December 9, 2016

Loyola University • New Orleans • Volume 95 • Issue 13 • December 9, 2016

THE MAROON FOR A GREATER LOYOLA

Sanctuary status undecided following walkout

By Lily Cummings

victim of torture and oppression in his home country of the Philippines.

“This is my way of saying thank you to this nation,” he said. “It was Margie, a 16-year-old student at a place of security and safety that John Ehert High School in Marre- welcomed me when I was feeling ro, Louisiana, immigrated with her rejected and threatened in my own parents to the United States from home.”

El Salvador when she was only five.

Since the start of Alcazar’s work She now has two siblings who were with high-school students, three born in the U.S. Today, her family participants in his program—all is one of many immigrant families children of immigrants—have atwho have growing concerns since tended Loyola. Today, one student the presidential election of Donald now teaches in France, another Trump. has just been hired at an account“Since the election, my past vio- ing firm and the third is currently lent experiencenrolled in law es have come school. Accordback,” Margie ing to Alcazar, said. these accomMargie works — Alvaro Alcazar plished students with Alvaro Director of Loyola's Twomey Cenhave served as Alcazar, inter- ter for Peace Through Justice mentors and disciplinary volunteer tutors faculty member over the years, at Loyola and director of the uni- inspiring Margie and others in his versity's Twomey Center for Peace program.

Through Justice. On Saturdays, Mar“My parents would love for me to gie participates in Alcazar's Pre-Col- attend Loyola once I graduate and lege Incubation Experience for they are committed to this plan— Majoring in Math and the Natural loans or not,” Margie said.

Sciences, a program Alcazar said is Margie's hopes of attending coldesigned to encourage and empow- lege may depend on the future of er public high-school students from immigration legislation, such as low-income, immigrant families. the Deferred Action for Childhood Alcazar's mission for the program is driven by his own experiences as a See SANCTUARY, page 3

lrcummin@loyno.edu @lilyrain6

"Break the law or break up the family."

TASJA DEMEL/ The Maroon

Melissa Alba, political science junior, talks to a crowd outside Monroe Library about her experiences as a Hispanic-American in the U.S. during a campus walkout Nov. 16. At the walkout, students declared Loyola a sanctuary campus, but no official statement has been made by Loyola administration.

Financial equilibrium project expected to increase enrollment

By Seán Brennan shbrennal@loyno.edu @sean_themaroon

Loyola, a campus that thousands utilize daily, has a book value of almost $250 million dollars.

That would buy 67,661 tickets to Super Bowl 51 in Houston.

However, that amount is not even half of the university's assets, which, as of 2014, totaled nearly $606 million. That's enough for every current Loyola student to purchase 19 C-Store milkshakes everyday for the next four years.

There’s a lot to learn from Loyola’s 2015 Form 990, the school's most recent available tax return. For example, Sodexo, the food service responsible for feeding the Loyola community, was compensated almost $6.68 million in 2014.

Loyola University New Orleans is an income-tax exempt corporation, worth over half a billion dollars in assets and responsible for the educations of over 4,200 undergraduate and graduate students. The school generated more than $200 million in revenue and over $180 million in expenses in 2014 alone.

All private universities and many public universities are exempt from taxes on any revenue related to their educational purpose, qualifying Loyola as a public charity in the federal tax code, according to the Association of American Universities.

For an institution of Loyola’s scale to function, the school employs over 2,600 faculty, 259 of which are full-time instructional staff spread across the university's five colleges: the Colleges of Business, Arts and Sciences, Music and Fine Arts, Graduate and Professional Studies and Law. There are also 169 part-time instructors as of 2015, according to Loyola’s Office of Institutional Research.

The difference between full-time and part-time instruction is what Howard Bunsis, chairman of the collective Bargaining for the American Association of University Professors, said is one of the largest, most common issues in universities nationwide.

“If you dig down to the detail, you see an incredible slow down in hiring full time faculty. It’s a huge difference. Students are being taught more and more by part-time faculty,” Bunsis said. “In every state, it’s

the same story. It’s why I present to professors across the country.”

At Loyola, recent budget shortfalls have lead to a year-by-year decrease in total instructional staff numbers.

This decline of nearly 600 total staff, from 3,223 in 2012 to 2,633 in 2014, correlates with a decline in overall revenue, which primarily comes from the private school's tuition and fees.

“Not a single private university has enrollment as under 50 percent of their revenue,” Bunsis said. “From there, the question is ‘how is that money being spent?’”

According to Leon Mathes, Loyola’s vice president of finance, the money from students' tuition and fees drive the school's revenue, making the university a "tuition and fee dependent entity." He said at the end of the previous fiscal year, which ended July 31, 2016, tuition and fees accounted for 83 percent of operating revenues.

Mathes also said the school’s endowment, an investment fund comprised of over 400 individual funds, is strong.

“At July 31, 2016, Loyola’s endowment had a market value of

12% - Academic Support 3% - Public Service 1% Research

24% - Instiutional Support

10% - Student Services

44% Instruction

5% - Other core expenses

Source: IPEDS Data Center In 2014, 44 percent of Loyola's expenses went towards compensation for instruction, the majority in the university's expense breakdown, according to the National Center for Educational Statistics

$251 million. The endowment provides operating funds and restricted funds for such activities as scholarships, professorships and

chairs,” Mathes said.

According to Bunsis, however, the

See FINANCE, page 7

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December 9, 2016

THE MAROON

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Simple Rape 6800 Block of St. Charles Avenue

Nov. 30

Sexual Assault Buddig Hall

Dec. 1

9:26 p.m.

Burglary Buddig Hall

Dec. 2

12:22 p.m.

Burglary Buddig Hall

Dec. 2

3:59 p.m.

SImple Battery Freret and Broadway Streets

Dec. 3

12:50 a.m.

Simple Battery 1000 Block of Broadway

Dec. 3

3:20 a.m.

Burglary 1200 Block of Pine Street

Dec. 4

12:30 a.m.

Theft Biever Hall

Dec. 6

9:57 a.m.

Bicycle Theft Monroe Library

Dec. 6

12:15 p.m.

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STAFF

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news

December 9, 2016 The Maroon

3

Students to study at 21 international universities

By India Yarborough iayarbor@loyno.edu @iayarbor

Around 30 Loyola undergraduate students will leave New Orleans next semester to embark on study abroad opportunities at 21 different universities across the globe.

According to Alisa Jackson, assistant director for study abroad, four students, or roughly one-fifth of those participating in international programs this coming spring, received a total of $14,500 in Gilman Scholarships—a federally awarded undergraduate grant directed toward study abroad opportunities for students who demonstrate a financial need.

According to Jackson, some of the unique places where students are headed include Tokyo, Amsterdam and Ghana.

“This year is probably a little lower than it has been in the past, but our [number of ] students studying year-long has increased,” she said.

Jackson stresses the importance of working closely with students to find the study abroad opportunities right for them and guiding students through the application process.

The process includes talking with peer advisors who have studied abroad previously, meeting with someone from the study abroad office, completing an online application with a progress report and personal statement and organizing future classes around study abroad plans.

Jackson said, ideally, students start planning and applying a year in advance.

Alex Pucciarelli, theater junior, started planning her upcomming trip to Amsterdam last semster.

“If you do it gradually, it’s not that bad,” Pucciarelli said. “Just stay on top of it because it is a big deal.”

Pucciarelli said she chose Amsterdam for its art and because she wanted to live in a city.

“I’ve always had a fascination with museums and art, and Amsterdam is full of all the culture and his-

Courtesy of Francesca Bua Francesca Bua, English junior, rides a camel in the Sahara Desert during a study abroad trip ealier this semester. Around 30 Loyola undergraduate students will study abroad this spring at 21 different universities across the globe.

tory,” she added.

