Spring 2023 Vol. I

Anything

By Jaelyn Duran

By Juliette Huy

Miles Gaskin

By Isabella Ocañas

By Jamilyn and Daniella Moreau

By Eleanor Koski and Juliette Huy

By Will Barron

By Lauren Vu

By Brian Guevara

By Daniella Moreau

By Jamilyn Moreau

staff writers

Editor in-chief

Alexandra Davenport

Managing editor

Sydney Scott

Co-editor in chief

Jaelyn Duran

Will Barron

Gil Bothwell

Tatum Foulger

Miles Gaskin

Brian Guevara

Juliette Huy

Eleanor Koski

Daniella Moreau

Jamilyn Moreau

Isabella Ocañas

Jack Sundblad

Lauren Vu

Designers

Chief designer

Zetta Whiting

Liv Haley

Tina Huynh

Daniella Moreau

Jamilyn Moreau

Carissa Nelson

Isabella Ocañas

Daniel Pearson

Erika Taylor

Letter from the Editors: I

f you haven’t noticed, Chapbook Magazine has evolved and blossomed this school year. We have transitioned from a wesbite to an online magazine platform to showcase the talents of both writers and designers through the pages. This semester, Jerry Hicks’ magazine class worked as a team with Gary Metzker’s digital design class. Together, we created one of our best issues of Chapbook Magazine ever.

Starting this semester at a sprint, we asked students to arrive on the first day of class with story ideas. Four weeks later, with little to no experience writing for a magazine, they had stories written and ready for the design team. After countless hours of refining, the issue came together.

We are proud of all the writers for challenging themselves and showing their dedication to this magazine through their work. And we are grateful to our design team for making incredible illustrations, taking fantastic pictures, and designing every page to tell these stories.

We want to thank Jerry Hicks and Gary Metzker for their guidance and support these past seven weeks. It is an honor to learn from you both.

We encourage you to not only appreciate the writing but the overall design of each story. Please enjoy the third edition of ChapBook Magazine and the first issue of the spring 2023 semester. As you read, celebrate the outstanding work of our talented students. Enjoy, and make sure to follow us @chapbookmagazine on Instagram!

Your

editors, Alexandra Davenport

Jaelyn Duran Sydney Scott

The Law School Stain

Can Chapman rid itself of John Eastman’s legacy?

By Jack Sundblad

Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law sits across the street from the main campus. Originally founded in 1995, John Eastman served as the dean from 2007 through 2010, remaining a professor until early 2021. Photo by Jack Sundblad

It’s surreal for most of the nation to believe that a lawyer turned college professor was responsible for helping plan and justify a coup d’etat against his own country.

It’s even more surreal to learn that lawyer was a longtime Chapman University professor and once the dean of its law school. John Eastman. Whose bizarre, extremist legal opinions have made him one of the most loathed lawyers in the country.

This was the case for creative writing professor Tom Zoellner, who joined those publicly complaining about Eastman’s ties to Chapman.

“This is not the way you want people finding out about Chapman University,” said Zoellner. He not ed that even after the Chapman faculty had com plained about Eastman, the former dean went on to be connected with what Zoellner calls “darkest day in modern American history” — the nation’s Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6,

court agrees, a final decision would be made by the California State Supreme Court.

The bar outlined 11 disciplinary charges filed against Eastman, stating that he “assisted then-President Trump in executing a strategy, unsupported by facts or law, to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election.”

Bar chief trial counsel George Cordona accused Eastman of “making false and misleading statements that constitute acts of moral turpitude, dishonesty and corruption.”

Cordona added that the Capitol incident was “an egregious and unprecedented attack on our democracy, for which he (Eastman) must be held accountable.”

Eastman lawyers responded that the Bar’s actions were “politically motivated”, and violated his free speech rights. But even if Eastman’s efforts were wrong, his lawyer said they did not rise to the

Now, two years after that fateful day, Eastman is now the subject of even worse than the wrath from his own peers. He now faces disbarment for his legal counsel of former President Donald Trump in the days leading up to the insur

The California State Bar announced it’s intention to disbar Eastman in a press release three months ago. That challenge now goes to an indepen dent State Bar court. And if that

Mario Mainero, a Chapman law professor, points out that attorneys cannot rely solely on free speech rights: “Deceitful conduct in the course of a presidential campaign is within the Business and Professions

Like many Chapman professors, Mainero was reluctant to give out his opinion since the action is pending in court. But he did say that the state bar would likely rule out frivolous arguments and concentrate not make “arguments that are without good

Eastman faces even more legal challenges.

John Eastman, former professor and dean of the Fowler School of Law

The House January 6th Committee, in its final report, recommended criminal action against Eastman be pursued by the U.S. Attorney General’s office.

Under pressure from the university, Eastman resigned as a Chapman professor shortly after the Capitol riot. But his name in the news still concerns many Chapman faculty and students that he’s leaving a stain on their school.

Chapman president Daniele Struppa said the university’s own code prevented him from firing Eastman. But he made his views clear:

“Eastman’s actions are in direct opposition to the values and beliefs of our institution. He has now put Chapman in the position of being publicly disparaged.”

The Los Angeles Times raised that very issue with a headline that stated the Eastman name “still haunts” the university.

Disbarment might help, some believe.

“Having him disbarred just shows his complete lack of credibility,” said Emilie Haskell, a double major in political science and broadcast journalism and documentary. “He won’t be able to teach

again. He won’t be able to have that status of being a lawyer that gave him the credibility to be a part of the obstruction in the first place.”

Eastman joined the Chapman faculty in 1999 and was dean of the law school from 2007 to 2010. He left that role for an unsuccessful bid for public office, but remained on the Chapman faculty until the Capitol insurrection. At that time, he also ended his position as a visiting scholar at the University of Colorado Boulder. But he remains a faculty member at the Claremont Institute, a non-profit conservative think-tank he helped found, with no association with the Claremont Colleges.

But leaving Chapman doesn’t end it all. For some, the stain is lasting.

Sam Andrus, a senior political science major, had filed his own complaint against Eastman with the State Bar. Though it was eventually dismissed, he remains critical.

“As someone who goes to Chapman, and is thinking about applying to law schools while having Chapman on my transcript, on my resume, it was beyond the treasonous aspect and the shame to go to the same school as this person,” said Andrus.

John Eastman is currently facing disbarment as the California State Bar files

11 disciplinary charges against him. Illustration by Jack Sundblad

He added:

“It was offensive to me personally because I knew that it would reflect badly on me if the institution of Chapman itself and California is withholding taking action to reprimand this person for this horrible act.”

The Chapman faculty was angered that two years earlier, Eastman had written in a national magazine a challenge to Kamala Harris’ citizenship – and right to run for national office — even though she was born in Oakland, CA., but with immigrant parents.

The faculty, Zoellner included, published a letter to the editor in the Los Angeles Times calling for action against Eastman by the university.

“We weren’t necessarily calling for John Eastman to be fired. But that action had to be taken on the university’s part,” explained Zoellner. “My decision to do so was on patriotic grounds.”

While Chapman president Daniele Struppa sympathized with their position, he said his hands were tied: Eastman had not been convicted of any crime, and had free speech rights. He was sorry that many of the faculty disagreed with him but “that is the price of democracy.”

When Eastman wrote his own letter of retirement, he praised Struppa for being cooperative during the fallout. But he attacked both the faculty and some of the members of the Board of Trustees.

He meant Wylie Aitken, who was president of the Chapman board at the time, of the Kamala Harris controversy.

Aitken, a lawyer himself, wrote then that “One would think a real scholar would know better.” Aitken also worried what Eastman’s reputation would do to harm Chapman:

“One has to question Eastman’s loyalty to his school. . . putting in jeopardy Chapman’s dramatic rise in the national rankings.

But the debate continues.

Jessica Lopez, a senior political science major, thinks that Eastman’s involvement with Chapman could have an effect on prospective students.

“There’s also the other end of ‘oh, is Chapman really a university I want to go to because of the ties of a situation like Eastman?’” Lopez said, imagining what others may be thinking.

And Andrus points out:

“Obviously, the more he is in the news, the more people are going to associate him with the law school.”

But does this mean that discussion of Eastman and his legacy should stop?

Some think that continued discourse would only hurt the university more in the long run. After all, Eastman himself never responded and many Chapman law professors declined to be quoted in this article.

“One of the most consequential collisions of constitutional law and an attempt to overthrow the constitution came out of our law school,” said Zoellner, encouraging people to look at the reality of the situation. “But you want to sort of say ‘oh, let’s move on!’ I fundamentally don’t agree with that.”

Sam Andrus’ complaint to the State Bar of California, originally submitted on Feb. 8, 2021. Andrus drafted the letter with the help of an attorney that he was close to. “Obviously, I really hoped I would be the one to help him get disbarred,” said Andrus. Photo illustration by Jack Sundblad

Can I stay, or would I go?

The upperclassman housing dilemma

By Gil Bothwell

Chapman sophomore Landon Davies is comfortably living in the Davis Apartments this year.

Next year? Who knows. He could very well end up on his own.

“I have no idea where I am going to live next year, ” said Davies, an integrated educational studies major.

Davies is not alone.

Landon Davies looks on at the Henley Resident Hall. As Chapman continues to grow, the need to house the influx of new students leaves question marks for upperclassmen and transfers in need of school housing.

Photo by Gil Bothwell

While all underclassmen students are guaranteed housing through the university, juniors, seniors, and trasnfers are at the mercy of a lottery to determine if there will be space to house them on-campus.

Of the 7,869 undergraduates at Chapman, 3,660 students live on campus, with juniors and seniors only making up 458 of these residents, according to statistics from Dean of Students Jerry Price. Price admits that both upperclassmen and transfer students are underserved in this area.

The good news: some help is on the way. The bad news: it’s still far off.

More specifically: Fall Semester of 2024.

A Chapman purchase last November may ease some of the worries of students looking for a place to live. However, for current sophomores like Davies, that won’t happen until the start of their senior year.

A new $160 million apartment complex located in Anaheim is opening up for students in the fall 2024 semester. It plans to make a home for about 800-850 students and help the school reach its desired 50% housing goal for all undergraduates.

The former Anavia Apartments will become “Chapman Court” and serve as up-scale apartments, primarily focused towards upperclassmen and transfer students.

Located at 2045 S. State College Blvd., the new building is just under three miles from campus down Walnut Avenue (becomes Orangewood Avenue on Main Street) and about two blocks from Chapman Grand.

Chapman’s new Director of Residence Life and First Year Experience, Juan Tinoco, spoke about the building and its features.

Juan Tinoco, Assistant Dean of Students and Director of Residence Life and First Year Experience. Tinoco is new to the Chapman staff, joining in January of 2023.

“[The rooms] are gorgeous… they were planned and built as luxury condos,” said Tinoco. “We are currently working on getting feedback and buy-in from our current students to make it a space that is welcoming to them,” he shared.

The new complex would have 250 units, with a typical layout of two bedrooms and two bathrooms per unit, which would be shared among four students, and a number of amenities including a full kitchen, in-suite

Photo from the Chapman Website

washer and dryer, walk-in closets, and an on-site fitness center and pool.

