The Observer, Spring 2024 - Issue 8

ASCWU ELECTION FINAL RESULTS PUNCHED

By the students, for the students

CONGRATULATIONS... I GUESS? GRADUATING SENIORS TO NOT RECEIVE HONOR CORDS

Gabriela Gonzalez Staf Reporter

Late-night study sessions, office hour visits and frequent trips to Brooks Library are overly familiar experiences for CWU’s graduating senior class. For a select group of students, years of effort have culminated in academic honors. Hours of blood, sweat and in some cases, quite literal tears, earn graduates the titles of Cum Laude (GPA between 3.50-3.69), Magna Cum Laude (3.70-3.89) and Summa Cum Laude (3.90-4.0).

To recognize this exemplary academic achievement at spring commencement, the pinnacle of some students’ college careers, these high achievers are not awarded with honor cords. Rather, they are given honor tassels to attach to their graduation caps.

“I think it’s pretty sad for students that have worked so hard in college to be an honor student, to not get honors cords, then to find out that our tassels don’t even have a charm of our graduation year on it,” voiced Sydney Ziegler, a senior communication major and honors student. “It feels very cheap and honestly disrespectful towards the students who have put so much work into their education and choosing to graduate from Central.”

CWU isn’t the only school in the state to abstain from providing honors cords, however these schools are separate from a strong majority. Western Washington University, Eastern Washington University and the University of Washington all award high academic achieving students with honor cords, leaving CWU an unfortunate outlier.

The responsibility of handing out honor tassels falls to the Office of the Registrar. At this time, they do not have a full, comprehensive list of which departments within the school provide honor cords for their students. In reality, not all CWU graduates are part of a department that awards honor cords.

Grace DiOrio will be graduating this spring as an education major, and she was recently informed that the education department does not hand out honor cords. DiOrio feels that honor tassels do not give justice to the work put into being an honor student. “I do not feel like a tassel showcases the honors to others like honor cords would,” DiOrio said. “I also believe that since there are no representation of honors on the tassel, except for the color, how would anyone know?”

The School of Education is one of the largest departments at CWU.

Not only does CWU’s administration not provide honor cords, but they also have no updated information for students as to how they might access cords through other departments, assuming their department offers honor cords in the first place.

Cashier at the Wildcat Shop, graduate Information Technology and Administrative Management student Natalie Lysene, described her experiences navigating the convoluted honor tassel discussion as a school employee.

“I haven’t had any frustration from customers really but there is always a lot of confusion about that,” Lysene said. “Our managers just tell us to say that any cords are through their different departments.”

For most students, honors regalia are not just an insignificant accessory meant to complement their crimson gowns. Mattie Wilson, a senior honor student in the communication program, shared her thoughts as a first-generation college student.

“Graduating is not just a huge success for me but it’s also a huge success for my

family,” Wilson said. “I am lucky to have an extremely supportive family that has helped me in many ways and I do believe the school should recognize the fact that we have earned our place in honors and provide us with honors cords. We have worked not only as students but as people and employees for the school and providing honors cords should be something that the school can do.”

Ziegler felt similarly, she emphasized the hard work done by honors students and the little acknowledgement they’re given in return. “Don’t just give us a letter every quarter saying ‘congratulations you are on the honor roll,’ give us something that means something and shows you actually care about your students.”

With or without honor cords, Ziegler, Wilson and the rest of CWU’s undergraduate class of 2024 will proudly walk across the commencement stage on June 8 to be celebrated for their achievements.

Cum laude tassel (left) regular tassel (right). (Photo courtesy of Gabriela Gonzalez.)

Statement regarding AI content in last week’s issue of The Observer

On the morning of Friday, May 17, it came to our attention that one of the pieces that we ran in issue seven of The Observ- er published the day prior was likely generated by artificial intelligence (AI), as were a couple of other stories submitted by the same reporter published in previous issues. The stories written by AI have been taken down from our website, and we are working on accountability. We are not identifying the piece that was generated by AI because it is not our goal to shame the reporter who made a mistake. We stand by and are proud of each news story that was published on May 16.

Upon learning about the instances mentioned above, 40 stories from this year were run through AI detection software including all the other content published in the May 16 issue, and aside from those mentioned above, they all came back as negative.

At The Observer, we explain to all staff members that the use of AI in any form is prohibited on the very first day of class. Each and every staff reporter and editor signs our Policy on Plagiarism, Fabrication and Journalistic Dishonesty at the beginning of the quarter which details our policy on AI, and how it is strictly forbidden.

The use of AI does not just affect the writer who uses it, but the entirety of the staff here at The Observer. Any use of AI in The Observer is an active agent in tarnishing the paper’s credibility, credibility that we have worked tirelessly to earn and maintain. Our current staff are in the position we are in now because of the work that previous editors and writers from across the years put in to establish a newspaper that people can trust. Our staff hopes to do that same thing, leaving a legacy for future aspiring journalists to look up to.

