Mar 18th, 2021

The Marlin Chronicle THURSDAY 3.18.21 || MARLINCHRONICLE.VWU.EDU

VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY

Virtual climate action summit connects students

BY STEVEN SERRANO-CRUZ sdserranocruz@vwu.edu

Alex Powers|Marlin Chronicle

‘No fan’ policy alienates Marlin community

BY ALEX POWERS ampowers@vwu.edu & NICHOLAS MUNDY namundy@vwu.edu

“We’re not allowed to do that.”

That’s the message you get when you call to ask to use parking at Heritage United Methodist Church on Baker Rd. The church sits adjacent to Virginia Wesleyan University’s TowneBank Arena, where the Marlin baseball and softball teams compete.

“I believe the extent that the university has gone to make sure there’s no spectators has upset the softball family that we have,” says Mike Glaubke, parent of a fifth-year player on the Marlins two-time national champion softball team.

Glaubke and the softball team are not alone. All sports have been impacted. Frustration with the ‘no fan’ policy has escalated among the Marlin community, without explanation or an expec-

tation of change from the Athletic Department.

The Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) announced Jan. 11 that there will be no spectators allowed at any indoor athletic competition.

On Feb. 16, the VWU Athletic Department released their Outdoor Sports Spectator Policy for the 2021 spring semester sports seasons.

“Only game essential personnel will be allowed in or around practice and competition sites” for all sports, effectively barring all friends, fans, and family. The ‘no fans’ decision was made “out of an abundance of caution and for the continued health” of the Marlin community explained the news release.

Student Athletic Advisory Committee President Skyler Lattuca explained the trouble in creating a policy, with or without SAAC’s input. “When the

Greek life returns strong in spring

[ODAC] conference as a whole fails to come up with something that dictates [to] all of us, and we have all these sports coming up very quickly, the best thing you can do is make a blanket call to start until we can really have a plan in place.”

In a mid-February interview with Marlin Chronicle sports reporter Shirell Washington, Virginia Wesleyan University Executive Director of Athletics Joanne Renn similarly acknowledged the challenges of an athletics season featuring more than a dozen sports playing at the same time.

“We’ve got to worry about game management still because we have brand new protocols.”

She notes the added measures the Athletic Department must take to let the teams play safely. “There’s a lot going on in and around competition that normally doesn’t involve that,” Renn said.

“Campus protocol right now is that we’re pretty much trying to maintain our bubble, and we did a really good job last fall.”

Of the 15 schools in the ODAC, VWU is the only one without any fans allowed for outdoor sporting events. Each of the other schools have instituted safeguards such as allotting 2 spectator tickets per student-athlete, capping total spectators at 250 or 30% of capacity (adherent to the Second Amended Executive Order 72 from Governor Ralph Northam), and requiring masks and social distancing.

Naturally, the responses from parents not being able to watch their kids have been of frustration.

“I was very disappointed to hear that parents could not be spectators at any of the sports,” says Parent 1, a parent of a volleyball

See GREEK Page 4

Nicholas Mundy|Marlin Chronicle Banners for VWU’s fraternities and sororities hang outside of Batten Plaza.

See CLIMATE Page 2

Senator, delegate share perspectives on new legislation

BY ISAAC GUZMAN imguzman@vwu.edu

Since the end of January, all Greek Life has been limited to virtual events. The executive decision by Governor Northam to transition into phase three has allowed for smaller events like fundraising or recruiting to be held in person at Virginia Wesleyan University. However, most events remain in the virtual format.

There have been challenges and limitations for these leaders and organizations, but positivity has prevailed as these sororities and fraternities continue to brainstorm new ideas for events and also try to honor some old favorites for the VWU community.

Zeta Phi Beta leader, Analaysia Davis said that her favorite event was game night. “I think I can speak for our chapter when I say we loved the game night. It was really fun and we are all pretty competitive” Davis said.

The game plan for the Zeta Phi Betas is to organize and operate the events with “all hands on deck from all of the women, and to exemplify finer womanhood in all of our events. We also try to also uphold our principles, scholarship and service, with everything we do. COVID-19 is presenting a difficult time for the Zeta [Phi Beta]s in terms of hosting virtual events. Also, the hardest thing we are facing is getting the campus community to attend virtual events. It is important to stress that virtual doesn’t mean it can’t still be fun,” Davis said.

President Bria Covington of Tri-Sigma said, “I think this event had amazing timing. I, too, have been procrastinating some activities and things, and this is the best time to have everyone sit down together as students and get stuff done.”

The sorority’s brainstorming for this event took into consideration mental health and self care. “Our chapter places a huge emphasis and importance on mental health and self-care. The pandemic and academics have been draining for everyone so I thought that a self-care breakout room would be beneficial for everyone” Covington said.

Eric Fisher and the members of Kappa Alpha Psi have not hosted an event yet, but he said, “stay tuned, the school will not be disappointed.” Their events on campus were planned out to be bigger and closer in distance, but with the COVID-19 restrictions, these events have proven more difficult to accomplish.

“The lack of human interaction is the biggest challenge.

Personally, I’m an extrovert and I enjoyed the in person interactions last year. Never took it for granted, but

See FANS Page 7

Virginia Wesleyan University served as a host for the 2021 Climate Action Pursuit event.

This event was held virtually from February 24 to February 26.

Professors, faculty members and students were given the opportunity to participate in these events that had the presence of professionals who were providing learning experiences and planning on how the participants could work together towards climate and justice.

Junior Sophia Gonzales participated in one of the three events that were held that week. Gonzales is currently an Earth and Environmental Studies major with a double minor in Business and Communications.

She related to topics that were about the environment and climate because of her experience in the field. Nonetheless, the topic that combined social justice with environmental factors was one that caught her attention.

“The one that I attended was about Racial Equity Investing 101 and it was called ‘No Justice, No Peace without the person’s free portfolios,’ and I heard from a diverse panel of women, topics that I didn’t even think about until I listened to it,” Gonzales said.

“The event was pretty engaging,

Facebook|Courtesy Jen Kiggans (left) and Nancy Guy (right) represent VWU’s district in the General Assembly.

The 2021 Legislative Session of the Virginia General Assembly has adjourned after a 46-day session that left a number of dramatic law changes sitting on the Governor’s desk. The Democratic-controlled Assembly passed reforms to the criminal justice and electoral systems and expanded workers’ rights.

Governor Ralph Northam has already signed 80 of the bills sent to his desk from this session. Amongst those already signed into law is a bill that lifts the prohibition on abortion coverage in health insurance sold on the state marketplace, and a bill that prohibits schools from filing suit against parents of students who can’t pay school lunch debts.

Northam also signed a bill that was passed unanimously in both houses to expand the number of health care providers who can administer the COVID vaccine, widening the

BY BRIANNA SANDY bnsandy@vwu.edu

pool to include qualified nursing students and other medical professionals.

Still unsigned are several significant bills that have gotten national attention, including a law that would make Virginia the first state in the South to eliminate the death penalty. Criminal justice reform also included automatic expungement of eight misdemeanors with the option to petition the court for other charges to be expunged after seven years of good behavior and a prohibition on sending people on parole back to prison on a technical parole violation such as missing a meeting with a parole officer.

Lawmakers also passed laws that would legalize small amounts of recreational marijuana beginning in 2024.

The Assembly eliminated the so-called “panic” defense, which allowed people charged with attacking LGBT individuals to claim that they acted out of fear after realizing the victim was same-gender attracted or transgender.

The part of the Virginia Constitution that defined marriage as between a man and a woman was also revoked in this session. It still needs to be approved by the majority of the Assembly next year in order to become a voter referendum, which could occur in November 2022.

Five universities and colleges built or maintained by slaves were ordered to pay reparations by way of scholarships or community programs. The universities include Longwood University, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia Military Institute and the College of William & Mary. Another bill will allow undocumented immigrants to apply for financial aid for college. K-12 schools will be mandated to provide an in-person option for education beginning in the fall.

The Chronicle spoke to Senator Jen Kiggans and Delegate Nancy Guy, who represent Virginia Wesleyan’s in the

See ASSEMBLY Page 3

Swim team shatters 13 school records at ODACs

BY SHIRELL WASHINGTON sawashington@vwu.edu

The Virginia Wesleyan University swim team came to play and show that they are a force to be reckoned with this year. The Marlins competed in three swim meets for both men and women this season, including ODACs. Due to COVID related concerns some of their scheduled swim meets were cancelled or postponed which caused the Marlins to have a shortened season.

“This season posed a lot of challenges for us, but the team really came together and relied on each other at practices and the small racing opportunities we had, and brought us together as a family,” said Sophomore Chloe Dewberry. “Once our team was growing we really showed we are a force to be reckoned with. Now we are showing that we are here to compete with those big schools.”

On the women’s side, the Marlins went 1-1 overall during the regular season as they took a loss 239-22 to the University of Lynchburg Hornets. Then, they took home the win 117-108 on senior day in a home game against the Vixens of Sweet Briar University. There were second and third place finishes as well in the 500 yard free and 100 yard breaststroke.

On the men’s side, the Marlins went 0-2 overall during the regular season as they took losses 228-23 to the Univer-

vwu.edu|Courtesy In their fourth season of competition , the men’s and women’s programs have shown immense growth.

sity of Lynchburg Hornets and 183-53 to the HampdenSydney Tigers.

“The team overall, we really took those challenges and turned them into something better. We really went for it but we are ready to be together and racing again next year,” said Dewberry.

At the 2021 ODAC championship, the Marlins showed

See SWIM Page 7

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Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

News

VWU reports five new COVID-19 cases in latest updates

BY CONNOR MERK

ccmerk@vwu.edu

There has been a minimal amount of COVID-19 cases announced in the last few updates from the Emergency Response Team. There were two confirmed cases between Feb. 26 and March 4 and three confirmed cases between March 5 and 11.

