The Daily Northwestern — Nov. 17, 2021

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Chicago artist integrates Asian heritage in art

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In Focus: Northwestern students with chronic illnesses feel unsupported by University services

By ARIANNA CARPATI

daily senior staffer @ariannacarpati1

Three weeks ago, as her asthma symptoms flared, Communication and McCormick senior Gillian Finnegan sat in class struggling to

suppress a cough. She couldn’t focus on taking her exam. All she could think about was whether the students staring at her thought she had COVID-19. And how much longer she could hold in her cough. And if they noticed her labored breathing. She felt like her classmates didn’t want her

there.

Finnegan tried to prevent this exact situation from happening. In fall 2020, she submitted an application to AccessibleNU, the center that provides accommodations for NU students with disabilities. She asked for flexibility in being late or absent from

classes due to her eosinophilic asthma: a rare, severe form of asthma that causes breathing difficulties and coughing fits that can last up to a week.

She waited a year and never heard back, but Finnegan said she wasn’t worried. Classes were remote, so she wasn’t concerned about rushing

across campus, which could prompt or exacerbate an asthma attack.

She tried again over the summer when she found out the University was returning to in-person instruction.

This time, ANU did respond

— only to refuse her request for accommodations after an intake meeting. Instead, the center asked her to fill out a request form for the third time.

Finnegan isn’t alone in needing support from NU.

» See IN FOCUS, page 4

D65 hears updates on mental Dream About Tea closes after two decades health and Special Services Co-owners and customers reflect on community

By OLIVIA KHARRAZI

the daily northwestern @oliviakharrazi

Upon stepping into Dream

About Tea, customers are welcomed by intricately painted tea sets and Chinese calligraphy books lining the walls. Red lanterns tumble from the ceiling, and gold

paper decorations hang from metallic ribbons. Glass jars of loose-leaf tea with handwritten labels cover the counter,

» See TEA, page 10

Board presents on disparities in student performance

By AVIVA BECHKY and NANDIPA SILUMA

the daily northwestern @avivabechky, @nandipasiluma

Content Warning: This story

contains mentions of suicide risk.

Evanston/Skokie School District 65 Board of Education heard updates on student and staff mental health, support for students

with Individualized Educational Plans and disparities in reading and math levels at its Monday meeting.

» See D65, page 10

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THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

AROUND TOWN

Susan Cua integrates Asian heritage into her art

By CHARLOTTE EHRLICH

the daily northwestern @charlottehrlich

In Manila, 11-year-old Susan Cua crafted a “The Merchant of Venice” drawing for her elementary school art exhibit.

After years of art shows and open houses, Cua said she’d never thought she’d make it this far. Art has always resonated with the Chicago artist. Originally from the Philippines, she moved thousands of miles away to her aunt’s home in Illinois when she was 18.

“I’ve always wanted to come to America — it’s one of those dreams for people back home,” Cua said. “Being here is a way of being myself.”

Based out of Greenleaf Art Center in Rogers Park, Cua rents an art space with Evanston artist Maureen Crowley. With paintings covering the walls from top to bottom, the space showcases a diversity of artistic styles.

Cua’s side of the studio is characterized by idyllic scenery, like her series of watercolors on Monet’s garden, according to her website.

“Over the years, Cua’s painting style has changed,” her website reads. “Now more bold, expressionistic and dramatic, as she experiments mixing media combined with delicate strokes from her Asian heritage.”

Although she finds open houses beneficial in building her client list — like her first at Evanston’s Unicorn Cafe — Cua said she prefers one-on-one

City employees need to be vaccinated or submit weekly tests as of Nov. 15 All Evanston employees are required to either be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or submit negative tests to the city every week as of Nov. 15. The city first created the policy in mid-October, and by Nov. 5, over 82% of city employees were fully vaccinated.

On Monday, the city announced it reached an understanding regarding the requirement with the

Photo courtesy of Susan Cua

Susan Cua displays her artwork on the walls of her studio. The Chicago artist rents a space at Greenleaf Art Center in Rogers Park.

commissions.

Artists can best market their products on social media platforms such as Facebook or through word of mouth, Cua said. Making her work available

digitally made it more accessible to family members abroad, like her 21-year-old nephew, she said.

“He told his mom, ‘I want these three paintings online. You’ve got to help me buy them,’” Cua said.

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the country’s largest trade union for public services employees.

The city and the union are aligned in the move to mandatory vaccines. The city previously reached similar agreements with Evanston’s Fraternal Order of Police and International Association of Firefighters. All three agreements cumulatively cover approximately 97% of unionized city employees.

Currently, federal law permits employers to mandate their employees to get vaccinated, though this permission is somewhat limited by the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VII regulations. The

city previously referred to an emergency temporary standard released on Nov. 5 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, requiring all workplaces with 100 or more employees to mandate vaccinations.

At this time, city employees are encouraged, but not required, to get COVID-19 vaccine booster shots as well.

The vaccination policy applies to all permanent, seasonal and part-time city employees, including contractors, remote workers, volunteers and interns. Staff are considered fully vaccinated either two weeks after their second dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines or two weeks after the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Crowley, who works in the same art space as Cua, said she has enjoyed getting to know the artist and hearing her stories about her large family.

She also added that she appreciates how well their styles go together due to the noticeable technique difference between the two.

“She’s much more impressionistic than I am,” Crowley said. “I think her artwork has a dreamy kind of quality to it, while mine is more bright and clear.”

Inspired by impressionist painters, Cua has traveled to several European countries to paint landscapes.

Cua also expanded her artistic talents through studying piano performance in music at the American Conservatory of Music and music therapy at DePaul University. She said she still plays and teaches piano in her free time.

It was during this time, while she was studying piano performance, when she also developed her artistic portfolio at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and through courses at the Evanston Art Center.

After an intercontinental move, prolonged physical distance from family and an adjustment to life in a new world, Cua said art has gotten her through it all.

Though she has worked several side jobs over the years to make ends meet, Cua said art remains her favorite pastime.

“Art, to me, means life. You have to have the passion for it,” Cua said. “I’m happiest when I’m painting.” charlotteehrlich2025@u.northwestern.edu Employees can request an exemption through a HIPAA-enabled survey on the grounds of a medical exemption, a religious belief or a preference for weekly testing. If denied an exemption, employees have 15 days to receive the first dose of their vaccine series or a single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

City employees seeking a vaccine in light of the policy can visit vaccines.gov to find a vaccination appointment or call 1-800-232-0233. Evanston residents looking for more information on the policy can also dial 311.

— Ilana Arougheti

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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

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ON CAMPUS

Dean of Libraries to retire after 15 years

By ELLA JEFFRIES

Editor in Chief Isabelle Sarraf

eic@dailynorthwestern.com

the daily northwestern @ellajeffriess

After 15 years at the University, Sarah Pritchard, Northwestern’s Dean of Libraries and Charles Deering McCormick University Librarian, announced she will retire in 2022.

Pritchard’s first job was at the Library of Congress. She said many people questioned why she would leave such a prestigious position. However, Pritchard said she saw herself as an academic librarian and has conducted meaningful work in university libraries. In addition to NU, Pritchard has worked at the University of California-Santa Barbara and Smith College.

“I have had a truly amazing experience here at Northwestern and it has been the highlight of my 45 years working in research and academic libraries,” Pritchard said. “Being at Northwestern has been, in many ways, the pinnacle of academic and research librarianship.”

Once she officially retires, Pritchard said she looks forward to delving into the stacks of books she has not had time to read. She will stay in Evanston, where she hopes to continue various nonprofessional NU-related activities.

During the last 15 years, Pritchard oversaw the library’s strategic planning, which includes managing resource development, targeting outreach and partnerships on campus and across other University libraries, and allocating funding.

The libraries raised $78 million to support library advancements as part of NU’s “We Will” fundraising campaign under her leadership, Pritchard said.

“I think one of Sarah’s biggest impacts has been her support for the professional development of librarians and library staff,” said D.J. Hoek, an associate University librarian for research and engagement. “That has included increased funding for travel, training, research time and affiliation with other campus schools, institutes and centers.”

Pritchard said her biggest impact on the

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Sarah Pritchard celebrates 15 years working at Northwestern as the Dean of Libraries. She recently announced her upcoming retirement, which will be in August 2022.

University community has been overseeing the expansion and evolution of the libraries.

As a result of Pritchard’s initiatives, the libraries were one of the first places on campus to have gender neutral bathrooms.

Additionally, a large number of library staff went through the Change Makers program, a dialogue-based series run by the Women’s Center that aims to create a more collaborative and inclusive community.

