Old Gold&Black
“Covers the campus like the magnolia s ”
David Brooks brings wisdom to the Face to Face student-led forum
The Muslim Student Association hosts Islam Awareness Week
SYDNEY GLENN Contributing Writer
Wake Forest students were allowed to connect with their Muslim peers during Islam Awareness Week, which was held Feb. 17-21.
“Our goal was to focus on educating, engaging and fostering open dialogue between the Muslim community on campus and the broader student body,” President of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) Fahad Janjua said. “We want to create spaces that are welcoming and open for questions and learning.”
MSA organized various events throughout the week, focusing on various traditions and communitybuilding activities leading up to Ramadan, a month of fasting, community, reflection and prayer. During this month, Muslims don’t eat or drink between sunrise and sunset to devote themselves to their faith and become closer to their God.
Each day of the awareness week is catered to a different event, including hijab workshops, Arabic calligraphy, an open Jum’ah and one of the most popular events: ‘Ask a Muslim.’
The Wake Forest community gathered to hear David Brooks, a conservative columnist and author, express his takes on the current state of our social and political world. The Face to Face speaker forum was held on Thursday, Feb. 27 in Wait Chapel.
The best-selling author, op-ed columnist for the New York Times and recurring commentator on PBS NewsHour focuses on addressing the value of community and bettering the inner self, along with commenting on our current political climate. He has written six books, with many bestsellers among them.
The event was moderated by senior Steven Cayea and master’s of management student Nasra Deria, who are both members of Wake Forest’s Leadership and Character program.
“Moderating the event was an exciting and enriching experience,” Deria said. “Working alongside the very intelligent Leadership and Character scholars as we prepared the questions was both challenging and rewarding.
David Brooks himself was attentive, quick-witted, warm, and intentional with his responses. Meeting him backstage beforehand eased my nerves and allowed the conversation on stage to flow nicely. It was truly an experience I'll never forget.”
Brooks used humor and storytelling to keep students engaged as he gave advice on entering the professional world and finding one’s passions.
Brooks urged students to find a career that makes them feel alive, rather than something that is a mere occupation.
“Find the four moments you are happiest and see if you can draw a thematic line between them,” Brooks said.
He then explained the importance of
taking risks that lead to greater things.
“I call it identity capital– doing something unusual that people will ask you about in every job interview throughout your life,” Brooks said. “That speaks to taking risks.”
He continued: “My mission is to widen my horizons and do something crazy, so that if [a job] ever [asks] me for something I’ll know I can handle it.”
Alongside advice about external success and achievements, Brooks expressed thoughts about how to cultivate your best inner self. Related to his book “The Second Mountain,” Brooks said that over the next 10 years, students will make four big commitments in their lives — to a vocation, a philosophy or faith, a community and a family. These big commitments, though rewarding, may lead to pain and hardship.
‘Ask a Muslim’ is an event held each year that allows Wake Forest students to learn more about Muslim culture and how their peers celebrate, as well as help to educate the community about Islam.
“Islam is a tradition that spans over 1400 years of history and every continent on earth, so there is a lot to explore and grow our understanding about,” Associate Chaplain for Muslim Life Imran Haq said.
Additionally, Wednesday’s activity held a Muslim life presentation and Q&A, exploring Black history in Islam through movements and notable figures. Islam is one of the smallest religious communities in Wake Forest, making up only 0.6% of the student population. Providing opportunities for non-Muslim students to listen and learn about the community beyond stereotypes was one of the biggest goals for this week.
Celebrating 191st
Founders Day
Page Four
CITY & STATE Controversy at Brunson Elementary Page Five FEATURES
Reclaiming the value of humanities Page Nine
ENVIRONMENT
Talking with Sacoby Wilson Page Eleven
OPINION
Disparities in Greek Life Page Thirteen SPORTS Should March Madness expand? Page Sixteen ARTS & CULTURE "Legally Blonde The Musical" in 24 hours Page Eighteen
CAROLINE KHALAF News Editor
Piper Saunders/Old Gold & Black
Old Gold & Black
This column represents the views of the editor-in-chief of the Old Gold & Black, Ella Klein
Letter from Exec: Paywalls and (literally) free press
Our campus newspaper is an important institution.
Unfortunately, print media is a dying art — more and more local papers have closed their doors, leaving huge gaps in communities all over the country. Newspapers exist primarily as an arm of democracy: a way to moderate power, inform communities and give a voice to critical issues. Now, as it becomes increasingly hard to stay open, many surviving news outlets have put their content behind a paywall. Monetary earnings become an increasingly large factor.
Journalists are underpaid. That's a given of going into the industry: low wages and long hours. It’s what your professors and parents warn you about.
It’s what leads to the incredible rate of burnout among journalists. But the work is important. That's what keeps us going.
As a university newspaper, we have the privilege to not worry about money. In all transparency, our executive board and editorial committee get a small stipend per semester — but I can confidently say that even without that, we would all keep writing. This is not a privilege we will have for the rest of our lives.
It’s also a privilege to be one of the few remaining hyper-local news sites without a paywall. Now, more than ever, our content is being read by those outside of our community. With our newly minted City & State section, as
well as our expansion of local content coverage, we are trying to uphold the values not just of a college newspaper, but include some aspects of a city-wide one.
While outlets transition to being fully online, we keep our 20-page, bi-weekly, full color print paper at the heart of our organization — even if people only pick it up for the crossword.
This is not to say that we don’t support the newspapers in our community: in an ideal world, we would have endless coverage of our bustling city. However, we are advocating for more writers.
We urge every student reading this to consider writing for the Old Gold & Black — not just for our benefit. As students, you are in the unique position to
Old Gold&Black
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY SINCE 1916
ELLA KLEIN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF kleiek22@wfu.edu
ANDREW BRAUN MANAGING EDITOR brauar23@wfu.edu
>> NEWS
Maria Silveira, silvmt23@wfu.edu
Caroline Khalaf, khalca23@wfu.edu
>> CITY & STATE
Nick Costantino, costnp24@wfu.edu
>> FEATURES
Alexandra Meier, meieam22@wfu.edu
Miriam Fabrycky, fabrml24@wfu.edu
>> ENVIRONMENT
Mia Springer, spriml21@wfu.edu
Beza Zelalem, zelam22@wfu.edu
Asst. Editor
Reese Lile, lilerl24@wfu.edu
>> OPINION
Mattie Stillerman, stilmk23@wfu.edu
Asst. editor
Towne Moores, moortv24@wfu.edu
>> SPORTS
Sean Kennedy, kennsm21@wfu.edu
Asst. editor
Blake Robinson, robiba24@wfu.edu
SKYLER VILLAMAR-JONES DEPUTY EDITOR villsc22@wfu.edu
>> PHOTO Piper Saunders, saunpg23@wfu.edu
>> VIDEO
Jack Perez, perejw22@wfu.edu
>> SOCIAL MEDIA
Sophie Chan, chansr23@wfu.edu
>> COPY CHIEF
Alex Keating, keatam23@wfu.edu
>> WEBMASTER
Audrey Howley, howlam23@wfu.edu
>> DESIGN CHIEF
Oliver Hale, haleop21@wfu.edu
>> ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Jordan Rill, rillje22@wfu.edu
>> ADVISER
Phoebe Zerwick, zerwicp@wfu.edu
Want to write for us? Email wfuogb@gmail.com
“
As students you are in the unique position to make your voice heard...
make your voice heard and learn about your community, on and off campus. You can fill the gaps that have been left behind by newspaper closures. You can explore the in-depth topics many print media outlets don’t have the bandwidth to cover.
We promise to continue covering the campus (and some of Winston-Salem) like the magnolias.
WILL KUNISAKI MULTIMEDIA DIRECTOR kuniwx23@wfu.edu
>> POLICIES
RYDER SOLBERG BUSINESS MANAGER solbrs23@wfu.edu
Our job as a newspaper is to be a platform for all voices, not just the ones we agree with. However, we reserve the right to reject advertisements that are vulgar, inaccurate, obscene or violate Wake Forest’s policies on nondiscrimination, diversity, equity, and inclusion as they pertain to student organizations. We will also reject any advertisements that promote illegal activities according to the state of North Carolina.
Not only do we hold our newspaper and its contents to a high standard, but we also expect that those who choose to use us as an outlet for their ideas, opinions and skill hold themselves and their content to a high ethical standard.
The Old Gold & Black is published Thursdays during the school year, except during examinations, summer and holiday periods, by Triangle Web Printing of Durham. The views expressed in all opinion pieces and advertisements contained within this publication do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Old Gold & Black. As part of our commitment to reporting news fairly and accurately, we will not remove any previously published content online unless it is retracted. If an error in either our online or print content is brought to our attention, we will revise the originally published article with an appended correction. In order to facilitate thoughtful and appropriate debate, profane, vulgar, or inflammatory comments on our website are not allowed and will be deleted. Comments which incite violence, target individuals in a form of cyber bullying, or which promote ideas which vilify marginalized communities will be deleted, and proper authorities may be notified and involved.
>> SUBMISSIONS
The OGB welcomes submissions in the form of story tips, columns and letters to the editor. Letters to the editor should be fewer than 350 words, and columns should be around 500 words. Send yours via e-mail to kleiek22@wfu.edu the Monday before publication. We reserve the right to edit all letters for length and clarity. No anonymous letters will be printed.
>> ONLINE MEDIA
Website: wfuogb.com
Facebook: facebook.com/ogb1916
X (Twitter): @wfuogb
Instagram: @wfuogb
TikTok: @wfuogb
Sports X (Twitter): @wfuogbsports
Brooks: Face to Face speaker discusses moral norms in today’s politics
Continued from Page 1
“Moments of suffering interrupt your life and remind you that you aren’t who you thought you were,” Brooks said. “In these moments of pain you see yourself more accurately. You have to stay in the pain to see what it has to teach you.”
Though he is an experienced journalist and author, Brooks explained that the first six months working for the New York Times was the hardest period of his entire career.
“I had never been hated on that scale before,” Brooks said. “When I was hired, my boss said I was the most conservative we think our readers could stand.”
Though he is a longtime conservative, Brooks shared negative opinions on the current state of American politics with President Donald Trump.
“[Conservatives] believe in the power of the institution, the importance of moral norms, in human sin, so there -
fore we have created constitutions, habits, rituals to build up the better side of our nature,” Brooks said. “When I look at a lot of what Trump is doing, it seems like the opposite. I just don’t think conservative is the same thing as being a republican anymore.”
Brooks’ honesty about his views on the political world stood out to students like junior Nick Mauro.
“My favorite part was how it’s super relevant to today’s culture,” Mauro said. “[Brooks] described his personal beliefs about being a conservative and how it doesn’t exactly align with a sort of political ideology nowadays.”
Wake Forest Medical School student Riyan Deria came to the event even though she was unfamiliar with Brooks, but she was impressed.
“He told some really interesting stories, and I liked hearing his perspective especially because I like listening to people who might not align with my views,” Deria said. “It was easy to be receptive to what he was saying.”
Mauro expressed similar sentiments. “He has different opinions and takes a very balanced approach to providing commentary,” Mauro said. “In the program for leadership and character there’s definitely this value on a
diversity of perspective and a curiosity to learn different types of thinking. Brooks obviously brings that.”
Contact Caroline Khalaf at khalca23@wfu.edu
Awareness: MSA hosts community-building events
Continued from Page 1
The African American Muslim community can be especially overlooked, as cultural differences can leave them unrecognized and divided. Media and social practices can fail at representing the diversity of the Muslim community, creating a narrow image of what it means to be Muslim.
“Events like these aim to further engage discussion where people can talk about what their religion means to them, how it has influenced their lives and how they practice,” Janjua said. “It opens doors for discussions on race, identity, culture and faith in a way that tears down misconceptions and stereotypes, educating the broader community and creating an inclusive environment.”
To end off the week, the MSA hosted an open Jum’ah in the lounge, a prayer service on Fridays with food and conversation. Jum’ah is a special noon service held every Friday that adult male Muslims are required to attend. It regularly takes place in a mosque. This week served as an interactive opportunity for theological discussion and reflection, sparking meaningful conversations and gaining new cultural perspectives.
After awareness week, the MSA will hold more events leading up to and throughout Ramadan.
“One of my favorite activities we do is the MSA iftars, where we break the day’s fast together,” Vice President of MSA Mai Soliman said. “We cater Halal food and spend the night catching up, playing board games and working to better our faith.”
The lounge is a vital part of practicing faith and connecting with similar students in MSA. Located in the basement of Collins Residence Hall, the lounge provides a place of community, worship and harboring new relationships and connections.
“It takes a great deal of vulnerability to share one’s faith with others, and I think that vulnerability can lead to deeper connections, empathy and understanding,” Haq said. “When empathy is spread across the world, feelings of belonging I think naturally follow.”
Promoting inclusivity and combating misconceptions were only a few of the many goals behind Islam Awareness Week. Promoting interfaith conversations and learning opportunities in a safe and welcoming environment made this week an important step towards a more informed Wake Forest community.
“When we take steps to know about one another it helps us to open our hearts, enriching us with humility and strengthening our bonds,” Haq said. “It is not irrelevant to learn and know about others, and that is why initia -
tives like Islam Awareness Week are so important and vital to help us build connections.”
Contact Sydney Glenn at glensd24@wfu.edu
POLICE BEAT
• An individual took someone’s unsecured wallet with cash near Worrell Professional Center. This report was filed at 9:22 p.m. on Feb. 24.
• An ex-employee with a passenger was seen with a pistol in a car near Reynolda Hall. This report was filed at 4:50 p.m. on Feb. 26.
• An unknown individual entered a storage trailer by breaking a lock near 2400 Reynolda Road. This report was filed at 12:15 p.m. on Feb. 27.
• Assist Winston Salem Police Department with a video of the Delta Kappa Epsilon house where a car was stolen. This report was filed at 6:40 p.m. on Feb 28.
• An underage individual consumed alcohol at an off campus party. They were transported to Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center. This report was filed at 5:15 p.m. on March 1 near Bostwick Residence Hall.
