Student, professor, dean give their takes on Tufts’ distribution requirements in a changing educational landscape see FEATURES / PAGE 3
FOOTBALL
Seniors seek to cement legacy in matchup with Colby
Inaugural Tufts Latinx Film Festival fosters conversation, cross-cultural learning see ARTS&LIVING / PAGE 4
SEE SPORTS / BACK PAGE
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VOLUME LXXVI, ISSUE 39
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Friday, November 2, 2018
MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.
Posters linked to white nationalism appear on get-outthe-vote signs across campus
Tufts community responds to ‘It’s okay to be white’ posters
SEOHYUN SHIM / THE TUFTS DAILY
Get-out-the-vote signs around campus including the one above, pictured in front of Eaton Hall, were affixed Wednesday night with posters bearing the phrase ‘It’s okay to be white.’ by Daniel Nelson and Charlie Driver Executive News Editor and News Editor
Posters bearing the phrase “It’s okay to be white” appeared across Tufts’ Medford/ Somerville campus late Wednesday night on get-out-the-vote signs that were put up this week. The slogan first appeared on the internet forum 4chan on Oct. 31, 2017 with a call to post it “on campuses (and elsewhere)” over Halloween. Posters were subsequently found at numerous universities in the United States, including Harvard University and Tulane University. The slogan was later adopted and promoted by white nationalists, including former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan David Duke. The slogan recently reappeared on college campuses after similar calls on 4chan to post it “on public spaces and campuses.” This is the first time posters bearing the slogan have appeared at Tufts. Many of the posters at Tufts were placed on signs encouraging participation in the upcoming midterm elections put up by JumboVote and the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life. JumboVote is a nonpartisan, student-led initiative that was founded in the run-up to the 2016 election to increase voter participation among Tufts students. The posters surfaced over the weekend at the University of Vermont and Champlain College, both in Burlington,
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Vt. Posters were also discovered Wednesday night at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn. This year, forum posts explain that the campaign aims to incite left-leaning media outlets to unfavorably cover the posters and to link them to Saturday’s mass shooting by a white nationalist at the Tree of Life — Or L’Simcha synagogue in Pittsburgh. The posts added that the intention is to lead undecided white voters to vote for ‘pro-white’ candidates out of fear of being marginalized. Australia was another target of Wednesday’s campaign, as the office of Anne Aly, a member of the country’s House of Representatives, was covered in posters bearing the same slogan. This came after the Australian Senate voted 31–28 on Oct. 15 to reject a motion decrying “the deplorable rise of antiwhite racism,” which added that “it is okay to be white.” The posters at Tufts were affixed to multiple get-out-the-vote signs around the lower academic quad and on the President’s Lawn. The posters were also wrapped around the windshield wipers of cars in the Cousens Parking Lot. According to Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) Sgt. Christopher McGee, the on-duty supervisor Wednesday night, TUPD removed all posters that were located as of 5:15 a.m. and will conduct an investigation of the incident.
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University President Anthony Monaco’s Nov. 1 message to the Tufts community, addressing Saturday’s anti-Semitic violence in Pittsburgh and Wednesday night’s white nationalist-linked defacement of campus get-out-the-vote signs, is pictured. by Daniel Nelson
Executive News Editor
Students and administrators, including the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate and University President Anthony Monaco, responded Thursday to the appearance of posters linked to white nationalism around Tufts’ Medford/Somerville campus on late Wednesday night. Posters bearing the phrase “It’s okay to be white” were affixed to get-out-the-vote signs that JumboVote, a nonpartisan initiative to increase voter participation among Tufts students, and the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life had erected earlier this week. Monaco responded to the incident with dismay and resolve Thursday evening in an email to the Tufts community that addressed recent hate-fueled incidents around the country. “We have watched with great sadness as incidents of hate and division have taken place across our nation in recent months—most recently in Pittsburgh, where Jewish worshipers were killed by an anti-Semitic gunman,” Monaco wrote. “These incidents remind us of the need for continued vigilance against hatred and those who espouse it.” Monaco expressed appreciation for the student who reported the posters to the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD), adding that TUPD is investigating the incident.
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“It is unknown at this time whether the events on our campus were perpetrated by someone in the Tufts community,” he said. Monaco also acknowledged similar incidents that occurred on other college campuses across the country Wednesday night. The Daily has confirmed that identical posters appeared on the campuses of at least nine American universities, including Harvard University, Duke University and the University of Delaware, as well as in Fort Worth, Tx., various Canadian cities and at the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom. Monaco’s statement took a hard line against hatred and bigotry in all of its forms and promised that harassment and threats against members of the Tufts community will not be tolerated. “We are committed to ensuring that everyone here – students, faculty, and staff — can learn, teach, and work in safety,” Monaco wrote. “We will not allow those intent on division to demean and diminish any member of our community.” Monaco also characterized the placement of the posters — of which at least eight were located and removed, according to TUPD — as an attempt to deter efforts at increasing voter participation at Tufts. He emphasized the university’s commitment to promoting respectful political
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THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Friday, November 2, 2018
THE TUFTS DAILY Seohyun Shim Editor-in-Chief
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Sean Ong Caleb Symons Managing Editors Alexis Serino Associate Editor Daniel Nelson Executive News Editor Jessica Blough News Editors Connor Dale Charlie Driver Jenna Fleischer Juliana Furgala Kat Grellman Liza Harris Zachary Hertz Gil Jacobson Anar Kansara Liam Knox Natasha Mayor Cathy Perloff Minna Trinh Hannah Uebele Shantel Bartolome Assistant News Editors Austin Clementi Conor Friedmann Abbie Gruskin Noah Richter
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University administrators, TCU Senate denounce ‘It's okay to be white’ signs
RESPONSES
continued from page 1 discourse while decrying its more pernicious forms. “We respect and encourage political discourse and civic engagement at Tufts, but today’s action clearly had a different purpose – to foster discord and fear during a major national election,” Monaco wrote. Tisch College Dean Alan Solomont expressed a similar sentiment in an interview with the Daily. “I think that one could interpret this messaging from the alt-right as an effort to actually discourage students from participating,” Solomont said. “But I have enough confidence in Tufts students to know that they’re not going to be dissuaded.” Solomont remained hopeful that the incident could embolden students to participate in the election. “The response to this, I hope and believe, will be not to be intimidated but to actually get out there and participate,” he said. Solomont noted that groups all across the political spectrum, from liberal to conservative, have had times when their presence on campus resulted in “expressions of hate” during his five decades as a member of the Tufts community.
