Dec. 3, 2025

The Emory Wheel

From ‘Lady Fleming’ to

By EilEEn Zhu Staff Writer

Spotted resting under cars, eating leftover food on the Oxford College Quadrangle and pacing around Melizer Circle, stray cats roam all over Oxford College’s campus. According to an email on Nov. 12 from Oxford Associate Dean and Director of Residential Education and Services (RES) Timothy Leyson to the Oxford Student Government Association (OxSGA), the college aims to relocate the cats that live on Oxford’s campus to a local no-kill shelter by the end of the fall semester.

Amelia Green (27Ox) and two other students run an Instagram page for “Lady Fleming,” one of the cats on campus. Green said relocating the cats may damage morale on campus since many Oxford students have bonded with the animals.

‘Sox,’

Oxford’s

Wheel, the Facilities Management Office described the University’s process of setting traps for stray cats to “humanely” control their presence on Emory campuses.

stray cats to be relocated Oxford’s early graduation rate decreases to 21.1%

releasing them back into their environment. Emory also works with our pest control contractors to assist with humanely trapping.”

“Once a stray cat is discovered, live traps are set for a two-week period,” the office wrote.

“During that time, traps are opened

“It’s a bad thing that they don’t want the cats on campus, because I think it’s a big resource for students just to enjoy the company of little creatures,” Green said. “It’s a shame.”

Leyson, who is working with the Facilities Management Office on this project, praised students’ passion for the stray animals in his email to OxSGA, but also said Oxford’s campus is not “equipped to provide” care for the cats.

In a statement to The Emory

and set each afternoon and checked the following morning. If the trap remains clear, the trap is closed until the afternoon, so cats are not kept in the cage throughout the day.”

The University brings captured cats to the LifeLine Animal Project, a nonprofit animal shelter located in both Fulton and DeKalb counties, according to the Facilities Management Office.

“Emory has a history of utilizing Trap-Neuter-Return, a program to humanely manage feral cat populations,” the office wrote. “This involves spaying or neutering cats and then

As of press time, the Facilities Management Office has not confirmed whether they have removed any cats from Oxford’s campus.

Newton County, where Oxford College is located, operates Newton County Animal Services, which does not have a no-kill policy and holds stray animals for three business days, according to their website.

In Leyson’s email to OxSGA, he asked students to “refrain from feeding, sheltering, or attempting to care for the stray cats directly.” He noted that students may unintentionally harm the health and safety of both the cats and the Oxford community by providing the animals with food or shelter.

Despite this guidance, many students have expressed concern and taken action to care for the cats. According to OxSGA Speaker of the Senate and Chair of Student Living Aidan O’Sullivan (26Ox), the colder weather in recent months has caused concerns for some in the student body, and a few have attempted to help the animals in different ways.

While several stray cats have traversed the campus over the years —

See OXFORD, Page 3

By EilEEn Zhu Staff Writer

After hitting an all-time high of 33.7% last year, Oxford College’s early graduation rate dropped this year after previously steadily increasing for six consecutive years.

Of the 432 current Oxford sophomores, 91 students, or 21.1% of the class, will matriculate early to the Atlanta campus after the Fall 2025 semester, according to data from Associate Director of University Communications Rachel Smith.

Last fall, Oxford announced and enacted a new credit policy, after which many students expressed worries that the policy would make it more challenging to graduate early. Under the new policy, students are limited to transferring up to eight credits earned through Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or college credit toward Oxford graduation requirements. Before the policy was implemented, Oxford allowed students to transfer up to 18 credits.

According to Oxford Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Valerie Molyneaux, the college implemented this change “in the interest of equity and to ensure that the quality and rigor of outside coursework meets university standards.”

Priyanka Mohanraj (26Ox) shared that while she initially wanted to graduate from Oxford early, she was one credit short from doing so.

“Last summer, when I found out I couldn’t graduate early, it was very

confusing,” Mohanraj said. “The credit policy, it inhibited a lot of people that initially came in with the goal of graduating early.”

Mohanraj mentioned she wanted access to more of the research opportunities on the Atlanta campus.

“If I were able to graduate early, in terms of pre-professional goals, it would put me more ahead,” Mohanraj said. “I know with research, when I was reaching out to Atlanta professors, they very much preferred people that are on the Atlanta campus.”

Mohanraj highlighted that the new credit policy, which began for her class, affected her four-year plan.

“I already prepared a lot of my classes before I came into Emory,” Mohanraj said. “With the transfer policy and especially with my credits, a lot of them didn’t really transfer smoothly. It made me take a lot of classes I took in high school, like stats or econ. It put me a little behind in that sense.”

Shraddha Vanaparthy (25Ox), who plans to graduate early from Oxford this fall, said she wanted to graduate early as part of her plan to graduate from Emory University a semester early.

“With the gap semester, especially as I’m on the pre-med track, I thought it’d be cool to have that time, so I could, for example, study for the MCAT, or if I wanted to work a full-time job, I could pursue that within that semester, instead of hav-

See EARLY, Page 2

SGA releases new financial data to improve transparency

By Tori MoonEy SGA Desk

Seeking to increase financial transparency, Emory University’s Student Government Association’s (SGA) Vice President of Finance Grant Lichtman (26B) delivered a financial report on SGA’s yearly funding, accounts and spending during their Nov. 17 legislative session. The report publicized much of SGA’s financial data for the first time in recent years.

This release follows SGA’s Nov. 10 legislative session, during which legislators asked the organization’s executive branch for more information about SGA’s funding and accounts, seeking to increase transparency with the student body. According to the SGA Finance Code, upon the legislature’s request, the vice president of finance must deliver a biannual public report.

The Nov. 17 financial report publicized the amount of money in SGA’s Contingency Account, which funds University-wide programs and events through the SGA supplemental funding process or with SGA legislative approval. As of the report’s publication, SGA anticipates having $546,349.70 in the account for Spring 2026. Each year, unspent Student Activity Fee (SAF) funds are

added to the account balance, which carries over from one SGA administration to the next.

Much of SGA’s funding comes from the SAF, a mandatory, semesterly fee that every student pays to help fund SGA and student groups. Currently, students pay $133 semesterly into the SAF.

According to SGA Chief of Staff Elijah Robuck (26C), in recent years, SGA kept the amount of money in the Contingency Account private from students due to “contract negotiations,” but Robuck did not expand. However, the SGA Constitution states that the organization’s papers are public record.

SGA President Tyler Martinez (26C) said the decision to publicize the amount of money in SGA accounts was part of the current administration’s larger initiative to build transparency with the student body.

“We definitely want to make sure that every process within student government is equitable, and it holds every organization that we contribute to accountable,” Martinez said.

Lichtman said this administration is emphasizing transparency in order to increase the student government’s accountability in financial decisions.

“This year, we’re trying to be a lot more transparent and equitable with

the money we have and the money we give out,” Lichtman said. “We want to make sure that all of our decisions are data-driven and that we’re not really just doing anything arbitrary.”

Each semester, the Student Accounts and Billing Office collects the SAF from students’ tuition, and SGA then disperses SAF funds to divisional councils and executive agencies, which are responsible for overseeing undergraduate-wide programs and clubs (EAs).

Some of SGA’s other accounts include the Executive Account and Legislative Account, which provide administrative funding to run programs and events. Another SGA account is the Fee Interest Account, which collects interest on SGA accounts and funds permanent programs that benefit every undergraduate student, such as stipends to reduce printing costs and continue managing the Hub.

SGA also allocates funding to the four divisional councils based on enrollment numbers at each college, including the College Council, the Bachelor of Business Administration Council, Oxford Student Government Association and the Emory Student Nurses Association. The SAF split determines the percentage allocated to the division for each student and to SGA.

SPencer friedland/editOr-in- chief

Student Government Association President Tyler Martinez discusses referendums at the University Senate on Nov. 18.

Additionally, SGA also provides funding to EAs, which include Service Council, Belonging and Community Council, Club Sports, Outdoor Emory and Student Programming Council, among others, based on the annual EA review process. Lichtman said that during the EA review process, each EA presents on past and future initiatives, which the Finance Committee uses to determine how much money they need for the fol-

lowing year.

Martinez highlighted future changes that his administration hopes to make to the EA review process.

“We don’t think that that’s been the most useful way of determining an allocated budget for executive agencies specifically, and we’re looking to enhance that process so that it’s more equitable and just more

See LEADERS, Page 3

Olivia Piri/Staff illuStratOr

Emory more than doubles Bitcoin endowment holdings

By livia MaZnikEr Contributing Writer

After becoming the first U.S. university to disclose its cryptocurrency holdings in October 2024, Emory University more than doubled its investment in Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that invests in bitcoin, this year. The University increased its stake in the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust to over 1 million shares, which were valued at nearly $52 million when Emory reported the purchase on Nov. 12. By comparison, at the end of June, the University held just under 500,000 shares, valued at $21 million.

Emory also slightly increased its equity stake in Coinbase from last year’s 4,312 shares to nearly 4,500 shares, worth around $1.2 million. Coinbase is a cryptocurrency exchange platform that allows individuals and institutions to trade digital assets.

Along with expanding their bitcoin investments, Emory invested nearly $79 million in BlackRock’s iShares Gold Trust, signaling a shift toward more hard assets. The new investments are part of Emory’s hope to diversify its long-term endowment investment portfolio, according to Emory University's Goizueta Business School Associate Professor of Accounting Matthew Lyle. Teaching Professors of Economics Musa Ayar and Melvin Ayogu emphasized that the recent increase reflects the growing normalization of bitcoin as a stable investment.

Ayar said that he was “not really surprised” to see Emory expand its investment.

“In higher education, maybe it’s not a common practice yet, but cryptocurrency is making ground for a good five to 10 years now,” Ayar said. “It was only time that the higher

education institutions will join this trend.”

Lyle mentioned a market shift toward investment following recent developments in cryptocurrency regulation, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopting generic listing standards that make it easier for additional cryptocurrency ETFs to launch.

“We’ve seen a bunch of ETFs that were created over the last 16 to 24 months,” Lyle said. “What that did was basically say that the SEC was OK with bitcoin and [Ethereum].

Once you have that, then the regulation risk doesn’t become such a big deal.”

Lyle did not view Emory’s increased investments in cryptocurrency as a negative, calling Emory’s decision “not an unreasonable move at all.”

“We’re going to see more broader adoption and holdings across not

only universities, but institutions in general with respect to crypto,” Lyle said. “You’ll probably see other universities end up holding more bitcoin, more ETH, than we have in the past.”

For Lyle, the University’s increased investments in Bitcoin are not concerning because he believes skepticism around cryptocurrency has faded as institutions start to invest in it.

“To me, as a person that would like to see broader crypto adoption and some of the misnomers about what it is pass, it’s a positive thing as a product,” Lyle said. “I personally like that Emory has some crypto in its investment portfolio.”

U.S. News & World Report values Emory’s endowment at over $11 billion, placing it among the 15 largest university endowments in the country. With a portfolio of that scale, Lyle said the cryptocurrency position

Crime Report: Theft by taking, entering an auto, felony theft by shoplifting

By GEorGE SEGall

Crime Desk

The Emory Wheel regularly meets with Emory Police Department (EPD) Records Manager Ed Shoemaker (87G, 90G) and Director of Campus Safety Communications Morieka Johnson (94C, 24L) and uses EPD’s public crime log to inform the Emory University community about recent crime on and around Emory’s campuses.

To report a crime, contact EPD at 404-727-6111 or police@emory.edu.

Theft by taking at 800 Houston Mill Road NE

A non-Emory-affiliated individual reported a theft on Nov. 26 at about 9:30 p.m. The individual parked on the shoulder of Houston Mill Road, roughly several hundred feet away from the entrance to Hahn Woods, a wooded area with a walking path near Emory’s Atlanta campus.

The victim parked their vehicle, a Chevrolet Tahoe, with a trailer and a skid steer attached, and left at about 6:00 p.m. to walk on the trail. They returned from the trail at

about 8:15 p.m. and discovered the trailer and the skid steer were missing. Moreover, the victim rented the trailer and skid steer from a Home Depot. A skid steer is a construction vehicle that workers can use to dig and haul materials.

According to EPD, the value of the trailer is $1,500 and the value of the skid steer is about $30,000. EPD did not find video coverage of the area during the time of the incident and has been unsuccessful in locating the vehicle’s movement. EPD has assigned the case for an investigative follow-up.

Entering an auto on Emory Point Drive

Someone not affiliated with the individual reported to EPD on Nov. 28 that an unknown perpetrator broke into and stole property from the vehicle in Emory Point's parking garage at about 2:00 p.m.

