December Edition 2024 - PantherNOW

Fall 2024 Issue 4

PANTHERNOW PantherNOW.com

Monday, December 2, 2024

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Monday, December 2, 2024

NEWS

FIU faculty oppose volunteering on anti-Semitism committee reviews Aniela Cabrera Staff Writer

context of the questions used didn’t go against the examples of antisemitism The State of Florida has listed in section 1000.05 been an epicenter of acaof the Florida Statutes. demic issues and obstrucAccording to the statue, tions, and now, these issues “criticism of Israel that is are making a new home at similar to criticism toward Florida International Uniany other country may versity. not be regarded as anThe FIU Board of Trustti-Semitic.” ees and administration, diFIU has already faced rected by the Florida Board the gutting of the D.E.I of Governors, has asked department, censorship faculty to volunteer on anof sociology courses, and tisemitism review committees post-tenure review. for a targeted list of courses Earlier this semester, and their corresponding the Board of Governors textbooks. The courses seissued a request for course lected are directly related to descriptions and syllabi with Judaism and Middle Eastern the following keywords: Israstudies. el, Israeli, Palestine, PalestinCertain faculty are now re- ian, Middle East, Zionism, sponding with a petition and Zionist, Judaism, Jewish or pending legal action.

Jews.

Florida legislator Randy Faculty then received an Fine has publicly taken credit email on Nov. 1 from Profor proposing a committee vost Elizabeth M. Béjar and following the result of an Executive Vice President incident at FIU earlier this and Chief Operating Officer summer, involving quiz ques- Noël Barengo of the FIU tions for a Terrorism and Faculty Senate.

Homeland Security Course.

It contained a finalized list Fine is a Jewish republican of courses selected for antiserepresentative who became mitic review at FIU from the enthralled by the matter on BOG. “X” and publicly lashed out The courses are as follows: at FIU administration. The Politics of the Middle East,

Via FIU Flickr

Terrorism and Homeland Security, International Relations of the Middle East, Judaism after the Holocaust, Politics of Western Europe, and Religion and Society of Israel/Palestine.

Bejar didn’t respond for comment and Barengo redirected his comment to another faculty member involved with the petition.

Ronlad Cox, a professor in the Politics and International Relations Department, said that this “policing” of faculty is an infringement of academic freedom highlighted in the FIU Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Written in the contract, faculty have the right to choose the course material used in class to the best of their judgment. Professors at higher-ed institutions have scholarly expertise as well as the judgment of other scholars within their department to help guide them.

“If this committee review follows through, it will severely undermine professors and their integrity. It would open a door to more censorship at the state level, which in the State of Florida, has appeared to be very biased,” said Cox.

Martha Schoolman, a Jewish English professor, helped work on the petition and wrote an op-ed in regard to the anti-Semitism scare over the summer that Fine got involved with.

Schoolman said, “The first level of resistance is to say [faculty] are not helping with the reviews.”

The committee email stated it will need “groups of 5-7 members” and asked that at minimum the committees be “composed of a core set (2-3) of faculty directly familiar with the course/discipline.”

FIU alum killed in private school bus accident

Persaud’s profile picture on LinkedIn

Brian Olmo Editor-in-chief 22-year-old FIU alum Anjali Persaud was hit by a private school bus and killed on Nov. 20, 2024.

The collision happened on Southwest 109th Avenue and Second Street — just three minutes away from MMC. The bus was turning right onto Third Street before making a fatal impact with Persaud. No stop sign is present for northbound traffic.

Persaud was transported to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital before succumbing to her injuries.

Persaud had graduated from FIU in the summer of 2024 with a degree in Business Administration.

It is unclear if Persaud was attempting to cross the road or if the driver will face any charges. The bus was transporting nine children.

None were injured.

A memorial of roses has been started at the scene of the incident.

CORRECTION: In our November edition, the article about Global First Year claims that David Lecon stated that amenities are one-time costs and not recurring. This is incorrect; Lecon never made this claim and this error has since been changed in the online version.

Fall 2024 Issue 4

PantherNOW.com

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Courtesy of FIU Athletics

Former football captain accuses Coach MacIntyre of verbal abuse, throwing chair at player Adrian Benitez Staff Writer

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ormer FIU football linebacker and team captain Reggie Peterson has made several allegations against Head Coach Mike MacIntyre, including verbal abuse and assault.

