Second-year Nutrition and Behavioral Health student Jada Aurellia Chaplin won the general Associated Students of Central Washington University (ASCWU) presidential election, as confirmed by the final election results released on Monday.
Aurellia Chaplin sat down to speak with The Observer about her primary missions, goals, plans and reflections from her campaign now that her position as ASCWU President has been secured. The following is a Q&A, edited for length and clarity.
Q: Congrats on winning the election. First, I want to ask about your campaign. What were your biggest takeaways from the campaign? What have you learned from the voters who supported you?
A: One big takeaway [was] it helped me understand how to connect to my students. I noticed that even though tabling can sometimes feel embarrassing for yourself or putting yourself out there, it’s honestly worth it, because that’s how you get the engagement. That’s how you understand people from the ground level, rather than just waiting for them to meet with you. So it’s really just being where the students are is what I really took away.
Q: What are your “day one” issues you want to address as ASCWU President? What can students expect to see first?
JADA AURELLIA CHAPLIN JADA AURELLIA CHAPLIN
A: Yeah, so the first thing is over the summer, I’ll be working with my next BOD [Board of Directors] coming in, but first and foremost is setting expectations and boundaries with those people. I feel like we all need to have expectations for ourselves, and once we start that, we can be transparent for our students. I talked about building the bridge and being communicative, and that is something I’m working on. That is something that is a really big goal of mine.
The next thing is also building relationships with directors, if that’s going from rec to dining services, to health and promotion, and even my higher-ups I do need to speak to. It’s really just building those relationships first and that communication bridge, so we could start on a good level, and then I could start doing a lot of amazing things after that.
Q: Hondo Acosta-Vega, your predecessor, has maintained that ASCWU will have a neutral stance on matters concerning the faculty vote of no confidence in the university president. Do you see that stance continuing under your leadership?
A: Yes, being able to stay grounded and being neutral on things is the best, so we can understand stories. Biases cause a lot of conflict and issues, so I’d rather stay neutral on things for the better of my students
Q: What do you think you bring to the role that is unique to you? What can students expect to see being done differently?
A: What’s unique to me is my empathy. I’m a very empathetic person, so no matter what
you’ve done to me or others or who you are as a person, I will love you for who you are and your flaws, no matter what it is, and that’s something unique to me. That’s something I’ve grown [up] with and something that I’ve always had, and now it’s my opportunity to share my heart to the students, so I’m very excited to just love and respect everyone.
Q: You said in a previous Q&A that your “main mission is to make a healthy, loving campus.” Now that you have the role secured, what will your process look like for keeping true on that mission?
A: It’s really just connecting and supporting my Student Life Director. She will be doing amazing things, especially with advisory committees and making connections with directors. I will be supporting her on those things that she needs, but even in my own role is creating those relationships so we can start having those difficult conversations. If that’s creating another advisory committee for specifically health, or if it’s just having more opportunities for our students, or just more communication. It’s really starting on those priorities first.
Gabriel Genzel
READ ONLINE
Bythestudents,forthestudents
’Everyone’s A Star’ Album Review
Wildcats talk leadership with “Songbird of the South” Melany Peterson
Nora Wendl retells
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I was disheartened to see criticism directed towards the Observer in a listening session conducted by the Board of Trustees on May 4, 2026.
I have taught at CWU for 12 years. I enthusiastically read every print issue of the Observer. I legitimately look forward to Thursdays. Sometimes I have agreed with the coverage of controversial topics. Sometimes I have disagreed with the same. At all times I have appreciated the care, professionalism, and discretion with which our student newspaper has treated such sensitive issues.
Every student whom I have heard speak of their time with the Observer has described it as a transformational experience. The Observer has won numerous awards for its coverage of campus issues. That coverage should not be artificially curated to be more positive or celebratory. The Observer prides itself on being “by the students, for the students.” It continues to do a fantastic job reporting on issues that affect the students.
A free and independent press is essential to a healthy, functional democracy. This is especially true on a college campus, where our student journalists grow in their competence and confidence. Across the country student newspapers have reported on policy issues, educational issues, wars, social policies, and the panoply of issues that affect the 21st century student. To the extent we hope that journalists of tomorrow challenge hierarchies of power and the status quo, so must we celebrate the student journalists of today who are doing the same. This is where they learn to be thoughtful, accurate, and brave.
The CWU Board of Trustees have rightfully identified our students as our “north star.” I enthusiastically agree. I count the CWU Observer as a brilliant point of light among the luminous constellation of CWU students.
