Feb. 24, 2021 | The Reflector

CMYK

THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANAPOLIS • FOUNDED 1922 • INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA VOL.

99

I S S UE 8

reflector.uindy.edu

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Contributed Photos by Hirons

University of Indianapolis sophomore sport management major Will Loggan poses on the set of one of the "It's Our Shot" public service announcements at Key Stadium. The PSA by the Indiana State Department of Health is part of the state's larger effort to encourage Hoosiers to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. The PSA aired across Indiana during Super Bowl LV on Feb. 7. Loggan's father, Paul, a UIndy alumnus, died of COVID-19 in April 2020.

Father's legacy honored in COVID-19 PSA

By Taylor Strnad

MANAGING EDITOR On Feb. 7, during Super Bowl LV, roughly 1.6 million Hoosiers were urged to get the COVID-19 vaccine by an advertisement the Indiana State Department of Health aired. The star of the PSA was University of Indianapolis sophomore sport management major Will Loggan.

L oggan lost his father, Paul Loggan, to COVID-19 back in April of 2020, according to The Indianapolis

State of the UIndy heading into 2021

By Noah Crenshaw EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a twopart series about the state of the University of Indianapolis heading into 2021. The second, and final, part will be published on March 10.

2020 was a year full of events that led to unprecedented changes to the lives of students,faculty and staff at the University of Indianapolis. Among the changes imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the nationwide reckoning on racial justice, the university also dealt with staffing changes among the highest levels of its administration.

Former Executive Vice President and Provost Stephen Kolison, Jr. announced he would be leaving after nearly three years at the university in June 2020, leading to University President Robert Manuel asking Mary Beth Bagg to assume the role of interim vice president and provost. Fast forward to now, in February 2021, and Manuel said he is hopeful about UIndy’s future.

Tuition In December 2020, UIndy announced that tuition, room and board and other fees would increase for the 2021-22 academic year. Following the > See University on page 8

Star. Paul left a legacy behind not only at UIndy as an All-American football player, but as a teacher, administrator and coach at North Central High School in Indianapolis.

Paul graduated in 1985 and was inducted into the UIndy Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012 for his contributions to the f oot bal l team. D ur ing his tenure, he was team captain, lettered all four years, finished his career ranked in the school’s top 10 in career tackles and named defensive player from 1982-1984, according to UIndy Athletics.

He was known throughout the entire state. The day after his death, schools across Indiana left their stadium lights on to honor him. UIndy, Franklin College, Indiana University and Butler all left their stadium lights on that night, according to IndyStar.

Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Young said that this was not the university’s idea, but the governor’s idea, to revolve the PSA around football and Paul Loggan and his legacy within the city and state.

“Being an athletic director in the city and his connection to football and

they were just kind of searching the internet and came across the PSA that Will [Loggan] did wearing a mask for UIndy and that’s how they actually connected to Will and the family and kind of put two and two together and it just kind of went from there,” Young said.

The PSA is a part of the state’s “It’s Our Shot” public awareness campaign, urging Hoosiers to get vaccinated, according to the state’s website. Loggan was filmed at UIndy’s Key Stadium wearing his football jersey. During the 30-second PSA, Loggan talks about

his family’s experience and urges people to get vaccinated.

Loggan said that filming the PSA was surreal and a good experience. He said it felt good to impact the whole state and send out a message to share his family’s story and hopefully people will go out and get the vaccine. Loggan said he was one of the first people to see it.

“It gave me goosebumps when I saw it for the first time,” Loggan said.

“I went in to do the voice over and I got to see it before they released it and so it was pretty cool to actually sit there and be like the first person to see it.”

Dance Marathon hosts annual event

Over $40,000 raised for Riley Hospital for Children, virtually and in-person

By Amber Beraun STAFF WRITER

The jungle-themed 13th annual University of Indianapolis Dance Marathon fundraiser had to take a different format this year to adhere to COVID-19 guidelines. The event was held on Saturday, Feb. 13, in Schwitzer Student Center where there was food, decorations and dancing.

Senior public health major and UIndy DM President Jessica Koons said the yearly fundraising event included three rooms for social distance morale dancing, games and raffles and a Twitch livestream for those participating from home. According to Koons, the event was split into two sessions with the groups rotating between rooms to keep the capacity at 25 people or less per room. She said sanitation periods between rotations were implemented to keep the areas clean.

“It gives me a lot of pride… that we were able to persevere through everything and figure out a safe way to host this hybrid marathon so that we could give people part of the in-person experience, while also keeping them safe and letting them continue regardless of if they were needing to be in-person or online,” Koons said. “I’m just really proud that we were able to pull that

INSIDE: NEWS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3, 8 OPINION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 SPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 5 FEATURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 ENTERTAINMENT . . . . . . . . . .7

Photo by Kiara Conley

Members of the UIndy Dance Marathon Executive Board presents the total amount that UIndy DM raised for Riley Hospital for Children on Feb. 13 in Schwitzer Student Center. The 2021 Dance Marathon offered a virtual livestream for the event due to COVID-19.

off.”

According to Koons, the money raised by UIndy DM helps fund child life programs and research at Riley Hospital for Children.

Half of the donations go to the Herman B. Wells Center for Pediatric Research and the other half goes to the different child life programs in the hospital.

“Not a lot of other marathons get to fund research and child life, so we really like that because it directly impacts the patients there. It’s nice to have that

connection,” Koons said.

Dance Marathon’s closing ceremony revealed the team’s $42,526.13 fundraising total. Koons said this ceremony was limited to the executive team and the top ten non-executive fundraisers to keep capacity low.

The award for top executive fundraiser went to the UIndy DM executive board’s Vice President of Finance Kyle Kamminga who raised $2,704, the award for top committee member fundraiser went to Rosemar y Hemmelgarn who raised $1,070 and

the award for top dancer fundraiser went to Kaylee Rulong who raised $406.

Junior communication major and UIndy DM Director of Operations Erin Phillips said the practice of live streaming this event was new this year, allowing participants to be involved virtually if they were uncomfortable attending in-person. She said depending on how it goes this year, UIndy DM hopes to continue to livestream in the future.

Phillips said the Riley children > See DM on page 3

INACCURATE REPRESENTATIONS

BLACK MALE INITIATIVE

JUSTICE CHOIR

Inaccurate representation of under-represented groups is prevalent in mainstream cinema and can spread misinformation.

We need to reject offensive, harmful film portrayals in favor of authentic performances.

The Black Male Initiative is an organization that supports male students of color in the pursuit of academic and professional development and success.

Antonio Toliver speaks regarding his bringing BMI to UIndy and the initiative's plans and goals.

Started by Dr. Webb Parker, the Justice Choir focuses on activism with the goal of providing a creative outlet for the UIndy Community, according to Amber Smith.

> See OPINION

> See FEATURE

> See ENTERTAINMENT

2

OPINION

THE REFLECTOR

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Mental well-being Techniques to deal with the stress of attending college

By Jazlyn Gomez

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Mental health is something that affects us all, whether we like it or not.

Many factors can affect our well-being, but I think school particularly impacts college students' mental health. The pressure that school puts on students can negatively affect students’ wellbeing and can lead to increases in depression, anxiety, and the number of students dropping out, according to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center.

If schools want to encourage better retention levels and promote student well-being, then they must help students manage stress. Thankfully, the university does provide access to therapists and support groups through the Student Counseling Center. But I wish there were more accessible resources that can be used when needed.

Personally, I have dealt with mental health problems many times.Thankfully, with the help of others and myself, I have been able to find coping skills that keep me grounded and relaxed.

As someone who has anxiety and overthinks almost every assignment, I have found these strategies extremely helpful. Without them, I honestly do not know where I would be in college.

When times get really hard for me, I immediately practice grounding techniques. According to psychotherapist Sarah Allen, grounding can take many different forms, but I have found one particular form to be the most effective. The technique I use is called the 5-4-3-2-1 technique.

This technique involves the senses and remembering the present moment. The five steps consist of naming five things you can see, four things you can feel, three things you can hear, two things you can smell and one thing you can taste. I usually practice these freely and without a specific order. This specific coping skill really helps me regulate my breathing and control my racing thoughts.

When I am not so anxious and instead feel burned out from Zoom classes and homework, I turn to another strategy: 10-minute breaks. Whenever I do homework, I make sure to take quick breaks. I usually watch YouTube during these.

For example, as a communication major, I have to write many papers for my courses. So, I get drained quickly and struggle to come up with writing ideas. Whenever I get an assignment, whatever it may be, I complete a quarter of it and then hop onto YouTube. I watch a fun, lighthearted video that

Photo contributed by Nathan Herbst

University of Indianapolis junior Nathan Herbst (right) and University of AlabamaHuntsville junior Alex Herbst (left) at a track meet in Huntsville, Alabama in March 2020.

Twins in college

By Nathan Herbst People always tell me they wished they had a twin, and I used to always wonder why. I have an identical twin brother and didn’t think growing up with one was all that special, to be honest. But being a twin myself caused me to lose sight of the minor miracle this phenomenon is. The odds of two people separately and naturally being born with exactly the same genetic sequence are infinitesimally low. Yet genetics allows twins to be born much more often than sheer chance would allow.

