N • Low turnout
Students reflect on Tuesday’s primary election and the lack of knowledge about where to vote on campus.
C • Dark side of the moon
For the first time since 1925, a total solar eclipse is happening in central New York. Here’s how to prepare for the day.
9
S • Battle-tested
Syracuse long pole Riley Figueiras
emerged as a staple on SU’s new-look defense one season after recovering from an ACL tear.
16
Maxwell’s social science Ph.D. program has not been admitting applicants for two years. Students were officially made aware in March.
After earning a bachelor’s at the China University of Political Science and Law and a master’s at the Renmin University of China — both in public administration — Jun Zhang wanted to pursue her “dream” of continuing her academics in the United States.
Zhang applied to 20 public administration doctoral programs across the U.S. and heard back from ten. However, one stood out: Syracuse University’s social science Ph.D. program.
“(Since) I had seven years … in public administration, I really want(ed) to try something new,” said Zhang, a
second-year student in the program. “I knew that public administration in the Maxwell School is super strong and at the same time, I could have a
I was shocked, not about the decision, but the process. When you are students, you are informed of the decisions, but not integrated into (them).
Jun Zhang ph.d. student
little more chance and the flexibility to explore other disciplines — that’s what really attracted me.”
In February, students in the Ph.D. program were informed in a meeting with current faculty chair Renée de Nevers that admission to the program had been paused for two years, Zhang said. It remains halted indefinitely.
After the February meeting, students requested a meeting with Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Dean David Van Slyke, which Zhang said de Nevers helped them arrange. During the March 18 Zoom meeting, Van Slyke cited a “reimagining” of the program as the reason for the pause, according to meetingnotesobtainedbyTheDailyOrange.
“Maxwell is continuing a pause on admissions to the social science
Around a hundred people gathered in the Common Council’s chambers
afternoon with flags and signs to call for a resolution in support of a ceasefire in Gaza.
During the entirety of the Council’s study session, members of the ‘Cuse Ceasefire Coalition — a collection of local activist groups dedicated
to passing the Common Council resolution — and other community members wore Palestinian and Israeli flags and held signs calling for a ceasefire. Pat Hogan, who represents the 2nd District, said the Council will vote on the ceasefire resolution at its regular meeting Monday.
“I wanted to thank everybody in the audience here,” Hogan said.
“Before anything, we are citizens in the city of Syracuse, we owe
each other respect and let’s act in that manner.”
The resolution will urge “the President and the Congress of the United States to call for peace to lessen the suffering of civilians in Israel and Gaza,” according to next Monday’s meeting agenda. Common Councilor At-Large Chol Majok, who will introduce the resolution at the next meeting, asked the other councilors to save any comments for Monday.
“The citizens of the United States want a permanent ceasefire called and passed, and we believe our country has the power to do so and should do so,” coalition member Amelia Bittel said. After Hamas’ initial attack on Israel killed 1,200 people almost six months ago, Israel’s response has killed over 30,000 and wounded 70,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli military killed seven people working with the World Central Kitchen who were on a convoy Tuesday. While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the airstrike was an accident, Chef José Andrés, the founder of WCK, told Reuters the aid workers were “targeted deliberately.” Bittel said Israel has “already committed multiple war crimes.”
free thursday, apr. 4, 2024 celebrating 120 years
The best quotes from sources in today’s paper.
NEWS
“If (SU) can spend millions of dollars on building new dorms, they can spend money on having an event to get all students to vote.”Ben Martin, Syracuse University sophomore Page 7
The Daily Orange is an independent, nonprofit newspaper published in Syracuse, New York. The editorial content of the paper — which started in 1903 and went independent in 1971 — is entirely run by Syracuse University students.
The D.O., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is editorially and financially independent from SU, and the paper receives no funding from the university. Instead, The D.O. relies on advertising revenue and donations to sustain operations.
This fall, the paper will be published Thursday when SU classes are in session. The D.O.’s online coverage is 24/7, including while SU is on break.
To show your support to The D.O.’s independent journalism, please visit dailyorange.com/donate. Donations are tax deductible. Editor@dailyorange.com
corrections policy
letter to the editor policy
If you are a Syracuse University or SUNY-ESF student interested in contributing to The D.O. on either its advertising or editorial teams, please email editor@dailyorange.com. The D.O. strives to be as accurate in our reporting as possible. Please email editor@dailyorange.com to report a correction. The D.O. prides itself as an outlet for community discussion. To learn more about our submission guidelines, please email opinion@dailyorange. com with your full name and affiliation within the Syracuse community. Please note letters should not include any personal information pertaining to other people unless it is relevant to the topic at hand. All letters will be edited for style and grammar.
CULTURE
“If you're on the quad, there'll be thousands of people on the quad all looking up. When's the last time you saw thousands of people all looking up?” Walter Freeman, an SU physics associate teaching professor Page 9
OPINION
“This speaks to broader issues that those who pursue majors similar to African American studies face at other universities – institutions of higher education not valuing the major.” - Sarhia Rahim, columnist Page 11
SPORTS
“He rolls this thing out, it is just really really nasty." - Tom Ripley on Riley Figuerias' wrap check Page 16
Noteworthy events this week.
WHAT: Pet Therapy
WHEN: Apr. 4, 5:15 - 6:45 p.m.
WHERE: Barnes Center at The Arch, 103
WHAT: Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion: Open Skate
WHEN: Apr. 5, 2 - 4 p.m.
WHERE: Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion
WHAT: Holi
WHEN: April 6, 12 - 4 p.m.
WHERE: Women’s Building, Field (weather permitting)
Many Syracuse University students, several of whom are first-time voters, did not cast their vote in Tuesday’s presidential primary election, citing frustration with candidates and a lack of university communication about the election.
New York had a low voter turnout statewide with only about 5.1% of New York’s registered Democrats and about 5.8% of New York’s registered Republicans casting their ballots in Tuesday’s election, including early voting, according to preliminary results from the state’s Board of Elections.
Nearly 12% of Democratic primary voters left their ballots blank to send a “clear message” to Biden to “stop the genocide in Gaza,” according to a release from Leave it Blank NY. In New York’s 22nd district, which encompasses Syracuse, only 6.8% of Democratic voters left the ballot blank — among the lowest in the state, according to City & State New York.
This year’s ballot was headlined by incumbent Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, both of whom “easily” won the primary, according to the Associated Press. Most of the other candidates who were on the ballot, such as Nikki Haley and Dean Phillips, have dropped out of the race, according to The New York Times.
Although several students said they were not voting in the primaries Tuesday, most expressed that they planned to vote in other upcoming elections, including the New York primaries on June 25 and the general elections on Nov. 5. Although they plan to vote, most indicated concerns and frustration with the candidates on the ballot.
Christopher Davis, a sophomore magazine, news and digital journalism major, said he will be voting in the November elections despite being “disappointed” with the candidates.
“I’m not satisfied with our candidates,” Davis said. “Both candidates right now just don’t have the best interest of our people and I think there’s a lot of broken promises.”
As a registered independent, Carlo Pisacane, a junior studying computer science, said he is unsatisfied with this year’s presidential candidates but said he will be voting in the November general election for who he considers a “lesser evil.” He said, despite his reservations about the candidates, it is important to vote for president.
Nate Harrington, a second-year creative writing and magazine, news and digital journalism major, said neither candidate represents a “majority” of the country’s opinion, saying voters are just “settling.” Similarly, Arieza Maglalang, a freshman majoring in anthropology, said voters have to choose a candidate based on avoiding harm.
“In terms of politics, I feel like we’re at a position where it’s basically just picking between who’s a lesser of two evils,” Maglalang said. “It’s mostly like who’s not going to screw us over.”
Students also expressed various issues, such as gun control, educational reform, the environment and LGBTQ+ rights, as their motivation for wanting to vote in upcoming
elections. The most prevalent issue that students cited as a motivation was reproductive rights, especially as states across the country limit access to abortion and reproductive healthcare in the wake of the Roe v. Wade decision.
Students mainly emphasized disappointment in the lack of ethics they had seen from the two candidates.
“We’re lacking good leaders and, in general, being a good person is important,” said Ben Martin, a sophomore studying advertising and entrepreneurship. “I’m not really seeing that in these leaders so I want to vote to have more humanity and ethics in office.”
Information about local upcoming elections, voter registration and polling locations can be found by going to the county’s Board of Elections website, Onondaga County Board of Elections Democratic Elections Commissioner Dustin Czarny said. On the website, new voters, including SU students, can access direct links to register to vote and request absentee ballots to anywhere in New York state.
Paloma Valderrama, a sophomore studying architecture at SU, did not vote in the elections Tuesday because she said she doesn’t know how to register to vote.
“I was born here but I did not grow up here, so I have no clue how to do it and I just don’t have time to figure it out,” Valderrama said.
Valderrama’s struggles with accessing information about voter registration and the primaries are not isolated. Czarny said the issue with students’ lack of knowledge on voter registration is because they don’t know where to look.
Several students, including those registered to vote, said they were not going to vote in the
For German Nolivos and Reed Granger, the lone candidates for president and vice president of Syracuse University’s Student Association, “Listen, Learn, Lead” is more than a campaign slogan. It is a pledge to continue to recognize the diversity of a predominantly white institution.
Throughout their campaign, Nolivos and Granger have emphasized how their backgrounds as members of minority groups will influence their leadership for SA’s 68th session. They’ve grown tired of their communities’ perspectives going “unaddressed.”
“I want to be a voice for students like me, who normally don’t have these types of voices or a (seat) in the room in conversations with those in power,” Nolivos said.
“We need to have all communities in positions of power, because, at the end of the day, we need everyone’s voices.”
Though their platform has six primary goals, Nolivos and Granger have put the greatest emphasis on two: the “promotion of DEI through supporting historically marginalized students” and strengthening SA’s relationship with the student body, according to their campaign’s Instagram page.
Nolivos and Granger, both current sophomores, are running uncontested in this year’s spring general elections and received endorsements from several student government leaders, including current SA Vice President Yasmin Nayrouz and the members of SUNY ESF’s Mighty Oak Student Assembly, throughout this election week.
“(Nolivos and Granger) are both incredibly hard-working people,” Naryouz said. “They bring so much passion, creativity, new ideas and they are truly dedicated to improving the student experience and helping their peers.”
While many past SA executives have run their senior year, they feel confident that their
past experiences with the association have prepared them well for the position.
Nolivos, who currently serves as SA’s vice president of community and government affairs, said he was inspired to pursue government and politics after growing up as a political refugee. As a Venezuelan immigrant, he has emphasized throughout his campaign how growing up under political turmoil taught him the importance of considering a “sense of belonging as a leader.”
“I came to the (United States) because of the tyrannical regime in my country,” said Nolivos, who is also a dual major in political science and public relations. “My whole life has been determined by the political factors surrounding me.”
After immigrating to the U.S., Nolivos went to high school in Miami — where he served as president of his high school’s student government. He then came to SU as a Posse Leadership Scholar — a program that offers full tuition to students with “extraordinary academic and leadership potential from Miami,” according to its website.
Granger, SA’s current chief of staff, also cited their background as a driving force behind their leadership style and campaign goals. Granger — a Black student who identifies as queer — grew up in a suburb outside of Dallas, Texas. While her community in Dallas was diverse, she said she often struggled with feeling accepted.