The Chapman shuttles are also currently in the planning stages to have a route that would include the new building, ensuring that students without a vehicle have access to, and from, campus.

According to Tinoco, no rental cost for students has been decided by the university, although financial details are in the works.

Over the past few years, Chapman has not only experienced a growth in admitted students, but also an increase in undergraduates seeking on-campus housing.

Many students have shown interest in continuing to stay on-campus even after their first two mandatory years are finished.

According to a university press release last November, the number of upperclassmen that desire housing has increased by about 175% between 2017 and 2019.

Finding off-campus housing can also be a struggle for students, especially in the current condition of real estate in Orange. Orange County vacancy rates are at about 2.5% as of August, much lower than the 4-5% yearly average over the past decade, according to a CoStar forecast. The lack of available housing options has even led some students to live in unsafe housing situations.

Chapman senior Sofia Savage, currently on the pre-law track, lives near campus in a three-bedroom home. She has a list of safety hazards at her residence including live wires, a water heater on

A street view of the Anavia Apartments on State College Boulevard. Photo by Gil Bothwell

the ground, popcorn ceiling, and no smoke alarms, along with others.

AJ Torres, a senior business major, is also currently living in a home not meeting safety regulations as his bedroom does not have a window.

“It was hard for us to find anything. Everything was getting rented so fast so we were willing to take whatever we could get,” said Torres.

Chapman professor and real estate broker, Stephanie Muchard, is familiar with students living in unsafe off-campus housing.

“The violations are by the thousands,” Muchard said.

In her professional experience she has witnessed many landlords cutting corners to save money, and says college towns like Orange are some of the worst.

Other students have had a positive experience living off-campus, like Wolfgang Sakamaki. As a senior business major, Sakamaki has enjoyed living off-campus with his cross country teammates, but knows others are often less fortunate.

“I love living [with my team]. The past two years have been great,” said Sakamaki. “We got lucky with our place for sure, this is not the norm,” he said.

The university is well aware of the pitfalls, and wants to ensure that students are given as many options as possible. Preferably on campus.

Even though the new apartment complex has many desirable components, sophomore business major Ohm Patel isn’t fully sold.

His problem: location. It’s too far from campus.

“I would consider living [there] but it wouldn’t be my first choice because of the commute,” said Patel.

For those willing to take the school shuttle or aren’t bothered by the three mile drive, Chapman Court could be the answer for student housing needs in the coming years, but what should they do until then?

Studies show that students that live on campus have better retention rates. We want to make sure that everyone that wants to live here can live here,” said Tinoko.

Wolfgang Sakamaki (left) and his roommate, David Anderson, on the balcony of their home near Chapman.

Photo by Gil Bothwell

Critical Minutes: Chapman Plans for Gun Violence

By Alexandra Davenport

The day before fall semester began in 2021, Chapman senior Alec Hays missed his last surf of summer. Instead of hitting the waves, he heard gunshots pop from the complex below his upstairs apartment. That left him sitting cramped in a closet with his roommate. For five hours.

Just one block south of Chapman’s campus. This was not a drill.

As mass shootings become increasingly more frequent in America, young people fear it could happen anywhere. Campuses like Chapman are discussing plans to best protect students. Photo illustration by Alexandra Davenport

“I never thought a shooter would be right at my door,” Hays said.

Students thought the same thing at Michigan State University. Where three were killed and five injured.

So did the students at the University of Idaho, where four students were stabbed to death near campus.

So did the three children and three staff members who were fatally shot at a Nashville elementary school by a former student.

Or the victims at the dance studio in Monterey Park, California, where 11 were killed by gunfire.

Alec Hays (right) showing where he hid next to his roommate, Karson Utzinger (left), in their closet during the shooting near Chapman.

Photo by Alexandra Davenport

Like every young person who is supposed to feel safe at school or a public space meant just for fun.

More than 90 mass shootings have already occurred in America in 2023, and over 25 of those have happened on school grounds. It could happen anywhere, from elementary schools to college campuses, even at Chapman University.

So how well prepared is Chapman? It depends on who you ask.

An open campus prompts Chapman leadership to have an active shooter plan. But it hasn’t been tested — yet.

Since Chapman Public Safety relies on the Orange Police Department to respond in extreme incidents, the campus community must be prepared for the minutes until police arrive. Those critical minutes prove it takes a whole school approach to save lives.

But can campuses like Chapman really be prepared for the unimaginable?

“It’s also almost 100% unpreventable,” Jerry Price, dean of students, said. But they can try.

“The best way we can help in these situations is for each of us to be mindful and informed. To me, that means thinking about a plan in advance,” Price said.

But there’s no perfect plan for when terror knocks.

Ricardo Gonzalez, chief of Chapman Public Safety, confirmed a suggestion to university leadership about five years ago to arm Public Safety officers with guns. Price said there have even been past discussions to give officers access to guns in lockers.

It would alter the written mission policy of Public Safety on camps, Gonzalez said. But if it happened, “campus safety officers would have to be fully trained to be an armed public safety department.”

The Board of Trustees did not want to pursue arming officers because many felt strongly

Alec Hays (pictured in a yellow hat) and his roomate (left), leaving their apartment with small bags packed, not knowing when they would be able to return. Photo courtesy of Alec Hays

against it. Too much danger of a student getting hurt.

“The evidence that now’s the time isn’t powerful enough yet,” Price said.

But Price said decisions can change, just as they did at a Denver high school, when the local school board reinstated armed guards in March after two faculty members were shot.

At Chapman, Public Safety officers carry pepper spray and batons and patrol on bikes and in cars.

“The worst thing is a student getting shot, but a student getting shot by another Chapman staff member would be horrible,” Price said.

Price referenced the Feb. 13 killing of three students by an active shooter at Michigan State University (MSU).

“I think the best thing we learned is, if you do it well, it can go well. But even then, three people died,” Price said.

Though police responded quickly, MSU students were on lockdown for three hours until the suspect was located and arrested, according to a timeline of events. Multiple alerts were sent to students with updates and instructions to “run, hide, fight.”

The lower complex, numbered 219 on the right, where the shooter fired a gun right below Alec Hays’ upper apartment, circled in red. Photo by Alexandra Davenport

The Tweet that announced the shooting, just one block from Chapman’s campus, in 2021. Screenshot by Alexandra Davenport

The MSU campus shooting was yet another warning.

“The bad news is things happen. The good news is every time they happen, it gives us a chance to compare notes, to see what works, what doesn’t, so we learn from those situations,” Price said.

Campuses nationwide are re-evaluating active shooter training as it evolves. But in the moment, heart-jolting gunshots make decision-making difficult for those threatened.

In 2015, Chapman students in DeMille Hall had to shelter in place after a man was reported on campus with a handgun. The Orange Police responded and concluded that there was no threat found. But the fears from those students were real.

An accessible campus means anyone can walk on and pose a threat.

“A lot of it is random, and that’s part of the problem,” Denis Binder, professor of law at Chapman, said.

Binder published an academic article seven years ago on how to secure educational institutions. Students at elementary schools, high schools, and universities can all fall victim to an active shooter. Binder noted the incident at Northern Illinois University in 2008, when a former student opened fire, killing five and injuring 21.

Gonzalez noted that Public Safety is constantly evaluating its safety measures. He said there will be a new “Stop the Bleed” campaign to equip students with skills to survive an active shooter incident. In the meantime, students can fill out a form to request in-person active shooter training sessions. There is also an upcoming field training exercise planned for May with the Orange Police and Fire Deparments.

Binder said Chapman has mostly neighborhood community crime, as noted in Chapman’s annual Clery Statistics, which discloses campus crime statistics.

While large campuses cannot be run like high-security prisons, Binder said there is a need to worry about campus security and learn from other incidents.

“Unarmed security is not going to be effective in a very very quick timespan,” Binder said.

If unarmed Public Safety officers can’t handle active shooter incidents alone in real time, Price suggested students consider what they’d do if an active shooter threatened campus.

“Think about your classroom buildings, or where you live. If you’ve gotta report there’s an active shooter, where would you go?” Price said.

Alexis Reekie, student body president, said that students need to be aware of their school’s active shooter plan.

“We are having continued conversations with the administration to advocate for additional safety provisions at the university level,” Reekie said.

Reekie encouraged students to reach out to student government with suggestions as that dialogue continues.

Young people are growing more aware of the unexpected threat lurking anywhere from large crowds to school grounds.

Alumni Christian Grevin can still feel the horror of when a normal October night turned into a nightmare. In 2017, his older brother called his family in the night, yelling his goodbyes over the sounds of gunfire and a sea of screams.

The Grevin family sped four hours from Orange to Las Vegas, hoping to see their brother and son alive again. They arrived at the Route 91 Harvest Festival at 2 a.m., after an active shooter opened fire into a crowd of over 20,000 people from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.

Grevin said they found his brother, frozen in shock and covered in blood that wasn’t his own.

“We start to see ourselves in the victims and it being a possibility to happen to us,” Grevin said.

And Grevin, his parents, and his brother will feel trauma from that night for the rest of their lives.

Grevin, a political science major, felt compelled to research the emotions surrounding mass shootings for his senior research project. He was surprised to learn that that fear is preconditioned in young people in America, who live in the harrowing reality of frequent gun violence.

Over 50 people were killed in that Las Vegas shooting.

Grevin assessed the Chapman Survey on American Fears, which is collected annually based on worries. He found that young people show higher levels of fear surrounding mass shootings than older age groups.

He said one statistic from 2017 stood out: America accounts for 5% of the world’s population, yet 31% of the world’s mass shootings happen within its borders.

This map shows the over 25 incidents of gunfire on school grounds.

“There’s a lack of focus on it, in regards to our government and policies, and stuff actually being done about it,” Grevin added.

But Chapman leadership and the campus community can do something about it through training and action plans.

The plan for an active shooter is to notify the local police, which is about a mile from campus, and direct them to the location of the shooter. Students should run, hide, or

taught in fall 2022, according to Gonzalez.

Training can help students be ready for the worst and encourages a “whole community” approach. Anyone can play an important role in reducing the impacts of an active shooter.

As Hays, a public relations and advertising major, hid in his closet during the active shooter event near Chapman in 2021, he recognized how Chapman students like shooter event near Chapman in 2021, he recognized how Chapman students like him may not be as prepared as they should be.

“It was terrifying how unprepared and unaware I really was. I had no power in that situation,” Hays said.

To some, an active shooter coming to Chapman seems improbable. There’s mostly neighborhood crime in Orange and campus doesn’t feel dangerous every day.

“All that’s good news, but it is still not assurance that it won’t happen,” Price said.

The DeMille Hall shutdown in 2015 was a warning. The 2021 shooting a block from campus was a warning.

The MSU killings were a warning.

fight and follow Panther Alert instructions.

Other campuses of comparable size to Chapman, like the University of Redlands or the Claremont Colleges, also rely on local police and tell students to run, hide, fight. These colleges also offer active shooter training.