However, Solomont also made clear that the current political environment of foundering discourse, lost civility and open animosity is a reflection of the Trump administration’s divisive governing strategy. “The current leadership gives license to people who are hateful to express that [hatred],” Solomont said. “When they hear the President of the United States speak the way he does, I certainly don’t think that discourages people.” Solomont added that the best thing the Tufts community can do is to move past recent hateful incidents. “It’s the act of a handful of people who, when they do something like this, have a loud megaphone,” Solomont said. “But I think we should reject it, repudiate it, move on and try to encourage this community to participate in democracy.” Student leaders on campus also spoke out in the wake of Wednesday night’s vandalism. The TCU Senate Executive Board released a statement on the Senate’s Facebook page Thursday morning decrying the incident. “[We] were shocked to learn that posters with language linked to white supremacist hate groups were found on our campus last night,” the Executive Board wrote. “We want to take this moment to reaffirm our support
for the members of our community targeted by white supremacist hatred, especially our students of color, Jewish students, Muslim students, and LGBTQ+ students.” The Executive Board unequivocally rejected the white nationalist movements to which the posters have been linked. “White supremacy has no place on our campus. It is more important now than ever to stand firmly against this hatred and bigotry while reaffirming that the Tufts community is strong precisely because of its diversity,” the Executive Board wrote. Mary Pat McMahon, dean of student affairs, and Robert Mack, associate provost and chief diversity officer, wrote in an email late Thursday that the university will provide students with an opportunity for reflection and support Friday 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Metcalf Hall Common Room. “We know that this act of bigotry and hate, and its resonance with recent national events, may have a significant impact on many students, as well as faculty and staff,” they wrote. “In an effort to provide students with an opportunity to connect, find support, and reflect on possible next steps for our campus community, we are hosting an informal gathering [Friday].”
Students, faculty participate in Halloween ‘Frankenstein’ read-a-thon by Conor Friedmann Assistant News Editor
The Department of English and Tufts University Art Galleries (TUAG) co-hosted a full day, marathon reading of the entirety of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” (1818) in the Tisch Family Gallery this Halloween. The event was a part of the international “Frankenreads” reading festival, put on by the Keats-Shelley Association of America to honor the book’s 200th anniversary, according to the Frankenreads website. Tufts’ iteration of the event was organized by Associate Professor of English Sonia Hofkosh. Billed as a “community marathon reading,” Tufts’ Frankenreads was open to all members of the Tufts community interested reading a small section of the novel. Starting at 10:30 a.m. and going until the end, readers took turns reciting aloud the novel before the attendees. Hofkosh said that her motivation for bringing Frankenreads to Tufts was to offer the Tufts community a space to celebrate the novel. “I wanted Tufts to be part of this wide celebration which brings various people around the world together around a literary text,” she said. “I saw it as an excellent opportunity to bring members of the Tufts community together in recognition of this remarkable novel, written by a very young woman in 1818, which then and still now addresses some of most complex and pressing questions there are about what or who gets defined as human.” Hofkosh added that the book is an important reading in her own teaching, and that Mary Shelley is an important figure in her own scholarship as well. Jess Keiser, an assistant professor of English, told the Daily in an interview that Hofkosh is one of the leading figures in Shelley research. Keiser also participated in the reading: At about 5:45 p.m., he read a pivotal moment of the novel in which Dr. Viktor Frankenstein kills the monster’s female companion. Keiser said that Frankenreads made “Frankenstein” into a new experience. “It’s a book that I’ve read many times. I’ve taught it many times. But hearing it out loud, read by many people, I was just sort of captivated, riveted, and I couldn’t leave until
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Tufts celebrates the 200th anniversary of Frankenstein with marathon readings of the novel in the Tisch Family Gallery in the Aidekman Arts Center on Oct. 31. I found out what happened, even though I knew exactly what happened,” Keiser said. Hofkosh also noted that reading the text out loud contributed to her understanding of the text, which she has read many times in the past. “There were readers and audience members [at Frankenreads] who had not read the book before and who were surprised by how complex the character of the creature is and how moving the story is, but even I, who have read the book multiple times, heard things in it yesterday that I have failed to register in past readings.” Many of the readers throughout the day were Hofkosh’s students. Tufts staff, faculty, alumni and community members were also invited to fill reading blocks from 1–3 p.m. and from 6–9 p.m. According to Hofkosh, readers included Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences James Glaser and Dean of Academic Affairs Joseph Auner, as well as various faculty members. Several local community members also volunteered to read. Laura Ferguson, senior writer and editor in the Tufts’ Office of Communications and Marketing, said she had a positive experience at the event. “It was energizing in so many ways — we talked on the way back how refreshing it is to
read aloud,” she said. “[The reading] reminded us all that literature matters.” The reading took place in the Tisch Family Gallery in Aidekman Arts Center, as a part of a partnership with Liz Canter, TUAG’s gallery academic program manger. The gallery currently features “States of Freedom: The Figure in Flux,” an exhibition described by the gallery as “addressing the impossibility of representing the human subject in total.” The exhibition, which took the bicentennial of “Frankenstein” into consideration, focuses on human “form,” according to a Sept. 14 Daily review of the exhibition. According to Hofkosh, the gallery venue was particularly relevant to “Frankenstein,” a book about a creature who gets pieced together out of disparate body parts. Over the course of the day, readers and audience members came and went, taking in the classic novel, a story of failed humanity, on Halloween. The bicentennial celebration of Frankenstein does not end on Halloween, however. According to Hofkosh, the commemoration continues at Tufts with a screening of an experimental film about the writing of “Frankenstein” and discussion with the filmmaker Abigail Child on Nov. 29 at 6 p.m. in Tisch Library. Daniel Nelson contributed reporting to this article.