Whenever anyone finds out that I have an identical twin brother, I am almost always asked at least one of the following questions: Who’s older?

Have you ever switched places or tried to trick anyone? Do you know what the other is thinking? That last question is the most painful one to deal with. I was asked these questions frequently when I lived in my hometown with my twin, but after we decided to go to different colleges I was no longer asked these somewhat cliché (to me, at least) inquiries because I did not have a doppelgänger beside me. More than halfway through my third year of college, I almost find myself missing those annoying but comfortingly familiar questions, even though they always irked me as I was growing up.

Separating from my brother was hard for me. Leaving someone you had spent so much time with would be hard for anyone. After all, we had come into the world and learned to crawl and walk and talk together. Until we went to college, the longest we had been away from each other was barely more than a week. But as we grew and matured, our interests gradually diverged and beckoned us down different paths.

My brother and I shared a lot in common. We still do. We both run

NCAA Division II cross country and track and have similar personality traits, mannerisms and interests. Being around someone who quite literally saw life through the same set of eyes was nice. But our hometown had us tied together. Many friends, teachers, classmates and acquaintances saw us as a package deal — two people who not only looked the same, but talked the same, acted the same, were the same.

Developing a distinct personal identity under these circumstances was a little difficult. We always had to define ourselves in relation to the other and were never really given the opportunity to carve out separate identities. This was not necessarily a bad thing, but I felt a little left out because nearly every person I knew had this chance and I did not. I found myself not wanting to escape my brother by going to a different school but just curious as to what I would find out about myself when we headed out on our own.

So going to the same college was low on our priority list when searching for schools. We didn’t intend to go so far from each other, but sometimes life takes you in surprising directions.

Arriving at college, I felt the same sense of liberation many people feel when they first experience living on their own. I also felt more like an average person and less like a genetic oddity. I was no longer known as “one of the twins” but could instead introduce myself to others in whatever way I pleased.

My relationship with my brother is still a close one and very valuable to me, and I wouldn’t give up being a twin for anything. But everyone eventually comes to a time when they must find out for themselves who they are, and not define themselves according to a single role. We are complex beings with many interests and relationships that miraculously converge into a single identity. But only one person can decide who you really are and what you value in life: you.

prone restraint.

According to disabilityrightsca.org, prone restraint is a method of extended restraint against an individual. This method can put the restrained at risk of injury, including asphyxiation or death, according to disabilityrightsca.org.

Despite this practice being potentially lethal, multiple autistic people and disability advocates have said “Music” portrays prone restraint as a correct way to aid an autistic person when he or she is having a meltdown, according to buzzfeed.com.

The film’s director, Sia, said the scenes would be removed and a warning statement would be added to the film, according to The Rolling Stone. However, that these depictions of autism and prone restraint happened at all seems immensely irresponsible to me. If just one person, having seen the unaltered film, concludes that prone restraint is a safe method for aiding autistic people, in my opinion, damage already has been done.

To be clear, I am in no way saying that “Music” or any single film

is responsible for the widespread stigmatization and misunderstanding of autism. However, in a digitized world where misinformation is easily shared, the public should not underestimate the potential harm.

While oftentimes the goal of the filmmaker is to manipulate reality or create an escapist fantasy, the lives and identities of real-world underrepresented groups are not some fun house display for presumptuous actors and hackneyed directors to exploit. Filmmakers must handle these sensitive subjects with tact. The consequences of failing to do so can be severe.

Dismantling harmful mindsets and systems of oppression neither begins nor ends with better media representation. Even in a world where all underrepresented roles were portrayed by actors of their characters’ respective identities, the work still would be far from over. That being said, rejecting offensive, harmful film portrayals in favor of authentic performances would be a step in the right direction.

OPINION EDITOR

Graphic by Jazlyn Gomez

is no longer than 10 minutes. After that video, I bring myself back to the assignment. That small break seems always to help me get through the rest of the assignment.

Another technique I use to lessen the stress of school is to make time for myself and find a creative outlet. When I look at my assignments due for the week, I check to see when I can fit in a day free of work. By declaring one day of the week as my day off, I end up completing assignments faster and with less stress, because I have a day to spend

as I choose. But the demands of school work often limit my opportunities to express creativity. So I end up painting or drawing on my days off. Having these outlets relieves the pressure I often feel from school. I enjoy my day, forget about everything and focus on things I find fun.

I have learned many ways to strengthen my sense of well-being.

These are simply my usual go-tos.

Ultimately, any healthy coping strategy that works for you is probably a good one.

he put on were problematic. For instance, Corden’s character frequently spoke with emphasized diction on certain consonants and acted in a feminine manner, which are trademark stereotypes of gay men, according to huffpost.com. As such, I think the problem is less about a heterosexual actor playing a gay character and more about his playing what many casual moviegoers may view as “the gay character.”

Now, I am not trying to say that this single performance in this single movie is solely responsible for the reinforcement of LGBTQ+ stereotypes in our wider society. But it is indicative of a larger issue. According to novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, in her TEDTalk “The danger of a single story,” stereotypes are not necessarily untrue, but they are incomplete.

Adichie’s words lay out the problem perfectly. These stereotypes of gay men allow the cisgender, heterosexual majority to view LGBTQ+ people as “the other” — incapable of acting, thinking or being anything like them.

The most ironic thing in the case of “The Prom” is that Glickman’s characterization would be a non-issue if an LGBTQ+ actor, who sincerely embodied these inflections and mannerisms, were portraying him.

But that is not the case, and Corden definitely should be held to scrutiny.

I wish stereotype reinforcement

Film misrepresentation harms minorities

By Noah Fields FEATURE EDITOR

Mainstream filmmakers’ misrepresentation of minority groups is nothing new. However, particularly egregious recent examples remind the filmgoing public that such film portrayals in some cases may be stereotypical, may misinform and may be hurtful.

“The Prom,” a film adaptation of the eponymous Broadway musical, was released on Netflix on Dec. 11, 2020.

Controversy arose about James Corden, a heterosexual actor, playing Barry Glickman, a gay character, especially after Corden received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his performance.

Truth be told, I know LGBTQ+ people who did not mind Corden’s performance. And as a member of the LGBTQ+ community myself, I do not find his performance particularly alarming. However, I still believe the vocal inflections and bodily gestures

THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANAPOLIS

The Reflector is a student publication, and the opinions contained herein are not necessarily those of the University of Indianapolis. The Reflector is dedicated to providing news to the university community fairly and accurately.

Letters to the editor, suggestions, corrections, story ideas and other correspondence should be addressed to The Reflector, Esch Hall, Room 333, or sent via electronic mail to reflector@uindy.edu.

NOTE: To be considered for publication, letters must include a valid name and telephone

number, which will be verified. Letters are subject to condensation and editing to remove profanity.

Submission of a letter gives The Reflector permission to publish it in print or online. All submissions become the property of The Reflector in perpetuity.

Advertisers: The Reflector welcomes advertisers both on and off campus. Advertising rates vary according to the patron’s specifications. For advertising, contact 317-788-2517.

Readers: You are entitled to a single copy of this paper. Additional copies may be purchased with prior approval for 50 cents each by contacting The Reflector business manager.Taking multiple copies of this paper may constitute theft, and anyone who does so may be subject to prosecution and/ or university discipline.

Rejecting offensive, harmful film portrayals ... is a step in the right direction. were the worst harm these inaccurate portrayals could cause, but “Music,” released on Feb. 10, 2021, suggests that the potential harm could be more severe. “Music” tells the story of a girl with autism, played by Maddie Ziegler, a non-autistic actor. While my preceding concerns about stereotyping apply here, what makes “Music” especially concerning is its depiction of

STAFF DIRECTORY EDITORS / MANAGERS

EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS

STAFF

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.................................NOAH CRENSHAW • crenshawn@uindy.edu MANAGING EDITOR......................................TAYLOR STRNAD • strnadt@uindy.edu NEWS EDITOR.................................................KIARA CONLEY • conleykf@uindy.edu SPORTS EDITOR...........................................JACOB WALTON • waltonja@uindy.edu FEATURE EDITOR................................................NOAH FIELDS • fieldsn@uindy.edu ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR.......................HALLIE GALLINAT • gallinath@uindy.edu OPINION EDITOR........................................NATHAN HERBST • herbstn@uindy.edu ONLINE EDITOR..........................................MADISON GOMEZ • gomezm@uindy.edu PHOTO EDITOR.............................................JACOB WALTON • waltonja@uindy.edu ART DIRECTOR.............................................ETHAN GERLING• gerlinge@uindy.edu BUSINESS MANAGER.............................OLIVIA CAMERON • camerono@uindy.edu DISTRIBUTION MANAGER....................GISELLE VALENTIN • valenting@uindy.edu ADVISER..................................................JEANNE CRISWELL • jcriswell@uindy.edu

KASSANDRA DARNELL......................... darnellk@uindy.edu JAZLYN GOMEZ....................................... gomezj@uindy.edu

AMBER BERAUN KESHON GRIFFIN DASHANEE HUNTER BRETT PINNA WILLIAM RIDDELL ALEX VELA ANIKA YODER

THE REFLECTOR • 1400 EAST HANNA AVENUE INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA 46227

Contact Us: The Reflector office 317-788-3269 Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. 317-788-3269 after hours or fax 317-788-3490.

