The Flat Hat January 24 2023

FLAT HAT NEWS BRIEF

The Bray-Digges House will be moving from its current location on the campus of the College of William and Mary to the Colonial Williamsburg Historic Area on Charter Day, the morning of Feb. 10. The Bray-Digges House is the original home of the Williamsburg Bray School, an 18th-century building which served previously as an educational facility for enslaved Black children.

“The Bray School has so much to teach us about our nationʼs history, and many who shaped it,” President Katherine Rowe said in a statement. “The Williamsburg Bray School Initiative, and research projects like it, are foundational to William and Maryʼs core mission. We are fortunate to have great partners at Colonial Williamsburg and in the local community to help us tell its story.”

Dendrochronology analysis of the wooden frame of the building was completed in 2020 and confirmed the structureʼs original use as an educational facility for many of Williamsburgʼs enslaved children from 1760-1774. Initial work done in an effort to restore and interpret the structure was made possible in part due to funders including the Gladys and Franklin Clark Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, Truist and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The Bray School building is currently located at 524 Prince George Street on the Collegeʼs campus and will be moved to the intersection of Francis and North Nassau Street in Colonial Williamsburg. The building has most recently housed offices for the Collegeʼs Department of Military Science and has been previously known as Prince George House.

Chief Cheesebro announces Spring 2023 retirement

MOLLY PARKS // FLAT HAT MANAGING EDITOR

After serving the College of William and Mary for eight years, Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of Police Deborah Cheesebro announced her plan to retire at the end of the spring 2023 semester. Cheesebro’s retirement marks the end of her 52-year-long career devoted to public service, including 22 years in university police administration.

2023 marks Cheesebro’s ninth year at the College. She arrived in Williamsburg in 2014 as the College’s rst female Chief of Police. Cheesebro was then elevated to Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of Police, integrating environmental health and safety, risk management and emergency management with the police department.

“When I rst came in, I did a lot of work in changing the culture of the police department, focusing on on the quality of what we do, focusing on meeting the needs of the community, even if that meant that we worked outside of the normal realm of law enforcement and took a broader approach to policing and meeting community needs,” Cheesebro said. “Over the years, taking that tack meant that I was pretty hands-on in some things, especially when I rst got here, and in doing that, being very intentional about team-building within the department. I always think that a police department will go out and treat the community in a way that they’re treated within the agency. So I always start here.”

With a department of about 30 members, including 24 sworn police o cers, Cheesebro noted how proud she is of the community-based culture her team has fostered at the College.

“Everything we have done is, I think, was for the right reason at the right time. I think being a fair and impartial police agency has always been a constant in my mind no matter where I was. To me, there’s no excuse for treating anybody other than with dignity and respect. And I think that for all three positions in the universities, I was able to clearly send that message and build a sta who also believed in it separately,” Cheesebro said.

In her time in university law enforcement, Cheesebro has worked across three campuses. Before coming to the College, she spent ve years at the University of Michigan Police Department and nine years at the University of North Carolina School of Arts Police Department.

Originally from Framingham, Massachusetts, Cheesebro has had a strong work ethic since she was 16 years old and working at her local grocery store. Her rst full-time criminal justice job was in juvenile justice as a youth coordinator. Working all throughout her educational path, Cheesebro received her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from West Virginia State University and her masters in criminal justice with an educational concentration from Michigan State University. She earned a Ph.D. in organizational behavior and development with a concentration in human resources from Union Institute and University.

“ ere’s a high bar here, and I wanted to be part of that,” Cheesebro said. “I think these eight and a half years I have really cherished that … being among the best of the best because it challenges you every day … you come in and say, ‘How can we be better today? How can we do more for the community?’”

e fall 2022 semester was particularly di cult for the College community. e campus community has been in mourning after the deaths of two students. Furthermore, the campus community endured

a shelter in place following an anonymous social media threat.

“Student deaths are the most di cult issue that I deal with personally or professionally. And the same is true for the rest of the team here,” Cheesebro said. “ e national, state, regional incidents that have been occurring take a toll on everybody. I would tell the students, faculty, sta , the whole community that you have a very dedicated group of people here that, day in and day out, work to keep them safe no matter what.”

Cheeseboro addressed that the College’s Police Department is constantly training and discussing what they can do to keep the community safe, including debrie ng incidents from other areas to study what other teams did and what was e ective. She noted that during graduation, she becomes especially re ective.

“Graduation is always my favorite time of the year. We like to think that for every happy graduate, that we had some small piece of keeping them safe when they were here. In partnership with them. And it is a partnership, and I would emphasize that to the students as well. Because it takes all of us to create a safe community,” Cheesebro said. e relationships built with students have been Cheesebro’s favorite part of the job. Between participating in Kappa Delta’s Campus Golf philanthropy event and the pre-COVID-19 campus food ght, Cheesebro has always found the student interactions as some of her most memorable moments. One of her favorite memories on campus was when William and Mary Police Department handed out free beverage tickets to every student in Earl Gregg Swem Library during nals week, wishing the students good luck and reminding them to take study breaks. Cheesebro said she will truly miss continuing to build trusting relationships with students and helping them through any fears or issues they may have, however she is leaving comfortably

knowing the campus safety is in good hands.

“It is a good time for me, personally and professionally,” Cheesebro said on the timing of her retirement. “I know I’m leaving a department that is in excellent shape.”

Upon her retirement at the end of the academic year, Deputy Chief Don Butler will replace Cheesebro as the Interim Associate Vice President for Public Safety and the Chief of Police. Butler has been part of the College’s Police Department for over ten years, since 2012.

Re ecting on her nearly six decades in law enforcement, Cheesebro spoke about what it means to be a police o cer today.

is would be advice to anybody in this eld. Don’t think you’re better than the community you work for … It doesn’t matter who you’re dealing with, whether it’s a student, a faculty or sta member or a city person who might be homeless. e goal should always be the same, and the way you treat everyone should be the same. And again, and I sound like a broken record sometimes, but the baseline of treating everybody with dignity, courtesy and respect, to me, is sacred. And to anybody going into this profession, that’s what’s expected. at’s what makes an e ective o cer,” Cheesebro said.

Cheesebro and her husband plan on spending half of every year with her son and two grandchildren in Michigan. She is looking forward to quality time with her biological family after leaving what she calls her “work family” and the College community.

Obviously, the Congressman should reach out to William and Mary students as the campus is now in his new district. It is important that the Congressman listens to William and Mary students while in Washington.

̶ James George

After nine years at the College, WMPD Chief Deborah Cheesebro is retiring at end of Spring 2023

JACK WIESENBERGER / SUBMISSION TO THE FLAT HAT

ANNA ARNSBERGER / FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR

COURTESY PHOTO / DEBORAH CHEESBRO

After a 52-year career in public service, Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of Police Deborah Cheesebro announced plans to retire in Spring 2023.

Bray-Digges House moving to new location in Colonial Williamsburg Historic Area

ABIGAIL CONNELLY / FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR

The dreaded evening finals slot

Mollie Shi ett THE FLAT HAT

Just recently, finals season was upon us. Now, for most of us, just the thought of finals fills us with dread. However, there are those of us that have had that dread compounded by one thing at the College of William and Mary: the 7-10 pm exam slot.

Now, I will admit to some form of freshman naivete when it comes to finals—their scheduling and other things—but I was extremely surprised to discover that my Intermediate Spanish final would be taking place from 7-10 pm on Monday night.

There are two extreme issues with the nighttime exam slot. One—and this may just be for those of us who aren’t very patient—waiting all day to take an exam is just the worst. There are those of you who would say, “Yeah, but at least you have more time to study.” That may be true, but what do you think I’m going to be doing while I’m studying? That’s right, panicking. Because what that will have done is make me realize that I am absolutely not prepared for the exam that I’m about to take, and then I can think about that all day. Alternatively, if studying is actually helpful, cramming all day will just make me tired, and then I won’t be able to focus come exam time. And, yes, an energy drink would resolve that, but then I would just crash in the middle of the exam. So, all of this leaves me back where I started. Spending all day dreading 7 pm.

