news

Community-based course adapts to pandemic

By MEGAN FAHRNEY

news Writer

despite covId-19 restrictions, notre dame professor Tatiana botero has found ways to help students engage with the south bend Latino community through her community-based learning course, “Immigration and the construction of memory.”

The course is taught in spanish and covers the history of immigration, border crossings and current migrant issues.

For the community-based aspect of the course, students meet with members of two non-profit organizations that serve the Latino community in south bend: el campito and La casa de Amistad. on Thursday evenings, students gather in hesburgh Library to listen to stories and interact with different people associated with the community organizations. This semester, students are putting together books about each of the organizations’ histories and key contributors over the years. botero, a teaching professor of spanish in the department of romance languages, said this semester’s project idea was inspired by el campito celebrating its 50th anniversary and La casa de Amistad celebrating its 48th anniversary. she said these anniversaries led her to want to feature the organizations themselves.

In past years, students traveled to the organizations to visit the children and interview their family members. They put together books about the family histories of those with whom they spoke and gave them the books at the end of the semester. shannon Weyer, director of programs and operations at el campito, said there are a lot of immigrant families at el campito that have rich cultural and diverse backgrounds.

“Giving [students] the opportunity to hear different people’s stories and backgrounds and kind of connect and reflect on that is a huge takeaway for them,” Weyer said. sophomore caroline Zitnik, who is currently enrolled in the course, said it is challenging and nerve-wracking — yet worthwhile — to speak with native spanish speakers.

“It just kind of opens your eyes to other people’s experiences more and allows you to be more empathetic and understand how this huge political issue right now is affecting real people,” Zitnik said. botero created the course and has offered it for the past eight years. As the daughter of colombian immigrants, she said she has always been interested in immigration issues.

“storytelling has always been also very important for me, so I kind of thought about it and pieced it together,” botero said. “I started thinking about how I can create a class that works with the Latino community and what would be the project that the students would work on.”

In the classroom, students read the book “La otra cara de América” (“The other Face of America”) by Jorge ramos, which tells immigrant stories and dispels common myths about immigration into the U.s.

After taking the course last spring, junior Patrick Kelly said he was inspired to continue work on immigration issues. he currently interns at Friends committee on national Legislation, a lobbying firm based in Washington d.c.

Kelly’s job is to organize students on campus to lobby Indiana senators and representatives to pass the dream and Promise Act, which provides a pathway to citizenship for deferred Action for childhood Arrivals (dAcA) recipients. botero said she has many students who go on to address immigration issues after the course.

“I know that the students that come through the class, to those students, the class has a great impact,” she said. “And then they’re able, many of them, to continue on doing different projects with the Latino community, so I know that then the impact kind of grows through their projects.”

Photo courtesy of Tatiana Botero

Students sit in Hesburgh Library as part of professor Tatiana Botero’s “Immigration and the Construction of Memory” course.

Contact Megan Fahrney at mfahrney@nd.edu

Belles

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and hanging out with some friends,” she said. “It was very relaxing to have a day off, but I definitely would have preferred the week off instead of having these randomly scattered days.”

First-year maria dyro said she planned to use the day off to catch up on sleep and work.

“I will be sleeping in, napping and reading Jane Austen for my literature class,” she said. “I plan to have a leisurely morning and am grateful to have the day off.” dyro also expressed disappointment at the lack of a weeklong spring break.

“I would rather have a week off because it would be more of a vacation than a catch up day,” she said. “If I did have the week off, I would be visiting family, but this one day obviously does not allow us to leave.”

Although first-year riley Kostic said she wished she could have had a normal spring break, she was grateful to have a day without classes. Kostic said she hoped to spend the day relaxing and studying.

“I honestly don’t really like that we don’t get a spring break, but there’s not much we can do about it,” she said. “of course, I would love to have a normal spring break, but given the circumstances, one reading day is better than nothing.”

In contrast with the students that said they planned on using the reading day to relax on campus, there were some who planned on spending it outdoors.

