11.9.22

Student Association moves toward election changes

LyDIA PALMER STAFF WRITER

Mississippi State University’s Student Association leaders will be making changes to the election system for the upcoming spring election.

According to SA President Kennedy Guest, all of these changes are intended to benefit the student body.

SA executive council members said there will be two changes that students will primarily notice. These will be the development of a more independent senate and a combined president and vice president ticket during voting.

Having a more independent senate is

something that is very important to many involved with SA but particularly to SA Vice President Ann

Aldermen discuss city's recycling program

HEATHER HARRISON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The Board of Al dermen is considering reinstating Starkville’s curbside recycling pro gram.

In March 2020, the city stopped the curb side program due to COVID-19. Starkville then moved to a drop-off recycling system at the sanitation department called Think Green.

At the board meeting last Tuesday, Students for a Sustainable Cam pus from Mississippi State University came to speak to the board about the group’s climate change demands.

Emma Van Epps, the SSC’s president, said Starkville was the only city in the SEC without curbside recycling.

“One obstacle for people recycling is that (the drop off center) is primarily open during the workday, except for the 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the first Saturday of each month,” Van Epps said. “And that can be a

big obstacle for people who are either in their jobs during those hours or are maybe disabled and have a hard time hauling their recyclables to the Think Green center.”

RECYCLE, 2

senator before serving as vice president.

As vice president, Radicioni works as the head of the senate. Certain

bills have been passed that will expand Radicioni’s role to compare to the president, not just being the leader of the senate.

In the new system, the vice president will begin attending meetings and events in place of the president to maximize their time and effectiveness.

Before now, the senate has primarily come up with ideas and presented them to Radicioni and Guest, but these two see more potential for the branch.

“I didn’t like that our senate was, you know, essentially a part of the cabinet that answered to the student body vice president or president,” Guest said. “I wanted to fix that and give them their own feet to stand on and to allow them to be kind of in control of their own destiny.”

Drag performance at festival prevails after initial cancellation

On Oct. 25, the Starkville Area Arts Council (SAAC) decided to cancel the drag performances scheduled for the Cotton District Arts Festival.

SAAC Program Coordinator Juliette Reid said the decision was made because of threats made to end sponsorships and funding for both the festival and organization as a whole.

“When we were considering our decisions, we were only hearing from one side of the community. People from the queer community — a lot of them did not even know there was going to be a drag show. So, we weren’t hearing from them,” Reid said.

According to Reid, the

opposing parties felt the drag show would not make the festival a family-friendly event.

“It was a lot of misconceptions that a lot of people, who don’t know about the queer community or drag at all, heard through the grapevine,” Reid said.

Starkville Mayor Lynn

“It is also one of those things where if you do not want to be there, then you didn’t have to be there. There was no command performance. There were three stages,” Spruill said.

DRAG SHOW, 2

Food prices rise in Starkville community and across nation

HANNAH RAE KENNEDy STAFF WRITER

According to the USDA Economic Research Service, the Consumer Price Index for grocery foods increased by 13% from September 2021 to September 2022.

This statistic has directly impacted the prices of food in Starkville, Mississippi. Whether it is groceries or restaurants, the prices of food have increased rapidly in the past few months.

Will Davis, assistant professor of agricultural economics, said high inflation in food prices is a result of many interconnected factors. Specifically, he noted that soaring costs are a lingering effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

“Some of it is driven by COVID, and some of it is driven by the Ukraine and Russian war because it has

changed the price of oil dramatically,” Davis said.

Davis said the price of oil is important because the production and transportation of food products depend on fuel. When those costs rise, so do the costs of food.

Everyone that depends on grocery

stores or restaurants for food has experienced an increase in their bills.

According to the USDA, the Consumer Price Index for restaurant purchases has increased by 8.5% from September 2021 to September 2022. Harish Balamurugan, a junior majoring in software

engineering, mentioned the rise of food prices at Starkville restaurants. Locally owned and chain restaurants alike have raised the costs of meals in recent months. When going out to eat, Balamurugan claimed that he had paid several dollars more than he used to for the same meals.

“This month, I have paid $5 to $6 more than I did two years ago or even last year,” Balamurugan said.

Jasmine Ally, a junior majoring in food science, has experienced the repercussions of increased grocery prices this year. Instead of her

typical purchase of animal-based protein, Ally has had to opt for more affordable options. This comes as a result of the increased prices of eggs and meat products.

In September of 2022 alone, the price of farm-level eggs increased by 12.1%, according to the USDA. This contributes to the 120.4% increase in prices of eggs from September 2021 to September 2022.

Likewise, the USDA has predicted that wholesale poultry prices will increase between 19% to 22% in 2022.

“I eat a lot more protein in beans and anything plant based that is cheaper than meat,” Ally said.

