The Daily Illini Vol. 150 Issue 47 April 8 by The Daily Illini

THE DAILY ILLINI

THURSDAY April 8, 2021

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Visit our website!

Vol. 150 Issue 47

All Illinois students receive eligibility for coronavirus vaccine ChampaignUrbana Public Health District permits people 16 and older to obtain vaccine

CUPHD press release said. The Massmail urges all members of the community to schedule an appointment to be vaccinated if they are in a position to do so. However, the University said they recognize that there are individuals with certain health conditions or reasons that prevent them from being vaccinated. Since there are select appointments available to the community, Chancellor Robert Jones requests patience from the community until further vaccines and appointments are made accessible to the public. CUPHD leads the vaccination distribution for the Champaign-Urbana area, and the University will distribute more information to the public when it becomes available, Jones said in the Massmail. Despite the increase in COVID-19 vaccine availability, individuals – regardless of vaccination status – must continue to remain in compliance with mandatory testing schedules and safety precautions. These include “regular COVID-19 testing, wearing face coverings, social distancing, hand washing and avoiding large gatherings,” according to the Massmail.

BY ALEXANDRA GERGOVA STAFF WRITER

MARK CAPAPAS THE DAILY ILLINI

Students study for finals on the second floor of Grainger Library on May 6, 2019. The Champaign-Urbana community celebrates National Library Week with increased activities and events.

CU celebrates National Library Week BY AMRITA BHATTACHARYYA NEWS EDITOR

Local libraries in Champaign-Urbana are celebrating National Library Week through special events and increased activities. First sponsored by the American Library Association in 1958, National Library Week occurs annually in April, with libraries across the country promoting library use and support. To celebrate, the Urbana Free Library has had multiple events throughout this week, including virtual storytimes and a raffle for a Roku Express giveaway. The Urbana Free Library is also hosting a virtual escape

room titled “The Library Case of Characters” on their Facebook page, which had close to 700 hits as of Tuesday. “We’ve done those digital escape rooms before, and they’ve been really popular,” said Amanda Standerfer, director of development and promotion at the Urbana Free Library. For the Urbana Free Library, the activities don’t look too different than they would have in years past. “We’re doing quite a bit that we would normally do ... I would say just the difference is that we can’t be together to celebrate with people,” Standerfer said.

The Champaign Public Library also has an array of events throughout the week, including virtual storytimes which are archived on their Facebook page. On Wednesday, local poet Jim O’Brien hosted a writers workshop and taught a course called “Poems from Prompts.” “You never know the impact of one event, one author visit,” said Evelyn Shapiro, promotions manager for the Champaign Public Library. “That just has repercussions and impact for years to come.” On Thursday, the Champaign Public Library has an interactive business roundtable webinar titled

“Increase Your Reach.” Current and aspiring business owners can brainstorm ideas and talk about marketing strategies. According to Shapiro, events for this week look very different compared to years past due to COVID-19. “In a normal year, we’ll have 40 events going on in one week,” Shapiro said. “Live music in the lobby, we’ll have workshops every afternoon, we’ll have 300 kids come over from Edison, middle schoolers in the library every day.” However, Shapiro says community members have

The University released a Massmail announcing that all faculty, staff and students are considered eligible to schedule and receive the COVID-19 vaccine via select appointments. This a nnouncement comes in response to the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District’s official notice that vaccine appointments have been extended to “individuals 16 years of age or older who live or work in Champaign County.” W hile C U P H D ’s announcement extends eligibility to individuals 16 years or older, vaccination opportunities for those younger than 18 will differ depending on the site and the authorized vaccine being distributed. “Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are currently available for individuals age 18 and older while Pfizer is available for those age 16 and older,” the gergova2@dailyillini.com

SEE LIBRARY | 3A

University reinstates standard fee assessment BY GEORGE PHELAN STAFF WRITER

Of all of the elements of normality that have been shattered by the pandemic, at least one is guaranteed to return by the fall semester — student fees. According to a Massmail sent out on March 26, the University will reinstate the standard fee assessment, which had previously been lowered. Over the past t wo semesters, student fees had been lowered during the pandemic, with every category lowered by at least $50 for students. Alongside lowering fees for University services and facilities, seven of the 12 student-initiated fees were eliminated entirely, i nclud i ng i n it i at ives such as Bicycle Programs & Infrastructure a nd the Clea ner Energies Technology. Brian Farber, executive assistant to the associate vice chancellor for Student Affairs, provided feedback about the decision to change fee assessment and described how the decision to move back to a standard fee assessment came out of anticipation for pre-

pandemic conditions and as a way to fund programs wh ich had i ncu r red higher expenses due to the pandemic. “ W henever we make reductions, similar to what we did in the fall and the spring, of 20% to 30%, it has a significant impact on continuing expenses that we experience during the pandemic,” Farber said. Farber cited specific expenses such as debt ser vice and mortgage payments as some of the continuing expenses are usually covered by the student fees, alongside the salaries for the employees in these units. Utility costs also increased during the pandemic due to increased concerns over filtration in University facilities. Despite these increased costs, the University ’s decision to return to standard, higher fees for students is not an attempt to recover from the expenses the University encountered last year, but rather to return to the normal operations of the units normally paid for by student fees, according to Farber.

“We’re grateful for the federa l gover n ment ’s assistance with relation to the CARES funding that has come, both the first and second round of funding and the American

Rescue Plan that has been approved and hope to have some funding from that as well,” Farber said. The structure by which SEE FEES | 3A

CAMERON KRASUCKI ITHE DAILY ILLINI

A pharmacist from Carle Foundation Hospital extracts the Moderna vaccine into a syringe at the Church of the Living God on Feb. 20. The University just announced that all faculty, students and staff are now eligible to receive the vaccine through select appointments.

INSIDE

Opinions: University lacks transparency for next academic year

Sports: Wells wins two titles in Florida meet

PAGE 6A

PAGE 1B

ANGELINA CHAN THE DAILY ILLINI

JUST STEPS AWAY FROM TARGET. INTERESTED? DON’T SCAN THIS QR CODE. DAILYILLINI, DAILYILLINISPORTS

INSIDE

Police

@THEDAILYILLINI, @DI_OPINION, @DI_SPORTS |

Life

Culture

Crossword

THEDAILYILLINI |

Opinions

@THEDAILYILLINI |

Letters

Sports

THEDAILYILLINI

DAILYILLINI

Classifieds

Sudoku

THEDAILYILLINI 4B

buzz

2A Thursday, April 8, 2021

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

THE DAILY ILLINI 1001 S. Wright Street Champaign, IL 61820

Champaign University

• Theft was reported at Scott Hall, 202 E. Peabody Drive, Champaign on Monday. According to the report, a student had his clothes stolen from a washing machine on Feb. 25. The stolen clothes have an estimated value of $95.

The Daily Illini is the independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. The newspaper is published by the Illini Media Co. The Daily Illini does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of the University of Illinois administration, faculty or students. All Illini Media Co. and/or The Daily Illini articles, photos and graphics are the property of Illini Media and may not be reproduced or published without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free; each additional copy is 50 cents.

UI Housing faces occupancy decline

STAFF

Editor-in-Chief

Longform editor

THOMAS DEMOUY

Diana Anghel editor@dailyillini.com

Matt Troher longform@dailyillini.com

STAFF WRITER

Managing editor, Reporting

Photo editor

Managing editor, Online

Cameron Krasucki photo@dailyillini.com

Asst. photo editor Lanie Hibel

Design editor

Chieh Hsu online@dailyillini.com

Jonah Ozer design@dailyillini.com

Managing editor, Visuals

Asst. design editors

Ryan Ash visuals@dailyillini.com

News editor Amrita Bhattacharyya news@dailyillini.com

Asst. news editors Aliza Majid Mona Alrazzaq

Julia Eversmann Angelina Chan

Video editor Maddy Chemers video@dailyillini.com

Asst. video editor Tara Mobasher

Buzz editor Carolina Garibay

Asst. daytime editors Asst. buzz editor Willie Cui Vivan La

Sydney Wood

Sports editor

Citlaly Leanos copychief@dailyillini.com

Jackson Janes sports@dailyillini.com

Asst. sports editors Angelle Cortes Will Payne

Asst. sports editors of on-air

Copy chief Asst. copy chiefs Kathleen Findlay Zainab Qureshi

Social media director Jane Knight disocial@dailyillini.com

Josh Pietsch Claire O’Brien

Brand Manager

Features editor

Co-Publishers

Gwyn Skiles features@dailyillini.com

Kit Donahue Melissa Pasco

MaryKate Green

Asst. features editors Rohit Jammu Jenni Kellenback

Opinions editor Nathaniel Langley opinions@dailyillini.com

Asst. opinions editors Nick Johnson Samuel Rahman

TODAY’S NIGHT SYSTEM STAFF Night editor: Zainab Qureshi, Matt Troher Copy editors: Tyshawn Primer, Margaret Burnetti, Xiadani Mendoza, Elizabeth Wessel, Madelyn Heidke, Danielle Rhody, Hannah Stewart, Jillian Salomon Designers: Page transmission: Diana Anghel Web manager: Chieh Hsu

• Retail theft was reported at • Aggravated batter y was Schnucks on the 200 block reported on the intersection of of North Vine Street around James Cherry Drive and Florida 1:30 p.m. on Monday. AccordAvenue around 7 p.m. on Suning to the report, the offender day. According to the report, attempted to take six pieces of an unknown offender driving a merchandise before being convehicle intentionally struck the fronted by a store employee who victim who was walking on the recovered the merchandise. The sidewalk. The victim was not offender then fled the scene. injured and refused medical attention. news@dailyillini.com

Urbana

• Nothing to report.

(217) 337-8300

Heather Robinson reporting@dailyillini.com

How to contact us

POLICE

Classes over the last two semesters have primarily been online, removing the obligation to be on campus for most students. Making the trek back to campus proved to be a challenging proposition for many out-of-state and international students. The increased COVID-19 risk associated with air travel turned away some students, while many more did not have the option to return due to travel bans. Ashna Gupta, sophomore in LAS, remained in her home state of California

this year. “Once all my classes got moved online, I didn’t really see the benefit of going back to school when I would be sitting in my room all day, especially since a lot of my friends did not go back either,” Gupta said. Hamilton brought up many of the hardships international students faced this fall, including the difficulty associated with traveling across national borders during the pandemic. “We did see a more sig nif ica nt drop in the number of

international students contracted with University Housing as compared to domestic students,” Hamilton said. Those who could not travel safely were given the option to cancel their housing contract without charge. Students who did not complete their oneyear on-campus housing requirement this academic year will be obligated to fulfill this requirement in the 20212022 academic year.

