NBN Magazine Spring 2023

Dressing for the part

Wirtz costume designers on what it takes to say yes to the dress. | pg. 22

SPRING 2023

Beyond the sirens

| pg. 45

SPRING 2023

What tattoo would you never get?

PRINT STAFF

EDITORIAL

PRINT MANAGING EDITOR Mia Walvoord

ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITOR Jenna Anderson

EDITOR-AT-LARGE Jimmy He

SENIOR FEATURES EDITORS Sela Breen, Emma Chiu, Caroline Neal, Maddy Rubin

ASSISTANT FEATURES EDITORS

Sam Bull, Noah Coyle

SENIOR DANCE FLOOR EDITORS Sari Dashefsky, Brooklyn Moore, Tessa Paul, Chloe Rappaport

ASSISTANT DANCE FLOOR EDITOR Olivia Kharrazi

SENIOR PREGAME EDITORS Lauren Cohn, Katie Keil, Sam Lebeck

SENIOR HANGOVER EDITORS Julia Lucas, Natalia Zadeh, Julianna Zitron

ASSISTANT HANGOVER EDITOR Bennie Goldfarb

CREATIVE

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Hope Cartwright

ASSISTANT CREATIVE DIRECTOR Iliana Garner

PHOTO DIRECTOR Eloise Apple

DESIGNERS Grace Chang, Valerie Chu, Emma Estberg, Bennie Goldfarb, Abigail Lev, Sammi Li, Esther Lim, Michelle Sheen, Raven Williams, Allie Yi, Allen Zhang

WEB STAFF

MANAGING

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Kim Jao

EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jade Thomas

MANAGING EDITOR: Astry Rodriguez

ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITORS: Conner Dejecacion, Christine Mao

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION EDITORS: Rafaela Jinich, Sammi Li, Ashley Sanchez

SECTION EDITORS

NEWS EDITOR Arden Anderson

POLITICS EDITOR Brennan Leach

ASSISTANT EDITORS

Elliot Oppenheim, Gideon Pardo

ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS Jaharia Knowles, Kelly Rappaport

LIFE + STYLE EDITOR Ashley Sanchez

SPORTS EDITORS Miles French, AJ Anderson

INTERACTIVES EDITORS Annie Xia, Elizabeth Casolo

ASSISTANT EDITOR Maya Mubayi

FEATURES EDITORS Ryan Morton, Darya Tadlaoui

an infinity symbol

ASSISTANT EDITORS Ava Hoeschler, Sara Xu

OPINION EDITORS Mya Copeland, Abigail Lev

CREATIVE WRITING EDITOR

Amaya Mikolič-Berrios

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Jade Thomas

WRITERS Jackson Baker, Hannah Cole, Audrey Hettleman, Kim Jao, Andrew Katz, Kate Lautenberg, Abigail Lev, Charlotte Varnes, Raven Williams, Hannah Zhou

PHOTOGRAPHER Tyler Keim

FREELANCERS CORPORATE

PUBLISHER Julianne Sun

MARKETING Sam Stevens

AD SALES Stephanie Kontapanos

GRAPHICS EDITORS Olivia Abeyta, Iliana Garner

FREELANCER Emma Estberg

PHOTO EDITOR Jonah Elkowitz

ASSISTANT EDITOR Lianna Amoruso

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITORS

INSTAGRAM EDITORS Sela Breen, Stephanie Kontopanos, Esther Tang, Annie Zia, Sara Xu

TWITTER EDITOR Nozizwe Msipa

TIKTOK EDITOR Lianna Amoruso

PHOTO BY TYLER KEIM

COVER DESIGN BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

DEAR READERS, S

pring Quarter marks a significant crossroads for our Northwestern community, with new beginnings as well as somber — yet hopeful — endings. While the newly formed class of 2027 is eager to discover all that the University has to offer, our seniors nostalgically reflect on their Northwestern experience as they begin to carve out their own spaces in the working world. Dreams are being shaped and fulfilled all around us. This edition of NBN is informed and inspired by this transitional period.

In our Pregame section, members of Northwestern field hockey express joy after landing their dream partnership with Dunkin’ and seeing heightened interest in women’s sports. In Dance Floor, we examine the history of the Northwestern community and attitudes toward admissions. We also hear from student trailblazers, like film writer/director Julz Fiet, making a mark on their industries.

This issue’s cover story, “Becoming Boo,” spotlights campus legend and Northwestern men’s basketball star Boo Buie. Buie shares his path to success, thanking the family members, friends and mentors who supported him along the way. His story unveils the man behind the jersey and reminds fellow students in the midst of self-discovery that their innermost dreams are worth reaching for.

Our Hangover staff refuses to accept defeat in their search for summer internships and shines a light on silly campus tropes with their light fixture quiz. But as you transition into adulthood, take heed of some symptoms of early-onset millennialism …

I’m immensely proud of this issue and all the editors, writers and designers who worked tirelessly to bring our collective vision to light. As this year comes to a close, I hope this issue of NBN provides you with the same thoughtfulness and inspiration that it has gifted me.

Sincerely, Mia

Walvoord

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

OK TO COMPOST:

‘Cats going

GREEN

A composting guide from Cats Who Compost.

WRITTEN BY SAM BULL // DESIGNED BY ALLEN ZHANG

Spring has sprung in Evanston, meaning beach days, t-shirts and … composting! Composting is the process of breaking down organic materials to create fertilizer that brings nutrients to plants and soil for farming and gardening. This practice can provide Northwestern students with an opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint, get outside and become better informed on waste management.

BROWNS

Weinberg second-year Kelly Teitel, a member of the student organization Cats Who Compost (CWC), says the club provides troughs behind Hillel, Sheil Catholic Center and the University Christian Ministry for all Wildcats to drop their food scraps and biodegradable materials. The compost is picked up by Evanston-based waste management service Collective Resource, who return it to the club as nutrient-rich soil that is then sent to the Wild Roots Garden club for

their garden outside Norris. CWC undertook a range of projects this quarter, from a wastereduction challenge in the dining halls during Earth Week to collaborative events with other sustainability organizations.

“I found composting to be a really fulfilling and simple way to witness how much I can reduce my waste by just placing compost in the [trough] instead of the trash — I just found that really gratifying,” Teitel says.

Teitel hopes the resources and education CWC provides will incentivize more students to try composting in the future. She says composting alone can be expensive, so the services CWC provides are a much better option for Northwestern students.

“Even [for] off-campus students, the locations are around campus, so on your way to class it’s very convenient, and you don’t have to pay for these services,” Teitel says.

DO NOT COMPOST:

• Animal/dairy products such as bones, oil and cheese

• Plastic and other nonorganic matter

• Acidic plant matter like citrus peels or onions

Moral of the story: It depends on your compost service requirements.

Choose a container

Teitel says virtually any kind of container works for collecting compost. She recommends a screw-on jar or a bucket and suggests students empty it in the troughs once a week to avoid strong odors.

If you want to create your own composting system, you can collect your scraps in the same way, but you’ll need an outdoor space for your pile. Some options include plastic bins or wooden troughs.

Collect your materials

Specific requirements depend on the compost collection service, but most services accept both “browns” and “greens.” Browns encompass leaves, straw, wood chips or paper, whereas greens include food scraps and grass clippings.

1 2 3

Maintain your compost

CWC makes this easy with troughs for all students! If you’ve dropped off your compost at the CWC-provided troughs, all your steps are finished and the composting process repeats.

If you’ve got your own system, air and water are key. To best decompose the fertilizer, the compost should be damp — not too wet and not too dry. Air is also crucial. The more oxygen in the system, the faster you will get your final product. This involves rotating the pile frequently so air can reach the bottom.

PHOTOS FROM PEXELS, PIXABAY

t’s 5:10 p.m. on a Wednesday, and Apsara Balamurugan is sitting on a stationary bike at the front of the cycle studio. Although her spin class does not begin for another 20 minutes, every bike in front of her is either occupied or reserved with a water bottle.

Balamurugan, a Bienen and McCormick third-year, hosts weekly classes at the Henry Crown Sports Pavilion and Aquatic Center (SPAC). There are seven student trainers, all female, who teach SPAC classes ranging from Latin Dance to Vinyasa Flow.

Balamurugan has been teaching Cycle Express since her sophomore year. Every Wednesday, students and Evanston community members alike flock to her class, eager to fit a highintensity workout into their busy days. Before college, Balamurugan had never imagined teaching a cycling class. She was a swimmer in high school and tried a cycle class her freshman year at a friend’s suggestion. Soon, Balamurugan realized she was pretty good at cycling and enjoyed it too. Her next thought was: “What if I taught the classes?”

Let’s get physical!

Medill second-year Alexia KadotaBrowner has been a personal trainer at SPAC since her freshman year. Her exercise journey began at age 12, and she started to regularly take classes at her local gym when she was 15.

“Around that age, I decided that I wanted to become a personal trainer and a group exercise instructor,” KadotaBrowner says.

As she became closer with her trainers, her aspirations grew. Before she even arrived at Northwestern, KadotaBrowner contacted Northwestern’s Associate Director of Fitness and Wellness to figure out how she could get involved with training.

“I’m not certified yet, but once I am, I’d love to work for you,” Kadota-Browner wrote in the email.

By the end of her first Winter Quarter, Kadota-Browner was hired as a personal trainer. She’s since graduated to teaching Cardio Kickboxing every Thursday from 7 to 8 p.m. this Spring Quarter.

Weinberg second-year Mira Brodsky has been taking yoga classes since she was nine years old. Like Kadota-Browner, she applied to work at SPAC before she even arrived on campus.

WRITTEN & DESIGNED BY ABIGAIL LEV

PHOTOS BY ABIGAIL LEV

Meet the SPAC student trainers leading your favorite fitness classes.

Kadota-Browner demonstrates a front kick, one of the basic moves of kickboxing.

Balamurugan on a stationary bike in the cycle studio at SPAC.

“It’s just so awesome to be a teacher and a student at once. I was technically a Northwestern teacher before I was a student,” Brodsky says.

For Brodsky, yoga is all about creating connections.

“It’s a cool community space for getting to know people without actually talking to them,” she says.

Brodsky, who has over 500 hours of training, understands that yoga manifests differently for each individual and encourages her participants to take care of themselves. If she does a flow on her own that feels empowering, her thought is, “Let me teach this so other people feel a version of that.”

Kadota-Browner puts thought into how to improve and best prepare for her kickboxing classes throughout her week. She went to the studio the morning of her first class to complete a full run-through of her routine. Now that she is more settled in, if she wants to incorporate new choreography, she will practice in her bedroom.

“I went to the studio with the mic on and everything. I taught the entire class to an empty room just so I could really get used to it,” Kadota-Browner says.

Balamurugan also sets aside time during the week to prepare for her spin classes, including curating a specific class playlist.

Most of Balamurugan’s course plan is based on music. For each of her songs, Balamurugan makes sure to plan out a specific movement to match the beat, including various choreography.

She also tries to incorporate song suggestions from her participants. Balamurugan uses music as a way to build a relationship with as many of her trainees as possible. She motivates her attendees throughout the class.

“I try to put myself out there and be relatable in a way that makes people feel comfortable in my class,” Balamurugan says.

Her efforts to connect with participants seem to be effective since Balamurugan’s classes are consistently full.

“I get there at 5 p.m. and then people start showing up right when I open the doors,” Balamurugan says. “It just gets really full, and I feel bad because I have to turn a lot of people away.”

Brodsky also says she has amassed a steady following over her two years of instruction.

Communication second-year Alex Angrist started attending Brodsky’s Vinyasa Flow during Spring Quarter 2022. She says Brodsky’s Thursday classes have become a “hallmark” of her Northwestern experience.

Kadota-Browner’s classes are similarly well-attended. With a capacity of 70 participants, more than half of the space is consistently filled.

“I genuinely thought the turnout was gonna be like 10 people,” Kadota-Browner says. “So I was really shocked to see over a hundred people come to take my [first] class, and it filled up so fast that we had to turn away over 30 participants. The room maxed out at capacity.”

One of the individuals in attendance at Kadota-Browner’s first class was Weinberg second-year Elle Howard. Like many participants, Howard’s first kickboxing attempt was in Kadota-Browner’s class.

“How can I make the class a little bit easier so that when my participants leave,

She does this by starting out with a basic demonstration of the punches and kicks. Before adding a piece of choreography, she instructs participants to watch her and join in when they are ready. For Howard, this was integral to her enjoyment of the class.

“I had no experience, but she made it seem like there was no judgment at all,” she says.

Howard tries to go to SPAC around five times a week. Every Thursday, she attends a BODYPUMP class instructed by a professional trainer, rather than a student. She enjoys BODYPUMP, but feels there is something special about having a Northwestern student as a trainer.

“I just feel more comfortable with someone our age,” Howard says.

Angrist shares this perspective. Brodsky is her favorite instructor, and throughout the past year, they have gotten to know each other over the hour-long yoga classes.

“She understands the stress of being a college student,” Angrist says. “She can connect with students on a more wellbalanced level because she also just had a

Brodksy does a head stand in Studio AB at SPAC, where she teaches her yoga classes.

Dunkin' D-1

WRITTEN BY CHARLOTTE VARNES DESIGNED BY ESTHER LIM

PHOTOS BY ELOISE APPLE

When Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) legislation passed in Illinois in May 2021, McCormick third-year and field hockey player Lila Slattery dreamed of partnering with Dunkin’. At home in Maryland, she frequented the New England-based coffee chain, ordering her go-to large iced coffee with caramel syrup and almond milk.

She was so excited by the prospect of a partnership that she contacted the brand herself about ambassador opportunities in fall 2021, but she never heard back. A year later, Dunkin’ made it up to her by offering the entire Northwestern field hockey program a NIL deal in October 2022. The field hockey program’s deal, which included paid social media promotion and gift card giveaways at a National Girls and Women in Sports Day

event, ran from November 2022 through February 2023.

“We had just gotten back from practice, and all of us were in the locker room,” Slattery says. “Somebody read [the email] out loud and was like, ‘Guys, Dunkin’ wants to partner with our team.’ I was like, ‘Shut up. No they don’t.’ I was in awe.”

NIL deals have skyrocketed nationally since legislation first allowed such partnerships. Many deals, nationally and at Northwestern, have centered around individual players –– like graduate student and lacrosse player Izzy Scane’s partnership with Gait Lacrosse and SESP third-year and field hockey player Maddie Zimmer’s deal with STX.

A team-wide deal sponsoring all players, like Dunkin’s agreement with

field hockey, is especially unique. The chain officially launched its NIL program in December 2022, sponsoring 23 individual student athletes across the country in addition to the entire Northwestern field hockey program.

When Dunkin’ reached out to Northwestern, the company sought four field hockey players to be its primary ambassadors. Slattery, Zimmer, Communication fourth-year Alia Marshall and Weinberg second-year Regan Cornelius filled those positions.

Each ambassador had a different topic to post about, Slattery says. She focused on holiday deals, Marshall advertised the rewards program, Zimmer posted “taste tests” to advertise the menu and Cornelius posted about getting Dunkin’ during poor winter weather.

Northwestern's field hockey team runs on Dunkin’.

Alia Marshall (left) and Lila Slattery (right)

As part of the deal, players received gift cards, payment for social media posts and packages with Dunkin’ gear including a tumbler and a sweatshirt. Slattery, who lives with Zimmer, says they were excited to receive the gear.

“My window faces the street, so I saw the UPS truck pull up,” Slattery says. “We sprinted downstairs and we unboxed everything. It honestly felt like I was a kid on Christmas.”

The partnership marked Marshall’s first time participating in an NIL deal. She says the deal involved a lot of “open communication” with Dunkin’. Social media captions were approved beforehand, but she says players generally had a lot of creative freedom. As part of the deal, Marshall posted a “Day in the Life” video during winter break featuring her morning Dunkin’ routine.

“They were like, ‘Whatever works for your brand, whatever you want to post on social media,’” Marshall says.

For Marshall, the most rewarding experience was participating in National Girls and Women in Sports Day at a Northwestern women’s basketball game. She handed out $5 gift cards and told spectators about the Dunkin’ sponsorship.

This partnership builds on a broader trend of gender equality in the post-NIL athletic world, as female student athletes tend to benefit from their name, image and likeness just as much as their male peers. In Dunkin’s first wave of NIL partnerships, the majority of participating student-athletes were women.

Slattery says acquaintances from high school and old teammates would reach out to her and tell her that she was featured in a Dunkin’-sponsored post on their Instagram feed.

“Their brand helps grow knowledge of women in sports and field hockey,” Slattery says. “Just seeing how large their brand was compared to my little world I live in –– that was crazy to me.”

“ “

It felthonestly like I was a kid on Christmas.

Study IN THE CITY

Take a break from the library and discover some of Chicago’s hidden gems.

WRITTEN BY JIMMY HE // DESIGNED BY GRACE CHANG // PHOTOS BY JIMMY HE

It’s easy to get burnt out from Northwestern’s strenuous cycle of revolving midterms, especially if you’ve exhausted your share of productive Evanston study spots. Tired of fighting for a seat at Colectivo or Sherbucks? Bored with the monotony of campus libraries? Look no further than this snippet of Chicago’s study network to spice up your next academic grind session!