Ally said she has bought more Ramen Noodle packets in the recent months because of their affordability.

Balamurugan and Ally alike expressed concern for the rise in the cost of food.

Olivia Radicioni.

Radicioni has worked with the senate since her freshman year. She has served as a freshman senator and a campus-wide

Spruill said she did not believe that any of the material was inappropriate.

PAyTON BROWN NEWS WRITER

At the senate meeting on Nov. 1, multiple bills were passed to change the SA election system in the spring. These bills will help develop the senate as an independent body.

Landon Scheel | The Reflector

Emma Van Epps serves as the president of MSU’s Students for a Sustainable Campus.

Madelyn Sykes | The Reflector

On Oct. 29 at 2 p.m., Fendi LaFemme performed at the Cotton District Arts Festival.

Courtesy Photo | Hayden Delacroy

A Halloween display at a Publix supermarket in Miami, Fla shows the prices of festive treats. The Consumer Price Index for grocery food has increased by 13% this year.

Courtesy Photo | Phillip Pessar

Guest’s statement was echoed by Radicioni. She said this increased independence of the senate would make senate elections more meaningful and competitive. She said she hoped senate elections would gain more attention from MSU students due to the change.

Another change that students will notice is the change to voting. In the past, students were presented with five different ballot options: student body president, vice president, secretary, treasurer and senate elections. Now, there will be four different sections: a combined presidential and vice-presidential ticket followed by the secretary, treasurer and senate.

MSU is the only school in the SEC that does not use a ticketing type of

RECYCLE

Van Epps suggested the city introduce an opt-in recycling program using the 100 or more recycling bins the city owns from the old program.

Ward 5 Alderman Hamp Beatty expressed his interest in the idea. He said Oxford reinstated its curbside recycling program last year due to citizens’ demands.

Beatty questioned why Starkville and the university spend money for big events in town, but the city does not have curbside recycling.

“I’m just putting it in context, what we prioritize to put money on, but we do not

DRAG SHOW

Due to the negative feedback received from certain locals, SAAC released a new schedule excluding the performance from the lineup.

A day after the revised schedule was released, Starkville Pride released a statement on Instagram to speak out against the cancellation.

Along with Starkville Pride, Dave Hood of Dave’s Dark Horse Tavern wrote a response to the decision since he booked the drag performance for the festival.

“I wrote my letter to try and let everybody know what was going on,” Hood said.

In his statement, Hood wrote that he booked the show with pride and excitement as this year’s music and entertainment chair.

Along with a drag show, Hood had booked a gospel act to perform on the west side of the festival to adhere to multiple interests of attendees.

“Instead of all the alt-right Christians deciding to protest and stay home, they could have gone to the other side where I booked the best gospel band. Instead, they wanted a metaphorical pillowfight,” Hood said.

Hayden Delacroy, known by his drag name Trinity Devine, found out about the performance cancellation from his contacts in the SAAC council.

system in elections, so this is not new territory for college student association executive councils.

The combination of president and vice president candidates running together throughout the campaign means that you cannot vote for a separate president and vice president but rather a preformed team of the two positions.

“If you have two people doing the same thing, but they have different, conflicting mindsets, you could hit some real problems,” Guest said.

The new ticket-voting system raised concerns regarding equality and fair playing fields with the new system, but the SA executive council assured students that these concerns are being taken

seriously and regularly evaluated.

Deputy Chief of Staff Cameron Mayers spoke about these concerns.

“Me being a minority on campus and coming from an underprivileged area growing up, the financial obligations of running (for an SA executive position) have always intimidated me and others like myself,” Mayers said. “But the new system eases that burden off of you entirely because you run with a partner.”

There are still many questions about the new system since it has not been placed into effect on MSU’s campus yet, but Mayers said he is confident that most students will be in favor of it after learning more.

Student Association will be holding Town Halls on Wednesday, Nov. 9 at 7

p.m. and Thursday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m.

These will be meeting times for students to come and ask SA members any questions they may have about the changes. The purpose is to hear students' opinions months before the first election in the new setup takes place.

Guest said he hoped that being open about exactly what these changes will look like will alleviate concerns about the new system.

In addition to the forums, SA executive members also have regular office hours which can be found from the Executive Council page of the Student Association website. Their emails are also listed on that page for students to reach out with questions, concerns and comments.

have a curbside recycling program,” Beatty said. “I think that’s something that’s missing desperately in the city of Starkville.”

Later at the meeting, Beatty discussed recycling as part of the board's scheduled agenda item. He said it was time to switch from drop-off recycling to opt-in or curbside and to charge for it. The alderman did not have ironedout plans about how to achieve this goal, but he said he wanted the board to consider the idea.

Beatty compared Starkville to Oxford, Tuscaloosa and Auburn.