Friday, November 2, 2018
Features
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Tufts community members discuss role of distribution requirements in modern liberal arts university
RACHEL HARTMAN / THE TUFTS DAILY ARCHIVES
Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences James Glaser poses for a portrait in front of Ballou Hall on Sept. 18, 2017. by Daniel Meakem Contributing Writer
Students and professors come and go on the Hill, but debate on the merits and flaws of distribution requirements for undergraduates in the School of Arts and Sciences has remained a constant over the years at Tufts. In total, graduation requirements — including distribution, writing, language and world civilization requirements — take students with no pre-matriculation credits up to 19 courses to complete — potentially over half the courses they will take during their time at Tufts. Amidst rising tuition costs and increasing pressures on students to be employable, a dean, a professor and a student share their perspectives on the current value and drawbacks of Tufts’ distribution requirements with the Daily. Maddie Oliff, a junior, said that one of her concerns about the distribution requirements is not being able to complete her planned majors and minors or having to enroll classes that do not interest her. “I had to drop an education class, [which] would count toward my American studies major,” Oliff said. “I had to prioritize a math class that I’m in because I still need to fulfill that distribution requirement.” In response, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences James Glaser said more students could look beyond the “checklist mentality” of organizing one’s academics to stop viewing the distribution requirements not as mere “obstacles.” “Very few people don’t accomplish what they came here to accomplish. I’ve never heard students say that the distribution requirements were something standing in their way,” Glaser, a professor of political science, said. “People are always going to be unhappy with something, but the fact of the matter is that most people fulfill the requirements just sort of by virtue of the choices that they would have made anyway, and then there may be a
little bit [of courses] on the margins that they wouldn’t have taken.” Steve Cohen, a senior lecturer in the Department of Education, said that just the fact that these requirements are not too burdensome on students does not prove their necessity, but instead they should be evaluated from the actual gains of implementation in the Tufts curriculum. Cohen also challenged the appropriateness of using admission to the next level of education as a justification for college graduation requirements. “I think that there’s something about math, science or humanities that everyone should be exposed to … High schoolers go through the same thing — you have to take all this stuff all the time, and if you want to go to college and you don’t want to take algebra two, they’ll say ‘what? No, take it.’ They’ll rarely make the argument that it was about the way you think about variables; instead they’d say ‘colleges want you to take it,’” Cohen said. “If you’re applying to grad school to be a high school history teacher, people aren’t looking for your math score. So there should be another justification, another reason, rationale for [the requirements], which, I assume, there is. And whether or not those courses meet that rationale, that’s the interesting question to me.” Glaser said that instituting distribution requirements is part of a broader philosophy of open-ended education — a philosophy that not everyone is naturally inclined to abide by, no matter how beneficial. “Say that a well-educated person is educated broadly. I think that philosophically I believe that, and if left to their own devices most people would approach their education that way, but I think the fact is that maybe not everybody would, and we’ve tried to set the parameters around the degree to require people to taste broadly and to be a well-rounded person.” Oliff expressed that another important aim of a liberal arts education is to equip
individuals with comprehensive skill sets for their future. “As liberal arts students, we want to have people skills, we want to have analytical skills, we want to have it all,” Oliff said. “There’s a difference between stretching out of your comfort zone and feeling like it’s a burden to take those classes, and therefore not putting as much energy and thought and excitement into those classes.” Oliff questioned if whether these distribution requirements actually lead to the benefits that they are meant to produce. “If I’m taking a math or science class, am I actually building logical intelligence? Especially since there are many classes known to be really good non-major classes … that [wouldn’t] even count towards a math major,” Oliff said. However, Glaser said that he has heard from many students who entered classes with one mentality and exited with another. “I hear all the time: ‘I didn’t think I would like that class, I had to take it, and it turned into something that became very interesting or enriched my life,’ and I have to say that’s very true. Here I am, I graduated 30 years ago, and the courses I took in art history, oceanography, the classics and economics are still with me, and I wouldn’t have necessarily taken them. But I did because I wanted a degree,” Glaser said. Besides the benefits of distribution requirements on an intellectual or philosophical level, Oliff noted that it is perhaps not good practice for Tufts to charge students so much for tuition and then not give them more freedom as to what they actually get to study while they are in attendance. “I think if the approach to a liberal arts education were more student led, then that would be more beneficial,” she said. “I think there’s something to be said for trusting your student body … I would say that Tufts students are curious, and I would say that placing a requirement on students turns them off from exploring more.”
However, Glaser drew a direct connection between the presence of distribution requirements and the mission of a university like Tufts. “[The distribution requirements are] a statement of the values of the faculty and the university. And those values say [that] we expect a well-rounded person to be educated in the humanities, the social sciences, the natural sciences, the arts, quantitative areas as well, and that’s what we value … the requirements are an expression of those values.” Cohen explained that other than the English writing requirement, Tufts students actually have a fair degree of choice regarding courses to fulfill the distribution requirements. “Aside from the English requirement, there are really no specific requirements for students. Nobody is thinking they can’t major in history if they didn’t start with the ancient Greeks. I do think that students should have a great deal of choice in what they take in college.” Cohen said, “What always amuses me is that Tufts students seem to love to collect. They collect majors, they collect minors, I even have someone with a triple major. You know, I could barely do one [major]. That always amazes me. So, I’m not sure how many students really are detrimentally affected by the distribution requirements.” Cohen added that it is up to every new generation of Tufts students to determine for themselves, within open-ended major and distribution requirements, what a well-rounded education will entail. “It’s for … the present-day students to be thinking about what they came to the university for, and what the university if providing, and if the university’s notions of a broad education that’s also a focused education is satisfied by the idea of a major and distribution requirements. I do think that if it were a return to rigid requirements, there would be more complaints, and those complaints would probably be justified,” Cohen said.
