November 17, 2023

Volume 92 • Issue 10

November 17, 2023

Athletic equipment theft addressed at ‘Town Hall’

FSUgatepost.com

Apollo’s Anguish

By Adam Harrison Asst. News Editor Members of SGA held their biannual Town Hall to give students a chance to raise questions, comments, and concerns to administrators on Nov. 14.

At the forum, students raised concerns about theft, mental health, and accessibility.

In attendance was President Nancy Niemi; Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations Eric Gustafson; Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Kristen Porter-Utley; Vice President for Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement Jeffrey Coleman; Assistant Vice President of Human Resources and Equal Opportunity Kim Dexter; Associate Dean of Students for Student Life Glenn Cochran; Assistant Dean for Student Engagement Rachel Lucking; Director of Facilities Daniel Giard; Vice President for Student Affairs Meg Nowak; Borrego;

See TOWN HALL page 3

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST Olivia Copeland (left) and Zach Morrison as Daphne and Apollo during the “Cupid & Psyche” dress rehearsal Nov.15.

Board of Trustees discuss enrollment strategies

By Naidelly Coelho News Editor The Board of Trustees discussed the University’s strategic enrollment plan, President Nancy Niemi’s evaluation, and FY 25 budget during the Nov. 15 meeting.

During the Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management Committee Report, Trustee Nancy Budwig provided updates on enrollment and retention rates.

She said undergraduate enrollment has dropped 5% and graduate enrollment has risen 6% compared to AY 2022. The University is 6% ahead in new student enrollment compared to

last year.

The University has a decrease of 2% in overall enrollment compared to last year, Budwig said.

The University’s retention rate is 72%, which is 1% ahead of 2022, she added.

She said because of the delay of FAFSA forms this year, the University might see some change in those numbers.

“So getting out the financial award letters - which the aim is to do it earlier and earlier - will be delayed,” Budwig said.

Dean of Strategic Enrollment Management Iris Godes said the FAFSA form will open on Dec. 31, which will delay the sending out of award letters

News

until early March.

“I was talking about this with my staff today. There’s a sort of national May 1 decision day to submit your deposit. Well, if we can’t get your award out to you until April, are you ready to make a decision? So we’re going to have to see how that goes. We’re going to be watching closely,” Godes said.

Godes said FSU received $22 million from the MASSGrant Plus Expansion for financial aid available for students.

This expansion will give students more financial aid who are eligible for the Pell Grant more money. Students who are part time and eligible for Pell Grant will also receive financial aid,

TOWN HALL pg. 3 GENERAL EDUCATION pg. 4

Opinions GIVING THANKS pg. 6 EM’S GEMS pg.7

Sports

See BOARD OF TRUSTEES page 5

National Philanthropy Day celebrates the goodness of giving

By Ryan O’Connell Associate Editor On a cloudy, cold November afternoon, Sarah Ripton floats between tables deployed by the Maynard Parking Lot, behind West Hall.

One of the folding tables is covered in an array of QR codes - links to local nonprofits, volunteering signups, and a way for students to donate unused meal swipes to commuters missing a meal plan through Sodexo.

When she isn’t talking to passing students, alumni, and faculty, Ripton is making sure a range of crafts are ready for passersby to participate in - painting, jewelry making, and blanket building to name a few.

These opportunities - not only a chance to relax and stretch creative muscles - are part of a larger celebration of National Philanthropy Day, recognized Nov. 15, and hosted by the Office of Development and Alumni Relations.

Ripton, the coordinator of student support and advocacy for the Dean of Students Office and the single point of contact for basic needs security, is the only staff member running the Rams Resource Center, which the Philanthropy Day focused on highlighting.

The resource center, operated by the Dean of Students Office, is receiving help this semester from two interns and two student workers, she said.

“I have support from student workers who are phenomenal,” Ripton said.

She added the interns are funded by Alexis Schlesinger/ THE GATEPOST the “ending campus hunger grant” and are responsible for the day-to-day op- VOLLEYBALL pg. 8 erations of the Rams Resource Center, KONDI BREAKS RECORDS pg. 9 which also receives help from the two student workers, employed through work-study.

Ripton said not only was Philanthropy Day a good way to highlight and celebrate the resource center, but also the partnering businesses which help it operate.

She said Circle of Hope, a local organization in Massachusetts, for example, donates amenities and specialty orders to the Rams Resource Center, which can include specifically-colored pants Alexis Schlesinger / THE GATEPOST or special bedding.

BOTANY pg. 11 See PHILANTHROPY page 12 RAENA’S ROOM REPORT pg. 13

Arts & Features

INSIDE: OP/ED 6 • SPORTS 8 • ARTS & FEATURES 10

NEWS

2 | NOVEMBER 17, 2023

Gatepost Interview Caitlin Laurie

Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief Emily Rosenberg Associate Editors Ryan O’Connell Sophia Harris News Editor Naidelly Coelho Asst. News Editors Kaitilin Carman Adam Harrison Opinions Editor Izayah Morgan Sports Editor Adam Levine Asst. Sports Editor Riley Crowell Arts & Features Editors Raena Doty Jack McLaughlin Asst. Arts & Features Editors Bella Omar Owen Glancy Design & Photo Editors Maddison Behringer Adrien Gobin Asst. Design & Photos Editors Dylan Pichnarcik Alexis Schlesinger Illustrations Editor Ben Hurney

Director of Financial Aid

By Dylan Pichnarcik Editorial Staff What is your educational and professional background?

I have a bachelor’s and a master’s degree, both from Clark University. My bachelor’s is in communications and my master’s is in professional communications. For my professional background, I started in higher education doing fundraising at WPI [Worcester Polytechnic Institute]. Then I got a job as assistant director of financial aid at Clark University in 2010 - that’s where my financial aid career started and I did that for about two-and-a-half years.

It was a private, high cost, four-year traditional residential liberal arts campus. … Then in June of 2012, I became a senior financial aid counselor at Quinsigamond Community College, a public two-year school.

I was a counselor for another five years. I was then promoted into two different associate director roles.

The first one was in 2017 and I was director for another six years, that was when I started managing staff.

Now I’m here as director. I really like public higher education and can get behind that mission more than very high cost high-class schools.

What drew you to FSU? I wanted to stay within the public Staff Writers sector for affordability and for the Jesse Burchill value of education. I really missed Carly Paul the traditional four-year college Liv Dunleavy campus feel. So I feel it was a combiJackson Clyde nation of both my previous instituEmily Monaco tions, and I was taking pieces that I David Abe liked most about both of them. And Francisco Omar Fernandez Rodriguez it all came together here.

Dante Curry Richard Gill Andrea O’Brien Paul Harrington Dorcas Abe

Advisor Desmond McCarthy Asst. Advisor Elizabeth Banks

What do you hope to accomplish in your new role as Director of Financial aid?

The FAFSA simplification for 202425 is launching sometime next month, so learning the changes and being able to educate others about it. Also updating our [financial aid award] packaging for 2024-25 to make sure that we’re leveraging as a recruiting tool. We’re getting a lot of funding from the state, they have recently increased their higher education funding. … Also with [the] FAFSA simplification, the Pell Grant is expected to increase by 30 40%. … So we are going to have to look at how we package financial aid. I am

Dylan Pichnarcik / THE GATEPOST going to start implementing the 202425 FAFSA changes and packaging, and then I will be making sure we’re using it as a recruitment tool to increase enrollment.

What is your favorite part about FSU? I really like the diversity on campus.

It is actually much more diverse than I realized - which is great to see! All of the staff have been very friendly, and I think the high level administrators’ hearts are in the right place, they are very pro-students. There are a lot of changes happening right now with the new president. I think she has a great

vision for the school. I really appreciate the strong leadership here.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I like to travel and spend time outdoors hiking and exploring different national parks. My favorite is Zion National Park. I like to cook and spend time with my family - I have two kids and a husband!

CONNECT WITH DYLAN PICHNARCIK dpichnarcik@student.framingham.edu

Police Logs 100 State Street McCarthy Center Room 410 Framingham, MA 01701-9101 Phone: (508) 626-4605 Fax: (508) 626-4097 gatepost@framingham.edu

Friday, Nov. 10 11:03 Family Problem FSU Police Department Advised

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Saturday, Nov. 11 00:21 Parking Enforcement Larned Hall Citation issued

Sunday, Nov. 12 07:12 Alarm (Fire/Smoke) West Hall False Alarm

Tuesday, Nov. 13 12:45 Safety Escort Union Ave. Parking Lot Services Rendered

NEWS

NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 3

Town Hall Continued from page 1 Chief of Staff,General Counsel and Secretary to the Board of Trustees Ann McDonald; Executive Vice President Dale Hamel; and Director of Dining Services Michael Newmark.

SGA Vice President Raffi Elkhoury brought up concerns about campus security, specifically theft of equipment in the weight room.

He said there is a large portion of the student population who have an interest in the weight room, and there should be funding put toward new and better equipment as well as new security measures such as cameras.

“We want to make sure that the new stuff isn’t getting broken or stolen … because that has been an issue in the past,” he said.

Elkhoury also suggested renting equipment as an alternative to directly purchasing it.

Hamel said there are a number of ways to potentially fund this idea, especially because a large portion of the athletics funding goes to sports.

“I do like the suggestion of possibly including it on the capital [projects] ranking exercise, so we’re going to have a discussion in executive staff about that,” he said.

SGA President Evelyn Campbell added the potential solution of putting individual tags on the weights so they can be easily located if they are taken.

She said they could be a better alternative to cameras because with cameras, you can see who took the equipment but not where they went, and that doesn’t solve the issue.

“Having tags on the weights would then allow you to know exactly where they are, which would be more helpful and more useful,” she said.

Hamel raised the concern that tagging equipment like a dumbbell would be too apparent, and someone could simply take the tag off before stealing it.

Senator Jeremy McDonald added purchasing new equipment for the weight room would be beneficial for the overall health and safety of the athletes as well.

He said having more accessible and functional equipment would enable athletes to compete at the highest level they can, in addition to preemptively avoiding injuries.

