November 11, 2022

A Culture Fest to remember!

Henry Whittemore Library establishes alumni fundraising group

By Sophia Harris News Editor

The Henry Whittemore Library is hosting an array of upcoming events for the remainder of the fall semester and planning events for the spring se mester.

In addition to the events on campus, an alumni fundraising group, Friends of the Whittemore Library, is in the early stages of development.

This group was started by the pre vious dean of the Whittemore Library, Bonnie Mitchell, and is being led by the current dean of the library, Millie González.

“We’re forming a group to really engage alums and people who either

graduated from Framingham State or worked at Framingham State and really provide information about the library to them and give them the opportunity to give back to the library financially,” González said.

González added the group is “in its infancy.”

Working with Mitchell, they have formed a board of directors for the alumni fundraising group which in cludes faculty members, faculty emeri ti, and members of the community.

She said the board has also created the bylaws for the fundraising group.

Desmond McCarthy, an English pro fessor and a member of the Friends of the Whittemore Library board, said, “It’s an honor to be involved in this vi

sionary initiative, which was the brain child of our current library director Millie González and our retired library director Bonnie Mitchell.”

McCarthy emphasized the impor tance of the library to the campus com munity.

“A library is at the center of any uni versity, and we need to do everything we can to provide financial assistance to Whittemore Library and support the many new initiatives and programs that Millie is putting forward.”

He added, “A library is not simply a research center and a repository of in formation - it’s the hub of an academic community.”

McCarthy said the alumni

Framingham State celebrates military-connected students

By Leighah Beausoleil Editor-in-Chief

Coordinator of Veteran and Military Services Christine Denaro hosted a banner signing and an open house for the center this week in honor of Veter ans Day.

Denaro officially began serving as coordinator Oct. 17.

On Nov. 7 and 8, Denaro hosted a table in the McCarthy Center lobby for community members to write messages on stickers to veteran and military-con nected students that were then placed on a banner. The banner is currently lo cated outside the center in Dwight Hall.

“In honor of Veterans Day on Friday,

I thought this would be a good oppor tunity for the Framingham State Uni versity community to recognize the veterans who served our country, and this was just my small way of acknowl edging them,” Denaro said.

Also on Nov. 7, Denaro held an open house at the Veteran and Military Ser vices Center for community members to check out the space, learn more about the center, and meet her.

In her new position, Denaro said she has three goals.

She said she would like to increase the enrollment of military-connected students, which is currently approxi mately 150 students.

Denaro said she would also like to

get those students more engaged with the center. “I hope to create relation ships with our community to get re sources that they may need outside the college.”

In her role, she said she can help mil itary-connected students with anything from educational to personal needs, in cluding applying to the University and for the education benefits they receive through the military.

Dean of Students Meg Nowak Bor rego said beyond the center, mili tary-connected students have resourc es available to them through CASA, the Counseling Center, and additional edu cational, medical, and mental health

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Leighah Beausoleil / THE GATEPOST Afro Carribean Dance Group (ACDG) getting ready to perform at their annual Culture Fest. This event features a variety of performances, including singing, rapping, dancing, and a best dressed contest.

Gatepost Interview

Chantrell Frazier Chemistry Professor and Mary Miles Bibb Teaching Fellow

By Naidelly Coelho Staff Writer

What is your educational and career background?

I am a native of Tampa, Florida, so my high school is Thomas Jefferson High School. It’s a predominantly Hispanic and Black high school in the Tampa Bay area. From there, I graduated from high school in 2012. And then, from 2012 to 2016, I attended a historically Black uni versity called Savannah State University in Savannah, Georgia, and that’s where I obtained my bachelor’s of forensic sci ence with a concentration in chemistry. And so during those four years is where I kind of found my interest in research and the sciences. From 2016 to more recently - the beginning of this year, 2022 - I attended Florida Internation al University and obtained my Ph.D. in biochemistry.

What is your job at FSU?

I’m a part of what we call the Mary Miles Bibb Teaching Fellowship. It’s a program that they’ve reinstated more recently, which allows me to hold the ti tle of an assistant professor of chemistry here at Framingham State University. So, my official title is assistant professor of chemistry, but I have that because of the fellowship. And currently, I’m also a part of a new grant that they brought to Framingham State, which is the Massa chusetts AGEP [Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate], which is through NSF, so I’m also a part of that cohort.

How did you earn the Mary Miles Bibb Teaching Fellowship?

I literally saw it in an email. When I was finishing up my Ph.D., I was trying to understand if I wanted to go indus try, or if I wanted to go academia, and so then I knew I wanted to teach. That was like a calling for me. I just saw how it existed when I was a student, as well as observing it - hands-on as what we call a T.A. when you’re doing your doctor ate. So you were a teaching assistant, so you really had the power over your labs. But in the sense of actually teaching chemistry, I knew that’s something I re ally wanted to do. And this postdoctoral fellowship allows me to do that. It gives me the grace to strictly focus on learn ing how to be a better professor because a lot of times when you get into these positions, you are kind of thrown into it. So this position allows me to really grow my teaching pedagogy, and allows me to

refine my skills and get better at teach ing chemistry.

Do you have any goals for your career?

Ultimately, I’ve always wanted to start a school - STEM-focused school, but that’s kind of a long shot. But currently, at least at Framingham State Universi ty, what I want to do is get the students of color who are in the STEM field more involved with STEM activities. So I want to start a forensic science course here at the University. So I’m kind of working on that now trying to figure out the proper channels in doing that. But I definitely want to get the students of color who are in the STEM field, more involved in activities that will help them get expe rience, as well as make them more ap pealing to whatever their future endeav ors are with medical school, or going to get a doctorate or whatever the case may be. Just really getting them involved and exposing them to the opportunities that exist to do that, because someone did it for me. I only have two years, so let’s think that’s the caveat about the post doctoral fellowship. It is only a two-year assignment. So, I’m trying to do as much

as I can or make an impact as much as I can while I’m at it.

Do you have any hobbies outside of your work?

I really like to work out, and I real ly like to play basketball. I’m currently recovering from ACL surgery from six months ago, so I haven’t been able to kind of get involved in the scene. But I truly love working out and playing bas ketball. I’m excited for the basketball season this year. I will be attending a lot of games to see some of my students who are actually a part of the team. I’m excited about that.

Do you have any advice for students?

Don’t give up. I know a lot of times as a first-year student or even getting ready to graduate, it’s like, “What am I doing? Where do I have to go?” Don’t give up whatever you do. There’s always help available for you.

Saturday,

Monday, Nov. 7 05:18

Monday, Nov. 7 05:40

Thursday, Nov. 10 14:45

Courtesy of Chantrell Frazier

SGA concerned with lack of communication from administration

By Johan Perez Staff Writer

Students expressed concern about a lack of communication from the ad ministration about important matters as well as the level of responsiveness and effectiveness of Student Services during open forum at SGA’s Nov. 8 meeting.

Lorretta Holloway, vice president of Academic Enhancement, was invited to the meeting as part of an effort by her department to discuss with stu dent groups concerns about “road blocks” students face.

She said the path of a new student from the start of their college career to the finish is not as ideal as it’s usually projected. “We all know that’s not nec essarily what happens.”

Holloway said speaking with stu dents directly is important. “Some times, other people want to give you help, and they decide what you need as opposed to asking you what you need,” she said.

She said she has already attended several student group meetings, with more scheduled in the near future. “If you’re in a club, and you think your members have a lot to say, I’m willing to try to figure out a time to come meet and talk.”

Student Trustee McKenzie Ward said she was concerned there is no ADA commissioner at FSU. “When I was walking into the Athletic Center today, the doors that open for the handicap button were locked,” she said.

President Dara Barros said students taking a leave of absence without fol lowing official protocol have a rough time in the readmission process, “es pecially [first-generation students] who don’t have parents to tell them how to take it the correct way.”

Evelyn Campbell, outreach and events coordinator, said a majority of first-year students she assists at CASA often fall behind in their assignments, which lowers their morale.

She said the RAMS 101 courses should be tailored more toward “keep ing up with work” and “how to perse vere if you’ve fallen behind.”

Barros also said the Student Ser vices Center is not “student focused or student ready.”

She said Student Accounts and Fi nancial Aid should communicate more effectively. “There’s times where I get an email saying I have a hold on my ac count, then two hours later, ‘Sorry, we lied. Financial Aid just hasn’t posted your aid yet.’”

