Thursday, September 7, 2023

This week in-brief

CD News Staff

Drastic bus driver shortage continues to challenge Charlottesville and Albemarle schools

Both Charlottesville City Schools and Albemarle County Public Schools continue to face a drastic shortage of bus drivers — between the two systems, more than 3,000 students have been left without a bus to school. Both counties are adjusting responses developed last fall to maximize the numbers of students with safe transportation options.

Currently both CCS and ACPS have expanded ‘walk zones’ — areas close enough to the school that students in those areas are no longer eligible for bus transit. Administrators began expanding these zones last year in response to similar driver shortages.

Crossing guards are stationed at several key intersections to improve safety for the increased number of walkers. Families of elementary school students also have the option to sign their children up for “walking school buses” staffed by teachers and community volunteers that take students from a central location to Venable and Clark elementary schools.

Phil Giaramita, public affairs and strategic communications officer for ACPS, said that this year’s expansion of walking zones brought between 200 to 300 kids off the buses. This year, the county is also implementing a bus waitlist but hopes to bring as many students off the waitlist as possible as more drivers are trained and hired.

The county will have a better understanding of how many students are actually using the bus by mid-September and can then reconfigure the routes to bring more students off of the waitlist, according to Giaramita.

U.Va. Health sees a spike in COVID-19 cases

U.Va. Health has reported a rise in COVID-19 cases, matching an increased hospitalization rate across the country. According to NBC29, U.Va. Health admitted an estimated 2.7 patients a week for COVID-19 in August, and that number has since risen to 11.4.

University students are also noticing an increasing number of cases among friends and classmates. While the nationwide numbers remain low compared to massive peaks seen across the U.S. throughout the pandemic, COVID-19 hospitalization rates have been on the rise again — increasing by almost 19 percent from July 21 to Aug. 19.

Third-year Education student Torie Hoffman said she felt sick for a few days before testing positive for COVID-19. She said that she took a test at Student Health, but after waiting a day for results, she took an at-home rapid test to find out the result as soon as possible.

“I got super anxious… it put a lot of stress on me, [just] not knowing, and I have a really busy schedule,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman lives in the Kappa Delta sorority house, and she said that others tested positive there as well — either quarantining or going home after receiving positive test results.

Hoffman said that having to miss classes made her very stressed, adding that she is taking a lot of courses this semester.

9.4 9.1

Wahoo Spins laundry program offers 10 free loads per semester

In response to student complaints surrounding the cost of laundry, Housing and Residence Life announced a new laundry program for all undergraduates living on Grounds. The program — dubbed Wahoo Spins — offers students credits for 10 cycles of laundry, either wash or dry cycles, for a total of five complete loads of laundry for the semester.

Beginning Aug. 29, credits for the 10 cycles, in the form of $17.50, were uploaded to all on-Grounds undergraduate students’ Cavalier Advantage accounts on the University’s laundry app, Speed Queen.

The cost of the program totals $119,612.50 for the 6,835 undergraduate students living in on-Grounds housing this semester.

The Class of 2026 Council began working towards the program during the 2022-2023 academic year, then as the First Year Council under the leadership of Keoni Vega, class president and second-year College Student, and Annie Zhao, vice president and second-year College student.

“Laundry is something that is essential to everyone — no one should be worrying about it, and it shouldn’t be a luxury to have clean clothes,” Zhao said.

Zhao said starting the laundry program was important to the two leaders in their goals of serving their class and the University. The two served as Class President and Vice President during the 2022-2023 year and will remain in the position for the 2023-2024 year after being reelected last spring.

ALBERT TANG THE CAVALIER DAILY

The cost of the program totals $119,612.50 for the 6,835 undergraduate students living on Grounds this semester.

Little Mod Hotel opens on 14th Street

The new building also offers five longer-term apartment spaces for lease

Priya Kommu | Senior Writer

Nestled in the heart of student housing on 14th Street, the 1960’s-themed Little Mod Hotel and its attached food truck are set to open this week. The hotel replaces the Alcove Apartments, an off-Grounds student housing option constructed in 1964.

Property developer Bill Chapman said he aims to create a unique hotel experience with the Little Mod’s mid-century modern design. The hotel, relatively small in size and located in the midst of the student housing landscape, features five apartments that can be rented by the month and 15 rooms with nightly rates.

“We specialize in small properties where we feel like we get to know the guests and we can provide them a high level of services while the other hotels have hundreds of rooms,” Chapman said.

Chapman expects future apartment tenants to be parents, short-term University employees or people in transition between houses.

The five apartments within the building offer an extended stay, although the cost exceeds

most student budgets. While pricing is still in the works, Chapman said monthly leases will cost between $2,000 to $3,000. Nearby, Grandmarc at the Corner — housing targeted towards students — prices annual leases at month rates between $730 and $1220.

Little Mod’s apartments are the latest addition into a housing market that has been criticized for affordable housing availability, which has long been a concern for Charlottesville residents — especially with the influx of students and University-related businesses raising rent. The average cost of living in Charlottesville increased recently, now 10.7 percent higher than the national average.

For those looking to visit, a standard room with one king bed at the Little Mod Hotel ranges from $159 to $559 a night. The average booking made a month in advance typically costs around $179 — a pricing model aligning with the Graduate Hotel’s average rate of around $177 a night and the Marriot Courtyard at roughly $161.

Chapman renovated the Al -

cove site, working with elements of the original design. Since the old building lacked a kitchen and dining room, Chapman decided to include an attached food truck during renovations to transform the property into a full service hotel.

The “Mod Pod” food truck will be open to both hotel guests and the general public. Chapman anticipates that most business will come from students walking through the area.

“Once we went through that trouble, it just made sense to open it up to the thousands of students who walk by everyday,” Chapman said.

The Mod Pod will serve breakfast and lunch from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., offering menu items such as kolaches and a variety of street tacos.

Many students residing on 14th Street are eagerly anticipating the Mod Pod’s arrival. Grayson McCombs, a fourth-year Commerce student living nearby, said his housemates enjoyed free food samples offered by the truck before its opening.

“It’s pretty funny looking, it just looks like a big tinfoil ball,”

McCombs said. “I think a few of us are actually going to try to apply to work there — I think it’ll become kind of popular.”

McCombs said his friends put their names down for job applications after seeing a hiring sign at the location.

The Little Mod hotel is Chapman’s most recent project in the world of Charlottesville development. He previously developed the Oakhurst Inn and the South Range apartments on Jefferson Park Avenue. Similar to the Little Mod Hotel, The Oakhurst Inn offers an attached dining option, the Oakhurst Inn Cafe, serving breakfast and brunch open to the public.

Jim Shideler, General Manager of the Little Mod Hotel and the Oakhurst Inn, said the Little Mod’s nostalgic design and location adjacent to the Corner set the property apart from competitors.

“There are a lot of small boutique hotels in Charlottesville that have their own unique offerings, but I think it’d be very difficult to compare us to any other property just because we are so different from a theming

perspective,” Shideler said.

While the hotel’s location near the Corner offers proximity to restaurants, the hospital and Grounds, McCombs wondered if the Little Mod hotel might prove too close to student life for older guests.

“I don’t know this would be the best place for parents because it’s pretty loud around there,” McCombs said. “You can hear all the bars playing music at night so it just depends on your taste for noise.”

The Mod Pod is open to the public Sept. 6, with the hotel’s first reservations beginning Sept. 7.

ADAIRE BURNSED THE CAVALIER DAILY

The hotel itself is on the smaller side, with five apartments that can be rented by the month and 15 rooms with nightly rates.

McIntire moves to three-year program

Students are largely in support of the change, which is aimed at preparing them for a competitive job market

The McIntire School of Commerce will switch its undergraduate program from a two-year to a three-year program starting in the fall of 2024. The leaders behind this change hope to give students more flexibility in their coursework during their time at the Commerce school and better prepare them for competitive employment recruiting cycles.

Traditionally, prospective Commerce students begin in the College and apply at the end of their second year for matriculation into the Commerce school third year. Under the switch to a three-year program, announced Aug. 29, first-year students will matriculate in the beginning of their second year and apply in their first — beginning fall 2024.

All current first and second-year students will still apply into the twoyear program during their second year — the Class of 2028 will be the first to apply in their first year.

Demond Morris, Commerce Council president and fourth-year Commerce student, called the change “definitively necessary.”

