Oberlin College announced yesterday that it would pay Gibson’s Bakery the sum of $36.59 million in damages as awarded by the Lorain County Court of Common Pleas in 2019. This decision follows the Ohio Supreme Court’s Aug. 30 announcement denying the College’s appeal. The College filed the appeal with the Ohio Supreme Court on May 13 this year, and the court voted 4–3 against hearing the appeal without making any substantive statements on the case. These events mark the end of the College’s five-year-long litigation with Gibson’s.
Lauren Krainess Managing Editor
Kushagra Kar Editor-in-Chief
The fourth proposition contested the format with which punitive damages were calculated, which resulted in an overall damage award that was allegedly four times more than what should have been legally possible. Punitive damages are capped at twice the amount of compensatory damages. Compensatory damages constitute measurable financial damage to a party — which has no cap under Ohio law — and a capped amount of damages to account for non-measurable
Goff also referenced another factor in switching providers — that the College could not obtain certain COVID services from UH at the time. Additionally, Goff noticed that UH lacked specific college health experience.“Just[from] meeting regularly, it became appar ent that in the area of college health, there wasn’t a lot of experience from the department in that area,” GoffAccordingwrote. to previous Clinical Coordinator of Student Health Services Erin Gornall, UH informed the staff of Student Health Services that the College would end its contract with UH in late May. Although the Student Health staff at the time was employed
Goff emphasized that the previous Student Health staff were employees of UH and that they were not employees of the College, though Gornall contested this“Forcategorization.thepastyear we were University Hospital employees,” Gornall wrote in an email to the Review “Maybe in the eyes of an administrator, it is easy to dismiss us as such. However, when you look at how long we have all been with Student Health, most of us were College employees prior to becoming UH
by UH, several members had been College employ ees before the College outsourced Student Health Services to UH in July 2021. Gornall had worked for Student Health for over six years at that point.
The Student Health Center welcomes a new health care provider.
Doris Jankovits, a previous Student Health Ser vices family health nurse practitioner, sought out the opportunity to apply for a position with HHP in Student Health to continue working at the College. Although she interviewed for a position, she was ultimately rejected. Reasons for her rejection were explained in an email from Deb McCarthy, a recruit er for physicians and advanced practice clinicians at Bon“TheySecours.felt you were not well-aligned with the cul ture of the ministry of Bon Secours Mercy Health, and may not have been happy there long term; which is what we would want for any of our providers,” McCarthy wrote.
Last week, Bon Secours, the parent company of the College’s new health care affiliate Harness Health Partners, announced it will not provide students with certain reproductive and gender-affirming health care services. The health care affiliate had previous ly agreed to do so. After a June announcement of a new partnership, HHP began operating the College’s Student Health Center in July after the College end ed its contract with University Hospitals.
“We waited to hear from the College, because we were College health employees before being UH [employees],” Gornall said. “We were just hoping that maybe the College is taking us back or some thing.”Although the June 8 Campus Digest email stat ed that the staff working in Student Health Services would have the opportunity to apply for positions with HHP, Gornall and previous Student Health Services Women’s Health Specialist Aimee Holmes never received additional details about these appli cations from the College or HHP.
The College’s appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court was based on four primary arguments, presented as propositions of law. The first proposition concerned the constitutional protection of opinion speech, wherein the College argued that written and oral statements should fall under the same purview of protection. Proposition two raised the concern that imposing liability on the College for facilitating student opinion would contradict the First Amendment.
College to Pay $36M, Gibson’sConcludingLitigation
The June 8 Campus Digest email announcing the change in health care affiliates cited student feedback as the reason for the change in providers. According to Vice President and Dean of Students Karen Goff, the most common complaints in the past year from students about Student Health Services included long lines to see providers and confusion due to having two different providers for the Col lege’s COVID-19 testing and general Student Health Services. HHP has managed the College’s COVID testing program for most of the pandemic, while UH provided general health care in Student Health.
“Based upon that feedback and our own evalua tions, Oberlin decided to pursue a new partnership,” Goff wrote in an email to the Review
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“The Ninth District severed students’ right to protest orally from written protest materials, insisting its decision would not chill speech because oral chants were protected and Oberlin’s conduct was separate,” the appeal read. “Can a line be drawn between oral and written speech that protects only the former when the context is the same? Even if it can, can colleges be held responsible for facilitating this speech consistent with the First Amendment?”
“While this outcome is a disappointment, our financial plans for this possibility, which included insurance coverage, mean that this payment will not impact or diminish our academic or student life experience, or require us to draw down Oberlin’s endowment,” President Carmen Twillie Ambar wrote in a campus-wide email yesterday.
The third proposition cited precedent that elements of a case clearly addressed by the jury in the first stage of the trial should not have been presented to the jury again in the second stage. Specifically, the jury found during the first stage that the College had no constitutional actual malice, i.e., it did not meet the U.S. Supreme Court’s criteria for proving a statement was made with actual malice. According to the College, having failed at carrying the burden of proof that the College acted with malice during the first stage of the trial, the Gibsons’ legal team should not have been allowed to reintroduce those arguments in court.
Bon Secours Mercy Health Changes Position on Reproductive Care Services
September 9, 2022 The Oberlin Review | September 9, 2022 Established 1874 Volume 152, Number 1 1
The final sum of $36.59 million constitutes $25.049 million in punitive and compensatory damages, $6.565 million in attorney fees, and $4.975 million in interest. Oberlin College will now work with the Gibsons’ lawyers to determine further details regarding the payment, including distribution of attorney fees. The College will also work with its insurers to determine the extent of coverage for punitive damages.
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at a minimum, the Court should vacate the punitive damages and attorney fees award or at least properly cap the punitive damages.”Withlegal proceedings now complete, President Ambar emphasized the College’s continued commitment to its academic mission.
ObieSafe informed students in its automatic email response. “As we prepare to start the new academic year, your health and wellbeing remain our top priority.”TheObieSafe email went on to outline several new policies, such as: “If and when requested to wear a mask by another member of the Oberlin community with whom you are interacting, please comply.”Somestudents, though, are not satisfied with the new potential policies. College second-year Sophie Raymond, for one, is concerned about the new COVID policy — she feels that immunocompromised students like her were not considered in the College’s plan. Raymond feels that too much responsibility is placed on immunocompromised students’ shoulders to advocate for themselves when there should be a policy in place that protects them.“In the past, I felt very safe here at Oberlin with both the masking and the required return testing, especially after breaks,” Raymond said. “But now that neither of those things are going to be happening, I’m really worried for both my safety and the safety of other people who are in my same situation.”Raymond considers the policy of remaining in the same room with COVID-positive roommates to be particularly alarming.
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Planned ObieSafe Protocol Updates To Take Effect Sept. 11
The College will pay Gibson’s Bakery $36.59 million in damages, ending five years of litigation.
“Like me, the majority of the campus was not here at the beginning of this matter in 2016,” President Ambar wrote. “But it is also true that this case has been difficult for all of us who love this institution and its hometown. I am looking forward to all that is ahead, and remain focused on Oberlin’s core mission of providing a truly excellent liberal arts and musical education.”
The ObieSafe team added, “We have a limited supply of housing, which varies day to day. We will work with immunocompromised students who feel the need to seek temporary housing while a roommate recovers from COVID.”
much as they want, but to me, these actions of dropping the COVID guidelines tell me that the administration doesn’t care about my safety or the safety of other people in my situation.”
ChrisGracieAvaTomasicMillerMcFallsStoneman
Photo courtesy of Bryan Rubin
Ohio Supreme Court Votes Against Hearing College Appeal in Gibson’s Lawsuit
Students shared their thoughts on fall semester COVID-19 protocols. Illustration by Madison Olsen
“The Court should accept jurisdiction and enter judgment for Oberlin and Dean Raimondo on the libel and [intentional infliction of emotional distress] claims, as well as the resulting punitive damages and attorney fees award,” the conclusion of the appeal read. “In the alternative, and
Raymond also brought up the accessibility issues with requiring an official diagnosis in order to receive necessary accommodations.
consequences of an action, such as emotional distress. The Ninth district Court of appeals relied on precedent to award punitive damages based on uncapped compensatory damages. The College argued that the Court’s precedent was inapplicable in this case. The College thus contested the lower courts’ decision on the final amount awarded to the Gibson’s in damages, resulting in an sum of over $11 million more than Oberlin assessed legally permissible.
Sofia Tomasic Senior Staff Writer
Further, ObieSafe is now placing the responsibility of contact tracing onto individual students.“Oberlin is maintaining minimal contact tracing and is asking for your independent cooperation and ability to notify your close contacts on your own,”
Per the ObieSafe email released to students in August, “If only one roommate tests positive, healthy roommates should wear a mask and maintain social distance as much as possible.”
“I think actions speak louder than words,” Raymond said. “I think that Oberlin can say that they are supporting all of their student body as
“To me, that’s just nonsensical,” she said. “You can’t wear a mask when you’re sleeping. You can’t guarantee free flow of air in a single room.”
ObieSafe’s COVID-19 policy for this fall is a shift from previous semesters. Return testing was not required for students at the beginning of this year, and masking will be entirely optional starting Sept. 11 — unless there is a surge in cases and ObieSafe decides to “Throughoutreevaluate.thesummer, we closely monitored COVID-19 and CDC guidelines,” the ObieSafe team wrote in an email to the Review . “In light of this information, coupled with our vaccination rates and the availability of rapid home antigen tests, it was decided not to require testing prior to the start of the Studentssemester.”who have tested positive for COVID are expected to retrieve food for themselves, and temporary housing for COVID-positive students is no longer available. For students whose roommates have tested positive, temporary housing is only provided if the student has a “relevant accommodation” and housing is available.
News 2 The Oberlin r eview To submit a correction, managingeditor@oberlinreview.org.email Published by the students of Oberlin College every Friday during the fall and spring semesters, except holidays and examination periods. Advertising rates: $18 per column inch. Second-class postage paid at Oberlin, Ohio. Entered as second-class matter at the Oberlin, Ohio post office April 2, 1911. POSTMASTER SEND CHANGES TO: Wilder Box 90, Oberlin, Ohio 44074-1081. Office of Publication: Burton Basement, Oberlin, Ohio 44074. Phone: (440) 775-8123 September 9, 2022 Volume 152, Number 1 (ISSN 297–256) Editors-in-Chief Kushagra Kar Emma Benardete Managing Editor Lauren Krainess News Editors Nikki Keating Alexa Stevens Opinions Editors Emily Vaughan Elle Giannandrea Arts & Culture Editors Juliana Gasper Malcolm Bamba Sports Editor Andrea Nguyen Cont. Sports Editors ZoeKaylaKuzbariKim Conservatory Editor Walter Thomas-Patterson Photo Editors KhadijahAHallidaybeFrato This Week Editor Cal Ransom Senior Staff Writers Adrienne Sato Sofia
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Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at Noah Hall.
“I guess technically it’s a temporary room assignment,” Hochheiser said. “Which means technically [ResEd] could be like, ‘Hey, you’re moving.’ Like anytime. Which would be really unfortunate.”
At the start of last year, students who did not receive housing assignments were placed temporarily into rooms at The Hotel at Oberlin. However, this is no longer possible because The Hotel has returned to full guestResidentialoperations.Education has developed solutions to accommodate the volume of new students this year. Several students, such as College third-year Martina Taylor, were placed in modified living spaces to address the housing shortage. Taylor is living in a double in Baldwin Cottage, the Women and Trans* Collective, that ResEd converted into a triple — with one of their roommates sleeping in a walk-in closet. Though ResEd had not originally positioned the third bed within the closet space, Taylor and their roommates arrived at this configuration to prevent crowding.
