January 26, 2018 by Loyola Maroon

Loyola University • New Orleans • Volume 96 • Issue 14 • January 26, 2018

THE MAROON FOR A GREATER LOYOLA

Students help impact tax bill By Erin Snodgrass eesnodgr@my.loyno.edu

Protesters participate in the New Orleans' portion of a nationwide Women's March to promote women's issues and human rights Jan. 20, 2018 in downtown New Orleans. Peace volunteers marched with the protesters. CALEB BECK/The Maroon.

Activists fight for equality at NOLA Women’s March By Caleb Beck cmbeck@my.loyno.edu @CALEBBECKIRL

The one year anniversary of Trump’s inauguration was met with feminine resistance and activism in downtown New Orleans and across the country. Five thousand women and allies congregated Saturday morning at Duncan Plaza and marched proudly through the French Quarter, rallying against sexual assault, healthcare reform, immigration policies and other human rights issues. The New Orleans protesters joined sister Women’s March movements conducted in Denver, Raleigh, New York, Las Vegas and other major cities. Activists took to the streets, many donning trademark pink cat ears hats, waving signs mocking Trump, gender inequality and other hot-button issues of the current administration. The main objectives for this year’s march were bolstering voter

See WOMEN’S MARCH, page 6

registration and encouraging more women and Democrats to run in local elections. The organization Emerge Louisiana was present and reported 390 local women are being trained for public office. In the past year, New Orleans elected its first woman mayor, LaToya Cantrell, who gave a keynote speech to the protesters. “We all have a right to be respected. We all have a right to be loved. We all have a right to live in a city that represents and loves all people,” Cantrell said. Cantrell noted that the city for the first time in its history is reflecting these goals, and New Orleans’ women can strive to make an impact come midterm elections. “We have proven that women can advance, women can lead and we can do it where we uplift women and equity in every move as we grow,” Cantrell said. Loyola biology senior Victoria Odom said the dedication of the protesters was empowering. “The oldest and youngest partici-

pants struck me the most. I couldn’t imagine having lived through the 50s to the 70s and still having to march down the street to demand equality. We owe a lot to the older generation of feminists,” Odom said. Beyond pressing women’s issues like reproductive rights and sexual assault, this march was conscious to be inclusive, and many also marched for the plight of Muslims, transgender persons and African countries offended by Trump’s recent remarks. Patricia Boyett, director of the Women's Resource Center, said an open look at new issues is crucial to show the wide breadth of human rights united under feminism. "I consider it vital that we address issues that affect all women and all genders in the feminist movement across the world. I support Mayor-Elect Cantrell's decision to reach out to El Salvador, Haiti and the entire African continent to let citizens of those nations know that she, like so many of us feminists in Ameri-

ca, oppose President Trump's racist comments," Boyett said. Peace volunteers were designated to keep crowds calm in the case that detractors might react adversely to the march. If there were such groups, they were unseen and unheard throughout the Central Business District and French Quarter. Music industry senior Cristina de Arcos said she hopes movements like these inspire future generations of females. "A big reason I marched was for my little sister, Gracie. I want to teach her that she can continue to be a strong, brave and independent girl as she enters her teenage years, when most girls tend to back down,” de Arcos said. Patricia Boyett said that these human rights campaigns can progress only if maligned groups cooperate with one another. "The feminist movement will never achieve gender equity unless feminists fight for the equal rights and dignity of all genders across the globe," Boyett said.

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Late last semester, Tommy Screen alerted the Loyola community to provisions he called "troubling" in the tax reform bill, which had passed the House of Representatives and was being considered in the Senate. “I am happy to report that your efforts, coupled with the efforts of numerous others with similar interests, helped persuade members of Congress to eliminate most of the harmful provisions that would have impacted our students, employees and graduates,” Screen said in a previous email sent out on Jan. 11, 2018. The final bill was signed by the president on Dec. 22, 2017. The bill formerly known as the "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act" was signed into history as “An Act to Provide for Reconciliation Pursuant to Titles II and V of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018." Provisions that were eventually removed included one that would have eliminated the ability to deduct student loan interest payments from taxes and one that would have taxed employer-provided tuition assistance as income. The American Opportunity Tax Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit, both of which, according to Screen, help families offset college costs, were also saved from being devalued in the bill. The proposed provisions would not only have affected students. A provision that would have taxed tuition remission benefits for university employees as income was also taken out of the final product. Graduate students could have been impacted, as well. The original bill included a provision that would have taxed graduate student tuition remission as income. According to the New York Times, the only education related provision that was changed in the final bill passed by Congress was an expansion of the use of 529 college savings accounts to include K-12 private school tuition. This is seen as a victory for families who send their children to private school. Screen said by notifying the Loyola community to the bill and urging them to call their representatives, he hoped to educate people on the number of issues that were included in the legislation originally passed by the House, which would have had a negative impact on many of Loyola’s faculty, staff and students. “It is my hope that the call to action was seen as a motivating factor in having our students actively participate in the political process on an issue that will directly impact many of them,” Screen said. He believes that Loyola students, along with thousands of other students across the country, let their voices be heard. “They had a large impact on the members of Congress who ultimately stripped the many educational provisions that would have had a negative impact from the final legislation which was signed by the president,” Screen said.

