October 26th Edition of The Lorian

The Lorian

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Independently Published by Loras Students Since 1922

Vol. CI Iss. IV

October 26 , 2022 - Dubuque, IA

FLOAT LIKE A BUTTERFLY, STING LIKE A DUHAWK

Loras Celebrates Tihar-Diwali

By BENJAMIN SHAPUTIS

By JULIA MEDINA

A couple of weeks ago, Loras College ended their sixth week of classes and another wonderful campus homecoming. A newly reinstated club, Loras Boxing Club, began the weekend by hosting an open house in the gym. Friday afternoon, from 4:00 to 5:30 pm, Professor/Coach Mederson opened the doors to students to tour the space, learn the basics of boxing, use equipment, train, snag a bag of popcorn, and socialize with a diverse group of people, all with the help of club members Erick Rodriguez, Benjamin Shaputis, and our mascot Cabo.

Over the hour and a half, many of Loras’s engaged and excited students participated. After teaching the basics of the classic combo of a jab and straight, Mederson, Rodriguez, and Shaputis taught students how to use the equipment. Mederson helped teach the basics of the speedbag, Rodriguez manned the double-bungee/double-ended bag, showing how to hit a quick jabcross-slip combo, while Shaputis practiced the same combo with punch mitts.

Though the open house was a great way to start the weekend, the club is also looking for donations to finish the space. Club member Richard Hernandez has created

Both the Global Student Union and Better Together celebrated Tihar/Diwali also known as The Festival of Lights. The festival celebrates good overcoming evil and light overcoming darkness.

Diwali is celebrated over a course of five days. The names of those days are Dhanteras, Naraka Chaturdasi, Lakshmi Puja, Govardhan Puja, and Bhai Dooj. The festivities usually include dancing, music, food, many different decorations for the home, and the use of firecrackers. Here on campus, we celebrated with speeches, traditional dances, and food.

There were speeches given by Loras international students and faculty members, sharing memories of when they would celebrate in their home countries. Many of the anecdotes included memories of the food that was eaten, especially the sweets. They highlighted for us how intense the use of fireworks and firecrackers are since they represent the light that is being celebrated. The Alumni Campus Center ballrooms held 60-70 people in attendance to enjoy the evening as members of the Loras community.

There were many faculty members, students, and children of all different backgrounds.

A highlight of the night was

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photo from MARY FELLERS

Members of the Loras community celebrated Tihar-Diwali on Oct 24 in the Ballroom. Also known as the Festival of Lights, it is known as Tihar in Nepal while the celebration is called Diwali in India.

Duhawk Dispatch Four

IOWA INTERFAITH CONFERENCE COMES TO LORAS

By AVA BRADLEY

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There’s a reason it’s called, being on the spectrum

By EDWARD CLISSOLD

One of the most common stereotypes about autism is that all autistic people are introverts and don’t want to hang around other people. However, that’s not true of all of us. Autism is a spectrum so every autistic person is different. Lynn Gallagher, the director of the Lynch Learning Center, says that being autistic “doesn’t mean that you view the world in the same way.”

You might know Quinn Frese from his Monday Motivation emails that he sends out, his Fridays with Frese video interviews, or from the activities that are organized by the Lynch Learning Center. What you may not know is, like me, Quinn is on the autism spectrum. He was

diagnosed when he was a toddler. He said the diagnosis led to “a bit of an adjustment.” Quinn didn’t respond to his name being called and didn’t speak until he was three.

School was also difficult for him because he was sensitive to noise and had a hard time coping with changes in routine. For example, when his parents didn’t pick him up on time he started to freak out.

“I was crying because I wanted to get out of there,” he said.

However, he had a good support system. He attended occupational therapy, speech therapy, and vision therapy which helped him through it. He said that school went well, but there were “those few hiccups.” Some

photo from MARY FELLERS

Loras students and faculty members participated in the Interfaith Leadership Summit in August of 2022 in Chicago, IL. This conference will bring in students from other neighboring colleges and universities to build interfaith awareness. From left to right: Tania Tauseef, Ariful Islam Azam, Subhekshya (Subie) Wasti, Mary Fellers, Sadikshya (Sadie) Bhattarai, Diego Rodriguez, and Dr. John Eby at the Interfaith Leadership Summit.

