered other parts of his life, taking away his ability to engage in sports and other activities.

“As for a lot of artists, that puts you in the emotional space for expression,” Powers said. “You’re dealing with a lot of things, and that needs to go somewhere.”

Powers described his music as a blend of “bluegrass, country, folk and Americana.” Some of his biggest musical influences include folk Americana band “The Avett Brothers” and alternative indie band “The Head and the Heart,” often covering the latter in his performances in high school.

Powers also touched on how his childhood influences his music today, recalling fond memories of how his family’s music tastes greatly shaped his own.

“I remember going to my grandma’s house, and she lives in New Jersey, and we’d drive up there and listen to James Taylor CDs,” Powers said. “That was very influential for me, because I know a lot of people grew up listen[ing] to pop music, and I grew up listening to my parents’ James Taylor CDs.”

However, Powers said he is continuing to find his voice and

sound as he lets life and his experiences shape his creative process. He described his first year of college as “waffling on what he wanted sound-wise,” releasing an initial first EP that he said did not align with his creative vision at the time, leaning too heavily into the pop genre.

Powers said he feels more confident in his sound in his 2022 EP “As I Am,” an amalgamation of the folk, country and classic rock music he grew up on and continues to listen to.

Over the years, Powers said his songwriting process has also greatly shifted from being inspired by largely his own life to seeking ideas from other avenues. Powers said he now often lets songs find him, getting inspiration from the unexpected. He shared stories of finding lyrics in conversations with friends and those around him, even deriving the lyrics “forges from the earth with a soul of loam” from an email exchange with a professor. With his songwriting, Powers said he sometimes takes a more realistic approach, gathering experiences from his life. In these

situations, he rarely puts pen to paper, humming and strumming his guitar until a song is conceptualized. He also utilizes storytelling to take a more abstract approach to songwriting, hashing out stories on a notepad or a computer before he picks up a guitar.

One of the most interesting ways Powers said he goes about songwriting is through seeking out different sonics and tones in his music. Though he said he now has a guitar he primarily uses for songwriting, he used to purchase and sell different types of guitars often to test out new sounds. When he felt a guitar had run its course in one of his songs, he said he would obtain a new one and continue.

“I would write a bunch of songs on a guitar, run out of steam, and then get something that had a slightly different sound, just tonally a bit different and then I’d get inspiration again,” Powers said.

Powers said that coming to the University has allowed him to take advantage of the burgeoning Charlottesville music

scene to expand his own career, performing at local breweries and wineries. While he said that he noticed that few college bands delved into the folk or Americana genre, he found that space has been well-received in the area.

Charlottesville has provided a plethora of new opportunities for collaboration and inspiration. On his last EP “As I Am”, Powers got the chance to work with the Earlysville Bluegrass Boys on tracks “As I Am” and “Michael Palermo.”

He also said that he wants to continue to explore his sound and is open to it evolving. Powers said that while his most recent song, “Red/Blue” leans more folk, other songs of his lean more country. While he is unsure where his sound will go in the future, he said that hopes to continue to explore both genres and find a good blend.

Powers will be taking the stage May 14 at Child’s Peach Orchard. In the meantime, his newest singles “Red/Blue,” “Humble Way” and “Redwood” are available to stream on Spotify.

ALBERT TANG | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Powers said that coming to the University has allowed him to take advantage of the burgeoning Charlottesville music scene to expand his own career, performing at local breweries and wineries.

Capturing the second half

Students begin a new semester after Nov. 13th shooting

Students returned to the classroom for the start of spring semester as the University continued to honor the three lives lost in the November shooting — second-year College student Devin Chandler, fourth-year College student D’Sean Perry and third-year College student Lavel Davis Jr. Two other students, third-year College student Mike Hollins and second-year College student Marlee Morgan, also suffered non-fatal injuries. The University has requested an independent review of the University’s response and threat assessment which should be ready late spring or early summer. In the meantime, students walk to and from classes over Beta Bridge — where the three victim’s names remain painted along with hundreds of hearts and personal messages.

Senator Bernie Sanders discusses healthcare and the economy during book tour speech

Senator Bernie Sanders (I- Vt.) discussed his goal to establish Medicare for all, as well as the current state of the United States economy at a book tour event at Old Cabell Hall Thursday with over 800 attendees. This event was one stop on Sander’s national tour to promote his new book “It’s Ok to Be Angry About Capitalism.” Sanders said one goal he has with his book is to break through the irrelevant discussions that take place in American politics.