University Housing has experienced a significant decline in the occupancy rates of student dormitories on campus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, accompanied by a more pronounced drop in the number of international students utilizing University Housing. According to University Housing Senior Assistant Director Chelsea L. Hamilton, the occupancy rate for fall 2020 was 67%, compared to 93% in spring 2020. tdemouy2@dailyillini.com This rate does not account for the temporary loss of over 800 spaces this academic year due to the renovations on Wardall Hall in the ISR complex. As more in-person classes became available this semester, the occupancy rate increased 4% compared to fall 2020. Occupancy rates have remained consistent across the wide variety of dorms that are offered, according to Hamilton. “The demand for new residential buildings is commonly always higher than traditional buildings, but in order to dedensify our halls, and with the health and safety of our residents at the forefront of all of our operational decisions, occupancy levels were kept fairly consistent throughout our ANGEL SALDIVAR THE DAILY ILLINI hall inventory,” Hamilton Allen Hall sits quietly at 1005 W. Gregory Drive in Urbana on Oct. 24. University housing said. occupancy rates have been declining due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Daily Illini is located in the basement of the University YMCA at 1001 S. Wright St., Champaign, IL 61820. Our office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday - Friday.

General contacts Main number: Advertising: Newsroom: Production:

(217) 337-8300 (217) 337-8382 (217) 337-8345 (217) 337-8320

Newsroom

Online: If you have a question about DailyIllini.com or The Daily Illini’s social media outlets, please email our editor at online@dailyillini.com. Employment: If you would like to work for the newspaper’s editorial department, please fill out our form or email employment at dailyillini.com. Calendar: If you want to submit events for publication in print and online, visit dailyillini.com. Letters to the editor: Letters are limited to 300 words. Contributions must include the author’s name, address and phone number. University students must include their year in school and college. The Daily Illini reserves the right to edit or reject any contributions. Email opinions@dailyillini.com with the subject “Letter to the Editor.”

Advertising

Placing an ad: If you would like to place an ad, please contact our advertising department. (217) 337-8382 or e-mail advertise@illinimedia.com.

The Daily Illini is online everywhere you are.

Website dailyillini.com

The Daily Illini App Play Store, App Store

Facebook The Daily Illini The Daily Illini Sports

Twitter @TheDailyIllini @DI_Sports

Instagram @TheDailyIllini

Snapchat TheDailyIllini

Corrections When we make a mistake, we will correct it in this place. We strive for accuracy, so if you see an error in the paper, please contact Editor-inChief Diana Anghel at (217)-337-8365.

THE DAILY ILLINI PRESENTS

Housing Fair 2021

Wednesday, April 28th 3pm - 7pm COVID safety measures will be followed

FEATURING: Bankier Apartments • American Campus Communities • Burnham 310 • Green Street Realty • HERE Champaign • ONE Illinois • The Pointe at U of I

UNIVERSITY YMCA

THURSDAY April 8, 2021 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

NEWS FROM 1A

LIBRARY been embracing the various virtual activities offered this year. “This is a community that treasures libraries,” Shapiro said. “They’ll come to the doors of the library, and they know we have safe practices and we’re a welcoming place. There’s gonna be a smile behind the mask of everybody that works there.” Standerfer says libraries are important institutions in communities that welcome everyone and help people learn new things. “I think libraries are more important than ever to help us connect with other people, to connect to information that we need,” Standerfer said. “Libraries are kind of the cornerstone of democracy.” abhatt52@dailyillini.com

FROM 1A

FEES

“It is heartening to see students cooperate as the rates stay low,” Kaler said, adding that there would hopefully be more in-person events for students to look forward to if the progress continues. Implementing proper precautions for COVID-19 are essential to lower the current rates and make way for a safer and interactive fall semester.

fees w ill be assessed will fully emulate how fees were assessed prepa ndemic. W hile the University has indicated that online classes will still be available for fall of 2021, students will not have any reduced fees for living outside of the Champaign-Urbana area. The anticipation of prepandemic conditions was influential in the decision to return to a standard fee assessment. “I certainly hope that August is going to look very different, and a lot of that is based upon our aggressive efforts in vaccination in the state, and efforts to try to vaccinate the student body, hopefully even before (students) all leave for the rest of the semester,” Farber said. “We’re hopeful that we will return to a fall that looks very much like it would have looked before the pandemic began.”

payalr2@dailyillini.com

georgep2@dailyillini.com

CAMERON KRASUCKI THE DAILY ILLINI

Peter Abbamonte, professor in Engineering, adjusts his video camera for students who choose to attend class online on Nov. 2. The University is planning on introducing more in-person classes for the fall.

UI includes more in-person events for fall BY PAYAL RATHORE STAFF WRITER

While the official plans for the upcoming fall semester are yet to be released, the administration is currently focusing on providing vaccines for students and the future possibility of having more in-person classes and University events. “Although we are planning for a more near-normal campus experience next fall, we are waiting for the final plan from

the University before releasing fall housing details publicly,” said Chelsea Hamilton, senior assistant director for Communications & Marketing. Hamilton stated t h at Un i v er sit y Housing will continue to follow the guidelines presented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, state and local health officials to maintain the health and safety of all those on campus.

“Our current priority is serving those who live in our residence halls and apartments this spring,” Hamilton said. Rooms are also recommended to have around a 50% capacity for classes in accordance with social distancing rules and regulations. This measure is being undertaken due to the increase of in-person classes. “I am certain that the number of in-person classes will approach the normal number,”

said Rebecca Lee Smith, associate professor in AHS. Smith also added that while she hopes that there will be less testing, there are many unknowns between now and the upcoming fall semester to predict the testing frequency. “As far as testing frequency is concerned, that would depend entirely on the rate at which it spreads,” said Robin Kaler, associate chancellor for Public

Affairs. “We will continue testing till the pandemic ends and it is clear that there is no risk.” Emails regarding the availability of vaccines at different locations are also being sent regularly so that students are able to have access to the vaccine. “While the vaccines are not mandated, we are ensuring that they are being offered to students,” Kaler said.

University extends test-optional policy for next two admissions cycles BY ALEXANDRA GERGOVA STAFF WRITER

In response to the detrimental effect COVID-19 has had on the accessibility of standardized testing, the University of Illinois System Board of Trustees unanimously approved a request last Thursday to extend the test-optional policy through both the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 academic years. T h is development aligns with the previous academic year’s removal of the standardized testing requirement for applications submitted to the University. During the previous admissions cycle, approximately 44% of firstyear applicants for the fall 2021 semester opted not to submit standardized test scores, according to Director of Undergraduate Admissions Andy Borst. According to a presentation delivered at the Admissions Subcommittee of the Academic Senate, freshman applicants will be able to decide whether they wish to have their SAT or ACT scores considered. Regardless of whether they send the scores or not, their answer to the question will determine whether the University considers their scores. Home-schooled students, athletes and those with a General Educational Diploma will have the option of opting to not submit their scores should they wish not to. Additionally, the upper division transfer applicants will not be required to submit scores. However, lower division transfer applicants will be required to. Transfer applicants are grouped based on the amount of credits they have why entering the University. Applicants who opt out of submitting their standardized scores but have

SCREENSHOT OF ZOOM

Director of Undergraduate Admissions Andy Borst presents information about University applicants during the Admissions Subcommittee of the Academic Senate meeting. For the next two admissions cycles, students will have the option of submitting their test scores.

not finished at least three years of “secondary education in an English-speaking country” must submit TOEFL/IELTS scores. The decision to implement a test-optional policy for the next two academic years was purely due to the limited nature of standardized testing opportunities for students in a COVID-19 dominated world and not in response to other concerns related to fairness that have prompted some universities in the nation to forgo the requirement in its entirety. “The decision to create a test-optional policy and to extend it further was due to the lack of ACT/SAT testing opportunities for students,”

Borst said in an email. “The on-going COVID-19 pandemic limits students’ opportunities to take the ACT/SAT.” Prior to the Board of Trustees’ meeting, the Admissions Subcommittee of the Academic Senate had met twice to deliberate the test-optional policy, opting to vote in favor of it during the second meeting in March. “Enrollment Management did a presentation to the Admissions Subcommittee in early Spring (of 2020) during a standing meeting to discuss the Test Optional policy,” Borst said in an email. “The Admissions Subcommittee discussed its recommendation and asked

members to go back to their respective faculty colleagues to discuss the policy further.” Fo l l o w i n g these discussions with respective faculty and colleagues, the Senate gathered in March and found that there was “overwhelming support for a test optional policy given the significant impact of COVID-19,” according to AD.21.03: “Implementation of a Test Optional Policy for the 2022 and 2023 Admissions Cycles.” In a pool of 114 responses, 84% indicated approval. Many students can attest to the disruptive nature of COVID-19 on the schedule of standardized tests. “In terms of the SAT, they

were really unclear when it would take place,” said Gil Montiel, junior at Plainfield East High School. “They didn’t have a set date for a while. We just found out two weeks ago that it would take place on April 13.” Because of the University’s decision to implement a testoptional policy, Montiel is more likely to apply and appreciates the emphasis on GPA as opposed to a simple standardized test score. “I prefer the University focusing more on GPA and extracurriculars because I think it is a better indication of students as individuals and their academic performance versus just one standardized test,” Montiel said.

While the policy is only being extended to the next two admissions cycles, the Senate voted in favor of creating a Task Force to “evaluate the efficacy and fairness of entrance exams and the need for applicants to report scores beyond the 2021 cycle,” according to AD.21.03: “Implementation of a Test Optional Policy for the 2022 and 2023 Admissions Cycles.” The decision to extend the test-optional policy for the next two admissions cycles will enable the University to collect data and determine whether they wish to extend this policy further. gergova2@dailyillini.com

LIFE & CULTURE

THURSDAY April 8, 2021 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

UI professors contribute to ivory research BY GWYN SKILES FEATURES EDITOR

Oceans away, mighty beasts shake the earth as they tilt their large grey ears and point their tusks forward. Un i ver sit y pr ofe s sors and researchers led nationa lly recog nized advancements in the study of elephants, making a name for themselves in the

studies of animal sciences and anthropology. A lfred Roca professor in ACES and elephant studies expert said he has been providing evidence to prove the differences between African forest elephants and African savanna elephants. “They ’re as different from each other as humans from chimps and probably

PHOTO COURTESY OF PETER PROKOSCH/FLICKR

Elephants graze in the rainforest on the Dzanga Sangha Reserve in the southwestern part of the Central African Republic. University professors and researchers have pioneered nationally recognized advancements in the study of elephants.