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Welcome back to the Duhawk Dispatch! Student Government hopes you had a relaxing and fun Fall Free Days.

This week, I would like to talk about the Campus Life Committee.

The Campus Life Committee is chaired by Savannah Paisley. So far this semester, they have been working closely with Campus Dining to solve issues such as employment and food at our dining options. Outside of their Campus Dining work, they have been working on how to get students connected with each other on campus. All students search or have searched for belonging on campus. One of the main goals of the Campus Life Committee is to help students to find belonging on campus.

Campus Life Committee Members: C h a i r : S a v a n n a h P a i s l e y, Savannah.Paisley@loras.edu Out of State Representative: L o g a n B i e s m e y e r, L o g a n .

Biesmeyer@loras.edu International Student Representative: Daniela Bernal, Daniela.Bernal@loras.edu International Student CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

To Vote or Not To Vote

Makhachev wins UFC 280

High School vs. College Hoco

The Time is Now For Dewey

Midterm elections are right around the corner. For many of us at Loras, this will be our first chance to vote. Politicians are promising big changes, but should you care? Most people would say that voting is important. I study philosophy and the opinions of philosophers when it comes to voting might surprise you. I’ll page 3

The UFC held one of the most highly anticipated events this past Saturday. Traveling across the world, UFC 280 took place in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, at the Etihad Area.

In the feature bout of the prelims, two top 10-ranked welterweights fought it out. #5 ranked Belal Muhammad (21-3) took on #8 Sean Brady (15-0). Training with former UFC page 3

When I hear the word homecoming, I picture teenagers dressing up in their best clothes, taking pictures for social media, and dancing the night away at a high school gym. However, the college homecoming experience is slightly different than the high school homecoming experience.

One major difference was that alumni came back to Loras and tailgated in page 4

Division. Anger. Fear. This is the current political climate that we live in here in America, unfortunately. For far too long, our political system has suppressed all attempts at a third party candidate. The closest we have ever had at a third-party President was Ross Perot in 1992. Since then, almost nothing.

Distrust in the American page 4

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The Lorian

LORAS TO HOST IOWA INTERFAITH CONFERENCE

By MARY FELLERS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

As Loras prepares to host the Iowa Interfaith Conference, students in the Interfaith Leaders Program have been working hard. About 20 students are currently enrolled in the program, and several of these students have taken on leadership roles to make this conference happen. The students have been working under the guidance of Dr. John Eby of History and Dr. Angela Kohlhaas of Mathematics, who will help facilitate the event.

This conference will bring in students from other neighboring colleges and universities to build interfaith awareness and leadership among individuals. These skills ensure that individuals not only work wel l to ge t he r but t r u ly understand one another. The main themes for the weekend center around ecology, spirituality, and the art of storytelling.

A small group of Loras students involved in interfaith activities traveled to Chicago in August to experience Interfaith America’s Interfaith Leadership Summit.

Interfaith America is a national organization founded by Iboo Patel focused on fulfilling the mission “to inspire, equip, and connect leaders and institutions to unlock the potential of America’s religious diversity.” The summit brought together interfaith leaders from universities and colleges across America from varying backgrounds.

Loras students were amazed by the diversity of attendants. Along with also developing skills in themselves, these students attended the summit with their own mission: Take notes.

Students were entrusted with the mission to bring back any ideas or experiences that would influence the planning of the Iowa Interfaith Conference to be held here at Loras.

Sadie Bhattarai, a sophomore international student from Nepal, attended the Chicago trip in August and is a part of the Interfaith Leaders Program. She has been involved with the planning process and is excited to share what she has experienced with other students.