I hope that this incident doesn’t discredit all of the hard work that our editors and reporters put in. This is unfortunately not the first time AI-generated content made it into the paper. In the fall quarter, before my tenure, The Observer had two stories — one in the sports section, and the other in opinion — come back as AI positive. Because those stories were flagged as AI-generated after the end of the term, there was no mention of them in the issues of the newspaper published afterward. However, those stories were promptly removed from the website, as well as a few others to err on the side of caution.

These unfortunate instances have taught us that our editing process is flawed when it comes to catching the use of AI, and as times change, we need to change with them. In the afternoon that I’m writing this (May 20), I established guidelines to use moving forward, which include running every story we receive from our reporters through a detector before any editing of stories begins.

We are incredibly disheartened and disappointed at this incident. When I took the editor-in-chief position in Jan. of this year, it was one of my main missions to continue to establish the credibility and prestige of The Observer, and this is a massive step back. I am still immensely proud of the work that we have done over the last two quarters, and especially of last week’s issue, which I think is still one of the strongest issues we have written in a long time. I, and we, hope that we can regain your trust in the weeks moving forward.

STAFF

LETTER from the EDITOR

I’m sure you’ve read my statement at the top of this page, if not, I highly recommend that you do. I, personally, felt very dejected when I found out this news. If you know me, you know how vehemently anti-AI I am, and how distraught I would be at the prospect of AI-generated material appearing in the newspaper. I’m still endlessly proud of all of our staff reporters and editors and hope that their work is not tainted in your eyes because of this.

But it has not been an entirely bad week! Our faculty advisor Francesco recently got approved for American citizenship! I’m so, so happy for him. We also have made a bunch of progress on our orientation issue which will be debuting this summer, big thanks to our graphic designer Brandon Davis for his tireless work on that. Finally, congratulations to our lovely Assistant Copy Desk Lee Beck on winning a Department Award Certificate of Achievement for English (Undergraduate Creative Expression) at this year’s SOURCE awards! They’re so talented, and their recognition is more than deserved.

This is our second-to-last issue of the quarter, and I’m feeling bittersweet. Not only because of this recent happening but also because I’m really bummed out at the prospect of half of my team graduating or leaving. These people are some of my best friends in the world, and I’ve laughed, cried and bled for and with them. Their work and time will always be remembered by me.

Stay tuned for next week, we hope to go out with a bang.

Isaac

(Photo by Megan Foster)

SHOWCASES PACIFIC ISLAND CULTURES

Winnie Killingsworth Online Editor

For over two hours on May 18, the SURC Ballroom was filled with chee-hoo cheers, music, dancing and cascading dollar bills.

Polyfest, advertised on posters throughout campus as “[a] celebration of culture through music, performances, and interactive games” was hosted by the Pacific Islander Student Association (PISA).

Happening during Asian and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, Polyfest had “over 500 people in attendance,” Letali Aulava, PISA secretary, said.

The islands represented in the showcase were Māori, Hawai’i, Tahiti, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. Dances of females, males and both sexes filled the event with activities in between each island’s segment. If people in the

audience liked the dancing on stage, they could come up and throw bills at the dancers they liked the most.

The activities, all involving audience participation, included musical chairs, a scavenger hunt, ‘jingle in the truck’ and a chee-hoo contest.

Jingle in the trunk is when you have a tissue box with ping pong balls in it, tied around your waist and you have to shake your hips to get the balls to fall out of the kleenex box. Whoever does it fastest wins.

Chee-hoo is used by Samoans to express happiness and excitement. The audience got to cheer for their favorite participant to decide who had the best chee-hoo.

“We had people from different backgrounds and cultures join our club and dance,” Josiah Nikolao who goes by Niko, PISA president, said “I

felt it was great to see all of us come together and accomplish something like Polyfest.”

Nikolao’s personal favorite part what that he was “[building] new connections and make new friends.”

The preparation for the event started months before with “dance practices back in February [while they] also [built] our club from the bottom up,” Nikolao said. “Lots of fundraising in order to buy outfits that represent each culture and of course we had to take time to create those outfits.”

Aulava added that “all the other little behind the scenes details, it really takes every one of us to make it happen.”

One of the five hundred attendees, a senior majoring in anthropology, loved the event.

“It was so much fun,” Dezarae Lenear said. “I had always wanted to go but the dates didn’t line up with my schedule so I was super happy I was able to go before I graduated. I think my favorite part was seeing my friends up on the stage, seeing my friends sharing their culture after working so hard to practice beforehand.”

Having happened in years past, momentum for next year’s event is already building.

“We are already planning for next year starting with us trying to book for next year’s event,” Nikolao said.

Between the lines of the MANASTASH

Hayley James Staf Reporter

The Manastash is CWU’s longest-running literarcy journal, with the 34th annual volume launching last week. To celebrate the individuals who had their work published in the journal, the English class 485 put on a launch and reading party through SOURCE. This was when the writers got a chance to read their work aloud to the audience, share their work with their peers and celebrate the accomplishment.

