The Spectrum Vol. 71 No. 16

UNIVERSITY POLICE TO HAVE ‘SIGNIFICANT’ PRESENCE AT MICHAEL KNOWLES SPEECH

UNIVERSITY CONCLUDE ALLEN WEST INVESTIGATION WITH NO CHARGES FILED

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UB won’t cancel Michael Knowles’ on-campus speech over CPAC ‘transgenderism’

The conservative commentator, who called for ‘transgenderism’ to be ‘eradicated,’ will speak at a

Americans for Freedom event Thursday

UB won’t bar conservative political commentator Michael Knowles from speaking on campus because of its need to “uphold the principles of the First Amendment,” the university said in a statement Sunday, disappointing students and faculty who had called on administrators to cancel the speech in light of Knowles’ recent remarks about transgender people.

Knowles, a host for The Daily Wire and author of “Speechless: Controlling Words, Controlling Minds,” was invited by UB’s Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) chapter to deliver a speech titled “How Radical Feminism Destroys Women (And Everything Else).” The speech is scheduled for 7 p.m. this Thursday in Slee Hall.

Knowles made national headlines this week after saying that “transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely” in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday.

In the days following that speech, UB faculty and students petitioned the university to cancel this Thursday’s YAF event on the grounds that Knowles’ speech at CPAC incited violence against trans people.

Three UB faculty members wrote and circulated an open letter to UB Presi-

dent Satish Tripathi asking him to rescind Knowles’ invitation to campus because of what one of the letter’s authors, UB Gender Institute Director Carrie Tirado Bramen, called “Knowles’ call for genocidal violence against trans folk.”

Several other university-affiliated groups — including the Art Department, English Department and Graduate Student Employee Union (GSEU) — also issued statements in support of trans students and, in some cases, called on the university to cancel the speech.

David Schmid, an English professor and one of the authors of the letter, told The Spectrum that upwards of 2,500 people had signed the letter via Google a form as of Monday evening, about 48 hours after it was first posted.

“[It’s] quite impressive for a place like UB, where it’s often difficult to get people energized, but people are energized about this,” Schmid said. “People are scared, and I’m talking in particular about trans members of our community. For them, this is literally a matter of life and death. I’ve heard from a number of people that say they are afraid of the consequences of bringing this speaker to campus.”

Architecture professor Martha Bohm wins seat on survivors’ life raft

recap of the 12th annual UB Honors College Life Raft Debate

Donned with floral leis, students tossed large beach balls around the Student Union Theater as they awaited the start of the UB Honors College’s Annual Life Raft Debate Monday evening.

Professor Martha Bohm, a first-time competitor, won this year’s debate , receiving a nameplate on the trophy oar. Bohm received 26% of the 80 overall votes — just one vote more than the runner-up, Mark Frank.

The debate takes place in a fictional end-of-the-world scenario. The students in the audience, stranded on a hypothetical life raft in the ocean, represented a small group of survivors who were escaping a “global cataclysm” to begin a new civilization. With only one seat life on the raft, students must choose one professor from among the debaters — Martha Bohm, Chad Lavin, Cecilia Martinez-Leon, Noemi Waight and Joseph Costa — to take with them as they rebuild society.

“Professors are representing their disciplines, not just themselves,” Patrick McDevitt, Academic Director of the UB Honors College, said in his introduction.

Costa, last year’s winner and professor in the Department of Anatomical and Pathological Sciences, had to play “devil’s advocate.” Costa said his job was to “do his best to get the students to not select anyone, to keep the seat open on the life raft.” Despite the daunting task, Costa said he felt confident and “very comfortable” heading into the debate.

In the audience was Costa’s daughter, Julia, who said it was “cool” seeing her father back on stage following his “exciting” win last year.

First in the random speaking order was Bohm, professor of architecture and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. Bohm, like the other contestants, was given eight minutes to make her case to the audience.

“Architecture is the cornerstone of civilization, and architecture invented cornerstones,” Bohm said, going on to argue that bringing an architect on the life raft would ensure that students would have shelter.

But her argument wasn’t solely practical. Bohm cited examples of spiritually significant architecture, such as the Hagia Sofia and the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Washington D.C.

“I think there’s real meaning that we need to find, and memory we need to maintain. I think we need a place that does that, a place of dignity, and you need to remember what we’ve lost,” Bohm said. “After 9/11, we built a memorial to remember that place and that loss. And that’s what spatial design architecture can do: give us a place to hold our memories”

Following Bohm was Lavin, an English professor arguing for political theory, who took a more playfully flattering approach. Planting the seeds of contempt between survivors on the raft, Lavin argued that political theory “helps us understand what power is,” which he stressed is important “if you want to take control of this raft.” He compared political theorists to Machiavelli, a master manipulator, whom Lavin noted as the type of person you’d need on the raft to maintain order.

“Politics is essentially a struggle on the battlefield of language,” Lavin said. “We’re going to need some stories that give our life meaning and purpose. Stories that make us believe that we are a we.”

Martinez-Leon, director of the Engineering Management Program and an

industrial engineering professor, followed with a compelling slideshow and a figurine of Remy from “Ratatouille.” “My job is not just to get you there, but to help you achieve your goals,” Martinez-Leon said.

GRANT ASHLEY MANAGING EDITOR

‘We need to end this cycle of hatred’: queer UB students speak out against Michael Knowles

Michael Knowles called ‘transgenderism’ to be ‘eradicated from public life’ in a speech Saturday

VICTORIA HILL SENIOR NEWS EDITOR

After UB announced that it would not cancel conservative commentator Michael Knowles’ on-campus speech, some students say they are unhappy with the decision and will protest the event outside Slee Hall, where Knowles is set to speak Thursday evening.

Knowles, a host at The Daily Wire, has drawn national and local criticism after delivering a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in which he said that “transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely.”

“Any direct interaction with Knowles is only going to lead to him finding some way to make the community look ridiculous; to try and belittle us and any argument we make,” Talia Wright, a freshman biochemistry major, said. “It’s better to protest and advocate for trans people as a whole and the LGBTQ+ community as a whole, in a positive way.”

Jennifer Torres, a freshman aerospace engineering major, is hoping that the protest will show unity for the transgender community at UB.

“I hope that many people will show up to the protest. This will be a sign of unity on the campus, despite opposition, despite people who state we don’t belong and that we should not exist, despite that — we won,” Torres said. “We choose to represent and stand together regardless of what we’re facing.”

Campus Living will be holding a peaceful protest march from the Blake Center in the Ellicott Complex to Slee Hall. OUTpatient and UB LGBTA are holding an LGBTQIA+ dance party in the Student Union lobby during the speech, and UB LGBTA is also hosting tabling events in SU Thursday.

Still, some students have reservations about a public protest.

“My biggest concern is that a public

protest could turn violent fast,” Samantha Syracuse, a sophomore psychology major, said. “I completely support pushing back against this event, but a protest seems risky. To me, this man is way too far gone to be reasoned with, and things could easily turn into a shouting match where he uses that to twist an argument or a fight breaks out.”

Other students have taken additional measures outside of these organized events to protest the speech.

One anonymous UBReddit post stated that some students reserved up to 20 tickets for Knowles’ speech and were not planning on showing up.

According to YAF’s Eventbrite, “A ticket does not guarantee entry and is revocable,” YAF’s Eventbrite page reads. “Any unclaimed seats will be given to those in the standby line up to 15 minutes prior to the event start.”

An open letter to UB President Satish Tripathi addressed the university’s decision to let Knowles speak in an email to the campus community Tuesday, writing that UB “must support the constitutionally protected democratic principles of the First Amendment.”

The Spectrum spoke to students who said they were “disappointed” and “unimpressed” with the email.

“I really don’t think it’s productive at all because we’ve been hearing the same message over and over again. It hasn’t achieved anything besides just making the university look good,” Julian Livingston, a sophomore psychology major, said. “Inviting controversial figures is something that keeps happening, and it’s going to continue happening unless something changes.”

Last spring semester, YAF invited former congressman and conservative pundit Allen West to campus to give a speech titled “America is not Racist.” West’s visit prompted student protests.

Livingston wishes that the email

UB Equity, Diversity and Inclusion office receives “steady stream” of complaints ahead of Micheal Knowles’ appearance

Majority of callers have asked the office to cancel the Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) event set for Thursday

KIANA HODGE NEWS EDITOR

The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) received a “steady stream” of calls, emails and contact forms regarding conservative commentator Michael Knowles’ speech slated for this Thursday, according to EDI Director Sharon NolanWeiss.

The majority of callers have asked the university to cancel the Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) event following a speech Knowles made at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday in which he called for “transgenderism” to be “eradicated from public life entirely.”

Many on social media implored Western New Yorkers to call EDI and stop Knowles’ appearance at UB.

“Tell them it isn’t free speech to call for eradicating an entire group of people, which includes members of their own community,” Our City Action Buffalo, a coalition of community-based organizations, said in an Instagram post Sunday. “Tell UB that in addition to canceling the event, they should put out a statement to affirm their trans and gender non-conforming students.”

EDI has also received communications advocating for the event to move forward.

Nolan-Weiss stated that EDI doesn’t

have the personnel to individually respond to each telephone call, but they are responding to UB students, faculty and staff who contacted the office through email or forms.

“EDI recognizes the feelings of pain, betrayal, and a lack of safety that so many members of our community feel as a result of the YAF event,” Nolan-Weiss said in an email to The Spectrum. “UB has been consistently expanding measures for transgender inclusion in our policies, activities and resources, from incorporating chosen names and pronouns, to providing support through LGBTQ+ campus organizations, to adding all gender washrooms across campus, and we will continue to develop measures to promote inclusion for our transgender community in the days, months and years after Mr. Knowles has left our campus for his next speaking engagement. One speaker does not have the power to change our efforts and our commitment, which will persist.”

