Volume 45 Issue 24

THE VOICE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO MISSISSAUGA

April 1, 201 9 Volume 45, Issue 24 themedium.ca

Student Choice Initiative news

Ending an Era

Writing a book as an undergrad

Saying goodbye to UTM

Meet Adam: Soccer all-star

News, page 2

Opinion, page 4

Arts, page 5

Features, page 8

Sports, page 11

U of T students challenge prejudice Students from the Mosaic Fellowship Program hosted a workshop on intergenerational prejudice KAYVAN AFLAKI On Tuesday, March 26, the Mosaic Institute, a ‘think and do tank’ that creates platforms for learning and dialogue among diverse Canadian communities, hosted a roundtable discussion in the Student Centre following a two-day interactive art exhibit focused on dismantling prejudice.

The UofMosaic Fellowship Program is the university campus-based initiative of the Mosaic Institute targeting undergraduate and graduate students with “an interest in difference and a commitment to promoting diversity and equity on their campuses.” In the current program year, the UofMosaic Fellowship Program brought together twenty fellows from nine Canadian universities to Toronto in September 2018 for a weekend of training and professional development.

Since this time, the UofMosaic Fellows have organized a national campaign targeting the problem of intergenerational prejudice. As defined by the Mosaic Institute, intergenerational prejudice refers to “an inherited set of attitudes and feelings toward a person or group of people based solely on that person’s perceived group

PHOTO FROM THE MOSAIC INSTITUTE FACEBOOK PAGE

The UofMosaic Fellowship this year discussed intergenerational prejudice. membership for which there is no legitimate factual basis.”

The definition goes on to explain that these preconceived feelings are learned from parents or grandparents, but “can be unlearned.”

In their attempt to dismantle intergenerational prejudice, the UofMosa-

ic Fellows designed an interactive art exhibit and roundtable discussions hosted at post-secondary institutions across Canada. UofMosaic Fellows stationed at UTSG, UTM, Concordia University, University of Ottawa, and the University of British Columbia hosted the events on their respective

campuses over the month of March.

According to a statement by the UofM Fellowship, the campaign aims “to create spaces where individuals are able to reflect on, reveal and dismantle an intergenerational prejudice they have received or experienced.”

“We believe that our prejudices do

not form at birth, but can often start inside our homes,” reads a description off the UofMosaic Fellowship webpage.

Last Monday and Tuesday, UTM’s UofMosaic Fellows hosted the interactive art exhibit in the CCT atrium.

UTM students had the opportunity to share their experiences dealing with intergenerational prejudice by colouring a Russian matryoshka doll and placing it within a larger doll frame. The art exhibit culminated on Tuesday evening with a roundtable discussion hosted in the UTMSU’s presentation room.

In attendance of the group debrief was the Chief Executive Officer of the Mosaic Institute, Akaash Maharaj, and UofMosaic Program Coordinator, Pallak Arora. Students from UTM, Sheridan College, and George Brown College were also in attendance.

Maharaj, formerly the CEO of the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC), began the event by reinforcing the importance of introspection and reflection on personal values and difficult subject matter.

Mosaic continued on page 2

Capital Management celebrates year UTM’s first capital management club held its closing ceremony to celebrate its success over the year MDUDUZI MHLANGA STAFF WRITER

This past Monday, March 25th, the UTM Capital Management club held its closing ceremony to wrap up its activities of the 2018-2019 academic year. This club is the first student-run investment fund at UTM. According to their Facebook page, through a partnership with Desjardins, UTM Capital Management provides students a platform to make informed investment decisions based on their ongoing research and analysis of the markets.

The Medium spoke with the club’s president Massil Beguenane about his motivation for starting the club. Beguenane explained that while other schools have investment funds, UTM lacked a legitimate one. The first objective of the club was to find a company to invest in.

Massil stated that he hopes to one day hopes to equal or surpass Mc-

PHOTO COURTESY OF WALEED AUMEERALLY

The UTM Capital Management club is the first student-run investment fund at UTM. Gill, which started with $200,000 ten years ago and now has $4 million in its management. He explained his delight at the club’s popularity, “We’re pretty impressed with the number of

people that are interested in this club in just its first year.”

During the closing ceremony, five teams split into different industries (i.e. technology, healthcare, energy)

to find a viable company for the club to invest in.

Take-Two Interactive was one of the companies presented. The team representing this company had to

look at the stock’s volatility, its risks, its promise, its earnings, and its debts to evaluate whether it is worth investing in. The judges decided that TakeTwo was the best choice and rewarded the team $1, 000.

Among the judges were members from Desjardin, BigPictureTrading and the UTM finance faculty. Ed Rieckelman, adjunct professor, executive in residence for the UTM department of Management, and faculty advisor for UTM Capital Management. stated, “I think that understanding the global economic markets, understanding how the stock market works, and understanding how to value individual stocks are all terrific skills if you’re a finance major or accounting major. But I think they’re universal skills that are important for all of us.

And I also think it can be pretty fun.”

Massil and Rieckelman hope to extend the partnerships beyond just Desjardin to increase the clout and effectiveness of the club.

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THE MEDIUM 04.01.2019

Campus affairs updates March 21st, 2019 Property Damage UTM staff reported a damaged glass pane in the student centre.

March 21st, 2019 Property Damage UTM staff reported damaged glass in the Davis greenhouse.

March 21st, 2019 Trespass to Property Act Campus Police received a report of two students sitting on the RAWC roof. The students were issued Provincial Offence Notices for entering premises when entry prohibited.

March 22nd, 2019 Police Information RAWC staff reported a student using another student’s t-card to enter the gym facilities.

MELISSA BARRIENTOS ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR

March 23rd, 2019 Noise Complaint Campus Police attended a residence to assist in shutting down a large social gathering.

These reports are those that have been released to The Medium and do not necessarily constitute an exhaustive list.

Students can contact the UTM Campus Police at 905 828 5200, Peel Regional Police at 905 453 3311, or Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222 8477.

Poets perform

JULIA HEALY/THE MEDIUM

UofMosaic fellowship applications will open in the summer.

Mosaic continued from page 1 “Sometimes, it’s challenging to have these sorts of discussions. I think you should all be very proud of the fact you have come here today and are willing to confront [these issues].”

Maharaj earned his MA from Oxford University in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, and was elected President of the Students’ Union.

Maharaj has been decorated twice in Canada’s national honours for his contributions to peace summits regarding the Middle East, and for his services to integrity in international sport.

Over the course of the event, participants were invited to sit at tables and partake in small group discussions discussing their experiences dealing with prejudice under the facilitation of UTM’s UofMosaic Fellows. Shortly after, all participants engaged in a large group discussion sharing their insights and personal stories pertaining to intersectionality,

DESIGN FROM GOVERNING COUNCIL PRESENTATION

The Campus Affairs Committee unveiled the layout of the New Food Court in the Davis Building.

biases, and intergenerational prejudice. The event was capped off with performances by two spoken word poets, Nasim Asghari and Maymuna Mohamed, who shared original pieces addressing identity, nationality, and family.

Omar Ali, one of the UofMosaic Fellows at UTM and an organizer of the interactive art exhibit, believes that the event marks the opening of a new discussion among UTM students about the nuances of intergenerational prejudice.

“It was a different sort of event that doesn’t get talked about. It was great to help organize and hear different people’s ideas on prejudice. It’s also interesting that people open up about their intergenerational prejudices even though you barely know them. I think it has to do with the fact that we all have these shared experiences that are passed down to us.”

Applications for the next cohort of UofMosaic Fellows is slated to open in the summer of this year.

On March 27, the Campus Affairs Committee gathered to review the Hospitality and Retail Services updates and initiatives.

Vicky Jezierski, the Director of Hospitality and Retail Services at UTM, delivered a presentation regarding contract updates, construction updates, sustainability projects, and other upcoming projects.

Jezierski began her presentation by describing the improved May 2018 contract with the e-commerce platform company, called ITC, that allows students to tap at all cash registers, including the T-Card’s meal plan function. The contract with ITC has also given UTM the ability to install e-commerce platforms on the printing centre in the library, which will soon be functional.

In November 2018, the university signed a vending machine contract with Naccarato (a three-year contract with an expandable two one-year terms). This will allow UTM to have non-exclusive contracts with various companies.

UTM currently has over thirty vending machines stacked with classic pop beverages, candies, and chips.

With the privilege of the non-exclusive contract, UTM also has a trial period with three different companies to test out the Best Buy Express, the My Lil’Healthmart, and the THEOS Coffee Espresso Bar. Regarding the success of the three trial-run vending machines, Jezierski commented, “In IB, after we removed Second Cup, we put in THEOS Coffee Espresso Bar and very quickly we had to add the second one because it was just so busy.”

The Campus Affairs Committee meeting also unveiled the layout of the New Food Court in the Davis Building.

The New Food Court will include: Rotisserie, Thai Express, Harvey’s, Fusion 5: Asian Food Box, Pizza Pizza, Mongolian Grill, FairTrade Canada, Bento, a salad bar section, and an international food section.

The Hospitality and Retail Services decided on these food retail services after several research projects detailing the food preferences of UTM students and faculty, and after determining an appropriate price range and food retail contract for the university.

“Three years ago, we did extensive analysis and community engagements sessions […] and we had a lot of feedback from students and faculty,” said Jezierski. “We [also] have ongoing sessions and consultation through our food advisory committees which

UTM graduates and undergraduate students sit on, and we consult all of these options.”

While the food retail services will have a permanent location in the new food court, Jezierski believes that there might be last minute additions to the food court layout. Most likely the all-day breakfast café, named Oh La La, will make a permanent move to the center of the New Food Court

by FairTrade Canada.

“We decided to try the all-day breakfast [at the temporary Davis food court] and to our great surprise it is a very popular location. We have been getting a lot of requests to move it into the food court. So although we don’t have a permanent location for it, we will accommodate for the full-day breakfast in the new food court when it’s all done.”

Jezierski also confirmed that the New Food Court, like most of the food services at UTM, will have food options for students who maintain a religious diet.

“Most of our meat currently served is halal meat,” said Jezierski. “We meet with students on a regular basis that have nutritional requirements, medical requirements, or religious requirements and we work with them to make sure that they have choices that are suitable to their needs.”

“We have been quite busy over these last 7 months,” concluded Jezierski. “[The New Food Court is] coming soon. But like with any construction project, there are challenges. Especially when you have a building that’s really old and you’re trying to build it up to where it needs to be.”

Budget and Funds Scott Mabury, Vice-President of Operations and Real-Estate Partnership, and Jeff Lennon, presented U of T’s 2019-2020 Budget Report and the Long-Range Budget of 2019 to 2024.

The U of T balanced budget of 2019-2020 is projected to be $2.77 billion with 63 per cent of revenue coming from student tuition and fees, and 59 per cent of expenditure covering faculty and staff compensation.

The projected average revenue growth rate is 3.5 per cent at the institutional level, a decrease from the 5.2 per cent projection that was calculated before the provincial government’s 10 per cent tuition cut. This means a revenue loss of $65 million for U of T. The new provincial tuition fee framework also entails that, with the domestic tuition fee frozen at the 2019-20 rate, there will be a decrease of domestic tuition revenue and an increase in international tuition revenue.

