Los Angeles Loyolan April 20th 2016

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E. OM . H ICE UR YO R VO S. W U YO R NE U YO

W W W. L A L O Y O L A N . C O M

EST. 1921

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Los Angeles LOYOLAN The

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What do broken controllers, Dual citizen Hana Vilanova Netflix binging and loud has the opportunity to play music have in common? in the Olympics for Spain

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Clinton to give final address LGBTQ+ President Bill Clinton will be giving the undergraduate commencement address. Michael Busse, Gracie McManus Senior Editor and Executive Editor @LALoyolan

President Bill Clinton will speak at LMU’s undergraduate commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 7. “His commitment to improving the lives of other people, during and beyond his career in U.S. politics, embodies the ethos of becoming women and men with and for others,” said LMU President Timothy Law Snyder in a press release. “President Clinton will inspire our graduates as they seek to lead lives of meaning, purpose, and global impact.” Clinton served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 as a member of the Democratic Party. During his two terms, he presided over the United States’ longest peacetime economic expansion. Before that, he served twice as governor in his home state of Arkansas. After his tenure as president, he founded the Clinton Foundation, a non-profit with the mission to “strengthen the capacity of people throughout the world to meet the challenges of global interdependence,” according to the Foundation’s website. In particular, the Foundation’s work has focused on global health, education and economic development initiatives. Despite Clinton’s philanthropic efforts,

some members of the LMU community have expressed dissent for the choice of speaker. RenewLMU, “an alliance to strengthen LMU’s catholic identity,” has made a petition to disinvite Clinton, according to the group’s website. They listed several reasons that detail why they believe Clinton should not speak at this years commencement ceremony, including his involvement in a sex scandal with 22-year-old intern Monica Lewinsky in 1998, his prochoice views expressed in the past and his marriage to Hillary Clinton, one of the Democratic candidates for the presidency, which they argue will politicize Commencement. The Rev. Allan Figueroa Deck,

S.J., rector of the LMU Jesuit community, responded to the dissatisfaction expressed by RenewLMU and others. “In conferring this honor LMU does not endorse all of Mr. Clinton’s past or current policies nor condone all his actions,” Deck told the Loyolan via email. “Rather, the University recognizes the extraordinary service he has given to civil society and his lifetime connection to Catholic and Jesuit higher education as a Georgetown University alumnus.” According to an email sent to graduating students by University Registrar Kathy Reed on Friday, each student participating in the ceremony will receive 10 tickets to distribute to friends and family. Tickets will be required for entry to Sunken Garden, and the festivities will take place on Saturday, May 7, at 9:30 a.m. Clinton’s nephew, Tyler Clinton, will be one of 1,400 undergraduate students participating in the comm e n ce m e n t ceremony.

via Flickr | Gage Skidmore

Swenson named valedictorian Former Editor-in-Chief of the LA Loyolan, Ali Swenson named valedictorian Michael Busse Senior Editor @LALoyolan

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li Swenson has spent the last four years at LMU harnessing the power of other people’s stories. Now Swenson, the valedictorian of the class of 2016, is ready to start writing the next chapter of her own. Though her passion for storytelling developed in her work as a journalist, Swenson has been shaped by a variety of interests. “I’ve never been someone who has just one interest,” said Swenson, a senior psychology major and business administration and journalism double minor. “That scared me when I was coming into college, I kept thinking, ‘How am I going to choose one? I guess the answer at LMU is that you don’t have to.” Indeed, Swenson has found success in a wide variety of pursuits at LMU academically, professionally and socially. She was recently named the top scholar in the psychology department while maintaining a near-perfect GPA. She has thrived as a member of several honors societies, in Greek life as a member of Pi Beta Phi and as a volunteer at Richstone Family Center. She was part of a team that represented LMU – and won – at the 2015 International Business Ethics Case Competition, and her work as editor-in-chief of the Loyolan has bestowed many awards to the publication. Those who know Swenson best are unsurprised by her success. Izzie Gibson

Penrose, a senior at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania, grew up with Swenson in the Seattle neighborhood of Ballard and attended school with her from kindergarten through high school. According to Gibson Penrose, Swenson’s achievements are nothing new. “She would read to all the other kindergartners, because we couldn’t read yet,” said Gibson Penrose. The two were among just a few students to test into an accelerated academic track called Spectrum, which lasted from first grade to middle school. “She’s always been one of the smartest girls I’ve known.” Swenson’s mother, JoAnn Marsden, also noted that Swenson has had a focused

curiosity from a young age. She learned to speak with a wide vocabulary early in life and was at ease conversing with adults. While her older sister, Jenna, was more physically active as a child, “Ali would sit and observe and focus and read,” Marsden said. “One day, [Ali and Jenna] were playing school, and Ali comes crying to me because she has a big F on her paper, and I take it and look at it, and of course, everything was right,” said Marsden. “Jenna laughingly says that she should take credit for Ali’s success because she made her play school so much.” See Valedictorian| Page 2

Caroline Burt | Loyolan

Ali Swenson was named valedictorian on April 14 at the Academic Awards Convocation.

students allegedly confronted Students were allegedly discriminated against by an Alumni Relations employee. Kellie Chudzinski Asst. News Editor @LALoyolan

Three student workers from the LGBT Student Services office were engaged in a verbal altercation with an LMU employee from the Alumni Relations office between 9 a.m and 12 p.m. on Palm Walk near the Von der Ahe building on Thursday, April 14, according to a Gender-Sexuality Alliance press release. Senior biology major Catalina Ibarra and senior business majors Kaii Blanton and Cosette Carleo noticed that signs put up for Rainbow Week, or LGBTQ+ Awareness Week, by LGBT Student Services (LGBTSS) had been removed and placed behind a garbage can, according to Carleo. As Blaton, Carleo and Ibarra attempted to replace the signs, an employee from the Alumni Relations office, whose name has not yet been made available to the public, allegedly approached the students about LGBTQ+ issues and voiced opinions on differing sexualities, expressing that antiLGBTQ+ signs should be put up in place of the students’ signs. The employee also referred to one of the students as a man, even though that student had informed the employee that they identify as gender neutral, according to Carleo. As of Tuesday April 19, multiple attempts were made to contact the employee in question, through the Alumni Relations office, email, phone and a social media account appearing to belong to the employee. At the time of print production on Tuesday, no responses were received. The Bias Incident Response Team (BIRT) met and released a statement on April 15, notifying the LMU community that BIRT, along with Public Safety and the Los Angeles Police Department, is looking into the events of April 14 as reported by the three students. BIRT also clarified that the investigation will continue as two separate incidents, the first being the removal of the LGBT signs and the second being the employee and students’ confrontation. “The University stands behind its statement of non-discrimination, which prohibits unwelcome, harassing conduct on the basis of several classifications, including gender identity and sexual orientation.” said John Kiralla, the executive director of marketing and communications and BIRT member, on April 14, before BIRT had met. ASLMU responded to the incident through social media, encouraging the LMU community to treat each other with respect. ASLMU is still looking into the events that took place last Thursday. “I’ve really only experienced love and acceptance upon coming out to new people, but this lady told me that I was wrong and unnatural. That shook me to my core,” Carleo said. Anthony Garrison-Engbrecht, director of leadership programs and LGBTSS, responded to the alleged events on April 14 via phone call. See LGBT| Page 3


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