“We’re the same kind of university town. Same kind of folks, same kind of income. You know, a lot of the same kind of stuff that these other places have, and they have curbside recycling,” Beatty said.

Ward 2 Alderwoman Sistrunk said curbside recycling needed “to be done in a financially responsible way.” She asked if the city should continue drop-off recycling while providing curbside pickup.

“I do think it would be a great time to take a step back and look at our sanitation services top to bottom, what it

costs us to provide, what our opportunity costs are going to be, what we will give up in order to have the time to do curbside recycling,” Sistrunk said.

Sistrunk said that before the city decides to switch the program, it needs to gauge the citizens’ interest in curbside recycling. She said opt-in recycling might work better because not all neighborhoods would participate in curbside recycling.

Sistrunk told Beatty to see if a company would partner with the city to provide curbside recycling.

Ward 1 Alderman Ben

“We came to the conclusion that the cancellation was made too hastily without consideration of the impact and without conversations with the people outside of the s ector who has given us all of the hate,” Switzer said.

“When I initially found out, I was angry and upset and just speechless because I’m only 22. I’ve never dealt with something like that,” Delacroy said.

After a discussion with Starkville Pride, Delacroy and other members decided to create a post to inform the community.

“We felt like when a major donor tries to pull funds to cancel a show, that’s not what an arts festival is supposed to be,” Delacroy said.

After making multiple posts to spread awareness, Delacroy said he sat down with three members of the SAAC board.

“You could tell by just the environment of the meeting that they knew what they did was wrong and that they were willing to learn from their mistake,” Delacroy said.

SAAC Executive Director Mary Switzer said the decision was soon reversed after a discussion with the performers, Hood, Starkville Pride and SAAC board members.

Switzer and Reid agreed that the cancellation went against the council’s anti-discriminatory policy and organization mission as a whole.

“We, the Board of Directors, concluded that letting them perform was the right thing to do and the only decision that needed to be made,” Reid said. “And then, obviously, we would make changes to our committee members, and the way we go about sensitive topics like this in the future.”

On Oct. 29 at 2 p.m., the drag performance hosted by Trinity Devine and Fendi LaFemme occurred on the east stage.

Hood said the show was packed with one of the best crowds of the day.

Delacroy said he enjoyed the performance and appreciated the support given by the three SAAC members he met with.

“With kindness and compassion and understanding, you will have a higher chance of getting what you want,” Delacroy said.

The pair both said they had to spend more time carefully budgeting their money to allocate enough for the rising prices.

Specifically, Ally has looked to buy more groceries in bulk, while Balamurugan has opted for eating out fewer times a week in hopes to cut down costs.

Both college students and lowincome members of the community have been affected by the rise in prices of food.

“When food prices increase, it has a disproportionate effect on low-income households because they are already spending a lot of their

money on food,” agriculture economics professor Davis said.

Davis explained how those who are considered low-income already spend around a third of their money on food. When food prices increase, this has a profoundly negative effect on those who were previously

spending a notable percentage of their money on food.

He added that inflation contributes to the lack of food security in low-income households because of their already fooddependent budget.

When food prices increase, this creates a problem for those who

Carver said he would collaborate with Beatty to look at recycling in the city.

“I don’t mind helping out there,” Carver said. “I’ll find out where it works in the Southeast and how it works there.”

Beatty said he wanted to give citizens an inexpensive, convenient recycling program.

“I just think that we in Starkville are the place,” Beatty said. “We can find a way to do this.”

already have difficulty getting essential items that they lack.

“They are not sacrificing going to the movies; they are going to be sacrificing some sort of necessity,” Davis said.

While the rise in the cost of food is an ongoing issue, Davis said the prices of

certain foods are falling while some continue to rise.

Again, he pointed to the cost of fuel and said that it contributes heavily to the costs of food.

“When oil prices begin to decrease, we will start to see a decrease in the price of food,” Davis said.

SA President Kennedy Guest spoke about the upcoming changes at a senate meeting.

Landon Scheel | The Reflector

On Oct. 29, Trinity Devine performed at the Cotton District Arts Festival alongside Fendi LaFemme and other drag performers.

Courtesy Photo | Hayden Delacroy

“I’ve never dealt with something like that.”

Hayden Delacroy

Drag Performer, Trinity

Devine

The Think Green center is currently home to Starkville's recycling program. Madelyn Sykes | The Reflector

The Starkville Area Arts Council decided to reinstate the drag performances on the East Stage for the Cotton District Arts Festival.

Courtesy Photo | Hayden Delacroy

Weekly Horoscopes

Libra- Pray, if you will, for the hot air balloon racing committee. The stars im plied some concerning stuff about fire and nylon. Just be careful out there.

Taurus- While wandering the desert for 40 years, expect the Lord to pro vide you with manna, water and written rules on clay tablets, but notably not a map.

