By Matt Glover News Editor
SRU will join nine other Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) universities in introducing a two-year residential housing requirement for Fall 2023.
The nine PASSHE universities that have implemented two-year housing requirements are Bloomsburg, California University, Clarion, Edinboro, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville and Shippensburg.
SRU President William Behre has thought about a two-year residential housing requirement since he arrived in 2018. SRU had more undergraduates at that time, so implementing a plan then wasn’t feasible.
Behre also enlisted Chief Student Affairs Officer David Wilmes and his staff to convince him why the two-year residential housing requirement would be a bad idea, and they couldn’t come up with a “compelling” enough reason.
When researching for his plan prior to the pandemic, Behre consulted a national study done by the Association of College and University Housing Officers – International (ACUHO-I) regarding persistence and the benefits of living on campus.
Based on the study, Behre made a “conservative” estimate that junior and senior classes will increase by about 2%, which is about 50-60 students.
Two years from now, he predicts that SRU will see about a 2-4% jump in the second- or third-year class.
“If you get half a percentage point in a year in first- to second-
year retention, you’ve done a great job,” he said. “These are numbers that don’t change quickly.
“If this (requirement) stays for six or seven years, I think your sophomore to junior class will be about 4% larger than it would have been if you had done nothing.”
Of the nine residence halls on campus, SRU owns only North Hall and Rhodes Hall. The other residence halls were built while President Cheryl J. Norton was in office by a foundation that rents the land from SRU. The foundation owns the buildings, but SRU manages payroll and staffing except for cleaners who are part of an outside contract.
The foundation uses the rent they collect from students to pay their mortgage in the form of a bond. The foundation then reimburses SRU for employees’ salaries and other management costs. What’s left over is donated to the 501C3 Chairity, which goes toward scholarships for SRU students.
SRU is currently at about 92% occupancy. Since Fall 2016, the university is down 800 undergraduates. Since the university has relaxed its commuting rules, Behre is confident they will fit the increased number of students.
"If we go from 92% to where we want to be at 99% occupancy, that extra 7% of money is going back into scholarships," Behre said.
There are also some rooms on campus that are currently housing two students, but they could fit three people in those rooms while staying within housing guidelines. This is only a worst-case scenario, though.
When the University Union
is renovated, which is expected to be completed by 2023, the student counseling center and student health center will move out of Rhodes opening the first floor if extra space is needed.
“The decision is really based around the idea of providing those first two years of experience,” Wilmes said. “While there are going to be some people that are displaced, that was sort of a bigger picture kind of thing.”
The administration is still working out the criteria for which upperclassmen will get priority housing on campus. Scholarship programs like the Pittsburgh Promise that require students to live on campus for four years will still have housing.
The university also has an emergency relief fund for students in crisis.
In addition to the two-year residential housing requirement, Behre is well aware of concerns that the requirement will exasperate a campus-wide “parking problem.”
He argues that the new requirement does not affect the total number of students looking for parking.
“If our enrollments don’t grow, and our housing goes up by 7%, there will be more students,” he said. “Though, it will likely be that more students will be seeking overnight parking on campus.”
A resident student is most likely parking their car and walking to class, so those students aren’t fighting for spots, he said.
Behre also considers that the next president may not want to come into the position and make decisions without doing their own research first. In his opinion, this is a low-risk, high-
return experiment.
However, SRU-APSCUF is concerned that requiring students to live on campus for two years will drive up their costs.
“We (SRU-APSCUF) are concerned that requiring twoyear housing unnecessarily raises the cost to attend SRU, which appears to be the opposite of the statement ‘highest quality education at the lowest possible cost’ found in PA ACT 188 and PA ACT 50,” SRU-APSCUF President Jason Hilton said.
Behre would argue that living off campus is more expensive than living on campus when adding in bills for parking, utilities and other costs.
SRU-APSCUF also believes that students from lower-income
backgrounds may choose to instead attend universities that don’t have a two-year residential housing requirement to keep costs down.
An overall loss of students could also trigger a need to reduce the number of faculty at SRU.
“Administration argues that any loss of students recruited will be covered by an increase in retention of student,” Hilton said. “That is an economic model. We (SRU-APSCUF) have asked for evidence that this will both lead to an increase in retention and that such an increase will offset the loss of students recruited. We have not been provided with that evidence.”
If living in the dorms was
more beneficial than living off campus, administration would not have to mandate that students live in the dorms for two years, Hilton said. “We (SRU-APSCUF) believe SRU should focus on enriching the experience of students living in dorms and/or lower the cost of student housing, such that students will rationally choose to live in the dorms for multiple years, rather than be forced to do so.”
Behre argues that if the administration does not see the results they were looking for, or admissions brings issues to the presidential cabinet, the requirement can easily be reversed by the next administration.
“In some ways, I think if there’s a controversy over this, it’s
SRU’s chief diversity officer Anthony Jones has hired an assistant director for the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB).
Keshia Booker was hired internally from the Office of Inclusive Excellence. She was previously the assistant director of multicultural development.
“She’s the type of person that when you say ‘this is the goal,’ she’s rolling up her sleeves and checking boxes to attain that goal,” Jones said.
Jones describes her as a very hard worker with great ideas and a thirst to do more. He is confident they will work well together. The assistant director position is designed to be his right hand.
“I just think that she’s the person you would want next to you if you’re trying to figure something out,” he said.
The pros of hiring internally are that Booker already knows the systems on campus and who to talk to about specific issues. Since
Jones is still new to SRU, he is happy to have someone who can give him internal direction about who to speak with to get things done.
However, hiring internally may not give the DEIB and university the same fresh ideas and perspectives that come from an external candidate that has had experience with other institutions.
The committee tasked with finding an assistant director consisted of Jones, administrative assistant Amber Holmes and SRUAPSCUF vice president and elementary education/ early childhood chairperson Michelle Amodei.
The hiring process began in the summer and took longer than the committee had hoped. They had several strong candidates, but the candidate pool had not been as strong as they would have liked, Jones said.
The committee looked for qualified candidates with experience in the office’s mission, vision and values.
In addition to diversity, equity and inclusion, they had to understand the addition of belonging- as well as what that term means for the office.
Jones was also looking for experience in programming and the assessment and recruitment of faculty and staff
A weaker applicant pool than they had hoped for caused the committee to wait and let the pool grow before starting the review process. Jones speculated that qualified individuals may not have been applying due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected employment across the country, and because of better opportunities outside higher education.
Qualified individuals also may not have known about the “diamond in the rough” Slippery Rock University because of its location and size. Jones understands the rationale that if candidates can find work closer to them or in a larger city, they will probably explore those options before choosing SRU. Working here must make sense for the individual.
“I think when people choose it, they fall in love with it,” Jones said. “But again, that diamond in the rough, how would you know if you don’t have a reason to know?”
The committee started with about 12 candidates, and eight of them were solid. They got through the first round of candidates and were planning to bring them to campus when they started hitting bumps in the road.
Two candidates did not interview well and were clearly not right for the position, and two candidates dropped out.
Booker did amazing in her interview, hit all the points they were looking for and was more than qualified, according to Jones.
“We do have an opportunity to work with someone who has a wealth of knowledge on the
institution, and also the social capital that comes with that,” Jones said.
Booker does not have an official start date, but Jones said she will be starting soon.
When she starts, they will be working right away on the search advocate process. These processes involve bringing in search advocates to ensure the university’s hiring process is fair and unbiased, and they give the university more diverse candidate pools.
They will also be working on what Jones calls the discovery program, which will help prospective students who normally may not consider SRU find out about the university and what it has to offer them.
Toward the end of the semester and the beginning of next semester, the DEIB will transition to the final draft of the DEIB Strategic Action Plan, which will help bring in students and faculty from underrepresented populations.
“[There are] a lot of things we’re up against,” Jones said. “I don’t like to put them in front of us as excuses, but there are definitely barriers we have to overcome.”
The DEIB will also be
"She's the type of person that when you say 'this is the goal,' she's rolling up her sleeves and shes's checking boxes to attain that goal."
– Anthony Jones, chief diversity officer
Slippery Rock University will not raise its tuition for the 2023-24 academic year.
"At Slippery Rock University," President William Behre said, "our students receive a strong education that prepares them for life after college without having to pay the high prices necessary at some of the larger universities or private colleges."
In previous years, tuition has gone up almost 2-3% more than it is currently. The current in state tuition is $3,858. Another increase of 3% could mean students would be paying $115.74 more for their tuition.
A lack of tuition increase could mean that a lot of the other things students pay for could also go up like housing, technology fee, etc.
"First, allow me to explain the process," Behre said. "Neither the University administration nor the Council of Trustees has the power to raise tuition – they can only make recommendations."
"The administration starts by making a recommendation to the Council. If the Council approves
that recommendation, then it is forwarded to the State System Board of Governors in Harrisburg.
"The Board of Governors then makes the final decision on all tuition and some fees. The Council of Trustees decides on other fees based on recommendations from the administration.
"This year, we are not recommending a tuition increase," Behre said. "We made this decision because the governor and the state legislature’s recently approved budget substantially increased the state appropriation to PASSHE. As a result, the University’s base budget increased by $9.7 million.
"We always strive to keep costs for students as low as possible. This allocation increase from the commonwealth will allow us to go another year without a tuition increase. This gave us the ability to meet our costs in the near term without raising tuition," he said.
SRU has not increased its tuition for four years.
Student enrollment for Fall 2022 for freshmen was up 7.51%. Whereas it was -7.37% in the Fall of 2021. SRU's
enrollment increased this year, indicating we receive a higher budget to not have to raise tuition.
This decision will have nothing to do with the scholarships and they will remain the same as long as our donors continue to contribute to the school.
