Vol. 107, Iss. 17 | Tuesday, September 26, 2017
The Flat Hat The Weekly Student Newspaper
of The College of William and Mary
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CONSTRUCTION
In the [demolition] zone The 2017-2018 Flat Hat guide to campus construction SARAH SMITH // FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR Over the next three academic years, the College of William and Mary will break ground on new construction projects and review architectural designs for projects to transform campus. Demolition, renovations and the design process for buildings will manifest across campus from the Student Recreation Center to the Integrated Wellness Center. Alumni House Renovations to the Alumni House, announced last year, are estimated to be $20 million and sourced from private donors. According to Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration Sam Jones, the current space was not meeting the needs of alumni, so the renovations would create support spaces for them and add a larger gathering space. Following the proposed designs, the renovations would add 400 seats around round tables or 900 seats in a theaterstyle space. This design is intended to complement the Bright House, which is one of the current parts of the Alumni House. The design also includes a space for a gathering garden and adds beauty to the existing structure. Director of Facilities Maintenance, Planning and Design Jeff Brancheau, said the contract for the construction will be awarded in the summer of 2018. Brancheau hopes the renovations will be completed by the summer of 2019. Grim Dell The ongoing construction on the Grim Dell is part of a three-phase project. This project, according to Brancheau, is designed to improve sediment and storm water drainage issues on campus, which have negative ecological impacts. The first phase of this project was just completed, and the second phase, which will come with the creation of retention pools, will begin in the coming weeks. Future construction will include best management practice sites, which are acceptable structures that are implemented to protect water quality and promote soil conservation. The last steps will include paving a gravel path behind Washington Hall and Ewell Hall. Brancheau said this construction should end no later than August 2018. $3.3 million was allocated to this project. Integrated Wellness Center Construction on the Integrated Wellness Center began in April 2017, and the planned completion date is for some time before the 2018 academic year. The goal is to create a holistic health center, which will move the Student Health Amount, in millions, of Center and the Counseling Center into the same building, and will expand wellness options for students. ongoing and future Currently, foundational concrete is being poured, and construction projects at the according to Brancheau, it should begin to resemble a Colleg e of William and Mary building in the next two to three months. After adjustments
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BY MEILA N SOLLY / THE FLAT COURTESY PHOTO / W HAT M.EDU
See CONSTRUCTION page 3
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Inside Opinions
Recurring swipe trouble with academic buildings
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Rainy, High 82, Low 72
Kiana Espinoza ’19 gives advice on how to fix those pesky struggles swiping into your favorite study spaces. page 6
Huge Hopes
Get to know the Tribe’s new Athletic Director, Samantha Huge, and her plans for Tribe Athletics. page 10
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News Editor Nia Kitchin News Editor Sarah Smith fhnews@gmail.com | Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | Page 2
THE BUZZ
I feel honored to have been appointed to this task force as W&M’s representative. I think that civic engagement is largely important to connect anybody to their community, and that issue is especially relevant for college students who are living on campus in the college bubble.
— Katherine Webb ’18 on her appointment to the Governor’s Task Force on Millennial Engagement
From DoG Street to Disney World
The Flat Hat
Emily Flack ’20 discusses her time working as a performer in Disney’s parks Page 2 Spotlight
EMILY CHAUMONT // FLAT HAT MANAGING EDITOR
While her friends were stressing out in the Earl Gregg Swem Library in May of 2016, Emily Flack ’20 took a break from studying for her finals to submit an application to the Walt Disney Company. While her classmates were starting their summer internships in June of the same year, she was moving to Orlando to start her yearlong job as a performer at Walt Disney World. Flack originally entered the College of William and Mary as a member of the Class of 2019, but took a gap year for her job as a performer. She said that taking a gap year to perform was one of the best decisions she’s made in her college career. “I really think that a gap year is very important to find out exactly what you want to be doing and who you are as a person,” Flack said. “Definitely going straight from my senior year of high school into my freshman year of college, I felt like I was going from studying to more studying, and I think taking that gap year and not having to worry about studying, not having to turn in essays or take a midterm, I just really got to focus on figuring out what I wanted to do with my life. The good thing is, at least for me, that performing is what I want to do with my life.” A theater major and music minor, Flack said her experience performing at the parks solidified her passion for performance and theater. She said she plans to keep performing for as long as possible and is constantly in the process of searching for auditions to attend. “You just have to keep the fingers crossed and keep going to auditions as much as you can and hope that out of the billions of no’s you get a yes,” Flack said. Not only did her experience at Disney solidify her love for performing, but
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Flack said interacting with the children every day in the parks also brought out a passion for education. “I’ve also thought about possibly trying to pursue education at some point since I love children, I love seeing children grow and learn, so that’s something that I didn’t really consider too much before, but after taking the year at Disney, it’s something that I’ve really started to consider,” Flack said. Flack’s performer job at Walt Disney World fell under the entertainment umbrella of the Walt Disney Company. According to Flack, the entertainment portion of the company is responsible for all of the shows, parades and character experiences in the Disney parks. Her main commitments were performing in a show at the Magic Kingdom and working at the Royal Sommerhus in Epcot, which is a place where guests can meet some of the characters from the movie “Frozen.” Flack said that performing for a year also connected her with her family and her childhood. “My family always went to Disney … and I remember every time I would meet a character or go see a show that was something that really stuck with me from a young age,” Flack said. “Even now, I still go to the parks and get excited to see Mickey Mouse. I mean, I know kind of how the whole thing works, but it’s still an experience that just resonates with you no matter how old you are.” Flack said that her favorite part of her job was meeting and interacting with new people from all around the world. She also said that working at such a heavily visited tourist attraction gave her experiences that she would not have been able to have to the same degree had she stayed at the College rather than taking a
SAM DREITH / THE FLAT HAT
CORRECTIONS 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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Emily Flack ‘20 took a year off to work in Walt Disney World during the 2016-2017 academic year. Nia Kitchin News Editor Sarah Smith News Editor Heather Baier Variety Editor Akemi Tamanaha Variety Editor Alyssa Grzesiak Sports Editor Chris Travis Sports Editor Meilan Solly Chief Staff Writer
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POLICE BEAT
gap year. “Even though you meet people in college every day who are different than you, getting to see that on a really broad scale was something I think I really learned a lot about,” Flack. She also said that she appreciated being able to share the stories she grew up loving with the children she met through her job. “We always got to see Make-A-Wish kids, and those were always touching because all those kids wanted to do was feel magic and feel that moment of excitement and of course we always did whatever we could to make them happy,” Flack said. “They were sometimes tough, when children were very sick, sometimes they couldn’t even make it to the park and we would record something to send to them because they couldn’t leave their hotel room or their hospital, so just knowing that again those stories really do help people and make them happy is the whole reason we did the job.” Flack said that these positive experiences she gained from working at Disney made her difficult decision to take a year off of school easier. “I really had back-and-forth thoughts about it the whole time I was deciding,” Flack said. “But it ultimately came down to the fact that this was something I had always wanted to do and I knew that if I didn’t take that year to experience it that I would have regretted it.” She said that she likes staying within her comfort zone, so moving down to Florida so quickly helped her push herself. The time between submitting her application and moving down to Orlando was only around a month, a timeline Flack said was fairly typical of the entertainment portion of the company. “I think just diving straight into it didn’t give me any time to back out,” Flack said. “So I knew that if I took the job, I had to do it, and I couldn’t have second thoughts about it.” In fact, Flack said that the process of moving to Florida was logistically easier than the process of disentangling herself from the commitments she had already made at the College, like housing and classes. She said that Disney sets out-ofstate hires up with a relocation package which made her transition easier than she expected. “At first I was really overwhelmed by the whole thing because it’s very different going from being a student to suddenly having full adult responsibilities,” Flack said. “The biggest thing was just having your own responsibilities solely on you, so it wasn’t that you had dormmates to depend upon or hallmates. ... I think actually the weirdest thing to readjust to [back on campus now] is the fact that the only responsibility I have now is just myself versus the job versus the car versus the apartment. It’s nice to be able to just focus on being me and not having to worry about being an adult for another couple years.”
Sept. 22 - 24 1
Friday, September 22 — Possession of marijuana reported on Richmond Road.
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Saturday, September 23 — Calvin Richard Kolbe arrested for possession of marijuana on Richmond Road.
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Sunday, September 24 — Carlos Luis Alvarado arrested on charges of credit card theft on Duke of Glouceser Street.
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Sunday, September 24 — Miguel Hernandez arrested for assault and battery of a family member on Perriman Road.
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The Flat Hat
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
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CAMPUS
SA, College increase sustainability efforts New policies result in creation of campus-wide departments, green fees MADELINE MONROE FLAT HAT NEWS ASSOC. EDITOR
New sustainability efforts are underway at the College of William and Mary this fall, as the Student Assembly expanded its executive branch with the creation of a sustainability department and the College’s Office of Sustainability began development on a plan for the future of sustainability on campus. According to SA President Elijah Levine ’18, sustainability is important because it impacts marginalized people to a greater extent. “There’s such an extent to which [the] sustainability issue is not just about our physical surroundings but it is very much a social issue,” Levine said. “It’s very much true that marginalized people, people of color, are affected first and to a greater extent by climate change. If we don’t assess the problem intersectionally in that way, if we don’t see how it gets at the very fabric … of the institutions that we take for granted, it’s only treating a symptom of the problem, and we need to get to the root.” According to Levine, SA’s new department on sustainability launched Sept. 12 after a unanimous vote by the senate. The department will be headed by a secretary and two undersecretaries who will focus on
food and waste policy and energy policy, respectively. “The two undersecretary positions I think speak to the big part to sustainability that any campus is going to face, which is ‘How do we go about sustainably sourcing food and disposing of that food and how do we power all these buildings in a responsible way?’” Levine said. “So, in that sense, the energy position is going to be a lot of research, and we’re hoping to try to speak out for another energy audit or report. We haven’t had a full analysis since 2008.” Levine said that SA would aim to “build on the small steps” that have already occurred on campus to make the College more environmentally conscious, including the composting initiative at Marketplace, with a focus on raising the College community’s awareness. Additionally, SA Vice President Annelise Yackow ’18 said that they are working on a carbon offset program with vans for Steer Clear, which is a continuation of a project SA began last year. Levine also said that SA was considering partnering with organizations like the Student Environmental Action Coalition and Campus Kitchen in the future to strengthen their sustainability efforts. However, SEAC Co-
Facilitator Brendan Thomas ’18 noted that any collaboration with SA would be done on an individual basis. “SEAC is explicitly not an institutional organization, so we work with more grassroots activism, things that we see as more important for students to get involved in,” Thomas said. “So we might encourage people to partner with SA or [the] Committee on Sustainability, but as an organization we don’t necessarily cosponsor things like that.” Thomas did say, however, that SEAC has subcommittees that specifically work with College organizations and administration on policies. Along with student initiatives, Director of Sustainability Calandra Waters Lake said that the College is planning on developing a campus-wide plan for sustainability, starting this fall. “We are going to be putting together a comprehensive plan that will look over the next few years and determine where our priorities are, what will our goals be, our commitments, basically where do we see sustainability going at William and Mary,” Lake said. “We’ll have opportunities both online and in person for students, faculty and staff to provide us feedback on where they think sustainability
should be going. Essentially, this is your ship to steer.” Although the College’s Green Fee program was active again this summer, awarding over $50,000 to various student, faculty and staff projects including Branch Out’s waste reduction proposal and a permaculture demonstration garden, both Levine and Yackow felt that the College could be doing more when it comes to sustainability initiatives. According to Levine, the College puts an emphasis on creating task forces and conducting surveys and analysis, instead of implementing new sustainable policies. Thomas said that institutionally-supported projects like Green Fees and the building of reusable water bottle fountains promote environmentalism as an individual initiative. Thomas believes that this approach misreads the issue, because he believes that climate change is caused by systems and structures that are oppressive. “It’s not a cure-all solution like it’s being framed as, and I think it’s a way for the university to avoid looking at the structural problems that create and promote our contribution to climate change, like the fact that we invest in fossil fuels and that we don’t have a particularly sustainable campus,” Thomas said.