He also describes the program as a “Ponzi scheme” and “a team built off lies.”

Peterson had retired from the team before the start of the 2024 season, citing politics as one of the main factors.

These allegations were made public in a post to his X account Thursday afternoon, Nov. 21.

Regarding players, Peterson said that MacIntyre is “scared to hurt their feelings” and alleged he was making false promises regarding NIL money and playing time.

Peterson says the players “were absolutely vexed to the point they couldn’t even cheer.”

Peterson alleges that he was moved down the linebacker depth chart by MacIntyre during the 2024 offseason despite “grading out the highest in multiple practices,” as well as being lied to about NIL payments.

Peterson said the following about MacIntyre‘s response to his grievances: “I was verbally abused, my religion was thrown in my face, and I listened how terrible I was on and off the field, he tried to belittle me, like my concerns were invalid.”

In another allegation of verbal abuse, Peter-

son said that MacIntyre told a defensive player “You suck, you suck. Worthless, you suck as a player.” Peterson said the player is still on the team today.

Among his other allegations, Peterson also alleges that MacIntyre threw a chair in the locker room during halftime of FIU’s match against FAU in 2022, which inadvertently hit a player, as well as “tossing someone’s helmet at practice telling them to go get it.”

In an exclusive interview with PantherNOW, Peterson described the situation in the locker room during the FAU game.

“So halftime, he instantly just started cursing from A to Z and started flipping tables and kicking chairs,” said Peterson. “He was totally upset, like 10 out of 10, like 100% upset. So he’s cussing and his words, word for word, he says ‘I don’t know if I can do this. I don’t know if I can do this. I gave you guys an amazing game plan, but you don’t want to do it. I should have never took this head coaching job.’”

“He threw a chair and the chair ended up hitting a player named Caleb Lynum who on Twitter yesterday admitted that Coach Mac did hit him.”

Peterson then says that the locker room erupted, with a player and MacIntyre needing to be held back.

“Julius Pierce, our former center who transferred to Middle Tennessee, he was held back because he was arguing with Coach Mac and Coach Mac was being held back. Pierce was like ‘I don’t care what you say, you just hit a player!’

Coach Mac was like ‘No I didn’t, no I didn’t!

Former FIU football offensive lineman Lyndell Hudson II added context to the chair

throwing allegation in a quote tweet, saying “buddy damn near hit me with the chair during halftime when we were playing FAU 2022.”

Peterson alleged that MacIntyre made the following speech before a game against Western Kentucky in 2022: “They’re bigger than us, Stronger than us, Faster than us, Quicker than us, but we are smarter. Go out there and kick some butt.” The Panthers lost the game 73-0.

Another former player, Samuel Hill, alleges on X that MacIntyre asked him to reschedule the funeral of a family member so Hill could be available for a football game.

“One day November 2022 my grandmother had passed away. The week of her funeral Coach Mac asked me ‘Is there anyway you or your family could change the date of the funeral so I could play that Weekend’. I was so distraught by the question I honestly didn’t know what to do.”

PantherNOW received no response from Carr or MacIntyre after repeated attempts.

A representative from the university’s media relations team responded via email with a statement.

“The FIU administration is aware of issues raised surrounding the football program. They are being taken very seriously. The matter is being addressed following the university’s standard procedures; therefore, we have no further comment at this time.”

Scan the QR code to read PantherNOW’s exclusive interview with Peterson.

SPORTS

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Monday, December 2, 2024

Norman Mayorga | PantherNOW

SLAM JAM.

Men’s basketball aims to replicate start of season success

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IU men’s basketball’s first game of the season at home was more of a dunk contest than an actual competitive match.

The team’s starters took turns doing their best Vince Carter impressions, flying high over the FNU Conquistadors for all kinds of athletic dunks. One-handed slams, two-handed rim grazers, reverse dunks, you get the gist.

But since then, the Panthers have been in a rut, dropping three of their last four games in November. To give the team credit, all losses have been close.

Their largest margin of defeat was only five points against Howard.

What exactly is it that’s going wrong for FIU? The numbers point to the team’s offense, which ranks as the third-lowest, averaging 74 points per game, and three-point shooting.

Junior guard Jayden Brewer has been leading the team with 14.4 PPG and 5.6 rebounds per game, but his three-point efficiency of 21.1% and turnovers suggests ample room for improve-

Brian Olmo Editor-in-chief ment. The three-point struggles aren’t Brewer exclusive, FIU as a unit has been the worst three-point shooting team in the Conference USA, averaging a dysmal 26.8 3P%.