"Cost is one of many factors students consider when deciding on a college," Behre said, "so keeping costs down helps, but by far not the only factor. Our students in particular chose SRU not just because of cost, but because of our academic programs, our expert faculty, our beautiful campus, our history of career preparation, and/or one of our many athletic teams.
"Had a modest tuition increase been necessary, I don’t think enrollments would have been impacted all that much," he said.
Fees for technology, housing, etc. are still being calculated at the moment. While Behre doesn't see there is an increase, he also isn't sure there won't be, either. Costs are still being calculated, and there will be updates on tuition and fees.
With COVID-19 travel restrictions still heavily enforced in China, how does the Information Systems and Technology Management Department (IMS) teach Chinese students at a 12-hour time difference?
In 2018, the Quanzhou University of Information Engineering (QUIE) contacted SRU about starting a dual-degree program so their students could get an American education from American professors without leaving China.
SRU’s purpose for this program would be to give international students an American education, increase enrollment at SRU and give the university global recognition. Administration also hoped the program would persuade Chinese students to come to SRU for a semester and increase cultural diversity on campus.
The program also benefits the university with the revenue it brings in.
“This program is bringing a lot of money to the university,” Jallow said. “These Chinese students are paying a lot of money and they are not here. They’re not using our technology.”
Behre said the program brings in six figures of revenue for SRU, but that’s within the grand scale of the total operating budget which is $150 million.
Students join the program
in their second or third year of college according to SRU President William Behre.
They first get an associate’s degree from QUIE, which SRU accepts as its liberal studies requirement before taking 36 credits as an IMS major.
Those students then continue toward a four-year degree in China and a fouryear degree at SRU.
Also in the partnership model, QUIE pays the university for educating their students, then that revenue is used to offset student costs at SRU.
Before the pandemic, the plan was to send a professor to China every semester to teach the joint program, then they would come back to SRU and another professor would go the next semester.
IMS department chair Abdou Karim Jallow and IMS professor Stephen Larson, who both participated in creating the curriculum, attended several meetings during the summer of 2018 then went on a weeklong trip to China to sign contracts and see the facilities they would be teaching in.
When the pandemic hit, Jallow and Larson quickly shifted to teaching the curriculum online after planning for it to be taught in person for several months. As an additional difficulty, SRU cannot export the same software used on campus directly to China. It must first be modified.
“That’s not the most effective way to teach,” Larson said. “Especially speakers of a second language because they don’t get to see your body language and the Chinese students are reluctant to ask you to repeat something because we’re teaching in English.”
Jallow also said the students can be reluctant to speak up, but he believes it’s because of a cultural difference. Unlike students in the United States, students in China don’t casually talk with their professors.
According to Larson, none of the professors teaching for this program speak Chinese. It’s better that way because the students then have a stronger incentive to learn English.
There are classroom assistants though that are bilingual and can help when a student doesn’t understand a concept.
Most of the time, adjunct professors are hired specifically to teach these classes via Zoom. Their students sit in a classroom, and each have their own computer screen. Jallow and Larson have both had to teach these classes and had differing experiences.
Jallow enjoyed teaching his class from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
“They do writing assignments, and I can tell you, they write very well,” he said.
Larson did not enjoy
teaching those classes as much as Jallow. He taught classes in that program for two semesters. One was 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., and the other was 10 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
The first time, he took the position because the professor they had hired to teach the class had taken another job the week before the class started.
“The second time, we could not find somebody to teach the class because who wants too teach 10 to 11:30 at night,” Larson said.
The worst part of teaching those classes was that he didn’t get enough sleep, and he missed out on nightly family time, he said.
Professors also sometimes get stuck with overload, which means they’re teaching more than four classes. In one instance, a professor teaching for the program in the fall got sick and had to be replaced for the spring semester.
“You kind of get burned out when you’re teaching more than four classes (in a) semester,” Larson said.
When China’s travel restrictions loosen, SRU President William Behre thinks that enrollment for the program will likely increase. SRU also hopes to send professors to China and teach the program how it was intended.
However, Behre is also concerned that professors would not feel safe in China’s current geopolitical landscape. It’s in their contract that the professors may be asked to go, but Behre said he would not send somebody who felt unsafe.
There is no timeline for when SRU faculty may go to China, but Behre thinks it won’t be this year since people tend to worry more about disease during the winter.
“I think that if we are, as a world, going to build those bridges, it’s not going to be through the politicians,” he said. “It’s going to be through our students.”
The Department of Education (ED) changed President Biden’s student debt relief program on Sept. 29 making Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) or Perkins Loans ineligible for forgiveness.
“Our goal is to provide relief to as many eligible borrowers as quickly and easily as possible,” a department spokesperson said in a statement to NPR, “and this will allow us to achieve that goal while we continue to explore additional legally-available options…”
According to federal data, more
than 4 million people still owe commercially held FFEL loans. An administrative office that spoke to NPR said roughly 800,000 borrowers could now be excluded from relief.
Roughly 1.5 million FFEL borrowers also have direct loans, which are loans through the federal government. By making FFEL loans ineligible for consolidation, those borrowers are now getting less forgiveness than they were promised.
FFEL borrowers who applied for their loans to be consolidated into direct loans before Sept. 29 will still be eligible for one-time debt relief.
FFEL loans were issued and
managed by private lenders but guaranteed by the federal government. The program was discontinued in 2010.
Perkins Loans are low-interest federal loans for students with exceptional financial need. The ED classifies financial need as the difference between the cost of attendance and expected family contribution. These loans are distributed by the university.
These loans are also no longer given. Final disbursements were allowed through June 2018.
Legal experts speculate that the federal student debt relief policy was changed to prevent private banks that manage old FFEL loans
from filing lawsuits citing financial harm.
When FFEL borrowers consolidate their loans into direct loans, those banks lose the longterm profits they would have seen from interest payments and repaid loans.
The same day the ED changed their eligibility guidelines, six Republican-led states sued to block Biden’s plan using that same argument, according to NBC News. Those states were Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and South Carolina.
“The consolidation of [Higher Education Loan Authority of the State of Missouri] FFEL loans
harms the entity by depriving it of an asset that it currently owns,” the complaint said.
This isn’t the only hurdle Biden’s plan has faced. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that Biden’s plan to forgive federal student debt would cost the government about $400 billion.
The ED did its own estimate averaging the program at $30 billion annually for the next decade and $379 billion over the program’s lifespan of at least three decades.
The ED’s estimates are based on assumptions about future economic conditions and participation rates, among other criteria.
The estimate also assumes that only 81% of eligible borrowers will take advantage of federal student loan forgiveness.
According to the ED, nearly 90% of relief dollars will go to those earning less than $75,000 per year, and the top 5% of earners will not benefit.
The ED is currently reviewing options and discussing with private lenders to find a way to offer those carrying FFEL loans relief as well.
Eligible borrowers have until Dec. 31, 2023, to apply for federal student debt relief. The current pause on loan repayments will end in Jan. 2023.
After years of the spotted lanternfly costing vineyards, orchards and lumberyards thousands of dollars, scientists may have finally found it a worthy opponent.
Scientists have identified the fungi Batkoa major that killed 97% of spotted lanternflies on tree trunks when reproduced in a lab setting.
They also identified a second fungi, Beauveria bassiana, that killed 51% of the flies while on the ground. Batkoa major killed the rest on the ground.
“[This is] a great example of how a major new invasive herbivore can be suppressed by native pathogens,” Eric Clifton, a postdoctoral researcher at Cornell, said in a previous article. “Nobody stepped in to do this; it all happened naturally.”
The fungi invade the flies via direct contact. The flies pick up the spores, which then continue to grow around the insect’s body. Within days, the fly will lie dead covered in white spores. These spores are then picked up by other flies, and the infection spreads.
The fungi may also target other insects, but many of them, including bees, know how to eliminate this infection or keep the infected bug away from the hive.
Scientists suspect the spotted lanternflies cannot do this because they were not exposed to this type of fungi in Asia.
The flies have fewer natural predators in the
United States which has allowed them to thrive, but they still have some such as praying mantis and birds. However, these predators do not eliminate them at any meaningful rate to slow their spread.
The flies were first discovered in the United States in Berks County, Pennsylvania in 2014. Some PA vineyard owners that year reported up to 90% losses.
A University of Pennsylvania study estimated losses to be at
$42.6 million according to The Winchester Star.
The spotted lanternflies feed on more than 70 species of fruit and hardwood trees, vines and crops by sucking the nutrients out of their sap. They also excrete a sugary substance called honeydew that promotes black mold growth, as if anyone needed another reason to avoid honeydew (this editor’s personal opinion).
Butler County has avoided the PA Department of Agriculture’s quarantine list so far, but we have many
species of hardwood trees that could attract them such as oak, hickory, maple, pine, sycamore, black cherry, white ash and tulip trees.
On SRU’s campus, we also have trees less common in Pennsylvania like the okame cherry, sugar tyme crabapple and Norway spruce trees. Th ese were added via the SRU Green Fund grant in 2017.
The flies favorite meal is the tree of heaven, another invasive species from Asia. The tree has also been a problem as it can reproduce
very quickly and can kill native plants around it, according to The Nature Conservancy.
According to a North Jersey article, homeowners can also plant trap trees, which are trees injected with insecticides. The flies then swarm the tree, eat the sap and die from the poison.
The flies have now spread to 45 PA counties and 14 states. October brings mating season for these flies, so there are bound to be more next year.
The females lay 30-50 eggs
at once and coat them with a protective layer to survive the winter. The protective layer is usually rectangular and can be gray, light brown or cream-colored.
The eggs are usually laid in hard-to-reach areas like treetops, but the protective coating will help them stick to any flat surface. They’re able to travel long distances by sticking to cars.
