Issue 7 - Volume 136 by Vermont Cynic

THEVERMONTCYNIC THE Issue 7 - Volume 136 | October 8, 2019 | vtcynic.com

$27 Million UVM’s approximate direct investment in fossil fuel companies

Students plan to present the board of trustees with divestment proposal Emma Pinezich

KYRA CHEVALIER

epinezic@uvm.edu

A student group is again pushing for UVM to divest from fossil fuels and plans to submit a proposal to the board of trustees this month. The board of trustees, who has control over UVM’s endowment, has previously not supported divestment. Organize, a newly formed environmental club, hopes their proposal will put pressure on board members to pull UVM’s investments from fossil fuel companies at their meeting Oct. 25-26. UVM has approximately $27 million of direct investments in fossil fuel companies as of June 2019, according to an email from Richard Cate, the vice president of ﬁnance and University treasurer. This amounts to around 5% of UVM’s endowment, the email stated. Cate was recently tasked to oversee sustainability and climate action issues by President Suresh Garimella. Cate has not indicated support for divestment. “We aren’t invested heavily in those things,” Cate said. “There are some investments, not a lot. The real question is, is that an effective way to help the environment?” However, senior Kieran Edraney, the president of Organize, believes that it’s more important for UVM to divest to make a statement about fossil fuel companies, he said. “It’s not really about the money at the end of the day,” Edraney said. “It’s about the public perception of the companies.” Cate will meet with Organize Oct. 11 to discuss divestment. Members of the group have been collecting signatures for a divestment petition from students and fac-

ulty outside of Royal Tyler Theatre and Waterman building since the beginning of September. The petition has roughly 1,000 signatures so far, according to Edraney. As an alternative to divestment, Cate suggested that students should transition towards bikes and away from cars to reduce the carbon impact of UVM. “When a student says they’re not going to drive a car anymore and they’re going to ride a bicycle, they’ve actually done something,” he said. “They’re reducing the amount of oil that is needed.” Organize hopes to include the petition signatures with their proposal to show the board how many members of the UVM community are in favor of divestment, Edraney said. “This isn’t just a minority of students,” Edraney said. “This really should be implemented because its a widely held belief on campus.” Student groups have urged the board to divest from coal and other fossil fuels in the past. In 2013, the Socially Responsible Investing Advisory Council requested that the University divest from fossil fuels, and was rejected. At the time, about 10% of UVM’s endowment was invested in fossil fuels, which amounted to around $38.8 million, according to a December 2013 Burlington Free Press article. SRIAC submitted the request after student groups urged the University to divest, including the Vermont Student Climate Culture Group. SRIAC is a division within the administration tasked with advising the board of trustees on the morality of its investments, like those in fossil fuel companies. It is made up of students, faculty, staff and adminis-

trators. Cate supervises SRIAC, and can make recommendations to the council. In 2016, SRIAC made another recommendation that UVM divest from coal after student groups again pushed for the board to take action on climate change by divesting from coal. However, the board did not vote to change their policies. In a statement released by the board of trustees investment subcommittee in February 2016, who controls the endowment investments, they said they did not support divestment because it would not be ﬁnancially careful. The subcommittee also pointed out that UVM at the time had no direct investments in coal companies, and they had no intention to change this. The board did not make a commitment to remain divested from coal permanently. The question of divestment has not formally been raised at a meeting since, according to the board of trustees’ meeting records. Divestment at universities has become a national movement. Around 150 campuses across the country have committed to divestment, including Boston University, Middlebury College, Syracuse University and Sterling College. In Vermont, Middlebury College announced in January 2019 that it would begin the process of divesting its more than $1 billion investment. The move came after mounting student pressure and a schoolwide referendum, hosted by the SGA, according to a Jan. 29 Burlington Free Press Article. Additionally the Vermont State Colleges System is partially divested from fossil fuels.

NEWS

Preacher raises free speech concerns Ella Ruehsen iruehsen@uvm.edu

Preacher Keith Darrell stood, Bible in hand, just after noon, Sept. 30, in the middle of Andrew Harris Commons. As students passed by, a small group stopped to listen. “Binary thinking is inescapable, you’re either serving the will of God or the will of Satan,” Darrell said. “Homosexuality is unnatural. It’s unnatural.” Darrell is a traveling campus preacher for Whitefield Fellowship, an organization named after 18th century Evangelist James Whitefield. At Youngstown State University in Ohio in September 2011, Darrell was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. Still, Darrell continues to tour the U.S. preaching his views. At UVM, students quickly surrounded him and began yelling back at him and a counterprotest was organized. Several UVM Police Services officers responded to the event, but little could be done as Darrell has a First Amendment Right to speak in a public place, according to the Constitution. Some students, including SGA President Jillian Scannell, a senior, were left upset by the events of Sept. 30 and the lack of clarity in campus free speech policies. “We should all know specifically what we can and cannot do and what other people can and cannot do,” Scannell said. “I don’t want a harsher policy or an expansion of the policy, I just want some asterisk that explains and clarifies the policy.”