“Investing in the weight room is also investing in our athletes and injury prevention,” he said.

Senator Tony Sims brought up simi-

lar concerns about security on campus regarding the game room.

He said property from the Game Room such as various game boards have been stolen. Students are able to gain access to the room with their IDs until 2:00 a.m., and there should be more security to prevent theft.

“Due to lack of security, public opinion on that room is not where I would like to see it, and I think that a similar method to tagging could be employed with a lot of those pieces,” he said.

Dean of Student Engagement Lucking responded that there are already cameras in the game room, and they have been used when following up with damage-related issues, but they will look into the tagging idea.

She said they use card access to the room to figure out and track down who was inside the room during the time of damage, but many students aren’t swiping to enter, “so part of it is community responsibility for the space.”

In terms of managing the game room as a community space, she directed those with suggestions to follow up with the Center for Student Experience.

Elkhoury raised concerns about the availability of and access to mental health resources on campus, and if there was a way for the University to advertise counseling services and resources outside of the FSU counseling network.

Hiring graduate students at the counseling center “is a really good step to trying to meet that need, but I think there is still an unmet need in the student mental health and counseling department,” he said.

Associate Dean of Students Cochran responded that graduate interns in the counseling center are valuable, and they are interested in adding more.

There is one person who holds remote early evening sessions, but that may not fit into every student’s schedule, so they are also looking into more options.

He said there are flyers posted around campus that provide information on outside mental health resources, but they are looking for additional ways to advertise them as well.

“We have had some student leaders, we’ve had RAs, we’ve had S.E.A.L.s go through a full-day certification - [mental health first aid] - it would be great to have more people trained in that,” he said.

He added that the course was 8

Weather

hours, and they are looking into options to replace it with a 4-hour course in order to encourage more students to take it, and to have it fit more easily into students’ schedules.

The 4-hour course would not be as in depth, but it’s a tradeoff between fewer training hours and many more participants, he said.

Chief of Staff and General Counsel McDonald suggested having the Counseling Center reach out to coaches because many student athletes struggle with mental health. “I think a lot of coaches would be receptive to that - to know their players are doing OK.” The scheduling for mental health sessions is difficult for student athletes, but coaches could play a major role in assisting them with that.

“I work at CASA as an ASPT tutor, and a lot of my students are athletes and their coaches help them sign up for these academic sessions to help them with that, so that’s a possibility as well.” Student Trustee Ryan Mikelis said.

Elkhoury asked if there could be a space for students to discuss the “current situation” in Israel and Palestine.

Vice President of DICE Coleman said the Center for Inclusive Excellence is available for students and faculty to participate in educational discussions.

“What we want is to make sure we are offering an educational discussion and we want it to be balanced. The University is not taking positions. And so we want the space to be somewhere where students can be supported, where community can be built, but also there can be education,” Coleman added.

Campbell brought up accessibility, and baby-changing stations being installed on all floors in the McCarthy Center. There is currently only one changing station on the second floor.

Tony Sims raised a concern about the lack of air-conditioning in many buildings, especially dorms. The heat in the early months of the semester can be very overwhelming and “to some who may have health conditions, potentially harmful.”

Also on the topic of residence hall conditions, Mikelis said access to elevators in all buildings is a necessary accommodation need that is not being met.

Sims expanded on that point, saying there are no elevators in Peirce and Horace Mann presumably due to their

“historical significance.

“As much as I admire that, I believe that it is necessary to have some form of disability access to each of these buildings. As an individual with physically disabled parents, it has been frustrating to not be able to have my father come see me … because he can’t get up those stairs,” he said.

He said by not accommodating for physical disabilities, the University is limiting some students from living in certain dorms. In addition to dorms, there are areas on campus that do not have ramps nearby, such as “in between Peirce and Horace Mann and the Athletic Center.”

Hamel responded that they’ve looked into the air-conditioning issue before and it is largely a financial issue.

The prospect of adding air-conditioning to the top two floors of one wing in Larned Hall would cost $2.8 million, and would be reflected in a significant rent increase.

“Unfortunately, during the shoulder seasons it can happen on both sides - there can be hot stretches where it does get warm, but it’s a tradeoff.

During the summer, we accommodate the worst part of the heat by putting people in Linsley,” he said.

The same financial problem occurs for the elevator issue. The University tries to address it by providing accommodations to buildings that don’t have elevators, Hamel said.

Cochran said, “We’ve done very well in working with students’ accommodations and needs,” but it becomes more difficult when providing for a visitor who can’t make it to those areas. It is also important to clearly describe the halls to incoming students so they are aware of what they are choosing.”

During closing remarks, Niemi said the forum was very well structured and did a wonderful job of reflecting everyone’s concerns. “I really love the way we communicate and we should be a model for a lot of places in the world, starting in our own backyard.

“I love it that we seem to be one of the few places in the state system that has this opportunity, and it’s an initiative I’m really proud of.”

CONNECT WITH ADAM HARRISON aharrison3@student.framingham.edu

Forecast provided by the National Weather Service www.weather.gov

Sunday night Nov. 19 Mostly clear, with a low around 30. NW wind around 10 mph.

Monday night Nov. 20 Mostly clear, with a low around 25. W wind around 10 mph.

Tuesday night Nov. 21 Rain. Low around 35. SE wind around 15 mph.

Wednesday night Nov. 22 Mostly cloudy, with a low around 30. W wind around 15 mph.

Monday Nov. 20 Sunny, with a high near 50. W wind around 15 mpg.

Tuesday Nov. 21 Sunny, with a high near 40. N wind around 10 mph.

Wednesday Nov. 22 Mostly cloudy, with a high near 50. SE around 15 mph.

Thursday Nov. 26 Mostly sunny, with a high near 40. W wind around 15 mph.

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4 | NOVEMBER 17, 2023

NEWS

General Education Advisory Board seeks campus feedback for future changes to program

By Kaitlin Carman Asst. News Editor Framingham State University is reviewing its General Education requirements in accordance with the strategic five-year cycle.

As part of this review, the General Education Advisory Board is seeking student and faculty feedback to write a proposal suggesting changes to be submitted to the University Curriculum Committee (UCC) by the end of January.

The UCC is a governance committee that will debate and approve the proposal. The final changes will be reviewed and approved by the All University Committee.

The first option, “Build a Model Around the Learning Objectives (LOs),” would make each LO a requirement and courses would be aligned with those requirements.

The strengths of this suggested model include general education purposes being clearer to students, clarity regarding the two primary reasons to change: LOs and model alignment and the need for a diversity requirement.

Implementation of this model could make “transfer alignment exceptionally difficult and maybe impossible,” and restrict pedagogical choices, according to the “Paths to Change” video that is posted on a Canvas site, “General Education Program AY 23-24.”

The second option, “Keep the Domain Model / Assign LOs,” would keep domains as “as they are, but each subdomain would have at least one LO attached to all courses in that subdomain,” according to the “Paths to Change” video.

The strengths of this proposed model include student and faculty familiarity with the current domain model. Also, the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) requirements are built in.

Drawbacks include the lack of diversity subdomains and would potentially include substantial changes to existing courses and limitations of pedagogical approaches.

The third option is “Create Something New.” It could provide an “opportunity to take advantage of the best thinking about general education, including the inclusion of HIPs (High Impact Practices),” as well as creating a better “integration between general education and majors,” according to the “Paths to Change” video.

Potential drawbacks include the requirement for a broad agreement on this new approach and “Increased resources for faculty development, logistics, and administrative support,” according to the “Paths to Change” video.

The work is expected to be completed by “after spring break,” according to Patricia Lynne, English professor and chair of the General Education Advisory Committee (GEAB). Any changes will affect the graduating class of 2029.

The University’s Assessment Advisory Group (AAG) developed a comprehensive five-year review that would, in accordance with NECHE parameters, allow the University flexibility to shape the program in a way that better serves students.

GEAB was formed in AY 2021-22.

Lynne said, “The goals for this review

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are to figure out how to make our general education more meaningful, more useful, and frankly, make it clear to students why they are doing it.”

One of the key issues regarding the general education program, according to Lynne is, “Our learning objectives, which are supposed to be the learning objectives for the program, do not align with the program in any way.”

Another issue pertains to the lack of a “visible” diversity requirement.

Although some current courses would technically fill that requirement, “there’s nothing in the model that specifically requires that all students take courses that have a diversity component to them,” said Lynne during the “Paths to Change” video.

This is an area of focus that students and faculty addressed on an anonymous discussion board on the General Education Program Canvas website.

“Approximately 5% of students graduate having completed all of the learning objectives for the program, which means they are not really learning objectives at all,” Lynne said.

Lynne explained the University’s current model, the domain model, replaced the goal model. She said, “What the goal model did that was considered somewhat problematic is it had silos.

“Those silos meant that people didn’t talk to each other and students really didn’t understand [that general education program].”

In addition to silos, Lynne explained

crediting agency says you have to take classes outside of your major because a bachelor’s degree isn’t just major courses.

“We don’t want to teach people in such a narrow window that you can’t make connections with other fields.

General education is part of a bachelor’s degree in the U.S., but how we get there is really up to the individual university.”

Kate Caffrey, communication, media, and performance professor and faculty union president, expressed concern regarding the lack of visible diversity requirements within the current general education program.

One of the biggest concerns relating to general education is “that we have this learning objective for diversity and we don’t really have specifically outlined courses that are for that learning objective,” said Caffrey.

Secondly, “Across the nation, there’s all these changes in education and there’s much more of a focus on education as training for a job. I think some people think that’s a great thing - I’m not one of those people,” said Caffrey.

“I think general education is a really good thing and [it gives] students the opportunity … to explore something they might not [have].”

Her third concern is related to the third general education proposal, “Create Something New,” which was presented in the General Education Program’s “Paths to Change” video.

“I think general education is a really good thing and [it gives] students the opportunity … to explore something they might not [have].”

Kate Caffrey Faculty Union President

that there were also overlays students were required to take. If these were not being met, despite meeting basic requirements, students could not complete their degrees.