WILLIAMSBURG
New Williamsburg police chief focuses on student outreach WPD plans to expand parking enforcement, establish joint patrols with WMPD NIA KITCHIN FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR
Williamsburg Chief of Police Sean Dunn has been on the job for 90 days but is already in the process of making changes to the police department. He said that his top priorities are safety and communication within the community as well as giving the community greater visibility and a friendlier reputation. “I think overall as a profession law enforcement has to do a better job today than ever before of facilitating positive interactions with community members,” Dunn said. “We want to be seen as friendly and approachable and highly visible, and in doing so that helps us better engage with our citizens.” Dunn said that he particularly wants to facilitate better communication with year-round residents of Williamsburg and students at the College of William and Mary. He said that the Williamsburg community can bridge this student-resident gap through communication. He said that he will capitalize on the inexpensive and readily available presence of social media as well as community meetings to facilitate this
communication. “I’m looking for ways that as a department we can be more engaged with our citizens, that includes both one-way communication to our public but also mechanisms for us to have a greater two-way relationship and … so we can best ensure that our priorities match the priorities of our communities,” Dunn said. Class of 2020 President Kelsey Vita ’20 said that she was looking forward to increased communication between Williamsburg officials like the police chief and students at the College. “I think more opportunities for open and frequent communication are the best way to bridge the gap between the City of Williamsburg and students, so I’m hoping and eager to see a stronger community relationship with the new leadership,” Vita said. Dunn has also made changes to the WPD staff, mainly in regards to parking enforcement. Previously there was only one part-time parking enforcement officer responsible for the City of Williamsburg, and Dunn has increased this to two full-time officers and two part-time officers for parking enforcement.
“One of the issues that I quickly identified was that we had one parttime parking enforcement officer responsible for the entire city,” Dunn said. “And it just stretched this officer way too thin and so we’re bringing on three additional staff members … that unit will be responsible for citywide parking issues.” According to Dunn, enforcing parking ordinances has been a weak spot for WPD, and the staff has been added to in order to increase parking compliance. Dunn said that when some people are parking illegally, it causes frustration for other citizens who are attempting to park legally. “We have found that a lot of folks maybe don’t have the appropriate parking decals or otherwise are parking illegally throughout the community,” Dunn said. “And that has caused quite a bit of frustration for quite a number of our citizens. So we are increasing the parking enforcement. Naturally what we hope to achieve is compliance. In addition to increasing parking enforcement, Dunn said that he is also increasing police presence in high pedestrian traffic areas. He said that these enhanced neighborhood patrols will be
adjusted for the evening hours in places where officers typically see a higher concentration of pedestrian activity. He said that these high traffic places will be identified based on past experiences and general knowledge of the area. Dunn said that police officers can identify these areas “very easily” because of their prior experince on the job in Williamsburg. “The goal is first and foremost to keep people safe,” Dunn said. “But secondly it’s to be a friendly and welcoming law enforcement presence that hopefully encourages positive behaviors and is a welcoming and inviting presence while discouraging negative behaviors.” Sen. Jack Bowden ’18 said that he was appreciative of the extra patrols. “After the shooting at The Crust last year, I am glad to hear that increased patrols by Williamsburg City police are in the works,” Bowden said. Dunn explained that these patrols will be mostly on foot or bike and that the Williamsburg Police Department has extended an invitation to the William and Mary Police Department to conduct joint patrols. He said that WPD wants to join forces to keep the community safe.
He said that the WPD is interested in fostering increased collaboration with WMPD. Dunn said that it would be useful to have WMPD’s relationships with students when dealing with infractions on campus. Regarding issues of difference of policy between the two institutions, such as the College’s medical amnesty policy for students, Dunn said that WPD’s highest priority is safety and that it is not out to get anyone. “Naturally what we want is to care for our citizens, and so I would hope that [joint patrols] would not discourage our student population from making contact with us,” Dunn said. “And I can assure you that our goal is not to use those opportunities for enforcement. Our goal is to use those opportunities to provide the care and support that is needed by our community members.” Vita said that she has many friends living in Richmond Hall so she hopes that their sometimes late walks home will be considered when planning patrol increases. She also said that the community must work together to increase safety. “Our Williamsburg and William and Mary community needs to take steps to make sure that no students feel uncomfortable going back to their dorms at night,” Vita said.
College moves forward with construction of Integrated Wellness Center, PBK renovations With renovations to Richmond Hall complete, College begins overhaul of Landrum Hall to prepare for 2018-2019 academic year CONSTRUCTION from page 1
were made to the budget, it increased from $17 million to $19 million. Landrum Hall With a budget of $19 million, the College is completely renovating Landrum Hall, which is located in the row of residence halls including Chandler Hall and Barrett Hall. Landrum last had residents in the 2016-2017 academic year, and was taken offline during the summer of 2017. The renovation process includes completely gutting the building, replacing the windows and roof and re-doing the gutters to prevent leaks in the top floors. During the renovation, the building will also be connected to central air conditioning. Other additions to the residence hall include glassed-in conference rooms for studying, and adding an additional two beds through an updated floor plan. According to Brancheau, this project is set to be completed by the fall 2018 semester, although he is currently unsure if it will be ready for new residents as was initially planned. One Tribe Place After demolition on the 1984 wing of the residence hall began last spring, the College initially set a goal to complete demolition by 2017 Commencement. However, the demolition project is ongoing, and Brancheau said he hopes it is completed by the end of the academic year. The 1984 wing of the building was not up to
the College’s building code when the College purchased the property formerly known as the Hospitality House. Water penetration damaged the 1984 wing and the hotel’s restaurant and ballroom, which have not been in use since the time of purchase. The planned demolition initially had a budget of $4.447 million, but has since decreased to $2.5 million. While the College had initially planned to rebuild the back wing to create more student residence halls, that project was estimated at $10 million, which has since halted the second phase of OTP renovations. “We are sort of ‘moth-balling’ the interior right now, to keep it in a preserved status,” Brancheau said. “That way, if leadership goes in and decides that they want to do it [the renovation] we will have that ready to go.” Accessibility Infrastructure Following the Americans with Disability Act, the College began a two-part compliance project last spring. The first part involved relocating the first-floor bathroom of Adair Hall and adding an elevator. This project was estimated to be completed by December of 2017, but the completion date has been pushed back to August of 2018. The second part of the project was designed to add “curb-cut” sidewalks, which are sidewalks designed for individuals in wheelchairs, around the Sunken Garden and between the Earl Gregg Swem Library and Small Hall. Construction
on these sidewalks has not yet begun, and is not part of the ongoing construction near the Sunken Garden. According to Brancheau, construction on the Sunken Garden in September of 2017 was done to fix the existing bricks and to put down a netted straw mat to induce grass growth. However, the netting was not as successful as the College hoped, so Brancheau said the net will remain there for now. $2.889 million was allocated for these projects, but Brancheau said it is not clear if this is the current budget or when construction on the curb-cut sidewalks will begin. Fine and Performing Arts Complex The first two phases of the Fine and Performing Arts Complex received funding from the Virginia General Assembly for $118 million. According to Brancheau, there is a schematic design for the first two phases, which means there is a basic design for the project. Now, the College is working on completing a true preliminary design by March 2018, and hope to award the construction project by August 2018. These phases will create a new building in between Lemon and Hardy Halls, which is set to be 75,000 square feet. The first two phases also involve renovating the existing PBK structure, which will add 110 square feet. The third phase, which involves connecting the Muscarelle Museum of Art to the existing Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall structure, has not
yet received funding from the General Assembly. This project will add new recital halls, music studios, instrument practice rooms and dance studios, which will meet national accreditation standards for the College’s dance minor. Muscarelle Museum of Art The College is working on awarding the contract for the design for the Muscarelle renovation, which aims to renovate the existing building and create a new addition that will extend towards Morton Hall to increase exhibit space. The basic design is scheduled to be completed by April 2018, and the construction is tentatively scheduled to be completed in December of 2020. While the College previously announced that all funds would come from private donors, Brancheau said the budget for the project is not yet set, since the designs have not been completed. Student Recreation Center Construction on the Student Recreation Center is set to be completed next week, after final touches are made to the pool renovations. With a budget of $1.5 million, construction began in January 2017, and involved redoing the locker rooms, and upgrading the pool facilities. The locker room renovations have already been completed and are open again for public use. While the pool has been completed and filled with water, Brancheau said final touches are needed for the ventilation and pool filtration systems.