U of T’s revenue in the 2019-2020

academic year will be funded by 34 per cent of international tuition fees, 24 per cent of government funding (from the Operating Grant), and 21 per cent of domestic tuition fees. In the 2022-2023 academic year, U of T’s dependence on international tuition fees will continue to increase as the Long-Range Budget projects U of T’s revenue to be funded from 38 per cent of international tuition fees, 21 per cent of government funding, and 21 per cent of domestic tuition fees.

To this end, Mabury and Lennon present the Four Corners to develop a new source of revenue for U of T. Some of the goals of the Four Corner plan include: “Improving the amenities and environment on the campus edge, growing the portfolio of quality attainable housing, and promoting innovation and commercialization by providing suitable space.”

The operating budget presentation shows that while UTM had 12, 553 undergraduates enroll in the 2018-19 academic year, UTM had a 0.3 per cent domestic enrolment variance to plan and an 8.7 per cent international enrolment variance to plan. This means that there are more international undergraduate students enrolling to UTM than the university has planned.

This movement is most significantly seen in St. George’s domestic undergraduate enrollment results as it is projected that the St. George campus will have a decrease of 5.1% of domestic undergraduate enrollment, a loss total of 1485 students. The overall undergraduate enrollment at U of T is then projected to decrease by over 2% by the 2023-24 academic year, Regarding the effects of the OSAP changes the presentation noted 62 per cent of undergraduate students at U of T received OSAP in 2017-18, a total of 29,323 students. At the UTM campus 65 per cent of undergraduate students had received OSAP in the 2017-18 academic year.

The changes to OSAP will also be affecting U of T’s financial aid program, the Student Access Guarantee (SAG), as its framework works as a supplement to OSAP. When a U of T student requires financial aid, they can apply for the SAG program where their case is first sent to OSAP and if there is still an outstanding balance then the university’s reserve for financial aid covers the remaining fee.

“Our SAG program is closely linked to the OSAP program, so as it changes, those changes will flow into SAG,” said Lennon. “As fewer people are qualifying for OSAP, fewer people are going to flow into the university’s SAG program.”

SCI guidelines released

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HUMANS OF UTM

PHOTO FROM OFA.ON.CA

The Student Choice Initiative details were sent to student societies last month.

ALI TAHA NEWS EDITOR Last week, the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities published an official guideline to the tuition fee and ancillary fee changes that will be implemented in the 2019-2020 academic year. The document expands on details about the Student Choice Initiative sent out to student societies by Vice-Provost, Students Sandy Welsh last month.

SCI Guidelines According to the document, an ancillary fee refers to “a fee imposed or administered […] in addition to regular tuition fees, which a student pays for a service or product.” The University of Toronto denotes such fees as ‘incidental.’

The guidelines for the SCI differentiate between “essential” and “non-essential” that are charged by the university to support clubs, stu-

dent societies, and programs that fall outside of the provincial framework for compulsory fees. Students must be provided an opt-out option for all “non-essential” fees.

Service fees may be deemed “essential” by individual institutions as long as they fall within the ministry’s established framework, which includes athletics and recreation, career services, student buildings, health and counselling, academic support, student ID cards, student achievement and records, financial aid offices, and campus safety programs. At UTM, this also includes the student transit pass.

Institutions must inform students the breakdown of each individual fee, before listing the fees to ensure students know what they are paying for.

Mark Overton, dean of student affairs at UTM, stated that UTM is currently “reviewing all of the ancillary fees, including those of stu-

dent societies and their affiliates, to see which ones could be considered essential under the Ancillary Fee Guidelines (section 6 of the MTCU document). I understand that the final guidelines were released on Friday so we’ll be working to interpret and apply them in the next few days.”

Tuition fee cuts Tuition for domestic students will be reduced by ten per cent come the 2019-2020 academic year. This reduction will not apply to “most international students” or “full cost recovery” programs that receive funding through tuition.

For the 2020-2021 academic year, the ministry will also freeze the tuition for all academic programs at all post-secondary institutions in Ontario.

The tuition cut will not apply to students in deregulated programs, such as CCIT, DEM, or Commerce.

U of T receives donation

“I think when you spend many hours together trying to work on the same project, a bond forms. We all have the same goal. We all want to be the voice of UTM.” “This entire year has been a learning curve, where we have gotten to know how the job works, how we work as individuals, how we interact as a team, how we solve problems, and how we find solutions. It’s been a really meaningful, arduous journey, but we got through it and we’re ready for what life throws at us next. And we wouldn’t change it for the world. And to all of our fellow UTM students, don’t forget you have a voice. Don’t forget—” “To answer your e-mails.”

“Don’t forget that when everyone else is gone, the campus newspaper is here to stay.”

“Tell me something, girl…”

“Are you happy in this modern world?”

To my associate and volunteers, Thank you so much for contributing to the paper.

It’s been a pleasure working with you and seeing your growth as writers and journalists. I wish you all the best in your future endeavours, and I hope you will continue writing, reading, and searching for the truth!

To our readers, I hope we provided you with important, interesting information that SPILLED THE TEA. Please enjoy the tea forever and ever.

- Ali Taha, News Editor 2018/2019

PHOTO FROM UTORONTO.CA

The upcoming Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre will explore the societal implications of AI. VANESSA CESARIO SPORTS EDITOR Heather Reisman and Gerald Schwartz have donated $100 million to the University of Toronto, marking their donation as the largest one U of T has ever received. This money will help build a new innovation complex that will include a new institute to explore artificial intelligence. The complex will be called the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre.

“The University of Toronto is deeply grateful to Gerry Schwartz and Heather Reisman for their vision and generosity,” said U of T President, Meric Gertler. “This extraordinary gift will spark Canadian innovation, boost our economy, and enable a deeper examination of how technology shapes our daily lives. It’s a gift that reflects Gerry and Heather’s entrepreneurial spirit and their deep concern for Canadians and global so-

ciety.”

The building will be located at the northeast corner of College and Queen’s Park at the university’s downtown campus and will include two towers and offer space to smaller Canadian companies.

According to the university, one tower will house the new Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society, whose mission is to explore the societal and ethical implications of AI and other emerging technologies, and the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, a not-for-profit that focuses on machine learning.

The second tower will include laboratories for highly successful researchers and innovators in regenerative medicine, genetics and precision medicine. These scientists are researching the potential of stem cells to repair and regenerate damaged tissues and organs, and treat cancer, diabetes, strokes, and blindness.

Reisman is the CEO of Indigo and Schwartz is the CEO of Onex Corporation. The couple are among the richest families in Canada, falling under billionaire status. “We’re immensely proud and excited to be part of an initiative that will further spark innovation, anchor talent and ideas in Canada, and illuminate the importance of socially responsible technology,” the couple said.

“It will help consolidate Toronto’s leading position in the AI world,” said retired U of T professor, Geoffrey Hinton. “It will also bring together scholars from an array of disciplines to study the implications of AI in today’s world.”

The complex will be constructed in two phases. This first phase will be a 250,000 square foot, 12-storey tower that is set to begin this fall. The second will be a 500,000 square foot, 20-storey tower.

Ali Taha (53) Yasmeen Alkoka (1) Alicia Boatto (1) Vanessa Cesario (1) Melissa Barrientos (17) Kayvan Aflaki (8) Kevin Kim (1) Mduduzi Mhlanga (8) Tanisha Kumar (5) Ayesha Hassan (2) Harris Watkins (2) Avleen Grewal (2)

Shveta Bhasker (2) Mihail Cubata (2) Miduduzi Mhlanga (1) Melissa Aragon (1) Tara Varela (1) Abe George (1) Marko Spajic (1) Eden Finer (1) Grace Meany (1) Aparna Gopalakrishnan (1) Zainab Umar (1)

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My voice may be leaving, but The Medium’s never will “So, Mahmoud, when you read this in the future, do a few things: 1. Don’t cringe at your writing skills or at the whole cheesy sentimental crap you wrote. 2. Just look back at the time you wrote this and remember, you grew. Keep doing it.”

That was the end of my first-ever editorial, and now I begin writing my last.

I’ve had very little time all year to really think back to the first time I began volunteering here as a naïve little photographer. Little did I know that my decision to take a step forward into photographing for this paper would lead to this point now, with me as the Editor-in-Chief. That’s the thing, every decision we ever make, connections we establish, hurdles and stresses we face, we never know what the hell will happen as a result.

This is an emotional time for me and my staff. I didn’t spend 6 years doing a job I hated or felt was a job.

This was a passion that I hold so important in my life and was more absolutely ecstatic to have been a part of.

To my team. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you to every team that I have had the absolute pleasure of working with since my time as an associate photo editor. All of you have taken time to teach me, laugh with me, stress with me, and grow with me in ways that are unimaginable.

To Ali, Vanessa, Jessica, Paula, Yasmeen, Mahnoor, Alexa, Olivia, Lyndon, Mayank, and Adam, I know things weren’t what we hoped it to be, but you did it. We did it. Thank you for your patience with me. Each of you have come out different than when you began, and stronger. I wish I could have been there more for you,

and have been a bigger part of your growth as journalists, but I am honoured to call you friends. Without you, the integrity and growth of this paper would not have happened. I hope you have learned and garnered an experience that you will cherish. I believe in every single one of you, I always did and always will. If there’s one thing I hope you have taken, it’s that I hope you appreciate and enjoyed the journalistic experience. Spread its importance, and embrace it.

From the moment I began my time here at The Medium, my goal has always been to leave any inch of an impact that I could on this campus. I don’t ask for compliments, or for you to tell me whether I did or not, but I sincerely hope that you remember this paper and remember my pledge to all of you. Whatever legacy I left here, take it and make it 400x better, for there is always a way to improve.

To Alicia, it’s been a long journey but 24 issues later we did it. I know how important journalism is to you, and I thank you for being a fabulous partner and friend. I am beyond grateful for you being so patient with me when I was in the midst of everything in my life and without your leadership alongside mine, I would not have been able to get through it all. You’re going to be a kick-ass editor, journalist, writer, and I am so proud of you for all that you have done so far and will do in the future.

Of course, I have to thank my family. They probably will never read this but hey, I have to give them a shout out. Mama & Baba, thank you for letting me take the car every weekend, and also questioning why the hell I was working so many hours every

Thank you to everyone who contributed photos to Volume 45!

Yasmeen Alkoka (74) Olivia Adamczyk (20) Mahmoud Sarouji (1) Alexa Neves-Hua (1) Julia Healy (28) Brittany Semplonius (8) Muhammad Ali (8) Delaney Rombough (5) Anthony Labonte (2) Belicia Chevolleau (1) Pawel Migdal (5) Wendell Macapagal (5) Ashley Vanderkoen (5) France-Victoria Drysdale (4) Lynn Medi (3) Muhammad Zaid Arif (3)

Naairah Paurobally (3) Jeanlouis Rebello (2) Michelle Liou (2) Ericka Cruz (2) Chen Gong (2) Natalie Ng (2) Noor Al-Kaabi (1) Yi Rong Tan (1) Melanie Asselin (1) Christy Tam (1) Shifa Siddiqui (1) Halah Butt (1) Leilah Dhore (1) Aimen Ali (1)

week for the paper – that always put things into perspective every time I had to repeat why this was so important to me. Adam, you absolutely saved me, and helped me when I just couldn’t do something, and for that I am thankful.