Aries - Crows. Dozens of them, all pecking away ravenously at the hood of your 2006 Toyota Corola in cham pagne beige. They’ve unionized and re fuse to be trampled by the man.

Scorpio - Train for the possibility of a shocking and sudden act of violence from Sydni Vandevender, our ad man ager. She is greatly disturbed.

Sagitarius- Your semi-legal sports gambling habit has wrecked your per sonal life and your finances. The Mave ricks are only a 6.5 point favorite tonight. A man with a tattoo of a snake on his scalp is pounding at your door, and you fell asleep having soiled your self. Your mother and father miss you, but that’s why you play the game.

Gemini -Hysteria is sublime and the body reviles order. November

Thursday, November 3, 2022

A resident of the city/county reported his firearm was stolen from his work truck while parked at a loading dock near the Swalm Chemical Engineering Building.

Friday, November 4, 2022

A pair of students were ar rested on Stone Boulevard for petit larceny and pub lic intoxication.

An employee reported his departmental vehicle was taken from Tracy Drive. The vehicle was later found.

More Bad Dawgs can be found each week in our online edition.

Saturday, November 5, 2022

A student was transported from Fraternity Row to OCH via ambulance for medical assistance.

A grand total of four people were arrested over the weekend at Davis Wade Stadium or in the Junction.

Sunday, November 6, 2022

A student reported her ve hicle missing from Critz Hall.

Another student was ar rested in Davis Wade Sta dium for public intoxication, on a Sunday no less.

Sigma Phi Epsilon stocks

-Not much traffic -Washington, D.C. flashbacks.

Last week on the inaugural edition of Bathroom Reviews, bathrooms from Allen Hall, Old Main and Perry were reviewed, to name a few. The lows were low, and the highs were high. This week, I am diving further into the lore of Mississippi State University bathrooms, once again highlighting the good, the bad and the smelly. After all, with the sheer number of bathrooms on campus, I could not in good conscience stop at six reviews.

Just as last time, this only gender neutral and women’s bathrooms, and each is rated out of ten based on overall experience, factoring in cleanliness, privacy and resources.

Lee Hall (fourth floor) 7.5/10

-Very clean

These bathrooms on the fourth floor of Lee Hall are located right next door to the president’s office. I am not sure if it is the placebo effect, but these bathrooms gave me severe flashbacks to all of the bathrooms I visited in Washington, D.C. Why? Not sure. Perhaps proximity to someone with the title of president? They were extremely clean -- exactly what one would expect from the president. The stall doors were almost identical to the doors in Old Main Academic Center (re: the good ones). This bathroom was perfectly on par.

McComas Hall (basement), 5/10 -Hard to find

- Private -Smells nice McComas Hall is a building that I would avoid at all costs if you need a bathroom on a time crunch.

It took me an embarrassingly long time to even find the stairwell, much less the bathrooms in the basement itself. The good news is that you probably will not have a problem finding an open stall, since most people will get lost on the way there. The bathroom was outdated but very clean (maybe due to being unused). I was also pleasantly surprised by the smell of this bathroom, which was aided by a Glade plug-in.

Colvard Student Union (First floor), 7/10 - Lots of stalls - Central location (Is this a plus? Depends on your plans.)

- Relatively clean with a tendency to get a bit dirty

This bathroom is genuinely the definition of what should be average in a perfect world, but last week I wrote reviews for bathrooms in Perry that had standing water (I hope) on the floor. My scale is off. There is

really nothing to complain about here. I never have to wait for a stall, it is well stocked and there are no significant gaps in the stall doors. It tends to get a little dirty, but this is likely due to the amount of people that come through these bathrooms on any given day, not the effort of the janitorial staff.

Colvard Student Union (second floor), 8.5/10 - Clean - Lots of stalls - Less used

This bathroom is almost identical to the first floor bathrooms; however, it does not get half of the foot traffic. All of this culminates into a near-perfect bathroom. Very clean and extremely nice.

Sanderson Center (to the left when you enter) 5/10 - Not well known - Not extremely clean - Water on counter - Only two stalls

The biggest downfall for this bathroom is that it only has two stalls, and it is not overwhelmingly clean. I have definitely seen worse, but I have also gotten my shirt wet on multiple occasions due to the countertop being soaked with water. I do not think it is a leakage issue, so I am not sure what the reason behind it is. It is an unsolvable mystery. Oh, and I almost forgot, there are typically no paper towels and the air dryer is absolutely horrific. It could not dry a quartersized puddle, much less your hands after washing.

