09/07/23 Full Edition

Old Gold&Black “Covers the campus like the magnolias”

WA K E F O R E S T ’ S S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1 9 1 6

VOL 110, NO. 1

Wake Forest creates Early Action application for first generation students

Student Health Service reports spike in COVID-19 cases

CHRISTA DUTTON Editor-in-Chief

CHRISTA DUTTON & MADDIE STOPYRA Editor-in-Chief & News Editor

Wake Forest’s College of Arts and Sciences is encouraging faculty to be flexible with attendance in light of an uptick in COVID-19 cases reported by Student Health Service.

Medical director of Student Health, Dr. Jessica St. John, told faculty there had been an increase in visits to the Student Health clinic where students were complaining of upper respiratory infections. According to Campus Health Chair Dr. Warrenetta Mann, 50 students tested positive for COVID-19 last week, and 27 have tested positive this week.

A Tuesday morning email sent to faculty by Dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Dr. Jackie Krasas and Dr. Eric Ashley Hairston, Associate Dean for Academic Advising, said that students may not have documentation from Student Health that some professors require to grant an excused absence due to the limited availability of appointments. They also encourage faculty to be adaptable with course requirements as they might have “unintended consequence of encouraging students to come to class while ill.”

“A student is acting responsibly and protecting our community when they follow isolation protocols so as not to unnecessarily expose others by attending class,” the message from the two deans reads.

“As educators, of course, we all value class attendance. In recent years, we also have increasingly had to factor in the overall health of our community when managing our

NEWS Wake Forest legacy admissions Page Four

classroom and policies.”

Mann said that slightly more than half of students coming into Student Health for respiratory symptoms are testing positive for COVID-19.

“Based on previous semesters, we anticipate these numbers will start trending down over the next two weeks,” Mann said. “However, respiratory illnesses, including RSV, flu and strep will remain an active issue in our community throughout the fall. We should all be doing all we can to stay safe.”

Vice President for Campus Life Shea Kidd Brown told the Old Gold & Black that the numbers collected

by Student Health may not be entirely accurate because some students do not test at the clinic.

“Student Health tracks student cases for those who test positive at the clinic,” Kidd Brown said.

“However, given that students may be treated off-campus or self-test, the numbers tracked by SHS may not provide a holistic view of the respiratory illnesses within the community.”

The letter says that only students who are “severely ill” should make an appointment, and all others are advised to follow the “healthy habits” guideline shared by Student Health at the beginning of the semester. St. John noted that faculty should work with students and allow them to complete missing assignments as they recover from home.

Some professors are choosing to mask while teaching or transition

FEATURES The Final Word Pages Six-Seven

class to Zoom if they or multiple students test positive for the virus.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends a five-day isolation period for those who test positive for COVID-19. After five days, individuals can end their isolation period if their symptoms have disappeared or if they are fever-free for 24 hours without medication. Regardless of when isolation concludes, the CDC recommends that individuals wear a mask when indoors or around other people until at least 11 days after showing symptoms.

Masks are currently not for sale at POD store across campus, nor are COVID-19 tests. According to Mann, masks are limited to oneper-student at Student Health and self-testing kits are available at local pharmacies. Approximately 750 self-testing kits were distributed by Student Health at a recent resource fair during New Deac Week.

According to the Student Health website, students who test positive for COVID-19 are allowed to isolate in their residence hall “with the help of campus resources” or travel to another location to complete their isolation period at their own expense. Students who are at “increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19” have the option to temporarily relocate to another room if their roommate on campus tests positive for COVID-19.

Contact Christa Dutton at duttcd20@wfu.edu and Maddie Stopyra at stopmf21@wfuedu

What's Inside

ENVIRONMENT

Tips for a sustainable move-in

Page Nine

OPINION Why your Instagram matters more than Kim's Page Eleven

SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

First-generation undergraduate applicants to Wake Forest now have an application option available only to them — non-binding Early Action.

Launching this fall, this application will allow first-generation students to apply to Wake Forest by Nov. 15 and hear back by Jan. 15, all while retaining their ability to consider other schools. Previously, any student who wanted the option to consider other schools had to apply Regular Decision and wait until April 1 for a decision.

Wake Forest President Susan Wente said this initiative is a way to make the path to Wake Forest “clearer” for first-generation college students, who, she says, do not often take advantage of early admission programs to the same degree as students from college-educated families do.

See Early Action, Page 3

Wake Forest looks toward 2034 CHRISTA DUTTON & MADDIE STOPYRA

Editor-in-Chief & News Editor

Wake Forest University released its strategic framework plan to outline the university’s vision as it prepares to enter its third century in 2034.

Titled “Framing our Future,” the document details a strategy for Wake Forest to become a “community of learning, inquiry and partnerships.” President Susan Wente describes the framework as a “living document,” meaning it could change as the university and higher education landscape evolves.

The three thematic goals described in the framework — creating a community of learning, creating a community of inquiry and creating a community of partnership —are meant to guide the university as it pursues its mission and confronts issues in higher education.

The document lists issues like financial uncertainty caused by economic instability, future enrollment trends impacted by changing demographics and student expectations; and new pressures on college athletics.

SPORTS Behind the posts: Soccer's unsung heroes Page Fifteen

See Framework, Page 3

ARTS & CULTURE Reflecting on the Barbenheimer experience Page Nineteen

Old Gold & Black This column represents the views of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Committee

From the editor: We stand with UNC I picked up the phone on Monday to answer a call from my sister, a senior at UNC Chapel Hill. I was folding laundry. She was driving home from the grocery store. Thank goodness she was at the store. Just a few miles away from her, a UNC faculty member named Zijie Yan was killed and students endured a tense and frightening three hours of lockdown until the suspect was apprehended.

Media accounts say Yan was known as a dedicated educator and even more dedicated father. His death is one of the latest acts of gun violence to enrapture America’s attention.

The Old Gold & Black extends its deepest sympathy to Yan’s family and

friends. Monday will go down as one of the worst days of their lives. Our hearts break with you, and we stand in solidarity with all those who mourn.

All the while on Monday, Wake Forest students enjoyed their first day of class. Still delighting in life’s gifts while others are forced to grieve is one of the strangest parts of being human. Our staff gathered for our first in-person meeting of the year on Monday, sharing laughs, pitching stories and setting goals for the year — a year we hope and pray is not marred by a tragedy like this.

Since I became editor, I’ve often wondered not if, but when, our newsroom might have to cover an active shooter situation on our campus.

The Old Gold & Black also wants to extend its utmost admiration to the Daily Tar Heel, UNC’s student newspaper. The front page published by the Daily Tar Heel on Wednesday powerfully visualized the student experience during an active shooter situation. The front page, which has gone viral, lists real text messages that students received from friends and family during the lockdown. Texts like “Are you safe?”

“Where are you?” and “I love you.” If Yan received any of those messages from his loved ones, he never had the chance to read them.

The Daily Tar Heel’s student journalists covered this tragedy with swiftness

“

I've often wondered not if, but when, our newsroom might have to cover an active shooter situation on our campus. and accuracy, keeping their campus informed all while living through it themselves. They’ll continue to do so even after the nation forgets about UNC and moves on to the next school that endures a shooting. That’s America.

Old Gold&Black THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY SINCE 1916

CHRISTA DUTTON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF duttcd20@wfu.edu

BREANNA LAWS

AINE PIERRE

MARYAM KHANUM

SOFIA SCORDLEY

PRINT MANAGING EDITOR

ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR

MULTIMEDIA MANAGING EDITOR

BUSINESS MANAGER

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>> NEWS Daniel Parolini, parodj20@wfu.edu Maddie Stopyra, stopmf21@wfu.edu Assistant: Claire O'Brien, obricc22@wfu.edu >> FEATURES Natasha Heisenberg, heisng20@wfu.edu Isabella Romine, romiie21@wfu.edu Assistant: Eli Leadham, leadey22@wfu.edu >> ENVIRONMENT Una Wilson, wilsui20@wfu.edu Bella Ortley-Guthrie, ortlbs21@wfu.edu >> OPINION Shaila Prasad, prassp21@wfu.edu Lauren Carpenter, carple21@wfu.edu >> SPORTS Cooper Sullivan, sullcg20@wfu.edu Aaron Nataline, nataae21@wfu.edu Assistant: Sean Kennedy, kennsm21@wfu.edu

>> ARTS & CULTURE Adam Coil, coilat21@wfu.edu James Watson, watsjc22@wfu.edu >> PHOTO Virginia Noone, noonvc21@wfu.edu Evan Harris, harres22@wfu.edu >> VIDEO Asheton Ayotte, ayotag20@wfu.edu >> SOCIAL MEDIA Lucy Roberts, robels20@wfu.edu >> COPY CHIEF Josie Scratchard, scraja20@wfu.edu >> ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Ava Cofiell, cofiac20@wfu.edu >> EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Aine Pierre (Chair), pierav20@wfu.edu Sophie Guymon, guymsm20@wfu.edu Shaila Prasad, prassp21@wfu.edu Ashlyn Segler, seglal20@wfu.edu Hope Zhu, zhuq21@wfu.edu

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>> POLICIES Our job as a newspaper is to be a platform for all voices, not just the ones we agree with. However, we reserve the right to reject advertisements that are vulgar, inaccurate, obscene or violate Wake Forest’s policies on nondiscrimination, diversity, equity, and inclusion as they pertain to student organizations. We will also reject any advertisements that promote illegal activities according to the state of North Carolina.

Not only do we hold our newspaper and its contents to a high standard, but we also expect that those who choose to use us as an outlet for their ideas, opinions and skill hold themselves and their content to a high ethical standard.

The Old Gold & Black is published Thursdays during the school year, except during examinations, summer and holiday periods, by Triangle Web Printing of Durham. The views expressed in all opinion pieces and advertisements contained within this publication do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Old Gold & Black. As part of our commitment to reporting news fairly and accurately, we will not remove any previously published content online unless it is retracted. If an error in either our online or print content is brought to our attention, we will revise the originally published article with an appended correction. In order to facilitate thoughtful and appropriate debate, profane, vulgar, or inflammatory comments on our website are not allowed and will be deleted. Comments which incite violence, target individuals in a form of cyber bullying, or which promote ideas which vilify marginalized communities will be deleted, and proper authorities may be notified and involved. >> SUBMISSIONS The OGB welcomes submissions in the form of story tips, columns and letters to the editor.

Letters to the editor should be fewer than 500 words, and columns should be around 500 words. Send yours via e-mail to duttcd20@wfu.edu the Monday before publication. We reserve the right to edit all letters for length and clarity. No anonymous letters will be printed. >> ONLINE MEDIA Web: wfuogb.com Facebook: facebook.com/ogb1916 Twitter: @wfuogb Instagram: @wfuogb TikTok: @wfuogb Sports Twitter: @wfuogbsports

Old Gold & Black | News

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 3

Early Action: Application launches this fall

Continued from Page 1 “Great universities like Wake Forest are called to be catalysts for good in society,” Wente said. “This means lowering barriers to accessing the extraordinary educational opportunities we offer here.”

Wake Forest is the first top-30 national university to offer an Early Action option specifically for first-generation students.

Wake Forest’s other application options include: Early Decision 1, a binding option which allows students to apply early in the fall and receive a decision on a rolling basis.

Early Decision 2, a binding option for those who missed the first deadline. Students receive decisions by Feb. 15.

Regular Decision, a non-binding op-

tion. Students receive decisions by April 1.

First-generation students can still apply through the Early Decision or Regular Decision routes.

Wake Forest defines a first-generation student as: “a student whose parents did not graduate from a four-year accredited college or university. First generation can also include the children of parents who earned a degree in another country, immigrated to the United States and are underemployed in the U.S.” This announcement comes about a month after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that affirmative action in college admissions is unconstitutional. The Early Action option will help not only firstgeneration students but also low-income students and students of color, because of the overlap of these identities. The

U.S. Department of Education reports that first-generation college students are more likely to come from a lower socioeconomic status and that just over half of first-generation students are racial or ethnic minorities.

This isn’t Wake Forest’s first change in its admissions policy to create a more inclusive student body. More than a decade ago, Wake Forest became the first top-30 national university to adopt a test-optional policy after realizing that a test score didn’t tell an applicant’s entire story. In the 10 years after becoming test-optional, ethnic diversity at Wake Forest increased by 68%. In a 2014 interview with Wake Forest Magazine, former Dean of Admissions Martha Allman said that Wake Forest admitted more students eligible for Pell Grants, more first-generation students and more

racial minorities. After the pandemic, many other universities across the country adopted a similar policy.

“Wake Forest recognized early that not requiring standardized tests could open the door wider for those who may not have applied to selective colleges and universities,” Provost Michele Gillespie said. “The University continues to lead the way in removing barriers for students and establishing pathways of opportunity.”

Applications for Fall 2024 admission are now available. Students can apply through the Common Application, Coalition Application or the Wake Forest Application. More information on admissions can be found here.

Contact Christa Dutton at duttc20@wfu.edu

Framework: University outlines thematic goals Continued from Page 1 The framework has been a year in the making. Wente and other university leaders have been working together to draft the document since last summer.

Those working on the framework engaged in conversations with more than 1,000 faculty, staff, students, alumni, parents and community members. The plan was presented to the Board of Trustees in June.

The document lists action steps to accomplish each of the goals outlined. To promote a community of learning, the framework says that Wake Forest will make a number of improvements to

promote equity, belonging, experiential learning and chances to embody Pro Humanitate. Some action steps include: • Expanding financial aid resources • Continuing to adopt the “Thrive” initiative, which is widely publicized by the Office of Wellbeing and based on the Eight Dimensions of Wellness model • Establishing new undergraduate orientation programs for first-year and transfer students that connect students to helpful resources • Continuing the Residential Commons initiative, which launched with the Class of 2027. This initia-

Daniel Parolini/Old Gold & Black

Since last summer, university leaders have consulted with over 1,000 students, staff and alumni about how best to embody Pro Humanitate.

tive ensured that academic advising groups were assigned to the same residence hall, located more firstyear classes within residence halls and placed four Faculty Fellows in each freshman residence hall.

• Creating an experiential learning center that promotes research, scholarship and creative work, career readiness, community engagement and study away/abroad programs • Assessing current and potential partnerships across learning communities on campus • Documenting where and how data and digital literacy are currently integrated into curricula • Fostering spaces where informed dialogue about current issues can take place — spaces like the debate team, Face to Face series and Call to Conversation.