Pritchard also led the creation of a new strategic plan explicitly focusing on equity, diversity and inclusion, not only in staff hiring but also in collections, services and spaces.

The libraries partnered with the NU Black Alumni Association and the provost’s office to take on major responsibility for archiving the history of NUBAA and expanding the library’s

work to archive the Black experience. Pritchard also created the first position at NU libraries for Asian Studies. The library has since expanded its holdings and upgraded the physical location for Asian Studies materials.

University Archivist Kevin Leonard has worked with Pritchard closely, and said her outreach has paid off. He said the University’s support for acquiring collections and building improvements for new facilities have created opportunities for staff.

“Her work has allowed archives to acquire collections in much more volume, and I like to believe, some very significant collections during her time in office,” Leonard said. “She has been really supportive of me and my unit.”

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THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

IN FOCUS From page 1

Associated Student Government’s 2019-20 analytics survey found at least 226 students answered “Yes” to the question, “Do you have

an ongoing, diagnosed, clinical health issue?”

More than 31% of those students said they were registered with ANU. According to the University’s most recent Diversity and Inclusion report, 1,004 undergraduate students are registered with ANU for chronic illnesses and physical, intellectual and psychological disabilities.

Chronic health issues vary in severity, but some students who feel they require accommodations have been left with long wait times or been entirely turned away. The pandemic has worsened these issues, especially for students whose symptoms mimic those of COVID-19 or who are immunocompromised due to their illnesses.

Dismissed and denied Finnegan said she felt invalidated by her experience with ANU. Her intense and frequent asthma attacks are aggravated by cold weather and strenuous activities, like working out or even walking across campus. She hoped to receive accommodations that would keep her from being penalized for taking her time to get to class or staying home altogether when her symptoms were flaring up, which can occur multiple times a quarter.

Once she submitted the ANU application a second time, Finnegan was asked for a form filled out by a doctor — a step she said wasn’t clear in her first application.

But when Finnegan was finally able to meet with an

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

ANU representative at the end of the summer, she said her experiences were downplayed. At one point, she said the representative compared her condition with their own, less severe experiences with childhood asthma.

“I was sort of second-guessing my symp-

toms, because they were like, ‘Oh, well, I don’t really see how this affects your everyday life,’ or ‘Can’t you just take your inhaler? Doesn’t that fix everything?’ even after I had explained most of why that is not ideal and why I don’t want to keep relying on that,” Finnegan said.

If her asthma is flaring up, Finnegan may have to use her inhaler multiple times a day or week to feel comfortable getting somewhere quickly. But using an inhaler more often can lead to health issues, including increased heart rate. Her inhalers are also expensive, and using them up faster means having to purchase more sooner.

Finnegan said she doesn’t understand the denial since she did have a doctor’s note. By ANU’s standards, she should be eligible for accommodations; students qualify if they have a “physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities,” including walking, speaking, breathing and taking care of oneself.

She was told she could apply again — but on the basis of allergy symptoms related to her asthma, instead of the asthma itself.

“I don’t even know if it’s worth it at this point,” Finnegan said. “It just didn’t really feel like they were hearing me.”

changed due to privacy concerns, was diagnosed in April with Crohn’s disease, a type of inflammatory bowel disease. Symptoms of the disease can include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue and loss of appetite.

Sam is on Remicade, a biologic medication that is administered in infusions. He has to sit for a three-hour IV infusion every eight weeks.

He also takes six methotrexate pills, a different immunosuppressive drug, once a week.

His symptoms have decreased since starting his medications, but Sam still finds himself running late to class or activities if he needs to use the restroom emergently. He used to be on the track team in high school, but now finds that when he runs, his stomach hurts immediately afterward and he experiences rectal bleeding.

Sam missed four days of Northwestern University Marching Band camp in early September to go home for an infusion. That became a costly disruption to his schedule, because he was unable to schedule an appointment with Northwestern Medicine in time. Since his infusions are on a strict timetable, it is likely he will have to miss other important classes, exams and activities.

He first reached out to ANU in August, hoping to receive accommodations for his infusions and symptom management. He said he was offered an intake meeting three weeks away, but missed it because he didn’t realize it conflicted with band camp. Several back-andforths followed, during which he was offered another meeting but missed the email. Ultimately, he was told to call the office to reschedule, which he didn’t do until October.

Once he finally had the meeting in October, Sam said he received early registration accommodations and flexibility for being late to class or excusing himself to use the restroom as needed.

Kadolph said. “It makes it really hard to go up stairs, so after probably two flights of stairs I can’t really go much further because … (My legs) feel like lead.”

For her sophomore year, Kadolph received housing accomodations in the form of priority room choice, which would allow her to live on a lower floor and in a dorm with an elevator.

Generally, the person in a group with the lowest priority number can choose a room or suite and pull friends with higher numbers in to live with them. Kadolph planned to do so with her close friends, hoping to live with people who were both aware of her condition and willing to serve as a built-in support system.

“I am not super comfortable with opening up to others and telling them about my condition,” Kadolph said in a message to The Daily.

“Living with people who already know what I’m going through in regards to my medical condition is really comforting.”

But when it came time to arrange her sophomore housing, Kadolph said she was told she couldn’t choose her roommates.

Residential Services told her she had to live with University-assigned suitemates because she was only given priority to choose her suite due to her accommodation, she said.

“For me to be accommodated, then I had to lose out on the perks that everyone else has here, to choose their roommates or suitemates,” Kadolph said.

The issue was ultimately resolved, but Kadolph said the difficulties caused extra stress. Her parents had to get involved and she had to get a doctor’s note saying she needed a support system in her dorm, she said.

Students submit requests based on individual housing or dining needs that often include supporting documentation, Residential Services told The Daily in an email. Requests are then reviewed

He was unable to receive accommodations before his last infusion appointment, however, which was on the same day as a midterm. Luckily, his professor was accommodating even though he wasn’t registered with ANU at the time.

“Part of it was me (forgetting to attend the meeting), but part of it was just that I’m busy (like) any Northwestern student,” Sam said.

“It’s not easy trying to schedule something like that, especially in the beginning of the quarter, when they gave me a date nearly a month out.”

AccessibleNU did not respond to The Daily’s request for comment. In an email to the Daily, University Spokesperson Jon Yates said ANU does not publicly comment on specific cases “due to the topics and issues being compliance related under civil rights legislation (e.g. Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act).”

by Northwestern University Health Service or Counseling and Psychological Services. Residential Services did not directly address Kadolph’s experience with losing roommate choice.

Long waits and logistical conflicts Weinberg junior Sam, whose name has been

Housing hurdles Even after being approved for accommodations, students can still face bureaucratic obstacles.

Weinberg junior Natalia Kadolph was diagnosed with McArdle disease when she was 18 years old. The rare genetic blood disorder renders her unable to break down stored glycogen into glucose, leading to muscle fatigue and cramping. She said this can make it difficult to walk long distances around Northwestern’s sprawling campus.

“I have to slow down and take breaks because my muscles are cramping in my legs,”

In-person courses introduce conflicts After NU announced a return to in-person classes, students registered with ANU said they don’t recall receiving communication from the University regarding support for those who are immunocompromised due to their chronic illnesses.

NU stopped requiring weekly COVID-19 testing for vaccinated students during the 2021-22 academic year. The Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences also said it would not permit remote or asynchronous versions of in-person classes this fall, according to an email obtained by The Daily in August. The email stated that Weinberg would require in-person office hours this fall.

Despite the impact these policies have on students with chronic illnesses who are immunocompromised, they are only granted accommodations to miss class or join remotely if they test positive for COVID-19.

Although Finnegan’s immune system is not compromised by her condition, some of her respiratory symptoms are similar to those of COVID-19. She said she wishes remote learning options were open to everyone, not just to those who test positive for COVID-19. That way, when her symptoms were bad, she could focus on class rather than try to suppress her cough, she said.

Weinberg junior Christine Potermin has juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease that causes her joint pain, mainly in her hands,

THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

wrists, knees and feet. Potermin receives support from ANU in the form of extra-time accommodations for exams and approval to use a laptop in class to take notes.

In order to keep her arthritis under control, Potermin takes five pills each morning and another nine at night, plus an extra five methotrexate pills once a week. Those with autoimmune diseases, like Potermin, are often put on medications that suppress their immune systems to counterbalance the disease.

Potermin said this is why the return to in-person classes deeply affect immunocompromised students. If they get sick, they’ll experience much longer and more severe viral symptoms than most people, including from the coronavirus.

As a result, Potermin and her friend group take extra steps to reduce their risk of contracting COVID-19, like frequent testing and only attending small social gatherings.

“A lot of people I know are getting sick,” Potermin said. “I’m very concerned (about) that, because if I get a cold I will be in bed for a week.”