In the wake of continued gun violence, University seeks best path forward

In light of five gun-related homicides in Charlottesville since 2022 and an increase in violence around Grounds, students and community members have expressed concerns over solutions to improve safety and prevent further violence. Timothy Longo, associate vice president for safety and security and University chief of police, said that while long-term initiatives are still being worked out, short-term solutions for gun-violence include increased patrols and security cameras. Although he has faith in the short-term benefits of his proposals, Longo stressed the need for a deeper understanding of root causes and wider community change such as public investments and after-school programs.

1.18

ISC concludes first fully in-person recruitment since 2020

The University’s Inter-Sorority Council chapters celebrated the end of a fully in-person recruitment process with bid day on Madison Bowl Field Sunday. Current members of each sorority met new members with balloons and colorful signs in hand after new members opened their bid cards together without the presence of COVID-19 gathering restrictions that had moved much of recruitment online in previous years.

A legacy for the ages: Mark Mincer’s impact on Grounds

From eager prospective students after their first tour of Grounds to fourth-years looking for that final perfect memento of their time at the University, Mincers on the Corner is the go-to Wahoo store which sells everything from University-branded Teddy bears to classic t-shirts. A longtime Cavalier and involved Charlottesville resident, Mark Mincer was a man who bled blue and orange. Mark passed away Jan. 30 at 60 years of age — he is remembered by friends, family and the larger community for his passionate support of University athletics and students.

Tichara Robertson wins presidential election, Honor Committee’s historic multi-sanction system passes

Third-year College Tichara Robertson was elected Student Council President in a contested election, earning 56 percent of the vote. Students also voted to pass the referenda put forth by the Honor Committee, which outlines a multi-sanction system, one of the single largest changes to the Honor system since its adoption of a formal constitution in 1977. The highest turnout University-wide was on the Honor referendum, with 23.7 percent. Of the 6,138 students who voted, 5,444 or 88.7 percent voted in favor.

4.15

Waka Flocka Flame, Baby Tate and NLE Choppa perform at Springfest

Hit artist behind the exhilarating single “No Hands” Waka Flocka Flame performed at Ting Pavillion along with Baby Tate and NLE Choppa at University Program Council’s Springfest concert. The inclusion of three artists — hinted at by the UPC writing “2/3” in their earlier announcements — represents a break in a longstanding tradition of solo performances. Drew Pitter, director of UPC’s Concert committee and fourth-year College student, said th e committee decided to bring in multiple names in order to find artists with lower fees instead of one headliner with a higher cost.

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In response to rising opioid-related fatalities, the Food and Drug Administration recently approved naloxone for over-the-counter sales. In 2021 alone, there were 70,601 synthetic opioid-related deaths. Narcan — the most popular brand of the medicine naloxone — can reverse opioid overdoses. The University needs to be proactive, especially now that the Drug Enforcement Administration is strongly warning college students to be wary of unintentionally consuming fentanyl-laced pills. While the University must ensure naloxone is accessible for all students on Grounds, putting naloxone in residence halls is a necessary first step to ensure student safety as the national opioid crisis worsens.

Students are at increased risk for both intentional and accidental consumption of opioids — and naloxone is a feasible solution the University can provide to mitigate these risks. While opi -

Put Narcan in dorms

With rises in opioid-related deaths — including fentanyl — students need easy access to naloxone

ods can be safely used under the supervision of a medical professional, a 2006 study showed that 12 percent of college students have intentionally used prescription opioids for nonmedical purposes. Students can also consume opioids accidentally when taking other drugs — fentanyl specifically poses a threat to students because criminal drug networks disguise it as drugs like Xanax and Adderall.

Six out of ten of these fentanyl-laced pills contain a lethal dose. Marijuana — which is used more popularly as a recreational drug with students — can be laced with fentanyl. Drugs like fentanyl are an invisible threat to student lives, ones that could be hiding in a single pill or recreational drug.

It should be clear what we stand to gain by providing naloxone as a resource for students, but some may wonder why naloxone needs to be in dorms when it could be administered by first

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responders. Administering naloxone right away increases the chance of survival, and it can be re-administered after three minutes if the person is not responding. A student can be given multiple doses of naloxone in the time it takes an ambulance to arrive. Naloxone is also safe — there is no harm in administering naloxone to someone who is not actually overdosing on opioids. It is essential to emphasize students must still seek professional medical attention after a suspected overdose, but naloxone is a safe and immediate response that must be available on demand.

Peer institutions have already begun to give students access to naloxone. California passed the Campus Opioid Safety Act, which provides California State University and the California Community Colleges systems with free naloxone for students. The Campus Opioid Safety Act also requires that students receive education on opioids and

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how to administer naloxone. Similarly, New York passed legislation in October that requires State University of New York and City University of New York campuses to stock naloxone in dorms. Closer to home, Virginia Commonwealth University has a solution in the form of a professor who rides around on a bike distributing free naloxone to students. Undoubtedly, other schools see the necessity of providing naloxone for students — and our University should too. The University must follow the example set by other colleges who are proactively protecting the wellbeing of students.