NEWS

3

THE REFLECTOR

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Corrections The Reflector acknowledges its mistakes.

When a mistake occurs, we will print corrections.

If you catch a mistake, please contact us at reflector@uindy.edu.

On Page 2, in the article "Biden's plan for colleges is great," we cut off the end of the story.

The full article can be read online at reflector. uindy.edu.

On Page 4, in the article "Track shakes of Rust," we misspelled senior thrower Katrinia Hopkins’ and junior pole vaulter Brittney Clark‘s first names.

In the photo caption of the article, we misspelled senior thrower Katrinia Hopkins’ first name.

We apologize for these errors.

DM from page 1

Photo by Dashanee Hunter

University of Indianapolis Center for Advising and Student Achievement Assistant Director Sunni Manges works with a student in her office in Schwitzer Student Center. Manges is in charge of the university's new Student Solution Center, which launched in November 2020. The center helps direct students to answers for questions they have about the university.

Student Solution Center opens

By Amber Beraun STAFF WRITER

One of the newest additions to the University of Indianapolis is the Student Solution Center, which launched in November 2020. Located in Schwitzer Student Center Room 206 and available online, this center was formed as a way for students to easily become connected with the university offices to find answers to all their questions from financial aid inquiries to assistance with registration and getting rid of holds.

Universit y President Rober t Manuel said the students at UIndy have to engage with lots of different entities and organizations.

Students are often sent to the right office, but have to do it themselves, he said. By being disconnected due to COVID-19, he said it made sense to have an educational navigator for students who had questions or needed opportunities to be made for them.

The conversation for this started and

Manuel gave the idea over to the Sunni Manges, assistant director of the Center for Advising and Student Achievement, or CASA. “[The Student Solution Center] is a new approach using a way to access the existing really good services that are already available for folks that just need a concierge person to walk them through it,” Manuel said.

“It’s a guide for a student to figure out how to really solve questions so that they’re not suffering in silence or figuring out how to navigate it themselves.”

Manges is in charge of the Student Solution Center and directing students to the answers they need. According to Manges, the center helps all students— freshmen to seniors — with any questions they have, ranging from financial aid to registration.

“The idea is that any question that a student brings to the center to Sunni [Manges] … gets stewarded to an answer,” Manuel said. “So, a student would come in and explain their question to Sunni, and Sunni would

help them call the office or probably, maybe even do the work herself and let the student know so that the student doesn't have to go to two or three or four different offices to figure out the solution.”

According to Manuel, Manges i s c on n e c t e d t o a l m o s t e ve r y administrative office on campus and she is uniquely positioned to know who, where and what needs to be connected. He said Manges has a pretty unique background that allows her to understand how to navigate and has the mentality to care about student success.

Manges said she is glad students feel comfortable coming to her for help.

“I’ve been around this university for a really long time, been an advisor to a lot of you [students],” Manges said. “So, hopefully, I’ve made a connection and a relationship there where people feel comfortable coming to me and know they can be real and get some real answers too. That’s what I strive for.”

Manges said the requests come to

New event reward program Greyhound Rewards designed to gain students' interest

By Hallie Gallinat

ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR A new system has been added for University of Indianapolis’s events called Greyhound Rewards.This system, created by the Student Activities Team and the Office of Student Affairs, was added this semester, according to Assistant Director of Student Activities Bridget Webster.

How the system works is that students receive points from attending weekend programs, according to MyUIndy.

Students scan a QR code, located at the check-in table of the events, using the UIndy App, according to Assistant Director of Student Activities Nicole Schuch. The points students receive are tracked by Student Affairs, according to MyUIndy.

“We [Student Affairs] review it that following Monday,” Schuch said.

“So if we have programs on Friday and Saturday, which we do, on Monday we'll review it, enter it into our spreadsheet, and then we'll contact the students that reached a certain tier. If it's Tier 10 or Tier 15, we'll contact them to let them know what they have unlocked in their level, and then they can come pick up their incentive prize here in Student Affairs.”

There are different levels of prizes, according to Schuch. These prizes range from T-shirts, tumblers, hands-free touch tools and lanyards. Students earn their first prize, a hands-free touch tool, when they attend two events, according to Student Leadership and Activities Board (SLAB) Operations Chair Craig-Anesu Chigadza. If students attend all 38 events throughout the semester, they earn dinner with a campus celebrity, such as Vice President for Student and Campus Affairs Kory Vitangeli or University President Robert Manuel, according to Schuch.

Prizes can be claimed in Schwitzer

Student Center Room 210, she said.

According to Chigadza, Greyhound Rewards also apply to virtual events, and the QR code will be made available at the beginning of the event. However, these events must already be Greyhound Rewards eligible, according to Schuch. The points are also cumulative, Chigadza said.

“If you come to two events, you collect your hands-free touch tool,” Chigadza said. “If you arrive next weekend for different events, that counts as three events and you get your UIndy lanyard. So you don't have to start fresh. It's cumulative. So, we're just ready to reward people for being there to support us and just to make sure we increase student participation

I think it's an idea that's going to continue to grow ..." on campus.”

Because of the pandemic, Chigadza said normal ways of engagement have been affected negatively. The Greyhound Rewards system was created to increase student participation, according to Chigadza.

“It's just so that we can continue to foster student interest and programming around campus,” Chigadza said.

“Of course, most of our weekend programs have giveaways of prizes, but we just wanted to add that extra notch to make sure that there's even increased participation and increased excitement when it comes to programming that's put on our campus.”

Plans for Greyhound Rewards

are going to continue post COVID-19, according to Chigadza.

He says he hopes to offer more prizes to students, as well as bigger prizes.

According to Schuch, she has already seen students take advantage of the Greyhound Rewards system. Schuch said she has seen students already reaching the third tier.

“We've only had a little bit of the time to assess it just because we're still at the beginning of the semester,” Schuch said. “However, the students really enjoy it. They get so excited when they come pick up their incentive prize here in the office. So it's been [a] neat way for us to interact with students in a positive manner at the program, and then following up the program when they get that email that following Monday.”

According to Schuch, the best way to find out if an event is Greyhound Rewards compatible is to check emails sent out by Vitangeli. All weekend programs will be Greyhound Rewards eligible, as well as any event that is sponsored by SLAB, Schuch said.

She said Residence Life programs that are on Fridays and Saturdays are also eligible for Greyhound Rewards.

Chigadza said he hopes UIndy students will take advantage of Greyhound Rewards. He believes it is an idea that is going to grow on Greyhounds.

“I think it's fantastic,” Chigadza said. “I definitely encourage my fellow Greyhounds and students to take advantage of it because it gives us a moment to distract from some of the hardships that have been brought about by the pandemic. I absolutely love the idea. I think it's an idea that's going to continue to grow, an idea that is going to build excitement once more and more people know about it.”

her from different ways and she tried to keep more strict data, but with issues being multifaceted, it became muddy really quickly. She said that over 50 forms filled out for the solution center online and has had others reach out through emailing her.

Manges said the solution center has kept her very busy and that all requests — little and big — take some time.

"There's been a lot of action from the student side, and the faculty and staff as well,” Manges said. “They’ve done a great job too at recognizing if there’s a student that isn’t coming to class, or if there’s something that’s been shared with them, they’ll reach out to me. … then, I’ve done the connection with the student just to see what the issues are and see what we can get solved.”

Students can make an in-person or virtual appointment by emailing solution@uindy.edu or filling out a student solution form, which can be found online or in the UIndy App at any time.

who usually come to this event to share their stories were unable to attend this year due to safety c oncerns.

“We hear motivational stories about people who have overcome what they were in Riley for and now they just go for yearly visits, but we also hear from families who are at the hospital all the time and who have struggled for years,” Phillips said. “It is nice to hear both those motivational stories, but as well as hearing people who are going through the struggles of being at the hospital but those stories are what motivate us to fundraise I feel like.”

Phillips said these stories were still able to be told at Dance Marathon 2021 in pre-recorded videos sent in by Riley children and their families rather than in-person.

“They’ve been sending us videos to play throughout the day so they can share their stories with us and share why they love Riley and appreciate Dance Marathon,” Koons said.

“So, I think that ’s a really good part. It brings you back to why you’re doing this in the first place when you get to hear from a Riley kid.”

Koons said she encourages everyone to join UIndyDM for their Spring call-out meeting, though students can get involved at any time with a $15 registration fee that is donated directly to Riley Hospital for Children. Students can also email UIndyDM@uindy.edu with questions about Dance Marathon and how to get involved.

SPORTS

4 THE REFLECTOR

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Photo by Jacob Walton

Junior Nikol Alekseeva rears back to return a ball in a match against Grand Valley State University. Currently on the season Alekseeva is undefeated in the No. 1 singles spot. She has only given up two games across four sets with her first win coming in two easy 6-0 sets.

