Friday, March 28, 2025 Volume LVI, Issue 23 Est. 1969
CWRU replaces DEI office with Office of Campus Enrichment and Engagement amid federal pressure on equity programs
Téa Tamburo News Editor
Case Western Reserve University’s Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Engagement has been replaced by the newly created Office of Campus Enrichment and Engagement, according to a March 26 email from President Eric Kaler. This change follows executive orders issued by the Trump administration aimed at eliminating DEI programs at institutions that receive federal funding.
“The executive orders (issued Jan. 20 and Jan. 21) to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs in organizations receiving federal funding make clear that there are consequences for those who do not comply,” the email stated. “We have watched the evolution of the legal challenges to these executive orders, and, as we have seen among some of our peers already, it is clear we must be in compliance with them to receive the federal funding that is critical to our present and future.”
of Campus Enrichment and Engagement will focus on fostering community connections across CWRU and will also oversee the administration of the Gallup Engagement Survey, a questionnaire prompting responses regarding workplace satisfaction and company culture.
“This office will work to connect our community and offer programming that aligns with its new mission: Enriching our campus life through building community, active engagement, mindful learning and transformative civil dialogue,” Kaler wrote.
As of March 26, the Office for DEI Engagement’s website has been replaced by the Office for Campus Enrichment and Engagement, and more information about this new office will be added to the website, according to Kaler’s email.
“The Office for Campus Enrichment and Engagement seeks to champion the unique perspectives and experiences of each individual while connecting students, faculty, staff and postdocs as part of the broader Case Western Reserve University commu-
Kaler also mentioned that CWRU’s school-based programs will “see similar changes and staff roles may be adjusted to align with this new approach.” According to the Faculty Senate’s Feb. 24 meeting minutes, the faculty hiring process will be shifted from the Office for DEI Engagement to the Office of the Provost.
Kaler highlighted the importance of embracing a wide range of perspectives and lived experiences within the community and how the university’s values of “civility and the free exchange of ideas,” “civic and international engagement” and “appreciation for the distinct perspectives and talents of each individual” will continue to be prevalent within the university.
He wrote, “It challenges us to think differently, to consider other perspectives and to constantly demand that we do better, and be better. Our institution has a long and proud history of offering a path to a better life for all, and we will continue to do so long into the future.”
In an email sent to the Undergraduate Diversity Collective (UDC)
Lucas Yang/The Observer
executive members on March 26, third-year UDC President Sofia Castro highlighted that “UDC-affiliated clubs already include a non-discrimination clause in their constitutions” and will continue to operate and receive funding without any changes.
She wrote, “I just got off a call with Travis Apgar, the vice president for student affairs, who assured me that student and alumni organizations centered around culture and diversity can continue to operate, as long as they do not deny membership or participation on the basis of religion, race, gender, or origin.”
When contacted by The Observer regarding the newly instated Office of Campus Enrichment and Engagement, the university declined additional comment.
The Observer will continue to report on the campus-wide effects of these changes.
Additional reporting contributed by Sports Editor Darcy Chew, Director of Design Auden Koetters, Executive Editor Shivangi Nanda and News Editors Vani Subramony and Zachary Treseler.
CWRU freezes staff hiring amid federal research funding cuts
Zachary Treseler News Editor
In a Feb. 26 email, Brian Burnett, the newly appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer of Case Western Reserve University, announced the implementation of a hiring freeze for new staff. These cost-saving changes come amidst a backdrop
of recent changes to higher education administration put forward by the Trump administration that threaten traditional funding for higher education.
“Changes at the federal level, especially the capping of indirect cost rates for the National Institutes of Health grants, could lead to considerable budgetary impacts at Case Western Reserve University,” the email states.
Burnett characterized the hiring freeze as a “temporary pause” for the semester, emphasizing that this impacts all hiring, including for already posted positions.
Exceptions, as Burnett said in the email, must come from the Executive Compensation Committee. Little is known publicly about the group: a search of the CWRU website only shows four results, all tied to the faculty
search and compensation process. In an emailed statement to The Observer, the university clarified that “The executive compensation committee is a small group of university leaders who evaluate each open position based on its critical importance to university operations.”
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Browns break away: Brook Park Stadium plans face resistance from Cleveland leaders
Vani Subramony News Editor
On March 18, Haslam Sports Group (HSG) announced their plans for a new Cleveland Browns stadium with a letter from Chief Operating Officer of the Browns David Jenkins and a flyby video of the proposed facility. The move comes after HSG’s decision to shift the Cleveland Browns’ home stadium, Huntington Bank Field, from its lakefront location to Brook Park, Ohio.
Included in the plans are a transparent stadium roof, updated parking, a “Fan Wall,” “unique club, concourse experiences and a wide range of products not available at the current location,” according to the letter released. Jenkins’ letter says that the proposed stadium will “drive the fiscal and economic impact necessary to pay for the public portion of the funding model” while remaining accessible for homegame attendees.
“We love Cleveland and Northeast Ohio and are committed to our community, our schools, our youth sports programs, our involvement in local healthcare, and our extensive impact programs. This project reinforces our dedication to Greater Cleveland and all of Northeast Ohio,” Jenkins said. “We’ve made a promise to ensure our team remains the Cleveland Browns, and our Brook Park plans solidify that commitment.”
These plans were not met with cheers from all. In a statement on March 19, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb blasted the Haslams for their stadium plan, saying, “The Haslam Brook Park scheme will burden taxpayers and damage downtown to benefit billionaires.” In his statement, Bibb said that “[t] heir scheme relies on average ticket prices nearing $700, parking rates north of $100, increasing taxes for hotels, parking, and rental cars, and the assumption thousands of people will pay high rent to live in luxury apartments in the shadow of the airport.” Bibb also referenced the Haslams’ previous public commitment to renovate the Browns’
current stadium: “[t]he City of Cleveland offered nearly half a billion dollars to keep the Browns in the city, based on the Haslams’ original request for a transformed lakefront stadium.” He added, “It is disingenuous and insulting to say— as the Haslams do in their recent federal court filing—that the city doesn’t have a competitive plan for the lakefront.”
Bibb also claimed that the stadium move violates state law. Ohio’s Modell Law states that teams playing in taxpayer-funded stadiums cannot move their stadium without permission from the “political subdivision” (in this case, the City of Cleveland) or less than six months’ notice and an opportunity for the political subdivision and any individuals within it to purchase the team.
HSG refuted this statement in a press release on March 18, claiming that “the City of Cleveland has been misguiding Clevelanders by inaccurately conflating the Brook Park project with Art Modell breaking a lease and moving a team to an entirely different state. The City has done so by invoking the so-called Modell Law—an Ohio law passed in the 1990s in response to the relocation of the Browns out of Ohio— to try and halt the project.” Brook Park is less than 20 miles from the Browns’ current lakefront stadium.
HSG has also filed an updated lawsuit against the City of Cleveland. In the March 18 press release, HSG’s Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel Ted Tywang said, “Our actions in court are intended to ensure that the city’s irresponsible and baseless attempt to apply the Model Law to the Browns does not slow our momentum to build a world-class stadium right here in Northeast Ohio for the Browns, our fans and the entire region.”
According to the Statehouse News Bureau, an amendment regarding funding for the new facility has been drafted and would insert a $600 million package of bonds into the state budget. This $600 million would contribute to the $3.4 billion necessary to build the new stadium and surrounding development.
