March 31, 2023

Whipping up some fun

Students express concerns at Adminstrators’ Forum

By Naidelly Coelho Asst. News Editor

Students expressed concerns about race-related issues on campus, policing, the registrar’s office and commencement at the Administrators’ Forum on March 28.

Student Trustee McKenzie Ward said coming to open forums is a great opportunity to express concerns and problems to administrators.

Dara Barros, SGA president, said women’s safety has been an issue lately and she believes campus police can be doing more.

“I think police officers should walk around on campus on foot, especially at night - late at night, just to protect women in general from possibly get-

By Leighah Beausoleil Editor-in-Chief

From small mom-and-pop shops to large corporations, Framingham State students are given the opportunity to gain valuable first-hand experience in the field they love through internships in the fashion industry.

This semester, students from the Fashion Design and Retailing Department who hold concentrations in merchandising began their transition into the workforce with their final two-credit course, according to Virginia Noon, a fashion design and retailing professor.

This course requires students to

ting kidnapped or even other things,” she said.

Barros said “kidnapping on campus hasn’t happened yet, but we should be proactive about issues like these.”

Kim Dexter, assistant vice president of human resources and equal opportunity and Title IX coordinator, said the staff has been conducting prevention studies on sexual harrasment, sexual violence, domestic violence, and stalking.

She said from the last sexual violence climate survey, they were able to obtain many answers from students regarding safety.

A new survey will be launching next Monday and she encourages students to fill it out.

Brian Dyson, president of Brother 2 Brother, said there is a need for sup-

port from staff for affinity groups.

He said the school’s Instagram page doesn’t promote affinity groups as much as it does other clubs.

Jeffrey Coleman, vice president of diversity, inclusion, and community engagement, said students want a sense of belonging at the University.

Barros said there is a need for more cultural events on campus to emphasize the importance of all cultures.

Dillon Riley, an SGA senator, proposed hiring a mental health professional at University police.

He said many town police departments have started to include someone prepared to handle mental health crises in order to help those in need.

Lieutenant Martin Laughlin said

See

FORUM page 8

complete over 280 hours of work at their respective internships in addition to the course’s accompanying assignments, Noon said.

“Those assignments really are developed to be reflective in nature, and they help them to assess the progress in their career [as well as] personal analysis of their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats,” she added.

Noon said she and the department’s chair, Professor Haewon Ju, oversee the internships throughout the course of the semester.

She said the department works “closely” with Career Development in order for students “to develop soft

skills.”

By the time the students are seniors, they will have made several drafts of their resumés and will be ready to complete the “final” ones of their college careers, Noon said.

In addition, the Career Development Office conducts mock interviews with students, she added. This “has been really great because sometimes, the students think they don’t need to do that, but they have to get dressed and they have to create a scenario for a mock interview.”

Regarding Career Development, Noon said, “They’ve been instrumental

(Left) Jeffrey Coleman, vice president of diversity, inclusion, and community engagement, gets ready to pie Dale Hamel, executive vice president, in the face at an SGA event March 28.

E ditorial Board

Editor-in-Chief

Leighah Beausoleil

Associate Editor

Emily Rosenberg

News Editors

Sophia Harris

Branden LaCroix

Asst. News Editor

Naidelly Coelho

Opinions Editor

McKenzie Ward

Sports Editor

Adam Levine

Arts & Features Editor

Ryan O’Connell

Asst. Arts & Features Editor

Raena Doty

Design & Photo Editor

Maddison Behringer

Asst. Photos Editor

Zachary Sorel

Adrien Gobin

Staff Writers

Jesse Burchill

Riley Crowell

Owen Glancy

Mark Haskell

Ben Hurney

Jack McLaughlin

Emily Monaco

Izayah Morgan

Kate Norrish

Bella Omar

Carly Paul

Wenchell Pierre

Ryan Schreiber

Lainey Morrison

Kyle Walker Advisor

Desmond McCarthy

Asst. Advisor

Elizabeth Banks

Gatepost Interview Shelli Waetzig Professor of Chemistry and Food Science

By Raena Doty Editoral staff

What is your professional and educational background?

I was an undergrad in chemistry at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, and from there, I went to get my Ph.D. at the University of Kansas in organic chemistry. I did a one-year postdoctoral stint at the University of Kansas and then moved to the University of California-Irvine and did a postdoctoral stint there as well. And from there, I moved out of Boston and did a two-year full-time temporary position at the College of the Holy Cross, and there I taught chemistry, which is what I teach here, and I started here in 2013.

What interested you the most in the field of chemistry?

I was originally a biology major, and I took my first intro to bio courses at the same time I took organic chemistry. And my instructor was amazing, and it was just a really fun class. I did not get 100% on every exam, but it was something that challenged me and I really enjoyed that challenge, and I’m somebody who likes puzzles, and this course offers a lot of those kinds of challenges in terms of trying to figure out how to put things together.

What do you think students can get out of learning about chemistry?

Most of the people who come through my door, specifically because I teach organic chemistry, are those who will end up in science somewhere. But either way, I really think that chemistry - it offers the opportunity to find a lot of resilience. Very rarely is there a time when someone doesn’t - I don’t want to say “fail” because … failure looks different for everyone, right? - but they may not achieve their goal at some point in the course. And really finding a way to navigate that disappointment and, you know, having that grit to change something and turn it around - it’s a really important life skill to learn how to study and potentially change the way you study. … I truly believe that anybody can do chemistry and it’s just a matter of sticking to it and putting in the hard work.

Do you have any advice for students?

Go to class, do your homework, and get to know your professors. I really

think it’s important that we’re at a small school and you need to take advantage of the fact that I enjoy getting to know the students because that’s why I enjoy Framingham State - the size of it is just right. And I think the students should really recognize that as being a strength of FSU and really take advantage of getting to know their professors. Because they’ll find, I think, that they have a lot of advocates for themselves if they did that.

What do you enjoy the most about FSU?

A lot of it is the size, like I mentioned before. I think that if you give people the opportunity, we have the ability to look out for each other, and there’s often times in my class where I see a student that’s not there, and I haven’t heard from them, and I’ll try to reach out and say, “Hey, is everything OK?” So I like that it’s tight-knit enough that we can … be aware of what’s going on around us. So I really enjoy that part of FSU. … I also enjoy the diversity that our campus brings in terms of our student population and the background as a pre-health advisor - I’m chair of the pre-health committee. It’s really, really fun to see students

Police Logs

Saturday, March 25 12:37

100 State Street

McCarthy Center Room 410

Framingham, MA 01701-9101

Phone: (508) 626-4605

Fax: (508) 626-4097

gatepost@framingham.edu

Elevator Call 87 State Street Checks okay

Sunday, March 26

04:28

Parking Enforcement

Normal Hill Parking Lot Citations Issued

Tuesday, March 28

22:15

Alarm (FIRE/SMOKE)

Towers Hall Checks okay

Courtesy of Framingham State

who come in and navigate Framingham State, and then watch them graduate and go on to do the thing that they want to do. It’s fun, because we are so small, to watch those students mature from freshmen to their graduation day.

What is something students would be surprised to know about you?

It was funny because I was talking to a friend about this last night and I was like, “You know, I did not ace every single chemistry exam that I ever did - like, quite a few of them.” So I think maybe just letting people know that professors aren’t perfect and I am included in that, right? So there were certainly even organic chemistry exams that I did not get A’s on, and then you can still go and do that thing, right? So I think that’s kind of a fun way to look at it - we all have a journey.

CONNECT WITH RAENA DOTY rdoty@student.framingham.edu

Thursday, March 30 08:41

Well Being Check

Larned Hall Report Taken

New concentrations for Fashion Design and Retailing Department approved

By Naidelly Coelho Asst. News Editor

Changes have been made to the structure of the fashion design and retailing major with the addition of two new concentrations to fulfill students’ needs.

The Fashion Design and Retailing Department now offers two majors: fashion design and fashion merchandising. Fashion merchandising offers two concentrations: apparel product development and retail merchandising, according to FSU’s website.

Haewon Ju, Fashion Design and Retailing Department chair, said the concentrations were designed by the faculty to expand opportunities for students.

She said students wanted more courses related to merchandising and the structure of having a concentration in retail merchandising would provide students with that.

Virginia Noon, fashion design and retailing professor, said the product development concentration offers a mix of design classes and courses for product and apparel development.

The merchandising concentration is more on the business side of fashion, in which students are able to position products for sale, Noon said.

Fashion design is the creation of original products, including clothing, accessories, and footwear, she said.

Students in this major sketch designs, select fabrics and patterns, and give instructions on how to make the products they design, Noon said.

The changes in the original concentrations resulted in essentially a different model with two majors, but with the same courses that were offered before, she said.

Ju said two new hires were made by the department in order to offer the extra courses for the concentrations.

Noon said there are three new gen ed courses that are available for students: Sustainability in the Fashion Industry, Designer to Consumer, and History of Textiles.

“Designer to Consumer is our foundation course - which is an overview of the entire industry,” she said.

History of Textiles as a gen ed provides students with the basis of cultural dress and history costume through the years, Noon said.

“We really appreciate the flavor that students from across campus bring to our classes. So we really value that and hope that they can see the depth and value of our field,” she said.

Rui-Rui Zhang, fashion design and retailing professor, said big companies, like TJX, have a product development department. The new structure allows students to have the same mindset as if they were in the company.

Students want to go more into the business side of fashion and explore the new trends everywhere they go, Zhang said.

Noon said, “We see a true trend - our students are kind of getting a job within this area, including product development in general, product development, design, merchandising, and also marketing.”

Zhang said the program developed a project in 2020 in which students collaborated with Boston Theater and City Ballet of Boston.

Students engaged with these organizations to help with merchandising, creating T-shirts, logos, designs, and visual elements for the show, Zhang said.

The students were able to engage with professionals in that area and experience how it feels to be in the real world, according to Zhang.

“The students learn to use the information from the class and really practice that knowledge in real, authentic projects,” she said.

Students in the Fashion Design and Retailing Department “have very high intuition of how to use the visual and business mindset to promote something - so I think our students really get the most [out of it],” Zhang said.

She said many students plan to start their own businesses, and the courses that are offered help them in many different ways.

The department provides all skills necessary for students to create their own business, including learning supply chains that help them in the business world, Zhang said.

The Department of Fashion Design and Retailing offers internship opportunities for students, she said.

The intentions of internships are to involve students in real experiences and allow them to see how the real world works in the industry, Zhang said.

“The apparel world is huge and we are preparing our students for that,” she said.

Zhang said the department is unique from other departments because they are theoretically oriented and also hands-on.

Noon said the department has offered internships at many different companies: TJX, DC Consignments, Top It Off, Aerie, Newbury Street’s di-

verse boutiques, Anthropologie, and Nordstrom Rack.

“My challenge about placing interns is it’s very dynamic. It is not like we have 15 opportunities and 15 students to match. It’s constantly evolving and changing - it’s very dynamic. And that’s the hardest part for students because they just want to know that they’re secure. And I say, ‘You just got to see what happens,’” she said.

There is a non-credit requirement of 200 hours of work in retail that is completed earlier in the student’s college careers, Noon said.

She said she has a student who is currently an intern at a boutique called DC Consignments in Natick.

The student’s main role is social media manager, for which she used her experience from her internship in courses in the department, Noon said.

She said she has another student currently working as an allocation analyst in a cooperative program, where she works in the buying-process side.

Noon said a student who worked in a high-end footwear store in Newbury Street was able to travel to Paris on a shopping trip.

“One of the things we do in the business is we go out and we shop - we look around - we see what other people are wearing and buying and of course you go to Paris. You go to Europe. You go to New York City. And then you apply parts of it to your customer,” she said.

Jaida Melendez, a fashion design major, said her internship started last summer, which turned into a job.

The program is connected to TJX company and has many other FSU students who were also offered the same opportunity as she was, she said.

