The Arbiter Vol. 36 Issue 15 | 4.11.24

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

ON THE COVER:

It is an uphill battle being a female athlete. Since the passage of Title IX, women have been battling the stereotypes surrounding their presence in sports. In order to defeat stereotypes, female athletes at Boise State are constantly working hard to raise the bar in their respective sport.

HOW TO REACH US:

As a student-run organization, we produce accurate and hyper-local information through non-partisan and socially responsible media. MISSION:

Photo of Channel Tres performing at Treefort 2024.

Photo by Taya Power-Thornton

Election Results: Isaac Celedon and Kate Perkes win ASBSU President and VP

The election results for President, Vice President and other positions for ASBSU have been announced

Kiryn Willett | News Editor | news@stumedia.boisestate.edu

On April 5, the results of the ASBSU elections that took place from April 3-4 were announced through email to BSU students. The elections used a ranked

choice voting system.

A total of 1,778 students voted, which was 12.3% of the eligible voters.

The Stampede was running on a platform focused on mental health, parking

and advising. While Believe in Boise State focused on mental health as well, their campaign included supporting diversity on campus and sexual assault awareness.

Isaac Celedon and Kate Perkes from The Stampede won President and Vice President with 1,113 votes, which was 68.7% of the votes. Celadon served as the Assembly Leader for part of the 20232024 academic year. Perkes is a freshman, and is new to ASBSU.

The Stampede’s platform is affordability, accessibility and meaningfulness.

The Stampede wants to increase student involvement, reduce parking costs and improve dining. The Stampede also intends to have a more central advising model and improve advising. Additionally, they plan on publicizing locations, dates and agendas of meetings to incentivize student participation.

Ethan LaHaug from The Stampede won the election for AVP of Ethics Affairs with 1,208 votes, 77.6% of the votes cast for that position. The AVPEA is responsible for upholding Code and the Constitution, processing complaints about potential violations of Code or the Constitution, and implement changes to Code or regulations passed by the legislature.

LaHaug served as the Senate leader this year, and was one of the complainants in an ethics complaint filed against current President Cheyon Sheen and the former AVPEA Nathan Hoang. LaHaug wrote a significant portion of the current code and some of the Constitution passed last year. LaHaug is affiliated with Turning Point USA, a right wing organization that is hosting Dr. Scott Yenor to give a talk on “compulsory feminism” on campus. Yenor recently made international headlines for allegedly using university resources to

organize a christian nationalist group.

Natalie Rivera from The Stampede won the election for AVP of Financial Affairs with 1,157 votes, 73.0% of the votes cast for that position. The AVPFA is the primary student representative and serves as the Chair for the Student Funding Board.

Natalie Rivera does not have previous experience in ASBSU, but ran on a platform that included simplifying the grant process. When asked how she planned to accomplish this during the elections debate, Riviera did not give specifics but said “I might not know how to do this, but I’m willing to learn.”

Nick Lloyd from The Stampede won the election for AVP of Academic Affairs with 1,125 votes, 70.5% of the votes cast for that position. The AVPAA is the student representative for academic affairs, chairs the Student Senate and serves as a student representative at the Faculty Senate.

Deigo Tapia, running unopposed from The Stampede, won the election for AVP of Inclusive Excellence with 1,412 votes, 92.3% of the votes cast for that position. Tapia served as the AVPIE the 2023-2024 academic year as well. The AVPIE is the primary representative for under-served student populations, and appoints six students from under-served student populations to the General Assembly.

Other positions such as Senators for the colleges were voted on as well. Students had the opportunity to vote for their student Senator for colleges they are affiliated with. Both the ballots and the results were sent out through email.

More information about the candidates can be found on their campaign social media or the elections page of ASBSU. Inauguration will take place at 4:30 on April 11, 2024.

Newly elected ASBSU President Isaac Celedon. Photo by Taya Power-Thornton

Potential changes in gun access on campuses

SB 1228 and HB415 pose changes to firearm regulations in Idaho schools

Kiryn Willett and Jaxon Holmes | News Editor & Staff Writer | news@stumedia.boisestate.edu

Firearm access is not a new concern for Idahoans. Since the beginning of the 2024 legislative session, Idaho lawmakers have brought four gun-related bills to the State Legislature. Boise State hasn’t had a change in their gun policies since 2015, when Section 183302 allowed gun owners with enhanced concealed carry permits to carry firearms on campus. In January 2024, Senate republicans introduced a bill that aimed to change this. The proposed legislation would allow anyone with a concealed carry permit to possess a firearm on public college campuses.

In 2023, Campus Safety responded to six reports of weapons violations at Boise State. Tana Monroe, Director of Security, Police and Event Operations, explained these situations.

“When there is someone with a gun, and

we see it … we want to have a conversation with them. Sometimes it’s education and we just need to inform them what the law says”.

Monroe is unsure how a change in the law like this would look like for campus security, stating, “We will figure out what that looks like and feels like on our campus and what people are comfortable with.”

Monroe said it would be critical for students and staff to understand what is expected of them.

“The most important thing is we want to have conversations with people, educate, and inform and make sure that if people see something, they call us,” Monroe said. The concealed carry bill, S1228, remains in the Senate Affairs committee. A similar bill introduced in 2023 never made it out of the committee.

College campuses aren’t the only places facing possible changes in firearm regulations.

House Bill 415 would allow employees at K-12 institutions with enhanced licenses to conceal carry weapons on campus. It passed the Idaho House with a 53-16-1 vote on Jan. 31, but then referred to the State Affairs Committee.

The bill’s proponent, Rep Ted Hill, said that the more ideal solution would be for schools to have trained security guards, but that the legislature and constituents would not fund it.

“We’re not going to spend the money. We’ll spend that much money to defend your boat in a storage unit, people will definitely spend the money there. They’ll spend 200 bucks for a fence around their boat, and for their bank, but they want to spend 20 bucks for their kids and their school security,” Hill said.

According to Hill, when it comes to gun violence at schools the police often arrive after many have already been killed, which makes this bill necessary. Hill described schools as a “chasm of vulnerability” and wants to remove the gun free zone signs on schools. Hill said the legislation was a “deterrent piece”.

Hill believes the fears of guns being used incorrectly or being taken from teachers is “not based in reality”.

“A lot of it’s the fear of guns and guns are bad. But the problem was bad people have guns, they’re very bad. And so we’re trying to defend it with good people with guns,” Hill said. “This is an obscure thing that’s never happened. So we just won’t do anything because of that — something that’s a fear that’s literally never happened.”

Yvonne Shen, a Boise High student and a board member for March For Our Lives, a student-led organization that advocates for gun control, said the bill won’t protect children.

“From a logistical standpoint, it’s not going to protect kids. I think the intention

of protecting kids is 100%. Correct. And I totally agree with that. But logically, like when you think about it, I guess from two sides, right,” Shen said. “The first side is like, you know, if you’re arming teachers, and they can have a faster response to these kinds of, you know, school shootings and whatnot, but the real like, the reality is more so that it’s just gonna give more access to guns in the first place. And it’s just gonna cause more harm than good.”

Shen shared concerns about misfiring or misplacing a firearm, and the mental health crisis that young people are experiencing. Shen said the bill does not ensure people are properly trained, and the idea that people who aren’t properly trained could bring guns on campus was “scary”.

“It would definitely make me a lot more scared to go to school, and especially with the parts of the bill that allow for other like school volunteers to concealed carry on campus as well,” Yvonne said. “I think for me, that’s one of the main concerns, just knowing that someone could show up to my school as like a volunteer and have a gun on them.”

Jacqui Hamilton leads the Idaho Chapter of Moms Demand Action, a grassroots organization that supports gun restrictions that she says is “extremely opposed” to this measure.

Current Idaho laws allow school districts to implement individual policies to allow staff to carry concealed weapons on campuses. “School board members are the closest to the community and know what the community needs … we want them to leave it in local control,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton has been working closely with those that would be most affected by this bill. “I do not know a single teacher [in the area] that is in support of this bill … We already have the mechanisms in place for those districts that want to do that.”

Photo of the Prohibited Items signage.

Photo by Niamh Brennan

Part 2: The ASBSU Review Board has ruled in favor of an ethics complaint

The complaint filed against ASBSU President and AVPEA has been settled

Kiryn Willett | News Editor | news@stumedia.boisestate.edu

Article While the Review Board did determine that Sheen and Hoang had failed to recognize the Senate’s decision, the ruling wasn’t made until March — over four months after the complaint was filed.

