Loyola Phoenix: Volume 53, Issue 1

Volume 53

Issue 1

September 15, 2021

LOYOLA PHOENIX ‘I’m disappointed she wasn’t the president we hoped for’

The award-winning student newspaper of Loyola University Chicago

Jerry Harkness leaves storied legacy on and off the court

Students and faculty reflect on Rooney’s tenure as her final year as president begins

LU CALZADA lcalzada@luc.edu

AIDAN CAHILL acahill1@luc.edu

Loyola President Jo Ann Rooney announced Aug. 23 she will leave her position as president at the end of the 2021-2022 school year, The Phoenix reported. Faculty and students reflected on her tenure and legacy as Rooney’s final academic year began.

Some shared frustrations over how issues like the COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice were handled within the university. Others spoke about her historical title as the first woman and non-clergy member to lead the Jesuit university.

David Ingram, a philosophy professor and treasurer of the Loyola chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), described Rooney’s legacy as a “mixed record.”

When announcing her departure, Rooney cited “deep reflection,” “some personal issues” and a “desire to ensure continuity of leadership” as the university implements a new strategic plan, The Phoenix reported. Susan Sher, chair of Loyola’s Board of Trustees, said Rooney offered to stay in her position longer if a replacement can’t be found within a year.

Ingram said Rooney’s resignation came as a surprise to him and other faculty members especially after the recent resignation of Loyola provost Norberto Grzywacz in May. Pamela Caughie, an English and women’s and gender studies professor, said while she didn’t have an inkling that Rooney would be departing.

ROONEY

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‘The last gasp of summer’ Pitchfork music festival brings a mix of genres to Union Park ZACK MILLER ALEC KARAM zmiller1@luc.edu akaram@luc.edu

Pitchfork Music Festival returned to Chicago Sept. 10-12 after a year off with a jam-packed lineup featuring artists of varied genres and fame, headlined

by Phoebe Bridgers and St. Vincent, among other tentpole acts.

The first day of Pitchfork opened with an eclectic mix of musicians, but it was some of the quietest groups that shined the brightest.

Halfway through the day Hop

Along took to the Red stage. Singer and guitarist Frances Quinlan’s acoustic guitar felt like the breeze that rolled in with the start of the band’s set — cool and refreshing.

Quinlan’s unique melodies in the group’s hit songs “Tibetan Pop Stars” and “How Simple” helped the band stand out among the well-curated list of artists who played the first day.

It only made sense that Friday’s headliner, Phoebe Bridgers, would have the most elaborate stage backdrop of the day. Taking inspiration from the art book that came with vinyl copies of her latest album, “Punisher,” she made her way through the better part of the record

while still mixing it up a bit with older tracks like “Scott Street.”

Behind the art, though, remained one constant — a depiction of a starry sky.

Bridgers earned her place among the celestial bodies track by track, injecting her personality into the studio-sounding performance through embellishments on powerful notes.

Her cover of Bo Burnham’s song “That Funny Feeling,” from his recent Netflix special “Inside,” which has now become a staple on her setlist, was welcomed by the crowd who sang along with her.

PITCHFORK 10

“I think I would change places with Jerry, when the chances were ‘Whose eternal salvation are you going to take, yours or his?’” Jack Egan, former Rambler men’s basketball player and friend of Jerry Harkness said. “I’ll take his.”

Jerry, captain of Loyola’s 1963 men’s basketball national championship team, passed away Aug. 24 at the age of 81. Although his legacy has been shaped by his contributions on the basketball court, he is remembered by close friends and family as a man with a humble heart and selfless disposition.

Born in Harlem, NY in 1940, Jerry began playing his sport as a kid — meeting long-time friend Elbert Shamsiddeen playing basketball together on a neighborhood team in the Bronx. The two became lifelong friends, and Shamsideen said Jerry would still come back to visit their housing project in the Bronx after he left to play for Loyola.

He remembers Jerry as someone who loved to sing, dance merengue and of course, win.

“Five, ten, fifteen seconds left in the game, he’d make sure we weren’t gonna lose,” the 82-year-old said.

With the Ramblers, Jerry was a two-time All-American and captain of the squad that won the 1963 NCAA Championship — Loyola’s sole men’s basketball championship. He went on to briefly play in the NBA for the New York Knicks before playing three years in the short-lived North American Basketball League (NABL) and finishing out his playing career with the Indiana Pacers in the American Basketball Association (ABA).

HARKNESS 14

Following vigil for teen’s drowning, city agrees to put up liferings NICKY ANDREWS ISABELLA GROSSO nandrews@luc.edu igrosso@luc.edu

Days before the Chicago Park District announced it would install life rings around the city’s beaches, family and community members gathered at Tobey Prinz Beach Park to remember the 19-year-old who drowned there last month.

Just a couple steps away from where her son drowned, Maria Diez hugged family, friends and community members who gathered on Sept. 7 to honor her son’s life and bring awareness to the lack of life rings placed along the

lakefront.

“The first couple of nights I couldn’t sleep,” Maria Diez, the mother of Miguel “Maicky” Cisneros, said during her speech. “I closed my eyes and I just had that image of my son screaming for help, he had a thick loud voice.”

Miguel “Maicky” Cisneros drowned just feet away from the Pratt Pier at Tobey Prinz Beach Park on Aug. 22, the Phoenix previously reported. Despite him being only a couple feet away, bystanders were unable to save him because of a lack of life rings in the area.

Cisneros, a recent graduate of St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, was described by family members as ath-

letic and tall with an amazing smile.

Cisneros grew up in Chicago and his friends said he has a deep care for the city and his community members.

Mario Rodriguez, a friend of Cisneros’, told The Phoenix he felt intimidated competing against Cisneros’ for a college scholarship.

“He just spoke with passion and value and courage about how he wanted to become a politician and everything we would do to fix his community,” Rodriguez, 19, said. “He was a bright kid and had a deep love for Chicago. [He was] always working for the betterment of other people.”

A&E Virbant VMAs: A look at the ceremony’s most notable fashion moments page 9

VIGIL

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Nicky Andrews The Phoenix

Maria Diez, Miguel Cisnero’s mother, spoke to a crowd of family, f riends and community members during a vigil honoring her son’s life Sept. 7.

SPORTS New men’s basketball head coach Drew Valentine has Sister Jean’s blessing page 16

PAGE 2

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

The Phoenix’s Return to Print: Coming back from a year online FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

Emily Rosca | The Phoenix

EDITORIAL Editor-In-Chief Katie Anthony Co-Managing Editor Zack Miller Co-Managing Editor Rylee Tan News Editor Kayleigh Padar Assistant News Editor Ananya Chandhok Assistant News Editor Nicky Andrews Sports Editor Lu Calzada Assistant Sports Editor Amelia Ickes Assistant Sports Editor Fernando Molina Bier A&E Editor Alec Karam

In 2008, the day after Barack Obama won the presidential race, my aunt handed 8-year-old me a copy of the Chicago Tribune. Filling the front page was an image of the president-elect with the headlines “Obama” and “Our Next President.”

“That’ll be you one day,” she said as she handed it over to me. I think she meant president. However, as a second grader I wasn’t even quite sure how one became president — or if I wanted to do it. I did know the paper looked cool, and I felt pretty important holding it.

From there began my love for newspapers. It wasn’t until high school that I got to actually be a part of a paper, as the print news editor for the Downers Grove South Blueprint.

Then here, at The Phoenix, first as a

writer, then an assistant editor and now as the editor-in-chief.

The conversations have been had — as I’m sure they’ve been had at every student publication across the country — is this the year we stop printing? Illinois State University’s student publication, The Vidette, moved to online-only this fall after 132 years.

It wasn’t even a conversation for my predecessors running the paper, who were confronted with the unthinkable: a pandemic. Our campus was empty, our reporters and editors working out of their homes across the country, the lights in our newsroom were turned off and our computers gathered dust. A pause on printing was inevitable — it was a tough decision that had to be made.

stories published on our website do. Each copy is an untouched look into what mattered that week at Loyola. The front page tells you what was at the forefront of students' minds — a copy from February 2020 has a story about a few COVID-19 cases on page three. In another copy from March, the pandemic takes up the entire front page.

Print papers may one day become obsolete. But, at The Phoenix we continue to recognize the importance these physical copies of news hold. So, for as long as we can, we’ll continue to print. And we hope you continue to pick up our paper.

contents News.

Assistant A&E Editor Paige Twenter Business Manager Nick Miller

Editor-In-Chief kanthony@luc.edu

How supply chain issues are affecting Loyola dining

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Why Loyola's instagram has gone silent

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Essay: The son of a first responder reflects on Sept. 11

Arts and Entertainment.

Co-Managing Editor zmiller1@luc.edu Co-Managing Editor rtan@luc.edu

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News Editor kpadar@luc.edu

Memorable looks from the VMAs Art organizations return to in-person activites

Sports.

Sports Editor lcalzada@luc.edu

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A&E Editor akaram@luc.edu

7 An update on

Multimedia zmiller1@luc.edu

FOLLOW US

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Opinion.

CONTACT

Twitter @PhoenixLUC

Today, Sept. 15, is the first time The Phoenix has produced a print product in over a year. Why, though? We got really good at publishing stories online. Printing papers takes time, skill and money (quite a bit of money).

I, admittedly, have an unrequited love for print papers. But more than my own infatuation with them went into the decision to keep The Phoenix in print. Like that 2008 paper my aunt gave me, print papers provide us with a physical copy of history. You can feel it. You can flip through the pages and learn what else was happening in the world when these events took place.

In our newsroom lives a table, overflowing with thousands of copies of The Phoenix. This unofficial archive gives us so much more than the thousands of

Loyola's racial justice efforts

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Lake Shore Campus

Men's basketball legend Jerry Harkness is remembered by family, friends and colleagues

16

Drew Valentine starts with Sister Jean's blessing

Security Notebook 1. Sept. 6, 2021: A Loyola reported a purse theft that occurred at the Loyola Red Line station to Campus Safety.

Instagram @LoyolaPhoenix Facebook @TheLoyolaPhoenix

2. Sept. 7, 2021: A Loyola student reported an electronic theft through extortion to Campus Safety.

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3. Sept. 8, 2021: A Loyola student reported public indecency to Campus Safety that occurred on the 1100 block of West Granville Avenue.

4. Sept. 11, 2021: Two loyola students reported two municipal violations in the alleyway near the 6300 block of north Winthrop Avenue to Campus Safety.

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

News

PAGE 3

VIGIL: Miguel Cisneros is Remembered by His Family, Friends and Community Members Family and friends gathered at Tobey Prinz Beach Park Sept. 7 to honor the life of the 19-year-old Miguel “Maicky” Cisneros who drowned there Aug. 22.

NICKY ANDREWS ISABELLA GROSSO nandrews@luc.edu igrosso@luc.edu Days before the Chicago Park District announced it would install life rings around the city’s beaches, family and community members gathered at Tobey Prinz Beach Park to remember the 19-year-old who drowned there last month.

Just a couple steps away from where her son drowned, Maria Diez hugged family, friends and community members who gathered on Sept. 7 to honor her son’s life and bring awareness to the lack of life rings placed along the lakefront.

“The first couple of nights I couldn't sleep,” Maria Diez, the mother of Miguel “Maicky” Cisneros, said during her speech. “I closed my eyes and I just had that image of my son screaming for help, he had a thick loud voice.”

Miguel “Maicky” Cisneros, drowned just feet away from the Pratt Pier at Tobey Prinz Beach Park on Aug. 22, the Phoenix previously reported. Despite him being only a couple feet away, bystanders were unable to save him because of a lack of life rings in the area.

Cisneros, a recent graduate of St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, was described by family members as athletic and tall with an amazing smile.

Cisneros grew up in Chicago and his friends said he has a deep care for the city and his community members. Mario Rodriguez, a friend of Cisneros’, told The Phoenix he felt intimidated competing against Cisneros’ for a college scholarship.

He just spoke with passion and value and courage about how he wanted to become a politician and everything we would do to fix his community,” Rodriguez, 19, said. “He was a bright kid and had a deep love for Chicago. [He was] always working for the betterment of other people.”

Rodriguez and Cisneros both ended up receiving the scholarship and Cisneros planned to attend Columbia University in New York City with the money.

“I should have been driving him [to New York] last week but instead last Monday I was burying my son,” Diez said during her speech. “All just because the lakefront has no life rings.”

Since her son’s death, Diez has been working with the 49th Ward Alderman,

Maria Hadden, to continue to put pressure on Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Chicago Park District for not installing more life rings.