He explained that the switch to a three-year program will allow the Commerce School to remain competitive with other elite business schools

Grace Thrush & Merrill Hart | News Staff

using three or four-year programs and will be more beneficial to students searching for jobs in the business world.

“It’s all about setting our students up to succeed, and I think this will be the best way to do [that],” Morris said.

In the last several years, recruitment cycle timelines for business internships and jobs have accelerated. Many students must work to secure an internship for the summer after their third year, Morris said.

“McIntire has limited intervention to ensure that our students, who are out there recruiting, who are the face of the University of Virginia, are being able to hold themselves in these interviews … and be able to compete with the other institutions across the country for these very limited jobs,” Morris said.

Fourth-year Commerce student Carly Price said she agrees the change will benefit the large numbers of students applying to internships.

“I think it would have been nice to have the perspective of a year of business school behind me before I started that process,” Price said.

Morris also said the curriculum change will create flexibility for both accepted and prospective Commerce

students. A prolonged curriculum will allow the school to devote more time to career development for students.

A three-year program will also be more advantageous to students not accepted into Commerce, who then must pivot to find enough credit hours to declare a new major to graduate on time, Morris said.

In 2022, the Commerce acceptance rate was 61 percent from a pool of 613 students. Applicants must take ten prerequisite courses before applying, including Foundations of Commerce, Introduction to Statistical Analysis and Microeconomics.

Under the new program, Commerce will only require applying students to complete one introduction to commerce course as a prerequisite. Morris said he hopes the reduced prerequisite requirements will also encourage more students to apply and help promote equity within the Commerce school.

“Currently, the structuring of the prerequisites, they can be very daunting and they truly limit the student’s ability or mindset to believe that they can get into [Commerce],” Morris said.

Instead, Morris said Commerce administrators want students to be able to succeed in their first year and

use the school as a resource in helping them through these courses in their second year.

While in favor of the new program, fourth-year Commerce student Alexander Hunter conversely said the earlier application process may favor students with stronger high school resumes, since they will have less time to get involved at the University before applying to McIntire.

“You literally have one semester of college to go off with, and most people have pretty much the same resume after the one semester here,” Hunter said. “I think a lot of kids will drive themselves crazy — ‘how do I prepare if my Commerce school application is due in like three months?’”

While Morris said he cannot predict how the curriculum change will change the competition between applicants in gaining a spot in McIntire, he said he hopes it will encourage more people to apply.

Along with anecdotal stress and competition between applicants preceding admission, Commerce comes with a notable price tag. In-state students pay $30,336 in tuition and fees, compared to in-state upperclassmen College students who pay $21,730. Out-of-state Commerce students pay

$68,456 while out-of-state upperclassmen College students pay $59,362.

Commerce currently enrolls around 700 students — an additional class would bring this total to around 1,050. The undergoing $100 million Commerce expansion project will create new research and classroom spaces to accommodate the growth.

Despite this construction, Price wondered how Commerce would support another full class of students.

“Having that many more students in the school is just something that’s gonna take time to adjust to — you need more teachers, you need more classrooms,” Price said. “I know they’re building [the expansion] but I just wonder how the mechanics of the program are going to work.”

All three Commerce students agreed, however, that the three-year program will overall serve to strengthen the school’s curriculum and outcomes.

“I think this will be the best way to [prepare students], whether that’s really the career development side of things, whether that’s from curriculum flexibility, and the ability to have more time in the classroom to focus on critical skill development,” Morris said.

New zoning draft divides Charlottesville community

The latest version of the multi-year project affects mixed-use development, affordable housing

Finn Trainer | Senior Associate

City residents have shown mixed reactions to Charlottesville City Council’s latest revision of the zoning ordinance draft. Proposed changes would increase provisions for density and multi-use developments, but citizens have raised concerns over the potential consequences for affordable housing.

The zoning rewrite is one product of the city’s multi-year Cville Plans Together initiative, created in 2020 with the goal of expanding affordable housing in Charlottesville. However, the recent draft has divided the city’s residents, with some voicing concerns that the ordinance will unintentionally produce more highend and student housing rather than achieving its intended goal of supporting affordable housing.

The zoning draft ordinance introduces several significant changes. The first module updates zoning districts, allowing for more mixed-use development and higher density of buildings. The second modifies development regulations, which will affect parking and landscaping. The third

module adds new regulations regarding inclusionary zoning, with the aim of increasing the amount of affordable housing in the city.

Charlottesville City Councilman Michael Payne said that a provision known as the inclusionary zoning requirement will require every housing development with 10 or more units to make at least 10 percent of them affordable — defined as having rent equal to or below 60 percent of the area’s median income.

Payne also said that the draft had previously included another anti-gentrification provision known as a sensitive communities overlay, which would have limited development size and incentivized smaller-scale affordable housing in certain areas of pre-existing zoning districts. He said that consultants from the firm Rhodeside & Harwell, Inc. removed the provision to allow homeowners to sell their properties for a greater value.

Dr. Peter Gray, Lewis Mountain Neighborhood Association member and Charlottesville resident since

2016, said the new ordinance plan will push out the lower-income residents that it was originally intended to help. He said he’s very concerned about gentrification and resident displacement resulting from the zoning change.

“When this whole process started several years ago, there were strong assurances against gentrification and displacement amongst lower-income Charlottesville residents,” Gray said. “That’s been a key part of the plan, and it was, under the dark of night, removed from the plan.”

Meadowbrook Hills-Rugby association member Ben Heller said that he supports some parts of the draft zoning ordinance — such as its clearer language, allowance for some duplexes and accessory dwelling units — but he anticipates that the new ordinance plan will mainly lead to residences that attract students.

“[Student housing is] just so profitable,” Heller said. “The teacher wage for Step 5 teachers earning $60,000 a year is going to compete with students who come from house-

holds that make $200,000 a year.”

Heller also said that students often share apartments and are less concerned with the quality of the housing than other potential renters, describing Charlottesville’s student housing market as “an economic juggernaut.”

The University community has long affected the Charlottesville housing market. Part of the University’s 2030 Strategic Plan aims to reduce student housing demand in Charlottesville by providing mandatory on-Grounds housing for second-year students.

“[The plan has] been a huge impact on availability of student housing,” Gray said. “They’re doing all the right things… to me, that’s the way you can get affordable, high-quality student rentals — the University owning and managing properties.”

In contrast, Heller said there is no real pressure on the University to improve their student housing, which could make its goal to provide mandatory on-Grounds housing for undergraduate students’ first two years

of study unrealistic.

“I’ve been hearing since the time I got here, ‘oh, we’re going to house all second-years,’ and people I’ve talked to from Charlottesville [say] ‘oh yeah, they’ve been saying that forever,’” Heller said.

While the 2030 plan could eventually alleviate pressure in the Charlottesville housing market for residents, the issue of affordable housing in Charlottesville persists for the near future. Although the zoning ordinance is close to finalized, it will likely undergo more changes before it’s enacted — after the Charlottesville Planning Commission finishes making amendments to the ordinance, City Council will hold a series of work sessions to make final changes and then vote to approve or deny the new zoning plan. Councilman Payne said the earliest the final vote will happen is December.

The Charlottesville Planning Commission will conduct a public hearing about the draft zoning ordinance rewrite Sept. 14.

Revival of Pride at McIntire

A much-needed safe space for LGBTQ+ identifying Commerce students at the University is quickly regaining traction this fall

Elizabeth Parsons | Senior Associate

As the semester starts back up at the University, a group of students looks to match the energy and excitement of a new academic year to create lasting change in the McIntire School of Commerce — Pride at McIntire.

Pride at McIntire’s mission is to serve as a safe space for LGBTQ+ Commerce students and allies, providing a hub for both professional development resources and community support.

PAM strives to foster an environment where traditionally underrepresented voices are heard, acknowledged and amplified.

PAM was founded in the 2016-17 academic year but entered a period of inactivity due to changes in leadership and the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, executives in the organization are filing for obtaining CIO status to reestablish a strong presence on Grounds.

Andy Ventura Lopez, PAM’s co-president and fourth-year Commerce student, is working hard to create a permanent place for LGBTQ+ students to feel unified in a largely heteronormative environment. Ventura Lopez is looking to reach out to interested students, in particular underclassmen, to help sustain the club’s place at the University for years to come.

“A lot of the members are third and fourth-years, so we’re trying really hard to recruit younger members to build up our foundation again,” Ventura Lopez said.