An active shooter training course,“Run, Hide, Fight,” is available to Chapman students upon request through an online form. It was last

And increased gun violence and school shootings in America are warnings.

To Hays, in his last year at Chapman, there has to be more than hiding and sending a prayer that it would be no one’s last day.

Hays added: “I hope Chapman can be ready and prepared for the unexpected so no one has to go through that.”

grounds. From the Everytown Research and Policy website

Sideline Heroes Shining a light on Athletic Training

By Gil Bothwell and Miles Gaskin

Injuries are part of the game and Chapman’s senior lacrosse attack Anna Klose understands that as much as anyone after three hip surgeries.

But when the game knocks her down, she knows she’s in good hands with Pam Gibbons, Chapman’s director of athletic training, on the sidelines.

“Pam is beyond amazing. I really love her,” said Klose. “She is always there for me.”

While athletes and teams are celebrated and recognized for their accomplishments, some of sport’s biggest heroes may be hidden behind the scenes.

The sports world was stunned by the story of Buffalo Bills’ cornerback Damar Hamlin, who received life-saving CPR after suffering a cardiac arrest during a National Football League game. This shined a light on the role of athletic training staff everywhere.

In a press conference from the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Hamlin’s

doctors agreed that without the quick response by the training staff on the field, the outcome could have been very different.

“We cannot credit their team enough,” Dr. William Knight commented in a press release.

While not all sports injuries are a matter of life or death, athletic trainers must be prepared to help athletes when injuries happen.

Athletic trainers, Nadine Kong (left) and Pam Gibbons (right), member of the staff is present at all football games. Photo courtesy

At Chapman University, the athletic trainers are assembled to do just that.

The Chapman athletic training staff is a five-person crew led by Pam Gibbons. They work with all the sports teams and numerous athletes all year.

Gibbons has been offered jobs at bigger colleges, but she has declined them all. She wanted to remain an integral part of the Chapman community.

“At the end of the day this athletic department is such a supportive and cohesive family, that the idea of leaving that and going into someplace where it is all new- it just never felt right,” Gibbons said. “This feels like home.”

Ashley Raciak returned to her alma mater 10 years ago to join the training staff.

“I would say one of my strengths is the true care and passion that I have for the profession and my athletes,” she said.

The staff works closely with college student assistants from California State University, Fullerton. Known generally as CSUF. The Cal State students who are pursuing a masters degree in athletic training must work as part-time assistant athletic trainers, under the supervision of full-time staff members at different clinical sites.

Gibbons came to Chapman in 1991 as the assistant athletic trainer, and in 1998 she was promoted to director of athletic training and sports medicine.

(right), tending to football player Nick Tawney during a home game. At least one courtesy of Larry Newman

Chapman, along with several other local colleges, has formally agreed to function as one of these clinical sites. Chapman did have an athletic training program until 2019. It was terminated when it transitioned from the Attallah College of Educational Studies to the Rinker Health Science campus.

CSUF students help with treatment of injured athletes, walk them through stretches, rehab exercises, and pre-game preparations.

Krista Jones, a current CSUF graduate student in this program, said working at Chapman has been beneficial for her.

“Pam and the rest of the staff are very knowledgeable on a lot of different things, and I have definitely been able to get a lot more hands-on knowledge and practice,” Jones said.

Jones was particularly struck by the widely televised Hamlin incident.

“I thought it was obviously very devastating to see something like that on national television,” she said. “But I think that it opened people’s eyes to the profession of athletic training,” she said.

Jones felt that the event was a good way to help people recognize athletic trainers as healthcare professionals. She also expressed how the severity of Hamlin’s injury made her examine her own work.

“It definitely made me realize that if I really want to do this I have to be able to commit to doing something like that,” Jones said.

Jones’ goal since her teenage years is to become an NFL athletic trainer.

Another part time Chapman athletic trainer, Lane Fishburn, who graduated from the same program as Jones at CSUF, was also significantly impacted by the Hamlin incident.

“When a situation like that happens, all the years of training that you’re doing finally just kicks in and goes into override,” she said. Fishburn wants to be an advocate for every highschool to have an athletic trainer.

A number of athletes on campus have shared their

Gabrielle Leveratto (left) and Sierra Moreno (right) treat injured softball player Gracie Rose while Coach Janet Lloyd watches over. Photo courtesy of Larry Newman

appreciation for the training staff and the role it has played in their recovery.

Josh Lee, a senior cross country and track runner, has a history of injuries. On various occasions since his freshman season, he has utilized the resources of the training staff to help with his achilles tendinitis, knee patella tendonitis, and shin splints.

“They provided PT exercises, an ultrasound for my achilles, and some scraping,” Lee said. “I would say they are a good first step.”

His biggest critique of the Chapman staff would be their availability for some sports, such as at his early practices for cross country and track.

“If I was hurting at practice I would have to

wait from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. to get treated,” Lee said.

Klose, a health science major, is pursuing her dream of becoming a physician assistant for orthopedic surgery. She has worked with Gibbons throughout her ongoing hip injuries.

“She obviously knows her stuff exercise-wise. In my experience all around she’s been very supportive, along with the mental side of it, and empathizes with me which I believe is a huge component with athletes and injuries,” she said.

Between the long hours, travel, treatment sessions after night practices, and at times working as many as four games a week, the job can be quite grueling and time consuming for Gibbons and her staff.

Even though the job isn’t easy, for Gibbons,

seeing an injured athlete return to play is the greatest reward for all the hard work.

Gibbons added:

“When you can help them through all of the steps that are required to get them back on the field and back to their full potential, that right there is what makes this job worthwhile.”

Chapman’s athletic training staff pictured, from left: Alberto Huerta, Gabrielle Leveratto, Pam Gibbons, and Ashley Raciak. Joe Satariano (not pictured) is a new member of the staff that joined this year. Photo courtesy of Pam Gibbons

Anything is Fossil-ble

Dinosaur bones find a temporary home at Chapman

By Jaelyn Duran

Ben Rotenberg picks and removes the matrix during preparation work. “It’s incredible. It’s like digging for buried treasure everyday,” Rotenberg said. Photo by Jaelyn Duran

Senior Ben Rotenberg traveled to Montana last summer to work as a sound technician on a documentary his good friend and senior Amalie Seyffert is filming.

It was all about a 30-foot dinosaur. A gryposaurus with 78 million year old fossilized bones.

Little did Rotenberg know, he would be returning to Chapman to prepare those very bones for future scientists.

“I was like, I need to jump on this opportunity because this only comes around once in a lifetime and I’ve been here ever since,” Rotenberg said.

Where?

Hashinger Science Center Lab Room 121. And the public is welcome to come take a look.

When Rotenberg isn’t in class, you can find him in the lab working on those bones. Which could help become only the second such skeleton completed in the world.

The lab is not just the home now for all things dinosaur on campus. It’s also a place for students such as Rotenberg and Seyffert to discover a new career interest and connect their major studies to newfound curiosities in natural sciences.

Here is how this all started:

Research paleontologist Jack Horner joined Chapman in 2016 as a presidential fellow, teaching two courses in the Honors Program. Every summer, Horner invites students to join him and his colleagues on a trip to the Montana Badlands, one of the best places to discover dinosaur fossils. That’s where the gryposaurus discovery all started in summer 2021.

Knowing there were more pieces of the same dinosaur that needed excavation, Horner returned the following summer where he invited Seyffert to bring a crew, Rotenberg and co-director Flo Singer, to start filming a documentary.

Aside from the film, Seyffert and Rotenberg also got their hands dirty as they helped free the fossils from the sediment where a crew then carefully wrapped the specimen in a 4,000-pound plaster jacket for transportation. Because it is property of the Badlands, items are donated to museums and universities for study and exhibition.

This specimen will belong to the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Washington for display.

A 2022 graduate Sarah Wallace discovered the first gryposaurus bone on the 2021 dig which is now known as dream bone.

A picture of a gryposaurus skeleton that the dino lab uses for reference. The parts colored in red determine which of the bones have been found and what isn’t red is what is left to be discovered. Photo by Jaelyn Duran

But with its permission, it is being studied and prepared at Chapman. The jacket was first transported to the Cooper Center, an archeological warehouse in Santa Ana, and then eventually moved into the Hashinger lab in October.

“For Chapman, it’s the first dinosaur that’s ever been here so it’s a cool thing for students to see,” Horner said. “It beats just looking at your phone right?”

At this stage in the process, they are figuring out information about the environment the animal lived in and new ways to extract these specimens out of the sediment. Horner describes these as things “you just can’t go on the web and get an answer to.”

Horner’s main goal is to connect his students to science, especially because a majority of them are not science-related majors. He stressed the point that humans have become more disconnected from nature and it’s important for us to reconnect to be knowledgeable about the history of the world.

“But more than anything, the whole idea of science is to learn new things. And in order to learn, you have to be curious about things to begin with,” Horner said.

The end goal for Horner is to not only find the rest of the dinosaur and reattach everybody to nature, but for Chapman to have something dedicated to the paleontological field. Because these objects are in public trust and we don’t have a facility, the fossils will eventually make their way back home for exhibition at the Burke Museum.

“We don’t have a museum here but we’d like to have one. And we can’t. We’ll never get one until people understand that we could have things like this here,” Horner said.

The crew as they work to get a 4000-lb plaster jacket down the mountain and ready for transport in Montana summer 2022. Photo by Flo Singer

Amalie Seyffert while she is helping Ben preparation work whereas she is now

Photo by Flo Singer

Horner and Rotenberg forecast preparation to be complete by this summer and will make their way back to Montana to look for more. So it is up in the air for how long the dinosaur bones will be at Chapman before departure. Ultimately, it’s up to the Burke Museum leaders when they want them back.

However, before they go, Horner plans to have them 3D printed at the Fowler School of Engineering. This is so that Chapman will have replicas and continue to educate and fascinate future students with them.

Seyffert, a documentary filmmaking major, stumbled upon this project when Wallace and Horner approached her to join the dig and film a documentary. After applying for various grants and discussing the project with Horner and president Struppa, Seyffert was on her way to Montana the upcoming summer.

“I never thought I would be making a film about dinosaurs but it was the type of thing when Jack came and presented it as a concept I was like, ‘oh

yeah dinosaurs are really interesting and cool and I would love to learn about them’,” Seyffert said.

Initially, Horner pitched to Seyffert the idea of women in paleontology, as it is a male-dominated space, but there are several angles the documentary can take. There is yet to be a film of the entire process from excavation to a completed skeleton, so Seyffert and Singer are open to exploring all options. For now, they plan to continue the documentary and join the Montana dig again this summer.

Jack Horner explains the importance the education of these fossils can provide. The biggest challenge he says is “coming up with good questions.”

Photo by Chapman staff, Adam Hemingway

Ben Rotenberg with some now solely focused on the documentary.

Being in charge of this project, Seyffert wants students to have that genuine human and academic curiosity. She hopes students are walking by the lab or watching the documentary down the line and thinking to themselves ‘wow this is really cool’.

“I hope that students can feel inspired in the same way I’ve felt inspired by becoming involved in natural sciences. It’s very cool and fun to feel like sciences are actually accessible,” Seyffert said.