This brings the total number of cumulative confirmed cases to 34 and 31 total cleared cases.

The VWU Emergency Response Team stated in an email update on March 12 that the Virginia Department of Health has asked state residents to verify and update their COVID-19 vaccine pre-registration information in the new statewide system. They recommend that if an individual has not updated their information, they should take the time to review their information and answer the additional questions added to the form. This can be done at the Vaccinate Virginia website: vaccinate.virginia.gov.

According to the Virginia Department of Health, as of March 16, Virginia has had over 597,000 total confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, over 25,000 confirmed and probable hospitalizations, and nearly 10,000 confirmed and probable deaths. Regarding localities near VWU, Virginia Beach has had 31,937 cases of COVID-19 and Norfolk has had 15,467 cases as of March 16.

Other universities in our region are facing this challenge as well.

For example, Old Dominion University, which has 24,000 students, had 12 confirmed cases between March 5 and March 11.

Norfolk State University, which has 5,000 students, has 67 positive COVID-19 cases as of March 10. As of March 16, Christopher Newport University, which also has 5,000 students, currently has six active student cases with a total of 251 cumulative cases in 2021. Also, William & Mary, which has 8,000 students, has seven active cases as of March 16.

This comes as Governor Northam has made key changes to his COVID-19 mitigation

regulations relating to social gatherings, entertainment venues and dining establishments.

According to a news release from the Office of the Governor, “Governor Northam is beginning to ease public health restrictions by taking steps to increase capacity limits in outdoor settings, where evidence shows the risk of airborne transmission of COVID-19 is lower.”

For social gatherings, the maximum number of individuals permitted in a social gathering will increase from 10 to 25 people for outdoor settings, while remaining at 10 persons for indoor settings.

Additionally, outdoor entertainment and public amusement venues will be able to operate with up to 1,000 individuals or at 30 percent capacity, whichever is lower.

Indoor entertainment and public amusement venues must continue to operate at 30 percent capacity with a cap of 250 people.

Previously, entertainment venues were limited to a maximum of 250 individuals.

For dining establishments, the on-site sale, consumption, and possession of alcohol will be permitted until midnight, extended from 10:00 p.m.

The delegation that represents VWU on the state level, Delegate Nancy Guy (D) and State Senator Jen Kiggans (R) expressed differing opinions on Northam’s leadership during the pandemic in an interview with Chronicle news reporter Brianna Sandy.

Guy approves of Northam’s actions and is appreciative of his medical background. “I think the governor’s done a masterful job.

He is, as you know, a physician.

And not only is he a physician, he is a physician who has worked in crisis situations as an army doctor in a time of war, [who had] to allocate scarce resources and understands the need to, to make those decisions about what goes where, when,” Guy said. “And I feel like he’s surrounded himself with good people and done exactly that.”

CLIMATE CONTINUED FROM PG. 1 we had 20 people on the call and even though we didn’t really have time for a lot of questions, I still felt that what they had to say was so important.”

The event was made with a relaxed and flexible schedule for students to connect whenever they got the chance. “For the event, you just had to sign up and you can go whenever you want, you don’t have to miss class or anything,” freshman Edward McDonald said.

McDonald said that of all the themes that they talked about in this event, the most interesting topics for him were the financially responsible ones. “I went to a bunch of different sections that had to do with being more environmentally conscious with your money. They were talking about how to invest in communities along with ESG foams.”

He also added that this conference gave him ideas and knowledge on how people can invest in companies that will help the environment. “The companies that they present were kind of more ‘morally okay’ to invest in,” McDonald said. “Like

Connor Merk|Marlin Chronicle

Guy also commends Northam’s ability to make decisions about what restrictions to instate and how to allocate resources. “In terms of PPP, we were way ahead of most states in that sphere [and that was] responsible for us keeping that [coronavirus] at bay.

And hopefully there’s light at the end of the tunnel.”

Additionally, Guy mentioned that we cannot eradicate this disease, so it is important to keep the case number curve flat enough in order for the healthcare infrastructure to handle the patients using their services.

She has also tracked the Virginia Department of Health and Virginia Association of Hospitals and Healthcare Providers website to examine the statistics and has come to the conclusion that Virginia has effectively handled the virus.

“I track not just the VDH website that shows, who has it, you know, how many cases were reported. I track the Virginia Association of Hospitals and Healthcare Providers to see how our hospitalization rates are going, how many people are in ICU, how many people are on ventilators, what our capacity is, and we never got into the red.

Never,” Guy stated.

investing in green technology and divesting from fossil fuels.” In the future, McDonald would like to specialize more in this field of financial and environmental studies.

Being her first event that she attended at VWU, Freshman Alecia Fischman expressed that equity being connected with environmental discussion is one of the most important topics that people have to know about. “There is a problem in the U.S. today where environmental issues are affecting minorities more and I do not think that this is talked about enough or recognized about enough,” Fischman said.

One of the topics that was most interesting and important for these students was the combination of social justice and environment. Students expressed that the communication of the message was fluid and understandable.

“It was easy to understand these topics.

They went into what racial equity investing and the definition of racial equity versus racial justice,” Gonzales said. She firmly believed that this conference helped make her a better agent of change.

“It was not people saying only facts or anything like that, there were a lot of key note conversations that were about

On the other hand, Senator Kiggans critiqued the Northam administration for their handling of the pandemic. “We didn’t do a good job in the beginning. I think everybody would admit to that, probably. Probably, he [Northam] would as well. We were ranked, what? 49 out of 50?” Kiggans said. “The beginning rankings were not good and I really wish that we would have prepared a little bit more. I think that we probably should have had more foresight into some of the barriers that we encountered early on, you know, what was this going to look like, what do we need.”

Kiggans also criticized the set-up of the vaccine registration hotline. She wished that the state government would have had the foresight to prepare the program for individuals who do not use computers on a regular basis, especially older adults.

“I was in close contact with the health department, I know those guys were trying. We were asking them to do things that they just don’t do on a regular basis and vaccinate the entire population of Virginia as fast as possible. That’s not what they’re normally doing,” Kiggans said. “There was a lot of room for improvement, I’ll say that. I think it’s slowly getting

what is going on right now in the world,” Fischman said.

The event was held virtually to comply with social distancing protocols. Students claimed that despite this, it was very interactive and informative. “I think that being virtual kinda makes me more comfortable, it made me feel better,” Fischman said.

McDonald explained that he really liked the fact that he did not have to miss class to attend one of these conferences. “I was able to switch between meetings without causing much of a disruption, so I was able to get the highlights of each one,”

better and I know that some of the rankings, you know, Virginia has moved up and up and up. So, we’re doing a better job, but it would have been a better thing to have just a smoother rollout.”

Recent public opinion data released by The Harris Poll COVID-19 Tracker (Week 54) fielded March 5th to 7th, among 1,963 U.S. adults, resulted in interesting findings about Americans’ thoughts on the pandemic. In response to the question, “Are we out of the woods yet?” 57% said not yet and we are in the same position as we were in summer 2020, 43% stated that the current state of the pandemic is not as bad as previous months because of vaccination efforts.

Additionally, The Harris Poll response examined what Americans think about the mitigation restrictions. 30% say that the restrictions should be lifted only after a consistent decline in cases and hospitalizations. 28% stated that regulations should be lifted once everyone who wants the vaccine is able to get it. 9% said it should occur when those in priority vaccination groups are vaccinated. 19% said they should be lifted right now.

McDonald said.

The speakers of these conferences made everything more accessible and easy for the audience members. Gonzales expressed that she would have enjoyed an in-person conference, but it was still engaging and interesting.

This event was one of the four milestone events that the Second Nature organization has planned. Other events will take place on June 10-11, October 7-8, and December 9-10, 2021. Students interested in these events have the opportunity to also submit session proposals for them to be discussed in these virtual conferences.

Emily Uzzle|Marlin Chronicle

Enrollment Office adapts to COVID-related adversities In spite of hesitations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, application and enrollment numbers at Virginia Wesleyan “are looking strong” according to Vice President for Enrollment Heather Campbell. Campbell claims that students do not seem any more hesitant than in years prior to apply or enroll at the university, but they are curious about the precautions being taken to keep the campus community safe.

“Students have always had a lot of questions before deciding to enroll since picking a college is a huge decision, but now the questions are just different,” Campbell said. “Now they want to know more about safety and what our COVID protocols are. They also want to know

BY WILL FARKAS

scfarkas@vwu.edu

VWU|Courtesy Vice President for Enrollment Heather Campbell ‘04 pictured above.

what happens to their financial aid if their family is impacted by COVID after they arrive.”

Additionally, the Batten Honors College has seen similar applicant numbers from previous years, the biggest difference being that the competition is now virtual.

One big difference from previous years is students’ general lack of access to the SAT and ACT exams, so the Office of Enrollment has had to take this into account when considering applicants. VWU was a score-optional school before the pandemic, but the past year’s difficulties accessing standardized tests have led to diminished numbers of score submissions.

With many aspects of enrollment moving online, virtual tours, information sessions and high school visits have become more

widely available for prospective students.

“We offer virtual information sessions twice a week,” Campbell said. “[We host] Marlin Mondays which are topic specific information sessions, Marlins Day Open Houses, Batten Honors College information sessions, [and we] attend college fairs and high school visits, all virtually.”

Campbell states that even once restrictions are lifted and in-person activities are safe to resume, these options will still be available to anyone wishing to utilize them.

So far, the biggest success of the virtual sessions has been making the VWU campus available to people all over the world from the comfort of their own homes.

News ASSEMBLY

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Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

New program builds foundation for firstyear students

CONTINUED FROM PG. 1

BY WILL FARKAS scfarkas@vwu.edu

Emily Uzzle|Marlin Chronicle Virginia State Capitol Building in Richmond, Virginia where the bicameral body of 100 members of the House of Delegates and 40 State Senators meets annually to discuss and pass legislation.