The delay

The process of getting a ruling on the complaint took months. According to Engstrom, the Review Board was only operational for two weeks out of the first semester. Part of the delay in the ruling was the fact that the Review Board was incomplete.

Sheen appointed members to be confirmed for the Review Board, so the complaint could be decided with a full Review Board, but her first two appointments were denied by the Senate.

Her first denied appointment for Review Board Chief was the former Chief of Staff, Zane Rivers.

When asked by LaHaug during his confirmation hearing if his resignation was due to a “serious ethics breach”, referring to filing a complaint against Engstrom and recommending Sheen fire the SFB officers, Rivers stated he sat down with Engstrom and they “talked like adults” and “worked it out”.

Engstrom was then asked to speak on the issue, and summarized the events that transpired. When asked to respond to Engstrom’s accusation, Rivers stated he did not disagree with what Engstrom said.

“I told you what I thought Chief of Staff was. My job was to protect Chey [Cheyon Sheen] and that is what I did,” Rivers said during the meeting to confirm or deny his appointment.

Rivers was not confirmed, with one member voting yes, seven members voting no, and three abstaining.

“I appreciate having been nominated. The confirmation process is one

aspect of ASBSU that’s more about internal dynamics than broader student concerns. At the end of the day, we’re all friends and committed to the university’s wellbeing. I look forward to supporting our awesome campus community in other ways,” Rivers wrote in an email to The Arbiter.

In an interview with The Arbiter, Rivers claimed he was not given enough time to address everything he wanted to say about the claims Engstrom made during the meeting.

“I think it’s important to note the distinction that the account of events he provided in my Senate confirmation hearing is very different than the account events I now see him claiming. And I was constrained in that Senate confirmation hearing and limited in my ability to respond in fact, I wouldn’t have had a chance to respond at all had it not been for the advocation of a of a senator and even so I only got a brief few seconds to to respond to what had been a multi minute rant,” Rivers said. “The account of events Mr. Engstrom in that Senate confirmation hearing, I did not dispute his account of events, I highly dispute his characterization of those events.”

Sheen then appointed Adele Stireman, who is one of Sheen’s roommates. When asked about whether or not this posed a conflict of interest, Stireman said she believed she could remain unbiased and had told Sheen there is “no communication about ASBSU in our house”. While deciding whether or not to confirm Stireman, members expressed concern over a potential conflict of interest.

Hali Higgins, Graduate College Senator, asked if anyone knew why they “kept getting people who are a huge conflict of interest”.

Everest K.C., Graduate College

Senator, responded, “Because the complaint is against Chey”.

Engstrom and LaHaug also expressed discontent with the appointments.

“As a person I definitely like her but I am concerned about a conflict of interest,” LaHaug said during the meeting to confirm. “I am not a fan that Chey is appointing a friend.”

LaHaug had previously spoken in favor of appointing Max Harris during his confirmation, someone he openly described as his friend during Harris’s confirmation hearing for the Review Board. LaHaug claims he has not spoken to Harris since, and does not hang out with him as friends to avoid bias.

Engstrom said it was “disrespectful” they were not getting appointments “an arm’s length [away] at all”.

Mark Nelson, a COAS Senator, said he believed if they found someone for Sheen, she would be amenable to appointing them.

“If we’re gonna mow down everybody that Chey says, then it would become our responsibility to give her a list of values that we wanted. I mean, they should be the same ones that are written in the rules. But you guys go find them,” Nelson said. “Like while even in the Senate today, people were making accusations [and] that deal, saying well, if the President doesn’t sign up by five minutes, ‘screw her’ kind of deal. That stuff should not be in there.”

Stireman’s confirmation was denied, with nine members voting no and two abstaining. Gregor Posadas was confirmed as Review Board Chief on Feb. 8. The Review Board was then trained before the hearing finally took place.

The impacts

But for Peña, the infighting has had real impacts on the ability of ASBSU to function.

“I think it’s just generally the attitude, like the culture towards ASBSU. I think that is the defining issue here,” Peña said. “There should be no infighting that can’t be resolved within a single meeting, let alone multiple school years of fighting. It’s completely unnecessary, and it only serves to disbenefit our students. And more and more people, myself included, have raised that concern, and time and time again, the same people, the same bad faith actors who have ignored that concern, continue to ignore it. So that’s where I’m super passionate with ASBSU, that’s what I really think needs to be said.”

Peña stated that some elected officials were “bad faith actors” and “strongly advise[d]” constituents to not re-elect them. Peña also claimed he was told there was “no interest” in finding College of Engineering senators for empty positions when he attempted to do so.

Currently, both the College of Engineering and the College of Education do not have all their positions filled for ASBSU.

ASBSU has currently spent nearly 80% of its budget, but has only passed seven bills. According to Peña, last year ASBSU passed approximately 30 bills, showing a large discrepancy between what the number of bills the current administration has passed compared to the previous year.

When asked if infighting has contributed to the lack of bills passed, Peña replied, “100%”.

“We have been working for so long to just get everyone to work together that we have not been able to get stuff done,” Peña said. “Furthermore, I think we need to be proposing more bills. I really really commend Amelia’s Ready for Kindergarten Bill. That was that was the first bill this year and

more or less one of I don’t know two or three, maybe the only one that I think would have had any measurable substantial impact on student life on campus”

ASBSU’s struggle with transparency and reaching students is not new, with Nelson describing some members’ methods as “cloak and dagger”, but Peña said he has been advocating for more accessibility to information about ASBSU for students.

“I had a virtual meeting with one of our senators … related to election code stuff. And he expressed a sentiment that I hear, it feels every time I talk to a legislator ‘I don’t know what the hell is going on’,” Peña said. “And we are not telling them and I have had Executive Cabinet members discourage me and criticize me for being as transparent with the legislature as I have been. So those are the dynamics of play.”

According to Peña, ASBSU members are skeptical of the methods Peña has suggested to increase transparency.

Peña has suggested multiple times that the meetings be live streamed so the information is more accessible to students, but has been met with resistance.

“Every time since that I’ve made it, the response I’ve gotten from every member of ASBSU is ‘dear god please do not record the meetings’, unanimously. They have said ‘absolutely not, do not do that’,” Peña said.

Members expressed concern that people would intentionally clip videos or take statements out of context for “smear campaigns”.

“Like this is the fear that people have around transparency right now. And as someone who you know, is extremely for transparency, but also cares about the privacy and rights of these people and I understand what’s happened in the past — It’s hard for me to say just don’t worry about it. It’ll be fine, right?” Peña said. “It’s really difficult for me to balance, frankly, safety with transparency. But I like to think that I err more on the side of transparency.”

Before the decision on the complaint, The Arbiter contacted Sheen for comment about the complaint. According to Sheen, members had agreed not to speak to anyone not involved in the complaint, including the press, about the complaint until the decision had been made.

“I want to respect the agreement

that we came to that the people [on] the complaint and the people were involved like, we came to an agreement that we wouldn’t talk about it outside of the people like parties like relevant parties, and I’m in that respect like their privacy and the fact that I promised not to do so,” Sheen said.

Sheen said she wished to give no

further comment, and did not respond to a request for comment after the decision was made. Hoang also did not respond to a request for comment. The complaint has been settled, but months passed before a ruling was made, and members operated with little or no transparency with ASBSU and the larger student body.

Photo of students participating in a meeting.

Photo by Niamh Brennan

OPINION

Here, queer and full of fear: Being an LGBTQ+ student

Many queer students, especially in red states like Idaho, face unique challenges

Ella Van Leuven | Opinion Editor | opinion@stumedia.boisestate.edu

Have you ever had to refrain from holding your partner’s hand in public because you might be harassed or even put in physical danger?

Have you witnessed your ex-girlfriend get expelled and her mother get fired because “Her sexuality made other students uncomfortable”? Were you the last person in your grade who wasn’t kicked out of the school because they were queer?

If you’re straight and cisgender, these most likely aren’t problems you’ve had to consider. Being neither of those things, particularly as someone who grew up in Idaho and was sent to private Christian schools, has not made my experience as a student any easier.

LGBTQ+ people everywhere have faced hatred and oppression throughout histo-

ry. Although conditions have significantly improved in recent decades, queer people still face significant challenges in their day-to-day lives, especially in more conservative areas – for instance, in Idaho.

The environment for LGBTQ+ individuals in Idaho is marked by contrasts between conservative societal norms and growing areas of support and unity. The state’s conservative cultural and religious backdrop often poses challenges for LGBTQ+ people, influencing public policy and social attitudes that can restrict rights and acceptance.