Students and Faculty alike have faced “sweltering” heat in Farrell Hall, which is scheduled to be demolished this summer. Temporary air conditioning (AC) units have been brought in to cool the building, but inclassroom heat has forced some professors to react.
Barbara Ann Rieffer-Flanagan, a professor of Political Science and associate chair, had her class moved out of the building following the increase in temperature. “It was over, at least, 82 degrees registering. It was sweltering, and the students were incredibly uncomfortable and frustrated with the situation,” Rieffer-Flanagan said. “One student in one of my classes sort of mentioned, ‘Is there any way to switch classrooms, or anything along those lines?’ And I said I would look into it.”
So Rieffer-Flanagan did, and for the past two weeks her class has been hosted in Dean Hall. “It was just not a good environment for student learning,” Rieffer-Flanagan continued. “I took the next steps to move the class for the rest of the quarter to Dean Hall, so that's where I will be, and hopefully that helps the students do better in class or not melt.”
Following the increase in temperature, temporary AC units have been placed around the main walkways of the building, but Farrell Hall’s main AC system has been shut down since the beginning of the quarter.
According to David Leder, associate director of strategic communications, the reason for the lack of building-wide AC is that the Facilities Management Department (FMD) “evaluated the cost benefit of doing an expensive repair of the mechanical cooling system in Farrell Hall versus the length of use, and they determined that it would be cost prohibitive to make a significant investment in an end-of-life system scheduled for demolition in less than two months. The temporary AC units are intended to alleviate some of the discomfort until all occupants of Farrell are relocated by the end of June.”
This situation in Farrell comes at the same time that Mitchell Hall was closed following a roof leak that resulted in flooding and water damage on both the first and second floors.
According to Leder, staff were temporarily relocated for safety. "We are currently assessing the extent of the repairs needed and evaluating whether long-term relocation will be required for the departments previously housed in Mitchell Hall," Leder told The Observer in an email. "Campus updates will be shared as more information becomes available and the situation progresses."
Faculty and Students React to the Heat
Since the heat began to build in Farrell Hall, multiple denizens have stated that they have found it increasingly hard to deal with. Nuhamin Regassa, a second-year student majoring in Political Science,
STUDENTS AND FACULTY FACE HIGH HEAT IN FARRELL HALL
MITCHELL HALL CLOSED FOLLOWING ROOF LEAK
described the heat that had built up prior to a fire alarm going off in the building.
“Before the fire alarm had gone off, there was an intense amount of heat that was near suffocating. I even remember drinking an increased amount of water just to stay cool,” Regassa said. “I find that the school doesn't really support the Political Science department because we're small in number, but also just because we're to be moving to the NAC (North Academic Complex) soon, doesn't mean anyone could experience health-related issues due to the heat, like heat strokes, etc.”
R. Shaffer Claridge, senior lecturer of Law and Justice, said he has also been faced with the challenges presented by the building’s high temperatures.
“It's been hard. The rooms are pretty small, and we've got lots of students in them, so in addition to the heat from outside, heat generated by the lights in the projector, just this many bodies in a room makes it hard,” Claridge said. “I sweat every single class period. Mostly, though, it's the students who report being unable to focus and really feeling pretty miserable.”
Claridge added that he does think steps are being taken to make things easier on students and that he was grateful for the portable cooling devices provided, but they also are “pretty loud and disruptive” themselves.
“I think everybody's doing the best that they can. It also is just kind of a sad way for the building to go out,” Claridge said. “I've taught here my entire career. I don't know exactly how long the Law and Justice Department has been here, but it's been, I would guess, 20-plus years. It's being torn down. We have a beautiful new facility, but I think we'd all looked forward to one last hurrah in this building, and it's kind of sad that this is the end of it.”
Another Political Science major, Alina Lombardo, a third-year student, described how the heat affected their classes this quarter, with half of them having been moved out of the building.
“At the start of the quarter all four of my classes were in Farrell Hall and two of them had to be moved due to complaints and exhaustion,” Lombardo said in an email exchange with The Observer. “Everyone has complained and is unhappy with Facilities not turning on the AC, just because Farrell is being torn down is not a reason enough. So many clubs, and classes, and professors, and PEOPLE are in Farrell for several hours every day and this lack of regard for students and staff (who are the "north star" of the BoT, remember) is embarrassing, at least to me.”
ON PAGE 4
Farrell Hall on a sunny day. (Photo by Brandon Mattesich)
STUDENTS AND FACULTY FACE HIGH HEAT IN FARRELL HALL (CONT.)