Around 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 19, the complainant parked their vehicle in the parking deck at 855 Emory Point Drive. They returned on Nov. 26 at roughly 4:30 p.m. to discover their backpack missing from the car.

According to the complainant, the backpack contained a black Chromebook laptop, a laptop charger and miscellaneous school supplies. The backpack belongs to the complainant’s child, and the child’s school issued the Chromebook.

EPD is currently gathering information on the Chromebook so that it can be entered into the Crime Information computer, allowing them to conduct an investigation.

Felony theft by shoplifting at CVS Pharmacy at Emory Point

An employee of the CVS Pharmacy at Emory Point contacted EPD on Nov. 30 at about 6:00 p.m. to report a shoplifting incident that occurred the previous day. The store manager reported to EPD that on Nov. 29 at about 11:25 a.m., a white female entered the pharmacy, picked up a prescription, then proceeded to fill her bag with merchandise and she left the store at about 11:55 a.m. without paying for the merchandise.

The woman returned to the store at 12:07 p.m. and filled her bag with merchandise. She left the store at about 12:17 p.m. again without paying for the items. The store discovered the missing merchandise the following day during its inventory count. EPD reviewed their camera footage and described the individual as a female in her early 50s, carrying a black bag.

The reported value of the property stolen is $1,000. EPD assigned the case to an investigator for follow-up. Shoemaker could not confirm if this were related to previous shoplifting cases at the CVS.

— Contact George Segall at george.segall@emory.edu

Emory, but companies and other investment managers make their way into it, that should give the average person that hasn’t heard that much about it … maybe they should start to ignore a little bit more some of the negative things associated with cryptocurrencies,” Lyle said.

Ayar and Ayogu also highlighted hedging, an investment strategy that allows investors to reduce the risk of loss by adding a second investment to help protect against losses on the first, as a likely reason for Emory’s simultaneous investment in bitcoin and gold.

Ayar described gold as an “anchor in a portfolio,” and Ayogu further emphasized gold’s role in protecting investments.

“Gold is good because if anything happened to some of the regular fiat money, regular currencies, you’ve got gold, as a hedge,” Ayogu said.

represents a minimal share of the total endowment.

“52 million out of 11 billion is pretty small,” Lyle said. “You don’t take 5% of your investable assets and throw them into a new asset class. You build up a position slowly over time.”

Ayar noted that endowments across the country have moved away from extremely conservative approaches, such as bonds. Many large universities have diversified their portfolios by investing in private equity, startups and other riskier investments. Similar to Emory, Harvard University (Mass.) and the University of Texas at Austin have also invested in cryptocurrency.

Ayogu interpreted these investments as “a change in the culture,” and Lyle noted how other universities have expanded their cryptocurrency investments.

“When you actually see, not just

As institutional interest in Bitcoin grows, Ayogu said students should expect slower, steadier performance from their investments.

“Don’t ask for heaven and Earth just because you put your money in that,” Ayogu said. “You may begin to expect the kind of returns maybe in the future that you find with S&P 500 or Dow Jones.”

Lyle emphasized that cryptocurrency is simply another kind of money, and not as abstract as people assume.

“One of the things that I’ve learned, and that students learn, is that this notion of money, it’s an abstract notion,” Lyle said. “If [money] is real, then this cryptocurrency … why is it any less real?”

Managing Editor Lauren Yee (24Ox, 27C) contributed to reporting.

— Contact Livia Mazniker at livia.mazniker@emory.edu

Early graduates discuss reasons

for leaving at end of fall semester

Continued from Page 1

ing academics,” Vanaparthy said. Vanaparthy also said she needed to take up to 19 credits for several semesters in order to fulfill the requirements to graduate early. In addition to that, she took two summer classes.

“Financially, yes, it was expensive, but I guess my mindset was like, you do these two courses, or I spend an extra 45k for a semester,” Vanaparthy said. “In the long term, it felt more financially responsible.”

Divya Nagarajan (26Ox) said she initially wanted to graduate early but ultimately did not because she lacked the necessary credit hours. She said her perspective on Oxford influenced her original desire to leave campus a semester early.

“I really didn’t like Oxford, and I was like, ‘I don’t want to be stuck here,’” Nagarjan said. “I was like, ‘I’m so jealous of everyone in Atlanta who gets to be close to everything, and I’m far away and in the middle of nowhere,’ so I’m going to graduate a semester early.”

Even though Nagarajan dislikes Oxford’s credit policy, she also shared that she was glad she did not end up graduating early because she now appreciates her time at Oxford.

“I think it’s dumb, but also good, because now I really like Oxford,” Nagarajan said. “So, I’m kind of glad that I didn't graduate early.”

— Contact Eileen Zhu at eileen.zhu@emory.edu

Siya Kumar/newS editOr

JacK SuttOn/dePuty PhOtOgra Phy editOr

The CVS Pharmacy at Emory Point reported a felony theft by shoplifting to the Emory Police Department on Nov. 30.

Leaders explain finance code, current distribution of funding

Continued from Page 1

straightforward and data-driven as well,” Martinez said.

Outside of divisional and EA funding, student groups can also apply for supplemental funding from SGA if their division or EA denies financing or cannot fully fund their request. Supplemental funds come from the SGA Contingency Account, according to the finance code. SGA passed its first round of supplemental funding this year during its Nov. 24 legislative session.

In recent years, SGA has usually allocated supplemental funding monthly, but its suspension earlier this year prevented the legislature from continuing this process, according to Lichtman.

University-wide funding cuts have impacted SGA’s supplemental funding process. Student groups are receiving similar amounts from divisional councils and EAs as the SAF has not been affected. However, Lichtman said that many organizations that previously relied on funding from departments across the school are seeking SGA supplemental funding instead.

“Given the university funding cuts, we might have to handle more supplemental funding requests through SGA, because if clubs can’t go to departments or the administration for funding, we’re probably going to have to take over that,” Lichtman said.

In addition to supplemental funding, Robuck said SGA administration is considering new solutions to ensure student groups receive sufficient funds.

“[SGA’s] hope is to work with donors and alumni, as well as use

the money that SGA has, to make up for as much of the loss that they can within reason,” Robuck said.

In light of these funding cuts and “confusion” surrounding the supplemental funding application process, Lichtman mentioned that SGA plans to make changes to the current Finance Code. He outlined his goal to standardize the operational and supplemental funding process, including centralizing applications across divisions and EAs and adding a review by the Finance Committee.

“I don’t want to add a lot of oversight,” Lichtman said. “I still want the divisions and EAs to be able to review funding on their own, but I would just want the final, annual budgets to be run by the Finance Committee, at least before they’re allocated.”

Martinez added that SGA plans to update the Finance Code to account for increased demand for supplemental funding, amid university funding cuts.

“We definitely acknowledge that and also are revising the Finance Code to make sure that level of funding that was once provided, we’re able to take that on,” Martinez said.

To better understand funding needs, SGA is conducting a survey to collect student input on how they would like to see money spent across campus. Lichtman urged students to reach out with questions about SGA finances to increase transparency.

“We want students to know that they can talk to us if they want information about where the SAF’s going, because it’s their money,” Lichtman said.

— Contact Tori Mooney at tori.mooney@emory.edu

Oxford students defend presence of campus cats

Continued from Page 1

from Lady Fleming to “Sox” — students are concerned about the cats’ well-being as the weather has gotten colder.

OxSGA Vice President Delaney Arnold (26Ox) said she set up bed sheets outside of a dorm hall where stray cats could sleep for a night, but mentioned that an unknown party threw away the sheets. Arnold also said there were two separate instances where students set up cat beds outside, but they were then disposed of, again by an unknown party.

Some students set up an anonymous GoFundMe to help feed Lady Fleming in early September, raising $260 for cat food as of press time. However, in early November, the Office of RES hung up posters asking students not to feed the cats. Green said she would like to see a program to support the stray cats at Oxford, akin to the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Campus Cats

organization, whose members provide care for cats on their campus. She said she hoped that OxSGA would “fight” to help create a similar resource for the animals.

Tinghan Wang (26Ox) disagreed with Oxford administration’s attempts to relocate the stray cats, questioning whether there was clear reasoning behind concerns about students interacting with the cats.

“The better solution is just to keep [Lady Fleming] on as a campus cat, because when we put out little shelter boxes for her and scratching posts, she was using them,” Wang said. “RES administration was just like ‘No this is a hazard’ — but a hazard for what and how?”

According to O’Sullivan, he and Leyson discussed potential solutions to safely house the cats during a private meeting on Nov. 10. O’Sullivan proposed adding a shelter for campus cats, following similar measures taken

by the Georgia Institute of Technology. Leyson said the idea was not possible, according to O’Sullivan, due to a lack of space and other liability issues.

“It’s largely being handled well,” O’Sullivan said. “Obviously, I want to see, as soon as possible, the cats being brought to a no-kill shelter … This can’t really drag on much longer. It is getting colder, and I’m worried that the cats could die.”

Even with the plan to remove the cats in place, students like Ella Lim (27Ox) worry about how the departure of the animals may affect Oxford’s broader sense of community and student life, as well as the cats’ well-being. “I feel as though the cats were kind of a part of Oxford’s school spirit and community,” Lim said. “Removing them isn’t the right decision because I think they’ve adjusted to life here.”

— Contact Eileen Zhu at eileen.zhu@emory.edu

Emory, Georgia Tech address nursing shortage with new partnership

By Malk El-aBTah Contributing Writer

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing projects that Georgia will face a drastic nursing shortage by 2035, placing it among the ten most affected states. To make nursing education more accessible, Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) have launched a new pathway program to open more routes into nursing.

The agreement went into effect in October 2025, allowing Georgia Tech students to begin applying immediately for the upcoming cycle, which begins in Summer 2026. Georgia Tech Deputy Director for Academic Success and Advising Shannon Dobranski wrote in an email to The Emory Wheel that students will typically be able to apply within their first six semes-

Emory University's

of Nursing is partnering with the Georgia Institute of Technology to build collaboration between the health and technology industries.

ters. However, Dobranski added that the program will also consider students closer to graduation for the

The Emory Wheel

Volume 106, Issue 15 © 2025 The Emory Wheel

Alumni Memorial University Center, Room 401 630 Means Drive, Atlanta, GA, 30322 Business (404) 727-6178

Editors-in-Chief Ellie Fivas and Spencer Friedland ellie.fivas@emory.edu spencer.friedland@emory.edu

Founded in 1919, The Emory Wheel is the financially and editorially independent, student-run newspaper of Emory University in Atlanta. The Wheel is a member publication of Media Council, Emory’s organization of student publications. The Wheel reserves the rights to all content as it appears in these pages, and permission to reproduce material must be granted by the editor-in-chief.

The statements and opinions expressed in the Wheel are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Wheel Editorial Board or of Emory University, its faculty, staff or administration.

initial cycle. To qualify for Emory’s 15-month Master of Nursing (MN) program, applicants must complete 25 hours of approved math and science prerequisites.

Emory School of Nursing Senior Associate Dean for Enrollment, Student Affairs, and Organizational Engagement Lisa Muirhead spearheaded the program after establishing similar collaborations with other Atlanta universities.

“We’ve done this sequentially,” Muirhead said. “We’ve built a formal partnership with Agnes Scott, with Spelman, with Oglethorpe and the most logical and next step was Georgia Tech. I reached out and was enthused and excited that they were as interested as we were.”

Muirhead said this partnership “creates a clear, structured career pathway into nursing” for Georgia Tech students to plan their coursework strategically and transition seamlessly into Emory’s MN program. She added

that graduates of the program will have success in employment, with most receiving job offers from Emory Healthcare or other affiliated institutions. 97% of graduates have jobs within three months of graduation.

“We are certainly meeting a workforce need, particularly as we consider the vacancies of nursing positions,” Muirhead said. “Every one of these graduates who complete that Georgia Tech education, transition to the School of Nursing, will move into the workforce.”

Dobranski said that Georgia Tech students transitioning into this program will reap the benefits of pursuing interdisciplinary work because Georgia Tech does not offer a degree in nursing.

“Our students are known for their comfort with science and technology,” Dobranski said. “They have excellent critical thinking skills, problem-solving skills, and I’m super excited that our graduates are going to go on and

inform this really essential element of American health care.”

Francisco Castelan, assistant director for pre-health advising at Georgia Tech, added that the initiative will expand university support for students exploring non-traditional health careers.

“College is an exploratory time, and this adds to the potential options of what they could be considering versus the traditional pathways,” Castelan said.

For students like Leah Vazquez (27N), the partnership exemplifies the kind of interdisciplinary collaboration already transforming the healthcare space.

