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APRIL FOOL’S EDITION

GRAY & BLUE THE UNIVERSITY OF MOSTLY WOMEN STUDENT NEWSPAPER

APRIL FOOL’S PAGE All articles on this page should be considered satirical and not be taken too seriously.

PRESS

March 29, 2018

VOLUME 91 | ISSUE 20 SASSING THE COMMUNITY SINCE

Paino’s playlist leaked to UMW RYAN BRAUCH Sports Editor

On Monday Mar. 26, personal information of University of Mary Washington President Troy Paino was leaked to the entire faculty and staff of Mary Washington campus. An anonymous student hacker was able to gain access to Paino’s email account in which they discovered Paino’s mixtape and numerous personal pictures, such as Paino in the bathtub, amongst others sent to his wife Kelly Paino.

The hacker then shared the hidden contents of the emails to the entire student body along with the entirety of the faculty and staff of both the Fredericksburg and Stafford campuses. In addition, the hacker also shared Paino’s mixtape on Spotify, Apple Music and Pandora to make it easier for students to share and listen to the President’s hot tracks.

Some of Paino’s most popular songs include: “Spending tuition”, “Straight outta Brompton”, “I kissed a squirrel” and “SUITS.”.

“It definitely sounds like something I could get down to at Bourbon Room,” said senior English major Kelly Emmrich as she jammed to “Spending Tuition”.

One group of students have taken such a liking to Paino’s music, that they have started a petition to get the President to open for rapper T-Pain for the Spring Concert in April.

“I’ve been listening to it nonstop, T-Paino opening for T-Pain would be legendary and probably the coolest thing to ever happen at UMW,” said sophomore biology major Lauren Closs.

Despite his mixtape’s rising popularity, Paino refuses to leave his house

out of embarrassment and is refusing to take interviews or speak to the press.

“Everyone needs to give him some space, he made a mistake and now he is trying to figure everything out. It’s a process,” said senior women and gender studies and journalism major Es Hethcox.

As the Spring Concert draws near, students await to see if their president will take the stage and drop some bars.

This story is a part of our April Fool’s edition and is intended to be satirical in nature. All information or quotations are made up and not to be taken seriously.

wikimedia commons

Administration orders rock removal Es Hethcox Online Editor

any class, so the identity of the painter is unknown.

The guerilla artist painted a nude image of Dwayne Johnson, popularly referred to as “The Rock” on the rock.

“I was going to use the rock for my project,” McIntyre said. “I was going to do a painting of Nicolas Cage.”

While several families on tour were aghast at the remarkable likeness of the piece, certain students appreciated the accuracy of the rendition.

“It was a solid piece,” Spanish major Izzy Briones said.

Junior Ryan Brauch agreed that the piece was “above average.”

Some students voiced that the size of the rock did not accurately display the image.

“I wish the artist had chosen a different canvas, the size of the rock did not do the piece justice,” sophomore Ronic Ngambwe said.

Although the rock is slated for removal, students are already starting to figure out a different landmark to paint.

This story is a part of our April Fool’s edition and is intended to be satirical in nature. All information or quotations are made up and not to be taken seriously.

On the night of March 26 Student Activities and Engagements announced that UMW administration has made plans to remove the Spirit Rock. The rock is currently scheduled to be removed on April 2. Campus Police will accompany the removal crew in case of student protest.

The rock, which has been a part of UMW for decades, has been a hubbub of advertisement, birthday wishes, student comradity and a canvas for student expression for many years.

Many students are upset with the impending removal of the historic UMW landmark.

“I am OUTRAGED,” junior Lauren Closs said. “The rock is a valuable platform for students. If we don’t have outlets for student creativity then we are just as repressed as Liberty University students.”

Sophomore, Meaghan McIntyre, expressed her disappointment in the administration’s decision.

This administrative decision was instigated by an inappropriate image painted on the rock March 26, 2018 by an art student. The work was not part of

An anonymous student hacker shared some of President Paino’s confidential photos.

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ODR changes policy to allow pigs and miniature horses as service animals LAUREN CLOSS Life Editor

Service animals can be a life-saving resource for individuals with disabilities. While knowledge and awareness of service dogs has improved immensely in recent years, very few public places allow other types of service animals that can be equally beneficial. This is about to change, however, at the University of Mary Washington where recent requests from students with disabilities over the last year has encouraged the Office of Disability Resources (ODR) and the Office of Residence Life to look into allowing service pigs and miniature horses on campus.

According to an ODR representative, they were compelled to look into the policy change as several students that would benefit from service animals are allergic to or have an intense fear of dogs. After consulting with allergists, they found that while individuals may be more allergic to certain breeds, there

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is no such thing as a truly hypoallergenic dog. It is also much more common to be allergic to household pets, so many people that are allergic to dogs do not have the same reaction to pigs and horses.

Currently at UMW, students can already have an undefined variety of animals as support animals, which are defined by the ODR webpage as “an animal that provides emotional or other support which ameliorates one or more identified symptoms or effects of a person’s disability.” Service animals, however, which are defined by the webpage as “any animal (dogs) that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability.”

Following requests from students, ODR and Residence Life recognized the need to allow a larger variety of service animals, which can accompany students around campus and into classes in addition to living with them in residence halls.

BEACH BOD

Music to pump up your time in Anderson.

LIFE | 9

One of the students that submitted a request to ODR discussed the use of pigs and horses as service animals.

“Farm animals can be just as smart or smarter than a lot of dogs,” she said, “so they can be easier to train, and they live for a lot longer.”

As good as this policy change sounds, there have been some surprising logistical challenges. According to a Residence Life representative, there have been several options discussed for where to keep the animals on campus. “We were initially in discussion with Hazelwild Farms, who we already have a partnership with, but we decided that we ideally would like to be able to keep the service animals in the rooms with students. Many of the rooms in the UMW Apartments don’t have carpet and could easily be altered to include stables.”

This new policy change has inspired animal lovers on campus to start clubs focused on fundraising and raising awareness for service pigs and service

NO OPINIONS

Students refuse to comment this week.

VIEWPOINTS |

miniature horses, similar to the current club Canine Companions for Independence (CCI).

“We just really saw a need,” said one student. “Everyone cares about the dogs but no one is recognizing the horses, and they could really help people. We could work with the Guide Horse Foundation and farms in the local area to train service animals of all types.”

Another student expressed her concern over the ignorance surrounding the term ‘service animal’. “A lot of people say service animal when they mean service dog. This is the type of exclusive behavior we won’t stand for. Service animals can come from a wide variety of species beyond just dogs. People should be more accepting.”

This story is a part of our April Fool’s edition and is intended to be satirical in nature. All information or quotations are made up and not to be taken seriously.

GOLF CART GUY

Student legend wins gold in golf cart cup.

SPORTS | 12

THE

BLUE &GRAY

THE UNIVERSITY OF MARY WASHINGTON STUDENT NEWSPAPER

PRESS

March 29, 2018

VOLUME 91 | ISSUE 20 SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE

1922

University of Mary Washington’s console living room attracts attention Sarah Goodnough Senior Writer

On the fourth floor of UMW’s Hurley Convergence Center, there is a corner that looks like a portal to the past.

Stacks of old video games, ranging from Rush to Super Mario, bear notes indicating which student is mid-play. A shelf decorated with Lisa Frank stickers holds an old Nintendo Entertainment System, VHS tapes and a Walkman box.

A few kitchen chairs and an old recliner offer students a place to sit in front of a vintage television. The scent of nostalgia hangs over it all, drawing students from across campus to relax and hang out away from the stress of their classes.

The Console Living Room is an exhibit of situated media technology: a recreation of a space in which one would have used these artifacts from past digital ages. While it started out just as a fun project, it quickly became a highlight of UMW. “It allows students to reflect on technology, culture, and just general vibes of each decade,” said Dr. Gwen Hale, director of the Writing Center. “It truly

is an interactive piece of art.”

One of the few things a student won’t find in the Console Living Room is a plaid couch, which was added as part of the ‘70s exhibit to complete its grunge aesthetic. While exuding a foul stench, it was the most iconic piece from the exhibit. It provided students a place to relax and get comfortable as if they were hanging out at home. However, it has since been done away with.

“It defined the space,” said senior English and psychology double major Kirsten Quarforth.