Sigma Phi Epsilon house, 7/10

- Decently clean - Period products - Not going to lie, I have only ever been in this bathroom with friends, never actually used the restroom myself. For the sake of my own integrity, I feel this piece of information must be included. I genuinely did not know

what to expect, since I visited this bathroom at a party. I really think things could have gone much worse. In fact, I would say the experience was genuinely pleasant. The bathroom was clean. There were only two stalls, but I feel that for this location, it makes sense. You cannot expect a Student Unionsized bathroom in a fraternity house; it is just impractical. The real winner of this bathroom is the small organizer on the counter, which was fully stocked with pads and tampons. Seriously, at the time of writing this review, there is no other bathroom on campus that has had period products, much less available for free and at a fraternity house, no less. Stick around for next week, where we ask the question: how many consecutive weeks of bathroom reviews will they let me publish?

Megan Contributing

Maybe it is the English major in me, but when I sit down to take an exam, an essay test causes the stress to

leave my body in one giant wave. This is in very sharp contrast to how my stress levels rise whenever I sit down to take a test that is primarily multiple-choice, true or false or, god-forbid, math.

I know that encouraging the use of essay tests is ridiculous and unpopular — made even more so by the fact that Mississippi State University is known in part for its engineering

program. However, the ability to write cohesively, concisely and in a way that is compelling to your audience is a skill that is vital to every field.

I will admit right from the jump that essay tests have some drawbacks.

First, essay tests can only cover part of the full scope of the material learned and instead usually focus on a specific theme, idea or singular important topic. This can be problematic for students when it comes to studying material. It can be challenging to know what they will be tested on if the instructor does not provide a study aid for the exam.

According to Craig Steele, a professor of Biology at Edinboro University with a taste for essays about exams in 1997, essay prompts are not necessarily representative of all the content covered in a course. This means a student could dedicate time to studying the wrong material and feel overwhelmed or underprepared on test day.

Finally, essay tests take a long time to grade. This can prove to be a hindrance for both the professors, who have a lot of papers to grade, and the students anxiously waiting for their papers to be returned to them.

Despite these difficulties, essay tests are far more rewarding than you might think. Using the essay format removes all the limits that formats like multiplechoice tests impose on test takers.

Jamie Kaufman with LibreTexts states, “Essay

questions provide more opportunity to communicate ideas. Whereas multiple choice limits the options, an essay allows the student to express ideas that would otherwise not be communicated.”

Kaufman is absolutely correct. Essays provide students the opportunity to express their ideas in creative ways without the limits of precise answers. For college students, this means we would be able to express learned material in a way that allows for a more personal critique from our professors and further hone our communication skills through our writing.

In addition, essay tests are closer to the experiences most of us will face in our careers after we graduate. Christian Reiner expresses this flawlessly in his workbook for educators, titled austerely and in all caps as “PREPARING EFFECTIVE ESSAY QUESTIONS.” He stated, “Constructed responses are closer to real life than selected responses. Problem-solving and

decision-making are vital life competencies. In most cases, these skills require the ability to construct a solution or decision rather than select a solution or decision from a limited set of possibilities.”

We will not be able to make an educated guess on most of the problems we will experience in life. The communication skills essays help develop can make a huge difference in our professional lives. By advocating for an increase in the frequency of writingbased tests, we would not only be demonstrating our grasp of the knowledge presented in class, but also further developing our abilities to communicate effectively, preparing us to go out into the world outside of this campus as well-rounded alumni who can count and read.

Next time you sit down to a written exam, be aware that you are in the best position to illustrate your understanding of a topic in a way that is both flexible and customizable to your major, interests and goals for the future.

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Off Louisville Street, a town has united to pro vide a family with a new home. Inside is a mother chasing around her chil dren, a kitchen smelling of pancakes and colorful furniture.

The apartment is mis matched yet coherent, playful yet peaceful. As they grieve a life left be hind, gratitude runs deep in the family’s heart. They are thankful for the generosity shown to them by the Starkville, Mississippi, community.

After Anna Shevchenko and her family were forced to flee Ukraine after the Russian inva sion, they were warmly embraced by the people of Starkville. Community members showed South ern hospitality by provid ing the family an apart ment and everything they needed to build a home, from the furniture to the dishes and the paintings on the wall.

Shevchenko’s Cedar Cove apartment displays works of art reflective of their journey from Ru bizhne, Ukraine, to Starkville. The bright colors and distinctive themes serve as visuals for what they have en dured and what may be to come.

Above the kitchen table hangs a print of “Van Gogh’s Chair” by acclaimed 19th-century expressionist Vincent Van Gogh. The work

symbolizes modesty and simplicity, much like Shevchenko’s life in Uk raine and how she found pieces of her home coun try in Starkville.

Shevchenko recounted her city fondly and dis cussed her love of host ing friends and family for dinner. Her favorite dish to make for guests was a beetroot soup called borscht, which she has also made for her Stark ville friends.