An analysis of open positions from the Human Capital Management system reveals the main impacts of the hiring freeze. Of the 75 jobs that were live the day after the announcement of the freeze, 16 of them are on the “director” level roles, including the Executive Director of Entrepreneurship through Acquisition and four positions for director of development. Many student-facing positions are also impacted: a career planning specialist, four roles in University Health and Counseling Services and two librarian roles were previously listed and now unposted.
The university didn’t comment when contacted about the impacts of the hiring freeze and the status
of student-facing departments that have historically been plagued by understaffing. In a written statement, the university said, “The freeze does not include student employment.”
In the same email, Burnett announced pauses on universityfunded travel for staff, “unrestricted discretionary spending” and “additional pay and temporary staffing requests.” He said these measures are necessary to “help protect against these significant potential financial impacts,” referencing the cap on indirect research costs from the National Institute of Health. This cap, announced on Feb. 15, seeked to cap indirect cost reimbursements for federally funded research studies at
15% of the grant’s worth.
CWRU’s prior negotiated reimbursement rate is 61%, which matches with the rate at University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic. The change to 15% amounts to $38.8 million potentially being cut from CWRU, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. Universities and research institutions across Ohio may lose up to $185.7 million.
CWRU is not the only university that has implemented spending changes. Peer UAA institutions, such as New York University and Emory University, have announced similar cost-cutting measures. These hiring freezes also extend to include Ivy League schools and various public university systems, capturing na-
tional attention and headlines. These measures have been challenged in court and as of March 26 are subject to a preliminary injunction from a federal court in Boston, pending three lawsuits filed by higher education interest groups and a few universities, which does not include CWRU. Regarding the lawsuit and injunction, a statement released by President Eric W. Kaler on March 6 said that “While concerns remain about the slowing of research funding and the potential for indirect cost caps, we are grateful to these groups—and many others with whom we’ve partnered—for advocating on behalf of researchers to conduct their meaningful, lifechanging work.”
A rendering of the proposed layout for the new Cleveland Browns stadium showcases a modern design aimed at enhancing the fan experience and revitalizing the city’s waterfront.
Courtesy of the Cleveland Browns
Japanese Breakfast explores nostalgia and introspection with their latest release
Kennedy Wolf Staff Writer
This past Friday, March 21, Japanese Breakfast released their fourth studio album, “For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women).” Japanese Breakfast is fronted by Michelle Zauner, an accomplished indie pop singer-songwriter as well as a New York Times bestselling author. She is quite famous for her memoir “Crying in H-Mart,” which launched her writing career. Needless to say, Zauner is quite a creative and artistic person. Her newest album further showcases her creative talent through lyrical storytelling, absurdist usage of instruments and soft breathy vocals.
While I was listening to “Melancholy Brunettes,” I realized there was a new underlying component much stronger in this album than any of her others— a strong sense of nostalgia, an almost return to the emotions associated with childhood. This album sounds quieter, more subdued than Zauner’s previous ventures, perhaps even melancholic. “Melancholy Brunettes” is a clear departure from her 2021 album “Jubilee,” which was generally much louder and upbeat. Despite the slower and slightly more depressing nature of this album, there is still much happiness to be found in its lyrical storytelling. This storytelling is just more combined with
elements of melancholia and sadness than her previous work. After I listened to all 10 tracks back to back, I did not feel sad necessarily but instead more introspective. While there were certainly some lyrics that made me feel melancholic, at the end of my listening session I was in a much more contemplative state than before, not a sad one. “Melancholy Brunettes” highlights Zauner’s talent because it is an objectively sad album—the word “Melancholy” is what the title starts with—but she leaves the listener feeling a different emotion by the end of it. I feel like I am being emotionally gaslighted by her music, but I am not mad about it, by any means.
Japanese Breakfast is well known among their fans for using uncommon instruments. In “Melancholy Brunettes,” Zauner used a gamelan, sarod, celesta, a vintage church organ, windchimes, xylophones and a steel guitar. I had to look up the first three, having never even heard of these instruments before. But she incorporates their distinctive and unique sounds into her songs quite well. The overall effect is a sort of dreamy, atmospheric landscape, which contributes to the introspective nature and feelings I associate with this album. Instruments such as the windchimes and xylophones also remind me of my own childhood—I actually think my kindergarten classroom had
a big xylophone—and I am curious if that was her intention by including these instruments, which normally are not featured on major studio albums. Their inclusion definitely adds to the feelings of nostalgia that I associated with this record.
Zauner is a talented singer, songwriter and producer, so I was going into this album assuming that she would impress me again. But there is always this element of surprise that she consistently manages to bring to her music that astounds me, especially when it is so easy for other artists to fall into old
patterns with their respective sounds. I never expected “Jubilee” to sound as happy as it did, nor for “Melancholy Brunettes” to sound as contemplative as it does. Japanese Breakfast always keeps their listeners on their collective toes, wondering what mood her next project will bring. And that’s honestly remarkable in the music landscape we live in. The album is a great listen for anyone who wants to feel confused about their emotions for half an hour and then contemplative for the next several hours—and also for strange instrument enthusiasts.
Yo La Tengo gives an unconventional performance at Beachland Ballroom
Kate Gordon Life Editor
Last Monday, March 24,
Cleveland’s
Waterloo Arts District. Composed of Ira Kaplan, Georgia Hubley and James McNew, the band cycled through an eclectic setlist of underrated fan favorites and a few sparse hits, shifting the atmosphere of the venue from subdued to frantic and back once more to calm
over the course of the evening.
The concert was an unconventional performance in a couple of key ways. First, it was the only concert I’ve ever been to that didn’t have an opening act. The trio simply appeared onstage at 7:45 p.m. and launched into their first song, no introductions, no preamble. They also didn’t put much effort into appearances—since they’re an older group, it’s not like I was expecting coordinated outfits or costume changes or anything—which was a bit of a surprise anyway considering how standard visual appeal has become for performances today. Yo La Tengo wore casual clothes, no visible makeup and had no props or visuals beyond two lines of colored lights and a disco ball that they turned on for exactly three songs.
The setlist itself also defied expectations. The band’s current tour doesn’t actually correspond to any album release, so they played songs off a variety of records, although a whopping seven still came from 2023’s “This Stupid World.” I liked the decision to divide the concert into sections by mood: pre-intermission was the “quieter set,” which I vastly preferred, and post-intermission was the “louder set,” which was largely staticky guitar feedback. The band also returned for an encore where they played three covers with ties to the Cleveland rock music scene. Interestingly, of the concert’s 19 original songs, none of them even fell within the band’s 30 most-streamed on Spotify. My favorites were, and I’ll admit that I hadn’t heard either of them before that night, “Miles Away” and “I Feel Like Going Home,” both of which featured Hubley’s soft, enchanting vocals. The
band’s commitment to only playing deep cuts is truly admirable and not something you see from a lot of other acts these days.
This brings me to my only criticism of the evening: the concert felt a bit self-indulgent at times. No hits sounds cool in theory, but in practice it can be tough to sit through. I get it, I’m not owed a performance of my favorite song, but no “Autumn Sweater” or “Our Way to Fall” or “You Can Have It All” was disappointing and there’s no getting around that. Also—and maybe I’m being a bit self-indulgent with some of these descriptions—they played an almost entirely instrumental song that felt like being trapped in purgatory for its ten-minute-plus run. Reader, I thought hours had gone by. During this song Kaplan also did this weird pantomime where he pretended to smash his guitar but didn’t actually break it? I didn’t understand what the point of it was, except to maybe distract the audience from the song’s grating bass/ drumline that didn’t change even one time in the whole ten minutes.