January 26, 2018

THE MAROON

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news

January 26, 2018 The Maroon

Ament ready to start new adventure

Loyola linking students and alumni

By Madison McLoughlin

pmwhitta@my.loyno.edu

By Payton Whittaker

mmmcloug@my.loyno.edu

Nathan Ament has already begun to set sail as Loyola’s new director of admissions. Ament plans on increasing efficiencies and continuing the momentum and growth of the university during his time here. Having never worked for a Jesuit university before, Ament was excited about doing something different. Loyola is also the largest institution that Ament has worked for in terms of undergraduate students. “I was honored and also excited to be offered this position and being able to work with such a great team,” Ament said. “I’m very excited to be working with Dr. Head at an institution with national recognition.” After discovering that being a band director was not his forte, Ament took a job his friend offered him in the admissions office at Aurora University in Illinois. Since then, Ament has worked in admissions, earning leadership roles and experience. Due to his extensive experience in the admissions offices across several universities, Ament believes he will be put to good use mentoring the admissions staff at Loyola. He is also confident in his ability to conquer the challenges the job brings him. One of the things that Ament loves most about Loyola is the student body. Ament finds himself drawn to institutions with students who aren’t afraid to be themselves. “I have always ended up at quirky institutions where the students tend to not fit into stereotypes,” he said.

Nathan Ament, director of admissions, hopes to use his new position to grow the university. Ament began working on Jan. 11 and is excited to work for a Jesuit University. CRISTIAN ORELLANA /The Maroon.

“They are real and more down to earth.” Loyola, although similar to his previous experiences in some ways, is going to be a new adventure for Ament, his wife and their two children. After previously residing in Illinois and working at home, Ament finds it refreshing to be in the warmer weather and back on a college campus. “When I got here, everyone was

friendly, at Loyola as well as in the city,” Ament said. “I’m excited to get to know Loyola and New Orleans, too, seeing as I had no knowledge about the city previously.” Like many students, Ament also has an after school hobby: boats. “I love boats,” Ament exclaimed. “I’ve had ten boats in the last seven years.” Ament hopes that now that he is located in New Orleans, near the

Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, that he will be able to continue buying, fixing up and selling boats for fun. Ament hopes to be the opposite of the Titanic for the admissions department and waits eagerly to see what is in store for the years to come.

Founding director of advising excited to make change By Erin Snodgrass eesnodgr@my.loyno.edu @erinsnod

Missy Hernandez, Loyola’s founding director of academic advising, is no stranger to building new academic advising programs. She spent four years working at a government institution in Abu Dhabi as a full-time faculty academic advisor doing introductory and career exploration courses. Following that, she spent two and a half years as the founding director of academic advising at Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar. “I have experience. I’ve done this before. I understand the challenges and nuances of a new position,” Hernandez said. Brad Petitfils, director of the student success center, said Hernandez has a proven track record with remodeling academic advising centers and said he believes Hernandez will make an immediate and positive impact. “This new model for advising is part of the exciting work that is currently happening in Project Magis. We have set high goals for our retention rate in the next few years, and we know that Dr. Hernandez’s work will help us to reach those goals,” Petitfils said. After seven years abroad, Hernandez and her family felt that it was time to come home. Upon her return, she said she was looking for a school where she could have an impact and make change.

“It’s gonna be a challenge as the university is going through a lot of transitions, and this is just one of those, but I think it’s an exciting time. I think people are looking forward to change,” Hernandez said. The Student Success Center is currently under a full-scale remodel on the second floor of Monroe Library thanks to a generous donation by Pan-American Life and an anonymous donor. According to Petitfills, the new center will centralize key academic support services, including the office for accessible education, the office for student success and the office for writing and learning services, which includes the writing across the curriculum lab. “We are especially excited that the new center will have a soundproof testing center for students who are served by the office for accessible education, and the new tutoring space will be the envy of campus,” Petitfills said. As part of her new position, Hernandez and the office of academic advising will be making some changes. She plans to open an academic advising center for first-year students, undeclared sophomores and at-risk students, providing intensive advising services, starting in the fall of 2018. “Students will be advised in the center during their first year and transition into their college and their faculty advisor once they choose their major,” Hernandez said.

Missy Hernandez, Loyola’s founding director of academic advising, sits in her new office in the Pan-American Student Success Center, currently under renovation, on Jan. 24, 2018. Hernandez and her team plan to implement an advising center that focuses on first-year students and undeclared sophomores. ERIN SNODGRASS/The Maroon.

Petitfils said this new model will help ensure students that they are in the right major early in their academic career. Hernandez said she is still waiting to hear about staffing numbers but hopes to have two or three advisors joining her in the center. Hernandez said she knows that advising has been a concern for some students on Loyola’s campus,

but this doesn’t make her nervous. She said she is open to student concerns and suggestions. “My dissertation was on retention. I’ve been in it as an academic advisor. I’ve been a faculty advisor. I have the experience. I have a passion for it. I’ve got a wonderful team,” Hernandez said.

The Career and Development Center, or CDC, has partnered with the Alumni Association and have put together a program called LoyolaLink. This program connects current Loyola students to experienced alumni over the phone in an attempt to mentor students in career networking. The CDC puts together several events associated with the LoyolaLink program every few months. Each event centers around a group of related careers that may interest Loyola students. “This month we are hosting one focused on careers in science, technology and healthcare,” Jill Boatright said. “In March, we are hosting a LoyolaLink event focused on careers in Communications.” Boatright is LoyolaLink’s Career and Development Center’s Liaison. She helps determine which careers should be featured at the events that will engage students. The CDC encourages students to use this opportunity to connect with experienced alumni, get to know other career fields that may be of interest and broaden their professional connections. LoyolaLink pairs students with alumni based on specific career interests. The CDC guides students through conversations and questions in preparation for the alumni involved in LoyolaLink. The students and alumni then talk over the phone. In the span of 15 to 20 minutes, alumni share their career advice, and students are able to practice professional networking. “We send tips for preparing for the event and potential questions to ask,” Boatright said. “Our career coaches are also available for oneon-one appointments to discuss preparing for the event more thoroughly.” The alumni that are involved in LoyolaLink voluntarily sign up and are made aware that the students they will be mentoring may not be professionals. This program is for students to learn. Perfection is not expected. The alumni sign up for LoyolaLink to give advice, share experience and aid students in broadening their professional connections. “To me, the best part of the program is that students get to connec with alumni and practice networking in an easy, non-intimidating atmosphere,” Boatright said. Students can get involved in LoyolaLink by signing up online. The CDC has events every few months. March 22 is the next LoyolaLink event in which the CDC will be hosting a variety of communication related career interests. During this event, alumni will share advice on careers in communications or public relations with students who are interested in pursuing related careers. The CDC sends out reminders through posting flyers and on their social media accounts. Additionally, all events are posted on Employola, OrgSync and the University calendar. “The students that participate in these events come away with invaluable advice, new professional contacts and sometimes event leads on jobs or internships that could help them launch their careers,” Boatright said.