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ARTS&LIVING
Friday, November 2, 2018
Q&A: Inaugural Tufts Latinx Film Festival celebrates diversity, dialogue by Julian Blatt
Assistant Arts Editor
While movies can amuse and entertain us, they also teach us a lot about ourselves and the society we live in. It is also important and beneficial to watch movies that depict the lives and societies of others, so we can develop a better understanding and appreciation of each other and begin to bridge the gap that divides us. No one understands the significant impact of diversity in movies better than junior Vladimir Proaño. An intern at the Latino Center, Proaño helped plan and organize the Tufts Latinx Film Festival, which began Oct. 24. The festival will close on Nov. 9 with a screening of television miniseries Vida at 1 p.m. and Pixar’s award-winning film Coco at 3 p.m. in Sophia Gordon Multipurpose Room. The Daily sat down with Proaño for an interview to learn more about the festival. Tufts Daily (TD): What’s your role the Latino Center? What does the center mean to you, and do you think it is an important part of Tufts? Vladimir Proaño (VP): My duties at the center range from supporting logistics to designing some of the center’s programming and events. Within the center’s organization, I work in the Arts and Culture committee with another intern and two peer-leaders and work with events that pertain to our committee, although we also collaborate with interns and peer-leaders in other areas as well. My experience with the center is fairly recent, as I was generally uninvolved with it during my first and second years at Tufts. The center has carried out very important changes since then, however. One of them has been to expand its programming to cater to more Latinx groups, including Caribbean and Latin American students. As someone who grew up in Latin America and experienced the lack of space on campus for people who share my background, this was a valuable opening that made me want to get involved in programming to improve this connection. For many students, the center has historically been a homely space, and this new opening to students like me was valuable.
VIA IMDB
The promotional posters for ‘Coco’ (2017) and ‘Vida,’ screening at the inaugural Tufts Latinx Film Festival, are pictured. This extends to the new groups the Latino Center works with, and of course, other groups it has always catered to. Here lies the value of the center for Tufts, as it is the primary point of contact the university has to interact with Latinx students in ways that match their experiences. After all, Latinx is neither a race nor a nationality. It is a broad spectrum of cultures coming from and related to a geographic region, which makes it impossible to place these students under more rigid categories like race and nationality. The Latinx experience is unique and so is the center. TD: Where and how did the idea for the festival originate? VP: This year’s Tufts Latinx Film Festival is the first of its kind, though we hope to make it an annual celebration of Latinx identity and culture. The idea came from our director, Julián [Cancino], and was further developed and curated by [sophomore] Rebeca Becdach and me [and] interns at the center. However, the unique element is that we invited Latinx professors to participate in it and gave them complete freedom to choose the films they were interested in screening. This way, we can foster more organic interac-
tions between students and faculty about Latinx identity. TD: Why is the festival important to you? VP: The element I like most about the festival, besides the input from faculty, is the diversity represented in the films. We have movies written in indigenous languages from Guatemala and others that look into the Latinx perspective in the United States. For me, this festival is a sample of the diversity of our identities. TD: Why is the festival important to the center? VP: It offers a chance for faculty and students to interact in a space outside of the classroom and exposes students to topics that faculty are not always able to share in class. Besides, by bringing in professors from different departments, various perspectives are made available to students who don’t necessarily know much about certain fields. Therefore the festival is important to the center in that it helps it meet its objectives of fostering conversation and reaching out to students who either identify with the discussed topics or are interested in them. TD: And why is the festival important to Tufts in general?
VP: By making these very particular glimpses of the Latinx and Latin American experiences available to the wider Tufts community, the festival fosters conversation and cross-cultural learning. TD: How and why were these particular movies chosen for the festival? Which one is your favorite? VP: The movies were proposed by Latinx professors that we reached out to and that agreed to present the movie and deliver some introductory remarks. It is completely up to the professor which movie they want to screen. I have only seen one of the movies so far, “Ixcanul” [2015], and [I] enjoyed it a lot and would most definitely recommend it. TD: What would you say to a student who is thinking of attending a screening to convince them to go? VP: The films we plan to screen are not the first suggestion you will find on your Netflix account. They are, however, great works that have won awards and show the realities of some Latinx experiences that are worth watching. TD: What do you want people to take away from the festival? VP: I would say the diversity that the term Latinx or Latino entails. While many structures and systems often deal with the Latinx experience incorrectly and fail to understand it, in reality it is not as simple as it is often depicted. It is extremely diverse and complex, and I want people to get a sense of this from the festival and hopefully understand some of their Latinx peers’ experiences. TD: What are your future plans for the festival? Would you like it to happen again? VP: The festival is still underway, so we have not yet discussed any future plans. However, it has been successful and extremely interesting so far and would certainly like to see it continue next year … We regularly issue a newsletter with all events. This Friday, we will have a town hall for the community to come and voice their feedback, and hope to see everyone with something to say present. Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT
Mental health issues in fashion bring traditional practices into question by Antonio Bertolino Arts Editor
Content warning: This article discusses suicide and mental health. The fashion world has a problematic past when it comes to how it approaches the mental health of the people who are a part of it. Models are subject to an intense amount of pressure from different stakeholders in the fashion industry that is not sustainable in the long term. Because of the stigma attached to mental health issues, these models are rarely in an optimal position to speak out about their experiences. The rise of Instagram and other social networks as platforms where fashion content is posted 24/7 has also had harmful effects on the expecta-
tions people have for models and their lifestyles. In order to be booked frequently, models have to maintain an online presence that is consistent with their glamorous appearance on the catwalk. This often results in models burning out very early due to exhaustion from the excessive pressure and expectations of the people around them. However, several women involved in the fashion are initiating conversations about mental health. In a recent interview with Vogue, Sara Ziff, founder of fashion model rights group Model Alliance, talked about her research concerning eating disorders in the fashion industry. Ziff estimates that over 62 percent of models that were interviewed in her collaborative study see FASHION, page 5
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Adwoa Aboa (left) and Sara Ziff (right) are pictured.