SAWYER LOFTUS/The Vermont Cynic

Preacher Keith Darrell stands in Andrew Harris Commons, surrounded by onlookers, Sept. 30. Although many voiced objections to Darrell’s rhetoric, his presence was protected under the First Amendment. Scannell said that after talking to campus attorney Jen Papillo, she found the only things that can inhibit free speech, even speech that may be deemed hateful, are “time, place, manner” and if there is a “clear and present danger.” Annie Stevens, vice provost for Student Affairs, said a campus can put parameters in place to offer free speech so long that it occurs at reasonable times, public spaces and in the proper manner. A clear and present dan-

ger is a situation where people could be harmed, Stevens said. Scannell said many students received Darrel’s message as a “clear and present danger,” but according to the law, it did not qualify as such. Acting Chief of UVM Police Tim Bilodeau said officers spoke with students at the protest about their concerns, but ultimately, the police have to protect the Constitution. “There is this expectation that police are going to enforce campus policy at the level they

would with a criminal act, but we can’t use our police authority to violate the First Amendment right to free speech,” he said. The preacher has a right to be there because these are public spaces, open to anybody and every year preachers show up on campus, Bilodeau said. This very same man has been here before, he said. “We are what we are when it comes to the power that is invested in us, we just aren’t everything,” Bilodeau said.

Everyone can participate in a dialogue on how to best deal with these scenarios, and stakeholders can be student groups as well as administrators, Bilodeau said. SGA is hoping to hold a panel either next week or the week after with Director of Student Life Daphne Wells, Stevens, Papillo and a Deputy Chief of Police, outside on the green. The panel will discuss free speech policies and students will be able to ask questions.

President’s installation marks new chapter for UVM Lilly Page lpage@uvm.edu

In a symbolic transfer of power, UVM’s new president, Suresh Garimella, was handed the University mace and presidential medallion. This transfer of two physical objects signaled the official start to his presidency and a new chapter of UVM history. Garimella was installed as the 27th president of UVM Oct. 3 in the Ira Allen Chapel. The chapel was filled with members of the UVM community and senior elected officials, including U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy and Governor Phil Scott. Garimella was previously the executive vice president of research and partnerships at Purdue University before being chosen as UVM’s 27th president. In his presidential address, Garimella said that he is coming in with a framework in order to improve UVM in all aspects. “Our most prominent responsibility is the success of our students,” Garimella said. “They deserve the highest qual-

ity education we can offer, and ensuring success means that we can make UVM affordable and accessible to a wide variety of students.” Garimella also said he is committed to doubling down on what UVM is known for. “Part of our framework is to enhance our research and scholarship and reputation, and contribute knowledge to better society and solve global challenges,” he said. Garimella said he is committed to not only better UVM, but also Vermont, as he sees the two as connected. UVM has a $1.3 billion economic impact for Vermont and supports over 11,000 jobs. Garimella said he wants to provide opportunities that are available to everyone. “Diversity is our strength,” he said. “It must be our inspiration.” He ended his presidential address saying UVM students and staff are up to a new challenge and that as president, he committed to contributing all he can to help. David Dagle, chair for the

STEPHAN TOLJAN/The Vermont Cynic

President Suresh Garimella is presented with the University mace at his Installation Ceremony, Oct. 3. During his address, Garimella said he is committed to bettering both UVM and Vermont. board of trustees of UVM, said Garimella should take ease about the numbers of UVM presidents compared to that of the nation. “The University of Vermont has had 27 Presidents,” he said. “By contrast, over a century and

the same time period, we have had 45 presidents of the U.S. Here at UVM, people like UVM presidents more than U.S. presidents.” Governor Scott said it was clear to him that the new president was more than willing to

use his previous experience to help Vermont in any way he can. “I look forward to working with you in the years to come to build an even more prosperous University and an even stronger Vermont,” Scott said.

he Cynic received three letters in response to last week’s “UVM will not divest.” Richard Cate, vice president for ﬁnance and University treasurer, said UVM would not be divesting from fossil fuels despite student demand. The Editor-in-Chief thought it important to devote part of this edition to divestment, and to the voices of these three different UVM afﬁliates. The Cynic accepts letters in response to anything you see printed as well as issues of interest in the community. Please limit letters to 350 words. The Cynic reserves the right to edit letters for length and grammar. Please send letters to opinion@vtcynic.com.

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EXECUTIVE Editor-in-Chief Bridget Higdon editorinchief@vtcynic.com Managing Editor Alek Fleury newsroom@vtcynic.com

OPERATIONS Operations Manager Tim Mealey operations@vtcynic.com Marketing Daniel Felde cynicmarketing@gmail.com Distribution Manager Dariel Echanis