Controversial speakers are allowed to give speeches at UB, even if the views of the speaker, or content of the speech is hurtful or demeaning, UB said in a statement Sunday.

Nolan-Weiss said that there is a “widespread misperception” that hate speech is not protected by the First Amendment. UB considers guidance such as that pro-

would’ve included resources for transgender students, to make them feel safe and advocated for.

Inviting Knowles to the campus doesn’t give Livingston a “good feeling about the UB community.”

“It’s really tiring and exhausting to see our rights being debated by people who couldn’t care less about us and while I am thankful for our allies who are standing up and speaking for us and for our safety, I also find it really important that we ourselves as trans individuals step up,” Torres

said. “At the end of the day, we are the ones who are directly being hurt by this, and we can’t go out silently… we have to fight.”

Torres asks for allies of the transgender community to show up to the protest.

“Join us and just live with us — exist with us — on Thursday and show your support because that visibility will help make a difference,” Torres said.

Email: victoria.hill@ubspectrum.com

vided by the U.S Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR).

The OCR states that in order to establish a hostile environment, harassment must be sufficiently serious as to limit or deny a student’s ability to participate in or benefit from an educational program.

As such, OCR wouldn’t determine that an optional student-sponsored event would create a hostile environment, giving UB grounds to disallow students from hosting the event on campus.

Nolan-Weiss believes that the community can still use their own speech to “uphold our values and support those in our community who are most affected by their vitriol.”

“Hateful and dehumanizing rhetoric is an affront to everything our community embraces,” UB President Satish Tripathi said in an email to the UB community Tuesday. “To all those who are disenfranchised, marginalized and persecuted, including our transgender community, please know that we support you, and we will continue to uphold UB’s cherished values of diversity, equity and inclusion to ensure that the university remains a safe and welcoming place for you.”

Affected members of the community can access resources on the Office of Inclusive Excllence’s website or get support from the Office of Student Engagement.

Email: kiana.hodge@ubspectrum.com

Moaz Elazzazi / ThE SpEcTruM Queer uB students are encouraging people to protest ahead of Michael Knowles’ speech in slee

Moaz Elazzazi / ThE SpEcTruM controversial speaKers are allowed to give speeches at uB, even if the views of the speaKer or content of the speech is hurtful or deMeaning uB said in a stateMent sunday

Aging isn’t as scary as you think

doesn’t have to be a horrifying thought.

One day, if you haven’t already, you might meet someone who will change your life forever. Eventually, you might call them “partner.” Someday, you might get married and whether you want kids or not, you and your partner become a family.

One day, your old, achy self will sit in a reclining chair as you watch your grandkids laugh and play. You’ll take a look around at the wonderful family you’ve helped create, and that’s when you’ll feel true fulfillment.

I know you miss those comforting times.

When the world was filled with all sorts of vibrant colors.

When you were 12 years old: riding bikes with your friends to your local ice cream shop during the sweltering summer.

When your biggest concerns were what you were having for dinner and what time your parents wanted you home on the weekends.

Well, here you are. You’ve made it to college, and you’re having the time of your life. But you miss the freedom of being a child.

Now, the world seems gray. Bike rides with your friends have been replaced with a summer job.

Now, you’re tasked with deciding what career you’ll stick with for the rest of your life.

Oh, and you might start to go bald.

You’re not alone in this fear, but aging

You might also discover your vocation, or your calling. The thing you were born to do and are truly passionate about. The thing that gets you out of bed in the morning.

Whatever you envision your ideal future to be, getting there is sure to be difficult. But if it was easy, life wouldn’t be as rewarding.

The meaning of life is measured by the amount of yourself you’ve invested in it, and difficulty makes us stronger people as we get older.

You and your partner might get into arguments from time to time, but it won’t matter if you love them all the same.

Your children may eavesdrop on your arguments, and you might feel guilty having presented yourself in a negative way. This will bring your children closer together as they get older. They’ll form a bond stronger than steel.

Eventually they’ll have children of their own, and you’ll watch the process of life unfold from the outside looking in.

Why fear old age when we’ve only just begun our stories? We may think 18 or 20 or — god forbid — 22 is old, but we’ve only scratched the surface of what life holds for us. We have time to figure out our careers and to find our partners. Maybe you want to stay single and focus on your career, which is also a viable option. You may not want kids which will save you money and allow you to focus on your personal goals.

The future doesn’t exist yet. Your life can unfold in any way you want it to. You are in full control of your own destiny.

That’s the beauty of getting older. They say life is short, but we’ve got plenty of time on our hands to decide how it all plays out. As human beings we fear the unknown, but embracing the twists and turns that life throws at us can turn our fear into excitement.

Relax, take a deep breath. We’ve got wild rides ahead of us all. Rather than lament our fates, let’s look forward to the beauty that awaits us.

Email: dylan.greco@ubspectrum.com

Knowles’ statements on transgenderism not only constitute hate speech; they also demonstrate a profound ignorance of science. To counter his irresponsible and dangerous rhetoric, this should be pointed out. I heard some of his anti-trans remarks at the Conservative PAC — “transgenderism is false,” “a man cannot change into a woman.” He simply doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He knows nothing about the biology of sexuality, and in that ignorance he represents a growing number of influential politicians. We as a university, a center of higher learning, should counter such ignorance with rational statements of science-supported fact. This is a very foundational reason for our existence.

Respectfully,

Phillips Stevens, Jr., Ph.D. Associate Professor of Anthropology Emeritus University at Buffalo, SUNY

Gifting flowers for a holiday does more harm than good

Next

It’s winter in Buffalo. The ground is covered in snow, and the temperature is far below freezing.

But Trader Joe’s has a fully stocked display of fresh flowers.

It’s no secret that flowers are an important aspect of celebrating certain holidays. Día de los Muertos, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, anniversaries and birthdays in between wouldn’t be the same without the colorful displays.

But the timing and scale of these holidays makes it nearly impossible to satisfy the demand with locally-sourced flowers.

Flowers purchased at a chain grocery store traveled much further than the bouquet for sale at the local farmers’ market, but holiday flower demand causes markets to rely on more distant sources.

This year, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported 1.15 billion inspections of cut flower shipments for Valentine’s Day, most of which had come from Ecuador and Columbia. The most commonly imported cut flowers were roses.

These long-haul shipments have a huge carbon footprint, but jet fuel isn’t the only concern.

Many of the flowers sold for arrangements are grown with copious amounts of fertilizers and pesticides so that farmers can increase their production.

Weak flowers can’t sustain the journey or stay perky in a vase for long. These flowers also use large-scale refrigeration units to keep them in their best condition. This increases the flowers’ carbon footprint by using ecologically-damaging refrigerants

like CFCs, which deplete the ozone layer.

Some flowers are grown domestically, but require heated greenhouses and massive energy consumption.

The impact of cut flowers is not only endemic to the colder seasons. Many of the most beautiful bouquets contain flowers that can’t grow to the same quality under local conditions, requiring temperature-controlled greenhouses, fertilizers and pesticides.

It is up to farms to prioritize sustainability, use renewable energy and employ ecologically-sensitive fertilizers and pesticides whenever possible.

An experiment completed by the Cumberland Flower Farm in the U.K. swapped out flowers in one of their signature bouquets from internationally grown stems, to the same varieties grown locally in a greenhouse.

The latter bouquet had one-tenth of the carbon footprint of the initial bouquet. The experiment also created the same size

bouquet with native and local, outdoorgrown alternatives, ending with a carbon consumption one-thirtieth the size of the original bouquet.

The experiment concluded that consumers should purchase native flowers, instead of going for the roses every time.

In Buffalo, we don’t always have the option to choose varieties that grow in our local conditions.

For events outside of our local growing season, cut flowers don’t have to be the only option. Paper flowers, handmade cards and gifting experiences are not only more sustainable but last longer and can be more easily personalized.

Next time a holiday calls for a bouquet, opt for a local option — or ditch the display.

Email: opinion@ubspectrum.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 9 2023 VOLUME 71 NUMBER 16 CIRCULATION: 3,000

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The views expressed – both written and graphic – in the Opinion section of The Spectrum do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board. Submit contributions for these pages to The Spectrum office at Suite 132 Student Union or news@ubspectrum.com. The Spectrum reserves the right to edit these pieces for style and length. If a letter is not meant for publication, please mark it as such. All submissions must include the author’s name, daytime phone number, and email address.

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University Police to have ‘significant’ presence at Michael Knowles speech

UB’s YAF chapter spends thousands on additional security

MORGAN S.T. ROSS ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

University Police will “implement robust security and safety operations” at conservative commentator Michael Knowles’ oncampus speech this Thursday “to maintain safety and to protect all parties’ rights to free speech before, during and after the event,” according to UB spokesperson John Della Contrada.

Police will maintain a “significant” presence inside and outside Slee Hall, where Knowles is slated to speak. Attendees will have to pass through security checks and be wanded.

“Members of the UB community and attendees are reminded to immediately alert UPD to any instance of unlawful conduct, especially those that pose threat

to personal and campus safety,” Della Contrada said.

The UB chapter of Young Americans for Freedom, the organization that invited Knowles, has also hired outside security. The group has used approximately $2,544 from their club budget to hire Excelsior Security to staff the event, according to the SA general ledger.

On the event’s ticketing page, YAF states that it will enforce metal detector screenings and require ticket holders to provide identification to verify entry to Slee Hall. Items such as banners, air horns and signs are prohibited. Any attendees considered “disruptors” will be removed from the event and are “subject to prosecution.”