“I know it’s done a lot of good in the past, and that it is changing for the better,” she said. “Bringing in a new perspective allows for growth and newness at Oberlin, and that is exciting.”
As a result, this year’s enrolled class size shows an increase as well with 893 new students, up from last year’s 883. The two larger-than-average classes have consequently placed a strain on Residential Education.
Campus Safety officers responded to a report of a bat in the first-floor hallway of Severance Hall.
New staff have also participated in recent events for their respective divisions. The MRC is opening up its spaces to POC students to hold events, and the CSS celebrated first-generation students for an entire week.
An officer completing a walkthrough of Peters Hall observed a bat by the Language Lab.
College second-year Alana Florencio-Wain also expressed excitement about the MRC and its new staff.
Students express dissatisfaction with their current housing situations.
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“So basically, in the spring I got my housing information from ResEd and they said that I was gonna be living in a double in Baldwin,” Taylor said.
“And then when they sent out the info again, near the fall, right before classes started, they said that I had a different roommate, but it turned out that they turned the double into a triple without telling us. And it was very unclear. So we ended up just having two people
Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022
Over the past two semesters, the College has restaffed multiple offices, divisions, and departments. The Multicultural Resource Commons, for one, has brought on a full staff for the first time since 2020.
Similar occurrences have taken place not only throughout Baldwin but in other dorms, as well. Several students across campus are living in communal spaces, such as lounges, that ResEd has converted into dorm rooms. This leaves dorm buildings with fewer lounge spaces for community programming and connection.
College New Hires Emphasize Diverse Skill Set, Community Relationships
inclusion are such big things, especially here. So now that I start seeing more kinfolk, it’s definitely a great atmosphere, and I feel more welcome, too, and more inclined to go into those offices and into those spaces.”
Students Living in Common Rooms Due to ResEd Housing Shortage
The Oberlin Review | September 9, 2022
Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at a Goldsmith Village Housing Unit.
“I’m here for the culture. I was invited to apply for the open position after the great and illustrious Johnny Coleman retired,” Michael Boyd Roman, assistant professor of Design and Black Visual Culture in the Studio Art and Africana Studies departments said. “I’m an artist and I have a skill set there, but I’m also a Black man and have a knowledge base interest and skill set there as well. I wanted to be somewhere where I was valued for both. This is where I wanted to be.”According to Roman, settling into a new community is about understanding the needs of the space.
in the front room and then one person living in the walk-in closet.”
“It was important that the CSS staff offered different skills because students are not a monolith,” Cross wrote in an email to the Review . “In particular, some of the CSS staff members were former mental health professionals, and while they won’t be practicing in that role, that training and lens will always be valuable. Having a staff who offers a diverse skill set is particularly helpful, as they can serve as a resource to each other as different student concerns arise.”
Officers and Oberlin Fire Department members responded to a report of a student stuck in the elevator on the second floor of the Service Building.
Students like Hoccheiser are left uncertain about what the rest of their semester will look like as a result of temporary housing assignments and are questioning if and when they will receive answers from ResEd.
Friday, Sept. 2, 2022
Nikki Keating News Editor
Katie Graham began her position as an LBGTQ+ community fellow in the MRC this semester. Graham graduated from Cedar Crest College in 2022 and focused on queer identity and intersectionality in American pop culture and the superhero genre during her undergraduate studies. She expressed excitement for the potential she sees within the MRC’s new staff.
The Admissions Office has seen a steady increase in the number of applications to the College over the past few years. According to Manuel Carballo, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid, the College received 10,340 applications for the 2022–23 academic year, up from 9,243 in 2021, 7,919 in 2020, and 6,265 in 2019.
College first-year Maia Hochheiser lives in a former lounge in Burton Hall that now acts as a double. The room looks different from many of the other dorms on her floor — it is carpeted and both the windows and the window panel within the door have been frosted over in an attempt to block out extraneous light. Hochheiser added that Burton’s hallway lights never fully turn off and are motion activated, resulting in increased light filtering through the door windows whenever someone walks by.
Many new professors have also joined the Oberlin community to fill vacant faculty positions. The Africana Studies department, for example, has welcomed multiple new professors.
The Center for Student Success has also welcomed several new staff members this semester. Kyle Farris has joined the office as a director of student success & success coach, and he will specialize in working with students on the graduate school application process. Dean of Student Success Harmony Cross emphasized the importance of hiring staff with a diverse skill set for the office.
“I really wish ResEd was more transparent about everything because I can see how, to them, turning a double into a triple wouldn’t be a big deal, but I spent the later half of my summer being really confused and worried about what situation I was going into,” Taylor said. “And I feel like where you sleep and live with a stranger is kind of a big deal.”
Monday, Sept. 5, 2022
Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at LordSaundersOfficersHouse.responded to a student reporting a bat in Talcott Hall.
“I’m very excited to be in an office that is very new because we’re really getting to shape what we wanna do,” she said. “All of us are new in this position. So, there’s a lot of potential.”
An Oberlin resident reported that they almost struck a student, who crossed the street illegally, on West Lorain Street by the Science Center. The student was not injured.
“One of the first things you learn in community art is that one of the best ways to alienate a community or a population is to walk in and be like, ‘I’m the expert,’” Roman said. “Ideally, you’re going to get into a new space, a new community, and you’re gonna learn what they need, what they want, how you fit, and what you can bring to the table. So that’s why I say that right now, the goal is to immerse myself in the community as much as possible.”
College second-year Ezra Pruitt feels enthusiastic about the diversity of some of the College’s new staff members.“Iamreally excited about the MRC and the Center of Student Success because now I get to see people that look more like me,” Pruitt said. “Diversity and
Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at a Union Street Housing Unit.
Alexa Stevens News Editor
Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at Kahn Hall.
Officers responded to a report of a bat in the laundry room of Talcott Hall.Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at Tank Hall.
A student reported a bat flying around in the second-floor stairwell of Talcott Hall.
For Taylor, lack of communication from ResEd posed a key issue. When they found out they would have a third roommate late this past summer, Taylor placed calls, left voicemails, and sent emails to ResEd.
Officers responded to a faculty member reporting a bat in the firstfloor restroom at Warner Center.
Sunday, Sept. 4, 2022
Security Notebook
Officers and OFD members responded to a fire alarm at a Goldsmith Village Housing Unit.
The construction this summer resulted in various street and parking lot closures. An Aug. 3 Campus Digest email indicated that the SIP should not cause any additional summer road
this change so soon before the start of the semester, we quickly moved to en sure the needs of our students would be met without interruption,” Presi dent Carmen Twillie Ambar wrote.
College Contracts with Bon Secours Mercy Health
Your dissertation at the University of Pittsburgh is about the pros and cons of peer-led intergroup dialogue facilitation. Do you aim to encourage similar dialogue between Obies?
When I got into student affairs as an undergrad almost 20 years ago, I really enjoyed orientation programs, student activities, and multicultural clubs. I was living down south for the first time in my life and had begun to experience overt racism to my face as a person of color. This was one of the awakening moments for me — I started to realize my experience as an undergraduate at a primarily white institution was difficult at times, and I began to connect the dots that it was not because of my own doing. There were systemic structures at play. This started a whole process of reflection about my experience growing up in Los Angeles during the LA Riots and the OJ Simpson trial, among other very unique experiences.
One major facet of the project involves switching some buildings’ heating infrastructures from steam heating to hot-water-based heating. In the buildings where this change has taken place, the hot water used for heating is heated using natural gas. However, eventually this water will be heated by electric heat pumps. Campus Energy & Resource Manager Joel Baetens described the benefits of this“Usingchange.140 Fahrenheit water for heating instead of 240 Fahrenheit steam has many benefits,” Baetens wrote in an email to the Review . “It is safer, more efficient, easier to control, and most of all, can be produced with renewable and clean energy.”
Oberlin has a rich history in social justice and activism. How do you hope
Scott Hwang, Senior Assistant Dean and Director of the Multicultural Resource Commons
“Harness Health Partners assured us both verbally and in writing that they would provide a wide range of services — LGBTQ, sexual, and wom en’s health, including but not limited to the prescription of birth control and other forms of contraceptives,” Goff wrote. “The signed agreement also included continued medical care of previously established plans for gen der-affirming care.”
Are there any qualities you hope to see from the students you work with within the MRC?
In early June, Scott Hwang was named Senior Assistant Dean and Director of the Multicultural Resource Commons. Hwang holds a bachelor’s degree from Gordon College and a master’s in higher education from Geneva College, and he is currently pursuing a doctorate in education from the University of Pittsburgh. Hwang began his career working as the director of student leadership at Covenant College. Afterward, Hwang shifted into working with multicultural programs at Gordon College and Messiah University. Hwang most recently worked at the University of Michigan in intergroup dialogue and social
“It will take another year or so to get the wells installed and operational, but once they are we will be able to switch most heating and cooling from natural gas to 100 percent green electricity — that will get us very close to our goal,” Petersen wrote in an email to the Review
to honor the College’s values as the new Senior Assistant Dean and Director of the Multicultural Resource Commons?
I don’t think we are looking for specific qualities from students who want to be involved with the MRC. We want to support all students and make them feel like they belong. I encourage anyone to stop by Wilder Hall, room 212, to connect with us.
Harness Health Partners declined to comment on these matters and re quested that questions be directed to the College.
Can you talk about how you became interested in addressing societal educational disparities? Were there any early experiences that inspired your career goals?
Theclosures.nextphase of the project will focus on converting other campus buildings to the district hot water system and installing electric heat pumps and geothermal wells. Air conditioning will also be installed in multiple buildings across campus during this phase.
The switch towards issues of equity and justice happened when the Virginia Tech shootings occurred. The fact that
As the MRC reaches its 27th year, what changes do you hope to implement?
I think I will always use intergroup dialogue principles as my grounding in how I interact, program, and lead. I have had conversations with David Dorsey about my experience, and he plans to use me as a resource and consultant for the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life. At the end of the day, I do encourage Obies to have difficult dialogues with each other. We are socialized to not talk about certain things, but if we can’t have these conversations, then we are inevitably going to fill in the gap with assumptions, stereotypes, and misinformation.
According to the email, FPSLC has previously supplemented Student Health Services and conducted sexu ally transmitted infection testing clin ics on campus. FPSLC will begin pro viding students with gender-affirming care and reproductive healthcare ser vices on campus, “including offering contraception, STI testing and treat ment, PrEP and PEP for HIV preven tion, Pap exams, and dispensing re productive health contraceptives and medication such as Plan B on campus,”
The College completed most of the second phase of the threestage Sustainable Infrastructure Project over the summer. The ongoing project, which has a target completion year of 2025, is slated to improve energy efficiency on campus by 30 percent and save the College $1 million annually in energy costs.
the project’s additional progress this summer on installing the pipelines that extend from campus buildings to campus athletic fields, eventually connecting to geothermal wells, which are yet to be constructed.
Last week’s email from the Office of the President also announced a part nership with another health care affil iate who would provide these services: Family Planning Services of Lorain County.“While we were disappointed by
At Covenant College, you primarily focused on student organizations and orientation programs. However, your work since has centered around issues of equity. What inspired this switch?
The MRC staff will be present on campus trying to build relationships and trust with students, and I hope that this will lead to affinity groups and clubs wanting to partner and collaborate with us to have a greater impact on the whole campus and community.
