Study Breaks Magazine June Issue

What One MIT Professor Learned from Watching the Kardashians pg. 16

FEMINISM

HAS

Let us take care of all your printing needs

THE CORNELLIAN ARCHITECTS BRIDGING THE GHANAIAN EDUCATION GAP pg. 40

Helped Stigmatize Male Rape? pg. 20

MEE T T HE S T UDEN T FIL MM A K ERS TA K ING REP RE S EN TAT ION IN T O T HEIR OW N H A NDS

pg. 34

MORTUARY SCIENCE

Majors Take Solace in Job Stability pg. 22

Maga zines C at alogs Pos tc ards C alendar s & Broc hures

4954 Space Center Dr., San Antonio, TX 210.804.0390 www.shweiki.com

VICTORIA

GRAHAM

is making invisible illness

visible page 28

J U N E 2 0 1 7 /// S T U D Y B R E A K S . C O M

june T A B L E

O F

C O N T E N T S

growing ghana PAGE 40 Student architects from Cornell are teaming up with a Ghanaian NGO to create a sustainable school system for the country’s women

T HE TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S J U N E 2 0 17 • S T U DY B R E A K S . C O M

OFFICE HOURS PAGE 16

UNIVERSIT Y REPORT

MIT professor César

PAGE 18

Hidalgo is making a

The biggest news from

realit y T V show—about

colleges across the country

himself

By

COVER SPOTLIGHT MAKING INVISBLE ILLNE SS VISIBLE

Mig uel Roble s

By Va la r ie K iel

Photography by Sarah Bomberger

ONLINE THIS MONTH

STUDENT ISSUES

#COLLEGEHACKS

PAGE 20

Think there’s no way to

Have statistics for male

get a perfect summer bod

GROUP WORK

rape been drastically

overnight? We (kind of)

PAGE 14

underreported for decades?

prove you wrong

The UConn Break

New numbers indicate yes

By Liam Chan Hodges

Dancing Club puts a

By Jonat ha n K i m

PAGE 8

PAGE 26

new spin on exercise

By Gw y n n Lyon s

WHAT’S YOUR MAJOR?

IN VISIBLE ILLNESS PAGE 28

PAGE 22

Pageant star and EDS

Dying to graduate?

survivor Victoria Graham

Mortuary Science

is working to spread

might be a perfect

awareness about the reality

fit for you

of unidentifiable disorders

By K ayla K ibbe

By K r i st ia n Por ter

STUDENT EXHIBITION

EXTR A CREDIT PAGE 46 Rajat Bhageria’s ThirdEye Technologies have

PAGE 10

Soetkin Van Landegem, a

drastically improved

European transplant and

quality of life for the visually impaired

Graphic Design major, brings

By L i nd say Biondy

a sophisticated eye to her creations

By Maddie Ngo

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THE MEAL PL A N

MEET THE PRESIDENT

PAGE 24

PAGE 48

Thought pizza couldn’t

If school doesn’t pan out

get any better?

for UN T’s Barrett Cole,

Try adding honey

she’s just as happy w ith

By Tyla h Si lva

farm life

june T A B L E

O F

C O N T E N T S

DIVERSIF YING STUDENT MEDIA PAGE 34 Led by students like Yale’s Rebecca Shoptaw, ar tist s are using the accessibilit y of the internet to increase representation in media

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CONTRIBUTORS

student writers Study Breaks is written exclusively by a team of student interns from across the country. These writers work with the editorial team to pitch and submit one piece a week for the website, in addition to writing for the monthly print magazine.

VAL AR IE K IEL

LINDSAY BIONDY

GW Y NN LYONS

@valkiel6

@lindsay_biondy

Stanford University

Texas State University

University of Pittsburgh

Linguistics

Advertising

English Writing & Legal Studies

Group Work

Office Hours

Extra Credit

PAGE 14

PAGE 16

PAGE 46

T Y L AH SILVA

MADDIE NGO

MIGUEL ROBLES

@queencyclops

@maddiengo

UC Denver

Emerson College

University of Florida

English & Journalism

Writing, Literature and Publishing

English & Economics

Around Campus & Growing Ghana

The Meal Plan

Student Exhibition

PAGE 18 & 40

PAGE 24

PAGE 10

JONATHA N K IM

LI A M CHA N HODGES

K AY L A K IBBE

University of Texas at Dallas

@mauimongol

Connecticut College

Chemistry

Franklin and Marshall College

English

Student Issues

Government

What’s Your Major?

PAGE 20

#CollegeHacks

PAGE 22

Fall internships run from September 28 to January 28, and applications close January 14. If interested, email editorial@studybreaks.com with “Student Writing Internship” in the Subject.

Introduce yourself in the body, making sure to include your name, school and major. Please attach at least two samples of your work. Ideal writers are intelligent, funny and talented, though no formal experience is necessary.

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ASHLEY WERTZ

K R ISTI A N PORTER

A NA N YA CHA NDR A

@ashleywertzzz

@itshistoryitspoetry

@goingbananyas

University of Pittsburgh

Northern Kentucky University

University of Pennsylvania

English Writing

English

Biological Basis of Behavior

Diversifying Student Media

Making Invisible Illness Visible

Extra Credit Photography

PAGE 34

PAGE 28

PAGE 46

K AR EN Y U

A MAR BATR A

TIER NA N PAR DUE

NYU

@abatraphoto

@tparduephoto

Art History

University of Connecticut

UMass Boston

Student Exhibition Photography

Math-Stats

Communications

PAGE 10

Group Work Photography

Office Hours Photography

PAGE 14

PAGE 16

SAR A CAR PENTER

SAR A BOMBERGER

CL AR A MOK R I

@viva_la_sara

Mount St. Mary’s University

@cmokz

University of North Texas

Elementary Education

Yale University

Photojournalism

Invisible Illness Photography

Political Science

Meet the President Photography

PAGE 00

Diversifying Student Media

PAGE 48

FOUNDER: GAL SHWEIKI ART DIRECTOR: IAN FRIEDEL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: MARK STENBERG DIGITAL EDITOR: ALEX THOMAS, LIZZY SELLERS GRAPHIC DESIGNER: BRYAN RAYNES MARKETING: RALPH CHAPLIN ACCOUNTING: ELIZABETH CASTRO DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: MARCUS FLORES DISTRIBUTION: FRANK HARTFIELD, JOSE ESPINOZA, ERNEST WARD

PRODUCTION: SHWEIKI MEDIA Study Breaks magazine is published twelve times per year by Shweiki Media, Inc. copyright 2012.

All rights reserved. This magazine may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or hereafter invented without written permission from the publisher. Reproduction or use in whole or in part of the contents of this magazine or of the trademarks of Study Breaks Magazine, Inc., without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. The publisher assumes no responsibility for care and return of unsolicited materials. Return postage must accompany material if it is to be returned. In no event shall such material subject this magazine to any claim for holding fees or similar charges. Study Breaks Magazine is an entertainment magazine for the students of San Antonio, San Marcos, Austin and Lubbock, published 12 times a year. CORPORATE OFFICE: STUDY BREAKS MAGAZINE INC., 4954 SPACE CENTER DR., SAN ANTONIO, TX 78218 • CONTACT STUDY BREAKS: EDITORIAL: MARK STENBERG, 210-705-3284 ED I TO R I A L@ S T U DY B R E A K S .

COM • STUDY BREAKS MAGAZINE IS EXCITED TO HELP YOUR BRAND REACH OUR AUDIENCE THROUGH VIDEO AND WRITTEN CONTENT. SALES: RALPH CHAPLIN, 210-892-0951 /// CONTACT@ STUDYBREAKS.COM

Photography PAGE 34

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A NOTE FROM THE EDI TOR

our paper, your magazine

ecently I was sitting in Halcyon, a coffee shop in San Antonio, talking to a man I had just met about Study Breaks. Out of curiosity, he brought the website up on his phone and read the titles of the first three articles that appeared on the page: “First-Generation Student Maria Vega Is a Voice for Voiceless Immigrants,” “Musician, Activist and Duquesne Student Elizabeth Harris on Bringing DIY to the Marginalized” and “A ‘Vagina Monologues’ for Women of Color, Courtesy of the University of Michigan.” The man, whose name was Enrique, had gone to Texas State for his undergrad years ago, and was familiar with Study Breaks’ predecessor, a publication of the same name but with a wildly different kind of content.

He looked up at me, bemused, and said, “So you’re this kind of magazine now?”

The question got me thinking about how exactly Study Breaks became what it is today—a magazine and website written and photographed by students across the country about college life, pop culture and the stories of remarkable undergrads. We were convinced from day one that the only chance we had of creating a publication that students cared about was by covering topics that they were interested in, and that the only way we could ensure we did that was by having them write what they wanted. We never sat down and decided what kind of magazine Study Breaks would be, only who would be writing it. We hoped that in doing so, we would create a sort of word-cloud type of publication, one that spanned dozens of different subjects, but clustered organically around key topics that students found relevant to them on a daily basis.

As the magazine continued to grow, what started out as a word cloud soon turned into a snowball, and before we knew what had happened, Study Breaks had become a progressive publication, one intent on telling the stories of all students, from all political stripes and racial backgrounds, religious convictions and sexual orientations, a magazine that found its common ground in the studenthood of its writers and subjects, and sometimes nothing more than that. As more students visited the website, Study Breaks’ reputation as a clear-eyed chronicler of the national student narrative grew, and, before we knew it, the brand had turned into one that, in a cycle of self-perpetuation, attracted remarkable students by empowering remarkable students.