Seyffert shared that sciences in middle and high school were almost intimidating and she felt that there was not much support in those departments. So, being able to use interdisciplinary learning here at Chapman and delve back into natural sciences, Seyffert appreciates learning paleontology in such an engaging way.

“It’s been a very surreal journey learning about dinosaurs in my everyday life when I was the type of person who thought I would not be engaging with science for the rest of my life,” Seyffert said.

Rotenberg didn’t either.

Rotenberg, a screen acting major, attended the dig in 2022 to work alongside Seyffert, but he says he did little to no sound work during the trip. Instead, Rotenberg found himself fully immersed into the experience of the continued Gryposaurus dig and Horner hired him to continue the work.

“I spent most of my time, as you can see, on this specimen and I really just kind of fell in love with the work,” Rotenberg said.

As a kid, it’s fair to say Rotenberg was kind of obsessed with dinosaurs and it stood peripheral in his life. But he never became a scientist or a dinosaur researcher. His job is to “make the bones look pretty” and that’s his expertise when it comes to dinosaurs.

Rotenberg said, “I have like hundreds of photos being just covered in dinosaur stuff and I never thought I would be able to actually work with them.”

Ben Rotenberg working on dream bone. Fun fact: Rotenberg drove to Oklahoma to bring it to Chapman in February. Photo by Jaelyn Duran

During preparation work, Rotenberg follows four steps:

1. remove the matrix (mudstone, rock, dirt, etc.)

2. remove the fossil/s from the jacket

3. clean up the fossil/s

4. glue together the pieces that make up the entire bone

This is the extent of Rotenberg’s job but it’s the work he enjoys and hopes to continue to do.

“It’s been a great time. It’s kind of unbelievable…it’s pretty cool to get to go to work and work on dinosaur bones every day,” Rotenberg said.

Here is the pubis bone broken apart. This sandbox is where Ben Rotenberg pieces together parts of the bone to eventually glue together all the pieces that make up the complete bone.

Photo by Jaelyn Duran

Photo by Jaelyn Duran

ACCESSIBLE SUSTAINABILITY

Is secondhand shopping the future of fashion?

BY JULIETTE HUY

Earth is becoming a trash bag full of the outfits we got sick of. Every second of the day, a new dump truck full of clothing gets unloaded into a landfill. That’s 92 million tons of clothing each year.

As the health of our planet declines, consumer habits and efforts at sustainability are becoming indispensable, and awareness is spreading.

For style fanatics like sophomore Daniel Salazar, this means practices like online shopping just aren’t cutting it anymore.

“I started making little adjustments to my life, where now I don’t really buy anything new anymore,” Salazar said.

What has he turned to instead? Thrifting.

The rise of thrift culture among young people in recent years has made sustainable shopping more accessible than ever before.

In 2022, nearly 40% of Generation Z and Millennial shoppers reported they spent increasing amounts on secondhand clothing compared to regular apparel.

“At this point, I think of sustainability as an ethical and moral decision,” said Rachel Kinnard, a professor of fashion at Chapman.

Kinnard added:

“It depends on how much people value the earth and their fellow human beings.”

For many, their journey in sustainable clothing consumption all began with the hunt for originality.

And he’s not alone.

The global market for secondhand clothing is growing at three times the rate of the world’s apparel market, with an expected growth of 126% by 2026.

Resale companies like ThredUp and the RealReal have also contributed to this increase, leaving brands struggling to catch up alongside evolving markets.

“Before you could only go to your local thrift stores and now you can source things from anywhere in the world,” Kinnard said.

But what began for many as a new form of self-expression quickly accelerated into a consumer-led movement

to change their lifestyles and the fashion industry.

Salazar now works as a buyer at DeeLux, a popular buy-sell-trade located in Old Towne Orange.

He recounts getting his start in thrifting in 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic first hit.

“I always knew fashion drew me in and that clothes were awesome, but I never really knew how to get the resources for it,” Salazar said.

Above Mikey Johnson trains Tatiana Haynes at DeeLux. Below is the selection of denim at DeeLux, showing jeans that outlive trend cycles and have endless opportunities to get reworn. Photo by Juliette Huy

“You can’t get another piece like that if you find it thrifting... I don’t know what I’m looking for, and out of nowhere the best pair of jeans I’ve ever found in my life pops up in front of me...”

– Mikey Johnson, DeeLux buyer and flea market reseller

He’s since become an advocate for slowing consumption by putting old clothes into new hands.

Among young people, the obvious benefit of secondhand is just as Salazar describes:

It’s cheaper. Whereas many sustainable brands and “eco-friendly” products remain costly, thrifting provides an affordable option for the everyday person to shop with the earth in mind.

So how can brands keep up with a new generation of shoppers who are no longer willing to keep spending their money on unexceptional items?

Meeting the demand for sustainable products is a good place to start.

And several companies have already moved towards environmental consciousness by stepping into the world of secondhand.

Patagonia has been at the forefront of corporate sustainability for years with its Wornware program, where customers can trade-in and buy used Patagonia gear.

By using natural materials and helping customers to repair used items, the company hopes to get customers to wear clothing for a lifetime.

Even Levi’s is encouraging customers to buy less by setting up a clothing recycling program, giving timeless denim new life.

The difficulty for customers is differentiating the companies that are truly making changes from the ones that only claim to be.

“I see greenwashing happening. There’s a lot of these ‘direct to consumer’ brands that will say all of our bathing suits are made out of water bottles or something to get people to buy them,” warned Kinnard.

She gives the cautionary tale of TOMS shoes’ “Buy-OneGive-One” model, which hit the market in 2006.

Despite the customer appeal of giving back to those in need just by buying a pair of shoes, a little research brought many questions about the program’s true social impact.

“[TOMS] kind of started the do-gooder consumer product, and it ended up that they really weren’t helping anybody,” Kinnard said.

For consumers looking to be more sustainable, self-education is key in spotting what’s real and what’s not.

“A lot of it is following people that are making a difference, keeping up with sustainable young designers, and trying to avoid those big corporations even though they’re practical,” said sophomore fashion student Moira Wu.

The men’s section at DeeLux offers a variety of colorful options for a vintage look. Photo by Juliette Huy

Social media has already helped several consumer-led organizations do their best to spread awareness.

Accounts such as @Fash_Rev (Fashion Revolution) and @Remakeourworld give sustainable brand alternatives for those looking to make a change.

No Kill Mag is an online magazine that shares up-andcoming designers to watch, tips on how to reinvent what you already own, and interviews with young activists working for changes in the culture of clothing.

Other small companies, like LA-based Suay Sew Shop, are practicing “vertical sewing,” which reduces clothing waste through a combination of recycled textiles and domestically grown organic materials.

In 2019, Suay kept over 250,000 pounds of garments out of landfills and has since expanded its industry activism to garment workers’ rights and policy reform for fair wages.

With the support of an emerging generation of conscious consumers, companies like this are just the beginning for the future of retail.

Young secondhand shoppers are at the front of the race toward sustainability, and fashion is running to catch up.

“Honestly today, it’s who you are or what you’re wearing,” said Johnson.

And with 92 million tons of clothing weighing on our shoulders, where you’re buying from means just as much.

Above, Daniel Salazar sorts through a customer’s clothes at Buy-SellTrade on Feb. 28. Customers can receive cash or story credit when they bring in old clothes as new store inventory. Below, Salazar tags new inventory before it hits hangers at DeeLux. Inventory is curated by style, season, quality, and current trends. Photos by Juliette Huy

Aims

O

Olympics for the

By Miles Gaskin

The first thing to notice when left-handed Marjorie Stemmler pulls back the taut string of her pink and black bow is the fierce determination in her eyes. And when she lets her arrow fly, it’s most often dead center. Medal-winning bullseye.

Stemmler, a Chapman junior English major, is modest about her collegiate-level archery record. But she’s confident in her strengths.

“I can read the wind like I’m a leaf on a tree, and I can dance with my bow like we’re doing the tango,” she said.

She has won multiple medals at the collegiate level. That includes winning a gold medal at the Southern California indoor archery collegiate championship, competing against schools like UC Irvine, UCLA, and USC.

But it’s another gold than Stemmler has in mind. Olympic gold. In 2028, when the Olympics reach Los Angeles.

“I think about it every single day,” she said.

While she will compete in preliminary competitions for the 2024 Olympics, that’s basically meant as a warm up. To see where she stands against the best.

Stemmler is the first Chapman athlete to ever appear in intercollegiate archery. Not that it was easy to get that Chapman affiliation, despite her skills. Partly for insurance reasons, she had to go through intense evaluations from the athletic department to wear the Chapman name, and she had to compete unaffiliated for a year.

While rare, it’s not unheard of for college athletes here at Chapman to pursue either Olympic medals or professional sports. From NFL kickers, to Olympian swimmers, and even long jumpers, Chapman has had a number of elite athletic talent over the years.

But they all came from team sports. Stemmler is the only Chapman athlete to compete individually, according to Mary Cahill, club sport director.

Stemmler’s drive to succeed on the Olympic level comes from her personal competitive nature. Her next goal is to finish in the top 16 shooters at Olympic trials later this year. Stemmler admitted that both she and her coaches didn’t expect her to make it this time around. Her first attempt at qualification is more about gaining experience against top level competition.

Only three men and three women at the very most can represent a national team in the Olympic games, so the roster is quite refined. For Stemmler, the next step in her pursuit of the Olympics is to participate in more international tournaments, so she can start to compete against a

higher level of competition. Aside from her collegiate gold medal, Stemmler finished third in the California Indoor Collegiate Championships. Also, when she competed for the indoor national championship, she recorded the second highest score of any collegiate archer at the time of her shooting.

Impressive stats. Especially since Stemmler only picked up the sport three years ago. And nobody in her family knew anything about archery.

“A lot of people I am competing against have been shooting for years and years,” she said.

That means she has to make up for her lack of experience with practice. Lots of practice. And lots of sacrifices.

With classes Tuesday through Thursday, the other days are devoted to long hours on the shooting range. But to strive for the Olympics, she knows she needs to run those sessions seven days a week.

She routinely shoots until the sun goes down.

“I gave up a lot of money, a lot of time, and I don’t get to hang with my friends as much,” she said. “Thankfully, they are understanding that, but it does kind of suck.”

(Middle) Marjorie Stemmler with a silver and bronze medal a West Regionals at UCLA. Photo courtesy of Marjorie Stemmler

(Top) Marjorie Stemmler competing at the SCIACC in Chula Vista, CA. Photo courtesy of Marjorie Stemmler

Stemmler is not the first Chapman student to look to pursue her sport at the very highest level. Chapman alumni

Ariana Kukors, and Kate Ziegler, represented the United States and Chapman in swimming at the 2012 London Olympics.

Ziegler earned Silver and Bronze medals at the 2011 world swimming championships, and Kukors at one point held the world record in the 200 meter individual medley.

Chapman Sports Information Director Steven Olveda, recalled a couple of examples of Chapman athletes playing sports professionally as well.

