The Breeze 5.07.26 by The Breeze

The Breeze

Letter from the editors

Reflecting on the 2025-26 academic year

minds behind many creative ventures. Although we maintain our editorial independence, it would be truly impossible to do what we do without your continued support.

To our advisors and the School of Media Arts and Design, we are extremely grateful for you taking our calls — even when they come at 3 a.m. You’re our sounding board, educators inside and outside of the classroom, and mentors.

Among these advisors stand two giants: Roger Soenksen, whose nearly half-century of teaching experience he has generously extended to The Breeze; and Gwyneth Mellinger, your dedication to ethics is an inspirational reminder that it’s central to everything we do. You both have left a lasting legacy for years to come.

However, your readership is what motivates us. Every time you grab a copy of The Breeze or read a story on our website, you give us another reason to show up.

This year, JMU has experienced innumerable changes. From a new president and football coach to a new Chick-fil-A — and everything in between — it’s not only been our responsibility, but our privilege to document and inform the greater community of Harrisonburg and JMU.

Throughout these changes, one thing has stayed constant: We strive to report unbiased, accurate, timely and important news.

A special thanks to our staff, from writers and photographers to editors and designers; nothing here at The Breeze is done alone.

To Breeze TV, which extends journalistic reach through another medium, we appreciate your commitment to serving the JMU community.

Without our advertising department, under the leadership of Blake Shepherd, The Breeze wouldn’t be possible. They are the

Finally, a very special thanks to JMU. The Breeze is an environment where young professionals become seasoned journalists. Without your support and transparency, we cannot accomplish this. We at The Breeze look forward to fostering that relationship further, and creating a culture of free press on a campus named for the Father of Constitution. It truly takes a village.

Sincerely,

Hannah Kennedy, editor-in-chief Preston Comer, print managing editor Emma Notarnicola, online managing editor

Student Accounts Come With:

EDITORS Charlie Bodenstein & Emma Brown EMAIL

Move-in during FROG Week

Move-in dates for first-year students were Aug. 15 and 16. FROGs and parents help students move in.

Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Harrisonburg City Council delayed the B1C (central business district) vote determining whether The Link apartment complex will be built until June 23. The complex would greatly affect the parking and traffic in the Downtown area.

Georgia Southern 35-10 in rain game

JMU moved to 3-1 after defeating the Eagles.

Caden Burch / The Breeze

Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Breeze file photo

Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year Trent Hendrick (below) led the team in total tackles. Caden Burch / The Breeze

TPUSA restarted on campus

Around 80 students gathered on top of Warsaw Parking Deck on Sept. 15 to revive JMU's chapter of Turning Point USA (TPUSA). The chapter's founder, senior Reagan Polarek, said Charlie Kirk's death on Sept. 10 inspired her to create a space for open debate on campus. TPUSA held a vigil for Kirk on Sept. 24 honoring his life and his values. The chapter also brought anti-trans activist Riley Gaines to campus on March 10.

American flags left behind after Riley Gaines spoke in Festival Ballroom. Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Students prayed at the Charlie Kirk vigil two weeks after his assassination. The vigil was organized by JMU's chapter of TPUSA and Network of Enlightened Women (NeW). Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Riley Gaines was a D1 swimmer at the University of Kentucky. Caden Burch / The

Around 200 Students and community members from across the Shenandoah Valley gather for the Charlie Kirk vigil at Festival Conference Center. Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

S panberger visits JMU

Earle-Sears speaks at JMU

Winsome EarleSears speaks at the Bridgeforth club room during her campaign tour on Oct. 16

Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Abigail Spanberger speaks at Festival Ballroom room.

2025 Gubernatorial Election

Election results

• Governor: Abigail Spanberger (D)

• Attorney General: Jay Jones (D)

• Lieutenant General: Ghazala Hashmi (D)

• District 34 Rep.: Tony Wilt (R)

Elections took place Nov. 4, 2025. Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

State senator Mark Obenshain at the November Republican watch party. Breeze file photo

Students at the November Democratic watch party. Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Wallows is a Los Angeles-based band composed of Dylan Minnette, Braeden Lemasters and Cole Preston. The band brought dukes to their feet on Oct. 3 when they performed at the Atlantic Union Bank Center for an energetic night to remember. Wallows played many of its crowd-pleasing songs including “Are You Bored Yet?” Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Male Contest

Mr. Heartthrob

Matthew Soriente won the competition hosted by the JMU Fashion Club held outside Wilson Hall. Photos by Rowan Potts / The Breeze

Alpha Phi fraternity hosts annual pagent in support of women’s heart health.