The best way to remove the eggs is to scrape them off with a flat edge, such as a razor blade or a scraper.
"Our goal is to provide relief to as many eligible borrowers as quickly and easily as possible, and this will allow us achieve that goal while we continue to explore additional legallyavailable options..."
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Slippery Rock University
Slippery Rock University
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Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania 16057
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Students, staff and alumni look forward to homecoming week every year. Participating in activities, visiting old professors, enjoying Rock football again and the annual parade spur a feeling of togetherness and nostalgia.
However, homecoming can only make us feel this way if it is carried out with the same amount of effort and passion as it always has been.
This year's homecoming theme is "Feelin' 22." A mixtape accompanies the phrase on all promotional items, which alludes to the intended meaning.
In an SRU news article, the university explains that the theme is a nod to Taylor Swift's song "22." That is the only explanation for why they chose this theme.
Using the year as a reference to a party song from the early 2010s is somewhat creative, but a theme has to be built around the song. It needs to act as more than just a title.
Is this a nostalgia theme? An ode to the early 2010s? If so, why a mixtape as the logo? It would be much more appropriate to use an iPod with a pair of corded earbuds.
Giving their own takes on the theme, organizations participated in spirit board paintings, where they painted popular songs on poster boards. Songs included California Gurls by Katy Perry, Born This Way by Lady Gaga and Don't Worry, Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin.
The "Feelin' 22" theme is either just vague enough to be interpreted in different ways, or it is a boring attempt to appeal to a wide audience.
Not so welcoming
With the confusion about the theme and lack of ample advertising, this year's homecoming doesn't feel as collective or welcoming as it has before.
SRU's Instagram account has been posting about each day's events exclusively on their Instagram story. Instagram story posts disappear after 24 hours. A few social media posts here and there doesn't seem like enough.
The university should consider letting student employees have a more handson experience with the next homecoming social media campaign. Students know what students (or former students) like, and that could increase involvement for everyone.
Thinking about what grabs students' attention in general would work for the
homecoming committee's benefit: More emails, social media posts and posters.
Most of the issues being talked about among the student body could be solved if students were more involved in the planning process.
Other high schools and colleges give the student body a few different options to choose from for a homecoming theme. SRU should consider doing this in the future.
Taking advantage of nostalgia
The first time that Rally for Rocky was announced to the public was on Sept. 12. The SRU University Advancement Twitter account tweeted about the launch of the campaign, saying once it reaches $22,000, Rocky the Rock would make a "special one-time appearance" during homecoming.
When you consider what would happen if $22,000 is raised—the university's old
mascot making a singular appearance during homecoming week—it seems like an unrealistic, big ask.
The old Rocky the Rock costumes are housed within the Bailey Library Archives, after Bob Jones, SRU alum of 1983 and original wearer of the costume, donated the homemade Rocky costume in 2016. The Rocky the Rock costume, and other memorabilia, are on display for students to see on the third floor of the Bailey Library.
It is not clear why this large sum of money must be raised to see a mascot one time when it is already on display. It feels like an easy money grab that preys on nostalgia in exchange for thousands of dollars.
Most of these Twitter posts about the Rally for Rocky event do not mention the fact that this money is going towards the SRU Scholarship Fund, according to the description on the campaign
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site. Posts that mention the scholarship fund are few and far between.
This is the first known time that the university has used a fundraiser like this to collect money. So, how have they raised money for the scholarship fund before? And what has given them the need to pass the proverbial donation bucket?
It seems like alumni are the most interested demographic in this one-time Rocky appearance. A whopping 71% of the donations are from alumni, compared to 1% from students.
With 117 donors and four days remaining as of Oct. 11, the Rally for Rocky campaign has only raised over $15,000.
What happens when the $22,000 goal isn't met? This amount of money being raised with no outcome might make homecoming fall flatter than it already has.
What do you think the homecoming theme "Feelin' 22" means?
Lauren Pflueger Sophomore Early Education & Special Education Slippery Rock, PA
"I thought of it as the year 2022."
Brandon Moore Junior Security Beaver Falls, PA "I would say it's probably just about having fun in 2022 after two years of COVID. It's about feeling yourself and having fun while you can."
Reece Watson Sophomore Business & Management Houston, TX
"It's about living your best life in the year 2022."
Nina is a senior converged journalism major with a certificate in global and intercultural communication. She is the editor-in-chief of The Rocket and the vice president of Lambda Pi Eta. Nina identifies as bisexual.
June. One of the few times a year when big corporations put in minimal effort to acknowledge the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community (LGBT) for a mere 30 days. Th en, poof... the rainbow shirts, socks, boxers, are all gone.
The same thing applies to LGBT History Month during October, except it's even less likely for companies to celebrate the queer community. That's sad and frankly unacceptable.
It's all performative activism. Some companies would rather let customers know they are allies by releasing a lazy line of rainbow clothing with the
words "Love is love" than advocate for the community in a meaningful manner. In other words, a quick money grab at the expense of a marginalized community.
Creating a rainbow version of a logo isn't inherently problematic. But it becomes harmful to an already marginalized community when it is not backed up by significant action.
A prominent example of bad Pride merch is Walmart's "Come to the gay side, we have rainbows" shirt. This harmful, out of
touch message minimizes queer identity by making it seem like a choice.
In an attempt to cater to the LGBT community, big corporations like Walmart and Target display superfical messages on t-shirts that have no benefit to the community. Stamping a rainbow on select items in your establishment does nothing but fail the LGBT community.
Other companies aren't doing any better. H&M, for one, donates a portion (only 10%) of proceeds from their "Pride Out
Loud" collection to LGBT charities.
Adidas is another one of the many brands that has a dedicated line for Pride Month. But Adidas is also one of the major sponsors of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, a country with anti-LGBT laws. This is not only a blaring contradiction, but it also makes companys' attempts to support the queer community even more shallow.
Avoiding performative activism
How to avoid any type of performative activism seems
pretty straightforward, but apparently not to some. So, to spell it out: Educate yourself. Make a legitimate commitment to LGBT advocacy. Donate your proceeds to an LGBT charity. Do research before sponsoring an event that directly contradicts with what you say you stand for.
Another way that may not be so obvious is the process of normalizing queerness instead of stereotyping and ostracizing an entire community.
Corporations must include people that are
in the queer community in the planning of LGBT History Month and Pride Month campaigns. It is counterproductive to exclude people from the community that you are trying to target.
Companies should not be supporting the queer community only once or twice a year, but rather all year round. Making a consistent effort to raise awareness and show support takes large corporations one step closer to successfully supporting the LGBT community and making it count.
global greenhouse gas emissions.
One of the topics I find most fascinating is regenerative agriculture. Two years ago, I read Gabe Brown’s “Dirt to Soil” and have never looked at plants the same way. For me, his philosophies just make sense.
The basic principle is to mimic how plants grow in nature. It’s what they do best.
With regenerative practices, the no-till method is used to plant seeds, as well as cover crops during the off season.
Jessica is a double major at SRU in geography and nonprofit management. This semester, she is the social media assistant for the Office of Sustainability.
We have all heard the doom and gloom of climate science and what the future holds. While it is important to understand climate change, we should not let it weigh us down.
Working for Paul Scanlon with the Office of Sustainability has opened an avenue for me to explore the pathway of how our world can change for the better. He constantly provides me with initiatives and projects in our local area that promote better systems. I would like to share some of the inspiring and interesting news I have heard with you.
Food Minimizing food waste and improving sustainable food production practices is extremely valuable in a world, in which 40% of all food produced is wasted. Food production is estimated to be responsible
Biodiversity is encouraged to bring in as many nutrients to the soil as possible.
This is how farmers can maximize growth and profit without using additional fertilizers or pesticides.
Plants need intact soil and biodiversity to reach their fullest potential, and livestock will assist in that process.
Gabe even mentions that most bugs are not pests and will benefit your crops. The more diversity on your farm or in your garden, the better.
Regenerative farming causes plants to take more carbon dioxide out of the air and store it as carbon in the soil than does conventional farming. To provide incentives farmers to "go green," federal legislation has been proposed to allow farmers to increase their revenues by selling carbon credits to companies looking to lower their carbon footprints.
There is a revolution of regenerative farmers taking on the challenge of transitioning their land to no-till biodiverse havens.
Most operations save money and can produce more to make a profit. The first step in changing our world is to rethink how we grow our food. Food can even start on your windowsill with soil, sun, water and a little seed.
Energy Maybe you’ve heard about it, but hydrogen energy is the newest renewable technology. Part of the fight against climate change will have to be from innovations. The newly passed Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has granted $7 billion for the creation of regional H2Hubs (centers for developing hydrogen electricity).
The combination of hydrogen atoms with oxygen atoms produces an electric reaction, similar to how a battery functions. This energy source is already used by NASA and in industrial processes. The Department of Energy (DOE) hopes to use hydrogen for a better purpose.
There is a “National Clean Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap” on the DOE’s website containing more information about hydrogen power across the United States.
To fully establish clean energy across the country, there will need to be multiple sources of renewable energy. Each community has different strengths and weaknesses, that renewable sources can play off
As an example, SRU’s campus could use geothermal energy powered by renewable electricity to eliminate our coal usage for heating while also providing cooling.
Many companies and manufacturers are facing increasing pressure from stakeholders to reduce their carbon emissions and clean up their practices. This is an area that you, as an SRU
student, can help make moves in as well.
The Office of Sustainability has open positions for students to conduct sustainability assessments on food manufacturing facilities. You can apply for this internship on Handshake. Plastic
I have already talked about it, but I bring it up again because it is such a crucial piece of the climate change puzzle. Solving our waste and packaging problem will also help solve our carbon emission problem. Everything is connected.