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The Flat Hat
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
ADMINISTRATION
JED program sets mental health goals Campus chapter focuses on implementing JED’s national recommendations SARAH SMITH FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR
Two years ago, as student mental health complaints were rising at the College of William and Mary, Associate Vice President for Health and Wellness Kelly Crace engineered a link to JED, a national organization that aims to protect student emotional health and prevent suicide. JED is a nonprofit organization that partners with high schools and colleges nation-wide to strengthen their mental health, substance abuse and suicide-prevention programs. Currently, there are more than 1,000 colleges and universities that partner with JED, which means that 10 percent of undergraduate students at four-year institutions are covered by JED’s guidelines. Once Crace formed a partnership, other co-directors, including psychology professor Chris Conway, joined the College’s JED efforts. Now, the College is working to follow JED’s prescribed campus policies and develop a plan to implement changes to mental health policies. “I care about student psychopathology,” Conway said. “I am a clinical psychologist, I study psychopathology. I think it’s important to have a director of the program who understands the origins of mental health problems.” Conway is one of the co-directors working on a strategic plan that will serve as the framework for developing initiatives and policies for the College. This will also serve as a guide for staff and faculty to detect student distress. For example, if a student approaches a faculty member and indicates that they are struggling to turn in assignments due to a mental health concern, this guide will instruct faculty on how to approach the situation and direct the student to mental health resources on campus. While the College’s JED program is still working on finalizing the strategic plan, JED representatives have begun to implement other initiatives to address mental health concerns on campus. According to Conway, the program has begun to restructure the College’s website and mobile app so that emergency contact information is more available to students in distress. “Another thing that we are doing is to figure out the best approach to handling students who are in crisis,” Conway said. “This is a really tricky situation, because students who are in crisis need to be advised or need recommendation on where the most appropriate treatment is, and sometimes that is off campus, like in the case of an emergency psychiatric hospitalization. This is a huge issue that is of interest to administrations or faculty. We
are looking at how to develop a program that is going to give help to the students who need it, while maintaining respect and an understanding of people’s rights as students on campus.” According to Conway, a lot of the policies that JED is working to enact are ones that are long term because of the bureaucratic process, but once they come into effect, they will be managed and refined by student groups and other organizations that will inhabit the Integrated Wellness Center. Group-based therapy is one such initiative that will be offered through the IWC as part of JED’s strategic plan. At the College, JED’s representatives have worked to establish different routes for psychological treatment or the prevention of student mental health complaints. One of these, group-based therapy, is designed for students that have difficulties with emotion regulation, or students who feel like they have variable and intense emotions that they want to better manage. This therapy will take place in a classroom setting, where participants will learn emotion-management strategies. This is also known as a cognitive-behavioral treatment, or CBT. “One of JED’s priorities is to make sense of that from a student and administrative perspective,” Conway said. “One of the things that we are working to improve is our communication with the student body, and get input from students and in general. Student rates of mental health problems have been skyrocketing at a national level, and William and Mary is not an exception to this trend. This initiative is super important on the larger timescale, but … it seems like campuses, not just ours, are working to be responsive to these rising rates of identified student health problems.” In accordance with the strategic plan, JED is also working to disseminate statements about mental health complaints and student distress for faculty to include in syllabi, similar to the statement on student accessibility services. This would be a statement on how mental health causes concerns for students on a personal level and can affect studies and performance in university coursework. According to Conway, the plan for this is for it to be sent out in the spring 2018 semester, and professors could opt to include it in their syllabi then. Two ongoing projects involve Kognito training and doing environmental scans of the campus. Kognito training is a program that will first train people with “social influence,” such as Orientation Aides and Resident Assistants, to recognize and address suicide risks. Once the first round of training is complete,
those influencers will spread the training to others, like new students. Environmental scans involve identifying high-risk places for potential suicides and incidents of self-harm. Once these locations are identified, JED will work with the Office of Facilities Maintenance and the William and Mary Police Department to restructure these locations to limit the physical risk of suicide and to add signage to promote helpful resources. “Research evidence has shown this to be critical in minimizing suicide risks,” Conway said. “We are working with the administration to do that at parking garages, rooves of buildings and at Lake Matoaka — places where drowning and falling is possible are some of the most obvious. We are also recommending that the College replaces closet rods with breakaway closet rods, so that if a student was considering hanging themselves, it wouldn’t be possible there. The evidence actually says that those small simple precautions make a meaningful difference in suicide rates.” Health Outreach Peer Educators is one student organization that has already partnered with JED. According to Sarah Kook ’18, JED’s goal to promote mental health on campus aligns with HOPE’s mission to provide health information to the College community. “JED strives to address this issue by starting initiatives and providing guidelines in various areas, including: University policy, student wellness, help-seeking behavior, mental health services, environmental safety, academic performance, sense of belonging and identifying students at risk,” Cook said in a written statement. “HOPE supports their intersectional, multi-dimensional approach to foster a healthy campus environment. We hope that JED will reduce stigma and build a sense of cohesion and support within the W&M community, not just among students but with the staff and faculty members as well. While HOPE is a student-led organization (with few advisers) that develops programs mostly for students, JED brings all college affiliates together to foster well-being for all of W&M’s community members. HOPE is excited to see faculty members in action, often in collaboration with students.” According to Conway, JED is important to him because it serves as the group that connects all the parties interested in mental health advocacy. “JED is that thing,” Conway said. “We are connected with the Dean of Students, the dean’s office, and we are connected with the administration. We are a combination of all of that, plus the faculty. If the students have agendas, I think they should come to us and we can amplify their voices and their impact.”
STUDENT LIFE
Katherine Webb ’18 appointed to community service task force McAuliffe’s group on millennial engagement works to recognize campus community efforts ALYSSA GRZESIAK FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR
Katherine Webb ’18 has a passion for service that resulted in her appointment to the Virginia governor’s inaugural Millennial Civic Engagement Task Force. As one of 26 members, Webb will be representing the College of William and Mary in the task force. She was nominated for the role by Office of Community Engagement Director Melody Porter. “I feel honored to have been appointed to this task force as W&M’s representative,” Webb said in a written statement. “I think that civic engagement is hugely important to connect anybody to their community, and that issue is especially relevant for college students who are living on campus in the college bubble. It can be so easy to get swept up in classes and extracurricular activities, so doing community service personally helps me ground myself and serves as a reminder that grades and school are not everything.” The purpose of the task force, formed this summer by Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, is “coordinating and implementing statewide
civic engagement initiatives and fostering the development and growth of a culture of civic engagement.” Webb’s role is to help Virginia citizens find their voices and advocate opinions on the issues concerning communities — specifically, the role and involvement of college students. The main goal, according to Webb, is a positive kickback in college communities and beyond. Webb is one of 17 student representatives on the task force. Those students, representing private, public, and community colleges are joined by Secretary of the Commonwealth Kelly Thomasson, Deputy Secretary of the Commonwealth Traci DeShazor and representatives from the State Council on Higher Education, Virginia 21 and the Virginia Community College System. “Virginia was proud to become the first state in the nation to commit to integrating service years on its campuses, and I am honored to take that challenge to the next level by launching the Civic Engagement Task Force,” McAuliffe said in a press statement. “Virginia millennials will set the course for the future of this commonwealth. Through this task force, our mission is to find
new ways to encourage them to take ownership of their communities and civic institutions.” During her freshman year, Webb joined Branch Out, an alternative break program, which is described by the Branch Out program’s website as an immersive service trip in which students engage in direct service with a community partner organization. Her first accomplishment was leading a trip to D.C. Central Kitchen as a site leader in spring 2013. “It was my first experience doing any type of service trip, and this one was a service-learning trip,” Webb said. “Alternative breaks involve this education component before you go on the break. Then, you go on the break, do volunteering there, get to know community members and have wonderful conversations.” Service plays a role in more than one aspect of Webb’s life. She is also an active member of the Kappa Delta sorority and leads a Girl Scout troop of rising sixth-graders. She also has experience working on the Lemon Project, which according to the Project’s website is a multifaceted and dynamic attempt to rectify wrongs perpetrated against African Americans by the College through action or inaction. The goal of the project is to
unify the college community and the surrounding Williamsburg area in a positive manner. Webb said she plans to use her role as a member of the task force to address what stops college students from getting involved in their communities, in the hopes of improving active participation. The first step is communicating what is on the minds of students at the College. “As a member of the task force, I hope to address the barriers to civic engagement that exist on our campus and to receive recommendations and help from the task force in addressing these obstacles,” Webb said in a written statement. “After hearing from W&M students at the round table discussion on Tuesday, Sept. 26, I plan to bring issues that I hear about back to our larger meetings as an entire task force to get input from other student representatives and members of the Governor’s office.” The task force will be hosting a round-table discussion with students from the College Sept. 26, from 2-3:30 p.m. in Blow Hall room 201. Webb will be gathering with students from the College to solicit ideas for future community service work.
STUDENT ASSEMBLY
Senators discuss revisions to Student Assembly code, gear up for freshmen elections Senate unanimously passes Code Revision Committee Act, discusses Official Transcript Subsidization Act at weekly meeting SARAH SMITH FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR
As elections for the class of 2021 approach, the College of William and Mary’s Student Assembly Senate is gearing up for the semester by reviewing the SA code and expanding on previous initiatives, such as subsidizing academic materials for students. Following amendments to SA elections made after former SA President Eboni Brown ’17 was elected, for each election held by SA, there should be four information sessions scheduled within a six-day span to allow for all interested candidates to attend an information session and register to campaign. However, the class of 2021’s information sessions were initially scheduled for Sept. 21, Sept. 23 and Sept. 24, which violated the Elections Commission Act. During the start of this past Tuesday’s meeting, SA President Elijah Levine ’18 addressed this code violation, which was brought up by Class of 2019 President Jonah Yesowitz ’19 prior to the meeting. He acknowledged that the information sessions were in violation of the code and rescheduled them. “The way we are going to fix this is by pushing the election date back to Oct. 9 and adding an information session on Sept. 25,” Levine said. “This still infracts on the regulation that we have
to have four information sessions within a six-day span, it’s a five-day span, but according to … code, we have the obligation of holding a successful election. I don’t think it’s a successful election if those people cannot be integrated into the senate until late October or perhaps November, the price to pay being having meetings in a five-day span instead of a six-day span. … The spirit of the code is to ensure the success of the election and of the study body as a whole and that is ensured by giving them one more senate meeting to acclimate to things.” Yesowitz said that he thought Levine and SA Vice President Annelise Yackow ’18’s solution was beneficial, but he wanted to know if it would be possible to schedule an interest meeting prior to the one scheduled for Sept. 21 to create a six-day span. Levine said that adding meetings to the front end of the period would make them less attended, which would not make it worthwhile. Yackow said that because the fall elections are only for the new students, they are smaller than the spring elections, where all senate representatives as well as the SA president and vice president are up for election. “This is our smaller election,” Yackow said. “We wouldn’t feel comfortable doing this for the other one.” Sen. Sikander Zakriya ’19 said that because the Elections Commission Act has not been followed consistently since it was implemented, the senate should consider changing the code to
amend the time period requirements for information sessions. Chair of the Senate Alaina Shreves ’18 said that while it is not being followed this semester, it was followed during the spring 2017 SA elections. Following along with the new semester’s code review, Sen. Brendan Boylan ’19 introduced and sponsored the Code Revision Committee Act, which was passed by a vote of unanimous consent. This bill established an ad hoc standing committee, which will allow senators to continue formally working through the code so that, throughout the semester, they can introduce legislation targeted at revising the code and modernizing it. Boylan also introduced the Official Transcript Subsidization Act in an attempt to expand SA’s efforts for subsidization, which would allocate $7 per copy for students to access their official transcripts, and would initially be capped at 1,500 copies. SA currently also allocates funds to subsidize blue books for final exams. “We are looking into mechanisms we could put into place. We are talking about doing surveys,” Boylan said. “We want to make sure it would be prioritizing juniors and seniors, since those are the individuals it would most benefit because they are applying to internships, jobs and grad school. We are establishing it on a first come, first serve basis.”