She works with the people in charge of designing sweaters and labeling for brand names, Melendez said.

“We have to sit down with buyers and sell them [sweater designs] to buyers like, ‘Hey, these are trending now,’” she said.

Noon said she has a student who graduated recently who is now working as a location planner for CVS. The student is a buyer for the candy section.

“Our program can take students to many different places - we just want them to be successful,” she said.

Noon said some students have come to her after many years post-graduation saying how grateful they are for the program.

“We have a strong alumni connection. You know, recent grads and graduates from years and years [ago] - we still stay in touch with them,” Noon said.

Students in the department can go many different ways with the fashion and retailing major, she said.

Noon said, “The students have the focus and drive and love for fashion.”

CONNECT WITH NAIDELLY COELHO ncoelho3@student.framingham.edu

Sunday night April 2

Mostly clear, with a low around 29. NW about 15 mph.

Monday April 3

Mostly sunny, with a high near 56. SW wind about 15 mph.

Monday night April 3

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43. SW wind about 20 mph.

Tuesday April 4

Partly sunny, with a high near 62. W wind about 10 mph.

Tuesday night Apr. 4

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 46. S wind about 10 mph.

Wednesday April 5

Mostly cloudy, with a high near 63. E wind about 10 mph. 30% chance of precipitation.

Wednesday night Apr. 5

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 53. S wind about 15 mph. 30% chance of precipitation.

Thursday April 6

Mostly cloudy, with a high near 71. SW wind about 15 mph. 30% chance of precipitation.

Courtesy of Virginia Noon

(Left) Fashion students Lola Mwilelo, Cianna Jackson, and Jaida Melendez.

Finalists for Dean of Arts & Humanities

By Emily Rosenberg Associate Editor

Framingham State hosted Tracey Rizzo, a candidate for Dean of Arts & Humanities, in the alumni room for a faculty and staff forum, March 21.

Rizzo serves as the Dean of Arts & Humanities at North Carolina Asheville where she is also a history professor. At North Carolina Asheville, Rizzo is a member of several strategic planning and general education review task forces. She also has led diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in recruitment, retention, and curriculum revision at Asheville.

Rizzo said she wanted to take on the role of Dean of Arts & Humanities at FSU because the idea of being surrounded by so many leaders, especially women, in higher education is “very enticing.” She added her daughter-inlaw is studying at Wellesley College, so she is familiar with the surrounding region.

She said, at this time in her life, she knows she does not want to be a provost, but she definitely is looking for a new opportunity.

Rizzo’s research focuses on her interest in first-generation students, poverty, and exploration of intersectional identities in world history.

She said one way she has taught intersectionality is through a first-year seminar on video games. In the seminar, students were asked to identify themselves as characters from the vid-

identities are contextual, they’re intersectional. Our task is to craft these narratives about them, and convey them through media, such as video games,” Rizzo added.

During the question-and-answer session, Maria Bollettino, chair of the history department, asked how to prevent particular majors from being siloed within the college, and rather share resources with various departments so majors would not have to “compete” for resources.

Rizzo said that her answer was not popular, but suggested “gravitating toward meta majors.” She said this is an approach that had to be taken for a variety of reasons with the classics major at her college, which was combined with the languages department.

Alexander Hartwiger, English professor, asked, in relation to the decline in enrollment in arts and humanities, how she would pitch a major in the college as valuable to students as well as communicate this to the admissions office.

Rizzo said treating video games as a serious platform to teach history and the arts has attracted a lot of first-year students - especially men - to her college. She said she is currently advising a senior thesis on video games and led a course on first-person shooter games.

She added what Generation Z is interested in can be fun and being able to transcribe those forms of media into career readiness is what can be appeal-

By Naidelly Coelho Asst. News Editor

LaJuan Simpson-Wilkey, who serves as assistant vice president in the Office of the Provost at Kennesaw State University, Georgia, was the second candidate for FSU’s Dean of Arts & Humanities position to visit campus on March 23.

Simpson-Wilkey said she has a Ph.D. in English and has worked at Clayton State University, which allowed her to broaden her scope in African American literature.

She said her leadership style is being flexible, adaptable, and collaborative, with faculty.

“I like to move with purpose, so that

website, where she saw students who wanted to be creators and innovators.

“Part of the arts and humanities should be students who are and want to be innovators, writers and creators,” she said.

Someone anonymously asked through Zoom, “In reality in higher education there is a decline in enrollment in arts and humanities. So what kind of pitch would you make to prospective students and their families?”

Simpson-Wilkey said she wants the arts and humanities faculty to decide on a vision and goals and then from there, “communicate to admissions and enrollment what kind of plan we have.”

“Sometimes you just need to be face to face with individuals and actually

eo games “Assassin’s Creed” and “Roman Empire Hack n’ Slash.”

Rizzo said her goal in her dean’s office is to allow professors to do their work and scholarship in a way that attracts more students.

“My first-year seminar on video games also has attracted probably zero history majors. That’s OK because we’re all in the same boat. We want any students even if they’re going to go major in computer science. I would love to have them bring these kinds of competencies to game design where they’re thinking about historical accuracy versus historical authenticity.”

During her presentation, Rizzo said history cannot be taught without making it “race-centric,” and neither can sustainability.

She added, developing empathy is a learning outcome that is achieved throughout the humanities.

“I think there’s no better skill that a college student, a high school student, or anybody can have than empathy, empathy for their distinctiveness, while also understanding that their

ing to students.

Mirari Elcoro, vice president of the faculty and librarian union, asked Rizzo if she had any experience working in a unionized environment. Rizzo responded that while she does not, she has experience serving as a faculty senator in a shared governance community and believes that while this is different, there are likely “translatable” similarities.

Nicola MacEwen, professor of fashion, design, and retailing, asked about Rizzo’s experience working with corporate partners because the major works closely with businesses to obtain internships.

Rizzo responded, saying she once served on a city council board, the Historic Resource Commission, where she was one of the voices in the room preventing historic properties from being torn down by corporations.

we are not just spinning our wheels doing things that are not going to tie to our vision and mission or where it is that we want to go,” Simpson-Wilkey said.

She said she has been working with microcredentials and she thinks it’s important to have a PLA or a challenge exam that would count toward a class.

Another change she wants to propose is having a faculty one-to-one mentoring program, Simpson-Wilkey said.

She said she wants the faculty to have a strong relationship with each other.

Simpson-Wilkey said it is important to her that students are able to succeed in classes and have the proper tutoring.

“One thing that’s important to me over the last few years has been just financial literacy, making sure that our students who are here, once they leave, they have those skills,” she said.

She has a five-year plan. In year one, it would be envisioning and assessment, and years two through five would be the implementation of any of the changes and the reassessment at the end, Simpson-Wilkey said.

Art History Professor Yumi Park Huntington asked, “What about this position at Framingham State specifically attracts you and why is this?”

Simpson-Wilkey said she was attracted by FSU’s arts and humanities

share what it is that we want to do and have a marketing strategy attached to that and share what that marketing strategy is,” she said.

Mirari Elcoro, vice president of the faculty and librarian union, asked if she had any experience in working in a unionized environment.

“I do not have experience working in a unionized environment, but I do have a lot of experience with working with shared governance,” Simpson-Wilkey said.

In her current job, she helps to shepherd policy through governance bodies and help faculty and student organizations, she said.

Simpson-Wilkey said part of being a leader is being able to communicate with everyone and make sure everyone does what they are supposed to do.

Miscommunications will happen, but “the longer it goes, the more we create this revisionist history in our mind,” she said.

Tracey Rizzo

LaJuan Simpson-Wilkey

“I like to move with purpose, so that we are not just spinning our wheels doing things that are not going to tie to our vision and mission or where it is that we want to go.”

- LaJuan Simpson-Wilkey

“I would love to have them bring these kinds of competencies to game design where they’re thinking about historical accuracy versus historical authenticity.”

- Tracey Rizzo

visit campus for open forums

Teresa Stores

By Leighah Beausoleil Editor-in-Chief

Teresa Stores, associate provost for faculty affairs and professor of English and creative writing at the University of Hartford, Connecticut, was the last of the dean of Arts & Humanities candidates to visit campus March 27.

Stores has worked at the University of Hartford for over 20 years, holding a variety of positions, including director of the Humanities Center, Harry Jack Gray N.E.H. distinguished teaching humanist, associate dean of curriculum and instruction for the College of Arts and Science, director of the Creative Writing Program, and multiple interim departmental chair positions.

She is also a published author of three novels, a collection of short stories, and multiple poems and essays.

Stores said she comes from a family of creative minds, including her two children, who are both currently pursuing careers in creative fields. “We keep telling them, ‘Just follow your passion.’ So that’s part of who we are as a family and as people out in the world.”

She said it is “clear that what we need to be able to negotiate that uncertainty, and that complexity is an understanding of how we think of being able to think critically across disciplines, make connections to the past, to the future, to the social structures that surround us, to be able to communicate that, to be able to listen, and to be able to read carefully.”

Maria Bollentino, chair of the History Department and assistant director of CELTSS, asked, “Could you describe how your leadership style and communication practices could facilitate an environment of cross-disciplinary, cross-departmental cooperation, collaboration, and resource sharing to increase engagement of community partners and access to alumni support?”

Stores said though she “hates” to say it, the best way to encourage this would be through forming a committee or advisory group that can meet regularly. Then, in those meetings, the different departments can maintain an open dialogue with one another and connections can be made among individuals who can work well together to achieve a specific goal.

She said she initially pursued this field of study because she wanted to know the value creativity has in the world, adding she believes it is the job of faculty, practitioners, and scholars in the areas of arts and humanities to articulate this.

“We get into the arts because we’re passionate about it, but the next step is teaching students how to talk about that and how to share that vision,” Stores said. “Our job is to make that bridge between that passion and that belief in the value and the specifics that we take from what we learn as creative and critical thinkers into the world to make a difference.”

She said this is her vision for the College of Arts & Humanities.

Alexander Hartwiger, a professor of English, asked what “messaging” Stores would use in recruitment of prospective students and how she would communicate the core of this message to those working in admissions and enrollment.

Stores said this is in relation to what she has been saying, adding how people in this field need to articulate their work in a way that allows people to understand its value, especially for those who may doubt the field.

Mirari Elcoro, a psychology professor and vice president of the FSU chapter of the Massachusetts State College Association, asked, “What is your experience and approach working in a unionized environment?”

Stores said she is passionate about unions, but has limited experience with them. Due to working at a private institution, the only union she has worked with is one for part-time faculty.

“I sit on the negotiating team for the Provost Office with the part-time faculty union,” she said. “We negotiated a new contract.

“Everybody got what they wanted,” Stores added.

She said it is all about communication. “It was really because we came to the table and I was passionate about this with the team and I said, ‘We have to provide for these part-time faculty who have not been served well by the university.’”

Courtesy of Kennesaw State University

Dean of Arts and Humanities candidate LaJuan Simpson-Wilkey.

Courtesy of University of Hartford

Dean of Arts and Humanities candidate Teresa Stores.

Courtesy of University of North Carolina Asheville Dean of Arts and Humanities candidate Tracey Rizzo.

“We get into the arts because we’re passionate about it, but the next step is teaching students how to talk about that and how to share that vision.”

- Teresa Stores

Finalists for Dean of Graduate and Continuing

Enrollment

Anne Roberti Marilyn Cleary

By Branden LaCroix News Editor

FSU held a forum for Anne Roberti, one of the finalists for the dean of Graduate and Continuing Education position, March 21.

Roberti is currently the director of Community Education and Lifelong Learning, the graduate coordinator for the TESL program, and a visiting associate professor in the Division of Graduate and Continuing Education at FSU.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in linguistics and French from Georgetown University, a master’s degree from Columbia University, a certificate of advanced study in international education from Harvard University, and a doctorate in educational linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania.

She previously worked at Northeastern University as an educational consultant and adjunct lecturer. She also worked as the director of the English Language Academy at the Boston campus of the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), before becoming director of graduate academic support.