more different from lions and tigers,” Roca said. Until recently, the International Union for Conservation of Nature officially recognized the two different species. This especially helps forest elephants, whose population has declined by more than 86% over the past few decades. “I just hope it’s not too late,” Roca said. W hile sava nna elephants are also endangered, their population has only declined by less than 60%. Roca said forest elephants are more at risk of extinction due to their slow reproduction rate: they wait six years longer than savanna elephants to reproduce. Forest elephants are also more susceptible to poaching because Roca said the ivory in their tusks is easier to carve and they tend to live in unprotected areas. W hen the Union recognized the difference between the two species of elephants, it increased the chances of conservation efforts for forest elephants, Roca said. However, the endangerment of forest elephants doesn’t only affect them. It also puts indigenous trees at risk. Students at the University who haven’t studied animal sciences said they are still aware that elephants are endangered. Sophia Diaz, Freshman in LAS, said she’s upset by the lack of activism to save elephants and argues that

any research to help them is time well spent. “I’m very disappointed with how everything has been handled,” Diaz said. “There’s not a lot of action being done for elephants because I know there’s a lot of trafficking being done for their tusks. I know that they’re about to be extinct.” Roca and his colleagues examined elephant tusks found in the wreckage of the Bom Jesus, a ship found off the coast of Namibia that was used for trade in the 16th century. In the conclusion of their research summary, the team said, “our interdisciplinary methodologies revealed the longterm genetic diversity and habitat use of the African forest elephant, helpful for conserving this iconic species.” By extracting DNA from the ivory, Roca and his colleagues were able to determine the origins of widespread poaching of forest elephants. Roca’s colleague, postdoctoral student Alida de Flamingh, said the process to remove the DNA from the ivory is daunting. However, their research provides the blueprints for future investigations using DNA extraction of ivory. “The study provides a method or protocol for analyzing these archaeological artifacts specifically ivory in this case,” de Flamingh said. “This protocol and this approach

can be used for other types of ivory as well.” Before entering the laboratory, de Flamingh had to put on protective gear and spray herself with chemicals that kill any DNA on her person. This is so researchers are certain that the DNA extracted is from the ivory. The ivory was sent to the University from the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Illinois has one of eight ancient DNA laboratories in the country. The drama of a shipwreck and the significance of endangered elephants is something de Flamingh said would attract students to the study. “I think one of the things that this research shows is that science can be used to answer really cool questions,” de Flamingh said. “Everybody is interested in shipwrecks and loot within a shipwreck and everybody loves elephants. W ho would’ve thought that you could determine where elephants that lived 500 years ago came from?” De Flamingh is originally from South Africa but came to the University after emailing Roca and seeing the elephant studies programs. “When I was in South Africa, I was studying elephant genetics,” de Flamingh said. “There aren’t really elephant genetics professors in South Africa, so for my master’s, I really struggled to find people to help me. While I was doing my master’s, I kept citing

articles by Roca.” The team conducted research abroad in addition to utilizing campus resources. They traveled to the National Museum of Namibia and the University of Cape Town, South Africa to collaborate with others. While there aren’t any elephants in the United States, de Flamingh said Illinois has much better facilities to study them than their peers abroad. One of the biggest takeaways de Flamingh said was teaching their partners in Namibia and South Africa how to analyze the DNA in the ivory and helping them expand their facilities. “I feel extremely passionate about showing people that don’t have the same opportunities that I had for my Ph.D. that those opportunities are out there,” de Flamingh said. “One of the good things that came from this project is it provided the funded opportunity to go to South Africa and share these analytical techniques which would be extremely helpful.” In the future, the team plans on continuing its ivory analyses. However, they plan on examining other animals such as walruses and rhinoceros. Although de Flamingh can’t share any specifics, she said she is looking into working with the Field Museum in Chicago. gskiles2@dailyillini.com

Students spend time outside, appreciate nature BY ALEX LAZARO CONTRIBUTING WRITER

As the University transitions back to a state of normalcy, the vibrant energy on campus is starting to surface. This is appreciated and relished by many University students, and since the weather has been warmer, many are spending time outside. Antonio Sanchez, junior in Information Sciences, described his new found appreciation for something as simple as sitting outside. “I think I’ve always been about nature and the outdoors, but I feel that going through something like the COVID-19 pandemic made me appreciate it more,” Sanchez said. He went on to describe that he goes for walks multiple times throughout the month as long as his schedule and the weather permits it. He even started to become more environmentally conscious by doing things such as turning off the water while he brushes his teeth and taking the time to recycle things. At the University level,

environmental consciousness is coming to the forefront day by day. As the litter of disposable masks was becoming a risk during the fall semester, the University responded by placing mask recycling containers in different locations like the Illini Union, or the different residence halls containers for recycling plastic bags have also become more common, but these can only be found in the Union for now. The Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment have deemed April Earth Month with different events taking place each day, such as community trash pickups, lectures covering environmental issues like “lessons from the pandemic to tackle the climate crisis” and rock painting events meant to educate while stress relieving. “As you get older, you become more conscious, especially right now with climate change being a big threat, and I feel like it’s one of the biggest challenges my generation will face,

along with the generation after me,” Sanchez said. Other students recall some of their favorite things about nature and how they have acted as an unconscious stress reliever. Jocelyn Gonzalez junior in Business, said that she has always enjoyed nature and being outside, and although she does not actively look for it as a stress reliever, it always ends up being one. “I like going on walks to discover new things, but I always catch myself looking at the trees or feeling the wind, maybe even catching the sunset or the sunrise,” Gonzalez said. “It’s just a sense of calming, and it helps me forget about the responsibilities I have for a moment.” However, with a newfound appreciation, there is also a new type of caution that is on the minds of some students. Sanchez said he’s hesitant to participate in outdoor activities because there’s a risk he could contract the COVID-19 virus. “COVID-19 definitely changed my perspective on

LANIE HIBEL THE DAILY ILLINI

An Illinois student performs an aerial on the Main Quad Saturday afternoon. As it’s getting warmer, more students are enjoying the outdoors.

things such as going outside or interacting with other students,” Sanchez said. “It just feels a little strange compared to last year. For example, if I was in the Japanese Garden, I wouldn’t have hesitated to go up to someone and just interact with them, but I’ve just become more cautious.” Noel Enciso, junior in

LAS, also developed anxiety during the pandemic. “It’s something that I didn’t think my generation would have to worry about,” Enciso said.“I tried not to go out as much last semester because I was worried about spreading the virus to my family, such as my parents or my grandfather.” When walking on the

Main Quad, several students can be seen wearing masks as they go for a jog or ride their bikes around campus. Other students sit socially distanced in little huddles. Even the students playing spikeball or football try not to make too much contact with each other. alazar20@dailyillini.com

ALL NEW Starting at $99*

Rent Our Theatre! Advance tickets on sale now! Phoenixtheatres.com

DOWNLOAD FREE. LISTEN NOW.

232 W. BURWASH AVE, SAVOY , IL 61874

Apple and the Apple logo and iPhone are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Thursday, April 8, 2021

Call to action spurs debate over efficacy BY FARRAH ANDERSON ASSISTANT LONGFORM EDITOR

When Arnoldo Ayala, University senior and speaker of the senate for Illinois Student Government, got an email inviting him to join a committee for the University’s Call to Action for the 2020 academic year, he was excited to start. As the only student on the main committee for the public safety, policing and the justice system working group, Ayala said it’s stressful being a representative for the entire student body. “Sometimes I can’t go because I have class or I have other commitments,” Ayala said. “And if I can’t go then there’s no student representation on this committee.” Last summer, the University announced a plan to tackle systemic racism. Named the Call to Action, some committee members like Ayala have raised concern over whether real action will come. The Public Safety, Policing, and the Justice System working group is composed of faculty members, University administrators and one student. At meetings, Ayala said productive conversations often get derailed as debates ensue between police and non-police members of the committee. “It’s just a constant back and forth with us trying to give solutions and give ideas to fix the issues and the police just saying no,” Ayala said. Sean Garrick, vice chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, said that one of the biggest challenges to dismantling systemic racism is bridging the gap between the campus and the surrounding Champaign-Urbana community. “We’re seeking to foster better collaborations and partnerships with the external community, not simply on our terms, but on the terms of those who are outside of the University,” Garrick said. Garrick said seeking a range of ideas from members with diverse experiences, perspectives and expertise was essential to make strong recommendations. Naomi Paik, policing committee member and associate professor in LAS, said she had reservations about joining the group in the first place. Now, she feels like her presence will justify what

I JONAH OZER THE DAILY ILLINI

action is taken. Paik said that having police on the committee is a clear conflict of interest. “The only voices that are actually getting traction in terms of actual movement, policy, hires and programs is the UIPD,” Paik said. Although many concerns have been raised about having police partake in the conversation, Garrick said it’s important to have law enforcement at the table. “Collaboration and cooperation with all stakeholders are key,” Garrick said. And Paik said the more money the police on campus get, the less money goes to the students. “We will see action, and most of it will continue to pull resources away from student services and from community members and will continue to be dumped

into the UIPD,” Paik said. To tackle the biggest challenge of engaging the Champaign-Urbana community, Paik said the University needs to treat it differently. “If you actually want to resolve issues of community divisions with the University, then you have to treat the community as if it’s a community in which we are embedded and not as an external threat to University property,” Paik said. Illinois Public Media reporter Lee Gaines reported that over half of people physically taken to jail by the University of Illinois Police Department, were Black, despite only making up 7% of the student population. Cameron Pope, junior in LAS and member of Defund UIPD, said this number is part of what inspired him to take a harder look at race and

policing. And although Pope said the UIPD acknowledged the disparities, he said their justification wasn’t much better. Pope said the police said that many of the Black arrestees were Champaign-Urbana community members. Now, Pope said the University needs to listen to the students to see what they want the police on campus to look like. Pope said he and Defund UIPD sat outside at a table in front of Alma Mater to talk to students about the recent Illinois Student Government referendum trying to reallocate 25% of the UIPD budget to student services. After talking to students, Pope said a majority were in favor. Now, he said it’s the University’s responsibility to take action. “It’s literally just a matter

of the University listening to students and when they do not, it’s a matter of the students standing up together,” Pope said. As the Call to Action plan begins to accept research proposals from faculty, policing committee member and associate professor in LAS Gilberto Rosas said he needs to see higher-ups follow-through. “We do not want whatever we produce to just be shelved,” Rosas said. To make real progress, Rosas said that the University should listen to communities of color in ChampaignUrbana to see what they want and need. “Communities of color often are really engaged in these processes, and we need to go alongside them rather than imposing our own vision of what is to be done,” Rosas said.

