The Flat Hat November 6, 2018

Vol. 108, Iss. 18 | Tuesday, November 6, 2018

The Flat Hat The Weekly Student Newspaper of

The College of William and Mary

NEWS ANALYSIS

TIMELINE

Virginians to vote on two ballot measures

August 21 William and Mary Students United joined other activists in Richmond, Virginia to participate in the national prison strike.

This strike responded to demands made by incarcerated activists.

Proposed amendments would provide tax breaks WILLIAM ALLEN FLAT HAT CHIEF STAFF WRITER

Tuesday, Nov. 6, voters in Virginia will be deciding on more than just Congressional candidates on Election Day. They will also be asked to consider two ballot measures proposing amendments to the Virginia Constitution.

These ballot measures would need to be passed by a simple majority of Virginia voters before the Constitution can be amended. The two measures would both amend Article X of the Virginia State Constitution dealing with taxation and finance. Both would allow localities to provide tax exemptions which are not within the normal scope of their delegated powers.

“Virginia is a Dillon Rule state, which is kind of a wonky term, but essentially that just means that the Virginia Legislature, the state Legislature, holds all the authority, and the only powers that localities hold are those that the Legislature delegates to them,” President of Virginia21 William Parada ’19 said.

Unlike other states, Virginia has a lengthy process for the passing of constitutional amendments. Proposed amendments end up on the ballot via the state Legislature as legislatively referred constitutional amendments.

“The way in which amendments are adopted to the Constitution typically will be that two sessions of the general assembly have to approve putting the item on the ballot, and they have to do it in a way in which the two approvals are separated by a general election,” government professor John McGlennon said. “We are in the first year of a new legislative session, so that means that these two amendments had been approved by the previous House of Delegates. We had an election last November and now that House of Delegates and Senate have approved the amendment once again.”

Due to the fact that the Legislature is not allowed to advocate for the passage of these amendments and both have See BALLOT MEASURES page 4

DRIVER HITS STUDENT ON JAMESTOWN ROAD According to Williamsburg Police Department Major Greg Riley, James Whitehead of Williamsburg was charged with failing to yield the right of way after he hit a student with his car on Jamestown Road at around 6:05 p.m. Monday, Nov. 5.

Riley said that the pedestrian was transported to the emergency room in Riverside Doctor’s Hospital as a precautionary measure.

Sen. Anthony Joseph ’21 said that as he was walking to Campus Center, he saw a Prius hit the pedestrian while they were crossing the sidewalk and saw the victim fall about five feet away from him.

According to Joseph, the victim, who is a student at the College of William and Mary, was conscious and responsive after the accident. “[The pedestrian] was well within the crosswalk,” Joseph said. “My friend and I were about 10 seconds from being in the crosswalk. That could have been one of us.”

— Flat Hat News Editor Leonor Grave ‘19

Profile News Opinions Sports Variety

September 4 Students United hosts an information session in the Sir Christopher Wren Building Yard.

Students United had not reserved this space and were asked to leave by administrators.

September 18 COURTESY PHOTOS / W&M STUDENTS UNITED

[Hunger] striking against VCE Student withdraws from College as faculty members call to question outcomes of the student conduct process SARAH SMITH // FLAT HAT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Tuesday, Oct. 30, a student who goes by Aditi left the College of William and Mary. Aditi, formerly a member of the class of 2020, chose to withdraw from the College mid-semester after they were placed on disciplinary probation. Saturday, Nov. 3, Aditi left the United States, headed to their mother’s home in India.

Aditi asked that their last name be withheld from publication.

“Leading up to my withdrawal, I thought about what education means. I talked a lot about languages, the white academy, the university,” Aditi said. “... William and Mary, the way it is, is part of the oppressive structures. Partaking in this institution perpetuates the things we’re trying to fight.”

Aditi is one of five students associated with William and Mary Students United who went through the student conduct process this semester. After being summoned to the Dean of Students Office for failing to comply with orders given by Student Leadership Director Anne Arseneau ’89 M.Ed. ’92 at a Sept. 4 interest meeting, Aditi went through a committee hearing and was then placed on disciplinary probation for the fall 2018 and spring 2019 semesters. Only one of the other four students, Maura Finn ’20, was placed on disciplinary probation for the remainder of the fall 2018 semester.

A few days before Aditi made the decision to withdraw, they were engaged in their second hunger strike of this semester in order to draw attention to the issue of prison labor.

Responses to their hunger strike as well as the results of their conduct process contributed to Aditi’s decision to withdraw.

Origins of Students United Students United — which is not a recognized student organization at the College — can be loosely described as a campus chapter of the broader Virginia Student Power Network, which is an organization that gives smaller campus organizations the resources needed to mobilize networks of students. George Mason University and the University of Virginia each have their own chapters of this parent organization.

According to Dalton Jared ’20, another student involved with the organization, Students United serves to fill a void that students like himself felt had been created by the dissolution of the College’s chapter of Black Lives Matter. A number of students who organized with Black Lives Matter and students who helped organize the fall 2017 protest at an AMP-sponsored American Civil Liberties Union event merged to create Students United and changed the College’s Black Lives Matter page on Facebook to “Concerned Students at William and Mary” and then to “W&M Students United.” VSPN first formed an affiliation with students at the College after Students United began organizing.

“A few people involved with the ACLU event, they either graduated or left [the College],” Aditi said. “There did seem [to be] like a void … clearly there was a lot to be changed, and it doesn’t have to be that complicated.”

Over the last several months, Aditi, Finn, Jared and others have organized events under the name Students United. For many, an event this summer created the impetus that rallied support for Students United.

Issues at hand This rallying event was a national prison strike held Aug.

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21. The strike called for the improvement of conditions inside prisons, for all prisoners to be paid their state’s minimum wage for labor they provide while imprisoned, the reinstatement of voting rights of prisoners and those formerly imprisoned and for the end of criminal justice policies and practices that target people of color. Students and alumni — many of whom are now associated with Students United — traveled to Richmond to participate in the national event.

Since then, Students United has mainly organized around the issue of divestment from prison labor, particularly the statewide contract that requires public institutions in Virginia, such as the College, to purchase furniture from Virginia Correctional Enterprises. Prisoners who produce this furniture make less than $2 per hour.

Over the past semester, Students United has identified their broad goals as raising awareness about and politicizing this issue. More narrowly, Students United wants to see the College end its relationship with VCE and have College President Katherine Rowe identify the contract with VCE as a form of modern slavery in a campus-wide message.

“We do feel hopeful. By pushing William and Mary to acknowledge that, we can cause other universities to do the same,” Jared said.

While other groups, such as the College’s chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America, are mobilizing around the issue of prison labor, Students United distinguishes itself as a loose organization that welcomes those involved to engage in any form of protest.

This past semester, that has included student-hosted open mic nights, marches, hunger strikes and small group discussions. Jared referred to this strategy as a “diversity of tactics,” meant to ensure that Students United is approaching the issue from as many angles as possible.

Student activism and administrative response The Sept. 4 event in which students gathered in the Sir Christopher Wren Courtyard to protest was advertised as an interest meeting for students who wanted to get involved with Students United. Students United distributed flyers during Convocation and planned for the meeting to be held in the Wren Yard. Students United was contacted by Arseneau over Facebook in the days leading up to the event. Arseneau informed them that only recognized student organizations could reserve the space in the Wren Yard and asked them to either find a recognized sponsor or consider relocating the event to a space designed for spontaneous expressive events.

The spontaneous expressive activities policy is part of the broader Use of Campus Facilities Policy which was last revised Oct. 15, 2013. For an event to be considered a permitted spontaneous expressive activity — phrasing Arseneau said was used to avoid the phrasing of “free speech zones” — it must either be held at a designated spontaneous activity location or at another location when advanced scheduling is not practical, if designated locations are in use, if the spontaneous activity is too large for a See STUDENTS UNITED page 3

Students United attended their first Student Assembly senate meeting to ask for support, potentially in the form of a resolution. They later attended a second meeting.

September 19 Aditi began the first of their hunger strikes on the Sadler Terrace.

They remained there for 54 hours, during which they read poetry from incarcerated activists.

September 26 Four students associated with Students United had their information sessions for the student conduct process. Finn had already received her summons.

September 30 Students United hosted a march with SEAC. One alum was detained and later barred from campus for writing “Slave Owner” on the James Monroe statue.

October 18 Aditi began their second hunger strike, intending for it to last 14 days. They ended it Oct. 23, the same day they chose to withdraw from the College.

November 3 Aditi left the City of Williamsburg and the College. Students United is also working to brainstorm new ways to encourage students to radically organize.

Inside SPORTS

2018 Basketball Preview

Check out Flat Hat Sports’ annual basketball insert for preseason breakdowns of the men’s and women’s teams.

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THE BUZZ

News Editor Leonor Grave News Editor Madeline Monroe fhnews@gmail.com

The Flat Hat | Tuesday, November 6, 2018 | Page 2

I think it’s a good sign [that the] percentage of women in games programs, as students, are growing. The challenge is getting people to hire them, because often game studios use a five years of experience criteria to hire, and what that does is exclude the hundreds and thousands of girls coming out as freshly minted game designers now.

— Northeastern University game design professor Celia Pearce on gender equality within game development.

Mending the civil-military divide

POLICE BEAT

Nov. 1-3

As president of the Student Veterans Association, Corey York ’19 bridges two worlds SARAH SMITH // FLAT HAT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

1

Thursday, Nov. 1 — Boozing on Boundary: Carlos Martinez Hernandez was arrested on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol at South Boundary Street.

2

Thursday, Nov. 1 — Shifting gears: Leanne Meadors was arrested on charges of driving with a suspended or revoked license at the intersection of Capitol Landing Road and Jefferson Street.

3

Saturday, Nov. 3 — Sipping and slurring: a charge of underage possession of alcohol was reported at the intersection of Jamestown Road and Chandler Court.