First-year Liz Grimm said she wanted to use the reading day to get outside and take a break from schoolwork.

“I am going out to eat with my friends to take a mental health break from the stress of school,” Grimm said. “We like trying new restaurants in the area and eating outdoors, which allows us to enjoy the beautiful spring weather but also maintain our distance from others.” despite the lack of a spring break, students still expressed gratitude for the day off.

“I appreciate the effort that is being made by the saint mary’s community,” Grimm said. “They are doing the best they can.”

Grimm said she thought a weeklong break would have been feasible, since students and staff are beginning to receive the vaccine.

“With vaccines beginning to roll out, I believe that a weeklong break could’ve been permitted, especially since easter is a very significant and important celebration for the catholic faith,“ she said. “Although it has been very positive to have something rather than nothing, I feel as though it would’ve been better to have a spring break.” The student Government Association’s social concerns committee hosted “Togetherness Tuesday” during the reading day, as part of the annual Love Your body Week. The event was open to all students and took place in the tent outside of the student center. belles were able to come grab a goodie bag and deliver it to a close friend.

Contact Carmen Feucht at cfeucht1@saintmarys.edu

Petition

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the petition had received over 19,000 signatures.

“When they announced that Justin cavallo was only getting two misdemeanors, it didn’t really get much attention, at least from the media that people back home, where olivia’s from, really know about,” hodnett, who attends the University of Florida, said. “It honestly took a lot of digging for me to actually find this information out.” sophomore Isabella botello said she hopes the petition will be able to bring some peace to the families of the victims.

“I don’t know if something big is going to happen or come out of this,” botello said. “but I think doing this whole movement and giving the support to the families is what matters the most right now — giving them the strength that people are with them.”

The petition is calling on the south bend Police department, the st. Joseph county Prosecutor, Indiana Attorney General, U.s. Attorney General, U.s. Attorney northern district of Indiana and Gov. eric holcomb to change the charges in order to directly connect cavallo to the fatal crash. currently, he is only facing two class c misdemeanor charges related to drunk driving. on the day of the accident, cavallo’s blood alcohol content was 0.13, according to the south bend Tribune, 0.05 over the limit of 0.08. drunk driving, hodnett said, is a pervasive issue that impacts many communities, not just notre dame.

“If this happens and people who are driving drunk don’t get the correct sentence,” hodnett said, “I feel like that sends a message saying ‘It’s okay. You can get drunk, you can drive. You can even kill people and you won’t go to jail.’ so, it really sets a bad example for every community.”

The petition cites Tim spencer — commander of the st. Joseph county Fatal crash Team (FAcT) — as saying that an inability to prove cavallo actually caused the crash is the reason no charges

Photo courtesy of Carlos Fabrega

Two first-years, Valeria Espinel, left, and Olivia Rojas, right, were killed Oct. 24, 2020, after being struck by a car on Ironwood Road.

ND alum launches startup, aids community

By MARIA LUISA PAUL

news Writer

As covId-19 began wreaking havoc on the U.s. a year ago, daily life saw a rise in different challenges and experiences. For many, the pandemic brought financial complications and increased mental health issues.

In the midst of a pandemic that is also hurting businesses, Frank P. Quinn, a former administrative assistant at the IdeA center’s Innovation Lab and notre dame alumnus (‘02), found an opportunity to merge his three passions — camping, innovation and giving back — into a startup company.

A self-declared fan of the outdoors, Quinn’s aha moment came with what he deemed “the big fan list,” or a tally of likes and dislikes that he created by asking himself two main questions: “What am I big fan of?“ and “What kind of product would naturally and organically come from me and who I am — my experiences, my inclinations and what I enjoy?” he said.

The outdoors, partying responsibly and safety — an important goal he credits his experience of being a father for — were at the top of his list. meanwhile, costs associated with a vehicle’s maintenance and storage, setting up tents and sleeping on air mattresses figured among Quinn’s dislikes. The result was road house, a platform storage-bed that converts sport utility vehicles (sUvs) into campers.

