October 6, 2021

THE TIMES-DELPHIC The weekly student newspaper of Drake University Vol. 141 | No. 6 | Oct. 6, 2021 FEATURES

SPORTS

COMMENTARY

Nonbinary students are being welcomed into sororities this fall.

The Drake women’s soccer team tied Indiana State in double overtime.

Do the trade-offs of mask mandates sometimes outweigh the benefits?

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Drake professors speak out about cuts to course offerings, summer pay

DRAKE PLANS TO MAKE CUTS to course offerings, summer pay, and adjunct faculty hiring to address budget issues. PHOTO BY GRACE ALTENHOFEN | MANAGING EDITOR Grace Altenhofen Managing Editor grace.altenhofen@drake.edu

An email sent to Drake faculty members by Provost Sue Mattison on Sept. 10 has left some professors frustrated and worried about the university’s budget priorities.

The email laid out plans to decrease the number of course offerings in each department and set a new flat rate of pay for teaching summer classes, among other cutbacks.

Mattison said these cuts come in the midst of ongoing budget issues for Drake that led to $4.2 million in salary reductions and a $4.5 million decrease in contributions to faculty members’ retirement funds in the 2020-2021 academic year.

“If you’ve been doing the math, my vision alongside our budget situation and the external environment are at odds, and the vision is not sustainable for Drake through the long term,” Mattison wrote in the email.

Mattison wrote that the proposals in the email are intended to save expenses and allow Drake to increase professors’ salaries in the long run, with the goal being to increase salaries to “80% of the median target for their discipline.” She noted that last year, the university spent

$1.5 million on teaching overloads, not including FirstYear Seminar, January Term courses, Drake Law School courses or Bulldog Foundations courses.

Mattison said she believes these additional courses may contribute to a culture of overwork at Drake.

“Since I’ve been at Drake, the comments and complaints that I hear most frequently is how overworked everybody is, and how underpaid everybody is,” Mattison said.

Additionally, Mattison believes the ability to teach summer classes is a privilege unto itself.

“There are some people that may have kids at home, they may have other responsibilities that [prevent them from teaching] extra during the year or during the summer,” Mattison said.

“And so they don’t have the same opportunities to increase their salaries as other people who do.”

However, some faculty members have expressed concerns over the way in which the university intends to resolve its budget issues.

“Some faculty are concerned that their entire programs or the classes that they teach might have to go away because of things like low enrollment, which basically means that those classes or even entire

programs are not generating enough revenue,” said one Drake professor who asked to remain anonymous. “So for us to provide those classes and programs, that really is an expense to us that we’re not getting the benefit from.”

Another money-saving measure Drake is aiming for is a decrease in the number of adjunct faculty who are brought in to teach classes. For current faculty, this raises the question of whether their workload will be increased to accommodate the shift.

native language, according to a 1978 book she contributed to and the book “Boarding School Seasons” by Minnesota University professor Brenda Child.

“And, where the Indian people are involved, the Anglocontrolled schools, the Bureau of Indian Affairs schools and the missionary and public schools have openly and consistently sought to destroy the native tribal cultures and tried to impose the Anglo culture,” Adeline Wanatee wrote for the book “The Worlds Between Two Rivers.”

Adeline Wanatee went on to advocate for Indigenous rights at the state and national level, and she became the first woman elected to the Meskwaki Tribal Council and the first American Indian inductee of the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame, according to the University of Iowa Press.

who had never returned to their families. Native News Online reported that over the next two months, other First Nations announced the detection of an estimated total of 1,093 more unmarked graves at Indian residential schools across Canada.

“The tragedy at Kamloops is a painful reminder of the human rights violations that occurred at hundreds of Indian boarding schools run by the U.S. government and churches across the United States,” the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS) said in a June 7 press release.

In 1920, Canada’s Indian Act made it mandatory for Indigenous students to attend residential schools, according to the Indigenous Foundations project from the University of British Columbia. After an extensive investigation, Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission concluded in 2015 that the country’s residential school policy from 1867 to the late 1990s had suppressed Indigenous languages and cultures, “institutionalized” child neglect and created educational goals that “usually reflected a low regard” for the intelligence of the students.

“The door had been opened

“If you’ve been doing the math...the vision is not sustainable for Drake through the long term.”

“A lot of the classes that we offer are offered by adjunct professors because Drake historically hasn’t really done a very good job at refilling faculty spots for faculty who have retired,” the anonymous professor said. “So many retirements have happened when we hadn’t actually replaced that faculty [member].

The provost really wants to cut the adjunct budget because from her standpoint, when

she cuts that money out of the budget, she can use that money to raise people’s salaries. But the problem then is, who is going to teach those classes?”

Another concern among professors is the change to summer school pay. Previously, faculty members’ pay for teaching summer classes was a percentage of their salary from the regular school year.

According to the provost’s email, this will change so every professor will be paid the same flat rate for teaching summer classes.

The professor said that lowering some faculty members’ summer pay while raising others does not represent equity.

“What we’re going to do is we’re going to introduce a flat rate for summer pay, which is being sold to us as an equity thing,” the anonymous professor said. “So like, everybody’s going to make the same amount of money. For some faculty, that new flat rate is a small increase, as far as I understand, a few hundred [dollars] more than what the average faculty in those colleges would make if they taught in the summer. For other colleges, as far as I know, it’s an almost 50% decrease in their summer pay.”

Nate Holdren, a Drake professor in the law, politics and society department, said

he has known many faculty members who have left Drake because they were not satisfied with their salaries.

“Because of pay, there’s high turnover, and the turnover is disruptive,” Holdren said.

“Also because of pay, there is a fair amount of dissatisfaction, which just makes it less of a pleasant place to work. It’s a lower quality of life.”

Holdren said that many faculty members only stay because of the job satisfaction they get from the students.

“And I think that’s kind of taking advantage of our better nature because we’re all dedicated to students,” Holdren said. “I think one of the things that means is that the university can treat people this way, and it promotes turnover and it creates all these negative effects.”

Provost Mattison said the reactions from professors are on par with what she expected, but she said that they should remember the benefits of this plan.

“Some people are going to get paid less,” Mattison said.

“But I want them to also recall that they’re going to work less and that they’re going to be paid fairly, so that’s the overarching method while keeping [Drake’s] mission at the center of the curriculum.”

A reckoning follows the detection of hundreds of unmarked graves at Canada’s residential schools Andrew Kennard News Editor andrew.kennard@drake.edu

Marian Wanatee said her mother, Adeline, talked little about her experiences at the Flandreau Indian School in South Dakota and the Haskell Institute in Lawrence, Kansas.

“To me, you know, it was appalling [that] they would be sent off like that from their tribe,” Wanatee said.

Wanatee is a citizen of the Meskwaki Nation, a sovereign government of Indigenous Meskwaki people based in a settlement in Tama County, Iowa. As a child, her mother Adeline attended a federal boarding school system that was created to assimilate Indigneous peoples in the United States and Canada.

Indian boarding school students’ diet lacked “quantity, quality and variety,” dorms were overcrowded and students received substandard education and medical care, according to the 1928 Meriam Report prepared for the Secretary of Interior. The report also said that students above fourth grade spent half of their day maintaining their schools.