“We have a number of student-athletes who have gone pro. Nick Garcia was a third round pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2020. We’ve also had a few basketball players play overseas as well as a football player or two,” he said.

Olveda also mentioned former Chapman football kicker Mike George, who kicked in a game for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Another well known Chapman name is Anna Wlodarcyk —- Coach W to most of her students.

A long time head coach of Chapman’s track and field teams, she competed in the 1980 Moscow Olympic games in long jump.

She placed fourth, representing her native Poland. According to an article by Olveda, “Under her leadership, the women’s track & field program has broken 36 records in 16 different events,” since its inception back in 1993.

Will Stemmler make an Olympic name for herself?

She’s got a strong support team. That includes well known coaches and enthusiastic parents, Kurt and Jessica Stemmler from the Bay area, who are still in awe that their daughter chose this path. She still laughs about that.

“The first ever competition my mom came with me and she asked, ‘Can you really shoot that far?’ Well damn, I hope I can.”

They plan to anxiously follow her daily reports when

she competes next month’s outdoor Arizona Cup in Phoenix. That includes qualifications for the Pan-American games in South America.

“It is really cool, because my dad wasn’t all that into archery at first,” she said. “But now he wants to come to these competitions.”

Stemmler really started to pick things up with her pursuit of archery in 2020, when she met one of her most influential coaches, Coach Victor Chia. Coach Chia was one of the first people in Stemmler’s life who really believed she could be an elite archer.

Later she would meet another coach, Eric Tollefson, who has actually coached an Olympian before, Jack Williams, who made the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. He is convinced that a higher level of intensity and training will help take Stemmler’s accuracy to the next level.

While she’s in love with her sport, Stemmler laughs that it isn’t always easy being the only left-hander in the field.

“There’s just not much equipment for left-handed people,” she said. “Also, most of the time I have to face someone while I shoot because the person next to me is usually right- handed. So sometimes I make awkward eye contact with the person shooting.”

As for those in her corner, that includes the entire Chapman athletic community.

Chapman Athletic Director Terry Boesel summed it up: “We would be very happy to see Marjorie fulfill a dream of hers.”

Stemmler with Coach Eric Tollefson at the SCIACC in Chula Vista, CA. Photo courtesy of Marjorie Stemmler

Sleep-Aid or Sleep-Hinder?

The Effects of Melatonin on College Students

By Sydney Scott

Plagued by too many thoughts, fears, and anxieties at night, Chapman junior Maggie Vetter more often than not struggles to find sleep.

Her solution:

Melatonin.

“I use it every night unless I feel like I don’t need it,” the screenwriting major said. “But then I feel terrible.”

Many Chapman students often use melatonin during their college years to help them sleep, especially when the stresses of class and life keep them from their eight hours. However, some students, as well as neuropsychologist Lane Scott, fear it is doing more harm than good.

Melatonin is a hormone that our brains produce in response to darkness that makes people sleepy. In recent years, it has also been synthetically made in the form of an over-the-counter dietary supplement in order to help aid those with sleeping problems.

Melatonin supplements can be found in various stores including Target, CVS, Amazon, and are even sold in Chapman’s University Bookstore in the Bhathal Student Services Center. Depending on the container size, these supplements can cost five to thirty dollars.

The use of melatonin has risen in adults over the past two decades from 0.4% to 2.1%. In fact, in a poll taken on Instagram out of 96 Chapman students 71.8% of them have taken melatonin at least once as a sleep aid.

But is this a good thing? For Dr. Scott, who worked at a sleep clinic for several years at Providence hospital in Seattle where he was the Medical Director of Rehabilitation Psychology, it might not be.

“I have a lot of concern about us artificially taking substances that our body already creates,” said Dr. Scott. “There’s not enough research on it.”

Sophomore Katy Wathen has similar feelings about the supplement.

Maggie Vetter uses melatonin supplements to sleep after hours on her phone or laptop at night. Photo illustration by Sydney Scott

“I don’t hate it,” said the integrated educational studies major. “But it sucks when you form a dependency on melatonin to go to sleep. I also get weird dreams when I take melatonin which I’m not a fan of.”

Although junior Kaitlyn Vetica recognizes its usefulness.

“I like it because it works, but it’s not something that I rely on,” said the computer science major. “I think in a pinch if you are having trouble sleeping and have to get up early, it is useful.”

For senior English major Jamilyn Moreau, melatonin supplements are a vital factor for her to get any sleep at all.

“I’m prescribed insomnia medication,” she said. “I also take my melatonin alongside my medication to calm me down when I get anxiety.”

Anxiety is a key reason Vetter uses the supplement as well.

“It knocks me out and makes it so my thoughts don’t spiral,” she said.

However, Dr. Scott stresses that melatonin is NOT meant to be used to treat either issue.

“I have a lot of concern about us artifically taking substances that our body already creates.”

Neuropsychologist Lane Scott worries about the effects of melatonin after years of working at a sleep center. Photo courtesy of Lane Scott

Senior Jamilyn Moreau takes five 12mg melatonin tablets before bed.

Photo illustration by Jamilyn Moreau

– Lane Scott

“Melatonin is not supposed to be a treatment for anxiety,” he said. “And I don’t think we’ve ever really proven that people are having insomnia because their body is not producing enough melatonin.”

But why are those unlike Vetter and Moreau who don’t suffer from anxiety and other sleep disorders taking melatonin too? Wathen has a suspicion.

Phones.

While scrolling on TikTok for hours at night, Wathen exposes her eyes to the bright light of a cell phone and often feels her brain waking up even though she was extremely tired when she laid down for bed.

“Your average person, me included, is going to go on their phone and scroll before they go to bed,” she said.

The blue light emitted from electronic devices reduces the production of melatonin at night, according to the SCL health website.

“It’s probably increased with college students more since we’re always on our phones and laptops; on them are our social lives and our education,” said Wathen.

Moreau has also noticed similar effects on her sleep from using her phone at night.

“The thing is, I know better, and yet I’ll still do it sometimes, which I always regret because it triggers my insomnia,” she said.

But Dr. Scott claims there are better ways to treat insomnia and other sleep disorders.

“There are a lot of things that are relevant to sleep, but as Americans, we don’t really think about that stuff,” he said. “We just want a quick fix.”

Some alternative methods include noise machines, sleep soundtracks, meditation, and 8D music.

“It’s soothing and isn’t in the form of a drug, so I think it might be more appealing than melatonin is,” Vetica said.

However, if the lack of sleep is persistent, Dr. Scott recommends finding a sleep clinic to establish the exact problem.

“We need to normalize it,” Dr. Scott said. “Everybody has sleeping problems, but my advice to anyone who feels their sleep patterns are beyond normal is to treat the problem directly instead of relying on lightly tested supplements.”

While Vetter recognizes the risks, she still feels comfortable using it when necessary.

She said:

“I don’t want to be reliant on it, but I don’t think it’s casues any significant problems for me yet.”

“I don’t hate it... But it sucks when you form a dependency on melatonin to go to sleep.

– Kaitlyn Vetica

I also get weird dreams when I take melatonin which I’m not a fan of.”

Olly gummies, Good Day chocolates, and Carlyle tablets melatonin supplements. Photos courtesy of Sydney Scott and Jamilyn Moreau

A to-go pack of melatonin supplements sold at the Chapman University Bookstore. Photos by Sydney Scott

NEW FEAR UNLOCKED:

What your Favorite Restaurants Aren’t Telling you

By Tatum Foulger

Thelatest county food inspections are in for restaurants in Old Towne Orange. Some are good, some are nasty. Cockroaches, finger-licking cooks, and disease-level nasty.

Although county health inspection reports are available to the public, most people do not know they should be looking out for them.

How should customers know where it’s safe to eat?

At least once per calendar year, the Orange County Health Care Agency’s (OCHCA) Environmental Health team conducts inspections of food facilities in the county. Along with restaurant inspections, Environmental Health also has programs that deal with water quality, hazardous materials, solid waste, and several others.

Environmental Health’s purpose is to “protect public health and promote the well being of all Orange County residents, workers, and visitors,” said director Christine Lane.

On Valentine’s day in 2022, Taco Adobe was shut down by the environmental inspector assigned to the establishment because of a cockroach infestation and malpractice committed by an employee.

The report noted several cockroaches: some dead,

some still alive.

The inspector saw the bugs in various areas, including by freezers and sinks. He even saw a cook lick his fingers while engaging in active food preparation. While the inspector was there to stop the cook from continuing, what would happen if the inspector was not there?

“Poor employee health could contaminate food and transmit illness to customers via the food and surfaces,” Lane said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), a large percentage of foodborne illnesses are spread by contaminated hands.

A little over a month after reopening, Taco Adobe went up in flames.

Although the restaurant is undergoing restoration, its owners have since introduced a catering service.

Café Zocalo, another restaurant in the Orange Circle, had its permit suspended earlier this year, forcing it to temporarily halt operations due to rodent droppings in critical areas of the facility.

“I wouldn’t say that makes you want to vomit because I don’t like vomit, but that is disgusting,” Kierra Koehn, a

Chapman pharmacy graduate student, said.

Neither Taco Adobe nor Café Zocalo representatives responded to a request for comment prior to publication.

In late January of this year, Urth Caffé was visited by the OCHCA as a regularly scheduled inspection. However, what seemed like a regular visit revealed some dirty secrets.

Multiple areas in the Orange Circle restaurant showed an accumulation of grease and grime, a lack of handwashing facilities, and improper internal cooking temperatures, noted inspectors.

In light of these reports, Urth Caffé manager Bryan Diaz assured there is no ongoing risk to restaurant consumers.

“We get our condiments freshly every day so we ensure that the day and expiration is correct and everything is

sealed properly,” he said. “Managers go through each refrigerator and pick up temperatures just to pretty much measure what our temperatures are to make sure that it’s not going under or over.”

While cockroaches and other rodents are less than ideal, the biggest health risk to the Orange community is improper heating and cooling temperatures, one of the most common inspection violations in area restaurants.

Improper heating and cooling temperatures are a common cause of foodborne illnesses, defined by the Food and Drug Administration as “illnesses caused by consuming food contaminated by bacteria and/or their toxins, parasites, viruses, chemicals, or other agents.”

According to Rosalee Hellberg, associate director of Chapman’s food science program, these temperatures can mean illness-causing microorganisms may survive the cooking step and cause bacteria to grow to dangerous levels.

“It is a concern, especially if the violation is not fixed after the first inspection,” Hellberg said.

Koehn lamented it’s sad that these inspections are not better known to the public.

“In healthcare we tell the truth about a patient’s

Visitors spend time at various restaurants in the Orange Circle. But are they up-to-date on the county’s latest food inspections? Photo courtesy of the city of Orange

Kierra Koehn, a Chapman class of ‘25 graduate student. Photo courtesy of Kierra Koehn

treatment and conditions, so why wouldn’t you be transparent when it comes to other health issues?” she said.

However, it’s not all bad news. Zito’s Pizza passed its last few health inspections with no need to schedule a reinspection, proving it is possible if the correct measures are taken proactively before health risks arise.