“There’s a new way for a safe, social-distance hang that has as much to do with enjoying all the nature our beautiful midwest has to offer as it is to promote positive mental health by way of the inherent exercise, fresh air and vitamin d associated with getting outdoors,” Quinn said. made from 1/2-inch Uv-coated plywood on a Kern category 4 laser, the road house platform’s dimensions are 67 by 7 by 36 inches, and it weighs 64 pounds. Quinn said the product’s proportions are ideal for mid-sized sUvs — such as the subaru Forester, honda cr-v and Toyota rAv-4 — but will fit inside larger vehicles as well.

Quinn said he envisioned mobility and versatility as the “paramount” aspects of his invention. Thus, road house platforms come with six different storage access points and an attached bottle opener. They also include a plexiglass sheet that can easily be washed if they are used as tables during social gatherings.

“road house can also easily become a surface to share an outdoor meal or play a game of pong,” he said. “We want to ensure customers have a safe way to comfortably sleep, especially when and where getting behind the wheel isn’t a good idea — secured for the night in your vehicle with your own pillows and blankets.”

Quinn offers two different prices that include the product’s assembling and free area delivery: $475 for a road house platform and $600 for one including a gel memory foam hybrid mattress. The notre dame alum said that 3% of the proceeds would be donated to the city of south bend’s homeless missions.

It takes a village

despite his love of adventures, Quinn said camping came with a “crippling” disadvantage: sleepless nights in uncomfortable tents or air mattresses.

“I’m someone who really loves a good night’s sleep,” Quinn said. “I would need a day to recover from going camping just because it wasn’t comfortable enough.

Armed with the objective to maximize comfort, Quinn took advantage at the resources available at the IdeA center to turn his vision into a reality. he said road house was the end product of extensive teamwork and cooperation.

“There’s a lot of collaboration and synergy happening there just by exposure, the wonderful creative environment and just people wanting to have fun and use their skills to help each other,” he said.

First, Quinn shared his idea with an industrial designer, who helped create a prototype with the center’s equipment. Then, shreejan shrestha — an industrial designer at the Innovation Lab and Industrial design and teaching scholar for the department of Art, Art history and design — created a logo that encapsulated the project’s idea. Finally, brandon Welsch, an Innovation Lab graphics lab technician, agreed to develop creative content for road house as a way to launch his own production company, Gas ditch Productions.

For Quinn, notre dame’s IdeA center is the ideal starting point for any aspiring entrepreneur in the notre dame community.

“If you have an idea, you walk in there, it’s the safest place that you can fail,” he said. “because all there is is learning from it.”

The road house founder said students should jump at the opportunities this center offers regardless of their major.

“I was an english major and now I have a side business just because I was curious and motivated,” he said. “We all have this wonderful network — and notre dame should know about this. no matter what you’re building, whatever your major is, you could go and have a side business. multiple sources of income are ideal, especially in this day and age.”

Giving back to the community

even before launching road house in november 2020, Quinn said he had a close connection with south bend’s homeless population. As a University student, he was part of the old college Program for men discerning a vocation to priesthood in the congregation of holy cross, and thus had formed close ties with the mission to serve the poor. now a husband and father to a 5-year-old girl, the close ties he formed with holy cross’s mission to serve the most vulnerable motivated Quinn to create a business that would also give back to the community.

“There was always going to be some type of giving back and service at the heart of a product, because that’s what makes it truly fulfilling,” Quinn said.

As of now, Quinn’s startup is contributing 3% of its proceeds to local homeless missions, which would benefit the increased homeless population in the area.

According to the Indiana housing and community development Authority’s data, there are currently 516 homeless people in st. Joseph county, which represents a 25% increase from the 413 counted in the 2019 report — the third largest increase among the categorized 17 regions.

In the future, Quinn said he is aiming to provide a platform bedstorage to a person living inside their vehicle for every fifty road house products he sells, especially considering the frigid weather homeless people must endure without shelter during the colder months.