WORLDVIEW

January 26, 2018 The Maroon

A pharmacist administers a flu shot Jan. 18, 2018, at a Walgreens in New Orleans. Doctors and pharmacists can give the flu shot. SOFIA SAMAYOA/The Maroon.

Health officials: it’s not too late to get the flu shot By Sofia Samayoa assamayo@my.loyno.edu

As a flu epidemic seizes the health of thousands of Americans across the country, health officials are pressing people to proceed with caution and take care of themselves. Many Loyola students are taking this to heart. The most recent Influenza Surveillance Report released by the Center for Disease Control on Jan. 13 reported that Louisiana influenza levels are exceedingly high. For those who may feel uneasy about this news, medical professionals in the state are revealing that it is not too late to get the shot. Rebekah Gee, secretary of the

Louisiana Department of Health, explained that getting the shot is necessary in order for people to safeguard themselves during this vulnerable time. “An annual flu shot is the best way to protect yourself and your family from the flu, which can be very serious and even deadly,” Gee said. Louisa Hurt, public relations junior, was the first in line this season to get a shot at Loyola’s Health Service. “I’ve always gotten the flu shot growing up, and my parents always urge that my sister and I get it. I keep getting it because I’ve never gotten the flu, but I know that it has other effects for many different people,” Hurt said. “It’s always fine for me,

but a lot of people say that the shot either made them sick or didn’t work.” The notion that the flu shot is not always effective has gone viral, but it is more complex than most people think. Donna Luis, a pharmacist at a Walgreens in downtown New Orleans, said that although the flu shot can’t protect against all strains of influenza, it’s still worth taking the time to get. “It’s only protecting you from certain strands,” she said. “A lot of people have gotten [the shot], and a lot of people have the flu, but usually though if you get the shot, even if you then get the flu, it’s not as severe as it would be.” Even with it being relatively late

in the flu season, Luis said that the shot is easy to get and that the advantages are significant. “If you get it now, you may get protection for different strains, as long as you’re well you can get it. If you’re feeling ill, we won’t give it to you,” she said. According to Louisiana Children’s Medical Center for Health, there have been 847 flu cases at Touro Infirmary, 273 at the University Medical Center and 696 at Children’s Hospital New Orleans. Motivated by the alarming reports about the flu epidemic in the news and her personal world, New Orleans resident Alexandra Elizondo decided to get the flu shot for the very first time in her life.

“Normally I don’t bother getting it and this was my first time. After hearing the news of how bad it was and seeing some coworkers missing, I ran and got the shot,” she said. Despite the increased level of flu activity in the state, not every Loyola student has had the shot. Marketing senior Nicole Wilkinson has not felt a serious need to get the shot. “I didn’t get it, and I haven’t been sick. I just take my vitamins,” she said. A bad flu season sees nearly 700 deaths and 8,000 hospitalizations according to Gee, and she said Louisiana could surpass these numbers with the outbreak this year.

Massive proposed TOPS cuts could impact Loyola By Rich Simmerman rwsimmer@my.loyno.edu @rsimmermanla

Around this time last year, Chris Ibert was a high school senior from Franklin, Louisiana who was getting ready to commit to Loyola. His love for making music and interest in the culture of New Orleans drew him to St. Charles Avenue. “Loyola isn’t a cheap school, but its music program is incredible, and so are the people here. Thanks to support from my parents and scholarships, I was able to make the stretch and pursue my education here,” he said. One of those scholarships was the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students, more commonly called TOPS — a Louisiana resident based scholarship program giving out almost $300 million to students across the state each year. After previous cuts from earlier budget shortfalls, the scholarship fund is now facing its most detrimental cut yet, as released from an early budget proposal delivered by Louisiana Governor John Bel Ed-

wards on Monday morning. Despite using $291 million in operational funds for the 2017 academic year, the budget proposal would slash its funding to just $58 million. Ibert and many other Loyola students are among the 48,800 students who received TOPS in the fall semester and who could be facing a massive loss in scholarship money as early as fall 2018. Ibert, who is now a Popular and Commercial Arts freshman, said that TOPS is of the utmost importance to in-state students across campus. “Without TOPS funding, I would probably have to leave Loyola,” Ibert said. In recent years of financial problems, the Louisiana legislature has targeted TOPS as one of the first programs to see takeaways. In 2016, TOPS faced a 30 percent funding decrease as the legislature cut funds to prevent further cuts to hospitals around the state. Though still harmful, this was a breath of fresh air for thousands of students statewide. But based on Monday’s proposal, the fund now faces a potential 80 percent cut. Higher education facili-

ties also face a cut of $26 million. “It’s the worst [budget] I’ve ever seen,” Democratic state Representative Pat Smith of Baton Rouge said after hearing the Governor’s remarks. Edwards presented the proposal as a “worst case scenario.” The reason it looks so bad early on is because the temporary taxes have not yet been renewed, and the state legislature has not yet found an alternative replacement to the $1 billion that could be lost. “This is not the budget that I want to present to you, and it’s certainly not the budget that I want implemented. But, these are the choices that have to be made when a billion dollars in revenue has not been replaced. This is what falling off a cliff looks like,” Edwards said after presenting the proposal. Edwards has clashed with the Republican-controlled legislature for years on TOPS and has come out on top in recent years. “I don’t want to see TOPS lose any funding at all,” he said. TOPS has faced drastic cuts before and has fared fine. It is yet to be

