The Breeze 9.29.22

101 NO.7 BREEZEJMU.ORG

Sold out Family Weekend game adds to ticket sale upswing

By MADISON HRICIK The Breeze

It took all of about 10 minutes for students to get tickets for JMU football against Texas State. After that, JMU Athletics announced the game was sold out.

The quick sellout can be attributed to Family Weekend, one of the Dukes’ most popular games each season. This season, the ticketing department was coordinating with Athletics to announce a sellout even before student tickets were available.

“We made sure all of our ducks were in a row for Family Weekend,” JMU Director of Ticketing Services Brad Burgess said. “Then we got with Kevin [Warner]’s team as well, and our graphic designs to get things in place … so that we can communicate that as quickly as possible.”

JMU fans had discussed online the likely early sellout for Family Weekend as early as the Sun Belt Conference football schedule announcement back in March. But Family Weekend has a lot more on tap than just the football game, and the ticketing services office continues to navigate the football season as the Dukes prepare for another packed home game.

Opinion | Students can impact U.S. democracy, but they must participate in local elections

By EMMA SELI The Breeze

In a representative democracy, voting is a civil duty citizens hold to elect their representatives in the government — this includes the U.S. president and members of Congress. The upcoming state and local elections are classified as midterm elections and take place halfway through the current presidency.

State and local elections, while sometimes overlooked, are important; these elections are for governors, delegates and other local officials. Last year, Virginia held a gubernatorial election on Nov. 2, in which Glenn Youngkin (R) beat Terry McAuliffe (D), who held the office from 2014 to 2018.

On Nov. 8, there’ll be 11 congressional races held in Virginia for the U.S. House of Representatives, along with numerous local elections throughout the state. Voting in these elections is vital, and it’s a freedom many around the world don’t have.

Student voting, specifically, is important and gives students the opportunity to engage in elections and participate in our democracy as a whole. Congressional election results determine which political party — Republican or Democrat — dominates the House and the Senate. In such a politically polarized society, voting is crucial.

“We’ve got to be ready to go in front of a sold out crowd for Family Weekend,” JMU football head coach Curt Cignetti said. “We need to play with a lot of energy and to our standard.”

Ticket availability for Family Weekend

Since Family Weekend is already a high-demand event, JMU Athletics usually plans ahead for its football tickets. The biggest planning element, Burgess said, is deciding how many general admission tickets and student tickets to make available.

JMU allows families to tack on their student’s free ticket once tickets go on sale to ensure the entire family can stay together. So, in a sense, while the standard two-week student ticket notice occurred last Monday, as long as people were buying the standard $30 general admission ticket they could purchase a student ticket as well.

“That gives them the opportunity to sit with their students [and] get their tickets all together,” Burgess said, “and they know that when I come for Family Weekend, we are all going to be together as a family.”

JMU community impacted by student debt relief

By SARAH ECCLESTON The Breeze

Sixty-seven percent of students consider the cost of tuition at the university they choose to study at before enrolling, according to the U.S. Department of Education. At the end of August, President Joe Biden introduced a plan that’ll forgive up to $20,000 of student loans per person.

According to the White House, there are three parts to Biden’s plan — providing aid to ease the financial damage of the pandemic, holding universities accountable for raising prices and making the loan system easier to manage for current and future student loan holders.

JMU Ticketing and Athletics have prepared for Family and Homecoming Weekend games to be sold out for JMU football. Photo illustration by Abi Middleton / The Breeze

Less than half of all college students voted in the 2016 election, according to Tuft University. Breeze file photo

CORRECTIONS: An article about the Gemeinschaft Home (“Halfway house assists former inmates in re-entry process,” Sept. 22) incorrectly stated Travis Trout's siblings didn't help his grandmother with finance. Trout doesn’t have siblings and was referring to his aunts, his grandmother's children. An article about hazing and bid day (“This week on Breeze TV: Part II of the hazing investigations series,” Sept. 22) included a photo that was misleading in implicating a specific organization in hazing. That was not The Breeze’s intent. The photo has been updated in the online version of

story.

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No debt, no stress

Biden’s student loan relief plan evokes excitement, skepticism from JMU community

from DEBT RELIEF, page 1

With this plan, people who make $125,000 after graduating will be eligible for up to $10,000 of loan forgiveness and Pell Grant recipients will be eligible for up to $20,000. The plan falls under the Heroes Act, which responds to the impact of COVID19 on individuals, businesses, state and local government, the economy and public health.

According to an Aug. 24 article from PBS NewsHour, approximately 43 million Americans have federal student debt. One-third of those individuals owe less than $10,000, and half owe less than $20,000. Nearly one-third of all U.S. students take out loans to pay for college tuition, with an average balance of $37,667, according to the article, with the total amount of federal student debt adding up to more than $1.6 trillion.

According to a Sept. 26 NBC News article, Biden’s plan to forgive $10,000 in federal student debt for most borrowers will cost the government an estimated $400 billion — a number released by the Congressional Budget Office on Monday. According to a Sept. 27 Politico news article, the Pacific Legal Foundation filed a lawsuit on behalf of plaintiff, Frank Garrison — an attorney who works at the foundation — who says although he would receive $20,000 in loan forgiveness under Biden’s plan, he’d be “worse off” by Biden’s debt relief because it’ll increase his state income taxes in Indiana.

According to Federal Student Aid, starting March 13, 2020, student loan repayment was suspended due to the pandemic, and was set to resume many times, but has been extended. On Dec. 31, 2022 student loan repayment will restart.

JMU alum Michael Apsley (’20) said he’s lucky that he hasn’t needed to pay back any of his loans yet.

Although Apsley has saved up enough money to repay his loans once payment resumes, he said he worries that other borrowers may not be able to.

Apsley said he believes $10,000 isn’t enough for lower-income students. He said many of these students may take out private loans because federal loans have higher interest than private

loans. However, Biden’s loan forgiveness plan only applies to federally-funded loans.

“Putting these kind of, debt relief, kind of band aids on the situation or even just trying to force tuition to stabilize isn’t really going to help if we have such a deep disparity between upperand lower-income people when it comes to college,” Apsley said.

Apsley said he believes the only path to take is free higher education. He said this would give everyone equal access to compete with other students across the country without financial limitations. Apsley said he believes Biden’s loan forgiveness plan would just be a “drop in the bucket” of debt for many borrowers.

Even so, for Apsley and others with student debt, student loan forgiveness could mean a down payment on a house, a car or just extra money in case of an emergency.

“Ten thousand dollars is a really big help to have back,” Apsley said.

Brad Barnett, a personal finance professor at JMU, as well as the associate vice president of access and enrollment management and JMU’s financial aid director, said students shouldn’t take out more loans hoping they’ll eventually be forgiven.

“This has never happened before and it should never happen again,” Barnett said.

Barnett said this wasn’t a change in policy, so it’s not expected to repeat itself. Barnett said JMU’s financial aid department never advises students to take out loans based on potential forgiveness.

Karina Hange (’19) said that leaving JMU, she wanted to pay off her loans as early as possible. However, she said she paid most of her debt back before the pandemic and is disappointed that she can’t get that money back with Biden’s plan.

Hange said she had less than $10,000 of debt, but since Biden’s plan isn’t retroactive, she won’t be refunded. Her remaining balance of debt is $700.

Junior Evan Graby, sophomore Cat Kruse and recent graduate Zach Thomas (’22) said they worry the cost of tuition isn’t just

based on what’s learned in the classroom, so tuition prices rise because universities want to compete with each other.

Graby said colleges should focus less on amenities and more on classroom learning so tution can be more affordable.

“We’re living an amazing life at JMU ’cause we have a thousand different places to eat,” Graby said. “All the buildings and everything are super, super nice — compare that to a normal high school.”

Kruse shared a similar sentiment about what students’ money goes into.

“It’s kind of, like, for profit rather than the actual education,” Kruse said.

Thomas said he saw tuition go up every year that he was at JMU but didn’t see education quality improve.

“Maybe the football program does [improve] … but it’s not really worth it,” Thomas said.

According to JMU’s University Business Office website, $2,331 of a student’s tuition and comprehensive fees goes toward intercollegiate athletic programs for men and women. The comprehensive fees for a full academic year are $5,408.

However, Thomas said he’s “very excited” about Biden’s loan forgiveness plan because he’s a Pell Grant recipient and once the plan goes into effect, $20,000 of his debt will be forgiven and he’ll only have $3,000 left in loans to pay on his own.

Biden’s plan also aims to make the loan system more manageable and hold universities accountable for raising tuition prices. Individuals with student debt will be eligible to apply for loan forgiveness Dec. 31 when the COVID-19 Emergency Relief and Federal Student Aid expires.

Barnett recommended that JMU students monitor the JMU financial aid website and its emails for any information about when to start filling out applications for loan forgiveness.

CONTACT Sarah Eccleston at ecclessk@dukes.jmu. edu. For more coverage of JMU and Harrisonburg news, follow the news desk on Twitter @BreezeNewsJMU.

Graphic by Anna Leone / The Breeze

Go green

Environmental Management Club organizes climate strike, pushes for new initiatives

By ELLE HART contributing writer

The Environmental Management Club (EMC), one of the many environmental clubs on campus, is switching its messaging this year.

Rather than “shouting demands” like in years past, as junior Elena Finelli, president of EMC, said, this year’s EMC is about “offering our support as students and citizens,” as well as supporting local organizations, such as Climate Action Alliance of the Valley (CAAV), which focuses on climate advocacy; 50 by 25, which focuses on clean energy; and Vine & Fig, which focuses on sustainability

“[Local organizations] are more established,” Finelli said. “Having two-way support between the orgs helping us, but us helping the orgs is something that’s really important to us.”