“I was not as welcomed as I would have preferred in my K through 12 experience,” Granger said. “I looked up to people who look like me and were able to speak up on (these) issues.”
To cope, Granger said they looked to Black female politicians and “queer leaders” as role models. Granger said these individuals taught her the importance of being a “welcoming face” for marginalized groups who often feel isolated and “alone” on a campus as vast as SU.
Nolivos and Granger have been members of the association since their freshman year and assumed leadership positions in the past general election cycle.
This past semester, Nolivos organized SU’s inaugural Calentón Music Fest — the school’s first Hispanic/Latine music festival co-hosted by SA, Las Naranjas — a Spanish language and culture club at SU — and La L.U.C.H.A.
Nolivos said he was proud to introduce programming that created a space for Latino students on campus and hopes SA will continue to
host programming with other cultural groups.
“If I hadn’t been in the organization, I don’t know if anyone else in the organization would have gone for this specific event,” Nolivos said. “We need to have all communities in positions of power, because, at the end of the day, we need everyone’s voices.”
Nolivos, who is also president of Las Naranjas, organized Calentón alongside María Quiñones Rios, a club member and junior in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Quiñones Rios said she met Nolivos last academic year, and he later convinced her to join Las Naranjas. He pitched the idea for Calentón to her in the summer of 2022.
Through organizing Calentón, which Quiñones Rios called a “surreal” experience, she developed a friendship with Nolivos and said
she is “proud” of his decision to run for SA president.
“(Nolivos is) just a very resourceful person. If you need something at Syracuse, ask him and he’s going to know somebody who can help you … he has a contact for literally anything,” Quiñones Rios said. “It did not surprise me at all when he told me he wanted to be SA president.”
Kinara Orozco, a senior in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and friend to Granger, similarly expressed support for their Nolivos-Granger campaign. Orozco has worked with Granger through her position on the executive board of the SU chapter of Phi Sigma
Metro Boomin and Future - “WE DON’T TRUST YOU” album
MUI 402 - Current State of the Music Industry
In their new album, “WE DON’T TRUST YOU,” Metro Boomin and Future reiterated their status in the music industry. With features from Prodigy, the pair assert the idea that they are successful artists in the industry.
“Who the veterans? Who the seasoned veterans at this sh*t/ That can tell you what’s hot and what’s not?”
With disses and references to other artists, this album is proof that the state of the music industry is complicated. By taking MUI 402, students will learn what the music industry looks like in 2024, and maybe what prompted these artists to claim they’re at the top of the game.
TRF 430 - Topics in Entertainment Business
“WE DON’T TRUST YOU” is this year’s single most streamed album on Spotify in one day when it was released on March 22. The two know how to craft a successful album.
Take TRF 430 – the artist representation section specifically – to learn more about new entertainment business theories and upcoming trends in the industry that Metro Boomin and Future mastered on their album.
March was a month full of exciting new music releases. If you liked last month’s music, check out the culture section’s recommendations for classes to take next semester.
EFB 340 - Forest/Shade Tree Path
WGS 297 - Philosophy of Feminism
Olivia Rodrigo is known for her girl power bops. What better class for “Livies” to take than a course on the foundations of feminism? On songs “all-american bitch” and “girl i’ve always been,” Rodrigo channels her unapologetic self. “I can’t say I’m a perfect 10, but I am the girl I’ve always been,” Rodrigo sings on “girl i’ve always been.”
Learn different feminist theories on what caused the secondary sex status of women to channel the activist Rodrigo.
PSY 329 - Biopsychological Perspectives
Rodrigo has handed out contraception on her “GUTS world tour.” She immediately received backlash online and decided to stop. While fans may not find condoms and Plan B at her concerts anymore, take this class to learn about the importance of women’s health.
The class will discuss psychological theories of gender and adaptive fitness. Students will explore the interactions of behavioral, endocrine and immune processes on women’s health.
If you love nature as much as Kacey Musgraves, head on over to SUNY ESF for the Forest/Shade Tree Path class.
“It's in our nature to look out for each other, In the heart of the woods,” Musgraves sings on “Heart of the Woods,” which is about her Tennessee home.
Take this Environmental and Forest Biology class to learn more about the importance of forests.
MTC 551 - Songwriting
Throughout her career, Musgraves has made a name for herself as a standout lyricist. She frequently writes songs for other artists, including Miranda Lambert and Hayden Panettiere.
By taking MTC 551, students can learn about the behind-the-scenes processes that lead to their favorite songs. After taking this class, SU students may even find success for themselves as a ghostwriter like Musgraves.
FST 422 - Wine and Beer Appreciation
Many of Hozier’s songs discuss drinking habits, a theme reiterated in his latest EP. Hozier sings “I'd rather take my whiskey neat,” in the song “Too Sweet” and the lyric has gone viral.
If you love the viral TikTok trend, take Wine and Beer Appreciation. In the class, learn more about both still and sparkling beers and wines by engaging in discussion. The class will also explore ingredients, processes and laws of beer and wine.
ITA 101 - Italian 1
Hozier’s new EP “Unheard” is part of the album “Unreal Unearth,” which is based on the classic Italian poem “Dante’s Inferno.” In the album, every song corresponds to a level in hell described by Dante. In the EP, “Too Sweet” relates to the sin of gluttony, also described in “Dante’s Inferno.”
By taking Italian classes at SU, diehard Hozier fans can read and interpret the subject matter that inspired him in its original format. Fluency in Italian may enhance and deepen the experience of listening and re-listening to Hozier’s greatest hits.
HOM 493 - Music and Identity
Beyoncé’s recent album “COWBOY CARTER” explores the breadth of American culture through various music genres, from country to rock and roll. While introspective, the album also inspires listeners to appreciate diverse communities and organic, everyday sounds.
HOM 493 encourages students, and members of the BeyHive, to critically analyze intersecting identities and music genres in today’s world.
DAP 368
Beyoncé’s “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” has us headed to a dive bar ready to line dance. But first, we have to learn the steps. With DAP 368, students learn the histories and impact of ballet, jazz and modern dance through readings, viewing and demonstrations.
PSY 373 - Human Memory
Ariana Grande’s new album “eternal sunshine” gets its name from the 2004 film “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” The movie is about a procedure that allows participants to remove all memories of a significant other from their minds.
With PSY 373, students can learn about how memories work, and the role they play in human behavior.
With songs like “Don’t Wanna Break Up Again” and "We Can't Be Friends,” Grande dives into the controversy surrounding her split from husband Dalton Gomez for “Wicked” co-star Ethan Slater.
"We both know it's time / So we say goodbye / Just one kiss goodbye / With tears in our eyes / Hope you won't, won't regret me / Hope you'll still think fondly of our little life."
With controversies throughout her career, Grande is a constant presence in gossip magazines. Through “eternal sunshine,” she responds to her critics by capitalizing on the rumors about her. By taking PHI 192, learn about the ethics that may be behind her decisions.
Syracuse University will remain test-optional for students applying for admission in fall 2025 and spring 2026, according to a Wednesday news release.
SU first established a test-optional admissions policy in 2021 during the pandemic and has since extended the policy to subsequent admissions cycles.
Under the policy, applicants are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores.
Applicants are not penalized if they choose to not send scores and are still considered for merit scholarships, according to the release.
If an applicant chooses to submit their test scores, they may either selfreport or submit official scores. Applicants who self-report must submit official test scores if they are admitted and choose to enroll.
Maurice Harris, dean of admissions, said in the release that the test-optional policy allows “greater emphasis” on other aspects of prospective students’ applications like academic courses and extracurriculars.
With the pandemic and concerns over the equity of standardized testing, test-optional admissions policies have become more common in recent years. Over 1,900 schools did not require applicants to submit scores for fall 2024 admissions, according to the National Center for Fair and Open Testing. After the United States Supreme Court overturned affirmative action in June, experts predicted even more colleges would switch to test-optional.
Since then, some major universities have gone back to requiring standardized test scores, including Dartmouth College, Yale University and Brown University, pointing to the standardized tests’ indicators of success in college classes. Others, like Georgetown University and the University of Florida, immediately reverted to requiring test scores after the pandemic subsided.
At a September University Senate meeting, Vice Chancellor Gretchen Ritter said that SU would keep its legacy admissions in place as the university does not “simply admit” based on legacy. However, she added that the university’s admissions efforts would focus on recruiting a diverse student body and revising essay questions to ask applicants how they would contribute to a campus community that is “welcoming to all.”
spwright@syr.ed @stephaniwri_
Syracuse University adopted a test-optional admissions in 2021, responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. It has extended the policy into the fall 2025 and spring 2026 admissions cycles. leanne rivera staff photographer
the notes state.
A staff member in Maxwell told The D.O. that de Nevers’ term ends on June 30 and that the school has invited Lutz to fill the position.
Ph.D. program while we evaluate and explore options, which include reimagining and refocusing the program,” Cort Ruddy, Maxwell’s director of communications and media relations, wrote in a statement to The D.O. “This is a storied program with alumni that continue to have (an) impact in academia, public service and beyond.”
The program is unique to Maxwell as the country’s only interdisciplinary social science Ph.D. degree. The 78-year-old program is designed for students whose academic interests could not fit into a single social science discipline, allowing doctoral students to build their own curriculum, according to the program’s website.
The program’s 38 doctoral students take courses and work with professors within Maxwell’s various social science disciplines such as anthropology, economics, geography, history, international relations, political science, public administration and sociology. Students can also take courses in other schools at SU like the Whitman School of Management and the School of Information Studies, de Nevers said.
All the “opportunities,” including support from professors, will continue for current students, the meeting notes state. Social science doctoral students are “fully funded,” according to the program’s website.
Maxwell is “committed to ensuring” the current cohort of students finish their coursework as planned, de Nevers said. A public administration and international affairs associate professor, De Nevers, who has held the chair position for six years, is also the program’s only faculty member.
According to meeting notes, students were told Amy Lutz, an associate professor in the sociology department, will become the department chair on July 1. She and Tammy Salisbury, the program’s administrative assistant, will continue as the program’s staff support,
According to meeting notes, Van Slyke told students that the reimagining has no “defined process” besides the continued pause on admissions. The application website for the program is still active online with no mention of the pause.
Van Slyke said that only 95 applicants applied to the program in the last five admission cycles compared to hundreds of applicants to other programs, according to the notes.
“In the meeting, we were presented with data on application volume, intake, and program reach that suggested that the program, despite the same degree of advertisement, has been unable to attract students at the rate or volume that ‘traditional’ programs have,” a student in a program who wished to remain anonymous wrote in a statement to The D.O.
Zhang said the dean presented the low admissions numbers in comparison to other Maxwell programs, including economics and sociology, as a “signal” that the program is not attractive to potential students.
“Do you think that there is a causal relationship between the quality of the program and the number of applicants?” Zhang recalled a student asking.
Meeting notes also state that Van Slyke was concerned with the prolonged time doctoral students take to complete the program. While some students finish the program in 4-5 years, others take close to 6, de Nevers said.
Van Slyke also discussed whether “resources” are being “optimally used” or if they would be “better integrated into mainstream disciplines” with “stronger infrastructure and job market,” according to the meeting notes.
