April 4, 2023

Marriage equality talk LGBTQ rights

By CARLY BAHR Staff Writer

Fifty-three years ago, Blue Earth County issued the first same-sex marriage license in the United States. Eight years ago, same-sex marriage was legalized across all states with the Obergefell v. Hodges decision. And last year the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court wrote that the court should reconsider this decision.

Aaron Hoy, assistant professor of sociology at Minnesota State, spoke Thursday about the history of marriage equality in the U.S. The Sociology Department has been hosting social justice speeches about various topics, organized by Carol Glasser.

Hoy’s presentation covered the historical journey toward federally legalized marriage equality. Itstarted with the first same-sex marriage license issued to Michael McConnell and Jack Baker in 1971. That was followed by a 44-year internal fight over marriage being necessary for same-sex couples.

And most recently there was Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ remarks in his Dobbs Vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization concurring opinion, where he stated the court “should reconsider” Obergefell and other cases that use Roe as precedent.

Following these published remarks, in conjunction with various anti-LGBTQ legislation,

including Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill and Tennessee’s recent bill banning drag shows, many individuals in the LGBTQ community feel these recent policy changes and suggestions from government officials are cause for concern, Hoy said.

“I think we’ve seen all sorts of bills passed and proposed, like restricting transgender access to sports and health care.

There’s no evidence behind any of this being necessary. There’s all kinds of evidence suggesting it’s really deleterious to people, but they pass anyway and I think that fact should scare us. It does scare me, right? Because I think that’s all evidence that we’ve got huge targets on our backs right now,” Hoy said.

MSU College Democrats President Storm Novak said the

ADT programs’ positive impact

By MERCEDES KAUPHUSMAN Staff Writer

For millions across the globe, getting a routine cleaning at the dentist is a luxury they lack, and the dire need for accessible and affordable dental care is growing.

Minnesota State is helping relieve it with the introduction of its Advanced Dental Training, or ADT program.

The ADT Program at MSU is the fourth of its kind in the country. The program trains individuals to serve as the dental version of a nurse practitioner.

SCOTUS decision “opened up” the idea that her rights are not untouchable.

“It really put it into perspective that all of these wins that we’ve gotten through painstaking effort and activism and years and years of advocacy can just be taken away very, very easily by a very authoritative and non-democratically elected

Seek those summer internships through the CDC’s help

By EMMA JOHNSON News Director

With a little less than a month left of school, several students are scrambling to find summer internships and jobs. The Career Development Center (CDC) is here to help.

The CDC works with students to help them find on- and off-campus jobs, internships and employment post-graduation. It offers a variety of resources such as a job search handbook, resume and cover letter assistance and career assessments.

CDC Director Pamela Weller said students should start looking for internships as soon as possible.

“Waiting until the last couple of weeks before classes end often means a desperate job seeker who accepts the first thing that comes along,” Weller said. “Apply early and be patient and pos-

itive.”

With employers browsing through several applications, Weller said it’s important to make resumes stand out.

“Customize your resume with specific qualifications the employer is looking for by using keywords and phrases. Also, lead with your education as it’s the biggest selling point,” Weller said.

Weller encourages students to keep resumes to one page, doublecheck for errors and use a PDF when submitting to employees.

Sophomore Eddison Saywon heard about the CDC from presentations, career fairs and emails. He turned to the CDC to help him find a summer internship by utilizing the resources they offered.

“I had a resume that needed to be reviewed and updated and I needed to have a cover letter.

I also had to research employers interested in hiring an intern from construction management,” Saywon said. The hard work paid off as

internship at Braun Intertec Corporation. Saywon said he’s looking forward to his intern-

In other words, an Advanced Dental Therapist is more than a hygienist, but less than a dentist.

These therapists go on to take care of patients that often come from rural areas, and have little to no dental work done.

“These dental therapists are going to fill a huge gap in care, especially in rural health—dentists don’t always accept Medicaid, or state funded insurances,” said Trisha Krenik-Matejcek, professor in Dental Education at MSU. “These dental therapists could work in community clinics and do a lot of these fillings that some of the private practices won’t, so it’s a really good thing for rural public health and dental health.”

Director of the ADT Program, Anitha Peddireddy, has a long road of experience with dentistry in countries such as Denmark, Australia and the United States. She stresses the importance of ADT students having the “desire to help people.”

“ADT is definitely not for everybody because you need to have a lot of cultural acceptance and empathy; you have to be really strongwilled and helpful,” Peddireddy said. “These people have never seen the dentist and it’s the first time they’ve come to the clinic and you’ll see like 10-15 cavities, and a lot of teeth are gone, and they’re from very low socio-

DYLAN LONG • The Reporter

Minnesota State’s Dr. Aaron Hoy spoke to students on Friday about marriage equality amid several new pieces of legislation that target anti-LGBTQ community such as Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

Saywon obtained a summer

LILLY ANDERSON • The Reporter

The Career Development Center offers a variety of resources to help students stand out when it comes to applying for internships and summer jobs.

MARRIAGE on page 4 

From felon to finding peace: Ty Herman shares his story

By JULIA LIN Editor in Chief

Sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for wire fraud and defrauding investors of more than $19 million in a textbook Ponzi scheme, Ty Herman, a Mankato native and MSU alum, can attest it is never too late to turn your life around.

Herman, 64, shared his story with Integrated Business Experience students Thursday, and cautioned them to avoid prison and take on the business world.

“I learned more about criminal activity inside of prison than outside of it,” Herman said. “But I never accepted prison. I wanted to get out of there as fast I could and I detested every second of it.”

Living a comfortable life for decades while working with bigname companies after his minor league baseball career with the Boston Red Sox, Herman had good relations with many named brands such as Conair, Mr. Coffee and Black+Decker.

It wasn’t enough. After his children went on to college, Herman decided to get involved in excess inventory

management, buying products for pennies on the dollar and selling them for nickels on the dollar to make some extra income.

Upping his production to the point where he needed investors, it all started going south when he tried to make his first seven-figure deal that ended up being a scam.

“Instead of telling my investors I screwed up and lost the money, I went to them and said, ‘All good,’ in fact, it’s so good, that I’m gonna take the

money that I just got, and I’m gonna reinvest it,” Herman said. “That is the first rule that I will give you, don’t tell your first lie because from that point it’s constant catch-up.”

Herman said he went through a classic midlife crisis,buying fancy cars, dating younger women and gambling in Las Vegas. However, the constant paranoia of getting caught ate at him to the point where it was unlivable.

“I was living in Hell. I knew

BUSINESS on page 3

 DENTAL from page 1

economic status. You have to be really empathetic and understand their point of view.”

MSU student Crisstill Duaso knew dentistry as a privilege. Coming from the Philippines, Duaso settled in Minnesota at 5 years old.

It was not until her arrival that she experienced sitting in a dental chair for the first time.

“I had really, really bad teeth and they didn’t really prioritize dental care in the Philippines, so I didn’t have any work done on my teeth until then,” Duaso said. “I visited the dentist a lot and needed so much work, and I never really

complained about it. I was always so interested when I was younger about all the stuff that they did because it was very foreign to me.”

The dental hygiene selection process in itself is competitive. From the slim number of 30 students that were accepted, six will go on to pursue their Master of Science in ADT.

One of those six is Duaso, who recalls getting her acceptance letter in the middle of class.

“I was in shock,” Duaso said. “I couldn’t even focus the rest of that class period because

DENTAL on page 3

JULIA LIN • The Reporter

Ty Herman speaks to this semester’s Integrated Business Experience program students about cautioning them to avoid prison.