PAM hopes to guide students to success in the classroom and beyond through a variety of learning opportunities that are specially curated for Commerce students — such as Commerce-related workshops, networking opportunities and mock ICE classes for prospective first and second-year students in preparation for the first year of the Commerce curriculum.

Connections with other organizations on Grounds, like the Queer Student Union, have supported PAM’s revival. Ryan Young, PAM’s employer engagement chair and second-year College student, said that he wants to educate students about programs specifically geared towards LGBTQ+ students in the consulting industry. He hopes that PAM will increase access to these opportunities and empower those

students.

“I want to just spread the word and show that there are a lot of things that are going on right now that can be a lot of service to people in the [LGBTQ+] community,” Young said. “I really want to let people know that there is a space for them.”

Micaela Pesante, PAM’s PR Chair and fourth-year Commerce student, credits her time at PAM for giving her the chance to explore what it takes to authentically be an ally to the LGBTQ+ community at the University.

“Pride at McIntire provided me with the opportunity to be an ally, learn, grow and connect with others who share a commitment to creating a more inclusive and accepting community,” Pesante said. “It’s a chance to celebrate diversity and contribute to a positive and supportive environment for all members of the community, regardless of their sexual orientation.”

Ventura Lopez said that,

above all, the community and sense of belonging found within PAM is essential to the life of many Commerce students. He said that PAM not only strives to discuss what it means to be LGBTQ+, but also how each student’s cultural background is intertwined with that identity.

“As a Latinx student, there is more to me than just one identity,” Ventura Lopez said. “PAM allows my intersecting identities to be seen.”

It is PAM’s hope to increase allyship with the LGBTQ+ community in order to cultivate a new generation of intersectionality in the professional world, working to break the norms and commonly held stereotypes of Commerce as an not inclusive field.

“Our goal is to show that there are programs and companies [that] have a commitment to inclusivity,” Young said. “Being able to showcase that is really important because of the culture of feeling unwelcome [in many

professional spaces].”

Ventura Lopez said that while he feels that most workplaces have begun to create spaces for LGBTQ+ employees and establish visibility, it still has not done enough to combat disapproval and exclusion in some places.

“I feel like the majority of the firms have LGBTQ+ groups,” Ventura Lopez said. “I don’t think visibility is the main issue, I think mostly acceptance because people have different opinions and beliefs which, there’s nothing wrong with that, but I think acceptance is like the last hurdle, that we — or anyone who’s a part of LGBTQ+ — has to face in the corporate world.”

Students interested in joining PAM can find a link to their GroupMe and Listserv through their Instagram account — @prideatmcintire. PAM executives say that it is vital to have spaces for LGBTQ+ students and allies to come together to ensure everyone has the tools to succeed

— something that they say is inseparable from pride and living authentically.

“Making sure that everyone, no matter their sexual orientation, feels safe and embraced on grounds is very important,” Pesante said. “PAM is dedicated to creating an environment where students, faculty, and staff know they are supported and genuinely cared for.”

DOMENICK FINI THE CAVALIER DAILY

As a hub for both professional development and community support for LGBTQ+ students and allies, PAM fosters an environment in Commerce where underrepresented voices are heard, acknowledged and amplified.

Recently I was pleasantly greeted with the smell of freshly baked cookies as I approached my front door, and was met with a bag filled with chocolate chip cookies with a note from my neighbors across the hall. I walked into my apartment with the goodies, eager to show my roommates and we all gathered by the table, remarking on the sweet gesture while indulging in the perfectly baked cookies.

My roommates and I quickly got to work and baked brownies in return, also adding a message with our contact info. After dropping them off at our neighbor’s door, we periodically peeked our heads out to see if our offering had been accepted until we peeked out one last time, and the brownies disappeared into their apartment.

Growing up, I moved from state to state, never staying in one place too long. Anytime my family made these big moves, my mother, an avid baker, would bake the most delicious pumpkin cookies — which were always a hit — and give them out to neighbors by personally delivering them, often taking me along to meet their

Spreading love, one batch at a time

The joy I found from sharing baked goods with my neighbors

Yumi Kim | Food Writer

families. It is nice to see that baking is still bringing people together years later.

Moving into a new place that day felt stressful and quite overwhelming, so receiving such a kind and selfless gesture after a long day of moving was extremely touching. There’s something undeniably special about the sweet aroma of freshly baked bread, cookies or warm brownies wafting through the halls.

The beauty of sharing baked goods with your neighbors is that you can do it year-round. While holiday seasons often inspire this tradition, there are absolutely no restrictions on when you can extend a plate of your favorite treats. Surprise your neighbors with a batch of cinnamon rolls on a chilly winter morning, celebrate the first blooms of spring with lemon bars or share a pie during a summer barbecue. Any time is a good time to share a little sweetness.

A wonderful aspect of sharing baked goods with neighbors is the opportunity to celebrate the rich tapestry of culinary traditions

that make up your community. You can learn about different cultures and flavors, creating a fusion of taste that enriches the collective palate of your neighborhood. In my time as a food writer for The Cavalier Daily, I have written numerous articles on my favorite Korean and Japanese recipes, two cuisines that I grew up eating and enjoying. I hope to spark inspiration in others to try delicious new flavors and expand readers’ palates one simple recipe at a time.

If you’re eager to start sharing your baked goods with your neighbors, here’s a simple chocolate chip cookie recipe to get you started. So, don your apron, preheat the oven, and let the sweet scent of neighborly love fill the air!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 11 minutes

Yields: ~ 40 small cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C).

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Stir in the semisweet chocolate chips.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto ungreased baking

Spain with and without the “s”

sheets and bake for 9-11 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.

Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring them to wire racks to cool completely.

Pack your freshly baked cookies in a decorative tin or a pretty plate, and share them with your neighbors to brighten their day!

In a world that often feels disconnected ever since our year of isolation and growing complacency with virtual interactions, reaching out to your neighbors with a plate of homemade baked goods can create a ripple of warmth and kindness that extends far beyond your doorstep.

In my opinion, sharing baked goods is a universal language of love, capable of brightening even the gloomiest of days. It’s a reminder that small acts of generosity can make a big difference in building a stronger, more caring community.

I didn’t love my study abroad experience in Valencia, but that doesn’t mean I’m not grateful for it or don’t stand to learn anything from it

Alex Pawlica | Life Columnist

“How was Spain?” asked a friend who I hadn’t seen all summer.

“It was…” My voice faltered before landing on the only word I thought would be appropriate to use.

“Good. It was good.”

“Just good?” they asked, raising an eyebrow.

I quickly laughed off my verbal misstep and chalked it up to my fatigue before changing the subject. The true answer — the kind you don’t casually drop in post-summer small talk — was more complicated than “good.”

Before beginning the U.Va. in Valencia program, I had heard people sing its praises. They boasted about their Spanish summers complete with wild touristic escapades, frequent beach trips with new best friends and no shortage of tinto de verano. The thought of a picture-perfect study abroad trip was enough to quell whatever nerves I had — but that image didn’t last long.

It wasn’t that I encountered a series of misfortunes or anything that could make for a study abroad hor-

ror story. In fact, I had many things to be grateful for. I had a kind host mom, great professors and roommates that I got along well with.

Still, I couldn’t help but feel down most days. Although I’d spent time abroad before — last year, I spent a month walking the Camino de Santiago — I had never felt so homesick for such an extended period of time. Minor nuisances like having to adjust to a new space began to feel insurmountable and I increasingly craved the familiarity of my own bedroom.

All the while, I grew stressed about all the things I had to deal with, some of which I didn’t have any control over. I was starting a virtual internship, dealing with family matters and watching as money left my bank account without being replenished as I wasn’t actively working.

Most importantly, I missed the sense of community I felt before I left. My closest friends all stayed in the States, and some even spent their summers in Charlottesville. While I had some truly wonderful people around me, making plans

and building relationships often felt difficult in the short and busy four weeks I spent in Spain.

What’s more, if I’m being honest, I wasn’t overly fond of the program itself. I had dedicated professors and a good homestay, but I didn’t fall in love with the city of Valencia or feel that my cultural horizons were expanded all that widely. I just didn’t resonate with the city.

Even though I knew it did me no good, I spent a lot of time ruminating on what my summer might’ve looked like if I had made different plans. I couldn’t help but imagine scenarios where I was somewhere else, doing something else.

Any one of those challenges — to some degree — could be expected. But taken all together, day after day after day, it was clear that something wasn’t quite right. I should be enjoying this, I thought to myself — l didn’t want to be ungrateful or cynical, but I felt like I couldn’t bring myself to be joyful.