• An individual removed a secure bike from behind a residence near Polo Road. This report was filed at 1:21 p.m. on March 2.
MSA holds the “Ask a Muslim” event each year that allows Wake Forest students to learn more about Muslim culture.
Photo courtesy of @wfu_msa on Instagram
Brooks used humor and storytelling to keep students engaged as he gave advice on entering the professional world and finding one’s passions.
Piper Saunders/Old Gold & Black
Wake Forest celebrates 191st Founders Day
The annual celebration honored the new Hopkins Hall namesakes, alongside the recipient of the Medallion of Merit
JILL YODER Staff Writer
Feb. 20 marked the 191st annual Wake Forest Founders Day, celebrated with a program held in Wait Chapel for students, faculty, staff and alumni. The event honored Beth and Larry Hopkins with the honorific renaming of South Residence Hall, as well as Donald Eric Flow, the recipient of the 2025 Medallion of Merit.
“Our founders are our students, faculty, staff, every person who has lived, worked or studied at Wake Forest,” President Susan R. Wente said. “So today we honor nearly two centuries of Demon Deacons. We celebrate each person who has made new discoveries, uncovered new knowledge and expanded our reach and ability to serve humanity as our motto calls us to do.”
An Honorific Renaming of South Residence Hall
President Wente announced that South Residence Hall is being renamed Hopkins Hall to honor Professor Beth Hopkins and the late Larry Hopkins.
Beth Hopkins earned a Bachelor’s degree from Wake Forest in 1973 as one of the first Black female residential students in university history. She served in many roles at Wake Forest, most recently as a Life Trustee.
Larry Hopkins earned his Bachelor’s degree from Wake Forest in 1972 and his medical degree in 1977. The couple has been influential across the Wake Forest campus for many years.
“I always look forward to giving somebody a better chance,” Beth Hopkins said in a video presented at the event. “Because I have always believed that there’s an open door somewhere and all you have to do is tug on the knob a little bit.”
‘Don’ Flow’s Medallion of Merit
The Medallion of Merit was presented to Donald ‘Don’ Flow, a member of the Wake Forest community who has exhibited a driving belief in change throughout his career. Flow received his MBA from Wake Forest Business School in 1933. He served many roles in the business school, the medical center board, the health sciences board and the Board of Trustees, including chair of the board for three years. Flow’s work helped bring the Winston-Salem Open to Wake Forest, and he was instrumental in the success of the Wake Will philanthropic campaign. In 2017, he was awarded the Wake Forest Distinguished Alumni Award.
“It took me one conversation to realize he’s quite a Renaissance guy,” said Wake Forest Executive Vice President for Health Affairs Julie Ann Fresichlag in a video for Flow presented at the event. “He shocked me when I met him about how he asked questions and his persona. He was trying to solve a problem. When I came here he was the one that really participated in looking at the changes and how to make them happen.”
Following the presentation of the medallion, Flow spoke at the event.
“I tell people that my life is summarized in a simple formula,” Flow said. “Life is a profound gift, lived under grace, and the only appropriate response is gratitude expressed through generosity. Thank you, Wake Forest for not only helping me understand this but also for giving me a community in which to make this a reality.”
This award marks the only time two members of the same family have been individually named recipients. Donald Flow followed his father, Victor I. Flow Jr., who received the medallion in 2001.
A senior orator’s speech on theater and life
This year’s senior orator was Zac Anderson, whose speech, ‘Ephemeral Moments, Eternal Impact,’ explored the intersection of theater and life, the former teaching him that every moment of life is both fleeting and full of meaning. Anderson highlighted the role of Wake Forest’s culture and community in teaching him this lesson.
“The true beauty of [Wake Forest] is that the lessons don’t just show up in the big defining moments,” Anderson said in his speech. “They live in the quiet ones, too, in the spaces between all the milestones. [Wake Forest] isn’t just a collection of individuals, it’s a place where people lean in, lift each other up and create something bigger than themselves, and that’s what makes it unforgettable.”
The collective influence of Wake Forest’s community
The Founders Day addresses each touched on the deep and transformative impact of Wake Forest on the lives of all those who step on to campus, as well as the power each person has to be the creators of a transformative culture.
“There were so many similarities between my speech and [Flow’s] of how much this place has shaped us and made us who we are,” Anderson said, in an interview with the Old Gold & Black. “It was cool to see and think that some day in the future I’m going to be looking back at this and feeling similar things. It was cool to see how many people love and care about [Wake Forest].”
Founders Day serves as a reminder of the history of Wake Forest created by thousands of hands, as well as a call to live more fully into Pro Humanitate each year.
“When I think about Founders Day,” Wake Forest Alumnus and Fellow Roscoe Bell said, “it’s about remembering that the university has always been dedicated to developing the whole person and making them good agents of change in the world. The mission has only become more beautiful year after year as we continue to bring into question who is Pro Humanitate for and what are we here to do. I think it’s a communal reminder of who we are and that allows us to do our best work.”
Will Kunisaki/Old Gold & Black
President Susan R. Wente spoke at the 191st annual Wake Forest Founders Day in Wait Chapel. The program honored nearly two centuries of Demon Deacons.
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest University
President Wente announced that South Residence Hall is being renamed Hopkins Hall to honor Professor Beth Hopkins and the late Larry Hopkins.
CITY & STATE
Nick Costantino, costnp24@wfu.edu
THURSDAY, MARCH 6, 2025
Brunson Elementary School construction begins amid controversy
The new building will be located on a contaminated brownfield site
MIRIAM FABRYCKY Features Editor
On Monday, February 17, construction began for the replacement Brunson Elementary School building, the latest development in a decade-long process that has sparked controversy due to environmental contamination at the prospective location.
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (WS/ FCS) is entering into an agreement with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality to safely develop the land between 10th St NE, Ivy Ave, and N Patterson Ave, which has hosted several industrial plants over the past century. One business burned down, while several furniture factories dumped coal directly onto the earth. Toxic chemicals from a nearby dry cleaning business also leached into the soil. The site sat empty from 2006 until 2021, when Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools purchased it. The new Brunson Elementary will be the first public elementary school in North Carolina to be built on a brownfield site. A brownfield contract lays out strategies for developers to be able to safely use formerly abandoned and contaminated land.
Darrell Walker is the Senior Executive Director of Construction and Planning for WS/FCS and has been involved in the Brunson Elementary project since 2015, when the district first decided the 63-year-old school needed to be replaced. Apart from general deterioration, the current building has also experienced flood damage from a nearby creek that occasionally overflows.
According to Walker, the school district selected the new property from over 20 options within the attendance zone and conducted “half a dozen” studies to better understand any associated environmental risks. Some markers were identified as having high levels for residential use. As students and staff will not be in the school around-theclock, though, the city found no cause for concern.
“It was enough, [however], that we felt comfortable needing to enter into a brownfield agreement to protect the Board of Education and future boards,” Walker said. “It guides and tells you how to prepare the site, versus just going there and doing whatever we want to do, and then problems pop up down the road.”
Walker clarified that the word “brownfield” does not describe the condition of a property, but rather refers to an agreement between North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality and land developers. Safety precautions that will be used at Brunson Elementary include an underground monitoring system that will keep track of contamination levels and a vapor mitigation system to keep harmful fumes from entering the building. “If we see some markers change, we know that before it gets too late,” Walker said.
Walker confirmed that there were no protection systems in place outdoors to mitigate the risk of exposure to contaminants, but explained that Brunson’s new playground will be built in a portion of the property that does not show signs of soil contamination. “Unless you dig down fifteen to twenty feet in the ground, [the students] all should be safe and sound,” Walker said.
While the details of the Brunson brownfield covenant are not yet finalized, records of the agreement process are available online.
The construction process has already presented its own challenges; according to Walker, the building team has discovered buried bricks, pipes, and asbestos insulation. Workers rely on the recommendations of the environmental management plan to properly identify and dispose of such hazardous materials. However, the brownfield agreement does not specifically address labor safety and implements no plans to protect workers, according to Walker.
Walker acknowledged other concerns regarding Brunson’s new location beyond environmental considerations. Some parents question the area’s safety because the property neighbors Samaritan Minis -
tries, a soup kitchen, shelter, and substance abuse recovery site serving homeless men. Walker is optimistic, however, that the proximity of the two institutions could instead lead to rewarding community relationships, suggesting that Brunson students could volunteer at Samaritan Ministries. “Some people will see that as a negative, but we’re looking at this as a real positive opportunity for kids to get a taste of what the real world is all about sometimes.”
Other parents have expressed dissatisfaction at the prospect of decreased pedestrian accessibility. Many students will lose the ability to walk to school when Brunson moves from its current location in a residential neighborhood to a more industrial zone.
Dr. Stan Meiburg, the Executive Director of Wake Forest’s Sabin Center for Environment and Sustainability, is confident that the land can be safely rehabilitated. “From what I can tell, [the school district] did an appropriate investigation… found a couple of hot spots, cleaned them up, and now they’ve prepared [the site] for reuse in what seems to be a very appropriate way.” He was also impressed that the school district is taking steps to prevent dangerous vapors from entering the building, as most developers overlook that risk.
Previously, Dr. Meiburg served as Acting Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency after a 39-year career at the EPA. Beyond his extensive background in environmental management, Meiburg has paid attention to the Brunson Elementary saga for personal reasons: he attended the school from 1961 to 1964. “The building is at the end of its useful life,” Meiburg said. “It still looks very much as it did when I was an elementary school student.”
Some community members remain opposed to the construction and have expressed their misgivings at school board meetings and online. When the school district posted a live video of the groundbreaking ceremony on their Facebook page, for instance, they encountered swift backlash. One commenter, Tanya Malinovsky Piner, wrote “TRAITORS! You’re going to curse kids and staff with harmful ailments, I hope people impacted sue each of you money grubbing liars. Who paid you off?!”
Brunson Elementary is a magnet school that provides Highly Academically Gifted (HAG) services and an academic focus on STEM subjects. It is also a Title I institution, meaning that it receives supplementary funding from the federal government because it enrolls a significant number of low-income students. In the 2023-2024 school year, 367 of the 370 students at Brunson Elementary were eligible for free lunch.
Adverse weather conditions have delayed the construction timeline by a few months, but Walker projects that classes will start at the new Brunson location in August of 2026. Walker is excited to see the school district’s decade-long dream of a reimagined Brunson building finally come into fruition. “Moving to a brand new facility is a big lift… it [will] bring a level of excitement to the school that just kind of leaks right on into the classroom.”
Contact Miriam Fabrycky at fabrml24@wfu.edu
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools staff and students gathered for the groundbreaking ceremony at the Brunson Elementary School construction site.
Courtesy of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools
North Carolina joins legal challenge over NIH research funding cuts
22 total states unite against threats against medical research and public health
MALCOLM BROWN Staff Writer
In his 2024 election presidential campaign, Donald Trump’s platform called to dismantle existing governmental agencies and programs. Since taking office in January, he has enacted this on the National Institute of Health.
The National Institute of Health (NIH) is a part of the Department of Health and Human Services that conducts medical research for the entire nation to improve and save lives.
On Feb. 7, 2025, The NIH released a memo stating that the agency would cap its grants for “indirect costs” at 15%, down from the previous 28% average. These indirect costs include office staff, improved equipment, maintenance and utilities needed to operate their facilities. The reason for this decrease in grant spending, according to the NIH, was part of the Trump Administration’s plan to reduce government spending and waste.
As expected, this action from the NIH caused a stir in the medical and academic communities. According to the Associated Press, “scientists warn the Trump administration’s drastic cuts for medical research will endanger patients and will cost thousands of jobs.”
According to the University of Washington’s Medical School, “the abrupt loss of hundreds of millions
of the
North Carolina and several other states are challenging NIH funding cuts to maintain the same level of financial support for medical research.
of dollars … [halts] countless lifesaving health research and cutting-edge technology initiatives.”
Due to the potential implications of these new measures, North Carolina, along with other states (including Massachusetts, California, New York and Maryland, who are the top 5 states in NIH research funding), filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration on Feb. 10 to halt these efforts.
North Carolina's decision to file the lawsuit was primarily based on concerns that research institutions, such as Duke University and UNC Chapel Hill. The lawsuit could lose hundreds of millions in federal funding if a proposed cap on
indirect medical research payments is upheld in court. UNC receives $531 million and Duke $580 million each year from the NIH.
UNC Vice Chancellor for Research Penny Gordon-Larsen wrote in a letter to university researchers on the day of the indirect costs cap that a “change of this nature would yield significant negative impacts to Carolina [...] as [indirect costs] supports the federally required regulatory and compliance functions, the costs to administer grants and costs of the facilities and infrastructure required to support research.”
Dr. Robert Lefkowitz, a Duke University professor of medicine, told
the New York Times in an interview after the new NIH measure, “I think the American people need to understand how devastating it would be if this goes through. A lot of research would just have to stop; I can't imagine that the shortfall could be met from other sources.”
In response to lawsuits filed by North Carolina and the 21 other states, a federal judge temporarily blocked the NIH from cutting research funding on Monday, Feb. 10. The judge argued that the NIH's new measure would severely undermine research into treatments for cancer, Alzheimer's, heart disease and various other health conditions.
This instance is the latest challenge to the new Trump administration policies. In late January, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration's attempt to freeze trillions of dollars in federal grants and loans.
As the legal battle unfolds, the potential influence on medical research and public health remains a focal issue of debate. With the courts playing a vital role in determining the future of NIH funding, the situation underscores the continuing tensions between governmental policy changes and upholding support for scientific advancement.
Contact Malcolm Brown at browmd24@wfu.edu
County Schools proposes new school zones
Fostering Diverse Schools, the district’s new initiative, seeks to address socioeconomic needs in the school system
Contributing Writer
The Forsyth County School system proposed a two-year Fostering Diverse Schools initiative to modernize the district’s school zone boundaries. Current school zone boundaries have remained untouched for the past three decades, despite the county’s 42.1% population increase since 1992.