Courtesy Anitha Peddireddy ADT Program student, Rachel Wangen (front left), is the first graduate of the ADT Program as of fall 2022. She is accompanied by Dr. Anitha Peddireddy (front right), Cynthia Degner (back left), and Amanda Weyek (back right).

Shot teacher files for $40 million

By DENISE LAVOIE

The Associated Press

A Virginia teacher who was shot and seriously wounded by her 6-year-old student filed a lawsuit Monday seeking $40 million in damages from school officials, accusing them of gross negligence and of ignoring multiple warnings the day of the shooting that the boy was armed and in a “violent mood.”

Abby Zwerner, a first-grade teacher at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, was shot in the hand and chest on Jan. 6 as she sat at a reading table in her classroom. The 25-year-old teacher spent nearly two weeks in the hospital and required four surgeries.

The shooting sent shock waves through the military shipbuilding community and the country, with many wondering how a child so young could access a gun and shoot his teacher. The lawsuit names as defendants the Newport News School Board, former Superintendent George Parker III, former Richneck principal Briana Foster-Newton and former Richneck assistant principal Ebony Parker.

Michelle Price, a school board spokesperson, said via email that the board had not yet been served with the lawsuit, adding the school division refers all legal claims information to its insurer.

“Our thoughts and prayers remain with Abby Zwerner and her ongoing recovery,” said a board statement, calling the safety and well-being of staff and students its utmost

priority. “The School Board and the school division’s leadership team will continue to do whatever it takes to ensure a safe and secure teaching and learning environment across all our schools.”

George Parker, the former superintendent, did not immediately return a cellphone message. A message left on a cellphone listing for Ebony Parker also was not returned.

Foster-Newton’s attorney, Pamela Branch, has said she was unaware of reports that the boy had a gun at school on the day of the shooting.

“Mrs. Briana Foster-Newton will vigorously defend any charges brought against her as a part of the lawsuit filed by Ms. Zwerner and respond accordingly,” Branch said in a statement.

James Ellenson, an attorney for the boy’s family, said in a statement Monday after-

noon that the “allegations in the complaint in reference to the child and his family should be taken with a large grain of salt.”

“We of course continue to pray for Ms. Zwerner’s complete recovery,” Ellenson said. “In that there is still the potential for criminal charges, there is no further comment.”

No one has been charged. The local prosecutor said last month that the boy will not be charged, although an investigation is ongoing.

The superintendent was fired by the school board and the assistant principal resigned. A school district spokesperson has said Newton-Foster is still employed by the school district, but declined to say what position she holds. The board voted to install metal detectors in every school in the district and to purchase clear backpacks for all students.

 BUSINESS from page 2

that the reckoning was coming and there was no way I would retrieve all that money,” Herman said. “It became such a nightmare I couldn’t sleep and my family was in my rearview mirror.”

On Nov. 19, 2013, Herman received a knock at the door of his condo. With the peephole blocked, his visitors let themselves in. It was over.

“I was relieved it was over. And I knew it was recovery time,” Herman said.

When the reconciliation began, Herman felt lucky his family and some friends had forgiven him.

“I was fortunate for people like (MSU Baseball) Coach Bowyer who had visited me in my green uniform. It felt great, but so humbling,” Herman said. “The shame that is attached to that is lifelong.”

Herman said as you get into the business you will have many temptations. His advice was: Don’t make the same mistakes as he did.

“Don’t ever tell your first lie, you cannot get out. Go to someone you trust and talk to them. I am living proof that it is not worth it,” Herman said.

Finishing his probation in

 DENTAL from page 2

it was just a surreal feeling to have that hard work pay off.”

Students like Duaso, who will become the first in her family to graduate university, are eager to undertake the task.

“A lot of the stuff that I work for goes back on to my family,” Duaso said. “Being a Filipino, we’re very family oriented, so I do a lot to just make my family proud and it’s a real-

January, he now lives a quiet life with just the bare necessities.

“Rebuilding a life at 64 is not easy,” Herman said. “But I have the love of my grandkids, my children and ultimately I’ve got God’s love and forgiveness and grace.”

In contact with his old baseball coach all these years later, Herman still makes light of his situation.

“I do have the honor of maybe being coach Bowyer’s first felon,” Herman said.

Herman told the IBE students how greed can get the best of anyone.

“Everyone in business is going to be faced with challenges, it is not just financial ones,” Herman said. “Their actions will always have consequences, and they have to be aware of those pitfalls and avoid them.”

What got him in that position was, ultimately, greed.

“We are becoming beholden to our income. Financial pressure can make you do things you wouldn’t normally do,” Herman said. “It’s only going to get worse. While the temptation is there and need to always have something greater, we will always be challenged.”

ly big motivator. It feels really good to do all these achievements for them.”

The ADT program is proving to be a success, as they have bookings placed as far as midfall. Anyone is able to book appointments through the clinic on campus and utilize an affordable alternative by calling 507-389-2147 or emailing dentalclinic@mnsu.edu.

JOHN C. CLARK • The Associated Press Messages of support for teacher Abby Zwerner, who was shot by a 6-year-old student, grace the front door of Richneck Elementary School.

Members of Congress on TikTok defend app’s reach to voters

Community colleges are reeling

By JON MARCUS The Associated Press

When Santos Enrique Camara arrived at Shoreline Community College in Washington state to study audio engineering, he quickly felt lost.

“It’s like a weird maze,” remembered Camara, who was 19 at the time and had finished high school with a 4.0 gradepoint average. “You need help with your classes and financial aid? Well, here, take a number and run from office to office and see if you can figure it out.”

By FARNOUSH AMIRI

The Associated Press

Rep. Jeff Jackson of North Carolina has used it to explain the complex fight over raising the debt limit. Rep. Robert Garcia of California has used it to engage with members of the LGBTQ+ community. And Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania has used it to give an overview of Election Day results.

As pressure against TikTok mounts in Washington, the more than two dozen members of Congress — all Democrats — who are active on the social media platform are being pushed by their colleagues to stop using it. Many defend their presence on the platform, saying they have a responsibility as public officials to meet Americans where they are — and more than 150 million are on TikTok.

“I’m sensitive to the ban and recognize some of the security implications. But there is no more robust and expe-

ditious way to reach young people in the United States of America than TikTok,” Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota told The Associated Press.

Yet the lawmakers active on TikTok remain a distinct minority. Most in Congress are in favor of limiting the app, forcing a sale to remove connections to China or even banning it outright.

The U.S. armed forces and more than half of U.S. states have already banned the app from official devices, as has the federal government. Similar bans have been imposed in Denmark, Canada, Great Britain and New Zealand, as well as the European Union.

Criticism of TikTok reached a new level last week as CEO Shou Zi Chew testified for more than six hours at a contentious hearing in the House.

Lawmakers grilled Chew about the implications of the app for America’s national security and the effect on the mental health of its users.

Advocates for community colleges defend them as the underdogs of America’s higher education system, left to serve the students who need the most support but without the money to provide it. Critics contend this has become an excuse for poor success rates and for the kind of faceless bureaucracies that ultimately led Camara to drop out after two semesters. He now works in a restaurant and plays in two bands.

With scant advising, many community college students spend time and money on

 MARRIAGE from page 1

body,” Novak said. Political Science Professor Kevin Parsneau said a post-Obergefell U.S. would not likely resemble pre-marriage equality in terms of policy.

“It would presumably go back to states and I think similar to abortion, where now that the abortion issue has gone back to states, a lot more states are willing to legislate protections then there proba-

courses that won’t transfer or that they don’t need. Though most intend to move on to get bachelor’s degrees, only a small fraction succeed; fewer than half earn any kind of credential. Even if they do, many employers don’t believe they’re ready for the workforce.