Barros added, “If I wasn’t a student leader and didn’t know how to advo cate for myself, I wouldn’t have gone to the Financial Aid Office five min

Weather

Sunday night Nov. 13

Mostly clear, with a low around 33. W wind around 10 mph.

Monday Nov. 14

Sunny, with a high near 46. NW wind around 10 mph.

utes after I got the email.”

She recommended a more in-depth financial aid session during orienta tion to teach new students to learn how to read their financial aid pack ets, saying currently, “they really just speed through it.”

Campbell agreed, saying first-gen eration students need more informa tion sessions for financial aid. “It is such a difficult task to come to college when your parents haven’t,” she said.

She added family information ses sions could help parents of first-gen eration students as well. “My parents were supportive of me going to col lege, but they had no idea what was happening. We had to blindly figure it out ourselves.”

Senator Dillon Riley said the COVID-19 pandemic “shook up how universities work.”

He added even as a second-genera tion student, he still had issues in the registration process. “My mom was trying to help me out and she had no idea what was going on, either.

“She’s trying to learn at the same time. It’s new for everybody,” he said.

Senator Austin Van Lingen said the staff of the Student Services Center “seems like they had an attitude prob lem.”

He said, “Whoever you’re having a conversation with, especially in regard to your bill or financial aid, [should] definitely be speaking in a nicer man ner with students.”

Barros said, “It’s as if they act like we should already know accounting and how to read our bill.”

Sam Houle, SATF treasurer, said his success as a student has “kind of been in spite of the advising process rather than because of it.”

He added in his first advising meet ing as a freshman, his advisor told him to drop his minor because he “didn’t understand how higher education works.” He said he trusted her and did so, only to now not be a licensed ed ucator after graduation even though that was originally his plan.

“I had no idea what the ramifica tions of that decision were,” Houle said.

Ward said the incident of an indi vidual brandishing a fake gun while driving through campus last week was never communicated to students.

“We basically found out about it through a chain of everyone tell ing everyone,” she said. “I personally wouldn’t want to come to a campus where it’s not communicated to me.”

Holloway added she had not heard about this incident until Ward raised it at the meeting.

Campbell said communication is an issue for faculty and staff as well. She

said faculty and staff told her, “Yeah, I only found out because of The Gate post.

“It makes us feel like we’re forgot ten sometimes,” she said.

Campbell added, “When you’re sit ting in the SGA office and I get a text saying they think there’s someone with a gun on campus, and then I have to walk through campus terrified because campus police haven’t told us. … When it comes to communications, when we’re always the last ones to know, it makes us feel less and less valued each time.”

Holloway confirmed an emergen cy alert test that was sent to student emails during the fake gun incident was already planned and unrelated.

Vice President Raffi Elkhoury said the lack of research opportunities and sufficient technology to perform ex periments within the STEM majors makes it difficult for students to learn skills that will be used in future em ployment.

“If you want to go into working in a lab, you want to have practice with certain lab equipment,” he said. “If the school doesn’t have that, that can defi nitely turn students away or hamper their progress.”

Holloway thanked the SGA mem bers for their feedback.

Following up on the Oct. 26 meeting, Barros said she received a document from Dean of Students Meg Nowak Borrego detailing each issue addressed in the Oct. 11 Administrators’ Forum, the proposed solution for each issue that was discussed in follow-up meet ings, and the administrator assigned to

each one.

The issues addressed include a change of modality in classes, broken equipment and weights missing in the Athletic Center, ticketing in the park ing lots, and a request to notify the community through email of major decisions.

The SGA members said goodbye to Sara Gallegos, executive director of Student Experience and Careers and SGA advisor, as this was her last meeting as SGA advisor. The new SGA advisor will be Leah Mudd, assistant director of student experience and orientation

Ward said Tuesday Nov. 15 is the Campus Safety Walk at 6 p.m. at the McCarthy patio.

Ward also said the next Board of Trustees meeting is Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 6:30 p.m. in the Alumni Room and on Zoom.

She said she is working on orga nizing a student open forum with the Board of Trustees as an informal event to “make sure the Board of Trustees get to know us as students and get to know what the student experience is like.”

The “U-Rock” award was presented to Ben “Bench” Hurney by Riley. He said Bench was selfless and gave his time to others even when he didn’t need to.

[Editor’s Note: McKenzie Ward is Opinions Editor for The Gatepost]

CONNECT WITH JOHAN PEREZ jperez3@student.framingham.edu

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

Monday night Nov. 14

Mostly clear, with a low around 28. NW wind around 5 mph.

Tuesday Nov. 15

Partly sunny, with a high near 46. N wind around 5 mph.

Tuesday night Nov. 15

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 34. Calm wind.

60% chance of rain and snow.

Wednesday Nov. 16

Mostly cloudy, with a high near 49. NE wind around 5 mph. 60% chance of rain and snow.

Wednesday night Nov. 16

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 33. W wind around 5 mph. 40% chance of rain and snow.

Thursday Nov. 17

Mostly sunny, with a high near 48. W wind around 10 mph. 30% chance of snow.

Emma Lyons / THE GATEPOST SGA Advisor Sara Gallegos speaking at the Oct. 28 meeting.

Civic Engagement Center now open with internship, mini-grant opportunities

By Leighah Beausoleil Editor-in-Chief

Framingham State University’s Civic Engagement and Service Learn ing Center opened this semester, of fering internships for students and mini-grants for faculty and staff, ac cording to Susan Dargan, dean of the College of Education and Social and Behavioral Sciences.

The center’s mission is to provide volunteer opportunities to students, connecting them with local commu nities that may be underrepresented and underserved, according to the Framingham State website.

The center partners with MetroW est Nonprofit Network, an organi zation that aims to provide support to and collaboration with local non profits.

Located in the Center for Inclu sive Excellence, students, faculty, and staff can visit during office hours from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. These are held by its Faculty Coordi nator David Smailes, a political sci ence professor.

This semester, the center is spon soring four paid internships focused on civic engagement. Interns are as signed a nonprofit to work with and meet regularly with the faculty coor dinator to work for the center itself.

The interns worked with Anna Cross, director of MWNN, to find their nonprofit placements.

Dargan said around 2016, a group of FSU employees worked together to file an application for a Carnegie Classification in order to be recog nized as an institution for “strong civic engagement.”

Though the group knew the chanc es of acquiring this classification were slim at that point, Dargan said the application process allowed them to begin taking the necessary steps to one day reach that goal.

Then, the vice president of diversi ty, inclusion, and community engage ment who was leading the charge for this classification left the University. Subsequently, Dargan said the group did not have the “wherewithal” to complete the application.

She said institutions can apply ev ery two years, and during that in-be tween time, she asked the Universi ty for an administrator position and funding.

Dargan said she was given ap proximately $18,000 a year, which allowed her to hire a faculty coordi nator, offer mini-grants, and provide faculty training.

“Then last year, the Board of Trust ees agreed to fund initiatives related to retention and improvement, and there’s a lot of literature that shows that community-engaged learning helps us retain students, particular ly in a demographic we’re seeing a growth in in our student population,” she said.

“Our students who are BIPOC tend to really respond well to that kind of training,” she added.

The Board of Trustees granted the initiative a one-year sum of $100,000, she said.

However, she said the biggest chal lenge the center faces is not having a leader, adding other institutions typ ically have a full-time employee in that position.

“What I’m hoping is that we can show what can be done and how there has to be someone in charge of it,” Dargan said.

In the meantime, she said the act ing director is the faculty coordina tor who will oversee the interns and assist faculty and staff in applying for the mini-grants.

“He’s on the work group and he’s going to be working on the meetand-greet breakfast and things like that,” she added. “Then we’re work ing on another faculty development institute this summer, which is a lot of work.”

Dargan said, “The faculty coordi nator gets $3,500 a semester. It’s not a ton of money. It’s not a course re lease. It’s a recognition of the work they’re doing.”

Smailes said as a political science professor, he has always had an in terest in civic engagement.

He added, “It’s such an important part of community building and de mocracy.”

After getting involved with a civic engagement group at Westfield State University, where he used to work, Smailes said he has been looking for more ways to get involved.

He said this led him to apply for one of the center’s mini-grants the first year they were offered and ulti mately apply for the faculty coordi nator position.