The Student Life Freedom of Assembly Support Team (FAST) will also be present

Life Raft

As a master of systems, she reminded the audience that “we are systems, we live in systems.”“Do you want to just survive, or do you want to have fun?” MartinezLeon said, before she put on a “Vote for Cici” ringer T-shirt.

Frank, a professor of communication, introduced his background in nonverbal communication by giving an overview of the history of Neanderthals, driving home the point that effective communication is necessary for survival.

Frank reflected on his days as a bouncer at a bar, as well as the time he spent completing his doctorate in a medical school and working with military law enforcement, where he “did a little special agent training.” He used these experiences to highlight his other skills, while still maintaining that communication was most important.

“Communication helps us learn from the past to address current problems,” Frank said before dramatically dropping the microphone into his hand. Waight, a professor of science education, discussed her upbringing in Belize chasing lizards and playing with worms.

“All of these experiences were steeped in wonder,” she said.

Waight argued that “science education is at the crux of future possibilities — think big issues like food security, climate jus-

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

tice, climate sustainability, and resiliency,” she said.

She told the audience that having a science educator on the life raft would give them a team player, a collaborator, an innovator and a problem solver.

“Scientifically literate people are better positioned to make critical decisions that benefit all of humanity,” Waight said.

After Waight made her opening statement, rebuttals began. The contestants each had two minutes to refute the claims of the others and reiterate why their discipline would lead to success. Bohm attempted to bribe students for their votes with pencils.

When the rebuttals concluded, Costa, the devil’s advocate, posed rhetorical questions for the audience to consider while voting. He asked which of the disciplines are immediately useful, and which ones ensure long term survival. He noted that he was the first person to ask the question: “What can you do without any of these disciplines?”

After being elected the victor, Bohm attributed her success to “thousands of years of fantastic work” that she was able to leverage in the debate.“Architecture is critical for shaping our tomorrow,” she said.

Email: news@ubspectrum.com

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for students and faculty who wish to attend. The FAST team is a committee of university staff who support “students at activist events as they learn how to be agents of positive social change.”

Knowles drew national criticism after saying that “transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely” in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday.

Knowles was originally scheduled to appear at UB on April 26, 2022, but the event was postponed. At the time, Connor Ogrydziak, then-acting president of the UB’s YAF chapter, told The Spectrum that the club postponed the speech because of a “need to hire security outside of the university,” among other factors.

Knowles’ speech comes 11 months af-

Pushback

ter former congressman and conservative commentator Allen West delivered a speech titled “America is not Racist” in the Student Union. UPD had an “increased presence” at West’s speech following Yik Yak posts that threatened violence against student protestors. UPD later investigated three counts of harassment related to the event.

UPD is asking that attendees notify them of any threats or harm to personal or campus safety. UPD can be reached at (716) 673-333 for all campus-related emergencies.

Email: morgan.ross@ubspectrum.com

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

The letters’ authors closed the form Tuesday, writing that it was “being formatted and sent to President Tripathi.”

In an email to the university community Monday, Tripathi said that UB was “grateful for the many meaningful contributions” made by LGBTQ+ community members but reiterated that the university couldn’t legally disallow YAF from hosting Knowles.

“When faced with the prospect of intolerant and hateful speech directed at transgender people entering the campus dialogue, I understand that espousing our university’s values and clarifying the First Amendment may ring hollow — and, indeed, feel wholly inadequate,” Tripathi said. “But let me reassure you: These values of diversity, equity, inclusion and respect keep us grounded. They guide our every action. As the bedrock of our university, they most certainly do not crumble when confronted with dehumanizing, transphobic rhetoric.”

Schmid didn’t expect UB to cancel Knowles’ speech but said that the university’s statement showed it was trying to have things both ways.

“You cannot say that you are working to create a safe atmosphere for all members of the community and at the same time give this bigot a platform at UB,” Schmid said. “Those positions are not commensurable. One of these things has to give.”

Lawrence Mullen, the head of GSEU and president of UBQ, UB’s queer graduate student organization, said that UB was “hiding behind” its interpretation of the First Amendment and “abandoning trans students” in the process.

“If it is really a First Amendment violation, and the University of Buffalo is sued, then get sued,” Mullen said. “You’re choosing to bring a fascist to campus. If

the alternative is [that] you get to protect your trans students — and your trans students, faculty and staff know that they have a safe place — then get sued by a fascist student organization. That’s a no brainer to me.”

UB’s YAF chapter created controversy last spring after inviting conservative commentator and former U.S. Rep. Allen West to deliver a speech titled “America is Not Racist.” The lecture drew dozens of student protestors both before and during West’s appearance on campus. The university investigated three reports of harassment and several Yik Yak posts that threatened violence against student protestors. Then-YAF president Therese Purcell said she was chased into a bathroom in O’Brian Hall, a series of events consistent with University Police reports and security camera footage obtained by The Spectrum

“Our YAF chapter at UB is not unfamiliar with pushback from both university faculty and students,” Connor Ogrydziak, the president of YAF’s UB chapter, told The New Guard, a YAF-affiliated publication. “Each speaker event sees attempts to suppress them, but we will continue to remind everyone that the First Amendment covers all ideologies, even those not regularly promoted on campus.”

Ogrydziak didn’t respond to a request for comment from The Spectrum

Knowles was originally scheduled to speak at UB on April 26, 2022, weeks after West’s speech, but YAF postponed the event, citing “time constraints” surrounding the “need to hire security outside of the university” and “set final arrangements” with the Student Association.

Email: grant.ashley@ubspectrum.com

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Lewis Family holds press conference demanding arrests of Tyler Lewis’ alleged assailants

The family of Tyler Lewis, the Buffalo State sophomore who was fatally stabbed near the Ellicott Complex last October, called on the district attorney to arrest the alleged perpetrators at a press conference Monday in front of the Erie County Court.

The Lewis family was accompanied by the family’s legal team and community members, as well as the co-founder of Black Lives Matter, Melina Abdullah.

“Throughout what is considered the grieving stage, we’ve had no time to grieve,” Karla Longmore, Lewis’ girlfriend, said. “We’ve been fighting for justice and having to take matters into our own hands, and that is due to the DA’s incompetency and lack of concern for this case.”

Longmore added that it has been almost five months since Lewis’ murder..

James Williamson, the attorney representing the family of Tyler Lewis, said that the Lewis family’s legal team wants to ensure that whoever is responsible “is brought to justice.”

“Every minute, every second, every hour is building up and causing more unnecessary pain,” Williamson said.

Williamson also confirmed that a grand jury has been convened in connection with the case, which was originally reported by The Spectrum last month.

“It’s really, really important that we understand that the district attorney is not moving for justice for Tyler Lewis because Tyler Lewis is a young Black man,” Abdullah said. “When mothers send our children off to college, we expect those universities to keep our children safe. When we send

Faculty not required to get COVID-19 vaccine despite December 2021 Hochul announcement

UB recommends that students and faculty stay up to date on COVID-19 booster shots

VICTORIA HILL SENIOR NEWS EDITOR

them to college, we expect the university to treat our children with love and care. That’s not what we’re seeing with Tyler Lewis.”

Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said in a statement that his office has “met with the family of Tyler Lewis on numerous occasions” to “regularly provide updates on this ongoing investigation.”

“Any claim that our office has not been transparent with the Lewis family is completely false,” Flynn said.

The Lewis family encourages those that have any information on the incident to come forward using the anonymous tip line set up by the family, which can be reached at (716) 226-6336.

Email: suha.chowdhury@ubspectrum.com

SUNY faculty members are not required to get vaccinated against COVID-19 per a SUNY policy that went into effect last September.

Governor Kathy Hochul announced that SUNY faculty and staff would be required to get vaccinated in December 2021, an announcement that “blindsided” campus union leaders. The faculty vaccine mandate couldn’t go into effect until United University Professions (UUP) and the state came to an agreement regarding its implementation.

UUP and the governor entered negotiations on a potential mandate in February 2022.

“UUP is negotiating a new contract with the state. This process began last year,” UUP spokesperson Mike Lisi said in an email to The Spectrum. “Before negotiations began, both sides mutually agreed — as part of negotiations ground rules — that neither would discuss issues being negotiated in public or with the media.”

Neither SUNY nor the governor’s office responded to requests for comment.

While students who plan to attend inperson classes and/or utilize in-person services at a SUNY facility are still required to provide evidence that they have completed their primary COVID-19 vaccination series, other vaccination requirements for students have changed.

UB students are no longer required to receive any booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, per UB’s health and safety guidelines. Students enrolled at UB for the spring 2022 semester were required to receive a booster shot before the start of that semester.

UB students with religious and medical exemptions no longer have to undergo

mandatory weekly surveillance testing. That requirement was dropped at the start of the fall 2022 semester, John Della Contrada, a university spokesperson, said.

UB’s health and safety guidelines strongly encourage UB employees and students to stay up to date with their vaccinations, including getting COVID-19 booster shots when eligible.

About 98% of UB students are vaccinated, as were 92% of UB employees, according to data from the spring 2022 semester, according to Della Contrada.

“Neither UB or SUNY have the authority to mandate vaccinations for all employees because they are represented by collective bargaining agreements — only the state can negotiate mandatory vaccination requirements,” Della Contrada said.

Della Contrada says students should get tested if they have COVID-19 symptoms and stay up to date on their COVID-19 booster shots even though they are no longer required by the university.