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Phase three of the SIP will begin in summer 2023.
the shooter was a Korean-American male really shook me to the core. This was another experience that shaped me and my career trajectory. I immediately began to look through an equity lens and started to connect the dots of how and why things were the way that they were. At this point, I had not had the formal education about and didn’t know the terminology of systemic oppression and racism, false narratives, intersectionalities, tokenism, microaggressions, etc. These were things that I had experienced and was experiencing, but I thought it was just what life was. I was right about one thing — this was how life was — but I didn’t know the why or the how.
“Where it makes sense, we are adding AC to buildings,” Baetens wrote. “This also provides comfort for occupants and opens up campus to be more utilized in the summer.”
[employees].”Holmes,who had worked at Stu dent Health for over seven years, re flected on her disappointment about not continuing her position.
Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Biology John Petersen, OC ’88, who has sat on committees that have played a role in designing the SIP, made note of
NewsNews 4 Ava Miller Senior Staff Writer
President Ambar wrote.
“We’re still not over this,” she said. “We’re still dealing with how we feel about it. We’re honestly sad. I loved my job. It was the best job I’d ever had. I never planned to leave. I would stay there till I retired. But now I don’t have that choice.”
OFF THE CUFF
“Oberlin is committed to the health and total well-being of all of our stu dents,” President Ambar wrote. “This commitment requires that we provide a high level of care across a wide scope of services, including reproductive healthcare and gender-affirming care.”
Scott Hwang Photo courtesy of Scott Hwang
FPSLC will operate out of the Stu dent Health Center three days a week, and on the four days when FPSLC is not operating on campus, the College will provide transportation to FPSLC. According to Goff, FPSLC will provide telemedicine services to students, and the College will also have an indepen dent nurse practitioner on site.
SIP Phase Two Complete, Phase Three to Wrap Up in 2025
justice education. Hwang wrote to the Review about the trajectory of his career, what drew him to Oberlin, and his hopes for the ThisMRC.interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Emma Benardete Editor-in-Chief
Last week, another email from the Office of the President informed the community that HHP would no lon ger prescribe contraceptives for the explicit purpose of birth control or implement gender-affirming care. Ac cording to Goff, HHP agreed in its of ficial contract with the College that it would provide these services.
The history of Oberlin was definitely a draw for me as I looked at this position. Over the summer, my colleagues and I were emptying out files, pictures, and books from where the old MRC used to be located. We plan to archive and keep records of people who have done this work in the past and connect it to the current MRC. We also hope to create a “Celebrating the Legacy” event around graduation in late May and invite alumni who were doing social justice and activism work. It is very important to honor the past and those whose shoulders we stand on, but at the same time, we can’t rest on our laurels and must recognize there is plenty of work to be done.
EdItOr I al BOard
Republican representatives Ron Hood of Asheville and Bill Dean of Xenia introduced the so-called “Protect Vulnerable Children Act” to the Ohio Statehouse Feb. 11. While the name suggests positive connotations of protecting inno cent youth, this could not be fur ther from the truth. This tricky title is just another attempt by congres sional Republicans to both confuse liberals and persuade conservative voters into supporting a heinous, harmful bill. If passed, doctors could be charged with a third-de gree felony for attempting to pro vide gender-affirming medical care to transgender minors.
“In recent days, Bon Secours informed Oberlin through media reports and emails that they are no longer comfortable with their prior position,” the email read.
OPINIONS EdItOrS
Two days before the majority of students re turned to campus, President Carmen Twillie Ambar announced that Harness Health Part ners had decided not to provide a number of essential reproductive health and gender-af firming care services. These services include the prescription of Plan B, except in certain extenuating scenarios. HHP is the new pro vider of Student Health Services and a divi sion of Bon Secours Mercy Health. The news came as an unwelcome surprise to everyone, including the administration, as indicated by President Ambar’s email to the Oberlin com munity on Tuesday, Aug. 30.
SUBMISSIONS POLICY
Kushagra Kar Emma Benardete MaNagINg EdItOr Lauren Krainess
Abigail Kopp OC ’20
its speed in announcing a partnership with Family Planning Services of Lorain County, who offer reproductive and gender-affirm ing health services as a supplement to HHP. Even though FPSLC will only operate on campus three days a week, the College will offer transportation to their care centers on all other days. Every intention was in our best interest, but the execution and consequent reality is a critical betrayal of our trust.
Ohio Trans Healthcare Policy Will Harm Trans Youth
Elle Giannandrea Emily Vaughan
Editorials are the responsibility of the Review Editorial Board — the Editors-inChief, Managing Editor, and Opinions Editors — and do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff of the Review
Furthermore, the benefits of pu berty blockers are both numerous and significant. According to the Mayo Clinic, these benefits can in clude improved mental well-being, reduced depression and anxiety, improved social interactions and
“My number one concern, by far and away, is the irreversible nature of these procedures,” Hood said. “These procedures — most of them — lead to sterilization. And these things are not reversible.”
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5 OPINIONS The Oberlin Review | September 9, 2022 September 9, 2022 Established 1874 Volume 152, Number 1 OPINIONS
In an email rejecting a previous Student Health employee from a position she applied for with HHP in Student Health, a recruiter for Bon Secours wrote, “You were not wellaligned with the culture of the ministry of Bon Secours Mercy Health, and may not have been happy there long term.” Setting aside the “culture of the ministry” for a moment, we are deeply disconcerted by the greater irony of mismatched cultures and long-term unhappiness at play here.
EdItOrS IN-ChIEf
puberty by suppressing the body’s release of sex hormones. There are two major means of administering puberty blockers — an injection received every three months or a small implant placed in the upper arm — and both can be provided in a doctor’s office, not an operating room.According to Seattle Children’s Hospital, taking puberty block ers should not affect one’s future ability to bear children. The Mayo Clinic backs up this research by explaining that “Use of GnRH an alogues [puberty blockers] doesn’t cause permanent changes in an ad olescent’s body. Instead, it pauses puberty, providing time to deter mine if a child’s gender identity is long-lasting. It also gives children and their families time to think about or plan for the psychological, medical, developmental, social and legal challenges ahead. If an ado lescent child stops taking [puberty blockers], puberty will resume.”
The inconsistent presence of reproductive care services on campus undeniably limits access to these essential services and makes it more difficult and inconvenient for stu dents to get the care that they need. These changes will likely have the greatest impact on members of marginalized communities who already suffer from disproportionate access to contraception. The fact is this: even if the original contract with HHP had been executed as planned, the College’s decision to contract with and thus financially support a healthcare affiliate that broadly denies criti cal reproductive and gender-affirming care to its other clients was already massively prob lematic.Allof this means HHP has its work cut out for it. If it intends to serve students effective ly, it needs to gain our trust, which is no small task. Student feedback reportedly constitutes the majority of the reason Oberlin decided to terminate its contract with University Hospi tals. Without our support and belief in your capacity to do right by us, you cannot serve us.
In all this commotion, the front line of people hurt by the College’s decision was its own previous employees. Last year, the College outsourced to UH, and while some portion of previous College employees navi gated the shift over, not a single person from the old staff was retained by HHP this year. Several previous staff members in Student Health had held their positions for many years, creating opportunities for students to build relationships and become comfortable with the staff. Even if these were employees of UH and not the College, the College should have provided support in assisting these staff members in applying for new positions with HHP. If nothing else, their presence may have reassured students to the mildest degree, and possibly instilled hope that someone on the inside was on our side.
This Editorial Board believes the College compromised its core values, and what may have started as an endeavor to serve students has instead failed to provide us with essen tial services and shaken us to our very core. We know the administration is committed to providing the right care, as evidenced by
Let me start my opposition with some fact-checking. Most gen der-related medical assistance for trans youth does not come in the form of invasive surgery but in stead through puberty blockers, which help delay the emergence of characteristics that come with
At the heart of this conversation is a sim ple question: why would the College contract with an organization with clear ties to the Catholic Church when its views on reproduc tive rights are clearly and publicly opposed to Oberlin’s values? President Ambar has been outspoken about the College’s commitment to reproductive justice, and students have rallied and written about their every need, anxiety, and hope. If ever there were a clear collection of people standing for the same values, this is it. Where does Bon Secours’ rig id adherence to Catholic guidelines regarding reproductive rights fit into our community’s shared goals and hopes?
Editors’ note: In recent months, multiple bills limiting transgender peo ple’s access to healthcare have been introduced in the Ohio State House: HB 454, which would ban gender-affirming care for minors, and HB 61, a clause in HB 151, also known as the “Save Women’s Sports Act,” which prohibits transgender girls from participating in high school and college women’s sports. This piece was written in February of 2020, when an other bill targeting transgender youth was introduced, and it serves as a reminder that this is an ongoing issue as discriminatory bills continue to make their way through federal and state legislatures.
Students today face the dreadful fact of having to place their health and well-being in the hands of an organization that has demon strated to us that its morality supersedes our necessities. There is already a long history of lack of trust between people in marginalized communities and medical providers, and there is no relief in sight. Student Health is meant to be a place that provides support to students. The College needs to face the fact that HHP lacks student confidence, and do the work in rebuilding student trust.
According to Dean of Students Karen Goff, Bon Secours and Oberlin College signed a contract earlier this year wherein HHP agreed to provide all of the services provid ed to students in previous years. The sudden alteration of those terms is unacceptable and inexcusable, and the burden of the fallout is as much on the College as it is on Bon Sec ours. In a worsening national climate around reproductive rights, every bit of uncertainty harms us all, and while Bon Secours may rest comfortably in its Catholic proscriptions on reproductive care, both HHP and the College must now contend with serving a deeply dis trusting student body.
See Access, Page 7
Shift to Bon Secours Mercy Health Contradicts Oberlin’s Values
students, including Cesar Chavez, Dr. Trinh T. Minh-ha, and Kwame Ture.
These past two and a half years of COVID-19 have made approaching health exceedingly challenging. In communities like Oberlin, where most students work, eat, and live togeth er full time, this is especially true. In response to this seemingly never-end ing peril, Oberlin, like other colleges, has developed a two-pronged focus on prevention and management this fall semester. Thus far, Oberlin’s preven tion policy seems to be more effective than its management policy but both have their strengths and shortcom ings.Oberlin’s COVID prevention strat egy can be summarized as follows: through Sept. 10, masks are required indoors except in individual dorm rooms, and all meals are grab and go. After Sept. 10, wearing masks indoors will be optional, but masking proto cols are subject to change based on COVID cases in the surrounding com munity. As a first-year, I have not seen how the Oberlin administration dealt with COVID in the past, and I half expected mandated mask-wearing in classrooms and dormitories through out the year. I am personally relieved that was not the direction they decid ed to Forgo.one, wearing masks makes be ing a first-year more intimidating. Seeing other people’s faces is incredi bly important when interacting, espe cially when meeting new people — an activity that has consumed a lot of my time at Oberlin thus far. It’s hard to
lin students don’t know what TWH is, and most people don’t even know what Third World Internationalism is. The College needs to do a better job of ed ucating students about this housing op tion. TWH is an integral part of Ober lin’s history that must be preserved.
“I think it is really indicative of the direction Oberlin is headed, that it took
The Third World Program House, lo cated in Price House on South cam pus, has a rich and important history at Oberlin College. It was established in 1973 upon the principles of Third World Internationalism and the Third World Liberation Front — multiracial coalitions of radical organizers work ing to build solidarity among the na tions and peoples of the Third World. As of fall 2022, it has been converted into a traditional first-year residential hall.Last May, I contacted the Office of Residential Education to inquire about TWH, which hadn’t been operating as the full program house since the pan demic began. They told me that it did not seem like it held much interest in the community for the upcoming se mester, but that they could consider operating it as TWH if they learned about students interested in the space.