“In academia, being affiliated with a discipline and a field is one of the most important elements of one’s professional success,” the unnamed student wrote. “This is why interdisciplinary scholarship, despite its importance, is relatively rare.”
During the meeting, Van Slyke, according to meeting notes, also told students there are no current plans to close the program — which the staff member confirmed. According to meeting notes, faculty and “others” will be consulted throughout the re-imagining process.
“I was shocked, not about the decision, but the process,” Zhang said “When you are students, you are informed of the decisions, but not integrated into (them).”
Another student in the program, who also wished to remain anonymous, said they are unsure of what the reimagining will look like, who is involved in the decision-making process or if Maxwell is using “traditional routes of engagement,” like establishing a faculty committee or collecting student suggestions.
Austin Brown, who graduated from the program in 2023, said its interdisciplinary structure attracted him to Syracuse. After earning a bachelor’s in psychology and addiction studies at Texas Tech University and a master’s of social work from the University of Vermont, Brown said the program aligned with what he needed academically from a doctoral degree.
“My interests have always been on the things that lie outside of the boundaries of what can be reduced in psychology, social work or environment,” Brown said. “(The social science Ph.D. program) was an opportunity to be able to access all of the (disciplines) that I think that I needed in order to make better use of the knowledge that I already had.”
Brown said he had excellent faculty support that pushed his research and dissertation work throughout his time at SU. He felt that most of his fellow doctoral students, whom he called “committed scholars” with defined professional and academic goals, were happy with their experience.
During her first year, Zhang met a public administration graduate student in a sociology course interested in the program. After the student applied, he told her that he later received a notification that the program was not admitting students that year, she said.
“The program hasn’t admitted any new students in the past two years, and did not give this message to the potential applicants,” Zhang said. “This is a program that some applicants only want to (attend) … they plan the rest of their lives based on that.”
Brown emphasized that he was committed to attending the program, both for its interdisciplinary nature and for the “prestige” of SU. Even after being published around 30 times, he was on the waitlist before receiving admission, he said.
Even before the official meeting, Zhang heard murmurs about the lack of new enrollment. Once students were officially made aware, efforts to organize have been “scattered,” she said.
“Any changes made will embody the prestige of the program’s history while adapting to a shift in recent years where potential students opt to apply for specialized degrees in other disciplines,” Ruddy wrote to The D.O.
One of the unnamed students in the program wrote they have “no immediate insecurity” given the “assured” support from the dean that they will be able to complete their degrees, but that there is “no clarity” on the next steps.
“Of course, if intake is paused for a few more years, we will all graduate and the program will shut down organically,” the student wrote. “We have no reason not to take the Dean’s Office at their word when they say that they are not shutting down the program, but pausing intake to reimagine it.”
Zhang said some changes would benefit the program but that students must be included in the decision-making, which should be done in a democratic and clear process, not the “black box” it’s currently being made in.
“What did you do in the past two years?” she said, referring to Maxwell’s leadership. “We need to solve problems in the time that we have, not put off (solutions).”
“We, as a coalition, just want our city — which is a sanctuary city that many people from many different cultures, including a very large number of Muslims, Arabs and Jews call home — … to recognize the atrocities and condemn them,” Bittel said.
The coalition held a public forum at the North Side Learning Center on March 21 with several community activists to discuss why they believe the Syracuse community should support a ceasefire. A panelist at the forum said Majok, who was in attendance, and At-Large Councilor Rita Paniagua support the coalition, and Majok said they have used the CCC’s feedback to help craft the proposal.
Through the coalition’s conversations with residents, Bittel said that, “by and large,” the Council’s constituents support the resolution. She said the coalition has collected letters and signatures from a change.org petition, which currently has over 620 signatures as of 11:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Diane Wladis, who is Jewish, said there has been a “tremendous wave of antisemitism that is unprecedented” and fears the ceasefire resolution may encourage antisemitism, racism and Islamophobia.
“Votes like this that really have no impact on the geopolitical climate do have an impact on the community and the way that Jews are treated and perceived,” said Wladis, who held a sign that read “Political moral cowards use antisemitism and racism.”
Wladis added that she is in support of a ceasefire but said hostages need to be returned first.
About 240 civilians and soldiers were taken by Hamas and other militants to the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, according to the Israeli Military. The Wall Street Journal reported last Wednesday that 130 hostages remain in captivity, including the bodies of at least 34.
“I’m here to represent, to remind people that politicians should not use their platform to encourage antisemitism and racism and Islamophobia,” Wladis said. “Those are things I have always fought against and right now it just feels like the Jewish voice is being marginalized, so I’m here to speak up.”
Attendee Collin O’Connor said he went to the event to “stand out against” propaganda and misinformation about the war. Since the start of the war, misinformation on social media has ranged from claims of Palestinian “crisis actors” to the Israel Defense Forces shooting at the attendees of Nova music festival on Oct. 7.
“It’s in all of our interests to stop this, so my small part — hold a sign — just let the city council know at least some of us fear,” said O’Connor, who held a “ceasefire now” sign.
O’Connor added that it takes a “lot of courage to actually stand up” in a place like the study session and said he was grateful for the people who came to the meeting.
The CCC encouraged people to “pack the Common Council Chambers” before its regular meeting on Monday at 1 p.m., according to an Instagram post. The coalition will also host a rally in support of a ceasefire at City Hall at 2 p.m. Sunday.
“We just hope that humanity goes out over all of the other feelings because … all we’re asking for is humanity,” Bittel said.
kaluther@syr.edu @kendallaluther
ing new dorms, they can spend money on having an event to get all students to vote,” Martin said.
presidential primaries because they were not aware the elections were taking place Tuesday, with some pointing out they had not received any emails or seen anything on-campus from the university about the presidential primaries.
There were two polling locations on SU’s campus for Tuesday’s election in Goldstein Student Center and Huntington Hall, according to the Onondaga County Board of Elections.
Martin, who voted by mail to his hometown in Arlington, VA, said SU can “do better,” as tabling is the only initiative he said he has seen on-campus to increase voter registration and participation.
“If (SU) can spend millions of dollars on build-
Similarly, Harrington said there were no resources through SU that he knew of and he was “most definitely on his own” while looking for information on voting. He suggested the university should consider having voter information readily available in busy campus locations like Bird Library.
There is information and resources on voter registration, absentee voting, upcoming elections and polling locations on SU’s Office of Government and Community Relations website.
Alaa Elhussen said she believes SU has done a good job disseminating information on voter registration but only to students in majors
related to political science and government. Elhussen said SU should aim to make voting information more “accessible” to students with majors who may not have as much exposure to civic education, such as those in STEM majors.
Beyond concerns over access to voter and election information, various students also pointed to anxieties over the prevalence of bias and misinformation. Martin said these concerns have only been heightened with the amount of students who use social media as a news source.
Approximately half of United States adults get news “at least sometimes” on social media, according to a November 2023 study from Pew Research. Martin said this can be problematic because social media is often plagued by misinformation and bias.
Lily Klein, a junior studying psychology and forensic science, said bias will be an issue this election season.
“Finding unbiased sources is a challenge because everything is so biased and there’s a lot of wrong information out there and false news,” Klein said. “So it’s going to be hard to navigate that.”
Czarny said it is “crucial” that young voters register and show up to the polls this election year.
“If this generation participates at anywhere near the equal rates of the other generations, you outnumber the other generations,” Czarny said. “Your voice can really play a part in any election and if you are consistently voting, the politicians must and shall listen to you.”
saolande@syr.edu
semester, stood out to her during the recruitment process for their “enthusiasm” and interest. She said they have continued to be an active and highly engaged member.
“(Reed’s) definitely somebody who works well to hear other people’s ideas,” Orozco said. “I’ve never seen Reed just dismiss anybody before, at all … they always listen to you and have good feedback.”
Granger said one of her proudest moments during her time as chief of staff was collecting student feedback during SA’s “No
initiative.
Through No Problem Too Small, SA identified several issues pertinent to the student body. Nolivos and Granger have pledged in their platform to continue to focus on these concerns, including campus safety, food accessibility, transportation and sustainability on campus.
“People are often intimidated by trying to speak to leadership, but getting to be a vehicle for those concerns and bringing them to the people that can make change has been one of my favorite opportunities,” Granger said.
Nolivos and Granger also said they were heavily inspired by past SA executives, namely current SA President William Treloar, Nayrouz and Adia Santos, SA’s vice president during its 66th session.
Nolivos Granger said Santos has advised them throughout their campaign, including before the March 27 executive debate town hall.
“(Nolivos and Granger’s) vision for a more inclusive and engaged student body aligns with my own values and past goals as EVP of the 66th session,” Santos wrote in a statement to The Daily Orange. “I have confidence that under their leadership, meaningful progress can be made on priorities that really matter to the student body.”
Nolivos said he was inspired by Santos’ passion for “defending students in marginalized communities,” citing her involvement with #NotAgainSU — a series of demonstrations organized by Black students in 2019
to protest the university’s response to hate incidents on campus.
Even the “Listen, Learn, Lead” campaign slogan was inspired by past SA leaders, Granger said. They said the phrase intends to serve as a continuation of the Treloar-Nayrouz campaign, which emphasized “amplifying student voices.”
Unless a write-in candidate receives more votes, Nolivos and Granger will likely assume their roles in SA’s 68th Session next week — following the April 1-5 election period.
“There’s not a right way for (SA) to work without student input,” Nolivos said. “(As president), I cannot talk on my behalf or Reed’s behalf, I need to be a voice for 15,000 other people.”
With the help of our guide, April 8’s solar eclipse won’t pass you by
glasses. Totality in Syracuse will last a little over one minute, according to the SU physics department.
What is a solar eclipse?
f there is one day in Syracuse that shouldn’t be overcast, rainy or snowy, it is next Monday. On April 8 at 3:23 p.m., a total solar eclipse will occur over Syracuse skies. This is a once-in-a-lifetime event because Syracuse is in the path of totality, so bring proper viewing devices, a plan for the best viewing and, most importantly, enjoy the moment.
Important Safety Guidelines:
Totality is the peak of a total solar eclipse, when the moon completely blocks the light of the sun. You must have proper eye protection if you are going to look directly at the sun when the moon is not in totality.
Before and after the total eclipse, a partial eclipse occurs. Any sliver of the exposed sun’s surface can severely damage the unaided eye, because it is the same as looking at the sun on a normal day.
The most popular choice for eye protection are solar eclipse glasses, but you may opt for a safe hand-held solar viewer. The device you choose to look at the sun with must be compliant with the ISO 12312-2 international standard, meaning legitimate glasses must be stamped with the ISO logo.
For a limited time, solar eclipse glasses are being distributed all over Syracuse University’s campus. If your solar viewing device is scratched, torn or damaged, do not use it. Any type of sunglasses, potential clouds or other filters are not safe options to observe the sun.
When using proper viewing devices, do not look through binoculars, telescopes or other magnifiers. If you do not wish to view the sun directly before or after totality, there are various camera obscuras, pinhole projectors or eclipse projectors that are alternatives.
The naked eye can only safely view the eclipse when it is in totality, or when it is completely dark. Totality is over the moment the sun reappears through solar eclipse
During the new phase of the moon, the moon lines up between the Earth and the sun. When the new moon blocks a certain amount of the sun’s surface from Earth’s view, then a solar eclipse occurs.