Legal protections for LGBTQ+ individuals in areas such as employment, housing and public accommodations remain inconsistent, with significant variations across different regions of the state. According to the Movement Advancement Project, Idaho’s LGBTQ+ policy tally is ranked at 2.25/44.5.

This incredibly low score is a result of a lack of protection and solidarity offered to queer people in Idaho, for instance, the lack of family services nondiscrimination laws, state family leave laws, credit and lending nondiscrimination laws or even nondiscrimination laws for state employees.

Going to school and going through adolescence is terrifying and exhausting as is. Being a part of the LGBTQ+ community only makes this more challenging for many young people, due to the bullying, harassment and ostracization they may be at risk of.

A queer Idaho resident who wished to remain anonymous shared their experience growing up and attending school here.

“It made me kind of insecure for a long time because I live in Idaho and being gay

isn’t necessarily frowned upon, but it’s not as welcomed as it is in other places,” they said. “There were so many homophobic people at Eagle. It drove me almost crazy a couple of times, so I wasn’t open about it in high school. When you’re around that many fully straight people, being in tune with your sexuality is kind of weird.”

Being LGBTQ+ can significantly compound the challenges of student life, navigating not just academic pressure but also the added layers of social stigma, misunderstanding and sometimes outright discrimination. LGBTQ+ students often face unique problems including fear of bullying or exclusion, the struggle with self-identity in an unsupportive environment and the lack of visible role models or resources that affirm their experiences.

These challenges can lead to feelings of isolation, heightened anxiety and difficulty focusing on school, impacting both students’ mental health and academic performance. Additionally, the constant vigilance over personal safety and the energy spent concealing one’s identity to avoid negative reactions can detract from the learning experience, making school a place of survival rather than growth and discovery.

Living in a conservative state with a heavy value on religion can be difficult for young queer people who may not have supportive family, friends, or other role models. Fortunately, opportunities for LGBTQ+ people to seek support and connection are more available than ever.

“There’s been wonderful improvement, not only in representation, but more resources and support,” the Eagle High graduate said. “It’s really good that there’s now outlets for people so they can go talk to somebody, like specifically LGBTQ+

therapists.”

In Idaho, queer individuals have access to a variety of resources aimed at offering support, advocacy, and community connection. The Idaho Coalition Against Sexual & Domestic Violence integrates LGBTQ+ considerations into its broader mission, providing crucial support for those facing violence. Boise Pride and Idaho Falls Pride offer vibrant platforms for celebration and solidarity, highlighting the state’s growing LGBTQ+ visibility.

For youth and their families, The Community Center in Boise features programs and social gatherings to foster acceptance and understanding. Additionally, PFLAG chapters across the state offer a network of support for LGBTQ+ individuals and their families, promoting dialogue and acceptance. These resources, among others, play vital roles in building a more inclusive and supportive environment for queer people in Idaho.

Not being able to openly express affection, facing systemic discrimination or witnessing the harsh consequences faced by others for simply being true to themselves demonstrate the urgent need for empathy, understanding and systemic change. While progress has been made, the journey towards full acceptance and equality is far from complete.

Despite these challenges, the growing support and resources available for LGBTQ+ people offer hope to queer Idaho residents. The increasing visibility and advocacy work are crucial steps toward dismantling prejudices and building a more inclusive society. For young LGBTQ+ individuals in Idaho, these changes bring not only support but also a sense of belonging, and a promise that their voices will be heard and valued.

Illustration of a collage of rainbows.

Illustration by Sasha White

Three pop princesses you should add to your Spotify rotation

Chappell Roan, Maisie Peters and Kacey Musgraves are elevating the ‘pop’ music scene

Olivia Brandon | Culture Reporter | culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu

If you’re anything like me, once you find a musical artist you resonate with, their music alone will be on repeat for the foreseeable future.

Chappell Roan, Maisie Peters and Kacey Musgraves are three artists who are going to dominate my Spotify Wrapped and should be included in your listening rotation stat.

Chappell Roan

Where to begin? Chappell Roan is a pop/alternative artist whose music focuses on the queer experience and exploring self-love. Chappell’s debut album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” was released in September 2023 and truly is a “Femininomenon.”

The songs range from upbeat sassy anthems like “HOT TO GO”, which features a YMCA-inspired spelling riff, to heartbreaking ballads like “Coffee”, which details the experience of being unable to see an ex-partner without it leading to something physical.

“Pink Pony Club,” one of Chappell’s most popular hits with 26,128,988 streams on Spotify, is a raw and moving song focusing on Chappell’s experience with finding herself, both as an artist and as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community.

While this is a no-skip album for me, my current favorites have been “Red Wine Supernova” and “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl”; two songs infused with energy, fun and the feeling of not taking life too seriously. Chappell’s aesthetic takes inspiration from drag queens and she has cited this persona as a major reason she has been able to form her identity as a performer.

Chappell is currently opening for Olivia Rodrigo on her “GUTS” tour but when performing at her own sets, she always has three drag performers from the area open for her.

Maisie Peters

“Nobody actually happy or healthy has

ever been so desperate to prove it.” Ouch, Maisie! This line comes from “Watch”, a track off of pop singer Maisie Peters’ second album “The Good Witch”. Peters is a British pop singer who has a high-energy rock-inspired pop sound.

“The Good Witch” features catchy break-up tracks like “You Lost The Breakup”, which describes a girl coming into her own after the end of a toxic relationship, and my personal favorite, “You’re Just A Boy (And I’m Kinda The Man)”, depicting a similar theme of reaching your full potential after a growth-stifling relationship ends.

Peters also explores heartbreak through the song “Want You Back” which explores the concept of knowing someone is bad for you but missing them nonetheless.

“The History of Man” illustrates Peters’ songwriting skills with various historical and biblical allusions throughout the song, depicting various women who deeply loved a man only to be betrayed.

Honorable mentions from this album include “Holy Revival”, “Body Better” and “Guy On A Horse.” Each of these tracks grapples with a breakup in a different way, from insecurity to anger to eventual acceptance. I’m so glad Peters is getting recognized more and more in the music industry for her catchy melodies and incredible lyricism.

Kacey Musgraves

“Deeper Well”, pop country artist

Kacey Musgraves’ newest album, released in March 2024 and is the perfect album for spring. Musgraves excellently blends country influences with a folksy mystique that draws the listener in. The track “Cardinal” sounds almost enchanting, seeming to take influence from a Fleetwood Mac seventies sort of sound.

Of course, I have to discuss the title track, “Deeper Well”, a beautifully reflective song about what and who should take up space or hold weight in your life. “But you’ve got dark energy, somethin’

I can’t unsee / and I’ve got to take care of myself”, Musgrave sings, perhaps referring to her ex-husband Ruston Kelley whom she split with in 2020.

This song does not feel like a classic “break-up” song, it is simply Musgraves realizing that the person she wants to become cannot exist in the partnership she was in, she’s found a “deeper well”.

Many of the tracks on this album feel nostalgic to me, such as “The Architect”, which features warm guitar and introspective lyrics about the origins of the natural world. For my overthinkers out there, Musgraves’ song “Sway” is the song for you. “Most of the time, all the thoughts in my mind keep me runnin’ / Show

me a place I can just think of nothing,” Musgraves sings. This song is sweet as it doesn’t present as co-dependent or reliant on another person but suggests that simply by being around someone who is able to take things in their stride, you can learn how to as well.

Each of these women brings something different to the music scene and has left it better than they found by creating these albums. From upbeat breakup pop ballads to whimsical country to somber ballads reflecting on identity or heartbreak, these three musical artists are at the top of their game and will continue to create more beautiful art in the future.

Graphic of albums from Chappell Roan, Kacey Musgraves, and Maisie Peters.

Graphic by Kelsey Mason

Female Athletes at Boise State are breaking records and barriers

How the female athletes of Boise State are constantly raising the bar for future athletes

Marlei Soderquist | Sports & Rec. Editor | sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu | Graphics by Sasha White

Women’s sports is on the rise and it’s here to stay.

Cast your mind back to a time when the sports arena was an exclusive boys' club, where the cheers of victory echoed predominantly for male athletes. Then, like a thunderclap heralding change, came the passage of Title IX in 1972 — a watershed moment that sparked a revolution in women's sports. With this groundbreaking legislation as their rallying cry, women athletes across the nation seized the opportunity to rewrite the script, carving out a place for themselves in the pages of athletic history.

This is not just about breaking records; it's about breaking barriers. It's about women athletes defying gravity, stereotypes and societal norms with every match, game or meet. Through their sheer grit and determination, they have transformed the sports landscape into a stage where strength knows no gender and victory has no bounds.