Heritage Outpost ($)

1 Lobby, 1020 W Lawrence Ave, Chicago, IL 60640

Directions (6.5 miles from the Arch):

CTA: eight-minute walk from red line Argyle stop

Located on the first floor of an apartment complex, Heritage Outpost is an affordable café adjacent to an expansive lobby of comfortable armchairs, lush leather couches and a wall of collaged photographs in mismatched frames. Grab a coffee and pick a seat beneath the geometric-tiled ceiling to catch up on some work or simply people-watch.

Edie’s All Day Café & Bar ($$)

675 N Wells St, Chicago, IL 60654

Directions (11 miles from the Arch):

Intercampus: 19-minute walk from Ward stop

CTA: 10-minute walk from red line Chicago stop

Edie’s bustling atmosphere is perfect for solo adventures and cute study dates. Despite a relatively higher price tag, Edie’s extensive coffee, pastry and brunch menu is worth the occasional splurge. Kick back with a colorful specialty latte — like charcoal or lavender — and headphones to tune out the Chicagoan chatter as you hit the books. If you’re exhausted after an especially hard day’s work, treat yourself to a drink at Edie’s bar!

Poetry Foundation (FREE)

61 W Superior St, Chicago, IL 60654

Directions (12 miles from the Arch):

Intercampus: 13-minute walk from Ward stop

CTA: four-minute walk from red line Chicago stop

Home to a 30,000-volume poetry library, the walls surrounding the Poetry Foundation’s seating area are crowded with colorful anthologies. An outdoor foyer encloses the literary society’s entrance, reducing noise and creating a sense of intimacy. Take a study break to browse the shelves or survey the artwork on display in the foundation’s exhibition gallery.

Harold Washington Library (FREE)

400 S State St, Chicago, IL 60605

Directions (12 miles from the Arch):

CTA: two-minute walk from red line Jackson stop

Harold Washington Library Center’s elusive winter garden is an oasis tucked away on the building’s ninth floor. Potted trees, plants and ivy-covered walls juxtapose hanging chandelier fixtures to create a cozy outdoor-esque scenery. The seating on this particular library floor is sparse, but grab a table if you can and soak up the natural light from the glass ceiling.

Chinatown Branch, Chicago Public Library (FREE)

2100 S Wentworth Ave, Chicago, IL 60616

Directions (14 miles from the Arch):

CTA: two-minute walk from red line Cermak-Chinatown stop

Chinatown’s branch of the Chicago Public Library is a modern, open-concept gem well worth the hike from Northwestern. Rows of white bookshelves provide privacy for tables accented with bright orange chairs and benches. Minutes away from Chinatown restaurants, look out the glass-paneled exterior to ponder your post-study lunch spot.

Behind the

burlesque

Northwestern burlesque groups encourage individual empowerment.

WRITTEN BY SAM LEBECK // DESIGNED BY SAMMI LI

Asultry beat fills the room as the curtains slowly draw back, unveiling a captivating scene of burlesque dancers, each adorned in costumes and sparkling under the lights. With a flick of the wrist and a sly wink of their eyes, the dancers draw the crowd in, teasing and tantalizing with their seductive moves to the Burlesque movie soundtrack: “It’s a life, it’s a style, it’s a need, it’s burlesque.”

Burlesque has enthralled audiences since the late 1800s with its unique blend of sensuality, humor and showmanship. This facet of performance art has empowered performers and their audiences to celebrate their bodies and embrace their sexuality.

The revival of burlesque has inspired a new generation of Northwestern performers to put their own spin on the art form. Lipstick Theatre is a studentrun organization that emphasizes intersectional feminism and performance storytelling. Lipstick provides free, fun spaces for performers and audience members of all identities and abilities to participate in this exploration of self and sexuality.

Burlesque has served as a platform for social and political commentary throughout its history. Contemporary burlesque performers in Lipstick continue to draw on these traditions, using their platform to uplift those with marginalized gender identities to share their stories through art. While the beloved annual burlesque show in Spring Quarter shrank significantly after 2020, the passion for burlesque has endured. Communication second-year Sam Wester — who produced this year’s show — says lower numbers create a more intimate setting for more vulnerable activity. “I would love to see more people getting into [burlesque],” Webster says.

In an effort to be open to as many performers as possible, Webster says Lipstick Theatre is planning on introducing choreography workshops earlier in the year to let newcomers get a feel for burlesque before committing to the show.

Webster says the show is their art, but the real purpose of burlesque is the journey towards building confidence and joy within the performers before the curtains rise. Webster’s love of dance and delight in helping others find their confidence through movement motivated her to help produce this year’s performance for Lipstick Theatre at the end of March.

the elements that go into creating a captivating performance. Leading up to the red-hued, sensual displays of lace and leather in Norris, the behind-the-scenes work the theater group put in to create a safe space was essential to crafting the production.

While the burlesque atmosphere is filled with joy and laughter, Teitler says there is significant, deep work taking place behind the scenes. The process behind the production has a lasting outward impact because burlesque bridges the conversation about bodies and sexuality to a more public space.

“We do a lot of workshops surrounding consent and intimacy and how to engage with others safely in an environment of such vulnerability,” Webster says. “It’s really invaluable, the lessons [burlesque]

teaches you about creating a safe and comfortable community, building

“Burlesque is a dance process, but at its core, it’s not about the dance,” Webster says. “Ultimately, the goal is to find what feels empowering to you, to find what feels sexy and what feels joyful.”

Communication second-year Sophie Teitler helped direct the show and choreographed pieces to highlight dancers’ abilities and confidence, including the opening dance. She worked with dancers to create pieces that reflected their own style to make the show look effortless.

“A lot of the pieces look easy because [the dancers] created the movement, so it’s something that comes naturally to them,” Teitler says. “One of the most special things is that as shows go on, people get more and more comfortable and more and more clothing starts coming off.”

Choreography, costume design and music selection are just a few of

Ultimately, the goal is to find what feels empowering to you, to find what feels sexy and what feels joyful.

Sam Webster

Communication second-year

“

“

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

The

inspo

brain behind the

“zom-com”

Meet Julz Feit, the student filmmaker with a fresh take on a zombie flick.

WRITTEN BY JENNA ANDERSON // DESIGNED BY RAVEN WILLIAMS

Communication second-year and makeup designer Mark Park approaches one of the lead actors with a cup of gooey fake blood and a toothbrush. Park dips the toothbrush into the dark red fluid and flicks a splatter of it across the actor’s face and chest.

Communication third-year Julz Feit stands behind Park, overseeing his work.

“Some more on his forehead right there,” Feit directs. Park adds more blood, then glances back at Feit.

“More?” Park asks.

“More,” Feit replies.

It’s the first day of shooting for Kori + Carter vs. The School, a short film written and directed by Feit. This “zom-com” shows the journey of two female friends battling a zombie outbreak to make it to an epidemiology final, while revealing an underlying romance between them.

Feit spent the last few months in pre-production after winning a $1,500 grant last Winter Quarter from Studio 22, a Northwestern student production company. Premiering at Ryan Auditorium

on June 3, Kori + Carter vs. The School reflects Feit’s mission as a filmmaker to carve out a space for queer people in genres like horror and science fiction.

As Park continues to bloody the actors, the tidy Tech basement around him transforms into a bustling Hollywood set on this Friday morning in April. Room LR72 is overrun with special effects makeup, film equipment and Einstein bagels for the cast and crew. The chaos spills into the hallway with crates full of lighting, camera, sound and costume supplies lining the lockers.

But the mayhem is organized. The actors get into costume and makeup in the room while the crew diligently sets up the first shot in the hallway. Feit flows between both spaces, dishing out instructions and high fives.

Venti Starbucks in hand, Feit buzzes around the set in tan overalls, a floral tank top, white and blue Nike’s, a backwards New York Mets baseball cap, blue dinosaur earrings, a stack of six necklaces and chunky rings on every finger. The pre-production phase has been stressful, Feit says, but filming is their favorite part. Today, Feit describes themself as a “beacon of happiness.”

The first scene is simple: The three main

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

Feit (center) sets up the shot for a zombie attack scene.

characters run down the hallway. But the lighting, sound and camera teams still need to coordinate to get the shot just right. Feit checks each element, pausing to thank the crew members, and then explains the scene to the actors.

Finally, it’s quiet on set, and Feit gives the call: “Action!” They get the shot in two takes.

Feit has wanted to be a writer/ director since they were in middle school. They spent those early years studying interviews, speeches and books by directors before getting behind the camera themself.

“I remember reading a quote, ‘If you want to be a director, go direct. Film something right now,’” Feit says.

So in sixth grade, Feit made a blackand-white silent film about a breakup on their iPhone and edited it with iMovie.

“Bad and short is better than absolutely nothing,” Feit says, laughing as they recall their first project.

The summer after their freshman year of high school, Feit watched Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, a 1969 western about a pair of outlaws directed by George Roy Hill. After watching that movie, Feit’s aspirations truly solidified.

“For some reason, something clicked in my brain,” Feit says. “I was like, ‘I want to do this for the rest of my life.’”

Feit’s current focus is in “heavy genre” films like horror, science fiction and westerns. Last summer, the University gave Feit a research grant to write and direct their first short film, The RIQI Exchange, a sci-fi about an interspecies exchange program with an agender alien and a genderquestioning teen.

Feit says they are gender open and push for queer representation in everything they write. Their main focus is stories of trans joy.

“We don’t need every story to be about coming out. That’s not what all of our life is. We have a lot of other experiences,” Feit says. “I would say that’s a main point where I find inspiration: telling stories for my community that haven’t been told yet.”

Feit says their favorite directors — including Martin McDonagh, Bong Joonho and Wes Anderson — blend genres and shift tones masterfully. Their films go from funny to tragic in a snap.

Feit attributes their love for these dark twists to their upbringing. In Feit’s Irish Catholic family of seven, dark humor is the norm.

“Everyone’s self-deprecating. Everyone has so many problems and issues and just makes fun of that,” Feit says. “It’s gonna turn out OK as long as you can laugh at it.”

Feit says their taste is also influenced by their twin sister Cara (or “Corn,” as Feit calls her as a running joke). Feit loves writing and watching movies about duos, like Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid In their favorite films, the plot is centered on an underlying conflict between a pair, and an extraordinary situation forces them to address it. e

“

Julz Feit Communication third-year

I want to rest of my life.

do this for the “

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

Park (right) bloodies Weinberg fourth-year Santiago De La Torre (left).

This motif found its way into Kori + Carter vs. The School. Carter (played by Communication fourth-year Claire Scavone) has feelings for Kori (played by Communication fourth-year Devony Hof), and the zombie outbreak forces Carter to address her emotions.

“Seize the day,” Feit says. “You never know what’s gonna happen. Hopefully zombies won’t happen, but it could. So you should tell that person you like them.”

Back on set, Feit works with the crew to set up a shot in a janitor’s closet. The two leads, Scavone and Hof, sit on the floor in the hall, chatting and laughing while they wait. Communication third-year Jason Sekili walks over to join them. He plays the other main character, a courageous janitor who helps Kori and Carter make it through the minefield of zombies (picture Bruce Willis in Die Hard).

Down in room LR72, makeup designer Park takes a quick break from putting special effects makeup on the zombies to eat lunch — burritos from Ovo Frito. Detailed gashes and bites bring Feit’s gory vision to life, but it takes forever to get the latex wounds and fake blood just right. Park has been at it since 8:30 a.m., and he’ll be working nonstop with the makeup team to have the zombies ready for their scene at 3 p.m.

Even with the long day of shooting, the cast and crew are all smiles. Feit says these lengthy production weekends bond everyone, and the set is full of friends.

“It feels like a work family,” Feit says. In the past three years, Feit has worked on a wide range of student films. Even when they don’t have an official job in the crew, Feit will come to set to help anyway to make things go faster and hang out with their friends.

Communication third-year Tristan Braumeister says Feit was a huge help for a film he produced called Stay in Touch Braumeister is always a little reluctant to take on production jobs because of the stress and labor. But when Feit asked him to produce Kori + Carter vs. The School at a party, he said yes.

“Julz is really dependable,” Braumeister says. “I knew that if I worked with Julz, they would be a good director.”

Braumeister is producing this film with Communication third-year Maddie Morse, and Feit says the pair was instrumental in the pre-production process. Even a short film requires months of planning and organizing before the filming weekend.

Once all the roles for the cast and crew are staffed, vision presentations set the general film structure for everyone. Then all the little details need to be worked out. On a given day, that could entail creating a shot list, scheduling the shooting weekend, handling risk management, acquiring food donations, designing costumes or coordinating fight scenes.

“I absolutely hate pre-production,” Feit admits.

Thankfully, Feit says their crew has been fantastic about staying on top of things.

And their work seems to have paid off. The first day of shooting ran ahead of schedule, wrapping three hours early. The cast and crew enjoy dinner from Dave’s Italian Kitchen and begin cleaning up. The makeup team pulls the latex wounds off the zombies and wipes off the blood. The lighting, sound and camera crews move their equipment outside to their truck parked in the alley between Sargent and Tech.

Feit finally emerges from the Tech basement to load the truck. It’s an unusually warm weekend for April. Sunkissed students walk through the alley, seemingly on their way back from the beach.

There’s two more days of filming this weekend, so the only sun Feit will get is from loading the U-Haul. But as Feit hoists equipment into the truck, laughing and smiling with the crew, it’s clear there is nowhere they would rather be.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JULZ FEIT

A shot from the movie: The janitor (center) fends off a zombie, defending Carter (left) and Kori (right).

deSTIgmatize

One student’s journey of getting tested and staying safe.

WRITTEN BY JACKSON BAKER // DESIGNED BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

Sixty-six percent of college students reported having sex in the past 12 months, according to a 2018 National College Health Assessment survey. However, according to the Journal of the American Sexually Transmitted Diseases Association in 2016, only about 8% of male college students and 20% of female college students reported getting tested for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the past 12 months. These numbers don’t add up. Why?

STI testing should be a normalized part of sexual health, yet it often carries stigma and a level of unearned embarrassment that it’s time to do away with. An STI scare can be an anxietyinducing, uncertain event. The last thing anyone should worry about while they navigate a stressful sexual health experience is the appointment and testing process. I decided to get STI tested, just to prove to everyone that it’s no big deal. Spoiler: It was no big deal.

Before setting out to write this article, I had never been STI tested or even looked into making an appointment. I realize this makes me part of the problem, but luckily for me, making an appointment with Northwestern Medicine was very easy. Similar to scheduling any other appointment with Student Health Services, all I had to do was head to mynm.nm.org, log in and make an appointment for an STI screening under the “Sexual and Reproductive Health” category. In fewer than five minutes, I had an appointment within the week.

I got to Searle 10 minutes early and went to check in. There was another student standing in line behind me, and I found myself hoping the administrator wouldn’t mention the reason for my visit. The enormous irony of having that thought while on a research excursion for an article on destigmatizing the STI screening process hit me like a bus.

Why did I feel that way? I think it could be because my first instinct was to associate STI testing with having an STI. Wrong.

On top of that, I associated having an STI with some level of shame or embarrassment. Wrong. Even further, I assumed this random student standing in line would think less of me for having some connection to STIs. Hopefully wrong.

In the waiting room, I noticed posters on the wall and ads on the TV screen with hashtags like #EndHIVstigma and #GetTested, encouraging students to sign up for STI testing. After speaking with some of the medical professionals who helped me, I learned that these campaigns have created a huge shift in attitudes towards STI testing. Spreading information about how easy and important the process is has resulted in a significant increase in the number of students who get tested. STI screening tests are now one of the most common tests at Evanston’s Student Health Services lab.

I was called in for my appointment just six minutes after checking in. After my vitals were taken, I met with the doctor. She began by asking the usual questions many of us have come to expect from a doctor’s appointment: allergies, medications, whether or not I smoke, et cetera. After that came the first deviation from all other student health appointments I’ve had: I answered questions about my sex life.

She asked how many sexual partners I’ve had, what kind of intercourse I was having and what kind of protection I was using. I found myself more comfortable than I expected answering these questions because they’re really just data points to inform the doctor’s recommendations for testing or treatment.

The doctor was more than happy to answer my questions about the process, what I was being tested for and how I would get my results. It turned out that to be tested for five of the most common STIs, all I had to do was give a blood and urine sample. The blood sample would test for HIV, hepatitis C and syphilis while the urine sample would test for gonorrhea and chlamydia. One of my big questions was, of course, what if I test positive I

was honestly shocked at how easy the process was.

for something? Put simply, if I were to test positive for an STI, I would make another appointment and head back in to discuss treatment.

The doctor informed me that I was participating in an STI screening — a routine test not connected to a specific worry or set of symptoms — and that STI screenings are recommended for students a couple times a year. The doctor shared that this recommendation changes based on lifestyle. Students with more frequent changes in sexual partners should think about getting STI tested more often.