I began my years here with absolutely no idea what it meant to even be a journalist. They just asked tough questions right? Boy was I wrong.

My last thank you goes to you, the reader. Without you, we don’t exist.

Without you, we don’t serve anyone.

Every volunteer or staff member of this journalist outlet works tirelessly here to serve your voice. We fought and will always fight for the truth. The Medium should hold a special place in your campus experience. The Voice of The University of Toronto Mississauga will never shout, but will always be here to spread knowledge, stories, experiences, and stay true to you.

Student journalism doesn’t exist.

It will always be journalism, whether it’s here or at the highest level, journalism is an absolute necessity for the livelihood of knowledge. It is my hope that I was able to facilitate that for you.

If there’s one thing that I hope for everyone reading this to take away with them, it’s this: do not underestimate the power and importance journalism has on your life.

To future first years, and current students, pick up a paper, read, and engage. Whether it’s The Medium, The Varsity, The Underground, it doesn’t matter. We are all here to serve you and inform. Journalism will never die, it will always struggle but it will never be out of your lives. Journalists fight, and my staff at The Medium

every year, day in and out have done just that.

I’ve had to go through so much change in life, and I’ve gotten to the point where I know how to embrace that. It is time for me to move on into my career and other places in my life and every ounce of me is anxious, nervous, afraid and excited. My time at The Medium will never be forgotten, and has brought me to a level of confidence unimaginable.

To the team next year, don’t stop fighting. Become one, and fight for the truth and information. Never back down, tell beautiful stories, and sad ones. Engage our audience. Be the journalist that you know this paper deserves.

Past Mahmoud, I will never cringe at the cheesy crap you wrote, for that crap was what got you here. You grew alright, you grew.

Thank you The Medium II Publications.

I’ll remain in the archive and pages of the aging paper for years to come, but The Medium will follow me wherever I go.

Whether you are coming back again next year, or coming back, never forget what you did here. You wrote your fricking hearts out.

As for me, I once said I photographed my heart out, but now, I just let my heart out.

See you UTM, grow forever, and seek the truth, always.

YOURS, MAHMOUD SAROUJI EDITOR IN CHIEF 2017-2019

Congratulations to the 2019 - 2020 elected editorial board! Best of luck!

Editor in Chief: Ali Taha News Editor: Melissa Barrientos Sports and Health Editor: Sarah-May Oldfield Features Editor: Syeda Farima Adil Arts and Entertainment Editor: Srijan Sahu

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So long UTM: Class of ‘19 looks back With graduation coming soon, The Medium caught up with some outgoing graduates JESSICA CABRAL FEATURES EDITOR

There’s only one week left in the semester, and for some, there’s only one week left in their undergraduate career. With UTM’s convocation scheduled for June 5th and June 6th, graduating students are busy submitting their last assignments, studying for their final exams, gathering references letters, applying for jobs, or accepting offers of admission to continue on with their academic journey.

After a simultaneously exhausting and educating four, five, or six years, graduating students often wonder what’s next for them once they cross the stage at Convocation Hall. Will they find a job in their field? Should they pursue more school? Maybe, it’s time to start travelling the world?

But, with what money? Last week, The Medium caught up with some graduating students to discuss their experiences at UTM, their future plans, and their advice for first-years.

Matthew Dworak, fourth-year, psychology, biology, and sociology For Matthew Dworak, a fourthyear student majoring in psychology and minoring in biology and sociology describes the feeling of graduating this year as “surreal.” Although he is excited and proud to have completed this chapter in his life and to be moving forward into the future, Dworak admits that “it’s kind of weird how quickly four years of struggling goes by right in front of your eyes when in the moment it seems never-ending.”

Due to UTM’s close proximity to his home, Dworak believed that at-

tending UTM would help him save money while allowing him to obtain the prestigious recognition of a University of Toronto degree. The combination of these two reasons helped steer Dworak towards choosing UTM after high school. “Despite constantly feeling like I was in a can of sardines (hello, overpopulation), the experience [at UTM] was very homey and comfortable. I enjoyed the years here being close to home, while still getting the intensive U of T experience,” Dworak says.

Immediately after graduation, Dworak plans “to take some time to [himself],” explaining that he hopes to work while also taking the time to digest his experiences before jumping into the next journey. In the long term, Dworak isn’t too concerned with finding a job in his field, rather he hopes to “end up with a job that makes [him] happy.”

“Life happens and plans change so often that things just aren’t guaranteed and I respect the idea of letting things happen as they do,” he says.

Reflecting on his experience at UTM, Dworak claims that if he had the opportunity to go back to first year, he wouldn’t change anything.

“Making the mistakes I did and doing things the way I did shaped so much of what I became today. I’m happy with the place I’ve come to and I wouldn’t alter anything for fear of the butterfly effect; small changes leading to huge consequences,” he says. “Although, if I was back in my first-year self, I would take the success package for PSY100 a little more seriously.”

When asked about the advice Dworak would give to current and

ALEXA NEVES-HUA/THE MEDIUM

The Medium spoke to some graduating students to learn about their plans and experiences incoming first years, he wants to remind them that it’s okay to make mistakes because university is meant to be a learning process. “Keep your head up, do what you need to do, and make sure your mind has officially exited the mindset of high school.”

Erica Rzepecki, fourth-year, CCIT and Professional Writing After spending the past three years working on residence, Erica Rzepecki, a fourth-year student double majoring in CCIT and Professional Writing, claims that, for her, there have been many memorable moments at UTM. “I’d say move-in days are some of the best ones—watching the new first years come in, scared and excited is a great moment because you know how much they’ll change and grow over the year, even

NAAÏRAH PAUROBALLY/THE MEDIUM

This year UTM convocations are scheduled for June 5th and 6th.

though they have no idea yet,” she says.

Picking UTM “completely based off vibes” in grade 12, Rzepecki knew that the programs UTM offered would be a perfect match for her interests. She explains that participating in campus tours and seeing “the beautiful buildings, the nature, and the deer” sold her on her decision.

When asked how her overall experience was at UTM, Rzepecki remarks that she always finds this question “funny for some reason.”

“To quote Dickens, ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.’

Honestly, the past four years have been such a transformational time for me. I’ve been challenged a lot, and faced so many issues (personal, academic, mental health) that have been so difficult in the moment, but overcoming all of these challenges has been the most rewarding feeling. At the end of each year, I look back on who I was at the beginning, and it’s always a completely different person.

In a good way, I hope.”

Graduating in June has Rzepecki feeling “kind of surreal.” She’ll have to face big changes, such as moving out of residence after spending her entire undergrad journey living away from home. “It always felt like there would always be more assignments or tests or portfolios to do, so being at the end doesn’t quite feel real yet,” Rzepecki admits. “It’ll probably sink in once I move out of residence, and into wherever I’m going next. I’m definitely excited to move onto the next stage of my life, but nervous because I don’t completely know what to expect.”

In the long term, Rzepecki hopes to find a career where she can use her writing and editing skills to make a difference. “The ‘problem’ with me-

dia and creative fields is that they’re always changing and evolving, so my future career may not even exist yet.

But my goal is to do something that I can feel good about—use my skills in writing or design to make a difference, maybe working with a nonprofit. It sounds kind of cheesy, but I think that’s how I’ll find fulfillment,” she says.

Remembering her experience as a first-year, Rzepecki claims that if she could go back to that time she wouldn’t change anything. “Firstyear me worried too much about insignificant things, but I think that’s a normal part of the process as you gain maturity and perspective. All the mistakes I’ve made throughout these four years have taught me lessons I’ll carry with me throughout my life, so I’d never want to take away that learning experience from myself.”

For those nervous first-years, Rzepecki wants to share a few concise words of wisdom: “Don’t be afraid to pursue big goals—but also make sure you strive for balance. Burnout is real.”

Jessica Valadao, fourth-year, psychology, biology and sociology When she was making her postsecondary decisions in grade 12, Jessica Valadao, a fourth-year student majoring in psychology and minoring in biology and sociology, fell in love with UTM’s size, its “gorgeous campus,” and the surrounding nature. “It’s just something I wouldn’t be able to get downtown. I’ve had such a great experience as a student here at UTM and I honestly could not have picked a better school for myself.

I’ve met so many interesting people and I also learned a lot about myself throughout my time here,” she says.

Grads continued on page 10

04.01.2019 THE MEDIUM FEATURES» 9

Discussing PI, teaching, and awards with Zingaro Dr. Daniel Zingaro, MCS professor, was recently awarded U of T’s Early Teaching Career Award KEVIN KIM ASSOCIATE FEATURES EDITOR

In commendation of the stellar teaching that is exhibited by new professors at U of T, an honor dubbed the Early Teaching Career Award is distributed each year to select professors that are nominated and supported by the students they taught. Every year, up to four recipients are chosen for this award, with the stipulation that the recipients be within the first six years of their teaching career.

One such professor, Dr. Daniel Zingaro, assistant professor in the mathematical and computational sciences department, won the award last month in February. With a primary focus on computer science and mathematics, he is soon to reach his sixth anniversary as a professor at U of T. “I have won some research awards […] this teaching award means more to me than those research awards do, because my students helped me win this award; they determined that I should win it. They wrote reference letters, and that’s a big factor in who wins this award—what is the actual impact on students?” Zingaro says.

Zingaro goes on to explain the importance of student input in winning the award over other factors, such as his application and the input of fellow colleagues. “By virtue of winning the award, I know that [students] were very complementary, so that was really nice; to have an award that, in some sense, was determined by the students.”

When prompted on how he tends to structure his lectures, Zingaro had much to say. “My claim to fame is pure instruction, or PI, as it’s called.

It’s designed to replace lecture by these multiple-choice questions that test conceptual understanding.” Having done much research on education and its applications, some interesting

studies resulted in his adoption of this teaching style. Notably, Zingaro points out that “If you do a lecture for an hour or two, students learn very little from it. I think this is an extreme case, but there are examples in physics where the prof has tested students from the beginning of a lecture on some upcoming material, and then they have a lecture. Then they get tested after the lecture, and they do worse than before!” He remarks that while leaving students confused after lectures isn’t always counterproductive to learning, as it may motivate them to learn more, the ultimate verdict is that students are digesting much less material from traditional lectures than expected.

As an overview of PI, the technique operates as follows: students expose themselves to course material before lectures, whether that is through readings, videos, or other mediums.

Students then come to lecture with an incomplete, but workable understanding of what will be taught.

They’re given a multiple-choice question that is specifically designed to facilitate conceptual understanding; each wrong answer points to a common misconception that students may have about the question posed.

Generally, students will work silently and independently on the question first—a marking scheme based on participation and not correctness ensures that cheating for correct answers doesn’t happen, while providing an environment free of stress.