opinions
Opinions Editor Brendan Doyle Opinions Editor Kiana Espinoza fhopinions@gmail.com // @theflathat
The Flat Hat | Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | Page 5
STAFF COLUMN
What kneeling stands for on the football field
Brendan Doyle
FLAT HAT OPINIONS EDITOR
MADELINE MONROE / THE FLAT HAT
Students pass by emergency vehicles on Ukrop Way on Sept. 20. The emergency response team was dealing with a gas leak at Adair Hall on Sept. 20.
STAFF COLUMN
Emergency alerts generally not specific
Emily Chaumont
FLAT HAT MANAGING EDITOR
In the month of September, students received that fateful combination of a text, phone call and email from the College of William and Mary’s emergency notification system several times. Tuesday, Sept. 5 there was a diesel spill near Swem, and it still smells faintly of gasoline when you pass by the area. The next day, a regularly scheduled test of the system went out. This past Wednesday, Sept. 20, there was an “incident near Adair Hall” in the morning that was later revealed to be a gas leak. Although it was cleaned up by the afternoon, that evening another alert went out as students evacuated the Sadler Center due to a kitchen fire. These events were not just Snapchat-story fodder — they were actual emergencies that the campus needed to be notified of. For that, I commend the protocols in place for fulfilling their purpose and notifying the campus of dangers and incidents as they occur. However, I don’t know that notifying the campus of “incidents” is the best way to go about things. For all the good our notification system has done, it has also caused some trouble lately. For instance, with the gas leak at Adair, it was first reported as an “incident,” which is a vague term that can mean just about anything. While this vagueness is not technically wrong, specificity is
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always beneficial when it comes to anything that involves student safety. I was in a dance class in Adair when the gas leak happened, and we evacuated the building after someone came to tell our professor that there was a gas leak. The stairwells smelled like gas as my class was evacuating. Because I was there, I knew exactly what was going on. However, because it was not reported as a gas leak until several minutes after it was called an “incident,” I had several friends tell me they were confused or panicked about the nature of the emergency. Since “incident” can mean anything from a tree falling on the building to a medical emergency to a gas leak, it is understandable that students would be concerned about the lack of information provided. Even so, the half-hour lag between the texts I received that referred to the situation as an “incident” and as a “gas leak” is not the most concerning issue our campus has seen with the emergency notification system in the past year. In July, the system sent out a message that said “Gun shots reported near(loc). Police are responding. Remain securely indoors. Call 911 for help or to report additional information.” A few minutes later, another message went out that said “False Alarm. There is no emergency on campus. An alert message was accidentally sent.” This error was absolutely unacceptable, and although it was not as devastating an issue as it would have been during the school year when everyone is on campus, it was still a mistake that affected a great number of students at the College for the summer. A mistake like this should not have been possible. There should have been enough safeguards in place that an alert about a serious incident could not be sent accidentally. An active shooter situation is not something that anyone takes lightly, and the people in charge of sending out emergency alerts should treat “incidents” like shootings and gas leaks with the same respect and concern the student body and College community does. Email Emily Chaumont at emchaumont@email.wm.edu.
While this vagueness is not technically wrong, specificity is always beneficial when it comes to anything that involves student safety.
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COMMENTS @THEFLATHAT
Instead of a system that is flawed in its treatment of the accused, maybe (just maybe) we are dealing with a system that is flawed. Full stop. — Abbey Childs on “College Burned by FIRE: Civil Liberties Group Awards College’s Sexual Misconduct Policy ‘D’ Rating”
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If you turned on a television Sunday, you saw it. Hundreds of National Football League players locked arms or knelt along with teammates in a national anthem protest. This latest round of protests came after President Donald Trump criticized Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, for “disrespect[ing] the flag” and called for owners to “fire” players who demonstrated during the anthem. The President called him, and any other players who have protested, a “son of a b—.” So, of course, nearly every team showed some form of protest on Sunday. And they all looked relatively like the demonstration the College of William and Mary football team put on during their first game of the year in Charlottesville against Virginia. For those unaware, the Tribe football team presented a “show of unity” before their season opening game against the Cavaliers. During the pre-game coin toss, the Tribe locked arms and turned away from the field, lifting up their jerseys to reveal t-shirts underneath that read “United We Stand, Divided We Fall.” Before the game, the team released a statement regarding the demonstration. According to the team, “the expression represents our desire to make a positive statement about our shared beliefs in cultivating a society based on respect for people of all ethnicities, cultures and backgrounds and one that embraces unity, civility and loving one another despite our differences.” This is quite a turn from what Colin Kaepernick intended when he began kneeling before games in 2016. The quarterback began kneeling to protest police brutality and the continued discrimination against people of color. I wasn’t expecting the William and Mary football team to protest before a game. Therefore, any statement before the game before the state of our politics and our nation, is better than none. I will always be on the side of activism in sports, as it is a very broad platform that can affect change. However, when all someone has to say is, “we are together,” do they really have anything to say? Fast forward to Sunday, Sept. 24. The protests at NFL games, for the most part, were almost identical to the demonstration that the Tribe put on in Charlottesville. Teams released statements about unity, players locked arms, and then the game went on as scheduled. Obviously, there was much more media coverage and public scrutiny. But the message, and the way the message was communicated, was generally the same. Just as the William and Mary protest didn’t mention white supremacy, NFL teams didn’t mention police brutality or discrimination against people of color. And while the sight of football teams kneeling or intertwining arms is powerful, the messages described by most teams do not push for changes in discriminatory or racist practices. Let it be known, many individual players speak up directly and loudly. For example, Michael Bennett of the Seattle Seahawks has called for an entire month devoted to activism in the NFL, much like the league’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Bennett and Kaepernick are probably the two most outspoken players in the league on social justice issues, but there are certainly other players who devote much time and energy to these problems. The thing with these protests, though, is that they’ve moved the target. The College protest, though very well intentioned, didn’t showcase opposition to racists or an opportunity to be better. It showcased unity. The NFL demonstrations this past week were not about police brutality, at least according to the organizations themselves. They were about unity in the face of Trump’s comments. Opposing a racist president is something to be commended, but the fact that it took so long to get behind this viewpoint is concerning. On the William and Mary side, I would encourage players to take a stand any way they can. I’m not going to tell players to protest in a way that would involve disciplinary action on the team, such as the inevitable scolding or suspension that would happen if a player knelt. But if players believe in a cause, they should support it in some form, both off the field and on the field. Email Brendan Doyle at bpdoyle@email.wm.edu.