The second issue, and perhaps the biggest, is the fact that, at 7 pm, we would all rather be doing something else. Now, maybe that thing would just be studying, or getting some homework done, but it most likely wouldn’t be taking an exam. Even the latest classes here, with the exception of some labs, end at about 6:30. There are those of us who are night owls, and so won’t be

COLUMN

Advice for vegans, by a vegan

Giorgianna Heiko

THE FLAT HAT

I have been vegan for six full years. And while most of that has been filled with enjoyable and gratifying memories, those experiences coincide with some anger, frustration and challenges. This essay is not meant to advocate for or justify veganism. This is simply a how-to guide to navigate universal problems vegans run into and to give some helpful perspective to non-vegans. Out of these universal vegan problems, I have learned the following three lessons.

Lesson number one, make nice with the administration, and help administrators when you can. Whether you’re away at an internship or working as a camp counselor, you must call ahead of time and establish a rapport with the people in charge of feeding you. You don’t want your first interaction with them to be a complaint. And if I know anything, there usually will be one. Maybe the food isn’t substantial, or maybe you literally cannot find your food because it hasn’t arrived yet, or worse, someone forgot to order it.

It’s important to note that most administrators I’ve encountered want to help … until they inevitably realize that our existence is a burden to them; just when they thought they could make a simple order from their favorite pizzeria — think again! Their favorite pizzeria has no vegan cheese, and they need to accommodate you, often by law or policy. But don’t let this “required by law/policy” fool you. The accommodation space is a palatial gray area that could take the form of a BLT … minus the bacon, pizza … minus the cheese or a turkey sandwich … minus the turkey, none of which are substantial vegan meals with plant-based protein. We want instead an FLT (facon rather than bacon), a pizza with cashew-based cheese, or a tofurkey sandwich.

will come up. For non-vegan readers, I want you to know, we’ve heard it all before. “But meat tastes so good!” We know — that’s why we try to imitate it. “I could never go vegan.” Most vegans said that once before too. “Just get cage-free eggs.” Cage-free eggs sound great, until you do your research and find that the label allows businesses to pack chickens in conditions just as horrific as the cages — they fool you on a technicality.

Also, for my non-vegan readers, please know that no one makes the life-altering decision to eat an exclusively plant-based diet without doing extensive research first. Unless you are well-versed in the fields of environmental morals, animal rights and health, your best bet is to not raise these issues in an attempt to argue.

Back to my vegan readers, if a non-vegan does raise these issues in an attempt to persuade you to return to your omnivorous roots, remember, arguments have no place in the environment we want to foster at the dinner table. Just as we get defensive when someone tells us how to live, most meat eaters would get defensive when you tell them that eating meat is immoral if they literally have meat in their mouths, no matter how nicely you say it. If someone brings up your veganism, you must politely try to change the subject. If they persist, be transparent and say you’d rather not talk about it at dinner where the food you are eating becomes a sensitive topic. You can always discuss it at a more appropriate occasion, like a debating club.

scared of the idea of an exam starting at 7 pm, but they probably won’t want to take it. A traditional school schedule, after all, which has been ingrained in all of us through secondary education, ends at about 4 pm, leaving our evenings to do with as we choose. I for one am a little bit resentful to have to miss out on other activities to go sit in a lecture hall and take an exam.

That probably makes me sound a little bit ungrateful, but it’s true. The reason the nighttime exam slot exists is almost certainly so that the College can schedule all exams in a small time slot. You know what, that’s admirable, but also a little unfair. That is for two reasons. Primarily, it gives you less time to study between exams, and, in the worst compounding of that issue, it can lead to double exam days. This semester, I have my Psych final from 2-5 pm on Monday, and then my 7-10 Spanish exam that same day. So I get the pleasure of stressing about two things for the exact same amount of time.

Now, to me, there seems to be a perfectly clear solution to this. Option A, extend finals week to give students more time to study—which I recognize would be unpopular for the sole reason that it keeps us all here longer.

Or, there’s Option B, which is to allow students to self-schedule their exams. This is the policy at other institutions such as Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts—disclaimer, my mom’s alma mater. In selfschedule exams, you’re given a period of time, normally about a week, where you can take your exam from anytime from 9 in the morning to 4:30 in the afternoon. Admittedly, Smith is a much smaller school than the College, but it would be interesting to see such a program implemented school wide to provide each student their best opportunity to succeed during finals.

MollieShiflett’26isanundecidedmajorwhowillprobablyendup majoringinHistory.SheplaysontheGoldWomen’sClubSoccerteamfor theCollegeofWilliamandMaryandisanavidfanofmostsports,except golf.EmailMollieat mrshiflett@wm.edu.

Earl the Squirrel Issue 2

To make the administrators’ lives even easier, give them a list of plant-based proteins ahead of time, and better yet, a list of restaurants that have those proteins. Not only is the administration more inclined to help you because you are helping them, but even when they make a mistake, or what is too-often the case, no longer want to take the extra couple of steps to accommodate a vegan, you can say to them “there’s nothing on here that’s on the list of plant-based proteins I gave you.” Though it shouldn’t be a battle, sometimes it is, and now you’ve won.

Lesson number three, when people do ask about your veganism, be polite, have answers prepared and be humble — there is a chance that someone brings up a good point that will really make you think. Encourage discourse on veganism, even if someone asks leading questions designed to make you trip. This may take some practice. Let’s start with a real example of what someone has said to me: “My friend is diabetic. She can’t go vegan. Some vegans are so disrespectful about that.” Here is how I replied, starting with positively acknowledging her decision to have discourse about veganism. “I’m sorry to hear about your friend,” then, establishing my humility, “I’ve heard of vegan diets helping and even curing some forms of diabetes. I wonder where she got that information.” She responded with, “Huh, I don’t know.” Regardless of whether that woman actually listened to what I said, I have established my trust with her for future conversations because I chose not to say, “Your ignorant friend is making things up!” No matter what, you cannot get mad at people even when they are mad at you for your choices, as this woman was clearly implying. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.” Our goal as vegans is for non-vegans to understand us, our morals and our way of life.

Lesson number two, raising objections to an omnivore eating an omnivorous meal is not, how shall we say, polite dinner conversation. This can be a real challenge for some vegans. Most of us are vegans for moral reasons, and we are very passionate about our cause. But perhaps even more important than making nice with the administration is making nice with our loved ones. The dinner table is where we socialize, make communion and bond with others. But without fail, your veganism

In conclusion, my fellow vegans, I advocate that we be understanding of non-vegans’ limitations regarding their knowledge of veganism. Let’s not contribute to the vegan stereotypes that we are divisive, dogged and difficult. We must help others to help us. And we must allow others to explore our minds and morals on these sensitive issues in as comfortable an environment as possible.

GiorgiannaHeiko’25isanEnglishMajorandprospectiveCreativeWritingminor.Sheisco-President oftheLiberalStudentsLeague,adebateclub,andhas beencastinthewinterplayAMid-SummerNight’s Dream as the character Puck. She is also involved in theCreativeWritingClubandtheGalleryLiterary Magazine.Youcanemailherat grheiko@wm.edu.

COMIC

COMIC BY TOBY KANT / COMIC BOOK CLUB PRESIDENT

though it shouldnʼt be a battle, sometimes it is, and now youʼve won

...cramming all day will just make me tired, and then i wonʼt be able to focus come exam time.

Word is better than docs, and I’m not scared to say it

Grill THE FLAT HAT

There’s a disease going around this campus.

Now don’t panic - you probably won’t catch it if you’re safe. You don’t need to wear a mask to avoid it, but if you collaborate with a certain demographic of students on campus, it might slowly spread into your laptop during group projects and take over your browsers before you can even realize it. I’ve felt its pressure, but I’m happy to say I’ve come out on the other side unscathed.