Pucciarelli will be paying for her plane ticket and housing out of pocket, but otherwise, her tuition payments and scholarships at Loyola will transfer to cover the

costs of her studies.

“There are some added expenses, but the school will accommodate you,” Pucciarelli said. “And there are so many random scholarships.”

Pucciarelli said she cannot wait

to meet new people and be a part of something bigger than herself.

According to Pucciarelli, some of the key benefits of studying abroad include gaining independence, knowledge and experience, while

Cont.: Students, not administration, declare sanctuary SANCTUARY, continued from page 1

Arrivals policy, implemented in 2012, which protects qualified immigrants who arrived in the U.S. before age 16 from deportation.

Loyola’s president, the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., sent an email to the university community Nov. 30 saying Loyola will stand with and protect its undocumented students and students of all backgrounds. Wildes was one of over 70 Catholic university officials to sign a statement of solidarity released by the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities that same day. The statement mentioned the deferred action policy as a protection measure for undocumented students, a policy which President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team has used as an example of executive overreach on immigration legislation that Trump has vowed to rescind.

This statement signed by leaders in Catholic education was released two weeks after Loyola students and faculty held a solidarity walkout Nov. 16, at which university com-

munity members spoke of unity and social justice and marched around campus shouting anti-hate chants.

Loyola was among 80 college campuses across the nation to react that day to the push to unite and stand up for Muslims, people of color, LGBT individuals, women and all other minorities who feel targeted since the presidential election.

Students and faculty who organized the walkout declared Loyola to be a Sanctuary Campus, but the university took no official stance.

Ashley Howard, assistant professor of history and director of African-American studies, was among faculty who spoke at the Nov. 16 solidarity walkout and declared Loyola a safe space.

“If you find yourself as a historically marginalized person—as someone who identifies as gay or black or Muslim or a woman—this is a safe space for you,” Howard said.

“This is your university. We are here for you.”

In Wildes’ email, he said, “Loyola will work to protect to the fullest extent of the law undocumented

students and promote retention of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program.”

Wildes did not, however, declare Loyola to be an official sanctuary campus, a term that varies in meaning at college campuses throughout the country, according to a Dec. 3 article in The Washington Post about university’s exploration of “sanctuary status.”

According to The Post, for example, to some schools like the University of Pennsylvania—Trump’s alma mater—sanctuary status means refusing to allow federal agents to remove undocumented students from campus without a warrant. Many schools are still refusing to classify themselves as Sanctuary Campuses in fear of jeopardizing federal funding.

Similar to Wildes’ solidarity statement, Alcazar believes Loyola’s walkout and declaration were mostly symbolic.

“We will protect marginalized groups who are here at Loyola, but I do not think that it is to the extent that we would defy and prevent

agents of the federal government from coming and saying ‘we need to deport you,’” Alcazar said. “That is the sad part.”

Margie said her family paid around $15,000 in legal fees for her to apply to the federal deferred action program. She hopes when she is a high school senior she will be eligible for financial aid through permanent residence status and may apply to Loyola, but if the federal deferred action policy is revoked, Margie and other undocumented students like her may find themselves facing a future without college in the U.S. Margie’s parents have hired a lawyer to aid them in obtaining citizenship for their children. Once she is 18, Margie may be able to petition for her parents’ legal status as well, but until then because her parents have no documents, Margie said they are fearful.

Alcazar said two options exist for immigrant families in similar situations to that of Margie’s: break the law or break up the family.

becoming a more open-minded individual.

Francesca Bua, English junior, said even students who have traveled alone before can benefit from study abroad because she said opportunities abroad often places students in uncomfortable situations.

“I’ve been put in these seemingly impossible and crazy situations, in foreign countries no less, and have had really only myself to rely on, and every time I figure it out I learn to trust myself and my capabilities more and more,” Bua said.

Bua studied abroad this semester in Aix-en-Provence, France through the International Student Exchange Programs and hopes to complete a second major in French.

“I chose Aix-en-Provence specifically because I’ve never been to the south of France, and most of the people who live here don’t speak English like they do in Lille de France (northern France), so I knew it would force me to rely on my French more,” Bua said.

Pucciarelli is looking forward to her experience in Amsterdam and hopes it will push her outside of her comfort zone. She equates the experience to starting college anew.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone have a terrible experience abroad, so I have high hopes,” Pucciarelli said. “It’s getting me through those finals. For me, it’s worth it.”

Jackson encourages students interested in studying abroad to visit studyabroad.loyno.edu to explore available programs or schedule an appointment with her office.

“We work so closely with every student who goes abroad, and it doesn’t cost anything to come in and talk to us,” Jackson said. “There is an option for every student at Loyola to go abroad whether it’s for a semester or for a year.”

Study abroad’s fall 2017 priority deadline is Dec. 15, and all applications for that semester are due April 1. Summer programs are currently accepting applications.

Haley Pegg contributed to this report.

news brief Library moves to extended hours, other study spaces available Monroe library began extended study hours this week and will be open 24/7 through Dec. 16 with the exception of a brief closure Saturday, Dec. 11 from 2-9 a.m.

Non-Loyola students are not allowed in the library past midnight.

Loyola students will be able to enter through the lab doors near Miller Hall and will need a Loyola ID with a current semester sticker to enter the facility. Free coffee and tea will be available on the first floor after midnight.

Starting Wednesday Dec. 8, students should be on the lookout for “pop-up cookie parties” hosted by the library, where staff will be offering suprise plates of homemade cookies.

Other available study spots include the Women’s Resource Center Living Room, Magis Lounge, Buddig 12th floor lobby, Carrollton Conference Room, Cabra Conference Room, Monroe Library, Danna Center and Satchmo’s Lounge.

4

WORLDVIEW

December 9, 2016 The Maroon

Warm winter more likely, says government forecast

By Nick Reimann nreiman@loyno.edu @nicksreimann

If you’re dreaming of a white Christmas, looks like you’re out of luck.

Or at least, that’s what the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration seems to suggest in its annual winter outlook.

The outlook, which is a climate forecast covering meteorological winter--the months of December, January and February-- gives the New Orleans area between a 40 and 50 percent chance of having a warmer than average winter.

The prediction cites a La Nina pattern forming as the primary reason for the increased chances of warm temperatures throughout the South. La Nina occurs when the waters of the eastern Pacific become cooler than normal. Through a complex method of global heat distribution, this pattern has major impacts on global climate, with the primary influence in eastern North America being warmer than average sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic and related bodies of water, such as the Gulf of Mexico.

With a weak La Nina pattern in place, which NOAA officially declared on Nov. 10, its formation “will likely contribute to drier and warmer weather in the Southern U.S. and wetter, cooler conditions in the Pacific Northwest and across to

the northern tier of the nation this winter,” according to NOAA. While NOAA may have that prediction officially in place for this winter, at least in recent years, the actual outcomes appeared very different.

For their 2015-16 winter prediction, NOAA put the New Orleans area in the 40 to 50 percent higher than average likelihood for a cool winter. The high on Christmas this past season: 82, the hottest temperature ever seen on the holiday since record keeping began in 1871.

The previous winter, 2014-15, had a similar result. That winter forecast, too, put the New Orleans area in the 40 to 50 percent likelihood of having a cooler than normal winter.

What happened?

January of 2015 was the warmest January on record at New Orleans International Airport, the site of official weather recording in the city since 1946, with an average temperature of 64.6, far ahead of the previous mark of 63.3, which occurred in 1971.

Look another year in the past, and you find yet another inaccurate prediction. This time going in the opposite direction.