“I’m just really excited,” Smailes said. “I think one of the great things about this is that it really brings the community and the University to gether in a really important way. And I think every time I’ve been involved in civic engagement projects and service learning projects, everybody comes away with something really valuable from it.”

Cross said MWNN reached out to Framingham State regarding civic engagement around 2018 because the organization wanted to “develop a closer relationship” with the Uni versity.

“The legislature at that time was going to build in civic engagement as part of their funding, and then de cided not to, so that kind of put the whole project on hold,” she said.

However, this year, Dargan reached out to MWNN with a propos al for working with the organization to find internship placements for students, Cross said.

“So the program that was devel oped with funding by the University to support internships managed by MWNN and building on the relation ships that we have in the community with the nonprofits really allowed us to be able to identify organizations that were interested in having in terns and then link interns to pretty significant, I think, experiences that they’re having in the nonprofits,” she said.

Cross added the organization is grateful for its partnership with FSU.

“It’s really an opportunity for us

to build cultural awareness for us to build a focus lens on equity and jus tice by having people who can really speak to issues that are happening in their community from a very direct experiential place,” she said.

Britania Lewis, a senior business major, said she is interning for the MetroWest Food Collaborative, a nonprofit aimed at promoting and supporting policies and programs re lated to equal access to food.

Lewis said she is currently working on the nonprofit’s website and social media presence, while also planning for a legislative breakfast where leg islators will meet with the organiza tion and discuss funding.

She said it’s “really great,” but she got “thrown into it” in an “unconven tional way” because the first meeting she attended was about the Food Summit and involved legislators.

“It was interesting just to be in the room with these people and hav ing these ideas coming together was great,” she added. “I learned a lot and I’m getting to meet a lot of new people and just be able to collaborate and get work done.”

Lewis said following graduation, she wants to pursue operations or project management, adding her ex perience at the internship - making new connections and learning more about how those individuals came into their roles - will ultimately ben efit her in her career.

She said the “key” to civic engage ment is “reaching out to the com munity and letting people know that we’re here and we’re doing the work and we want you to be part of the work.”

Emily Rosenberg, a junior political science major, said she is interning for the Mental Health Collaborative, a nonprofit in Hopkinton aimed at promoting mental health awareness, which is done in part by the training it offers to schools and corporations.

Rosenberg is currently writing let ters to legislators encouraging them to add an amendment to their bills that mandate mental health training because those bills sometimes do not specify when the training needs to be completed.

She added Massachusetts does not have a mental health training man date, but she is also writing a letter to Boston Mayor Michelle Wu be cause she is “extremely passionate about mental health.”

Rosenberg said, “She wants to cre ate a stronger platform to support people with mental illnesses.”

She said she appreciates the op portunity this internship gives her to develop research skills for political policy, including mental health edu cation and the platforms of senators and representatives.

Rosenberg added she is also work ing with students making videos about their experiences with mental health.

“I’ve always been really passion ate about mental health education,” Rosenberg said. “I actually came to college wanting to do mental health policy.”

She said civic engagement is im

portant because she believes people should get involved with and learn more about their community and ways they can help.

Geanny Infante, a senior fashion design and retailing major, said she is interning for Amazing Things Art Center (ATAC), a nonprofit in Fram ingham with an art and music focus that hosts community events.

Infante said she is working on the marketing logistics for the nonprofit, which involves contacting local busi nesses about promotional opportu nities, creating a route for posting, and a guide for the different require ments a location may have regarding advertisements.

She said she appreciates the time flexibility that comes with this in ternship as most of it is working from home with no set schedule.

Infante added this allows her to get more experience with and im prove her time management skills.

Following graduation this Decem ber, Infante said she wants to be part of a production team for which she can design clothes for companies.

When she initially began studying for her degree, she said she was wor ried about the job prospects related to her major.

“But now new jobs are being cre ated, and a lot of places are hiring,” Infante said, adding her internship experience at ATAC will help her re sumé when she begins to apply for jobs in January and February.

Infante said civic engagement is important because “not only are you helping out your local community, but you’re also getting experience yourself and can grow as an individ ual.”

Dargan said, “We are intentionally having a social justice, anti-racist fo cus with our work.

“You don’t want to have the kind of white savior mentality with this kind of work, and so there’s some re ally good literature out there on how to avoid that and how to listen to the people in the community to make sure you’re doing work that is bene ficial, and recognizes their strengths at all times and recognizes what peo ple have been through,” she added.

Dargan said her short-term goal for the center is “to see a big increase in interest in participation and com munity-engaged learning. In the long term, I would love it to be embedded in the fabric of the University, so that people in this community know that Framingham State is there for them.”

[Editor’s Note: Leighah Beauso leil is a member of the MetroWest Nonprofit Network board, but does not work with the Civic Engagement and Service Learning Center. Emily Rosenberg is Associate Editor of The Gatepost.]

CONNECT WITH LEIGHAH BEAUSOLEIL lbeausoleil@student.framingham.edu

Whittemore Library

fundraising group “is working to help Millie create a vibrant 21st-cen tury environment at Whittemore - not just for your own campus, but for the Metro-West region.”

González said the board has “laid the foundation.”

The next steps will include sending information out to alumni to inform them about this opportunity to be come more connected to the Library and Framingham State.

“Making that connection from when you’re on campus, as a student or as a staff member, and then when you leave, you’ll still have the connec tion to the library. I think it’s really wonderful,” Gonz lez said.

She noted many valuable initiatives at public libraries are funded because of the “friends of the library.”

González said the board will identi fy specific initiatives or items to better the library and enhance the quality of experience for students.

González said, “We’re very excited about this.”

Kathleen Barnard, the student events coordinator for the library, said the alumni fundraising group is in the “planning stages.”

She added there are “a lot of real ly great ideas floating around,” and as the board continues to meet, there will be more information available.

González highlighted other initia tives underway at the library, includ ing the community board that is locat ed at the building’s entrance.

“The entrance is really the most im portant aspect because immediately, you get a sense of the vibe of what the library is all about,” she said.

González said the community en gagement board will be used to adver tise events on campus to engage stu dents.

She said the library is also partner ing with the Rams Resource Center and University Police for two upcom ing events.

“For example, whether it’s nice in teresting furniture or buying a collec tion of books, or paying for student worker salaries, those are the kinds of things that when we fundraise big, you know the money that we fundraise will go to those initiatives,” she said.

The library will be hosting a drop box where the campus community will be able to donate items such as coats and canned goods for the Rams Re source Center.

She said the library will be partner ing with University Police on a Toys-

González said in April, there will be a week-long event held for National Li brary Week, which includes book give aways, book discussions, cake-deco rating contests, and presentations by faculty showcasing their work. She said there will also be initia

tives held for Black History Month as

González said the goal is to make the library more student-focused. She said students will be surveyed to learn what events they would like to see the

ing, inclusive library is our goal. And to

munity, I think it’ll make it even more Barnard said she would “love” to hear more from students and what

She added any ideas that students have for events the library potentially

“If anybody has any thoughts on what they’d like to see, I’d love to hear them. That’s always fun for me,” Bar

nard said.

Ray Dufresne, a junior English ma jor, said, “It would be nice to see them [the library] be more proactive with the students and community - like of fering tutoring sessions, donating old books, and doing book drives for chil dren around the neighborhood who might need the support.”

Dufresne added, “Getting color printers that actually print in color would be a plus.”

Sophia Moretti, a senior psychology major, said she would like to see the library host events that are “commu nity-based” and that would bring the campus community closer together so Framingham State would not feel like a “commuter school.”

“I want the library to feel more like a community space … a space where you can make friends,” Moretti said.

Abigayle Versackas, a senior history major, said she enjoys the events that the library hosts.

She said she is “definitely interested in going to Cocoa by the Fire” and is “looking forward to it.”

Versackas said she would like to see the library host community-run book discussions especially geared toward “Indigenous History Month, Wom en’s History Month, and Black History Month.”

She added a possible allocation of the alumni fundraising group funds would be new furniture.

“I think that would be really nice and overall, just revamping the space would be nice to see,” she said.

Ella Reddin, a sophomore English major, said she would like to see the li brary become more commuter friendly.

She added she is frustrated with the lack of usable outlets in the library and would like to see more accessible out lets to use.

She said, “I don’t have a dorm to go back to, so sometimes, I hate it when I’m in the library, and its plugs are not working or I’m just constantly trying to plug in the wall.”