A solar eclipse does not occur every new moon because the moon’s orbit around Earth is inclined by five degrees relative to Earth’s orbit around the sun. This makes the specific alignment required for a solar eclipse infrequent. However, there is an average of two to five solar eclipses around the world in a year.
Of these solar eclipses, there are annular solar eclipses, hybrid solar eclipses, partial solar eclipses and total solar eclipses. Total eclipses are the second most rare withhybrid solar eclipses being the most rare.
How is the upcoming total eclipse different from the total eclipse in August 2017?
Total solar eclipses can be seen from the same place on Earth’s surface once every 360 to 400 years on average.
“Subtracting the prediction for when the next (total) solar eclipse is (by the date of the previous eclipse in the same location), that will give you some number, it could be 100 years, it could be 1,000 years,” said Daniel Paradiso, a second-year physics Ph.D. student at SU. “Once you do that for all of the places around the globe, and average them all up, usually the number that is quoted is around 400 years.”
In Carbondale, Illinois, the town will experience two total solar eclipses within seven years. Syracuse’s last total solar eclipse was on Jan. 24, 1925, but the city was six miles outside of the path of totality, according to the SU physics department.
This year’s eclipse may be the only total solar eclipse in our lifetimes where totality is visible from Syracuse. The next total solar eclipse over New York state will be Oct. 26, 2144.
During the April 8 total solar eclipse, the path of totality is up to 122 miles wide while August 2017’s eclipse was about 71 miles wide. August 2017’s total solar eclipse traveled from the West Coast to the East Coast, and the upcoming total solar
eclipse travels in a northwest direction, beginning in southern Texas.
More people in the United States can view the total eclipse this Monday than in 2017 because of the path and new route. The estimated time in totality is longer for the 2024 total eclipse, nearly two minutes longer at its greatest at four minutes, 28 seconds.
For the corona, the uppermost atmosphere of the sun, which is visible around the moon during a total solar eclipse, there may be a more spectacular show for the 2024 eclipse. The sun will be “in or near solar maximum”, which would mean there is a possibility to see stronger solar eruptions. Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and constellations may also be visible during totality. If you are lucky enough, you may be able to faintly see a comet pass around Jupiter.
What should you consider if you would like to take photos?
Given the totality in Syracuse lasts for a little bit over a minute, you should not take photos of the eclipse when it is not in totality. Anything that damages your eyes will also damage your camera lens unless you have a proper solar filter.
Walter Freeman, an SU physics associate teaching professor, said he enjoys photography of both nature and astronomical subjects.
“The eclipse is a profoundly astonishing opportunity to make art, right? It is also going to be a beautiful and human moment and I don’t want to spend the entirety of my few minutes of totality thinking about ISO settings,” Freeman said. “So I haven’t decided if I’m going to take any pictures at all. If I do, it may be a carefully set up sort of artistic moment.”
The eclipse will be an unforgettable moment to share with your friends and experience during your time at Syracuse. Make sure to enjoy the moment, Freeman said.
“What I would encourage people to think about, particularly people who are looking to memorialize the occasion, is this will be a very human occasion,” Freeman said. “If you’re on the quad, there’ll be thousands of people on the quad all looking up. When’s the last time you saw thousands of people all looking up?”
davishood@dailyorange.com
By Ava Lombardi asst. copy editor
Syracuse University’s First Year Players (FYP) last performed “The Addams Family” in 2016. Eight years later, current students are reprising this classic show, creating an updated set and taking new approaches to beloved characters.
“This year is very special to me because we are doing a show that we have done before, but are approaching it with a new energy,” said Lia Della Bordella, SU junior and this year’s stage manager. “The first-years have
worked so hard and it absolutely shows. The entire show looks and sounds beautiful.”
FYP is an entirely student-run organization at SU that immerses members in various aspects of theater. Each spring, FYP puts on a musical that features an all-freshman cast as upperclassmen run things behind the scenes. This year’s musical will run from April 4-6 and tickets are available through the SU Student Box Office.
“The Addams Family” is a musical comedy adapted from cartoonist Charles Addams’ iconic macabre cartoon characters. The show follows
the iconic Wednesday Addams, grown up and in love with a man who her parents do not know about. The musical explores the relationships between the Addams family as they meet Wednesday’s “normal” boyfriend and his parents.
Freshman Anna McCusker, who plays Wednesday Addams, said the months of rehearsing with the rest of the cast have been “extremely fulfilling.”
“My favorite part of the rehearsal process has been the people,” McCusker said. “This has been such a welcoming place. Every rehearsal is filled with smiles and laughter and
I couldn’t be more grateful for the talented and kind people I’ve met through this show.”
The organization held auditions for the show earlier in the semester. More than 40 freshmen earned spots in the cast, crew or pit depending on their skills and interests.
Stage Manager Della Bordella has been part of the group since she was a freshman. Along with scheduling rehearsal rooms, building the firstyears’ schedules and attending set builds and rehearsals, she also acts as a liaison between different departments within the organization.
“We’ve been rehearsing the show since the beginning of the semester, but discussing it since the summer,” Bordella said. “I particularly loved getting to attend the auditions, there’s something really special about being so hands-on with a production from start to finish.”
In addition to rehearsals, FYP members participated in team bonding activities and hosted fundraising events during the fall semester. Keeping with FYP tradition, the first-years were also paired with older students who acted as
Redgate
Local house show venue Redgate is hosting two Syracuse Universitybased bands this Friday: Icelandic Orangutans and The Local News. The Local News will also support Saint Luke and Dipsea Flowers at Funk n’
Waffles Flower on April 11.
WHEN: April 5 at 10 p.m.
PRICE: $7 presale, $10 at the door
From a Louis Vuitton western-inspired Grammy’s ensemble to the release of singles “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” and “16 CARRIAGES” during this year’s Super Bowl, Beyoncé incorporates components of the country-western genre in her recent album while making it her own.
On March 29, she dropped her Act II album “COWBOY CARTER.” The album follows 2022’s Act I “RENAISSANCE” and 2016’s “Lemonade,” continuing a legacy of projects that focus on the ever-changing nature of art and culture.
Westcott Theater
Singer, songwriter, rapper and DJ Borgore is coming to Westcott Theater Thursday. Borgore, who has collaborated with prominent artists like G-Eazy and Miley Cyrus, released his latest album, CHIAROSCURO, on Friday. It is his first album since 2019, according to Spotify.
WHEN: April 4 at 9 p.m.
PRICE: $30 - $99
Funk ‘n Waffles
In the mood to listen to some Nirvana but want to hear it live? Funk ‘n Waffles has you covered. Nirvani, a Nirvana cover band formed in 2021, will play the venue Friday night. Each member of the Nirvani portrays one of the band’s original members down to their appearance and musical style. Get ready for a tribute experience you’ll never forget!
WHEN: Apr. 5 at 8 p.m.
PRICE: $18.22
The 443 Social Club
This Friday, Erin Harkes is performing alongside Little Saints at The 443 Social Club. Harkes, a singer, songwriter and comedian based in upstate New York, released her latest album, “Zoloft and Probation,” in 2021. Little Saints is an indie-folk band from Saratoga Springs and is made up of Natalie Santini, Andy Arnold and Ian Dingman.
WHEN: Apr. 5 at 7 p.m.
PRICE: $23.11
The Song & Dance
This Saturday, country artist David Morris is taking the stage at The Song & Dance for a stop on his “Bored in the USA Tour,” named after his 2023 album. The Charleston, South Carolina, native is known for combining genres in a “country hip-hop” collaboration. Fellow country artists Jake Banfield and Joe VanDresar are joining Morris on Saturday night.
WHEN: April 6 at 7:30 p.m.
PRICE: $20.29
The album’s 27-song tracklist boasts a long list of artists and collaborators. Beyoncé welcomes her daughter, Rumi, on the album’s fourth song “PROTECTOR,” and pays homage to country legends like Linda Martell, Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson.
In an Instagram post, Beyoncé said the process of creating the recent album started over five years ago after an experience where she did not feel “welcomed.” “COWBOY CARTER” inspires her to delve deeper into the breadth of country music, a journey that has evolved into one of unity and education.
“Act II is a result of challenging myself, and taking my time to bend and blend genres together to create this body of work,” she said in her Instagram post.
On the album’s cover, Beyoncé prominently sits atop a galloping horse, “Chardonneigh.” She takes the reins in her right hand while her left holds the rod of the United States flag, which purposefully focuses on the 13 stripes representing the 13 colonies. Attempting to uncover the image’s meaning has bewildered some individuals, who often settle on nationalism as its explanation. Others question why she displays a symbol that carries significant weight for the country’s oppressed groups, given her advocacy for them. We are reminded, however, that nothing Beyoncé does is without intention, and perhaps the cover and content of “COWBOY CARTER” is an attempt to explore the dichotomy between Blackness and Americanness, while proudly redefining both of these identities.
Her intentions analyze the prominence of Black people in the history of cowboys and rodeos, a culture deeply embedded in the framework of her home state of Texas. A press release shares that the term “cowboy” was initially used pejoratively to refer to former slaves as “boys,” who were skilled and endured the most overwhelming task of tending for livestock.
Beyoncé offers a platform for discourse that centers a reality of egregious social injustice, while uplifting the rich history of those like Bill Pickett and the Prairie View Trail Riders, who paved the way for today’s Black cowgirls and organizations like Oklahoma Cowboys. With her album, she finds solace in a complete immersion into her Black Texan identity, while using it as a tool for critique.
“COWBOY CARTER” begins with a somber ballad, “AMERIICAN REQUIEM.” It samples Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” originally composed to honor Russia’s defense against Napoleon, but has become a patriotic tune often played during July 4 celebrations in the United States.
“This house was built with blood and bones/ And it crumbled, yes, it crumbled,” Beyoncé sings, connecting the theme in the album’s final track, “AMEN.”
In other words, the United States was built
from page 9 fyp
anonymous “mentors” throughout rehearsals and were ultimately revealed to the freshmen in March.
Sophomore Fred Gullo, FYP’s pit manager, said the rehearsal process has fostered a tightknit community among members.
“The theme of ‘The Addams Family’ is that through thick and thin, no matter what, family comes first and last,” Gullo said. “I feel like that has gone beyond the show and affected both the staffers’ and the first-years’ experience.”
Gullo and his musicians have been rehearsing four times a week since the beginning of the semester. He is specifically looking forward to the audience hearing his two favorite songs: “Secrets” and “The Moon and Me.”
After only a few months, FYP has greatly impacted Gullo and McCusker’s experience at SU. McCusker is looking forward to her future involvement in the organization and believes “The Addams Family” will be a hit among patrons of all ages.
“This show is made up entirely of crazy, fun characters and it’s impossible not to be entertained by their antics,” McCusker said. “‘The Addams Family’ is a fun show, plain and simple. The audience will have a good time.” aalombar@syr.edu
upon the erasure, the “blood,” of Indigenous peoples and by the exploitation, the “bones,” of Black people. Both “AMERIICAN REQUIEM” and “AMEN” explicate a reckoning of our country’s past and signal a consideration of the death of a cruel America.
“Hello, my old friend/You change your name but not the ways you play pretend,” Beyoncé sings.