On Friday, Finelli led about two dozen people in a climate strike from Wilson Hall on JMU’s Quad to Court Square in downtown Harrisonburg. Finelli said the main goal of the strike was to bring a community of students together to advocate for a more enviornmentally-friendly community.

The marchers carried signs with slogans advocating for climate-minded policies, with one saying, “Denial is not a policy.” Councilmember Laura Dent, who carried a sign saying “I’m with her” beside an image of the Earth, marched alongside them.

At the Sept. 13 Harrisonburg City Council meeting, Dent proposed a municipal solar ordinance that would require Harrisonburg’s Public Works building to be renovated with solar panels, which was passed by the council. In a recent interview with The Breeze, Dent said the recently passed solar ordinance will be drafted and revisited in October.

At the climate strike, Dent spoke to the crowd outside Court Square and emphasized the importance of voting for environmental policies. The climate strike, held Sept. 23, fell on the first date of early voting in Virginia’s midterm elections.

“Vote for the climate advocates who will do what we need for your future,” Dent said.

During the strike, while some climate advocates were voting, Dent said there needs to be more climate initiatives and climate advocates in the Harrisonburg City Council, such as the solar ordinance.

Finelli said the climate strike was designed to focus on climate action — not just at JMU, but in Harrisonburg as well.

“They do go hand in hand,” Finelli said. “Climate action in Harrisonburg is as important as climate action at JMU.”

One of the initiatives that EMC began to work toward last year was a task force with JMU administration to help push for a carbon net-zero plan. After some back-and-forth last spring, JMU administration decided not to go forth with the task force, Finelli said.

“[The administration] thought we could have had different approaches because they did feel that we were on the offensive, when that’s not the message we were trying to get across,” Finelli said.

After a few meetings, Finelli said, JMU administration decided they didn’t like EMC’s approach in regard to the task force.

“It was kind of upsetting because we did put a lot of time going into it,” Finelli said. “Overall, we realized we just needed to re-strategize and restructure our approach.”

The Breeze contacted Mary-Hope Vass, executive director of communications for JMU and university spokesperson, for a statement regarding why administration decided to not move forward with the task force, but didn’t receive a response by this article’s print deadline.

This year, Finelli said talks about the task force are still happening, and at the climate strike, Finelli carried a sign with a QR code for a survey asking about people’s opinions on climate change, as well as their satisfaction with JMU’s current sustainability actions. Lizzie Emch (’22), last year’s EMC president and organizer of the 2021 climate strike, said the testimonies will be presented to the administration when

EMC meets with them next.

“We want to continue our passion and the momentum of bringing some environmental change to JMU,” Emch said.

Emch was president of EMC when the task force effort began. It was initially composed of students who met with JMU faculty and administration. They researched topics like environmental policy, finance and climate methods. Emch said they had a few meetings, but those meetings fizzled out at the end of the year. Finelli said that she talked with administration about how EMC can support JMU and spread the word about how JMU is currently doing with sustainability.

In regard to the climate strike, Emch said it’s important to “get the ball rolling again.”

According to JMU’s Recycling and Waste Management website, JMU uses the 6 R’s: rethink, reduce, reuse, repair and restore, redistribute and recycle. JMU’s recycling policy includes indoor and outdoor cans that are solely used for aluminum cans — rather than for plastics, cans and glass as used in previous years due to Harrisonburg no longer accepting plastics and glass recycled together. Compost containers are also available at many of the dining options on campus, according to the website.

While it may seem like there’s not much the average JMU student can do, Finelli said she has a few suggestions. While individual efforts are important, she said, working within an organization is, too.

Finelli said she believes the climate strike was a successful event for EMC and the community.

“I would rather have just a couple people there who cared [about the environment] rather than a ton of people who didn’t understand or didn’t care,” Finelli said.

CONTACT Elle Hart at hart2ej@dukes.jmu.edu. For more coverage of JMU and Harrisonburg news, follow the news desk on Twitter @BreezeNewsJMU.

The Environmental Management club organized the Harrisonburg Climate Strike on Sept. 23. Photo by Valerie Chenault / The Breeze

Advocacy in action

Photos by Valerie Chenault / The Breeze

Community members march in Harrisonburg Climate Strike

Key takeaways from city council

viewed housing needs through the lens of social determinants of health to quantify existing housing supply, assess demand for different housing types, identify barriers to meeting demands and list potential policy tools to address housing gaps, according to the Harrisonburg city website.

The goals of the four policies are to create and preserve housing in Harrisonburg — specifically housing that’s affordable to residents at the “lower end of the spectrum,” she said — develop a process that’ll establish a method of how Harrisonburg conducts housing business and build more housing capacity with local partners.

and the regulatory and zoning framework. The final report will be presented to the council once finished and will describe different scenarios that might be feasible for developing housing at those locations, which will help draft a request for proposal — a document that announces a project, describes it and seeks bids from qualified contractors to complete it — for those sites.

According to the memorandum, council will need to make policies regarding the sale or rental type, unit types, target populations and affordability and income levels for city-owned property to become housing.

Webb said the housing department and the council would be able to create the terms of the tax abatement by location and determine whether a certain number of units must be kept affordable to qualify.

To use this option, council would need to decide the duration and depth of the tax abatement, locations, unit types and income and affordability, according to the memorandum.

Fee waivers

By KASEY TRAPUZZANO The Breeze

Council hears update on housing initiatives and policy direction

Liz Webb, Harrisonburg’s housing coordinator, presented city council with four potential housing initiatives and policies on Tuesday to help the council determine policy direction: the use of city-owned property, American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for affordable housing, residential tax abatement and fee waivers.

Webb said three of the four initiatives are priorities council identified last year among the 2021 Comprehensive Housing Assessment and Market Study Project recommendation. During the study, the city

“Pursuit of any of these policy initiatives will contribute to a ‘housing ecosystem’ that demonstrates to developers that the city of Harrisonburg is coming to the table with the tools and the mindset of supporting affordable housing growth,” according to the housing memorandum given to the council.

Use of city-owned property

Webb said one of the most impactful initiatives is the use of city-owned property. At the beginning of 2022, Harrisonburg applied for and received a $50,000 community impact grant from Virginia Housing to study two sites: Central Avenue and Neff Avenue. The reason for this grant, Webb said, is to potentially develop affordable housing, determine suitability and costs of the two sites and determine the financial feasibility.

Webb said the grant goes toward a consultant team that will study both sites. The team came to Harrisonburg last month, Webb said, and started looking into site constraints

ARPA Funds for affordable housing development

Webb said another high-impact housing initiative could be to use ARPA funds, allocated by Congress during the pandemic, for a housing development program. According to the city’s website, Harrisonburg has $23.8 million in ARPA funds.

“In a sense, it would be sort of a limited run of a housing trust fund,” Webb said, “not a trust in perpetuity, but a way to do a one round of funding.”

Councilmember Laura Dent said she liked the idea of ARPA funds as a limited-term pilot housing fund.

Webb said allocating ARPA funds to create a competitive application for housing funds has been successfully implemented in different cities. Types of lending or granting like this can maximize the use of ARPA, she said, an already limited funding resource.

“One of the great things about doing some kind of application,” Webb said, “is that it gives policymakers the opportunity to say what you want to see.”

Webb said if there are objectives the city wants to accomplish that lineup with the housing study, policymakers will be able to “spell them out” in the application for housing funds.

“To have some combination of dedicated project funds and open-for-application kinds of funds is a model I would like to see,” Dent said.

According to the memorandum, the council will need to decide whether the housing department can move forward with this initiative, as well as the amount of ARPA funds allocated and a further discussion on goals and targets.

Residential tax abatement

Virginia code allows the city to provide a partial real estate tax exemption on a structure that’s at least 15 years old and has undergone substantial rehabilitation, renovation or replacement for residential use, according to the memorandum.

Webb said this option’s impact would be “less immediate and direct” than using cityowned property or ARPA funds.

Webb said other cities have implemented residential tax abatement in various ways, and it’s a tool Harrisonburg could use in many different ways.

“I want to be clear,” Webb said. “Different cities have done this in different ways … If your goal is to have individual home owners to rehab, you’re going to set up a program one way. If your goal is preserving affordable units, you’re going to set it up a different way.”

For example, according to the memorandum, Staunton, Virginia, uses the main residential tax abatement to incentivize owners to renovate existing older properties, so its program requires the renovation to generate a value increase. Richmond’s program, on the other hand, focuses on affordability and sets specific requirements to do that.

Virginia code allows the city to waive building permit fees and other local fees associated with the construction, renovation or rehabilitation of housing by a nonprofit with the purpose of assisting with providing affordable housing, or by a private-sector entity that’s pursuing an affordable housing development, according to the memorandum

Webb said the city would get to set the conditions and define affordable housing for the fee waivers. A challenge with these initiatives, Webb said, is that fee waivers must be big enough to offset costs.

“Are you really buying affordability if you waive a $400 fee?” Webb said. “It’s not going to really bring down the rental cost. For it to be substantial enough to have an impact, it has to be a pretty big fee.”

Webb said the biggest fees are associated with public utilities, including water fees and sewer fees, which Webb said pay for the direct cost of installing utility hookups and pipes.

“If it’s something [the council] wants to pursue, we will do it,” Webb said, “but there are financial impact analyses on that.”

Council will have to decide which fees, units and developers are eligible for the waivers, according to the memorandum.