After the first submission of individual answers, students then work in groups and re-do the question.

“What we see in the research is that the correctness on the first vote, the individual vote, is usually something like 40-50 per cent or so. And then it goes up dramatically for the group vote; it goes up to 70 or 80 per cent.

And you might think, well, maybe they’re just copying from people who

YASMEEN ALKOKA/THE MEDIUM

Daniel Zingaro says this award means a lot to him because students helped him win. they perceive to have more understanding. But we did more research using isomorphic questions, and suffice to say, we have a lot of evidence showing that there is a little bit of copying, obviously, but for the most part, it does demonstrate conceptual understanding of what they’re learning.”

Zingaro has done a plethora of research based on PI, and regardless of what is examined—student opinions, exam grades, conceptual understanding—classes structured around PI simply perform better than lecture classes. In fact, his main area of focus when it comes to research does not relate to computer science at all— he obtained a Master of Education through OISE, the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, and then went on to obtain his Ph.D. in Education at UofT. To provide some insight into the work that professors do, when asked

after his opinion on the obligation of professors to teach and whether all professors enjoy it, Zingaro gave the question some thought. “At U of T, we have two kinds of professors; we have a teaching stream, and we have a research stream. We have breakdowns for how we’re expected to spend our time. So, a teaching stream is 80 per cent teaching, and 20 per cent service. The research stream is, I think, 40 per cent teaching, 40 per cent research, and 20 per cent service.” Although “service” was not clearly defined here, it seems to refer to responsibilities such as service to committees, organization of conferences and events—in general, activities of leadership.

Zingaro is ambivalent on the distinction between these two streams.

“The teaching stream professors… a lot of us do research, and a lot of us are experts in pedagogical research.

So, I find it somewhat concerning

that we don’t have the word ‘research’ in our titles, even though we do a lot of it. Correspondingly, the research professors do a lot of teaching, and they don’t have ‘teaching’ in their title.” Regarding the question posed, “Are all professors passionate about teaching? That’s a clear no. I think some professors don’t enjoy teaching very much at all […] they are influencing a lot of students that take their classes, and I’m sure it comes across to students’ which professors care and which don’t. But that said, the demands of research are immense.

It’s very challenging to be an expert in both teaching and research. It’s doable, but I think most professors choose one.”

Zingaro may be found teaching various CS courses within UTM, he also aspires to dabble in teaching some math courses in the future—the disciplines are, after all, intimately connected.

In conversation with Shalini Nanayakkara UTM alumna Shalini Nanayakkara published her first fantasy novel at eleven years old GORDON CORK

Shalini Nanayakkara has been writing since she was eleven-years-old and self-published her fantasy novel The Time has Come when she was twelve-years-old.

During her undergraduate studies at the University of Toronto, she demonstrated her leadership as an editor-in-chief for the English department’s annual publication With Caffeine and Careful Thought. Her influence as editor-in-chief stretched beyond the reach of the English publication to different department programs and included sixteen editors and twenty-one authors.

Nanayakkara continues her education at the University of British Columbia, with the achievement of the Social Science and Humanities Research award that granted her sev-

enteen-thousand dollars to continue her research on eco-critical readings of fantasy literature, from the Industrial Revolution to now.

Nanayakkara currently works as a committee member organizing UBC’s 2019 Endnotes Conference, two days for graduate students to present their work to peers.

She also hosts a podcast called The High Fantasy Podcast, where she and co-host Morgan Sutherland, discuss fantasy literature and interview independent authors. You can find The High Fantasy Podcast on YouTube.

Nanayakkara moved from Canada to Sri Lanka when she was a child.

Her father worked as a professor, founder, and director of the Post Graduate Institute of Management, in Sri Lanka. Nanayakkara’s exposure to academics and her passion for ecological activism inspired her to write a book called The Time

Has Come. The books’ plot features aliens invading Earth and offering an ultimatum: “We won’t destroy you if you solve climate change, war, and poverty. You have one year.” Her father used the university’s printing center to publish Nanayakkara’s book. Peers from the university and Nanayakkara’s private elementary school were impressed at her threehundred-page publication. When Nanayakkara moved back to Canada for high school, she was embarrassed because her 2008 publication was printed in Comic Sans.

“I thought I was being cool and different.” Nanayakkara then published a second edition in 2011, with the same Sri Lankan publishers. She plans on publishing a third edition in Canada, “I hope to finally see it on Indigo shelves.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHALINI NANAYAKKARA

Writing continued on page 10

Nanayakkara is currently helping organize UBC’s 2019 Endnotes Conference.

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THE MEDIUM 04.01.2019

One week left of school, one week left of undergrad Grads continued from page 8 With graduation approximately three months away, Valadao admits that she will miss seeing the friends she made around campus every day, but she’s looking forward to starting a new chapter in her life. “It’s unbelievable; I am so excited to be graduating this year.”

After spending four years on the campus, Valadao has met many people and created many life-long memories. But when asked about her most memorable moment, one aspect sticks out clearly in her mind: UTM’s nature.

“My most memorable moments were going for walks through the UTM trails with my friends,” Valadao recalls. “It’s something we would do as a stress reliever during our breaks between classes. We definitely never got used to seeing the adorable deer everywhere, and even after four years, you can still catch me taking pictures of them when they are wandering through campus.

Although many students choose to skip out on their readings in order to make time for other assignments and course work, Valadao recommends that students “try their best to keep up with readings in classes because they really do help when test time comes” but also balance their time wisely. She encourages networking and building relationships with other students in your programs because “these people are going to be by your side for the rest of your years ahead and I guarantee that UTM is where you’re going to form some of your most long-lasting friendships.”

Currently, Valadao plans to spend her summer catching up with family and friends after a strenuous four years. Valadao sees herself working in a clinic or a hospital, where she can

help elderly patients perform daily tasks. “I find it rewarded to see smiles on people’s faces after brightening their days, whether it’s by helping others through physical struggles, making them laugh, or simply asking how their day was.” In the fall, Valadao will be attending Mohawk College for a brain disorders management graduate certificate program.

Sameer Kotwal, sixth-year, Biology and Anthropology Sameer Kotwal, a sixth-year student majoring in biology and anthropology, explains that if he could go back to first year, he wouldn’t change anything about his experience because “this could change who [he is] today.”

“It sounds cliché, but I don’t have any regrets. But, it took me a long time to become passionate about my courses, or become truly invested in my education, or as a first step, even go to my classes more regularly. [But] if I could go back, I would definitely push myself to work harder in my courses, and build better relationships with my professors,” Kotwal says. “There is a lot of stigma for students who want to take more than the conventional four years to finish a bachelor’s degree. For a long time, I would even lie about which year I’m in. For example, in my 5th year, I would tell people I’m in my 4th year.

In my 6th year, I would tell people I’m in my 5th year. I was just so afraid of social judgement, and of people assuming I’m ‘dumb’ or not committed, or anything along these lines. It took me a long time to learn that everyone has their own path to get to where they want to, and that there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.”

Describing his overall experience at UTM as “tiring but worth it,” Kotwal admits that he will “definitely miss this school and the relationships

[he’s] built through it.”

“I’ve had six years to learn, make mistakes, and grow. I definitely wouldn’t be who I am today if I didn’t have the last six years-worth of experiences,” Kotwal says, After graduating grade 12, Kotwal had to decide between accepting an offer to Western University or University of Toronto. Ultimately, he chose U of T Mississauga and quickly realized he made a good decision.

Six years of working, studying, and building relationships on campus makes it challenging for Kotwal to pick his “most memorable moment,” but if he had to choose one, he explains that he’d pick his three years working as a don on residence. “This opportunity gave me a chance to go from a student to a teacher. I got the chance to be a friend and a role model at the same time. I also learned more about what our school is all about: its strengths, its weaknesses, and how to support our students better. University leaders have always preached about building a balance in your life as a key to achieving student success. For me, even though it sounds cliché, this opportunity was that key.”

In the long term, Kotwal would like to “explore the intersectionality behind medicine from the point of view of a physician.” He explains that this could involve working in research or helping to build more culturally and socially-sensitive medical service.

“I want to be a physician, and not just because I have a passion for the sciences, but also because I want to help address several barriers [and] issues people (everyday citizens) in the community face in terms of healthcare (which in my opinion, should be a basic human right for all). Also, one of the reasons I took longer to finish my degree was to get better grades, become a more committed student

Video games, ecology, literature Writing continued from page 9 I asked Nanayakkara how she could write a three-hundred-page sci-fi book at eleven. “I read a lot. I read all the Harry Potter books and Eragon. I didn’t read a lot [of different] books.

I read [these] same books over, and over again. So, I kind of got the style of fantasy writing.”

Nanayakkara published her book in 2008, one year before the Sri Lankan civil war ended. The Time has Come shows the evil side of humanity. The aliens threaten to destroy us if we don’t peacefully end all our wars. I asked if the civil war had inspired her in any way to write The Time has Come. “That’s interesting, I don’t know necessarily. I lived in a privileged area and I went to private school. I was never in any [immediate] danger. But, it was in the back of my mind.”

Nanayakkara explained that her inspiration for her book wasn’t specifically the Sri Lankan Civil war, it was an accumulation of what she saw in the media as a child—the Sri Lankan Civil war being one example of many portrayed on the media.

Nanayakkara has spent most of her life in Canada, and from as young as she can remember, she has

always been passionate about climate change. As a child, she watched and read stories about climate change in the media. We watch this news but rarely do anything about it. At eleven-years-old, Nanayakkara wrote The Time has Come to show the importance of time in our socio-political decisions. “Climate change is expected [to have significant effects within the next fifteen years, maybe sooner]. I wanted to write a book to show what [humanity] can do when we have an external force to motivate [our actions].”

I said, “It’s kind of like having an incentive. For example, in our university writing programs, we have incentive to write stories because we have an external force motivating us to do well. That external force being our grades.”

Nanayakkara and I agreed that The Time has Come contains a sociological context. We as a society are motivated to take action at the last minute, distracted to take action ahead of time, and require immediate reward to take any action at all.

Procrastinating homework is a small example of procrastinating action on climate change. But both use the same mindset. We have plenty of time to do our homework, we put it

off until the next day, then we realize that it’s due tomorrow and we scramble to finish our homework. It’ll only be when it’s too late that Earth’s due date comes and we as humanity will scramble to solve climate change.

“If you care about the environment in World of Warcraft, then you should care about the environment you live in, in real life,” Nanayakkara said referring to her Graduate thesis.

In 2017, Nanayakkara was awarded the University of Toronto Mississauga Undergraduate Research Fund, an award for $500.00 CAD to conduct research on a specialized topic. Nanayakkara chose to research why fantasy environments are so inspiring. She compared Romantic Era poet, Lord Byron’s Manfred to the videogame, World of Warcraft.

Nanayakkara used her five hundred dollars to buy books, academic journals, and a subscription to World of Warcraft where she owned amateur players as a level 43 Druid and a level 53 Warlock. “I would post screenshots of me playing WoW and caption it ‘haha look at me using research money to play WoW!’”