General Assembly, to discuss what has come out of the 2021 session.

Senator Kiggans is a freshman senator who described her priorities as getting students back to in-person school, helping businesses stay open and advocating for people in long-term care facilities. Kiggans is a nurse practitioner who deals primarily with geriatric patients when the General Assembly is not in session.

Kiggans was the co-patron of the bipartisan-passed bill that required schools to open with an in-person option in the fall—the GOP did not have the votes to pass the bill with an emergency clause to enact it immediately.

The Republicans and Democrats negotiated to pass a bill making the first $100,000 of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans tax-free, protecting the interests of small businesses. Kiggans expressed disappointment that a bill to limit the governor’s executive order power failed, but was pleased by the successful bill that made business’ purchases of personal protective equipment tax free.

Kiggans was also an advocate for a bill that expanded a Board of Health scholarship to previously-excluded types of nurses, which passed to the Governor’s desk as well.

Other bills that Kiggans was a patron of that passed include a requirement to discuss advance directives in high schools and a bill changing the date of the primary elections to take place when school is out of session.

Kiggans attempted to bring a bill that would improve staffing ratios at nursing homes, but the bill was converted into a study for the second year in a row, which the Senator characterized as disappointing. However, she said that she intends to bring the bill up again next year. Her SB 1422 bill, which would have required the Department of Vital Records to update the Department of Elections about deaths on a weekly basis so deceased voters can be purged from the rolls, was tabled in the House Privileges and Elections Committee. Given that the bill had passed with a large margin of support in the Senate (34-5) and was supported by both Departments, Kiggans was surprised that the bill didn’t make it to a vote in the House. She said that she will consider bringing it again in the next session, hopefully to greater success.

The bill that Kiggans is proudest of passing this session was SB 1150, which created the Military Liaison position in the Department of Veterans Services. “It’s so important in my district just because we do have so many bases in Virginia and so many married servicemen and women whose spouses have to move every two to three years.”

The position will act as an aide to military spouses, helping them navigate through the bureaucratic paperwork of getting resettled in new places and advocating for their needs.

Going into the next session, Senator Kiggans said that she will be bringing back a bill that would mandate a school

nurse in every school in Virginia. “I think that having a school nurse in each school building would be helpful, especially for a lot of our lower income communities, places where children are not properly receiving regular health care. If we put in a registered nurse--or any board certified nurse--in the schools, they could assist with those kinds of things, maybe some preventative screenings and routine health assessments.” Kiggans also highlighted that they would be particularly useful in helping track and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 as children return to school.

Delegate Guy is also in her first-term representing our House district. She described her priorities as “looking out for my locality, helping move the ball forward on environmental issues, looking out for public education and contributing to meaningful criminal justice reform.”

Guy was the chief patron of several bills that passed to the Governor’s desk this session. HJ 549 commissioned a study about the coronavirus’s impact on schools, HB 2159 prohibited the intentional release of non-biodegradable balloons and HB 2042 gave localities the ability to exceed guidelines about tree conservation under specific circumstances.

On the criminal justice front, Guy said that she was proud of the legislation passed by the Assembly this session. “We made such incredible progress this year on criminal justice reform—the headline being, of course, that we repealed the death penalty and we legalized marijuana in 2024. But we did a lot of other things that will significantly improve people’s lives. And I think we made our justice system fairer.”

Guy was particularly proud of the death penalty repeal.

“I think our biggest accomplishment was to repeal the death penalty, mostly because of what that says about us as a society…. [The death penalty] is really a form of codified vengeance. And I think it says that we are not a very evolved society when we have a government sanctioned way to kill people, no matter how heinous they are. I happen to believe it’s just wrong.”

Asked what she would like Virginia Wesleyan students to know about her and her record leading up to the elections in November, Guy’s answer was simple. “I’m doing this for your generation…. I feel like my generation has failed your generation in addressing certain critical issues in our society…. Those include gun safety, include addressing what I call the existential crisis of climate change that is going to fall largely on [your generation], and addressing the systemic racism that has plagued us for so long.”

All 100 House of Delegates seats will be up for election this year. The Senate is elected to four-year terms, and will not face election again until 2023. For information on how to register to vote in the November elections, visit https:// www.elections.virginia.gov/registration/how-to-register/.

WesBridge is a new program coming to VWU that allows incoming freshmen to get a head start on their college course load. Participants in the program will take the four-credit Wesleyan Seminar I (WES100) and the onecredit Effective Learning Strategies (INST105) classes during the summer semester after graduating high school.

These classes were selected to “ease students into their college education and help them build the skills needed to succeed at VWU,” according to the Feb. 22 Nota Bene.

The program will not change requirements for freshmen, but will fulfill the WES 100 graduation requirement and an elective.

Upcoming freshmen can be invited to participate in WesBridge after a holistic review of an individual’s application by the Office of Enrollment. “We review transcripts, courses taken, grades, letters of recommendation and test scores when provided,” Vice President for Enrollment Heather Campbell ‘04 said.

“After a thoughtful review of all materials, students who would benefit from a bridge program are offered a spot in the program.”

Tuition fees for the program will be covered by the participants’ enrollment deposits. Classes will be taught in person, so students can either live on campus or commute.

Both courses will be taught by VWU faculty members so that students can start building a rapport with professors even before they join the rest of their peers in August.

Dr. Sue Larkin, associate vice president for academic affairs, has worked hard to bring this program to life and hopes it will give students a good foundation on which to start their college experience. “Our hope is that this will provide incoming students in the program with a supported introduction to college,” Larkin said. “The program will provide enhanced academic opportunities through the course work and other resources that will help students to build connections to the VWU community and enter the fall semester more confident and better prepared for the rigors of college.”

The VWU website clarifies that this experience will also serve to help students “prepare for the non-academic part of college” and become successful members of the Marlin Nation.

VWU|Courtesy

Summer & fall course registration details • Beginning on April 5, students will be able to select courses for the summer and fall 2021 semesters.

• Students are instructed to go to WebAdvisor and create a tentative plan before meeting with their advisor.

• For special registrations such as overload permission, courses needing professor consent, pass/fail courses, audit courses, cross-registered courses, guided study, independent research and tutorials, contact the Office of Registrar via email reg@vwu. edu or phone 757-455-3358.

• Also, visit https://www.vwu.edu/ academics/registrar/ for more information regarding transcripts, registration instructions and student forms.

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Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

The

MARLIN CHRONICLE Editor-in-Chief Alex Powers ampowers@vwu.edu Managing Editor Nicholas Mundy namundy@vwu.edu News Editor Connor Merk ccmerk@vwu.edu Community Editor Lauren Faulkner lafaulkner@vwu.edu Opinions Editor Dalton Powers dmpowers@vwu.edu Sports Editors Nicholas Mundy namundy@vwu.edu Anthony Wilson alwilson@vwu.edu Weekender Editor Faith Macwana fpmacwana@vwu.edu Photo Editor Erin Highsmith eehighsmith@vwu.edu Illustrations Editor Emily Uzzle ebuzzle@vwu.edu Online Editor Ash Dobrenen akdobrenen@vwu.edu Copy Editor Brianna Sandy bmsandy@vwu.edu Advertising Manager Alyssa Lane amlane@vwu.edu Adviser Dr. Lisa Lyon Payne lpayne@vwu.edu

Life in Quarantine: “Policies are subject to change”

BY LAUREN FAULKNER lafaulkner@vwu.edu As of now, VWU continues into its second semester dealing with COVID-19 and has stated that “the University is maintaining policies from the fall semester that proved successful in achieving our goal of an in-person educational experience for our students” according to April Christman, executive assistant to the vice president for campus life and member of the Emergency Response Team. However, this has not been the case for some students and many members of the community are struggling to understand what the official policies are when dealing with quarantine, quarantine housing, exposure and positive COVID-19 test results.

According to the Returning Back to Campus - Spring 2021 COVID-19 Guide distributed to the VWU community before the start of the semester and currently available under VWU Coronavirus Information, the policy for those who test positive is, “When able, those testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 will complete their self-isolation at their permanent residence. Where self-isolation at a student’s permanent residence is not feasible or poses risk of transmission to others, the University will coordinate with the student and local health authorities to identify an appropriate location for self-isolation.”

Even though VWU is in its eighth week of the semester, over thirty students, whether they have tested positive or been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 have been required to quarantine, whether that be on-campus in quarantine housing or at their permanent residence.

“We recommend anyone who is able to go home, to go home to quarantine if they can for their own comfort purposes. We have worked with several people who live really far away or have family members with compromised immune systems who prefer to remain on campus,” Jason Seward, associate vice president for campus life and operational management,

said in an earlier interview with the Marlin Chronicle.

The COVID-19 Guide states that “the University will hold a limited number of spaces on campus for individuals with suspected/con-

of exposure and individuals who test positive for COVID-19 will need to isolate themselves for 10 days after their positive test. Those who test positive do not need a negative COVID-19 test in order to return but instead need to be symptom free without help from any medication.

When students are notified to go into quarantine, they are informed by the administration through a phone call and then an email. They are told they need to self-isolate and schedule a COVID-19 test, according to an interview with Seward and Christman.

Any other contact with the University is based on student need.

“During quarantine, students are still expected to attend classes virtually, stay in contact with their professors, and organize getting a COVID-19 test,” Christman said on Feb 26. Academic Affairs will notify professors about the student needing to go virtual; however, students are expected to stay in contact with their professors to organize assignments and class meetings.