Like many other Indigenous students of the boarding schools, Adeline Wanatee was forbidden from speaking her

‘These painful experiences that still linger’ On May 27, the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation announced that a ground penetrating radar scan at the site of the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia, Canada had revealed the remains of 215 students

INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOLS like the Indian Training School have come under new scrutiny. PHOTO COURTESY OF HATHITRUST

early to an appalling level of physical and sexual abuse of students, and it remained open throughout the existence of the system,” the commission’s final report says.

Levi Rickert, founder of the digital publication Native News Online, said he thinks there has been a reckoning in response to the news from Kamloops. Rickert said that a new awareness of racial issues that followed George Floyd’s murder has contributed to the renewed focus on the Indian boarding school systems.

Rickert added that coming to terms with these experiences has been traumatic for Indigenous communities.

“All of the sudden, people are saying, it may be more healthy to talk about these situations,”

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Rickert said. “If we’re going to get to long-term healing, we have to bring it out into the open and start discussing some of these painful experiences that still linger.”

‘A necessary first step’ On June 22, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced the opening of a federal investigation into former U.S. Indian boarding schools.

Haaland said the​​ investigation will identify boarding school facilities and known or potential burial sites near the schools, as well as the identities and tribal affiliations of students taken there. On Sept.

30, the Interior Department CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 >>

02 | News

A closer look at the Indian Training School in Toledo, Iowa >> CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

announced that it had invited tribal governments, Alaska Native corporations and Native Hawaiian organizations to provide feedback for the investigation’s final report and help the department protect burial sites and other sensitive information.

“Beginning with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the United States enacted laws and implemented policies establishing and supporting Indian boarding schools across the nation,” the Interior Department said in a June 22 press release. “The purpose of Indian boarding schools was to culturally assimilate Indigenous children by forcibly relocating them from their families and communities to distant residential facilities where their American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian identities, languages, and beliefs were to be forcibly suppressed. For over 150 years, hundreds of thousands of Indigenous children were taken from their communities.”

On Sept. 30, a bill that would create a Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies in the U.S was reintroduced in Congress, according to a press release from Senator Elizabeth Warren’s office. The proposed commission would investigate and document the experiences, impact, and ongoing effects of the federal boarding school system.

“The work of a commission will be a necessary first step in the healing journeys for many of the generations of Native people who have experienced loss due to Indian boarding schools,” NABS CEO Diindiisi McCleave said in a Sept. 30 press release.

‘We will not give you our children’ According to NABS, 367 boarding schools operated in the United States between 1869 and the 1960s. The Indian Training School at Toledo was established in the late 1890s about four or five miles from the Meskwaki settlement, according to Judge John R. Caldwell’s 1910 history of Tama County.

Following various smallscale attempts to establish schooling for the Meskwaki between 1875 and 1898, demand for assimilation grew strong near the turn of the century, according to MacBurnie Allinson’s 1974 dissertation on “Education and the Mesquakie.”

In 1895, federal Indian agent Horace Rebok organized an “Indian Rights Association,” which held that “the problem of [the Meskwakis’] civilization lies in the line of christianization and education,” according to Rebok, Caldwell and E.C. Ebersole’s report about the association and the Indian Training School in Toledo.

“We have to break the power and influence of the chiefs and medicine men before there will be any marked progress in the

tribe,” Rebok wrote in 1895, according to the report.

In a meeting with Chief Pushetonequa of the Meskwaki, Rebok attempted to convince the chief that having Meskwaki children put in the Indian Training School in Toledo Boarding School would be to their benefit, according to the report.

“My friend, the Musquakies have always been friends to the white people, but they will not accept your school,” Pushetonequa replied, according to Rebok’s report.

“You may come and kill us, but we will not give you our children. I will say no more.”

Despite this, the chief was eventually persuaded to accept the school in open council in late 1898, and by June 30, 1899, total enrollment had climbed to 50 students, according to Rebok’s report.

According to Johnathan Buffalo, the Meskwaki Nation’s current historic preservation director, the children were required to go to the school.

To get more children to attend the school, Rebok went to the Tama district court, according to Caldwell. The court transferred the guardianship of 20 Mesquaki children to, in most instances, federal Indian agent W.G. Malin, according to Rebok’s report and Caldwell.

Rebok’s report says that these children were neglected orphans, although Buffalo said the government did not understand the tribe’s family structure.

“Well, when you live in a tribe, you always have mother and father figures,” Buffalo said. “They may not be your biological parents, but you always have grandma, grandpa that these kids were living with.”

One of Malin’s charges, a Meskwaki girl named Le-lahpuc-ka-chee, left the school without permission, according to Caldwell. Caldwell wrote that an attempt was made to get a warrant for her arrest. On Dec. 29, 1899, a judge ruled that Le-lah-puc-ka-chee could not be compelled to attend the school, according to Buffalo and Caldwell.

“The effect of this decision was disastrous to the school,” Caldwell wrote in his history of Tama County. “The elder Indians had been intensely hostile to it… When the news reached the Indians of the decision above quoted, the school was practically depopulated in a day and very few Mesquakie children have been in attendance since that time.”

Buffalo said that Native Americans from other tribes were then brought in to fill the Indian Training School in Toledo. He said that after the school closed in 1911, the government started sending Meskwaki children to boarding schools in other states— including Adeline Wanatee.

“We won the battle, but in a way, we lost the war,” Buffalo said. “Because our kids ended up being taken far away.”

This article was also published in Native News Online.

MANY MESKWAKI STUDENTS attended federal boarding schools in Iowa or other states. PHOTO COURTESY OF HATHITRUST

Oct. 06, 2021

News

CPHS creates new public health major

THE NEW PUBLIC HEALTH MAJOR offers a way to make a difference to students who are frustrated by the toll taken by the COVID-19 pandemic. PHOTO BY OLIVIA KLASSEN | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Carmon Baker

Contributing Writer carmon.baker@drake.edu

On Aug. 25, Drake University released a statement announcing that the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences would be launching a new public health major.

Health Sciences Department chair and associate professor Cassity Gutierrez said that previously, the public health classes at Drake were combined with the health administration major in CPHS. Gutierrez said the new major will separate these two fields of study.

“We really wanted something that allowed it to be exclusively public health and to get all of the competencies needed to be a public health professional,” Gutierrez said.

According to the Drake website, the major requirements will consist of a minimum of 24 credits in the Drake Curriculum, or general electives, and a minimum of 12 credits in professional electives.

The suggested four-year plan outlines a total of 124 credits.

“Students pursuing the public health major complete courses that promote and support individual and community health and wellbeing,” the press release said.

“They will develop the critical thinking and analytic skills necessary to address topics such as access to health care, health promotion, disease prevention, health disparities, health economics, health policy, and others.”

Gutierrez also emphasized that students in the new program will still be actively involved in other CPHS programs, adding that public health needs “to be part of that healthcare team that we talk about.” She said that a wide variety of students can participate in this program.