Luckily for you, I’m here to bring this epi- demic into light. I don’t seek praise or notoriety – I’m just a student, looking out for my fellow class- mates who I care very deeply about.

This problem –this sick- ness – might even live in many of you, so take this as a warning before this gets too harsh.

There is a strong consensus around the College of William and Mary that Google and its associated apps are superior to Microsoft and its applications. Docs over Word. Sheets over Excel. Google Drive over OneDrive. And I’m here to say that this ridiculous theory could not be farther from the truth, and hopefully, with some work, switch students to the right side of this battle with Microsoft.

Now I imagine that some of you Google-defending readers have already come up with a counter to fire back at me, but don’t think I’ve come into this topic without doing some research first. I already know what Microsoft’s first “major problem” is – the whole “nothing ever saves” debacle. Here’s how I imagine people came across this travesty: You’re in elementary school, and it’s time to use those fancy big computers with all the games! You type out your acrostic poem on Word like your teacher tells you to, rush to click out of the app, and hop on to Cool Math Games to play some Run. Then, when it’s time to read the work of art you’ve created for your class’s poetry reading… oh no! It’s gone! You think, “How can I ever trust Word? This won’t ever save my stuff!”, and the first time you use Docs, you’re sold.

It doesn’t have to be just like that, but I imagine there is one similar aspect in everyone’s independent Microsoft horror stories. User error. Luckily, Microsoft apps (and you) have gotten smarter and better at making sure documents, projects or graphs don’t get lost.

Just like Google uses Google Drive, Microsoft uses OneDrive. Once someone’s OneDrive is paired with an account, every file opened on any Microsoft application also connected to the same account will automatically prompt you to save it somewhere, and even suggest that it be saved to your individual OneDrive. Those files can be accessed on any device and be shared to anyone with an email.

Boom - major complaint against Microsoft has been dismantled. But I’m not here to tell you why Word, PowerPoint and Excel are just as good as their Google counterparts. I’m here to show why they’re better.

To do so, I turn to the quality of each app. A problem arises for Google already. If you haven’t noticed, there are no downloadable apps for Google applications. Every time you want to jot something down on Docs, slow down for a second - have fun opening your web browser first! I want an app that I can just click on and open – like any Microsoft app has – and can be accessed even if the internet connection is disrupted. Trust me, Doc users, I’ve seen your pain when the internet crashes.

I was sitting in psychology the other day when my friend Isabelle’s laptop couldn’t connect to the Wi-Fi. I watched her click on every button imaginable on her laptop as a warning message floated over her Doc, preventing her from typing a single word on the page. I laughed. Hard. If only she was typing on Word…

Google users can actually access documents offline, though – they just have to download a browser extension, mark files to be available “Offline” before said file is used, and then cry when they realize they forgot to mark a different file that they really needed but now can’t use. Easy-peasy!

Let’s say a Google-user’s application of their desire is finally open. Here’s what I challenge them to do – open its Microsoft counterpart and compare the apps visually. Whether its Word, PowerPoint or Excel, every app simply looks more user friendly than what Google offers. Things are better labeled and easier to understand. There is color on each heading. There are even graphics to help find certain areas you may want to edit.

On top of that, Microsoft offers better features, too. For this example, I turn to PowerPoint and Slides. I made two identical presentations, one on each app. They each had a title slide labeled “Title” and one single slide of content, on which I put one bulleted point and a picture of a dog. PowerPoint immediately suggested ten plus formats I could use to make my slide look better. Google offered zero ideas and accepted my ugly slide. Microsoft wants you to succeed! Google wants to laugh at artistically challenged people like me. Sad.

I know that the College just made the switch to Microsoft this year. I also know that most upperclassmen probably think that I’m just some freshman who never got to experience the bliss of living in a Google-filled society on campus. I sympathize with their discomfort towards scary Outlook and OneDrive – it’s a big change!

It’s not. I lied, similar to how people who say Docs is better than Word are lying to themselves.

At the end of the day, I am just a kid with an opinion. I’m more than open to hearing any pro-Google’ers out about why they think I’m wrong. Just send me an email over Outlook, and I’ll be happy to get back to you.

MaxGrill’26isnotevenremotelysurewhathewantsto majorin.HeisfromPhiladelphiaandloveswatchingthe Phillies,talkingaboutthePhillies,andreadingaboutthe Phillies.Inhissparetime,youmayfindhimengagedinan intensegameofSpeedChess.Ifyouwanttoplayhim,email mbgrill@wm.edu.

Going home for the holidays

been three-ish months since I had last been there.

On revisiting favorite spots

Before Thanksgiving break, I had yet to go home post move-in, making this the longest stretch I have ever been away from my childhood home.

I stayed on campus for fall break, I’ve had my parents come visit me here and I’ve simply called to stay in touch with friends and family. Some of you may relate to this narrative, others less so, but where I’m from this is highly unusual.

Most of my hometown friends have had their homecomings twice and thrice already (granted, they’re a lot closer to home than I am). My take on going home for the first time is colored by the norms of my hometown, my personal opinions, my previous experiences and the experiences I’ve had here on campus, so bear that in mind as you continue reading.

Spice level 1:

On (briefly) living at home again

Have you ever been told that your house has a distinct smell, but could never smell it yourself? My first shock once home was picking up a note of that scent (not in a bad way, it doesn’t reek like my dorm does). I actually felt so offkilter that I had to stand in my kitchen for a second and just look around — I felt like everything was both different and the same, or maybe it was just me that was different? I spent the first day or two aimlessly wandering around my house, opening drawers and cupboards, looking for anything that had changed. Either way, those first few moments back home were neither good nor bad, just weird for me. It was like opening a time capsule, even though it had only

Oh, this was absolutely wonderful. That’s really all I have to say about it — I had really been craving a latte from my favorite coffee place back home, I missed my favorite stores downtown and I missed my car and driving those familiar roads like you wouldn’t believe. It was so refreshing to go back to those familiar places. Even though I adore new experiences and pretty much always crave novelty, it was just nice not to have to look at menus or maps for a little while.

Spice level 2:

On seeing old friends

This, unsurprisingly, was a bit of a mixed bag. I’ve grown up with most of my hometown buddies, so coming to college was the first time I’ve ever been without them. In some cases, we had a joyous reunion — so much to talk about, lots to show and tell and a clear intuition that we are in the same place in life right now. In other cases, I was shocked to find that we have already grown in almost completely different directions, and so had very little to talk about. Whether the experience was good or bad, seeing my old friends made me really miss my buddies here on campus. For me, it was eye-opening on how much more comfortable and at home I feel with my friends here than with (most of) my friends from my hometown.

Spice level 3:

On cuisine

We all rag on dining hall food, but I’m ashamed to say it: I actually started to miss some Sadler cuisine while away. That’s not to say I’d prefer

it to the delicious home cooking I had while on break, but let’s just say I was really craving one of those giant waffles from the dining hall. Maybe it was just that I was missing dinner with my friends a little bit, but I was dying to be back in that ambient, fluorescently lit atmosphere of the dining hall after a long day.

On sleeping

Honestly, the biggest shock for me was sleeping in my bed at home and actually ACHING for my bed back here on campus. I thought I’d hit the pillows like a rock at home, but I actually struggled to sleep for a while. Instead, I collapsed in random corners of my house, even falling asleep on my poor mother for more than two hours after Thanksgiving dinner. I think I slept more on my couch than I did in my actual bed.

These were just some of my experiences from going home for the first time since move-in and months of living virtually on my own for the first time in my life. Maybe some of this will change with time or perspective, but I found the whole experience a little jarring. I also came back to campus with a little more homesickness than what I left with, which is something I didn’t expect. “Home for the Holidays” has a whole new meaning to me now — for the holidays, you truly can’t beat home sweet home, no matter how jarring, melancholic or all-around weird it may be.