“This partnership really opens up the nursing world into different career pathways like engineering and technology and things like that,” Vazquez said. “It really gives us a support system and shows us that we have the support of people in other career pathways.”

Looking ahead, Muirhead highlighted that the partnership exemplifies the potential of the future of nursing education.

“The beauty of this particular partnership is two top-ranked institutions who are coming together to build a bridge to improve the human condition,” Muirhead said. “We have a person who has experience in technology, moving and combining that with an expertise in nursing, which really affords an opportunity for us to answer new questions, new solutions, equipping students to develop cuttingedge strategies to enhance clinical practice, optimize health systems and improve patient care outcomes.”

— Contact Malk El-Abtah at malk.el-abtah@emory.edu

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Emory University's Oxford College plans to relocate stray cats on campus to no-kill shelters.

The Emory Wheel Opinion

Join Emory PhD workers, boycott Starbucks

By Tasfia Jahangir and federico sánchez Vargas Contributing Writers

Every morning on campus, there is a line at Starbucks. Students in the store sit with laptops open, earbuds in, waiting for their caffeine fix before class or lab. Behind the counter, baristas move quickly, calling out names, steaming milk and juggling endless orders under pressure, all while smiling through exhaustion. For most customers, this daily exchange lasts less than a minute. But, for the workers making coffee, these activities are part of a much larger fight that has been brewing for years.

Since 2021, over 1,000 baristas from more than 640 Starbucks stores across the country have voted to unionize under Starbucks Workers United (SBWU). These workers are not asking for much, just the basics that should come with any job: living wages that actually cover rent and groceries, predictable scheduling so people can plan their lives, safe and equitable workplaces free from retaliation and harassment and a seat at the bargaining table.

Despite this massive nationwide mobilization and the modest demands the baristas bring forth, Starbucks has refused to come to an agreement with workers for more than four years. Instead, the company has fired union organizers, stalled negotiations and spent millions on union-busting, all while boasting record profits and maintaining one of the highest CEOto-worker pay gaps in the United States. This standoff within Starbucks exposes a basic truth about the economic system itself: Bosses will preserve the terms of exploitation long before they will relinquish authority to the people who make their profits possible. SBWU’s fight is a frontline in a broader class struggle that workers at Emory University and across the country contend with every day.

The Emory community can no longer ignore this struggle.

Starbucks workers escalated the fight for a fair contract even further on Nov. 5. In stores across the country, SBWU members voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike on one of Starbucks’ most profitable annual events: Red Cup Day, which takes place on Nov. 13. Red Cup Day, a kickoff of the company’s holiday sales season, is built on record-breaking sales, frenetic labor and intense pressure on baristas. By walking out, workers made clear that the company cannot continue to profit off the holiday rush while refusing to negotiate fair contracts.

It has been four years since the first Starbucks store unionized in Buffalo, N.Y. During that time, Starbucks has improved wages and benefits — such as upping pay, adding credit card tipping and increasing parental leave for all retail workers — while under pressure from workers. But, these gestures fall short of what baristas have been organizing for: Only a binding contract, won through collective power, can secure real and lasting change.

For PhD workers at Emory, this struggle feels familiar. We see the same logic play out in our own jobs. Our labor is essential to keep the University’s teaching and research machine running, yet the institution treats our work as expendable when it comes to pay, security and respect. We, too, have faced rising costs of living that outpace our pay. We, too, learned that when workers demand basic improvements to pay and working conditions, those in power suddenly go deaf. And we, too, have joined our fellow workers in a national wave of unionization, pushing back against the same business models Starbucks uses: ones that depend on underpaid, disempowered workers as the institutions themselves thrive.

Starbucks’ resistance to improve pay or provide stability for its employ-

ees mirrors what is happening across the nation’s economy, from universities to hospitals and service counters, where workers are expected to shoulder ever-expanding workloads, endure a chronic power imbalance and remain silent about the conditions that make their jobs untenable. This is why EmoryUnite!, the PhD workers union at Emory, recently passed a resolution standing firmly with SBWU, with a decisive 97% supermajority voting “YES!” to boycott Starbucks and support SBWU’s campaign. Starbucks workers’ courage to organize in one of the most antiunion industries has inspired countless others to build their own unions, from Amazon warehouses to university campuses. SBWU’s “No Contract, No Coffee” campaign is a rallying cry for workers everywhere who are tired of being ignored.

These

In a public letter to the Starbucks Board of Directors, investors raised alarm about Starbucks’ labor relations and called on the company to “restart negotiations and promptly reach a first contract with Starbucks Workers United (SBWU).” Their letter notes that Starbucks’ labor relations have significantly deteriorated as the company has racked up hundreds of unfair labor practice complaints, and the investors warn that the labor crisis now threatens “long-term shareholder value.” Even those profiting from the company’s success recognize that ignoring employees threatens the company’s bottom line.

Just this week, that mounting pressure forced a significant shift. Starbucks agreed to pay about $35 million to more than 15,000 New York City workers after an investigation found that the company denied stable schedules and arbitrarily cut hours. A testament to the power of collective action, this settlement comes amid SBWU’s nationwide unfair labor practice strike, which has drawn politicians to the picket lines alongside baristas. These developments make clear that Starbucks’ labor crisis is no longer a dispute contained within individual stores, rather, it has become a national flashpoint. However, while this settlement is a major concession, it still falls short of workers’ core demands. The pressure must continue until Starbucks commits to a fair and enforceable contract so that such scheduling abuses and broader labor rights violations are not repeated.

When even investors begin echoing workers’ demands, and regulators, shareholders, consumers, and workers are all converging on a single message, it is clear that the situation has arrived at a breaking point. The message to Starbucks is now palpable: The era of unchecked corporate intransigence is ending.

The question is no longer whether the company can reach a fair contract, but whether it will choose negotiation over escalation before this crisis engulfs the company itself.

The movement Starbucks workers have led, from their historic union drive in 2021 to their nationwide strike escalation, is about power: who has it, who does not and what happens when workers decide to take it back. It is about the right to a voice on the job and the simple, yet unshakeable, belief that the people who make a workplace function should also shape its future. Starbucks workers have shown us that organizing is possible in industries built on turnover and precarity, in which corporations

expect exhaustion and demoralization to keep people quiet. Their success has inspired graduate workers, restaurant servers, nurses and countless other sectors of workers who see themselves reflected in the struggle for dignity. At its core, the movement asserts an idea that every worker should understand, that we create the value our employer survives on, so we should have a say in how the value is used.

EmoryUnite! has committed to supporting SBWU in concrete ways. Many of our members are participating in the “No Contract, No Coffee” campaign, boycotting all Starbucks products and stores until the company negotiates a fair contract for its workers. We are respecting and upholding picket lines at all Starbucks locations, refusing to cross them under any circumstances, and we will join and publicize those lines.

We are also forming a working group within EmoryUnite! to coordinate ongoing solidarity work for Starbucks employees across the country. We call on the broader Emory community to take up these actions alongside us and boycott Starbucks until the Starbucks Board of Directors returns to the bargaining table and meets SBWU’s demands.

As students, workers and community members who recognize this struggle, we have a choice to treat solidarity as a slogan or live it out in practice. Starbucks workers have already proven that when workers stand together, they cannot be ignored. It is time we meet the call they have courageously put before us — Emory students and student workers must be bold, be brave and make history by joining the movement: No Contract, No Coffee!

— Contact Tasfia Jahangira at tasfia.jahangir@emory.edu and Federico Sánchez Vargas at federico.sanchez.vargas@ emory.edu

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Dear Doolino, I want a third roommate — one that’s a little furrier!

By dooLino CaMpus overlord

Dear

Doolino,

I want to adopt the cats in Asbury Circle, but my roommate is allergic to them. How do I sneak one in?

Sincerely, Future Cat Lady

Dear Future Cat Lady,

I feel your pain. Cats are excellent companions, and I have found that they are more intelligent than most of the student body on this campus, although that is a low bar.

And with Oxford College relocating all of the cats on their campus by the end of the fall semester, you must act fast as the Atlanta campus could be next.

The first question you must ask yourself is how allergic your roommate truly is to cats. Is this allergy fatal or is a feline companion simply inconvenient to them? If your roommate would join me in the realm of the dead after being exposed to a cat, perhaps it is better to avoid introducing a feline friend into your home, as painful as that may be. I know humans are so annoyingly fragile.

However, if it would simply cause your roommate slight discomfort — for example, a runny nose, a fullbody rash or persistent sneezing fits — then you can consider the introduction of a cat an opportunity for character development. Introduce it to your ecosystem without guilt. After all, in this dog-eat-dog world (or perhaps human-get-cat world), we must put ourselves first.

Now that Thanksgiving break has ended, you have the perfect opportunity to sneak a cat from Asbury Circle into your dorm. I can guaran-

tee that students have been avoiding studying for their upcoming finals all week. They will certainly be pulling all-nighters studying the second their plane touches down in Atlanta. Use their sleep deprivation to your advantage. Tail them at every waking moment, keeping your eyes and ears peeled for any unexpected yawns or sighs. Point out their obvious exhaustion, and helpfully suggest they take a nap or go to bed early. Insist that you only care about their well-being and will wake them up if anything important happens on campus. Eventually, they will give in to your pestering and go to bed. That, Future Cat Lady, is when you strike.

After all, in this dog-eatdog world (or perhaps humanget-cat world), we must put ourselves first.

The second that your roommate falls asleep, sprint to Asbury Circle disguised in a ski mask, gloves and an all-black bodysuit. With Atlanta’s frequent rainfall and quickly dropping temperatures, you will not stand out at all.

Show up armed with tuna and milk, although Emory’s cats may prefer the salty tears of pre-med students to a bowl of warm milk. I would not know — I have not cared for a pet since dog-sitting my neighbor’s hellhounds while growing up. Eventually, however, a cat or two is sure to arrive at your feet.

Pick your favorite — preferably a hairless one out of respect to your roommate, although this is unlikely

— and skedaddle back to your domicile. With any luck, your roommate will still be asleep. Build a little nest for your furry friend out of old blankets and towels. Make sure that they are warm — since you attend Emory University, your air conditioning unit is likely to be broken for the next three to five business years, so you cannot rely on modern technology to protect your cat from chills or illness.

If you need to, steal some of your roommate’s blankets. At this point, you have already disrespected them beyond repair, so a little more betrayal would not hurt. Hope and pray that your lofted bed does not collapse on the cat — you want your new pet to eat Fancy Feast, not become it.

Around this point in time, your roommate will probably wake up. It is at this moment that you must mimic the situationship that you had freshman year — that is to say, lie about everything.

If their allergies start acting up immediately, offer them some antihistamines and console them that they surely contracted frat flu (ignoring the fact that Emory students have only been back for three days with no frats throwing any flu-inducing events).

Do not fret if they hear a meow or two here and there — simply gaze at your roommate with concern, remark that the fever must have traveled to their brain and recommend a visit to Emory Student Health Services. Eventually, your roommate will down some cough syrup and fall back asleep, buying you even more time with your meowing mate out in the open.

Unfortunately, it is unlikely that you will get away with this deception forever. Whether it’s by finding a stray cat hair, waking up with the curious feline sitting atop their chest or witnessing an ominous pair of

glowing eyes in the shadows, your roommate will probably discover the cat eventually.

As such, I suggest a coup. Stand on top of your bed, hold your cat up to the ceiling like you are in “The Lion King” (1994) and declare your place of living yours and only yours.

Challenge your roommate to a duel, insisting that once they lose, they must vacate the residence immediately and allow the cat to take their bed. It does not matter what your housing portal says — in the end, it comes down to honor.

In all seriousness, Future Cat Lady, coups can be fun, but respecting others is even better. You could disrespect your roommate’s auton-

omy and introduce a purring pal to their home because it brings you joy, but you should not. Perhaps, before you decide to adopt a cat, you should simply spend time with your roommate and be grateful for their presence. After all, you signed a housing contract for a reason.

Maybe the real feral cats were the sickly living partners we found along the way. At the end of the day, if getting a cat is that important to you, maybe you should be the person who moves out. Respect others, do not get rabies and never forget that Doolino knows best.

