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Confusion clouds shelter-in-place

Phones pinged in classrooms Wednesday afternoon with alerts of a shelter-inplace order, forcing professors to rely on instinct and each other in the face of unclear instructions from the University.

Officials issued the order via GW Alert at about 4 p.m., about 15 minutes after a man charged with homicide escaped Metropolitan Police Department custody at GW Hospital; police are still seeking 30-year-old Christopher Haynes. Authorities lifted the shelter-in-place order at about 8:15 p.m., but professors said unclear policies and inconsistent enforcement made it hard to decide whether students could actually leave classes or if they should have completely sheltered in place for the entire four-hour advisory.

Even after the initial alert warning of a “dangerous individual” was issued, many students failed to heed the order and left their residence halls and classrooms to walk through campus.

Some faculty said confusion grew about halfway through the shelter-in-place period. Officials issued a 5:54 p.m. alert telling community members to continue to shelter in place but also asking them to exercise caution if they left their shelter. The notification confused professors and students who believed no one was supposed to be outside. While officials didn’t lift the shelter-in-place order until about 8:15 p.m., several professors said unclear instructions — which led to a lack of clear authority over whether students could stay or leave — caused them to let students leave more than two hours

earlier, at 6 p.m.

“The text message was a little confusing,” said Hayley Cutler, an adjunct professor of dance. “I thought that telling us to ‘Shelter in place, but if you choose to leave,’ was a little hard to navigate as a teacher, feeling responsible for the future decisions of the students in that moment.”

GW has emphasized its public safety reforms over the past several years, culminating in the decision to arm officers within the GW Police Department beginning this fall. But confusion stemming from Wednesday’s alerts — like whether students should have stayed put throughout the shelter-in-place order — highlight potential concerns about GW’s emergency communications system.

Cutler said she took her students to the dressing area of the dance studio on G Street when she got the initial shelter-in-place alert and knew

amid manhunt

A-10 to relocate headquarters to DC

BEN SPITALNY CONTRIBUTING SPORTS EDITOR SANDRA KORETZ SPORTS EDITOR

Atlantic 10 Conference officials announced plans to relocate the conference’s headquarters to Washington, D.C. in a press conference at the Elliot School of International Affairs Thursday.

The A-10 aims to begin relocation in November 2023 and wrap up operations by June 2024, following the completion of the 2023-24 athletic season. After being headquartered in Newport News, Virginia since 2009, the A-10 will be the only NCAA Division I conference to call the District home.

OF

what to do “instinctively” but wasn’t “recalling specific protocol” from the University. She said the alert asking community members to use extreme caution if they left shelter was “tricky” for faculty trying to decide whether they should ask students to stay in the room because it implied people could leave before officials issued an all-clear message.

The shelter-in-place entry in GW’s Emergency Response Handbook states that community members must stay in a safe place until the all-clear but does not specify how faculty should manage students wanting to leave the classroom. The guidelines mainly provide advice for dealing with inclement weather, like recommending community members seek shelter in a “low part” of the building without windows and avoid potential falling items.

Cutler said Carl Gudenius, the head of the Theater and Dance Program, contacted her

“immediately” to ensure she and her students felt safe in the studio when officials ordered the shelter in place. She said when the community received the alert about using extreme caution if they chose to leave, her class walked out of the building as a group after Gudenius joined them.

“There was a lot of really positive communication from the program head that I felt really good about, so that made me feel comfortable sort of saying ‘Okay, everybody can come out and get your stuff, and then we’ll wait for Carl,’” Cutler said.

University spokesperson Julia Metjian said GW’s Emergency Management team worked with the GW Police Department and MPD to issue the shelter-in-place alert and communicated with GW Hospital, “federal partners” and “other public safety organizations” to assess the situation.

The conference will occupy an approximately 5,000-square-foot office near Dupont Circle inside the National Center for Higher Education, which houses several tenants in academia and college athletics. Officials also partnered with District officials, Events DC and the Washington DC Economic Partnership to make the move official, per a release. Following the pandemic, the D.C. government and Mayor Muriel Bowser have been using benefits to support, attract and retain businesses like the A-10.

The A-10, which GW was a founding member of in 1975, comprises 15 universities and sponsors 22 sports, including 18 of GW’s athletic programs. Members of the men’s and women’s basketball teams and many of GW’s head coaches were also in attendance.

When asked about the possibility of making the basketball championship a permanent fixture in D.C., Bowser seemed open to the idea.

“I like it. So, we’ll talk more,” she said.

The announcement also comes while the District is moving to hold onto its professional sports franchises. The group that owns the Washington Capitals and the Wizards have privately expressed interest in potentially moving the teams outside of D.C., the Washington Post reported. Bowser is also attempting to attract the recently sold Commanders back to D.C. by revamping the RFK Stadium site, which has sat abandoned for years after the team moved to Maryland in the 1990s.

Bowser and A-10 Commissioner Bernadette McGlade emphasized the economic impact the A-10 and its events bring to cities. McGlade said four-day championship events have raked in up to $17 million in revenue.

who physically assaulted a police officer and escaped custody at the hospital at about 3:38 p.m. Wednesday.

Police on Thursday are still searching for a homicide suspect who escaped custody at GW Hospital Wednesday, offering a $25,000 reward for anyone who can offer information that leads to the whereabouts of the suspect.

Acting Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith said police are still looking for Christopher Haynes, the 30-year-old man

Smith said at a press conference in the Elliott School of International Affairs that Haynes was charged in the murder of Brent Hayward, a 33-year-old man from Gainesville, Virginia, who was shot in Northeast D.C. on Aug. 12.

Smith said the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force — a division of the U.S. Marshals Service — apprehended Haynes in Manassas, Virginia, Wednesday morning. MPD officers were pro-

cessing Haynes at the department’s homicide branch when he complained about a preexisting ankle injury, leading officers to transport the suspect to GW Hospital at about 3 p.m., Smith said. Smith said one officer accompanied Haynes from the homicide branch to GW Hospital, and one officer met the pair at the hospital, which aligns with MPD policy. She added that MPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau, which investigates officer misconduct within the department, is still investigating yesterday’s proceedings — including

whether Haynes was properly handcuffed — to ensure they followed MPD policy.

“The suspect was not secured, from my understanding, securely,” Smith said.

Smith said Haynes fled the hospital after physically assaulting an officer who was changing his handcuffs at the hospital. She said officers called for assistance after his escape, leading to a multiagency search for the suspect.

She declined to provide the status of the officer who was physically assaulted, saying it was still under investigation.

And while the conference, a nonprofit organization, will not contribute any tax money to D.C., Bowser said new employees, visitors and events will bring economic benefits to D.C.

“One thing I’m happy about is supporting the A-10,” said interim Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Keith Anderson. “But Visit DC is supporting them with venues. So when they have these tournaments, we can maximize the economic impact here in the District of Columbia.”

Bowser said investing in higher education is an integral part of her strategy to “bring the vitality” of the city back as part of her Comeback Plan.

Officials hired new staff and expanded the Student Health Center’s hours this semester to include weekend and evening appointment times.

The SHC is now open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays and noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays — after previously operating only on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. last academic year. University spokesperson Julia Metjian said the expanded hours will better serve students who have classes or work during the day.

Metjian added that Medical Services hired a gynecology advanced practice provider this fall and that Counseling and Psychological Services hired a clinician who specializes in LGBTQ+ student concerns in response to student feedback. She said CAPS currently has

13 counselors and “several” additional positions to be filled later this semester — an increase from 12 last semester, according to website archives.

Metjian said officials also expanded SHC service to the Mount Vernon Campus this semester by adding appointment times in Merriweather Hall Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and CAPS walk-in hours from noon to 4 p.m.

“Increasing our hours and increasing our staff numbers opens more appointment slots for students to establish a relationship with our providers and to access our services,” she said.

In January, officials partnered with telehealth company AcademicLiveCare, which Metjian said “expanded” access to SHC services, like counseling, psychiatric and medical care, to 24 hours a day. She said the partnership supplements the SHC’s hours, especially after the SHC closes and

when students are not in the District.

“As the number of students presenting with health concerns has grown at various times, SHC advocates for more staffing, supplies, virtual platforms, changes in hours, etc. to keep the Center fully accessible to all of our students,” Metjian said. “We have been consistently supported by the institution in these efforts.”

More than 20 students said they find weekend and evening hours more accommodating, with more than a dozen saying they are now more likely to make an appointment with the SHC than before the change. More than half a dozen students said they previously experienced long wait times and difficulty getting in touch with SHC staff when trying to make an appointment because of the SHC’s limited appointment slots.

Jordan Fields, a sophomore majoring in interna-

tional affairs, said adding Saturday appointments is a “step in the right direction” to give students sufficient opportunities to seek help. She added that the later weekday hours would improve the “well-being of students”

because students with classes until 5 p.m. can still visit the SHC.

Fields said last fall, SHC staff told her she could not get an appointment for two weeks when she was “more sick” than she’d ever been and could

barely talk. She said she hopes the expanded hours will increase the number of available appointments so that students can get an SHC appointment sooner.

COURTESY

TAYTUM WYMER

A Metropolitan Police Department o cer keeps watch over a taped-o 24th Street as authorities rush to locate the escapee

Wednesday.

Officials report uptick in graduate student enrollment, launch marketing campaign

Provost Chris Bracey said the University welcomed a “strong” increase in graduate students this fall at a Faculty Senate meeting Friday.