The mental toll of chronic illness Potermin has found community in the marching band as part of color guard, but she said her arthritis impedes her ability to partake in long practices.

Before school began, color guard held rehearsals for up to eight hours. Potermin sometimes found herself in a symptom flare during some practices, but she was able to control it with emergency steroids. Her symptoms worsen if she is unable to find time during the academic year to properly care for herself by eating and sleeping well.

“The arthritis has a lot to do with my mental health, and my mental health affects my arthritis, and just basic taking care of myself is really hard sometimes when I’m mentally not doing well, (which) affects my body,” she said. “Because chronic pain just makes me feel really down and awful and s--tty.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is a direct, cyclical correlation between major depressive disorder and chronic illness. Depression can precede chronic illness and chronic illness can also increase symptoms of depression.

Potermin said having a psychologist in CAPS, the University’s primary mental health service, with a special interest in mental health issues related to chronic illness would be help-

ful, especially since the services are free and nearby for students.

CAPS does not report having a practitioner who specializes or has special interests in mental health issues related to chronic illness for the more than 200 students like Potermin managing these medical conditions.

Sam has experienced intense anxiety since a colonoscopy and abscess removal procedure for his Crohn’s disease in January. He also has anxiety surrounding his bleeding.

When he does bleed, it puts him in a terrible mood for the rest of the day and he fears for the next time it will happen, he said.

He spoke to Northwestern Medicine, where he sees a specialist, about a therapist referral. But Sam said he does not have faith in CAPS to provide therapy specialized for chronically ill students.

“At the root of it, I don’t think the University actually cares about CAPS at all,” he said.

“They just put it there in name so that the University can say it takes initiative on mental health.”

CAPS did not respond to The Daily’s request for comment.

5

“Why would you not be an advocate for a student with a chronic illness?”

Feinberg Prof. R achel O’Conor primarily focuses her research on how older ad u l t s sel f manage chronic illness, includi ng m ed i c ation management and social interactions.

O’Conor said she believes providing students with the accommodations they need is important.

But she said the University can improve the lives of students with chronic conditions, and the rest of the student population, by thinking bigger.

“Disability occurs if there’s a mismatch between a person’s ability and their environment,” O’Conor said. “It’s no longer a disability if the environment is modified so that the person can function within it.”

Larger environmental modifications, such as putting elevators in every dorm, would not only decrease the amount of accommodations requested but would also universally benefit all students, O’Conor explained.

O’Conor said these suggested changes could also help remove stigma from the accommodations students need.

Since Finnegan has been unsuccessful in obtaining accommodations from ANU, she has approached some of her professors individually and received mixed responses. She said she will sometimes skip large lecture classes if she’s experiencing asthma symptoms and feels like it isn’t acceptable to come to class late.

Because her symptoms intensify in the winter, Finnegan said she noticed her Winter Quarter grades in freshman and sophomore year differed from those in her junior year, when she did not miss classes because they were remote. She expects that with ANU’s support, she would have a better chance of being taken seriously by professors when asking for leniency in late policies.

Communication Prof. Barbara Butts was one such professor who was willing to provide accommodations w ithout ANU’s official support.

Finnegan took multiple theatre courses with Butts, who was on the board for ANU for several years and worked

extensively on projects that make learning more accessible to students.

“If you’re really committed to teaching, and you’re really committed to students’ learning,

why would you not be an advocate for a student with a chronic illness?” Butts said.

Butts is working on a software program alongside AccessibleNU with Glean, a company that aims to bring aspects of remote learning that positively benefited students into the inperson classroom environment. One example is Zoom’s chat function, which allowed students to communicate with their class even if they did not feel comfortable being vocal.

While some students may be hard on themselves when it comes to requesting accommodations, Butts said students with chronic illnesses deserve the flexibility they need in order to level

the playing field between themselves and their peers.

Butts said speaking up and asking for accommodations can pave the way for future students.

Sam described his Crohn’s disease symptoms as either “invisible or really embarrassing.” He wishes ANU would go one step further than just publicizing that its services exist. He didn’t know what specific accommodations existed

that could benefit him, such as flexibility with being late to class or early registration, until his adviser informed him.

While ANU may be accessible to some students, Finnegan said it wasn’t to her.

“I just wish the University would make it easier (or) more known what kind of things that they can do,” Finnegan said. “Because I didn’t even apply to ANU accommodations until … I met somebody else that had an accommodation similar to what I may need. (I didn’t know) that that was possible.” ariannacarpati2023@u.northwestern.edu

6 THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

arts & entertainment Tyler Keim/The Daily Northwestern

One of the pieces in artist Stefan Petranek’s exhibition at the Dittmar Gallery titled “In Our Hands.”

‘Anthro-obscene’ exhibition explores climate change

By JORJA SIEMONS

daily senior staffer @jorjasiemons

The wreckage of homes lies littered on a desolate highway. Tall piles of wood and broken concrete obscure a stormy grey sky. Palm trees curl over from high winds.

This is the landscape artist Stefan Petranek captures in a 14-panel photography display exposing Hurricane Michael’s destruction of Mexico Beach, Fla., in 2018. On the back wall, hollowed into each photo frame is a letter lined with turquoise foam to spell out “ANTHRO-OBSCENE,” the namesake of Petranek’s exhibition at Dittmar Gallery.

“Anthro-obscene: What We Choose Not to See,” open to the public through Dec. 8, explores how anthropogenic — or human-generated — climate change alters natural landscapes. The exhibit includes a selection of work from “The Future is Broken,” which premiered in 2019 at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis’ Herron School of Art and Design, where Petranek is an associate professor of photography and intermedia.

Motivated by a feeling of urgency, Petranek said he

titled the exhibition “Anthro-obscene” as a “personal response” to the obscenity of a current lack of action on climate change, despite ample knowledge of it.

“My desire to speak for climate change specifically comes out of my own anxieties for thinking about the future,” Petranek said.

Before pursuing photography and interdisciplinary art full time, Petranek studied biology and worked within an environmental engineering company, familiarizing himself with climate policy.

Each piece of artwork in the exhibition is a photograph of a place that carries personal significance to Petranek, from Summer Lake, Ore., to the Upper Mississippi River, Minn. However, Petranek obscures the landscapes by overlaying climate science data exposing climate change’s impact on those areas.

In “In the Eye—Hurricane Michael, October 8, 2018,” Petranek uses a laser-etching technique to burn jagged lines representing ocean gyres into a photograph of his nephew wading in water near Mexico Beach.

This technique, which comes from Petranek’s experimentation with laser engravers in Herron’s digital fabrication lab spaces, enables him to precisely erode a photograph’s surface.

“It’s adding heat to this photographic landscape,

and it’s changing it,” Petranek said. “Climate change is based around too much warming of the climate, and so in that way, it parallels the larger issue.”

Through data visualization strategies like laser etching, Petranek said he can expose what is happening to landscapes beyond what meets the eye.

“These landscapes often can look just fine and normal, and our capacity to understand how they’re changing is really limited with our own eyes,” Petranek said. “When we can start to comprehend or recognize how those spaces or those landscapes are going to be changed by climate change, we feel like we have a much closer connection to it and concern for it.”

Weinberg sophomore Eve Downing, a Dittmar student curator, said she hopes the exhibit sparks conversations between visitors, including Northwestern students experiencing climate anxiety.

Growing up in Southcentral Alaska, Downing said she has witnessed her own home environments change. In her area, spruce beetles have rapidly reproduced due to rising temperatures, leading to the mass infestation and loss of spruce tree populations.

“I think it’s really great to have someone who’s working out of the Midwest bring out an attempt to show what will likely happen in these areas,” Downing said. “It can be difficult at times to share what is

happening in more remote areas.”

Earth and Planetary Sciences Prof. Daniel Horton said he finds it powerful when artists such as Petranek use aesthetic, emotional mediums to communicate the cold, hard facts of climate change.

Horton, who leads the University’s Climate Change Research Group, said there has not yet been enough accomplished to address climate change problems at hand.

“My job is to project the future and say what the consequences might be,” he said. “But society at large easily has the potential to change the projected outcomes. It just requires the courage of the individual and the courage of our leaders to make those changes.”

Reflecting on what he wants visitors to take away from “Anthro-obscene,” Petranek said he hopes people understand what losing places to which they feel connected will mean.

“I hope that people look at the work and feel a stronger need to really value the earth and the climate,” Petranek said of his landscape-focused work.