Roberti said she grew up in Massachusetts, and Framingham State holds “a really important place in my heart.”

She said many members of her family have attended or are currently attending FSU, and another member has applied for the upcoming Fall 2023 Semester.

While studying at Georgetown Uni-

ni, faculty, department chairs, and “anyone who has a voice in the programs that we offer.”

She said FSU is “very student driven. So, for me, getting student feedback is one way that we can continue to enhance programming in the master’s degree area.”

Roberti said she is also interested in implementing nano- and micro-credentials instead of a full graduate program, which grants students a digital badge that they can provide to potential employers instead of a full transcript.

“We have to pay attention to what the student’s needs are - what they want - so that they can be successful in their jobs,” she said.

She added these goals should be seen through the lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

“We need to have faculty and staff who represent the identities of the students that we serve,” she said, adding, “The open educational resources are important - making the programs themselves affordable, but also representing the belief systems and who the students are.”

Jerusha Nelson-Peterman, professor and chair of the Nutrition and Health Studies Department, asked Roberti about how she would create “a better situation” for graduate coordinators and advisors who have not seen a pay increase in 15 years, as they are not covered by collective bargaining agreements.

By Branden LaCroix News Editor

FSU held a forum for Marilyn Cleary, one of the finalists for the dean of Graduate and Continuing Education position, March 23.

Cleary is currently the assistant dean of graduate studies and continuing education at Worcester State University. She is also currently an adjunct professor in the education and communications departments.

Cleary earned a bachelor’s in biotechnology and a master’s in business administration from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and a doctor of education in organizational leadership from Northeastern University.

She is also the recipient of the 2022 Diversity and Inclusion Award from Worcester State University and sits on the board of Massachusetts ACE Women’s Network, an organization that supports women in higher education.

She said, “It’s always been a goal of mine to engage in meaningful and impactful work. It’s very important to me - I want to be able to make a change in the lives of students, create pathways,

gram development, part of which is to allow new programs the opportunity “to gain momentum.

“Sometimes, there’ll be a wonderful program, but because it didn’t grow fast enough, or our expectations maybe weren’t realistic for how quickly the program would grow, we ended up canceling it before it really had a chance to fly,” she said.

Cleary added, “We want to make sure that our programs prepare our students for jobs with family-sustaining wages.”

She said she also values student input when developing new programs.

Another goal of Cleary’s is to establish more partnerships through community outreach to employers.

“It’s very important to have these relationships with our employers to make sure that our programming is aligning with their needs,” she said.

Mirari Elcoro, a professor of psychology and vice president of the FSU chapter of the Massachusetts State College Association, asked Cleary if she has experience working in a unionized environment.

Cleary said she has always had

versity, Roberti said her interactions with international students led her to want to work with international students, immigrants, and refugees.

While working at MCPHS, she said MCPHS “really had not developed academic support or social support - any support services - for international students.”

She helped develop MCPHS’s English Language Academy, which gave her “great experience in developing curricula, collaborating with faculty, hiring faculty, supervising faculty, [and] making sure I’m working with deans to get a curricula approved.”

When she became the director of Graduate Academic Support, she said she advocated for resources for graduate students “so that they can succeed.”

Roberti said one of her priorities as dean would be to continue to build relationships with corporations and organizations to help prepare students for the job market.

She added it is important to perform market analysis for potential new graduate and master’s programs, as well as assess any current programs while connecting with students, alum

Roberti said she would “advocate strongly in favor” of increasing the pay of coordinators and advisors. She added to ensure it doesn’t happen in the future, “I think it needs to be maybe reviewed every year and to take a look at what the program is bringing in in terms of revenue, and what we can afford to do in terms of increasing payments.”

Mirari Elcoro, a psychology professor and vice president of the FSU chapter of the Massachusetts State College Association, asked Roberti what her experience is with working in a unionized environment.

Roberti explained she was a part of a teachers’ union when she worked as a teacher.

Roberti said she would “engage with the leaders of the union and to listen to them, and to be aware of what the issues are that are concerning the unions.

“I value and support unions and so I want to develop a strong relationship with the leaders in order to see how we can best serve our students,” she said.

and also support the enrollment and revenue goals of the institution.”

One of Cleary’s focuses is adult university students, which she identifies as a growing population.

“There are 650,000 adult students in Massachusetts with some credits and no degree,” she said. “So this is a growing market.”

Along with the opportunities of market growth focusing on adult university students, she added it is also a social justice issue.

“If we can make a good pathway for our adult students, we support that group as well,” she said. “And in my understanding of the mission and vision of Framingham State, I believe that this all falls into line with the vision and mission of the University.”

She said through her dissertation and research, she developed an “adult-student blueprint.”

She said the recruitment of adult students requires a “whole different model” than for traditional students. Part of this model will be the development of mentor programs.

Cleary said she has been involved with developing multiple mentoring programs, including peer mentoring, faculty mentoring, BIPOC ministry, staff mentoring, and alumni mentoring.

She added she focuses on prior learning assessments for adult students, which helps “shorten the pathway” for them.

Another focus of Cleary’s is pro

a “collaborative relationship” with unionized faculty and staff.

“I have never had any issues with my faculty colleagues, and hope that in the spirit of relationship building that I won’t,” she said. “And if I do, I hope that we can solve them.”

Cleary was also asked by an attendee over Zoom what undergraduate programs might appeal to non-traditional students.

She said according to her research, a majority of adult students gravitate toward business and psychology programs.

She said many adult students also look for classes that are HyFlex, which is a combination of in-person and online modality, which gives them the option of working remotely.

She added a challenge for many adult students is poverty, “so, we have to be flexible in our delivery so that they can participate in the programming.”

Cleary said from her experience, adult students “want to know, ‘How long is this going to take? How much is this going to cost? And what kind of job am I going to get at the end?’

“So, we can answer those questions. And we can offer them classes in the timeframe and the modality that they want,” she said. “I think that would make us very attractive to adult students.”

“It’s very important to have these relationships with our employers to make sure that our programming is aligning with their needs.”

- Marilyn Cleary

“We need to have faculty and staff who represent the identities of the students that we serve.”

- Anne Roberti

Education visit campus for open forums

Kirill Bumin

By Branden LaCroix News Editor

FSU held a forum for Kirill Bumin, a finalist for the Dean of Graduate and Continuing Education position, March 27.

Bumin is currently the dean of graduate studies at Stonehill College. Before that, he was assistant dean of the Graduate School at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (UNCP).

Bumin earned bachelor’s degrees in business administration and political science at High Point University in North Carolina, and earned a master’s degree and doctorate in political science from the University of Kentucky.

He was also a professor of political science and public administration at UNCP, and is a professor of political science and international studies at Stonehill College.

Bumin said when he started as an assistant dean at UNCP, the graduate program had approximately 750 students. “We grew to 2,050 students,” he said, “so it was about a 270% growth in enrollments.”

He said UNCP is “the most diverse institution in the University of North Carolina [system]. It is one of the most diverse in the South.

“I deliberately sought out my career in places like this. I wanted to be surrounded by first-generation, by military, non-traditional students, [and] minority students,” he said.

Bumin explained he is a first-generation immigrant who immigrated from

been a 10% decrease in enrollment since 2012, but added there has been a 4% increase since 2019, “but that picture is also not very clear.”

He added gender disparities in graduate studies is also a challenge. As an example, he said at UNCP, 71% of graduate students were women.

Bumin said if selected for the position, he will focus on developing new programs, as well as expanding existing programs, “making them more competitive in the marketplace.”

He added he will also focus on graduation and retention rates for the graduate and continuing education programs, with a focus on cohort analysis “to really understand how the graduate programs are doing.”

Another focus will be to incorporate more hands-on activities into the graduate programs.

He said he has experience in the “extracurricular side” of education, including study-abroad programs and advising multiple student organizations.

“Students typically don’t remember what I told them at my 9:00 o’clock Intro to Political Science class,” he said. “But they will remember tracking through the Thai jungle on an elephant, or sitting in Berlin at a briefing conducted by a German official or by a US embassy official.

“These kinds of experiences transform students - they give them excitement. They give them a stake in their education,” he said.

Another focus of Bumin’s will be to

the former Soviet Union in 1994.

Bumin added, “For 12 years, I worked with that population of students - I’m deeply familiar with the needs of students from such backgrounds, both as a faculty member and administrator.

“That’s one of the reasons why I’m here today, because it’s very exciting to be able to contribute to the intellectual growth and career growth for students” of that background, he said.

Bumin said he has experience with event planning, including Model UN conferences, which are simulated United Nations assemblies for students, as well as budget planning, marketing, and research, and said he is “very comfortable with a variety of strategic planning processes.”

Bumin explained one of the current challenges is declining enrollment for graduate studies. He said there has

support relationships with local communities. He said, “I would argue one of the principal missions of a regional state institution is to draw these very direct and explicit connections with local communities.”

He said he is also interested in expanding counseling and psychological services for graduate students, as most of those services are developed with only undergraduate students in mind.

“It’s really important to work with those offices to realign them in such a way that they understand the unique and the specific needs of that target audience and that they’re there when they’re needed,” he said.

CONNECT WITH BRANDEN LACROIX blacroix@student.framingham.edu

Courtesy of Framingham State Dean of Graduate and Continuing Education candidate Anne Roberti.

Courtesy of Worcester State University Dean of Graduate and Continuing Education candidate Marilyn Cleary.

Courtesy of Stonehill College

Dean of Graduate and Continuing Education candidate Kirill Bumin.

“I deliberately sought out my career in places like this. I wanted to be surrounded by first-generation, by military, non-traditional students, [and] minority students.”

- Kirill Bumin

Administrators’ Forum

Continued from page 1

police officers go through training in mental health assistance.

Ward said, “I think it’s just how can we get more funding so kids can feel better supported when it comes to situations like this?”

Having a psychologist on the police department for mental health calls could be beneficial to students, she said.

A student present at the meeting said she has been in a situation where they were having a panic attack and their parents called 911 because they weren’t sure what to do.

“I had three police officers in my room, and that freaked me out even more because they had guns on them - like all their gear and everything. I think they must have not known what to do, so they tried to restrain me, which made me even more anxious.”

They said in these situations, especially on a school campus, it’s important to have trained people to handle situations like these because the Health and Counseling Center is closed over the weekend.

The student said they believe students are generally afraid of cops.

Ward said a great way for students to get to know the University’s police staff is to come to their events.

Laughlin said, “We want to try to break the barrier.”

Barros questioned why Sandella’s is still closed over the weekends. She said this has been hard for students since they only have a few options for dining.

Aretha Phillips, dining services general manager, said the reason for keeping Sandella’s closed is declining enrollment.

She said the number of students dining at Sandella’s over the weekend was low.

brought up a concern about student accounts.

“So, they came from another university. They were calling and asking about how their loans work and asking more questions. From that, they said that the person was extremely rude - when they tried calling the day after that, the lady told them that if they keep calling them again, she will strike the student’s ID,” Campbell said.

Dexter said it is very “important” to report situations where a staff member oversteps.

“There’s a director in most departments. Sometimes, titles are a little funky. So you can certainly follow the chain of command. But my office is available for any employee concerns that come up,” Dexter said.

Barros brought up another issue regarding student services. She said she was advocating for a student whose first language is not English.

“I went in there asking if the registrar’s office could help them with their appeal because the registrar’s office told them to do an appeal but didn’t give them any resources to do the appeal. And one of the ladies from the Student Accounts Office told me that the student does not need any help because the student has written many emails to them,” she said.

Barros said the University has to pay more attention to students who don’t speak English fluently or are first-generation students because not everyone has someone at home who can help.

make forms and resources available to students.

Barros said a student complained about steak and chicken being raw about two weeks ago.

Phillips said when students see issues with food, they should report it right away in order to protect other students who might be eating something that is not properly cooked.