“There is, of course, cold weather amnesty. many different buildings offer shelter the during the coldest months where homeless don’t have to live inside a vehicle or under bridges,” Quinn explained. “but you have to be sober to get a bed at the south bend center for the homeless.”

Contact Maria Luisa Paul at mpaulran@nd.edu

Michigan adults to qualify for vaccine April 5

By ISABELLA VOLMERT

Assistant managing editor

In two weeks, notre dame students from michigan may be able to qualify for a covId-19 vaccination. on march 12, michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced all state residents over the age of 16 will be eligible to receive a vaccine starting monday, April 5.

In a weekend update email Friday, the University recognized the developments of the neighboring state of michigan.

“We realize that we have community members who live in michigan,” the University said. “We are following the developments in michigan closely.” The email also provided a link to which michigan residents can use to sign up for the vaccine.

University vice president of public affairs and communications Paul browne told The observer in an email correspondence the University encourages students who are eligible to receive the vaccine at a location within “close proximity” and meet age, residence and/or other eligibility requirements in neighboring states to do so.

“by close proximity we mean reachable within driving distance, not air travel, with no need to stay overnight or stop for meals or other needs,” browne said. “For example, students with no more than a four hour drive to parts of michigan where eligibility is at age 16 and above are encouraged to be vaccinated there.”

First-year finance student Tristan reilly said he is considering traveling to michigan as soon as he is able to be vaccinated. “It would be a change to almost go back to normal,” he said. “I’d travel home as soon as I could, [maybe] April or may,” he said. reilly is a current Keenan resident from Grosse Pointe, michigan, a suburb of detroit. reilly said he’s never had covId-19 and while he doesn’t worry too much about contracting it, he hopes he can get the vaccine so he doesn’t have to worry as much about testing. senior ryan neff grew up in the detroit area of michigan, and will be eligible for the vaccine starting April 5. neff, a physics and piano performance double major currently living off campus, has not contracted the virus.

“I know even though if I got [covId-19], probably nothing would happen,” he said. “but I’d still really like to get the vaccine, just for the peace of mind knowing I would be protected from it.” neff noted, with the vaccine, he would still wear a mask and be cautious when socializing, “It would make me feel just a little less anxious about talking to people who I’m not rooming with,” he said.

In response to the University’s encouragement of short distance travel, neff said, “I think that definitely makes sense, that’s definitely the best reason to travel to get the vaccine.” even though his current address is in Ypsilanti, near detroit, he plans on trying to be vaccinated at nearby niles, michigan, about twenty minutes away. senior sarah Galbenski, a resident of Grosse Point shores, is scheduled to receive her vaccine today. she said when she heard the news from Gov. Whitmer, she called the spectrum health Lakeland hospital in niles, michigan, and was able to set up an appointment before the April 5th date.

“When I told [an employee] that my father was a liver transplant recipient and severely immunocompromised, he told me that I would qualify on march 22,” she told The observer over email.

Galbenski said among a number of reasons for being vaccinated — including protection against the virus and any short-term or long-term effects — is to protect her family, friends, community and especially her father.

“every person who gets the vaccine makes the world a little safer for him to venture into, and my vaccination will make his home environment safer this summer as well,” she added.

Galbenski said she is excited about michigan’s updates of the vaccination process‘ expansion and the work the state is doing to ensure the “elderly, immunocompromised or those whose socioeconomic status heightens their vulnerability“ continue to be a priority for vaccination. currently, Indianans aged 40 and older are eligible to receive the vaccine, as well as those with certain health conditions. notre dame provost marie Lynn miranda and executive vice president shannon cullinan said in a statement march 16 they encourage all members of the notre dame community to be vaccinated as soon as they are eligible.

Additionally, notre dame has created an online infrastructure to document vaccine status and completion for community members through their University health services patient health portal. browne also said regardless of vaccination, students are required to show up for surveillance testing.

on its vaccine here information page, the University said, “If you are currently eligible for the covId-19 vaccination in your state, we encourage you to make an appointment to get vaccinated.”