“It’s in the subtlety that we pull some of the most profound understandings of our environments.” jorjasiemons2024@u.northwestern.edu

One Book photo contest winners focus on climate crisis

By OLIVIA KHARRAZI

the daily northwestern @oliviakharrazi

This year’s One Book One Northwestern selection, Hope Jahren’s “The Story Of More: How We Got to Climate Change and Where to Go from Here,” was succeeded by a student photography contest.

It encouraged students to look for ways to connect imagery with the history, consequences or solutions to climate change through an original photo submission.

The Daily spoke to the winners about their techniques and inspirations.

Kenneth He: First Place Following review by a committee of Northwestern representatives, Bienen freshman Kenneth He was selected as the first-place winner.

His black-and-white photograph illustrating the impact of air pollution on wildlife earned him the coveted prize.

A trail of smoke snakes up into a gray cloud while two birds fly around in the distance. The photo is black and white.

Hana Ahmed: Second Place Medill graduate student Hana Ahmed’s submission

featuring a picture of a burning photograph she took while on a hot air balloon in Egypt received second place.

Ahmed said she found herself constantly surrounded by conversations concerning climate change while pursuing Medill’s Health, Environment and Science specialization.

“When people talk about the environment or talk about climate change, it seems like something that’s almost impending doom, but no one recognizes how far into it we are,” Ahmed said. “It kind of seems like something that’s far away. I wanted to have a picture that really is in your face.”

A photo of an Egyptian sunset taken from a hot air balloon is burned at night next to a tree.

Olivia Johansson: Third Place

Photo courtesy of Kenneth He

“In the 20th century, the use of fossil fuels, pollution and selfish greed have left our planet with poor air quality.

As a result, healthy environments for animals like birds are diminishing at an alarming rate, leaving them with little resources to live. Will Earth become a place only inhabited by humans?”

McCormick junior Olivia Johansson took her photo in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of northern Minnesota. She said she was on her lunch break outside her office when she realized the landscape would be perfect for a photo.

“I was at the docks looking out and I saw the mist rolling across the lake,” Johansson said. “And I saw this little water bottle that had been left, and I thought it was a really striking photo.”

As a member of Save the Boundary Waters, a campaign aiming to permanently protect Minnesota’s BWCAW from ore mining, Johansson said she has long advocated for climate change initiatives.

Her photo reflects both her involvement in environmentalism, as well as the particular value she has for the area.

“I think we should embrace the beauty and environments in our everyday lives. Take a moment to appreciate your local park and your local streams, and make sure that they are being taken care of and they are

being respected as part of our kind of urban environment, as well,” she said.

A misty lake in black and white surrounded by dark shadows of trees disappears into a misty sky while a sole empty bottle bobs in the middle of the lake.

Natalia Tapia Moreno: People’s Choice Natalia Tapia Moreno’s photo won the People’s Choice award from a Facebook poll run by One Book One Northwestern.

Moreno’s photo was inspired by her 10-year-old sister, who once asked her, “Do you think I will survive climate change?” Moreno said she felt saddened by the burden already placed on younger generations.

“I wanted to include all these different contributors or consequences of climate change and just show them in a single picture to have a greater impact,” Moreno said.

Photos of plants growing out of a sidewalk, fires, railroads surrounded by polluted air, and a clock are edited together to form a collage. A quote from “The Story of More” reads, “If your world ever falls apart, and you lose everything, where is the place that you will turn to, and then return to?” In the center of the collage, Moreno’s younger sister plays with her dog.

When reading the book, Moreno was struck by its focus on the systemic issues contributing to climate change.

“Although the book gives you tools so you as an individual can have an impact, it also discusses how you are part of a greater system and every single one of us is contributing in a way,” Moreno said. “But if you don’t change the whole system, there’s not much that we can do about it.” oliviakharrazi2025@u.northwestern.edu

THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

7

Open Tab: Deep Purpl offers fresh, trendy options

By KARA PEELER

the daily northwestern @karapeeler

A sign reading “Deeply in Love” in purple neon letters greeted me when I walked through the door of the açaí bowl restaurant.

That sign couldn’t be more accurate: there’s a reason Deep Purpl attracts customers even as temperatures drop and snow falls. Located across from the Downton Evanston Plaza at 630 Davis St., Deep Purpl’s bright awnings and fluorescent signage are bound to lure in visitors galore.

The restaurant boasts trendy decorations, a plethora of plants and multiple comfortable seating areas.

Familiar pop music adds to the fun and welcoming ambiance. The room is decked out in purple paint, a coincidence that aligns well with Northwestern pride.

Visitors can customize Deep Purpl açaí bowls extensively — their different size options and 18 toppings are on offer, including fresh fruits, nut butters, vegan protein powders and even other

“superfoods” such as chia seeds, cacao nibs and goji berries. With so many choices on the table, the eating experience is tailored to the customer’s taste buds and preferences.

Usually these snacks are served as a smoothie bowl, but Deep Purpl has added its own twist to the trend, serving the food in a clear cup adorned with Deep Purpl’s logo. The restaurant also offers six smoothie flavors, with and without protein.

“They have protein smoothies too, which I think is really interesting,” said Medill graduate student Kaitlin Wood, who also runs a food account on Instagram as a hobby. “For people who are working out, it’s a great place to go.”

Though açaí bowls originated as a dessert in Pará and the Amazonas in Brazil, the sweet smoothie-like dish has spread and popularized around the globe.

“I used to eat (açaí) almost every day in highschool … in Brazil,” Gabriel Firmo (Weinberg ’21) said. “I have been hearing about açaí in the U.S. for about four years, but it is always very Americanized.

It’s been strange (to see) takes on it from people who have clearly not tried it the way it is produced back

home (in Brazil).”

In the U.S., açaí is especially popular on the West coast and in Hawaii. Firmo said he was eager to try Deep Purpl after his friend raved about it, and added he’s getting accustomed to this Americanized version of açaí.

A woman with blonde hair wearing a grey sweatshirt squeezes a sauce out of a bottle into an açaí cup.

After trekking through the snow from my dorm to Davis Street, I tried Deep Purpl’s “PB Chocolate Heaven” vegan protein smoothie, which tasted milkshake adjacent. I would absolutely recommend it for someone looking for an extra boost of protein in their sweet treat.

The smoothie was creamy, so thick it almost didn’t flow through the straw. Its flavor was akin to a chocolate peanut butter cup, which made the smoothie so worth it, even during the start of the snowy season. I could imagine it being a fun breakfast or even a dessert alternative.

As for the açaí bowl, I opted for 12 ounces of the rich mixture, which was both luxuriously sweet and fruity.

Loading up on toppings, I selected kiwis, strawberries

and blueberries; the fresh fruits complemented my bowl’s almond butter and cacao nibs. The bowl satisfied my sweet tooth while also promising more health benefits than a straight-up dessert. Not to mention, its presentation was even more aesthetically pleasing than I had anticipated.

Every time I visited, I noticed employees taking extra steps to create positive experiences for customers.

One employee even delicately placed strawberries in the shape of a flower when crafting my açaí bowl. The attention to detail was immaculate and, undoubtedly, Instagram-worthy.

And if you’re ever away from Evanston, have no fear. Deep Purpl is a Chicago-based chain with four additional locations throughout the city. So if you’re looking to satisfy your açaí craving, the walk downtown — even in the snow — is absolutely worth it for the tasty treat that will rejuvenate you as you prepare for finals.

Jack Austin contributed reporting. karapeeler2025@u.northwestern.edu

Liner Notes: Taylor Swift begins again with Red rerelease

By ISABELLE SARRAF

daily senior staffer @isabellesarraf

Fall 2012: that pre-teen awkwardness associated with seventh grade, J-14 and Tiger Beat posters of celebrities plastered on childhood bedroom walls and Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” blaring from car speakers.

This weekend, Swift’s fans got to dress up like hipsters, eat breakfast at midnight and relive that era with the release of “Red (Taylor’s Version),” a re-recording of her fourth studio album, “Red.” The record marked a transitional period in Swift’s career through its exploration of several musical genres, combining her country roots with pop, electronic and rock flairs.

Swift is on a journey to re-record her first six albums and reclaim her masters catalogue, and this is the second installation of that undertaking. “Red (Taylor’s Version)” was released Friday, following “Fearless (Taylor’s Version),” which she dropped in April.

This album’s tracklist is — to take a line from Swift’s lyrics — happy, free, confusing and lonely in the best way. Swift herself has described “Red” as “musically and lyrically” resembling a heartbroken person. But that doesn’t mean the album is all sad songs. On the contrary, Swift often jumps from heartwrenching, stripped-down songs like “Sad Beautiful Tragic” to upbeat jams like “The Lucky One.” The

intentional back-and-forth mimics the enigmatic nature of heartbreak, “a fractured mosaic of feelings that somehow all fit together in the end.”