Additionally, Ayala said adding more students into the conversations around policing and systemic racism is a way to show that the University values student input. Garrick said that they plan on including more student voices in the conversations. “The next stage of this work will include opportunities for student feedback, and we hope that many students will engage with us in this process,” Garrick said. Graduating this May, Ayala said he’s worried about student representation in the committee once he’s gone. “That’s a lot of pressure to put on me, and it’s not a good way to have student input,” Ayala said. “You need multiple students because I’m just one person.” farrah2@dailyillini.com

NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD

ALL NEW

DAILY ILLINI APP

NEWS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS • Stay up-to-date on all things Illini • Get breaking news immediately • News, sports, features, opinions

ALL NEW! Exclusive offers only available in the App

ACROSS

1 Taradiddle 4Russian country house 9Swiss bread 14 Nail 15 Out and ___ 16 Out now, in a way 17 “___ Crossroads” (Bone Thugs-NHarmony hit that got a Grammy) 18 They’re swaddled and coddled 20 Regain, as affection 22 Like games decided by buzzer beaters 23 Contests 25 City stray 29 One of a pair that often goes missing 30 Run out of Time? 32 Spot for an icicle 33 Birds with S-shaped necks 35 Male actor with the most Primetime Emmys (7) 36 Org. for drivers 38 & 39 Classic sports video game … or a hint to four squares in this puzzle 41 Something to take on a date? 42 Retired pugilist Ali 44 Gave a bit of lip? 46 Folklore fiend 47 14 pounds, in England 49 All alternative 52 Stamp collector? 54 Not forget 56 Devout 57 Some measures championed by the March for Our Lives movement 58 Co-founder of the women’s rights newspaper The Revolution 63 Still making cartoons? 64 Bad way to run

25 31

56 59

22 24

55 57

PUZZLE BY BLAKE SLONECKER

65 Supercharge 66 Divisions of a krone 67 “___ thank me later” 68 Tour of duty 69 Country that uses the krone: Abbr.

DOWN

1 Mufti’s decrees 2 All-time singleseason hits leader in M.L.B. history (262) 3 Seats that sink 4 Counterpart of “Bitte” 5 Tony Shalhoub’s character on “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” 6 Lower? 7 Where some car logos appear 8 Lagoon encirclers 9 Beliebers or the Beyhive, for instance

10 Some Outback entrees 11 Shapiro of “All Things Considered” 12 Michelle Obama ___ Robinson 13 Stack on a rack, maybe 19 Part 21 Garden item that can be brined, informally 24 Annoying roommate, maybe 26 Eggs Benedict component 27 State 28 Word with paper or limit 31 Actress de Armas of “Knives Out” 34 Subj. in biochemistry 35 Qty. 36 When repeated, start of an old antacid slogan

37 Very enthusiastic 39 Georgia senator Ossoff 40 Violinist Leopold 43 Electric guitar pioneer 44 Random criticism 45 Words immediately after Casca cries “Speak, hands, for me!” 47 Any day now 48 Tough pills to swallow, at times 50 Bread 51 Eve of “The Vagina Monologues” 53 Bumper-to-bumper activity? 55 Origin of water clock technology 58 For instance 59 Space oddity 60 Not worth a ___ 61 Nail polish brand 62 “Sister of God”

The crossword solution is in the Classified section.

MONDAY April 5, 2021 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

OPINIONS

Modern board games University snubs defining ‘new normal’ supply opportunities THE DAILY ILLINI EDITORIAL

ers deplete the phrase of any legitimacy — including Iowa State’s President and University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Chancellor — this administration must breathe life into the exhausted saying. The “new normal” is more than a Massmail detailing certain ambitions for a campus return. A bonafide recovery implies transparent dialogues between campus directors and the respective body: Prioritization and accounts of specific revisions are central to this restoration. Accordingly, risk manJULIA EVERSMANN THE DAILY ILLINI agement will be present no matter the preferred outfall approaches, al, more personal campus cinated for classes, as well come dictated by the school. and the COVexperience” is mandatory to as clear, dependable policies Whether there is an immeID-19 pandemic legitimately serve students directly protecting the Unidiate emphasis on in-person slowly but bitterly recedes, and faculty. versity body are mere stepor a gradual focus on camthe University’s general Quoted in the Chicago Tri- ping stones in the journey to pus rehabilitation, COVsilence on the 2021-2022 bune, Andreas Cangellaris, an orderly campus environID-19 woes and risks will not academic year becomes vice chancellor for academic ment. A supplementary safe retreat in these successive deafening. affairs and provost, fortuobjective for preparations semesters. Despite a recent update nately, provided concrete must include supplying menThe University’s panfrom leadership outlining numbers and anticipates, tal health resources for those demic maneuvering has “anticipations,” the Universi- “faculty should anticipate afflicted by the pandemic’s appropriately warranted ty consequently lacks sizable classrooms will be filled to solitary-inducing nature. applause, but it is essential communication and trans50% capacity, or capped at Predating the pandemic, to remind oneself of its longparent planning regarding 200 people.” the mental health conditions term purpose: the secure this subsequent academic Similarly, Cangellaris of students were already reappearance of all students year. Despite the encourage- added, “50% capacity with crippling. Today, both for and faculty into C-U. ment in the update, overall an upper limit of 200 indithose on and off campus Undoubtedly, SHIELD has the message reflects more viduals will allow a large these last semesters, COVproved to be an astounding a “hope for the best” memo percentage of our classes ID-19’s effects on mental achievement. Correspondthan a relevant strategy. to be offered in person.” Inhealth have been calamiingly, if the University demIt is imperative for the person aspirations exist, yet tous for students’ futures. onstrates equivalent priority administration to effectively the extensive framework for Exacerbated with this ensu- delivering in-person value to speak with students and fac- communication and reason- ing loneliness and “Zoom its students and faculty, anxulty on arrangements coning for students returning fatigue,” faculty and students ieties would be inefficient. cerning this next academic remains dreadfully vague. presently await a detailed, Besides victories defying year. It is also essential that For any compelling “new impressive proposal incenCOVID-19, the administracomprehensive statistics and normal,” prioritizing acativizing for a fascinating, yet tion, publicly, is not as finepropositions are delivered to demic and campus qualshielded return. tuned in acknowledging its guarantee sensible accomity will be paramount. Thus Ambiguity surrounding following steps. The 2021modations for campus life’s far, the administration has which classes will be online 2022 academic year is the revival. displayed prominent skill versus inperson, broad latest opportunity for school In a statement published in mitigating COVID-19 “goals” and inconclusive leadership to prove itself in mid-March, University outbreaks — maintaining intentions deteriorate the once again. of Illinois System President minimal positivity rates, as prospects for a decisive “new Effective accommodations Tim Killeen remarked, “Bar- well as earning praise from normal.” Nevertheless, the arrive when the detailed, ring a marked change in the various outlets and fellow University requires equal public emphasis shines pandemic’s current trajecuniversities. vigor as was implemented in on individuals personally tory, we intend to welcome As such, it is within reason handling COVID-19 for the attending classes. With vacstudents back to a more trato request school managefresh promise of an admira- cinations, likewise, providditional, more personal cam- ment to exercise the same ble rebound. ing a light at the end of the pus experience next fall.” inquiry for safety while balHowever, simply asserttunnel each day for general Despite the well-received ancing the priority of in-per- ing the conditions for a “new society, the future awaits for positivity, clearer language son activities. normal” is not sufficient. the University to properly other than “a more traditionEnsuring enough are vac- While other university lead- illustrate this “new normal.”

‘Godzilla vs. Kong’ lacks story, emotional depth forced by the producers only to make it at least look like YUZHU LIU cinema instead of a fighting COLUMNIST game. The film’s core conflict — what motivates Godzilla he following includes and Kong to battle against spoilers for “Godzilla each other — is directly and vs. Kong” and “Aveng- crudely summed up in one ers: Endgame.” word: feud. “Godzilla vs. Kong” was The incentive and funcreleased on March 31. The tion of the several major new epic monster movie por- human characters are left trays a war between the two unexplained. Their facial most arousing icons and cur- expressions are always conrently receives a rating of 6.9 fused at any crucial moment on IMDb. of the two-hour story like There is no denying the they are constantly cheated investment in imagination is by the scriptwriter. These marvelous — especially the scientists seem to have no unlimited site selection of idea of what is going on even action scenes. Abandoning when the audience ultithe common “Skull Island” mately comprehends. style forbidden zones, the Watching the two fearfilm places the two mighty some monsters fight like it is creatures on the sea and the end of the world should under the ground. be entertaining, but the view The significant speof the process is actually cial effects can be seen in exhausting. The dense bomhow CGI establishes the bardment of visual effects unknown underground keeps the audience’s nerves space. Gravity inversion tense with rest. Watching brings the same mirror “Godzilla vs. Kong” feels world as “Inception.” Thanks like completing a cranial to Warner Bro’s visual techmarathon, because it wholly nology, the dynamic aesignores the importance of thetics of the aircrafts’ flight appropriate rhythms and paths and the assorted ecocivil scenes. logical designs in the earth’s Director Martin Scorsese core are presented perfectly. developed similar criticism The final climactic scene against Marvel’s superhero is set in neon-glittering movies in a column he wrote Hong Kong. It is astonishing for the New York Times. To to watch how Godzilla and him, these franchise movKong smash this metropolis ies are closer to theme parks into pieces on the big screen. than they are to films, as However, the plot of this “They would be nothing movie is criticized as illogimore than a succession of cal. The messy, brutal comdynamic and elegant compobat accounts for almost sitions and cuts without the two-thirds of the film’s painful emotions at the cenlength and works to pump ter of the story.” the audience’s adrenalin. It In this perspective, tells a scratchy story that is “Godzilla vs. Kong” is

PHOTO COURTESY OF IMDB

Godzilla and King Kong fight in the movie “Godzilla vs. Kong”. Columnist Luzhu Liu argues that the film is not worth watching.

undoubtedly a typical amusement park movie. The whole film is nothing other than pure physical stimulation. The production team does not have any intention to create a sound monster universe or endow the fictional monsters with humanity. Even if Kong has learned human sign language, Kong is used by the human characters for three tasks: let it fight with Godzilla, take humans to the earth’s core and stop fighting. This autonomous individual with free will and tremendous power is disappointingly depicted as a furious, allegiant pet. Kong should be seen as an equal ally of humans, while the movie puts Kong in a passive relationship of domestication due to human’s fears of an unknown, robust creature. In response to Scorsese’s negative comment, Marvel chief creative officer Kevin Feige said to the Hollywood Reporter that the masses love superhero films because Marvel works are “a communal experience in a movie theater full of people.”