All said, however, Yo La Tengo played a solid concert and introduced me to a side of their discography I hadn’t heard before. I’m far more partial to the band’s slower numbers, and my favorite moments were those when Hubley had the mic—she has a truly beautiful voice and a delicate touch that she can just as easily relinquish to go full-throttle on the drum kit. The next time the band goes on tour, I would encourage anyone interested to attend, although I’d emphasize that a close listen to their discography is likely necessary to get the most out of the experience.
indie rock band Yo La Tengo took to the stage at Beachland Ballroom in
Indie pop band Japanese Breakfast explores nostalgia through frontwoman Michelle Zauner’s lyricism and unique instrument choice in “For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women).”
Courtesy of Dead Oceanschman
Indie rock band Yo La Tengo performed a 22-song set—intentionally excluding their biggest hits—in Cleveland’s Waterloo Arts District. Vani Subramony/The Observer
THE WORST CASE SCENARIO
Renaming the Office for DEI
Auden
Koetters Director of Design
Ah, rebranding. Nothing says "progress" like giving something a new name and praying no one notices. Case Western Reserve University’s recent decision to replace the Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) with the shiny new Office of Campus Enrichment and Engagement is the academic equivalent of emailing students of a “minor increase in police presence at Adelbert” when a dead body found on campus.
But fear not! I’m here to guide you through this bureaucratic wilderness. Follow these tips to stay engaged (pun intended) with all the excitement.
1. The word-soup waltz: Welcome to the world of corporate euphemisms, where “enrichment” means “please stop emailing us.” The new office claims to foster “civil dialogue"—which is code for a spirited debate where no one is allowed to raise their voice or imply systemic issues exist. For extra fun, try hosting a conversation about inequity using only words from a Gallup Engagement Survey.
2. The compliance camouflage: When the government says “Jump,” universities say, “How high, and would you like us to dismantle our equity programs on the way up?” Compliance is now the name of the game. If you spot administrators nervously whispering words like “funding” and “federal grants,” don’t worry, that’s just the sound of progress being quietly escorted out the back door.
3. The Gallup gambit: Looking for feedback? Enter the legendary Gallup survey, now with 37 thought-provoking questions such
as, “On a scale of mildly amused to wildly ecstatic, how included do you feel today?” Each response brings you one step closer to winning the coveted stress ball (conveniently shaped like the concept of inclusion).
4. The donut diplomacy: Nothing says community like a tray of slightly stale donuts. The Office for Campus Enrichment and Engagement is on a mission to bring people together for civil dialogue over a Bavarian cream. Pro tip: Always go for the sprinkle one. It's the most enlightened.
5. The ultimate rebrand test: If you’e still not sure what the new office actually does, you’re not alone. Try this challenge: Ask an administrator for the office’s mission. If they respond with something involving "fostering transformative experiences through dialogue-driven engagement," congratulations! You’ve unlocked level five of corporate jargon fluency.
Pro tip: When discussing these changes, try out some strategic vagueness. Phrases such as “It’s complicated” and “We’re navigating challenging times” are crowdpleasers. Just don’t accidentally imply that meaningful change is still on the table. If all else fails, embrace the enrichment vibes. Attend a workshop, share your thoughts and grab that free pen emblazoned with the new office name. After all, change is hard, but free office supplies make it a little sweeter.
In the end, the Office for Campus Enrichment and Engagement will settle into its glossy new website, and life will go on. Good luck, brave scholar. May your perspectives be enriched, your engagements be fulfilling and your donuts be only slightly stale.
The Jumble
Overheard CWRU
Compilation of out-of-pocket things heard across campus
Crossword
Aries Taurus
Top 10 worst April Fools' pranks from history
10. BBC’s Spaghetti Tree Hoax (1957): The BBC aired a fake documentary claiming spaghetti grew on trees in Switzerland. Thousands of viewers called in, asking how to grow their own spaghetti trees.
9. The Dead Dog (2001): Inspired by "National Lampoon's Vacation," Paul Goobie tied a dead chihuahua to his co-worker Kevin Meloy’s car bumper in 2001. Meloy, who was deaf, unknowingly drove for miles as horrified motorists tried to alert him. Goobie was later charged with unlawful disposal of a dead animal.
8. Richard Nixon’s Fake Presidential Run (1992): NPR ran a fake news segment announcing that Richard Nixon was running for president again with the slogan “I didn’t do anything wrong, and I won’t do it again.”
7. Eruption at Mount Edgecumbe (1974): Residents of Sitka, Alaska, were terrified when they saw smoke billowing from the dormant Mount Edgecumbe volcano. It turned out to be a prank by a local who had set old tires on fire inside the crater.
6. Milton's Volcano (1980): A fake broadcast claimed a volcano erupted in Milton, Massachusetts, using real footage from Mount Saint Helens and a bogus warning from President Jimmy Carter.
5. Hijinks of Hussein and Son (1998): The Babil newspaper, owned by Hussein's son Uday, informed its readers that President Clinton had decided to lift sanctions against Iraq, only to admit later that it was just joking.
4. The Iraqi Ambassador's Final Joke (2003): As coalition troops advanced in Iraq, Iraqi Ambassador Abbas Khalaf Kunfuth held a press conference in Moscow where he held up a piece of paper he claimed to be a news flash from Reuters and read "The Americans have accidentally fired a nuclear missile into British forces, killing seven."
3. The Fake Assasination (1986): Israel Radio falsely reported the assassination of Nabih Berri, leader of the Shi'ite Amal movement, sparking regional tensions. the officer had meant it as an April Fools' joke, commenting it was "Berri Berri funny."
2. Revival of the Warsaw Pact (1996): Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency falsely reported that the Russian parliament was considering reviving the Warsaw Pact. The claim spread quickly, causing panic in the Czech Republic and Bulgaria.
1. Releasing The Prisoners (2000): Romania’s Opinia newspaper published a cruel April Fools' prank, falsely claiming prisoners at Baia Mare would be released. Around 60 hopeful families traveled to the prison, only to be met with the devastating truth—it was all a joke.
The war on higher education threatens economic prosperity and manifests the rise of totalitarianism
Addison Miller Contributing Writer
On March 19, the Ohio House of Representatives threatened to undermine Ohio’s public higher education system by passing Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), sponsored by State Sen. Jerry Cirino. Its passage in the Senate followed by Governor Mike DeWine’s signature on the bill would deeply injure a system that enrolls roughly 430,000 students and includes institutions of national and global prestige. Ohio should be proud of its public universities, which provide world-class education and produce Ohio’s talent and civic leadership. Instead, the Republican Party and Cirino resent Ohio’s universities and seek to mold them into their vision by undermining academic freedom. Because universities are loci of knowledge, innovation and leadership, SB 1 threatens Ohio’s future economic and social prosperity. Beyond Ohio, the Trump administration’s actions threaten free speech, the rule of law and economic prosperity on the national level.