I informed former TWH Residential Assistant Serena Zets, OC ’22, about ResEd’s decision to fill the house as a traditional hall. They expressed con cern and sadness at how quickly such a historic hall was being dissolved.
According to the Oberlin Col lege and Conservatory website, Price served as a “safe space for those who self-identify as a marginalized person including people of color; first gener ation students; low-income students; lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, question ing, and transgender students; and al lies of these persons.”
Eleven days later, I sent ResEd a list of 50 names of interested upper classmen students, enough to fill the house without even including incom ing first-years. They were quick to shut me down, responding that they had already filled the building and I could try reorganizing next year, although no one had moved into the building yet and the housing placements had barely been assigned.
College fourth-year Stephanie Shug ert lived in TWH her first year. She en joyed her experience in TWH as a mul ticultural safe space for undocumented students, first-generation students, and scholarship students.
“It was really interesting to engage with these people from different iden tities in our lounge with the mural and everything,” Shugert said. “We talked about our histories, our peoples’ histo ries, but also how being at Oberlin in a space like Third World was upholding how our presence at Oberlin is in and [of] itself a way of social justice, in try ing to bridge the gap between the ed ucational disparities of marginalized peoples.”Soon, the last students who found solace in TWH — such as Shugert — will graduate, and the history of the house will be lost to new students.
it from being such a radical and historic house to now just an overstuffed, overfull [first-year] residence,” Zets said.
TWH was an invaluable space for students of all backgrounds to convene and work together to learn with each other and fight against injustice.
a mask while sleeping, even in shared sleeping spaces. I understand that this year, due to the massive influx of stu dents, Oberlin is short on available rooms, but separating COVID-positive students and their roommates should be a priority to prevent the spread of COVID and keep healthy students healthy.Another more easily addressed is sue with this policy is that students with COVID are allowed to go into public dining halls, even after the campus-wide mask mandate expires. Again, masks are effective, but they are not miracle devices, and permit ting sick students to roam campus seems very risky. A dining hall is an area frequented by many people who could potentially get infected. It ob viously isn’t realistic to demand that CDS deliver meals to every student with COVID, but it should not be an option solely restricted to those who are too sick to walk. Perhaps students should be encouraged to give their phones or ID cards to roommates or friends so they can pick up food for them, with going in person or seeking delivery from CDS being a last resort. With that being said, it is good that Oberlin has made COVID testing so readily available, and the website does mention that there may be some sort of temporary housing for healthy roommates who are immunocompro mised. This is not meant to be a stern rebuke of Oberlin and the decisions made by the administration, but rather an observation that there is room for improvement in this incessant strug gle to combat COVID.
“When the [United Auto Workers] organizing was happening, all of those meetings took place in Third World House,” Zets said. “When students were fighting against austerity mea sures, all of that happened in Third WorldTWHHouse.”wasan invaluable space for students of all backgrounds to con vene and work together to learn with each other and fight against injustice. Marginalized students at Oberlin face issues that are too often ignored by the administration and larger student body.
isn’t to say that caution is unnecessary, especially with a dead ly virus. However, there is a tangible apathy to COVID guidelines around campus. Many students are relative ly indifferent to mask-wearing within dorms and when meeting with friends, and if COVID were to materialize, it would likely spread with or without these “until Sept. 10” policies. While I wouldn’t make the argument that rules shouldn’t be made at all if few are likely to follow them, I do think it wise of the Oberlin administration to
Lanie Cheatham
“The mission statement [of TWH] was to serve as a space for those com munities but also to serve as a space for organizing and a catalyst for those communities coming together,” Zets said.Now, Price is traditional housing, just another symptom of over-enrollment and the College’s general disregard for preserving safe spaces on campus. The doubles in Price have been converted
TWH is a program house that re quires care and education. Most Ober
“It is one thing to say that there is no demonstrated interest, but the deep root of that is that they didn’t do any thing to garner interest,” Zets said.
It seems irresponsible to force a healthy student to continue to be in close quarters with someone who has tested positive for COVID. In making this decision, Oberlin has overesti mated the efficacy of a piece of cloth or polyester. Catching COVID while working and sleeping in the same area as an infected person is not inevitable, but it is still very likely. Additionally, the CDC does not recommend wearing
I would argue that Oberlin could have been even more liberal with its COVID policies these first few weeks. For example, the mandated graband-go lunch style doesn’t seem like a necessary step. Again, speaking as a first-year student, mealtimes provide students with a prime opportunity to meet classmates and forge friendships outside of one’s dorm. Oberlin’s web site mentions that these temporary policies were decided upon in an ef fort “to reduce the potential impact of the large migration to campus,” but because almost everyone coming to campus this year had to show proof of full vaccination, it seems that this potential impact had already been re duced.This
into triples. Other identity-based resi dence halls, such as Zechiel House, are dealing with ResEd’s seemingly hap hazard placement of people who did not request to be in an identity-based safe space, while other students in search of a safe space dorm are left floundering.TWHserved not only as a safe space but also as a hub for activism and civ ic engagement. The lounge contains a mural depicting historical figures such as Che Guevara, Malcolm X, and Mo handas Gandhi, and TWH brought in several prominent activists to speak to
ResEd Dismisses Requests to Revive Third World House
walk into a room of strangers and, in stead of finding friendly faces, finding friendly masks. I would also argue that the learning process is, to some de gree, impeded by those lurking masks — if not one’s ability to learn from a professor, then at the very least one’s propensity to participate and actively engage with the course material.
not push too hard on these regulations at the beginning of the semester when COVID doesn’t seem to be a significant threat. Overall, though, Oberlin’s pre vention efforts have been reasonable, and it’s important to show Oberlin stu dents and their parents early on in the year that the school is mindful of the COVID crisis. College students don’t like being told what to do either way, but if there is a rise in COVID cases in the future, students may be more likely to take Oberlin’s emergency measures seriously later if the school is more le nient now. Perhaps it would stress the gravity of the situation.
“There aren’t many safe spaces on the campus, or there aren’t many spac es for people to feel authentically them selves and feel comfortable existing in, let alone to build community and foster dialogue in,” Zets said. “And so the fact that there was a whole house where that was part of its dedicated mission was really important, and that it was so open and welcoming and that it could also house allies who were willing to engage and become involved was im portant because it was one of the few spaces at Oberlin that purposefully did that. I think the fact that it is not there anymore makes that kind of communi ty building less possible.”
This semester’s COVID quarantine policy is a different story. If a student contracts COVID, they must self-iso late for “five days after symptoms sur face.” While in isolation, students can pick up grab-and-go meals from the dining halls, but if they are too sick to pick up their own meals, they may con tact Campus Dining Services to have meals delivered. Healthy students whose roommates are COVID-pos itive are advised to wear a mask and “maintain social distance as much as possible,” while continuing to live in the same room.
6 Opinions
College COVID-19 Policies Compromise First-Year Experience
Henry Larson Columnist
Written by Oberlin Fossil Fuel Divestment Working Group Steering Committee: Susan K. Chandler, OC ’65; Molly Cornell, OC ’65; Sylvia Greene, OC ’65; Sally St. John Volkert, OC ‘65
Zoey Birdsong Columnist
This fall, Oberlin welcomes its largest first-year class on re cord for the second year in a row. Many departments, such as Campus Dining Services and the Office of the Registrar, are figuring out how to adapt to accommodate the influx of stu dents, but Residential Education has been under noticeable strain as it tries to find living spaces for everyone. These dif ficulties have immediate consequences for students, but they are also indicative of a pattern at Oberlin.
For example, in a fall 2021 public state ment, Dartmouth stated that it had “launched a comprehensive plan to put forth solutions to help address the ongoing climate crisis, both locally and globally. The plan consists of a di verse set of measures focusing on three areas of impact: research and education, energy ef ficiency and resiliency on campus, and stra tegic investment of endowment funds, which includes investing in energy transitions while reducing all fossil fuel holdings to zero.”
More students are now applying to Oberlin because it has become easier to do so. Over the past few years, the Office of Admissions has eliminated several aspects of the application process such as the application fee, the supplemental essay, and the SAT/ACT requirement. Now, people who can’t pay ap plication fees or don’t have time to write extra essays may have an easier time applying to Oberlin. I applaud these changes.
The Oberlin administration deserves criticism for poor planning and foresight. Administrators should have consid ered their ability to accommodate more students as they set admissions and enrollment targets. While it is valid for up perclassmen to be frustrated about resources on campus be ing stretched, it is important to remember that no one person or group is responsible for the current housing crisis. Every member of the large first-year class deserves to be here, and I am glad that so many people have the chance to get to know and love Oberlin the way I do. Regardless of the challenges stated above, it’s worth celebrating that so many more people are getting an Oberlin College education.
Continued from Page 5
Nobody can change the number of students on campus this year. We can adapt to the crowded dorm rooms and King hall ways and choose to see the extra first-years as an excellent addition to our community. Now, I think our focus should be on pressuring the administration to put its students first so we don’t end up in this situation again, especially now that there are more of us.
By driving up applications, Oberlin can increase class siz es — and tuition revenue — while maintaining their selective acceptance rate. I can’t say for certain that this was the moti vation behind these changes, but it is an effect that the Admis sions Office could have predicted.
Housing ProblemsIndicativeShortageofLargeratOberlin
We don’t doubt that there are members of the Board of Trustees who share our urgent concern. Many have dedicated considerable energy to issues of justice for farmworkers, women, and racial minorities, as well as to sci ence and democracy. We call on Chair Cana van and the Executive Committee to put this call for a public pledge to divest from fossil fuels before the Board at its Oct. 6–7 meeting — and to invite the participation of all sectors of the Oberlin community.
The economic and political power of cor porations which have reaped significant prof its from fossil fuel extraction is unparalleled. It is only through collective action that there is a chance to stop irreversible environmental harm. This venture would add Oberlin’s name to the long list of colleges and universities that have made their divestment from fossil fuels public. Moreover, it would align Ober lin with the millions worldwide who see the disproportionate impact of climate change on those living in poverty, people of color, and to day’s youth. As stated in our letter, what we want is for Oberlin to take on a larger moral responsibility, one that takes a stand against our planet’s ultimate existential threat.
On May 20 of this year, the Oberlin Fossil Fuel Divestment Working Group sent a call to Oberlin officials to join the College’s com mitment to campus-wide carbon neutrality by 2025 with a public pledge to divest complete ly from fossil fuels by the same date. This call to action, which was addressed to Board of Trustees Chair Chris Canavan; Chief Invest ment Officer Jun Yang; Vice President, Gen eral Counsel, and Secretary Matthew Lahey; President Carmen Twillie Ambar; and other Oberlin officials, has now been signed by 190 students, faculty members, and alumni.
duce fossil fuel holdings, and, from previous research, were not surprised by the numbers in their report. However, neither Canavan nor Yang’s report on the present level of current holdings addressed the central idea of the call: the importance of a clear and public fos sil fuel divestment policy. Meanwhile, 64 U.S. colleges and universities — including sister institutions like Middlebury, Amherst, Dart mouth, and Kenyon — have issued commit ments to full divestment.