Read the rest of this article online at themedium.ca

and a more involved community member. A career as a medical professional involves constant learning, which requires commitment, passion, and a sense of purpose. It took me a long time, but I worked hard to build these skills and these are some of the most important lessons I’ll be taking away from my time at UTM,” Kotwal states.

To the incoming first year students and those he has met through his residence experience, Kotwal emphasizes the need for balance. He reminds students that academics and building social networks are equally important. “Also, don’t worry about making mistakes and don’t fear failure. Speaking from my own experience, there is nothing wrong in making your own path to your goals—maybe even take a couple extra years to finish your degree like I did.”

Eden Finer, fifth-year, CCIT and Professional Writing “Honestly, [it’s] kind of unreal. I don’t think it hit me until now that I might not ever be around such a large amount of people my age. In the real world, I’ve been told that it’s hard to find others in a similar stage of life as you, and who are about your age.

I think a lot of us take for granted how easy it is—for the most part—to make friends in university. The way it’s set up is kind of perfect for that,” says Eden Finer, a fifth-year student majoring in CCIT and Professional Writing, in reference to how it feels to be graduating this year.

Leaving grade 12, Eden was drawn in by CCIT’s joint program with UTM and Sheridan. She explains that the program continued to touch upon on some of the topics that she studied in high school, but “in two highly reputable institutions with high quality education.”

When asked about her most

memorable moments, Finer narrows her decision down to two: her cocurricular trip to Thailand and her experience as lead organizer for Ad Summit.

“The first one would have to be the co-curricular Thailand trip where we learned all about voluntourism, or ethical tourism. We got to wash elephants and pave a road with the Akha people amongst many other unforgettable experiences,” Finer recalls.

“My other most memorable moment would have to be being lead organizer of Ad Summit this past school year. It was one of the most challenging experiences I had in my undergraduate career. Including myself, we started off with three lead organizers. About halfway through the fall semester, both of my two co-lead organizers stepped down from their positions, following half of the rest of our executives who did as well. When faced with the decision of either shutting it down, or pushing through, we decided to continue to try to make it work.”

“Planning a whole conference, especially from the ground up, is extremely challenging. It’s not something many can handle in addition to being a student. I was left to lead a team by myself. We were behind schedule. It seemed hopeless. But we managed to pull through, and eventually hosted a successful conference on March 2nd. I have no regrets with the decision I made to make the Ad Summit Well Fed Artist conference happen. We got really good feedback.”

For the first-year students, Finer provides a few words of wisdom: “You have nothing to lose by putting 100% of yourself in your work. Also, try to get involved outside of the classroom.

It’s where I found some of my closest friends, and gained the most invaluable experiences.”

Thank you to everyone who volunteered for the Features section during the 2018/2019 academic year!

I am so proud of each and every one of you. Thank you for making the section a success every week.

A special shoutout to my Associate Features Editors Kevin Kim, Fatima Adil, and Liayana Jondy. Thank you for your dedication and your willingness to cover topics. I appreciate all of your help this year! All the best in the future.

- Jessica Cabral, Features Editor 2018/2019 Jessica Cabral (15) Ali Taha (1) Yasmeen Alkoka (1) Mahmoud Sarouji (1) Vanessa Cesario (1) Paula Cho (1) Kevin Kim (16) Fatima Adil (16) Liayana Jondy (9) Syeda Hasan (3) Belicia Chevolleau (2) Delaney Rombough (1) Mayank Sharma (1) Latisha Lobban (4) Daniel Reale (3) Shayna Jan (3) Lara Wulandari (2) Marko Spajic (2) Aparna Gopalakrishnan (2) Sharmeen Abedi (2) Syeda Zehra (2) Fatima Al Saadie (2)

Louissa Barnes (1) Maryam Faisal (1) Safiyya Hanslod (1) Natalie Ng (1) Moradeyo Adeniyi (1) Nahil Al-Zuhaika (1) Julia Costanzo (1) Maria Khan (1) Elias Ancer Gomez (1) Mellisa Napenas (1) Muhammad Zaid Arif (1) Jenny Liu (1) Zarmeena Khan (1) Nalisa Dharanraj (1) Avleen Grewal (1) Amanda Homsi (1) Fatima Anabtawi (1) Mahnoor Hamid (1) Melissa Ramsammy (1) Wafika Thoba (1) Tonina Mauro (1)

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Czerkawski always leads by example Adam Czerkawski has been a member of the varsity men’s soccer team since his first year at UTM SARAH-MAY OLDFIELD ASSOCIATE S&H EDITOR Adam Czerkawski never thought he was much of a math or science guy.

History was his best subject in school.

Now in his second year at UTM, he majors in History with a minor in Linguistics and Anthropology. He also plays centre back for both UTM varsity men’s soccer team and Ontario League 1.

Czerkawski is a Mississauga native, born to Polish immigrant parents. He speaks Polish at home since it was his first language. Despite being born in Canada, and being raised here, Adam couldn’t speak English entering the Canadian school system.

Czerkawski considers his parent to be fairly traditional. Nowadays they occasionally speak in English, but his parents still like to keep Polish tradition. “Whenever there’s a holiday, thev pretty much do what they did in Poland. They don’t brush that aside. A big one that people in Poland or the Ukraine do is when it’s Easter time, they go with eggs and a basket full of food, and then you go to church and they bless the food. They don’t really do that in Canada.”

Czerkawski is the first member of his family to play soccer, and the first

to play at a highly competitive level.

His father grew up around a soccer club in Poland, but he only ever played for fun. Czerkawski is the first in his family to ever play for a team.

But his family does their best to support him. “My dad likes watching me play. My mom stays away because she doesn’t like watching me get hurt,” he says.

Sports, let alone soccer, isn’t a big deal in Czerkawski’s family. They don’t watch sports, but soccer has been his life for as long he can remember. Czerkawski was 7-years-old when he joined his first soccer team, a rep team called the “Serbian White Eagles.” “One day my neighbour came up to me, he had a child around my age, he told me I was really good and that I should play for his son’s team.”

Czerkawski played for the White Eagles for a year moving on to several more teams, each one a higher level than the last, bringing a new challenge. Wherever the opportunity “I played for Etobicoke, Erin Mills, Mississauga United.” He played in the Ontario Youth Soccer League (OYSL), the highest you can play as a young soccer athlete, at 14 years old.

Czerkawski now plays for not only UTM, but for a team in Scarborough in the League 1 division, the highest

UTM ATHLETICS/FACEBOOK

Adam Czerkawski is the first member of his family to play soccer. men’s league you can reach in Canada just under the CPL and MLS. Czerkawski, like most students, came to UTM for the education. Former coach of the varsity men’s soccer team, Rick Titus, actually gave Czerkawski a call. “A week before the first game, he gave me a call and said he didn’t see me at tryouts, and asked what was up. He [Rick] encouraged me to play.” And he’s never regretted the decision.

Czerkawski feels like he’s adjusted

well to life and pressure as a studentathlete. Despite being the youngest on the team, Czerkawski was a starter in his first year in League 1. It takes a lot to be both a League 1 athlete and a UTM varsity athlete. “I have three practices with League 1 a week, all in a row, from 9-11. I get home at 12, and I have to wake up for either a 9 am class and then workout with Darren. You learn to get used to it. I grew up playing soccer, so my body’s naturally fit. I feel like I can take more

than the average person.”

Despite being moved around to different positions, Czerkawski plays and enjoys centre back. It’s where he feels the most comfortable, and it’s the position he’s played the longest. He credits the team’s mandatory workouts with varsity athletic trainer, Darren Turner, to the advantages he has over other players on the soccer pitch.

“I find it easier going up against strikers that aren’t as strong as me.”

Czerkawski is a defender and there are a number of players that come to mind in terms of who he looks up to, or wants to play like. One name that stands out is Zbigniew Boniek. Playing in the Serbian league when he was younger, Boniek was a name he heard a lot. And since Boniek plays his position, Czerkawski made sure to pay attention. “I always liked watching him.

He’s very strong and physical. I like to say I kind of play like him, emulate my game like him. He was known was for going into tackles strong, for putting his head where people wouldn’t put their feet.” Czerkawski tries to carry that same fearlessness towards his body onto the pitch when he plays which has unfortunately resulted in a number of injuries.

Soccer continued on page 12

A successful school year for UTM athletics A look over the past year for UTM athletics from varsity sports to tri-campus development leagues AMRISH WAGLE ASSOCIATE S&H EDITOR Summer is just around the corner, with bright sunshine and warm weather to break us out of the cold and into four sweet months of summer vacation. As the year inevitably draws to a close, here’s a look back at UTM’s year in athletics.

UTM’s basketball teams had a rocky year with the men’s varsity team achieving 4 wins and 16 losses, whereas the women’s varsity team managed to do a bit better at 5 wins and 15 losses. As for the Tri-Campus Developmental Leagues, the women’s basketball team unfortunately couldn’t get any wins for the whole year and sustained 9 losses against St. George and Scarborough. Compared to last year, the men’s varsity team actually doubled their wins, whereas the women’s teams for both varsity and developmental have remained at about the same level of performance.

The Eagles definitely could use more practice on their basketball skills, but with another year looming close, they’ve no place to go but up.

UTM hosted this year’s 2019 Badminton Championships on behalf of the OCAA and among the top badminton athletes from across Ontario, UTM’s own badminton team had also crushed the regionals to have 7 of their more talented players qual-

YASMEEN ALKOKA/THE MEDIUM

As the semester comes to a close, The Medium looks back to a year of UTM athletics. ify for provincial play. Second year all-star, Rachel Wong, won OCAA Women’s Badminton Player of the Year, OCAA All-Star and won the silver medal at the Women’s Single Provincial Tournament. Wong went on to finish fourth overall at Nationals held at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The Cross Country team had quite an interesting year as well. At the 2018 OCAA XC Championships on October 27, UTM’s prized runner, Sophie Glanz finished sixth overall, clocking in at 24 minutes and 13.7 seconds. Moreover, we also had four

other runners in the women’s race with Talyn Tait coming in at 26th place and the rest obtaining the 62nd, 64th and 65th spots, out of an overall 82 runners.

As for the men’s 8k run, Kale Heino landed the 17th spot at 28 minutes and 26.4 seconds, while Haseeb Malik managed to come in at a close 23rd place with 29 minutes and 5.4 seconds.

At the OCAA nationals, Sophie Glanz attained the 14th place and Kale Heino and Haseed Malik received the 30th and 88th place respectively. This was quite a year for

the team and they definitely left a mark with all their sheer talent.

The women’s varsity soccer team had an interesting season with 1 win, 6 losses and 3 ties. They’ve definitely improved vastly from their previous year when they only had 1 win out of 10 games. At this rate, they’re looking to be even better next year. The men’s team achieved better results with 6 losses, 3 wins and 2 ties. This team did however qualify for the OCAA Provincials at George Brown College and ranked an overall sixth place in the outdoor season and placed third at OCAA Provincials for indoor soc-

cer.