For the 2013-14 season, NOAA gave the New Orleans area a 40 to 50 percent chance of a warmer than average winter.

That winter ended up being the 13th coldest for the state of Louisiana in the 119 years of record keep-

Courtesy of NOAA

The 2016 winter forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration gives Louisiana between a 40 and 50 percent chance of having a warmer than normal winter. NOAA cites a La Nina climate pattern as the main contributor to this warm forecast. This is also expected to result in a drier than normal season in Louisiana.

ing, with the city of New Orleans experiencing several hard freezes and ice events, including two incidents of freezing rain occurring in less than a week in January 2014, precipitation that is an extreme rarity in the area.

Louisiana State University climatologist Barry Keim recognizes the recent inaccuracies, but feels that

since the forecast doesn’t actually predict the temperature, but rather the likelihood of what the temperature might be, the public should take that into consideration.

“The way these things work is that they basically divide things into three groups: it’s either going to be above normal, below normal or somewhere in between,” Keim said.

“So when they put these maps out, and they bump something up to 40 percent or 50 percent, what that’s telling us is that rather than having a one in three chance, you have a one in two chance if it’s 50 percent.

I think that most people, when they look at these things, they’re hard to interpret.”

Even with this, though, Keim feels that climatology has not yet reached the point to where these types of forecasts can be trusted.

“The bottom line is that this longrange forecasting does leave a bit to be desired. You know, we’re only so good at it, and that’s why we put these percentiles on it. These indicators tell us a little about what the future may hold, but in reality, it could be almost anything,” Keim said.

Even after giving these forecasts disclaimers, though, Keim did feel pretty comfortable making one prediction about this winter.

“You know, given the dry forecast, I would say the chances are less likely [of seeing any snow] than a typical winter,” Keim said. “Doesn’t mean it won’t happen, but even in an average winter the chances are pretty low, and we’re even lower than that going into this winter. I certainly wouldn’t count on that.”

New Orleans last experienced accumulating snowfall on Dec. 11, 2008.

THE MAROON

December 9, 2016

C R O S S W O R D

ACROSS

1. Rifle filler 5. Campus bigwigs 10. Ending for brides, chamber or milk

14. Teller of fibs 15. Humanlike machine of sci-fi 16. Edit menu option 17. Presidency’s last days, e.g.

19. ‘90s TV title toon teen 20. Attaches with string 21. Prefix with deed or lead 23. Quaint lodging 24. Six-pack muscles 25. Pre-cable reception aid 29. Stop for a moment 31. Abolish 32. Leading the field 33. Three: Pref.

34. Rapper __ Kim 35. PC key near Ctrl 36. Anonymous writer, maybe, and a hint to the devotee hidden in 17-, 25-, 50- and 60-Across 41. Kit__: candy bar 42. “Bossypants” memoirist Tina 43. “__ you ready?”

44. Fire-setting crime 47. Boxing count 48. Gets a glimpse of 50. Commentator dissecting chips and putts 53. Bro or sis 54. Expected landing hr.

55. Wobbly walker 56. Green film on bronze 58. Clear liquors 60. Usual sitcom length (including ads) 63. First chip in a pot 64. “In other words ... “ 65. Cabinet dept. concerned with nukes 66. Leaning Tower city 67. Stadium levels 68. __ buco: veal dish

Down 1. Brewpub fixture 2. Typically 18-inch-long

baseball collectibles 3. Double-checked 4. Gold medals, to Spaniards 5. Pipe clog dissolver 6. Scads of centuries 7. Prez on a penny 8. Painter Rockwell 9. A red wine one is hard to get out 10. Stick-in-the-__ 11. Consecrate using oil 12. “Beats me” 13. Steal a pup 18. Links warning 22. Vodka order, familiarly 26. Memorial column, for short 27. Pita filling 28. Catch in a sting 30. Bored with 34. Permit 35. “Trainwreck” actress/ screenwriter Schumer 37. Attacked on foot 38. Reject as false

SUDOKU

5

39. Causes of disappearing beaches

40. Entourages 44. Issue in May-December romances

45. Spiral pasta 46. Slopes 47. Japanese floor mat 48. Laurel of Laurel and Hardy 49. “Handmade fresh all day” pizza chain

51. Like three Cy Young games 52. Bridge measures 57. “The Cosby Show” son 59. Baltic or Aegean 61. Sara whom “nobody doesn’t like”

62. At a distance

For the weekly puzzle answers, download our app!

AT FAIR GROUNDS RACE COURSE

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10TH 1751 Gentilly Boulevard

www.fgno.com SIX $1,000 SCHOLARSHIPS WILL BE GIVEN AWAY ON DECEMBER 10TH Students must register for the scholarship drawings by 1:30pm. Doors open at 11am.

The registration table will be located inside the west entrance on the first floor.

Students must be present to win and show a valid government issued photo ID along with their current college student ID. Visit the registration table for official rules and drawing times.

Scholarship_10.25x7.indd 1

11/30/16 6:14 PM

6

RELIGION

Students celebrate winter holidays

By Chasity Pugh cmpugh@loyno.edu @chasitypugh_

With the holiday season in full swing, Loyola students are gearing up to complete finals and celebrate the season with family and friends.

However, with the diverse student body that Loyola holds, students celebrate the season differently.

Rachel Dufour, chemistry and psychology senior, celebrates Hanukkah with her family when she goes home for the holidays. This year, the holiday will be celebrated from Dec. 24 to Jan. 1.

Dufour said that she lights a menorah, adding a candle each night, to celebrate the Hanukkah miracle.

The eight-day festival of light, Hanukkah, begins on the eve of the 25th of the Jewish month of Kislev.

The holiday celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, of purity over adulteration, of spirituality over materiality.

“I tend to play a great deal of dreidel around this time, especially with the Pre-K students I teach at Touro Synagogue. I also try to do an extra good deed each day,” Dufour said.

One Hanukkah custom includes eating foods fried in oil. Dufour said

her family eats some extra fried foods such as latkes, along with potato pancakes and applesauce during this time.

While students like Dufour celebrate Hanukkah for the holidays, others celebrate Christmas with a twist of their own culture.

Khadija Moses, mathematics senior, is an international student and native of Trinidad. Like most people, she celebrates Christmas by gathering with her family.

“Basically, the entire family gets to-

gether, usually at my grandparents’ house, and everyone brings a dish,” Moses said.

In addition to holiday favorites such as ham, turkey and macaroni, Moses’ family cooks traditional Trinidadian dishes for Christmas. These include ponche de creme, which is a milk-based alcohol drink made with rum, similar to eggnog, and callaloo, which is a soup made from a leafy vegetable.

“At home, we make callaloo with a taro, desheen or callaloo bush.

However, outside of the Caribbean, people tend to use spinach — since the other leaves aren’t readily available or known,” Moses said.

Moses said that the Christmas dinner is a real feast. She also appreciates getting to spend time with loved ones.

“We come together to just talk and lime (hang out), maybe watch some TV and play games. Last year, we played Heads Up and Bean Boozled,” Moses said.

Moses said that music is also often played during her family’s Christmas celebrations. Parang and Soca Parang are types of popular folk music originating from Trinidad that reflect the island’s American Indian, Spanish and African heritage.

As most international students go home for the holidays, the International Student Association puts on a gathering for students before they leave.

Ana Rique Rivas, director of activities for the International Student Association, said this year they will hold a cookie decorating extravaganza.

“This event is also significant because the exchange students get to say goodbye. For this Christmas we are actually planning the activity for next week,” Rivas said.