The Oberlin Review | September 9, 2022 7
Oberlin Must Publicly Divest from Fossil Fuels
“We want a face-to-face meeting with [the Board of Trustees],” Courtney Horner, a third-year College student and member of the working group, wrote. “We want to work with them, not against them. Jun Yang writes about supporting current and future generations of the Oberlin community. That is the exact same thing that we are doing. If [the Board] is not actually listening to and working with the current generation, their support is useless. If I’ve learned one thing from my Oberlin edu cation, it’s that solutions that don’t consider all members of the community they’re trying to help only create more problems.”
In turn, we received two responses: one from Chris Canavan, whose comments were included in a May 20, 2022 article in the Re view, “Student Groups Demand Divestment from Fossil Fuels,” and a second from Jun Yang in a May 24 email to the Working Group. The responses from Canavan and Yang were appreciated.“Theendowment’s exposure to fossil fuels is small and shrinking,” Canavan wrote. “This is deliberate. We haven’t made any new in vestments connected to fossil fuels for some time, and we are letting go of legacy invest ments as fast as we feasibly can. Our legacy exposures are mostly tied up in investments that can’t easily be liquidated overnight.”
According to the Office of Institutional Research, Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences received 10,340 applications for the class of 2026, eclipsing last year’s record-setting 9,243 ap plications and the 7,979 applications received the year before. The class of 2025 was the largest incoming class in at least 20 years, with 777 students in the College and 87 more in the Conservatory. According to Manuel Carballo, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid, this year’s first-year class has, in total, 893 students, including transfers. The size of these last two first-year classes was due, in part, to pandem ic-related deferrals — but that isn’t the only thing at play.
Access to Trans Health Care Threatened in Ohio
integration with other children, the elimi nation of the need for future surgeries, and reduced thoughts or actions related to selfharm. According to a study by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in At lanta, about 1.8 percent of high school stu dents identify as transgender — 35 percent of whom have attempted suicide over the past year.Additionally, a different survey found that out of 20,000 transgender adults, the adults who received gender-related medical treat ments in their youth were less likely to expe rience suicidal thoughts. Many doctors who provide treatments for transgender youth are well aware of these positive outcomes and consider this bill a breach of their Hippocrat ic Oath. Dr. Scott Leibowitz, psychiatrist and the medical director of Behavioral Health with the THRIVE Gender Development Pro gram at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, explained, “It’s a double standard to completely withhold a form of known ben eficial medical interventions.”
Regardless of the abundant benefits ex perienced as a result of gender-affirming medical treatments and the serious negative consequences faced by those without access to such treatments, I oppose this legislation on the same grounds that I oppose anti-abor tion laws: because they take away one’s au tonomy. How someone chooses to alter their body should be completely up to them, not politicians.I’malso upset and concerned because this bill was not created in isolation. This trans phobic type of legislation has been appearing across the country. At least 10 other states have introduced similar bills: Colorado, Flor ida, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Tennessee. Thankfully, South Dakota’s bill was rejected on Feb. 10, and was even met with some Republican opposition. Hopefully Ohio will follow in South Dakota’s footsteps, but in the meantime, we must do our part: Call your representatives and vote in 2020.
The context and framing of this discussion are also important.
Larger incoming class sizes mean that more students get the chance to attend Oberlin, but it also means that Oberlin has less room for its students. ResEd has recently struggled to meet demands for housing. Last year, they converted dorm lounges into rooms, sent out an email asking upperclassmen to secure off-campus housing a month before students returned to campus, and even used The Hotel at Oberlin for student housing. This year, they had to stretch the capacity of some residential spaces by assigning extra students to them, even, in a few instances, placing upperclassmen in housing with firstyears. A few weeks ago, ResEd also considered pairing Res ident Assistants with roommates, even though single rooms are part of the job agreement.
ResEd’s handling of the situation isn’t ideal, but they don’t have much control over the matter. They can’t decide how many students Oberlin admits, but they still have to figure out how to stretch the available housing to fit everyone. They’re just trying to compensate for a mess they didn’t make. If I were them, I’d probably try the same tactics.
We appreciate the Board’s decision to re
Over enrollment is also not entirely the fault of the admis sions office. Rather, it’s part of a pattern at Oberlin and in high er education in general: putting finances above student inter est. Recently, Oberlin has faced pressure to cut costs across the board, as evidenced by several significant cost-reducing changes, such as outsourcing the dining and health services to AVI Foodsystems and Harness Health Partners respectively.
ITS TIME TO OF LEADERSHIPSTUDENTANDINVOLVEMENT
YOU WANT TO START A STUDENT ORGANIZATION Is it an original idea? Think about any clubs that already exist or are considered inactive. No, an organization with this focus alreadyJoinexists.that organization or form a collective! You’ll meet some great new people.It’s not original, but the organization was active less than five years ago. Renew it! You can use the same process clubs use to renew their organizations each year. Yes! No clubs like this exist or have previously existed for the past four academic years. Cool! You’ll need to find five other students interested in starting the club with you first. Then, you can write a charter and send it in to be approved. Does it include any illegal activity or anything against College policy? YesNo Is it meant to be short term, existing for only a semester or year at a time? Yes! I’ve got a cool idea! Text by Cal Ransom, This Week Editor Design by Erin Koo, Layout Editor I’m gonna have to stop you there. Organizations like these aren’t able to be chartered. Yay! You’re on the right track. Keep going! I gave my information to the Office of Student Leadership and Involvement. What hap pens now? If your organization is approved, you’ll be notified. Once this happens, you can reserve spaces, advertise, and get access to funds from the Student Finance Committee.
Photo by Abe Frato
you
visit the Office of Student Leadership and Involvement, you might end up in a meeting with Tina Zwegat, the director of student involve ment.
Congrats on your new organization! You did it! If your organization doesn’t get approved, you’ll have the chance to appeal the decision through the General Faculty voting body. Share five people interested in your club with the Office of Student Leadership and Involvement.When
“I
SO
She
can then guide students through similar orga nizations they could partner with or show them charters from past clubs they could possibly renew.
GO TO THE OFFICE
THIS WEEK
See Figure 1. FIGURE 1 Is it exclusive so only certain people can join? 8
often have students send me emails or stop in saying they’re thinking about starting a club on a certain topic,” Zwegat said.
As an Oberlin alumna, Whitfield wants to connect with Oberlin Col lege students in a way that only a for mer student can.
Political views of one’s family do not dictate one’s own choice of be
For Ewe: Inclusive Fiber Community Hosts Grand Opening ARTS & CULTURE
Juliana Gaspar Arts & Culture Editor
1. Lisa Whitfield, OC ’90, owner and proprietor of the new store, strives for inclusivity and guarantees a space for those who feel underrepresented and
Sydney Sweeney Social Media Posts Spark Debate on Cancel Culture, Celebrity Responsibility
Dlisah Lapidus
hiding her family’s controversial party affiliation. A Twitter user later found photos of the actual hats worn at the party, which instead boasted a parody catchphrase referencing her mother’s birthday, “Make Sixty Great Again.”
even took a trip to the store. Bridget Heinzerling, College second-year and co-instructor of KnitCo, expressed gratitude not only for having a lo cal store with a wide variety of yarns available but also for someone like Whitfield who is knowledgeable in her“Oberlinfield. has always been a really special place,” Whitfield said. “The day after I opened, I went and spoke to the KnitCo class. I just opened the day before and for the next month and a half I had people come in. They would say, ‘I read your mission and I knew I would be safe here’, or ‘I saw your logo and I knew I’d be safe here.’”
“She broke down all of the differ ent kinds of fiber,” Heinzerling said. “She provides a wide variety of differ ent fiber yarns because a lot of people are allergic to animal yarns or they’re a little expensive, and because this is a college town, a lot of people need more accessible options and she was able to provide those. It’s nice to have an option that’s local [and] that has more yarn Whitfieldoptions.”hasopened a space that allows those in need of community to feel accepted and welcomed. This in cludes Oberlin College students who love to knit or to express themselves through other fiber arts. These values were made clear at the grand opening of For Ewe, inclusive of all fibers and all people.
Matter movement. This incident, however, has thrown into question all there is to be said about a celebrity’s ability to read their audience. Sweeney is, of course, no stranger to the fact that a digital presence is a responsibil ity which grows with one’s following. So why now would she neglect to con
For Ewe: an Inclusive Fiber Commu nity opened its doors Thursday, Sept.
Whitfield’s opening has also given community members the opportunity to learn more about fiber types and choices in an inclusive setting.
September 9, 2022 Established 1874 Volume 152, Number 1
Photo Courtesy of @Sydney_Sweeney/Instagram
See Cancel Culture, page 10
Lisa Whitfield stands in front of yarn from her store For Ewe, which fosters cul turally inclusive crafting.
unwelcome in other spaces, especial ly in fiber communities. Although the store itself has been open since midApril, the grand opening only took place last week due to scheduling con flicts.Sunny skies greeted guests as they joined Whitfield for refreshments and a few words from special guests. Bry
Sydney Sweeney’s recent Instagram posts sparked a variety of conversations on cancel culture.
liefs, so to argue that Sydney Sweeney is exempt from this, simply because her mother’s birthday celebration had a hoedown theme, is reductive. As an influential celebrity with over 14 mil lion Instagram followers, Sweeney had previously received praise for her outspoken support of the Black Lives
an Burgess, president of the Oberlin City Council; Janet Haar, executive director of the Oberlin Business Part nership; and Kathy Perales, vice presi dent of the Board of Trustees for OBP, shared words of encouragement with Whitfield before she cut the classic red ribbon with the help of her hus band.“It’s always exciting when we get to invite a new business into Oberlin,” Burgess said. “Over the course of the pandemic, we saw businesses shut down and leave, and it’s been really tough. Since then, we have seen a re surgence in local interest. I’m so glad that Lisa has been able to open up a new business here, … providing a ser vice for our community.”
Photo by Finn Miller
The Oberlin Review September 9, 2022 9
Last week, Euphoria star Sydney Sweeney took to Instagram to wish her mother a happy birthday, shar ing a collection of photos of a hoe down-themed family celebration. It didn’t take long for the internet to uncover some poorly hidden details in the background, “exposing” yet an other celebrity for insensitive politi cal views. The controversy has since mutated into a catch-all case against cancel culture, with Sweeney caught in the Themaelstrom.firstsubject of scrutiny in the post was a picture in which a partygo er is seen wearing a graphic t-shirt of the “thin blue line” flag. The thin blue line flag ostensibly represents Blue Lives Matter, a pro-police movement that arose in opposition to Black Lives Matter and which is often recognized as a reactionary symbol of white su premacy.TheInstagram post also received backlash for featuring a video of the ac tress with family and friends — several clad in red baseball caps — dancing at the birthday party. Fans immediately assumed the caps to be “Make Ameri ca Great Again” merchandise worn by supporters of former President Don ald Trump, and accused Sweeney of
“I know what it’s like to go to Ober lin,” Whitfield said. “I know what it’s like to be exploring all of the different parts of yourself. This is the one time in your life where you can do that in a very contained way. The world out there is not Oberlin. The fights that you fight at Oberlin are small com pared to the fights you’re gonna fight out there. So this is the time where whoever you are, however you identi fy, you should be able to walk into my shop.”Students from KnitCo see poten tial connections at For Ewe. Last se mester, KnitCo welcomed Whitfield into the class as a guest speaker. They discussed all things yarn related and
Continued from page 9
While Sweeney’s fans took to Twit ter to share feelings of disappointment and betrayal by the situation, many others, including news sources, chose to highlight the controversy as another example of the left-wing “woke” men tality and obsession with “canceling.”