While there are many ideas for how to make naloxone available at schools, there is one example that stands out as a solution for the University. Marymount University created emergency boxes containing naloxone that they installed around their campus. The University should consider Marymount University’s process

and specifically apply it to dorms to increase access. Once naloxone is available in dorms, the University can put emergency boxes at other locations on Grounds, increasing access over time. Starting with boxes located in each dorm is a feasible solution to this life-threatening problem. Having naloxone in dorms is not harmful, but opioids can be.

MIKAYLA HAVISON is an Opinion Columnist who writes about University Life for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.

The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of The Cavalier Daily. Columns represent the views of the authors alone.

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The Jefferson Council cannot get in the way of our progress

In its latest attempt to counteract change at the University, the Jefferson Council held its second annual meeting to discuss topics like diversity, equity and inclusion practices, affirmative action and “woke” culture at the University. The Council, led by Bert Ellis, Board of Visitors member and Darden Alumnus, was formed to preserve Thomas Jefferson’s legacy and the Honor system.

In theory, the Council’s objectives are not inherently threatening. The University too strives to protect Jefferson’s legacy and the Honor Committee — through celebration but also through reform. But the Council’s refusal to acknowledge the ways the University’s oldest traditions have consistently harmed marginalized groups shows that the group is out of touch with our values as a community. Simply put, a council that antagonizes meaningful attempts to honestly reckon with our horrific legacy of racism has no place on our Grounds. This is a warning for students — we must resist the Jefferson Council’s agenda.

The choice of speakers for the event highlights the sort of problematic rhetoric that the Council deems acceptable. One prominent speaker chosen

to give remarks at the event was conservative Brown University professor Glenn Loury, who began his speech by acknowledging that the topics at hand were sensitive, but did not exactly approach the topics in a sensitive manner. One of Loury’s most controversial takes is that the circumstances of Black Americans who are not well-off today are the result of their own failures to take advantage of 20th century developments in Civil Rights. At one point,

versial and contrary to University values — it is because they are. Attending this university is a constant reminder of its storied past — a past that features great feats but also tragic failures, like the institution of slavery and the Honor system’s historic discrimination against minority students. Despite these failures, the University has continued to progress forward through student-led changes to the Honor system in consecutive years. Bert Ellis has

da that is antithetical to this progress by calling it “woke” and displacing our viewpoint in favor of their own.

The Jefferson Council knows they are out of touch with the values of this community. At the meeting, members of the council behaved as if they were a rebel group that could only discuss these issues in private. Despite the disconnect, it is wrong to say that the Jefferson Council is all talk no action. As we have seen already, members like

fighting to redress.

Not only are the Jefferson Council’s views desperately out of touch, they have the potential to harm the culture of progress that students have created on Grounds. The Council’s blog shares daily posts that have criticized the University’s “left-wing brainwash.” Discussing ways to create a better future is not left-wing brainwash, it is progress. By examining our historical wrongdoings, we are moving towards a future that can appreciate both the legacy of Jefferson and acknowledge the remarkable progress that we have made to fix our wrongdoings. This progress is in pursuit of a better future for all that attend the University — and if the Jefferson Council continues to fight against that better future, we students must not let them.

Loury’s outlandish takes solicited a response from an audience member who said if he had to choose a doctor and only knew their race, he would not choose a Black doctor. Loury, who believes that white supremacy is a narrative put forth by the left and is a departure from reality, did not shut down the comments. If these comments sound contro-

a history of vocally opposing proposed changes from students, specifically saying he is ready for a “fight” to save Honor. Acknowledging and remedying the negative effects left by centuries of racism in our institutions is a task students have taken upon ourselves because we care to leave our school better than we found it. The Jefferson Council continues to espouse an agen-

Ellis have penetrated our governing bodies with agendas of combatting changes they see as too “woke,” like DEI initiatives — relatively common practices intended to remove barriers caused by centuries of institutional racism. If we allow the Jefferson Council to undermine the University’s values as they assume positions of power, we risk repeating the racist history we are

FORD MCCRACKEN is a Senior Associate Opinion Editor for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.

The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of The Cavalier Daily. Columns represent the views of the authors alone.

Revisions of literature whitewash history

In today’s world, the act of teaching, learning and even reading are all highly political. What is taught, how it is taught, what is read, how it is read, these are all questions that we are reckoning with on a daily basis. And unfortunately, the current trajectories of our answers represent a conscious erasure of uncomfortable history.