The project was made possible by a nearly one-million-dollar two-year grant from the United States Department of Education. The district’s initiative is part of a larger Department of Education effort to improve school conditions by increasing socioeconomic diversity. In the 2023 fiscal year, the Department of Education sponsored $10 million in new awards for twelve districts nationwide.
The district is currently reviewing potential draft boundaries while incorporating community feedback into the models. Changes to the school zones will be incremental, meaning no new maps will be implemented before the 20262027 school year.
The timeline of the proposed changes to WS/FCS school district boundaries is contentious among the community
Additionally, students will not be removed from schools they already attend during the redistricting process. Unique aspects of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (WS/FCS) model, such as school choice and special magnet programs, will still be available following any changes.
WS/FCS describes practical motivations for the new plan, including streamlining school transportation, reducing school size discrepancies, solidifying feeder patterns between schools and diversifying schools across socioeconomic lines. The district’s three proposed maps balance these four objectives. While one plan excels in diversifying socioeconomic
status but falls short in home-to-school distance, another reduces transportation time, but is less effective at promoting diverse schools.
Of the stated objectives for the Fostering Diverse Schools plan, increasing student diversity is at the forefront. Despite the best efforts of Winston-Salem’s current school choice model to increase student mobility, many zones remain divided across racial and economic lines.
For instance, two elementary schools in zone 5, Kimberley Park Elementary School and Sherwood Forest Elementary School, have markedly different demographic compositions. In the 2023-2024 school year at Kimberley Park, only 2.9%
of students were white. In the same zone, at Sherwood Forest Elementary School, 73.6% of students were white.
While the Fostering Diverse Schools initiative works to address such imbalances in student demographics, parents have raised concerns over elongated transportation routes, separated friend groups and unrealized diversity objectives. In response to parents' concerns about school redistricting, Superintendent Tricia McManus reassured parents that all schools in the district have merit, with “great indicators in every school beyond just a school grade.”
McManus remains hopeful and asserts that WS/FCS is “working very hard on many initiatives to make sure all of [its] schools are high quality.”
As plans for the new zones continue to evolve, families, parents and students can stay informed by attending an upcoming Fostering Diverse Schools listening meeting or learning more about the plan at https://www.wsfcs.k12.nc.us/page/fostering-diverse-schools.
Contact Eva Kate Probus at probek23@wfu.edu
Courtesy of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools
EVA KATE PROBUS
Winston-Salem/Forsyth
Courtesy
Associated Press
FEATURES
Alexandra Meier, meieam22@wfu.edu
Miriam Fabrycky, fabrml24@wfu.edu
Awake Forest offers space for community and reflection
The meditation club brings students together through mindfulness
KATE REILLY Contributing Writer
From a young age, senior Eric Rosenblum has been curious about consciousness, spirituality and the human experience. As a child, he would play in his yard and watch worms wriggle through the dirt and wonder “What’s it like to be a worm?”
That question would lead to another — “What’s it like to be me?” — and set him on a lifelong journey toward understanding the nature of existence.
Today, as the founder and president of Awake Forest, he helps students explore similar curiosities through the practice of mindful meditation. Every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m., students from all years and backgrounds gather in a meditation room beneath the Pit in Reynolda Hall. They begin by discussing their week or engaging in deep icebreakers before meditating together for 30 minutes.
Rosenblum guides this weekly meditation, where a group of roughly 10 to 15 students sit in silence, focusing on their breath, thoughts and the present moment. The group also let conversations flow naturally, often finding inspiration from a book or passage someone comes ready to share with the group.
The club, with around 30 rotating members, offers a sense of community that extends beyond its weekly meetings. Members frequently text in the group chat, inviting others to join impromptu meditation sessions in different spaces around campus, such as a garden or other outdoor spaces.
When Rosenblum arrived at Wake Forest freshman year, he received a text from his mom telling him to check out the Mindful Wake Club, which she had read about online. She even texted him an hour before the club’s first meeting that semester, reminding him of the opportunity.
“I was literally walking past the library and the meeting was happening there, so I was like, ‘Okay cool, I’ll go check it out,’” Rosenblum said.
He met the club’s founder, Tim Auman, who was
the university chaplain for 25 years until retiring last winter. Auman was both a church minister and an ordained Buddhist. He started Mindful Wake, an organization split between the Office of the Chaplain and the Office of Wellbeing.
“It’s a mix of spirituality, mental health and physical health,” Rosenblum said.
Auman planted the idea to start Awake Forest. He told Rosenblum that he had been waiting for a student to start a meditation group since beginning his role as chaplain. Auman said it was the right time to start this kind of organization, and Rosenblum agreed.
During his sophomore year, Rosenblum founded Awake Forest with the challenge of balancing the needs of both experienced meditators and complete novices. From its early days, Awake Forest has welcomed all individuals, regardless of their background or prior experience.
“Some people have read a dozen books and have meditated for years; others walk in and don’t even know what meditation is,” Rosenblum said.
He sought a structure that would neither disrupt experienced meditators nor leave beginners lost. While he does guide the club’s weekly meetings, his leadership style is not overbearing. He recognizes that too much guidance could interrupt certain members’ practice, so he’s established a system that fosters success for both newcomers and frequent meditators. The club found a flow that works for all, welcoming anyone interested in joining.
“We’ve landed in this happy medium where our more experienced members will bring in newbies and teach them a little about what we do before their first meeting,” Rosenblum said.
Christian Hayden, a senior in Awake Forest, recalls how meditation has transformed his life. He started meditating in high school, and it’s become a huge part of his life and throughout college. He met Rosenblum while studying abroad in Sydney, Australia in fall 2023. After returning from his study abroad program, Hayden joined Awake Forest where he’s grown to be a
Contact Kate Reilly at reilkd21@wfu.edu OLD
leading member of the club.
“[Rosenblum] was the first person I met at Wake Forest who did this practice, and it was awesome to share that,” Hayden said. “It just makes me happier throughout the day and makes me better at everything I do.”
Hayden discovered many benefits to meditating in a group as opposed to practicing alone.
“I think a lot of meditation is about holding intention, and because we’re so used to thinking about the past and projecting into the future … it’s hard to kind of hold that intention in mind,” Hayden said. “But there’s just something about it when you’re with other people, you’re reminded of that intention to be present at all times and it genuinely does have a massive impact.”
In addition to holding him accountable to his intentions, Hayden has found his involvement in Awake Forest to be extremely fulfilling. For him, the most rewarding part of his role is watching their meditation sessions redirect people’s day for the better. The Wednesday night sessions positively redirect his whole week.
“I think a lot of times people walk in the room with a lot of baggage,” Hayden said, “and they’ve had a stressful day, but then, we sit down for 30 minutes [and] have this amazing conversation.”
These meetings can “redirect people’s entire lives,” according to Rosenblum. One of the most rewarding moments Rosenblum has had as the founder of Awake Forest was when a football player came up to him and told him how one of their sessions made him rethink some of his biggest life choices.
“The passage we decided to read that day was from this awesome book called ‘The Alchemist.’ It talked about following your inner voice, your heart, your destiny,” Rosenblum said. “I think he was a math and [statistics] major, and he came up to me at the bar the other night and said he’s considering switching to philosophy, and he seemed really happy.”
Rosenblum noted that meditation has the power to inspire positive change in people’s lives, and he believes it’s important to hold a space for people to meditate and have these transformative realizations.
Rosenblum and Hayden have big hopes for the future of Awake Forest. In the next few weeks, they are starting their first ever guest series where they will bring in guests to guide discussions and offer new perspectives on mindfulness, wellness and self exploration. Guests include a philosophy professor and a WFU yoga instructor.
The series will kick off on Mar. 18 with James Hash, assistant minister for the largest Black church in Winston-Salem. Hash studied mindfulness at UCLA and Rosenblum believes he has an interesting perspective to share.
Through this guest series, Rosenblum and Hayden hope to attract anyone on campus who’s interested and might want to get involved. Like their weekly gatherings, these guest series meetings will not be exclusive to former club members.
Rosenblum has seen unprecedented growth for the club this year, and he hopes this will continue beyond his graduation in May, when he and Hayden plan to pass down their roles and possibly increase leadership in the club. While they don’t know their successors yet, they are excited to meet more people throughout the semester who could be future Awake Forest leaders.
GOLD & BLACK
Photo courtesy of Eric Rosenblum
Awake Forest members meet on Wednesday evenings in the basement of Reynolda Hall to practice mindful meditation.
Q&A with Mason Goodwyn
BENJAMIN PAPPAS
Video Contributor
Student YouTuber reflects on four years at Wake Forest
Senior Mason Goodwyn is a content creator, merit scholar and 2024 homecoming king. He sat down with Benjamin Pappas, Old Gold & Black video contributor, to reflect on his time at Wake Forest and where his journey will take him next. The full interview, available in full online at the Old Gold & Black’s YouTube channel, has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Benjamin Pappas: You hit the ground running your freshman year, building an impressive content-creation career. Where did that motivation come from?
Mason Goodwyn: In high school, I did TikTok, but they weren't really paying creators at the time. I wanted something a little more sustainable that allowed for long-term growth, so I jumped on YouTube. When I applied to colleges, I saw college content creators, such as Elliot Choy at Vanderbilt, who inspired me to apply to their colleges. When I got to Wake Forest and saw they didn't have a content creator, I was like, "Oh, I could fill this void." And I thought it could be very helpful for students like myself when they look at Wake Forest in the future.
Tell me more about the social transition you experienced in college? Was your social life consistent, or did it ebb and flow?
Some parts ebbed and flowed, but the main group I stuck with was Two Cities Church. That college community was very strong for me. It just helped me develop my Christian faith. Having those people strengthen those values has been instrumental along the way.
What other personal growth have you seen in yourself at Wake Forest from freshman year to now?
I'm more of a risk-taker. I'm willing to actually go for what I want and don’t stray away from it, even if someone says it's too hard or the chances are slim. When someone says, “That's a 1% acceptance rate,” I'm saying in my mind, “I can be part of that 1%.” I don't want to reject myself before they can reject me.
How do you think you developed that confidence?
I think it's by learning from failure. I've learned more from my failures than from my wins. The first time I was trying to get an internship, during my freshman
Senior Mason Goodwyn creates videos showing his life as a
dent. He has over 8,000 subscribers on YouTube and 4,000 followers
year, I was applying to Capital One. They rejected me because I didn't know how to do a case study and I bombed the interview. But bombing that interview helped me to ace my interview for BCG my sophomore year. And I think without going through that hardship, I wouldn't have learned “Okay, how do I reset and go forward to have success in the future?”
What is something that you thought was going to be important, but then turned out to not be?
I think your grades only matter to a certain extent. For the companies I applied to, their bars were like 3.6; after you passed 3.6, you should focus on everything else outside your grades, in my opinion. So get the grades in a decent place, but after that, go chase your dreams. Go join the clubs and activities. Go get the leadership position. Start a business. Start a YouTube channel. That's what I did, so I didn't put all my time into just studying. Studying is great, but I feel like you
learn more through actually doing outside of class than just in class itself.
Tell me more about the faith and the values that you hold. How does that motivate your actions, especially in business, where you are such a decision maker?
I think it helps me be an ethical businessman. When I have values in the business world that affect my faith, anything I do in the business won't go against those. You can be a Christian in the business world, and actually you can promote philanthropy and give back to others. I think one thing I would like to do in the future is hopefully give back to those who don't have as much. If God has blessed me with all that I have at Wake Forest right now, I think I have a duty in the future to hopefully show that to others.
You are an incoming associate at the Boston Consulting Group, which is very impressive. What is your plan for the near future?
The dream scenario would be to work at BCG for two years, then matriculate over to the MBA program. BCG does have sponsorships, so they could cover the cost of my MBA if I'm able to move up in the company. I think one day I would like to start my own company, or potentially even transfer to another company to do strategy. So those are my two options post-MBA. I think I'll either return to BCG immediately after my MBA, or even do something else if the opportunity arises.
Is there any Wake Forest goal or bucket list item that you still have left to accomplish before graduation?
I think these next couple months, if I could sign the Chapel — because I know inside the top you can sign your name — I think that'd be cool. If Wake Forest basketball can go to March Madness, that would be a dream of mine just to watch them on TV. I have faith in Wake Forest, and maybe they can pull an upset and get there. In the future, it's crazy to say, but if I ever get my name somewhere in a building or if I'm able to “make it” like that, I think that would be a dream of mine.
Photo courtesy of Mason Goodwyn
Wake Forest stu-
on Instagram.
Benjamin Pappas/Old Gold & Black
Senior Mason Goodwyn sat down with Benjamin Pappas, Old Gold & Black video contributor, to reflect on his time at Wake Forest and where his journey will take him next.
Reclaiming the value of humanities degrees at Wake Forest
How students are navigating major declaration in an increasingly competitive world
SYDNEY PASCERI & NOAH BRYANT
Contributing
Writers
With rising tuition costs and uncertain job markets, students are choosing majors that promise immediate returns. As they struggle to justify their major’s relevance in a career-driven world, more students are leaving subjects like literature, history and religion, instead turning to business and social science studies.
Since 1996, Wake Forest has seen a decrease in the number of students choosing to pursue a degree in a majority of the humanities programs. Students receiving English degrees has decreased by 23%, 66 to 39, Students receiving religion degrees has decreased by 73%, 11 to 3. Although other majors in the humanities like classics and history have seen relatively no change in degree program enrollment since 1996, the Wake Forest Business degrees have experienced an increase of 86%, 160 to 297.
“I don’t foresee a huge increase in history or English majors here at Wake Forest in the immediate future,” English Department Chair Monique O’Connell said. “I think part of that has to do with the cost of our institution. It’s a very expensive place to go to school.”
Wake Forest’s enrollment costs have risen by over 72% since 1996, from $18,500 to $62,000, a reflection of the national trend of increasing tuition at colleges and universities. U.S. universities have seen an average increase of 70% over the same period according to The Brookings Institute.