Cancel PromotesCulturePublic Figure Accountability
Ramos’ expansive vision for LAL breaks barriers that exist for students not only at Oberlin but in their own homes as well.
Like many student organizations, LAL struggled with a loss of institu tional memory during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, executive board members feel that the organization has found its footing once again, bringing a renewed sense of energy and unity within LAL.
nacular as a way to casually call out a person who had stepped out of line. As with much of our digital vocabulary, this term was eventually appropriat ed the white, mainstream media, and while the trend of calling out celebri ties for unbecoming behavior on the internet has been around since the early 2010s, the term “cancel culture” only entered these spaces recently.
“I want to see as many events hap pen as possible, but I especially want to see more informational events,” Ramos said. “That’s something that
La Alianza Latinx will host their next interest meeting in Latinx Heritage House, officially called Zechiel House.
Now that LAL is gaining momen tum and growing in size, members of the Bort are enthusiastic about recruiting new members and getting them involved in holding positions for planning events.
They were excited to see a large number of new students at the bon fire.“Some of us who planned the bon fire were expecting more returners than first-years, but we were pleas antly surprised at the amount of firstyears and newcomers,” Sablay said.
With movements like #MeToo and the public outcry after George Floyd’s murder in 2020, the social media at mosphere changed, and this term be came associated with more urgent sit uations warranting serious action.
College third-year Cristal Ramos serves as co-chair and program co ordinator for LAL along with Sablay, who joined the LAL Bort during her second year at Oberlin. Ramos has noticed that the organization is run ning especially smoothly this year, and she is confident that LAL is now well equipped to organize large-scale events that are fun, thought-provok ing and valuable to Latinx students.
The act of “canceling” has lost meaning over time. What etymologi cally began in the 1980s as a reference comparing the end of a relationship to the cancellation of a TV show was adopted into African-American ver
Feeling let down by someone you respect, even idolize, is certainly jus tifiable. Many people do feel inter personally connected to celebrities, despite their faults. In this instance, what started as a realization of the values of a celebrity became a display of reactionary internet vitriol, which then devolved even further. What was initially a push to hold an influential person responsible has now trans formed into a politicized attack on the elusive cancel culture — a contempo rary term used to describe some de gree of digital, social, or professional ostracism following a celebrity’s unac ceptable behavior.
sider the importance of politics in her ownOfcommunity?course,itis ridiculous for a so cial media post to warrant threats and aggression, and were Sweeney to show signs of growth from the online expe rience, perhaps the controversy could have died down sooner. Instead, some of her fan accounts were pushed to the point of leaving the fanbase. This was in part attributed to Sweeney’s re sponse, which, instead of an apology, was a slightly defensive tweet in which she said, “You guys this is wild. An in nocent celebration for my mom’s mile stone 60th birthday has turned into an absurd political statement, which was not the intention. Please stop making assumptions. Much love to everyone and Happy Birthday Mom!” Many fans were unsatisfied with the defensive and dismissive nature of the tweet.
Leela Miller Senior Staff Writer
“The Latinx community is so broad and diverse. It can be hard to repre sent everyone because we come from everywhere. We’re encouraging more people of different Latinx identities to join our executive board and our programming committees.”
Sydney Sweeney’s family posed for a picture at her mother’s birthday. Photo courtesy of @trent_sweeneyy/Instagram
Arts & Culture 10
La Alianza Start-of-yearHostsBonfire
“LAL’s presence on campus is part of a wider network of Latinx-identi fying organizations that do extraor dinary work to ensure folks in our community feel affirmed in their identity and that they have a space on Oberlin’s campus,” Sablay said. “At a predominantly white institution that regularly caters to the needs and con cerns of white, middle-to-upper-class students, LAL is important to serving the interests of Latinx students and helping folks build support systems.”
The bonfire’s popularity highlights LAL’s important cultural role on Oberlin’s campus. The group func tions as a support system for Latinx students in a college environment with a Latinx population hovering at just around 8 percent and also serves as a nucleus of Latinx cultural pro gramming and celebration.
La Alianza was great at in the past, and it’s something we want to re commit to, especially because I know many students feel disconnected from their culture or just want to learn as much as they can about it.”
Yet, as the phrase has become more prominent, it has started to be used to describe both major and minor offend ers, leading to widespread paranoia over being “canceled” and unease over shifting power dynamics. In a space where everyone is able to have a voice, and everyone is willing to listen, who’s to say that you won’t be affected? The weaponization of this terminology in vokes fear that a simple mistake could cost any innocent person their private and professional life, which empow ers the free-speech counterculture, moving us further from digital safety and equality. The fear of ostracism is enough to push impressionable people away from safer, more open platforms and into the more nefarious alt-right pipeline, which promises an anti-can cel culture atmosphere.
In addition to new members, Ra mos emphasized a desire to attract students from a range of Latinx back grounds to leadership positions so that LAL’s programming can be as di verse as possible.
“I want to arrange more guest speakers talking about topics that we as Latinx students don’t always have a chance to talk about with our own families due to cultural taboos, such as mental health and the intersection of Latinx identity with issues of gen der, race, sexuality, and class,” Ra mos said. “La Alianza is a social or ganization, and we definitely have a good time, but it’s also meant to be a resource for students.”
La Alianza Latinx, Oberlin’s cam pus-wide Latinx Alliance, welcomed new and returning members at a bon fire chat on AccordingSaturday.toCollege fourth-year Haley Sablay, who sits on the LAL Bort (the organization’s board) as both an interim co-chair and program coordinator, the event was publicized via weekly emails and the first-year orientation schedule. From there, the information quickly spread via word of mouth, and the event saw an im pressive turnout.
If you’re interested in learning more about LAL, contact lal@oberlin. edu or @oc_laalianzalatinx on Insta gram. A total of eight open positions on the LAL Bort will be announced at the next interest meeting taking place at Zechiel House. An in-depth over view of LAL’s structure and hopes for the upcoming academic year will also be Zechieldiscussed.House is located at 207 Woodland Street, Oberlin, OH 44074.
For all of its pitfalls, the internet is a tool. It allows us to contextualize and assemble our collective conscious ness. Like any movement or organi zation, there are sure to be mistakes from which we, as patrons of these systems, can learn from and grow. Maybe one day, if we have not already, we will reflect on “cancel culture” as having gone too far, but isn’t that the formula for a successful movement? Is it really so terrible for young people to enter digital spaces knowing that ac tions — even virtual ones — have con sequences?
Photo by Juliana Gaspar
“I was deeply impressed by everybody who performed,” O’Leary said. “Everybody was really amazing, but also everybody was really human. People made mistakes up there like everybody does, and that made me think, ‘Maybe I could do something in the future if I feel so Kodavartiinclined.’”and Davey said that the purpose of the event was to help build a stronger community among first-year students.
Last Sunday, 16 first-year students performed in Oberlin’s annu al First-Year Variety Showcase hosted by the Obertones at Finney Chapel. The night’s performances ranged from musical acts, includ ing singer-songwriters and improvised soundscapes to taekwondo and magic tricks. The Obertones also performed three pieces over the course of the night.
Adrienne Sato Senior Staff Writer
According to College fourth-years Nihal Kodavarti and Elliot Davey, event organizers and co-presidents of the Obertones, nearly 300 students came to Finney for the show.
“It’s really nice to watch the change in energy from when these 16 nervous first-years walk into Finney Chapel and sort of begin talking to each other, and then by the end of it they’re all so excit ed,” Davey said.
Photo courtesy of @oberlinpal/Instagram, middle left: Mike Crupi
“Another reason, I guess, is to introduce [the first-years] not only to other [first-years] but to other students as well and to just kind of make connections across the campus community,” Lang said. “I’ve definitely made a lot of connections with other students after per forming, and I think that was a really great part of the experience.”
“It was really nice to see people were really hyping each other up — not just the performers, but the audience was all really excited,” Kodavarti said. “It was also nice because it wasn’t just first-years in the audience; the show is open to everyone.”
College first-year Max Lang performed two original pieces at the showcase. Despite only having performed their original music once before, they decided to sign up for the showcase after being encour aged by some friends. Lang mentioned that the energy in the crowd helped them get over some of their initial stage fright.
Davey echoed the sentiment, adding that the supportive feeling at the showcase was something that is a hallmark of the Oberlin community as a whole.
“It’s just really nice to see how supportive the Oberlin commu nity is of each other and of the people who are new to our commu nity,” Davey said. “One of the reasons that I came to Oberlin in the first place was how welcoming the student body is, so seeing that that welcoming spirit is still really alive and well is one of my favor ite things about this show.”
First-Year Showcase
FIRST-YEAR ORIENTATION
College first-year Jo O’Leary attended the showcase and men tioned how much they enjoyed seeing the amount of talent within their class.
“The crowd in there was so supportive of every single person that went up, and it was just a really, really good feeling,” Lang said. “I was honestly worried. I’ve heard so many things about upper classmen being scary to the [first-years], so honestly how good the crowd was was great.”
“It’s a nice way for people who are new to the school to make themselves known and also get to know their classmates,” Davey said.Davey also mentioned that during sound check, first-year per formers were able to start creating a community with one another.
Lang agreed that the showcase was important in fostering con nections between new Oberlin students.
The Oberlin Review September 9, 2022 11
Comic: Taking Stock
Photo courtesy of HBO
What is particularly compelling about Mira’s character is that her cynicism toward her Hollywood success is not framed around seediness or exploita tion. Instead, it is used to reveal a series of truths and ironies often taken at face value within modern cin ema.Director Olivier Assayas’ choice to highlight the locales — craft services, Parisian hotel rooms, and ac tor trailers — pulls the curtain back and exposes the mundane realities of life beyond the silver screen.
The series utilizes René Vidal’s character to ex amine the transcendental nature of cinema for the artists involved. His failed marriage to Jade Lee, the lead actress in the 1996 film of Irma Vep , acts as a thematic throughline for his arc. In the series finale, Vidal returns to the material world and reaffirms his devotion to his estranged wife and children. While Vidal remains grounded, Mira’s physical form is sub sumed by the character of Irma Vep.
Mira peers around a corner in her Irma Vep costume
Irma Vep Offers Sincere Exploration of Film Making
HBO’s Irma Vep is able to shine beyond its languid pacing in an unflinching yet humorous depiction of modern filmmaking. The series follows Mira (Ali cia Vikander), a disillusioned actress navigating the foreign territory of French cinema, as she stars as black-suit specter vampiress Irma Vep in a remake of the 1915–16 silent serial film Les Vampires . The pro duction of Les Vampires under French director René Vidal (Vincent Macaigne) allows the series to work as a meta-commentary on modern-day filmmaking.
In its sincere exploration of filmmaking, Irma Vep is able to uniquely balance conversations around leg acy casting; remakes, reboots, and retellings; and the merits of authenticity when adopting source mate rial. Rather than telling a story about cinema with the noise of lights, cameras, and theatrics, Irma Vep instead uses an unconventional ghost story — a film that encapsulates the spirits of past lives and blurs the lines between the real and the imagined.
Malcolm Bamba Arts & Culture Editor
Anya Spector, OC ’19 from Sept. 14, 2018
Irma Vep interweaves the series’ own footage with scenes from Les Vampires , giving viewers a window into French filmmaking of the 1910s. These flashback scenes, which are reenacted by the present-day cast of Irma Vep , highlight the rudimentary elements of filmmaking in the early 20th century. This is exem plified in a scene in which Irma Vep, played by Mira, lies in the path of an oncoming freight train before successfully escaping at the last second. This is con trasted by cast and crew ushering the actress off to another gig after completing the death-defying stunt.