After all of my questions were exhausted, I headed down one floor to the laboratory. In just nine minutes, I had finished both tests and was on my way out the door. I was honestly shocked at how easy the process was. Pro tip: The urine sample is only considered valid if you haven’t peed in the past hour, so if you’re on your way to an STI testing appointment, hold it.

The phlebotomist who took my blood sample told me that attitudes surrounding STI testing have done a complete 180. She’s worked in the lab for 31 years and remembers when students would come in and whisper that they were there to get STI testing done, lest anyone overhear and judge them. Now, students will ask their friends to come along with them for fun. For the most part, students are far more educated on the process or at least no longer have the same hesitation they used to — and for good reason. The process was quick, painless and private, and I got my results the next day through the MyNM app.

Regardless of your sexual habits, if you haven’t been STI tested in a while (or ever), I encourage you to take 30 or 40 minutes one afternoon and go do it. Hell, you could even bring a friend!

Q& A

Examining the stigma around STIs.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Isat down with Northwestern sociology professor Dr. David Schieber to understand more about stigma.

NBN: From a sociology standpoint, is there a relatively simple definition of stigma?

Schieber: People are treated differently by other groups of people in society. A key feature of stigma is invisibility versus visibility. When people feel bad about something and have the ability to hide it, they do so.

NBN: How might this translate to the stigma surrounding STI testing?

Schieber: Very consistently within sociology, anytime one group feels like another group is placing shame upon them or judging them for what they’re doing, they don’t try to make it obvious. STI testing is certainly in that category. Especially in the U.S., there’s a kind of moral stance against sex or sexual activity outside of marriage or relationships. It certainly ends up shaping whether or not people even seek out STI testing or are embarrassed to even talk about them.

NBN: What are some ways we can approach STIs differently to reduce the stigma about getting tested?

Schieber: Take an emphasis off of blame. Don’t blame people for the situation they’re in. It’s like, this is an infectious disease, you have it, let’s treat it. You could get a cold, you could get an STI. That’s the situation. And then drawing equivalences. This is not something that’s unique to you. This happens to other people, and that’s OK. As you describe, going to get tested with friends — that’s very positive in terms of removing stigma.

business into

WRITTEN BY SELA BREEN & BROOKLYN MOORE // DESIGNED BY ALLIE YI

It’s the Winter Quarter of your sophomore year — banking recruitment season. You wake up to a day filled with networking calls, studying technicals and keeping your GPA up. All the added extracurricular pressure has you struggling to find time to complete work for your classes and maintain a balanced social life with friends.

Many Northwestern students go through this rigorous recruitment process to land elite business jobs after college. The process is informed by various factors including personal connections and industry background knowledge. Acceptance into some of Northwestern’s elite business clubs awards access to exclusive resources and connections that can heavily influence job recruitment.

Northwestern’s business clubs range in size and exclusivity. Northwestern University’s Investment Banking Club (IBC), Investment Management Group (IMG) and parts of the Institute for Student Business Education (ISBE) are often considered the most competitive, as are co-ed business fraternities Alpha Kappa Psi (AKPsi) and Delta Sigma Pi (DSP).

According to IBC’s website, the organization prepares its members to take advantage of recruitment opportunities by providing access to private recruiting events, invite-only office visits and alumni mentoring.

Similarly, the AKPsi website says the group’s goal is to build a supportive community of driven individuals with a shared interest in business. ISBE is the largest student-run business organization at Northwestern and aims to provide its members with business education and opportunities within its seven focused sectors.

IBC focuses on pre-professional development, guiding members through the junior year internship recruitment process, while business fraternities like AKPsi and DSP have an additional

social element. IMG and ISBE work to foster students’ experiences in the finance industry. The benefits of club membership motivates students to endure the competitive recruitment process.

“They do a really good job at simulating what the actual workforce looks like and what the actual finance recruitment process looks like,” says Jessica Hu, Weinberg second-year and member of DSP, IBC and ISBE.

These business clubs give their members a leg up in the interview process by imparting the esoteric knowledge needed for job recruitment in their members. Additionally, members gain the intangible advantage of connections with peers and employees at elite companies who provide assistance during recruitment.

Northwestern sociology professor Bruce Carruthers says the connections and information about career opportunities in finance are not widely circulated, so if a student is plugged into the proper networks, they are at a significant advantage.

The goal of most exclusive business clubs is to have all members receive junior summer internships at impressive companies — internships that often turn into jobs following graduation.

Receiving an offer from one of these companies typically requires hours of networking with employees at different businesses and memorizing possible technical questions for interviews. The veteran club members guide new members through this grueling recruitment process. How did they accrue this knowledge? An intense recruitment of their own.

“Recruitment, as you’ve probably heard — it’s pretty horrible. It’s a terrible time of your life,” says Rohan Gudivaka, Weinberg third-year and member of AKPsi and the IBC executive board.

Weinberg third-year Nina Petrouski, who is also a member of AKPsi and the IBC executive board, says she was told to prepare to sacrifice most of her social life when she was recruiting last Winter Quarter.

“It just never leaves your mind. You’re always thinking about it. You’re always checking your emails. You’re always in go mode,” Petrouski says.

Although the experience was taxing, Petrouski says membership in the clubs helped her immensely throughout the internship recruitment process. She explained how AKPsi and IBC taught her the unspoken rules of business, introduced her to networking and gave her access to exclusive interview question banks and job information sessions. Clubs gain this information from current students who have already received offers and alumni working at these elite banks and firms.

But what does this mean for people who want to go through finance recruiting but are not members of these clubs?

Often, admission to the clubs can feel as selective as companies themselves.

Business clubs give students a head start, but their rigorous recruitment process may leave some behind.

Weinberg second-year Becky* explains the rigor of her IBC recruitment process.

“IBC did three back-to-back interviews. Before you even got to that point, you had to put in an application, and you had to network with two people in IBC. Then you had to do a phone screening and the IBC super day,” Becky* says.

After all of this, Becky* was told by the IBC presidents that, while she was not accepted to the club, she could come to club meetings. When she and other seemingly half-rejected members went, they were lectured and given quizzes, despite not having access to the same resources as members. The presidents also made it clear IBC was not to go on their resume.

Eventually, Becky* stopped going to these meetings and joined other more accessible finance organizations with tangible benefits.

“It made you think, ‘If I can’t even get into a club for this, how am I supposed to get an actual real-life job,’” she says.

Weinberg second-year Dan Buzali is a member of the Hispanic Finance Association. He went through the recruitment process without being in any of the most competitive business clubs and landed an internship at Blackstone, an elite private equity firm, for the summer prior to his graduation. He says he kept himself on track with recruiting and forged industry connections on his own.

Buzali says participating in a program at McKinsey, an elite consulting firm, after his freshman year helped him get a foot in the door in the finance world. He found out about the McKinsey opportunity from an older student who had successfully landed prestigious positions in finance and mentored him throughout the recruitment process.

“I think the general culture [around recruiting] is fairly competitive and aggressive. But I also know that I’ve had a lot of great experiences with people who were willing to help each other,” Buzali says.

While he prepared a lot on his own, Buzali says he also worked with friends. He explains that most people use the same guides to prepare for interviews and that if you know the right people, even friends who are in the clubs, it is not difficult to find prep guides.

Becky* took a similar approach to Buzali and mentions the role LinkedIn played in her job search.

“LinkedIn stalking was actually something that I did a lot, and it really helps because these people really want to help you,” Becky* says.

Still, reaching out to alumni or professionals in the field without a previous connection is hard for many students. And while it’s true that Northwestern’s prestige helps many of its students acquire higher-level job opportunities, this is not always enough in the world of finance.

“The elite status of the investment banking firms is fed by the elite educational status of the people who they recruit. So there’s this kind of mutually affirming elite status,” Carruthers says.

Carruthers explains how, while Northwestern students all have a huge advantage, aspects of people’s personal backgrounds and campus experiences create another level of privilege. Students from a higher socioeconomic status are more likely to have connections coming into school, helping them gain admission to these elite clubs.

“The only way you can best position yourself is by having upperclassmen friends that have gone through it –– it’s so unfair,” Hu says.

Gudivaka says his older brother, a Northwestern graduate, helped connect him with friends in business clubs on campus when he began his freshman year.

“I would have had no idea that like 90% of the clubs existed without talking to them,” he says.

Personal background and prior knowledge influence students’ experiences with business organizations and job opportunities at Northwestern. For those who are not accepted to one of these elite clubs or do not know they exist, Buzali seems to have found an answer: asking for help.

“I feel like I’ve seen a lot of people get discouraged by rejections from the clubs, or I’ve had friends who the pressure of being in the clubs kind of gets to them,” Buzali says. “It’s not for everyone, and for those who don’t land there, I hope they are aware that there are other resources, and they should still be looking to reach out to other students on campus and find alternative support systems.”

As intimidating as blindly asking for help may sound, Becky* agrees it is a valuable option for students looking to break into the industry.

“So many people were in your shoes,” she says. “If you realize that you want to get into banking, a lot of people at Northwestern will just be open to help you.”

*Names have been changed to preserve anonymity.

“ It made you think , ‘If I can’t even get into a club for this, how am I supposed to get an actual real life job?’”

PART Dressing for the

WRITTEN BY TESSA PAUL DESIGNED BY ESTHER LIM

Wirtz costume designers provide insight into their creative passion.

Awhite dress with ruffles accented with blue lace and ribbons. At first glance, it is a beautiful, feminine dress from the early 20th century. Upon further inspection, one can see the blue lace detailing at the top forms a Star of David around the neck. The neckline rises high up toward the chin, circling tightly around the throat.

Rifkele is the character who wears this dress in Indecent, the Virginia Wadsworth Wirtz Center of Performing Arts’s spring production. Her religiously conservative parents exalt strict control over her, and

The designers

Wallfish has always had a love for design. She went to an arts high school where she could pursue her passion for fashion. It wasn’t until her internship at the Metropolitan Opera, her first experience working with costumes on a large scale, that her interest shifted to costume design.

“That was really my first time I realized how costume design relates to the storytelling and how it can affect the whole production,” Wallfish says.

She decided to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in theater with a concentration in costume design at the University of California, Los Angeles.

MFA graduate student Alaina Moore had a similar journey into costume design. She was a general art and design student at Columbia College Chicago and focused on fashion for a while. She eventually found her way into a theater environment and quickly fell in love with costume design.

“I love being kind of limited in a way by a specific story,” Moore says. “It reigns in what can be a chaotic curiosity that I have about the world.”

the lace Star of David around her neck mimics the constrictive environment she lives in. The dress appears to be choking her, representative of how the forces of her family and religion restrict her freedom of who she wants to love.

Costume designers are an integral part of the theater production team, and their work requires not only artistic skill but also creative vision and analytical thinking. The in-depth analysis of how Rifkele’s costume conveys Indecent’s themes is just a fraction of the work Master of Fine Arts (MFA) graduate

Other costume designers at Wirtz were drawn to the field as an extracurricular but pursued other academic interests during their undergraduate years.

MFA graduate student Ben Kress majored in psychology at Kenyon College. During his junior year, he took a costume design class for fun. He fell in love with it and began working on student productions, using work-study hours to spend time in the costume shop.

student Lia Wallfish, the production’s costume designer, puts in when designing costumes for theater productions.

Wirtz puts on multiple shows every year, and the costume designers play a critical part in the final performances. The costume shop located inside Wirtz is a safe haven for the designers. Bobbins of thread stacked on a rack, various hats strewn across a table, mannequins scattered across the room; this seemingly hectic space is where creativity thrives.

turned into a professional career for over six years.

Storytelling through costumes

Storytelling is an essential component of every show and is also integral to the costume designer’s creative process. Costume designers help bring characters to life and directors’ visions to fruition.

Wallfish briefly worked in the costume departments of television series like American Horror Story and American Crime Story , but she says the creative freedom and storytelling of theater produce a more enticing expression of artistry.

“It felt in line with why I was interested in psychology, too, because it’s really just exploring why we are who we are and who we can be but through art,” Kress says.

Eventually, this extracurricular passion became a post-graduation internship at a theater in Baltimore, Maryland, which

Moore agrees the storytelling and collaborative aspect drew her away from fashion and into costume design.

“It’s such an ecosystem, a sort of system of storytelling, and I really love that about it,” Moore says. “I love that the collaborative aspect of theater gets me out of my own head and my own

“

“ It’s such an ecosystem, a sort of system of storytelling.

Alaina Moore MFA graduate student

creative imagination and makes it this whole community coming together to tell a story.”

Kress values storytelling and its effects on the characters he’s working on. He recognizes that clothes are often the first thing a person sees about a character, and audiences can form many impressions about a character at first glance.

“I’ve been thinking about my art as a kind of a conversation in that way,” Kress says. “When this character shows up on stage, you’re thinking about, ‘What is the first thing you want the audience to hear?’”

During Fall Quarter, Kress was the costume designer for the Wirtz production Me… Jane, a show about Jane Goodall, the famous anthropologist who worked closely with chimpanzees. He connected with the production because he could follow her real-life journey of connecting with nature and becoming an environmental activist. Kress explored themes of sustainability to guide his designs for the show; most of the clothes were thrifted, and a prop chicken was made entirely out of discarded denim.

The creative process

Wallfish has an elaborate creative process for designing the final costume. After receiving the show’s script, she reads through it once without making any notes. Next, she re-reads the script and takes notes about the time period, location and descriptors of the characters. She then does visual research for costume design and worldbuilding. After meeting with the director and discussing a shared vision for the production, she begins creating quick gesture drawings which will later become the final renderings.

Moore has a similar process involving an analysis of the script, in-depth historical research and designing the final image. She prefers to use a collage technique to create the final renderings of costumes.

Moore implements the historical research into the design but also likes to break away from historical conventions, updating costumes based on a liberal interpretation of the text. Evidence of Moore’s intermingling of historical fact and creative exploration can be seen in Blood Wedding, the Wirtz show she was the costume designer for during Winter Quarter.

The wedding dress is a black Victorian lace gown, as described in the original

play. The black color is the traditional style of wedding gowns from Andalusia, Spain, the region where the story takes place. Moore maintained the Victorian style in the angular neckline but modernized the rest of the dress. She formed lines in the skirt of the dress to mimic the Art Deco style of the 1930s, which is when the play was written.

Staging for shows can also create unique challenges for costume designers. In Indecent, all performers remain on stage and visible to the audience the entire time. Each actor plays multiple roles throughout the play and has numerous costume changes that have to occur while on stage.

“We’re actually using a lot of magnets for this show because it’s much faster than velcro or snaps,” Wallfish says. “It’s much easier for the actress to get it right.”

Before coming to Northwestern, Kress had the opportunity to design costumes for community organizations that put on shows for prisoners. The prison environment posed a creative challenge; security limited many common items from being brought into the prison, such as sneakers.

“There’s few things you can bring in there, so the whole world has to be basically on their bodies,” Kress says. “You have to do all the world-building kind of involved in the clothes, and we still got to be super creative.”

This process of adapting to different environments, audiences, director’s suggestions and more poses a creative challenge that requires designers to be open to constant change and not become too attached to their first rendering.

“Costume design is an expression of art, and I love myself as an artist,” Kress says. “Maybe one day, I’ll want to express that in a different way, and that’s an openness to change that I hope to continue to foster here.”

PHOTO BY TESSA PAUL SKETCH BY LIA WALLFISH

Rifkele’s dress from the musical Indecent (left) and the sketch that Wallfish used to conceptualize initial ideas for the costume (right). The blue lace detailing at the top is meant to form a Star of David.

Social passport

Northwestern’s international students navigate social norms in the U.S.

WRITTEN BY KIM JAO & HANNAH ZHOU DESIGNED BY ABIGAIL LEV

“How are you?” is a question that carries different implications across cultures.

“I didn’t know whether or not it was a form of salutation or if people actually cared about me,” says Weinberg first-year Seungmin Han from Seoul, South Korea.

Han says small talk is less common back home, but he has learned to adjust in introductory social settings in the United States.

“I [say “How are you?”] more now, but I feel like it’s not really the content of the conversation but what it implies,” Han says. “I guess it’s a little bit of genuine interest, but a lot of it is just trying to reaffirm your friendship.”

Ten percent of full-time undergraduates at Northwestern are international students from 104 distinct countries, according to Northwestern’s 2021-2022 international student statistics. The University’s diversity has increased over the past decade, and the undergraduate student body in particular has seen a 60% increase in heterogeneity during this time.

McCormick first-year Ricardo Olmos also had to adjust to American norms of greeting but for a different reason: In his hometown of Cartagena, Colombia, a hug and kiss on the cheek are expected.

“It’s not appropriate to do that here,” Olmos says. “I’m used to it because my dad would do that to me, my mom would do that to me, everyone would do that to me. You can’t really be that close to people [here].”

For many of these students, the first time they set foot in the U.S. is when they move into their Northwestern dorms. International students often grapple with varying degrees of culture shock in addition to settling into the college lifestyle.

Sociology, Gender and Sexuality Professor Héctor Carillo described this as an adjustment to the “social script” of the U.S.