Bracey said the new class of graduate students is “driven” by higher international graduate student enrollment. He said he also convened an admissions policy task force to continue to “encourage” diversity in the student body after the Supreme Court struck down the consideration of race in college admissions in June and that Vice Provost of Enrollment and Student Success Jay Goff will deliver an enrollment update in November.

Former interim University President Mark Wrighton and University President Ellen Granberg said in June that they are “deeply disappointed” in the prohibition of race-conscious admissions and the decision would make building a diverse student body more difficult.

Granberg, attending her first senate meeting as University president, said she’s met with student organizations like the Institute for Citizen Leaders and attended staff meetings for departments including athletics and the Division for Student Affairs this fall. She said she also met with the Medical Faculty Associates’ Board of Trustees to discuss the organization’s financial stability.

Wrighton said in January that the MFA, an independent group of D.C. doctors who teach students in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, will not meet their goal of recovering from their $200 million debt by the end of fiscal year 2023.

“There is certainly a ways to go, but there are some building blocks that have now been put in place that I think are going to help us improve the MFA’s financial condition,” Granberg said. She said she attended an orientation for university presidents of schools that recently joined the Association of American Universities, an organization of “premier” research universities. She said the AAU conducts polls to collect data relating to higher education that isn’t publicly available but accessible through AAU membership.

She added that the Office of Communications and Marketing launched the Rev Up campaign, which targets potential graduate students through advertisements in “high-profile” locations like Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Capital

One Arena.

“As I understand, it has been many, many years since we’ve done a comprehensive campaign to market our graduate programs,” Granberg said. “And certainly this is a time when we’re looking to increase enrollment so I’m delighted that’s going on.”

Irene Foster, the co-chair of the senate’s Educational Policy and Technology Committee, gave a presentation that said students are struggling with basic math and reading comprehension and classroom engagement before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. She said the Office of the Provost recommended that the senate should have a subcommittee on student success and retention to combat students’ academic struggles, faculty should ensure that students are taking the ALEKS exam for correct course placement and faculty should provide “intervention” by the third week of the semester if students are not making progress.

“Faculty are in fact the frontline workers on student success. We are the interface at the University,” Foster said. “We have to be involved in student success and student retention. It cannot occur at the provost office level, it has to occur at the frontlines.”

Sharon Reich Paulsen, the University’s executive vice president and chief administration officer, and GW Police Department Chief James Tate reviewed the implementation plan for arming GWPD officers and presented updates from phase one, which launched Aug. 30 and involved the arming of the department’s top two officers with 9 mm handguns. Tate said officials learned from phase one and feedback from faculty that they need to “clarify a number of items” in the department’s use of force policy, which outlines expected police conduct in specific

circumstances, de-escalation efforts and evidence bias training.

“One of the things that I have learned and we’re now moving forward with is making sure that we sort of get outside the law enforcement discipline when it comes to how we approach deescalation or how we approach implicit bias, how we approach mental health,” Tate said.

Paulsen also acknowledged how some faculty feel the decision to arm officers doesn’t align with the University’s shared governance principles, which establish that all faculty should have a role in “key decision making,” after the Board of Trustees only notified the senate’s Executive Committee before making the GWPD arming announcement in April. She said officials will continue to “closely consult” faculty throughout implementation and that she is “extremely pleased” the Physical Facilities and Safety Committee, a senate standing committee in charge of monitoring the implementation process, is providing feedback to the administration.

Paulsen said officials “anticipate” implementing phase two of the plan, which entails arming four lieutenants, by the end of the month as previously announced in a release published Sept. 1. Several senators expressed concern with the timeline of the decision’s rollout, including Jennifer Brinkerhoff, a faculty senator and professor of international affairs, international business, public policy and public administration, who argued GWPD should take more time to learn from phase one before proceeding.

“I was more concerned with the rapidity of moving from phase one to phase two, whether or not there’s an opportunity for learning during this phase,” Brinkerhoff said. “Why do we need to move quickly to phase two?”

Board soliciting applications for Recent Alumni Trustee

The Board of Trustees is searching for a recent graduate to join the ranks of its body.

Board Chair Grace Speights and Alumni Association President Maxwell Gocala-Nguyen sent an email late last month to alumni soliciting applications for a Recent Alumni Trustee position, who will serve from 2024 to 2028. Alumni who graduated with a bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate degree within the past five and a half years relative to the start of the term are eligible to apply.

“Candidates must be of the highest integrity and demonstrate a strong commitment to the University,” the email states.

The term will begin June 1, 2024 and end May 31, 2028. Board members do not receive paid compensation, according to public tax records.

Trustees Mollie Bowman and Luis Otero are hosting three virtual information sections in September to share their experience as former recent alumni trustees, according to the application.

“We seek a diverse pool of candidates to recommend for service,” the email states. “Persons shall be qualified to serve

as a trustee without limitation to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.”

Applicants must complete six application questions, including why they want to be on the Board, what qualities they bring to the position and the nature of their involvement with GW postgraduation. The application also asks candidates to outline their prior governance experience in other organizations, list their top three priorities for the Board to address in the coming years and disclose any past experiences that could be perceived as “an embarrass-

ment or controversial” to the University.

Applicants must also submit a cover letter and three letters of recommendation for officials to consider their candidacy, according to the application. The application deadline is Friday, Oct. 13, 2023.

The Board oversees the operations and overarching strategy of the University, like approving GW’s yearly budget. Recently, trustees selected Ellen Granberg as the next University President, retired the Colonials moniker, approved shared governance principles between faculty and the administration and decided to arm the GW Police Department.

GW canceled classes and evacuated campus buildings following bomb threats at the University Student Center and Ross Hall after terrorist attacks hit the Pentagon and World Trade Center.

RAPHAEL KELLNER | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

FILE PHOTO BY AUDEN YURMAN | SENIOR PHOTO EDITOR The Board of Trustees’ office building on 21st Street.

SAGE RUSSELL | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

University President Ellen Granberg attends Friday’s Faculty Senate meeting — her first as president.

LILY SPEREDELOZZI | SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

LILY SPEREDELOZZI | SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

SAGE RUSSELL | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

BLACKMAIL

Public Property on Campus (2100 Block of F St.)

9/5/2023 – 11:31 p.m.

Closed Case

A male student reported being blackmailed via Snapchat by an unknown subject requesting cash payment in exchange for not revealing personal photos. Referred to the Metropolitan Police Department.

DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY/VANDALISM

Mitchell Hall (7-Eleven Store)

Reported 9/6/2023 – Unknown

Closed Case

A GW Police Department officer observed graffiti on an interior wall. No suspects or witnesses.

DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY/VANDALISM

Guthridge Hall

9/6/2023 – 9:10 p.m.

Open Case

GWPD officers responded to a report of destruction of property. Upon arrival, police made contact with a male student who reported a dispensed fire extinguisher. Case open.

BLACKMAIL

Somers Hall

9/7/2023 – Multiple

Open Case

A male student reported being blackmailed via Snapchat through the use of explicit photos. Case open.

THEFT II/BICYCLES, THEFT II/OTHER

International House (Loading Dock)

Reported 9/7/2023 – Unknown

Open Case

A male student reported the theft of his bicycle. During the report, a female student reported her bicycle tires stolen from the same location. Case open.

THEFT II/FROM BUILDING

Academic Center

9/7/2023 – Unknown

Open Case

A female staff member reported her laptop stolen from an Academic Center office. Case open.

LIQUOR LAW VIOLATION

Guthridge Hall

9/7/2023 – 11:12 p.m.

Closed Case GWPD officers responded to a report of an intoxicated male student. Emergency Medical Response Group officials responded and after evaluating the student, transported him to the GW Hospital emergency room for further treatment. Referred to the Division for Student Affairs.

Dining hall prices jump due to increasing costs and ‘marketplace,’ officials say

SHEA CARLBERG STAFF WRITER

Officials increased dining hall prices this academic year, and students aren’t sure the price hike is justified.

The all-you-care-to-eat dining in Shenkman and Thurston halls — which climbed from $8 to $10 for breakfast, $10 to $15 for lunch and $12 to $17 for dinner — and vendors in District House have increased their respective prices for student meals this fall. District House’s Meal Deals, a discounted student meal, increased to $15, almost double from last year’s $8 price.

University spokesperson Julia Metjian said GW Dining increased its entrance prices for the fall semester based on increasing costs and the “marketplace.” She noted that students enrolled in the unlimited or block meal plans do not pay the door rate.

GW completed the overhaul of its dining system in January, launching a series of swipe-based meal plans for students to use at the trio of all-you-can-eat dining halls and Meal Deals at District House. Before officials created swipe-based meal plans through its dining revamp, students used GWorld cash at select restaurants and grocery stores around campus.

For juniors and seniors paying $2,060 for the 90-swipe plan and $890 in declining balance, a swipe averages out to $13. Students on the 175-swipe plan end up paying less per swipe than the door fee for lunch

and dinner: a swipe costs the equivalent of about $10.68.