Seriously?? This goes against absolutely everything the entire country was founded on. We have zero idea how many reported rapes are falsified, and if we define accusers as infallible, guess what? — Juliet Benda Thomas on “College Burned by FIRE: Civil Liberties Group Awards College’s Sexual Misconduct Policy ‘D’ Rating”
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
The Flat Hat
Page 6
Recurring swipe trouble with academic buildings
Kiana Espinoza
FLAT HAT OPINIONS EDITOR
We have gotten to the point of the year now when exams and papers are starting to stack up. With those heightened midterm season responsibilities, we’re all going — or have started already — to look for those perfect study spots on campus. For some of us, it’s the first floor of Swem, where we can feel the presence of other busy bees and not feel so alone under pressure. For others, it’s anywhere with the smell of coffee. However, for those who have a hard time finding quiet spaces where they can concentrate, academic buildings are often the first choice. Personally, I like to search the campus for a quiet but relaxed space at all costs. I have little preference between Morton, Tucker, Tyler, Miller, Washington or wherever. If you’re like me, and you scout out the most solitary corners of campus to churn out your papers, you might have a similar problem: getting in the door. Tribe Card Services is typically great about responding to needs when it comes to access. As an English major, I tend to veer toward Tucker, where I usually have access anyway. However, since the start of this year, I have heard several complaints about swipe access failures, especially in buildings where access should be granted as a declared major. My partner, who is a declared physics major, is currently taking 11 credits
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Although I understand that [the ISC] is a nice building that we want to keep looking new, isn’t the point of an academic building to provide academic resources like study spaces? in Small. Yet, he can’t swipe into any door in the building. In addition, I’ve also had several friends — who are either STEM majors or simply people who think the ISC is one of the best places to study — complain about overall lack of access. With all its mazes of study spaces, white boards and resources, the ISC is typically closed off in terms of swipe access unless students are conducting research there. Although I understand that this is a nice building that we want to keep looking new, isn’t the point of an academic building to provide academic resources like study spaces? While most of these problems can be fixed with an email because we have amazing and incredibly attentive employees here at the College, that doesn’t always help in the moment. When a problem set, an assignment or a paper is due the next day and Swem tables are at a premium on every floor, where do you go to power through your workload? For students who find themselves in a similar predicament, I have a couple pieces of advice. First, you should check your Tribe Card access on the Tribe Card Services website, which is a great resource for a number of things, like checking your Express and your Flex spending habits. If you find that you don’t have access to buildings that you should be able to get into, then you could send an email over to workor@wm.edu that explains the problem. I believe you should also include your 930 number just to speed up the process. Also, be sure to be incredibly nice to our employees and thank them for their time. Second, if you find yourself trying to swipe into an academic building with limited time on your hands, outside of email hours, then try the circling method. Often times a door may be unlocked at a specific location for student access until a certain time. If that doesn’t work in the moment, you might have to try somewhere else. I’m due to send an email soon about my own swipe access into Tucker, and I plan to do that before I’m in a pinch for time. Still, despite all the issues and inconveniences, I am always grateful for the study spaces and resources already offered to students. I just wish that the ones we have were a bit more accessible. Email Kiana Espinoza at kaespinoza@email.wm.edu
JAE CHO / THE FLAT HAT
Life in a Language House: A sense of community sorts, which usually gets used alternatively for studying. The rooms are located to either side of these in groups of three or four per alcove. The Language Houses offer a significant improvement over dormitories like DuPont or Old Dominion in that their common areas, by virtue of their central location, actually fulfill their intended purpose — namely, the promotion of community and building of relationships. The effect of this change was evident within the first month of my stay at the
Benjamin Halkowski FLAT HAT GUEST COLUMNIST
After searching rather languidly for off-campus housing last year, I finally gave up, unsatisfied with apartment offerings. I had stayed in two traditional dormitories previously and was acutely aware of the drawbacks. In a traditional dormitory, it’s hard to get to know your hallmates on any deep level. Schedules often conflict and the out-of-the-way location of the common areas prevent any real sense of community from growing. The residential assistants do an admirable job of combatting the isolation effect, but the order is a tall one. My experience with the Language Houses began with a friend who had lived in the Japanese House for two years. Whereas the halls of my old dorm often felt vacant and lifeless, the “J-House” exuded a wonderful sense of excitement and sociability. I remember walking into the lounge once — the first room you walk into upon entering — and seeing two girls cooking something in the kitchen, a group of guys playing video games on the TV and a small study group sitting at the bright wooden table just behind the sofa. Had I been feeling more proactive, the scene of such a lively community would have necessitated my immediate application for Language Housing. I was studying French, so it would have made sense to live in the French House and work on the language further. However, at the time I still had delusions of offcampus housing. By the time I gave up on that in the heat of summer about a month before fall semester, that option, and most every other housing option, was closed to me. The only real option, after contacting housing services in a state of minor panic, was to live in the German Language House. My only connection to Germany was through my sister who stayed in Austria for a year. She became fluent in the Austrian dialect and gave me and my family an excuse to fly there one summer — a tenuous connection at best. Not knowing exactly what to expect but having the
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In a traditional dormitory, it’s hard to get to know your hallmates on any deep level. experience of the J-House still in working memory and facing the alternative of homelessness, I decided to sign up for the German House. The Language Houses at the College of William and Mary are not like residential dormitories. From the enriching cultural experience offered by native tutors to the communal atmosphere, they offer something much more than traditional dorms. First off, each house is arranged around their own personal communal areas: the kitchen, the lounge (equipped with TV and sofas), and a dining room of
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I didn’t choose to live in a Language House .... And yet, looking back, it was the best year I’ve had at William and Mary. German House. To get to your room, you had to go through the common areas, which meant seeing friends, which meant having conversations, which meant building a community. These are things which don’t happen in the other dormitories in which I’ve lived. Over the course of the year, you get to know your housemates on a much deeper level than traditional hall mates. On top of the increased sense of community, you have the amazing resource of a language tutor. Of course, if your goal is to learn or sharpen a new language, the ability to talk with a native speaker is invaluable. But apart from language, these are people who, through their unique outlook on life and their life experiences, offer wonderful conversation. I found myself talking to Kim, the German tutor, not to practice my German — although I did periodically ask for phrases — but rather to enjoy the company of someone from which I had so much to learn. Talking with people from different backgrounds is a great way to educate yourself. Knowledge is experience and you gain it through forging your own as well as uncovering someone else’s through books and conversation. Kim talked to me about politics in Germany at the time — the rise of the far right. Because it was her country, she spoke differently about it. She helped me understand things on a deeper level — a level impossible for foreign correspondents to emulate in news articles. We also talked about life. She often mentioned how anxious the average student was here compared to where she grew up. This wasn’t the only college she’d experienced, so she could offer that precious outside perspective and give a reality check whenever we needed it. As if the intellectual stimulation wasn’t enough, Language Houses boast a prime offering of home cooked food. Kim constantly flooded our ‘free food counter’ with baked goods as well as traditional German food — a wonderful collection of delicious, homemade treats. Her waffles, topped with powdered sugar, were particularly successful. I didn’t choose to live in a Language House. I lived there because I had no other options. And yet, looking back, it was the best year I’ve had at William and Mary. I could write a short novel about all the incredible things I experienced and all the new people I met. Anyone remotely interested in Language Housing should apply. I truly believe the experience is far superior to a traditional dorm. Email Benjamin Halkowski at bhalkowski@email.
variety
Variety Editor Akemi Tamanaha Variety Editor Heather Baier flathat.variety@gmail.com // @theflathat
The Flat Hat
| Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | Page 7
“Femme in Public”
Alok Vaid-Menon’s performance challenged the binary gender system HEATHER BAIER FLAT HAT VARIETY EDITOR
Instead of spending Friday, Sept. 22 with friends, food and fun, countless students packed into Tidewater A to hear Alok VaidMenon, a transgender rights activist, give a powerful performance entitled “Femme in Public.” Vaid-Menon is a gender nonconforming spokesperson for those who don’t fit the gender binary. They use a mix of humor, poetry and dance in their performances to give audiences a fresh take on transmisogynist issues. Last week, they delivered a night filled with education, activism and entertainment. Lambda Alliance and Student Assembly teamed up to bring VaidMenon to campus. Lambda Alliance Historian and Public Relations Chair Andrew Uhrig ’20 said they chose Alok because they think it’s important for students to learn about diverse opinions. “I chose Alok specifically because I’ve followed them on various social media platforms for a while. I’m familiar with their work and familiar with their world views, and I really enjoy bringing diverse opinions into my own personal space, which is why I follow them,” Uhrig said. “I think it’s important for people to hear these sorts of things, which is why I invited them to campus because I know they have opinions that matter.” Vaid-Menon began their show with a poem to set the tone of the event. They repeated phrases such as “where do all the sad girls go” and used the sound effect of blowing wind in the background to create an ominous atmosphere. Uhrig said Vaid-Menon’s style was unique and bringing them to campus was something the administration wouldn’t have considered without student interest. “This campus prides itself on celebrating diversity, and this is one of the ways in which it can easily do that,” Uhrig said. “And this isn’t something that the administration would think of doing because it’s very out there. [Vaid-Menon is] very open with all of their thoughts, and that’s a very radical thing to do nowadays,
and I really appreciated that.” After the opening poem, VaidMenon’s dialogue began in a humorous tone, joking about the recent presidential election and poking fun at a friend who recommended to them the book “Eat, Pray, Love.” However, their tone quickly began to shift and tackle issues such as suicide and transgenocide. Menon said that 63 percent of the transgender population
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has attempted suicide, and calculating statistics of that nature is difficult because of a general misunderstanding regarding transgenderism. They said that often when a transgender or gender nonconforming person dies or is killed, their sex is reported as that which their appearance matches, not the one they identify with. They referred to this as an unacknowledged genocide of transgender and gender non-conforming people.
Vaid-Menon interspersed poems throughout their dialogue in order to present students with a new form of activism centered around art and creativity. “I think that now more than ever, we need the work of artists and to cultivate creativity and artistry in one another because it’s so easy to become jaded and simple and forget why what we do matters, and I think that every action of descent matters and that it doesn’t matter if you feel
I think now more than ever we need students to feel a part of our movement — [students] that are fighting for the safety, dignity, security and joy of all people everywhere. — Alok Vaid-Menon
GABBIE PACHON / THE FLAT HAT
Alok Vaid-Menon used comedy, dance and poetry to deliver a fresh and powerful perforamce on Friday that challenged the binary gender system.
like you’re just [causing] only a ripple or its not large scale,” Vaid-Menon said. “I think that all of that actually really matters, and we need art to remember what kind of world was possible.” Vaid-Menon said many languages, including English, lack the proper terminology to refer to gender nonconforming people. They choose to use they/them pronouns because they believe their personality contains multitudes of characteristics and gender attributes that cannot be fixed to one sex. One attendee, Holden Mershon ‘20, was at a loss for words after experiencing Menon’s performance. “I’m so shook that I’m speechless,” said Mershon. Uhrig said they and possibly many other students at the College of William and Mary may be facing issues similar to those Menon spoke about, and their performance was a way for them to hear from someone who had struggled the same way they had. “By bringing them here, it was kind of like expressing my own feelings on the topic, and I think there’s something special about that,” Uhrig said. “There’s really something special about hearing someone else who struggles in similar ways that you do, and I think some people in this room probably have those same struggles but may not present that way, and so it was really important for them to hear it.” Vaid-Menon said that the movement for transgender rights is not one that can be fought by only those personally affected. They called for justice for the transgender community in the form of accountability. “I think now more than ever we need students to feel a part of our movement— [students] that are fighting for the safety, dignity, security and joy of all people everywhere. I think when I think about what that mandate looks like, it looks like a recognition fundamentally that our power comes from working together and that our power comes from being vulnerable and honest about how scary the times are,” Vaid-Menon said.
CONFUSION CORNER
Learning to listen to life’s rhythm and rhyme
Taking a break from Spotify music and enjoying the simplicity of the spoken word
Ellie Moonan
head that I welcome because they provide me a break from my own. It is the advice from my friend that I have yet to meet. Spoken poetry gives words excitement again, instead of the impersonal, complicated nature I am used to seeing in documents and articles. Life has been overwhelming and strange lately, causing me to walk and breathe more.