“Part of what [international students] often have to do is learn the ropes about how to participate in U.S. society and what is advantageous to them in terms of forms of interaction, but also what kinds of things can be disadvantageous,” Carillo says.

Beyond salutations, Weinberg first-year Amber Lueth from Shanghai, China noticed a difference in how people in the U.S. interact.

“I feel like Americans in particular are really extroverted people, really over the top in friendliness, at least on the first meeting,” Lueth says. “You need to be loud. You need to smile and be confident, even with people you won’t interact with again.”

Lueth describes exchanges with strangers back home as more transactional. For example, little would be said in an exchange with a cashier at a grocery store. To her, Americans’ friendliness in short interactions is a double-edged sword. It can be socially draining to constantly engage in small talk but also pleasant to have rapport.

While Lueth has noticed that strangers verbally acknowledge each other more in the U.S., she says people back in China are inherently more perceptive of each other’s presence. For instance, she says someone is likely to be stared at if they talk too loudly on public transportation. As a result, Lueth describes feeling more conscious of her presence in public settings in Shanghai compared to in the U.S.

McCormick third-year Maia Traub, who is from Johannesburg, South Africa, says she has to speak louder to be heard in group conversations. This has affected her personality in college.

“I was considered an extrovert back home, but when I came here, I was considered an introvert simply because of the volume of my voice,” Traub says.

Learning the ropes

Weinberg first-year Noblesse Ushindi also felt the need to become more conscious of his speech. For fear of getting in trouble, Ushindi says he has to control what he says in the U.S., especially because he feels some things that might not be a big deal back home in Kigali, Rwanda are treated seriously here. This surprised him when he moved in for college.

You had me at “hello”

You need to be loud . You need to smile and be confident , even with people you won’t interact with again.

AMBER LUETH WEINBERG FIRST-YEAR

“Back at home, the conception we have about [the U.S.] is that it’s a free country, that there is freedom of speech, which I feel like to some degree they do have,” Ushindi says. “Here, I have to think about any single thing I’m going to talk about [and] consider the environment I’m in.”

Some international students believe that American culture has made them more thoughtful.

“I became more diplomatic, which I feel is more of a maturing experience, but also it kind of hinders your thoughts,” Ushindi says.

Weinberg fourth-year Ines Hinojosa’s interactions in the U.S. have made her critically reflect on the socioeconomic norms of racism, classism and a lack of opportunity back home in Mexico City.

“There’s a lot of social and political-economic issues in Mexico that I hadn’t really thought about critically before coming to the U.S. and learning more about the world,” Hinojosa says.

Traub also realized the different implications that words hold in the U.S. She says in South Africa, there’s a specific demographic of people called “Coloureds,” who are mixed-race descendants from the inter-marriage of white settlers, African natives and Asian slaves. The term is used neutrally back home but considered derogatory in the U.S.

“I use the word coloured. Everyone was like, ‘Woah, you can’t refer to people like that,’” Traub says.

Expectations vs. reality

Many students who either were not immersed in American culture before or did not have much prior experience were shocked to learn that Americans were friendlier than they expected. Much of Han’s perception of American culture was informed by Western media he consumed growing up.

“I thought in the U.S., [people] would be total strangers to each other,” Han says. “I expected the U.S. to be like New York City, or how people stereotype it, but I felt that it’s not as individualistic as I initially perceived. It’s warmer and more welcoming.”

Ushindi also formed a perception of Americans based on Western media.

“I expected timeliness, consistency, honesty. Back at home, we have this idea that people in the U.S. are so honest, and that’s what I was expecting,” Ushindi says.

He compared American social norms to those in Rwanda which, to an extent, confirmed his initial perceptions. However, Ushindi says he was surprised at how bad Americans are at lying, and that back home, people lie all the time with no ill intention.

Forming connections

Han had to adjust to the lack of hierarchies between people of different ages in the U.S., coming from Korea. He says conjugations change to the honorific form when speaking to adults in Korean, linguistically defining his relationship with those older than him. The same kind of relationship in the U.S. has less of a hierarchical distinction.

He also compared student-professor interactions between the U.S. and back home. While Northwestern professors often give students avenues for regrades, Han says a Korean teacher’s word is the law, and asking for a regrade is considered rude backtalk.

“Because of this respect that you have to hold, sometimes you have to act in ways that I feel like Western people would think is illogical,” Han says.

These cultural differences often lead international students to gravitate to one another because of similar past experiences.

Ushindi says he feels most comfortable with the people who come from the same place as him. For example, the same things that make him angry make them angry too, and people from different backgrounds have a different set of taboos and criteria for determining what’s appropriate. He also says he’s more reserved when meeting new people as he figures out how they may react to different things he says.

For Traub, the very fact that international students come from different cultures and norms is what helps them bond

Back at home, we have this idea that people in the U.S. are so honest , and that’s what I was expecting.

“ “

NOBLESSE USHINDI WEINBERG FIRST-YEAR

From back then to top 10

Tracing the evolution of Northwestern admissions through the archives.

WRITTEN

coexisted, they had little interaction until 1870, when it was first proposed that the two institutions merge.

This story was researched in the McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives.

Today, Northwestern boasts a U.S. News & World Report Top 10 ranking and a 7% acceptance rate, cementing its prestigious academic reputation that attracts students from around the globe.

However, the University once educated just 10 students and struggled to gain traction as a legitimate institution of higher education after its founding in 1851. Its founders — Grant Goodrich, John Evans and Orrington Lunt — hoped the University would help preserve traditional Christian values through its partnership with the Methodist Church. These humble beginnings beg the question: How did Northwestern rise up the ranks and become the illustrious campus it is today?

“The establishment of a preparatory course of study allowed the faculty to set high standards for admission to the college. As early as 1855-56, entrance requirements at Northwestern were comparable to those at Harvard, Yale and Wesleyan,” Harold Williamson and Payson Wild say in their book Northwestern University: A History.

Young men could attend the Northwestern preparatory school for up to three years before becoming full-time University students, helping to build the student population.

However, the University did not want to admit women students because they believed women required “special care” to retain societal morals while away from their families. As such, the two schools agreed to unite as one academic institution but retain separate spheres for living.

The arrangement allowed women to access Northwestern libraries, classes and museums and even permitted them to study alongside their male peers in some cases. Despite this, female students continued to live in a female-only building with matrons to supervise and ensure nothing risqué occurred.

Fifteen years later, Northwestern began to consider admitting women to their University after pressures emerged from other exclusive schools that began to accept female students.

In 1871, North-Western Female College became Evanston College for Ladies. Its 1873-74 catalog proclaimed its goal to “provide a Home for Young Women where morals, health and manners can be constantly under the special care of women.”

Since the Midwest lacked the private preparatory feeder schools of the East Coast, Northwestern’s founders devised a plan to develop their own preparatory school.

Following the school’s inception, Northwestern immediately moved to compete with prestigious colleges of the East, like Harvard and Yale.

Evanston was home to the NorthWestern Female College since 1855, the same year Northwestern welcomed its first class. The female college offered courses in classical studies at the modern-day middle and high school level, largely following the classes listed at Northwestern. Despite completing very similar coursework, the female college graduates were awarded only a laureate (essentially, recognition for their studies), as opposed to a bachelor’s degree.

While the North-Western Female College and Northwestern University

Because of its careful supervision, the Evanston College for Ladies “attracted more women to Northwestern than to other universities in the region,” according to then Northwestern President Erastus Haven, as quoted in Williamson and Wild’s book.

In 1873, the Evanston College for Ladies was fully absorbed by the University and became the Women’s College of Northwestern. The University added a Dean of Women position, and Northwestern formally became a coeducational institution.

BY BROOKLYN MOORE DESIGNED BY MICHELLE SHEEN

“The women question”

The Northwestern University Class of 1879.

PHOTOS FROM UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

Bienen

Racial disparities

For many years, the University’s population remained largely white — although a few international students enrolled after attending protestant missionary schools in their countries of origin.

In 1903, Lawyer Taylor became Northwestern’s first Black graduate.

“Laying aside all humor and cheap wit, let us give nine rahs for a fellow who has fought his way thro’ college under more difficulties than any of us have ever encountered, who is the first of his race to receive a degree from Northwestern,” a classmate said at graduation, according to Jeffery Sterling and Lauren Lowery’s book Voices and Visions.

In 1902, the school formally segregated University housing, barring most Black students from living in dormitories. The Black men that did live in dorms usually did so only because they were on athletic teams and lived with the other players.

However, the segregation policy was enforced for all Black women, who were not allowed in dorms. Their only option was to find boarding in Evanston, which was extremely hard to come by. Many Black female students were forced to drop enrollment due to housing difficulties, like one who tried to live in Chapin Hall but was removed after white students complained.

“At the conclusion of the school year last spring, a dozen or more girls at Chapin Hall informed the matron that they would not return to the school this year if colored coeds were admitted again,” reported the Chicago Tribune on Sept. 16, 1902.

The first desegregated dorm opened in 1947, largely influenced by the integrated military units of World War II. The International House, located at 1827 Orrington Ave., was open to Black women and international students, neither of whom were allowed in the other dorms.

Around the same time Black students were beginning to be admitted, the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) came into being. The SAT allowed universities to judge candidates on a supposedly objective level.

With the SAT, “the centerpiece of admission to elite higher education became an elusive concept: the applicant’s ‘character,’” says now Vice President of Inside Sales at Mercer Advisors Andrew Thompson in his undergraduate thesis on Northwestern admissions.

As the standardized test became more popular and students learned to study for it, the University embraced additional measures of applicant differentiation. While some qualities like community service and extracurricular accomplishments were conventionally accepted, others were more sinister.

In the 1960s, the Anti-Defamation League submitted a report that outlined evidence of a Jewish admissions quota to the Northwestern administration. While the University removed the religious identification question on applications in 1957, the admissions team utilized other Jewish indicators — like living in certain areas — to block Jewish students’ acceptance.

While the University’s investigation of the complaints only acknowledged “incompetence” and “inefficiency,” not overt anti-Semitism, Northwestern

formed two new committees to oversee the admissions team.

The committees not only succeeded in decreasing anti-Semitism in the admissions process but also decreased racism in considering applications.

According to Thompson, 13% of Northwestern undergraduates selfidentified as Jewish by 1964. Similarly, in 1966, a committee recruiting effort doubled the Black student population on campus.

The Black students demanded several changes to Northwestern policy, including a gradual increase of Black student admissions to make up 12% of incoming classes, the creation of a Black student committee to advise the admissions office and reserving separate living spaces for Black students. The latter two requests were granted, but the first was denied.

While admissions of Black students increased, racism and segregation still plagued the Black student experience. Tensions mounted and Black students protested by taking over the Bursar’s Office in 1968, an event still discussed today at the University.

It is the entire world we want to reach, influence and contribute to with our vitality and creativity.

Henry

Former University President

Imaginative sketch of the Northwestern Female College in 1858.

TheClassof1877on

Accessibility

The University also denied the demands to have Black students approve all appointments to the Human Relations Committee and to allow Black student representatives shared power with the Office of Admission when considering Black applicants.

It is difficult to assess the success of the new initiatives as few records exist prior to 1960 on admissions statistics and student demographics. However, post-1960, the administration began to retain detailed reports of admitted students. Post-1980, the first records of racial and geographic demographics of students are available.

In 1960, records show Northwestern received a total of 5,387 applications across first-year and transfer students, admitted 3,120 students and enrolled 2,021. Admitted students had an average class rank in the 87th percentile and averaged an SAT math score of 578 out of 800.

Even as Northwestern grew in popularity, some administrators recognized the continued lack of diversity and accessibility in the incoming classes. The University offered almost no financial aid in securing residential accommodations, presenting a large barrier to attendance for those who were low-income yet forced to find offcampus housing.

In a Daily Northwestern article published on Jan. 12, 1965, then Dean of Students Roland Hinz insisted Northwestern needed greater diversity.

‘There aren’t enough minority groups here, and there should be even more students from the East,” Hinz said in the article.

Hinz suggested that more students receive scholarships and that the University have a wider cross-section of society.

Following Hinz’s recommendations, Northwestern rolled out a new financial aid program totaling two million dollars.

“We were determined to change the University from being a regional institution to one of

national and international distinction,” Clarence Ver Steeg, the Faculty Planning Committee lead member, said in 1968.

The new financial aid program helped Northwestern attract a more diverse student body from all over the world. By 1997 Northwestern received a total of 16,674 applications, admitted 4,909 and enrolled 1,891. Average class rank jumped to the 94th percentile, and enrolled students averaged an SAT math score of 694 out of 800.

Northwestern now

In 37 years, Northwestern moved from a 57.9% acceptance rate to 29.4% from 19601997, contributing to its selective reputation and ever-increasing academic excellence.

But more than selectivity, Northwestern became a University open to young adults from every background. Each step in the University’s history has brought Northwestern closer to former University President Henry Bienen’s vision in his 2000 State of the University address:

“As we reflect upon Northwestern’s remarkable heritage, we now enter the 21st century renewed in our purpose of making the University an institution of the highest order of excellence, not just for the Northwest Territory, but for the entire world. It is the entire world we want to reach, influence and contribute to with our vitality and creativity.”

Today, the University’s admissions committee engenders heartache for many and joys for few. While progress in the diversity and equity of admissions is undeniable, archival research demonstrates just how far the institution has come.

College Cottage at Orrington and Clark housed female students from 1872 to 1935.

the steps of UniversityHall.

Classroom to combat

WRITTEN BY JULIANNA ZITRON // DESIGNED BY ALLEN ZHANG

It’s 5:30 a.m. on Northwestern’s Evanston campus, and the normally bustling student hub is nearly barren. One of the few out this early is Weinberg first-year Swastik Sharma, dressed in his naval uniform. Before the sun rises, rain or shine, Sharma treks to the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) building on the corner of Sheridan Road and Noyes Avenue for his mandatory fitness training as part of Northwestern’s NROTC program.

Sharma never saw himself joining the military, but when he discovered participating in NROTC would allow him to attend a top-tier university tuition-free, he was eager to join. The unit of about 20 midshipmen, composed of students from both Northwestern and Loyola University Chicago, will all graduate as active members of the United States Navy or Marine Corps. After completing their mandatory service requirement of anywhere from five to eight years based on their chosen path (surface, submarines or aviation), each midshipman can pursue their career of choice or opt to continue their service.

Sharma came across the NROTC program when looking for ways to finance his college education.

“I really wanted to go to a school that has a good economics program, but at the same time, I was really turned off by the cost,” he says.

After speaking with a NROTC recruiter and students who were involved with the program, Sharma decided to apply. Northwestern’s program includes a trial period for first-year enrollees. As long as students complete their first year of training and a summer cruise, they are allowed to exit the program without being tied to the service commitment and still not pay tuition for their first year.

“I was a person who initially was very skeptical, but I’ve definitely been way more enthusiastic as time has gone on,” Sharma says. “I’m very, very happy with the program.”

Weinberg first-year Kate Virsik first got involved with the Navy in high school when she was a member of the Naval Sea Cadets Corps Program. The program exposes students to various military experiences, such as recruit and medical training.

“That [program] was what made me think maybe I’d want to continue to do this in the long run,” she says.

the Navy or Marine Corps. Students are also required to take physics and calculus classes.

Then there’s the most infamous aspect of the NROTC program: the physical training. Members are required to remain physically fit through frequent group exercise, coupled with individual workouts in their free time. Routine fitness tests track whether members can fulfill the required number of pushups, plank time and mile run-time.

Though challenging, Sharma finds this requirement fosters a sense of camaraderie among the midshipmen, as they can discuss their strengths and weaknesses.

Since workouts and Naval courses take place in the early morning, well before the average Northwestern student’s dreaded 9 a.m., Sharma has found his schedule is quite different from his peers.

“[There are] a lot of moments where I wake up at 5 a.m. and I see my roommate just going to bed,” Sharma says.

As a Sea Cadet, Virsik also performed military marches and songs in a band at events to honor veterans. Their dedication and sacrifices inspired her, and Virsik’s interactions with servicemen and servicewomen enhanced her deep-seated patriotism.

“The largest reason I joined was because I want to serve this country,” she says. “I think that’s also part of it for everyone else that joined.”

Outside of the standard classes for their majors, NROTC students take two Naval Sciences courses each year that focus on the culture, standards, technology and strategy of the Navy and Marines, as well as a year-long Naval Science Lab. The lab requires students to dress in uniform and discuss U.S. current events, along with bringing in guest speakers from

Virsik also attests to the extra commitment NROTC requires in the early mornings.

“I’m not close friends with any varsity athletes, but I imagine it’s probably similar in the sense that you are a student, but you also have this other thing that takes a lot of priority in your life,” she says.

Though an NROTC member’s dayto-day can be overwhelming, Sharma explains the close ties between the battalion’s members makes the adjustment to the unusual schedule more bearable.

“When you [first] see seniors, you’re already a little bit afraid of them because you don’t know how formal you have to be with them,” Sharma says.