Lombardo also explained that although the fans in the building have cooled things down “a bit,” they have also created new problems. “Several of my friends (as well as myself) have complained about the noises caused by the fans, which can be distracting for classes, as well as a sense of ‘wet air’ caused by the fan on the first floor,” Lombardo said. “It's hard to describe, you'd have to go in and experience for yourself.”
Rieffer-Flanagan explained that other faculty in the building have also talked about how they have been forced to handle the heat, but that for her, there weren't that many options. “Other faculty members have talked about how hot it is teaching in this building as well, and one had sort of encouraged his students to dress lightly … but I was not going to ask my students to do that,” Rieffer-Flanagan said.
“One of my students is a Muslim woman and I would never, ever be like ‘you need to change your attire,’ which is key to [their] religious beliefs, because of the temperature in the building,” Rieffer-Flanagan said. “So my response was, just get me someplace else.”
Political Science major Logan Williamson was one of the students whose class got moved out of the building following the heat, and remembered the whole experience as disruptive.
“The heat prevented me from being able to properly pay attention and participate in class,” Williamson said. “I feel rather forgotten by the university. I understand that the building will be demolished, but it is still actively used and occupied by the Political Science and Law departments. By refusing to pay for maintenance and air conditioning this quarter, it demonstrates to the student body that the University prioritizes profits over its students.”
“Additionally, my professor having to make the decision to move to Dean Hall has disrupted my and many of my friends' abilities in class and attendance,” Williamson continued. “It is a very disappointing situation all around.”
Moe Alkhazraji, a Political Science major, said that while he does not have any personal problems with the heating, he thinks that CWU needs to do more to support its faculty. “If the school administration were worried about costs, which they should not be as I have seen with my own eyes the proposed legislative budget for CWU earlier this year, then they should perhaps cut back on handing out bonuses and salary increases to each other and instead use that money to provide proper working AC's for their elderly professors who have given years, including missed vacations, opportunities, family celebrations and gatherings, etc, in order to be good servants and teachers to their students,” Alkhazraji said.
Lombardo argued that the burden of change should not be put on the students of the university regarding things like the heating situation in Farrell Hall. “It should not be upon us complaining for something to happen,” Lombardo said. “The university should've seen that there are still classes and events occurring in Farrell, and either made everyone not have classes in Farrell and start moving into the NAC, or kept the AC on until people moved out of their rooms and offices.”
Farrell Heat Mentioned at Faculty Senate Meeting
Trye Price, assistant professor of Law and Justice and a faculty senator, spoke at a Faculty Senate meeting on May 6 about the heat, stating that all he’s seen is that temporary AC units were put into the building.
“Obviously, big problems with this,” Price said at the meeting. “The only response we've gotten so far through the day, literally this week [May 6], is we've had air conditioning units being industrial ones, and [we] saw the fans. But that doesn't address overall cooling, we're having open windows, which results in distracting noises, and for people like me that have really severe allergies, my doctor is actually impressed with my numbers and how bad it is.”
“This is just not okay,” Price continued. “It's a health detriment. It's uncomfortable, and a big issue is the lack of communication, because if this would have been told to us, let's say, last fall, when it looks like there were some decisions made above us or whatever, we could have made some alterations to classroom location. We could have given our students updates and notifications, and especially for those who need air conditioning for health reasons, allergies and such.”
Faculty Senate Executive Committee (FSEC) Chair Natashia Lindsey expanded on what she’s heard from the university following a request for comment from The Observer. “It is my understanding that the Registrar
has identified classrooms across the university, across campus, and should be interacting with those faculty so that they can move their classrooms,” Lindsey said. “I asked for clarity around what's happening with the staff around that building and did not really get an answer there.”
Story Contributions by Parker Wood.
BECOME
A MOVERS & SHAKERS VOLUNTEER TO HELP NEW STUDENTS MOVE-IN
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17 AND FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2026
2-HOUR VOLUNTEER SHIFTS FROM 8:00 A.M. TO 4:00 P.M.
Housing and Residence
A portable AC unit on the fourth floor of Farrell Hall.
(Photo by Brandon Mattesich)
Giving Track and Field
The current CWU Track and Field (T&F) team is one of the most accomplished in the school’s history. Among the 88 athletes and seven coaches that accompany the team, 14 school records and five Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) records are held. The men’s team holds five school records, while the women’s team holds nine school records and all five GNAC records.