Reddin said with the fundraising group’s money, she would like to see an investment in more diverse and rel evant books offered by the library.

[Editor’s Note: Desmond McCarthy is the advisor to The Gatepost.]

CONNECT WITH SOPHIA HARRIS sharris9@student.framingham.edu

She said the library will also be part

nering with the Center for Inclusive Excellence to hold a book discussion.

Sophia Harris / THE GATEPOST The sign outside of the Henry Whittemore Library Nov. 10.

Courtesy of Framingham State Millie González, dean of the Henry Whittemore Library

“Having a really vibrant, welcoming, inclusive library is our goal. And to bring in all of the ideas from the community, I think it’ll make it even more enriching.”

- Millie González Dean of the Henry Whittemore Library

THE GATEPOST EDITORIAL

Veterans need and deserve support

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of the year 1918, World War I officially ended.

Today, we celebrate and honor not only those who fought in WWI, but all of the people who have served in the U.S. military fighting for our freedom.

Those sacrifices have come from some of our peers here at FSU who are veterans them selves, actively serving in the reserves, or are otherwise military connected.

Today, we are celebrating them.

However, as a community, we need to ensure we are honoring and supporting these students every day.

This support can come in various forms, such as the flexibility and understanding pro fessors can extend to these students when they are performing military duties.

Some students may need to miss classes due to this service or may not be able to complete an assignment on time because they are in a place with no access to the internet.

In general, the move from active duty to college life can be difficult for these students and professors understanding that challenge is crucial to making the transition successful.

We also need to recognize the ways their military experience affects their lives as stu dents.

According to the U.S. Department of Veter ans Affairs (VA), military-connected students may struggle with the independence that comes with being in college.

These students have spent much of their time following orders and respecting rank, and therefore have internalized these behaviors, making it difficult for them to think and act independently.

Although, it is important not to stereotype military-connected students because they have their own experiences and they are not all the same.

According to the Coordinator of Veteran and Military Services, Christine Denaro, a student brought to her attention a comment made by a professor that was along the lines of, “I can’t believe how undisciplined the student veter ans are here.”

Denaro went on to explain there are a num ber of reasons why the students that professor

has in mind may be struggling in class, which could include PTSD, a traumatic brain injury, or another unseen cause.

It could also simply be the adjustments the students need to make to college life.

As a community, we need to be educating ourselves about the experiences of our mil itary-connected students and not make as sumptions concerning how we think they should be.

We can also be more mindful of the com ments made and the questions asked in the classroom during discussions regarding the military.

It is vital we acknowledge the community these students may have lost and the difficulty they have in making new connections.

Many military-connected students may be non-traditional students. Only 15% are tra ditionally aged college students, according to the VA.

These students may also already have fami lies and responsibilities outside of FSU, which can contribute to a sense of loneliness and iso lation here on campus.

The Veteran and Military Services Center, located in Dwight Hall, is a great place for these students to find community with those who understand what they have gone through or are currently experiencing.

There, military-connected students can have a quiet place to study and do homework, watch TV, grab a cup of coffee, and hang out with friends, but it is also a place to get in formation and resources that are specifically aimed at helping them.

Denaro advises military-connected students not to be afraid to ask for help.

“They can come to me with no judgmentanything that they need, and I’ll get them the help that they need,” she said. “Asking for help is a sign of strength, so don’t be afraid to ask.”

Military-connected students are essential and invaluable members of the community and deserve to feel that way.

We need to support, honor, and celebrate them.

Veterans and military-connected students: We see you. We appreciate you. And we thank you for your service.

A journey of self-love

By McKenzie Ward Opinions Editor

In fourth grade, I would wear the same pink Hollister zip-up hoodie to school almost every day.

It did not matter if it was 30 degrees or 80 degrees, I wore that zip-up if I felt like I needed it.

And I didn’t need it because pink was my favorite color, nor was it because I loved Hollister.

I felt like I needed it because I wanted to hide my arms - one of my insecurities.

For my entire life, my weight has been my biggest insecurity.

I remember being told by my pediatrician I should start eat ing less because I wouldn’t want to be an obese adult and I was on the track of becoming one.

I wasn’t even 7 years old when she told me that.

I was 9 years old when I began weighing myself using the scale at my grandparents’ house because to me “fat” was a dirty word and I was so afraid of becoming it. This was around the same age that a family friend introduced me to Nabisco’s 100-calorie snack packs which ultimately led me to excessive calorie counting in the years following.

During my pre-teen and teenage years, I spent them strug gling with binge eating. Though I managed to lose weight at the beginning of high school, admittedly in an unhealthy way, during my junior year when I went on birth control, it caused an increase in appetite and I quickly gained the weight back.

And now that I am 22 years old and a senior in college, my weight continues to be my biggest insecurity. I will purposely avoid having my photo taken and will delete full body photos of myself that people took before I can see them because of how painful it is to even just look at myself.

Even when I traveled to France during my senior year of high school, I strayed away from taking too many full body pictures of myself in fear that I would “ruin” the photo.

I still regret not having any photos of me in front of the Eif fel Tower.

However, one of my current mental health goals is to prac tice self-love and my main inspiration is singer and rapper, Lizzo.

Lizzo is known for her songs “About Damn Time” and “Truth Hurts,” but she also has multiple songs about the importance of finding love for yourself.

Lizzo’s song “Soulmate” is not about a romantic soulmate, but instead is about being her own soulmate and finding selflove. When I heard this song for the first time, I began to re alize the disservice I was doing to myself for hating my body.

Over the years, Lizzo has served as an influential role model for those like me who continue to struggle with self-love. In an op-ed she wrote for NBC, she stresses the first step of self-love is acceptance, which according to Lizzo is accepting yourself where you are, while knowing you have room for growth and healing.

One of the other important aspects of self-love that I still need to incorporate into my life is to stop negative self-talk. As someone who is a perfectionist, when I do not meet my own standards, I beat myself up and force myself to obsess over any mistake, both big and little.

As a result of negative self-talk, I have become my own big gest hater. But one of the ways to best confront negative selftalk is to give your inner critic their own name and then cross examine the thoughts.

By thinking of your inner critic as an outside force that you can cross examine and question the validity of their state ments, it makes it easier to deal with the negative self-talk.

While learning how to love yourself can be one of the big gest challenges, the reward is more than worth it.

As I am on this journey of self-love, I have major goals for myself that I hope to reach.

My biggest goal is to be able to get back to Paris, take a pho to in front of the Eiffel Tower, and be able to say “I look beau tiful,” because I am.

Letter to the Editor

As I retire from Framingham State University, I wanted to take a moment to express my appreciation to all of you that have made these past five years enjoyable. For many of you, I treasure the friendships we have cre ated and expect those to continue into the future.

In particular, though, I want to ex press my overwhelming gratitude to the hard-working men and women in Facilities and Campus Events. I’m so proud to have had the opportunity to lead these two amazing departments and I am humbled by the support you have shown me. Together we have ac complished so much, but it would not

have happened without your collective hard work.

“One is too small a number to achieve greatness. No accomplishment of real value has ever been achieved by a human being working alone.” -John Maxwell

So much of the work that you do is invisible to the faculty, staff and stu dents…until, of course, an issue aris es. But then you shine your bright est! When others are snuggled warm in their beds, our team is on campus clearing snow or restoring electricity after a power outage. When others are at family gatherings or worshiping on a Sunday morning, our team members

are on campus cleaning or supporting the churches and other events happen ing on campus. When COVID-19 shut down much of the campus, Facilities personnel still came to work every day, ensuring that the buildings were clean, keeping the heat on, refilling hand sanitizers, delivering mail, and doing the many things required to ensure that the campus facilities were ready to support the work of the University.

While I know that the campus ap preciates what you do, people often are focused on the other important work being done for Framingham State. You do not always get the recognition you deserve. So before I retire, I want to

make sure I say this, one more time, to the teams in Facilities and Campus Events - THANK YOU for all that you do and for making my job so reward ing!

With great appreciation, Patricia Whitney, assistant vice president of facilities and capital plan ning

Campus Conversations

How will you be honoring veterans this weekend?

By Ryan Schreiber, Staff Writer

“My dad is a veteran. He was in the Army for seven years stationed in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. So, the way I was going to honor him, to start, I work at a car wash. For Veterans Day weekend, we give a free best wash to all veterans, thanking them for their service… [My dad] protected various lives serving in the military going through the training and stuff that was required. So, being able to celebrate his day - I call it his day because he’s a veteran. for all veterans, it’s their day. Celebrating that is honorable.”