“It generated a lot of confusion and a lot of anger,” said Lynne.

During that review, one of the University’s goals was to get rid of the overlays and downsize that general education program, according to Lynne.

As a result, overlays were removed with the exception of a mandatory lab course. Lynne said, “We got it down to eleven [requirements] with one fulfilled by the major.”

“There’s still going to be some students who say, ‘Why do I have to take these courses?’ - that’s always going to exist. But if more students understood why … there’s going to be less resistance to general education and also more buy-in,” said Lynne.

Amanda Simons, chair of the Biology Department and the General Education Advisory Board, said, “Our ac-

Caffrey explained the idea to have “general education courses that connect more to a person’s major - that makes me nervous.”

She said, “I think it’s limiting for students.”

Universities that have adopted similar general education programs have eliminated English and History departments, according to Caffrey.

“It makes me nervous for my colleagues. … As a union president, I’m concerned about people’s jobs,” said Caffrey.

“If you have a department that has fewer than five full-time faculty members, then the University can hire as many visiting lecturers as they want,” she said.

The University is focused on having higher enrollment, “but we need to take care of the students who are here, right? We need to retain those students.

“The thing that retains students is relationships with your professors,”

said Caffrey.

Caffrey said, “As a union, we should be unified. … Our power comes from being unified and working together and I feel like right now, we are divided as a faculty because I think people feel scared and threatened because it’s their livelihoods.”

She said, “I’m concerned about living in a world [where] people don’t have a broad education and everything is focused on, ‘How am I going to earn a paycheck?’ That seems a little scary.”

Raena Doty, a sophomore SGA senator who is a student representative on GEAB, said, “I see a lot of value in being able to choose classes that I am strong in as a student.

“I want to choose classes that have to do with my major - have to do with my future career as someone who is trying to go into the field of education.”

Brock Bauman, a sophomore business major said, “I took a nutrition class last year and it kind of helps with diet stuff. … I don’t really see the benefit of … taking a history class.”

When asked about how general education could be improved for future students, sophomore Christy Howland said the University should “listen to students more and cater their general education courses more toward their major instead of a generalized nationwide standard.

“I need to know how to pay my bills, do my taxes, and all these important mathematical real-life things - they want me to spend my money on quantitative reasoning.”

When asked what they thought about the general education program, freshman Sebastian Pilat mentioned the lab requirement and said, “That’s kind of stupid.”

Lynne addressed the presence of misconceptions “that there is topdown pressure to do a specific thing with the general education model and that is absolutely not the case.

“To be frank, nobody in upper administration has said anything to us about what they think it should be.

There’s nothing, nothing at all - and that’s as it should be.”

The General Education Advisory Board Committee has an active Canvas page where students and faculty can review focus group findings, governance reports and logs, and the Special Committee on General Education 2021 final report.

Community members can also voice their opinions anonymously through various discussion boards. For those who do not want their feedback posted, there is also the option to email ideas to education@framingham.edu.

Lynne said, “We want to do something that is meaningful for our community and our students and so the intent is very much to get a sense of what that is.

“We’re never going to have one-hundred percent consensus and that’s fine - but I think we can reach something that is a fairly strong agreement about good things we should do.”

[Editor’s Note: Raena Doty is an Arts & Features Editor for The Gatepost] CONNECT WITH KAITLIN CARMAN kcarman@student.framingham.edu

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NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 5

Board of Trustees Continued from page 1 she said.

In addition to Pell Grant receivers, families who have an adjusted gross income of $100,000 can also be eligible for the MASSGrant Plus expansion, Godes said.

“It is not helping us with recruitment, but hopefully, with retention,” she said.

Godes said they have hired a consultant to “create some new efficiencies, and do things more automated than we have in the past.”

Executive Vice President Dale Hamel said for the MASSGrant Plus expansion, the state has only allocated $62 million of the $84 million to universities and there is still $22 million to be allocated.

“I hate to see us having to package three times,” said Hamel, referring to financial aid award letters, but he hopes the University can get as much as they can.

Linda Campanella from SOS Consulting was present in the meeting and explained the next steps of strategic planning for the next five years.

She said the new process the University is pursuing is very important as it will give opportunities for engagement to all constituents of the University.

Campanella said not everything in the University has to change to have a successful institution, but there are areas in which it can be rebuilt or reformed in strategic ways.

A survey conducted among the Trustees shows diversity, small classes, and relationships between faculty and students were common responses on areas of leverage, she said.

Five trustees and 10 senior executives responded to the survey.

However, the survey shows the trust between students and police on campus and alumni engagement are strong areas for improvement, she added.

Campanella said the survey demonstrated areas of priority, including higher retention rate, student success, reputation, and faculty, and staff reflecting FSU’s diverse student population.

She said there is a preliminary timeline for when the strategic plan will be launched. From now until the end of the year, the team will keep gathering data, and by January, there will be a “vision” of how the University should look five years from now.

During the President’s Report, Nancy Niemi said “revenue streams” are changing, especially for FY 25.

She said the University has been sitting on revenues from pandemic funding and she hopes the University can start looking into obtaining revenue from different sources, including federal grants and corporate sponsorships.

“So as we look at our fiscal health going forward, we’re not only depending on our state appropriations and revenues, but there’s lots of possibilities through hard work,” Niemi said.

During the Chair’s Report, Beth Casavant said there will be completion of a presidential evaluation, and she hopes for trustee support.

There are three parts to the presidential evaluation: financial, equity, and overall student success, Casavant

added.

She said Vice Chair Anthony Hubbard has agreed to write the financial portion of it and encourages other trustees to join the committee.

“Having participated in a presidential evaluation, I know that it is work, but it isn’t the same kind of work as, let’s say, a presidential search committee, for example. It’s mostly done on your own writing,” she said.

In his Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement Report, Vice President Jeffrey Coleman said received a $5,000 grant from the Sudbury Foun-

be fully staffed soon as they only need one more officer.

She said it’s important for students to trust the University police, after many changes in that department in the last couple of years.

Ramsbottom shared new Chief of Police Joseph Cecchi’s goals and also discussed the types of calls the police typically receive, such as parking enforcement, building openings, building security, direct patrols, and safety checks.

She said students want more blue emergency boxes and cameras in res-

Naidelly Coelho / THE GATEPOST Gustafson (left), Hamel, and Ramsbottom at the Board of Trustees meeting Nov. 15. dation for racial and equity initiatives to support the creation of artistic murals around campus that will serve as visual Native American land acknowledgments for the campus.

He said DICE is also hosting weekly

idence halls.

Ramsbottom said she can’t imagine students asking for more cameras in residence halls because when she went to college, it would have been considered an “invasion of privacy.”

“It is a shift in the mindset and the feeling of students and what they’re expecting,” Claire Ramsbottom Trustee

community office hours by the campus ministers, including an Evangelical chaplain, a Jewish chaplain, a Catholic chaplain, and “now a Muslim representative who has joined us.”

During the Development and Alumni Relations Report, Vice President Eric Gustafson provided updates on alumni-related events that happened around campus in the last couple of weeks.

He emphasized the importance of academic department-related alumni events.

During the Student Experience Committee Report, Claire Ramsbottom said the police department should

“It is a shift in the mindset and the feeling of students and what they’re expecting,” she said.

During the Administration, Finance, and Technology Committee Report, Vice Chair Anthony Hubbard said the committee had a meeting on Oct. 31 to review the financial trends for the University over a 10-year period.

He said the committee has talked with the Strategic Planning Committee to understand their investments and what they would need to be supported.

Hubbard said Higher Education Emergency Relief Funding has been

spent, so looking into FY 24, “there was a budget approved that included a $1.9 million deficit. So reserve use for operations will be reduced for a number of reasons - we’ll address those in January.”

During the Student Trustee Report, Ryan Mikelis thanked administrators for their presence at the Town Hall meeting, previously administrators’ forum, on Nov. 14.

[Editor’s Note: See “Athletic equipment theft addressed at ‘Town Hall’” on page 3] “It really is integral to letting students know that their concerns are heard,” he said.

Mikelis said SGA held a retreat for senators at which they reviewed their constitution, roles of eBoard members and senators, and funding.

Instagram is used by many students and Mikelis emphasized some Instagram pages, including @fsunewrams, @K9_ramsey-fsu, and @fsu_seals.

K-9 Campus Police dog Ramsey was introduced to the trustees by Casavant.

Corporal Shawn Deleskey, who is Ramsey’s handler, said the dog will be utilized in mental health calls. Ramsey has 12 more weeks left of training.

After Worcester State’s gun violence incident, Ramsey and Deleskey went there to support students, staff, and faculty, he said.

The Student-in-the-Spotlight was Rebecca Rivera, a child and family studies major. She was introduced by Kelly Kolodny, an education professor.

Rivera is a first-generation student and a bilingual assistant teacher at the early childhood centers on campus. She has maintained a 3.96 GPA throughout her years at FSU. Rivera said, “Being bilingual has helped me tremendously in connecting with families that I otherwise would not have been able to. It helped me open new opportunities such as translating information to families, helping children express their ideas during the school day, and being able to be a support system for these families and their children.”

She said she has helped many institutions to raise money to help others in need.

“I was able to raise over $1,000 for my late history teacher who passed away from cancer shortly after having her first child. Giving has always been a passion of mine,” Rivera said.

She was inducted into multiple honor societies and said she is thankful for all the opportunities FSU has provided her with the guidance of her professors.

“While my time at FSU will be coming to a close in May, I will forever hold on to learning from the professors I’ve met and the countless children I have been lucky enough to work with and that have left an imprint on me close to my heart. I have no doubt that this was the right choice for me for my undergraduate degree,” she said.

CONNECT WITH NAIDELLY COELHO ncoelho3@student.framingham.edu

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6 | NOVEMBER 17, 2023

OP/ED THE GATEPOST EDITORIAL

Giving thanks As we prepare to leave for Thanksgiving break, the changing temperatures bring a lot more that nobody really wants to deal with - the annoyance of the cold, the flare-up of seasonal affective disorder, and the looming thought of finals.