An exposure situation is described as a prolonged period of exposure such as more than 15 minutes, being without a mask, and being less than 6 feet away from another by the Returning Back to Campus Spring 2021 guide. Students that get directly exposed to an individual that tests posiKathleen Vanden Berg | Marlin Chronicle tive for COVID-19 must self-isolate and get a COVID-19 test. As mentioned in a previous interview with the firmed cases of COVID-19 and to accommo- Chronicle on Feb. 5, the University “require[s] date the needs for room changes. Additionally a diagnostic PCR test and for that result to be the University will be working with its partners sent back in order for us to calculate the isoat a local Extended Stay as an overflow provi- lation and quarantine time period and to begin sion…” The Marlin Chronicle’s request for contact tracing,” said Christman. additional clarification on the number of quarThe Emergency Response team recommends antine spaces was declined by the Emergency that community members check for the latest Response Team. updates from the university through the latest Even though the COVID-19 Guide does not emails from the University. However, as COVdirectly mention how cases of exposure will ID-19 numbers on campus continue to change, be handled in terms of quarantine, Christman the official university policy that remains is “all explained that the self-isolation periods follow institutional policies are subject to change due CDC guidelines where exposed individuals will to change in guidance and conditions” as stated need to quarantine for 14 days from the last day by Christman.

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The Marlin Chronicle is the official student newspaper of Virginia Wesleyan University.

Staff meetings are held every Tuesday at 5:40 p.m. in Batten 217. Signed submissions are welcome, but subject to the discretion of the editor. Letters are not edited for content, but may be edited for length and mechanics. The views and opinions expressed in this newspaper may not necessarily reflect the views of the entire staff of The Marlin Chronicle or Virginia Wesleyan University.

The Marlin Chronicle Virginia Wesleyan University 5817 Wesleyan Drive Virginia Beach, VA 23455 757.455.3311

“As a former collegiate student newspaper editor, professional journalist and long-time advisor for the Society of Collegiate Journalists, I understand the role and value of student media at a liberal arts institution.

Virginia Wesleyan University proudly supports the editorial independence and press freedom of student-edited publications. We believe that student editors have the authority to make all content decisions and consequently, assume full responsibility for decisions they make.”

--Scott D. Miller, Ph.D President

to ensure that everyone can take something away from every event we hold. Our main focus is engaging with our community and giving back. Zeta also has ZNEF, which gives out hundreds of scholarships to people in the community,” Davis said.

Kappa Alpha Phi members feel like their energy is distinctive and that this is what then makes them engaging as a brotherhood on campus. “Every fraternity and sorority on campus has an impact and a presence, however with the Kappa[Alpha Psi]s, I think it’s just the vibe and energy we give off. We all have gravitating qualities and it shows when you see us interacting in public. Thursdays we dress up in suits and everybody takes notice--especially when we hand out carnations to the ladies,” Fisher said.

Tri-Sigma emphasizes quality time with prospective and current members. “Ideally, the

game plan has been to host as many recruitment events as possible, as well as sisterhood events for our own chapter to have our bonding time as well, since the pandemic has kept us apart for so long,” Covington said.

All three organizations said that the way the school has been responding to COVID-19 has been reasonable. “I don’t think that the school is doing anything wrong with its response to COVID. We are all trying to do our best with the pandemic, and safety is the priority. I would love to see more outdoor activities when the weather gets nicer,” Davis said.

Director of Student Activities Sarah Guzzo has also been a bridge to making sure these events were organized efficiently and effectively, both virtually and in-person. “Sarah Guzzo and the Student Activities Office have been super efficient with giving us everything we need and want within the COVID-19

guidelines for campus,” Covington said.

COVID-19 restrictions have really slowed the number of new members these organizations have seen compared to a normal semester, but these leaders and organizations have been focusing on preparing their members to be successful in recruiting when they can and achieving academic and social excellence.

Greek Life continues to plan and host events, whether they be virtual or in-person, as a form of recruitment during the spring 2021 semester.

For more information on how to participate, students should check the This Week email from Student Activities, or the current Student Activities Calendar available on the vwu.edu website. For specific information about Greek Life organizations, students can reach out to them via social media.

Sunrise Movement enters the Tidewater Community thanks to VWU Students

BY LAUREN FAULKNER lafaulkner@vwu.edu The Sunrise Movement, a national organization focused on uniting young adults across different areas to combat climate change has made its way to Virginia Wesleyan’s campus through four VWU students: Devin Calpo, Celine Maharaj, Brooke Morris and Criofan Shaw.

The National Sunrise Movement is described as “a youth movement to stop climate change and create millions of good jobs in the process.

We’re building an army of young people to make climate change an urgent priority across America, end the corrupting influence of fossil fuel executives on our politics, and elect leaders who stand up for the health and wellbeing of all people” on the Sunrise Movement website.

The main focus of the current movement is to stop climate change and establish millions of jobs relating to clean energy in the process, build the Sunrise Movement through communities across the world, welcome all types of people, remain nonviolent during the fight against climate change and help the local community and the areas around each hub.

The Sunrise Movement Tidewater Hub will focus its actions in the Hampton Roads area, and will “be heavily involved in the community both on and off campus. We will work together to bring about awareness of the devastating effects of climate change and take action through

public policy and outreach,” said Celine Maharaj, Treasurer and Action Planning Lead.

Currently the movement has about 20 members on campus, and hopes to gain more through their weekly virtual meetings that are open to any Marlins who are interested in participating.

Last week, the movement hosted their first event on campus where they had a virtual watch party of the “Good Jobs for All Campaign” livestream from Sunrise National. The Sunrise Movement Tidewater branch plans to hold “community events in the future and expand beyond the bounds of the club at VWU,” Maharaj said. The plan is to hold multiple interactive and thought-provoking events during the year that will be open to the on-campus and off-campus community.

The new movement hopes to increase their members and establish themselves as a powerful organization not just on-campus but in the local community.

For more information about joining, community members can email the movement at sunrisetidewater@gmail.com or follow the movement on Instagram @sunrisetidewater to learn about upcoming events and meetings.

For a more in-depth look at the overall message of the Sunrise Movement, please go to the following site: https://www.sunrisemovement.

Sunrise Tidewater|Courtesy

org/?ms=SunriseMovement-WeAreTheClimateRevolution.org/?ms=SunriseMovementWeAreTheClimateRevolution.

The Marlin Chronicle | marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

Thursday, March 18, 2021

Travis Malone is announced as new Dean of the Batten Honors College

BY LAUREN FAULKNER lafaulkner@vwu.edu

In the March 15 Nota Bene, it was announced that Dr. Travis Malone would be taking over for Dr. Joyce Easter as the new dean of the Batten Honors College at the end of the academic year.

Malone has been teaching at Virginia Wesleyan for 15 years and serves as a professor of theater and the founding dean of the Susan S. Goode School of Arts and Humanities. Malone is known for actively assisting with fundraising efforts and being a faculty consultant for the construction of the Susan S. Goode Performing Arts Center and the latest renovation of the Susan T. Beverly Hall.

“I am excited to join the Batten

Honors College. I look forward to working with the students in the Honors College and building upon the foundations of the program established by Dean Easter and Jane Batten,” Malone said.

Easter will be returning to the faculty of the chemistry department at the end of this academic year, after serving as the founding dean of the Batten Honors college.

“I am excited to have an arts professor in a leadership position with the Batten Honors College.

As an art student, I am looking forward to working more with Dr. Malone in the Honors College as I know he is very passionate

In the February edition of “The Pharos,” a monthly newsletter featuring the accomplishments of faculty, 22 faculty members were recognized for their accolades over the previous academic year.

In Print:

VWU | Courtesy

and will do great things for the program,” said Kayla Bissette, current sophomore Batten Honors College student.

BY LAUREN FAULKNER lafaulkner@vwu.edu

leadership and development.

The program is aligned with the National Competencies of Teacher Leadership and Teacher Leader Model Standards to give students the tools to provide direct change in whatever field of education they pursue.

Students can enroll in the program on a full-time or parttime basis for the program as the courses will be taught in 8-week sessions. The program will be

offered at the price of $499 per credit hour.

For those interested in the program, more information can be found at the website here: https://www.vwu.edu/ academics/graduate-programs/ master-of-education/ .

Requirements for the program are an online application, official transcript, an essay, and proof of a teaching license.

Long Night Fight Against Procrastination helps students fight burnout

BY LAUREN FAULKNER lafaulkner@vwu.edu

On Wednesday, March 10, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., the Hofheimer Library and the Learning Center teamed up to provide students with a nightlong workshop focused on combating procrastination and burnout during the middle of the semester.

This online event featured multiple sessions for students to join over the course of the workshop.

These sessions included Research Help, Writing Help, Organizational Tips and Tricks, and the occasional study

break with multiple sororities on campus including Alpha Sigma Alpha, Tri Sigma, Phi Sigma Sigma, and Alpha Kappa Alpha.

Students who attended the event were also entered into a prize drawing just for attending, and prizes were announced during the night-long event.

“It was great to have something that made the university feel like it was normal again…” Jamie McKinney, an organizational tutor at the Learning Center, said.

Hofheimer Library | Courtesy

Students receive grant from Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund

BY LAUREN FAULKNER lafaulkner@vwu.edu

Virginia Wesleyan Students received an email this past week informing them that they will be receiving a grant from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. This grant was a part of the stimulus package from the federal government.

The amount of money received was based on each student’s

qualifications from the FASFA. The range of grants was from $400 to $900.

Students were given the option to receive the grant as either an e-check or have those funds deposited directly into the student account to apply for either summer or fall classes.

Included in the email was a

Faculty accomplishes much during the 2020 year

BY JACK PALMER jrpalmer@vwu.edu

VWU announces new online Master of Education program Classes in the new online Master of Education program will begin on May 17. This program has 10 required courses for students and can be completed in a little over a year. The program will be fully offered online and administered by full-time faculty members.

The program was designed for licensed teachers who were looking to further their education and pursue careers in education

5

confirmation form that allowed students to make their selection

by March 22, 2021 so that the grant can be processed for the student.