In this context, she sings to the institution of Jim Crow, a term no longer used in today’s daily language but with effects still visible in social and political contexts. In “AMERIICAN REQUIEM,” she questions whether society can stand together for something stronger than evil, articulating the need for unity and love.
On the album’s second track, she shines a light on today’s Black country artists with “BLACKBIIRD,” a cover of the Beatles’ 1968 hit “Blackbird.” Four Black Country Music Television’s “Next Women of Country” joined her on the song – Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy and Reyna Roberts. Their rendition is especially remarkable because of the original’s backstory. In an interview with GQ, Paul McCartney said he wrote the song to inspire hope after learning of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, specifically in Little Rock, Arkansas.
“In England, a ‘bird’ is a girl. So I was thinking a Black girl going through this, now’s your time to arise, set yourself free,” McCartney said.
Like “RENAISSANCE,” each song on “COWBOY CARTER” seamlessly blends, creating the feeling of tuning a radio while coasting down never-ending Texas highways. Willie Nelson acts as a host of the fictional radio show, KNTRY on “SMOKE HOUR ★ WILLIE NELSON” interlude, a return to his time as the DJ of Pleasanton, Texas’s KBOP.
As if finding the signal, the track plays snippets by blues artist Son House, rock and roll guitarist Sister Rosetta Tharpe, rock and roll pioneer Chuck Berry and singer Roy Hamilton, before settling on Nelson’s voiceover.
“BODYGUARD” exemplifies one of Beyoncé’s favorite ways of creating music – having no rules. With guitars, percussion instruments and passionate vocals, she creates an upbeat popcountry love song. The track feels like a runway
romance story – it’s flirtatious, edgy and one of the album’s standouts.
The feelings don’t stop there. The queen of country music, Dolly Parton, graces the tracklist’s second transition cameo “DOLLY P.” The name “Jolene” repeatedly echoes then fades away to Parton’s sweet, southern voice.
The same echoes kick-off Beyoncé’s version of Parton’s 1973 country hit “Jolene,” a song about rivaling romances. Parton begs auburn-haired Jolene not to take her man, while Beyoncé’s ready to fight the “hussy.”
“Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene/I’m warning you, don’t come for my man,” Beyoncé sings, letting Jolene know exactly who she’s messing with. “The games you play are nothing new/So you don’t want no heat with me, Jolene.”
The album continues with its 12th track “SPAGHETTII,” featuring country music pioneer Linda Martell and hip-hop country artist Shaboozey. Martell is the first Black female solo artist to perform at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry.
“YA YA” is then introduced with angelic, girlish vocals. Beyoncé, with Tina Turner’s ferocity, makes listeners want to grab a tambourine and stomp their feet. She sings of her roots in the United States, keeping the faith and the hope of a better future.
“My family lived and died in America/Good ‘ol USA/Whole lotta red in that white and blue/ History can’t be erased,” she sings.
Beyoncé said, “All the sounds were so organic and human, everyday things like the wind, snaps and even the sound of birds and chickens, the sounds of nature,” a truth clarified on the album’s 23rd track “RIIVERDANCE.”
She harmonizes over a glorified banjo and even uses her nails as a subtle percussion instrument, a nod to Dolly Parton and Patti LaBelle who, in 1987, also used their nails to sing “Shortenin’ Bread.”
With “COWBOY CARTER,” Beyoncé continues to spotlight, explore and challenge society’s view about culture and identity through lyricism and beats. It’s symbolism that unifies her messages, making it not only one of the best Beyoncé albums but also a great American story.
ststewar@syr.edu
The state of SU’s African American studies department represents a failure on the part of the university and an opportunity for improvement
Aday before the spring semester began this year, the African American Studies department received an email from the College of Arts and Sciences that they would go the semester without a department chair, hampering their ability to hire faculty. And with dwindling resources and support, the department’s ability to fulfill its mission is compromised.
In the aftermath of #NotAgainSU and the recent United States Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action, the African American Studies department at Syracuse University is facing a concerning decline. This decline doesn’t just impact academics, but represents a broader lack of support for diversity, equity, inclusion and access efforts within the university community. The current issues involving the AAS department and SU represent wider challenges to create spaces of equity in higher education.
As a Black student at SU, I am deeply troubled by the implications this has for our collective future.
Departments like African American Studies not only enrich the dialogue within academia but also foster an environment where diverse voices are valued and celebrated. They serve as a vital space to engage in critical conversa-
tions on race, identity and social justice. Courses offered by AAS challenge students to discuss race and encounter curriculums that address injustice. These classes then encourage students to engage with tough topics outside of FYS 101.
Without the department, there will be a void within the university that undermines the mission to foster diversity and inclusivity in higher education.
Students of color continue to fight for the implementation of DEIA training and an increase in initiatives to encourage diversity on campus. Similarly to #NotAgainSU, the advocacy of students is what helped bring AAS to life on campus.
Student-led programs within the AAS department have always centered on community and cultivating space for Black students through initiatives like the Martin Luther King Memorial Library, the Paris Noir Summer Abroad Program and the Black Syracuse Historical Mapping project.
Community building within AAS pushed the bounds of the SU campus as well with the department’s strong ties to the wider Syracuse city community. The Community Folk Art Center is a unit of the African American Studies department at SU and works to bridge the community and campus with its exhibitions, programming and volunteer opportunities.
While student activism has played a significant role in the building and resiliency of the department, it is now crucial for institutional support and accountability to accompany these grassroots efforts.
SU has stated that they will continue their DEIA goals regardless of the overturning of affirmative action, but the current state of the AAS department proves otherwise
“I think the lack of support for the department is not only a reflection of the university’s consistent failure to uphold academic integrity and academic freedom but also a failure to uphold its principles of DEIA,” said Alani Henderson, an SU student minoring in African American studies.
In addition to filling the empty department chair position, the university must take accountability for how they promote programs on campus and what they perceive as “valuable.” This speaks to broader issues that those who pursue majors similar to African American studies face at other universities – institutions of higher education not valuing the major.
Transparency is also required from both parties so students can participate in improving the department. Efforts made by the department to address the concerns they have for their future with students was one step. While students hold a lot of power on campus, the onus can not solely be on students. It starts with department leadership continuing to meet with the campus community and giving students a call to action that can better mold how students organize. Ultimately, the fate of the AAS department isn’t just a matter of academic administration, it’s a reflection of our university’s commitment to equity and justice. As students and stakeholders, we must demand better and hold our institution accountable. The AAS department’s resilience and legacy remind us of the importance of community and collective action in confronting systemic challenges.
Sarhia Rahim is a junior Policy Studies Major. Her Column appears bi-weekly. She can be reached at slrahim@syr.edu.
For as long as I can remember, the Latine community has struggled to reconcile the differences between race and ethnicity. My own family has been forced to have difficult conversations about colorism, racism, xenophobia and what it means to have white privilege when Anglo-American society doesn’t recognize white Latines as white.
I, too, have been called to think about my identity, how I’m perceived and both the setbacks and powers I hold as I move through the world.
This refusal of many to acknowledge their whiteness bleeds into every aspect of their lives, from how they interact with other marginalized groups, to how they think about systematic oppression, to how they answer seemingly simple questions on the annual census.
With the next census coming up in 2030, the White House has recently approved changes to combine race and ethnicity into one question, inaccurately positing Latino/Hispanic as a race and undoing the years of work that’s been done to bring greater visibility to non-white Latines both within and outside of the community.
For decades before this, the U.S. Census Bureau has organized race and ethnicity as two separate categories, listing Latino/Hispanic as an ethnicity and White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander and “other” as races. To spell it out even more, they also include the options for white, non-Hispanic and white, Hispanic.
Under this current categorization system, the census acknowledges that Latines may be of any race and, specifically, that Afro-Latines, Indigenous Latines, Asian Latines and Middle Eastern Latines can and do exist – which is unequivocally a good thing because it makes the visibility of people of color that much more prominent.
There are a whole heap of other issues with the new version we’ll see in 2030, like the fact that they only list six Latin American countries under Hispanic/Latino when there are, in fact, 33. They also listed Haitian under Black/African American when Haiti is considered part of Latin America.
From my perspective, this was done to make white Latines comfortable. Because for many of them, answering the first part is easy. But, it’s the second part that causes confusion, uncertainty and even anger because the majority of white Latines will not identify themselves as white.
This is especially true if they have been targets of xenophobia (which is often confused with racism), if they don’t identify culturally with Anglo-American society, if they want to deny their European colonist heritage or if they believe that they are of Indigenous or African descent based on their skewed understanding of the Latin American history.
Unfortunately, these beliefs and behaviors are common and widespread. In 2020 alone, analysts found that 44% of Latines marked “other” or left the question blank altogether and that 94% of census takers who responded “other” were Latines. Personally, I can’t tell you how many times my family members have voiced this inner conflict of not wanting to identify as white on government documents because it doesn’t feel “true” or “authentic to them.”
To a certain extent, I do understand the frustration. Throughout history and today, Latines, even white Latines, have been consistently racially targeted and oppressed by Anglo-Americans in similar ways to other communities of color. I’ve known relatives who grew up in the 60s when Jim Crow laws forced both Latine and Black community members to sit at the back of the bus and go to segregated schools.
I’ve seen photos of the infamous signs from Texas that read “We Serve White’s Only – No Spanish or Mexicans” and “No Dogs, Negros or Mexicans.” In addition to the horrific dehumanization of equating these two groups with animals, this also equates Mexicans with every other nationality in Latin America and makes a clear racial distinction between white people and Latines.
And yet, there is a simultaneous history of Mexican Americans specifically wanting to be categorized as white. In the 1930s, they protested in vast numbers when “Mexican American” was classified as a race and forced the next census to recognize them as white. This was likely because of the disadvantages they faced when they were othered within Anglo-American culture, society and media. Another layer of this is their own potential
racism toward other minority groups that they didn’t want to be equated with.
We’ve seen this happen to other immigrant groups as well like Irish Americans and Italian Americans, where historical oppression disappears as the definition of whiteness expands and evolves over time.
Go even further back, and the original period of European conquest in Latin America was characterized by a common goal of “mestizaje,” or to create a near-total white and mixed-race utopia where race no longer existed through murder, violence and genocide of Black and Indigenous communities. Historically, we have always wanted whiteness.
The legacy of race and ethnicity in the Latine community is long and complicated, unfortunately without any obvious resolution. What is clear to me, however, is that the problem isn’t actually the census at all. I’d argue that the heart of this long-standing question is white Latines and how they’ve been socialized to believe that their identity is removed from systems of white supremacy and anti-Blackness.
How they distance themselves from their own privilege when they are, more often than not,
perpetuating the same harmful attitudes that they believe they’re victims of. How they deny the very history of Latin America so they are able to claim oppression, then turn around and oppress other groups of people who have also been racialized in this country.
It’s frustrating that the U.S. Census Bureau director, Robert L. Santos is the first Latine to lead the department, yet he is to blame for this harmful and unnecessary change.
If nothing else, this new census is going to make it that much more difficult to recognize and combat racism and anti-Blackness. It’s going to undo years of conversations we’ve had as a community to understand the differences between race and ethnicity and unlearn the myths we’ve been told all our lives. If the goal was to give us representation, make progress and address a historic lineage of pain and erasure, I can say that this wasn’t the way to do it.