However, Weinberg fourth-year Matthew Lindstrom quickly assumed the role of a mentor for the first-year.

For these students, Northwestern is their homefront.

Kate Virsik

Weinberg first-year

“The largest reason I joined was because I want to serve this country.”

“He immediately was just like, ‘You know what, I was in your shoes. Here’s what I did,’ and he gave me a lot of resources,” Sharma says.

Lindstrom is currently the only Northwestern senior in the unit. Most of the former midshipmen had to leave the unit for medical reasons, a strict NROTC program requirement Lindstrom almost failed to meet this year after getting pneumonia. Others chose to leave because the program’s intense atmosphere was a poor fit for them.

Northwestern’s NROTC unit is one of the smallest in the country, which Lindstrom believes is an asset. There is an unprecedented amount of interaction between upperclassmen and underclassmen, a common barrier in other units and in the Navy itself. The smaller unit also allows each person, even first-years, to take on additional leadership roles.

“All of us freshmen are very enthusiastic about the program, partly because the juniors and seniors are very welcoming,” Sharma says. “They’re very happy to have us here. I think a lot of them really want to build up the unit.”

The program is growing in numbers, with around 10 new midshipmen coming in from the Class of 2027. Even current freshmen who were skeptical of their long-term commitment to the program, like Sharma, have become dedicated members hoping to continue the legacy of NROTC at Northwestern dating back to the 1940s.

The broader Northwestern community is often unaware of the NROTC program. In fact, Virsik explains many people are surprised when she mentions she is part of the program here.

“A lot of people don’t know it exists here because we only wear [our uniforms] in the morning,” Virsik says. “So unless you’re up really early, you’re probably not going to see us in uniform.”

Though there can be a stigma surrounding the military, Sharma and Virsik haven’t experienced any backlash from the rest of the student body. In fact, many of Virsik’s peers

are curious to learn more about her experiences in NROTC. Sharma found even his own preconceived notions about ROTC were unfounded.

“One of the things I was worried about the most coming to ROTC was if they’re just gonna be a bunch of people who are very obsessed with the military,” he says. “The people in the program are people who are very physically fit, but they are very academically capable.”

Lindstrom acknowledges that along with the curious and supportive parts of the student body, there are some vocal anti-military members of the community.

“They are very real reasons to be critical of the military, so I don’t look down upon those students,” he says. “Maybe we have disagreements, but their criticisms are fair, and they’re worthy of attention.”

After completing the post-graduation service commitment, NROTC members can go down any path they choose, whether it’s staying in the ranks or moving away from the military entirely. Currently, Sharma’s plan is to pursue a career in economic policy, likely in a government role.

He says even with only one year of NROTC experience under his wing, he already gained skills applicable to his future employment. He believes his experience as a public servant and his knowledge of the military will give him a leg up.

“I also feel the kind of discipline I’ve had to build in managing ROTC, staying on top of my grades and not falling behind physically or academically is really, really powerful,” Sharma says.

Lindstrom feels NROTC has taken him on a journey of personal

growth. Though he doesn’t know if he will continue his service after his mandatory commitment is complete, he feels NROTC has prepared him for any path he would take.

“That kind of support system is really rare,” he says. “It’s a laboratory for leadership and professional development. There’s no other place I really experience that at Northwestern.”

Chat

RE: GPT

Northwestern students and professors share their thoughts on the usage of AI.

DESIGNED BY ILIANA GARNER

Responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Professor Hatim Rahman

Kellogg Assistant Professor of Management & Organizations who researches how AI impacts employment relationships

ChatGPT, like any other technology, serves as a mirror to our society because it reflects what we value and prioritize. When I look into this mirror, I see an amazing technical achievement, but I also see an appropriation of knowledge, labor and natural resources, hype and unequal access. A major source of ChatGPT’s training data is found on the internet, which includes copyrighted materials and data that many people and organizations did not give consent to use for training an AI system. When ChatGPT provides you an amazing answer, it is likely appropriating and profiting from someone else’s knowledge and labor without giving them credit or compensation. A recent analysis found that a copyright symbol was found 200 million times in a dataset that many AI models are trained on. ChatGPT’s servers also consume precious natural resources every time we use it; this is a factor we cannot overlook when trying to address climate change.

Send a message.

As much as it is easy to believe ChatGPT will replace many jobs, history suggests otherwise. Since the 1950s only one job has been eliminated by automation — the elevator operator. The most likely outcome is that ChatGPT’s impact on jobs will be shaped by complex, often unanticipated, factors. Many people may change the way they work (not always in ways that help), but it is unlikely to lead to mass unemployment. Further, studies show, despite their technical prowess, most new technologies — including the internet, personal computers and smartphones — have had a limited long-term impact on productivity.

An uncomfortable reality for many technologies in the past few decades is they often concentrate wealth and opportunity among the elite in society, further exacerbating inequality. Thus far, there is nothing to suggest ChatGPT will be different. Already, only people who can afford to pay a monthly fee get access to its updated, more advanced model.

Professor Randy Hlavac

Medill IMC Professor who teaches Digital, Social and Mobile Marketing

Content strategy and digital marketing are vital components of today’s business landscape. With the increasing amount of content available online, it’s becoming more challenging to stand out and make an impact. Artificial intelligence, specifically ChatGPT, is one tool that can revolutionize content strategy by providing content strategists with a new way to generate insights, define specific audiences and create content using a multimedia approach.

While Northwestern students know of ChatGPT, they don’t understand the creative power they can achieve by training ChatGPT effectively. If used correctly, it can develop anything from strategic and competitive insights to forms of content including articles, video scripts, blog posts and “outside-the-box” concepts, social media posts, Tweets, hashtags, emojis and even entire websites.

Using ChatGPT in content strategy can significantly accelerate a marketer’s ability to create engaging and effective content. ChatGPT can generate innovative insights and ideas, help define specific audiences and aid in creating all types of content using a multimedia approach. By utilizing ChatGPT, students can create high-quality, engaging content that resonates with their audience and generates positive business outcomes.

ChatGPT helps marketers move from strategy to concept to content to marketing — all the steps required to create exciting, engaging content and to make a target audience aware of it. Marketing at the speed of AI!

Emma Estberg

McCormick fourth-year, Applied Mathematics

In one of my courses this quarter [Data Engineering Studio], my syllabus included a sentence about ChatGPT along with the usual statement programming classes include about sharing code and using the internet. To my surprise, we were encouraged to use ChatGPT. I didn’t think much of it until the first class when we were going over the syllabus and my professor [Diego Klabjan] repeated the sentiment. He began gushing over the usefulness of the tool while simultaneously warning us the code it produces will likely include errors.

The course uses a flipped classroom environment, and I was shocked to hear a text-to-speech voice when I pressed play on the first video. The next class, my professor explained — he had made the slides, then used ChatGPT to generate a transcript, then fed it to a text-to-speech to use for the video. During the demo that period, he pulled up ChatGPT to ask it to write some code. In another class, he asked it about coding syntax. He chooses to use ChatGPT over and over, so much so that now there are snickers in class any time it is mentioned. And each time, he points out the errors in the results.

What concerns me most about ChatGPT are its errors. I can imagine people will use it and take whatever the AI spits out to be the truth. People do not fully understand the process behind the generative pre-trained transformer and how it uses prediction to determine which words should come next. I keep coming to the idea that we are not ready — the general public isn’t ready — for this jump in technological advancement.

Hannah Cole

Medill third-year, Journalism

The usefulness of ChatGPT depends on how people use the platform. Using ChatGPT to create recipes from the food in my fridge is helpful, and talking with fictional characters when I’m bored is incredibly entertaining. I have heard mainly from computer science majors that ChatGPT helps create or check code. However, if you’re a humanities student, ChatGPT should not be your friend. After reading numerous discussion posts and peer-editing essays that use ChatGPT, it’s obvious. Small grammar mistakes and accidental word swaps are everywhere. Not to mention, ChatGPT doesn’t consider your assigned course readings.

That said, every one of my humanities courses changed its syllabi to prohibit ChatGPT. Meanwhile, computer science courses are encouraging students to use it. My professors seem incredibly worried about academic integrity, yet ChatGPT should be the easiest to catch for essay submissions. The fervor and worry surrounding academic integrity undermine students’ ability to think for themselves and use their judgment not to use electronic essay writing websites. These platforms have been around for ages, and ChatGPT isn’t bringing anything different to the table in that respect. Perhaps for computer science majors, it’s life-changing, but I wouldn’t know about that. Most students at this school know that essay-writing platforms don’t produce anything good or usable, so it’s unclear why some professors are so worried about that changing. Perhaps in the future, the platform will figure out a way to factor in readings and produce a perfect five-page, double-spaced, analytical essay. However, until that becomes a reality, the anxiety over ChatGPT is too high.

ChatGPT’s Response

Prompt: Write a 200-word essay about the benefits or dangers of using ChatGPT

ChatGPT is an innovative technology that utilizes artificial intelligence to interact with humans. While there are several advantages of ChatGPT, there are also some potential risks that need to be considered.

One of the primary benefits of using ChatGPT is that it can provide fast and accurate responses to a wide range of questions. Since ChatGPT is trained on vast amounts of data, it has the ability to comprehend and respond to various queries, making it a powerful tool for customer service and research.

Furthermore, ChatGPT has the potential to automate many tasks, saving time and resources for businesses and organizations. By using ChatGPT to handle routine tasks such as scheduling appointments or answering frequently asked questions, companies can free up their employees to focus on more complex and highvalue tasks, ultimately improving overall productivity.

However, one potential danger of using ChatGPT is that it can be utilized to spread misinformation or propaganda. Since ChatGPT can be trained on any dataset, it is possible for bad actors to use it to promote false or harmful information.

Another potential danger is that ChatGPT could be used to replace human workers, leading to job loss and economic inequality. While automation can be useful, it is crucial to ensure that it does not result in negative consequences for society.

Overall, while ChatGPT has several benefits, it is essential to use this technology responsibly and ethically to ensure that its advantages are realized while minimizing its potential risks.

PHOTO BY TYLER KEIM

Becoming

WRITTEN BY ANDREW KATZ // DESIGNED BY EMMA ESTBERG

As fans stormed the court after Northwestern’s historic win over the No. 1 ranked Purdue, Daniel “Boo” Buie soaked in the moment four years in the making.

“That was the first time the court had ever been stormed in my career,” Buie says. “I wish every game could get stormed like that. That environment was sick.”

Buie, who announced in early May he will be returning to Northwestern for a fifth year, was instrumental to one of the Wildcats’ best basketball seasons in school history. The SESP fourth-year from Albany, New York averaged a career high in points, assists, rebounds and field goal percentage during the 2022-23 season.

Expectations were low for the Wildcats coming into this winter. CBS Sports and ESPN’s experts predicted Northwestern would finish 12th out of 14 teams in the Big Ten Conference. This was largely in response to Pete Nance and Ryan Young — two of the team’s top scorers last season — transferring to North Carolina and Duke, respectively. For Buie, leaving Northwestern was never in the cards.

“Coach [Chris] Collins and the staff talked about being a part of a rebuild and being something special,” Buie says. “They saw how I could help this program get back to the tournament, so I felt like I owed it to them to come and give it four years, giving them my all.”

Northwestern was the only school in one of the five major college conferences to make an offer to Buie, making his decision to return for his senior season a no-brainer.

“I’m a big loyalty guy,” Buie says. “I’ve always been big on trust, and it’s not always greener on the other side. So sometimes you just got to jump over obstacles and figure it out to create your own path.”

Boo

A look inside the life of Northwestern’s premier hooper.

PHOTOBYELOISEAPPLE

Buie did just that. He has a close bond with senior teammate Robbie Beran, who recently transferred to play at Virginia Tech with his final year of college eligibility. Beran and Buie became close friends during their freshman year, and both expressed how important it was to them to build something special at Northwestern.

“Boo and I were always on the same mental,” Beran says. “Boo is my brother for life.”

Beran says he and Buie clicked early on. From the very first practice, Beran could see how talented Buie was. The two went through tough times together, losing a lot of close games in their first three seasons. But heading into their senior year, Beran and Buie did not let their past losses get to them. Beran says the team never got too high or too low and just stayed the course. He largely credits Buie’s steadiness for Northwestern’s turnaround season.

The pair lived together junior year and often played video games or Monopoly in between class and practice. The senior duo has come a long way, and Beran says he is incredibly grateful for their bond.

“It’s weird how Coach [Collins] randomly selected a kid from Albany and a kid from Richmond and four years later — boom: That’s buddy, bro,” Beran says.

With Nance and Young gone, Buie, Beran, guard Chase Audige and forward Tydus Verhoeven were the elder statesmen for the Wildcats. This year, Northwestern focused on rebuilding, with secondyear guards like Brooks Barnhizer and Julian Roper II featured as key parts of the team’s lineup. Third-year center Matthew Nicholson, who played very little his first two seasons in Evanston, slid into the starting lineup as well.

The team had a meeting over the summer once everyone got on campus, and Buie was impressed by how quickly they connected.

“It was a really heartfelt meeting,” Buie says. “I was like ‘Wow, we haven’t even practiced together.’”

That initial meeting set a tone for the team. From then on, Buie says the group was open-minded and incredibly honest. With players listening and holding each other accountable, the team could connect off the court, unlike previous seasons.

“In past years, I felt like there were a lot of cliques on the team between classes,” Buie says.

The Wildcats made team-bonding trips to local restaurants and bowling alleys. While the team has hung out like this in past seasons, Buie says it happened more often this year.

Sometimes you just got to jump over obstacles and figure it out to create your own path. Boo Buie

“ “

PHOTO BY TYLER KEIM

From Albany to Evanston

A big reason for Buie’s star season was a key addition to the coaching staff. Talor Battle, Buie’s half-brother, joined him on the Northwestern bench as an assistant coach. Battle — who played for Pennsylvania State University from 2007-2011 — brought experience and a personal connection, which helped unlock Buie’s game.

Battle is 11 years older than Buie and the third eldest of ten. Buie and his siblings grew up in a small, inner-city house in Albany. Battle was the first person in his family to graduate from college and says it was important to him to set an example for his younger siblings, adding that their upbringing was certainly not “peaches and cream.”

“It wasn’t always great, but the one thing we could always get to was a basketball,” Battle says. “Basketball was an escape for all of us. It was something we always had to keep us out of trouble and could use to try to change our lives.”

Battle remembers Buie shooting his diapers in the trash and rolling up socks and throwing them in the laundry basket. Battle says all of Buie’s older brothers toughened him up over the years, making him the player he is today.

When Battle got to Northwestern, he easily identified what Buie needed to work on. As someone who has watched Buie play his whole life, Battle knew he needed to get stronger so he could play off two feet, improve his finishing around the rim and become a stronger defender.

Battle says Buie made life easier on the coaches this season. Buie became a natural leader, and his growth and maturity off the court were reflected during games, Battle says.

“I don’t want to take any credit for that,” Battle says. “That was all him. He grew up and matured.”

Instead of getting on a group FaceTime call like many families do to catch up, the Buies play video games. With headphones and a microphone set up, the brothers chat while playing Fortnite and some of their other favorite games.

“He’s probably the best out of the bunch, and he does not let us hear the end of it,” Battle says.

When asked what it was like to have his brother join the coaching staff, Buie expressed that it had its pros and cons.

“Yeah, honestly, it was quite annoying,” Buie says.

Battle understands where his brother is coming from. He nitpicks Buie’s game, holding him accountable for everything, as he’s done since they were kids.

Buie says Battle did not hold back critiquing him, something other coaches are not as willing to do. This type of accountability is what helped Buie break out

in 2023. Buie says they were both “super dialed in” and all of their conversations during the season centered around what he needed to do to improve.

Beyond Battle’s success at Pennsylvania State, another of Buie’s older brothers, Taran Buie, was a high school star who went on to play college ball at Penn State and Hofstra University. Buie says he models his game after Taran and Battle.

“I remember being three years old at my brother’s basketball games and I would get in trouble because I would run on the court,” Buie says. “I remember shooting at halftime or trying to run on the court and shoot when there was a timeout.”

PHOTO BY TYLER KEIM

Bouncing back

The support from fans, students and the media this season was new for Buie. In his first three seasons, the Wildcats only won 32 games combined, and Buie received his share of criticism. But Buie says as long as there is positivity within the coaching staff and the players, everything flows really well.

Ignoring the outside noise can be challenging for high-profile players. Athletes at the highest level have opened up about their mental health struggles and discussed how public negativity can be difficult to overcome. Buie says he used his first three seasons — and all the pessimism that came with them — as a learning experience.

“Life is imperfect, so there are always going to be challenges,” Buie says. “There are always going to be ups and downs. So going through all the downs, all the tough games and hard losses, it just built me up and gave me more character as a man on and off the court. It made me a better player and really built my mental toughness.”

To prepare for his senior season, Buie says he sacrificed going out, video games and much of his free time to improve in the offseason. During the season, however, Buie found time at the end of the day to play Fortnite or watch his favorite show, Breaking Bad

These moments provided a short reprieve from the grind that student-athletes like Buie face at Northwestern. For much of the season, Buie had class straight through the morning until 1:00 p.m. Once he got out of class, he would eat before heading to the gym for practice.