Now these failures are coming home to roost. Community colleges are far cheaper than

bly would have been in 1973,” Parsneau said.

President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act — the most well-supported federal pro-LGBTQ bill in U.S. history — into law in December. The bill passed with 39 House and 12 Senate Republicans voting yes. The bill overturned the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act which excluded same-sex couples married under state law from federal marriage benefits, and stated the Full Faith and

four-year schools. Published tuition and fees last year averaged $3,860, versus $39,400 at private and $10,940 at public four-year universities, with many states making community college free. The number of students at community colleges has fallen 37% since 2010, or by nearly 2.6 million, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

Credit Clause of the Constitution does not require states to recognize these marriages performed in other states. Although the Respect for Marriage Act does not require states to allow same-sex couples to marry, it requires the federal government and all states to respect pre-existing same-sex marriages. Meaning, in the event Obergefell is overturned, same-sex marriages would require federal and inter-state recognition.

J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE • The Associated Press Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., joined by the popular app’s supporters, leads a rally to defend TikTok at the Capitol in Washington.

LINDSEY WASSON • The Associated Press Santos Enrique Camara dropped out of Shoreline Community College at age 19 in 2015 after completing two semesters in automotive engineering.

1st moon crew in 50 years includes woman, Black astronaut

McDonald’s temporarily closes US offices ahead of layoffs

By MARCIA DUNN The Associated Press

NASA on Monday named the four astronauts who will fly around the moon late next year, including the first woman and the first African American assigned to a lunar mission.

The first moon crew in 50 years — three Americans and one Canadian — was introduced during a ceremony in Houston, home to the nation’s astronauts as well as Mission Control.

“This is humanity’s crew,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

The four astronauts will be the first to fly NASA’s Orion capsule, launching atop a Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center no earlier than late 2024. They will not land or even go into lunar orbit, but rather fly around the moon and head straight back to Earth, a prelude to a lunar landing by two others a year later.

The mission’s commander, Reid Wiseman, will be joined by Victor Glover, an African American naval aviator; Christina Koch, who holds the world record for the lon-

gest spaceflight by a woman; and Canada’s Jeremy Hansen, a former fighter pilot and the crew’s lone space rookie. Wiseman, Glover and Koch have all lived on the International Space Station. All four are in their 40s.

“This is a big day. We have a lot to celebrate and it’s so much more than the four names that have been announced,” Glover said.

This is the first moon crew to include someone from outside the U.S. — and the first crew in NASA’s new moon program named Artemis after the twin sister of mythology’s Apollo. Late last year, an empty Orion capsule flew to the moon and back in a long-awaited dress rehearsal.

“Am I excited? Absolutely,” Koch said to cheers from the crowd of schoolchildren, politicians and others. “But my real question is: ‘Are you excited?’ ” she said to more cheers.

The Canadian Space Agency snagged a seat because of its contributions of big robotic arms on NASA’s space shuttles and the space station. One is also planned for the moon project.

By DEE-ANN DURBIN

McDonald’s has closed its U.S. offices through Wednesday and told its corporate staff to work remotely as it prepares to announce a round of layoffs.

In a memo to workers posted on the website TheLayoff. com, the Chicago-based burger giant said it wanted to “ensure the comfort and confidentiality of our people during the notification period” and would hold all notification meetings virtu-

ally. It told international corporate staff to follow guidance in their particular regions.

The company said in the memo that the layoffs are intended to make McDonald’s more efficient.

“We have a clear opportunity ahead of us to get faster and more effective at solving problems for our customers and people and to globally scale our successful market innovations at speed,” the company said.

McDonald’s declined to

comment on the memo or the layoffs on Monday. The memo was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Though the U.S. labor market remains strong, layoffs have been mounting, mainly in the technology secto r, where many companies over-hired after a pandemic boom. IBM, Microsoft, Amazon, Salesforce, Facebook parent Meta, Twitter and DoorDash have all announced layoffs in recent months.

There have been cuts in other sectors as well.

MATT ROURKE • The Associated Press

A report says McDonald’s has closed its U.S. offices for a few days as the company prepares to inform employees about layoffs, which are supposed to make McDonald’s more “efficient.”

The Associated Press

JOSH VALCARCEL • The Associated Press

The above astronauts will be the first to fly the Orion capsule, launching atop a Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center.

Made in China: Spring is here

Julia Lin Editor In Chief Emma Johnson News Director Joey Erickson Variety Editor

Alicia Reed Sports Editor Dylan Engel Photo Editor

You don’t have to constantly hustle

As the last month of school is upon us, several of us are stressing about the number of projects and homework assignments we need to accomplish. Because of this stress put upon us, we students feel like we have to simultaneously get up early and go to bed late in order to get everything done on time. Having a hustle mentality can be helpful in achieving our goals, but taking it too seriously can take a toll on our physical, mental and emotional health. We as students need to realize we don’t have to hustle all the time.

Being constantly on the move is a quick way to experience burnout. Often, we don’t think we’re burning ourselves out until it’s in the late stages when we’re forced to stop and slow down. Falling out of our daily routines and using unhealthy coping mechanisms can deter us from being our best selves. If we don’t take time to focus on ourselves, who will? Burn-out can affect us in ways we’d rather not experience such as feeling anxious, overwhelmed or even sick. Recognizing when we have too much on our plates is important in making sure we stay healthy and productive.

We as students need to prioritize taking time for self-care more than we do. Eating the right foods and drinking plenty of water is important as well as getting exercise and doing a small activity that brings us joy. Don’t neglect friends either. Hang out with them, whether it’s talking about both of your struggles or letting loose and having fun. Stepping away from our computers for even a half-hour to do something we enjoy can be a great pick-me-up and a way to rejuvenate ourselves after working hard.

If we don’t pick a time to slow down and take a deep breath, our bodies will pick a time to do it for us. More times than not, it will be whenever a big test is coming up or when we need to accomplish several assignments. If we are experiencing symptoms of stress and anxiety, especially those that make us feel like we are getting sick, that is a major indicator that it’s time to step away for a while. While those thoughts may seem counterintuitive, they’ll allow us to jump back into our work with good energy to tackle our to-do list. It’s important to recognize the signs of overworking ourselves so we can take the time to slow down and de-stress.

In today’s mentality where hustle mindset is common, we as students need to remind ourselves that it’s okay to take breaks to focus on ourselves. Especially with all the last month of school thrown at us, we need to take critical steps now in order to prevent ourselves from feeling overwhelmed during finals week. Finding steps to balance out the hustle mindset are not only beneficial now, but for helping us manage life post-graduation. We as students need to take time to step away and breathe for a bit so we can finish the year off at our best.

Pulse

By JULIA LIN Editor in Chief

As a Minnesota Native, April is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you are going to get. Whether it is a blizzard on Friday and sunny skies of 70 degrees on Wednesday, April in Minnesota is more indecisive than 16 year old Julia at the mall. With the fluctuation of weather, there also seems to be a buzz or spring fever, if you will, amongst the college students at Minnesota State. Could it be the defrosting of the deep seasonal depression many of us experience during the long winter months, perhaps? Or is it the fact that we are on our last leg of the semester and the seniors and itching to graduate?

With my eyes set on the horizon to walk across that stage on May 5, I am starting

to feel the spirit of the spring season. I even started to clean out my closet and dispose of things I do not wish to take with me to my next adventure to Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Spring cleaning is a must for anyone who lives in a state where it snows. Vacuuming your car floor mats after months of dirt has been collected is oddly satisfying.