“My experience at the interfaith conference was inexplainable. I had the opportunity to meet people from all kinds of backgrounds and engage in smooth and intellectual conversations about controversial topics in society.” She admitted, “Talking about religion is hard, e s p e c i a l ly to d ay … but [ t h i s experience] gave me space to share my story and listen to others.”

Bhattarai goes on to encourage everyone to take part in events like this so that people will learn these skills, have these experiences, and use them throughout their lives.

Now, nearly two months later, Loras will implement these in about a week. Along with student experiences, the group has been working with area interfaith leaders to plan for the three-day event. The event will begin on Friday afternoon with a welcome keynote speaker in the Ballrooms. The rest of the weekend will follow with more talks,

opportunities to share experiences, and time to grow in community.

Juliana Mace, a junior als o involved in the Interfaith Leaders Program, looks for ward to the weekend’s activities.

“This will be a great opportunity to listen to different religious leaders speak about their faith backgrounds while also growing in my faith.”

Throughout the weekend, attend ants w i l l a ls o have t he opportunity to visit various religious sites including St. Isidore Catholic Worker Farm. Students will meet Brenna and Eric Anglada who actively “live out Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day’s vision of a Christian community on the land, integrating sustainable agriculture, communal prayer, simple living, hospitality, educational workshops, and active nonviolence.” This way of life is known as the Catholic Worker Movement which began in 1933.

The farm is located in Cuba City, Wisconsin.

From there, students will visit Casper Bluff Thunderbird Effigy Mound to learn about how spirituality and ecology inform each other. Other highlights of the weekend include site trips to St. Elias Greek Orthodox Church and Radius Church, a black evangelical church, for Sunday services. Anishinaabe Elder (Ojibwe), Mishiikenh Ishkwebiidwewiidang, will guide a reflection on Saturday night followed by small group discussions.

Dubuque provides a diverse area with many wonderful opportunities f o r i nt e r f a i t h d i a l o g u e . T h e willingness of these community leaders to spend time with students is greatly appreciated. The interfaith team at Loras is extremely excited to provide this opportunity for all interested students, faculty, and staff. In the future, Loras hopes to be able to host or take turns with other institutions to host this event.

The event officially begins on Friday, but attendees are encouraged to come to the Children of Abraham event happening on Thursday, Oct 27, at 7 pm at the Temple Beth El in Dubuque. All are welcome to attend.

Dr. Eby has described Children of Abraham as a conversation between people from different faith traditions.

It is an opportunity to hear from someone else’s experience and perspective, a perfect opportunity to practice interfaith skills and generous listening.

Other pre-conference events include a hike on Friday morning from 9-11 a.m. (contact Dr. Eby to sign up and receive the meeting lo cat ion) and Juma Prayer at the Tristate Islamic Center from 1 : 3 0 - 2 p. m . Fo l l o w i n g Ju m a Prayer, all are welcome to stay to engage in a conversation with the Imam. Although the deadline for registration has passed, you may still be able to attend the conference.

For more information about the conference or to reserve a spot, feel free to email Dr. Eby at john.eby@ loras.edu.

October 26, 2022

Breaking Austim’s Stereotypes CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

of his challenges went away in 4th and 5th grade. However, all of his challenges didn’t end there.

When he went to middle school, the new environment was meant a new challenge. He described 6th grade as his least favorite year because “it was a time where students had to figure out personal worries.”

Quinn said when he got to high school, he decided that he wanted to meet new people. Although he hung out with people in elementary and middle school, he didn’t really go out of his way to meet new people.

It was in high school that he said he developed “a natural joy about people” and wanted to connect with others. He said this helped him build up his courage which led him to take on more leadership positions. Quinn now views social interactions as a lot of fun and sees a natural joy in interacting with people.

“Sure, you could put a lot of nice things, you could put a nice meal or a trip to Hawaii in front of me and that’s going to make me happy,” he said. “But I think what really brings the true joy is just those interactions with people.”

He says that he wishes he was always like that but acknowledges that getting there “was all a part of the growing phase.”

Remember, autism is a spectrum.

While Quinn finds joy in meeting new people, I still struggle with social interactions. It’s hard for me to initiate a conversation.