EDITORIAL Copy Chief Liv Marshall copy@vtcynic.com Culture Sarah Robinson cynicculture@gmail.com Features Greta Rohrer cynicfeatures@gmail.com News Sawyer Loftus news@vtcynic.com Opinion Mills Sparkman opinion@vtcynic.com Podcasts David Cabrera vtcynicpodcasts@gmail.com Social Media Sam Litra socialcyniceditor@gmail.com Illustrations Noah Zhou illustrations@vtcynic.com Layout Kyra Chevalier layout@vtcynic.com Photo Stephan Toljan photo@vtcynic.com Assistant Editors Henry Mitchell (Opinion), Kate Vanni and Meilena Sanchez (Layout), Dalton Doyle (Copy), Allie O’Connor (Culture), Emma Pinezich (News) Copy Editors Will Keeton, Zoe Sheppard Page Designers Stephanie Hodel, Ed Taylor

ADVISING Faculty Adviser Chris Evans crevans@uvm.edu

OPINION

Alumni, push divestment Letter to the Editor Benjamin Silverman, UVM ‘10

am a 2010 alumnus from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Arts in economics. It was with great displeasure that I read in the Oct.1 Cynic article about how the UVM board of trustees has no intention to move towards fossil fuel divestment. While Richard Cate, who is now overseeing sustainability and climate issues at UVM, states they are looking at other avenues to pursue climate action, this is insufﬁcient. Truthfully, the level of disgust I have at my alma mater continuing to have $38.8 million invested in an industry that is careening humanity towards a climate apocalypse can’t be easily expressed. The lack of a basic moral compass at a time when we have less than 11 years to avert climate catastrophe is a sign of gross irresponsibility on the part of UVM. While at UVM, I was part of the movement that successfully got the University to divest its endowment from companies like General Dynamics and others that manufactured depleted uranium and cluster

munitions, both illegal munitions under international law. This successful campaign showed me that the board of trustees and president at the time could be convinced to take principled stands with moral clarity. The board of trustees of UVM then believed in their responsibility for the socially responsible investing of the endowment. The board of trustees today clearly does not.

I refuse to support a school that doesn’t take seriously the dangers of the climate crisis. While at my graduate school, The New School in New York City, in my capacity as the elected co-chair of the university student senate, I was part of the successful campaign for that university to divest its endowment from fossil fuels. It was there that I helped to illustrate the clear ﬁnancial case for fossil fuel divestment. If humanity has any hope of survival, the vast majority of fossil fuel companies’ assets, that is their rights to natural

gas, oil and coal deposits, must never be realized. Their oil and coal assets must forever be literally stranded in the ground for us to survive. The board of trustees at The New School believed in their ﬁduciary responsibility to not invest in companies with massive stranded assets and liabilities; the board of trustees of UVM clearly does not. All of this is to say that I refuse to support a school that doesn’t take seriously the dangers of the climate crisis. I refuse to support a school that sees its students’ future as disposable, so long as they are getting steady returns on their investments. To that end, as an alumnus, I will not donate my money or volunteer time to the University of Vermont until such time as it divests its endowment completely from all fossil fuel companies. I will further be actively encouraging all my fellow UVM alumni to do the same: not a penny for UVM’s endowment so long as that endowment is proﬁting off of humanity’s destruction. If the leadership of UVM cares nothing for our planet’s future, then I shall care nothing for UVM’s future.

Divestment not our only option Letter to the Editor Richard Cate, Vice President for Finance, University Treasurer

lobal climate challenges are capturing headlines around the world, and rightly so, as environmental concerns are among the most pressing issues of our time. Members of the UVM community are finding various ways to call attention to these issues and push toward achieving carbon-neutral goals. I applaud their commitment, dedication and enthusiasm. President Suresh Garimella has designated me responsible for UVM’s sustainability and climate action efforts. At UVM, we have a long history of environmental initiatives and, as we continue to move forward, it is worthwhile to consider some of what we have done thus far: 1. Efficiency upgrades over the past decade have reduced energy use by 16%, even while the campus has grown by 10%. 2. Since 2015, the University has been consuming 100% certified, carbon-neutral renewable electricity. 3. From 2007-2016, UVM’s total emissions decreased 52%

per capita and 48% per square foot of building space. 4. Collective efforts across the University have earned us a Gold Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System designation from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 5. The University has created and funds a Sustainability Faculty Fellows Program. 6. Nearly two-thirds of all departments now offer sustainability courses.

These are complex problems that involve extensive use of resources, often calling for large financial commitments. 7. Since 2006, UVM requires that new construction and major renovation projects achieve U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design silver designation.

As a result, UVM has one platinum, seven gold and six silver projects on our campus. 8. UVM offers sustainability themed housing in LEEDcertified residence halls. Much more can and will be done. These are complex problems that involve extensive use of resources, often calling for large financial commitments to be balanced against other priorities to ensure affordability and financial access for our students and the success of UVM as a whole. Endowment investment and divestment strategies are complex, and ultimately reside with the University’s board of trustees. The endowment portfolio currently includes about $27 million of direct investments in fossil fuel companies, or about 5% of the endowment value. None of the University’s over $200 million of cash is invested in fossil fuels. I look forward to continued dialogue and engagement on this pressing issue, including my meeting this week with the SGA Committee on the Environment. I believe we can accomplish much if we work together.