As time went on, I did adjust to life in Valencia. The wave of anxiety I experienced peaked and began to subside during the latter half of

the program. It helped that my time was eventually punctuated by moments of joy, thanks to lots of communication with my support system back home — even from afar, loved ones kept me afloat.

After the program, I found myself reflecting on the experience with a couple of classmates. As we swapped jokes, hot takes and struggle stories about our time in Valencia, I came to feel a newfound sense of solidarity. It was validating to hear that they also made lots of long-distance calls and had similar thoughts about the city.

When I was in the headspace that I had been in during the program, it seemed like so many people were living their best lives while I struggled quietly. The truth is that my experience wasn’t entirely uncommon — it’s just that it’s not the kind that gets talked about when selling study abroad programs.

In retrospect, I can simply take my experience for what it was — a great opportunity, sure, but perhaps not the right one for me at the time.

When I think back on it now,

I recall a piece of wisdom that my older sister shared over the phone. She reminded me that people often place weighty expectations on certain experiences — they’ll say that high school or college or a term abroad is the best time of your life. However, the reality is different for many people — and that’s completely okay. I don’t rank my month in Valencia among the best times of my life. I don’t need to.

Although my experience wasn’t exactly magical, I won’t spend my days mulling over alternate realities that could’ve been. I don’t think that going to Valencia was the best decision I could’ve made, but I’m grateful for the good parts of my study abroad and doubly grateful for what it taught me. All that to say — don’t sweat it if your experience of something isn’t quite the way you dreamed it to be. Take from it what you can and continue to practice gratitude.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

A&E Book Club: Three books to read this September

Get into the spirit of the fall semester with these three horror, fantasy and thriller reads

Elizabeth Shackelford | Staff Writer

Autumn is falling upon us, and as quickly as the leaves turn scarlet, summer will race away, leaving behind only wisps of sunshine and memories. As we depart from sunny vacation into the new semester and new season, do not despair. While days relaxing at the pool may be far gone, the days of warm lattes, cozy sweaters and latenight horror films lie ahead — and what glorious days they will be. Here are three books to help inaugurate the new semester and get into the spooky fall spirit.

“The Basic Eight” by Daniel Handler

Flannery Culp may be a murderer, but does that mean she is really guilty?

At a high school full of cliques, Flannery finds herself an integral member of the Basic Eight, a group of teenagers as used to throwing lavish dinner parties — markedly tasteful, sans murder — as they are implementing schemes that can go a bit too far. Like any highschool friend group, the friends face drama, betrayal, love and the after-

math of absinthe, all faithfully recorded in Flannery’s senior year diary.

Perfect for fans of books like “The Secret History,” Handler captures perfectly the perils of a high-stakes academic environment gone too far. With unreliable narrator Flannery rife with teen angst and more intelligence than she knows what to do with, the merit of Daniel Handler’s “The Basic Eight” shines through even 25 years after its initial release date.

Handler’s 1998 debut novel is the often overlooked sibling of the author’s works. Better known for publishing under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket, Handler began releasing the critically-acclaimed “A Series of Unfortunate Events” just one year after his debut. Despite the difference in publishing name, “The Basic Eight” delivers the same witty narration many readers fell in love with as children in “A Series of Unfortunate Events.”

“Bunny” by Mona Awad

It’s back-to-school season at War-

ren University, and though Samantha Heather Mackey may have been accepted into the school’s prestigious MFA program in creative writing, she is a far cry from feeling truly accepted into the university’s culture and social scene.

While the girls, who call one another “Bunnies,” have curated a world that seemingly revolves around all things sweet and sugar, Samantha quickly learns that everyone has a dark side when they invite her to their writing workshop involving pastries, childhood crushes and sacrificing the grotesque monsters that they bring to life.

“Bunny” delves beyond the terror of the supernatural into the psychological horrors of cults and the profound loneliness of feeling alone in a room full of people. While Samantha looks outward to greet the dangers that the Bunnies create, she must look inward to face the horrors of her own mind, created in response to her isolation.

Nominated for the Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Horror, “Bun-

ny” has gained notoriety since its publication in 2019. Beyond its positive reception by readers, the rights to a film adaptation have recently been acquired by Bad Robot, a film studio owned by J.J. Abrams. While an announcement of the film’s official development has not yet occurred, the book’s popularity within Hollywood indicates that an adaptation will soon be in the works.

“The Starless Sea” by Erin Morgenstern

Zachary Ezra Rawlins may be the son of a fortune teller, but that does not mean he shares his mother’s affinity for all things magical and mysterious. That is, until he discovers a curious book hidden inside his own university’s library. After unearthing a series of clues, Zachary sets upon a path to uncover the secrets of a library located beneath the surface of the Earth.

With weaving timelines and an experimental structure, “The Starless

Sea” is a love letter to storytelling riddled with vibrant scenes, distinct characters and mystery. The intertwined timelines bend genres as Zachary attempts to discover his own role in the library’s story, as well as the history and eventual fate of the magical place.

“The Starless Sea” is a book for people who love books. Morgenstern forefronts the question of literature’s role in preserving knowledge, asking who controls the stories written and to what extent readers participate in the creation of those stories.

Having received nominations for multiple awards for her writing in the fantasy genre, Erin Morgenstern is no stranger to writing about the mystical. Her debut novel “The Night Circus” was published in 2011 and she has since sold over 3 million copies in 37 languages worldwide.

From navigating the stress of classes, friendships and the changing seasons this September, these three books have you covered. Just make sure to keep your schemes safe and your mysteries literary.

Q&A with indie-pop artist Becca Mancari

Tanner Rowe | Arts & Entertainment Editor

“Honey, where do you go when you got nowhere to hide,” sings Becca Mancari, an indie-pop artist from Nashville, on the opening track of their recent album “Left Hand.” Mancari’s music exudes transparency and emotional rawness, and their whispering, delicate vocals inspire listeners to follow suit.

Mancari is set to return to Virginia to hit The Jefferson Theater Sept. 23, opening for artist Joy Oladokun before kicking off their own North American Tour.

Mancari, whose parents live in Virginia, is no stranger to Charlottesville, even making sure to shout out East Main Street’s Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar during an interview with The Cavalier Daily.

“I have deep roots in Virginia,” said Mancari. “The Jefferson is a bucket list show for me, so I’m really excited.”

In advance of their performance, Mancari candidly discussed their recent record, a culmination of self-acceptance and lyrical lucidity.

You shared in a previous interview that the symbol of the “Left Hand” is a reference to the Mancari family crest,

which depicts a left hand holding a dagger. What does this image represent to you?

“I tied it back to when kids were born with left hands back in the day, they oftentimes were made to use their right hands because the parents said, ‘It’s unnatural,’ or ‘You’re gonna live a harder life.’”

“I just thought that was so interesting that that was so embedded in my own story as being queer. Being told, ‘You’re not normal, you have to change. You have to bend a certain way to fit into society,’... It felt rebellious to just love the imagery of this dagger, it felt powerful. I really wanted it to reflect in the record this feeling of defiance and self love.”

On one of the most intimate moments on the record, the title track “Left Hand” explores mental derealization through a conversational, stream of consciousness-like monologue, in which the speaker urges themselves to wake up, love themselves and forgive. In what ways does this track represent themes on the record as a whole?

“That is all truly a stream of con-

sciousness. So I recorded that in this room that I’m speaking from right now… It’s almost like reading somebody’s diaries, Iike reading somebody’s notes themselves as they struggled to stay alive. The importance to me is that I think a lot of people feel this way, but they don’t know how to say it.”

“It just allowed you to hear me be as vulnerable as I’ve ever been.”

You are open about having faced religious trauma while growing up in a Christian household, which stood as an obstacle to finding your identity as a queer person. How does this experience inform your songwriting?

“I think what happens in religion is what I think is so divisive... Love should be the anchor to all things, you know, and to me, I still have a spirituality that’s part of my being and like what I care about is bringing people together.”

“Being raised very religious, it was really, really difficult but it also gave me a lot of compassion. And I have a lot of understanding for people in a way that I don’t regret. It helped me love people that hate me.”

Your music is often characterized

by its lyrical vulnerability — do you find the process of being transparent about personal experiences in your lyrics to be somewhat arduous and vulnerable, or self affirming and strengthening?