“Red (Taylor’s Version)” cements the fact that Swift’s strength as a musician has always lied with her songwriting. Her “From the Vault” tracks — songs she wrote for the original Red album that were ultimately cut — dive deeper into heartbreak in its rawest form. Similar to “Fearless (Taylor’s Version),” the Vault features some of Swift’s best collaborations to date, including a Phoebe Bridgers duet in “Nothing New” and Chris Stapleton’s background vocals in country banger “I Bet You Think About Me.” My favorite Vault track on the album has to be “Better Man.” Originally written for the 2012 “Red” album, “Better Man” found a home with country band Little Big Town, serving as the lead single for their 2017 album “The Breaker.” Fans had previously only heard her perform the song a handful of times live acoustically — only the real ones know about “Better Man (Live at the Bluebird Cafe).”

“Better Man (Taylor’s Version)” is a fresh breath of air amid a country-pop album that loses some of the original album’s country flair. The song is Swift’s intimate reflection on a toxic and abusive relationship.

Without a band to flesh out the vocals, Swift’s version of the song allows her signature harmonies to shine through. Coupled with Aaron Dessner’s ambient production, “Better Man” shines as one of the most lyrically poignant songs on this 30-track album — and, arguably, her entire discography.

This album review couldn’t be complete without

Illustration by Angeli Mittal

discussing “All Too Well,” which many fans consider to be Swift’s magnum opus. I could probably write a dissertation about “All Too Well (10 Minute Version),” but the addition to the track that stuck with me the most is its entirely new third verse.

Some of the best lyrics on “Red (Taylor’s Version)” are the ones that mirror some of her more recent albums, which, retrospectively, make them hit even harder. Ever so Shakesperian, Swift plays on words in “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” with “They say all’s well that ends well, but I’m in a new Hell.” She deftly parallels the bridge of “Lover” from her 2019 album of the same name, which includes the line,

“All’s well that ends well to end up with you,” giving the love song a new meaning.

There’s a reason the 10-minute version of a song written about a decade ago is now topping the charts: Swift’s dexterously sharp lyricism coupled with the vulnerability and hopelessness of heartbreak make for a head-banging album closer you can’t help but stream on repeat.

Between Swift’s nine studio albums and two rerecordings, we’ll be remembering the “Red” era all too well. isarraf@u.northwestern.edu

Alum Andrea Bartz’s novel may be adapted into Netflix film

By DIEGO RAMOS BECHARA

daily senior staffer @d_ramos42

When writing a new novel, Andrea Bartz (Medill ’08) always starts by developing the book’s hook.

Though she may have no idea how the book will begin or end, she knows the hook will drive readers to turn to the next page and keep them engaged, so developing it is key.

So far, that method has proven effective for Bartz, whose recent New York Times bestselling book “We Were Never Here,” was picked up by Netflix for a potential film adaptation produced by Molly Sims and Greg Berlanti (Communication ’94).

Bartz said she relies on the “headlights in the dark” approach when crafting a narrative, meaning

she doesn’t plan scenes ahead of time. Rather, she simply writes, letting scenes develop and evolve organically.

“I don’t know where the story is going, just like if you’re on a windy road, you don’t know where it’s going to take you in the dark, but I have these headlights and so I can see just the next curve as I’m about to hit it,” Bartz said. “As I’m finishing a scene, I start to have ideas about what’s next, just as I’m about to get to the point where I need it.”

Intrigued by the idea of exploring deep fears and vulnerabilities she’s always had, Bartz said she gravitates toward suspense thrillers. Turning her fears into a narrative is a way for her to not only think more proactively about herself but also the world around her.

“We Were Never Here,” a murder mystery involving two best friends, tackles themes of friendship,

Graphic by Angeli Mittal

Andrea Bartz’s (Medill ’08) recent bestselling novel, “We Were Never Here,” is set to be adapted into a Netflix film produced by Molly Sims and Greg Berlanti (Communication ’94).

trust and loss and also explores fears many women face like the dangers of sexual assault.

Confronting these fears through writing is something Bartz said she finds cathartic, especially when overcoming those fears by finishing her novels and bringing those themes full circle.

“These topics have a lot of emotional weight for me because there’s a lot of fear surrounding them and fear surrounding talking about them,” Bartz said. “I love writing novels that have some deeper, darker — and perhaps unlikable and (not) fun — themes to read and issues at its heart.”

The book makes references to campus, as the main characters befriended each other as undergraduates at NU. As an alumna, Bartz said her time at the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications and her professors and mentors who helped chart her “Northwestern direction” were essential after graduation.

Jennifer Armstrong (Medill ’96), a freelance writer and Bartz’s mentor, said the most commendable thing about Bartz is her tenacity.

“She put in the work so that she was ready when ‘luck’ came her way, which I think is key to most authors’ successes,” Armstrong said. “She kept going no matter what, and is constantly getting even better at what she does.”

Medill Prof. Patti Wolter, who taught and regularly keeps in touch with Bartz, attributed her success in the publishing industry to her magazine editing skills, a field she worked at for years after graduating from Medill.

“Anyone in my classes knows that I teach a lot about ‘magazine think,’ which is about framing stories in unique ways for audiences,” Wolter said. “Any time you can play with how your story is framed, and where it’s being centered, helps work a muscle that will lend itself to the kind of creativity that writing a novel demands.”

Bartz can’t reveal too much about the adaptation

itself, as it’s still in its very early stages, but she did hint at what’s next for her.

She’s working on her fourth novel, set to release sometime in 2023, which will tackle “complex relationships between high-powered women.” This new novel will deal more with the consequences of romantic relationships as opposed to platonic ones.

Bartz implores NU students to take advantage of the speaker series and cultural immersion events that the University hosts for free.

“Though it’s important to party and enjoy your friends, remember that NU is a hub that breeds culture,” Bartz said. “There are amazing speakers, panels and cultural events right at your fingertips so go out and enjoy them, because this is the last time any of this will be directly offered to you for free.” diegoramos-bechara2024@u.northwestern.edu

arts & entertainment Editor Laya Neelakandan Assistant Editor Diego Ramos Bechara Designer Angeli Mittal Staff Olivia Kharrazi Kara Peeler Isabelle Sarraf Jorja Siemons

8 THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

Omar Offendum performs identity-centric rap, poetry

By SHANNON TYLER

the daily northwestern @shnnnmrynn

Syrian American rapper and spoken word artist Omar Offendum explored the intersection of culture and art with Northwestern students Tuesday night at an event hosted by the Middle East and North African Languages program.

The event, held at McCormick Auditorium, meant to provide students with an opportunity to delve into their culture through music.

Offendum held a workshop and later a live performance of his songs and poems with oud player Ronnie Malley.

The performance consisted of poetic recitation, storytelling and rapping, in a blend of English and Arabic, while the workshop was a conversation about his life and how poetry and music have played a significant role in shaping who he is.

“When I first began as a young (artist), I was a part of this youth culture of hip-hop,” Offendum said. “Now, I’m almost 40, and there’s a whole wave of young Arab rappers all over the Middle East who have taken what we thought was some small fledgling art form and taken off with it.”

Offendum’s music is a blend of hip-hop and Arabic poetry. He told the audience that growing up, he had rap music in his headphones and Arabic poetry in his school books. Incorporating the two, he found a way to express his identity and share it with the world.

Arabic Prof. Ragy Mikhaeel said Offendum’s music is important for him and younger generations, explaining that the expression of art during difficult times in the Arab world helps the community.

“Having Omar and Ronnie with us today is simply opening a window on modern Arab culture and the new generation that has no fear,” Mikhaeel said.

Offendum’s music heavily centers identity, especially being a Syrian American and first generation immigrant. His works are often about the Arab American immigration experience, the rich Arabic culture and his personal loss and growth.

He also uses his platform and gift to speak

Jonah Elkowitz/The Daily Northwestern

about issues including the Syrian refugee crisis, but he explained that creating work on heavy issues can take an emotional toll on artists.

“I cannot listen to certain songs from earlier on in the (Syrian crisis),” Offendum said.

“They inspire me, and I’m glad I did them, but it’s almost depressing to hear how optimistic we were looking back at the situation.”

Communication senior Alex Manaa, who attended the workshop and concert, appreciated how Offendum’s art is rooted in identity.

“(He’s) using his platform to shed light and build this beautiful, sympathetic, compassionate image of his people,” Manaa said.

Offendum’s workshop, “From Kabbani to Kendrick: Building Bridges between Poetry and Hip-Hop in the Language Classroom,” was more of a conversation with the artist than a presentation. Offendum challenged participants to reflect on who they are, where they came from and where they are going using poetry and music as a means to express themselves.