Being selected to have your work published in the journal is a great honor and can help writers in their future careers. “Events like the Manastash Launch forge a greater sense of community on the creative spectrum in academia, something I feel doesn’t get enough support anyway,” Lee Beck, senior English professional and creative writing major and assistant copy desk editor for The Observer, said. “Literary works especially don’t get as much attention as other creative showcases, such as concerts or art

exhibitions, despite the literary arts being a pillar of support for a broad spectrum of creative works.”

Publishing your work is a major accomplishment; many authors work on their projects for weeks, months or even years. “I’ve been writing ever since I was little, and it’s always been a dream of mine to write professionally,” Beck said. “Now that I’ve been published there’s an overwhelming sense of pride coming from the little kid who just wanted to write stories.”

The journal is special for all those involved, the writers, the editors, the designers and all the teams that work together to make this event and journal unique. “I was really excited when I got to be a part of it, and getting to be the managing editor was even extra special because that’s exactly what I want to be after I graduate,” Trina Junkert, first-year English professional and creative writing major and the managing editor of Manastash, said. “It’s been a huge

amount of effort and excitement for me, it’s exactly what I was going for.”

The process of editing, designing and formatting the journal takes a solid team effort, dedication and a lot of time, starting in the fall. “It was a whole joint effort of the entire class, putting everything together and collaborating with each other and communicating so that it all came together in one big piece or the very end,” Junkert said. This journal is a labor of love created by the students, instructors and staff who contribute, making it memorable for the readers.

The Manastash invites everyone in the community to submit their work, whether it is hybrid work, poetry, fiction or visual art, each academic year. The theme for the next volume of Manastash will be, “Invisible Worlds.” Submissions are open now until Feb. 7, 2025, for more information regarding the submission requirements, go to Manastash.org.

Photo by Winnie Killingsworth

NEW CHOICES

NEW MASTERS DEGREE COMING TO CAMPUS

Nicolas Palaia Staff Reporter

CWU has always prided itself on the expansive programs available and its ability to cultivate new opportunities for students. The most recent opportunity for students is a new degree in the Cultural and Environmental Resource Management masters program, or CERM as it has been coined by the Program Director and CWU Professor of Geography Megan Walsh. CERM is a program that is, according to its CWU page, a “interdisciplinary program with a focus on environmental, cultural, and economic resource management.”

CWU has been offering a Master of Science for the past forty years. This new masters degree does not have the requirement for a thesis research project that the current masters does require. “[CERM] allows us to train people who can go out there and protect our natural resources,” Walsh said.

By adding this degree, CERM will help students who may not be financially stable enough to go over the original two years in the master’s program, or if the student might not just have enough time. CERM will allow students to develop leadership skills so that they can have enough real-world experience to be in charge of an excavation. That way students don’t have to start out spending most of their time digging at sites.

The degree will be a 45-credit one, with the final project being the culmination of all the students’ experiences. Students will be a part of a minimum two-member graduate committee. Where they would then be consulted by the program’s coordinators and by the dean of graduate studies and research.

With the culminating experience being that each student with the help of their committees will successfully design and implement their results

in an applied project. Other universities like the University of Nebraska Lincoln offer a similar degree in Masters of Applied Science in Natural Resources, which also served as Walsh’s biggest inspiration when designing the degree. Walsh believes that, thanks to CERM, there will be a pretty large increase in CWU’s anthropology graduate program.

Plenty of anthropology agencies and organizations who are already lined up and ready to take on graduated students from this program. Requirements include a bachelor’s degree in any of the applied environmental sciences.

CERM has just completed its first test trial for the degree with outstanding results. But what does this mean for CWU? Walsh states that “I think it’s going to increase the number of students in our graduate school. I think there’s a lot of capacity to grow the number of graduate

students we have. There are a lot of people out there who are CWU grads or other grads who live in this region, who really are looking again for an opportunity to increase their ability to climb whatever ladder they’re trying to climb.”

The one-year degree will be officially established as a graduate program for students this coming fall. Applications are currently open until August of this year. If any graduate students are on the fence Walsh said “This program is really tailored towards your own interests. There’s really no set boundaries to it, and there’s no set limits.”

(Photo courtesy of CWU Flickr)

Astor Powell-Pedersen News Editor

If you have been on campus any time in the last several months, you’ve certainly noticed all of the construction, blocked pathways and, of course, the lack of L&L. While we’ve had this time to say goodbye to the language and literature building, it is now time to bid farewell to another tower of bricks on campus, because next on the list of knock-downs is Farrell Hall.

Farrell Hall, located on the northwest end of campus, was erected in 1975, made to be an extension of the library complex, according to CWU archives. Now, Farrell is home to the political science and law &

justice departments. The hall was named after Corrine Farrell, a native Ellensburger and CWU alum. “Farrell was born in Ellensburg in 1924,” according to “What’s in a Name? Farrell Hall” by Crimson & Black staff. “She attended local schools before earning a bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and Central Washington College of Education (former name of CWU). She also earned a medical degree from Creighton University in Nebraska in 1957.”