Under its goal to be a community of inquiry, the university is pledging to promote scholarship and research with the following action steps: • Integrate a well-defined understanding of the teacher-scholar model • Engage in cluster hires, joint appointments and endowed professorships to attract teacher-scholars who have been recognized in their fields • Define a university-wide process for determining if new research, scholarship and creative work hold potential to become areas of institutional

significance Create new partnerships that enhance the university’s contributions to national and international projects and policymaking • Partner with Advocate Aurora Health and Atrium Heath to address public health needs Lastly, the document includes goals for implementing partnerships that nurture the local community. One of the aims within this goal is to “reinforce Wake Forest’s role as a leading collaborator” in Winston-Salem, the Triad, Charlotte and North Carolina at large.

The university plans to determine the most strategic ways to support the region’s economic development based on Wake Forest’s areas of distinction and how it can work with other higher education institutions and non-profits.

The framework will be continually assessed and evaluated through various indicators, ensuring that the resources necessary for success are fully applied and that each outcome is consistent with its initial objective. Working with current and historical data from the Office of Institutional Research (OIR)’s data repository, the framework aims for transparency in how it is being implemented and maintained.

•

Contact Christa Dutton and Maddie Stopyra at: duttc20@wfu.edu stopmf21@wfu.edu

POLICE BEAT • • • • • • • • • •

Individual took a JBL speaker that was laying on a table in Angelou Hall. The speaker was later returned. The report was filed at 9:52 a.m. on Aug. 28.

A student was scammed $450 while attempting to purchase concert tickets. The report was filed at 8:06 p.m. on Aug. 28.

A student was vomiting in a suite bathroom and advised that he had consumed eight to nine beers. The student was checked by Life Star EMS Unit 3 who advised that the student was safe to remain in his room for the evening. The report was filed at 1:20 a.m. on Aug. 29.

A student was vomiting and his roommate called for medical assistance. Forsyth County EMS Unit 38 transported the student to Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Hospital. The report was filed at 3:26 a.m. on Aug. 29.

Unknown subject(s) entered an unlocked victim’s vehicle. The subject(s) did not use force and nothing was taken. The report was filed at 10:45 a.m. on Aug. 31.

Unknown subject(s) entered an unlocked victim’s vehicle. The subject(s) did not use force and nothing was taken. The report was filed at 11:43 a.m. on Aug. 31.

Unknown subject(s) entered an unlocked victim’s vehicle. The subject(s) did not use force and nothing was taken. The report was filed at 12:30 p.m. on Aug. 31.

An intoxicated individual refused to leave Last Resort. The report was filed at 10:43 p.m. on Aug. 31.

An intoxicated individual was lying in the grass playing a prank on his friends. The report was filed at 12:36 a.m. on Sept. 1.

The Winston-Salem Police Department assisted the Wake Forest Police Department with a subject who advised that he was robbed of his wallet, shoes and phone after leaving the West End Opera House with the suspects. The suspect jumped out of the vehicle at the Reynolds Boulevard and Indiana Avenue intersection and ran into the cemetery. He then began walking home to Tiffany Avenue. The WSPD responded to the scene on Polo Road. The report was filed at 5:48 a.m. on Sept. 3.

Page 4 | Thursday, September 7, 2023

Old Gold & Black | News

As national attention turns to legacy admissions, what are Wake Forest’s policies?

Relationship to the university is one of many factors considered in admissions, says VP of enrollment CHRISTA DUTTON Editor-in-Chief After the Supreme Court ruled against the use of affirmative action in college admissions, the nation has turned its attention to another factor often used in admissions at elite schools – legacy status.

Legacy admissions refers to the practice of giving preference to the family of alumni during the admissions process. Being a legacy is not a free pass into the university, and data shows that legacy applicants are usually more qualified in terms of test scores and other accomplishments than typical applicants.

The practice made national headlines when the Education Department opened a civil rights investigation into Harvard University’s legacy admissions policy in late July. Three activist groups alleged that the practice discriminates against students of color in favor of white and wealthy students.

The investigation follows Wesleyan University’s decision to end legacy preferences. Wesleyan is the latest school to drop the preference, although other schools like Amherst College, Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins and the University of Pittsburgh have also dropped it in recent years — CMU and Pitt ended their programs following the Court’s decision regarding affirmative action.

The exact number of colleges and universities that consider legacy status is unknown, but a report from the Institute for Higher Education Policy found that just over half of selective four-year colleges use the practice.

What about Wake Forest?

Vice President for Enrollment Eric Maguire says Wake Forest does consider an applicant’s relationship to the university as one of many factors in the admissions process.

“A student’s relationship to the university, including if a parent or another member of their family attended,

is often known to our admission committee as they conduct a holistic review of an application, but admissions decisions are not based on any one factor,” Maguire said. “The holistic review considers a variety of factors, such as an applicant’s academic performance, extracurricular activities and how their personal experiences align with Wake Forest’s motto [Pro Humanitate].”

Maguire told the Old Gold & Black that in a typical year, seven percent of incoming students at Wake Forest have a legacy affiliation. He said this was “a smaller percentage than many other top national universities.”

Comprehensive data on the percentage of legacy students at top schools across the nation is hard to come

“

Just over half of selective four-year colleges use [legacy admissions].

What about Wake Forest?” by. Many schools do not report these statistics, but a look at student newspaper coverage from peer institutions seems to confirm Maguire’s claim that Wake Forest has a smaller percentage of legacy students than many other schools.

Duke University’s student newspaper, The Chronicle, issued a survey to first-year students in the Class of 2026 with questions about their journey to Duke — questions like what type of high school they attended, whether they applied Early Decision or if they had legacy status. The survey, which had an 18% response rate, found that 15% of respondents said their parents or siblings attended Duke. The year before, 22% of respondents reported legacy status.

In Vanderbilt University’s Class of 2023, 14.8% were legacy students, according to The Vanderbilt Hustler.

At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Daily Tar Heel reported that in 2018, 48% of instate applicants and 40% of out-of-state applicants who were children of alumni were accepted. For that application year, the university’s overall acceptance rate was 23%.

Johns Hopkins has not considered legacy status in admissions since 2014. The university’s student newspaper reported that in 2009, 12.5% of the freshman class were legacy students. By 2020, that number had fallen to 3.5%. During the same time period, the percentage of Pell Grant-eligible students more than doubled.

Why do colleges have legacy admissions?

Maguire did not disclose why Wake Forest specifically considers legacy affiliation as a part of an application.

Emilio Castilla, a professor of management at MIT, conducted a study focused on data from an unnamed elite college. In the study, Castilla gives two main reasons why universities still use legacy admissions.

The first reason has to do with money. Legacy applicants are more likely to accept an offer if admitted, resulting in a better yield for universities. Legacies are also more likely to pay full tuition, have more generous parents and be more generous alumni themselves once they graduate.

The second is more abstract. Some schools believe that having more legacies on campus promotes a richer “intergenerational community,” thereby increasing school pride among students.

America has certainly placed a closer eye on admissions practices at elite schools. Time will only tell how our nation’s top universities will adapt to the changing legal landscape.

Contact Christa Dutton at duttcd20@wfu.edu

Photo courtesy of Wake Forest University

FEATURES

Isabella Romine, romiie21@wfu.edu Natasha Heisenberg, heisng20@wfu.edu Eli Leadham, leadey22@wfu.edu

OLD GOLD & BLACK

PAGE 5 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

How HIV in Kenya reveals gender inequities MARGARET BOLT Contributing Writer

that came in was asked if her husband had ever laid a hand on her.

Every time the woman said no, the clinician I was working with laughed and said “not yet.” She gestures to male genitalia made out of wood to illustrate that none of them can trust their husbands, who she believed were likely going behind their backs with other women and contracting HIV. “He has a girlfriend, and then he comes home and

women receive free healthcare and HIV testing during their pregnancies.

The reality is that women are not responsible for twice the amount of HIV cases as men are. They’re just more likely to get tested, which skews the data.

Though the focus on PrEP for HIV-negative patients and the sexual education slowly becoming more comprehensive is great, it is imperative that the Kenyan government recognizes why the rates of HIV

The supervisor with whom I’m working lets out a small gasp. I glance over at the HIV test results of the 23-year-old pregnant woman in front of me: there’s a red line — her test is positive.

The woman hangs her head. She’s visiting for her third trimester checkup at Kisumu County Referral Hospital in Kenya. Due to high HIV rates in Kisumu, the hospital requires women to be tested for HIV during each trimester of their pregnancy.

She was negative for HIV during her second trimester. In the last 30 seconds, she has not only learned that she is HIV-positive for life, but also connected the dots that her husband has cheated on her in the last three months while she has carried his child.

With 18% of Kisumu residents being HIV-positive (and the rate only increasing), the Kenyan government has launched several initiatives for HIV prevention, including education efforts in schools and pushing PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) on HIVnegative patients. But the fact remains that women continue to be blamed for the high rates of HIV in the county, while the root causes of skyrocketing rates go unaddressed.

I began to notice the unfair associations between women and HIV during my first week interning in Kenya. Adolescent girls and young women are considered the most “at risk” demographic for HIV with almost twice the HIV infection rate as Kenyan men.

Kenya is highly religious, and each public school features a Christian curriculum. Most teach abstinence-based sexual education, while others teach “family planning” — the method of tracking one’s menstrual cycle for ovulation and avoiding sexual activity during that time. This renders the use of contraception (for STDs/STIs and pregnancy) extremely low.

Due to the significant poverty in Kenya’s poorest neighborhoods, many young girls are coerced into unprotected sex with older men for money or even necessary menstrual products, such as tampons or pads, when they are young. This has yielded a teenage pregnancy rate of 42% in Kisumu County, and a disproportionately high rate of HIV in young girls.

Most of this occurs before these adolescent girls have had sexual education in school, or learned about PrEP and other HIV prevention. Despite the horror of this reality, there is no focus on stopping older men from taking advantage of primary school-aged women or encouraging the use of contraceptives.

Margaret Bolt/Old Gold & Black Instead, the rhetoric is that young women need to learn how to say no or compromise with these men Kisumu County has a teenage pregnancy rate of 42% and a disproportionately high rate of HIV in and do other things for money. young girls. Most of this occurs before these adolescent girls have had sexual education in school.

PrEP is a medication designed to reduce the risk of HIV transmission to someone who is HIV-negative. he sees you! Or he says he is HIV-negative, and he in young women are so high.

They’re more likely to be taken advantage of, more This could mean a sexual partner, a child or anyone blames you for not trusting him!”

Still, the HIV-negative women eligible to take PrEP likely to be victims of domestic violence if they atelse who might be exposed. tempt to protect themselves and they get tested at Though it seems that most people would take ad- for free denied the clinician’s offer.

The culture of male pride in Kenya has led to thou- disproportionately high rates compared to young vantage of this medication in a place where HIV rates sands of cases of HIV and domestic violence. Most men. are soaring, the public reaction is quite the opposite.

Each of these points to symptoms of the real probwomen believe that if they took PrEP or asked their PrEP is highly stigmatized; the bottle it comes in is lem — there is massive gender inequality in Kenya, husband to use a condom just in case, their husband distinctive and taboo; most people would rather run and it perpetuates their inflated HIV rates. In the would beat them or otherwise blame them. the risk of contracting HIV than take medication daifuture, I hope to see developments regarding male Furthermore, the narrative during my time in medly (despite the only possible side effects being quite testing initiatives and more sexual and reproductive ical environments in Kenya was that men will not go mild and short-term). health focus in schools to address the root of the isDuring my experience in the HIV-testing clinic to the doctor unless they are seriously ill, sometimes sue. of Kisumu County Referral Hospital, the clinicians even on their deathbeds. Meanwhile, women are screened for domestic violence signs. Each woman more likely to seek preventative care, and pregnant Contact Margaret Bolt at boltma20@wfu.edu

Old Gold & Black | Features

THE FINAL WORD How the death of a progressive Baptist church at Wake Forest reflects denominational tension and a decline in organized religion CHRISTA DUTTON Editor-in-Chief

O

n an overcast Saturday last November, bells rang out from the carillon in Wait Chapel at Wake Forest University.

Inside, people found old friends, giving them hugs and saying, “It’s been too long.”

Death has a way of reuniting people, bringing together those who have been touched by the deceased for a formal time of remembrance and celebration. Today, no person was being honored. Rather, a church in its last days of existence.

A few months prior, the congregation of Wake Forest Baptist Church voted to disband in November. Members were aging and dwindling in number, in part because of a nationwide rejection of organized religion by young adults who had grown at political odds with the churches of their childhoods. Once the church closed, Wake Forest would not have a Baptist church on campus for the first time in its 189-year history.

The Celebration of Life event was held on Nov. 5 2022, just a couple of weeks before the church would hold its last service. Dozens of people with ties to the church formed throughout the years gathered in Wait Chapel to remember the church’s life.

The chapel is a familiar and beloved place for the congregation of Wake Forest Baptist. Before they moved to a smaller space, the church had always met in Wait — Wake Forest’s defining piece of architecture located at the heart of campus — rent-free. Then, in August 2022, the university announced a new rental policy that would be implemented at the start of the new year. Rayce Lamb, the church’s lead pastor, described this as “the straw that broke the camel’s back” for a lot of their folks. Many congregants already felt like there wasn’t a relationship with the university anymore. This solidified that feeling.

Wake Forest Baptist had always been an outsider of sorts — different from its Southern Baptist peers and the university it called home because of its more liberal views on theology and politics. These differences would go on to create tension between the church and more powerful institutions like the Southern Baptist Convention and the university with which it shared space.

Wake Forest Baptist long held a reputation for being more progressive than its Southern Baptist peers. In the 1960s, the church marched for Civil Rights. In the ‘90s, it provided care for AIDS patients, when many still refused to treat them.Throughout the 2000s, the church fiercely advocated for marriage equality and LGBTQ+ rights. Each week, Lamb began the service with “Welcome to Wake Forest Baptist,” and the congregation responded, “Where all are welcome, no exceptions” — a motto they’ve certainly lived up to. Those gathered at the Nov. 5 service swapped stories about how the church had welcomed them and served as an exemplar of progressive Baptist life.

While branded a “celebration,” the service was still mournful. Like a family at a funeral, church members processed down the chapel’s middle aisle.