After the presentation, Mayor Deanna Reed said several projects the council has approved in the past haven’t been done.

“It’s disappointing when we think that we have a slew of housing coming our way,” Reed said, “and then for some reason — whatever it may be — the developer decides, ‘Oh, well we can’t do it,’ so then we’re kind of back to square one … At least five of our projects I’ve been a part of, I haven’t seen them yet.”

Councilmember Chris Jones said some of the projects haven’t happened due to the rise of cost in the economy and the Great Resignation affecting those who move into potential housing in Harrisonburg.

“That’s a double whammy that hit us,” Jones said.

Council approves special events application

Council approved multiple special events on Tuesday, including Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance’s (HDR) Skeleton Festival, a pre-Halloween festival that includes trick-ortreating at downtown businesses, costume contests and other activities. The festival will be on Oct. 15 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The Harrisonburg Half Marathon — the city’s first half marathon planned in partnership with the Parks & Recreation, Tourism and Economic Development departments, which the city hopes will attract locals and visitors — was also approved by the council. The marathon is on Oct. 15.

The week after, Harrisonburg will host the Race to Beat Breast Cancer 5k Run/ Walk, an annual event in Westover Park that fundraises for the RMH Foundation, on Oct. 29.

CONTACT Kasey Trapuzzano at breezenews@ gmail.com. For more coverage of JMU and Harrisonburg news, follow the news desk on Twitter @BreezeNewsJMU.

Graphic by Anna Leone / The Breeze

This week's key takeaways from SGA Senate

By ELEANOR SHAW contributing writer

The Student Government Association (SGA) Senate nominated Marcus Rand to the position of Sergeant-at-Arms and heard a presentation from the Xi Delta chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha at Tuesday’s meeting.

Marcus Rand appointed as Sergeant-at-Arms

The Senate unanimously approved the nomination of junior Marcus Rand to the position of Sergeant-at-Arms.

“I’ve been very impressed with his work this year,” senior Grace Smith, legislative affairs chair, said.

This position involves assisting the Speaker of the SGA Senate and the Parliamentarian in upholding the rules during Senate meetings. Furthermore, the Sergeant-at-Arms works to uphold and maintain governing documents, as well as serve as a substitute in the absence of either the Speaker or the Parliamentarian.

“Marcus was one of the members that came to me eager to have the position,” junior Tara Snowden, SGA parliamentarian, said. “He reassured me that he was willing to take on the time commitment of parliamentarian … I’m more than confident that Marcus will do that.”

Outside of the meeting, Rand expressed his gratitude for his appointment to the position.

“I’m excited to be someone to defend free speech and make sure that debate remains civic, even when it gets maybe a little heated on some of the more controversial topics we talk about here in SGA,” Rand said.

Graphic by Anna Leone / The Breeze

Alpha Phi Alpha presents to SGA

JMU's Xi Delta chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha presented the fraternity’s members, missions and events to the Senate.

The reason for this presentation was to educate SGA on the chapter. SGA encourages Inter-Cultural Greek Council (ICGC) chapters to visit SGA meetings to raise awareness for themselves and educate the Senate on what they offer the JMU community.

Alpha Phi Alpha was represented by senior Jacob Paul, the chapter president; junior Corey Peter, vice president; senior Jakeh Traylor, secretary; junior Judah Acueampong, historian; and senior David Figueroa, treasurer.

“It’s good to come out and do presentations like this in front of the SGA to get our name out there and to let people see all the things we do,” Figueroa said outside of the meeting. “Not that many people know about Alpha Phi Alpha and all of the stuff

we do for our community.”

Alpha Phi Alpha was founded in 1906 at Cornell University, making it the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity, according to the presentation. The seven Cornell University students who founded the fraternity have been given the nickname “the seven jewels.” The Xi Delta chapter was founded in 1979, with its charter seating both at JMU and Washington and Lee University.

During the presentation, Paul outlined several of the Alpha Phi Alpha programs. “A Voteless People is a Hopeless People” is an initiative promoting voter education and registration, Paul said. “Go-to-HighSchool, Go-to-College,” he said, concentrates on supporting the completion of secondary and university education. “Project Alpha” deals in promoting safe sex, and “My Brother’s Keeper” focuses on supporting the widows of the fraternity’s past brothers, he said.

Further, the Xi Delta brothers elaborated upon the chapter’s signature programs. Paul said “Homeless Night Out” is an event during which the brothers simulate homelessness for a night and donate to local shelters. “Alpha Week,” he said, serves as a celebratory period surrounding the fraternity’s Founder’s Day, which is Dec. 4. “Voter Registration Drive” is a project focusing on registering people to vote and “March of Dimes” is an initiative to provide support to expecting or new mothers, Paul said.

In the past, Paul said the Xi Delta chapter has collaborated with several other student organizations, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and SGA.

CONTACT Eleanor Shaw at shaweo@dukes.jmu.edu.

For more coverage of JMU and Harrisonburg news, follow the news desk on Twitter @BreezeNewsJMU.

OPINION

EDITOR EMAIL

Evan Weaver breezeopinion@gmail.com

Voice your vote

Want to praise someone or get something off your chest? Darts & Pats is the place to do it. Submit your own at breezejmu.org.

A “traitor” dart to the student who took my unoffical assigned seat in class.

From someone who had to take someone else’s unofficial assigned seat.

An “overwhelmed” dart to my workload lately.

From someone who can’t even take one day off.

Student’s right to vote is underutilized in congressional elections

compromising controversy

A “sigh-of-relief” pat to my professor for granting me an extension on my assignment.

From someone who has too much on their plate.

from VOTING, page 1

While it may seem that a single vote can’t possibly contribute to an election, that’s far from the truth, especially in congressional elections. These elections have smaller voter turnouts, meaning votes are more concentrated among certain populations, according to the National Geographic Society. So, while your vote in presidential elections may not directly impact the outcome of the election, it can significantly affect the result of state elections

These elections have an immense impact on both party representation in Congress and future policy decisions. Typically, the president’s party loses seats in the House during midterm elections, according to the American Presidency Project. Biden heads the Democratic party, which also currently dominates the House and Senate, so the dominant party will likely lose seats in Congress. This is partially due to the president’s declining approval ratings — 57% of Americans disapprove of the president, according to Reuters — giving way for citizens to elect more Republicans. If Republicans take the House, it will be more difficult for Biden to pass his proposed legislation.

students — 48% — voted, according to Tuft University. Compared to the 60% voting rate among the national average for all Americans, that’s relatively low.

Students also represent a massive voting bloc.

“Students constitute a large enough voting bloc to shape election outcomes and shape the future and health of a participatory, equitable, and informed

by Evan Weaver / The Breeze

graduate assistant at the Madison Center, said. Clapp said that students are often “targeted by disenfranchisement” and deserve to be properly educated on the electoral process and should have equal opportunities to vote.

The Madison Center reaches out to students via social media and campus presence, informing students about how they can contribute to the discourse surrounding public issues in a meaningful manner, and according to Clapp, it’s been incredibly successful.

Clapp said the trend of decreased voting in congressional elections is concerning.

IVOTED

“Considering local and state elections often have a more direct impact on constituents than federal elections,” Clapp said, “this year, for midterms, our main focus is on providing clear and concise information about the election and candidates to students.”

Clapp observed from the 2016 election to the 2020 election, the JMU student voting rate increased by 20.5 points, with a 74.6% student voting rate in the 2020 election.

The voting rate at other institutions that participate in the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement (NSLVE) was 66%, a significant difference when compared to JMU voting rates in the 2020 election.

A “five-points-fromGryffindor” dart to the attendees of the Queen City Mischief and Magic festival in Staunton for taking all the parking spots.

From someone who had to walk a mile to watch a play at Blackfriars Theatre for class.

With all that’s at stake when midterm election season rolls around, students must participate in voting for Congressional candidates. Elections are consequential to citizens’ everyday lives, including access to health-care, the cost of education, the federal minimum wage and criminal justice system reform, just to name a few.

Tuft University’s Institute for Democracy and Higher Education explains that it’s essential for higher education institutions to promote voting and participation in our democracy among their students. This is necessary because students represent a small portion of voters in the U.S.; in the 2016 election, less than half of all college

democracy,” according to Tuft’s Institute for Democracy and Higher Education.

The Institute also mentions that increased student voting will eliminate existing equity gaps in political participation. As colleges are becoming more racially and ethnically diverse, “eliminating voting gaps among students will tackle representational and political inequality,” according to the Institute.

JMU’s James Madison Center for Civic Engagement seeks to increase voting rates among students and strives to inform students about the importance of voting for the common good and participating in our democracy, Angela Clapp, the

Clapp stressed the importance of voting in every election because voting determines future policy decisions in your state and can impact the president’s legislative agenda for the remainder of his presidency. It’s essential for students to participate in presidential, state and local elections. The outcome of such elections not only affects a variety of aspects of people’s daily lives, but they also close equity gaps in voting and allow students to participate in our democracy

CONTACT Emma Seli at seliek@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more editorials regarding the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the opinion desk on Instagram and Twitter @Breeze_Opinion.

Editorial Policies

The Breeze reserves the right to edit submissions for length, grammar and if material is libelous, factually inaccurate or unclear. The Breeze assumes the rights to any published work. Opinions expressed in this page, with the exception of editorials, are not necessarily those of The Breeze or its staff.

Letters and guest columns should be submitted in print or via e-mail and must include name, phone number, major/year if author is a current student (or year of graduation), professional title (if applicable) and place of residence if author is not a JMU student.