Left to right Reps. Johnny Berthelot, R-Gonzales; Reid Falconer, R-Mandeville; Jack McFarland, R-Winnfield; and Lance Harris, R-Alexandria, talk about taxes Jan. 22, 2018, ahead of Gov. John Bel Edwards’ presentation of his worst-case scenario budget if lawmakers don’t replace $1 billion in expiring taxes. MELINDA DESLATTE/AP.

seen whether or not this time will be immensely different. “I am not going to pay a lot of attention to those numbers because I know that’s not going to happen” Lake Charles Republican Representative Mark Abraham said. Many other state leaders have issued similar statements, adding that

we are still months away from the state legislature going into session. It is too early to tell what will result, as nothing will likely be concrete until the end of the summer when the legislature departs Baton Rouge. TOPS information can be checked firsthand at LOFSA.gov.

THE MAROON

January 26, 2018

C R O S S W O R D

Across

1. Closest pal, in IM shorthand 4. Fish-eating raptor 10. Wretched 14. Period of history 15. Put a new flannel layer in, as a coat 16. Fruit punches 17. Nonconformist Harleyriding groups 19. Picky details 20. Chief Norse god 21. “Hulk” director Lee 22. Photoshop creator 23. Longtime “SNL” announcer Don 25. Rose and Orange 28. Hoppy brews, for short 30. Dog command 31. Shake, as with fear 34. Demeanor 35. “__ on a Grecian Urn” 38. Places where critters procreate 41. Camera initials 42. 35-Across, e.g. 43. Gulf War reporter Peter 44. Cancún house 45. Quick cash sources, initially 46. Honey Ryder and Mary Goodnight 50. “Fantastic!” 54. Like beer in a cooler 55. Unit of resistance 57. Lost fish in a Pixar film 58. Letter before eta 59. Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb ... and a hint to 17-, 25-, 38- and 46-Across 62. Rowing tools 63. Pine secretions 64. Antonym of post65. Gin fizz fruit 66. Remove, as a chin strap 67. The “S” in iOS: Abbr.

Down

1. Jazz style 2. Mexican artist Kahlo 3. Fire-walking mystic 4. Bruin legend Bobby 5. Nintendo rival

6. Backup strategies 7. Drummer Starr 8. London’s land: Abbr. 9. “Okay” 10. Graffiti creator, perhaps 11. Figure of speech 12. Do not disturb 13. Letters before tees 18. Curly salad green 22. Child psychologists’ benchmarks 24. Where to find columns with views 26. Millard Fillmore, partywise 27. Ogle 29. Melodic passages 31. NFL play callers 32. Internet address 33. __ Lingus: Irish carrier 34. Roaring-lion studio 35. Washington’s bill

36. Banned pesticide 37. Winter hrs. in most of Michigan 39. Not far 40. Like heroes deserving more recognition 44. Jewel box 45. Hearth receptacle 46. Obnoxious clowns 47. Basketball’s Shaq 48. Part of TNT 49. Rich soil 51. Pals, in slang 52. Nail-filing board 53. Kentucky Derby flowers 56. “American Beauty” actress Suvari 59. __TV: Turner channel 60. Farm layer 61. Telepathy, e.g.

SUDOKU

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Life &Times

January 26, 2018 THE MAROON

Film • Arts • Food • Music • Leisure • Nightlife

WOMEN’S MARCH, continued from page 1

Protesters stand in solidarity during the Women’s March Jan. 20, 2018 at the hills of Duncan Plaza downtown. Protesters held signs on controversial issues of the past year. CALEB BECK/The Maroon.

Pro-Haitians march through Duncan Plaza downtown Jan. 20, 2018 during the Women’s March that day. Many protesters march to stand against Trump’s recent derogatory remarks about Haiti, El Salvador and other countries. MATTHEW DIETRICH/The Maroon.

Women and allies continue through the Central Business District during the Women’s March Jan. 20, 2018. Mayor-elect LaToya Cantrell asked for the crowd to change history by electing women to office in Louisiana. CALEB BECK/The Maroon.

A woman dances for peace on Bourbon Street during the Women’s March Jan. 20, 2018. The route for the march began in the Central Business District, advanced to Canal Street and made its way through the French Quarter before returning to Duncan Plaza where it began. CALEB BECK/The Maroon.

Protesters march down Royal to Canal Street during the Women’s March Jan. 20, 2018. Speaker Nia Weeks from Women with a Vision asked the protesters to keep in mind incarcerated women and sex workers as they marched. CALEB BECK/The Maroon.