Aside from those who want to work in public health fields post-graduate, Gutierrez said she could also see students with this major going on to medical school.

“I could also see a future clinician doing this as their undergrad,” Gutierrez said.

“They would have to make sure in the elective areas that they’re adding all the sciences they need, but I would think someone going through this would be really intentionally doing something in healthcare.”

Gutierrez said that one of her goals is to create a program where students can earn their undergraduate degree in public health and then their master’s degree in an abbreviated time frame. However, she said the first step is for the new program to be accredited as a standalone bachelor’s program by the Council on Public Health.

“But what we did when we designed it was we made sure that it aligned with the competencies that we were going to need to have when we submit for accreditation,” Gutierrez said. “So to make sure that our classes were addressing those core competencies of public health professionals that they want to be in any type of program that will eventually

hopefully get the accreditation.”

One of the main focuses when developing the public health major was avoiding incurring new costs for the university.

According to Gutierrez, there were already classes in CPHS and across campus that would fit into the public health major, especially from the already established Global and Comparative Public Health concentration.

“We wouldn’t want to do anything or add anything that cost the university money over the long run because then we’re taking tuition dollars from students and putting it towards a program that’s not generating and helping to pay for some of the other university services that are provided to all students,” CPHS dean and professor Renae Chesnut said.

Chesnut said that part of the inspiration for the new major came from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has raised awareness about public health issues and careers.

“Something about the pandemic is that it did raise the awareness in society about what someone might do with a public health degree,” Chesnut said.

“A lot of times in some of our professions we have to do a lot of education of potential students about what you can do with a career. And we’ll still have to do that with public health because it’s so broad and varied, but the pandemic has raised the level of understanding of not only what public health is, but the importance of public health.”

Student body elects first-year, Bright College senators Gannon Henry

Student Senate Beat Writer gannon.henry@drake.edu

On Friday, Oct. 1, vice president of student life Connor Oetzmann and student body president Morgan Coleman announced that Mac Muehlberger will be Drake’s first-year senator and Kat Fortin will serve as student senator for Bright College.

Fortin, the only candidate for Bright College, received all of the 8 votes that were cast in the Bright College senate race. The race for first-year senator was considerably more competitive, with Muehlberger receiving 126 votes, Ben Connolly receiving 70 and Armarion Draper receiving 27.

Candidates needed more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid a runoff election between the top two candidates, which Muelhberger secured by 15 votes.

Prior to the election, all three of the first-year candidates spoke at the Sept. 29 forum, with each promoting their own unique approach.

Draper, who is the current RHA diversity chair, highlighted the idea of building a more diverse community where firstyear students have access to more career opportunities.

Connolly’s approach focused on student support and mental health, calling for an academic

environment where students are comfortable enough to pace themselves with college.

Muelhlberger, who ran on the tagline “I’m not running to be my senator, I’m running to be your senator,” based his platform on communication between senate and students.

Fortin, who participated in the forum via a pre-recorded video, promoted building a community between students attending Bright College.

Fortin will be the first Senator to represent Bright College, a newly formed college focused on offering two-year associates degrees in multiple disciplines.

Despite the differences in their overall approach, all of the candidates affirmed that they would try to represent students and listen to their concerns. While campaigning, Muelhberger capitalized on this, using surveys and other online forums to hear from students.

Now that the election is over, he plans to continue using these techniques.

“I’m going to do my best to remind everyone that those forms are up there and that I want to hear from them,” Muehlberger said. “You can bet that I’m going to keep plugging my form, because I want to know what the people want, and I want how I can best represent them.”

As first-year senator, Muelhberger will also be chairman of the first-year

interest committee, which works to “address the activities, policies, programs, and problems pertaining to firstyear students,” according to the student senate website. In previous years, the first-year senator has appointed the other candidates to positions on the first-year interest committee, and Muehlberger plans to follow this trend to help all firstyears feel comfortable in the environment.

“A big part of this is just making sure that first-years feel comfortable in their transition to Drake,” Muehlberger said.

“If we can get students involved and making friends and talking to each other, then they’re not having to constantly worry about being in this new life.”

Outside of his focus on communicating with first-year students, Muehlberger hopes to expand on Drake’s community outreach.

“One of the things I really personally would like to do is get a lot more student involvement with charitable organizations,” said Muehlberger. “I would really love to get the Senate to branch out and do some activities with a lot of charitable organizations or fundraising organizations because it’s always good to do stuff like that.”

Muehlberger and Fortin will attend their first senate meeting on Oct. 7th.

03 | Features

Features

Oct. 06, 2021

Spirit squads return to the track Max Fouts Staff Writer max.fouts@drake.edu

Members of spirit squads, such as the Drake dance and cheerleading teams, are thrilled to once again be performing on the track after spending last year’s football season cooped up on the bleachers due to COVID-19.

“We are ecstatic to be back performing on the track again,” said dance team captain Sydney Skemp, a junior majoring in public relations and advertising.

“We have been working so hard gearing up for this football season, and hope to see many fans out there in the stands.”

Cheerleading coach Maddison Grell said that she is excited for her team to be cheering on the track again as well.

“They were all separate and in the stands last year,” Grell said. “So I’m really excited for them to actually be out and have a full football game experience.”

Students are excited too, such as Malik Patterson, a sophomore majoring in computer science.

“It brings more entertainment to the game, and makes things overall more fun,” Patterson said. “It helps bring the energy to the people.

It helps bring the energy to the crowd. I think that’s a valuable thing to have in a game like basketball or football.”

Many of the spirit squad members said that cheering in the bleachers, although better than nothing, was challenging last year.

“It was pretty discouraging,” said junior cheer member Anna Petropoulos, an actuarial science and data analytics

major. “We really couldn’t do much, especially because it’s a little bit dangerous trying to move a lot on those [the bleachers].”

Senior cheer member Lauren Vein agreed, recounting the time she fell down three levels of stairs during a football game.

“We all learned to cheer in the stands,” Vein said. “I fell. I was jumping.”

Vein, a public relations and history major, said that despite all the downsides to cheering from the bleachers, she was still grateful for having the opportunity to cheer at all.

“It was what we could do and I was grateful for it,” said Vein.

She said despite the challenges her team faced, they have come out the other side stronger, and more committed to the sport, than ever.

“The group of returners, they’re the strongest girls

I know,” Vein said. “To get through that and still be here and excited about the season, I mean, that just tells you how committed they are to the program, to the sport, to the school.”

Petropoulos said to compensate for their lack of movement on the bleachers, the cheer team used a lot of signs and timed motions to get the crowd and players hyped for the game.

But now that they’re allowed back on the track, cheer coach Grell said she’s ready to see her team step it up this year.

“I’m super excited for us to start getting up to some more stunts,” Grell said.

Petropoulos said she, and the rest of the cheerleading team, are ready to meet this challenge.

“I think the most exciting thing is the level of skill we’ve come to,” Petropoulos said.

Skemp said that the dance team is looking forward to performing their quarter break and halftime shows again, as well as possibly gaining sports status this year.