The page also contains updated information about vaccine eligibility in Indiana, michigan and Illinois. notre dame’s temporary vaccination site will open this weekend, where anyone currently eligible in Indiana may be vaccinated. In the march 16 statement, miranda said the state is looking for spanish interpreter volunteers for the event.

“The Indiana department of health is looking for volunteers to serve as spanish language interpreters,“ the statement said. “no medical training is required, but volunteers must be fluent in spanish. To volunteer, please email vaccine@nd.edu.”

“In st. Joseph county, more than 29,000 people had been fully vaccinated as of late last week,” the south bend Tribune reported on march 16. “more than 25% of the county, or nearly 51,000 people, had received at least one vaccine shot.”

The observer | wednesday, march 24, 2021 | ndsmcobserver.com

InsIde column

Quiet quarantine contemplations

Genevieve Coleman

saint mary’s news editor

As I was writing this column, my mind kept drifting back to one of the most profound and highly contentious debates I have ever participated in through my more than 14 years of catholic schooling: whether pets go to heaven.

As a 19-year-old who considers herself somewhat educated, I can now comprehend the theological foundations of the argument that pets cannot be in heaven. but as a 7-year-old who had spent her entire childhood growing up without siblings and at least one dog, I simply could not wrap my head around the thought that I would never see my pets again after they died. how could I continue to live my life knowing that the animals I loved would not be celebrated in the afterlife the same way I would be? how could I exist without these treasured friends? needless to say, in the three instances where my theology teachers would try to engage in this conversation with their classes of elementary and middle-schoolers, they would be met with a lot of crying, protesting and eye-rolling. I took part in all three. At the end of these fraught discussions, my peers and teachers realized they had reached a decided impasse and both eventually moved on to prevent any more emotional outbursts from either party.

I didn’t have a reason to reflect on these parts of my religious education until my sweet 10-year-old dog passed away from cancer three days after christmas.

It was a very difficult loss, especially nine months into covId. even though I know my grief cannot compare to the heartache that other families have experienced during this time, over the last several months, I felt like I had lost control over a lot of parts of my life. I was dealing with other health problems and, like most people I knew, I felt an inherent sense of loss and misdirection.

At first, words failed to describe what I was feeling. my friend of 10 wonderful years was gone, so I thought about where he would continue to exist. I thought back to the conversations I had with my religion teachers and the words of different popes about animal’s place in heaven.

I thought about how to gain control of the narrative I felt was out of my hands, and I realized I couldn’t. I can’t get my dog back in the same way I had him, but as long as I continue to remember him as the goofy little boy he was during my life, I haven’t lost him forever.

This column is not my two cents about whether God meant for animals to be in heaven, but rather a really self-conscious way of saying it’s oK to grieve what you’ve lost in this pandemic. It’s oK to question the things you thought were certainties, because nothing has been certain for the last year. It’s oK to feel tired of the circumstances you’ve been living in.

Just remember to love, so you don’t feel lost yourself.

You can contact Genevieve at gcoleman01@saintmarys.edu

The views expressed in this Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

How do you not know?

Sydni Brooks

everything is Fine

Editor’s note: This story includes descriptions of sexual abuse. A list of sexual assault reporting options and on-campus resources can be found on the Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s and Holy Cross websites.

In the aftermath of the kidnapping and murder of sarah everard in the U.K., I had several conversations with friends regarding sexual assault and predatory behavior. conversations with girlfriends usually consisted of sentiments of solidarity and relatability, while most conversations with guy friends usually ended with them appalled or completely bewildered at what they’ve heard. Thankfully, I haven’t had many conversations with men who dismiss or disregard any women’s experiences with sexual assault or harassment, but I have noticed that many men are completely unaware of the lifestyle their female friends are forced to lead, the precautions they must take and the fear they survive through on a daily basis. considering the prevalence of women in our society and the grave statistics regarding sexual assault against women, I am always left with one question after these conversations: how do you not know? most people understand that sexual assault and harassment for both men and women exists at a monstrously high rate, but many don’t comprehend the severity of what these statistics mean. According to the rape, Abuse & Incest national network (rAInn), one out of every six American women has experienced rape or attempted rape in their lifetime, meaning in a room of six women, at least one of them — if not more — have been sexually assaulted. And according to the national sexual violence resource center (nsvrc), approximately 19.2 million women experience sexual coercion in their lifetime, and approximately 81.3% of female rape victims reported that their first completed or attempted rape occurred before the age of 25.