Frankie Hernandez, junior

“If I see a veteran, I plan on saying. ‘Thank you for your service.’ I plan on volunteering at any organization, packing boxes, and doing stuff like that.”

Alex Szarka, junior

“I have family who are retired, active-duty members and typically, we always throw a party for them just so they can feel special on that day. We try to preach them all year long.”

Maite Denis, junior

“By texting all the ones we know, ‘Thank you for your service.’”

Flannery O’Connor, senior

“Going to football on Friday and honoring the people who are there.”

Gwendolyn Carpenter, senior

SPORTS

Women’s basketball cruises past Wellesley 3-30 opening night

By Danielle Achin Sports Editor

The Framingham State women’s basketball team opened their season with a home court victory over Welles ley College Nov. 9.

The Rams opened the first quarter with a 7-0 run capped off with a Flan nery O’Connor layup before Wellesley made it on the board for the 7-2 score.

Wellesley managed to score another five points to the board, but Framing ham remained at the advantage head ing into the second quarter with the 11-7 lead.

Nearly three minutes into the sec ond quarter, the Blue closed the gap to two points with a jump shot made by Wellesley’s Jiyun Chae - the only points Wellesley would make for the rest of the quarter.

Framingham controlled the paint with a 23-0 run and kept Wellesley off the scoreboard until the 8:59 mark in the third frame for a score of 34-11.

The score quickly jumped to 4513 with combined points from Rams’ O’Connor, Haidul, Fernandez, and Gwendolyn Carpenter.

With two seconds remaining in the third quarter, Rams freshman Gabriela Redford increased the score to 52 with a two-point buzzerbeater jump shot and kept the Blue at 13 points heading into the final quarter of the game.

Less than a minute into the final frame, the Rams continued to build the lead when Carpenter opened with a three-point jump shot.

With just over four minutes left in the game, the Rams had accumulated 59 points on the board while Wellesley

managed to score 24 points.

Wellesley scored the final points of the frame with a two-point jump shot from Arla Hofer for the 3-30 final score.

The Rams were led by O’Connor, who was the game-leading scorer of the night with 25 points, followed by Haidul, who scored 17 points.

Redford also chipped in six points of her own, averaging a shooting per centage of 50 for her first game.

With the win, Haidul commented on the team’s success after their first game of the season.

“We get along with each other and it really shows on the court,” she said. “I thought, especially defensively, we were very strong and our offense is going to come together a lot more throughout the season, but I still think we did phenomenally.”

Redford said the team has great chemistry with one another and it really benefits the strong playing dy namic they already have on the court.

She said, “Everyone is really close, so it works really well. We always work 100 in practice, so it definitely plays out in our games.”

The Rams will return to the court next week when they travel to Eastern Nazarene for non-conference action Nov. 15.

Adrien Gobin/ THE GATEPOST Rams’ ’Connor ta ing a free thro shot during the fist home game Nov. 9.

Adrien Gobin/ THE GATEPOST

Rams’ Carpenter guarding ellesley player during first home game Nov. 9.

Adrien Gobin/ THE GATEPOST Rams’ Haidul blo ing pass against ellesley during first home game Nov. 9.

Men’s soccer loses in MASCAC semifinals

By Adam Levine Asst. Sports Editor

The Framingham State Rams were defeated by the Bridgewater State Bears in penalty shootouts after a match that lasted for 110 minutes Nov. 4.

Framingham State attempted 25 shots and took eight corner kicks. The Bears only tallied 17 total shots and had two corner kick opportunities.

Bridgewater State had a strong of fensive start, but two offside calls pre vented them from taking any shots.

At 9:47, Bears’ Ethan Lofontant’s shot was saved by Rams’ senior goalkeeper James Hartshorn.

Bridgewater State committed a foul that gave Rams’ graduate student Bryce Nardizzi a penalty kick oppor tunity. He was able to score and Fra migham took an early 1-0 lead over Bridgewater at 11:11.

The players’ aggression was evident the entire match. At 11:43, Bears’ Ja cob Ramos received a yellow card. At 13:11, Rams’ sophomore defender Mi chael Champagne received a yellow card.

After Hartshorn saved a Bears’ shot attempt, Rams’ senior Jared Nardiz zi took a shot on the Bears’ net that missed wide.

Bridgewater attempted three shots in three minutes. Hartshorn saved the first two, but Bridgewater’s third at tempt led to their first goal. At 18:44, Lafontant was assisted by teammates Carsten Boloz and Gavin Norton to tie the match 1-1.

The half continued with the two teams trading off on possessions and

shots.

At 25:35, Bears’ Ethan DeMelo re ceived a yellow card.

Framingham attempted two corner kicks that led to two shot attempts on the Bears’ net. Bridgewater attempted a corner kick with less than 5 minutes remaining in the half, which led to an

All eight of these shots, on both sides of the field, were unsuccessful.

Rams’ sophomore defender Lach lan Forgan took back-to-back corner kicks. Neither attempt was directly followed by a Framingham shot at tempt, but the Rams continued their

opportunity and launched seven shots on Bridgewater’s net.

Bridgewater attempted one corner kick and two shots with less than 13 minutes left of regulation time. Both teams traded shot attempts as the end of regulation time inched closer. The Bears’ Norton closed out regulation time by receiving a yellow card.

The first 10-minute overtime was not enough time for a winner to emerge. Each team only took one shot, and, at 97:39, Bears’ Justin Silva re ceived a yellow card.

The second 10-minute overtime al lowed both teams to take more shots, but the match remained scoreless. The Bears’ David Nelson and Rams’ Jared Nardizzi both received yellow cards.

Bridgewater and Framigham alter nated five shot attempts during penal ty shootouts. Framingham’s first four shots were successful, but Bridgewater made all five attempts to secure their victory.

The Rams’ senior defender Brian Sullivan reflected on the season, say ing, “Especially today, we showed that we really put in the effort this whole season.”

Although the Rams’ season con cluded, Sullivan said, “We definitely put the pieces of the puzzle together at the end.”

unsuccessful shot on the Rams’ net.

The first half ended with the score tied 1-1.

In the first 10 minutes of the second half, four different Rams’ players tal lied a combined seven shot attempts. During Framingham’s attack, Bears’ Will Halben took a shot on Hartshorn.

offensive strike.

Framingham’s offense did not let up until the 77:32 mark. During this time, Framingham had one corner kick

BR D E A ER A E

FRAMINGHAM STATE

Adam Levine / THE GATEPOST Rams battling al ons at goalpost attempting to s ore during the game Nov. .

Adam Levine/ THE GATEPOST

Rams’ ared Nardizzi i ing ball a ay from goalpost during the game Nov. .

Adam Levine/ THE GATEPOST Rams’ inha passing ball to teammate during MA CAC emifinal game Nov. .

CONNECT WITH ADAM LEVINE alevine @student.framingham.edu

ARTS & FEATURES

First-generation

By Ryan O’Connell Arts & Features Editor

GenerationOne occupied a table in the McCarthy Center’s lobby with two banners showcasing student and staff support through signatures Nov. 8.

GenerationOne is an affinity group focused on first-generation students, connecting them to first-generation faculty and offering them support.

The table was set up to show first-generation students that an or ganization on campus exists specifi cally for them, and that the group is committed to their success.

In March 2021, Framingham State University received a “First Gen-For ward” designation by the Center for First-generation Student Successbecoming one of 270 institutions rec ognized for committing to improving the experiences of first-generation students.

According to the University’s Office of Institutional Research, the percent age of first-generation non-transfer students enrolled in an undergradu ate degree for the Fall 2021 semester was 51%. The statistics for 2022 are not publicly available.

Alexandra Hebert, a senior psy chology major, said she describes her self as a first-generation student. She said she understood first-generation students as students who were the first in their family to pursue a degree higher than an associate’s.

Hebert said she chose to enroll in college to better help her chances of getting a job, and to further educate herself. She added college was always emphasized when she was in primary and secondary school, and felt it was the next step for her.

She said she thought FSU provided enough support for first-generation students, and thought requirements for the University were usually well documented and self explanatory. Hebert said the Rams 101 course also helped her to understand what was expected of her as a student.