As a physician, Farrell was a fivetime recipient of the American Medical Association Physician’s Recog-

FAREWELL THE FUTURE OF

nition Award, along with earning several academic awards. After her passing, her estate established several student scholarships including the C. Farrell Fine Arts & Research Scholarship and the Dennis W. Farrell Pre-Medicine Scholarship. There are mixed feelings about Farrell coming to its end. “I’m sad to see it go, but [I’m] excited to see what the future home of LAJ and Polisci looks like,” Kento Ibarra, senior law & justice major, said. “Farrell Hall is a really comfortable building. It’s not particularly shiny or new, but it’s very cozy. My favorite part is the Mock Trial Courtroom!”

FARRELL HALL

Dr. Bernadette Jungblut, a professor of political science said, “I think Farrell Hall is fabulous. Now, I also know what the design for the North Academic Complex is, and I think that that’s going to be fabulous as well. So will I be sad to leave Farrell? Yes, because the classrooms in Farrell are perfect for the way I teach and the way I want my students interacting with one another and engaging with the material. On the other hand, the North Academic Complex is going to be a gorgeous building, and I think a lot of us are excited to move there once it’s finally built.”

(Photos courtesy of CWU archives)

Photos by Abril Fernandez

Annual DoVA Student Exhibition at

LARSON GALLERY

LARSON GALLERY

Maydeli Borges & Megan Foster Staf Reporter, Copy Desk Lead

Annually the Department of Visual Arts (DoVA) students and instructors at Yakima Valley College (YVC) showcase their art at the DoVA Student Exhibition. The exhibition is held at the Larson Gallery in Yakima, Washington. From April 30 to May 25, this free event celebrates Yakima’s hidden talent of student artistry.

For this year’s exhibition, student art was chosen from spring and fall quarter of 2023 and winter quarter of 2024. Students were given the opportunity to price their work, making the exhibition a chance for community members to purchase locally made art. In addition to students, instructors are able to showcase a piece of their own work at the exhibition that highlights their creative process.

Many of the students also have a chance to win a variety of awards, given by the student government. A variety of achievements such as sponsor awards, cash rewards and honorable mentions. As well as giving awards for best drawing or best print out of the whole gallery.

“My art style would be that of a common thread of things I see, it would be impermanent and impermanence,” Kayo Nakamura, a YVC art instructor, said. ”Nakamura is one of the instructors who was tasked with selecting student art pieces to be presented at the gallery, and her work has been featured in the gallery in the past. “I’ll be observing the students and when I see something that a student makes, I think [if it] might be something that we want to include in the show,” she said.

Nakamura is a graduate in fine arts, studying both painting and drawing. Many of her works have been featured in galleries in Seattle and countries like Japan and Germany. Nakamura teaches a wide variety of classes, from drawing and painting to printmaking.

“The partnership between Yakima Valley College and the Larson Gallery Guild creates an environment where ideas flourish,” according to the Larson Gallery website. This partnership allows for YVC students and faculty to showcase their art in a professional setting. The partnership allows for a diverse range of art to be displayed, highlighting different artists and their artistic medium and process.

“The partnership with the Larson Gallery is very important for not only exhibiting student work but also for arts education and providing an opportunity for students to view a diversity of art media and artistic voices,” Monica Lemmon, an art instructor from YVC, said according to the university’s website.

Abibatou Sarr “Phenominal”

Alondra Lopez “Octopus”

Noemi Ramirez “Bowl of Ramen”

Mikenzee Sanchez “Untitled”

Isaac Hinson Editor-in-chief

After a long campaign trail, the final voting results from the Associated Students of Central Washington University (ASCWU) student government election has been revealed, as per and verified by the ASCWU Election Commission.

Malik Cantu was re-elected as president, while Nick Villa was re-appointed as vice president and Alec “Hondo” Acosta-Vega was voted in as senate speaker.

This will be Cantu’s second term as ASCWU president. Cantu, who has been a member of the ASCWU since their freshman year, ran this year campaigning for development on the long-promised Multi-Cultural Center, as well as the chance to build relationships in and around CWU and Ellensburg.

“I am so incredibly grateful to be stepping into this role again,” Cantu said in a statement to The Observer. “To be trusted with this privilege twice is a rare opportunity so I fully intend to give back as much as possible through raising awareness and making progress on the initiatives I ran on. This campaign process was very eye opening for me as a leader so I’m excited to also work on my areas of growth. I want to congratulate all of the candidates this year and thank them for sharing their passion and motivation. To my fellow presidential candidates, I want to say thank you for advocating for the needs of our students and taking action to create change. To the newly elected, I am so excited to work with y’all (some again) to create an even stronger, more active presence of student government in the campus experience. Every single candidate this year demonstrated a deep care for our community and commitment to leadership.”

Among students who voted, a little more than half of them voted for Cantu for president, about a third voted for Eliasib Alvarado, 13% voted for Charles Johnson and 3% abstained. For senate speaker, half of the students who voted cast their ballots for Acosta-Vega, a quarter voted for Meric Jackson and 22% abstained.