“It is a small city, not very big at all,” Shevch enko said. “We would spend time together and cook something special for our guests. We try to do this here (in Stark ville), too.”

In Rubizhne, Shevch enko worked as a mas seuse with her mother while her father was a manager at a post com pany. They were content with their quiet life, but the Russian invasion in February 2022 forced them to uproot their lives and leave their home for America.

Leaving Ukraine was heartbreaking for Shevchenko and her family as the impending threat of war loomed. The toughest part was leaving five male family members who stayed to fight. She said that her strong faith helped her trust in what was to come.

“For each country and each person, it’s not easy,” Shevchenko said. “We are a Christian family. We were told this

would happen, but we didn’t know when. We were prepared to move wherever God would have us, and I could see he was leading us here.”

Also in the kitchen of Shevchenko’s Starkville apartment hangs “Sun flowers” by Van Gogh. The work depicts grat itude and light, which is what Shevchenko felt to ward the town that took her family in without hesitation.

Shevchenko turned to Facebook groups hoping to find someone who could help relocate her family. She contacted Rodney Mast, a farmer from Crawford, Missis sippi, with a passion for assisting Ukrainian refu gee families relocating across the globe. He an swered her two days lat er, eager to help.

Mast said he spent countless hours not only relocating these families but helping them transi tion into their new nor mal.

“I have become some what of a liaison for the process. I look for strengths of the Ukrain ian families and find op portunities in the USA that seem to fit their abil ities and desires,” Mast said. “Currently, I have helped over 40 families come to the USA.”

Mast credited Stark ville residents for giving Shevchenko’s family a smooth transition to the South.

“Starkville and the Golden Triangle region

have shown their heart and it is lovely to see,” Mast said. “The cultural differences and the lan guage differences are completely overlooked with laughter and hugs.”

Vika Jones, a commu nity member originally from Kazakhstan, as sisted Rodney Mast in bringing the family to Starkville. Jones under stood the family’s strug gles being from a Euro pean country herself and served as a source of comfort by speaking Russian, their native lan guage, with them. She described other ways the community supported Shevchenko’s family.

“We showed them how to use public transporta tion to get around, mainly to go to their ESL

classes. We created a gift registry with some essen tials,” Jones said. “Some people took them clothes-shopping, and some donated some clothes for them.”

Shevchenko said their lives in Starkville reflect their lives in Ukraine. They have formed friend ships by getting involved in local churches and hosting their famous dinner parties.

“They opened their hearts for us. We get in vited to church and are always willing to go,” Shevchenko said. “They would provide meals to us when we first arrived, and insisted they come to us for dinner, too.”

Shevchenko’s favorite painting hangs in the liv ing room, where the

family spends most of their time together. It is the work of an unknown local artist depicting two houses on a yellow field under a dark blue sky, the colors of the Ukrain ian flag.

The painting reminds her of a peaceful life in Rubizhne, which she said she hopes to return to someday.

“It’s hard to say what’s next for us, but we’d like to go back to Ukraine someday,” Shevchenko said. “The people who live here (in Starkville) care so much for us, and we’ve made relationships with good people.”

Wherever she and her family may go, Anna Shevchenko will always carry the kindness of Starkville with her.

MSU Dining TikTok page gains local notoriety

As people all over the world become their own stars through the video social media app TikTok, Mississippi State Univer sity Dining Services started to feature its own stars through the app. Dining Services start ed a TikTok account in May of this year. Its vi deos highlight the staff members, locations and food by posting the latest trends. The posts use popular songs or run ning jokes within the app’s community to reach students at the university.

Marketplace at Perry’s beloved Ms. Annie be came the star of most of the videos. Annie Doss started greeting students at the Perry doors 15 years ago. She said many students come up to her to ask when she will be in the next TikTok.

“Well, (the TikTok page) is good. I love it and I love y’all. I do it be cause of y’all. That’s why I really do it. I love it,” Doss said.

Rylee Jones, a junior communication major from Dallas, Texas, is a TikTok user and said she saw Dining Services’ TikToks as she scrolled through her feed. She highlighted a post of Doss in a police car as her favorite.

“She (Doss) is so sweet and hilarious, and seeing her on my 'for you page' is perfect,” Jones said.

Dining Services posted a video joking that Doss is the mastermind behind the clever, comedic vi deos. Doss said she had not heard of TikTok be fore the creation of Din ing Services’ account and is not the one who runs the page.

Parker Cunningham, a Mississippi State alum nus and marketing spe

cialist for Dining Servic es, oversees the TikTok account. He said he wanted to engage stu dents and add value to their experience at Mis sissippi State through the posts on TikTok.

Cunningham said what he does is all about the positive impact. He said he heard from students about how much they en

joyed the videos, and he said he loves helping the dining staff and the rest of campus shine on the platform.