There were hymns and prayers and Scripture readings. Lamb gave a homily inspired by a 1958 sermon delivered by a former pastor of the church entitled “The Peril of Neutrality.” In that sermon — delivered more than six decades ago — the preacher urged his church to “boldly pursue justice.” The pastor argued there was no room for neutrality anymore when it came to the injustices of their culture. Lamb recounted ways that the church accomplished that goal as a progressive agent of justice in their city. He then charged his congregation to carry on that legacy and bring God’s justice wherever they go next, making Wake Forest Baptist a circle unbroken.

Toward the end of the service, the audience gave the church a final blessing. They extended their hands toward the communion table in front of the pulpit where photographs of the current congregation were

placed. With arms outstretched, a final commendation was given to the congregation to remind them that, because of Jesus’ resurrection, death never has the final word.

Baptist roots Wake Forest Baptist Church was established on Wake Forest’s original campus in Wake Forest, North Carolina, in 1835, one year after the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina founded the college. That church still exists today under the same name, and the old campus is now home to Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, one of the Southern Baptist Convention’s six theological seminaries.

When Wake Forest College moved to Winston-Salem in 1956, it brought the church with it, keeping the name Wake Forest Baptist and continuing the 125-year-old tradition of having a Baptist church at the center of campus.

As the Baptist State Convention — an association within the Southern Baptist Convention — underwent a conservative resurgence, the university and the convention broke ties in 1986. Wake Forest Baptist would follow suit and leave the Southern Baptist Convention in 2000.

Ditching its Baptist affiliation was a significant shift for the school because of its historical connection to the denomination. As a result, the school’s religious demographics began to shift.

Throughout most of its history, Wake Forest primarily attracted Baptist students. In 1951, 72 percent of the student body was Baptist.

By 2005, less than 15 percent were Baptist. In the fall of 2021, the dominant religious affiliation on campus was Catholic.

While Wake Forest became less and less Baptist through the years, it would go on to make a decision demonstrating that it couldn’t shake its Baptist heritage completely — a decision that would put the church at odds with the university.

university wanted to “honor and respect its Baptist heritage.”

Students were outraged. The Student Association for Equality (SAFE) at Wake Forest wrote a petition saying that the trustees violated the university’s non-discrimination statement and urged them to let Wake Forest Baptist perform the union. More than 1,000 students and faculty signed the petition. SAFE also protested by placing flowers on the steps of Wait Chapel and hanging signs on the columns with messages like “Support religious freedom” and “Autonomy.”

At the State of the University address later that month, Hearn told the student body that the trustees’ statement was misunderstood. Nowhere in their statement did the trustees prohibit the church from doing the ceremony, they just asked them not to.

In 2000, Parker and Scott would finally celebrate their union ceremony in Wait Chapel in front of the Wake Forest Baptist congregation. Almost two decades later, the church would make another large step toward the inclusion Ryan Butler, Lisa Yewdall/”A Union in Wait” and affirmation of LGBTQ+ folks.

Making history Among clergy members dressed in robes, Erica Saunders walked down the middle aisle of Wait Chapel, knowing that when her ordination ceremony was over, she’d make history.

Those in the processional found their seats as a hymn played. In a few moments, Saunders would be an ordained minister in the Baptist church — unique because many churches in the Baptist denomination only allow men to be ordained. While Wake Forest Baptist had already left the Southern Baptist Convention and is still not a member today, many Baptist churches in the South are, and they

A union in Wait In the late ‘90s, two members of Wake Forest Baptist, Susan Parker and Wendy Scott, asked the church if they would perform a union ceremony for them since same-sex marriage was illegal in North Carolina at the time.

The church voted yes, although not without some pushback. While most of the congregation was supportive, some outsiders did not agree with the church’s decision.

One person wrote the church to express concern about the church’s choice, citing verses 18-32 in the first chapter of Romans. In this passage, the apostle Paul writes about how humans have forsaken God, using homosexuality as an example of a sin to which humans had succumbed. The person who sent the letter saw clear Biblical evidence against homosexuality. The congregation, however, interpreted this passage differently and saw no problem allowing the two women to be united.

The church then asked the university’s chaplain at the time, Ed Christman, for permission to conduct the ceremony. Christman asked President Thomas Hearn, and Hearn asked the Board of Trustees. The trustees came back with a no.

A four-person ad hoc committee on the Board ofTrustees released a press release on Sept. 8, 1999, that asked the church not to conduct the union. A front-page story printed the next day in the Old Gold & Black reported that the university’s decision was “based largely on historical, rather than contemporary ties to the Baptist church” and that the Susan Parker (right) and Wendy Scott (left) (Photo credit: Ryan Butler, Lisa Yewdall/”A Union in Wait”)

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 7

rarely allow women to preach. Fewer Baptist churches even outside the convention allow trans-women to be ministers, and that’s what makes Saunders’ ordination so radical. On March 24, 2019, Saunders became one of the first openly trans woman to be ordained in the Baptist church.

A couple hundred people came to witness this moment in history.

Almost her entire class at Wake Forest School of Divinity was there, as well as a few university administrators. Her grandmother and grandfather were there too. They are the only two people from her biological family she’s still in contact with.

While her biological family may have not been there, her church family was. Most of the Wake Forest Baptist congregation came to support Saunders — the 24-year-old Wake Forest Divinity student who became one of their own two years prior when she walked into a church service.

Church of misfit toys Saunders didn’t even know there was a church that met on campus until a friend told her about a “Trans Day of Remembrance” service in 2017. And he only told her because he helped plan it.

When she heard her friend use “Baptist” and “trans” in the same sentence, Saunders was surprised. She had grown up in Asheboro as an independent fundamentalist Baptist — a conservative tradition disconnected from any formal denomination or convention — that believes being queer is a sin. They interpret Scripture literally and most only read the King James Version of the Bible. Behind the pulpit, there’s a lot of talk about damnation. Women cannot be preachers. Saunders remembers most women staying at home and often being pregnant.

Saunders’ experience in this type of church made her think that welcoming and affirming congregations didn’t exist. When she arrived at divinity school at Wake Forest, she had just come out as trans and was questioning how her lifestyle and faith would ever coexist. Yet, she was learning about all these faith expressions in her classes. So she went searching.

She tried many churches around Winston-Salem, and while they were kind congregations, they just didn’t feel right. Then she went to the Trans Day of Remembrance service.

During the service, Saunders expected to just observe, but then found herself standing up to speak. In tears, she told everyone how freeing it was to finally be herself and live the life God had called her to.

After the service, Lia Scholl, the pastor of Wake Forest Baptist in 2017, introduced herself and told Saunders how moving her words were. She offered Saunders her phone number and invited her to a Sunday service. It took Saunders a couple of months, but she finally gave Scholl a call, and they went for a walk around campus.

As they walked, Saunders told Scholl her story, and it was the first positive experience she ever had with a clergy member.

Then, Saunders finally visited Wake Forest Baptist. That Sunday, Scholl preached on the importance of welcoming trans and gay people, treating immigrants with respect and how everyone deserves to have basic human needs met. It was then that Saunders realized that her faith and her convictions on social justice didn’t have to be separate.

“The people in the pews were very welcoming of me, not only as a trans woman but just as a person,” Saunders remembers. “They were curious about me and wanted to form a real relationship, rather than wagging a finger if I missed church, as it would have been in the church that raised me.”

Saunders came to love this church and the people in its pews, seeing herself as proof of the church’s motto that “all are welcome, no exceptions.”

“I used to affectionately joke about the church as the ‘Island of Misfit Toys,’” Saunders said. “We were all weird or quirky. We had our own things about us that made us not fit in other places, but we really found a home at Wake Forest Baptist. The love in the air was palpable.”

Two years later, the church of misfit toys would be the one to ordain her.

All are welcome, no exceptions The main part of any ordination service is the two charges — one to the ordained and one to the church.

In her charge, Saunders was asked if she would faithfully serve her congregation through the highs and lows of life while always preaching love and justice.

Erica Saunders’ ordination (Photo credit: Eve Andrews)

“With God’s help, I will,” she responded as part of the liturgy.

Next, the Wake Forest Baptist congregation was asked if they would support her through love and prayer.

“With God’s help, we will,” they said. They always had.

After the charges, Saunders knelt before the altar. Those in the audience were invited to lay their hands on her, a typical practice in churches when someone begins vocational ministry. As hands rested on her body, tears streamed down her face.

“I wept through pretty much the entire thing,” Saunders said. “I don’t know why I even bothered to put on makeup that day.”

The ceremony ended with a reception. The people Saunders loved most gathered together to give hugs, eat food and share drinks.

“Not alcohol though,” Saunders recalled. “I did that later.”

Shrinking congregations Wake Forest Baptist Church is far from the only church to have closed its doors within the past few years. According to a study done

by Lifeway, an evangelical research organization, 4,500 churches from across 34 different Protestant denominations closed in 2019 while only 3,000 were started. Compare that to just five years earlier, in 2014, when the number of churches closing and beginning almost equaled each other.

One reason why churches are dying is that people aren’t going to them. For the first time in its eight-decade-long history, Gallup reported that church membership is below 50 percent.

Scott McConnell is the executive director at Lifeway Research who has spent much of his professional life producing studies and analyzing statistics in order to help churches. He likes to remind people that while church operation is largely connected to finances, the survival of churches is truly dependent on the people who are a part of it.

“Churches are people, and when you start to get down to tiny numbers, or the different spiritual gifts aren’t present — if there’s not somebody to teach, there’s not people encouraging, there’s not people serving — then they’re really not functioning like a church,” McConnell said.

Gallup found that church membership is strongly correlated with age. Only 36 percent of millennials belong to a church compared to 66 percent of traditionalists — those born before 1946 — and 58 percent of baby boomers. As these older generations pass away, there are few young people to take their place in the pews.

Wake Forest Baptist reflected this trend of declining membership.

At the end of its first year in Winston-Salem, its membership included 380 students and 303 non-students — mostly faculty, staff, administration and their families. In its last year, Lamb said that the average attendance was 25 to 30 people — a majority of them being over 50 and none of them being college students.

Lifeway Research did another study in 2019, this one examining how many young adults (18-22 years old) dropped out of church and why.

The study found that 66 percent of respondents dropped out of church for at least a year between the ages of 18 to 22. McConnell says that these statistics and the stories behind them can tell us why young people are

Photo courtesy of Eve Andrews

dropping out of church.

“The number one reason [why young people stopped going to church] is that they physically moved to a new location and just never found a new church. It simply wasn’t a high-enough priority in their life that when they relocated, they didn’t add that back in,” McConnell said.

If church was something that their parents pressured them to do, college students now found themselves free from that responsibility.

Young people also dropped out because they viewed church goers as hypocritical and disagreed with a church’s stance on political issues.

“Theologically, we can step back and condemn [churches] for that. Because the gospel is for everyone, and the heart of every church should be to reach everyone,” McConnell said. “At the same time, we continue to see a pattern that churches tend to be most successful at reaching people like themselves. That’s true socioeconomically, that’s true ethnically, and it’s true age-wise. It would be harder for an older church to truly be welcoming of a completely different age cohort.”

This proved to be true for Wake Forest Baptist, who like many other churches in America, had a hard time attracting young people or even more people at all. At its final service, 37 people came to worship together for the last time.

Let God do the rest Jerry Gay was 12 years old when he attended the church’s first service in 1956. His family had moved to Winston-Salem from Wake Forest, for his father to teach math at the college. At 78, he was about to attend its last.

Others in attendance hadn’t been to the church in a while but came for the final gathering. People hugged old friends that came through the door. “It’s like a homecoming!” someone said.

Maggie Hurst sat in the back row by herself watching as people chatted. She drove from Statesville that morning to be with the church that ordained her on their last Sunday. She still works in ministry now; however, she said work was hard to come by for a gay Baptist preacher like herself.

That day’s announcements were grim. Lamb said social media sites would disappear in a few weeks. All final donations had to be made by the end of the year, and all the church’s belongings that received bids in the silent auction must be picked up next week.

After a hymn, Lamb led the church in a call-and-response prayer that reflected on the church yesterday, today and tomorrow.

“We lift these names, our church ancestors, who made us feel belonging here,” Lamb prayed.

The congregation called out the names of those who made them feel welcomed here. Sara. Carl. Marcus. Penny. Gene. Warren. Pastor Rayce.

“We lift these emotions stirring inside us as we gather in this space for the last time,” Lamb prayed.

The congregation was invited to name the emotions they were feeling that morning. For several moments, there was silence. No words could do their feelings justice. Eventually, a few people spoke up. Sadness. Hurt. Gratitude. Guilt. Hope for the future.

“We lift our commitment to your work outside of this place,” Lamb prayed.

People shared a next step that God was calling them to take once the church closed. Hurst said she would start a queer Bible study in Statesville.

Next, the congregation sang “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing,” and then Lamb delivered the church’s last sermon.

Lamb said that he’d been dreading the last Sunday. He feared that when the end finally came, he wouldn’t know what to say. So he decided to go back to the basics of sermon preparation — a sevenstep process he learned in seminary. For his final sermon, he walked through those seven steps.

Step one, pray.

Step two, let the Holy Spirit reveal to you a passage of Scripture.

Lamb said that God often procrastinates on this one, but the Spirit finally led him to 1 Corinthians 2.

Step three, wait for the Holy Spirit to reveal the larger message.

Lamb read verses 1-10, which describe how Paul came to the church in Corinth not with lofty words or mere human wisdom but with the truth of Christ and his crucifixion.

Step four, tell an attention-grabbing story.

He told the story of a mentor who supported him through his depression. His mentor often told him that “When tomorrow comes, you’re going to realize that you’re okay.”

Step five, draw a connection to the passage.

Lamb said that, like Paul, he was also frightened when he came to this church in January. He teared up as he shared how welcoming this congregation was of him and what a joy it had been to lead them.

Step six, proclaim.

Lamb told the congregation that the church isn’t an institution, but rather the people who make it up. He commended them for their testimony to God’s love in the way that they loved this church, this university and this community.

“When tomorrow comes and Wake Forest Baptist no longer exists, it will be okay, and you will be okay,” Lamb said. “Because we are Wake Forest Baptist Church, Wake Forest Baptist will live on.”

“Now for the last step,” Lamb said. “Step seven — let God do the rest.”