Outside of president, vice president and senate speaker, seven other positions were voted for, as well as the CWU Student Green Fund. Of those seven people voted in, six of them ran unopposed. Anthony Marquez was voted in as a senator at large, as well as Camden Delano via write-in. The rest are as follows. Michelle Carillo was elected director for governmental affairs; Gerardo Castillo was elected director for student life and facilities; Caleena Wyman was elected senator for the graduate school; Mariana Leos-Bravo was elected senator for the College of Business; Gabriel Genzel was elected senator for the College of Arts and Humanities, and Ivan Rojas Iman was elected senator for the College of the Sciences.

CANTU RE-ELECTED FOR PRESIDENCY

SENATE SPEAKER

(Photos by Jakob Burnham)

RE-ELECTED PRESIDENCY

CWU BASEBALL TAKES OVER GNAC HONORS FIRST-TEAM

Jackson Roberts & Devanee Lopez Staff Reporters

The CWU baseball season did not end the way the Wildcats wanted it to but their efforts throughout the season did not go unnoticed. Numerous players were recognized with awards for their outstanding play this year following the Wildcats early exit from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament.

The GNAC player of the year award was brought home by junior outfielder Ben Leid. He was the only player in the league to hit over a .400 average, sitting at .425 to end the year. He also led the team in home runs, hits, runs batted in (RBI) and on base percentage. Along with player of the year he was named to GNAC first team all-conference and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) first team in All-West region.

“I have never won an award this big, I’ve had all of the all conference all league stuff

which is really cool but honestly the day it happened i kind of forgot about it,” Leid said. “I heard someone mention it to me when we were on the bus after practice in Billings. It was cool to get texts from people about it and obviously it’s cool when you feel like your hard work is paid off.”

Junior second baseman Marcus Manzardo was awarded the newcomer of the year award and was also named to GNAC first team all-conference. He played his previous two seasons at Spokane Falls Community College before coming to CWU. Manzardo finished the year hitting a .343 average, 69 hits, 20 RBI’s and supplying consistent defense.

Manzardo had his sights set on a GNAC championship and would’ve preferred that over any individual award, but he stated that he’s still very proud of the play he and his teammates showcased this season. “I love my teammates,” Manzardo said. “So it is obvious-

ly so cool to see that many guys earn awards. I think it shows how much talent we had on our team this year and it doesn’t come without hard work.”

There were two other members of the baseball team that were awarded with first team honors. Senior outfielder Kevin “Baba” Varner Jr. and senior catcher Austin Ohland also made the cut with their productivity this season. Ohland was a four year starter for the team as the man behind home plate and earned GNAC first team all-conference honors for his fourth consecutive year. He also made NCBWA second team All-West region. Varner Jr. finished up his second year at CWU after transferring from Pierce College and has put the GNAC on notice with his bat and his ability in the outfield.

With Ohland’s departure going into next season, CWU will be losing one of their cornerstone pieces in CWU’s all time home run leader. However, Ohland is still confident about the future of the Wildcats roster with

Austin Ohland after mound visit.

Photos courtesy of Jacob Thompson / Thompson Sports Media

ONTO NEW HORIZIONS

JACOB THOMPSON’S NEXT BIG SHOT

CWU athletics recently bid farewell to a key member of their team, Jacob Thompson, who oversaw athletics photography and was a digital media graduate assistant (GA) as part of the athletic administration masters program.

While he’s no longer at CWU, the departure comes with exciting news for Thompson as he’s just begun his new position as an athletics marketing and creative services specialist for the University of California, Irvine.

Thompson’s journey at CWU started back in 2018, it wasn’t as a photographer or graduate assistant; he was completing his undergraduate studies as a student-athlete on the track & field team. By 2022, he was ready for graduate school and was fully prepared to leave the university behind.

However, everything changed when Josh Wetzler, the associate director of

athletics for external affairs, gave him a call about the opportunity to complete his master’s program at CWU and combine his love for athletics with his growing talent in digital media. Without hesitation, Thompson was all in.

“In my mind I already said ‘yes,’ so it was an easy decision to make,” Thompson said about the graduate assistant position. “Getting offered to stay in a place that I love and continuing to do the things that I love was a crazy moment in time for me.”

For the next two years, Thompson became an invaluable part of the program, bringing moments to life through his work.

One of the final pieces of Thompson’s massive CWU portfolio was being able to capture the CWU men’s basketball team’s recent GNAC championship win, which will live on and be remembered in large part through Thompson’s photography.

“It was insanity,” Thompson said about the victory. “It was a crazy feeling, because I knew how happy all those players were. It was such a high moment in the season for them. My main thing was ‘Okay, I’m just going to be in the moment and capture for them,’ which I think I did.”

Thompson continuously cited the people he met during his time in Ellensburg, Washington as the source of his best memories at CWU. Thompson was able to build special connections with both the student-athletes whose lives and achievements he documented, as well as his co-workers and peers who he worked tirelessly alongside.