4

Saturday, Nov. 3 — Hit and a miss: Police arrested Lance Leston Hunger on charges of simple assault and battery at Middle Street.

POLICE BEAT BY SARAH GREENBERG, KARINA VIZZONI / THE FLAT HAT

A THOUSAND WORDS COURTESY PHOTO / COREY YORK

Corey York ’19, a government major and history minor at the College of William and Mary, arrived in Williamsburg after six years in the Marine Corps.

COURTESY PHOTO / MADELINE SALINO

CORRECTIONS An article published last week, “Three candidates vie for Senate seat” mistakenly included the phrase “chronic climate” instead of “current climate” in a quote from Libertarian candidate Matt Waters.

Another article from the Oct. 30 issue incorrectly attributed a quote from Rabbi Gershon Litt to Hillel President Alexina Haefner ’19. Haefner was also misquoted as saying she had been warned by her mother about the hate she would face after converting to Judaism.

The Flat Hat wishes to correct any fact printed incorrectly.

Corrections may be submitted in email to the editor of the section in which the incorrect information was printed. Requests for corrections will be accepted at any time.

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After six years serving as a member of the United States Marine Corps, Corey York ’19 has traveled to four continents and almost a dozen countries. He decided that his next step in life would be completing an undergraduate degree, and after making a quick search engine query on top public universities, he found himself moving to Williamsburg, Virginia to attend the College of William and Mary.

The College was not York’s first college experience; he graduated from Monroe Community College in 2011 with his associate’s degree before he joined the Marine Corps as an infantryman. Not long after, he was selected to the Marine Embassy Security group, whose mission is to provide Marines for duty at designated diplomatic missions in support of the Department of State.

Over six years, York was stationed in Athens, Greece; Nairobi, Kenya; Lagos, Nigeria; Wales, United Kingdom and Bangkok, Thailand. As an infantryman, he also was stationed in Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Hawaii.

“I was really excited to come back to school, excited to learn,” York said. “I think it’s been a challenge. Like I said, I was an infantry guy at first, there wasn’t a whole lot of academic or intellectual stimulation, insofar as a formal setting. … So I found it a challenge to learn how to take effective notes, how to do effective studying, have parity with my peers. I was able to do that, only because I probably worked a lot harder than I did smarter to get a good GPA. The professors here have been tremendous and understanding, and I’ve had great interaction with the student body here.”

On a path to return to public service, ideally as a foreign service officer, York chose to major in government and minor in history at the College. He’s particularly enjoyed taking classes with government and international relations professor Dennis Smith, who is now York’s major adviser.

“The thing I love about Dennis Smith is that I think I learn something new every day in his class,” York said. “They’re 50-minute classes, [but] I could spend three hours in his lecture hall. I felt challenged, he has high expectations … he has clear cut, concise, ‘If you do X, you see Y results.’”

Outside of the classroom, York is the president of the Student Veterans Association, a position that keeps his calendar booked.

He’s served as president since October 2017. For York, being president of SVA is very rewarding, and he said he’s thankful for the opportunity to guide the other undergraduate veterans at the College. There are currently 20 identified members of the organization and York is working to target the other 30 undergraduate student veterans who are not yet involved.

One of York’s priorities with the organization has been to bridge a gap he sees between the traditional student body and student veterans. To do this, he’s working to increase the presence of SVA on campus and plan events to get more traditional students involved with the group. To honor the hundredth anniversary of Armistice Day Nov. 11, SVA is planning military exercises for the student body to participate in on the Sunken Garden. There will also be a tug-of-war competition between SVA members and members of the Reserve Officer Training Corps.

“Student veterans bring diversity, life experience to campus,” York said. “The traditional students push us. I am a very A-type, driven person. I have sat next to several brilliant students in class who have pushed me to academic boundaries I don’t know if I would have [reached] if I hadn’t come to this school. One of my goals as president has been to try to help mend the civil-military divide that exists, to challenge the student veterans to get out of their comfort zone and to get students to realize we might have

a few tattoos, be a bit more muscular than some and have a few more colorful words, but we don’t bite.”

His responsibilities as president include working on both day-to-day and long-term goals. For example, he said he found himself spending three hours trying to help veterans register for mandatory COLL 150 classes, which their social classes barred them from receiving priority registration for. Going back and forth from appointments with the Office of Academic Advising, he soon found his morning Friday, Nov. 2 had flown by.

York also participates in the William and Mary Military and Veterans’ Affairs Working Group. Through these two organizations, he’s working on creating a better alumni network for student veterans, making clearer job and internship pipelines and developing a scholarship to help veterans with families pursue unpaid internships that would be beneficial on their resumes.

“If we’re able to pull that off, we’re able to have that solidified, being able to alleviate some of the financial burdens … that will live long past me, past whoever is the next president and be the most exciting and rewarding thing to come to fruition,” York said. “Knowing that a student veteran won’t be inhibited from demonstrating the range of ability they have, but had been prohibited from undertaking … being able to facilitate that professional development without any worries is the most exciting.”

“

Student veterans bring diversity, life experience to this campus.

— Corey York ’19

“

Each week, The Flat Hat profiles one person — a student, faculty or staff member, or alum that is deeply connected to the College of William and Mary. This week, The Flat Hat presents its first profile in a series about student veterans on campus.

While he’s still wishing to have a few more hours in each day, York has also added some more long-term projects to his to-do list. He’s reached out to veterans’ organizations at the MarshallWythe School of Law and the Raymond A. Mason School of Business in hopes of creating bonds and is also lobbying for the College to hire a full-time representative to assist veterans. He has spoken with former College President Taylor Reveley and current College President Katherine Rowe about his goals. He’s still waiting to hear back from the graduate organizations and financial constraints have stalled his dream of seeing a full-time representative at the College, but he’s hopeful that the work he’s doing now will continue to have impact.

Under York’s presidency, the College’s chapter of SVA was represented at Orientation for the first time this year, thanks to a partnership he formed with the Office of First Year Experience.

After adding new members to the organization through Orientation, he said he’s seen a 95 percent retention rate for members in SVA this fall.

“I would just love the student body to know [that they can] feel free to approach us,” York said. “We’ve got experience in the job workplace, we know how to network, how to do those things. … I am always willing to help. … The biggest thing I would want students to know is don’t be fearful, don’t feel intimidated. Many of us want to help and want to have discussions.”

The Flat Hat

Page 3

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

ACADEMICS

New scholarship to aid DACA students Funding efforts led by LatinX Alumni, LASU, UndocuTribe AVERY LACKNER THE FLAT HAT

In order to aid students at the College of William and Mary who are under programs such as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or Temporary Protected Status, the LatinX and Hispanic Alumni community at the College decided to take action and create the Jorge Alberto Urcuyo Scholarship.

Together with UndocuTribe and the Office of University Advancement, LatinX Alumni created this scholarship to specifically assist these students who might be prevented from receiving financial aid through FAFSA because of their immigration status.

For those involved in creating the Jorge Alberto Urcuyo Scholarship, it represents an important step in the College’s efforts to shape an inclusive community, regardless of one’s immigration status. In recent years, the presence of undocumented students at the College has become more openly acknowledged, but undocumented students still face numerous challenges.

Undocumented students report that the difficulties of regular college life are often compounded by worries about immigration status and financial aid. When President Donald Trump’s administration announced its plan to end DACA in September 2017, thousands of people, including many college students, were suddenly plunged into uncertainty.

The scholarship was created with the goal of allowing undocumented students to focus solely on their studies rather than economic worries.

“A lot of undocumented students come from backgrounds where college isn’t always an option, even though these kids may be super bright and have a lot of potential,” Latin American Student Union Vice President Andrea Mares ’20 said.

Besides holding DACA or TPS status, recipients of the scholarship must demonstrate financial need. While half of the funding for the scholarship

comes from a financial contribution from the Navas-Urcuyo family, and the scholarship is named in honor of one of its members. Jorge Alberto Urcuyo, despite having the opportunity to flee his home country of Nicaragua during the country’s revolution, considered it his civic duty to remain, became a teacher and accepted a remote post hours outside the capital city of Managua. “[Urcuyo was] extremely dedicated to his students,” Chilin-Hernández said in an email. “… [He] had a true passion for teaching and was thoroughly invested in the betterment of the impoverished people.”

Urcuyo was killed during the Nicaraguan Revolution, but the scholarship pays homage to his life and work.

The other half of the funds required the joint efforts of UndocuTribe and the LatinX Alumni Association. Alumni within and outside of the LatinX community supplied the rest of the money with individual donations.

UndocuTribe and the LASU were instrumental in the development and implementation of the scholarship fund. Besides assisting with fundraising efforts, the initial idea for the scholarship came from student members of UndocuTribe.

According to Jessica Chilin-Hernández ’12, the founder of the College’s LatinX Alumni group, the need for increased funding for undocumented students’ education was evident.

“The students shared with us their career dreams as well as their struggles as undocumented people accessing scholarship funding,” ChilinHernández said in an email. “… As Latinos in the [U.S.], Immigration touches our lives and our families, … so the importance of this project could not be more obvious to us.”

Furthermore, LASU was responsible for publicizing the scholarship’s creation. Its work to educate people about issues in the LatinX community provided a platform from which to advertise the new fund, and its work with

LatinX Alumni led to a significant amount of the funding that went into the scholarship.

According to members of LASU, this scholarship was an intentional response to the current political climate, one in which undocumented students have been dragged into the national immigration debate and slapped with dehumanizing labels like “illegal” or “alien.”

Besides providing financial support, the fund was intended to make a public statement about the presence of undocumented students at the College. UndocuTribe Director Diego Rodriguez Cabrera ’19 said that the creation of this scholarship represents a sign of goodwill from the College.

“I think what it says is that ... we belong here,” Rodriguez Cabrera said. “… The William and Mary community has shown and demonstrated their support.”

The scholarship will begin providing aid to students in 2019, and there are ambitious plans in the works for the future of the fund. Chilin-Hernández hopes that the scholarship will grow enough to be able to support multiple students. She also acknowledged the importance of supporting undocumented students at every level of the higher educational system, and hopes a future expansion of the Jorge Alberto Urcuyo Scholarship will be able to fill that role.