Rising tuition costs is also a factor in students’ decision-making processes when exploring possible majors.
“There is a concern about jobs,” said Michael Lamb, associate professor of Interdisciplinary Humanities and executive director of the Program for Leadership and Character. “Given how the cost of higher education has increased, many parents and students are focused on the return on investment and worried about how they can make enough money to justify paying high prices for tuition.”
Debunking the liberal arts employment myth
The preconceived, widely accepted notion that humanities majors will fail to succeed in their professional endeavors is a myth. According to the Harvard Business Review, over 500 business executives say that the most important skills for hiring college students are communication, critical thinking and ethical judgment.
“What research shows is that those who have humanities degrees are often more valued later in their careers because they’re able to think more creatively, more critically and more expansively,” Lamb said, “[and] because they’re able to think beyond just technical skill sets.”
Other faculty members argue that in a fast-paced world, students struggle to slow down and appreciate the humanities.
“The humanities suffer because the humanities, done well, require slow and reflective learning,” said Michael Sloan, the department chair of classics. This slow, reflective process becomes increasingly difficult as a crisis of attention, from social media and other technologies, seizes college students’ attention spans.
Eye-opening divisionals
The divisional requirements a student
studies have proven to also have a large impact on a student’s chosen major.
At Wake Forest, students are required to complete courses in five different divisions: Humanities, Literature, Fine Arts, Social Sciences and Math and Natural Sciences. These requirements form the foundation for the university’s liberal arts curriculum, along with basic requirements like first-year seminars, writing seminars, foreign languages and health and exercise science.
“I stepped foot on this campus planning to study finance,” senior Jack Peterson said. “And if I didn’t have to take a Philosophy class for my divisional, I would not be a Philosophy major today.”
Another student, sophomore Ben Hobson, is early in his collegiate studies.
“I have a lot of diverse interests, so I love the divisionals because I am not just allowed to, but I’m encouraged to go try other things,” Hobson said. “Pretty much every single semester that I’ve taken one or more divisionals, they have never failed to connect across my various studies.”
More often than not, Wake Forest students seek to complete their divisional requirements within the first two years of their studies. This way, upon major declaration, which happens after a student has completed 40 hours of courses, students will have experienced a variety of disciplines before narrowing their scope of study.
The next two or so years of study are then focused on the majors and minors of their choosing.
“If there were a campaign to keep the liberal arts or promote more schools to adopt the divisional system, I would be the first person to sign that petition,” Hobson said. “I know it is helping me see
the world more holistically.”
The Appeal to the Humanities
While finding the perfect job after college is important, students and faculty engaged in the humanities do not view their pursuits as a mere means to an end. Rather, the humanities help students learn about themselves, empathize with voices different from their own and learn how to be a better person.
As humanities majors continue to dwindle at Wake Forest, there is no lack of faith from faculty or students.
“I think that there’s this sort of intrinsic appeal about the humanities in terms of the way of understanding the human condition,” O’Connell said. “So, I ultimately am optimistic about the future of the humanities at Wake [Forest], and nationally.”
Faculty and students point to the statistics of exceptional performance in humanities graduates; however, they do not use that to justify their decision. Faculty and students alike take pride in their study of the humanities because of the deep impact it has on their personal development.
“If you step back and think about what education is for, and if you recognize that education is not only about producing workers but about educating human beings,” Lamb said, “I think the humanities and liberal arts become even more compelling because they’re the disciplines and the fields that prepare us not only to make a living but to make a life.”
Contact Sydney Pasceri at pascs21@wfu. edu and Noah Bryant at bryanb21@wfu. edu
A deep dive on tour guides
Ambassadors in Admissions shape the future Wake Forest community
BIANCA REZNIC Staff Writer
As the weather gets warmer and high school students receive college acceptance letters, Wake Forest students commonly see tour groups eagerly walking around campus. Some students are reminded of their own pre-college experiences and their first encounter with Reynolda Campus. Ambassadors in Admission, also known as tour guides, play a significant role in encouraging prospective students to apply to and attend Wake Forest. These students share information about the university and speak to their own experiences to help high schoolers envision what their life might look like on campus.
Senior Katie Poulton, the president of Ambassadors in Admissions, discussed the different qualities that make a successful tour guide, emphasizing the importance of being approachable and able to connect quickly with visitors. But it’s not all about being friendly. Poulton also shared the importance of being passionate about the university and getting involved on campus.
“It should be evident in your tours how much you love Wake. We also look for guides who are really involved on campus so that you have a lot of different stories and experiences that you’re able to talk about and share.”
The tours are almost entirely student-led and allow them to get involved and share their Wake Forest experience. Sophomore Audrey Jones said it is critical to have tour guides with diverse interests and backgrounds to appeal to a range of students.
“I knew that my tour guides were always an important factor in me liking a school or not liking a school,” Jones said. “You can’t have all the tour guides being a carbon copy of the same person. Because there are so many different types of people who go to [Wake Forest] and different types of prospective students, you want to make sure that each type of prospective student could look at a tour guide and go ‘Wow, that’s me. I could be successful here too.’”
According to Poulton, selling Wake Forest to others encouraged her to reflect on her experience, and reminded her of her own journey to attend the University.
“During the semester, it’s just very easy to get wrapped up in the business of being a [Wake Forest] student, the stress of exams and just the exhaustion of being a college student,” Poulton said. “Sometimes I forget how lucky I am to be a student here and how badly I wanted to be here when I was in high school. So giving tours gives me a chance to step back, no matter what’s going on in my day, and reflect on all of my favorite parts about [Wake Forest]. It always makes me so grateful to be here when I see how many students in high school would give anything to be in our position.”
During the training process, tour guides are taught how to adapt to unexpected moments they may face during their tours. They also develop their own anecdotes to create a unique tour experience.
“Every tour is different, and there are certain unexpected situations or problems that might arise during the tour,” Poulton said. “You have to really think on your feet in terms of how to solve those situations. We definitely do get a lot of unexpected questions or sometimes questions that are challenging to answer.”
Despite the challenges, some more trivial than others, the benefits are evident.
“The walking backwards part is hard for me personally,” Senior Bayla Sheshadri, the vice president of recruitment and engagement for Ambassadors in Admissions, said. “But I really do enjoy it to be honest. I think the benefit far outweighs the cost.”
The advantages of giving tours, apart from resume building or personal reflection, can be seen in the smaller moments: positive comments from families, answering questions, or even seeing someone previously in a tour group later on campus. These rewarding experiences not only shape the future Wake Forest community but enhance the current community as well.
“[Those moments are] really special because I think it shows that we as students are having an impact on making people find their home in the future. And so in that way I think it’s a really special job and something that you don’t really get otherwise.”
Contact Bianca Reznic at reznba24@wfu.edu
Mia Springer, spriml21@wfu.edu
THURSDAY, MARCH 6, 2025
Beza Zelalem, zelam22@wfu.edu PAGE 10
The Office of Sustainability creates campus change
Wake Forest’s sustainability office works toward climate oriented goals
SKYLAR VILLAMAR-JONES, SOPHIE FIONDA & CAMERON BITOVE
Deputy Editor and Contributing Writers
Climate change often dominates the news with upsetting headlines about rising temperatures, natural disasters and harmful emissions.
But not all sustainability news is negative.
“It’s always about finding that sort of happy medium between what’s most impactful and what people are going to get excited to get involved in,” said Brian Cohen, assistant director of sustainability engagement. “Anything that accentuates community, where people can do things together as groups of friends, tends to draw more people out.”
Wake Forest University’s Office of Sustainability, founded in 2009, collaborates with a range of campus partners to integrate sustainability into all areas of the campus.Its 2020 Sustainability Strategic Plan lays out two goals to achieve this: 1) develop a comprehensive plan on campus to achieve climate neutrality by 2040, and 2) introduce at least half of the student body to disciplinary-specific teachings through cross-curricular sustainability learning.
While these initiatives strive to impact the environment, they also aim to encourage students to incorporate sustainability into their everyday routines.
Goal one: intern initiatives
The office uses student internships that help various university partners reach climate neutrality, or net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. There are currently 12 interns, each of whom specializes in one initiative on campus. Cohen said the interns’ programs are successful in part because students sometimes respond better to relaxed and friendly environments than professional events created by adults.
“We trust not just our interns,” Cohen said, “but our sustainability ambassadors and sustainability
leadership group (SLG) members to figure out the best way to reach people.”
SLG allows first-year students to gain leadership experience with a sustainability project they design and execute. Owen Sawyer, sophomore and SLG student coordinator intern said that students also reach their peers easily because they are involved in other campus organizations
“It’s really interesting to look at sustainability through the lens of somebody who doesn’t necessarily have it at the forefront of their mind,” Sawyer said. “Obviously, if you’re getting involved with the office in any capacity, you’re really passionate about [sustainability].
He continued: “But even things like tabling or doing the Earth Day events help you to reframe how you look at sustainability to see that involvement isn’t going out and volunteering every day. It’s little steps.”
John Gibson, Earth Month programming intern, said that emailing students about programs is not sufficient, and that word of mouth and seeing events ongoing are more effective advertisements. One example, according to Gibson, was the donation bins for dorm room items that were placed outside of residence halls during move-out.
“The events which have taught students the most have been the very visual ones,” Gibson said. “I think everyone knows we should try and reduce waste, but many people forget it when they come to college. This initiative acts as a great reminder for students that what may be worthless to you still holds value and can be donated to someone else.”
Goal two: education
The office visits classes to teach lessons and has created first-year seminar courses to incorporate sustainability practices in academic settings. Krista Stump, engaged and experiential learning for sus-
tainability manager, said that it is important to show students that sustainability touches so many areas of everyday life.
“Regardless of what you’re studying, business or philosophy or math, there’s a way to integrate sustainability into what you’re already learning,” Stump said. “When students graduate, they’re going to be a leader, and we want them to have some knowledge about how they have a positive impact on sustainability initiatives.”
Stump said the classes she visits will frequently use one of the many learning spaces on campus, including the Reynolda trail and wetlands. One class she taught was Introduction to Engineering Experimentation, where students designed water filtration devices and water sensors for these Reynolda areas.
“Students are very interested,” Stump said. “They participate more in experiential learning because it’s more engaging. It’s adding something new, interesting and fun, and frames learning in a more hands-on way.”
Sophomore Jalyn Walters, one of three campus garden interns, said that interactive learning spaces are effective because students can visualize the impact their actions have on the environment.
“This position has helped me so much to not only learn about regenerative agricultural practices such as composting, tilling alternatives, and crop rotation,” Walters said, “but also to be able to educate others on how farming can be harmless, and even beneficial, to the area around you, and can also make your food healthier.”
A greater reach
While the university takes steps every day to reach climate neutrality, the Office of Sustainability’s work is never done. Cohen said that engaging students is an ongoing process and is something that his office keeps in mind when planning all initiatives. He said while free food or prizes draw students to events, they try to find subjects that interest students enough to retain them without handouts.
“I don’t think there’s a one-size-fits-all approach,” Cohen said. “I think it really depends on who we’re trying to reach. But the general rules are: make it fun and exciting. That can be an incentive in itself. We don’t necessarily have to give something out, but we want to find something that people are passionate about.”
OLD GOLD & BLACK
The Office of Sustainability recently relocated to a larger building, including a space for a student lounge, and various meeting rooms.
Will Kunisaki/Old Gold & Black
The office uses intern- ships that help campus partners reach climate goals.
Photo courtesy of WFU Office of Sustainability
Q&A: Sacoby Wilson — science that can change lives
The professor and environmental health scientist gave a lecture at Wake Forest on March 4
SHAILA PRASAD Senior Writer
Sacoby Wilson, a professor in the Department of Global, Environmental and Occupational Health at the University of Maryland College Park, is driven by environmental issues that shaped his childhood. Growing up in Vicksburg, Mississippi, Wilson lived in a neighborhood surrounded by a major highway, a sewage treatment plant and a landfill — the latter two were less than a mile from his home. Some of his classmates lived right next to the landfill, a reality Wilson didn’t fully comprehend until later in life. His father worked as a pipe-fitter at the nearby Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, where he was exposed to asbestos.
These early experiences ignited his passion for biology, toxicology and environmental science. While at Alabama A&M University, earning his bachelor’s degree, Wilson joined the Minority Biomedical Research Support program through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and became an Environmental Protection Agency Minority Academic Institutions fellow during his freshman year. His work in these programs helped set him on a path to becoming a leading voice in environmental health.
The Environmental Careers Organization (ECO) program within the EPA fellowship, which focused on diversifying in the environmental space, introduced Wilson to Robert Bullard and Benjamin Chavis. Meeting them sealed Wilson’s future in environmental justice. After this, he pursued his master’s and PhD in environmental health sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He admits his attendance was less to do with the university being a top ten institution in his field and more to do with Michael Jordan.
With the birthplace of the environmental justice movement in Warren County, N.C., Wilson’s time in Chapel Hill allowed him to grow up amid community leaders and founders of the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network. His experience engaging with communities on the front lines of the environmental justice movement pushed him toward a postdoc at the University of Michigan. There, he was part of the Robert Wood Johnson Health and Society Scholars Program, where he received mentoring in social epidemiology.
He entered the academic track as an assistant research professor at the University of South Carolina and has been at Maryland since 2011. The Old Gold & Black sat down with Wilson in advance of his lecture at Wake Forest.
Shaila Prasad: What kind of environmental justice work were you involved in during your time at Chapel Hill?
A big chunk of my graduate work was working on industrial hog farming with community-based organizations who were fighting against the industry in North Carolina. My work was using the community-based participant research framework to engage with communities and residents impacted by industrial hog farming — it’s what my dissertation was focused on.
[My PhD classmates and I] also did a lot of work to look at the issues around the built environment, looking at sewer and water infrastructure in historically black neighborhoods. Because of segregation, rail lines and racism, these neighborhoods were not connected to publicly regulated soil and water infrastructure. If they were connected to the public lines, they were connected to lines that were not up to
code. It’s what we call the lack of basic amenities.