Dec. 24, 2022 saw the highest spike of positive COVID-19 cases in Erie County since June 2022. Cases reached a high of 18 positive cases per 100,000 people a day and now stay at around 11 positive cases per 100,000 people.

Erie County is at a medium community risk level, according to CovidActNow. Only 17.8% of the population has the new bivalent booster.

The booster shot is recommended at least two months after completion of a primary series vaccination. COVID-19 boosters are available at most local pharmacies.

To keep up with the latest updates on UB’s COVID-19 planning and response, visit the university’s website.

Email: victoria.hill@ubspectrum.com

University Police conclude investigation into events surrounding Allen West speech with no charges filed

The Erie County District Attorney’s office announced it won’t press charges against any individuals in connection with the events surrounding Allen West’s speech last semester.

“Our office could not prove that a crime occurred beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law,” Kait Munro, a spokesperson for the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, said in an email to The Spectrum

West, a conservative commentator and former Republican congressman, was invited by UB’s Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) chapter to deliver a speech titled “America is not Racist” in the Student Union last April. In response, dozens of students protested before and during West’s speech.

University Police had been investigating, among other things, reports that protestors had harassed “three students who had organized the event that evening” for months, UB spokesperson John Della Contrada said in a statement. That investigation included multiple interviews with witnesses and review of campus security video footage and social media posts.

The case had remained open for months following West’s appearance.

According to police reports obtained by The Spectrum, all three complainants said they were chased by a “group of approximately 50 to 100 people” from the Student Union to O’Brian Hall. One student organizer who filed a report removed their shoes because they “could not run fast enough with them on” and hid from protestors in a men’s bathroom on the second floor of O’Brian with another UB

student. A second student organizer said they passed the bathroom and “continued to run, eventually losing the group in a different building.” A third student organizer said they ran from O’Brian to Knox Hall, where an individual “kicked [them] in the testicles and punched [them] twice in the back.”

One student organizer said they wanted to pursue charges while the other two were uncertain, the reports said.

Although student organizers’ names and personal information were redacted in police reports, the events described are consistent with statements then-UB YAF president Therese Purcell made to local media outlets like The Buffalo News and WKBW. In the days after West’s speech, Purcell said she was chased by hundreds of students into a men’s bathroom and that the club treasurer, Patrick Wilkinson, was punched and kicked near Knox Hall.

Security camera footage obtained by The Spectrum from the night of the event shows about 10 UPD officers escorting West and YAF e-board members through a crowd of protestors to an SUV waiting in the Student Union courtyard. Purcell, wearing a red dress, can be seen walking with four other individuals toward the spine. Some of the protestors leaving the Student Union begin following them — some running, some walking. Purcell and the others can then be seen running into O’Brian and up a staircase, with students in pursuit.

Police interviewed the student organizer who was kicked in the groin on April 20, 2022. The student couldn’t describe their alleged assailant any more than they already had or identify an image of the per-

Yik Yak posts

son who struck them in a cell phone video taken by a friend of the organizer. The organizer declined to provide a deposition. Police also interviewed potential witnesses who were present at or near Knox, none of whom said they saw the organizer get punched or kicked.

No charges were filed because “there was no video or other means to identify the individuals who were allegedly responsible,” Della Contrada said.

The other two complainants said that none of the protestors who chased them “ever made physical contact” and that they couldn’t recall any direct threats made against them. A UPD officer investigating the incident said that one of the student organizers “was very frustrated during our interaction and repeatedly attempted to question me and generally expressed disappointment with the university’s response to the incident.”

“Although numerous individuals could be seen on security video following students through the campus after the event, the intent to harass or cause physical harm by any specific individual(s) could not be proven by the available evidence,” Della Contrada said.

Under New York State law, individuals can be found guilty of harassment for following someone in public but only if they do so “with intent to harass, annoy or alarm another person.”

Purcell, who has since graduated, declined a request for comment from The Spectrum

“The disinterest of the UB administration is unbelievable and alarming,” Purcell told The New Guard, YAF’s official publication, in August. “This really showed me

that the school and campus police do not care about the safety of conservative students on campus.”

UPD also investigated several anonymous Yik Yak posts made against protestors, one of which read, “If they keep yelling it’s gonna become target practice.” Police determined that the posts “were not traceable to any individual” and didn’t represent “credible threats” to campus, Della Contrada said.

Alongside UPD’s investigation, UB administrators conducted their own review of the events surrounding West’s speech. That review resulted in several changes, Della Contrada said, including a new requirement that student organizers develop event security plans with UPD; the development of “enhanced educational programming for students” in order “to create a better understanding of free speech protections;” and new guidelines concerning the venue space, ticketing procedures and attendance management for studentorganized events.

UPD Deputy Chief Josh Sticht didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Email: grant.ashley@ubspectrum.com

‘Every minute, every second, every hour is building up and causing more unnecessary pain’

SUHA CHOWDHURY ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

‘I am the Band-Aid to a gushing wound’: India Walton speaks at UB

Walton joins UB and Canisius MAPS to discuss confidence, national disparities and the difficulty of doing good

A.J. FRANKLIN ASSISTANT FEATURES EDITOR

India Walton, a current candidate for the Buffalo Common Council’s Masten district and nurse, spoke to a small group of around 20 students on Feb. 27 in the Student Union.

Walton, best known for narrowly losing a bid to become mayor of Buffalo after winning the Democratic primary over Byron Brown, didn’t hold back with her audience, discussing how the disparities she witnessed as a nurse led to her strong political convictions.

“There’s a strong desire in my soul to make sure that I leave this world better than how I entered it,” Walton said.

The Q&A-style event was put together through a collaboration between UB’s and Canisius’ Minority Association of PreMedical Students (MAPS). Students asked questions about what led her to transition from nursing to politics and how to pave their career paths, especially as a minority in the medical field.

At 19 years old, Walton was pregnant with two twins. She went into labor at only 24 weeks, the viability age of a fetus.

During her pregnancy, medical professionals consistently told Walton that her children were not going to survive. Even if they did, the medical professionals said, her children wouldn’t be able to communicate or be “productive people in society.”

Against the medical professionals’ advice, she did not give up. Walton successfully gave birth.

Walton recalled telling a nurse about her experiences. ”If you don’t like it, become a nurse,” the nurse replied.

Walton took that advice.

After her pregnancy, Walton enrolled in SUNY Erie Community College, eventu-

ally graduating with a bachelor’s degree in nursing.

She got her first nursing job at John R. Oshei Children’s Hospital. There were 170 nurses in her unit. Walton was one of just four Black nurses.

Students asked Walton about her experiences as a Black nurse and the challenges she faced in the field.

“I am the Band-Aid over a gushing wound,” she told students. “You get into this, and you say, ‘I’m going to change it from the inside out, I’m going to do better, I’m going to be the person, I’m going to represent,’ and it’s kind of impossible. You get very weary quickly because you are an item there out of 170 people.”

She came into the medical industry to change the culture, but the culture of the medical industry changed her.

For five years she worked with a physician at Children’s Hospital who repeatedly asked her if she was “the mother” of their patients jokingly. (Walton believes that it was due to her lengthy natural afro.) She says she started to internalize those comments, causing her to cut her own hair.

“In the moment, it felt like it was going to make me blend in, be more comfortable for myself, but also make my coworkers more comfortable,” she said. “That’s maybe the one thing I regret. I shouldn’t have done that. I should have kept rocking out.”

She later left her hospital job to become a school nurse, which ended up being a vastly different job.

“[My students] didn’t really have health issues,” Walton said. “They had community issues. These were children who were housing insecure, who were food insecure, who were experiencing community violence, trauma in their neighborhoods, in

their homes and really wanted someone that they felt safe with, that they could talk to.”

Buffalo has a poverty rate of about 27.6%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Walton recalled when two sisters in her school got lice on a Tuesday. She called their mother to recommend washing their hair to get rid of the lice.

The mother agreed — but said she couldn’t afford to get shampoo until she got paid that Friday.

“What BS is a world where children have to miss three days of school because their mother can’t afford to buy a $7 bottle of shampoo?” she asked.

This was the moment when Walton realized she could no longer be a bystander. She knew she needed to take on political advocacy.

Her years as a nurse have changed her political beliefs, leading her to see classism as a major contributor to disparities in her community.

“I watched people walk out of Children’s Hospital, walk out of Buffalo General and the provider will say they’re non-compliant, they ain’t going to follow their diet,” she said. “Well, have you thought about where the grocery store is? You want them to eat cabbage and broccoli, but where are they gonna get it from?”

A food desert is a place where a large proportion of the population has little access to supermarkets or large grocery stores, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Most of Buffalo is considered a food desert.

“Let’s be real,” Walton told students. “That’s not noncompliance; it’s inability.”

The mass shooting by a white supremacist at the Tops grocery store on Jefferson

Avenue last May has increased efforts locally to address the issue.

A student asked Walton what advice she had for students who feel overlooked. Walton said she felt that she needed to change to fit in and that it took her 40 years to figure out that she didn’t need to. Walton is now 41.

“My presence in whatever room I enter into is a blessing,” she said. “Every experience that I’ve had has been meant for me to share with somebody else. Don’t shrink. Don’t apologize for being who you are. Stand in your power.”

Walton ended the event by imploring students to do what they know is right. She emphasized that there is enough bad in the world and not enough people doing the right thing.

“That’s what I want to do, and it hurts like hell,” she admitted to students. “I cry a lot. It’s painful to do right. It’s not profitable to do right. People hate you for wanting to do right. But at the end of the day, I lay my head down, and I sleep good at night.”

The talk concluded with a round of applause for Walton. Students joked and took pictures with her.