“I really want to focus on getting the team into shape for hopefully gaining sport status and competing in the coming years,” Skemp said. “We were making major headway in the progression of that conversation and COVID has put a halt on making change in status for us.”

Both the dance and cheerleading teams hope to continue their normal cheering into the basketball season, but said they are unsure whether or not the Knapp Center’s indoor setting will allow this to happen.

“We don’t know about the basketball,” Vein said. “We could be in the stands; we could be on the court.”

FOR SOPHOMORE spirit squad members, this is their first time being on the track with their full team. When on their teams last year, they cheered and danced from the stands. And due to COVID protocols, only a certain amount of team members were allowed to be at each game. PHOTO BY OLIVIA KLASSEN | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

drake theatre allows live audiences again Logan Hock Staff Writer logan.hock@drake.edu

Recently, the Drake University theatre program announced that their productions featuring students would once again be held as inperson events after a period of shows being online during the height of COVID-19.

This season’s lineup of shows is set to be the first totally inperson theatre experience since the 2018-2019 season.

Students involved in

upcoming productions have expressed excitement about theatre returning to a sense of normalcy. They claim that a live audience helps enhance their performance which in turn gives the audience better satisfaction.

“An in-person audience is more important to us actors because we can use the audience’s energy as a way to heighten our performance,” said theatre student Abby Rogers.

Theatre faculty and professors have noticed student’s eagerness to get back in front of a live crowd and have

shared their ideas of getting back to a sense of normalcy.

“The students are very ready to get back to live performances,” said Erin Horst, director of the BFA musical theatre program.

“We all learned a lot last year when we had to get creative with our performance platforms, but it will be nice to return to some small sense of normalcy.”

Faculty members stated that in-person performances not only enhance the performances of the students involved, but they also enhance audience enjoyment as well.

“One of the elements that define theatre is its ephemeral nature. It is meant to be enjoyed live and in-person,” said Michael Rothmayer, associate professor of theatre.

While students and faculty have reacted positively to these changes, the lingering issue of COVID-19 is still in the minds of both students and faculty while planning the lineup for this year.

“Per University guidelines, we are requiring masks at our live performances this year for both actors and audience

DRAKE PERFORMANCES take place at the Harmon Fine Arts Center in the Coleman Studio Theater or the Performing Arts Hall theater. There will be two more plays and two musicals coming up for this season. PHOTO BY COURTNEY JACKSON | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

members,” Horst said. “We are hoping this will be the only extra safety measure required, but our situation may change due to the variants going around.”

“One of the elements that define theatre is its ephemeral nature. It is meant to be enjoyed live and in-person.”

Despite the steps taken to ensure the audience’s safety with COVID-19, the eagerness of the students has not diminished.

“The theatre department as a whole has done such an amazing job with keeping everyone safe, and I know we will be able to handle performing live,” Rogers said.

Theatre students hope that the offered in-person performances will spread the same excitement to the student body.

“I genuinely hope that people are just as excited as our cast is to be live in person again,” said Jude Thurman, Drake student and actress in Drake’s upcoming production of “9 to 5.” “Theatre has been hard to do without live audience members, so it would be amazing to see people come and watch us.”

Drake’s first show of the 2021-2022 season, “Medea,” took place this past weekend at Coleman Studio Theater.

04 | Features

Features

Oct. 06, 2021

Outstanding first-years : Maria Heath Bryson Rea Staff Writer bryson.rea@drake.edu

Maria Heath is best known around campus as the definition of the word extroverted.

Throughout the first month of the 2021 fall semester, Heath has gotten involved and taken every opportunity that has been presented towards her, resulting in a long list of student involvement and experiences that have driven her success so far.

Savannah Hamm, a longtime friend of Heath, described her as a leader. Hamm explained how Heath has a mysterious ability to lead people without any prior knowledge of the people around her. This skill, coupled with her caring and inclusive personality, signals to Hamm that Heath will be a strong leader within Drake’s community over the years to come.

“Maria is such a sweet and caring person, and [she] cares about the well-being for all people,” Hamm said. “She is an amazing leader, and she knows how to lead groups of people in the right way.”

Heath has gotten involved in several student organizations, including Delta Gamma, Borealis, the Herriott Hall executive council, Public

Relations Student Society of America and Drake Democrats.

Heath credits this heavy involvement to the Helmick Commons, as she makes sure to stop by any tables that are set up for information on possible student involvement opportunities.

“Maria is such a sweet and caring person, and [she] cares about the well-being for all people. She is an amazing leader, and she knows how to lead groups of people in the right way.”

“I understand I have to maintain a balance for my academics and mental health, but I’m staying very busy,” Heath said. “I’ve been visiting tables on Helmick Commons to learn about new opportunities and taking advantage of all the resources offered at Drake.”

Despite these successes, the college transition was not an easy feat for Heath to conquer.

Like so many other firstyears, Heath struggled with homesickness in her first days of living on campus.

“The biggest struggle was living on my own,” Heath said.

“I called my parents a week into college [feeling] very homesick.

This is the longest I’ve been away from home.”

However, Heath has stood resilient, pushing through these early struggles and finding success early in her college experience.

Heath encourages other first-year students who are struggling with the adjustment process to pay special attention to their mental health. She explained that your ability to take care of your own emotions is just as important as your ability to succeed on-campus.

“It’s okay to not be okay,” Heath said. “College is hard; you’re here, and you’re trying your best. Take care of yourself because you can’t be successful if you’re not healthy. Close that textbook and go eat a real meal.

Turn off the laptop and get a good night’s rest.”

The Outstanding First-Years column presents a profile of one first-year student each week, summarizing their successes up to this point in their college experience. The young students featured in this column have displayed exceeding academic performance and on-campus involvement, along with contributing to the campus community in a positive way.

MARIA HEATH is known around campus for her extroverted personality and her involvement in activities such as Delta Gamma and Drake Democrats. PHOTO COURTESY OF MARIA HEATH

non-binary students now welcomed into sororities Piper Davison Contributing Writer piper.davison@drake.edu

Sororities at Drake University welcomed nonbinary students to participate in primary recruitment this fall semester.

Elyse Dye, a member of Kappa Alpha Theta who identifies as non-binary, said that they believe last year was when Drake Panhellenic Council officially changed their bylaws to allow for non-binary members in sororities.

These changes will ideally welcome a new generation of members who hope to join fraternity and sorority life in the

coming years.

Dye said that most of the language used in chapter meetings and rituals procedures are traditionally gendered.

As Diversity and Inclusion Chair of their sorority, Dye is working with the people who run rituals and chapter meetings to help make their language more inclusive. Dye believes that steps like that should be taken in all chapters, sororities and fraternities, in order to make non-binary people feel more safe and included.

Dye also noted that members were encouraged to put their pronouns in their bios during Zoom recruitment this year.

“Pronouns are usually

something that aren’t discussed in recruitment as it is unfortunately assumed everyone is cis, so it was really nice to have people put their pronouns in their bio,” Dye said.

“If pronouns could be added to name tags for recruitment in the years to come, that would be awesome.”

Despite the use of some inclusive language, the term ‘sisterhood’ will continue to be applied in honor of the traditional value that it has represented for its members.