Writing Awards Give Students Opportunity to Showcase Work By Payton Whittaker Whittakerpayton0@gmail.com

Students with an apt for writing have the opportunity to present their pieces in an attempt to win the Dawson Gaillard Writing Award with the 37th annual competition taking place this year. Submission acceptance began Jan. 8 and ends on Friday, Feb. 9, and it is open to all Loyola students. There are four categories students can submit pieces under, including fiction, script, poem and general or scholarly essays. The competition is named for Dawson Gaillard, who was a chair of the English department and an editor of the New Orleans Review, a literary publication. “Originally it was just in creative writing,” said John Mosier, Loyola English professor. “We gradually added categories and it got bigger

and bigger.” Mosier oversees the entire competition and reads every submission as an overall evaluation of how the students are doing in their writing. “I’m very pleased with the quality of the submissions,” he said. Members of the English department are the judges of the competition. Because the judges are bound to recognize some of the names on the submissions, the pieces are submitted without a name and are instead attached to a number to avoid bias. “We do it as a sort of blind competition so the entries themselves don’t identify who the author is,” said John Biguenet, English department chairman. One member of the department will do the first reading, and if there is ever any question about which piece should be the winner, the

bunch is then handed off to another faculty member. “Dr. John Mosier oversees the whole competition and settles if there is any question about the winner,” Biguenet said. There is no specific template for how the judges rate a piece of work. The judges look for a piece that seeks to accomplish something and how well the piece succeeds in doing that. Because the judges look for what the writer is trying to accomplish, winners of competitions vary from year to year. “I think what each of the judges is looking for is basically the best of the crop,” Mosier said. Submissions are to be sent to the administrative assistant in Bobet 318. Names of authors are not to be attached to the piece. The competition is always held in the spring and the awards are an-

nounced by the College of Arts and Sciences at the end of the semester. “They’re technically supposed to be secret, but at some point, we tell the winners first so they can make plans with their parents,” Mosier said. Biguenet has helped english writing senior Mackenzie Becker get a copywriting internship in the marketing office. She now works with William Glass, the creative copywriter for Loyola’s Office of Marketing and Communications. “The English department is also very helpful in arranging writing-based internships for students,” Becker said. Additional writing opportunities for Loyola students include other student publications such as the Critical and Creative Arts publication or Reader’s Response: Undergraduate Essays.

UPCOMING EVENTS Pups on the Patio (1/26) Description: The Louisiana SPCA is teaming up with The Boot Bar & Grill tonight to find shelter dogs homes. From 5-8pm, puppies will be in a pet friendly area on the patio. Happy hour deals available (21+). Dog-friendly event! Location: The Boot

Krewe Du View (1/27) Description: Krewe du Vieux returns to kick off Mardi Gras with their parade, noted for it’s wild satire, adult themes and political comedy, as well as for showcasing some of the best brass and jazz bands in New Orleans. Location: French Quarter

January 26, 2018

THE MAROON

January 26, 2018

The Maroon

Louisiana Governor considering work requirements in Medicaid By Melinda Deslatte, Associated Press Louisiana is developing a proposal to impose work requirements on certain adult Medicaid recipients, as the Trump administration announced Thursday it will allow states to enact such provisions. Gov. John Bel Edwards said his administration is “actively working” on the concept, which would require federal approval. The Democratic governor talked of the proposal broadly in a speech Monday as part of a list of legislative agenda items, and he repeated his intention in a statement Thursday. The details of what Louisiana is crafting — and how many low-income people in Louisiana’s $12.5 billion Medicaid program it would affect — aren’t clear. Edwards said he wants the work requirements to be “reasonable,” with exceptions for people in school or training programs. He said Louisiana has hired a consulting firm that helped develop a similar work requirement proposal for Kentucky, which is awaiting a federal decision. “We’re looking at people who are able-bodied, and it has to accommodate those who are in work training or education,” he said. “We’re looking for a requirement that actually make sense.” Because Medicaid is a government-financed health insurance program with shared expenses between the state and federal governments, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has to agree to enact such work require-

Gov. John Bel Edwards speaks at an end-of-year news conference on Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana Edwards set a Jan. 19 deadline to reach a tax deal with House Republican leaders to close a $1 billion budget gap. If no deal is reached, the Democratic governor says he won’t call a February special legislative session. MELINDA DESLATTE/AP.

ments. On Thursday, the federal agency offered a roadmap for states seeking support for waivers imposing the requirements. After the announcement, Edwards issued a statement saying his administration will use the new guidance to “continue de-

veloping a Louisiana-specific program for our Medicaid program as we go forward.” The governor’s proposal to enact work requirements caught some off-guard, since Edwards administration officials with the state health department previously expressed

concern about similar suggestions. Critics of Medicaid work requirements say they can penalize poor people who may be unable to find employment and could lose life-saving health insurance. The Louisiana Budget Project, which advocates for low- to mod-

erate-income families, said many nonworking Medicaid recipients have circumstances that make it difficult for them to work. Bumping people out of the Medicaid program could end up driving up uninsured costs that fall on hospitals, health providers and the state, the organization says. In Louisiana, Medicaid covers 1.6 million people, about one-third of the state’s population, including newborns, pregnant women, elderly nursing home residents, people with developmental disabilities and, through the Medicaid expansion, hundreds of thousands of working-age adults. The federal guidelines say the administration would consider work requirements for “able-bodied, working-age” Medicaid recipients. States could require alternatives to work, including volunteering, caregiving, education, job training and treatment for a substance abuse problem. The guidance said states should exclude pregnant women, disabled people and the elderly and take into account hardships for people in areas with high unemployment, or for people caring for children or elderly relatives. State legislative efforts to try to enact Medicaid work requirements have been unable to gain traction. Sen. Sharon Hewitt, a Slidell Republican, proposed the idea last year, but it went nowhere amid worries raised by the state health department and others about forcing people off Medicaid rolls.

SPORTS Leah Banks sprints past the competition

January 26, 2018 The Maroon

By Will Ingram wringram@my.loyno.edu

@CodyWrites

Leah Banks, mass communication junior, broke 10 records in both outdoor and indoor track and field during the 2017 season. Banks said she wants to be “the demonstrative piece for what hard work and determination” can give athletes. CRISTIAN ORELLANA/ The Maroon.

campus,” she said. “It was something I knew would be a challenge since the heptathlon is not an easy event and it takes a lot of patience and motivation, but I thought that I had what it took to make that happen and achieve great things.” Head coach Nicholas Dodson noticed motivation was a key for Banks last year. It drove her to historic success, and he said this year is nothing different. “She is a fierce competitor and responds well when competition arrives. I usually just go over our race plans and strategies each week and set the expectation, and then she goes in her own zone,” he said.