Within the lab, there have been several discoveries of fungi and worms that can break down specific types of plastic. For what we have already produced, there is hope to turn the plastic found in the ocean back into a part of the environment.
In 2011, researchers at Yale University published an article identifying fungi found in Ecuador that can degrade polyester plastic. Their full paper can be found online in the American Society for Microbiology Journal.
More recently, researchers at Stanford found that the common mealworm can digest Styrofoam and several other forms of plastic. They can break down the chemical components into workable soil for crops.
But these discoveries are considerably old news, and research is being conducted to further these discoveries and provide communities with
the materials to use these organisms.
Currently, there are around 6 industrial petrochemical ethane cracker plants proposed to be built in the Western Pennsylvania region. These large plants use natural gas from fracking to make ethylene, or the building block of commercialized plastic products. If we want to create sustainable communities, we have to strive for better alternatives than natural gas.
Even with these discoveries, they cannot break down plastic already in the ecosystem as fast as we produce it. We still need to be conscious of our waste and mindful of what we spend our money on. Being environmentally conscious can save your wallet, too.
Community Just as every community will have a different situation and solution to the climate crisis, everyone has different ideas of how we can accomplish net zero emissions. For SRU alum, Alaina Carney, “conservation in every aspect” is key.
On a personal level, we need to positively highlight our prevention methods, like rewilding our lawns, using less energy, creating educating each other. While supporting these local initiatives, we should be enacting legislature that helps fund energy and infrastructure change at the manufacturing levels.
Along the same lines as Alaina’s answer, a current student, Alexes Gomez, believes in “the initiative to restore nature”. They blame convenience for our exploitation of the land, and we should be more conscious of using what we already have.
Instead of building and creating more, we could collaborate with other communities to rebuild common spaces.
Sustainability is more than lab research and discoveries. There is a reliance on each other that we need to develop. We all need to shift our mindsets to see new alternatives and ways of functioning as a community.
If Slippery Rock was more in tune with students and professors, we could be assisting each other in developing initiatives for the future. With a higher sense of community, we feel more responsibility for each other. Everything else falls into place once we realize our importance in the bigger picture of sustainability.
If interested in learning more about plastics, you can attend the Sustainability Next Summit on Nov. 16.
" If we want to create sustainable communities, we have to strive for better alternatives than natural gas."
To learn more about plastics, attend the Sustainability Next Summit
Nic is an alumnus of SRU '22 with a degree in political science and a minor in gender studies. They currently work as a field organizer, but in their free time, they like to make spoon rings, spend time with their cat Soleo and write music.
The first time I met Dr. Cindy LaCom was in early 2017, was when I was looking into possible colleges to attend. At the time, I had no interest in the field of gender studies. In fact, my dad began what would become the first of many conversations with Cindy out of a deep curiosity of how they would respond to someone who fundamentally disagreed with them.
In that rather brief interaction with them, something about their attitude and approach to the world caught my attention.
Two years later, when I ran into them again at the oncampus Starbucks, I once again was drawn in and knew that I had to take a class with them before I graduated. After one class, I declared a gender studies minor.
Rationalizing that decision to my family
was somewhat difficult; I was asked repeatedly, “What is gender studies and why is it useful?”
In many ways, this is the same question that is facing Slippery Rock University today with the imminent retirement of Cindy LaCom and the decision to not seek out a full-time replacement to direct the gender studies department.
While this decision has seemingly been made with the goal of cutting university expenditures, the loss of a full-time director for the gender studies program also marks a major cut in opportunities for students on this campus. Gender studies is not an expendable or unimportant field of study which this university should be reducing. Instead, it should be seeking to grow and nurture this program for the sake of all students on this campus.
Let me rewind for a second and explain the scope of gender studies at Slippery Rock. When pressed to answer what gender studies is by family, friends and otherwise, I have offered the tentative definition of "the study of the many forms oppression takes within an intersectional context."
This is because gender studies classes are not just limited to discussions of gender; They also examine topics like disability, sexuality, porn culture, the man box, systemic racism, law, medicine and the prison system among many, many more topics. The broad swath of topics it covers means it is a field of study which
has relevance to every other field of study on this campus.
This is not a controversial take. The university agrees that these topics are important to every field of study.
Just last December, the university’s curriculum was changed to add a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) requirement for all incoming students in the fall 2022 semester. In the fall 2021, the university also sought out and hired a Chief Diversity Officer Anthony Jones. However, paradoxically, by fall 2023, it seems that gender studies, one of the major DEI pillars at SRU, will be director-less.
This is a clear disservice to students, as the loss of a director of gender studies also leaves many important student opportunities, including several unique classes, program planning and an annual newsletter, to either find their way onto another faculty member’s plate or to disappear from SRU entirely.
This is unfair to not only our current students, but also to future students. As someone who has deeply benefitted from these classes, programs and the advisement of Cindy, the thought of other students not having the same opportunity to grow truly breaks my heart.
In writing this piece, I dug up an old email that Cindy wrote to me after our first meeting over five years ago. I remember reading it when it came in and being surprised that, at such a big university, someone would care enough about meeting me to write me an email. That care for each student did not end there.
A few years later, with their help, I found myself presenting a paper I had worked on in their class at a conference.
I also found myself attending deeply interesting programming which they helped to put on in their capacity as the Gender Studies Club advisor. In fall 2021, they helped
me get an internship, which fulfi lled both political science and gender studies criteria, for my spring 2022 semester.
I don’t expect someone to take over and be another Cindy LaCom. Th eir shoes are incredibly hard to fill, and their impact on this university and the students here will only be truly measurable in the years to come.
But, despite this, failing to fill Cindy’s position, and instead choosing to cut it out is an administrative short sight in the name of a budget, which should be righted.
The clearest route for this to be done is by changing course sooner rather than later and pursuing a full-time tenuretracked professor to co-direct the department by spring 2023. This position would allow for Cindy’s shoes to be filled, for students to not lose the many opportunities offered by gender studies, and affirm, once again, that this university understands that DEI is important across disciplines and majors.
Opportunities like these, which I was offered, need to be protected for both future and current students. I believe doing anything less to be a disservice to all those who pursue learning at Slippery Rock University. Th e course needs to be changed and someone needs to be found to co-direct gender studies rather than taking the easy route which the university has decided on, one which clearly ends in cutting student opportunities.
Annabelle is a sophomore double majoring in English education and creative writing. She is the assistant campus life editor on The Rocket staff and has been a vegetarian for almost seven years.
As Pennsylvania air holds me in its embrace,
I am greeted by leaves of orange, yellow, and red;
The crisp autumn wind whips my pinkhighlighted face,
And I’m glad that today I chose to leave my bed;
The sun breaks through clouds and burrows gently in my skin,
I watch as it bathes every hill until dripping with gold;
I adjust the sleeves of the cashmere I’m in,
And ponder why autumnal beauty never seems to get old;
From the bricks of Old Main to the paths where I walk, I am thankful for fall in Slippery Rock.
Th e leaves show me a song when they crunch ‘neath my feet,
Accompanied by a rustle-tinged breeze,
With a bird-chirping chorus and woodfire beat,
The perfect symphony to put me at ease; I delight in treats of sweet pumpkin and spiced apple flavor,
They warm me through like a hug;
These feelings are what I’ll remember to savor,
Along with each plant, tree, rock and bug.
In spite of my bias and qualms I may talk, I am thankful for Fall in Slippery Rock.
BY MAX ENCK, FRESHMAN PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR
"...failing to fill Cindy's position, and instead choosing to cut it out is an administrative short sight in the name of a budget, which should be righted. The clearest route for this to be done is by changing course sooner rather than later and pursuing a full-time tenuretracked professor to co-direct the department by spring 2023."By Tyler Howe Sports Editor Marissa Mastrangelo Rocket Contributor
Whether you are on the field, in a classroom, catching the Happy Bus or grabbing a quick bite to eat, Slippery Rock University and the surrounding community will always welcome you to be true to who you are.
Diversity, equity, inclusivity and belonging (DEIB) is not a mindset that the people of Slippery Rock community has confined to any walls or put restraints on. If anything, Slippery Rock University, as well as the surrounding community, is thriving from its inclusive nature.
DEIB has been a positively progressing mindset and practice that the whole of Slippery Rock's community has embraced.
When it comes to the SRU Rock Athletics as a whole, they've been hitting it out of the park.
After speaking with the Director of Athletics, Roberta Page, she was able to provide further insight into her opinion about the experiences within the athletics here and why DEIB is positively influencing the community.
"It's never needed to be something that we've needed to address in a negative way," said Page. "I'm proud of our teams, I'm proud of our coaches, and I'm proud of our student athletes for the
inclusive atmosphere that's created here."
Page described that everyone who participates alongside Rock Athletics are on the same wavelength as the rest of the university when it comes to promoting DEIB environments.
"Slippery Rock will always provide that environment," said Page. "We mirror the population on campus, so we are no different than what I would hope other professors, or faculty, or staff would have within their groups on campus."
Page has made it a point to bring up diversity in her meetings with all the coaches on campus. Not only is there no tolerance for discrimination, there is an expectation of inclusion.
There has been no shortage of conversations about diversity between Page and each staff on campus. In fact, her goal coming in was to create open dialogue. This was so that she could make sure that each and every person feels safe and respected on this campus.
"We use open dialogue in our meetings, we have an environment where we can talk about almost everything," Page said. "If that comes up and coaches have questions or thoughts, I'm certain that we've created an environment to have those types of conversations."
It stems further than just sports, however. Page acknowledged that there is
that same expectation of inclusion in the community.
She's right, and all that needs to be done to prove her point is to walk down main street.
"Our goal is to always provide a safe environment," Page said. "We are no different and should be no different than anyone else outside of Slippery Rock.