Maggie Obaro, the general manager of Thurston’s dining hall, said since she started working at Thurston Hall in April, no students have been using their own funds to pay at the hall. Instead, students who have frequented the hall use their swipes more than their declining dollars since more students are on swipebased plans. She said GW instructs the dining hall’s operator, Chartwells Higher Education, to set prices at certain levels based on the dining option prices on local food costs and what other schools are doing. Obaro said she and her kitchen staff improved their food preparation techniques from last year by learning from previous “mistakes” by listening to student feedback on adding pastries and gluten-free options and displaying updated menus on TVs around the hall with dietary restriction notices, like whether or not an entree is

AN NGO | GRAPHICS EDITOR

vegan or vegetarian. She said Thurston has focused on producing high-quality food to match the price increase.

“When the prices were brought up to us, one of the biggest things I said was, ‘If we’re going to be charging this price, we want to give them worth their value,’ which is where the quality of food comes in,” Obaro said.

Students are divided on whether the price increase has corresponded with an increase in portion sizes.

Cecilia Culver, a junior studying statistics and economics, who lives off campus and pays out of pocket for food — said the dining hall meals are no longer a worthwhile deal compared to shopping at Trader Joe’s for the same prices and “better” food. She said she decided not to return to the dining halls this year after noticing last semester that the entrance fee increased, with the price of breakfast up to $10 from around $8 before.

“I will never go to a din-

ing hall,” Culver said. “It is not worth my time or money unless I were to bring multiple things of Tupperware.”

Dani Trevino, a sophomore studying international affairs, said she emailed GW Dining two weeks ago and complained to dining officials about the unannounced change in prices. She said officials said they would forward her thoughts to the leadership team for future pricing decisions. She said she texted her friends to make sure she wasn’t “going crazy” when her Meal Deal cost $15 upon moving into her fall housing for the semester in late August.

“If for some reason for a day, you’re not swiping but you want to eat at the dining hall, you cannot eat at GW’s on-campus options without being tremendously over budget,” Trevino said.

Josh Gulyansky, a sophomore studying philosophy, said he swipes at dining options when he wants to because he is on the unlimited flex plan — which allows 85 days of swipes along with a declining balance — but that the plan is not worth it for the average student without swipes because of the price upturn.

He said price increases make him and his friends hesitant to visit campus dining options, but the larger portion sizes at vendors have kept him returning. DC Taco House previously offered two tacos for $8 on the Meal Deal before price increases, but now offers three tacos for $15.

Professors to add AI exercises to courses, syllabi

FIONA RILEY ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR RACHEL MOON CONTRIBUTING NEWS EDITOR

Professors are implementing artificial intelligence technology in their courses this fall to supplement students’ studies and acquaint them with AI’s growing prevalence in the workforce.

Five professors said they are integrating AI materials into their courses and syllabi to provide students with coaching resources for assignments and have assigned AI-related exercises to stimulate discussion on the subject. Professors said students can use AI tools to assist with their academics, rather than as a strategy for cheating, which will prepare them for AI’s expanding role in the professional world.

The professors said they were generally satisfied with the AI guidelines the Office of the Provost released last spring, which left the decision of whether or not students may use AI materials up to individual instructors and provided a set of default rules in case professors did not create their own rules. The default rules state that submitting AI-generated material for an assessment or using the tools during an assessment is cheating but permit using AI to study for assessments.

The professors added that AI can be a useful tool for students to help them learn class materials and learning to use

AI will be an important and desired skill in the workforce once students graduate.

Alexa Alice Joubin, an English professor and the co-director of the Digital Humanities Institute, said she started using AI tools in her classroom in 2021 to help students with their writing assignments and design research questions. She said regenerative AI — which responds to changing situations — is often subject to “hype” in the media and academics that makes it seem capable of writing entire papers, when in reality AI is still at a “very basic” stage.

“It’s a tool,” Joubin said. “But it can accomplish only very limited tasks, not discursive tasks.”

Joubin said she asked an AI system to design a frequently asked questions section for her syllabus and uses the tool Packback, an AI writing tutor, in her classes to provide writing coaching, like grammar and style corrections, to her students. She added that she uses AI with students to help them refine their research questions to be more open ended, instead of yes-no questions or questions that might not suit research topics.

Joubin said students should disclose when they use AI as a tool for writing, akin to how researchers disclose what scientific equipment they use to complete experiments.

Joubin said she has her class complete multiple discussion boards instead of a midterm paper and converted her final exam into a two-minute film project to ensure her students produce “meaning-

ful” and “personal” assignments. Joubin said she partly made the change to prevent cheating using ChatGPT because she feels students won’t outsource work they are passionate about to AI.

“People write better when they are debating, discussing, they genuinely have something to say from their heart as human beings,” Joubin said.

Despite some faculty’s willingness to integrate AI into their classrooms, many professors have raised concerns during Faculty Senate meetings over how students’ use of AI materials can violate academic integrity rules and how AI will affect their courses if used to cheat.

Ryan Watkins, a professor of educational technology leadership, said he started allowing students to use ChatGPT last spring for parts of assignments so students could interact with the platform. He said one of his assignments last semester included a section where students had to have a discussion with ChatGPT and then talk about what they thought the “implications” of ChatGPT were.

Watkins said he hopes professors are “intellectually engaging” with AI materials even if they don’t allow students to use them in the classroom. He added that he hopes professors consider how professionals might consider AI use as a skill in the workforce when students graduate.

“I don’t think they’re doing a service to our students not to keep up on this technology,” Watkins said.

Student organization hosts regular flea market, highlight student vendors

BARRY YAO STAFF WRITER

ELLIE VASKO REPORTER

An organization for student entrepreneurs hosted a flea market late last month, drawing crowds of community members who perused posters, clothing, vinyl records and handmade knick-knacks sold by student businesses and local vendors.

Startup Sustainability GW, a student organization that promotes student entrepreneurs, hosted a flea market between St. Mary’s Church and Lerner Health and Wellness Center on Aug. 26, which showcased the work of 20 local D.C. vendors and GW student businesses. Members of the organization’s executive board said the flea market drew roughly 3,500 students and that they plan to make the markets a weekly occurrence before the start of the spring semester.

Junior Jake Anszelowicz, the founder and president of Startup Sustainability GW, said the organization provides student entrepreneurs the resources to interact with the local community by instilling a “culture of hard work.” Anszelowicz said businesses at the flea market sell everything from clothing, home goods, tools, jewelry, antiques and collectibles, to coffee, ice cream

and homemade baked goods.

“We’re really a tight-knit, strong community because we just support entrepreneurs and that’s our main goal,” he said.

Anszelowicz said he oversees Startup Sustainability GW through his nonprofit organization Startup Avenue, which he founded in fall 2021 with GW alum Anas Mheir. He said the organization — which is self-funded and supports 15 entrepreneur startups at GW, including Make Space GW and the GW Entrepreneurship Club — provides space and promotion to startup businesses, and aims to establish a supportive community where all entrepreneurs feel valued.

Anszelowicz said Startup Sustainability GW uses revenue from the flea markets to provide student businesses with space, materials and advice about entrepreneurship to help sell their products and that the local and student vendors at the market came to Startup Sustainability GW seeking their support and resources to boost their businesses.

“We support them financially, with ideas formulation, collaboration, networking, resources and through expertise,” Anszelowicz said. Anszelowicz said future flea markets will not exactly replicate the first event because leaders plan to design each market based on stu-

dent feedback and observations of what students liked and didn’t like about each market.

“You want to adapt to what people want,” Anszelowicz said. “So if the students like clothing, which was our guess that they like clothing, jewelry and keychains and things like that, then that’s what we’ll give them.”

Aidan Richards, a 2023 GW alum who advises Anszelowicz and serves as the vice president of Startup Sustainability GW, said organizers of the Georgetown flea market invited organization members to table at their market last spring. The tabling inspired organization leaders to bring flea markets to GW as an outlet to provide goods for community members while promoting the work of student businesses and local vendors.

“Here’s an opportunity for your hard work to pay off by setting up at the flea market where you can sell your goods and meet other people and promote your products,” Richards said.

Richards said he considers the first flea market just the beginning of Startup Sustainability GW’s endeavors, which acted as a “test” to gauge how popular the events would be among GW community members and interested vendors. “The flea market is one thing that we have been working on that is going to continue,” Rich-

ards said. “That was essentially an early test pilot of who we have in our network in terms of who has a product that’s viable to sell and also supports the people we have been working with.”

Arni Seth, a sophomore majoring in international business, sold baked goods at the flea market after starting a baking business called Dollop Bakes in her freshman year of high school, where she sold treats for weddings and corporate meetings. She said the flea market gave her the means to continue promot-

ing her business in the GW community.

She said Startup Sustainability GW provided her with tables, chairs and space to set up and that the organization’s members did a “phenomenal” job at establishing connections with vendors and contacting a wide, diverse range of businesses at the market.

“I really didn’t know what to expect in terms of the popularity and the organization, but they did an incredible job and I was really, really excited to be a part of it,” Seth said.

—Compiled by Max Porter

Police continue search for homicide suspect after GW Hospital escape

“I want to thank everyone for their assistance yesterday afternoon,” Smith said. “We are working very closely with our local and federal partners to apprehend Mr. Haynes.”