Breeze file photos

JMU football introduces Billy Napier as new head coach

Billy Napier made his first public appearance as JMU’s 10th head football coach at an introductory press conference on Dec. 10. Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

EAT DOMINO’S EAT DOMINO’S DUKES DUKES

2025 Sun Belt

Champions

Photos by Caden Burch / The Breeze

EDITORS Madi Perini & Libby Mercer EMAIL breezesports@gmail.com

JMU faces Oregon in the College Football Playoff

Oregon beat JMU 51-34 in the first round of the CFP on Dec. 20. They were the first team to surpass 400 yards of offense against the Ducks. Photos by Caden Burch / The Breeze

Students enjoy canceled classes by playing in the snow. Photots by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

A look into the renovated Carrier Library

After four years of construction, Carrier Library is set to reopen August 2026.

ICE out of Harrisonburg

Students march to city hall in ICE protest

Landon Shackleford / The Breeze

Photo by Landon Shackleford / The Breeze

Breeze file photo

Photos by Landon Shackleford / The Breeze

Landon Shackleford / The Breeze

Breeze file photo

NO KINGS PROTEST

HOT DOG HOP

JMU students gather downtown for Harrisonburg's first Hot Dog Hop on Feb. 26. Branching off of the popular 'Banana Bar Crawl,' Mosea Marketing, which helps boost engagement on college campuses, sponsored the event. Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Harrisonburg residents came together downtown to protest the Trump administration on March 28. The protest was organized by HarrisonburgRockingham Indivisible, led by Michaela Blosser.

Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Photos by Caden Burch / The Breeze

Women’s hoops makes NCAA tournament

JMU women’s basketball punched its ticket to the NCAA tournament after winning the Sun Belt conference title. JMU fell 71-56 to Ketucky after the Wildcats went 32-10 in the first quarter.

2026 SPRING HARNESS RACING

Junior shortstop Kendra Lewis was named First Team AllSun Belt after transfering to JMU this past fall.

JMU softball clinched the No. 6 seed in the Sun Belt Tournament. The Dukes will face No. 3 Texas State in the quarterfinals on May 7.

WOMEN ON THE FIELD

Senior defender Olivia Rongo earned Defensive Player of the Year in the American Conference. Rongo broke the program record for singleseason caused turnovers.

The

the

Breeze file photo

Lilly Moss / The Breeze

JMU lacrosse won

American Conference title.

Dukes will face Notre Dame in the first round of the NCAA tournament on May 8. Breeze file photo

Rowan Potts / The Breeze

Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

Jim Schmidt’s Inauguration

University President Jim Schmidt giving his inauguration speech.

Photos by Landon Shackelford / The Breeze

View of the floor during President Schmidt’s inauguration.

President Jim during his inauguration on April 8, 2026.

Fraternities and Sororities perform at Greek Sing in Atlantic Union Bank Center on April, 2026. Breeze file photos

Breeze

fan FAVORITEs

Fraternity and Sororities perform at Greek Sing. Breeze file photos

PURPLE REIGN

Students gather on Festival Lawn to watch flipturn perform at Purple Reign music festival on April 18, 2026. Photos by Derrick Echols

The Breeze

Editorial Staff

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Hannah Kennedy breezeeditor@gmail.com

NEWS EDITORS Charlie Bodenstein & Emma Brown breezenews@gmail.com

COPY EDITORS Kayla Katounas & Luke Faircloth breezecopy@gmail.com

PRINT MANAGING EDITOR Preston Comer breezepress@gmail.com

CULTURE EDITORS Bella Arist & Audrey Fletcher thebreezeculture@gmail.com

PHOTO EDITORS Landon Shackelford & Annabel Dewey breezephotography@gmail.com

ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR Emma Notarnicola thebreezeweb@gmail.com

SPORTS EDITORS Madi Perini & Libby Mercer breezesports@gmail.com

AUDIENCE EDITORS Isabel Lewis & Grace Heberer thebreezesocials@gmail.com

“Beaches” by Beabadoobee

“Lonely Girl” by Weezer

“Always Alright” by Alabama Shakers

“Middle of Nowhere” by Kacey Musgraves

“Closer to Fine” by Indigo Girls

“Shut up and Drive” by Rihanna

“Cherry Waves” by Deftones

“Close Up” by Olivia Dean

@BreezeJMU!

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OPINION EDITOR Cali Gilmer breezeopinion@gmail.com

ART DIRECTOR Summer Solis thebreezeartdirector@gmail.com

TV NEWS DIRECTOR Lauren Keller jmubreezetv@gmail.com

Corrections

If you have any corrections, please contact the section editors via their designated email or the editor-in-chief at breezeeditor@gmail.com.

Patti Varol

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