The classroom can be especially hard. Whether it’s meeting a new classmate or working in groups, I am afraid I will say the wrong thing and people will judge me. This stemmed from the times I was bullied in middle school.

In 7th grade, students would say things that would make me angry.

This got to the point of me having a meltdown which, unfortunately, only encouraged them to bully me more.

I also remember people saying stuff to me and laughing at my reply.

This made me frustrated because I didn’t know why they were laughing at me and I hated to be laughed at.

Because of this, I hid parts of my personality that are associated with my autism. This is referred to as “masking” by autistic people.

Unfortunately, social interactions simply became exhausting to me. I would rationalize and tell myself that I don’t need other people, but that wasn’t always the case.

Even though I consider myself to be an introvert, that doesn’t mean that I don’t like interacting with people at all. Like Quinn, I show my authentic self when I am around people that I feel safe with. One time, I was eating lunch with my dad and I started talking about aviation, which I was passionate about at the time.

I told my dad about some of my favorite planes, like the Concorde and the Boeing 747. I even talked about some obscure facts about the planes, like how the 747 was originally designed to be a military cargo aircraft. People in the autistic community refer to this as “infodumping.”

Looking back at this moment I realize that there are some aspects of socializing that I enjoy. I still consider myself to be an introvert who needs to recharge after most social events. However, when I am around the right people, I can talk about things that I like and reveal my authentic self.

While Quinn and I have opposite personalities when it comes to socialization, I’m not “more autistic” than Quinn. The personalities of autistic people can vary the same way as neurotypical people.

“Ever yone is different and everyone experiences life and what it presents us with differently,” Gallagher said. “No one way is right and no one way is wrong. It just is.”

For me, there are positive aspects to autism, like knowing a lot about

Welcome to Boxing, Loras CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

a topic that I am passionate about.

But, of course, there are also negative aspects like sensory overload. Autism isn’t a blessing or a curse, it’s just a way of being human. Every autistic person is unique so it’s important for you to listen when they tell you how you can help them.

I am still finding out what works for me when it comes to socializing.

Quinn reminded me that people should seek out help when they need it. Here at Loras College, we are fortunate to have the Lynch Learning Center where people with disabilities can get support.

“It’s not going to be a tomorrow thing,” Quinn says. “You have setbacks but just don’t give up.”

Getting what you need to support your success takes time but it’s definitely worth it. We can also learn from each other. As for socializing, Quinn told me that it’s best to try to put myself out there. This can feel intimidating because I don’t know what will happen when I start a conversation. However, I’ll never know if I don’t try.

“Whether it be people with autism or without autism,” Quinn said, “we all can walk away from something, (like) a conversation, taking more knowledge.”

DUHAWK DISPATCH FOUR CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Representative: Antonio Russo, Antonio.Russo@loras.edu Transfer Student Representative: Ana Chandlee, Ana.Chandlee@ loras.edu First Year Representative: Chloe Dunigan, Chloe.Dunigan@loras. edu First Year Representative: Ian Critelli, Ian.Critelli@loras.edu If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about your campus experience, please reach out to a committee member or

LORAS HOSTS TIHAR-DIWALI CELEBRATION IN THE BALLROOM CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

photo from BENJAMIN SHAPUTIS

The Loras Boxing Club was established in 2022 by Dr. Mark Mederson. The Boxing Club has been one of the fastest growing clubs on campus.

a sweatshirt design that runs $25 for club members. Donations will contribute to funding a groundlevel boxing ring, a 5-gallon water dispenser for the space, more wraps and gloves, pool noodles for slipparry-guard practice, and, most importantly, new mats to protect us from the hard concrete floor space. Overall, the Loras Boxing Club’s op en hous e of fered an excellent time to socialize, learn the

basics of the sport, practice some self-defense, and try something new. All students and faculty are welcome to participate. To join the club, be sure to request admission through DuConnect and follow the Facebook or Instagram page.