With the music of his favorite artist Lil Baby to hype him up, Buie would practice for nearly four hours, always making sure to get in some extra shots before hitting the showers. On most days, Buie would not leave the gym until around 7:00 p.m.

Like many athletes, Buie makes sure to maintain a healthy diet during the season. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t save room for his favorite pregame and postgame snack.

“I only eat Rice Krispies Treats, bro,” Buie says. “That’s my favorite thing. If you ask anybody on the team, they’ll tell you that all I eat is Rice Krispies Treats.”

“Not only is he a Rice Krispies fiend, he is a connoisseur,” Beran says. “He is able to tell the difference between the ones we get from the facility and the ones from Sam’s Club.”

Buie will graduate this June. With his extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes because of COVID-19, Buie will get a master’s degree in his final year at Northwestern.

Northwestern’s success this season was largely due to Buie’s growth as a leader and a shot creator. Buie credits his teammates for believing in him and giving him the ball, trusting that he would make the right decision.

Barnhizer says Buie was a huge mentor and leader for him as a freshman. With Buie’s help, Barnhizer stepped into a bigger role this past season. He says Buie encouraged him to be aggressive, helping him take his game to the next level.

“He enjoyed throwing me the ball,” Barnhizer says. “He didn’t do it because he had to. He knew I could help the team and we both really wanted to win, so I feel like that’s why we got along so well this year.”

While Buie is a fierce competitor, Barnhizer says fans don’t see the “real Boo.” Barnhizer says he is chill, down-to-earth and will do anything to hang out with his teammates.

Barnhizer remembers having a conversation in the locker room with Buie after Nance and Young transferred. They discussed the upcoming season and agreed they could be a part of something really special. Sometimes, Buie’s leadership bordered on confrontational, but Barnhizer says that is what the team needed.

“I think that is why he is such a good leader,” Barnhizer says. “He just wanted to win so badly.”

Buie has high praise for Barnhizer, who strung together seven straight double-digit scoring performances toward the end of his sophomore season.

“I definitely see Brooks taking a big leap,” Buie says. “Brooks came along big time at the end of the season, and I think his confidence just really grew. He’s going to shock a lot of people if they’re not already expecting big things from him.”

Stepping up

Life is imperfect, so there are always going to be challenges. Boo Buie

Cheering with Boos

After Northwestern lost back-to-back games against Iowa and Michigan this winter, Buie says people began to count them out. The team held a players-only meeting to get things off their chest and hold each other accountable. Buie describes this as the turning point of the season, as the ‘Cats went on to win five straight games.

With each win, the excitement around Northwestern basketball grew. Students crashed ticket websites, vying for a chance to see Buie and his team play.

“Words can’t even describe the support and what the students did this year. Seeing the lines outside the door before the game — students don’t know how much it actually means to the program and to the players,” Buie says.

Buie reflects on attendance in past seasons and how the environment of Welsh-Ryan Arena this season differed from years prior.

“You’re talking to a guy who has been in the gym where there are only about 200 people total, and it’s a bunch of season ticket holders and little kids that got invited from some camp,” Buie says.

At Northwestern home games this season, fans yelled “Boo”s directed not at the refs or the opposing team but at their own star player. While to some this might be distracting, Buie says the chants never phased him. He says he knew when he was at WelshRyan Arena, the “Boo”s were for him. His childhood nickname is now a celebratory chant across the Northwestern community.

As fans got more invested in the team and the crowds got rowdier, Welsh-Ryan Arena became one of the best environments in college basketball. Students cheered loudly and taunted even louder.

“The heckling to the opposing teams was awesome. I know they definitely didn’t like that chicken sandwich chant,” Buie says, referencing the Chick-fil-A free sandwich promotion for fans if the opposing team missed eight free throws.

Buie became a bit of a celebrity as the Wildcats got hot. He says fans would stop him when he walked around the Chicagoland area, thanking him for the season. A lot of fans reached out over social media to express their support.

One group in particular got Buie’s attention. Buie says he was added to an Instagram group chat of Northwestern students in early February. Buie says he did not know anyone in the group chat and the messaging primarily consisted of Instagram reels. He says he tried to leave the group chat, but the fans were persistent, adding him back a couple of days later.

Buie says the group began to send memes related to Northwestern basketball. Once he finally started reading them, he thought they were quite funny.

“That shit was hilarious, bro,” Buie says. “That was the biggest support I had all year.”

Buie’s stellar season helped Northwestern reach the NCAA tournament for the second time in school history. For most people, playing in March Madness would come with some added pressure, but Buie says all the hardship from his previous years had prepared him for the moment.

“I knew I was going to have to up my playing standards, but I relied on my work and trusted in myself and I knew everything was going to be good,” Buie says.

Northwestern entered halftime down 10 in their second-round matchup against UCLA. The Wildcats came out on fire to start the second half. Buie says there was not a big halftime speech to spark the run but that the “win or go home” mindset pushed them to fight back. While the comeback fell short, Buie says one of the goals of the season was to make everyone proud, and he thinks they did that in the second half. That did not mean the loss stung any less.

“We were sad because we knew it was really over and this team was never going to play together again,” Buie says.

While Buie still has one year left, he credits his teammates, coaches and family for his success thus far. He promised to come to Northwestern and give it his all, and he has lived up to his word. After such a magical season, Buie has nothing but appreciation for Northwestern.

“It’s every kid’s dream, growing up in athletics, to play in front of a big crowd and in a fun environment,” Buie says. “I couldn’t be more grateful.”

Navigating thedistance

Northwestern students balance relationships near and far.

WRITTEN & DESIGNED BY RAVEN WILLIAMS

Medill first-year Josephine White dated her boyfriend for two and a half years before starting college. White says they had a strong foundation prior to the move and decided to continue dating despite being 480 miles away from each other — White in Evanston and her boyfriend in Pittsburgh. When she left home, White says she had more time to reflect on her relationship than she did back home. Realizing she needed the opportunity to grow independently, she broke up with her boyfriend to focus on herself.

Good relationships help people deal with stress, maintain healthy habits, build resistance to certain illnesses and even lengthen lifespans. One study found that people in healthy long-term relationships are 50% less likely to die prematurely than people who lack healthy relationships. Living without these vital connections is proven to be just as unhealthy as smoking. For college students, in a time filled with so much chaos and uncertainty, these bonds are more important than ever. Some Northwestern students speak about the realities of maintaining familial and romantic relationships while miles away from home.

Maintaining hometown connections

Weinberg third-year Ava Serin says she has maintained a close relationship with her family by finding small pockets of time throughout her day to contact them, no matter how busy she might be.

“I’ll call [my mom] when I’m walking to class or places because I feel like I’m doing something productive. I do the same with my friends,” Serin says.

Medill third-year Claire Gardner says she is still finding the best ways to connect with her loved ones back home. When in Evanston, she is often more focused on interacting with the people at school. Gardner says connecting with people back at home may not always be on her mind, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t care about them.

“I’m the type of person that when I’m in a certain environment, that [is] the environment I’m thinking about,” Gardner says. “So from time to time, reminding myself like ‘Oh, these are people you do really value a relationship with’ is important, because I often lose sight of things happening externally to my environment here.”

The quarter system also poses unique challenges to Northwestern students since holiday breaks rarely coincide with breaks for semester schools. Friends with different break schedules may not be available, but Gardner says she always makes time to visit her grandmother.

“It definitely makes me way more grateful for the time I do get to spend with [my grandma] when I visit,” Gardner says. “Whenever I go home for a week, even if I have some friends I would want to reach out to, I’ll always reach out to her and be like ‘Let’s hang out!’”

Weinberg second-year Keyanna Adams says she has always been close to her older brother and sister but has grown to appreciate them more since moving to college. She noticed she argued with them much less.

Like Adams, some students feel physical distance has allowed their relationships at home to improve.

According to a survey of U.S. college students from College Pulse, about 60% of respondents noted an improved relationship with their parents after beginning college.

This was the case for Gardner and her parents. She says the space she gained since moving halfway across the country benefited her family situation.

Serin also says she experiences less conflict with her parents when away from home during the school year. However, their relationship still isn’t perfect. In particular, Serin feels her parents may not always understand how the college experience has changed since their generation.

“I asked them a lot for advice with career stuff, and sometimes I don’t like the answers they’re giving to me,” Serin says. “They’re just trying to help, but there’s such a disconnect.”

of college students

Balancing friendships

Given students’ greater autonomy, college friendships often have more depth and maturity than childhood connections. Some, like Serin, say their college friendships are stronger than high school relationships. However, as new friendships begin to blossom in college, students may struggle to make time for old friends back home.

Serin went to a small high school with only 140 people in her graduating class, giving her a small group of people to connect with. Coming to college and meeting new people with varying backgrounds has allowed her to connect with a wider variety of people; those who are different from her but still share some common ground. Through navigating these differing social climates, she has learned that she values loyalty above all in her relationships.

Since coming to college, Gardner says she has solidified the friendships that were most important

to her back home. However, relationships on the “periphery” have fallen off since moving away to school. Gardner says losing old connections has been hard, but creating a solid foundation of friends in Evanston helped with the process. The balance of creating new friendships in Evanston while maintaining others at home has taught her about flexibility.

“I like to be able to predict what’s going to happen next, who’s going to be in my life [and] who I am going to be able to rely upon, but I’ve learned that’s just not possible and there will always be people there,” Gardner says. “And learning to be okay with that has been a big process for me.”

Both Serin and Gardner attended classes virtually during their freshman year, a time that typically facilitates connection. Beginning college during the pandemic posed unique challenges as they navigated creating relationships through a computer screen.

Serin’s method to connect with classmates was to meet as many people as possible until genuine friendships formed. However, she says it took time to solidify relationships with the seven friends she currently lives with.

Gardner says the difficulties of navigating friendships in college have taught her to be more aware of the people in her circle.

“I’m just more conscious of the fact that these are people who [I’ll] need to rely [on] to support me through hard things,” Gardner says. “I want people to see me for who I am.”

I am

“ I want people to see me for who I am “ .

Claire Gardner Medill third-year Claire Gardner Medill third-year

Navigating romantic relationships

Weinberg third-year Alex Bentele started dating his current girlfriend in 2020 during the pandemic. They enjoyed spending lots of time together when quarantine was lifted, but when they went to college, it was hard to transition back to communicating only over the phone. He says his commitment to his girlfriend has kept their relationship strong.

Maintaining healthy romantic relationships is difficult, especially while navigating young adulthood. Living halfway across the country only adds difficulties. Even for couples who attend the same school, intense workloads and busy schedules make it harder to juggle a relationship.

Weinberg first-year Riley Morris and SESP firstyear Nigel Prince began dating this past Winter Quarter. The couple has encountered challenges navigating a new relationship paired with their busy schedules, especially since Prince is also a Divison I soccer player. Along with the typical Northwestern-student workload, he juggles 7 a.m. workouts with classes ending as late as 9 p.m. The couple acknowledges that Prince’s schedule poses an obstacle when trying to find time to spend together, but they say they managed to overcome it early on.

“[We] are very conscious of our schedules,” Prince says. “Right when we got our class schedule, we immediately sent it to each other so we could begin to plan around them to see each other.”

Morris also says reminding herself of the realistic drawbacks that comes with dating an athlete, such as spending less time together, helps her cope with long periods spent away from her boyfriend.

“I kind of knew going into it that being the girlfriend of an athlete means they’re going to be busy,” Morris says. “But it makes me more secure and makes me feel more comfortable because even though he is so busy, he always makes time for me.”

Not all relationships survive the transition to college. When White moved to college, she got the chance to focus on herself.

“I used to be someone who thought about my partner first, and then thought about us as a partnership, and then thought about me and my needs,” White says.

Despite their break-up, White says she and her former partner are still friends. The transition to college taught her the importance of maintaining a healthy relationship with oneself.

“You have to be whole in yourself before you can be whole in a relationship with someone,” White says. “You need to be healed and whole and complete before you can really open yourself up to having room for another person.”

Josephine White Medill first-year

yourself be whole in yourself

I think that you have to before you can be whole in a someone someone. relationship with Josephine White Medill first-year

Learning to prioritize connection

Friendships, romantic relationships and familial relationships shape college students as they become adults. When asked if they could tell their past selves one thing about maintaining healthy relationships in college, students had a variety of advice.

“It’s worth it,” Bentele says. “You just have to be open to the communication being a little difficult and inconsistent with your schedules at first.”

Morris says in the past, she has avoided situations with unclear outcomes. She has since learned that just because the possibility of a budding relationship is confusing does not mean she should avoid them altogether.

“Lean into things that are scary. [Prince] initially scared me, but he’s now a very positive thing in my life,” Morris says. “So leaning into things that are scary is probably going to benefit me more than it’s going to hurt me.”

While learning ways to navigate new relationships, Gardner says her idea of friendships has evolved. With all the work it takes to maintain connections in college, she’s not afraid to take a step back if someone isn’t reciprocating that effort.

“If it’s not meant to happen, it’s not meant to happen,” Gardner says.

You just have to be to communication being a little difficult and inconsistent with your schedules at first.

open

“

open

Alex Bentele Weinberg third-year

Alex Bentele Weinberg third-year

Beyond sirens

Evanston and Northwestern EMTs share

their stories.

WRITTEN BY AUDREY HETTLEMAN DESIGNED BY ILIANA GARNER

Content warning: This story contains mentions of suicide, death, blood and graphic descriptions of physical trauma. This story has been edited for length and clarity.

Emergency medical service (EMS) personnel work for a minimum of 12 hours in a typical shift — and sometimes up to 24 — according to a 2021 study from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Some stick with the role for decades, while others use it as an opportunity to gain experience as they prepare for another job in the medical field. Along with the grueling schedule, EMS personnel struggle with mental health issues, separating work and home lives, frustrating coworkers and more. These are the stories of EMS personnel in the Evanston and Northwestern community, told in their own words.

Eleina Salgia, a Weinberg second-year on the pre-med track.

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

Eleina Salgia

It was kind of on a whim, my decision to be an EMT. I really wanted to know what I wanted to do before I started college. Hospital rounds are great, where you’re shadowing a doctor, but when you don't know what to do, you have a lot of people in the hospital [to fall back on]. But being an EMT, there's really no safety net. You have to know what you're doing.

The program was at Cleveland Clinic [and] lasted five weeks. Most people were already pre-med or med students for a few years already. I was basically the only one who had no experience in the medical world. It was like seven hours a day, something awful. Every day I was like, “I want to quit,” but at the end of every day, I loved it.

I remember a time I messed up. It was the biggest guy in class: 196.25 pounds. And I was the smallest person in the class. We were supposed to do a stair chair, which is basically bringing someone up and down stairs on a chair. I chose the biggest guy in class because I wanted to prove that I could do it. I got up two steps and I was like, “OK, I need help. Can someone else fill in here?” Instantly, I apologized to the instructor, and he was not mad at me at all. He was just really impressed with me. It was nice to have someone recognize that I was trying.

Eleina Salgia is a Weinberg second-year on the pre-med track. She completed an accelerated EMT certification program in Ohio the summer after her senior year of high school. In January, Salgia began working in Skokie for an interfacility transport company, which moves patients between medical facilities. Salgia works 12-hour shifts about twice a month during the school year.

The instructors were great. One of them overheard me on a phone call with my dad in the hallway. I told him, "I don't think I can be a doctor. This is so fast-paced. It's really stressing me out. I just don't think I'm cut out for this." [My instructor] pulled me aside afterwards and he was like, "We've noticed you in class. You're doing incredible. And don't think you're falling behind anyone."

He told me I would be an incredible doctor, and the world needs more people like that. It was just nice hearing from someone who has seen a lot of students before. It felt like I was being recognized and that there was someone who really wanted me to succeed.

I did work briefly in Ohio. This was when I was doing my ride along, so I wasn't even a trained EMT. We were called to a case of someone who was expressing suicidal ideation. It was two guys and me working. [The patient] was sitting in bed refusing to talk to any of us. She wouldn't respond to our questions, wouldn't say anything. [The patient’s] mother was called, and it was clear her mother wasn't really expressing that much care for her. She was yelling at her daughter like, "Why did you have to bring police into this?" It was a friend who called the police, but [the patient’s mom] was pretty mad.

The police came, and the other EMTs went to talk to the police, and they asked me to just watch her and help her get to the hospital. Once they left, I sat down with her and instead of asking, "How are you feeling?” or telling her, “You really need to get to the hospital right now," I started talking about her cat in her room. I was like, "Oh my God, I have a cat, too, she’s the love of my life! She's my best friend." And she finally started responding to me.

“ But at the end of the day, Eleina Salgia

I loved it.

This is the thing that made me realize I needed to be in the medical field. We were able to talk as two women without these other men in the room. I told her going to the hospital was going to be a lot easier if she agreed to go with us, because if not, then unfortunately, the police were going to have to take her in their car. I told her I would ride with her in the ambulance. I would be in the back with her. We don't have to fully strap her in, and I can just talk to her the entire ride. And she started crying and finally started packing and getting ready to go.