Prasad: What impact would you say universities and academic institutions could have in advancing environmental justice, if any?
I can say they haven’t done the best job. In many cases, it’s not the full university that’s part of that particular community. It’s one faculty member, it may be one student group, or it may be one class. Universities, when it comes to our mission of serving people, have failed. You don’t have that many programs in the country where students are being trained in environmental justice.
The first time there was real funding for environmental justice was the BidenHarris administration. As we know with the current administration, they’re trying to claw back and erase those programs. But you can’t erase the legacy of the environmental justice movement at the federal level. So you see, many universities have a mission to serve people, but they have, to be honest, failed at serving folks who’ve been impacted. I’m not saying there aren’t some faculty members putting in the work. But while they may be doing the work, they’re not being fully supported by their schools or universities.
Prasad: How do you deal with the emotional reactions you have to the realities you come across during your work?
As an advocate, I think it’s important to do work that’s going to be beneficial to communities that have been impacted. That’s the widest part of my life’s mission.
There is an impact emotionally from a negative perspective, but also from a positive perspective, because as a scientist, I think it’s important to make sure you have an impact. I get my emotional nutrition from working with communities. Because I’m working with them, uplifting their knowledge systems, uplifting the experiences, valuing the contextual expertise and knowledge. I get my emotional energy from doing that work. It’s important for me because that’s part of who I am. That’s where I come from. So yes, there’s some negative emotional impacts. But I think for me as a scholar, researcher and advocate, that’s where I’ve had the most emotional benefits, emotional gains in this space — working directly with communities.
Prasad: What are essential things to remember when stepping into such communities?
For me, it’s been really important to do empowerment science and to do liberation science with communities. Through these community partnerships, we make sure we’re putting communities first, and that the voices are driving the science. That’s one of the things about environmental justice, you want the community to speak with their voice, self-determination. So from the research perspective, we will make sure that they’re engaging in the work, they’re driving the research we do and we’re solving their problems. It’s just not an academic exercise. We’re doing science that can change lives.
Contact Shaila Prasad at prassp21@wfu.edu
The California wildfires: devastating impacts
Fast-moving fires demonstrate increasing toll of climate change
JASMINE
STANDEZ Contributing Writer
“Being from Southern California, it’s kind of just a part of life […],” senior Liz O’Shea explained. “There’s always two or three big fires every year, but they just never get close enough [that] you’re actually worried.”
This set of fires, however, was unusual because it occurred outside this window. Its catastrophic intensity was fueled by drought conditions and Santa Ana winds up to 100 miles per hour. According to AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter, the rapid, wind-driven fires became one of the costliest wildfires in modern history, totaling an estimated damage of over $250 billion — more than Hurricane Katrina.
While the fires occurred across the country, their effects have reached Wake Forest’s campus. O’Shea, who lived in the Palisades for nearly her whole life, expressed her feelings about the intense loss from these fires.
“It’s like where you went to ride your
bike, like where you played your first soccer game, like where you had your first kiss at your friend’s house,” O’Shea said. “None of those places exist anymore […]. They’re all just memories instead of tangible places you can go and visit, which is really hard to conceptualize.”
Many people, from the coast of California to Wake Forest’s campus, have lost a place filled with beloved memories and community. Families excitedly enjoying the holidays a month earlier now sift through the ashes of their beloved towns, hoping to find something to salvage.
“While no one that I know passed away, it still feels like a death in a way. It’s like the death of your childhood almost,” O’Shea said.
Extreme climate events are becoming more common. Within the past year, Asheville, North Carolina also experienced an extreme climate event from intense flooding from which the town is still recovering. Although the type of disaster differs, it demonstrates a concerning pattern for the United States.
Stephen Smith, a professor in the environment and sustainability studies department, talked to the Old Gold & Black about the scientific causes behind increasing extreme weather events.
“What we know is that as the planet gets warmer and warmer, we will see a pretty linear and strong correlation with the number of wildfires and how bad they are,” said Smith.
He clarified that while fires do occur independently, fires of such magnitude and intensity are becoming more likely due to climate change.
“With each incremental degree of warming things like forest fires and droughts continue to get worse and more common. Hurricanes [also] get stronger,” Smith said.
President Donald Trump has taken action to reverse many programs and initiatives designed to combat climate change. Along with withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, he reduced funding for climate initiatives and supported increased fossil fuel production.
Trump also signed an executive order
on his first day in office to open parts of the Arctic Wildlife National Refuge, a previously protected wildlife reserve in Alaska, for drilling. Trump’s choice to blatantly disregard climate change and its impact will harm the people of the United States.
Belgian Climate Scientist Joeri Rogelj states that “political decisions that disregard evidence … will be harshly coursecorrected by the hard physical reality of climate change.”
While it is easy to feel hopeless, people can still make a difference.
“Although there may not be progress from the top down in the next four years, people can still make a difference from the bottom up,” Smith said.
There are many opportunities for positive change within local communities, and if each person committed to making a difference steps up and does not lose hope, meaningful progress can be made.
Contact Jasmine Standez at stantj23@wfu.edu
OPINION
Mattie Stillerman, stilmk23@wfu.edu Towne Moores, moortv22@wfu.edu
The views expressed in all opinion columns represent those of the article’s author, not the opinions of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board
Uncertain tides
What a series of sweeping floods in Appalachia reveals about the American two-party system
EVA KATE PROBUS Contributing Writer
The Appalachian South has never been supported.
Americans who call the Southeastern Appalachian region home are one of the most vulnerable groups in the nation, yet neither the Democratic nor Republican Party works on their behalf. They never have.
Instead, polarization between the two parties distorts disaster into a defensive posture — taking away from the issues, such as the current flooding across the Appalachian region.
It’s easy for Wake Forest students to be uninformed or apathetic about a series of floods hundreds of miles from Mother So Dear. I’ve fallen into this trap too, even though this issue is nearby in western North Carolina or close to my home in Kentucky.
Over the past few weeks, I knew a storm was expected to hit my home state, but I greatly underestimated the magnitude. Frantic, I called my mom last week to ask about my hometown and our family. While my mom reassured me our hometown was fine, we mourned for towns that did suffer damage, and for the fourteen families that have lost a loved one thus far.
In an effort to cheer myself up, I ended my night by scrolling through social media. I then landed on a New York Times post covering the recent flooding affecting eastern Kentucky. The ache in my chest returned as I sat in bed watching footage of mountain towns under murky water. I opened the comments, expecting others to feel the same empathy. Instead, I found these sentiments about Appalachia:
Using a crisis to project a political stance upon its victims is already shameful, but chalking a deadly catastrophe up to a triumph for the liberal agenda, a consequence of widespread conservatism, is a horrific narrative I hope to disprove.
There’s an elephant in the room, but not throughout all of Appalachia.
Many of the comments point out that President Trump won 64% of the popular vote across Kentucky, with the floods being a rightful consequence of the results. In West Virginia, a state also impacted by the floods, the story remains the same: Trump pulled off victory with 70% of the popular vote. There is no denying that Trump faced little opposition in securing the popular vote in these two Appalachian states, but these statistics don’t tell the whole story. North Carolina, affected by greater flooding from Hurricane Helene, still favored President Trump, but the margins of victory were slimmer: just over a 3% difference separated Trump and Harris. Buncombe County, with Asheville as its county seat, has consistently favored Democratic Presidential candidates since the 2008 General Election.
Is Asheville an exception to the rule, or proof that stereotypes about voting trends in Appalachia are misguided? Comments casting the entire Appalachian region as a highly conservative, uneducated and impoverished group of people form a reductionist narrative that oversimplifies the realities of a diverse region spanning thirteen states and ignores its emerging Democratic leaders.
Two seemingly irreconcilable forces in American politics seem to agree on one thing – Appalachians are a dispensable demographic.
Climate disasters across Kentucky, West Virginia and North Carolina do not stand alone, but they do stand un-
resolved. Hurricane Helene destroyed much of Western North Carolina last September, but many communities still are struggling to rebuild their beloved homes. In Barnardsville, N.C., for instance, many are still without homes and material possessions. As the months pass by from the initial incident, some North Carolinians have lost trust in the government’s ability to respond to major crises.
Although Trump criticized the Biden Administration in his campaign for their response to Hurricane Helene, the Trump Administration has done little to address current flooding nationwide and ongoing relief efforts in North Carolina. While Trump authorized FEMA to implement disaster relief in Kentucky, some Kentucky politicians question the government’s ability under the current administration to effectively distribute the necessary funds. Given the Trump Administration’s plan to eliminate 84% of an office within the Department of Housing and Urban Development that spearheads disaster relief efforts, it is unclear how the Trump Administration will address disaster relief in the future.
The difference in President Trump’s response to Hurricane Helene and to this storm reveals a possibility that Trump only stands with Appalachia when looking to demonize the Democratic Party. Seemingly, empathy only pertains to elections.
But it’s not like the left has done any better.
As seen in the Instagram comments, some leftists are quick to rebuke Appalachian people for voting for Trump, scolding them for their apathetic, unintelligent choice. In this act of infantilization, the Democratic Party poses as the savior for Appalachia and all other vulnerable populations–yet they blatantly ignore the working class struggles that led to the current day political situation. Without giving thought to the history of workers’ strikes, labor movements or corporate exploitation in the region, Democrats lose the
ability to view Appalachian folks as partners. In the process, they lose sight of Appalachia altogether.
What we need most right now is everything that Appalachian communities “lack.”
While the immediate focus must be on replenishing impacted towns, these floods should inspire both parties to strengthen their dedication to the Appalachian region. To find an example, both Republicans and Democrats have to look no further than to Andy Beshear, Kentucky’s Democratic governor who leads a primarily Republican polity through flooding relief efforts with clarity, compassion and thoroughness.
This is not the first time Appalachian people have faced devastating flooding: another storm system ravaged the Kentucky and West Virginia area in 2022. It is the exact sentiments that many on social media have abandoned — sentiments of resilience, solidarity and compassion — that continue to define the Appalachian region and its people during hardships, past and present.
Country artist Tyler Childers speaks to his hometown Virgie’s resilience and solidarity. As Virgie faces the worst of the current Kentucky flood, the lyrics of “Follow You to Virgie” speak volumes:
“And I will follow you to Virgie
‘Cause that’s what us boys are for
To help you out when you get weary”
Are we willing to follow, or are we stuck pointing fingers?
If you would like to take the next step, you can take action by donating to any of the following organizations that benefit flood victims: Kentucky Flood Relief, West Virginia Flood Relief and Hurricane Helene Flood Relief.
Contact Eva Kate Probus at probek23@wfu.edu
Examining the disparities in Greek Life
Wake Forest should take action to raise awareness of the historically Black sororities and fraternities on campus
JACQUELINE GORFIN & AHLANNA NIKOLE JACKSON Contributing Writers
The sound of blasting music can be heard around campus as clusters of young women in matching colors cheer in celebration, welcoming the new sorority members to their long tradition of sisterhood and service.
If you guessed this was Bid Day, you're wrong. For members of the National Panhellenic Council, a coordinated organization of nine historically Black sororities and fraternities, the new member presentation is a rite of passage. During this highly anticipated event, commonly known as a probate, inductees reveal their membership for the first time through choreographed steps, strolls and recitations of organizational history. Chapter members, past and present, and even chapters from other campuses, proudly celebrate the new inductees, repping their colors, holding handmade posters and cheering on the new members in their public introduction.
At Wake Forest, a Predominantly White Institution (PWI), the events to foster community and celebrate Black excellence and achievement have not always been well received by the greater community.
“When I became an official member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, I saw on Fizz that a lot of people were asking, ‘Why are people wearing masks in the yard? And why are they on the lower quad yelling?’” NPHC President Sincere Fielder said. “You can ask us in person and educate yourself. If your interest has been piqued, why not come and just watch the show?”
This lack of appreciation isn’t just anecdotal — it reflects deeper structural inequalities that shape the Black Greek experience at Wake Forest. While the university touts Greek life as a major aspect of campus social life, that narrative often excludes the experiences of NPHC members.
This divide is rooted in history. As a PWI, Panhellenic (Panhel) and Interfraternity Council (IFC) organizations have shaped Wake Forest’s campus culture, playing a dominant role in social life and alumni engagement for the benefit of white students.
Contrastingly, since their arrival in 1988, the NPHC continuously fights to establish themselves within the university’s framework in order to support the betterment of Black and minority student populations on campus.
Understanding the divide
On Bid Day, the excitement is palpable. The iconic quad buzzes with energy as hundreds of students are welcomed into their Panhel sororities. Social media floods with photos of new, mostly white members, and the university community embraces the celebratory moment.
For members of NPHC, the experience is markedly different.
Without the large-scale visibility and institutional backing that their Panhellenic and IFC counterparts receive, celebratory moments for NPHC, also known as the Divine 9, are not always extended that same respect and acceptance.
"It's harder to learn about it because everything is underground for NPHC, whereas Panhel is very public and streamlined," said sophomore, Eliza Kalina, a member of the Alpha Delta Pi Panhel sorority. “I only knew Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority Inc. [an organization in NPHC] when I first got here because of Nia from “Dance Moms.” But, after I went to a probate and had friends that were in it, I learned so much more.”
The university and members of the six Divine 9
NPHC members form a much smaller percentage of the
egory and have been continuously overlooked
organizations on campus have made significant efforts to share the deeply rooted histories and values of their organizations on their individual websites, social media pages and campus events and through the official University Fraternity and Sorority life website.
The issue here is not a lack of education. It’s a lack of incentive to learn.
All in the numbers
NPHC’s lack of visibility on campus can be attributed to a number of factors. But mostly – it's the numbers.
Statistics shared from Brittany Harris-Nelson, the assistant director of Student Engagement/Fraternity and Sorority Life, revealed that 53% of the student body is involved in Greek Life as of fall 2024; 40% are in Panhellenic organizations, 10% in IFC and less than 3% of students involved in NPHC.