“From Miguel’s death what we can work for and what we can make of this is a change,” Hadden said. “A change to bring more safety to our waterfront, a change to the policy for the Chicago Park District, more awareness for the residents of our community, not just the lakefront community but all of the residents of Chicago.”

“We’ve been working with people to advocate for life rings along the lakefront trail for so long,” Dave Benjamin, Co-founder of the great lakes surf and rescue. “The life rings were supposed to be installed this summer but the park

district felt putting up life rings will influence people to jump in the water.”

After weeks of back and forth between residents and the park district, the city finally announced it would install the life rings.

A press release put out by the Chicago Park District on Sept. 10 stated that life rings will be installed as well as life preserver equipment at select waterfront locations as part of a program to help reduce risks of water related accidents and drownings.

In addition to life preserver equip-

Nicky Andrews

The PHOENIX

ment, the District will also install increased signage along the lakefront and conduct outreach with community groups to raise public awareness and enforce beach safety. Equipment will be installed prior to the 2022 beach season.

“I hope my Maicky, whose middle name was Angel, will be our angel in finally getting our city and park district officials to make a change and provide the safety equipment that our lakefront desperately needs,” Diez said on Sept. 6, four days before the district agreed to do just that.

Nicky Andrews

The PHOENIX

Miguel Cisneros’ death sheds light on the underlying issue at hand: a lack of life rings along the lakefront trail.

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NEWS

SEPT. 15, 2021

ROONEY: Students and faculty say goodbye to the departing president AIDAN CAHILL acahill@luc.edu continued from page 1

Rooney was the first woman and first member of the laity — or not a part of the Catholic Church hierarchy — to become president of Loyola. Ingram said this was important because most of the undergraduate students — 67.3% — are women and come from varying religious backgrounds.

“When President Rooney was hired, I was excited, I was thrilled,” Ingram said. “I remember the faculty convocation, that first one. In retrospect, I’m disappointed that she wasn’t the president that we had hoped for.”

“I’m disappointed that she wasn’t the president that we had hoped for.”

DAVID INGRAM philosophy professor

Caughie, who previously served as president of the AAUP, expressed similar feelings when Rooney was hired. She said she was thrilled when meeting the new president in 2016.

“I was one of the faculty invited to meet the new president,” Caughie said. “We didn’t know who it was going to be. When a laywoman walked in, I thought it was a real, very important sign that the university is going to be more open, diverse and willing to move away from the tradition of having to have a Jesuit at the head of the university.”

Hugo Acosta, a junior communications major who transferred to Loyola during the pandemic, said he felt disconnected from Rooney — only seeing her name occasionally pop up in emails. But, Acosta said he thinks Rooney made a lot of the “right calls” in handling the pandemic.

“I felt like there wasn’t much of a connection, obviously, because there’s so many other hands that are passing down messages,” Acosta said.

Tuition Increases In her 2016 inaugural address, Rooney said Loyola should stop relying on tuition increases and suggested it look for funding from donors and other means. However, during her five-year tenure, tuition increased by more than 13% — while her salary neared $800,000 — The Phoenix reported.

Tuition was one of the issues brought up by some students in discussing Rooney. Lily Buchen, a senior majoring in digital media, said she was happy to see Rooney leave. One of the major issues Buchen said she had with Rooney was the tuition increases.

“I would say that was probably the biggest problem that I’ve had with her,” Buchen said. “She’s raised tuition every year since I’ve been here; raising tuition last year when we weren’t even on campus was one of the most ridiculous things that I’ve ever seen.”

President Rooney was not available to be interviewed for the story.

Loyola spokesperson Anna Shymanski Zach said in an email to The Phoenix that the tuition increases, especially during the pandemic,

were in part due to the decision not to furlough or lay off any faculty during the pandemic. Although the university didn’t lay off faculty, it did reduce spending by furloughing at least 52 “She raised tuition every year since I’ve been here; raising tuition last year we weren’t even on campus was one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever seen.”

LILY BUCHEN digital media major

staff members and laying off at least 44 others, The Phoenix reported.

Shymanski Zach also said during the pandemic, $250 million in financial aid was distributed to students, the most seen in Loyola’s history.

Racial Justice Rooney’s 2016 speech also touched on diversity, saying it was “expected by students” and “required by society.” Loyola’s latest 2019-2020 diversity report shows an increase in students who report they’re Hispanic or Asian while the number of students who report they’re Black has fluctuated between three and six percent of the student population for the past 10 years, The Phoenix reported.

Despite the overall increase in diversity, the 2020-2021 academic year saw hundreds of students participating in protests calling for better support for Black students and employees at Loyola.

Their demands included cutting ties with the Chicago Police Department, providing better funding for Black student organizations on campus, hiring more Black faculty members and having a public forum with Rooney, among other others, The Phoenix reported.

William Bazzone, a sophomore journalism major, said he wished Rooney would have said more in support of racial justice at the university earlier on. Rooney didn’t issue a statement until 11 days after the protests began on campus, The Phoenix reported.

“You shouldn’t be political in your job,” Bazzone said. “But when you’re living in a city where a lot of political issues are coming up like that, I think the least you could do is acknowledge that it’s happening, and not turn a blind eye to it.”

Shymanski Zach said the university is open to “healthy debate and disagreement.”

“We welcome this debate and the diverse perspectives it brings,” Shymanski Zach said. “There are disagreements, but there are also places where we have been aligned and made good progress.

Ingram praised Rooney’s actions and words regarding racial justice — including her response to harsh immigration policies under former President Trump, her statement made after the murder of George Floyd and the establishment of an Anti-Racism Initiative (ARI).

“When she speaks on these issues, she’s often spoken very eloquently,” Ingram said.

Loyola’s ARI started following the 2020-2021 racial justice movement.

The three goals of the initiative are to “Create a safe, respectful, inclusive environment for students, staff, and faculty of color,” “Facilitate Black student, faculty, and staff success” and “Enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion in Academic Affairs.”

Buchen said the ARI was a good first step but was skeptical about its results.

“It sounds like Loyola is doing something but it doesn’t seem to me that there’s any actual change going

Courtesy of Loyola University Chicago

President Jo Ann Rooney announced her final year at Loyola on Aug. 23 in a university-wide email. on,” Buchen said.

While some promises in the initiative haven’t come to fruition — such as the Office for Black Student Success, which was set to open this fall, but wasn’t — other goals within it have been met.

Loyola implemented online anti-racism training into every University 101 course, an intro to college class all first-years are required to take. The university also increased mental health resources for students of color — including hiring two counselors to provide academic support for those students.

Shymanski Zach defended Loyola’s record on racial justice, highlighting the ARI and recommendations made

by Black Cultural Center. She also stated 79% of the 39 full time faculty hired between August and May identified as people of color. Within Loyola’s current first year class, 49% identified as people of color.

Shared Governance and Academic Freedom in Rooney’s Tenure Ingram said Rooney’s tenure lacked shared governance, an idea in which university executives and faculty share the responsibility for running the university.

“Another issue has been decisions that have been made in a kind of a top down manner without adequately consulting faculty and other employees at Loyola,” Ingram said.

Ingram said some of these decisions included the switching of university healthcare plans to Aetna insurance, closing Loyola University Museum of Art, and downsizing International Student Services.

Caughie also talked about these decisions and said this top down approach was one of the major issues she and some of her colleagues had with Rooney.

“It didn’t seem to be part of any mission, any vision for the university,” Caughie said. “They just came out abruptly. We had to constantly, as faculty. be reacting, rather than participating in the process” These and other decisions, Caughie said, led her to believe Rooney and others in her administration were out of touch with the academic side of the university and more interested in the business end of it.

Ingram also shared concerns about academic freedom during Rooney’s tenure, mentioning Loyola’s media policy — a past policy requiring press to go through Loyola spokespeople for all contact with members of the faculty and staff, which he said he considered “an infringement on free speech.”

This policy, which also included restrictions on The Phoenix’s reporting practices, was eventually altered, allowing faculty to talk to reporters without going through University Marketing and Communications if they choose, The Phoenix reported.

Shymanski Zach said a committee was formed more than two years ago to review shared governance procedures at Loyola and issue recommendations. She said Rooney and the interim provost recently received these recommendations and plan to review them in the coming weeks.

Loyola’s Next President Looking ahead to who might replace Rooney as Loyola’s president,

some students said they want to see a president who is receptive to students and represents Loyola’s diversity.

Bazzone said he wants a president who’s more conscious of social issues and puts students first when making decisions.

“They don’t want to be raising tuition, they want to be understanding, because this is still a really hard time for [the people] that are going to the school here,” Bazzone said. “And I think they need to be a bit more generous in that regard.”

Ingram said a new president might help stabilize university leadership, particularly in the Office of the Provost. He also mentioned the need for having a president committed to ideas of shared governance.

Caughie also said a commitment to shared governance was the number one thing she hoped to see in a new president.

“If you have a president who makes unilateral decisions, who doesn’t respect faculty, you’re in for a really difficult tenure as president,” Caughie said. “A president has to reach out to the faculty, and has to take faculty council as the representative body of the university seriously and work with them. That’s going to be crucial to the next President.”

Caughie said she hopes the university will show they’re committed to diversity in the search for a new president and remain open to having a lay person as president.

“I hope that somebody will just stabilize the ship, give us a chance to have a shared vision and adjust to it,” Caughie said.

Courtesy of Loyola University ChicagoJo Ann Rooney has been president since 2016 ­— she’s the first woman and layperson to hold the position.

NEWS

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

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‘It’s tough’ : Loyola Community Self-Enforces COVID-19 Guidelines NICKY ANDREWS nandrews@luc.edu

With the return of students on campus, professors and student workers have been tasked with enforcing the mask mandate in campus buildings and classrooms. For some, the new responsibility brings a comforting sense of control to their position, while others have said they’ve felt uncomfortable confronting peers on the topic.

Sandra Sullivan-Dunbar, a theology professor at Loyola, warned her students of her strict rules surrounding mask-wearing prior to the first day of classes.

“I do not want to be in a classroom with somebody whose mask is not on their face and over their nose because I’m worried about myself but I’m also worried about all the students sitting close by,” Sullivan-Dunbar said.

The delta variant — one of the most prominent COVID-19 vari-

ants in circulation right now — is commonly spread through coughing or sneezing from someone who is within six feet of another, according to the Center for Disease Control.

Mask-wearing that covers the nose and mouth has become the most common way to prevent the spread of the virus, The Phoenix reported.

While getting tested is no longer mandatory for those who are vaccinated, Loyola requires students and faculty to wear masks when on campus, The Phoenix reported. Despite her firm views of mask-wearing, Sullivan-Dunbar said she’s pleased to be back in-person teaching students face to face.

“It’s time to be back,” she said. “I’m so grateful that Loyola has required masks and vaccinations. I sense that the university worked really hard for it to be as safe as it could be.”

Communication professor Lee Hood shared similar views.

“I haven’t had any problems in class with anybody questioning the

mask mandate or trying to defy the mask mandate,” Hood said. “I have to give the students credit.”

“I haven’t had any problems in class with anybody questioning the mask mandate or trying to defy the mask mandate. I have to give the students credit.”

LEE HOOD communication professor

While some professors may feel grateful for the university and students’ efforts to protect the community, some student workers said they feel like there’s more to be done.

Angelica Juliano, a student worker and nursing major, noted the stressful

Nicky Andrews The Phoenix

When entering the Damen Student Center, students must show a health screener on their phones to student workers.

nature of checking the health app of every student who enters the Damen Student Center.

“As a student worker, it’s a little more stressful for us because people don’t listen sometimes,” Juliano, 21, said. “We’re not trying to be annoying about it, it’s just for the wellbeing of everyone that we have to enforce all of these rules.”

Juliano said she wishes the university had a different system that connected the health app to the student ID as well as scanners by the front doors. This way, students would be able to scan their ID, confirming they have completed all mandatory requirements rather than displaying the app on their smartphones.

University spokesperson Anna Shymanski Zach said this wouldn’t be reasonable.

“Students, faculty, and staff are asked to show their compliance status via Loyola Health to enter the Damen Student Center because it is a high-traffic area, and using the card swipe method would allow for a significant number of people to piggyback into the building unchecked,” said Juliano also said she believes health apps synced to IDs would help solve the issues of students who don’t have smartphones, those who only show screenshots or have issues loading the webpage.

“When you’re showing screenshots they’re not accurate because they’re not showing us weekly changes,” Juliano told The Phoenix. “They could have just been from your first week of school, then [if] you’ve got COVID and we don’t know that and you could just be walking around.”