Students like Manaa took the challenge and created poems that represented their identity.

She recited her impromptu poem using English and Arabic to express her identity as a firstgeneration immigrant from Egypt.

“Given the scale of devastation, how big the wounds are still for so many people, I hope we never forget that we can find ways to heal,” Offendum said. “Music does that for me.” shannontyler2025@u.northwestern.edu

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Sophomores in a cappella shine after remote year

By JOANNA HOU

the daily northwestern @joannah_11

After last year’s remote audition and recruitment process, some sophomores are joining campus a cappella groups for the first time this year.

McCormick sophomore Daehan Jung, decided not to audition last year due to the pandemic. Jung participated in a cappella in high school, but said he didn’t feel like the Zoom experience would be the same.

Jung watched his friends in a cappella groups rehearse last year and said the practices seemed underwhelming, especially because members couldn’t sing together over Zoom without causing massive delays.

“Everyone would just practice on their own muted, but the downside to this is you don’t know what others sound like,” Jung said. “Blending your voices together is a big part of acapella, if not the biggest, so that’s why it’s way less than ideal.”

However, seeing groups performing on campus at this year’s “Rock the Lake” rekindled Jung’s love for a cappella. He said he was excited by the possibility of live performances and in-person rehearsals.

Now a member of THUNK a cappella, Jung said he finds rehearsals refreshing after his scienceoriented days. THUNK is NU’s oldest a cappella group and is co-ed, performing around campus, Chicago and Cape Town, South Africa.

“I’m a STEM major and I’m around a lot of STEM students, but a cappella provides an outlet with people that aren’t in STEM,” Jung said. “It’s nice to have a balance between the STEM side of my school and the theatre, performing arts side.”

McCormick sophomore Sarah Yung said she also joined a group because she wanted to diversify her STEM-filled days. She auditioned for a cappella groups both years but did not make any her first time around. This year, Yung said the in-person audition experience felt much more comfortable, and she landed a spot on the Treblemakers.

Yung said a cappella has provided her with a sense of community and support. Even though rehearsals run late into the night, she said singing with fellow members allows her to de-stress from the rest of

her day.

“We start off rehearsals by checking in with each other; if we’re doing good, we celebrate with each other or hype each other up after a bad day,” Yung said. “Music has always been a really good way for me to relax and put myself in a happy space.”

Weinberg sophomore Rakin Hussain echoed her sentiments. He joined Brown Sugar this year and said he has already found a home away from home.

The instant mutual trust between him and the other members made him feel the safest he’s ever felt on campus, he said.

When a soloist for Brown Sugar got sick the day before the group’s performance at Acapalooza, Hussain said he wanted to help out in any way possible.

He stepped up to the soloist role and performed in front of the large crowd.

“I wasn’t really a soloist before, and (when I performed), I wasn’t thinking about the crowd,” Hussain said. “The whole time, I was thinking about how much I liked performing with the ensemble and about how good we sounded, and I just got caught up in the thrill of the moment.” joannahou2025@u.northwestern.edu

Madison Smith/Daily Senior Staffer

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THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

TEA

D65

behind which co-owner Daquan Yao stands brewing tea.

The Chinese tea shop, at 1011 Davis St., will be closing its doors Nov. 30. Yao and his wife Hong Wu have served tea together from their shop for nearly 18 years.

While in business school, the couple noticed a vacancy of tea shops in the Chicago area. They decided to be the ones to fill it, marking the creation of Dream About Tea. “We both had a dream to have a business where we could meet friends and share cultural ideas with the tea as the medium,” Wu said.

From the moment they opened their doors, Wu and Yao did just that, setting up their shop to bring Evanston residents together through its warm atmosphere, sense of community and flavorful teas.

The shop features a hodgepodge of couches and chairs where customers can sit and sip from colorful cups. As they converse with one another, classical music plays softly in the background.

Long-time customer Mike Brayndick has come to Dream About Tea with his family since the shop’s founding, attending various activities Wu and Yao organized to bring the community together. From watching his daughters win at Mahjong and celebrating traditional Chinese holidays to using the shop’s gathering space as an occasional workspace, Brayndick said he has always felt at home at Dream About Tea. His daughter, Casey Brayndick, has been coming to Dream About Tea since around the age of five.

She said she used to spend four to five afternoons in the shop each week, doing homework and chatting with friends over tea.

“The tea, of course, is amazing,” Casey said. “But there’s a real sense of community here that I think is something really special. That always brought us back.”

Though it was an emotionally hard decision, Wu said closing the tea shop is economically the best option. Amid the rise of e-commerce, as well as the stress placed on small businesses during the pandemic, Yao and Wu decided not to renew their lease.

With the closure of their business, Wu will continue working at her current primary job as a high school teacher.

Director of Special Services Anna Marie Candelario said student suicide risk and threat assessments more than doubled in September and October compared to the same months in 2019.

Board President Anya Tanyavutti asked whether the increase was due to better tracking of students’ mental health or an increase of students in crises.

Although tightened procedures may account for some of the increase, Candelario said the pandemic likely contributed to some students’ mental health emergencies.

This increase in student crises also creates emotional exhaustion for some student support staff members, Board Vice President Elisabeth “Biz” Lindsay-Ryan said.

“We talked about that at our last social work meeting, about secondary trauma and what they’re experiencing,” Candelario said in response. “I’m not gona lie, I’ve had quite a few of them break down.”

Candelario then discussed a proposal to support school staff by having a social worker come in monthly. Staff members also told her talking through different work scenarios together was beneficial, she said.

Assistant Superintendent of Student Services Romy DeCristofaro and Candelario presented data regarding students with IEPs. DeCristofaro said the numbers of both special education referrals and students with IEPs are increasing.

She also said 65% of students without IEPs were deemed to be at or above grade level in math and 75% in reading as of fall 2021. In contrast, 22% of students with IEPs were at or above grade level in math and 28% in reading, according to the presentation.

Large disparities also exist in student performance by race, which DeCristofaro said is a continuing problem. The district has consistently seen a racial achievement gap in yearly data, and has discussed steps to address the gap in recent years.

White students were deemed at or above grade level three to four times more frequently than Latine and Black students in reading, and between six and eight times more frequently in math. Multiracial students were more likely to be assessed as in line with target performance than Latine and Black students, but still fell below white students in the district. The charts shown did not include Asian or Indigenous students.

“It’s important for us to acknowledge that the significant racial disparity that we see in this data is unacceptable,” Lindsay-Ryan said. “It continues to be troubling and we need to continue to make every effort possible to close this gap.”

The district has also transitioned to a new IEP and Medicaid system. It supports IEP development through goal writing, IEP compliance and parent collaboration.

According to Candelario, the new system includes a translation feature and a parent portal that schools can use to email documents to parents. She said the system provides accountability and accuracy reports on a monthly basis. The system also allows room for parent feedback.

“Getting feedback from families is necessary, with boundaries ensuring that we’re providing the right services but also people (are) not dictating our services as well,” Candelario said.

Going forward, Candelario said priorities for the 2021-22 school year include improving equity and inclusion through building family partnerships, avoiding IEP compliance errors and emphasizing data when discussing student placements and needs.

Tanyavutti spoke of the need to improve from problems caused by the district’s past approach to equity.

“In the past (District 65 has) had a scarcity mindset around special education services and it’s created a lot of discord in terms of relationship with family,” she said. “I appreciate us thinking about how we shift out of that scarcity mindset and be more centered towards equity and inclusion.”

From page 1

From page 1

Prepare for COVID-19 to take part in your Thanksgiving break plans With Thanksgiving just around the corner, many students are making arrangements for their return home.

But Health professionals advise caution, because amid the holiday spirit, COVID-19 cases are expected to rise.

COVID-19 vaccines have been pivotal for combatting the pandemic — more than 97% of the Northwestern community is vaccinated. But Feinberg Prof.

Sadiya Khan said this is not sufficient for a return to

Illustration by Ilana Arougheti

Yao said he plans to return to school to learn to craft violins. Evidence of his lifelong passion is strewn throughout the tea shop, from a desk in a back corner housing a collection of violins to their cases tucked into miscellaneous locations.

For customers such as the Brayndicks, Dream About Tea’s closure means finding another place that will provide the same sense of community the tea shop did for so many years.

“Part of what I learned from being here, I’ll have to take with me. How I drink tea, the kind of teas that I drink, just that feeling of being settled and slowing down and being able to enjoy things moment by moment,” Mike said. “I think the tea shop — it sounds maybe corny — it’s going to

kind of live on inside me a little bit in those positive memories.”

Wu said saying goodbye to the people she met over the years makes closing her and her husband’s shop particularly emotional.