“The whole time that I went through rush, it was very accepting and very open, you know,” said first-year student Devon Vick, who uses she/they

pronouns. “Everyone respected your pronouns, I think I’ve had more people use my they/them pronouns than my she/her pronouns the whole time I was there.”

“Everyone respected your pronouns, I think I’ve had more people use my they/them pronouns than my she/ her pronouns the whole time I was there.”

Some students predict that

this change will make nonbinary students feel more comfortable.

“It’s definitely something that’s going to make a lot more nonbinary people both now and in the future feel more comfortable,” firstyear nonbinary student Andi Turnbull said. “Especially in a situation where sororities are viewed as full of girls and with nonbinary people, you’re like, ‘Well I don’t want to be there, but I also don’t want to be in fraternities cause that’s like all guys.’ “ Turnbull said that after hearing about the new policy allowing nonbinary students, they will “definitely plan to join rush next year.”

WHEN POTENTIAL new members signed up for formal Panhellenic recruitment, they filled out a form that included what their pronouns were. On the first day of recruitment, they were given a name tag with their name and pronouns on it that they wore for each event. PHOTO BY AUTUMN OSIA PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

05 | Sports

Oct. 06, 2021

Sports

Women’s soccer faces tough Missouri Valley Conference play

THE WOMEN’S SOCCER TEAM beat No. 15 Memphis last month, but is only 0-1-2 in Missouri Valley Conference play so far.

Lia Reichmann Sports Editor lia.reichmann@drake.edu

The Drake women’s soccer team tied Indiana State, 1-1, after going into double overtime last Wednesday, Sept. 29.

The Bulldogs conceded an early goal in the game, putting them down 1-0. In the ninth minute a through pass was played across Drake’s defensive third where Indiana State sophomore forward Sasha Thompson was able to slot past fifth-year senior goalkeeper Kelsie Stone.

“This season we have played all our opponents as if we are the underdogs, because on paper, we are,” said Olivia Bruce, fifthyear forward. “Being ranked seventh in the MVC means that we are expected to lose. So going

down a goal wasn’t something that rattled us, we just knew we’d need to work two times harder if we were going to get back into the game.

Stone faced 15 shots throughout the game with six saves. One notable shot she faced was where she had to make a reaction save on a one touch shot after the ball was crossed through the middle with 12 minutes remaining in the first half. This save helped prevent Indiana State from extending their lead.

“Kelsie took her COVID year, so she is more experienced and mature and a much better version of herself than in her younger years,” Horner said.

“She is doing a better job this year of limiting goal scoring moments that she has to make big saves by organizing her back line and solving problems

before they turn into saves. She also is tremendously confident this year and is handling the pressure of being a senior captain and having fun.”

First-year midfielder Makenna Shepard said the “team’s performance was strong” and that they were able to win all of the “50/50 balls”.

For most of the game Drake was able to maintain possession of the ball, as well as out shoot the Sycamores 24-15.

“We continued to play our game, and play it the way we know how,” Shepard said on what went well during the game. “Our seniors do a great job setting the tone for us and help each other out.”

In the 68th minute junior forward Meghan Brown drew a foul inside the box leading to a penalty kick. Scoring her third goal of the season, sophomore

PHOTO BY LIA REICHMANN | SPORTS EDITOR

forward Emma Nagel took the shot and tied the game up, 1-1.

During both periods of overtime neither team was able to score, so the game ended in a draw.

“Even in the end of the first half we had complete control of the game, so it felt like there were goals in our future,” Horner said. “At halftime we reminded them of where we had number overloads and to keep creating 2v1’s out wide and running at their fullbacks or getting crosses into the box.”

After looking back on the season so far Horner said they had a “really difficult nonconference schedule”.

“To tie at Kansas, win at Iowa State and beat 15th ranked Memphis is a testament to our team’s grit and ability to rise to the occasion,” Horner said. “In

Missouri Valley Conference grows to 12 universities

our first two conference games we dominated possession and created good chances, but didn’t make our opponents work hard enough to score their goals. We have proven to be a team that can limit goals against, and that will be our strength moving forward.”

The Bulldogs lost to Loyola, 4-1, last Sunday on Oct. 3.

However, Bruce said the team believes they can turn things around for the conference tournament.

“Our game against Loyola is always one that we know is going to be a battle,” Bruce said.

“Sunday night didn’t go our way, but we know as a team that we have a lot better to show for the next time we meet up with them.”

Sports Results Men’s Golf Sept. 27 and 28 at Zach Johnson Invitational Drake places first out of 15 teams

Women’s Volleyball Sept. 25 vs Bradley Drake loses 1-3 Oct. 1 at UNI Drake wins 3-0

Cross Country Oct. 1 at Gans Creek Classic Men’s places sixth out of 16 Women’s places ninth out of 16

Football Sept. 25 vs Valparaiso THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE plans to add Belmont University to the conference. PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS JD Snover Staff Writer jd.snover@drake.edu

Drake will face some new teams on a yearly basis, the Missouri Valley Conference announced last week. The conference announced that Belmont University will join the now 11 school conference, and early reports state that Murray State will even the number at 12.

Why the disruption to an already functional system?

The simple answer: conference realignment.

The longer answer: the Missouri Valley is making moves that it should’ve made years ago, and they aren’t the only ones doing it.

This year’s realignment cycle began with news that shook the college sports world: Oklahoma

and Texas were invited to join the Southeastern Conference, a coalition of some of the most competitive schools in collegiate athletics.

For reference, since college football went to a four-team playoff format in the 2014-15 season, four of seven national champions have come from the conference. In baseball, five of the last 10 national champions were SEC schools. So, it is kind of a big deal when that conference expands.

But that decision did more than add a couple teams to the SEC. It opened a gateway for things to shift around in all of Division I, and the Missouri Valley Conference is taking full advantage.

The conference voted unanimously in favor of adding Belmont, which is based in Nashville, Tennessee, but

it’s a move that should’ve happened years ago. In 2013, when Creighton left for the reincarnation of the Big East, and 2017, when Wichita State left for the American Athletic Conference, Belmont was at the head of conversations for expansion, but never agreed to a deal.

This year, though, the conference they’re currently in—the Ohio Valley—is bleeding members. Three members have already left the OVC, leaving the door wide open for the Bruins. They’ve won 20 games in each of their OVC men’s basketball seasons with the OVC, and they’ll be able to compete in a “higher” midmajor conference like the MVC. It puts the conference in a spot to consistently earn two bids to the NCAA tournament, which it did last year when Drake was

one of the last four teams into the selected 68.

Although not official yet as of Friday, Oct. 1, reports state that the conference is looking to even its numbers with Murray State, another refugee of the sinking ship that is the Ohio Valley conference.

The school has produced a lot of talent in recent years, including NBA star Ja Morant, who I think is probably going to end up being one of the best players of his generation by the time he retires. The program is ready to make the jump to the “higher” mid-major level, and the addition would be a great move for the MVC. The NCAA is in a state of realignment, and the Missouri Valley Conference is taking full advantage.