Also looking under your bed and finding trinkets from months ago is a rabbit hole of entertainment. But the most satisfying thing is throwing away all of the things you shoved under there in November.

Another thing I love about Spring is the snow-melted ground that defrosts the pet feces and mold. But you know what they say, you can’t have the rainbow without the rain. However, as

someone who has been diagnosed with asthma recently and has severe seasonal allergies, this time of year is a recipe for disaster. Zyrtec and Flonase become my best friends until the weather decides to finally pick a mood. Spring is like a preview of what is about to come. Although things are gloomy and drab, spring is a time when you can prepare yourself for a fun and packed summer.

For me that means going shopping for summer clothes, putting away my heated blankets and starting to search for my hammock. Going outdoors is one of my favorite things to do for myself. Whether it’s going on a hike through the park or on a “Hot Girl Walk” with my roommates, as long as the weather keeps getting nicer, it’s harder to be in a bad mood.

Compiled by Kole Buelow

BEN DIEHL, SENIOR “Baseball.”

REBEKKA JAY, FRESHMAN

Track and Field.”

CHIARA CARNELUTTI, SENIOR “Tennis.”

ETHAN HAUGEN, JUNIOR “Baseball.”

CALVIN MARSH, SOPHOMORE “Baseball.”

ALEX WINDSCHITL, JUNIOR “Golf.”

Editorials represent the opinions of The Reporter editorial board. The opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of the college, university or student body.

Letter to the Editor: Why you should vote for Representing Mavericks

Dear Editor,

As we brace ourselves to elect our next student government leaders in the coming week, I wanted to cease the opportunity to share our party’s platform with you against one of our core values of transparency.

Although we are not the only party seeking to represent students in this election, we believe that we are the party with the most actionable plans to drive inclusive changes across the diversity of our campus community.

Representing Mavericks is a student-focused party that seeks inclusive ways to represent the diversity of our student body.

We are committed to amplifying the concerns of our fellow students by putting ourselves in their shoes. This makes us more proactive in how we show value and care for students’ wellbeing.

Our goal is to represent and serve the interests of our fellow students regardless of race, immigration status, economic backgrounds, sexual orientation and gender identity.

Our vision is tailored around this goal, and we dream of a prosperous university where students can have a say on important decisions both at the university and state levels; where student government can be consulted on all major decisions that will severely affect student’s retention as well as their physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing, and where all students can have access to the relevant resources they need to realize their full potential.

We do this by advocating for our peers and ensuring equity in everything we do.

So, why should you vote for us? I could provide you with thousands of reasons why you should vote for us, but I will sum them up into one big phrase: BECAUSE WE CARE!

We care about everything you are faced with as a student, and our ears are here to listen to you. We are never too busy to listen to students.

But here are a few of the things we want to achieve if elected: College Affordability. While our university is blessed with several scholarship and financial aid resources such as FAFSA, TRIO, and PELL Grants, not much awareness is created around how, where and when students can apply for these opportunities.

Thus, we will bridge that gap by creating more awareness about these programs and helping students access them. Since international students do not qualify for FAFSA, TRIO and PELL Grants, we have devised an alternative program that will help make college affordable for them.

We will ensure that our university joins the list of schools that MPOWER Financing currently serves by providing student loans without a cosigner requirement.

Another place we want to focus on to meet our goal of college affordability is advocating for third-party options for international students’ healthcare policy at the system level.

This will take off the financial constraints of requiring students who can barely afford their tuition to get a one-year coverage in a lump sum.

Student Basic Need Resources. We will expand the budget of the food pantry to provide more food options to tackle the problem of food insecurity on our campus.

We will also advocate for expanded emergency grant resources to provide financial assistance to students facing temporary housing problems.

Expanding the bus routes and hours to provide transportation for students who work on campus up to 3AM is another way we are thinking about solving this problem as well as advocating for expanded mental health resources and ensuring diversity in the counseling center.

We will also continue the advocacy to move the Quiet Reflection Lounge to an enclosed room in the CSU where our Muslim students can pray and profess their faith without distractions.

Student Wage Increases. With this area, we want to ensure that Sodexo and all contracted companies on our campus can pay student workers at the same hourly pay rate as the University.

Civic Engagement. We will reach out to students and student groups to explore their needs and dialogue inclusive ways to tackle some of the problems on our campus.

To promote transparency and ensure extended representation for all students, we will create a council of student leaders which will be comprised of a representative from each of the major RSOs on campus, including FSL, Athletics and ISA.

Sincerely,

Destined Sehgbean

Voters with disabilities often overlooked

By AYANNA ALEXANDER The Associated Press

Patti Chang walked into her polling place in Chicago earlier this year, anxious about how poll workers would treat her, especially as a voter who is blind. Even though she was accompanied by her husband, she said she was ignored until a poll worker grabbed her cane and pulled her toward a voting booth.

Like many voters with disabilities, Chang faces barriers at the polls most voters never even consider — missing ramps or door knobs, for example. The lack of help or empathy from some poll workers just adds to the burden for people with disabilities.

“It doesn’t help you want to be in there if you’re going to encounter those kinds of low expectations,” said Chang, 59. “So why should I go vote if I’m going to have to fight with the poll workers? I’m an adult and

ship as it will give him handson experience as a construction management major.

“I’m going to be able to apply what I learned in the classroom to real-world situations and I’ll have the chance to meet and work with people in the field,” Saywon said.

Saywon said he gives credit to Muhammad Asghar Raja, his career advisor for helping him obtain his internship.

“I wasn’t prepared to apply to any company because I thought I wasn’t ready and I didn’t know what resources were available until I met Mu-

I should be able to vote without that.”

Chang had a better experience when she cast an early ballot in March in the runoff election for Chicago mayor, a race that will be decided Tues-

hammad,” Saywon said. “His insights helped me stand out among other applicants.”

Weller said students should seize summer internships in order to get practical work experience, network and shop for potential job opportunities.

“With internships, you get to apply classroom learning while gaining hands-on experience in your chosen field,” Weller said. “Internships help you make decisions about your future.”

Saywon said students should utilize the CDC for the advice they give to students.

“They will not just identi-

day, even as access to the ballot box remains a challenge across the city for voters like her. Chicago is among numerous voting jurisdictions across the United States with poor access to polling locations for disabled voters.

fy the opportunities, but they will prepare you to stand out among other applicants and capture the attention of employers,” Saywon said.

Weller added alumni often wish they had utilized the office more during their time at Minnesota State.

“With the support of the CDC, your search for a job or internship can be more efficient, effective and less overwhelming. We can help you grab your future by the horns,” Weller said.

For students looking to learn more, they can stop by Wigley Administration room 209.

ERIN HOOLEY • The Associated Press

Patti Chang, who is blind, uses headphones and audio along with an electronic controller outfitted with braille to vote in a Chicago election.

 CAREER from page 1

CAMPUS

good

welcoming

SPORTS S

Home-field advantage guides Mavs to victory

By HAYDEN LEE Staff Writer

Saturday, five different schools gathered to take part in the Mavericks 10s tournament, hosted in the All-Sports Dome in Mankato. Call it home field advantage, call it scripted, but the Mavs were the team that emerged victorious when it was all said and done.

The tournament was composed of Minnesota State, the University of Minnesota Duluth, Winona State and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. All schools had the opportunity to play each other, and the team with the most wins was named champion.

To start the tournament off, MSU took on UMD for their first match. The first half was a bit of a struggle for both teams, but the Mavericks seemed to flip a switch when the second half arrived.