Collective work drives divestment Letter to the Editor Sara Klimek, UVM ‘21

n a recent Cynic article, UVM’s newest leader of sustainability, Richard Cate, said UVM was not planning to divest from fossil fuels under President Suresh Garimella’s administration. Cate’s reasoning? The same “drop-in-the-bucket” argument we’ve heard from our political leaders and past UVM administrations alike. Initially, I was surprised that a school that claims itself to be one of the “Greenest in America” would still be funding environmentally and socially exploitative fossil fuel industries. Surely, a school that boasts about its Leaders in Energy and Environmental Design certiﬁed buildings and composting during campus tours would mention how UVM’s institutional commitment to global change extends far beyond the reaches of Burlington?

And to the administration, our message is clear: we will not back down. From the beginning, we, as students and stewards of global citizenship, have called for transparency and action from institutions, only to be met with roadblocks from powerful leaders who are concerned with making green, and not the environmental kind. Despite the sinking feeling in my stomach after reading Cate’s recommendation for students to “transition towards bikes” to reduce UVM’s carbon impact, I have new hope in the student body. The Rally for Climate action, led by SGA President and senior Jillian Scannell, and subsequent climate rally in front of Burlington’s City Hall only a few weeks ago shows what can be possible with collective action. Our lives, and the life of the planet, are dependent on our ability to educate, rally and raise our voices against injustice and inaction. Although Garimella’s administration can afford to stay quiet, we cannot. And to the administration, our message is clear: we will not back down.

OPINION

POINT-COUNTERPOINT

Free speech on campus Engage to fight back against hateful speech

don't give hateful speech attention it doesn't deserve Illustrations by IZZY PIPA

Christa Guzman cdguzman@uvm.edu

t was a crisp, fall day on UVM’s campus. It was hard to ignore the crowd starting to form in front of the Davis Center. On Oct. 1 from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., a preacher spewed racist, misogynistic and homophobic statements on Andrew Harris Commons. The man was identified as Keith Darrell, who is part of a radical Evangelical Christian group, Whitefield Fellowship, that travels around the country to preach to college students. This wasn’t about expressing what he believed in. Darrell was attacking students and harming those who are a part of marginalized groups. Student leaders from Queer Student Action, Bread and Roses Collective, Student Arab Association, Womxn of Color Collation, SGA and others led counterprotests to steer people’s attention away from Darrell. Andrew Harris Commons, where Darrell was standing, is a public venue under UVM’s solicitation policy. The UVM solicitation policy states UVM will support and protect freedoms of speech, expression, petition, peaceable assembly and association. Technically, Darrell was on a free speech area on campus, although a lot of what he was expressing to the public completely goes against UVM’s Common Ground. On Oct. 2, SGA President Jillian Scannell, a senior, stood in the same place as the preacher. She reminded students of UVM’s policy that speech can only be restricted when it poses a clear and present danger, urging students to counterprotest. These remarks pose a clear and present danger to our students. Darrell was not educating the community, but attacking students

with homophobic and racist remarks. He made our campus unsafe. According to Our Common Ground, UVM rejects all forms of racism, bigotry and oppression of members of our community. We need action, whether from UVM Police Services, President Suresh Garimella or the UVM administration as a whole. If they truly care about the safety of students, they would take steps to prevent such a hateful person from coming onto our campus. If this happens in the future, they should remove Darrell from campus, or even better, have him banned. The issue here is hate speech. This should not be tolerated. On Aug. 27, stickers that read, “Keep America American” and “Better Dead than Red” expressed messages of white supremacy. In an email from UVM Police, the administration condemned these messages. “The police do not protect people, they protect the law. And in this case, they were protecting Darrell’s freedom of speech. This man invoked violence and nothing was done,” said senior Carter Shapiro, an organizer for NoNames for Justice and Queer Student Action. We as students need to get involved to prevent this hate from occurring on our campus in the future. Stage a counterprotest. Don’t allow yourself and others to listen to these detrimental messages. Drown hateful messages out with music, with your voice. Show your support for student groups such as Queer Student Action, Black Student Union, Explain the Asterisk and NoNames for Justice. Exercise civil disobedience. Speak out against injustices. Speak up against hateful preachers like Darrell. Never stay silent.

Christa Guzman is a junior animal science major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2019.

Meg Trogolo mtrogolo@uvm.edu

n evangelical preacher stands in a high-traffic area of campus, spewing homophobic language and surrounded by angry students. Sadly, this is not an unexpected sight at UVM. Evangelicals have set up shop on UVM campus at least four times in the past four years, according to Cynic articles from October 2015, September and October 2017 and October 2018. It always turns into quite a scene, too. The preacher shouts whatever hateful phrases pop into his head until his voice gets hoarse. Clusters of students try to argue with him even though he repeats the same five sentences. After every visit by these unpleasant guests, the community debate begins. What can we do to prevent professional instigators like this from coming to UVM? What will we do if and when it happens again? It’s a complex question, and one where no perfect solution jumps out at first glance. One such preacher visited UVM Sept. 30, shouting anti-gay slogans and expressing support for convicted sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein’s criminal activities from a position in front of Howe Library. Some student activists set up a counterprotest surrounding him, intending to draw the attention of the students who were debating the preacher back to their chants. However, most students passing through simply saw two clusters of people shouting, and those who stopped simply stopped to see why. Two days later, on Oct. 2, SGA President Jillian Scannell, a senior, stood in the same spot where the preacher had been. She reminded students of UVM’s