Zito’s employees say it’s because they pay attention to the smallest detail.

“I’m front-of-house so for my measures it’s basically just wiping down the tables and countertops,” said Eleanor Koski, Chapman junior and Zito’s Pizza employee.

Koski added:

“Everyone wears gloves when they cook, and I think it is partly because you can see the cooks when you

are sitting at the table. The nature of being on display helps things be cleaner.”

Even if health inspection reports have never crossed your mind before, this is a sign to think twice about the restaurants where you eat. So if you are worried at all:

Here is how you can look it up for yourself. Simply enter the restaurant you’re looking for, click enter and a list of matches will fill the screen. You will then be able to click the establishment name and view its inspection history.

Or you can go to the OC Health Care Agency website and look up Food Establishment Inspection Results.

passed its latest inspection

Zito’s Pizza

in January. Photo by Tatum Foulger

Café Zocalo was shut down for a week due to rodent droppings. Photo by Tatum Foulger

NEW KiD on the BLOCK

BY ISABELLA OCAÑAS

Last August when senior Heather Ulwick was driving down Palm Street in Orange, a pop of blue and orange was sticking out between the rows of non-descript houses she passed.

Later she would learn the blue and orange structure is home to the new Palm Market & Deli. And for the next four months, Ulwick and her roommates watched it come to life. Four months of long labor for the new owners, who had to sell their own home to pay for it.

“I’ve literally been waiting for this place to open since I saw it,” said Ulwick, a music tech student.

So when its doors finally opened just before Christmas, she was ready. And not disappointed.

The Palm Market & Deli, located just two blocks east of the Chapman campus, is not a new place. Well, it kind of is. The old Palm Market was a classic neighborhood convenience store, established in 1925, and closed just before the pandemic. Its new owner, Tim Waterhouse, hopes to establish the Palm Market & Deli as the “go-to” store for Orange residents and Chapman students alike.

“We’ve never lost sight of the fact that this is a neighborhood market,” said Waterhouse, who rebuilt the Palm Market & Deli keeping Orange residents and Chapman University in mind.

The Palm Market & Deli is one of the oldest buildings in Orange, dating back to 1925. Photo by Isabella Ocañas

The Palm Market has been under plenty of previous ownerships. The first of which was the son of one of the founders of Orange, Alfred Chapman. Since its establishment, the market has become an integral part of the neighborhood. Throughout the years, it was the stomping grounds for generations of Orange residents.

But Waterhouse himself is not an Orange local. He hails from southern New Jersey where he spent his time in his grandmother’s kitchen and his early career in kitchens across the East Coast. So what pushed him away from his home base?

When Waterhouse made the journey west there was only one thing that mattered, palm trees.

“I know if there’s a palm tree, it doesn’t snow,” said Waterhouse.

But it wasn’t long before he fell in love with Orange. The tight-knit community and craftsman houses gave the neighborhood a familiar East Coast feeling. When he looked at the houses and the people around him, Waterhouse could tell this was a group of hardworking and committed residents.

“And usually committed people tend to like nicer things,” he said.

So when he found the slowly deteriorating building sitting between Cleveland and Harwood streets, he knew this was his chance to provide that.

But the rebuilding process wasn’t easy. What was supposed to be a simple three-month job, Waterhouse thought, turned into nearly a year and a half of excavating floors soiled with rat droppings, rotting drywall, and deteriorating wood. It wasn’t cheap either. In total, the rebuild cost just shy of $650,000, according to Waterhouse’s calculations.

“This place almost put me into the mental hospital,” said Waterhouse.

But the sacrifices weren’t just monetary. In order to fund the delis’ refurbishing, Waterhouse and his family gave up their home in Placentia. The

The Palm Market and Deli, located at 608 E Palm Avenue, reopened under new management on December 19, 2022. Photo courtesy of Palm Market & Deli Facebook.

Waterhouse family now resides in the 2,000-squarefoot apartment above their new market.

It’s been just over two months since the Palm Market & Deli opened and the place seems to be in full swing. It’s clear that Waterhouse has become one with the Orange community. As he sits outside on a Thursday evening sipping a black americano, Waterhouse greets the passerby, most he knows by name.

“You can just tell Tim really cares about the people he serves,” said junior education major and Palm Market employee Janey Bonnifield.

Orange residents and Chapman students stop by to grab a six-inch deli sandwich for $9, craft beer, artisan pasta, or just to chat with Waterhouses’ wife of 19 years, Moose, who runs the front counter.

The first thing that greets you when you walk in the doors of the Palm Market & Deli is a larger-than-life gumball machine (pull an orange gumball and you get one six-inch sub for free). Two rows of shelves sit under fluorescent lights. You’ll find an assortment of specialty candies, chips, wine, and even some Spam and other non-perishables for those looking to restock their cupboard.

“It’s kind of a mecca for all things food,” said Chapman senior and public relations and advertising student Natalee Olsen.

Is Palm Market the new go-to place in Orange? The verdict is still out. While those that know about Palm Market & Deli know it well, there are plenty of Orange residents who are yet to be familiar with the updated shop.

“I can’t believe I hadn’t heard of this place sooner,” said Orange local and first-time Palm Market patron Jennifer Pershon. “I think it’s a great fit for the community we have here.”

Nearly six months after first witnessing what would become the Palm Market & Deli, Ulwick still makes trips there when she gets the chance. It’s a typical Wednesday night, and she finds herself at the deli counter once again. Tonight, she’ll order what she always does, a six-inch plaza sandwich, with magic sauce.

So what did all those trips past the orange and blue add up to? Ulwick said with a smile:

“It was worth it.”

From left, Tim Waterhouse with his wife Moose and daughter Kaylie prepping food for the deli. They currently live right upstairs. Photo courtesy of Tim Waterhouse

Inside the market, visitors will find a variety of snacks, drinks, and sandwiches.

Photo by Isabella Ocañas

MASTERING howtobe

The Chapman tradition continues in the Ada family with Brendon Ada (left), alongside his dad, Peter Ada, and sister, Mauri Ada (right).

Photo courtesy of Brendon Ada

bea transfer student

By Jamilyn Moreau and Daniella Moreau

Senior Brendon Ada didn’t expect to mesh at Chapman after transferring from two community colleges in 2020. And after a year online due to COVID-19, he wondered if he’d find friends on campus.

“I really thought I’d just be a, ‘go to school, do school, go home, and that’s my life,’” Ada said.

But that wasn’t the case. He not only found Chapman a good fit, he got involved with helping other transfer students.

It doesn’t work for everyone. Some transfer students still feel out of place. Some are jolted by Chapman’s high costs. But for some, moving on from community college or transferring from another four-year school makes them feel like freshmen again.

Each school year, Dean of Students Jerry Price estimates that Chapman welcomes more than 1700 firstyear students and 350 incoming transfer students.

“Transfer students come from a million different backgrounds,” Price said.

According to Price, transfer students tend to be more academically focused. Though students’ college goals vary, Price said that Chapman works to ensure they get what they want from their experience.

Though transferring wasn’t seamless for Ada, a screenwriting major, he’s found ways to get involved. He became a transfers orientation coordinator. That includes details down to making sure they receive a stole and tying red ribbons to students’ class fenestra.

“I definitely think it’s a work in progress,” Ada said. Ada has also joined Chapman’s professional film fraternity.

“I was really lucky to have found a community and been accepted,” Ada said.

Other transfers were not as lucky.

Transfer student Lauren Broderson was forced to live off campus due to late admittance causing her to feel alone.

“In my classes, I was practically mute. Like I didn’t talk in my class the first semester at all,” said the sophomore creative writing major.

For a group project, Broderson said her partner thought her name was Gigi the entire semester.

“I was like, oh, that’s how people saw me,” she said.

(Above) Alex Manalastas (starting left) and his roommates (Evan Fenley, Brian Guevara, JP Olaia) at the beach. Photo courtesy of Alex Manalastas

Outside of the classroom, transfer students have had to find unique ways to make friends.

One transfer student used social media to find his roommates, who ended up becoming some of his best buddies.

“Actually, this is funny. I used Facebook to find my roommates, which is pretty rare,” Alex Manalastas, a human applied physiology major, said. His plan was to commute the second semester, but decided to extend his lease because he loved his roommates.

Transfer student Miles Gaskin, a junior English major, noted that his involvement with the football program helped him connect with the Panther community.

“It was pretty easy for me to find friends and find a social group. But I also feel like a lot of that had to do with the fact that I played sports,” Gaskin said.

Aaron Perry, senior transfer counselor, said finances are the most significant area of dissatisfaction for transfer students.

“There’s typically a gap with transfer students. And so helping them just kind of have that financial literacy is a pretty big part of my work. Just because I know it can be daunting for some,” Perry said.

Student involvement is in the hands of the transfer students. Meeting with an advisor as a transfer student is critical to a student’s success, which Ada regrets not doing more frequently.

“I didn’t really use my advisors when I was at my community college. So then when I came here, and they’re like, ‘you have to meet with your advisors,’ I never really did,” Ada said.

“We really rely on them being assertive and coming to us with questions,” Price said.

Miles Gaskin, on the right, and his teammate Franklin Starz on the football team. Photo courtesy of Miles Gaskin

STUDENTS

ORANGE FILM FEST

By Eleanor Koski and Juliette Huy

It’s a Thursday night at Frida Cinema art house in Santa Ana and Chapman juniors Jordan Sharkey and Jackson Spiner are buzzing in anticipation over the opening of “Cocaine Bear.”

But they’ve also got another buzz going: Just maybe this would be the place for their own upcoming endeavor: a student-led “Orange Film Fest.”

For student filmmakers like Sharkey and Spiner, there is no greater fulfillment than to see your own work up on the silver screen. And these Chapman University students are taking it into their own hands.

On their minds was the hunt for the perfect venue. Once the fluorescent shimmer of the Frida Cinema’s marquee lit up their faces, it started to fall into place.

Come April, Frida Cinema will host the first-ever Orange Film Fest. Chapman students can showcase their work and compete among other filmmakers for industry exposure. It was founded by Chapman junior Derrick Davidian. He soon got student enthusiasts like

Still shots from submitted films to the Orange Film Festival. Photos courtesy of Rachel Brownlee

Sharkey and Spiner involved.

“Film festivals are fantastic for showcasing independent films and are a great way to discover new filmmakers,” said Spiner, a screenwriting major.

For filmmakers and artists alike, festivals like Orange Film Fest offer a crucial networking community where they can find supporters, collaborators, and even investors. They provide a chance to market and promote films not usually accessible to independent filmmakers.

Festivals also allow filmmakers to push the conversation forward by exploring different thoughts and sharing ideas. While viewers experience a diverse scope of views, filmmakers also get a platform to test their work in front of a crowd.

“There is also something exciting about watching films with a collective audience. Especially, in the case of Orange Film Fest, an audience of your peers,” said Sharkey.

Davidian came up with the idea after attending the Newport Beach Film Festival. Disappointed after seeing how the festival ran, he wondered if he could create a similar, smaller-scale experience that could, in his opinion, operate more successfully.