The $25,000 reward consists of $10,000 from MPD, $10,000 from the FBI and $5,000 from the U.S. Marshals, Smith said. Haynes escaped custody at 3:38 p.m. at the 900 Block of 23rd St. NW, according to a statement by the Metropolitan Police Department Wednesday. Officials issued a GW Alert at 3:53 p.m., advising community members not to engage with a “dangerous individual” reported at 24th Street and New Hampshire Avenue. Officials issued a shelter-in-place order via GW Alert at 4:02 p.m. and canceled evening classes and events in another notification

at 5:54 p.m. Authorities searched for the subject with helicopters, police checkpoints and K-9 units in Foggy Bottom for more than four hours, before GW lifted the shelter-in-place order at 8:15 p.m. and officers took down their outpost for the manhunt at 8:22 p.m.

TWEETED

University President Ellen Granberg sent an email to the GW community at 3:16 p.m. Thursday, saying Wednesday’s “public safety emergency” in Foggy Bottom caused “fear, anxiety and uncertainty” across the University’s campuses. She said community

members’ health and security is the University’s foremost priority. “GW continues to work closely with the Metropolitan Police Department throughout this process, and we will continue to update the community as needed,” Granberg said in the email.

Man arrested for assaulting GWPD officer

HANNAH MARR ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Metropolitan Police Department officers arrested a man outside District House Friday, per an MPD report.

being PACKED

Syd on 09/06/2023

@DARLINGSTARLET_

Officers reportedly advised the suspect — who appeared to be wearing a GW Dining uniform — to leave the basement of District House “numerous times” at 11:40 a.m. Friday after he was previously barred, but he refused. An MPD officer began to arrest the suspect for unlawful entry when the employee pulled his arms away and balled his hands into fists, then grabbed a uniformed GW Police Department officer on scene and brought him to the ground, the report states.

The report states that the fall caused pain to the GWPD officer’s right shoulder and knee.

Officers then arrested the suspect for unlawful entry, assault on a police officer misdemeanor and resisting arrest and transported him to MPD’s Second District precinct.

Students left classrooms before officials issued all-clear order, faculty say

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Metjian declined to say whether officials think community members understood expectations for the shelter in place but referred to optional emergency preparedness resources available to faculty.

“In this incident, MPD recommended that the University community shelter in place, which is intended to limit activity outdoors, protect people and allow emergency personnel the ability to do their work,” Metjian said in an email. “We updated the entire GW community frequently as we confirmed additional information and as the emergency and related guidance evolved.”

Thiago da Silva Moreira, a biological sciences faculty member, said his students left his classroom in the Media and Public Affairs building at about 6 p.m. after receiving the 5:54 p.m. alert asking community members to be cautious if they choose to leave, even though officials had not lifted the shelter-in-place order at that time.

“When everybody received those messages, they asked me, ‘Oh, can we leave?’ And I said, ‘I don’t think I can legally hold you in place, so it’s your choice,’” Moreira said.

Moreira said the door to his classroom is “damaged” and opened from the outside without GWorld tap access during the order, even though a GW Alert sent at 4:26 p.m. said officials locked all GWorld readers. He said he still felt “reasonably safe” because the door only opened to the hallway.

Christopher Rollston, the department chair of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, said he was teaching a class in the Smith Hall of Art when officials issued the shelter-in-place order, and the door to the classroom “automatically locked” so anyone entering needed to scan their GWorld card. He said he felt prepared to execute the shelter-in-place protocol because the University asks all CCAS professors to include a safety and security section in their syllabi with links to instructions for “every possible scenario.”

A syllabus template provided by the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment requires that instructors include a reference to the Secu-

rity and Safety Policy, which includes GWPD’s phone number and links to the Emergency Response Handbook.

“From my perspective, GW prepared faculty well by talking, by saying, ‘Hey, these are things you have to put in your syllabi,’” Rollston said. “That was really useful, if faculty actually read those things they should have been prepared for every scenario.”

Rollston said none of his students left when the class concluded at 5 p.m., with the majority remaining in the room until closer to 6 p.m. when students received the notification about proceeding through campus with caution.

“They were watching out the door between 5 and 6, and they were like, ‘There are a lot of people out there, I think we can go out,’” Rollston said.

Robert Baker, an associate professor of music who was in class with seven students when he received the shelterin-place notifications, said he walked up and down the halls of the music department in the basement of Phillips Hall to make sure everyone followed the order. But Baker said his students left in groups when officials sent out the alert advising extreme caution but only after he facilitated a conversation about exercising caution and asked his students to text him once they arrived at their residence halls.

Barbara Benitez-Curry, an assistant professor of media and public affairs, said because she was lecturing, she didn’t know there was a shelter-in-place order until a student told her. BenitezCurry said she let her students leave the classroom about 25 minutes after officials issued the alert that advised extreme caution after she “checked in” with her SMPA administrator.

“The helicopter was gone, people were walking around everywhere like it was just another day,” Benitez-Curry said. “So when we got that text message, it came just about where my class ended anyway.”

Isabel Matta, a sophomore who was in a Spanish class in Phillips Hall during the incident, said her professor asked students wishing to leave the room before the end of the order to record a video stating their name and taking responsibility for anything that might happen to them after they leave.

Student organization seeks to donate leftover food to local charities

LYDIE LAKE STAFF WRITER

A student organization is returning to campus with plans to eliminate food waste at GW.

GW Food Recovery Network members said they aim to reroute leftover food from catered campus events to homeless shelters and donation centers around the District, salvaging food that would have otherwise been thrown away. The group’s leaders said they noticed students disposing of edible food in compost bins after campus events rather than redistributing leftovers, which pushed them to revive GW FRN after its 2020 dissolution during the pandemic.

“We were just seeing how much edible food was getting put into composts, and I think all of us were kind of noticing that issue and like wondering about what to do,” said Rio Daims, a senior and the president of the GW FRN. “That was something that had been a structure in place at GW in years prior, so it seemed like a natural approach to fix the issue.”

Members said the primary food donation centers for GW FRN include The Store, GW’s food pantry in District House, Central Union Mission and Bread for the City, where the centers confirm the food is safe to donate and then distribute to unhoused people in D.C.

Daims said the organization, a chapter of the FRN’s national organization, hopes to reduce the amount of edible food placed in landfills or compost bins after events on campus. They said they expect to carry out two food recoveries per week, which involve attending catered GW events and collecting leftover food after the event, which members immediately drive to one of the donation centers.

“Many, many people kind

of overestimate the amount of food that’s required for events or just eating in normal, every day meals,” Daims said. “We want to stop that in its tracks and also feed people in the process.”

Colin O’Brien, an associate for the Office of Sustainability and the staff adviser for GW FRN, said the network was completely student run prior to the pandemic but will now run through the Office of Sustainability. He said the network will be student run again in the future — with about 70 people already showing interest in the club — but he is currently “invested” because his focus at the Office of Sustainability is reducing food waste on campus, which inspired him to restart the network with student interns.

“We can really expand on the

program and by having some support through the Office of Sustainability, it will be helpful in the longevity of the club itself because, obviously, students turn over and graduate and move on to different things,” O’Brien said. “So I can kind of be a resource for future leaders of the organization.”

O’Brien said GW FRN uses a “straightforward” model that uses volunteers, campus events and off-campus donation centers, which mirrors how it operated pre-pandemic, but they are also interested in recovering the edible leftovers at GW’s dining halls because many FRN chapters at other universities are “actively” involved in collecting leftover food produced through their own dining programs. He said

the network will also explore opportunities to redistribute food on campus for GW students and staff who may be facing food insecurity.

”I hope that this becomes just a standard part of campus culture that when folks are planning events of any size, they’re reaching out to Food Recovery Network to coordinate a pickup of any leftovers and that just becomes a normal thing,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien said GW FRN will also provide food safety training at general body meetings for their members, which he said would come off as “trustworthy” to donation partners by affirming that student volunteers know how to handle food. Daims said after completing the training, vol-

unteers would wear gloves and personal protective equipment to recover the leftover food at an event and then transport it to the respective donation center.

GW FRN Vice President Ella Marsh and Daims were both working as interns for the Office of Sustainability this spring when O’Brien posed the question of rejuvenating the organization. Marsh said students have been “receptive” to the organization by attending their tabling events and interacting with the former Instagram account, but many of the students already like to compost or work in GW’s GroW Garden.

Marsh said the recoveries they plan are “dependent” on the events other student organizations hold on campus, which determine whether they can collect and donate leftover food. She said scheduling volunteers may be difficult because there are no set shifts yet, but they will try to get the message out early so members can schedule the events around their classes and other commitments.

“If we show up to an event and they say there’s gonna be a bunch of extra food and there’s nothing, then it’s hard to communicate that,” Marsh said.

Senior Kristen Caldwell, a compost educator with the Office of Sustainability, said she heard talk about the network’s resurgence at work, which pushed her to help Daims and Marsh restart the club. As a compost educator, Calwell said she runs compost collections to increase sustainability efforts on campus, but repurposing food through GW FRN for those facing food insecurity presents an even more sustainable approach.

“If there’s a bunch of extra food, being able to compost it is a really great sustainability step,” Caldwell said. “But it would be more sustainable to have the food be eaten rather than composted.”

gw core is there being an active shelter in place and the kogan poster sale

COURTESY OF ELLA MARSH

Student organizers for the GW Food Recovery Network tabled in Kogan Plaza this past week with candy and recruitment information.

ERIKA FILTER | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith speaks at the conference Thursday.

NORA FITZGERALD SENIOR STAFF WRITER

A human rights lawyer spoke about affecting change in the legal field and emphasized economic and women’s rights at the GW Law School on Thursday.