With the Mavs starting to feel a strong sense of composure as of late, the battle against Duluth ended up being no challenge, finishing the match on top with a score of 34-7.

“As a team, we really started to put together ourself and really understand more than you just gotta tackle and run,” said Mavs team captain Alex Wehrman. “We’re really getting our formations down

and how to play with each other.”

The Mavericks’ second matchup was an even easier task than their first. While going head to head with Winona, it was all about

MSU right from the start.

Throughout the entire match, the Warriors couldn’t put anything together, leaving them scoreless. However, the Mavs were still on

fire, completing the match with a final score of 50-0.As the tournament matches were going on, players that weren’t involved in the matches formed two teams, each

consisting of all four schools.

These two teams competed against each other in a scrimmage format as a way to make sure everyone was involved.

“We really wanted to keep everyone involved,” said Wehrman. “That’s the main thing we’re focused on so we can stay as a functioning unit.”

For the Mavericks’ third and final match, they found themselves facing a much more fierce opponent, in Stevens Point. This matchup was the deciding factor of who took home the championship, and it ended as a one-score game.

The Pointers were able to get on the board first, making it 5-0 for a while. After some regrouping, the Mavs pulled together and scored two tries, closing out the tournament with a 10-5 win.

“We were not a first half team,” said Mavs wing Dominic Bothe. “It took us over the first quarter of the match against Stevens Point to get it together.”

The Bulldogs, Pointers and Warriors all left empty-handed Saturday afternoon, while the Mavs took home the honor of dominating their own tournament.

Coming up, the Mavs will host their alumni game April 8 before heading to Otsego April 15.

Baseball takes the majority of Marauders series

By CHARLIE GROEBNER Staff Writer

Coming off their white-hot sweep in last week’s matchup, Minnesota State once again finds themselves operating on full cylinders. The Mavs took a 2-1 series win against the University of Saint Mary’s over the weekend.

Heading into their scheduled matchup, the Mavs stepped up to the plate against UMary. While their overall team has struggled to gain consistency this year, they are another NSIC team, meaning that every victory over fellow conference rivals is crucial regardless of the record.

Opening their first of Saturday’s doubleheader, the Mavs lacked punch following last week’s game. Right out of the gate, the Marauders launched a homer into right field in the bottom of the first, giving them a 1-0 lead against the Mavs.

However, the Mavs didn’t let that lead go unanswered for long as junior outfielder Jackson Hauge knocked an RBI double to give them a 2-1 lead. Unfortunately, the Marauders took control of the game with two single RBIs in the fifth and another single RBI in the sixth to give the Marauders a 5-2 victory over the Mavs.

Entering game two of the doubleheader, it was a back-and-forth

affair all game long. A high-scoring affair that saw the Mavs get back in the win column with a 14-6 victory to cap off the day.

One of the biggest contributors and noteworthy performances was junior Jackson Hauge. The native of Ramsey, Minnesota has burst onto the scene after seeing limited action in his past two seasons. This season alone he is leading the NSIC in triples with six total.

Head Coach Matt Magers has been satisfied with how he has been performing.

“He has been in the program for four years now and has been a guy battling redshirting and injuries. Last year he played a handful of games and had a very good batting average while being around some of the older guys. This year for him, he has been a center point to our offense, and being a guy who has the power certainly has helped benefit us this year,” said Magers.

After finishing up for the night, the Mavs took the field on Sunday afternoon for the series-deciding game. The rest worked as they tallied four runs in the first inning to give them an early lead.

While the Marauders responded with a run scored, the Mavs continued to pile on runs, with five scored in the third for a score of 9-2 entering the fourth.

From there the Marauders tried catching up but were unable to, following another five runs in the fi-

nal innings. This resulted in a 14-7 victory for MSU.

Following the team’s performance, Coach Magers thought that they performed well. However, he did also feel that

there was a time that he saw a need for improvement and noticed struggles within the group.

“Our goal is always to win two out of three which we did. I did feel we could have won the first

game that we lost after we were ahead, but Saint Mary was able to put three runs up on us. So besides that fifth inning in that first game, we played some good baseball and played good defense and pitched well,” said Magers.

LILLY ANDERSON • The Reporter

Minnesota State’s Men’s Rugby team won the Mankato 10s Tournament after defeating University of Minnesota Duluth, Winona State University and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point last Saturday.

File photo

Minnesota State’s Men’s Baseball team win the series after a 14-7 score Sunday against the University of Mary. The Mavericks won 2-1 in the three-game series last weekend.

Women’s golf ready for NSIC Preview Mavericks take on the Mules of Missouri

By MOHAMED WARSAME Staff Writer

The Minnesota State Women’s Golf team is set to take the course Monday and Tuesday for the NSIC Preview. The Mavericks have a quick turnaround as they head back to Missouri after competing in the Holiday Inn Express Missouri West Invite March 27-28.

The event will be held in Smithville at the Paradise Pointe Golf Complex. The course is a par-72 track that plays to 5,522 yards. It features four par-5 and four par-3 holes.

One of the teams that Minnesota State will be battling against, is the winners of the Holiday Inn Express Missouri West Invite, Missouri Western State. The Griffons finished with a team score of 604. Concordia St. Paul, Upper Iowa, Sioux Falls and Winona State round out the rest of the competitors.

The Mavs weren’t able to execute the way they hoped in their latest appearance on the green. The nine-team event hosted by Missouri Western, saw the Mavs finish in eighth with a team score of 663. This was quite the dip from their 630 point total and fifth place finish in the SMSU Spring Invitational at Wigwam Golf Club in Li-

tchfield Park, Arizona March 7-8.

In the days leading up to the Holiday Inn Express Missouri West Invite, head coach Alex Schmitz highlighted the team’s freshman as something he was excited to see go out and perform well.

Despite the team’s overall less than stellar outing, freshman Sammy Youngquist continued her impressive year. She paced the Mavs with a score of 164. Youngquist has played in 14 rounds this year, averaging 79.6, which places her as the second-lowest average on the team.

The freshman has shot under 80 on seven of those 14 rounds, with three rounds going 75 or lower. Youngquist’s most astounding round in her MSU career took place in the Concordia Golden Bear Classic back in September 2022, where she shot a 72. That round earned her the second lowest career round of any active Maverick.

Freshman Lauren Rebrovich also made her mark on the squad during the Golden Bear Classic where she shot a career best 68 in the final round. Rebrovich is averaging 82.1 for the season.

Schmitz also anticipated the team’s leadership, seniors

and upperclassmen to pick up where they left off in the fall as they headed into their first competitive event of the spring. The Mavs will need their leaders to step-up if they want to finish the season on a high note. Senior Sam Soulier has played in 45 rounds as a Maverick, which makes her the second highest total on the team. Soulier is averaging an 81.7 for the season. She also shot her career-best at the Golden Bear Classic with a 75.

Junior Anna Cihak is another key cog in the machine. Cihak is vastly experienced having played in 44 rounds for the Mavs, making her the third-highest total on the team. She has played in 12 rounds this season, with an average of 77.7. Cihak recorded her career-best at the Golden Bear Classic by shooting a 70 on the second day of the event. Adding her to the list of Mavericks to have a career day in the fall.

The Mavs will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing performance their last time out.

This will be their second competitive event in the spring and third overall. With the team able to get their feet wet over the last few weeks, they hope that this trip to Missouri will be a lot kinder to them.

By LUKE JACKSON Staff Writer

The Minnesota State Men’s Golf team looks to head back to Missouri, once again, for the Central Missouri Mule Invite. The tournament hosts two rounds of golf Monday and Tuesday. The Mules National Club plays to 6,362 yards on a par 70. This features four par5s and six par-3s.