The Breeze welcomes and encourages readers to voice their opinions through letters and guest columns. Letters must be no longer than 250 words. Guest columns must be no more than 650 words.

EMMA SELI

Graphics

Bad Behavior

Student behavior is the reason for the high legal drinking age in the U.S.

ETHAN JARDINES contributing columnist

Back in March of this year, Barstool Sports released their rankings for the Top 50 Party Schools, with JMU ranking 37th. As always, there was much bickering on Twitter, and many JMU students were distraught by the standings. DukesTailgate notably criticized Liberty University’s placement above JMU on this list on Twitter. Of course, no party school ranking system is an exact science.

Nevertheless, behind this ranking is a much darker reality: College campuses around the country are fighting underage drinking — and losing.

JMU is no stranger to the battle against substance abuse. In August alone, there were 34 reported alcohol violations, according to the JMU Police Department’s daily crime log — and most students only started to arrive on Aug. 19. On top of simple alcohol violations, there’s been a fair amount of alcohol-related crime; just this month, on Sept. 9, five cars were damaged in an East Campus parking lot by a suspected drunk driver.

When comparing the U.S. to other countries, it becomes evident the U.S. is the odd man out; most European countries hold their minimum legal drinking age at

18. Given this fact, it’s not surprising that there’s a push among college students to reduce the drinking age. Livia LaMarca, a staff columnist for The Pitt News, advocates for this reduction in drinking age. LaMarca claims it would create a safer environment for drinking in her article “Lowering the drinking age creates safer environments for college.” Unfortunately, these students don’t realize they’re the reason the U.S. drinking age remains at 21.

Following the end of prohibition, with the passing of the 21st Amendment, most states set their minimum drinking age at 21 although some were set lower, as indicated by ProCon.org, a subsidiary of Britannica. This was the case until The 1984 National Minimum Drinking Age Act, which threatened to remove a portion of funding from states that didn’t increase their drinking age to 21. By the end of the 1980s, all states had raised the minimum drinking age to 21. Today, the drinking age seems to be less subject to change than ever before.

Eivind Grip Fjær and Willy Pedersen, two researchers from the University of Oslo, explained the link between value priorities and drunken behavior in their article published in 2015: “Drinking and moral order: Drunken comportment revisited.”

Tune it out

Essentially, Fjær and Pedersen tie together the idea that the context of drinking, and the norms associated with said context, can predict how individuals will behave. For example, if people are drinking at a party for pleasure, it isn’t too surprising that other pleasure-seeking behaviors, like non-consensual intercourse, may arise. By contrast, if people are drinking for social integration, say among friends in a dorm, no problematic behavior is likely to emerge because social integration doesn’t have many morally objectionable routes.

While there’s familial and social drinking present in the U.S., we differ from other western countries because there’s a substantial culture of drinking for the euphoria of intoxication; responsible drinking just doesn’t seem to appeal to undergraduates here in the states. Unsurprisingly, this ill-advised activity typically manifests in reckless behavior among college students that put others in danger.

“I think it’s a little different culturally,“ freshman elementary education major Natalie Strong said in regard to international drinking cultures. “[Europeans] also might put a different view on how they use alcohol, over here it’s just for parties and for fun,

over there it’s just like another drink or something.”

The behavior of students drinking under 21 in the U.S. only further cements the current drinking age being the permanent reality.

We have a culture that supports drinking for pleasure, which creates the opportunity for students to make poorly judged decisions in the pursuit of hedonism — a culture not present in other countries. Until college students at least learn to control the context in which they indulge, the minimum drinking age will remain at 21.

As reported by OnMilwaukee, a few Republican lawmakers pushed to decrease the drinking age to 19 in 2017 but failed to get the support from the Republican Assembly Speaker, Robin Voss, and thus, the bill died. If you want change to come, your legislators need to see a sense of responsibility in your intoxicated activities. Please, drink in the right context — or better yet, don’t drink at all.

CONTACT Ethan Jardines at jardineg@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more editorials regarding the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the opinion desk on Instagram and Twitter @Breeze_Opinion.

AVA MENONI contributing columnist

“Why does Belle sound like a robot?”

My friends and I asked ourselves this after watching the opening number of the 2017 liveaction remake of “The Beauty and the Beast.”

By the time we were 12-13 years old, we could easily pick out the autotune in her voice.

As the movie went on, we were disappointed by how edited Emma Watson’s — the actress who played Belle — voice was. I realized they were changing her voice to sound like the original singer, Paige O’Hara. When we went back to choir class, we asked our teacher why it sounded that way. His response included that Disney was too concerned with correcting and editing Watson’s voice that it forgot she had a wonderful voice — it just wasn’t Paige O’Hara’s.

Autotune was first invented in 1996,

according to Berklee, meaning that Gen Z was the first generation to listen to music that oftentimes incorporates autotune. According to the Billboard Hot 100, some of the most popular songs during our childhoods, including “Tik Tok” by Ke$ha, “Fireflies” by Owl City and “Bad Romance” by Lady Gaga, used autotune.

For young music students, social comparison is a big issue. It’s impossible to not compare yourself to friends and classmates. Now, however, there’s a new issue: Young musicians are comparing themselves to artists’ voices — voices that have gone through hours of editing.

Autotune is a tool used often in modern music and has been used in many popular songs. Peyton King / The Breeze

prevalence of autotune sets

expectations for vocalists.

The U.S. has a high legal drinking age compared to many other countries where it’s 18. Daria Auren / The Breeze

from AUTOTUNE, page 11

Today, streaming music is the norm. Compared to earlier generations, Gen Z has access to so much more music. Spotify, the most popular music streaming platform, claims on its website that it has 433 million users. The normalized consumption of edited music causes people to have a false belief that voices aren’t flawed.

“When people go to concerts and they hear the artist, they often say that they’re not as good as they thought they were on the recording,” vocal education major Sophia Osmani said. “It creates this false narrative that every note that they sing is absolutely perfect and that is not the case.”

Autotuned music creates unattainable expectations for singers, because unlike recordings that they’re used to listening to, live music is flawed. The constant strive to be better than these recordings can have a negative impact on the singer’s mental and vocal health.

Perhaps autotune has such negative impacts because at times, it’s difficult to know when or how it’s being used. Some artists, such as Kanye West and The Black Eyed Peas, have used autotune stylistically. When used in this obvious way, autotune is almost like another instrument, adding a certain electronic sound that our generation’s pop and rap music consumers crave.

Autotune is most harmful when it’s used in unexpected ways. “American Idol” and “The Voice,” both vocal competition shows that market themselves as showcasing

raw talent, have been accused of using autotune on contestants.

Events such as Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and the New Years’ Eve Ball Drop host live performances with famous artists. Although these events are advertised as live, prerecorded autotune songs or onsite vocal editing is sometimes used. It’s impossible to forget Mariah Carey’s lip sync disaster at the New Year’s Eve Ball Drop celebrating the beginning of 2017. In Carey’s situation, the use of autotune backfired in a big way. The use of autotune during these events ruins the integrity of live performances.

Christina Santiago, a vocal education major, expressed how important it is to have education on what autotune is, how it’s used and how often it’s used.

“Learning about the process of live performance and recording can help you understand how to use autotune as a helpful tool,” she said.

Santiago went on to say that autotune is most harmful when a singer is aiming toward perfection because every voice is different and perfection is impossible.

Autotune creates unattainable expectations for young singers and ruins the integrity of live performances. Striving to be “perfect” will continue to be a problem as technology advances and autotune becomes more powerful

CONTACT Ava Menoni at menoniap@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more editorials regarding the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the opinion desk on Instagram and Twitter @Breeze_Opinion.

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This week in JMU history...

On Dec. 2, 1922, The Breeze was born. Since then, it’s been the indispensable source of news for the JMU and Harrisonburg communities for almost 100 years. The Breeze will celebrate its centennial this December, so we’re traveling back in time. Each week, The Breeze takes a look back on historic moments in JMU and Breeze history by publishing the cover from the same publication day, just years in the past.

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Michael Russo & Avery Goodstine thebreezeculture@gmail.com

Hispanic Heritage Month

Latinx Student Alliance & Grupo Candela host events to celebrate Latinx & Hispanic students

By MATEO CSERNECKY contributing writer

Blasting music and lively festivities of the Latinx Student Alliance (LSA) and Grupo Candela filled Warner Commons Friday, Sept. 16, as they celebrated the start of Hispanic Heritage Month (HHM).

The event featured many different opportunities to celebrate, including a map for students to write their names and country of origin, candies, free T-shirts, posters and a performance by Grupo Candela, JMU’s own Latinx dance team. This is one of many events held by the LSA for Hispanic Heritage month at JMU. A spirit week occurred just this past week with events like Wear Hispanic Flag Colors Day, Jersey Day, Hispanic bingo and a day for wearing your LSA merch.

Spanning from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, Hispanic Heritage Month started in the 1960s during the civil rights movement as a way for Hispanic Americans to celebrate and honor their heritage and acknowledge the contributions of Hispanic Americans to American history. It officially became Hispanic Heritage Month in 1988 when President Ronald Reagan signed it into law. Sept. 15 was chosen because it was the day of independence of several Hispanic countries, including Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, with Mexico, Chile and Belize also celebrating their independence during this 31-day period.

For many Hispanic and Latinx students at JMU, Hispanic Heritage Month can be seen as an opportunity to embrace their culture and reflect on who they are and their experiences as a

Latinx or Hispanic student, whether it’s through visiting the Latinx student lounge in the Student Success Center or participating in the celebratory events hosted by the LSA, or even attending the Hispanic Film Festival at the Arts Council of the Valley in Harrisonburg.