Harvard professor Alicia Ely Yamin, a lawyer specializing in interdisciplinary human rights and health work, discussed efforts she has made throughout her career to advance human rights causes and the release of her new book, “When Misfortune Becomes Injustice: Evolving Human Rights Struggles for Health and Social Equality.” Rosa Celorio, the Burnett Family Associate Dean and Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in International and Comparative Law and Policy, moderated the conversation hosted by the International & Comparative Law Program.

Yamin said she wrote her new book — the second edition to the original — in response to the pandemic, which she said highlighted how current macroeconomic policy makes human rights efforts “impossible.” She said her new book focuses on using the stories of people she has met throughout her career to convey that the human connection of human rights as a field of law separates it from others.

“Much of why human rights matters relates to real human beings, how we experience our lives,” Yamin said. “It’s not the

treaty language, as important as it is to know that and learn that, but it’s about how it affects us as human beings and as societies.”

Yamin said human rights studies have an “ethical obligation” to learn from the past and use mistakes as tools to build a better society. She said the pandemic was a “huge debacle of multilateral cooperation” and that the “global community” must recognize and remember that mistake to prevent future mistakes.

“The book talks a lot about different ways the pandemic affected us, but now I think one of the most important things to think about is not forgetting,” Yamin said.

Yamin spoke about balancing work with family and offered advice to students about how to enact meaningful change despite facing obstacles. She said the “most important” things in your legal career cannot be done alone.

“By ‘collective,’ I don’t mean joint publication of the law review article,” Yamin said. “I mean joining together with people often from very different backgrounds with different perspectives to do the ant-like work of moving the ball forward.”

Yamin said one of the central issues facing human rights work is the intersection between reproductive health and climate change. She said this is why interdisciplinary work, like focusing on the intersec -

tion between women’s rights and economics, is significant despite being “not being rewarded” in academia.

“Much of the book outlines women’s human rights needs to grapple more centrally with economic inequality and economic structures,” she said.

SBA Senate gives about $200,000 to law student organizations

HANNAH MARR ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

The SBA Budget Allocation Act dispersed a total of $194,997 into three categories — $104,997 for student organizations, $20,000 to the ad hoc fund and $70,000 to the SBA Executive Budget.

SBA Sen. Akhil Kambhammettu, the chair of the senate’s Finance Committee and the sponsor of the bill, said SBA President Shallum Atkinson decided to “drop” the anticipated executive budget from $90,000 to $70,000, putting an additional $20,000 toward funding student organizations.

Kambhammettu said pulling $20,000 from the executive budget allowed him to fulfill all of the law student organizations’ 15 appeals, except for one organization that he kept the same and for two organizations where senators increased the amount they allocated, although it wasn’t the full requested amount.

Senators passed an amendment 10-1 that allo -

cated an additional $1,000 of the Organizational Oversight Preparedness Supplement fund to the GW International Arbitration Students Association. SBA Sen. Charlie Schmidt, who introduced the amendment, said he believes Anisa Ostad, the president of the organization, is a “visionary leader.” He said the SBA did not use the OOPS fund in the previous year and that the money “evaporated into thin air.”

“The initial request was $18,000 because they have these plans and were very disappointed to see the allocation of $200 some dollars,” Schmidt said. “They’re like shoot, all of our big plans are out the window

and this vision for having two conferences, they can’t do that.”

Senators rejected an amendment 5-6 that would allocate $500 of the ad hoc fund to the Student Intellectual Property Law Association. SBA Sen. Christopher Swindell, who introduced the amendment, said he was concerned about how organizations with fewer members are getting more money than SIPLA, which is the largest law student organization on campus.

“When you look at the active members, you have other groups that have the same amount of members who are getting $9,000 or $12,000,” Swindell said.

Visitors and students enjoy the atrium at the National Portrait Gallery on Sunday.

NORA FITZGERALD | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Yamin concluded the discussion by offering career advice to aspiring lawyers in the audience. She said she experienced sexism over her career and has grown to be in a place where she can be an “ally” for broader human rights issues.

turn to be an ally,” Yamin said. “That it’s my turn to put, especially when Trump came to power, literally putting my physical body on the line in anti-Muslim protests at the beginning of the administration in issues around abortion or gender-affirming care.”

Metro riders to see increased service during peak hours starting Monday

MAX PORTER CONTRIBUTING NEWS EDITOR

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority officials are increasing Metrorail service on five out of the six lines starting Monday.

WMATA officials announced in a release Thursday that trains on the Red, Blue, Silver, Green and Yellow lines will run more frequently during peak hours between 7 and 9 a.m. and 4 and 6 p.m. due to “ridership trending higher.”

The service increase marks the 11th increase since last summer and the highest train frequency in Metro’s 47-year history, according to the release.

Trains on the Red Line will arrive every five minutes during peak hours, on the Green Line every six minutes, on the Yellow Line every six minutes, on the Blue Line every 10 minutes and on the Silver Line every 10 minutes. Orange Line trains will continue arriving every 10 minutes during peak hours.

“Metro is working hard to provide frequent, reliable service to help move our region and grow our economy,” WMATA General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke

said in the release. “This service increase is another win for our customers and a testament to Metro staff who have worked hard to restore safe, frequent service.”

The release states that the service increase will provide 6 percent more train trips than what’s currently offered and 60 percent more trips than at this point last year. The service increase means that Metro is now using 89 percent of its budgeted service levels for Fiscal Year 2024, according to the release, with Metro receiving a total capital and operating budget of $4.8 billion.

Ridership across the Metro system has gradually increased since 2021,

FILE PHOTO BY ALLISON ROBBERT

when it experienced a decade-low 121,554 average daily rail entries. Foggy Bottom-GWU Metro station jumped to the system’s third most popular station last year after hosting the seventh-most riders in 2019.

The Metro has faced service disruptions since a Blue Line train derailed in October 2021.

The release states that WMATA officials will continue to assess the need for future changes to service as ridership “continues to grow,” with the Biden Administration last month calling for more federal workers to return to in-person work this fall after the COVID-19 pandemic forced many to work remotely.

Patients seek more SHC appointments

Aurea Gingras, a senior majoring in creative writing, said she used to play for the women’s basketball team and that the SHC’s old hours made it “stressful” to schedule an appointment between practices and afternoon classes.

She said she is more likely to make an appointment with the SHC if she is sick — as opposed to an outside medical provider, like a CVS MinuteClinic — because of the expanded hours, which work with her schedule.

“With my current schedule, it would make a lot more sense based on the current hours,” she said. “If they had stuck to the hours from last year, I probably would not consider it just because I don’t have time.”

Stella Meserve, a junior majoring in data science and geography, said she visited the SHC her freshman year when she had bronchitis and that SHC staff were “difficult” to reach because they would put her on long holds or not answer her calls. She said the Saturday hours are helpful because students who get sick on Fridays don’t have to wait until Monday to get an appointment.

“It’s definitely beneficial to have it open on the weekends because your body isn’t going to decide that you have to get sick on a weekday when on-campus stuff is open,” Meserve said.

Harvard professor Alicia Ely Yamin, right, and Rosa Celorio, left, unpack Yamin's recent book release during the moderated conversation at the GW Law School on Thursday.

The Student Bar Association Senate unanimously voted to distribute close to $200,000 in annual funding at their special meeting Thursday.

SNAPSHOT

“I don’t necessarily think it’s the hours that would make me more inclined to make an appointment,” Fields said. “If I saw that the more hours were increasing the availability of appointments, then that would maybe make me more inclined to schedule an appointment.”

A train speeds through the Foggy Bottom station, where service will increase for its three lines.

LUCAS CABRERA | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Senators scheduled a special meeting for Thursday evening to vote on the budget allocations.

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Opinions

Op-ed: Shelter-in-place orders are unimaginable where I’m from

When I told friends and family in the Netherlands

I would study abroad in the United States this semester, they asked me if I was worried about school shootings and feeling unsafe on campus. I waved away their concerns, never expecting to have a shelterin-place order during the second week of class.

Nova Spier Guest Contributor

On Wednesday, we all got the message via GW Alert: A dangerous individual was reported near campus, and the Foggy Bottom Campus went into shelter-in-place mode.

A student told me nothing like this had happened for a very long time, so I should not be the only one shocked by this experience. However, when my class in the School of Media and Public Affairs building finished at 6 p.m., almost two hours after the first alert, most students left the building confidently like it was just a regular Wednesday. At the same time, other students talked about how you could lock the classroom door from the inside so no threats could enter the room.

I could not relate to either of these reactions. As an exchange student, I had

never experienced anything like this before, and I had no idea how to react. In high school in the Netherlands, we practiced what to do when a fire alarm goes off, not how to shelter in place because a murder suspect has escaped police custody.

So, should I just walk to my residence hall, as so many of my classmates did? Should I stay in place since I live in Townhouse Row — just a few blocks away from GW Hospital and on the same street the alerts told us to avoid? My professor was nice enough to walk me there, knowing that this was all a shock to me.

The news added to my confusion. I got texts about the incident being breaking news, the FBI getting involved and a helicopter circling above campus.

The alerts, the news and the situation outside seemed so contradictory. I felt safe — the suspect probably fled and hadn’t lingered on campus. The threat did not seem that serious, and the whole situation seemed like a joke that people made memes about, which they did and circulated on Instagram.