What sets the narrative of female college sports aglow is its undeniable aura of empowerment. Beyond the accolades and trophies lie stories of courage and inspiration — tales of women who dared to dream big and chase their passions with unwavering conviction. They are not just athletes; they are trailblazers, challenging perceptions and redefining what it means to be strong, fierce and unapologetically female.

But the impact of female college sports transcends the confines of the stadium walls. It reverberates through

classrooms, boardrooms and living rooms, reshaping societal attitudes and reimagining the possibilities for women everywhere. With each match, game and championship won, women athletes become beacons of hope, lighting the way for future generations to believe in themselves and their limitless potential.

Though many of the biggest names in women's sports come from around the country, Boise State has their fair share of incredible female athletes and trailblazers.

EMMA LOYIM

Coming fresh off being crowned the inaugural MWC Gymnastics Champions, the Broncos gymnastics team is in

one of the best places it has ever been.

One key contributor to the wild success the Broncos have seen this season is in part to the Mountain Lakes, New Jersey native, Emma Loyim.

Loyim is an all-around gymnast, competing in all four events: vault, bars, beam and floor.

“It definitely feels amazing. It was something that we were kind of expecting due to all the hard work we had put in,” Loyim said. “It was our top goal of the season, to live up to our goal was amazing, we were on top of the world!”

The MWC Championship was one of the pinnacles of success for this season for the Lady Broncos, but they had a bit of help from Bronco Nation in the process. Boise State Gymnastic fans broke the average attendance record this season at 2,108.

“It was great to have fans come out and support us,” Loyim said. “The energy has definitely been at an all time high during our meets … getting to see the growth in the sport is also really rewarding. ”

When it comes to being a student-athlete, balance is key when leading a squad of powerful gymnasts while also excelling on and off the gymnastics floor.

“It definitely is a lot to balance,” Loyim said. “Especially taking on that leadership role and being an upperclassman … I have a lot of mentors that I look up to and I just hope that I can be that kind of mentor to the other girls.”

Being a female-athlete comes with a sense of empowerment for Loyim and

the growth of the sport at Boise State is a convincing aspect for this group.

“A lot of people can look at men and of course, they are stronger, faster and can jump higher,” Loyim said. “There is so much beauty in appreciating what women can uniquely do … celebrating women athletes is something that has taken time, but it is here now!”

PAIGE BARTSCH

Boise State’s volleyball star, Paige Bartsch, is no stranger to the spotlight. Since the day she stepped on the court as a Bronco, she was destined for greatness.

The Helena, Montana native, has been a star athlete since day one.

In 2019, Bartsch was named Gatorade Player of the Year in Montana and also received three Montana All-State and All-Conference honors. To go along with her list of volleyball achievements, she also led her high school to two-straight Montana AA State basketball titles.

As a Bronco, Bartsch’s career has been seemingly exquisite, each year getting better, stronger and more powerful.

In her freshman year, Bartsch was

named Mountain West Freshman of the Year and was placed on the MW Championship All-Tournament Team. In her sophomore year, she led the Mountain West in kills per set (3.95) as well as points per set (4.55).

Bartsch saw the most advancement in her game in her junior year. During the 2023 season, she not only led the MW in kills (530), attacks (1,349), aces (52) and points (614.5), but she also was ranked top-15 in the NCAA in each of these categories.

Bartsch’s 530 kills got her name into the Mountain West record books, recording the second-most kills in a season.

Not to mention, Bartsch is an absolute business mogul.

She not only led the team in nearly every aspect, but she also was the first Boise State athlete to be named to a Bronco Ford NIL deal, which at the time was one of the most lucrative NIL deals for any Bronco athlete.

TAYLOR CAUDILL

The Boise State softball team has seen tremendous growth in the last few years thanks in part to a class of seniors that have led the Broncos to incredible wins over nationally ranked teams as well as regular season championships.

Senior pitcher Taylor Caudill has been a staple piece to the success of the softball team and is undoubtedly one of the best pitchers in the Mountain West and in the nation.

Caudill was placed on the First Team All-MW after a fabulous 2023 season and there is no signs of stopping for the incredible player. To accompany her MW honor, Caudill was named to the NFCA All-Pacific Region Third Team and the MW All-Tournament team.

With 33 appearances and 24 starts in the circle Caudill posted an impres -

sive 15-8 record on the season with a 2.72 ERA, 147 strikeouts, 16 complete games, four shutouts and two saves in the 154 2/3 innings pitched.

With great success, comes the challenge of balancing the daily tasks of being a student athlete. Despite the challenge, the 2020-21 Mountain West Scholar Athlete never loses sight of her priorities and academics.

“I always focus on the fact that I am a student first, I pride myself on my academics,” Caudill said. “Our team also prides ourselves on our community service and giving back to the community … it's also our standard that we give back, that we lead in the community and that we show our support to those that support us.”

The growth of Boise State softball is undeniable, with record-breaking attendance and new stadium renovations.

“It's honestly been amazing,” Caudill said. “Having been here all four years it's been cool to see the growth of this team and of this sport … fans have come out in truckloads and so many people come out to support us and have lights now and the new scoreboard. All of these new aspects just make it that more appealing to fans and new players.”

As one of the team's leaders, Caudill prides herself on the work she has put in to get to the place of leadership, after three years of being a Bronco, it is Caudill’s time to take on the leadership role.

“I’m more of a lead by example kind of leader,” Caudill said. “I have taken on more of a background role that helps make sure everybody is on the right page … I pride myself on being the person that the girls go to when they need help … I get called mother a lot…I have definitely worked my way into this role. It wasn't something that was just given to me overnight. It has developed over the last four years and in this season especially.”

Caudill recognized the sheer necessity to acknowledge and recognize the strides women are taking in sports.

“It is cool to see the platform that women are getting,” Caudill said. “To see how big of strides we are taking as far as the impact we are having on

other people and the fact that people are starting to notice it and to notice how much work we put in and how deserving we are of that attention that we shouldn't really have to ask for it at this point.”

To Caudill, being a female athlete “is about empowering each other, it's about bringing up this next generation of women and showing them that they are able to play and they are able to compete at the highest level without people telling them that they can't.”

“It's a joy to be an athlete,” Caudill said. “Being a woman makes it even more fun.”

blocks per game, and was ranked seventh in rebounds, with 7.8 rebounds per game. She led the team with 226 rebounds and 38 blocks and recorded a team-high 11 double-doubles.

During her junior year, Muse did not slow down. She started in all 33 games, averaging 9.1 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Her outstanding performance earned her the prestigious title of Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year. She also led the league with an average of 2.8 blocks per game and set a new single-season block record with an impressive 93 blocks. Most notably, she became the program's all-time career-block leader.

ABBY MUSE

To know anything about Boise State Athletics is to know Abby Muse. Muse, a senior forward out of Brentwood, California, has been a force to be reckoned with on the women's basketball team

In her time as a Bronco, Muse has garnered significant recognition for her defensive prowess, being named 2022-23 MW Defensive Player of the Year, 2022-23 MW All-Defensive Team as well as MW All-Freshman team in 2020-21 and MW Honorable Mention in 2022-23.

Starting as a freshman, Muse made an immediate impact for the Broncos.

Appearing in all 23 games, including 15 starts, she ranked second in the MW with 40 blocks and an average of 1.7 blocks per game. Her impressive performance included six games with double-digit scoring and two games with 10-plus rebounds.

She continued to excel her sophomore year, starting in all 29 games, averaging 10.2 points per game, 1.3

Her senior year was just as star-studded, as she started in all 35 games, averaged 7.5 points per game, 8.4 rebounds and kept shattering records as she averaged 2.6 blocks per game.

However, just as Muse is an absolute stud on the basketball court, she is also an absolute academic weapon.

Just as she rings in the athletic accomplishments, she also rings in academic accolades as well. Muse was named a MW Scholar-Athlete (202022), a three time Academic All-MW student-athlete and on the CSC Academic All-District 7 (2022-23).

Not only does Muse possess all of the capabilities of defending and defeating opponents, but she also possesses the skills to be one of the top students in her MBA cohort.

For more interview content from Muse, visit @arbiteronline.com

THE FUTURE OF WOMEN’S ATHLETICS

As we embark on this exhilarating exploration of female college sports, let us not only celebrate the victories but also honor the journey—the trials, triumphs, and transformations that have propelled women athletes to center stage. For in their stories lie the blueprint for a future where barriers are but stepping stones and every girl who dares to dream is unstoppable.