Annali Menjivar, a senior Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication and studio art major,and co-president of LSA — said Hispanic Heritage month lets her reflect on her journey as a first-generation college student, getting to pursue the dreams of her parents, an experience she said she feels isn’t recognized as widely.

“That’s the thing people don’t realize at a predominantly white institute: You go to college and everyone thinks it’s whatever, but that’s a thing that a lot of people don’t even get to touch,” Menjivar said. “A lot of people here … come from households where they have to completely maneuver college and everything by themselves, and that can be really hard. So, I think what HHM means to me, it’s me saying, ‘I deserve to be here.’”

Hispanic Heritage Month can serve as a reminder of the accomplishments and sacrifices Latinx and Hispanic parents or other family members have made to get to this point and allows them to reflect on how they’re paving the way for future generations. As Menjivar said, it’s an opportunity for students to “recognize their own impact as a Hispanic or Latinx person” and how they “represent their culture at JMU”.

“Being able to spread my culture across campus is something that’s very important to me,” said Kenneth Guzman, a senior architectural design major, and co-president of the LSA. “Just making it known that we’re here, we’re making our mark, we’re

doing our thing — that’s the biggest goal.”

Hispanic Heritage Month isn’t just a celebration for students. It’s an opportunity to educate others about their culture and to have their experiences represented in a wider light, to show others what being Hispanic or Latinx really means. Menjivar noted educating people from outside their culture is important and offers a chance to look at different perspectives.

“On campus, I’ve definitely noticed in classes, I’m the only Hispanic person there. I’m the only one with this perspective that I have,” Menjivar said. “It is so valuable — the diversity of experiences — not only just ethnicity-wise, but the diversity of perspectives that we all come from, and we get to provide that to these students that might have no idea what it’s like outside of their own bubble.”

Hispanic Heritage Month has also been an opportunity for the LSA to make itself known with the multitude of events they planned, Menjivar said. The goals of these events are to help students who may not feel as confident or connected to Hispanic culture feel more involved and like they belong.

“We didn’t like that people had to go out of their way to go and find LSA, so we wanted to take this opportunity to try and promote it better and get it out there to the students who could really use something like this as an opportunity to better connect with who they are,” Menjivar said. “When you come from a first-generation household, our parents tend to have to change cultures really quickly. They have to assimilate to the United States. They tend to not show us a lot. A lot of people don’t necessarily speak Spanish that well, or even at all, and that’s fine. But you lose that massive part of you.”

The activities at Warner Commens are only one event hosted by the Latinx Student Alliance during Hispanic Heritage Month. Ryan Sauer / The Breeze

Guzman and Menjivar both said there’s a sense of cultural disconnect that comes with being a first-generation student. Guzman specifically said this has been overtly present in many people he’s known and has caused negative effects on their mental health. With this cultural disconnect in mind, it might be hard for them to feel any sense of pride for who they are, Guzman continued, and it might be hard to see any real representation anywhere.

“In high school, I remember being sought out by teachers telling me to join the Hispanic Student Alliance because they saw I was Hispanic and I remember hating that feeling,” Menjivar said. “I was ashamed of my identity and I didn’t want to be a part of a club that embraced what I felt were the boring parts of my identity.”

According to Guzman, this is part of what Hispanic Heritage Month and the LSA attempt to solve. He spoke about the importance of helping Hispanic and Latinx people embrace their indentiy, bringing awarness to the culture and helping students find others to share their experiences with who might also be feeling the same cultural disconnect.

“Growing up in a mixed household, we never really celebrated stuff like this. However as I grew older, I became more in touch with my identity as a Latina and started to appreciate this more and more,” freshman music major Christina Santiago said. “It’s been such an incredible feeling to find that minority community in a PWI.”

Hispanic Heritage Month is a celebration of what it means to be Hispanic or Latinx. It’s a celebration of the sacrifices Hispanic and Latinx students, their ancestors and families had to make. It’s a celebration of mannerisms, music, food, experiences, perspective, history, triumphs and identity.

Menjivar put it best.

“With LSA and with our events for HHM, we want to make people feel as special as we think they are,” Menjivar said. “We want to be loud and big. It’s not just us we’re representing but other kids who don’t have that same confidence in their identity, who don’t think they can make it through the semester because they don’t have the same resources as everyone else.”

No matter how close someone may feel to their heritage, Hispanic Heritage Month is an opportunity to become closer to their community and a way to become more familiar with their own heritage and culture. Like Guzman and Menjivar said, “it is never too late” to fix a cultural disconnect.

Some ways that disconnect can be mended, Menjivar said, can be through Hispanic or Latinx music, finally having their name pronounced right or attending an LSA event.

The LSA and JMU are making sure that through Hispanic Heritage Month, more Hispanic or Latinx students get an opportunity to feel a deeper connection to who they are and what they represent.

“I think it’s so important that we share our culture with others. It’s always rewarding to learn more about other people and their practices,” Santiago said. “It feels really nice to be able to share my heritage with my friends and share things such as music, mannerisms, fashion and food. It’s such a validating experience that everyone, Hispanic or not, should experience.’”

CONTACT Mateo Csernecky at csernems@dukes.jmu. edu. For more on the culture, arts and lifestyle of the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the culture desk on Twitter and Instagram @Breeze_Culture.

A WEALTH OF HEALTHA WEALTH OF HEALTH Student learningresources for success

By HANNAH LIFRIERI The Breeze

When I first came to JMU, I had a hard time navigating resources that could benefit me as a student, whether it was extra support for my math classes, someone to review my paper for writing class or even a guide on planning out my assignments and how to balance it with a busy lifestyle. After attending JMU for a year, it was reassuring to find out JMU has countless resources, but I wish I’d used them sooner. Here’s some that I’ve found:

Walk-in help

Math is notorious for being the subject that sometimes — no matter how hard you try it just doesn’t stick. My peers suggested visiting the Science and Math Learning Center (SMLC) in the Student Success Center (SSC). These tutoring services are accommodating to everyone, as you can either go in person or via Zoom. Walk-ins are welcome, but make sure to check the schedule to see when tutors are available, as hours may vary.

PASS your class

If your class isn’t covered by the SMLC, check out Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS). These sessions are held by a professor joined by a peer leader. Peer leaders can support you with class content, study habits for that specific course, lecture notes and extra practice. These sessions can be held online but are located in different buildings across campus as well.

The University Writing Center (UWC), much like the SMLC, offers online and in-person sessions; however, you do have to make an appointment through the website.

Communication is key

Whether you’re a communications major or not, the Communication Center is open to anyone. While it specifically targets classes such as SCOM 121/122/123 for the School of Communications exam, the Center also opens its services to presentations, job interview preparation, research, speeches and combating public speaking anxiety. These sessions are by appointment only through its website.

College is a challenge, but utilizing JMU’s resources can put you on the path to success. After using these resources myself, I was a more confident student because I knew where to go for help. Once I began using these resources, I could see a direct, positive impact on my grades. Overall, knowing there are a variety of places I can turn to for help makes college less stressful.

Read the full article at breezejmu.org.

Grupo Candela, JMU’s Latinx dance team, attended the event and taught attendees how to salsa. Ryan Sauer / The Breeze

Hispanic Heritage Month was established in the 1960s and takes place from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. Abi Middleton / The Breeze

Hispanic Heritage Month and the Latinx Student Alliance try to help people “embrace their identity,” Kenneth Guzman said. Ryan Sauer / The Breeze

Money Money Management Management

In a turbulent economy, financial literacy takes on new meaning for students

By ALEXANDER WEISMAN contributing writer

Amid the backdrop of COVID-19's lingering specter, supply chain issues and an energy crisis looming in Europe, college students start the 2022-23 school year on an uncertain note.

Alongside all of that comes a statistic that reverberates through news headlines like an earthquake, but alas, it's no natural phenomenon — it’s the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) report.

Used to measure changes in prices paid by consumers for goods and services over time, according to the BLS, economists use the CPI to gauge the U.S. economy’s health. Currently, the CPI shows that overall, costs are currently 8.3% higher than in August 2021 and that inflation is still a persistent force in the economy.

Akhil Kanodia, assistant director of JMU’s Gilliam Center for Entrepreneurship, said that with high inflation, it’s “come to a point where everybody wants to understand how to protect their assets as wealth.”

But how can college students do this? The answer might lie in financial literacy education. Financial literacy is defined by Investopedia as “the ability to understand and effectively use various financial skills, including personal financial management, budgeting, and investing.”

Brad Barnett, JMU’s director of financial aid and scholarships, said financial education is a holistic process.

“Oftentimes when people think of personal finance, they go right into investing,” Barnett said. “[In reality], the majority of good financial management is based on behaviors.”

Growing up in a financially challenged family, Barnett said, he knew he needed to change things to avoid the mistakes of his parents. After beginning his work in higher education 26

years ago at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Barnett said he’s seen many students undergo similar challenges.

“It didn’t take long to figure out that a lot of the students who were coming to our institutions were financially a mess,” Barnett said.

Working to find a solution, Barnett created the course Dollars and Sense (UNST 475) class at JMU to grab students before they graduate and help them avoid many of the common financial mistakes that people make.

With 12 topics ranging from savings and budgeting to shopping and credit, the seniors-only class, with a summer asynchronous section open to all students, offers an opportunity to build practical skills for the real world, Barnett explained.