I don't think we are doing anything differently than what others are doing across the country."
Page further explained that she has never had to deal with any form of negativity in regards to DEIB amongst the athletic department. As well as that, discrimination will never be tolerated within the athletic department.
All the work that is done by everyone behind the scenes to make everyone feel welcome is to show that Slippery Rock cares and supports about everyone, according to Page.
"I think it shows our perspective student athletes that we care about them as individuals, not about what they bring," Page said. "This is a very accepting campus and we are part of that campus."
She is proud of Slippery Rock for creating a safe environment for people to continue being who they are.
"I am proud of our community," said Page. "I'm proud of the athletic department, Im proud of the university and I am proud of our town."
Life doesn’t always take the path we want it to or expect it to, and defensive tackle Jeff Marx knows that firsthand.
Marx was a four-year football letterman at Ursuline. He gathered four all-district selections, All-Ohio honors as both a Junior and a Senior, the “Five Blocks of Granite” award which is given to the top five offensive linemen in the Ohio Valley, and was selected to play in the Ohio North-South Senior AllStar game. He did all of this while being an accomplished powerlifter and an honor-roll student.
Out of high school, Marx fielded offers from
Navy, Army West Point and Youngstown State before he would decide to commit to Navy. He enjoyed the football aspect but the longer he spent there he realized that he needed to pave a different road for himself.
After some time searching, Marx had narrowed down his potential schools to Duquesne and Slippery Rock University. He shared that his final decision was heavily based on how welcoming the coaching staff was and the positivity that appeared to surround the football organization.
“What really made me want to come to the Rock was the coaches, it felt like a family atmosphere,” Marx said.”
It was clear the developing brotherhood between the players and coaching staff had
a positive impact on Marx. It was also clear that Marx had a positive impact on Slippery Rock’s on-field production. He helped transform Slippery Rock’s 13th-ranked run defense in 2017 into the 2ndranked run defense in 2018.
Marx undoubtedly played a large role in this production, but you wouldn’t be able to tell by talking to him because of his humility. He always gives credit to the playmakers around him and the coaches for putting him in the right position to make plays.
“I credit our success to the family atmosphere, our competitiveness on the field, our trainers who take care of our bodies day in and day out, our weight room staff that gets us ready for each game having us explosive and
strong, that’s where I really credit our success to,” Marx said.
Head Coach Shawn Lutz unquestionably had a large impact on Marx’ early success. As the former defensive line coach, Coach Lutz typically has a strong bond with the position group.
“He’s really just become a great role model. We have a great relationship,” said Marx.
That 2018 season culminated in a national playoff berth and a PSAC championship appearance.
Unfortunately, neither title would be assumed as The Rock fell to West Chester University in the
PSAC Championship and Notre Dame College of Ohio in the 3rd round of the NCAA Division II National Playoffs.
This didn’t prevent the team from growing and building commoradory.
“Playing on that team was really special,” Marx said.
Despite not bringing home hardware, the bar had been raised.
“We really set the standard by practicing hard every day, competing against each other. We really rose the standard for years to come,” said Marx.
The framework for the 2019 season had been created and it was time to execute, which they
absolutely did. Slippery Rock football opened up the series by dropping 62 points on Wayne State University and collecting the win. They would go on to win every other regular season game to finish undefeated.
Marx would capture his second First Team All-PSAC West honor after starting all 14 games and accumulating 7 TFL, 1 sack, and one fumble recovery. Marx once again gave all of the credit to those around him. He commented on the coach’s and trainer’s ability to bring the best out of their players.
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Gannon mercyhurst Seton hill Slippery Rock pitt-johnstown california (pa.) indiana (pa.) edinboro clarion
Millersville
E. Stroudsburg
Shippensburg west chester kutztown indiana (pa.) bloomsburg mansfield mercyhurst slippery rock
(5-0)
(4-1-1)
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One week after The Rock dropped their first PSAC west to Indiana (Pa.), they returned home looking to get back on track. It took them all of 13 seconds to do that, thanks to Jawon Hall taking the opening kickoff 97 yards to the house.
“I liked the way we started the game with [Jawon Hall] taking it to the house, that’s the way you want to start a football game and we did that,” Lutz said.
One of the biggest challenges was making sure that The Rock could get momentum on their side. Against Indiana (Pa.), they could only keep it in spurts. Against Mercyhurst, they were able to do that much better than the week prior.
threw his third interception in two weeks.
Grover redeemed himself the next drive, as he led a 20play, 89-yard drive that took up nine minutes of gametime. The style of play is something Rock football fans are not used to seeing. Long drives have never been The Rock’s thing, but neither has running the ball more on a drive than passing.
Yet that’s exactly what happened throughout the Mercyhurst game. Although Slippery Rock drove nearly the entire length of the field, they were held to just three points on the drive.
The Lakers offense answer to Slippery Rock’s long drive was a three-play drive, that went negative yards. Just like that, the ball was handed back to the green and white.
After going down by 17, the Lakers were able to chip at the lead with a field goal that drew them to within 14 points. That score would hold until halftime.
Mercyhurst fought back as soon as the whistle blew to begin the second half. Something Lutz respected and anticipated coming into the half.
“It’s difficult to be on top of things and be at your best at all moments,” Lutz said. “But I’ve got to hand it to Mercyhurst, because they never stop going and they played very hard tonight, and they just kept coming back.”
Every time The Rock put up a good drive in the half, it seemed that the Lakers responded. After scoring to begin the half and get back to only seven points down, Slippery Rock once again played the long game.
9-2-3 (8-1-3)
8-2-4 (7-1-4)
6-2-5 (4-2-5)
4-2-8 (3-2-7)
4-6-3 (4-5-2)
4-6-2 (4-5-2)
3-4-5 (2-4-5)
1-7-5 (1-6-5)
3-10-1 (2-9-1)
After the kick return, The Rock didn’t score a point again for a little over 16 minutes of gameplay. On their first offensive, however, Grover
They showed a glimpse of what they can do on offense if they want to it, as they took the ball 81 yards in five plays. The drive ended with Grover hitting Kyle Sheets for six.
A five-minute drive culminated with Hall crossing the plane off of a Grover pass from 16 yards out. The score put Slippery Rock up 24-10, but two
minutes later Mercyhurst’s Dustin Shoaf scored on a one-yard run.
A lost fumble on The Rock’s next drive had the Lakers poised to tie the game. Starting from Slippery Rock’s 27, they had a golden opportunity. It was squandered with a fourplay drive that turned the ball back over shut the game down for good.
“That fumble, if they got that score, it’s a tie ball game, and they had been coming down the field and scoring,” Lutz said. “So it was crucial for us to get that stop.”
The last score of the game came Max Maciejewski on a shovel pass from Grover. It was the final nail in the Laker’s coffin.
Lutz feels they still need to find their complete footing.
“We’ve played well in spurts, but it’s because we’ve turned over the football,” Lutz said. “If we don’t turn it over, we’re talking about a completely different team.”
Gannon indiana (pa.) edinboro california (pa.)
SLIPPERY ROCK
Seton hill mercyhurst pitt-johnstown
9-1 (2-0)
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6-3 (1-1)
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19-1 (9-0) 13-5 (7-1) 15-4 (5-3)
15-6 (5-4) 10-8 (4-5)
8-13 (4-5)
13-8 (3-6)
3-14 (1-7) 7-15 (1-8)
The Slippery Rock women’s Field Hockey team has consistently increased its winning percentage since 2018. After back-to-back doubledigit loss seasons in 2018 and 2019 followed by COVID-19 canceling the 2020 season, The Rock has a winning record for the first time since 2017. Coach Rayell Wallace attributes the continued growth and success to a number of things.
“The team did a lot of work over the last, really over the last 2, 2 ½ years to be where we are today. Not just work on the field but also in the weight room and definitely in the team meetings we had to improve the culture and really get to where we are today,” said Wallace.
It has been evident to Coach Wallace since the beginning of her coaching tenure in 2019 that the girls had talent. She made it her goal and her job to help the team reach its’ ceiling and everyone is now reaping the benefits.
“There’s a lot of things that they improved on, their skill has improved, their understanding of the game,” said Wallace.
If you asked Wallace, she would say that the key to unlocking the best possible play out of players is a combination of confidence in oneself and confidence in each other. Playing as hard as possible without fear is how the girls in white and green have begun to unlock their full potential.
Erin Roland has experienced probably the greatest statistics gain of this mentality. She has a team-leading five goals and twelve points. Coach Wallace commended her play while also making sure to credit the playmakers around Roland.
Wallace also commented that the team is doing very well with playing through each other and looking to everyone for leadership.
“The understanding and respect that the players have between each other has been the biggest improvement… We believe that everybody can lead in their own way,” said Wallace.
Coach Wallace made sure
to explain that much of this teamwork and leadership comes from an emphasis placed on intensity in games, in practice, and in the weight room. If her players are able to maintain their big-moment ferocity throughout every aspect of every game and their preparation, they cannot be outworked and thus put as much pressure on their opponents as possible. That is Coach Wallace’s plan, and it has been working.
“We’re always going to work intensely and you can say that in the weight room as well,” said Wallace.
Perhaps the best example of this was The Rock’s dominant 5-0 victory over Wingate University on October 2nd.
Slippery Rock jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the 20th minute of the game but never stopped the intensity. Erin Roland ended the game with two goals and an assist.
Coach Wallace’s impact on her players’ mindset is evident and she is excited about how they have accepted her teachings and incorporated them into their game.
“A lot of it is the improvement in the culture… the increase in the standards has gotten us to where we are right now,” said Wallace.
Her team has enjoyed nonstop improvement over the last few years and that can be attributed to Coach Wallace's consistency in raising the bar and never stopping pushing her players to be their best selves.