Sofia Aguilar is a first-year grad student in the Library and Information Science program. Her column appears weekly. She can be reached at saguilar07@syr.edu.
When Deputy of the Congress of Guanajuato, Mexico, Yulma Rocha, spoke in a discussion held at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs on March 21, she shed light on this haunting truth.
As a fierce advocate for gender equality, Rocha spoke to the problems that women have faced throughout politics in Mexico, stemming from her own personal experiences, having held a political office since she was 21.
Throughout her roles in Mexican politics, Rocha successfully led the enforcement of the 2019 federal amendment that calls for gender parity (an equal split of gender representation) in the political, economic and social atmospheres within her state, resulting in her collaboration with two more “diputadas” for the foundation of Guanajuato’s first feministically-driven legislative caucus.
The Maxwell School is a highly-endowed and accredited institution, and it is our responsibility to use the privilege of our education to highlight marginalized narratives, especially amidst the exacerbation of the feminization of poverty. We must raise awareness of these disparities and celebrate women, such as Yulma, who are paving the path for equity.
According to the Scholars Strategy Network,“representation of those marginalized by multiple, intersecting systems of power and inequality is intricately bound to the representation provided by women of color.” With increased representation and diversified perspectives, multifaceted policies can be brought to the table and into the rooms where decisions are made. To ignore our narratives, voices and legislative wins as women of color is to be ignorant of the intersectional stratification we’re systematically subjected to.
Raising marginalized voices to the platform of academia is vital to hearing different narratives and perspectives to a population that
On March 21, SU’s Mexican Student Association hosted Yulma Rocha Aguilar in a discussion regarding women’s participartion in politics. courtesy of valeria martinez
would otherwise be wrongly deemed as mere victims and not drivers for change. BIPOC student organizations representing their respective countries (especially in predominantly white institutions like SU) also have a responsibility to uplift resilient voices that are actively enacting and petitioning for political and legislative change. Often, those are the narratives often left out of Western academia as it continues the belittling stigmatization of the Global South.
The Mexican Student Association (MEXSA) aims to raise awareness and cel-
ebrate Mexican culture at SU. As the Vice President of philanthropy for MEXSA, I’ve cherished the ability to celebrate my beautiful culture while simultaneously advocating for native voices to speak on their achievements. Our events are deeply thought through and to avoid our culture’s appropriation and belittlement, we always give a quick presentation on the roots of important celebrations.
Mexico is so much more than the U.S. fueled drug wars and cartels. We, like all exploited countries, have valuable narratives and ideas. But if
western media perpetuates the idea that we’re victims of a war-ridden country, then our innovators and initiatives are never seen by the masses.
The upcoming election in Mexico is the first of its kind as two major electoral coalitions have nominated female candidates, and it is more than likely that Mexico will have its first woman president-elect by June 3, 2024. This wouldn’t have been possible with the reforms that vital feminists such as Rocha pushed and continue to push for.
Looking through the past events and panels tabs in the Maxwell School website and youtube channel, we can see that academics from the United States are invited to speak on Latin American issues. They usually do not focus on the perspectives of marginalized communities in the countries they call themselves “experts” in.
However, the Mexican Student Association President Jaime Mauricio Luna worked alongside Mariana Godinez to reach out to Mexican politicians to bring to the Maxwell School and lead transformative conversations about foreign politics. These are necessary as we go into a dreaded U.S. presidential election that marks stagnation and stratified regression more than it does societal progression.
“During the year that I have been part of the executive board, the team has been focused on making MEXSA not only an organization that creates fun cultural events on campus but can also host important conversations about pressing issues in our country,” Mauricio Luna said.
It’s vital that we acknowledge our privileged status as students of a private institution. It is through highlighting change-driven voices that we make an impact in students’ biases that go beyond a culturally-enriching event. Rather, we believe that student organizations are the catalysts needed to ignite systematic change as we have collective power in shifting the narrative through the resources that are at our disposal.
Valeria Martinez is a sophomore majoring in Earth Science, Sociology and Environment, Sustainability and Policy. Her column appears bi-weekly. She can be reached at vmarti10@syr.edu
After finishing its nonconference slate with a dominant 17-4 win over Cornell Tuesday, Syracuse has three conference games left in the regular season. The Orange currently sit atop the Atlantic Coast Conference, winning all six of its games against conference foes.
SU kicked off ACC play with an upset win over then-No. 2 Notre on Feb. 24 before defeating Duke a game later. Then, after a loss to then-No. 15 Stony Brook, the Orange have defeated Virginia Tech, then-No. 9 North Carolina, then-No. 9 Virginia and Louisville amid their seven-game winning streak.
Next, Syracuse travels to Cicero North Syracuse High School Saturday to host Pitt. The Orange last hosted a game at CNS on April 8, 2023 against then-No. 19 Clemson. The game is the Orange’s last home game of the regular season before they travel to Clemson on April 13 and Boston College on April 18.
from page 16
One-on-one play is the bread and butter of club contests, Figueiras said, since players are trying to impress college coaches to get recruited. So before each game, Figueiras focused on knowing the dominant hands of his opposition and what dodges to expect. He never concentrated on throwing checks, instead dominating matchups with Joey Spallina at the Lake Placid Summit Classic with his feet. (One year, he held Spallina to just one assist.)
“Defense isn’t flashiness with split dodges or roll doges and all that,” Figueiras said. “It’s kind of just doing what everyone does and doing it at a higher level.”
In high school, as attacks slowly stopped relying on solo play, Ripley said Figueiras started “enhancing his teammates.” Syracuse defender Billy Dwan, who joined the Hawks as a sophomore, said Figueiras’ strength was his communication. “He always communicates, which is an underrated skill on defense,” Dwan said. “If you’re not communicating you’re probably doing the wrong thing.”
(Notre Dame), Naheem McLeod (Florida State), Kyle Cuffe Jr. (Kansas) and Chance Westry (Auburn) — to complete an impressive new-look side. It was a practically perfect offseason for the new head coach.
The results? Well, barring a few uncontrollable season-ending injuries to McLeod and Westry: SU’s most conference wins (11) in a single season since 2013-14. First victory against an AP top-10 team — SU beat then-No. 7 ranked North Carolina 86-79 on Feb. 13 — since 2019. Regular season sweeps over Pittsburgh and now-Final Four team NC State.
Autry was asked to evaluate his inaugural year at the helm after Syracuse’s ACC Tournament defeat:
“On this journey, when you get your opportunity as a head coach, you learn a lot,” he said. “I was proud to have this team, I was lucky to have this team.”
And an assessment of his players’ growth throughout this past season?
“This was a team that I needed. I thought we were all good for each other, but to put everything into context right now is a little difficult for me to do,” Autry said. “I love this team. I love their fight. I love everything about this team. I love the coaches on this team. That’s one thing I can say.”
“There was a deeper experience and dynamic between (the senior class), especially on the defensive end of the field,” Glanell said.
Costantino and Kelsey Richardson split time in goal, “quarterbacking” the defensive unit, according to Eckroth. Due to their differing playing styles, opponents were “thrown off” when they would substitute for each other in net, Costantino said.
“It’s just when you get that type of leadership (on defense), players elevate their game and their expectations,” SU assistant coach Regy Thorpe said. “I think they really respected the tradition that was built on the women’s side (program), and really wanted to create their own tradition and their own legacy.”
SU set out to hold its opponents under 10 goals each game. And it did, limiting opponents to 10 or fewer goals 15 times.
Here’s everything to know about Pittsburgh (4-9, 0-6 ACC) before it faces No. 3 Syracuse (10-3, 6-0 ACC):
All-time series Syracuse leads 2-0.
Last time they played…
In its 2023 ACC opener, SU traveled to Pitt on Feb. 25. After Natalie Smith scored just over a minute into the game, the Orange never trailed and trounced the Panthers 16-4.
Syracuse’s offense was spearheaded by Megan Carney and Emma Tyrrell, who combined for seven goals. SU’s four goals surrendered was the fewest an opposing team scored against it all season.
The Panthers report
Pitt sits at the bottom of the ACC, losing all six of its conference games. In their three years as a Division I team, the Panthers have only one conference win, which came against Lousiville on April 9, 2022.
Though the Panthers have a middling 31.6 Offensive Efficiency (44th in D-1), per Lacrosse
Figueiras understood the importance of communication playing in front of goalie George Alvarez as a freshman at St. John’s. Alvarez, now a junior at Harvard, was a “non-stop talker,” telling everyone on defense what to do.
“You’re not just saying what you’re doing, you’re helping your teammates out,” Figueiras said.
That type of communication was necessary at St. John’s because of the elite competition it faced in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference. Opposing attacks ran complicated sets which required more rotations and higherlevel thinking, Figueiras said. To learn how to stop them, head coach Wes Speaks taught Figueiras the importance of analyzing film.
Speaks helped Figueiras look for how other teams got the ball to their best players. Instead of watching professional or collegiate play in the basement, he examined clips of his opposition on Hudl at home in the two or three days between each game. If he had questions, he asked Ryan why an attack made the decision they did.
With a deeper understanding of preparation, Figueiras dominated the conference as a senior. He said good attacks tested him at the beginning of games, throwing five or so dodges before
It’s a love that’s likely tested, though. And it’s easily noticeable when tuning in to most SU games. Constant on-court bickering. Poor body language. A pile-up of embarrassing 20-plus point losses to Virginia, Duke, North Carolina, Wake Forest and plenty more forgettable defeats.
Syracuse’s season-ending loss was more of the same. Archaic outlet passes careening out of bounds. Self-inflicted miscommunication leading to wasted transition opportunities. Careless turnovers gave way to 30 fast break points for NC State. Looks of bewilderment shared between Mintz and Autry eliciting animated disagreements on play calls.
Beaten by the eventual bid-stealing champions? OK. You can live with that.
But surrendering a 21-2 second-half run and resorting to childish intra-squad squabble as the game clock dwindled? That marks the resurfacing of a now-unsalvageable issue. One that must be acted on in the offseason.
“Togetherness. As a whole. Especially when things get rough on the court,” Starling said when asked about what went wrong versus NC State. “A lot of things can happen over the course of a game and it’s easy to lose yourself in that. And that’s what we kind of did today…”
“I guess you can attribute that to maturity.”
So, concern amid the excess of Syracuse’s departures — and the lack of incoming talent — should be tempered. Autry’s learning what
Syracuse’s 15-1 record led SU to earn a share of the ACC regular season title. In the ACC Tournament, the Orange defeated Notre Dame and North Carolina to set up a rematch with Maryland. SU entered the contest on an 11-game winning streak, but two 3-0 second-half runs by Maryland led to a 13-7 loss.
On senior day, Syracuse and then-No. 11 Loyola went to overtime tied at 12-12. The Orange got out to a one-goal lead before Harbeson, a defender, intercepted a pass and scored her first-ever collegiate goal to seal the 14-12 victory. Harbeson’s goal marked one of the “greatest moments” during the 2014 senior class’s career, Costantino said.
On the sidelines stood head coach Gary Gait. The former men’s team star and current men’s coach always stayed composed no matter the events transpiring on the field.
“For the most part (Gait) was always very calm and truly had fun,” Katie Webster Fiacco
Reference, and eight players with at least 15 points this season, their defense is what sets them back.