Shepherd Yancey, a co-worker of Juliano’s, agreed it’s hard to enforce COVID-19 guidelines as a student.

“It’s tough because people are people, students are students, you can’t control everyone,” Yancey, 23, said. “But if the university was a bit more proactive about being stringent covering the entire face with masks I think it would be advantageous for everyone, including myself.”

While Yancey’s job description

includes enforcing the mask mandate, he said additional means of enforcement would be helpful to him at work.

“I would prefer that Loyola do a bit more, whatever that looks like for the university, to enforce the proper mask-wearing whether that be through signs or personnel other than those working,” Yancey said.

While signs reminding community members to wear masks can be spotted on entrances throughout campus, the university has not employed additional staff to regulate mask-wearing in campus buildings.

“Loyola believes compliance with all COVID-19 health and safety protocols, including our mask policy, is everyone’s responsibility,” Shymanski Zach said. “Loyola administration continues to keep an open dialogue going with students, faculty, and staff who may have concerns as we navigate our full return to campus.”

“It’s tough because people are people, students are students, you can’t control everyone.”

SHEPHERD YANCY student worker

The university encourages all students and faculty to report masking violations through the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict for student violations, and through the appropriate administrator’s office for faculty violations.

While the university aims to utilize community-based enforcement, professors like Sullivan-Dunbar hope to foster trust within the classroom.

“It’s better to build the classroom community to where we all know that this is what’s expected and that this is how we take care of each other,” Sullivan-Dunbar said.

Campus group partners with Loyola to provide free menstrual products SOPHIE LEWIS slewis6@luc.edu

In the last year, Loyola teamed up with Students for Reproductive Justice (SRJ) to provide free pads and tampons for all students who menstruate.

Previously, SRJ — an unofficial student organization which promotes resources for sexual and reproductive health — provided these products themselves, while they tried to get the Loyola administration to help fund the project, The Phoenix reported.

It’s frustrating that a community that prides itself on being caring and inclusive has had issues regarding menstrual products in the gender neutral and male bathrooms.

RILEY TOMES first-year student

During the spring semester of 2018, the Vice President’s Office began a trial period of providing pads and tampons in select bathrooms around campus and because of overwhelmingly positive student feedback, the trial proved to be a success, according to SRJ’s website. SRJ didn’t

respond to requests for comment.

As a result, SRJ got the Loyola administration to take over this project permanently during the spring of 2019-2020. Loyola began providing pads and tampons in five bathrooms at Lake Shore Campus and two bathrooms at Water Tower Campus shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic closed its campuses. Associate Dean of Students — Samantha Maher Sheahan — said this project is, “absolutely a success.”

“I think it’s great that Loyola is providing pads and tampons for their students, but whenever I go into the bathroom there is never any there,” said first-year Jessica Marroquin, a neuroscience major.

The Sullivan Center bathroom — one of five bathrooms to offer menstrual products at LSC — promotes the Menstrual Equity Project on signs above the supplied pads and tampons. The goal of this project was to work with Loyola administration to provide free tampons and pads for students through the Student Innovation Fund.

“I had no idea that there were pads and tampons provided in the bathrooms,” said first-year Ellyson Heine, whose major is undecided but on the pre-law track.

A sign above the menstrual products states, “Any body can menstruate— if you don’t need these, leave them alone!” The sign was posted after previous incidents where menstrual products had been tampered

Nicky Andrews The Phoenix

Signs are posted above the menstrual products referencing the Student Innovation Fund and advertising free supplies.

with in the male and non-binary bathrooms, The Phoenix reported.

“It’s frustrating that a community that prides itself on being caring and inclusive has had issues regarding menstrual products in the general neutral and male bathrooms,” Riley Tomes, a first-year theater and English major, said.

A male student threw away menstrual products in the men’s restroom in October 2019, The Phoenix re-

ported. After a peer confronted the student and was ignored, the bystander decided to post a video of the interaction to Twitter — by the morning the post was viral.

Currently, the consequences following his actions are not public knowledge and The Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution (OSCCR) didn’t respond to The Phoenix when asked about potential consequences for this type of behavior.

“Anybody that would ever see any tampering is encouraged to report,” Sheahan said.

Sheahan explained if tampering is reported the university would “review available information, identify the respondent if possible, OSCCR would address behavior, and if it was found to be motivated by hate or bias then it would be sent to the Office of Equity and Compliance.”

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

6 NEWS

Community members reflect on Loyola’s return to campus EHMED NAUMAN enauman@luc.edu

As Loyola’s campus comes back to life, some students are facing unique challenges returning to on-campus learning after spending more than a year completing classes online. For sophomore Stephanie Heuss, coming to campus means learning in-person for the first time since high school.

“I still feel like a freshman,” Heuss, who’s a commuter student, said. “But after missing out on graduation and prom, it’s so cool to be on campus, see people talking to their friends, and walking to classes.”

In March of 2020, Loyola shifted all of its classes online as the COVID-19 pandemic ramped up. By the spring semester of 2021, the university offered a hybrid learning experience for some classes, with a mix of online and inperson meetings, The Phoenix reported.

With campus returning to full operation, vaccination is required for all students and faculty returning to campus – except for those who received a medical or religious exemption.

Although students look forward to re-entering the classroom, many still feel unfamiliar with the structure of

college classes.

“It’s intimidating when you don’t know what to expect from in-person college classes,” Heuss said.

To help students orient themselves on campus, Loyola planned a Welcome Week with several activities for new and returning students to find ways to get involved on campus and socialize.

Sp ecif ically for s ophomores, Loyola’s Second-Year Sunday gave students the opportunity to take part in Loyola traditions like walking through the famed green doors of Cudahy Library and attending their own welcome session in the Gentile Arena.

First-year student Turell Tate said he prefers in-person life far more than online life through the pandemic.

“I love in-person classes,” Tate said.

“It allows me to do more with my time and allows me to have a dedicated space for learning with no distractions.”

Tate grew up in Memphis and said moving to Chicago and being on campus felt both exciting and nerve-wracking.

“At first it was a culture shock,” Tate said. “Memphis is very rural compared to the bustle of Chicago.”

Sophomore Amy Burkett said she thinks returning to the classroom

and building relationships with professors will be beneficial to her learning experience.

“One thing I’m looking forward to with in-person classes is getting to know my professors,” Burkett said. “I know a lot of people who have made such strong connections with their professors and that’s so hard to get on Zoom.”

Some professors shared this sentiment in regaining personal relationships with each other in the classroom.

Communication Studies Program Director and professor Elizabeth Lozano said she feels grateful to reenter the classroom environment since it lends to creating more developed relationships between her and students.

“Your entire body gets ready for the space and you’re able to completely change your mindset when physically in a classroom,” Lozano said. “Education is best when people have community rather than competition with people they do not know.”

Outside of the classroom, students have the opportunity to find community through becoming involved in some of Loyola’s 250 clubs and organizations.

Tate especially looks forward to

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Damen Student Center is once again a place students can mingle and work.

becoming involved with on-campus organizations.

“I’ll join as many singing clubs as possible and get involved with intramural sports,” said Tate.

At least a thousand students attended

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

the organization fair where sports teams, art clubs, social justice organizations, and other clubs tabled to get students interested in campus communities, according to Student Activities and Greek Life (SAGA).

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Loyola’s campuses are fully reopened this academic year following over a year of remote classes and reduced capacities.

Loyola’s Instagram inactivity sparks student questions Dining halls struggle to keep up with ISABELLA GROSSO igrosso@luc.edu

Loyola’s Instagram account has gone silent, sparking questions across the student body. Its last post referenced Martin Luther King day Jan. 18.

Sophomore biology major Lainey O’Boyle said it’s a little strange Loyola isn’t keeping students in the loop of what’s going on on campus through social media.

“I think it’s weird not posting,” junior Sarah Atwell said. “If they are redoing their Instagram I think they should post that they will be back soon or something.”

In addition to posts coming to a halt, Loyola also turned off comments on their last three posts.

Loyola spokesperson Anna Shymanski Zach said comments on the Ins-

tagram posts haven’t been fully deleted, they’ve just been paused.

Sophomore forensic science major Nayeli Varges said it seems like Loyola paused the comments because they want to preserve their image.

“I think that it’s kinda weird that they would delete all their comments,” Atwell, 20, said. “Loyola is very much a public place and people can voice their opinion on social media. I could understand if they were really vulgar, but if it was just feedback they should respond or deal with it and not just delete the comment.”

University Marketing and Communications (UMC) directly manages and monitors Loyola’s four primary social media accounts: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter, Shymanski Zach said.

“UMC is evaluating the univer-

Nicky Andrews | The Phoenix

Loyola’s Instagram hasn’t posted anything since Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 18.

sity’s social media approach overall, which includes hiring a director of social media, and during this time, Instagram is temporarily paused,” Shymanski Zach said.

Shymanski Zach wouldn’t answer questions about whether the comments on Instagram contributed to the university’s decision to re-evaluate their social media approach.

“It makes me think about what those comments said and why the school felt the need to pause them,” O’Boyle said. “Why don’t the students have the freedom to comment on what they feel on social media?”

Despite Loyola’s pause in posting, the main Instagram account, @ loyolachicago, still remains popular, recording a 14% increase in followers in the last quarter alone, according to Shymanski Zach.

“The primary Instagram account remains a valuable channel for Loyola, and while a timetable has not been set on reengaging the account, the plan is to resume posting,” Shymanski Zach said.

Though Instagram is a way to connect with students through social media, students still regularly receive information from Loyola’s different departments via email, newsletters, website updates, webinars, text messages and campus digital panels, as well as by following Loyola’s other social media accounts, Shymanski Zach said.

“I think Loyola not posting is kind of sending out a bad image because so many other universities are more in tune with their social media and more in touch with the times,” Vargas, 19, said. “Not everyone checks their email.”

supply chain and employee shortages ISABELLE DRAXLER idraxler@luc.edu

With dining halls reopening this year, signs have popped up warning of menu changes, substitutions, and delays.

Employee shortages around the nation have caused delays in all food processing alleys, which affect Loyola’s dining experience.

In early summer of this year, as several businesses and corporations started re-opening in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, some corporations didn’t see a return of employees.

Loyola invited students back to a fully reopened campus this semester and its three dining halls on Lake Shore Campus are operating at full capacity, The Phoenix reported.

Loyola spokesperson Anna Shymanski Zach said the university is “actively managing and monitoring the pandemic-caused supply chain and staffing issues occurring nationally across industries.”

“We are working closely with our suppliers — leaning on constant communication, decision making, and flexible menus — to keep up with Loyola’s dining needs and to minimize impact to our students and community,” Shymans-

ki Zach said in an email to The Phoenix.

The dining halls are open at full capacity and students sometimes face long lines for meals.

Noah Hickey, an 18-year-old firstyear, said he follows a vegetarian diet and has “no complaints,” about the menu choices, although the wait for food can be long.

“De Nobili gets packed with lines, especially for the vegetarian options,” Hickey said.

Other students have been disappointed in the selection they’ve seen.

“I wish the types of food were more diverse,” Paige Block, an 18-year-old first-year studying biology said, I end up having to eat the same thing for lunch and dinner.”

Shymanski Zach said the uncertainty faced by students is shared by the university.

“Supply shortages vary over time, so what we may be short on at one point in time may be accessible soon after,” Shymanski Zach said. “Similarly, staffing situations are also in flux right now due to the ever-changing pandemic landscape.”

With so much frustration around the subject, Shymanski Zach wants students to know Loyola is “actively recruiting” staff members.

Nicky Andrews | The Phoenix

Loyola’s dining halls have faced delays and food shortages due to the pandemic.

NEWS

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

7

Phoenix 101: How Loyola is addressing racial justice LEEN YASSINE lyassine@luc.edu

Following months of protests and gatherings by students calling for better support for Black students, the university has been working over the past year and a half to address racial issues on campus and beyond, from research initiatives to academic and mental health resources.

The Phoenix spoke with university officials to learn more about the resources and organizations Loyola is introducing to address racial justice on campus.

What is the Anti-Racism Initiative?

One of the main organizations within Loyola working to address racial justice on campus and create resources for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) students is the Anti-Racism Initiative (ARI). It was created in the summer of 2020

following nationwide protests in support of Black Lives Matter, including several demonstrations organized

by Our Streets LUC — a group of students calling on Loyola to better support Black students and cut ties with the Chicago Police Department, among other demands.