In 2022, Florida governor Ron DeSantis signed the Individual Freedom Act, more commonly known as the Stop W.O.K.E Act. This law criminalizes any instruction that discusses identity as a basis for discrimination. Since its passage, this law has prompted various decisions that constitute censorship — prime examples include rejecting 42 widely accepted math textbooks and banning AP African American Studies from being taught in the state. This law promotes an inaccurate representation of a complicated history and a similarly complicated present by erasing struggles, contributions and experiences that deviate from traditional nationalist narratives of life.

Recent developments have expanded the erasure of history from an ill-intentioned conservative policy phenomenon to a well-intentioned social literary trend that is nonetheless highly problematic. Specifically, es-

Posthumous revisions of offensive language in literature, while well-intentioned, whitewash history

tates — which oversee posthumous decisions regarding authors’ work — and publishers of many famous authors are revising offensive language in already published works in order to reflect modern language norms. Among the affected authors are Agatha Christie, Roald Dahl and Ian Flemming. This

ablelist and body-shaming language has been replaced with body-neutral language. And in Ian Fleming’s books, racial slurs have been censored. With many cases, the estates and publishers assert that their revisions align with what the authors themselves would have wanted — that is to say contin-

perficial inclusivity and permit uncomplicated adoration of well-liked authors. However, this is at the expense of a genuine historical understanding which critiques offensive undertones and overtones without erasing them.

Moreover, the removal of specific

marginalizing and its contemporary implications are exactly what legislation such as the Stop W.O.K.E Act attempts to prohibit. Learning critical race theory disrupts simplified narratives of white supremacy. Similarly, learning that authors we idealize were themselves employing marginalizing language disrupts their status as literary models. These are disruptions with which we must engage.

specific erasure of history is especially concerning because it is disguised as a well-meaning attempt to remove marginalizing language from classic books. However, it is essential to see this for what it is — an unwillingness to discuss the complicated and problematic historical context in which these authors lived and their own marginalizing prejudices. Instead of historically contextualizing these offensive phrases, the phrases, along with an opportunity to learn nuanced history, are simply erased. In Agatha Christie’s books, stereotypical references to ethnicity and racialized descriptors have been removed. In Roald Dahl, much of the

ued relevance for their stories. But we must question whether these revisions actually do violence to authentic historical narratives.

Walter Benjamin once asserted that “there is no document of civilization that is not at the same time a document of barbarism.” Novels, as historical documents of past human civilizations, are documents of barbarism. To revise their language is to damage a document of history and to excuse the original barbarity by pretending that it never happened. Acknowledgement of complexity in these texts complicates the value of these novels and contextualizes their perspectives. Revisions promote su-

and overtly offensive phrases cannot erase the overall offensive dispositions of the author, which inevitably appear in the plot at a subtler level. For example, the removal of a racial slur does not mean that the character’s behaviors will not conform to racialized stereotypes. But in removing the blatantly offensive, publishers have absolved the public and themselves of interrogating racism, ableism, ethnic stereotyping and sexism in literature. We are no longer obliged to engage with why a racial slur is condemnable today if it was once acceptable or why popular authors display problematic tendencies.

These conversations regarding past

Instead of changing literary language to reflect present norms, we should discuss its historical context and the flaws of the authors. It is useful and vital to discuss the social milieu of past centuries — their flaws, their norms and their modern day implications. Failure to engage in these conversations, both inside classrooms and in more public forums like social media, will whitewash a complicated past and permit historical misunderstandings.

NAIMA SAWAYA is a Viewpoint Writer who writes about Academics for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.

The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of The Cavalier Daily. Columns represent the views of the authors alone.

The Jefferson Council knows they are out of touch with the values of this community.”

An organization that refuses to accept that racism is a part of our past should not be a part of our future

Revisions promote superficial inclusivity and permit uncomplicated adoration of well-liked authors.”

Senioritis — Fourth-Yearitis? — of a Fourth Year

It’s that time of year! The sun is shining, the pollen is flowing, the Lawn is packed — the Lawn is packed! — I appreciate those who get the Finding Nemo reference. Anyway, you better get creative if you want to find a picnic spot. Most importantly, there are fourth years, like myself, wearily gearing up to take our final steps down the lawn. If you’re hoping to spot a fourth year in the wild and show some support, here are some things to look for based on personal experience.

1. A look of general vacancy. They’ve fully exhausted the brighteyed-bushy-tailed look.

2. Lying starfish-style on the Lawn because they don’t actually give a crap about their filler classes and are calculating the GPA damage for half-assing their final assignments.

3. A class ring.

4. Camping outside of Bodo’s for the #1 ticket and swearing on

Thomas Jefferson’s name if anyone cuts in front of them.