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Friday, November 2, 2018 | Arts & Living | THE TUFTS DAILY
Fashion's mental health hangups not limited to models FASHION
continued from page 4 with Harvard University, Northeastern University and Boston Children’s Hospital, had been encouraged to lose weight or change their size by their modeling agency or by their clients. Ziff expressed her concern about modeling as a career, arguing that conditions similarly dangerous for workers’ mental health exist in very few other fields. “If you think about modeling as a job where you’re subject to maybe unsafe working conditions, I think you can appreciate the need for having some basic health and safety standards,” Ziff said. Adwoa Aboah, the 26-year-old British supermodel who recently headlined a Burberry campaign, has often spoken out about her personal struggles with mental
health before and after her modeling career. Last year, Aboah starred in a video sponsored by Heads Together, a mental health charity fronted by Kate Middleton and Princes William and Harry, holding a conversation with her mother about her suicide attempt as a teenager. In an effort to end the stigma surrounding mental health conversations and to challenge perceptions of the seemingly idyllic lifestyle of fashion models, Aboah founded Gurls Talk, an open online platform where users are welcome to share their experiences with mental health issues. In a recent post on Gurls Talk, model and actress Phoebe Torrance describes an anxiety attack she had on the day of a photoshoot for a swimwear brand, when she also posted a picture of herself captioned “Summer smiles.” Torrance recounted the episode to demonstrate that social media
users often do not get the full picture when scrolling through their feeds, and it is hard to tell when someone is struggling with mental health since it is such a difficult topic to discuss. The toxic side of the fashion world does not solely affect models, however. The fashion school of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Antwerp in Belgium, one of the most prestigious programs in the fashion world, recently made headlines after one of its students committed suicide. The teaching methods of Walter Van Beirendonck, the director of the program, were immediately questioned. They were deemed to be excessively intense by students and alumni alike. In an interview with The Business of Fashion, Wilton Gorske, a former student of the Academy who
dropped out after one year, said “It wasn’t until I left the Academy that I realized how incredibly misguided the intentions were of the professors in how they treated us as students.” Gorske also said that “there’s a difference between constructive criticism and manipulation,” referring to the often emotionally damaging critiques made by professors to their students. It is, above all, important for authority figures in the fashion world to re-evaluate their practices and start considering the mental health of its stakeholders with less power in the industry. The conversation about mental health is a fundamental one to have, and initiatives like the ones led by Ziff and Aboah are vital to the welfare of people who are a part of the fashion world.
MOVIE REVIEW
‘Minding the Gap’ provides subjects with opportunity for reflection, redemption by Daniel Klain
Contributing Writer
Content warning: This article discusses child abuse and domestic abuse. 2018 may be shaping up to be the year of the documentary. With films like “RBG,” “Won’t You Be My Neighbor” and “Three Identical Strangers” released in theaters, the documentary has seen a surge in quality output. While these theatrical releases have dominated the media spotlight for the genre, the best documentary of the year may be quietly minding its business in Hulu’s library. “Minding the Gap” tells the story of three young men from small town Rockford, Ill., following the trio’s childhoods and their love for skateboarding, as well as the confluence of the two. In an innovative twist, the documentary is directed and filmed by one of its subjects, Bing Liu. “Minding the Gap” has a familiar hand-crafted, low-budget style, but it also utilizes a wholly unique technique. A significant portion of the film depicts people skateboarding in scenes that are quite dynamic. Liu follows his subjects as though he is simultaneously riding and filming alongside them, capturing the sport’s smooth artistic flow while highlighting its difficulty. The cinematography brings a great deal of the subjects’ emotions to life in what is typically a relatively grounded and understated genre. Liu follows his childhood best friends in 23-year-old Zack, a new father, and 17-yearold Kiere, a high school dropout who faces the harsh reality of joining the labor force. On its surface, the film’s themes are relatable: Zack and Kiere grapple with how to balance their idealistic passions and their realistic futures. The calmed ignorance suddenly shattered by the impending existential panic of creating a viable future for both themselves and their loved
ones is something with which college students can connect. Even if they cannot relate to skater culture, young-adult viewers are likely to ask themselves when they can take time off from being an adult and devote it to things that make them happy. With Zack and Kiere starting at the bottom of the corporate ladder, it becomes clear that skateboarding is not just their passion but rather an escape from troubled lives at home. All three individuals were either victims of abuse from their father figures or, as in Zack’s case, are domestic abusers themselves. The confrontational tone of Liu’s questions and in his friends’ responses suggest that the making of the documentary itself was cathartic for the trio. Rather than suppressing their history with abuse, Zack, Kiere and Liu are forced to address how these experiences have influenced and changed their perspectives, especially given that they increasingly find themselves in situations similar to those of their abusers. Liu even admits that he made the film as a way to let go of his pain and anger. “Minding the Gap” hits its climax with Liu’s questioning Zack about allegations of abuse that Zack’s former partner, Nina, has levied against him, as well as Zack’s absence in his son’s life. Zack admits to domestic abuse and explains his disappearance and alcohol addiction as a suppression of fear and guilt. The film in no way rationalizes Zack’s actions but, rather, forces him to address the damning realization that he is now no different from his father, whom he criticizes frequently. Therein lies the film’s tragedy: What happens when we become everything we set out not to be? “Minding the Gap” tells the story of fathers and sons and growing up, subjects that are common to both documentary and narrative film. However, the challenges that its subjects confront, and their subsequent pain and growth, make the film equally emotional and rewarding.
VIA IMDB
A promotional poster for the Hulu original documentary ‘Minding the Gap’ is pictured.
TRASHING ONE EGG WASTES 55 GALLONS OF WATER
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Friday, November 2, 2018 | FUN & GAMES | THE TUFTS DAILY
F& G
tuftsdaily.com LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Luke: “I saw Caleb in class. I’ve hit my Caleb quota for the day.”
FUN & GAMES
SUDOKU
LINDA C. BLACK ASTROLOGY
Scorpio (Oct. 22–Nov. 21)
Brilliant ideas ripple through a collaborative effort. For solutions, get into a hive mentality. Learn and teach simultaneously. Go for substance over symbolism.
CORRECTION
Difficulty Level: Taking BIO 13
Thursday’s Solution
A previous version of the Nov. 1 article “Environmentalist speaks about urgency of climate change, civil disobedience in activism” incorrectly used the concept of “just sustainabilities” to describe environmentalist Bill McKibben’s work. “Just sustainabilities” describes Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning Julian Agyeman’s own work. The article has been updated to reflect this change. The Daily regrets this error.