“I think very much both. I think you have to go through the vulnerable to get to the strength.”

“We all have choices to make as artists. And I think for me, my music comes to me in a way that feels really, really vulnerable in a way that I can’t describe. It’s just like it was given to me and it saved me. So I hope it does the same for others.”

The record sees collaborations with boygenius’s Julian Baker, Paramore’s Zac Farro and Brittany Howard, all longtime friends. How would you describe the creative process working with these artists?

“When you get two really good friends, and I think two really great artists together, you can make magic, you know.”

“Collaboration like that is just so pure, and I get to celebrate my friends and what they do. And they could celebrate me.”

For our final question, I’d love to ask what you’re most looking forward to at the moment, particularly ahead of your upcoming tour dates?

“Whew… You know, I am really looking forward to translating the songs live with my band. We’ve worked really, really hard. We’ve just spent a month just playing through these new songs. And I leveled up in a different way.”

“Touring is so hard right now. Getting people to buy a ticket is just like, ‘I’ll name my first child after you’, You know what I mean? But I know that I’m committed to this for life.”

Not only does the album represent Mancari’s emotional maturity, but their musical maturity. “Left Hand” stands as Mancari’s first partially self-produced record, allowing for their creative control over the production process and total freedom of expression. “I feel really connected to it in a deeper way than anything I’ve actually ever put out,” Mancari said.

In advance of their performance at The Jefferson Theater, Mancari opened up about using songwriting to delve into spirituality and queer identity

“Murmuration” highlights professor’s lasting impact

The art exhibition gathers multimedia art made by Schoyer’s former students and colleagues

Emily Pitts | Senior Writer

Artwork made of artwork, a collage of pieces saved by Asst. Prof. Elizabeth Schoyer lines a wall of Ruffin Gallery floor to ceiling in “Murmuration,” a culmination of the connections formed between Schoyer and her students over the past 20 years.

Murmuration is a word with two meanings — both the quiet utterance of a noise and the name for a flock of starlings. The exhibition highlights how different voices flock together to form a murmuration. For Schoyer, the exhibition is her personal murmuration. She brings together all of these artists’ energies and influences as a narrative of the people she knows.

Schoyer features nine former students and three colleagues more in depth, putting two of each of their pieces — spanning topics from the environment to politics — on display around the gallery.

Rachel Lane, class of 2013 alumna and a Charlottesville-based artist, has two artistic short films on display.

“One requirement for all studio art majors was to take two semesters of drawing, and [Schoyer] was my professor for one of those semesters, and we just stayed friends ever since,” Lane said.

Lane’s two films, which play on a screen in the center of the room, both center around nature. According to Lane, the first piece is a work in progress, a documentary-style short film about a historic tree near the Charlottesville airport.

“I think the estimate is anywhere from 450 to 490 years old,” Lane said. “I’m in the early stages of creating this documentary film,” Lane said. “[‘Murmuration’] inspired me to begin… I’ve already met so many people who love the tree and have so much to say about it, and stories about it.”

Lane still feels Schoyer’s impact on her current art, though it has been 10 years since she was a student.

“These are brand new films… but I’m sure in many ways they are impacted by what I learned from her when I was her student 10 years ago,

and I’m sure there are little traces of her presence in everyone’s work,” Lane said.

Lane currently teaches art in the Charlottesville community to over 1,000 students every year, ranging from children to adults.

Sandy Williams IV, a current assistant professor at the University of Richmond and former student of Schoyer’s, brings two renowned pieces to the show, also through unconventional media.

Their first piece, “The (Bronze) Wax Monuments” is a collection of melted candles shaped like statues of former historical figures and Confederate generals — including a Robert E. Lee Statue that was recently removed in Charlottesville. They were driven to create them based on their time as a student at the University and in graduate school at Virginia Commonwealth University.

“I felt like [the wax monuments] were these little anti-monuments… they’re miniature,” Williams said. “They’re malleable. They’re ephemeral and you can hold them and

have agency over them.”

Williams said that they felt frustration about the cities’ failure to remove the life-sized Confederate statues and how it spurred them to create these pieces.

“I’ve been in Virginia all my life, and I’ve been around things that resemble or remember or commemorate the Confederacy,” Williams said. “So it was just this conversation that was unavoidable.”

Their other piece, a part of their “Unattended Baggage Series”, is an unconventional clear suitcase with a timer on it displaying how long since the piece has been touched.

“Violence exists invisibly in our spaces,” Williams said. “These backpacks also are occupying space, but in a different way, in a more suspicious manner, by their presentation, by the context of being in space.”

Williams said that Schoyer’s class left an impact on them — they did not originally intend to major in art. Williams found the small class and caring professor to be a refreshing break from large lectures.

Williams said. “Professor Shoyer was a big light in my life in my undergrad years,” Williams said.

On the flier for “Murmuration,” next to the list of featured artists, there is a quote by researcher Andrea Cavagna, who comments on the nature of starlings.

“The [starling] group responds as one… cannot be divided into independent subparts,” the quote reads.

Schoyer’s “Murmuration” describes this phenomenon — a group of individuals, and unique artistic voices, make up a whole. The many voices are the culmination of Schoyer’s impact as a mentor, colleague and artist.

“[‘Murmuration’ is] a representation of Professor Schroyer’s career and all the people that she’s impacted and had relationships with,” Lane said. “It’s very special what it represents. And I think it’s a lovely gesture instead of putting her own work in the gallery.

“Murmuration” is on display in Ruffin Gallery until Oct. 6 — Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ADAIRE BURNSED THE CAVALIER DAILY

Murmation is a word with two meanings — both the quiet utterance of a noise and the name for a flock of starlings.

On average, two local journalism outlets closed each week of 2022, leaving more than twenty percent of citizens without a local newspaper. In recent years, people in positions of power have increasingly threatened local journalism by attempting to suppress unfavorable coverage. Specifically, elected officials have revoked funding for public notices and filed expensive and unjustified defamation suits. There are many intersecting reasons that outlets are closing. But at the end of the day, it is the actions of powerful citizens that uniquely constitute a sort of indirect and legal censorship of news media against which we must remain vigilant.

Public notices provide important information to citizens, including town meeting dates and government salaries. As such, they are essential to a functioning democracy and are often required by law. Contracts for publishing public notices are frequently given to local journalism outlets, a logical choice given their proximity to constituencies. In the past few

We are losing local news outlets

Powerful individuals are unconscionably threatening local journalism nationally and in Charlottesville

years, however, some officials have revoked these contracts in what appears to be retribution for unfavorable coverage. Predictably, these changes threaten outlets’ revenue sources and jeopardize their existence.

As if selectively revoking these contracts did not sufficiently endanger local news outlets, some states are going farther and reversing the very laws which require public notices. In Florida, the law no longer requires that public notices be published independently. Rather, public notices will be published on government websites.

While done under the guise of accessibility, these actions and laws bring into question the reliability of public notices and undermine an ethos of government transparency. When local and state governments revoke these contracts and reverse relevant laws, they are, in effect, silencing local outlets and diminishing basic transparency. We must call this what it is — censorship.

In addition to these backhanded censorship maneuvers, powerful in-

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dividuals, many of them elected, are suing news outlets in ridiculously expensive and unfounded defamation suits. For example, in 2021 in Wisconsin, now state senator Cory Tomczyk filed a defamation suit against The Wausau Pilot & Review for an article alleging that he had used a homophobic slur during a county meeting. The suit was thrown out by a judge in April 2023, but Tomczyk has appealed this ruling, elongating the legal process for a local newspaper which will be hard-pressed to find additional money.

Like countless other instances, the controversy in Wisconsin perfectly encapsulates the fact that it is relatively easy for powerful officials with either economic or political capital to bring defamation suits, which are notoriously difficult to prove, against outlets that they find unfavorable. Such suits, irrespective of their success, can shut down news outlets with little cost to the officials.

This issue is not entirely displaced from Charlottesville. We are

THE CAVALIER DAILY

MANAGING BOARD

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EDITORIAL BOARD

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Dan Freed

Ava MacBlane

Nathan Onibudo

Songhan Pang

Naima Sawaya

Shaleah Tolliver

JUNIOR BOARD

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not exempt from national pressures that threaten the news. Powerful people have proven themselves to be a threat to Charlottesville’s journalists, and the polarization that has initiated revocations of public notices across the nation is undeniably present here in the City.