Thanks to all who came out, and a special thanks to Father Vu for blessing our special space! Let’s look forward to a great year!

the traditional foods shared.

All guests were able taste samples of the delicious cuisine inspired from Southeast Asia, specifically countries like India and Nepal’s d i s h e s . It w a s a w o n d e r f u l opportunity to be exposed to the different ethnic cuisine and appreciate its meaning in the celebration.

Upbeat cultural dances were performed by international and American students and faculty.

Every time the dancers performed, it gave the audience a sense of excitement and community. The audience clapped and cheered on the electrifying and outstanding performances by our own students and staff. This year’s Diwali/Tihar event was a success and brought much joy to our international students as well as the rest of the

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The Lorian

MAKHACHEV SUBMITS OLIVEIRA IN THE SECOND ROUND TO WIN UFC 280

By ALLEN CATOUR

The UFC held one of the most highly anticipated events this past Saturday. Traveling across the world, UFC 280 took place in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, at the Etihad Area.

In the feature bout of the prelims, two top 10-ranked welterweights fought it out. #5 ranked Belal Muhammad (21-3) took on #8 Sean Brady (15-0). Training with former UFC champion and highly skilled wrestler Khabib Nurmagomedov, Muhammad used his wrestling to defend against multiple takedown attempts from Brady throughout the fight. The beginning of the second round saw Muhammad press forward and eventually get Brady against the fence. After a flurry of combinations and punches, the referee stepped in at 4:47 of the second round. After his TKO victory, Muhammad is now on a nine-fight unbeaten streak.

The spotlight fight of the main card turned out to be an absolute battle. Taking a huge step up in competition, highly-touted prospect Sean O’Malley (15-1) faced former bantamweight champion Petr Yan (16-3). Many fans wondered if O’Malley could handle fighting a highly skilled fighter like Yan after slowly progressing through the rankings. Those questions got answered shortly as the two traded back and forth during the first round. After 15 minutes, both men left each other battered and bloody.

Yan secured six takedowns during the three-round bout, but O’Malley had more significant strikes. In the end, the judges awarded O’Malley the split decision win despite many people believing Yan won the fight.

After defeating the #1 ranked contender, O’Malley likely will fight for the bantamweight title in the future.

In t h e c o - m a i n e v e nt , t h e bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling (21-3) defended his title against former 2x bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw (18-4).

About 20 seconds in the first round, Dillashaw’s shoulder popped out as Sterling secured a takedown. In his post-fight interview, Dillashaw admitted he blew his shoulder out at the end of April and dislocated it multiple times during training camp. However, he survived the first round while Sterling out-grappled him. Before the second round, Dillashaw’s coach successfully popped the shoulder back in place.

Unfortunately, it came out again as Sterling finished the fight with ground-and-pound at 3:44 of the second round. The win pushed Sterling’s win streak to eight.

The main event lived up to the hype. Fighting for the vacant lightweight title, Islam Makhachev (22-1) fought former champion Charles Oliveria (33-8). The UFC

TO VOTE OR NOT TO VOTE

By DYLAN SWARTZ

Midterm elections are right around the corner. For many of us at Loras, this will be our first chance to vote. Politicians are promising big changes, but should you care?

Most people would say that voting is important. I study philosophy and the opinions of philosophers when it comes to voting might surprise you.

I’ll come back to this.

Politics may be more contentious today than at any time in recent memory. If you spend any time on social media, I’m sure you’ve witnessed this. People are passionate about things like police brutality and abortion. Literally life and death. But some philosophers disagree about exactly what we should do about this.

Christopher Freiman, a philosophy professor at William and Mary University, wrote the book “Why It’s OK to Ignore Politics.” In a short overview of the book, released

by William and Mary, Freiman argues “that political participation is generally not an effective way of helping people.” He says, “If a citizen is interested in doing (helping), they instead could do things such as raise money for key charities that help improve people’s lives.” Freiman believes that it comes down to a cost-benefit analysis based on time and effort.

When it comes to choosing a candidate, we research the people running, we argue with people about the candidates and we wait in line to vote. We spend all this time, while stressing ourselves out, on elections.