Something that I love about the community of EMTs is that I've never been treated differently as a woman [by my coworkers]. It teaches you very early on that if you prove yourself, nothing can stop you, and there aren't people out to get you. That was something I was really scared about [in the beginning]. I'm the smallest one here. I'm 5 foot 1 inch and a woman of color going into this field where stereotypically it's always been big white men. But once I got in there, I realized I wasn't going to be treated any differently. It wasn't that I had to prove myself as a woman, I just had to prove myself as an EMT.

I've worked in the hospital, and it's a little bit harder to understand where [patients are] coming from, because a lot of them are already annoyed. They've had their vitals taken in the ambulance. They don't understand why it's happening again. But seeing the version of them who has to call an ambulance and needs help is a lot more humbling and makes you realize that it's their worst day. For us, it's just another day. You need to treat them with the compassion that you would want to be treated with, which I think sometimes gets lost in a hospital setting.

[Working as an EMT] is the one part of my day where I'm not thinking about school stress or anything else. Even when I'm working out, I'm still thinking, “I should probably be back home right now studying for bio.” Or when I'm out in Chicago or out with my friends, I'm thinking, “I have an assignment that I really should have started.” For some reason when I'm working as an EMT, even if there's downtime, I'm never thinking about schoolwork. I think the change in location is one of the biggest things. As an EMT, I'm so far out from campus. When I take off the uniform, I'm just like another kid again, just going to school.

Greg Young

Greg Young is a 43-year-old firefighter/ paramedic who has worked with the Evanston Fire Department (EFD) for nine years. He began his EMS career as a volunteer firefighter in his hometown southwest of Chicago, where he still lives today. I spoke to him at Evanston Fire Station 1, 10 hours into his 24-hour shift.

Ileave home at 4:15 in the morning to get [to the fire station] at quarterto-6. I get here an hour early because that's a big part of our culture, trying to relieve the crew before us so they don't get a last-minute call, and then their 24 hours turns into 25.

When I was 27, I decided that I wanted to do something else that was comparative pay to what I was currently doing. I had kids real early, and I owned

my own drywall business. I decided that I probably don't want to do that the rest of my life, abuse my body. So now I just abuse my mind [laughs].

I tried volunteer [firefighting] because I didn’t know if I could handle it. By the time I was 33, I started getting job offers. [EFD] is the first full-time department that offered me a job. I've had other offers since, but I really like what Evanston has to offer. It's just a little bit of everything.

Children are the cases that stick with you — or me, anyway. I don’t wanna say it’s easier, but it’s different with older adults as opposed to what you view as a defenseless, innocent person.

This one was probably three or four years into my career. I ended up assuming care in a paramedic role for a kid that was the same age as and went to school with my daughter.

It was in the morning before school. The kid was a passenger sitting in the back of a minivan in a captain’s chair. His mom was driving. A [driver] in his 20s blew a stop sign going 60 miles an hour and the timing was just … wrong. They were T-boned. When I got there, [the kid] was pinned in between the sliding door and the captain’s chair from impact. That was a particularly tough case because he was in a real bad way. His legs were pinned up behind him, rotated backwards, and he was sitting there screaming, “My legs! My legs! My legs! I’m gonna die!” We had to cut him out, and as soon as we got him out, I had to take him to the ambulance and take care of him until the helicopter showed up.

He ended up OK — different, but OK.

He played soccer with my daughter, and I saw him at a game probably two years later. I could tell he was running a little different. His mom recognized me and came and found me and said, “Thank you.”

It took me a while to get over that case. I dwelled on it a little bit, thinking, “How is he? What happened to him? Did I do everything right?” You know they’re terrified, and your instinct –– or my instinct anyway –– is to say, “You’re going to be OK. We’re going to take care of you.” In the moment, that’s the right thing to say, but then you question it later.

[Seeing him two years later] brought a lot of those feelings back. It was emotional — I didn’t cry, but I teared up.

It was a big weight that I didn’t feel at the time, but it kind of felt like it went away when I saw him.

Situations [like that] proved to me that [being a paramedic] was something I could do and [that] I was built to do. I'm not denying that it doesn’t affect me in a negative way, but there’s always the next call. You have to realize you didn't create the situation. You're doing what you can to help.

When I worked in [my hometown], we ran four calls a day, and five was a busy day. We would go on 1,200 calls in an entire year. You felt like you were doing really good all the time. In Evanston, we did 11,300 calls last year. Once you get into a higher frequency all the time, what I started to notice, and I'm not afraid to say it, is that I had to go talk to somebody, a psychologist.

To think about the job is harder than to do it. The graphic doesn't bother me, but it's just the stress of the job that eats away at you slowly over time. So it's important for medics to be cognizant of that. For a while, it's easy to deal with. But as you start to develop a family and outside responsibilities, it takes time for you to realize it's weighing on you. And it's just important to do something about it.

It's very hard to separate work life from home life. [The department] is almost like a second family, but it's a totally different dynamic. When you're that entrenched here and then have to go home, it's hard to separate the two. And [work] is the one that sticks, more than home, because it's so much more dramatic. You get caught in this weird thing where there's two separate existences.

[My psychologist] has taught me techniques. Like on the drive home, you don't make any phone calls about work. Tell yourself, “You're going home. You're going to a different environment. Whatever is going on there is OK.” And also more self-reflection, like, “I'm justified

“ You have to realize you didn't create the situation.

You're doing what you can to help. ”

in the way I feel,” but now thinking about why I feel that way.

[Mental health] is becoming talked about more and more. For the longest time, it definitely was not. It was, "We're tough guys. We're firemen. We don't show weakness." And it's still that way. We'll have trainings where people make light of it, you know, but that's how we cope with it. We all joke

Medill third-year Anna Bock is a pre-physician assistant (PA). When Bock was 18, she completed her EMS certification in her hometown of Denver, Colorado. Every summer since, she has worked as an emergency medical technician (EMT) for a Denver-based inter-facility transport company.

Ioriginally got [certified] because I wanted to see if I was squeamish, if I could handle blood and if I should pursue pre-med. My instructor brought pictures from his calls over the years so you saw all the stuff you were likely going to see in the field. There was a slide once of people that had been impaled, there was a guy who had gone into a boat dock and had the wooden things sticking out of his stomach, and another guy had a steel pole that had gone into his leg. I remember being like, “This is so crazy — not good, but kind of cool!”

It’s definitely a job where you have to get down and dirty. You get thrown up on, peed on — various bodily fluids that you might not necessarily enjoy bringing into your daily routine [laughs].

I had a dementia patient once who took off all his seat belts while we were driving in a snowstorm. I remember trying to gently go around the guy and buckle him back up and flip the belts so he couldn't reach them. Especially with psychiatric patients, they're not functioning normally, and you can't expect them to do

about it. But if somebody was really having an issue, you will not see an outpouring [of support] more than from this group of people. Everybody in this department is willing to help and do whatever you need if you're really, really struggling. I want every firefighter to be OK seeing somebody. I could choose not to be as busy as I am, but I choose to be at the

station because I like the people here. It’s like another family. We're all good friends and get along really well. We have a routine. I like being busy, too. As much as it is a stressor, I do enjoy it. A lot of stories come from there. A lot of your positive experiences come from there. I'm very thankful I got the job and chose this career path.

Anna Bock

so. Getting frustrated or concerned isn't going to help in the moment.

In those situations, even though you naturally [feel] wildly uncomfortable, I take a deep breath, I push down that rising panic and I’ve found that I'm able to function anyway. That's almost something that drove me into the career in the first place — I noticed that when things are going totally awry, instead of panicking and freezing, I am able to control and modulate that panic and then act and help control whatever I'm facing. It's still very difficult. I don't want to make light of it, but in a way, it's fulfilling, being able to act in those moments when you're needed most.

I once had a patient that was schizophrenic and had a history of being aggressive with emergency responders. I was also pretty new at the time. My partner was a paramedic and I really wanted her to take the patient because she can sedate him if needed, but my partner [wanted to drive]. I was nervous. I don't think I took a deep breath the entire call. I checked his vitals when I could. He wasn't really

“

Getting frustrated or concerned

isn't going to help ” in the moment.

cooperative, and I was just like, “I'm going to sit behind him.” There's a chair where you can sit behind the patient if you need to, and they can't really see you or reach you very easily. I remember sitting there and waiting to be done with the call.

I went home that night and I was so exhausted. I never wanted to feel that way again, where I felt like my life was in danger while I tried to help the person.

I had a best friend pass away by suicide a year ago. At the moment it happened, I was with a [suicidal] patient. I can still [treat those patients], but it's really hard for me. I don't particularly like to hear the

definitely bring me down. I try my best, especially after what happened to my friend, just to show them that I care. I just try to show there are people out there in this world that want them to be there.

I've found that I don't cry in the moment. I'm really good at bottling it up for the day. But there's something about the second I walk into my home and I realize that it's all real life happening around me.

I do occasionally have the day where I just have to cry. I'll go curl up in my parents’ bed and I will talk about why I'm frustrated that something happened and how unfair the world is. And then the next day I'll wake up and I'll go back.

I feel better knowing no matter what’s happening in this world, I’m coming home knowing that I was a good part of [someone’s] story, and I spent time taking care of someone. It is so impactful. Talking to patients and hearing their stories and knowing that you at least tried your best to make them feel like someone cares and someone is there for them, I think, is really cool.

I can't think of a job I would rather do. It's an incredible career. It really changes your perspective on the world. I really enjoy interacting with people and hearing their stories. I am never bored with this job. Every day I go to work and it's different. And I love it.

Get inked !

Students tell the stories behind their tattoos.

WRITTEN

& DESIGNED

BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

After eight long months of planning, deliberation and anticipation, Weinberg thirdyear Maggie Carlson walked up to the mirror in a private, plant-filled tattoo studio in Wicker Park to see her finished design for the first time. A king cobra coiled around a bundle of lilies of the valley stared back at her from its new permanent home on her ribs. Carlson was awestruck.

“Once it was done, it felt like a part of me, like it belonged there,” she says.

The lead-up to that moment was a long journey. In July 2021, Carlson started the search for her ideal tattoo artist in Chicago. It wasn’t until November that she stumbled upon The Same Scorpio, an independent hand-poke artist with a delicate, intricate style. She set up a meeting, paid a $150 down payment for the tattoo and met with the artist on Zoom twice to discuss the design concept before she finally stepped foot in the studio in March 2022. Still, the process was not complete: Carlson had to make the 40-minute drive into Chicago and back every other week for three two-hour long tattoo sessions.

Getting a tattoo in the Chicago area can be a daunting experience for Northwestern students — from researching artists to deciding on placement and designs to saving up to cover the costs. But Carlson says it was all worth it when standing in front of that mirror.

“From the second I saw it, any doubts wavering in the back of my head just completely vanished,” she says.

From Idea to Art

The first obstacle for many is figuring out what symbol or artwork they want to permanently emblazon on their bodies. Tattoo inspiration can come from almost anywhere: social media, family members, memorable trips or experiences, even an inside joke. Spontaneous flash tattoos –– a pre-designed image ready for inking on demand –– or random doodles may appeal to some, but others want designs that represent something meaningful to them.

Carlson is one of those people. She envisioned her snake and flower tattoo as her own personal version of a Medusa tattoo — a design commonly used to

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

symbolize protection and one’s recovery from assault. Carlson was assaulted at the beginning of her first year at Northwestern, and getting her tattoo helped with her recovery process.

“This was part of my healing to help me reclaim my body and be like, ‘It’s mine and not somebody else’s to use,’” she says. “Anytime I feel like I’m not strong enough, I’m not doing well, it helps to look at that and know I can get through things.”

Illustrative tattoo artist Iz Mozer inks many Northwestern students at their studio in an art collective in West Town. One rewarding part of their job is seeing the impact that getting a meaningful tattoo has on their clients.

“To aid in someone’s own empowerment and liberation is such a beautiful and touching thing,” Mozer says.

Medill fourth-year Grace Deng felt that impact when Mozer tattooed her last October. Mozer inked a pill bottle with lavender growing out of it on Deng’s left bicep. The design symbolizes the combined use of holistic and Western medicine to find relief from symptoms of chronic illness — something both Mozer and Deng deal with. When choosing a tattoo artist, Deng prioritizes people with shared life experiences and identities.

After months of searching for a femaleidentifying or non-binary Asian tattoo artist

in Chicago, Deng met Adele Tamae at a popup art show. Tamae, a queer, Asian American and femme-identifying artist, gave Deng her fifth tattoo on May 8. The design was a sixinch portrait stretching across Deng’s right upper arm of Jobu Tupaki from Everything Everywhere All at Once

“[The film] is universal in a lot of ways in that search for love, but also it was very personal to me,” Deng says.

While choosing a meaningful design is important to some like Carlson and Deng, others find the selection process almost instinctive. Weinberg secondyear Ethan Roe was walking through Boystown with a friend last summer when they came across Pink Rhino Tattoo on North Halsted Street. They impulsively decided to walk inside with the intention of coming out with a new piercing or flash tattoo.

As Roe’s friend got a helix piercing, they looked through each Pink Rhino artist’s flash collections. One design stood out to Roe: a lighter with a plant growing where there should be a flame. Though the artist who designed it wasn’t there that day, Roe came back later that same week to get it tattooed. Roe wants tattoos, and getting flash is a fast and easy way to build a collection of art on their body.

“There’s not a strict criteria,” Roe says. “If I vibe with it, I vibe with it.”

Mozer finds that tattoos people get for the aesthetic are often just as impactful as ones with personal stories behind them.

“I don’t think there’s a wrong intention for a tattoo,” Mozer says.

Besting the Barriers

Once a tattoo design is decided, the logistical obstacles follow. First, there’s the price.

Carlson paid $700 for her fine line, hand-poked tattoo. The cost included the $150 downpayment Carlson paid before the Zoom consultations started. Luckily for Carlson, a few months earlier in December 2021, a couple left her a $1,000 tip at her server job at Found Kitchen in Evanston. With this boost in income, as well as her other tips from working 25 to 30 hours a week and cutting back on eating out, Carlson was able to meet living costs and set aside enough money for the tattoo. Considering the level of care and thought her artist put into the design, Carlson felt the price was reasonable.

At Pink Rhino Tattoo, where Roe has been tattooed twice, owner and tattoo artist David Herrera sums up the pricing as “it depends.” The size, placement and complexity of the design all factor into the cost, so a client won’t know the definite price until they talk to the artist.

First page: Pink Rhino Tattoo shop owner David Herrera leans on the doorway into the tattooing area. Opposite page top: Tattoo artist Adele Tamae places the stencil for Grace Deng’s tattoo on her arm. Opposite page bottom: Deng laughs with Tamae during the tattoo session.

Left: Bly Logan, tattoo artist at Pink Rhino, sketches potential designs in her notebook.

Above: Ethan Roe’s tattoo from Pink Rhino reads, “It’s Okay To Cry,” the name of a song by their favorite artist SOPHIE.

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

take less than what you deserve.”

Iz Mozer

Illustrative tattoo artist

Pink Rhino’s minimum price for a tattoo is $100, covering something from the size of a dot to a dime.

Deng paid $225 plus tip for her Jobu Tupaki tattoo from Tamae, an independent artist. Price is something Deng considers before scheduling future appointments. She’s wanted a large thigh tattoo of Chang’e, the Chinese moon goddess, for a long time but is saving up as she expects the price to be $1,000 or more.

In addition to the cost, the anticipation of pain can also deter students from getting a tattoo, especially their first one.

“Most people come in, they’re usually intimidated,” Mozer says. “I affirm and try to be there for clients reminding them that limits are important and that pain is okay to experience.”

After five tattoos, Roe feels confident that the temporary pain of getting a tattoo is worth it considering its permanence.

“It’s a very mild investment compared to what you’re getting out of that,” Roe

says, adding that the pain isn’t as bad as one might expect. “It feels like a bee sting turned 10 notches down.”

While Tamae worked on Deng’s newest tattoo in a six-hour long session, Deng mentioned frequently that she felt relaxed. “You’re very gentle,” Deng told her artist. The chill music and persistent hum of the tattoo machine made for a soothing environment. Deng only complained of pain when Tamae’s machine got closer to her shoulder but maintained that the pain was worth it.

As an artist, Mozer feels it’s important to listen to the clients and respond to their pain and other concerns. They think the biggest red flag in a tattoo artist is someone pressuring clients into something they’re not ready for.

“If you have specifications about size and placement and how your body is treated, don’t take less than what you deserve,” Mozer says. “You can revoke your consent at any point.”

Herrera emphasizes that a client can always ask about health and

“Don’t

illustrative tattoo artist Iz Mozer, depicting lavender growing out of a pill bottle.

Below: Roe shows off their most recent tattoo, a flash design of a puffer fish.

Bottom right: Roe’s first Chicago-area tattoo, which they got last year at the shop Tattoo Union in Chinatown.