GraceSaunders’26isaprospective chemistryandeconomicsdoublemajor fromRoanoke,Virginia.Inherspare time,shecanbefoundlisteningto TaylorSwift,tryingtoreplicaterecipes fromtheGreatBritishBakingshow andprobablyreadingherchemistry textbook.EmailGraceat sgsaunders@wm.edu

On the names of math classes

Jutt FLAT HAT OPINIONS EDITOR

I came to the College of William and Mary not sure what I wanted my major to be. My frontrunner for a while was government. Then one day my freshman fall, while hanging out with a couple of friends, the conversation turned political. Not political in the traditional, contentiouspolicy-debate sense, but political in the benign, meta, “how much do we know about politics” sense. Essentially, we were quizzing each other on our ability to name the individuals holding important political offices in America: name three members of the Cabinet, name five Supreme Court Justices, etc. Expectations were highest for me, as all were aware of my intention to pursue government, or at least public policy, as an area of study. So, when I was asked my first question the tacit assumption was that I would scoff, answer it correctly without needing to think, and request a more challenging one.

The question was “who are Ohio’s senators?” That might not sound like a softball, but in light of the fact that I lived in Ohio for the first eighteen years of my (at that point) eighteen-and-a-half-year life, it really was. And yet, no names came to mind. I sat in dumb — in all senses of the word — silence. For a long time. An embarrassingly long time. That is, until my friend broke it by sympathetically remarking that brain-farts happen all the time, and inviting me, as a second chance of sorts, to instead name Ohio’s governor … or perhaps my district’s Congressional representative … or even Cincinnati’s mayor. It’s like I had fallen off a ship into the ocean, and this friend of mine was throwing out life buoys, one after another. However, instead of taking hold of one of the buoys and using it to stay afloat, the buoys instead smacked me right on the top of the skull, one after another, knocking me unconscious and expediting the drowning process.

The deep embarrassment from that event blossomed quickly into unadulterated shame. That shame eventually graduated into a full-blown identity crisis. And that identity crisis prompted a thorough investigation into other potential areas of study, which approximately a year later — last semester — translated into my declaration as a math and economics double major. Having taken a lot of government classes freshman year, I felt a little behind in both majors’ curricula, so I built a schedule for this semester comprised exclusively of courses in those departments, three math and two econ. I anticipate that it will be quite a challenging semester. However, as we finally reach the topic of this article, convincing family and friends that you are up for a relatively intense semester is a difficult task for math majors, thanks to an idiosyncrasy in the names of math classes.

At some point on some recent break I ended up talking to my mom, as one does, about my upcoming schedule. I started, for no particular reason, with my econ classes. I recall trying to stifle a proud grin when it came time to mention Bayesian Econometrics, and then shortly thereafter trying to pretend I had some semblance of an idea what Bayesian Econometrics is (or would it be “are?”). The haughtiness of the name — and my scatterbrained, Google-fueled, undoubtedly errant explanation of the content dealt with in such a class — did indeed seem to have the desired effect of impressing upon her that I am quite the scholar.

Then it was time for the math classes.

The first one I listed was Ordinary Differential Equations, which — instead of being met with a nod or a “got it” or an “oh cool” or any of the other generic reactions typically employed in conversations about class schedules — had the inexplicable effect of causing her to laugh. After I pressed her for an explanation, she explained that she thought it was funny that a supposedly college-level math class had the word “ordinary” in it; that certainly seemed to run contrary to the notion that math classes should get harder as you take more of them. I agreed with her assessment with a laugh of my own, though I made a mental note that maybe in future schedule-based conversations “differential equations” would do just fine.

Next, I cited Abstract Algebra. “Algebra?” She asked, caught off guard. “Abstract Algebra,” I retorted, hoping to convince her by my intonation that the probable difficulty of any ‘abstract’ type of math outweighs the conflicting connotations of ‘algebra,’ the math class taken by most U.S. students sometime between the seventh and ninth grades. She seemed unconvinced.

I knew I would be digging myself into an even deeper hole with the third math class before I even said it. “Graph Theory,” I eventually, dejectedly sputtered out. She looked at me in wide-eyed, ecstatic disbelief, before eventually explaining that my 11-year-old brother Ben had also just started learning about graphs in his math class, and that if I needed her to quiz me on the difference between the x and y axes she would be happy to help. There’s no coming back from that. I walked away from that conversation thinking it was a funny, though slightly demeaning, coincidence that all the math classes I was set to take had some quirk in their names that made them sound really basic. The next time I looked on the open course list, however, it became clear quickly that there was no coincidence, for the easy-sounding-college-math-class phenomenon was far from restricted to those three.

“Foundations of Math,” for example, sounds like a pretentious preschool’s name for their approach to math, replete with units about counting to ten and what a triangle looks like. “Linear Algebra” seems like a class that would use a whole lot of slope-intercept form. “Elementary Analysis,” regarded by many as the most difficult class math majors are required to take, literally has the word elementary in it. Elementary (adj): 1. Relating to the basic elements of a subject. 2. Straightforward and uncomplicated. “Topics in Number Theory” certainly sounds like a blow-off class to the average outsider, who would probably imagine tests include questions like “do you think a bajillion or a gazillion would be bigger?” and “do you write your sevens with the little dash across the middle or not? Explain your answer.” Finally, take Math 430, “Algebra II,” which shares a name with a math class literally every student, at least in my home state of Ohio, must have taken at some point to graduate high school.

What’s my point? Am I terrified of the thought that people will, based on my schedule, assume I am taking a highly remedial curriculum? Not at all — well, maybe a teeny bit — but more than anything else I think it’s hilarious, and have enjoyed telling my pre-teen siblings that I’ll be calling them for help the nights before I have tests. My point is that, for those of you not studying math with friends who are, if said friend says they are overwhelmed because of how much work they have for geometry, don’t assume they are being sarcastic. And if a friend exclusively refers to their classes as “Math 311” and “Math 451,” now you know why.

AdamJutt’25ismajoringineconomicsandmath.Asidefrombeingan opinionseditor,heisamemberofClubTennisandinvolvedwithInterVarsity. FeelfreetoemailAdamat adjutt@wm.edu.

GUEST COLUMN

Max

Grace Saunders THE FLAT HAT

Adam

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MADELEINE HARRIS // FLAT HAT VARIETY EDITOR

Ericka Miller ’24 remembers standing in awe as she entered her first meeting of ESSENCE Women of Color during her sophomore year of college. It was the first time on campus in which she had found a room filled with other Black women.

“It was kind of jaw-dropping because I was always used to walking into a room and being maybe one of three Black students in general,” Miller said. “So seeing not only Black students, but Black women students all there, all talking, all having similar mannerisms to you — it just felt very welcoming.”

A 30-year-old club at the College, ESSENCE stands for Educating Strength and Sisterhood by Executing a Nurturing Community of Empowerment. And that is just what the organization does: provide a safe space on campus for women of color, allowing them to uplift each other and form community with others going through similar experiences at a predominantly white institution.

Now, Miller holds a position on ESSENCE’s executive board as treasurer, where she enjoys being a part of the club’s planning process. She works to not only maintain the organization, but also strengthen the ESSENCE community so that it continues to impact others the way it has impacted her.

“ESSENCE kind of helped me break out of my shell a little bit more,” Miller said. “And it was the one of the first clubs that I actually got actively involved in and wanted to actually join exec.”

Nia Darrisaw ’23, ESSENCE’s Public Relations/marketing coordinator, emphasized Miller’s message. She explained the discouragement and imposter syndrome that she and other women students of color may feel at predominantly white institutions when they enter a room and see only one other person who looks like them. As a junior transfer student, going to weekly meetings of ESSENCE provided her with a powerful sense of belonging at the College.

“Seeing people…putting in as much effort and doing the hard work, it just builds a lot of confidence within you to be like, ‘I am supposed to be here,’” Darrisaw said. “I have people around me to solidify that feeling and make me feel more confident.”