Release Date: Friday, November 2, 2018
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich CROSSWORD Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS 1 Service calls 6 Emotionally bother 11 Sonic the Hedgehog maker 15 Miller’s salesman 16 Audibly awed 17 Dirt handful 18 Commonly bristly covering 21 “Settle down!” 22 Watch name 23 Black shade 26 Positive aspects 27 Make the cut? 29 Christmas celebration 32 Sock part 33 Innate abilities 34 Ginsburg colleague 36 With 37-Across, an apt reminder 37 See 36-Across 39 Pile 43 Off the plate 46 Mooch 48 SHO sister channel 51 Last-minute deadline 54 Whaling weapon 56 Narrow inlets 57 Friend of Frodo 58 Red flag 59 World Heritage Site org. 61 “Things are different now” ... and an apt hint to three other answers 67 Long-billed wader 68 Like Stout’s Wolfe 69 Former National Endowment for the Humanities chair Cheney 70 Great balls of fire 71 Herd butters 72 Radiate DOWN 1 1980s TV ET 2 Call from Mrs. O’Leary’s barn 3 Dingo prey 4 Cop making a traffic stop? 5 Nosy sort 6 Mustang’s rate of speed, at times 7 Selfishness
8 Delicacy 9 Sound of disapproval 10 Special __ 11 Ponzi schemes, e.g. 12 Firstborn 13 Like lovestruck eyes 14 Pop-up source 19 Reasons to take painful steps? 20 Verb in the song “Sloop John B” 23 Mutt’s companion 24 “First Lady of Song” 25 Colorful duck 27 Polio vaccine pioneer 28 TV forensic series 30 Nasty 31 Cheese go-with 35 “Trouble ahead!” 37 “It’s __ fun” 38 Farm crawler 40 Genesis grandson 41 Water en un lago 42 Salon offering 44 Scintillas 45 Short still? 46 Squirrel away
47 Range on which 7 denotes neutrality 48 Strictly speaking 49 “Two and a Half Men” beach setting 50 Pack without an inch to spare 52 First name of a literary “Papa” 53 Family reunion attendees 55 Persist, with “on”
59 Pigmented eye area 60 Black shade 62 “Sooey!” responder 63 Blood classification letters 64 Beast that rhymes with zoo 65 Word with living or dead 66 When doubled, a Ramone
Thursday’s Solution ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
By Ed Sessa ©2018 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
11/02/18
11/02/18
Sports
Friday, November 2, 2018 | Sports | THE TUFTS DAILY
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Tufts serves up 15–9 season record, prepares for NESCAC quarterfinal VOLLEYBALL
continued from back A day earlier against Conn. College, Tufts dominated for three consecutive sets to win the Senior Night game 3–0. The Jumbos took an early 7–1 lead in the first set, and the Camels were unable to take the lead for the remainder of the set. The Jumbos took the first set 25–19. Nearing the end of the second set, Conn. College was leading by three points when Tufts responded with five consecutive points to take a two-point lead at 20–18. Responding to a kill from the Camels’ first-year right setter Avery Light, the Jumbos furthered their lead with two kills from Nwanpka and a kill from Stewart to make the score 24–20. Finally, the Jumbos earned the winning point on the back of an attack error
JULIA MCDOWELL / THE TUFTS DAILY
First-year setter Ariel Zedric serves during Tufts 3–0 Senior Night win over Conn. College on Oct. 26.
by Camels’ sophomore outside hitter Katie Howley to win the set 25–22. “We had very good energy and constant communication,” Nwanpka told the Daily in an email. “Overall we just had fun and played loose.” The third set was a back-and-forth battle as both teams traded points throughout the entire set. Tufts was holding a one-point lead at 23–22 when Stewart got a kill followed by a kill from Desler to win the set and the game. Bright, Nwanpka and sophomore middle hitter Jennifer Ryan had eight kills each on the game. “In the Conn College game, we really stepped up our serve and pass game,” Bright said. “Our servers were making their serves tough and in the court, and our defense was keeping us consistently in system on both serve receive and defense.”
After the conclusion of the regular season, Tufts enters the postseason as the No. 5 seed in the NESCAC. Tufts faces Middlebury in the NESCAC quarterfinal on Nov. 2, at Bowdoin. Bright described the team’s attitude heading into the postseason. “Looking into the postseason, we are making sure not to assume anything about the teams we are facing,” Bright said. “Postseason brings out a very different team in everyone, and to assume that every team will do the same thing they did in the regular season would be a poor choice on our part. On the flip side, we are going to be leaving the previous results against these teams in the past, and working to just compete no matter what comes at us from the other side of the net.”
Sailing team wins Nickerson Trophy amidst nor’easter conditions by Jason Schwartz Staff Writer
As the days become shorter and colder in the New England autumn, the sailing team looks to wrap up its successful season, competing in five regattas this past weekend. However, the Jumbos did not ease off the gas despite the relaxed schedule and the frigid air. On Thursday night, four lark boats, “Jumbalaya,” “Jumbutts,” “Jumblitty” and “Jumbabies,” sailed at the Dark of Night Regatta, a promotional regatta hosted by Tufts. Ansgar Jordan, a first-year who sailed on “Jumbabies,” felt the regatta was a fun experience for the team. “It’s really a lot of fun, especially for people who come to watch,” Jordan said. “We try to get some teams from around the Boston area to come out and sail — like we had Northeastern here. Brown came, which is pretty surprising because that is a bit of a drive. What we do is we put little flashlights on our boats so we can still kind of see where we are going, and we put flashlights on the marks that we have to round in order to complete the race. It gets colder throughout the night but everyone is out there having fun. On the top floor of the boathouse, we do a little chili dinner for the visiting teams.” Needless to say, the regatta was a fun way to kick off the weekend early. Up the New England coastline in Brunswick, Maine, the team, which sent two divisions, posted positive results at the Victorian Urn Trophy on Saturday and Sunday. Tufts finished ninth among 16 teams, racking up a total of 244 points. Brown finished first with a total of 108 points through 14 races each in both divisions. According to junior Charlotte Lenz, sailors were equipped with dry-suits to combat the cold and windy late October climate in Maine. “The idea of having the last regatta in Maine is kind of wild because it is so cold,” Lenz, who skippered the B division boat through the first ten races on Saturday, said. “When I sailed, everyone was wearing dry suits [since] winds were at 20 mph and it was sleeting. Meanwhile, the cold and wet weather did not stop one Tufts team from outperforming sixteen other boats at the Tufts-hosted Nickerson Trophy for firstyears. Tufts’ victors were Jordan, Samuel Merson, Charlie Hibben, Ryutaro Sochi, Mallory Hood, George Sidamon-Eristoff and Jessica Friedman. This squad had an overall total of 45 points, beating the second place finisher, Roger Williams, by a margin of 30 points. Jordan spoke to the cohesive bond that he felt his entire team possessed and the huge role it played in their success at Nickerson.