Junior Josh Boast holds one of the school records with 51.45 seconds at the 400-meter hurdle competition. Boast was a local to Ellensburg and even ran track and field at Ellensburg High School. His name being in the history books seemed untouchable.
“As an Ellensburg alumni, I’ve thought about the idea of being in the record books for CWU,” Boast said. “But I didn’t really think I could do something this special so it does really mean a lot for me.”
Boast spoke on his history and experience with one of his teammates, Freshman Colton Magruder. “Me and Colton go way back to our high school track days. We actually were on the same 4x100 in high school my senior year and we ended up placing 5th in the 2A championship race,” Boast said. “I think it’s pretty cool that me and him are able to represent Ellensburg at such a high level … we are already just so familiar with each other it leads to such a good connection of trust between each other.”
Klein and Calhoon have all placed top 10 in the school’s 100-meter hurdle history in the last year, with Klein coming 0.10 seconds behind the record.
“It keeps me on my toes,” Brown said about his teammates. “It keeps pushing me to strive for greatness and allowing me to not be relaxed in my practice or my career. It keeps me pushing so that way, I can go beat those guys and shove it in their faces a bit.”
Brown had a chance to play with Boast and, like Boast, competed with Correa in 2025’s 4x400 relay team. “Those are my guys, those are my best friends,” Brown said. “I go to war with those guys, so it’s nice when we all get to come together and for a common cause: to try to beat a record together … (Johan’s) that guy.”
Being just a sophomore, Brown still has some years left in his collegiate career. Brown currently has his eye on his teammate’s record in the 400-meter hurdle. “I’m gonna try to come for Josh Boast’s record in the 400-meter hurdles, because I’m gonna try and buff it down and give him a run for his money.”
When reflecting on his collegiate career so far, Brown had one word: “Unfinished.” Brown went on to elaborate, “Job’s not finished yet. I’m excited to keep striving for greatness and be the best I could be, the best teammate I could be, so we can all come together and get that team title.”
Magruder holds his own record at CWU, as he set the Men’s 100-meter record earlier this year with a time of 10.35 seconds.
Both Magruder and Boast are members of the men’s CWU 4x100 relay team, along with Sophomore Ian Calhoon and Junior Chase Perez, who own the respective record with a time of 40.76 seconds. Boast has been on the 4x100 relay team his entire time at Central, allowing him the opportunity to work with other athletes that hold records, such as Senior Drew Klein who holds the school’s Pole Vault record and alumni Johan Correa who still holds CWU’s 800-meter, 1500, 1 Mile and 5000 sprint records.
Boast reflected on his time competing with Correa and Klein, stating that “competing with so many of these great athletes is truly a blessing.”
“My freshman year, I found myself looking up to people like Johan and Drew because they worked so hard and were so passionate about the sport,” Boast continued.
The record books aren’t always on the mind for the junior sprinter, as his interview with The Observer was his first time hearing he was 0.67 seconds away from breaking the school’s 400-meter dash record. “In all honesty, I never really realized how close I was to the record,” Boast said.
Among the many athletes Boast mentioned was Sophomore Boogy Brown, who holds his own record for the T&F team. Brown holds CWU’s 110-meter hurdle record with a time of 14.15 seconds. Boast stated that the underclassman was “a great help for me this year” and named him among the athletes who were a blessing to compete with. “He’s been one of my top motivators in the weight room and at practice, always pushing me to be better,” Boast said.
Brown set the hurdle record early in his collegiate career, coming in as a freshman and breaking the record. Brown said setting the record so early in his career “feels good, but it just allows me to focus on my own race and just keep striving to beat the same record I have.”
The isn’t alone in his record, though, as the aforementioned Boast,
Boast and Brown were both asked if there was anyone on the team that they wanted to shout out.
Boast answered, “My shoutout has got to go to my team as a whole, I just am so thankful that I have a great support system of people who push me every day and make me a better athlete and friend and I wouldn’t be as decorated of an athlete if my coach didn’t trust me to do the things I do so I have to give Coach Hill, Coach Parker and Coach Fickle a shoutout as well.”
Brown responded with “I feel like all of them get a good hand of life. Every time you do something good, coaches right there, expressing this to the whole team.”
The current men’s team isn’t the only CWU T&F team that holds top spots, as the women’s team holds four more school records and five GNAC records.