Without the ‘70s couch, the Console Living Room lacks a certain hominess that attracted so many students. Assistant Professor Zach Whalen, who heads the ongoing project, recognized the part that couch played in the exhibit and has decided to replace it. The latest addition to the room will be a ‘90s loveseat from communications and digital studies professor, Dr. Lee Skallerup Bessette.

“A comfy couch invites people to sit and gives them a sense of home, of hanging out with their friends, and fond memories,” said Dr. Hale. “Throw in

“It allows students to reflect on technology, culture, and just general vibes of each decade.”

-Dr. Gwen Hale

The console living room is a popular attraction to UMW students.

some nostalgia and you have a winning combination.”

Whalen plans to place the loveseat in front of the old TV where students will be able to get comfortable while watching movies or playing their favorite games.

“I think it might be nice to have a place for multiple people to sit,” said Quarforth.

Some of the electronics available for students to use are a late ‘90s Mac computer, a Fisher Automatic Turntable and a Nintendo Entertainment System complete with Wolverine, Super Mario Bros and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartridges. There are a handful of comics like the 1985 The Avengers and the 1977 Fantastic Four, both volume one, and numerous VHS cassette tapes avail-

Daniel Arango

able to watch.

Whalen and Jim Groom, then director of the Division of Teaching and Learning Technologies, started the project in the spring of 2015 when the HCC was still quite new to the university.

They wanted to supply the new building with PlayStation and Xbox games to go with the game consoles available for checkout at the front desk. Their discussion turned into a joke about whether or not they could checkout an Atari, an outdated video game console from the late 1970s.

At first it seemed ridiculous. Why provide a piece of outdated equipment for students to use, especially when the HCC featured a sleek and modern design? However, the more they talked

•Console Living Room | 10

“Liberated” on UMW’s campus RACHEL MARTIN Staff Writer

Rachel Martin / Blue & Gray Press

Abby Steinberg, Mr. Steinberg, Shay Douglas, and Ben Nolot posing by the Liberated banner after a successful showing.

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On Thursday, March 22, a group of students and members of the Fredericksburg community gathered in the Digital Auditorium of the Hurley Convergence Center to watch the documentary “Liberated: The New Sexual Revolution.” The documentary, directed and produced by Benjamin Nolot with Magic Lantern Pictures, follows a group of college students as they attend spring break in Daytona. In doing so, the documentary exposes the realities behind the current culture of rape and casual sex.

The event on campus was coordinated by junior Abby Steinberg, and was a part of the documentary’s national tour.

After the film ended, Nolot and one of the spring breakers, Shay Douglas, sat with Steinberg and her father to answer questions.

The questions started with a hard-hitting one directed at Douglas, who had been one of the predominant guys who had convinced several women to have one-night stands with him and seen no

problem with it.

“If there was one thing you could say to those girls, what would it be?” After thinking about it for a moment, Douglas answered in a compelling statement, owning up to and apologizing for his previous actions. Over the course of the documentary, Douglas convinced many girls to have sex with him, and it was stated that there had been many more girls before the documentary was filmed.

“I’m sorry…to express how amazing they are, how intelligent and beautiful they are for who they are,” said Douglas. “Not for their body or what they do with their body or that performance they put on, but to let them know that and see them for the person that they are for their heart…and see them for a human being, a whole human being. Not just for their physical body and what they have put on show for us, but for their intellect for their mind, and for their spiritual side for their entirety of a human.”

Between when the documentary was filmed and when it •LIBERATED | 10

FRACTURED FREEDOM

POSITIVE PETS

TIME CONFLICT

LIFE | 6

VIEWPOINTS | 4

SPORTS | 3

CPR Department hosts religious freedom conference.

Emotional support animals are the real deal.

Baseball struggles to balance academics and athletics

SPORTS

Overwhelming schedule leaves UMW baseball players struggling to keep up with academics

ALICEN HACKNEY Staff Writer

This semester the Mary Washington Baseball Team has been hard at work with more games than any previous season and already busy student schedules.

This year the baseball team played 18 non-conference games before their conference games which hasn’t happened in previous years as long as many players can recall. The schedule consists of nearly 40 games, and, considering the games didn’t start until late February, this semester is packed.

“We played 18 non-conference games this year before playing any conference games, which we’ve never done before. It was a lot, but the games become a little more spread out from this point on which is good. I think it will pay off because we have more time to recover in between the big conference games that matter the most!” said junior Kevin France.

Some weeks this semester have had as many as five games with varying locations. These games can be at home, but there have been many games at other campuses and in different destinations. In the middle of the week, players have to make trips to Virginia Beach, Williamsburg, as far

south as Danville, and as far north as Maryland.

“We’re told in advance what time practice will usually begin, so we try to schedule all of our classes before then. So this semester was 2 p.m., so our guys get classes before then.” said junior Kevin France. “When we travel and miss classes during the day, we email professors beforehand to let them know (ideally we tell them at the start of the spring semester and get them a complete schedule), and then go to office hours or other class times if needed to get caught up. Most professors are very helpful about working with our schedules, but there have definitely been some issues with missing presentations or other work.”

The rigorous schedule has come with some difficulties. Considering the travel time, game play, and practices making all deadlines and class times can become a real challenge. This has left some having to rely on office hours, reschedule classes and tests, or just take the loss.

“Quite honestly, I’ve struggled recently with my studies due to the amount of class I’ve missed.

Sometimes I feel completely

disadvantaged in some classes because of the requirements of the time consuming baseball season,” said sophomore Bryce Runey.

All that being said, this extra practice and game time has benefited the team in many ways. Between getting more comfortable playing with each member and getting more time to work out game scenarios before actual conference games, the baseball team is seeing a strong increase in over all skill and proficiency.

“We’ve never played this many games prior to conference games starting, and I think that’ll benefit us tremendously. Baseball is a game of repetition and consistency, so with the extra games, we’ve definitely seen a lot of at bats and had time to gel together which will significantly benefit us when we continue into conference play,” said Runey.

With all the pre-conference games, this season is just revving up. As the season goes on, the boys are hoping to continue to grow close as a team and improve their skills both on the team and in the classroom. To find the baseball teams schedule go to the UMW Athletics website.

Stephen Johnston up to bat

UMW Athletics

Hank Biggs preparing for a big throw

UMW Athletics

From varsity to club students share their experiences

ARIANA BARRETT Staff Writer

Many people come to UMW to pursue their sports career further, but sometimes the workload of college courses becomes too much to juggle along with a varsity sport. For a variety of reasons, many people end up leaving varsity teams and instead of quitting their sport for good, they decide to join the club version of that team.

One of the main reasons people quit a varsity team is that it’s very time consuming.

“It’s a lot different than high school and I felt like I couldn’t focus everything on academics because it was really time consuming with practice and traveling and missing class,” said Kristen Lundquist, a sophomore softball player.

Lundquist first heard about club softball at club carnival and knew it was the perfect way she didn’t have to give up her sport.

“I still had a passion for it and I knew that it would not take up the full time commitment that a varsity sport would.

It’s a lot more relaxed and still gives us the level of competition that I need,” Lundquist said.

Along with not having as much of a

time commitment, varsity players make the switch to club because they don’t have to deal with demanding coaches anymore.

“One thing the coach always said was ‘this is a business trip. We’re here to do business’ and one thing I always loved about playing softball was that it was fun,” Lundquist said. “We really felt pressured to win.”

“I got cut during preseason my sophomore year…I was a little behind in skills than other girls on the team,” said Schmidt, senior field hockey player.

Other players felt that their coaches weren’t recognizing their hard work and the club team would.

“I was not very fond of the head coach and his thought process of certain things. I was working hard to earn a starting position and thought I should have a starting position when in reality he already had a set lineup before the season ever started.” Said Justin Pitts, senior baseball player.

There are many athletes that are afraid to join club teams because of the stigma that is associated with them; being on a club team is seen as having no real skills in that sport.

“At first I was weary because I thought I would get judged by the guys I played varsity with,” said Pitts.

“I just wanted to continue playing the sport I love. I was worried [the club team] wouldn’t like me because I came from the varsity team, but they were all so nice and really inclusive,” said Schmidt.

But after being on the team, many people find that they take on a newfound leadership role and feel good about the skills they bring to the team.

“I have been the captain for two years now. Before I was captain, the former captain asked me about how to do certain skills and show the team how to do them as well. I think I bring a more advanced skill set and style of play. I know how to break skills down technically to teach them to others,” said Schmidt.