The ARI is a group of Loyola faculty, students and alumni working to support Loyola community members of color through the creation of new programs and resources — including mental health services and diversity, equity and inclusion training. The ARI also began sending out bi-weekly newsletters in March with the goal of educating readers on anti-racism and updating the Loyola community about the intitiave’s work.

The ARI’s three overarching goals this school year involve creating an “inclusive environment” for students, staff and faculty of color, facilitating Black student success and enhancing diversity, equity and inclusion in

Academic Affairs, according to the initiative’s website.

This fall semester, the ARI is implementing “evidence-based practices” to retain faculty of color, ensure Black community members have access to intersectional and inclusive wellness resources, and coaching university leadership on anti-racism, among other things.

An Office for Black Student Success is also in the works and more information will be shared when it’s available, Nelson-Christensen said — although a progress report published by the ARI and Loyola’s Black Cultural Center in April stated the office would be complete before the Fall 2021 semester began.

University 101: Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging

In other academic news, Loyola also implemented a “Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging for Students” course available to all students and

required for incoming students in Fall 2020.

The online course is administered through Everfi — the same company responsible for Loyola’s alcohol education and sexual assault prevention programs — and is included in University 101, a seminar required for all first-year students.

Along with about 2,600 incoming first-years, about 1,000 additional Loyola students were assigned this module last fall — including peer advisors and student leaders — according to Loyola’s Associate Director for First-Year Experience Kevin Clarke.

Despite these numbers, Clarke said not everyone has completed the module and that “it’s hard to say” how much progress each student made within the course.

“This is just the starting point for more meaningful conversation,” Clarke said in an interview with The Phoenix. “This is really a foundational piece for a lot more the university will or can do for diversity, equity and inclusion.”

The ARI is currently working on implementing a similar program for graduate students, according to ARI Chair Dr. Amy Nelson-Christensen.

Mental Health Support for BIPOC Students

Zack Miller The Phoenix

Students chalked messages demanding Loyola address racial justice issues. Since then, Loyola implemented some changes.

Alongside the creation of more academic resources, Loyola is working to expand mental health services for BIPOC students.

Dr. Andrea Boyd, who has been working at the Wellness Center since 2014, took on a new position as Staff Counselor for Diversity, Inclusion and Social Justice initiatives in January 2020 — just two months before Loyola students were sent home due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

Instead of working from the Wellness Center in Loyola’s Granada Center (6445 N. Sheridan Road) like most Wellness Center staff, Boyd said her office is located in the Damen Stu-

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dent Center (6511 N. Sheridan Road) just across the hall from the Student Diversity and Multicultural Affairs (SDMA) office.

Boyd said her position involves her working directly with BIPOC, LGBTQ and first-generation students — which are just some student identities that fall under the umbrella of SDMA, she explained. Boyd said she has also created workshops on topics such as mental health among student activists and race-related stress.

The Wellness Center has also worked to increase diversity and representation on its staff with the hiring of a Black-identifying counselor in summer 2020, according to Loyola’s Director of Counseling Dr. David deBoer. The Wellness Center also hired a new counselor this summer who will primarily work in the Sullivan Center (6339 N. Sheridan Road) to provide academic support for BIPOC students, he said.

“We are committed to continuing to work to become an anti-racist institution and to continue to promote anti-racism on our staff,” deBoer said.

“We encourage students to continue to hold us accountable.”

What is the Institute for Racial Justice?

While the ARI and Wellness Center aim to create change directly within the university, the Institute for Racial Justice (IRJ) is more externally focused, said founding Dean Dr. Malik Henfield. Rather than creating on-campus programs, the IRJ is responsible for conducting research on racial justice and forming connections with racial justice-related organizations across Chicago, the nation and globally.

Students who are interested in getting involved with either the ARI and IRJ can visit their websites, which include updates from their respective organizations and further contact information.

Opinion

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

PAGE 8

Don’t Bow to Hate Groups: Make the Vaccine Mandate Mandatory

THE PHOENIX EDITORIAL BOARD In April, our former staff wrote about how a vaccine mandate at Loyola could help us return to the “normal” college experience. The week after, the school announced a vaccine requirement that has allowed students to return to in-person learning and living this fall.

While the vaccine policy states that unvaccinated students won’t be able to attend in-person classes, live on campus or get access to campus buildings, Loyola approved exemptions to more than 40 students following legal threats.

The group of students said they were opposed to vaccines “produced or tested with fetal cell lines” and refused to get the shot citing it as a “grave sin” in a press release put out by their legal representation, Liberty Counsel.

Katie Anthony Rylee Tan Lu Calzada

The group argued with a flimsy legal backing. In August, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Indiana University’s vaccine mandate — backing the Appeals Court for the Seventh Circuit’s citation of Jacobson v. Massachusetts, which allowed for Massachusetts’ smallpox vaccine mandate with no religious exemptions.

But these students’ legal counsel may also be familiar to some for other reasons.

This is likely because Liberty Counsel is designated as an antiLGBTQ+ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, an antidiscrimination group.

“Homosexual conduct can result in significant damage to those involved who engage in such conduct,” Liberty Counsel wrote on their site in 2015, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

“There is no evidence that a person is born homosexual. And there is evidence that people can change.

Our culture is being pressured with demands that our homes welcome, our daycares embrace, our schools indoctrinate, our businesses promote, and our laws reward this harmful sexual behavior.”

so she grabbed a vacuum cleaner bag and wrote on that instead.

I also know that he carried a stretcher with then Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld. My dad yelled for help carrying said stretcher, and didn’t even realize who it was until a family member saw the video.

There’s plenty I can’t tell as well. Stories that are just too heartbreaking to repeat. I didn’t understand them as a kid, but they now put me on the verge of tears.

Sept. 11 is not something my generation knows first hand. We weren’t alive when the attack occurred. All we know is the aftermath. Even though I wasn’t born at the time, the scars still cut deep.

My father spent the majority of my first year of life bouncing between military bases in Maryland, his first deployment coming the day of the attacks. While this was going on, my family finished moving to Pennsylvania in October 2001, and had me in January 2002.

His brother soon faced deployments as a member of the New York National Guard. Their two brothers-in-law, one an airman

and the other a soldier, would also be affected. Later on, my cousin would follow in his father’s footsteps and enlist.

Like all service members at the time, their lives would be upended by the two wars the U.S. engaged in.

They all saw service in the Middle East, my father going to Iraq when I was five. All of these deployments took a toll on me as I grew up — for 20 years there was always a chance one of my family members could get shipped off to war.

"Children do best in a home with a mom and a dad."

LIBERTY COUNSEL WEBSITE

They’ve since toned this down to making more passive strikes at the LGBTQ+ community.

“Children do best in a home with a mom and a dad,” their website currently reads under the “Marriage & Family” tab. Founder Mat Staver has

Zack Miller Kayleigh Padar Alec Karam

published a book titled “Same Sex Marriage: Putting Every Household At Risk.”

Not to mention their legal aid to conversion therapy groups in Florida or when they “successfully challenged” a lower court decision in the Supreme Court to allow protesters to harass those seeking healthcare at a Florida pre-natal clinic.

When asked by The Phoenix, the university didn’t address whether it knew about Liberty Counsel’s status as a hate group or how much pressure from the group affected its decision making, among other things.

“The University cannot comment on individual student matters,” the statement from Loyola spokesperson Anna Shymanski-Zach said in an email. “Given the serious nature of the pandemic…

we are rightly called to make reasonable efforts to protect one another through vaccination.”

While Loyola won’t answer whether or not Liberty Counsel had any bearing on their decision, the fact that Loyola changed their minds the same day Liberty Counsel demanded the switch makes us question who can influence the administration.

Groups like these — who fight and speak against the students who attend classes here every day — shouldn’t have a seat at the table.

Every death, every hospitalization and every “long-hauler” is one too many. The university needs to ensure it’s doing everything in its power to keep students and staff safe.

Make the vaccine mandate mandatory.

Essay: The son of a first responder reflects on September 11th AIDAN CAHILL acahill1@luc.edu

I’ll start with the story. The story I’ve known since I was a kid and the story that defined so much of my life to this point. Even though I wasn’t alive to see it written.

On Sept. 11, 2001, my father was traveling between Maryland — where he was a National Guardsman — and Alexandria, Virginia where he was a paramedic. On his way there, he received a call from my mom telling him that two planes had impacted the World Trade Center. My mom thought it was an accident. My father didn’t.

While he was on the phone with my mother, he looked up and saw smoke coming from The Pentagon.

He hung up the phone, drove towards the smoke, and ran to assist.

From there the story becomes hazy. I know sometime on that day my mom got a call from my dad. He passed his phone around and had her take the phone numbers from the survivors, this way their families would know they made it out. My mom couldn't find a piece of paper

“All we know is the aftermath.

Even though I wasn't born at the time, the scars still cut deep.”

AIDAN CAHILL

During this time I’ve watched my father suffer. War and emergency response takes a toll on you, both physically and emotionally. It strains your family, forcing you to make tough decisions and miss important events.

I don’t think a day goes by where he doesn’t feel a sense of guilt over this. I hear it every time he talks to me. Every time we talk about grades or the news, it’s there. I wish it wasn’t but I don’t know the words to make it go away.

I don’t wish the pain my family has endured upon anyone. Even after all this time, it still weighs heavily.

Every year, my family prepares for this day. We silently mark the date, knowing the day of the week and how our schedule fits into it.

As it gets closer, it feels more like a looming cloud suffocating you and making everything dark and grey.

Sometimes that feeling will pop up randomly —following the death of Secretary Rumsfeld or during a particular training at the firehouse.

I didn’t expect it to loom so heavily this year. After all, I'm in Chicago. Far away from my home state, which contains the crash site of United 93, and nowhere near the Pentagon. I thought I could get away with ignoring it. I told an editor that I couldn’t write a piece but after seeing a display at Lewis Library, I realized I had to. While it may be easy to hide the pain this

anniversary is causing, saying it out loud is therapeutic.

On that note, I encourage you to read the stories of the fallen. Read the stories of their families and the people they saved and inspired.

Look at those who came after, the soldier and civilian alike. Their stories may be set in stone but don’t let them be forgotten.

As for the living, there’s a bit of hope. The wars are over. We can now properly assess what happened and take time to heal and cope. That’s not to say the days ahead won’t be hard but at least we can take a deep breath and move forward.

As for my family, things may be their usual brand of insanity, but for the first time no one will be in a position where they could be sent to war. Over time my family members left the military, the last one doing so this past July.

Overall, I’m just grateful my family —and really this country — survived the last 20 years. Sept.11 may have devastated this nation and caused much turmoil for many families, but at the end of the day we can push forward. That’s all I can really ask for.

A&E

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

9

Vibrant VMAs: A look at the ceremony’s most notable fashion moments Photos courtesy of Lauren Woulard, MTV

NATALIE DOYLE ndoyle1@luc.edu

Photo courtesy of Lauren Woulard, MTV

Megan Fox wore a sheer Mugler dress at the Video Music Awards.

Hosted by Doja Cat at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn Sept. 12, the Video Music Awards (VMAs) not only saw a packed house and huge performances, but also plenty of flashy red carpet looks.

The VMAs, which have been hosted by MTV for the past 37 years, are known for embracing funky, ground-breaking fashion — whether it be Madonna’s white lace bustier dress and “Boy Toy” belt in 1984, Cindy Crawford’s Versace bondage dress in 1992 or Lady Gaga’s infamous meat dress from 2010 — the award show has been home to some of the wackiest looks over the years.

And while the 2021 VMAs didn’t have anything quite like Gaga’s meat dress, there were still plenty of fun trends and stunning looks featured on the red carpet this year.

One of the evening’s most stunning dresses was also one of the simplest.

Megan Fox’s sheer, nude and gold Mugler dress paired with her glowy makeup and beachy wet-hair look made for a show-stopping appearance.

Even Machine Gun Kelly’s sparkly, firered Dolce and Gabbana suit couldn’t take away from Fox’s ensemble.

Another simple yet gorgeous ensemble was Hailey Bieber’s seethrough lilac dress by Maison Alaia.

While it was one of the simplest looks of the night, it was one of the sleekest.

One major trend at the VMAs this year was corset detailing. Doja Cat wore a stunning black Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood corset and Camilla Cabello had a hot pink corset top on her vibrant dress. Both Olivia Rodrigo’s vintage red carpet dress by Atelier Versace — Versace’s haute couture collection — and the flouncy dress she wore while performing “Good 4 U” featured corset

detailing on the bodice.