The confirmation form encourages students who still have a balance on their account for their spring semester to apply this grant to their account.

In Christ Pallant and Christopher Halliday’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: New Perspectives on Production, Reception, Legacy,” Dr. Terrence Lindvall wrote a chapter that playfully looked at global parodies of the 1937 Walt Disney feature film. He noted that “feature and short animated films offer indirect ways of communicating values.”

In addition, Lindvall also authored another chapter that was not recognized in “The Pharos.”

In Dr. Kathy Merlock Jackson, Dr. Lisa Lyon Payne, and Dr. Kathy Stolley’s “Animals and Ourselves,” he wrote a chapter that investigated various models of what anthropomorphic cartoon characters laugh at and why.

Both chapters act as parables that adhere to Horace’s ideal of utile et dulce, texts that are both instructive and entertaining.

Both chapters utilize celebrated analyses of the cultural and aesthetic landmark Disney features.

Other accomplishments in print included Dr. Sara

Sewell’s published book chapter entitled, “Antifascism in the Neighborhood: Daily Life, Political Cultural, and Gender Politics in the German Communist Antifascist Movement, 1930-1933” which was featured in the Journal of Comparative Fascist Studies.

Dr. Lisa Lyon Payne, along with three coauthors, published “Keeping the Lights on and the Wolves Outside: College Student Media Advisers in Communities of Practice.” Dr. Stephen Hock published a chapter focused on sustainability entitled, “Just Junk in a Safeway Cart I’m Pushing Down to the Recycling Center: The Aesthetics of Ecology in Michael Robbins’s Poetry.”

In just this last month, Dr. Nadia Nafar and Dr. Kenneth Yung published a paper titled “Political Freedom and Form Cash Holdings” in the Virginia Economic Journal, and Dr. Joyce Easter, Dr. Deb Otis, and Dr. Maury Howard published “Chemical Reactions” in the POGIL Activity Clearinghouse Journal.

Presentations and Panels: Dr. Jason Squinobal featured eight compositions that explored the synthesis of electronic and acoustic music. He was joined in performance with his group, the Trio Atomic. The group recorded, edited, and produced the video in its entirety. Squinobal was accompanied by his group members, Will McPeters and Mike Laubach, who are adjunct faculty members at Virginia Wesleyan University.

Other accomplishments in this area included Dr. Ben Haller for his presentation of his paper, “Orpheus and Orfeu: Marcel Camus Eastertide Pagan Temporale.” Dr. Scott Ramsey presented his paper, “2020 Vision: How a Global

Pandemic and the Black Lives Matter Movement Focused our Teaching.” George Jackson presented a paper entitled, “Differential Tax Treatment of Debt vs. Equity: How Do You Draw a Line That Doesn’t Exist?” at the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing’s Mid-Year Fellow Workshop.

In the last month, Dr. Marielle Postava-Davington presented a talk titled “Adventure of a Termite Ecologist: Learning to Make the Most of What Nature Gives You” as a part of a virtual seminar series hosted by the Lincoln Memorial University School of Mathematics and Sciences.

Various Other Accomplishments

Various other accomplishments included Dr. Joyce Easter for her three-year appointment to the Small College Committee of the National Collegiate Honors Council. Stephen Leist was appointed to the editorial board of Virginia Libraries, the publication of the Virginia Library Association, for a twoyear term. Additionally, Dr. Doug Kennedy was one of nine people appointed by the US Department of Justice to serve on the Tort Claimants Committee (TCC)

in the Boy Scouts bankruptcy proceedings.

Lastly, Dr, Craig Wansink was featured in the last section of the newsletter, entitled “Community Engagement.” He was recognized for the first-ever presentation of his course, “Extreme Religion: The Body and Rituals from World Religions.” Dr. Benson Fraser was also recognized for beginning his course, “Mass Communication and its Influence.”

Opinions

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Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

The world looks different from up here Drone photography offers a unique perspective on the every day world

Ross Winner|Courtesy

BY ROSS WINNER rawinner@vwu.edu For the past two years, I have been learning aerial photography with my DJI Mavic Air drone. Before I bought the drone, I had little to no experience flying.

However, with a DJI drone, anyone can fly because the drone has automated obstacle avoidance, known as APAS 3.0 and is very hard to crash.

When I bought the drone, it was around $1600 for a kit that included everything I needed. Another feature I appreciate about this drone is the extremely high-resolution details its photos and videos take. This drone is capable of taking 4K videos at 60 FPS and 48-megapixel photos along with HDR photos. Another awesome thing about this drone is the amount of time

the batteries last for. I have a total of two batteries that each last up to 34 minutes of flight time, making it possible to fly for an hour.

When filming and taking photographs it is crucial to have enough battery to get the precise shots. Overall, this was a great purchase and definitely worth the money for me.

I am not a local in Virginia Beach, I’m actually from central Pennsylvania close to Penn State University.

I enjoy being in the mountains hiking, swimming, flyfishing, and dirt bike riding.

This was one of the main reasons why I decided to buy a drone, because the mountains in my area are enormous. I live extremely close to Sproul State Forest, known for being the largest section of state game land in Pennsylvania. This state forest covers approximately 305,450 acres, or a little more than 470 mi.² What makes this a great location for a drone is that it features steep and rugged hillsides that are cut out by the west branch of the Susquehanna River. I’ve always wanted to get a better perspective of the land and with a drone this is something you can do. The best time to get aerial photos would be around autumn when the foliage is at its peak. Overall, buying a drone would benefit me, so that’s why I did it two years ago.

Something I found important when starting to use my drone was understanding the different cinematography techniques for capturing footage. I want to share a few basic techniques I found to be the most helpful when starting to fly.

I’d like to start with the pedestal shot, this type of shot is done by flying up or down without moving the

camera gimbal at all. You are relying only on flying and not moving the camera angle at all. This method is best used when trying to capture monuments, large objects in the distance, statues, and when going above the clouds.

This next technique is fairly easy to do and looks very cinematic when used in a video. It’s called the flyover.

This type of shot is very common with music videos and commercials and I’m sure you’ve seen it before.

To accomplish this type of shot you have to choose one specific object or landscape and focus the entire camera movement around that one object. You must not move the gimble at all until it passes the object from above. Lastly, I want to share my favorite type of shot to do in the mountains. This type of shot is called the drone reveal shot and is a simple drone maneuver used to reveal a subject or object to a person.

The best part about this shot is it kind of gives suspense to the viewer about what you are going to show. An example of this type of shot would be flying the drone up the side of a mountain, popping off fast at the top and flying into the sky.

I also want to make a point to anyone reading this that flying a drone is not as hard as you think it is. I honestly had no experience before buying this drone and easily picked up how to fly.

Now I’m able to make money by flying at weddings, outdoor gatherings, school events and many more other things. It’s also something that I find to be really fun and always interesting. So, if you were ever thinking of getting a drone for a hobby or business, I say do it. You won’t regret it!

Drone photography shots by Ross Winner show campus from a unique perspective. (From left to right) a panoramic view of central campus; Greer Environmental Science Center and the lighthouse are showcased by the changing; Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center is seen from above.

‘Not like anything you will have ever experienced’ Glass blowing ignites students’ creativity through a unique aesthetc experience

BY JULIA ROGERS julia@juliacrogers.com Why should you consider taking a glass blowing glass at Virginia Wesleyan University?

The art of glass blowing is an ancient and unique art form. It is not like anything you will have ever experienced before or will encounter again. Manipulating this molten material that is the consistency of honey is a lesson of a lifetime. You will be mesmerized. You will be humbled. You will learn to let go of attachment.

Glass blowing encompasses much more than an artist working alone in their studio. It is rather a dance between multiple individuals moving together to create a desired piece.

To realize your design you must dictate your needs to your teammates so that they can assist you in the production. You must learn to take charge in the heat of the moment, leading the team through the delicate process. When acting as an assistant to the glass blower who is creating their piece you must take on the humble role of responding to their needs. These different roles teach leadership and servitude transferring into your everyday life. The aspect of teamwork brings students to form strong bonds and lasting friendships as well.

Working with molten glass is a step by step process that is very challenging and strengthens one’s perseverance and intellect. In the class we give one on one instruction to help you through each step of the process. The glass which must stay above 1,000

degrees fahrenheit can crack if not carefully attended to.

Shattered glass on the floor reminds students to let go of attachment, to stay strong, and to start once more. In time you remember the dance and gain muscle memory through repetition finding greater success in this fastpaced, old-age art-form.

Julia Rogers|Courtesy

Rogers instructs students on a glassblowing technique.

As an instructor I focus on balance, there is an important balance that must be considered when teaching. That balance lies between control and freedom. As a teacher I take charge of my students, yet also allow for free thinking and ingenuity.

Without freedom to explore, individuals do not learn to be experimental, which results in less creativity. I

teach the fundamentals and at the same time give them the freedom to develop their own unique designs.

I introduce concepts in the beginning courses and always allow students to use other materials or art forms to enhance their projects, encouraging whatever material is necessary to be effective.

Early on, critical thinking, as well as, learning the appropriate vocabulary for discussing artworks is introduced. Understanding how to put concept into a piece of artwork, being able to discuss that idea, and knowing how to present the work is a crucial part of being an artist.

I lecture on historical and contemporary art that relates to the project being presented. Also I tie the ideas behind the artwork with the world at large, which in turn, ensures discussion within the class. As humans we draw inspiration from our surroundings, internalizing stimuli to formulate ideas. I want students to be able to think and talk about their lives within the culture they live in.

Glass blowing is a class that will expand any student’s horizons whether they are art majors or nonart majors. Learning to control a material that itself is so alive while working with a team is a humbling and rewarding experience.

You will find the freedom to use multiple materials and to explore your own ideas that inspire you. I encourage collaboration and discussion to create a learning environment that brings individuals closer. This enables you to feel free to express your ideas within the community of art school.