“Undocumented people are starting to attend graduate school, and it’s important to support those journeys as well,” Chilin-Hernández said in an email.

According to LASU President Carolina Lopez ’20, the College has yet to witness the uninhibited potential of the undocumented community, but she is hopeful this scholarship will change that.

“I think that’s the beauty of this scholarship,” Lopez said. “It’s not about your documents, where you’re from, or your status in this country. It’s about your commitment to education, and how driven you are.”

POLITICS

Days before election, Luria urges students to vote Event co-hosted by Young Democrats, VOX, Rainbow Coalition focuses on policy AVERILL MEININGER THE FLAT HAT

Thursday, Nov. 1, congressional candidate Elaine Luria sat down with the members of VOX: Planned Parenthood Generation Action, the Rainbow Coalition and William and Mary Young Democrats in the College of William and Mary’s Washington Hall to speak about her campaign, answer questions and emphasize the ongoing importance of voting.

The event was arranged through the combined efforts of the three organizations.

Luria, a Democrat, is running for a seat in the House of Representatives in Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District against incumbent Republican Scott Taylor. She talked with students about their critical role in inciting change amidst a frustrating political landscape.

At the beginning of the discussion, VOX Copresident Jioni Tuck ’19 conveyed her appreciation of Luria’s dedication and concern for women’s rights and reproductive justice. Luria has been endorsed by abortion rights organizations, including the Planned Parenthood Action Fund and NARAL ProChoice America.

Luria spoke on a wide range of topics regarding the progress, or lack thereof, of civil rights and the deleterious effects of offshore drilling. She underlined the critical nature of universal background checks in the fight to end gun violence and the alarming

increase in hate crimes across the nation. Luria also discussed healthcare, a cornerstone of her platform. She highlighted the necessity of Medicaid expansion and her desire to preserve and improve the Affordable Care Act in Virginia.

When asked about LGBTQ rights, Luria acknowledged how much more work still needs to be accomplished.

“I think that regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, I look at a world in the future where we move past asking these questions and having to have this discussion,” Luria said.

Luria was also asked about the lack of female representation in Congress, which is currently only 19.4 percent. Luria spoke to the importance of a Congress that is more diverse on the whole.

“If Congress looks more like the communities we live in, more like this room, our representation will be better,” Luria said.

The theme of Luria’s overall message to the audience surrounded her potential ability to overcome political polarization while in office.

She emphasized her background of over 20 years in the Navy and the non-partisan nature of her job there. She appreciated that, above everything, while she was serving her country, the goal was to come together, complete a mission and get things done. Luria said that she believes this view is the most productive to help accomplish change in the government.

After she finished answering questions, Luria took the time to meet many of the students from the crowd of roughly 100. One of the attendees reflected on why she believed the event was so widely important.

“Well, I’m a freshman at William and Mary. I was very politically engaged back home, so it has been an interesting adjustment coming to a new place where I don’t know the politicians as well,” Barrett Fife ’22 said. “I think this was a great opportunity no matter what side of the spectrum you fall on to learn a lot more about the Williamsburg politics while also staying engaged with the national story of the midterms.”

Meanwhile, Young Democrats President Cody Mills ’20 expressed his gratitude toward Elaine Luria for speaking to students. He emphasized how valuable her potential candidacy would be for the diverse populations of individuals in the College’s community. Mills also said that he found the issue of health care access to be essential for LGBTQ individuals and reproductive justice.

“I think Elaine is a really special candidate just because of how informed she is on all of these different local issues, but she’s all really good at connecting them to a more national scope of why they are important,” Mills said.

Throughout “A Conversation with Elaine Luria,” Get Out the Vote was continually in the spotlight.

Luria pointed out the necessity of voter outreach

in the final days of the election. Young Democrats opened sign-ups for GOTV shifts at the check-in for the event and emphasized their importance for canvassing and phone banking.

“Turnout, especially in this election, matters,” Mills said. “If not enough people come, Elaine could lose by 10 votes, and all the polls are showing how close it is, so everything is pointing to how important your vote is.”

While individuals may be frustrated with the current state of politics, Luria emphasized the overall importance of voting.

“Having that frustration is one thing, but acting on it and voting is another,” Luria said. “If we want to change the conversation in Congress, we need to change the people in Congress.”

JAMIE HOLT / THE FLAT HAT

Democrat Elaine Luria met with students in Washington Hall.

Gilbert: ‘Every institution has time, place and manner restrictions on speech’ Groups that have shown public support for Students United cite concerns about fairness in conduct process STUDENTS UNITED from page 1

for a designated location or if the expressive value of the activity is enhanced by it taking place at a different location.

Jared said that Students United believes its event complied with the spontaneous expressive activities policy, even though Arseneau had messaged the group to the contrary, because the location at the Wren Yard was significant to Students United. Jared said that because they planned the interest meeting as a way to communicate student opinion to Rowe and other campus officials, the Wren Yard outside the President’s House was a symbolic location. Arseneau said that because the group had passed out flyers and advertised the event a week in advance, she did not find the event to be in compliance with College policy.

Arseneau also suggested that Students United reach out to YDSA and Amnesty International as potential sponsors to host this event.

However, Aditi said Students United was not in favor of going through the process of securing a sponsor to legitimize their actions. Neither Amnesty International nor YDSA agreed to sponsor the event.

When students were asked to leave the event by Arseneau and Associate Dean of Students and Community Values and Restorative Practices Director Dave Gilbert, some lingered. These were the five students issued summons to begin the student conduct process.

“I very much failed to comply,” Finn said. “I didn’t think these regulations were interpreted correctly.”

Aditi said the response to this first event of the semester set the tone for how Students United would plan its strategy for the following months.

“When there is more repression, there is more room for rebellion,” Aditi said. “[The administrative response] made very visible the repression we were trying to point out.”

Gilbert said he believes that Students United has generally mischaracterized the opinions of College officials as a result of some students’ perceptions of the student conduct process.

“I do want to say, however, that I think matters had been

mischaracterized as far as the university’s intention,” Gilbert said. “I have not heard, nor have I uttered, I have not heard any of my colleagues utter it for a moment that they are hostile towards the message here, or that they don’t support free expression. I think what students — and again, why would they, they don’t run a university — but they don’t see the bigger picture. And an example would be every institution has time, place and manner restrictions on speech.”

Since Sept. 4, Students United has hosted several events at the Meridian Coffeehouse, organized a march through campus co-hosted by the Student Environmental Action Coalition and made public remarks at Student Assembly senate meetings to share their concerns.

Aditi has also engaged in two hunger strikes.

During the first hunger strike, Aditi remained on the Sadler Terrace for 54 hours in a grouping of chairs meant to symbolize a cage. Aditi and other students associated with Students United read poetry and letters written by incarcerated activists and held signs explaining their mission.

Then, as Homecoming began, Aditi announced a second hunger strike.

This one was planned to last for a maximum of 14 days but would end early if Aditi passed out or if Rowe acknowledged their demands. Aditi ended their second hunger strike Oct. 23 after going without food for 125 hours. Aditi lost 10 pounds during this time period.

“I ended my strike yesterday, after 125 hours without eating,” Aditi said on the W&M Students United Facebook page Oct. 24. “Much love to everyone who supported me. But the weather was too cold, as were the hearts of many of the people that I was hoping to spur into action, for me to continue to starve myself. I am prepared to die in the fight to put an end to slavery. And I exhausted myself to work towards that at this university. …”

Aditi said that while many students and faculty members were kind and supportive of them as an individual, they were disappointed by students that questioned their choice to engage in hunger strikes and by students who were not called to more radical acts of protest.

Moving forward Although Aditi has since withdrawn from the College, Jared says he and other students plan to continue organizing under Students United.

“This process has been strenuous,” Jared said. “It has really thrown a wrench in things. It’s been slow.”

Jared also said that he hopes in the future, the group will be able to reorient; he never intended Students United to focus solely on prison reform. For Jared at least, the hope is that Students United will become a hub for all students to participate in radical organizing around a variety of issues. For example, Oct. 11, Students United hosted a discussion space for black student activists where the conversation centered on whether it was harmful or helpful for students to study abroad.

Other organizations have also become involved with Students United. UndocuTribe, an organization that advocates for the rights of student recipients of the Deferred Action for Child Arrivals and Temporary Protected Status policies, began circulating a petition in solidarity with Students United denouncing “unequal punishment and treatment” and demanding “the immediate reversal of the sentences against the members of W&M Students United.”

Professors have expressed solidarity as well — faculty from the Asian American and Pacific Islander academic program worked together to release a letter criticizing the treatment of Aditi and other students associated with Students United.

The letter addresses concerns stemming from Aditi’s committee hearing. Aditi began their testimony in Hindustani and they were asked to continue their testimony in English. Aditi received disciplinary probation for two semesters and Finn received disciplinary probation for one semester while other students received warnings. The APIA faculty letter calls to question whether or not the differing repercussions were a result of Aditi and Finn’s race or gender identity.

“In closing, we issue this statement as an exercise of our academic freedom but more so out of concern and dedication to our entire William & Mary community that wishes to proudly announce to our entering and current students, their families, faculty, as well as to administrators and staff members, that all who are here belong here,” the open letter signed by Asian and Pacific Islander American Studies faculty states.

“We certainly hope that this is the case.”

— News Editor Leonor Grave ’ 19 also contributed to this report.

Page 4

The Flat Hat

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

STUDENT ASSEMBLY

SA 2020 senate results on hold after voting glitches Seats of Mills, Nichols, Medrano pending as Review Board investigates EMMA FORD, KIM LORES FLAT HAT STAFF WRITER, THE FLAT HAT

Friday, Nov. 2, the class of 2020 elected Cody Mills ’20, JonDavid Nichols ’20 and Zie Medrano ’20 as Student Assembly Senators in a special election. Sunday, Nov. 4, the College of William and Mary’s Student Assembly Review Board received three cases, calling into question the ways in which votes were collected and counted.