Even among these seemingly magnificent movies made by the Hollywood machine, “Godzilla vs. Kong” is still unqualified to be considered a cinematic narrative. It has been one year since “Avengers: Endgame” came out. Recalling the experience of the 181-minute watching process, what impressed the audience were the deaths of Iron Man and Black Widow along with the solemn, stirring memorials at the end of the film. Empathy and sympathy are the critical components of what Feige called “a communal experience” — a concept which is totally absent in “Godzilla vs. Kong.” The two iconic monsters in motion picture history become toys in this new movie. No one cares about who wins, who loses, who lives and who dies. Both the lizard and the monkey are merely simulated mechanical toys that light up their eyes and roar at you when you pass by and never look back twice. Yuzhu is a freshman in Media. yuzhul2@dailyillini.com

I also, notably, exclude “lightweight” and party-style games such as ASSISTANT “Exploding Kittens” or OPINIONS EDITOR “Cards Against Humanity” that rose to promimost people, the nence via Kickstarter. words “board The most obvious change game” conjure in the industry evolved up images of “Monopoly,” the medium and heavy“Clue” and “Sorry” — fond weight games — the next or torturous moments step a person could take from childhood. To those after playing a game like more in the know, may“Catan.” be games like “Catan” or The modern era pushed “Risk” — games about this subsection of games settling an uninhabited into ones with incrediisland and competing mil- bly high production value, itaries’ quests for world immaculately commisdomination, respectively, sioned artwork, quality pop into mind. tactile components, innoI would never mean to vative game mechanics put down another’s enjoyand narrative worldbuildment or experience with ing. A modern-era board such games, because enjoy- game is an experience. ment is all that really matThree such examples ters. But, for those who include “Wingspan,” “Fog have more jovial memoof Love” and “Root” — ries, I can only entice that although there are not more amusement awaits. many titles you can go And to those who range wrong within the top 200 from apathy to utter disof BoardGameGeek.com’s taste for the medium, give rankings. this new era of games a “Wingspan” is a 2019 chance. game that imagines playWhat is this new era, ers as “bird enthusiasts — though? This requires researchers, bird watchers, dividing the history of ornithologists, and collectabletop games into the tors—seeking to discover pre-Kickstarter and postand attract the best birds Kickstarter periods. to [a] network of wildlife Launched in 2009, Kick- preserves.” starter is a crowdfunding Players roll hefty wooden website where creators can dice, place brightly colored upload proposals for projeggs with their foul and ects — movies, kitchenattempt to create a tableau ware, books, tech, games, of beautifully illustrated etc. — and ask the general species with various abilipublic for the funds neces- ties. Wingspan immerssary to create said project. es players in a beautiful The creator receives the engine-building game and money and, after months won nearly every award in of production, the projits year of release. ect’s supporters receive “Fog of Love” is a 2017 the item they essentially game that immerses two pre-purchased. players into a romantic With Kickstarter, small- relationship from a meettime game designers did cute leading to a break-up not have to secure conor happily ever after. Playtracts with large publishers maneuver the generers such as Asmodee, Fan- al events that accompany tasy Flight Games, Days being a couple — choosing of Wonder or the other where to go for dates, argucouple dozen lucrative ing with in-laws, keeping industry pillars. These secrets and an argument designers began taking or two. their concepts straight to As a bonus, the rule their intended audience book is unnecessary as the via Kickstarter and raised game explains itself to you incredible funds. in little bit-sized cards Selling directly to cusyou read during your first tomers and ensuring a cus- play. If there ever was a tomer base preceding pro- couple’s modern board duction allowed designers game, this is it. to keep a greater percent“Root” is a 2018 war age of revenue by elimigame of cartoon woodland nating middlemen, which animals battling over domopened room for more inance in the forest. The audacious creativity. trick is each player helms Currently ranked as the a species of animals who number one board game of play the game differently all time (by the agreed-upon — the bureaucratic birds industry authority — Board- attempt to keep their govGameGeek.com), “Gloomernment from collapsing, haven” originated in 2017 on the cats try to construct a Kickstarter. That game’s variety of buildings and a sequel, subsequently, rag-tag group of rebellious broke the record for most mice wage guerilla warfare money raised on a single to defend their home. Kickstarter campaign — All three of those titles 12.9 million dollars. Mod- would not exist if it were ern board games are not not for the Kickstarter “Monopoly.” Now, we’re revolution that ushered talking about legitimate in this new “modern” era coinage. of tabletop games. EveryThe industry’s democra- one should try at least one tization — thanks to Kick- modern board game — if starter — lifted first-time for nothing more than designers into prominence, a single exposure to the raised the standards and best of what board games expectations of what have become. games should provide and liberalized any previously Samuel is a junior in LAS. constrained design space. srahma37@dailyillini.com SAMUEL RAHMAN

PHOTO COURTESY OF DEREK BRUFF/FLICKR

The board game “Wingspan” is laid out on a table ready to play. Columnist Samuel Rahman argues that it’s time to stray away from the classics and start playing modern tabletop games.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS | opinions@dailyillini.com with the subject “Letter to the Editor.” The Daily Illini reserves the right to edit for length, libel, grammar and spelling errors, and Daily Illini style or to reject any contributions. Letters must be limited to 300 words. Contributions must be typed and include the author’s name, address and phone number. University students must include their year in school and college.

THURSDAY April 8, 2021 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

SPORTS

MEN’S TRACK & FIELD

PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL GLASGOW/ILLINOIS ATHLETICS

Graduate student Jonathan Wells poses for a photo with a medal from the Big Ten North Florida Invitational on a sunny day. Though his father has passed, he uses it as motivation to continue getting better and stronger.

Wells wins two jumping titles in Jacksonville meet BY CARSON GOURDIE STAFF WRITER

The book “Outliers” by Malcom Gladwell examines how Bill Gates became one of the richest men in the entire world. Was it because he’s the smartest man alive and had the greatest business model ever? While both of those have some truth to it, Gates’ environment growing up — such as having wealthy parents who connected him with International Business Machine as a child — played a part. Illinois track and field star Jonathan Wells is one of the most talented jumpers in the nation, having just won two jumping titles in Jacksonville this past weekend. But as the six-time AllAmerican makes note when discussing one of his favorite books, “Outliers,” he only has so much impact on his own success — though he may be shorting himself with factors he had to deal with.

“Everyone sees the results but not the story,” Wells said. Wells is old. After graduating high school in 2014, the Fox Lake, Illinois native made the move down to Champaign-Urbana, immediately securing a spot as one of the best athletes on the roster. The 2014 state champion in high jump and long jump finished fifth in the conference while qualifying for the NCAA championships as a freshman. But the athlete recognizes that was a long time ago. Due to family emergencies and an extra year of eligibility granted due to the pandemic, Wells is enjoying his sixth year of eligibility at Illinois while taking advantage of completing his Masters in business administration. “For sure,” Wells said regarding whether COVID-19 was a blessing in disguise. ”I always feel that situations happen for a reason, and you can learn for oppor-

tunities to grow. COVID has navigated me to get my MBA and train for the Olympic trials.” Though Wells has become a premier talent in the country, he doesn’t give himself credit for his incredible, steady improvement from an already impressive starting point. Instead, Wells acknowledges the opportunities given to him and chalks up the success he had because of a strong supporting cast. “I am not as talented as I am on paper without my coaches and teammates,” Wells said. “You can have potential, but it’s how you exploit that potential and unlock it.” While Wells credits his coaches, teammates and his dietician for unprecedented success as a member of the track & field program, what Wells’ progressive experiences through college has granted, can’t be chalked up as another big advantage.

Amid his junior season, Wells’ father, Sean, was diagnosed with brain cancer, and he struggled with the impact of chemotherapy. Wells couldn’t stand by and continue a track and field career. He took time away from school so he could go back home and become a caretaker for his father. “I didn’t know it would be three months, and six turned into nine and nine turned into a whole year,” Wells said. His patience was tested, and his athletic ability faced the possibility of dipping alongside his desire to try for the Olympic trials. Even as Wells said putting his life on pause was extremely difficult, he knew he needed to help out a man who had such a significant impact on his life. Wells’ dad, despite battling a deadly disease, didn’t allow the cancer to destroy his outlook on life. While he never stopped bat-

tling, Sean continued to say, “never give up,” a phrase his son has used to further his career on and off the track. Sea n unfor tunately passed away after his battle with brain cancer, but his impact lives on with his son. After the death of his father, Wells got permission to make a T-shirt with the track program that had his father’s famous phrase on it, alongside a cancer symbol. “After he passed away, he wouldn’t want life to be stagnant,” Wells said. “He wants you to use your Godgiven talent, so I came back into the sport.” Despite taking a year away from the track, Wells faced little-to-no fallback as a Big Ten athlete. In a COVID-19 shortened year, Wells finished in the top five in both high and long jump, securing first place in the conference in the high jump. With the passing of his father, combined with a global pandemic, Wells’

collegiate career has been extended through unparalelled hardships. But instead of gaining fatigue, Wells has taken advantage of opportunities given to him and even had to battle the toughest event of his life. Wells has written onethousand-word essays to appeal for an extra year of eligibility. He’s taken time out of his career to help his beloved father, and he’s combined it with the workload of trying to complete an MBA. Wells can claim outside factors have contributed to his success the most, but this Illini of the Week honoree took matters into his own hands and paved his own path toward a very successful career after college. “God has been leading, and I’m glad to be here,” Wells said. @gourdiereport gourdie2@dailyillini.com

FOOTBALL

Coming home: Bielema family reunites after months apart Bret Bielema had been planning a March 26 reunion with his wife, Jen, and young daughters, Briella and Brexli, for months. Not seeing his family since a short stay in New Jersey for Christmas, Bret hoped to hop on a plane by 7 a.m. and take a two-hour flight out to his family’s rental home just to bring them right back to Champaign, so he could be with his family for good. But a few weeks back, Bret received an email that he had to attend a Zoom meeting that morning with all the Big Ten head football coaches. A small wrench had been thrown in his plan and waiting to hold Briella and Brexli, hear their giggles and see their smiles was more than just a minor inconvenience. But Bret and Jen are used to plans changing on a limb. In fact, their entire relationship has revolved around changes much bigger than a two-hour flight delay. The two met when Bret still coached at Wisconsin, so Jen made moved with him to Arkansas, then New England, then New York and now, Champaign. So naturally, Bret adapted, pushed back his flight a couple hours and was warmly welcomed by his family in Jersey late morning. “Oh, I should have gotten it on camera,” Jen said.