Jackelyn Garcia, a sophomore interior de sign major from Dumas, Arkansas, said she thought it was funny when she saw the dining TikToks on her "for you page."

“I like whenever they dance,” Garcia said. “I think it’s funny whe never they dance or rec reate trends.”

Along with its fun filled posts, the dining TikTok put out videos exploring their hidden gems. One of these in cludes McArthur Café Express, a dining hall that opened in 2010.

is something amazing.

McCurry said he and the staff at McArthur saw a rise of “newcomers” since the post about their location. He said he is appreciative of every one that comes through.

Cunningham posts weekly about all things to do with Mississippi State dining and campus life. He runs all social media accounts for the department. He said the staff around him, and his experience at Missis sippi State, helped him create the popular vi deos.

The Mississippi State dining TikTok posts are under the handle @msstatedining and re posts are on Instagram Reels under the same name.

Chilly mornings, pump kin spice and autumn leaves bring a fuzzy feel ing to all who know what comes next: "Call of Duty."

Many were awaiting "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s arrival," which grossed over $800 million on the Oct. 28 launch weekend. More players came online than ever before in the fran chise’s history. Like so many others on launch weekend, I was lost in my computer mon itor. The patter of gunfire and the thunder of explo sions blocked out the out side world. Between in tense firefights, I took wild gulps of Mountain Dew and savage bites of pizza. I was completely con sumed by "Modern War fare 2."

After 15 years of iter ation, "Modern Warfare

2" has set the industry standard for a first-person shooter. The game’s riv eting gunplay glued me to my computer.

Weapons feel weighted, pulling the trigger feels punchy and the audio and visual effects are satisfac tory. Submachine guns feel light and snappy, un loading assault rifles feel deadly and firing anything bigger feels like it would make your shoulder sore.

Whipping from target to target and portioning out ammunition to elimi nate threats is incredibly satisfying. The time-tokill is quick and the game play is unrelenting. The difference between win ning and losing a gunfight can be a few well-placed shots.

However, compared to some previous "Call of Duty" titles, the move ment has been slightly slowed. Instead of sliding and jumping around the map, players are more en couraged to remain

grounded by mounting on walls and making use of flash bangs before clear ing rooms.

"Modern Warfare 2" also features the return of the Gunsmith, allowing you to meticulously trans form your weapon through the addition of various attachments. An assault rifle can be mod ified to shoot farther and hit harder or filed down for close quarters.

Unlike previous titles, you must unlock weapons by using weapons within the same family. For ex ample, to unlock the fa mous AK-74U, you must first use the larger caliber AK-47. This forces the player to bounce from weapon to weapon to pro gress, and each weapon has a unique feel that pre vents the process from be coming too tedious.

Something that may be a little more tedious, though, is the process of unlocking these transfor mational attachments.

Rather than becoming un locked as you use the weapon, many of these at tachments also require you to level up other weapons. This goosechase for attachments can be a deflating experience. The game's visuals are simply unmatched in the genre. Maps feel true-tolife and are filled with de tail, masking the reality of their simplicity. Gun smoke rises from weapons as operators make lifelike animations.

Faces of characters enter the uncanny valley as scenes from the cam paign force me to stop and take a long look. If you’re looking for visual fidelity, "Modern Warfare 2" has it.

"Modern Warfare 2" includes all the traditional game modes, as well as the 64-player Ground War mode. Ground War features tanks, helicop ters, scenic vistas and chaos — a chaos that may drift a little too far from

how the game has been tuned for its smaller, more popular game modes. A small group of enjoyable two-player co operative missions are also available.

The high-budget, seven-hour campaign did little more than meet ex pectations — some mis sions bring shock and awe, while others bring boredom. The AI was un impressive, and the narra tive itself was underwhel ming — those who bother to play the campaign may not remember the details for long.

Few games on release are without their bugs and glitches, and Modern Warfare 2 is not one of them. In my 40 hours playing multiplayer on PC, the game has crashed more than 10 times, and graphical bugs would streak across my screen on occasion.

I waited in matchmak ing for long periods be fore realizing a restart was

necessary. I also encoun tered a hacker — a player had “god mode” enabled. "Call of Duty" has be come a seasonal activity and this year’s installment is compelling enough to warrant its purchase. As more content is added, such as the release of "Warzone 2.0" Nov. 16, the title could prove de finitive for the franchise.

Christian McCuury, a catering attendant at McArthur Hall, said it is fun to be a part of the TikTok videos. He said the account

saMuel

Ivy Rose Ball | The Reflector

Anna Shevchenko, right, and her family fled to Starkville, Mississippi, from Ukraine in February due to the Russian invasion.