Contact Christa Dutton at duttcd20@wfu.edu

ENVIRONMENT PAGE 8 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

OLD GOLD & BLACK

Una Wilson, wilsui20@wfu.edu Bella Ortley-Guthrie, ortlbs21@wfu.edu

Trash Trout catches trash in Reynolda Village Wake Forest Properties partners with Yadkin Riverkeeper in installing a trash collection device BELLA ORTLEY-GUTHRIE Environment Editor On July 10, Wake Forest Properties partnered with Yadkin Riverkeeper, a non-profit of water keepers and advocates, to install Asheville GreenWorks’ Trash Trout, which will collect trash, plastic waste and debris found within Silas Creek in Reynolda Village.

The partnership, which initially began in September 2022, will help clean and begin microplastic research of Silas Creek, with Yadkin Riverkeeper leading the volunteer sign-ups and maintaining the Trash Trout site. Yadkin Riverkeeper is one of 15 riverkeepers within North Carolina that cleans, advocates and studies different tributaries and watersheds.

The Trash Trout, like the one in Silas Creek, is the lovechild of Asheville GreenWorks and North Carolina Attorney General’s Environmental Enhancement grant.

In 2000, the N.C. hog production giant Smithfield Foods entered a 25-year agreement with the state of N.C. to fund $2 million a year to various environmental enhancement projects pertaining to air, water and land quality across the state. As part of this grant, 15 N.C. riverkeepers from Waterkeepers Carolina received funding towards microplastic research and installing Trash Trouts in their watersheds. GreenWorks, a nonprofit that works to create a “climate-resistant community for all,” designed and produced the Trash Trouts.

Edgar Miller, the executive director and riverkeeper

of Yadkin Riverkeeper said that the grant aimed towards understanding the microplastic levels and trash within smaller tributaries across the state.

“The real goal of that was to identify whether or not you know how well these [trash trouts] work did removing trash, but we were also taking samples for micro plastics,” Miller said.

Grace Fuchs, the Yadkin Riverkeeper Assistant from September 2021 to this August 2023, describes the Trash Trout as a colander. The Trash Trout, with silver aluminum circular pontoons encases a silver fence frame with an open top and bottom. The fence material allows for water to flow through the Trash Trout but catches the trash like pasta strained through a colander. The Trash Trout is anchored on both sides of the creek bed with steel cables. On either side, line buoys funnel the trash into the trap. The amount of trash collected in the trash trout depends on the watershed flow rate. Meaning, with more water flowing, more trash is picked up and pushed down or upstream. The trap itself is also climate change resistant with the Trash Trout unhitching and moving to the side of the creek in case of heavy flow rate or fallen tree limbs.

GreenWorks initially began the Trash Trout project in 2015 with hopes to halt trash polluting in smaller tributaries before reaching larger bodies of water. In addition to cleaning watersheds, they wanted to build more awareness of water pollution within communities and municipalities. After two years of research, GreenWorks

partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and installed their first trap in 2017.

Eric Bradford, the director of operations at GreenWorks, said that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife partnership helped GreenWorks’ Trash Trout design not only be effective but safe to wildlife and other ecosystems within tributaries. “[The partnership] really helped us design what [the Trash Trouts] are today, creating it the way it is with no top, no bottom on the trap,” Bradford said. “The size of the openings, for the sieve that’s on it, is important as well. The way [the Trash Trout] operates, the way it sits in a creek, all of those things were informed through working with partners like U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and also with local engineering firms, so we could come up with something that’s simple but effective.”

GreenWorks offers two Trash Trouts: Trash Trout which is 21 feet by 12 feet and can sit in a 200-foot wide stream, and then Trash Trout Jr. (the one located in Silas Creek), which can sit in a creek 50 feet wide.

Silas Creek’s Trash Trout installation took six hours with volunteers from Yadkin Riverkeeper and GreenWorks measuring the creek and cementing the Trash Trout properly onto the bank. The stream morphology and size was important in choosing the location for the Trash Trout, as installing trash trouts requires certain creek creeks and needs to be visible and away from outdoor water activities such as paddling or kayaking.

See Trash Trout, Page 9

Virginia Noone/Old Gold & Black

Environment | Old Gold & Black

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 9

Trash Trout: Cleaning up the creek Continued from Page 8 “It’s a bit of a process back and forth, making sure that we find the right [location] because, you know, all of those tributaries have their own personalities and have their own challenges,” Bradford said.

“We’re basically doing something that’s not really a paved path for us here. We’re blazing forward each time that we do this.

Each installation is different.”

While the Wake Forest location proved to be the best of both worlds for size, visibility and education purposes, Wake Forest Properties was not Yadkin Riverkeeper’s first location choice. According to Miller, they initially looked into streams throughout Forsyth, Davidson and Rowan county to find the right stream size for the trash trout. Miller originally identified Peter’s Creek near Hanes Park in Winston-Salem as a potential location.

After some back and forth discussions with the city, Winston-Salem raised some issues with the insurance, liability and monitoring of trash trouts, according to Miller. Miller and his team responded and after some discussion, Winston-Salem responded “not at this time.” and Yadkin Riverkeepers switched directions According to Miller, there was no formal request or proposal submitted or denied by the city, but in short, they did not receive permission to install the trash trouts. The Yadkin Riverkeeper pivoted and reached out to Wake Forest Properties in September 2022.

Jodi Tonsic, the director of marketing at Reynolda Village Wake Forest Properties, led the Trash Trout initiative alongside Jenny Bush, the assistant director of Wake Forest Properties.

“We’re very committed to sustainability efforts and to trying to preserve the beautiful property that was the Reynolda estate,” Tonsic said. “We were also interested with, again, Wake Forest being an educational institution, of any possible things that Yadkin Riverkeeper could learn from having [the Trash Trout] installed on our property.”

As apart of discussion with Wake Forest Properties, the Yadkin Riverkeepers signed a standard Property Use Agreement which according to Tonsic, “requires third parties conducting activities on our property to have liability insurance to protect the University from personal injuries and property damage that might occur related to those activities,” Tonsic said.

Yadkin Riverkeepers in accordance with the contract and Wake Forest University’s requests provided a COI [claim of insurance] of $1 million and added Wake Forest Properties under their insurance policy in case of damages to others or any other property from the trash trout.

While Trash Trouts help riverkeepers keep track of trash, they also allow for research and education in the community.

Madison Sings, GreenWorks’ watershed outreach coordinator and Yadkin Riverkeeper both rely on the help of volunteers to host cleanups in watersheds and with Trash Trout. In Asheville, Sings trains volunteers in cleaning up the trash courts while scheduling work days for volunteers and students.

“We look for people who we can empower to become a part of the educational component,” Sings said. “We’re educating our stream keepers about the local waterways, and they become empowered by

the information they’re learning to go out and tell other people.”

Fuchs says that Trash Trouts not only mitigate trash reaching the ocean, but also show the quality of our waterways.

Although the Trash Trout gathers trash like plastic and styrofoam, watersheds, like Silas Creek, are still at risk from microplastic contaminating the water. In her sampling of the creek at Reynolda Village, Fuchs found particles of microplastics.

“It’s not that far from [Wake Forest’s] campus,” Fuchs said. “There are still pieces of microplastic in [the creek] already.

That’s only going to increase as you go further down the river system, and there’s more and more trash.”

Fuchs continued: “What we do in [Winston-Salem] has an impact on downstream users of the river. Surprisingly, a lot of people don’t know where the Yadkin River is, or that it’s our drinking water source here in Winston-Salem.”

Bradford reiterated Fuch’s sentiments, stating that while the traps help facilitate cleanups, they also open conversations regarding waste in communities.

“We want to talk about where the trash is coming from, and what are some of the sorts of things that we can do to support this on a state level,” Bradford said. “Is it a bottle bill? Is it something local in your particular county that you can do that can limit where the trash is coming from? Is this enforcing certain ordinances that you have in your county that you’re just not currently doing?”

He continued: “There’s a whole myriad of things because, yes, it’s great to put the traps out there. But for us, we want these folks to know that they’re part of a big-

ger network, and we can work with this network.”

Although the 39 Trash Trouts installed across five states are efficient in collecting trash, volunteers are needed to continually check and clean out the Trash Trouts.

For students, Fuchs advocates for people to start small and limit their plastic waste to mitigate debris in watersheds. Both Sings and Bradford also recommend students interested in engaging with Trash Trouts or interested in water cleanups to reach out to Asheville GreenWorks.

Brian Cohen, the assistant director of sustainable engagement at the Office of Sustainability at Wake Forest, vocalized hopes for potential student involvement and engagement in the future.

“The Office of Sustainability is always open to partnerships and for supporting the great work that local organizations such as Yadkin Riverkeeper are doing to improve the health of our ecosystems,” Cohen said. “While I’m not sure if there are volunteer opportunities around the Trash Trout specifically, we definitely hope to get more students out into the wetlands to see how human and hydrological processes interact and to help keep the area as healthy as possible.”

Miller says that volunteer efforts and the need for volunteers is slow, as the trash trout hasn’t collected as much trash due to the flow rate. In the future, if students want to get involved with volunteering at Yadkin Riverkeepers or cleaning out the trash trouts, they can contact them via their website or email.

Contact Bella Ortley-Guthrie at ortlbs21@wfu.edu

Tips for a sustainable move-in UNA WILSON Environment Editor Your band posters and photos hang on the walls as newly bought textbooks are arranged on top of your desk. Perhaps a plant sits on the windowsill, or you have a stolen brick from the quad propping open the door. As you settle into your new home at Wake Forest, sustainability might not be at the forefront of your curatorial mindset. However, small changes, such as purchasing more environmentally-efficient appliances to deck out your dorm, can make a big difference in cutting down campus-wide carbon emissions.

Sophomore Ella Klein is the first-year events coordinator for the Wake Forest Office of Sustainability. She says that one of her top priorities when moving in is to use as few cardboard boxes as possible, and instead opt for reusable bins that she can use as storage throughout the year.

“Bringing your belongings in something reusable, like reusable grocery bags or suitcases, makes both the move-in and move-out process easier,” Klein said. “It saves you money — you don’t have to invest in cardboard boxes every time you have to carry your stuff in and out — and it’s better for the environment.”

Although Klein is a local from Winston-Salem, she added that reducing the number of car trips between campus and your house or storage unit can make a beneficial difference as well.

“Take less than you think you need,”

Klein said. “This makes it easier to avoid throwing things away at the end of the year.”

On average, each college student discards roughly 230 pounds of trash each year, according to data from Tufts University. The same study shows the most significant spike in student-generated waste occurring during the months of May and June, or move-out season.

Brian Cohen, the assistant director of sustainability engagement at Wake Forest, emphasized to plan ahead and only bring what you need to campus.

“When students come to campus for the first time, we find that they often overpack and end up throwing items away during move-out,” Cohen said.

“When we think of the three Rs of sustainability — reduce, reuse and recycle — people tend to gravitate toward the last one. If we focus instead on reducing before we actually consume, we can prevent the trash from even ending up in the landfill in the first place.”

When you do make a purchase for your living space at Wake Forest, keeping sustainability in mind can further decrease the university’s carbon footprint. According to Cohen, choices like LED lights over incandescent ones, power strips that can turn off when you leave the room and using as few electronic cords as possible are all ways to make your space more energy efficient.

“When you start to think about reducing your carbon footprint, even little

things like bedding can be altered to use less energy,” Cohen said. “Investing in flannel sheets and good blankets at the start of the year, for example, might make you less likely to crank up the heat in the winter and burn more fossil fuels. It all adds up.”

Making your dorm room more sustainable can be a good first step into starting a sustainable lifestyle on campus and beyond.

“After you get your dorm room setup, there are dozens of other opportunities

to immerse yourself in greener initiatives at Wake Forest’s Office of Sustainability.” said Cohen. “The Campus garden, for example, is a great place to get your hands dirty and meet others with a shared interest in green living. And, the Office of Sustainability’s website is continually updated with our upcoming programming for the semester, so you can stay connected to all the presentations, activities, and events year-round.”

Contact Una Wilson at wilsui20@wfu.edu

Photo courtesy of the Wake Forest Office of Sustainability

Page 10 | Thursday, September 7, 2023

Old Gold & Black | Environment

Wildfires & Weaver: Both reveal environmental injustice The Maui fire disaster and the local Weaver Fertilizer fire both impacted marginalized communities UNA WILSON Environment Editor On Aug. 8th, 2023, the city of Lahaina on the island of Maui, Hawaii, erupted in flames. More than 2,500 acres were disintegrated in the blaze, including residential homes, temporary housing units, schools, roads, museums and most of the town’s primary infrastructure.

Roughly 100 people were killed in what is now considered to be the deadliest fire in the past century of U.S. history. Thousands of residents have been displaced from destroyed homes in a state which already has the fifthhighest rate of homelessness compared to all other U.S. states and territories.

Although the fire was extinguished on Aug. 13, the road to recovery stretches far into the future of Lahaina’s residents. The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimates it will cost roughly $5.52 billion to rebuild the infrastructure lost in the fires in a process likely to last many years.

Dr. David Wren, a professor of Chemistry at Wake Forest, recalled when his hometown of Paradise, Calif., burned down as the result of a wildfire in 2018. He explained how the consequences of these disasters can last for years.

“Following the immediate shock of the event, a lot of people don’t understand the scale of the recovery that follows, as in how long it truly takes to rebuild in the aftermath of a fire like that,” Wren said. “My high school only just reopened this year. And [Paradise is] lucky, because my town is on the mainland. For an island like Maui being further from resources, it could take much longer.”

Weather and climate disasters have significantly increased in the past 50 years, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). However, the data points toward climate change as the primary culprit for the recent spike in meteorological tragedies, wildfires like the one in Maui cannot be solely attributed to climate-related weather irregularities. In fact, centuries of extractive agriculture practices in Lahaina’s sugarcane and pineapple industries have depleted the fertility of the island’s soils — making the land much more fire-prone.

While the cause of the fire has not been officially stated by authorities, there is much speculation. Some believe it is due to climate change and the dryer conditions in Maui. Others, however, claim that downed power lines started the flames. Hawaiian Electric has adamantly de-

nied these claims.

Stephen Smith, professor of environmental science at Wake Forest, said that in Maui, climate change may have exacerbated the risks associated with an already environmentally degraded landscape.

“While climate change is not the single perpetrator of the Maui wildfires, the drought that the island experienced this year can be attributed to rising global surface temperatures causing weather extremes,” Smith said. “And it was the combination of drought conditions and really high winds that made the wildfires in Maui so devastating.”