To compensate for this, the Panthers either need to find a way to put the ball through the hoop or play elite defense.

Liberty is a perfect case study of why defense is so important.

The team is the lowest scoring team in CUSA, only averaging 74 PPG. But they hold opponents to a conference-best 61 PPG. Liberty is currently 7-1.

FIU should be able to get back into the win column sooner rather than later with some adjustments and better shooting.

The team faces off against FAU at home on Wednesday, Dec. 4. The Owls are a team that’s only a little over a year removed from its miraculous Final Four Cinderella run in the NCAA Tournament. In their last matchup against FAU, FIU was blown out 94-60. If the team wants to avoid the same fate this time, it’ll need to play some of its best basketball of the season.

Top Scoring Teams in CUSA (PPG AVERAGE AS OF NOV. 26)

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Luke Hall | PantherNOW

CASH IT IN.

Women’s basketball needs to improve shot efficiency Jon Gonzalez Staff Writer

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issed shots and poor shot selection.

If there’s anything to say for why women’s basketball has started out on the wrong side of .500, it’s missed shots and poor shot selection.

As a team, they haven’t shot higher than 50% from the field since their record-breaking win against FNU, and haven’t even gotten back to 45% in their four losses since then.

This team thrives when its best players can work in their spots on offense, driving through lanes for layups or taking jumpers from the elbows.

But when the opposing team can make those shots and make them more efficiently, the Panthers stall out.

They don’t have another move to turn to.

They refuse to shoot from beyond the arc, and it’s hurting them. They’re too comfortable throwing out the same offense every game against defenses who know the Panthers aren’t at full strength.

That strength, being effective on both ends

PARIS ATKINS Across 5 games

15.0 PPG 6.4 RPG 46% FG

of the court, hasn’t shown consistently so far and it’s because of their shot selection. Without the three to pull opposing defenders away from Panther ball-handlers, they’re pushed into making tougher shots or passes from tighter windows. It’s unnecessary, they’re forcing a stagnant offense with no alternatives.

The only way this team gets anywhere is through firing on all cylinders at all times, they have to be perfect to even stay in games. None of this is for a lack of trying.

Junior guard Paris Atkins has put the Panthers on her back through multiple games by brunting most of the scoring burden.

She’s not alone, every player on the team is putting in their best effort but they’re only human.

They can’t help having off-nights. There’s plenty of time left in the season to turn things around, but if the Panthers don’t change their ways not much else can be helped.

If they’re going to miss shots, they might as well take them from further away.

Monday, December 2, 2024

OPINION

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TRUMP WON.

What does this mean for higher education?

Margi Rentis via FIU Flickr

Heidi Cuevas Opinion Director

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he election results are in: Donald Trump has won and while some see this as a victory, we need to be ready to adapt to a significantly more conservative education system.

Let’s start with the rumors of Project 2025 beginning once Donald Trump is inaugurated— if this is true, none of us are safe from the disastrous impact it will cause.

Written by members of Trump’s first administration and published

by The Heritage Foundation, Project 2025 is the 900 page extremist conservative blueprint with 735 proposed policies.

Some of these policies range from restricting reproductive rights, start mass deportation, strip away transgender rights or any gender

affirming care and attack higher education.

And though Trump has consistently claimed that he is not associated with Project 2025– despite having direct ties to the writers and foundation— his stance on higher education is driven by conservative motives anyways.

Trump has promised in his campaign trail to cut federal funding for schools that teach critical race theory or gender ideology and he has vendetta against DEI which has been shut down in 10 states, including Florida.

We’ve already been feeling the effects of censored education but Trump’s second term is going to continue blurring the line between being educated and being fed the false conservative ideology that he continues to push for.

The FIU Board of Trustees has

already cut 22 courses from their core curriculum that focus on race and ethnicity, LGBTQ+ studies, anthropology and sociology— all important courses to teach us the reality of the racism and oppression in American history that continue to haunt us today.

Trump also claims he will dismantle the department of education and give states control over schools yet he wants to push the “American Way of Life” and make “patriotism a centerpiece of education.”

So how will states be in control of education if he is pushing for an education curriculum that teaches what he wants students to learn?

And if Trump succeeds with his agenda and states are granted control over education, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis political “war on woke” agenda will torment

students studying in the humanities field.