“I really feel like I can share my experiences with the girls and I have a lot of knowledge about the sport and I know that the team as a whole our goal is to get better and to keep our competitiveness up and I feel like I’ve been able to help some of the girls too,” said Lundquist

Athletes find that they enjoy playing club sports, finding that the light hearted environment is much better to play the game they love in. Some have even shown their peers how much better the experience of the club team is.

“I was one of the first players to make the transition to club baseball from varsity. After I made that transition, there have been five other players that have played club after myself from the varsity team,” said Pitts.

“Being Captain means I get to coach, which is something that I love doing, and that I want to continue to do when I become a teacher. While I did love my time on the varsity team and it was great experience, I love being on the club team and all of the doors it has opened for me,” said Schmidt.

UMW Club Softball

UMW Club Softball twitter

Weekly Scoreboard baseball

Mar. 28 vs. Christopher Newport (L) UMW: 1 CNU: 4

softball

Mar. 28 @ Randolph-Macon (L) UMW:1 RMC: 4

Men's lacrosse

Men's Lacrosse

Mar. 24 @ St. Mary’s (Md.) (W) UMW: 13 St. Mary’s: 11

Mar. 29 vs. Frostburg St. TBA

women's lacrosse

women's lacrosse

Mar. 28 vs. St. Mary’s (Md.) (W) UMW: 18 St. Mary’s 11

Mar. 31 @ Wesley TBA

baseball

Mar. 31 @ Wesley TBA

softball

Mar. 31 @ Salisburg TBA

3

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Editor: Ginny Bixby | blueandgray.views@gmail.com

Why having emotional support animals shouldn’t be stigmatized

my anxiety and depression that I put my dream into action. I begin to learn about emotional support animals and how they could help mitigate the stress of having I was never really a cat person. I thought these disorders. I spent my entire summer they were lazy and boring with no person- vacation browsing through the SPCA and ality. Once I started college, my feelings Humane Society websites looking for the began to change. I found myself watching perfect little companion, until finally I more and more cat videos and dreaming found Joyce. about the day that would I adopt one for The day I officially met her was the hapmyself. piest I’d been in a very long time. The joy I It wasn’t until after I came to terms with experienced made me a completely new person. I came to depend on her almost as much as this sweet little cat depended on me.

Many people don’t know that emotional support animals can be any domesticated animal ranging from cats and dogs to teacup pigs and ducks. This is the major difference between ESAs and other service animals; while a service dog for a person who is hearing impaired must be able to assist them with very specific tasks, ESAs offer support simply by being there.

Before Joyce came into my life, there were mornings when I couldn’t get myself out of bed.

I was overwhelmed with this intense feeling of despair that stopped me from living my life and made it impossible to function properly. Therapy and medication can only do so much for a person and I constantly found myself filled with self-pity. Joyce gives Joshua Staley/Blue & Gray Press me the motivation to push through these instances and on the days The author’s cat, Joyce. that recovery seems impossible, I JOSHUA STALEY Staff Writer

How cell phones are ruining our relationships JOSE REYES Staff Writer

Pick your head up, take a deep breath in, and have a look around. In the spring, the flowers bloom and fill the air with the scent of happiness. Just when you think you’re in the clear, you will also see snow fall from the sky and cover the ground like powdered sugar to have classes canceled.

When our heads are down, we may see the weather for the coming days, or maybe what are friends are up to, or maybe even how the stocks are doing. Maybe we can communicate to our family members or loved ones that aren’t close by, sometimes we order things that we may need to use later, but mostly we will just be seeing a blue light that serves no purpose but to distract us from the beautiful world and people around us.

Thanks to scientific studies, we have discovered the effects that social media and cell phones have on our lives, and more importantly, our brains. We know that engagement with social media and our cellphones releases a chemical known as dopamine, which is the same chemical that’s released when we smoke, drink and gamble. The one key difference is that while those activities have age restrictions, cell phones and social media do not.

Social media, whether we recognize it

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or not, is a drug. It feels really good, and there’s a reason why we go back on an app or social media site ten times within an hour to check our interactions. We go back to see if people liked our photo, if we’ve gained any more followers, and if people are leaving comments. It is simply because of the dopamine released when we see those notifications popping up. It’s a temporary solution just like alcohol, smoking, and gambling. People who spend more time on social media suffer higher rates of depression, and we are starting to see that the benefits of cell phones and social media do not outweigh the negatives.

Younger and younger kids are getting unlimited access to these devices that they are not prepared for. Their brains simply cannot handle the addictive effects. If it’s hard for adults to quit these these habits, then how can we expect a teenager to be able to deal with it? From a young age, the only approval we seek is that of our parents. As we reach adolescence,we begin to seek the approval of our friends. This is the way we alculturate to the surrounding tribe outside of our immediate family. During this period we are supposed to learn to rely on our friends for help, but as we have begun to see, we are relying more and more on on

have her there to hold. She makes me feel safe and gives me an ally. I know the love and kindness I get from her are unconditional, and that no matter what, we can count on each other.

I’ve heard some very unsettling things about emotional support animals being shams. Although I can understand that it may seem laughable to someone who doesn’t experience life the same way that I do, my relationship with Joyce is not a joke.

I won’t negate the fact that there are individuals out there that try and exploit the privileges ESAs get for their own personal gain. Maybe they’re going away to college and just don’t want to have to go a day without seeing their beloved pet. Or maybe they’re traveling and don’t think they should have to pay any fees associated with bringing your pet onto a train or plane. These people negatively stigmatize emotional support animals and do not represent individuals like me who actually benefit from emotional support animals.

What people do not realize is these animals help us in more ways than anyone could have imagined. Joyce keeps me on a set schedule. She tells me when I need to wake up and she forces me to follow through with commitments in both school and work. She is my rock; a constant reminder that I can do better, and everything will be okay. She helped me to realize I deserve good health and happiness.

It’s easy for people to acknowledge the validity of a service animal for someone with a physical disability like blindness or those who are hearing impaired. But for those of us who are functionally disabled in a more invisible way, the negative

rhetoric around ESAs reminds me that our society refuses to treat neurological disorders the same as physical illnesses such as blindness. This, of course, is part of a much bigger conversation that needs to be had.

Joyce, like any animal, has her flaws.

She’s moody and extremely picky about the kind of cat food I give her. She also has some anxiety issues of her own when I bring new people into our shared space.

However, Joyce has a heart full of love— not just for me but for every other person she encounters. She may need a little time to warm up, but once she does, she’ll be running after you in the hall and jumping onto your lap for some snugs and an ear scratch. These flaws are a perfect reminder that we all have challenges in life, and she inspires me to not let these challenges hold me back and to love everyone just as she does.

I’ve learned so much about how wonderful it is to have a cat in your life, and I sincerely hope critics of emotional support animals can come to understand that they provide a real service to those with mental disabilities. I am so lucky to have such an incredible support system of friends and family in my life, but people get busy and not everyone can be there when you need them. The bond I have with Joyce is something special. She’s always there when I get home and she never pushes me to answer a million questions when all I need is quiet. She just wants to do is be by my side and have me hold her when I need to curl up in a ball and cry.

There isn’t a single day that goes by that I don’t acknowledge the beauty of our relationship. I can’t even imagine my life without her in it.

social media and cell phones. Due to this, we are no longer acquiring the necessary coping mechanisms to deal with stress. We know the main reasons why alcoholics drink are social stress, financial stress, and career stress . Like them we too will turn to the bottle, except our bottles are our cell phones. We do not know how to form deep meaningful relationships with one another and studies show that when asked, we will admit that.

We confess that most of our relationships are artificial, and although we have fun with our friends, we know they will cancel if something better comes up.

Cell phones also send out subconscious signals to other people around us. Whether we are walking into a meeting, grabbing food with friends, or just walking around in public, having your cell phone out sends a very strong message that whatever your doing, or whoever you’re with, is just not that important. Think about sitting down to eat with someone, and they suddenly pull out their phone and set it on the table.

How does that make you feel? Exactly. The same thing happens when we eat with our friends, everyone is on their phones and the interaction is simply not important to anyone, we are constantly connected, and forever addicted. Even when something is important to us, we may only pay at-

tention until it is done, then we go back to our phones. We don’t talk with the people around us, and as studies are coming out on depression, suicide, school shootings, as well as an increase in mental illness, we are starting to see technology as a potential contributor to the issue.