BOBBIE GREEN / The Maroon

New Orleans gets lit at Celebration in the Oaks

December 9, 2016 THE MAROON

Mass and Pancakes combines stress relief, tradition

By Leah Banks lmbanks@loyno.edu

As the end of the semester approaches, a fun-filled event is coming to help students de-stress and unwind as they begin studying for finals.

Loyola University’s annual Mass and Pancakes is an event organized and led by the Office of Mission and Ministry as well as the Residence Hall Association. The event takes place each semester right before final exams begin.

On Dec. 11, Loyola’s ministry will have 9 p.m. Mass in the Audubon Room. Directly after the Mass, students are encouraged to stop by the Orleans Room for a nighttime breakfast. Students are also able to receive free t-shirts, but these items run out fast.

The fun tradition was started over 30 years ago by a former staff member in Student Affairs who saw it as a good opportunity for students to come together to pray in thanksgiving for the semester and to celebrate the end of the semester with each other.

Ken Weber, university minister for liturgy and music, sees this tradition as a time to come together as a university as well as cultivate the Jesuit values that the university, as well as the students, hold dear.

“Mass and Pancakes embodies so well our Catholic, Jesuit culture here at Loyola because the Catholic Mass is the central celebration of the Catholic religion, and to follow Mass with a meal is a practice that goes back to the earliest Christians, who inherited the practice of combining a religious ritual with a shared meal from our Jewish ancestors,” Weber said.

The theme for the Mass and Pancakes event is always chosen by the Residence Hall Association. This year’s theme is “Finding Dory.”

Teddy McDermott, sociology sophomore, is looking forward to the event.

“I think that since I’ve never been to Mass and Pancakes, the best moment of it for me would be the fellowship aspect with friends and classmates. And pancakes—because who doesn’t love pancakes,” McDermott said.

McDermott may be surprised when he learns there are no pancakes at the event—the univeristy discovered that pain perdu, which is like French toast, keeps better than pancakes under heat lamps early in the event’s history.

COLLEEN DULLE / The Maroon SIDNEY NURNBERGER & JESSICA MOLINA / The Maroon

Many of the lit paths provide a cheery ambiance during the event (left). A unicorn, one of the many animal light fixtures at the annual event, rears over a lake in City Park (top middle). A diamond of light hang above parkgoers as they stroll through the oaks (top right) Mr. Bingle, the snowman, welcomes patrons to the display (bottom).

Students get pain perdu at Mass and Pancakes 2014. Mass and Pancakes takes place the last Sunday night before exams.

7

THE MAROON

December 9, 2016

Local restaurants reflect on impact of UberEATS on delivery

By Sidney Holmes smholmes@loyno.edu @sidneymajee

The arrival of UberEATS is being met with mixed reviews from local restaurants.

On Nov. 1, Uber added New Orleans to the long list of cities where people could get food from restaurants in their area delivered right to their door.

Over 100 restaurants in the New Orleans area have partnered with the app. Downtown deli Part and Parcel started using UberEATS shortly after it came to the city.

Jacob Labas, Part and Parcel manager, said that UberEATS has brought a lot of new business to their deli.

“UberEATS tacks on at least $150 to $500 a day. It keeps us busy even when we’re not busy in the restaurant,” Labas said.

Users can use the app to browse menus, place orders and track the progress of their orders.

Caitlin Cortez, music therapy junior, said that she thinks a lot of college students use UberEATS because it is convenient.

“We usually get 10 minutes breaks, and I’ll have to buy chips or something real quick from the

c-store, but the app makes it possible for me to eat an actual meal for a reasonable price,” Cortez said.

After its launch, the app offered free delivery for a limited time, but now the cost of delivery is $4.99.

Meals can take anywhere between 20 minutes to an hour for delivery, which is why some restaurants choose not to use the app.

Tasia Race, manager of Willa Jean, said they don’t use the app because they are worried how third party delivery will affect the food.

“It takes away the quality of the food once it leaves our hands and goes to someone who doesn’t even work for the restaurant,” Race said.

Labas said it’s important that customers understand that delivery takes away from the quality of the food.

“It’s basically understood that anything you get to go decreases in value as it travels. We don’t think it reflects on the quality of our restaurant,” Labas said.

Cortez said another problem with third party delivery is that it’s very difficult to fix mistakes.

“If you order something and the company messes up, like the restaurant forgets something from the order or the Uber driver brings the wrong thing, you are stuck with what you were delivered,” Cortez

said.

Labas said while the app is good, there are still a few kinks that need to be worked out. He said it is important that the Uber drivers understand how the process works to keep business going smoothly.

Race said she hopes the app continues to do well because it could benefit many restaurants.

“There are so many good places to eat around here, so I think it’s very beneficial for people who can’t get to them,” Race said.

Cont.: A deeper understanding of Loyola University’s financial status for students FINANCE, continued from page 1 return on operating investments varies per year, and typically only amounts to 5 percent of the total endowment.

Therefore, with over 80 percent of operating revenue coming from tuition and fees, enrollment numbers are the key. When enrollment estimates miss their mark, they cause the biggest financial issues for private universities -- budgetary gaps that can take years to balance.

In 2012, Loyola had a freshmen class of 866 students, one of the largest classes in the school’s history. The following year, however, enrollment expectations missed the mark by 200 students.

To combat the budget gap following 2013’s enrollment shortfall, Loyola created the Financial Equilibrium Project, a multi-part plan that aims to reduce the university’s spending by $11.5 million by 2020.

The Rev. Kevin Wildes, university president, announced the plan last fall, following months of input from a special presidential advisory board, multiple financial committees and personal faculty discussions, according to a fall 2015 article from The Advocate.

Mathes said that the Financial Equilibrium Project will save a total of $4 million in costs by the end of the 2017 fiscal year.

The plan aims to eliminate 11 programs from Loyola’s budget, in-

cluding programs that give grants for faculty research and training.

Eighty-five other programs are to receive funding cuts, 20 will see increases in funding and the remaining 106 will stay unaffected over the next four years.

Discordant with the initial plan from the presidential advisory board, programs like Catholic studies and theater arts and dance will not be eliminated.

Beyond cuts in the budget though, the equilibrium project places an emphasis on raising Loyola’s enrollment, as more departmental cuts may be anticipated if the student body does not grow.

For more on Loyola University finance see Loyolamaroon.com

Total Revenue Total Expense

Source: Form 990 Despite a deficit of -$14,761,416 in 2011, total revenue increased by almost $40 million from 2010-2013 as enrollment increased. In 2013, projected enrollment was off by 200 new students, and both revenues and expenses decreased to 2014.

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SPORTS

8

Leading the Pack: Anthony Rizzi

By John Casey

jecasey@loyno.edu @J_E_Casey

Coming into his freshman season, Anthony Rizzi never saw himself as a record-setter and national qualifier, but now that he is, he’s intent on being the best that Loyola University has ever seen.

“My first two season’s here have definitely been unexpected,” Rizzi said in a one-on-one interview. “I never went to state in high school, I only ever made regionals, so qualifying for nationals was a huge accomplishment.”

His impressive season, including a personal 8K record at the Berry Invitational, all led up to the Southern States Athletic Conference championship where Rizzi placed seventh and ultimately qualified for the national championship. Rizzi was Loyola’s first male national qualifier since 2006, ending the decade-long drought.

“It was a fun experience, different than anything I’ve done before,” Rizzi said about his championship experience. “I had pride in just being there among some of the nation’s fastest people.”

Rizzi went on to finish 280th out of the 332-runner field at nationals with a time of 27:51.70, exactly four minutes shy of the first place finisher.