And let’s not forget how the Biden administration inclusion to protect LGBTQ+ students and survivors of sexual assault under Title IX will be stripped away.

Is this a surprise? No, not really.

In Trump’s first term he wanted to protect the accusers not the victims in sexual assault cases and the inclusion of LGBTQ+ students continue to be rejected by republican politicians, including DeSantis.

The sad reality is that Trump’s second term as president will affect us one way or another. The education we have known for over a decade will crumble under Trump’s second term, leaving us only with pieces to depend on.

Coach MacIntyre allegations highlight underlying problem with student-athletes Former football team captain Reggie Peterson made the allegations against MacIntyre in a public post on X with other players chiming in.

Peterson spoke with PantherNOW in an exclusive interview to offer more detail.

If the allegations against MacIntyre are true, he has to be fired. There’s no question about it – he cannot remain at the helm of this team.

Hitting a player with a chair because you can’t control your temper is inexcusable.

We understand that it’s not an easy job to be the head coach of a team with constant pressure from higher-ups and fans alike to succeed.

But that is no excuse to hurt a student.

There are also allegations that Athletic Director Scott Carr was made aware of the chair-throwing incident and ignored it, which is outrageous. If true, this is an absolute failure of the football program and Athletics in protecting its student-athletes from harm, and both should be ashamed.

MacIntyre has allegedly cultivated a culture of fear within the program, according to Peterson.

This highlights a problem that isn’t just present at FIU, but universities nationwide.

Student-athletes are deathly afraid of speaking out against instances of abuse because they don’t want to be targeted by their own athletic programs or potentially lose their scholarship.

Some even label athletes as soft and entitled for talking about abuse because so many people see it as something that comes with the territory.

Being chewed out for a bad play? Sure, happens all the time. Having a chair thrown at your head during halftime because you are losing?

Unacceptable and we shouldn’t treat it as such.

Oftentimes, players only feel comfortable talking about their experiences after they finish their collegiate careers, and by then, years have gone by and the cycle of abuse has run its course.

Current student-athletes should not be afraid to speak out against abuse within their teams and MacIntyre and Carr need to be held accountable should these allegations be true.

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Fall 2024 Issue 4

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Don’t toy with your mental health this holiday season but I feel indifferent because I’m always with Kailey Krantz them.

Diverse thoughts.

And what about the students who can’t come visit their families that The holidays are meant to be easily or want to take celebrated with your closest friends the winter break as an and family, but there is a lot of opportunity to travel? pressure to deal with.

They’re worried they’ll The holidays like Thanksgiving, be made out to be the Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa bad guy by some disand New Year’s Eve come with big tant relative because of expectations from everybody. But their absence. as college students who stress over And some students assignments and work for months, are hesitant to come the break adds a whole new level back because they of stress. don’t want to relive According to the American Psytheir family drama, chology Association, about 89% especially when they’ve worked so of adults surveyed said their stress hard to create a life that was free and anxiety increase when the from that. holidays come around— sadly, it’s Then there is the financial stress not at all surprising. of buying the “perfect” present for As an online student who is with everyone. their family every waking day, it As we’re crossing off the names can be a lot to deal with because in our list, the total price of these there are times when I feel that I presents adds up fast. Some of the have no chance to breathe or have presents we end up buying our a moment for myself. friends and family members cost Part of the holiday magic comes an arm and a leg which isn’t great with being there with your family, when we’re trying to pay for our

Alyssa Pelaez | PantherNOW

tuition, books, room and board and other vital expenses.

The holidays are supposed to be a time for joy and laughter, we shouldn’t be spending half of that time pulling our hair out.

The holidays can send your mind into a whirlwind, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

One thing I do to check in with myself is sit with my emotions. I recognize that these feelings are perfectly normal and I don’t have

to force a smile when I’m not okay.

I’m also very lucky to have a support system of friends and family who have always been there for me whenever I needed them the most.

Though the holiday season brings us lots of joy, the stress is unavoidable at times. Taking care of ourselves mentally however we think is best is important to remember.

Discussion boards are a waste of time Linette Garcia Campus Chronicles

I dread seeing the Canvas notification saying my professor added a new discussion board assignment. I don’t think I have another “Hello!

Great job on your discussion post” in me.

For those of us who are chained to online education, discussion boards are slowly ruining our lives with unnecessary tasks.