The d-league men’s ice hockey team had a fantastic year where they defeated UTSC in the championship game, bringing home the gold for UTM. The men’s volleyball team finished their year with 5 wins and 5 losses. The women’s team, however, suffered worse luck with 1 win out of a total of 9 games. On the other hand, the d-league men’s soccer team achieved similarly dismal results with 1 win out of 6 games and the women’s team losing all of theirs.

The HCC did however host some of their annual spectacular events.

Their gigantic Be Well UTM Fair was a showstopper, followed by the YOLO pub night, Meet-a-Friend Café, Let’s Talk UTM and the crowd-pleaser; MoveU Skate. Not to mention, all the other endeavours were also very appreciated, including Flu Clinic, Exam Jams, the Health Survey and various educational tabling events.

UTM has had quite a busy year with athletics. With all of the UTM sports teams having success in some way, it is relatively accurate to say that the 2018/2019 athletic year was a good one. Bringing this year to a close, the Eagles can be seen to definitely have come a long way. They’ve endured crushing losses, remarkable triumphs and are looking towards the future for profound change.

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Learn about Passionate and versatile fibromyalgia

Soccer continued from page 11

Czerkawski sprained his ankle at the beginning of the outdoor season, keeping him out of action for 3 months. But he didn’t want to stay out of action for too long. The outdoor varsity soccer season is short. Missing two games could mean missing as much as eight games. Czerkawski worked with the teams Athletic Therapists to get back onto the soccer field. He missed three games with his injury, and played through the rest of season with the lingering pain.

The sprained ankle was the worst of Czerkawski’s leg injuries. He’s known for having experienced multiple head injuries throughout his soccer career. Czerkawski’s aggressiveness has led him to multiple concussions, the first of which he experienced when he was only in elementary, from one too many headers to the head. In a couple of his worst impacts to the head, Czerkawski remembers being knocked out cold, completely blacking out.

However, he’s been rewarded for his multiple efforts. Last season as a first year student and member of the varsity soccer program, Czerkawski was awarded Men’s Varsity Indoor Soccer MVP and the UTM Fair Play award for embodying and exemplifying the Athletic Department’s Fair Play Code.

Like most athletes at UTM, Czerkawski has found an extended family in the UTM community.

Some of his closest friends also play on the team. Outside of the team, Czerkawski is only close to a handful of people. His UTM team and the athletic community have become his core friend group. “I enjoy it in that sense. If it wasn’t for them, I’d be going to class and then home. Without them, I wouldn’t have too much of a social life.”

Czerkawski does a lot of planning to ensure he can be successful both in the classroom and on the soccer pitch. He often completes assignments and work ahead of time, before practices and workouts, so he can work hard at those practices and workouts. “Time management is a big thing. I make sure I know when to do certain things. I know when to work. I know when to rest.” Czerkawski deals with the mental stress of his busy life by trying not to be too rigid with his planning, “Even though I plan things

out, I try to go with flow. Whatever happens, happens.”

Czerkawski credits his emotional resiliency to his soccer journey.

“Growing up I always played at a higher level, always having many practices. While other kids in elementary and high school did their own thing, I had to go to these trainings and practices. I’d come home at midnight sometimes. I think I’ve mentally adjusted to it. I can deal with it now, even with a busier schedule, because of that.”

The outcome of the first game, before [...] UTM, would decide whether our men’s varsity soccer team would be going to Regionals.

Czerkawski is only in his second year at UTM, but he still feels he brings something to the team that some of his teammates don’t have: experience. “I’ve played at a higher level than a lot of guys on the team.

So I feel like that experience allows me to help them in the game. When it comes to situations where we play at a Provincial level, I feel like I can hold the team at the back. If we don’t get scored on, we can’t lose,” says Czerkawski. “I think it’s the experience, the level headedness and that grit. I throw my body in there and show that I’m ready to take one for the team. The team comes first. I don’t think about my body in that sense. If I can win the ball, if I can get the ball somewhere, I’ll get it there. I want to leave it all on the field, but I do want to play in the next game.”

His coaches, Head Coach, Chris Everleigh and Assistant Coaches, Corey Baker and Gio McDonald, can attest to the experience and versatility he brings to his varsity team, as well his quiet and respectful nature.

“He [Adam] has been a model athlete for not only the athletes coming into the program but also the athletes that were here at UTM before him,” says one of his coaches. “Adam brings a high level of experience as he has played at almost every level that Canadian soccer has to offer, going as far as the semi-professional Ontario League 1 competition. Added to that, he has experience training with

the national team for his age group.

Through competing at such high levels, Adam has been able to bring a high level of technical and tactical understanding to this program, as well as a strong will to succeed.”

“Adam does not talk much, unless he thinks necessary. This goes from on the training field to in team meetings to on the field. Instead, he finds a way to lead through his actions and high work rate in training as well as games. Adam has played every position except goalkeeper for UTM during his OCAA career and he will be the first to tell you that he can play that position in an official game with little to no problems. He is primarily a central defender but has also played on the wings, in the midfield and in attack when we have been in need of a goal or assist. One thing that has always stood out about Adam for me is despite his primary position being defence; he has very rarely failed to score a goal in a big game situation for UTM, he just ALWAYS scores,” asserts another of Czerkawski’s coaches.

Despite being a force on the pitch, Czerkawski still finds so much room for improvement to his game. “Because I also play at a high men’s league level, you have to be 100% or you can’t keep up. So I want to keep learning, keep improving.”

The men’s varsity soccer team made it to Provincials, in both the outdoor and indoor season. Czerkawski’s favourite part of the season was the win that got them into Regionals.

The team travelled to Sudbury to play Cambrian College. For Cambrian, it was a back-to-back weekend. The outcome of the first game, before their game against UTM, would decide whether our men’s varsity soccer team would be going to Regionals. Cambrian tied in that first game, meaning UTM would need a win against them by at least 3 goals, to make it to the Regionals tournament.

UTM ran over Cambrian, defeating by a massive 6-0. The win was great, but Adam loved how his teammates played. “Even though we won 6 nothing, everyone had a good game. Everyone was scoring, everyone was putting in a good shift. When he heard on the bus that they had tied, and that we still had a chance, I feel like everyone grabbed that chance.

You felt the energy. That was our best team performance.”

Thank you to all those who have contributed to the Sports & Health section of The Medium this year. Without your continuous hard work, this section would not have been as successful as it was. It’s been such a pleasure to read all of your articles and serve as your editor for the past two years.

To my two associate editors, Amrish and Sarah-May, thank you for being so reliable and making my job so easy.

Lastly, to my amazing editorial team, thank you for sharing your love of Harry Styles and Super Smash Brothers with me.

I will miss all the laughs, love, and of course… food!

All the best, Vanessa Cesario, Sports and Health Editor 2018/2019

PHOTO FROM PRINCESSINTHETOWER.ORG

Fibromyalgia has often been considered difficult to diagnose.

SYEDA HASAN

Approximately 75 per cent of fibromyalgia cases are left undiagnosed since its symptoms are similar to that of other conditions, making it difficult to attribute them to fibromyalgia alone. Fortunately, just this week, researchers at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Centre have developed a test that is able to accurately diagnose the condition using blood samples. Dr. Kevin Hackshaw published this study in the Journal of Biological Chemistry stating how his team used vibrational spectroscopy on acids and proteins in blood in order to distinguish fibromyalgiasufferers from others. Although the test is not yet ready for commercial use, it is a step in the right direction.

Here the question arises: what exactly is fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia can best be described as a medical condition that affects a person’s central nervous system. This condition enhances the system’s ability to sense pain by altering the way in which the brain processes pain signals. In other words, the brain is led to believe that a sensation is more painful than it is. Those thought to suffer from this disease usually experience musculoskeletal pain all over their body. They constantly deal with a dull ache throughout the body that never seems to leave, and this pain is usually accompanied by immense fatigue, lack of focus, headaches, mood swings, gastrointestinal issues, depression, anxiety, and so on. Al-

Vanessa Cesario (15) Yasmeen Alkoka (4) Amrish Wagle (19) Kayvan Aflaki (1) Sarah-May Oldfield (15) Miguel DaSilva (10) Syeda Hasan (5) Belicia Chevolleau (2)

Labina Khalid (3) Louissa Barnes (2)

though this condition can affect both men and children as well, it is women who are more susceptible to it.

Around 80-90 per cent of people suffering from fibromyalgia are women.

Although doctors have yet to pinpoint the exact reason for the development of fibromyalgia, they attribute it to several different factors working together such as genetics, age, gender, trauma, and rheumatic disease. Those whose family members are known to have this disease are more likely to develop it as well. Similarly, those aged 20-50, females, victims of stressful situations, and rheumatic disease sufferers are more than likely to develop fibromyalgia.

As mentioned above, since there is still no fixed test to determine and diagnose fibromyalgia, doctors often dismiss it as an ‘imaginary’ disease leaving patients to suffer alone. In order to diagnose, doctors usually consider whether the patient has been suffering through body pain for three months or more. In the past, 18 specific pain points would be pressed in order to determine if pain was present, however this method has long since been discontinued.

According to the Mayo Clinic, fibromyalgia can best be treated through a mixture of medications such as pain relievers, antidepressants and anti-seizure drugs, and therapy such as counselling. Occupational, and physical, and lifestyle changes such as eating healthy, exercising, and reducing stress are also believed to relieve symptoms.

Chen Gong (1) Leen Blaibleh (1) Muhammad Zaid Arif (1) Michelle Rocio Cardozo-Iglesias (1) Samer Hafuth (1) Michelle Iglesisas (1) Ibom Chukwudi Irem (1)

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Justin Singh on romance & comedy in writing UTM professional writing and communication student Justin Singh discusses his novel Out All Night PAULA CHO A&E EDITOR Drawing on personal experiences and hoping to start conversations, UTM student Justin Singh is set to publish his first novel next month. Out All Night is the product of his semesterlong work in the Professional Writing and Communication course called Making a Book. The Medium sat down with Singh to discuss his novel, the importance of comedy in writing, and exploring identity for LGBT youth.

The Medium: This is your debut novel! How was your experience in Making a Book?

Justin Singh: It feels unreal actually—Making a Book was probably the easiest and hardest course I’ve ever taken. From a glance on the outside, it might seem difficult because you have a whole book to publish.

But because you’re supposed to have finished writing the book before, once you get through the process of editing, typesetting, and designing the cover, the publishing is literally a few clicks. Everything happens so quickly and took forever at the same time.

TM: Can you tell me the concept and overall plot of Out All Night?

JS: When writing it, I wanted to do something different. In the PWC program, the focus is mostly on portfolio-based work, but I decided to pick one story that I wrote a few years ago and extend it because I had so much

JULIA HEALY/THE MEDIUM

Justin Singh was one of the students in this year’s Making a Book course. to say. I added components from different parts of my life which turned it into one giant thing, instead of separate short stories.

The book is about a character named Bentley who lives in Toronto with a roommate. His roommate tells him that if he doesn’t get a boyfriend by the time he turns twenty, he’s going to be cursed with bad relationships, bad everything. So, he really tries to go out and find a relationship, but he struggles with internalized homophobia. It’s hard for him to date other guys until he meets someone who really cracks through his shell.

TM: What’s your writing process like?