She added the community was a big help in adjusting to college life. “Oth er peers, my RAs my first year here, professors and just staff in general, I feel like they’re all pretty welcoming and there to answer questions and help guide you.”

Evelyn Campbell, a sophomore marketing major, said neither of her parents attended college, but she had always wanted to earn a degree.

“Honestly, it was a no-brainer for me. I kind of just always loved school. … I’ve always fantasized about going to college,” she said.

Campbell added as an honors stu dent, she takes her education very se riously and feels college can provide young people with an array of oppor tunities. “I just feel like there’s such a

students recognized at banner signing

benefit in learning that you won’t get otherwise.”

She said she couldn’t remember many challenges she’s faced at FSU due to being a first-generation stu dent, and added she thought the Uni versity did a good job providing sup port networks for students who were the first in their families to attend college.

Campbell said FSU wasn’t initially her first-choice school, but she feels

FSU does a good job of supporting first-generation students, it could do more to help educate parents on the institution’s expectations and re quirements.

Samantha Medeiros, a junior hos pitality and tourism major, said being first-generation is both something to be proud of and a challenge. “It’s kind of like an accomplishment for my family, in a way,” she said.

“It’s also really difficult to figure

She said although sometimes nav igating the campus and completing paperwork is confusing, the Universi ty’s resources have been very helpful to her.

“CASA is really good with helping. I actually work in the office as a men tor myself, so I’ve kind of felt like I wanted to give back since I’ve gotten so much help from the school,” she said.

Medeiros added she believed the University does a good job of support ing first-generation students already, but didn’t know about GenerationOne before the fair, and thinks they should advertise it more.

Matthew Brady, a freshman histo ry major, said he considers himself a first-generation student.

Brady said he’s adopted, and al though his adoptive parents both have degrees, his birth parents do not. “My parents who adopted methey actually both went here, which is the reason that I’m here.”

He added in the past, he didn’t think he’d end up in college, but was happy he was wrong.

“Three years ago, you could tell me I would be at college and I would laugh in your face. I never thought I would be, but I’m very happy I’m here,” he said.

Brady said he only decided to en roll thanks to a friend - he said he saw the work his friend was doing, and knew he could handle it, but didn’t enroll until he saw all the facilities the school had to offer.

confident in the decision she made.

“I planned on going to a different college, but it just didn’t end up work

things out on my own, so having help on campus is really important,” she said.

“He took me here one day to go play basketball in the gym, and I saw the workout room, saw the library, I saw the dining hall, I saw McCarthy - I saw everything and I was like, ‘There’s no way this place is real,’” he said.

He added he was currently in dual enrollment with the Navy, and want ed to earn his bachelor’s and poten tially master’s degree.

“I want to gain the most education I can. I want to take a lot of classes. You know, I’m paying to be here, so I want to do well,” he said.

Brady said it wasn’t hard for him to be an independent person, and to accomplish what the school demand ed of him, but said sometimes, it’s challenging to balance a personal life with school, as well as remaining in dependent.

ing out. I wasn’t getting the support I needed from them, so FSU was my backup school,” she said. “It doesn’t feel like my backup school anymore. I really made this place my home.”

Campbell said she “couldn’t imag ine not being here,” and attributed her success to the number of oppor tunities she’s been offered at the Uni versity.

She added although she thinks

Medeiros said she didn’t think of attending college until high school, when a teacher introduced the idea of higher education to her.

“My high school teacher actual ly … told me what college was. Since my family never even graduated high school, I didn’t really know, and she opened up many opportunities for me, so I’m really grateful for her,” she said.

He added while sometimes, he doesn’t feel comfortable asking for help, he knows FSU would be there for him if he ever sought it. “I have so much more support than I ever thought I would have here.

“I love everyone here - this place is family now,” Brady said. “Rams for life!”

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

Ryan O’Connell / THE GATEPOST

(Front) Juniors Samantha Medeiros and (Back) Callie McMahon signing the first-generation students’ banner Nov. 8.

“Three years ago, you could tell me I would be at college and I would laugh in your face. I never thought I would be, but I’m very happy I’m here.”

- Matthew Brady Freshman History Major

Veterans day

tary-connected students is not to be afraid to ask for help.

so.

benefits they receive through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Benjamin Day, Counseling Center director, said his office has “exten sive” experience working with mili tary-connected students.

“Many of our licensed therapists have backgrounds in trauma-in formed counseling, especially for individuals with PTSD,” Day said. “While our trauma-informed coun seling services can be accessed by all students, many military-connected students may find this approach use ful for their particular needs.”

Denaro said when it comes to the transition from service to education, veterans may struggle with feeling disconnected from the University community, especially if they are old er, have families and responsibilities outside of school, and/or generally have more life experience than the average student.

She said when military-connect ed students are discharged, they are “kind of thrown into the abyss” be cause they are transitioning from al ways being told what to do to trying to navigate the independence of college life.

Denaro added veterans may also struggle with a loss of camaraderie as they have departed from the same group of people they have been with for years, but said the center can be a place “where veterans can congre gate and get that sense of camarade rie back.

“They support each other,” she said. “It’s such an amazing thing when you see two veterans who don’t even know each other and they just connect. It’s quite amazing. They’re really good for each other.”

Nowak Borrego said the best way for the community to support mili tary-connected students is to encour age them to come to the center and point them toward resources.

She added, “When they recognize that the trouble the student is expe riencing is actually that of a veteran student, again, referring them over to resources that might be more related to their experience.”

Denaro said she would like to host a webinar for faculty and staff inform ing them on what they should know about military-connected students.

“A veteran came to me when I first started and had expressed that one of his professors said something to the effect of, ‘I can’t believe how un disciplined the student veterans are here,’” she said.

She added this is “concerning” to her because that “lack of disci pline” the professor is seeing could be caused by an unseen cause, including PTSD or a traumatic brain injury.

“But again, he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know,” so she said she would like to provide that informa tion to the FSU community.

Denaro said her advice to mili

“It’s so ingrained in them that ask ing for help is a sign of weakness,” she said, adding at one point, it was for them because it could affect promo tions in their jobs.

“So they’re still afraid to admit that there’s a problem, but they can come to me with no judgment - anything that they need, and I’ll get them the help that they need,” Denaro added.

“Asking for help is a sign of strength, so don’t be afraid to ask,” she said.

Nowak Borrego said in her role, she advocates for resources and tries to check in and be supportive in any way she can, including answering ques tions and helping to fix anything that may not be working for military-con nected students.

She said she and Denaro work to gether to help students who are de ployed manage their responsibilities at the University.

Nowak Borrego added they “try to assure that we are not disadvantaging them for choosing to be deployed.”

As an example, she discussed the students who are members of the Na tional Guard and were being deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic for various short-term activities.

She said they will “work with their faculty and our institutional policies to make them feel appreciated, sup ported, and successful as a student here, while also managing the re sponsibility and service to the United States.”

Nowak Borrego said Framingham State also “collaborates with Boston College to offer an ROTC opportunity.

“Students can participate in ROTC classes here at Framingham State, and then they work on the unit at BC to do military commitments,” she added.

Nowak Borrego said, “I think our military-connected students are won derful assets to our classrooms and our student population because of the experiences they bring.”

She said she would also like to highlight how the resources offered through the center are also for stu dents who may have family enlisted in the military or want to enlist them selves.

She added they can come to the center and talk to Denaro and other military-connected students and find the “people who care because they [military-connected students] them selves were hoping they had people back at home who cared.”

Glenn Cochran, associate dean of students and student life, said al though the majority of military-con nected students are commuters, there have been a “good number” of them in the past who lived in the residence halls.

Cochran said Residence Life hosted a veteran- and military-themed floor in the past, but because of the pan demic, they have not continued to do

Kathleen Barnard, student en gagement coordinator for the Henry Whittemore Library, said the National Library of Medicine has a selection of books categorized as “graphic medi cine.”

“There’s a whole bunch of graphic novels out there that are first-per son experiences and the idea behind graphic medicine is to help patients learn through other people’s experi ences and in a very accessible way,” Barnard said. “One of the ones that they have is specifically for veterans.”

After hearing about this, Barnard said she wants to possibly host a dis cussion in collaboration with the cen ter about this book.

In regard to Veterans Day, she said, “Make sure to thank veterans on Vet erans Day. They sacrifice a lot and their families sacrifice a lot, so just make sure to thank them.”