ESSENCE’s typical weekly activities vary, ranging from lighter, random conversations that allow members to relax and joke around, to heavier discussions. Overall, it provides a safe space for its members, which is especially crucial to have on

campus so that they can reflect on their experiences openly.

“It allows us to finally have somewhere to talk about those issues, knowing that there won’t be any kind of repercussions or just any kind of negative backlash that we could get because we’re all in the same position,” Darrisaw said.

Former ESSENCE Club President Mikayla Williams MBA ’23 detailed how ESSENCE was integral to her undergraduate time at the College. Prior to finding ESSENCE during the spring of her freshman year, she considered transferring to a different university.

“I just didn’t feel like I was making connections that were more fulfilling for me, like being able to voice my concerns as a

significance of the relationships she has formed in ESSENCE, which left her looking forward to each weekly meeting.

“Usually when I go to clubs, it’s like a chore or like something that I have to do, an obligation,” Bostick said. “But ESSENCE just made me feel so excited. I guess it’s just more like a personal, more intimate club.”

One of ESSENCE’s main involvements on campus is collaborating with the Black Student Organization and the Center for Student Diversity to organize the “Stepping Into Excellence Black Expo.” This annual event brings together small Black-owned businesses from the College’s students and the greater Williamsburg area with pop-up shops one day in February for Black History Month.

Other than a few bigger events that ESSENCE participates in each year with other groups, the club mainly does smaller social activities rooted in building and strengthening community. One of the favorites are the random walks through Colonial Williamsburg.

Williams recalled walking around Colonial Williamsburg with her best friends, other ESSENCE club members who were also seniors at the time. The club has a Bigs and Littles program, in which a new member is matched with a more senior member, and Williams and her friends ran into their ESSENCE littles on their walk.

“[The Littles] just join your little walking group, and you end up forgetting what you were coming to campus to do,” Williams said with a laugh. “And you just end up chatting with them and going to random places all over campus.”

Bostick remembered going on a walk that doubled as a photoshoot with her twin, club historian Brittney Walters, and their Big in Colonial Williamsburg last year.

“It was nice because I hate taking pictures, I don’t like doing that,” Bostick said. “So it definitely built up my confidence a little because [our Big] was using a professional camera and everything.”

Black woman,” Williams said.

Through ESSENCE, Williams shared that she was able to build bonds with people that she now calls her sisters. She currently shares an apartment with two of these sisters.

“It’s kind of like being in a sorority without the letters kind of thing, so it’s very fulfilling,” Williams said.

Club secretary Christina Bostick ’23 further emphasized the

ESSENCE stands out as a positive force on campus, building up women of color and serving as a strong source of community. This is evident for so many, such as Darrisaw, just from their first meeting with the club.

“It truly solidified that safe space feeling and, you know, that you all just kind of want success for each other,” Darrisaw said. “And they’re there to also build you up.”“And they’re there to also build you up.”

It was kind of jaw-dropping because I was always used to walking into a room and being maybe one of three Black students in general. So seeing not only Black students, but Black women students all there, all talking, all having similar mannerisms to you — it just felt very welcoming.

“ ”

- Ericka Miller ’24

E.S.S.E.N.C.E. Women of Color uplifts, creates safe space for members at a predominantly white institution

N E V E R M A X I N G O U T O N F U N W I T H F U N M A X

As student spokesperson of the College of William and Maryʼs Wellness Center, Max Beers ʻ24 puts a positive spin on wellness throu gh Sillybandz, social media

VIVIAN HOANG // FLAT HAT VARIETY EDITOR

“It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s — ?” Most likely, upon hearing this catchphrase, you probably thought of Superman. Not of Clark Kent, the mild-mannered, spectacled journalist, but instead his caped alter ego, Superman. Same goes if someone mentioned Gotham City to you; invoking the name of the imaginary city most likely produced a mental image not of billionaire Bruce Wayne, but rather the shadowy figure of Batman.

For Max Beers ’24, or his better-known alias which is a bit less superhero-esque but still just as straight to the point — Fun Max.

Like Superman and Batman, Fun Max uses his powers to enact positive change within his community — but not by taking bad guys off the streets. Instead, Fun Max serves as a student spokesperson for the College of William and Mary’s Wellness Center, showcasing the ways students cultivate positivity on campus. Under this lively persona, Beers aims to start a larger discourse about wellness from a public-facing, student perspective and motivate students to integrate wellness into their everyday lives.

“Generally, anything we’re doing is just trying to get people to engage with how they can take care of themselves, how they can just have more fun in their day,” Beers said. “I don’t have all the answers to how somebody should be well, but I know that having fun certainly doesn’t hurt.”

Another crucial goal of Fun Max is to imbue students with a sense of autonomy over their own wellbeing.

“We as students have to change the stress culture ourselves. The people participating in a culture are the only people that can change it,” Beers said. “And so the idea behind Fun Max is to try and give the Wellness Center a student face that people can look at and say, ‘Okay, so this is something that’s ours, this is something that we can feel a bit of ownership over.’”

Fun Max represents the culmination of Beers’ lifelong mission to engage with topics related to wellness. Raised by a mother who earned her Master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, Beers has long been primed with a keen curiosity, a deep care for wellness and what it embodies.

It should, then, come as no surprise that Beers became a Wellness Ambassador with the Center after forming a close connection to Associate Vice President for Health & Wellness and Director of Center for Mindfulness and Authentic Excellence, Kelly Crace. By a miraculous twist of fate, Beers managed to snag a spot in Crace’s highly coveted Flourishing course as a freshman, and it was after many rounds of after-class conversations that Crace eventually recommended the fitting position of Wellness Ambassador to Beers.

“I just kept going to talk to Crace after class and said, ‘This is really interesting, and I want to do more, I want to do more,’” Beers said.

However, it wasn’t until April 2022, midway through Beers’ sophomore year, that he would take his position as a Wellness Ambassador to the next level and step into the role of Fun Max. In retelling the origin story of Fun Max, Beers described the fateful day when President Katherine Rowe and Vice President for Student Affairs Ginger Ambler came to the Wellness Center to discuss the state of wellness on campus with Wellness Ambassadors.

During what would become an hour-long

conversation, Beers was struck by the utter lack of positivity in a discussion claimed to be about wellness.

“It kind of got to the 30 minute mark where I was just sitting there thinking like, ‘Nobody has said anything positive or about what goes right on this campus, and we’ve been talking about mental health for 30 minutes now,’” Beers said.

“Every single thing that’s been said has been about how people are struggling … And so I kind of just started going on this tirade of, ‘Why are we not talking about what’s going well?’”

Max’s self-proclaimed ‘tirade’ eventually transformed into a discussion amongst him and the other Wellness Ambassadors, in which Claire Aminuddin ’24 suggested that Max become the student spokesperson for the Center. Then, as Beers remarked previously, the rest became history.

The Wellness Ambassadors then set to work building Fun Max around the concept of social prescription, which aims

them through taking various psychology classes or talking with his mother.

“[The Fun Glossary is] just things that I, over the years, have been like, ‘Okay, this is helpful, it helps me a lot. I’d like for other people to know this,’” Beers said.

Now, The Fun Glossary is primarily spearheaded by Kasey Pataki ’24 and Rebekah Cohodas ’23, other Wellness Ambassadors that Beers works closely with. Beers also credited Anne-Ryan Gareis ’25, Audrey Murcko ’25, and Integrative Wellness Manager Lindsay Heck for the integral roles they serve as members of the Fun Max team.

Along with Instagram, TikTok serves as a vital avenue for the dissemination of Fun Max’s messaging. Beginning with Beers’ iconic line, “Hey, I’m with So-And-So, and this is what they do for fun,” Beers often films these mini student showcases on his TikTok in which he asks another student what they do for fun on campus

their outreach beyond the digital sphere.