Dyson said he has seen many improvements in the food since Phillips took over dining services.

“Nothing’s perfect in the world. There’s always going to be a rainy day, but she definitely holds it down,” he said.

Evelyn Campbell, SGA outreach and events coordinator, said a student

She said the school privileges white students and that “we’re 10% away from being at a minority-serving institution, and about 49% first-generation students.”

Dale Hamel, executive vice president, said the school has 12 strategies to raise enrollment, and one of them is customer service.

“We do recognize there is a need for improvements there. So we’ll continue to work on that. And as a part of that, at the end of that whole process, today was a reflection or a recognition that each of these initiatives needs to have an equity review as part of it,” Hamel said.

Barros said student forms and resources should be more visible to students and not hidden in a website.

She suggested using QR codes to

Eli Paré, a graduate student, brought up a concern regarding the graduate commencement being held on a separate date from the undergraduate program.

Paré said she received the notice that the commencement was moved to Friday, May 19 last Wednesday. She said she signed paperwork earlier this semester in January that said that graduation was going to be held on Sunday, May 21.

President Nancy Niemi said the decision was made by her because faculty and staff were requesting something different because usually, the commencement is undergraduate focused.

Paré said it’s very inconvenient for people’s families that have already planned for this day months ago, and now the number of guests is limited to only five people.

“I think if it had been something that we’d known was coming for the whole year, it wouldn’t feel like such a gut punch, but this is now a ceremony where you know some of the faculty that we were relying on to be there will not make it because of this recent change. Support systems that we were hoping will be there cannot make it and now we have to pick and choose between friends,” Paré said.

Niemi apologized and said there is nothing she can do to reverse this.

Ben Hurney, an SGA senator, brought up a concern regarding washing machines working in residence halls.

“I just have a hard time knowing which ones work. Some of them have like a swamp growing in them and others will say that there’s no water,” he said.

Barros asked why the washing machines were not working even though SGA allocated funds toward them.

Glenn Cochran, associate dean of students and student life, said the laundry machines have a system-wide contact.

He said typically, when washing machines are down and they ask for a replacement, it’s often done.

“We want high-efficiency machines because I think the sustainability benefit is important. But they also should be commercial machines that hold up well,” Cochran said.

He encourages students to fill out a form regarding laundry machines not working so they can send people to repair them.

Sam Houle, SATF treasurer, said his meal swipe plan allows him to use it up to 7 times per week, but having limited meal swipes per week is not good for students, because other SODEXO schools give all students all their meal swipes at once each semester and they can use them the way they wanted.

“I think we’re not given enough responsibility on our own to also learn these life lessons,” he said.

As a response, Phillips said the reason FSU has this meal swipe plan is because they want to make sure students will have enough swipes to carry throughout the semester.

Ward said, “We’re really lucky to have this chance to have this open communication with the University administration.”

[Editor’s Note: McKenzie Ward is Opinions Editor and Ben Hurney is a Staff Writer for The Gatepost]

“I just have a hard time knowing which ones work. Some of them have like a swamp growing in them and others will say that there’s no water.”

- Ben Hurney, SGA Senator

CONNECT WITH NAIDELLY COELHO ncoelho3@student.framingham.edu

Gatepost Archives

(Left) SGA President Dara Barros, Malik Martin, and Director of Dining Services Aretha Phillips.

OP/ED

THE GATEPOST EDITORIAL

We, the concerned

Since the Fall 2014 Semester, Framingham State’s undergraduate enrollment has dropped by 36%, according to the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (MDHE).

Between the Fall 2021 Semester and the Fall 2022 Semester, Framingham State lost 243 undergraduates, according to MDHE. This is an approximate 8% decline in students.

Clearly, FSU has had an enrollment problem for some time, and granted, efforts are being made to fix it, but this is not enough.

We’ve seen the concepts for the new marketing campaign, and neither of them looks promising.

The two brand concepts presented in a survey that was shared with the Framingham State community as well as some prospective students are, “Proudly Public, Personally Transformative,” and, “We, the Future.”

We acknowledge that these are only ideas and the University may only end up using parts of these concepts or even neither of them at all.

And frankly, we recommend the latter.

The first concept’s main focus is Framingham State being a public institution.

How does that make us any different than our eight sister institutions that are also public and located in Massachusetts?

Being proud that we are public is great. Of course we are and we should be.

However, this does not give us an edge over the other higher education institutions in this state that are not only public, but are promoting their other qualities that make them exceptional places for students to get a degree.

The second brand concept is a strange approach to the University’s marketing.

Part of the concept states, “There’s a seismic shift taking place here at Framingham, and it’s changing who benefits from higher education.”

Is there a fault line underneath FSU that we didn’t know about?

This sounds like some sort of science experiment.

The one positive that comes from this branding concept is, “We, the ones who embrace the opportunities

Is this the new Jim Crow?

By Izayah Morgan Staff Writer

presented by this public university.”

This is the value of getting an education at Framingham State.

This University provides us with so many opportunities that enhance the education here. However, none of that matters without the conviction to embrace those opportunities.

We at The Gatepost have emphasized this for years in our editorials.

Engagement is everything.

We are happy the University is taking steps to fix our enrollment problems, but if this is the best we can come up with, then the future of this University remains uncertain.

In addition to embracing opportunities, we should also be emphasizing our small class sizes and the close relationships students are able to develop with their professors.

We should be celebrating our students and what they are able to accomplish at this University.

The administration should also be considering what marketing opportunities are available on campus.

We should be taking advantage of our academic Marketing Department and encourage those students to come up with brand concepts.

Make it a capstone project.

Make it a contest.

The students at this University are brilliant, and who knows the value of this institution better than the students themselves?

Framingham State is an amazing institution with so many opportunities and qualities that make it worthwhile.

However, no prospective student is going to know that if we are not properly marketing that to them.

White representatives in the Mississippi state house approved a bill to create a new district that would include all of Jackson’s majority-white neighborhoods. This was passed despite the fact that the capital city is largely Black individuals. From the U.S census it was polled that Jackson is around a 83% Black population.

Two supervising judges will be chosen by the Mississippi Supreme Court’s white conservative chief justice - its prosecutors and public defenders will be chosen by the state’s white Republican attorney general. Policing will be enforced by a white police chief and be under the supervision of a white public safety commissioner.

The Black majority will have no vote in the matter. This means it is all left up to officials in the Mississippi government who are white to make the decisions of a majority Black city.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba had choice words for state lawmakers and the bill passed. “It reminds me of apartheid,” Lumumba said Monday. “They are looking to colonize Jackson, not only in terms of them putting their military force over Jackson, but also dictating who has province over decision-making.”

Black leaders and the community of Jackson as whole has been pushing back on this for a while.

This feels as if it is a force over the citizens making explicit decisions for them. Having a small white majority - that is naturally segregated from the rest of the city - making decisions of policing and justice for a largely Black majority is wrong.

Not to mention Mississippi has a very long history of racial moments to put it gently. Its long and controversial history started with plantations and slavery. Then, after the Civil War when Black people were “free,” the state of Mississippi went on to create Black codes which segregated the newly “freed” citizens.

Throughout the 1900s Mississippi was known to be one of the most violent states for Black people. The state was known for having Ku Klux Klan members who terrorized African American communities. This included public lynchings of all ages, bombing of their homes, destruction of their comunties, and assassinations of public leaders.

The Civil Rights Movement lasted between the 1950s and the 1960s and brought attention to the racial injustices. This time period had many activists such as Medgar Wiley Evers who had challenged these racist and inequitable ideas. However, this eventually led to his assassination for speaking out on these issues.

Despite the racial strides that the Civil Rights Era was able to help prosper, Mississippi continued to face racism and inequality for decades. These issues included police brutality, discrimination in the justice system, medical malpractice, and mass incarceration.

Mississippi has undoubtedly had controversy throughout the history of this country. Laws such as this with even the mayor having his fair share to say about this bill passing is interesting to say the least.

The legacy of racism in Mississippi will continue to be a complex issue and laws such as this one only further set us back.

Leighah Beausoleil / THE GATEPOST

We deserve and need change

By McKenzie Ward Opinions Editor

I was only 12 years old when I felt genuine fear for the first time.

I was only 12 years old when I watched a news report about 20 children who were only 6 and 7 years old who were killed in their classrooms - a space meant to be safe for children.

I was only 12 years old when I believed something would change.

I mean, 20 children and six educators were killed - how could it not change?

But now 10 years after the Sandy Hook shooting, I am 22 years old and since Jan. 1, 2023, there have been 90 shootings on school grounds, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database. As of March 31, we are only 90 days into the year.

And most recently, on Monday, March 27, in Nashville, Tennessee, three children and three adults died when an individual walked into their school and shot them.

Schools are meant to be a place to inspire, protect, and nurture - not a place where people are murdered.

Despite my hope that no family would ever have to experience the pain of losing someone they love to gun violence, over these last 10 years, nothing has changed.

Our children and educators continue to worry each and every day and ask themselves, “Will my school be next?”

However, rather than address this issue by passing much-needed gun control legislation, our nation’s poli-

ticians, specifically the GOP, continue to ignore the fact that our country’s children and educators are dying as a result of gun violence.

On Tuesday, just one day after six innocent people were murdered, U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee stated, “We aren’t going to fix this,” when asked what Congress would do about school shootings.

He claims that gun legislation is not going to solve school shootings but rather that our country needs a religious “revival,” and said that Washington won’t fix it because they are the “problem.”

Well, yes Washington is the problem, but it is because the GOP continues to ignore pleas from across the nation to protect those in our schools.

When asked if there were other steps lawmakers could take to protect our nation’s children like Burchett’s daughter, Burchett replied, “We’ll homeschool her,” - a privilege that is not realistic for the majority of parents in the United States.

Parents across the United States who simply cannot afford to homeschool their children are forced to live in a state of constant fear of their child becoming yet another victim of the GOP’s inability to swiftly address the impact of gun violence in our schools.

Our educators are forced to create plans for an active shooter and have weighed their point of fight or flight.

Every teacher we all know has pon-

dered over the thought, “What if a shooter enters my classroom - what would I do?”

This is something our educators should never have to deal with.

They are teachers - not warriors.

While the GOP is more concerned about banning drag shows, banning books, and banning a diverse curriculum, children are dying at the hands of gun violence and the blood is on the hands of the members of the GOP.

If the GOP truly cares about protecting our nation’s children, they would start by being open to bipartisan-supported gun control legislation such as reimposing the ban on assault weapons that expired nearly two de-

cades ago that prohibited the man

ufacture, transfer, or possession of semiautomatic assault weapons.

As each day passes, the United States government puts our nation’s students and those working in schools in danger.

We needed gun control legislation after Columbine.

We needed gun control legislation after Sandy Hook.

We needed gun control legislation after Parkland.

We needed gun control legislation after Uvalde. We need gun control legislation now.

Em’s Gems: A Trip to the Bookstore

Ryan O’Connell / THE

Campus Conversations

What is something that you want people to know about you?

By Ben Hurney and Kyle Walker, Staff Writers

“I’m an approachable person whom anyone can talk to.”

“I am a jazz musician.”

-John Zouharis, senior

“I’m really big into paleontology.”

“I would say that I enjoy talking to people, and I would have no problems with someone just trying to strike up a conversation with me.”

-Tony Sims, junior

“I love to paint. It’s really fun.”

Letter from the Editor: A message regarding Volume 91 Issue 19

Dear campus community,

I would like to apologize for the delay in our print version of the March 24 issue of The Gatepost.

The printing press we use recently had to take on the workload of a whole other printing plant that closed, which resulted in the delay of its delivery.

Upon its delivery later in the week, we noticed a major error in the issue that made it unreadable for our audience.

Our readers deserve the best and most professional product, so we have fixed the issue and hope you enjoy the double-print issues made available to you this week.

Thank you all so much for your patience.

We value your readership.