Going forward Coach Wallace feels good about the team getting better and just wants them to keep playing off of each other and playing with zero quit. There is a lot of season left and Coach Wallace’s main hope for the rest of this season would be the girls continuing their growth into becoming the best players that they can be.
The last time Slippery Rock field hockey finished above .500, they made playoffs. That is the goal again this year.
When asked how to increase their record further above .500 and reach the true heights of the team’s capabilities, Coach Wallace responded, “I would say to not be scared of their potential.”
“It speaks to how well they prepare us,” said Marx.
The Rock had a full head of steam and was looking for vengeance in a return to the PSAC Championship game. This year they would be facing off against Kutztown University. Momentum and intensity alone, however, cannot carry you to victory. The Rock offense was rolling, putting up 21 points on 3 passing touchdowns in the first half. Kutztown had also found its rhythm, answering with 28 points before the 3rd quarter.
Just like Marx’ unexpected life changes with switching schools, a coach’s game plan often needs to fluctuate. The 2019 season PSAC Championship game is a fitting example of this. We can’t be sure what was discussed in the locker room at halftime, but it worked. The Slippery Rock defense came out in the second half and put on a defensive clinic.
“You know, the defense played great that half we only gave up 7 points I believe,” said Marx. He was correct. The offense had also stalled somewhat. With time running out, the Green and White sideline started to become nervous that a second straight PSAC championship loss was just over the horizon.
“Being down [7 points] with like 4 minutes to go it was like man are we gonna get this thing?” Said Marx.
The defense had done its job. The offense now needed to mount a 15-point comeback after not scoring once in the third quarter. Roland Rivers proceeded to guide his squad down the
field for three scoring drives that eventually culminated in a go-ahead Charles Snorweah 8-yard touchdown run. Slippery Rock held their first and only lead of the game with 25 seconds remaining in the 4th quarter.
Kutztown would drive well into Slippery Rock territory and line up to attempt what would be a game-winning 51-yard field goal. Dean Krcic lined up his kick and missed.
“Winning that game was really special,” said Marx.
Just as everything was looking up, Jeff Marx would be thrown a series of Curveballs.
The entire next season would be canceled due to COVID-19 and if the team wanted to sustain its success they would have to focus on succeeding in the classroom and staying in football shape individually.
Despite the frustration of missing the 2020 season, The Rock was still coming off of a PSAC Championship and were ready to build on it.
The White and Green once again vanquished Wayne State University to start 1-0 and a winning streak. The same trend of reflecting the 2019 season continues as Slippery Rock football jumped out to a 3-0 start, but a wrench had been thrown in the works as defensive cornerstone. Marx suffered a season-ending injury when a short stick concept forced a missed tackle that led to an offensive lineman falling on Marx’ leg, severely damaging the structure of his foot.
Marx had to draw on his family and football
brotherhood more than ever.
“It was a hard road but I knew I was gonna get through it okay with, like, the people I have in my life. My mom, my dad, my girlfriend now and then my brother… It made a huge difference to have people that cared really a lot about me,”
one-score loss to Indiana University, Slippery Rock football has steamrolled their competition. Excluding that game, they have accrued a 5-0 record and an astonishing 183-57 scoring margin. Marx himself has put
utterly dominant 2.5 sack, 3 TFL performance against Seton Hill where SRU football came out with a 30-2 victory.
“The team chemistry really came along a lot… To see us bond a lot, come together, and become like brothers, that brotherhood really came to set in. I think that’s what’s really making this 2022 team really special,” said Marx.
It will likely take an undefeated season from here on out for SRU football to make playoffs.
Marx commented on a few ways the team can improve both physically and mentally.
“It all comes down to preparation… Competing hard, preparing well, studying on film better, I think that’s what will really take us to the next level,” said Marx.
developed into somewhat of a leadership role as an upperclassman and he places emphasis on never losing focus on what’s most important both on the field. He vocalized that everyone can always continue improving and how to do so.
accountable in the
the PSAC Championship, which Marx noted would be a very welcome development as The Rock has the firepower to beat anyone in the section, but he has his sight set further as well.
“If we win out we’re gonna make the national playoffs… If we can grind out a couple of wins to win the national championship, that would be about the biggest dream of my life you know? That would be awesome to get a ring in Texas,” said Marx.
These potential games and goals coming up are undeniably exciting, but Marx is also looking forward to his future past football which is getting closer every day. He participated in an internship at Pitt in 2021, where he focused 3 months on becoming a more informed athletic trainer. He garnered more experience in Hubbard, Ohio as well when he trained high school
Marx expressed interest in being a strength coach while also entertaining the possibility of opening up his own gym if ever given the opportunity. Much like his athletic career, Marx’s future aspirations are also very much open to change. In the same vein, they will likely undergo unexpected occurrences that are hopefully for the better.
“I have a few different options that I wanna take… I really like working with highschool athletes,” said
Marx has had more than a few twists in his academic and athletic careers but nearing the end it would appear as if he wouldn’t change a thing.
“Transferring out [of Navy] turned out to be the best decision of my life… this University as a whole has really meant a lot to
The Women’s and Pride Center hosted its second annual Burlesque Bash on Oct. 8. The event was held in the Smith Student Center Ballroom, featuring student performers, catered food, casino games, a photo booth and raffles featuring gift cards donated from local businesses. Even a magician visited tables to perform tricks.
Burlesque is a type of performance involving "extremes of behaviors or dress or caricature," according to Jen Salamone, assistant director of the Women’s and Pride Center.
“Burlesque has always been queer and camp," she added.
“Performance is related to gender, because we talk about the performativity of gender, right? We perform maleness or femaleness, and that’s about expression. … We’re giving people space to play with that. And it obviously brings up sexuality
as well. Just the ability to be open with that expression in public.”
“In my imagination, it allows people to express themselves in ways that weren’t necessarily appropriate back then— quotes around that, because appropriate changes over the years,” said Jarod Piccioli, graduate assistant for the Women’s and Pride Center.
“It’s up to interpretation, but I think it is an environment where people aren’t afraid to be themselves.”
Salamone associates burlesque with the movie “Cabaret,” which, to her, is about “social justice, rising above oppressive regimes and just doing what you want in those spaces.”
“They were the places where people could be free to express themselves, to talk the way they want, to interact the way they want,” Salamone said. “So, it really is a liberatory experience.” October is LGBT History Month, a separate entity from Pride Month in June.
“LGBT History Month, I think, really tries to focus on our elders or ancestors, what LGBTQI people have brought to the world,” Salamone said. “[We] focus on those trailblazers and the ones that are still … doing that kind of work.”
In her words, Pride Month is more about being accepted or being seen in your authentic self. However, since Pride Month takes place when school is out of session, LGBT organizations on campus are combining pride and history in October. RockOUT is planning a Pride Week from Oct. 24-28.
“Coming out is important, because people see that you exist and that you’ve always been here,” Salamone said.
“That’s the thing about LGBT history: Queer stuff is not new. Sometimes people say, ‘that queer stuff, it’s all over the place now and it wasn’t like that before.’ Well, that’s not true. LGBTQIA+ people have been here all along, and they’ve actually built culture. Queer kids aren’t
taught about their history, you know? Connecting to our history and the things that we’ve done and knowing we can make an impact [is important].”
Burlesque Bash was a social event with educational elements. SRU alum Nic Condon attended to inform students about voter registration and its importance.
“A lot of college students are not registered to vote,” Salamone said. “A lot of LGBT folks are not registered to vote, especially trans folks who [may] have to identify themselves with a different name than they would want to be identified with.”
Everything else was intended for entertainment and to showcase our students, because all of our students were the entertainment, Salamone said.
“Really, it’s just our kickoff event. I think in future, we want to make Octobers a little more robust, and focus on the education part a little bit more. But we have a solid kickoff to get
LGBTQ+ pride is more visible in some spaces than others. At most American colleges, for instance, pride is celebrated and nonstraight, non-cisgender people are treated as equals. However, LGBTQ+ acceptance is not universal.
On Monday, two religious zealots visited SRU’s Quad to broadcast their beliefs. They held a long list of people for whom “hell awaits,” including "party animals," "Catholics" and “homosexuals.” Students responded with counterprotests; no one seemed to completely agree with the list.
Despite this, the belief that LGBTQ+ people are disturbed, inappropriate or simply bad is still around.
Cindy LaCom is the director of the gender studies department at SRU, as well as a professor in the department of nonprofit management, empowerment and diversity studies. This is their 30th year at the university. LaCom identifies as straight and “primarily cisgender.” However, they use they/them pronouns because they believe gendered language reinforces “a binary that doesn’t have to exist.”
LaCom grew up near San Francisco, in a oneof-a-kind environment for LGBTQ+ people. They had openly gay friends in the 70s, when most people had no choice but to stay in the closet—and their sexual orientations were widely accepted.
“I was already very, very involved in LGBTQ issues as an ally,” LaCom said.
to college and then grad school in Eugene [Oregon]
… I was, at that point, very politically involved in a number of different issues. One of them was LGBTQ issues.
“That was probably when I … recognized how easily rights that I think I had taken for granted could be repealed or threatened.”
They named several cultural turning points that advanced LGBTQ rights, including the Stonewall riot, the AIDS crisis, the legalization of same-sex marriage and the transgender rights movement.
LaCom and their partner moved from the West Coast to New Castle, Pennsylvania, thirty years ago, and the culture shock was immediate. They described an incident at a county fair, two weeks after moving to the area.
“They had a dunking booth,” they said. “Th ere was a girl, probably 13 or 14, and a boy, probably from her high school, who was trying to dunk her. He kept throwing these beanbags and missing, and she screamed out, ‘come on! What are you, a [homophobic slur]?’