In the wake of the 2024 presidential election, national and state-level Republicans alike believe they were given something of a mandate to redefine who and what America is for. President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk have been touting Trump’s 1.5% margin of victory in the national popular vote as permission to go on a rampage against the administrative state. They’ve gone after marginalized communities, while Cirino thinks this win gives him permission to attack higher education on the state level. Over 200 people testified and 830 submitted testimony against the bill at a Feb. 11 hearing, and approximately 900 people showed up to protest the bill at The Ohio State University on March 4. That certainly doesn’t seem like a great deal of public support.
Cirino says that the bill will restore academic freedom and undo the discrimination—against the allegedly oppressed minority of white, heterosexual, cisgender men—of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. With SB 1, he says, Ohio will lead the nation in depoliticizing
higher education. “The wind is at our backs. And soon we will set sail into a golden age of higher education in the Buckeye State,” a recent release from Cirino’s office concludes. Among other provisions, SB 1 would ban all DEI efforts—including trainings, DEI departments, diversity scholarships and more; regulate academic discussion of “controversial subjects,” defined as “any belief or policy that is the subject of political controversy”; require faculty and staff to not “indoctrinate any social, political, or religious view”; ban faculty collective bargaining over certain subjects and faculty strikes and require undergraduates to take a “civic education” course that requires reading “patriotic” texts—examples were works by Adam Smith (author of “The Wealth of Nations” and so-called “father of capitalism”) and Martin Luther King Jr. These demands come alongside threats to take away state funding if a public university fails to obey the bill.
Proponents of SB 1 may claim it is trying to depoliticize public higher education, but a cursory reading of it reveals that it is, in fact, a radical incursion of partisan politics into the academy. The bill refuses to define DEI, leaves open the question of how much intellectual diversity is enough and doesn’t clarify what would constitute indoctrination, making it clear that the metric by which public universities will be measured is by how much they bend to the GOP’s agenda. In disciplines that deal with social relations, it’s difficult to imagine how it would be possible to avoid “controversial subjects” as the bill defines them. As such, it will be difficult for many disciplines to avoid allegations of indoctrination and the scrutiny of the legislature.
It’s telling that academic disciplines that are unavoidably political in their aims and methods, such as gender studies, sociology and social work, get attention for being unacceptably political. Whereas departments of economics, despite their greater influence, prestige and fundamentally political assumptions, usually escape scrutiny for their politics. Instead of encouraging academic freedom, SB 1 crushes any academic opposition. While it at-
tempts to indoctrinate students to the status quo, SB 1’s civic education course is cast as apolitical because it doesn’t threaten those in power (MLK Jr’s “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” is the exception, but Cirino clearly hasn’t read it).
Whether they reside in Ohio or not, students will be less likely to choose to study in Ohio if academic freedom is jeopardized. What becomes of, for example, Cleveland State University’s highly ranked urban planning program if instructors are scared that they’ll lose funding if they speak too frankly about climate change? Universities are already starting to fold—OSU obeyed in advance by shuttering DEI offices and programs, and the Inter-University Council of Ohio, a lobbying group that represents Ohio’s public universities, has refused to take a stance for or against SB 1 for fear of putting universities in the GOP’s crosshairs. The bill undermines the ability of Ohio’s universities to perform the key task of attracting out-of-state students and retaining in-state talent. Moreover, the Trump administration’s broad cuts to research funding threaten the competitiveness of American research in general, which promises to put us behind the curve.
While Trump’s actions, like SB 1, threaten free speech, they also threaten the fundamental principles of the rule of law and due process. Through the recent political imprisonment of Palestinian Columbia University student activists Mahmoud Kalil and Leqaa Kordia, extrajudicial deportation of students and academics from Georgetown University and Brown University, visa revocations for those expressing pro-Palestinian sentiment and the pulling of $400 million in research funding from Columbia, his administration broadens the attack. By extralegally deporting non-citizens with whom it has political disagreements, Trump is telling us that citizens and non-citizens alike will face harsh punishment for dissent, legal or not.
The logic of the war on higher education supposes that a woke surveillance state discriminates against people for being white and stops
conservatives from getting college degrees if they refuse to pass ideological litmus tests. Such a thing has never existed. The focus on DEI and “wokeness” stems from the right’s frustration that society, for the past two decades, has rapidly liberalized, especially in academic settings. Social progressivism, though, is not all that is necessary to rectify structural issues. As a result, workingclass voters began to believe that the out-of-touch liberal elite was trying to tell them how to think instead of improving their living conditions. Trump catered to that resentment in his reelection campaign. But the voters didn’t elect Trump to remake American society in his backward vision: They wanted to lower the cost of living and believed his rhetoric on that issue.
Neither political party is equipped to meet the moment. Republicans are misreading their mandate and are pathologically obsessed with returning America to the 19th-century social order by any means necessary, while Democrats seem constitutionally unable to behave with urgency. The fundamental issues of our time ultimately stem from our mode of economic organization. Meanwhile, the GOP is cruelly undermining America’s modest social safety net. DeWine recently instructed the Ohio Department of Medicaid to institute work requirements, which would deprive 61,000 people of health insurance, and congressional Republicans are looking to pay for Trump’s tax cuts for the wealthy by cutting nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid. While DEI is a force for good, the progressivism from which DEI originates cannot make significant progress until it is willing to address the elephant in the room—rampant capitalism. Anthropologist Karl Polanyi was right to say that, in the development of capitalism, “human society had become an accessory of the economic system.” Without addressing the subordination of human life to the market, we may never fully address structures of oppression while slipping deeper into totalitarianism. The mission for opposition to the rise of totalitarianism must be to both resist it and offer a genuine alternative to its ruthless vision.
LTTE: Concerning the 11 indicted individuals and 1948
Thomas Kim Hill Contributing Writer
In 1952, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion offered Albert Einstein the presidency of the new State of Israel. The 11 individuals just indicted by Cleveland prosecutors should take note. Einstein rejected the offer, and we should recall his famous 1948 letter to the New York Times (NYT). Co-signed by about two dozen other prominent American Jews, the letter tied the creation of Ben-Gurion’s new nation to fascism.
Specifically, Einstein condemned future Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and his political party as “closely akin in its organization, meth-
ods, political philosophy and social appeal to the Nazi and Fascist parties.” Begin was leader of the notorious Irgun militia, which was responsible for perpetrating the Deir Yassin massacre where over 100 Palestinian villagers, who played no part in the resistance, were murdered. Deir Yassin was the primary example why the creation of the new Jewish state became known as the Palestinian Nakba (catastrophe in Arabic). Ultimately some 750,000 Palestinians were ethnically cleansed from Palestine. Aharon Zisling is less well-known than Einstein. He was Ben-Gurion’s minister of agriculture and served in Israel’s Knesset. In 1948, observing Deir Yassin and other atrocities committed by Jewish militias, Zisling stated on the record, but not well publicized at
the time, that he was shocked as “Now Jews too have behaved like Nazis.”
Today on the Case Western Reserve University campus, we can see that 1948 is but an eye-blink away in the vast millennia of history in the Holy Land. The Nakba and the creation of Israel provide a moral lens through which we must judge the shenanigans of the current CWRU administration, which supports Israel’s crimes and genocide in Gaza and enthusiastically endorses the prosecution of its own students.
As a footnote to this sordid history, we should never forget Hannah Arendt, one of the co-signers of Einstein’s 1948 NYT letter. Arendt went on to write “Eichmann in Jerusalem” in 1963 after attending the trial of this lieutenant to Adolf Hitler in Israel.