The funny thing, in answer to Enrique’s query of whether we were that kind of magazine, is that the answer was less about the Study Breaks staff and more about the student body at large. After all, all Study Breaks does is reflect what it is that students care about. So, it’s not a question of whether we’re that kind of magazine, but whether or not students are those kind of people, whether or not the average college student is the kind of empathetic, mature, intelligent person that cares about the social issues shaping the world they’ll eventually inherit. And the answer to that, thankfully, is yes, they are. And we couldn’t be happier about it.

R

MARK STENBERG EDITOR IN CHIEF @MarkStenberg3

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ONE-LINERS FROM THE VAULTS

“Wouldn’t you rather send a text asking ‘Are you clean?’ than receive one that says, ‘By the way, I tested positive for chlamydia, just thought you should know’?”

Alli Guaman, Marymount Manhattan College vulture.com

The Truth About STDs and

“I’ll give a high-five to any

Online Dating

fellow female who can artfully string together a line

“A s you c an guess,

of foul digs, but I often found

things were not

myself thinking, ‘When is she

Gucci at all.”

going to shut the fuck up?’”

Ashley Wertz, University of Pittsburgh

Jasmin Suknanan, Stony

theodyssey.com

Brook University

fanart.com

Why the Meltdown at

Netflix’s ‘Girlboss’ Goes

“At one point, I would start

Fyre Fest Is Par t of a

Overboard and Sours a

off by listing the four Euro-

Larger Problem with

Good Story

pean countries, making the

Festival Culture

wallpaperUP.com

How to Rock the Service Job You Lowkey Hate Just in time for summer and all the terrible parttime jobs that come with it, UCLA student Crissonna Tennison’s piece on surviving the doldrums of unchallenging work is packed with helpful tips to get you get through your never-ending retail job. Her most insightful pearl of wisdom? At least it’s temporary.

listener wait for as long as possible for the part they

“It’s truly a magical night

wanted to hear: ‘…and my

to never look up from

father’s parents are from

your phone.”

Mexico.’”

Kayla Kibbe, Connecticut

Flavia Martinez, Amherst

College

College

Why Wearing a Tank Top

The Loaded Question No Per-

Doesn’t Make

son of Color Wants to Hear

You a Feminist Hero

THE FIVE COMMANDMENTS OF MEETING YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER’S PARENTS

By Lindsay Biondy, University of Pittsburgh

quora.com

aviva.com

opinionatedmale.com

pinterest.com

relevantmagazine.com

Thou Shall Not Make Physical Contact

Thou Shall Not Lose Thy Voice

Thou Shall Come Bearing Gifts

Thou Shall Not Covet Thy Partner’s Parents’ Wallet

Thou Shall Not Take the Lord’s Name in Vain

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SPOTLIGHT

illustration by cam cottrill

In Light of the UT Stabbing, Emotional Campus Carry Debates Resurge Writ ten days af ter Hendrix J. White stabbed four UT students, taking the life of freshman Harrison Brown, University of Texas at Dallas student Jonathan Kim examined the morbid irony of the at tack coming in the final weeks of the first year that campus carr y laws were enac ted. In a fastidiously researched piece, Kim weighs the new ordinance and finds it wanting.

ONLINE CLASSES This month on the website, learn how to: Design a personal website // Make vegans look ridiculous // Understand the importance of unwritten rules in sports // Sweet-talk a professor that hates you // Know when to drop out // LIST THE HOTTEST MEMES OF 2017 // Ghost romantic partners with a clean conscience // YouTube yourself into a genius

th e p o

p u la rm

a n .c o

m

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STUDENT EXHIBITION

SOETKIN VAN

LANDEGEM

By Madeleine Ngo, Universit y of Florida Photography by Karen Yu, New York Universit y

SOETKIN VAN LANDEGEM is a junior at the Stevens Institute of Technology, located in Hoboken, New Jersey, majoring in Visual Art and Technology with a concentration in Graphic Design. ¶ Landegem is a European native who strives to incorporate the inspirations and styles of European culture in her work. She is one of the only graphic design students at Stevens, a primarily engineering-centered university. Her work ranges from vivid floral patterns to informative data visualization graphics. Landegem is currently considering a potential career designing layouts and prints for magazines.

MADELEINE NGO: When it comes to designing, are there any specific programs you like to use?

SOETKIN VAN L ANDEGEM: Since mos t of my illus trations are digital, I use Adobe Creative Suite Illus trator and Photoshop a lot. The program has a lot of dif ferent fea-

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tures, so it ’s easy to bring to life whatever vision I have in mind. If I want something to look organic, I can use a lot of dif ferent brush t ypes and textures depending on what projec t I’m working on.

Even though the program has a ton of features, it ’s s till easy to use all of the different tools. I’ve memorized all of

the shor tcut s, so creating a sketch on the computer is almos t as quick as a handmade sketch.

MN: Where do you draw inspiration from?

SVL: I tend to draw inspiration from obser ving the world around me. I was born and raised in Belgium, so my background is an

inf luential par t of my work. When I go back to visit, I like to take road trips to neighboring countries. In Europe, ever y countr y has a completely dif ferent culture with diverse lifes t yles, foods, architec ture and ar t.

I have this European culture in me; I’m a produc t of Europe. I tr y to ref lec t this side

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of myself through my work. I find inspiration from the breathtaking landscapes of Provence, the saturated colors from fruit and vegetable market s in Tuscany and the coziness and romance from Bruges.

Mos t of the time, I’m inspired by any thing interes ting to me in the moment.

Right now I’m really into fashion, so I’m using Adobe Illus trator and Photoshop to create pat terns for print s.

MN: What inspired you to pursue ar t in college?

SVL: My parents always told me that I was born with creativity in my veins. When I was little, I would create flowers out of leftover napkins and the Giza pyramids out of my mashed potatoes.

I never focused on just art; I mostly just did it as a hobby. When I went to school, math was the only other subject that interested me. In high school, we had to take a few electives and I loved CAD, which was a combination of math and art through industrial design and architecture.

I visited multiple colleges during my last few years of high school,

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but nothing really spoke to me except for the Visual Art and Technology major at Stevens. My tour guide was also a Graphic Design major. After seeing his passion for the subject, I knew I wanted to go to Stevens.

MN: How has Stevens helped you with pursuing ar t?

SVL: Before I went to college, I didn’t really know what I wanted to s tudy or what profession interes ted me the mos t. I knew I loved ar t and math, but I had no idea a major like Visual Ar t and Technology exis ted.

As a Visual Ar t and Technology s tudent, we’re required to take a few core classes, including design, video, game design and animation. Af ter delving into so many dif ferent fields, I realized I like design the mos t. I was firs t introduced to illus trations and graphic design at Stevens, and now I can’t imagine what I would have done if I wasn’t here today.

MN: What are your future plans?

SVL: I don’t really

have a concrete plan right now, but I would love to be a graphic designer for a magazine or a clothing store.

If I were to work for a magazine, I would hope to design page layouts, create t ypography and plan out dif ferent color schemes for layouts. I’m also considering doing graphic STUDYBREAKS.COM

design marketing for a clothing store. I would love to make flyers, posters, lookbooks, websites and even the design of the clothes. In the end though, I’m open to a lot of dif ferent career paths right now.

MN: What is it like to be one of the only graphic design students

at a primarily engineering college like Stevens?

SVL: Since Stevens is an engineering school, Visual Ar t and Technology is a pret t y small major here. In my class there are only seven of us, and only a few s tudent s are pursuing a concentration in Graphic Design.

My ar t classes are really small and intimate.

I think that, because of this, my professors are more familiar with me and my work. We’re able to develop a personal connec tion with our professors, because we have so much one-on-one time.

We frequently have class critiques af ter

we finish projec t s. Since our classes are so small, ever yone get s a block of time in which people critique your work, so you have that ex tra feedback. In the end, Stevens has helped me figure out my s trengths and weaknesses, my ar tis tic s t yle and the t ype of ar t work I hope to continue making.

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STUDENT GROUPSHOWCASE WORK

Bust a Move The b-boys of UConn’s Break Dancing Club give “head-spinning” an entirely different meaning.

By Gwynn Lyons, Stanford University Photography by Amar Batra, University of Connecticut osh Colon and Dustin Ping, president and vice president of the Break Dancing Club at the University of Connecticut, had a unique criterion when deciding which college to attend: Did it have a break dancing group?

Fortunately, their college did. After four years, the two have become so involved in break dancing that they couldn’t imagine their college experience without it.

Ping had discovered break dancing in high school through YouTube. After watching a few videos, he was hooked. “I would just type in, ‘how to break dance’ on YouTube. I didn’t know anyone who did it, so it was just me and the internet,” he says.

Now, Ping and Colon have found a community of dancers at UConn’s Break Dancing Club. The b-boys practice six times a week, two hours per session, working on group routines and their individual styles. “Style” in breakdancing comprises four elements: top rock (standing dance moves), footwork, freezes (striking poses such as handstands) and power (high-energy moves like headspinning). According to Colon, one common misconception people have about break dancing, and power in particular, is that it requires super-human muscle power. “Really it’s all about muscle memory,” Colon says. “It’s kind of like walking: When you first started walking, you couldn’t do it, but as you got older, you did it every single day and now you can walk flawlessly without even thinking about it.”

Members of the Break Dancing Club learn new moves from their peers. One of the most rewarding aspects of being in the club is seeing newbies make improvements, Colon says. “There are always times when you see a new member or someone who’s been practicing a specific move for a really long time [get the move]. Everyone’s just around each other and someone notices it, like, ‘Oh my god you finally got that move!’ or ‘Wow that beginner finally is branching out!’” On the flip side, it can be frustrating when no one witnesses your improvements. “You look around and go, ‘Did anyone see that?!’” he jokes.