Alex Morais, a senior, said he served actively in the Marines for five years and continues to serve through a reserve element.

Morais said he likes to come to the center to “calm and sort of decom press either before or after the gym, and I’ll use it in between classes.”

He said he recommends mili tary-connected students to come to the center and use the resources it has to offer even if it is just to use the microwave or fridge, adding he was not initially aware of the place his freshman year until “I started poking around and I recommend they do the same.”

Morais said for him, the transition from service to education was “diffi cult.

“What I always say is, ‘I miss the clowns and not so much the circus,’” he added. “You lose a lot of the strong connections you have with people.

“My biggest piece of advice I would give myself is that you can still main tain and develop strong connections within, and outside, of the military,” he said. “You don’t have to embracewe have a saying - ‘embrace the suck,’ with each other in order to have that strong connection. You can still find people that share the same traits and values.”

JohnMichael Chase, a senior En glish major, said he enlisted in the National Guard in 2017 and continues to serve.

Chase said his transition from ser vice to education was “painless” as Framingham State is “adaptable and welcoming to service members, es pecially many of the professors, who have been very understanding of the flexibility that’s required for soldiers who have different drill schedules and things that need to get done outside of normal class time.”

This “flexibility” is key to how the community can help military-con nected students like himself, he said.

He added typical college students may have the weekend to read and

complete homework assignments, while students like himself will have limited time and internet access.

Chase said he recommends all mil itary-connected students to “capital ize” off the educational benefits that are offered to them.

“I am going to college having paid nothing but for gas and books,” he said. “That’s not even to mention all the different industry certificates they can get, especially for the IT world, which they can get reimbursed for.

“This might not be common knowledge, but many of the trainings that we have done in the military are transferable into college credits,” he added. “That can potentially short en your degree. For myself, my own training essentially gave me a free minor in computer science.”

Stevie Margotto, a senior business management major, said he was ac tive in the Navy from 2013 to 2017 working as a parachute rigger.

Margotto said the transition to col lege life was “difficult,” but the cen ter and its resources were helpful for him.

He added, “My biggest piece of ad vice would be don’t be afraid to reach out. There are so many people out there that want to help - they want to make it easier for us to continue to be successful.”

Spencer Carlin, a junior computer science major, said he was active in the Marines for five years following his graduation from high school in 2014.

“The transition back to life/col lege was mentally challenging at first since the tempo of the military is so stressful and fast all the time,” Carlin said. “After some time of convincing myself and understanding that it’s OK to be doing nothing, occasionally, that mental burden goes away a lit tle.”

He said the community can sup port military-connected students by being understanding of the different lives they lead and how “mentally taxing” it can be.

Carlin said his advice for new vet erans is to “understand that taking time to take care of yourself and per sonal issues is OK. Stay on top of as signments before it gets stressful for you.

“If you think you’re really stressed out because of assignments or exams, imagine the worst day you ever had in the military - I know you’ve had oneand compartmentalize your academic chaos the same way you did for the military chaos on that day,” he said. “It works wonders.”

He added, “Faculty and staff here will work with you to help you solve the issues at hand. You should use their services.”

CONNECT WITH LEIGHAH BEAUSOLEIL lbeausoleil@student.framingham.edu

Cast and production team of ‘Young Nerds of Color’ visits FSU

By Raena Doty Interim Asst. Arts & Features Editor

A panel of scientists and artists from the Central Square Theater visit ed the McCarthy Forum to talk about their experiences working on the play “Young Nerds of Color” Nov. 9.

The play is about the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) and how they relate to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The content of the play comes from the synthesis of over 60

interviews by BIPOC in STEM.

The panel included Des Bennett, dramaturg and community engage ment manager for Central Square Theater; Kortney Adams, an actor in “Young Nerds of Color”; Eboney Hearn, executive director of the Office of Engineering Outreach Programs at MIT and interviewee for the play; and Melinda Lopez, playwright.

After Adams began the discussion by reading two short scenes from the play, Lopez started the conversation by speaking on how she chose to write

the story.

“Why are there so few represen tations of scientists of color on the stage? And as theater makers and as people who embrace science, love sci ence, practice science, this seemed like a good question to investigate,” Lopez said.

She said she mostly tried to keep the interviews intact when writ ing because the original interviews were “so compelling, so dynamic, so mind-blowingly fiercely proud” and she didn’t want to change them.

Hearn spoke next on what it meant to her to be part of the interviewing process when creating the play.

“I just remember breaking down. The questions touched me in a way and I couldn’t really formulate an swers in a way that I’m used to - just being able to talk - because it was like two worlds were crashing together,” she said.

She explained the “two worlds” were the force of enthusiastic, young BIPOC and the force of despair.

Adams talked about her experience as a BIPOC scientist and artist, and how they interact. She said she al ways saw a deep connection between science and art in a way that doesn’t always make sense to other people, particularly white people.

The panel then discussed the im portance of diversity in STEM.

Hearn said she used to get defen sive about that question before her work shifted to diversity, equity, and inclusion training, because it felt like

it was asking her to justify her exis tence in STEM. But she understands now answering helps people compre hend the importance of social prog ress.

“I see science as a tool for helping us - everybody. And so for me, I think that the questions we’re asking have to also be representative of the peo ple who we need to serve and make things better for. And so for me, di versity is important because there are questions that need to be asked and answered,” she said.

Lopez said the question reminded her of one of the interviews used to write the play.

In this interview, a chemist de scribed being the only person of col or at a convention of 300 people. She said this creates a “feeling of being hyper visible, and then at the same time, not being seen for the contribu tions that you can bring.”

Hearn said “Young Nerds of Color” is not intended to be a story about the trauma of BIPOC in STEM, but rath er a call to action to make the world better.

“This is to celebrate the joy of the experience,” she said. “There are chal lenges, but not all of us are coming from the same experience. As folks of color, we’re actually quite diverse in our upbringings and our experiences and our knowledge, and let’s cele brate that.”

CONNECT WITH RAENA DOTY rdoty@student.framingham.edu

By Jack McLaughlin Staff Writer

“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” is the hotly anticipated sequel to its 2018 predecessor. The film serves as a tribute to the late actor Chadwick Boseman, who starred in the titular role in Marvel Studios productions until his untimely death in 2020.

The film focuses on the nation of Wakanda struggling to move on fol lowing T’Challa’s passing. Wakanda has been attacked by other nations more frequently as their possession of the precious material vibranium is concerning the rest of the world due to its capabilities.

Shuri (Letitia Wright) is strug gling to properly mourn her brother’s death, but is confronted by Namor (Tenoch Huerta), who demands an allegiance against other countries as his civilization of Talokan is under threat due to the vibranium they own.

This film proves to be Marvel Stu dios’ best this year. It’s a slow burn drama centered around the ideas of grief and loss with all the dazzling ac tion we come to expect from the Mar vel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

The writing proves to be a sizable improvement over most MCU en tries. The lack of a reliance on cheap punchlines and trendy humor gives this story the proper serious tone it

is going for. There are moments of brevity sprinkled throughout, but this movie is first and foremost going for a more dramatic feeling.

A particularly good scene between Shuri and Queen Ramonda (Ange la Bassett) in the first hour explores the film’s idea of grief in an expert ly crafted and performed scene that stood out far beyond most attempts at emotion in Marvel films.

Action scenes are fairly scarce in the first two acts, at least for Marvel standards. Audiences are instead giv en more moments to understand the inner dilemmas these characters are facing, and these end up being more entertaining than any of the action.

The third act is composed almost entirely of action that detracts from the over two hours of dramatic build up. It unfortunately felt like it stum bled back into the MCU formula of requiring the film to end in a huge drawn out climax.

What made this third act different, however, was that the characters, par ticularly the villain, were given plen ty of moments to make the audience empathize with them and give the ac tion emotional weight.

Namor is a perfect villain for this type of story. He is a character who is simply trying to protect his people, and is willing to do anything in order to achieve that. It’s hard not to sym

pathize with his plight throughout. The film does terrific work making you not want to disagree with his con cerns with the main characters.

Namor’s scenes with Shuri in the middle of the film perfectly explore this idea of a sympathetic villain. The bond they establish throughout these sequences make it all the more rivet ing once their conflict truly begins.

A new face introduced to this story is Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne). She is mostly included here to set up her character for the eventual show centered around her, but her impor tance to the story will not go unno ticed and will certainly leave you wanting more of her.