She coined the now famous phrase “banality of evil” to characterize Adolf Eichmann’s moral aloofness from the death camps which he did so much to organize. Like so many other complicit Germans, Eichmann refused to take any responsibility for the horrors of the Holocaust unfolding before their very eyes. After all, they did not actually participate, hands-on, in marching the Jewish victims into the ovens. Hannah Arendt was onto something, a lesson we should never have forgotten now in the 21st century. It’s fair to say that there’s a lot of banality of evil on the CWRU campus. The 11 indicted individuals are certainly not on the wrong side of history, as it will be written!
Thomas Kim Hill ‘73 MA Education
“Money, money, money must be funny in the rich man’s world”
Catherine Choi Staff Writer
With the development of stock markets and other forms of asset markets, putting most of one’s income in a savings account instead of investing became a foolish practice. With e-commerce and technology, it has become easier for people without a sturdy capital foundation to make a fortune. Additionally, new lucrative career paths, such as being a small business owner or content creator, opened up as well. On the other hand, it has become much easier for people to get into financial trouble with easily-acquired loans, intense exposure to advertisements, the development of social media and society’s distorted economic concepts. However, just because it is common does not mean it is okay.
A common habit to reevaluate is getting large loans for life purchases like tuition, cars and houses. People should attempt to stay within their means and secure as few loans as possible. Although education is valuable and can potentially change one’s life, attending a school that is not affordable or worth the tuition is not an ideal decision. When choosing a degree, people should keep the career path they will take to pay off their loans in mind before they start getting in the way of life. Student loans have a high interest rate and take a long time to pay off. Even if one files for bankruptcy, student loans will remain unless approved to be completely discharged. If these loans are not paid on time, it could lead to legal action, credit score damage, financial instability and, in the case one had their parents co-sign a loan, can negatively affect their family’s financial standing.
The same applies to car payments. Although a car is a necessity in the United States, rather than a luxury
like in other countries, one should not be heading to the dealer the moment after they get their driver’s license. Novice and student drivers should not get extravagant cars since the insurance payment tends to be higher due to the increased risk of accidents and recurring costs. People should also refrain from viewing cars as a status symbol and instead get a car where the monthly payment is affordable. People can think that the car payment is bearable when they initially buy the car, only to realize that they disregarded the additional fees (such as maintenance, depreciation,
gas, taxes, interest, payments, parking and insurance) that accompany car ownership. Also, depending on the neighborhood’s safety, if a person lives in an area where public transportation is well developed and is safe to get around, they should use the public transportation system rather than chastise it. Public transportation is convenient, cost-effective and environmentally friendly, and we should not be getting ourselves into unbearable debt when we don’t necessarily need a car to get to where we want.
In the United States, people move out once they’re adults, and they sel-
dom move back even after they graduate. Instead, people live alone or with a roommate in an apartment or buy a house with a high mortgage. Our society tends to view adults who live with their parents as poor or immature. However, there are benefits to living with parents that outweigh the potential shame that accompanies it. By living with their families, people can often save on rent and living costs while living in better conditions than some one-bedroom apartments can offer. This can allow them to save funds to eventually go to a down payment while staying closely in touch with their family. For people planning to get a house without a high down payment, living in an apartment can be beneficial to avoid annual property tax and spending money and time on maintenance. It also allows people to move to different places freely. Home mortgages have a high interest rate. Without a high down payment, it may take more than a decade to pay the loan off.
Another thing that should not be normalized is overspending. People should closely consider what they spend their hard-earned money on. We are influenced and affected by our surroundings more than we think, creating a trap many people fall into. We get easily persuaded into thinking we need a product that we didn’t know existed before viewing a subtle celebrity endorsement, forgetting to recognize that they received the product for free and get paid as a part of their job. We often perceive having extravagant things such as luxury products, cars, hobbies, vacations and houses proves that we are successful. However, having or not having something does not define you.
People who do not have someone to guide them financially are more prone to financial problems than others. It is important to remember that just because something is commonly done does not mean it is justified.
More than a fast: What Ramadan teaches us all
Eid is soon. In the next couple of days, families from all around the globe will gather to break their fast for the last time, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. As dates and desserts decorate the table, the sound of sheikhs reciting the Takbir al-Tashreeq rings in the background. It’s an exciting time for Muslims. However, it doesn’t have to be an exciting time for Muslims alone. Islam has been around for 1400 years, dating back to the time of Prophet Muhammad around 610 CE, making it almost as old as Christianity and Judaism. However, Islam is much more misunderstood. As a result, your average American may not know much about this holy month. This is a shame because the lessons that guide Muslims through Ramadan provide a lens the rest of the world should consider peering through.
So what is Ramadan? Aside from an excuse to stay out past midnight drinking chai after taraweeh, Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic Hijri calendar. This is a lunar calendar that is used to determine the date of Islamic holidays and rituals. Ramadan is considered the holiest month of them all because it’s the month where the first verses of the Qur’an were revealed to Prophet
Muhammad. Muslims believe that for these 30 days, the gates of Heaven are open and the gates of Hell closed. Blessings and mercy from God are multiplied, particularly on Laylat al-Qadr (the Night of Power), the night the Qur’an was revealed. To make the most of these blessings, it’s also a time where Muslims strive to be on their best behavior.
The most common thing people know about Ramadan is that it requires fasting. This means no food or water (yes, not even water) from dawn until sunset. At its essence, fasting is a test of self-discipline. It teaches us to overcome our physical desires and habits to focus our attention on spiritually. The long hours of thirst and hunger turn into gratitude for the things usually taken for granted, encouraging us to be mindful of those who don’t have a choice in experiencing hunger and thirst. Thus, fasting allows us to recenter ourselves, remembering who we are in relation to our morals and duties to society.
Despite the countless lessons that can be drawn from a month of fasting, the world is still rather resistant to understanding Ramadan. A large contributing factor is that recent historical events have distorted the way society views Muslims. The most infamous is the SeptemberSept. 11th attack on the Twin Towers in New York City orchestrated by the terrorist
group Al-Qaeda. Almost 3,000 people died that day, leaving the world angry and grieving. Unfortunately, the target of society’s anger became Muslims. Soon after 9/11, The U.S. government marked people of Middle Eastern, South Asian and Arab descent as national security threats and targeted their communities for mass surveillance. This coupled with the rise of ISIS and selective framing of global conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Palestine bolstered Islamophobic and xenophobic narratives for the rest of the world to run with.
If we took a moment to move past these prejudices and stereotypes, we could use the lessons cultivated during Ramadan to better ourselves for the sake of others. A really big part of Ramadan is charity. Fasting opens our eyes to the reality of hunger, one that millions face every day without the promise of iftar at sunset. That’s why Muslims are encouraged to give throughout the month, whether through zakat (obligatory charity) or sadaqah (voluntary giving), to help uplift those in need. My friend Zhuldyz, observed her first Ramadan last year, let alone doing so across three countries. From professors in Ireland accommodating her needs to breaking her fast at an iftar with the very students she goes to school with, she found that charity and community transcend borders. At its heart, that’s
what Ramadan is all about, showing up for one another with kindness, humility and care. And that’s something the world could use a little more of. Ramadan also invites us to reflect on what lies beyond our immediate surroundings. As families gather for Eid celebrations, others in places like Gaza and South Sudan are struggling to find safety, clean water or even a meal to break their fast. The month teaches us to see their suffering not as distant tragedies, but as shared human experiences that call for our attention and action. Fasting nurtures empathy, and charity encourages responsibility, reminding us that our gratitude should be matched with compassion. In this way, Ramadan helps us contextualize global crises through a lens of solidarity, urging us to respond not with apathy, but with purpose. So as the crescent moon signals the close of this sacred month, we’re left with more than just the memories of nightly prayers and shared meals. We’re left with a blueprint for how to live with intention, empathy and care. Ramadan may be coming to an end, but its values don’t need to. Whether you fasted or not, whether you’re Muslim or not, the spirit of this month offers something for everyone: a chance to slow down, look outward and lead with compassion in a world that desperately needs it.