Sports

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Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

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player, wishing to remain anonymous to protect their daughter.

Cindy Meinen, mother to an XCTF student-athlete, said, “It came as a huge disappointment when I heard of VWU’s plans...

I felt even more let down when I saw that other ODAC schools are allowing their home teams to have spectators.”

“I don’t understand, nor has there been any further guidance or clarification since the policy came out on [Feb. 16],” Glaubke added.

One update was the announcement of a pay-for cutout program. As advertised on the website, Marlin fans could purchase for $35 a “cutout of themselves, relatives, or even your furry friends to support your Marlins.”

“I think it’s a nice sentiment, I think it was a cool idea. However, I don’t think it was thought out that well, you know,” Lattuca said, adding that it would mean more to improve live streams and highlight videos.

“In my opinion, it’s the university asking me to pay money to not be present at a sporting event,” said Parent 2, who wished to remain anonymous to protect their daughter from retribution.

“It tells me that the authorities of Virginia Wesleyan are either unwilling or unable to think of ways that they can safely allow people to attend these events.”

As to the success of the program, no numbers were made available by the Athletic Department. Glaubke said, “to the best of my knowledge, we don’t have cutouts in our stands at softball. I’ll leave that to speak for itself.”

The effect of not having spectators at games is very real for student-athletes. Freshman S’Zahria Jones, a guard on the VWU women’s basketball team, acknowledged this. “It’s different having no fans because of the idea of home court advantage, and it’s kind of like some players thrive off of fan energy,” Jones said.

Sophomore Maliek Conaway,

a forward on the VWU men’s basketball team, commented, “Overall, it’s pretty weird…The crowd really impacts like the momentum of the game.”

Student-athletes have still found some silver linings to not having fans cheering them on. “It also has its positives. You know, in some games it’s way easier to hear your teammates on the court,” Conaway points out.

Jones adds that the team has bonded closer, leaning on each other for support. “We found a liking [for] making a team playlist. We get to the locker room to get changed, and we’ll have our team rituals.”

But parents still lament the loss of fans. Parent 2 noted that “the difference between the practice and the game is the fans…. A huge, huge part of that experience is having people present to watch you play.”

“It’s not the same team that I’ve watched play for four seasons….

It just doesn’t seem like it’s the same group of girls that we’ve watched participate at the highest level,” Glaubke added.

Like all other decisions the past year, the spectator policy was made to prioritize the health and safety of the Marlin community, per administrative announcements.

A factor that few other schools in the ODAC have to contend with is a high population density like that of Hampton Roads.

VWU’s location amid the seven cities adds another extra hurdle to facilitating an in-person semester.

VWU has found great success in mitigating the spread of COVID-19 to campus. In the Fall 2020 semester, there were only 33 total cumulative confirmed cases.

As of Nov. 20, 2020, VWU had the second fewest cases among reporting private institutions, per President Scott Miller. So far in the Spring 2021 semester, 34 confirmed cases have been accounted for, keeping the total under 100 for the academic year by a considerable margin.

“I do want to say, you know, thank you, to Virginia Wesleyan for keeping students safe”, said Parent 3, a parent from out of state who requested to remain

Erin Highsmith|Marlin Chronicle A hill typically used by spectators sits behind Broyles Field.

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up and showed out. During the two-day event, thirteen school records were broken by the Marlins. The men’s team placed 6th overall with total points of 167 points and the women placed 5th overall with a total of 204.40 points.

In the 800 freestyle relay, the men’s team of Nathan Viricochea, Grant Morgan, Jack Palmer, and Tyler Strong shattered the old record by 27 seconds in a time of 8:20.27. Viricochea also broke the record in the 500 freestyle by ten seconds, finishing with a time of 5:21.25, and beat the 200 breast record by twelve seconds, finishing with a time of 2:25.30.

Morgan broke last year’s time of 6:37.65 by dropping it to 5:19.08 in the 400 Individual Medley.

Strong set the new record in the 200 back dropping .02 seconds with a time of 2:07.25. Strong was named ODAC Third-Team AllConference for his performance in the ODAC championship. He became the first men’s swimmer to receive this recognition in program history. Lastly, Matthew

Bavuso set a new record in the 200 fly with a time of 3:27.57.

The women’s team of Kiera Doyle, Chloe Dewberry, Emily Lewis, and Kara Young broke the school record in the 800 freestyle relay by seven seconds, finishing with a time of 9:11.38.

Dana Smith broke two records at the ODAC championship, dropping the school record in the 200 Individual Medley by five seconds (2:21.25) and dropping the 100 yard breaststroke to a time of 1:10.88. In the 400 Individual Medley, Young set a new school record of 5:55.76; Dewberry claimed a new record in the 200 Back with a time of 2:20.36.

Finally, Taylor Morich broke a record in the 1650 Freestyle with 22:48.62.

“We talked kind of on and off with the team about courage over comfort. They had a lot of reasons to not swim fast this year, but they wanted it bad enough, and collectively I think that’s why we got the results that we did,” said Head Coach Mike Ginder.

anonymous.

“I think the school has done a fabulous job of communicating about the COVID I think they’re trying to do their best and keeping the students separated,” said Parent 1.

Yet, the concerns persist for that very reason: separation. Students and parents have questions about the internal consistency of VWU’s COVID-19 protocols, and more importantly, if the degree to which they’re being enforced may be doing more harm than good.

Parent 2 acknowledged deeper problems. “They need to look at the risk of the decisions and the impact of the COVID Mike Glaubke|Courtesy mitigation strategies that are being implemented around the A letter from HUMC giving permission for spectators in February. country, particularly with relation softball games were met further games.” to mental health….” similarly. “Well, I tried to be a The church’s property is A senior at VWU and little bit proactive and went over private and separate from VWU. avid basketball fan, Alexi to the church to ask permission if However, the relationship Baumgardner noted the impact it would be okay since the school between VWU and HUMC runs she has seen with COVID-19 had a no spectator policy on deep. The district superintendent policies. “It decreases the sense campus.” for the Elizabeth River District of community around campus and “I approached the pastor of of the United Methodist Church, causes me to isolate myself even the church. I spoke with her in which HUMC lies, is Wayne more, which is sort of the point, personally,” Glaubke said, Snead, an ex-officio designate but it definitely messes with your adding that he intended to make on VWU’s Board of Trustees. mental health being stuck inside a donation to the Church for their Moreover, VWU plans to appoint all day.” good nature. a minister from HUMC in a “The Church was very “joint capacity” as “Pastor of “I want to watch receptive, they didn’t see any HUMC and Chaplain of Virginia my daughter play her problem with it…. They agreed Wesleyan University,” per a that we could park in every other March 8 Nota Bene. last game in a Virginia parking place, wear a mask, and At the time of publication for Wesleyan uniform, in utilize their parking lot for the first this piece, the Feb. 16 ‘no fan’ person.” two home games of the season.” policy has received no update Those two match-ups would beyond the partnership to tow VWU’s COVID-19 policies be on Wednesday Feb. 24, and violators at HUMC. On the certainly do not mandate students Saturday, Feb. 27. A letter from possibility of new policy, Lattuca stay on-campus and inside. the pastor confirmed permission notes “the expression by various Yet, the strict regulations of for Glaubke and another player’s coaches and administration [is] COVID-19 mitigation have still parent to attend the games. that we would like to look into left an impact on mental health, On Wednesday, Feb. 24, having spectators,” and that well-documented across the Glaubke arrived to the field, and informally, discussions are taking country during the pandemic, called Renn as a courtesy to let the place. including feelings of isolation. university know they were there.

“I believe VWU can do “I’m allowed to go on campus “At 11 o’clock that morning [on] better for its athletes and parent to drop stuff off for my daughter. game day, everything was fine. At supporters,” said Meinen, who I’m allowed to go on campus to one o’clock on game day, half an hasn’t seen her daughter run since fix a car. I’m allowed to go on hour before the start of the game, fall 2019. campus to assist any other student I received a text from the A.D. “I mean I know...the number doing something with open [Renn], asking me to leave.” of hours and days and weeks arms, welcome[d] in,” Glaubke Glaubke notes his confusion and years of effort that went into explained. “But I can’t watch my turned into frustration as head getting her to where she is” Parent daughter 300 foot away on private women’s volleyball coach Andrea 2 says of his daughter. property.”

Hoover-Erbig accompanied Glaubke explained that “I want “It’s insulting to us parents,” another athletics coach and to watch my daughter play her Keith Weddle, a softball parent, instructed him to leave. “We last game in a Virginia Wesleyan explained in a comment left on the declined to leave because we had uniform, in person. I don’t want VWU Athletics Facebook page. permission to be there, and we to watch it through a video feed, “There [are] no scientific reasons watched the game.”

I don’t want to watch it on TV, I why there are no fans outdoors,” Before Glaubke could attend don’t want to hear it on the radio, he said, citing the clash between Saturday’s games, per the I don’t want to look at it on my VWU’s policy and the state of letter’s permission, an update phone.”

Virginia’s provisions. to the athletics department was The Chronicle asked Vice Saturday, March 13, sophomore announced on social media President for Campus Life and student Noah Hughes wanted that Friday at 5:30 p.m. The Operational Management Keith to support his friends on the update includes the message, Moore, Head Softball Coach men’s tennis team while they “The Heritage United Methodist Elliot, and Associate Director were hosting a match against Church parking lot is not available of Intercollegiate Athletics and Bridgewater College. Hughes for those wanting to view athletic Head Women’s Soccer Coach said he sat in his truck and walked events. Violations will result in Bowers for an interview regarding around the parking lot behind the vehicles being towed.” this story. Moore and Elliot Batten Student Center and beside With the fear of being towed, deferred to Executive Director the Everett Tennis Center. He Glaubke resigned from attempts of Intercollegiate Athletics was asked to leave by an VWU to circumvent the campus policy. Joanne Renn. Bowers did not athletics employee.