Courtesy Photo

Megan gordon Contributing writer

Landon Scheel | The Reflector

Annie Doss, known as “Ms. Annie,” and Parker Cunningham, MSU Dining marketing specialist, pose in front of Perry Cafeteria.

Marlar: A win is a win; MSU football outlasts Auburn in overtime

A win is a win is a win. We hear it all the time, but the phrase hit with a little extra "oomph" this Sunday around my usual coffee group. After Mississippi State University's 3933 overtime victory over the Auburn Tigers on Saturday, the Bulldogs were able to put a maroon and white bow atop a very hectic week off.

If head coach Mike Leach made $500,000 dollars off of that game, his defensive coordinator Zach Arnett deserves $499,999 of it. Despite allowing 33 points to what the entire country considers a bad Auburn team, they played incredibly well.

The return of Jaden Crumedy loomed large in the running lanes, as Auburn found staunch resistance

between the tackles thanks in part to the 6-foot-5-inch, 315 pound defensive lineman's efforts. Tyrus Wheat's pair of sacks were game changing, and Wheat showed exactly why his efforts will be needed on Sundays in the near future.

However, we have to talk about it. During the entire third quarter and most of the fourth, the offense looked absolutely abysmal. It looked as though there was a lack of communication between Will Rogers and his receivers, but his offensive line wasn't lending much of a hand either.

Were there plenty of times Rogers should have found someone sooner? Arguably so, but at the same time, the routes weren't great during that particular stretch, and neither was his offensive line. To make matters simple, the passing game worked when it had to.

However, there was one area that MSU abandoned until late in the game, and it's an area that has allowed this offense to cause nightmares for defensive coordinators at times this season: the run game.

MSU ended the game with a grand total of 13 total net rushing yards, the least of any game so far this year (I sure would hope so), and if the offense wants to keep teams on their toes and avoid those thick zone coverages, they must establish the run earlier.

Woody Marks averaged 6.4 yards per carry in the affair, and despite those efforts, only got seven touches. There were only 18 official rush attempts on the night, but five of those were Rogers' sacks, and another was a bobbled snap by punter George Georgopoulos.

I ask you, then, oh wise Bulldog fan, do you still think Will Rogers

had time to throw all night? This is the bottom line, not only because Stone Cold said so, but I did: a win is a win, and this late in the season, you take them however you can get them.

The Bulldogs are now bowl eligible for a record 13th consecutive season. One of those seasons includes a three-win year, but we won't talk about it, because again, take them where you can get them.

Next week, it's Bulldogs squared as MSU takes on the University of Georgia, in what I can only imagine will be a hotlycontested matchup (hopefully). Davis Wade Stadium will need to be jumping for MSU to have a chance against the current favorite for the national championship, but crazier things have happened. That game is a night game, too, with a 6 p.m. kickoff airing on ESPN.

MSU volleyball rebounds by sweeping Alabama on the

The Mississippi State University volleyball team swept the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa Saturday.

After going on a bit of a losing streak in conference play, the Bulldogs had an impressive performance against Alabama — putting up a combined 52 digs, 35 kills and 33 assists against the Crimson Tide.

Graduate player Gabby Waden put up a 12-kill performance in Tuscaloosa, including four digs and three aces, while

senior Gabby Coulter had her fourteenth double-double — recording 26 assists, 11 digs, three kills and an ace.

After the win, Bulldog head coach Julie Darty Dennis discussed Coulter’s impact on the impressive performance from MSU.

"Offensively, Coulter kept us balanced and everyone was efficient," Dennis said. "Lilly (Gunter) anchored us again defensively and had a great service run too.”

The defense also looked sharply improved from previous games, with

senior Lauren Myrick making her presence felt all over the court as she recorded eight digs, a block and an ace.

Freshman Sophie Agee also shone in the win against Alabama with her five kills, four digs and three blocks. The effort on all ends of the ball helped propel the Bulldogs to a 3-0 match victory over the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa.

Coach Dennis gave her evaluation of the Bulldogs’ performance to the media postgame.

"What a great win by the Dawgs," Dennis said. "(I'm) super proud of our effort and execution.

We were disciplined, we worked hard, and got that road win. That first set showed a lot of fight and showed that we weren't willing to back down. I thought it was really impressive how we kept our composure and Lauren was able to finish it out on the service line for us."

With Saturday’s victory, the Bulldogs improve to 13-10 overall record, including 6-7 in SEC play. MSU volleyball returns to Starkville to play the University of Kentucky on Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. The game will also be broadcast live on the SEC Network.

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tanner marlar managing

Junior quarterback Will Rogers broke Dak Prescott’s career record for touchdown passes and passing yards in the win against Auburn. Rogers leads the Southeastern Conference with 2,912

Colin James staff Writer

Jahari Bell | The Reflector

After the win against Alabama, MSU volleyball improves to 13-10 (6-7) on the season.