JS: When I first sit down to write, I try to tell the story as a whole—I

get everything down, all the details, everything I can remember. From there, I try to see the holes where I can add things that need more focus and where I can subtract things that aren’t necessary. Then I’ll edit and include a little fluff, like what can sound more beautiful. I find that I can’t write unless I’m enclosed. Writing is like a little private moment for me.

TM: Why did you decide to weave comedic undertones in your book?

JS: I find that the best way for me to express myself is through humour because a lot of people, especially in the writing program, tend to speak dramatically and I wanted something to relieve that tension. I think the significance of comedy is that it’s a way to express certain ideas and have a

conversation about them, rather than everything being serious. The fact that we can laugh about these things means that they’re real and happening. I think that humour is important in everything.

TM: One of the prominent themes in Out All Night is discovering identity, specifically for the LGBT community—how does this manifest throughout the story?

JS: I’m hoping young adults and the LGBT community relate to the difficulty of dating portrayed in the story because they’re the ones trying to discover who they are. I personally feel, growing up as a gay kid, it’s harder to understand yourself because you don’t have many resources.

When you’re in school or out in pub-

lic, what you see are hetero-relationships. Specifically, in the book, there’s a moment that takes place within drag queen culture, where the character puts down drag to bring himself up because he sees the culture as being more gay. That kind of mentality is obviously not good and brings to light that we all need more perspective. There aren’t many stories of gay protagonists, so I hope this is one that brings about many.

TM: What does literary success look like for you?

JS: For me, literary success is love for your own writing because that’s the hardest thing. Once you get past that and you write something that you love and love showing people, I think that’s what success is because you’ll feel happy on the inside. Once you exude that confidence and love for your own work, other people will grow to love it too.

TM: Do you have any advice for aspiring student authors?

JS: The best advice I could give is to write about what you would want to teach other people, because I believe that books and stories should have lessons and meanings embedded within them. I think whatever you’ve learned in your life that could help someone else in the future, that’s what you should write about because you lived through it.

The book launch for Out All Night takes place at the Gladstone on June 4th.

(Don’t) pass it down: breaking stereotypes UTM’s Don’t Pass It Down exhibition aimed to dismantle intergenerational prejudices and biases KEENA ALWAHAIDI ASSOCIATE A&E EDITOR This year, the U of Mosaic Fellowship made it their main mission to create an interactive art exhibit in UTM’s CCT atrium. The exhibit, entitled Don’t Pass It Down, Dismantling our Intergenerational Prejudices, is mindful to expressive discussions and encourages students to let it all out.

The Mosaic Institute is a Canadian charity that strives to bring people of different backgrounds and nations together, and cultivates peace and understanding between societies.

Their fellowship program, which has organized the exhibit, is in charge of bringing youth together in an initiative that supports students who are passionate about diversity on Canadian campuses.

Don’t Pass It Down aims to help students at UTM uncover the intergenerational prejudices they have faced in their lives, whether as young children or adults. The term “intergenerational prejudices” refers to prejudices that are passed on through

JULIA HEALY/THE MEIDIUM

This year’s U of Mosaic Fellowship exhibit allowed expressive discussions on prejudice. older family members, such as parents and grandparents. They are not fact based and are often preconceived.

The symbol that the U of Mosaic chose to represent their project is the Matryoshka Doll. The middle of the exhibit, there is a board covered in little paper cut outs of the Matryoshka dolls. They all inhabit different messages that UTM students have written on them. Presumably, the

messages are quotes from the intergenerational prejudices that they have faced all their lives. One says, “You’re speaking too loud for a girl.” Another says, “Studying the sciences is more important than studying the arts.”

And another: “Don’t eat too fast. It’s not lady-like.”

When I inquire about all of these cut outs of the dolls, I turn to a staff member of the organization, Kayvan

Aflaki. He mans the table and answers questions about the exhibit for anyone who comes along. When asked about the doll symbol, he claims that, “a lot like these dolls, it’s also said that we carry a number of layers to us as well.

The culminations of different experiences we’ve had in life are a number of different prejudices and biases that we may have. We may not always recognize or realize that we have those bi-

ases but they’re kind of always there.”

I get a clearer understanding of the doll symbol now, and begin to read over the dolls and their messages. What I realize has generated all of these diverse answers is the question right in the middle of the board: “What is an intergenerational prejudice that you have received?”

Aflaki agrees that each doll represents something that differs from the other. “Some of them touch on success and GPA’s and academics.

Some are more on the basis of sex and gender, and others have more of a religious undertone and talk about things like atheism.”

The exhibit had a good understanding of how to bring the UTM community together to realize the prejudices they have faced through their family members. While they have come to acknowledge them here, it’s interesting to see why they have engaged with it. Perhaps some have kept these secrets inside, while others are advocating to stop the ideas their families have planted in their heads.

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THE MEDIUM 04.01.2019

Welcoming EDSS’ one act plays to the stage The annual English and Drama Student Society directed and produced a show of one act plays REBECCA FLEMISTER STAFF WRITER This past weekend, the English and Drama Student Society hosted their festival of one act plays. The two-day festival took place in the Erindale Studio Theatre and featured five plays that were all written, directed, and performed by UTM students. This year, the festival featured an overwhelming number of first and second year students, many of which were first-time writers and directors on the cusp of finding their artistic voices.

As one would expect, the shows were rough around the edges, speckled with bits of unnecessary dialogue and black out scene transitions, but each show managed to have moments of clarity, maturity and vision that spoke to the talent and potential of their creators.

The festival kicked off with False Dichotomy. Written by Christopher Kovaliv and directed by Clara Lambert, False Dichotomy is unavoidably controversial. Set in hell, the show places four of history’s most notorious killers, Adolf Hitler (Derek Brockbank), Jeffery Dahmer (Oliver Parkins), Elizabeth Bathory (Daniella Dela Peña) and Timothy McVeigh (Kenneth Johnson), around a poker table and asks them to confront the crimes they committed on Earth. Each killer believes they are somehow superior to their peers, and they justify the intention behind their crimes, but when Lucifer (Clara Lambert) joins them at the table, their sense of superiority begins to waver. This provocative play dares to ask whether there is truly a clear dichotomy between right and wrong.

PHOTO FROM 1 ACTS EVENT PAGE POSTER

The EDSS Festival of One Acts ran from March 29th to 30th.

The show ends with the devil offering a seat at the table to anyone from the audience who believes they can definitively tell the difference. This production features a strong cast of villains, and contains a number of lively stage images, but, like many shows in this festival, it runs a bit long and could benefit from some paring down in order to strengthen the bold claims that the show is attempting to make.

Under Pressure, written and directed by Bronwyn Keough, is a raw depiction of adolescent life. The script carries the tone and cadence of a sixteen-year old’s diary. The show features beautiful moments of variability and candid performances from its cast. The show deals with everything from alcoholism to homelessness to suicide and these topics are handled with a great deal of earnestness, but occasionally, the overlapping of the themes and storylines becomes mud

dled. This is a beautifully thoughtful show that might benefit from a bit of tightening.

Christina Orjalo made her EDSS directorial debut last semester with a modern retelling of Susan Galspell’s Trifles, and she continues to build a strong repertoire of female lead work as a director and playwright with Luke 7:47. The play takes place in a recreation space within a women’s prison. Sister Sylvia, played by Amilia Woolfrey, attempts to get a group of inmates to open up about their past and turn to the lord for forgiveness. She takes a particular interest in Mary, a new inmate who is awaiting her final sentencing for the murder of her husband and son. The play explores what it means to be forgiven when you can’t even bear to forgive yourself. There was a clear chemistry among the ensemble. Beverly, played

by Ally Matas and Lola, played by

Gina Montani, played off of each other well. Their wry banter set the tone for the other female relationships in the play. Elif Coskun’s Molly, a woman recently released from solitary confinement, was equally fragile and frightening. Her unpredictable shifts in mood were as heartbreaking as they were hilarious. She managed to be a beautiful counterbalance to the tight knit group of convicts introduced in the opening scene. Christina Orjalo solidifies her directorial style and further proves her talent for directing a well-balanced ensemble of women.

M&M, written by Aria Sharma and directed by Muhaddisah Batool, is a domestic drama that delves into the psychology of a man caught up in an extra-marital affair. The show takes on the task of reflecting the real and the imagined within the same space. In the moments when these

images clearly overlapped, the show was evocative and humorous. The symbolism wasn’t always clear, however, and occasionally it was hard to discern what was meant to be real and what was meant to be imagined.

Overall, M&M was a sweetly unsettling glimpse at an idyllic domestic life on the brink of decay.

Ethan Ryckman closed off the evening with his play Bad Guys. This metatheatrical supervillain farce was arguably the biggest hit of the night. Best friends and henchman Eric (Austin Chiasson) and Erika (Bénédicte Mbaididje) serve the bumbling supervillain Uber Mort (Marissa Monk). When Eric witnesses a girl (Nina Richards) getting bullied in the park, he convinces Erika and Uber Mort to take her on as a new hench person. Fast pace, satirical and witty, Bad Guys playfully pokes fun at the superhero genre.

Bad Guys subverts audience expectation and pushes the boundaries of classic gags while also throwing in timely self-aware social commentary.

Bad Guys is a great example of how to make social critiques a seamless, cohesive part of a light-hearted comedy. Austin Chiasson gave the stand out performance of the night. His sweet, dopey sidekick character was magnetic and established Chiasson as a natural born comedian. Whether a joke was base and crude or pointed and clever, he kept the audience captivated without ever missing a beat.

Ethan Ryckman’s Bad Guy’s brings a cartoon like sensibility to the stage in a delightfully original way.

The EDSS Festival of One Acts ran from March 29-30.

Four UTM students exhibit work at Trinity Art Show The theme of this year’s Trinity Art Show is Statements and hopes to prompt conversations about personal identity ANGELA GU What is art? Art is shaped by our personal histories. Art is collectively defined. Art is for advancing the artist’s worldview. Art can be so many things and art can make quite the statement.

The 2019 rendition of the Trinity Art Show takes place this weekend, and it is all about statements. The focus is on issues in society, grappling with contemporary manifestations of racism and gender and everything in between. With artwork by ten artists across the University of Toronto and two interactive installations, the show hopes to serve as a springboard for meaningful discussions.

Read about the four U of T Mississauga students whose artwork is featured in the show this year: Jasaña Alleyne is a mature student at UTM in her penultimate year in the Art and Art History joint program with Sheridan. Alleyne says, “I think it’s a very powerful theme,” noting the importance of statement-making art. Her painting, Madonna Lactans, subverts the historic dominance of white Renaissance artists and the priority given to white subjects. Alleyne wants to change the depiction

This year’s Trinity Art show aimed to highlight contemporary social issues. of Black figures—when they appear in Renaissance-era art, they are typically subordinated as slaves and relegated to the background.

Alleyne notes that Black artists did exist in the Renaissance, but their art has not seen the spotlight and is often omitted from art history education.

Her Black Madonna and child painting is a step in changing the current, and it is the first of her Renaissance reimagined series.