There was no shortage of flashy metallic either, with Billy Porter fabulously rocking an all-out silver suit, and Paris Hilton’s futuristic, silver-studded mini dress. Of course, there was also Chloe Bailey’s Marni dress that looked like it could have been made out of tin foil or one of those Mylar emergency blankets.

As for one of the funkiest red carpet looks, Kim Petras takes the cake.

Petras came decked out in a full-body, black latex bodysuit under a stunning mini-dress that looked like it came straight from a Renaissance-era cathedral. Her dress was reminiscent of many of the 2018 Met Gala’s theme, “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.” The juxtaposition of the black latex and the beaded, bejeweled dress made for a statement look on the red carpet.

While not quite Kim Petras-level camp, Kacey Musgraves extravagantly

Graphic by Alec Karam

stepped out in a vibrant Valentino purple and red ensemble, complete with a huge, purple feathered headpiece. Musgraves’ look was reminiscent of Gaga’s in July 2021. Gaga stepped out of Radio City Music Hall in a purple Valentino cape and similar Philip Treacy purple feathered headpiece.

While there were a plethora of bold, interesting looks from the VMAs this year, other attendees were lacking. Justin Bieber seemed to forget the awards show was happening, rolling up in a black hoodie and baggy jeans. During his performance with the Kid Laroi, Justin Bieber was serving gothic farmer in what looked like the same black hoodie and large overalls.

While not every single look at the VMAs was of the spectacular degree, it’s good to see vibrant colors and stunning silhouettes back on the red carpet again.

Returning as rockstars: Dogleg faces their biggest crowd yet at Pitchfork ZACK MILLER zmiller1@luc.edu

Michigan-based punk band Dogleg faced a dogleg — or sharp turn in a path — of their own in March 2020. The group released their debut album “Melee” March 13, the same day former president Donald Trump declared a national emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, as live music crawls its way back onto the scene, the quartet has returned to a full rockstar treatment.

Dogleg took on Pitchfork Music Festival’s Green Stage midday Friday — facing a crowd of hundreds — which they estimated was four times bigger than their previous record showcased in their “Fox” music video.

The performance was a dream come true and one that had been a long time coming. Three of the four members — bassist Chase Macinski, guitarist Parker Grissom and singer and guitarist Alex Stoitsiadis — met at a music school in seventh grade and have played together since.

Now, after adding drummer Jacob Hanlon to their lineup — who said the crowd size “blew his mind” —

Macinski said playing this set made him feel like some of the bands he’s idolized since his early days in music.

“When I did my first jump in the middle of ‘Fox,’ I was like, ‘This is how Blink 182 feels,” Macinski told The Phoenix.

The group’s energy matched that of the crowd, which Stoitsiadis attributed to the amount of preparation they put into playing.

“This is how Blink 182 feels.”

CHASE MACINSKI Dogleg bassist

“We can play all of this in our sleep,” the 23-year-old said. “That’s how [we] can play with this much energy. [We] just practice, practice, practice. Then, when you play, you already have the muscle memory.”

He admitted his signature cartwheel — this time with a running start due to the amount of space they had on stage — is not practiced.

Despite the great turnout reinforcing their status as rising stars, Stoitsiadis said he feared people would be sick of their year-old album already.

“I have been waiting to play these songs for so f---ing long,” Stoitsiadis said. “I was worried that people would be sick of the songs.”

The frontman’s fears turned out to be unfounded.

While their album’s title is a nod to the Nintendo game series “Super Smash Bros.,” it was also a fitting title for the audience’s reaction to their set. It didn’t take long for a mosh pit to form in the crowd, with thrashing audience members kicking up the dusty ground as the group shredded through their set.

As the notes of their album-closing song “Ender” radiated throughout Union Park, Hanlon got up from his kit and threw his sticks into the crowd — joining the ranks of great drummers from across all genres and eras in doing so — which he said helped set in the gravity of the situation.

“I felt like a badass.”

“Melee” is available to stream on Spotify, Apple Music and other streaming services.

Zack Miller

The Phoenix

Dogleg singer and guitarist Alex Stoitsiadis yells into the microphone during the band’s Sept. 10 set at Pitchfork Music Festival.

Zack Miller

The Phoenix

Fans thrash around during Dogleg’s set at pitchfork Music Festival Sept. 10.

PAGE 10

A&E

PITCHFORK: Chicago’s alternative music festival brings the heat

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Faye Webster donned a blue dress for her performance at Pitchfork’s Blue stage.

continued from page 1 Her cover of Bo Burnham’s song “That Funny Feeling,” from his recent Netflix special “Inside” — which has now become a staple on her setlist — was welcomed by the crowd who sang along with her. She then closed out the set with the final track of her sophomore album, which ends in screaming and a shredding guitar solo — a fitting finish for her existential-yet-cathartic style.

Bartees Strange picked up the pace early Saturday with tracks from his debut album “Live Forever,” seamlessly swapping between genres. Singer and multi-instrumentalist Bartees Cox Jr. captivated the crowd with an arsenal of shredding guitar licks, straightforward rap lines and dreamy soundscapes.

“This is the coolest,” Strange said.

“I dream about this s---, so thank you so much.”

Faye Webster hit the Blue Stage in the early evening to perform songs from her indie pop album “I Know I’m Funny haha.” Despite sound difficulties with Webster’s low-mic volume, the audience overflowed in support of the artist.

Women continued to dominate Saturday as Angel Olsen and St. Vincent gave prolific performances Saturday night. Olsen entered the stage radiating confidence as bright as her yellow highlighter pantsuit.

Olsen’s set was a mix of powerful vocals, inspired instrumentals and stand-up comedy. Between tracks, Olsen played with the audience, showing off her personality and captivating the audience in tow. A fan begged to toss broccoli on the stage.

“Try not to hit me in the face,” Olsen said. “‘Cause that offends me.”

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Rising star Caroline Polachek performed an echanting set Sunday evening.

Olsen teased the crowd with a story about a new song she wrote in the hotel.

What followed was a bait-and-switch with her signature hit “Shut Up Kiss Me,” leaving the audience screaming and dancing along.

With her angelic vocals, Olsen looked like the final form of a hotel lounge singer.

To close, Olsen brought singer/songwriter Sharon Van Etten on stage to perform “Like I Used To,” with fans swaying in joyous approval.

St. Vincent closed the night with a bombastic headlining performance, making every prior set look like a warmup. Hardly taking a break, St. Vincent went track-to-track effortlessly.

With a set of cartoon big-city buildings and synchronized background singers/dancers, St. Vincent’s set was aesthetically triumphant. As her lounge pop tunes rattled the audience into an enthusiastic trance, the stage transported fans to a cartoon — think “Powerpuff Girls” or “Totally Spies.”

St. Vincent’s look for the night solidified the atmosphere, a hybrid “Showgirl Barbie” and Madonna look with a sultry tuxedo and Stepford-wife hair with curled ends.

The set had the energy of a Disney villain’s exposition heavy song — in the best way. Performing hits from her latest album “Daddy’s Home” as well as earlier career staples, St. Vincent served a versatile mix of jazzy pop, electropop, rock and folk inspirations.

For 80 minutes, it was St. Vincent’s atmospheric world and the audience was just living in it, and living for it.

Caroline Polachek hit the stage Sunday in sunglasses and cowboy boots as

Bartees Strange covered a broad swath of genres during his set.

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Adrienne Lenker — vocalist and guitarist of Big Thief — sings during the group’s mellow Friday night set.

an instrumental of her track “The Gate” played. With one studio album under her belt, Polachek commanded her 55-minute set with a refined flair. The weather was so-hot-it-hurt-your-feelings, but the ethereal tracks brought an ocean of relief to a captivated crowd.

“Pitchfork, how’s everybody doing?” she addressed the audience. “This is it, the last gasp of summer. We’re here sweating together.”

Polachek beamed energy as she ran through her album “Pang” and new lead single “Bunny is a Rider” — plus two unreleased tracks — bending the limits of her vocals through whistles and a long-held scream.

As though the music possessed her, Polachek was an enchanting force on stage. With her arms in the air and her hips swaying, Polachek was a free-spirit Shakira: her hips may not lie, but they can do spells.

One would be hard-pressed to find more talented musicians than Stephen Bruner — more popularly known as Thundercat — and his backing band.

Not even technical difficulties could throw off the masters of improvisation — who jammed through it as if it were a planned part of their set — while a music-production pit crew worked to fix the issues.

“You are giving me life right now,” the bass virtuoso remarked to the crowd before going into his hit “Them Changes.”

Closing the festival, headliner Erykah Badu transcended time with her performance. Badu entered the stage as a hypnotic image of her oscillated on screen — perhaps to brainwash the audience into forgetting she was 25 minutes late.

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Jade Lilitri sings during Oso Oso’s Sunday afternoon set.

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Thundercat rips a funky bass solo while his backing band jams during their Sunday evening set.

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Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

Zack Miller | The Phoenix

St. Vincent headlined a dynamic set, running through hits from her versatile discography, ranging from folksy tunes to funky electropop during her Saturday night performance on Pitchfork’s Green stage.

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

12 A&E

A walk through Rogers Park: Loyola graduate publishes book of art inspired by the neighborhood LEEN YASSINE lyassine@luc.edu

When Loyola graduate Eric Kessler’s first year of teaching was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, he found comfort in routine walks around his neighborhood.

Kessler — who said art has been a hobby of his throughout his adult life — decided to start drawing the buildings he walked past, from local storefronts to neighborhood homes and anything in between.

He compiled 120 of these sketches into a single book, aptly naming his now-published work “A Walk

Courtesy of Eric Kessler

Eric Kessler drew St. Ignatius church after his first year of teaching.

Through Rogers Park.”

“I didn’t actually put much thought into it,” Kessler, a Chicago Public Schools teacher, said of the title. “It explains what I did and what the body of work is … and I thought there was a simple charm to the words. It was fitting, and why complicate things that don’t need to be complicated?”

Kessler said he worried for his friends, family and students after the outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020. As he was figuring out how to teach from his living room, Kessler said he realized it was still safe to go out for walks — with masks and

social distancing guidelines, he noted.

“I could focus on the beauty around me rather than worrying about things that were outside my control,” the 34-year-old said.

He continued drawing throughout the summer — what he describes as one of his most productive periods as an artist — using a mixture of ink pens, markers and watercolor paints.

“When that school year finished in June 2020, I posted my grades for the last time … and I just felt a weight off my shoulders,” Kessler said. “I took a walk and I took my sketchbook.”

Courtesy of Eric Kessler

Eric Kessler sketched this view from his living room window in the spring of 2020, when he was about one month into remote teaching his fourth grade class.

Oscar Isaac ups the ante in ‘The Card Counter’

Aqib Rasheed | A&E Writer arasheed1@luc.edu

“Loneliness has followed me my whole life, … There’s no escape. I’m God’s lonely man,” says Travis Bickle in a somber voice-over. Bickle commits awful acts in “Taxi Driver,” but even he finds a companion in God. What happens if one can’t find God? That’s the question being asked in “The Card Counter” — a minimalist character study about a brooding anti-hero, reminiscent of French auteur Robert Bresson’s films. Paul Schrader is undoubtedly the master of writing and directing this subgenre, helming the scripts of “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull” and “First Reformed,” serving as director on the latter as well.

While not as earth-shattering as his previous directorial effort, Schrader’s “The Card Counter” is an engaging noir featuring a quiet yet powerful performance from Oscar Isaac.

Released after 10 years in jail, William Tell (Isaac) is a former military interrogator who plays cards on a seemingly never-ending casino trail. He’s confronted by Cirk (Tye Sheridan), the son of another military interrogator, with a dangerous proposition. William rebuffs his advances

but asks Cirk to accompany him on the gambling journey.

The two men encounter La Linda (Tiffany Haddish), a financial backer who presses William to join the high stakes games. Together, the trio hop casino to casino as William confronts his dark past, attempts to find redemption and possibly fall in love.

Redemption, revenge and reclamation are themes found in most of Schrader’s (“Light Sleeper,” “Bringing Out the Dead”) works. In this movie, the director explores expiation as William tries to correct his past wrongs by taking care of Cirk.

Schrader does an excellent job by framing the movie as journal entries, making the audience an extra traveler on William’s self-reflective journey to salvation.

“The Card Counter” works as a fascinating companion piece to 2017’s “First Reformed,” in which Reverend Toller did nothing wrong but felt a crisis of faith. William, on the other hand, is the crisis, having a hand in the horrors at Abu Ghraib. The reverend takes atonement to a radical place, whereas William wants to deal with it in a personal way.

“Very few filmmakers have the ability to challenge moviegoers like that — [director Paul] Schrader has managed to do it in back-toback movies.”