According to Lacrosse Reference, Pitt’s 33.1 Defensive Efficiency ranks 93rd in D-I. In ACC play, opposing teams have scored 18.2 goals per game.
The Panthers played Duke closely, falling 13-11 on March 8 and fell 13-9 to Virginia Tech on March 23, but they have lost every other conference game in blowout fashion.
Against an inferior Pitt squad, the only way SU doesn’t win this game is if it gets off to a slow start and continuously plays down to the Panthers’ level. Slow starts plagued the Orange during their 3-3 start to the season, but there have been no signs of those issues repeating throughout their seven-game winning streak.
Syracuse head coach Kayla Treanor has preached throughout the season that she wants her team to play complete games, and the Orange should have no problem doing so against Pitt as long as they get off to a fast start.
giving up. The Cadets went 19-0 that year, only giving up double-digit goals twice as Inside Lacrosse’s No. 1 high school in the country.
Definitely being at the top then, it gives you the confidence to do it again.
Riley Figueiras su men’s lacrosse defender
“That was the culmination of all the years of putting that work together,” Figueiras said.
Figueiras’ historic final season at St. John’s was vastly different from the start of high school. Ryan said the transition for Figueiras was tough since he’d never played against many older players before on the club circuit.
Rather than going against Ryan, Figueiras further improved his one-on-one play versus then-junior and current Georgetown attack TJ Haley after practice. Ten games into the year,
works. The impatient sophomore core he led for year one had its highs but lacked discipline and consistency.
There’s been a concerted effort in the portal to mend these issues. SU has shown interest in Mount St. Mary’s guard Dakota Leffew, UNC Greensboro forward Mikeal Brown-Jones and Hofstra guard-forward tandem Jaquan Carlos and Darlinstone Dubar — all junior transfers and older.
Lampkin — a fourth-year player — became the Orange’s first commit out of the portal. A welcome quality shared between most of these targets? Hungry, hard-nosed, experienced mid-major players fit to plug the errors of this season’s personnel.
But they’ll be responsible for teaching SU’s newest recruiting class too. McDonald’s All-American Donnie Freeman is a freakishly athletic 6-foot-9 wing and the program’s highestranked incoming freshman since DaJuan Coleman in 2012. Consensus four-star guard Elijah Moore recently scored an unfathomable 67 points in a high school game and is considered one of the best shooters in the country.
In terms of those already in Autry’s system, Starling quietly blossomed into a steady doubledigit scorer and Bell cemented himself as one of the nation’s premier outside shooters. Cuffe Jr. fought for solid rotation minutes and offered reliable stretches on the defensive end. Westry,
(then Katie Webster) said. “He always joked that inside the dome, it’s always 70 and sunny.”
Thorpe and SU assistant coach Brett Queener supplied energy after big plays while assistant Katie Rowan Thomson (then Katie Rowan) shared her unmatched lacrosse IQ in “down-toearth” style conversations, Fiacco said.
In contrast to Gait, Thorpe brought a more emotional approach to coaching. Thorpe, a current assistant at Florida, delivered fiery pregame speeches that gave players chills, Costantino said.
The two mixing personalities created a wellbalanced staff that players could take pieces of. Then there was Rowan Thomson and Queener.
At practice, Rowan Thomson, not far removed from her SU playing career, included herself in offensive drills. Queener worked largely with goalies, quickening reaction time.
That year’s team bonded beyond team practices and games, congregating at “The Field” on Syracuse’s South Campus to play cornhole or
Stat to know: 40.2
According to Lacrosse Reference, Pitt’s 39.6-second Offensive Pacing is the eighth fastest in D-I. This means that, on average, the Panthers use less than half of the 90-second shot clock to take a shot.
Coming off a performance where Cornell only scored four goals while Syracuse caused 15 turnovers, SU’s defense must key in on slowing Pitt’s offense to ensure a similar blowout.
Player to watch: Jenna Hendrickson, attack, No. 36
In her junior season, Jenna Hendrickson led Pitt in goals (29) and points (37). Across six games this season, Hendrickson has notched at least a hat trick and scored a season-high four goals in the Panthers’ season-opening 20-4 win over Duquesne.
Though she’s not as much of a distributor, ranking third on the team in assists (eight), Hendrickson can take over a game through her passing. Against Louisville, she notched a career-high three assists en route to a season-high five-point performance.
justingirshon@gmail.com
@JustinGirshonhe was slated against St. Paul VI Catholic High School’s then-senior Jacob Angelus, whose talent was far above most players he had ever faced. Figueiras won the matchup.
“That was a big moment for me because he was the big recruit, one of the best players in the conference,” Figueiras said.
This year, Figueiras guarded Angelus again when Syracuse played then-No. 2 Johns Hopkins. Though a sophomore, Figueiras was under similar circumstances, saying the transition back to playing after his injury was rough at first. He felt like he could contribute off-ball, but he wasn’t himself on it.
On film, Figueiras realized he had lost some of the mechanics which were second nature to him. By the March 7 contest with the Blue Jays, he fixed those issues, holding Angelus scoreless.
“When I watch him play every game, I see all of the hallmarks of Riley that I saw when he was in high school. Aggressive, tenacious, chronically looking over at his shoulder to his teammates,” Ripley said. “That was the same kid I had the pleasure of watching growing up.”
a 6-foot-6 combo guard and former four-star prospect, shoulders lofty expectations.
Most signs lead to a pretty quality SU squad.
Autry’s trial run was a fun one to follow. Only now, his early offseason actions have shown that he isn’t shy from doing things his way. It’s been a long-vocalized want since his infamous apology to Syracuse University after losing 99-70 at Wake Forest on Feb. 3.
“We’re gonna work. We’re gonna work, and we’ll keep working,” Autry said postgame. “We’re gonna work to my standards.”
It’s not to say that the season wasn’t an accomplishment, nor should we deflect blame on the players and their performance. Once 202425 beckons, SU’s roster will be unrecognizable.
But Syracuse will be OK because a lot clicked this year. Master recruiting yielded high-profile newcomers. There was the implementation of an exciting high-paced offense and optimisticlooking man-to-man defense.
Autry understandably said the future was “hard to even think about right now” following the Orange’s loss to NC State. Now, things are trending in a different, yet correct, direction — Autry’s direction — even if it may not look encouraging.
So, in terms of what’s next? Well, buckle up and believe.
trschiff@syr.edu
Kan Jam. On road trips, they had karaoke sessions where Gait and Thorpe would sometimes participate as well.
The Orange entered the NCAA tournament confident, outscoring their opponents 40-23 in the first three rounds. Then, for the third time in less than three months, Syracuse faced the topranked Terrapins in the NCAA Championship. The matchup featured two Tewaaraton finalists from each team, including Maryland’s Taylor Cummings and Megan Douty and SU’s Treanor and Cometti.
But Syracuse failed to avoid a third straight loss to Maryland. Despite the defeat, the 2014 team is seen as one of the top in program history.
“I think we set a tone and set the bar pretty high,” Fiacco said. “We hopefully made all these younger girls in the country realize that Syracuse is an amazing school for lacrosse.” tswilcox@syr.edu
National hug a newsperson day
Quentin Hillsman, former Syracuse women’s basketball’s head coach who resigned in 2021 amid allegations of inappropriate behavior, threats and bullying toward his players, was hired by Ole Miss Wednesday as an assistant. It’s Hillsman’s first NCAA coaching job since his SU tenure ended in turmoil.
“I am extremely grateful and humbled for the opportunity to join the women’s bas -
Syracuse forward Alyssa Latham has reportedly entered the transfer portal. The news was broken on April 3 by Talia Goodman of The Next. Latham becomes the third SU player to enter the transfer portal after Marilena Triantafylli and Kennedi Perkins.
Latham came to SU as the No. 73 ranked freshman in the class of 2023, according to ESPN and had an instant impact with the Orange. Along with fellow freshman Sophie Burrows, Latham carved out a role in Syracuse’s rotation from the beginning of the season. Latham started 26 of Syracuse’s 32 games and averaged 8.6 points per game and seven rebounds while shooting 46% from the field. Latham’s performances garnered an All-ACC Freshman Team selection.
Her breakout performance came on Nov. 30 against Alabama, where she scored a career-high 23 points on 9-for-10 shooting while playing all 40 minutes. Latham also scored 21 points against Notre Dame on Dec. 31, leading the Orange to an upset victory.
Though Latham’s performances dipped throughout the season. In five straight games from Jan. 18-Feb. 1, she didn’t reach double figures in scoring and Syracuse head coach Felisha Legette-Jack moved her to the bench for the next six games. Latham started Syracuse’s final five games, including its two NCAA tournament games against Arizona and UConn.
With Latham in the portal, Syracuse’s frontcourt consists of Saniaa Wilson, Izabel Varejão — who announced her return for a sixth season this week — and Kyra Wood. Latham was the lone underclassman of the group. zakwolf784254@gmail.com @ZakWolf22
ketball team at Ole Miss, one of the premier programs and premier institutions in the Southeastern Conference,” Hillsman said in a statement.
The Athletic first reported the allegations against Hillsman in June 2021. The article contains interviews from nine former players and 19 other members of the team, including managers and staff members, which detail Hillsman’s alleged use of vulgar language and threatening remarks to his players. The report came after 11
players transferredfollowing SU’s second-round NCAA Tournament loss to UConn.
An Ole Miss spokesperson provided a statement to syracuse.com’s Chris Carlson in response to Hillsman’s hiring, writing that the program completed a “comprehensive background check” on the coach. The Rebels’ coaching staff has maintained a close relationship with him over the years, the spokesperson wrote.
Hillsman was previously hired as the head coach by Club Baloncesto Leganés — a professional
club in Madrid, Spain — in the wake of his resignation. He never coached the team due to visa issues and further backlash from his Syracuse exit. Coaching SU from 2006-21, Hillsman accumulated a 319-169 record and helmed the Orange to their first-ever national title appearance in 2016. He has also served as an assistant coach at St. Mary’s, Siena and Alabama, among other programs.
ccandrew@syr.edu @cooper_andrews
In 2014, Syracuse advanced to the NCAA Championship, setting up a trilogy matchup with Maryland. While SU steamrolled its way through the season, the Terrapins served as its kryptonite, handing it the only two losses of the season.
“We just knew that every time we played them (Maryland), we were gonna get an unbelievable fight from them,” Alyssa Murray Cometti (then Alyssa Murray) said. “They were so talented in every position.”
In front of a crowd of over 10,000 people in Towson, Maryland, the Terrapins jumped out to a 9-6 halftime lead. SU lost Liz Harbeson to two yellow cards and Mallory Vehar to injury in the second half as Maryland extended its lead to seven in the second half. The Orange led a comeback effort behind Cometti’s three second-half goals, but the Orange fell short, losing 15-12.
Though Syracuse came up a game short, 10 years later the team is seen as one of the best in program history. The Orange won a program-record
21 games and reached its third straight Final Four. The season set the tone for the program’s future as the Orange returned to the national semifinals in 2015 and 2016 and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament in each of the last 11 seasons.
Current SU women’s head coach Kayla Treanor and Cometti powered the attack to 15 or more goals in 10 games. Meanwhile, a senior-led defense held opponents to 8.88 goals per game and the midfield won 58.5% of draw controls.