Drake loses 21-24 Oct. 2 at Butler Drake wins 6-3

Women’s Soccer Sept. 29 vs Indiana State Drake ties 1-1 2OT Oct. 3 vs Loyola Drake loses 1-4

Men’s Soccer Sept. 25 at Loyola Drake loses 1-2 OT Sept. 29 at Missouri State Drake loses 1-3 Oct. 3 vs Evansville Drake wins 1-0

06 | Sports

Sports

Oct. 06, 2021

Football team wins close game against Butler University

THIRD-STRING FIRST-YEAR QUARTERBACK BLAKE ELLINGSON helped the Bulldogs narrowly beat Butler in his first career start. PHOTO BY LIA REICHMANN | SPORTS EDITOR Bryson Rea Staff Writer bryson.rea@drake.edu

The Drake Bulldogs came into this past Saturday’s away game against Butler in an odd situation; starting quarterback Ian Corwin and backup Luke Bailey were out due to injury, forcing third-string first-year Blake Ellingson into his first career start.

This short-notice change put pressure on the Bulldogs defense, as their best chance to win would come from a lowscoring affair. Luckily for them, the Bulldogs defense came prepared.

The Bulldogs dominated defensively, allowing just three points and 245 total yards of offense for Butler to work with. This dominant defensive

performance carried Drake to a win, as the Bulldogs were only able to score six points offensively. Without this nearperfect defensive performance the Bulldogs would have likely fallen short of a victory.

Following the Bulldogs loss against Valparaiso at home over a week ago, then-starting quarterback Bailey explained that the team had the ability to win out if they played their best football.

“I believe we can win out the rest of the season and continue our hopes for a top spot in the conference,” Bailey said.

So far, this prediction has held up. The Bulldogs focused on minimizing mistakes offensively this week, and it paid off. Drake’s Ellington played a key part in this, ending the game with no interceptions despite a day full of contested

passing lanes.

“It always feels good to not turnover the ball in such a chaotic sport like football,” Ellington said. “Being coached up the right way throughout the practice week on where and when to deliver the ball gave me the confidence I needed before the game even started.”

Even though Ellington’s performance was not particularly flashy, his ball security played a large role in the Bulldogs ability to play downhill defensively.

The Bulldogs defense came to play when it mattered most on Saturday, with several crucial stops deep within their own territory. When asked about the most influential aspects of Saturday’s game, Ellington started by noting the Bulldogs ability to stop Butler with their backs against the wall.

The Bulldogs minuscule offensive production came primarily from Cross Robinson, who racked up 63 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

Cross Robinson has maintained his stance as one of the most consistent producers within the Bulldogs offense, averaging over 60 yards a game through the Bulldogs first two league match-ups.

Colin Howard has also continued to dominate offensively, with four receptions for 92 yards on the day, extending his streak as the Bulldogs leader in receiving yards in every game this season.

Drake’s match-up against Butler was put to rest with a seven-yard first down pass from Ellington to tight end Ryan Hayes with 1:53 left in the game, the final nail in the coffin as the Bulldogs knelt the clock down

to 0:00 following that play.

Moving forward, the Bulldogs will likely focus on increasing offensive production and maintaining consistency defensively.

“Our defense has to keep being themselves, physical and smart,” Ellington. “Offensively we will have to string together better possessions and eliminate mistakes in order to put more points up and take down Dayton.”

There’s no doubt that Drake will have to put up more points next week to win, facing a Dayton team that has scored a total of 101 points in their last two games alone. Knowing whether they do so will have to wait until Saturday, Oct. 9, but there is no doubt that this Bulldogs team will come home ready to play.

shanghai dragons win grand finals in last season of overwatch

1

THE FIRST PEAK at Overwatch 2’s new game mode, push, was played during the half time of the Grand Finals by pro players. PHOTO BY LIA REICHMANN | SPORTS EDITOR Lia Reichmann Sports Editor lia.reichmann@drake.edu

The Shanghai Dragons, a team that became unfortunately famous for losing 41 straight games of Overwatch in the professional esports league OWL, has completed an almost fairytale ending after winning the Grand Finals last week.

In a dominating 4-0 win against the Atlanta Reign the Dragons proved that they were a step above the rest of the league. They were a strong team throughout the season and through each stage forced teams to play to what they wanted, creating the meta.

OWL will have played the

last professional match of Overwatch 1 with the Grand Finals as it has been confirmed next season will be played on Overwatch2. Overwatch as we know it will be completely different as the sequel is set to come out next year and will be quite different.

There will be many changes to the game, but one of the biggest changes will be a smaller lineup from 6v6 to 5v5 with one tank being removed. Another change that I and many other fans are thankful for is that the much hated assault map type or “2CP” will be replaced by push, a new map type.

During the halftime of the Grand Finals fans got to witness an exhibition game of push being played by pro players from the LA Gladiators and Washington

Justice. During this game mode players are in a smaller map, which means more fights and action, trying to control a robot that is pushing a payload with a certain amount of time allotted.

While I would have rather seen more gameplay and less commentary from the casters the new game mode looks pretty fun and action packed.

In OW2 there will also be new heroes, with only Sojourn confirmed, character designs and reworks. They revealed new hero abilities for Bastion and Sombra during the game which should add an interesting new element to the new game.

Some of these changes include Bastion’s ultimate which is now an artillery strike where you can strike three areas of the map where rockets will hit. Sombra

can also now hack while in stealth mode only briefly revealing herself to the enemy team and her ultimate, EMP, will do 40 percent damage to an enemies current health and will still hack them.

All of these changes and the ones that have been slowly revealed to us over the last few years seem promising and have caused new excitement within fans and players alike. However, all of this comes upon what has been a tumultuous year for Overwatch, its community and the company that made the game, Activision Blizzard.

Not only were there rampant sexual harassment, abuse and discrimination allegations against Blizzard, but lead game developer Jeff Kaplan left the company last spring after

almost 20 years with Blizzard.

Even a character, McCree, will have a change to his name as the lead designer he was named after, Jesse McCree, was associated with the allegations.

However, Blizzard is trying to get past all of this and continues to work on releasing OW2 as the deadline had previously kept being pushed back each year.

Who knows how the new season of OWL will go with one less tank in the game or what Blizzard will do to fix the company culture, but for now I will be slightly optimistic that the new game will actually come out next year and will give the community the game it deserves.

07 | Commentary

Commentary

Oct. 06, 2021

taking off the mask: a monumental task Mackenzie Swenson Contributing Writer mackenzie.swenson@drake.edu

It’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Not a soul is in the vicinity; you are completely, totally alone in the void that is the third floor of Cowles Library. You slide your mask down, imagining that there is no rational reason for you to hinder your studying with the aforementioned piece of cloth.

However, not five minutes later, a kind library worker asks you to pull your mask up, and you, not wanting to initiate a conflict, oblige.

As is often the issue with broad regulations, Drake’s mask mandate allows too little room for reasonable exceptions.

By now, society is aware of the benefits masks provide in preventing the spread of COVID. However, there are times when wearing a mask is practically pointless - such as when a student is studying or exercising alone.