“To be proud in your Blackness,” Nayab Mesfun, vice president of UB MAPS and a junior exercise science major, told The Spectrum was their biggest takeaway from the event. “To know your worth and know you’re worthy.”

Email: aj.franklin@ubspectrum.com

offers

The Celebration of Black Excellence event last week spotlights the Black community

ALISHA ALLISON YVONNE MORALES NATHAN RHOADS STAFF WRITERS

Greiner Hall hosted a Celebration of Black Excellence (COBE), a two-day event to honor Black leaders, students and arts at UB last Friday and Saturday.

Three days after the end of Black History Month, the event aims to show that the shortest month of the year isn’t enough time, especially when many experience Black history, Black excellence and being Black all year round.

“I think this provides [students] with opportunity, space, a home,” Matthew Castillo, the assistant hall director for Greiner Hall and a second-year social work graduate student, said. “When you’re coming to college, you’re stepping out of your comfort zone because you hope to find a community among the people around you. This program allows people to meet people like them for the first time.”

‘What does Blackness mean to you at UB?’

The two-day celebration of Black excellence (COBE) started off strong with its first event: “What does Blackness mean to you?”

A panel of three Black female leaders at UB — Kristina Collier, Jasmine Foster and Ivanna Colon — shared their experiences with racial injustices and how they found success despite the odds.

They spoke about finding your community through connecting and networking with others in various fields.

“When you find your people, you will feel encouraged to continue your journey,” Collier said.

The panelists also spoke about how to overcome imposter syndrome. Foster encouraged listeners to not compare themselves to others, as everyone’s journey is different.

“Since I started this journey to my Ph.D… I have always thought that I would want a seat at the table,” Collier said. “But honestly, it’s less me having a seat at the table and more me creating my own table.”

“In life, you are going to need to be unapologetic about things,” Colon added.

‘Poetry Slam’

COBE’s poetry slam event was full of support, warmth and a need to speak from one’s heart. Music played gently in the background as students stood in front of a classroom and showcased their poems.

Each word rang with confidence, each line emitted truth, and each piece delivered that night opened a perspective that was longing to be heard.

From pieces about being victorious as a young Black woman whose skin is “richer than the sun’s rays,” to experiencing life as an Afro-Latino man whose journey is reflected when looking upon a mirror and more, all pieces read at COBE’s poetry slam event were welcomed and celebrated with finger-snapping and praise.

Uchenna Obumneme-Akaneme, a freshman nursing major, described feeling a sense of relief when she received an invitation to COBE, noting that events like this are not often seen at UB. She says the intimacy of the event allowed her to freely speak her mind and celebrate herself.

“With poetry, it’s really you expressing who you are,” Obumneme-Akaneme said “You relate your word, your masterpiece and be who you are through your piece. That’s what made me really happy to come here.”

Obumneme-Akaneme presented her own piece, “The Worth Beyond Value,” that night. The meaning behind the spoken words was felt, especially in the final lines of her poem:

“The child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth I am Black and Black is me I represent Kings and Queens I continue OUR story to set us free because if you don’t see my Blackness, you don’t see me.”

‘Let’s Discuss — Speaker Event’

St. Clair Detrick-Jules, author of the photojournalism book, “My Beautiful Black Hair” spoke at COBE on Saturday. Sponsored by the Office of Inclusive Excellence, she came to Buffalo from Washington, D.C. to close out the celebration with a discussion of her book and her inspiration: her sister Khloe.

From a young age, Khloe was made fun of by her classmates for having an afro. Detrick-Jules wanted to show her that there is a community of Black women with hair like hers.

She traveled to different places photographing and interviewing Black women with natural hair and learning about their journeys to finding self-love.

Some of those interviews were shown to the audience. Detrick-Jules highlighted the importance of vulnerability and storytelling, the CROWN Act (a law in 20 states that prevents discrimination based on hairstyle and texture) and the policing of Black hair.

Attendees asked her questions and shared their natural hair journeys. There was also one student who shared their experience with racism on UB’s campus.

“I was honored to be part of the COBE experience because it seemed like they just had so many really great uplifting events going on,” Detrick-Jules said.

Vigil

A vigil to commemorate the loss of Black lives was held on the patio of Greiner Hall Friday night, the last event of day one. Attendees were handed flameless tea light candles and gathered in a circle.

“Being able to have a space or even

just knowing they [students] could have a space — they don’t have to hold all their emotions by themselves,” Mary Margaret Tull, one of the two counselors present, said. “I think probably students have had to do that a lot.”

Residence Hall Director Anthony Vargas said that COBE was not only a celebration but also a time to reflect.

Before placing the candles on the patio, Vargas told students that the artwork created on day two will be added to the display for the remainder of the academic year as a reminder of Black excellence.

The candles were turned on and attendees observed a moment of silence. When the moment had passed, Vargas asked the attendees to share their thoughts.

“It was very intentional to not forget the lives we have lost in our communities, the lives we have lost in our local communities, right here at UB, right here in our Buffalo community,” Vargas said. “It [the vigil] was a circle. We are all looking at each other. We were all able to be there for each other with our counselors, our staff and our students as a community.”

Email: features@ubspectrum.com

sarily in a good way.

her to reach a larger audience of people.

Hena Doba went on-air for the first time during 9/11.

Visiting family in her hometown of Queens, New York, the UB alum and former Spectrum features editor immediately jumped into action.

“I just picked up a camcorder and started walking the streets of Queens,” she said. “And lo and behold, that’s when my on-air job began.”

At the time, Doba was working as a TV news producer in Watertown, New York, a “tiny little [media] market,” mere months after graduating from UB with a degree in psychology and English.

“I was told growing up my whole life I was going to be a doctor, or go to med school, or [be an] engineer…that’s why I ended up there [at UB],” she said. “But then one day walking down the hall… I saw The Spectrum’s poster and who knew that day would change the course of my career?”

While she chose to pursue a career in television after graduation, she never thought she’d be working on-air.

At the turn of the century, TV news wasn’t very diverse, meaning Doba, a Pakistani woman, stuck out — and not neces

She says she was grateful to have a news director who “stuck to his guns” and had her back, but that didn’t protect her from the racism.

Her news directors used to get emails that said things like “Why is the terrorist telling us the news?” Once, during a live shot, a passing driver rolled down their window and called Doba a “very derogatory term.”

“I think it was ignorance and anger,” she said. “I don’t hold on to it in any way, in any negative connotation.” After the developments she’s seen during her more than 20 years in the industry, Doba remains optimistic about the future despite her past experiences.

“When I got my first TV job, I was asked not to use Zulfiquar [her maiden name] because it was too ambiguous… I don’t think anyone would tell any employee that now,” she said. “I think we have come a long way… I’d like to say things are slowly changing.”

Doba has worked all over the country since leaving Watertown, including at stations in Atlanta and Hartford, Connecticut. She currently works in New York City, her goal since the start of her career due to the city’s status as “market one,” allowing

Doba currently works as a host and anchor for Cheddar News, a financial news network where she highlights the experiences of successful female leaders.

Although she’s achieved her goal of returning home, she credits leaving the “New York City bubble” as one of the best decisions she’s made, especially during her time as CBS news’ national correspondent.

“I was traveling all over the country,” she said. “Whenever there was breaking news, I was on a plane and I was on the scene. I think moving and meeting all these people is what makes me so empathetic and so willing to tell other people’s stories outside of New York City. I’m so grateful I had the chance to leave the city and come back.”

Doba has covered a lot of major tragedies in her career, including the Sandy Hook and Parkland shootings. As a journalist, she’s learned to put her feelings aside and focus on doing her job.

“I might break down later off-air, but it’s not going to happen on-air,” she said. “I always try to remember what I’m doing there.”

She still keeps in touch with some of the parents from the tragedies.

“You see the changes that these communities are making within not only with themselves, but in their school,” she said.

“It’s just nice to see at the end of the day, on some of the worst stories that you can think of — you do see people coming together, and that never gets tiring.”

Email: jasmin.yeung@ubspectrum.com

AlishA Allison / The specTrum Celebration of blaCk exCellenCe (Cobe)

Health Promotion hosts ‘How to Help a Sexual Assault Survivor’ workshop

Two more workshops are scheduled in the coming weeks

KATIE SKOOG FEATURES EDITOR

The spring 2022 UB Custom National College Health Assessment survey, a nationally-known survey that collects data on students’ habits and behavior, asked the question, “Have you ever experienced sexual violence, such as sexual harrassment, relationship abuse… or threat of abuse, stalking, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, or non-consensual sexual contact?”

The results? 9.8% of cisgender men, 33.6% of cisgender women and 50% of transgender and gender nonconforming students reported yes.

Aaron Maracle and Jessica Mencia, hosts for UB Health Promotion’s “How to Help a Sexual Assault Survivor” event, used those statistics to kick off their presentation in Student Union 235 last Thursday.

Maracle, a violence-prevention specialist, and Mencia, a social work graduate student and student assistant, presented in-person and online attendees with resources for students who either have experienced sexual assault or are trying to help someone who has.

Maracle and Mencia then moved on to the definition of affirmative consent. UB adopted the practice before 2014, with SUNY following suit in 2014. It’s now a standard at all college universities across New York State since 2015.

The definition of “affirmative consent” is “a knowing, voluntary and mutual decision among all participants to engage in sexual activity. Consent can be given by words or actions… Silence or lack of resistance, in and of itself, does not demonstrate consent. The definition of consent does not vary based upon a participant’s sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.”

Maracle added that a lack of under-

standing of consent is overwhelmingly not the cause of sexual assault.

“It’s not that people don’t understand this [consent], it’s that they fully understand it and just don’t care,” he said.