Another challenge, according to Ping, is the fluctuating membership of the group. Some members come every day, and others drop out after a few months. Colon added that break dancing is misunderstood. It is often perceived as an aggressive activity, but it really stems from a culture of love. He said break dancing originated as a way to replace street and gang violence, so it can seem violent on the surface.

“When you see people battling [in break dance sessions], it looks like they hate each other, but the moment the battle is over you see people hugging each other and giving each other high fives.

Yeah we’re fighting, but we’re fighting through movement.”

The Break Dancing Club recently competed at Break U at NYU, an event for b-boys all over the East Coast. In addition to “jams” like this, they also perform at Asian Nite, an event run by the Asian-American Cultural Society at the University of Connecticut.

This month they are preparing to wrap up the season with other local competitions. Meanwhile, the b-boys will continue to work on their individual styles and get ready for the club’s next jam.

J

Vice President Dustin Ping, standing, and club member Ed Ho

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T H E ST U DY BR E A K S DOSSIER NAME: UConn Break Dancing Club UNIVERSIT Y: Universit y of Connec ticut NUMBER OF MEMBERS: 20 FACULT Y ADVISOR: Sheila Kucko PRESIDENT: Josh Colon OTHER POSITIONS WITHIN THE GROUP: Vice President, Secretar y, Treasurer, Event Coordinator NOTABLE EVENTS: UConn Asian Nite, Breaks U at NYU FOUNDING DATE: early 2000’s

OFFICE HOURS

What if the Kardashians Were Physicists?

MIT professor César Hidalgo’s eight-part reality television series, “In My Shoes,” proposes treating academics like pop stars.

By Valarie Kiel, Texas State University Photography by Tiernan Pardue, UMass Boston rofessor César Hidalgo, who teaches the Collective Learning group at the MIT Media Lab, has developed an eight-episode reality TV series that challenges perceptions of reality television. The project, entitled “In My Shoes,” follows Hidalgo as he goes about working, researching, traveling and collaborating with others, in order to give viewers a deeper look into the life of a scholar, both in and out of the classroom. Hidalgo designed the project with hopes of shedding light on the daily lives of academics, as well as contesting the idea that reality television is inherently insubstantial.

What is your job at MIT? I run the Collective Learning group at the MIT Media Lab. In our group, we study how teams, organizations, cities and countries learn. We also develop data visualization resources, such as the Observatory of Economic Complexity, Pantheon, Immersion and DataUSA, which facilitate the ability of groups to learn by visualizing and analyzing data.

What led to you creating a reality TV series about your life?

It all began with a missed flight. In 2014 I was scheduled to give a talk at the Santa Fe Institute in New Mexico. My plan was to fly to Albuquerque on Thursday night, drive to Santa Fe, give my talk and return to Boston the next day.

However, the connecting flight from Boston to New York was delayed, so I could not make it to Albuquerque. On my way back from the airport, I

notified the people in Santa Fe that I was missing the event and told them that I was going to send a video instead. That night, I sent a text message to Manuel Aristarán, a graduate student who had recently joined my group. Manuel had mentioned that his wife was a filmmaker, so I asked him if I could hire her to help me make a video the next day.

The next morning we filmed, edited and submitted a video.

A few months later, I offered her a desk and a paycheck in my lab.

What’s the show called, and what’s it about?

The show is called “In My Shoes,” and it shows the life of a scholar taking on the world.

It helps illustrate what the life of a scholar is like outside the classroom, meaning on the road and at home. The series also helps show a realization that is natural to those who

have traveled the world. “In My Shoes” reveals that the things that are common to people from different parts of the world are larger than those that set us apart.

How might the show influence college students?

It is hard for many college students to imagine what the life of a professor is like, in part because it is a global life that takes place mostly outside the classroom. “In My Shoes” helps show students what the life of a professor can be like.

It shows how a scholar connects with other scholars, as well as with the private sector and policy-making actions.

You mention that the series is about balancing work, travel and family. Why is pointing

that out relevant for students?

College, and specially grad school, is a major transitional time in a person’s life; it is a transition between childhood and adulthood. I meet many bright students every year at MIT, but what is hard for them to learn is what it means to have an adult life. The challenges that people need to learn involve soft skills: how to communicate effectively, how to relate to others, how to identify a good idea, how to balance and prioritize work, etc. Most students think they know to do this, but I find most of them don’t. I don’t think I am a role model for these skills, but I think the series helps show a potential path that may lie ahead.

T H E C .V. NAME: César Hidalgo COLLEGE: MIT ACADEMIC SPECIALT Y: Data Visualization Systems REALIT Y TELEVISION SHOW: “In My Shoes” FUTURE PL ANS: A second season, shot in vir tual realit y

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UNIVERSITY REPORT

Around Campus The biggest news from colleges across the country.

By Miguel Robles, University of Colorado Denver

THE SPOTLIGHT: FREE SPEECH’S ROLE REVERSAL here do you draw the line between protecting free speech and restricting hate speech? If anyone knows, please contact the University of California, Berkeley immediately. Starting in 2014, when a petition circulated the campus calling for the cancellation of controversial comedian Bill Maher’s commencement speech, the traditionally liberal university has come under fire for its handling of unpopular speakers. In February, violent demonstrations forced the administration to cancel an appearance from former Breitbart Senior Editor Milo Yiannopoulos. Then, in late April, conservative pundit Ann Coulter cancelled her speech. After a free-speech rally held by conservative and alt-right supporters collided with a liberal anti-hate-speech faction, five individuals were arrested.

In a bizarre twist of fate, a campus once synonymous with First Amendment freedoms has now become a hotbed of intolerance.

W

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

The Player’s Tribune

Nick Pritchard - WordPress.com

Run for Your Life Universit y of Pit tsburgh running back James Conner put his fight on the gridiron on hold when Hodgkin’s Lymphoma forced him to fight for his life. Af ter undergoing six teen rounds of chemotherapy, he was selec ted in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draf t by the Pit tsburgh Steelers. He won’t be a hard guy to root for.

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Return of the Badgers At the Universit y of Wyoming, Star Wars fandom has made its way into the curriculum.

The universit y is of fering a graduate-level course that promises to analyze the series from literature, historical and religious perspec tives.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

“Berkeley will continue to be a liberal echo chamber unless the university can ensure that conservative speakers can speak on campus.”

- Naweed Tahmas,

Berkeley College Republicans

Image via Washington Post

GoFundMe -Hannah Wilson

THE BUZZ What’s Down Under The St. Mary’s College of Maryland has uncovered evidence of former slave quarters on the development site for a future athletic stadium.

Cuts, Cuts, Cuts Central Michigan laid off twenty-four employees in order to address a twoyear, $20 million budget deficit.

GOING INCOGNITO After a University of Colorado Denver undergraduate student posed as a medical student and interacted with at least one patient, Denver Health Medical Center has suspended all badge access for students.

A Death Wish Daniel Messell, the man convicted of murdering Indiana University student Hannah Wilson, is appealing his 80year sentence just days after the twoyear anniversary of her death.

Athlon Sports

MEANWHILE, IN TEXAS INKING ELDERS UT Austin Studio Ar t professor Michael Smith will contribute to the fif th edition of the Muster Sculpture Projec t by flying to Germany to tat too German seniors. TURNING UP THE HEAT Af ter receiving bomb threats on consecutive days, UTSA brought in the FBI to help investigate. BACK ON THE MAP Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garret t became the first #1 overall selec tion in the NFL Draf t from a Texas universit y in the last 35 years.

MENTALLY UNSTABLE Kendrick J. White, the man charged with stabbing four students at the Universit y of Texas at Austin, told police he had no memor y of the at tack. “If I did something I don’t remember then I want to be told.” NEW BEGINNINGS With a $1 million grant from Blackstone Launchpad, UT Dallas opened an entrepreneurial lab designed for students to turn entrepreneurial ideas into star t-up companies.

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STUDENT ISSUES

Feminism and Male Rape For decades, stigma has discouraged women from reporting sexual assault.

But have even deeper taboos suppressed men from reporting theirs?

New findings suggest a horrifying truth.

By Jonathan Kim, University of Texas at Dallas ccording to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), 11.2 percent of all college students, including undergraduates and graduates, experience “rape or sexual assault through force, violence, and incapacitation.” Only one out of five female victims in college report their sexual assault to law enforcement. And of the male college victims?

RAINN doesn’t mention it.

This exclusion could mean one of two things: Either RAINN, a respected institution, tried to get the data, but so few raped men came forward to warrant statistical inclusion; or it didn’t try to get the data at all. Regardless, both cases imply that male rapes are so stigmatized and misunderstood that either raped college men are unwilling to come forward, or that RAINN doesn’t see a worthy duty in soliciting those men for thorough research. Both cases, in other words, point to a grander theme—an intense societal stigma and ignorance of male rape victims.

Undoubtedly, rape has always been a gendered issue, with feminism playing a large role in bringing the issue of rape into a new public light. For almost forty years, partly in thanks to Susan Brownmiller and her seminal 1975 book “Against Our Will,” the word “rape” no longer connotes a lust-based sexual act, but one that is criminally violent and power-centric.

And, as radical feminism began to bud from its more liberal parentage, it helped raise awareness that the violence inherent in rape was not just an issue in and of itself, but rather something that existed within a societal construct traditionally scarred by a deep prejudice against women.

But the mission of radical feminism, though laudable, had an unfortunate consequence. It helped further to cement the age-old idea that rape is an only female problem.