The aforementioned Hopper is currently at the top of CWU’s 400-meter dash and is a member of both the 4x100 relay and 4x400 relay teams. She won school records for both teams. Hopper joins Zoe Gonzalez, E’lexis Hollis and Ashlyn Nielsen for the 4x100 team who hold the top spot the school record in 2025, and holds the GNAC record for the 4x100 event. The 4x400 relay team consists of Ellie Degroot, Carley Huber, Donna Marie Harris and finally Hopper who broke the CWU record this year.
One of the most decorated athletes CWU has to offer is Junior Emy Ntekpere. Ntekpere is one of two members of the CWU T&F to hold multiple individual records.
STUDENTS REACH FOR THE STARS DURING
ASTRO WEEK
Ethan Kennedy Scene Editor
FMeisner Dunlap Copy Editor
ollowing a now yearly tradition, the Astronomy Club at CWU once again hosted “Astro Week,” inviting students and community members to learn about the cosmos. Guests were invited to the Lydig Planetarium, located in Discovery Hall, for a chance to have an in-depth look into the night sky.
From May 11 to May 15, the Astronomy Club hosted six presentations, each managed by a presenter. Every show was tailored to different interests.
Hollie Wehmeyer, the Astronomy Club president, spoke on the importance of “Astro Week.”
“We’re trying to get our club out there a bit more, but we’re also trying to promote astronomy and interest in the cosmos. We want to get as many people involved as we can,” Wehmeyer said.
Each event held two raffles. One was for attendees, where any participating guests could receive a ticket and possibly win prizes. The other raffle
was a $1 donation raffle, with a winner chosen at the end of the week for an Astronomy Club hoodie and other prizes.
May
12:
A Cosmic Address
On May 12, Luisa Miller dove into our own solar system during her show, exploring our surrounding planets and the sun. At the end of the presentation, attendees were allowed to participate in choosing where to zoom the projector.
The Astronomy Club typically meets at the Lydig Planetarium on the first Monday of every month for a presentation and welcomes anyone interested, whether staff, student or community member.
May 13: Nebulas
Hosted by Jacob Osborn, the show included a deep dive into how nebulae are formed, why they take certain shapes and why they remain certain
colors. Osborn incorporated humor into his presentation, which kept the audience lively and attentive.
Osborn went on to describe various nebulae and their history, boasting a vast array of facts, and mentioning an unnamed nebula cluster and asking the audience for their input.
The Astronomy Club uses a Worldwide Telescope, along with six projectors and eight computers, to provide an all encompassing experience for all its guests.
ASTRO
TYLER SMITH PERFORMS “STARSTRUCK COMEDY” DURING ASTRO WEEK
Meisner Dunlap
Copy Editor
Comedian Tyler Smith’s 18plus comedy show called “Starstruck Stand-Up” started with the story of Zeus, the King of the Gods, who seduced Princess Alcmene. Later in the story, Hera, the God of Marriage and the Queen of the Gods, known for her envy, married Zeus. When Hera learned of Zeus’ infidelity with Alcmene,
Smith said she became furious with the hero of his comedy show, Hercules. “In her vengeful rage, [Hera] planned to thwart Hercules to ensure that his cousin Eurystheus of the same bloodline of Perseus would be before him,” Smith said. “Hera manipulated the birth by hastening his mother Nicippe’s labor, which is also messed up to Nicippe, just saying, that doesn’t sound very fun and she’s already going through labor in ancient roots.”
Smith performed his “Starstruck Stand-Up” on Friday, May 15, from 6-7 p.m. and from 7:15-8:15 p.m., as the final two Astro Week presentations taking place at the Lydig Planetarium. The CWU Astronomy Club started Astro Week in an attempt to recruit more students to join their organization.
of Hercules and the constellations named after the characters in that legend.
Astronomy Club President Hollie Wehmeyer counted a total of 34 attendees during the 6 p.m. show on Friday.
“Zeus wanted to make his son immortal and the way to do that was for Hercules to perish from the breast of the goddess. I also highlighted this work because breast is really fun to say,” Smith said during the show. “I’m going to make you all sit through that real fast.”
Then, Smith growled the word “breast” in what he referred to as his creepiest voice. This got a lot of laughs out of the audience.
Overall, Wehmeyer said she felt proud of how well the audience reacted to Smith’s comedy show. “Our Friday show, our first one, was super successful. We had a lot of people, a lot of laughs for our 18-plus comedy show,” Wehmeyer said. “I think people, for the most part, thought the show was really funny. There’s a lot of good comedy in there.”
Another moment in which the audience laughed was when Smith “voluntold” Wehmeyer into pretending to be a fake deer. This exemplified one of the 12 labors that Eurystheus forced Hercules into completing.