The main attraction and challenge of this course are hole 8’s 650-yard par-5 and hole 18’s island green. According to head coach Alex Schmitz, the Mavs’ main strength this year is hitting the ball hard allowing them to eliminate the short game. This could come in favor on the long 650-yard par-5 and when they narrow in on the island green to finish off the match.

This tournament will be a hard battle for the Mavericks to overcome as seven of the top 11 schools in the NCAA II Central Division rankings will be playing. The Mules will be hosting 16 other teams; five of which are from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

On top of this, the Mavs

recently saw the Mules in the NSIC Preview at Adams Pointe Golf Club where the Mules finished first while the Mavs came in at 10th place. Central Missouri took a dominating win through outstanding efficiency with an overall team score of 580 while MSU shot 615 finishing 39 shots above par.

Last year, MSU finished 44 shots over par finishing 14th out of 21 teams. One highlight coming out of the mediocre finish was Ben Laffen tying for 16 place shooting +3. In one of his rounds, he finished under par with 69 strokes, something he’s only done five times throughout his career. Laffen will be returning this year with more knowledge of the course along with Kaleb Johnson, Joe Bigger and Jack Klimek who all played at The Mules National last year.

For information during the tournament, you can follow the Mavericks around the course at golfstat.com. Following the tournament, the Mavs will once again travel back to Missouri to return to Adams Pointe Golf Club for their final tournament the NSIC Championship April 21.

4BR IN DUPLEX

Courtesy MNSU Atlhetics

Courtesy MNSU Athletics

Minnesota State’s Women’s Golf team competes in a day two of the NSIC Preview event at the Paradise Pointe Golf Complex in Smithville, Missouri.

Minnesota State’s Men’s Golf team competes in Warrensburg, Missouri today for the second half of the Central Missouri Mule Invite event.

Women’s tennis picks up seventh consecutive win

Svitolina loses in first match as mom

By HOWARD FENDRICH The Associated Press

Two-time Grand Slam semifinalist Elina Svitolina did not exactly ease her way back in her first match as a mother: Her return after more than a year away from the tennis tour was a back-andforth three-setter lasting 2 hours, 46 minutes at the Charleston Open on Monday.

Svitolina — ranked as high as No. 3 in the past and currently No. 1,081 — could not quite pull out a victory, ceding the last two games and losing 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-4 to Yulia Putintseva on the main stadium’s green clay on a cloudy, breezy day.

“Physically, it was not easy for me,” said Svitolina, a 28-year-old from Ukraine. “It showed, I think, that I’m not at my best, but I’m getting there.”

She felt goosebumps when the crowd roared to mark her entrance. There were her familiar big-cut forehands. Her customary visor. And the unmistakable competitiveness displayed by clenched fists and yells of “Let’s go!”

She began the process Jan. 2, working alongside Monfils, who was coming back from an injury.

“Good company,” Svitolina said. “We really motivated each other to train really hard, every day.”

By HAYDEN LEE Staff Writer

this weekend, but unfortunately, the patented late March Minnesota blizzard had other plans.

Friday’s matchup with St. Cloud State was delayed due to weather conditions in Minnesota reaching an all-time annoyance. The match was canceled on the day of, and the teams are still working on setting a date to make it up.

Moving forward, the Mavs traveled to Rogers Saturday to take on the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs. It was April Fools day, but the Mavs were not messing around, sweeping the Bulldogs 7-0 while not dropping a single set.

To begin, sophomore Avery Stilwell and freshman McKenna DeMarce took a 6-3 win over Shay Callaway and Mallory Lithun in the No. 1 doubles match.

Sophomore Freia Lawrence and senior Chiara Carnelutti followed suit, taking the No. 2 doubles match easily, 6-0. Despite already clinching the point for doubles, sophomore Hana Minsiy and freshman Daria Podmogilnaia took care of business in the No. 3 doubles match 6-1.

To complete the sweep, the

Mavs needed to win all six of the singles matches. Which they did. But they did it all without their normal No. 1 singles player, Lois Page, who did not play in an attempt to give her some rest.

Lawrence defeated Callaway 6-1 and 6-2 in the No. 1 singles match, and Carnelutti picked up a 6-2 and 6-3 victory in the No. 2 singles match. Stilwell handled the No. 3 match, winning 6-3 and 6-2.

Oddly enough, Podmogilnaia won the No. 4 singles match with the same scores. DeMarce took the No. 5 singles match, winning convincingly 6-0 and 6-1. Minisy was the last domino that needed to fall, and she closed out the weekend with a 6-3 and 6-1 victory over Laura Palmer.

“I was very proud of the Mavs for all of the singles players earning straight-set wins,” said Mavs coach Jeff Thomae. “It says a lot about our depth that everyone could play up a spot and still have such convincing wins.”

With the St. Cloud State match being postponed, the Mavs now have four more matches before they turn their attention to the NSIC Tournament. As it stands now, the Mavs will face their next opponent on April 8, where they will travel to Owatonna to take on Southwest Minnesota State.

HELP WANTED

“It’s very nice to have her back. She’s always been super nice and an inspiration for me, because she was a warrior on court, a fighter, and I love these kind of players. It’s even more inspirational seeing her come back as a mom,” said Paula Badosa, who is seeded 12th in Charleston. “I’m very happy for her and I hope soon she’s back where she belongs.”

Svitolina and her husband, fellow player Gael Monfils, became parents in October, when their daughter, Skaï, was born. From the time of her previous match — at the Miami Open in March 2022, when she was ranked No. 20 — Svitolina knew she wanted to come back to tennis.

Just didn’t know when.

They’re both adjusting to life as mom and dad with jobs that require plenty of travel. Monfils went to California and Florida for recent tournaments; now he is at home in Monaco with Skaï, FaceTiming with Svitolina as much as possible.

“She loves the phone. She holds the phone. It’s not going to be easy to take the phone from her in the future,” Svitolina said with a laugh. “She’s getting used to FaceTime.”

This is the longest she has been away from her baby since a weeklong trip to Ukraine in February, when Svitolina visited her grandmother, uncle and other relatives and joined former pro Sergiy Stakhovsky in holding a tennis clinic for 300 kids amid the war that began a year earlier when Russia invaded.

Svitolina thought it was “sad” that the All England Club announced last week it would allow players from Russia and Belarus, which aided in the attack, to return to Wimbledon in June after being banned from the tournament in 2022 because of the invasion.

One of her proudest moments in tennis was earning a bronze medal for Ukraine at the Tokyo Olympics. Among her other accomplishments: winning the season-ending WTA Finals in 2018 and reaching the semifinals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open the following year.

Now she’ll head to smaller venues on the sport’s lower levels — a tournament in Switzerland with $60,000 in total prize money; one in Portugal offering $100,000 — and try to figure out her schedule beyond that.

Does she still harbor hopes of a Grand Slam title one day?

“It’s the ultimate goal for me,” Svitolina said.

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Courtesy MNSU Athletics

Minnesota State’s Women’s Tennis team defeats Minnesota Duluth 7-0 with ease last weekend.

MIC SMITH • The Associated Press

Elina Svitolina, of Ukraine, reacts after a shot against Yulia Putintseva, of Kazakhstan, during action at the Charleston Open tennis tournament.

Women’s NCAA Tournament features plethora of March Madness

WWE no longer just a family affair

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN The Associated Press

WWE is saying goodbye to existing as a family-run business as it joins with the company that runs Ultimate Fighting Championship to create a $21.4 billion sports entertainment company.