In fact, the definition of the word “rape” has a history skewed against men. Since the 1930s, the FBI defined rape as “the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.” This definition explicitly restricted rapes to apply to only females, and, for a long time, local governments excluded male rapes when reporting to the FBI. For example, in 2010, Chicago recorded 86,767 cases of rape, but used a broader definition of rape, so the FBI left out Chicago’s statistics. Localities began to complain, and, in 2012, the FBI finally changed its outdated definition of rape to “the penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina

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or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” Only recently did the FBI officially lift “rape” as a term exclusive to women.

The FBI had excluded data that didn’t fit its already-prejudiced view of rape, and thus misrepresented its statistics on rape in general. But the danger of holding such preconceived notions goes deeper; it hides the actual truth about the prevalence of male rape.

In their lucid 2014 study, Lara Stemple and Ilan Meyer looked into five federal surveys from the FBI, the Bureau of Justice and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). They found that the CDC, in its 2010 survey, reported that 1,270,000 women were raped, and presented its findings that suggested women are disproportionately affected by sexual violence. But the CDC put male’s non-consensual sex (“being made to penetrate”) in a separate category marked as “Other sexual violence.” When taking this into account, the number of raped women and of men forced to penetrate are nearly equal: 1,270,000 and 1,267,000, respectively.

If feminism is truly about the equality of both sexes, and not the mere promotion of one, then its followers should realize that the violence and power inherent in rape can victimize both men and women. But claiming a cause for equality, while framing certain issues as purely feminine, like rape and sexual assault, has the same effect as claiming a cause for only women; both don’t recognize the possibility that a prejudice against men, not just of women, could also be tipping the balance.

As Joss Truitt from “Feministing” points out, sexual violence doesn’t fit the standard narrative of feminism, and challenges the habit of forming two boxes—men who represent power and women who are the oppressed—that make it harder for other survivors, including men, trans women, genderqueer and other gender non-conforming, to fit in.

College campuses, where the cowardly “rape culture” is most invasive, need feminists to stand up for both female and male rapes. By remembering the male victims, college feminists can send a powerful message to today’s youth that rape is, and has always been, a violent and power-centric act that is indiscriminate of gender, and that they aim to fight not against a particular masculine hegemony, but truly for the equality of both sexes.

Darcy cartoon | cleveland.com

Slow Flows the Dawn Blogger

STUDYBREAKS.COM

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WHAT’S YOUR MAJOR?

This Month, We’re Studying:

Mortuary Science

By Kayla Kibbe, Connecticut College ntroverted? Not great with small talk? Do your best work in silence? You may have a promising career working with the dead. With a degree in Mortuary Science from the University of the District of Columbia, you’ll learn everything you need to know to help the dearly departed make a smooth transition to the underworld, or at least underground.

I

Average Salary

$

39,000

MYTH AND TRUTH MYTH: Mortuary Science majors must be pretty dark.

TRUTH: It’s a grim field of study to be sure, but hey, somebody’s gotta do it.

And since death is pretty much the only thing in life that’s guaranteed, it’s actually not a bad business model. Maybe they’re just practical.

MYTH: Funeral directing is a dying industry in an increasingly secular society.

TRUTH: God may be dead, but someone still had to plan the funeral.

Whether or not religion is involved, society’s general fear of death still leaves everyone pretty willing to cling to bizarre notions and archaic traditions surrounding death and the afterlife. The only thing dying is the customers.

MYTH: Funeral directors capitalize on other people’s misfortune.

TRUTH: It’s safe to say few people would go into a business that gruesome if they didn’t truly find some fulfillment in bringing peace to the deceased and their survivors. That said, the money doesn’t hurt. Would you vacuum out a corpse’s abdominal cavity just for the love of the game?

CONVERSATION STARTERS

KEY TERMS

“Guess I shouldn’t ask if you want to grab a cold one…” /// “When did you first realize you wanted to devote your life to helping create some of people’s worst memories?” /// “Who will under take you when you die?

Is there a never-ending chain of under takers under taking other under takers?” /// “Have you always had a passion for death or is it more of a hobby?”

EMBALMING: Preserving a corpse from decay. It’s mummification, but with a different name so it seems like society’s attitudes toward death have evolved over the last 5,000 years. /// DESAIROLOGY: Also known as mortuary cosmetology, the art of prepping hair and makeup for the deceased’s final act. These stylists work with some of the most agreeable clients in the business. /// UNDERTAKER: Synonymous with mortician and funeral director, but somehow so much creepier. Despite the Grim Reaper vibe, undertaker is actually a euphemism, intended to politely veil a reference to the person who undertakes the responsibility for the deceased. /// DECEDENT: The body. The corpse. The dearly departed themselves, in the flesh—but not for much longer. /// MOURNERS: The bereaved family and friends of the deceased who will soon be convinced that anyone who really cared about their departed loved one would settle for no less than the deluxe funeral package complete with the hermetically sealed, silk-lined mahogany casket.

FUN FACT

POT ENTIAL JOBS

Sometimes the body has a mind of its own, even af ter death.

Along with set ting the face to achieve that per fec t “He looks so peaceful” aesthetic, mor ticians also massage the body to relieve some of the stif fness, sometimes inadver tently transferring that stif fness to a cer tain organ in some optimistic male decedents. Talk about mourning wood.

MORTICIAN Funeral director, undertaker, what have you. The last man to let you down, only wants you for your body. The medical practitioners of the afterlife, they pick up where doctors fail.

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COSMETOLOGIST You’ll get plenty of practice on clients who can’t complain.

Mortuary science is basically low pressure beauty school.

HIT MAN The perfect part-time side hustle that also drums up business for your main gig.

Fabrice Sommier 5

THE MEAL PLAN

Get Lost with the Sauce This summer, swap out dough and marinara for watermelon and yogur t to put a refreshing twist on tired fruit salad.

By Tylah Silva, Emerson College here are number of things great about summer: the weather, the free time, the traveling, the parties. The best part though? The food. But to be honest, the food is the best part of anything ever.

What makes summer dishes so great though, is the feeling that not only are you eating something delicious, but that you’re also eating something that’s good for your body.

Even popsicles, though high in sugar, do you the service of chilling your core so you can brave the summer sun.

All the desserts are amazing this time of year, but a must at any party is fruit salad. And of course, your fruit salad better have watermelon, because a fruit salad without watermelon is like cooking a chicken without seasoning; it’s edible, I guess, but you’re not going to enjoy it.

That’s why this recipe is centered around the best summer food of all time—the almighty watermelon. And the best way to eat the best summer food is the same way you eat the best all-year-round food—in pizza form. That’s right watermelon pizza is a thing, but it’s not exactly what you’re thinking. No one is going to suggest putting watermelon on pizza, or putting any pizza toppings on watermelon. Instead, the recipe calls for dressing up your watermelon slices with all kinds of delicious fruit toppings.

Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and pineapple are just a few possible toppings. Drizzling a little raw, fair-trade honey on top with granola is a sweet, healthy addition to an already healthy dessert that will make your body feel good. However, if you believe that every body is a summer body, then don’t be afraid to swap out that honey for caramel or chocolate drizzle. Add your toppings just as one would with pizza, by doing one half the healthy way and the other half the chocolate way.

The best part of this recipe, however, is that you can share it with your friends. It’s perfect for a graduation party or a fun meal to make at a sleepover. You’ll also have a lot of fun telling your friends, “I made pizza!” only to see the look on their faces when you bring out the watermelon.

Keep in mind that watermelon pizza isn’t just a dessert meal; you can turn that fruity pie into a refreshing breakfast by topping it with Greek yogurt and fruity pebbles.

Watermelon pizza is versatile, healthy and an all-around fun experience that you can share with the whole party, so don’t show up with a simple fruit salad like some kind of nerd. Instead, wow your friends with a watermelon pizza, and don’t forget to post pics to the ’gram so everyone can see how cute and creative your meal is.

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Arnella Photography

WATERMELON PIZZA PREP TIME 10 mins TOTAL TIME 10 mins SERVES: 8-10 INGREDIENTS 1 watermelon 1 cup coconut yogurt (or Greek yogurt) ½ cup strawberries, sliced in half ½ cup raspberries ½ cup cherries ½ cup blueberries ½ cup pomegranate seeds honey or maple syrup (optional) INSTRUCTIONS Using a sharp knife, cut off a slice of watermelon right down the middle, about 2-3 inches thick.

Using a spatula, spread an even layer of your yogurt around the watermelon leaving a bit of empty space at the top. (Where your “pizza crust” is.)

Layer your fresh fruit on top as you please. You can add as few or as many toppings as you like!

Drizzle with honey or maple syrup for a little extra sweetness if desired.

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#COLLEGEHACKS

S T U DY BR E A K S PR E SE N T S

#SummerBodHacks Sick of healthy, sustainable ways to lose weight at a moderate pace?

You’ve come to the right place.

By Liam Chan Hodges, Franklin and Marshall College

THE ENDORSEMENT: DEHYDRATION

Summer is a time to relax. A time to enjoy the weather and soak up the sun. A time to go sleeveless, a time to go topless, maybe even a time to go bottomless, if you don’t mind the possibility of an arrest here or there. Summer is a time to wear as little as possible and just let it all hang out. ¶ Of course, if your body is actually hanging, flopping or sagging, or if you’re just not in the peak physical form that you had hoped, these physical insecurities can make the summer months much, much less enjoyable. In which case you have two options. You can either tell society’s body standards to suck your ass and own that shit, or you can follow a few of these simple, quick and extremely ill-advised tips to get that shredded summer body that you’ve always dreamed of.