CULTURE

Forgotten Feminists in the literary sphere

Powerful women that have contributed to the literature and impacted women’s rights

Olivia Brandon | Culture Reporter | culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu

Until I took my women writers course, I didn’t realize just how many of the authors I had interacted with in my courses at Boise State were male and white. Luckily, in upper-division classes, there is a slightly more diverse syllabus of authors — though there are still so many incredible women authors I would love to learn more about.

Here are just a few incredibly talented women writers who have slipped through the cracks of literary history.

Gloria Anzaldúa

Gloria E. Anzaldua was a Chicana writer, feminist and gay rights activist who explored feelings of cultural isolation and “unhomeliness” – the concept of feeling excluded due to being a part of multiple cultures. Anzaldua’s 1987 work “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” explores the reclaiming of the word “chicana” which was historically used negatively in reference to Mexican-American individuals as well as the gendered nature of all languages, but specifically in reference to Spanish.

Other influential Anzaldua works include “This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color” published in 1981 and “Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza” published in 1987. Anzaldua has received several literary awards such as the Sappho Award of Distinction, the Lambda Lesbian Small Book Press Award and many more. In her work Anzaldua focuses on the idea of “borderland” or existing in a space between cultures, coupled with the intersectionality of being a lesbian woman, and establishing a sense of identity for yourself.

“I will have my voice. Indian, Spanish,

white. I will have my serpent’s tongue — my woman’s voice, my sexual voice, my poet’s voice. I will overcome the tradition of silence.” -” How To Tame A Wild Tongue”, Gloria E Anzaldua

Louise Erdrich

I know this is not an underground author whatsoever but I hadn’t read her work until very recently and want to save others from the fate of a life without Erdrich’s work. Pulitzer prize winner Louise Erdrich is a part of The Turtle Mountain Band of the Chippewa indigenous community and is known for her powerful and poignant storytelling.

Perhaps her most notable work “The Sentence” was published in 2021. This incredible novel explores the intersectionality of being indigenous, a woman and the scrutiny of being formerly incarcerated.

Erdrich does a phenomenal job of interweaving issues facing indigenous communities into a fast-paced and addictively witty plot. Eldrich’s work “Future Home of the Living God” is a commentary on the current state of reproductive rules and regulations placed on an individual’s right to choose.

The work sat unfinished until Trump’s election in 2016 which reignited Erdrich’s passion for the piece. In an interview with the New York Times, Eldrich highlighted that the fight “for women’s rights is an unrelenting battle,” and that she “saw that [her] daughters might have to live with the steady erosion of human progress.” I highly recommend Eldrich’s work and hope to see her on more syllabi in the future.

“The world was filling with ghosts. We were a haunted country in a haunted world.” - “The Sentence.”

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction, PEN Open Book Award and countless others, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is known for her novels “Americanah” and “We Should All Be Feminists” which both contain themes of identity and life experience as a Black woman.

“Americanah” focuses more specifically on entering America’s education system as a Black woman from Nigeria attends Wellson College, while “We Should All Be Feminists” breaks down the ways in which the patriarchy is harming both women and men.

Adidichie’s work discusses invaluable issues and promotes crucial conversations regarding the intersectionality of race and gender. Adidichie’s Ted Talk “The Danger of a Single Story” illustrates the power that literature and

spoken-word stories hold as they give us merely a snapshot of superficial and oftentimes stereotypical impressions of an individual and community. At 13.1 million views on YouTube, this talk has been an introduction for many people to Adidche and her incredible work.

“Culture does not make people. People make culture. If it is true that the full humanity of women is not our culture, then we can and must make it our culture.” - “We Should All Be Feminists.”

These women are just a few examples of figures who added so much richness and depth to the literary sphere through their rich writing and powerful storytelling. Their contributions to the women’s rights movement have been invaluable and are proof that oftentimes the pen truly is mightier than the sword.

Graphic of women writers, from left to right, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Gloria Anzaldúa, and Louise Erdrich Graphic by Kelsey Mason

Building Bridges, Finding Friendship: Refugee stories matter

How do you change the world? It’s easier than you think

Koletta DiDio | Staff Writer | culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu

There is a large population of refugee students at Boise State University, but their stories go overlooked and unheard too often. If you’re wondering how you might reach out your hand, how you might be able to make a difference or make a friend, keep reading.

“We had no choice. We had to leave our house during midnight. It was the first week of Taliban occupation,” said Sayed Bahauddin Mirbacha, freshman and double major in global studies and social work.

Before coming to the United States, Mirbacha had a life in Afghanistan and a future he was planning. When asked to tell his story, this is where he began.

Mirbacha and his family were forced to flee their home in Afghanistan due to Taliban occupation. First they flew to Qatar, and from there it was a dizzying, fast-paced series of locations: from Qatar to Bahrain, Washington D.C., Texas, New Mexico — until finally they ended up in Boise, Idaho.

Mirbacha somehow managed to deal with the depression and the heartbreak and still prioritize his education. Just because the future he’d been planning was gone, didn’t mean that he couldn’t make a new one.

In Afghanistan, Mirbacha was about to graduate high school. But in Boise, he was set back to a junior because of the language barrier. Mirbacha originally relied on Google Translate to understand his teachers and classmates, but he was determined to learn English.

“I never gave up. I started to advocate for myself,” Mirbacha said. Not only a determined student but a quick learner, Mirbacha worked with his teachers to better understand the material. His grades improved, but more importantly so did his passion for life as he became involved with environmental preservation and activism, working with Idaho

Climate Justice League and campaigning for mental health with Services of String.

The U.S. Refugee Resettlement program provides protection for refugees who have fled their home country and grants them permission to stay, and protection against refoulement (forced return). Boise is one of these resettlement cities from a choice administered by the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, and since 1975, the region has acted as shelter for over 30,000 refugees. There are many who can relate to Mirbacha’s story, who have stories of their own. And Boise State is working to make sure that these voices have a platform on which to stand so when they speak up, their voices are heard.

Boise State’s School of Public Service partnered with the Multilingual Student Alliance and English Language Support Programs to provide events titled “Building Bridges, Finding Friendship.” College students from refugee and immigrant backgrounds were given the opportunity to tell these stories and talk openly about the hardships of their lives. Leading these events are members of the Refugee Speakers Bureau Joel Ntando, Beth Norton and Mike Stefancic from School of Public Service.

Stefancic works tirelessly to create a welcoming environment for students with refugee backgrounds by coordinating events that give them more of a voice, such as this one.

“We’ve really thematically designed this around students who have a refugee background in order to speak about that. Drawing these connections and building community is really the goal because we have a youth mental health crisis here in our country — you’ll hear a lot of the speakers talk about that here today, about how building community has been so essential in building friendships,” Stepancic said. “I hope it breaks down this idea of a refugee being somebody

different than yourself. That could be any one of us at any point in time.”

The event did more than give a platform for voices that might otherwise not be encouraged to speak — it was a call for action within our community. The desire to connect is innate in all of us: all we need to do is follow our instincts, and really see the people we talk to.

One of these people, these dreamers with a refugee background, was Yeva Varaksa. A former student, Varaska’s story was told in a low, steady voice, a golden bracelet glinting on her wrist from where her godmother placed it on her the last time Varaksa saw her in a war-ravaged Ukraine.

Varaska’s experience as a refugee from Ukraine was another heartbreaking tale — to watch your loved ones suffer is a unique grief to the soul. But when her experience darkened with her own depression, such heartbreak turned debilitating. Ultimately, there was hope as people reached out to her. Building those bridges with that simplicity of one question, “are you alright?”

Sometimes it’s intimidating to approach a stranger. Maybe you think you’ll do more harm than good, or it

isn’t your place because you haven’t had the same experiences. But in Varaska’s case, it’s all quite simple. When asked how best to support people in crisis she said, “Just be there. Just be there for the person.”

Now, a student at Boise State, Mirbacha is double majoring in global studies and social work, in addition to a certificate for human rights. To say the least, his ambition and drive has only grown since his time at Boise State.

Mirbacha wants to make the world a better place and believes that change starts with the individual. For Varaska, that change was someone reaching out to ask if she was alright.

When asked how one should reach out, Mirbacha just smiled. “It’s not that hard…it’s just a really good advice for all the people — not just for the students or for the people with the refugee backgrounds…if you want to make a friendship, the first thing you can do is reach out to the person sitting beside you and say hi, what’s your name?”

You never know what story someone is holding — sometimes it really is just that simple to change the world.

Illustration of flags from Ukraine, United States, and Qatar.