The responsibility to fix this addiction that is slowly consuming the future of humanity falls in our hands. It would be great if we could rely on parenting, on individual willpower and on social media companies to put a stop to this. The sad reality is that it will take more than that. We must be the ones to take a stand and to pick up the slack that has been left behind. As institutions, we must shape our environments to encourage these social skills, because that is when great things happen. Innovation and progress don’t come from cell phones, they come when our minds wander and work together to solve problems. This is not to suggest that we do away with cell phones or social media altogether, only that we strike a balance.

Rob Hampson/unsplash.com

Thursday, March 29, 2018 Thursday, January 21, 2015

VIEWPOINTS Long-distance relationships are worth the effort BETH DEVINE Staff Writer

Couples usually feel pressured to break off with their partner before entering freshman year of college. The transition between high school and college is tough.

Although every relationship is different, couples should reflect on the future and strength of their relationship before making the rash decision to breakup. Long-distance relationships have a negative stigma surrounding them, but speaking from experience, I believe that long-distance relationships have their unique advantages.

I am currently in a long-distance relationship, and I’ve come to realize that dating someone who lives far away has its ups and downs. In the beginning of our relationship, my boyfriend and I took a lot of time to decide whether or not a long distance relationship in college was possible for us. After months of getting to know each other just as friends, we established a strong foundation that gave us the stability we needed to commit ourselves to each other, regardless of the fact that we live thousands of miles apart. We ignored outside pressure and negativity, and our relationship has flourished ever since.

Even though being apart is hard at times, I’ve come to believe that long distance relationships in college are worth the effort.

If both partners are committed to being with each other, then the relationship has the potential to strengthen and grow into something very special.

Since my boyfriend and I go to schools on opposite sides of the country, we have had to learn how to develop effective communication skills. Our distance forces us to share our thoughts and feelings, causing us to have real, heart-to-heart conversations.

These meaningful conversations allow us to share a strong bond that is built on trust, love, and friendship.

We find ways to maintain a fun and interesting relationship. For example, we write long letters, watch synced-up movies on Skype, send each other care packages for finals week, and read and discuss about books for our two-person book club (we call this the “Coast-to-Coast Book Club”).

Because I hardly see my boyfriend, I greatly value spending time with him in person. Every time one of us visits each other, we cherish every moment, even the mundane ones, like going to the grocery store together. I get the fun opportunity of playing tour guide when he visits by showing him all the sites to see in Washington D.C. and Virginia. Every visit is like a mini-vacation for the both of us. These visits have taught me to appreciate my significant other’s time and effort to see me Other UMW students feel the same way about their long-distance relationships.

Sophomore Frankie Edwards believes that even though distance is difficult, it is worth

the effort to be with his girlfriend, since he is optimistic about the relationship’s future outcomes.

“Overtime, communication has gotten way easier, and the prospect of the future is getting closer,” said Edwards, “I feel closer to her, because it’s really special when I’m finally able to see her in person.”

Freshman Gabby Gallier also believes that distance has strengthen her relationship with her significant other. Plans to see her boyfriend give her extra motivation to work hard in school.

“I always get happy whenever I he visits me at school,” said Gallier. “Plans with him always help me get through the week.

I really value the time we spend together.”

Long-distance forces you to be independent, and not to lose yourself in a relationship. You have your own social life, education path, and future career goals. Since I can’t spend time hanging out with my boyfriend, I have more time to focus on school and friendships. Although this forced independence sometimes hurts long-distance couples, it is important to be committed to someone you can trust. Time to focus on personal growth is necessary for success in college.

Independence was a very important aspect of UMW alumna Jill Stapleton’s long-distance relationship. While she was at UMW, she dated her current husband who went to school in upstate New York.

When asked what she learned from her long-distance experience, she stated, “I learned that the primary reason we go to college is to study and prepare ourselves for future careers. I had two internships while at UMW, and if I had been dating a local boyfriend, I might not have done as good a job at those internships, because I would have been wanting to spend time with him.”

Stapleton is very happy she risked having a long-term distance relationship, considering it was much harder back then due to limited technology.

“In our case, long-distance worked out very well. We’ve been married 32 years.

Even if it doesn’t work out, it might be what keeps you out of trouble while you are studying for your future career,” said Stapleton, “A lot of students spend more time on social life than studies while in college.”

Determination, cooperation, love, and commitment are necessary elements of success for a long-distance relationship.

Although it is not for everyone, long-distance relationships are certainly possible and worth the effort. Couples entering college should deeply consider committing themselves to a long-distance relationship, since it grants independence, yet helps couples create a stronger bond.

Late night fire drills hurt students’ academic performance DYLAN BURKETT Staff Writer

Different types of safety drills are common place for anyone who has ever gone to school. Everyone has gone through them at some point in life because being prepared for the worst is a top priority.

Fire drills in the university are rather different from ones from elementary through high school. Unlike here, they are scheduled for some point during the school day to make sure that everything runs as expected and the buildings can and are being evacuated effectively. While fire drills here ultimately have the same goal, their timing can be quite arbitrary, and often occur in the middle of the night.

Each semester, Residence Life requires students to participate in three fire drills to practice evacuating the dorms. If one has classes throughout the day, it’s pretty easy to be outside of the building when a drill occurs during the morning or afternoon.

On the other hand, the drills that take place in the middle of the night are actually very inconveniencing.

While it is easy to understand that the fire alarms must wake people up in order to alert them of an actual emergency, students are often dismayed when they wake up to loud sirens and have to wander around in the dark to find clothes and shoes and make it outside in a timely manner. Additionally, students who have 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. classes may have problems with these late night and early morning drills because the drills will interfere with their sleep cycles and make it difficult to wake up in time for class, or even fall back to sleep.

The most common reaction that I have experienced in drills has been that of most of the people on my floor running down the hall shouting obscenities to make sure

that everyone wakes up and makes it to the designated marshalling point so that the hall passes the drill and doesn’t have to wake up at that time in the morning again any time soon.

My biggest problem with these inconveniences is that once I’m awake and have been outside for a while, my body is running and ready to begin the day, even though it could be anywhere from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. This is especially terrible because when we’re finally allowed to go back inside, I almost never can fall back to sleep. While this is just my experience, I am sure that there are many others here on campus who have had similar experiences and are highly aggravated by this situation.

One of the bigger issues with these drills is that they may affect students’ performance in class the next day. Many halls here on campus house a large number of residents; therefore, it is easy to assume that the drills do take quite a long time.

With students being stuck outside and not allowed to leave, they’re missing out on time that they could be using to sleep or even finish assignments for classes that they may have the next day.

When I reached out to a resident assistant here on campus for answers on how they go about organizing these drills and what it is like to be on the other side of them, they refused to comment.

The importance of these drills is crucial to the safety of everyone here on campus, but there are obviously many issues with them. While it is important that our systems operate correctly, and halls can be evacuated in time, it is not worth risking the performance of students the next day.

Staff Editorial: Blue & Gray Staff prints April Fools issue as part of longstanding tradition Once a year, the editorial staff of The Blue & Gray Press releases an April Fool’s issue to the University of Mary Washington community. This has been a longstanding tradition that the editorial team has continued over the years.

While we at the Blue & Gray strive for an ethical, truthful and professional student newspaper, we believe it is important to express ourselves through satire, humor and exaggeration in this issue.

While these articles are published, they are not to be taken seriously or in any way as an accurate depiction of any aspects of our campus community.

The April Fool’s edition was originally designed to poke fun at organizations, events, people, landmarks and other aspects of our campus. It is our hope that we will provide our readers with a few laughs.

Every April Fool’s article contains a disclosure at the bottom of the article online for reference and at the bottom of each April Fools article in print. We hope that all can join us in celebrating the gift of laughter conveyed through such satirical articles. Thank you and we hope you enjoy.

By THE BLUE & GRAY PRESS EDITORIAL BOARD

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LIFE

Editor: Lauren Closs blueandgray.life@gmail.com

CCI hosts 5k dog walk and puppy party on Jefferson Square LINDSEY BROWN Senior Writer

Jefferson Square was a dog lover’s dream on Saturday, where many breeds of dogs visited the puppy party hosted

by CCI (Canine Companions for Independence) and participated in the 5K dog walk. Students and members of the community brought their own dogs, or borrowed dogs from local shelters for the event. CCI’s current dog, Rotary, and Jax the third, a Golden/Labrador Retriever cross who graduated from CCI’s training program were there as well.