“One of the things we start off with is figuring out what’s really important to you,” Barnett said. “Once you understand that, how can you create a plan that has your money do that?”

Describing common pitfalls for college students, Barnett said food shopping and peer pressure spending are huge. Excessive convenience spending including a lot of eating out and non-effective grocery shopping are part of this, Barnett explained.

Just like in the real world where there’s pressure to spend, Barnett explained that until people can become comfortable talking about

money and looking for alternatives with their friends, people keep spending money trying to keep up, just digging their hole even deeper.

In a report published by PYMNTS, as of April 2022, “61% of U.S. consumers lived paycheckto-paycheck,” correlating to approximately 157 million adults. This is a 9% increase since April 2021.

In light of this, Barnett’s biggest advice to students is to not be normal.

“As a country, normal equals paycheck to paycheck, normal equals not saving a lot of money, normal equals not being able to handle an emergency when it pops up,” Barnett said.

With a paycheckto-paycheck lifestyle increasing, some say financial literacy education needs to increase.

Sean McCracken, a junior Computer Information Systems (CIS) major, said there’s no definitive answer as to which institutions are responsible for fostering financial literacy, although he added that high schools should bear more of the responsibility.

“Not everyone’s going to college,” McCracken said. “Everyone’s going to have to make financial decisions.”

McCracken said JMU should offer more financial literacy education resources, although students are also very busy with other classes for their major.

Touching on the same topic, Barnett said both parental and personal responsibility greatly impact financial literacy education.

Aside from Dollars and Sense, Barnett acknowledged there’s no formally structured system surrounding financial literacy education at JMU. JMU has a webpage about financial literacy that provides links to different online resources for students to take advantage of.

Paris Economou, a junior accounting major, said if it weren’t for her major, she wouldn’t have learned how to be financially literate.

Economou also mentioned her experience in the general education course BUS 160, which she said incorporated financial literacy topics like doing taxes and budgeting for the future.

“As college students who now have new credit cards, who now are on their own and have to manage their own money going out and buying things that they need, they haven’t been taught how to exactly manage it,” Economou said.

For Barnett, he said one of his favorite things about his class is watching how students progress throughout the semester.

“We’ve been through three classes so far … and already, students are writing in their journals to me about how they have found ways to save money just because they’re paying attention to it.”

Even better for Barnett, he said, is hearing back from former students who tell him how the course helped them start off on the right foot.

“I'm just the messenger,” Barnett said. “I can't make anybody do anything, but they really grasped it and decided they wanted to do something to make their life better.”

CONTACT Alexander Weisman at weismaar@dukes.jmu.edu. For more on the culture, arts and lifestyle of the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the culture desk on Twitter and Instagram @Breeze_Culture.

Brad Barnett, director of financial aid and scholarships, said financial literacy is a holistic process that encompasses reducing excessive spending and being more aware of how you spend and save money, among other techniques. Valerie Chenault / The Breeze

Graphic by Anna Leone /TheBreeze

Local laughs

X2 Comedy, featuring JMU professor, drives up ’ Burg comedy scene

By TAG HILLIARD contributing writer

Kinesiology professor Chris Womack spends his days teaching at JMU and his nights in front of a different audience — as a stand-up comedian.

Womack’s wife, Dawn Davis Womack, started X2 Comedy in March 2018 — a clean comedy pop-up club spreading laughter throughout Harrisonburg and Rockingham. After a few years cut short due to COVID-19, X2 Comedy will be back in full swing this year.

Dawn, a podcaster, actress and producer, began her stand-up career in 2016. After finding work “everywhere but here” and noticing a lack of comedy acts in Harrisonburg, Dawn decided to create X2 Comedy and grow the local scene herself. X2 Comedy partners with businesses and organizations for events and features standup, comedic skits, monologues and pageants.

After a few years of success and surviving the pandemic, X2 Comedy introduced a new standup comedian last May: Chris Womack made the jump to get on stage and tell some jokes after a lifelong love of comedy.

“[I’ve been into comedy] since I was a kid,” Chris said. “I had almost as many comedy albums as a kid as I had rock ‘n’ roll albums.”

Chris came to Harrisonburg in 2006 after taking a faculty position in the kinesiology department. He credits some of his on-stage success to his long-time career of lecturing, and he said stand-up comedy has allowed him to feel more relaxed in the classroom and be more flexible with his students.

“You’re in front of a crowd of non-receptive people sometimes,” Chris said. “I’ve only used humor in the classroom to loosen things up and stuff, so that helps immensely … You just vibe with a crowd [on stage, and] I started just bringing the same approach to the classroom.”

Chris said he’s had a number of his own students come out to see his and the other comics’ performances, though he and Dawn hope to see a broader student audience.

“The word needs to get out so when we do run into the JMU community, they’re like, ‘Oh wait … there’s a professor that does comedy?’” Dawn said. “Once the word gets to JMU, they’ll probably take over Court Square Theater where

we do a lot of our shows [and see] the funny JMU professor.”

The Womacks said they enjoy laughing and learning from popular comedians like Richard Pryor, John Mulaney and Lachlan Patterson.

Patterson headlined an X2 Comedy performance live at Harrisonburg’s own Melrose Caverns. While Chris hosted the show, Dawn opened for Patterson. At the same event, there was live music, activities provided by local axe throwing business Beards & Broads and a full food and beverage garden — “a comedy-musicaxe throwing festival,” Dawn said. The Womacks have already planned next year’s “Cave Fest” for July 15-16, 2023.

Other exciting upcoming performances include a comedy pageant with stand-up acts, improv troupes and comedic monologues live on Oct. 8 at Court Square Theater. New & Improv.’d, JMU’s student improv troupe, is expected to perform.

Lucien Anderson, a senior geology major and member of the group, said the group is excited and grateful for the chance to work with X2 Comedy.

Dawn often provides New & Improv.’d with a variety of opportunities.

“Sometimes she’ll wrap us in and have us be a part of the events — whether we’re an opener or something along those lines — just to kind of get the crowd going and add a little bit of goofiness and humor into any event they put on,” Anderson said. “It’s really cool to have a JMU professor do stand-up … We are always really appreciative to be able to work with them.”

The Womacks’ presence in the JMU comedy community has brought a fun- and laughterfilled environment to Harrisonburg. They said they’ll be hosting comedy classes at Hotel Madison later this fall, always seeking out talent in the area.

“We don’t put anybody up there that’s not funny,” Dawn said, “including ourselves.”

CONTACT Tag Hilliard at hilliatm@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more on the culture, arts and lifestyle of the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the culture desk on Twitter and Instagram @Breeze_Culture

Chris Womack, JMU kinesiology professor, takes the stage to perform stand-up comedy in the community alongside his wife and fellow comedian, Dawn Davis Womack. Courtesy of Chris Womack

Kicker's next quest

As NFL misses field goals, college football record-holder readies for his opportunity

By GRANT JOHNSON The Breeze

The sixth-largest crowd in Kidd Brewer Stadium history quieted Saturday at the end of JMU’s first drive versus Appalachian State. Fair enough — the drive ended in three points for the road team.

For JMU, the field goal 6:50 into the game by redshirt junior kicker Camden Wise signified something more than a fleeting lull at “The Rock.” It was the first made field goal by a JMU kicker other than kicker Ethan Ratke (2016-21) since Nov. 17, 2018, versus No. 15 Towson in the last game of the regular season that year.

That was 41 games ago.

Now, Ratke, nine months removed from his JMU playing days, 542 points and 101 made field goals later, is looking for more.

From the feet, up

Ratke got “the cleats they had in the back” from JMU as a redshirt freshman in 2017. He said he didn’t think much of it. He began the year as the fourth-string kicker, to be fair.

By the end of fall camp, Ratke had climbed to second string. The starting kicker, thenjunior Tyler Gray (2015-18), injured his hip flexor against William & Mary during the seventh regular season game in that same year.

So, Ratke and his white cleats were tested against live bullets, starting in the third quarter versus the Tribe. He passed the first test: 2-for-2 on field goals, 3-for-3 on extra points.

It was relatively smooth sailing for Ratke at first. JMU, by the end of the 2017 regular season, hadn’t lost in 23 outings dating back to the previous September. Ratke overtook

kickoff duties, made 4-of-5 field goals and all extra points in his first four full games.

But the cleats accumulated holes. Ratke said it was because he always dragged his right foot. The left side of his right cleat was lined with openings, starting at his big toe.

Even still, they were his shoes, his cleats, after all, which he said he wanted to roll with the whole season. Former JMU punter Harry O’Kelly (2017-21) said Ratke was superstitious about them. Ratke felt he had to keep his pair.

That changed versus No. 10 Stony Brook in JMU’s first matchup in the 2017 FCS playoffs. Ratke went a combined 4-for-6 on field goals and extra points. Ratke attributed the missed kicks to his cleats, one being the only missed extra point of his career that wasn’t blocked.

The cleats became “unusable.”

“It would just kind of be like a tear, and it just slowly opened up even more from just the impact on the ground,” Ratke said. “Eventually it was just like a big hole that was there, and so I felt like a big hole was kind of impacting, catching on the ground when I kicked, and that made me want to switch.”

For the FCS quarterfinals the next week versus Weber State, Ratke exchanged the holed cleats for the same model but a half size down to 8 1/2. He didn’t wear the new pair all week.

Ratke remembered that Dec. 8 Friday night as “very cold,” he said in a text to The Breeze. He stayed by the sideline’s heaters most of the time, he said, and adrenaline pumped to the point he didn’t feel the frigidness.