COURTESY KENNETH LEGLER
First-year Abbie Carlson and senior Taylor Hart navigate the waters of Mystic Lake during practice on Sept. 21. “Since we have a very large [first-year] team of about 28 people, we really tried to get everybody sailing,” Jordan said. “Based on our results of the first and the second day, sailing with different people showed that we have a really deep [first-year] squad, and I think we can go far with that going forward.” “Jumbos Ladies,” which had an all-female crew, also competed in the same regatta. Lera Anders skippered the A division boat and earned 13th place in her division. Alexandra Talbot skippered the B division boat well for 11th place. Overall, “Jumbos Ladies” landed in the middle of the pack at 11th place with a total of 186 points. Meanwhile at Yale’s Dave Perry Team Race, Tufts’ two teams finished second and fourth among five teams in an in-conference regatta. The Jumbos 1 team finished with a 6–1 record to place second, while the Jumbos 2 team edged out the 0–7 University of Rhode Islam Rams with a 2–5 record. Trekking westward into the northern banks of the Connecticut River, two teams, one in each division, raced Saturday and Sunday at the 78th Professor Schell Trophy at Dartmouth. On Saturday, sailors braved through cold air and heavy rain, the latter causing a couple of delays throughout the day. The sun came out the next day, but it was colder. Sailors raced fourteen times.
Senior Jackson McCoy skippered the A division boat with junior Emily Clutterbuck in the first twelve races and then with junior Emily Calandrella in race 13. Senior Chris Keller then took over for Calandrella for the final race. Overall, the team earned ninth place in its division with 125 points. The B division boat, placing fifteenth in its division with 100 points, featured an equally experienced crew: senior Florian Eenkema Van Dijk, senior Cameron Holley, junior Duke Saunders and senior co-captain Ian Morgan. Yale won the regatta with a total score of 147 points. “I did not really know any of the [first-years at] the beginning of the year, but now they are an integral part of the team,” sophomore Jacob Whitney said. “The [first-year] class has definitely shown that they are a strong class in practices throughout the week. Also, their victory at Nickerson shows that they are able to compete against other teams.” The team also has a few walk-ons that have found a home in the sailing community. Their sailing skills have improved dramatically as the season progressed, and they have proved to become valuable assets to the team, according to Jordan. “We have a few [first-year] walk-ons on our team,” Jordan said. “One of them is Mo Liu; she already sailed a regatta with me at MIT a while ago, and there have been big improve-
ments there. From all the other walk-ons, some of the practice schedules do not line up because the [walk-ons] made their schedules before joining the team, so in some respects, scheduling is a little difficult. But we have a really good team here, and it is cool to see that most of the walk-ons have stayed with us and have regularly come to practice.” According to Lenz and Jordan, firstyear Abbie Carlson will be representing Tufts at the LaserPerformance Women’s Singlehanded Nationals in Michigan this weekend. Her teammates have praised her and wish her well. “We are all very excited for her because it is a big deal to go to nationals. Hopefully, she will do well,” Whitney said. Since this was the last weekend of regattas, the rest of the sailing team will spend the next two weeks of the fall season practicing on Mystic Lake. Jordan said that having additional practice after the regattas have ended keeps the team prepared for the upcoming spring season. “The purpose of our practices the next two weeks is to be prepared for the spring season,” Jordan said. “Whenever the lake is no longer frozen over, we [are] going to be out there practicing. By then, the weather might not be that great, so right now we are trying to enjoy the good weather and make the most of it.”
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Sports
Friday, November 2, 2018
Football to host Colby in final home game of 2018 season by Jake Freudberg Contributing Writer
The Jumbos (5–2) will take on the Colby Mules (2–5) tomorrow at Ellis Oval in their final home game of the 2018 season. Tufts is currently tied with Williams for third place in the NESCAC standings after losing 19–13 to undefeated Amherst on the road last week, but a win over Colby would solidify the team’s finish as one of the top teams in the conference. The Jumbos have had an up-anddown couple of weeks, having claimed a critical 28–21 victory against the Ephs on Oct. 20 followed by their loss to the Mammoths on Saturday. Tufts’ offensive struggled in adverse conditions at Amherst, as the hosts escaped with a six-point victory to move to 7–0. Although Amherst generated 281 yards of total offense and Tufts produced 253 yards, both teams struggled to capitalize on their offensive opportunities. The Mammoths punted five times, while the Jumbos punted seven times. Both teams benefited from strong individual performances on the defensive side of the ball. Sophomore linebacker Jack Walton had a game-high 12 tackles for Tufts, and junior defensive lineman Kevin Quisumbing had the team’s only sack of the day, forcing a fumble that Amherst junior offensive lineman Brendan Coleman recovered. Senior linebacker John Callahan made a big impact for the Amherst defense with an interception and a 65-yard fumble recovery. The Mammoths got off to a hot start with a touchdown on their first drive after converting a fake field goal attempt. Callahan’s interception quickly gave the hosts good field position again, which they turned into a 39-yard field goal for a 10-0 with 10:43 remaining in the second quarter. Senior quarterback and co-captain Ryan McDonald got Tufts on the board for the first time with under four minutes remaining in the first half on a 25-yard rushing touchdown. Turnovers continued to be an issue for the Jumbos in the second half.