In June 2022, the digital records of The Hook disappeared from the internet, in what the former editors believe to be a malicious and intentional act. In 2011, The Hook made an enemy of a University student when it covered a rape case that the Dean of Students had dismissed. In the early 2020s, the paper’s records were sold to an undisclosed buyer, who still owned the records when they disappeared in 2022.

The former editors believe that this rape controversy, and the people embroiled within it, are responsible for this act of indirect censorship. While the evidence is circumstantial, it is certainly concerning that entire media records can be erased by the rich in our very backyard. To counteract these trends, residents must condemn

those who seek to silence the media and implore the city to continue its sponsorship of local journalism.

The first amendment protects against direct censorship, guaranteeing press freedom. However, not all censorship is obvious — some is indirect and outwardly legal. This censorship empowers the already powerful, those with monetary and political capital, to further dictate public discourses and impede accountability. If this is allowed to continue, we can expect more news deserts across the United States, a trend which promises increased misinformation and polarization. This does not have to be our reality — by fighting to protect local newsrooms we can safeguard the individuals who safeguard our democracy.

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

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U.Va. must continue fighting antisemitism

When residents of the University of California at Berkeley’s chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi woke up last week, they were met with hundreds of shellfish strewn across and thrown through the windows of their property. With good reason, the members of the Jewish fraternity initially thought this act was a hate crime — consumption of shellfish is strictly prohibited under Jewish law, the vandalism took place on the first Shabbat of the semester and UC Berkeley has a history of antisemitism. A couple days later, though, the student responsible said it was an ignorant prank, not a calculated act of antisemitism — a position that was later confirmed by a spokesperson for the Berkeley Police Department. The brothers of AEPi, though, said it best — ignorance does not excuse antisemitism. The mere fact that the vandal did not know better does not erase the antisemitic implications of their harmful actions. As acts of antisemitism increase on college campuses and Jewish students continue to share that they feel unsafe at their schools, acts like the one at UC Berkeley must prompt larger discussions about the need for universities to redress the pervasive legacy of antisemitism.

This work is especially important at the University — the legacy of an-

As antisemitism rises, the University must avoid complacency to protect its students

tisemitism is deeply embedded in its history. In 1841, the University hired James Joseph Sylvester and became the first school in the United States to hire a Jewish professor to teach a secular subject. After only four months, though, Sylvester left the University because of the harassment and violence he received from students — it took eighty more years for another Jewish professor to be hired. In 1862,

circumstances must inform how we understand our present reality.

are still forced to live on Alderman Road, which is named after a former University president who was also the leader of the eugenics movement at the University. There are no institutional dedications to Professor Sylvester. If you Google “Jewish history at U.Va,” the Jewish Studies department and the Corcoran Department of History will pop up. What is missing from this page is any history

This work is especially important at the University — the legacy of antisemitism is deeply embedded in its history.”

the first Jewish student, Gratz Cohen, arrived at the University. Despite adhering to the University’s confederate culture and serving as president of the Jefferson Society, the letters he sent home were about the antisemitism he witnessed. In 1927, after more Jewish students were admitted, the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences said that “some limit” would have to be set on the number of Jewish students admitted to the University. With its history of institutionalized racism and sexism, the fact that the University also served as a hotbed of antisemitism may be unsurprising, but past

Sadly, antisemitic events continue to occur on Grounds. The Unite the Right Rally in the summer of 2017 was a horrific attack on Jewish people, with demonstrators marching down the Lawn screaming, “Jews will not replace us.” Even more recently, opinion columnist Dan Freed argued that the University failed its Jewish students by neglecting to issue a University-wide communication after a welcome sign was stolen from the Rohr Chabad House at U.Va. Many students only knew about the incident because of an Instagram post from the organization. While Student Affairs did work with Chabad House following the incident, the University never publicly acknowledged that the theft had occurred. Jewish students are too often the only ones advocating for themselves — the University’s failure to speak on the issue only further proves this.

Today, many Jewish first years

about Jewish students, faculty or culture at the University. The University community must face this lack of acknowledgement head on and begin to memorialize the Jewish voices that have helped to shape the University into the institution that it is today. One way we can begin this work is through leveraging the University Guide Service — by centering Jewish stories on historical tours, students can play an active role in helping the University transcend its legacy of antisemitism.

By not taking steps to mitigate the ways its problematic past contributes

to present day injustices, the University creates spaces for antisemitism and effectively preserves its legacy of bigotry and hatred. The University should not just strive to preserve a holistic account of Jewish history and protect Jewish communities on Grounds, but it should also strive to create an environment in which Jewish students can thrive. UC Berkeley has Jewish student organizations, like AEPi, that foster a sense of belonging — likewise, the work of University student groups like Chabad House and The Brody Jewish Center are much appreciated as they create spaces for Jewish students to feel safe, included and welcome. These safe spaces at both universities, however, do not actually guarantee feelings of security for all Jewish students. Without institutional action, a legacy of antisemitism will persist in whatever environment it is allowed to — the University must not be that environment.

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

Online summer classes should be cheaper

Summer sessions can often be advantageous to students of all backgrounds. They allow students to complete more credits and even graduate sooner if they desire. Taking classes over the summer can even help students complete a more robust course of study with double majors and minors. Not all summer classes, however, are created equally. While the University offers two different types of courses — both in-person and online — their prices remain identical. Online classes should not cost the same amount as in-person classes. Despite being able to deliver the same amount of information in the same amount of time, the experiences of these two types of courses could not be further from one another — prices should reflect those disparities.

On the Student Information System, classes that are offered in the various summer sessions are listed with their mode of instruction. Sometimes, however, the modality changes. In my case, I signed up for an in-person class in the second summer session. A week after I enrolled and paid tuition, I got an email from the registrar stating that my class had switched from in-person instruction to a web-based

course. Since online courses are not any cheaper than in-person classes, I was forced to pay the same amount of money for a less effective educational experience.

Let me be clear — virtual classes have several benefits. Namely, they are generally more accessible and pro-

of the benefits of virtual classes. Even still, it would be naive to say virtual classes and in-person classes are of the same caliber. In-person classes offer hands-on learning opportunities and easier interactions with one’s peers, better interpersonal development and an environment that is typ-

take the class — the efficacy of how course content is delivered must be the decisive factor in pricing courses. To be taught effectively is the very reason students sign up for classes with instructors in the first place.

It is worth noting, though, that professors themselves are not to blame

more opportunities — it would also benefit the University. Cheaper online courses provide an incentive for students to utilize University-run courses instead of outsourcing to community colleges, even if they live away from Grounds. The University is missing out on an advantageous opportunity. If more and more students are rushing to fill their summers with courses, why would the University not want to make its courses a more appealing option to all of their students?

vide a greater degree of flexibility to students. Summer classes, in general, make it easier for students to double major or expand their areas of study by taking engaging classes that they would not have otherwise had the opportunity to take. Online classes can be especially useful because they create learning opportunities for working students or those who cannot live near Grounds in the summer to further their education. In fact, there has been an increase in students who enroll in online summer classes — both at universities and community colleges. Students do recognize and take advantage

ically less distracting than taking class online at home. In short, in-person classes create a better learning environment than virtual classes — studies have found online classes often warrant lower grades and produce worse performances than in-person classes. The bottom line is that while virtual classes are convenient, they are not as useful or fulfilling as in-person classes. Why, then, is the price the same?

While the pay structure of classes may be built on something other than quality of the instruction offered — perhaps the labor of the professor or the amount of resources required to

for the drop in educational quality that is inherent in online learning environments. As such, educators should not be forced to shoulder the cost of cheaper online courses. If the cost of summer courses directly contributes to the rate at which professors are compensated, then the University cannot simply lower the cost of courses — it must also subsidize the difference to ensure that faculty do not walk away with less in their pocket.

Additionally, making virtual summer courses cheaper than in-person summer courses would not only benefit students by allowing them to seize

It does not make sense — nor is it fair — that in-person and virtual classes are priced the same, despite fundamental differences in educational quality. Virtual classes are useful, but they are not as useful — nor, in my experience, as enjoyable — as in-person classes. The community and camaraderie foundational to the educational experience is diminished when classes move online, so the tuition we pay for these courses should also decrease.

RILEY LORGUS is an Opinion Columnist who writes about Administration and University life for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at opinion@ cavalierdaily.com.

It does not make sense — nor is it fair — that in-person and virtual classes are priced the same, despite fundamental differences in educational quality.”

How To Go Through Your Villain Era at U.Va.