AQIB RASHEED Resident Reviewer

It’s an interesting dichotomy that asks the viewer — can we forgive these protagonists for their actions?

Very few filmmakers have the ability to challenge moviegoers like that — Schrader has managed to do it in back-to-back movies. He makes the question even tougher to answer in this film with the charismatic and uber cool Isaac playing the protagonist.

Isaac (“Inside Llewyn Davis,” “Ex Machina”) is a top five actor in Hollywood right now. Very similar to Llewyn Davis, William is a quiet protagonist — someone who is haunted by his past, trying to get through this next phase of his life. He fits the Schrader lead mold perfectly, nailing the voiceover and being the ultimate DudeTM at counting cards.

His chemistry with Haddish (“Girls Trip,” “Night School”) is sizzling. Schrader adds more humor to this film than his others and Haddish is a great choice to deliver those lines.

Her back and forth with Sheridan (“Ready Player One,” “Mud”) is always fun to watch.

“The Card Counter” is a winner until the final 25 minutes where it begins to lose its luck. The movie is a slow-burn for the most part but Schrader accelerates to an unsatisfying end. He would’ve been better off taking his time, finding something similar to the haunting ending of “First Reformed.”

Unlike William, La Linda’s and Major John Gordo’s (Willem Dafoe) characters are underbaked and deserve more screen time. Dafoe (“Spider-Man,” “The Lighthouse”) isn’t given much to do and it would’ve been nice to see him and Isaac in more frames together.

Ultimately, “The Card Counter” is a throwback to the great crime dramas of the ‘70s and ‘80s. In an industry filled with big tentpoles and existing IP, it’s refreshing to see original movies like this being made.

It had the potential to be a royal flush but it’s really a full house — a strong hand, but not the best one.

“The Card Counter,” rated R, is now playing in theaters.

He drew St. Ignatius Church (6599 N. Glenwood Ave.) that day.

Kessler described publishing his book as “a shot in the dark.” He initially shared the news through his personal Facebook page in the beginning of July. Throughout the month, he continued to spread the word on other platforms, including his art page on Instagram and a Rogers Park Facebook group.

“The first run was just 20 books,” Kessler said. “I was cautiously optimistic that I could sell those.”

After selling about 80 copies, Kessler said he realized his book was bigger than he expected. He said sales went “through the roof ” after Block Club Chicago published a piece about his art.

As of Sept. 7, Kessler had sent out about 230 copies of his book — and one to his mom, which he said doesn’t count.

“Just the publication felt awesome,” Kessler said. “It was really fulfilling to see my work turned from pages in a sketchbook to a finished, professional book that I could share with the community.”

Art has always come naturally to Kessler — he said he often creates art in the evenings to relax — but this book was the first time he made his work public.

“The first time that I really shared it with the community on Facebook,” unless you consider my little art instagram page or my little art Facebook page. But

really sharing it with the community.”

Kessler — who grew up in Kenosha, Wisconsin — said his art was immediately influenced by Chicago’s architecture upon moving to the city in August 2015.

“All the skyscrapers, all the old brick buildings,” Kessler said. “Every building is such a work of art by itself. There’s just so much that caught my eye and just worked itself into my artwork.”

Kessler moved to Ravenswood in July — closer to the school he works at in Irving Park, where he teaches fourth grade — he said he still feels “such a strong connection with Rogers Park.”

While in the Rogers Park and Edgewater area, Kessler attended Loyola, completing a graduate program in elementary education in 2019.

Kessler isn’t sure what his next step is and he’s fully focused on teaching right now, but he said he’s considering making individual prints of some of his work.

Kessler also recalls some of the community members who reached out to him post-publication, including local journalists and a neighborhood store owner.

“He paged through it and said, ‘My God, did you get everything?’

And I said, ‘Well, I tried.’”

‘A Walk Through Rogers Park’ can be purchased on Kessler’s website: www.internalcombustionart.com.

Kacey Musgraves ‘star-crossed’: a new take on heartbreak music RAVEN WALTERS rwalters@luc.edu

Kacey Musgraves fans finally got to listen to the long-awaited album, “star-crossed” Sept. 10, her first release since her Grammy-winning album “Golden Hour” in 2018.

Musgraves has always been an outlier in the world of country music.

Her career took off in 2012 when she signed with Mercury Nashville and released her debut album “Same Trailer Different Park” in 2013. Since then, she’s racked up six Grammy awards through her unique take on the genre. “star-crossed” keeps with Musgraves’s style of pop mixed with country to give it the authentic style that draws people to her music. Recorded in the wake of her recent divorce from singer-songwriter Ruston Kelly, Musgraves conveys her wide array of mixed feelings and emotions following the separation.

Many elements of her previous albums can be found in the new addition to her music career. Her guitar tones — mixed with different pop beats — stayed true to previous releases, giving her the perfect blend of genres, a skill Musgraves has mastered in her music.

The album fits superbly with her impressive discography, building on top of an already strong base. She articulates the feeling of being lost and feeling hopeless in a similar way she used her emotion to lead in “Golden Hour.” “star-crossed” was the first song to be released just two weeks before the rest of the album. It sets the scene for the remainder of the story she is telling through the 15 track album. “Let me set the scene/ two lovers ripped right at the seams/ they woke up from the perfect dream.”

A movie feature accompanied the album in select theaters and is streaming on Paramount+ starting Sept. 10. The 50-minute film depicts the relationship between Musgraves and her ex-husband and cycles through all the stages of regret,

Courtesy of Universal Music Group

sadness, and acceptance during the process of the separation.

Each song on “star-crossed” takes on its own chronological view of her heartbreak. While a few of the earlier songs are more mellow and woeful, the later ones take on a more hopeful view of her situation.

The second song on the album, “good wife,” starts off as a slow, sweet song about treating her husband but it picks up to a faster beat where Musgraves reveals that it’s because he needs her as much as she needs him. “God help me be a good wife/ ‘cause he needs me,” Musgraves sings on the track.

The song does a superior job of depicting the denial she’s in after losing the relationship and claiming she can be what she wasn’t in the past.

“Help me let go of all the things that make me mad.” “angel” is a sad lament, mourning what could have been. She repeats the line “If I was an angel” followed by what she feels she could’ve changed about herself if she were a perfect person.

However, on “there is a light” the tune shifts and starts out with a new upbeat vibe. It is then taken over by an unsuspecting flute solo giving the song a positive and hopeful feel to it where Musgraves finally lets go of her hurt and connection to her ex. It seems to be the last stage in the grief of a breakup, ending with the line “There is a light inside.”

MORE ONLINE For more on Kacey Musgraves’s album, visit loyolaphoenix.com.

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

A&E 13

The art of running arts clubs Student Organization Leaders Talk the Return to In-Person Courtesy of Charles McGroarty The Phoenix With a majority of classes back in-person, the Invincible Comic Book Club will meet in-person on Sept. 16 after more than a year on Zoom..

ALEC KARAM akaram@luc.edu PAIGE TWENTER ptwenter@luc.edu

Students are packed like sardines on the shuttle. Damen’s endless seating options are all taken. Student life is bustling on Loyola’s campus after 18 months of pandemic-induced isolation, just as student organizations return to hosting in-person activities.

The world of on-campus arts and entertainment became a barren land once COVID-19 hit, with theaters turning into testing centers and the once-fruitful industry grinding to a halt. Student organizations faced an eerie silence as the ties that brought their members together dissipated.

For these organizations, the return to active student life is a much-needed life raft.

LUC Film Club president Nina Smythe entered the role at the height of the pandemic last spring. Contrasting the club’s typical Damen Cinema screenings, she held Zoom screenings

to maintain the club’s presence while abiding by COVID guidelines.

Despite prior in-person screenings drawing in up to 50 students, Smythe said the virtual screenings sometimes had as few as two attendants. Smythe, a junior majoring in film and digital media, said laptop screenings can’t hold up to a theater viewing “because there are so many distractions.”

“In-person events are really crucial and a really critical part of film club,” Smythe, 20, said. “You’re already on your laptop so much and it’s not the same vibe. Being in the theater, that’s such an important aspect to watching a film. It creates such a unique experience when it comes to film and appreciating film.”

Unlike the film club, the photography club had no pre-pandemic precedent. Club president Emily Burdett resurrected the organization in fall 2020 after signing up for a defunct version of it in fall 2018 as a first-year.

Burdett, a senior multimedia journalism major, said the club never got off

the ground her first or second years of college, and she wanted to change that.

During the socially distanced, muted time of fall 2020, she sought to bring community to fellow student photographers.

Yet, pandemic restrictions clipped the club from truly getting off the ground, she said.

“We had a lot of interest, but because everything was on Zoom, it kind of fizzled out as the year went on.” Burdett, 21, said. “Photography’s very interactive and people want to go out and shoot, and we couldn’t do that last year.”

“People knew what they wanted, and we just couldn’t give them that unfortunately,” she said.

But not all arts organizations flailed under the weight of the pandemic. Senior Charlie McGroarty, president of the Invincible Comic Book Club, said the transition to virtual student life was a blip on the radar for the club.

English and graphic design double major attributed this to the club’s size.

“We’re a relatively small club, we al-

Who will win?: 2021 Emmys predictions AQIB RASHEED arasheed1@luc.edu

After last year’s Zoom ceremony, the 73rd Emmy Awards will be held in-person at an outdoor venue in Los Angeles Sept. 19. It will be hosted by Cedric the Entertainer and will air at 7 p.m. CT on CBS. Here are The Phoenix’s predictions for the major categories at the ceremony.

Outstanding Drama Series Nominees: “The Boys,” “Bridgerton,” “The Crown,” “The Mandalorian,” “Lovecraft Country,” “Pose,” “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “This Is Us” Projected Winner: “The Crown” Nominations for “The Mandalorian” and “The Boys” are exciting and confirm the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences isn’t ignoring cultural phenomena. However, this award has “The Crown” written all over it. Season four introduced the world to Emma Corrin’s complex Princess Di and became the series’ best season thus far.

Outstanding Comedy Series Nominees: “Black-ish,” “Cobra Kai,” “Pen15,” “Emily in Paris,” “Hacks,” “Ted Lasso,” “The Flight Attendant,” “The Kominsky Method” Projected Winner: “Ted Lasso” Gone are the days of sitcoms and traditional comedies. That said, “Ted Lasso” is arguably the best piece of content released since the pandemic hit in March 2020 — a wonderful, feel-good show with a knock-out cast. “Hacks” and “The Flight Attendant” were enjoyable, but no one is out-scoring “Ted Lasso.”

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Nominees: Regé-Jean Page for “Bridgerton,” Sterling K. Brown for “This Is Us,” Billy Porter for “Pose,” Jonathan Majors for “Lovecraft Country,” Matthew Rhys for “Perry Mason,” Josh O’Connor for “The Crown” Projected Winner: Josh O’Connor for “The Crown” Page is a sensation — on screen and social media — and Majors is a rising star who will win many awards in the future. It’s unwise to bet against “The Crown,” which is why Josh O’Connor is the best pick here in a pitch-perfect, whiny performance as Prince Charles.

It wouldn’t be shocking if Billy Porter pulled off the upset, but expect O’Connor to prevail.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series Nominees: Emma Corrin for “The Crown,” Olivia Colman for “The Crown,” Uzo Aduba for “In Treatment,” Elisabeth Moss for “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Jurnee Smollett for “Lovecraft Country,” Mj Rodriguez for “Pose” Projected Winner: Emma Corrin for “The Crown” Once again, no one is stopping “The Crown.” Corrin’s incredible, heart-wrenching performance as Diana elevated the show from good to great, showing the wrinkles in the stylized lives of the Royals. She absolutely deserves the award as she embodies Princess Diana in every scene. No other role was as transformative as Corrin’s.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Nominees: Jason Sudeikis for “Ted Lasso,” Anthony Anderson for “Black-ish,” Michael Douglas for “The Kominsky Method,” William H. Macy for “Shameless,” Kenan Thompson for “Kenan” Projected Winner: Jason Sudeikis for “Ted Lasso” This category isn't a contest — Jason Sudeikis will win the award. The other actors have little to no traction or conversation about their performances. There is no “Ted Lasso” without Sudeikis, who’s able to turn a silly commercial into one of the best shows on TV right now.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Nominees: Aidy Bryant for “Shrill.”