“Peter and I both were like ‘oh my god,’ and we looked around. No reaction whatsoever. People were laughing. And I looked at him and said, ‘I’m not sure we’re gonna be okay here.’
That was a radical indicator of how different it was.”
There were other, similar incidents within their first few years at SRU.
“[Within] my first three years of teaching, I was in a college writing class. We were talking about [gay rights] and one of my students raised her hand and said, ‘I don’t really mind gay couples, I just don’t like the public displays of affection.’"
LaCom asked if she meant on campus or in her hometown; her response was “both.” LaCom and the student turned out to live in the same town.
“I said, ‘I’ve never seen a public display of affection on our campus by a samesex couple,’” LaCom said. “‘I live in New Castle and I’ve never seen anybody [do it] there.’”
Although the student had never seen same-sex couples display affection either, she was so opposed to the idea that she felt the need to talk about it.
LaCom listed multiple examples of discrimination, in public and in private, on campus within the last decade. However, they have seen a shift within the same period of time.
“There is a more intersectional understanding of LGBTQI+, which has been a huge change,” LaCom said. “If we don’t understand
homophobia in the most intersectional context, we’re not doing a good job of battling homophobia.”
Current students, who haven’t had LaCom’s decades of experience fi ghting for LGBTQ+ rights, had more optimistic stories to tell about acceptance.
Natalie Smith, the president of RockOUT, and Matthew Broznick, who holds executive board positions in RockOUT and TRANSaction, came from relatively accepting environments. However, there were moments of conflict.
“I live in Allegheny County over the summer,” Broznick said. “My neighborhood is really split down the middle [in terms of politics]. … I never felt unsafe about it. But I wanted to do a pride flag a couple of years ago for June, and both my parents didn’t want to do it. Not because they were
against it, because they were worried it was going to get vandalized.”
Smith lives in Slippery Rock during the summer. Although she feels safe expressing her sexuality on campus, the surrounding town is a different story.
“I felt myself feeling like I couldn’t be very public with my sexuality outside of campus, but on campus, I would say it’s super inclusive,” Smith said. “I think Slippery Rock University does a great job of picking … the right majority of students. I’ve felt very accepted here.”
RockOUT was holding a game night when the protestors showed up on campus. Vice President Katie Shope passed by them and took pictures to show the other members.
people involved and get our community together.
“My goal as the assistant director of the Women’s and Pride Center is to meet folks
on campus who might identify as part of our population, so women or queer, and make some connections. That’s what I want to do.”BRANDON PIERCE / THE ROCKET Students "gamble" at one of many casino games provided. Students were given a fake $10,000 bill at the door to use as currency for the games.
"If we don't understand homophobia in the most intersectional context, we're not doing a good job of battling homophobia."
– Cindy LaCom, professor and director of SRU's gender studies program
“iNostalgia,” Boost Peer Coaching’s newest program on exploring the benefits of nostalgia, took place on Oct. 5 in the Smith Student Center. Attendees listened to a short presentation about the psychology behind nostalgia, took a Kahoot quiz about kids’ TV theme songs and watched clips they may remember from their childhoods.
Stickers, candy and snacks were provided to add to the theme of childhood memories.
Leah Meszaros, a senior majoring in neuroscience, created the program as part of her work with Boost. Th is is her fourth year as a Boost peer educator. She was “super excited” about the high turnout for an event from a “newer organization.”
“It was a larger audience than Boost typically gets for some programs,” Meszaros said. “We were worried about a lower attendance, so we really pushed [an advertisement] a few hours before, and it either worked out really well or everybody was already coming, so it didn’t matter. It was something that must have attracted the general body of Slippery Rock.” Meszaros pointed out nostalgic media's popularity for people of all ages.
“We kind of wanted to capitalize on that … and obviously, it hit its mark,” she said.
Meszaros spoke about using TV as self-care, which she wasn’t conscious of
until she joined Boost. She wanted to incorporate her neuroscience major as well, and the addition of nostalgia tied everything together.
When Boost peer educators create their programs, they use academic articles for most of their information. They also have access to data from CARE referrals, which are used “to see what’s missing and what’s needed from the student body,” according to Meszaros.
Not all programs look like Meszaros’ – some expand on past programs or spread their message through social media – and she stated that the format depends on the presenter’s personality and ideas.
“I kept thinking of a kid’s birthday party,” Meszaros said. “That’s why the tables were set up the way they were, with the snacks and the stickers in the middle as a centerpiece."
Th e overall goal was to teach and engage students. From the CARE referrals, Meszaros realized that “our student body sometimes needs permission to be stressed.”
“Being a college student in general is stressful,” Meszaros said. “They’re always asking you questions about where you’re going or where you came from, and you never really get time to be present.
“Events on campus are rewarding … to sit in the room and take a break for however long [the event lasts]. I think that’s super important. And it’s not that hard to do with Slippery Rock’s community.”
Every Boost event ends with an optional review from attendees, and Leah described hers as “glowing.”
“I believe every single person who filled out a survey said that they would be interested in coming to a Boost program again,” Meszaros said. “That was absolutely exciting, that something I created would make them feel that way. We hope to see those familiar faces in future programs.”
Big nicotine takes a fruitier form in order to directly target college students throughout the United States—including those who attend Slippery Rock University.
A survey about nicotine addiction on campus, conducted via social media, garnered responses from 124 SRU students.
“If I had any advice for someone who hasn’t tried nicotine, I would tell them to stay away from it because I wish I never tried it to begin with,” one participant said anonymously.
The survey showed that 60.5% of participants answered “yes” to the question: “Do you use nicotine?” Of those 75 students that answered in the affirmative, 72.5 % claim to engage in the habit daily.
Evidence of addiction is prevalent throughout campus. 43.7% of those surveyed answered that they consider themselves addicted to nicotine, while 10.7% of participants claim they are “not sure”.
“I hate it,” one participant said, “but I feel like I don’t have control over whether I can hate it or not because I love it too.”
“I have been addicted to substances in the past such as opiates and I was able to quit cold turkey without ever looking back,” another participant said, “I cannot say the same for nicotine… I haven’t been able to go more than 10 days without it since I was 16. I genuinely wish I never started.”
When asked which form of nicotine they most often consume, 86.1% of participants answered that vaping is their preferred method of intake.
“It feels like every time I step out in the quad, I see at least one person shrouded by a cloud of vapor,” freshman Brayden Sample said. “It’s interesting that the problem is literally visible, yet nobody seems to care.”
Vaping has been on a steady rise in America for the last ten years. Though it was originally marketed as a safer alternative to smoking, there is no evidence to support this claim. In fact, there is evidence to the contrary.
“My friend from high school had a rupture in his lungs due to vaping,” an anonymous SRU student said. “The damage is the same, except you can eliminate some of the risks that come from second-hand smoke with cigarettes.”
Makers of e-cigarettes also sold vaping as a way to end nicotine addiction. However, this was proven false as well.
According to fda.gov, 14.1% of high school students and 3.3% of middle school students reported electronic nicotine use. Similarly, 67.9% of those surveyed at SRU claim to have first begun vaping in high school. 14.8% say the habit formed in middle school.
Statista.com reported that, as of fall 2021, 75.7% of college students claimed to have used e-cigarettes within 3 months of being surveyed.
“I think students turn to it because of stress and accessibility,” said Sample. “I know nicotine use targets lower-income people, too. Perhaps that
is why it’s such a big issue here.”
Another reason for vaping’s reign over Slippery Rock University may be due to flavored disposable vaporizers. 85% of teenagers prefer flavored disposables for their nicotine fix, according to fda.gov.
On the local survey, SRU students were asked to name the kind of vape that they use most often. While every other answer identified disposable vapes notorious for child-like flavors, only one user listed Juul.
This may be a result of the FDA’s ban on flavored Juul pods in 2019. The other companies students listed (Novo, Vuse, Elfbar, Njoy, Flair, Hyde, etc.) each have a vast array of flavors to offer.
A few examples of Elfbar flavors include triple berry, watermelon-bubblegum, energy drink, lemon-mint, blue raspberry, strawberrybanana, cranberry-grape, pina colada, peach-mango, honeydew and more.
“Disposables come in very bright colors,” Sample said. “It’s so blatantly marketed to young people that it’s not even funny.”
Still, struggles for nicotine users go beyond dodging eye-catching colors and pining for taste.
“Sometimes I feel like the odds are stacked against me as a nicotine addict,” a participant said anonymously. “It’s impossible to quit when you’re surrounded by so many others who struggle with the same thing.” One self-proclaimed victim of nicotine addiction at SRU said simply, “vaping kills.”
"Our student body sometimes needs permission to be stressed. Being a college student in general is stressful. ... You never really get time to be present."
– Leah Meszaros, SRU senior and Boost peer educator
The Cyberspace Club is a cybersecurity-focused group where students can listen to speakers from the field, participate in national competitions and more.
“We focus on things like encryption data protection and bringing in members from the industry to explain what cybersecurity truly is,” club president and junior Douglas Maxwell said. “We do a lot of research and focus on why it is an important and growing field.”
The club meets about once a month on a varying schedule, and they meet more frequently toward the end of the semester
so they can “prepare for [the] cyberspace event”, according to Maxwell.
At the Cyberspace Event, members present and discuss research projects they completed during the semester.
“We’ll talk about things like data breaches that have happened and how they can be avoided, or specific algorithm functions that are useful to cybersecurity,” stated Maxwell. “We also showcase some of the code or framework that we’ve developed.”
The next Cyberspace Event will commence in November 2022, though there is no exact date at this time.
The Cyberspace Club also focuses heavily on preparing members for the Cyberforce competition through the federal government’s Department of Energy.