Then came the first test in his new cleats: A 46-yard game-winning field goal attempt, with JMU’s 24-game win streak and the FCS semifinals on the line.

Ratke kicked. JMU won. Five years later, he’s the all-time college football leader in

points (542) and field goals made (101).

“He was a very nervous, shy guy at first,” O’Kelly said. “Then, I think ever since that Weber State kick, he really had that ‘I'm a dog’ mentality, and he was — he was a dog.”

After the kick, Ratke said, classmates and friends told him no college moment would be better. A young Ratke disputed that.

“I don't want this to be the peak of my career,’” Ratke recalled telling himself. “So, I remember kind of keeping that in mind, and then start thinking about all the other goals I would want to achieve throughout my career.”

Next-level ambition

NFL kickers are struggling early in 2022. According to a Sept. 16 article from The Athletic’s Mike Sando, Week 1 kickers were worse in clutch kicks than any week since at least 2000. By the end of Week 3, the 33 kickers who’ve attempted a field goal are 79.7% on 174 attempts. Ratke made 101 of 117 field goals in college, or 86.3% of them.

Ratke, not on an NFL roster, is readying for an opportunity. He said he’s kicking 3-4 times a week. He finished his public administration graduate program at JMU in the summer after interning at enCircle, a nonprofit that provides services for people with disabilities. He said he wants work in public service if the NFL doesn’t pan out or, even if it does, serve in the offseason. He’s currently job-hunting around Richmond.

One kicker got drafted in the 2022 NFL Draft in April and six were signed as undrafted free agents — all from Power 5 programs. For the duration of Ratke’s career, JMU was an FCS program.

That doesn’t mean it’s impossible for Ratke to make it to the NFL: Arguably the greatest

NFL kicker of all time, Adam Vinetari, attended the FCS’ South Dakota State. Four of the 33 NFL kickers who’ve attempted a field goal in 2022 are products of the FCS or lower division schools, or schools that were FCS for the beginning of their college careers.

“I think had we been in the Sun Belt for the last few years, his opportunity gets better. Same for a few of our guys,” O’Kelly said. “I think they got overlooked purely because we're in a conference where there was no really other good teams. I mean, there's one other good team every year, but really, we’re the dominant force.”

Ratke knows his other knock: He hasn’t attempted many long in-game field goals, and he wasn’t the primary kickoff specialist at JMU except for in 2017, when Gray went down. His longest made field goal at JMU was the 46-yarder versus Weber State in the FCS quarterfinals. Longs of the seven drafted and undrafted 2022 rookies in their last years of college? Fifty-one thrice, 52, 54, 56, 57, 57 and 62 yards.

He’s been working on it and, frankly, Ratke said he doesn’t think long-distance kicking has ever been an issue. He said JMU just hadn’t been in positions to try many long kicks while he had the job. Once a week, Ratke said he’s practicing 60-yard kicks and feels comfortable hitting them.

JMU’s pro day on March 23 allowed Ratke to show off his leg in front of 20-plus NFL scouts. But Ratke couldn’t attempt a field goal longer than 52 yards — because of rain, JMU moved its drills to a half-football-field indoor facility. A retractable side opening let Ratke move back to maximum distance.

He nailed it, with room to spare.

Madison Hricik & Grant Johnson

Former JMU kicker Ethan Ratke (2016-21) is training 3-4 times a week in hopes of continuing his football career. Breeze file photo

A packed Bridgeforth

JMU vs. Texas State ticket sales demonstrate growing trend

from TICKETING, page 1

Once the student tickets were available on Sept. 19, however, there were only around 1,500 at the 9 a.m. opening window. JMU allotted a certain number of student tickets to accommodate students whose families aren’t attending the game but still want to go. These tickets were the ones available at 9 a.m. But that doesn’t mean only 1,500 students get to go out of 25,000.

In addition to general admission, student tickets and pre-purchased season tickets, JMU also reserves blocks of tickets for other groups, such as any traveling Texas State fans, sponsors or community groups.

Warner said that in previous years, having an estimated 4,000 student tickets sold following the season opener, regardless of Family Weekend, is still “pretty good.” In fact, the ticketing office regularly expects Family Weekend to sell out or come close to it every year, even before planning commences.

“Family Weekend is the one game that kind of always takes care of itself,” Warner said. “That game always sold itself out … regardless of how the team is doing.”

The hardest part of creating these blocks for Family Weekend, Burgess said, is creating an estimate as numbers are updating. Warner said the ticketing office does everything it can to make the most accommodating allotment and allow opportunities for students to go to as many games as possible.

This is also the first “true” Family Weekend for freshmen, sophomores and juniors due to the pandemic, so the demand to experience Family Weekend in its real intention — including families wanting to be with their student at the famed football game — has also increased.

“I think we’re still having some of that postCOVID effect,” Burgess said. “So, that whole, you know, perfect storm of things has brought everything together to sell out.”

This “model” JMU has used in calculating the number of student tickets may change in the coming years as students become more interested in going to games, Burgess said. The ticketing office is learning from the trends and growth that’s occurring this year as the football team plays this season.

“This is a model we’ve had for a number of years now,” Burgess said, “and in first-year FBS, we’re trying to understand that our trends are making sure that we’re able to put the right butts in seats.”

Since the victory over Appalachian State last weekend happened after JMU announced the Family Weekend sellout, there wasn’t any sort of trend in ticket sales stemming from that particular game. However, the general trend in ticket sales is still increasing, even after the first two home games against Middle Tennessee State and Norfolk State.

Warner said that following the first home game of the season, there’s a level of unpredictability with how many students will attend the rest of the games on the home slate. That’s what the

increased trend has shown the most — at least, so far.

Outside of JMU vs. Texas State, Family Weekend hosts multiple events across campus. For the majority of them, the JMU ticketing office still sells tickets for events like Friday Night Flights and, during Homecoming Weekend, the University Program Board’s concert featuring Flo Milli. That doesn’t mean the ticketing department isn’t able to help customers with the different events. Rather, Burgess said the ticketing department is, in a sense, the “front porch” of all ticketed events and customer relations at JMU.

StubHub’s effect on ticket sales

Just because JMU announces all 25,000 tickets are sold, that doesn’t always mean 25,000 fans show up at Bridgeforth Stadium that Saturday — and if they decide not to go to the game, the ticketing office doesn’t accommodate refunds.

They will, however, tell fans to go to StubHub and resell tickets there. StubHub is JMU’s direct online-only partner resale service that the ticketing department certifies.

“That allows them the ease and access they can make to a game, they can sell it directly,” Burgess said, “because we know that they’re a trusted platform that works with our ticketing company.”

The process to sell a ticket or purchase a resale is fairly simple and allows JMU fans to get a return on their own investment.

While there are other ways to get rid of an already purchased ticket, one popular platform being JMU Nation Ticket Exchange on Facebook, Burgess said fans should be more careful with those types of exchanges or resale platforms since those aren’t partnered through the ticketing office.

This also includes more well-known platforms like Ticketmaster and VividSeats, which are widely used by other collegiate ticketing departments and for professional sports. But JMU only partners with StubHub.

The only time JMU does accept returned tickets is with group blocks, in which those tickets go on StubHub as a “resale” ticket. Those no longer need to be purchased as a block, but fans can use them again as single-game purchases.

“They can still get value out of those sales that we’ve already declared to sell out,” Warner said. “That’s not a large number of tickets, but it does still present us a chance to maximize our sales.”

So, if fans can’t make it to Harrisonburg — because of, say, the weather — the ticketing office has options available.

Hurricane Ian could crash the party

On Wednesday morning, Warner released a statement to Harrisonburg media:

“We’ve been in close communication with meteorologists all week and, at this time, do not anticipate any change from our 1:30 p.m. scheduled kick time.”

Hurricane Ian, a Category 4, made landfall in Florida midday Wednesday and has forced college games on the southeastern coast

to postpone or cancel. Even ESPN College GameDay moved its setup indoors to keep the event for Clemson vs. NC State.

However, the Dukes have no intention of canceling the Family Weekend event, Warner said. JMU will monitor the weather conditions leading up to and during the game, he said, but mostly for thunderstorms.

JMU has a command center that will monitor lightning within 10 miles of campus and make a general safety announcement if needed. But aside from that, JMU is expecting a cool, wet game.

“If there’s any impact directly from the weather before [or] during the game, we are able to anticipate that and address it,” Warner said. “I don’t think it’s really going to impact

anything significant.”

The biggest question remaining: How many JMU fans are willing to brave the weather?

Assuming Dukes fans are OK with clear plastic ponchos and rain-stained streamers on Saturday afternoon, not much should change. Family Weekend is more than just the football game, although the excitement surrounding the team right now could be worth the wet afternoon.

“It’s going to be up to each individual family to decide, ‘How does the weather impact my decision to attend?’” Warner said.

CONTACT Madison Hricik at breezesports@ gmail.com. For football coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

JMU Athletics Weekly Schedule

Thursday, September 29

None

Friday, September 30

All Day

Women’s golf at Evie Odom Invitational

10:15 a.m.

Cross country at Paul Short Run

6 p.m. Volleyball at Texas State

6 p.m.

Women’s soccer vs. App State

Saturday, October 1

All Day

Women’s golf at Evie Odom Invitational

All Day

Men’s tennis at ITA All-American Championships

All Day

Women’s tennis at Liberty Hidden Dual

1 p.m. & TBD (exhibition)

Lacrosse vs. Maryland & at Towson

1:30 p.m. Football vs. Texas State

7 p.m.