Jean Smart for “Hacks,” Allison Janney for “Mom,” Kaley Cuoco for “The Flight Attendant,” Tracee Ellis Ross for “Black-ish” Projected Winner: Jean Smart for “Hacks” Finally, a non “Ted Lasso” or “The Crown” award! This is Jean Smart’s world and we’re just living in it. “Hacks” is fun but it’s Smart’s performance that makes the show. Her Deborah Vance is crass, witty and lovable all at the same time. Cuoco would’ve been the pick in a year without “Hacks.”

Outstanding Limited Series Nominees: “Mare of Easttown,” “I May Destroy You,” “WandaVision,” “The Queen’s Gambit,” “The Underground Railroad” Projected Winner: “The Queen’s Gambit” This lineup is one of the strongest in the ceremony. “The Queen’s Gambit” was a wildly popular show earlier in the pandemic — expect it to prevail at the Emmys.

While the chess miniseries was effective, “Mare of Easttown” was nothing short of an achievement. Suspenseful and the closest thing we’ve had to appointment viewing in a long time, this should be the winner.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Nominees: Paul Bettany for “WandaVision,” Hugh Grant for “The Undoing,” Ewan McGregor for “Halston,” Lin-Manuel Miranda for “Hamilton,” Leslie Odom Jr. for “Hamilton” Projected Winner: Paul Bettany for “WandaVision” Arguably the weakest category, I wouldn’t be surprised if any of these men won the award. The “Hamilton” nominees truly make no sense — it’s a musical, not a movie! Grant playing against type was fascinating and should be the choice. Bettany, though, is the safe bet due to WandaVision’s immense popularity.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Nominees: Kate Winslet for “Mare of Easttown,” Michaela Coel for “I May Destroy You,” Anya Taylor-Joy for “The Queen’s Gambit,” Elizabeth Olsen for “WandaVision,” Cynthia Erivo for “Genius: Aretha” Projected Winner: Kate Winslet for “Mare of Easttown” This truly feels like a toss-up between Winslet and Taylor-Joy. The Best Limited Series winner could very well be a predictor for this category.

A split with Taylor-Joy’s show taking that and Winslet winning this award seems likely, though. Winslet — already an Emmy winner — is an established actress and gave one of the best performances of her career in “Mare of Easttown.”

ways have been,” McGroarty, 21, said.

“We’ve been able to become very close with one another through that smallness. ... It’s a lot easier to get to know pretty much everyone.”

Even with the organization’s smooth transition to Zoom and back to in-person, McGroarty is still eager to press play on some foregone events. Before the pandemic, the club hosted movie nights in their meeting spot — a Cuneo classroom — with pizza, soda “and all that good stuff,” he said.

“People feel a little bit more casual, a little more willing to talk about the movie as we’re watching, whether that be scenes they really like or fun facts behind it,” McGroarty said. “Or, if it’s a particularly bad movie, laughing throughout the entire thing.”

He said he’s looking forward to a semester of reinvigorating the club with these nights, as well as trivia nights, costume contests and “a variety of fun comic convention-esque activities.”

Loyola’s Department of Programming (DOP) got a head-start on jumping back in-person. The organization ushered students back into campus with a Saturday Night of Comedy event headlined by Marlon Wayans.

With hundreds in attendance, the DOP event set a precedent for the new normal of student life. As campus roars with life after a barren year, students are eager to get involved.

This year’s Organization Fair on Lake Shore Campus’ West Quad led to the photography club receiving a whopping 150 student sign-ups. With a growth in interest came growth in opportunity. Burdett said she’s planning to gather the club for outdoor photo-walks of fall foliage, as well as attending events, such as Chicago Henge.

As COVID-19 hovers in the backseat — not quite disappearing in the rearview — club organizers are both

excited to see some restrictions lifted while also remaining vigilant. DOP Main Stage Director Takayla Patterson said the club is making sure to abide by health guidelines while trying to provide an exciting student experience.

“You gotta be really flexible and you got to be prepared for it to go any way,” Patterson, 25, said. “And now it’s just something that we’re always going to have in the back of our minds. Is social distancing being adhered to? Is [there] going to be a big outbreak after this?”

In the ever-shaky world of COVID-19, Burdett said she wants to make the photography club’s mark and provide a solid foundation for future years to expand on. She said she wants to use her role not just to further students’ photography skills, but to provide companionship.

“I remember being a scared freshman in a brand-new city, never [having] been on the train before, taking my camera downtown,” Burdett said.

“It’s pretty intimidating at first. But, once you make those connections and you meet new people, it gets a lot more fun … to go out and do photography together.”

Emily Burdett is a contributing photographer for The Phoenix.

EMILY BURDETT The Phoenix

Emily Burdett has been president of the photography club since fall 2020.

MUNA headlines spirited hometown performance

Olivia Simon | The Phoenix Muna appeared in Evanston for a hometown performance Sept. 10.

OLIVIA SIMON osimon@luc.edu

For a headliner show, LA-based pop group MUNA ventured to Evanston SPACE Sept. 10 amid a busy month spent touring with Phoebe Bridgers.

The pop group is composed of vocalist Katie Gavin and guitarists Josette Maskin and Naomi McPherson.

The band is no stranger to Chicagoland, as Gavin is from Chicago and performed at Evanston SPACE at 16.

The band’s music is even interlocked with the city as well: “I Know A Place” persuades listeners to “hop on the purple line.” When introducing “Winterbreak,” Gavin stated that the second verse of the song was written in an Evanston parking structure.

The group performed their brandnew single, “Silk Chiffon,” with McPherson taking on the verse originally featuring Bridgers. While the song was released a mere three days before the performance, the audience had no problem recalling every word to the catchy, sapphic pop track.

The night ended as Gavin acknowledged difficult situations affecting the ways concertgoers could be mentally present at the performance, segueing into “I Know A Place,” the lead single from their debut album “About U.” The song was the second

to last, repeating a call to cherish peace and to not “be afraid of love and affection.”

Standing amid a crowd of strangers, MUNA’s performance was a moving reminder of the connectedness and community found through their music. On stage, the energies of the artists fed off each other and clearly reveled in their audience’s animation.

The group sent its audience off with “It’s Gonna Be Okay, Baby,” the final track off their 2019 album “Saves The World” which Gavin introduced as a “gay prayer.”

The trio’s vulnerability was highlighted as they sang through trials of young adulthood, from moving across the country, to losing friends and falling in and out of love. After singing “you’re gonna tell your reflection,'' Gavin addressed the audience and added “that’s you,” before the final chorus that echoed, “it’s going to be okay, baby.”

In the 90-minute show, MUNA created an experience full of reflection and hopefulness, sandwiching heavier songs between optimistic tracks that highlighted the group’s candor and vulnerability.

The group will continue on tour with multiple artists — Phoebe Bridgers, Bleachers and Kacey Musgraves — through February 2022. Their next show will be Sept. 15 in Lewiston, New York alongside Bridgers.

Sports

PAGE 14

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

Harkness: athlete, storyteller, man for others

Courtesy of Jerald Harkness

LU CALZADA lcalzada@luc.edu

After retiring from professional basketball, Jerry went on to become Indianapolis’ first Black sportscaster.

He also worked with 100 Black Men and other community organizations, always trying to give back to his community, according to his wife, Sarah.

“I think I would change places with Jerry, when the chances were ‘Whose eternal salvation are you going to take, yours or his?’ I’ll take his.”

Courtesy of Jerald Harkness

historic photo of Jerry and Mississippi State’s Joe Dan Gold shaking hands marked more than just tip-off.

The gesture represented an important subversion of segregation laws that forbade the Maroons from playing integrated teams, which they broke when the team snuck out of town to play the Ramblers.

However, this wouldn’t be the last

“[Jerry] was very, very good at making people feel good about themselves, because he always sought the positives of people,” Jerald said. “I don’t know a better

Courtesy of Jerald Harkness

“I think a lot of people overlook this part about [him],” Jerald said.

“He was a huge storyteller, [he] had an absolute passion for movies … I remember him taking me to see ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind,’ and that passion for movies lasted our entire relationship together.”

Jerald currently works as a documentary filmmaker, a career that

“[Jerry] was very, very good at making people feel good about themselves, because he always sought the positives in people.”

JACK EGAN Former Rambler and friend of Harkness

“He was just amazing,” Sarah, 69, said. “Just to sit back and watch him and his relationship with everybody, it’s just amazing. He was a really great man … he’d do anything for everybody.”

Jack Egan, a former Rambler teammate, said whenever instances of injustice were brought to Jerry’s attention, he would immediately become active in the cause — especially at Loyola. Egan said he remembers his friend as someone who was passionate about all sorts of causes, intervening even if they didn’t affect him directly.

However, in the 1963 NCAA Regional Semifinal against Mississippi State University — the “Game of Change” — he faced an issue affected him directly. The team’s Black starters faced discrimination, which included letters from the Ku Klux Klan and having to travel separately from the rest of the team.

That night, as one of four Black starters on the Loyola team — where Egan was the only white one — the

how much he loved covering those types of stories in his community.

“He would use sound effects and he would use music intros,” Jerald said of his dad’s creative mind shining through his work. “He had relationships with so many professional athletes, when they would come to Indianapolis … he got the best scoops.”

Jerry created memorable stories as often as he told them. Egan, 79, has fond memories of Jerry from their days at Loyola, their time together as teammates in the NABL and their lives after basketball.

Egen said he will remember Jerry’s genuine selflessness when receiving awards, crediting those

JERALD HARKNESS Son

meeting between Gold and Jerry, according to Jerald Harkness, Jerry’s son. During the filming for Jerald’s documentary “Game of Change” — which Jerry came up with the idea for — Jerald reached out to Gold, who lived near Indianapolis. He then offered Gold gas money so he could drive up to record an interview.

The two former opponents ended up becoming close from that day forward, forming a friendship that lasted until their deaths. Gold was buried with the famous handshake photo in his casket.

compliment to give someone than that.

If he came in contact with you, he would make the type of connection that would always be positive.”

While the basketball world may remember Jerry for his skills in the game, Jerald remembers his father fondly for his talents off the court — especially his creativity and his storytelling ability.

came out of a shared passion with his father, and lives in Indianapolis. He said he and his father used to talk about movies “twice as much” as they did about sports, and Jerry enjoyed pitching Jerald ideas and coming up with stories of his own. He even told his own life story through his book, ‘Connections.’

Jerald said after Jerry left television and got to working in radio, he started a local show in the early ‘80s.

He said he remembers his father taking his tape recorder to local football and basketball games, and

around him.

One of Egan’s fondest memories of Jerry’s kindness was from the team’s banquet following the 1963 national championship. Egan said Jerry had convinced their coach to give all the starters the Most Valuable Player award, and he did this without almost any of the other players knowing.

“Most of the time you’ll hear someone say, ‘Well, you know, the credit doesn’t go to me, it goes to the other guys on the team,’ I hardly ever believe that they really mean that,” Egan said. “But Jerry actually meant it … He’s the only one that has ever convinced me.”

Jerry is survived by his two children, Jerald and Julie, his four grandchildren and his wife, Sarah.

Center: Courtesy of Loyola Archives Courtesy of Jerald Harkness

Courtesy of Jerald Harkness

15 SPORTS

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

Dempsey GettyJack Images

Illinois approves new NIL legislation: Student-athletes eligible for compensation FERNANDO MOLINA BIER fmolina@luc.edu

For years, student athletes have protested their inability to profit off their own athletic skills while their colleges garner millions of dollars because of them. The universities’ athletes run the show for free, attracting the fans, selling tickets and playing every game with the risk of sustaining a significant, long-term injury.

The bill passed the House May 31 and was signed by Illinois Governor Pritzker June 29, marking a win for student-athletes as Illinois passed the new name, image and likeness (NIL) legislation, allowing them to be compensated.

Examples of what athletes can do to be compensated under the new legislation include making an appearance on behalf of a brand, selling autographed items and making commercial appearances.

They can also be compensated by starting their own company, becoming a spokesperson, monetizing

a YouTube or social media account, selling their own merchandise, giving private lessons and starting their own camps or clinics.

According to Tom Sorboro, Senior Associate Athletics Director in charge of the NIL Legislation at Loyola, compensation can also come in forms other than money.

“Compensation could be monetary,” Sorboro said. “It could also be product or services, gift cards, apparel, a car. It’s not necessarily a money thing though in some instances it is.”

To clearly understand the NIL Legislation, it’s imperative not to confuse name, image and likeness with performance. Student-athletes can be compensated for using their NIL to benefit other brands and potentially one of their own, but not based on their performance or with the purpose of recruiting new players to their team.

This prohibits any compensation from the university itself, or performance-based incentives in contracts with sponsoring brands.

Because of this, the universities’ level of involvement is limited.