5. Walking out of a Lawn room.

6. Talking to a group of friends about how young the first years look and asking if they used to look so little.

7. Crouched in front of a laptop with upwards of 40 pages in a word document, possibly with dried tear streaks. They’re writing a thesis, do not approach.

8. Not being able to decide which food truck to go to because if they have to make one more decision today they will implode.

9. Practicing their run on the Lawn because there’s one semester left — if you know, you know.

10. Taking pictures with a cap and gown, pretty dead giveaway. All of this amounts to what is affectionately known as senioritis. Senioritis (noun) – lack of motivation to do anything related to academics by the end of high school

or college. In my experience, it’s been like having a toddler in my brain who frequently cries, ‘but I don’t wanna!’ when I look at my upcoming assignments. Eating chocolate is a temporary suppressor.

I’m well acquainted with senioritis since my struggle with it in high school. Though, for whatever reason, I didn’t expect it to come back in such full force this semester. Something about being a fourth year and not a senior…

One of my friends mentioned that we had just a week of classes left, which I reiterated with a cheer. Almost done! Almost no more homework for at least the near future — unless you are going to grad school! On top of this I took graduation photos, making me think, “Do I really need to go back to class? Look, I already graduated, I did it, it’s official!” Later that evening I looked at the calendar and indeed confirmed that there was only a

week left — or in other words, seven days. Seven days meaning possibly just one or two left per class — meaning, oh crap, it’s really almost over.

This is different from the often-repeated “thank God it’s almost over” because the routine I’ve been in for four years is about to drastically change — hopefully overall for the better. But it’s not easy counting on one hand how many weekends are left to spend with friends. The University keeps everyone corralled in Charlottesville for each semester, but as the summer approaches it feels like Jim Ryan is holding up a sign for fourth years saying, “You’re almost at the finish line! Hope you did everything you wanted to!”

Like most young adults, I have in fact not done everything I wanted to do because growing for four years means I don’t have the same wants as first-year me, and it’s only in the last hour of college that I rec-

ognize how much more time I had earlier on. They say time flies when you’re having fun, but it also flies when you’re desperately trying to stay on top of school work and navigate a typical, tumultuous, young adult personal life. I suppose this is why they give bucket lists to the first years.

If you ever see your fourth-year friend looking a little forlorn, tell them to take a break from studying and go outside to live a little. If they have made it this far, the homework always gets done, but these moments in the last hour of college won’t wait. Also, maybe buy them a coffee or sandwich or something if they’re writing a thesis — it sucks.

CATHERINE ORESCAN is a Humor Columnist for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at humor@cavalierdaily.com

What if...?

Sarah Elder | Cartoonist

SPORTS

Ben James dominates first regular season at Virginia

Less than a year after graduating high school, James has medaled at four regular-season tournaments

At first glance, freshman golfer Ben James might seem like the average player who spends his weekend afternoons with friends trying to earn his first hole-in-one. Even though he’s still seeking this elusive achievement, James has spent his first year at Virginia succeeding in just about every other way, more resembling a PGA Tour professional than a 19-year-old college student. However, James has been ahead of the curve for a while.

James originally committed to the University of Connecticut when he was 11, but later realized his potential to compete in a Power Five conference and decommitted. He committed to the University of Virginia as a freshman in high school, citing interest in Virginia’s academics and strong coaching staff. Although he was four years older than when he made his first commitment, it was still a nerve-wracking time for him and his family — there were a lot of unknowns, James said.

“It’s a risk for both parties, myself and the coach, because — you don’t know if I could play pretty well, or I could play really bad,” James said. “I struggled my freshman and sophomore year, but I ended up playing

really well my junior and senior year. So it kind of kind of worked out for both of us.”

When James signed his letter of intent to play for Virginia in 2021, he was the No. 2 junior in the American Junior Golf Association rankings, prompting excitement for Coach Bowen Sargent.

“Recruiting on the surface is a lot like first dates — everyone is on good behavior,” Sargent said. “But everybody who came up to me [at a tournament during a visit] said what a good kid he is, how humble he is, willing to help people out. That all is a big part of it. It’s not just about golf.”

James had more to accomplish before heading south to Charlottesville to join Sargent and the rest of the team. Last summer, James received a sponsor’s exemption to play in the Travelers Championship. Each year the tournament director invites topranked amateurs to play in the event and turn professional. Although James had not begun his college career, by then he was the No. 1 ranked junior golfer — he had just barely missed his chance to qualify for the U.S. Open.