CCI put on a 5K and a puppy party to help raise money for the service dogs they train on campus. A total of 45 runners signed up for the 5K. There were a few different routes the runners could take, but each route started and ended on Jefferson Square, where the runners were greeted by the various dogs that were at the puppy party.

The puppy party had a bake sale, a puppy kissing booth, barbeque, a raffle booth and a booth for the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). Brendan Helms, a senior history major and Publicity officer of CCI said, “the bake sale booth made over 100 dollars.” There were quite a few dogs in the puppy party up for adoption. The SPCA had three dogs at the event up for adoption that came from

the shelter.

The SPCA’s volunteer, Hunter Williams, attended the event representing the shelter. Williams explained that there is a program called Adventure Tails that allows people to rent a dog or cat for a few hours. The person must be 18 years old in order to take the animal to the out, and spend time with the them. This is a good program for college students living on campus, who cannot have dogs or cats in their dorm. Williams said, “It gives the dogs an opportunity to be around people, and gives them an opportunity to be adopted.”

According to the President of CCI, Rachael Wiczalkowsk, CCI is a national service dog organization partnered with the UMW club. The club raises service dogs through student volunteers and raises awareness about service dogs through fundraising and education. When a student wants to raise a service dog, they go through an application process. If the student passes, they receive a service Lindsey Brown / The Blue & Gray Press dog for 18 months. They teach the puppy CCI graduate, Jax, poses with his trainer about 60 basic commands, and then the and owner. dog advances to advanced training. The training is located in New York State, of the two breeds, and the purebreds where they will be separated into more are used for breeding. Wiczalkowsk, a advanced programs. The dog could be a senior psychology major, said working hearing dog, a skill companion dog for with service dogs has “definitely been a someone in a wheelchair or a facility/ thought for a career path for me because therapy dog. CCI only uses Labradors of my major.” and Golden Retrievers for service dog Jax and his owner Toni Collins training. The dogs are usually mixes attended the event and were greeted

by many dog lovers. Jax was trained on campus by senior psychology major Greg Genuardi, who is also Vice President of CCI. Jax now works for Extra Special Parents in Richmond, VA, a foster care facility. Collins is the Director of Adoption Services. She is able to bring Jax into courthouses, hospitals and therapist’s offices. Jax helps facilitate children who are no longer with their parents in Foster Care.

Genuardi mentioned, “My mom is a teacher, and when I was training Jax, I would bring him into my mom’s class.

When he left I was hoping he would be with kids, because he was really good with them.”

Collins also pointed out, “As we deal with children who have been through trauma, the service providers have secondary trauma, because they are trying to process what the children have gone through. Jax is helpful for the staff, we’ll do exercises and I’ll always try to incorporate him into them. He is just a morale booster all the way around.”

Jax knows 40 commands and has recently been taught how to bring a tissue to Collins if she sneezes. Collins even demonstrated a command where Jax had to pick a pencil off the ground and bring it to her. Jax can also open doors, close drawers and jump on the counter for a person in a wheelchair.

Collins gushed, “He’s just a pretty darn amazing dog.”

Snowmen appear on UMW campus during school cancellation

Students got creative with this snowman on Ball Circle, dressing it up in a bra and using an ice cream cone nose and tortilla mouth.

Snowmen pray to their snow deity outside of Westmoreland Hall.

Many students celebrated the snow day on Mar. 21 by building snowmen all around campus. The wide variety of snowmen seen here show the creativity of students of UMW.

A snow-cyclops and it’s little snow dog on Ball Circle.

Photos by Aaron Reynolds

This snowman outside of Monroe looks happy as can be with his foliage-covered friend on his head.

Many students built tiny snowmen around the Monroe Fountain.

This cool snowman decided to chill out in an adirondack chair on Jefferson square.

Thursday, March 29, 2018

LIFE

“Kirby: Star Allies” introduces entertaining yet simple gameplay HARRY FISHER Senior Writer

Only one year after its release, the Nintendo Switch has proven to be one of the company’s most successful consoles of all time, with a plethora of great new games to boot. On Mar. 16, Nintendo gave gamers another new installment in the lineup of great Nintendo Switch games with the newest game in the Kirby series, “Kirby: Star Allies.”

Much like Mario, Kirby is a Nintendo series aimed at creating fun, familyfriendly adventures that anyone can enjoy, even people who don’t usually play video games. The main character of the series is a pink puffball named Kirby who can eat enemies in his fictional home world of Dreamland and gain their powers. The player must use these powers to traverse a series of levels filled with various enemies, obstacles and boss fights. However, most Kirby games are actually pretty easy to complete. They’re not meant to be terribly challenging games, mainly because their target audience is young kids. However, they’re designed in a way that makes them a fun and breezy experience for anyone who wants to give them a try, young or old. Their cute chibi characters, bright colorful landscapes and well-designed levels provide good times for people of all ages.

However, “Star Allies” mixes up the classic Kirby formula with some brandnew gameplay elements. In addition to being able to eat enemies to use their

powers, Kirby now has the power to befriend enemies in the game to form a team of up to four characters. What really makes this mechanic fun is that four players can play the game at once, with the first player controlling Kirby and the other three controlling enemies.

This allows players to tear through the levels, combining their various powers to take down other enemies and bosses.

Some characters in the game can even share their powers with other characters.

For example, if one character has an ice power, and another character has a sword, the ice character can share their power with the sword character, thus giving that character an ice sword that allows them to freeze enemies.

Another aspect of the game that makes it even more fun is the fact that Kirby can befriend certain boss characters. This feature allows the player to take control of some of the classic Kirby bosses, such as King Dedede, a big penguin who can smack enemies around with a hammer. My favorite character to play as is Metaknight, who is essentially a dark version of Kirby with a sword. The game really begins to open up once the player gains the ability to play as these characters, as they have their own unique abilities that Kirby and the other playable enemies don’t have.

All these gameplay elements combined make the game a fun little adventure. However, the game is a little too easy for its own good. While Kirby games are supposed to be easy, most

of them still have some level of challenge. “Star Allies,” on the other hand, doesn’t really have much in the way of challenge at all. For one thing, it’s extremely easy to rack up extra lives. When my younger brother and I played the game together, we managed to get over a hundred extra lives by the time we reached the final world and we only died once or twice.

It’s also pretty easy to avoid taking damage, even during boss fights. I hardly ever found myself needing the health items that were scattered throughout the game. Also, I was playing as Metaknight most of the time, and his various sword-based abilities allow whoever is playing as him to dominate the game.

One thing that makes the game a bit more challenging is the search for puzzle pieces that are scattered throughout the levels. These pieces Wikipedia. aren’t too difficult to find, but “Kirby: Star Allies” was released on Mar. 16. obtaining them requires the player to solve a short puzzle using one of the destroying Dreamland. various powers which Kirby and the Although the game may not be very other characters can obtain. Searching challenging, it is still a fun and enjoyable for these pieces can add some challenge experience. It has great characters with to your first playthrough, and obtaining various abilities, colorful levels with lots them allows you to unlock some neat of variety and enough bonus features to artwork. Also, by completing the game make you want to play it again. “Kirby: as different characters, you can unlock Star Allies” is another great Nintendo a few fun mini games. My personal game all around, and even though it’s favorite was the game where each player aimed at kids, it’s still fun for people of has to use a baseball bat to smack a all ages. meteor back into space to prevent it from

CPR Department hosts conference addressing religious freedom ES HETHCOX Online Writer

and the controversial 2016 presidential election, Barry and Aminrazavi were inspired to address the growing religious intolerance in America which they have seen affecting members of the UMW community. They constructed this two day conference to address issues that religious groups in America are facing.

affected by the election in several ways,” Professor Barry said. “Our faculty face the uncertainty of the “Muslim” ban temporarily stayed by the US courts.

And our students have felt the effects of growing anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ hate speech and acts across campus.”

The speakers of this year’s event,

on various subjects regarding religious freedom and participated in a round table discussion on Thursday night discussing Amidst an unexpected flurry of snow the controversial Charlottesville protest and cancelled classes, the Department of on Aug. 12, 2017.