Best,

Leighah Beausoleil Editor-in-Chief

“I come from a small country from Central Asia [Kyrgyzstan] and usually when I tell people where I’m from, people don’t know it.”

- Altynai Tantabaeba, sophomore

-Deanna Girard, sophomore

-Autumn Ray, freshman

-Benjamin LaRose, junior

Softball shows no mercy in doubleheader sweep over Lesley

By Adam Levine Sports Editor

By Riley Crowell Staff Writer

The Framingham State Rams swept the Lesley University Lynx in their non-conference doubleheader at the Maple Street Field March 28.

The first game action began with a leadoff home run by Lesley in the top of the first inning.

Framingham’s second baseman, Brooke Grassia, immediately answered back with a leadoff home run of her own in the bottom of the first inning.

Grassia said, “When you go into bat where someone hits a leadoff home run, you just kind of want to get on base - it’s not really a home run mentality.

“After a couple of good pitches, I actually got down on the count, and then I found one that was mine and I decided to hit it out,” she added.

The Rams’ pitching didn’t falter for the rest of the game. Framingham’s pitchers, Ally Moran and Rylynn Witek, collected the next 15 outs without surrendering a run.

The Rams’ offense took full advantage of the strong pitching performance, tallying a total of 14 runs and 16 hits in their 14-1 five-inning mercy-rule win in the first game.

Among the biggest contributors to Framingham’s offensive outburst were Grassia and center fielder Angelina Lynch.

Grassia and Lynch combined to bat 5-for-5 at the plate, both knocking in three runs each and coming around to score every time they got on base.

In addition to Grassia’s leadoff home run, Lynch’s two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning added to Framingham’s slugging at the plate.

In the second game of the doubleheader, the Rams kept up the momentum.

The Rams’ offense shined from the get-go, piecing together five straight hits to start the game and scoring three runs in the first inning.

In the third inning, Framingham’s catcher, Zoe Smyth, launched a tworun home run over the left field fence to extend the Rams lead to 6-0.

Meet the Coach - Softball

By Adam Levine Sports Editor

Larry Miller, 33, is in his ninth season as the Rams’ head softball coach.

Miller said he played baseball growing up, but stopped after he graduated high school. “I transitioned into administration and sports management,” he said.

Miller said he began coaching during his senior year at SUNY Cortland while earning his bachelor’s degree in sports management.

During his first season coaching at SUNY Cortland, the team finished fourth in the country in Division III.

Miller said, “I was super fortunate to start coaching under one of the most legendary coaches in Division III softball - Julie Lenhart.

“She had this culture and environment of being able to have a fun, inclusive, positive atmosphere, but still playing and pushing for a championship level experience,” Miller added.

Miller grew up in the New York City area and went to college in Cortland, New York. He said he came to FSU and was hired as the first full-time coach in

the program’s history.

Miller said, “I saw the opportunity to come in and make a mark and have an impact and bring the program from where it was to where it is now.”

Miller said FSU gives students a “traditional New England college experience in a beautiful campus.”

He added, “It’s definitely a great place - being able to surround yourself with good people from our athletic staff to our campus administration.”

Miller said his favorite part about coaching is the relationships with his athletes. “The ultimate thing is, obviously, the relationships and the impacts that us as coaches are able to have on the student athletes that we work with, both in the short term and in the long term.

“I’d be lying to you if I didn’t say that I don’t love competing and winning and being able to be a part of some special championship runs here in the last few years - that’s definitely fun,” Miller added.

Miller said one of his favorite experiences as a coach came in 2019 when the Rams’ softball team traveled to SUNY Cortland for regionals.

Lynch continued her tear at the plate, gathering two more hits, including a solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning.

These contributions brought Lynch’s final stat line for the doubleheader to a perfect 5-for-5, with two home runs and four RBIs.

Across the prior 14 games, Lynch only recorded six hits. Lynch said, “Honestly, lately I haven’t been producing what I should be producing, so I feel like that’s what I, myself, and my team really needed.”

Framingham’s starting pitcher, Olyvia Mendonca, provided four strong innings of work in the circle, striking out four Lynx batters and conceding

zero runs.

Mendonca said, “I was pretty confident with my team behind me to have my back.”

The Rams excelled on the base paths throughout the doubleheader, stealing four bases in game one and another five in game two.

The Rams won both games after five innings due to the eight-run mercy rule.

These victories pushed Framingham over the .500 mark, improving their overall record to 9-7.

The Rams travel to Mass Maritime for their first conference doubleheader April 1.

Miller said, “I got to coach against my mentor in what was her final season.

“That was personally one of those moments I’ll never forget,” he added.

Miller works alongside his assistant coaches, Rachel Desrochers and Lisa Strom. Desrochers is an FSU alumni and was a two-year starter during Miller’s first two seasons at FSU.

Miller said, “I’m really fortunate to have those two individuals to help me provide the best experience we can for our student athletes.”

Miller said his favorite athletes growing up were now retired professional baseball players Paul O’Neill and Derek Jeter and he added, “I will still always be a New York Yankees fan.”

Miller said O’Neill’s antics as a “fiery competitor” impacted the way he looked at baseball and translated it to softball.

Miller said Jeter “always played the game with the utmost respect.

“That’s something that I really try to instill in our staff and in our athletes,” he said.

Miller said, “Overall, it’s surround-

ing yourself with good people - from our athletic administration, to our staff, to our coaching staff, to our student athletes, I’m fortunate to come to work every day.”

Stats sourced from fsurams.com

Frank Poulin Photography

Larry Miller

Adam Levine / THE GATEPOST Rams’ Brooke Grassia at bat during game against Lesley March 28.

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST Ram Ally Moran pitching during game against Lesley March 28.

Women’s lacrosse falls to Babson 21-9

By Adam Levine Sports Editor

The Framingham State Rams lost to the Babson College Beavers 21-9 at Maple Street Field March 30.

Head Coach Devyne Doran said, “Babson is talented and we take away lots of good lessons from playing really talented teams.”

Babson only slightly edged out Framingham in all relevant match stats, except for their success with free position shots. Babson scored eight of their 10 free position shots, while Framingham only scored one of their four shots.

The Beavers began with a quick goal in less than 2 minutes of play.

Framingham’s attacker Hannah Guerin scored a goal off of an assist from teammate, midfielder Rachel Er-

ickson, to tie the game 1-1.

Babson pulled away and closed out the first quarter with 5 unanswered points.

Framingham’s only successful free position shot came from Erickson to kick off the second quarter. She followed up with another goal, this time assisted by teammate, midfielder Regan Fein, less than 2 minutes later.

The Rams closed the gap and trailed 6-3 with 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter.

Babson responded by outscoring Framingham 3-1 to close out the second quarter.

The Beavers led with a score of 9-4 at halftime.

Three of Babson’s first-half goals came from free position shots.

The Rams and Beavers scored a total of 10 goals in an eventful third quarter.

After Babson opened the quarter with a goal, the Rams’ attacker, Hailey Baker, scored a goal for the Rams.

Babson responded again, but Guerin scored back-to-back goals and brought the Rams back within 4 points of the Beavers.

The Beavers countered with 4 unanswered points to reclaim and further extend their lead.

Framingham’s attacker, Maddy Skiff, closed out the lively third quarter with a goal.

Babson led by a score of 15-8 entering the fourth quarter.

The Beavers attacked the net to add on another six goals in the fourth quarter.

Framingham’s attacker, Leah Green, hit the back of the net to break up Babson’s scoring, but the Beavers prevailed.

Babson’s dominant free position shots and offensive performance secured them the 21-9 victory over Framingham.

Baker said, “There were a few plays where we could have done a little bit better here and there, but overall, I think the intensity level that we had today reflected us pretty well.”

The Rams prepare for an eightgame stretch of MASCAC matchups to close out their regular season.

Framingham’s defender, Kaleigh Houlihan, said, “I’m excited to get into MASCAC play. I think we have a lot to look forward to and show what we can really do.”

Baker said they matchup well against the rest of the MASCAC. “We feel like we have a lot to prove so we’re all kind of playing with a chip on our shoulder.

Doran said, “We are feeling goodhoping for another championship.”

Framingham travels to Fitchburg State for their first MASCAC matchup April 1.

Track and field show promise at Bridgewater

By Adam Levine Sports Editor

The Framingham State Rams track and field team traveled to the BSU Bears Invitational to compete with 17 other teams March 25.

Framingham’s Emily Newcomb, who ran the 800-meter and 1,500-meter, said, “It was not only our first meet back, but the conditions were definitely not ideal with it being only 40 degrees out with sleet and rain for most of the day. Our team showed up ready to go, and overcame our conditions and performed pretty well overall.”

Seventeen athletes competed across nine different events for the Rams, two of whom earned a spot on the MASCAC Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Weekly Honor Roll.

Newcomb earned a spot on the weekly honor roll with her outstanding performances in the 800-meter run and the 1,500-meter run. She placed third in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:29.66, and placed fourth in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 5:09.97.

Newcomb said, regarding the 800-meter run, “I ran only a few sec-

onds off my PR [personal record], which is faster than I was running at this same point last year, so I was pretty stoked about that.

“This year, I would really like to win the 800 at MASCACs and I think the results of our first meet have shown me that I’m off to a good start,” Newcomb added.

Newcomb set the school record with her time in the 1,500-meter run. “I haven’t run a 1,500 since my sopho more year, so I was a bit out of practice.

“I would love to race it again at anothmeet this to see how I could do if I changed my racing tactic,” she added.

Alyssa Caputo also earned a spot on the weekly honor roll for her performance in the shot put throw and hammer throw, placing sixth and eighth, respectively.

Caputo said, “The honor roll mention is huge for both Emily and me and our team as well. It’s important to me knowing that others see the hard work we are putting in and it shows in our results.”

She said her hammer throw of 32.88 meters was a new PR and the second-best distance in the team’s history.

Caputo said, “Hammer was the first event which went very well.

“With shot, I know I can do better and will in the upcoming meets. It was hard to get a good throw in when it was raining and hail-

Other highlights of the meet included the fifth-place finish in the 4x100-meter relay by Becca Morris, Brooke Fenton, Lydia Manurowski, and Elizabeth Dykstra.

Fenton said, “My mindset was to definitely focus on nailing my handoffs and really using my form when I was running.”

Fenton said their finishing time is the second best in the team’s history. “We feel really good about it and we feel like we can definitely improve in future meets.”

In addition to these top 10 finishes, Framingham’s Casey McAuliffe and Olivia Poole placed ninth and 10th, respectively, in the 5,000-meter run, Manurowski placed eighth in the triple jump, Bella Kondi placed 10th in the discus throw, and Kaylee Beck placed fifth in the hammer throw.

Caputo said, “The team is constantly having girls hit new PRs and placing high.

“The FSU community can expect this track team to become a really good team that is very competitive in the MASCAC over the next few years,” she added.

The Rams travel to the UMass Dartmouth Corsair Classic April 1. CONNECT WITH

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST Rams players during game against Babson March 30.

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST Ram Hannah Guerin making a pass during game against Babson March 30.

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST Ram Molly Lanier during game against Babson March 30.

ARTS & FEATURES

Breathing life into history

Whitney Scharer reads from her novel ‘The Age of Light’

By Raena Doty Asst. Arts & Features Editor

As spring starts to roll out on FSU, the time for the annual Miriam Levine Reader Award comes around again.

At 4:30 p.m. on March 30, author Whitney Scharer came to the Heineman Ecumenical & Cultural Center to read a passage from her novel “The Age of Light” and answer questions from the FSU community about the story and her process writing it.

“The Age of Light” is a historical fiction novel about Lee Miller, a model and photographer for Vogue and later a war photographer during World War II.

Patty Horvath, a professor of English, introduced Scharer. She began talking about her own introduction to Lee Miller’s story as an undergraduate student, and how she learned about a type of photo called the “rayograph,” invented by Man Ray - and his muse and creative partner, Lee Miller, often left out of the story.