“The contest takes place in Indiana, so we will be participating virtually,” Maxwell said. “Big companies like Microsoft act as the judges… Students are presented with cybersecurity problems and are asked to showcase— either through framework or penetration testing skills—how to solve those problems.”
The organization itself is relatively new. It started in 2019, around the time that the cybersecurity major was added to Slippery Rock University’s roster.
“The cyberspace club is essentially an academic club that can serve as a tool for students to make connections in the cybersecurity world and participate in related activities that they may enjoy,” Maxwell said.
By Annabelle Chipps Asst. Campus Life EditorThe College Progressives Club is a coalition of SRU students that aims to bring progressive activism to campus. They organize ceremonies and protests, host educational panels and do community work to achieve this goal.
“[The group] is all about creating opportunities for students to get involved,” club president and sophomore Eric Gondella said.
“I always give this example,” Gondella said. “I was talking to a professor about the Roe v. Wade decision and they told me that, though they say this coming from a mile away, their students had no idea. We want to be the people who make sure they have an idea.”
On Wednesday, Oct. 19, from 6-8:30 p.m., the club is having a panel discussion about the future of reproductive rights in America. The conversation will feature philosophy professor Katherine Kirkland and political science professors Emily Keener and Heather Frederick.
The club was originally created in 2017 with the title
The logo for the newly rebranded College Progressives Club is shown here. Membership has greatly increased over the past two years.
Young Progressives Club but has since rebranded.
“It formed as a more progressive alternative for students who didn’t quite fit into the Republican and Democrat clubs on campus at the time,” Gondella said. However, due to inactivity, members decided it was time to rebrand.
“We wanted it to be more hands-on this time,” he said.
On Monday, Oct. 11, College Progressives invited the president of First Nations, an indigenous-led
campus organization, to facilitate a discussion about environmental justice and Indigenous Peoples’ Day. The same week, they sponsored voter registration tables around campus.
Throughout the course of the academic year, they plan to hold many educational events and volunteer opportunities.
“Working to improve our community is the most important thing we can do as college activists,” Gondella said.
By Dereck Majors ColumnistBiopics are nothing new. A renowned actor or actress brings an iconic figure back to life on the big screen in some original way. Awards pundits hail this actor’s take as being one of the best of the year simply because of how well the actor can imitate the icon’s voice or mannerisms, for example.
In the end, it doesn’t matter what’s in the script—all that matters is how the actor’s portrayal resurrects their subject and how convincing their performance is to the audience.
Director Andrew Dominik’s “Blonde” attempts to rewrite the cursed shelf life of biopics. His take on Marilyn Monroe’s life is based on a 2000 novel by Joyce Carol Oates and features Ana de Armas in the leading role. Rather than simply describe Monroe’s rise to fame through the film industry, Dominik’s fi lm decides to change the narrative and focuses on some of her spiral into the abyss—albeit in a completely fictional tale.
At times the film feels like a highlight reel of Marilyn Monroe’s worst moments, but Dominik attempts to provide Monroe with humanity.
The film covers most of the blonde bombshell’s life, from her youth living with her abusive and mentally unstable mother to her death by overdose. Like a typical biopic, the film hits on the moments as she climbs the Hollywood social ladder, but “Blonde” decides to take an alternate look at Monroe by focusing on the men in her life.
From the absent father she never met, the studio executives who take advantage of her, boyfriends, husbands, and even JFK himself, “Blonde” deals with the male gaze in a way that has enveloped Marilyn Monroe’s entire career. Male fans have fawned over the actress not for her incredible acting talents, but solely for her looks. Dominik decides that, rather than viewing Monroe as a person, his film should focus on Monroe as an icon. The exploitive manner in which he does this, primarily by testing the limits with excessive nudity and the MPAA’s NC17 rating, feels extremely grotesque.
But then again, this is not your standard biopic, nor should it even be considered a biopic. “Blonde” may revolve around one of history’s most iconic actors, but its story was never advertised as a historical
retelling. Instead, Oates’s novel and Dominik’s film are meant to be dark fairy tales of Marilyn Monroe. Therein lies the issue: Monroe has been constantly vilified by the press and public since entering Hollywood at such an early age. A film that continues this trend nearly 100 years after her birth feels rather fainéant.
While it is hard to overlook controversy over the film’s script, it is hard to disregard the other factors that ultimately make “Blonde” such an ambitious fi lm. After witnessing the different elements, from the euphoric score by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis to the luscious cinematography by Chayse Irvin (who has done previous work on music videos such as Beyoncé’s “Lemonade”), it is devastating that this film will forever live on simply as one of the millions of options to watch on Netflix on your smartphone rather than on a 50-foot theater screen.
Audiences will never be able to experience Ana de Armas’s captivating performance the way it was meant to be viewed. The upand-coming actress, known for “Knives Out” and “Blade Runner 2049”, gives this role her all. She dons the iconic tousled curls and beauty mark on her right
cheek and truly becomes Monroe. Her soft, delicate imitation of Monroe’s voice allows her to quietly deliver a powerful execution that reigns as her career’s best.
While it is hard not to simply reenact mannerisms of an icon such as Marilyn’s whose entire life was captured on film by either the press or in her fi lms, de Armas, like Oates and Dominik, crafts a new version of the character. de Armas knows how to charm the audience. Her performance allows viewers to get into Monroe’s head and encounter each emotion de Armas puts on the screen.
Ultimately, once the controversy over the ethics of the film’s script is placed in the backseat, audiences can begin to really experience the vision that Dominik had when crafting this fi lm. Although messy in context, it is executed so ambitiously. Despite its nearly three-hour runtime, “Blonde” feels like it flashes before your eyes once the fever dream crashes to a halt in the film’s haunting and poignant final moments. Just like the well-known image of Marilyn Monroe’s flying skirt over the sidewalk grate, “Blonde” will stay in the minds of audiences for years to come.
This year’s homecoming week kicked off with Blast from the Past on Oct. 11, sponsored by the homecoming committee, University Program Board (UPB) and the Pride Center.
Almost 300 students checked in and even more attended, according to Bailey Carden, UPB's director of university events.
Carden said the theme was chosen based on vendors and what they could bring to the table. She was reminded her of her childhood in the
2000s, and she wanted to bring that childhood enthusiasm to campus.
Vendors offered a variety of activities for students during the event. These included a photo booth, spin art glasses, sand art, wax hands, musical chairs and goody bags to fill yourself. Goody bag materials included a variety of candy, Smencils, Silly Bands, animal erasers and stress relievers.
There were a total of three rounds of musical chairs. Two of the winners were Aeryana Dunham and Aiden Donnelly, who won $10 Starbucks gift cards.
Informational tables were on display as well. One encouraged students to register to vote, and another educated passersby about the Pride Center and their upcoming events.
Additionally, there were inflatable games like Hungry Hungry Hippos, Quarterback Bliss and the classic Wacky Waving Inflatable Tube Man.
The events were based on budget, potential interest and cost effectiveness. UPB votes on the activities at their committee meetings and incorporates those with the most votes.
"The games and events had a lot of us sharing little stories from doing stuff like that when we were kids,” said Harley Wolfgang, a sophomore who attended Blast from the Past.
The most popular event was the goody bag table, according to Carden and UPB president Amanda Reilly, as students had complete control over
what went into the bags and the amount.
“It was a really creative way to get students involved while also having fun doing the games, creating sand art in a jar and seeing what different clubs had to offer,” sophomore Caitlyn McHugh said.
Carden and Reilly said they heard amazing feedback on the event. Reportedly, students could be heard saying this was the happiest they’d been in 20 years, while they walked around the event and enjoyed all it had to offer.
"It’s a really good event to destress especially during midterms and being able to go back into our childhood memories,” junior Cherie Martin said.
“Almost all of RockOUT was like, ‘let’s go down to the quad instead of having a game night,” Smith said. “Seeing what these two guys were promoting was difficult, and I’m sure it was very triggering for a lot of people passing by. But it was almost a feeling of pride … whenever everybody decided ‘no, let’s go down there.’
“[They] made it feel like RockOUT wasn’t just a club for fun and games. It’s really a group full of people who are willing to advocate for ourselves, each other and the community in general.”
She also spoke on the importance of inclusion.
“Even if you have a moderate view, I think it’s just about not disregarding other people’s feelings,”Smith said. “When [beliefs] get to an extreme, I think, is when it gets a little crazy. … If we have these opposing views and we can come togetherand talk about them in a peaceful way, where we’re hearing and understandingeach other.
“I think hatred breeds when we don’t really listen to each other,” she continued. “As a campus, if you’re encouragingstudents to learn and broaden their minds, you can’t not include them or not accept them at the same time.”
As a professor, LaCom tries to challenge prejudice on campus through intersectional, LGBTQ+ programming in classes and organizations.
“I think today’s students are much smarter about enacting resistance to [the protestors’] message,” they said after being told about students’ counter-protests. Efforts included same-sex kisses, inclusive chants and a few genuine questions
about the protestors’ rhetoric.
“It makes me happy to hear that that kind of resistance was being practiced. That’swonderful.”
LaCom is less enthusiastic about the efforts of administrators.
“In 2020, PASSHE presidents – and William Behre was one of them – signed statements declaring their universities actively anti-racist,” they said. “I would advocate that they fund gender and queer studies directors and programs at PASSHE schools, and create the same kind of budget …If our administration fails to resource gender and LGBTQ studies, they are ethically failing women and queer students, faculty, staff and admin on our campus.”
“You’re the hope,” they continued. “I really believe our students are the hope.
“If you look at acceptance of homosexuality, generationally, your generation is the most open, the most accepting, the most supportive. And I’d like to see in 20 years, if we were to do this interview again, to see if that’s gotten even better.”
"You're the hope. I really believe our students are the hope."
– Cindy LaCom, director of SRU's gender studies program