Hydrate or diedrate. It’s a saying as old as time. When the summer heat rolls in, the drink coolers roll out. Of course, the million-dollar question is, What will be your refreshment of choice? Some may say juice, others soda, and a few lunatics will try to push water on you every chance they get.

However, don’t let yourself be bamboozled; liquid abstinence is the only safe option. If you want to lose weight, liquid is your biggest enemy. After all, the human body’s composition is 60 percent water, which means that if you don’t consume any liquids, you could be 60 percent hotter.

R E G A R DI NG

Summer Bods All jokes aside, the idea of needing to achieve a summer body is pretty freaking dumb. Being shredded is great, but achieving a healthy physique should be a year-long focus, not a few months of rushed gym time in the hopes of looking aesthetically pleasing for strangers at the beach. I’m not saying you should sit on your ass in front of the computer all summer, for the love of god definitely go workout.

But, if you’re going to hit the weight room, step on the elliptical or check out your nearest salad bar, it should be for the right reasons. Work out and eat healthy because it feels good and makes you happy, and never let insecurities keep you from enjoying the gorgeous weather or showing some skin. After all, the only way you’ll learn to love your body is by using it. So get out, get tan and get naked.

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#COLLEGEHACKS

EAT THIS, RUN THAT

Protein If you want to be hot, you need protein.

Top every meal with chicken breasts, and remember that cooking food decreases its protein content, so sashimi that shit.

Salmonella is just a word.

Stress If you’re overweight it’s probably because you don’t have enough stress in your life. Instead of going to the gym, consider going through a tough break-up, taking an excruciatingly hard class or facing extreme disappointment. It’ll be well worth the grey hairs.

Steroids I mean….they work.

STUDYBREAKS.COM

4,639 MILES

.25 miles A whopping quarter mile is all that’s needed to burn this sticky treat.

SLICE OF WATERMELON

19 MILES

.5 miles Having to run half a mile for every slice of watermelon is definitely worth it.

A CRAPPY BEER

1 mile One mile for a crappy beer is absurd.

SQUEEZE BOTTLE OF MAYONNAISE

19 miles You’ll be pounding pavement for a few hours to pay for shotgunning one of these bad boys.

AN ENTIRE COW CARCASS

4,639 miles Going just south of 5,000 miles seems like a lot, but if you can digest a cow, I doubt 180 marathons will phase you.

1 MILE

Smoking Does smoking make you look cool? Nope, but it’ll definitely make you look skinny. Coughing and wheezing? That’s just fat leaving the body.

POPSICLE

.5 MILES

Cotton Balls Do you want the inside scoop on the newest, hottest diet? Of course you do. Look no further than your bathroom cabinet. Dip cotton balls in juice and swallow those fuckers. They’ll fill you up, and they’re completely food free.

The average student burns about 120 calories per mile. Below is the number of miles you’ll have to run in order to burn off each of these classic summer treats.

.25 MILES

HOW TO: LOSE WEIGHT DANGEROUSLY

V I S UA L R U L E : S T U DE N T PH Y SIQU E PI E C H A RT 10% Students who are in great shape

4 0% Students who are in okay shape

50% Students who want to eat this graph

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Invisible Illness

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Victoria Graham

VICTORIA GRAHAM TURNS INVISIBLE ILLNESS INTO PUBLIC AWARENESS

By Kristian Porter Northern Kentucky University Photography by Sarah Bomberger Mount St. Mary’s University

STUDYBREAKS.COM

Looking at Victoria Graham, you would never guess that there is anything unusual happening within her body. The Mount St. Mary’s University student, who competes in beauty pageants and recently won a prominent local competition, looks no different standing on stage next to the other equally talented, beautiful women, and you would never guess something was wrong—until she turns around.

Graham has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), an illness that weakens the tissue of the skin and bones, affecting every aspect of her body, and causing hyper-flexibility, dislocation of joints and constant pain. The illness left her with a twenty-five-inch scar that spans the length of her spine. With no way to hide the scar, she walks across the stage during pageants in bikinis and backless dresses. For the talent portion, where she performs a monologue designed to educate her audience on EDS, she dons a tailored hospital gown, leaving her back exposed.

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Though she is proud to show her scar now, Graham was not always this comfortable with her illness. As a child, she was an athlete, playing soccer and competing in gymnastics.

Though she did not have an official diagnosis, Graham did know that her joints would dislocate. Despite this knowledge, she refused to wear braces on her knees, even during her games, because she was scared of what others would say. Arriving at her first pageant audition, wearing a thrift store t-shirt and a neck brace accompanied by her dad, she was still self-conscious. She looked around at the other women and thought, “What am I doing here?”

Graham made the decision to compete in a beauty pageant after a latenight conversation with her roommate. “Sports had been taken from me. Most of my social life had been taken from me. I was on a reduced course load, so school had been taken from me. So many aspects of my life had been changed in ways that I had no control over, so I wanted to do something for me while I still had the ability,” she says.

A photographer taking headshots of the contestants questioned her about her illness and, when Graham reached to take off her neck brace for the picture, the photographer insisted that she keep it on. “That was one of the first pictures of myself I ever really liked,” she says. “I began to realize that I could still like how I looked with a neck brace on.”

After this first experience with a public display of her illness, outside of posting on social media for her family, EDS became a focal point of her pageant platform. She soon created an awareness campaign called “But You Don’t Look Sick,” shedding light on invisible illnesses, or chronic conditions that show no outward symptoms.

Wanting to take this awareness to an even grander scale, for her twenty-second birthday, Graham founded a non-profit organization called the Zebra Network. The organization takes its name from the common physician’s approach to medical problems. They are taught to always think of the obvious answer first, to think of horses when they hear hoofbeats.

Graham hopes her organization can

change this. “When you hear hoofbeats, think zebras because zebras exist,” her website displays.

The Zebra Network works not just to educate the public on Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, but to provide advocacy to victims. When Graham was a child and began regularly visiting the doctor, she spent an awful amount of time in waiting rooms. She would sit in these rooms, dreaming of ways they could be better. “We would have a wall where people could paint, an area where people could do crafts or watch TV, all of the things that would make the situation better in a child’s mind.”

Her childhood imagination was the inspiration behind her non-profit, which works to make hospital stays better for not just the patients, but the caregivers as well. When someone with EDS stays in the hospital, there must be someone with them at all times to monitor movement. “The caregiver can’t even leave the room to go get lunch in the cafeteria,” Graham says.

The Zebra Network, in addition to raising awareness of EDS, provides care and support baskets to hospital caregivers. Graham places so much importance on the education of invisible illnesses, because she wasn’t able to get her own diagnosis until she went to college. From the ages of ten to thirteen, Graham and her family were actively seeking the reason for her pain, going from doctor to doctor, desperate for a diagnosis.

“Some of them questioned my sanity,” Graham says. “They wanted to know if I had friends, if I was happy.

Some of them said I was making it up, that the amount of pain I said I was in wasn’t really what was going on.” This is a common issue for those who suffer from illnesses that disguise themselves. Because there is no bandage to see or cast to sign, because the illness is harder to understand, there is a tendency to dismiss it all together.

It wasn’t until almost ten years later that she was finally given an answer.

Graham was in organic chemistry class, listening to her professor’s lecture, concerned with passing the class to satisfy one more item on her Pre-Med Biology checklist, when she experienced sudden memory loss.

She didn’t know where she was. She

didn’t even know who she was.

Her memory returned, but her health concerns persisted. Not until a week later, though, when she was studying for a quiz and her memory failed her again, did Graham finally allow herself to worry. This time, she couldn’t retain any information, and, after having a photographic memory for most of her life, she knew something was wrong.

She called her parents, panicked and was instructed to get ready because they were taking her to the doctor’s. “But you don’t understand,” she said, “I have a test tomorrow.”

Many college students, like Graham, have had to decide what takes priority when, alongside final exams and group projects, you are also dealing with a chronic illness So, after seeking medical attention for her memory loss, Graham took a semester off from college, Eastern College at the time, to seek out a specialist. There she received disheartening news. “One of the specialists, the head of a headache clinic at a world-renowned hospital, told me that there was no mechanical reason for my pain,” she says.

After finally seeing an Ehlers-Danlos specialist, she found out there were actually seven mechanical reasons for her pain. The doctor who originally told her there was nothing wrong later said he had seen thirty possible EDS patients, but had neglected to diagnosis any of them.

“My immediate reaction was, ‘What about the twenty-nine other people?

Where are they now? Are they even alive?’” she says. “It was infuriating.”

She was able to go back to school, but it wasn’t long before she felt the symptoms again. After seeing her neurologist, she discovered that her vertebrae were loose, hitting nerves, arteries and her spinal cord. She took her finals early that semester and, while everyone else was slaving away over their tests, Graham was having surgery. She began a constant cycle of having surgery and going to school, eventually taking a total of a year-and-a-half sabbatical in which she had six different surgeries.

During her time at Eastern College, Graham says that there were certain members of the administration who were great, but there were

Sports had been taken from me. Most of my social life had been taken from me. I was on a reduced course load, so school had been taken from me.

So many aspects of my life had been changed in ways that I had no control over, so I wanted to do something for me while I still had the ability.

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BUT YOU DON’T LOOK SICK certain people, namely professors, who weren’t considerate. Ecology was a class that she needed to take for her major, but she found herself in a bind when, despite having the American Disabilities Act, a Disabilities and Accommodations coordinator and the head of the Biology department on her side, a professor would still not let her take his class. “It was because I couldn’t participate in a kayaking trip,” she says. “He said he didn’t understand because there was a student last semester in a wheel chair and she was fine.”