Callahan’s fumble recovery gave the Mammoths great field position on the Jumbos’ 2-yard line, and senior running back Jack Hickey pounded the ball into the end zone to extend the hosts’ lead to two possessions. McDonald attributed Tufts’ struggles to a host of factors, including difficult conditions. “It was a combination of the weather — it was pretty rainy out there with the nor’easter — and their defense is really well coached, and they’re just good players,” McDonald said. With 13 minutes remaining in the game, the Jumbos orchestrated a 75-yard drive that culminated in a sixyard rushing touchdown from senior running back Dom Borelli. It was too little too late for the visitors, however, as the Mammoths’ defense clung to their six-point lead. McDonald threw his second interception of the day with 2:10 remaining, sealing Tufts’ fate. Coach Jay Civetti noted his frustration with the team’s performance. “We needed to respond and answer with a big play, and we didn’t,” Civetti said. “The interception and the turnover led to nine points, and it was a sixpoint game. [McDonald’s] interception was terrible, and the strip fumble was just a great play. If we really want to be a championship contender and really want to compete for an opportunity to be the best in the league, that’s a game we have to play better in and win.” The Mules should present an easier task this week, though they come into Medford with momentum from a twogame winning streak. Colby defeated Hamilton 23–21 on Oct. 20 before downing Bates 21–6 in Saturday’s snowy conditions in Lewiston, Maine. Senior running back Jake Schwern led the offensive attack against the Bobcats with 226 rushing yards and three touchdowns to earn NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. Tufts is superior to Colby in nearly every statistical measure. Whereas the Jumbos averages 360.9 yards of offense per game, the Mules average just 291.3. Tufts also average 26.4 points per game to Colby’s 14.4. Nonetheless, Civetti
EVAN SLACK / THE TUFTS DAILY
Senior running back Dom Borelli takes a handoff in Tufts 28–21 win over Williams on Oct. 20. is making sure that his team does not underestimate Colby as it readies for tomorrow’s matchup. “We’re preparing for them like the New England Patriots are coming to Medford,” Civetti said. “They have a two-game win streak right now. I think they have one of the best tailbacks in the league. They have a dangerous quarterback who is really starting to take off, [and] they have coach [ Jack] Cosgrove, who is just a legend. They’re certainly not scared of Tufts.” In last year’s matchup between the two teams in Waterville, Maine, the Jumbos defeated the Mules 28–14. The visitors capitalized on turnovers, including two interceptions by senior defensive back Tim Preston, including one that he returned for a touchdown. Meanwhile, sophomore running back Mike Pedrini scored three touchdowns for the Jumbos, who never trailed. In fact, the Mules have not defeated the Jumbos since a 37–0 win in 2013. Colby hired Cosgrove last winter after former head coach Jonathan Michaeles, who is now on the staff at Bowdoin, resigned. Before coming to Colby, Cosgrove was the head coach
at the University of Maine for 23 years, where he earned the title of winningest coach in program. As Tufts’ seniors have the potential to become one of the most successful classes in program history with wins in its final two games, the team is focused on raising their game on Senior Day. “To think five years ago, six years ago, we couldn’t win a game, to now we’re talking about one of the most winningest classes in the history of 143 years of football — that’s pretty impressive,” Civetti said. “So, I am deeply, deeply focused on making sure that we do everything we can to put these seniors in a position to achieve that.” Despite everything at stake for the Jumbos, they will need to stay grounded tomorrow. “I think one thing we have to do well this week is manage our emotions,” McDonald said. “We’ve got about 30 seniors who are playing their last home game ever, so emotions are going to be running high for sure. It’s just going to be a battle against ourselves.” Tufts’ Senior Day matchup with Colby will kick off at Ellis Oval at 1 p.m.
Volleyball clinches fifth seed for postseason play by Savannah Mastrangelo Sports Editor
Closing out the regular season facing two NESCAC opponents, Tufts went 1–1 over the weekend to finish the regular season with a 15–9 overall record and a 6–4 conference record. In the final game of the season, Tufts lost to Wesleyan in a five-set game on Saturday, a day after it trounced Conn. College in three. The Jumbos took an early lead in the match against the Wesleyan Cardinals on Saturday, scoring six consecutive points early in the first set. Behind the serve of first-year outside hitter Cate Desler, the Jumbos advanced their lead scoring five more points to make the score 14–5. Wesleyan was unable to gain any footing in the set, and Tufts won the set by 15 points, 25–10.
The second set was much closer, as both teams stayed within a few points of each other until the end. Tufts led Wesleyan by two points at 22–20 before a bad set by Wesleyan sophomore setter Grace Rose and an attack error from Wesleyan junior outside hitter Nicole Hilton awarded Tufts two additional points. Up 24–20, the Jumbos closed out the set, with the winning kill from Desler, at 25–21. The Cardinals responded early in the third set by scoring the first nine points of the match, the first key momentum shift. It wasn’t until a kill from junior outsider hitter and co-captain Maddie Stewart that the Jumbos made it on the scoreboard. While Tufts was able chip away at the deficit, Wesleyan maintained the lead for the entire set and won 25–19. Wesleyan continued to dominate offensively in the fourth set by scoring
six consecutive points and taking an early 9–4 lead. Later in the set, Tufts narrowed the deficit to three points, but soon after Wesleyan pulled away again and maintained a large lead for the remainder of the set, eventually taking the fourth 25–14 and forcing a decider. The beginning of the fifth set mirrored that of the previous two sets, where the Cardinals gained a quick and comfortable lead. Wesleyan led Tufts by five at 9–4, but Tufts was able to catch up. The move to try and take the deciding fifth set for Tufts started when Desler earned a kill to break up the Wesleyan four-point scoring streak. Two kills from junior middle hitter Christina Nwanpka sandwiched a kill from junior outside hitter Brigid Bell, and brought the Jumbos within just two points of the Cardinals at 12–10. However, the Cardinals responded
with a kill, and despite another point from Stewart, the Cardinals earned two more points to clinch the set and the game at 15–11. With this win, Wesleyan claimed the No. 2 seed in the NESCAC. “During the first two sets of the Wesleyan game, our team played with confidence, and that made the biggest difference,” senior outside hitter and co-captain Mackenzie Bright told the Daily in an email. “In the third through fifth sets, Wesleyan really started to challenge us, and we didn’t rise back to continue to challenge them as well. We got less consistent offensively and defensively, and really let the game happen to us.” Stewart led the team with a careerhigh 16 kills, followed closely by Desler who had 13. see VOLLEYBALL, page 7