— Contact Doolino six feet under the Quad

I wasted Oxford’s best opportunities by running to Atlanta

By cayden Xia opinion editor

I will graduate from Oxford College in two weeks. A few months ago, I would have given anything to say those words. During much of my time at Oxford, I felt like I was caged on a 354-acre campus in rural Georgia, missing out on the boundless resources and excitement Atlanta had to offer. With Oxford’s reputation often reduced to negative editorials and anxious Reddit threads about its lacking social life, I arrived expecting the worst which often shaped my early perceptions of the college. Yet, now that I am two weeks away from graduating, all I feel is regret and melancholy for all of the wasted Oxford opportunities I refused to engage in. All the shortcomings of my freshman year experience were mostly the product of my own stubbornness, and I failed to appreciate all that Oxford offers its students. I learned too late that at Oxford, you get what you put in. When I first arrived on campus, I felt trapped. During my first year, I planned as many weekend trips to Atlanta as possible, using any excuse — club meetings, errands or a spare hour — as a reason to leave Oxford. A friend on the Atlanta campus even joked that I spent more time on the

campus than he did. But the more time I spent in Atlanta, the less I invested in the place I was actually supposed to call home. Looking back, I now know that feeling trapped had nothing to do with Oxford itself: It came from the community I never allowed myself to build. I didn’t reach out to enough Oxford students or put in the effort to form meaningful connections. I kept interactions superficial and retreated to my dorm instead of engaging with the campus around me. Escaping to the Atlanta campus only deepened that sense of isolation I had created for myself, making me feel as if I was not tethered to either place.

I have stopped fixating on everything Oxford supposedly lacks.

To avoid this feeling, I would bury myself in my classes. Since I was graduating early, I had to take a lot of classes in order to reach Oxford’s requisite 65 credits in three semesters. Completing extra coursework and participating in as many extracurriculars as possible gave me the excuse I

needed to feed the denial that Oxford was just a temporary step, not a permanent residence. I avoided reaching out to people, trying new events and engaging with the very community I unfairly claimed was boring or empty. I told myself my social life was lacking, but I never showed up to go out. I said there was nothing to do on campus, but I never attended the things that were actually happening. All of this culminated into a single fact — by the end of the first year, I felt alone and did not want to return to college.

I convinced myself that I didn’t belong at Oxford. I didn’t want to transfer because I felt like I had invested too much effort in leadership roles and different responsibilities to give it all up and start from scratch at a new college.

However, I also was not happy, and I do not want to discredit those feelings. In retrospect, though, I realize how flawed I was to think and act this way because it was not Oxford’s fault but my own.

This semester, however, my mindset shifted. Slowly, without even realizing it, I have rectified all the mistakes I made my freshman year.

I have found myself enjoying campus events like a student-run Asian Night Market and Music for Change OxFest, participating in spontaneous dorm room conversations and

having genuinely interesting conversations with classmates instead of rushing out of class. I went to popular events on campus instead of walking straight past them and, for the first time since arriving, I really felt happy to be at Oxford and experience what it is like to enjoy college. Now that I’m about to leave, I cannot help but feel regret for taking so long to immerse myself in a place that I had written off before I even came.

But the more time I spent in Atlanta, the less I invested in the place I was actually supposed to call home.

This isn’t to say my freshman year was awful — despite what I have said about my experience, there were still times of excitement and connections, and there were people and experiences that made that year meaningful. Further, this semester also has not been some sort of perfect turnaround — I have still experienced all of the stress and pressure

that accompanies college life. But I have stopped fixating on everything Oxford supposedly lacks and comparing it to a campus 40 minutes away. Oxford has its flaws — its Advanced Placement credit rules are frustrating, class selections feel limited and students drag its reputation through the mud more often than it deserves.

I’m not pretending these flaws don’t exist, but I wish I had given this place a fair chance earlier. I wish I had shown up more, talked to people more and stayed on campus instead of running from it. And I wish that the current and incoming Oxford freshmen view the campus for what it really is: a unique experience that they should cherish and engage with. Oxford is not missing anything — that’s a hard realization for me to sit with, especially now that I’m leaving. Even though I do regret how I spent my time here, I’m also genuinely excited for the opportunities waiting on the Atlanta campus. I’m ready for bigger classes, new clubs, research opportunities and birria tacos from Twisted Taco. As I leave Oxford, I’m going with a pivotal lesson learned from my experience at a place where I wish I had had more time.

— Contact Cayden Xia at cayden.xia@emory.edu

Saba FaiSal/Deputy illuStration eDitor

Ditch performative trends: It’s actually cool to care Commercialization distorts Christmas spirit

By VincenT yoo

Contributing Writer

If you have interacted with anyone in Gen Z or Generation Alpha, you have almost certainly heard the phrases: “I can’t lose aura,” or “I need to be nonchalant.” You may have even said them to yourself. Someone usually merits these descriptions while acting excessively mysterious, sticking their hands in their pocket, chewing gum or tilting their head up at a slight angle.

Trying too hard to be nonchalant is not a new phenomenon — it is a harmful idea with a new coat of paint. Being nonchalant means to minimize expression, to not care and make any task seem effortless, even if said task actually required a great deal of care. It has become a highly praised trait to be nonchalant, and as such, many adopt this persona to fit in. From childhood, we are pressured to act and live in a way that conforms to what we believe others expect from us. This pressure can result in longterm alienation, with people feeling out of place in public as they build fictional personas to fit in rather than ones that reflect their true identity. But, this feeling is often avoidable. Rather than changing or completely hiding our personalities unnecessarily, we must overcome this aversion to authentic behavior and act true to ourselves in daily life.

Being performative tells people that you seek approval, not that you are exploring your genuine interests.

Acting in a nonchalant manner not only covers up your genuine self but also presents an inauthentic identity to others — one that significantly differs or possibly conflicts with your real traits and interests. Most recently, we can observe this inauthenticity in the performative male trend. Calling someone a performative male implies that the specific choices they make regarding their clothing and hobbies serve only to garner the attention of women and that these men lack a genuine interest, knowledge, or respect for these behaviors. Ultimately, the performative male phenomenon results in men flaunting a facade of an identity — one that many see right through. Common performative male attributes include wearing baggy jeans in warm weather, drinking iced matcha lattes and pretending to read Jane Austen novels. These performative male traits have grown into more of an overplayed joke. The very idea of being performative oozes inauthenticity, with these men overtly claiming to enjoy a behavior while not actually caring or knowing much about it communicates nothing about one’s true self. Being performative tells people that you seek approval, not that you are exploring your genuine interests. With the satirization of the performative male, unfair biases are

now being associated with men who instead enjoy or embody the stereotyped identity. A fashion fiend might particularly love wearing baggy jeans. An enthusiastic bookworm might find hundreds of lines worth annotating in Austen’s “Pride & Prejudice.” I know someone in my own residential hall who owns an entire ceremonial matcha tea set. Some men may simply adopt so-called performative male behaviors for their own enjoyment and not for the approval of others. Yet, when someone introduces themselves with those genuine passions, there is a nonzero chance that they will immediately be called performative. Even if the comment is intended as a joke, shaming someone for real passion can easily lead to their shielding of that behavior, making it harder for them to connect with others on a deep level.

This pressure to conform not only affects our social well-being — it also damages our physical health. College students are constantly strapped for time. Between cramming for midterms, networking, socializing and going to parties, losing a few hours of sleep is bound to happen. At Emory University, I know several busy senior undergraduates who manage to get their full eight hours of sleep, but I also know countless freshmen in the least demanding year of college who are in a constant state of sleep debt. The fear of missing out (FOMO) is a huge reason for this self-inflicted sleep deprivation. This fear manifests in many different ways, such as going to parties despite not enjoying them or joining clubs that you have no interest in. Forming new relationships and experiences in college is important, but if doing so starts to affect your health, then FOMO is clearly providing diminishing returns. While following this pattern does not make someone inauthentic, it does highlight how college students are constantly burdened by the expectations of others.

It is possible to find authentic people at college. College is an environment where you are encouraged to follow your desires by becoming involved in student organizations, extracurricular activities and new classes. Therefore, practically everyone at Emory has a genuine passion that makes them an interesting person. However, you cannot find said passions nor connect with the authentic sides of people by covering up your own identity. We, as college students, must throw ourselves out there without any public filter or performative traits to create deep and long-lasting relationships.

Being authentic is certainly not easy, especially when meeting new people. The simpler option is to act the same way as others, make the same comments and move in the same direction. If you take that easier road and act nonchalant, trading your genuine self for the stilted version, you hazard tricking yourself into thinking you are not unique or do not have your own story to tell. However, every person at Emory has unique experiences, thoughts and achievements. It is our responsibility to let others know about them, and we can only accomplish that goal by being ourselves, not by performing to fit someone else’s expectations.

— Contact Vincent Yoo at vincent.yoo@emory.edu

By JoshUa gLazer staff Writer

For the past two months, the Emory University Chorus and Emory Concert Choir have been rehearsing a series of carols for a performance in early December. The candlelit choral concert, an annual Emory tradition since 1935, remains a favorite among community members. From performing classics like “The First Noel” (2018) to new favorites like “Trinity Te Deum” (2012) and the Nigerian carol “Betelehemu” (1992), choir director Eric Nelson ensures a diverse representation of voices, languages and backgrounds. However, one thing is for certain: The carols do not shy away from their Christian roots. Although I observe a different faith, I appreciate the warmth and beauty behind the traditions and values these carols carry for our audiences.

While performances like the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at Emory still celebrate and welcome the birth of Jesus, the celebration of Christmas in the United States has become more secularized and commercialized than ever. Pop-up villages like the Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park in New York City capitalize on the holiday by selling goods and food at exorbitant prices. Hallmark’s Holiday Movies and Series television program captivates millions, even outperforming CNN in views during one November week.

These money-making machines are just two examples of how many U.S. corporations use the guise of Christmas to sell secular products — a cheesy rom-com and a $10 specialty hot chocolate appeal more to the Instagrammable winter spirit than to the holy spirit. As a result, we have reached a point in the United States when someone like me, a member of a different faith, feels like the Christmas celebration is barely Christian at all.

The history of Christmas celebrations in the United States elucidates how the holiday became so secular. Around the time of independence, U.S. society held a more restrictive Puritan attitude toward Christmas, which condemned the merriment and mirth associated with the holiday. By the mid-19th century, Charles Dickens’ novel “A Christmas Carol” shifted the narrative around holiday celebrations through its message of charity and goodwill toward all people.

Decorating trees, sending holiday cards and giving gifts soon became the

norm, with Americans essentially reinventing the celebration of Christmas to fit their cultural needs in the 1800s. Thus, former U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant’s recognition of Christmas as a federal holiday in 1870 reflected the trend toward a more universal, family-centered and festive holiday. Dickens reminds us through Tiny Tim that Christmas should be about personal reflection, tradition and time spent with people in our lives worth celebrating. However, the oversensationalized Christmas of today often falls short of these ideals.

If anything warrants preserving, it’s the holiday’s religious roots.

Once a time for reflection and giving back, the 21st-century celebration of Christmas in the United States has now morphed into something so mainstream and commercialized that it no longer reflects its central values or pertains to any one group. This may appear harmless. After all, everyone loves decorating cookies, drinking hot cocoa or listening to the Pentatonix on the radio — if people even listen to the radio anymore.

Furthermore, as commerce shifts to digital, the United States is on track to generate $250 billion in online shopping revenue during the 2025 holiday season alone. The issue with the modern celebration of Christmas is not necessarily Amazon or the Pentatonix, but the drift is worth acknowledging: When popular culture turns a religious holiday into just another profitable seasonal aesthetic, it loses the very reason that holiday is worth celebrating in the first place.

This fall, in Jay and Leslie Cohen Assistant Professor in Religion and Jewish Studies Kate Rosenblatt’s Religion and American Capitalism class, we have learned to recognize patterns of when the U.S. market absorbs religious traditions and repurposes them for visibility, growth and mass appeal. Christmas is just another example of this wider pattern of commercializing religious holidays, no different from St. Patrick’s Day or Halloween. Corporations have leaned into elements that sell — such as Santa Claus, ugly sweaters and ginger-

bread houses — and ignored religious aspects like attending church or caroling. The result is a bizarre tension: Christmas is now universalized to fit every American’s way of life, yet the holiday bears little resemblance to its original religious core.

When I celebrated Christmas while studying abroad in Spain in 2023, I experienced the harmonious balance between celebration and religious observation for the first time. Festive lights and holiday cheer filled the city, and incredible holiday markets sold knick-knacks and mulled wine.

But, at the center of each city was a giant nativity scene, retelling the story of Jesus’ birth. Lastly, despite widespread secularization among the younger generation of Spaniards, my host family and many others still attended Misa de Gallo, the midnight mass on Christmas Eve.

In the United States, the same dedication persists among a dwindling number of families. To me, the mass secularized appeal of commercialization often makes these remaining faithful observers seem invisible. If anything warrants preserving, it’s the holiday’s religious roots. A change is necessary. I am not arguing for shutting down the Winter Villages in New York or banning cheesy Hallmark rom-coms — my mother would kill me if I suggested such a thing.