“I was just so excited to see him too.” The dogs were barking because (the girls) were screaming, ‘Daddy, Daddy;’ And my oldest, she’s totally a daddy’s girl. And she just embraced him. And he embraced her. And then he had both girls. Like it’s a memory I will remember, but I so wish that I got at least a photo or video of it would have been best. But it was a special moment for all of us.” After the initial excitement of reuniting with her husband, Jen finished packing up her rental home that her, the kids and sometimes Bret occupied for a short nine months. In the meantime, Bret stayed out of the way, letting Jen do her supermom duties while entertaining the girls. “The (kids) were running all around, screaming and yelling,” Bret said. “They had on their Illini outfits. It was funny because we were about ready to get on the plane, and Jen was doing some last-minute things with the house and putting the car seats in the car service. So I was having them play tag inside the house because the house was totally empty, and they’ve never been able to run the length of the house, so they were excited. It was fun.” Those little moments of fun Bret gets to share with

PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL GLASGOW/ILLINOIS ATHLETICS

Illinois head football coach Bret Bielema and his family explore his new office on Dec. 22. The Bielema family hopes to reside in Champaign for the long term. The Bielema family hopes to reside in Champaign for the long term.

his girls are so precious to a father who has such limited time with his family. From the pandemic, which forced Bret into a six-week quarantine with the Giants at the end of July, to the coaching change in December, Bret has spent about half his time in the past year in a hotel or on a plane. Even in a normal year,

the rigorous time commitment it takes to be a pro or collegiate football coach keeps Bret away from his wife and kids more than any of them like. And with the Bielema girls getting older now, the recent move has been the hardest on the family. “My oldest, she’s three, and she definitely is ask-

ing for Daddy more,” Jen said. “So that broke my heart a lot during our time away, because I could see it sometimes in the car. I’m like, ‘Baby, what’s wrong?’ She’s like, ‘I miss Daddy and want to see Daddy.’ And that’s when it’s just like, she knows. She can sense it. And it’s the first time in any of our moves, that she’s been able to

speak her emotions of missing Daddy. “That probably tears my heart the hardest when I can just see it on her. And then she said that, it almost brings tears to my eyes now because I saw it a lot in these last three months, especially in the last month.” SEE BIELEMA | 3B

2B Thursday, April 8, 2021

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

FOOTBALL

Patterson finds new role as running backs coach BY JOSH PIETSCH ASSISTANT ON-AIR EDITOR

his work so far. However, wh at i s changing for Patterson is the players he’s working with. He knew most people on the team already from being around for three years, but Patterson was primarily working with tight ends. Now, as a running backs coach, Patterson moves to a new group of players he hasn’t done much work with. Having been the head coach of Trinity Catholic High School before joining the Illini, he’s confident his experience with coaching multiple groups will work in his favor this year. “Being a high school

coach, you coach almost every position,” Patterson said. “What changes is the little nuances of the position.” A nother benef it Patterson has by moving to the running back group is that he is joining a very skilled squad of rushers. Chase Brown had a br e a kout sophomor e season in 2020, and younger na mes such as Reggie Love, Jakari Nor wood a nd Cha se Hayden are other backs he can use in his system. Despite uncertainty about one key back, Patterson is enjoying the new group he’s working with and said the

group is working together nicely. “I tell them that this room is our room, it’s not my room,” Patterson said. “That’s a serious room. Those guys push each other. Great group, I don’t think I could have asked for a better situation.” Junior Mike Epstein is the one running back with uncertainty around his name, as he is yet to make a decision. Epstein, though, is a difference-maker in multiple ways. Three season-ending injuries later, Epstein had a solid 2020 season and will surely make a difference on the field if he comes back

for the fall. His presence in the locker room, though, is also very important to the Illini. “For us, we want Mike back, but it’s up to him on the decision he has right now,” Patterson said. “Any room is better when you got a Mike Epstein in it.” Even if Epstein doesn’t stay, Patterson has a great group to work with. And with this new group of players comes a change in culture, something multiple players have alluded to so. Each player that’s been asked about the new coaching staff has said that something feels different

in the locker room, and Patterson agrees. The new culture of the team is a new look for the Illini, and Patterson is all for it. “The family deal, when everybody hears it, it feels like a trending thing, but it really feels that way in this building,” Patterson said. “When you walk in here it feels completely different. ... It’s just a huge change.” Patterson will get his first in-game experience as running backs coach on April 19 during the annual spring game.

Illinois football running backs coach Cory Patterson was the lone coach retained by Bret Bielema from Lovie Smith’s coaching staff. Patterson is moving to coaching running backs after spending the past three years with the tight ends. He is adjusting to not only a new coaching staff, but to a new group of players in his new position as well. Bielema has shown he wants to have an almost brand-new start for the players as far as coaches @JPietsch14 go, but he has expressed pietsch3@dailyillini.com excitement when announcing Patterson would be stay ing in Champaign. For Pat terson, the decision to stay wasn’t difficult either. He played an important role in recruiting over the past couple years, but he was even more impressed with what Bielema brings to the table for Illinois. “He shows it every day,” Patterson said. “The way he talks with his players, the way he interacts with us, he’s the type of guy you wanna coach for. You sit around him and not get anything done ‘cause he’s always working his tail off. I mean that’s the beautiful thing.” Patterson also commented on the new staff as a whole, and he mentioned how great it’s been to work with his new colleagues. “It’s been a lot closer,” Patterson sa id. “The group as a whole, this staff, everybody seems to work together real well. Coach B did a phenomenal job of personalities together. He found guys that not only work hard but are gonna work hard together.” Patterson also noted that his job as a recruiter has gotten easier, crediting PHOTO COURTESY OF ILLINI ATHLETICS Bielema with his recruiting Illinois running backs coach Cory Patterson runs through a drill with a few players. Patterson is coming up on his fourth season with the Illini and is the only coach efforts and complimenting Bret Bielema kept from Lovie Smith’s staff.

WE HAVE

OFFICIAL RCH ME

NOW!!

Get your official WPGU 107.1 FM merch at

redbubble.com/people/wpgu/shop · T-shirts · Stickers

· Hoodies · Tote Bags

· Phone Cases · And More!

We ordered

15 EXTRA YEARBOOKS! Order yours today!

100

(Includes domestic shipping; International shipping $50 extra)

Order your yearbook online at

illioyearbook.com or call 217-337-8314

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Thursday, April 1, 2021

WOMEN’S TENNIS

CAMERON KRASUCKI THE DAILY ILLINI

Head coach Evan Clark waits for Kate Duong and Ashley Yeah to cool down before giving them some tips during their doubles match against Wisconsin Feb. 26. Clark has transformed the program since taking over as head coach in 2016.

Clark sets lofty expectations, serves new challenges BY WILL PAYNE STAFF WRITER

Over the past few years, the Illinois women’s tennis team has seen a resurgence on the court, and this all began with the arrival of head coach Evan Clark in 2014. Clark began his time at Illinois as an assistant coach. He had spent the previous two seasons as the head coach of University of North Carolina Wilmington, where he finished his tenure with a record of 31-11 and earned the Colonial Athletic Association’s Coach of the Year honors. Despite his success on the east coast, when the opportunity came for Clark to come to Champaign, he did not want to pass up the opportunity. “With being an assis-

FROM 1B

BIELEMA Back in New Jersey, the girls were in preschool, which kept them occupied during the day and let Jen focus on the move, but after school got out, FaceTimes or phone calls to Bret were a constant. The family “lived vicariously” through them. Jen would sometimes give Bret a call on the way to or from school, during dinner, bath times or before bed, just so the girls could feel connected to their father. With Jen, Briella and Brexli now in Champaign for good, those interactions through the phone have finally ended. Because spring football at Illinois is underway, Bret is still mainly occupied by work, but he can now be a part of dinner conversations, read bedtime stories and even help with preschool pick ups every so often. But with the girls being so young, there’s still a layer of confusion and doubt that their father isn’t here to stay. “(Sunday) I had them all morning, then we were going to leave the offices,” Bret said. “My youngest, Brexli, was like, ‘Daddy, are you coming with?’ We came back to my hotel for a minute, then tonight when we were putting them down, I had to come back to the office and make some recruiting calls. And they were like, ‘When will I see you again?’ and I’m like, ‘I’m here, baby, I’m with you. You’ll see me every day.’ So every time I’m leaving them they think I’m leaving for a long time.” It’s no secret Bret is an emotional man when it comes to his family. Illinois fans and followers witnessed that when tears were shed during his introductory

tant, I knew there was a lot of potential at Illinois, as the tennis programs have always been strong,” Clark said. “I was fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time.” After one year as an assistant with the Illini and another as interim head coach, on June 10, 2016, Clark was named the head coach of the Illinois women’s tennis team. At his press conference when he was named head coach, Clark had the goal of building on the progress that was made during his season as the interim head coach and soon turning the program into a “national contender annually.” Whenever a new coach comes into their position, there is always a change in mindset throughout

press conference while Bret discussed his wife and kids. While Bret is comfortable showing that side of himself to the media, or team or Jen, it’s something he keeps from Briella and Brexli. Whenever he has to say goodbye to them, he typically finds a way to sneak out of the house to shed those tears in private. He would never want to make his girls more upset. But Jen always sees that side of Bret, a side that has evolved throughout their marriage as the couple has watched their kids begin to grow up. Seeing Bret and the girls together, playing games or doing daddy-daughter date night or hanging out in the office has brought Jen a much-needed sense of comfort. “My husband’s definitely a very sentimental, sensitive guy,” Jen said. “He really cares. He loves his girls, as daddies do, but he misses them, and he really misses them hard when he misses them because he knows he doesn’t get to necessarily be there for everything. If he could be in two places at once, I know that he would love that, as many of us would. But he loves his girls, and they love him back hard, so I know just us all being in the same town is just nice. It feels like we’re home again. It’s just felt like we’ve been this broken house, if you will, because he was in Champaign, and we were there.” Champaign is a new home for both Bret and Jen, but there’s a sense of “familiarity” with the town. The Bielemas are now just a couple hours away from Prophetstown, Bret’s hometown, and Chicago, the city where Jen and Bret had their first official date. Being back in the Midwest, the heart of the Big Ten, is also a famil-

the facilities, regardless of the sport or school. A new recruitment process, training regimen and strategies all come into play; however, Clark made the transition happen seamlessly. “It wasn’t any thing earth-shattering,” Clark said. “But we changed the culture pretty quickly, in terms of how everything was going to work, while putting in my system.” Under Clark, the Illini have become one of the strongest women’s tennis programs in the Big Ten, consistently finishing in the top of the conference. In Clark’s first three seasons at the helm, the Illini compiled an overall dual record of 52-31, including a 25-10 mark in the Big Ten. Along with the great play

on the court during those seasons, players on the Illinois tennis team under Clark also had a perfect graduation rate. During the 2017-18 season, Clark led Illinois to one of its best seasons in school history. The Illini finished the regular season with a whopping 22 wins and a berth in the NCA A tournament for the first time in eight years. “In rankings, we got to five in the country that year, and if you were to tell me we’d be number five, I would have said you were crazy,” Clark said. “We definitely got there a bit quicker than I thought in 2018, but the personnel was all there, with the upperclassmen and four freshman.” One of the ways to make

any collegiate team up their game is by putting them against the best competition in the country year in, year out. When Clark got the head coaching job, he knew it was time for the Illini to up their competition if they wanted to regain national respect. “One big thing that changed when I took over was the schedule,” Clark said. “And so we played a really competitive schedule when I began and ever since then. The year we got to five in the country, we beat pretty much all of the top ten teams in the country. That was a tough thing to do, but we were fortunate enough to win a lot of those matches. But that is always going to be our philosophy; we are going to play tough opponents.”