A lot of Rizzi’s recent success can be attributed to the new head coach hire, Nick Dodson. “[Dodson] has done a great job of recreating the program,” Rizzi said regarding his new coach. “He has a really strong plan for the team, he

December 9, 2016 THE MAROON

Petition proposed against Baby Cakes’ new name

By Nick Ducote for sure is taking the team in the right direction.”

Dodson’s effect on the team’s success can be seen clearly on paper.

In addition to his national qualifier, his coaching this fall has led to numerous career and season personal records. Despite increasing intensity in training, the team has seen far less injuries this season, largely due to Dodson’s training tactics.

Rizzi’s goal as a cross country runner over the next season is pretty straightforward, yet a difficult task to conquer.

“My goal is to tackle this next season differently. I want to make records and history.”

Rizzi, who currently holds the sixth fastest 8K time in Loyola history, is intent on reaching the top. He isn’t too far behind, sitting a minute and 45 seconds back from number one.

Despite seeing so much success as a runner, Rizzi’s ultimate goal at Loyola is unrelated to his cross country career.

“What I want to accomplish at Loyola is to be living proof that you can do whatever you want if you put your mind to it,” Rizzi said, when asked about what he wants to accomplish by graduation day. “I want to have students remember they can do what they want, that its fun and to enjoy it.”

Rizzi is deeply involved in the Loyola community and beyond. In addition to work, Rizzi is passionate about environmental issues and has frequently attended environmental conferences. He urges new and current students to become involved in what they love to do, whether it be on campus or elsewhere.

Loyola Athletics

Anthony Rizzi, environmental studies sophomore, competes in the national championship on Nov. 19 in his home state, Illinois. Rizzi, a native of Chicago, became Loyola’s first male National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics national qualifier since 2006.

Loyola volleyball team is already preparing for the new season

By Ryan Micklin rwmickli@loyno.edu @RyanMicklin61

Senior Katie Philippi ended her four-year playing career on Loyola’s volleyball team in a 3-1 win over Dalton State College in the conference championships, where Philippi finished with a game-high 21 digs.

“My senior season was a whirlwind, to say the least. We started off strong this season and then we struggled a little as a team, but we worked together, leaned on each other and built each other up,” Philippi said.

The Loyola volleyball team finished their 2016 season with a 15-23 record, entered the Southern States Athletic Conference Championships as the seventh seed in an eight seed pool and ultimately finished the season ranked seventh in the conference, which has 12 teams.

“Overall, I was very happy. I think we hit some milestones and achieved some things that we haven’t done before. We took sets away from Mobile both times we played

them, and we finally took a set away from Coastal Georgia in the conference tournament,” Angela Franke, head coach of the volleyball team, said.

While the volleyball team has struggled to compete with some of the top teams at the conference championship under Franke’s tenure, it hasn’t stopped her team from voicing their support for their head coach.

“Even though my time playing under her is over, I know that there is nothing that I can’t go to Coach Franke with. Coach Franke has been a blessing in my life, to put it simply. She gave me the guidance that I needed, and for that, I am eternally grateful,” Philippi said.

Franke said that the team as a whole lacked a significant skill that most great teams seem to possess— great on-court communication.

“Overall communication and just talking more on the court, I think that was our biggest issue this year, and that’s something that you can’t force or teach,” Franke said.

When asked about the team’s

weaknesses this season, Philippi mentioned that the team lacked consistency throughout the season.

Despite the up and down season, Philippi noted that regardless of what happened on the court, the team’s ability to pull together and lift each other up stood out as one of the team’s strong suits.

“Our strengths were in our ability to pull together when things would get tough. The trust and love that my teammates have for one another is unmatched, and that made us an unbreakable unit,” Philippi said.

Franke has big plans for her team during the offseason, making the cliche sports term ‘there is no offseason’ a reality for the players who are already prepping for the 2017 season.

“We’re going to definitely participate in two spring tournaments just so that we can get back in the routine of playing volleyball. We are going to do a lot of conditioning to build up strength so that we can hopefully minimize injuries going into the 2017 season,” Franke said.

As Franke and the rest of her team

prepare for the 2017 season, Philippi will be preparing for something different—graduation.

“This team has brought out the absolute best in me. I’m going to miss the constant support, love and dedication that this group of women has given me. They have made me into the person that I am today, and I have no doubt in my mind that my college career wouldn’t have been complete without this team and this experience. I already miss them every day,” Philippi said.

Although Philippi won’t be there with the team next season, she remains optimistic about the future of Loyola’s volleyball program and said that the underclassmen on the team possess the talent necessary to lead this team to a conference championship.

“This is going to be a championship team in three years. Coach Franke did a great job recruiting our freshmen this year, and I have no doubts in any of their abilities to lead this team to be champions of our conference,” Philippi said.

naducote@loyno.edu @naducote89

With the recent name change of the New Orleans minor league baseball team to Baby Cakes, there are a few groups arguing for a name that’s more suited for the city.

Since unveiling the new name, a petition to change the name has been circulating on Facebook and has gained over 10,000 signatures.

The petition was put out by Innovative Advertising, an ad agency in Mandeville. In addition, the ad team also put together several other team logos to suggest instead of the Baby Cakes. Names such as the “Mudbugs,” “Satchmos” and the “Krewe” were the top picks for the company.

Jay Connaughton, the ad manager, thought that the people in New Orleans should have had the final say in the name change and not a group of board members from California.

“Like so many other people in New Orleans, I’ve taken my kids to Zephyrs games, and when we saw the name Baby Cakes, we just thought that was a ‘swing and a miss.’ They could have done so much better. We’re very familiar with who we are, and they could have called that California agency and told them that there’s no such thing as a Baby Cake to anyone from New Orleans,” Connaughton said.

When the Pelicans were in transition from the Hornets moniker in 2013, the team was also met with mixed reviews. The name change garnered media hype and was poked at as a joke, but in reality, the name change resonated well with the majority of local fans.

Cookie Rojas, the general manager of the Baby Cakes, thought that a change was needed. He came as a secret shopper to games and saw that ticket prices were low, sales were low and that the city needed something unique to reflect itself.

“We know that people out here enjoy baseball and we saw an opportunity to get fans back here and get the community engaged. Can you say the name is reflective of the ride at Pontchartrain Beach? Yes, but it truly comes from Denver. An usher explained it to me that it was a hand me down, and I don’t think New Orleans deserves a hand me down name,” Rojas said.

Rojas also said that no one likes change and that a strong reaction can be expected from any kind of change of this caliber.

Locals who went to Zephyrs games, like Chris Griffin, are still trying to take the name seriously.

“That name, Baby Cakes, totally turns me off. It just makes the team sound soft. It’s kind of hard to believe a team named Baby Cakes could be any good. If I was a player on an opposing team and I would ask ‘who are we playing next week?

The Baby Cakes?’, I couldn’t even take them seriously,” Griffin said.

However, even with the negative views, there are people who are buying into the name.

The Baby Cakes are selling out of gear at their store at Zephyrs Field and is in the process of hiring additional help for the amount of online orders they are receiving.

While public opinion is mixed, the name Baby Cakes is looking financially successful and is here to stay.

December 9, 2016

Life &Times

9

Film • Arts • Food • Music • Leisure • Nightlife

Kerry Cahill is the ‘eye in the sky’

Designer discusses ‘Mafia III’ setting

By Tyler Wann

By Jamal Melancon, Yuichiro Oguma

wtwann@loyno.edu

Loyola alumna Kerry Cahill starred in a one-woman show about a fighter pilot whose unexpected pregnancy lands her a job as a drone pilot.

Southern Rep Theatre company and Loyola’s theater department collaborated to bring George Brant’s play “Grounded” to the stage, which was Cahill’s first performance back at Loyola as an alumna.