policy stating that speech can only be restricted when it poses a clear and present danger and urged the community to counterprotest. “Drown out their message with our common ground values of respect, openness and justice,” Scannell said. Sending a positive message, as Scannell and the student protestors on the scene did, is a good start. However, Scannell is forgetting one thing. No matter what we choose to meet his message with, we addressed him. That means we gave him what he wanted. A campus preacher may act like he wants you to convert to whatever religion he’s selling, but his ultimate goal is always attention. Just like that D-list celebrity you unfollowed on Twitter because they spent too much time trying to pick fights, he only thrives when everyone is looking at him. If another preacher starts using hateful rhetoric on campus, we can spread the word so that anyone who needs to avoid the area can do so. However, we can do this over text and on social media, therefore depriving these preachers of the bright spotlight they crave. For these preachers, any amount and any kind of publicity is good publicity. The more attention we shower on them, no matter how negative, the more often they’ll come back to UVM for a guaranteed audience. This is college. We’re all swamped with work, and when we pass by Howe Library we’re usually on the way to another class. Keep walking. Keep your headphones on. Don’t let a religious narcissist make you late. They don’t deserve that satisfaction.

Meg Trogolo is a junior political science major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2017.

CULTURE

Prism Center turns 20 years old Jean MacBride jmacbrid@uvm.edu

Speeches and solidarity filled the Alumni House during the Prism Center’s 20th anniversary celebration. Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York City, the Prism Center held its 20th anniversary party Oct. 4 in the Alumni House. Students and faculty gathered to celebrate the organization’s past and future. Leaders in the LGBT community and alumni mingled, snacked and drank on the second floor of the Alumni House. TV screens showed pictures from the LGBT center’s past. John Krowka ‘75 is the founding president of the Gay Student Union, the Prism Center’s predecessor. Krowka said that he and other gay students and allies met off campus at a since-closed camera shop downtown. The camera shop was called Abraham’s Camera Shop and was located at 111 Church St. “I ran into other students and faculty and we started talking about the idea of starting a gay student union,” Krowka said. Krowka added that the Gay Student Union was founded five years after Stonewall, and that universities around the country started forming affinity groups. The students got assistant English professor Ken Seid to sponsor the Gay Student Union, he said. “It was approved without any controversy, but the papers

STEPHAN TOLJAN/The Vermont Cynic

Planning committee member Sanford Friedman ‘73 and his partner Jerry Hipps converse with attendees of the Prism Center’s 20th anniversary celebration, Oct. 4. For the first time, the celebration, which took place in the Alumni House, was fully funded by the University. picked it up, and it was on the front page of the Burlington Free Press the next day,” Krowka said. Krowka said the club didn’t meet on campus because some members were nervous to be seen going to a gay student union meeting. Former Prism Director Dot Brauer said they were the first staff member to work full time at the Prism Center in 2002. The center relied heavily on student volunteers, and the

next full-time position wasn’t created until 2006, Brauer said. “The policy work we did was for transgender students,” they said. “They did not have safe places to go to the bathroom on campus because we had no gender neutral bathrooms.” Brauer said bringing gender neutral bathrooms to campus got national attention. The Prism Center created preferred names for transgender students in 2004 through a paperwork process and added

the function to the schools software in 2009, they said. “I think within the first 24 hours 300 students had signed up,” they said. “It wasn’t just [transgender] students but also students with long names and international students.” During a speech midway through the celebration, planning committee member Sanford Freidman ‘73 said that the celebration had been fully funded by the University for the first time.

“In the past we had a small budget from the alumni center and a small group of donors covered the rest,” he said. Prism Director Kate Jerman said this was a good example of partnership. “The University didn’t always feel so good about celebrating LGBT alumni,” she said. The event brought together LGBT alumni of all ages to celebrate progress made and obstacles still to be overcome.

Lucky Chinese Food Cart boasts 27 years on campus Sophia Duplin sduplin@uvm.edu

In search of a tasty, affordable lunch on campus, students often frequent the food trucks that line University Place. Lap Ninh has been operating a self-run Chinese food truck called Lucky Chinese Food Cart on University Place since he was 35-years-old. Students who are fans of his General Tso’s chicken, lo mein or fried rice are in luck because he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. “I want to work for five more years,” Ninh said. “I’m 62 now, so I want to work until 67. After 67 if I still have energy, then maybe two or three days a week.” Ninh is the father of four sons. His two oldest attended UVM, his third attended Champlain College and his fourth is finishing his senior year at Harvard University, he said. Ninh will decide his next step in life depending on where his sons are. “If they move far away maybe my wife and I will move there,” he said.