Freiman says that all this time and stress could be better used on something that would have more of a personal impact on the issues we care about.

People participate in politics because they believe they are helping other people. Freiman is not saying that politics are not impactful. He is saying, “…there’s a difference between saying this thing is impactful and saying I, as a single individual, can have an impact on this impactful thing.” He is saying we should put our energy into things stripped Oliveria of the title in his last fight after missing weight.

B efore this fight, fans argued about who the best lightweight currently was. Both fighters entered w it h impressive w in st re a ks, Oliveria at 11 straight wins and Makhachev at 10. The first round consisted of Makhachev securing a takedown with Oliveria throwing up submissions, something many expected. However, many were shocked as Makhachev knocked down Oliveria before locking up an arm triangle choke and making him tap at 3:16 of the second round. In his first title defense, Makhachev expects to take on P4P #1 and UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

The next UFC pay-per-view event takes place on November 12 as Israel Adesanya defends his middleweight belt against Alex Pereira at UFC 281.

October 26, 2022

Your “My Story” Isn’t Really Yours: Social Media and Free Speech

By DR. MARK MEDERSON

where we can actually see we can make a difference.

Perhaps this is because many people often think about democracy as only the act of voting. But democracy takes many forms. Our voices are much louder at a local level, or in the workplace.

Organizing could be a better use of your time. You could organize at your workplace and work toward unionizing the workforce. This could have a much larger impact on your life and your community.

Organizing your workplace could lead to a better wage, healthcare, and more control over your work environment. Every employee would benefit from this, but your vote in a presidential election would have almost no impact on the outcome of the election.

There is another view that we can consider when it comes to voting.

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy says that Utilitarianism, “…is generally held to be the view that the morally right action is the action that produces the most good.”

If this is your view then voting would be necessary. If the vote can create a greater good then you must vote.

But, again, look beyond just the national or state elections for president or governor. Focus on voting for local officials. Your vote in local races carries much more weight than state or national elections. A perfect example is prosecutors.

Prosecutors have a lot of power at the local level. They can decide what criminal cases to prosecute.

There has been a push throughout the nation to elect more progressive pros ec utors. This is b ecaus e progressive prosecutors do not prosecute most nonviolent crimes.

Let’s say that you decided that s ending p e ople to pr is on for marijuana possession does not work for the greater good. Marijuana is almost completely harmless and it is legal in some states. It costs you, the taxpayer, a lot of money to charge, prosecute and jail people for this crime. Those jailed also will end up with a record that can hurt them when it comes to returning to society as productive citizens.

If you have decided that having a prosecutor that does not prosecute marijuana possession will create the most good for society, then you must vote in that election.

Most Americans would tell you that voting is important. Christopher Freiman would tell you to question this. He would ask you if voting was really the best use of your time.

Utilitarian philosophers would ask you to consider the impact. I ask you to determine where you think your vote will have the greatest impact?

Keep it local and keep it strong. And, while you’re at it, go ahead and vote for the state and national offices as well. I mean, you’re already there, right?

When Brandi Levy, a 14-year-old high school cheerleader, failed to make the varsity squad in 2017, she showed her frustration by posting on Snapchat. She dropped f-bombs and posted a photo of her and a friend flipping the bird. Administrators at her Pennsylvania high school punished her for the comments by suspending her from the cheer team for a year, claiming she would create chaos and hurt the “teamlike” environment of the squad.

She and her parents sued the school over the suspension. Her case made it all the way to the Supreme Court in the summer of 2021 where the Court, in an 8-1 decision, decided in the Levy family’s favor.

While the Court ruled for Levy, in their decision they added “that schools may in fact punish some speech, especially if it is harassing, bullying, cheating or otherwise disruptive.”

This distinction that speech, which has been deemed “disruptive,” can be punished goes all the way b a ck to 1 9 6 9 and t he Ti n ke r decision by the Court. This was over two Des Moines high school students who wore black arm bands to school as a quiet protest against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The school claimed the arm bands were disruptive but the Court ruled in favor of the student protest saying that the arm bands would not substantially disrupt school activity.