“[Davidian’s] target audience is the entirety of the Chapman community,” said Sharkey.

However, Sharkey quickly added that she feels that Davidian’s hopes for audience outreach may be a bit ambitious for the crew’s first time putting on the event.

While applications are exclusive to Chapman University students, the festival holds no official affiliation with the school.

“Much of the work that students are proudest of is their independent work, which Chapman doesn’t screen,” replied Spiner.

A lot of film students applaud those behind the new festival.

“I think it’s cool that there are students taking things into their own hands,” said sophomore film production major Will Benzian. “At Chapman, you barely see what anyone in your year is working on before you’re a junior.”

Although the team of students hopes to acquire independent sponsorships, sophomore film production major Jake Ditargiani explained funds for the event are currently limited to submission fees and ticket sales. Tickets are $17 to $20.

long as running time does not exceed fifteen minutes

From left, Jackson Spiner, Riley Scott, Conrad Holzman, and Jordan Sharkey check the script in between takes for the film “Dumb Deaths.” Photo by Franco Picache

Derrick Davidian, Founder of Orange Film Fest. Photo courtesy of the Orange Film Fest website

Films of any genre are accepted and encouraged, as long as running time does not exceed fifteen minutes and at least one key crew member is a current Chapman University student. The festival is open to Chapman students of any major seeking to showcase their work outside of an academic setting. At first the festival staff looked at a Chapman venue. But Frida was a popular choice.

“We chose The Frida because everyone loves it,” Spinner said. “Plus, it’s close to Chapman and it feels like the epicenter of film in Orange County.”

The event will run on Saturday, April 29. Ten student films, selected by an independent committee, will be screened. Guest speakers from the entertainment industry, not yet disclosed, will also speak. While the organizers have films of their own, they have no guarantee those will be selected by the committee.

The goal is to make Orange Film Fest an annual event for Chapman film students.

“I know they can be annoying and talk too much about cameras, but they are really talented and deserve to have an audience for their work,” said Spiner.

Chapman student filmmakers on set for the independent music video “Pass in Time.” Photo by Franco Picache

“They deserve to have an audience for their work”

– Jackson Spiner

CHAPMAN LACKING POLITICS PASSION:

By Will Barron

WHERE ARE THE PROTESTS?

Could it ever be a red and black chapman sweater in the place of Undergrad student Mia Jimenez (left) who marched among the crowd at University of California, Irvine in solidarity with graduate students on Nov. 17, 2022. Photo Courtesy of Juliette Huy

ore than 48,000 graduate students, faculty and system workers at the University of California dedicated six weeks to strike for better working conditions. There were hundreds of undergraduate students by their side.

But could any issue at Chapman demand a similar student call to action?

James Moore, the vice president of Chapman Democrats, doubts it.

“I think if there’s anything to be really concerned about, it’s the lack of interest in civic actions,” Moore said.

As other campuses demand action, protests and rallies are not common on Chapman’s campus. Chapman is historically a libertarian institution as shown by its former president James Doti, a disciple of Milton Friedman. So where are these public protests and acts of free speech on campus?

John Compton, political science professor, asked what social or political issue could get that kind of support from the community here at Chapman.

Moore questioned where individuals’ priorities lie:

“Try and think about your priorities when it comes to politics. And if your priorities are arguing about balloon stuff. You might want to take a step back,’ he said.

The University of California strike was effective. The strike earned a 66% pay increase over three years for University of California graduate workers and teacher assistants. Success in the eyes of many.

Moore answers what he sees as a hindrance to students raising these sorts of civic actions by identifying what he sees as a culture of anti-protest at Chapman saying “this is not all of Chapman, but parts of Chapman glorify anti-protesting action.” He cited the bust of Ronald Reagan on campus as an example.

James Moore, vice president of Chapman Democrats.

Photo courtesy of James Moore

Nikita Prokhorov proudly displays a sign while marching at UC Irvine on Nov. 17, 2022. Nikita is a PhD phisosophy candidate and a grad student instructor teaching writing and composition. Photo by of Juliette Huy

Sculpture of former President Ronald Reagan located between Fish Interfaith Center and Hutton Sports Center. Photo courtesy of the Chapman website

Kate Robinson of Chapman Republicans disagrees with this in her experiences. She said Chapman administration has been open to protests and disagreements citing her club’s ability to host talks from even controversial speakers.

“Our admin is actually really accommodating, they let us host whatever speaker we want, I know, there are other colleges that push back on that kind of stuff,” Robinson said.

Robinson called back to a time when COVID-19 restrictions were strong and Chapman Republicans successfully fought to loosen them.

“I really think it is possible for students to make a change, we can do a lot and our fight with the COVID stuff really proved that,” Robinson said.

Compton saw an overlap between the two. He said students should put focus on things they can do as individuals and in small groups to make a change. He assessed that it would be more difficult for students at a private institution to do what the UCs did as private institutions, unlike state governments, don’t have as much flexibility in their decisions.

Professor Compton also notes a distinction in the kind of relationship employees and students have with an institution. He noted that those who rely on an institution for a paycheck are going to have more motivation and he does not see a similar policy goal being able to unite a group at Chapman.

Chapman likely won’t see a large-scale movement like what UC had, but some, like Robinson, feel it is important for the individual to engage politically to encourage a change in places they see need them, especially their own community.

While there are concerns about the lack of interest in civic actions and a culture of anti-protest at Chapman, both Moore and Robinson agree that social engagement is an important part of being in a community.

Robinson concluded:

“Just anything to spark conversation, I think is the best thing.”

Moore encouraged students to communicate their concerns by speaking up.

“So it’s very important. If you have issues if you have concerns, it really helps to have groups of people who can help you articulate those issues, and help you get what you need,” Moore said.

From left: Abbey Umali, Kate Robinson, and Charlie Sisk, tabling for the Chapman Republicans. Photo courtesy of Kate Robinson

Decoding the Personality Puzzle: Finding

a Fit for Asexuality

By Lauren Vu

ISFJ, ISFP, INFP, INFJ, and INTP.

Stanton doesn’t believe she fits those: She is an ENFJ. She is extroverted, intuitive, feeling, and judging. Myer Briggs says ENFJs are helpful, creative leaders.

These people make up the asexual community.

They call themselves aces.

One of them, sophomore broadcast journalism major Shannon Stanton, transferred from Chapman after her freshman year to find a new home at Suffolk University in Massachusetts.

“As an ace person, you kind of feel out of place everywhere,” Stanton said.

While personality does not always influence sexuality, according to Chapman psychology professor Ashley Weller, there is evidence for this sexual minority that suggests a relationship between the two.

To Stanton, personality and asexuality have no relationship.

“I feel like people might think people who are asexual are super quiet,” said Stanton. “And that’s just not the case for me. I’m very outgoing. And I love connecting with people. I don’t really see a correlation there.”

INFJs are more likely to identify as asexual.

One Chapman sophomore identifies with that. She asked for anonymity, but she is an animation and visual effects major. INFJ personality type identifies as sexually repulsed. INFJs tend to steer away from casual sex and are least likely to masturbate, according to Weller. The sophomore source said she found asylum in the animation major away from the omnipresence of college hookup culture.

“I’ve always found safety in kids’ shows… There’s a lot of comfort in knowing that I can just turn on something like that and not worry about a random sex scene,” she said.

“Given” is one of the shows in which the anonymous source found comfort. She envied the romance between the two male protagonists.

The standard most use to judge is the well known Myer Briggs Personality Indicator.

The 16 Myers Briggs types are different combinations of introversion versus extroversion, intuition versus sensing, thinking versus feeling, and perceiving versus judging. They go by complicated initials that won’t mean much to the average reader. But five of them are most likely to be asexual, according to Weller. Those are:

“It made me so sad. I just want what they have. They’re in love and they aren’t having sex,” said the source.

Though INFJs and INTPs are most likely to be aromantic, the anonymous source said she feels romantic attraction in rare cases. Her one-year relationship was one of them. Unfortunately, she did not have the same luck as the characters in “Given” when her partner broke up with her for not wanting to have sex.

“I have not been in a relationship since,” she said. “And I have not pursued one since.”

Everyone thinks about sex–except for the 1.7% of U.S. adults who don’t.

“Sexuality is fluid, as well as our personality,” said Weller. “So the answer is yes, there does seem to be some correlation between the two. But it’s important to remember that those can change.”

In a world motivated by sex, asexual individuals often feel alone.

Illustration by Jaelyn Duran

The ISFJ, ISFP, INFP, INFJ, and INTP Myers Briggs personality types are more often asexual. Photo collage by Lauren Vu

“There have been times where I [felt] I should be in a relationship… And then I realized [that] this is going to happen again.”

Trust issues are common among ace people. The judging silences and confused stares after they come out are enough to steer ace people away from pursuing relationships.

It feels even worse when doctors tell ace people that they are scientifically abnormal.

Some say aces are erroneously led to believe by physicians that they can be treated for a medical problem.

“If somebody just doesn’t want to have sex, that does not mean that something is medically wrong with them,” Weller said.

In a world that seems to be motivated by sex–a world that says not having sex is wrong–it is often difficult for an allosexual person–someone who experiences sexual attraction–to stay in a relationship with an asexual individual.

Remy Cashman, a 2017 Chapman graduate who majored in film production and is now a post production assistant on “Outlander,” identifies as bisexual. During college, the young woman Cashman liked told them that she did not want to have sex. Unlike many others who unknow-

ingly enter relationships with ace individuals, Cashman did not take it personally.

“There’s the expectation of sex. But there shouldn’t be one in general. Just en joy your time with the person and see what happens,” Cashman said.

Experts agree that if there is one thing the general population can learn from ace people, it is to treat every relationship as sacred–not just the romantic ones or the ones that satisfy sexual needs. Asexual people do not have to worry about “situationships” or “friends with benefits,” which are pseudo-relationships that are centered around sex and too often end in heartbreak.

(Left) Ashley Weller, an adjunct psychology professor at Chapman University. Photo courtesy of Ashley Weller

(Top right) An illustration of the asexual flag.

Illustration by Jaelyn Duran

(Middle) Remy Cashman performing stand-up comedy. Photo courtesy of Remy Cashman

“I think that I find that my friendship[s] with ace people are a lot stronger and deeper,” said the anonymous ace source. “Not having the partner be the priority in a friendship… means you can get a lot closer to them. I tend to treat my friendships with the same kind of emotional depth as most people would treat their relationships, and I find that there tends to be this massive difference in effort.”

Finding where sexuality fits with personality does not complete the entire puzzle. Personality tests like Myers Briggs do not tell the whole story, but can provide a glimpse into how one can grow as a person.

Periodically taking love language and attachment style tests could help romantic partners improve their conflict resolution and adjust to each other’s communication styles and needs.

Learning how to understand a significant other is the most important part of any relationship, regardless of sexuality or personality.

Weller added:

“Above all, the most imperative thing, regardless of personality type, is knowing how your partner wants to be loved, whether that’s physically, emotionally, verbally, through kindness, through small acts of service.”