“A lot of the work that we’re doing now is trying to figure out how we can diversify and try and reach people that aren’t seeing everything we post,” Beers said. “And part of that is we’re on the William and Mary website now, which is awesome. I think that that’s something that I never thought would happen in my time at William and Mary — having my face on a website. But then there’s just trying to put up literal, physical fliers and just trying to get the information out in as many methods as possible so that people will have as many ways as possible to see the message and try to engage with it.”

Along with finding new ways to connect with the student body, the Fun Max team aims to continue with The Fun Glossary and student showcases while launching several new initiatives.

“We’re going to start a new series called ‘Fun Max Uncovers’ — or something like that — where I go and try and show how the resources on campus can be used for your own wellbeing,” Beers said. “So we’ve already got one of those filmed where I went to Swem Special Collections and just poked around and saw all the cool stuff that’s there just by asking like, ‘Hey, can I go and poke around?’”

The Fun Max team’s future ambitions continue with plans to start a series called Fun Max Interviews in which Beers sparks a dialogue about wellness with notable staff and students on campus.

“Fun Max Interviews … [are] where I’m just trying to sit down with people that are bigwigs at William and Mary and say, ‘How do you think wellness factors into what you do everyday?’” Beers said.

This interview series ties into one of the two items on Beers’ personal College bucket list to complete before graduation: interviewing President Rowe in, let’s just say, a manner that captures the spirit of Fun Max.

“I want to sit down and interview Kathy Rowe, and I want to do it in the most ridiculous way I possibly can,” Beers said. “I’d wear a costume, like, a shark costume.”

to construct a more holistic view of wellness beyond the physiological realm.

“One of the key frameworks for Fun Max is this idea of something called social prescription,” Beers said. “It’s the idea that medication and chemical imbalances are only half of what makes wellness — you also have to have a sense of community and belonging. So a lot of the initiatives we undertake are trying to peel back a little bit of an onion and say, ‘Here are the things that people do at William and Mary that are fun and that they feel a sense of belonging to.’”

The Fun Max team also launched The Fun Glossary, a weekly Instagram series that educates students about psychological terms that can help them in their wellness journeys. Through bright infographics and easy-to-understand language, The Fun Glossary makes complex psychological terms accessible to the student body and teaches students how to incorporate these terms into their everyday lives.

Beers noted that many of the terms highlighted on their social media are ones that personally resonated with him when he learned

wellbeing engages in the

TikTok began as a lighthearted venture for Beers to interact more with the student body, it yielded the Fun Max team a material benefit they had never expected: a sponsorship with Silly Bandz. After Silly Bandz took notice of a TikTok that Beers made with his friend Bryce Early ’22, who shared that giving away free Silly Bandz was how she liked having fun, Silly Bandz reposted the TikTok on all of its socials and website and sent Beers hundreds of Silly Bandz in support of the Fun Max cause after the two got in contact with one another. Looking to brighten fellow students’ days with a free burst of nostalgia, the Fun Max team then set up shop on campus and re-gifted the Silly Bandz to passersby during finals week.

“The big thing we did was get 600 Silly Bandz and gave people free Silly Bandz under the pretense that all they had to do was just tell us, how are you taking care of yourself during finals?” Beers said.

Now having an established presence on social media, the Fun Max team’s next goal is expanding

And for the second must-do on Beers’ bucket list?

“I want to organize the biggest game of Duck Duck Goose ever, and I want to do it in the Sunken Gardens,” Beers said.

While these goals — and by extension, Fun Max himself — may seem laughable and can be easily chalked up to just some more of Fun Max’s goofy shenanigans, probing beyond the surface-level silliness of Fun Max reveals serious intellectual and psychological underpinnings that render it a well-thought-out and beneficial venture for improving students’ wellness.

At the end of the day, Fun Max’s outspoken commitment to authenticity and welcoming spirit encourages students to learn to not take themselves so seriously and think more critically about how to create joy within their own lives. For Beers, the community that has grown alongside Fun Max exemplifies the impact he wants to leave behind with his cherished passion project.

“If nothing else, a hundred or so people felt like they were in on a joke, which is kind of poetic in a way, because that’s really all we’re trying to get at — is that people feel the sense of community and belonging here, and having a big joke like that gets the job done,” Beers said.

COURTESY IMAGES // MAX BEERS

William and Mary ghts back in overtime to beat Charleston

Casey, Wagner combine for 85 minutes, play key role in late offensive surge

JAKE FORBES FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR

Sunday, Jan. 22, William and Mary women’s basketball (9-9, 4-3 CAA) battled back to defeat Charleston (8-9, 3-4 CAA) 80-74 at TD Arena in Charleston, South Carolina.

“I don’t think we had shown the ability to bounce back like that before,” head coach Erin Dickerson Davis said. “This was a huge step in our growth. Just seeing them rally together — the bench was into it the entire game.

Graduate student guard Sydney Wagner started the day with a three-pointer to put the Tribe up three. Charleston then scored nine unanswered points to jump ahead by six. The Tribe responded with five unanswered baskets of their own, all coming from different players. Charleston junior guard Jaila Roberts finished out the first quarter with a layup to pull the home team within three of the Tribe’s lead.

The two teams battled back and forth throughout the second quarter. Midway through the quarter, the Tribe converted on backto-back jumpers from junior center Kayla Beckwith and freshman guard Alexa Mikeska to take an eight point lead. A layup from graduate student guard Riley Casey in the final seconds of the half put the Tribe up by nine heading into the locker room.

With 7:33 remaining in the third quarter, junior forward Rebekah Frisby-Smith drained a three-pointer to extend the Tribe lead to double digits. However, their lead quickly disappeared. 2:13, Charleston tied the game at 40 apiece. The two teams battled throughout the remainder of the quarter, but Charleston held a two point lead heading into the final quarter.

Another jumper from Charleston senior guard Jada Logan with 7:32 left in the game extended Charleston’s lead up to six. After Wagner converted a fast break layup to pull the Tribe within four, Logan responded with yet another successful jump shot. Charleston junior forward Adaora Onwumelu added a layup and Logan made a

free throw to extend their cushion to nine points.

The Tribe slowly battled back in the final few minutes of the game. Casey converted on a jump shot from the paint and made the and-one shot from the foul line. On the next play, Casey ran down the court during a fast break and made a layup to pull within four points of Charleston.

Just over a minute later, the Charleston advantage grew to six points. Frisby-Smith converted both free throws with 2:09 remaining in the game to pull back within four points. Then, on the next possession, Frisby-Smith made a three-pointer to get to 64-63.

With 29 seconds left, Charleston fouled Frisby-Smith again. She missed her first free throw, but converted the second to tie the game. Charleston missed a game-winning three-pointer to seal the game and the two teams headed back to their benches for a rest before the overtime period.

Charleston scored first in the overtime period after a successful free throw from junior guard Anika McGarity. Wagner scored on the ensuing Tribe possession, and it never looked back. The Tribe converted three unanswered field goals, rounded out by a Casey three-pointer.

With 1:13 remaining, two successful free throws from Logan pulled Charleston back within two points, but another successful three-pointer from Casey sealed the deal. Charleston fouled three times in the final 17 seconds of the game. Casey made the first two shots and Wagner made the final four to win the game 80-74.

“Come overtime, they just did some veteran things,” Dickerson Davis said. “They were seniors, and they led the troops.”

William and Mary shot 43.4% from the field compared to 35.7% for Charleston. On the road, the team also shot an impressive 75% from the stripe.

Wagner and Casey played 43 and 42 minutes respectively. Casey finished with a team-high 26 points and shot 5 of 12 shots from beyond the arc. Wagner finished with 20 points, but committed five

turnovers. Frisby-Smith recorded a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds.

“Today was a huge step in the right direction,” Dickerson Davis said. “To come out and not only beat them but to beat them in an overtime situation, I just hope our girls can take that and see how much we’ve grown.”

The Tribe will host North Carolina Wilmington on Friday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. in Kaplan Arena.