While the first two labors involved killing beasts, namely the Nemean Lion and the Lernaean Hydra, the third labor involved chasing a sacred deer called the Ceryneian Hind.
An anonymous artist drew constellations for the Lion and the Hydra on the planetarium software called the Worldwide Telescope. Luisa Miller, who is an Astronomy Club officer, controlled the planetarium and placed the constellations into the heavens above the audience. These heavens serve as the ceiling of the room.
However, Miller did not have a constellation for the Hind at her disposal. So to demonstrate Hercules’ third labor, Smith chased Wehmeyer around the planetarium.
“Not all of the missions that Hercules was
sent on had representation among the constellations and so this was part of the comedy routine,” Astronomy Club Advisor Cassie Fallscheer said. “[Smith] asked [Wehmeyer] if she would volunteer for something, but he didn’t tell her what she was volunteering for. This, it turned out, was what she had volunteered herself for, to be chased around the planetarium twice.”
In addition to the lack of astronomical representation of the Hind, Miller faced another technological problem, as described by Fallscheer.
“In Tyler [Smith’s] stories, sometimes he had to use the same constellation for multiple beasts,” Fallscheer said. “He showed Taurus the Bull a couple of times. When he first started talking about it, he was talking about wrestling the boar, the pig, but he showed the bull Taurus for that beast as well. There were a couple of times where there wasn’t the character represented in the heavens. And so he had to go with what there was represented in the heavens and use that in his storyline a couple of times.”
HUES
CWU Students and Ellensburg community members took part in the annual Hues of Hope color run, a 5k event seeking to raise awareness for various causes represented by the various colors. The May 18 event was manned by volunteers and was open to anyone. The Observer’s Staff Photographer Orion Phillips was there to capture the event. These are their photos:
OF HOPE
SUDOKU
Fill in the puzzle so that every row across, every column down and every 3 by 3 box contains the numbers 1 to 9.
With unexceptional writing and a plot so romantically cliché you could see every “twist” from a mile away, the TV show adaptation of “Off-Campus” is everything it could have been.
Elle Kennedy is the author of the five-book series, “Off-Campus”. This series includes two spinoff series that together have seven books, “Briar U” and “Campus Diaries.” Kennedy is not known to be a profound author. Rather, her writing is one peg above the writing that is published on Wattpad. The words are simple and consist of telling rather than showing. Every plot is predictable and can perfectly fall into a simple cliche; for example, grumpy sunshine, enemies to lovers, etc.
In the first season of the tv adaptation of “Off-Campus,” which follows book one, “The
Deal,” the tropes can be tied down to miscommunication, third-act breakup, and fake dating. Every cringey dialogue and awkwardly written scene was transferred almost perfectly on screen, creating a perfect experience for those who have never read the book but want a similar experience.
Garrett Graham and Hannah Wells are the two main characters followed throughout the show. From the very beginning, they did not have any displays of healthy communication. Even the overall plot of fake dating started when Garrett pretended to be her boyfriend when he saw her struggling to talk to her crush, Justin Kohl. She did not have the chance to discuss it and agree until after the fact.
To further that lack of communication, Hannah didn’t communicate when a hockey player who had caused her trauma was playing against
Garrett in a game. Garrett also didn’t communicate the feelings he had regarding his dad, both with Hannah and his long-time friends, and even the side characters of the story lacked any communication with each other and the main characters.
This lack of communication caused a drawnout series with a rushed final episode. Not only did we have to see if the main couple would work it out in episode eight, but we also had to see if Hannah would win the showcase and continue to have the money to afford school, if Garrett would be allowed to play hockey again and if the second main couple could make it work.
Outside of the romance, the series explores the complex emotions that come with real world experiences. Hannah struggles to write lyrics to her music after being raped by a hockey player she knew in high school. This also impacts her ability to orgasm. She then asks Garrett to help her experience her first one around a man so she can feel comfortable with her crush. This is the beginning of the line between fake dating and real feelings being blurred.
Garrett is also going through his own complex emotions with his dad who is a popular NHL player being abusive towards his mom. It is also alluded to that he faces the abuse as well. He tries to give his dad a second chance at thanksgiving but quickly finds out that his dad is abusing his fiance.
All of this could have been far more enjoyable if the college-aged characters had any knowledge of communication, so that any other part of the plot could fully form and become resolved and/or explored earlier on. While this may add to a cliffhanger that leaves viewers anticipating the next season, there are still many other love stories to cover if they choose to make each season follow one book.