“I wanted to be out there all day,”

Abby Nichols | Staff Writer

James said. “I mean, when do you get to hit balls on the range around all these top Tour pros, interact with them, hit in front of crowds? You’re in the spotlight, so why wouldn’t you want to be out there?”

Although James did not make the cut, he headed to Virginia with confidence following this experience. Having now been on Grounds for almost a full year, James has created great relationships with both his coaches and teammates, allowing his humble confidence to grow.

“Coach Sargent and Coach Groves have been awesome,” James said. “I mean, we have all the tools here to be successful. [Coach Sargent] just kind of really structures our practices which is important to me.”

Having grown up in Milford, Conn., James began playing golf in much different weather than most professional players. Jordan Spieth from Texas, Brooks Koepka from Florida, and most other Tour players from warm cities grew up being able to play outside all year round. James thinks his background prepared him and made the adjustment to college golf that much smoother.

“I hate the cold,” James said. “Even though I am from Connecticut. But I think obviously playing in tough and windy conditions kind of taught me how to scramble and taught me how to show grit out there.”

At Virginia, he has demonstrated this grit. James has led the team to success in several tournaments. Currently ranked 16th in the nation’s college golfers, with an average of 69.52 strokes per round, the Cavaliers are able to rely on James’ consistency in high-pressure tournaments. Having medaled in four tournaments so far this season, it’s clear that James’ hard work is paying off.

“You know golf is golf, no matter what level you play,” James said. “I kept riding the momentum in the fall and am playing pretty well in the spring as well. So I can’t complain.”

James gives a lot of credit to the chemistry of the team and the fun that they have on the course. James has been friends with junior Chris Fosdick for over a decade due to their shared Connecticut roots. James was also reunited with freshman Bryan Lee, after seeing each other almost every week playing in junior events.

“Our chemistry is so good,” James said. “We’re all there for each other, love each other, and I think that just that makes us play better.”

The regular season ended April 11 with a tournament at Birdwood Golf Course, hosted by the Cavaliers, where they finished in second place. James finished the tournament tied for first place and was thrilled that his family was able to come and watch him play, which they often cannot do since they live so far away.

The next step for James and the Cavaliers is the NCAA tournament, with regionals beginning May 15. Fans should keep an eye out for the freshman phenom to crack the leaderboards. James has just finished an incredible regular season with four first-place finishes, but he is confident in the team’s overall ability to work together and perform well.

“We’re gonna be working hard, we all want it really bad,” James said. “I think it’s just about playing for each other and we just have to kind of go out there and fight every shot. I mean, that’s all it really is, just not giving up… That’s the key on a team sport.”

The freshman has concluded his first regular season with four first-place finishes.

Busy off-season builds excitement for women’s basketball

Coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton has doubled down in her efforts since the end of a successful first season

Corbin Lathrop | Staff Writer

The Virginia women’s basketball program team took a sizable step forward in year one under Coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton. The Cavaliers began their 2022-23 campaign with a 12-0 record, and in late December found themselves ranked in the USA Today Coaches poll for the first time since 2011.

Although a bad case of the injury bug and a brutal ACC schedule slowed Virginia down during the second half of the season, there was still plenty of reason for fans to be encouraged. The Cavaliers earned a postseason invitation to play in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament — which they turned down due to a lack of available players — and average attendance at John Paul Jones Arena doubled from the 202122 season to the 2022-23 season.

Early this off-season, Agugua-Hamilton and her staff have been busy in the transfer portal and on the recruiting circuit, giving Virginia fans lots of encouraging news and more reasons to be optimistic.

Transfers

The Cavaliers have added two key pieces to their roster through the transfer portal so far this off-season— rising sophomore Paris Clark

and graduate transfer Taylor Lauterbach.

Clark, a 5’8” guard from The Bronx, was a highly touted recruit coming out of high school before she committed to play for Arizona. A 2022 McDonald’s All-American from Long Island Lutheran High School, Clark averaged over 25 points and 8 rebounds per game during her high school career and earned New York State Gatorade Player of the Year honors after her senior season.

Clark was limited by an injury early in her freshman year at Arizona but saw an increased role as the season progressed. She’s a three-level scorer who will be a weapon on both sides of the floor for the Cavaliers.

The addition of Clark also means that Virginia’s 2023-24 roster will feature four former McDonald’s All-Americans — Clark, graduate forward Sam Brunelle, who will be returning to Charlottesville after a foot injury cut her season short, rising senior guard Mir McLean and rising freshman guard Kymora Johnson. The collection of highly rated players is a testament to Coach Agugua-Hamilton’s prowess on the recruiting and transfer portal trail, especially considering that Virgin-

ia failed to recruit any McDonald’s All-Americans for over a decade prior.