Hawaii’s economy is Photo courtesy of Jackson DeWitt heavily reliant on tourism and real estate, with a In February 2022, a fire at the Weaver Fertilizer Plant erupted less than a housing market leading the mile away from roughly 6,500 residents, who were quickly urged to evacuate. highest prices for land and Instances of environmental inequity are observable in houses in the country. For many native Hawaiians, this Winston-Salem’s very recent history, as well. In Februmeans affordable housing is hard to come by and often ary 2022, a fire at the Weaver Fertilizer Plant erupted found in places with poor environmental and human less than a mile away from roughly 6,500 residents, health conditions. who were quickly urged to evacuate due to hazardous The housing inequity experienced by many native Ha- air quality conditions and the threat of explosion. The waiians is an example of “climate gentrification,” a term homes located in close proximity to the Weaver Fertildescribing increased difficulty for local people to afford izer Plant are valued at significantly lower prices than housing in safer areas after a climate-amped disaster. other neighborhoods in Winston-Salem. These homes “Often, environmental inequities are most observable are affordable to those who work in lower-income jobs when you look at where marginalized communities live and are predominantly communities of color. in contrast to affluent ones,” said Crystal Dixon, associWhen interviewed in 2022 immediately after the fire ate professor of the practice in the Department of Health at the Weaver Fertilizer Plant, Dixon noted that the and Exercise Science. In her research on environmental placement of marginalized communities close to areas racism, she has found that communities of color are ofof high risk of environmental degradation or disaster is ten disproportionately burdened with environmental no coincidence. health hazards through both policy and practice.

“Since the 1930s, a practice called redlining has “In Maui, unfortunately, most of the native Hawaiians placed certain communities near toxic environmental will likely not be able to return to the land that burned where their homes once stood,” Dixon said. “It’s just not conditions because the property values are lower, and going to be affordable when new urban development will they are cheaper places to live, but they are also really the only affordable places to live for under-resourced cater toward making the most money.” communities to live,” Dixon said. “In Maui, the same phenomenon is happening. The difference is, in addition to ecotourism and gentrification pushing up housing prices, the wildfires have dwindled what little housing was already available.”

Although Maui’s tragedy is geographically distant from Wake Forest’s campus, Dixon points out that insights can be drawn from the systemic issues of class, race and equity which affect our local communities as well.

Wren echoed Dixon’s perspective. As part of his curriculum, he devotes one class period each semester towards teaching the science of climate change.

“I realized that Wake Forest doesn’t have a formally required class about how climate change works, and I wanted to emphasize to students that what happened to me and my town could happen to anybody,” Wren said. “Students are also at an age where they can vote. I try to both educate and empower students.

Voting for officials that have climateforward policies, that will take environmental health risks into account; that’s something everybody can do to make a difference.”

Photo courtesy of CNN

Wildfires rage in Laihana, Maui, Hawaii. More than 2,500 acres were disintegrated in the blaze, including residential homes, temporary housing units, schools, roads, museums and most of the town’s primary infrastructure.

Contact Una Wilson at wilsui20@wfu.edu

OPINION

Shaila Prasad, prassp21@wfu.edu

OLD GOLD & BLACK

Lauren Carpenter, carple21@wfu.edu

PAGE 11 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

The views expressed in all opinion columns represent those of the article’s author, not the opinions of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board

Why your Instagram matters more than Kim Kardashian’s Examining the ethics of photoshopping VIRGINIA NOONE Photography Editor

My best friend recently texted me a picture of herself to get my stamp of approval before posting it on her Instagram, a tradition we’ve upheld since creating our accounts in fifth grade. As I looked over it, I noticed an incredibly old man wearing a confederate flag shirt and smoking a cigarette in the background. I responded, “Very cute. Want me to edit out the redneck behind you?”

She agreed, and I quickly got to work in Adobe Photoshop, as I have for many friends before. Within five minutes, the sun shined brighter to highlight her features more generously, and the man had disappeared.

I sent the new and improved image back, and it was posted shortly thereafter. As I looked through her Instagram, after commenting “so pretty” as per girl code, I realized I had photoshopped or edited nearly every image she had posted. The original photos felt like an innocent secret that we kept between us. It was a haunting reminder that social media is not real.

This is in no way an Earth-shattering sentiment.

Most social media users are keenly aware of it, particularly when it comes to celebrities or public figures. Although celebrities and ad companies are arguably the root of the problem, they are not the most damaging force in the world of unethical photoshopping.

When looking at a photo of the Kardashians, for example, the assumption is that their bodies and faces have been photoshopped or manipulated in some way.

They are not real body standards — or even real people — to me. The dissociation of celebrities that have been notorious for photoshopping have made them akin to Barbie dolls. They are not even worth comparison because they are so obviously plastic.

The larger ethical dilemma is how real people, or public figures that are perceived as real people, post photoshopped pictures and the effect that has on societal standards.

Louisiana State University gymnast, Olivia “Livvy” Dunne, came under scrutiny earlier in August when she was caught posting photoshopped photos on her Instagram that made her look skinnier and less muscular compared to the original versions that LSU gymnastics posted. Dunne is one of the highest-valued female college athletes, and her social media has amassed 4.4 million followers. She quickly deleted the photos when fans realized the inconsistencies between photos, but she has yet to release a statement to address her action.

According to The Jerusalem Post, the popular photoshop app FaceTune has been downloaded more than 60 million times since its release in 2013. Social media use has been proven to negatively impact users’ body image, eating patterns and overall mental health, particularly in young women. Despite knowing that photoshop is prevalent, it is often unspotted, and thus its negative effects are widespread. This is because photos that have been photoshopped well are not recognized as distorted because of survivorship bias.

We only know Dunne and other public figures have been photoshopping because they have been caught.

They have been caught because their following is so large that there is inherently a higher chance of someone noticing. Whereas when I photoshopped a man out of the background of my friend’s photo, we are the only ones who have the original photo, and her platform consists of less than 700 followers. Therefore, the risk and potential scrutiny is exceedingly lower.

Original (left) and edited (right) photos of LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne (Photos taken from Instagrams of @livvydunne and @lsugym, but have since been deleted) Photoshopping is not always unethical, however. Hypothetically, if one of my friend’s followers noticed a man was edited out of the background of her photo; it would not negatively affect anyone. Whitening your teeth or increasing the exposure in the picture are also ethical adjustments as they do not morph structural elements of your body. Photoshopping becomes unethical when it is used to distort your natural body or features to perpetuate an unrealistic beauty standard. A good rule for personal users to abide by when editing photos

is to question what kind of backlash they would receive if they were celebrities and were exposed for the edits.

When personal accounts photoshop their bodies, it is actually more damaging than when someone like Kim Kardashian does it because personal account photos are perceived as authentic and the bodies as natural. Noncelebrities photoshopping reinforces unhealthy, idealistic body standards and ultimately hurts themselves as it perpetrates a harmful expectation of women.

Contact Virginia Noone at noonvc21@wfu.edu

Page 12 | Thursday, September 7, 2023

Old Gold & Black | Opinion

Ramaswamy asserts himself as the new Trump alternative Vivek Ramaswamy's charisma could mean trouble for Democrats in 2024 ADAM COIL Arts & Culture Editor The first Republican presidential debate was mostly a breath of fresh air for conservative viewers looking to move away from the distinct spectacle of Trumpera politics. A relatively small portion of the debate was dedicated to discussing Trump and, surprisingly enough, the candidates complained they were spending any time at all on the former president. Even after some taunting from co-host Brett Baer who reminded the candidates that Trump was beating them soundly in the polls, the eight Republican hopefuls remained focused on presenting their own vision for the country’s future, even if that vision had little more nuance than undoing anything and everything President Biden has done.

While many were expecting Trump to be the most criticized man not in the room, it soon became clear that the candidates actually had more quips and diatribes prepared against President Biden. Everyone on stage was in agreement. President Biden is too old. He’s incompetent. He’s weak, and so on. However, I imagine the general sense among viewers at home would be, “We know, but why should we expect you to be any better?” In this regard, nobody on stage did themselves any favors when it came to taking votes from Trump.

In fact, it seemed as if the strategy among the candidates — aside from Chris Christie — was to treat Trump as if he is a great Republican president of years past, not their most formidable rival. As if Trump not being on television is enough to make his dedicated base forget he’s the frontrunner, many of the candidates had nothing but nice words for former president Trump. Perhaps the most difficult-to-watch moment of the entire evening was when DeSantis shamelessly pantomimed Trump’s signature move from “The Apprentice” and said, “Anthony [Fauci], you are fired.”

DeSantis also tried to mimic Trump in how he attempted to control the flow of the debate: answering questions he was not asked, not answering the questions he was asked and cutting off the moderators before they were finished speaking. The most promising moment of the evening for left-leaning viewers occurred when DeSantis did just this. As the moderators asked the candidates to raise their hands if they believed in man-made climate change, DeSantis quickly stepped in, saying, “We’re not schoolchildren. Let’s have the debate.” Because of this maneuver, the only Republican candidate to give a straight answer was Ramaswamy, who said, “The climate change agenda is a hoax.” The other seven coolly dodged the question. But we’ll continue discussing the environment in a bit.

Now, let’s look at each candidate individually.

Former governor of Arkansas Asa Hutchinson was invisible and forgettable. All I remember of him is that he is adamantly pro-life, which I could have told you simply by the stage he was standing on.

North Dakota governor Doug Burgum was surprisingly strong, preaching traditional small-town values and a blue-collar work ethic. However, he is far too Canadian, too nice and too underwhelming to make it very far.

Former governor of New Jersey Chris Christie was quick and quippy as always, but prowess in debates has always been his one trick.

The only time he has shown any

heart in his entire political career was when he hugged Barrack Obama, a sin most Republicans will never be able to absolve him of.

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott was stiff and did not seem confident or enthusiastic about anything he said.

Former Vice President Mike Pence focused all of his energy on Ramaswamy and did little to distance himself from Trump. I do not see any path to the nomination for him unless he goes through Trump.

Former governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley was convincingly the most intelligent person in the room.

She embarrassed Ramaswamy on foreign policy, had the most electable position on abortion and positioned herself as a champion of women. However, it is difficult to see her resonating with the new conservative base that Trump has engendered over the past decade.

Florida governor Ron DeSantis was largely non-combative, affecting an undeserved demeanor of superiority over the rest of the candidates on stage. His performance likely will not hurt him but it certainly did nothing to help him either. The guy is simply chronically unlikeable.

In my eyes, Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy was the winner of the debate. Because Pence and Christie consistently went after him, he had exceedingly more air time than anyone else on the stage. If we learned anything from the 2016 debates, it is that conservatives want to see fireworks, and Ramaswamy brought the gunpowder.

More than just a showman, though, I think Ramaswamy might be a juggernaut-caliber candidate in a general election scenario. On the one hand, his personal testimony to the American dream is a reproduction of Barack Obama’s speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, and he might have the youthful energy to sell

it as well as Obama did. On the other hand, he takes after Trump in how he plays the role of the outsider looking to upend the status quo in Washington. Like Trump and Obama, he takes the criticism that he is too politically inexperienced and flips it on his head, claiming that his lack of political contamination is the very reason he can bring about change. He simultaneously preaches the American dream and a near-apocalyptic worldview. After talking up his personal rags to riches story he claims that “we’re in the middle of a national identity crisis.” He is a gifted speaker who knows how to pack a punch into his words and he presents himself as a family man who shares the same values as Christians. He is the antithesis of Joe Biden, and he’s probably the only candidate who has a shot of beating Trump. Biden — as well as those of us who are concerned about the health of the planet — better hope he doesn’t.

Ramaswamy’s main issue right now is that, up until this point, he has been a sycophant to Trump. Not being a federally indicted criminal is not going to be enough for him to step out from underneath Trump’s shadow.

If Ramaswamy does win the nomination, I believe that President Biden has only one path to victory: environmental policy. Ramawsamy’s third claim in his list of ten “truths,” which is that “human flourishing requires fossil fuels,” is one of the great euphemisms of the current presidential race. The man is a flat-out climate change denier. Biden’s only hope would be to goad Ramaswamy into taking his inflammatory rhetoric regarding the environment too far, alienating not only the youth but also science-respecting moderates. After all, Ramaswamy is much, much more likable than 2020 Donald Trump, who Biden only squeaked by.

Contact Adam Coil at coilat21@wfu.edu

Oliver Hale/Old Gold & Black

Opinion | Old Gold & Black

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 13

Bring the English major back from the dead How English studies at Wake Forest could serve all students better “I understand the music, I understand the movies, I even see how comic books can tell us things. But there are full professors in this place who read nothing but cereal boxes.”

“It’s the only avant-garde we’ve got.”

— Don DeLillo, “White Noise” ADAM COIL Arts & Culture Editor Nationwide, college students are becoming less interested in studying the humanities. According to the codirector of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators project, Robert Townsend, “the study of English and history at the collegiate level has fallen by a full third” in the past decade. Meanwhile, “Humanities enrollment in the United States has declined overall by 17 percent.”

This plummet is not without its explanations, many of them catalyzed by the inevitable consequences of a new, internet-dominated world. But while we could sit around and debate ad infinitum about the specifics, lamenting the end of the glory days of literary studies, what is needed right now are solutions.

Being an English major at Wake Forest has granted me the rare privilege of getting to field the grievances and opinions of classmates majoring in normal, societally acceptable fields. I have found that, in those rare instances in which my peers are not utterly perturbed by my financially unsound decision to pursue English studies, they often feel the need to explain to me why they aren’t majoring in something similar. I invoke my anthology of flimsy anecdotes for one specific reason: people still care about art.

I believe with dogmatic conviction that college students today are still interested in how music, poetry, film, comedy and other media function. Since they are humans, they have an innate interest in how what they consume between classes and before bed shapes them as a person. They just aren’t seeing their interests reflected in what is available for study at Wake Forest.

I propose two solutions to this issue, both of which can help revitalize a dying field that is nearly indistinguishable from a pyramid scheme to outsiders.

The immediate solution is to hire more writing and creative writing teachers. Right now, we simply do not have enough writing faculty to keep up with the demand from students. Speaking from personal experience and the accounts of my classmates, it is frustratingly difficult to get into a creative writing workshop, while many English classes feel spookily under-booked.