The deal announced Monday between Endeavor and World Wrestling Entertainment, on the heels of its biggest event of the year, catapults WWE into a new era after spending decades under the control of the McMahon family.

By SCHUYLER DIXON

This year’s record-breaking women’s NCAA Tournament featured breakout stars, upsets and capped off with the flamboyant Kim Mulkey leading LSU to its first basketball championship.

Mulkey’s unforgettable outfits were just one of several memorable moments. There was Caitlin Clark’s 40-point triple-double in the Elite Eight game, the drama of South Carolina’s quest to complete the latest undefeated season and two No. 1 seeds being knocked off before the Sweet 16.

It led to the highest attendance ever in the tournament’s history to go along with stellar TV ratings in every round. The timing couldn’t be better for the sport. It all could lead to women’s basketball getting a separate TV deal when the contract expires next summer.

Here’s a look at some of the top moments from the tournament:

FIERY FASHIONISTA

Mulkey is never hard to miss on the sideline with her feisty approach and reactions to referees and her players. The coach’s flamboyant attire takes her presence to a different level, and her Final Four outfits certainly stood out.

For the national semifinal game, Mulkey arrived in a carnation pink top with a flower-like puffs along the entire sleeves, a designer-made top similar to what her 2-year-old granddaughter wore. Even the LSU mascot was spotted in pink attire.

The coach wore a sparkly,

golden, tiger-striped outfit during the championship game. Her team were the golden girls, winning the first basketball championship in school history.

DAZZLING CLARK

Clark set an NCAA Tournament record by scoring 191 points over Iowa’s six games, surpassing Sheryl Swoopes’ 177 points for Texas Tech in 1993 — and Glen Rice’s 184 for Michigan in the 1989 men’s tournament.

Before 30 points in the championship game, the 6-foot Iowa-born Clark was the first player in the women’s tournament with back-to-back 40-point games. That included her 11th career triple-double in the regional final against Louisville, before another 41 points against previously undefeated South Carolina in the national semifinal game.

HISTORY DENIED

South Carolina was trying to become the 10th women’s team to run through a season undefeated and the first school to win consecutive titles since UConn won four straight from 2013-16. The Gamecocks were denied that chance, losing to Iowa in the Final Four behind a stellar effort from Clark.

END OF AN ERA

UConn’s run of 14 consecutive Final Four appearance came to an end in the Elite Eight when Ohio State forced the Huskies into 18 first-half turnovers with fullcourt pressure defense. The Huskies hadn’t missed playing in the national semifinals since 2007. NEW FORMAT

Vince McMahon purchased Capitol Wrestling from his father in 1982, and took the regional wrestling business to a national audience with stars such as Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, John Cena and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. The company, which changed its name to World Wrestling Federation and later World Wrestling Entertainment, hosted its first WrestleMania in 1985.

McMahon, in an interview with CNBC, addressed doubts among some WWE fans and industry experts that he would ever make a deal for the business. “It’s the right time to do the right thing. And it’s the next evolution of WWE,” he said.

In a presentation after the deal was announced, the WWE and Endeavor said that they will cross promote to drive brand awareness and deepen penetration of their overlapping fan base, more than 700 million UFC fans and 1.2 billion WWE fans worldwide.

Ties already exist talent wise between WWE and UFC, with stars such as Brock Lesnar and Ronda Rousey crossing over between the two organizations.

A new publicly traded compa-

ny will house the UFC and WWE brands, with Endeavor Group Holdings Inc. taking a 51% controlling interest in the new company. Existing WWE shareholders will hold a 49% stake.

The companies put the enterprise value of UFC at $12.1 billion and WWE’s value at $9.3 billion.

The new business, which does not yet have a name, will be lead by Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel.

McMahon, executive chairman at WWE, will serve in the same role at the new company. Dana White will continue as president of UFC and Nick Khan will be president at WWE.

“Together, we will be a $21+ billion live sports and entertainment powerhouse with a collective fanbase of more than a billion people and an exciting growth opportunity,” McMahon said in a prepared statement Monday.

He also provided some idea of where the focus of the new company will be, saying that it will look to maximize the value of combined media rights, enhance

sponsorship monetization, develop new forms of content and pursue other strategic mergers and acquisitions to further bolster their brands.

Confirmation that WWE is being sold comes after McMahon, a majority shareholder of WWE, returned to the company in January and said that it could be on the block with viewership continuing to rise.Rumors swirled about who would possibly be interested in buying WWE, with Endeavor, Disney, Fox, Comcast, Amazon and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund all in the mix.

McMahon said on CNBC that there were several buyers interested in WWE, but that combining with Endeavor is the right move.

“It makes all the sense in the world for all these synergies that we have to extract all of the value that we can out of the marketplace,” he explained.

Media industry analysts viewed WWE as an attractive target given its global reach and loyal fanbase.

DARRON CUMMINGS • The Associated Press

LSU head coach Kim Mulkey reacts during the first half of the NCAA Women’s Final Four championship basketball game against Iowa.

The Associated Press

WWE • The Associated Press

In this photo provided by WWE, Over 80,000 attend the first night of WrestleMania 39 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, Saturday

VA RI ET Y

Dungeons and Dragons: Maverick Style

By KENDALL LARSON Staff Writer

Dungeons and Dragons is a tabletop roleplaying game. The game consists of a Dungeon Master, also called the “DM” and a group of players. This popular game has its own club at Minnesota State, which is run by student Karl Betcher.

In Dungeon and Dragons, players can do anything — fight vampires, kingdoms and creatures of the deep. Players can also release a farmer’s cattle, as one of Betcher’s groups did.

To Betcher, the game is “a way to have fun and a place to go where you don’t have to worry about anything.”

A player’s actions are his or hers to bear, and they decide their own path, which can be very appealing.

“There is a whole bunch of creativity with the aspect of roleplaying. You get to step into someone else’s shoes and create their story,” said Betcher.

Besides offering a great way to have fun and test out character concepts, the Dungeon Mavericks club is a great way to make friends. According to Betcher, many people attending the club are just starting out.

But with every game come

misconception. Betcher said the most common one he encountered with players was that “it is hard to start,” which could not be further from the truth, at least for Dungeon Mavericks.

“It is in no way, shape, or form hard to start. We give you everything you need and can help you make a character in 10 minutes,” Betcher stated.

One of the big things the club

offers is the freedom to experiment. If a player tries a character and doesn’t like it, he or she is encouraged to try a different character. And if a player is worried about not remembering

the rules or how things work, Betcher has them covered.

“I’m more than happy to pause the game and explain things because I love working with the game mechanics and helping players understand them,” Betcher said.

Besides offering a diverse number of choices for customization, Dungeons and Dragons has many pre-generated worlds in the forms of their published books and many Dungeon Masters that create their own worlds. This creates a world of choices for the players, where the possibilities are quite literally endless.

“I had this whole campaign planned out, but one of the players didn’t quite get the roll needed to advance part of the planned story, so I instead made up a different creature, and a new story started,” Betcher recalled.

Dungeons and Dragons has many choices that have consequences, both good and bad. But the number one thing you can do every time is “roll with it.”

“The best advice I can give is to roll with it, and that no call is a bad call,” said Betcher.

Dungeon Mavericks meet 5:30-10 p.m. Sundays in CSU 256.

Schomberg works to end the stigma around disabilities

By LAUREN VISKA Staff Writer

One billion people — 16% of the world — have a disability.

Despite that number, there is a stigma about talking about it. Librarian Jessica Schomberg spoke March 31 over Zoom to give students more information on the 10 principles of Disability Justice and ways Disability Justice can influence work and learning. The event was part of a series hosted by the Disability Alliance Affinity Group.