Although it’s easy to complain, The Gatepost would instead like to take a moment to recognize the wonderful aspects of our Framingham State campus for which we are grateful.

For example, this week, 13 administrators gathered for SGA’s biannual Town Hall, previously known as Administrators’ Forum.

During the forum, students and administrators took part in valuable problem-solving discussions about student issues.

Town Hall is a long-standing tradition at FSU and one that does not exist at many other universities. We appreciate administrators taking time to listen to students’ concerns on a double-booked week, when the Board of Trustees meeting also occurred, to offer responses to student concerns.

We would specifically like to give a shout out to President Nancy Niemi, as well, who has been a phenomenally supportive member of the community since joining the University.

We would also like to thank SGA for providing this venue for students and for caring deeply about the well-being of our student body.

We at The Gatepost are also grateful for the Center for Inclusive Excellence. As an entity that covers student events, over the course of the semester, we have witnessed student participation levels at programs soar. The dedication to diversity in programming to create a truly welcoming, celebratory, and fun environment for all students has been phenomenal.

Thank you, Program Coordinator Emma Laurie and CIE Director Jerome Burke.

We are also incredibly thankful for the University’s commitment to student wellness.

The Health Center offered Narcan training in early October to provide students with incredibly important knowledge on how to save lives in the case of emergencies during an epidemic that is worsening. The Center continues to provide valuable learning opportunities weekly, and we would like to acknowledge Coordinator of Wellness Education Pamela Lehmberg and the S.E.A.L.S Peer Health Educators.

We would also like to take this time to rec-

ognize everyone responsible for making sure the University functions every day - such as the maintainers, the rest of the facilities team, and the staff in the Dining Commons.

Something else we are thankful for is the student outreach by University Police. Its recent attempt to connect with students by hosting tables in McCarthy Lobby and attending student events with K-9 comfort dog Ramsey helps to foster a reassuring relationship between students and campus police.

We appreciate this effort.

It has also been clear this semester that we can rely on FSU to show up to support worthy causes.

For example, the recent campus-wide celebration of National Philanthropy Day that took place in front of McCarthy Center and

by West Hall showed a conspicuous commitment to giving and taking a step back to recognize others.

The education honors society, Kappa Delta Pi, also hosted a Thanksgiving Food Drive for local Framingham families to help ensure they were able to celebrate the holiday.

Furthermore, Sarah Ripton, director of the Rams Resource Center, has been revitalizing the center in recent months and serving students daily.

During the cold months, the RRC, in collaboration with Dining Services, also runs a food and coat drive.

All of this reminds us of how when our campus comes together, we can make a great impact.

It is so important to support these services as they are instrumental for students in need, sometimes being their only way to make it through a difficult time.

So even if some students never need them personally, having these services here is something all of us should appreciate.

And our faculty.

Many of us have amazing, hardworking, and thoughtful professors who dedicate their lives to helping students.

If a specific professor comes to mind when you read that, take some time to thank them!

These are just a few examples of why our campus provides us daily reasons to be grateful.

We encourage you, even during the hustle of finishing up the semester, to look around and acknowledge what gives you reasons to be grateful.

You will be surprised by how much you will find.

Have an opinion?

Feel free to email it to: gatepost@framingham.edu Opinions should be about 500 words.

Anyone can submit.

We look forward to hearing from you!

The Gatepost Editorial reflects the opinions of the newspaper’s Editorial Board. Signed Op/Eds reflect the opinions of individual writers. @TheGatepost | FSUgatepost.com

Breaking birth control stigma

By Emily Monaco Staff Writer

There’s been a lot of stigma around birth control. But it is more important than ever right now to be informed about our options. A lot of girls start thinking about taking birth control around age 15. I started at 16.

Everybody’s experiences are so different and it shouldn’t be discounted that there can be good and bad. But everything comes with good and bad, and I wish the stigma around birth control would just die down.

As someone who has been on almost every single type of birth control, I can tell you right now it can be a long process of trying to find what’s going to work best for you.

Some people believe birth control is poison (yes and no) and that’s entirely their opinion but that shouldn’t keep it from other people who want to use it.

When I was on hormonal birth control I got very sick some people react that way from hormones and it turned out I was one of them. And that’s part of the stigma around it hormones are bad and evil.

Not for everyone! Some people really benefit from them as they can help regulate painful periods or acne.

You don’t have to use hormones either. There are non-hormonal options too (yes, besides condoms) like the copper intrauterine device (IUD). A major stigma around this form of birth control is the pain of insertion. And it is a fair concern because, yes, it does hurt! Depending on your doctor you either can get numbed or you have an uncomfortable time.

I was very lucky to have a doctor who numbed me, and

Emily Monaco / THE GATEPOST the pain after was the worst part, but it can be manageable.

It took me a while to consider getting an IUD and that was after I had tried four other kinds of birth control. Paragard, which is the IUD I have, is a T-shaped intrauterine device made of plastic and wrapped in copper to prevent pregnancy.

I had thought about it for a few years before getting it. I even ended up on a subreddit of people who had an IUD so I could get some real experiences before I made my decision.

I was scared.

It is unrealistic for anyone to expect someone to know exactly what they want to do with their body, when there are so many factors involved, without being scared. And it is OK to be scared.

Birth control can be scary because it can be something you don’t understand. Not knowing is scary. The politicians who demonize it and are actively trying to ban it want you to be scared of it.

But being informed about your options is more important now than ever. Birth control is health care whether you use it for preventing pregnancy or regulating your cycle.

The stigma around it is based on fear, and it’s OK to feel a little scared about it if you’re unfamiliar with your options.

At the end of the day, it is a private decision that only you can make.

It’s your body and your choice.

For more information on reproductive health visit https:// reproequitynow.org/what-we-do.

OP/ED

NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 7

Em’s Gems: An Unexpected Guest

Emily Monaco / THE GATEPOST

Campus Conversations What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?

By Bella Omar and Alexis Schlesinger, Editorial Staff

“I’m in contact with both of my parents and have my car.”

- Maeve Norgeart, freshman

“What am I thankful for? Sleep.”

- Marcus Falcao, freshman

“I am thankful for my friends, my girlfriend, my sister, and just anyone who is thankful for me.

I am a very thankful person.”

“I’m in college.”

- Anthony Darkwah, freshman

- Dawanee Phanthavong, freshman

“That’s a deep question, but I feel like the thing I’m most thankful for right now is just my friends and family.”

- Thomas O’Leary, sophomore

“I’m thankful for life and my family everything that comes with it.”

- Kenley Fleurimond, junior

FRAMINGHAM STATE UNIVERSITY’S INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1932 | FSUGATEPOST.COM

8 | NOVEMBER 17, 2023

SPORTS

Fourth-seeded volleyball wins MASCAC Championship

By Adam Levine Sports Editor The Framingham State Rams defeated the MCLA Trailblazers 3-2 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Tournament Championship game Nov. 11.

After five grueling sets, the fourth-seeded Rams upset the third-seeded Trailblazers to claim the MASCAC Tournament title.

Head Coach Richard Casali said, “It feels great.

“It makes all the hard work worth it,” he added.

During the 2022 season, the Rams entered the MASCAC Tournament as the top seed, but lost in the semi-final game.

Sophomore Stella Bailey said, “Last year, it was incredibly disappointing to lose so early on.

“This year, we were able to turn that disappointment of the loss into success. This year, we knew what it was like to lose, and we knew we didn’t like the feeling. We learned to outwork the teams that we play - not just in the game, but in the practices leading up to the game,” she added.

Anna Szymanski, a captain and a graduate student, served as a key to the Rams’ offensive dominance during the tournament and earned the Tournament Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.

“The MVP award was such an honor.

I am so thankful for my team and everything they have done to support me in receiving it,” Szymanski said.

She said her goal this season was “to lead this team to a victory.

“This was extremely meaningful to me because it felt like everything and all the years of work had paid off,” Szymanski added.

“I left nothing on the court,” she said. “I gave those girls every single ounce of energy and motivation I had in me. It wasn’t important that I played my best game - it was important that I was the best captain I had ever been.”

Szymanski said, “We were by far the hardest-working team in the MASCAC this year and we worked every single day for this to pay off.”

Senior captain Hailey Sanders said, “I am just proud of this team overall.

“Although it is great to win the MASCAC, I would have been really satisfied if we didn’t, with this group of

season, the growth was varying as with girls,” she added. most sports.

During their “We had some really great ‘Ah-ha’ path to victory, moments where it seemed like it was the Rams defeatall coming together and then total oped the fifth-seeded posite moments.

Bridgewater 3-0 Nov. “The most important part of the 7 and the first-seeded season was the end, and that was Westfield 3-2 Nov. 9.

Sophomore Carly Beaulieu said when it all came together. Our hitters losing to Westfield and MCLA during were smarter and our defense was the the regular season “really opened our strongest it had been,” added Szymaneyes,” and the team entered each game ski.

In addition to Szymanski’s with “determination” and “confidence MVP-performance during the tourto play more aggressively.”

Casali said, “It’s fantastic to beat nament, Framingham had the most anybody. I knew that we could beat members of any team on the MASCAC All-Conference First them - just as they could beat us. It was Team and Second a question of how we Team. would perform Sanders and Szythose days. manski are members “The big of the 2023 MASCAC question was, All-Conference First ‘Did the players Team. feel that they could Sanders finished first beat them this time?’ in the MASCAC in kills They did!,” he added. per set (3.34), first in kills Sanders said, “The last (371), and first in hitting two games, especially, we percentage (.341). Szyhad so much energy and so manski finished second much willpower. I am proud in kills per set (2.88) that we were able to tap into and second in kills that and get it done.

(308).