When it comes to creative writing, there is nowhere to hide. There is no regurgitation, no such thing as a safe answer — the creative writer has more agency and more power than any other student performing any other kind of exam. The writer must create something out of nothing, and she must take full responsibility for those decisions. In this way, it is easy to understand how crucial of an exercise this type of work can be. It is inherently self-propelling and pushes the student to do their absolute best — to perform not for someone else but for the act itself. They are striving not for an A, but for the feeling of achievement, the power of conjuring specific emotions in others. It is a more admirable goal to give a professor something they didn’t know they needed than to give them what they already want.

We need more writing and creative writing professors.

There needs to be more attention directed to the creative pursuits of students because something like genius can appear anywhere — except in a vacuum.

Another way to galvanize enthusiasm for English studies is to imagine it as the glue that holds so many other subjects together. What if humanities classes be-

Evan Harris/Old Gold & Black

came cognizant of their ability to dissolve into other firmly as an end in itself, maybe it can become more agdisciplines? What if they could be reimagined and mar- gressive in how it shapes other disciplines. keted in such a manner that they were not only enticing Of course, this is not a plea to do away with the canon but materially effective to take? Because let’s face it — and nix Shakespeare and Dickens from the university. being an academic today is not as feasible of a reality as The literary titans are essential to our understanding of it used to be. our language; however, we need to give students who This past spring, The New Yorker released an article cannot pursue a degree in the humanities a better reatitled “The End of the English Major”. At first glance, son to take more English, philosophy or art classes than I thought it would be a worn-out piece lamenting the required. We need to make these classes exciting, chalbygone eras of literary golden ages, but it turned out to lenging, rewarding and useful, equipping students with be something far more devastating. What really rattled an intellectual arsenal designed for our modern age. me was how convincing the argument was that STEM is actually an exciting field to be in right now. As in, Contact Adam Coil at coilat@wfu.edu maybe those engineering students strung out on caffeine and Python are not selling their souls for a guaranteed six-figure salary but are working to be a part of this generation’s most significant advances.

Describing his experience touring Harvard’s billion-dollar Science and Engineering Complex, Nathan Heller writes, “In school, I had been friendly New & Gently Used Books & Bookish Gifts to the sciences, but I had majored in the humanities, and since then I’d never had a moment’s real regret. After half an hour in this new complex, I was prepared to do it all again and choose the interesting, vivifying life path of an engineer.” At first, I was terrified of the prospect of a future in which science and math are more fun than music and philosophy — a future in which the humanities never recover from their current stagnation.

Then I wondered if this was simply an error on Sherwood Plaza Shopping Center my part, a myopic viewBetween Burke Street Pizza and H&R Block point in which I could not 3354 Robinhood Road, Winston-Salem fathom a revitalization in English studies that www.bookferret.com is indebted to advances in the harder disciplines.

Hours After all, the underlying Tuesday through Friday – 11am-7pm issue with English studSaturday – 10am-7pm ies is that it has become a lonely, isolated field. The Sunday & Monday – Closed people simply aren’t there.

If it can no longer stand

SPORTS

PAGE 14 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

Follow us on Twitter @wfuogbsports OLD GOLD & BLACK

Cooper Sullivan sullcg20@wfu.edu Aaron Nataline nataae21@wfu.edu Sean Kennedy kennsm21@wfu.edu

Wake Forest beats Elon in season opener Mitch Griffis throws for 329 yards, 3 TD and INT on the way to a 37-17 win SEAN KENNEDY Asst. Sports Editor A new football season kicked off with a lot of promise after Wake Forest beat the Elon Phoenix, 37-17.

Redshirt Sophomore Mitch Griffis took over the helm as starting quarterback this season and was able to provide a bevy of memorable moments, including a win that represented Head Coach Dave Clawson's 150th of his career.

Griffis and the offense got off to a hot start in their first possession of the season. After an initial three and out by Elon, Griffis spread the wealth in a matter of plays. He found five different receivers on his first five completions, the last of which was an 18-yard pass connecting with a wide-open Wesley Grimes to land the Demon Deacons their first touchdown of the season.

“I thought Wesley stepped in and played a great game,” Griffis said of Grimes postgame. “He’s a super talented player.”

The Griffis-to-Grimes connection would not stop there. Later on in the first, Griffis found his target downfield for a 49-yard connection that helped set up kicker Matthew Dennis’ first field goal of the season.

After another Elon offensive three and out, Griffis led another scoring drive. On a play that will be on highlight tapes to come, Griffis launched a heave in Jahmal Banks’ direction, who came down with the ball after an acrobatic effort. The touchdown put the Demon Deacons up

by 17 early in the third quarter.

The second half did not start The day wasn’t all sunnearly as well, however, as shine and happiness for Elon running back Jalen Griffis, though. On the Hampton found a gap to ensuing drive, Griffis his left and slipped past was sacked on consecuthe secondary for a 49 tive dropyard touchdown run. backs- once “I thought our deby Caleb fense played really Curtain, well, except for that followed one play,” Clawson up by said postgame.

Chazz HarThe Phoenix’ ley on the next play. momentum did “I thought he was inconnot stop there. On sistent,” Clawson said of a first down on Griffis postgame. “He defiWake Forest’s own nitely held onto the ball too side of the field, long at times, and his interGriffis looked to nal clock was a bit off.” find Taylor Morin “I stayed in the pocket in the middle, but too long,” seconded Griffis. was intercepted by Despite struggling Curtain. The Elon on that drive, the defensive back took it Demon Dea50 yards to the house cons saw flaws to make it a 14-point in the Phoenix unanswered run by s e c o n d a r y. the Phoenix.

Both Griffis “I want to be and tight end perfect, but I know Cameron Hite I won’t be perfect,” saw a chance to go bigGriffis said. “It’s a and after Griffis found Hite learning process.” deep down the middle of the Despite the drawfield, the latter ran it in for a backs, the Demon 69-yard touchdown.

Deacons found “I saw green grass,” Hite said. “I tried themselves running to race and leave the defender behind the ball well in the there.”

Evan Harris/Old Gold & Black fourth quarter. While

trying out a new jumbo running package, running back Demond Claiborne burst out for three rushes of 10 yards or more. Claiborne finished the night with 70 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts.

“I thought Demond [Claiborne] made some really great cuts,” Clawson said.

In a last effort, Elon kicker Jack Berkowitz hit a field goal as time expired to make the final score 37-17.

Overall, the team thought that it was a night of positives and promise as the team looks to take on an SEC opponent this Saturday — the Vanderbilt Commodores.

“I thought our specialists played very well tonight,” Clawson said. "Matthew Dennis was perfect on field goals. Good to see [Caleb] Carlson kick the ball in the endzone for us. The snappers were good. Ivan Mora punted the ball well."

Clawson also provided praise for his defense, led by defensive coordinator Brad Lambert. Lambert, in his second year in charge, and his defense gathered momentum after a tremendous performance.

"We rushed the passer, we covered well, and our corners played really well," Clawson said. "Overall, we're happy to be 1-0."

Clawson and the Demon Deacons take on Vanderbilt at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Contact Sean Kennedy at kennsm21@wfu.edu

Football's perennials begin to grow New and old Demon Deacons showed promise in victory over Elon COOPER SULLIVAN Sports Editor Just like spring, the start of football season is the time of new beginnings.

On this day, the routine run from the locker room is a ceremony like no other, sending chills down fans’ spines and breathing the freshest of air into their soon-to-be exhausted lungs as they scream the names of players they just heard of for the very first time.

On this day, the entire season is foreseen after one or two drives. It’s either “our year” or “next year,” and the hasty binary decision is never wrong. Honestly, what’s the point of playing out an entire 12 (hopefully more)-game season if it’s already over?

On this day, players find out whether the seeds they planted this past offseason will burst out of the dirt and bloom into their full potential, if they will start to grow and then wilt or if they will even

begin budding at all. loss, 1 sack) showed he can hang On Thursday, Aug. 31, it was a in the FBS level. Kickoffs finally new beginning for Wake Forest as resulted in touchbacks, and the they took on the Elon PhoeSpirit of the Old Gold & Black nix and other reminders of marching band finally had such, besides the renamed enough members to spell venue, were floating “WF” out on the field. around Allegacy It wasn’t just the players Federal Credit Wake Forest was putting on Union Stadium the field, but the energy more than pollen. those players had, as well.

Redshirt sophoThere weren’t as many more Mitch Griffis (19defeated looks after Elon for-30, 329 yds, 3 TD, INT) busted out two 50-yard earned his second career start scores (a Jalen Hampton under center and his first rush touchdown and a Caas QB1 and team captain. leb Curtain pick-six) as there Fifth-year tight end Camerwould have been in years past. on Hite (4 rec, 91 yds, TD) As cornerback Dashawn Jones exceeded his career receiving said, all they think is “next totals in the first half alone. play, next play, next play.”

North Carolina A&T transfer linebacker Jacob Roberts But amidst all the new (7 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for Bella Parolini/Old Gold & Black faces, new stadium signage,

and new enthusiasm were many familiar sights. Yes, there was the splotchy “sellout” — the second quarter mass exodus of students and the gaggle of children playing on the lawn were still present for this Wake Forest home game — but most impressively, it was the core of the team that refused to get outshined by the brand-new LED lights.

Wake Forest is a team that prides itself in the development of their program. It is easy to look at the success stories of an undersized or overlooked recruit having allconference worthy seasons and making it to the NFL (Greg Dortch, Zach Tom, A.T. Perry), and it’s also easy to look at the what-could-have-beens (Jamie Newman, Tayvon Bowers, Nolan Groulx). But it is the middle of the pack, the next man up and everyone else that truly tests the validity of a program’s development.

See Column, Page 16

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 15

Sports | Old Gold & Black

Behind the posts: Soccer’s unsung heroes The managers of men’s soccer discuss the demands and rewards of their position

Evan Harris/Old Gold & Black

From left to right: Tyler Thompson, Nico Machado, Manny Guevara, Tyler Fausnaught, Ethan Humphrey, pose on Spry Practice Field after working and wrapping an evening practice. With three seasons of experience, Guevara leads the group as head manager.

MADDIE STOPYRA News Editor

For junior Tyler Fausnaught, many of the student managers’ not-so-glamorous responsibilities such as treating grass stains on players’ jerseys are what make them vital to collegiate athletic teams.

“It’s not the coolest job to have,” Fausnaught said.

“You’re definitely doing the dirty work and working behind the scenes. But if the players or the coaches had to do the work that we do, they wouldn’t have enough time to focus on the game and the job they are trying to do.”

Fausnaught is one of the Wake Forest men’s soccer team’s five student managers, alongside senior Manny Guevara, senior Ethan Humphrey, junior Nico Machado and sophomore Tyler Thompson. Each week, they work behind the scenes to ensure each practice and game runs smoothly. Their responsibilities include setting up for practice, transitioning between drills, filming games, sorting gear and occasionally traveling with the team.

In a normal week, the managers work in teams of two to run practice. They arrive at the field 45 minutes before the players to set up drills and pump soccer balls. During home games, four to five managers prepare warm-ups and set up cameras two hours before the game begins. After recording the game, the managers account for all the gear, treat the players’ jerseys and wash the players’ socks. According to Humphrey, he spends an average of 8-10 hours per week working with the team.

Thompson expressed that the most significant challenge of his job is ensuring that each drill is set up and the equipment works properly during every practice and game.

“There is some pressure because you need everything to go right,” Thompson said. “In practice, you need the clock to be working so that [the team] can time the drills properly. You need the drills to be set up correctly, or it will go awry. In games, the filming is super important, so [the players] can watch it back. I think that there is just a lot of pressure, and that would be the main challenge.”

In addition to these responsibilities, Guevara’s role as head manager adds an administrative element to his job. He explained that alongside scheduling managers to practices and games, he communicates with the coaches regarding uniforms and equipment.

“I have to work a lot with other people’s schedules,” Guevara said. “Every manager has a different major.

Some majors require early morning classes and others require late afternoon classes, so you have to work around that.”

Despite these challenges, Machado and Humphrey agreed that working with each other and the team is rewarding.

“Throughout my life up until the end of high school, I played soccer,” Humphrey said. “I’ve always had an interest in it, and being able to work with some of the best college athletes in soccer in the country is pretty cool.”

He continued: “I’m constantly learning from players and coaches just by watching. Then, I get to talk to all of them about professional soccer, while none of my other friends at Wake Forest follow professional soccer.

It’s just a whole group of 30 people that I can geek out about soccer with.”

Guevara, who has worked consistently for the team since his sophomore year, explained that his friendships with the players and other managers have grown over time.

“As time has gone by, I’ve gotten closer to the players of my age who are currently seniors or juniors,” Guevara said. “I’ve been able to call some of them my friends and hang out after practice or after any game, as well. With the managers, I’m pretty close to most of them. Some of them are my roommates, so it’s a great experience hanging out with them after practices and games and also being able to bond with them at work.”

While each manager said that they do not think many Wake Forest students know about their work with the team, they each expressed that they feel recognized by the players and coaches.

“I mean, nobody really thinks about the managers,” Machado said. “When it comes to the coaches and players, they’re very grateful…the players are always thanking us, and it’s really nice to hear from them.

They’re always saying thank you and helping us when they can.”

Hosei Kijima, one of the team captains, expressed that the student managers are assets to the team.

“Our managers are such a big help to daily operations,” Kijima said. “As a player, it is a great relief to have our training gear, jerseys and socks and actual practices being set up by them. They make Wake Forest a very professional program with everything set up so we can perform at our best.”

Kijima also noted that the managers are a positive presence off the field.

“Apart from the logistical side, they are great people to be around as they are always working hard, smiling and enjoying every moment that they have as a student and manager,” Kijima said. “I will always appreciate them.”

Contact Maddie Stopyra at stopmf21@wfu.edu

Page 16 | Thursday, September 7, 2023

Old Gold & Black | Sports

Column: New season Continued from Page 14

Griffis and Hite are both of that mold, and so is Jones, who secured his first career interception on Thursday. Sophomore running back Demond Claiborne (13 carries, 70 yds, TD) was thrust into the second-string position over the offseason and is showing to be a formidable option. Either Wesley Grimes (3 rec, 76 yds, TD) or Jahmal Banks (6 rec, 108 yds, TD) was always open, and thus the Elon secondary had to pick their poison.

Kevin Pointer (2 tackles, 1 tackles for loss) and Kendron Wayman (2 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss) may not have lit up the stat sheet, but their consistent pressure from the defensive line allowed for players like Roberts, Jasheen Davis (5 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss) and Malik Mustapha (9 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 pass breakup) to do so.