Illustration by Sydney Smith

CULTURE

Ernest Hemingway’s literary footprint in Idaho

Hemingway’s timeless novels and relationship to Idaho continues to shape future writers at BSU

Josh LaPine | Ad & Sales Manager | culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu

Ernest Hemingway, a Nobel Peace Prize winning author, has influenced a century of writers with his books that reflect his years reporting on the Spanish Civil War, expat writers in Paris and the frontlines of World War I— all conveyed through the lens of historical fiction.

Hemingway’s novels have been enjoyed by millions and appreciated for his writing style that doesn’t just focus on monumental events in the 20th Century, but highlights the emotion and motivations of his characters amidst imperative eras in history.

In 1939, Hemingway fell in love with Sun Valley, Idaho after being introduced to the city through a resort promotion with the Union Pacific Railway. Boise State has recognized Hemingway’s contribution to literature and residency in Idaho by naming the Creative Writing Center the Hemingway Center in 1986.

It was in Sun Valley where Hemingway began working on portions of his most notorious novel “For Whom the Bells Toll”. After the breakout of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, Hemingway left for Spain to cover the stories of the fighters he would meet.

The book starts off with an American teacher Robert Jordan high up in the mountains around Segovia, Spain, connecting with the anti-fascist Loyalist guerillas. Jordan is the only foreigner in the band of guerillas and isn’t trusted as the explosive technician set to blow up a nearby Nationalist bridge in the coming days.

While living with the band of guerillas, Jordan meets Maria, a young women traumatized by rape who was rescued a few days earlier from Naionalist soliders. The book follows Jordan and Maria on a 72-hour love affair where the looming future of the coming efforts to blow up an enemy bridge forces the two to hang onto every second they have together.

Jordan and Maria live in a cave and are commanded by a foolish and drunken guerilla leader Pablo, and his wife Pillar who is forced to take charge of the band. Through trials and tribulations Jordan, Pillar and Pablo watch enemy troop movement along the nearby bridge, waiting for the orders to destroy it and make way for a loyalist counter offensive to end the war.

Jordan’s love for Maria grows with every passing second and the two day dream of leaving the war to settle down. The closer the two become the closer the time comes to destroy the bridge — the one obstacle stopping them from forever being together.

“How little we know of what there is to know.”

Another one of Hemingway’s notable novels is “The Sun Also Rises”. This novel captures the forgotten generations of expat writers along with their delusional way of life, moods, and attitudes after the end of the First World War.

On a drunken night out in the dance halls of Paris, Jake Barnes runs into his former lover Brett, the two ride around in a taxi talking until they eventually meet Barnes’ friend Robert Cohn at a bar. After seeing her for the first time in years Cohn admits he is in love with Brett. Barnes warns Cohn not to get involved with Brett, who has a history of affairs and is currently engaged to the World War Iveteran Mike Campbell.

Barnes and Cohn agree to take a trip to northern Spain and meet Brett and her fiance in Pamplona, Spain and witness the “Running of the Bulls”. The group stays at a bullfighter enthusiast hotel and amongst the first days there Brett confessed to Barnes that she and Cohn had just spent a week together in another part of Spain that her fiance is unaware of. This confession eventually leads Barnes, Cohn and Campbell to spend the trip butting heads and fighting over Brett.

While the men clash for Brett, she meets a young bullfighter named Romero and runs away with him to Madrid. Once the trip ends, Brett writes Barnes asking him to come to Madrid and save her from corrupting the young bullfighter Romero. After meeting Brett the book begins to close the same way Brett and Barnes meet. The two ride around Madrid in a taxi and Brett tells Barnes about how much fun they could have if they were together. As the book closes Barnes replies to Brett, “Yes isn’t it pretty to think so.”

The book captures the empty and meaningless lives of the group of expat writers that fill their time with drunken parties, and their desire for women. The parties and trips distract the expats from their haunting memories of World War I.

Hemingway’s “A Farewell to Arms” opens on the Italian front during the First World War where we meet Frederic Henry, an American serving as an Italian ambulance driver. Through a fellow soldier Henry is introduced to a nurse from England named Catherine, and the two begin a romantic relationship while Catherine continues to grieve her husband who was killed earlier in the war.

While serving on the front Henry is wounded from a motor blast and sent to a hospital in Milan where Catherine cares for him. Henry falls in love with Catherine and impregnates her. Shortly after Henry is punished for drinking alcohol and forced to return to the Italian front.

Henry makes an attempt to desert the front and travels through northern Italy to reunite with Catherine. The two escape through Switzerland, a neutral country during the war. Catherine is happy to be with Henry but predicts that many bad things will happen to them. Time ticks on as Catherine’s delivery dates approach and the foreshadow of terrible things draws nearer. As the book tries to explain tragedy, the reader can reminisce with the quote, “There isn’t always an explanation for everything.”

Hemingway’s books take his audience through life, death, hate and euphoria as lessons of life and the triumphs and tribulations of past generations are portrayed through detailed first person descriptions of the main catcher’s thoughts. Although Hemingway passed away in 1961, his works continue to inspire writers and readers everywhere.

Photo of two books by Ernest Hemingway stacked together.

Photo by Niamh Brennan

Conan Gray dips his toes into 80’s synth-pop with his new album ‘Found Heaven’ Moving away from his usual heart wrenching ballads, Gray moves into a new genre

Kelly Ann Asker | Copy Editor | culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu

If you’re at all familiar with Conan Gray, you will likely know that his music tends to air on the side of ballads about a broken heart. Themes of infidelity, someone not loving you back and difficult family dynamics are scattered throughout his discography

Gray’s 2018 EP “Sunset Season” and his albums, “Kid Krow” (2020) and “Superache” (2022), all have the same sort of

feel — but Gray seems to have made a 180 degree switch with his newest release.

“Found Heaven”, Gray’s newest album, was released April 5 — and it’s something we’ve never seen from Gray before. Instead of sad song after sad song, Gray has dived into a new genre — 80’s synth-pop.

When the first single off the album, “Never Ending Song” was released on May 19, 2023, I was thrown into a complete

frenzy. This was something we had never seen from Gray before and it immediately became my song for the summer.

Nearly a year, and four more singles later, “Found Heaven” was released — and just like “Never Ending Song”, this album will be on repeat all summer long.

The album opens with its title track, “Found Heaven”. In an interview with NME, Gray says, “‘The intro is to me saying, ‘if there was no god above us, if there was no one watching; how would you live your life?’” Gray, raised very religiously, wanted this song to communicate the importance of living your life on your own terms.

The majority of the songs on “Found Heaven” are upbeat, dancy and are begging to be played in a rollerskating rink or in your car with all the windows down. My go-to summer songs will be “Lonely Dancers”, “Boys & Girls” and “Bourgeoisieses”.

If you’re thinking, ‘Why is bourgeoisies spelt wrong?’ — don’t worry, Gray isn’t illiterate, in fact, this misspell was done very intentionally.

In an interview, Gray discussed the meaning behind this song saying, “...the name ‘Bourgeoisieses’ is an intentionally misspelled plural of the bourgeoisie. I wanted to make a song that was jokingly saying ‘I want to be part of the bourgeoisie’, but not knowing anything about that so that’s why it’s misspelled.” Growing up poor, Gray always thought the concept of overly rich people was ridiculous — and this song tells that story.

The lyrics say, “The men at war, they draft the poor / No time to mourn, I’m on the dancefloor / Mom and Dad got my back / But I don’t need that, I need a Maserati.”

Gray has a unique voice that perfectly suits heartbreak anthems, but with his new album, Gray has found a new way to showcase his phenomenal range. In “Boys & Girls”, Gray moves from a falsetto in the verse, then drops to a lower range for

the chorus.

The variety in his vocal range and the way he can use his range to make a song unique is truly admirable and is what makes Gray stand out as an artist.

If you’re not ready to say goodbye to Gray’s iconic vocal belts and themes of heartbreak — fear not, even with this genre change, Gray still delivered three songs for you to sing in the shower. If you’re in need of a good cry, tune into “Winner”, “Alley Rose” and “Forever With Me”.

“Winner” was one of the singles off of “Found Heaven” that released on Aug. 25, 2023, and now the single has its place as the closing track on Gray’s third studio album. “Winner” follows themes of Gray’s severe family issues growing up and seems to be a follow up to “Family Line”, a song off of “Superache” with similar themes of familial trauma.

His lyrics, “Packed my bags at fourteen / I hadn’t planned on leaving / But you haven’t been back home for days / The pots and pans and roaches / They’re glad I’m finally goin’ / ‘Cause, even them, they shudder at your name,” give us a glimpse into Gray’s home life.