Collier leads

16 rebounds in home loss on Saturday Tribe comeback falls short in high scoring battle against NC A&T

menʼs

JAKE FORBES FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR

basketball with

Saturday, Jan. 21, William and Mary men’s basketball (8-13, 3-5 CAA) lost to North Carolina Agricultural and Technical (10-12, 5-4 CAA) 9086 at Kaplan Arena.

“Credit to A&T, I thought they played really well today,” head coach Dane Fischer said. “They played the game like they wanted to play it.”

NC A&T started off hot, scoring 15 points in the first six minutes of the game to jump ahead of the Tribe by seven.

After a media timeout, the Tribe scored eight unanswered points. Junior forward Ben Wight began the run with a layup. Sophomore guard Gabe Dorsey and graduate student guard Anders Nelson drained three-pointers on backto-back possessions to pull within one point ten minutes into the first half.

NC A&T soon after stretched their lead to eight points. However, when the Tribe scored 10 unanswered points, it took their first lead of the game at 28-26. The two teams battled back and forth for the remainder of the first half, entering the locker room tied at 36 apiece.

GYMNASTICS

22

points,

With 11 minutes remaining in the game, senior guard Miguel Ayesa drained a threepointer to put the Tribe up six points. At the six minute mark, NC A&T began to climb back into the game and began a 15-0 run. NC A&T extended their lead to double digits with a threepointer from redshirt junior forward Marcus Watson. With just one minute and 43 seconds remaining in the game, the Tribe found itself in a 15 point hole.

“Every time we made a run, we gave up some easy ones the other way,” Fischer said. “Really proud of the way our guys hung together and almost gave ourselves a chance down the stretch.

However, junior forward Noah Collier led the home team in a valiant comeback effort. Collier made a layup and dunk to pull the Tribe within 10 points. After a successful free throw from NC A&T, Dorsey drained a three-pointer to decrease the deficit to eight points. Off a steal by junior guard Jake Milkereit, Collier converted another layup with 38 seconds left. On NC A&T’s next possession, Collier stole the ball from Watson and Dorsey converted the fast break layup to pull the Tribe within four points and 38 seconds remaining.

After missing two free throws, sophomore guard Matteus Case converted a layup to pull the Tribe within three points, but only three seconds remained in the game. However, the Tribe ran out of time and surrendered a foul in the final second of the game. NC A&T sophomore guard Kyle Duke drained a free throw to seal the deal.

“We almost gave ourselves a chance because the guys stuck together,” Fischer said. “I was really proud of that and it’s something we’ve got to use as momentum for us.”

Collier played a team high of 34 minutes. He recorded a double-double and led the Tribe with 22 points and 16 rebounds, both career highs. Dorsey scored a career high 21 points and recorded five rebounds. Wight finished the game with 13 points and five rebounds. Graduate student guard Chris Mullins accounted for nine of the team’s 14 assists.

The Tribe out-rebounded NC A&T 46-36 and bested their opponents in second chance points (156). However, NC A&T recorded 25 fast break points, compared to the Tribe’s 11 points off fast breaks.

The Tribe shot an impressive 45.2% from the field, but struggled at the free throw line (11-20).

The Tribe will host Stony Brook (7-13, 3-4 CAA) on Thursday, Jan. 26 in Kaplan Arena at 7 p.m.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

Men’s gymnastics nishes fourth at Navy Open

Cuy competes in all-around, secures fourth place individually

best in the meet.

Saturday, Jan. 21, William and Mary men’s gymnastics finished fourth at the 2023 Navy Open in Annapolis, Maryland with a score of 370.35.

Ohio State won the team title with a 405.35. Penn State finished as the runner-up (395.45) and Navy rounded out the podium (386.05).

Springfield and Simpson also competed in the meet.

Sophomore Samuel Smith led the Tribe with a score of 12.55 on the floor exercise. All five Tribe gymnasts scoffed at least a 12.05 on their way to a team score of 61.45.

The pommel horse marked the Tribe’s weakest event.

Graduate student Christian Marsh excelled on pommel horse with a 13.2, besting all his teammates by at least 1.35. His performance was eighth

Marsh again led the way for the Tribe on rings, scoring a 12.45. Sophomore Zachary Patrick finished the event with a 12.25.

The Tribe’s strongest event of the day was vault, with all Tribe gymnasts scoring at least 13.05. Freshman Ricky Pizem scored a team-best 14.1, enough for a T-10 finish in the event in just his second collegiate meet.

On parallel bars, Marsh registered a career high 13.85. His finish was good enough for fourth in the competition.

Senior Aidan Cuy scored a 13.6 to finish tied for fifth.

Finally, on the horizontal bar, four of the five Tribe gymnasts scored in the 12s. Freshman Evan Sikra had the best score on the team with a 12.6.

Cuy was the only Tribe gymnast to compete in all six events. He finished the day

with an all-around score of 74.35, placing fourth in the competition. Marsh and Cuy led the team with a pair of top-

Senior Daniel Layton set a William and Mary indoor track and field school record for the fourth time this season at Liberty University’s 3rd Annual Brant Tolsma Invitational on Friday, Jan. 20. Layton placed fourth in the heptathlon with 4,967 points, besting the previous school record of 4,872.

He also broke his own record in the heptathlon 60m hurdles. Layton finished the event in 8.42 seconds. Previously, he ran a 8.59 at the JDL Multi Meet last February.

His freshman year at William and Mary, Layton was named All-East after finishing

the indoor season fifth in the heptathlon at the IC4A Championships. Layton is a biology major and grew up in

SAMUEL LI / THE FLAT HAT

Graduate student Riley Casey drives into the paint against Rich mond on Thursday, Dec. 1. She scored 26 points against Charleston on Sunday, Jan. 22.

SAMUEL Li / THE FLAT HAT

Junior Noah Collier runs out on the floor before a home game against Richmond Richmond on Saturday, Dec. 1. MENʼS

10 finishes.

The Tribe will travel back to Annapolis, Maryland on Saturday, Jan. 28 to face Navy.

JAKE FORBES

FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR

JAMIE HOLT / THE FLAT HAT

Senior Aidan Cuy swings forward on the end of the parallel bars during last yearʼs ECAC Championships at Kaplan Arena on Saturday, April 2.

COURTESY

Williamsburg moves to

Wittman reelected in midterms

College Republicans and Young Democrats express thoughts on congressional transition, desires for legislative reform

thrilled Wittman was re-elected,” George said. “Representative Wittman is a humble, friendly individual who is focused on constituent services. I look forward to seeing him continue to work for the residents of the 1st District.”

The 2022 midterm elections resulted in Republicans gaining control of the United States House of Representatives for the first time in four years. Following the 2020 census and the subsequent congressional redistricting of Virginia, Williamsburg moved into Virginia’s 1st Congressional District (VA-01) in time for the midterms. As the constituents of the 1st District voted to re-elect Republican Rep. Rob Wittman for his eighth consecutive term, the city of Williamsburg — which used to be in the 2nd District as the electorate of former Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria — transitioned to a red district.

Wittman, former environmental health specialist for the Virginia Department of Health and member of the Virginia House of Delegates, was first elected to Congress in 2005. At the time, the 1st District had included Williamsburg. In October 2016, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ruled the adjacent 3rd District unconstitutional due to racial gerrymandering. As a result, a courtordered congressional map was put in place starting with the 2016 elections.

For the four years that the chamber was under Democratic control, Luria represented Williamsburg in Congress. After the 2020 census, the Virginia Supreme Court approved a new congressional map, which moved Williamsburg from the 2nd District back to the 1st District.

Wittman, whose electorate leans Republican, defeated Democratic challenger Herbert Jones by a margin of 56.5% to 42.5%. Luria would go on to lose her race in the 2nd District to Republican challenger Jen Kiggans. Kiggans won 51.7% of the votes, while Luria fell short at 48.3%.

Members of student political organizations at the College weighed in on the recent congressional transition for the city of Williamsburg.