Were there mistakes from these inexperienced players? Of course there were.

Were there overall weaknesses in the game, like the rushing attack (or lack thereof) or special teams sloppiness?

FOOTBALL

AP Poll rankings in parentheses; as of Sept. 5

ACC W-L (Conf.) PF PA Duke (21) 1-0 (1-0) 28 7 Louisville 1-0 (1-0) 39 34 Florida State (4) 1-0 (0-0) 45 24 Miami 1-0 (0-0) 38 3 NC State 1-0 (0-0) 24 14 UNC 1-0 (0-0) 31 17 Pittsburgh 1-0 (0-0) 45 7 Syracuse 1-0 (0-0) 65 0 Virginia Tech 1-0 (0-0) 36 17 Wake Forest 1-0 (0-0) 37 17 Boston College 0-1 (0-0) 24 27 Virginia 0-1 (0-0) 13 49 Clemson (25) 0-1 (0-1) 7 28 Georgia Tech 0-1 (0-1) 34 39 MEN’S SOCCER

United Soccer Coaches rankings in parentheses; as of Sept. 4

Atlantic W-L-D (Conf.) GF GA Louisville (7) 3-0-0 (0-0-0) 10 2 Syracuse (4) 3-0-1 (0-0-0) 7 1 Wake Forest (9) 2-0-2 (0-0-0) 9 3 Boston College 2-1-1 (0-0-0) 3 3 NC State 2-2-0 (0-0-0) 7 6 Clemson 1-1-1 (0-0-0) 10 3 Coastal W-L-D (Conf.) GF GA Duke (10) 3-0-1 (0-0-0) 11 1 UNC 2-0-1 (0-0-0) 7 3 Notre Dame (20) 2-0-1 (0-0-0) 8 1 Virginia 3-1-0 (0-0-0) 5 4 Pittsburgh 1-1-1 (0-0-0) 8 8 Virginia Tech 0-2-2 (0-0-0) 4 11 WOMEN’S SOCCER

Definitely. Will that hurt in big away games against Clemson, Notre Dame and Syracuse if left unchecked? Absolutely.

“Just like all Game 1’s, there was a slew of mistakes,” Head Coach Dave Clawson said. “We have a lot of guys that played for the first time tonight, so we’re going to be a work in progress. Sometimes you learn more in losses than wins. It’s easier to teach things and make corrections after winning, it’s a lot better. So given the two choices, I’ll take that choice.”

For some, it’s the first time being tackled since 2022. There were bound to be inconsistencies, and it would have been even more surprising if there weren’t.

Even if the 37-17 win wasn’t as convincing as some may have liked, there is no reason to fret. This is just the beginning of the season. No one has bloomed yet. But there are a few Demon Deacons popping through the thick astroturf, ready for their next chance.

Evan Harris/Old Gold & Black

Jahlane Forbes celebrates his goal with Jeffrey White. Forbes banked the fourth goal of the night off an assist from Liam O’Gara.

Contact Cooper Sullivan at sullcg20@wfu.edu FIELD HOCKEY

NFHCA Coaches Poll rankings in parentheses; as of Sept. 5

ACC W-L (Conf.)

Louisville (5) 4-0 (0-0) Syracuse (7) 3-0 (0-0) UNC (2) 3-1 (0-0) Virginia (6) 3-1 (0-0) Duke (13) 2-1 (0-0) Boston College (16)2-2 (0-0) Wake Forest (17) 2-2 (0-0)

GF GA 8 3 20 3 11 6 11 5 7 6 6 3 3 6

Mike Liu/Old Gold & Black

Emily Morris winds up for the through pass to Alex Wood.

Morris earned one score in two shots on goal against Iona.

VOLLEYBALL

AVCA Coaches Poll rankings in parenthese; as of Sept. 4

ACC W-L (Conf.)

Louisville (2) 6-0 (0-0) Virginia Tech 6-0 (0-0) Wake Forest 6-0 (0-0) Georgia Tech 4-0 (0-0) NC State 5-1 (0-0) Miami 4-1 (0-0) UNC 4-1 (0-0) Pittsburgh (9) 4-1 (0-0) Virginia 3-1 (0-1) Clemson 4-2 (0-1) Florida State 4-2 (0-0) Duke 3-2 (0-0) Boston College 3-3 (0-0) Notre Dame 2-2 (0-0) Pittsburgh 2-2 (0-0) Syracuse 0-6 (0-0)

PTS/SET 19.26 16.15 16.82 17.57 16.96 18.47 17.15 17.06 17.45 17.15 20.21 15.79 15.90 15.94 17.06 11.06

Bella Parolini/Old Gold & Black

Junior forward Brooke McCusker navigates William & Mary’s defense. McCusker notched two shots in the 2-1 loss to the Tribe.

DEMON DEACONS AT HOME THE NEXT TWO WEEKS

United Soccer Coaches rankings in parenthese; as of Sept. 4

Football vs. Vanderbilt Saturday, Sept. 9, 11 a.m.

ACC W-L-D (Conf.) GF GA Pittsburgh (22) 6-0-0 (0-0-0) 23 4 Florida State 3-0-0 (0-0-0) 9 2 Clemson 5-0-1 (0-0-0) 21 1 Virginia (18) 5-0-1 (0-0-0) 18 3 Wake Forest 5-0-1 (0-0-0) 15 1 UNC (3) 4-0-2 (0-0-0) 15 2 Notre Dame (11)3-0-2 (0-0-0) 13 6 Virginia Tech 2-1-3 (0-0-0) 7 2 Duke (14) 2-2-0 (0-0-0) 5 8 Boston College 2-3-1 (0-0-0) 8 8 Miami 1-2-3 (0-0-0) 6 5 NC State 1-2-2 (0-0-0) 7 9 Syracuse 2-4-0 (0-0-0) 6 7 Louisville 1-3-2 (0-0-0) 5 6

Field Hockey vs. App State Sunday, Sept. 10, Noon Men’s Soccer vs. Gardner-Webb Tuesday, Sept. 12, 7 p.m.

Men’s Soccer vs. Syracuse (4) Saturday, Sept. 16, 7 p.m.

Field Hockey vs. Bryant Sunday, Sept. 17, Noon Men’s Soccer vs. Liberty Tuesday, Sept. 19, 7 p.m.

Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics

Kalani Whillock (19), Emma Farrell (10) and Rian Baker (17) celebrate a point during the UCF Invitational, where Wake Forest was undefeated.

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 17

Sports | Old Gold & Black

SMU, Cal, Stanford to join ACC Wake Forest reacts to conference expansion SEAN KENNEDY Asst. Sports Editor

The new era of collegiate sports knows no boundaries, and the Atlantic Coast Conference proved no different after their recent addition of three national institutions: Stanford University, University of CaliforniaBerkeley and Southern Methodist University.

The three institutions are wellreputed academic schools, with each of the three ranking at the top of the U.S. News’ National Universities list.

(Stanford, UC Berkeley and SMU rank third, 20th, and 72nd, respectively.)

“These are world-class institutions that will strengthen the ACC’s academic and research network, in addition to providing new and exciting competitive opportunities for our student-athletes,” Wake Forest President Dr. Susan Wente said in a press release.

Wente, also a member of the ACC’s Executive Committee, concurred with Wake Forest Athletic Director John Currie in approving the expansion of the conference.

“An important factor in Wake Forest’s decision to vote in favor of expansion is the academic caliber of the institutions with whom we have aligned ourselves,” said Currie in his

“From The Quad” newsletter.

Another reason for the additions was the strength of each of the sports and their athletic departments. Stanford has won 26 out of 29 Directors’ Cup trophies, an award given to the most successful athletic department in the nation.

“We’re already competing against Stanford, SMU and Cal in the NCAA Championships,” said women’s golf star Rachel Kuehn. “To add them to the ACC will make our conference even more of a powerhouse.”

“The student-athletes we have in our league are used to playing at the highest level,” Currie said to the “Ovies + Giglio” podcast this month.

“They want to play at the highest level, and this is the highest level.”

Some student-athletes believe that the addition of the three schools will improve the quality of competition in their sports as well.

“I came to Wake Forest to compete, win championships and earn a degree from one of the top schools in the country,” said Wake Forest football wide receiver Ke’Shawn Williams.

“This news about the ACC expanding is good for our league.”

One of the issues among the dissenters was student-athlete welfare.

In an open letter written by the UNC Board of Trustees, board members opposed the expansion for this reason.

“The strong majority of the Uni- pansion is the security of Wake Forversity of North Carolina at Chapel est and the ACC. In the ever-evolving Hill’s Board of Trustees opposes the landscape of college sports and reproposed expansion of the Atlan- alignment, acting quickly to add the tic Coast Conference,” they wrote. institutions could prove crucial to the “Although we respect the academic survival of the conference.

“The additions of Stanford, Calexcellence and athletic programs of Berkeley and Southern Methodist these institutions, the travel distances University brings stability to our confor routine in-conference competitive play are too great to make sense for ference,” said Head Football Coach our student athletes, coaches, alumni Dave Clawson. “While these schools and fans.” (UNC Athletic Director are out of the traditional ACC footBubba Cunningham reportedly voted print, these programs all have historic against expansion in the vote held last success and will bring a new element to our league.” week.)

Failure to act at other institutions “There are ways to adapt to new has proven costly. Most notably, Pacgeographic realities that don’t com12 member Oregon State has been promise competitive excellence and left in the ruins of what was a Power allow for the ability to make sure our Five conference and are left looking student-athlete welfare is appropri- for a home. ate,” Currie said to “Ovies + Giglio.”

Despite this, a recently completed “Today’s announcement about the $161 million renovation of their Atlantic Coast Conference expand- football facilities at Reser Stadium ing is further evidence that our goal provides a telling sign that just beis to compete at the highest level,” cause money is poured into facilities, said Student-Athlete Advisory Coun- does not mean that it guarantees a cil President Matthew Dennis. “I ap- spot in a power conference. preciated AD John Currie meeting “We have to look at how we make with us to discuss this potential move sure the ACC continues to stay and what it will mean for us as ath- strong for generations,” Currie added letes, and I look forward to continu- to Ovies + Giglio. ing these conversations to ensure that The three institutions are set to the player wellbeing of all student- join the conference next year. athletes is at the forefront of college athletics.”

Contact Sean Kennedy Another notable outcome of the ex- at kennsm21@wfu.edu

Men’s soccer tallies one draw, one victory Roald Mitchell delivers a hat trick against Furman following the team’s draw with No. 20 Maryland AVIKAR KHAKH Staff Writer

initial shot of the match was off target, coming off the foot of a Maryland player in the 21st minute. Though they managed to break the ice with the first attempt at goal, the Terrapins awarded the Demon Deacons a set piece shortly after.

However, the attempt was thumped by the Maryland wall. Wake Forest’s next scoring opportunity came at the 29-minute mark on the foot of junior Roald

Mitchell, when he received a cross and mark, tying the game 1-1. just missed the goal.

Wake Forest had a dominant first half At the halfway point, the Demon with a significant shot advantage; howThe No. 9 Wake Forest men’s soccer Deacons had a shot advantage, but the ever, the game stood stubbornly knotted team (2-0-2, 0-0-0) took on a hefty chalmatch remained a stalemate between two 1-1 going into the break. The second half lenge this past Friday, drawing 0-0 in a skilled squads. Both teams continued to featured more Demon Deacon domistandoff against No. 20 University of struggle to put the ball in the back of the nance, and the game score started to Maryland (1-1-1, 0-0-0). Both squads net up until the 72-minute mark when reflect that dominance. Mitchell got his struggled to generate prime scoring opMaryland earned a penalty kick. second goal of the night in the 54th minportunities throughout the match. The When it looked like the tie was just ute after capitalizing on a rebound opabout to be broken, goalkeeper Trace Al- portunity caused by an initial shot from phin stood tall on his line and success- Niang. Mitchell earned his hat trick, the fully stopped the strike that was headed second of his career, in the 70th minute for the bottom right of the net. Alphin after successfully potting another penalty came up big in the 88th minute as well kick. with another save to keep the game With the score at 3-1, Wake Forest scoreless. He ended the game with three kept its foot on the gas. Senior defender saves, highlighted by his monster stop Jahlane Forbes added a tally to make it on the penalty. The North Carolina local 4-1 as a result of a fantastic through-ball was just awarded ACC Defensive Player into the box by freshman Liam O’Gara. of the Week, as well, the second time he For good measure, junior forward Leo has earned the title in his career.

Guarino added another goal in the 89th After earning a draw through a solid minute, finishing the match with an ofperformance against a powerhouse team fensive show and cementing the 5-1 final in the Terrapins, the Demon Deacons score. looked ahead. The team went back to Following a big win, Wake Forest will its winning ways on Monday by taking focus on its ACC opener in a significant care of Furman (1-2-0, 0-0-0) with a matchup ahead as they face off against 5-1 victory, including four second-half No. 8-ranked University of Pittsburgh. goals and a hat trick from Mitchell. The The game is scheduled for Saturday, Demon Deacons’ first goal of the night Sept. 9 at 7 p.m. in Pittsburgh, Pa. Evan Harris/Old Gold & Black came off the foot of Mitchell on a penThe Demon Deacons celebrate Roald Mitchell’s hat trick against alty kick. The Paladins answered back Contact Avikar Khakh at Furman. A penalty kick in the 70th minute brought him his third goal. with a goal of their own at the 36-minute khakas22@wfu.edu

ARTS & CULTURE PAGE 18 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

OLD GOLD & BLACK

Adam Coil, coilat21@wfu.edu James Watson, watsjc22@wfu.edu

Taylor Swift draws fearless crowds on her latest tour The Eras Tour takes the summer by storm

CAROLYN MALMAN Staff Writer Anyone who possesses any interest in music, or has a TikTok account, probably experienced “The Eras Tour” taking over their lives this summer.

Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” gained attention when the singer-songwriter announced she was going on tour on Nov. 1, 2022. On her Instagram, Swift announced that her tour was going to be “a journey through the musical eras of [her] career (past and present!).” Immediately fans took to social media, particularly TikTok, to share their predictions about the tour. Some fans even acted out how they believed Swift would enter onstage. Swift shocked fans when she arose from the stage while giant flowing fabrics opened to reveal her custom Versace outfit and bedazzled boots.

