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Student studying language of COVID-19 receives tuition waiver award
SIUE band performs in Granite City to promote the arts
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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
the student voice since 1960
Thursday, November 18, 2021 Vol. 75 No. 12
News in brief SIUE investigates reports of racism at Kappa Sigma
At Delta Chi’s Car Smash event, undecided freshmen Raquel Robinson (front) and Alyssa Wilson (back) of St. Louis, hit a donated car with sledgehammers. I Alex Aultman / The Alestle
Former congressman John Shimkus donates all of his career documents to Lovejoy Library GABE BRADY lifestyles editor
John Shimkus has had a varied career as a soldier, teacher and Congressman. “I was very fortunate to go to a military school, so once you do that, you have to serve, which I did,” Shimkus said. “I stayed in the military. I moved back to teach. I always wanted to teach high school, and I got a chance to do that for four years, and then I segued into trying to serve in political office.” Now, he is donating all of his documents from his political career to the Lovejoy Library here on the SIUE campus. “My family has a very close connection with the university. I went and got my master’s here, my wife got her master’s ... It’s like home, and so this is where they should be,” Shimkus said. Lovejoy Library Dean Lis Pankl is extremely grateful to Congressman Shimkus for donating his documents, hoping that they can be helpful in the future. “SIUE and the Lovejoy Library are honored to preserve the John Shimkus Congressional Collection and make this historic material available to students, the region and the world,” Pankl said. The John Shimkus Congressional Collection consists of photographs, records, and communications throughout the entirety of Shimkus’s political career. In a recent seminar, SIUE Chancellor Randy Pembrook interviewed Shimkus about his time in office and his life in public service. “At the heart of Congressman Shimkus, you will find a public servant that never forgot his small town roots and still possesses a positive view of our country,”
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Former U.S. Rep. John Shimkus donated documents from his political career to Lovejoy Library, dubbed the John Shimkus Congressional Collection. I Clair Sollenberger / The Alestle
Pembrook said. “The work Congressman Shimkus is most proud of includes passing bills that ensured every cell phone could dial 911 in an emergency, placing heart defibrillators in schools, and updating regulations regarding toxic substances.” After giving a brief biography of Shimkus’s life, Pembrook asked what inspired Shimkus to choose politics as a career path. “I was always involved in student government. I was student president of the eighth grade class, I was involved tons in high school. We had a great class rep program, along with the student council there,” Shimkus said. “So, working with people and getting along with people has always been part of the deal.” Shimkus is teaching a Political Sci-
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ence class at SIUE. He says he uses stories from his time in Congress to teach his students. “Well, my students know,” Shimkus said. “They heard me say that when you’re a member of Congress, you get assigned to a committee, and that’s kind of where you become a subject matter expert. There’s a lot of things you want to do and there’s some offsets of things that you can do, but I was able to go on the Energy and Commerce Committee, so that kind of directs the work you can do in energy, healthcare, telecommunications, environment issues.” Shimkus said that he’s truly most proud of the aforementioned bills that he had gotten passed.
SIUE officials are investigating reports that a campus fraternity harassed and hazed a Black student pledging the fraternity with racist and homophobic slurs. Arluan Van Hook, 18, of St. Louis told The Grio that he has to be escorted on campus by a police officer, after reporting Kappa Sigma’s SIUE chapter to the university in October and receiving threatening phone calls. SIUE’s Bias Incident Response Team issued a statement Tuesday that said they have been investigating since Van Hook filed the complaint in October, issuing a no-contact order between Van Hook and all members of Kappa Sigma. The fraternity has been placed on a cease and desist, and Van Hook was offered the chance to change living arrangements on campus. According to The Grio, however, he opted to move back home to St. Louis. “We regret that this student has felt unsafe due to this disrespectful behavior,” the statement read. “Actions of this nature are unacceptable and have no place at SIUE.” The SIUE Interfraternity Council also released a statement condemning the frat members’ behavior, as well as racism, homophobia and hazing in general – while recognizing that fraternities have “well-documented historical roots” in such practices. “We commit to doing our due diligence of speaking up and speaking out when we have borne witness to or made aware of such incidents,” the statement read, while calling on the administration to “fill these gaps in accountability.” In its statement, IFC apologized for the harm that has been caused, while recognizing that apologies may not be enough. “We understand that to create lasting and impactful changes in our community, we must be committed to becoming more knowledgeable about our history, individual implicit biases, and acknowledge privileges that can create inequities,” the statement read. Kappa Sigma’s national leaders told The Grio that the frat has suspended six members of the SIUE chapter. A hearing on the issue is expected to take place Thursday.
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