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

safety standards. Every official body art establishment in Chicago must meet requirements set by the Illinois Department of Public Health. At Pink Rhino, every needle and cartridge is sterilized and single-use. Herrera is hopeful that every shop is the same.

“It’s okay to ask the artist,” he says. “A lot of people, I think, are afraid to ask their artist. Just for their peace of mind, we use everything disposable.”

Looking in the Mirror

Despite the hurdles they have to cross, students leave tattoo parlors with art they’ll have with them for the rest of their lives. For many, it’s a big step in self-love. When Roe peels the clear bandage off their newly inked skin each time they’re tattooed, they can’t help but proudly stare in the mirror.

“It is so exciting to see [yourself] exerting control over what your body looks like, and it’s a really direct way to do that,” Roe says.

Even unplanned tattoos have their beauty.

“So many of my friends have impulsively gotten tattoos that they love that have no meaning to them but just look really cool,” Deng says. “I think there’s something beautiful about adorning your body with art impulsively.”

No matter the size or price of a tattoo, the impact is permanent. Leaving The Same Scorpio’s tattoo studio last year, Carlson felt stronger than before.

“It really helped me feel like my body was my own,” she says. “Having that as something that was uniquely me really helped with feeling strong again and feeling like my body is mine.”

my body was my own.”

“It really helped me feel like

Maggie Carlson Weinberg third-year

Top left: Tamae adds the finishing touches to Deng’s tattoo of Jobu Tupaki.

Bottom left: The marked-up stencil of Maggie Carlson’s tattoo design, a unique interpretation of a Medusa tattoo.

Right: Deng smiles at her completed portrait tattoo minutes after Tamae set down her machine.

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

PHOTO BY HOPE CARTWRIGHT

PHOTO COURTESY OF MAGGIE CARLSON

Experiential Storytelling at Medill

Medill’s Master of Science in Journalism program is one year and teaches modern storytelling methods with a foundation in fact-based reporting and editing. Students participate in a one-week immersive reporting trip (either U.S. or abroad) during winter quarter.

https://medill.school/MSJ23

Pictured here: Medill graduate journalism students doing reporting in Argentina and South Africa in February 2023.

58 Knead to know

59 Man vs. gnat

60 Dearest hiring manager ...

61 Early-onset millenialism

62 Trapped in Tech

63 Let it shine

PHOTO BY ELOISE APPLE

know

Crust us for an all-in-one guide to MOD Pizza’s infamous menu.

e’ve heard about a million people ask for a build-your-own MOD pizza, and it got us thinking: Does the MOD menu mean nothing to you guys? In the name of keeping your lunch experiences as hot and fresh as a steaming Maddy (and to save the MOD workers from making a custom order every time you motherfuckers have a free half-hour on South Campus), we tried all of MOD’s Norris-renowned preset pizzas.

7/10

Mozzarella, pepperoni, mild sausage, ground beef, red sauce Breaking my vegetarianism for this pizza, my first thought was:

was giving raw onion and raw onion alone, even though it had sausage shaped like my post-MOD shits. Don’t plan on kissing anyone for the next four to six business days.

And for dessert …

No Name Cake — 12/10

Contents unknown

This may be the most elusive item on the MOD Pizza menu, and I’m pretty sure this was the first time it was ever ordered. We opened it up at the beginning of our meal and let it bask in the sun for a little while, giving it a gooey, chocolatey sensation that welcomed our forks and our taste buds. The final special surprise was a creamy filling that kept us coming back for more. 12/10

MAN MAN

VS.

GNAT GNAT

WRITTEN BY KATE LAUTENBERG // DESIGNED BY VALERIE CHU

Gnats — like many freshmen during Wildcat Welcome — are frantic to take advantage of their newfound sexual freedom and the undeniably romantic vibe of the Lakefill. Students, however, are less than thrilled. Swarms of tiny black insects engaging in public debauchery sexile students from peaceful spring walks. Students disgustedly pluck gnats from their hair and clothes while walking to class as gnats buzz profanities at the heads that displace them. Like many of society’s problems, perhaps a friendly campus dialogue can end this feud.

The Humans The Gnats

I don’t eat meat. These gnats are infringing on my religious freedom when they fly into my mouth and I accidentally swallow them,” Weinberg fourth-year human Rishab Jayanthi says. “The gnats are committing a hate crime by making me eat them.

I’m just trying to enjoy my spring after a winter of seasonal depression. It’s only right that I get my time outside,” Communication first-year human Caroline Samuelsen says. “The gnats impede my enjoyment of the outdoors — it’s not kind of them. I would like them to reconsider their invasion this spring.

There are so many gnats it’s hard to see. It makes me think they’re an aviation hazard,” Weinberg fourth-year human Jason Irias says. “I’m scared for the planes at O’Hare.

Yesterday, I was chatting up this girl and — I mean, she was hovering so close to me that our wings were basically touching — and then out of nowhere, bam!” threeday-old gnat Nate says. “I was in someone’s mouth. It was too kinky for my taste, and I haven’t seen the girl since.

Every time someone goes on the Lakefill and sees the gnats, it’s a reminder they’re getting some and you’re not,” Weinberg fourth-year human Mike Palaskas says. “The real problem is that gnats make people feel insecure about their sex lives.

Sounds like quitter talk – Nash needs to up his game.

The worst is when the human girls wear that shiny stuff on their lips. It’s always so sticky and smells all flowery, but when I try to get a taste, I just end up covered in it,” nine-day-old gnat Nash says. “How am I supposed to get it on when I smell like a teenage girl? I used to be the prettiest gnat on the lake. All the guys flew over when they smelled my seductive pheromones — until this Rapunzel-wannabe walked by,” seven-day-old gnat Natalie says. “Those long locks engulfed me and bent my wing — I’m ruined. I have three days left to live and no guy will even look at me.

The students are the worst. I’m only alive for 11 days and I have to spend all my time with them,” five-day-old gnat Natalia says. “As if I want to waste my fleeting days hearing them brag about going to a beach school. Give me a break.

As gnats take to the Lakefill, campus tensions rise.

Perhaps administration should designate a Pure Eats section on the Lakefill where gnats are forbidden.

We better start dousing the planes in citronella oil.

Dearest hiring manager …

PLEASE GIVE ME THIS JOB I NEED IT SO BAD, LIKE SO SO BAD.

WRITTEN & DESIGNED BY BENNIE GOLDFARB

June 9, 2023

Dearest hiring manager,

When I received your email containing my 40th rejection letter of the month, I swore there was something wrong with me. But after some self-reflection (and the passing of my anxiety attack when someone asked me where I’d be this summer), I realized I had been gaslit.

Your scathing “we’ve decided to go in another direction” left me with no motivation, no happiness, just a seething anger for all the Northwestern nepo babies who keep posting on LinkedIn. I have no other choice than to regret to inform you that I am unable to accept your letter of rejection. I understand the position I applied for was extremely competitive, receiving a record number of applicants, but I have no other options. I have received a record number of rejections, and I NEED a job this summer. This was a difficult decision for me to make, and it shouldn’t be taken lightly. Considering the only club I’m a part of doesn’t have any Greek letters attached to it, I understand there may have been more qualified people.

Upon reflection, I definitely could’ve worked harder. I wish I had started networking with Blackstone analysts when I was 12 so I wouldn’t have to deal with being ghosted by hiring departments full of corporate 20-somethings who make six figures out of college. Clearly, it’s too late for that.

I will be at your doorstep in my business-casual best promptly at 9 a.m. on June 10. Unfortunately, I will have to take a sabbatical on August 10 because I’m vacationing in Cabo. And before I begin next month, you should know that I do have a few limitations. For one, I’m exclusively willing to work in the city I grew up in because I am only comfortable in my mother’s home. I also need at least $25 an hour because this life (aka vacationing in Cabo) doesn’t pay for itself — and neither do my parents. I’m also

hoping for three weeks off and the option to work from home, because the thought of a 40-hour work week may actually bring me to an “off the grid” lifestyle in a log cabin in the woods. Lastly, I need a guaranteed internship for next summer and a job offer after graduation because God knows I won’t be applying for any more jobs.

Again, I sincerely appreciate the time and effort you devoted to rejecting me. Please know this is not a reflection of the quality of your workplace, nor should you be discouraged by the news of my arrival. I look forward to hearing from you. And seeing you. June 10. 9 a.m.

The one that got away (and will eventually come back), Bennie

Sent from my iPad

ISO: well-connected

parent

Early-onset millennialism

WRITTEN BY JULIA LUCAS // DESIGNED BY EMMA ESTBERG

We all begin college fresh-faced and full of life. We March Through the Arch predicting we will become smarter, hotter and even more into indie music. But as our GPAs begin to slip, so does our youth. Some among us inevitably begin the insidious, dreaded cycle into the out-of-touch trenches of early-onset millennialism. While technically speaking, we are permanently trapped in the Gen Z cult, the ghost of our 30s can still possess our minds, bodies and outfit choices. Learn how to keep an eye out for early millennial behaviors to keep your friends, your classmates and yourself entrenched in the shining world of TikTok and Mitski.

Common patterns

Symptoms of early-onset millennialism masquerade as inoffensive quirky interests and awkward interpretations of contemporary trends, not outright rejections of the modern era. While the classic millennial might abhor the Gen Z rejection of side parts and skinny jeans, the early millennial will opt for cropped straight-leg jeans and beach waves, maintaining plausible deniability of their condition. Typical cases will begin after a victim assembles their first charcuterie board and will escalate towards the ultimate millennial precursor: posting your first Boomerang since 2013.

Early-onset vs. classic millennialism

Early-onset millennialism merely suggests a person’s likelihood to drop off the face of the trend cycle within six months of graduation. They rarely express explicitly millennial traits. Instead, they will adjust Gen Z staples to fit the millennial within them. Consider the fine line between Doc Martens (Gen Z) and Chelsea boots (earlyonset millennial). Finding the distinction between a wolf cut and side bangs, naming your car and naming your plants, and tote bags and less cool tote bags is subtle but vital to understanding where millennialism originates.

How to treat symptoms Types

If you are experiencing early-onset millennialism, try scrolling on TikTok for five to seven hours a day. If a friend is experiencing early-onset millennialism, tie them to a chair using thrifted band tees and blast Soccer Mommy or a comparable indie-pop sensation who looks like they’d read your tarot cards in a packed bar. Some symptoms can be relieved through a three-month GT’s Living Foods kombucha cleanse. Seek professional help from your local Mayfest freshman if early-onset symptoms advance.

Early-onset millennials come in three key forms: the social media millennial, the millennial hobbyist and the beanies and bangs millennial. Each has its own foundational characteristics but many overlap.

This variation of the early-onset millennial prioritizes their online presence, offering us Instagram polls and beach photoshoots that insult the art of the photo dump. Classic content includes:

• Pictures of sunsets (we’ve seen them)

• Pictures of sunrises (they happen literally every day)

• Birthday photoshoots

• New haircut posts

• Mirror selfies at the bar

This type of early-onset millennial obsesses over quirky hobbies they won’t let the rest of us forget. Typical perpetrators include:

• Plant parents

• Barefoot Wine sommeliers

• “Adventuring”

• Harry Potter enthusiasts

• Party planners for things that don’t need parties (think: getting a cat, signing a lease)

This early-onset millennial projects their cross-generational psyche through personal expression. Participants include:

• Dyson Airwrap users

• Warby Parker customers (stop polling us about which frame style to get)

• Curtain bang devotees

• Chelsea boot wearers

• Water bottle/laptop sticker collage artists

The social media millennial

The millennial hobbyist

The beanies and bangs millennial

Day 0:

Today, I embarked on a

life-altering,

world-shifting journey. As a double major in sociology and performance studies, I’ve been swaddled by the southern charm of Locy and University Hall. I’d stay there forever if I could, but the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences liberal arts curriculum had other plans. I hadn’t taken a STEM class since junior year of high school, so when my advisor told me I needed to take a formal studies distro, I realized I would have to venture into the radioactively depressive territory that resides north of Norris.

After walking through the heavy and impossibly confusing doors that guard the building (I had to wait for someone to open them for me), I set off to find Tech LR2.

A few wrong turns later (LR2 was not on the second floor), I was 20 minutes late to my CS 110 lecture. I figured it wasn’t worth it to keep looking, so I attempted to retrace my steps to the front door. I wish I left a trail of crumbs behind me.

Day 5:

Getting out of Tech is not as easy as one would hope. I’ve been tracking the days via the analog wall clocks, but they could really use some windows in here. I’ve tried asking the NPCs I see in the halls for help, but they never seem to hear me through their noise-canceling AirPods. One of them mumbled something about Tech Room Finder. Find her? I hardly know her!

I found a shower in what looked like a closet (I couldn’t tell if that smell was the physics majors or me); I couldn’t find a towel though, so I just covered myself with two astrobiology textbooks and air-dried.

Day 34:

My primal instincts have kicked in, and I’ve been hunting lab mice and gathering gum stuck under the desks. I miraculously came across an atrium today. It was the first natural light I’d seen in weeks. I climbed one of the trees to get a high vantage point and launched spitballs at the unassuming students studying below.

TRAPPED in Tech

One humanities major’s harrowing testimony.

WRITTEN BY JULIANNA ZITRON DESIGNED BY MICHELLE SHEEN

Day 41:

I’ve grown tired of the taste of radioactive mice, and I’ve been eyeing the Fig Newtons in the vending machine. I realized I’d need a way to come up with some fast cash. There was a flier on a bulletin board offering $50 to participate in a psychological study. A few hours of my time for 25 delicious fig-filled treats? Sign me up!

Day 68:

Turns out “psychological study” meant tying me to a chair, forcing me to watch hours of uninterrupted Acapalooza footage and seeing how long it took for me to go clinically insane.

Great news! I escaped! I hid in a storage closet and made a new friend, Graham. He used to be an anthropology major.

Bad news! I really have to pee. Too bad I can only find men’s bathrooms here.

Day 69:

Graham and I were on our daily hot girl walk and we took a wrong turn. We chose to ignore the “Caution: Do Not Enter” signs and opened an industrial metal door. Big mistake.

Bright red laser beams emitted from the room and Graham was lasered to death. I’ll miss him, but the researchers were happy to know their weapon of mass destruction was functional. I heard they sold it to Meta.

Day ???:

Can it be?? At the end of the hallway, the pee-colored glow of what I think must be the sun stares back at me. I walk towards the light, push on the door and I’m met with a gust of fresh air, something I had long forgotten. I take a step forward. Then another. Suddenly I’m swept off my feet, landing hard on the ground. I look up to a hand reaching out.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you with my moped,” says my knight in Northwestern Athletics-branded armor.

Let it shine

Which campus light fixture are you?

WRITTEN BY NATALIA ZADEH DESIGNED BY SAMMI LI

College is all about finding yourself. Between choosing your major, post-grad plan and which White Claw flavor to shotgun, you’re lucky if you don’t spend all your time nervously curled up in a ball on the floor of your dorm laundry room (just me? ok). This quarter, let us enlighten you. Figuring out your five-year plan isn’t nearly as gratifying as knowing what kind of light fixture you are. You are bright! You shine! Without further ado, NBN presents: Which light fixture are you?

Do you have a DILF?

No.

Were you traumatized by your high school’s theater kids?

Their production of Seussical keeps me up at night.

Schill Morty WTF (Yes).

Who’s your favorite NU president?

True or False: Ted Cruz is the Zodiac Killer.

No, of course not. It’s a stew. No, we want answers! All signs point to yes.

… I was a theater kid (shame on you).

Radiohead or Phoebe Bridgers?

Radiohead (ARE YOU OK?)

Phoebe Bridgers (are you ok?)

Fluorescent ceiling light: The average Northwestern student. You’re everywhere, and we just can’t seem to get enough of you! Bold, inquisitive, a little bit nauseating. But listen, that’s ok! You’re special and distinctive in your own way. Wear your Canada Goose jacket with pride!

Listen, this isn’t something I’m proud of.

Do you know how to cook an egg?

Duh!

Is cereal a soup?

Obviously.

Do you think you’re a moral person?

No. Yes.

How much wood would a wood chuck chuck?

Five trees. Not sure.

Which type of foliage do you identify with most?

Christmas tree A little shrub

Deering chandelier: You, by far, slay the hardest out of all of your peers.

The manic pixie dream girl of light fixtures, if you will. Enigmatic, cool, pretentious, shiny. Is that a mason jar in your hand? You have it all!

The Sun: You think the world revolves around you, and it does! Everyone knows you’re there without even having to look at you. You simply shine too bright! You were born for a life in the spotlight. We cannot wait to read your autobiography.

Blue Light on campus: You’re tall and blue. Exciting! Understated and reliable, you’re always there, but no one really notices until they need you. Don’t fret though! You are an integral part of your community, and nobody else shines quite like you do.

MS IN LEADERSHIP FOR CREATIVE ENTERPRISES

Develop the marketing, financial, entrepreneurial, legal, and analytical acumen needed to be an innovative leader in the creative sector

Earn your master’s degree in one year

Start in the Fall or Winter Quarter quar-