We, as Americans of all faiths, need to do a better job of acknowledging these observant families in how we represent the holiday, especially as statistics show the churchgoing population shrinking year after year. At the very least, we should return to the family-centered, reflective celebration that Christmas once was by celebrating the people at our table and ensuring there is room for traditions to keep flourishing.

For decades, Emory has tried to preserve these traditions through the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols. On Dec. 5 and 6, you can find me in my black robe and white cotta, standing with the Concert Choir baritones, singing carols written centuries ago. The warmth of the organ and brass fills the room. The sopranos sing with such purity that it sounds angelic. These carols are grounding, a reminder that celebration can be sacred and joyful at the same time. Even as an outsider, I can recognize the power and clarity in that.

— Contact Joshua Glazer at joshua.glazer@emory.edu

Cherie Zhou/StaFF illuStrator

The Emory Wheel Arts Life

Catching Color: Anna Wehrwein on learning, unlearning

By Catherine Goodman Managing Editor

At 5 years old, Anna Wehrwein encountered something so violent, so vivid, so visceral that it changed her forever. Wandering the corridors of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, she stumbled upon a painting of the severed head of John the Baptist. Staring at the scene, Wehrwein was horrified, startled and yet intrigued. She was utterly captivated by the medium — a fascination that she maintains to this day.

“What it solidified really early on was that painting was really powerful,” Wehrwein said. “That it could convey a story and emotion in a really powerful way.”

Now, an assistant professor of visual arts at Emory University and a practicing artist, Wehrwein remains “obsessed with paint.” In addition to her frightening confrontation with the beheading, Wehrwein encountered the material throughout her childhood. In her Boston home, which overflowed with art books, painting was not merely tolerated but encouraged. While many children slip into sleep counting fluffy sheep, Wehrwein stared at the lines of a subway scene above her bed that her mother, Pam Ozaroff, painted. As Wehrwein’s eyes wandered across the brush strokes and colliding colors, she wandered into dreams. In adolescence, art-mak-

editor

Anna Wehrwein’s studio displays her love for color.

ing remained a priority: she took art courses, attended creative summer camps and completed pre-college programs.

Wehrwein completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, pursuing a double major in English and creative writing and studio art. Throughout her time in college, she found herself increasingly drawn to painting.

“Painting was where my ideas were synthesizing better and where I was enjoying spending my time,” Wehrwein said.

Following her graduation, Wehrwein worked in the publishing industry but felt unsatisfied splitting her time between her professional and artistic endeavors. After two years working a nine-to-five, Wehrwein knew she had to make a change and pursue painting full-time. So she packed her things and headed south to complete a master’s degree in drawing and painting at the University of Tennessee. In her second year at the University, Wehrwein led undergraduate art classes. Through this experience, Wehrwein found strong mentors, an inspiring peer group and a new passion — teaching.

“That synthesized everything for me in terms of what I wanted to do and the type of work I wanted to be making,” Wehrwein said. “And what it meant to be an artist and also an educator.”

Wehrwein went on to instruct drawing and painting classes at the University of Missouri, where she altered her painting practice. During her time, she taught a course that interrogated the priorities and principles of abstraction. Although she initially assumed her students needed help understanding the complex topic, she found herself learning along the way.

The “feedback loop” between professor and pupil encouraged Wehrwein to reevaluate her methods and aesthetic interests. Soon, Wehrwein’s own work began to shift: unexpected flatness invaded her canvases as the class questioned the construction of space.

The rules changed, and Wehrwein began building imagery in response to abstract elements, specifically the fragility of perspective. Although she had

always been fascinated by the properties of paint, she became enamored with the act of mark making, bringing the brush to the canvas and relishing in the bare physicality of the action.

“The metric of when something works, or when I’m satisfied, is not ‘Does it look like the thing?’” Wehrwein said. “If the mark making is interesting, then that’s good.”

In her oil painting “Shoreline” (2024), two men rest atop a picnic blanket by the marsh. One man leans on his elbows, poring over the pages of a book. The other rests his head upon the reader’s back, gazing up at the sky. Blue floods the scene, enveloping the subjects in a tender, yet cool, embrace. And the two men? They are not strangers Wehrwein happened upon, but her friends and fellow artists.

“I don’t stage any images,” Wehrwein said. “They’re always scenes that are candid, intimate, personal.”

Wehrwein advocates for dialogue among artists — both in personal and professional relationships. In 2021, she co-founded stop-gap projects, an artist-led gallery in Columbia, Mo. and the culmination of her dedication to fostering connections across the art world. When Wehrwein rented a studio with an attached storefront, she and her collaborators felt they had struck gold. Within a month, the storefront became a gallery space for local and non-local artists. Over four years, Wehrwein and her friends curated shows of various media, from sculpture to prints. For the group, there was “no such thing as a bad idea,” but there was a very important rule: the owners would not show their own work.

“It wasn’t a platform for us,” Wehrwein said. “It was how we could connect with other artists and give our attention to them.”

The gallery closed earlier this year but continues as a nomadic project. However, Wehrwein is not concerned with the organization’s longevity. For her and her companions, the gallery did not need to “be forever to be worth it.”

Although Wehrwein’s work did not appear in stop-gap projects, she has exhibited at galleries across the country, including Philadelphia, New York

and Missouri. From expansive canvases to contained drawings, Wehrwein creates work to leave the studio.

“The thing I always love about, it’s the hardest part, is getting ready for that final sharing with the public,” Wehrwein said. “But you always learn something back.”

Although Wehrwein is now a teacher, she will always be a student. Wehrwein learns and unlearns, marks and steps back, intuits and interprets.

On her studio table rests a mountain of books on exhibitions and artists, from the works of Milton Avery to Mildred Thompson. She speaks of her influences like phantoms holding her wrist as she paints.

“Sometimes it’s really conscious,” Wehrwein said. “Sometimes it’s just like they’re in the room with you and you don’t even know it.”

Like the spirits that flit about her studio, color haunts — or more so taunts — Wehrwein. It exhilarates her. It eludes her. It drives her. Color is at the “heart” of her work.

“Color doesn’t exist on its own,” Wehrwein said. “It’s contextual. It is affected by what’s around it. And that way, it’s incredibly unstable.”

In her painting “Planting (a sunset),” a woman kneels at the edge of a bin wearing gardening gloves. The ground and the trees, her hair and her skin retain traces of yellow and green. In “Reader (big fan)” (2024), brown, orange, red and green clash, collide and complement each other in an oppressively warm domestic scene. In “Watering (Care Ethics)” (2023), a vibrant blue washes over a sitting man on the patio, just before a small garden.

The colors are realistic but not representational. Warmth seeps in where it should not, while cold clutches scenes of care. While painting, her best days are those when she surprises herself.

The shock that Wehrwein’s work elicits is far removed from that of a beheaded skull, yet it is no less captivating. As Wehrwein travels from the studio to the classroom, she brings much more than paint-smeared overalls, she brings all her phantom fascinations — friends and frustrations alike.

– Contact Catherine Goodman at catherine.goodman@emory.edu

Find Atlanta paradise at Old Fourth Ward’s Lotta Frutta

By Fiona Ferguson C ontributin G W riter

Madras Mantra could not be more of a hole in the wall unless the staff handed your takeout bags through one.

Located in the far corner of a sprawling Goodwill parking lot off Lawrenceville Highway, wedged next to a nail salon, the restaurant is the kind of place you drive past a dozen times, never realizing it serves some of the best Indian food in Atlanta.

The restaurant’s exterior is nothing to write home about, and the interior is the same story. But the smells that hit you when you walk through its glass doors — cumin, cardamom, frying ghee — are anything but ordinary.

The restaurant, which opened its doors in 2017, is part of the family-owned group that also created Madras Chettinaad, Bollywood Masala and Madras Cafe. All these restaurants are vegetarian and focus

on South Indian cuisine.

Madras Mantra’s speciality are dosas — thin, crispy rice and lentil crepes made with every filling imaginable.

The restaurant dedicates an entire page of their menu to the different kinds of dosas patrons can order: from the fiery red garlic dosa from Bangalore, India, to the tangy Chettinad dosa from the Tamil Nadu region.

And they don’t stop there: If you explore the Madras Mantra menu further, you will find dals, curries, biryanis and stewed vegetables that will make you rethink everything you know about meatless food.

My friends and I visited Madras Mantra on a Thursday afternoon, embracing the chilly November weather with the promise of a hot, well-spiced Indian meal.

The restaurant’s humble setup of tan booths and yellowing tile floors is straight out of a ’90s diner, and a single buffet table feeds the whole

restaurant.

The ambiance feels comfortable and inviting — the kind that you would find at your grandma’s favorite hometown restaurant.

Our group claimed a booth close to the buffet for close proximity to seconds, thirds and beyond, and we dug in. I filled my first plate with dosa, mutter paneer, dal makhani, vegetable biryani, stewed cabbage with chickpeas and every starchy Indian accompaniment — white rice, naan, uttapam, pakora and medu vada, a donut-shaped savory bread made with lentils.

Sauces and pickles lined the wall behind the buffet, where I added tamarind chutney to the side of my plate. By my second plate, I had tried everything.

And by plate three, I knew what to come back for: the masala dosa — crispy, buttery and filled with spiced potatoes — and the mutter paneer, tender cubes of fried cheese in a rich, tomato-onion curry. The buffet

changes daily, but it always boasts a flavorsome dosa and a standout curry.

Madras Mantra is not just quality food — it is smart, with student-friendly prices.

No à la carte dish costs more than $16, and a weekday buffet ran our group just $14.03 each.

While a Chipotle bowl with guacamole will run you around $15.50, a filling meal from Madras Mantra will make you forget DoorDash exists with its great pricing and fantastic taste.

Still, the steady flow of drivers picking up to-go bags from Madras Mantra signals that plenty of people have figured out how to get their South Indian cuisine fix without leaving the couch.

And of course, I had to have dessert before we left, so I grabbed one more small plate of gulab jamun, fried dumplings soaked in sugar syrup, and a sample of pal payasam, a creamy liquid dessert that was new

to me.

The payasam was a surprise hit, subtle but soulful — the kind of dish that reminds you why you walked through the restaurant’s doors in the first place.

That feeling, of discovering a new delicious food and enjoying old favorites, is what Madras Mantra provides: an opportunity to break from the chains of Emory Village cuisine and out of your comfort zone, beyond the routine butter chicken and garlic naan and into something regional and authentic.

Their food makes driving to an out-of-the-way strip mall and sitting in a slightly-sticky booth seat worth it.

For my fellow Emory students: Get out of our culinary bubble, go on an adventure and try some Indian food that’s not from the Dobbs Common Table for once.

– Contact Fiona Ferguson at fiona.ferguson@emory.edu

Catherine G oodman/m anaGinG

Catherine Goodman/manaGinG editor Anna Wehrwein poses next to an unfinished work.

Year in Review: Arts & Life staff revisits best films, albums

By arts & LiFe staFF

As 2026 arrives, the new year promises new adventures, memories and art.

Before January sweeps 2025 under the rug, the Arts & Life staff reflects on our favorite albums and films of the past 12 months.

From musical celebrations of femininity to cinematic high-speed car chases, these selections reflect the varied cultural contents of the past year and the art we will keep with us as the New Year’s Eve clock strikes midnight

— Foreword by Catherine Goodman, Managing Editor

‘The Art of Loving’

by Olivia Dean

Although a coveted award, the Grammy’s “Best New Artist” can be a blessing or a curse. Since its inception in 1959, the category has seen stars rise and others promptly fall, from Billie Eilish to Esperanza Spalding.

Of the 2026 nominees, Olivia Dean stands out as a clear winner — and the best-suited to avoid the award’s malicious mythology.

Dean’s sophomore album, “The Art of Loving,” arrived in September, but its tracks remain welcome earworms several months later. Through keen language and a creative blend of pop, soul and R&B influences, the British

singer-songwriter delivered a timeless album like Adele’s “21” (2011) or Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black” (2006). Across 12 tracks, Dean revels in her femininity, accepts affection in all forms and criticizes hypocritical lovers.

Album highlights include the confident “Man I Need,” the flirtatious “So Easy (To Fall In Love)” and the fierce “Let Alone The One You Love.” On the former, Dean invites her lover to shape up and step up atop a bright piano and soft harmonies. “Just come be the man I need / Tell me you got something to give, I want it,” she sings through a smile. On “So Easy (To Fall In Love)” Dean celebrates her own magnetism as she

‘Let God Sort Em Out’

remarks, “I’m the perfect mix of Saturday night and the rest of your life.”