According to the CDC, COVID spreads primarily through respiratory droplets between people less than six feet apart and rarely through contact with surfaces. Therefore, if an individual is sufficiently spaced from those around them, wearing a mask only creates discomfort without the benefits of illness protection.

Even then, if Drake believes that the minimal possibility of transference through surfaces is cause for concern, it can provide students with disinfectant wipes

in place of mandating masks.

I for one would be thrilled to wipe down my three-walled individual studying cubicle or exercise machine after use if it meant that I would not have to wear a mask for the duration of my activity.

Of course, not everyone will be bothered by a mask while studying or even during exercising. However, those who are bothered can be inconvenienced or downright harmed by unreasonable mask mandates. For instance, I have yet to use the lovely facility known as the Bell Center because I am simply not athletic enough to handle exercise in a mask, even though one of my main goals for this year was to begin regular cardio and weight training to improve my physical health. In place of cardio on a treadmill, I have opted for jogging around campus in the hot sun, but I have yet to find a reasonable replacement for weight training.

That said, I know many others who altogether scrapped the idea of staying fit due to the mask mandate in the campus’s primary recreational facility. Hence, a policy that was designed to promote health is instead hindering health.

Likewise, mask requirements in the library can hurt certain students academically.

When possible, I attempt to study outside or find empty unmonitored rooms in academic buildings because I find the mask to be detrimental to my studying. When this is

not an option and I wind up at a secluded work desk on the third floor of Cowles, I often find myself tugging at the earloops, pulling down the nosepiece or frequently removing the mask to take a sip of water. (Yes, I have a well-fitting, breathable mask. Yes, I face some of these same issues during classes but am willing to endure for the benefit of those around me. And yes, I may have undiagnosed OCD.) If a student like myself is respectfully socially distancing while studying, a mask provides minimal health benefit and yet causes productivity to suffer.

This isn’t to mention that students often hang out maskless in dorms and the dining hall - activities far more likely to cause transmission than studying alone in the library.

The potential danger posed by the hours-old remnants of a student’s respiratory droplets is comparatively minute. Of course, you could argue for the reverse solution to eliminating this inconsistency: Require that students wear masks whenever possible indoors, including in the dorms and after eating. However, given the low transmission rates on Drake’s campus, I think it is safe to say that these activities have minimal impact and can therefore proceed as normal.

If wearing a mask in the aforementioned situations provides little protection but can be detrimental to a student’s physical and academic well-being, why, you might ask, would an institution of

MASKS IN THE SHOWER, masks in the car, masks in the desolate attic of the library. One writer points out the absurdity and redundancy of it all; but hey, in the event that the desk coughs... it’d behoove you to mask up. PHOTO COURTESY OF FLICKR

academics institute such a policy? This requires a more in-depth look at the influences of public opinion, especially academic public opinion, on our institutions of higher education.

While it is typically good that these institutions cater policies to those they serve, college students - and even college faculty - are rarely experts on matters of health policy, save a few specialized professors. What follows is that some of these policies become performative; they act as statements of

adherence to socially acceptable agendas rather than guidelines grounded in scientific fact.

Once again, I do not believe that any portion of the mask mandate was designed to be harmful; Drake administration simply wants to do what is best for students and faculty. In the end, however, recognizing when science and public opinion conflict is vital to creating policies that benefit all students without causing unnecessary health or academic damage.

Yuma rice and pumpkin spice: one cook’s advice Mylo Bissell Contributing Writer mylo.bissell@drake.edu

Cooking is more than just a comfort. It’s a piece of home and a way to connect each of us together. After taking this story, I texted my friends that I was cooking the next day and immediately the energy was better.

So I picked two recipes: apple dumplings and yuma rice, a connection to my home that I can share with them from our dorm, which came with it’s unique struggles.

I didn’t have access to the same tools I was used to so I ended up cutting my apples with scissors and using a spatula instead of a spoon to make my caramel sauce. I made everything in disposable bread loaf pans instead of it’s usual casserole dish and nothing was as seasoned as I’d have liked because it didn’t make sense to buy those things when everything got stored in a communal kitchen.

In spite of this, my friends have already asked for these items again, either because they are very kind or just tired of Hubbell, but so you may impress your friends as well, here are the recipes: Yuma Rice Yuma rice is a gooey rice dish with a mild tang that creates a light umami to contrast the way the warmth of the dish fills your stomach and soul.

Ingredients: 1 8-oz tub of sour cream 2 4-oz can of green chilies 1-2 bags of monterey jack cheese 1 box of Minute Rice Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. 2. Prepare the rice. (You can make rice in a rice cooker or on a pot on the stove, I went for minute rice to have the option of making it in the microwave cuz it made the whole process easier and a little less time/ space consuming. I was also working with one pot for both recipes so it made things a little more complicated.)

3. Mix the rice, sour cream(just a few dollops) and green chilies and put it in the casserole dish or bake tray.

(This step is really up to you what you’re aiming for while mixing is a very creamy mix that makes something similar to the sound mac and cheese makes) 4. Put a little bit of cheese on top for aesthetic (optional) 5.Bake it for 25 minutes or until bubbly and a little golden Apple dumplings Apple dumplings are like an apple pie with a warm almost caramel like sauce that’s a hug on a plate.

Ingredients: 2 granny smith apples 1 cans crescent dough 3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) butter 1 c. brown sugar 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract Pinch kosher salt 8 oz. ginger ale soda Directions: 1.Preheat oven to 350° 2. Dice the apples (optional: peel them) 3. Separate crescent dough into triangles and put your apples at the widest part then roll into standard crescent roll shape or a ball shape. Place into prepared pan.

4. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt together.

5. Pour mixture over apples.

6.Pour soda around edge of pan, trying to avoid pouring on top of dumplings.

7. Bake dumplings until golden, 30 minutes.

Optional but recommended: Serve warm with ice cream and spoon sauce from pan over dumplings.

Nothing about the process or end result was perfect. There are more things I think could have gone right but didn’t, changes I’d make, ingredients I’d substitute for, but the joy of sharing my meal with my friends? The kind of laughter that can only come from a home-cooked meal shared around a table with those you care about? It made every minute of difficulty worth it. I

BOBBY FLAY, RACHEL RAY AND A FALL DAY. Don’t know how to cook? What the hell are you waiting for? Grab your mother’s cookbook from 1810 off the shelf, watch 240p DIY YouTube videos, and get to shaking and baking! It ain’t so hard; first, set the oven to 425 degrees. No--- that’s Papa Murphy’s. Then, uh, grab some salt... always need to salt. Ah, screw it. The finished product doesn’t need to look like a product of “Nailed It!” anyway. PHOTOS COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

hope to become a pro at dorm cooking and if you make these recipes too don’t feel afraid to improvise. Change the apples

for peaches or pumpkin pie filling, change the cheese in your rice, add sauteed onions and bell peppers instead of

green chiles. Make something you can share that you feel proud of. It’s just one more way to make campus feel like home.