Through Dream About Tea, Wu said she connected to people from all walks of life and listened to their stories. No other experience could have given her these close bonds with clientele, she added.

“What a lovely community that we belong to,” Wu said. “We feel very blessed and fortunate to have the opportunity to be part of the community.”

pre-pandemic “normalcy.”

Precautionary measures should remain in place, especially around high-risk populations such as individuals aged 65 and older and those with underlying medical conditions. Because of waning immunity of the vaccines, people who were vaccinated at least six months ago and have not yet received a booster shot are also more susceptible to infection.

However, receiving the booster is not a guarantee of safety against the virus. Northwestern Medicine experts recommend having a conversation with at-risk populations to discuss comfort levels with planned holiday celebrations.

Despite the recent announcement of expanded Pfizer authorization to children aged 5 to 11, this group will not be fully vaccinated by the time Thanksgiving

comes, so they’re still at risk of spreading COVID-19.

Health experts also ask college students to exercise caution, especially with the end of Fall Quarter bringing an influx of final exams and projects. Stress can reduce the immune system’s capability to fight off infection, making this population also increasingly vulnerable to COVID-19.

At-risk populations and college students living on campus are eligible for a booster if six months have elapsed since their last Moderna or Pfizer dose.

Those who received Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose COVID-19 vaccine can get a booster two months later. The maximum effectiveness of the booster, however, doesn’t occur until about two weeks after receiving it.

Northwestern Medicine experts also recommend taking advantage of the available at-home COVID19 tests throughout the Thanksgiving break. Khan advises frequent testing, but especially before traveling and before Thanksgiving dinner.

The possibility of false negatives remains because of the three-to-five day delay between COVID-19 exposure and symptoms. But frequent testing aims to reduce the risk of infection going unnoticed.

Those who test positive are advised against traveling and to confirm the test result with PCR testing.

The University provides free at-home COVID-19 tests for students, staff and faculty at the Donald P. Jacobs Center.

Illustration by Angeli Mittal

— Angeli Mittal

oliviakharrazi2025@u.northwestern.edu

avivabechky2025@u.northwestern.edu, nandisiluma2023@u.northwestern.edu

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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

11

Explainer: Northwestern’s active and pending lawsuits

By CATHERINE ODOM

the daily northwestern

Northwestern has faced numerous lawsuits in the past few years, ranging from the cheer team to its retirement plan — the latter of which will be heard in front of the Supreme Court next month.

The University was also recently involved in a suit alleging unfair tuition during the pandemic, a lawsuit dealing with a data breach by Northwestern Medicine and Elekta and another alleging improper storage of student biometric data collected through test proctoring software.

While some suits are still ongoing, others have been dismissed. These lawsuits were filed between 2016 and 2021.

Sexual harassment on the cheer team Earlier this year, former NU cheerleader Hayden Richardson (Weinberg ‘21) filed a lawsuit against the University, alleging fans and alumni sexually harassed cheerleaders. She also alleged the athletic department did not respond appropriately, violating Title IX regulations.

Richardson is suing for emotional damages as well as lost academic and career opportunities.

In her complaint, she stated then-coach Pamela Bonnevier forced her and other cheerleaders to entertain fans at tailgates and alumni events, despite frequent groping and inappropriate comments. Richardson said these individuals were older men who were often intoxicated and potential donors.

The cheerleaders were forced to mingle alone and without supervision, Richardson alleged in her complaint. Richardson said Bonnevier was unresponsive when she asked for help and support. Following an internal investigation last year, Bonnevier was fired in November 2020.

The lawsuit alleges the University was slow to investigate reports of sexual harassment.

Over a year after Richardson first came forward, the athletic department began an official investigation into the matter. Richardson said she had still not seen the findings of the report when she filed the lawsuit.

Defendants include NU, Bonnevier, Mike

Polisky, Heather Van Hoegarden Obering and Amanda DaSilva. Obering is the associate athletic director for marketing, and DaSilva is the associate director of equity and Title IX compliance.

Polisky was promoted to athletic director in May, but resigned just nine days later amid significant public outcry. Athletic Director Derrick Gragg replaced him in the role.

The University filed a motion to dismiss Richardson’s allegations in May.

Racial discrimination on the cheer team Former cheerleader Erika Carter (SESP ‘18) also claimed she experienced mistreatment while on the cheer team. In addition to the sexual harassment Richardson alleged in her lawsuit, Carter said she and other Black women on the team experienced racial discrimination.

In February, Carter told The Daily she was planning on suing the University.

Carter told The Daily that Bonnevier emailed her saying she could not wear her hair naturally or in braids and suggested she wear a wig at events. She also told Carter her hairstyle choices could affect her opportunities on the team. Carter also alleged Bonnevier did not allow Black cheerleaders to stand near one another because of “optics.”

Other Black cheerleaders have voiced similar complaints about their time on the team.

Carter participated in a 2020 investigation into the culture of the cheer team, but she said she was not given access to the findings of the report.

Retirement plans In 2016, St. Louis-based firm Schlichter Bogard & Denton brought a lawsuit against NU for a “breach of fiduciary duty,” or not acting in its employees’ best interests, in its retirement plans. In July, after numerous appeals, the case made its way to the Supreme Court.

The University is being sued for a “breach of fiduciary duty” due to excessive fees relating to their employee retirement plans. District and appellate courts previously decided in favor of NU.

Take NU with you, wherever you go.

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Numerous similar lawsuits have been filed against universities and other institutions, and the Supreme Court’s upcoming decision may offer insight into the outcomes of those suits.

The Court will hear arguments in December.

COVID-19 tuition and online instruction Students who participated in online classes during the pandemic brought a class action lawsuit against NU for offering exclusively online instruction in fall 2020 and not refunding tuition or fees. The University did, however, discount tution 10% that quarter.

They argued the University entered an implicit contract that promised in-person education and by not holding in-person classes or reducing tuition, NU had breached that contract. The plaintiffs presented communications from the University to demonstrate the implied guarantee of an in-person experience.

This lawsuit was dismissed in September by Judge Harry Leinenweber. His opinion stated NU’s website and marketing materials did not constitute binding or universal promises to all students, and the University did not explicitly promise to offer in-person instruction.

This suit is one of many that have been filed across the U.S. as a result of online instruction during the pandemic. Students and families have demanded reduced or refunded tuition for what they consider an inferior learning experience online.

These suits have largely been unsuccessful for the same reasons the suit against NU was dismissed: most universities never explicitly promised their students an in-person learning experience.

Northwestern Medicine and Elekta data breach Deborah Harrington, a former patient at Northwestern Memorial HealthCare filed a class action lawsuit September against Northwestern Medicine and Elekta for an April data breach.

Elekta, a Swedish company that provides radiation services for cancer and brain disorders, experienced a data breach in the spring

Illustration by Angeli Mittal

affecting 170 healthcare systems, including Northwestern Medicine.

The data breach jeopardized the personal health information of more than 200,000 patients at Northwestern Memorial HealthCare, including Harrington. The information included names, birthdates, Social Security numbers and other private health information and data.

The suit is seeking damages for the patients whose data was potentially breached. The defendants allegedly acted negligently and did not adequately protect patients’ information, according to Bloomberg Law.

Improper capture and storage of data through online test proctoring An anonymous NU student going by the name of Jane Doe filed a class action lawsuit against the University in January for alleged improper capture and storage of student biometric data, including face scans and voices, through online test proctoring software. The suit alleges the University violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act and seeks damages for students who have taken tests using this software. Multiple, separate lawsuits have been filed in connection to online proctor software. catherineodom2024@u.northwestern.edu

Wildcat Crossword

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Wednesday, November 17, 2021

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MEN’S BASKETBALL

Northwestern rides three-pointers to comeback win

By KYLE LEVERONE

the daily northwestern @klever0ne15

Joshua Hoffman/Daily Senior Staffer

Upon winning the opening tip against New Orleans, Northwestern sent a message Tuesday night by immediately attempting two three-pointers: they were going to live or die behind the arc tonight.

The Privateers entered the night 0-4 alltime against the Wildcats and 20.5-point underdogs going into tonight’s matchup.

According to KenPom, this NU team has the second-most difficult season of anyone since the 2001-02 season. But this game wasn’t supposed to be one of the major challenges.

Still, despite being down two at the half, NU (3-0, 0-0) pulled off a secondhalf comeback victory with a 83-67 final score.

“I know a lot of people don’t realize, especially early in the year, that (the) team we played tonight is gonna win a lot of games,” coach Chris Collins said. “A lot of people picked them to win their league … but can we do better? Yeah.”