The Cavaliers’ second transfer-portal addition, Lauterbach, is a 6’7” center from Appleton, Wis., who played the last three seasons at Kansas State. A former top-100 prospect, Lauterbach played limited minutes at Kansas State but was a force on the boards and a shot-blocking threat when she was on the floor.

Lauterbach provides much-needed height to an otherwise undersized Virginia frontcourt. Additionally, she earned a spot on the 2022 Academic All-Big 12 first team.

Recruiting

In addition to adding through the transfer portal, the Cavaliers also bolstered their roster by landing a commitment from Edessa Noyan, a 6’3” forward from Botkyrka, Sweden.

Noyan gives the Cavaliers more size up front but also has the ability to put the ball on the floor. She played the last several seasons for Sodertalje BBK, a club in Sweden’s top women’s basketball division, where she averaged 7.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last season.

At the 2022 U18 Nordic Cham-

pionships, Noyan showed her ability to be both an elite scorer and rebounder. She averaged 18.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game as she led Sweden to the title

Noyan’s experience playing against older competition overseas allows her to be an asset to the Cavaliers by being well-prepared for the bigs of the ACC. Her size and rebounding ability paired with intriguing handles make for an exciting commitment to a Cavalier team that looks to compete hard in the paint.

Noyan joins Virginia’s 2023 recruiting class, which already features a pair of top-50 recruits in Johnson and Olivia McGhee.

Speaking of Johnson, the 5’8” five-star recruit from St. Anne’s-Belfield in Charlottesville became the Cavaliers’ first women’s basketball signee to play at the McDonald’s All-American game since 2009 last month.

Johnson, who repeated as the Gatorade Virginia Girls Basketball Player of the Year after averaging 22.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 4.4 steals per game last season, helped the “West” team to a 110-102 victory in the contest.

Johnson’s smooth assist in the first quarter gave Virginia fans a preview of her elite playmaking ability, but it was her performance in the three-point contest the night before the game that stole the show. Johnson drained 17 of 25 shots during the final round of the competition, posting a score of 20 on her way to victory in the “2023 JamFest 3-point shootout.”

Johnson is cause for plenty of excitement for Cavalier fans. The last time a hometown high schooler won the shootout was when Brunelle did so in 2019. Virginia was not an attractive location for recruits at the time and Brunelle committed to Notre Dame before returning last season. The program has since taken strides under Agugua-Hamilton, and the Cavaliers can now retain electric homegrown talent. Her future in orange and blue will be a testament to just how far the program has come.

With most of their core group returning from last season to go along with a great recruiting class and the addition of two key transfers, the Cavaliers will look to take another big step forward next season.

ALBERT TANG THE CAVALIER DAILY

Coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton has re-energized a Cavalier program that looks to take another big step forward next season.

Justin McCoy’s path to cementing his wrestling legacy

While dedicating himself to leading the program, McCoy celebrates individual ACC title

Calvin Roe | Staff Writer

Graduate student Justin McCoy entered the semifinal of the ACC Championships as a two-time runner-up at the event. With a chance to clinch his fourth-straight appearance at the national meet, McCoy felt the pressure as he took the mat to face North Carolina State freshman Matthew Singleton.

As the match started, one might not be able to see that under McCoy’s ear guards was the mind of a wrestler who battled injuries, redefined his spirituality and took a redshirt year, all in hopes to better his team and his chance of becoming an iconic Virginia wrestler.

McCoy decided to attend Virginia after the coaches introduced him to the wrestling program’s culture — the players themselves have been integral in engineering this culture through student leadership both in and out of practice.

“I could tell that each guy truly loved their teammates and hung out with them,” McCoy said. “I could just see a bond here among the team compared to other places that I visited.”

Despite McCoy’s investment in the team, his first year proved difficult. As a star in Pennsylvania high school wrestling — winning a state championship in 2017 — McCoy became frustrated with his performances in practice against his teammates. Furthermore, he found adjusting to wrestling year-round challenging after playing three sports in high school.

“At first, I wasn’t beating anyone — everyone was beating me,” McCoy says. “I remember the coaches just telling me the first year to be patient, just keep focusing on getting better and better.”

The accumulation of these adjustments resulted in McCoy redshirting his freshman year. Despite being uncertain about redshirting at first, McCoy trusted the coaching staff and was “on board” with their opinion about his freshman season.

In college wrestling, however, redshirting is a different process. Athletes are still allowed to compete while unattached, meaning they cannot contribute any points to team events. Therefore, McCoy was still able to gain valuable experience — such as winning the freshman division at the Hokie Open Nov. 4, 2018.

“I wasn’t wrestling the most high-level, top-ranked guys in the country at that point, but still wrestling other college students and beating them gave me a lot of confidence,” McCoy said.