With the 2018 season in full swing, Banks looks to build upon her previous success. “My goal this year is to do better and be better than I was last year,” she said. “Last year brought about a lot of setbacks and there were numerous things that I had to overcome. This year, with the training and the process, I feel more confident in being top three in the nation in both indoor and outdoor seasons.” With only two years left at Loyola, she would like to leave a legacy of high standards for the program, the athletic department and Loyola itself.

“I want to be the true definition of the quote that says, ‘For the victory does not go to the swift, but to those who endure to the end,’” Banks said. “I want to set a standard. I want to be that demonstrative piece for what hard work and determination can truly get an athlete who sets goals for themselves.” She wishes to not only make her mark at Loyola, but to have her legacy celebrated as one of the greatest. “I want to be remembered as one of the greatest ever to wear a Loyola track and field uniform. I want my mark to be long-lasting and ultimately unforgettable,” she said.

Club sports struggle to receive transportation funds By Will Ingram wringram@my.loyno.edu @WillIngram4

Imagine devoting time and energy to practice, meetings, studying plays and working out in order to do your best in the sports you love, yet you are missing one pivotal thing: a way to get to the game. Loyola club sports have not been receiving the funds they need in order to travel and compete to the best of their ability. The vans used for clubs sports are showing their age and disrepair, causing issues for club sports traveling to practices and competitions. Sailing team captain Sofia Giordano has expressed her concern explaining that the vans purchased by the school are no longer able to leave the city. “Our main issue that has caused extensive headaches among our team is that we do not have adequate transportation to get us to events,” she said. According to Giordano, the club sports department has two 12-passenger vans. One of them is from 1990 and unable to make trips outside of the city. The van issue has progressed into such a problem that the team has even been unable to compete. “This past fall semester we knew we had several out-of-state compe-

Loyola baseball to host scholarship and team fundraiser By Cody Downey cadowney@my.loyno.edu

@WillIngram4

Since the age of the Ancient Greeks, track and field has been used to test the physicality of the human body through speed endurance and strength. Only the best runners, jumpers, and throwers got the chance to stand on the highest pedestal and take home the gold medal. For Loyola, one such athlete has proven herself to always stand on a pedestal whether as a runner, jumper or thrower. Mass communication junior Leah Banks set the 2017 Loyola track and field program on fire as she broke 10 school records in both indoor and outdoor events, placed on the Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-State team and was Loyola’s first ever National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Outdoor Track and Field All-American for finishing sixth in the heptathlon, a competition consisting of seven track and field events. “My motivation last year was simply to do something that hadn’t been done before,” Banks said. “It was something that I truly wanted and desired, and I continued to work hard even when I wasn’t at practice in order to make that possible. I wanted to be in the record books and make history, and I worked for it.” Having her name in record books was a goal of hers even before she became a member of the Wolf Pack. “Being a heptathlete, winning medals and breaking records was something that I wanted to do from the moment I set foot on Loyola’s

titions that we would need transportation in order to attend,” Giordano said. “So during the summer we put in a request to use the second van that was able to make trips out of the city. We were told we would be able to use it for all our out-of-state competitions. Then, two days before our first competition, we were told the van was in the shop and we could not take it.” With her past experiences with the vans, Giordano believes that the future will not be any brighter. “A few years ago there were four vans, two died and were never replaced. So I can imagine that when the current vans die, they will not be replaced, and the club sports will be left with nothing,” she said. Giordano said that her team often had to go through extreme measures when traveling. After the team was denied access to the vans twice because of maintenance, Giordano said the team had to rent cars for transportation and get reimbursed by the Student Government Association. With most of her team being under 21, renting cars for the team was a challenge. Giordano said she is concerned that the expensive reimbursement way affect other club sports, not just the sailing team. “Although we were reimbursed for the rental from SGA, this expen-

As baseball season steps up to the plate, the Loyola baseball team gets ready to host the First Pitch Scholarship Fundraiser. Ticket sales for the event go directly into the Wolf Pack Baseball Development Fund, while raffle tickets sold at the event go to fund the Coach Louis “Rags” Scheuermann Baseball Scholarship for first-generation student athletes. The scholarship is dedicated to Scheuermann, who served as head coach from 1957 to 1972 and led the team to a record of 340 wins and 92 losses. The event was started in 2010 by a group of Loyola baseball alum who wanted to create a scholarship for baseball players that would honor their former coach. “In my years working at Loyola, I’ve heard so many wonderful stories about Coach Rags,” assistant vice president for alumni engagement Laurie Leiva said. Leiva said that the fundraiser is significant as it benefits Loyola athletes and honors a Loyola legend. “The Rags Scheuermann Scholarship Fundraiser has evolved to be a dual purpose event that provides the opportunity for Wolf Pack Athletics and the Alumni Association to come together and celebrate the start of the new baseball season and the legacy of Coach Rags,” Leiva said. Head baseball coach Doug Faust said that he sees the fundraiser as an opportunity to bridge the gap between current and former players. “The event brings the Loyola baseball alumni and the current Loyola baseball players together, allowing them to meet and get to know each other,” said Faust. Tickets for the event can be bought online for $50 per person. The ticket covers the cost of the dinner buffet, beer, wine and donation to the baseball team. The festivities start at 6 p.m on Feb. 1 at Rock ‘N’ Bowl.