Photo by Jacob Walton

Sophomore Nikolaj Talimaa knocks the ball to his Butler University opponent before a point is set to be played. Talimaa won his No. 2 singles match in just two sets: 6-4, 6-0.

Greyhounds return to the bubble

Men’s and women’s tennis make return to UIndy courts, go undefeated in the starting contests

By William Riddell STAFF WRITER

A little over one year ago, the University of Indianapolis Men’s and Women’s Tennis teams were 1,172.2 miles away from Indy in San Antonio, Texas when they found out their season was going to be cut short. Now, as we approach another March, they have finally returned to playing matches in the UIndy Tennis Center.

The men’s team is off to a 3-0 start after defeating both Grand Valley State University and Grace College on Feb. 6. Then they broke Butler University’s heart on Valentine’s Day, winning 5-2 in a match where the Hounds swept the Bulldogs in doubles. The men’s team is currently ranked tenth in the nation in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) poll. Sophomore tennis player

Nikolaj Talimaa said that the team, led by ninth-year Head Tennis Coach Malik Tabet, did not waste much time getting back into a rhythm.

“Every team member was really motivated,” Talimaa said. “You could see the fire in everybody when we were playing. We also had a good team chemistry … In the second match, we were louder, we were pushing more, we were screaming more, there were more positive vibes and emotions in the air.”

The women’s team, which is currently ranked fourth in the latest ITA poll, is also off to a strong start. They downed Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis 6-1 on Feb. 5 and then followed that up the next day by blowing out No. 19 Grand Valley State 7-0. They also knocked off Butler in a similar fashion to the men in a 5-2 win.

“Obviously our goal is to be the best team in the country,” Tabet said. “We’ve

been very fortunate to recruit very strong student-athletes … Kids who know how to balance their education and their sport.”

Last March was when the sports world went dark and tournaments all around the

We were really sad because why we were there, why we’re here, to compete...” country were canceled. At the time, both tennis teams were preparing to compete in the San Antonio Intercollegiate Championships. According to Tabet, the gravity of the situation started to kick in when he heard that one team en route to the tournament had turned around.

“When we heard that, we knew something was very strange,” Tabet said.

Greyhound Sports update

“You condition yourself about what’s going to transpire during the season, and then everything is gone. It took me a while to digest the fact that we were dealing with a virus that was threatening our everyday lives.”

Tabet said that hearing that the season was going to be canceled was a tough pill to swallow, especially with both teams off to a tremendous start. According to UIndy Athletics, the men’s team was undefeated at 6-0 and the women’s team was 9-1 going into San Antonio. Both teams had their remaining matches cancelled.

“We were really sad because that’s why we were there [and] why we’re here, to compete,”Talimaa said.“We were playing well last year. That’s why we’re happy to compete right now. You never know with COVID.” Last season may have been cut short, but according to Tabet, the ending to last season has provided a new lens for

viewing the opportunities that this current season bestows.

“We realize that we can’t take tennis, our favorite sport, our passion, we can’t take it for granted,” Tabet said. “Make the best out of [this season], make every moment a great memory, and if we finish a season, then we just checked all of the boxes.”

Now, with the season just getting underway, two of those boxes both teams hope to check off are national titles. The ITA Division II Indoor Championships are scheduled for Feb. 26-28 in Oklahoma City, while the NCAA DI I Championships will be held on May 19-22 in Surprise, Arizona. Tennis is finally back, and for Tabet and his two teams, that is all that matters.

“We missed this feeling of competition, and now that we have some matches, and it just felt wonderful,” Talimaa said.

Women’s basketball - OVERALL: 11-8 - 6th in GLVC Six games, that is how many games the University of Indianapolis Women’s Basketball team has won in a row to catapult them higher into the GLVC standings with just two games remaining in their regular season. They have done this on the backs of their senior guards Mickey Sasson and Taylor Drury who both over the streak have found success with Drury finishing with 28 points in their last road win over the Missouri S&T Miners. Sasson has been getting it done with points and with rebounds as she has averaged a doubledouble in the past six games with 12.3 points per game and 10.8 rebounds per game. The Hounds wrap up their season with games against Maryville University, Feb 25, and Lindenwood University Feb. 27, at home.

MEN’S BASKETBALL - OVERALL: 8-10 - 10th in GLVC After starting 0-7, nobody would have expected the University of Indianapolis Men’s Basketball team to have playoff hopes. However, after a string of wins that were capped off with a come from behind win against the Missouri S&T Miners, the Hounds have playoff hopes with three crucial games coming up in their schedule. In the recent stretc,h the Hounds have gone 3-1 with their only loss coming to No. 4 in the GLVC, Southwest Baptist University. In the win over Rockhurst University, the Hounds were fueled by sophomore forward Kendrick Tchoua and redshirt freshman forward Jesse Bingham combining for 32 points. And then as they traveled to Rolla, Mo. to take on the Miners the game was controlled by Bingham once again, alongside senior forward Mikail Simmons, the pair combined for 48 points.

Track and Field

Photo by Jacob Walton

It was a big couple weekends for the University of Indianapolis track teams as they competed in the Grand Valley State Big Meet on Feb. 12-13 in Allendale, Mich. The team then returned home to compete in their own UIndy Classic on Feb. 19-20. Both meets proved to be positive affairs for the Greyhounds with records falling and provisional marks being hit. At the Grand Valley meet, junior distance runner Ben Nagel was able to break two school records, one for the 800 meter and then as a part of the DMR quartet. The pair of distance runners senior Lauren Bailey and senior distance runner Berenice Cleyet-Merle were able to hit the national qualifying marks. In the UIndy Classic, the Hounds saw several more provo marks with freshman thrower Zoe Pentecost in the weight throw alongside senior thrower Katrinia Hopkins hitting the shotput mark. Junior pole vaulters Brittney Clark and Lauren Joseph both leaped over the provisional marks at the UIndy Classic.

Swim and Dive - 2nd PLACE in GLVC Championships The University of Indianapolis Swim and Dive teams kicked off their playoffs with the 2021 GLVC Championships that started on Feb. 10 and went all the way to Feb. 13 in which saw both teams finish in second place in a stacked GLVC During the championships, the soophmore diver Mikaela Starr and junior diver Benjamin Radar were both able to win GLVC Divers of the Year.

The awards continued as freshman swimmer Brynhildur Traustadottir secured the GLVC Female Swimmer of the Year award.

Volleyball - OVERALL: 4-2

Contributed Photo by Matthew Edwards

Traditionally a fall sport, volleyball is one of the many sports being pushed into the spring to compete and they are doing it with a good start with a successful weekend in their own Ruth Lilly Fitness Center. The Hounds welcomed the Drury University Panthers and the Maryville University Saints to their home court on Saturday Feb. 20 which saw the Hounds walk away with two victories. Between the two victories, UIndy was led by senior outside hitter Katie Furlong in kills with her totaling up 25 between the two matches combined. Junior setter Alex Equihua saw success setting up her teammates leading the Hounds in assists with 42 total across both matches.

Sports Update Box by Jacob Walton

SPORTS

5

Men’s Lacrosse ranked No. 9

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

THE REFLECTOR

Program, now in its sixth year, starts with win over Lewis Flyers behind All-American Brian Robb

By Jacob Walton SPORTS EDITOR & PHOTO EDITOR

Photo by Jacob Walton

Junior attacker Drew Billig pushed the ball around the backside of the Lewis Flyers net.

Billig was tied in point for the game with six coming from five assists and one goal.

Photo by Jacob Walton

Redshirt senior mid-fielder Kansai Grey celebrates after the 15th and final goal of the UIndy Men’s Lacrosse team’s win over the Lewis Flyers. He led the team in shots with 11.

Future of Athletics

By Alex Vela STAFF WRITER

With second semester underway, athletics at the University of Indianapolis are right back into the swing of things.

However, the number of teams that will be suiting up during this time of the year will be more than in previous seasons for the Greyhounds.

According to V ice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Young, there are big plans in place for the university. The logistics and budgetary complications still need to be worked out before any facility upgrades or additions to campus.

Despite that, he said he sees the Greyhounds being the top private institution in all Division II athletics in the not-so-distant future.

Young said that right now they are getting close to finishing the budget process for the university, the process to talk about capital projects, which facility upgrades would fall under. While COVID-19 has put a halt on a lot of those things, he is motivated to get things underway.

“It [COVID-19] has completely changed lives for all of us. It has changed UIndy Athletics. It has changed the University of Indianapolis,” Young said.

“I’m really looking forward to being able to actually put things in place that I want to see here for the five-year goal for our department.”

According to Associate A.D. & Senior Woman Administrator for Student Support Jackie Paquette, the Greyhounds should see a recovery from the pandemic in three-to-five years.

“I think you’re going to see us return back to having teams in the Top 25,” Paquette said.

According to UIndy Athletics, there are 23 varsity sports, the most recent additions being men’s and women’s lacrosse, which were added in 2016.