Ninh has an affinity for working with UVM students, as they remind him of his own children. “They’re really nice,” Ninh said. “You know, sometimes I feel like they’re just like my kids. I like joking with them.” Senior Sid Callahan said he has established a friendship with Ninh. “He’s my boy,” Callahan said. “We talk about sports games, about football. He tries talking to me about soccer but I don’t know anything about soccer.” Lucky Chinese is fueled by regular customers. Some students frequent this food truck every day of the week. “Some customers come Monday to Friday,” Ninh said. “I have some customers that come every day.” The students who come often have a relationship with Ninh. Callahan gets Lucky Chinese Food three or four times a week. “He calls me spicy boy,” Callahan said.“I recently asked for three scoops of hot sauce. He refused to give it to me at first because he said it would be

too hot, but now I get it all the time.” Ninh said that he misses his regulars once they graduate. “I have a few kids who came to get food from me for four years,” Ninh said. “Then when they leave, they come give me a hug. I say ‘oh my kids!’ And I miss them.” Senior Ferris Garel gets Lucky Chinese food three to four times a week. “It’s honestly the most affordable place on campus,” he said. Garel’s order, half chicken finger half sesame chicken with pork fried rice and two duck sauce, comes out to $6.50. Garel said that he will definitely miss Lucky Chinese once he graduates. The restaurant maintains a 4.5 star rating on Yelp. Comments mention the generous portion sizes and low prices, as well as commenting on the sunny disposition of Ninh. Lucky Chinese is one of the few food trucks on campus. But Ninh, the sole operator, is more than just a food vendor. He is a beloved friend to students.

TAYLOR EHWA/The Vermont Cynic

Lap Ninh, owner and operator of Lucky Chinese Food, poses in his truck, Oct. 1. Ninh has been operating the truck for the past 27 years.

CULTURE

GHOST WALK

Culture writers critique a Burlington Halloween tradition

LUKAS DRAUGELIS/The Vermont Cynic

Queen City Ghostwalk leader Thea Lewis speaks during a tour, Oct. 4. Lewis has been operating the tour, which brings guests around downtown Burlington and features several landmarks, since 2002.

not spooky enough

educational and fun Marjorie McWilliams mmcwilli@uvm.edu

bright orange ribbon around a black hat and a floor length cape completed the mysterious aura of Thea Lewis on a chilly Burlington night. Lewis has led Queen City Ghostwalk for 17 years and it shows. “I’ve been scaring up history in Burlington since 2002,” she said. The Queen City Ghostwalk is a historical walk through downtown Burlington. The tour runs from early July through Halloween and is led by Lewis. Her mythical tones and ethereal air add a spooky overtone that compels the audience to believe her, as she smoothly transitions from story to story. Lewis begins her “Darkness Falls” tour in front of the Democracy Statue on Main Street, with a group of 30 people. The tour stayed within the bounds of downtown Burlington and featured several of Burlington’s most loved landmarks including the Flynn Center for Performing Arts and American Flatbread. The pizza spot is said to host a ghost with an anti-woman agenda who lurks in the basement and stirs up trouble, and has caused several people to quit their jobs. Nevertheless, I still ate there the next night, reassuring myself that the ghost stays in the basement. In contrast,the Flynn is home to a kindly ghost that appears for late night construction workers. Lewis guesses the ghost was a man who fell to his death during one

of these late night sessions and now returns to oversee the safety of others. Lewis’s aura is so compelling I found myself imagining the flickering lamplights to be the work of ghosts rather than what I would typically attribute to faulty light bulbs and the slightest breeze.The hair on the back of my neck stood up. Not only were her stories suspenseful, but Lewis managed to slide some humor in as well. She changed her voice when she spoke of stories told to her by others, at one point imitating the Boston accent of her friend who was duped by a beautiful ghost woman. Even for ghost skeptics, the tour is interesting simply for the history. It’s clear that Lewis has dedicated time to discovering the stories, secrets and intricate history of Burlington. I particularly enjoyed her description of the seedy past of the Burlington Waterfront which served as a lumberyard. The wood stacks were so high it resembled a maze and required street names to navigate. There were also underground tunnels built between Burlington hotels that still exist, though apparently in bad repair. As the tour came to an end, Lewis’s parting advice was to check their cars before driving home to make sure they’re not bringing home any unwanted “friends.” For $20, I got over an hour of entertainment, a crash course in Burlington history and a lot of food for thought. While I’m not sure I’m craving a ghost encounter, I’m certainly geared up for Halloween. Marjorie McWilliams is a sophomore NR major and has been writing for the Cynic since spring 2018.