She got her start in New Orleans and currently acts in movies and TV, appearing in works such as “Battleship,” “Free State of Jones” and “The Walking Dead.” She said she was pleased to be back on campus and working with Loyola’s theater department once again.

The show’s single-actress format provided its lead with both challenges and opportunities in preparing for the role. The play is written in a style all its own, doing away with any sort of verse or formal structure, a factor which, according to Cahill, made the show somewhat difficult to learn.

Yet, as Cahill detailed, the most extensive preparation was not memorizing the script, but getting inside the headspace of a drone pilot.

Cahill set out interviewing drone pilots and doing extensive research into what the job actually entails.

She said she was able to get inside the minds of the people who work these jobs and use those details to make her performance more authentic.

“Where people pause becomes more important than what people say,” Cahill said.

While the format of the show may be unusual, the themes it ex-

plores are anything but. The classic questions of identity and morality are presented clearly throughout the play. But the show also explores some topics that are not as often touched upon, namely, that of surveillance.

The show questions what it means to live in a world where we are either constantly watched, or are constantly watching, as an “eye in the sky.”

“There are a lot of cameras out there,” Cahill said, when asked about what she had learned from her preparation.

Cahill said the play is not only meant to entertain, but also to educate as well. This is a “small window” into what those pursuing a military career have to go through, according to Cahill.

“A very small number of people are paying a very large price, and you owe it to them to try to understand where they are coming from,” Cahill said.

The issues the play discusses are those of the next generation, those that don’t yet have an answer.

According to Cahill, “Grounded” is the first step to finding that solution to the problems of modern surveillance and privacy vs. security, which is to acknowledge and understand these problems.

Performances of “Grounded” ran from Nov. 2 to Nov. 27 in Loyola University’s Lower Depths Theatre, and an extra performance weekend was added, which ended on Dec. 3.

The next Southern Rep performance will be “The Sweet Bird of Youth” by Tennessee Williams taking place from March 21 to April 15 in the Lower Depths Theatre.

jmmelanc@loyno.edu, yoguma@loyno.edu @Jam_M_Mel

Courtesy of Southern Rep

Kerry Cahill stands on a platform in Lower Depths Theatre. Kerry worked to interview several drone pilots and enacted extensive research to prepare for her role.

Kern Maass named dean of College of Music and Fine Arts

By Davis Walden jdwalden@loyno.edu @DavisWald

Kern Maass finds his home as the newly appointed dean of the College of Music and Fine Arts at Loyola University New Orleans.

The College of Music and Fine Arts has been successful in its enrollment growth and additions to its curriculum and community outreach. With 700 students enrolled in the fall 2016 semester, Maass will be inheriting the second largest undergraduate college at Loyola and will be replacing interim dean Anthony DeCuir.

A 2020 goal for the College of Music and Fine Arts is to form artists who make excellent art and have sustainable careers, encourage artists to explore the rich artistic culture and heritage of New Orleans and form artists who are aware of their relationship in society, according to provost Marc Manganaro.

“The College of Music and Fine Arts is poised to introduce a new collaborative and innovative leader, and I have confidence that Kern Maass will bring great expertise to the college in these areas,” Manganaro said.

Maass, whose background is in furniture design, historic preserva-

Courtesy of ASU News

Student Dan Culpepper, right, is part of a collaboration between Eastman and a design class at Appalachian State University to design outdoor furniture using a new wood product developed by Eastman. Professors also involved in the project are Richard Prisco (left) and Kern Maass (middle) both members of the industrial design faculty at Appalachian.

tion and research on design, craft and manufacturing innovations, is a shift from DeCuir’s background in music therapy and vocal performance.

Briana Thompson, theater arts freshman, is curious about the new dean’s appointment.

“It’ll be interesting to see how he funds the arts,” said. “Finally, it’s a unique way to go about it. He’ll bring new ideas to the table.”

Some students, such as Mari Nerbovig, music therapy senior, have voiced their concerns over having a dean who does not have a background in music.

“The future of this school dictates how much my degree is worth in the future, Nerbovig said. “If Loyola’s music program dissipates, I’ll have less options in the future.”

Maass is the former associate dean of the College of Fine and Applied Arts at Appalachian State University. There he created programs such as the AppLab and Howard Street, both of which were developed by industrial design students.

“There are a lot of programs that don’t get the recognition or attention that they deserve,” Colleen Ryan, music education junior, said. “It’s ultimately different with a

change of this magnitude, but I believe all the programs can excel.”

The AppLab is an interdisciplinary program that “uses design thinking to find sustainable, practical solutions to everyday problems on campus,” according to the AppLab webpage. Students from a variety of majors work in teams to gather information and solve problems they see on campus. IDEX Lab members at Appalachian State University designed Howard Street, an interdisciplinary work and meeting space.

In 2001, Maass founded Maass Design, designing furniture and tabletop accessories that have been exhibited nationally and internationally.

“These experiences have given him [Maass] a unique perspective on how to position and leverage creative practice in multiple contexts,” Manganaro said. “Innovative, collaborative and visionary were all adjectives used to describe Maass.”

Maass’ appointment to the position was a two-year-long process, according to Laura Hope, chairwoman of the department of theatre arts and dance.

“I hope this is a time for collaboration and growth for us,” Hope said.

Kern Maass will begin at Loyola Feb. 1, 2017.

Matthias Worch, game design director at Hangar 13 studios in California, spoke with The Maroon about the origins of “Mafia III’s” setting and its choice in a black protagonist named Lincoln Clay. Worch has over 17 years of experience in the industry and is originally from Germany.

“Mafia III” is a video game released in 2016 that takes place in the fictional city of New Bordeaux, a recreation of New Orleans in the 60’s.

Q: Why New Orleans?

A: “Mafia” as a franchise is very much known for creating these really cinematic stories, setting them in historic times in America and always dealing with major American crime cities. Even though you automatically gravitate towards some obvious contenders like New York or Chicago and so on, New Orleans is one of these major American crime cities that most people didn’t really know about and probably still don’t know about it, unless they played our game. It has this really deep history. In fact, it’s where the Sicilians arrived before they arrived anywhere else in America. Once we realized that [New Orleans has a deep history of organized crime] this was really perfect for us. New Orleans has everything that we look for in a Mafia game: organized crime, the Italians. New Orleans is also one of those cities I feel are quite under-served when it comes to video games.

Q: Which was decided first? The main protagonist or main setting?

A: It was a little bit of both. We realized that if you were just to create an Italian mobster in that setting, he might not have as much perspective on what’s going on in the world. He might be quite privileged actually. So that’s when I think we hit on Lincoln Clay as a character, and that I think goes hand in hand. We realized, “Oh my god, if we actually did use an African-American or half-black character in this setting, that actually gives us a whole bunch of interesting ways in which we can talk about this time and place.”

Q: Is there anything you would like to add?

A: It’s been incredible working on “Mafia III” and learning more about New Orleans as we were actually making this game. Being able to draw parallels between our version New Bordeaux and New Orleans, just learning a lot about the city, this is something I really like about games. Both making games and playing games, I feel this is where our medium, video games, can do something that no other medium can do. It can really fully immerse you in a time and place. It can actually experientially bring you closer to a subject matter and to a place.

So being able to drive around in our bayou and then going to the real bayou in New Orleans, doing the same thing in the French Ward/ French Quarter in New Orleans and just learning a lot about that mafia history has been really cool. And I hope that’s the case for anybody else who plays our game.

See the full interview online at loyolamaroon.com

EDITORIAL

10

December 9, 2016 THE MAROON

OUR EDITORIAL

The majority opinion of our editorial board

HOWLS & GROWLS

Sanctuary Campuses: Where do we draw the line?