This statistic is seconded by the drastic difference in enrollment of Black and white students; Black students make up 7% of the undergraduate population compared to white student enrollment at 66% for fall 2024 as stated in the University Fact Book. The major gap in these numbers have real life implications.
“
It is important to remember that what we see online is staged, and no one wakes up with the camera rolling.
With Panhellenic and IFC Greek life being deeply ingrained into the University’s culture, when you're not in the dominant group, it’s almost impossible to not fall into the periphery.
“The heavy peer pressure with Panhel overshadows NPHC,” said senior Gah’Ques Ligons, a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity. “They don't get to see us because they intentionally only engage with and advertise a certain type of Greek life.”
NPHC members form a much smaller percentage
it.
of the Greek life category and have been continuously overlooked because of it.
Noting the disparities in housing and space allocation, Ligons added, “We don’t have our own space. So more often than not, Panhel and IFC organizations are more prone to receive funding and access to resources that we don’t get."
All recognized Panhel and IFC organizations have lounge spaces on campus. Yet, only one NPHC organization, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., has a dedicated lounge, leaving the rest without the same communal spaces for chapter meetings, service programming, and community building.
The lack of space impacts recruitment, retention and the ability to foster a strong sense of community, which all play a role in increasing campuswide visibility.
Steps toward inclusivity
Despite these disparities, some Panhel and IFC members recognize the inequities and are helping advocate for more recognition around NPHC organizations.
“The university does so much around ‘Pro Humanitate’ during the first week of school for freshmen,” Kalina said. “They should have something around Greek life showing the different organizations on campus, specifically for NPHC and probates especially.”
However, some students are less confident in the student body’s willingness to learn about a culture of Greek life starkly different from their own.
“There's a divide, and it's important to bridge it,” junior Wilson Todd said. “I think there are individuals in the student population that will make efforts, and there are individuals that will never make efforts to learn.”
As awareness grows and conversations around equity and inclusion continue, students have a real opportunity to foster a more inclusive college experience at Wake Forest through Greek life.
Change is on the horizon. But, in order to truly achieve inclusivity on campus, everyone must be willing to learn.
Will Kunisaki / Old Gold & Black
Greek life cat-
because of
More than a performance and more than a game
Kendrick Lamar's halftime performance rewrites the rules of entertainment and revolution
CAROLINE GOTTSMAN Staff Writer
“The revolution’s about to be televised. You picked the right time but the wrong guy.” With these words, Pulitzer Prize winner Kendrick Lamar began the most layered and politically charged Super Bowl halftime show in American history.
Though this performance provided sharp commentary on racism, the fickle American audience, the entertainment industry and America’s division, many dismissed it as the end of Lamar’s rap battle with Drake.
Lamar’s performance was more than just entertainment — it was a bold statement on the current atmosphere in America. The question is: were you watching closely enough?
Challenging America’s game
Lamar’s performance opens with a cameo by Samuel L. Jackson, a famous Black American actor, dressed in a red, white and blue suit. He introduces himself as “Uncle Sam,” a play on his name and a reference to the national personification of the United States. Jackson welcomes the audience, saying, “This is the Great American Game” — referencing both the game of football and the stage layout of a game controller. The stage layout frames Lamar’s performance as a game. Lamar positions himself as the one being controlled and the audience as the ones controlling him.
Lamar begins on top of a Buick GNX and says the famous line: “The revolution’s about to be televised. You picked the right time but the wrong guy.”
These words reference Gil Scott Heron’s 1971 song “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” where Heron, a Black American poet and singer, urges his audience not to be passive bystanders in a revolution but instead fight for justice. Lamar’s inversion of Heron’s lyric suggests that he believes that everything — even a revolution — has been reduced to its entertainment value.
Lamar’s claim that the American people have “picked the right time” but “the wrong guy” could have a multitude of meanings. The “right time” may refer to the Superbowl performance itself. However, “the wrong guy” may refer to Lamar himself as people are expecting to be mindlessly entertained, but Lamar instead offers a powerful commentary on society.
A nation divided
Lamar then performs his song “Squabble Up,” a call to action that encourages resilience and fighting back.
Jackson interrupts his song, claiming that it is “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.”
“Too loud” and “too reckless” propose that Lamar’s defiant message in his opening song unsettles the audience by challenging the status quo. “Too ghetto” carries historical weight since it reflects how systemic racism, segregation and economic barriers have confined Black Americans to certain areas. Jackson shows how American people often devalue music made by Black artists if they do not conform to white musical norms.
Lamar opens his next song “HUMBLE” with a powerful image. The dancers dressed in red, white and blue recreate the American flag with a divide in which Kendrick Lamar stands alone. The split down the middle of the flag represents how American society has become more and more polarized in politics, culture and racial tensions.
When “Euphoria” played — one of the songs Lamar wrote about Drake — lights in the stands spell out “Warning: Wrong Way.” Lamar may be referencing how he is not supposed to perform songs about Drake on television because that could result in a defamation
lawsuit. An alternative interpretation is that American society is progressing in the wrong direction.
Next, Lamar performs “Man at the Garden” while male Black dancers snap behind him. Jackson says, “Oh you brought your homeboys with you, the old cultural cheat code. Scorekeeper, deduct one life,” implying that society often judges and feels threatened by a strong Black community.
Crowd pleasers
Kendrick then performs two of his more calm, famous songs, “Luther” and “All the Stars,” which both feature SZA. Jackson comments, “That’s what I’m talking about. That’s what America wants. Nice and calm.” However, Jackson is interrupted when “Not Like Us,” Lamar’s Grammy-winning diss track, begins to play. Jackson, exasperated, leaves the screen. Lamar’s decision to play this song at the Superbowl — even though, as he states earlier in the performance, “You know they love to sue” — shows an open rebellion. Lamar’s statement “40 acres and a mule. This is bigger than the music” is referencing the unfulfilled promise of reparations made to formerly enslaved people after the Civil War. Lamar voices that this performance is not just about entertaining people; it is about making a powerful statement on the way Black people are treated in the United States.
Lamar boldly addresses Drake in the song. Serena Williams briefly appears crip walking. This cameo is both a dig at Drake, as they were rumored to have a relationship in 2011, and a statement on how Black culture is policed, perhaps a callback to when Williams received backlash after she did the crip walk following her victory against Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon in 2012.
Lamar ends his set with his song “tv off,” perhaps urging Americans to disconnect from distractions and instead focus on issues like those he presented. After the stands light up with the words “Game Over,”. Though the spectacle may be over, the implication is that the real work — the revolution — has just begun. In my opinion, Lamar’s performance came at the right time and with the right guy.
He turned the Halftime stage into a national platform for protest, confronting America with the uncomfortable truths of its political and societal tensions. His message about America’s division and the devaluation of Black art was a statement that needed to be made. Lamar reminded America that art is about more than entertainment; it is meant to disturb the comfortable, reveal contradictions and provoke action.
Courtesy of the Associated Press
Kendrick Lamar stands in the middle of a sea of dancers dressed in red, white, and blue, the colors of the American flag, during his performance.
Kendrick Lamar performs two of his more calm, famous songs, "Luther" and "All the Stars," which both feature SZA, showcasing their stage dynamic.
Courtesy of the Associated Press
Blake Robison, robiba24@wfu.edu
Sean Kennedy, kennsm21@wfu.edu
No. 1 Men’s Tennis sweeps weekend, remains undefeated
Historic run sees Demon Deacons beat ranked Stanford, Cal at home
SEAN KENNEDY Sports Editor
Top-ranked Wake Forest Men’s Tennis (19-0, 2-0 ACC) is on a roll, entering conference play and defeating two ranked opponents over the weekend, including the No. 9 Stanford Cardinal and No. 26 California Golden Bears.
The Demon Deacons continued on their historic start to the season. After winning the ITA National Team Indoor Championship in February, Head Coach Tony Bresky’s squad came back to WinstonSalem and continued on their best start to a season yet. The team opened the season with 19 consecutive wins, five more than their next best season (14 wins), 2018).
One of the key factors to the Demon Deacons’ hot start has been their dominance in doubles play. Against Stanford, the partnerships of No. 15 DK Suresh/Charlie Robertson and Franco Capalbo/Ioannis Xilas each won their sets to clinch, with the latter duo winning a final tiebreaker in third doubles.
With the doubles point clinched, the Demon Deacons continued their momentum, winning two courts with both Suresh and Capalbo, the latter of whom beat Stanford’s Nico Godsick in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4.
Stanford bounced back on other courts, however. Both Henry von der Schulenberg and No. 80 Max Basing won second and third singles for the Cardinal, respectively, putting the Demon Deacons at just a 3-2 overall advantage. After Pow fell behind in the third set in fifth singles, it came down to fourth singles.
Amidst growing adversity, the Demon Deacons found a hero. Freshman Charlie Robertson bounced back against the Cardinal’s Kyle Kang to win in the fourth singles, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5, and clinch the program’s first win in conference play.
Against California, the Demon Deacons continued their dominance in doubles — the No. 3 Tacchi/ Pow and Suresh/Robertson pairings each won their courts.
Currently, Suresh is the only player in the country to be featured in the ITA national doubles rankings
“It was an unbelievable effort by [Robertson] to finish it out there,” Bresky said in a post-match statement. “He showed an incredible amount of toughness. He played great tennis, the tennis we know he can play.”
four times, partnered with Dostanic (No. 5), Andrew Delgado (No. 16), Xilas (No. 43) and Robertson (No. 50).
“I think that a lot of people know that [DK] is the best doubles player in the country,” Bresky said. “It’s huge for us that we can toss in someone else with DK and they can still be great.”
In singles play, Suresh continued his dominance against ranked opponents. He would defeat No. 6 Carl Emil Overbeck in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, to win all four of his matches on the weekend. Luca Pow would also win his court in fifth singles, defeating Derrick Chen, 6-2, 6-4.
The Demon Deacons also went into the weekend without No. 11 Stefan Dostanic, the second-highest ranked Demon Deacon according to the ITA. In his stead came graduate student Franco Capalbo, a former Pac-12 First Team player at Utah. With his experience came leadership and a chance to play in singles — yet his match stood unfinished at 4-6, 6-2, 1-0.
“[Capalbo]’s been itching to get in there,” Bresky said. “He’s a true leader of our team. He’s an unbelievable captain- and he knows that when it’s his time, he’s ready to go.”
The Demon Deacons finished the match with a commanding win from No. 65 Ioannis Xilas, who beat Cal’s No. 49 Alex Chang, 7-6(1), 6-2.
“We were very excited to get another ACC home win this afternoon, Cal has an excellent team,” Bresky said. “We’re happy with today’s results and looking forward to next weekend on the road.”
Wake Forest Men’s Tennis travels up to Blacksburg, Virginia, to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies on March 7th. First serve is set for 2 p.m.
Contact Sean Kennedy at kennsm21@wfu.edu
Freshman Charlie Robertson took on Cal’s Timofey Stepanov in fourth singles on Sunday. Robertson pulled through with a clutch win two days beforehand against Stanford.
Will Kunisaki/Old Gold & Black
Ioannis Xilas takes a swig of water during a break in his match against No. 49 Alex Chang, eventually winning, 7-6 (1), 6-2. The Demon Deacon is now ranked 65th in the nation.
Will Kunisaki/Old Gold & Black
Men’s Golf takes on Colleton River Collegiate
Kennon finishes third overall, team ties for third in first of two South Carolina-based competitions
TEE JOHNSON Staff Writer
The Wake Forest Men’s Golf team put on a solid showing in Bluffton, S.C. at the Colleton River Collegiate this week. With scores of +11, E, and +2 the Demon Deacons ended tied for third with an overall total of +13. The outlier was the first round, where all five starters shot over par, including scores of 77 (+5) and 78 (+6).
“Today was a very tough and cool day, but the guys battled as we finished the last hole in the day,” Head Coach Jerry Haas said of the play from day one. “Very proud of the way the team battled today; they showed great emotion and played until the very end.”
Despite the rocky start, the Demon Deacons bounced back in the second round, largely due to an incredible 66 (-6) from senior Scotty Kennon. The Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. native put up a bogey-free card, including four birdies on the front nine and two on the back. Kennon’s score was the lowest of the day for the Demon Deacons and the entire field.
One of those birdies was on the second hole, a 548-yard par five that played as the easiest hole on the course throughout the tournament, with an average score of 4.68. However, he managed to post pars on the three hardest holes on the course — 18, 3 and 17 — allowing him to take advantage of the easier holes.
“Scotty held us in today with an unbelievable 66 in the afternoon,” Haas said.
Three of the other starters posted scores of 74 (+2), helping the Demon Deacons end the round with an overall score of even par.
The Demon Deacons ended day one in fourth place, with some work to do in the final round to have any chance of a top three finish.
The standout performer from Monday was senior Marshall Meisel, who posted a 70 (-2) with four birdies. Like Kennon from round two, Meisel took advantage of the first two holes, starting the day with consecutive birdies.
Meisel would end up shooting even for the rest of the round, and a 72 (E) from sophomore Tom Haberer helped the Demon Deacons to a +2 overall score in the final round. This was enough to move up one spot into tied for third with Chattanooga.
On the personal leaderboard, Kennon posted a final round 74 (+2), dropping him to third overall with a total of -2. Kennon was one of just five golfers to finish below par. Haberer finished tied for 14th, with a score of +4.
“After a slow first nine holes, we played some better golf,” Haas said in a postmatch statement. “We are a team that can improve with some confidence and continued belief.”
Wake Forest Men’s Golf will be back in action in two weeks at the General James Hackler Championship in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Contact Tee Johnson at johntg23@wfu.edu
Should March Madness expand?
With rumors regarding the expansion from a field of 68 teams, will it create a better tournament?
NAT WIEGMANN Staff Columnist
This article represents the view of Nat Wiegmann, not the Old Gold & Black.
As March approaches, so does the greatest spectacle in sports — the NCAA Tournament. With its arrival comes a familiar debate: should the current field of 68 teams be expanded?