Sexual assault is a crime about power and control. Maracle clarified that rape and sex are not the same because one is a crime and one is consensual. He emphasized the importance of giving power and control back to survivors by listing off guiding principles for doing so.

Helping the survivor how they want to be helped is crucial. Maracle said they are the experts in their own experience and how support for whatever decisions they decide to make is needed.

Other ways to help are to create a safe environment for the survivor by either holding the perpetrator responsible or keeping them away from the perpetrator.

There should be no qualifications on helping survivors. For instance, people should not say, “I’ll only help you if you leave this person.” This is another way of taking control over the situation away from the survivor.

Maracle said if anything at all, believe the survivor. Only 2-8% of sexual assault reports are false, and being part of a survivor’s support system makes all the difference.

In the second half of the event, Maracle displayed various on-campus resources for students who have survived sexual assault.

Most faculty and staff at UB have an obligation to report when a student tells them they experienced sexual assault. UB has a campus advocate, Alicia Wattie, who is not affiliated with UB, who can provide help and keep experiences anonymous.

Wattie is a contracted employee through crisis services, and therefore doesn’t have any responsibility to the university. Her

only job is to help survivors how they want to be helped. Students in need can call or text (716) 796-4399 on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Tuesday and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) offers information intake forms for students who choose to remain anonymous.

“They [survivors] may not be ready to put their name to what happened to them, but they might still want to document that somewhere. They can leave as much or as little information as they want or contact information or not,” Maracle said. “At the end of it, they get a record of the report number… They have that report then they can go back and attach their name to it.”

EDI also offers academic accommodations for survivors. If someone needs to

take a test at a later date, EDI will contact a professor and keep the student’s experience anonymous. The test cannot be more difficult than the original test. EDI also can find a different section of a class for a student whose perpetrator is in the same class.

Healing from sexual assault takes different amounts of time for every person, Maracle said at the end of the event.

“Talking about sexual assault isn’t easy,” he said. “But the things worth doing aren’t always easy.”

The “How to Help a Sexual Assault Survivor” workshop will also be offered both in-person and via Zoom on Thursday, March 30 at 3:30 p.m. in SU 235 and Wednesday, April 12 at 4 p.m. in SU 210. For more resources and reporting options, go to EDI’s website.

Email: katie.skoog@ubspectrum.com

Get Ahead This Summer

Queens College is offering in-person and online classes over four summer sessions:

Session 1: June 5–29 (4 weeks)

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Take advantage of:

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Registration open now!

Students from all colleges welcome.

www.qc.cuny.edu/summer

Elazzazi / ThE SpEcTruM

MERET KELSEY SENIOR ARTS EDITOR

ALEX NOVAK ARTS EDITOR

Zodiaque, UB’s pre-professional dance company, showcased their diverse talents in a series of performances last weekend at the Center for the Arts.

Their 48th spring program included nearly two hours of inventive dance, ranging from a murder mystery-inspired number to comedic tap and technical ballet. The dancers explored the avant-garde, the emotional and everything in between.

The show opened with “One Night,” an upbeat hip-hop number that evoked technicolor Old Hollywood musicals with a modern flair.

The dancers sat at café tables, chattering over coffee. Then, one-by-one, they leapt from the still scene into energetic dance. Each dancer took turns coming to life in their own individual routines before joining together and, eventually, retreating to the coffeehouse tables where extras continued to mindlessly chit-chat.

“Sinew,” an introspective ballet number choreographed by Rachel Leonard, initiated an abrupt tonal shift. The dancers swayed, marched and embraced each other in monochromatic purple outfits as the music shifted between soft, soulful strings and almost militaristic drumming. The title of the piece literally refers to the tissue that connects muscle to bone and metaphorically refers to the kinship shared by the dancers.

Brennah Woollis, a senior dance major featured in the piece, said that she and her fellow dancers originally took a mournful approach to the choreography, which tells a story about “connectivity and empowerment amongst women.”

“And then she [Leonard] told us, ‘No, this is a joyful piece,’” Woollis said. “This is about being with your peers and connecting with your company members and being strong.”

As one of many graduating seniors from

the company, Woollis found the meaning behind the vulnerable piece even more resonant.

“I felt like that was super powerful, especially as a senior, because it’s so hard to let these things go,” Woollis said. “So when you can connect with your peers like that, it just makes everything 10 times better.”

Then, the Zodiaque dancers embodied warriors’ intensity in the chest pops, crab walks and clapping of “House of Ascension.” The cast, dressed in twirling skirts, circled the stage and raised their hands in the air, concluding the first act.

The showcase returned for their second act with the night’s most unconventional number: the avant-garde and bewitchingly bizarre “Manon.” Dancers stumbled and collapsed on the stage, gasping for air in tattered gray dresses. Ominous music, akin to that of a horror movie score, propelled the dancers as they writhed around on the floor underneath an eerie bird’s eye view projection of the unsettling dance itself. The hypnotized dancers’ chaotic movements and the piece’s jarringly unusual choreography bewitched the audience.

“‘Manon’ is this being that kind of controls all of us, and the whole piece is one cycle,” Kiara Cieslinski, a senior dance major featured in the number, said. “We take turns pulling out our hair and representing this entity taking over and inhabiting each one of our bodies until we’re all just freaking out and then we have to start all over again from the top.”

The sheer insanity of “Manon” provided a sense of escape for the dancers, like junior dance major Sophia Fino, who embraced the feelings of possession that this dance demanded.

“I become someone else when I’m doing it,” Fino said of “Manon.” “It’s like some higher power comes over me when I’m performing that one. It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had.”

The dancers transitioned from witchy suspense to comedic tap with “Behind the

Curtain,” a meta-comedy piece heavy with props and Vaudevillian humor. Dedicated to acclaimed tap dancer Gregory Hines, the number opened with a fitting quote: “Behind every curtain there’s another story.”

The performers emerged onto a dressing room set, complete with a mirror, a dresser and a rack of formal coats. Each dancer donned a coat, and what followed evoked Chaplinesque silent films, with the dancers engaging in a goofy cat-andmouse chase over a stolen shoe set to jaunty piano music.

Things took a turn when the piece was interrupted by an announcement from above: “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s showtime.”

The curtain dropped. The dancers’ characters shifted, launching into a seamless tap performance with theatrical smiles plastered across their faces.

The company moved from light humor into gothic mystery with Zodiaque co-director Michael Deeb Weaver’s “An Evening at West Manor.” This frighteningly compelling number and its vampiric upscale world of plotting and sinister intentions included solos in single spotlights, dramatic posing and even fight choreography.

Ultimately, the deed was done by the maid in the dining room with the bottle of poison as she flitted around the manor’s guests, spiking their champagne glasses. As the entire dinner party dropped dead and the stage lights turned scarlet red, the unassuming murderer reigned triumphant over the drama theater stage.

“I’m a big fan of murder mystery movies,” Weaver said. “I got a really great cast that I knew would be super creative and embody the characters, so I decided to go for it, and I’m super happy with how it turned out.”

The second act drew to a close with “Prism,” choreographed by Kerry Ring. The dancers traveled across the stage with

natural, fluid movements. Wrapped in airy, colorful drapery, they resembled a Monet painting come to life.

Keeping with tradition, the company returns for “Z’Bows,” the dancers’ final send off to the audience. The Sunday show’s sendoff was especially important for the seniors in the group, affectionately referred to as “Zeniors,” as each took their final bow with Zodiaque. Each senior — in their classic sequined blue tops — wowed the audience with their own solo, each bleeding into the next with an effortlessness that only emerges from the genuine sisterhood these dancers share.

As the curtain lowered, audience members got to their feet, clapping and whooping. Meanwhile, many “Zeniors” found themselves in tears, overwhelmed by the finality of this moment.

“I think I blacked out,” Cieslinski said. “I just kept finding myself staring at every corner of the theater and just trying to remember it all and take it all in and be completely present and not, you know, let it go by too fast.”

“You’re fighting back these tears the whole time,” Woollis said. “But we have a huge group hug after the curtain closes and we all just cry it out.”

Other “Zeniors” took this moment to reflect on their years-long journey with the dance company.

“I can’t stop thinking about when I was a freshman and… I just remember watching and I’m like, ‘I need to do this. I need to be in this company,’” Sidney Bowers, a senior dance major, recalled. “[In the bows] it’s sort of just looking around at everyone. I’m on the stage. I’m wearing the blue top. My friends are right beside me. It’s just sort of the perfect ending that dreams can come true.”

Email: meret.kelsey@ubspectrum.com

Email: alex.novak@ubspectrum.com

Two Bulls win gold at MAC indoor track championship

Jonathan Surdej and Christina Wende highlight successful showing for UB track and field

Track and field took home eight medals at the Mid-American Conference (MAC) indoor track and field championships, which took place Feb. 24-25 at Bowling Green University’s Perry Field House.

Among the most notable performers were senior Jonathan Surdej, who won his fifth gold in the men’s shot put, and fifthyear Christina Wende, who won gold in the women’s long jump and won silver in the women’s triple jump.

It was the third-consecutive MAC indoor shot put title for Surdej.

“I go in to every MAC expecting my best,” Surdej said. “I was ranked second [coming in], but I like to think I wasn’t an underdog.”

Wende won her first MAC gold medal in the women’s long jump with a careerbest 6.04 meter jump. Her winning distance was 3 centimeters longer than junior Hayley Manners of Central Michigan. She credited her mental preparation and competitive nature for her success.

“At the beginning of the year [our coach] started giving us chapters from this book called ‘Mind Gym,’” Wende said. “I trained very hard, but those other people in the field are obviously very good. What’s that next step you can take? Mentally, for me, it’s reading chapters to become calm in competition.”