HOWL to Sneaux GROWL to hypocritical cabinet appointments HOWL to Celebration in the Oaks GROWL to no dead days this year HOWL to ugly-beautiful Christmas sweaters GROWL to that one family member you see every Holiday...

HOWL to ya mother’s cooking

EDITORIAL BOARD Starlight Williams

Editor-in-Chief

Naasha Dotwiala

Managing Editor for Print

Nick Reimann

Managing Editor for Electronic Properties

Taylor Ford

Maroon Minute Executive Producer

Anna Dobrowolski

Design Chief

Barbara Brown

Photo Editor

Jessica Molina Caleb Beck

News Editor Life & Times Editor

Paulina Picciano

Wolf Editor

Jamal Melancon

Worldview Editor

Brian Wollitz

Sports Editor

Colleen Dulle

Religion Editor

Seán Brennan

Opinion and Editorial Editor

Paulina Picciano

Copy Editor

Hayley Hynes

Copy Editor

Haley Pegg Bobbie Green

Senior Staff Writer Graphic designer

EDITORIAL POLICY The editorial on this page represents the majority opinions of The Maroon’s editorial board and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Loyola University.

Letters and columns reflect the opinions of the authors and not necessarily those of The Maroon’s editorial board.

The Maroon does not represent the opinion of administration, staff and/or faculty members of Loyola.

Letters are subject to editing for length, grammar and style. Please limit submissions to 400 words. Submissions are due no later than 4 p.m. the Sunday before publication.

Please send all submissions — The Maroon, 6363 St. Charles Ave., Box 64, New Orleans, LA 70118.

Email us your letters — letter@ loyno.edu.

Submissions may also be made online at www.loyolamaroon.com.

Anna Dobrowolski

In response to the unprecedented election of Donald Trump, whose major campaign promise was the forced removal of 12 million undocumented immigrants from U.S. soil, universities across the country have officially declared themselves as “Sanctuary Campuses.”

Now is the time for Loyola University to do the same.

Contrary to what some believe, the designation as a Sanctuary Campus goes far beyond a handful of upset college students protesting President-elect Trump’s victory.

In fact, the 20-plus universities and colleges that have announced themselves as Sanctuary Campuses have made a promise rather than a protest: if necessary, they will defy the federal government to protect their students.

The presidents and governing boards of schools like the University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Texas State University and Vanderbilt University have publicly vowed to uphold multiple measures that will potentially put them at odds with President-elect Trump and a Republican Congress.

Notably, these schools will prohibit Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers from entering their property without a warrant.

They will also refuse ICE any information regarding their students’ immigration status.

“Sanctuary Campus” is not a buzz-term. It is a direct, official challenge from educational institutions across the country to a Trump administration that no one can predict.

That is why Loyola, as a Jesuit university that upholds justice,

that takes initiative to help those in need, that values the common good and that disavows demonization to promote understanding, must take action in suit.

Following the presidential election, students and faculty marched through campus and called Loyola a sanctuary for those marginalized and in fear for their livelihoods from Trump’s controversial policies.

While the demonstration was received across a spectrum of reactions, it differed from university President Rev. Kevin Wildes’, S.J. official statement last week, which promised to uphold the standards of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities and the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities.

In his statement, Wildes calls upon Loyola’s Jesuit value of social justice, “to protect to the fullest extent of the law undocumented students on our campuses.”

Wildes statement is strong, but the intention of the associations to definitively comply with federal laws is the very difference between just that: strong intentions and action.

In two years, if ICE agents were to come to campus demanding information on undocumented students at Loyola, would we give it to them in compliance with the law? Would we watch as they pulled first-year students, 18-year-olds simply seeking education, out of Biever Hall and drove them to deportation camps?

What if President-elect Trump gains the support to implement another one of his campaign promises, and ICE officers show up asking Loyola for information on all Mus-

lim students?

Hopefully, these things will not happen. Hopefully, Trump’s reeled back rhetoric since November will equate to more moderate policies.

Hopefully, the checks and balances of our government will prevent any of his unconstitutional campaign promises. Of course we should hope for this.

But if we can learn anything from this election, it’s that nobody knows what a Trump administration will hold. With the anti-immigrant sentiment present in our country and a legislative branch controlled by representatives of this sentiment, it is imperative that Loyola take our stand now, and not later.

If we are to truly be a sanctuary for the marginalized and uphold our values, we must do so proudly and with conviction, for the people in the back, the sides and the middle to hear.

Loyola has neither the state funding nor an Ivy League endowment that would make us as confident in this fight as Yale or Rutgers University. In fact, if the federal government were to cut our funding, it could potentially bleed the university dry.

That could mean 2,600 jobs and the education of over 4,000 students on the line.

But in the face of this risk is a choice that will define who we are as Loyola University.

If anyone were to come knocking on St. Ignatius’s door demanding the inhumane removal of another person, he’d be greeted with a cannon ball. Now, our ammunition is acceptance.

This is where we draw the line.

Letter to the editor: Wildes, address divestment concerns Dear Father Wildes, We’ve composed this letter with hopes that you will provide a clear response to the concerns being raised about the University’s investments in for-profit prisons and the fossil fuel industry.

Outcries from the student body have been growing louder in the struggle for racial, gender identity and environmental justice on campus. The time has come for an official, clearly outlined, response from administration to the Loyola community that resonates with a commitment for change.

If Loyola University ultimately looks toward being a leader and protector of social justice, then it must take bold steps to divest from the very institutions that aid in oppression, destroy frontline communities and threaten the well-being of our future generations. Loyola University New Orleans has an incredible opportunity to lead the way in the southeastern region of the continental U.S. to divest from private prisons and fossil fuels.

Transparency is the first order of business that needs to be addressed. The community deserves to know where their contributions are being invested. We ask you to confirm your position of removing any investments in the private prison industry and begin divestment from the fossil fuel industry. The aforementioned changes should be considered as fundamental to the vision of a Jesuit institution.

The leader of the Catholic Church and fellow Jesuit, Pope Francis, directly calls us to reckon with our moral ecology in his letter, Laudato Si. This encyclical letter written to all people on this planet demands we act: “A change in lifestyle could bring healthy pressure to bear on those who wield political, economic and social power. This is what consumer movements accomplish by boycotting certain products. They prove successful in changing the way businesses operate, forcing them to consider their environmental footprint and their patterns of production.

When social pressure affects their earnings, businesses clearly have to find ways to produce differently. This shows us the great need for a sense of social responsibility on the part of consumers. Purchasing is always a moral, and not simply economic, act. Today, in a word, the issue of environmental degradation challenges us to examine our lifestyle” (No.206).

You owe it to the dedicated student body, your impassioned and loyal faculty, staff and alumni to address these concerns. It is time for a plan of action. You have a team of dedicated students willing and available to carry out a vision that supports Loyola and the greater community’s health and well-being.

This letter will be shared with the various parties mentioned above to model the transparency that is so pivotal to the success of the suggested changes.

Regards, Max Boyce, Divest Loyno

OPINION

December 9, 2016 The Maroon

11

Acquiring unlimited opportunities through service When’s the right

time to start celebrating Christmas?

Brianna Cunningham AmeriCorps member, Tulane University Center for Public Service

Rebecca Sullivant Music education, sophomore

bc028@bucknell.edu

Up until this point in my life, participating in service has been a major part of it. In high school, I was required to do a certain amount of hours as a part of my senior graduation requirement, and in my undergraduate career at Bucknell University, I had the opportunity to participate in service trips throughout the school year.

As a first generation college student, what mattered to me most about my college experience was that I received a great education by the end of my four years. What I mean by great is an educational experience that would challenge my perspective and enhance my level of engagement in the community.