“I felt like I could shoot up a conversation with anybody, and that’s what made my time so special,” Thompson said. “It didn’t matter what team you were on, what year you were, how long you’d been here, if you were a

freshman or whatnot. I feel like I could pick up a conversation with anybody and we could just kick it off. Those relationships were super special to me.”

When discussing what he would miss most, Thompson fondly reminisced about the quality of the people at CWU, which reflects the high regard in which he is held by his peers.

“The people I got to work with made this experience memorable for a lifetime,” Thompson said. “There’s connections here I’m going to have for the rest of my life, and that is why I was so happy to do what I was doing.”

When fans look back on some of the most energizing moments in athletics, it’s often through the lens of Thompson. His exit marks the end of an era for CWU athletics; as he embarks on his next journey in California, he leaves behind an impactful legacy of visual storytelling.

Left to right: CWU football linebacker Isaac Clark with a well done sign, rugby player Elise Norris, the men’s basketball team winning GNAC, softball player Jillian Hampson, basketball player Samaad Hector leading the huddle.

Charis Jones & Isaac Hinson Sports Editor, Editor-in-chief

Former athletics department photograher Jacob Thompson.

(Photo by Eric Becker)

Photos courtesy of Jacob Thompson / Thompson Sports Media

The Observer @ SIFF

‘I

Saw The TV Glow’ ‘I Saw The TV Glow’

Isaac Hinson Columnist

Iwas lucky enough to attend the Seattle International Film Festival — a hub for filmmakers all around the world to show off their movies big and small — for five days last week. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life, and I hope this is the first of many years where I will be able to cover an event like that.

The first film I saw as a part of my time there was one of my most anticipated films of the year, Jane Schoenbrun’s “I Saw The TV Glow,” their follow-up to 2022’s “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair.” The film takes a magnifying glass not only to television-culture/fandom-culture, but also how the depressing reality of suburbia almost necessitates escapism on that scale, especially when those places suppress people’s ability to find themselves.

I found myself absolutely astounded. As someone who grew up in a suburban setting and struggled to really come into myself in that world, the film completely resonated with me. The main character Owen at points seems copy-and-pasted from my own experience. What does that say about me? Who knows. I don’t.

Suburbia is depressing. Every house looks the same, every store is the same, every school is the same and you’re encouraged to conform and be a part of the sameness. That’s sad! Life can be vibrant and exciting if you let it. And the harsh reality is that many people in these situations need to turn to media to find this vibrance. For Owen and a girl in his neighborhood named Maddy their escapism is found in a TV show called “The Pink Opaque,” which is presented almost as a teenage-supernatural-neon-“Charlie’s Angels.”

The characters in the show are in a constant battle with the villain Mr. Melancholy, which is on-the-nose in the best way possible. Because aren’t we all? Melancholy, much like suburbia, can feel inescapable. Like there’s no way out, and the only way is through.

Schoenbrun is a master of the art of showdon’t-tell. “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” is a very, very quiet movie. With primarily just one character throughout, her story is told in her lack of words. Her silence speaks loudly, which makes her words sound like trombones blasting. The harshly-pixelated images paint a fuzzy canvas akin to the mental state of the character.

Many of these same motifs carry over to “I Saw The TV Glow.” Owen — who is brought to life thanks to a career-best performance by Justice Smith — can be equally quiet. His story is told through the vast array of technicolor Schoenbrun employs throughout the movie, showing Owen’s inner turmoil in big bombastic visual stimulation. One of the very first shots of the film shows a young Owen engulfed in a pink, purple, white and blue tarp, alluding to the themes of transitioning that loom over the entire film.

There is one shot towards the middle part of the film where Owen and Maddy are sitting together at some sort of bar — reuniting after some time — and it’s clear that they are at two very different points in their lives from the lighting alone. Maddy’s face is lit up with many different colors, showing her progression from earlier in the film with nothing but the lighting applied by Schoenbrun. At the same time, Owen’s face is drowned out in shadow, stuck in place.

Schoenbrun has talked about how when they started writing “I Saw The TV Glow” right when they began taking hormones, and how the writing process served as a way to process their own transition. When looking at the film through that lens, things start to really click, and everything becomes heightened.

The craft of the movie is supreme. The jump from “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” and “I Saw The TV Glow” in terms of pure scope and production is immense. The sets are bigger, the shots are more intricate and the story is simultaneously far more expansive and personal.

Another highlight of the movie is the excellent score/soundtrack, crafted by musician Alex G. The score is somber, moody, electric and at times abrasive, perfectly accompanying the harsh yet colorful world created on the screen. The soundtrack features appearances from artists like Yeule, Coraline Polachek, King Woman, Sloppy Jane and a personal favorite of mine, Phoebe Bridgers.