At the same time, I was a little shaken. Why did everyone act like this was normal? I just didn’t know how to feel and how to act. I wanted to talk to friends or family at home. But because of the time difference, they were already asleep as the

“‘Beyond Granite’ says that each of us — you and me, and especially those who don’t see themselves reflected in the pale statues of a few historical figures — are part of the United States.”

— ETHAN BENN on 09/06/2023

Perspective:

Native American students are invisible at GW

whole situation unfolded.

Once I got back home, I could fortunately talk to the other exchange students I live with, who were just as shocked about this whole experience as I was. We spoke about how something like this would never happen in the Netherlands, South Korea, Argentina and many other places. Even though people said quite soon after the first alert that the suspect probably wasn’t armed, the fact that there is more gun violence in the United States and firearms are easier to buy and access here made the situation scarier than it would have been in any of our home countries.

At least an hour passed by while my housemates and I shared our experiences. How can you concentrate after something happens that just seems unthinkable at your home university? Why did all the American students walk around like this was a normal day? Is the idea of gun violence, escaped murder suspects and sheltering in place so ingrained in them?

Another exchange student summarized the situation particularly well: “At least now we can say we’ve got the full American experience.” —Nova Spier is a senior majoring in journalism and mass communication and an exchange student from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Ibelieve that being true to yourself is the most meaningful work one can do. I say “work” because honoring your heritage is no easy task.

Noah Edelman Opinions Writer

From a young age, I was familiar with how the colonial American “nation” deliberately evicted the Native American inhabitants of this country from their lands and nearly eradicated them, my family included.

As my grandfather and uncle have always reminded me, this is why the preservation of our people is so vital. In my eyes, Native identity is a commitment to honor the traditions that have given life to those who came before you and a deep connection to the world, especially the land. My ancestors and I will not be forgotten.

When I was applying to GW, I took its claims of a vibrant, diverse community at face value. For a school that makes a point of including land acknowledgments on most syllabi, actual Native students are bizarrely underrepresented and ignored.

It was hard to get over the feeling that I had been stranded. Native students represent 0.065 percent of undergraduate students, according to enrollment data from 2022. There were 10,798 undergraduate students here last year — 0.065 percent of that is just seven people. How is that possible?

Going from one of hundreds of Natives I knew to being one of seven I haven’t even met was beyond jarring. It made me lose a peace of mind that I didn’t know could leave me. I have lived places with few Natives before but never somewhere with an amount I could count on my hands.

The lack of a thriving Native student population creates a situation in which teachers and students alike are free to disseminate their own views on Native

issues as they see fit. I sat through a talk in which a white professor stared me down and explained how he understood the nuances of my tribe’s sacred activities. And when faculty do encourage research and interest in Native issues and politics, actual Natives are not present to partake in that discourse.

Some students at GW, including friends I’ve made here, are oblivious to and ignorant of Natives — they rarely know we even exist.

It’s also felt like administrators involved in diversity programming are less concerned about the events and associations related to Natives than ever before.

GW’s responsibility to Native students extends beyond simply acknowledging its existence on colonized land. It must include reparations in the form of scholarships for Anacostan and Piscataway students, whose land this campus sits on.

GW must publicly recognize, promote and take care of the few of us who are here. Being seen for who you are is an inexplicably uplifting experience, and the school definitely has the resources to reach out to seven students and check in.

Just give us something to hold on to: a landmark on campus honoring the Native ancestors who cared for this land in the past, a space for Native students to gather, a message of “We can help, you’re not alone.”

Being invisible is a beyond dehumanizing experience. It makes you feel like nothing. It makes you look in the mirror and question the skin that adorns your body. It makes you jealous and resentful in the face of something that should never spark those feelings within you — your identity.

It feels like my world is hidden, that sometimes I would be better off leaving it in the shadows than trying to bring it to school with me. Nobody deserves to feel like that. College is supposed to be the space where the true you can blossom. And as long as I have a say, I will not be forgotten here.

—Noah Edelman, a sophomore majoring in journalism, is an opinions writer. He is of Santa Clara Pueblo descent.

Perspective: Break the binary and normalize all pronouns in classrooms

After I walked into class on the first week of school, I immediately started getting anxious about class introductions. When it was almost my turn, I frantically thought to myself, “How do I – if at all – introduce myself with my pronouns?”

Riley Goodfellow Contributing Opinions Editor

As a nonbinary person, people do not know to use my they/them pronouns unless I explicitly tell them to — some people continue to misgender me even after I do. Because of social constructs that define gender as male or female, no one inherently knows my pronouns. Speaking my identity into existence is daunting, but fearing that people will speak my identity into extinction is even worse.

The conventional gender binary wrongly splits gender into one of two options: male or female. When cisgender men and women express their gender in a way that fits societal expectations of masculinity and femininity, strangers can assume their correct pronouns

just by looking at them. But because there is no one way to “look” nonbinary, I have to come out every time I want someone to respect my identity no matter what I look like.

Cisgender students may think announcing their pronouns in class is an exhausting repetitive activity, but I have no other choice.

It is a privilege to be the man I’ve watched introduce himself as, “just a dude” or the cisgender person who skips over the pronoun part of the introduction a professor outlined for the class because their pronouns are correctly assumed.

While it is incredibly liberating to live outside the strict rules of the gender binary, I have to make sure the environment is safe for me to be open about my gender identity.

When professors and peers include their pronouns in their introductions, it is a good indicator that I can safely inform the classroom of my own without fear of retaliation.

This is not always the case. When I studied abroad in Barcelona last semester, a peer reported my class to the program’s dean after I introduced myself. Why? Even though we were in Spain, he said he wanted to exercise

We’re far past the pandemic’s peak, but COVID-19 cases are ticking upward nationwide. From sore throats and runny noses to face masks and canceled classes, we don’t know the full picture of COVID on campus — and neither do officials.

The University wound down its testing and contract tracing efforts at the end of last semester, cementing the “return to normalcy” that lifting its classroom mask mandate already signaled. While we don’t need to return to the darkest days of the pandemic, keeping the “post” in our post-pandemic world will require GW to act on behalf of its community.

Despite a decline in cases from January through early June, hospital admissions, deaths and levels of the virus in wastewater have crept back up this summer. Anecdotally, it seems there’s been an uptick in COVID cases, too. But emails from a sick teacher canceling class or tales of friends skipping plans to self-isolate are no replacement for hard facts.

So, do these national trends hold true for the Buff and Blue? Whether you view COVID as just an inconvenience or a serious, life-threatening illness, that information simply isn’t available to you right now. As COVID waned, we traded universal measures for an individual but data-driven approach to public health. Besides sneezes, sniffles and empty seats in the lecture hall or classroom, we just don’t have that data now.

Are officials eager to further spend millions of dollars to restart the University’s contact tracing and testing system? Probably not. But it won’t take a massive response — or a man-

his “First Amendment” right of freedom of speech not to use my pronouns.

I am simply trying to exist as myself, but constantly having to decipher where I am safe is draining — I never truly know if people will accept me.

Hearing others share their pronouns in a classroom normalizes the idea that we must listen to how people identify rather than assuming how they do so. Gender expression and presentation as viewed through the lens of the gender binary does not equal pronouns. Categorizing people based on their outward presentation only perpetuates the limited categorization of men and women.

Not all gender-nonconforming people feel comfortable sharing their pronouns, and professors should never obligate someone to do so. Some people aren’t safe to out themselves in certain situations, and one’s gender identity is an ongoing experience that should not be forced in the classroom. But those who are comfortable sharing should do so to help those that can’t.

Everyone has pronouns, but I found myself being the only person to share mine in two of my six classes this semester. In another

class, only another gender-nonconforming person and I shared our pronouns, singling us out. My experience doesn’t stop in classrooms. I also have to make space for myself in work meetings, social scenarios and anywhere else where I want people to know the real me.

Whether it’s in the Associated Press Stylebook, 12th-century literature or medical texts from the 1600s, “they” has been a widely accepted singular pronoun. But my identity is continuously ignored and written out of existence. I know who I am, but I struggle to find ways to verbalize my identity in ways that are palatable or understandable to others both inside and out of the classroom.

My pronouns are inherent to understanding me as a human. With little access to other opportunities to exist, I cling to my pronouns as a means of survival. Cisgender people who acknowledge their own identity and pronouns and not just mine contribute to a society where my existence is not debatable — a society in which I hope to one day live. —Riley Goodfellow, a junior majoring in political science, is the contributing opinions editor.

date — to ensure that students, staff and faculty aren’t going at it alone amid an uptick in COVID cases.

If GW’s done dealing with COVID on an institutional scale, it can at least help connect individuals to the resources they need, from masks and at-home tests to vaccinations and booster shots. Officials can provide face masks at residence halls and high-traffic areas around campus and allow community members to request at-home tests through GW.

Creating a simple way to upload the results of those tests would give community members some picture of the state of COVID on campus. And when it comes time for the school to have its annual flu vaccine clinic, it wouldn’t hurt to add COVID boosters to the list — the University sent out emails advertising free COVID booster shots and flu vaccines last fall. But above all, we need regular communication from officials about the presence of COVID on campus and in D.C., especially when we’re facing more cases.

GW’s COVID response has been an all-or-nothing approach. We’ve shifted from full-time masking and routine testing last September to what seems to be a minimal response today.