In the meantime, SA Elections Commission Chair Sarah Baker ’19 has announced that Friday’s results, which were previously certified, are now pending.

SA held the special election in response to the resignation of Sen. Abhi Chadha ’20, Sen. Clare DaBaldo ’20 and Sen. Sarah MacPhee ’20, who are unable to remain in SA as they will be studying abroad next semester. SA Senate was planning to inaugurate the newly elected senators Tuesday, Nov. 6, but at this point it is not clear if that will still happen.

The Review Board cases concern technical difficulties that occurred during the day of the elections. Class of 2020 President Kelsey Vita informed the 2020 student body via email that

multiple students had difficulties accessing their ballots on TribeLink for the special election. In response, SA asked students encountering the issue to send the names of the three candidates they wished to vote for through an email to Baker.

The three cases, brought forward by Vita, Sen. Alec Friedman ’19, Sen. Jack Bowden ’19 and Angela Tiangco ’20 question the constitutionality of using “provisional ballots” as well as whether or not the provisional ballots can be counted.

Additionally, Tiangco brought forward concerns that technical difficulties during the day of the election threw off results.

According to Review Board Chair Henry Blackburn ’20, these were the first cases the Review Board has had since becoming active again this year.

Out of the 961 students who voted, Mills received 176 votes for a total of 18.31 percent of the vote, Nichols received 131 votes for a total of 13.63 percent of the vote and Medrano received 123 votes for a total 12.8 percent of total votes.

Two students, Liz Holmes ’20 and Samuel Towler ’20, withdrew from the race before Friday.

Angela Tiangco ’20 fell two votes short with 121 votes, or 12.6 percent of the total vote. Nick

Thomas ’20 received 113 votes for a total of 11.76 percent of the vote. Caroline Garman ’20 received 101 votes for a total of 10.51 percent of the vote.

Alicia Draper ’20 received 85 votes for a total of 8.84 percent of the vote. Maddie Talnagi ’20 received 66 votes for a total of 6.87 percent of the vote. Jaret Anderson ’20 received 45 votes for 4.68 percent of the total votes.

Although not elected, Angela Tiangco ’20 was endorsed by SA President Brendan Boylan ’19 on his Facebook page.

Mills focused his campaign on the mental health of LGBTQ students, particularly the mental health of transgender students, as well as improving the Freestanding Emergency Call Boxes or the “blue light” system and increasing menstrual product access on campus.

“I felt so excited to know that my classmates saw me as the right choice, heard the message I was trying to give and were receptive to it,” Mills said in a written statement. “It also makes me excited because at the core I was trying to focus all of my campaign work on LGBTQ issues that are often swept under the rug, especially in terms of LGBTQ mental health, and so to see that a good amount of people thought that issue should be a

priority also made me really happy. I was mostly just happy to know that I get to be a part of a lot of really interesting and important decisions being made and I hope I can highlight a lot of the issues I ran on.”

Nichols anchored his campaign in student’s personal interests and assisting students in finding their community. Prior to his election as senator for the class of 2020, Nichols served as secretary of student life for SA, a position appointed by Boylan and SA Vice President Samir Tawalare ’19.

To fill Nichols’ vacancy, Boylan and Tawalare will have to appoint a new secretary of student life.

“I am profoundly grateful to the class of 2020 for this opportunity to be a reliable representative in Student Assembly,” Medrano said. “Learning the election results was tremendously exciting, as I have long been eager to take on a role of this nature at the College. I look forward to getting to beginning efforts to improve campus mental health, safety on Richmond Road, diversity in our community and other priorities important to members of the class of 2020.”

Reporting contributed by Sarah Smith.

ACADEMICS

Symposium explores gender, diversity in technology Visiting professors discuss identity, scholarship in online communities, videogame industry, racism SARAH GREENBERG, KARINA VIZZONI FLAT HAT NEWS ASSOC. EDITORS

In commemoration of the College of William and Mary’s 100th anniversary of coeducation, the the Equality Lab hosted this year’s digital humanities symposium entitled “My Mother Was a Computer: Legacies of Gender and Technology.” The symposium featured an array of expert discussions and presentations regarding the relationship between women and technology.

The event was made in collaboration with the Executive Committee of the program in Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies and faculty on the Ad Hoc Committee for Engineering and Design Opportunities at William and Mary.

One of the panels included at the symposium, entitled “Gender and Gaming,” explored the ways in which female and non-binary identities are represented within the gaming community as a whole, including both game development and scholarly research regarding gaming.

The panel was moderated by Director of American Studies and Community Professor of History, American Studies and Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies Leisa Meyer. Panelists discussed more recent changes and continuities that have occurred within the gaming industry regarding how gender is portrayed and represented.

Northeastern University associate professor of game design Celia Pearce expressed an optimistic attitude regarding gender equality within game development while still recognizing the difficulty women often face when attempting to enter the industry.

“I think it’s a good sign [that the] percentage of women in games programs, as students, are growing,” Pearce said. “The challenge is getting people to hire them, because often game studios use a five years of experience criteria to hire, and what that does is exclude the hundreds and thousands of girls coming out as freshly minted game designers now.”

The panel also highlighted the absence of women and LGBTQ gamers and games within the academic historical record of gaming and game studies. Temple University associate professor of media studies and

production Adrienne Shaw’s current research helps build the LGBTQ Game Archive, an online database of all LGBTQ content in videogames known to exist since the late 20th century.

Georgetown University assistant professor of English Amanda Phillips recognized the importance of Shaw’s work, relating it to the broader lack of female and LGBTQ representation within gaming history.

“What I pick up on is partially trying to resurrect the longer history of feminist work in video games because we are in a moment in which we tend to think that feminism is just happening around video game scholarship and that’s not true,” Phillips said. “Adrienne’s work shows as well, there’s a longer history of queerness in games and so on, and I think all of us here are trying to actually push back on that narrative that we’ve finally arrived and sort of recognize that it’s a thing that’s been happening all along.”

The panel went on to draw attention to the various female voices that have been excluded from game studies and scholarship. Phillips said much of female and feminist scholars’ research on multimedia and games history has been intentionally left out of gaming’s historical record due to the prevalence of white masculine methods that have wrongly characterized it as “sloppy scholarship.”

“There is a very active, intentional process by which feminist critique in particular is ejected from the game studies canon,” Phillips said.

In response to Phillips’ comments, University of California Irvine professor of informatics Bonnie Ruberg expressed a desire to reclaim the idea of feminist research as “sloppy scholarship.”

“I want to do sloppy scholarship, because to me what sloppy brings up is it brings up the mess, which is a kind of a queer figure of messing up taxonomy, messing up meaning,” Ruberg said. “I wonder what it means to do sloppy scholarship as a feminist practice.”

The following panel, entitled “Gender and Online Community,” involved speakers from various institutions across the United States engaging in presentations and discussion regarding the relationship that gender has with technology and the internet.

Data and Society Media Manipulation Research Lead Joan Donovan began the panel with her presentation, “On the Internet, Everyone Knows

You’re a Nazi,” which discussed the history of masculinity on the far right.

Donovan said that although the internet allows for a degree of anonymity, people can be in tune to your personal opinions and biases based on internet tendencies and positions. According to Donovan, the Proud Boys group is one example of a radical, far right group that uses the internet as its platform.

“We’re going to chase you [Neo-Nazis] off the internet, we’re going to chase you off YouTube, we’re going to get you when you show up in games, we’re going to find you on Twitch, and we’re going to null platform all these Neo-Nazis,” Donovan said.

Following Donovan’s presentation, Brandeis University assistant professor of English Dorothy Kim addressed the weaponization of intersectionality by the alt-right against specific marginalized communities online. Kim discussed work by writer I’Nasah Crockett and noted the use of fake Twitter accounts to target marginalized groups.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assistant professor of communication Alice Marwick explored the dynamics of harassment and its relationship to technology in the presentation, “Finding Gender in the Network: Forced Publicity, Harassment, and Public Work.” Marwick discussed various types of harassment, including networked harassment and forced publicity, and how there is little being done to prevent them.

Marwick also discussed the concept of safety work, which she said women utilize to handle violence from men.

“It’s the strategizing and planning that women and girls undertake in responding to avoiding and/or coping with men’s violence,” Marwick said.

“Work repeated over time becomes habitual and absorbed into the body as a kind of hidden labor.”

University of California Los Angeles assistant professor Veronica Paredes discussed the idea of network belonging in her presentation. She used examples from the film “Born in Flames” to evidence media coalition.

Paredes also referenced other means of action and organizations, discussing projects that catalyze this unity such as Equality Labs.

“They’re coming together through media-based activism to catalyze this revolution, to center women to center non-binary folks, trans folks, lesbian folks,” Paredes said.

Organizations, delegates weigh in on Virginia ballot measure impacts Ballot measures to instate floodproofing tax exemptions, allow veteran spouses who relocate to retain exemptions BALLOT MEASURES from page 1

generated only a small of amount of debate, many voters are unaware that these measures will be appearing on the ballot. The Senate and House races have dominated recent coverage, leaving some voters uniformed about the questions they will encounter on their ballots.

Ballot measure one was proposed by Sen. Lynwood Lewis, who represents parts of the Eastern Shore and Norfolk — areas prone to significant flooding.

The amendment would allow localities to decide for themselves whether tax exemptions should be given to homeowners who floodproof their homes.

“I think the idea here is to provide incentive for people to take action to protect their property against flooding in the future,” McGlennon said. “One of the things that may restrain some property owners from improving their property now, to maybe raise the height of the house, … if that has the effect of the raising the value of the house, that would might discourage them from making that investment because then they would be paying taxes on a higher value of the house.”

Some organizations have raised a number of environmental concerns around this ballot measure. Further development in flood-prone areas could have a negative environmental impact on coastal and wetland environments.