Our professors can assign as many discussion boards as they want, but this doesn’t mean students will actually engage with one another.

Learning is a personal concept that everyone has, so what works for one person, doesn’t work for another. In my case, discussion boards are a hit-or-miss.

In my two years as an online student at FIU, discussion boards have consumed most of my time. Every professor sends us at least one dis-

cussion board a week, and whenever I look at it, I can’t help but wonder what’s the point of doing them.

The intention of these Canvas discussions is to be an interactive online forum. But most of us see it as meeting a word count to get an easy A. However, this depends on how the professor sets up their discussion boards.

Replying to three peers with no guidelines but to be “thoughtful” and meet a set word count isn’t teaching us much. When I scroll through the responses, I see that everyone uses the same introduction and regurgitates the same opinion.

Don’t get me wrong, discussion boards help us give us those extra few points we need or get feedback on bigger assignments, but the cons outweigh the pros.

Discussion boards create a vacuum for a narrow conversation pattern. We’re inevitably

Megan Long | PantherNOW

pressured to agree or disagree with someone’s perspective, and our understanding of the class material is limited to long paragraphs.

Discussion posts are not genuine interactions between classmates but forced civility with hollow discourse. Overall, we do not need discussion boards to learn the class subject, and they’re easily replaceable with more lively assignments.

Columns presented within this page do not represent the views of PantherNOW Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

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Monday, December 2, 2024

FINDING THE LIGHT IN “UNCLE VANYA”

Alex Gabriel Perez and Nicholas Quintana | Photo courtesy of Ivan Lopez, School of Theatre

Gabriela Danger Assistant Director

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IU Theatre took on “Uncle Vanya,” an 1897 Russian play written by Anton Chekhov with many poignant questions about life’s meaning, told through the interactions of a group of equally miserable characters.

The four act play deals with themes of loneliness, regret, aimlessness, passion; though it is often viewed through a nihilistic lens, hope– if you squint.

It is certainly a story where it seems like nothing happens on the surface, but has a lot more going on underneath.

Though “Uncle Vanya” is a period piece, according to director Justin Packard, it is also “ […] a living, evolving, accessible reflection of human beings then and human beings now. A lot has changed since Chekhov’s time, and yet nothing has truly changed. These characters, these themes, these moments should all be all-too familiar to you, our contemporary audience.”

Like in many Russian classics, this play finds a lot of its characters struggling.

From the titular Uncle Vanya himself (actually named Ivan Voynitsky), to the depressed traveling doctor Astrov, playing these characters requires getting into the right

mindset. Richard Weber, a BFA musical theater major who plays Astrov in the production, mentioned that his character struggles particularly with “finding the light.”

“Astrov even says ‘there’s no light for me anymore’ […] so I think the hardest part about playing him is getting into that essence of, ‘I’ve been through so much, and yet, I’m still trying to work through it,’” Weber said.

Majorly taking place in the home estate of one of the characters, atmosphere is a great component in drawing

audiences into the time period.

Set designer Alexis King commented on the symbolism found within the set’s physical design and motifs.

“My biggest personal touch is the deep, wine red color of the walls,” King said.

“I wanted to represent not only the passion in each character, but also represent the metaphor of getting blood on your hands, because this family and story is messy and chaotic.”

One of the things that set “Uncle Vanya” apart from shows FIU Theatre has done in the past is the way it was written as

Photo courtesy of Ivan Lopez, School of Theatre

well as its content. Packard spoke on the importance of “Uncle Vanya” for Chekhov’s career, as well as the educational value for young performers. “[This play] provides our students the chance to dig into the rich and complicated layers of [Chekhov’s] language, his historical perspective, and the genesis of what many modern acting techniques are based on,” said Packard.

Weber spoke on one unique technique used when practicing for the production, the etude.

Essentially, the etude is an improvisational exercise that actors do to connect with their character through events that happen offstage or off script.

Weber imagines that between some of the acts, there’s an etude that happens, which brings the characters back to the stage differently than when they left it. It’s up to the actor to explore this change as they see fit.

“We’re seeing things about the character that aren’t necessarily in the script,” Weber said.

“So for example, Astrov has this really deep rooted alcohol problem, or, a substance abuse problem. Through these etudes, I get to explore that angle, and there’s more of that for his character.”

“Uncle Vanya” ran from Nov. 15-24 at the Wertheim Performing Arts Center.