That year’s senior class led the program to the 2012 National Championship after missing the NCAA Tournament the year prior. From that point forward, the feeling of playing in a national championship was something the Orange became fixated on, Cometti said.
Before the historic 2014 season, Syracuse fell to then-No. 1 Maryland 11-10 in the Final Four a year prior. The team lost defenders Becca Block and Linley Block to graduation, but 2013 captains Bridget Daley and Alyssa Costantino returned for their senior seasons.
“We had amazing leadership on that team,” Treanor, a sophomore in 2014, said. “For me as an
underclassman, (I) kind of just got to be a part of an amazing journey and ride with the leadership that we had that took so much ownership in what we wanted to accomplish.”
The Orange won their first six games but fell 12-10 to Maryland on March 10. SU went on to win its next nine games, including five top-10 matchups, setting it up for the ACC tournament.
Treanor scored a program-record 79 goals alongside Cometti, who led SU with 45 assists. The pair each tallied over 100 points while seven other players scored at least 10 goals, taking pressure off its top threats.
“When everyone is bought in, no one cares who’s the one scoring, it just allows you to play so much more freely,” Cometti said. “I think that’s what allowed us to be so lethal.”
The defensive unit led by Natalie Glanell, Kasey Mock Eckroth, Harbeson and Costantino — all of whom were seniors and roommates — provided constant pressure, forcing 55 more turnovers than its opponents.
When Paul Mokotoff, the founder of Syracuse’s club curling, graduated in 2022, concerns for the team’s future arose. Having seen other clubs in the region crumble after senior members left, the departure of the squad’s upper-class core created uncertainty.
“One of my fears when I graduated was, ‘How is this thing going to survive?’” Mokotoff said. “So back in 2022, I had stepped down as president and let someone else take over — prove that somebody else could run the club and other people could teach other people how to curl.”
Mokotoff, a curler since high school, founded the club in March 2018 at Utica Curling Club, located about 45 minutes away from SU, with sociology professor Rebecca Schewe, a curler at the club. That fall, Syracuse’s club curling team had seven registered members at the Club Sports Fair.
In its debut year, the team made a surprising national tournament appearance, a feat it’s repeated every year since. This season, it reached a new achievement: its first regional title, winning the Grand National Curling Club Collegiate Championship.
“Winning regionals was super fulfilling,” said Adam Wingert, a curler on the regional roster. “To win it all is a huge honor, and it is great having that (memory) with the team.”
Mokotoff’s worst fears of the team’s collapse never came true. Under its current president, Melanie Salas, an SU senior, the club’s membership has remained at around a dozen.
“Although I’m quite a distance away, I did hear about the win and I was very proud of them,” Mokotoff said.
Salas, who grew up dancing, joined the team after a group of friends convinced her to, though she was the only one to follow through on joining. She had no previous curling experience and didn’t ice skate, but found shared principles of balance and passion between dance and curling. Today, she’s the club’s first-ever female president.
Most of SU’s club curlers join the team with little to no experience, though many have a sports background. At the beginning, “everyone sucks,” a unifying experience that Alexander Reid, a firsttime curler, was drawn to.
“It’s doing something completely new for the first time,” Reid said. “You’re in the same boat with a bunch of other people, so you make really good friends through that common connection of, ‘This is really hard, but let’s see where we can go.’”
To start the season, the club holds “Learn to Curl” events at the Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion to teach new curlers. It is led by older members of the team or those with prior curling experience.
The club also hosts weekly Sunday practices in Utica and attends bonspiels — weekend curling competitions that feature several games and multiple teams. At early-season “team development” tournaments, the squad gives experience to younger curlers and learns how to strategize as a unit, Wingert said.
“It’s a lot of fun to watch people get into the sport, there’s a lot to learn and it can be pretty tricky to get things down,” Wingert said.
At practices, the team is coached by Schewe and Utica Curling Club’s M.J. Walsh and Roger Rowlett. Due to the learning curve of curling, early tournaments don’t always go well.
“Your first month curling, you’re going to get destroyed…but I still came to the next week because all I learned was, ‘Now I see what everyone else is doing, I really want to compete at that level,’” Reid said.
As the season progresses, the club identifies its core and increases its competitiveness at bonspiels. Syracuse attends tournaments in the northeast hosted by clubs such as Princeton and Yale.
Syracuse graduate student Josef Komissar said the club’s small roster allows for a “tightknit” group of curlers of varying levels of curling experience, which he said is critical for a niche sport. He and the rest of the team were thrilled to find out that regionals would be held “at home,” the Utica Curling Club.
“It’s fantastic to have all these college curlers hanging out in the (Utica) Curling Club,” Komissar said. “Everyone’s pretty friendly…(we get) out on the ice to compete with them and still have these good friends on the other teams after the games.”
Regional championships are a recent addition to college curling. At the tournament, SU went undefeated and finished first out of 24 teams. The club beat the defending champions, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, whose club is twice as large as Syracuse’s, to win the trophy.
“It was a dream come true,” Reid said.
Following the regionals victory in early February, the team traveled to the 2024 United States Curling Association’s National Championship in Rice Lake, Wisconsin.
Yet, Syracuse had a lackluster showing at the national tournament, losing in the first round. Despite the exit, the club drew positives from its tournament appearance.
“(It was) great to see some of the people we’ve been playing with from other schools (at nationals),” Komissar said. “Even if we didn’t perform as well, competitively, we still had a really good time and learned a lot of things that I think will carry forward into next year.”
Schewe said she is “optimistic” about the club’s future. She added that good recruitment has grown the team since its founding, and this year, strategy and play continue to “advance” to higher levels. Reid said that SU will look to mirror other programs’ core squad and backup squad set-ups going forward.
“The nationals team was headed by two sophomores. I think that’s really promising because they also headed the regionals team, led the team to victory in the regional championship,” Komissar said. “I think it’s looking pretty good for the future.”
By Anish Vasudevan editor-in-chief
Ask Riley Figueiras about his right ACL tear and he’ll first mention the date: October 14, 2022. The play he made that day was routine — a simple dash for the ball which just popped out of someone’s stick. The result was anything but normal. An awkward plant of his right leg resulted in the complete disappearance of his right knee.
“Your ACL is not there,” Figueiras said. “You don’t know what it’s going to take to get back. But you know how difficult it is just from hearing other people.”
Figueiras’ recovery journey was still different. Despite being a freshman, junior Saam Olexo wanted to learn from Figueiras after taking over his close defender position last season. Olexo knew Figueiras had years of experience guarding top national players at the club and high school level.
In one particular game, Duke’s Andrew McAdorey beat Olexo early. Figueiras told Olexo what he would do against McAdorey. Olexo wasn’t scored on the rest of the game.
Now fully recovered from his ACL tear, Figueiras plays alongside Olexo instead of giving tips from the sidelines. Wearing No. 11, given to the best player on Syracuse’s defense,
he has quickly stood out in John Odierna’s unit. He’s shown no sign of slowing down since high school when he won 65 straight club games with the Annapolis Hawks and wasn’t scored on his entire senior year at St. John’s College High School.
“Being able to play at a top high school and a top club team, you know you can play against these top guys,” Figueiras said. “Definitely being at the top then, it gives you the confidence to do it again.”
Figueiras began playing for the Hawks in fifth grade, staying with them through high school. Hawks coach Tom Ripley put a premium on footwork, comparing defense in lacrosse to basketball where it’s “feet first.”
Before every game, Ripley had his defenders do a simple box drill. Run up, shuffle to the side, backpedal and repeat.
“That’s not an accident, it’s the most important,” Ripley said about pregame drills. “The stick is secondary. It’s important, but in youth lacrosse it’s infinitely less important.”
Figueiras continued working on his footwork at home alongside Ryan, his older brother who was an attack at Detroit Mercy from 2018-22. The duo placed a ladder on the soft carpet of their basement, alternating running through it as basketball or football played on the TV in front of them.
The season wasn’t supposed to end this way.
Bowed heads. Fidgeting. Players stuffing game-worn gear into schoolbrand duffle bags and handing sneakers to team managers.
Reporter questions searching for first-hand analysis on pivotal game trends drew further displays of disappointment. Lengthy sighs. Furrowed brows.
But those painful inquiries are considered the underhand tosses, the softballs. Because following Syracuse’s 83-65 second round exit to NC State in its only Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament game, unanswerable questions surfaced.
What now? What next?
“I’m not answering those questions right now,” sophomore forward Chris Bell said when asked about his future with SU. “I love it here. This is home. That’s all I’ve got to say about that.”
No decisive responses from anyone. Though Quadir Copeland let slip a seemingly sarcastic verdict about playing under first-year head coach Adrian Autry.
“It was cool,” he said, lacking his usual effervescence. “It was fun. I enjoyed it.”
The suffocating air of the unknown thickened around SU’s locker room at Capital One Arena. Now, 21 days removed, it’s been an eventful offseason. Just not in the way most expected.
Syracuse, largely deemed realistic competitors for the National Invite Tournament crown given its 20-win campaign, rejected a bid on March 17. The reason? A puzzlingly narrowminded approach that the program’s “only postseason goal was to play in the NCAA Tournament.”
When Figueiras was in middle school, they taped the two televised college lacrosse games from the weekend every week, including matchups between Maryland and Syracuse. While Ryan focused on the attacks, Figueiras looked at Nick Mellen and Brett Kennedy as he cycled through the ladder.
The brothers took their skills from the basement to outside, battling one-on-one since Figueiras picked up a stick to when Ryan left for college. They fought against each other on a hill in their backyard or at The Calverton School nearby. Figueiras said he gained a lot of confidence going against his brother, adding some moves to his repertoire as well. In seventh grade, Figueiras mastered the wrap check, wrapping his stick around opponents’ bodies to take the ball away. He immediately brought it to the Hawks’ practice.
“He rolls this thing out, it is just really really nasty,” Ripley said. “He just got a knack for it. He got really good at setting it up and timing it properly.”
Heading into eighth grade, Figueiras made another big change with the Hawks. Because of injuries, Ripley moved Figueiras from close defender to long-stick midfielder for the summer. Ryan said it helped him master the spacing on the field, making him a better one-on-one player before he switched back to close.
When the transfer portal opened hours later, SU lost guards Copeland and Justin Taylor — two key contributors. They joined former highly-touted, four-star forward Benny Williams, who was dismissed earlier this season due to undisclosed reasons. Backup center Peter Carey announced his departure too. On Monday, All-ACC Defensive Team selection Maliq Brown followed suit.
Then there’s star point guard Judah Mintz. He returned to Syracuse for his sophomore season to boost his NBA Draft stock after flirting with the professional game last summer. This year, he averaged 18.8 points, 4.4 assists and clinched Third-Team All-ACC honors before the conference tournament — a distinction he was outwardly dissatisfied about — and is expected to test combine waters again come May.
Losses: five (potentially six).
Additions: one. Colorado transfer Eddie Lampkin committed to SU after taking his official visit Tuesday night.
And that’s OK.
Because reconstructing a roster — and succeeding — isn’t a foreign concept for Autry. Less than a year ago, he inherited a promising young squad from Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim and retained eight players.
Autry returned every member of Boeheim’s coveted six-man recruiting class in 2022, which ranked 21st nationally, according to 247Sports. And in the portal, he brought in four high-profile transfers
J.J. Starling