“I think this title proved to Szymanski said, “As everyone in the MASCAC, and captains, our success ourselves, that even though was so important bewe are young, we are still very cause we need to lead talented and able to work tothis team by example. gether phenomenally,” she There is no better way added. than being one and Framingham won their two in the league for semifinal game and final game kills.” in the fifth set, which is played Bailey and Reynolds until one team scores 15 points. are members of the 2023 Coach Casali said, “The sucMASCAC All-Confercess in the fifth set comes from ence Second Team. our ‘Never Say Die’ attitude. I Reynolds was told them if they did also named 2023 their best and never Dylan Pichnarcik / THE GATEPOST MASCAC Rookie of quit, that we could live Anna Szymanski, the Year (ROY). with either result.”

2023 MASCAC Tournament MVP Reynolds finSzymanski said, “We ished sixth in the have no problem going MASCAC in kills to a fifth set. We thrive per set (2.54), third in kills (282), and in the fifth set.

“The team’s success came from third in hitting percentage (.302).

“It feels amazing to win ROY,” their mindset that we were not going to go home and we were going to Reynolds said. “I really could not have end the night with medals around our done it without my teammates and coaches.” neck,” she added.

Bailey recorded 1,030 assists Freshman Natalie Reynolds said, “The fifth set has become our special- through the regular season and MASty. We love a great competition.”

CAC Tournament. She finished first in Framingham began this season with the conference, 458 ahead of the next a record of 1-2 before piecing togeth- highest. er an impressive 10-game win streak “Obtaining over 1,000 assists in Sept. 9 to Sept. 26. one season was a huge accomplishDespite their win streak, the Rams ment,” Bailey said. “I cannot say it is as concluded their season with an overall much of a personal accomplishment, record of 18-10. but more of a team accomplishment.

Szymanski said, “Throughout the Without good passes and amazing hit-

Alexis Schlesinger / THE GATEPOST Natalie Reynolds (left), 2023 MASCAC Rookie of the Year Anna Szymanski (right), 2023 MASCAC Tournament MVP ters, then kills can’t happen.”

Sanders and Szymanski both leave Framingham State volleyball with a MASCAC Championship in their final season.

Szymanski said, “It was unbelievable to end my FSU career with a championship win. This is every athlete’s dream and I could not ask for a better ending to my volleyball career.”

As of press time, Nov. 17, the Rams concluded their season with a loss to the Ithaca College Bombers 3-0 in the opening round of the NCAA DIII Tournament Nov. 16.

Despite their season coming to a close, the Rams have hope for next season with a young roster.

Coach Casali said more freshmen played this season than the previous season. “It’s hard to show up as a freshman and be a big contributor to the team. Last year, we were an older team and it didn’t take quite so much time to gel.”

Beaulieu said, “I think we’ve made a statement being such a young team.”

Reynolds said, “Being such a young team is giving us ample time to grow and build throughout the years. The chemistry will only continue to grow.”

Bailey said, “To have such a young team find success so early is incredibly exciting.

“We are all hopeful of the success that the next few years will hold for us, while still understanding that absolutely nothing will be handed to us. We are ready to work hard and grow together as the years go on,” she added.

Szymanski said, “You can expect that these girls will continue to give everything they have all the time.

“If there is one thing we taught them, it was that,” she added.

Stats sourced from fsurams.com and MASCAC.com

Dylan Pichnarcik / THE GATEPOST Rams’ volleyball celebrating a point.

@TheGatepost | FSUgatepost.com

MASCAC CHAMPIONSHIP FRAMINGHAM STATE 3 MCLA 2

CONNECT WITH ADAM LEVINE alevine5@student.framingham.edu

SPORTS

NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 9

Hartwiger - English professor doubles as gold medalist

COVID-19 can’t ‘Bench’ Hurney

By Dylan Pichnarcik Editorial Staff

By Emily Rosenberg Editor-in-Chief

Championship in France. He also won two additional gold medals at other international ultimate frisbee events.

Additionally, Hartwiger serves as manager and captain of the team.

While students at Framingham State basked in the chill of early November mornings, Hartwiger enjoyed the sunshine of California.

After weeks of diligent training, the United States team was able to call themselves champions.

“I felt relieved,” Hartwiger said. “I was the manager and captain of the team, so I was involved in selecting the team to compete. That’s a lot of responsibility because you’re the architect of the team and want to make sure we put together a team that wins gold.”

Hartwiger added he felt immense pride that all of his team’s training and dedication finally paid off.

Along with adding another gold medal to his list of accolades, Hartwiger returns to FSU as a world champion, a title he does not take lightly.

He said, “When you’re representing your country, you realize that when you make decisions in game time it doesn’t just reflect on you, it doesn’t reflect on the group you’re playing with, in this case it represents your nation. … That was something our entire team took seriously.”

Hartwiger inspires sportsmanship and excellence for all Ram athletes, on and off the field.

Alexander “Sandy” Hartwiger, professor of English, represented the United States team at the quadrennial Beach World Ultimate Frisbee Championship in Huntington Beach, California on Nov. 1-4, where he and the United States team won a gold medal.

The Beach World Championship is an event sponsored by the World Flying Disk Federation (WFDF) that takes place every four years. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, this is the first time the event took place since 2017.

Prior to this event, Hartwiger won a gold medal at the 2017 Beach World

Courtesy of Sandy Hartwiger Sandy Hartwiger (right) trades jersey with Eduardo Lim from the Philippines after Team USA defeated Team Philippines 12-9 in the finals.

CONNECT WITH DYLAN PICHNARCIK dpichnarcik@student.framingham.edu

Ben Hurney ran past the Central Park finish line of the New York City Marathon Nov. 5 and received a medal around his neck celebrating the human accomplishment of finishing the 26mile race.

But the journey to the finish line was not as he had planned.

Hurney, a junior studio art major, known to his friends as “Bench,” was coming down from his fair share of COVID-19 when he ran the marathon.

Just two weeks before the race, Hurney took a pause in his training program to rest and to ensure he wouldn’t infect anyone with the virus. When he set out to the City to run, he was still coughing, congested, and slightly fatigued.

“I couldn’t tell if I was struggling to breathe because COVID is a respiratory infection or because I was running 26 miles,” Hurney said.

He said he would definitely do it again, adding something he learned from the experience was that people are “incredibly supportive.” He noted how a runner dropped Clif Bloks at his feet when he stopped to cough on a bridge in the Bronx, which he didn’t even need because he had some tucked into his shorts.

“I didn’t even want them, but I was super appreciative,” Hurney said.

Hurney said having run cross-country and track in high school, it was always a goal of his to run a marathon, but it was just about getting the timing right. It was in his freshman year of college when he started thinking about it seriously and finally this spring when

Courtesy of Ben Hurney Ben Hurney crossing the finish line of the New York City Marathon Nov. 5. he committed to the challenge.

Hurney is a member of the FSU men’s cross-country team. Outside of athletics, he is also the illustrations editor for The Gatepost and the president of the Framingham State Activities Board.

Running with the Greater YMCA Charity team, he raised $3,000 for the organization.

Upon signing up for the race in April, Hurney said he picked up a training program his teammate sophomore Parker Winters wrote. This program started out with just 2 miles per day and slowly became more intense each week.

He thanked Cross Country Head Coach Mark Johnson and Winters for their help training. He also thanked his parents Suzy and Doug Hurney for their support.

CONNECT WITH EMILY ROSENBERG erosenberg@student.framingham.edu

Kondi breaks field hockey records

By Adam Levine Sports Editor

Adam Levine / THE GATEPOST Bella Kondi (right) dribbling around a defender.

Field hockey captain Bella Kondi, a midfielder, broke two records and tied another during the 2023 season, her final season as a Ram. Kondi, who received her bachelor’s degree in Spring 2023, returned to the Framingham State field hockey team during her master’s program.

During the 2023 season, she recorded 19 assists and finished her career with 35 assists.

Kondi broke both the single-season assist record (13) and the career assist

record (21), previously held by former teammate Corlene Guenard ’23.

Kondi also tied the single-game assist record (3) on two separate occasions, during the team’s 4-3 win over Bridgewater State Sept. 26 and 5-0 win over Bridgewater State Oct. 20.

Kondi led the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) in assists by 12 and landed a spot on the All-Conference First Team.

Kondi said a goal is “not just two people.”

She said an assist starts all the way at the defensive line. “When a play builds all the way from the backline, they’re also a part of the assist.”

Kondi said, “I feel like for me, an assist is being open to setting someone else up for success.

“If I’m not the person to finish it, then I’m more than willing to hand it off to someone else to get the goal,” she added.

She said setting up her teammates, especially those who don’t typically score, is “more rewarding for me than to actually get the goal.”

Head Coach Allie Lucenta said, “An assist can be a lot of hard work, or knowledge, to set up a goal. It’s not recognized much of the time because everyone looks at the goal itself.”

She said, “Bella works very hard in the midfield.

“She sets up a lot of plays and is one of the primary players on offensive

corners.

“She deserves the credit for all the hard work she put into it,” added Lucenta.

Kondi said she first noticed her high number of assists after the team’s 3-0 win over UMass Dartmouth Oct. 4, during which she recorded two assists.

She said Coach Lucenta said to her, “‘Holy smokes. You’re literally double the other MASCAC players on the assists list right now. You’re doing great, keep going.’

“After that, I was just kind of curious to look at my stats.

“That’s when I really found out that it was a big deal,” Kondi added.

She said she is in “awe” of herself after this accomplishment.

“I didn’t think that I really was doing anything stand out,” Kondi said. “I just thought, ‘Oh, I’m helping everyone else get to the position that we need to be.’

“It’s just crazy to look back now and see I was in so many plays that made or break the season,” she added.

Kondi said during both regular-season wins over Bridgewater State, during which Kondi recorded three assists, “It really just came down to the nitty gritty.”

She said as a fifth-year graduate student on the team she has “been on the field long enough.

“I have the IQ,” Kondi added.

Former teammate Guenard said she

and Bella had a small undergraduate class and were very close.

She said, “I thought it was exciting holding the record and being able to see the growth of the team.”

Guenard said Kondi is a “team player.

“She makes those assists when she sees a pass opening,” she added.

Kondi finished her final season as a player on the Rams’ field hockey team with a 2-0 loss to the Worcester State Lancers in the MASCAC Championship game Nov. 4.