“Let Alone The One You Love” includes striking lyrics, which showcase the passion and power of Dean’s voice. “And, if you knew me at all / You wouldn’t try to keep me small / Who would do that to a friend, let alone the one you love?” Dean questions.

From opening Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet Tour and making her “Saturday Night Live” (1975-) debut, Dean only needs one New Year’s resolution: keep it coming.

— Catherine Goodman, Managing Editor

‘Addison’ by Addison Rae

Over the past few years, TikTok st ars have shown the world that they can be more than amateur choreographers — some can sing catchy music too. Addison Rae, a TikTok dance sensation with her fair share of viral gaffs, belonged to this same brand of lip syncers-turned-popstars.

However, with a small, mighty and growing fandom, Rae is now a Grammy-nominated artist sharing stories of gilded fame, unrequited love and childhood trauma through an idiosyncratic dance-pop lens.

On her self-titled debut album, “Addison,” Rae channels warm colors and whistle tones to portray the con-

trasting nature of fleeting youth and everlasting beauty. Throughout her album, listeners fall into the mythical, late-night rendezvous of “Diet Pepsi” or drive through the liberating, vulnerable sunset soundscape of “Summer Forever.” On “Money is Everything,” Rae embraces humor and humility as she describes her path to self-made stardom.

Paying homage to the pop queens who have preceded her, Rae promises to follow in their footsteps — but do so with her own flair.

“Wanna roll one with Lana, get high with Gaga / And the girl I used to be is still the girl inside of me,” Rae sings.

Rae reveals a deep, intimate side

to her artistry on this record. She sings about the loneliness of glamour and attention on “Fame is a Gun” and captures the nostalgia of youth on the euphoric “Times Like These.” And on “Headphones On,” one of the album’s standout tracks, Rae confronts her past self.

In this climactic ballad, she explains how she found peace amid adversity: “Life’s no fun through clear waters / You can’t fix what has already been broken / You just have to surrender to the moment.”

To anyone who tries to say Addison Rae is a talentless TikTok star, I will just put my headphones on.

— Jacob Muscolino, News Editor

I first listened to this album the day it came out while riding a train through New England. For those 40 minutes and 52 seconds, I was the closest I had ever felt to being a drug dealer. This record from the seasoned rap duo, consisting of siblings Pusha T and Malice, begins with the John Legend-backed “The Birds Don’t Sing,” a touching tribute and apology to the duo’s parents. From that point on, it is all gas and no brakes for Clipse. The following three songs make up the best run of the album, delivering nasty instrumentals to complementary, stellar features from Tyler, The Creator and Kendrick Lamar.

This stretch culminates with the fourth track, “So Be It,” which I have dubbed the coke anthem of the summer. Sampling a track by Saudi artist Talal Maddah, the song delivers an untraditional hip-hop instrumental that the duo effortlessly flows on, recalling their early years of selling drugs and gaining the early cosign of their grandma. After a flurry of premium tracks, especially the one-two punch of “E.B.I.T.D.A.” and “F.I.C.O.,” we get “So Far Ahead,” the

climax of the Grammy-nominated album. Produced by and featuring Pharrell Williams, Clipse gifts the listener a luscious mix of a beautiful chorus and riveting synthesizers for two verses.

“So Far Ahead” is not only a candidate for my personal favorite song of the year but also one of Clipse’s best songs in their storied discography. “Let God Sort Em Out” is a triumphant reunion for two hip hop pioneers and the best rap album of 2025.

— Sammy Brodsky, Sports Editor

‘One Battle After Another’ by Paul Thomas Anderson

Paul Thomas Anderson’s movie “One Battle After Another” may be one of the best films of the decade — let alone 2025 — and I am not just saying that because I have seen it in theaters four times. The film is a sprawling, modern-day epic that feels expansive yet completely intimate.

It feels bigger than his previous films while still retaining their sense of humanism throughout.

The movie follows Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), an ex-revolutionary who springs back into action when Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw

(Sean Penn), an enemy from his past, returns to apprehend Ferguson and his daughter, Willa Ferguson (Chase Infiniti).

While the plot seems typical for an action-adventure flick, Anderson leaves his own distinct filmmaking mark at every twist and turn.

From the comically named pseudo-white supremacist “Christmas Adventurer’s Club” to the self-described “Latino Harriet Tubman,” Sensei Sergio St. Carlos (Benicio Del Toro), Anderson crafts an engrossing world of zany yet true-to-life characters that are both hilarious and politically poignant.

For me, the most transcendent aspect of “One Battle After Another”

was watching Anderson experiment in a genre he has never attempted before. Although the film has classic Anderson hallmarks, such as sharp dialogue, deeply written characters and a message that changes upon repeat viewing, the filmmaker tries his hand as an action movie, creating a film that is nothing short of awe-inspiring.

And it is even better in VistaVision — which I saw, in case you have not heard. Additionally, to further evince my dedication to this generational film, I dressed as Bob Ferguson for Halloween.

ivana Chen/illuStration editor

by Clipse

ivana Chen/illuStration editor

– Alex Gerson, Deputy Editor ivana Chen/illuStration editor

tiany Guo/ContributinG illuStrator

‘If I Had Legs I’d Kick You’ by

Mary Bronstein

After a 17-year hiatus, Mary Bronstein returned to the silver screen with “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” a tour de force of a film that left audiences holding their breath on the edge of their seats. The film is based on Bronstein’s time supporting her young daughter, Kate (Ella Beatty), and while not an autobiography, is “emotionally true,” according to Bronstein. As Linda, Rose Byrne delivers an amazing performance, complete with many close-ups and moments devoid of anything besides Byrne portraying a mother descending into madness. Throughout the

nearly two-hour film, Byrne’s performances, combined with Bronstein’s direction, take viewers through a whirlwind of emotions, showing how Linda functions as a single mom, caring for her daughter on a feeding tube, while constantly on the verge of a breakdown.

At the beginning of the film, a hole bursts in Linda’s roof, which the film contrasts with the hole in Kate’s stomach where a feeding tube is helping Kate maintain her weight. As the film moves on and Kate’s situation worsens, these two holes come to dominate Linda’s life. The movie climaxes when Linda finally breaks with reality, abandoning Kate at a motel to investigate the hole

Strobe lights, heavy breathing and a crowd of ravers thrashing to a pulsing beat. In my mind, these are the images that FKA twigs’ “EUSEXUA” conjures: f leeting moments of complete freedom, a musical baptism and dance-induced perspiration.

With the release of each new project, FKA twigs not only provides a collection of songs but also fully-realized eras to accompany them.

From her blistering, religiously infused album “MAGDALENE” (2019) to her energetic, zodiac-inspired mixtape “CAPRISONGS” (2022), FKA twigs bolsters her songs with music videos that feature searing visuals and striking choreography. With the January release of “EUSEXUA,” FKA twigs pushed her

artistic vision to its limits, contorting her voice and body to craft a project that combined her musical strengths, including intricate, experimental soundscapes, soaring vocals and sleek yet alluring lyrics.

From the alluring, sexy lyrics in “Striptease” and “Perfect Stranger” to the poetic vulnerability of “Wanderlust,” FKA twigs crafts an album that basks in its off-kilter storytelling, masterful production and reverence for the power of letting go of all inhibition.

On Nov. 14, FKA twigs released the follow-up to “EUSEXUA,” entitled “EUSEXUA Afterglow.” Offering 11 new tracks, “Afterglow” serves as a perfect complement to the original record. If “EUSEXUA” encapsulates the euphoria of a night in the club, “Afterglow” is the deep

‘KPop Demon Hunters’ This past summer, I spent most of my time at a camp on the Washington coast. Working with the young campers, I quickly discovered the lengths children will go to for candy, the importance of banning “6-7” talk, and the craze behind “KPop Demon Hunters.”

The incessant lyrics of “Soda Pop” haunted my every waking moment, which the cutest, most irritating, and testing little demons sing. Out of curiosity, and somewhat against my will, I watched the movie and, like many others, the mesmerizing sounds of “Golden” possessed me.

in her roof and is transported into a metaphysical realm. Returning to Kate, Linda pulls her feeding tube out, believing she is cured. Separated from reality, Linda’s husband Charles (Christian Slater), who has been offscreen the entire movie working on a ship, confronts her, causing Linda to run toward the ocean, away from all of her problems. In this moment, the audience and Linda share the same perspective, with tension busting, Bronstein ends the film with a climax that leaves viewers speechless, unable to know what parts of the film were in Linda’s head.

— Spencer Friedland, Editor-in-Chief

‘Man’s Best Friend’ by Sabrina Carpenter

The first time I listened to Sabrina Carpenter’s album “Man’s Best Friend,” I was lying on News Editor Jacob Muscolino’s (28C) floor, kicking my feet in the air with excitement, ready to take notes on what I was sure would be my album of the year. But our mutual scavenging for commentary reflected an ugly truth: Upon first encounter, I did not like “Man’s Best Friend.” But after a few hours and a few more listens, I realized the true beauty behind Carpenter’s latest project — she winks at her listeners, doling out witticisms while masking her pain with humor. From

breath you take after leaving. From the sprawling, catchy “Sushi” to the intense, gut-wrenching “Stereo Boy,” “Afterglow” concludes the “EUSEXUA” era in a deeply emotional yet danceable fashion. As she sings on “Cheap Hotel,” life is best enjoyed in those fleeting yet seemingly eternal moments: “Lying on the floor at the cheap hotel / With some friends of mine, getting high / We’ll be going all night,” FKA twigs sings. Now the soundtrack to my latenight walks and twilight drives, “EUSEXUA” reminds me to appreciate the joyous ephemerality of my college years and the swell of emotions and self-discovery that accompany them.

– Hunter Buchheit, Arts & Life Editor

‘Virgin’ by Lorde

A month after graduating high school, I sat in my best friend’s minivan listening to Lorde’s newest album, “Virgin,” staring out of the rainy car window. It was an early Friday morning — sleeplessness from the previous night stained my eyes and excited anticipation for a road trip with my best friends engulfed my fatigue. Lorde released “Virgin” during a period of my life where peculiarity and change were inevitable as I graduated high school and prepared to move away from my home. Lorde’s ability to convey the complexities of growing pains, transformation and rebirth in “Virgin” resonated with multiple parts of myself — one that grieves my old life and another that works to embrace

the provocative cover to the promiscuous music videos, Carpenter tells a story. Beginning with wishing to change her lover in tracks like “Sugar Talking,” Carpenter eventually switches to acceptance in “Goodbye.”

Throughout the record, Carpenter’s uncensored honesty makes the project compelling.

It is hard to take your eyes — or rather, ears — off of Carpenter as she showcases her lyrical wit on the ruthless singles “Manchild” and “Tears” or when she ironically promises “none of this is a metaphor” in the sensual “House Tour.”

Apparently, finding someone with an ounce of competency is more difficult than Carpenter anticipated.

Carpenter is not promiscuous without reason — she walks the line of being too much but never crosses it.

It is difficult to grapple with Carpenter’s whimsy, especially as her bouncy beats and playful instrumentals hide the true depth of the lyrics, but that is the point: Beneath the jokes, Carpenter is human, using comedy to cope with her unsatisfying love life.

The album is layered and complicated, but that is what makes it so special. Carpenter may not be “Man’s Best Friend,” but her music, and this album especially, sure is mine.

— Amelia Bush, Arts & Life Editor

a new life. Four years prior, Lorde released “Solar Power” (2021), where she reflects on maturity, reconnection and a desire to indulge in the natural world. In “Virgin,” Lorde rejects that all-encompassing maturity and admits that, despite growing up, her inner adolescence remains. Lorde’s signature up-tempo techno beat, reminiscent of “Supercut” (2017), emerges in her singles, “What Was That,” “Man of the Year” and “Hammer.” In each, Lorde embraces her individuality, no longer conforming to a singular identity. These themes continue in “Shapeshifter,” where Lorde accepts all versions of herself, recognizing that change is not linear, nor does it ever stop. In the standout track, “David,”Lorde blends heavy production with powerful vocals, singing,

“Said, ‘Why do we run to thе ones we do?’/ I don’t belong to anyone, ooh.” This emotional conclusion to the album leaves the listener feeling uncertain yet unafraid. In comparison to the rest of the songs, this track slows the heartbeat of the album to a culminating stop, allowing the listener to reflect and revel in the final meaning. The emotional tides of “Virgin” are not accidental — it is a reminder that nothing is forever. However, these growing pains are impermanent. Although I fretted for the future a mere few months ago, I now think back to that quiet car ride I spent with Lorde and smile at all the good I was yet to experience.

“KPop Demon Hunters,” an animated movie directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, follows Huntrix, a famous girl group with demon-hunting secret lives who protect the world through song and battle.