“So, out of respect for our softball reply to Chronicle requests. Renn Glaubke’s attempts to watch team, we declined to attend any repeatedly declined to comment.

Young team looks foward to future

BY NATHAN SHEIRBURN nssheirburn@vwu.edu

Women’s basketball turned their season around after rocky start to due COVID-19 protocols.

They ended their season with a record of 5-7, including a four-game win streak to close out ODAC play. The streak put the Marlins to a 4-4 record in ODAC play, giving the team a first-round bye. The Marlins then went on to the ODAC tournament quarter-finals, where they lost to Washington and Lee with a final score of 67-109.

Although the season had its challenges, Head Coach Liz Hudy gave the young Marlins team a pleased nod after the team had proven to overcome those challenges. “I was really proud of our performance and to get us one level closer [to ODAC finals] than the year before,” said Hudy.

In a typical season, the Marlins play 25 games. This year there were only 11 games played.

Although there is growth in the Marlins’ future, Hudy is already looking forward to the damage the team will be able to do next

season.

“We had some growth and learning that we had to do at the beginning of the year from an X’s and O’s standpoint, and I think we were really excited to come together as a team midway through and have everybody back together…. That’s when we

season and [plan to] use that momentum going forward to next season,” said Hudy.

Up and coming freshman stars S’Zahria Jones and Adaje Williams both earned starting spots while being top scorers on the team. Senior Sabrina Jones was another top scorer and held the most rebounds for the team.

Jones was also proud of the team for how far they had come.

“For us and being here last year, we have definitely come a long way with everything that happened at the beginning of the season, only playing with 6 or 7 players for six games. When we got back together we treated it as a fresh season. We looked at our record as being 0-0 [and] when everyone came back, we put the pedal to the metal and gave it all Sports Information|Courtesy we got,” said Sabrina Jones.

Jones acknowledges that the Sabrina Jones shoots over Ferteam is young but says that is rum defenders. also a strength for the team going went on our win streak. For us forward into next season. “The it’s about growth and I’m really sky’s the limit for this team for proud about how we ended the sure,” said Jones.

Sports

The Marlin Chronicle | marlinchronicle.vwu.edu March 18, 2021

8

Volleyball has defining win in opener theCloser

BY NATHAN SHEIRBURN nssheirburn@vwu.edu

Volleyball huddles before scrimmage against Salisbury.

Schedule

Marlin Scoreboard

After taking the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Championship in 2019, the Marlins’ women’s volleyball team looks to repeat as the first-ever women’s volleyball spring season starts in 2021. In 2019, the #2 seeded Marlins defeated the RandolphMacon Yellow Jackets 3-1. The final victory boosted VWU to 28-7, setting a new program record for wins in a season.

This was only the Marlins’ second appearance in the conference championship

Anthony Wilson | Chronicle

and their first championship win. The 2021 season will be Head Coach Andrea Hoover-Erbig’s final season as the team’s Head Coach since she will become VWU’s new Athletic Director.

As Hoover-Erbig enters her 15th season as the team’s Head Coach, she seeks to improve on last season.

“We’ve been competitive in the ODAC. We’ve been in the top third, probably top quarter, for most of my time here. And I

think that’s always the goal. It’s always our goal to win the conference championship,” said Hoover-Erbig.

The team graduated six seniors that were all starters from the 2019 championship squad, making room for old players to step up and new players who want to be on the court. Hoover-Erbig sees the roster shift as an opportunity.

“We are going to have a learning curve when we begin competing for sure, but we are excited about the talent that we have in our gym,” said Hoover-Erbig. “We need to work hard to get better every day.”

Returning starter, junior and captain Katie Yeager sees a team that can overcome the challenges for the year. “We are definitely going to have a young group out there, but I think that they are really capable of stepping up to the challenge,” said Yeager.

The first-year captain looks to improve upon her leadership skills for the 2021 season. “I’ve always been an underclassman to a big group of seniors, so to finally be in a leadership role is different,” said Yeager.

As the Marlins look to repeat this season as the ODAC champions, the ODAC is only allowing four teams in this year’s tournament. The Marlins opened up their season with a defining 3-0 win over the Shenandoah Hornets on 3/16. They look to continue this style of play 3/18 against Marymount University.

BY NICHOLAS MUNDY namundy@vwu.edu

Major League Baseball is losing viewership. It’s as simple as that. It kills me to even type it. The sport that I care most deeply about is losing people every year. With a heavy heart, I am going to try to explain and give possible solutions.

The average length of a typical nineinning game sits around three hours.

Similarly, the normal NBA and NFL game also lies around three hours in duration.

Why is it that MLB seems to be losing more spectators than any other major professional sport?

While the NBA and NFL have lost a small percentage of viewership throughout the past five or so years, the MLB is losing it at a more alarming rate. So, let’s get into why this could be happening.

Younger generations are used to getting everything quicker. Anyone with a smartphone can find out the latest information in about two blinks of an eye.

This generation’s attention span is shorter than any other’s. The MLB is unable to keep the attention of viewers anymore.

There are less casual fans due to how long the games are.

For the biggest game of the year, the World Series, the MLB has seen an alarming decline in viewers. With over 22 million in 2016, viewership was the highest it had been since the 2004 World Series (over 25 million). But in 2019, viewership had declined to under 14 million, the culmination of a steady decrease throughout recent years.

One thing that I would really like to see is something that I think other sports would benefit from, which is allowing viewers to listen to the in-game conversations of the players.

During the past summer, Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning and Phil Mickelson all competed in a charity golf match where they were wired with microphones so you could hear their thoughts before their shot.

Adding that feature to baseball would allow listeners to experience more interaction during the game.

There are more obvious possible solutions to the MLB’s decreasing audience such as providing more offense while getting rid of the designated hitter and shortening the game as much as possible. But broadcasting the players’ conversations would provide a spark of interaction that could intrigue the audience enough to tune in.

March Madness is here! Fill out your bracket!

*Disclamer: Neither the NCAA nor the Marlin Chronicle endorses or condones gambling.

Giant screen set up on Rose Lawn for scary movie night Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

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Faith Macwana | Marlin Chronicle

Poetry: Food For The Soul

BY FAITH MACWANA fpmacwana@vwu.edu

John Keating from “Dead Poets Society’’ famously once said, “And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.”

To an average college student, poetry might just be another boring, dry reading assignment or not on their radar at all. Throughout the years, though poetry has changed to fit in with modern times. It comes in many different forms such as rap, spoken word and even art.

Robert Macias Drake, better known as R.M. Drake is an American poet best known for his books “BEAUTIFUL CHAOS” and “BLACK BUTTERFLY.” With a huge social media presence of over 2.4 million followers, Drake has managed to unite fans from all across the globe through his writings.

Recently, Drake published a collection of short poems entitled “Something Broken. Something Beautiful.” The set has four books: Oracle, Departure, Manifest and Elevation. Each book touches upon a different aspect of a relationship,

whether it be a romantic or platonic. Beautiful cover art graces the front of these paperbacks.

According to Drake’s official website, “This set is for all who have a dream. For all who struggle with two jobs to get by. For all who have been ignored their entire lives. For all who feel empty.

For all who cannot sleep at night because there is too much in their minds. For all who have died a little in the name of love. For all who believe in something. This one…is for you.”

Drake’s prose is as simple and clean as it gets.

The poems are brief, but impactful. You find yourself being sucked in and reading the words over and over again letting them wash over you.

Given the current state of the world, it is pretty easy to fall into a state of loneliness and depression. It doesn’t take a lot to let all the stress build up until you’re feeling like a rubber band stretched too thin. The tension gets bigger and bigger until one day you just snap.

People are interesting, though, in that some of us try to adapt because despite it all, we still try our hardest to act like we are strong. We act

as if the world around us doesn’t affect us. The truth is, it’s okay to not be strong all the time.

It’s okay to ask for help and to seek release elsewhere. People need people at the end of the day and while everyone’s support system might look different, poetry is essentially a support system. It’s food for the soul. It’s a way to escape the world for a little bit. No one is perfect or superhuman. Be gentle with yourself and take that break.

Words are hard to come by sometimes.

Thoughts, feelings, emotions, it’s all messy. To be human is to be messy. “Something Broken.

Something Beautiful” reminds readers that yes, people are draining and yes, the world is cruel and unfair sometimes. However, there is beauty in your strength and your resilience. There’s beauty in your ability to pick yourself up from the ground piece by piece and rebuild.

At the end of the day, we’re all just humans looking for that connection, for someone to understand us and put our thoughts and feelings into words.

Women’s History Month

BY FAITH MACWANA fpmacwana@vwu.edu

Kathleen Vanden Berg | Marlin Chronicle Source: Alexa Saccone Quizlet

For the past 35 years, Women’s History Month has been designated as time to celebrate women and their achievements in all aspects of life. In the Hampton Roads area, there are plenty of events being hosted that people can get involved in.

Between March 1 and March 31, Zieder’s American Dream Theater will be hosting “She’s A Brickhouse: A Month Long Celebration of Women’s History Month.” These events will be free and open to the public and will include a variety of exhibits ranging from art, discussion panels and stories. Some of the productions include brand new plays and shows, such as a new musical excerpt about Francis Perkins, the woman behind FDR’s New Deal, and “Broken Dolls”, a piece about the lives of women experiencing human trafficking.

People can also tune into a podcast called “It Happened One Night: A Feminism Frozen A-ha Moment” created by Sibel Galindez, The Z’s community liaison. More information and registration details can be found on Zieder’s American Dream Theater’s website.

Expanding a little further than just the Virginia Beach area, a discussion about the challenges women face in the film industry will be held in Newport News.