Cyrus Oswald coswald@uvm.edu

’m not saying that ghosts aren’t cool. It’s comforting to think that people never really leave, but stay with us in some way. But an integral part of anything ghostly is fright. On the Queen City ghost tour, I didn’t get the fright I wanted. The tour had a lot of interesting historical insights but that’s just not what I wanted to get when I signed up for a ghost tour. Tour guide and company owner Thea Lewis clearly had put a lot of research into old Burlington. The tour started on a classic cool October evening downtown. We walked from in front of city hall to behind the Flynn Center, across Main Street and looped around to end the tour behind American Flatbread. During the tour, Lewis wove the historical figures of Burlington together with their according spirits around these days. Lewis talked about the historical uses of buildings like American Flatbread and the former Hotel Vermont, which now operates a few blocks away. The hotel’s old building now houses the Gryphon and What Ale’s You. Ghost stories were woven in with the histories of buildings around Burlington. She talked about spirits haunting female servers in the basement of American Flatbread, and an especially pretty ghost in the stockroom of Ale’s. Through all of these stories and facts, I never felt scared. I never thought that there would be a ghost behind me or peering out from the shutters of a window. It’s the spookiest month of the year, and the tour never got me in the

LUKAS DRAUGELIS/The Vermont Cynic

Lewis stands by the street signs of King Street and Church Street. The tour starts in front of the Democracy statue. mood. According to Lewis, there are 14 ghosts on UVM’s campus alone. That should have made me scared to come back up the hill after the tour, but it didn’t. Although a few of the stories she told had disturbing content, they didn’t make me disturbed. Lewis clearly had practiced her tour plenty; she knew it by heart. She had a lot of information about old Burlington and its figures, and knew a lot of ghost stories, some fun and some scary. Even with her well thought out and organized tour, I just didn’t feel spooked.

Cyrus Oswald is an undeclared sophomore. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2018.

SPORTS

Men’s Hockey opens season with win Aryanna Ramsaran

The first-years took 12 of the team’s 43 shots on goal, according to the box score. “I remember my first game, it was against Concordia [University] I think, and coming in halfway through the game and the crowd’s full, it’s unbelievable,” Alvaro said. “There’s no better place to play for college hockey and I think they got a taste of it tonight.” The Catamounts are traveling away from Gutterson Fieldhouse for their next two games before returning home Oct. 25, according to UVM athletics. “The first game video is always a good teaching tool, and there’s plenty of time to get ready for our next game,” Sneddon said.

aramsara@uvm.edu

The men’s hockey team opened their 2019-20 season with a win against the University of Guelph Oct. 5. The Catamounts came back from an early 1-0 deﬁcit to win 6-1. “I certainly want to tip my hat to the fans, you know for an exhibition game, there’s not many across the country that gets a crowd like that,” head coach Kevin Sneddon said. There were 3,656 people in attendance for the game, according to the box score. Fifteen penalties were awarded throughout the game, including one misconduct penalty for sophomore defenseman Ryan Da Silva of Guelph, according to the box score. “They played us physically and we’ve only hit ourselves for the last month and a half so it was nice to have our guys experience that,” Sneddon said. Senior goaltender Stefanos Lekkas made 21 saves, junior goaltender Tyler Harmon made nine saves and junior goaltender Matt Beck made two saves, according to UVM athletics. The team cheered for both Harmon and Beck from the bench when both players made their ﬁrst appearances in goal during the third period. Along with the 32 saves

MADDY DEGELSMITH/The Vermont Cynic

Junior defensemen Cory Thomas (Left) and Owen Grant (Right) ﬁght for possession of the puck during the men’s hockey game, the ﬁrst of the season, Oct. 5. The Cats won the game 6-1, with Thomas scoring UVM’s fourth goal. from the goaltenders, the rest of the team took 43 shots, 10 more than Guelph, according to the box score. “It’s certainly nice to see a few of those nice goals, obviously some excellent shots by our guys,” Sneddon said. The team had six different players score and had not tallied six goals in a game last season, according to UVM athletics.

Goals were scored by firstyear forward Jacques Bouquot, sophomore forward Joey Cipollone, junior forwards Alex Esposito and Bryce Misley, junior defenseman Cory Thomas and senior forward Matt Alvaro, according to UVM athletics. “It’s nice for confidence levels for the guys for sure,” Alvaro said. “I think we’ll be just fine with a lot of guys who put the

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puck in the back of the net with a couple of first-years coming in.” There are five first-years on the 2019-20 season roster, according to UVM athletics. “I think Jacques Bouquot obviously showed what he can do tonight,” Sneddon said. “Andrew Lucas, I can see he’s got some game, I think he was a little nervous tonight.”

A LOOK AHEAD Oct. 18: at Clarkson University Oct. 19: at St. Lawrence University Oct. 25: home against University of Maine Oct. 27: at Qunnipiac University Nov. 1: home against University of Massachusetts Lowell Nov. 2: home against University of Massachusetts Lowell Nov. 15: home against Boston College.

Division I sport offerings change with student pool Hayley Rosen hrosen@uvm.edu

As student demographics change on campus, the Division I sports offerings feel the impact of the changing campus landscape. The changes do not happen overnight, and any changes to the varsity programming require much consideration and conversation, athletic director Jeff Schulman said. The last change in DI offerings was the elimination of the varsity men’s baseball and women’s softball teams in 2009. The most recent addition in UVM’s varsity sports offerings was the reinstating of the men’s indoor and outdoor track and ﬁeld team in 2005. UVM currently has 18 varsity sports, 10 women’s and eight men’s, which compete at the NCAA DI level and are members of the America East Conference, Intercollegiate Skiing Association and the Hockey East Association. Changes to the DI sports offers have happened a number of times in the past and could theoretically happen again in the future, Schulman said. “One of the things [the athletic department] focuses a great deal on is making sure