“Unfortunately, I was not surprised by Wittman’s victory,” Young Democrats Outreach Chair Emerson Rosenthal-King ’25 said. “While Herb Jones was a superb candidate, Williamsburg was recently drawn into a very conservative district.”

Echoing similar sentiments, Young Democrats President Andrew Hoffman ’24 cites Wittman’s policy positions as a point of concern.

“I think it’s clear from his voting record that Rob Wittman’s politics are not representative of the school or Williamsburg at large,” Hoffman said. “He is a consistent enemy of women’s right to choose, common sense gun control and an empathetic approach towards immigration. All these decisions, as well as the ones that he will doubtless make in the current Congress, illustrate how radical and senseless his political leadership of this district is.”

Wittman has an “A” rating from the anti-abortion nonprofit organization Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. In 2022, the National Rifle Association also endorsed Wittman and gave him an “A” rating.

Wittman’s political positions differ starkly from those of Luria. In 2018, the abortion-rights nonprofit NARAL Pro-Choice America endorsed Luria’s bid for Congress.

James George ’24, a Republican and supporter of Wittman, praised his performance and his re-election.

“As someone who admires Wittman’s work on Capitol Hill, I am

As Williamsburg’s representative for more than ten years, Wittman has had a close relationship with the College. For all of his 16 years in Congress, he has also represented Gloucester Point, the location of the College’s School of Marine Science at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science. In 2009, Wittman announced a 1.49 million dollar grant for VIMS’s acquisition of the Catlett Islands.

During that time, the College also named him the 2011

in a town hall at the College to allow for communication with students.

“We might have many differences with Congressman Wittman, but we are always interested in sharing our opinions and finding common ground,” Wittman said.

George also expressed a desire for Wittman to reach out to students.

“Obviously, the Congressman should reach out to William and Mary students as the campus is now in his new district. It is important that the Congressman listens to William and Mary students while in Washington,” George said.

Students also offered thoughts on what Wittman should prioritize.

“I would love to see Congressman Wittman cooperate with President Biden and Democrats on issues the American people care about, like lowering prices, combating climate change and fighting for social justice,” Rosenthal-King said. “Unfortunately, the Congressman seems more interested in pushing Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s agenda, which includes restricting abortion rights, lowering taxes for the wealthy and launching partisan investigations.”

Hoffman added that if Wittman aims to represent his district, he should prioritize gun reform legislation.

The College Republicans also laid out its desire for Congress to function as a check on the Biden administration.

In addition, the U.S. House of Representatives recently finished their election for House Speaker earlier this month. It was an unusual election that took 15 rounds of voting, making it the first House Speaker election since 1923 to advance past the first ballot. To be elected, a candidate for the speakership must receive a majority of the votes cast.

Wittman voted for California Rep. Kevin McCarthy on all 15 ballots. A group of Republican members, mainly led by Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz J.D. ’07, refused to vote for McCarthy unless several concessions that would weaken the power of the speakership were given.

“Congressman Rob Wittman has made a real difference for the better in his community and the Commonwealth, and now in Washington, D.C., through decades of public service,” former William and Mary President Taylor Reveley said in a 2011 WM News article. “Having served at the local, state, and federal levels, he has much to share with our students about his experience in government. We’re honored to welcome Rob back to campus as the 2011 Andrews Fellow.”

In the same year, Wittman wore a Tribe uniform to the annual congressional baseball game. He also gave a lecture at the College in 2009.

Students differ in their views on whether Wittman should or will establish a connection with current William and Mary students.

“I honestly do not think it is necessary for Wittman to establish a connection with students here,” the College Republicans said in a statement to The Flat Hat. “Most students are not registered to vote here in the district and some don’t even vote. I think he should better focus his time on listening to what his voters of the district want.”

Rosenthal-King shared his desire to see Wittman participate

“I don’t see the chaos of the Speakership election helping the GOP in 2024,” Rosenthal-King said, in reference to the speakership election process. “Not only did the American people see how dysfunctional Republican leadership is, Speaker McCarthy gave a lot of power to radicals such as Marjorie Taylor Greene. These farright politicians are pursuing a pretty unpopular agenda.”

Wittman holds a Ph.D. in Public Health from Virginia Commonwealth University and sits on the Committee on Armed Services and Committee on Natural Resources. An avid fish enthusiast, he co-chairs the Congressional Wildlife Refuge Caucus.

George expressed his hopes for Wittman to represent them well in Congress.

“The Congressman should work on conserving our environment and advocate for increased nuclear energy,” George said. “I voted for Wittman in November and look forward to seeing his work for the next few years.”

Though Hoffman also expressed hope in the re-election, he doubts Wittman’s continued time in office will bring desired changes.

“I’d love to see him surprise us in Washington, but I really don’t see that coming,” Hoffman said.

BOOTH FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR

Thursday, Jan. 19, the Lemon Project at the College of William and Mary held the first of their monthly Spring 2023 Genealogical Research Roundtables. These roundtables are scheduled to meet once a month from January to May 2023 via Zoom, where genealogists and family historians are able to share their knowledge and resources to assist each other in any research challenges they may be facing. This series is focusing on slavery and postEmancipation era Black history in Virginia.

The roundtable was led by Jajuan Johnson, a Postdoctoral Research Associate working with the Lemon Project. Johnson began the talk by introducing himself and outlining the main goals of the discussion, before allowing attendees to introduce themselves, their background and research connections to Black genealogy. The attendees included a variety of individuals, ranging from local residents who are searching for information about their ancestors to staff members at the College who have research backgrounds which could be beneficial for those looking for genealogical information.

“We’ve been very fortunate to build a community of genealogical researchers over the past couple years, make some breakthroughs in our own researchers, but this is an effort to connect more with people because we understand that many people in the community are working on projects and they overlap with what we’re doing,” Johnson said. “And so, we want to share, you know, any of our findings, and also just open this space up to have some

rich genealogical conversations.”

The participants were mainly locals from the greater Williamsburg and Tidewater areas, including several with ties to the College. Kiana Wilkerson ’18 was among the attendees in the

“So I’m kind of here for two reasons, one for myself because I want to actually start doing this work,” Wilkerson said. “This job makes me want to start helping my family members do their ancestry and find our kind of history

Jessica Ramey, an instruction and research librarian at Earl Gregg Swem Library, also attended the meeting. Ramey frequently works with students and library patrons with information related to genealogical research. She discussed several resources available at Swem, such as the Virginia Historical Index and historical government records that are available through Special Collections. She also emphasized that Swem mainly contains records related directly to people from Virginia, and more specifically, the College.

“And you know, we have a lot of hidden gems in our collection,” Ramey said. “So we do have a number of wills, a number in monograph form, again on microfilm. So there’s lots to find in our collection and I would really encourage you to come in if you are in the area and you want to, you know, look at some things you are more than welcome to. So you can email our research desk questions and I will tackle them to the best of my ability.”

After the introductions concluded, attendees were able to ask specific questions relating to any issues they had been facing in their genealogical searches. Many attendees helped direct others on where to find information about specific surnames, government documents and records about their ancestors who were enslaved. While some attendees were just starting their genealogical research, others farther along in their journeys gave advice on local resources to use during the beginning of their searches.

Zoom meeting who discussed how she wanted to take advantage of genealogical resources that she hadn’t formerly used when she was still a student at the College.

and then sideways trying to build up that community of people who’s trying to find all this ancestry to help out the other descendants that I’m working with.”

The next genealogical roundtable will be hosted on Zoom Thursday Feb. 16, and members of the public and college community can register on the Lemon Project’s website.

Hunter Andrews Fellow. The fellowship’s namesake served as the Democratic Majority Leader in the Virginia Senate from 1980 to 1995.

CALLIE

COURTESY PHOTO / ROBWITTMAN.COM

Rep. Rob Wittman is a member of the Committee on Natural Resources, which is dedicated to water quality, preservation of wildlife and natural resources in surrounding areas