The environmental nonprofit organization Northumberland Association for Progressive Stewardship released a statement urging Virginians to vote “no” on question one due to its environmental impacts.

“There is also the worry that when homeowners, for instance, construct barriers to divert floodwaters that it could impact neighboring houses and property and could divert the flooding onto their property which would worsen the flooding for them,” Parada said. “So there are many unintended consequences that could arise from this.”

The editorial page staff of Fredericksburg newspaper The Free Lance-Star wrote that this amendment would be “forcing other taxpayers to subsidize owners of coastal or other waterfront property:” in effect, forcing taxpayers to pay for at-risk waterfront properties.

Still, supporters of the amendment see the measure as a positive relief for property owners with flood risks.

“The question is what would be the benefit to the public would be more broadly if local governments chose to exempt this property, and in some instances, we could say that it might have a positive effect on reducing the pollution that would result when flooding occurs,” McGlennon said. “So if you move a house up, some of the things that might be inundated in a flood would be out of reach.”

Ballot measure two is much less controversial. The question would allow spouses of permanently and totally disabled veterans to change their residence and still maintain the property tax exemption they receive. Question two was proposed by Del. Jason Miyares J.D. ’05 of Virginia’s 82nd District, which represents Virginia Beach.

“There was a constituent who was closing on a home, and she was basically being hit

with a large property tax bill every month,” Miyares said. “… These are the individuals that have gone so far. It’s the least we can do for them.”

According to Miyares, the current status of the constitution doesn’t allow these spouses

to change properties due to a draft mistake in the Legislature. In Virginia Beach, where there are many military spouses, Miyares’ constituents would receive a welcome relief from this restrictive constitutional rule if this measure passes.

opinions

Opinions Editor Ethan Brown Opinions Editor Katherine Yenzer fhopinions@gmail.com // @theflathat

The Flat Hat | Tuesday, November 6, 2018 | Page 5

GRAPHIC BY MAGGIE MORE/ THE FLAT HAT

Students vote in congressional midterm elections STAFF COLUMN

STAFF COLUMN

Voting in Virginia is unique privilege given Despite living in Williamsburg, out-ofstate’s recent political competitiveness state students should vote in home district

Zoë Connell

Ethan Brown

THE FLAT HAT

FLAT HAT OPINIONS EDITOR

As students at the College of William and Mary, we have all come to love — or at least tolerate — our adopted home state of Virginia.

Sure, the Old Dominion has its flaws; for example, tensions between Northern Virginia and the rest of the state are intense and bitter, especially at the College (where derisive comments about “NoVa” seemingly make their way into every conversation).

Our undeniably racist history is a glaring stain on our state’s collective identity. As I am confident we all know, traffic on Interstate Highway 64 East is truly unbearable.

Like every other state, Virginia is imperfect. But as a resident of the Commonwealth for 19 years, I still possess an inexplicable affection for the Old Dominion, in part due to its irregular election calendar.

I was obsessed with elections as a young teenager, and I adored watching forecasting models and pundit predictions. While it pains me to praise the University of Virginia, I grew up poring over blog posts from UVA political analyst Larry Sabato and meticulously tracking his prognostications for Virginia’s gubernatorial and congressional races. I was especially enamored with the Huffington Post’s forecast map in the run-up to the 2012 presidential election, paying close attention to the varying hues of blue and red that were always cast all over the Commonwealth.

Throughout my adolescence, I’ve always been fascinated by the political evolution of my home state, and luckily, Virginia’s electoral schedule allows me to indulge my strange addiction, as there are always a plethora of competitive races to watch.

Two years ago, Virginia’s support of Hillary Clinton was a watershed moment in our state’s political

history. The Old Dominion became the only former Confederate state to support Mrs. Clinton’s presidential bid in a rare Democratic sucess that election year.

A year later, in 2017, Virginia politics once again entered the national spotlight, as our gubernatorial race became a proxy battle of partisan support in the Trump era. Last year’s state legislative elections were similarly thrilling to watch and resulted in a stunning 51-49 split in the House of Delegates. Next year, in November 2019, we can expect even more competitive elections, as all 40 seats in our state’s upper chamber are up for grabs.

But most importantly, eyes from coast to coast are on Virginia as voters go to the polls for the 2018 midterms. Sen. Tim Kaine is running for reelection after losing his bid for the vice presidency a short two years ago, and several of our state’s congressional races for the House of Representatives are among the nation’s most contested.

Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District features an exceptionally close race, and the College’s student population could play a key role in the selection of our next representative in Washington, D.C. I have spent countless hours in Earl Gregg Swem Library idling through FiveThirtyEight, Politico and The Hill during the past few months, looking at election coverage.

Now, we stand on the precipice of what could be a monumental midterm season for our country.

Regardless of the outcome, I am eager to be a voter during my state’s era in the political spotlight. I hope you all take advantage of the same privilege this exciting election day.

Email Ethan Brown at ewbrown@email.wm.edu.

As someone from New Jersey attending the College of William and Mary, I’ve come to realize that, although I love this school, there are a few drawbacks to being an out-of-state student aside from tuition. One such drawback is voter registration. This may not be limited to out-of-state students, as I have a few friends from Northern Virginia and other congressional districts in Virginia who have had similar experiences, but I find that this affects out-of-state students more so than their in-state counterparts.

Every fall, as soon as classes begin, voter registration season begins. People camp out on The Terrace, sit outside of The Caf and wander about the Sunken Garden continuously asking if you have registered to vote in Williamsburg. The answer for me is always, “No, sorry; I’m from out of state.”

Most of the time, that’s the end of the story, but occasionally, people will continue to push for me to register in Williamsburg. The typical reasons they give for doing so are that Williamsburg is a very competitive district and voting in Williamsburg means I will have more of an impact on my community here. While these are very valid reasons for registering to vote in Williamsburg, I would like to think that my reasons for not wanting to relocate my registration status are equally valid.

I will be the first to say that I completely support groups like NextGen who encourage students to register to vote. They do amazing work and I truly respect all that they have accomplished, but to the few students who pressure out-of-state students, or students from different districts in general, to

register in Williamsburg, I want to provide my rationale for voting in my hometown.

Aside from attending college, I have grown up in the same town my entire life. I am very emotionally attached and have forged bonds within my community there that outweigh some of the bonds I have made over the past two years here. Both of my parents still live there, as well as my sister, who is too young to vote.

My vote in my hometown could directly impact my sister’s high school as well as the taxes that my parents and I pay. In addition to this emotional attachment, I come from a very competitive district back home in New Jersey.

If I truly felt that my vote at home did not matter, regardless of my political views, I would certainly register to vote in Williamsburg. However, both fortunately and unfortunately, that is not that case, and every vote in my district does make a difference.

It has been drilled into our heads by now that voting is essential to ensuring proper representation, but it should be up to each individual where they want to be represented.

Personally, I want to be represented back home rather than at school, which I think is OK. If someone wants to vote in the district in which they attend school, that is also OK. People should register to vote wherever they feel their voice will make the most impact, but even more importantly, people should vote wherever they want to make the most change, be it their home or college town.

Email Zoë Connell at zsconnell@email.wm.edu.

STAFF COLUMN

After shocking 2016 elections, voting, sustained political engagement vital for democratic expression

Emma Ford

FLAT HAT STAFF WRITER

I woke up after the 2016 presidential election to my mom crying and I instantly knew who won. I remember putting on my makeup before school, hoping I could cover up the tear tracks from my sobs that morning. I remember worrying as I got into my car wondering how my school, heavily divided between liberals and conservatives, would respond. I remember my worst fears coming true as three boys marched

down the hall yelling, “build the wall.” I remember a Muslim girl’s hijab being ripped off. The 2016 presidential election changed me. It made me worried for the future, but it also made me angry — angry that a president once again did not win the popular vote, angry that young people did not go to the polls and angry that I would now be stuck with a president who would threaten my rights as a woman as well as the rights of many of my friends.

Now, it is time for the midterm elections, and a lot has happened within these past two years. The 2016 election sparked a change within our democracy, reminding people the importance of their voice and the necessity of using it.

Events like the Women’s March and March For Our Lives have given me hope that both women and young people will enter the polls on Election Day ready to make their voices heard.

Only 19.9 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds cast their ballots in the 2014 midterm elections, according to the Current Population Supplement conducted by the U.S. Census. According to a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census data, 18 to 29-year-olds have the potential to rival

the baby boomer generation in the electorate this year. The data show that we, the youth, can have a significant voice in our democracy, but it is our silence and lack of showing up that have resulted in us being forgotten.

We need to raise our voices if we want to see change in the 2018 midterms. I ran in heels wearing my high school graduation gown and tassels so I could cast my vote in the 2018 primaries after graduation practice. I received calls from my friends as they proudly told me they just submitted their absentee ballots, excited that their voices would be included this year.

Monday after class, I drove to Richmond with my older sister, woke up early today for the election, and cast my vote for Abigail Spanberger, representing the 7th District, and Tim Kaine for the U.S. Senate. I wanted to watch as my ballot was collected and see my voice on that page screaming for change. Our democracy survives when the people wield their voices, and voting is the most powerful weapon we have.

Email Emma Ford at erford@email.wm.edu.

The Flat Hat

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

Page 6

STAFF COLUMN

STAFF COLUMN

2018 Halloween weekend incites pessimism after disappointing costumes

Anthony Madalone

FLAT HAT OPINIONS ASSOC. EDITOR

Approximately one year ago today, I took to my soapbox at the Flat Hat and extolled the creative virtues of dressing up for Halloweekend. I championed the brilliance of a well-done costume and how the weekend served as “a great equalizer, allowing ingenuity to triumph and people to gather together under a banner of spooky fun.”

I was a Halloweekend optimist, claiming anyone could make a great costume with a little bit of wit and a basic wardrobe.

This year during Halloweekend, I abandoned my optimism.

My week prior to Halloweekend was exhausting. I was physically and emotionally drained and frankly, I didn’t have the time or motivation to commit to actually trying this year.