Graham suspected that the professor’s obstruction was due to the invisibility of her illness and his lack of understanding. A reason, she says, she encourages college students to talk with their professors and peers, to facilitate awareness. “So many professors do care about you, and they’re willing to listen. You just have to be honest with them.”

Not only can the education of these illnesses help administrators better accommodate their students, but it can help students seek assistance in the first place. Because these illnesses don’t outwardly show symptoms, many students brush their health to the side, either underestimating the severity of their condition or not being comfortable initiating the conversation.

This phenomenon is most prominently seen with mental illnesses.

“20-25 percent of college students struggle with a mental illness in a giv-

en year,” Maggie Bertram, associate director of training and education for the Active Minds organization, says.

“Of those students, less than half seek any kind of professional help.”

Some of this disparity can be explained by a perceived stigma attached to mental illness. Many students are simply just too embarrassed to talk about it. “People don’t want to talk about their struggles, because they either don’t recognize why they’re struggling or they’re afraid people will judge them for it,” Madalyn Purcell, founder and editor of “Mentality Magazine,” says. “A lot of the confusion and the misunder-

standing that people have about mental health is because it is not often a topic that is openly discussed in society. But it should be.”

“Mentality Magazine” is a student publication at the University of Michigan focused entirely on mental health, publishing the stories and experiences of students. The goal of the magazine is to educate and encourage discussion on the U of M’s campus, and provide those who suffer in silence a place for their voices to be heard. “I think everyone should be informed about mental health because your mindset, your mentality, that is you,” Purcell says, “and if

you lose track of it, you lose a part of yourself.”

Acknowledging that there is an issue in the first place can be a struggle in its own right. “There are things that I need to admit that I can’t do,” Graham says, “and it’s embarrassing sometimes, and I feel guilty for it, to say that I need help.” For a while, she would never accept accommodations from the university, because she didn’t want to look different or have others assume she was being granted special treatment. Looking back now, Graham would urge everyone to take any extra help they can get. “One day you could be okay, but the next quiz you might need them. I definitely struggled with that. It’s tough to admit to yourself that you need help.”

Though seeking out these opportunities is the best course of action, there are situations that make starting these conversations difficult and, frankly, pretty awkward. “I took a five-week philosophy class; each class was four hours long and I have a neurogenic bladder, meaning there’s nerve damage from where my spinal cord was tethered to my spine,” Graham says. “I pee often. I had to get up six times in one class period.”

The idea of discussing her restroom habits with her fellow classmates was embarrassing for Graham, and many of those who battle invisible illnesses find themselves in similar situations. Kelly Green, a student at Cuesta College, deals with vaginismus, a condition wherein her pelvic muscles contract and never release, making menstruation painful, sex impossible and even the act of putting on pants, at times, unbearable. “One can’t exactly discuss their vaginal health with a professor, so, to those who say, ‘Just explain it,’ it’s not always that simple,” Green says.

Her illness interfered with her education, limiting the amount of energy she had to contribute to her school work. She ended her first semester having only completed four credit hours. “It’s incredibly demoralizing to feel you’ll never be fully human and that no one understands,” she says.

In order to allow for the possibility of these kinds of conversations, awareness of illnesses that aren’t eas-

STUDYBREAKS.COM

ily recognizable is necessary. Organizations like “Mentality Magazine” and Active Minds are providing students with the tools to discuss mental health. “By opening up conversations about mental health on campuses, Active Minds chapters are dispelling some of the most common myths about help-seeking, so that more of their peers will get the assistance they need before reaching a crisis point,” Bertram says.

Similarly, the Zebra Network has been able to reach an audience that extends beyond the United States.

“I recently received an email from a woman in Venezuela, and, after somehow ending up on the French evening news, I now get messages from France saying they need my help,” Graham says. “But I’m only one person and sometimes I don’t know what to do.”

Graham, on top of competing in beauty pageants and working with her non-profit, has returned to taking classes at Mount St. Mary’s University, something that she loves,

but that is heavily affected by her illness. Completing her work now takes tremendous effort and long hours after suffering the equivalent of a traumatic brain injury. “To complete one chapter takes me a couple hours to read through. Then I have to take notes and then reread through the book one more time. That can take me six hours just to do that.”

She does this all knowing that, at any time, more issues can crop up.

Some days she’s paralyzed, and some days routine check-ups turn into emergency surgeries. Just before our interview, she had an emergency procedure, and yet, the meeting was pushed back only two hours, and she still enthusiastically answered questions on the phone, going on with business.

Graham’s passion for her education, her business and her life are what carry her to completing her tasks and what sometimes help her just to get up in the morning. “I just do it,” Graham says, “because this is what I have to do.”

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HOW STUDEN

T

S E I R WEB SE ARE CREATING DIVERSE MEDIA

By Ashley Wertz, University of Pittsburgh Photography by Clara Mokri, Yale University

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Yale filmmaker Rebecca Shoptaw, creator of the web series “Middlemarch: The Series”

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S

haring media has evolved a lot since the days of viral cat videos. Social media reaches millions of people daily, which makes it an important tool for creators across the globe.

Media such as television and movies can reach many people as well, but there are limits in place from decades of sticking to what is “right” and “normal,” and these definitions rest in the hands of those with the most power and privilege in the industry. And if the Academy Award-winning movies of the past haven’t told you who they are, I’m not sure what will.

People of color, the LGBTQ+ community, women, people with disabilities and so many other individuals hardly see themselves represented in popular media.

But the tides seem to be changing for the better, especially with the unexpected Best Picture win for “Moonlight” at this year’s Oscars.

Independent films often cater to these underrepresented people as well, but they don’t get nearly the viewership they deserve. Movies like “The Way He Looks,” the coming-of-age story about a blind teenager acknowledging his feelings for a male classmate, create beautiful stories for those who need to see themselves represented. But when you’re not in with Hollywood’s elite, it’s a bit difficult to get your foot in the door.

So how does this tie back to social media? In the past few years, there’s been a boom in people creating web series. Creators don’t have to sell their souls to large companies to get their content out there. And, what’s more, it’s getting easier for anyone to make their own web series, which opens doors when it comes to proper representation.

Sure, there are normal genres like comedy and romance, but creators have a lot more creative freedom than if they were jumping through hoops at a big studio.

The LGBTQ+ community especially is benefitting from web series, because nobody can tell creators that it’s too risky to make any (or all) characters queer.

Rebecca Shoptaw sets a perfect example when it comes to making films and videos as diverse as she pleases. Shoptaw is a Yale junior majoring in Film and Media Studies, and has been making films since she could work a camera. As a basis for many of her short films, she chooses well-known classics, like Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 23,” and adapts them for a queer audience. “I think more than anything I’m drawn to certain classic works to adapt because of their potential for representation,” Shoptaw says.

Classics have always been subject to intense scrutiny, to the point where possible representation is swept under the rug. Shakespeare and many other historical figures have had their “non-heterosexuality” erased because people have chosen to read their works as undeniably straight. Frustrated by this near-sighted reading, Shoptaw decided to take matters into her own hands and recreated the sonnet to make it “unequivocally not straight.”

And she’s not the only one who sees the potential for representation in older works. Shoptaw is inspired by web series like “All for One” (based on “The Three Mus-

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keteers”) and “Carmilla” (based on the novella of the same name). The LGBTQ+ spin on each of these works showed Shoptaw that it was possible to adapt her favorite stories into a longer series.

After musing about what she could use as material for her own web series, she found “Middlemarch,” a novel by George Eliot. The novel focuses on several distinct but intersecting stories about a slew of characters.

Shoptaw says one of the reasons she’s so interested in the novel is its larger arguments about human nature itself that still hold true in today’s society, such as the rigidity of social expectations.

“One wonderful thing about ‘Middlemarch’ is the way in which, unlike the relationships in many Victorian novels, most, if not all, of its healthier relationships are not particularly gendered,” Shoptaw says. The tropes in Victorian novels rely heavily on class difference and the imbalance of power between men and women. But the more neutral relationships in “Middlemarch” helped Shoptaw to simply change the gender of certain characters to make it LGBTQ+ without having to worry about these gendered power dynamics.

Shoptaw is also interested in the little moments of everyday life, so “Middlemarch” is the perfect source for her, as it deals with small-town living. “It was so heartening to be able to read a novel like ‘Middlemarch’ that reveled in its own ordinariness,” Shoptaw says. But the characters are still three-dimensional and as messy and mixed as actual people.

However, you might be wondering how a college student can balance such interesting projects and school life. Shoptaw says a perfect balance isn’t possible, but it helps that she doesn’t see filming as work. Rather, it’s something she can’t imagine not doing.

“I keep making films not so much as a fun hobby or extracurricular activity, but because filmmaking is what I do. I never really sat down and made a conscious decision to do film things exactly—it’s more of something that naturally became a bigger and bigger focus for me over time.”

Because Shoptaw likes to be fully in control of the production process (like writing, editing and cinematography), the way in which “Middlemarch” is filmed also makes it a little less complicated. “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries,” based on “Pride and Prejudice,” was one of the first web series to introduce the literary-inspired vlog trend. Basically, the story is told mainly through one character speaking directly to the camera, or several characters, in one location. In “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries,” Lizzie tells her story right from her bedroom.

Shoptaw’s own “Middlemarch: The Series” uses the vlog-style method as well.

“It’s interesting because I still wouldn’t say that any of these other web series necessarily inspired ‘Middlemarch: The Series,’” Shoptaw says. “Rather, they gave me a sense of what was possible within the realm of the literary web series: the conventions of the genre, what worked and what didn’t, what had been tried and what hadn’t.”