The near three-hour run time will make audiences cautious to enter the theater this weekend, and that’s rea sonable as it does take a lot of time and devotion to properly get invested into the story.

The first hour is paced slowly, bouncing from many different loca tions and characters that it will be surprising that there is still a large chunk of the film left. Fortunately, everything within this first hour is so entertaining that I believe most of the audience will be content with a slower start.

When leaving the theater, audi ences will be left with a Marvel film that will offer more than what they

go in to expect. A compelling cast of characters with plenty of runtime to explore them and the heavy themes they experience will leave you with the best tribute to Chadwick Boseman the cast and crew could have done.

CONNECT WITH JACK MCLAUGHLIN jmclaughlin7@student.framingham.edu

Raena Doty / THE GATEPOST

(Left) Des Bennett, Eboney Hearn, Kortney Adams, and Melinda Lopez at the “Young Nerds of Color” panel Nov. 9.

By Emily Rosenberg Associate Editor

Less than a year after her re cord-breaking “Red (Taylor’s Ver sion)” hit streaming platforms, the release of Taylor Swift’s 10th studio album attracted enough fans to crash Spotify.

“Midnights,” released Oct. 21, soon made Taylor the first artist in history to hold all top 10 spots on the Bill board Hot 100 at the same time.

The album is a collection of some of the most intense songs of her ca reer, without turning off casual lis teners.

It is also notable that Jack Antonoff of Bleachers was a co-producer of the album, making “Midnights” the first album Taylor and Antonoff produced solely together.

“13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life,” is the phrase Taylor used to market the project. The concept gives the album continuity and makes the listening experience enticing and curious because we all have midnight crises and epitomes.

The album’s single “Anti-Hero” is a catchy anthem for any human who isn’t a narcissist. Lamenting about how she sometimes feels like “ev erybody is a sexy baby” and she’s a “monster on the hill,” Taylor’s lyrics are provocative and melodramatic, which arguably work perfectly for a song about self-doubt.

Of all the topics Taylor has cov ered in her career through songwrit ing, “Anti-Hero” is a landmark for her,

By Raena Doty Interim Asst. Arts & Features Editor

After a nearly three-year hiatus, “The Dragon Prince” is back with an expanded cast of characters, vibrant animation, and a beautiful score. The fourth season was well worth the wait.

The first three seasons tell the story of humans and elves learning to rec oncile shared bad blood and rewrite history going forward. The fourth sea son takes place two years later after the dust has settled and there’s finally resources to start rebuilding.

There were plenty of loose ends from season 3 coming back to haunt everyone, though. Claudia has finally managed to resurrect her father Viren, and now they must find a powerful elf named Aaravos, who is trapped in a magical prison.

At the same time, Callum, now High Mage, Ezran, now officially king, and Rayla, who has been missing for the past two years, realize that Aaravos is close to escaping and embark on a journey to make sure that doesn’t happen.

The introduction of Claudia’s new boyfriend, Terry, is very welcome. He provides an interesting point of view in the story as an elf who is both sym pathetic to Claudia’s dark magic and afraid of getting blood on his hands.

proving to her fans that not only is she an imperfect human, but she feels major insecurities too.

She also does it with charm and humor, especially in the self-directed music video where she pokes fun at Taylories in a scene where her “chil dren” are trying to decipher a “secret message” left in her will. This is sim ilar to how Swifties assume Taylor leaves secret codes in all of her social media posts.

On the fifth track, “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” she sings the lyric, “I host ed parties and starved my body like I’d be saved by the perfect kiss.”

Here, Taylor continues the album’s theme of insecurity, discussing the devastating reality of an eating dis order she admitted to having in the “Miss Americana” documentary.

“You’re On Your Own, Kid’’ is a heartbreaking track that runs smoothly to replay, especially con sidering bits of the instrumental will allow you to literally picture Tay lor running aimlessly and helplessly through the city.

Songs such as “Lavender Haze” and “Karma” are upbeat car jams. And “Vigilante Shit,” another groove where she sings about how she’s been dressing for revenge, is a sexy, badass, bass-driven theme song for a villain that sounds like it was stolen off of “Reputation.”

Unfortunately, “Snow on the Beach,’’ featuring Lana Del Ray, sounds too much like a Del Ray song even though you hardly hear her on the track.

This was highly criticized by the media. Taylor is notoriously known for inviting female artists to feature on her tracks only to provide back ground vocals or a short snippet.

One of the album’s mellow songs, “Labyrinth,” a personal favorite of mine, is reminiscent of Swiftie gem, “The Archer” from “Lover,” both songs wrestling with having anxiety through the eyes of a partner.

At first, the lyrics sounded stupid ly simply when she repeats the same phrase “Oh no, I’m falling in love,” over minimal electronic instrumen tals. After a second listen, or in my case, 30th, the build up to the phrase is a masterful representation of how it really feels to be in-like with some one over and over again after years of self-inflicted hate.

“Mastermind” is also a slower piece which beautifully builds up to the al bum’s finale which is almost like a

breath of sparkling fresh air after a long journey through Taylor’s trau mas and questions.

After releasing five record break ing albums since 2020, Taylor has no need to prove anything as an artist. However, what “Midnights” expresses exceptionally well is even with all her success with her fans, will she ever be truly satisfied with herself?

This, along with the themes ex pressed throughout are ideas she’s kept throughout her career but could never write about because she did not have executive control over it. The tales she tells on this album are like a long lost autobiography of her young er and current self.

“Midnights” is intricate, delicate storytelling which we can always count on from Taylor.

The subplot about the Sunfire elves who lost their home because of Viren’s actions in Season 3 was my favorite. They now live in tents in a camp, hosting humans as their guests. Janai, the queen of the Sunfire elves, wants to marry Amaya, the human general of Katolis, but her younger brother Karim is urging her not to make it official.

The conflict between the humans and elves is very exemplary of the themes of the season because there are no villains and heroes. Rather, the conflict is about whether to make things right with restorative justice or punitive justice.

Janai and Amaya’s relationship be ing featured so prominently is heart warming. Though there have been LGBT+ relationships in seasons past, none of the others have been quite as important to the main plot.

I did find some of the gaps between Season 3 and Season 4 a bit strange. Anyone who read the graphic novel “Through the Moon” by Peter Wart man and Xanthe Bouma will antic ipate Rayla’s initial disappearance in the season, but no explanation is given for why she came back when she did, or what she was doing for the two years she was gone. Anyone who didn’t read the graphic novel won’t know why she left in the first place.

I also want to know more about how Claudia and Terry met. Why is Terry sympathetic to dark magic, de spite no elves other than Aaravos ever feeling the same? Why did he leave his family and home for Claudia?

The season ended rather abrupt ly, but knowing that it will be back through Season 7 makes it easy to forgive.

But in general, Season 4 came back with a bang: great music, great char acters, great design, and as ever, great humor.

The first three seasons repeatedly showed it is the youth who will have to shoulder the weight of the mistakes of their parents, and it is exactly be cause they are so young that they are able to do this. The characters were flexible, kind, and courageous.

In this season, everyone is a little bit older, and rather than telling the viewer to be a youthful spirit with the courage to stand up for what is right, the series shows what it will mean to pick up the broken pieces of a history filled with bad blood and old rivalries.

The work will be hard, Season 4 says. Conflict will happen and there may not be clear lines of good and bad. But it is still worth it to do the work for the sake of those who will be here in 20, 50, 100 years.

After two years of a pandemic

and political turmoil decades in the making, that’s exactly the message I needed to hear.

Courtesy of Netflix

Culture Fest Best Dressed

Afro Caribbean Dance Group (ACDG) held its annual Culture Fest Nov. 5 featuring singing, rapping, dancing, and a best dressed competition.

Spread and photos by Leighah Beausoleil, Editor-in-Chief

Recycled Runway

Spread by Design and Photo Editor Maddison Behringer

On Nov. 7, The Fashion Club presented its annual Trashion Show, which challenges student designers to create original designs out of uncoventional materials.

Congratulations to Designers Jake Measmer, Katie Sharpe, Lola Mwilelo, Yessemia Gamez, Britania Lewis, Odilia Mendez Barrondo!

Congratulations to the beautiful models who brought their brilliant creations to life!

Maddison Behringer / THE GATEPOST

Carly Paul / THE GATEPOST

Adrien Goben / THE GATEPOST