Why is the Fitness Center

Chapman’s gyms are constantly at risk of being full, meaning students have to wait a significant amount of time to use the equipment they need. Does Chapman not have enough room for everyone?

By Brian Guevara

Photo by Brian Guevara

Center so . . . H

ow full does a campus gym have to be for students to look elsewhere for a workout?

When every Chapman treadmill is full and only a single dumbbell is left, students have to choose: wait your turn or go another day without a workout.

“It’s so bad. It’s literally always packed with people, like, all the time,” said junior Lauren Blue.

Chapman’s growing faster than it can keep up with, and it’s showing. At least at the gym.

On Chapman’s main campus, there are only two walkable options: the gym at Henley Hall or the Julianne Argyros Fitness Center. Some students have given up the fight for a spot.

People working the entrance check-in are tasked with handling the mass amounts of students that come in every hour.

“The Argyros and Henley gyms have definitely been busy over the last few months, and it gets pretty loud and hectic in there,” said Becca Leberman, one of the fitness center assistants.

Chapman’s Wellness and Recreation Facility Manager Michael Sakhel explained that staff are doing all they can to accommodate the large number of students at the gym, and realistically the problem cannot be fixed very simply.

Sakhel noted:

“At the end of the day, what are we going to do to create more space here? Break down more walls and add 200 more square feet? That’s not going to help. When you’re a small campus gym, you really have to work with what you got, and we’re working with what we got right now.”

Even if he’s right, that doesn’t help students who are devoted to working out. Some students have even started making memes about how full the gym is online.

“I ended up working out at 24 Hour Fitness on Tustin because there is less of a chance that I see people I don’t want to see,” Blue said. “It’s just much more spacious and a better environment to get in your zone.”

24 Hour Fitness worker Julian Lopez thinks there is more value working out at a gym that isn’t extremely crowded.

“You do spend the extra money, but it’s worth your time because you don’t have to wait as long, there’s more equipment and more variety,” Lopez said. “It’s better value even though you are spending more.”

While the gym was still pretty busy last year, according to Leberman, it’s gotten “much busier this year.”

But what is causing this rapid overpopulation?

Each year Chapman welcomes more than 2000 first-year and transfer students, according to the dean of students, Jerry Price. This year, Chapman admitted an unprecedented amount of freshmen, increasing the attendance to an all-time high of just over 10,000 students.

There were a lower number of applications than the year before, yet it was the second highest number of students admitted in Chapman’s history.

On top of this, they accepted at the highest rate in history, a 16% increase from the previous year. The result of this is an influx of Chapman students using facilities that were initially meant for less people.

Chapman is doing all it can to accommodate the amount of students that are trying to use the campus gyms, according to Sakhel.

A meme made about Chapman gyms from a social media app called, “Fizz.” Screenshot by Brian Guevara

“We form capacity numbers based on the amount of equipment that is in the gyms in relation to how many bodies per square feet we can fit. Any time we reach those capacity limits, the fitness center assistants are trained to hold people from coming in,” Sakhel said.

On top of all the precautions Chapman is taking to try and control the population at the gyms, they are also looking to create more space.

The most significant improvement to gym capacity comes from the opening of the Chapman Court apartments. Chapman Grand already has its own residential gym, but with this opening, Sakhel said he believes the gym included in the apartments will help alleviate the issue. The catch is, only residents of those apartments will be able to use those gyms. And it won’t even open until the fall of 2024.

The school is planning to open a full fitness center at the Rinker Campus in Irvine in 2026. But that’s miles away, and it will be open to graduate students only.

The overcrowded fitness centers raise concerns about the school’s capacity in many other areas, and how they plan on making more space for their students in the future.

“This is an issue with athletics, academics, and a lot more than just the fitness centers. The question of how Chapman can find more space is a question that a lot of people up the ladder are asking too in their strategic plans moving forward,” Sakhel added.

When it comes to defining the current state of the gyms, many might agree with Blue:

“Right now it’s just better to work out somewhere else until they do something to fix the situation.”

(Above) Photo of Michael Sakhel.

Photo courtesy of Michael Sakhel

(Below) Becca Leberman working the front desk in the Julianne Argyros Fitness Center.

Photo by Brian Guevara

students G et A KICK O ut OF KECK

Ben Janda using a glovebox in the Keck Center. Photo courtesy of Ben Janda

By Daniella Moreau

Assenior Ben Janda sticks his hands inside two gloves you might see in a science fiction movie, he gets excited to play with a dangerous chemical. One that can’t be exposed to air.

Actually, it’s all about water.

“If the chemicals are exposed to water, they’ll either break down or explode,” said the chemistry major.

These giant rubber gloves, called gloveboxes, are one of the many technological advancements of the new Keck Center for Science and Engineering on Chapman’s campus. For some students, the nearly block-long Keck Center is just a shortcut way to walk to the dorms in cold or rainy weather. But inside, those scores of students wearing white lab coats say it’s opening doors they’d only dreamed about.

pened in 2018 with a new wing added two years ago, the $130 million, 140,000 square feet Keck Center is the most technologically advanced and largest facility on campus. It houses both the science and technology school and the engineering school.

Unique? It’s also the only place on campus where students are encouraged to write on the walls. And encouraged to study while sitting on the stairs.

Dean of the engineering school, Andrew Lyon, said just the excitement of the design of the Keck Center could be the reason for the increase in students transferring to engineering majors.

“I like to think that part of that is our curriculum, but probably part of it is also the building,” said Lyon.

Students’ opinions seem to support this theory.

Science and engineering students find Keck useful for high-level research in STEM fields, with access to advanced technologies typically reserved only for faculty and graduate students But it’s not just the tech that is a draw for the students. Students love the modern spaces. Kurt Horney, a junior biochemistry and molecular biology major, said the McCardle Steps are his favorite spot in the facility. With cushions scattered throughout the steps, it’s a hot spot for many students to relax or study.

The McCardle Steps are in the science wing

Lab partners

Kurt Horney and Anne Marie Santich.

Photo courtesy of Kurt Horney

From left, junior Andrew Evelyn Swim study in Swenson Daniella Moreau

“I love it just because I feel like it’s the heart of the Keck Center,” said Horney.

Ashley Alexander, also a junior biochemistry and molecular biology major, said the Keck Center is a great place to be curious. She urges students across campus to take advantage of the building. In Keck, students can write directly on the walls throughout the halls of the building. Horney said the whiteboard walls are helpful for working out complex reaction equations.

Software engineering freshman, Jacob Zamore said students love the unique study atmosphere. Such as the vibrant red booth study room tucked into the halls of Swenson.

“There’s just so many nooks and

crannies within Keck,” said Zamore.

Ethan Slade, a senior electrical engineering major, said his favorite spot in Swenson Hall (the engineering section) is on the second floor on the south side of the building.

“I love Swenson because that’s where all my friends sit up at a table, and we just post up,” Slade said.

There’s just one flaw with Keck. The space isn’t big enough to sustain the rapid growth of the majors. When finals roll around, these hot spots aren’t so hot. Study spaces fill up quickly.

“Competition for those spaces has been vicious at times. Especially during finals and midterms,” said Lyon.

When it’s busy in the Keck Center, Slade enjoys having access to the makerspace on the first floor. The Design/Create/Innovate Lab is in Swenson Hall, where students can use 3D printers and laser cutters.

“The classrooms in Swenson and Keck, I feel like, are up-to-date,” said Slade. “It’s technology inclusive. Like, I can use so much of the lab equipment to get things done throughout the day.”

Janda said the Keck Center has served as a second home for him.

“It’s like a place that kind of unifies us. I really do love it,” he said.

wing of the Keck Center. Photo by Daniella Moreau

Andrew Kwon and freshman

Swenson Hall. Photo by

what the heck is eecS?

the latest boom in chapman master's growth

By Jamilyn Moreau

Olivia Chilvers sits on a vibrant red barstool inside the Tech Shop at the Keck Center, reloading her email, awaiting a response that could determine her future.

What is she waiting for?

News regarding her acceptance to the new master’s program coming to Chapman’s Fowler School of Engineering next fall.

“I’ll be in the first cohort for the master’s, hopefully, because we find out soon. It’s really exciting,” Chilvers said.

The Electrical Engineering Computer Science (EECS) program is Fowler’s first-ever master’s degree program, opening in Fall 2023. Previously only offered as undergraduate degrees, this new hybrid program combines electrical engineering and computer science into one graduate program.

The new graduate program will send out informal acceptance letters mid-March. Spoiler alert: Chilvers managed to find out ahead of time that she made it.

Time scrunch is an understatement. The faculty senate approved the engineering program in December. The deadline for application submissions was Feb. 1.

There was no time to market the new engineering program properly, yet somehow word-of-mouth spread like wildfire beyond the Keck Center.

Erik Linstead, associate dean of the engineering school, was surprised that the enrollment target could be higher than expected, with 20 percent of the applications coming from non-Chapman students. “Fingers crossed that maybe we beat our enrollment target,” Linstead said.

It remains a mystery how the program gained so much traction in so little time.

“When the EECS graduate degree opened up, the word got around really fast,” said Chilvers.

Noah Fuery applied to the program partially due to the influence of his friends.

“When I changed my major to computer science, the atmosphere was completely different. I really love the close connection students have with the professors,” said the junior computer science major.

The common theme of friendship proves to be significant in the STEM field at Chapman.

“I started coming to this area, and I met some of my closest friends,” said Fuery.

In addition, relationships between faculty and students undoubtedly contributed to the number of applications.

Junior computer science major Ponthea Zahraii credits Linstead for helping her through a mid-college crisis, switching from a psychology major to computer science.

Olivia Chilvers (back right, with glasses) and her boyfriend, Trey Alexander (right of Chilvers), hang out with the DCI and Tech Shop employees. Photo courtesy of Olivia Chilvers

Olivia Chilvers (above) is eager to continue her education and hang with robots at the Fowler School of Engineering. Photo courtesy of Chilvers

Junior, Noah

“I came into this so scared, and I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” said Zahraii.

Zahraii discussed her options over coffee with Linstead, emphasizing her interest in the graduate program, which landed her a spot in his lab as a student researcher.

“If I’m the first class that means the work that I do is going to be some of the work that shapes the program,” said Zahraii.

Andrew Lyon, dean of the engineering school, said the program is unique in its design. It’s set up to help students become overall better engineers, not just learn how to do the job.

“Very often, graduate degrees are just to acquire more skills so you can go off and get a better paying job,” said Lyon.

How will the graduate school do this? By setting a solid foundation first.

This graduate program requires students to complete an Ethics Core and Leadership Core.

In Fuery’s opinion, this is a crucial component of the curriculum.

“If it is all technical, then it doesn’t structure the program,” said Fuery.

So, how could one stand out when applying to the new science?

According to Linstead, the student’s genuine enthusiasm.

“What we really care about when we’re reading the statement of purpose is sort of like, why are you excited about this?”

Noah Fuery (right) and Ponthea Zahraii (left) meet at this booth between classes. This spot has become a staple for their friend group to hang out. Photo courtesy of Ponthea Zahraii

Fuery (below), computer science major. Photo courtesy of Fuery

spring 2023