With that, the series was not bad by any means. It was cheesy and predictable, but an easy, comforting watch. Both in film and writing, this can be a guilty pleasure worthy of spending a short amount of time to complete.
Belmont Cameli as Garrett and Ella Bright as Hannah Off Campus (Photo courtesy of Prime Video)
Belmont Cameli and Ella Bright in Off Campus (Photo courtesy of Prime Video )
Jackson Lawler Columnist
Blizzard Entertainment’s first-person shooter video game “Overwatch” celebrates its 10th anniversary on May 24. As a long-time fan of the franchise, I’d argue that it is in the best state it’s ever been in, after years of decline. In just one year, the decade-long history of “Overwatch” has turned from a fall from grace into an incredible redemption.
When “Overwatch” was released back in May 2016, it was a massive hit and won The Game Award’s Game Of The Year award. Its success was largely due to its worldbuilding, namely its incredibly diverse cast of playable heroes filled to the brim with personality, hailing from every corner of the world and beyond. These stories were often told through beautifully animated short films known as “cinematics” that expanded on the lore and drew audiences in.
By far the most popular of these cinematics is “Dragons,” which was released eight days before “Overwatch’s” launch and currently sits at 46.7 million views as of May 2026. This was also the cinematic that got me interested in the game all those years ago.
I began playing in late February 2018, and instantly fell in love with the franchise. I’d play it almost every day, and I was so invested in the world for two years. I learned how to play every hero on the roster, though I was never very good, and got my sister into the game as well.
Although I never fell out of love with the lore of “Overwatch,” the same cannot be said of the game itself. Updates for the game began to slow significantly in early 2020 as the development team shifted their focus onto creating the sequel, “Overwatch 2,” and the pandemic certainly didn’t help matters. During this “content drought” of sorts, player counts gradually declined between 2020 and 2022, and I was among those who left.
The content drought began what I often refer to as a bit of a “dark age” for the franchise, which lasted almost half a decade. Communication from behindthe-scenes was scarce, the story progression slowed significantly, and many of Blizzard’s decisions regarding the franchise became questionable.
The original “Overwatch” servers were permanently shut down when “Overwatch 2” was released in October 2022. The sequel was free to play, rather than the original title’s $40-60 price tag, but all original players’ cosmetics and statistics were carried over. It was, from what I can tell as someone who didn’t experience it first-hand, a bit of a controversial mess on release.
As far as gameplay was concerned, “Overwatch 2” was largely the same game as before, but on a better engine. However, one particularly controversial gameplay change still sparks debate to this day: to directly combat the infamous “GOATS meta,” a strategy for the game that had ruled its servers for four years, teams could only have five players each rather than the six-player format that fans were used to.
There had been a promise of player vs environment (PvE) story content, which was a big selling point for the sequel, and it quickly fell through. What little PvE was released in August 2023 received poor reviews due to feeling unpolished and being locked behind a $10 paywall.
Additionally, though the sequel was free, it added microtransactions while removing loot boxes, meaning players suddenly had to pay money for cosmetics like hero skins.
New heroes were even locked behind the new Battle Pass system, meaning players either had to grind a lot of hours in the game to unlock them or pay money to get them quickly. While I was not keeping up-to-date on the game at the time, I did hear about the new heroes being locked, and it really left a bad taste in my mouth, even as someone not actively playing the game.
The launch of a similar first-person shooter, “Marvel Rivals,” created by Marvel and NetEase Games, seemed to be what got “Overwatch” out of those dark ages. The competition that “Marvel Rivals” brought to “Overwatch” seemed to stir Blizzard Entertainment to care about the franchise again, as significant amounts of its remaining player base switched to “Rivals.”
After almost four years of not touching a single round of “Overwatch,” I randomly woke up one morning with the first thought in my head being, “I kind of want to try Overwatch again,” with absolutely zero prompting.
I could not have possibly picked a better day, because that morning was February 18, 2025-- the start date of Competitive Season 15 for “Overwatch 2,” which is when the community generally tends to agree the game finally left the dark age.
I found that in the years I’d been gone, several new heroes and game features had been added for me to learn and many of the issues fans had with the sequel had begun to disappear.
Furthermore, communication between the development team had significantly improved. Heroes were no longer locked behind paywalls. The brandnew perks system shook the core gameplay up in its own right, making it all fresh for everyone.