“I’m hoping that it does induce

some kind of uncomfortability, so we can talk about it,” says Alleyne. Racism and representation are brought to the forefront in this piece. “If it’s in your face, you can’t ignore it,” she says.

Maryam Radwan (artist name: Mariam Radwan) has created a series of photos entitled Silk The Man, that questions concepts of gender identity, especially the idea of manhood and its portrayal in society. Elements of softness often linked to femininity are

used in this photo series, with the focal point being a man eating a cake, which Radwan says refers to sexuality.

Radwan is a student in the joint UTM/Sheridan program studying Communications, Culture, Information and Technology as well as Art and Art History. She is interested in exploring the harms caused by boundaries in society, as well as female identity and empowerment.

Radwan is also the co-president of Creatives For A Change, an organiza-

tion on campus that provides opportunities for students to make a difference in the world and meet creative professionals involved in making social change.

James Legaspi, also a student specializing in Art and Art History in the joint UTM/Sheridan program, has recently self-published a book of found art and found text, entitled Red on Top, on display at the exhibition. He is all about making statements with art, but says, “I don’t think I’m really an artist. I make things and people call it art.” Legaspi doesn’t believe in making “big hunks of art for people to applaud.”

Also on display is Legaspi’s short video entitled Landscape Painting, where white paint is applied to snow, humorously jabbing at the practice of landscape painting while also addressing the practice of whitewashing and white worship. Both the book and the video engage the marginalized East and Southeast Asian experience in North America, informed by his own Filipino cultural identity, and confront issues faced by people of colour.

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04.01.2019 THE MEDIUM ARTS» 7

A&E Year in Review

Trinity Art Showcase

We discuss UTM Arts, the Oscars, Queer Eye, and Us as highlights of the year

Trinity continued from page 6

SRIJAN SAHU DELANEY ROMBOUGH MAYA SUPER

UTM Arts This year, the Blackwood Gallery started off the semester with their exhibition The Work of Wind: Air, Land, Sea, which explored themes of sustainability and climate change. We spoke to staff at the campus radio station, CFRE, on re-establishing their music and show programming as well as to students Ruchi Wigwe and Alexis Whelan on their artistic pursuits. Blackwood Gallery also presented When Either But Not Both Are True last October. Theatre Erindale produced an incredible year of performances, including works of: Metamorphoses, Henry IV, Blithe Spirit, In the Next Room, and Three Sisters.

We covered other arts-related events as well, including Ad Summit’s WellFed Artist Conference and UTM Italian Studies play Ciao, Professoressa! We ended the year reviewing UTM Art and Art History program’s graduating exhibition and speaking to published student authors. Congratulations to all students involved with any of the arts related events this year. We wish you all the best this summer as you continuing pursuing the arts and seeing what you achieve next year. We’ll be following along Oscars 2019: Award show broke boundaries, especially for women The 91st Academy Awards marked a night of several milestones, making sure that the award season ended on a celebratory high. A remarkable number of women and people of color took home awards, a stark contrast from the awards of previous years.

Recently, the academy has become notorious for its outdated practices and lack of diversity. With increased pressure to change from the growing Time’s Up movement and allegations involving several big Hollywood names, the limelight was on the 2019 awards ceremony to bring about a major change. And it could not have started off on a worse foot. It suffices to say that Oscar’s 2019 had a rocky start. The build-up to the night of February 24 was dominated by news of Kevin Hart’s homophobic rants and rumors of behind the scenes awards being presented during commercial. Indicating, the night could possibly be the worst in living history. Still, the Oscars pulled through.

Not having a host shifted focus on issues that mattered more such as celebrating the diversity.

Black Panther led the charge with its black-focused, women led production team to win in three differ-

ent categories—best costume, best production design and best original score. The winners for best costume and best production design became only the second and third black women ever to win a non-acting Oscar, and the first to win in more than 30 years.

Some of the highlights of the evening were as following. Mahershala Ali became the first black actor to win in the same category more than once when he collected the award for Best Supporting Actor. Regina King’s Best Supporting Actress for If Beale Street Could Talk, rounded up the last of the three wins for a black woman.

And Domee Shi became the first woman of color to win an Oscar for Best Animated Short.

Bohemian Rhapsody was yet another star performer as it claimed the crown of the most decorated film of the night. It managed to recover from its director’s dismissal amidst sexual assault allegations and instead brought back focus to its inspiration story of a successful gay immigrant man. Rami Malek remarked that he was proud to be part of a story that celebrated a minority group, especially considering he himself is the son of immigrants from Egypt. His own journey has all the makings of a great biopic—the son of Egyptian immigrants wins Oscar for Best Actor.

The 2019 Oscars was definitely a much welcomed sight and let us hope this is a sign of more positive things to come in terms of diversity and equality. Though these milestones are worth celebrating, it’s worth noting how absurdly long it took for us to get this far.

-Srijan Sahu A Star Is Born In October 2018, the fourth rendition of A Star is Born, starring Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper as Ally and Jack, was released and became an instant pop culture sensation. The film garnered much critical acclaim from both critics and audiences, especially for the actors’ performances. Their performances were honest, relatable, and vulnerable, which is why it’s easy to sympathize with these characters even though they don’t always do the best or the right things. This film was also Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut. The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards including Best Picture and “Shallow” was nominated for Best Song.

The hit song, “Shallow,” became Lady Gaga’s fourth number one song on the Billboard Charts and thousands of covers of the song popped up on the Internet. “Shallow” won in its category, and Cooper and Lady

Gaga gave an intensely emotional performance of the song on the telecast, putting the song back on the charts.

Everyone seems to agree that this is a good remake of a film. The original story is still there but it’s new and modern with fresh takes on old themes such as romance, selfreinvention, fame, and feminism.

The 2018 film is heavily influenced by the 1976 version, starring Barbara Streisand. Some scenes directly came from that version such as the scene where Jack says, “I just want to take another look at you.” However, instead of jealousy being Jack’s major character flaw that leads to his downfall, in the 2018 version, the problem is his addictions to drugs and alcohol. Cooper’s version of the story felt like a story that was made for 2018, everything from the costumes to the music to the way the couple dealt with their problems felt right—it felt realistic.

The entire movie was overall really well done and really well thought out.

While it may have been influenced by previous versions and other stories, it’s a movie that stands on its own and when audiences think of A Star is Born, they will think of the 2018 movie.

Queer Eye Season Three A few weeks ago, the much anticipated third season of Queer Eye was released on Netflix. Everyone’s favourite Fab Five returned to Kansas City, Missouri to help Americans become the best versions of themselves. If you’ve never seen the show, here’s a quick rundown: Jonathan Van Ness does hair and skin care, Tan France does wardrobe, Bobby Berk does home renovation and interior design, Karamo Brown does culture and social skills, and Antoni Porowski does food and these five gay men give someone a complete makeover. This show is funny, uplifting, and heartbreaking all at the same time. It definitely tugs at your heartstrings and tear ducts.

Queer Eye became a pop culture phenomenon when it was first released in February 2018 and collected three Primetime Emmy Awards.

At its core, Queer Eye is a reality show but it’s unlike most such as The Bachelor/ette, Survivor, or The Voice, which have a lot of hysterics and trivial drama. Queer Eye is much more structured and lets the audience get to know the individuals, and it highlights everyone’s best qualities rather than their worst. Overall, it’s more thoughtful and heartfelt.

To read the rest of this article, visit themedium.ca.

Thanks so much to all the arts writers who have contributed this year! I’d like to give a special shoutout to my associates Srijan and Keena who have written diligently and elevated this section.

To the editorial team, thank you for all the laughs and inspiring me every step of the way. You’ve all demonstrated why student journalism is important and why I love my job!

Paula Cho, Arts & Entertainment Editor, 2018/2019

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Kay Rose studies biology and psychology at UTM and has also taken some studio courses at Sheridan. Although hesitant to label her work as “feminist,” Rose says that her works aim to subvert the traditional portrayal of meek and docile women in classical paintings. Rose’s work takes an “aggressive approach” in contrasting softer elements with threatening ones, including spiky nails and sharp blades—see, but do not touch.

One of these pieces, Armour, a reimagined suit of armour, is made of nail-studded mesh, laced up with red ribbon. The regal woman portrayed

KIMBERLY HUYNH NGUYEN

Kanye West: a controversial figure and creative genius, obnoxious narcissistic and musical phenomenon.

He balances this dichotomy not only through his persona in the media, but in his music, which explores the struggle between the darkness of fame and passion for his art. Dissect, a podcast hosted by Cole Cuchna analyzing the intricacy of hip-hop and RnB artists, spends 14 episodes dissecting one of Kanye’s most acclaimed albums, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

In an episode, Cuchna break downs what Kanye West refers to as his greatest musical pieces of all time, “All of The Lights.” Produced by Kanye West and Jeff Bhasker, Cuchna explores and dissects the order and chaos Kanye West works with in the song, pushing boundaries with the intricate ensemble of hip-hop, sonic tunes, full orchestra and overlapping it with layers of complex lyrical verses. Kanye beautifully weaves together the melancholic tunes of an orchestra of cellos, violins and pianos to contrast the rhythmic sounds of saxophones and drums, conveying an overwhelming amount of emotions.

The album came after the tumultuous events at the VMA’s where Kanye interrupts Taylor Swift’s award to defend for Beyoncé. As a result, he received backlash and criticism, inevitably taking a tole on not only his image but his creativity. He eludes to a metaphorical story of an ex-con beating his wife. Cuchna breaks down

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in Rose’s painting Indignation is literally sharpening a blade. Rose, however, did not want to explain much more, saying that “art means different things to different people and speaks for itself.”

Well then, see the art for yourself, at the historic Seeley Hall at Trinity College on the downtown campus.

The show kicks off with an opening reception on March 29 at 6 p.m., with snacks, sparkling beverages and original beats arranged by Elias Williams, providing a special soundscape for this year’s show. The exhibition will also be open for viewing on March 30 through 31.

Let’s start a conversation.

the story Kanye paints as a parallel to Kanye’s life after the VMA’s. After the backlash of the VMA’s, he loses control of his music and his child-like creativity being exiled, losing respect from fans and people in the music industry alike.

Cuchna highlights Kanye’s message of the dark side of fame. The song continually brings up light, shooting stars, spotlights. With Rihanna singing the hook, she encourages you not to look at the person the light is shining on but the light itself, eluding to the blinding effect of fame. The extravagance, the sex and the money may appear appealing, but like any light it has its negative effects when you gaze at it for too long. Like a shooting star, Cuchna takes note of Kanye symbolizing the beauty of a shooting star, yet like any shooting star, it deteriorates—its light eventually hinders, and flames die out. Kanye brings on a 14-singer ensemble, from the likes of Elton John, Drake and Fergie, to carry out the message put forth.

In an essence, this album presents a plea for forgiveness and redemption. West performs sonic acrobatics with his production and lyrics to show the world what he’s capable of.

He toys with the complex sounds and lyrics alluding to this struggle with fame, himself and his own creativity and seeks redemption for actions that put him in his state. An ambitious musical and successful attempt from Kanye West to win back fans and his colleagues, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy remains the defining album of Kanye’s career.

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