“‘The Age of Light’ is a story of erasure and exposure - those photographic concerns. The near erasure of a woman from our history and her exposure as a talented artist and documentarian of post-war Europe,” Horvath said.

Scharer said she began writing “The Age of Light” when she saw an exhibit of Miller and Ray’s work together at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem. Like Horvath, she had learned about Ray’s work in photography classes, but the teaching never included Miller.

“What fascinated me was Lee Miller - her work was absolutely incredible and her spirit was just infusing the whole exhibit, because it’s just this confident, ambitious energy,” Scharer said.

She cited her frustration with the way Miller was overlooked in history as the starting point for her research.

Miller started as Ray’s model, but like Ray, she was a surrealist in her own right, and eventually went on to produce unique and distinct photography separate from Ray, Scharer said.

She shared one story about Miller’s time as a WWII photographer, when she went to Munich, Germany, and visited Adolf Hitler’s apartment. Allegedly, she took a nap in his bed, drank his cognac, and took photos of herself in his bath.

Scharer said Miller had incredibly complicated feelings about the events of her life. She was 22 years old when she met Man Ray, who was 17 years older than her, and they were romantically involved with one another.

“He was very well-known, and yet she just had this hold over him - he fell in love with her very quickly, and he was kind of consumed by his love for her,” Scharer said.

Scharer said she was driven by curiosity for what type of woman Miller had to be to have that power over Ray, and that guided a lot of what she wrote for “The Age of Light.”

“There’s a … fair amount that’s been written about her - different biographies and essays. And I knew that was not what I wanted to do. I wanted to breathe life back into her,” Scharer said.

She said Miller went through many traumas in her life - she was raped at a young age, she was exploited by her father for nude photographs from when she was 13 years old into her 20s, she saw the horrors of WWII up close - and eventually, she stopped making art all together.

“How could somebody who had started out with so much promise, so much confidence, so much ambition, become this person who just stops making work?” Scharer asked.

She said that question drove her to write her novel, and it was the question she wanted to give her readers at the beginning so they could see it unfold throughout the story.

Scharer said she had difficulty figuring out the structure of the story, because while most of the novel took place in Paris, some parts did take place in Germany during WWII, and she didn’t know how to write action like that and fit it into the main story.

She said it was after reading “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk that Scharer realized the

story would be told through the perspective of Miller trying to tell one story, but other stories about WWII keep cropping up because she “started to think that these memories from World War II were sort of lodged inside her body.”

Scharer read a passage from the novel which she said was about halfway into the story about Lee and Man going to see an erotic dance performed by Kiki de Montparnasse, who formerly had a love affair with Man. Along the way, she met Jean Cocteau, a man who created “The Blood of a Poet,” a film in which Miller played a statue that eventually comes to life.

Scharer was able to see a showing of “The Blood of a Poet” while on her book tour in Paris, which she said was unplanned and coincidental. She and a journalist traveling with her didn’t know exactly where they were going, just that there were many posters for this event, and when they got to the showing of the film, they were shocked.

She said she didn’t get to spend much time in Paris before publishing her novel, but spent time sightseeing. She described the city as very similar to how it appeared in her book despite the 60 year difference.

One of the biggest challenges in researching and planning the novel was not having access to many of Miller’s writings, particularly informal and personal writings like letters, Scharer said.

She said had she had access to those writings, “I would have never finished my novel, because I would have honestly researched it forever.

“There’s something magical that

happens between the alchemy of the research that you do and then the imagination that you bring to the story,” she added.

Scharer said when writing the novel she created a philosophy for what she was and was not allowed to write, because historical fiction is allowed to be as accurate or inaccurate as the author wants, but having a philosophy helped to guide her choices.

She also gave advice to aspiring authors. She said fiction writers need to have a polished draft before finding an agent, and being comfortable with the format of writing is important, adding she wasn’t good with short stories despite writing them for a long time.

Scharer said she wrote her novel as a way to give voice, feeling, and connection to a woman who lost her artistic will and was written out of history in favor of a man who did no more work than her.

She added that writing this novel helped her to claim her own identity as an artist.

“I was like, ‘I’m writing this novel about this woman who wants to claim her identity as an artist and she’s having trouble doing that,’ and I am going, ‘No, no, no, I’m not a writer,’ you know? That’s so stupid,” Scharer said.

“So I think by getting to know Lee Miller and by going on that journey with her, I was able to be like, ‘I need to claim my identity as what I am.’ So that was when I started saying that I was a writer, and I have not stopped,” she said.

CONNECT WITH RAENA DOTY rdoty@student.framingham.edu

Raena Doty / THE GATEPOST

Whitney Scharer signing her novel, “The Age of Light,” for a community member of FSU March 30.

Diversity, not divisiveness

Liza Talusan leads a workshop about identity-conscious education

By Raena Doty Asst. Arts & Features Editor

Educators and future educators of FSU came together in the McCarthy Center Forum on March 21 to participate in a workshop about being an identity-conscious educator, led by Liza Talusan.

Talusan is a professor at UMass Boston who teaches courses about leadership, equity, and justice. The workshop itself took its name from her book, “The Identity-Conscious Educator: Building Habits and Skills for a More Inclusive School.”

She started the workshop by discussing three different skills attendees needed to develop to be an identity-conscious educator - to build knowledge, to engage in reflection, and to move to action.

She added she would aid educators in moving to action by providing three strategies that could be implemented into the classroom as soon as the next day - critical check-ins, building an identity-conscious practice, and identifying what she refers to as “windows and mirrors.”

Talusan started with critical checkins, saying she usually does critical check-ins at the start of anything she teaches or leads, whether it’s one of her classes or - as in this case - a workshop she was leading.

Critical check-ins do three things, she said. First, they transition the space to an educational area, allowing students and teachers alike to “calm down and get centered.”

Second, she said the critical-checks allow people “to put the content on the table,” which she described as laying out the plan for the meeting, class, or workshop before actually getting into any of the content.

Third, she said they allow people to build habits and skills out of the conversation involved in talking about this work.

Talusan then did a critical check-in with the group, asking everyone who attended to rate themselves on a scale of one to 10, one being the least and 10 being the most:

“How present are you for what’s happening here?”

“How committed are you to creating a more inclusive community?”

“Where does building skills - like, really working to create a more inclusive community - fall in terms of your priorities?”

“How much time do you have to commit to [diversity, equity, and inclusion] work?”

“How much energy do you have for this?” and “How often do you talk about identity?”

After participants rated themselves, Talusan asked them to reflect on why they gave that rating and what could be done to help them achieve a higher rating.

“I want you to take a second and think about, ‘OK, if I were going to move to action … and increase my number just a little bit … what would I need?’ … What would you need to move one number higher?” she asked.

Talusan said the type of critical check-in she demonstrated could be implemented into a classroom as much as it could be implemented into a workshop, and it’s a very practical tool for helping students work effectively in the classroom.

She warned against asking people how they feel if they don’t want an honest answer, though.

“I always ask my students, ‘How present are you?’” she said. “I’m always a 10. I’m always so present for this type of work. And so, if I’m going to ask them and they say ‘two,’ I have to be willing to hear ‘two,’ right?

“When I say to my students, ‘I don’t need you to be a 10,’ in the beginning,

educator,” highlighting how important it is to have these conversations about identity even when you don’t know much.

“Oftentimes, people are waiting for it to be perfect. ‘I have to wait to talk about identity until I know it well,’” she said, but added discussions around identity will not look pretty when someone first starts participating in them.

She said many people will quit conversations around diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as soon as it gets difficult.

“Understand it’s a little bit messy, but messy doesn’t mean it has to be divisive,” Talusan said.

She said students of any age can start talking about DEI in age-appropriate terms. In fact, she said many children are naturally curious and ask questions about diversity that get shut down by adults who don’t want

every single one of you needs to leave your differences outside that door’ … who does that make teaching easy for? It makes it easy for me. Because then I don’t have to care about anything that makes you different,” she said.

The third “move to action” Talusan identified is a practical activity to practice in classes, called “windows and mirrors,” terminology coined by Rudine Sims Bishop, an author and literary scholar. She asked attendees of the workshop to practice with her, showing them photos and asking them to identify parts of the photos that are “windows” and parts that are “mirrors.”

Windows, she explained, are places - particularly in books and curriculum - where a student may see an introduction to a new kind of world, as though they were looking through a window. On the other hand, mirrors

they’re really shocked. Like, ‘What? I was always told I was supposed to show up a particular way, and to be serious meant that I was always this,’ and I’m like, all right, that’s fine that you were told that, but what’s the reality?” she asked.

She said sometimes getting someone “one number higher” can be as simple as allowing students to eat snacks in class to get their energies up, and sometimes it’s a much larger problem that no individual person can solve, but allowing people to check in can create a more adaptable classroom that actually fits with the needs of the students.

Talusan added this approach can be adapted for students of many different ages by using, for example, simpler terminology or fewer numbers.

“We’re building the skills for reflection and the habits of conversation,” she said.

She moved on to discussing what it means to be an “identity-conscious

to engage in those conversations.

“How do we help children develop the habits and skills [for identity-consciousness]? It’s not by ignoring itit’s by engaging in this conversation, about being with them, helping them to build healthy habits,” Talusan said.

“Identity-conscious practice is simply this process of realizing that who we are informs and impacts how we act and interact and see the world around us,” she said.

Talusan said many people try to pretend they don’t see identity, which she identified as what many people call an “identity-blind approach.” She said she prefers the term “identity-avoidant” because her daughter is visually impaired and believes the association with blindness is ableist.

She said identity-avoidant approaches to teaching are more beneficial to the educator than to the students.

“If we’re talking about this in the classroom, and I say, ‘Mm, mm, mm,

are places where a student feels reflected and seen.

By identifying windows and mirrors, Talusan said educators and students can be more conscious of who they are and who the people around them are, and thus more identity-conscious.

She ended by saying that diversity in the classroom should be a starting point for a healthy, informed conversation, rather than a point of contention.

“As we start to build the habits and skills for being able to be curious with each other and really leaning into [that] diversity and identity don’t have to be divisive, we can actually build collaboration and curiosity and critical thinking and understanding and community together,” Talusan said.

Leighah Beausoleil / THE GATEPOST

CONNECT WITH RAENA DOTY rdoty@student.framingham.edu

Hao Zhang brings an engineer’s edge to fashion sustainability

By Ryan O’Connell Arts & Features Editor

By Bella Omar Staff Writer

Students in Rui-Rui Zhang’s fashion and design class listened to a guest lecture from Hao Zhang of James Madison University March 24.

Rui-Rui Zhang, who teaches Case Studies in Fashion Merchandising, introduced Hao Zhang (no relation) as a professor and an accomplished expert in life cycle engineering and sustainability assessment, who provided a new perspective into how fashion and sustainability are intrinsically tied together.

“This is a very paradoxical and challenging topic. So I think his perspective and his approaches to sustainability is going to be very, very helpful for us to get a more diverse perspective to look at the fashion industry,” she said.

Despite Hao Zhang’s lack of familiarity with the fashion industry, his knowledge on product life cycles and their respective assessments allowed him to shine light on the detrimental impact of fashion production.

Hao Zhang then described how his education, work experience, and research led him to explore manufacturing, system design, product design - including textiles, smart manufacturing, robotics, system engineering, and sometimes waste management.

He said his presentation would focus on explaining Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) with the potential to

touch on blockchain mechanisms.

Hao Zhang then explained that the purpose of conducting an LCA for any product, especially for garments, is to map out the life cycle and net environmental, economic, and social impact of any functional unit. A functional unit is the product being assessed.

He said product life cycles can usually be condensed into six main phases: material extraction, material processing, manufacturing, distribu-

Hao Zhang then introduced the process of deciding on the scope of assessment, scope being what particular section of the product’s life cycle is being observed.

He added there are three main scopes of assessment - gate to gate, cradle to gate, and cradle to grave.