Lucenta said Bella will be missed on the team. “It was a pleasure getting to work with her for the past five years.

“She is a leader on and off the field, who everyone looks up to,” added Lucenta.

She said, “This record will be hard to break, but we have a great and skilled group next year - we will see.”

Kondi said, “I hope someone breaks my record.

“I hope that people pay attention to the stats and if they really want to go for it, go for it.

“I’d be more than happy to see someone else break my record - congrats to you,” she added.

Stats sourced from fsurams.com and MASCAC.com

CONNECT WITH ADAM LEVINE alevine5@student.framingham.edu

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10 | NOVEMBER 17, 2023

ARTS & FEATURES Digital Humanities benefits Jaffna Transgender Network

By Jack McLaughlin Arts & Features Editor The Center for Digital Humanities hosted Gowthaman Ranganathan at the Ecumenical Center for a lecture titled “The Oral History of Queerness in Postwar Sri Lanka” Nov. 9.

The lecture also hosted Angel Queentus via Zoom, who is the founding director of the Jaffna Transgender Network (JTN). The JTN advocates for the rights and livelihood of queer and trans people in Sri Lanka.

English Professor Bart Brinkman began the lecture by first introducing Ranganathan and Queentus to the audience.

He explained that Ranganathan is a Ph.D. student at Brandeis University, and has worked for decades in India as a lawyer advocating for queer rights and has taught in law schools in India.

After this introduction, Ranganathan was invited on stage where he first acknowledged how digital humanities has affected how he feels about his work.

“Digital humanities kind of rejuvenated me in ways I didn’t realize I needed to be rejuvenated, and inspires me to take this project to completion,” he said.

The audience’s attention was brought to a map of Sri Lanka displayed on screen, representing the regions that were divided when the Sri Lankan Civil War occurred in their country in the 1980s.

After this context was provided, Queentus spoke on the JTN and their mission more in-depth.

Queentus explained how the JTN originally began because “there was no space to gather and meet and be ourselves.

“So we created things for ourselves.

Now we do a lot of work in aspects of cultural engagement and other workshops and so on,” she said.

The JTN began their archival project on trans lives in Sri Lanka in 2019 because previously there was not a lot of information on the topic, said Queentus.

“Because of the Civil War, there was not much documented on trans lives. And this was because many people died during the war, or they were displaced, or they lost their belongings, and were scattered around,” she said.

Queentus continued to explain the stories they were able to archive on trans lives in Sri Lanka is important to preserve for future generations to have knowledge on these people’s lives.

Their archival work is easily accessible and available for viewing on the X (formerly known as Twitter) and In-

@TheGatepost | FSUgatepost.com

stagram accounts run by the JTN. Ranganathan continued the discussion by talking about how he initially became involved with working with the JTN. He initially started due to his curiosity of what was occurring with LGBTQ+ rights in Sri Lanka, and decided to visit and find out what was happening.

“And I noticed that there was a lot of solidarity between Tamil-speaking people in Jaffna and Tamil-speaking people in India, where I have worked … for many years. So I realized that

of 13 to join the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which was a militant group in Sri Lanka.

While serving with the LTTE, the individual began to question their gender after spending extended amounts of time around other women.

“I lived like that for 17 to 18 years.

We did not know the outside world, when we lived with girls we shared affection with each other and spoke about happiness. When I was with women, I thought I was attracted to them because of living in such a context,” Ranganathan said, retelling this

“A parrot is becoming a tiger - which is basically to say that this woman who’s, you know, brought up like a cage parrot, is then becoming a tiger.”

- Angel Queentus Founding Director of Jaffna Transgender Network maybe I should go explore what’s happening in Sri Lanka,” he said.

Ranganathan’s contributions included organizing public discussions on LGBTQ+ rights and hosting workshops to teach on writing ethical reporting on LGBTQ+ issues.

It was within these workshops that someone suggested that documenting the stories of LGBTQ+ individuals in Sri Lanka was important, which was later pursued by the JTN. This transitioned into the retelling of stories collected by the JTN, the first of which followed a grandmother from Jaffna, who - along with being a priest - was also a performer.

The roles that they would take on were normally female roles in dramas, as women did not perform in these productions.

to the audience.

The third story followed a transgender woman who talked about the journey she took with her significant other.

The couple met at 18, and after getting to know each other after a performance, their relationship blossomed, Ranganathan said.

“He then attended a performance where she [the story’s narrator] performed the female roles and asked her if he could photograph her. She agreed to it and a friendship blossomed that has lasted until today,” Ranganathan recollected.

They primarily contacted each other via letters - which the story’s author admits to have lost because of the circumstances of the Civil War. “None of those letters are with

“Digital humanities kind of rejuvenated me in ways I didn’t realize I needed to be rejuvenated, and inspires me to take this project to completion.”

- Gowthaman Ranganathan Ph.D. Student, Brandeis University When asked about her dance performances, Ranganathan recollected that she wants “to be celebrating the sound of the dancing.”

The second story focused on an individual who left home at the age

me anymore. During the troubles we couldn’t hold onto anything.”

The couple’s relationship saw hardships during the Civil War, he said. They lost contact for a number of years after her lover fled the coun-

try, but eventually came back searching for her.

“He came and searched high and low everywhere. He looked for places I used to live in and asked for me with many people,” he recounted.

After these stories, Queentus went into detail on how they were able to have these available to share and the special opportunity that came with being able to have these people come together to tell their stories.

“We gathered a lot of information on these stories, and we were curious as to what these pieces of different stories are doing and where it’s good to converge.

“These stories are critical for us as we look towards the future,” she said.

Queentus gave a specific example of two people recognizing each other during one of these gatherings, and gave insight to how this interaction allowed for a more welcoming environment for transgender people in this group.

“A parrot is becoming a tiger which is basically to say that this woman who’s, you know, brought up like a cage parrot, is then becoming a tiger,” she said.

After this, the discussion opened up to questions from the audience. One attendee asked what their thoughts are on the history of performance, the appropriation of it, and what performers can do in the future to embody the culture they are a part of.

Ranganathan answered this by expressing the importance of performance in the work that they do. He suggested that a future project for him and his team would be to look further into how performance is used as a livelihood and a way to express gender identity.

Another question asked by the audience was how digital humanities can be used to assist Ranganathan and Queentus in carrying out the mission of the JTN. Ranganathan explained that it allowed for the JTN to create more engaging content with the stories that they are posting. Artifacts like photos can be used to enhance the story and offer context for the time in which they took place.

He also explained that because they are able to use technology to bring these stories alive and publicly accessible, it allows for them to be properly connected to the time in which they occurred.

“It’s a web, you know, like a web - that connects these stories among each other,” Ranganathan said.

CONNECT WITH JACK MCLAUGHLIN

jmclaughlin7@student.framingham.edu

ARTS & FEATURES

NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 11

Ayress Grinage shares journey into botany studies

By Jack McLaughlin Arts & Features Editor

By Paul Harrington Staff Writer The Center for Inclusive Excellence (CIE), in conjunction with the Framingham State Biology Department, hosted Ayress Grinage on Nov. 15 at the CIE to talk about her life story, along with her academic and life experience with her ongoing career in field botany.

The conversation started with Grinage opening up about her experiences, ranging from her childhood to her journeys through university. This was followed by an open Q&A with the attendees that covered various topics revolving around higher education and the STEM experience.

Biology Professor Cheng-Chiang Wu introduced Grinage to the attendees, providing an overview of her accomplishments.

Grinage is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Cornell University and a Gilliam Fellow at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute for her work advancing equity and inclusion.

The conversation began with a brief but warmhearted thanks to all the various people who helped put things into motion and thanked those who attended.

When Grinage took the floor to talk to attendees, she first stated that she was “very excited to have a conversation about what it means to be in STEM.” To get a sense of what their place in university was, Grinage had attendees scan a QR code that prompted them to put in how many years of college experience they have.

Grinage was born in Fairbanks, Alaska and brought up the point that she hates being asked where she’s from.

Born to a single mother in the U.S. Air Force, she said she does not really have many impactful memories of living in Alaska compared to the other places she has lived in during her lifetime.

She added one of her few memories of growing up in Alaska was seeing “insect lollipops” which she displayed on-screen for attendees to examine.

Grinage also said she moved to Virginia during her childhood, and was open about how going to a predominantly white school affected her confidence and capacity to participate in STEM compared to other students.

She expanded upon how constantly moving affected her life, and mentioned how she moved to Germany halfway through high school. The sudden move to Germany played a big role in how she performed in school as it was an abrupt change, she added.

When she transitioned to college, she did not know what she wanted to do at first, she said. While initially choosing a major in biology, Grinage’s meeting with advisors helped her lock in on her aspirations.

Ayress Grinage giving a lecture in the Center for Inclusive Excellence Nov. 15.

She emphasized that it is OK not more organism-based research - the to know what you’re doing right away question was, ‘What?’” Grinage said. and no one needs to make any choices Her decision to pursue botany over right away. entomology came down to a coin toss, When talking about her journey, as she had a difficult time picking beGrinage stated, “I think what is clear tween them, she said. about my journey here is that it’s very “They’re so intimately tied, nonlinear. It very much was when I like inspiring one another, that I figwas a kid too, gosh, I had to be mid- ured I’d get the best of both worlds. way through - no - I would say my ju- And I went the botanical route - the nior year in college - I did start taking coin told me to,” she said. biology courses that I really enjoy.”

“But now I dove into it - and here I She also emphasized the impor- am as a botanist.” tance of fostering connections with She said she is glad botany was your professor outside of the academ- the choice she ended up on, and exic side of university, as it goes a long plained one of the great opportunities way to form a connection with pro- that came with this was being able to fessors in case you are ever struggling meet her undergraduate advisor. with classes. This allowed her to feel Grinage opened the discussion to more comfortable with the work she the attendees, specifically the stuwas doing, she said. dents, to learn what their professional Grinage spent much of the conver- goals are. sation focusing on the benefit of doOne attendee shared their interest ing a 4+1 program. A 4+1 program is in pursuing graduate education, but when students do four years of under- expressed concern with being able to graduate, and then get their master’s afford it. in the one-year span.