Classics, Philosophy and Religion (CPR) “I loved the round table event,” said hosted a two day conference on Mar. 22 CPR intern Mitchell J. “It gave me a and 23 in commemoration of the Virginia greater understanding of the events that Statute of Religious Freedom. occurred and that are still going The conference, titled on in Charlottesville. Hearing “Religious Freedom in a from those who were on the Fractured America,” was front line really drove home the organized by Professors horror of it all. I really respect Mehdi Aminrazavi and and thank those who fight Jennifer Barry and took place everyday against those who as the department’s annual want to spread hate.”

Jefferson Lecture. Since While the conference 2002, the CPR department was open to the university has helped sponsor and host community and public, UMW the Lecture in the effort students were the majority of to commemorate Thomas attendees. Several students Jefferson’s establishment of enjoyed their experience and religious freedom in America. appreciated the conversation the In January 1777, Jefferson conference instigated. travelled to Fredericksburg, “I think this conference VA and with a small cohort benefitted the UMW community of men drafted what would because it gave the chance for become the Bill to Establish interfaith dialogue and helped Religious Freedom in Virginia the community discuss life (commonly referred to as the before and after the election in Virginia Statute for Religious November of 2016,” said senior Freedom). According to CPR Matthew Crawford. department chair Dr. Craig Justine Purdy, a sophomore Vasey, the statue provides psychology major, attended American citizens protection multiple speaker panels and Jennifer Barry / CPR Department the round table event and and freedom in religious practices and worship. Since From left: Kelly J. Baker, Benjamin Marcus, Emily Filler, Jennifer Barry, Mehdi Aminrazavi, Diane Fruchtman. appreciated listening to the Fredericksburg was the drafting site for According to Barry, this conference hand selected by members of the presentation. the statute, the city serves as a historical is the department’s effort to address the department, came from various “Students asking good questions are landmark in the development of religious growing religious intolerance which has disciplines and professional backgrounds good and important. But listening to freedom in America. affected members of not only the UMW and brought different perspectives and these people who are experts or aspiring Because of the historical significance community, but the public as well. solutions to issues related to Religious experts in this field was incredible,” Fredericksburg shares with the statute “Our own campus has been directly Freedom in America. They presented Purdy said.

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LIFE

Lucy Rose displays intimate vulnerability with new album and tours GRACE HOWIE Contributing Writer

“Was it me or was it you?” is one of the simplest questions asked by British singer-songwriter Lucy Rose on her most recent album, “Something’s Changing,” released July of 2017.

The album was inspired by her first tour around South America, which was independently organized after fans on social media regularly asked her to play in the country. She took only a backpack, guitar and herself, relying on the people who had asked her to visit their town to book shows and house her throughout the tour. These two months of free shows led to the creation of this album, which takes Rose in a different direction musically compared to her past albums.

This was her first release since her departure from her record label, Columbia Records, because they wouldn’t allow her complete creative control. As a result, “Something’s Changing” was completely self-funded and independent, only taking three weeks to make. There are 11 tracks on the album, riddled with complex but soft melodies that compliment Rose’s mellow voice. She feels more mature vocally on this record, especially with how she is using her vibrato and phrase lengths in a

much more intentional way than in the past.

She explores the idea of belonging and stability in “Is this called Home,” a beautifully arranged song.

It builds throughout until reaching a peak marked by the addition of orchestral accompaniment which works seamlessly with the content of the song. Then shortly after we get another transition which introduces a startling drum beat that speeds up as she sings “Let me hold your hand” over and over, inviting the listener in until it resolves Rose is playing in D.C. on Mar. 30. and returns back to the stripped-back sound from the beginning. raw somehow. She explained on Twitter, It’s a real trip, let me tell you. “the video was filmed on our first night On Mar. 1 she released her latest in Australia. I was jet-lagged, had no music video for the song “All that fear,” makeup on & had nothing to hide. I my personal favorite from the album wanted to show a side of me that for so which she put out this January as a bonus long I wouldn’t have shown anyone & track. The song is confrontational in a side of me I’ve grown to love.” The its content and the video echoes this. video was filmed by her husband and Throughout, the singer is staring into the tour manager Will Morris. camera directly. She is framed from the At the risk of sounding cliché, it neck up in the black and white video that seems her album title is more than fitting has shots of differing contrasts making because something has changed for the video feel harsher and almost more and within this artist. Throughout her

previous two albums songs have always touched on the themes of interpersonal and intimate relationships but on this album they are done so in a much more honest and vulnerable way compared to before, which was seemingly already vulnerable as can be.

Rose, originally from Warwickshire, England now lives in London but has been on tour for quite a while now. Since March she has been on a North American tour. One of the most interesting things Lucy Rose / Youtube. about her is that she relies on and is appreciative of her fans in ways that many other artists are not. Much like her South American trip, she has stayed at the homes of strangers, who she always thanks on social media. She really seems to give people the benefit of the doubt and embrace the kindness of humanity, highlighting that it does exist.

If you want to catch her live, she is playing at Union Stage in D.C. on Mar. 30.

Pumping Playlist: workout tunes for working on that beach bod Playlist by Lauren Closs

Pixabay.

1. “The Fox (What Does The Fox Say?)” by Ylvis 2. “Shia LaBeouf” by Rob Cantor 3. “Barbie Girl” by Aqua 4. “Friday” by Rebecca Black 5. “Humuhumunukuapua’a” by Ashley Tisdale and Lucas Grabeel 6. “Pants on the Ground” by Larry Platt 7. “I Just Had Sex” (feat. Akon) by The Lonely Island 8. “The Duck Song” by Bryant Oden 9. “The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins” by Leonard Nimoy 10. “Country Song (Pandering)” by Bo Burnham

11. “Baby Monkey (Going Backwards On A Pig)” by Parry Gripp 12. “The 7th Element” by VITAS 13. “Spooky Scary Skeletons” by Andrew Gold 14. “Chocolate Rain” by Tay Zonday 15. “The Gummy Bear Song” by Gummibär 16. “Peaches” by The Presidents of the United States of America 17. “Sweatshirt” by Jacob Sartorius 18. “The Campfire Song Song” by SpongeBob 19. “White & Nerdy” by ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic 20. “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley

This story is a part of our April Fool’s edition and is intended to be satirical in nature. All information or quotations are made up and not to be taken seriously.

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NEWS THE

BLUE & GRAY PRESS

MISSION The Blue & Gray Press is published every Thursday in the University Apartments Clubhouse for our university community. The goal of The Blue & Gray Press is to produce high quality and accurate news in a manner compliant with the Society of Professional Journalists ethics code. In its coverage, The Blue & Gray Press strives to highlight the community of the University of Mary Washington, as well as deliver fair and accurate coverage on the issues important to our students.

EDITORS-AT-LARGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Kelly Emmrich

SECTION EDITORS NEWS Meaghan McIntyre

Izzy Briones

VIEWPOINTS Ginny Bixby

LIFE Lauren Closs

SPORTS Ryan Brauch

ONLINE Es Hethcox

PHOTO

Cayley McGuire

Kyrstiane Urbaniak

FACULTY ADVISOR Sushma Subramanian

Editors: Meaghan McIntyre & Izzy Briones | blueandgray.news@gmail.com

Documentary analyzes spring break culture was finished, Douglas had a conversion and realized how wrong his actions had been. This realization came when he tore his ACL for the third time after that spring break.

“Concerning the friends that you hung out with in the film, I’m sure that they’ve seen the film, I hope they have, and I’m sure that they’ve heard and seen this beautiful transition that you’ve made. I’m really curious to see what their response was,” said another audience member in a statement directed towards Douglas. The audience knew of Douglas’s change of heart but were unaware of what had happened to the friends that he was on spring break with.

“That’s a difficult question,” said Douglas. “Most of my friends, they’re still from the movie and they’ve had children, some of them, and got married. But, some are still stuck in that mindset, and they’re stuck in this way in being in the world that is objectifying to women and dehumanizing and exploiting ultimately the vulnerable out there. It was hard for them to accept the path that I chose of self-honoring, and ultimately, I had to let go of those relationships that were no longer serving my entirety of a human.”

In making the film, Nolot wanted to explore what kind of culture breeds a man into becoming a sex-buyer.

“In the process of that, we went to spring break imagining it would be one small subsection of a larger film,” said Nolot when asked about how he went about depicting the rape and casual sex culture. “The thing that was the turning

•LIBERATED | 2

point for us that shifted it from being a small subsection of a larger film to being the entire film was the issue of sexual violation of woman on spring break.