“The brands have the ability to reach out to the athletes directly,” Sorboro said. “In fact, the way the law is written, we are not actively allowed to participate in connecting our student athletes with brands.”

Athletes, however, are required to disclose any NIL-related activity to the university. Loyola’s office of compliance reviews all offers to make sure they are consistent with the law, NCAA guidelines and the university’s mission statement.

“The university has the right to deny a partnership if the category or the brand is not consistent with the mission of the institution,” Sorboro said. “Even though this is a state law, the NCAA has some guidelines in terms of which categories student athletes are not able to partner with.”

Some examples of brands that go against NCAA guidelines and Loyola’s mission statement are those related to gambling, alcohol, tobacco and firearms. This is the

only way in which the university can shut down a possible student-athlete endorsement. Conflicts of interest within the university are not an acceptable means — they can be monitored and limited, but not denied.

“If one of our student athletes wants to partner with Adidas, that is permissible under the framework of the law,” Sorboro said. “If Nike is our exclusive shoe provider, we can keep our students from promoting Adidas during university sponsored, university sanctioned, athletic activities.”

Regardless of the university’s exclusivity deal, student athletes can still promote their competitors’ products outside campus and university sanctioned activities. They can remain personal ambassadors for the brand through social media and any other activity in which they are paid to promote.

Student-athletes are also allowed to hire an agent to help solely with the acquisition of NIL deals. However, exploring other opportunities

in college athletics or any sort of preparation for going pro is strictly prohibited.

The NIL legislation is technically not allowed for recruiting purposes and isn’t supposed to affect student athletes’ college decisions. But Sorboro said he believes schools in the 13 NIL-approved states might have an edge on recruiting top players as an unintended consequence.

“I think we would be naïve to say that it won’t be a decision making factor for student athletes as they’re making their college choices,” Sorboro said. “They likely will be able to see what other student athletes at any given school have been able to do.”

The future of college athletics remains uncertain as the NIL Legislation implies a major modification to the NCAA. It’s impact on players and recruitment is yet to be seen, as the beginning of the 2021-2022 academic year will mark a new era for higher learning athletics.

Billy Hency looks to keep improving in his senior year FERNANDO MOLINA BIER fmolina@luc.edu

An all-time Loyola talent, senior midfielder Billy Hency said he returns to the men’s soccer team with high expectations for himself and the team during the 2021-2022 season.

Since 2018, the 2020-21 First Team All-West Region Selection and All-MVC Player of the Year has been one of the most prominent soccer players to wear the maroon and gold. His career for the Ramblers has been one for the books, showered in goals, assists, and awards since his freshman year.

Since high school, the Fenton, MO native has been an off-thecharts athlete. Since graduating in 2018, he holds the record for goals with 81 and assists with 51 at Rockwood Summit High School, where he was a two-time United Soccer Association All-American Selection.

Without wasting any time, Hency marked his impact on the team as a first-year. He earned a starting role on the Loyola squad for 11 of the last 12 matches of the season and scored the golden goal in Loyola’s 2-1 victory over redline rival DePaul University Sept.

29, 2018.

During his sophomore season, he started 19 matches out of 20 and garnered Second Team All-Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Honors. For a second consecutive year, Hency posted a stellar performance against the

DePaul Blue Demons in a 4-2 victory Sept. 13, 2019, finding the back of the net twice and tallying one assist.

Unfortunately, Hency’s junior season was cut short because of

Photo courtesy of Loyola Athletics

Billy Hency is entering his fourth year on the Rambler squad.

COVID-19. Loyola was forced to shut down all sports for the fall of 2020, but that didn’t stop him or the men’s soccer team from making a comeback. In the midst of chaos and uncertainty, Hency said he was able to remain calm and take advantage of what had become a new reality for the soccer team.

“COVID had a lot of challenges, especially the fall of last year whenever we weren’t able to play,” Hency said. “But we were still here and able to train, and I think that was a good thing because it allowed us to have an extra se-

mester to get to know each other before we played in the spring.”

Upon his return in the spring of 2021, Hency recorded his best season yet. He was named MVC Player of the Year and Midfielder of the Year. He was also distinguished as a First Team All-MVC athlete and First-Team All-West Region by the United Soccer Coaches.

A hard worker on and off the pitch, Hency was also the fourth Rambler in program history to be named Academic All-American honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America, and in turn, an MVC Scholar-Athlete Team honoree.

Regardless of his various accolades, Hency remains humble and focused on team accomplishments.

“It [has been] an honor [to receive] the accolades that I’ve gotten, especially the MVC Player of the Year last year,” Hency said.

“But I’m more interested in team goals, winning and trying to get back to the NCAA tournament.”

As a senior playing in his fourth season for Loyola, Hency has already managed to score four goals in five matches and earn an MVC Player of the Week Award.

During the season opener, he yet again managed to score against rival DePaul, helping Loyola beat the Blue Demons out 2-1 Aug. 26.

In his fourth, and potentially final year of his career with the Ramblers — with the opportunity to come back because of covid eligibility — Hency looks to cement himself as a leader and role model

for the rising stars of Loyola.

“It feels good having people look up to me,” Hency said. “But I have to carry all my responsibilities and teach them like I was taught whenever I was a freshman and just [learn] to get better.”

After starting the season with a 3-2 record, Hency’s expectations for the team remain high as they prepare to enter MVC competition.

“We have some high expectations for ourselves because we know we [have] a lot of talent and good players,” Hency said. “We just are trying to stay healthy and fight in every single game. Hopefully we can win the

conference and make it back to the [NCAA] tournament.”

For the first time since spring 2020, students and fans are allowed back in athletic events to support Loyola athletics. According to Hency, the support and motivation a crowd provides does not go unnoticed.

“We enjoy you guys’ support every game, so if you guys can make it out to games that’s awesome,” Hency said. “We love to have you out there.”

Loyola will be back for kick-off at Loyola Soccer Park Sept. 25 to take on Drake University at 7:00pm C.T. The match is scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN3.

Stephanie Miller The Phoenix

Billy Hency was awared MVC Player of the Year for the 2020-21 season.

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SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

16

MSOC Ready To Take Back MVC Title Through Conference Play FRANK ZAWRAZKY fzawrazky@luc.edu

‘He’s Got to Do It His Way’

Zack Miller The Phoenix

Loyola Men’s Basketball Head Coach Drew Valentine Starts the Season with Sister Jean’s Support AMELIA ICKES aickes@luc.edu

Although the Loyola men’s basketball team won’t be competing on the court for another two months, the Ramblers’ new head coach Drew Valentine is already preparing for the season ahead.

Valentine took the reins as head coach of the Ramblers squad April 5 after former head coach Porter Moser announced his departure for the University of Oklahoma, The Phoenix reported.

Before stepping in as head coach, Valentine spent four years serving as an assistant coach under Moser and said he credits that experience for putting him in his current position at Loyola.

Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, BVM, the team’s chaplain and bobblehead muse, also spoke to this, saying that she’s glad Valentine had the time to learn from Moser before stepping in as head coach.

“We’re really fortunate that [Valentine] has been with us,’’ Sister Jean said. “He knows the process and the team, and they know him — we are very lucky that Drew said yes.”

Throughout his years at Loyola, Valentine said he has developed as a coach as a result of the values that exist within the Ramblers program, especially when it comes down to the details.

“I think I’ve gotten better at

evaluating the program, prospects, our team and other teams from a scouting perspective,” Valentine told The Phoenix. “That culture requires a certain amount of attention to detail [and mine] just went up.”

Among the players who have seen Valentine develop as a coach during his time at Loyola is graduate guard and Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) 2021 Defensive Player of the Year Lucas Williamson.

Valentine arrived in Rogers Park the same year Williamson did as a first-year in 2017. Over their time together with the Ramblers squad, they have seen two NCAA tournament appearances — the 2018 Final Four and the 2021 Sweet Sixteen — and three MVC regular-season championships.

“As the years went by, his role changed,” Williamson said. “He went from being the guy that was learning the culture to the guy that was telling the coaches and incoming freshmen about the culture. He definitely progressed and made some leaps as a coach and as a leader.”

Williamson will be returning alongside three other seniors to the Ramblers squad as a graduate student after capitalizing on the extra year of eligibility that the NCAA offered student-athletes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although he said the coaching staff wasn’t the largest factor in his decision process, Williamson said he’s excited to return with Valentine as the head

coach.

“I was really trying to make the decision based on what was best for my future and myself,’’ Williamson said. “Once I weighed out my options, it’s only an added bonus that I’m coming back and having Drew be the head coach — I’m coming back to something new and fresh but still something similar.”

Over their years together, Valentine and Williamson witnessed the development of the program on and off the court and the increase in its name recognition across the country.

Valentine said he credits this growth with forming his visions for the future of the program.

“People now know the kind of [players] that we bring in,” Valentine said. “That speaks to the brand that we have here, they know that we’re about doing things the right way — hard work, unselfishness, toughness, competitiveness.”

Looking ahead to the start of the season, Valentine said his goal is to remain consistent with the values that have been instilled into the program by his predecessors while adding his own approach to coaching.

“I want to remain committed to what I feel like helped get me the job,” Valentine said. “I don’t want to stray too far from the path, but at the same time I want to be me and put my twist on the culture.”

While Sister Jean also spoke to Valentine’s preexisting coaching expe-

rience under Moser, she also expressed the need for Valentine to develop his own ways of coaching and encouraging the Ramblers squad.

“I have a feeling that [Valentine] is going to speed up the momentum of the [team],” Sister Jean said. “He has to do it his way if he’s going to be loud and give directions to people on the court. I really believe that he wants this too and I’m sure his new coaches will want to help him.”

After a successful 2021 season that saw the Ramblers return to the Sweet Sixteen, Loyola Athletics is preparing to finally welcome fans back to basketball games for the 2021-2022 season.

The Ramblers currently hold a 27-2 record in the MVC in their last four years playing at home and went 13-0 last season at Gentile Arena.

Sister Jean said this home record makes her excited for the upcoming season and she’s enjoying seeing how people have been reacting to the team coming off their recent March Madness run.

“It’s just fun to look forward to all of this and to read about how people are talking about us now,” Sister Jean said. “You’d be surprised how many people are saying ‘when’s the first game?’ These students can hardly wait to go to the first game, and that makes me really happy.”

Loyola will open their 2021-22 season at home on Nov. 9 against Coppin State University. Time and broadcast details have yet to be announced.

After falling just short of a Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) title to Missouri State University in 2020, the Loyola men’s soccer team is ready to take on its ten game conference schedule. After Loyola’s victory on Sept. 11 against Western Illinois University, graduate goalkeeper Marcel Kampman stressed the motivation to do well in conference play.

“Conference play is what we live for,” Kampman said. “That is the most well defined route to the [NCAA] tournament. Every game is a tough game in the Valley no matter where they are ranked.”

The Ramblers go on the road Sept. 18 in Evansville to take on the Purple Aces. Rounding out the month, Loyola will host Drake University on Sept. 25 before traveling to Peoria to take on Bradley University Sept. 29.

Starting out October, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) comes to Loyola Soccer Park on the 3rd. The following Saturday, last season’s MVC champion Missouri State will welcome the Ramblers Oct. 9.

The rivalry between Missouri State and Loyola goes back to their first meeting Oct. 5, 2013 in Springfield, MO. Since then, the Bears have had a slight edge in the rivalry going 7-5-3. Since 2018, all both MVC Championships have been won by Missouri State or the Ramblers splitting them evenly.

Much like the end of September, the final week in October has contests against Drake and Bradley. This time Loyola will travel to Des Moines to take on Drake Oct. 23 while Bradley comes to Chicago Oct. 27.

Loyola will travel to Edwardsville Oct. 31 to take on the SIUE Cougars. Loyola has historically done well against SIUE, winning three of its last four contests.

Junior defender Michael Hong emphasized the importance of correcting mistakes before conference play after the victory against Western Illinois University Sept.11.

He said reviewing tape and more practice will result in success not just in the opener, but all season long.

“Conference play is huge, it’s a way to the NCAA [tournament],” Hong said. “We need to look at the film, get better and get ready to go into Evansville and get a few points.”

The regular season will conclude Nov. 6 when Missouri State travels to the Windy City for Loyola’s Senior Night. The MVC Tournament kicks off three days later on Nov. 9 as Loyola looks to reclaim their title back from Missouri State since the Ramblers’ last championship victory in 2019.

The Ramblers will face the Evansville Purple Aces in Evansville, Indiana Sept. 18 at 5 p.m., and can be streamed on ESPN3.