While I walk, I listen to the rhythmic words of others — almost like bedtime stories, except the voices are telling me their own unfinished tales and explaining how they cope with their own monsters and villains. Music fills my brain with vibrations. Spoken poetry fills my brain with colors — colors that begin to shape my own speech and thoughts. Now when I go to sleep, my dreams are vivid again; not because
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS COLUMNIST
When I was 10 years old, I fell asleep to the “West Side Story” soundtrack. Nearly every night for two years, I had my blue Walkman next to my chest and my crappy yellow earphones in, drifting to sleep to Sondheim lyrics. My dreams were always so vivid those nights. As I grew older, I stopped listening to “West Side Story.” Instead, I fell asleep to crickets, traffic and the sound of a pounding fan putting pressure on my ears. In short, I no longer fall asleep to stories. My time has changed from nights with a Walkman to days with Spotify; whether it be walking to class, doing homework or driving to College Creek, I have become accustomed to drowning out my mind with noise. Growing tired of numbing my brain with the same five songs day in and day out, I am finding different ways to listen through spoken-word poetry. Spoken-word poetry creates voices in my
COURTESY PHOTO / PIXABAY
I sneak “West Side Story” into my brain, but because of the new worlds poetry has allowed me to play in. Spoken poetry cannot fit into a Twitter limit or Instagram caption — its essence cannot be captured in a shared post. Do not pick and choose what comes into your head. Instead, pick and choose what you don’t often listen to so that you can train your mind to hear what it does not want to hear. Pick poems and subjects that make you cry and feel frustrated, so you can allow yourself to fall into intense emotion. Recognize that we all have voices, but, we all have ears too. Teach yourself how to listen so you can learn how to speak. It can only help us to understand and experience the minds of others. That is, after all, why we read novels, watch movies and listen to music — to somehow find our own humanity in each other’s words. In the words of Shane Koyczan from his poem, “To This Day,” “our lives will only ever continue to be a balancing act that has less to do with pain and more to do with beauty.” The more we recognize the beauty and validity in each other’s chosen words, the more we can keep ourselves stable and fall asleep to the sweet rhythm that our minds create. Ellie Moonan is a Confusion Corner columnist who has been learning to understand others through poetry, enjoying new dreams, and taking long walks while colorful words fill her head.
The Flat Hat
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Page 8
Light, Space and Energy
THE FLAT HAT / AKEMI TAMANAHA
Fred Eversley was the youngest engineer to work on projects for NASA’s Gemini and Apollo mission. In 1967, he left his job as an engineer to pursue a career in art. His work will be on display at the Muscarelle until Dec. 10.
Lecture at the Muscarelle discusses life and work of artist Fred Eversley
AKEMI TAMANAHA FLAT HAT VARIETY EDITOR
Light, space and energy are words a student might find on a physics syllabus. They are also words that can be found in the Muscarelle Museum of Art’s latest exhibit, “Fred Eversley, 50 Years an Artist: Light & Space & Energy.” Thursday, John Spike, the museum’s assistant director and curator, gave a lecture on Eversley’s work as part of the Muscarelle’s Third Thursdays series. The evening began with opening words from the museum’s director, Aaron H. De Groft ’88, who described Eversley’s recent praise for of the exhibit. “Fred Eversley was here last week,” De Groft said. “Fred is a major, major artist, and I’m going to go ahead and say this because John won’t, but he told John that after 200 exhibitions over a 50 year career, and when you’re first one-man show is at the Whitney, that’s amazing, he said the installation here that John and the staff did is the best he’s ever had.” According to De Groft, Spike’s connection with Eversley can be traced back to 1949, just two years before Spike was born. That year, Eversley began attending Spike’s father’s church in Lower Manhattan. Spike and Eversley met again in 2002 and 2012. Spike opened his lecture by giving a brief summary of Eversley’s early life. “Fred’s life was so fascinating because he was born a scientific prodigy and graduated with a degree from Carnegie Mellon Institute with a degree in electrical engineering,” Spike said. Eversley would later become the youngest engineer to work on projects for NASA’s Gemini and Apollo missions. After several years of collaboration with NASA and the U.S. Air Force, Eversley decided to leave engineering behind and pursue art. He was 26 years old. “After three non-stop years of daily work of racing to beat the Russians to the moon, he decided to follow his other passion and become an artist,” Spike said. “So ’67 is also his 50th anniversary as an artist.” Spike also discussed the beginnings of the minimalist movement in his lecture. According to Spike, one of the founders of the minimalist art movement was Carl Andre.
“He had a saying about it,” Spike said. “He says, ‘Matter matters,’ and that is so catchy you cannot read an article about minimalism without that catchy quotation. What it means to me … is this is exalting matter over spirit.” In addition to describing the minimalist art movement, Spike also discussed how Eversley’s work fit into the movement. Much of the art within the minimalist movement included an element of depersonalization, but this wasn’t the case for Eversley, who lived in Venice Beach and belonged to a West Coast-specific movement called Light and Space. During the 1960s, Venice Beach was a hotbed for emerging
THE FLAT HAT / AKEMI TAMANAHA
The Fred Eversley exhibit is being displayed on the second floor of the Muscarelle.
and established artists ranging from Eversley to musicians Jim Morrison and Janis Joplin. Eversley befriended fellow minimalist John McCracken, and the pair would often assist each other with their respective works. Together, they created the concept of a sculpture called a“plank.” The Muscarelle began installing the exhibit Aug. 24. According to Spike, the design of Eversley’s sculptures made the process of installing the exhibit a “harrowing” one. A few of the pieces that needed to be hung contained only a single hole for one nail to fit through. “Similarly the round lenses and mirrors in the show, they are not anchored to those blocks,” Spike said. “They sit narrowly between runners, and you know if touched we would be chasing it.” Spike’s inspiration for the exhibit’s design stems from several viewings of Eversley’s work. While viewing some of Eversley’s work at Brandeis University, Spike took a photo of one of Eversley’s pieces, which was reflecting light from windows. “What struck me was the beautiful reflections from the windows because they are all ground to optical high resolution crater than glass processes,” Spike said. “They aren’t optical instruments, Fred’s because he was always measuring such things. He was also struck by photos Eversley’s wife sent him of Eversley’s work that similarly captured the light. Spike said he felt it was important to create an exhibit that captures this light and energy. “This is what the minimalist installations have not been capturing,” Spike said. For the past several weeks, students, faculty and local residents have visited the Muscarelle to admire Eversley’s work and Spike’s exhibit design. “Usually when Eversley’s work is exhibited, it’s done so in a place with a lot of natural lighting, and the pieces are just surrounded by sunlight,” Mariah Vaughn ’19, an intern for the Muscarelle, said. “While that absolutely has its visual advantages, in our exhibit Dr. Spike carefully focused beams of light on the pieces, and so they have this incredible way of reflecting and melding with the light.” Eversley’s work will be on display until Dec. 10.
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
Living in sexile: How to practice proper sexile ettiquete
Extend your roommate the courtesy of communicating your sexual escapades
William Watkins BEHIND CLOSED DOORS COLUMNIST
Chances are, if you’ve had a roommate at college, you have been or will be sexiled. To be sexiled is to be removed from your room for the duration of the night as a result of it being under the sexual occupation of your roommate. In many cases, the issue is only lightly addressed in the early stages of a roommate relationship. However, issues can often arise when a lack of proper communication leaves the roommate with both a locked door and a huge gray area. This is the type of miscommunication that leads to sleeping on a friend’s floor on a cot composed of miscellaneous blankets, or to long nights in the lounge, stuck in a constant pendulum-style decision making process, going back and forth between trying to stay up
until a time that would be deemed appropriate to silently slide into your bed and sleeping on the generally unhygienic and unsupportive lounge couch. I’m sure that most would agree that these options aren’t exactly the most enticing. To sleep in a friend’s room would mark you as a burden to your hallmates, something you especially wouldn’t want early on in the year. Choosing to instead remain awake in the lounge would result in an awful disruption to your circadian rhythms; while this is already a well-known occupational hazard associated with collegiate life here at the College of William and Mary, it would be best to save all-nighters for emergencies. The last option
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(finally giving in to sleeping in the lounge) always leads to awkward encounters with the incoming early risers, a sore back and a constant struggle to battle the perpetually bright emergency lights in the lounge. This sort of thing can also be disruptive to someone’s studies if they have a test the next day for both getting adequate sleep and having access to study materials. It would seem that an uncoordinated sexile can be one of the most disruptive roadblocks for a collegiate roommate relationship. The most crucial point of any roommate relationship is establishing clear cut rules and boundaries from the beginning, especially if either are in a relationship where this would
All in all, even in the case of an act of passion, it is always important to keep in mind that your actions may affect other people when you are in a communal living space.
be a common occurrence. Many classic examples that have been thought of in the past include placing some article of clothing on the outside doorknob and removing it when “the coast in clear,” such as the sock or tie methods. However, that option is still full of ambiguity in the event that the “sexilers” don’t remove the clothing from the doorknob. This leaves the “sexilee” still wondering if an appropriate time to sleep in their own bed may arise. This also adds a level of publicity to the event, which may be uncomfortable for either roommate. All in all, even in the case of an act of passion, it is always important to keep in mind that your actions may affect other people when you are in a communal living space. Communication is key for those in and out of the bedroom. It would only require providing your roommate with an opportunity to collect clothing and study materials ahead of time and a relatively detailed text asking if it would be alright for the room to be occupied and describing how and when it would be safe to return. William Watkins is a Behind Closed Doors columnist who is excited to be writing his first column, but is less enthusiastic about being sexiled.
sportsinside
The Flat Hat | Tuesday, September 26, 2017 | Page 9
MEN’S SOCCER
Tribe still looking for first CAA win after late collapse
College needs overtime to top Longwood, gives up 75th and 85th minute goals in home loss to UNCW KEVIN RICHESON FLAT HAT ASSOC. SPORTS EDITOR
William and Mary had two matches this week as it looked to continue its momentum from a victory over Campbell the previous weekend. Wednesday night, the College traveled to Longwood and escaped with a 1-0 overtime win. Saturday, the Tribe returned home for a Colonial Athletic Association match against the University of North CarolinaWilmington. The Tribe led for much of the match, but gave up two late goals to fall 2-1. Wednesday, the College (4-3-2, 0-11 CAA) squared off against the Lancers on the road. The match got off to a slow start, but the Tribe began to dominate play and generate chances. After a few shots in the previous 10 minutes, junior forward Ryder Bell nearly put the College on the board first, but his shot ricocheted off the post after going past Longwood goalkeeper Lance Da Silva. The College put more pressure on Da Silva as the half progressed, forcing him to make a couple saves towards the end of the first half. In the 35th
minute, junior forward Christian Jones fired a shot on target that was saved by Da Silva, and in the 44th minute, sophomore midfielder Julian Ngoh put a shot on frame that was deflected out for a corner kick. However, the Tribe was unable to create another chance off the kick. The game went to halftime tied 0-0, despite the Tribe dominating play. The second half continued with the College controlling play. The Tribe almost found the back of the net off a set piece when junior midfielder Antonio Bustamante bent the ball into the box Freshman defender Sam Golan headed the ball towards the net, but once again Da Silva was able to make the save. In the 75th minute, sophomore defender Hristo Bustamante received a yellow card. Minutes later, the Lancers nearly scored when sophomore Connor Rea put a shot on goal, testing Tribe senior goalkeeper Phil Breno. Breno was able to make the stop and keep the score deadlocked. In the waning minutes of the half, the Tribe had one last chance to avoid going to overtime. Antonio Bustamante created some space and got off a shot, but it was wide of the goal.