“They’re principles identified by the performing arts group, Sins Invalid, which is a performing arts group based in San Francisco that is comprised of disabled people of color who express their worlds and dreams through performing arts,” said Schomberg. “So they worked together to identify 10 principles that are important to the movement to keep in mind as people work toward disability justice to craft the work that’s being done, and prevent it from being commodified.”

DAAG is trying to build a

larger community of students and workers who have disabilities or want to help people who do. They do this by hosting educational events during the spring semester.

“Disability Justice is an attempt to move the conversation to fully recognize the humanity of disabled people of color, disabled queer people, disabled trans people, disabled people who are incarcerated, disabled poor people and other people who are usually left out of the mainstream movement,” said Schomberg. “So one of the pieces of Disability Justice that I think is valuable to discuss is both how it’s deliberately inclusive of people who had been left out, and also it pushes people to reconsider how our entire social structure exists, and who it benefits, and it challenges people to be more creative and addressing problems.”

DAAG is an affinity group. An affinity group aims to get people from different parts of the campus community to work toward a shared goal.

“Any member of the campus community is welcome to join

whether they have a disability or not, so long as they want to work toward creating a campus community and a culture that welcomes and supports people with disabilities,” said Schomberg.

Schomberg said that one of the goals of this event was to “recognize the full humanity of disabled people who feel left out of a lot of disability conversations and also to challenge people to be considered possibilities.”

Schomberg said one misconception about disabled people is they are incomplete humans or deficient.

“There’s so much stigma against disability that people are uncomfortable talking about it because they don’t want to hurt people’s feelings. So they’re silent about it,” said Schomberg. “People with disabilities have a reasonable fear of stigma. That makes it hard again to talk about it, or fear of repercussions.”

For more information about upcoming events or general information, contact Schomberg; they will be happy to help.

Courtesy MSU Dungeons & Dragons Club

The Dungeons and Dragons club, pictured above, is just one of the many on-campus RSOs that Mavericks can spend their free time taking part in.

Jessica Schomberg, pictured above, is a librarian at the Memorial Library on campus. She spoke on Zoom to provide students with information about disabilities.

Courtesy Jessica Schomberg

Gwyneth Paltrow gets vindication at ski collision trial

Disney-DeSantis war of words heats up at annual meeting

By SAM METZ The Associated Press

Gwyneth Paltrow wasn’t to blame for a 2016 collision with a retired optometrist on a beginner run at a posh Utah ski resort during a family vacation, a jury decided Thursday following a live-streamed trial that became a pop culture fixation.

A jury awarded Paltrow $1 — a symbolic amount she asked for in order to show it wasn’t about money — and delivered her the vindication she sought when she opted to take it to trial rather than settle out of court.

“I felt that acquiescing to a false claim compromised my integrity,” Paltrow said in a statement released by her representatives that she also posted as an Instagram story for her 8.3 million followers. She also thanked the judge and jury for their work.

As Paltrow left court she touched Terry Sanderson’s shoulder and told him, “I wish you well,” he told reporters outside court. He responded, “Thank you dear.”

Paltrow’s attorney, Steve Owens, added in a statement he read outside court that “Gwyneth has a history of advocating for what she believes in – this situation was no different and she will continue to stand up for what is right.”

Paltrow, an actor who in recent years has refashioned herself into a celebrity wellness entrepreneur, looked to her attorneys with a pursed lips smile when the judge read the eight-member jury’s verdict in the Park City courtroom. She sat intently through two weeks of testimony in what became the biggest celebrity court case since actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard faced off last

year.

After the verdict was read, the judge polled the jury, which was unanimous on the decision. In civil court in Utah, only three-fourths of jurors need to agree on a verdict. The attorney fees Paltrow asked for in her countersuit were not included in the jury’s verdict, leaving the bulk of the final award for the Park City judge to decide.

Addressing reporters after the verdict, Sanderson questioned whether the lawsuit was worth it and said he believed that people tend to naturally trust celebrities like Paltrow.

“You get some assumed credibility from being a famous person,” Sanderson said. “Really, who wants to take on a celebrity?”

The dismissal concludes two weeks of courtroom proceedings that hinged largely on reputation rather than the monetary damages at stake in the case. Paltrow’s attorneys described the complaint against her as “utter B.S.” and painted the Goop founder-CEO as uniquely vulnerable to unfair, frivolous lawsuits due to her celebrity.

Paltrow took the witness stand during the trial to insist that the collision wasn’t her fault, and to describe how she was stunned when she felt “a body pressing against me and a very strange grunting noise.”

Throughout the trial, the word “uphill” became synonymous with “guilty, ” as attorneys focused on a largely unknown skiing code of conduct that stipulates that the skier who is downhill or ahead on the slope has the right of way.

Worldwide audiences followed the celebrity trial as if it were episodic television. Viewers scrutinized both Paltrow

and Sanderson’s motives while attorneys directed questions to witnesses that often had less to do with the collision and more to do with their client’s reputations.

The trial took place in Park City, a resort town known for hosting the annual Sundance Film Festival, where early in her career Paltrow would appear for the premieres of her movies including 1998’s “Sliding Doors,” at a time when she was known primarily as an actor, not a lifestyle influencer. Paltrow is also known for her roles in “Shakespeare in Love” and the “Iron Man” movies.

The jury’s decision marks a painful court defeat for Sanderson, the man who sued Paltrow for more than $300,000 over injuries he sustained when they crashed on the ski slope at Deer Valley Resort.

“He never returned home that night as the same man. Terry has tried to get off that mountain but he’s really still there,” attorney Robert Sykes said during closing arguments.

Both parties blamed the other for the collision. Sanderson, 76, broke four ribs and sustained a concussion after the two tumbled down the slope, with Paltrow landing on top of him.

He filed an amended complaint after an earlier $3.1 million lawsuit was dismissed. In response, Paltrow countersued for $1 and attorney fees, a symbolic action that mirrors Taylor Swift’s response to a radio host’s defamation lawsuit. Swift was awarded $1 in 2017.

Paltrow’s defense team represented Sanderson as an angry, aging and unsympathetic man who had over the years become “obsessed” with his lawsuit against Paltrow.

By MIKE SCHNEIDER The Associated Press

Disney CEO Bob Iger on Monday said any retaliatory actions by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature against the company that threaten jobs or expansion at its Florida resort is not only “anti-business ... but anti-Florida.”

Answering a question during an online shareholders’ meeting, Iger said that the Republican governor and lawmakers appeared to be retaliating against the company for exercising its constitutional rights. He referred to the incident last year when Disney criticized Florida’s law dubbed by critics “Don’t Say Gay”

while Bob Chapek was helming the company at the time. The measure bars instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, as well as lessons deemed not age-appropriate.

In response, Florida lawmakers passed, and DeSantis signed, legislation revamping the government-like board that oversees Walt Disney World’s 27,000-acre (11,000-hectare) property outside Orlando. Among the changes the legislation made was that the Florida governor got to pick the five supervisors of the governing board instead of it being controlled by Disney, as it had been in its previous 55 years. During the shareholders’ meeting, Iger declared the company’s love for the state.

KRISTIN MURPHY • The Associated Press

JAE C. HONG • The Associated Press

Gwyneth Paltrow leaves court Thursday, March 30, 2023, in Park City, Utah, after a jury found that Paltrow wasn’t to blame for a 2016 collision with a retired optometrist on a beginner run at a posh Utah ski resort during a family vacation.

Disney CEO Bob Iger called efforts by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to retaliate against the company for its policy positions as not only “anti-business but anti-Florida.”

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