Advocates argue that adding more teams would increase excitement and opportunity, while critics worry about diluting the tournament’s prestige. With discussions heating up once again, it’s worth looking at. This year is a prime example to end the debate of expansion.
Currently, the tournament includes 68 teams, with 31 earning automatic bids by winning their conference tournaments and the remaining 37 selected by the committee. The last expansion occurred in 2011 with the introduction of the First Four, increasing the field from 64 to 68 teams.
One of the primary arguments for further expansion is the growth of Division I basketball — rising from 282 programs in 2001 to 364 today. With only 18.7% of teams making the tournament, advocates believe a larger field is justified.
While that statistic may seem compelling, this year’s bubble proves why expansion is unnecessary. The current list of bubble teams is among the weakest in recent memory. Of the 16 teams currently
on ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s bubble, 14 have fewer than two Quad 1 wins and/or more than 11 losses. Expanding the tournament to 76 or more teams, as some have proposed, would only lower the standard and make selection feel more like an entitlement than an achievement.
The NCAA Tournament is meant to be a reward for truly deserving teams — either those with strong résumés or those who battled through their conference tournaments. Further expansion would only weaken that significance, making March Madness feel less special.
With the recent wave of conference realignment, the power conferences have grown even stronger. The SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC now feature even more high-level competition, meaning only the truly elite teams from these leagues should be rewarded with at-large bids. Expansion benefits struggling power conference teams that failed to prove themselves despite ample opportunity.
This year’s SEC is one of the most competitive conferences in recent memory, with projections suggesting 12 to 13 teams could make the tournament. Even under the current format, teams with losing conference records are likely to receive at-large bids. Expanding the field would only exacerbate this trend, allowing even more underperforming teams from major conferences to sneak in while diminishing the value of every regular-season game.
One of the defining aspects of college
Wake Forest Men’s Basketball finds itself on the “bubble” once again. In an expanded field, the Demon Deacons would likely make the tournament.
basketball is the weight each game carries. Unlike the NBA, where a long season allows teams to absorb losses, every matchup in college basketball has significant stakes. A single upset or marquee victory can drastically alter a team’s tournament hopes. Expansion would chip away at this dynamic, making regular-season games feel less important and reducing the urgency that makes March Madness so special. Instead of fixing something that isn’t broken, the NCAA should focus on maintaining the tournament’s prestige. March Madness should be about rewarding excellence — not extending invitations to
teams that had every opportunity to prove themselves but fell short.
The current 68-team format strikes the perfect balance. It rewards teams that have truly earned their place while still leaving room for a handful of at-large selections that can add intrigue. Expanding the field any further would only devalue the tournament, turning it into a participation trophy.
The beauty of March Madness lies in its exclusivity. Let’s keep it that way.
Contact Nat Wiegmann at wiegnh23@wfu.edu
Photo Courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics
Scotty Kennon (above) finished third overall amongst all individual golfers in the Colleton River Collegiate at Colleton River Club in Bluffton, S.C.
Evan Harris/ Old Gold & Black
Baseball splits Maryland, Princeton series
Pair of one run losses doom Demon Deacons; Lunceford, Morningstar have great starts
SEAN KENNEDY Sports Editor
Wake Forest Baseball (10-3, 0-0 ACC) experienced a rollercoaster weekend for the first time this season, as the Demon Deacons lost heartbreakers and experienced domination all across the four-game series against the Maryland Terrapins and Princeton Tigers.
Head Coach Tom Walter’s squad came into the weekend with no losses on their home turf at David F. Couch Ballpark all year, having swept their two series against Maryland/LIU and St. John’s beforehand.
Friday vs. Princeton
The Demon Deacons opened up the weekend with a pitching battle, as Logan Lunceford took the mound for the third time this year. After a tough start in which Lunceford let up a single run in the top of the first inning, Lunceford began dealing — including a 1-2-3 second inning.
After a mound visit in the sixth inning, the Demon Deacons turned to experienced reliever Will Ray. Ray, a fourth-year player out of Mars, Pa., did fantastic for an inning worth of work — until catastrophe struck.
After a pitch that Ray threw, he began to hold his arm, and recognized that something was off immediately. After being replaced by reliever Luke Schmolke, Ray went through testing, and Walter later revealed that Ray tore a ligament and would be out for the season.
“When [Ray] walks in a room, he's the guy making sure everyone's going in the right direction,” Logan Lunceford said. “Everybody can lean on him. He's fantastic.”
Princeton had an ace in their pocket, as well, as right-handed starter Sean Episcope earned Ivy League Pitcher of the Week honors for nine strikeouts in five innings. A two-run seventh inning allowed the Demon Deacons to make up the difference, and Wake Forest would win, 3-1.
Saturday vs. Maryland
The second game of the series had a heartbreaking loss for the Demon Deacons, succumbing to the Maryland Terrapins, 9-8.
Maryland got off to a hot start, scoring five runs in the first three innings. The Demon Deacons would bounce back, however, scoring six runs in the bottom of the third inning. Wake Forest launched two home runs in the inning, as both Kade Lewis and Jimmy Keenan rounded the bases.
In the top of the ninth inning, it all came down to a final strike. With one out to finish the game, the Terrapins found clutch hits from Anthony Calarco, Hollis Porter, and Jacob Orr, each of whom earned RBI singles to put the Demon Deacons behind by a single run.
Although the Demon Deacons came back and placed runners in scoring position, it was not enough,
as Marek Houston popped out in foul territory to ensure the Terrapins’ upset.
“That’s as disappointing of a loss as we’ve had in a really long time,” Walter said afterward. “I thought we outplayed them in innings two through eight, and they outplayed us in innings one and nine. That was the difference today.”
Sunday vs. Princeton
In the second matchup against Princeton, the Demon Deacons ended up flat once again, falling to the Tigers, 7-6.
Wake Forest starter Matt Bedford did well for the first two innings, however, ran into trouble in the third, as the Tigers woke up their bats. A seven-run top of the fourth inning would give the Tigers a sizable gap to defend, and defend they did.
“It’s disappointing in the first game that we gave up seven runs with two outs,” Walter said. “We’ve got to find a way with two outs to make a pitch in that situation.”
The Demon Deacons attempted to get offense going throughout the rest of the ballgame, including a chance in the final inning, when Lewis and third baseman Dalton Wentz each knocked in runs to put them down a single run.
Despite the late-game optimism, the Demon Deacons fell to the Tigers after Chris Katz struck out against Princeton closer Jacob Faulkner.
Sunday vs. Maryland
Wake Forest needed to bounce back after losing in consecutive games for the first time this season. With stellar pitching and a high-powered offense, the Demon Deacons did just that, defeating the Terrapins, 9-1.
At first, the game seemed like a pitcher’s battle, as Wake Forest starter Blake Morningstar and Maryland pitcher Logan Hastings held the game scoreless for the first five innings. They’d both finish with seven strikeouts each. Hastings would let up a single run in the fifth inning, as Lewis had a two-strike, two-out RBI single to put the Demon Deacons ahead for the first time of the game.
The Demon Deacons offense would wake up against Maryland pitcher Jack Wren, who let up back-to-back home runs to Ethan Conrad and Jack Winnay. By the time the seventh inning finished, the Demon Deacons were ahead, 6-1.
Wake Forest would add insurance runs in the next half inning after Winnay hit his second home run of the game, knocking in three runs to finish the Terrapins off, 9-1.
The Demon Deacons return to David F. Couch Ballpark this weekend as they head into conference play against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on Friday.
Contact Sean Kennedy at kennsm21@wfu.edu
Amount of points that Cameron Hildreth scored against Notre Dame.
National Ranking for Wake Forest Women's Golf.
Batting Average for Kade Lewis, good for best on the team. Home wins for Men's Basketball in the last four seasons.
Bresky has the Men’s Tennis team at its best in years, with top players like No. 5 DK Suresh Ekamabaram, No. 11 Stefan Dostanic, and No. 65 Ioannis Xilas each playing their best tennis at the moment. Bresky led the Demon Deacons to yet another top-10 win at home against Stanford to open conference play, all after claiming the ITA Indoor Team Championship title in Dallas, Texas. Bresky's squad has also won every double point in each of their 19 matches this season.
We think [Levonas] is going to be a starter for us, and really soon. I was really proud of Chris."
Christopher Wallace/Old Gold & Black
Logan Lunceford (48) gathers himself for a mound visit in the Demon Deacons' 3-1 win against Princeton. Lunceford won ACC Pitcher of the Week the week before, fanning 13 batters against St. John's.
TONY BRESKY
Tom Walter's evaluation of RHP Chris Levonas against Appalachian State
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics
ARTS & CULTURE
Lydia Derris, derrlf23@wfu.edu
THURSDAY, MARCH 6, 2025
schugh24@wfu.edu PAGE 18
Grace
'Young, Gifted, and Black' redefines history
Hanes Art Gallery's "Young, Gifted, and Black" amplifies the voices of Black artists in contemporary art
ALEXANDRA HULL
Contributing Writer
The entrance to Scales Fine Arts center was flooded, as attendees poured into the Hanes Art Gallery. On the evening of Feb. 6., the ‘Hanes After Hours’ event was centered around the “Young, Gifted and Black” exhibition.
Attendees congregated around the exhibit, admired the vibrant artwork on display, enjoyed free food, listened to culturally Black music from a live DJ and joined small group tours led by Wake Forest students.
Winston-Salem marks the traveling exhibition’s ninth stop as it makes its way around the country. “Young, Gifted, and Black: The Lumpkin-Boccuzzi Family Collection of Contemporary Art” highlights artists of African descent whose work explores identity, politics and art history. It will be on display through March 29.
The exhibition showcases an emerging generation of contemporary creators as they grapple with redefining the notion of Blackness in their work. The curators selected pieces that encapsulated four central themes: dramatic use of color, reclamation of the color black, materiality (nontraditional materials) and an expanded idea of portraiture.
“I hope that it’s highlighting artists of
African descent who have historically been underrepresented in museums and galleries so that people can see that these artists are doing so well and they made it,” said Rachael Hayes, assistant director of Hanes Art Gallery. “I hope that they can relate to the artwork, connect with it, and feel inspired by what’s in the exhibition.”
The significance of the exhibition extends far beyond the gallery walls. While the venue offers a glance into the incredible artistic abilities of many Black individuals, it also stimulates a conversation regarding racial underrepresentation in museums and academia. As Wake Forest assesses its own historical ties to slavery, segregation and wealth disparity, events like these provide a necessary window for deeper reflection, discussion and healing.
“This exhibit gives voice to artists who have historically been overlooked,” said Michelle Gong, a sophomore student docent. “It challenges the way we think about identity in art and forces us to engage with its deeper societal implications.”
Hidden among the event’s attendees was Clifford Owens, a Baltimore-born Black artist, whose 2015 piece, “Untitled,” was one of the 51 artworks on display. Owens delivered a lecture exploring his artistic practice the evening prior to the event. While his creative work reflects many of the same themes as his counterparts, Owens emphasizes the importance of redefin-
ing the narrative around Blackness.
“My art is not just Black art — it is American art,” Owens said. “When we constantly label things as ‘Black,’ we further emphasize the divide between races in this country. Art should be about unity, about the shared human experience.”
This opening event was co-hosted by the Intercultural Center and the Hanes Art Gallery. By working together to increase student engagement and attendance, “Hanes After Hours” expands campus awareness of the exhibition and encourages students to connect with the artwork through the establishment of a fun, inviting setting.
“I really think it’s a cool event, I wish I had heard of more things like this,” said Kappi Jernigan, a junior from Atlanta. “I think it’s a good way to celebrate art, especially highlighting the importance of a month like Black History Month in a unique way.”
The organizers of the Hanes Art Gallery are among those leading an effort to increase student traction for the exhibition. One goal of bringing “Young, Gifted, and Black” to Wake Forest is to increase minority student representation, especially given Wake Forest’s traditional status as a predominantly white institution (PWI).
“The pleasure of visual experience is universal,” Owens said. ‘It goes beyond the color of our skin, our family history,
class, religion, gender. Art brings us together, and that is what I want people to take away.”
Although the event received a strong turnout, the efforts for establishing a more equitable and racially inclusive campus are certainly ongoing.
When asked how the Wake Forest community should continue working towards this reality, Owens said that “Love must be at the center of all your discourses. That is all.”
Contact Alexandra Hull at hullal22@wfu.edu
A Musical in 24 Hours…What Like It’s Hard?
The 24 Hour Musical Project's "Legally Blonde" is exactly "What You Want"
KENLEY MCCLURE Staff Writer
Bend, snap and caffeinate was the motto of the production team behind this weekend's musical production of “Legally Blonde.”
On Mar. 1, at 2:30 PM in Brendle Recital Hall, a sold out crowd of 600 gathered to watch the production of “Legally Blonde,” — that was rehearsed and performed entirely within 24 hours.
The production was entirely student run: it was directed by senior Zach Anderson, and exclusively choreographed and performed by students. Rehearsals began a mere 24 hours earlier, on Feb. 28th, at 2:30 PM.
The 24-Hour Musical Project began in 2023 with a production of “Seussical.” This year, the project came back in full force.
My first order of business is applauding the musical selection this year. Not only is “Legally Blonde” popular and catchy, but those who haven’t heard of the musical have likely heard of the movie. And so, although lines were missed and the set was modest in comparison to other shows at Wake Forest, audiences still could grasp and enjoy what was going on.
The aforementioned scant forgotten lines were not a major source of critique, however. Even though the cast put together the entire show in 24 hours, there were very few line flubs or awkward moments. Any of those moments that did occur were made up for by the sheer enthusiasm of the performers.
Onto some standouts in the production. I would be remiss to not mention the true pulse of the show: senior MaryAnna Bailey, who played Elle Woods. Bailey was lovable and hilarious, perfectly encapsulating the spunk that makes Elle a fan-favorite. My favorite moment of hers actually came during one of the show’s ballads, “Legally Blonde.” Her angelic vocals and emotional range were on full display — I literally got goosebumps.