Though she loves the freedom of having her own

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projects, Shoptaw hopes to one day be a part of the TV industry, ideally as “the showrunner of some very gay TV show.” But she doesn’t want to give up on her personal work, as she believes the will to create something just because you want to is what keeps creative individuals going.

Shoptaw is not alone in the diverse web series category.

Another series made for and by the LGBTQ+ community is “Chapstick,” created by Columbia students Charlotte Kennett and Kearney Fagan. Although “Chapstick” and “Middlemarch” both have LGBTQ+ subjects and audiences in mind, they’re totally different. Imagine that.

Diverse media doesn’t have to focus entirely on what it’s representing.

But just like Shoptaw, Kennett and Fagan want to make characters that are just people who don’t happen to be straight. “We want people to feel accepted and happy when they watch our series,” Fagan says. “Our whole point for making this series was to normalize LGBTQ characters in TV and web series.” And the duo has succeeded in their quest.

The series follows two best friends, Marlo and Addy, who are lesbians. Unlike many shows and movies that dehumanize queer people to negative stereotypes, “Chapstick” aims to show people that you can have queer characters that do the same weird and embarrassing things as everyone else does. That’s just how human beings work.

Marlo and Addy go through the same confusing young adulthood rites of passage, such as messy relationships and recreational substance use.

Season one is completely finished, but fans needn’t fear. The show is coming back this summer, and Kennett and Fagan are bringing even more to the table. With funding from their fans, they plan on upping the production quality of the show as well as filming in even more locations.

The two would love to some day put their project on air, but for now they enjoy the process. “Overall, we make this show because we like it, and we wanted to create something different that we wished we had seen on Comedy Central or elsewhere,” Fagan says.

Since “Chapstick” is one of a kind at the moment, it’s important that it keeps getting attention and support.

The internet is a giant place, and it’s easy to get swallowed up when posting videos on YouTube, but “Chapstick” sticks out in a good way.

The more people see LGBTQ+ folks as normal human beings worthy of their own shows, the better it is for future media input from other marginalized groups. Web series are a great place to start, but film and series makers are always looking to go further.

Web series have opened many doors for diversity, but they also challenge certain genre conventions. Comedy series have also been extremely popular on YouTube. Unfortunately, comedy has been a “man’s world” for quite a while. But UCLA students Sydney Heller and Olivia DeLaurentis, the creators of “Sugar Babies,” think that people are “getting bored with things that have been on the air for a trillion years.”

Racist, sexist, homophobic and stale humor has long

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overstayed its welcome, but diverse creators are pushing back more than ever, thanks to accessible platforms like YouTube. Yes, there are still plenty of awful comedians on YouTube, but at least people have the freedom to not stoop so low. “[Making your own videos] gives you a lot more autonomy, because you don’t have to wait for someone else to tell you who you are,” DeLaurentis says.

Both creators believe it’s important for women to take charge of their own creative visions. “Women have always been funny,” Heller says. “It’s not like women are getting better at comedy; people are just now like, ‘Yes, let’s have more of this.’”

“Sugar Babies” is certainly a web series that showcases women-fronted comedy. The series focuses on two women, played by Heller and DeLaurentis, selling their services as strictly non-sexual sugar babies for rich guys in order to get themselves through college.

Heller and DeLaurentis met in their high school’s comedy improv team, so they’re no stranger to seamless, witty humor, similar to what you’d find in “The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo,” which the two cite as an inspiration for their own series. Their humor is fastpaced, so it’s difficult to recover from laughter between each joke.

“We’re super aware that [our work] is something online and if it’s online, especially through YouTube, it doesn’t need to be 100 percent perfect,” Heller says. Like Shoptaw, the two creators do everything on their own with occasional assistance from one or two friends at most, so putting too much time and money into production value isn’t their cup of tea. At the end of the day, the comedy is what drives them forward.

“We wanted to put as much comedic effort into it as we can and show off our voices,” DeLaurentis says. By using a web series format, the two comediennes hope to kick start something bigger and better. In fact, they’ve already pitched the show to a few people. But first they want to finish the web series and see where it goes from there.

This certainly wouldn’t be the first time a web series has transitioned into television territory, especially a comedy. “Broad City,” also created by a female duo, caught Amy Poehler’s attention and has been successful ever since.

Just like any other form of media, web series can be totally different. From classic adaptations to comedy that subtly fights back against norms, these projects shouldn’t be looked down on due to how they’re shared with the world. Posting online is also a great way to reach out to like-minded people and collaborate. Making a web series may not be an “insta-fame” deal, but the fact that people put so much time and effort into something they love, while knowing it might not go beyond YouTube, shows how sincere they are about sharing their work.

Breaking into an industry that’s been so resistant to change since its beginnings is no easy task, but making representation matter is becoming more and more acceptable. “Middlemarch,” “Chapstick” and “Sugar Babies” are a perfect sampling of what television could and should be.

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GROWING GHANA In partnership with Voices of African Mothers, students from Cornell University Sustainable Design are working to create a self-sustaining school for Ghanaian girls.

By Miguel Robles, University of Colorado Denver Renders courtesy of CUSD

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here is a fine line between charity and vanity, and in a social media-crazed society, Americans all too often blur that line. Victims of the white savior complex, who often double as the “insta-famous” weekend warrior, may enter the convoluted world stage with positive intentions, but usually leave behind unintended consequences. These misguided volunteers, who are usually Americans on service trips to impoverished areas, thrive on the images of the smiles of impoverished children. In these images, the self-appointed caretaker is often featured as the focal point of happiness and progress. After an abbreviated stay on-location, the savior returns home, basking in their own charitability, often never to return.

While optimistic, the idea of a short-term volunteer campaign creating lasting success is naive. Without truly addressing the region’s needs by working with local

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professionals and organizations, these charitable campaigns end when the cameras are turned off.

Believing that any Westerner can affect significant change, regardless of profession, skill or background knowledge, downplays the perplexing issues that the underdeveloped world has dealt with for centuries, while also advancing the paternalistic narrative that lasting change can only come from the minds of the former colonizers. These f leeting volunteer missions don’t often spark significant development, and leave behind a deeply damaging mindset for developing countries trying to get out of the dark shadows of colonial times.

Enter Cornell University Sustainable Design (CUSD).

Founded at Cornell in 2009, CUSD prides itself on its ability to engineer, design and construct sustainable projects meant to last the test of time.

The interdisciplinary design team, made up of Cornell’s

brightest students, responds to local needs by partnering with local professionals in the field.

The goal is to create a non-invasive design that works within the parameters of the area’s capabilities and available resources. A meticulous approach, consisting of extensive research and significant field work, ensures that the team will avoid the ineffectual myopia of the white savior. With this group there’s no posturing, no gallivanting in their own vanity.

Any preconceived notion of what these poor communities “need” is left at home, as they lend an open ear to the needs of the locals. They work to fill a hole left in a region, but unlike the weekend warriors, they work alongside professionals in the community.

Early projects with CUSD started to form the mold of their sustainable design, while paving success for future endeavors. The group’s first major project began with the Schoolhouse South Africa design in 2010. The team developed and constructed a

school outside of Johannesburg, South Africa. The design was built to be completely sustainable. The building is low-tech, has passive heating and cooling systems, with natural lighting, leaving essentially no environmental impact, while requiring little resources to keep it up and running. According to Samuel Turer, a Cornell junior who serves as the executive director of project identification and expansion for CUSD, the project was “so successful, they wanted an evening session as well. We needed to come back and install solar panels for night classes.”

The team kept the ball rolling with another success two years later, with Sustainable Neighborhood Nicaragua. In collaboration with the Nicaraguan non-profit organization SosteNica, CUSD developed a sustainable design similar to the schoolhouse in South Africa. This time, the design was a community-based, locally sourced, low-tech

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model home. The design was developed to withstand a 5.0 magnitude earthquake. It was later put to the test, as several years after construction, the neighborhood received a 5.7 earthquake, and the model home was the only structure in the village to remain standing. The design was so well received that SosteNica used it as a model to construct similar structures throughout the country.

It was then that Cornell University Sustainable Design came across its most ambitious project yet. In 2014, CUSD discovered an opportunity to do a project with a non-governmental organization (NGO) with a simple, yet complicated mission—educating girls in Ghana.

In Africa, approximately 40 percent of women lack access to basic education, leading to about twenty-eight million girls between the ages six to fifteen never entering in a classroom setting. In Ghana, the issue is particularly relevant. Far fewer

Ghanaian girls finish their education than Ghanaian boys. This issue has been prevalent in Ghana for a number of reasons. A large part of the discrepancy comes down to accessibility. Two-thirds of Ghana’s population are farmers. With such a large farming community, many families aren’t close enough to schools, and aren’t able to afford sending all of their children to school. Unfortunately, all too often it is the sons who get that opportunity, leaving the daughters behind to do housework. A major driver of the discrepancy comes down to deeply rooted cultural gender roles. Ghana, like many countries across the globe, have ingrained beliefs that the women’s place is in the home, to provide and maintain a family. While education is simply not an option for some of these communities, young boys often receive opportunities that young girls will never see.

That being said, there are many people in Ghana who do

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not conform to these widely held gender roles. Former chief financial officer of the United Nations, Nana Fosu-Randall, certainly has become the voice of this movement. Fosu-Randall, a native Ghanaian, formed Voices of African Mothers (VAM) as a way to establish a voice for the disenfranchised girls and women across the continent. Using education as a platform, VAM and its humanitarian founder believe they can empower women to create an egalitarian society throughout Africa. It all begins with providing a positive example of educated young women in the forefront of the movement. According to Fosu-Randall’s daughter and current project manager for VAM, Kachina Randall, “They would become leaders in their communities with an equal voice, creating an understanding among all people.”