The match headed to overtime scoreless. The Lancers had the first chance of the overtime period when they forced a corner kick., but they were unable to capitalize. In the 98th minute, senior forward William Eskay got the ball to Antonio Bustamante. He was finally able to find the breakthrough for the Tribe, ripping the shot into the back of the net for the game-winner. The College escaped with a 1-0 victory, giving them two consecutive wins. Saturday, the College played its conference home opener against the Seahawks (6-1, 2-0 CAA). The Tribe was looking to pick up its first conference victory of the season after managing only a draw in a match at Drexel. The match started with a lot of pressure on the Tribe defense by the Seahawks, the 18th ranked team in the country. “We were facing a lot of pressure, but we were very organized,” Golan said. The College eventually settled into the match and got some chances of its own. In the 20th minute, Ngoh fired a shot from a very close range, but it was hit directly at Seahawks goalkeeper Ryan Cretens.
In the 25th minute, Bell had a great opportunity from the top of the box, but his shot zipped just past the left post. The Tribe earned a corner kick in the 28th minute. It was originally cleared by the Seahawks, but junior defender Remi Frost fired the ball back into the box. Golan came up with the ball and dribbled to his left, firing a shot past Cretens to give the Tribe a 1-0 advantage. It was the freshman’s first goal of his career. “It was good to get my first goal and help the team out, so that was a positive on the night,” Golan said. The Tribe maintained its 1-0 lead going into halftime. In the 53rd minute, the College nearly doubled its lead when Antonio Bustamante’s shot hit the post. In the 60th minute, the Seahawks hit the crossbar on a header by defender Hjalmar Ekdal that would have tied the match. The Seahawks hit the crossbar again in the 68th minute. Many of their chances came off of corner kicks, and they nearly tripled the amount of corner kicks that the Tribe had for the match. “We needed to do a better job of stopping some of their possession
higher up the field,” head coach Chris Norris said. The College alleviated some of the Seahawks’ pressure over the next few minutes. Regardless, the Seahawks finally found an equalizer in the 75th minute. Another Seahawks corner kick led to a header off the crossbar, but the ball dropped dangerously in front of the goal and was hammered home by forward Phillip Goodrum. The Seahawks had all of the momentum after their goal and were able to create a couple more corner kicks and chances over the next few minutes. In the 85th minute, Goodrum scored again off of a corner kick to give the Seahawks their first lead of the night with just five minutes remaining in the match. Right after the goal, Antonio Bustamante ripped a long shot on goal that challenged Cretens, but he was able to make the save. That was the last chance the Tribe created, and the match ended with a 2-1 Seahawks victory after the late comeback. The Tribe looks to get back on track in conference play Wednesday at rival James Madison before returning home for another conference matchup against Delaware.
FIELD HOCKEY
VOLLEYBALL
No. 18 Tribe crushes La Salle
College falls in difficult game vs. Pacific
JOSH LUCKENBAUGH FLAT HAT ASSOC. SPORTS EDITOR
COURTESY PHOTO/ TRIBE ATHLETCS
The College laid it all on the line against Delaware, but ultimately dropped the divisive fifth set, one of three weekend losses.
Tribe drops close match to Delaware College falls to 2-14 in midst of 10th straight loss ALYSSA GRZESIAK FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR
This week, William and Mary welcomed three Colonial Athletic Association opponents to Kaplan Arena. The Tribe fell in three consecutive home matches to Delaware 2-3, James Madison 1-3 and Towson 0-3, respectively. Thursday, the College (2-14, 0-3 CAA) fell to Delaware in a tight back and forth contest. Despite winning the second and fourth sets, the Blue Hens (3-9, 1-1 CAA) took the final set resulting in a 3-2 loss for the Tribe. Senior hitter Sydney Biniak led the Tribe offense yet again with 21 points, followed by freshman middle hitter Julia Brown and junior hitter Heather Pippus, who each finished with 13. The College’s five service aces came from sophomore setter Autumn Brenner (2), Biniak (2) and Brown (1). Freshman hitter Lauren Moussaid dominated the Tribe’s back row with 22 digs. The Tribe dropped a close first set 25-20; however, it came back with a 27-25 victory in the second set. The final three points of the set came from a kill by Brown, Biniak and sophomore hitter Casey Foote, respectively, each off a Brenner assist. The Tribe had the longest streak of the set, going on a five-point run thanks to three consecutive attack errors by Delaware’s sophomore outside hitter Maria Bellinger, as well as a kill and block each for Brown and freshman hitter Kate Dedrick. In the third set, despite an early 6-1 lead, the Tribe could not keep up its momentum. The Blue Hens quickly tied the set up 9-9 then proceeded to take the lead, which they maintained through the set.
The College dropped the set 25-19. Again, jumping into an early 2-0 lead, the Tribe managed to follow through with its energy this time. Brown dominated a five-point run with three kills and a block, broken up only by a kill by Biniak. The College won the fourth set 25-23, the final two points coming from attack errors by Delaware’s junior outside hitter Brooke Robertson and senior middle hitter Daria Robinson. The fifth and final set of the contest was controlled by the Blue Hens. An early four-point run put them in the lead, 4-1, and the Tribe never got a chance to tie or take the lead. The College dropped the final set 15-9, resulting in a 3-2 loss to Delaware in the first CAA matchup of the season. Saturday, the Tribe fell to James Madison (10-0, 1-0 CAA) in a 3-1 loss. Biniak was in the lead with 14 kills, followed by Pippus with nine and Foote with eight. Brenner contributed 19 assists to junior setter Katie Kemp’s 18. The Tribe dropped the first set 2514, never taking the lead after tying the match 5-5 early on. The final point for the College came from a kill by Brown off a Kemp assist. The Dukes dominated the second set, starting with an early nine-point run, putting them up 9-0. The Tribe’s first point of the set came off a service error by the opposing team. The College never got within three points of the Dukes. An unforeseen energy emerged from the Tribe in the third set as it took an early 5-0 lead over James Madison. Not once did the College relinquish its lead, resulting in a 25-
21 victory. The closest the Dukes came was tying the set at 16 points. Unfortunately for the Tribe, it could not maintain the energy exhibited in the third set, ultimately dropping the fourth and final set of the contest 25-16. Half of the points from this set came from Biniak attacks. Sunday, the College took on Towson (16-0, 2-0 CAA). The Tigers outplayed the Tribe in every aspect, resulting in a 3-0 loss. The Tigers outscored the Tribe in total points (59-33), kills (48-28), blocks (8-4), assists (41-28) and digs (38-36). Biniak, although leading the College offense, contributed only 10 kills. Brown again scored the Tribe’s only ace, as well as contributing two blocks. Kemp contributed 12 assist, followed by Brenner with nine. By far the most competitive, the Tigers came out victorious 25-22 in the first set. Towson maintained its lead for the entire set, but the Tribe came close after a five-point run, closing the gap to 18-15. In a less competitive second set, the Tribe fell 25-13. Two fourpoint and two five-point runs by the Tigers made it impossible for the College to take the lead after tying the score at 3-3. The third set was dominated by a six-point run by Towson. The College dropped the final set 25-14, resulting in its third consecutive conference loss. The Tribe will hit the road again this weekend to challenge Elon in another CAA matchup.
No. 18 William and Mary split a pair of home games over the weekend at Busch Field, falling in dramatic fashion to Pacific Friday 5-4 before routing La Salle Sunday, 8-0. Friday night started promisingly for the Tribe (6-4), with the College jumping out to a 2-0 lead within the opening 20 minutes thanks to goals from senior midfielder Emma MacLeod and sophomore forward Woodard Hooper. The Tigers (4-6, 0-2 America East) quickly cut the Tribe advantage in half, however, when Pacific forward Kriekie van Wyk slotted a shot past sophomore goalkeeper Morgan Connor in the 22nd minute. The second half started with a bang as van Wyk tied the game at two just a minute after the restart. The teams began to trade goals as the half progressed, MacLeod restoring the Tribe’s lead in the 43rd minute before Tigers defender Savannah Burns canceled it out with a goal of her own. Four minutes later, senior forward Cammie Lloyd scored for the Tribe only to see Pacific once again equalize, this time through forward Gaby de Kock. The Tigers took their first and final lead of the game in the 58th minute, Burns assisting Pacific midfielder Ash Rutherford for the game-winning goal. Hooper and Lloyd came closest to tying the game again for the Tribe, but saw their efforts saved by Tigers goalkeeper Marlise van Tonder. The College ultimately fell 5-4, the Tribe’s third straight loss following defeats at the hands of Virginia and Boston College the week before. The streak would not extend to four, as the Tribe trounced the La Salle (5-3, 2-1 Atlantic 10) Sunday afternoon, scoring early and often
to ensure there would be no comeback this time. By halftime, the College had already put six goals past the La Salle defense, each goal scored by a different Tribe player. Sophomore forward Cata Days got the scoring started in the sixth minute, the College outshooting the Explorers 22-1 in an utterly dominant first-half performance. Lloyd, who scored her team-leading seventh goal of the season Sunday to extend the Tribe’s lead to 6-0 late in the first half, said the College did a great job playing as a cohesive unit. “When we play our best hockey is when we play team hockey, and that showed today for sure,” Lloyd said. “We had a variety of people score, a variety of people assist. I think when we play our team hockey and play as a unit is when we have the success like this.” The College added two more goals in the second half to polish off the 8-0 final scoreline, the third most goals the Tribe has ever scored in a single match. With eight goals and eight assists, the College also accumulated a teamrecord 24 points (two points for a goal, one for an assist), surpassing the previous high of 23 set against Lehigh in 1990. After the record-setting performance, Tribe head coach Tess Ellis lauded the team’s improvement from last season into this season. “I was saying to someone the other day that where we were 12 months ago to where we are now, it’s just leaps and bounds,” Ellis said. “Our stick work’s got stronger, our system is definitely stronger … The strength of our overall squad this year has really helped us to keep up the tempo and keep up with some of these big teams.” The College will continue its five-game homestand Friday night with its first Colonial Athletic Association matchup of the season, taking on Hofstra at 5 p.m. That will be followed by a visit from another conference opponent, Northeastern, Sunday at 1 p.m.