Two Loyola legends inducted into Hall of Fame By Andres Fuentes aafuente@my.loyno.edu @af_nola

A Loyola New Orleans club sports van sits in a parking lot on campus Jan. 11, 2017. Loyola New Orleans club sports teams can’t leave the city limits to compete because one of the two vans available for transport is overdue for maintenance and can leave them stranded. CRISTIAN ORELLANA/ The Maroon.

sive option takes money away from other organizations simply because the department does not replace their outdated vehicles,” she said. After all of her frustration, Giordano and her team simply wish represent Loyola well and only ask for transportation from the school. Zach Bracey, assistant director of campus recreation, is well versed in the transportation issue that the club sports are facing. “While I wish we were able to have van(s) for club sports to travel,

it is not currently warranted based on the limited amount of travel for competitions. The available vans are also not in the condition necessary to travel extended distances,” Bracey said in an email. Bracey said that he is doing the best he can to find a solution to the issue. “I will continue to look for ways to improve the travel experiences of club sports, as I know the current situation is not the most convenient or ideal for everyone,” he said.

Loyola basketball star Ryan Brock and the 2002 volleyball team were both inducted into the Hall of Fame this past Saturday. Brock, a local legend with his time at Brother Martin, joined Loyola in 2008. While on the basketball team, Brock was an offensive phenom as he lead the conference in scoring in each season he played. In his final season, he lead his team in points, rebounds, assists and steals, and was named best player in the Southern States Athletic Conference West Division. The 2002 volleyball team made its mark on Loyola history. The squad achieved a school record of 16 consecutive wins. It went undefeated in conference play and won its fourth-straight conference title and its second consecutive regional title.

EDITORIAL

January 26, 2018 THE MAROON

OUR EDITORIAL

The majority opinion of our editorial board

HOWLS & GROWLS HOWL to Bruff mugs GROWL to OR Styrofoam cups HOWL to city council hexes GROWL to ex-wizards turned politicians HOWL to being able to be outside again GROWL to no newspaper HOWL to peacoats and turtlenecks Have a howl or growl? Tweet us at @loyola_maroon to be featured each Friday!

EDITORIAL BOARD Sidney Holmes

Editor-in-Chief

Paulina Picciano

Managing Editor for Print

Erin Snodgrass

Managing Editor for Electronic Properties

Amy Ngo

Maroon Minute Executive Producer

Hayley Hynes

Design Chief

Osama Ayyad

Photo Editor

Madison McLoughlin

News Editor

Kaylie Saidin Paulina Picciano Miles Rouen Andres Fuentes

Life & Times Editor Wolf Editor Worldview Editor Sports Editor

Nick Reimann

Editorial Editor

Katelyn Fecteau

Opinion Editor

Ashley Pajak

Copy Editor

Crysten Price

Copy Editor

JC Canicosa Cristian Orellana Anderson Leal

Senior Staff Writer Senior Staff Photographer Director of Public Relations

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.

Sleet, not sneaux, falls in front of the Loyola letters at the Horseshoe on Jan. 16, 2018. Loyola was the last 4-year-university in New Orleans to cancel classes for that day. ANDERSON LEAL/The Maroon.

Loyola goes on ice break Last week, there was no print edition of The Maroon. You might have noticed. Even if you only wanted to pick up a copy to cover your head from freezing rain, our newsstands were noticeably empty — along with the rest of campus. And if you live in the dorms and decided to walk around last Wednesday or Thursday, you’d know why. Loyola was a proper ice rink. That’s why there’s no doubting the decision to cancel classes on Wednesday and Thursday was the right move, but there’s also no doubting it was a late move, as everything from City Hall to elementary schools sent out word they were closing before Loyola did. Most with a rational grasp on New Orleans’ ability to handle winter weather events saw this coming, but for some reason, Loyola seemed bent on toughing it out. An email sent out on Jan. 16 by Interim Provost David Borofsky said that normal operations planned to

remain for Jan. 17, even though it acknowledged that other schools across the city were shutting down. It was only late in the afternoon of Jan. 16, after the Commuter Student Association rightly sent out their own email telling students to only come to class if roadways were safe that Loyola decided to change its mind, canceling classes for the 17th. It was a similar story with the waiting game the next day. Loyola’s tardiness wasn’t without consequences, as everyone tried to plan for the next day, under “normal operations,” even though the rest of the city was closed. You might’ve even noticed some Maroon staffers skidding through campus as we still had the idea school would open soon enough for us to put together a newspaper. Yeah — no. We weren’t about to have someone break their leg trying to get to our office. So our question is: What was Loyola thinking in the first place? When it sent out that email reiterating that we were staying open

even though the entire city closed, what were they possibly thinking? This isn’t the Midwest. We don’t have a supply of snowplows and trucks to salt the road waiting on standby for situations like this. We don’t have the option to keep roadways open for any event less than a blizzard. And it wasn’t even snow we dealt with — it was freezing rain and ice, which anyone with experience living with winter weather will tell you is the most dangerous to drive in. So on a campus where 56 percent of students don’t live on it, and in a city filled with bridges, deciding not to put they nor their instructors lives at risk by driving on frozen roads wouldn’t seem like a hard, last-second decision. It’s an easy one. But for anyone who listened to their professors go over their syllabuses in the first week of classes, guess it shouldn’t come as a surprise. First day of class — professor: “Now let’s take a look at the emer-

gency prep part of the syllabus … well, hurricane season’s over. K. Thnx. Bye.” It may have gotten colder than usual last week, but this nonchalant approach to winter weather threats is unfounded. We get winter weather events in New Orleans. It happens. In 2014, sleet, snow and/or freezing rain events happened in south Louisiana four times — with two of those coming in the span of a week, while Louisiana’s only been hit by a hurricane twice in the last nine years. Bottom line, Loyola needs to be aware of winter weather events and be proactive when those situations come. We shouldn’t need someone dying — like what happened to a baby in Metairie — to remind us of how dangerous those situations are. So, again, good move by canceling classes. Let’s just figure out the obvious a little earlier next time.