Grinage responded to the attendee Grinage said, “The very good thing by asking all in attendance if they beabout this - and this is my safety net lieved that they would need to pay for here - is that it’s paid for, right? It graduate school. She then explained pays for your undergraduate as well her experience joining a master’s proas your one year of graduate studies.” gram and making the discovery that The faculty she said she met during these programs are generally funded this time period pushed her in the and would require little payment to positive direction she needed to suc- pursue. ceed at the highest level possible, and “What you have to do to get that added these positive influences at dif- funding can be different, and that can ficult times allowed her to foster her be stressful,” she added. ideas and confide in creative outlets.

She explained that she was workShe talked about how switching to ing 20 hours per week being a student biology felt like she “went 180.” instructor in laboratory courses. Oth“I went from this plant-blind, in- er methods to have funding included sect-running-away-from person to participating in a project with an adrunning toward the insect,” she said. visor or being a part of a fellowship, She added it was this choice to she said. pursue biology that motivated her to Another attendee asked Grinage if continue her education into graduate they took part in any extracurricular school. clubs at school that sparked their in“I want to do research. I want to do terest in biology.

Alexis Schlesinger / THE GATEPOST Grinage said no, but offered insight to her experience doing marching band for a single year.

“If you’re familiar with marching band, like, in any level, it’s a lot of work. And in a big college school it is a serious operation … I only did it for one year, I was like, ‘This is sucking the enjoyment I had out of this hobby,’” she said.

Grinage encouraged the students in the room studying biology to take on an undergrad research experience while they can “at least once.

“If you’re on the fence, maybe do another one over the summer. You get to choose where you go so you can optimize your summer capabilities see if maybe there’s an undergraduate research experience in a field station in Costa Rica,” she said.

An attendee asked Grinage what her experience was writing their thesis. She responded with a detailed explanation of what the components are within a thesis, and told the attendee to treat it like an independent paper, and not like writing a book.

“I feel like I was told a long time ago, and I was like, ‘Wow! Grad school’s gonna be tough, because I’m gonna have to write a book’ - but it’s a totally different headspace,” she said.

Grinage offered her assistance to any students who wanted advice on anything with higher education as well.

“I’m happy to respond, happy to have a Zoom meeting, and just kind of talk about where you are at and what you are thinking about,” she said.

CONNECT WITH JACK MCLAUGHLIN

jmclaughlin7@student.framingham.edu

CONNECT WITH PAUL HARRINGTON

pharrington@student.framingham.edu

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12 | NOVEMBER 17, 2023

ARTS & FEATURES

Philanthropy Continued from page 1 Ripton added most recently the organization donated a number of new coats to the resource center, which were on display Nov. 15. “[Circle of Hope] They’re amazing.

They do countless things for us,” she said.

Ripton also mentioned Dignity Matters, another local nonprofit, which has helped stock the resource center with feminine care products in their “menstruation station,” and support the supply of these products in residential buildings.

She added Family Promise, from Natick, helps stock the center with blankets and socks, as well as in supporting students who are raising children while they attend university through budgeting programs.

Ripton said Daniel’s Table and Stop & Shop have also been helpful in supplying food to the resource center in the form of single-portion and family-sized meals from Daniel’s Table, and all food purchased by the University coming from Stop & Shop.

She said this was the first celebration of National Philanthropy Day and the Rams Resource Center, and was organized by the Office of Development and Alumni Relations in celebration of the center and its partnerships.

Ripton said the crafting stations are for items people can make and then donate directly to the resource center, making it an inclusive event.

“We wanted to make that really possible because Framingham State is a high-need population. And so if a student can’t get to the store because they work several jobs and they’re paying for school and doing 10,000 other things, let’s have those crafts here,” she said.

She added, “What do we need? We

er students by stocking the resource center with their creations. She added the jewelry is helpful as they also offer professional items to students for aid in job interviews.

“We do now accept makeup … because we feel that if it’s needed to access financial security in our country, then it’s a basic need and it should be offered through our pantry,” she said.

Zely Dasilva, who had been knotting a blanket with three other girls, stood by the folding table too.

Dasilva, one of the two interns for the Rams Resource Center, is a sophomore health and wellness major helping at the Fall Philanthropy Fest.

She said it “feels good to be part of something helpful.”

Dasilva said she thought the Philanthropy Fest was a good way to expose students who may need financial help to the Rams Resource Center and the service it provides to the campus.

She added she hopes the event helps students learn not only what the resource center is, but also they are free to both give and take from the resource center.

Up Normal Hill, on the McCarthy Center Patio, William Hubert stood behind a similar-looking folding table in the same chilly weather. In front of him, the same spread of QR codes.

Hubert, a senior environmental studies major and SGA senator, helped raise student awareness about Philanthropy Fest in shifts alongside other SGA members.

Philanthropy Day is a great way to make sure students are getting all the resources they need and are entitled to, he said.

“I hope to see the cart full, the coat rack full,” Hubert said.

Mandy Taylor, a senior elementary education major, is part of a different

Alexis Schlesinger / THE GATEPOST (Left) Angie Demce and Meghan Tomasi at the McCarthy Patio Fall Philanthropy Fest table Nov. 15. need warm blankets, it’s winter time.

So let’s get those warm blankets to our students.”

Ripton said the crafts acted as an opportunity for students to help oth-

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donation drive focused on the same awareness and community building, the Kappa Delta Pi Thanksgiving Food Drive.

Taylor is the vice president of Kap-

Alexis Schlesinger / THE GATEPOST (Left) Elizabeth Phillips, Sarah Ripton, and Tara Stepanian, organizers of the Philanthropy Fest, during one of the event’s activities Nov. 15. pa Delta Pi, an education honor soci- on in the future. “I would anticipate ety, and organized the drive with oth- that we’ll be here again next year.” er chapter members.

Stepanian said one of the main She said the organization was pret- goals for the event was to make it ty light, as the group only promoted interactive and accessible, accomthe event through posters and email, plished by the craft tables.

She added building and donating and prepared drop-off locations items like the blankets and jewelry around campus for delivery.

Non-perishables collected by the also give an avenue for people who group will be donated to the Head want to contribute, but may not have Start program in Framingham follow- the capacity to financially.

Stepanian also said they have a ing Nov. 17, according to their flier.

Taylor said drives like Kappa Delta list of specific items needed for the Pi’s and the Philanthropy Fest are a resource center, too, so people who timely way of promoting donation to do have the ability to purchase and donate items know they need goods those in need.

“I think promoting collections like like individually wrapped toilet paper this are important for community rolls and shelf-stable nut milks.

“We’re trying to hit all the buttons building, especially close to the holiday season. It’s always nice to give for people to give them the opportunity to do what they can,” she said. back,” she said.

Stepanian said the great part about Tara Stepanian, assistant director of development for the Office of the Philanthropy Fest is even if peoDevelopment and Alumni Relations, ple are unable to give that day, it said her office was interested in host- doesn’t mean they can’t give “tomoring the Philanthropy Fest to start “the row, or next week, or in the holidays, conversation about what it means to when people are particularly in need.

“The opportunity always remains give.

“Obviously when you talk about - we just want to bring awareness to giving, people think we’re asking for this resource,” she said.

Stepanian said she loved seeing money, when the reality is there are so many other ways to give,” she said. alumni drive to the curb of the MayStepanian said fundraising often nard Parking Lot and drop off donatalks about “time, talent, and trea- tions, as well as the turnout of stusure,” meaning there are more than dents and professors.

“I honestly didn’t know what to just financial methods of contributing expect and I’m really happy about it,” toward a community goal.

She added it was important to en- she said.

She added one of her office’s goals courage people to think more globally, and about the power their words this year was to raise awareness and and actions can have, even as an in- have people talking about the power they have as a community. Professors dividual.

Stepanian said FSU already has a have stopped by and expressed en“wonderful and very generous” alum- thusiastic support for the event, she ni population, and the Philanthropy said.

“So, you know, small victories Fest had the goal of raising awareness about donation to undergraduate and where you can get it. But I’m very exgraduate students, faculty, and ad- cited about the support so far,” she said. ministration.

She said this is the first Philanthropy Fest celebrated at the University, CONNECT WITH RYAN O’CONNELL and hopes it is a good starting point roconnell1@student.framingham.edu for community building they can grow

ARTS & FEATURES

NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 13

‘The Killer’ misses the mark

By Owen Glancy Asst. Arts & Features Editor “The Killer” is the latest film from prolific director, David Fincher, famous for his work on films such as “Fight Club” and “The Social Network.”

With this being a brand new Fincher movie, expectations going into the film were extremely high, especially after how divisive his previous film “Mank” was.

Unfortunately, this was very disappointing.

The film’s biggest strength is easily its production. The sets, music, cinematography, and lighting make every country visited by our unnamed protagonist feel distinct and real. Oftentimes in international thrillers like this, many of the same iconic landmarks are used over and over again, but here it feels like we really do see a more realistic side of international travel.

The action scenes on display here are also great. From the tense opening to the chaotic home invasions of the film proper, everything is shot and choreographed in a way that makes the action memorable and fun.

Michael Fassbender does a great job at portraying the protagonist in both his body language and the fre-

quent inner monologues we hear that feels incomplete and unfocused. throughout the film.

It’s never made clear what exactly the Sadly, this is where my praise ends. protagonist’s relationship with the Despite Fassbender’s best efforts, his woman is, or why the botched assassigreat performance cannot save how nation was so important to his mysteuninteresting his character is. The rious employers. protagonist’s lack of a name and surThis veil of mystery can work in prisingly little character defilms of this genre, Ben Hurney / THE GATEPOST velopment throughout the but not when we film makes it hard to conknow nothing nect with the character on about our protagonist. even a basic level.