COURTESY PHOTO/ TRIBE ATHLETCS
College drops winnable game against Pacific to fall in its third straight, rebounds to destroy La Salle 8-0.
sports
Sports Editor Alyssa Grzesiak Sports Editor Chris Travis flathatsports@gmail.com @FlatHatSports
The Flat Hat | Tuesday, Septermber 26, 2017 | Page 10
PROFILE
COMMENTARY
Huge presence for Tribe Tribe Athletics welcomes important new member
Second half team? College executes after halftime
ALYSSA GRZESIAK FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR
able to do things a little bit better, not because we’re not doing them well … but let’s do them even better,” Huge said. “Whether it’s facilities, whether it’s staff, whether it’s After 17 years of Division I experience, Samantha Huge just ensuring that we’re scheduling in such a way that the student athletes are getting to compete against the best walked into Tribe Athletics with a new goal: to listen. “One skill I’ve tried to get really good at is listening. It’s competition to prepare themselves for CAA competition.” In addition to all the responsibilities that come with something I promised when I came in the door: I wanted to listen, I wanted to learn William and Mary,” Huge said. the title of athletic director, Huge has not forgotten the “Having the experiences that I’ve had, whether they’ve well-being of the student athletes off the court. Her been at an SEC school with 60,000 students or 100,000 involvement in the teams goes a step further than just an people at a football game to a school like Wake Forest administrative role; she values the personal relationships that is only 4,000 students, you know the thing that’s she forms with the individual athletes. Huge also has a personal tie to the College. She spent really consistent is the people care about their institution, they care about their athletics programs, they want them time here when her brother, Chris Huge ’84, played to be successful. They’re very passionate fans. And then football for head coach Jimmye Laycock ’70 from 1981 to the other thing that we get to do every day is work with 1983. She said this personal tie helps her understand the students like you and students who are really committed rigor of the academics as well as the physical feat of being to whatever they want to do with their lives, and it’s neat a student athlete at the College. “I think the important thing in the end is that we all to be a part of the enterprise that prepares them to go live remember that you all are students. You’re 18- to 22-yearthat life of impact.” Huge has arrived at William and Mary as the new olds who have dreams and hopes,” Huge said. “There director of athletics after spending three years as the senior are days that things don’t go the way you want them to, associate director of athletics at Texas A&M and almost and then there are days that you’re on cloud nine. To be five years at Delaware in many athletics administration able to be kind of a witness to that, but also someone to positions. While serving as deputy director of athletics encourage through those tough times, but also celebrate and recreation services at Delaware, Huge oversaw the the victories is really special.” One thing daily operations that Huge wants of the athletics for the College department and is for more enhancement students to show of facilities and up and support increased turnout their teams. and revenue She believes generation. that each and As last year every student wrapped up and should take summer workouts pride in athletic commenced, Huge success because saw promise in the they are just student athletes as much a part who make up the of the history Tribe. Watching the being made spirit and energy of as the athletes the volleyball team themselves. during preseason — Director of Athletics Samantha Huge According to practices and the Huge, without determination of the spectators the football team during its first scrimmage excited Huge. Her first look at and support from the stands, the Tribe would be less of a tribe. the programs in her domain was a promising one. “I want our students to come out and see how neat this “I went out to a couple of football workouts during the summer. They are so ready, they’re excited, they’ve is and come be a part of it because it is their Tribe too. We been working their tails off all summer. I think that I see really are one Tribe,” Huge said. “It’s not athletes and nona really promising season,” Huge said. “I’ve gone to both athletes, we’re all one. The role that they play is just as scrimmages, and I’m really excited. I think volleyball … important as the role that the student athlete who might it’s the coach’s second year, you can see there’s some be on the surface of competition plays. It’s important that energy. Those [‘It’s Time’ videos] have a great look into we all be a part of it.” A report on competitive excellence mentioned by Huge how they’re preparing. For me, it’s just amazing to me to see the commitment on the part of the coaches and ends with the phrase: “a championship experience for every student-athlete and every fan.” To Huge, that means student athletes.” Huge, the first woman to hold this position at the that every student, whether an athlete or a spectator, will College since the job was merged to cover both men and get to experience a CAA championship win or competition women’s sports, succeeded Terry Driscoll, who held the in a National Collegiate Athletic Association event. “I want more. I want us to — our sports that are position for 21 years. While one of the core responsibilities of the director of athletics is to manage the $24 million capable — to go win more than one game in the NCAA budget and serve as the leading fundraiser, Huge is also tournament,” Huge said. “A championship experience responsible for over 120 Tribe Athletics staff members would be that fans are seeing that we’re providing them with the opportunity to go along with our teams to a and coaches. Despite the College’s history of resilient competition conference championship and win one and a NCAA in the Colonial Athletic Association, Huge has a vision championship event and that we’re consistent and that for improvement. With many fall sports commencing we put things in place that will allow us to sustain that conference play in the coming days, if they haven’t so it’s not just a once in their four years, but a thing that’s already, precision and motivation are more important expected every year.” She believes that a true championship experience isn’t than ever for victory. “We have an incredibly successful history, and I plan something with a time stamp or a once-every-four-years to continue that. I think it’s one of those things that I’ll … limit; a true championship experience is a reward for draw on my past experiences and see where we might be endless hard work, support and commitment.
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There are days that things don’t go the way you want them to, and then there are days that you’re on cloud nine. To be able to be kind of a witness to that, but also someone to encourage through those tough times, but also celebrate the victories is really special.”
COURTESY PHOTO / TRIBE ATHLETICS
Samantha Huge is the first female to hold the position of Director of Athletics since the job was merged to cover both men and women’s sports.
Omar Hanley THE FLAT HAT
Saturday evening, William and Mary showed glimpses of greatness in a strong 30-9 win against Bucknell in its home opener at Zable Stadium, but still clearly has room for improvement. Junior quarterback Tommy McKee started his third game for the Tribe. Although his stat line looked fairly mediocre, Tommy was very comfortable making great passes in big situations. This is certainly a marked improvement from the previous two weeks, where he never seemed calm and collected in the pocket. Late in the first quarter, the Tribe steamrolled down the field with multiple impressive runs from true freshman Nate Evans and pin point passes from Tommy McKee. The highlight of the drive was a 34-yard run by Evans, which set him up for an easy one-yard punch in touchdown two plays later. Evans’ explosiveness added a new dimension and the much needed sparkplug to the Tribe’s offense in the absence of sophomore running back Albert Funderburke, who remains out with injury. At the end of the first quarter, the Tribe were in steady control with a 7-0 lead. Without Funderburke, the Tribe continued to lean on a committee lead by Evans and redshirt freshman Noah Giles. Evans ended his night with 18 carries for 89 yards and a score, while Giles carried 8 times for 31 yards and a score. Both looked effective at times, but Evans was clearly the best rusher of the day, averaging almost five yards per carry and breaking free for big gains on several occasions. The College continued to control the game into the second quarter. After a remarkable run by redshirt freshman tailback Jaret Anderson, the College seemed set up for another easy punch in, but was unable to convert in the red zone and was forced to settle for a 20-yard field goal. This drive signified a common problem for the Tribe this season. Just as the College makes strides towards greatness, it continues to miss out on great chances to take commanding leads. Bucknell seemed to take all the momentum toward the end of the second quarter. After what seemed to be a fumble recovery for a touchdown by the Tribe to give them a 16-0 lead, the ruling was quickly overturned as replay showed the Bucknell receiver’s knee on the turf before the ball came out. Bucknell continued to easily drive down the field with passes from quarterback Matt Muh and ended its drive with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Andrew Podbielski. After a complete lack of offense by the College on its next possession, Bucknell made it a one-point game with a 33-yard field goal at the end of the half. The College’s offense fizzled out in the second quarter, only producing 17 offensive yards after collecting 104 in the first quarter alone. Whether it was poor play calling or awful execution, the College played one of its worst quarters this season. The Tribe came out into the second half determined to put the game away. Early in the third quarter, McKee and Giles were able to drive the Tribe down the field 81 yards in six plays to give the Tribe their second touchdown of the evening with a 15-yard run score by Giles to cap off the drive. The College’s defense played amazingly in the second half. Led by defensive playmakers sophomore linebacker Nate Akins and junior linebacker Josh Dulaney, the Tribe was able to rack up four sacks in the second half and six on the night. The defense itself seems to have made tremendous strides since last year, after only gathering 10 total sacks last season. Midway through the third quarter, Atkins made a punishing hit which led to a fumble recovery for a touchdown by sophomore safety Corey Parker. However, Parker was then ejected from the game for his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after jumping into the end zone and flipping the ball in a flashy manner. It was fortunate that the College had a big lead, as that otherwise would have been a costly mistake by the young safety. Toward the end of the third quarter, the College continued to punish Bucknell as McKee closed the quarter with a beautiful 60-yard drive ended by a four yard pass to redshirt freshman fullback Tyler Christ for a touchdown. The college was able to hold its lead throughout the fourth quarter to clinch its second win of the season. The College seemed unstoppable on both offense and defense in the second half, scoring 20 unanswered points and racking up 115 total yards on offense. Defensively, the College shut out Bucknell and only allowed 42 total yards the rest of the game after giving up 184 in the first half. After this week’s bye week, the Tribe will look to continue its winning streak against Stony Brook next Saturday, Sept. 30 at Zable Stadium. The Tribe will hope to get star tailback Albert Funderburke and star wide receiver DeVonte Dedmon back into the action as the team enters conference play.
COURTESY PHOTO / TRIBE ATHLETICS
Junior Tommy McKee started in his third game for the Tribe as quarterback against Bucknell.