Fast forward to the current season, and the first recruiting class Clark brought to Champaign are all seniors now. Though the previous season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is safe to say Clark has done well so far as head coach. After a slow start to the season, the team has been playing well as of late. The Illini sit at 6-7 during a year in which they are only facing off against Big Ten opponents. As Illinois looks to finish the end of the year strong ahead of the Big Ten tournament later this month, this group will look to Clark for guidance on how to be at their best. @will_payne33 wpayne2@illinimedia.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF JEN BIELMA

Jen Bielema and her daughters, Briella and Brexli, take a photo in a box suite overlooking Memorial Stadium Saturday.

iar feel for the couple. But most importantly, Champaign feels like the Bielemas’ forever home. While they’re staying in a rental home for now, they are building a brand new house close to campus. “Illinois was special for us, because we are back in the Big Ten, and we love the Big Ten,” Jen said. “We’re close to home. It’s like the perfect world for us, which is why we’re building and really hoping to plant forever roots here. And this isn’t a stepping stone for us. We love college football. The NFL is great, too. We just love football. But we’re thrilled to be back in the Big Ten, thrilled to be back in college football and all of what that entails.” Dedicated to making this

his family’s home for potentially decades to come, Bret designed an entire wing dedicated to recruiting visits and remote work, featuring the “Illini Way,” which will include some of his football memorabilia, like Big Ten and Lombardi trophies. While no head coach has spent a decade or more at Illinois since Ray Elliot from 1942-1959, Bielema wants to rewrite history, and Jen has luckily always been on board. “When we were designing the house, we were talking about the number of cars to fit in the garage. And (Jen) said we’ll have to have room for the (girls’) cars and I’m like, ‘Jen, she’s three, we have 13 years.’ But it’s exactly where both of our minds are. I started laughing because

I was thinking the same thing.” Though the longterm move into the new house won’t be for about a year, Bret and Jen are just excited to start sharing the little moments together with Briella and Brexli, along with getting to know the Illini community. And while Bret will get most of the spotlight during their years in Champaign, as the head football coach always does, he knows getting to this point in his life and football career would be impossible without Jen. “I think as men we always gravitate to, you know, comfort and doing the same things,” Bret said. “You know, men always want to wear the same shirt, same hats, the same shoes. And

Jen has always driven me to get out of my comfort zone and to embrace things that I’m not familiar with. I don’t think I would ever have gotten that from anybody else but her. Because usually when you’re head coach, nobody tells you to do things to get uncomfortable, but she always does. And she does it in the right way. “And the jobs here that we have with our children, I mean, she knows more than anything how important those girls are to me. And the things we sacrifice and the things she does to make sure that’s always in check is something that’s really special.” @gabby_h11 ghajduk2@dailyillini.com

4B Thursday, April 8, 2021

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

29. Jul 2010

CLASSIFIEDS THE DAILY ILLINI 4 7 1 9 3 6 8 2 5

Announcements

8 3 2 7 1 4 5 6 9

2 6 5 8 1 4 7 3 9

9 5 4 2 6 3 8 7 1

9 8 3 5 2 7 1 4 6

6 1 7 9 8 5 3 2 4

1 4 2 7 5 8 9 6 3

4 8 3 1 5 7 6 9 2

7 5 8 6 9 3 2 1 4

7 6 1 3 9 2 4 5 8

3 9 6 1 4 2 5 8 7

5 2 9 6 4 8 1 3 7

5 3 9 4 8 1 6 7 2

1 7 5 8 3 9 2 4 6

8 2 7 3 6 9 4 5 1

3 9 8 4 2 6 7 1 5

www.dailyillini.com/classifieds

Needs Your Help!

6 1 4 2 7 5 3 9 8

2 4 6 5 7 1 9 8 3

Sign in to set up an account with us. Pricing is available on the site upon login. You can place ads in The Daily Illini print publications on Mondays and Thursdays, or on our dailyillini.com website, or both. 5 1 3 2 8 6 7 4 9

7 5 4 1 2 8 3 6 9

2 8 4 1 7 9 3 6 5

8 1 3 9 4 6 2 5 7

6 7 9 3 5 4 8 1 2

4 3 7 8 9 5 6 2 1

1 6 5 7 2 3 4 9 8

1 9 6 3 7 2 5 8 4

9 3 2 8 4 5 1 7 6

2 8 5 6 1 4 9 7 3

7 4 8 9 6 1 5 2 3

3 2 9 5 8 1 7 4 6

3 9 7 5 1 2 6 8 4

6 4 1 2 3 7 8 9 5

8 5 6 4 9 7 2 3 1

5 7 8 4 6 9 1 3 2

4 2 1 6 3 8 9 5 7

4 2 9 6 8 5 1 3 7

1 8

Submit a news tip to news@dailyillini.com

8 1 9 3 6 5 4 7 2

9 5 6 2 1 4 7 8 3

7 8 4 5 3 9 2 6 1

1 2 3 6 8 7 5 9 4

THE BEST WAY TO KEEP UP WITH THE NEWS

9 1

6 2

Enter the numbers 1-9 in the blank spaces so that each row, column and 3x3 square contains only one of each number. There is only one solution. (solution in Classifieds and online at www.dailyillini.com).

7 6

3 4 5 8 7 2 9 1 6 S U A F Y O

6 5 3 4 7 1 2 8 9

E N S L E R

G A G A

8 1 7 9 3 2 5 4 6

6 7 2 4 9 1 3 5 8 D I N E R O

P L O P

9 7 2 3 6 8 4 5 1

2 6 1 9 5 3 8 4 7

T E R M

3 6 8 1 5 4 9 7 2

4 9 7 1 2 8 6 3 5 A V E R

1 4 5 2 9 7 8 6 3

N C E D E S

5 9 4 7 1 3 6 2 8

5 3 8 7 4 6 1 2 9 F R A A I R R NBA B I O S E L E Y C E E A A S N A M A U T E D E T I R E T A G U NBA N Y C U P O N T N

2 3 6 8 4 9 7 1 5

A C H A B O U T E W B O C L S A L L A P S O N S B A J P O S T O N O R T O U S N T H O H O P S T I

7 8 1 5 2 6 3 9 4

D A N NBA C K G U E C K H E R A N I L A R E S S P P I S A NBA O U L U L L

SKILL:

The Daily Illini relies on inside sources to break news to the campus community. If you have information everyone needs to know, we want to hear from you.

Deadline: 11:00 a.m. one business day prior to publication

B E A

Sudoku 1

9 6 2 7 5 3 4 1 8

In addition to PAID ads for commercial businesses, we offer FREE ONLINE ads to UIUC students who sign into their accounts with “Illinois.edu” addresses.

I C H I R O

Announcements

THE DAILY ILLINI

Classified advertisers can now place print and online classified ads directly at:

F A T W A S

Announcements

29. Jul 2010

1 2

THE DAILY ILLINI 5

READ ONLINE AT

dailyillini.com 6

Use the QR code to sign up for our newsletter and get headline news sent to your email!

2 1

ON SOCIAL MEDIA

dailyillini.com

Thanks for working hard to keep our campus safe.

We can do this. covid19.illinois.edu

4 7

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Thursday, April 8, 2021

Programs offer bike education BY BRIDGET BASTEIN

buzz calendar

STAFF WRITER

The University campus is a great place to bike because of its flat terrain, access to many paths and bike lanes and pretty scenery. Biking is a mode of transportation that’s healthy for the body and the environment that can be used as a quick way to get to class or as a socially distanced activity to do with friends. Biking is such a prominent part of life on campus for many, and the campus has resources available for bikers. One resource is The Bike Project and its affiliated Campus Bike Center. Patrick Barko is a volunteer at The Bike Project and Jacob Benjamin is the manager of the Campus Bike Center shop, and they talked about the important work these organizations are doing. Barko described TBP as the umbrella nonprofit organization that operates the CBC as a co-op with Campus Recreation. The goal of these programs is to promote biking, bike safety and knowledge about bikes by making it more accessible and affordable to own and maintain a bike. Both programs have workshops with specialized repair tools, extra parts and knowledgeable volunteers that teach members how to repair and build bikes. These programs ensure that those on campus and in the broader C-U community get the greatest value at the lowest cost. A year long membership is only $30 or free with the purchase of a refurbished bike or the completion of a fixed number of volunteer hours, while an individual tune-up at a typical shop costs $60 to $120. Much of the work these programs do focuses on reducing their environmental impact. A lot of bikes end up going to waste because they are abandoned at apartments or are junked after something breaks. These programs collect and accept donations of abandoned and unused bikes from around the community and reuse them. If the bike is

BY RUKAYAH HUSSEIN BUZZ CALENDAR EDITOR

The buzz calendar is a compilation of events happening in the Champaign-Urbana area. Follow our top picks in Monday’s and Thursday’s papers for ideas on what to do on any night of the week, from where to eat to what to watch. Want to submit an event? Email calendar@readbuzz.com.

THURSDAY, APRIL 8TH

2021 School of Art + Design Faculty Exhibition ABE BAALI THE DAILY ILLINI

Campus Bike Center workers make repairs to a few bicycles on Tuesday afternoon. The Bike Project is a program that works towards promoting bike safety and knowledge.

in poor condition, its parts will be recycled. Benjamin said they’ll take as many parts as possible, even down to scrap metal, which means they have a lot of specific parts that are hard to find in shops and ordering online would be more expensive. Being able to have the tools and knowledge to teach people to repair their bikes prolongs the life of these bikes instead of being replaced because manufacturing and shipping have their own environmental impact. The CBC also partners with the Chicago-based nonprofit Working Bikes by sending them extra bikes they can’t use, and Working Bikes will repair and redistribute those bikes to those in need in both the local Chicago and global communities. Unfortunately, the pandemic has put limitations on the services these programs offer. Both were shut down for quite a bit and had to change policies after opening to maintain a safe environment. TBP’s downtown Urbana shop is now open on an appointment-only basis for sales, and the workshop is closed because many of its regular volunteers did not return to campus. The CBC is now open to the community as long as visitors show negative

COVID-19 test results. The shop also now has individual, distanced tool stations that are regularly sanitized, and they provide latex gloves as well. One challenge one of the shop managers reported was the difficulty of teaching someone to repair a bike since it’s a very hands-on process. Due to the pandemic, volunteers need to come up with creative solutions in order to teach from a safe distance. The CBC has also seen fewer people come by because the pandemic keeps many people at home, and it also prevented them from hosting their grand reopening at their new location on East Gregory Street. Since the weather has gotten warmer, though, and more people have found out about the move, things have started to pick up again. The CBC will also be proceeding with some events related to both riding bikes and fixing them up. While the pandemic may have limited these programs’ functions, TBP and CBC truly have still been able to serve the community. Barko and Benjamin both encourage those interested in biking to reach out and come pay them a visit at their respective shops.

 10 a.m.-4 p.m.  Krannert Art Museum, 500 E. Peabody Drive, Champaign  Free The 95th annual Faculty Exhibition highlights current work by School of Art + Design faculty in studio arts, art education, craft, new media and design disciplines. The exhibition represents excellence in arts research and practice, as well as the collaborative relationship between the School of Art + Design and Krannert Art Museum.