“Winner”, although written about family, can also be interpreted in different ways — such as abusive or toxic relationships. In the chorus he belts, “Is that there’s no one / Who ever has done better / At making me feel worse / Now you really are the winner.”

While at first I was skeptical of this genre change, as I’m a huge fan of Gray’s classic heart wrenching songs, I came around very quickly.

“Found Heaven” is an instant classic and has a song sure to suit whatever music you enjoy the most. Whether you’re searching for your song of the summer, or a song to cry to in the shower — “Found Heaven” by Conan Gray is a must-listen.

Photo of musician Conan Gray. Photo courtesty of Republic Records

SPORTS & REC

Boise State Gymnastics is crowned Mountain West Conference Champions

Despite entering the conference this season, the gymnastics team won the Mountain West title Marlei Soderquist | Sports & Rec. Editor | sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu

There’s a first for everything. That is just what Boise State gymnastics had in mind as they entered the inaugural Mountain West Conference (MWC) Gymnastics Championships.

Heading into the championship matchups in Logan, Utah, the Broncos were no stranger to conference titles, tallying an astonishing 18 conference championships, however none coming from the MWC.

On March 23, the script changed and Boise State won the very first Mountain West Gymnastics Championship scoring 196.550 points to edge host Utah State (196.500) in the league’s inaugural championship meet.

To start off in rotation one, the Broncos were on bars and finished with a 49.075, led by a 9.875 by freshman Mahleea Werline. In rotation two, the Broncos finished with a 49.500 on beams, which is the highest team score in the Mountain West on beam this season. The Broncos were led by Loyim with a 9.950.

Loyim led again during rotation three with 9.900 to secure a 49.100 on the floor. To finish it off in rotation four, the Broncos finished with a 48.875 on the vault, led by a trio of 9.800s from Sydney Kho, Emily Lopez and Adriana Popp.

After all four rotations, the team scores were as follows: Boise State 196.550, Utah State 196.500, San José State 196.400 and Air Force 195.450.

In their first season competing in the Mountain West conference for Gymnastics, the Lady Broncos took home the hardware and were crowned the very first MWC gymnastics champions.

“I’m so very proud of the team and their performance tonight,” head coach Tina Bird said. “To win the first Mountain West Conference Championship is such a historic moment and they deserve it.”

Emma Loyim finished first on beam (9.950) and tied for first on floor (9.900). Mahleea Werline tied for second on bars, matching her career-high of 9.875. Adriana Popp, who was the MW Co-Beam Specialist of the Year, tied for second on the apparatus with a 9.925.

To add to the accolades, Emily Lopez captured MW Gymnast of the Year and MW Bars Specialist of the Year accolades. With the honor, Lopez became the 10th Bronco to be named conference Gymnast of the Year.

“Emily Lopez is such a beautiful gymnast and is so deserving of her Gymnast of the Year honor,” Bird said.

With 18 conference championships under their belt in program history, the Broncos were no stranger to winning. Due to the incredible success of the

program, there was no denying Bird being named MW Coach of the Year, her seventh-career Coach of the Year selection, was a shock.

Bird not only led the Broncos to a MWC Championship, but also to the 2024 NCAA Regional Championships which the Broncos have qualified for in each of the past 16 seasons.

The Blue and Orange will kick off the NCAA Regional Championship against BYU in the first round of the competition.

Photo of the Boise State women’s gymnastics team. Photo courtesy of the Mountain West Conference

How the Mountain West Conference stands compared to other college conferences

With everything changing in college athletics, here is the state of the Mountain West conference

Alec Simeone | Sports & Rec. Reporter | sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu

The Mountain West Conference (MWC) has long been one of great highs and lows.

From multiple New Year’s Six bowl appearances, deep March Madness runs to underrated golf and cross country programs, in recent years, the MWC has turned into a power house in the Group of Five (G5), and in many ways, walks the line between G5 and Power Five conference levels in terms of its competitiveness.

Will the Mountain West “come of age” with the new additions of former PAC-12 additions in Washington State University and Oregon State University, or will the conference bog down over the next few years?

THE RESUME

Entering its 25th year of competition, the conference has seen 16 different schools throughout its history, however not all have hung around.

Inaugural members, University of Utah and Brigham Young University (BYU), have elevated to Power Five status, while Texas Christian University (TCU) had a seven year stint in the MWC before leaving for the Big 12 in 2012.

Since then, the Division I landscape has seen some drastic changes. Football has seen the introduction and expansion

of a post season playoff, March Madness has seen considerable growth in viewership and who could forget about NIL?

The Mountain West has not only survived all these changes, but flourished in them.

The conference has seen members win cross country nationals (University of New Mexico, Las Vegas/UNLV), go as far as the March Madness finals (San Diego State/SDSU), win Fiesta Bowls (Boise State).

Other notable accomplishments include record revenue distribution in 2021, first round NFL draft selections, league record NBA draft selections, and a record high of eight football teams that participated in bowl games in 2015.

The MWC also has access to large, untapped markets in cities like San Diego, Las Vegas, Boise, San Jose and all of Hawai’i.

THE FUTURE

So why isn’t the Mountain West, or why aren’t Mountain West schools Power Five candidates?

It’s a difficult question to answer, almost as difficult as answering, “What qualifies as a Power Five conference?”

In the simplest of terms, Power Five conferences have a lot of money. Commonly, TV and streaming deals often revolve around these conferences and the

Group of Five conferences tend to get the scraps.

More specifically as to why, however, in the past these conferences have been granted automatic bids to New Year’s Six Bowl games (Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl), as well as automatic bids to the NCAA Basketball tournaments.

With the emergence of a 12 team College Football Playoff, this translates to the previously agreed upon “6+6” model, where six conference champions will be granted a playoff berth, in addition to six more, “at large teams”.

With the recent conference realignment during the Summer of 2023, things should change, but haven’t as of yet.

It’s hard to imagine that the “PAC-2,” made up of WSU and OSU, will retain their automatic bid, seeing as one of them would thereby have a 50% chance to make the playoffs before any games are played. Ideas like a, “5+7,” model have been thrown around in executive meetings, however nothing is concrete as of yet.

Seeing as the distinction between a Power Five and Group of Five conference is largely based on prior contractual agreements between conferences, it is almost impossible to see the Mountain West Conference, or any G5 conference being ‘upgraded’.

Doing this would essentially allow for a lower conference to have a share of the pie, that otherwise they wouldn’t have had.

With that said, the PAC-12 isn’t officially dead, it’s only ceremoniously. What’s more likely is that an assortment of schools will fill the now empty PAC12, or it will cease to exist.

Prior agreements to bids and things of that nature already exist and would likely continue to exist if the conference

rose from the dead, though nothing is truly guaranteed.

By NCAA rule, a conference must be made of seven or more schools who compete in 12 Division I sports, men’s and women’s basketball being mandatory.

Five schools that meet this criteria (that I also happen to think would make for an exciting conference) are BYU, SDSU, Fresno State, UNLV and Boise State.

With all of that in mind, how likely is all of that to happen?

Well, not very likely. Just like big Power Five schools, the Mountain West has bowl contracts as well. The Broncos went to the L.A. Bowl last season partially because there’s a predetermined tie-in with the PAC-12 and MWC.

For the PAC-12 to fill its holes, it would require poking more holes in other conferences.

What’s good about this is that, in theory, there should be more talent in the Mountain West. The bad comes in more of a holistic form. The argument that “big schools are eating up all the good players from the smaller schools”, doesn’t really hold true here, at least not for the MWC.

Of the 193 football transfers between all Power Five schools and all Mountain West schools, 18% left the MWC, while 30% came to the MWC. In other words, there’s more talent coming in than going out.

Overall, the Mountain West looks to be in a relatively good position at the moment, especially when you compare it to the PAC-12. With OSU and WSU being in limbo at the moment, the MWC’s worst case scenario is that those teams run off to other conferences once the 2024-2025 season is over, and the best case scenario is that those schools join the MWC.

Photo of BSU Men’s Basketbal Head Coach Leon Rice

Photo by Taya Power-Thornton

COMMENTARY: Pump the brakes on Boise State quarterback Malachi Nelson

It is impossible to guarantee Nelson’s success at Boise State, especially given his collegiate career so far

Adam Bridges | Online Editor | sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu

Boise State football fans are more excited this year than year’s past, mainly because the team received quarterback Malachi Nelson, the team’s highest recruit in program history.

Although it is exciting to receive a player (especially a quarterback) that was highly regarded in high school, fans

should pump the brakes on their expectations for Nelson this season.

