TH E G ATEP O ST Volume 90 • Issue 6
FSUgatepost.com
October 22, 2021
Renovations underway at May Hall By Patrick Brady Interim Copy Editor
Renovations to May Hall, one of Framingham’s oldest buildings, began this fall semester. Both the exterior and interior frames of the building are being repaired. The repairs will be completed by early November. Patricia Whitney, assistant vice president of Facilities and Capital Planning, said May Hall is having some problems with the “building envelope” - the space between the inside and outside of the building. She said the exterior frame of the building was suffering from “water intrusion.” The University undertook a study a couple of years ago to identify the “worst culprits” causing damage to the building, she said. Whitney added the contractor is currently working on a “number of building envelope items” such as repairing the upper roof and “reappointing” bricks. “A number of [gutters] had just started to fail,” Whitney said, “so we’re replacing some
See MAY HALL page 5
News SWITCH TO CANVAS pg. 4 COVID-19 BY THE NUMBERS pg. 6
Opinions
HALLOWEEN SAFETY pg. 8 COMIC pg. 9
Sports
Donald Halsing / THE GATEPOST Contractors replace old copper gutters around the top of May Hall’s stairwell turrets Oct. 21.
Student organizations’ in-person events sucessful Shows and trips planned for remainder of semester By Donald Halsing Editor-in-Chief By Kathleen Moore Associate Editor Attendance at events hosted by student organizations is up from previous years, according to Sara Gallegos, director of Student Involvement and Leadership Development (SILD). She said attendance at individual events this semester increased compared to event attendance before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Leighah Beausoleil / THE GATEPOST WEEKEND GAMES PHOTO SPREAD pg.12
Arts & Features SPOOKY SUGGESTIONS pg. 16-17 JAMES BOND pg. 18
See STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS page 3
Students captivated by Daniel Tobin’s poetry reading By Caroline Gordon Arts & Features Editor
FOOTBALL pg. 11
Gallegos added more students are hosting events compared to last academic year, when the COVID-19 pandemic restricted the types of events organizations could host. She said hosting events this year is “a lot easier” because social distancing and room capacity restrictions have been reduced. However, Gallegos said allowing in-person events requires her to put “a lot of trust into our student groups who are running the events” that they are enforcing mask wearing. Gallegos said this semester began
“a little slow” because many student groups needed to “restructure and rebuild” before planning events. But throughout October, Gallegos has “been seeing more events up and going.” She said the calendar in SILD’s office has been filling up with events submitted by student organizations, which have been approved. Tanisha Jean, publicity coordinator of Framingham State Activities Board (FSAB), said the group’s recent events - both on and off campus
The FSU English department welcomed poet Daniel Tobin to the Heineman Ecumenical Center to begin the Alan Feldman Week of Poetry Oct. 19. Tobin is the author of eight poetry books. He has won many poetry awards such as The Massachusetts Book Award in Poetry, and the Robert Frost Fellowship. His poems have been featured in international journals such as the “Harvard Review,” the “Paris Review” and “The American Scholar.” The New York Times named his po-
etry book, “Blood Labors,” one of the best poetry books of 2018. In addition to his work as a poet, Tobin is a writing professor at Emerson College. Lisa Eck, chair of the English department, began the reading by noting her excitement to be hosting an in-person event. “Prepare to be transfixed,” she said. Tobin started by reading a few poems from his poetry book, “Blood Labors.” The first poem from the book is titled, “Blood Labors.” He said during Professor Samuel Witt’s poetry class he visited, they discussed John Don-
ne, a famous English poet. He said “Blood Labors” is influenced by Donne. The poem begins with the line, “This cotton bud I swab with my tongue will crack the code with all the Earth I am.” Tobin ended the poem with the line, “Wind scatters dust and seeds around the scene. From little the tallest branches reach the sky. And that is where the birds shall make their home.” The crowd snapped their fingers, while Witt furiously clapped.
See DANIEL TOBIN page 14
INSIDE: OP/ED 8 • SPORTS 11 • ARTS & FEATURES 13