The most information we learn about who he And this is where all of is as a person before the film’s problems come this incident is in from, the writing. one line about 3 5 The point of the minutes into movie is to get you this 120-mininto the headspace ute-long film of this cold-bloodthat’s it. ed killer and make This movie is practicalyou understand ly begging to be another 20 what his motives minutes long so we can learn are and how he anything about this guy beoperates. Howyond, “I’m a killer, here’s how ever, because so I do what I do.” While this can be much of the film is more interested in crafting this inter- an interesting angle, without the time national revenge thriller, we don’t get to properly build up why this guy is so enough time dedicated to this guy’s apathetic beyond “it’s my job,” it instead leaves the audience disconnectpersonal life.

Most of the film sees him trying to ed from the main character.

The popularity of the “John Wick” find and kill his employers after they attack a woman close to him follow- franchise does this film very few faing a botched assassination. This is a vors. It makes it seem boring in comgreat premise squandered on a script parison, and while “The Killer” may

have been influential and new if it was released 15 years ago, in the modern film climate it just comes off as boring and unfocused.

It’s sad because so much of the film is done well. As previously stated, the production and central performance are phenomenal, but when the script is this haphazard and the main character so hard to connect to, it makes the good parts of the film seem like a fluke.

David Fincher is a phenomenally talented director, responsible for some of the greatest films of all time, but “The Killer” is undoubtedly a rare Fincher miss.

A bland protagonist combined with a jumbled mess of a script drags down a film with excellent music, cinematography, action, and acting, to the point where you barely even notice these positives by the time the credits roll.

Rating: CFincher’s worst film since “Alien 3”

CONNECT WITH OWEN GLANCY

oglancy@student.framingham.edu

: Tea roses and teacups

By Raena Doty Arts & Features Editor Some hobbies can be difficult for students to keep up with when they live on campus - often because the space in on-campus housing can be a bit limited.

For Aili Schiavoni, a sophomore fashion design major and hobbyist cosplayer, she found living in Peirce Hall her freshman year made it hard - even impossible - for her to practice her craft in her own space.

This year, she said she chose to live in a premium single in West Hall - but not just because of the space.

“I got bullied into it,” she joked, and added her now-suitemates wanted to live together, but she still wanted the personal space offered by a single room, so she chose to get a premium single in a West Hall suite.

She added even though it wasn’t her original plan, she’s absolutely loved having the space to practice her craft.

“I just like having the ability to walk around, and I do a lot of pacing,” she said. “Having that extra floor space to lay things out, work on things - it’s been very helpful.”

Schiavoni described the decoration in her room as “baroque rococo,” and said, “It all actually started with tea sets.”

She added when she was young, she went with her family to a tea shop where they brought out food and tea in an actual tea set.

“I was obsessed with the teacups immediately,” she said. “I was just like, immediately hooked on it, and that sort of aesthetic of like the fake gold and the roses and all that fine china, porcelain look definitely branched out into what my room has become.”

She added the first tea set she ever got for Christmas is in her room now, proudly on display.

“It’s not anything super fancy, and so that’s why I feel the most comfortable bringing it places,” Schiavoni said.

“I actually brought it to campus when I was living in Peirce, but I kept it all completely packed into a box and under my bed. But I took it out and then I’d get people together for tea,” she said.

Aside from the decoration, Schiavoni said the layout of the room was important to her.

“I went online and I found the floor plans of the building,” she said. “I cut it out on an art app and I moved the things around.”

She added she wanted her bed to be next to the window and to have a large space in front of the door to work, host guests, and pace.

Raena Doty / THE GATEPOST Aili Schiavoni’s first tea set on display in her bedroom.

For living on campus, Schiavoni want to have a roommate and she said her “Comfy,” a type of hoodie didn’t push herself out of her comfort made of sherpa, is absolutely essen- zone just for the sake of pushing hertial. self out of her comfort zone.

“Especially now that I have suite“I got very fortunate that I met the mates, because you just throw that people I did and I’m now sharing my thing on, you can go anywhere in this spaces with them, but it’s not somebuilding,” she said. thing you should feel like you have to Schiavoni said students living on do,” she said. campus should “go with your gut on what you think you’re going to be comfortable with.”

CONNECT WITH RAENA DOTY She added she knew she didn’t rdoty@student.framingham.edu

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ARTS & FEATURES

‘The Maybe Man’ - here we go again

By Raena Doty Arts & Features Editor As someone rapidly hurtling into her 20s with no signs of slowing down anytime soon, it’s safe to say the prospects of settling down, discovering myself, and navigating the big wide world scare me more than a bit.

“The Maybe Man” by AJR provides no respite from these fears - but it never meant to. This album will make you confront the scary reality of what it means to be human in the contemporary world. It is an album of crescendo but no climax - uncertain-t y but solidarity.

“Maybe Man,” the first and titular track, makes this apparent. The song is a slowly building crisis of identity.

With each verse, the music builds too, and anyone would expect the beat drop at the end to be epic But it never comes, and the final verse in the song - before the shift into pandemonium - is delicate, soft, and maybe even unsatisfying.

In an album about wrestling with inherent meaninglessness, it works.

The song doesn’t build the way you’d expect, but when does life?

In “OK Orchestra,” AJR’s previous album, I found “OK Overture” too on the nose - it felt like they wrote the entire album then slapped together some melodies they’d already written without doing anything new. This leading song is much better - it stands on its own and sets up everything else perfectly.

Every song after “Maybe Man” is spent exploring the themes of growing up, rejecting ideals passed on without critical thought, and making sense of a senseless world.

“Inertia” speaks to an aspect of the modern world I haven’t seen explored - that is, the way stagnation often looks like motion.

It’s so easy to look at someone who

there are any answers to be found and that’s OK. If there was any disappointment in this album, it was “Turning Out Pt. iii.” On its own, it’s a very good song, and it fits into the context of the album well, but as the title indicates, it’s the third part in a trilogy.

The song feels to me a bit like a non sequitur to its predecessors. “Turning Out Pt. ii” left off at a moment of re-

David Abe / THE GATEPOST lives a busy life and assume they must be fulfilled, but sometimes it’s all inertia - sometimes all someone wants is to break away.

“Steve’s Going to London” covers a topic particularly familiar to me as a college student - watching your peers go through radically different stages of life.

When one of your friends is going to London and another one is sleeping on his best friend’s lawn, what does that say about where you’re supposed to be in life?

Like the album as a whole, the song gives no answers, but I don’t think

alization and promise, if a scary one that requires a breakup, so why is the singer now proposing?

“Pt. iii” is musically beautiful - soft and earnest in a way only a not-quitelove song could be - and the way t h e singer struggles with balancing contradictory expectations fits right into the album at large.

But I’m not satisfied with this song as an ending to the “Turning Out” series, and I can only hope AJR continues it in the future.

The album stands strong, though.

As always, AJR’s experimental sounds and blended use of instrumentals

and vocals, some very traditional and some very edited, keep every song fresh.

As someone rapidly hurtling into her 20s with no signs of slowing down anytime soon, this album terrified me - but it also let me know I’m not alone.

Other people are afraid of the job market, the housing market, the dating market.

Other people are just bouncing around from place to place, task to task, looking for something that means anything and afraid they’ll pass it by when they find it.

Other people feel the urge to abandon it all and give up - because what does it matter, anyway?

But the album is a reminder that even when it’s scary and uncertain, life can be beautiful, love can happen, and anyone can find meaning where it may not seem to exist.

I got from this album what AJR said very succinctly in “2085,” the final song - a reminder that “I’d hate to have to die ’fore I get my head together.”

Rating: A Perfect pandemonium

CONNECT WITH RAENA DOTY rdoty@student.framingham.edu

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ARTS & FEATURES

NOVEMBER 17, 2023 | 15

Liv’s Latest Listens Puzzles

ACROSS 1. Designer Giorgio 7. “Get lost!”

11. Overnight outfit 15. ___ Bell (“Live Mas” chain) 16. Actor Stephen 17. Driver’s license, e.g.

18. One saying “The sky is falling!”

20. Complainer’s quality 22. Commits perjury 23. Clothing 24. Stir up 26. Colonial insect 27. ___ Perignon 28. Improve, as an image 31. “Canada” birds 33. Reacts to, as a bad pun 34. Not modern 37. Toy sold with a foam basketball 40. ‘90s cardio trend 44. Plainly saying

45. Darth Vader’s childhood nickname 47. Habit wearer 48. “___ Too Proud” (jukebox musical) 49. Worker protecting grp.

51. “Assuming I’m correct...”

52. Certain high-intensity exercise session 56. Get out of Dodge 57. NFL team in S.F. 59. Sundar Pinchai, for Google 60. Name hidden in “thesaurus” 61. “Righteous, dude!” ... or parsed differently, a hint to parts of the starred clue’s answers 62. Addams cousin 63. Olympus Mon’s planet 64. TV commercial’s script, e.g.

39. Went bananas 41. On a hot streak, in slang 42. Greyhound offering 43. Musician Yoko 45. Fish found off the coast of Tahiti ... or in the word “Tahiti” 46. Aslan’s land 50. Passage that may be contested Puzzle solutions are now 51. Charged, in chemistry exclusively online.

53. Acronym for trig, chem, etc.

54. Baseball great Sammy 55. Sue Monk ___ (writer) 56. The “S” of 53-Down: Abbr.

58. Hog’s place

DOWN 1. Boxer known as “The Greatest” 2. Barolo or pinot noir 3. Foliage-clearing knife 4. “Little Birds” Writer Nin 5. Onigirl seaweed 6. Purplish shade 7. ___ master (cardio brand) 8. Degrees of excellence 9. Smoothie berry 10. “Crucify” singer Amos 11. Alcatraz and others 12. Toon, who said “I loved you more than any woman’s ever loved a rabbit” 13. Plopped down 19. Name related to suspect’s rights 21. “You ready?” reply 22. Trail behind 25. Allow 27. Indian megacity 29. Japanese drama 30. Its capital is Port-au-Prince 32. Convertible’s roof, perhaps 33. Word after “age” or “wage” 35. Slip into 36. It clouds military strategy 37. U.S. intel org.

38. Pass that’s scanned

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