Salsabeel Salem Staff Writer
Lucas Yang/The Observer
“I need background noise”
How the streaming industry has started to fail
Editorial Board
Even Case Western Reserve University students need to take a break from the academic grind every once in a while. This break likely includes a date with an array of snacks and the latest TV show everyone’s talking about. Today, instead of television networks, though, most students have turned to streaming. The advent of streaming services was originally marketed as a way to provide users more control over what they decide to watch while saving a bit of money. Recently, though, the sheer multitude of services and their low-quality content has been stealing the benefit of this independence.
Now more than ever, streaming companies have to contend with other high dopamine distractions like social media. As a result, there has been a clear decline in shows as an art form in many ways. More and more series are being fashioned into comfortable background noise to accompany other tasks. Admittedly, it has become hard for many of us to sit in the silence of our own thoughts as we constantly search for some kind of stimulation. We want to half-watch a show while we read, study, do laundry and even scroll on our phones. Viewers complain about plots being far too hard to follow, yet when asked if they were paying attention, they admit that they were in the middle of doing their chores as the TV blared in the background. It’s no surprise then that companies have noticed and adjusted for this increased need to multitask.
Shows fashioned as easily digestible, background noise can be spotted within seconds. Their budget is usually relatively modest, they probably include a couple content creators or actors who rose to a recent fame through a decent Netflix original (think Drew Starkey or Simone Ashley), and most telling, their scripts are absolutely atrocious. From Amazon Prime Video’s original “Picture This” (allegedly
Amazon Prime Video’s No. 9-rated show in the U.S. at the time of writing this) to Netflix’s “The Kissing Booth,” it is clear that these shows cater to an audience who has grown a dependence on their phones and find it difficult to focus on the other screen in front of them. There’s nothing wrong with a cheesy show, but when it’s trite, unenjoyable and sounds like it was written by a machine, that is when things start to become questionable.
The rise of these shows comes as no surprise seeing as creatives have been severely undervalued for their work for a long time now. In 2023, the Writers Guild of America launched a labor dispute against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, claiming that they were not being fairly compensated by big corporations. This dispute came alongside the American actors’ union SAG-AFTRA strike and ultimately resulted in the loss of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars. One major concern brought up during the time concerned the use of artificial intelligence and the staffing cuts in the entertainment industry due to the rise in AI-generated content. Exacerbating the issue, both strikes came after the COVID-19 pandemic when most industries—especially the creative ones—took a hit. Shows were put on hold, and actors and writers found themselves out of jobs and without ways to support themselves. All in all, the situation exposed how undervalued creatives are compared to more quantitative and scientific jobs despite the artistic value that writers and actors add to society.
Adding to the mistreatment of creatives, streaming services have made a habit of cancelling shows that are not immediately popular. Paradoxically, many consumers have come to expect this behavior, choosing to withhold from watching a show because they’re unsure if there will ever be a continuation or if it will perpetually end on a cliffhanger. On the other hand, if a show that does not end on a cliffhanger proves to be more popular
than expected, it is common for a second season to be made, leading to underwhelming character expansions and empty plotlines. As companies become more selfassured that the safest option is to continue recycling the same plots that they have used before countless times or renewing shows long past their expiration date, they end up ignoring countless opportunities to take chances on new, diverse stories. This is yet another way these platforms foster a feeling of incompleteness in their creations. Although the rise of streaming
services hasn’t been entirely bad—a large amount of content is now easily accessible, and consumers can decide what and where they want to watch—the industry is increasingly becoming riddled with new problems they should be forced to contend with. When entertainment becomes almost solely focused on profit rather than genuinely charming, innovative and/or thoughtprovoking stories, it hurts the general public. We need to make sure that we continue to seek out creatives who are working hard to craft thoughtful media.
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Sports
Swimming and diving earn numerous AllAmerica honors at NCAA Championships
Abhishek Nambiar Staff Writer
Over the course of four days this past week, the Case Western Reserve University swimming and diving teams competed in the 2025 NCAA Championships. The Championships, which occurred in Greensboro, North Carolina, from March 19-22, saw the Spartans achieve numerous accolades, including—but are not limited to— dozens of All-America honors and several podium finishes. The CWRU men’s team earned its best finish at the championships in 27 years, and the women’s team achieved its fifth-best all-time finish.
Undoubtedly one of the most successful Spartans at the meet was fourth-year diver Abigail Wilkov. She achieved the national runnerup position in the 1-meter and 3-meter dive contests, with scores of 470.75 and 501.65, respectively. With these finishes, Wilkov became only the second-ever member of the CWRU women’s swimming and diving team to record two top-two finishes within the span of not just a championship, but also their career. In addition, the 1-meter board finish marked the best national finish by a Spartan since Lauren Preyss finished in second place in the 200-yard freestyle at the 2007 championships.
“My events went better than I could have ever imagined,” Wilkov said. “I never thought I would be the DIII national runner-up on either board.”
With the addition of these two runner-up positions at this year’s championships, Wilkov finished her collegiate career with six AllAmerica First Team selections, the third most in the history of the women’s swimming and diving program. In total, Wilkov achieved seven career All-America honors— tied for the ninth most in program history with fourth-year swimmer
Gabriella Chambers.
In addition to Wilkov and Chambers, all six other Spartans on the women’s team who competed at the Championships achieved AllAmerica honors. This group consists of fourth-years Angeli Paull, Kate Menzer and Simone Vale, third-years Claire Kozma and Eliza Dixon and second-year Maggie Rose Rook. Chambers, Paull, Menzer and Kozma all earned All-America Second Team honors with a 15th-place finish in the 400yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:25.75. Dixon and Vale earned their honors in the 200-yard freestyle relay with teammates Chambers and Kozma, finishing in 12th place with a time of 1:33.53. Rook swam in the timed finals of the 800-yard freestyle relay together
with Kozma, Paull and Chambers; the quartet combined for a 7:32.06 time and 14th-place finish, in addition to an All-America Second Team honor.
Similar successes were seen on the men’s team, with numerous swimmers achieving various accolades. Perhaps the most notable of these swimmers is fourth-year Peter Meng: Over the duration of the championships (and his very last collegiate event), Meng totaled four All-America honors—the most by any Spartan on the men’s team at the championships since Jon Gellin achieved five in 2002—in addition to breaking numerous school records.
“Surprisingly, I felt very calm going into my events this year,” Meng said. “I originally thought I’d be more emotional or overwhelmed since it was my last collegiate competition, but at the end of the day, this is something I’ve done countless times before. I was just motivated to give it everything I had one last time and leave it all in the pool.”