that we have a varsity athletic program that is equitable for both men and women,” Schulman said. UVM also has to contend with fulﬁlling its Title IX requirements, he said. Title IX mandates that schools must have equitable participation opportunities between genders. The ratio of men and women on campus is constantly changing and it is not the same every year, Schulman said. Therefore, the athletic department is constantly assessing the changing student gender demographics to make sure the varsity offerings are equitable between men and women. The ratio of men to women is not only important for which sports are being offered, but it also has an impact on the sports’ roster sizes, Schulman said. There are other factors considered as well as to which varsity sports the school will have. UVM looks at national trends of what students are interested in and are participating in. One of the last teams to be cut, baseball, is currently trying to make a comeback. The group Friends of UVM Baseball has been working since 2010 to bring the team back, according to their website.

KATE VANNI

F EA

TU RE

Authenticity served at Pho Hong Elizabeth Roote eroote@uvm.edu

ietnamese restaurant Pho Hong has carved out a little slice of home, causing locals and college students alike to return for over 10 years. Pho Hong, on 325 North Winooski Ave., opened in February 2008. John Wick has been the restaurant’s front-end manager for 10 years. For him, the appeal of Pho Hong stems from its emphasis on hospitality. “We try to treat people like family,” Wick said. Pho Hong opened as the result of one woman’s love for cooking. Jade Le, daughter of Pho Hong’s owners, remembers it was always her mother’s dream to have a small cafe. Friends and family members urged her to pursue it, and eventually, she did. Even before she started the restaurant, Le’s mother loved making food for people. “We would get together as a family and we’d always cook a feast,” Le said. It’s easy to see these values play out just from sitting in the restaurant. An older woman comes in to order a small dessert. Le lets Wick know that the woman’s order will be on the house. There is a restaurant-wide break every day between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. to prepare for the dinner rush. At 4:15 there are still people eating, but no one is being hurried out. Even though

the break only lasts an hour, the front-end employees still let people linger as they ﬁnish up their meals. “We have an old style here,” Le said. “Everything is classic.” Many servers are well acquainted with the customers, especially regulars. They begin to recognize faces or voices over the phone. When people start coming in multiple times a week, employees like Wick know customers’ names, families and dogs’ names. Keeping Pho Hong running has been no small task. It is not uncommon for Le and those helping out in the kitchen to be at the restaurant, “14 hours a day, six days a week,” she said.

Despite the homey, sometimes laid-back feel of the cafe, it is fast paced both in the kitchen and outside of it. “My mother is here every day,” Le said. “She gets here at noon, and stays sometimes until 2 a.m.; My dad comes here at 2 a.m., 3 a.m., until 11 a.m. to make the broth.” Hard work has been a fundamental part of Pho Hong since the very start, and to glance over that would be a disservice to the chefs and servers that are so dedicated to maintaining the restaurant’s friendly, comfortable atmosphere. “When it ﬁrst started, it was just me and my mom,” Le said. “Then my aunt started doing the dishes. My sister was in medical school and she came in after to help out. It was all women when we ﬁrst started.” Since then, the number of employees has expanded to meet increasing numbers of customers. But even now, they manage to operate with less than 20 overall staff members. Ron Spivey has been a server with the restaurant for over six years. After working at other restaurants like IHOP and Buffalo Wild Wings, Spivey began his employment at Pho Hong. The camaraderie is what has kept Spivey at Pho Hong for such a long time — and he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. “[Pho Hong] probably got me through life, pretty much,” Spivey said. “There was a point where this was the only thing I was doing... This is like my foundation.” Part of the reason for having a smaller staff is that it allows Pho Hong to sustain their manageable prices. Good service at a reasonable cost is incredibly important to Pho Hong’s operation, Le said.

STEPHAN TOLJAN/The Vermont Cynic

(TOP) A customer at Pho Hong lifts noodles out of her bowl of pho noodle soup, Oct. 3. (RIGHT) A member of the kitchen staﬀ prepares broccoli before the dinner rush. (LEFT) A line cook stocks his station with green beans during the restaurant-wide break from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Nearly all of their entrees are under $10. Pho noodle soups, the restaurant’s staple, are $8.50 for a large bowl. “We try to keep the prices low,” Le said. “We have a lot of students coming here.” Sophomore Kyle Martin values Pho Hong for its authenticity, considering that it’s one of the few Vietnamese restaurants in Burlington. “It’s deﬁnitely a good spot to stop by for something quick, which is good,” he said. “And it’s relatively cheap as far as stuff around here goes. I like that.” Due to its close proximity to UVM, about half of the restaurant’s fall through spring customers are college students.

However, there are also plenty of families and locals that enjoy the restaurant. With a decade of experience, Wick ﬁnds great importance in conveying Pho Hong’s authenticity to customers. Pho Hong is very much a customer-centered establishment. This is evident through the long hours the cooks put in, the neighborly cheer of the servers and even the food itself. “It is a business,” Wick said. “But at the same time, we try to be more of your friend.”

Elizabeth Roote is a ﬁrstyear medical lab science major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2019.