Other female medalists for UB included graduate student Teasha McKoy, who won silver in the weight throw with 18.75 meters, and junior Scilla Benussi, who placed third overall in the pentathlon with topfive finishes in four of the five competitions within that event.

Senior Zaria Fuller finished just outside of the top three, with a T-4 finish in the women’s high jump (1.7 meters).

Senior Kaylah Britt and junior Emily Tait finished seventh and eight respectively, out of 21 competitors, in the triple jump, joining Wende in the top 10 of that event.

On the men’s side, UB took home medals in five more events.

Surdej’s 17.21 meter shot put throw was

over a half-meter longer than the throw of the silver medalist, Akron freshman Josiah Cox.

The UB shot put program has dominated in recent years. Later this season, Surdej looks to continue a streak of 13-straight outdoor shot put MAC championships.

The distance medley relay was UB’s only group-event medal. Sophomore Cory Demo (1200 meters), sophomore Fernando Sanchez (400 meters), freshman Noah Brightman (800 meters) and junior Evan Hilbert (1600 meters) took home the silver, falling to Kent State by a quarter of a second.

Graduate student Ryan Buzby placed third in the 3000 meter run, behind only Eastern Michigan senior Baldvin Magnusson (gold) and Akron freshman Brian Masai (silver). Buzby also placed fifth out of 12 competitors in the 5000 meter race.

Sophomore Calvin Finger was just eight centimeters away from gold in the high jump, claiming bronze with a two-meter jump.

And finally, in the men’s heptathlon,

sophomore Kevin Gabalski won bronze with top-three finishes in the 60 meter dash, 60 meter hurdles, long jump and the 1,000 meter race. Senior Michael Wolford was right behind Gabalski, taking home fourth in the heptathlon, including topthree finishes in the shot put and pole vault.

While the indoor track season wraps up for the Bulls, the team prepares to transition to outdoor competition. UB has three more away meets, March 24 and 30, and April 1, before the spring opener at home on April 8. The MAC outdoor track and field championship is May 11-13 in Akron, Ohio.

Email: ryan.tantalo@ubspectrum.com

Zodiaque’s 48th spring showcase explored the avantgarde, the emotional and everything in between

RYAN TANTALO

SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR

SPORTS EDITOR

The first result of a Google search for Curtis Jones is an English soccer player. The second is a former Penn State basketball player.

But toward the bottom of the first page, the profile for UB’s star shooting guard Curtis Jones can be found.

It’s never been easy for Jones to gain recognition, and it’s something he’s not only become used to, but also embraced.

“It’s been like that for most of my life to be honest,” Jones told The Spectrum. “It’s definitely good to come out of nowhere, because you open more eyes that way.”

The 6’5” sophomore from Minneapolis led the Bulls in scoring during the regular season this year, averaging 15.1 points per game. But it wasn’t always smooth sailing.

Jones received zero Division-I offers to play basketball coming out of Cretin-Derham Hall High School in Minnesota. So unlike most Division-I players, he began his college basketball career at a community college.

Coming off the heels of Section 4 and Class 4A titles at Cretin-Derham, Jones elected to play at Indian Hills Community College in Iowa — one of the top Division-I basketball player-producing junior colleges in the country.

Jones wasn’t going to let a lack of D-I offers dissuade him from chasing his dream of becoming a professional basketball player.

“I was never really too panicked about the situation,” Jones said. “But once I got

the Indian Hills offer, I pretty much knew I was going D-I out of there.”

Even though Jones knew that his time at Indian Hills would be short-lived, he made the most of it, averaging 12.1 points per game, as well as 6 rebounds and 5.5 assists during the 2020-21 season.

After a successful season in Iowa, Jones received multiple Division-I offers from mid-major programs such as South Florida, North Texas, Mount St. Mary’s and UB.

He ultimately chose UB because of its reputation as a top team in the Mid-American Conference, something the program has earned over the past 10 years thanks to coaches like Bobby Hurley and Nate Oats.

Jones contributed as a freshman, mainly serving as a stalwart contributor off the bench. He averaged 2.5 points and 1.3 assists while playing 12.1 minutes per game in relief of then-senior guard Ronaldo Segu.

Senior forward LaQuill Hardnett chimed in on what Jones was like during his first season as a Bull, saying, “He asked a lot of questions, like that’s all Curt did since the first day I met him...he was just ‘What’s this about?’ ‘What are we gonna do here?’ Last year was just his feeling-out time.”

Jones sought out advice when needed, and received help along the way during his freshman year.

“I want to shout out to my guy John Galvin because he helped me,” Jones said about the graduate assistant who helped with his transition to UB. “He was the one rebounding for me every day and things

like that.”

Now, a year later, Jones finds himself in more of a leadership role as the team’s top scorer, a stark contrast from the 2021-22 campaign.

But the departure of Segu (14.9 points per game) and Jeenathan Williams (19.1 points per game) — two key starters on last year’s team — created a vacancy on the Bulls’ roster.

While leading the Bulls with an average of 31.4 minutes played a game, Jones has embraced the added responsibilities.

“Really, I just wanted to help the team win and be a big part of the team,” Jones said. “And then everything else that came with it has just been a blessing.”

In what has been a shaky regular season for UB (15-16, 9-9 MAC), Jones and the rest of the Bulls will look for redemption in the MAC Tournament this week.

UB will need to depend on Jones’ scoring ability in order to make a run in this year’s tournament. But Jones said scoring wasn’t necessarily his specialty right away.

“I was never even really a big scorer like that, I just played the game the right way,” Jones said.

Scoring highlights of Jones’ season include a 32-point performance against St. Bonaventure (5-10 from three-point range), a 30-point outing against Western Michigan (5-11 from three-point range) and a 27-point game against Ball State (1121 from the field).

Over a three-game span in November (against Howard, George Mason and Canisius), Jones averaged 22 points per

game while shooting over 50% from the field and nearly 40% from three-point range.

Now, the No. 6 seed Bulls find themselves matched up against the No. 3 seed Akron Zips (21-10, 13-5 MAC) in the first round of the MAC Tournament on Thursday in Cleveland.

Jones has fully gained the trust of his teammates and coaches with the minutes he’s played and the relationships he’s built.

Last offseason, there were only five players that stayed on campus during the spring and summer months — Jones and Hardnett among them.

“It was crazy, just five of us working out every day, doing everything every day,” Hardnett said “It really grew us closer together.”

At the start of last season, Hardnett and the UB basketball program embraced Jones. The MAC Tournament will show how greatly the team has reaped the rewards.

Jones finished the regular season 14th in the MAC with 15.1 points per game and will look to increase that number heading into postseason play.

Jones is just a sophomore, and many within the program feel the best is yet to come from the once unrecognized recruit.

“I think Curt has a future in the NBA if you ask me,” Hardnett said.

Email: brandon.cochi@ubspectrum.com

Men’s club hockey voices frustration over Student Association financial procedures Team has been fined over $4,000 for SA policy violations

AMY MASLIN SPORTS EDITOR

UB hockey captain Anthony Coty was five and a half hours into the drive to Rutgers University from Buffalo when he pulled the van over and told his assistant coach that he needed a break from driving.

The long hours on the road were getting to him, and if he didn’t take a break, the mental exhaustion from driving would hinder his performance in the team’s first game.

Coty wasn’t supposed to be driving himself to another state, but the morning of Feb. 16, the Student Association canceled the Grand Tour bus that was supposed to take the team to Rutgers. The team made a payment of $21,300 to SA on Jan. 31, but it wasn’t put into their account until the afternoon of Feb. 16, the day before the Rutgers trip, according to Ryan Kelly, the team’s treasurer.

According to the team, because SA had not put the money into the team’s account, the bus was canceled. This led to the team

scrambling to make travel arrangements to New Jersey.

“It’s a really big difference between just being able to relax the whole trip then having your mind focused on driving with all your teammates in the backseat just like a bunch of lives at risk,” Coty, a sophomore communication major, said. “So yeah it does take a toll on you.”

In the league the hockey club plays in, most other teams have group transportation via a bus.

Morgan vonHedemann, now in his seventh year as a part of the team, volunteers 30-40 hours a week as the team’s head coach. He has been a player, an e-board member and team captain before being named head coach this season.

VonHedemann rented two vans and a U-Haul, totalling $1,400 — before the cost of gas and tolls, after the SA canceled the team’s bus the day before their scheduled departure.

VonHedemann doesn’t expect the SA to reimburse him for the $1,400 he spent on

the team’s transportation.

Under the Encumbrance and Expenditure Policy, the SA will only reimburse individuals for “goods or services that cannot be comparably purchased using a PO [purchase order] or one of SA’s Accounts.”

The team had originally tried to pay for the bus with a PO but were left with no choice other than paying out of pocket after the SA canceled their bus payment.

Canceling games was never an option either. Anthony Trigilio, a junior communication major and president of the club, says that if the team cancels games, they could be fined or even risk ejection from the league. He said SA was aware of these consequences.

The team also didn’t have a hotel booked for their trip to Rutgers, which SA is responsible for doing. The team is supposed to send hotel options to SA (which they did), and the SA’s travel agent books the hotel.

But a hotel wasn’t booked until the day the team was traveling because the money

was not in the team’s account. The hockey club was about three-fourths of the way to Rutgers when SA confirmed there was a hotel waiting for them. VonHedemann was expecting to pay out of pocket for the hotel because he was unsure if the SA would go through with booking the rooms. “We [the e-board] and coaches were the only people that knew we didn’t have a hotel yet. So we had to keep it quiet,” Coty said. “The whole half of the ride [we were] checking in and calling SA. My van called SA six times to see when the hotel was ready.”