Just because a player succeeded in high school does not mean that he is guaranteed to succeed in college. This can be supported by many collegiate careers including Tate Martell, Ben Olson, Max Browne and many more.

Nelson, the 6-3, 180 pound quar-

terback from Los Alamitos, California, threw for 2,898 yards and 35 touchdowns during his senior year of high school and was named the top recruit in the 2023 class. His performance helped him receive offers from University of Alabama, University of Oklahoma, University of Georgia, Ohio State University, Notre Dame and University of Michigan before deciding to commit to University of Southern California (USC).

It is undeniable that Nelson was dominant in high school, but his prior success has not shown any signs of carrying over to the collegiate level. He had high expectations set upon him considering his high-profile recruitment status and he did not live up to it at USC.

Nelson had only a few appearances in his first year, and did not take advantage of any opportunity he had. He made his first appearance during USC’s 2023 spring game despite being a month out of a shoulder surgery and had three turnovers.

He also did not perform well enough to earn the backup quarterback spot and had to sit behind NCAA star Caleb Williams and redshirt sophomore Miller Moss. While sitting behind Williams and Moss, Nelson only played four snaps.

According to USC head coach Lincoln Riley, Nelson also battled multiple injuries while with the team that hindered his ability to develop throughout the year.

“Malachi is obviously a young guy, he’s got a world of talent, he’s working hard, he’s had a few physical hurdles he’s had to overcome, which has not been – it hasn’t necessarily been maybe the smoothest of years and a lot of it out of his control just trying to get back healthy where he can train and develop to the level that he wants to and we all want to,” Riley said.

Even though the USC starting quarterback spot became available after Williams declared for the 2024 NFL Draft, it did not seem likely for Nelson to land the

role.

Prior to Nelson announcing his intent to enter the transfer portal, word got out about former Kansas State quarterback Will Howard being set to visit USC. This move from USC made it seem like the program was not content with Nelson’s performance throughout the year and was looking for a better player to fill their quarterback position.

Transferring to a different school after a disappointing year does not guarantee a player’s success.

Nelson will be facing less prestigious opponents at Boise State than he would at USC, but even then he is not guaranteed a career rebound with the Broncos.

Jeff Schweiger was considered the third-best defensive end and the ninthbest overall player in the 2004 class and committed to USC. After not living up to the expectations set by his high school career at USC, he hoped to revive his career by transferring to San Jose State. Despite making the transition to a less prestigious school, he remained unproductive.

In his defense, Nelson had a solid outing in the small amount of time he had during Boise State’s first scrimmage of spring camp, going 7-10 for 73 yards and a touchdown. He also has a chance to build off this at Boise State’s spring game on Apr. 20. Although these performances do not dictate how well a player will do when the season hits, they are good reference points.

Nelson could end up being a great quarterback for Boise State, but it is impossible to know exactly how he will do in the future. With that being said, expecting Nelson to become the next Kellen Moore prior to his first official snap as a Bronco seems unrealistic given his collegiate career up to this point.

Photo of BSU Football player #7, Malachi Nelson.

Photo courtesty of Boise State Athletics

LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR

Editor’s note: A reflection of the 2023-2024 year

Hanalei Potempa | Editor-in-Chief | editor@stumdia.boisestate.edu

This time last year I was given the opportunity to lead this publication, and I started by hiring an editorial staff that I am beyond proud of, as their passion and worth ethic is the reason why The Arbiter has accomplished all that I had originally set out to a year ago.

One particular goal stuck out to me when I asked myself what I wanted out of our cover stories this year: Inclusivity.

Inclusivity

Our very first cover story analyzed the trials of living as a woman in the state of Idaho, and from there we continued to have four more female-centric stories on our print covers, including our very last print of the year — a very full circle moment.

Thanks to the editorial skill of our section editors Emily Gordon, Marlei Soderquist and Ella Van Leuven, as well as our Culture Reporter Olivia Brandon, our women-centric cover stories debunked women’s health myths, created a spotlight for Boise State female athletes, addressed the impact of Idaho’s abortion bans and highlighted the impacts of local women writers.

In addition to our women-centric cover stories, our News Editor Kiryn Willett produced not one, but two LGBTQ+ cover stories this year. First semester we highlighted Boise Pride and the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in Idaho that isn’t over yet, and second semester we addressed the increase of anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes in Idaho.

Of course, inclusivity stretched far beyond our cover stories. Across all sections we gave a voice to a variety of underrepresented communities. From the MLK day march, to the stories of student refugees, Hispanic Heritage month, wheelchair tennis and so many more, the thread of inclusivity runs through the seam of every section.

New columns

We had a few brand new columns added to our sections this year that I hope will continue to be written for in the years to come. Two columns I would love to highlight specifically are the “Top reads” column and the “Forgotten Feminists” column.

With the help of Culture Editor Emily Gordon and Staff Writer Koletta Didio, we launched the top reads column, featuring monthly book recommendations of at least one of our writers every month.

Another new column that holds a special place in my heart is the “Forgotten Feminists” column. Before I could even begin to brainstorm how I wanted The Arbiter to celebrate Women’s History Month, our News Editor Kiryn Willett pitched this column to me.

The “Forgotten Feminists” column, spanning across all sections, was the perfect celebration of women’s history as it aimed to give a voice to the stories of women in history who are often overlooked. From the art of Selma Burke to trailblazing female film directors and iconic women of Greek mythology, this new column celebrated women in all the small, silent parts of history.

I also wanted to give an honorable mention to our Copy Editor Kelly Ann Asker’s persistent continuation of her “Monday Mystery Movie” column. This solo-run film column reviews some films before they are even out in theaters, and regardless of genre or rating you can always trust the review to be spot on.

Investigative and breaking news

This year the editorial staff took on a lot of big investigative projects, but specifically our News Reporters Joel Hroma and Kaylie Hilliker declared themselves true ‘watchdog’ reporters, tackling investigative projects that took weeks on end to finally call complete.

Amidst an upsetting increase in reported sexual assault cases on and around

campus, Hilliker addressed not only the increased cases of sexual assault, but the stigmas surrounding it and the many cases that go unreported. Hroma spearheaded an investigative piece addressing the possible reasoning behind police-involved shootings in Idaho reaching a new high.

When it comes to breaking news, the sports and news sections surpassed my expectations of high-pressure, on-site reporting. From ASBSU and mayoral election results to a variety of local protests, our news team Hroma and Willett were always there and always on it.

And our sports team — they never missed a game. Whether it was working in the Albertson’s Stadium press box on game days, watching away games on their televisions at home or even traveling to highly anticipated tournaments, collectively, our sports team duo Marlei Soderquist and Alec Simeone scored every point possible in my book.

As I mentioned, there is never a dull moment in Boise State Athletics, but instead of shying away from the craziness, our sports team leaned into it. They highlighted new coaches and players as they were hired or recruited, spotlighted specific players in player profiles, rushed game reviews minutes after the final buzzer and analyzed past game data to make game predictions.

We were even able to capture Boise State Football’s journey to winning the Mountain West Championship win on one of our print cover stories; confetti and all this print edition is the perfect keepsake for any Bronco fan.

Artistic, advocacy and editorial coverage

I wanted to give special props to the section I called home before I was called ‘Chief’— the culture section. From art exhibits, to the music scene, theater, social justice and environmental conservation, our culture team Emily Gordon and Olivia Brandon pushed the boundaries

of this section and did not shy away from covering any topic or event that they found intertwined in Boise’s culture.

From hard-hitting advocacy pieces about banned books or women’s health, to introspective art exhibits and music album reviews, this section truly covered it all.

And of course, no newspaper would be complete without an editorial, opinion section. I felt so lucky to have such a creative Opinion Editor in Van Leuven, as she somehow managed to strike a very hard balance of having insightful and fun to read opinion pieces, while also addressing political policy and activism on pressing issues.

From music album, book and podcast recommendations to commentary on Gen-Z and our new digital age, sustainable fashion practices, the housing crisis and more, the opinion section this year set a new standard, and I’m in awe of how it has transformed and evolved throughout the year.

I could go on and on about the amazing work done by this editorial staff and how lucky I feel to have had such an amazing team this year. And although my email inbox was constantly flooded with emails with the subject line “Article: …”, it was truly a joy to read and edit every single one of the articles we have published this year.

It is with a heavy heart, full of nothing but love, that I am officially signing off as Chief! I hope The Arbiter achieves even more in the years to come, and I’m so thankful this publication played such a huge role in my writing journey.

Hanalei Potempa