Young said that he is not ruling out the addition of more sports to the line-up.

He said he wants to put an emphasis on creating additional sports for women.

But his overall goal is to find sports that will help enhance UIndy. Both Young and Paquette said they have high hopes for the current and future Greyhounds, even with the new challenges that COVID-19 has brought.

“We’ve got all sorts of people trying to use Nicoson and Ruth Lily because volleyball is going right now too when they usually aren’t,”Paquette said.“So it’s sort of a puzzle, and it’s sort of a circus really, but that’s something we’ve had to look at is juggling that puzzle a little bit more. Also making sure the coaches are working together in order to keep all of those spaces open and keep all of those student-athletes competing.”

Both Young and Paquette said they always have the well-being of their student-athletes at the forefront of every decision they make. Young said once it gets closer to the summertime, they will try to take a step back and evaluate the plans for the upcoming years.

“I feel fortunate that we all still get to do what we have a passion for. It’s so important to me that our studentathletes still get an opportunity to practice and compete,” Young said. “I think this year, every time that we have an opportunity to compete as the University of Indianapolis, it truly is a blessing and we should take advantage of that.”

Paquette said it means a lot to her for the student-athletes to suit up and represent the Greyhounds again.

“When our wrestling team took the mat for the first time on Jan. 10, I almost started crying because that was such a sense of normalcy for me to see our wrestlers take the mat. And that’s something that hasn’t happened in over 300 days,” Paquette said. “It’s getting those things back that people are going to realize that maybe we should’ve been a little bit more grateful in the past for what we have. Even down to simple things like not having to wear a mask everywhere we go. Honestly, I think that’s good for our world.”

There are over 10 sports at the University of Indianapolis that have been able to secure a national ranking, and the No. 9 Men’s Lacrosse team is one of them. Prior to the start of the season, the team was notched at No. 10 in all of Division II before their season-opening win over the Lewis University Flyers on Feb. 6. According to Assistant Coach Austin Grimes, the team came in with a mentality that the game was theirs to lose.

“We told them at the beginning of the game, ‘If we’re going to lose, it’s going to be on our mistakes,’” Grimes said. “So we got to clean up our mistakes and everything and the guys finally clicked … It was 330 days since our last game, so it’s been a long time. A lot of our freshmen didn’t have a season last year at all.”

In that first game, the Greyhounds came out hot leading 4-2 after the first period. That lead eventually was cut down to only one goal, 9-8, as the team went into the locker room for halftime, according to UIndy Athletics. According to redshirt junior midfielder Brian Robb, the team came out of the second half with a new fire.

“I think in the first quarter we came out really strong and we kind of started to get lackadaisical,”Robb said.“And that affected us really bad. And then coming into the half, I think we just thought about it. We talked to the coaches. They let us know what we had to do. We had a little fire in our bellies and came out and worked as hard as we could and stayed composed. That was the biggest thing” The Hounds did exactly that, outscoring Lewis 6-3 in the second half leading to a 15-11 Greyhound victory.

In the win, Robb was tied in offensive production with junior attack Drew Billig at six points each, according to UIndy Athletics. According to Grimes, Billig has been able to mature a lot over the offseason and going into this regular season they, as a coaching staff, have given him control over the offense.

“He’s taken the reins of the offense, he’s in attack and he’s going to be on

the field at all times,” Grimes said. “Just knowing when to kind of push the ball, go to the cage but then also making the smart moves. So every dodge doesn’t need to be a shot. And I think this year he’s kind of finally realizing that just being a year older, being a junior now and [having] been a starter since he stepped on campus. So it’s kind of nice to have that.”

Last season as a sophomore, Billig was able to finish the shortened season second in total points scored on the team and in the process was able to be named as an Academic All-American.

Moving forward in the season, the Greyhounds had their match-up against Maryville University pushed back to Feb. 20, according to Grimes. He said that the GLVC has developed its lacrosse talent and there are plenty of teams that can

Brian Robb has been a starter since he stepped on campus for us...” provide this Greyhound roster with a challenge.

“The GLVC being a deeper conference now, we’re one of the oldest ones and we’re only six years in,” Grimes said.

“Rockhurst is always a tough matchup.

Lindenwood is too. I think the hidden one is Maryville.They have a lot of young talent. They’re very similar to us, but just a couple of years behind. They got a new coach, so it will be interesting to see what they have, what they can do.”

According to Grimes this team is set back slightly due the pandemic and lack of practicing required for a sport like lacrosse. He said that the team is still looking to find its groove early on.

“I think just with COVID and not having a fall season a little up and down,” Grimes said. “We’re still trying to get our stride, but we have the talent, just being a young program, it took a little bit to build, but I think we have the talent, if they can put it together.

It’s just not being able to be on the field and everything. Some guys are further behind than they should be.”

Pr ior to the season, it was announced that Robb was selected as a 2021 USILA/Warrior and New Balance Preseason All-America Honorable Mention according to UIndy Athletics. Robb said that while the award may be a nice confidence boost, it is not what matters and that the job is not done until they win. According to Grimes, being able to play with other All-Americans in the past has helped Robb emerge into the player he is now.

“Brian Robb has been a starter since he stepped on campus for us. He played his freshman year. He played with two All-Americans in Matt Johnson and Sean Kimball. So I think he learned a lot from them and what kind of to expect from the No. 1 guy,” Grimes said. “And you never know, with those accolades at the beginning of the year, how they’re going to do in the first game. And he’s proven that he’s worthy of that.”

In his past two seasons as a Greyhound Robb has been able to start 24 games in his midfield position, according to UIndy Athletics. In his redshirt freshman year he was able to produce 35 points of Hound offense, 25 of which coming from goals and the other 12 off of assists.

According to Robb and Grimes, one of the strengths of this team is its ability to run so many players. Grimes said this team has the ability to throw out several different attack, middle and defensive lines at teams and that will allow them to be successful in the long run. Grimes, who has been with the Hounds for three seasons, said that this is one of the deepest rosters he has been able to work with and that during COVID-19 and the chance of losing players to quarantine, that depth is going to be crucial for this team.

The Greyhounds who are in their 6th season as a program finished last season at 2-3 when the rest of their season was shut down. The Greyhounds were set to take on the Maryville University Saints was set to be played in St. Louis MO but that game was canceled due to COVID-19 safety protocols within UIndy’s program according to UIndy Athletics. They will continue their season on Feb. 28 when they face off with Davenport at Key Stadium.

FEATURE

6 THE REFLECTOR

Chapel honors Black History

By Giselle Valentin

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Hoping to support Black students on-campus University of Indianapolis students and exploring different ways of engaging them in the worship life, Monday Chapel Services was founded in 2018, according to associate chaplain Arionne Williams. The services are devoted to celebrate Black history, Williams said.

“We sat down with some Black students, faculty and staff and had focus group conversations,” Williams said.

“That’s why we kind of came up with the idea of having our own [chapel].”

The chapel holds a brief, weekly segment to highlight African heritage, according to Williams. During these segments, they honor historical AfricanAmerican figures and organizations.

“It’s important to celebrate and honor the students and the heritage that they represent,” Williams said. “And lift that up into as part of our worship, be thankful to God for what Black folks have done to sort of make our country and world better.”

The service dedicated to Martin Luther King was scheduled for Feb. 15 but was delayed to March 1 due to inclement weather, according to

Williams. Not only will the event commemorate King’s legacy but will have the theme of Black leadership and honor Black organizations on campus such as Project Regalia and Black Student Association. It is important to honor student leaders, Williams said, and to celebrate their contributions to the campus community.

“You really have to give people their flowers while they can smell them,” Williams said. “Sometimes we take advantage of the things that people contribute and say ‘thank you’ and keep it moving. But now we need to stop and look at one another and say ‘listen, what you’re doing is amazing and I’m grateful to you.’”

Junior elementary major Jayla Gregory said she has been co-college chaplain for two years. In that time, the service has followed the same routine, she said.

“You can walk away from the sermon that was preached and be like ‘Wow, Monday Chapel, I heard a great speaker today.’ I think chapel touched the situations I was going through,” Gregory said.

Williams said McCleary Chapel’s Facebook and YouTube accounts livestream the services at 4:30 p.m.

People also have the option of attending in-person, which is located on 4002 Otterbein Ave.

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Black Male Initiative

Initiative seeks to support Black men’s success at UIndy

By Nathan Herbst OPINION EDITOR

The Black Male Initiative is a new campus organization dedicated to supporting Black male students in their pursuit of academic and professional development and success. University of Indianapolis Vice President and Chief Inclusion and Equity Officer Amber Smith said that this organization is specifically designed to increase retention and graduation rates of Black men at UIndy. Sophomore religion and social work double major and founder Antonio Toliver said he started the organization with the assistance of the Office of Inclusion and Equity this semester after seeing a need for it on campus.

Toliver said he was involved with the Black Male Initiative at Rose State College in Oklahoma before he transferred to UIndy. While at Rose State, he said he discovered a passion for helping Black men and became involved in organizations dedicated to this.