Brigette Lundy-Paine, who plays Maddy, is absolutely sensational. Her transformation from a scared, awkward girl at the beginning of the film into the terrifying, neurotic — yet sympathetic — person she is at the end is truly impressive. She has a monologue in the climax of the movie that is genuinely horrific,

both from a vocal and physical perspective as she contorts her body and voice to image her words. As much as I loved watching Smith in this, I think I enjoyed Lundy-Paine more.

But that is not to discredit Smith in the slightest. I had not been a fan of his prior to this. I’ve been completely underwhelmed with his career thus far, despite the fact that it seems like Hollywood thinks the complete opposite. He has starred in two “Jurassic World” movies, “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” (which is actually quite good) and “Pokemon: Detective Pikachu,” leading some of the biggest franchises in the world, and I just have never understood what his appeal was. I’ve always thought he was quite dull and had zero charisma.

That’s not the case here. I’m so happy to say that he delivered one of the best performances I’ve seen in years. He reaches new career peaks, showing off complexities that help bring Schoenbrun’s script to life in extremely authentic ways. The stunted growth that he portrays across Owen’s life is tragic, encapsulating the silent suffering of the last 20 years of youths.

Owen and Maddy’s non-parallel trajectory is so fascinating. At the start of the film, Owen is alone, desperate to find any sort of connection in his suburban wasteland, desperate to find anything new. Finding Maddy saves him briefly, or at least puts a bandaid on a bullet hole. He sees her as someone who has come into her own, and he wants that for himself.

When she leaves the film for a period, her return is a brief moment of great relief for Owen. After feeling so alone, her return is welcome and fills him with a wave of nostalgia. The same nostalgia that has trapped him for the years prior, and she’s not as he remembers, which is punishing. Even though she has come back to find him, even though she has come back for him, which is all he’s wanted, it’s not the same. Nothing is.

Nostalgia is the ultimate trap. It keeps you stuck in mud. Maybe you can get one foot out, but you can never fully escape, and whatever feeling you remember so warmly was often much colder in reality. Life will always move on, time will always pass, and people will always change. It’s up to you to decide if you will change too.

Justice Smith (left) and Brigette Lundy-Paine (right) in ‘I Saw The TV Glow’ (Photo courtesy A24)

OPINION SECTION

Sports teams’ jerseys

SUCK

Megan Foster Columnist

Iwould not, in any way, say that I am a major sports fan.

I enjoy sporting events here and there, but more often for the atmosphere and the snacks than for the sports themselves. With that being said, my knowledge on the topic is restricted.

I pick up bits and pieces of information about that realm from living with two boys; so I don’t live completely under a rock in terms of sports, just partially. In the large scheme of things I would argue that I understand the basics, but I am in no way an expert or an avid sports watcher.

Now with my credentials on the matter aside, here I am writing to inform you of my, yes unsolicited, but ever so interesting, opinions on sportswear. I had a conversation with my roommate the other day that sparked the inspiration for this piece.

While he was avidly watching a basketball game, I outwardly debated the boring nature of the many jerseys that were popping in and out of the screen before me. My roommate then suggested that while this was a trend in the sports realm today, this wasn’t always the case.

This fact propelled us into deeper conversation regarding the former jerseys of various basketball teams. I was very much intrigued to see the simple, minimalistic nature of the jerseys dissipate and transform into colorful, and seemingly maximalist like, depictions of the team’s mascots.

The first uniform he showed me was that of the Toronto Raptors in 1995. Genuinely, are you kidding? Why did you ever make a different jersey? I would say the same thing for the 1995 Vancouver Grizzlies jerseys. Like these, these are what

I am asking for. Take note and apply to your new jerseys for next season.

I’m not saying that these arenas are adjacent to runways or red carpets, but you’re making enough money to provide your team with something other than an eyesore to wear during games.

For example, have you seen the bright yellow Utah Jazz jerseys? My boyfriend and our roommate have heard my extensive opinions on this. Seriously? Are we joking? Jazz fans, I am honestly so upset for you. The 1997 jerseys are so much better. Please reflect and do better next year.

This conversation has followed me into different spaces lately, including the newsroom. Per The Observer’s Editor-in-chief Isaac Hinson, the Portland Trail Blazers jerseys also used to suck significantly less. However, from my own research I have only found that through the test of time their jerseys have notoriously been some of the most boring in the league. Don’t get me wrong, the font used to be better, but if the only thing you have going for you is font, you essentially have nothing.

Now I can understand that there are plenty of teams that may have stuck to this simplistic style of jersey throughout the years. However, that just means they have always been boring and have more work to do than others. There are no excuses. Like, please, just get creative.

This opinion of mine is not restricted to basketball. Growing up in Washington I was surrounded by diehard Seattle Seahawks fans, but for me and my family, this was not the case.

My dad grew up in New Orleans,

Louisiana. Now this may lead you to believe that he was a New Orleans Saints fan, but this, again, was not the case. My uncle was a major Saints fan, but my dad was all about the Dallas Cowboys. All of this unsolicited information will lead you to the explanation that I grew up as a Seattle Seahawks hater. Hear me out, I appreciate the enthusiasm of the 12th man, but I just choose not to partake. I will turn down a half blue, half green wig and the excruciatingly painful ear ache that comes with a home game.