He finished the season 25-3 at 157 pounds, one of many weight divisions athletes can compete in college wrestling. Building momentum into his sophomore season, McCoy continued to rely on the relationships within the team.

“We basically just try to beat each other up, and then we walk out of the room and go to the locker room, and now we’re friends,” Mc-

Coy said. “You just create a bond with each other that’s incomparable to anything that I’ve ever experienced.”

One of these key bonds McCoy developed was with graduate student Victor Marcelli, his long-time roommate. Wrestling at similar weight classes and having entered the program in the same year, the two veterans push each other in practice.

“We’ve just kind of grown closer and closer as we tackle new experiences together,” Marcelli said. “We’ve been within two weight classes the past two years, so we hold each other accountable.”

After several adjustments his freshman year, McCoy’s wrestling career was not done changing. McCoy found success wrestling at 157 pounds, finishing second at the ACC Championships in 2021. However, after learning graduate student Jake Keating was considering switching from 165 to 157 pounds, McCoy decided to bump up weight classes his senior season. Wrestlers typically compete at the lowest weight level possible that allows them to maintain their strength, but this can create a stressful daily life for the athletes.

“You can cut weight and have the proper nutrition, but it’s very hard to do,” McCoy said. “I just feel better when I’m eating well and not having to focus on my weight and more just focusing on what I got to do out there on the mat.”

Despite wrestling against a whole new set of wrestlers, McCoy did not see his success halted by his new weight class. Instead, McCoy improved upon his previous season, going 19-4 and finishing runner-up at the ACC Championships.

“Whether it’s in real competition or practice… He loves to compete,” Marcelli said. “It’s contagious, I’d say.”

However, McCoy was still unsatisfied and continued wrestling with the Cavaliers as a graduate student. Finishing runner-up in consecutive seasons, McCoy says the finishes “stung” as he looked to get over the hump his fifth season.

Off the mat, McCoy attempted to be the leader of the squad as he got older, particularly with his work ethic in the weight room and bonds formed with teammates. Beyond his relationship with Marcelli, McCoy looks to foster a culture of accountability throughout the program as a captain.

“I’m not a very vocal person, so I try to do it with my actions,” McCoy said.

In addition to the added responsibilities as a team captain, McCoy explored how he could shape his faith to work alongside his wrestling career. In previous seasons, McCoy felt that he separated the two.

“It was almost like I separated wrestling from my faith in God for a while,” McCoy said. “Until mostly last year, I just realized that God has

literally given me all the gifts and all the opportunities to do what I love to do.”

With all those changes — both personal and wrestling-related — McCoy wrestled in his fifth season at Virginia, where he found himself in the ACC Championships once again.

McCoy faced North Carolina State’s Singleton in the semifinals, a matchup that granted the winner a ticket to the NCAA Championships.

McCoy breezed past Singleton in a 6-2 decision, earning him a spot as an NCAA qualifier. In the finals, McCoy wrestled the familiar face of Virginia Tech’s Connor Brady. McCoy and Brady’s wrestling styles worked in opposite ways, with McCoy being more aggressive. Entering the third period, the match looked to shape up in Brady’s favor, being tied 1-1 with McCoy with less than a minute left. However, McCoy completed a takedown with just under 40 seconds left.

“I believe in my scrambling ability,” said McCoy. “When a guy gets to my legs, I believe that I can score off that, I just took advantage of that opportunity.”

The match ended 3-2 in McCoy’s favor, ending his streak of ACC Championships runner-up finishes. Coach Steve Garland was equally impressed and proud of the strides McCoy has made in his fourth year in the program.

“He’s put in a lot of work this year, but the way he won was just flat-out guts,” Coach Steve Garland said. “He just found a way. That’s what it takes at this level.”

After the match, McCoy’s teammates stormed the mat in celebration. Even after a disappointing fifth-place finish as a team, the Virginia wrestlers could not hold back their excitement for their captain.

“Everybody was so joyful,” Marcelli said. “And so everybody sees the work that Justin puts in and kind of the way he pours his heart into it, so I think that kind of lifted everybody up.”

With an extra year of eligibility due to the coronavirus, McCoy is returning with aspirations of climbing up the ACC as a team and being an All-American. But for now, both cementing his Virginia wrestling legacy and experiencing the support from his teammates after the final was overwhelming enough.

“I have a video of it on my phone, and looking back at it, it almost makes you want to tear up a little bit because of how much I care about these guys and how much they care about me,” McCoy said. “It means so much to me.”

COURTESY VIRGINIA ATHLETICS

McCoy had the best winning percentage in 2022-23 of any attached wrestler.