OPINION

January 26, 2018 The Maroon

It’s never too early to learn philosophy catherine grace rice Philosophy senior

Ask the pack

Ask the Pack is a weekly question posed to the Loyola community. This week, we asked students:

kgrice@my.loyno.edu

Every Monday or Tuesday afternoon, a group of Loyola students, led by either Dr. Constance Mui or Dr. Joel MacClellan, can be found pondering some tough questions with a group of eager third graders. Welcome to Philosopher Kids, a community outreach program run by Loyola’s philosophy department, in which student volunteers spend the afternoon with third graders from Crocker College Prep, a local charter school, once a week. After a game of “Simon Says,” “red light, green light” or some other way to shake some post-school energy, we read a children’s book with the students and engage them in a discussion about philosophical themes it contains. In previous weeks we have read “The Giving Tree” (altruism, our relationship to nature), “The Stinky Cheese Man” (marginalization, loneliness), “Sneetches” (prejudice) and “The Ugly Duckling” (beauty). It has been such a joy to see these kids open up to us over the last few months. Their reading has improved exponentially, as well as their critical thinking skills and hopefully their level of compassion. There have been some ups and downs, mostly behavioral, but it is also very apparent that, at the end of the day, the children do indeed appreciate our efforts to teach them basic philosophical concepts and to invite them to think abstractly about big questions. I find it so important to start incorporating basic philosophical ideas into early childhood education. Although many of these children come from challenging backgrounds, they are curious about big questions, and they are interested

If you could invent a class to take at Loyola, what would it be?

Raven evans Music Industry senior rmevans@my.loyno. edu

“Do a class on adulting. There are certain aspects of adulting that I don’t understand, and I need to be taught about that.”

Lawrence D. Crocker College Prep School students participate in Philosophy for Kids, a community outreach program run by Loyola’s Philosophy Department, in a classroom at the prep school, October 1, 2017, in New Orleans. OANH NGUYEN/Courtesy.

in learning. The couple of hours each week that we spend with the students, encouraging them to discuss ethical questions and showing them the importance of thinking and using their minds, will hopefully be a gift that keeps on giving. The children are all so unique and smart and seeing their faces light up when they answer a question correctly or understand a challenging concept is incomparable. As much as it is good for the children, however, I have found it to be equally rewarding for myself. Getting to know these precious kids

who have already seen so much in their seven or eight years has opened my eyes to the universality of childhood wonder. There is not a single child that should be kept from his or her full educational potential. Each and every one of these children has something special to offer the world, and hopefully, in its own small way, Philosopher Kids is helping them all see that. It has been my pleasure to be a Philosopher Kids facilitator, and it will continue to be one of my most cherished memories while a student at Loyola. Engaging with New Orle-

ans youth about a subject so important to me has definitely shaped me as a person. I hope to see some of these children become leaders in their community someday, and I am confident that they will. Each and every one of these third graders is overflowing with potential to be great human beings, and it becomes apparent when they are engaged and learning about the world around them with eager eyes and an open mind.

Try embracing a New Year’s anti resolution jorrie tays Mass communication freshman jmtays@my.loyno. edu

It’s no secret that each new year after the next, all around the globe everyone’s new mantra is “new year, new me!” This mantra is often accompanied by intentions of losing a certain amount of weight, earning some sort of work promotion, raising GPAs by a couple decimal points or any other goal an individual may have put off working toward. Unfortunately, most of the time, these goals are only prioritized temporarily, eventually leading a person to fall off and become consumed with other things, much like previous years. This ultimately results in defeat, leaving those who were incapable of fulfilling their resolutions with a pretty crummy outlook on the year ahead. Establishing resolutions may

seem like the perfect opportunity for growth, but irony insists that they become a person’s downfall. A new year has always been something I have looked forward to even from an early age. Whipping out a fresh calendar, planning all the things to come, is all very exciting to me. Admittedly, I too often got caught up in the new year resolution cycle. As I grew older, I began to realize that at the end of January I was left feeling incompetent, unable to accomplish any of my goals. Maybe I made too many resolutions? Maybe next year I should aim for less? And so, I did, condensing my list of resolutions each year to only those I felt were attainable. Still with minimal success, I have decided that my best years have been those where I did not have a resolution at all. This year, I have decided to challenge myself. As far as New Year’s resolutions go I only have one: do more of what makes me happy. In my 18 years, I have discovered that I am my worst critic. I can imagine that this is true for others,

dylan tran Music senior djtran@my.loyno.edu

“A music business class, for non-music industry majors.”

Bryant istre Political science junior bjistre@my.loyno.edu

“A course involving more practical experience, maybe some sort of work in the community that would involve politics and bringing the community to classes at Loyola.”

Laura koessler

Business management sophomore lhkoessl@my.loyno.edu

“I would like a class that would focus on how to do taxes.”

Matthew Waldron, A ‘03, does a cardio exercise at the Loyola University Sports Complex, Jan. 24, 2018. Some people make New Year’s resolutions to embrace a healthier lifestyle, making January one of the busiest months at many gyms. KATELYN FECTEAU/ The Maroon.

all of us experiencing the same subtle sensation of sadness early in the year when we have let ourselves down again. In a way, my goal to be happy this year is almost an anti-resolution. I am still challenging myself, but not in a way that can be measured with numbers or the attainment of a position. It is my hope that in 2019, I

can look back at 2018 and measure my success in smiles and memories. By prioritizing my own happiness, it is nearly impossible to go into the following year feeling anything other than that. As we all make our New Year’s resolutions, I think we should all consider making “anti resolutions” and hope for a happier year.

Richard simmerman Political science freshman rwsimmer@my.loyno.edu

“I would really ask for a Louisiana politics class, because I think it’s really important especially for the political climate here.”

January 26, 2018

The Maroon

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