However, with all of that aside, I will say that the retro Seahawks jerseys are incredible. They are the only ones worth wearing. The painfully bright, highlighter green jerseys that they have the players running around in on Thursdays are quite alarming. Again, why are we creating an eyesore? If your goal was to be obnoxiously obvious and distinguishable from a mile away, then congratulations, you have succeeded. This is an opinion my roommate and I will disagree on.

It is interesting to think about the way that mainstream trends, at least those that veer toward minimalism, could affect decisions regarding clothing in the sports realm. I, again, as a person with little to no interest in the sports world, am eager to see the way maximalism makes its way back into the fashion world, and hopefully sporting teams attire. For now, I will continue to judge from the sidelines.

“ALMIGHTY SO 2” LIVES UP TO ITS NAME

Isaac Dobmeier Columnist

If you’re not paying attention to Chief Keef it’s a problem. Since the early 2010’s he’s been undeniably one of the most influential figures on the modern music scene — and I would go so far as to say all time. Just 28 years old, his most recent venture “Almighty So 2” is one among dozens of projects — and maybe his most evolved. At his core, Keef is an innovator, and “Almighty So 2” takes the sound of Chicago drill that he’s pioneered into a thrilling new lane for the artist.

Similarly to Keef’s 2021 album “4NEM,” “Almighty So 2” opens with minimalist grandeur on “Almighty (Intro),” where the backing operatic vocals soar over drums, building until Keef starts his slow yet epic verse onethird into the track.

The next few songs up the menace levels, particularly from the fantastic features on “Neph Nem” with Ballout and G Herbo, and “Jesus” with Lil Gnar, the latter being exceptionally ambitious. The exception here is the bitingly funny “Jesus Skit,” where comedian Michael Blackson dissects which black artists deserve reparations (no to Drake, yes to Keef), though the skit does overstay its welcome a little.

“Runner” is another standout here, Keef’s incorporation of a Nancy Wilson sample into that last verse is honestly incredible and something I’ve never heard before. “Runner” is followed up by twin bangers “Banded Up” and “Grape Trees,” both featuring female rappers Tierra Whack and Sexyy Red respectively. Sexyy especially has been one of my favorite recent Keef collaborators; the pair seem to have similar mindsets — bonding over never wanting to get married here — and she always manages to match his hotheaded energy, making for probably my favorite track on the album.

While I could talk forever about “Almighty So 2” delivering heat front to back, it’s really the artistry present on the project that sets it apart in Keef’s discography, and music as a whole. The album’s been in the works since 2018, burdened with delays, and the care, time and delicacy Keef has treated “Almighty So 2” with is palpable in the finished product. Save for one song, Keef produced the entire album, an insane feat for a project of this scope. And the production is stellar! The sounds are diverse and they professionalize a lot of the harsh edges that have been a hallmark of Keef’s previous work. Normally this kind of softening wouldn’t be my cup of tea, but it feels less like censorship and more like maturity. Keef executes this evolution with finesse, seemingly operating on a more ambitious scale than ever before. It’s obvious in the mixing too, which is crisp and delicate as the drums assault my ears in the best way.

In the lyrics, Keef is self-assured that he’s on top of the rap world. He boasts, as usual, but he seems grounded and mature. Keef knows he deserves his flowers and he takes an album-long victory lap, a celebration of life, his influence and come up. Keef is still here, he’s growing and he’s pumping out some of the best music of his career.

Photo and Design by Brandon Mattesich

WORD SCRAMBLE

Theme: CWU

By Astor Powell-Pedersen

CATLIBS

By Astor Powell-Pedersen

By Lee Beck

Aries (March 21-April 19): GO! GO! GO! IF YOU STOP GOING IT’LL GET YOU! GO! KEEP GOING!

Taurus (April 20-May 20): You’re going to come into a lump sum of $1 million sometime this week. If you don’t, it’s not my problem.

Gemini (May 21-June 20): OOOHHH SHIT! You’re going to attract a favorable, important hottie.

Cancer (June 21-July 22): Rot in bed and turn on “Community”, you need to rest.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22): Leadership coming out of the wazoo! Whether you want to or not, you’re gonna lead this week.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22): You are a thing to be admired! So successful! The stars said so :) But also you’re going to be busy, sorry :( stars said that too.

Libra (Sep. 23-Oct. 22): You will travel to a new place. YES IN TINY LITTLE ELLENSBURG UGH.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): This week you’ll be obsessed with your finances, but like in an informed way. You can do your research, I believe in you.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): You’re getting soooo sleepy. So so eepy sleepy.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan.19): You’re going to set some high standards, and actually live up to them for once!

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb.18): PARTAY! You’re going to barbeque and frolick, get pumped. There’s some opportunity for romanceeeee too <3

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20): Familiarity is the name of your game this week, DON’T VENTURE OUTSIDE OF THE COMPOUND.