Conflict arises when a demon boy band threatens the fabric and harmony of humanity by unleashing an army of horrendous demons that suck the life out of innocent souls to feed their leader, Gwi-Ma (Lee Byung-hun). The movie roots itself in themes of identity and self-acceptance while drawing from different aspects of Korean culture, including casting Byung-hun, who plays the villain in “Squid Game” (2021-2025).

With exceptional songwriting and vocal performances, the soundtrack bursts with earworms — each song captivates the audience. But the music is not the only thing enthralling: the fast-paced, colorful animation assists the captivating sonic landscape.

We all have our inner demons, but those of us who do not enjoy this movie have more than the rest.

In that case, I recommend watching it again and doing some soul-searching, because while kids are wrong about a lot of things, they are not wrong about the addictive nature of “KPop Demon Hunters.”

— Sarah Yun, Contributing Writer

ivana Chen/illuStration editor

— Mia Hamon, Music & Live Arts Desk

‘Eusexua’ by FKA twigs

ivana Chen/illuStration editor

Sa Sha emmeriCh/deputy illuStration editor

Maddie Tolbert connects countries, cultures through digital postcards

By hunter Buchheit a rt S & l ife e ditor

Maddie Tolbert (20Ox, 22C) still remembers the way her preschool teachers worried about her.

At one point, during a conference with Tolbert’s parents, her instructors expressed an unusual concern: Tolbert drew too much on scraps of paper and did not spend enough time on the computer.

Even as a child, Tolbert craved connection to places and people while the world around her became increasingly digitized. Now, two decades later, Tolbert continues to channel her love for tangible connection and memory-making to create Pi9eon, an app that turns digital images into postcards.

From Milton, Ga., Tolbert’s desire for a small community drew her to

CROSSWORD

Emory University’s Oxford College, where she sought to build on the policy knowledge she gained from a high school internship with the local government.

Tolbert began at Oxford in the fall of 2019. After taking her first few Emory classes, she realized she wanted to study both global and national politics, so she decided to major in international relations, taking advantage of what she saw as “limitless” avenues for study and extracurricular activities.

“I became more interested in learning about different cultures and how that interacts with the political context of different countries and how that has to do with history, too,” Tolbert said.

But just as she was beginning her journey at Emory, Tolbert’s plans, like the rest of the world, were upended by the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020.

To stay connected to the Emory community, Tolbert served in a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion position in the Oxford Student Government Association, which, along with helping her stay attached to peers in a world forced to social distance, solidified her interest in exploring other cultures.

“It was awesome,” Tolbert said. “I got to learn about different cultures, put on a lot of events, which was so fun, given that [during] COVID, everyone was doing the social distancing, and it gave me the opportunity to connect with people.”

While Emory classes were remote, Tolbert decided to travel to and study in Arizona. While in Arizona, Tolbert noticed that, like her, her peers’ addresses kept changing, making connections purely digital. Eventually, after graduating from Emory, Tolbert took her pas-

4. Cpls.’ superiors

5. Theseus’ abandoned bride

6. Wayfarer’s guide*

7. Put into a ponytail, e.g.

8. “Toy Story” boy

9. Presence

10. John Coltrane’s instrument

11. The Buckeye State

12. Drainage area

15. ___ on the Shelf

23. Slumped

25. Arizona desert

27. Approximately

29. Counterpart of scissors and paper

30. Before, archaically

31. Bad-mouth

34. Square ___ in a round hole

35. Shade

36. What’s on the tree

37. Grooming routine

43. Tight-fitting garment

44. Writer Hemingway

45. Makeshift shelter

46. Helpers: Abbr.

49. Traditional Christmas meal

50. Kimono sashes

53. No-win situation?

54. Snakelike fish

55. Arid

56. Friend

57. Hwy.

58. Investment option

sions for policy and human connection to Hawaii. She participated in AmeriCorps’ Volunteers in Service to America program, working on renewable energy projects and building on her Emory education. During her time in Hawaii, Tolbert continued to keep her friends updated on her travels through postcards.

After her year with AmeriCorps concluded, Tolbert decided to delve deeper into international politics by beginning a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University (Mass.). During her time at The Fletcher School, Tolbert continued to travel, spending a semester in Spain at IE University, where she studied international business. Through her travels, she once again noticed how difficult it was to stay connected to her loved ones and how postcards’ tactile nature elicits a different emotional response than a text.

“It’s more meaningful to receive a postcard than a DM,” Tolbert said. “My friends, when they receive a postcard from me, they send me a picture, and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, thank you so much.’ I don’t get that response when I send someone 10 Reels in their DMs.”

At The Fletcher School, Tolbert also met her peer Sanford Glickman. Tolbert bonded with Glickman over their mutual desire to bridge the physical divides between people.

After graduating from The Fletcher School this May, Tolbert began traveling around Southeast Asia, making an effort to absorb unfamiliar cultures as best she could. Still, Tolbert struggled to share her experiences with people back home due to the inefficiencies of sending mail abroad. One postcard she sent from Indonesia this August did not arrive

until November.

“I always want to stay connected with people, and I don’t know how to,” Tolbert said. “I send a lot of postcards back home, but navigating the international mail system is awful.”

During a conversation between Tolbert and Glickman, the pair discussed the difficulty of sending postcards to friends half a world away.

Glickman wondered aloud if they could bring postcards to a digital format.

Tolbert fell in love with the idea and soon thereafter, Pi9eon was born.

Glickman built out Pi9eon’s software in under a week, and Tolbert flew to Glickman’s home in Washington, D.C., where the pair spent two weeks finishing development.

To use Pi9eon, users upload an image from their camera roll to the app and add a note.

Then the company prints the digital postcard and sends it to the recipient within seven to 10 days, according to Tolbert.

Although she does not describe herself or her co-founder as “techy” people, Tolbert said building the app allowed her to return to her creative side as she applied the business knowledge she gained during her time at IE University.

Tolbert currently works for Lincoln Room Strategies, a consulting firm that specializes in transportation policy.

Still, she appreciates the freedom that comes with being an entrepreneur and having autonomy over her business decisions.

Looking to the future, the duo has grand plans for Pi9eon: As they prepare to talk to investors, Tolbert envisions a world where the app’s name is a part of people’s everyday vernacular.

“That’s our big goal,” Tolbert said. “We’ve made it if people are saying, ‘Oh my gosh, Pi9eon that.’”

Beyond widespread recognition, Tolbert hopes the app may remind the business world of the value of physical modes of connection.

“Gen Z, especially after COVID, are trying to connect with the real world,” Tolbert said. “Our goal is to set a trend, really, that other companies start valuing tangible items.”

Although far from her preschool self, Tolbert still finds comfort in the tangible.

Whether stepping foot in a new country or speaking to communities about energy and transportation policy, Tolbert will keep sending postcards and continue building Pi9eon, meshing two distinct worlds — paper postcards and real connections.

– Contact Hunter Buchheit at hunter.buchheit@emory.edu

By ethan aLtshuL Crossword Desk

CourteSy of m addie tolbert

Maddie Tolbert (20Ox, 22C) enjoys working in policy.

CourteSy of m addie tolbert

In her travels, Maddie Tolbert (20Ox, 22C) speaks to locals.

Crow Thorsen swims on after heart attack

By SaSha MelaMud Sports Feature Desk

Graduate swimmer Crow Thorsen has always known water. Growing up on the California coast, the Thorsen family lived walking distance from the ocean, where Thorsen learned to swim at just four months old. It was when the family relocated to Asheville, N.C., though, that Thorsen swam his first competitive lap and began his swimming career.

During his collegiate recruiting process, Thorsen’s younger sister Ginny described how the athlete scrawled pages and pages of notes on yellow legal pads with statistics of schools and their swim programs. Through his research, Thorsen learned that athletes on Emory University’s swim team steadily became faster during their time as Eagles. Emory swim and dive head coach Jon Howell recalled Thorsen’s recruiting process, calling him as an “easy match” with the Eagles.

“[Thorsen is] one of the hardestworking people we’ve had, very determined, very goal-oriented,” Howell said. “He’s somebody that lifts up people around him and makes us better as a whole.”

Thorsen became a national champion in his sophomore year in the 800-yard freestyle relay and then his junior year in the 400-yard individual medley. With the momentum from these previous seasons, Thorsen was ready to give senior year his all, especially being one of the elected captains.

On Dec. 27, 2024, Thorsen donned his swimsuit for winter training with his club team and siblings in Athens, Ga. The team was doing all-out sprints when Thorsen noticed something off, and by the second round of sprints, he began swimming slower. Struggling

to breathe with increasing pressure on his chest, Thorsen hopped out of the water.

“My club swim coach saved my life and said, ‘Crow, you need to go to the hospital,’” Thorsen said.

On the swim deck, Thorsen’s consciousness began to slip. His father drove him to the emergency room, where an echocardiogram revealed a blockage in his left anterior descending artery. Thorsen had experienced a “widowmaker” heart attack, a kind only 12% of people outside a hospital or advanced care facility survive, according to the American Heart Association.

“I honestly never thought it was a heart attack,” Thorsen said. “I thought it would be a two-hour visit and they would send me on my way. … Until now, it still doesn’t always click to me.”

After he was stabilized in the hospital, Thorsen messaged the Emory team with the news. Senior swimmer Jane Sanderson vividly recalled receiving that message.

“It’s shocking to hear that about anyone in our age group, but especially somebody who is so athletic and just

Women’s soccer confident ahead of Final Four matchup

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“a legacy” actively being built.

“To be able to have gone in the past few years and make it so that it’s already half of what the program history has accomplished all together is truly something that we all feel really privileged to be part of,” Garcia said. “We’re really building a good structure for the next coming years.”

For Garcia, the biggest change between last year’s tournament and this one has been building confidence in her playing.

“Last year I was really, really nervous to even be in the tournament,” Garcia said. “Now, since I’m way more confident, I’m able to cater more of my energy into making sure that our underclassmen are feeling their best.”

Garcia also pointed to the team’s “big five” mindset that the first five minutes and last five minutes of each half are defining moments in games, and can help keep energy up.

“That electrifies us,” Garcia said. “There’s been games where I’ve had to make some early saves … and when I am successful with those saves it really gives us energy.”

Similarly, Bozzuti said the postseason brought a shift in mentality for the entire team.

“The aspect of breaking it down, it’s one game, it’s just opponent X,” Bozzuti said. “You have to take care of business until you can make it to the next round.”

Patberg pointed to several regular-season games that convinced her the team had the resilience to make another deep run, citing wins against Columbus State University (Ga.), the University of Chicago and Case Western Reserve University (Ohio) and their tough University Athletic Association (UAA) schedule as matches in which the Eagles had to “grit out” tight victories.

“That’s what gets you through a Johns Hopkins and a Pomona game, is playing in the UAA,” Patberg said.

“That sets you up to be able to grit it out against fantastic opponents.”

Garcia echoed Patberg’s sentiment and said that pressure fuels their team rather than overwhelming them.

“The better competition we play, the better we are as a team,” Garcia said. “We strive on that pressure, we feed off of it.”

Last year’s Final Four appearance changed the standard for the Eagles, and this year has solidified their status. As the Eagles prepare for their game against No.3 Tufts on Dec. 4, the team has some unfinished business this time around.

“For each one of these players, in their sporting career, this is the pinnacle,” Patberg said. “This is as good as it gets.”

— Contact Ari Mayblum at ari.mayblun@emory.edu and Tvisha Jindal at tvisha.jindal@emory.edu

in such great shape,” Sanderson said.

After a night in the intensive care unit and cardiac wing, the hospital discharged Thorsen — but whether or not he would ever swim again remained uncertain. The road to recovery was long, but Thorsen was not afraid of a challenge.

“For a while, it meant doing nothing,” Thorsen said. “My biggest amount of exercise was, I was allowed to walk to classes with a backpack. I would take breaks and sit on benches — I realized there’s lots of benches around Emory’s campus, so that was a new perspective.”

Thorsen continued to find new perspectives during his recovery, especially after he started cardio physical therapy, where he was “the only person there without grandkids.”

“I earned the nickname ‘the inspiration’ from my friends in cardio physical therapy, and learned lots of fun stories and lessons from all of them,” Thorsen said. “They’ve experienced life or death for any situation, as have I, which brought us closer together, but it changes your perspective on life.”

As Thorsen progressed through

cardio physical therapy, attending three times a week, he went from becoming winded after a walk to eventually running a 5K.

“After finishing my first 5K, I was so emotionally exhausted, obviously physically exhausted, but I remember coming home and laying on my floor crying, being proud of where I was,” Thorsen said.