08 | Commentary

Commentary

Oct. 06, 2021

Autumn activities: have a ball this fall want it to be, but most include a pair of fuzzy socks, a Halloween cup, some candy, and any inside jokes you share with your friends. I like to go to Dollar Tree and buy them out of anything that they have that reminds me of my friends, and has to do with Halloween. Spooky Baskets are such a thoughtful and lovely gift for everyone involved, trust me, your friends will love them!

Photoshoots: There are so many fun photo shoots to have with your friends! A few of my personal Pinterest favorites include, but are not limited to, the sheet ghosts (where you take sheets and shades and look like ghosts around spooky places or campus), pumpkin head (where you buy a big pumpkin, carve it, put something to protect your hair over your hair and dress up to the nines) and the forever classic leaves, where you get a bunch of leaves, and throw them up in the air, and have fun with it! If you need more ideas, a quick Pinterest search will give you infinite ideas. You don’t need a fancy camera to take good photos either, you can use your phone to take advantage of the changing colors and falling leaves.

Take a hike: One of my favorites, going to explore nature for yourself! Fall

Olivia Klassen Contributing Writer olivia.klassen@drake.edu

The fall vibes are just around the corner! With classes being in full swing, and midterms creeping up on us all, it’s important to take some breaks and let yourself enjoy the warmish yet cold enough to wear a sweater weather, and it so happens that Des Moines offers a wide variety of fun fall activities for all!

The Downtown Farmers Market: The first, and most fall activity is the farmers market in Downtown Des Moines, which occurs every Saturday from 7 a.m.-12 p.m. and in October from 8 a.m.-12 p.m. until Oct. 30. The market has been rated second in the country and offers a wide variety of homemade foods, fresh cut flowers, art, and more. If you’re interested in going, the market is located in Downtown’s Court District. To learn more, you can check out their website.

Make spooky baskets for your friends: Fall is home of Halloween, and while most of us are too old and tired for trick or treating, you’re never too old to get into the spooky mood. A spooky basket can be anything you

MARVEL AT THE FALL COLORS, stuff your face with Mike & Ikes, go bobbing for apples... actually, maybe take a rain check on that last one. One writer lists some festive activities that’ll trump roasting in front of a seasonal mood lamp any day. PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

is the perfect time to go hiking, tent camping, or just to explore Iowa’s county and state parks.

A few parks close to the Des Moines area that I personally love are Margo Frakel State Park in Polk County, Ledges State Park in Boone County and Walnut Woods State Park in

West Des Moines. If you decide to go for a hike, camp or just to hang out please remember food, water, and to share your location with someone. Please don’t assume you know the land well enough and are able to go alone unless you are experienced in this region. Bringing someone

else in case you get lost or hurt is a great idea.

I hope you all find fun in fall with some of my ideas above and your own traditions! I wish all of you survival of your midterms and a mouthful of those cookies with pumpkins or ghosts on them.

Zoom in the room: students marooned Maddi Cave Contributing Writer maddi.cave@drake.edu

COVID— I’m tired of it, you’re tired of it. Most everyone is sick of hearing about the pandemic in the news, wearing masks and listening to goofy people argue about whether or not there are actually GPS government tracking devices in the vaccines. (Obviously there are, lol.) The fact is, though, that last year was pretty brutal for every single one of us in some way or another— and that is alright to talk about from time to time.

Whether you’re a freshman coming off a senior year of event cancellations and Zoom classes or you’re an upperclassman coming off a couple years of “going to college” from your hometown bedroom, I think I speak for everyone when I say that I am happy to see things getting back to normal. We are able to be together on campus, socialize with new people, and get back to participating in clubs and activities… however...

There is one aspect of our crazy 2020 that still lingers: the good... the easy... the evil…

Online class!!?!? (cue screaming with with simultaneous jazz hands) Despite the fact that all students and teachers are back on campus full-time, many of Drake’s classes continue to use online formats. Some professors are switching back and forth between online and

in-person, others schedule periodic online “practice” classes, and others just flatout still hold the majority of their classes online. Of course, it is great that professors have the ability to switch their class online when last-minute safety concerns arise… but how do Drake students feel when their professors just host a class online for the sole purpose of preference?

I decided to poll Drake students to find out.

Of the twenty-some students (a mix of genders and grades, first-year through junior) that agreed to take my anonymous questionnaire, 68.8% reported that they preferred to take their college classes in-person.

Only 6.3% reported that they preferred taking their classes online, and the remaining 25% said they had no preference.

Despite some people’s preferences, only one person who filled out the survey felt that they “learned better” in an online setting vs. an in-person setting… everyone else reported that they learned better inperson.

The next part of my questionnaire asked participants to indicate which problems they do or don’t face in their online classes versus inperson classes. 100% of people who answered this portion reported that they feel “It is too easy to get distracted” during an online class, whereas only 18.2% reported feeling this way in in-person class. 86.7% of participants reported feeling

THE TIMES-DELPHIC The student newspaper for Drake University since 1884 EMMA BRUSTKERN Editor-in-Chief emma.brustkern@drake.edu JEFF INMAN, Faculty Advisor jeffrey.inman@drake.edu

GRACE ALTENHOFEN, Managing Editor grace.altenhofen@drake.edu

ANDREW KENNARD, News Editor andrew.kennard@drake.edu

AUTUMN OSIA, Photo Editor autumn.osia@drake.edu

CASSANDRA SCHOENE, Features Editor cassie.schoene@drake.edu

MAX BROWN, Digital Editor max.brown@drake.edu

LIA REICHMANN, Sports Editor lia.reichmann@drake.edu COLIN FRIER, Commentary Editor colin.frier@drake.edu

CAT FARRELL, Media Manager cat.farrell@drake.edu ERIN DUENWALD, Copy Editor erin.duenwald@drake.edu

THE SUN IS SHINING IN THE SKY... and I’m stuck on Blackboard Collaborate, sings ELO... in an alternate universe. An in-person university with online classes... one of the parties in this deal got the shaft, that’s for sure. One writer poses a query to the student populace: would you rather raise your “virtual” hand, or real hand? PHOTO COURTESY OF MADDI CAVE | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

that “It is difficult to get involved in class discussion” and “It is difficult to answer the teacher’s questions” in an online class, whereas only 18.2% feel it is difficult to get involved in inperson discussion and 45.5% feel it is difficult to answer teachers’ in-person questions.

In the last part of my questionnaire, I asked people if they had any last “burning remarks” about online vs. inperson classes. One student said, “Online classes lose the sense of a personalized approach to education, and it is much more

difficult for me to get engaged and stay engaged in an online class discussion.” Another student said that, although they “wouldn’t be extremely upset if some of [their] classes switched to online, … [they] didn’t learn as much doing online classes last year.”

Though everyone’s opinions and preferences on online classes differ, I think one participant’s remark says it best: “College students attending an in-person university came here to be immersed in their academics, not sit in their room

on their phones while the lecture is in-session… If the school has the capability and resources, they should take initiative to provide in-person classes. #speakingfromtheheart” Many people are here at an in-person university because they’re ready to ditch the distractions and low-motivation of the online classroom and be in an environment where they can truly learn. Hopefully our professors feel ready to give us that same commitment… face to face, not screen to screen.

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