I walked into the weekend without a costume or a care to give. My experience was going to be as purposefully lazy as possible.

My costumes were perhaps the biggest stretch I’ve done in my entire life, and I was a varsity sprinter in high school.

On the first night of Halloweekend, I just felt like staying in bed. Thus, my costume was the most over-thetop pajama ensemble possible, complete with a robe, pants, moccasins and a mug.

Was there something I was actually striving to be? Nah. I just really wanted to be in my jammies, and nobody was going to tell me to take them off because it was Halloweekend, damn it. People had a wide variety of ideas about what I was.

“

Lurking within a sea of genuine effort are sharks like me, lazily slapping together whatever they have in their closet and calling it a genuine effort.

Keep your eyes peeled out there, folks. For every good costume is a lazy one hidden in the midst.

Some thought I was Ferris Bueller. Others thought I was a friend of mine known for his naps. When people asked me what I was, I usually just told them the truth, being that I wasn’t even wearing a costume and I was just really into the idea of wearing pajama pants and moccasins.

Were a select few people confused? Hell yes. Was I comfy, cozy, and wholly unconcerned about it? Again, hell yes.

On the second night of Halloweekend, I decided I couldn’t use the same pajama bit, so I took to crafting the most elaborate pun costume possible.

It came to me in a vision: one picture of a pan attached to me with paper clips, with a Kristaps Porzingis jersey as my shirt and a crown sitting atop my head.

When I was asked what I was, the answer was always the same: “I didn’t have a costume, so I was pan-knickking.” Zing.

These costumes were halfhearted, noncommittal and objectively bad. But now that I’ve worn them, I have a whole new perspective on Halloweekend.

Last year, I was in awe of the world of creativity surrounding me and the general excitement in the moment. I saw a man dressed as a taco in Wawa and was unabashedly shook.

This year, I experienced firsthand the stress that Halloweekend can bring when added onto an already busy schedule. Yet despite this, people barely noticed the last-minute nature of my costumes. My unapologetic lack of genius went almost entirely unnoticed by the innocent public around me.

Even if I am into Halloweekend next year, I’ll look at people with a new sense of pessimism. Lurking within a sea of genuine effort are sharks like me, lazily slapping together whatever they have in their closet and calling it a genuine effort.

Keep your eyes peeled out there, folks. For every good costume is a lazy one hidden in the midst. The next time you see a taco, be more alert than I was.

Email Anthony Madalone at asmadalone@email.wm.edu

GRAPHIC BY KAYLA PAYNE / THE FLAT HAT

Halloween should only be celebrated Oct. 31

Isabella Miranda THE FLAT HAT

Because Halloween is my favorite holiday, I have immense respect for the holiday itself and the traditions associated with it. I have noticed that Halloween changes from when you are a child to a college student. No longer does your mother dress you in cute onesies and send you off to school to join the other kids in costumes for a big parade. We now fend for ourselves in coming up with fresh, creative costume ideas for Halloweekend, forgetting how we used to dress up and trickor-treat when we were younger.

Reflecting on how Halloween has changed as I have gotten older, I stick to my purist inclinations that wearing Halloween costumes should be reserved for the holiday itself. I admit in having gone against my better judgement in the fact that I indeed, wore a costume to a party the weekend before Halloween. That experience is why I now believe Halloween should be celebrated on Oct. 31 alone.

Firstly, going to the Halloweekend party was a last-minute decision. I scavenged through the drawers of my dresser looking for any spare pieces of clothing that when combined, could make a somewhat decent costume. Donning a black mesh shirt

with white stars, black jeans and blue sparkle socks, I became the Milky Way galaxy. When I arrived at the aforementioned party, I was jammed into a small room with way too many people and not enough light. I thought, while sweating profusely and looking around the room at everyone in their costumes: Why did we do this to ourselves? Why did we wear costumes to a place like this?

The extra clothing that we were wearing as part of our costumes made everyone unnecessarily hot and uncomfortable, especially when crammed in a small room with roughly 40 other people.

The most popular costume of the evening was Serena and Blair from “Gossip Girl” in their iconic outfits. These look like school uniforms, consisting of skirts that remind me of what I wore growing up. I went to private school for 10 years and I will never forget how unforgiving the uniforms were. Skirts with plaid patterns that Burberry would scorn at and pleats that created the most unflattering shape to my body plagued my high school’s hallways while I suffered in silence. I would not wish those outfits on my worst enemies, which is why I find it puzzling now that people would voluntarily wear them as a costume.

When we celebrate Halloween on its designated day, we can save ourselves from the repeated discomfort that comes with wearing our costumes both on Halloweekend and on Halloween.

Not only the costumes, but the makeup worn to accompany them is just as tedious to apply and wipe off for multiple days. I understand Halloweekend and the desire to celebrate Halloween spirit before the actual holiday, but there can be other more comfortable ways to do so. Some alternatives would be watching your favorite Halloween movie or baking some spooky treats, but we should leave the actual donning of costumes to one day only: the holiday itself.

Email Isabella Miranda at immiranda@email.wm.edu

“

When we celebrate Halloween on its designated day, we can save ourselves from the repeated discomfort that comes with wearing our costumes both on Halloweekend and on Halloween.

Not only the costumes, but the makeup worn to accompany them is just as tedious to apply and wipe off for multiple days.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: WILLIAM AND MARY LAW SCHOOL’S ELECTION DAY HOTLINE This Tuesday, the William and Mary Law School’s Election Law Society will be hosting our annual Voter Assistance Hotline.

Phones will be staffed from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 6. The phone number is (757) 742-3095.

Volunteers will be available to answer any questions that might arise on Election Day. We can help you figure out where to vote, whether you have an acceptable photo ID, or what to do if a poll worker informs you that there is a problem with your registration.

No question is too small. In the past, our workers have even helped people find their precinct through Google Maps and remained on the phone until the caller found their voting location. This is a free service because we want to help you exercise your rights.

Common questions that people encounter on Election Day include: 1) Where do I vote?

2) What forms of ID are acceptable?

3) What is on the ballot?

There are only good questions to ask and we are happy to answer any that may come up before, during, or after voting.

We want to ensure that every person that wants to vote is able to do so. Although the service is hosted at William and Mary, it is not limited to students or the Williamsburg area. We are able to help all Virginia residents, so spread the word if someone you know is having trouble with voting. Voting is fundamental to our democracy and we believe that everyone who wants to vote should have that opportunity.

Please keep in mind that parts of James City County are in the First District and parts of the county are in the Second District, so different people may be on your ballot than your classmate’s ballot. Contact us if you have any questions about who is on your ballot.

VOTEline is an annual non-partisan service provided by the William & Mary Election Law Society to prevent confusion at local election precincts. The student group has operated VOTEline since November 2007. The hotline serves anyone seeking information regarding his or her rights at the polls. Please note that VOTEline assistance will only be available on Election Day. In accordance with Virginia’s new Photo ID law, all in-person voters on Election Day must present an acceptable form of photo identification. Valid forms of identification include, but are not limited to, valid Virginia driver’s licenses and identification cards, valid U.S. passports, valid college or university student photo identification cards from Virginia institutions of higher education, employer-issued photo identification cards, and other government-issued photo identification cards. For a complete list of acceptable forms of photo ID, visit http://sbe.virginia.gov/index.php/registration/photo-ids-required-to-vote/. To find out where to vote, visit http://sbe.virginia. gov/index.php/registration/view-your- info/ or call VOTEline at (757) 742-3095 on Election Day. For more information about VOTEline, e-mail Jane Chiffriller J.D. ’21 or Trevor Bernardo J.D. ’21 at elsvoteline@gmail.com.

variety p l a e c h e t s , h O e’ve w c ri e d !

Variety Editor Heather Baier Variety Editor Carmen Honker flathat.variety@gmail.com

The Flat Hat

CONFUSION CORNER

Break time

Student relaxation matters to prevent burnout, exhaustion

Facebook group counters campus narrative of apathetic stress culture, encourages vulnerability

N

SARAH SMITH // FLAT HAT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ear the end of the spring 2018 semester, Kate Dragonetti ’21 and Olivia Renda ’21 took to Facebook after crying together at the Mary-Cooke Branch Munford Plaza, in front of Earl Gregg Swem Library, as classes let out. The two, who were roommates at the time, then created the Facebook group, “W&M Places I’ve Cried.”

“It started half because we thought it would be funny and half because we cry a lot,” Dragonetti said.

The group, which is now a closed group, has 760 members. Students typically post the location where they are crying and sometimes their reasons why. Other students then “react” and share supportive messages through the post’s comment section.

Renda said that she and Dragonetti believe it is important for students to have an outlet, and that she believes “W&M Places I’ve Cried” has become a place where people can find support and be vulnerable.

“Opening up to a group of peers about the time you cried on campus is really vulnerable, but the page really encourages that,” Renda said. “It’s a really good thing to have in the campus community; we often can get caught up in that stress culture.”

Dragonetti said that after a student contacted her about changing the privacy settings of the group, she decided it would be better to make it a closed group. That way, only students — not their relatives — can see posts on the page, and frequent posters can feel safe when applying for jobs and internships.

Some students use this Facebook group more than others. As of Wednesday, Oct. 31, Kathryn Willoughby ’20 had posted six times. Hallie Feinman ’22 had posted three times. For Willoughby and Feinman, however, the group is comforting rather than shameful.

“I can’t remember who introduced me to it, but I have especially been using it this semester because it is really comforting,” Willoughby said. “No shade to ‘Swampy Memes [for Twampy Teens],’ I love Swampy, but there is a lot of ‘Oh things are terrible, things suck,’ this depressive, apathetic culture at the College in general but especially in other Facebook groups. The thing about ‘W&M Places I’ve Cried’ is that even though it’s places where people have cried, where they’re sad, where they’ve experienced an overwhelming emotion, it’s wholesome. You tell people and they ‘heart’ react, and they’re like, ‘We love you.’ It’s one of the more wholesome Facebook groups there is in my opinion.”