After getting connected with members of OIE, Toliver said they mentioned a need for an organization like the one at Rose State. According to Toliver, he decided to initiate it and continues to maintain a partnership with the office.

“I’m working closely with Dr. Amber

Smith and we’re putting together mentoring programs that can come out of this. So right now, we’re still in the beginning stages of trying to get it funded by the university because it is for the overall betterment of the university,” Toliver said. “We’re still laying the foundational pieces so that we can start getting things rolling.”

According to Smith, the retention

We are teaching students how to cultivate healthy relationships....” rates for Black males at UIndy are lower than the baseline rates for the student population as a whole. She said this program is focused on bringing those numbers up to the standard rates. This will be done primarily through mentoring programs.

“A student mentor operates as a liaison between faculty, staff and administration and a freshman student who may not know the institutional landscape,” Smith said. “Students, especially firstgeneration students, don’t know how to navigate college. A lot of your loss when it comes to retention is simply because

people don’t know what to do … and if they don’t know what to do, they leave.”

According to Smith, the Black Male Initiative’s mentoring will have multiple levels. Professional mentors will mentor upperclassmen and the upperclassmen in turn will mentor lowerclassmen. Smith said the mentoring will cover a variety of topics such as interpersonal development, conflict resolution, individual leadership skills and etiquette, and is built around a holistic student development approach centered on social ties.

“It’s rooted in relationships. We are teaching students how to cultivate healthy relationships that help them thrive,” Smith said. “Relationships with faculty, staff [and] administration, relationships with their peers, relationships with the institution and also themselves.”

Smith said the initiative is currently at the leadership development phase. She said that things are slow due to starting off amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but mentors are still being recruited and events are currently being planned.

According to Toliver, some of the goals of the organization are to eventually provide scholarships, networking opportunities, professional development and assistance in career fields to members. Smith said they also want to provide culturally relevant experiences that empower Black males.

Pennsylvania police officer touches community

Charles Fox/Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

When Mason Corrado, 4, went into a seizure at home, Lower Merion, Pennsylvania Police Officer Michael Aluise was the first officer on the scene. He, along with the other officers who responded, took care of Mason until paramedics arrived. When Mason came home from the hospital, Aluise stopped by the house to give her a special gift. Aluise gave Mason a stuffed unicorn and a unicorn blanket he thought Mason would like.

By Rita Giordano

THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER (TCA) — This is a story about a unicorn, a little girl who got scary-sick, and a police officer who did his job — and then some.

Most of all, it’s a story about kindness, how precious it is and how, in these especially difficult times, we should never forget how the smallest gesture can have profound impact.

It begins on the snowy evening of Feb. 1, just after dinner in the Lower Merion, Pennsylvania home of Maggie and Chris Corrado. Both are 35. Maggie is an event planner, and Chris works in e-commerce. They both grew up in Lower Merion.

That night, their daughters — Mason, 4, and Amelia, 18 months — were eating the Easy-Bake Oven cake they’d just made with their mom when Mason suddenly felt sick. Chris took her into the bathroom, only to summon Maggie a minute later.

M a s on w a s t a l k i n g o d d l y, h e said.

Soon, Mason wasn’t talking at all, just staring blankly toward a wall.

“I was calling, ‘Mason! Mason!’ and she was not answering. I looked her straight in the eye. She was not there,” Maggie said. “I called 911.

I was hysterical.”

As the Corrados waited anxiously for help to arrive, Lower Merion police officer Michael Aluise, 37, who was just starting his shift, heard a radio call for an unconscious 4-year-old.

“I might get six or seven medical calls a shift,” Aluise said later, “but when you see that it’s an unconscious child, you act differently, you respond differently.”

The roads were treacherous, but Aluise got to the Corrado home quickly. Inside, he assessed Mason.

She was staring blankly and wasn’t moving. But she was breathing. She was alive.

“It appeared to me she was deep in a seizure,” Aluise said. “Her hands were kicking a bit, like little tiny flickers of her fingers, and the blank stare, and she was not verbal, like she was frozen where she was.”

Soon, officers Ethan Gerstman and Steve Patton arrived with oxygen, which they administered to Mason as they monitored her vital signs.

Sgt. Matthew Colflesh came, too.

Maggie would later remark how professional and gentle the officers were.

But the ordeal was terrifying.

“My husband went upstairs with Amelia, and she was screaming, ‘Mama! Mama!’” Maggie said. “He was upstairs crying, and I was downstairs crying.”

Aluise was waiting for the OK to carry Mason to the ambulance, but he saw the fear in Maggie’s face.

“Sometimes when I meet people in a certain situation, they don’t necessarily want a cop. They want a parent. We’re human,” Aluise said. “So I said to her, ‘I have five daughters.’ I didn’t need to say anything else.”

And then Aluise, cop and father, scooped Mason into his arms, and he and Maggie ran through the snow to the ambulance. And soon child, mother, and medics were bound for Bryn Mawr Hospital, where medication brought Mason out of her seizure.

She was then transferred to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for more care. She was discharged the next afternoon, the cause of her seizure still a mystery that doctors hoped future tests would solve.

Through those 24 hours, Aluise’s simple words — “I have five daughters” — stuck with Maggie. They had been spoken not as an officer to a citizen, but as a parent to a parent.

And the call to the Corrado home stuck with Aluise. When he finished his shift that next morning, he told his wife about it. Among their five daughters are 5-year-old twins.

They reminded him of Mason. He thought of Mason waking up in a hospital and figured she must have felt confused and afraid. He thought how hard it had to be for her parents,

too.

“I told my wife, ‘I’m going out.’ She, said, ‘For what?’ I said, ‘I’m thinking about this girl.’”

Aluise went to a store. His twins love unicorns, so he picked out a stuffed unicorn and a pretty unicorn blanket he thought Mason might like.

It was the first time, as an officer, he had ever done such a thing. And at the start of his next shift, he stopped by the Corrados’ home. Chris came to the door; Maggie and Mason had just gotten home from CHOP and were upstairs resting.

“I told [Chris], ‘I’m thinking about Mason and about you guys. Here’s something for when she’s up and about,’” said Aluise. “‘I just want to let you know that [police officers] are human, too. We have families; we understand.

If you ever need anything, you can call.

We’ll always come, and we’ll do the best we can.’”

He then resumed his shift. It didn’t occur to him to tell anyone on the job what he had done.

Mason instantly fell in love with her unicorn, naming it Poppy.

And her parents were so touched

by Aluise’s kindness that Maggie posted about it on the Facebook page of the Lower Merion Community Network.

Within hours, the likes and the comments were pouring in. A local television station even came out to

interview Maggie.

Aluise, who is in his sixth year in the department, isn’t on social media, so he was surprised when friends alerted him to the post and the public reaction to it.

And though he and most officers don’t seek credit for what they do dayto-day, he said, he thinks it’s good for people to have a fuller view of police officers.

“I love my job, but at the end of the day, it’s my job,” said Aluise. “I am not a police officer first. We are husbands, fathers, mothers, wives. That’s why we react certain ways to calls. It’s really not necessarily the policeman in you.

It’s who we really are that comes out. It was good for people to see that.”

Maggie Corrado’s post, which stirred such community appreciation, says it best: “Thank you, Officer Aluise. While the unicorn-themed present certainly made my daughter’s night, for us it was a reminder that for all this madness out there, there is also kindness.

And a simple act of kindness during such an awful time is incredibly powerful.”

——— ©2021 The Philadelphia Inquirer, LLC. Visit at inquirer.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

THE REFLECTOR

7

ENTERTAINMENT

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Student forms community Safe Place with Kayla provides environment for African American women

By Olivia Cameron BUSINESS MANAGER

When junior business administration and management major Kayla MassyCharles was given the chance to create her own community group for students at the University of Indianapolis, she felt that it was a great opportunity to serve her community and be selfless. After being hired as a community steward for the Office of Ecumenical and Interfaith Programs, she created the small group, Safe Place with Kayla, to encourage African American women on campus to find resources that they need and give them a place to ask questions. The first meeting was held on Feb. 4, according to Massy-Charles.

“There’s a lot of things that we [African American women] face or feel uncomfortable about and we really don’t have a space to talk about that,” Massy-Charles said. “So I created the small group for that.”

Massy-Charles used to be an ambassador for Project Regalia, a group that started small and then expanded into a Registered Student Organization, that focuses on mentorship and empowerment for female African American students, according to Massy-Charles. She said she wanted to bring a more personal space for asking questions and receiving help.

“I noticed that a lot of Black women were just like ‘Oh I’m failing,’ or ‘I’m struggling to know what I want to do with my life. When I graduate, I don’t know what I’m going to do,’” Massy-Charles said. “I realized that that was something that I felt a calling to try to help with.”

To promote the group, Massy-Charles created an Instagram account and sent invitations over text to her friends and people that she knew. Junior public health major Shania Robertson said she heard about the group from Kayla and decided to attend.

“I think it’s a good thing,” Robertson said. “It’s another activity or space for

people of color that they could attend … [it’s] something to be a part of.”

