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Volume 51, Issue 124 | tuesday, april 25, 2017 | ndsmcobserver.com
AnTostal celebrates 50 years Week-long festival marks milestone with decade-themed events, giveaways By SELENA PONIO Associate News Editor
Before finals week every spring, Student Union Board (SUB) has attempted to alleviate some of students’ stress by coaxing them outside with a week of events and activities titled AnTostal. AnTostal — Irish for “the festival” — boasts various signature dorm events, decade-themed activities and free giveaways all culminating in a Decade Dance on Bond Quad on Friday night. In honor of its 50th anniversary this year, AnTostal made its theme for the week #TBTostal to celebrate its history, junior director of AnTostal programming Aline Irihamye said. “It’s a nod to our Irish heritage,” Irihamye said. “We just kind of
imagine it as Notre Dame’s spring festival.” Aside from the events SUB has planned, Irihamye said, this year’s AnTostal is even more jam-packed with iconic dorm events such as Keenan’s Muddy Sunday and Fisher Regatta. One typical AnTostal staple that will be missing this year, however, is the spring concert at the end of the week. “In a sense, no one’s more upset than the concerts committee that there isn’t a concert,” Irihamye said. “But so far, the outpouring has been positive. The idea is that more people will be excited about what we do have planned this year as opposed to the lineup of artists that we ended up with.” see ANTOSTAL PAGE 4
Students work to address local lead levels By LUCAS MASIN-MOYER Asssociate News Editor
Flint, Michigan, and South Bend, Indiana, have a lot in common — both are post-industrial Midwestern cities with about 100,000 people, and both have a lead problem. In order to help deal with the lead problem in South Bend, sophomores Brittany Margritz and Alex Bonino volunteered for “Get the Lead Out,” an event meant to raise awareness in the community about the problem and the opportunities for free testing. Margritz said she and Bonino were made aware of the event through an engineering class they were both taking. “We’re in a class called ‘Community-Based Engineering Design Projects,’ and we were tasked with designing a local project in the South Bend community, and our professor told us that … one of them was involvement in the lead project, and we decided that would be
NEWs PAGE 3
the best,” she said. Knowing the extent of the lead problem, discovered after a 10-year study done by Reuters, motivated Bonino to go out and inform the community on problems and possible solutions, he said. “So people are upset with what’s happening in Flint, Michigan, when there’s higher levels here in St. Joseph’s County,” Bonino said. “ ... The northwest of South Bend and the area [has found] 31 percent of the children tested over that time span had lead levels that were above the CDC recommendations where action needs to be taken. [This] was the highest percentage in all of Indiana.” This study, Margritz said, revealed some unexpectedly high numbers of children testing positive for lead. “[The number of those testing positive is] six times higher than the levels in Flint, Michigan,” she said. see LEAD PAGE 4
Scene PAGE 5
Rape reported to NDSP Observer Staff Report
Photo courtesy of Fiona Williamsr
Students eat Rise’n Roll Bakery doughnuts outside of DeBartolo Hall on Monday as part of the week-long AnTostal celebration.
A rape was reported Thursday to a University administrator, according to the Notre Dame Security Police (NDSP) crime log for Friday. The alleged rape occurred April 2 in a Mod Quad men’s residence hall, according to the entry. Students did not receive an email crime alert from NDSP alerting them that the report had been filed. Information about sexual assault prevention and resources for survivors are available online from NDSP and from the Committee for Sexual Assault Prevention (CSAP).
Former ND student files lawsuit against school Observer Staff Report
An unnamed former Notre Dame student has filed a lawsuit alleging he was unjustly dismissed from University less than a month before his graduation. The student claims the
decision was an “institutional response” to accusations that the University mishandled cases of sexual assault and harassment. An initial hearing on the case will take place in Hammond, Indiana on Tuesday. The suit states a male wstudent continually reached out to a female
student for support through text messages, and the University deemed this behavior to be an incident of dating violence. The suit contends the messages were not threatening in nature and asserts the complaint against the male student was vindictive.
Saint Mary’s announces Commencement speaker Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne M. Burke will address 2017 graduates at this year’s Commencement ceremony on May 20, according to a College press release. Burke will receive Saint Mary’s highest honor, an Honorary Doctor of Humanities degree, at the ceremony, according to the release. She has advocated for children and the disabled throughout her career, pursuing reforms to law enforcement procedures and
social service programs. “Justice Burke’s distinguished legal career and demonstrated care for the most vulnerable members of our society is a testament to her commitment to justice,” Saint Mary’s President Jan Cervelli said in the release. “A leader in her chosen profession and in the service of others, she represents the qualities we seek to instill in Saint Mary’s students.” Burke was the first woman appointed to the Illinois Court of Claims, and she earned a position on the Illinois Appellate Court
in 1995. Burke was appointed to the state Supreme Court in 2006 after Chief Justice Mary Ann McMorrow retired, and she was elected to a ten year term in 2008, according to the release. Burke played an integral role in initiating the Chicago Special Olympics, which she later helped develop into the International Special Olympics, according to the release. “The common theme in Justice Burke’s life and career is
Viewpoint PAGE 7
Baseball PAGE 12
Track PAGE 12
Observer Staff Report
see SPEAKER PAGE 4