The first half was largely controlled by the Cats, possessing the lead since going up 4-2 all the way until 1:20 left on the clock. New Orleans graduate guard Derek St. Hilaire was in the building though.

This seemed to be an issue for the Cats, who allowed him to score 18 in the first

FENCING

half — almost half of his team’s 37.

But another significant first-half issue came from within — or outside, rather.

After taking over half of their shots from beyond the three-point line, NU had only converted 28%. Sophomore guard Ty Berry made two in the first half, but seven others had missed at least one, four of them missing two. However, any team who shoots 18 threes in the first half — five more than New Orleans attempted all night — is certainly capable of putting up 15 more.

“I just think it’s what the game’s giving you,” Collins said. “The game was giving us kick-outs, from the post and from the drives, so tonight was a night where we shot 33 threes. As long as they’re good ones, we need to take them.”

Ultimately, the good ones started to go in, which was good for the ’Cats because they had no choice but to go in given the situation.

The Privateers came out firing in the second half, building on their two-point lead by scoring in four of their first five possessions, resulting in a quick ninepoint lead.

Ryan Young then had a moment.

With 16:11 left in the half, the redshirt junior center slammed down a putback dunk on top of a Privateer defender, sending an electric current through the all-purple Northwestern bench and the four other Wildcats on the floor. In the

ensuing minutes, the Cats rallied to take a 51-50 lead.

The lead traveled from Evanston to New Orleans and back to Evanston again.

Then the dam holding this tense backand-forth cracked, and the threes started to pour through.

Berry. Beran. Beran again. (A Pete Nance posterizing and-one dunk). Berry again.

Five scoring possessions ended with the Wildcats adding a total of 15 points to their towering score.

Collins said teammates kept encouraging players like Berry to continue shooting throughout the second half, despite missing a couple threes early on.

“We need (him) to keep shooting when (he’s) open,” Collins said. “And he did that.”

Despite the lackluster showing from deep in the first half, the Cats grinded to six more threes on 40% shooting in the second.

Ultimately, the three-ball lived on, and in a timeout huddle with 50 seconds left, NU huddled around their veteran coach and couldn’t contain their excitement about the night’s comeback.

“We talked in the game about playing with passion and fire, and I was just kind of letting it out for them,” Collins said.

“I’m in the fight with them.” kyleleverone2023@u.northwestern.edu

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Q&A: Sky Miller talks Alumni return to Welsh-Ryan resiliency, inspiration

By CHARLOTTE VARNES

By ALEXIS SCHWARTZ

the daily northwestern

Sky Miller, a sophomore saber at Northwestern, finished second in her 2020 campaign in the United States — the best ranking in program history. This story is an installment of the “Why I Play” series, where Wildcats discuss their love for their sports and how they got their starts.

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

The Daily: What sparked your interest in fencing?

Miller: I started fencing when I was around 10. I used to dance semi-competitively, but my dad hated going to the competitions. During the 2012 Olympics, they were showing fencing on NBC, and my dad saw it and said, “I’m going to sign you up in the fall for that.”

The Daily: What was it like playing and competing during the pandemic?

Miller: Since it was my first year on the team, there were a lot of adjustments. A major one was getting used to fencing with a mask on because we had to fit a COVID mask underneath our fencing masks. I also always had to be ready for a change because schools could drop at any moment if someone wasn’t feeling well or if they didn’t feel comfortable competing. I got really close to the people that were there during the winter last year.

The Daily: Do you have an athlete that inspires you?

Miller: There is a French fencer, Cecilia Berder, and the way she fences is so free-looking. She helped me understand that I don’t have to be so serious all of the time because this is fun — it’s playing with swords. There is also a Ukrainian fencer, Olga Kharlan, who is just very dedicated to the sport and has remained so for a very, very long time.

The Daily: What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned through fencing?

Miller: Resiliency. One weekend you can have a really bad competition or even multiple bad events, and then you have to somehow pick yourself up, shake it off and do it again. You will have another competition the next weekend, and all of those matter equally, so you can’t just put all of your eggs in one basket and then phone in everything else.

The Daily: Have you had any low points with fencing? How did you overcome them?

Miller: During my junior year of high school, I was trying to make the Cadet World Team, the 16-and-under age division world team for the U.S. Junior year is crazy — you’re visiting colleges and trying to make worlds and going to all the domestic and international tournaments.

You’re also studying for and taking the SAT, ACT, APs, and it was a lot. I missed (the World Team) by one spot. I took a little break because I was just fatigued. I focused more on school and trying to catch up with friends. I started playing for fun again because it had felt more like a job than something I enjoyed doing.

The Daily: Do you have a message for younger fencers?

Miller: Consistency: consistently showing up to practice, consistently showing up to your individual lessons, consistently showing up to competitions and giving everything you have. It is not overnight success — you have to slowly see where your weaknesses are and build them up day by day, practice by practice.

The Daily: Do you have a favorite fencing memory?

Miller: Last year, the Northwestern fencing team did a mock meet before our first competition. Fencing is a lonely sport, and for the first time, I had three people that I would travel with consistently. Having a group of people who fully support you, regardless of how you perform, who cheer you on and lift you up and want you to succeed wholeheartedly was really great.

I don’t think I’ll forget that. alexisschwartz2025@u.northwestern.edu

daily senior staffer @charvarnes11

It’ll be a homecoming for Abi Scheid and Maggie Lyon, two former Wildcats, when Loyola visits Welsh-Ryan Arena on Wednesday.

Scheid, the Ramblers’ director of women’s basketball operations, and Lyon, the assistant coach, are both Northwestern women’s basketball alumni: Scheid graduated in 2020, and Lyon in 2016.

“Having both of them at Loyola, it will kind of be weird looking down (the court),” coach Joe McKeown said. “We’re just happy that people think enough about our program to hire our coaches and players.”

Both Scheid and Lyon rank among the Cats’ top players in program history. Lyon was named the 2013 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and finished her time at NU seventh all-time in points.

She was also an honorable mention for the All-Big Ten team every year she played for the Cats.

McKeown, who was hired in 2008, credited Lyon with helping kick-start the program’s success, calling her one of NU’s strongest players ever and saying she remains close to the team today.

In the Cats’ 2020 Big Ten regularseason championship team, Scheid was one of the Cats’ stars. During that season, she ranked second in the country in 3-point percentage with an astounding .477 clip and was named to the All-Big Ten first team.

Scheid said she’s been back to WelshRyan Arena for open gyms, but not yet for a game. Coming back while in her new role at Loyola feels like “two worlds colliding,” she added.

“It’s going to be super fun, but my job has changed now,” Scheid said. “I’m not able to lace up again. I wish I was, but I’m very excited to come back and have the opportunity to have a team play at Northwestern again.”

Scheid joined Loyola in November 2020 as a volunteer assistant tackling everything from watching film to spending time on the court with the players.

She’s since transitioned to director of women’s basketball operations, a role

Joshua Hoffman/Daily Senior Staffer

Abi Scheid plays against Penn State in January 2020. Scheid, one of Northwestern women’s basketball’s strongest alumni, is now the director of operations for women’s basketball at Loyola.

she described as handling most of the “behind-the-scenes” aspects of college basketball like logistics, travel, food and gear.

As a former student-athlete, Scheid said she understands what players want out of her and what she can do to improve their experiences. Her learning and organizational change degree gave her the foundation for working with “people of all different backgrounds and experiences” and has paved the way for success in her new role, she said.

While playing for the Cats, she overlapped with several of the program’s current stars, including senior guard Veronica Burton. According to Burton, she and her teammates still see Scheid frequently, but she’s looking forward to being around her in a game environment again.

“It’ll be fun to see her on the other side of things, see her in her element as a coach now,” Burton said. “She knows some of our plays, still. Hopefully, they don’t know too much about it.”

Senior forward Courtney Shaw agreed with the sentiment, saying NU

always enjoys competing against alumni and that it’s “the best when they come back.”

Scheid said she’s looking forward to seeing former teammates like Burton, Shaw and senior guard Sydney Wood take the court Wednesday, as well as getting to watch the team’s newer players. She said seeing Burton, Shaw and Wood become leaders for their younger teammates has been a “cool thing” to witness.

McKeown is looking forward to having Scheid back in Welsh-Ryan Arena, he said, calling her one of NU’s fixtures. He expressed disappointment that Scheid was not drafted by the WNBA despite her strong collegiate tenure, adding that anyone with similar statistics in the men’s game would have been a first-round draft pick. He said he’d love to see her play again, but he is proud of her role at Loyola.

“She was an incredible part of who we are on and off the court,” McKeown said. “(I’m) really happy for her now.” charlottevarnes2024@u.northwestern.edu