Sexual orientation should not impede human rights. B1
SU cheer team seeks recognition, C1
‘Geography’ takes listeners on a trip, D1
Athletes cope with lost seasons, E1
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Tuesday, August 25, 2020
Reporting truth. Serving our community.
Volume 64 No. 2
Community struggles after use of racial slur on campus Hannah Pollock Editor In-Chief
The Shippensburg University community is grappling with another race-based incident on its campus. More than 20 campus community members gathered on the academic quad Monday afternoon to demonstrate their frustrations with the continued incidents. Students, staff, faculty and administrators peacefully sat with signs that read, “Black Lives Matter” and “End Racism Now.” The campus community was first made aware of the incident Saturday morning in an email sent by SU’s Chief Diversity Officer Stephanie Jirard. “We received a credible report of a race-based incident last night in one of the residence halls, specifically the use of the n-word written on a board,” Jirard wrote. In a follow-up email sent Monday morning, officials announced the Shippensburg University Police identified a
suspect in the incident. According to the email, officers obtained evidence that led to a confession. The person responsible is a juvenile and not a student at the university or a member of the Shippensburg community. However, officials referred the case to the Dean of Students Office for an investigation into a potential Code of Conduct violation. Due to the COVID-19 coronavirus, SU updated its residence hall guest policies. No outside guests are allowed in the residence halls. Jirard shared the university’s bias-response protocol which includes these steps: Assess any threats of imminent harm, investigate to determine whether the behavior violates any policies or laws. If so, refer for adjudication and discipline, educate the offender and repair the harm done where possible.
See “COMMUNITY,” A3
Carmine Scicchitano/The Slate
Lucas Everidge, left, and Shippensburg University Police Chief Michael Lee sit with signs outside the Dauphin Humanities Center Monday afternoon. Demonstrators gathered 6-feet apart in response to the use of a racial slur in Seavers Hall over the weekend. The demonstration was organized by students and faculty, and administration members, including President Laurie Carter, attended the event.
Officials cancel Corn Festival Blake Garlock
Guest Contributor
Carmine Scicchitano/The Slate
Signs directing students are found in almost all parts of Shippensburg University’s campus. SU community members must adhere to new guidelines and safety protocols when attending classes on campus.
SU sets sail into new semester Noel Miller News Editor
Shippensburg University is aiming to keep its students afloat amid a nationwide pandemic where students, faculty and staff must be able to adapt at a moment’s notice if they hope to stay on campus for the semester. Even as students were sent home last spring, the inevitability of their return to campus hung in the air. When the initial COVID-19 coronavirus response dust settled, SU officials were tasked with creating a plan to eventually reopen the campus. SU Chief External Relations Officer Kim Garris said the road to reopening began in February. According to Garris, SU officials developed six committees composed of faculty, staff and students who met to work on various reopening-related issues. SU also brought Chris Clarke on board to serve as executive director of operations. Clarke has worked in higher education for several years and is experienced in crisis response, risk management and staff development. Clarke said almost every aspect of the campus would in some way be changed or modified.
Reopening changes started with campus outdoor areas. Campus community members needed more space to meet, eat and work. SU’s solutions include large tents with folding tables and chairs. Additional tables allow opportunities for spaced-seating outside of Kriner and the Ceddia Union Building (CUB). Some of the seats are marked off to create a 6-foot space between available seats. A large part of the average college student’s experience is gathering to hangout, meet or study with friends around campus. Many inside areas from the CUB and the Erza Memorial Library, to the many lounges scattered across campus have seen similar changes to meet social-distance guidelines. Clarke said crews moved a couple thousand pieces of furniture from these areas to decrease the number of occupants while also maximizing space for students. A group of students assisted the moving crews in transforming campus, Clarke said. In addition to physical changes, SU officials had to develop new procedures for the meeting areas, dining halls and the bookstore to combat the challenges posed by the coronavirus.
Crews placed signs and stickers throughout campus and inside buildings to help direct the flow of traffic. In the CUB, crews divided the main walking area into two lanes to minimize contact when walking. In the classroom, faculty members had to modify how they run their classrooms. Clarke said faculty members received online training over the summer, to prepare for in-person teaching and how to use the new technology that would be added to the classroom. Technology has allowed many colleges and universities to offer a hybrid of in-person and online classes while giving students the choice to come to campus. However, these classes look very different from the in-person classes in which students and faculty are accustomed. Classrooms must be able to keep students and faculty 6-feet apart, as well as have the technology for teachers to broadcast themselves and their lectures for students on Zoom. Some classrooms have a maximum occupancy as low as 14 or 15 students. So Clarke turned to unconventional classroom spaces for classes with a higher student capacity.
See “CAMPUS,” A2
An annual Shippensburg tradition is the latest victim of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Streets closed to traffic and full of food vendors, games and the annual corn eating contest will not be found on the last Saturday of August this year in Shippensburg on what would have been the 40th annual Shippensburg corn festival. In a press release from late June, the Shippensburg Corn Festival committee announced that the 2020 Corn Festival was cancelled due to coronavirus restrictions. Instead, the 40th edition of the local favorite will be held Aug. 28, 2021. In the press release, the corn festival committee listed several of the options it weighed to try and
keep the festival this year. The committee considered moving the event out of Shippensburg, reducing the number of vendors and limiting how many people could enter the festival at a time. Ultimately, however, the committee felt that those restrictions would change the corn festival so much that it wouldn’t be the same event that the community loves, according to the press release. Shippensburg Corn Festival President Debbie Weaver said the large crowds of people who attend the yearly event created additional concerns. “There’s just no way we can bring 30,000 or more visitors and almost 300 vendors to downtown Shippensburg and ensure that everyone stays safe,” Weaver said in the release. See “CORN,” A2
File Photo/The Slate
The Shippensburg Corn Festival attracts thousands of vendors and visitors each year.