Key word: First. despite such obscene statistics, the traumas women face are viewed less as tragic incidents and instead feel and look like normal, everyday occurrences. every 73 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted, so the conversations between women regarding sexual harassment are unfortunately less about if something were to happen to someone and more about when. considering the prevalence of sexual assault and the relatability plenty of women feel when discussing the topic amongst each other, it confuses me how many people, especially men, do not recognize what is happening to their friends and family members. Guy friends will ask me, “do you really feel scared to go out at night?” not trying to be condescending, but simply oblivious to the fears and realities women have to face. I initially respond with a tiresome and frustrated “Yes,” because not only are men less likely to express they are afraid to walk home at night — they are oblivious to the millions of women who are. maybe it is part of a woman’s intuition, but I can’t help but notice the discomfort in a woman’s eyes when they are trying to wiggle themselves out of a conversation with someone who is a little too touchy and comfortable. I can’t help but notice the increase in the speed of pace as a group of girls walks down the street at night. There is a certain tension in the room when sexual assault is discussed, not simply because it is a sensitive subject, but because I know for several in the room, it is a subject they personally know way too well.

While I am dumbfounded at the lack of awareness of this issue, I can’t help but notice certain actions and comments men do and make that suggest they do understand the severity of what is happening to the women in their lives. Fathers are overprotective of their daughters because they fear the predatory advances grown men might make on their children. Parents tell children to “cover up” when male family members visit to prohibit the opportunity for their daughters to be sexualized in their own homes. Young girls are told they are acting or dressing “too grown” when they ask for different hair styles or short-sleeved shirts because parents are aware of what might entice child predators. Girls are dress-coded in school for wearing shorts in the summer to protect the eyes of young boys. While girls receive these punishments and constant reminders that life in their skin is an open invitation to violence unless they protect themselves, young boys are simply taught and encouraged to indulge in their desires. Unless a guy takes the time to converse with a woman who has suffered from the sexual violence of men, men never understand the consequences of being a woman and the cycle of inadvertent and completely useless protection from predators — by telling women to cover up and not stay out too late — repeats itself.

The unfortunate ideology by which we as individuals don’t hold the same weight for social issues that aren’t directly happening to us prohibits us from challenging and eradicating any social issue. our proximity to the issue shouldn’t make it any more or less important, and considering how prevalent sexual assault is in our society, I guarantee everyone knows someone personally who has been affected by sexual violence. Though we shouldn’t care how close we are to the topic, everyone we know is personally or indirectly affected by it.

Girls aren’t speed-walking to their cars at night, holding their keys between their fingers, to be obnoxiously cautious. Girls don’t ask you to walk them home with pleading eyes because they’re trying to get you to come upstairs with them. Girls aren’t refusing to go to an event because that one creepy guy is going to be there to be an annoying party pooper. Girls aren’t always mean and angry towards men who make them feel uncomfortable because they’re “too nice.” We do these things because we are terrified of the reality of our experience, as women in a world with predatory men. We are terrified of the consequences our sisters and best friends have experienced, and we are terrified of re-experiencing the consequences we already have experienced. sexual assault and harassment isn’t always a violent attack and isn’t something that a handful of humans endure; it is an unfortunately normalized phenomenon that everyone needs to be talking about.

Sydni Brooks is a junior at Notre Dame Studying English and Gender Studies. She is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, and calls Flaherty Hall home on campus. With equal passions for writing and helping others, she hopes to serve her community well in her future. She can be reached at sbrooks2@nd.edu or @sydnimaree22 on Twitter.

The views expressed in this column are those of the authors and not necessarily those of The Observer.