Hao Zhang said gate-to-gate assessment is tracking only alterations made within the factory. He said the first gate represents the factory where the product is manufactured and the

Retailing

tion, use, and disposal. He added these six phases follow a product through its entire life and are used to track its impact from factory to landfill.

He then went to explain what a functional unit is, and gave an example of how to define a unit of an LCA.

“If you’re conducting assessment on papers then you have to think about do you want to have the environmental impact of one piece of paper or one package of paper? Then this is how you choose your functional unit,” he said.

second gate is where the product is put on the shelf.

He added cradle to gate represents the journey from gathering of raw materials to factory production, and cradle to grave illustrates the entire lifecycle of a garment, from material collection to disposal.

Hao Zhang said that without being aware of the functional unit in an LCA, the carbon footprint emissions figure of a product has no significance.

He demonstrated how to conduct an LCA with a case study on the envi-

Custom ‘Taylor’ed - Eras Tour dazzles

By Bella Omar Staff Writer

Having released four new albums and two rerecorded albums since her Reputation Tour in 2018, Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has been eagerly anticipated by many, generating almost $591 million in ticket sales so far.

This record-breaking tour takes Taylor fans on a journey through her whole discography, from her debut album to her most recent album, “Midnights.”

While her 44-song, 3-hour set list is impressive, her coinciding wardrobe is just as noteworthy.

Paying tribute to each of her respective music and fashion eras, Taylor makes an astounding 16 costume changes throughout the show, with every ensemble being custom made by a variety of designers such as Roberto Cavalli and Atelier Versace.

Taylor opens the show with songs from her 2019 album, “Lover.” This is made clear even before she sang her opener “Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince’’ by her pink and blue bejeweled Atelier Versace bodysuit, resembling the pastel skies on the al-

bum cover. Characteristic of her tour outfits, this bodysuit was styled with a pair of custom Christian Louboutin knee-high boots coated in swarovski crystals in tandem with her microphone.

To introduce her song “The Man,” Taylor added a studded Versace blazer to her ensemble. This jacket’s debut was brief as she made a quick change into an embroidered gold fringe minidress by Roberto Cavalli reminiscent of her early eras to perform songs from her 2008 album “Fearless.” The matching bedazzled guitar completed the look.

After completing her song “Love Story,” the pop star transformed her look into a tribute to her album “Evermore” by replacing swarovski crystals with whimsical mustard yellow. Her long corseted dress with floral embroidery was custom made by Etro and perfectly encapsulated the bewitching undertones of the storytelling album.

To transition into her much edgier “Reputation” era, Taylor then donned an asymmetrical Roberto Cavalli black mesh and sequin jumpsuit. The red snake embellishments were

reminiscent of her music videos from that album. This suit was worn with yet another pair of custom Christian Louboutin ankle boots in black.

“Speak Now” was the next of the eras performed, and Taylor did not fall short in representing the year of its release, 2010, with a shimmering A-line ball gown in pastel pink by luxury bridal brand Nicole + Felicia, clearly paying homage to the fairytale nature of the album. The second show of the tour, she wore a similar gown by Zuhair Murad.

Her “Red” set was kicked off with a more casual costume change, with a white graphic T-shirt, with the words “a lot going on at the moment” styled with sequined black shorts and a fedora, practically recreating her “22” music video look. The words on the graphic T-shirt change into the lyrics, “Who’s Taylor Swift anyway? Ew.”

The T-shirt came off for the song “I Knew You Were Trouble” to reveal a red and black ombre romper by Ashish. A matching floor-length coat was added to complete the look for the 10-minute version of “All Too Well” with another coordinating guitar.

“Folklore” was encapsulated in an

ronmental impact of a cotton T-shirt.

Material breakdown, even of something as simple as a cotton T-shirt, is pertinent to calculating its net environmental impact, Hao Zhang said.

The transportation of this T-shirt also must be included in these calculations, he added.

The actual mass of materials, in this case cotton, is important as one of the impact factors of a product, he said. He added impact factors also include water and energy use in production.

In addition to carbon dioxide emissions, the garment industry causes harm to the environment in ways such as acidification and eutrophication.

Acidification is when a body of water’s pH is significantly lowered by production waste, harming the ecosystem and surrounding communities.

Eutrophication is when a body of water contains too many nutrients, in this case induced by garment production pollutants, resulting in algae overgrowth.

Hao Zhang then explained the case study’s results, how to interpret them, and the pros and cons of using blockchain technology in holding factories accountable for treatment of their workers.

CONNECT WITH RYAN O’CONNELL roconnell1@student.framingham.edu

CONNECT WITH BELLA OMAR bomar@student.framingham.edu

ethereal lavender chiffon dress by Alberta Ferretti, whose lace ruffles created dramatic silhouettes as Taylor moved across the vast stage. Almost comparable to one of Stevie Nicks’ signature looks, this dress will be one of this tour’s more notable outfits.

The album “1989” was celebrated with bright green and pink sets by Roberto Cavalli, characterized by dramatic fringe and beading.

Songs from the 2022 album “Midnights,” her most recent album, completed the show.

Beginning with “Lavender Haze,” Taylor emerged in a very fitting ensemble, consisting of a lavender faux fur coat and crystal T-shirt dress by Oscar de la Renta. The final look was a custom Zuhair Murad bodysuit in midnight blue, with no shortage of beading and fringe.

Taylor Swift and her team were detail-oriented in every aspect of the tour, and her wardrobe was no exception, with every look perfectly encapsulating the associated “era” of music and careful choice of designers.

CONNECT WITH BELLA OMAR bomar@student.framingham.edu

“His perspective and his approaches to sustainability is going to be very, very helpful for us to get a more diverse perspective to look at the fashion industry.”

- Rui-Rui Zhang, Professor of Fashion Design and

Student art displayed in Mazmanian Gallery and May Hall for Accreditation reveiw.

Photos and spread by Photos & Design Editor Maddison Behringer

Fashion internships

as we built our program over the years.”

Noon said the professors work with the students to search for internships, adding, “It’s a very dynamic process.

“We don’t have 20 intern positions sitting out there waiting to be matched with candidates,” she said. “Our industry is very dynamic and always changing, so we’ve built, over the years, a relationship with different companies in the area.”

Noon added, “Some I can call up and say, ‘I’ve got a great candidate I think would be a good fit.’ Sometimes, people call us.”

She said she helps students by making phone calls, but when it comes to doing the interview and getting the job, the students have to put in the work.

Noon said it can be “a hard process because students want to get something right away, but sometimes, they don’t happen right away, and that’s really where the learning comes.”

She highlighted a feature built into the course called the “special project assignment.” Noon explained this assignment encourages the student to ask the company for an extra project that they can help out with that will benefit the company. This project is typically something that the company may not have the time for.

In order to also improve public

speaking skills, students are required to present these special projects to their supervisors in addition to some other employees at the company, Noon said.

She said these internships give students the opportunity to see if they truly enjoy that particular part of the fashion industry. For example, some students may feel strongly about wanting to work in a corporation, but then realize they do not want to sit in a cubicle and look at numbers.

In these corporate roles, students are “doing the process of product development, which is coming up with

hired by the company. This has contributed to the growth and strength of the department’s alumni network.

“Our alumni connection is very, very strong, and we built that through our industry advisory board,” she added. “We have a group of companies that advise the faculty and help us guide our curriculum development, and many, not all, are alumni.”

store, adding they all “switch off.”

Each manager has a part of the store that they focus on. Johnson said her focus is on managing the stylists team, which consists of two employees.

the product, connecting with vendors overseas, and producing the product.

“Oftentimes, the students will realize that they really appreciate product - handling product, positioning of product - and that’s what we call merchandising, or fashion merchandising,” Noon said. “It’s putting the product placement in a way that is aligned with the company’s selling objectives.”

She said this often leads students into working in retailing, which they may have done in the past in a position such as a salesperson, but as interns, they are encouraged to take on roles with more responsibility in management such as that of a keyholder.

Noon said sometimes, the students in these internships will end up being

Noon said this program was originally established by professors emeriti Judy Flynn and Irene Foster. “I’ll just say they developed the program to be what it is today. Because I came in and continued to build it in a similar way that they did, I learned from them, and I think we can thank them for the work that they did. I think it continues to benefit all of our students.”

Ciara Johnson, intern at Anthropologie

Ciara Johnson, a senior fashion design and retailing major with a concentration in merchandising, said she is interning at the Anthropologie located in the Natick Mall as a keyholder/manager.

Formerly, Johnson said she worked at Anthropologie two years ago as a stylist.

She said as keyholder, her responsibilities include opening and closing the store as well as managing the staff along with the other managers at the

“I’m able to manage them and help style the mannequins, book any appointments for clients, talk to clients, kind of do any social media work with them,” she said. “That’s pretty much what I do day to day.”

She added, “I also have meetings with the stylists in the district. So we usually talk, I would say maybe twice a month about what’s happeningwhat our goals are money wise or just customer wise or business wise.”

Courtesy of Virginia Noon

Johnson said in her previous position as stylist, she had the freedom to style mannequins and work with customers and now as a manager, she is able to provide guidance and mentorship to those who currently hold stylist positions. “I’ve learned how to lead rather than follow.”

In addition, she said she has a better understanding of how the store is run and the analytics that she needs to pay attention to, including the data on how much customers buy and what the conversion rate is on a dayto-day basis.

Conversion is the percentage of customers who enter the store and

See FASHION INTERNSHIPS page 20

(Left) Fashion Design and Retail Seniors Eric Zhang, Ciara Johnson, Camille Stotz, Vallerie Dely, Claudia Tosi, and Kehinde Obawunmi.

Fashion internships

Continued from page 19

make a purchase.

Johnson said working at Anthropologie, she also has to understand the brand and the style that the company wants the customers to buy, which is different from her own personal style. However, despite following a style that is more “scripted,” when she finishes with a customer, she still feels accomplished.

She said when she interned at TESstylist over the summer, there was more freedom and creativity with how they styled customers as the store used multiple brands rather than a single one.

“I feel like the industry is tough and they want a certain way of what it looks like, but I think it’s important to kind of follow what they want … but also staying true to your own style,” she said, adding, “I’m still figuring it out.”

Johnson said her favorite part of styling is connecting with each model and listening to their stories and truly hearing how they want to be dressed.

“I think a lot of the time, a lot of businesses have a certain way they want their brand to look, but that’s not how our world is anymore,” she said, adding at Anthropologie, she often does not work the range of people that she did at TESstylist.

She said the company has only recently begun adding clothing in petite and plus-size sizing.

“I think the people inside the industry have made me love it more than actually working with clothes every day,” Johnson said. “I just love the people really inside. I’ve worked with some of the coolest, most fun, and most creative people.”

Adrianna Hassan, intern at Trend

Adrianna Hassan, a fashion design and retailing major with a concentration in merchandising, said she is interning at her father’s business, Trend, which is located on Newbury Street in Boston.

Hassan said Trend is a comfort shoe store, and her father recently opened a second store five blocks further down the street. Though she has worked there for years as a salesperson, she said she has been taking on more responsibility with the business’ marketing and more of the paperwork side.

Through her time working there, Hassan said she has been able to develop her people skills in order to improve her sales and build relationships with customers.

She added working at Trend has helped put the fashion industry into “a real-world perspective.” Applying what she has learned in school to the business allows her to gain a better understanding of how the industry works.

Hassan said if she had to offer ad-

vice to people interested in pursuing the fashion industry, she would recommend they “work hard and stick with it.”

She added, “If you really like to do it, it’s very time consuming, and it’s a lot of networking and meetings and everything, so just put 100% into the career.”

Hassan said watching her father

she initially thought. She added though it may sound strange for him to open a second store on the same street, both sides are geared toward different clientele. For example, she said one store is closer to Berklee College of Music, which means more of their clients will be college students.

Hassan said it was her father who

up at her family’s businesses. She added being at the store was her way of bonding with her father as he often works 80 hours a week.