The team had issues with SA last semester, too. In December 2022, the men’s hockey e-board had a hearing with SA after they were fined $872.50 for skating on Northtown Center’s ice before the requested funds to rent the rink had been approved. They were fined an additional $3,325 for not paying the referees before

MOAZ ELAZZAZI / THE SPECTRUM UB GUARD CURTIS JONES HAS MADE AN IMPACT AS THE TEAM S LEADING SCORER THIS SEASON

COCHI

ASSISTANT

Men’s basketball rallies for revenge win over Miami (OH)

Bulls to face Akron in first round of MAC Tournament as a No. 6 seed

Toledo to overtime, falls by one in MAC quarterfinal

Becky Burke finishes her first season at UB 12-16 (7-12 MAC) after 75-74 quarterfinal elimination

RYAN TANTALO SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR EVAN HILBERT STAFF WRITER

Men’s basketball (15-16, 9-9 MAC) defeated Miami (OH) (12-19, 6-12 MAC) 68-63 on Friday night at Alumni Arena, securing the Bulls the No. 6 seed in the MAC Tournament. UB rallied from behind despite missing leading scorer and sophomore guard Curtis Jones due to sickness. Junior forward Isiah Adams, who had a team-high 16 points, was the engine behind the Bulls’ success.

Before the opening tip, the Bulls honored two seniors: forward LaQuill Hardnett and guard Armoni Foster. The Star Spangled Banner followed senior night celebrations, sung by Hardnett’s mother, Anita Hardnett.

“I was nervous out there to start the game, I had to get a hold of myself,” Hardnett said postgame. “I’m 9-0 when my mom sings the national anthem.”

The Bulls struggled early on in the first half, shooting 11-32 from the field, falling behind 38-29 at half. UB found trouble holding on to possessions with six turnovers and a number of offensive fouls. Miami closed out the half by going on a 27-18 run.

“I think in the first half we didn’t have Curtis [Jones] and we were a little bit out of sync offensively,” Bulls head coach Jim Whitesell said.

Coming out of halftime, the Bulls went on a scoring rampage with 13-straight unanswered points.

“Coming out of half the first four minutes, basically we think that’s where the game is decided. It could get worse or it could get better,” Hardnett said. This

four-point lead continued to grow as UB found its stride offensively. They pushed the score to 49-43, the Bulls’ largest lead of the night.

UB put together a powerful second-half performance to push past the RedHawks. Miami senior forward Anderson Mirambeaux led both teams with 18 points in a close game that went down to the final minutes.

“In the second half we played with a lot of purpose and heart. I thought we played with a lot more defensive purpose,” Whitesell said.

The game was tight until the end. The Bulls were able to seal it by cashing in on six-straight free throws, which was the dagger to cap off the comeback win.

On their senior night, Hardnett finished with 13 points and five rebounds in 35 minutes and Foster finished with four points and four assists in 31 minutes.

Whitesell says he is confident in the team going into the playoffs in the coming week.

“This group can compete with anyone [and] our guys feel confident,” he said. “I’m really positive and happy about that, I saw some growing up out there”.

Whitesell closed the postgame press conference with a message to his team.

“You’ve earned your way into Cleveland, now you’ve got to go. Everything is one game [and] it’s all about going 1-0.”

The Bulls are set to face the Akron Zips (21-10, 13-5 MAC) Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for their MAC Tournament quarterfinal matchup. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Email: sports@ubspectrum.com

With their backs against the wall, women’s basketball took the floor Wednesday against the Mid-American Conference (MAC) regular-season champion Toledo Rockets (26-4, 16-2 MAC). In the first game of the 2023 MAC Tournament at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, the Bulls took the Rockets to overtime and had a chance to win on the final possession. UB fell 75-74 and was eliminated from the tournament.

The Bulls came in as the No. 8 seed, finishing the regular season with three straight wins to clinch a spot in the conference tournament. The Bulls finished 7-11 in MAC play, but still needed Ball State (24-7, 14-4 MAC) to defeat Miami (OH) (12-19, 7-11 MAC) on the final day of the season to secure a postseason berth.

UB lost six straight games before the late-season push. But when the games became must-win, the Bulls elevated their play.

“If you look at our last four games [including today], you saw the best of Buffalo basketball,” head coach Becky Burke said at the postgame press conference.

In her first season at UB, Burke led the Bulls to the postseason. Fifth-year guard Jazmine Young was the only player to return from the 2022 UB MAC Championship team. The Bulls entered the Toledo matchup as large underdogs, but rose to the occasion.

“They could’ve easily come out as the eight seed and rolled over,” Burke said of her team postgame. Burke added that she is “so incredibly proud” of how UB finished the season.

In the first half of the quarterfinal game, UB fell behind by as many as seven points. With less than a minute in the second quarter, the Bulls re-took the lead and entered the half ahead 42-40.

The second half was just as evenly matched. The teams traded clutch buckets

down the stretch, and neither team led by more than three points in the fourth quarter. With 13 seconds left, Toledo senior guard Quinesha Lockett hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 68. She finished with a team-high 19 points.

For the first time this season, in the Bulls’ biggest game, UB headed to overtime.

Fifth-year guard Re’Shawna Stone scored the first basket of overtime to put UB up 70-68. She finished with 18 points. Senior guard Latrice Perkins, the Bulls’ only bench player to enter the game, added another field goal to put UB ahead again, 72-71. Perkins finished with a solid five points, three rebounds and one steal.

The Bulls’ final lead of the game came with 53 seconds left in the five-minute overtime period. Fifth-year guard Zakiyah Winfield picked up her game-high 22nd point and put her team up 74-73. But every time UB hit a big shot, Toledo answered back.

With 13 seconds left, the Rockets went ahead with two free throws from senior guard Jayda Jansen. The Bulls had one final possession to save their season. Stone took the ball the length of the court and drove to the hoop, but couldn’t get a shot off through Toledo’s physical defense. Their season was over.

Burke gave credit to Toledo as a “really good,” “well-coached” team.

Becky Burke’s first season finished on a disappointing note, but the team still showed resilience and grit down the stretch.

Six Bulls will graduate, and Burke looks ahead to her first full recruiting class.

Burke spoke to The Spectrum, after the Bulls’ regular season finale, about her inaugural team and the impact of the seniors.

“They did everything we asked them to, they were a joy to coach and I think these fans really appreciated these guys,” Burke said.

Email: ryan.tantalo@ubspectrum.com

the games, according to Kelly, a junior business major.

The team’s budget for the year is approximately $100,000 but they only receive $14,000 from the SA. Each member of the team pays about $3,000 out of pocket.

Kelly shared a summary of the hearing with The Spectrum which said that the team gets a quote at the end of the season for what they owe referees. SA requires that they make requests for the money needed to pay the referees before the games, which doesn’t align with what the referee association does.

The team also received warnings for having equipment, such as jerseys, ordered to vonHedemann’s home, rather than the Student Union, and for hiring a trainer for a game before requesting the money to pay them. Coaches had also been volunteering without submitting the Volunteer Agreement forms.

According to the hockey club, SA told them the jerseys that were sent to vonHedeman were a violation of SA’s ticketing

and merchandise policy. In response to this violation, Kelly wrote that the jerseys ordered from Verbero were ordered by a pro-staff member from SA and that the team’s e-board did not tell Verbero to ship the jersey’s to vonHedemann’s house. He also wrote that the hockey club’s e-board was “not allowed to be involved in the ordering process,” but the team was still punished.

Kelly appealed the fines at the Feb. 6 SA Senate Meeting. SA did not appeal the fine that evening.

A spokesperson for the SA declined to comment because the hockey team’s case is still in the appeal process.

Kelly said that SA told him at the senate meeting that there was no process to appeal fines. They were told to apply for supplemental funding from SA and that SA will review a possible policy to have fines be appealed. As far as Kelly knows, their fine is not under appeal.

“Due to a mistake, the club is being punished with an approximately $4,000 fine,” Kelly wrote. “That is very unfair and un-

just. That is college students’ hard-earned money being taken from an organization that claims to be for the students and by the students.”

The team also had trouble with receiving their uniforms. As a requirement for their league, the team has to be wearing matching uniforms and have matching equipment, according to vonHedemann. This year, vonHedemann told SA what sizes and quantities of equipment they needed. SA told them the players had to all individually purchase all their equipment through the university, which caused the process to take longer.

The team didn’t receive their uniforms or equipment until January, which is halfway through the season. VonHedemann said the team can get fined from the league for not all being in uniform.

“It’s embarrassing to UB that we have kids that look like garbage cans on the ice,” Coty said.

Men’s ice hockey plays as a part of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) in the Northeast Collegiate Hock-

ey League (NECHL). VonHedemann said he feels like SA doesn’t understand the competitive nature of this league.

“You look at ACHA and they are beating NCAA D1 teams and D3 teams left right and center,” vonHedemann said.

“It’s not just a club sport. It’s a little bit more for these guys.”

VonHedemann said that he gets 30 to 40 emails a week of future college athletes wanting to come play for the team. He has students from Europe who have reached out to him wanting to play here next year.

But he says the power struggle with SA is harming the UB hockey program.

“I’m losing kids because they see what’s going on,” vonHedemann said. “They see that we’re not taking buses, they see we don’t look like a team on the ice… as someone that’s been a part of the program and just watching it utterly fall apart because of [what] SA is doing to us, it’s just so hard to watch.”

‘You saw the best of Buffalo basketball’: Women’s basketball takes No. 1