After a few months, Thorsen graduated from cardio physical therapy, and passed his stress test. With “the allclear” from his doctors, Thorsen had a new goal in mind: Getting back in the pool.

“It was really hard not being able to swim, and I realized how much of who I thought I was and what made up ‘Crow’ relied on my love and commitment to swimming,” Thorsen said.

With this roadblock to the water still in place, Thorsen questioned whether or not he was still an athlete. However, he soon realized he wasn’t alone in his self-doubt after speaking with an Olympic-hopeful runner who suffered a stroke and could never run again, yet still always introduces himself as a runner. For Thorsen, this interaction,

By TviSha Jindal Contributing Writer

The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) officially awarded its 17th franchise to Atlanta on Nov. 11, cementing the city’s reputation as a rising powerhouse in U.S. soccer. Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank will own the team, which will begin play in 2028.

Blank is no stranger to the Atlanta sports scene. He already owns the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and MLS’s Atlanta United FC, and plans to invest heavily in this new project. AMB Sports and Entertainment (AMBSE), Blank’s sports ownership group, paid a $165 million expansion fee, a league record and a substantial jump from previous fees.

The NWSL is fully behind the new expansion.

“Atlanta is a city that embodies the energy, diversity and ambition that define the next chapter of the NWSL,” NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said in a statement. “From its passionate fan base to its deep sports culture, Atlanta has all the ingredients to become one of the league’s most dynamic markets.”

Additionally, AMBSE committed to developing a first-class training facility dedicated exclusively to the women’s team, through another $165 million investment to hit the ground running.

The team will play its games at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The venue, which the Falcons and Atlanta United already share, will be reconfigured to hold 28,000 fans for NWSL games — smaller than its existing capacity of over 70,000.

AMBSE is already searching to hire

along with outreach from other athletes, was “crucial” in rebuilding how he saw himself post-heart attack.

“I talked to people that were going through the same thing as me,” Thorsen said. “They found me through my articles or through different connections, and we talked about losing our sport due to medical events, and I leaned on them a lot.”

Only six months after his heart attack, Thorsen took a running dive into the water from the same pool deck in Athens at a July meet. For the first time since December, he swam a competitive lap in a pool post-treatment, without any complications. While Thorsen still worries about something happening in the water, he said he’s doing his best to take each day “one step at a time.”

“I get more confident every single time,” Thorsen said. “There’s always fear, which has been frustrating because swimming has always been a calming safe space. … It still is, it’s just, sometimes I think about my heart a little bit more than I’d like to.”

But the fear has not stopped Thorsen. At the Emory Fall Invitational, he swam two events and won the 400-yard individual medley. Now back in the pool, Thorsen said he feels grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the swim team and beyond graduation from Emory, hopes to continue to be part of similar team environments.

“I want to keep exploring and hopefully sharing my positivity and my positive approach to life, as well as just a general sense of gratefulness and appreciation for what we have,” Thorsen said. “Everyone can sometimes use a reminder of that.”

— Contact Sasha Melamud at sasha.melamud@emory.edu

a leadership team and build the club’s brand identity. Given the ongoing bird theme for some of Atlanta’s professional sports, like the NFL’s Falcons and the NBA’s Hawks, it is not a stretch to imagine an NWSL mascot along those lines. The final name and branding, however, will be developed through consultation with fans in Georgia.

Atlanta follows recent additions to the NWSL in Denver and Boston, whose teams begin to play this upcoming season. The NWSL has hinted that more expansion could follow Atlanta, with the commissioner emphasizing a “rolling” expansion model, meaning the league may admit future teams as markets and ownership groups prove themselves ready. This expansion is more than just a sports franchise: It represents a significant investment in women’s soccer in both Atlanta and the broader United States. AMBSE and Blank’s commitment to infrastructure, such as building a new locker room in Mercedes-Benz Stadium and focusing on athlete development, shows that they are serious about building a sustainable, top-tier NWSL club.

From an economic standpoint, the

new team could generate significant local benefits. The new NWSL team will have a new training facility, new staff and hold frequent matches at Mercedes-Benz, creating jobs and community involvement. Moreover, as Atlanta continues to be a central hub for soccer, with the Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center based there, this NWSL franchise strengthens the city’s growing soccer identity.

In a press release, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens celebrated Blank’s leadership for making Atlanta into a soccer hotbed, boasted about Atlanta United’s record fan attendance and highlighted the city’s role in the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup matches.

As the team builds toward the 2028 launch, fans, players and stakeholders will be watching closely: What will the team be named? Who will coach? Which star players might be drawn to a fresh, high-investment franchise? For Atlanta, and for women’s soccer, the future just got a little brighter.

— Contact Tvisha Jindal at tvisha.jindal@emory.edu

Courtesy of Crow thorsen

Graduate swimmer Crow Thorsen talks with coach Jon Howell after a race during the 2025 season.

Courtesy of wikimedia Commons/Legoktm

The NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman stands and waves on the podium following the league’s 2022 championship match.

Sports The Emory Wheel

Men’s and women’s soccer teams advance to Final Four

By ari MayBluM and TviSha Jindal Contributing Writers

The Emory University men’s and women’s soccer teams are preparing for the Final Four of their respective NCAA Division III (DIII) soccer tournaments after advancing through the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight rounds on Nov. 22 and 23. Both teams will travel to Salem, Va., with the women’s team set to compete against Tufts University (Mass.) on Dec. 4, and the men’s team taking on Trinity University (Texas) the following day.

Men’s team reaches Final Four for first time in program history

For the first time in program history, the men’s soccer team advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA DIII

Men’s Soccer Championships. The Eagles are moving on to Salem, Va., to face off against the No. 5 Trinity Tigers at Roanoke College (Va.) in a highly anticipated Final Four fixture.

The Eagles defeated Dickinson College (Pa.) in penalty kicks after an exciting but scoreless 110 minutes of play. Men’s soccer head coach Cory Greiner entrusted sophomore defender Josh Ali with the first penalty. Ali kept his cool, converting the penalty and getting the Eagles on the board. Ali admitted the moment was not one he had pictured leading up to the season.

“If you had told me at the beginning of the season in August that I’d be doing that, I definitely wouldn’t believe you,” Ali said. “Going into the tournament, we knew that at least one game was going to be a tight one ... so, we were prepared when the moment came. We had full confidence in each and every one of the guys.”

With hopes of a national championship at stake, junior goalkeeper Geoffrey Halpern helped deliver the Eagles’ 10th clean sheet of the season. Halpern made six saves, including crucial stops in the 79th minute and both overtime frames. He credited the team’s goalkeeper coach Felipe Quintero for preparing him for the important penalty kicks.

“We train set pieces pretty frequently, and then through our goalkeeper training with our coach, [Quintero], I’ve seen shots like that plenty of times before,” Halpern said. “It was just a matter of staying calm in that situation … stay ready, stay set and react to the ball, as opposed to guessing where it’s gonna go.”

Halpern believes his chemistry with defense players was a significant factor in the Eagles’ historic victory.

“We were super efficient in that game,” Halpern said. “They had a lot more of a dynamic attack, something we hadn’t seen as much thus far in the season. … Now it’s just us complementing off each other — we’re all synced up, we understand how each other play, what the game is going to require from us.”

With the shootout tied 3-3 and a trip to the Final Four on the line, graduate forward Ignacio Cubeddu, the team’s leading scorer, stepped up to the plate and delivered the walkoff winner. Cubeddu described the thoughts running through his mind as he approached the penalty spot.

“As soon as I saw a miss, I was like, ‘Wow, this is it. You can’t write something like this,’” Cubbedu said. “This is pretty much everything I’ve worked for, this opportunity right here for me. And luck of the draw, you just take it.”

In addition to working toward high-pressure moments like the penalty kick, Cubeddu said he is pursuing a championship even in the face of adversity in his own soccer career.

“The standard for me has always been trying to win a national championship,” Cubeddu said. “Coming here to a new team, there’s always a lot of doubt, like, ‘Oh, can you do it again? … Can you do it with all the doubt and with everything on the line?’”

Despite the thrilling victory, Cubeddu and the Eagles are not satisfied yet. The team has their eyes set on something bigger: a national title.

“This is the furthest the program has ever gone,” Cubeddu said. “And if we can take it a step further, we can really write history. So, there’s a lot on the line for us to be the first

guys ever at Emory to win a national championship.”

Women’s team returns to Final Four for second consecutive season

After a gritty 1-0 win over PomonaPitzer Athletics (Calif.) in the Elite Eight, the women’s team will return to the Final Four for the second year in a row, and only the third time in program history.

For the women’s team, the postseason road back was neither guaranteed nor easy. Emory faced a tough side of the bracket, playing No. 19 Johns Hopkins University (Md.) in their Sweet 16 match-up. Yet, the Eagles met the moment with the same toughness and tactical consistency that has defined their season.

In the match against Johns Hopkins, senior goalkeeper Sophia Garcia delivered two crucial first-half saves, including a diving save in the 40th minute to keep the game at 1-1 heading into halftime. The Eagles came out on the attack in the second half with four shots on goal in the first ten minutes, resulting in a goal from sophomore forward Mikayla Camp in the 56th minute off of a cross by sophomore forward Emory Bozzuti.

In the Elite Eight, the Eagles broke through early against Pomona-Pitzer. In the 17th minute,Camp controlled a long pass from junior defender Jessica Nastasi and scored, putting the Eagles up 1-0 with her third goal of the weekend.

Women’s team head coach Sue Patberg emphasized that team leadership did not overhaul tactics heading into the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight and said film study, matchup preparation and discipline remained the core.

“Leading up to the game, more than in the game, we did a ton of crossing and finishing,” Patberg said. “That really came into play that weekend.” Garcia, who recorded eight total saves across the weekend, said the team’s return to the Final Four reflects

Formula 1 lines up for three-way drivers’ championship battle

By Maya vraTanina Contributing Writer

The 2025 Formula 1 season has brought chaos to the final stretch, as the drivers’ championship will come down to the last race of the season: The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Dec. 7.

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, the four-time reigning drivers’ champion, claimed victory at the Qatar Grand Prix on Nov. 30, while this season’s top driver, Lando Norris, from McLaren, finished in fourth. Verstappen’s win bumped him to second in the standings and guaranteed a championship battle between him, Norris and Norris’ McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, who stands in third.

The Abu Dhabi race should be an electric showdown between the three drivers. Norris enters with a recent string of strong performances, including three podium finishes in the last six races. As long as Norris places within the top-three finishers in Abu Dhabi, he will finish as the world champion.

While Verstappen struggled earlier in the season, his win in Qatar brought him to 396 points, just 12 behind Norris. Depending on his performance in Abu Dhabi, Verstappen could take his fifth consecutive world championship title.

Piastri, now trailing four points behind Verstappen, is trapped within a more complicated scenario. Earlier in the season, he appeared poised to tackle Norris directly. However, a series of disappointing weekends marked by missed podiums, a didnot-finish at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and a Las Vegas Grand Prix that saw both him and Norris disqualified has left him in a vulnerable position. To win the world title, Piastri would need to place at least second in Abu Dhabi with subpar finishes from the other contenders.

The constructors’ championship, based on total team points, will not be as exciting, with McLaren already securing the title, but Mercedes and Red Bull are locked in their own struggle for second place, with Mercedes currently sitting at 459

points and Red Bull with 426.

There have also been important developments off the track this season. At the most recent F1 Commission meeting on Nov. 14, the sport’s dignitaries gathered in London to discuss potential changes for the 2026 season, including mandating two pit stops in races, adjusting aerodynamic testing procedures to reflect advances in simulation technology, adjusting tire specifications and introducing new standards for driver cooling systems. However, F1’s governing body has not finalized these changes and the commission plans to continue its discussions after the opening races of 2026.

Additionally, the grid will expand to 11 teams next season for the first time since 2016, with Cadillac entering the fold. Veteran drivers Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas will compete for the new team after losing their seats in 2024 at Red Bull and Kick Sauber, respectively.

Red Bull is also going through a shakeup next season, replacing Yuki Tsunoda with current Racing

As the title fight tightens and new developments approach, F1 finds itself in a moment made of equal parts urgency and anticipation. The remaining race will decide a champion, and the changes on the

might set the tone for a new

Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar. Racing Bulls will, in turn, replace him with Racing Bulls Formula 2 driver Arvid Lindblad.

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ty Ler huff/Contributing Photogra Pher

Sophomore forward Jake Breitegan hustles to the ball during the 48th minute of the Homecoming match against the University of Chicago at the George W. Woodruff Physical Education Center.

Courtesy of wikimedia Commons/morio

The 2025 Formula 1 season will come to an end and a champion will be named following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Dec. 7.