Throughout the series, Mira also attempts to avoid obligations at the advice of her agent Zelda (Carrie Brownstein). She fears the professional impediments of forming anything more than a friendship with her assistant Regina (Devon Ross) after a failed relation ship with her previous assistant Laurie (Adria Arjo na). Mira passes through many phases of her life and career, which makes her evolution into the “ghost” of Irma Vep — who phases through hotel walls — seem like a natural evolution of the character.
Reprinted
12 Arts & Culture
Vikander and Macaigne’s performances weave together masterfully across the show’s eight-hour runtime. While Vikander’s portrayal of Mira demon strates the mundane aspects of life as a global star, Macaigne’s portrayal of Vidal showcases the sacrific es required of those who devote their energy toward ensuring film projects see the light of day.
After a two-year pandemic hiatus, the Conservatory Art ist Recital Series will return with three concerts spread across the 2022–23 academic year. Featuring a diverse set of Oberlin-associated performers who reflect a variety of post-Conservatory music careers, from Baroque bands to multi-instrumental recording artists, the series will pro vide a snapshot of post-Conservatory musical possibilites. The revived recital will not operate at the same capacity as the most recent series in 2019, which featured a more densely packed schedule.
In September, MacArthur Genius Award Winner and Vocal Performance alumna Rhiannon Giddens will per form alongside singer Francesco Turrisi in a collage-style acoustic performance featuring selections from their Grammy-award winning album They’re Calling Me Home, which delves into the concept of home as both a real and imagined place.
“I can still study with my teacher and prac tice in whatever practice room I want, even in the concert halls,” she said.
This situation is familiar for many Chinese students in the Conservatory. Zihua Ma, a thirdyear violinist, recounts the ways that Chinese in ternational students have stayed close through it all, playing online card games and eating meals together.“Iactually have not heard of any Chinese stu dents that went home,” Ma said. “I would say there were about 20 of us total.”
“So many of us are sad and mad,” Ma said. “There is a solution there, but you can do noth ing. … We believe in our country so much but we feel like we are not accepted there. That’s so hard, and on top of that, this is the first time many of us are living alone. Many of my friends miss home so much they cry a lot. They hav en’t been home in months and months and are having to figure so much out by themselves in a language they aren’t as familiar with.”
Chinese Students Remain on Campus Amid Covid Restrictions
For third-year Conservatory pianist Kyra Lombard, who watched Liu perform at the Chopin competition last year, the chance to see him live provides a welcome exam ple of pianistic virtuosity.
Color-coded QR codes are scanned to track positive cases in every public space, and the gov ernment continues to routinely place cities on lockdown if a handful of cases are reported. This is all part of China’s zero-COVID policy, which, although proven to be effective at controlling the spread of disease, makes international travel dif ficult.Aflight to China is expensive, with some tick ets running into the thousands of dollars. Addi tionally, the flights themselves must be direct so as not to risk possible contamination during layovers. Masking is strongly encouraged at all times, so eating is difficult, and upon arrival, travelers take buses, trains, and boats to get to government-mandated quarantine facilities for an additional minimum of 14 days. These facili ties, by the way, are paid out of pocket. Thus, de spite not having been home for months or years, many Chinese Conservatory students opted to remain in Oberlin over the summer. One such student is Conservatory second-year Allison Du.
Debut.The
“I would say the biggest reason not to go home is financial,” Du said. “You might have to pay someone to help you get the ticket. Then there is also the time it takes to quarantine and all of that. So by the time you’re done, it’s already a month out of your vacation. At home, it’s just my mom. I really miss home, but she’s afraid of the relationship between China and the U.S., like if the protocol changes [and] I might not be able to get back here.”
Another big reason to stay in Oberlin is free practice time. While the rooms of Robertson Hall are filled with the sounds of students practicing during the school year, summer is a time of quiet. Additionally, there are no pianos in China’s quar antine facilities. This quiet really helped Jiaming
Despite all of this, Ma and Du both remain excited for the start of the new school year. Ma in particular looks forward to continuing to en joy the new experiences this unique situation brings.“Ilearned
Walter Thomas-Patterson Conservatory Editor
In November, the Oberlin-bred baroque ensemble AC RONYM will reimagine the works of antiquated 17th cen tury composers into a program aptly called “Dreams of the Wounded Musketeer.” The New York-based ensemble gained notoriety for their sensitive presentations of fairy tale myths in a present-day context.
Photo by Abe Frato
CONSERVATORY Artist Recital Series Brings Star Power to Conservatory Stage
Li, a fourth-year Conservatory pianist.
“Threeinsufficient.performances
“I cannot wait to see Bruce Liu,” Lombard said. “I ap preciated his playing at the Chopin Competition. It’s just incredibly mature and thoughtful and he has this innate sense of Collegemusicality.”third-year Felix Weber echoed this sentiment and noted the relative significance of Liu as a trail-blazing pianist who represents an earlier time of classical compo sition.“It seems like good music, and I’m particularly excit ed to see Bruce Liu because of his dynamic and sensitive approach. He represents a ground-breaking generation of classical musicians. I’m so excited to experience the series because I’ve never seen it before,” Weber said.
how to set up furniture recent ly,” she said. “Growing up in China, I spent so much of my time studying and practicing that I feel like now I can finally spend time with my friends and have fun. Even though we really miss our families, we’re still growing up and learning new things.”
“I think staying here still has benefits,” Li said. “It has made me focus more on playing pi ano, so it actually is a good thing for me.”
A practice room in Robertson building.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, China’s strict COVID-19 policies have been recognized for their lengthy quarantine times, lockdowns, restrictions, and tightly protected travel policies.
Du felt similarly.
13 September 9, 2022 Established 1874 Volume 152, Number 1
Recently, a much faster route through Hong Kong has made it easier for Chinese students to travel home in a timely manner. However, this news didn’t come until the end of August, too late for any such summer travel to be possible.
The last concert, which is not until April, will feature acclaimed classical pianist Bruce Liu, winner of the XVIII International Chopin Competition in Warsaw, Poland. Liu, a former student of Conservatory Piano Professor Dang Thai Son, will perform in Oberlin’s Finney Chapel, which will be his final concert before his Carnegie Hall
Gracie McFalls Senior Staff Writer
series is returning to a mostly positive reception from students, who are itching to attend live concerts from contemporary stars.
A common area between Kohl and Robertson Conservatory buildings.
Zhang explained the unsettling feeling he encountered when he first opened the page featuring the artists who would perform as part of the series.
“I remember initially opening the page and wondering, ‘Wait, is this all there is to offer?’” Zhang said.
For Conservatory Dean William Quillen, however, the return of the Artist Recital Series represents a much-need ed reset. Quillen is looking forward to the return of the se ries alongside the other high-profile performances Ober lin Conservatory students will participate in, including the Sonny Rollins Jazz Ensemble’s trip to the Lincoln Center and the Oberlin Musical Union’s trip to Carnegie Hall.
“We are just so glad to have these performers make their way back to Oberlin,” Quillen said.
Yet, for third-year College student Barry Zhang who spent time as a Conservatory student during the pre-pan demic era, the return of the Artist Recital Series feels woe fully
across a year of school doesn’t really feel like a series — it feels more like three high-pro file performances,” Zhang said. “I’m hoping that in future years it will be able to expand and really feel like a series.”
Photo by Abe Frato
Coach Jess West and the team were so supportive throughout the entire recruitment process. I could depend on them with anything, and they were respectful of my decision regardless of the school I chose. I knew I wanted to focus more on academics than athletics, and finding a balance between the two was difficult. I knew from the moment I came to campus that this was the community I wanted to be a part of. After meeting with multiple coaches and teams, I felt like I already had a place in the OC field hockey family, which was something I hadn’t felt with any other school.
“Most players want to continue doing something athletic after high school or want to start,” Povilaitis said. “One of our top scorers now played soccer in high school, and one of the captains last year … didn’t know how to throw at first [and] became one of the best players on the team.”Second-year Josh Willmore is a var sity athlete on the football team, but is still able to prioritize the Horsecows off the football field. Many Frisbee players have other priorities, but the flexibility of club sports allows them to participate when they can. Wilmore believes that Frisbee has helped his
I’m especially excited about the accomplish ments my team is going to make this season. I know that we are working harder than ever to prove that we are capable of more than what the records from our previous seasons have shown. I am looking for ward to the special moments I’m going to be able to share with them through each achievement. My experience with this team has been more than I could ask for, and I’ve already made memories and friendships that will last a lifetime.
How do you think this goal and overtime win will dictate the rest of your season this year?
IN THE LOCKER ROOM
What is one thing you are most looking forward to this season? How has your experience with the team been thus far?
football skills, and has seen improve ment since his last season. Sometimes he goes to football practice during the day and then throws Frisbee at night with the rest of the team. Willmore isn’t the only varsity athlete who has made time for club sports. Third-year field hockey captain Susan RobinsonCloete participated in rugby events such as rugby prom, and third-year Adrienne Sato, who is on the women’s soccer team, practiced with the ice hockeyRugbyclub.is one of the most rigor ous club sports on any college cam pus — the women’s and trans team, the Rhinos, and the men’s team, the Gruffs, play against other schools within the region for tournaments and scrimmages. Last season, the Gruffs attended the Allegheny Rugby
competitive Frisbee before coming to Oberlin.“Alot of people come in not know ing how to throw a disc,” SterlingAngus said. “You can improve really quickly if you’re committed to it, though.”Following the Preying Manti’s success, the men’s open ultimate team, the Flying Horsecows, went to nationals last season and earned fifth place among the Division III colleges. College fourth-year captain Jack Povilaitis, also known as “Jack Hands,” mentioned that the count less hours the members spent play ing with each other contributed to their progression to nationals. The team also found success from devel oping the A and B team system that
definitely helped me gain a lot more confidence on the field. When I showed up to my first practice during preseason, I was simply trying to get playing time. Now that I have achieved that, the next step is to challenge myself to learn that it’s okay not to be perfect. Finding comfort in making mistakes is something that I’m working on to make myself a better player and challenge myself to do things that I might have been scared to do in the past.
I’ve played for roughly nine years now. My first coach convinced me to play club shortly after fifth grade and later inspired me to play at a higher
Union Spring 7s Championship and won the tournament’s Spoon champi onship. Likewise, the Rhinos played against nearby colleges such as Kenyon College and Baldwin Wallace University.AllObies, whether they are just looking to kick and throw a ball or are a DIII athlete looking to play another sport on the side, have the option of club sports to have fun and compete extensively. The flexibility of club sports allows students to engage with athletics while maintaining their reg ular schedules. These clubs not only form a culture of support but also push their members to improve their skills. From fencing to ultimate Fris bee to rugby, students can take a shot at sports they have never tried before and discover a new talent.
Scoring my goal was definitely a remarkable moment for me, not just because it was the first goal of the season but because it was also the first goal of my collegiate career. It was also the first home game, so scoring on our own turf made it that much more special. Having the entire team run up and tackle me down to the turf was something that made my work worth it; that recognition from the players whom I look up to every day was a feelgood moment on its own.
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Zoe Kuzbari Contributing Sports Editor
Last Saturday, first-year Elly Scheer scored the field hockey team’s first goal of the season, helping it win an overtime game against Nazareth College on Oberlin’s very own Bailey Field. While she gen erally plays defense, her offensive goal brings hope for more victories this season. Scheer has played field hockey since fifth grade and previously played lacrosse and ice hockey as well. Off the field, she’s a prospective Sociology major who enjoys reading and spending time with her friends.