Hassan said she hopes to open her own store one day.

Camille Stotz, intern at TJX Camille Stotz, a senior fashion design and retailing major with a concentration in merchandising, said she is currently interning at TJX as an allocation analyst.

Stotz said in this role, her focus is on sales, what the company has on order, and she gets to decide what products go on the website, especially for men’s and women’s athletic footwear.

She said doing this work has provided her with more insight on what is popular, such as golf. “Our golf shoes are doing outstandingly, and just like as a culture and society in general, I feel like golf is really becoming popular, especially among younger people.”

Stotz said her day-to-day typically starts with her deciding what should be put on the website. She then sends those over to the person who physically adds them to the site.

Additionally, Stotz said she will attend meetings throughout the day with her team members, adding she also works on problem-solving any issues with orders at the distribution center.

Having never worked in a corporate setting before, she said she has been able to improve and develop her office skills by “really just seeing how everyone else acts and what a corporate setting really looks like.”

Stotz said in this role, she has been able to see a “different side” of the fashion industry. Because many of her classes focus on product development and buying, doing a job that focuses on planning has taught her “a lot.”

She said planning allows the company to “put what we bought into action.

“I’ve talked to Dr. Noon about this and I’ve told her maybe we should start focusing more on analyzing data and the whole planning process in those classes,” Stotz said. “So I hope in the future, they do try to implement that more instead of just really buying and product development and all that.”

She said to those interested in pursuing the field, she recommends they “really understand what it means to go into the fashion industry.”

Stotz emphasized that while she is a fashion major, what she learns in those courses and through her internship experience can be applied to positions outside of the fashion industry. For example, she said there was a guest speaker who was a fashion major and now works at CVS doing planning for the company’s snacks.

open a second store this past summer has demonstrated to her how much more complicated the industry is than

inspired her to pursue this career.

“I was born into it,” Hassan said, reflecting on how she practically grew

She said in the future, she hopes to

See FASHION INTERNSHIPS page 21

Courtesy of Virginia Noon

Students in a fashion course conducting a fiber identification lab.

Courtesy of Virginia Noon

Sewing machines in one of the fashion design and retailing classrooms.

Fashion internships

Continued from page 20

pursue more jobs focused on the buying side of fashion. “I love looking at products. I love deciding, like, ‘Hey, maybe we should purchase this. Let’s try it out. Let’s see how the customer responds to it.’ It’s something I’ve always kind of had an interest in.”

However, Stotz said from her in-

items are luxury handbags, shoes, and jewelry. Due to the business’ large number of consignors, there are constantly new products being added to the store, including to the clothing collection.

Consignment is an arrangement in which a company will leave its goods in the possession of an authorized third-party seller.

like, ‘Oh, we can’t take this piece,’ if they want to consign it. It’s just you don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings, but I guess that’s communicationtelling them, ‘No,’ in a nice way.”

Additionally, Tosi said she has gained more skills in merchandising, editing, creating graphics, and learning how to run a social media account for a business.

people are becoming more interested in shopping sustainably, which I think is awesome because I’ve learned how bad the fashion industry is for the planet,” she added.

“Consignment shops are a great way to go and find those higher-end luxury pieces at an affordable price, but also staying sustainable,” she said. “I hope it becomes more popular.”

Tosi said she is excited for an upcoming project that she will be working on.

“I’m going to be doing a big photo shoot and just collaborate with a bunch of models,” she said. “I’m going to be making professional-looking advertisements, modeling all the models, styling … editing it, and then I want to create a magazine of all of that for DC, so that’s something that I definitely am extremely excited about.”

Kehinde Obawunmi, upcoming intern at Nordstrom

Kehinde Obawunmi, a senior fashion design and retailing major with a concentration in merchandising, said her internship will begin in June at Nordstrom in retail management.

Obawunmi said she is most looking forward to the opportunity to improve her skills, especially her professional skills, and apply all the knowledge she has gained at FSU to this position.

Currently, she said she is working as a service representative at Nordstrom Rack.

Obawunmi said she has loved fashion ever since she was a little girl, when she would play dress-up and watch fashion shows.

She said fashion is a way for her to express herself, adding if people wear the right clothes, they can feel more comfortable in their bodies and maintain a higher level of confidence.

“Once you know the kind of aesthetic you like, your confidence boosts because if you’re wearing clothes that are not your aesthetic, your body knows that,” Obawunmi said. “I see fashion - it’s also connected to spirituality, too.”

She emphasized that people should not care what is trendy, but should wear what makes them feel good, which is exactly what she does. “You’re serving your body - your skin.”

ternship experience, she now knows “you don’t really know what you’re getting into until you get into it.”

Claudia Tosi, intern at DC Consignments

Claudia Tosi, a senior fashion design and retailing major with a concentration in merchandising, said she is interning at DC Consignments in Natick.

Tosi said DC Consignments is a luxury and contemporary consignment store, adding the most popular

Tosi said her responsibilities include running the social media, cashiering, merchandising, working with consignors, pricing items, as well as updating the website - which had not been updated for some time - so the store can have more online shopping options.

Through this position, she said she has become more knowledgeable of different brands that she was not aware of before and she has improved her communication skills.

“It was definitely kind of hard at first,” she added. “I was scared to be

This last skill was one of her biggest challenges to overcome. She said deciding what to post was a “trial-and-error” process and she often worried about whether her posts would get likes and if she was increasing the business’ digital foot traffic.

Tosi said she has always been interested in sustainable fashion, and this internship has given her more insight on how popular buying second hand is.

“I feel like it’s definitely something that’s going to be bigger in the future because I feel like more and more

Obawunmi said she hopes to pursue a career in the fashion industry that allows her to travel and also express her creativity.

She said initially, she did not pursue fashion because she was feeling uncertain about doing it as a career. However, her family encouraged her to pursue her dream, knowing she had such a big passion for the industry.

To those also interested in the fashion industry, she said, “If there’s something that you want to do, go for it. It’s as simple as that.”

CONNECT WITH LEIGHAH BEAUSOLEIL lbeausoleil@student.framingham.edu

Courtesy of Virginia Noon

Students from the Consumer Textiles course posing with one of the #BannersforJustice banners.

Puzzles

41. Private info dished to a journalist

44. Some Energizers

46. Mimic

48. Grp. that might host a bake sale

49. Housing for a filly or colt

53. ISP since 1993

54 Fit

55. “Ha! What was I thinking?!”

57. Edge of a skirt

58. Palindromic address

60. Seasonal ailment

61. Away from the shore

63. Carpenter’s tool ... or what might beep when near 17-, 31- and 49-Across?

68. Cash register part

69. RPG spell caster

70. Too trusting

71. Put on the market

72. Annual Austin fest

73. Selfish desire

DOWN

1. Coding flaw

2. Abbr. on a lawyer’s door

ACROSS

1. Goatee, for example

6. Where to find toe beans

10. Do a terrible stand-up set

14. “We want to be included!”

15. “Now!”

16. Adidas competitor

17. Men’s Health alternative

19. Blend together

20. Blog feed format letters

21. Goulash or birria

23. Food label stat.

24. Online place to obsess about your favorite band

28. Device that uses a threepronged approach?

30. Brewpub order

31. Piece of a formal ensemble

33. Dairy animal

34. One of six on Australia’s flag

35. That guy

36. Carve into a plaque, say

38. Middle Eastern rulers

3. Cash dispenser

4. Lion’s outbursts

5. Watches someone’s pointer, say

6. La ___ (Bolivian capital)

7. Words on a sale rack label

8. Classified document?

9. Racer’s swimwear brand

10. “Kapow!”

11. Benefit of working an extra shift, maybe

12. Less spicy

13. Kitsch, basically

18. Sharp-witted

22. ___ and fold (laundromat service)

24. Confront head-on

25. Tons

26. Scent picked up on a test drive

27. Final, for one

29. “SNL” legend Hartman

32. “Sappho’s Leap” author Jong

37. Corned beef dish

39. Pilfers from

40. Joint with tobacco and marijuana

42. Particle smashed at CERN

43. Smoothie green

45. Baseball stitching

47. Hollering

49. Drum kit cymbals

50. Baby garment with snaps

51. They’re jerks!

52. It provoked a famous “party” in Boston

56. Like the Islamic calendar

59. Coffee shop cups

62. Every bit

64. Mountain ___ Baja Blast

65. Craps cube

66. The night before

67. Like the “C” on a Cubs hat

Puzzle solutions are now exclusively online.

‘The Last of Us’ - the end of the world never looked so good

By Kyle Walker Staff Writer

“The Last of Us,” created by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann for HBO Max, just wrapped up its first season.

This is an adaptation of the PlayStation exclusive video game, “The Last of Us,” made by game studio Naughty Dog. The show closely follows the plot of the original game, which tells the story of Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey). It follows so closely that some of the scenes are literally one-to-one down to the dialogue.

On Jan. 15, the show premiered. I began watching consistently around the time the fourth episode came out, and I was hooked.

Joel and Ellie meet unexpectedly and are forced to face a jarring, post-apocalyptic America, after several years of the outbreak of cordyceps. This is a mutated fungus infection which turns people into what the show refers to as “the infected,’’ who are essentially zombies. The two travel across the states together, encountering a lot of interesting characters and events, which even furthers the assumption that society is doomed.

A great example of this is when they reach Colorado. During this time, Joel is injured and Ellie sets off to find medicine and meets David (Scott

Shepherd) who appears to be empathetic to Ellie’s situation and agrees to help her in exchange for food. We then find out slowly that Da vid leads a group of cannibalistic survivors and otherwise has grim inten tions.

Scott Shepherd does a fantastic job playing David. He perfectly con veys the unstable nature of the char acter in a frighten ing way which makes you fear for Ellie.

The cast for this show is perfect. Joel and Ellie are in great hands with their respective actors. These two are very talented actors and at times feel very real and it was nice to see them interact.

Recently, Pedro Pascal, who por trays Joel, has been impressing critics and audiences with his performanc es and has been involved in several exciting projects. In contrast, Bella Ramsey, who plays Ellie, has not yet had many acting opportunities, but her performance shows that she has a bright future ahead. I hope that this

show will kick start her career. There was a lot of added content as well. The biggest part was a whole episode dedicated to Bill (Nick Offerman) and Frank (Murray Bartlett). The story of these characters is one of the biggest departures from the game.

In the game, Joel and Ellie come across Bill, but Frank is absent and has gone missing. However, in the show, Bill and Frank are depicted as a couple and the third episode delves into their love story, exploring how they first met. The episode was definitely one of - if not - my favorite episode of the season, and was an outstanding addition

Another small addition that was cool to see was a flashback of Ellie’s mother giving birth after being bitten by an infected. This was a really sad scene and offered some extra lore about why we don’t see her mom.

Some of the voice actors from the

game had cameos within the show which I thought was a really cool addition. Ellie’s mother was played by Ellie’s voice actor, Ashley Johnson. One of the cannibals who was a part of David’s crew was played by Troy Baker, who voiced Joel in the game.

Packed with plenty of emotion and great characters, “The Last of Us” translates very well as a show, and I cannot wait to see how they handle season two.

Rating: A

An infectiously good time

CONNECT WITH KYLE WALKER

Ben Hurney / THE GATEPOST

SGA Gets Their Just Desserts

Melanie Wu pieing Raffi Elkhoury at Pie SGA Fundraiser March 28.

A student pieing Raffi Elkhoury at Pie SGA Fundraiser March 28.

(Left) Evelyn Campbell and Andy Thompson after being pied at Pie SGA Fundraiser March 28.

Ann McDonald pieing Jeffrey Coleman at Pie SGA Fundraiser March 28.

Dara Barros pieing Dillon Riley at Pie SGA Fundraiser March 28.

Spread by Photos & Design Editor Maddison Behringer and Asst. Photos Editor Adrien Gobin

Photos by Photos & Design Editor Maddison Behringer