Executive director of Women in

Film and Video Melissa Houghton will be available to chat and answer questions. This event is scheduled to be held on Thursday March 19 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The event is free for members of the Virginia Production Alliance and $5 for nonmembers. More information can be found on their website.

The following day on Friday, March 20, Joint Base LangleyEustis’ Women’s History Month Committee is hosting a poetry night to honor women of the past and present. The event will be 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and held at Bar Louie, 3530 Von Schilling Drive, Hampton. On Tuesday, March 24 at noon, Norfolk Public Library and Norfolk State University will host a talk with Charlene Butts Ligon, author of “Fearless: How a poor Virginia seamstress took on Jim Crow, beat the poll tax and changed her city forever.” The event will be held at NSU’s Lyman Beecher Brooks Library Rotunda at 700 Park Ave., Norfolk.

Bringing it closer to home, Virginia Wesleyan University and Wesleyan Engaged office will also be hosting all sorts of different talks, panels and discussions centering around Women’s History Month. Regardless of where you are, be sure to celebrate and appreciate all the women in your life.

Thursday March 18, 2021 The Marlin Chronicle marlinchronicle.vwu.edu

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Tammie Moorman | Courtesy

Different workshops around Virgnina Beach offer unique hands-on experiences.

arworkshopvirginiabeach |Instagram

themermaidfactory | Instagram

plantbarvb| Instagram

theroyalchocolatevb | Instagram

Do It Yourself / by Tiffany Warren - tawarren@vwu.edu Feeling mentally exhausted from assignments and a long personal to-do list? Then de-stress and immerse in do-it-yourself workshops in the Hampton Roads area.

Potts n’ Paints is a pottery painting, glass fusing, clay hand-building and canvas painting studio. Owner Tammie Moorman originally started Potts n’ Paints in Great Bridge in Chesapeake in 2007 and recently brought it to Virginia Beach in March 2020.

Potts n’ Paints hosts different events including ladies’ night, birthday parties, summer camps and technique classes that are not limited to only paint nights. The studio fee that covers supplies and clean-up is $6 and the prices of pottery or other pieces to paint mostly range between $20-$25 depending on the size.

Sophomores Sky Patterson and Kadyn Marker shared their experience at Potts n’ Paints.

“I loved that there was no limit on how long you could work on your piece,” Marker said. “Sky and I were able to talk and paint without any sense of rushing. They have a huge selection of the types of pottery you can paint, as well as painting on canvas.”

Patterson added, “I definitely will do the clay painting again. It was my favorite thing. I don’t know which one I would do because they have about over 30 different sculptures that you can do so it was really hard to pick.

When you go in there, you’ll be shocked to see as much as they have.”

Due to COVID-19, Potts n’ Paints reached out to people in the local community to spread the word about their business and how they are meeting health and safety guidelines. Seating arrangements are socially distanced

and masks must be worn.

For not-so-artsy individuals that are nervous, Potts n’ Paints have technique classes, pieces catered to those artistically challenged and staff that provide assistance along the way.

The two locations of Potts n’ Paints are 2720 North Mall Dr. Suite near Lynnhaven Mall and 920 S Battlefield Blvd, Suite 102 in Chesapeake. Opening hours are 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Saturday and 12 p.m. - 5 p.m. on Sunday. For more information about Potts n’ Paints, check out their website at www.pottsnpaints.net.

Similarly, Anders Ruff (AR) Workshop in Virginia Beach offers hands-on DIY workshops to create canvas pillows, wood signs, wall hangings, framed signs, chunky knit blankets and more. Take a look at their workshop class schedule for an instructor-led DIY session on www. arworkshop.com/virginiabeach/#schedule. Come with friends to split the cost of making a DIY project at AR Workshop on 313 Laskin Road, Suite 101.

For the not-so-artsy types, try bringing a touch of nature into your dorm room by making a do-it-yourself terrarium.

The PlantHouse is a family-owned terrarium workshop and plant store that offers interactive classes on creating an air plant or succulent terrarium alongside an instructor.

Terrariums begin at $12. People can also find inspiration for home decor on their blog to personalize their space with their assorted plants and ceramics collection.

The PlantHouse blends plant-based activities and decorative products to customers and offers a way for people to grow a green thumb and foster creativity. It will

relocate to 1564 Laskin Road, Suite 192 in Virginia on March 13th. Opening hours of the workshop Monday to Saturday are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. De-stress by taking care of a plant to build a feeling of connection with nature.

Indulge your sweet tooth by becoming a chocolatier for a day at The Royal Chocolate by designing and creating a chocolate bar. De-stress by filling a chocolate mold, choosing personal favorite toppings and decorating the wrapping box. The event is open to everyone and located on 164 Central Park Avenue in Virginia Beach. Opening hours are from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday through Thursday, Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Get in touch with your coastal side and release creative energy on a mermaid or dolphin sculpture. The Mermaid Factory in coastal Virginia is an art studio and gift shop that creates handmade sculptures. People can make a one-of-a-kind crafted gift using non-toxic acrylic paints, glitter, fabric, shells, rhinestones and charms.

The Mermaid Factory’s two locations are 919A W. 21st Street in Norfolk and 510 Laskin Road in Virginia Beach at the Oceanfront. Due to COVID-19 health and safety guidelines, it is strongly recommended to make a reservation for one or two people because space for walkin painters is not guaranteed. Groups of eight or more are required to reserve at The Mermaid Factory.

Unwind and de-stress at a do-it-yourself workshop in Hampton Roads to create something and relax.

Music Trends / by Anthony Wilson - alwilson@vwu.edu Over the past year, many artists have delayed dropping their albums due to the coronavirus pandemic. Artists like Kehlani, Alicia Keys, Sam Smith and many others feared that a release during the pandemic would result in a weaker response. You would think that in a digital era, the music industry would be the least hit of all industries during the crisis, but that has not been the case. Tens of thousands of songs are uploaded to streaming platforms daily. In order for artists to stand apart from the crowd they need television appearances, videos to publish, radio station visits, tour dates, etc. A digital release is just one small piece to a greater puzzle. This year, with the world slowly returning to normalcy, the music industry is primed to release several highly anticipated albums.

Arguably, the most anticipated album release of the year is set to come from none other than Drake.

The Toronto-based rapper planned on dropping his album “Certified Lover Boy” in January, but while he is recovering from knee surgery, his team has delayed the release. In the meantime, Drake released a three-song EP called “Scary Hours 2” that features Lil Baby and Rick Ross.

Up next, Cardi B has been teasing her fans with a release for a few years now. Back in 2019, Cardi posted a video freestyling to her Instagram with the caption, “It’s just a

little something till I finish up the album.” After a few months of silence, Cardi B took the world by storm with her song “WAP” that went viral with her trend on TikTok. After spending several weeks on the Billboard’s Hot 100, Cardi B decided not to submit “WAP” to be considered for a Grammy, as she wanted to wait to release her full album this year for the awards next year.

J. Cole started the campaign “Vote for The Fall Off 2020,” and fans were all but promised the release last year, but for reasons undisclosed, the release fell through. Recently, the Dreamworld Leader released the songs “Lion King on Ice” and “The Climb Back,” which he states are songs to lead off this highly anticipated album. To add more to the anticipation, J. Cole posted a cryptic message to his Instagram followers that hints that this will be his retirement album. J. Cole was the first rapper in over 20 years to go double platinum with no features, making “The Fall Off” a must-listen in mid-late 2021.

While rap surely dominates the primetime, many others are gearing up for releases of their own. In a pop update, there is big news for “Beliebers” as Mr. Bieber plans to drop his sixth studio album “Justice” March 19.

On April 9, Taylor Swift plans to drop a rerecording of her early album “Fearless” that’s set to include six neverbefore-released songs. Finally, in a country update, Carrie Bing | Courtesy Underwood, Thomas Rhett and Dan + Shay are rumored to be releasing albums in the summer or fall of this year.

No matter your taste in music, 2021 appears to be a year “The Fall Off”, an album to be released by J. Cole, is full of releases suited for all tastes. one that has a chance to rival numbers by “Certified Lover Boy” from Drake. J. Cole began working on this album pre-2018 before he changed course and released “KOD”.

The Marlin Undertow / by Faith Macwana - fpmacwana@vwu.edu Place of Interest: Back Bay Wildlife Refuge

If you are an outdoor adventure-seeker or are looking for a little getaway as the weather warms up, look no further than Virginia Beach’s own backyard. Back Bay Wildlife Refuge’s is the place to get some fun in the sun. Visitors can enjoy approximately eight miles of nature trails, hidden beaches and more. Back Bay offers all sorts of different activities including a seasonal canoe/ kayak launch and educational programs. This is the perfect place to disconnect from the world and focus solely on nature. More information can be found on their website: https://www.fws.gov/ refuge/Back_Bay/

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Netflix’s “The Last Thing He Wanted” is a political thriller that follows the tale of D.C. journalist Elena McMahon (Anne Hathaway), who ends up brokering an illegal arms deal for her father. This coincidentally is the same story she is supposed to cover. Filled with twists and turns, “The Last Thing He Wanted” will keep you on the edge of your seat as you try to put all the pieces of the puzzle together. Be ready to be sucked into the world of the 1980s surrounding the US backing of Nicaraguan rebels. This film features classic stars such as Anne Hathaway, Ben Affleck, and Willem

“I’ll Give You The Sun” is a 2014 novel written

by Jandy Nelson. It is told from the alternating perspectives of twins Noah and Jude. Nude and Jude are best friends, practically joined at the hip. What happens when Jude gets into the best art school in the country and Noah doesn’t?

Nelson weaves the most heartbreaking tale with themes of family, divorce, relationships, and finding yourself. This is the type of story that stays with you forever. No matter what stage you are at in life, there will always be a message for you. “I’ll Give You The Sun” is the winner of many awards, including the 2015