Art Talk Thursday: Blair Ebony Smith talks about Homemade, with Love: More Living Room

 4 p.m.  Virtual event hosted by Krannert Art Museum  Free, registration required Art Talk Thursday brings you the opportunity to learn about art at Krannert Art Museum in a social, relaxed atmosphere. This month’s event will feature Blair Ebony Smith, DRIVE Postdoctoral Fellow in Art Education and curator of Homemade, with Love: More Living Room.

FRIDAY, APRIL 9TH

Quarantine Comedy with Arab American comedian Amer Zahr

 5:30 p.m.  Virtual event hosted by Arab Student Association  Free, registration required Join us and comedian Amer Zaher, writer of “Being Palestinian Makes me Smile” and creator of the documentary “We’re Not White,” for an evening of Quarantine Comedy and a discussion on Amer Zahr’s experience goring up Arab and learning the Arabic language and culture.

Spring Prairie Skies

 7 p.m.  Virtual event hosted by the Staerkel Planetarium  Free A virtual, live-narrated tour of the wonders of tonight’s sky, accompanied by some of the legendary stories of the ancient sky. Find out what constellations and planets are visible tonight and how to find them. This show is updated seasonally and is intended for all ages.

SATURDAY, APRIL 10TH

Champaign-Urbana Winter Farmers Market

 8 a.m.-11 a.m.  Lincoln Square, 201 Lincoln Square, Urbana  Free Shop from all of your favorite, local, craft, food, and farm vendors indoors at Lincoln Square Mall. Masks and social distancing will be required in the space and limits on the number of shoppers that can be in the market area at the same time will be in effect.

bastien3@readbuzz.com

Housing Find your next home with

The Daily Illini Start and end your housing hunt today! housing.dailyillini.com

buzz

THURSDAY April 8, 2021 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

Influencer scandals, cancel culture increases tension BY BECCA BERTRAM STAFF WRITER

Over the past several years and recent months, we’ve seen the rise of YouTubers and TikTok stars. Influencers have appeared on talk shows like “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and are arguably as famous as some A-list celebrities. With this fame we have also seen a rise in scandals involving these influencers, and some of these have turned into real, serious allegations. Some people are defending the influencers involved, saying they were young and didn’t know or it wasn’t their fault, while others are stressing the importance of holding these influencers accountable and arguing that serious consequences need to be enforced. One of the most recent controversies involves YouTuber David Dobrik and the “Vlog Squad,” or Dobrik’s internet posse. Dobrik and the Vlog Squad are currently facing serious allegations after former members have spoken about mistreatment and sexual assault claims against Dobrik and former Vlog Squad member Dominykas Zeglaitis, also known as Durte Dom. On June 2, former Vlog Squad member Seth Francois uploaded a video to YouTube titled “Accountability to

all Content Creators,” opening with a clip of Francois and Dobrik’s ex-girlfriend and actress, Liza Koshy. Dobrik can be heard exclaiming, “It’s a Black guy!” when introducing Francois to Koshy, who is also Black. Francois also included clips from past Vine videos and said white creators often take advantage of Black creators by using them as an excuse to say and do offensive things. At the end of June 2020, Dobrik used two minutes of his VIEWS podcast to apologize for his past racist actions, yet he never addressed Francois by name, nor did he apologize for any specific actions. His apology received minor backlash, but Dobrik was able to continue his career as if nothing happened, and Francois was labeled as a “clout chaser,” someone who does certain things to become more popular. The situation escalated when former Vlog Squad member Nick Keswani appeared on an H3 podcast, hosted by Ethan and Hila Klein, which is known for reacting to YouTube drama. Keswani was born with dwarfism and blindness in his left eye, and Dobrik would constantly make fun of his disabilities. Kewswani said that this eventually took a toll on his mental health, which is why he left the group.

A week later, Francois spoke on the H3 podcast and said, “I was touched by someone I did not consent to.” This is a reference to one of Dobrik’s “pranks” involving Vlog Squad member Corrina Kopf and 47-year-old comedian and creator Jason Nash. Francois was told he was going to be kissing Kopf, who was dressed in an old man suit, but they replaced her with Nash without Francois’ consent or knowledge. A similar incident to this one happened a second time as well. Regarding Dominykas Zeglaitis, or Durte Dom, a Business Insider article written by Kat Tenbarge brought attention to another deleted vlog titled “SHE SHOULD NOT HAVE PLAYED WITH FIRE!!” This video involves Dobrik and Zeglaitis and girls they invited over. Throughout the video, they make suggestive comments to the girls, and one of the girls claims that Dobrik provided them with alcohol, despite them being underage. One of the girls also said Zeglaitis pressured her to do things she didn’t want to and that she couldn’t give consent because she was intoxicated. Dobrik’s most recent online activity is his apology videos, where he claims consent is the most important part of his content. He said he should have known the vlog

JULIA EVERSMANN THE DAILY ILLINI

featuring Zeglaitis was inappropriate and that broadcasting that type of behavior is a bad influence on his viewers. As a result of all of the allegations, Dollar Shave Club ended its partnership with Dobrik and will no longer be a sponsor of his podcast. HelloFresh, DoorDash, Audible and long-time sponsor SeatGeek are also no longer planning on working with Dobrik. Dobrik is not the only YouTuber to be “canceled” recently. Other YouTubers, such as Shane Dawson, Tana Mongeau and James Charles have been involved with problematic incidents in the past, but Dobrik’s downfall seemed to happen much quicker than these other YouTubers.’ For example, James

Charles is being accused – for the third time – of talking to minors and sending explicit pictures, but his brand deals have not been taken away, despite him posting pictures of himself at a police station when responding to police reports made by the minors he contacted. Charles has only recently been called out for his actions from his main platform, YouTube, when his original YouTube show “Instant Influencer” kicked him off as the host. This has been the extent of his accountability, though, and there is a stark difference between the way many influencers are treated even by companies that represent many of the same people. For example, Morphe Cosmetics

removed Laura Lee and Jeffree Star products after their controversies, yet it still sells the James Charles Artistry palette. A lot of influencers have gotten away with actual crimes and demeaning their fanbases, making many wonder if anything would change if influencers had their platforms taken away. Many are saying platforms need to start holding their creators accountable, as these creators ultimately represent the platforms’ brand. These scandals and allegations also bring up the question of how much can influencers get away with before they are ultimately canceled for good. rlb4@readbuzz.com

Vision Video connects with listeners through poignant themes BY NATE SUN STAFF WRITER

Somewhere in between the macabre and eccentricity lies a sense of emotional catharsis that post-punk band Vision Video strives to achieve with their brand of poignant, gothic-style rock. With the release of Vision Video’s debut album underway, guitarist and vocalist Dusty Gannon was able to speak about the band’s history, their musical approach and the importance of the community in music. The value of the coteries that music builds has always been integral to Gannon’s cre-

do, and this can be accredited in large to his roots in Athens, Georgia. Athens is home to not only the University of Georgia but also a robust music scene, turning out legendary alternative acts including The B-52’s and R.E.M. It is a place Gannon describes as idiosyncratic and full of life. “You’re constantly hearing about that older musical legacy,” Gannon said. “It’s something that I sort of grew up with in a sort of way.” This legacy would be the foundation for the full-bodied musical presence in the area. “I grew up around here,”

Gannon said. “I remember being a kid and going to outdoor concerts … There’s always music here.” It’s more than just the music scene that left a lasting impact on Gannon, though. The whole culture surrounding Athens was just as important in forming the band’s quirks. In fact, Vision Video got its name from a local video rental store. “You can have this cool community experience without having the whole corporate aspect to it,” Gannon said. “The people that work there were unquestionably weird.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF OLIVIA MEAD

Members of the band Vision Video Dusty Gannon and Emily Fredock pose for a photo. The band connects with listeners on a personal level through their gothic-style rock music.

As such, the band Vision Video serves as a homage to this local gem not only in name but also in spirit. “It embodied what I loved about Athens,” Gannon said, stating that naming the band Vision Video was “a cool way to keep this small thing of Athens alive.” Just like the video store the band revels in peculiarities as their outwardly glitzy sound carries themes of trauma and saturnine elements. “The music is a vehicle for processing things that aren’t necessarily dinner table conversations,” Gannon said. “I want it to sound pleasing first, and then it pulls you into the message.” These gloomy themes are inspired by Gannon’s time in the army and processing the disturbing things he saw. In a way, his songwriting process serves as an abreaction for these experiences. Vision Video’s music is not so overt, though, as it serves to connect with all listeners. “Everybody’s been through some horrible thing in their life,” Gannon said. He explained that a key moral of their music is “understanding that it’s alright that things are not ok.” Gannon also explained the music that inspired Vision Video’s sonic and lyrical aesthetic, noting bands such as

Joy Division and New Order. However, among the postpunk and new wave bands that influenced him, there were many pop artists such as Peter Gabriel and Cindy Lauper. Gannon thinks about The Cure — how they performed a variety of genres throughout their career while remaining fundamentally goth — when talking about how he sees Vision Video. When it comes to writing Vision Video’s music, Gannon describes the process as “frustrating but ultimately fruitful.” Through all of the emotions put in and content they cut to make the best record they can, the project is definitely no easy task. Gannon likens the formation of a song to a sculpture. “You take this big block and chisel it down until it looks like something,” he said. “Once I have a structure of a song, at that point I give it to the band … I write the lyrics after the fact.” Members of the band include Gannon, Jason Fusco on the drums, Dan Geller on bass and Emily Fredock on the keyboard. All of them came together by virtue of the community created by music, and as Gannon affirms, all of them are very close friends who are alike and different at the same time — each friend brings their own spice to

ATTENTION

UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENTS BLANK SPACE RIGHT HERE We’ve got a

and it could be yours for a

DISCOUNTED RATE! 8,000 copies of The Daily Illini are distributed to over 150 locations every Monday and Thursday.

Contact us today at (217) 337-8382! We’re ready to wheel and deal to help you reach your target audience. *Digital advertising available as well.

advertise@illinimedia.com

PUT YOUR AD HERE!

throw into the pot. And just like the sense of community that brought the band together, Vision Video extends it to their fans. Gannon recalled getting messages on social media from listeners who reach out and tell him about how Vision Video’s music touches them. This is the sort of togetherness that Gannon and the band champion. “My biggest interest is in trying to make a difference in whatever ways I can,” Gannon said. Their ethics lie in the fact that their music impassions people more than the number of people it reaches. “At the end of the day, if I’m playing in front of a thousand people or five people, it doesn’t matter,” Gannon said. What matters is if he is “enjoying what (he’s) playing,” and “as long as it’s reaching somebody.” Gannon and Vision Video know they’re weird, and they’re ok with this since they know their music connects deeply with their fans. With this, Gannon leaves us with a moving piece of advice: “We’re all weird. Life gets a lot better when you start embracing all of the strange proclivities about yourself.” nssun2@readbuzz.com