Meetings are held in Esch Hall, Room 264 every Thursday at 5 p.m, according to Massey-Charles. Anyone interested in joining the group can attend a meeting or use the Google Form link found in the group’s Instagram profile, according to Massy-Charles. So far, conversations and activities have been about relationships and future plans and the challenges of attending a predominantly white school, she said. Everyone is in a different major and grade level so it will be helpful to work together on their plans, she said.

“Those [conversations and activities] are kind of the things that I want to promote there — a balance of everything: self-love, self-care and education,” Massy-Charles said.“That’s mainly what we’re here for, and I think being able to lean on each other for those types of resources is really helpful.”

Massy-Charles said her two goals are to expand the group and impact someone positively. She felt devastated when she saw Black staff members leaving UIndy for other job opportunities, according to Massy-Charles.

“It really sucked because there weren’t a lot of us, and I think it made it more difficult for me to ask for help and ask for resources,” Massy-Charles said. “So I want to be that. I know that I’m only a student. I really can’t email everybody, but at least I know where I went and I can give somebody else [help and resources].

Those administration [members] before they left, they gave me that; I didn’t have to go searching for it. So now it’s making it more difficult on our younger classmen that didn’t get that because now they’re dropping out; they’re transferring to different universities.”

Robertson said she believes that there should be more activities and spaces for students of color to attend. She believes that Safe Place with Kayla will impact her by allowing her to learn about different topics and situations that students of color go through on campus.

Massy-Charles said she knows that the group is being talked about and she

By Nathan Herbst OPINION EDITOR

Photo contributed by Kayla Massy-Charles

From left to right: Jasmine Ward, Shanya Robertson, Reality Leath and Adriana Kimp participate in a Safe Place with Kayla meeting, which meets every Thursday in Esch Hall.

believes it is going to continue to grow.

She has already seen a positive impact on a freshman who attended a Safe Place with Kayla meeting and received help with their classes, she said.

“I feel like overall this can be a place for [Black students], too. That’s really what I want to do. I want when I leave here that somebody at least feels comfortable to continue going on, like they feel comfortable, they know what they’re doing and they’re confident in that,” Massy-Charles said. “That’s

how I feel on this campus every day.

Whether or not I feel like I am the majority, I feel like I know what I’m doing and I feel like I belong here.

And I’ll know that up until I get my degree, so I want everybody to feel like that. I just know from how people move on campus, whether that’s just them getting their food and going to their room, whether that’s them having friends on campus to talk to, that a lot of minority students don’t feel like that right now.”

that I can use my platform and Dr. Smith focused on activism. The group utilizes can use her platform to get this off the a justice choir songbook that acts as a ground and then that students, faculty hymnal for social and environmental and other staff take up that mantle and justice issues, according to Parker. continue to use Justice Choir as an arm “Justice Choir is meant to have for community on campus.” the thread of music, or the thread According to Smith, projects like the of being a choir singing together, as Justice Choir are important for people part of who it is,” Parker said. “But its on campus to get involved in activism main goals or objectives are to form its in a way that pertains to them. She said own community activism, university this is important for her, as the Officer activism or engagement around issues for Inclusion and Equity, to provide of social and environmental justice that these creative are directly related opportunities to the to or important community to let to that specific I want to do something them authentically community.” contribute to the on this campus to become i n sAp i nr a toi otnh feo rr conversation.

“Everybody is forming the choir, fully involved...” not going to march, according to Parker, everybody is not was his prior going to sit in the boardroom and change experience and research surrounding policy. Everybody has a gift to bring to social justice issues. He said one of the the conversation,” Smith said. “And for first things he wanted to do when he some people, that’s going to be the arts. started working at UIndy was to get This is a way for people to engage with involved on campus in some way. speaking out regarding social justice “This [social justice] is sort of where issues in a way that might be organic to I started by asking some questions, who they are.” by meeting Dr. Smith and by saying, Parker said he was inspired by a friend ‘How can I be involved? How can I that is also a choral director in Minnesota help? What does our campus need? who formed a justice choir a few years What sort of work can I do?’ Basically, ago, hoping to create a collective of singers how can I get my hands dirty? What can

I do besides post statuses on Facebook and those sorts of things?” Parker said.

“I want to do something on this campus to become fully involved in campus life.

And because social justice is a passion of mine because working with social justice issues is something that is not outside of [my] comfort zone for me, that’s just sort of where I started looking to become involved.”

According to Smith, she wants to see projects like the Justice Choir grow on campus and have social justice and activism projects become a part of the campus community. She said these projects will allow people on campus to find a form of activism that pertains to them.

“S o you got the Juneteenth [podcast], you got the BelongSpace [Speaker Series], you got the play [“Kill Move Paradise”] and so I think that’s really important. They continue to work to make sure that those opportunities are made available,” Smith said. “So that’s how it becomes a part of your university culture. Not just something, not just a one-off you do. But eventually, it ’ll be like, ‘I helped start some things’ and then someone else is taking lead and it’s just going, and it just becomes a part of your culture.”

Justice Choir promotes activism

By Kassandra Darnell STAFF WRITER

University of Indianapolis Director of Choral Activities Webb Parker stands before the Justice Choir for rehearsal in the University Chapel in Schwitzer Student Center. The choir is currently rehearsing a song titled “Say Her Name,” composed by Alicia Lee, that focuses on the death of Breonna Taylor, according to Parker. He said the group will record an audio recording of the song and create a music video.

This choir is made up of about 30 members, ranging from students to faculty, and is open for anyone to join, according to Parker. He said he worked with Vice President and Chief Inclusion and Equity Officer Amber Smith to create this project at the start of the spring semester with the goal of making a creative outlet for the campus community.

“The main goal for this project right now is to drum up interest, to educate, to show people this thing exists,”Parker said.

“Moving forward post-COVID, we hope that this becomes a group on campus that’s quite active and quite visible, and when I say active and visible, I do mean in music-making, but also in activities that they plan on campus … It’s my hope

Photo by Kiara Conley

Two members of the Justice Choir rehearse in University Chapel on Feb. 18. The choir, which began earlier this semester, has around 30 performers, including faculty.

Graduate student hosts religious podcast

Photo by Kiara Conley

Members of the Justice Choir learn and performs songs such as “Say Her Name,” which was composed by Alicia Lee. “Say Her Name” is about the death of Breonna Taylor.

Anuoluwapo Mustapha, a University of Indianapolis master of public health graduate student, said she has always loved to talk and especially enjoys sharing with people God’s love for them.This fits with her recent foray into podcasting, she said, as she seeks to voice the concerns of today’s youth.

Mustapha started a religious podcast titled “Hard Truths with Mustie!” The podcast “discusses/deals with life issues affecting our generation and seeks to inform, educate, illuminate and empower this present generation to maximize their God-given potential,” according to the podcast’s website. The first episode aired in February 2020, and episodes have been released regularly since then, according to the website.

Mustapha said her podcast is based on the Christian faith and lifestyle, but she will talk about anything God wants her to talk about. She said her primary audience is younger people.

“It’s pretty much about empowering the youth,” Mustapha said, “educating and empowering the youth and helping them find themselves, helping them understand their purpose as well. Because the truth is, there [are] many things going on in this world that if you don’t have the right people in your ear, or you don’t have the right friends around you or the right people around you, it’s easy to go astray.”

Each episode has a specific topic, Mustapha said. Previous topics have included friendship, self-worth, leadership and freedom, according to the website. Mustapha said episodes mainly feature her speaking about the topic and sharing her personal experiences, but she does occasionally have guests on the show, too.

One guest was Victor Areghan, a UIndy alumnus and clinical trials manager at Eli Lilly and Company.

According to Areghan, he and Mustapha recorded an episode together about leadership. He also said he has helped Mustapha and given her assistance with the podcast. According to Areghan, they met at the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Indianapolis, where he serves as music director and Mustapha sings in the choir.

Areghan said Mustapha’s consistency has helped her find success. According to him, her daily prayer and Bible study have given her the wisdom to share her experience on relevant issues.

“It cuts across generations — young, old, male, female — her message comes across,” Areghan said. “It’s not geared to a particular gender or age group.”

According to Mustapha, her background as a Nigerian influenced her work on the podcast. She said that in her home country of Nigeria, the topics of depression and mental health were taboo, and people did not freely speak about them. Mustapha said she wanted to increase awareness of this issue and give voice to the struggle that she knew many people were going through.

“If I have to be that voice to help people find themselves, I will. If I have to be that voice to help people know that they are loved by God, I will,” Mustapha said. “This is me just hoping and praying that people find themselves and also know that God loves them regardless of whatever their past has been. It doesn’t matter; your past is your past, but you still have a future.

If my voice has to be that voice to let you know that God still loves you, I will do everything in my power to do it.”

According to Mustapha, she recorded multimedia news messages for a church in Houston when she lived there several years ago. She said she enjoyed this experience, and it compelled her to share some of her own story with others. She said she eventually decided to broadcast to the masses through a podcast format about her experience with and knowledge of life and Christianity.

Mustapha said she had planned to end the podcast last year but wanted to wait for confirmation from God before she did so. In the meantime, Mustapha said several people reached out to her and told her that they enjoyed the episodes, so she decided to move ahead with a second season. “Hard Truths with Mustie!” can be heard on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Anchor FM.