Feinman agrees. She said she believes many of the people who post in the group do so because they are moved by the beauty or significance of particular places on campus, like the Martha Wren Briggs Amphitheater or walking down Duke of Gloucester street.

“I think when people look at this page, people might think that this is William and Mary stress culture,” Feinman said. “I don’t think that’s what the page is going for. It’s a statement of where I am, I cried and then people can say if it’s a happy cry or a stress cry. … I think there are a lot of places that people end up crying because they are alone, or because it’s a pretty place. … This campus is so pretty and has so many isolated trails that you can go and find a peaceful place and go clear your head and cry.”

There are also places that people have cried more than others. The most popular locations are Morton Hall, the Earl Gregg Swem Library, Swemromas, Monroe Hall, Marketplace and Tucker Hall.

Willoughby said that while she’s never cried in Morton Hall — or in the popular-to-cry-in third floor bathrooms — she understands why people feel compelled to cry there. She said she finds herself crying in the Swem Library more than anywhere else.

“You can generally find me crying in the library because that is when I am getting overwhelmed by stress and things,” Willoughby said. “I don’t go to a spot with the intention of crying; I am crying, and I happen to be somewhere. For example, the other day, I don’t even know if I posted this or not, but I was really emotional because I was stressed on the third floor and I looked over and someone else was crying and there was this moment of solidarity; it sucks for both of us. It’s confirmation that I am not alone.”

Willoughby said that this semester has been particularly hard for her because of a depressive episode that she is going through. Because of this, she said she has been posting in the group more often than she did before.

“Instead of just crying alone, it’s like, other people are crying too, I am not alone,” Willoughby said. “I am not the only one stressed by midterms.

Sometimes there are wholesome posts because people were crying about seeing a dog. That is validation of emotion, there is no shame in it. I think that’s pretty awesome.”

Dragonetti said that one thing she appreciates is when students post pictures along with where they’re crying. She said that seeing red-faced, teary-eyed selfies is relatable, and everyone can relate to and share the experience of crying in public through sharing photos.

While Dragonetti and Renda don’t currently have plans for what will happen to the group once they graduate, they said that if it’s still active closer to May 2021, they’ll consider passing it down to other group administrators. For now, they just want those who join the page to keep up the energy that inspired it.

“If people are thinking about joining the group, please keep it a safe and fun place where people can talk about where they’ve cried,” Dragonetti said.

Location

‘W&M Places I’ve Cried’ by the teardrops Morton Hall

9

Sunken Garden Earl Gregg Swem Matoaka Amphitheatre

6

Marketplace

4

Number of tears shed

| Tuesday, November 6, 2018 | Page 9

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Ellie Moonan CONFUSION CORNER COLUMNIST

Have you recently been asked, “Where have you been?” Is the weight of your work causing you to want to retreat into a cave and never return? Well, there is a way out. If you have been absent from friends and events on campus, do not let that lead you down a path of complete isolation, for there are ways in which you can pull yourself out.

No one particularly plans to fail at following through on their grand plans and gestures with friends and beyond, but it happens all the time, and that is OK. What isn’t OK, though, is making this an unhealthy pattern and the feelings of guilt afterward.

Although it is a given fact that everyone is busy, we must still allow ourselves time to have genuine, wholesome fun. There are a few ways in which you can ease yourself back into your neglected social routine, with no apologies needed.

Impromptu movie nights are probably the easiest event to “plan.” All you need is to be knee-deep in homework at 11 p.m. in Earl Gregg Swem Library, suddenly have an urge to watch Anne Hathaway, push your work to the side and invite others over as you turn on “The Devil Wears Prada.” This type of creative burst could even inspire a certain new discourse with friends and allow you to get out of your head for a bit. I mean, we all get sick of talking about the same drama with the same people, so why not add a new movie to the repertoire and inspire new thoughts?

Another way to reintroduce yourself to the world is by stepping outside. The weather is at a sweet spot right now in Williamsburg, so you might as well take advantage of the outdoors as best as you can. Even just walking around campus can do wonders, especially for those who live off campus. Sometimes it is easy to forget that there is activity happening 24/7 on campus, and you can remain in sync with it all by taking a few laps with your earphones on. Plus, you never know who you are going to run into or what adventure awaits, and you may be incredibly thankful for that experience.

One of the most important routines to check into now and then is making phone calls. If you physically can’t get out of your cave, at least let your phone do it for you. Calling far-away family members or friends about daily events at college allows yourself to get some new energy and excitement about even the most mundane events. Making phone calls is like writing journal entries, and the more you put it off, the more overwhelming it may be to catch up. However, don’t let that stop you from doing it anyway.

All of this is not to say that being alone and isolating yourself is not helpful, because we all need it. Just make sure to not be afraid to take time for yourself and then unapologetically jump back into the busy current that is school life. No one needs to know where you have been, and you don’t need an explanation when they say, “I haven’t seen you in a long time.” Simply enjoy finally being in the presence of activities you have been away from for so long.

Trust me, your presence is appreciated wherever it may be on campus, and there should be no guilty feelings about being present.

Ellie Moonan is a Confusion Corner columnist who wants you to know it is socially acceptable to take time for yourself.

Page 10

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

The Flat Hat

The Flat Hat

2018-19 BASKETBALL PREVIEW Nathan Knight has worked tirelessly to make himself one of the best players in college basketball. Can he take his team with him to the top?

PHOTO BY JAMIE HOLT / THE FLAT HAT

IN THE INSERT: Men’s team preview, page 2 Women’s team preview, page 2 Nathan Knight: Hard work pays off, page 3 Season outlooks and predictions, page 4 The Extra Point: Is this the year? page 4

Team previews

The Flat Hat | Tuesday, November 6, 2018 | Page 2

Young teams, high hopes

Graduating seniors leave opportunities for new players to become stars KEVIN RICHESON // FLAT HAT SPORTS ASSOC. EDITOR

Men’s squad eyes CAA tournament Without David Cohn, a new era begins

Last season, William and Mary finished fourth in the Colonial Athletic Association and lost in the CAA semifinals, 83-73, to eventual champions Charleston. This season, the Tribe was once again picked to finish fourth in the CAA, behind Northeastern, Charleston and Hofstra.

The team will look to win its first CAA Championship this season after making the championship game four times during head coach Tony Shaver’s 16-year tenure.

“

This whole season is predicated towards winning those three games in March to get us to the tournament.

–REDSHIRT SENIOR PAUL ROWLEY

The Tribe lost several seniors after last season, including starting guards David Cohn ’18 and Connor Burchfield ’18. Cohn was the undisputed leader of the team after playing his last three seasons at the College when he transferred from Colorado State after his freshman campaign. Burchfield had the top three-point percentage in the country last season, shooting 52 percent for the season and 50.7 percent over the course of his career.

“We lost two great offensive players, [there’s] no doubt about that,” Shaver said.

The College will have a young roster this season, with experienced leadership from All-CAA second-team junior forward Nathan Knight, junior forward Justin Pierce and redshirt senior forward Paul Rowley.

“I’m going to need to help coach Shaver keep the offense at the speed it

was last year,” Knight said.

Some younger returning players will play a key role, including sophomore guards Jihar Williams and Luke Loewe.

Both players saw limited action last season, but with Cohn and Burchfield graduated, both players are likely to see more time on the court. Shaver has been especially impressed with Loewe’s performance so far this offseason.

“Luke’s playing at a really high level,” Shaver said. “I have a lot of confidence in Luke Loewe. [He’s] a tough young man, very team-oriented, really good defender on the ball … he’s consistently shooting the ball for us.”

The College will also get a boost from its six freshmen, especially freshman guard LJ Owens. Other freshmen include guards Thornton Scott and Chase Audige.

The Tribe will start off the season with a difficult non-conference schedule that will challenge a fairly inexperienced roster.

“Our non-conference schedule is the most difficult that I’ve faced here at William and Mary,” Shaver said. “It’s really going to be important for our staff and for our team to realize that this non-conference schedule is designed to make us better.”

In conference play, the College will play each of the other CAA teams twice, once at Kaplan Arena and once on the road. The Tribe will start CAA play Dec. 28 at home against James Madison. The CAA tournament will take place from March 9-12 in North Charleston, South Carolina.

The winner of the CAA tournament will receive an automatic bid to the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The Tribe is one of four original Division I programs that has never qualified for the tournament.

“This whole season is predicated towards winning those three games in March to get us to the tournament,” Rowley said.

Women’s team looks to climb rankings Boggs, team look to shatter expectations

In 2017, William and Mary was projected to finish third in its conference, but the Tribe struggled down the stretch and ended up in sixth place. The College lost in its first game of the Colonial Athletic Association tournament to third-seeded Elon, 6750. This season, the College was picked to finish sixth in the CAA. However, head coach Ed Swanson is confident that this young team could exceed expectations and take the next step to being a top team in the CAA. “I look at us as an upper-echelon team this year,” Swanson said. “We’re going to have to scratch and claw to get into the top four, but I do think that this team does have the possibilities of turning the corner.”

The College will be forced to play without two starters from last year: guard Jenna Green ’18 and center Abby Rendle ’18. Green and Rendle were part of the winningest class in program history with 66 career victories.

The Tribe will be led by an AllCAA first team preseason selection in senior guard Bianca Boggs. Boggs also finished as first team All-CAA her junior season and has the potential to make CAA Player of the Year this season.

Last season, she averaged 15.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Despite losing Green, Boggs has confidence in projected starting freshman guard Eva Hodgson.

“I think we’re pretty set to go with [Hodgson],” Boggs said. “Like I said, she’s incredibly mature, her ball handling is great, her court vision is great, her passing is on point … I think after one or two games hopefully she’ll be just fine.”

The College will also have the leadership of senior guard Misha Jones and senior center Chandler Smith, both of whom have seen limited playing time in the past.

“I try to relay coach Swanson’s messages and the assistant coaches’ messages as well as I can,” Jones said.