Summer break has ended, we’re back in the oppressive September Charlottesville heat and syllabus week is over. The fall semester has begun, and we’re not the same people we were last year. Some of us may have changed aesthetics — from grunge to VSCO girl or from cottage core to what your mom calls “an emo.” Others may have changed majors — from premed to Business or from English to Economics and then back to English because you realized the economy is going to crash anyway so who cares if you will make no money?

Lastly, there are those who ended the semester as Luke Skywalker, but then were recruited to the dark side at the beach in June when they were tanning and two imbecile kids decided to put Hot Cheetos on their back spelling out “no regerts” and then they had to spend the rest of their vacation in shirts. Not that I’ve ever experienced that.

But anyway, these individuals are probably returning to Grounds in their villain era. As someone a part of this group — due to a non-Cheeto-related incident — I think that I should share some of my advice on how someone experiencing their villain era can go about expressing themselves at the University.

So, without further ado, here are some of my starter schemes for those going through their villain era on campus.

1. First and foremost, language is key. As you can see in the sentence above, I said campus instead of Grounds. Quite scandalous, I know. But words matter. That is why along with the word campus, freshman, sophomore, junior and senior should be added to your everyday vocabulary. If someone asks if you are a first-year student, simply say no and tell them you’re a freshman. If someone asks if you are staying on Grounds, say “I am

always on the ground.” What you have to watch out for, however, is the people who pretend like they don’t care about you mixing up your lingo. You know, the ones that carry on the conversation like nothing happened but are secretly seething on the inside from your misuse of verbiage. Yeah, those ones. In this case, it is vital that you keep repeating the forbidden words with zest so that your target knows that you know you are getting to them.

2. Next, you target one of the most frequented places on campus — the Starbucks in Newcomb Hall. Here’s the plan. You order exactly 13 — unlucky numbers are your friends here — drinks from Starbucks right before rush hour. Then you watch as the hope drains from the eyes of students late to their classes as one after another, every order that is called out belongs to you and not them.

3. Though novice villains prob-

ably think that skipping class will give them a diabolical rep, they fail to understand that actually attending class can be more villainous than the former. Here’s what you have to do — take lecture classes. Why? Because then you can sit at the very front of the giant auditorium and either play solitaire, online shop or even, if you are evil enough, watch a Mr. Beast video. This way, not only are you not paying attention to your professor, but you are actively distracting the endless rows of students behind you. Who can pay attention to memorizing trigonometric functions when Mr. Beast is jumping a car over several school buses?

4. Ride an electric scooter. Not only will you make the people walking to class sad because they are already late and have a ways to go while you are zooming by at supersonic speed, but you will also be able to disobey all traffic laws

CARTOON

Water Bottle Woes

without facing serious consequences. Are you a pedestrian, bicyclist or motorist? Who knows! Nobody puts baby in a corner. The laws do not apply to you — allegedly. And when you have reached your destination, simply park your scooter in the middle of the sidewalk, or, if you dare, the middle of the road. What’s more villainous than that? And with those simple starter schemes, I am sure you will be able to make the most of your villain era while on campus. No matter if you’re a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior, I believe in you. And with that, I have a Starbucks drink to order.

WARDAH KAMRAN is the Humor Senior Associate for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at humor@ cavalierdaily.com

Sarah Elder | Cartoonist

SPORTS

Virginia field hockey is poised for a national title run

The Cavaliers have demonstrated their ability to contend at the highest level early in the season

Jacob Tisdale | Sports Editor

With four games under its belt in the 2023 season, No. 6 Virginia field hockey looks primed to take a leap forward, even as the standard for the program is remarkably high. Though the Cavaliers (3-1, 0-0 ACC) regularly field a top 10 squad that dominates in the regular season, postseason woes have defined their recent years. Their main opposition has come in the form of conference rival and reigning NCAA Champions No. 2 North Carolina. The Tar Heels (3-1, 0-0 ACC) have stifled Virginia’s ACC Championship aspirations four times in the past six seasons. However, this year the Cavaliers have shown that they have a chance to change the narrative and reclaim the conference title for the first time since 2016 — and maybe go further still.

The group has shown resilience and grit against a highly competitive slate in their first four games. At their best, they look like ACC and NCAA title contenders. The opening gauntlet has included statement wins over No. 11 Penn State, No. 10 St. Joseph’s and a blowout of unranked Temple. The only blemish on the record is a hard-fought 3-1 home loss to undefeated No. 9 Liberty. The Flames (4-0, 0-0 C-USA) exclusively scored on penalty corners and trailed Virginia in total shots 13-9.

North Carolina’s first four games look remarkably similar to Virginia’s. Also sitting at 3-1, they have knocked off elite competition, narrowly defeating No. 8 Michigan, No. 15 Princeton and routing unranked Penn. The Tar Heels ran into trouble against newly-crowned No. 1 Iowa, falling in an overtime duel. With a limited sample size, the teams seem to be on somewhat equal footing. However, there is reason to believe Coach Michele Madison will finally be able to disrupt what has become the status quo atop the ACC when the postseason rolls around.

Entering the 2023 season, the Cavaliers narrowly finished second in the Preseason ACC Coaches Poll, receiving three first-place votes to North Carolina’s four. Earning 42 total points to the Tar Heels’ 45, those closest to the action agree that the competition for the top of the conference will be neck and neck. However, the Cavaliers have an advantage when it comes to depth and coaching experience.

Madison worked over the offseason to secure one of the strongest rosters of her entire tenure. She bolstered the depth chart with a

balance of game-ready freshmen and a pair of potent graduate transfers while returning 18 experienced players from a highly competitive 2022 squad.

Of the returners, sophomore midfielder Daniela Mendez-Trendler and junior defender Jans Croon have been key to the team’s success this year. A preseason All-ACC pick, Mendez-Trendler has lived up to the expectations, leading Virginia with eight points on three goals and two assists. A remarkable 12 out of her 14 shots have been on target.

Croon has been reliably durable on the back line, playing all 240 minutes across four games.

Madison enters her 18th year as head coach of the program, with over 400 wins under her belt. Her coaching has shined alongside the

deep roster construction so far. The Cavaliers have yet to be shut out against stiff competition and will only improve as chemistry develops. The victory over the Nittany Lions (2-2, 0-0 Big 10) featured a coaching clinic, with key halftime adjustments from Madison making the difference. Even in the loss to Liberty, the Cavaliers adjusted and put together a strong final quarter. Croon and the defense shined against a high-octane Hawks (3-1, 0-0 A10) offense, limiting them to a single goal. Meanwhile, the win over the Owls (2-2, 0-0 Big East) showed the offense firing on all cylinders — eight players contributed either a goal or an assist. Mendez-Trendler scored twice.

Though the split preseason poll votes are a testament to the strength

of Madison’s coaching pedigree and talented roster, a major shakeup at North Carolina has the potential to upend the hierarchy of the conference. After 42 seasons at the helm, Tar Heel coaching legend Karen Shelton has retired. Her successor comes in the form of a recently graduated player, 23-year-old Erin Matson.

Matson, a North Carolina legend in her own right, dominated in her time playing for the Tar Heels. While she undoubtedly brings skill and a fresh perspective to the program, Shelton’s decades of wisdom will be sorely missed in Chapel Hill. While North Carolina experiences turnover at the top of the chain, the Cavaliers have consistency and experience from top to bottom, which has benefited them greatly in the

early bouts of a challenging season. While Virginia has a ways to go before facing the Tar Heels, they have the benefit of hosting them in Charlottesville on senior day just 11 days before the ACC Tournament in October. Also convenient to the Cavaliers is the site of the ACC Tournament — Turf Field.

With an already impressive resume, a deep roster at each position group, home-field advantage and Madison’s coaching pedigree, this year is shaping up to be the best chance for Virginia to finally expel its postseason demons. Winning the conference after repeated setbacks could set the stage for a deep NCAA Tournament run as a high seed. Though there is plenty of season left, keep an eye on Turf Field come late fall — history could be made.

ALBERT TANG THE CAVALIER DAILY

Sophomore midfielder Daniela Mendez-Trendler prepares for a shot against Penn State

Men’s soccer is here to stay — and to win

The Cavaliers have worried plenty with their inconsistent play, but they will find their groove soon

Ben Istvan | Senior Associate

For the first three matches of the Virginia men’s soccer season, fans and critics alike were skeptical of the team’s ceiling, as two unconvincing wins against mid-major schools and a 3-1 loss to No. 24 Loyola Marymount did not inspire confidence. But a victory against a nationally ranked, border state rival shows everyone how the Cavaliers truly have the ability to compete at the highest level of the sport.