How did it feel to score the first goal of the season?
Field Hockey’s Rising Star Elly Scheer
What made you choose Oberlin field hockey when deciding on a college?
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What are some of your personal goals for your first season on the team? Did scoring this goal change some of your plans for what you want to accomplish this season?
Elly Scheer runs on the field during the game against Nazareth.
Courtesy of Chase Sortor
As a first-year, my goal is to live up to the expectations of both my team and my coaches. As a defender, I’m still learning my place on the [defensive] line with the returning players, and I’m aiming to make a presence on the field and show my teammates that they can count on me to do my part. My first season will set the tone for the rest of my career, and gaining respect from my team and coaches on and off the field will help elevate myScoringgame.
Sports
How long have you been playing field hockey, and how did you get into the sport?
The win will definitely set a tone for the rest of the season and has already motivated us to work harder to gain that same feeling again. Having the stress of an overtime game is something that our team hasn’t dealt with before, and coming out on top was really exciting. I can already see an atti tude change within our practices and in the locker room — we’re striving for the next victory.
Continued from page 16 is similar to a varsity and junior var sity setup. Like many Horsecows and Manti members, Povilaitis came in not knowing how to throw a Frisbee.
level. I was unsure about playing in college until my junior year of high school. I still email him and update him on how my experience has been, and I dedicate my playing to him as he believed in me since day one.
Club Sports Competition Intense, Fun for Athletes
The women’s soccer team and staff pose on Fred Shults Field.
Since then, the team added another win to its streak at a home game on Wednesday night against Waynesburg University. The team will play Olivet College tonight in the NCAC Challenge.
as well as our chemistry on the court, and it’s showing,” Jones said.
On Saturday, the team traveled to take on Wilmington College and secured a second victory against the Quakers. Third-year midfield er Adrienne Sato capitalized on an early foul to score a penalty kick in the first half. Oberlin’s defense was then able to shut Wilmington out for the remainder of the game, securing a close victory for the Yeowomen.
Last weekend, the women’s volley ball team played at the Great Lakes Crossover with a pool of teams from other conferences around the Midwest region. Although the Yeowomen start ed with a loss to Thiel College, they won against both Eastern Mennonite University and Allegheny College in a two-game win streak.
Although they lost in a game on Wednesday against Baldwin Wallace University, the Yeowomen still have a chance to continue the momen tum from their weekend debut this Saturday against Chatham University at Fred Shults Field.
midfielder and cap
ready to move the program forward. This is the most talented team I have coached at Oberlin, and there are big things ahead for us this season.”
Volleyball Set for Historical Season, Strives for .500 Season Finish
Second-year Cami Sweet couldn’t believe the games’ statistics as Coaches Erica Rau and Katie Stansbury read them aloud to the team. According to the coaches, the Yeowomen have a solid chance of winning more than half their games this season — a first in program history. Sweet became the North Coast Atlantic Conference Player of the Week by scoring points for almost half the swings made over the net during the tournament. Additionally, she had a hit ting percentage of 0.475 from 36 kills out of her 59 hits in the tournament.
Andrea Nguyen Sports Editor Kayla Kim Contributing Sports Editor
Women’s Soccer Wins Two Games Over Weekend
The women’s soccer team had a jam-packed schedule this past weekend with a home game against Bluffton University last Thursday followed by an away match against Wilmington College. With the hire of new Head Coach Taylor Houck, all eyes were on the team in their first two games of the season. The pressure was on to see if her offsea son work with the team had suc cessfully reinvigorated the team’s culture and breathed new life into theTheprogram.Yeowomen did not disappoint. In their season debut, the team dominated the Bluffton Beavers in a 5–0 blowout. The Yeowomen fired
“We’re all so dedicated and we all want to win,” Sweet said.
Courtesy of Amanda Phillips
The team’s early success can be par tially attributed to Stansbury, known to the team as “Stanny,” a new assistant coach for the Yeowomen and former Division I volleyball player for Colgate University.“[Coach Stansbury’s] enthusiasm and volleyball knowledge make her an amazing coach. … I think our passers are already better after working with her,” second-year Natalie Dufour said. “She also just brings a lot of energy to theIncourt.”addition to Stansbury’s leadership skills, it doesn’t hurt that the majority of the team is made up of returning players who were part of a historic win against DePauw University and the first victory against Kenyon College in six years. This team almost went .500 last season, and though they weren’t able to achieve their goal, third-years Taylor Gwynne and Andréa Jones earned AllNCAC Honorable Mentions in the end.
The volleyball team huddles before a game
Courtesy of Oberlin Athletics
off 31 shots total and scored goals across the roster: third-year Maya Blevins, second-year Sam Gilfond, and first-year Elena Foley all found their way to the back of the net, with second-year Heather Benway scoring twice to finish the Beavers off. The defense was also stellar, with third-year goalkeeper Benji Maddox securing four pivotal saves in the victory.
The Oberlin Review | September 9, 2022 15
“So far we are two games into the season, and I am already so impressed with this team,” Houck wrote in an email to the Review . “We are fortunate to have both excellent leadership from our returners and a large, impactful first year class who is helping push the team forward every day. The team’s overall com mitment to each other is inspiring and I believe is what’s given us a competitive advantage in the previ ousIngames.”onlytwo matches, almost every player who has seen the pitch has taken shots. Houck’s improvements and the Yeowomen’s renewed confi dence in one another is clear when watching their new, fearless play style.Fourth-year
“The team this year has gained so much confidence through training and our new head coach,” Franklin said. “Having a tight-knit group of people [built around] a coach you can trust has allowed us to start our season with two wins.”
“We have worked hard to have a great relationship with volleyball in general,
tain Camille Franklin is already see ing progress in her teammates’ per formances. In her last season with the team, she’s excited to see how the group will grow under Houck.
The coaches show just as much excitement as their players this season.
“We are so excited about this group of young athletes!” Stansbury and Rau wrote in an email to the Review “Everyone has a lot of experience, and we have strong senior leaders that are
Chris Stoneman Senior Staff Writer
The oldest club sport on campus is the Fencing Club, the Flaming Blades. Newcomers who want to learn how to fence can join FenceCo, an ExCo that introduces them to the exhilarating sport. More experienced fencers can join the Flaming Blades and compete around the Midwest. In its recent his tory, the Flaming Blades has sent members to the Midwestern Fencing Conference, the Collegiate Club Fencing Championships, and two other tour naments hosted by The Ohio State University and Case Western Reserve University. At Case Western’s duel last year, fourth-years Illuin Darlington-Bai and JJ Wroblewski, as well as Arman Luczkow, OC ’22, placed in saber. However, most members of the club fence against each other.
Saying Goodbye to Serena: Reflecting on Williams’ Legacy
Fourth-year volleyball player and track thrower Iyanna Lewis shared similar sentiments to Jefferson and is thankful to Williams for the representation of Black women in sports.
“[The Blades] like to approach it as something fun and interesting to do, rather than in the hyper competitive spirit that many sport fencers embrace,” College fourth-year and club member Desmond Hearne Morrey said.
Oberlin’s club sports scene also boasts a success ful ultimate Frisbee program. In 2019, the women’s and trans ultimate team, the Preying Manti, won Division III nationals. In fact, two members from that year’s team ended up playing for the USA National Ultimate Team. In most cases however, many people who join the women’s and trans team haven’t played the sport before. College third-year Amelia Sterling-Angus is one of the few who played
16 September 9, 2022 Established 1874 Volume 152, Number 1
Frisbee members pose behind a booth at this year’s Connec tions Fair.
Serena Williams competes at the National Bank Open tennis tournament in 2022.
SPORTS
Photo by Leah Miller
In addition, both Serena and her older sister Venus Williams not only entered but also dominated a sport that is predominantly wealthy and white, both on the playing field and in the audience. She has been credited with inspiring more Black tennis players to join the sport, where participation increased by 44 percent between 2019 and 2021, according to an anal ysis by Sports Marketing Surveys. Black players such as Frances Tiafoe, Coco Gauff, and Naomi Osaka have thanked Williams after their games in the US Open this year, saying that they never would’ve picked up a racket if it wasn’t for her.
Andrea Nguyen Sports Editor
Kayla Kim Contributing Sports Editor
“I think that with professional athletes, we get so caught up in sensationalizing them and valuing them only by what they do as a sport,” Pastore said. “Obviously I don’t want her to retire, but I think it sends an important message that even the best need a break, even if it’s a permanent break.”
“She is a woman who looks like me, and has achieved awards, statuses and titles that no one else ever has,” third-year and Black Student Athlete Group co-chair Alyson Jefferson wrote in an email to the Review “To athletes of color, she shows us that our skin color doesn’t slow us down or makes us less [than] anyone else; if anything it makes us stand out more.”
Williams will forever be remembered as one of the best tennis players of all time in both accomplish ments and advocacy. No tribute, memorial, or inter view can ever fully encapsulate the indelible impact that she made for generations of athletes. Thank you, Serena.
See Club, page 14
Oberlin Athletes Shine in Club Sports
“I’m not someone who follows tennis closely, but I always paid attention whenever she played,” Lewis wrote in an email to the Review. “I’m grateful that she paved the way for Black female athletes, particularly in predominantly white sports, because it has opened the doors for so many other athletes that look like me.”After tennis, Williams is hoping to continue rais ing a family and working on her capital firm, Serena Ventures. Pastore is glad Williams will have the time to find her own path and start a new journey.
Anna Pastore, a second-year tennis player, has fond memories of watching Williams play on TV when she was younger. She is one of many who was inspired by Serena’s tenacity and perseverance.
On Sept. 2, Serena Williams’ 27-year tennis career most likely came to a close in a loss to Ajla Tomljanović at the third round of the US Open in the most watched tennis match in ESPN’s history. Williams, who announced her “evolution” from tennis in an essay for Vogue, did not give a specific date for when she would be stepping away from the court but nonetheless has received countless tributes after the game, including an unprecedented on-court postgame interview.
Photo Courtesy of Christopher Katsarov
Although not officially recognized by the NCAA, club sports can get pretty rigorous and competitive. There has been a history of Division III athletes participating in club sports during the offseason at Oberlin College, and no matter the varying levels of ability among the players, these teams focus on having fun with the sport while training intensely.
“It wasn’t just the tennis, it was the way she carried herself and the way she always stood up for herself, even though the media was always really polarized about her,” Pastore said. “I wanted to be … a person like her.”
The world has watched Williams grow from a kid training under her sister’s shadow in Compton, California, to one of the most decorated tennis play ers in history, winning 23 Grand Slam singles, four Olympic medals, and 73 career singles titles. She won over $94 million in prize money, the most won by any female tennis player in history. Williams became known for achieving two Grand Slams, winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon, Roland-Garros, and the US Open consecutively both in the 2002–03 and 2014–15 seasons in what came to be known as a “SerenaHowever,Slam.”Williams has impacted the world in more than the records, titles, and medals that she won. She has remained unapologetically confident in herself and her abilities no matter what people had to say, despite the racism, sexism, and transphobia she faced throughout her career. In a tennis world of dress codes and conformity, she stood out for her unique sense of style, wearing everything including catsuits, trenchcoats, and diamonds. Off the court, she was outspoken about issues that she was passionate about. She wrote a candid op-ed about her near-death expe rience during childbirth to call attention to the higher risk Black women face while pregnant and consistent ly advocated for fair pay in tennis.