There are other areas where students have been expelled from school based on social media messages. The majority of those cases involved bullying, racism or what has been deemed hate speech that was posted. That speech can certainly be deemed disruptive. But what about messages that do not contain what is considered vulgar, racist or hateful wording? What about a message about something at the school that is actually true but may present the school in a negative light?

According to Universit y of Minnesota assistant professor of journalism and mass communic at ion, C hr is Ter r y, truth is likely not a defense in the case of social media posts. Terry, a First Amendment scholar who specializes in media law, says this would be especially true at Loras College because of our private school status. Students at publicly funded colleges and universities, Terry says, may have an argument that their speech should be protected as Constitutional based on the First Amendment. But, he said, the cases that have been tested so far have not involved college students and free speech.

For example, if a student at a private college posted a photo of something that was broken in their classroom or dorm room and warned, perhaps, this could be a safety hazard, Terr y says administrators at the school can legally ask the student to remove the post or face consequences. Of

course, public relations instructors might counter this with the positive message solution rather than the punitive one. That is, public relations professionals have learned that a better way to address the photo would be to fix the problem quickly and post images of the fix. That is how PR professionals have learned to flip negative social media posts in their favor rather than presenting a hardened punitive posture.

Be aware that not every private school believes in quelling the speech of their students. Marquette University, also a private Catholic i ns t itut i on , t a ke s a d i f fe re nt approach to student speech.

“Marquette has had a long and rather robust dedication to … free speech principles as a campus,” Terry said. “That is not unique to Marquette, but it’s also not all that common in the private realm.”

Terry said that calling a student into an administrator’s office may be legal, although he thinks it borders on harassment. He said that it really depends on what the school has listed as their social media policies for students in the official student handbook. Terry said that many schools have explicitly noted limitations to social media usage by students in honor codes or handbooks. But, he notes, these are generally established to prevent student athletes from posting any information that could reveal NCAA athletic violations.

While the 2022-2023 version of the Loras student handbook lays out parameters for using school issued computers and the school’s internet service, there doesn’t seem to be a policy about how students may use their own social media accounts in the handbook.

Forbes online reported just last week that fake social media accounts are becoming a problem for schools.

These fake accounts are often set up to fool users into thinking it is an official school or administrator’s account. These are often used for hate speech or bullying. But what if a student, in order to avoid a run-in with administrators, set up a fake account to report truthful information about a school issue?

Terry says that, if students were to do this, they should plan on not using the school’s wi-fi or equipment in order to do it since those are much easier to trace back to the user. “ I t e l l my f r e s h m e n t o b e careful what they do or say while connected to the school’s wi-fi because everything they do is being monitored,” Terry said.

Most of these decisions come down to the idea that certain speech would be disruptive to the classroom learning environment. The question is, when does a post on a student’s own social media account reach the level of “disrupting” the environment of learning in a college classroom?

Perhaps the Court will be forced to answer this question at some point in the future.

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Homecoming in High School Compared to College, From a First Year’s Perspective

The Lorian

October 26, 2022

This satire piece does not represent the views or beliefs of The Lorian, the Editorial Staff, or Loras College. Please view this article as a piece of comedy, not one of factual information.

By BERNADETTE MERCURIO

When I hear the word homecoming, I picture teenagers dressing up in their best clothes, taking pictures for social media, and dancing the night away at a high school gym. However, the college homecoming experience is slightly different than the high school homecoming experience.

One major difference was that alumni came back to Loras and tailgated in anticipation of the football game. I loved seeing the packed st ands wit h e ver yone cheering for our team. My friends and I sat near the cheerleaders, and we were rewarded with frisbees, necklaces, and bubble wands. Every time the football team scored a touchdown, they’d launch t-shirts in the air! After the football game, my friends and I made apple pie and ate dinner together. It’s one of my fondest memories so far at Loras.