Every squad experiences some sort of growing pains at the start of the season, but great teams rise to the top when they play other great teams. In the Cavaliers’ 2-1 victory over No. 20 Maryland, they did that and then some.

Of course, the main source of worry for any Virginia men’s soccer fan will stem from the Cavaliers’ loss to the Lions Aug. 27. Virginia — then ranked No. 15 in the country –- was outplayed on its home field by a Lions team who had won just one of their last seven games entering the contest. To make matters worse, Loyola Marymount still remains winless outside

of Klöckner Stadium this season.

Although the Cavaliers could not brush off the loss as bad luck — the Lions held the lead from the second minute until the final whistle and outshot Virginia 12-5 in the second half — the game should go down as an outlier during an otherwise promising season.

The Cavaliers have given no reason for anyone to fret about their defensive abilities going forward, having conceded just one goal in their other three games to date. Noticeably, those three games are the ones that senior goalkeeper Holden Brown and senior defender Will Citron — each named team captains before the season — have started.

Brown and Citron were both benched for the match against Loyola Marymount, perhaps a decision made by Coach George Gelnovatch with the idea of giving key players a rest as more important games loomed. Whatever the reason, the duo’s absence was clearly felt by Virginia’s defense, who conceded three goals in a game for the first time in 19 matches.

When Brown and Citron both start for the Cavaliers, they’ve been lights out — in three games, they picked up three wins and managed two shutouts. Most recently, Virginia took down Maryland behind a heroic 59th-minute penalty save by Brown, a stop kept the Cavaliers in front and ultimately proved to be the deciding factor in the signature win.

Clearly, Virginia is a better soccer team when it has its senior leaders and defensive backbone in place. But there’s more reason to believe that the Cavaliers’ current body of work bodes well for the future.

That is because an eerily similar story played out for Virginia in 2022. The Cavaliers won two of their first four games last season, conceding seven total goals — all but one of them came in a 6-1 loss to the Terrapins. That defeat quickly became known as an inflection point for Virginia, who went on to allow only 13 goals in its final 15 games. The Cavaliers returned almost all of their defenders — including Brown and Citron — from that team that bounced back

so heavily.

Virginia is evidently no stranger to an early-season punch in the mouth. Following both the 2022 loss to Maryland and the recent defeat to Loyola Marymount, Gelnovatch emphasized that his team would learn from its disappointment. The Cavaliers did so in an overwhelming way last season, and with near-identical personnel this year, there is not much in their way of embarking on that same trajectory.

The other key concern that has cast doubt upon Virginia’s season has been its inability to make use of goalscoring opportunities. The Cavaliers have had no problem creating those opportunities, out-shooting their opponents by a gaping 65-38 to this point. However, Virginia has converted on just 7.7 percent of its shots this season, a number that’s down significantly from the 12.6 percent mark they achieved in 2022.

While the lack of finishing ability in attack should cause some distress for Virginia fans, they can expect that to balance out across the next couple

of months. The Cavaliers have hit the post or come inches from rippling the net more times than most could imagine this season. The law of averages says that simply cannot continue, and Virginia’s attackers will only get more comfortable playing together as the games pass.

If the win over Maryland was not enough to convince the masses of Virginia’s deserved presence among the country’s finest, the next couple of weeks will do plenty to turn more heads. The Cavaliers will have their strongest 11 players on the field in every game from this point on, and with slightly more good fortune in the final third soon to come, Virginia can absolutely work itself deep into conference and national tournaments come winter time.

ALBERT TANG THE CAVALIER DAILY

The team allayed many fears with a big win over border rival Maryland Monday

For Christian Bliss, enrolling early is a no-brainer

The highly touted four-star recruit will follow in the footsteps of fellow guards Malcolm Brodgon and Kihei Clark and electrify John Paul Jones Arena

Xander Tilock | Senior Writer

Virginia basketball is going to look significantly different than it did last season — arguably for the better. Many familiar faces have left the program, but a new youth movement gives the roster all the potential in the world. Among the leaders of the new orange and blue will be Christian Bliss, a four-star point guard from Newtown, Pa.

Bliss was originally a 2024 recruit, but reclassified to 2023 and will join the Cavaliers a year early as a redshirt freshman. He has the potential to start in 2024 in what would have been his true freshman season — but with an extra year of practice under his belt. In the contemporary college basketball landscape, Bliss’ mental maturity to enroll early and redshirt is both rare and admirable.

“I just thought a year in college to prepare would help a lot,” Bliss said in an interview with The Cavalier Daily. “Developing physically and mentally is big. [Strength and Conditioning Coach] Mike Curtis is big for me, I gotta get bigger, stronger and quicker.”

Having a year to develop both physically and mentally into an elite guard is highly valuable, instead of handling extensive minutes with only a few months of preparation. Bliss will be far ahead of his peers next year by doing so. The Cavaliers, in turn, will receive a polished guard that instantly raises their ceiling. Reece Beekman, Isaac McKneely and Dante Harris are all occupying heavy minutes at guard, meaning Bliss would spend a year of eligibility as the fourth option in the backcourt. Bliss will likely take Beekman’s spot as a starter when the latter goes on to the NBA.

Exciting fans even more, Bliss chose Virginia over offers from Villanova as well as Xavier and Miami, citing culture and opportunity.

“Everything is authentic,” Bliss said. “The coaching staff, the community — I can grow as a player and as a person. Of course, I also have to say my ultimate goal is to win a championship and leave this place better than I found it.”

In his 2021-22 high school campaign at the George School, the Cougars went 15-5, including a 5-3 conference record. In Bliss’ final season, he led the team to a 24-7 record, including a first-place 8-1 finish in the Friends Schools Conference. Wherever Bliss goes, team improvement follows. Pro Scholars Athletics Cardinals Coach Terrance Williams coached Bliss during his high school years and had nothing but high praise for him.

“What separates him from his peers are his worth ethic and desire to love everything that comes with the game of basketball,” Williams said.

As for on-court ability, Bliss shot a blistering 43 percent from threepoint range in his final high school season. While some compared Bliss to former guard Kihei Clark, former guard Ty Jerome is definitely the better fit due to Bliss’ excellent shooting prowess. Furthering the comparison, Jerome also played with the PSA Cardinals in New York before attending Virginia, which is perhaps where Bliss learned the traits he plans to bring to the program.

“I will sacrifice for the team,” Bliss said. “I am a leader, a winner, and will make sure we are focused in all phases. We have to prepare to perform every day. We are going to give everything we have for the fans.”

Bliss’ confidence fits the mold of

aforementioned Cavalier legends. He is a team-first player who can also handle a majority of the scoring load to go alongside hyper-aggressive defense.

Bliss was happy to praise his new teammates who will define the future of Virginia basketball — he said that the best shooter on the team is incoming sophomore transfer guard Andrew Rohde, a 6’6 secret weapon the Cavaliers will unleash this year.

The inputs for success that Bliss has identified for Virginia are toptier shooting with polished ball movement and the trademark Cavalier pack-line defense. Bliss himself embodies those crucial skills that are at the heart of Virginia basketball.

Bliss is keeping an eye on the

greater recruiting trail as well, with a convincing pitch to up-and-coming players with Virginia on their radar.

“This is a great place to develop,” Bliss said. “We have all the resources you need, you can go as far as you want. The coaches are always honest, it’s a great place to grow as a person and as a player.”

Bliss told The Cavalier Daily exactly what fans wanted to hear regarding a recent team excursion. The team went whitewater rafting in West Virginia for the first time since the 2019 championship season, hoping that the parallels between the two teams will continue to be drawn on the court as well.

“I have great confidence that we are on the right path,” Bliss said when

asked about parallels. “We are definitely capable of winning it all like those guys did.”

The Cavaliers of this season and beyond are going to be a serious title contender, and make for more exhilarating basketball in Charlottesville. Though his contributions on the court will have to wait a year, Bliss is excited to make his mark — the future of Virginia basketball is incredibly bright.

“I’m going to be a leader and push the guys,” Bliss said. “The work you do early defines you, it’s not just about one play. We can go far in March, as the standard at the University of Virginia is to win championships.”

After making the call to come to Charlottesville in August, Bliss has fit in seamlessly with the team