We’re equipped to deal with the virus and carry on with our new normal. Let’s not catastrophize about COVID, but we shouldn’t be blissfully ignorant about the virus, either. If we want to enjoy a post-pandemic world, we’re going to have to be a little vigilant.

MAURA KELLY-YUOH | STAFF CARTOONIST

Culture

“GUTS” BY OLIVIA RODRIGO

Grub, advice and a ton of notifications: Inside GW’s free food chat

Where’s the free pizza? Did that event have any leftovers? Where did the community coordinator drop off the coffee and donuts for their residence hall?

Nearly 1,000 students share a mega group chat in which they post activities with free food, promote their organization’s events and chat about all things GW. The chat, simply named “gwu free food & advice,” offers free food, has a relentless stream of notifications and curates a place where students can share experiences and create a sense of unity.

Nida Chotani, a junior majoring in environmental studies, said she created the free food GroupMe in September 2021, coming up with the idea after going on GW Engage and selecting the free food option in the “perks” filter. After finding events offering free food, Chotani thought it would be useful to create a group chat to tell students where free food is offered on campus and be able to foster relationships by providing a space for students to connect over a common interest.

“I didn’t expect there to be so many people joining,” Chotani said. A commuter, Chotani chose not to enroll in a meal plan with the University. She said she saves an average of $10 a week, in part due to the GroupMe, where she reads where to nab snacks and desserts from locations across campus like residence halls and Kogan Plaza.

Chotani said the app’s placement on the GW hub in GroupMe, combined with word of mouth

among students, were factors in the chat’s rapid growth. She added that as the chat grew, the burden of posting events with food from Engage lifted off of her as others began following suit.

Although originally a group chat about free food, Chotani said she’s glad the identity of the chat has conjoined with advice.

“There’s still the free food aspect, and people always still post about it,” Chotani said. “But I think it’s good that both of them are still

implemented. I enjoy people fostering connections and relationships.”

Emmy Ly, a junior and an admin of the chat, said she and Chotani’s main responsibilities involve moderating the discourse on the chat and added that the two are still trying to better handle conflict resolution when out-of-pocket comments arise.

Ly said the chat is resourceful in getting student perspectives on the University’s overall dining situation including their thoughts

Textile Museum exhibit presents European origins of DC landmarks

If you’ve wondered about the obelisk origins of the Washington Monument or the intricate design of the Capitol building’s facade, you can now step into antiquity as the Textile Museum reveals its newest exhibit tracing back D.C.’s most recognizable landmarks to their Greco-Roman influences. The exhibit, “Classical Washington,” opened in May and contextualizes 24 buildings, statues and monuments of ancient Greek and Roman styles, attributing each to a classical model from which the architect took inspiration. The research behind the exhibition was driven by Assistant Professor of Classics and Art History Elise A. Friedland in collaboration with work from undergraduate students in her class, Greece and Rome in Washington, DC: Classical Influences on Our Founding Fathers.

“Part of the sheer fun of studying this material is seeing how American designers transform classical models to ‘Americanize’ them,” Friedland said over email.

“There are examples at nearly every corner of D.C.”

Spanning two galleries, the exhibition walks the viewer through the chronological planning and construction of D.C.’s federal monuments and buildings.

Each federally commissioned work is illustrated by a variety of historical documents, from postcards to brilliant watercolor paintings. Beside each illustration, the viewer is provided an image of the classical inspiration. The descriptive label entrances the viewer, providing classical contextualization to our iconic landmarks from a world away.

Friedland said her passion is helping make ancient art relevant for students and the public, and she’s pursued research to fulfill that passion. Friedland won a fellowship in 2017 to identify frescos in the Senate wing of the Capitol, ultimately writing a yet-to-be-finished book surveying classical architecture in the District.

Friedland said her book became the impetus behind this year’s exhibit. She said she was initially invited by Jackie Streker, the former curator of the Albert H. Small Washingtoniana Collection based at GW, to collaborate on the exhibit in March 2022.

Each student in Friedland’s class wrote a label for all but four prints, lithographs or paintings depicting a D.C. building or monument. The students were also responsible for finding an image of the classical structure each building or monument derived from to be shown beside it. The Capitol and its in-

fluences from Rome’s Pantheon are a particular focus of the exhibit like the GrecoRoman origins of the Statue of Freedom at the top of the dome to the painting on the dome’s interior.

Friedland said that various Founding Fathers were involved in the design process of D.C., with Thomas Jefferson hiring Robert Mills, the architect behind the Treasury building, and George Washington’s involvement in The L’Enfant Plan, the initial urban plan for D.C. She said the Founding Fathers themselves have even taken on some GrecoRoman influences, with the carving of the Committee of Five who drafted the Declaration of Independence at the Jefferson Memorial taking inspiration from classic pediment carving techniques.

As most of the Founding Fathers received Europestyle education, Friedland said, their teachings focus on the Greek and Roman world. She said their attentions turned toward Greece as they envisioned a democratic society, which is clearly reflected in their architectural predilections.

“They use the visual vocabulary of ancient Rome especially, but also Greece, to communicate their ideas about their new nation,” Friedland said.

Classical Washington is open in the Textile Museum through Nov. 18.

on the quality of food offered at the dining halls. Ly added that while the chat is for fun, it sometimes gets serious, especially when people are running low on finances.

Ly said a turning point in the group chat occurred around this time last year was when a member’s laptop was broken and others gave them advice on where they could go to fix it. From that point on, Ly said the chat changed from its original name of “gwu free food” to “gwu free food & advice”

and members became more engaged and interested in connecting with one another.

Antonia Swad, a junior majoring in psychology and philosophy, said the chat shows students adapting to the new dining plans. She said students have complaints about the University’s adoption of a traditional dining plan, which she said was not what most students wanted.

Arianna Iqbal, a sophomore majoring in information systems, said she joined the group chat halfway through the 2023 spring semester. She said she learned about it through a coworker during her shift as an operations assistant on the Mount Vernon Campus.

Iqbal said the GroupMe has become more advice-related since she first joined. She said the number of messages can sometimes be annoying, so much so to the point where the vibrations woke her up recently.

Iqbal said she provides advice to others if she has relevant experience because “what goes around comes around,” and she hopes others will do the same for her if she is in a pickle. She said the group chat has helped her connect with people on campus before going to a meet and greet event for women in cybersecurity and feeling welcomed.

“It gives people an ‘in’ to knowing each other, even if they don’t know each other,” Iqbal said. “So it makes GW feel a lot more connected, which I know a lot of people feel like we have a problem with connectedness on our campus, so I think it’s a huge way to go over that problem.”

Out of the woods and into the dorms: Students’ indoor gardens

JENNA BAER CONTRIBUTING CULTURE EDITOR

NICK PERKINS CULTURE EDITOR

While strings of fairy lights and “Pulp Fiction” posters adorn endless residence hall walls, some GW students’ rooms instead look more like greenhouses.

Getting a slightly prickly cactus for your desk that will survive even if you forget to water it during exam week may be a college rite of passage, but students across campus are opting to expand past such minimal botanical flirtations and instead fill their rooms with leafy decor as far as the eye can see. From cacti named after film directors to familial connections with plants, the dorm gardens have given their horticulturist designers a chance to bring nature home.

Ashleigh Tobin, a senior studying political science and journalism, picked up gardening as a hobby during the pandemic. After going to farm stands and greenhouses with her mother while attending school online, she built up a collection of cacti and succulents.

When Tobin came to school in the spring semester of 2021, she brought all of her plants with her in an attempt to liven up the “drab” hotel room she turned into an apartment. Her collec-

tion has been growing ever since.

Katie Eastman, a junior studying accounting, said school obligations and limited green spaces in the District make it hard for her to embrace her love of nature. She said she compensates by turning her room into her very own green space.

“I really love being outside, but it can be hard to get out into nature since we’re in a city and I don’t always have a lot of time with school, so I try to bring some of all the amazing things outside inside by collecting plants,” Eastman said in an email.

Amelia Magel, a junior studying journalism, selfdescribes as “botanically challenged” but has not allowed her lack of a green thumb to stop her from caring for her beloved cactus named Spike Lee. While plenty of students acquire a cactus at the beginning of the year only to throw away or regift their prickly pal, Magel and Spike Lee have been together for nearly two years. “It’s fun to have a little greenery, especially a cactus,” Magel said. “I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is botanically challenged. Cacti are very easy and they’re resilient.”

Magel purchased her cactus in Arizona while visiting her grandparents before they ultimately drove Spike Lee across the coun-

try back to her home in New York. Her spiky companion now serves as a reminder of her grandparents’ home in the desert.

“He’s been all over the world because he also drives from Washington, D.C. to New York whenever I go home,” Magel explained.

Riya Sharma, a senior and Hatchet reporter, said her family home is decorated all over with plants. She said when she was coming to GW, her mom wanted to make sure she carried on the family tradition.

“So I wanted to and my mom also wanted to give me something to take with me to brighten up the space in college,” Sharma said. “And also because having plants around is just very nice, you don’t feel like you’re in a dead environment or just surrounded by walls. There’s some life.”

Sharma said she might not have a “green thumb,” but she’s still diligent about taking care of her plants, setting reminders on her phone to water them each and every day. She said despite the caretaking required, her dorm forest improves her living experience.

“I feel like they really brighten up the space,” she said. “And it just makes me feel better. Like I love just when I’m working at my desk, I can just look up and I can see the plants in front of me.”