Following her first set of tour dates in Glendale, Ariz., fans could find complete videos and live streams on all social media platforms of the show. The tour took over the internet and built even more hype for fans waiting for their time to attend. Swift even had to add more tour

dates to almost every location after the played two songs from anywhere in her popular ticket purchasing website Tick- catalog. etMaster crashed as a result of millions As a result of high ticket demand, of fans attempting to get tickets many fans did not have the opportufor shows. For those fans lucky nity to go. Fans demonstrated their enough to purchase tickets, dedication to Swift by tailgating Swift put on the performance in stadium parking lots during of a lifetime. the concert. According to FOX The singer would typiNews, an estimated 200,000 fans cally perform for three danced in the parking lot while nights in a row, Swift performed in Philadelwith a threephia. and-a-half-hour Due to Swift’s impressive performance each and dedicated fan base, it night. Throughout her was no surprise that going performance, she goes to the tour became the event through the highlights of every Swiftie’s — and evof her discography ery moderate Swift fan’s from all 10 of her albums, — year. Swifties spent putting extra emphasis on months crafting their her last four albums that she Eras Tour coshad not yet toured because tume. A fan of the pandemic. In addion TikTok tion to the consistent setlist hand sewed throughout each of the tour and bedazzled a dates and locations, Swift bodysuit that replicated Swift’s also included an acousopening number ensemble. tic section that Swiftie’s In addition to outfit prepalabeled “The Surprise ration, Swift tasked her fans Songs” where she Photo courtesy of Glamour with making something else for

the concert. In her song “You’re on Your Own Kid,” Swift urged her listeners to “make the friendship bracelets / take the moment and taste it.” So that’s what the Swifties did. They made countless beaded bracelets that included anything from song lyrics to song title abbreviations to inside jokes that only Swifties would understand. Young girls would trade bracelets with teenagers. Fans would trade bracelets with famous celebrities sitting in the reserved sections on the floor.

With this, Swift facilitated a beautiful community at each one of her Eras Tour dates.

The impact of Swift’s Eras Tour is even bigger than bracelets. In June, the market research firm QuestionPro estimated in June the tour would add $5 billion to the worldwide economy, according to CBS News — this was before new tour dates were even announced.

The late Barbara Walters once said “Taylor Swift is the music industry.” I believe that with the Eras Tour, Swift solidified her impact on the music industry and the world.

Contact Carolyn Malman at malmci22@wfu.edu

Reflecting on Jane Birkin's one-of-a-kind life The late icon, a star on both sides of the Atlantic, could seemingly do it all PRARTHNA BATRA Staff Writer We have the iconic Jane Birkin to thank for what we know today as the Birkin bag.

More than being the woman who lent her name to one of the most desired handbags in the world, Birkin was an actress, singer and fashion icon. This past summer, we bade farewell to the woman who was a style symbol for Parisienne chic whose love affair with Serge Gainsbourg inspired the arts for centuries to come.

In 1945, actress Judy Campbell and Royal Navy Lt. David Birkin, had their daughter, Jane Birkin, in London, England. She first married film composer John Barry, but their relationship came to a bitter end, as Barry left her when she became pregnant with her daughter Kate Barry. This whirlwind period was also characterized by one of her most controversial film roles, a nude model in Michelangelo Antonioni's 1966 film “Blowup.”

Despite her London upbringing, Birkin spent almost all of her life in Paris, France, where she moved after her divorce with Barry. In 1969, she starred in the French Film “Slogan,” despite the fact that she barely could speak any French.

Birkin once famously said when asked about her French skills, “Without my accent, I would have had a very different career. The French gave me a real gift in accepting me very quickly. They found me amusing, in large part because of my accent

and the mistakes I made in French. It is no doubt one of the reasons I never sought to improve it.”

Living in Paris — pursuing her career in French cinema and raising her daughter Kate Barry — she met and fell in love with her co-star Serge Gainsbourg. During this phase of her life, she took on roles in classic French films such as “La Piscine” and “If Don Juan Was a Woman.” Her 12-year partnership with Gainsbourg artistically and romantically went on to define the rest of her life, while also giving her a second daughter, Charlotte.

Birkin and Gainsbourg split in 1980, but Birkin always looked back on their relationship fondly. “Serge reconciled me with myself,” she said. “When a man loves you, it changes everything”. The couple was the epitome of the fun and young spirit that defined the streets of Paris in the late 1960s.

Looking back at their time together, Birkin called it her “fantasy” life. They used to party all night and come back just in time to wake up their children for school.

After her relationship with Gainsbourg, Birkin found love again with French film director Jacques Doillon, with whom she had her third daughter, Lou. Birkin continued acting and was featured in more than 70 films while also pursuing a singing career.

She went on to release 14 studio albums and six live albums during her career and toured even into old age.

Birkin had a golden heart. She worked consistently with Amnesty International, specifically on refugee issues and the AIDS

epidemic. She was frequently an outspoken feminist and ally for LGBTQ+ rights and continued her passion for advocacy by showing her support for the women’s protest in Iran in 2022.

But it is Birkin’s individual style that made her an undisputed icon. The image of Birkin with her doe eyes and fringed hair in a mini dress with her basket bags is the definition of chic.

Her name will live on forever, having lent itself to the Hermes bag which has gone on to become one of the most sought-after items in the world. One fine day in 1983, Birkin boarded an Air France flight from London to Paris, on what she expected to be just another normal day in her glamorous life. Her basket bag that was a daily staple had been run over two days ago by her thenhusband, Jacques Doillon. Birkin resorted to using a nondescript replacement. It didn’t account for her needs, and she ended up dropping her precious Hermes notebook and loudly remarked that no bag was large enough to hold all of her papers.

Such is the game of life and chance, as she was sitting close enough to Jean-Louis Dumas, then CEO of Hermes. He happened to overhear her and took the liberty to introduce himself and suggested to her that he could create a bag with adequate space to accommodate the excess stationary she loved to carry. He then proceeded to sketch a rough design on the back of a sick bag.

All big things once had humble beginnings.

The Birkin then made its official debut in 1984.

“Accidents are the best things in existence,” Birkin famously said in an interview.

“It’s often when things aren’t going well that we are forced into doing them differently, and they suddenly become interesting.”

Unlike other designer bags that dominated the 1980s, the Birkin was very silently luxurious and didn’t have any flashy logos. Its distinguishing features were a semi-structured body, two rolled handles and a turnlock closure. It was perhaps the discreet styling of the Birkin bag that got it off to a rather slow start. However, by the mid 1990s, it gained considerable momentum. By 2001, its feature in “Sex and the City” confirmed its status as an “it” bag. The iconic line still lives on: “It’s not a bag, it’s a Birkin.”

Part of the appeal and allure of the Birkin bag is how hard it is to get one. That along with its skyrocketing prices are what make it a status symbol. The exact details on how to purchase one directly from Hermes is a code many are still trying to crack. A study in 2017 revealed that the sought-after bag’s value has increased by 500% in the last 35 years, and according to a 2020 report by Knight Frank, an investment in a Birkin bag is better than stocks or gold.

The legacy of Birkin will live on forever through the Birkin bag, films and music she left behind. Birkin is survived by her daughters Lou Doillon and Charlotte Gainsburg.

Contact Prarthna Batra at batrp22@wfu.edu

Thursday, September 7, 2023 | Page 19

Arts & Culture | Old Gold & Black

Reflecting on the Barbenheimer experience A timeline of the ultimate day at the theater middle seats once again.

When I tell you this film took me on an emotional rollercoaster, I mean it. It was so delightfully funny at times but also so heart wrenching at others. The songs were incredible, and many of them have become permanent staples on my Spotify playlists. The actors did such a good job in both the most serious and the most ridiculous moments.

I’m glad they chose to include so much real Barbie lore, including the story behind the Barbie’s creation. I still own every Barbie movie CD from when I was a kid (Barbie and the Diamond Castle is still my favorite), and I love talking to anyone who will listen about the Barbie cinematic universe. It was so cool to get to see some of these things come to life with real actors.

Most of all, though, I loved the film’s portrayal of girlhood and all the highs and lows that come with it. Some may say that the film showed these issues in an exaggerated manner, but I would have to disagree.

I suppose you don’t really know it unless you’ve experienced it, but the objectification and demeaning that come along with being a woman are far too real.

I still remember the first time I was ever wanted by a boy for just my body — I was in fifth grade. I told my boyfriend of approximately two weeks that I was at my grandparent’s pool, and he had asked to see a picture of me in my bathing suit. I definitely remember far worse things men have said or done to me as I’ve grown older.

BREANNA LAWS Print Managing Editor Over the summer, cinema endured a cultural reset, and people came out in droves to be a part of the experience. Donned in their best suits or their brightest pinks, thousands participated in, as the internet refers to it, Barbenheimer.

Barbenheimer refers to the movies “Barbie,” directed by Greta Gerwig, and “Oppenheimer,” directed by Christopher Nolan. The films were released on the same day back in July, and both had been highly anticipated for months beforehand.

I’ve been an avid movie-goer for quite some time — my first theater experience was when I was five years old. My grandmother took me to see “Horton Hears a Who!” back in 2008, and I’ve been hooked on cinema ever since. So, of course, I had to partake in this historic day for movies.

Here’s how my Barbenheimer day went: Tuesday, July 25, 9:20 p.m.

I take an everything shower. My hair is washed; my skin is moisturized; I am flourishing. I text my best friends from my hometown, Gracie and J’Lynn, “Taking my Barbie girl shower so I can have Barbie girl hair for our Barbie girl day.”

Wednesday, July 26, 8:30 a.m.

I compile my outfits for the day: a business casual fit for “Oppenheimer” and an all-pink one for “Barbie.” We decided to watch “Oppenheimer” earlier in the morning, followed by a girl lunch, a wardrobe change and the “Barbie” movie.

Disaster strikes. Gracie informs us that she cannot make it to Winston-Salem in time for the “Oppenheimer” viewinwg. She is set to join us for lunch and “Barbie.” J’Lynn and I are disappointed, but not surprised at our dearest friend’s last-minute update. We forge onward to the theater.

a little cafe and bar located just outside of downtown Breanna Laws/Old Gold & Black

called The Remedy. We absolutely went to town, sharing a charcuterie board while also getting ourselves drinks and brownies. The servers were nice not to judge the sheer amount of items we ordered.

I ordered a matcha lemonade to drink while Gracie ordered a blackberry jasmine iced tea. J’Lynn does not like tea or coffee (crazy), so she just had water (boring).

I completed my outfit change in the bathroom and emerged like a pink butterfly from her chrysalis.

Now, it was time for the “Barbie” movie — something I had been looking forward to for months. J’Lynn was our chauffeur for the day, so I took the passenger princess duties of taking copious amounts of car selfies.

Breanna Laws/Old Gold & Black

Breanna Laws/Old Gold & Black

Wednesday, July 26, 11:00 a.m.

“Oppenheimer” time. Me and J’Lynn got seats in the perfect middle of the theater. The seats were heated and reclined — we felt immeasurably fancy. The movie was incredible with equally incredible actors. One thing about me is I will never miss a movie with Florence Pugh in it.

The sound design was easily my favorite part of the film — particularly in the victory speech scene. The banging of feet and cheers of the crowd are just as overwhelming to the audience as they are meant to be to Oppenheimer as he addresses the crowd. The music score was brilliant, and the IMAX speaker setup made it just that much better.

Wednesday, July 26, 2:00 p.m.

After “Oppenheimer,” Gracie joined us for lunch. We went to one of my favorite places in Winston-Salem —

Breanna Laws/Old Gold & Black

Wednesday, July 26, 4 p.m.

We arrived back at the theater, this time with Gracie in tow. I took many pictures, much to her dismay.

Everyone in the theater was wearing pink (except J’Lynn because I forgot the shirt I got for her, but I digress). A busted Barbie box sat in the corner of the theater lobby in which to take pictures. Happy emotions were in the air, and we were so ready.

Walking into the theater, there were noticeably more adults than children. Almost everyone in attendance looked to be around college-aged. I had prepared for this day well in advance, so we had perfect

To see these issues on a screen — more importantly, in a movie created by a woman about womanhood — was incredible, though perhaps a little nauseating. The best part, though, was how the film showed you that all of these negative things are not something you go through alone. There will always be a team behind you made up of strong women who care about you. As I looked over to my left, I was so glad to have my team sitting beside me.

All in all, I left the theater so glad to be a woman. My two best friends in the world and I got to see such great movies together, laugh together, eat together and take pictures in parking lots together.

This is what girlhood is all about — being together.

It’s about watching movies and gossiping on the car rides home. It’s about talking about far too personal stuff in a public restaurant. It’s about all this and more.

Barbenheimer was a social phenomenon for sure, but more importantly, it was a day in which I got to spend time with some of the best people in the world. Movies really are a great way to bring people together. My advice is, when the opportunity arises, never miss out on a chance to be with the people you love.

Contact Breanna Laws at lawsbn21@wfu.edu

Page 20 | Thursday, September 7, 2023

Old Gold & Black | Arts & Culture

Adam Coil’s Old Gold Tier List ADAM COIL Arts & Culture Editor

With Camino Bakery being usurped by Smith’s café and La Sabrosa’s coup d’etat in Benson, it’s time to reevaluate our Old Gold options on campus, lest we squander one of our precious swipes. Now, when opting to use an Old Gold instead of a typical Pit swipe, you’re probably looking for two things: convenience and something different from what you would expect at the Pit. With this in mind, I have three major criteria for this tier list.

How long does one have to wait after ordering to receive their food?

How unique of an eating experience does the Old Gold provide?

How satiated will one feel after eating their meal?

I have also taken some lesser factors into consideration. Such as, when is the restaurant open? How often is their ordering service working on Grubhub? Are there other Old Gold options that satisfy the same dietary needs?

With these things in mind, let’s take a look at the unofficial Old Gold tier list at Wake Forest — considering only what I deem to be the best Old Gold option at each restaurant. Before you smite me and my humble list with all of your ire, please remember that I tried my best.

S Tier

A

Chick-Fil-A’s (Spicy) Chicken Sandwich Meal

Zick’s make your own flatbread

Shorty’s Queso Deacon bowl

Einstein’s Bagel

La Sabrosa burrito

Village Juice smoothie bowl

Legal Grounds Café

Smith’s pastry + drink

Tier

B Tier

Subway sandwich

Starbucks sandwich

C Tier

D Tier

Forest Greens sandwich

Contact Adam Coil at coilat21@wfu.edu