That was something that was totally shocking to us. When we went down to Panama City Beach, we didn’t find a single girl who hadn’t been sexually violated, meaning every girl we talked to conceded that she had been sexually violated there. The last time that we were down there filming, a girl was gang raped on the beach.”

The film can be found on Netflix and has reached many people that way.

“Was on Netflix with my buddies tonight and typed in ‘spring break’ thinking we would find some funny, raunchy spring break movie to watch. Ended up clicking play on you guys’ movie and had half of us in tears at the end of it, convicted of thing we’ve done and the sickening culture we’ve encouraged.

It breaks my heart to really hear what these girls our age are going through.

I’ll be sharing your documentary with whoever I can. Thanks so much. I can honestly say this changed my life,” read one Instagram post about the film.

Amid all the questions for Douglas and Nolot, a question for Steinberg’s father was posed, asking if the film made him more concerned for his daughter’s safety and well-being. “No,” he said.

In explaining why not, he shared how much he loves and trusts her.

To watch the documentary, search “Liberated: The New Sexual Revolution” on Netflix. To contact the director and producer for any further questions, follow him on Instagram at @benjinolot

Exhibit offers sense of home to students •Console Living Room | 1 about it, the less ridiculous it seemed.

They asked themselves, “Why not?”

That simple question spurred the birth of the Console Living Room.

Whalen and Groom outfitted the exhibit with furniture from Goodwill and things found in the UMW surplus warehouse, where unused or discarded furniture is stored until state regulations allow the school to dispose of it. In order to make the living room as authentic looking as possible, they worked with a member from the theater department to construct wood paneling for the walls and added the old plaid couch to complete the ‘70s grunge aesthetic.

Whalen has made it his mission to curate media history so that UMW students can experience the digital ages that came before their birth. Ideally the project is far from being over, but Whalen will need help to continue this vision for the Console Living Room.

“It’s important to restore, to preserve that history and make it accessible through this exhibit,” Whalen said.

Because the equipment is older and requires a lot of attention in order to

remain functional, it forces students to take care of the exhibit and be mindful of how they treat each individual piece.

Anyone can use the equipment, so it becomes an “on your honor” responsibility to keep it in order.

Whalen has plans to keep updating the room each year. Once he gets caught up to the present, in future years he wants to start over with the 1960s.

His tentative plan when that happens is to recreate a week of ‘60s television programs. Whalen would also like to change the room’s setup.

“I want to rearrange it to make it more friendly and liven it up with some more artwork and make it more of an interesting space,” said Whalen.

In order for this to happen, Whalen will need help from anyone wanting to be part of the project. The only way this project will keep moving on is if more people are willing to participate.

Donating old technology and helping to keep things clean are some of the ways students can help to keep this exhibit going.

“Anybody to just share the vision with would be great,” Whalen said.

POLICE BEAT MEAGHAN MCINTYRE & IZZY BRIONES News Editors

Petit Larceny Between Wednesday, February 14 at midnight and Wednesday, February 28 at 9:54 a.m., clothing and an electronic device was stolen from Randolph Hall. This case is pending.

On Wednesday, February 28 between 2:00 p.m. and 4:31 p.m., US currency was stolen from Mason Hall. This case is pending.

Simple Assault On Wednesday, February 28 at 11:47 p.m., an incident of assault took place at Jefferson Hall. This case is pending.

Vandalism On Tuesday, February 27 at 8:46 a.m., a wall of Melchers Hall exterior was graffitied. This case is pending.

Between Monday, March 5 at 6:00 p.m. and Tuesday, March 6 at 7:00 a.m., a door was damaged at Goolrick Hall.

This case is pending.

On Wednesday, March 14 at 11:00 a.m. a vehicle window was vandalized at 900 block, Mercer St. This case is pending FDP.

Arson On Tuesday, March 20 between 9:00 p.m. and 9:20 p.m., the corner of a poster was burned in Arrington Hall.

This case is pending.

Intoxication

CORRECTIONS for THE Week In last week’s article titled “The future of ASL at UMW” the article stated that the Academic Affairs Committee of SGA filed an official request for ASL to be taught on campus. This is incorrect. The committee only started a petition. The writer’s name, Gabriella Garcia was also misspelled.

On Sunday, March 25 at 1:09 a.m., there was an incident of underage intoxication at Virginia Hall. One administrative referral was given.

PLEASE REPORT ANY MISTAKES SEEN IN THE BLUE & GRAY PRESS TO Kelly Emmrich, blueandgray.eic@gmail.com or Sushma Subramanian, ssubrama@umw.edu

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Thursday, March 29, 2018

NEWS

UMW students participate in the March for Our Lives

Allison Tovey / Blue & Gray Press

There was a huge turnout of young people and students at the march.

Students gather together and show off their signs.

Allison Tovey / Blue & Gray Press

Allison Tovey / Blue & Gray Press

Students gather together after the march waiting for the charter bus to take us back to campus.

Controversy over spring formal tickets Jessie Whitmer Staff Writer

After spring formal tickets sold out, discussion on whether or not seniors should have priority over the tickets began. Many students, primarily seniors, expressed disappointment over not being able to have bought a ticket this year. For seniors, this was their last chance to attend, and they shared different views on how the ticket sales take place.

Junior Cara Wissinger did not realize that seniors were not given priority.

“I honestly did not know that seniors did not get priority,” said Wissinger. “I guess it would make more sense in my opinion if they gave seniors priority. I have heard stories of seniors not being able to attend because tickets have been sold out, so that is a bummer.”

Other students had been under impression that seniors had seniority over ticket purchasing.

“I’ve just accepted the fact I’m not going to go to Spring Formal, never gone and probably won’t,” said senior Rachel Dacey. “Everyone tells me that they sell out of tickets every day. I’ve been told that the line backs up beforehand, and then all of them sell out in 30 minutes. I’m not going to miss class to buy tickets. Personally, I think that the senior should get precedence for Spring Formal tickets but that is because I always thought that’s how it went. I thought Spring Formal was a senior thing.”

For some, they do not feel that academic year should play a factor in attending Spring Formal.

“I think Spring Formal tickets should be available to everyone, regardless of

whether or not they are a senior,” said junior Bailey Lustig. “If someone wants to actively participate in on-campus activities and events, they should be given the priority.”

Another UMW Senior, Shannon Haley focused on the idea that seniors should most definitely be given priority over tickets.

“Seniors should definitely be given priority for tickets for Spring Formal,” said Haley. “Only a few hundred tickets are being sold, so getting in line and purchasing one is very competitive.

This is one of the seniors’ last events as a student at UMW, while underclassmen have multiple more changes to attend. If anyone has to miss out on Spring Formal, it should not be the seniors who really want to go.”

S o m e students feel that the dance should strictly be for upperclassmen.

“Honestly, I believe Spring Formal should strictly for upperclassmen,” said senior Nathan Neri.

“Every year the tickets become more difficult to purchase, to the point where most seniors don’t even hear of the selling dates until it’s too late. Another thing is many of us busy upperclassmen don’t have time out of our work, class, and athletic schedule to sit at the UC at 6 a.m. to wait in line for a few hours to purchase tickets, like many of these freshmen do. Though the idea of giving all students the opportunity to go sounds fair, priority should 100 percent be given to those who have given so much to the University over the past few years. The freshmen and sophomores will have their fun once they get through their gen eds and 101 classes.”

“This is one of the seniors’ last events as a student at UMW, while underclassmen have multiple more changes to attend.”

-Shannon Haley

Thursday, March 29, 2018

Allison Tovey / Blue & Gray Press

Many marchers brought their children, a reminder of future voters.

Allison Tovey / Blue & Gray Press

Students show off their homemade signs.

Student Government Beat Monday, March 26 - Friday, March 30 Executive Cabinet Mondays at 5 p.m. in the UC Capitol Room SGA is continuing to co-sponsor a series of discussions with the Office of the President called “UMW: Can We Talk?”. These sessions are attended by several administrators and student leaders to hear what students have to say and answer any questions.

We invite you to attend one of the two remaining sessions: • Campus Safety: Friday, April 6 at 1:00p in the HCC Digital Auditorium • Tuition and Fees: Wednesday, April 11 at 7:00p in the UC Magnolia Room SGA will soon be beginning a transition period to train the newly elected members and conduct the changeover to the 2018-19 SGA. During this time, please direct all inquires or concerns to president@umwsga.org or info@umwsga.org, and we will point you in the right direction!