Several underclassmen have the potential to make a significant impact for the Tribe.

Sophomore guard Libby Underwood played limited minutes in her freshman season but could be a key player off of the bench for the Tribe backcourt.

Furthermore, fellow sophomore guard Nyla Pollard started 27 games last season and could see even more minutes this year. She averaged 4.1 points per game in her freshman season.

Junior guard Nari Garner also saw 8.1 points per game mostly off the bench last season and could provide more scoring for the College in the 2018-19 campaign.

“

We’re going to have to scratch and claw to get into the top four, but I do think that this team does have the possibilities of turning the corner.

–HEAD COACH ED SWANSON

The College’s non-conference schedule is difficult and starts Nov. 6 at home with a game against in-state rival Virginia Commonwealth.

“I’m really looking forward to Tuesday night,” Swanson said.

“Obviously, an in-state rival, and we’re excited to have VCU back on the schedule, and we’re excited to be home in Kaplan.”

After its regular season schedule is completed, The College will look to advance further than the quarterfinals, like in the 2017-18 season, in the CAA tournament, which will be held March 13-16 in Newark, Delaware.

Profile

Sports Editor Brendan Doyle Sports Editor Julia Stumbaugh flathatsports@gmail.com @flathatsports Page 3

Hard work pays off for Nathan Knight

After breakout sophomore year, junior forward looks to up ante yet again BRENDAN DOYLE // FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR At around 10 on a Tuesday morning, William and Mary junior forward Nathan Knight was already drenched in sweat. The six-foot-ten centerpiece to the men’s program was shooting three after three.

For a player as physically imposing as the 235-pound Knight, the idea of him developing a consistent outside jump shot strikes fear in opponents and excites head coach Tony Shaver. So here he is, working with Austin Shaver, Tony Shaver’s son and assistant coach. Today, Knight’s morning workout is to hit 100 three-pointers, as well as 60 free throws.

Before he put together one of the best sophomore seasons in Colonial Athletic Association history, before he played 17 minutes per game as a freshman, even before he spent a year in prep school at Kimball Union, Knight was a five-foot-ten freshman pitching for the baseball team at Nottingham High School in Syracuse, New York.

“Basketball was the last sport I picked up,” Knight said. “It was baseball first, then basketball.”

Knight’s growth spurt that elevated him from scrawny guard to sturdy center can be described as the uncommon combination of fast and steady.

“Yeah, just hit [my growth spurt] through high school,” Knight said. “Sophomore year six-two, junior year like six-five, and senior year like six-eight.”

Even with his apparent height, Knight was not a highly-touted prospect out of high school — and he’s not embarrassed to admit that.

“Through my public school, I had about, maybe, four offers,” Knight said. “That was all. It was Colgate, Niagara, St. Bonaventure and then there was one more,

I think Canisius.”

However, as became a theme throughout Knight’s adolescent life, hard work took him further than many thought possible.

After his time at Nottingham, Knight attended Kimball Union Academy in New Hampshire for a year in prep school. It was that year that truly propelled him into the class of sought-after basketball recruits.

“That summer, I did a week at a Hoop Group [basketball] camp, and somebody told me that I got 20 offers that weekend,” Knight said. “It was great. You know, it’s very humbling to know that my hard work is paying off.”

One of the schools that came calling was the College. As it turned out, it was a perfect fit for both the school and the player. The Tribe got a player with great potential and a proven work ethic, and Knight found a comfortable place to call home for four years as well as a coaching staff that believed in him.

“I liked the school before I even came here, just the coaching staff and then doing some research with my parents, just the rich history that we have here,” Knight said. “And then the official visit was what really did it for me. You guys know, it’s a very homey campus. It wasn’t a hard adjustment for me. I knew it wouldn’t be if I came here, so that was a really easy decision for me and my parents.”

Knight committed to the College Oct. 5, 2015.

Neither Knight nor the Tribe knew just how much of an impact he would make in a short amount of time.

Back at Kaplan a few hours later for practice, the players run through their offensive sets. It’s clear Knight

JAMIE HOLT / THE FLAT HAT

Now in his junior year, forward Nathan Knight is looking to build upon his strong first two seasons in green and gold.

is trying to be a vocal leader on the court. He yells out the names of the play and his teammates and asks questions of the coaches if something goes wrong.

This has been a point of emphasis all offseason, for both Shaver and Knight. A few days ago, the head coach mentioned just how important it was for Knight to step into a leadership role, even if it took some growing into.

“There’s an old coaching cliche, and it’s really, really true,” Shaver said. “When your best player, or your best players, are your hardest workers, you have something special.”

The message has not been lost on Knight. Named one of four team captains along with junior guard Justin Pierce, junior guard Matt Milon and redshirt senior forward Paul Rowley, he talks about how much leading the team means to him just about every chance he gets.

The void that Knight is trying to fill is quite a large one. Guard David Cohn ’18, who graduated from the College last May after a three-year stint as the starting point guard, was the unquestioned leader of the team.

Stepping into his shoes will take some getting used to for Knight.

“Nobody on this team is as passionate about Tribe basketball,” said Knight. “At least, that I can see. I want to say I am, but I haven’t seen a person that’s more passionate about the game of basketball than Dave.

Dave was always screaming; he’s just always going at it, and I admire that about [him]. I miss Dave, in that sense, but I feel like that, him graduating, it’s giving us an opportunity to embody that, to embody that love for leading a team, for being the best captain, for being the best teammate you can be.”

With a young team and a tough non-conference schedule, Knight knows that the early part of the season could be bumpy. However, he seems confident in the ability for the team to get on track for conference play.

“I want to say that we’re going to win the championship,” Knight said. “That’s what I want to say.

But, obviously, I can’t promise that, because it’s a really good conference. There are a lot of really good teams. … I’ll say it’s going to be fun. I mean that. It’s going to be fun. I’m ready. So, how I see it going? I see it going really well, if we can come together as a team when the time comes.”

Knight has already accomplished a lot in his time here at the College, but none of his accolades matter as much to him as a CAA Championship would.

“Believe it or not, that’s one of the reasons I came here,” Knight said. “I saw that as an opportunity for me to really show myself, because that’s an opportunity for me to not just show myself but show everybody how good of a player, and how good of a captain, and how good of a team we can be. Because, like you said, if I can do that, that’s something that nobody’s ever done here.”

WOmEn’s BREAKDOWN 2018 PRESEASON RANK

Offense: No. 2, 65.8 avg. scoring Defense: No. 8, 65.3 avg. scoring

SEASON Predictions

FLAT HAT SPORTS ASSOC. EDITOR KEVIN RICHESON

FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR BRENDAN DOYLE

Men: 18-12, 11-7 CAA, 4th in CAA, lose CAA semifinal to Northeastern Women: 17-12, 9-9 CAA, 5th in CAA, lose CAA semifinal to Drexel

Men: 17-13, 11-7 CAA, 4th in CAA, lose CAA semifinal to Northeastern Women: 16-13, 10-8 CAA, 5th in CAA, lose CAA semifinal to James Madison

2018 PRESEASON RANK

No. 4 in CAA Offense: No. 1, 85.0 avg. scoring Defense: No. 9, 81.6 avg. scoring

2017

2017

No. 6 in CAA

Calling the shots

MEN’s BREAKDOWN

FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR JULIA STUMBAUGH

Men: 19-11 ,12-6 CAA, 3rd in CAA, lose CAA final to Northeastern Women: 17-12, 10-8 CAA, 4th in CAA, lose CAA semifinal to James Madison

THE EXTRA POINT

This could be the year for men’s basketball With young stars poised to break out, it’s time to be positive about this team

Reid Champlin FLAT HAT STAFF WRITER

Welcome to The Extra Point, The Flat Hat’s weekly sports column. Flat Hat Staff Writer Reid Champlin is taking the reins as the columnist.

Once again, we ask ourselves the question, hoping more than anything that we’ll finally like the answer: Is this the year? We dare to be so bold to proclaim that this is, indeed, the year: The year the streak is broken, the year William and Mary gets to dance, to embrace the madness, to finally, after 79 years, earn that coveted spot in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Tournament. I think of all the writers before me who have asked and answered this question, stretching all the way back to 1939. It is, in a way, a tradition to believe that you

will finally be the one who gets it right, who’s lucky enough to write this article in the year the College will finally break out, the prognosticator of coming glory. I am proud to continue that tradition.

While the Tribe faces an uphill battle, this year offers as good a chance as any to break through to the Big Dance. Enough stars have aligned to allow me to confidently say that the Tribe is poised to take down its Colonial Athletic Association rivals and finally escape the dubious list of original schools to never make the tournament.

I won’t hesitate to point out the elephant in the room: this is a very different team than last year’s. The Tribe reached the CAA semifinal on the strength of its shooting, notching nation-high percentages from the freethrow line and from beyond the arc.

Connor Burchfield ’18 led the nation in three-point percentage, and David Cohn ’18 rounded out the national-level shooters. Both graduated in the spring. The team’s strategy will either need to involve finding substitutions for these transcendent talents or shifting to focus on existing talent.

Headlining the 2018-19 team is forward Nathan Knight, the towering junior and Mid-Major All-American. Knight shot 57.5 percent from the field last season, averaging 18.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game with dominant interior play and equally impressive skill from distance.

Junior forward Justin Pierce, a capable wing, converted on over 50 percent from the floor while contributing 14.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game.

The team is in good hands with these two paving the way, but

they’ll need to fill the leadership gap left behind by Cohn and Burchfield in addition to the lost points per game.

Head coach Tony Shaver has brought stability to the team, which has now made the CAA semifinal for two consecutive years. If he can turn his capable underclassmen, particularly sophomore guards Luke Loewe and Jihar Williams, into consistent contributors and run plays through Knight and Pierce, this could finally, finally, finally be the year the Tribe makes it to the big stage.

COURTESY PHOTO / TRIBE ATHLETICS

Junior wing Justin Pierce will have to step up in order to fill the holes left by last year’s seniors.