JENNIFER IGBONOBA CONTRIBUTING NEWS EDITOR

JORDAN TOVIN | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

The Textile Museum’s “Classical Washington” exhibit walks the viewer through the chronological planning and construction of D.C.’s federal monuments and buildings.

MAXIMUS VOGT STAFF WRITER

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY AUDEN YURMAN | SENIOR PHOTO EDITOR

The “gwu free food & advice” GroupMe will guide you to gratuitous grub around campus and flood your notifications.

Sports

GAMES OF THE WEEK

NUMBER CRUNCH

Volleyball bounces back after early-season losses

Volleyball earned back-toback wins in a trio of matches at the Smith Center this weekend.

The Revolutionaries (26), who have not yet begun conference play, started their season with five straight losses on the road. But in their first home matches, volleyball beat Old Dominion and crosstown rival Georgetown University in the DC Showdown this weekend after an early Friday loss to North Alabama in the tournament.

Match 1:

The Revs fell 2-3 to North Alabama Friday in a doubleheader after dominating in their first two sets (25–19, 25–16). The Lions overpowered the Revs’ offense, leading to three set losses to close out GW.

Sophomore setter Dilara Elmacioglu collected her career high of 27 assists in a single game, contributing to the Revs’ offensive capabilities. Elmacioglu currently averages 5.03 assists per set, the 10th best in the conference. Junior opposite MC Daubendiek and junior outside hitter Brittany Myers each tallied 12 kills throughout the match.

Daubendiek said that although losing repeatedly is difficult, each loss has shaped her team into a stronger competitor.

“Obviously, the first few games did not go the way we wanted them to,” Daubendiek said. “But I think that every single game, you can look statswise and morale-wise, we have

improved. And we’re just going to keep improving. So we invite those challenges that we’re facing, and I think that we continue to conquer them.”

Although the Revs initially began the match full of momentum by winning the first two sets, their offense stuttered and they fell in the remaining sets to the 63 kills provided by the Lions, compared to the Revs’ 53. The Revs gave up 8 consecutive points in set three of the match.

Match 2:

The Revs proceeded to redeem themselves several hours later Friday night by securing a 3-1 win over Old Dominion in nail-biting sets with tight scores.

The Monarchs and the Revs scored points back and forth during the first set until the Revs scored a flurry of points to clinch the set. After substituting several Monarchs, the Revs were no match for the upgraded Monarch defense. Going into the third set, the Monarchs scored four points against the Revs, but that did not stop the Revs, who fired back with 9 points in a row courtesy of critical errors from the Monarchs and kills by graduate student outside hitter Grace Wiczek and sophomore setter Maeve Loughran.

The Monarchs proved to be a strong match against the Revs’ offensive lineup, with the sets alternating between the teams. After winning the first set 25-22, the Revs fell to the Monarchs 25–20 before picking up steam and firing through the remaining two sets (25–22,

25–23). Elmacioglu and Loughran logged 30 and 23 assists, respectively, contributing to 57 total assists throughout the match.

Match 3:

After a split tournament record, the Revs fired on all cylinders against crosstown rival Georgetown in their final match. The Revs took home the win after also being handed losses by other local rivals American and Howard universities while playing on

their first

opponent of the season.

Graduate student Kelsey Watkins has tallied a total of 27 blocks this season, the second most in the A-10.

the road in August.

Head Coach Katie Reifert said playing other local competitors allows her team to compete against nearby teams that are not in the conference.

“For us, we just love playing crosstown rivals American [and] Howard,” Reifert said. “It’s always fun to see, just in the District who’s the best that day.” The Revs put up a strong offense against the Hoyas while collecting 36 assists and 59 digs through the match. Senior opposite Liv Womble measured

Three-star recruit, combo guard commits to men’s basketball

BEN SPITALNY CONTRIBUTING SPORTS EDITOR

Three-star Class of 2024 combo guard announced he committed to play for the Revolutionaries Friday.

Ty Bevins, a native of Brandywine, Maryland, said in a Tweet that he is committing to GW with plans to play next year, adding his versatility as a 6’ 5” shooting guard to the men’s basketball team following his graduation from Gwynn Park high school. Bevins was ranked by 247sports as the 40th-best shooting guard in his class and the fourth-best player from Maryland. In addition to his stature, Bevins’ feel for the game and his impressive basketball IQ have impressed scouts and

analysts alike.

At the DMV Elite 80 event of 2022, in which 80 of the area’s top basketball prospects were invited to compete, Bevins turned heads with his court vision and shooting ability, knocking down both pull-up and catch-and-shoot jumpers.

In the 2022-23 season for Gwynn Park, Bevins averaged 12.6 points to go along with 3.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Playing this summer in the Capitol Hoops Summer League, Bevins led the Brandywine Boyz to an 8-2 record with his 18 points, six rebounds, and three assists per game. His performance earned him a spot on the first team all summer league as well as third place in MVP voting.

Atlantic 10 releases men’s basketball conference schedule

Atlantic-10 Conference officials released their intraconference schedule Wednesday for the upcoming men’s basketball season.

Following their 13 games of nonconference play, the Revolutionaries will have a twomonth turn against their A-10 foes, including three nationally televised games. The women’s schedule has not yet been released.

On Jan. 3, the first A-10 game, GW will face off against Fordham at the Smith Center. Last season, the Revolutionaries fell 70-85, with the Rams tying second in the A-10 with a 12-6 conference record.

The Revs will travel to Richmond to play the 2023 A-10 champion VCU in a televised game on USA Network. This game provides another opportunity for revenge, as VCU defeated GW last year, 74-68. Similar to GW, the Rams will have a vastly different on-court roster, with star guard and reigning A-10 Player of the Year Ace Baldwin, Jr. leaving the team to join Head Coach Mike Rhoades at Penn State.

Following a Jan. 13 game against Davidson, GW will host rival George Mason Jan. 15, airing on CBS Sports. The Revolutionary Rivalry was split last season, with GW winning the first game 78-75 and dropping the second 53-66. George Mason also experienced significant offseason shakeups,

with Head Coach Kim English leaving for Providence College and first-team All A-10 forward Josh Oduro among the players joining him.

Subsequent games against UMass, Richmond and La Salle are on the docket before the team travels to Dayton for a Jan. 30 matchup. The Revolutionaries won a 76-69 matchup against the Flyers last season, a team that reached as high as 21 on the AP ranking early in the season.

Rhode Island and Loyola Chicago will travel for games at GW before the Revs make the trek across the Potomac to face off once against George Mason Feb. 13. A quick trip on the Orange Line allows GW students to make an appearance in rival territory.

On Feb. 17, the Revolutionaries will welcome Richmond for an in-season rematch, this time televised on USA Network.

Last season’s Richmond at GW matchup was a nail-biting, double-overtime affair in which GW was able to eke out a 107-105 win.

The team then travels to play St. Joseph’s Feb. 21, the team that knocked out GW from the A-10 tournament in March of last year. Maryland native Guard Erik Reynolds II scored 34 points in the postseason matchup and should provide an exciting matchup against GW’s star guard of their own, graduate student James Bishop IV.

After traveling west for a game against St. Louis, the team will return to the Smith

Center to play its penultimate home game against UMass Feb. 27. Following this, the team travels to Philadelphia to play La Salle March 2. Last season’s matchup against La Salle was an impressive showing of in-season improvements and adjustments, as GW outscored the Explorers 92-85 in late February after losing their earlier matchup 6475.

The final home game will take place on March 6 against St. Bonaventure, their first matchup in the late season. Players in their final season, like Bishop, will have their last opportunity to show out for the GW crowd in a game that could likely be very consequential for A-10 tournament seeding.

Duquesne marks the Revolutionaries’ final regular-

eight kills that evaded the Hoyas’ defensive capabilities. Womble said having a 17-person roster has instilled a strong work ethic in her teammates and has allowed her team additional practice opportunities.

“I think our practice gym is one of the hardest practice gyms in the A-10 because of how hard we go after each other,” Womble said. The Revs will hit the road to compete against North Carolina State Wednesday at 6 p.m.

Bevins received interest from many Division I schools, including programs like Butler University and the University of Pittsburgh. He chose GW out of a top five that also included George Mason, Iona, Temple and American universities.

Bevins is the second highly ranked DMV product to commit to GW in recent years, as Hyattsville, Maryland native and combo guard Jacoi Hutchinson committed in November of last year. Being able to attract local talent appears to be a key fixture for Head Coach Chris Caputo as he continues to build his program in his second year. This announcement marks the Revolutionaries’ first commit in the class of 2024, a key get for the Revolutionaries.

season game, with a matchup scheduled for March 9. The Dukes handed GW their largest intraconference losing margin last season, a 67-93 score in an early February contest.

In Caputo’s second year with the team, the field appears to be wide open for the A-10 Championship, which will be held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

FILE PHOTO BY TAMARA RUSHBY | PHOTOGRAPHER

Senior opposite Liv Womble squares up for a spike.

BEN SPITALNY CONTRIBUTING SPORTS EDITOR

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY AUDEN YURMAN | SENIOR PHOTO EDITOR

Incoming freshman Ty Bevins launched his commitment to the Revolutionaries Friday on X, formerly known as Twitter.

FILE PHOTO BY MAYA NAIR | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Graduate guard James Bishop IV pulls up for a shot in a game against the Richmond Spiders.