After five years, not only was “Overwatch” finally out of its dark age, it found itself entering a golden age, and, in my opinion, one that is still ongoing. Over the next few months, I found myself falling back in love with the game. During this time, the game began visibly healing from the years of decline that it had experienced. In the last year, a point has been made by the developers to find new ways to keep the game fresh and interesting every few months.
As someone who left “Overwatch” during the content drought all those years ago, it has been incredible to witness. They even brought back some sorely missed features of the original game, such as lootboxes.
I’ve never seen a development team be this mindful of what their player base wants for any video game I’ve ever played.
When Blizzard announced a change to “Overwatch 2’s” new “Stadium” game to shorten its competitive mode, players almost unanimously disliked it and the change was rolled back within the same month. I personally liked the change, but didn’t even mind the rollback because it was handled so well. Communication with the community is visibly a much higher priority than it was in the past.
With all of these gameplay updates, the only thing still falling short was the story. The lore of “Overwatch” is the main reason most people got into the franchise, and it remained especially stagnant for years as well, only moving at a snail’s pace. This was a major complaint from the player base, myself included, for a very long time.
However, one year after I rejoined the game, in February 2026, Blizzard threw a huge curveball at “Overwatch 2:” they dropped the “2,” reverting the game to simply being called “Overwatch.”
With this “soft relaunch”, the story’s pacing really ramped up. Fans got the first fully-animated cinematic in years, titled “Reign of Talon.” In it, a long-time major villain of the franchise was dethroned, and a new challenger took their place.
The ramifications of this power shift shook up all areas of “Overwatch’s” world, including areas that haven’t been explored in years.
A new in-game story tab was even added, making story updates more accessible to fans. These changes have been keeping players more engaged than ever. Multiple gaming news outlets such as IGN and PC Gamer reported that the new “Overwatch” shattered its own active player count record set by “Overwatch 2’s” release, more than doubling it.
Personally, I’ve seen many of my friends who abandoned the game years ago, including some who had played the original game on launch 10 years ago, returning to the game and staying, because “Overwatch” is finally good again, even better-it’s fun again.
SECURE
Designed by Z Morris Divined by Ethan
Kennedy
Aries (March 21 - April 19): Knighted by the queen herself. So what is it, magic or the force? Not gonna lie… your name sounds like dookie. Your Star Wars character: Count Dooku.
Taurus (April 20 - May 20): Your Star Wars character: Yoda. Over 800 years old, you are. And the most skilled out there. Scary little green puppet.
Gemini (May 21 - June 20): You shot first, don’t worry I know. Best pilot in the business, and gotta stay by your best friend Chewie. Your Star Wars character: Han Solo.
Cancer (June 21 - July 22): Force Choke! Best and most iconic villain ever of all time. You were the chosen one. Your Star Wars character: Darth Vader.
Leo (July 23 - Aug. 22): Bald as hell, and your death is arguably ambiguous. Hold on to your butts.. And make it purple. Your Star Wars character: Mace Windu.
Virgo (Aug. 23 - Sep. 22): Chancellor, why does it look like your life force has been drained… oh. Your Star Wars character: Emperor Palpatine.
Libra (Sep. 23 - Oct. 22): You’re a Jedi like your father before you. And I don’t have a bad feeling about this. Don’t Skip(s) me you Joker. Your Star Wars character: Luke Skywalker.
Scorpio (Oct. 23 - Nov. 21): Went from a naked droid built by the darkest lord in the galaxy, to a rebel droid guarding the plans to the Death Star’s demise. Your Star Wars character: C3PO.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21): RRRRRR. GRRR ARRRGH GHGHG. GRRRROOOOOWWW. Your Star Wars character: Chewbacca.
Capricorn (Dec. 22 - Jan.19): HELLO THERE. Ben, listen, your show wasn’t all that great, but you were great in the prequels. Your Star Wars character: Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Aquarius (Jan. 20 - Feb.18): DON’T KISS YOUR BROTHER! I wish you had a stronger connection to the force. Your Star Wars character: Princess Leia.
Pisces (Feb. 19 - March 20): One would argue that the whole series of Star Wars is being told from the perspective of R2-D2. He’s been with Obi-Wan since the beginning, and lasted till the end. Your Star Wars character: R2-D2.
12 p.m. to 1 p.m. - Lion Rock Visiting Writers Series: Sonora Jha Craft Talk | Multicultural Center
5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. - Lion Rock Visiting Writers Series: Sonora Jha Craft Talk | Multicultural Center
4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. - Sustainability Forum | SURC 137