NEWS

8 THE REFLECTOR

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

University from page 1 announcement, several students voiced criticism about the increases on the UIndy App. Manuel said that when it comes to the increase in tuition and other rates, caring for students is the most important thing for UIndy.

“Going into the conversation about what we needed to do, the first question we had was 'How is this going to impact our students?’”

Manuel said. “The second question we had was 'How do we find more dollars to help our students who are here needed to continue their education if we increase the tuition?' But the third question is, the cost of COVID — the cost of doing the kind of education that you're experiencing now — is actually far more expensive than the traditional way.”

In order for UIndy to continue to provide the care for students that it has, and to help students continue to progress through their degrees, Manuel said the university needed to raise

MANUEL tuition. He said that UIndy is one of the least expensive private institutions in Indiana, and while other institutions may be freezing their rates,their rates are less of a percentage rate. UIndy ’s dollar amount for tuition is $15-$20,000 less than other institutions in the state, according to Manuel. “ We're also aware that we're able to help a lot of students not pay the full price and come here,” Manuel said. “We will work with anybody on campus who has questions about their aid or need for different aid to try to find a way to help them to continue their work at the university.

We never ever, ever take that lightly.”

Manuel said that raising tuition rates is one of the toughest conversations that the university faces, but UIndy officials have to balance true quality academic progress, the number of faculty, equipment, opportunities and support for students, with students' abilities to afford it. UIndy is trying its best to be great stewards of tuition dollars so that students can continue

their education at the university.

COVID-19 The cost of dealing with COVID-19 has been tremendous for the university, Manuel said. UIndy has spent more than $6,096,368 in response to COVID-19 across campus as of Jan. 31, according to data provided by the university.

Of those expenses, $1,386,590 has been spent on expenses UIndy has incurred in responding to COVID-19, according to university officials. These expenses include: • Testing kits and equipment for students, faculty, and staff, • Quarantine space for students, • Personal protective equipment, or PPE, • Technology to support online and distance learning, and • Other supplies associated with the cleaning and sanitization of campus.

Additionally, of those expenses, $2,441,755 was paid for from federal funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic S ecurit y Act, or CARES Act, that was provided to students for emergency financial aid grants, according to university officials. Another $1.7 million of the nearly $6.1 million expenses resulted from covering the costs of room and board refunds for students living on campus during the Spring 2020 Semester, which was paid for using funds from the CARES Act, according to university officials.

Approximately $570,000 of CARES Act funds covered expenses related to the management of COVID-19 on campus, including stipends for faculty to convert in-person classes on an online virtual format for the Fall 2020 Semester, contact-tracing support and technology to support online and distance learning. The university is expected to continue to incur costs, and some of the expenses UIndy will continue to pay for outside of the CARES Act may eventually get covered by federal funds as UIndy applies for those funds, according to the university officials.

Manuel said that he thinks that in September, when the next academic year begins, the university will be back to having larger group gatherings, regular meal deliveries, athletic events, and concerts. However, Manuel said that he does not know if UIndy would ease restrictions on things such as mask-wearing and hand-sanitizing, but certainly believes in the ability to have larger group gatherings.

Students’ mental health during COVID-19 Due to COVID-19, there has

been a rise in mental health issues among students, with an August 2020 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention saying that 74.9% of U.S. adults between the ages of 18-24 reported having at least one adverse mental health symptom during the pandemic.

The same CDC report also said that 25.5% of adults within that age group reported seriously considering suicide in a 30 day-period, and 24.7% of that age group reported that they had started or increased substance use to cope with pandemic-related stress or emotions.

When it comes to the health of students, along with faculty and staff, at UIndy, Manuel said the first thing university officials ask themselves before any meeting is about what they are doing for the health of the campus community. Every decision UIndy makes has to address that question, Manuel said.

“We're constantly monitoring the university population to make sure that if anybody has a need for support or for a connection that we're here

We're also aware that we're able to help a lot of students ..." to manage that,” Manuel said. “It is by far the driving force behind every question we ask ourselves as we chart our course through the COVID era.”

Racial justice and celebrating Juneteenth The death of George Floyd, a Black man, while being arrested by Minneapolis Police in May 2020 led to a realization by many across the U.S. that Black lives are still not treated as equal in the U.S., according to Time.

The wave of outrage sparked by the death of Floyd and other people of color sparked protests across the nation, and led many organizations and institutions, including UIndy, to have conversations about systemic racism and equity and inclusion. Manuel said that there are different approaches to entering these kinds of conversations, including organizational, financial and educational.

“Amber Smith, who is our chief equity [and] inclusion officer, is really responsible for leading the efforts to create the organizational framework in which we will all work to address questions of racism and equity and inclusion on campus,” Manuel said.

“She's done a terrific job of engaging faculty, staff, and students to be able to tell their stories, to be heard about the questions that are impacting them, and then to create interventions that allow dialogue to occur.”

Recently, UIndy’s senior level cabinet went on a retreat where all of UIndy’s vice presidents had a day to explore their goals for the upcoming year, and Manuel asked each vice president to include a series of goals related to equity and inclusion that would help address the larger questions Smith was asking. One of those questions was celebrating Juneteenth, June 19, the day celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the U.S. “Juneteenth is one of those institutional moments where we can recognize a moment just to understand and celebrate, but so are the BelongSpace conversations or Black History Month that we're working through,” Manuel said. “So was working with [UIndy] PRIDE and SOL [Student Organization of Latinos] and with the other groups that celebrate diversity on campus, and that can happen in religious and ethnic and racial and political and geographical ways. All of those things, if you look at the activities that are occurring, you're seeing more and more of these designed in a way that brings together the conversation that our society needs to have.”

The university has also launched a Juneteenth-related podcast titled “Juneteenth Conversations.” The goal of the monthly podcast is to have conversations about interracial topics, and topics relating to history and current events related Juneteenth, social justice, inclusion, and equality, according to UIndy’s website.

Brightspace Beginning this fall, students, faculty and staff will be faced with a completely new Academic Collaboration Environment, or ACE, as the university switches from using the Sakai Learning Management System, or LMS, platform to Brightspace. In the meantime, this academic year UIndy has several pilot projects underway to build on and learn about Brightspace’s functionality, according to Mar y Beth Bagg, UIndy’s interim vice president and provost.

“It has … many more features than what we currently have,” Bagg said. “A big example would be that this year we've had to use Zoom to do a lot of the work that you do in classes, and for us to meet right now. There is a built-in feature in Brightspace that allows for that kind of video exchange and meetings, and so forth built right into the

actual platform that we'll be using. It has a lot more features for recording and storing information for your classes.”

Bagg said that Brightspace also has more of the technology that the campus community has become used to due to COVID-19 that allows faculty to reach out in different ways compared to the past. Development on the new platform, however, began before COVID-19.

The new platform was also a part of UIndy’s Vision 2030, which is a set of lenses university officials used to look at what they wanted to accomplish by 2030, according to Manuel. Bagg said the new platform was part of Vision 2030 not only because of the functionality, but because the current platform was obsolete. While there is always a learning curve when it comes to new technology, Brightspace will give students more flexibility for group work and give faculty more

BAGG flexibility to help students with their assignments and other aspects of their coursework, according to Bagg.

Right now, only the courses that are fully online are piloting the new LMS platform, according to Bagg. This group has been developing the platform and protocols for how to use Brightspace’s new features. The next phase for the rollout will involve helping faculty transition their courses that are on the Sakai platform over to Brightspace. This phase is expected to begin toward the end of this semester, Bagg said.

“I think the students are really going to like it, and I think the faculty are gonna have lots of tools that they didn't already have before to help with building their courses in the new LMS, so we're excited about that,” Bagg said. “It's work, but we're happy about it because it's good work and it's going to make what we do better.”

More of The Reflector’s conversation with Manuel and Bagg will be published on March 10.

U I N D Y VS COVID-19 With the start of the 2020-21 Fall Semester at the University of Indianapolis, we all must do our part to protect ourselves and others from the global pandemic. Please consider these guidelines when on campus and in public:

WEAR FACE MASKS While on the university’s campus, masks are required to be worn at all times in public spaces. This does not include a dorm, apartment, or office.

It is not required to wear a mask while outside on campus aside from situations where social distancing is not possible.

SOCIAL DISTANCE Social distancing is a required practice for all persons on campus.

Certain areas will have queuing so as to limit the amount of people within one space. During phase 1.5, the person limit for most events and locations will be 100.

WASH YOUR HANDS Ensure that your hands are always free of germs by washing at every opportunity with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. It is especially important to wash your hands after being in a public space or interacting with objects others have used.

DISINFECT SURFACES Use soap or detergent to clean and disinfect objects and surfaces. UIndy’s Custodial Staff has been trained to clean off what is most often used by students. It is still recommended you attempt to disinfect all that you can before and after using.

Information from the CDC and from the University of Indianapolis Coronavirus Web Hub. Graphic by Ethan Gerling