I also loved the hypnotist because he hypnotized me. (No, I’m not hypnotized anymore.) My friend, Kate, showed me embarrassing videos of myself later that night. The carnival brought people together with games, food, and prizes. My favorite part was when my friends and I won dinosaur keychains!

O n t h e c o nt r a r y, my h i g h school celebrated homecoming with smaller activities all week long. We followed daily clothing themes, listened to music between passing periods, and attended the homecoming football game. I especially loved the trivia contests.

We would have a trivia question emailed to us and the first person who answered it correctly would win a prize. I did win a Snicker bar from it once! One of my favorite parts about my high school’s homecoming was the art on the tickets. The art would match the homecoming theme, and it was a personal touch my high school’s event.

A similarity between my college and high school experience was the anticipated homecoming dance.

There wasn’t a DJ, but there was food, t-shirts, inflatable hamster wheels, a 360-degree camera! I felt relieved because I knew what to expect at a homecoming dance. We danced to Pitbull, and I may have bonked my friends with the balloons a couple of times too. Apparently, Loras didn’t have a homecoming dance for a while until this year.

I’m glad that Loras holds a dance because it’s a familiar concept for freshmen. Hopefully we have one next year too!

DEWEY: THE RIGHT CHOICE FOR AMERICA Division. Anger. Fear. This is the current political climate that we live in here in America, unfortunately. For far too long, our political system has suppressed all attempts at a third party candidate. The closest we have ever had at a thirdparty President was Ross Perot in 1992. Since then, almost nothing.

Distrust in the American government is at record lows. According to PewResearch, only 20% of Americans have faith in Washington D.C. 65% of Americans also believe that politicians run for office to ‘serve their own personal interests’. It is disgraceful what some politicians have done to our great nation’s legacy of democracy. It is time to put our trust into someone who will serve not their own interests, but the interests of the people. And that candidate is Dewey.

Since 1962, Dewey has served the interests of the people of Loras College. As Chairman of the Dewey Party, he has been committed to excellence while serving the people of Loras. He has put the people first, always. Never once has Dewey had any selfish thoughts. Throughout his time at Loras, he has contemplated running for office time and time again. However, he cares so much about the people of Loras that he could not bear the thought of leaving them.

No longer can he stand by and watch. Dewey can no longer stand by and watch the fate of our democracy hang in the balance of our current politicians.

Dewey has a few key issues that he believes are central to his campaign for President.

Dewey has had enough of corruption within our great nation’s government. In order to put an end to this era of politicians putting themselves first and not the people, Dewey will create an Amendment that all politicians must sign the Academic Honesty Code. With this in place, Dewey will allow for Americans to put their faith back into their government. Dewey understands that this is a crucial step that must be implemented right away. Because without the faith of his people, Dewey knows all his

accomplishments would mean nothing.

Since the start of the pandemic, the American economy has taken a huge hit. Still, nearly three years after, we are battling the economic effects.

Dewey has a plan. Without the gold standard, our currency will only continue to fall victim to inflation. Dewey’s plan involves replacing the current U.S. Dollar with Duhawk Dollars. With Duhawk Dollars, America will be able to rebound from this economic crisis and regain its status as an economic giant.

And finally, the hostility between all nations on the planet is growing evermore each day.

The United Nations has tried and tried again to ease hostilities. To counter this rising tension, Dewey will create a stronger and superior United Nations – the Duhawk Nation. Dewey will use his gift of persuasion to talk every country on Earth to join the Duhawk Nation. Once every

country is a member of Duhawk Nation, they will all swear the oath of peace by reciting the following phrase: “What’s a Duhawk?

I’M A DUHAWK.” By swearing this oath, all countries will be committed to Duhawks supporting Duhawks. And thus, Dewey will create world peace.

Now is the time to vote for the Dewey Party. It is time to put the people of this great nation. It is time to put our faith into a fearless leader who will strive for peace and justice throughout this great world. Now is the time for Dewey.

Dewey Today. Dewey Tomorrow. Dewey Forever.

Long Live Dewey.