Speaking of angelic voices, senior Ellie Howell playing hairstylist Paulette Bonufante was pure perfection. Howell was genuine and earnest, and had everyone in the room rooting for her. Her ballad “Ireland,” where she details her yearning for an Irish lover and better future, was my personal favorite part of the show.
Elle and Paulette both were supported by
the cheerful “Greek chorus” played by sophomores Mary Caroline Kohlar and Carly Galbreth, as well as senior Olivia Goldstruck. All three performers brought an energy and sass that made it hard to believe they had all been up for 24 hours rehearsing.
Sophomores Bradley Jiang and Gavin Swartz, as Emmett Forest and Warner Huntington III respectively, were brilliant foils. While Jiang’s Emmett was awkward but kind, Swartz’s Warner was the kind of character that as an audience member, you love to hate. Both brought powerful vocals and an astute eye for comedy, the latter particularly on display during some of their zingers in the courtroom.
There’s no way I could not mention senior Conner Milstead’s Professor Callahan. Milstead’s “Blood in the Water,” — an integral song in setting the tone of Harvard’s cutthroat
atmosphere — did just that. Milstead commands the stage, and also delivers a nuanced performance that foreshadows Callahan’s villainous arc.
This show was emblematic of the notion: “there are no small parts, just small actors,” as some of the best moments came from minor characters. For instance, anytime senior Patrick Fenlon’s flirtatious Kyle, the UPS man appeared on stage, the audience was filled with laughter. Other laughter-inducing moments came from the Harvard admissions office trio of sophomore Bennett Haara and seniors Andrew Cibik and Will Rothschild. Acting as the group reviewing Elle’s unique law school application.
As someone who is involved in dance at Wake Forest, I am no stranger to Scales — I consistently see the hard work that the Theatre department puts into their productions. Typically, musicals, plays and other theatrical productions are huge time commitments with long and involved rehearsal processes.
However, the 24 Hour Musical Project allowed talented students who otherwise might not have had the time to be in a musical at Wake Forest to take the stage.
So, the next time someone says there's only 24 hours in a day, you can reply that’s enough time to put on an entire musical.
Contact Kenley McClure at mcclkj23@wfu.edu
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Schuringa,
The cast of the 24 Hour Musical Project's "Legally Blonde" celebrates under a pink shower of confetti at the conclusion of their show.
Kenley McClure/Old Gold & Black
Lydia Derris/Old Gold & Black
The exhibit showcases an emerging generation of black creatives.
Wake Forest Dance Team battles lack of support at UDA
Injuries,
illness, and inexperience derail the Wake Forest Dance Team’s bid for success at UDA Nationals
MARIA SILVERIA & COLLYN BALLENTINE News Editor & Staff Writer
Fevers burned and energy drained as the Wake Forest Dance Team’s jazz routine failed to advance past prelims at the Universal Dance Association College Dance Nationals (UDA) on Jan. 17.
With some teammates sidelined and others struggling through illness, their usual sharpness wavered. As the music pulsed and the crowd roared, the dancers hit their opening formation— but something was off.
“Competitive athletes are what makes great people, because they have a goal that they saw at the end, that they worked so hard for,” Head Coach Christy Creson emphasized the importance of the journey over the result.
The nation’s most elite college dance teams gather each year at UDA Nationals at the ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, FL. The event hosts powerhouse programs like the University of Minnesota and Louisiana State University — teams with deep-rooted dominance in the dance world. Wake Forest’s Dance Team was the smallest school competing in Division 1A.
Leading up to the competition, the team was met with several roadblocks, which ultimately led to its inability to advance to the semifinals. As the dancers took the stage, more than half were sick. There were also various last-minute costume, dance and music changes in the weeks prior. By the end of the weekend, even Volunteer Assistant Coach and former member of the team, Sarah Binkley, had the flu.
“The girls who were already feeling sick were just dragging,” Binkley said. “I didn’t know if they would even make it to the jazz performance that night. It was looking really rough.”
Last year, the Wake Forest Dance Team reached the semifinals in the competitive Jazz category, marking a major milestone for the program. While this year's team secured a second-place finish in the Game Day Live category, their Jazz routine failed to advance past preliminaries.
This year’s team featured 13 new dancers, including 11 freshmen. Many had to adjust to the physical and technical demands of
“We
don’t get workouts. We don’t get nutrition. We don’t get any of that."
“Competitive athletes are what makes great people, because they have a goal
worked so hard for,” Head Coach Christy Creson emphasized the
college-level dance and juggle the stress of sorority recruitment — which overlapped with their preparation for Nationals.
Senior Hannah Brown, the only fourthyear dancer on the team, noted that the team dynamic shifted as underclassmen outnumbered veterans.
“There’s a power in numbers,” Brown said. “And there’s definitely been a culture shift.”
Creson explained the opportunity for growth that can come out of training a team made up of predominantly underclassmen.
“At one point your team will be young, and you use that as your learning year,” Creson said. “So when teams say, ‘this was the year we grew,’ it's usually when you have a very young team. I think this year, they've just been dealt a lot of tough hands.”
Sophomore dancer Lauren Bettuchi also expressed the overwhelming impact that recruitment had on the team in the week leading up to the competition.
“The most stressful events for people on the dance team are probably going to be rush and UDA, and they happen to be on the same week,” Bettuchi said.
Sorority recruitment (commonly referred to as “rush”) at Wake is an intense, four-day process that demands long hours of conversations with sorority members, leaving many potential new members physically and emotionally drained. With 60% of women at Wake Forest involved in Greek life, the pressure to make a decision that will shape the next four years is significant. The stress of getting asked back to preferred sororities — combined with the reality that a sorority choice, or opting out entirely, heavily influences social life on campus — can feel overwhelming, especially for dancers already managing late-night practices ahead of UDA Nationals.
Adding to the instability was a coaching
transition — one of the team’s two head coaches departed last year, leaving Creson to adjust to a new leadership dynamic. Assistant Coach Anne Forbes' experience at Wake lies primarily with the Gold Cheer team, which places more emphasis on performances at various sporting events, rather than competitions. While Forbes brings positive energy and enthusiasm, the shift has left coaches stretched thin.
In 2024, Wake Forest’s Dance Team returned to UDA Nationals for the first time since 2016. While the team has competed sporadically in the past, its focus on competition is a recent development. During the 2021–2022 school year, Creson collaborated with the athletic department to rebrand the team as the “Dazzling Deacs,” shifting their focus from primarily performing at sporting events to becoming a more competitive program.
The past three years have been an uphill battle, led by Creson, to get more institutional support. Creson secured an athletic trainer for the team in 2022, but gaps remain between the dance team and other athletic teams. Although the dance team is Division I, they do not have access to strength trainers or the athletes-only gym at Wake Forest.
“We don’t get workouts. We don’t get nutrition. We don’t get any of that,” senior Dani O’Keefe, a team captain, said. “And that’s kinda messed up.”
The program lacks a dedicated academic advisor, offers no priority registration for classes, and provides limited access to mental health resources — challenges that compound during the demanding, year-round commitment of performing for five collegiate sports teams. The team typically trains three times a week for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, excluding team meetings and film sessions. In competition season, practices often run
they
they
late, and unofficial rehearsals run by students are common.
“We’re the only athletes on campus that go all year long,” Binkley said. “We don’t have an offseason. We cover football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and volleyball—on top of competing at the highest level.”
The team trains on a volleyball court instead of Marley flooring, the standard for dance competitions. Without mirrors, they rely heavily on film study to clean their routines. While some athletes receive specialized strength training, the dancers have no dedicated lifting coach or structured workouts tailored to their needs.
Despite these obstacles, Creson remains optimistic about the young program’s future.
“Every year, we keep moving forward,” Creson said. “We’re building something that lasts and these dancers are setting the foundation for future success. The commitment they show despite all these challenges is what makes this team special.”
Despite the setbacks during the national competition, the team has made strides as a competitive team, with dancers now being actively recruited. Some members, like sophomore transfer Jessy Velez, specifically sought out Wake’s dance team because of its growing reputation.
While their Jazz performance didn’t reach the semifinals, the team left Orlando determined to return stronger.
“They put blood, sweat, and tears into this for just two minutes on stage,” Creson said. “And maybe you get to do it again, maybe you don’t. There’s no ‘next game’ for us. But they still showed up and they’ll be back.”
Contact Maria Silveria & Collyn Ballentine at silvmt@wfu.edu & ballcs21@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics
Photo courtesy @wakedanceteam on Instagram
that
saw at the end, that
importance of the journey over the result.
The Crossword
ACROSS
1. Split ___ soup
3. Poe bird
7. _ ___ , skip and a jump
10. Software developer's creation, for short 11. Coke rival 14. Accredited soda 17. "Do the ____!"
18. Put back to zero
19. Star Wars sporting event 21. Congresswoman Omar
Molecule part
Turkish hat
Period of time
Company, abbr.
"Skyfall" singer
NYC borough
Touchdown 35. Chris, Andrew, or Mario from New York 36. The Buckeye State 39. Boot country 40. __ or off
42. Capital of Virginia
45. "Not Like Us" abbr.
46. Muppet frog
47. Steady flow
48. Car sticker abbr.
49. Cold prefix
51. Assistant to professor, initials
52. More repulsive
54. Roman Cath. title
56. Antlered animal
58. Pager
59. ___ Parks
60. Defibrillator abbr.
61. ARG. neighbor
62. Advil alternative
OLIVER HALE Design Chief
DOWN
2. Corn unit
3. List of priors
4. Show up
5. S-shaped country in S.E. Asia
6. No problem
7. "Ad ___" (2019 sci-fi film with Brad Pitt)
8. Part of a drum kit
9. Pikachu franchise
11. Angsty genre
13. Bachelor ___
14. Help out (3 words)
15. Sports betting platform
16. Snakelike fish
19. Subject for George Washington Carver
20. Pepsi rival
24. Erectile dysfunction
26. Shakespeare play, or small village
30. Psychedelic experience (2 words)
31. Residential community org.
32. Delivery from Santa
34. ____ & gloom
37. Hello
38. Former NFLer Michael portrayed in "The Blind Side"
41. X or V in Latin
43. Dr. Pepper knockoff
44. 5 cents
45. Actor Liam
47. "My bad"
48. Y chromosome carrier
50. Throw, slang
51. Sweet, green, or iced
53. Corporate head honcho
54. G.I. grub
55. Greensboro airport abbr.
57. Hooper Durant initials
Contact Oliver Hale at haleop21@wfu.edu
Cugino Forno goes vegan-friendly
Nestled in the heart of Winston-Salem’s Innovation Quarter — an eight-minute trip on the Wake Line from campus — Cugino Forno marries old-world Italian charm with a lively, modern atmosphere.
Located on the first floor of the historic Bailey Power Plant, the 5,800-square-foot space takes on an industrial-chic vibe — vaulted ceilings, exposed brick walls, and the soft hum of conversation from families and friends sharing slices of authentic, Neapolitan pizza.
I visited Cuginos (for the umpteenth time) on Wednesday, Jan. 29, for a sorority dinner. We chose Cugino because the atmosphere is fun and eclectic, the menu and drinks are affordable and they have a vegan option — as I am dairy-free and pescatarian.
Cugino Forno operates on a simple, streamlined system: order at the counter, then settle in at one of the large communal tables. The menu is refreshingly straightforward, allowing the food and ingredients to speak for themselves. For those who enjoy a drink with their meal, the restaurant serves a wide selection of wine and beer.
For those seeking a meal that aligns with plant-based eating, Cugino Forno’s menu offers a rare find in the world of traditional pizzerias: the marinara pizza.
Featuring San Marzano tomato sauce, fresh garlic, and oregano, the deceptively plain pizza was bursting with flavor. The chewy, slightly charred crust — baked to
perfection in their 900-degree oven imported from Naples — complements the rich, tangy tomato sauce and aromatic garlic. It was proof that great pizza doesn’t need cheese to be memorable.
It’s a small, but significant, nod to inclusivity in an industry that often overlooks dietary diversity.
As someone who values sustainable and ethical food choices, I was heartened to see how Cugino Forno bridges tradition with modern dietary preferences. Though wellsteeped in the history of Neapolitan pizza, the restaurant remains forward-thinking in its offerings and approach to community dining.
In addition to the incredible pizza, the restaurant’s atmosphere is wonderful for group dinners. A warm blend of a family-friendly atmosphere and vibrant energy, Cugino Forno feels like a community hub. The restaurant offers plenty of seating, including outdoor tables, that make the most of its Innovation Quarter location.
At its core, Cugino Forno is a testament to the power of tradition and quality. Founded by three cousins — Joseph, Yilmaz, and Adam — who grew up in Turkey, the restaurant is rooted in their deep appreciation for the craft of Neapolitan pizza. After spending time in Naples learning from master pizzaiolos, the trio returned to the U.S. with a mis-
sion to bring authentic Italian pizza to the Southeast.
“Pizza is more than a meal. It’s an art and a way of life for us,” said the cousins in a statement on their website. “We take pride in our craftsmanship, attention to detail, quality ingredients, and personal connection with each and every one of you.”
Their commitment to authenticity is evident in every detail. Close to 80% of the ingredients are imported directly from Italy. Even the ovens contain stone from Mount Vesuvius, a nod to the origins of Neapolitan pizza.
Cugino Forno’s dedication to quality has resonated with the community since the opening of its Winston-Salem location in 2019. The space not only preserves the industrial charm of the Bailey Power Plant but also transforms it into a gathering place where stories are shared over slices.
So, whether you’re a pizza purist, a veganfoodie or simply someone who enjoys a good meal in a great setting, Cugino Forno is well worth the visit.
From the first bite to the last, the restaurant delivers on its promise to wow — through food, ambiance, and hospitality.
If you haven’t stopped by yet, consider making the short walk from Wake Downtown to Innovation Quarter. You’ll leave not just with a full stomach, but with a newfound appreciation for the craft and care that go into every pizza.