On the first day of the championships, Meng placed 16th in the consolation final of the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1:49.67; he broke his own school record in the event’s preliminary with a time of 1:48.71, breaking the time of 1:48.96 set at the 2024 UAA Championships. This finish was the best in the event for a Spartan since Guy Genin’s 16th-place finish in 1990—Meng was also the first Spartan to achieve an All-America honor in the event since Genin.
Subsequently, on day two, Meng would achieve a 15th-place finish in the 400-yard individual medley with a consolation final time of 3:57.45; after previously achieving an All-America honor in this event last year, Meng became the first Spartan to earn multiple such honors in the event, again joining the likes of Genin following his streak from 1989-1991. Come day three, Meng competed in the 800-yard
freestyle relay with his teammates third-years John Drumm and Mason Bencurik and fellow fourthyear Griffin Gushman. The group finished 15th in the event (6:42.91), earning All-America honors for all four. Meng picked up his fifth career All-America honor, Drumm earned his third career All-America selection (and second of the championship), while Bencurik and Gushman achieved such honors for the first time in their collegiate careers.
On the final day, Meng recorded a ninth-place, 15:40.90 finish in the timed final of the 1650-yard freestyle. This finish gave him an All-America Second Team honor, his second consecutive one after a 14th-place finish last season. Yet again, Meng set school records, becoming the second-ever Spartan on the men’s team to earn multiple All-America honors in this event and achieving the best ever finish for CWRU in this event since Steve Pohnert’s seventh-place finish in 1992. With six All-America honors to his name by the end of the championships, Meng achieved the sixth most such honors in the history of the men’s swimming program.
With the championships marking the end of his collegiate career, Meng and Wilkov reflected on their journeys and the support that helped make them possible.
“It’s an honor to have been a part of this sport for so long, and it feels like an amazing way to cap off such a long journey,” Meng stated. “I couldn’t have come this far without the support of my family, friends, and the incredible coaches I’ve had throughout my career.”
Like Meng, Wilkov shared her success with her teammates and coaches.
“I am beyond grateful to my teammates, coaches and the CWRU Athletics community for my experiences over the past 4 years. None of my accomplishments could have been possible without them,” she said.
With two NCAA runner-up trophies, fourth-year Abigail Wilkov becomes just the second athlete in CWRU women’s swimming and diving history to achieve multiple top-two finishes in her career. Courtesy of Tim Phillis/CWRU Athletics
Fourth-year Peter Meng powers through the 1650-meter freestyle at the NCAA National Championship. With four All-America honors in his career, he holds the most of any CWRU men’s swimming and diving athlete since 2002. Courtesy of Tim Phillis/CWRU Athletics
Women’s tennis falls 6-2 after threemeet weekend
Darcy Chew Sports Editor
Going into this past weekend’s three meets, the No. 15-ranked Case Western Reserve University’s women’s tennis team was undefeated 5-0 after sweeping all five of their opponents with 7-0 victories. However, the team suffered a slight setback this weekend in Newport News, Virginia. Up against three nationally ranked teams—No. 17-ranked Christopher Newport University, No. 30-ranked New York University and No. 6-ranked Johns Hopkins University—the Spartans had a challenging weekend where they ultimately fell 6-2 overall.
The squad’s first meet was against No. 17-ranked Christopher Newport where the Spartans extended their win streak to six after the Captains were defeated 5-2. CWRU secured the doubles point with fourth-year Anna Kan and third-year Elsa Syed winning the first contest of the day at second doubles 6-4 and third-years Asha Shukla and Ellior Rose defeating their Christopher Newport opponents 6-3 at third doubles. The Spartans also won four of the six singles matches with wins from third-year Katalina Wang (6-1, 6-3), fourth-year Lily McCloskey (6-4, 7-6 (7-5)), second-year Katie Wong (5-7, 6-2, 6-3) and Syed (6-3, 0-6, 7-6 (7-2)).
On Saturday, the Spartans suffered their first loss of the season against UAA opponent NYU. The morning started off strong, with the Spartans clinching the doubles point after a close match between doubles pair McCloskey and Wang and Violets Isabella Hartman and Victoria Wang. The Spartans eventually triumphed over the Violets 7-3 in the tiebreaker set and secured the doubles point. The singles matches also remained close, with NYU taking the ultimate victory after the Violets secured wins in the first, second, third and sixth singles matches.
McCloskey, one of the captains of the team, reflects on the matches played this weekend and comments on the thrilling doubles match with NYU.
“My favorite doubles match that we played was against NYU.
In tennis, you have three doubles matches, and you have to win two out of three to get a doubles point. Kat and I were the last match on, and we were down several games where we were very close to losing the match. It’s easy to get really discouraged and just be like, ‘Oh, I’m not playing well today.’ We were able to fight back and ended up winning that match and the doubles point for the team, which was super exciting,” she said.
Another close match for the McCloskey and Wang pair came the following day, when the Spartans faced off against Johns Hopkins. The Spartans were once again able to clinch the doubles point after two close tiebreaker sets. McCloskey and Wang won first doubles 7-6 (9-7), and Kan and Syed won second doubles 7-6 (7-5). With the victory, McCloskey notched her 74th career double win and currently is two under Nithya Kanagasegar for the program record.
McCloskey had previously played doubles with former Spartan Hannah Kassaie, a top-nine finalist for the 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year and the most decorated player in CWRU women’s tennis history. McCloskey talked about how she transitioned from being doubles partners with Kassaie to Wang.
“[Hannah Kassaie] was such a big part of the team. She was such a leader by example and really showed us how to work hard and just bring all that fight to every match. I definitely enjoyed playing with her and being friends with her outside of everything, but a lot of it is transferring the skills that I learned over these past three years and taking that same mindset into playing with someone new,” she commented. “I play with [Katalina Wang] now. We’re all really good friends outside of tennis too, so that helps. It’s a lot of taking that positivity and energy that Hannah always showed … Kat and I are able to do the same thing where we just try to have fun with every match, and that helps us play.”
As one of the captains, McCloskey has been really proud of the team and their performance.
“Reflecting on the season so far, I’d say it’s been a lot of fun. We’ve been performing pretty well, too. It’s been really great to see. We
lost about half the team last year to graduating seniors. It was nice to see us bounce back and be able to rebuild. It has been really great. We were undefeated up until this past weekend. Even this past weekend, we played some really great matches, and everyone’s been
working hard, so it’s great to see it all,” she said.
This coming weekend, the Spartans have another three meets where they will be facing off against No. 20-ranked Kenyon College, Ohio Northern University and No. 21-ranked Bowdoin College.
Letter to my younger self: Reflections of a CWRU student athlete
Maggie Storti Contributing Writer
Dear younger me,
Right now you may be wondering why everything is happening the way it is right now. I know it has caused confusion, anger, frustration and many other emotions that one cannot describe. I know at this moment you don’t believe it, but I want you to know that everything truly does happen for a reason.
I know you have your heart set on a different school, different major, different soccer experience, etc., but I’ll tell you that everything will play out and that Case Western Reserve University is the place where
you are meant to be.
You have always had your life planned out. Even down to the second. But I want to give you a fair warning that things don’t always go as planned. There will be many bumps in the road, but all of it will prepare you for the amazing life and career set out for you. They will only make you stronger, kinder, more empathetic and compassionate.