Men’s soccer vs. Kentucky

Sunday, October 2

All Day

Women’s golf at Evie Odom Invitational

All Day

Men’s tennis at ITA All-American Championships

All Day

Women’s tennis at Liberty Hidden Dual

1 p.m.

Field hockey vs. Syracuse at Villanova

Monday, October 3

All Day

Men’s tennis at ITA All-American Championships

All Day

Men’s golf at Georgia State Invitational

Tuesday, october 4

All Day

Men’s tennis at ITA All-American Championships

All Day

Men’s golf at Georgia State Invitational

Wednesday, october 5

All Day

Men’s tennis at ITA All-American Championships

JMU student tickets were sold out in about 10 minutes for Texas State. Savannah Reger / The Breeze

‘He’s money’

Ratke trusts leg despite few long-kick attempts

from RATKE, page 18

“Thinking of distance as an issue is not something I think about,” Ratke said. “Fiftytwo is more than someone has seen for me in the game, but most guys are going in and going back to 60 in their pro day, like the guys who were getting signed or taken to a minicamp.”

Ratke said he received some interest for an NFL minicamp invite after his agent sent out his pro day footage, but nothing panned out. A few congratulatory handshakes at the pro day from scouts didn’t amount to anything more.

That doesn’t mean an opportunity can’t present itself, especially if missed kicks in the clutch continue this NFL season. O’Kelly said he wouldn’t be surprised if Ratke’s shot comes.

“If you want a guy who’s going to kick a field goal and not miss inside 50 yards, it’s Ethan Ratke,” O’Kelly said. “He had a couple unfortunate messes when he got into his head a little bit, but he’s money every time he goes on the field.”

The good ol’ days

Ratke is one of four specialists who defined an era of JMU special teams: O’Kelly, holder Alex Miller (2018-21) and graduate long snapper Kyle Davis, the only one still rostered by JMU in 2022. From 2019-21, they ran the show when the JMU offense and defense rested on the sideline. Davis guessed they amassed 5,000-6,000 snap-hold-kick reps together.

For Davis, now, 2022 is different.

He said Wise, Ratke’s replacement, is the “polar opposite” of Ratke. Wise is more relaxed, while Ratke worked himself up before many kicks. Davis’ job frequently became helping Ratke, his roommate, simplify the job, encouraging him to just kick the ball.

“If he was thrown off a little bit, you could tell it threw him off,” Davis said. “He would freak out throughout the game and stuff, so I just tried to play that calming role.”

With time, Ratke stopped worrying so much before every kick. His holder, Miller, described Ratke’s on-the-field demeanor as “level-headed.”

Over the span of all those kicks, stressed and not, Ratke said the top of his right foot and toes swelled; it didn’t hurt, he said.

He got new cleats every year at JMU, but he was big on keeping the same pair every year. On senior day in 2021, when JMU wore all black, Ratke still sported his white cleats. Head coach Curt Cignetti never told him to change them, Ratke said.

He can’t fit into those Weber State size 8 1/2s anymore, but he thinks he still has them somewhere.

They were too valuable to throw out.

CONTACT Grant Johnson at breezesports@ gmail.com. For more football coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

Defensive dominance

Stifling back line catalyzes JMU women’s soccer’s early wins

By KAIDEN BRIDGES contributing writer

After breaking defensive records in this year’s nonconference matches, the Dukes’ defense is hungry as they press on into their inaugural Sun Belt Conference season.

“The Sun Belt is a very good league,” JMU assistant coach Devin Zvosec said, “and I want to make sure our players are prepared to face any kind of playing style.”

Through the first 11 games of last season, JMU women’s soccer conceded 13 goals. But the Dukes have set the bar high early after forcing four straight shutouts, the highest record in program history during nonconference games.

The program record for most shutouts in a single season was set in 2002 after JMU finished the year with 11. Its five shutouts through six games left coaches optimistic and players eager for more.

“I’ve been extremely proud of our defensive performance so far this year,” Zvosec said. “From the back line defending to the team defending, every player is committed to excellence.”

The Dukes are pushing even more now that they’ve entered conference play. After Sunday’s tie against Southern Mississippi, JMU is 2-0-1 in the Sun Belt, ranked first in the east division standings and handing shutouts to its conference opponents.

Through 11 games so far, the Dukes allowed only four goals and have 44 total saves. The team has the lowest numbers of goals allowed, tied with defending conference champion South Alabama.

JMU redshirt junior goalkeeper Alexandra Blom was named Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week after her two shutouts and seven

saves last week. She earned the nickname the “Polar Bear” last season after working with assistant coach Rob Donnenwirth, for her power and strength. Blom is the only Sun Belt goalkeeper to have over .800 in saves this season.

After playing a juggernaut of a nonconference schedule last season — and heading into conference play 3-5-1 at the time — head coach Joshua Walters said this level of difficulty would only aid the Dukes in the future.

Now that this future is JMU’s reality, that difficulty has started paying off.

“Coming into this season and the new conference, we knew we wanted to show everyone what we are about,” redshirt junior defender Brittany Munson said. “I think we all just bought into the idea of not letting our opponents have any chances on goal, and we’ve been doing just that.”

Munson was named Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week in weeks 1 and 2 after she helped the defense hold VCU to 12 total shots, and Morehead State to four. She’s been a leader holding down the team defensively — not only does Munson help shut down the defense well, but her technical skills help the rest of her team offensively by helping produce attacks up the field. So far this season she’s accumulated 867 minutes on the field.

“[Munson] has taken a huge step in her game to become the anchor of our back line,” Zvosec said.

From being aggressive and fighting in the midfield to working hard in the definitive third, Zvosec stressed that the team has to have a mutual understanding of what it means to defend as one team.

“We just want to make sure that as the

season goes on and as games get harder that we are always communicating and helping one another out,” redshirt senior defender Ashby Larkin said.

Larkin plays a major role in the back this season. The 5-foot-10 defender brings height to the defense and logged 518 minutes through the last 11 games.

JMU’s defense is leaning into its youth. The Dukes currently sport around 10 players in their rotation, ranging from freshmen to seniors in their defensive third.

“It doesn’t matter what year a player is. At the end of the day, they’re all JMU Dukes,” Zvosec said. “That’s something they’ve all bought into this year, and that mindset has been a huge factor into our success as a back line and team defenders.”

The Dukes face Appalachian State on Sept. 30 in Harrisonburg. The Mountaineers are 2-1 and second in the Sun Belt East Division. Through 11 games, App State has scored 11 goals out of 135 shots and allowed 15 goals in return. It’ll be a defensive challenge for the Dukes as the Mountaineers average about 12 shots per game and are tied for fourth place in most shots taken so far this season. These teams have only faced each other one other time in 2014, where JMU produced a 2-1 win.

“I’m really proud of our defensive unit as a whole because we have such a competitive group, and no matter who comes on the field, they always make a difference and always play as hard as they can in order to keep the shutout streak that we have going alive,” Larkin said.

CONTACT Kaiden Bridges at bridg4ke@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more women’s soccer coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

JMU redshirt junior defender Brittany Munson stars on a defense that’s allowed four goals in 11 games. Abi Middleton / The Breeze

Grant

Joshua

Madison Mills

Savannah Reger

Charlotte Matherly

Ashlyn

Madison Hricik

Valerie Chenault

FOR RELEASE

ACROSS

1 Symbol on an Angels baseball cap

5 “Lucy and __”: 2022 documentary about a classic sitcom couple

9 Awaken 13 Trendy purple berry

14 Top __: instant noodle brand 15 “Yeah, try again”

16 *Fancy costume party 18 Snap up 19 Pulls, as a camper 20 Wyo. neighbor 21 Top-notch 22 Run out, as a subscription

24 *Colorful garden plot

26 Tribute poem 27 2016 Summer Olympics city 29 Letters on a car dealership sticker 30 Ritz-Carlton competitor 32 Mourning dove sound

34 Messy stuff 37 Out of favor with one’s partner, and where to find the ends of the answers to the starred clues

41 Bygone toy company 42 Winter malady 43 Future dr.’s exam 45 Woeful cry 48 “How repulsive”

50 Blackjack card 51 *Sensitive spot on the elbow 55 Shake hands (on) 57 “__ it first!”: “Dibs!”

58 Bird who is the only player to win WNBA titles in three different decades 59 CNN’s “__ Burnett OutFront” 60 2021 Pixar movie set in Italy

61 *Annual Florida college football game

By Emet Ozar

65 Fish often grilled for tacos, informally 66 Label again 67 Actress Falco 68 Mailbox opening 69 Forehead 70 Govt.-issued IDs

DOWN 1 Meat in a croquemonsieur 2 Obama-era health law, for short 3 Final funds 4 Brand of Greek yogurt 5 Tiny amount of eye cream 6 Inbox accumulation 7 Not frequently 8 Relatives acquired by marriage 9 Sweet treat in a Christmas poem 10 Pulsate 11 Foolish 12 Dressed for choir 14 Hwys. 17 Decorative pitcher 22 British lav 23 Confess 24 Grub

Thus, in logic

Freezer cubes

“No rush on this”

“That’s gotta hurt”

Prestigious showbiz nominations

“Later”

“__ Toledo!”

Collage application 40 Squeeze

Summer shirt

Soak up

More tart

Tortoise’s race rival

Movies

Run-of-the-mill

Chip with cheese

“Super cool”

Taunts

Frittata ingredient

Opposite of “yep”

Take first prize

“__ Misérables”

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

Edited by Patti Varol and Joyce Lewis

CITY OF HARRISONBURG JOBS

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Race For Relief 5K

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