For more information, visit umwsga.org or contact info@umwsga.org

Student Senate Wednesdays at 5 p.m. in Monroe 116 03.28.01 – Motion for the Academic Affairs Committee to work with Academic Services to develop a priority registration policy for upper-class, student athletes for the semesters in which their seasons run.

For more information, visit umwsenate.org or contact vp@umwsga.org.

DETAILS PROVIDED BY MATTHEW GOOD

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SPORTS

Editor: Ryan Brauch | blueandgray.sports@gmail.com

‘Golf cart guy’ brings home gold for UMW

GINNY BIXBY Viewpoints Editor

On Saturday, Mar. 24, several UMW golf cart drivers participated in the Twenty-Third Annual University of George’s Mom Golf Cart Racing World Cup. The event also included athletes from Christopher Newport University and Our Lady of Perpetual Motion College.

UMW junior Ryan Brauch, an experienced golf carter, won the cup.

“It is such an honor to have won the cup,” said Brauch. “Golf carting is my one true passion. I didn’t come to UMW for academics, I came here for the golf carting program. It is really too bad that the school doesn’t offer scholarships for the sport.”

The events consisted of circular races around Ball Circle, cross country races from Eagle Landing to the Bell Tower, and a popular event known as “Student Bowling”, where athletes race down Campus Walk trying to knock down as many students as possible.

Athletes receive bonus points in this particular event if a student they knock over drops their Qdoba bowl.

Golf cart driving has become a long standing tradition on the UMW campus due to its illustrious history of being a favorite sport of Mary Washington herself. In

many of her letters to her son, former president George Washington, Mary Washington lamented how she missed her daily golf cart rides around their property that George joined her on as a child, and she credited George’s success as a leader to his experience as a golf cart driver.

“I feel a true kinship with George Washington himself since we both have a history of golf carting,” said Brauch. “I’ve heard speculation that Donald Trump may be a golf carter as well, since he spends so much time at his golf courses. Maybe it’s a presidential skill, which would be helpful in my goal to one day become president.”

The sport of golf carting has proved controversial on the UMW campus. While the purpose of the campus golf carts is primarily to transport students from place to place on campus, drivers have often taken this time to practice their golf carting skills, racing across campus and nearly running over students. Many students have voiced their complaints to administration about the issue.

“The cup is a disgrace to UMW values,” senior Es

Hethcox said. “I can’t peacefully drink my iced mocha from Blackstone while walking down Campus Walk without fear of being flattened by one of those glorified chauffeur trash.”

“Last Halloween when he was wearing his Winnie The Pooh costume, I saw Dean Rucker almost get pummeled by a cart. This would have been such a tragedy for the UMW community,” said Hethcox.

A student who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation said that she feels that even when performing their actual duties, the golf carters only give rides to female students that are conventionally attractive.

“They’re only interested in picking up hot girls,” said the student. “When they’re not goofing off and practicing for their races, they are flirting. They need to do their jobs.”

Brauch vehemently denied these claims, and added, “cart is life.”

This story is a part of our April Fool’s edition and is intended to be satirical in nature. All information or quotations are made up and not to be taken seriously.

UMW among top finishers at the Trojan Challenge

ZACH WOHLEKING Senior Writer

The University of Mary Washington track and field took on the Trojan Challenge last weekend starting on Mar. 23, with a sizable field of 13 schools competing in Mt. Olive, North Carolina. After competing well in each event with many good placings and standouts for both the men and women’s teams, UMW men’s finished 3rd in the meet and the UMW women’s team placed fourth.

Standouts from the meet include top performers such as Jose Mundo, who recorded a 10.88 time in the 100m dash, Daniel Forjan who put up a 15.75m mark in Shot Put, and Erin Andrewlevich who recorded a time of 58.73 in the 400m dash.

These are just a few of the many standouts that were on display last weekend as UMW secured top half seeding in both men’s and women’s track and field falling behind just a small handful of schools. This was a primary display of

just how competitive UMW track and break through the wall. field can be when they’re on, even at an Daniel Forjan, a senior discus and shot event such as this with many schools in put thrower for the team, when asked attendance. how he felt about the meet, he said, “I Events like these are definitely their threw really well this weekend, it was a own experience, great meet. the crowds and the After this atmosphere can defiweekend I nitely have an impact am currenton the athletes and ly ranked effect concentration 6th in the nation in the as well as mental shotput, and balance. It’s interhoping to esting to try and put continue the yourself in the shoes success and of one of these athcapture my letes, all the eyes, the 3rd conferpractice the prepaence chamration. One always UMW Athletics and 5th all tries to be a master Forjan competing in shotput pionship conference award this of their event, shaving off seconds, or year in outdoor track and field. We had throwing a bit farther takes hours and hours of work and preparation in order to a good meet overall, with Sam Gorton

breaking the school record in the women’s hammer at 46.33m and Jose Mundo running a top 15 in the nation time at 10.88sec in the 100m dash.”

I also spoke with David Danek and got his take on the what it means to be prepared as a UMW athlete. He said that, “to be prepared you have to be able to switch up your normal routine on the fly and handle adversity. To do this at the collegiate level you have to plan ahead for any obstacle you might face and turning it into an advantage. Whether it’s changing your mark you practice every day or eating the right meal before a meet.”

This is just one of many successful meets UMW track and field, they seem to only be getting better and better as the years go on. It will be exciting to see how far they can go in the near future.

Stay in your lane: the inside scoop with Davon Guerrier

GEMMA SPICKA-PROFFIT Staff Writer

Despite this semester being his first at UMW, junior Davon Guerrier has already been able to contribute greatly to the team. He was named CAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week last week after an outstanding performance at the UMW Opener. He won the 110 meter hurdles and the 400 meter hurdles, and he stated that his time for the 200 was one of the best that he had run in a couple years.

Additionally, when Guerrier first arrived at UMW for the spring semester, he was able to break a school record for indoor track in the 60 meter hurdles in his first race as an Eagle.

Previously, Guerrier ran indoor and outdoor track at VMI. He was worried about being able to get adjusted to UMW, but he has come to feel much more comfortable. His teammates have been very helpful in welcoming him to the team and ease any of his concerns.

He stated that the training at UMW is probably the best training he has ever had.

Guerrier began running in 2006 when

Thursday, March 29, 2018

his mom put him and his twin brother on the summer team, the Richmond Lightning. What originally started as a way to help keep him out of trouble, has since turned into a long term dedication to the sport. One of his favorite athletes is Ed Moses, an American Olympic gold medalist. Moses was able to analyze the 400 meter hurdle from a physics perspective, and he determined that the perfect number of steps to take between each hurdle is 13.

Guerrier, inspired by this approach, is working on establishing the pattern in his own race. So far, he has been able to take 13 steps between the first few hurdles, but then reverts to his usual 15 when it gets too tiring.

“I like having a goal to work toward,” said Guerrier, “Even a PR of 0.01 is still an accomplishment. It means all the work that I have been putting in is actually paying off”. Some of his goals this season include breaking the school record for the 110 meter hurdles and becoming conference champion in two

events so he can help his team place. He believes that “as long as everybody stays healthy and keeps training consistently, we will be in shape to get at least second place in the conference”.

When it comes to competition preparation, Guerrier shared that he thinks “breakfast is the most important meal because you shouldn’t eat too much or too little the day of the meet”. His go to breakfast before meets is oatmeal, bananas, and a bagel with peanut butter.

Guerrier was not hesitant to share his strong preference of pancakes over waffles, describing waffles as “so crispy that they are more like a thin cookie than cake”. He prefers pancakes because they “are easier to eat and cut, especially when you add fruit”.

Guerrier’s favorite season is summer because he hates the cold. “It makes it hard to train, and it’s bad for your muscles,” said Guerrier. One reason he is particularly looking forward to summer is that he will have more time to spend with his pitbull puppy, Khalifa. He loves

to spoil Khalifa by driving him to the pet store and letting him pick out his own treats and toys. He also shares some of his food with Khalifa, especially peanut butter and banana sandwiches. Guerrier admitted that he underestimated the amount of work that would go into raising a puppy, but he believes the responsibility has helped him grow.

Guerrier in hurdles race

UMW Athletics

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