During your time as a person and soccer player at CWRU, you will achieve so much more than you ever thought possible. Winning the program’s first conference title, playing in every game of your college career, to even playing in the National Championship. But beyond the awards and titles, you will meet
some of the most amazing people, make memories that will last forever and grow into the person you are now. Being a student athlete here has also set you up for so much success outside of the classroom that you would have never imagined. Getting a world-class education that will help you in your career in medicine was something 2-year-old us only dreamt about.
Even with all the twists and turns, ups and downs, we have always figured it out. And I know as much as anyone we hate talking about ourselves and never really accept compliments of any kind, but please take this one I am about to give. Younger Maggie, I am so proud of you. No matter how many
times you’ve been knocked down, you’ve gotten right back up. You have put yourself out there, stood up for what you believed in and never let anyone put you down. You have been through some of the lowest of lows, and I want you to know that all that hard work, all of that perseverance, will lead you to some of the highest of highs in the near future.
In the end, just keep being you and it will all work out, even if you believe otherwise. These four (actually five) years at CWRU will go by faster than you think, so please don’t forget to take in every moment. Remember, life isn’t about the destination. It is about the journey.
Fourth-year Lily McCloskey hit 74 career doubles wins this past weekend, putting her just three wins away from setting a new school record. Courtesy of Tim Phillis/CWRU Athletics
Third-year Elsa Syed and her doubles partner fourth-year Anna Kan dominated in their matches against Christopher Newport, NYU and Johns Hopkins this past weekend. Courtesy of Tim Phillis/CWRU Athletics
Softball starts conference play 1-2 against No. 25-ranked WashU Bears
On March 21 and 22, the No. 8-ranked Case Western Reserve University softball team took on No. 25-ranked Washington University in St. Louis in their first round of UAA play. The Spartans played three games, falling short in two of the three.
Coming off a spring break road trip through California, the Spartans played eight games against six different opponents, finishing the week with a 4-4 record. They opened the trip with a thrilling 5-4 win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps before narrowly dropping the second game of the doubleheader 4-5. CWRU also picked up wins over Bethel University (6-3), Haverford (12-5) and Whittier (3-1). The Spartans came up short against ninthranked Redlands University in both matchups (6-8, 2-10) and fell to Illinois Wesleyan 2-4.
Despite the mixed results on the West Coast, CWRU made a national statement earlier in the season. In their opening stretch, the Spartans defeated four top-six ranked teams: No. 1 East Texas Baptist (6-5), No. 2 Linfield (2-1), No. 5 Belhaven (1513) and No. 6 Tufts (6-4). These high-profile victories catapulted CWRU into the national conversation and solidified them as a team to watch this season.
In the first inning of the Spartans’ conference opener fourthyear pitcher Lexi Miskey navigated early trouble. With one out and the bases loaded following 2 singles and a walk, Miskey responded with back-to-back strikeouts to escape the jam and keep the game at 0-0.
CWRU capitalized in the top of the second, as fourth-year catcher Katelyn Lamm drove in third-year infielder Elizabeth Berry with a double to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead.
WashU answered quickly in the bottom half of the inning, taking a 2-1 lead on a two-run homer. After CWRU stranded runners in scoring position in both the third and fourth innings, the Bears struck again with an RBI double, extending the lead to 3-1.
The Spartans narrowed the gap but were unable to complete the comeback, ultimately falling 3-2 in their first conference loss of the season.
The Spartans came out ready on Saturday, eager to bounce back against the Bears. After WashU left two runners in scoring position in the second inning, CWRU took ad-
vantage in the third. Second-year infielder Karen Potts doubled with one out and was brought home by a clutch two-out single from graduate student infielder KaiLi Gross, giving the Spartans a 1-0 lead.
Miskey kept the momentum going, retiring eight straight batters to keep WashU off the bases until the fifth inning.
CWRU added crucial insurance runs in the top of the seventh. Second-year outfielder Alaina Steffes sparked the rally with a pinchhit single, followed by a walk from Potts. With 2 outs, Gross came through again with an RBI single, and Russo followed with a two-run double to extend the lead to 4-0.
Though the Bears mounted a late rally, the Spartans held on for a 4-1 victory, securing their first UAA win of the 2025 season.
The Spartans wrapped up their
weekend with a hard-fought 3-2 loss to WashU in the series finale. Both teams were scoreless through the first three innings, and CWRU’s best early chance was erased by a rare unassisted triple play in the fourth. WashU capitalized in the bottom half with an RBI single to take a 1-0 lead.
CWRU responded in the fifth, scoring two unearned runs on a wild pitch after a single by first-year outfielder Kate Coonan, an error, and a walk loaded the bases. The Spartans held the 2-1 edge until the seventh, when the Bears tied it on a groundout and sealed the win with a walk-off sacrifice fly.
Miskey went the distance, allowing 3 runs on 9 hits. The Spartans tallied 4 hits and 4 walks, with Potts drawing 2 free passes.
Weekend highlights for the Spartans included snapping a fourgame losing streak against WashU with Saturday’s win. Gross continued her hot streak, recording her fourth game with at least three hits this season and her 10th multi-hit performance of 2025. Potts extended her on-base streak to 13 straight games and has reached safely in 16 of the team’s 17 contests. She also leads the Spartans with 13 walks, six more than any other player on the roster.
The Spartans will take a break from conference play this weekend, hosting a pair of Ohio opponents at Mather Park for two non-conference doubleheaders. They’ll kick off the stretch with two games against Capital University on Thursday, March 27, beginning at 3 p.m. CWRU will return to UAA action the following weekend, traveling to face Emory University on April 4 and 5 in Atlanta.
Scores and Upcoming Games
Men’s Tennis
CWRU vs Washington and Lee (3/29)
CWRU vs Hobart (3/29)
CWRU vs WashU (3/30)
Women’s Tennis
CWRU at Christopher Newport (3/21)W 5-2
CWRU vs NYU (3/22) - L 3-4
CWRU vs Johns Hopkins (3/23) - L 2-5
CWRU vs Kenyon (3/28)
CWRU vs Ohio Northern (3/29)
CWRU vs Bowdoin (3/30)
Swimming and Diving
CWRU at NCAA Championships (3/19-22) Men’s team: 25th of 48 teams (31.0 points) Women’s team: 17th of 39 teams (54.0 points)
Softball
CWRU at WashU (3/21) - L 2-3
CWRU at WashU (3/22) - W 4-1
CWRU at WashU (3/22) - L 2-3
CWRU vs Capital (3/27, 3 p.m., Mather Park)
CWRU vs Capital (3/27, 5 p.m., Mather Park)
CWRU vs Denison (3/30, 1 p.m., Mather Park)
CWRU vs Denison (3/30, 3 p.m., Mather Park)
Baseball
CWRU at John Carroll (3/23) - L 3-4
CWRU at John Carroll (3/23) - W 4-1
CWRU at Kent State (3/25) - L 7-14
CWRU at WashU (3/28-30)
Track and Field
W&L Track Carnival (3/21-22)no team scoring
CWRU at WashU Distance Carnival (3/27-28)
CWRU at Bob Kahn Invite (3/28-29)
Ellie Palaian Copy Editor
Fourth-year catcher Katelyn Lamm bats three hits across CWRU’s three games with WashU, contributing to their 4-1 victory in the second game. Tara Fritscher/CWRU Athletics