I did not want the responsibility of my education to just fall on my university. Indeed, it is through my different experiences of service that I have been granted unlimited opportunities and acknowledgment of the true benefits of service work. I believe that it is only right that I share what I have gained from my service experiences with other people.

Service work encourages one to be empowered. Individually, you may find yourself seeking out opportunities that will allow you to address these issues. When you develop enough confidence to create a change for an issue you truly care about, it empowers you to seek solutions that can have a global impact.

You may even end up researching projects that are relevant to your interest. Research is a pivotal part of the service work that you will do. It is something that you can show off to other people so that you can get them to believe in the work that you

resulliv@loyno.edu

Brianna Cunningham

Brianna Cunningham (middle) partakes in a service learning activity for Community Harvest, a hot mean program at Bucknell University.

do.

Service allows you to not only network, but also build relationships. With that being said, service also teaches you how to transform limited resources into an abundant amount of resources. Most of the time, after you develop those relationships, people will be willing to offer their services at no cost.

Financially, service gives you an open perspective. Most of the time you find yourself figuring out ways that you can to take advantage of free resources that the city may have to offer for your nonprofit organization. Service work can motivate people to rebuild their own community.

Indeed, it is the people who make up the community and not just the

physical contribution of buildings and houses. In my service experience, I have come to find that a lot of community members may have the expectation that the government is supposed to fix their problems. This should not be the case. You are the only one who truly knows the needs of your community so why expect someone else to fix the problems for you?

While working in the nonprofit world, there will be opportunities to take the lead on projects that could grant your organization more money or even more support. It shows you just how powerful money can be in life when your nonprofit organization is able to leverage those financial resources. Money allows

you to have security, and it allows you to have options. It is the gate to opportunities that not everyone will have the chance to have access to.

Every day within the nonprofit world, you are going to learn how to interact with different people and tackle different issues in the spare of the moment. While doing all of this service allows you to travel. In fact, much of my travel experiences, besides making college visits to different towns, began when I participated in service trips.

While you are not always compensated for service work, service work should be a part of everyone’s life because it allows everyone to have equal opportunity.

The difference between being self-centered and centering yourself Katelyn fecteau English writing, junior kifectea@loyno.edu

As finals week rolls around, the panic of students can be sensed all over campus in a sort of herd-mentality sixth sense. The library fills up and the line at Starbucks gets longer; the school is on edge. We shovel C-Store donuts in our stressed-out mouths and take bubble baths, quoting Parks and Recreation: “treat yo self.”

Why do we justify this—satisfying our basic need for comfort with the idea that it is a luxury to be at peace?

We need to be better at finding a healthy balance. In short, we need to learn how to love ourselves. Not like ourselves, not spoil ourselves with trivial junk food and quick fixes and not better ourselves, but love ourselves and care for ourselves the way we care for others.

When asked this semi-existential question—“do you love yourself?”—

most of my friends responded with a negative, such as “not really” or “I guess.” This isn’t because I spend my time with tragic people and pessimists—it’s because they’re attempting to straddle the line between pride and self-respect. The tug-of-war in our psyche between anti-narcissism and self-care is a difficult game, and often ends with a worn-out spirit peeking through in times of stress. Do we love ourselves? Sure, we may like ourselves, but do we care for our bodies and minds in a way we would want our loved ones to practice? Most likely, we don’t. This is our problem: a lack of self-love.

To be clear, I am not advocating for egotism or gluttony in the slightest sense; I am advocating for being responsible for our own mental health. We shouldn’t have to justify taking basic care of ourselves at the price of seeming self-indulgent.

When we care for a friend who is going through trauma, we feel, at the very least, a sense of satisfaction knowing that the person we love is in some way more mentally comfortable because of our actions. Why do we fail to take the same steps for ourselves?

In the same way, I am not laud-

ing the vain, not condemning the competitive. Our ability to listen to criticism and adapt to be better at whatever we are attempting is nothing short of evolutionarily amazing, and this should not be seen as a vice.

However, as much as we should want to better ourselves, we should take care to do so healthily. Loving yourself doesn’t mean accepting yourself as perfect; it means accepting yourself, period. We should strive for our goals but remain whole as we do so, knowing that our goals will not complete us because only we have that power; you are complete already. You should be loved, at the very least, by yourself. Why do we have such a hard time doing this?

It is imperative that we love ourselves. As millennials, we are often categorized as lazy and self-indulgent, but looking around Loyola I simply have a hard time buying that label. I see a student body of tireless social activists, many of whom protest for what they deem is right, whether or not the issue affects them directly. I see care for each other and overflowing support for the people we love. But I also see tired faces—faces that are unsure of their paths after graduation, after Thanksgiving break, after the week-

end. I believe that if we took the time to reassure ourselves the way we do others, and care for ourselves in a mentally healthy way that was more stable than survivalist, we would be wholesomely happier.

It is a basic human need to love ourselves, and it is a necessity that, to be able to truly love others, first you must love yourself. If you do not practice self-love, you have no way of being remotely able to love others to the potential that they deserve.

To quote Lucille Ball, “love yourself first and everything falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.”

Remember to care for yourself the way you want others to care for you—set the bar high. The respect that truly matters in this world is your own self-respect, and treating yourself as a precious object worthy of your own love is the first step to peace. This finals week, be kind to yourself as well as each other. Think to yourself the way you would want others to think about you. Be the person you know you can be, because you deserve all the love that is offered to you—most importantly, your own.

December is a month of extremes.

The weather has just started to actually get cold, finals are looming and Christmas is coming. One thing all of these events have in common is that we have no control over their timing. But Christmas acts as a focal point for celebration—the epitome of a holiday—and every year, there seems to be excitement brewing a little too soon.

Commercially, the Christmas season starts the day after Thanksgiving, but is this the real Christmas spirit? Should we be getting excited for Christmas yet? Or should we wait until closer to the actual day?

There is a wide range of dates I’ve heard, just this year, that have been marked as the beginning of the Christmas season for different individuals. The earliest was the day after Halloween, and the latest being Christmas day itself. A popular response, though, is December 1st, or as most of my Twitter feed says, “Christmas 1st.”

The “Christmas is hype” tagline is absolutely contagious. I love Christmas for several reasons, but a major one being how the whole world just takes two weeks or so to slow down and take a break from going so fast and so nonstop. As a student, nothing seems calmer than the week after finals, and time really does feel as if it goes slower. But, if the Christmas season starts before finals, can we still feel the eggnoggy excitement for the holiday brewing in our hearts or is it a way we bribe ourselves to make it to the end of the semester?

I argue that the Christmas we get excited for as soon as clothes go on sale and Buddy the Elf can be spotted sailing the Sea of Swirly, Twirley Gumdrops is not Christmas at all; it is actually the place the world becomes in anticipation of Christmas.

This is also known as the Christmas spirit.

So when is it OK for the Christmas spirit to start taking over? Well, since this is a major marketing component, advertisements will say that as soon as Santa waves from his magical sleigh at the end of the Macy’s Day Parade, it is open season for vigorous green, red and snow themed decorations. And this, I think, is a good time for us to allow the Christmas spirit to start slowing the world down and reminding everyone to be thankful for their blessings.

This Christmas spirit should not impede on the real reason we celebrate. A peer once said, “Jesus, allegedly, was a baby,” and as you may or may not know, this is celebrated for 12 days. However, it is rare to find someone who celebrates all 12 days, yet it is not at all difficult to find people already getting excited for Christmas. I think we have started to confuse the Christmas spirit with the Christmas season—the collection of 12 days set aside to fully appreciate the reason we celebrate Christmas in the first place.

December 9, 2016

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