Fosu-Randall began this process back in 1997, when she established the John William Montessori school in

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Kumasi, Ghana. The school started small, with only 36 attendees. However, after a large inf lux of donations, the school now holds 750 students, with an annual graduation rate of around 40 students.

From there, with the development of VAM’s Girl Academy, the organization continued to create a more inclusive environment for girls across Africa and Ghana. The vision for the academy isn’t as simple as developing an all-girls school, though. Rather, VAM hopes to create a community serving as a microcosm of its mission statement: A self-sufficient village meant to break the restrictive stereotypes of what women in Africa can be. According to Randall, educating girls sends a message: “We women are equally important. We can lead. We are useful outside of the home.

We are capable when given the opportunity.” The designed VAM Village in the Sogakope region of Ghana represents a

more inclusive Ghana.

VAM reached out to CUSD as a way to make this vision a reality. In 2014, the two organizations began collaborating for CUSD’s latest venture, Sustainable Education Ghana (SEG). For the last four semesters, CUSD students have worked tirelessly to design the academy at the center of VAM’s grand concept. As a way to establish connections with local professionals and understand the needs for the project, the CUSD team sent three of its members to Ghana in 2015. The group of three included Claudia Nielsen and Arielle Tannin, SEG’s two project directors. The trip provided a unique insight, not only to the resources available for development in the region, but also on the context for VAM’s work in the region.

The team was able to interview professional Ghanaian developers, while also visiting the development site in the Sogakope region and witnessing Randall’s earlier success,

following a visit to John William Montessori school. After that point, the CUSD team went into a strenuous amount of research and development, culminating in a completed design revolving around absolute sustainability.

CUSD gets its name from its ability to provide environmental, economic and social sustainability. The SEG design certainly addresses each component. Like previous projects, the design focuses on using local materials to maximize the available resources on hand as an economical approach, but also ensures that the development can be maintained over time.

The design includes the use of rammed-mud bricks, which, according to SEG architect and Cornell senior Alex Zink, “work like normal bricks, but they’re made from mud, so they’re not too far away and are dried naturally.” This makes sure that unnecessary resources aren’t expended, while avoiding burning fossil

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fuels. To heighten the sense of sustainability, the site makes sure the school wouldn’t be too dependent on electricity.

Electricity isn’t as readily available in Ghana, so the design has several features that account for the unreliable access. In lieu of air conditioning, the classrooms are pointed toward the wind to capture breeze, according to Zink. In addition, there will be solar panels installed for night time use and refrigeration, so when electricity is required, it doesn’t mean that fossil fuels have to be burned.

At the time of this writing, the design is finished. The only thing left to do in the project is fundraising and construction. By incorporating modular construction, SEG plans to essentially start small and grow from there.

Using the original chunk of funding, the CUSD team will head out to Ghana this summer for the initial construction of the school building.

After the school is up and

running, VAM can use the partner’s success to provide further marketing for the fundraising campaign. VAM envisions the success of the school will allow it to become a boarding school and eventually a fully sustainable village.

Both VAM and CUSD have shown lasting success begins with a small first step.

For the students of CUSD, this incredible project has given them an unbeatable networking opportunity.

Their work with professionals at home and overseas provides limitless possibilities for life after graduation. More importantly, it provides an exclusive perspective into the worlds of development and education in a country that couldn’t be more different than their homes. For the future students of VAM’s Girl Academy in VAM Village, this community offers a level of inclusion and empowerment that is destined to create future leaders of a new Ghana.

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EXTRA CREDIT

Get ting to Know:

RAJATBHAGERIA

By Lindsay Biondy, University of Pittsburgh Photography by Ananya Chandra, University of Pennsylvania Twenty-year-old University of Pennsylvania student Rajat Bhageria is the co-founder of ThirdEye Technologies, a product that uses artificial intelligence to empower the visually impaired. After meeting with representatives from the American Foundation for the Blind, Bhageria and his team realized that they had a product that was better than anything else on the market, and decided to bring it to fruition. All a person has to do is point their phone at whatever they want to look at, and within seconds, ThirdEye will verbally describe the object in detail.

Soon after graduating from high school, Bhageria also wrote a book called “What High School Didn’t Teach Me: A Recent Graduate’s Perspective on How High School is Killing Creativity,” which, as the title suggests, discusses the flaws within a typical high school curriculum. With knowledge and passion for both artificial intelligence and entrepreneurship, Bhageria hopes to continue to develop technology that will improve the lives of others.

“Me and a bunch of friends wanted to create something that made a 10x difference. We were tired of seeing all these startups and companies where people were doing something marginal that makes the world better by only ten percent. I thought if we were going to do anything, we better do something that really significantly improves the lives of a group of people.”

“It all started at Hackathon. A whole bunch of hackers and software people come together to build something cool. You have as much caffeine and food as you want, and, after thirty-six hours, you present it to the judges. If they like your idea, they’ll give you money. That’s where we started. A bunch of these investors thought we had a really cool product. They said, ‘Maybe you guys should turn this into a company.’”

“You could argue my book was my first entrepreneurial endeavor. After four years of high school, I may not be a sixty-year-old guy who has a doctorate in education, but being in the depth of the system, I understand what doesn’t work, and based on my observations, research and experience with teachers, I had some recommendations on how to solve these problems.”

about building a company; it was just making cool stuff that would make the world a better place.”

“The problem with education right now is that everyone sees it. Everybody knows the problem, but nobody ever does anything to solve it. So, my thought was to go for a grassroots, bottom-up approach, as opposed to a top-down approach.

Let’s go for the parents, the people who actually did graduate, and talk to them, and make them realize this is a problem we can solve.”

“I’ve optimized every portion of my life. I get up every morning and exercise and meditate, and I read before bed so I get a good night’s sleep. I optimize every tiny portion of my life, but I also realized that the lines are blurred between work and life.”

“My social life isn’t just going to some weird party and getting blasted drunk. For me, my social life is hanging out with other founder friends, or hanging out with interesting people doing interesting projects. And, it’s not only social. I have a good time, but I also get something out of it that I can apply to my company.”

“If I need a break, that refuge comes from reading. If it’s fiction, I love to learn about different characters and how they interact with each other. Or if it’s nonfiction, [I love] learning about anything from different parts of space, to how the ocean works, to obscure, weird topics. It’s really fun, and it’s cool when you combine random, eclectic topics together in your head. That’s the fundamental core of creativity.”

“Entrepreneurship isn’t a thing you do; it’s a way of living.”

“I didn’t really realize that this was entrepreneurship. I just looked at it as invention and making cool stuff. And I’ve always been interested in making cool stuff. It was never really

“The world is your oyster. You can do whatever you want to do, even if you know nothing. I think realizing that opens up a word of possibilities.”

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“At the end of the day, there’s no such thing as work/life balance; it’s all just life. ThirdEye didn’t feel like work and my book didn’t feel like work because I loved to do it, like intrinsic motivation. Obviously, there’s some portions that aren’t that fun, but overall everything kind of fits together.”

T H E FAC T FILE NAME: Rajat Bhageria AGE: 20 MAJOR: Economics & Computer Science YEAR: Junior HOMETOWN: New Delhi, India INVENTION: ThirdEye Technologies, a produc t that uses ar tificial intelligence to empower the visually impaired

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president Meet the

What is your major?

Integrative Studies, with focuses in International Security and Diplomacy, College of Information and Leadership Studies, with a Rehabilitation Studies certificate

What’s the best class you’ve taken in college?

Racquetball has by far been the best class in college!

Photography by Sara Carpenter, University of North Texas

Where do you want to go most in the world?

I like going anywhere warm that has a beach.

What are your summer plans?

I will be working for the Student Government Association and interning in Washington D.C. for a senator.

What is your dream job?

Making a positive difference, however cliché that sounds

Who are some of your favorite authors?

Jocko Willink and Khaled Hosseini are my current favorites.

What academic focus most interests you?

Reforming our education system What are your intellectual strengths?

Curiosity. I am always asking “why” in situations.

What is your go-to meal?

Any kind of noodle dish What’s your biggest struggle as a student?

My biggest struggle as a student has been overcoming my ideal of perfection. I work to do what I can do, the best way that I can do it, and try to accept it.

What will you never understand?

Why our education system judges us by our standardized test results.

What qualities do you most admire in a person?

The qualities that I admire most in a person are honesty, integrity and responsibility.

What is your favorite Instagram account? @bluewhistlerfarm–there is something so refreshing about watching nature!

What is your most marked characteristic?

My most marked characteristic is my resiliency.

I believe with hard work anything is possible!

What angers you?

When people are assigned a task and they fail to complete the job fully.

Where would you be if not in college?

I would own and operate a specialty butcher shop, with my own line of organic honey.

What is your typical outfit?

My typical outfit is jeans, Birkenstocks and a UNT t-shirt.

BARRET T COLE

What is your biggest indulgence?

My biggest indulgence is Takis and bubble tea; I could drink and eat these all day!

Student Body President of the University of North Texas What is currently on your mind?

Lately my mind has been full of thoughts on how to be the best undergraduate student body president I can be. I want to strengthen relationships at UNT and help everyone embrace differences and growth.

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What is your motto?

Dream the impossible. Seek the unknown.

Achieve greatness.

What music are you into at the moment?

Coldplay

What is your most treasured possession?

Family

What’s a secret talent of yours?

One of my secret talent s is the incredible amount of information I know about agriculture. I could easily live on a ranch with chickens and cows and be right at home!

What One MIT Professor Learned from Watching the Kardashians pg. 16

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J U N E 2 0 1 7 /// S T U D Y B R E A K S . C O M